TX II

Wow, where to begin. What a great trip we had. It felt like we were gone for a month—in a good way-- when really it was merely a week. We arrived in Austin around 4:00 PM after our plane was delayed for 2 hours. Boo! We could’ve slept in. Oh, and might I add that I had been in the ER with my mom all night the night prior. She up & decided to have appendicitis that day. I got the call at work from the doctor at the Instacare who said they needed someone to come and take her to the hospital pronto. I didn’t want her to have to take the dreaded ambulance ride, so I tore out of work early & rescued her. Well, sort of. Eight hours later, much physical pain and administrative ordeal she was safely out of emergency surgery and in her hospital but her appendix had actually ruptured by the time they got her in the OR. Good grief. The recovery was not as simple as it could have been, but I am happy to report that she is doing much better now and we are already planning a camping trip to the Wasatch Mts. for next weekend. But alas, I digress.

So we got to Austin and headed to San Marcos to my Aunt & Uncle’s house. I regret that we didn’t really get any pics with Gary & Gini (sorry guys) so we’ll have to make up for that next visit. They took us down to the San Marcos River where it winds through town and we floated from one of the falls to a point downstream that was not too far, but just enough to give us a taste. The water was brisk, and we saw a few fish, a lot of college kids (Texas State U), 'Frisbee Dan', and a few of Uncle Ace’s fellow Lions of the San Marcos Lion’s Club.

Afterward, we cruised back to their house, and proceeded to visit with their neighbors, and then….dinner! They really know how to treat folks like royalty. It had everything to do with an early birthday celebration for me since Gini would be leaving in the morning to visit her family in Arizona. Uncle Ace busted out the filets and lobster! I have some great pics of him goofing around with the crustaceans prior to putting them in the pot but I have chosen not to post them here as I figure it would just piss off my animal welfare friends. I must say I have to agree with Alton Brown in terms of getting over the whole ‘hurting’ of the lobsters. They are just great big insects. Perhaps I’m fooling myself, but regardless, they sure were tasty.

The next day, (my birthday!) we headed into Austin for a brief tour before splitting to Rudy’s BBQ Sauce for Jon’s radio cohort Michael (well, ok he’s actually the host) and we toured the Texas A&M campus. Along the way (and earlier in the day on our way to Hearne) we were enlightened by many a college tale from Uncle Ace. When we went to College Station he was able to point out several of his old haunts, on & off campus. Gig ‘em Ags!

Back in Hearne we started the evening with a pitcher of margaritas. Yeehaw! My birthday dinner was great. Mary’s El Alamo Cafe, owned and operated by Mary, a long time resident of Hearne and kind friend of my grandparents. It’s home style Tex Mex, and the chili rellenos are really excellent. Can’t beat the prices either! I was presented with a cake and candles, the whole she-bang. I am such a lucky, lucky girl. I think they even sang to me but I don’t recall as I was heading into a food coma & was undoubtedly half in the bag. After dinner we retired to Wheelock Street, and the day ended. The next day we were slated to meet my other Aunt & Uncle, Diane & Bob (from Houston) at Somerville Lake where their beautiful sailboat is moored. Stay tuned for that excursion, along with pics.