“A Few Days in Austin”
After the long drive from New Orleans to Austin on Sunday, I decided to keep it simple and eat in the hotel restaurant, Caroline. Lachie had the same idea and so we each had some unexpected company and covered a wide variety of topics.
I found the breakfasts at Caroline on Monday and Tuesday morning to be excellent. It’s so nice when a hotel restaurant has fresh and creative offerings. The corn cake benedict and the huevos rancheros were both delicious. And the poached eggs were perfectly cooked.
I had the Board Audit committee meeting on Monday, and then met Damon and Neffie at the Firehouse lounge, a cool speakeasy around the corner from the hotel. You slide the bookcase in the hostel lobby to the side to gain entry. I had been there before with Denny, Anne, and Diana, and knew they make good cocktails.
We tried Lonesome Dove for dinner. This is a well known place from Fort Worth, that opened a branch in Austin. It’s famous for exotic game dishes, snake, elk and the like. We all enjoyed dinner. The elk and foie gras sliders were a highlight, and my scallops were very fresh and well cooked.
After a full day Board meeting on Tuesday, the executive committee enjoyed dinner at Dean’s Italian restaurant. I enjoyed cooking the wagyu on a hot stone, and decided to have scallops again. These were just as good as the night before.
A few of us stopped into the Elephant room after dinner to listen to jazz music. The band wasn’t terrific, but pleasant for relaxing after a long day.
I made the final triangle of my drive on Wednesday, Austin to McKinney, stopping at DFW to pick up Diana on her return from San Francisco. I broke the drive up by stopping for lunch with April in Round Rock. We both enjoy the Salt Traders restaurant and it’s right off the main highway to Dallas. The shrimp poblano enchiladas were great.
Here’s Clorinda anticipating the new book from Ann Patchett that Diana got for her. I understand she put down her current book and dove right in.
I enjoyed the Beanie Baby movie over a couple of evenings. I thought Jack Galifianakas was very good as the guy who created and ultimately destroyed the Ty toy company. I’m sure there are still several hundred of these silly toys in storage units outside the house in Los Gatos.
All the inspections on the New Orleans house happened on Thursday: General, termite, sewage and air conditioning. We’re still awaiting all the details, but there doesn’t appear to be anything huge to deal with.
Patty and Brent were in town looking at potential places to build a retirement house. I don’t think they saw anything they liked, and so Dallas might be coming off the list. We met them at Harvest in downtown McKinney for Friday dinner. A really nice visit with good food. We’ll see them again in a week or so.
Rachel was over to sunbathe and enjoy the pool one last time on Saturday afternoon. She didn’t know about the move until she saw the yard sign. Oops.
Friends and family were having fun in other parts of the country. The Ogans at altitude outside Boulder, CO:
Olivia celebrating her sixteenth birthday. We don’t know who the guy next to her is. Interesting hair.
Will and Christine in Reno, NV with G-Man, Caitlin, and crew:
And lastly, Campbell and Molly with Kris and Cat on a beach in San Diego to enjoy some music.
“All the Sinners Bleed” by S.A. Cosby was my book this week. A fast paced thriller, and not for the feint of heart. I enjoyed it a lot, maybe even better than his last two novels. The main character, Titus Crown, a police chief in rural Virginia is excellently done. Here’s the online summary:
INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
“Fresh and exhilarating. . . Cosby keeps his eye on the story and the pedal to the metal.” ―Stephen King, TheNew York Times Book Review
A Black sheriff. A serial killer. A small town ready to combust.
The new novel from New York Times bestselling and Los Angeles Times Book Prize-winning author S. A. Cosby, “one of the most muscular, distinctive, grab-you-by-both-ears voices in American crime fiction.” ―Washington Post.
“An atmospheric pressure cooker.” ―People
Titus Crown is the first Black sheriff in the history of Charon County, Virginia. In recent decades, quiet Charon has had only two murders. But after years of working as an FBI agent, Titus knows better than anyone that while his hometown might seem like a land of moonshine, cornbread, and honeysuckle, secrets always fester under the surface.
Then a year to the day after Titus’s election, a school teacher is killed by a former student and the student is fatally shot by Titus’s deputies. As Titus investigates the shootings, he unearths terrible crimes and a serial killer who has been hiding in plain sight, haunting the dirt lanes and woodland clearings of Charon.
With the killer’s possible connections to a local church and the town’s harrowing history weighing on him, Titus projects confidence about closing the case while concealing a painful secret from his own past. At the same time, he also has to contend with a far-right group that wants to hold a parade in celebration of the town’s Confederate history.
Charon is Titus’s home and his heart. But where faith and violence meet, there will be a reckoning.
Powerful and unforgettable, All the Sinners Bleed confirms S. A. Cosby as “one of the most muscular, distinctive, grab-you-by-both-ears voices in American crime fiction” (The Washington Post)
This article about how AI can determine the attributes of music you were just listening too is quite interesting:
I wonder what my brain looks like after listening to this? Great beat and slide guitar sound. I think it made me quite relaxed.
Coexist peacefully, with kindness and compassion for all.