austin
Austin was...there's no other word for it...an extravaganza. Expectations? A city full of gun-toting socially aware BBQ lovers. Conclusion? That, and so much more.
I left Oxford on Friday on the nicest day in a while. While there seemed to be a storm a'brewin', it was fairly warm. If it wasn't the middle of December, I'd call it tornado weather. Jerry, my friend from Miami and I flew to Charlotte for an hour and a half layover during which I consumed overpriced beer and subpar crab cakes. Being from Maryland makes you picky about those sorts of things.
On the flight from Charlotte to Austin, I met him. I'd been told he existed, but never actually met someone like him. I'm not a huge fan of talking to weird people on planes, so the plan usually consists of plugging in the iPod while I find my seat, trying to decide if the person sitting next to me would be suitable for conversation, and then making a judgment from there. Old hairy man snoring 5 minutes into the flight? I don't think so. Cute guy who looks like he's possibly my age wearing a Harvard Law sweatshirt? You bet your buttons I'm talking to him.
This specimen was wearing a baggy black Scarface tshirt and baggy black pants. With chains on them. How he got through security is beyond me. He reeked of beer and whiskey. Even though I had my iPod in, he said hi. Faux pas, in my book. Don't interrupt my music, sir.
We started talking. Rather, he started talking. My obviously disinterested fake-smiling-and-nodding wasn't catching on. Turns out he's in the Marines. Strike one. I'm an Army/Air Force fan, myself. He's been at boot camp and is now going back to Austin to see his family. He recounts the wild parties he has every night. He tells me that people who get married to a military man is stupid because everyone knows our troops in the Middle East are fooling around with prostitutes. He asks about my Arabic tattoo on my wrist. Am I a terrorist? No, I spent the summer in Morocco teaching English. "Well that's funny," he said. "You're going over there to teach those mother f*$&ers and I'm going over there to kill them." He swears just about every other word, by the way.
Other highlights of the conversation include him telling me that his mother will kill him for all the tattoos he's gotten. He gets to see his little 16 year old sister for the first time in 2 years. She had a baby. He tells me about how she was raped..."but she probably deserved it." I kid you not. He said that. He tells me about how his cousins (yes...that's plural) went to jail for raping a girl, and then when they got out, they got revenge by raping her again. I almost threw up. He tells me about his dreams to be in the FBI (even though he doesn't want to go to college). He says that when he spends his 4 years in the Marines, he'll have his record cleared. "Which is pretty good, because I've been arrested more times than I can count."
I pretend to sleep for the next 2 hours of the flight. By the way, pretending to sleep for that long is hard work. He starts chewing tobacco and spitting into a plastic bottle. I try to ignore the stench. He talks to the guy across the aisle. Every so often I crack open my eyes to see the new victim shooting me pleading glances across the way. Sorry buddy. He's yours now.
The part that made me the most sick was when we were landing, and the flight attendant made an announcement that there were military personnel on the flight who had just come back from the Middle East. Everyone gave them a round of applause, except my friend next to me. He screams "HELL YEAH", stands up, and takes a bow. I want to hit him. I have had friends and parents of friends go on multiple tours. My mother is a Colonel in the Air Force, which, if my calculations are correct, makes this guy my bitch. I tell him this and he straightens up a little bit. This guy doesn't deserve a golf clap.
He asks if I have plans for that night. I say I'm going home with my friend Jerry. He says there's a pretty wild party in a warehouse that I should come to. And "if I'm interested in X, acid, coke, crack, pot, anything...it'll all be there." I politely pass. He tells me I'm lucky because I'm the first girl he's met in a while where he didn't ask for my number in the first 10 minutes. I count my blessings.
Finally off the plane, I meet Jerry and recount my story. I guess this guy went up to Jerry when he got off the plane and said "Your welcome. I'm in the Marines. Show some f*&^#ing respect." Cute.
Jason, my friend that I mainly came to see, was working for the next two nights so I decided to spend the night at Jerry's. His family was hilarious - they're Belgian. His mom was very attentive and made sure I was happy at every single second, but got a little annoying after a while. Jerry's sister Barbara was loud, but I loved her. She was disappointed that we didn't want to go out. I looked at the clock. 2am in Ohio. Time for bed.
The next morning I woke up and called my cousin Teress. We have a somewhat estranged group of family members in Austin that I haven't seen since I was 7. I wasn't able to meet up with Teress because she was working a lot, but it was great to talk to her regardless. Jerry and I went into Austin and checked out the Capital. Turns out the statue on the top makes it taller than the Capital in DC, which wasn't allowed. Silly Texas. Saw some cops, they actually wear cowboy hats. I was impressed. Found the portrait of G.W.B. He looked much younger. We went in the House of Representatives and saw where Texas laws go through. Took a picture with a cannon. Usual debauchery.
After that, we went to a place called Magnolia Cafe for lunch. It was on Food Network and was suggested to me. For a greasy spoon place, it wasn't bad. I was still craving some good ol' Texas BBQ though.
We drove over to University of Texas and walked around the campus for a while. It's quite pretty. Jerry and I took some inappropriate pictures with some statues. Got lost for a little bit. This place is much larger than Miami.
We went home and had dinner with his family then got ready to go out to 6th St. From what I've been told, this is a mix between Bourbon St. and Booze Heaven. Jerry, me, Barbara, and her friend Mel bar hop for 4 hours. I'm impressed. 6th St. reminds me a lot of State St. in Madison. I like that you can choose a bar based on the crowd and the music you want to hear. At Miami, you don't have much of a choice. Rap and douchebags, and your occasional creepy townie frequent every bar in Oxford. I'm enjoying the variety. After deciding to leave The Parish, a pretty cool dance place, my heel gets caught on the top step and I proceed to tumble down half of the flight of stairs. I hear a couple guys yell "HOLY SHIT" and catch me somewhere in the middle before I manage to crack my head open or break my leg. I still get bruised up pretty bad, but nothing a drink can't fix. The sad thing is, I wasn't even that drunk. I'm just a klutz.
Jason picks me up around 2am and we head back to his place where we begin catching up and having a couple more drinks before heading off to bed. Jason is my friend from Lima who moved to Austin to advance his film-making career. My favorite is his frito pie recipe video. Right now, he's working as a waiter until things pick up. On the drive over to his place he tells me about how he got jumped and now he has a handgun. Yeesh.
Sunday we wake up and go to Maria's Taco XPress for some breakfast tacos and migas. As delicious as they are, I'm having trouble eating them due to a surprise hangover. We head back for a nap, then go to S. Congress to check out the antique stores and other funky shops. I buy a few gifts for family, since I'd done zero Christmas shopping to that point. Finally, we head over to Rudy's for some delicious BBQ and bring it home to enjoy while we watch some Curb. A couple of Jason's friends come over and we go to the Trail of Lights, which kind of makes me want to stop being such a scrooge about this whole Christmas thing. However, it's below freezing, and I didn't pack for such weather. I mean, I'm going to Texas. I didn't realize it got cold.
Monday we went to S. Congress Cafe for brunch, which was a little expensive but was delicious. After some perousing on le internet, we discovered that the Alamo Drafthouse, a movie theater that serves a full menu of food and drinks, was playing Dark Side of Oz (also known as Dark Side of the Rainbow, the Wizard of the Moon, etc) at 8pm. A modern mystery, it plays Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon over The Wizard of Oz - and syncs almost perfectly! Maybe it was because I was under the influence, but it all made complete sense. The heart beats at exactly the right time...Money starts playing when the opens the door to Munchkinland...lyrics and transitions match up perfectly...Dorothy and her friends seem to be dancing to the music at some points! DO NOT DIE BEFORE YOU SEE THIS.
Tuesday was my last day so we wanted to make the most of it. I gave Maria's migas another try (not hungover, this time) and then we went to the shooting range because I'd never shot a gun before. Turns out I was a great shot! By the time we got done there, it was time to go so Jason drove me to the airport and I departed.
Like I said, Austin was everything I hoped it would be and more. I love how open-minded the city is, how fun it is, how much good food and stuff there is to do. My only complaint is that it's extremely spread out, so you pretty much have to drive if you want to go somewhere. All in all, definitely a great start to my winter break.
Next stop: ST LOUIS, BABY!
I left Oxford on Friday on the nicest day in a while. While there seemed to be a storm a'brewin', it was fairly warm. If it wasn't the middle of December, I'd call it tornado weather. Jerry, my friend from Miami and I flew to Charlotte for an hour and a half layover during which I consumed overpriced beer and subpar crab cakes. Being from Maryland makes you picky about those sorts of things.
On the flight from Charlotte to Austin, I met him. I'd been told he existed, but never actually met someone like him. I'm not a huge fan of talking to weird people on planes, so the plan usually consists of plugging in the iPod while I find my seat, trying to decide if the person sitting next to me would be suitable for conversation, and then making a judgment from there. Old hairy man snoring 5 minutes into the flight? I don't think so. Cute guy who looks like he's possibly my age wearing a Harvard Law sweatshirt? You bet your buttons I'm talking to him.
This specimen was wearing a baggy black Scarface tshirt and baggy black pants. With chains on them. How he got through security is beyond me. He reeked of beer and whiskey. Even though I had my iPod in, he said hi. Faux pas, in my book. Don't interrupt my music, sir.
We started talking. Rather, he started talking. My obviously disinterested fake-smiling-and-nodding wasn't catching on. Turns out he's in the Marines. Strike one. I'm an Army/Air Force fan, myself. He's been at boot camp and is now going back to Austin to see his family. He recounts the wild parties he has every night. He tells me that people who get married to a military man is stupid because everyone knows our troops in the Middle East are fooling around with prostitutes. He asks about my Arabic tattoo on my wrist. Am I a terrorist? No, I spent the summer in Morocco teaching English. "Well that's funny," he said. "You're going over there to teach those mother f*$&ers and I'm going over there to kill them." He swears just about every other word, by the way.
Other highlights of the conversation include him telling me that his mother will kill him for all the tattoos he's gotten. He gets to see his little 16 year old sister for the first time in 2 years. She had a baby. He tells me about how she was raped..."but she probably deserved it." I kid you not. He said that. He tells me about how his cousins (yes...that's plural) went to jail for raping a girl, and then when they got out, they got revenge by raping her again. I almost threw up. He tells me about his dreams to be in the FBI (even though he doesn't want to go to college). He says that when he spends his 4 years in the Marines, he'll have his record cleared. "Which is pretty good, because I've been arrested more times than I can count."
I pretend to sleep for the next 2 hours of the flight. By the way, pretending to sleep for that long is hard work. He starts chewing tobacco and spitting into a plastic bottle. I try to ignore the stench. He talks to the guy across the aisle. Every so often I crack open my eyes to see the new victim shooting me pleading glances across the way. Sorry buddy. He's yours now.
The part that made me the most sick was when we were landing, and the flight attendant made an announcement that there were military personnel on the flight who had just come back from the Middle East. Everyone gave them a round of applause, except my friend next to me. He screams "HELL YEAH", stands up, and takes a bow. I want to hit him. I have had friends and parents of friends go on multiple tours. My mother is a Colonel in the Air Force, which, if my calculations are correct, makes this guy my bitch. I tell him this and he straightens up a little bit. This guy doesn't deserve a golf clap.
He asks if I have plans for that night. I say I'm going home with my friend Jerry. He says there's a pretty wild party in a warehouse that I should come to. And "if I'm interested in X, acid, coke, crack, pot, anything...it'll all be there." I politely pass. He tells me I'm lucky because I'm the first girl he's met in a while where he didn't ask for my number in the first 10 minutes. I count my blessings.
Finally off the plane, I meet Jerry and recount my story. I guess this guy went up to Jerry when he got off the plane and said "Your welcome. I'm in the Marines. Show some f*&^#ing respect." Cute.
Jason, my friend that I mainly came to see, was working for the next two nights so I decided to spend the night at Jerry's. His family was hilarious - they're Belgian. His mom was very attentive and made sure I was happy at every single second, but got a little annoying after a while. Jerry's sister Barbara was loud, but I loved her. She was disappointed that we didn't want to go out. I looked at the clock. 2am in Ohio. Time for bed.
The next morning I woke up and called my cousin Teress. We have a somewhat estranged group of family members in Austin that I haven't seen since I was 7. I wasn't able to meet up with Teress because she was working a lot, but it was great to talk to her regardless. Jerry and I went into Austin and checked out the Capital. Turns out the statue on the top makes it taller than the Capital in DC, which wasn't allowed. Silly Texas. Saw some cops, they actually wear cowboy hats. I was impressed. Found the portrait of G.W.B. He looked much younger. We went in the House of Representatives and saw where Texas laws go through. Took a picture with a cannon. Usual debauchery.
After that, we went to a place called Magnolia Cafe for lunch. It was on Food Network and was suggested to me. For a greasy spoon place, it wasn't bad. I was still craving some good ol' Texas BBQ though.
We drove over to University of Texas and walked around the campus for a while. It's quite pretty. Jerry and I took some inappropriate pictures with some statues. Got lost for a little bit. This place is much larger than Miami.
We went home and had dinner with his family then got ready to go out to 6th St. From what I've been told, this is a mix between Bourbon St. and Booze Heaven. Jerry, me, Barbara, and her friend Mel bar hop for 4 hours. I'm impressed. 6th St. reminds me a lot of State St. in Madison. I like that you can choose a bar based on the crowd and the music you want to hear. At Miami, you don't have much of a choice. Rap and douchebags, and your occasional creepy townie frequent every bar in Oxford. I'm enjoying the variety. After deciding to leave The Parish, a pretty cool dance place, my heel gets caught on the top step and I proceed to tumble down half of the flight of stairs. I hear a couple guys yell "HOLY SHIT" and catch me somewhere in the middle before I manage to crack my head open or break my leg. I still get bruised up pretty bad, but nothing a drink can't fix. The sad thing is, I wasn't even that drunk. I'm just a klutz.
Jason picks me up around 2am and we head back to his place where we begin catching up and having a couple more drinks before heading off to bed. Jason is my friend from Lima who moved to Austin to advance his film-making career. My favorite is his frito pie recipe video. Right now, he's working as a waiter until things pick up. On the drive over to his place he tells me about how he got jumped and now he has a handgun. Yeesh.
Sunday we wake up and go to Maria's Taco XPress for some breakfast tacos and migas. As delicious as they are, I'm having trouble eating them due to a surprise hangover. We head back for a nap, then go to S. Congress to check out the antique stores and other funky shops. I buy a few gifts for family, since I'd done zero Christmas shopping to that point. Finally, we head over to Rudy's for some delicious BBQ and bring it home to enjoy while we watch some Curb. A couple of Jason's friends come over and we go to the Trail of Lights, which kind of makes me want to stop being such a scrooge about this whole Christmas thing. However, it's below freezing, and I didn't pack for such weather. I mean, I'm going to Texas. I didn't realize it got cold.
Monday we went to S. Congress Cafe for brunch, which was a little expensive but was delicious. After some perousing on le internet, we discovered that the Alamo Drafthouse, a movie theater that serves a full menu of food and drinks, was playing Dark Side of Oz (also known as Dark Side of the Rainbow, the Wizard of the Moon, etc) at 8pm. A modern mystery, it plays Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon over The Wizard of Oz - and syncs almost perfectly! Maybe it was because I was under the influence, but it all made complete sense. The heart beats at exactly the right time...Money starts playing when the opens the door to Munchkinland...lyrics and transitions match up perfectly...Dorothy and her friends seem to be dancing to the music at some points! DO NOT DIE BEFORE YOU SEE THIS.
Tuesday was my last day so we wanted to make the most of it. I gave Maria's migas another try (not hungover, this time) and then we went to the shooting range because I'd never shot a gun before. Turns out I was a great shot! By the time we got done there, it was time to go so Jason drove me to the airport and I departed.
Like I said, Austin was everything I hoped it would be and more. I love how open-minded the city is, how fun it is, how much good food and stuff there is to do. My only complaint is that it's extremely spread out, so you pretty much have to drive if you want to go somewhere. All in all, definitely a great start to my winter break.
Next stop: ST LOUIS, BABY!
posted by caitie at
8:40 AM
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