Austin ModHouse

Backstory: When I was in the 4th grade, I lived in Longview TX. Star Wars was the biggest thing that ever happened to me. I recall a weekend where the local radio station was broadcasting from the county fair. They said R2-D2 was there! I loved that little bot. I HAD to go. I begged, pleaded and fought with my parents to go to the fair. I was devastated when I was told no. I sat at home pouting all day. My father tried to placate me with a promise to take me to the Texas State Fair. He told me about Big Tex, a giant talking Texan. Not quite as great as R2-D2, but he assured me the State Fair was much better than the county fair.

A short time later, we moved to Louisiana. We never did go to the Texas State Fair

NOW, I can say I've been. I saw that big talking Texan. He's certainly larger than R2-D2...

My favorite part of the trip was the transport. We took a private jet up/back. That was certainly cool. I enjoyed my first ride on the DART light rail, and the Trolley that runs up McKinney ave.

after a couple hours of rides that spin, twist, go upside down.... and Fletcher's Corny Dog and other fried foods, the boys wanted to go back to the condo. The draw of the PS4 was greater than their love of fried foods.

Posted by paul at 12:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The beer of choice for us at this past ACL was the Metamodern IPA from Oasis. The weather was nice on Sunday, so we took a short trip out to watch the sunset from the deck at Oasis Brewing. We also enjoyed a fresh Metamodern.  

(BIG) 

and then it was gone...

Posted by paul at 02:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Kat had an idea. She wanted to make a dumpling to represent each of the four seasons. She can be easily discouraged, and almost gave up when she couldn't find recipes that matched her idea.

I work differently in the kitchen. I get an idea, look at other recipes for reference. Then modify them to fit my goal. She likes to be methodical, and trying her best to follow a recipe exactly. We had a small pep talk and I encouraged her to "get creative. make it taste like what you imagined". She spent some time and did eventually come up with her own four recipe variations.

four fillings...

Mrs. Holly helped stuff and fold the dumplings.

Kat made four different dumpling wrappers.

SUCCESS! Summer, Fall, Winter, and Spring (top to bottom). 

Congratulations to Kat. She had a unique idea and saw it through from concept to completion. We surely enjoyed the consumption.

The kitchen clean up  also required a substantial effort...

Posted by paul at 02:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Just before F1 at Cota, we took a trip to check out the track.

We took a hot lap in the school bus.  

Went up the tower.  

Yes, that's a glass floor. The kids all loved it. 

Ok, not all the kids loved it. He shares my concern with heights. He's laying down, those are the school buses beneath. I stood on the glass. It's a bit unnerving.  

The view of the track from up there was amazing.  

Not many people have laid down and watched the clouds roll past from turn one. It was a good day.  

Posted by paul at 01:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

He got an hour of Austin Kiddie Limits.  

"I'm going to the restroom, I'll be right back", I said. Ten minutes later I was completely lost in a sea of people, and I'd left my phone with her on the charger... The sun set and I spent the next two hours trying to find her in the dark. I learned a couple things.

#1: I shouldn't go anywhere without my phone

#2: I should memorize a few phone numbers in the event something happens to my phone

I'm not certain I'd do it again. I wasn't interested in most of the bands this year and the hardships were substantial at times. We did go see Willie. But the sound was not good, we could hardly hear him. Band of Horses was probably my favorite act this year.

LCD Soundsystem was also good, but not so much fun while trying to find the wife.  

Posted by paul at 11:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Friends hosted a tour and tasting at a local Winery, Solaro in Dripping Springs (30 minutes from our home).

Grapes have been harvested and the vines are going dormant.  

Fall temperatures have finally arrived. It was still a bit warm in the sun. Under the shade, a light breeze made for an ideal setting to enjoy some wine and cheese with friends.   

(BIG) 

I had been in Vermont a few days earlier. I flew, giving me the option to carry back a wheel of Harbison from Jasper Hill. That's some good cheese.

I'd packed a minimal amount for my trip to VT. I took my good camera, but not the battery charger as space was limited (I hauled those two tables as carry-on luggage). I managed to get one pic from the camera before I found the battery to be exhausted. The pic below was taken in Greensboro, near Jasper Hill Farm. 

(BIG) 

Posted by paul at 10:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)