It's amazing how much you might never realize how lucky you are to live in such a great place, until you actively choose to live somewhere else. Don't get me wrong. We love our little house in the country. The silence is fabulous and I can't tell you how nice it is to live without neighbors cramping our style. Sassy can go on an all night barking rampage and the only people she's going to bother are us. That's beyond refreshing. There are some key things about life in the city that we sure do miss, though.
1. Rudy's BBQ - OMG what I would do for a 1/4 lb. of extra moist brisket right now......mmmmm...and some creamed corn. Sweet Baby Jesus that creamed corn could bring peace to the Middle East. Why haven't we tried that? Your move, government. But fo' realz, you just can't get good barbecue in this part of the state. Don't even try to suggest Hard 8. It's overpriced crap with a bunch of country decorations on the wall to trick you. Don't be fooled.
2. The Alamo Drafthouse Cinema - You might be wondering why I'm not posting movie reviews every Monday like the good ol' days. Well, it's because going to the movie theater kind of sucks now. Even if the theater nearest to us is playing the movie we want to see (which is damn near never) it still sucks. Since first moving to Austin, movies have become synonymous with fried pickle spears and an organic root beer. You know what I get at the regular movies? Popcorn and a cherry coke. How freaking lame is that? They don't even have mocha flavored milkshakes (with those little chocolate covered espresso beans on top). Get with the program people! Last weekend we went to see Lincoln (all the way in Abilene for goodness' sake) and the lady behind us started talking on her cell phone. At the drafthouse that kind of rude, ignorant, jackass behavior is punishable by banishment. Ok, that sounds extreme. But srsly, they'll kick your ass out.
And though we never actually attended a Master Pancake showing, we always talked about going and now I'm sad we never did. You'll always have a place in my heart Drafthouse. The place that loves nothing more than standing in line for an hour to sit in a room smelling vaguely of pee and being waited on by hipsters. Jesus, I miss this place.
3. Our Church - Are you surprised? I would be too if I knew me. We attended St. Mary's Cathedral in downtown Austin in an all too non-frequent manner. There for a while, we were really good about going to Sunday night Mass but when the wedding started quickly approaching, our attendance dropped some. In the middle of this uber hectic downtown, there rests a Cathedral almost as old as Austin herself. Outside are tall buildings, pigeons galore, and traffic that could put a person in convulsions. But inside, oh man inside, there is a peace that I've never experienced anywhere else. In fact, in the few times that we would make it early it was everything I had in me to keep me awake. I'm not sure if it's the incense or the dimmed lights or even the soothing voice of the Priests, this church was the very meaning of peace and security for me. There aren't even minutes in my day-to-day life that I'm not anxious about. In fact, at this very minute I'm anxious that you are hating me with every word I type because you love Hard 8 and everything about it. (If that's the case, I'm can learn to live with not being friends anymore. Clearly we have nothing in common.) Or maybe you're Protestant or Agnostic even and have been conditioned to believe us Catholics are just awful. I'm sure that's at least partly right, because, well most people are awful but that's true for all religions. Don't hate. I would never cast judgement on you for your beliefs. Walking in the heavy wooden doors of this outstanding landmark melts all of my anxieties away. Well, all but one. Can I just say how much I don't enjoy the "Peace be with you segment" of our beloved Mass? I have no qualms with wishing peace and happiness upon those sitting near me. No, not at all. But in this day of rapid spreading influenza, do we really have to shake hands? I don't know where you've been. I don't know when you've last washed your hands. That's quite a selfish attitude, I know.
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| personal picture taken by moi |
5. Friends - no not the TV show. Actual friends. Part of moving back to the Stephenville area was supposed to be reuniting with my girlfriends...whom I've seen exactly twice in four months. That's not ok, but part of that blame falls on my lap for not being available on weekday nights. In Austin, my co-workers were my family. Of course there were those few family members that I wanted nothing more than to choke out (joking!) but for the most part I really truly loved every person there. It hurts my heart to not see these people day to day. There are things I thought I would never miss that I find myself pining for now. Like that one guy's crazy laugh, or diet tips that were really unwarranted, or finding your manager rocking in fetal position behind the store. I miss you guys. A lot. Be warned, there is a good chance I will tear up when I see you in two weeks. Mer, it's probably a good thing you'll be out of town because I could hug you to pieces. Literal pieces. Then I would pack you up and take you to work with me every day and prop you up in my office because work totally sucks without you.
