'Life isn't easy', I was reminded by someone close to me this week. True, not something I wasn't aware of, but thanks all the same. In the same breath though, I reminded myself that while it may not be easy, it sure is a lot of fun.
And so here I find myself, half way around the world in yet another country – still drinking in Irish pubs. Some things don't change wherever you find yourself. Today is the start of my third week as a resident of Sydney, Australia. Life is back in the starting blocks, top priority? Find a job (yesterday wouldn't be soon enough right now). There are others matters of pressing urgency but I won't bore you on the details.
I've moved in with my best friend Tristan and his wonderful girlfriend Amanda. Indeed, 'moved in' might be a kind way of describing the fact that these two great friends have practically adopted me and saved me from the streets. I'm down to emergency funds. Sadly however, I spent these emergency funds in a moment of madness and confusion at Heathrow 16 days ago. Two-hundred and fifty pounds excess baggage on my credit card which was nothing sort of a catastrophe. At least things can only get better from there... My plans to surprise Marilyn and Joel worked a treat. It was nearly a year to the day that I said goodbye to Maz as she returned to Oz in 2007 and Joel I hadn't seen since his hurricane visitation to Austin. Marilyn screamed, threw her phone, then cried. We hugged and it felt great. Joel on the other hand asked: "What are you doing here?" In true Team Unity-style we partied almost immediately while I fought the jetlag as we journeyed through the music and mayhem of Big Day Out Sydney. LCD Soundsystem, Arcade Fire, Battles and Spoon provided the soundtrack to my arrival in Australia. Phil and Mark became my newest Aussies friends. Good times were had.
[for everyone who's worried about how pale I am in the next picture, my face is covered in faded white zinc. I'm Scottish and I gotta protect that fair skin of mine. I'm not ill.]
I survived to the next day to enjoy the sunshine and celebrate my second Australia Day with the gang. We spent the day at The Domain park at the Triple J Hottest 100, a countdown of, yes, the top 100 tracks of the passed year. The top tune was so forgettable I couldn't tell you what it was. But it was good to see the Kaiser Chiefs make the 13th spot. A quick wiki search tells me Muse were number one. Dull. It was great fun nonetheless and the sun beat good vibrations all day long. Sadly the same can't be said since then as we've endured storm after storm here on the coast of New South Wales. The circumstance that hasn't helped the fact Tristan and I have been walking over a mile to get to Kelly's pub to use its free wifi. I am something of a regular now and the bar lady who I met on my first day here in Sydney is always really sweet to me.
The Superbowl happened and the New York Giants surprised everyone, except a seemingly deluded Chris Shea. What an amazing game it was. I can't say which I wanted more though, for the Patriots perfect season to be wrecked or for Brady to destroy Manning and co. What can you say? The Giants were amazing and deserved to win. The biggest sadness of the day was that I didn't get to share it with my American fans back in Austin. I have certainly been missing that Texan oddity and all my friends who reside there. I'm trying not to be that guy who moves to a new town and bangs on constantly about how great the other place he lived is. I'm trying hard, but I miss Austin so much, it feels like a part of me is absent. It is an absence I have been dealing with by perfecting my own pica de gallo to accompany the many tacos I've been making recently. Oh Rafa, where are you when I need my $1.50 barbacoa on flour?
You will have noticed that the blog has undergone some changes. I'm not sure I'm happy with the colours yet, so they may yet change again, but my eyes were starting to bleed from staring at them. Oh, and I decided it was time to put the Chautuaqua to bed and adopt my moniker as the blog's name. Anyone who is linking, could you change it on your page? thanks guys. Anyone who I haven't linked to could you let me know your address please? As soon as I figure out a title, I will be launching my film blog too, so keep an eye out for it.
Promise to post again soon. And ps. don't ever let anyone discourage you by telling you that life isn't easy. Stay strong and true to yourself. Good things will come with faith in your capabilities and confidence in the future.
Apparently I am not a reliable blogger, but then the past month has been quite grim here in Texas. The skies opened in June and thus spring showers became a summer storms. I have rarely experienced such rain in my entire life. Texas hasn't since 1924, the wettest June since records began, and even then there was only half an inch more rain. As a result an outrageous amount of my time has been spent stuck indoors and stuck in the mud. Yes, I allowed that unique British miserablism to overcome - even though I was somewhat enjoying the rain and the pensive thoughtfulness mood it lured me into for so long. As the humidity has risen, and sunlight interchanged with lightning, my moods have shifted more frenetically than an ADHD suffer on speed.
But it hasn't all been soulful starring out the window. I got to see Wolfmother at Stubbs BarBQ, which was a great fun. In fact, now that I come to think about it, it was the Friday most my friends were all up to their pert nipples in mud at the cold and even wetter Glastonbury (seems most thought the boundaries between Heaven and Hell had truly been blurred). So it was some much needed rock to take my mind away from where I wasn't. Travis, Chris and Mike were all there to thrash their air guitars, Chris in particular to thrash his ever expanding Puerto-fro (that's his Puerto Rico fro, not Pervert fro - just incase there's any confusion). Travis and I battled our way through two mosh pits to get to the front, which was pretty awesome and I couldn't resist crowd surfing out, albeit only 5ft. Afterwards it was the usual carnage, I bumped into my friends Nick and his girlfriend Bobby, cruised around a couple of bars doing shots and mixers with the adrenaline of the gig keeping me standing. Travis and I met back up to get a cab home, which I may or may not have been obnoxious to the driver before declaring that he'd ruined my cab ride and that I'd walk the rest of the way. Of course that only occurred after I'd tried to make best friends with the guy. Oh, and I came home with a walkie talkie, which I believe was procured at the bar Mohawk.
Then there was disc golf at Pease Park... in the rain. Pease Park is located in the centre of Austin, not far from downtown and enjoys the added feature of a river running through it (to steal a movie title), which on this occasion was flowing at around 4 feet in depth and with a fury. Needless to say I did go arse over tits trying to cross it for the fourth time.
Naturally a month of rain has also meant a host of movie watching, at home and at the cinema. There was Ratatouille, which proved a real hit. As funny and as touching as most all the Pixar films before it, once you could allow yourself to overcome the inherent creepiness of seeing rats run around a kitchen - no matter how clean they are. Live Free Die Hard finally landed, albeit after jumping from an F35 fighter jet in decidedly ridiculous fashion. Still, it was passable, Bruce brought his best John McClane-isms to the screen, kicked copious amounts of ass - although the circus act henchman using parkour is getting really tired now, though not as bad as Harry Osborn (James Franco) flying on a fucking snowboard in the tragically bad Spiderman 3.
Then there was a little documentary called Lost In Woonsocket. It was a film that I missed at SXSW despite the fact I'd met and made friends with much several of the people involved with the film (Malcolm, Thea, Ashley, John). Chris Tilly had caught it and had lots of good things to say about the film, so I was chuffed to pieces when Thea contacted me to tell me they were all coming back to Austin with more of the team for another screening at the Alamo Drafthouse. I promised to be there and was true to my word. By the end of the film I can't fully contextualise quite how I felt, but I know I'd been touched quite deeply. Lost In Woonsocket is a film not just about random acts of kindness - in this case taking one homeless, alcoholic man off the street and getting them into rehab. Rather it is a film about the consequences of an act of kindness - how the smallest of gestures can lead to the greatest of successes, often in the most unexpected of corners. It is about human spirit, its vitality and its potential to change, grow, and ultimately overcome. For me it was also a timely reminder of my good fortune, my family and my friends. That I'm not now, nor will I ever be, alone in this big adventure called life. It also reminded me that behind every face there is a story, and quite often those stories are well worth listening to.
On a sad note, however, this was to be my penultimate visit to the Alamo Drafthouse downtown. The 10-year old Austin landmark is moving to a new home on the highly commercial and townie-centric 6th Street. I hope it retains its old magic at the new location (what used to be Austin Ritz theatre years ago). The Alamo is by far the best cinema I have ever been to. These people know and love film like few proprietors of cinema screens anywhere in the world. The theatre is set up like this: each row of seats has its own bench in front, and every other seat has a menu. Once inside, you take your seat, pick what food or drinks take your fancy for the evening, write them down on a piece of paper, which then sticks up in a bar on the bench. A waiter comes by, picks up your order and 15 minutes later delivers it right to your seat. My favourite has been the Smokey Bacon and the Bandit BLT. Delicious. Anyway, the theatre always plays old cartoons and commercials (Fred Flintstone smokes Winstones don't you know). It also has its own unique warning for anyone who uses their phones in the cinema, I can't do it justice, suffice to say it involves zombies and and lots of blood.
So anyway, the Drafthouse is know for its screenings of lots of older films, obscure films, and outright classics (I'm still not doing this place justice). And so on the Drafthouse's penultimate night, and my last one there, I got myself a ticket for the 'thank you for smoking' screening of Breathless. Joined by a couple of friends I made my way there for some heavily nicotine infused movie-watching and even wrote a little summary for a local website, Slackerwood. Feel free to check it out, though it is far from one of my better written pieces.
In other news I went to Houston, but not to NASA, which was hugely disappointing. Did get to see Travis' dad (Larry) again, who is just one of the loveliest people you could hope to meet. Larry took myself, Travis and Chris out for dinner on our last night there and all I can tell you was I had no right being in this joint, but could certainly get used to it. Fine wine and serious fine cuisine. Steak all the way for me - in typical fashion though ordering white wine with red meat (see what I mean by not belonging). Also I got myself a ticket to see the San Francisco Giants play the Atlanta Braves (that's baseball folks) while I am in the Bay area. I'm so excited about this trip now it's ridiculous. Oh, and my birthday is in a mere matter of 2 and half weeks while I'm there. Can't wait for Daft Punk.
Oh, and then there was my discovery of Ann Coulter: the insane, pathological fascist-cum-political pundit. Words cannot do justice to how much I despise this woman. She is a horror to behold. I would direct you to one of the many youtube videos I've watched of her recently, but I just can't do that to you - if you want to find out more you can look her up yourself as I will play no part. However, if I do finally perfect the Nobhead Bomb I've been working on all these years, I believe she could well be the strongest candidate yet to be ground zero.
With once again promises to try to post more, I bid thee all adieu - oh, and the fact that I'm also considering potentially watching The Sound Of Music. Something that will have several ex-girlfriends shouting expletives in shock and disbelief should they happen to read this.
Firstly, sorry this has taken a while to get up but I've been so busy since getting back from Coachella and snowboarding. Myself, Chris and Travis moved into a new house, which is brilliant (I have a bed now and everything, sweet) and I have another feature to write for Beyond magazine. This time on fake Moon landings, which I spend more than a week trawling conspiracy websites for and rambling to anyone who will listen about cover-ups. But here is the story of my departure from Tahoe, the journey to Coachella, music and frivolity:
The time comes for Sam and I to leave Lake Tahoe. I think both of us are glad to be back on the road. For me it was such an experience going snowboarding and the fulfillment of a long-standing promise with Sam. Reconnecting with my old Utah State partner in crime was awesome. Like me, I hope, Sam's one of those people you pretty much pick up right from where you left off, and while it's a buzz to hang out with him, it is also a welcome familiarity during a time of great changes in my life.
We hire a car for the trip, organised at the morning before we leave of course. Departures are always bittersweet experiences I believe. I'm sad to say goodbye to Stan and Renick, who have been real characters to have met and a total pleasure. But new adventures await. Sam and I plan to stop by Sequoia National Park on our way South through California. We travel through some of the most amazing landscapes imaginable, pulling over constantly to take in the sweeping views free of the confines of the car. After around six hours of driving we arrive at Sequoia. It reminds me of one of the greatest things about America.
So here's the thing with Sequoia, it is home to the biggest trees in the world, the Giant Sequoias. These trees are huge. Driving through the park Sam and I find ourselves slowly down constantly to look up and gawp at these seemingly endless organisms reaching high up into the sky. They are stunning and have the power to remind me how small I am as a human being. We get out the car a couple of time to investigate and see up close some of the more impressive Giant Sequoias we pass. The big thing we miss though is the tree known as General Sherman, considered to be the largest living organism on the planet, standing at 275 feet tall with 2,200 years under its considerable belt. I wish I had time to explore the national park in full, but the light is failing and we still have a lot of driving to do. Still managed to get some pretty impressive pictures though.
I finally arrived at Coachella the following day and met up with Joel, Travis and Chris. The first thing to say it that it is so hot there. I mean crazy hot, it is the desert after all. All those video I’d seen of people seeming to be fairly languid during Daft Punk at the previous years Coachella - well I now understand that that is almost certainly something to do with the heat, which was over 100 degrees Fahrenheit everyday. Camping was a real struggle and I don't think I've ever drunk so much water in my life. We were all talc-ing up our private parts to avoid chaffing, check out Joel getting stuck in there.
Anyways, here's the thing with Coachella: 1) You're not supposed to take booze into camping with you, but security was fairly lax, so we managed to get around this without too much trouble. 2) There is a 2am curfew on the campground 3) There is also absolutely no post-music entertainment to help bring down the people who have just been partying all day long. 4) It's outrageously expensive for the states. Beers were $7 for a 330ml can of heineken. So that’s $7 for shit beer then. 5) The campsite is arranged in rows. Seriously. No higgledy piggledy. But full on rows upon rows with one big gap splitting the site in two. Not that this was big problem per say, but is kind of indicative of the whole festival organisation. Rules rules rules rules and then some more rules. 6) Not wrist bands for the event, only camping. Which means that if you leave the main arena there is no re-entry. Lame.
Right, now before I moan any further about it let me tell you about our weekend.
Friday. We queue up for a good 30 minutes in blazing heat and under the sun as we go through the security barriers. The arena is much like Leeds festival I guess. A couple of outdoor arenas, and about 3 or 4 tents. No shopping stalls selling crap you don't need, but that are fun all the same. Only food and official merchandise. Which is disappointing. No new cheap and cheerful festival hats or sunnies for me this year.
So anyways, the music. Well I finally got to see Digitalism and they were brilliant. Not as amazing as I'd hoped, but pretty great nonetheless. They always change up their sets a little, but while the songs were great, I couldn't help but feel the energy just wasn't there in a way it might have been in a small club. Felix da Housecat came out next and was absolutely brilliant. I can't believe I haven't seen him before, but he really did blow me away. Already riding high on the music, me and Joel then danced our little hearts away to Benny Benassi. Got to then see Faithless rock out Insomnia and God is DJ. Wow. Maxi Jazz really hasn't lost it in the slightest. That was such a thrill.
Afterwards we dashed over to see Bjork where me and Joel made friends with a cool random girl in the crowd (hey Evann if you're reading) and her mate in the crowd as we have a habit of doing - also she's cruder than Joel, so of course we instantly like her. Bjork is so much fun. She dances around the stage, belts out her tunes accompanied by a whole choir. She talks to the audience with that delicate childish voice of hers and you can hear everyone in the crowd giggle with delight. She’s amazing. I don’t know how else to describe her really. She’s just so unique and hypnotising. Friday was a great first day.
Saturday
Joel, er, 'showering':
Day gets off to a bad start when Travis gets busted carrying something he shouldn't be carrying into the venue and promptly gets kicked out, ticket confiscated. I don't see this happen as I somehow got filtered into the slowest queue on the planet and had to endure 1 hour queuing in the heat while security dragged their feet, which was more than frustrating, it was dangerous being at not long after midday. I get in fine but only discover then that Travis got booted out. I’m totally gutted and text Travis and tell him to go find a scalped ticket, he does, gets in a different entrance. I give him my poker winnings from the previous night toward the $70 ticket he paid for so it wasn't as bad as it might have been. We see Travis, which is awesome and I'm so chuffed to hear them rock out 'Why does it always rain on me' under the desert sun. Fran is so nice and charismatic. It's a real moment to see them play finally, though memories of an ex come flooding back, it's all good though.
Next up was Kings Of Leon who are great, but really all I can think about at this point is that Arcade Fire are playing after wards. I’m so excited and ready for a truly emotional experience. Arcade Fire are a dream. They were everything I'd hoped for them to be. Epic, deep, powerful and mesmerizing all at the same time. Rebellion nearly brought me to tears, but I held strong. Joel was not so impressed, and later we have an argument regarding their 'religious' undertones. I try to tell him that some of their songs are a critique of religion and not preaching religion. But we decide to have a row about it instead (this was actually when we were back in Austin and drunk - again).
After Arcade Fire I make a bee-line for Justice but only manage to catch the last 10 minutes which is more than a little disappointing. Course there are so many bands I miss its ridiculous. After Justice, LCD play and blow me away. I had no idea they would be this good, but they are. Chris, Joel and myself dance like the crazy fools we are. They close on the Sinatra-esque ‘New York, I love you but you’re bringing me down’, it’s one of those moments that you remember always from a festival. All there was at that time and space was the music and the moment leaving me and a thousand other people entirely enchanted.
After LCD the guys head to see The Good The Bad and the Queen, but I dash to the front for Tiesto closing Saturday on the main stage with all the rest of everyone from the dance tent. He opens with a remix of Imogen Heap, Hide and Seek, and I could cry there and then. Tiesto may not be my bag, but I loved every minute of his deep beats and trance sounds. So many good tracks and he's a pleasure to watch working. Obviously he loves every minute of it especially dropping those big tunes with thumping lines. He closes with Adagio for Strings and I'm spent. Awesome.
So back in the campsite that night, being the night before Rage played (they closed the festival), the riot police (local, state and SWAT cops - plus a helicopter) came into the campsite to break up a party at about 2am. It was nuts. They were armed with tear gas and rubber bullet guns - one guy we saw get beaten up and tazered. I have it all on video. There was a two-hour stand off with campers, of which there was a massive crowd which I was standing in - somewhat inebriated. Canadians were singing 'Oh Canada' English were chatting ‘Oh Lay Oh lay Oh lay oh laaay’, and Rage fans were chanting 'Fuck you I won't do what you tell me'. It was just plain nuts and total brought on by the festival organisers failure to have any post music entertainment for the campers. Music stopped at 12am and there was supposed to be a 2am curfew. Curfew? At a festival. Crazy. It was weird in so many ways it's hard to explain, I mean for sure it was partly due to the fact Rage were playing for the first time in ages and everyone was totally Gee'd up for it. But the festival organisation clearly lacks the foresight to see that people gathered in such a large group need ways to channel their energy. I couldn't believe they sent the police in riot gear in to break up a fairly innocent party. Check out the video and watch out for the dude at the back right getting beaten up by the cops and then tazered!
The only reason it didn't totally kick off was the fact that everyone was filming the cops and if they had fired on the crowd people would have died for sure - can you imagine a stampede in a campsite of all places?!? To the police's credit they did walk away, only after 2 hours of tension though and there were certainly some moments that it nearly happened.
Sunday I decide I want to take it easy on the last day. Spend what money I have on beer and see only the band I really really want to see before Rage and no running around from tent to tent all the time. We see the last couple of Tape n Tapes tracks - I'm gonna have to get their album - then pretty much wait around for CSS and Klaxons. Wow, both are brilliant and totally rock the entire place. CSS were just so much fun and so up beat. Klaxons lead singer is totally charismatic and I can see why they are so popular on the scene. Their music is brilliant and I'm totally buzzing when I hear them play Skans and Gravity's Rainbow. Awesome. Afterwards I check out Soulwax who are their usual intoxicating selves breaking up their Nite Versions tracks with some club classics.
Then we make our way to the main stage after another couple of beers to get in a good spot for Rage and with the added bonus of seeing Manu Chao. He is so good. Everyone is dancing, and happy and totally pumped up for Rage. Then Rage play, 45,000 people cram in and push forward to see them. It's like a out of body experience for 1 hour and 45 minutes. I'm jumping up and down like a crazy madman. Zach only speaks to the audience once during the whole show - but it's worth it as he lays into the American administrations past and present. As one point saying that if the laws applied to Hitler and the Nazi's after WWII were applied to every American government since WWII they'd all be guilty of war crimes and should be hung. The crowd, naturally, goes wild.
And then is comes. When they close with 'Killing In the Name' the whole place almost loses the plot. Everyone is singing and jumping and these brilliant white lights start flashing. It was sick. Travis thinks he may have actually blacked out in a state of trance at this point. Oh yeah, and Joel pulled this girl just before they came on and was playing tonsil tennis with her right through the Rage set. I have to tap him on the shoulder a couple of times to make sure he knows a track is about to drop less he gets his tough bitten off. Hilarious.
There's no riot afterwards. No revolution. Just a load of very satisfied customers. Ah well. In the end Coachella was a fantastic experience, mainly thanks to the music and the people I was with. I'll never go back there. Apart from the heat, the rules and restrictions - the fact that someone somewhere thought they needed to send riot police in to campsite to break up a party left a taste so sour that it will probably be my overriding memory of the festival and the place. Maybe it was something to do with Rage, or maybe its just that in a country where the individuals you meet are so easy going, that the authorities somehow fall at the opposite end of the spectrum. Policing through force (or the threat of) instead of cooperation and consideration. All it would have taken is dedicated entertainment for festival goers after the music had stopped. Where's the Silent Disco??? Can you really imagine these crazy folks starting trouble at 3am on Sunday night at Leeds festival 2006:
Anyways, the drive back to Austin takes us 24 hours. We decide not to stop by Joshua Tree for a nights camping. It's just too hot. Once we reach Texas we find it is totally pissing it down and I nearly crash the car into a ditch, which came at the end of period where we are all close to killing each other. Seriously, skidding, bracing, and about 3 foot from disaster...oops. But we all make it back alive. Which was nice.
And so that was that. Gonna post a video blog soon, try something a bit different.
Totally forget to post this up earlier - but look who I found in a random bar in Austin:
It's only bleeding Zoltar. Tried to make a wish, but the cheeky bligher went and nicked my dollar after flashing his eyes and shaking his head a couple of times. What did I wish for? Take me back to the 80s, drop me off at FAO Schwartz's and make sure Robert Loggia's there. Seemed like it was worth a shot...
Oh for those simpler times. If you do anything worthwhile to day, make sure it's learning this tune:
"The space goes down, down baby, down, down the roller coaster. Sweet, sweet baby, sweet, sweet, don't let me go. Shimmy, shimmy, cocoa pop. Shimmy, shimmy, rock. Shimmy, shimmy, cocoa pop. Shimmy, shimmy, rock. I met a girlfriend - a triscuit. She said, a triscuit - a biscuit. Ice cream, soda pop, vanilla on the top. Ooh, Shelly's out, walking down the street, ten times a week. I read it. I said it. I stole my momma's credit. I'm cool. I'm hot. Sock me in the stomach three more times."
Then let this put a smile on your face, and if at any time this week you feel lost or down remember, just cos you're big doesn't mean you have to be grown up...
South by South West has officially begun and I have a seriously full slate of screenings, press conferences and parties to hit. It's a tough life eh? Actually, running around the city with a raging hangover isn't the most fun in the world and putting together coherent sentences is more than a little tricky. But it's all part of the experience.
So my friend Chris Tilly got here on Wednesday, in for the festival too. He has taken to Austin like a duck to water, but I've come to expect nothing less of the lad. That boy knows how to come home with a story like no other. First night with my Brit sidekick in Austin we headed to a bar where one of Travis' friends, Mike, was DJing. Met loads of Trav's friends including this girl Shannon and her husband Cali. Ok, so Cali is a professional body modifier and Shannon a professional dominatrix. I didn't for a second hide my total intrigue as both explained their jobs to me. Wow. Not even sure I can possibly do justice to how much of the rest of the evening was spent with my jaw on the floor.
Much alcohol was consumed and new friends made. Oh and I started busting out some London town moves on the dance floor. It wasn't tragic or anything, but it wasn't very cool. But you gotta dance like no ones watching, right?
We survived the night at least and I think Tilly was in seventh heaven having met a Shannon - I kinda suspect he had a crush on her and god knows what sordid activity he'd get up to given the opportunity. One suspect he'd be biting off a little more than he could chew...
Next day was the day of the Disc Golf. Hangovers ahoy, bags loaded up with discs and beer we headed out to the course with another couple of Travis' friends, Dennis and Terry. It was a stunning day and there was a large group of us (10) out for a 18 hole round.
Let me say this, if you want to understand Austinites all you need do is join them for a round of disc golf. Quirky, laid back, eccentric, easy-going...any variation of this comes some what close to describing where these guys are coming from. It's not just a game, it's a way of life.
I'll try and explain disc golf here as briefly as possible. Like normal golf there is a tee-ing off place, and there is a hole. You shout 'four' if it looks like your frisbee is gonna hit someone - and with 10 of us playing there's a good chance. Each hole has a par number, though on the course we are playing every one is a par three. You drive with a driving disc, putt with a putter etc. Ok, I've started to make it sound boring. My bag was full of beers, I was wondering around in beautiful sunshine, and there was not a trouble in mind.
"There's no such thing as a bad round of disc golf except when you lose a disc." I'm telling you, they love their disc golf in Austin. So anyways, I do ok, so I'm told. 13 over par was my final figure. Not bad at all I feel.
After disc golf, most of the group headed over to a friend's house for BBQ where me a Chris ate brisquite for the first time. I have no idea if that's how you spell that, but I know it's smoked beef. I have no interest in wiki-ing it right now. Let me tell you this though, the guys here know how to make good salsa. Boy do they.
In other news, I discovered a new drive-through...yep, drive-through banking.
And by the way, I haven't mentioned how outrageously huge everything in Texas is. Everything in Texas is bigger, even, as Trav has told me like 3 times already, the state capitol building. It's in the Texas constitution. Go look it up people.
Lacking photos cos of my crappy camera. Will get them up asap.
So I am here in Austin and I can't imagine it will surprise anyone to know that I committed my first crime within three hours of landing on Texan tarmac. Yep, illegal drinking in Magnolia cafe after 2am (punishable by a not so light fine I told) - who'd a guessed it? However, the good news is I didn't get caught, so this trip is already looking positive compared to my last American misadventure that led to a seven-year long hiatus. I promise I will be careful though folks.
It still feels totally unreal being here - although this may be the jet lag, which is having an extra potent effect on me as Travis and his flatmate Chris don't sleep until around 3am - 9am to your folks back home and/or my body clock - and get up around 1pm. To say I'm monging out would be an understatement. I'm sure it won't take long for me to adjust, Travis and co will just have to cope with occasional episodes of absent staring on my part. Many people back home are, of course, entirely used to that regardless of jet lag.
What I have discovered so far: Americans haven't changed in at the seven years I've been gone. Oh, they do have mobile phones now though, which means like us back home they can no-longer organise a piss up in a brewery. And George Bush Jr - but we already knew about that guy didn't we. Nope, Americans are still kinda loud and they still don't do irony. I'm gonna save other observations for later when they are less like sweeping statements and more like carefully considered observations. I did however just discover that Americans don't just have drive-in movies, drive-through fast food and, of course, drive-by shooting. You can drive-through 'shop for beer', drive through 'post your mail' and god knows what else, but I'm certain more will follow - perhaps drive-through voting or drive-through strippers.
Speaking of which, there is a strip club called Expose just round the corner from Travis' place. Now I've never been to a strip club before, I don't really agree with them - scratch that, I disagree with them - but I have a strong suspicion I will end up there with Travis and his rag tag band of Austinites are some point or another. Chalk it up to experience I guess. Oh and the shooting range. I've been told now that I live in Texas I need to go fire some automatic weaponry. To be honest I don't know whether I more scared of the strip club or the gun club.
What I am excited about though is my first round of Disc Golf tomorrow. It's golf, but with frisbees. No, seriously. There is even a Professional Disc Golf Association (PDGA). Five courses in Austin alone. Basically what we have here is the hippy equivalent of golf - so let's just call it that, Hippy Golf. Fantastic.
Here's a great little tidbit from Wiki:
Disc golf, in some form, has probably been played since the early 1900s. But the modern day disc golf started in the late 60's. George Sappenfield, a Californian, realized that golf would be a lot of fun if played with Frisbees
Travis gave me my own disc bag and a couple of frisbees for my first game, which is awesome (Chris and Travis have really done their best to make me feel at home). I know I sound glib (something else I not sure if Americans get), but I really am excited about tomorrow. I can't imagine anything that could be that much more fun on a lazy sunny day than wondering around a park with beer, a group of friends, throwing frisbees as far as possible. By the way, did I mention they have different discs for different throws. Drivers, putters, chippers, the works. Just take a read of the Wiki link. Hilarious.
Other than this I should mention the weather is great. Still got a massive sense of apprehension and definitely in fear of the cultural hurdles - I even feel awkward about ordering a coffee and doing something wrong (it's the accent - I'm doing my best to be stealthy). But nothing ventured nothing gained right?!?
