Barbecue and Bluegrass
A few weeks ago, my brothers and I planned a dastardly sweet trick to play on our mother. She and Tom (stepdad) were going to Austin, Texas to visit the bros for Easter weekend, and she asked if I could come down. Originally, I couldn't because the tickets were too expensive and I thought I would have to work. But I did some rearranging and got the weekend off and cheaper tickets. But we still told Mom I couldn't make it and planned to surprise her. All last week I talked to her on the phone and it was so hard to lie to her, telling her "Have fun! Have some Peeps for me!", knowing I would be seeing her soon.
So, last Friday I headed out from work to JFK airport just as the sun was setting.
After a crazy delayed plane and weird seatmate who seemed to be a con artist of some sort, I got in at 2am and Greg was kind enough to pick me up and let me stay at his place. The next morning, he, Nathan and the 'rents had planned to meet up for brunch at a cute restaurant. I can't believe we all kept the secret, but sure enough, the second my mom saw me she freaked out, started crying and buried her face in her hands. She really made quite a scene.
Tom was surprised too!
Isn't she so adorable?
The restaurant, Chez Zee, was pretty cool too.
We had a wonderful breakfast together.
That afternoon, I went shopping with Nathan for some groceries.
I just can't believe how wide the aisles are compared to New York. I fully realize that nobody else cares, but look at all that space!
Later we all went for a scenic drive, since it was cloudy and rainy and freezing cold all weekend and there wasn't much to do outside.
Sorry about the goofy picture, Mom, but I just love it! I'll make it up to you by posting this beautiful one.
We decided to have dinner at a fine barbecue joint called The County Line. While waiting for our table, we checked out the scenic back patio, which I'm sure is amazing and packed in the summertime.
It was foggy, reminding me of a Jacuzzi in the winter.
The interior was just as cool as the exterior of the restaurant, very Texas-kitschy.
They even give you paper towels at every table.
Tom ordered a rack of ribs bigger than his own torso.
I got the double meat platter, and even after a half hour of eating and feeling stuffed, it seemed like I had barely touched my food!
Before:
After:
They had an awesome "sanitary restroom."
You know I checked it out!
They had this CD playing in the restrooms, "Talkin' Cowboy," where a very proper-sounding lady would say, "How do you do?" and the cowboy would translate, "Howdy, y'all!"
And who doesn't love pictures of Jimmy Stewart?
What an awesome poster.
That night, Nathan, the Parental Units and I indulged our shared love for live music and went to the Continental Club. There were some bluegrass and cajun bands tearin' it up that Saturday.
Everybody was dancing and jumping around like only the Texans can.
I like to call it the Texas Mosh Pit.
Their ladies' room also had some nice design elements. This was the wall decor.
Sunday morning, for Easter, we all had a hearty breakfast at Nathan's place.
We all chipped in (I helped by documenting the situation).
Nothing like mimosas before Mass!
I forgot to take my camera to church, so in lieu of the beautiful stained glass and photos of Mom, Nathan, Nathan's friend Liz and me, here's a photo of Nathan's pretty li'l neighborhood.
In the afternoon we all piled into Nate's car for a trip down to South Congress, the cool downtown area that Austin's known for (and the backdrop for "Austin City Limits").
Unfortunately, it being Easter Sunday and all, hardly anything was open. We did get to see some cool signs though.
... and did some hearty window-shopping.
We did get into one thrift/vintage/local artists' shop called Parts & Labor, and I got a shirt, a shirt for Dustin, and this funky bracelet made from old bottle caps.
For the rest of the afternoon, Greg went to work, Nate and my parents went to see a movie, and I (with a headache) stayed at Nate's place doing the dishes, and walked down to a local record store and got the new Klaxons CD and a blues compilation disc as well. I'm old school. No iPod.
But that night we reconvened and I treated the fam to a nice Mexican dinner out at Cantina de... something or other. Nathan and I had an in-depth conversation about the difference between Tex-Mex and real Mexican food.
At every table they had fresh avocados...
Our waiter, Alessandro, worked his magic with them...
... and voila! Fresh guacamole, which is a culinary treasure that is hard to beat, lemme tell y'all. Everyone should experience that.
For dinner I had mole enchiladas. YUM YUM YUM YUM YUM
We all had a great time, enjoying a delicious meal together.
Afterwards, we wandered around for a bit downtown and peeked into more funky shops.
Tom was drawn as if by a magnet to this gigantic guit-ar.
I tried to teach him how to take a picture with my camera. He just kept pressing the power button. Here's my demonstration picture.
Success!
In fact, everyone seemed enchanted by the big guitars.
Tom and I stopped for some gelato.
Yummmmm
And finally, that night we played some cards together to wind down our wonderful weekend. We decided on gin rummy and I have never played such a complicated game. Maybe it was because we played 8 different versions of it, and kind of made up new rules as we went along, but it seemed like every three seconds one of us would say, "Okay, wait. I have a question..." It was a LONG game.
Monday I traveled back to the East Coast and, since it was the lovely middle of the afternoon and I had the day off, I took the train home. It only took 2+ hours.
The weekend was an awesome one; I'm so glad I got to spend some time with my family and that my parents stayed an extra day (till Monday). Austin is a pretty cool little town... it looks like Missouri but has the feel of old Mill Avenue - a unique, artistic, down-to-earth kind of place. They had a great music scene going and I hope to come back for ACL Fest in the warmer months of the year.
Happy Easter everyone! I love Austin!
love,
*jenna*
So, last Friday I headed out from work to JFK airport just as the sun was setting.
After a crazy delayed plane and weird seatmate who seemed to be a con artist of some sort, I got in at 2am and Greg was kind enough to pick me up and let me stay at his place. The next morning, he, Nathan and the 'rents had planned to meet up for brunch at a cute restaurant. I can't believe we all kept the secret, but sure enough, the second my mom saw me she freaked out, started crying and buried her face in her hands. She really made quite a scene.
Tom was surprised too!
Isn't she so adorable?
The restaurant, Chez Zee, was pretty cool too.
We had a wonderful breakfast together.
That afternoon, I went shopping with Nathan for some groceries.
I just can't believe how wide the aisles are compared to New York. I fully realize that nobody else cares, but look at all that space!
Later we all went for a scenic drive, since it was cloudy and rainy and freezing cold all weekend and there wasn't much to do outside.
Sorry about the goofy picture, Mom, but I just love it! I'll make it up to you by posting this beautiful one.
We decided to have dinner at a fine barbecue joint called The County Line. While waiting for our table, we checked out the scenic back patio, which I'm sure is amazing and packed in the summertime.
It was foggy, reminding me of a Jacuzzi in the winter.
The interior was just as cool as the exterior of the restaurant, very Texas-kitschy.
They even give you paper towels at every table.
Tom ordered a rack of ribs bigger than his own torso.
I got the double meat platter, and even after a half hour of eating and feeling stuffed, it seemed like I had barely touched my food!
Before:
After:
They had an awesome "sanitary restroom."
You know I checked it out!
They had this CD playing in the restrooms, "Talkin' Cowboy," where a very proper-sounding lady would say, "How do you do?" and the cowboy would translate, "Howdy, y'all!"
And who doesn't love pictures of Jimmy Stewart?
What an awesome poster.
That night, Nathan, the Parental Units and I indulged our shared love for live music and went to the Continental Club. There were some bluegrass and cajun bands tearin' it up that Saturday.
Everybody was dancing and jumping around like only the Texans can.
I like to call it the Texas Mosh Pit.
Their ladies' room also had some nice design elements. This was the wall decor.
Sunday morning, for Easter, we all had a hearty breakfast at Nathan's place.
We all chipped in (I helped by documenting the situation).
Nothing like mimosas before Mass!
I forgot to take my camera to church, so in lieu of the beautiful stained glass and photos of Mom, Nathan, Nathan's friend Liz and me, here's a photo of Nathan's pretty li'l neighborhood.
In the afternoon we all piled into Nate's car for a trip down to South Congress, the cool downtown area that Austin's known for (and the backdrop for "Austin City Limits").
Unfortunately, it being Easter Sunday and all, hardly anything was open. We did get to see some cool signs though.
... and did some hearty window-shopping.
We did get into one thrift/vintage/local artists' shop called Parts & Labor, and I got a shirt, a shirt for Dustin, and this funky bracelet made from old bottle caps.
For the rest of the afternoon, Greg went to work, Nate and my parents went to see a movie, and I (with a headache) stayed at Nate's place doing the dishes, and walked down to a local record store and got the new Klaxons CD and a blues compilation disc as well. I'm old school. No iPod.
But that night we reconvened and I treated the fam to a nice Mexican dinner out at Cantina de... something or other. Nathan and I had an in-depth conversation about the difference between Tex-Mex and real Mexican food.
At every table they had fresh avocados...
Our waiter, Alessandro, worked his magic with them...
... and voila! Fresh guacamole, which is a culinary treasure that is hard to beat, lemme tell y'all. Everyone should experience that.
For dinner I had mole enchiladas. YUM YUM YUM YUM YUM
We all had a great time, enjoying a delicious meal together.
Afterwards, we wandered around for a bit downtown and peeked into more funky shops.
Tom was drawn as if by a magnet to this gigantic guit-ar.
I tried to teach him how to take a picture with my camera. He just kept pressing the power button. Here's my demonstration picture.
Success!
In fact, everyone seemed enchanted by the big guitars.
Tom and I stopped for some gelato.
Yummmmm
And finally, that night we played some cards together to wind down our wonderful weekend. We decided on gin rummy and I have never played such a complicated game. Maybe it was because we played 8 different versions of it, and kind of made up new rules as we went along, but it seemed like every three seconds one of us would say, "Okay, wait. I have a question..." It was a LONG game.
Monday I traveled back to the East Coast and, since it was the lovely middle of the afternoon and I had the day off, I took the train home. It only took 2+ hours.
The weekend was an awesome one; I'm so glad I got to spend some time with my family and that my parents stayed an extra day (till Monday). Austin is a pretty cool little town... it looks like Missouri but has the feel of old Mill Avenue - a unique, artistic, down-to-earth kind of place. They had a great music scene going and I hope to come back for ACL Fest in the warmer months of the year.
Happy Easter everyone! I love Austin!
love,
*jenna*
posted by jenna at 1:16 PM
2 Comments:
Honey,
I just got my own pics back, but they cannot compare to yours and your narrative. you make my heart sing. how blessed we all are.
thank you for the journelog. I JUST MADE UP THAT WORD!!!
mommy
Jenna
I'm so glad you made it to the reunion and to Austin. Great blog, as usual, I can still taste the BBQ ribs. Thanks for making the effort... we were rewarded richly by your presence. I hope you were too.
Tom
Post a Comment
<< Home