Your Song

Dear Scott,

We FINALLY made it to Austin. Although it seems as if I say this about every city we visit...I am madly in love with this place. This city screams Ben Nuttle. It's hip, young, chic, and the weather could not be more beautiful. Everyone seems happy here.

We arrived (miraculously, after our stint in New Orleans) yesterday around 6 p.m. I can honestly say that those were the most brutal 8 hours of my life, (I'm sure Mimi is rolling her eyes at that statement). Because at our arrival I strongly resembled Air Bud, due to the havoc wreaked on our appearance by New Orleans, we immediately showered and prepared for the night. We stayed with my friend AJ, the best host we could ask for. He had a whole itinerary prepared for our visit. My optimism was lacking due to exhaustion, but I managed to rally and prepare myself for the night. AJ and his 5 friends took us to dinner at a Mexican restaurant across the street from his apartment. I can honestly say that I have tasted the world's best chicken fajitas and margaritas. After dinner, AJ took us to a bar in downtown Austin, it was a little cottage-like house that had been renovated into a bar. The house was surrounded by a picket fence, strung with Christmas lights. To give a comfortable, house party-like feel, there were little picnic benches, ping pong tables, and...hula hoops which hung on the picket fences that surrounded the bar. I have never been a hula hoop queen, and I certainly wasn't going to attempt to "impress" the bar with my lack of hula hoop talent, so I just watched on in envy as other people worked the hula hoop like it was going out of style.

As the night winded down, and the bouncers had no choice but to peel me from the dance floor, we scrambled outside to fetch a cab. Unfortunately, the only ride we could find was a pedicab driven by Jack Black plus 50 pounds, he was obviously in no condition, or shape, to be basically piggy backing four full-grown adults through Austin, but, against our (my) better judgement, we piled into his cart in hope of "experiencing" the city. Six blocks and an hour and 45 minutes later, it became obvious that Jack was in poor shape, literally and figuratively. His perspiration had dyed his shirt from a light pink to a deep mahogany. I watched in serious concern as the sweat poured from his receding hairline, to his forehead, down the lens of his glasses, and finally cascaded down the slope of his nose, onto the sidewalk. By the time we arrived at AJ's apartment it looked as if Jack had given birth to a water buffalo. Upon arrival, I scrambled to an ATM and took out my entire inheritance, which I handed to him in remorse, and watched as Jack accepted the cash and very slowly wheeled off into the horizon.

This morning we got up, walked over to Jo's coffee shop, and finally headed downtown for brunch and mimosas. We spent the entire day on the rooftop of a restaurant in downtown Austin in the 80 degree sunshine, drinking bottomless mimosas and laughing until our face hurt. I missed your beautiful face terribly, I wish you could have been sitting there next to me.

This picture is of the side of the building where we got coffee this morning. You were the first thing that came to my mind when I saw this.

Until we meet again,

Liney