Get On the Bus

Two of the last three Saturdays, the wife and kid and I have taken the bus downtown. We've walked around, gone to the Austin Children's Museum, gone to the farmer's market, gone to the Old Pecan Street Festival, eaten lunch, and just spent a lot of quality time together. It's been great. Much better than sitting around the house all day staring at the TV.

The Weekend

(1) Made almost $200 at a garage sale Saturday morning. Woohoo!
(2) Attended a wine tasting party on Saturday night. A bunch of Chilean merlots and cabernets vs. the same varieties from other parts ofthe world (though mostly domestic). The wine and food were good (especially the bacon-wrapped dates wtih almonds!), but it was mostly nice to be among adults, enjoying good conversation and the cool evening weather.
(3) Yard work. Spring is here. As is daylight savings time, which means darkness when I rise, and daylight when I arrive home at the end of the day.
(4) Some lunch with the family at Opal Divine's, with live music from the guys in Pop Stars.

I'll say it again: I'm a lucky guy.

2007!

So, things have been pretty hush-hush at this blog lately. Mostly, it's because: (1) I got caught up in the rush of the holidays at the end of last year, and (2) I'm lazy. BUT! ALSO! I started a new job at the beginning of the new year. I'm still at the capitol, but I'm in a policy/political position now instead of a non-partisan/bureaucrat job. So I've got that going for me. The move has been great, and I'm really happy that I made the big jump.

In my personal life, I found out last month that our new baby is a boy! A little brother for the other kid! Hooray, etc! My initial reaction was slight disappoinment, because one boy and one girl has a nice symmetry to it, and what's cuter than a tiny baby girl? I quickly realized, though, that another boy will be nice AND much easier. Fewer new clothes and toys to buy. No little girl emotions and behaviors to learn. A same-sex playmate for the rough and tumble older brother. So. Good for us. Now we just need a name...

I hope to get back into the swing of this blogging thing, I really do.

Numero Dos

My wife and I are expecting another child. Due the first week of June 2007.

Louisiana food

Just got back from a trip to Louisiana. Among the food I devoured in less than three days:
- shrimp and crab stew
- crawfish pie
- boudin balls
- blackened alligator
- cornmeal pancake with crabmeat and mushroom cream sauce, served with garlic cheese grits and a handmade biscuit
- sauteed crab fingers
- white chocolate bread pudding
- pork roast and rice dressing

I'm full.

Yikes!

It's been too long since I've posted. Some recent experiences of note:

(1) Austin City Limits Music Festival. Three days of outdoor music and beer and sweat. I've been three times now, and I think this year was the best. My top four shows were Kings of Leon, Gnarls Barkley, the Shins, and Damien Marley.

(2) I bought a new suit. Gray with pinstripes. I'm trying to edit my wardrobe and replace old clothes with slimmer cuts.

(3) I enjoyed a delicious Brazilian-style beef roast prepared by a friend. Excellent charred, salty outer crust and moist, pink inside. The best meat dish I've had in a while.

(4) I've been riding the bus everyday. Me and my son ride it over to his school, then I walk from there to my office. It has been really, really nice to spend the time with the boy.

Update

Since my last post, I have:

- gone with the boy to storytime at BookPeople (the theme: robots)

- spent a relaxing morning thrift shopping (and scored a vintage green Izod shirt in perfect condition and exactly my size - for $2!)

- made a giant pan of beef and cheese enchiladas with verde sauce, cilantro, and sour cream, with a side of tomato and avocado salad

- sketched landscape designs for a friend's backyard

The Week

Last week I managed to:

- drink beer with friends at Opal Devine's South

- watch Star Wars with my son (who was seeing it for the first time)

- sip some wine in my backyard at night while listening to Elliot Smith and basking in the glow of my new garden lights

- visit the new Blanton Museum of Art, which needs some improvements to become a world-class art museum, but has some really nice pieces (mostly the abstract art in the America:Americas exhibit). Some suggestions for improvement:
(1) get rid of the reproduction sculptures, statues, and busts, which are everywhere; either get some originals or don't put them so prominently on display.
(2) edit down the size of the European collection (which is mostly second-rate religious paintings) and use that extra space for more contemporary American art.
(3) unlike some others, I actually like the large, open atrium entrance of the museum, but it would be more dramatic if there weren't the cheap-looking arches on the first floor or the reproduction busts and friezes strewn about.
(4) it's too late now, but it's really a shame that the original, more daring proposal for the building's exterior architecture was rejected in favor of more stone and stucco and orange terra cotta. I think an art museum should look more provocative and less like the campus Economics Department building.