Gotta Get a Handle on teaching this GAL boundaries.........I mean hey, I never went where I wasn't supposed to go especially in NEW placees...........could it be that this new friendship is about HER showing me how boring life is if you just color inside the lines............and follow ALL the rules. I wonder if Joe had something to do with her coming into my life......he's probably exhausted trying to get me to try new things....and hearing "NO NO "...I mean really..isn't moving from Oklahoma to Canada enough "NEW" for one lifetime!.......I wonder if I should go get another Dammit Doll in case this one gets worn out..........and I mean worn out because we are doing "spontaneous adventure" NOT because she's worn out trying to get me to break a rule.............we shall see...........better get this Part 2 of this Austin Trip into the blog for posterity if nothing else!........................
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| Dammit Doll always exploring new things! On this trip it seemed to be anything GREEN! New color for her as she has only seen white since being in our family! I really should have taken a pic of the people (young couple) watching me pull Dolly out of my purse and situate her in this greenness 'just so'.......well she demanded being placed "just so" ....what else is new for we of the female persuasion? |
DAY 2! SATURDAY IN THE TEXAS HILL COUNTRY AND POOLSIDE AND BARSIDE
Another great morning temperature wise and I was able to ADD something definite to our day's Adventures into the unknown.and I didn't throw a Tantrum to make it happen either!!!
I'd never been into a Presidential Library and hey, we were in Austin where Lyndon B. Johnson's Presidential Library is and it was not far from the hotel AND it was of all things FREE ADMISSION DAY into the Library (I have NO doubt this is what sealed the deal for Joe......it was FREE (which was great for this Republican spouse of mine) and if it wasn't good well no money lost. Ha).
I'd never been into a Presidential Library and hey, we were in Austin where Lyndon B. Johnson's Presidential Library is and it was not far from the hotel AND it was of all things FREE ADMISSION DAY into the Library (I have NO doubt this is what sealed the deal for Joe......it was FREE (which was great for this Republican spouse of mine) and if it wasn't good well no money lost. Ha).
We take the rental car to the Library which is near the Univ of Texas. Finally figured out where to park and we are walking towards the libary and just see tons of school buses. Seems the Free Admission Day is to allow lower income students the chance to experience the Library . We were both a bit unsure of what this large group of children was going to be like once we got inside the Library. We were both commenting upon leaving just how wellbehaved these large groups of children were for the hour or so we were in the building. Genuinely interested, appreciated the privilege of being there and we heard NO cross or disrespectful words between students/teachers. Nice to see!
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| My favorite photo. I can only imagine how awesome it was to have MLK, LBJ and I believe James Farmer, around the Civil Rights Movement in 1964. |
One area was set up depicting LJB's sense of humor. Hearing some of the jokes/wise cracks he made during speeches were not without jabs to the opposing party but not filled with the hate I seem to hear in today's so called jabs. I miss this healthier sparring between politicians that once went on. One can hear in his tone of voice he means it and yet isn't vindictive in the way he is delivering his point of view in his humorous delivery.
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| State Capitol of Texas. We just drove by and admired this majestic building. I was worried they would charge us extra to tour it once they learned we were from Oklahoma! How they would know that? I just think they would! ha! |
Off we went towards the outskirts of Austin popping in and out of housing additions here and there as well seeing some goregous rock/stone on homes! I SO miss masonry.......up in the far north it's ALL about the siding or ALL about the Stucco.......it has to be this way....but my eyes just bask in the brick/rock/stonework in the south! We were headed to a town/area called Driftwood, Texas. We'd been told to try a spot called Salt Lick BBQ . (UGh, I'M trying to be a savy blogger here and insert the link ....alas.....growing edge and this will have to be YOUR search....worth it if you are down Austin way though link or no link!!!
We saw lots of countryside and though I got no photos it was interesting to see the fancy gated and/or stone/rock entrances so many of these acreages or pieces of land had even if once you glanced up the lane a bit you might see a mobile home vs. the mansion you would expect would accompany such grand entrances. Lots and Lots of cactus and cedar trees ..............I honestly wonder if this area isn't the Cedar Capital of the World????? Joe said you'd have to have a real 'hate on' for cattle to graze them in this type of terrain!
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| a tiny part of the HUGE parking lot at the Salt Lick! I've never seen such a huge area for parking and so much of it filled with motorcycles too! As we stood in line we heard "no credit cards, no debit cards, and you bring your own beer or can purchase it before you head into the restaurant." Hmmmmmm. Good thing we had some cold hard U. S. Cash! |
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| Original Pit built in 1967. Family owned, they serve roughly 1,000 folks each week! This has been on the Today's Show, Food Network, The Travel Channel and trust me. WE WILL BE BACK! |
The place was packed! and everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves from little ones to biker dudes!
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| Talk about BAD FOOD.............home made gorgeous pecan and chocolate pecan pies!!! JOE saw those and THAT became the reason he was at The Salt Lick! I avoided this tempation and opted for my charred 'bad boy' brisket ends! I did have a tiny bite of the pie and it was tastey but music to my ear was when Joe said "this is good but not as good as YOUR pecan pie" I think he wasn't joking......especially re the crust! But hey if someone dropped one of these pies off to us we'd consume it that's for sure! I am certain I'd never tire of these pies OR this BBQ if I worked there............esp. the brisket ends!!! Something in my mind believes since they were tiny little chunks there just wasn't as much FAT in them so this makes the healthier!!! Please Agree! |
MORE poolside time in the afternoon and we enjoyed the laughter of TWO bridal parties having their stagettes this weekend. One group of girls was from Texas and the other one was from Chicago area. now you might ask how I know this? Usually I am the one who learns such information EXCEPT when it is a group of gorgeous young women! See, Joe made it poolside before I did as I just HAD to explore the gift shop. I have NOW decided I must explore POOLSIDE prior to exploring a gift shop!! But all kidding aside he was just unable to ignore the beauty and the laughter of these two groups of girls. They were all having great fun! Fun to watch such fun! Oh, and did I mention EVERY single one of them was in a bikini!!
It was very cool too because one of the gals in the Texas group went and got these funky shots for her group AND purchased shots for the 8 girls in the Chicago party too. Everyone celebrated together! Just neat to see people who didn't know one another celebrating their happiness together for a minute.
WE then got ready for the night on the town again. Tried a few rooftop establishments which seem to be where the younger generation hangs out. Something about being in a group of people who are NOT your children but are your children's age that makes me feel horribly OLD.. the fresh warmer air was just SO inviting though.
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| Dolly was living it up on the rooftop in the nightlights as we were killing time waiting for our reservation time at a spot Joe thought would be a good place for a fancy dinner! Dolly and I would wave to the people in the horse drawn carriages below and once a man waved back to us...WE got SO excited..Joe worried he would come steal us from him I think. We wondered.........but then got tired of straining our necks to glance to towards the entrance to see if perhaps he was coming to buy us all a drink!! |
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| We ate at this incredibly awesome restaurant that Joe discovered as we walked around downtown Austin in the early evening........He has a talent for knowing a fine dining spot! Service was impecable but the steaks we ordered beat anywhere we have eaten a steak in a very long time and Joe is not a picky person in general (I mean he married me right? LOL) BUT he is VERY picky about his cuts of meat when he is out at a fancier restaurant. This was superb! WE had a wonderful bottle of wine as well and just a great evening practicing using our napkins in our laps, the right fork and spoon for salads/desserts and all the table etiquette we were brought up on that we just don't put to use much any more! We didn't even drop anything on the floor or make too much noise either! |
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| New wine to us. Joe being Joe just told the manager the truth. We like wine, but don't know our wines and don't need it to be over the top expensive but we want a good wine to go with our beef. This was no 9.00 bottle but thankfully it was no 300.00 bottle either! Whew! Sadly I cannot get it up in Canada:( |
What awaits on our last day in Austin................................Tomorrow will tell.................................
DAY 3 SUNDAY IN THE RAIN..........NO DANCING THOUGH :(
POURING Rain........we really should have danced in it some I think. I mean isn't THAT an adventure!???????...........We wanted brunch somewhere and Joe wanted some good pancakes. Made reservations the day before (at my insistence so we would be assured Joe gets his pancakes!) at a place called Clark's Oyster Bar. Cute, small but very efficient and excellent spot. Fancy menu items with some words I'd not heard before and decided not to inquire......I just went with the pancakes too. Yum. Rain and wind caused the cancellation of the Kite Festival I'd gotten Joe to agree to see today. Darn. Not much to do on a Sunday in the cool, pouring rain. We ended up hanging out at the hotel and watching golf and just vegging......which really was OK and I always have a book so that helps too.
I had googled spots to see in Austin and discovered there was a real GINNY'S LITTLE LONGHORN SALOON! First it appeared it was closed, but reviews posted were recent and Joe was willing to find the place and if it looked "ok" we'd check it out. It said it was tiny and loud but Sunday afternoons had live music. Joe being the great navigator found it and I was SO hoping for a T-Shirt with my name spelled on it. Suppose I could go make one! The place was small, it was loud outside but looked harmless. We walked in and it was wall to wall people in a very tiny place. Live Band was Don Baker. Even the real Ginny was there. Couldn't find her and though they had T-shirts with Ginny's Rules on them Ginny wasn't on the T-shirt so I didn't want it. Had it been a nice sunny day, it would have been a fun place to hang out outside and have a few beers and hear some good music. As it was it was wet, cold and totally over the top crowded inside but I got a few pics to commemorate the brief visit!
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| Great set of rules for anywhere! NO idea who that photo is above Ginny's Rules though |
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| HOPDODDY burgers! GREAT FUN well run spot. Appears lots of college kids work there. Reviews were great and I was so excited but nervous when Joe said "sure let's try it" EVEN after I said the reviews said "don't let the long lines around the building scare you away it is worth it and line moves quickly" WEll, it was wet/cold/windy remember..............I worried Joe wouldn't go for it BUT there were just about 10 in line and we got inside in good time. A lady in a group behind us was a bit vocal about the line being outside/can't they move it quicker, can't we get inside yadda yadda. The door person was nice and just kept repeating "it's all worth it, what can I say" and so they hung in there. A system is in place once you are inside and you remain in a long line that takes you up to the front of the buildilng/you order/get a number and find your table then someone brings you your burgers. Well, I had to go to the "little girls room" and when I returned to the line which had moved slightly from where I'd left it .....this group behind us with the woman who was vocal outside the joint had cut in front of Joe AND a group of young guys and g/friends who were in front of us! Joe and I SO wanted to say something sarcastic to her and we even engaged the kids in front of us sort of venting but none of us went through with it! There are times when you just have to 'let it go' . Fortunately for everybody we were not sitting near these people...mostly fortunately for them! as I'm sure we would not have contained ourselves and we'd have had to say something around HOW rude they were to cut in front of us at of all places a Burger Joint! |
We have to go back or I do BECAUSE the ONE thing I truly wanted to SEE and experience that I discovered I couldn't was .............................................................................
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| THE 1.5 MILLION BATS THAT FLY OUT OF THE CONGRESS STREET BRIDGE AT NIGHT! too early in the season....They must still be in Mexico! I WILL BE BACK! |
Another trip is in the wings.............and there's no doubt it will be filled with unknowns, adventures!
Happy Trails/Trials !!!
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