It's been good to visit with friends and family in the area. Austin has some of my very favorite restaurants, and I managed to get to a few of them. The fall colors make everything even more beautiful than usual [← Colorado River]. I enjoyed taking Joey for walks around the RV park, through the woods, on the trail, as well as at some of my favorite local parks. Joey made some friends with whom she got to play tag. :-) 
My friend Callie and one of her neighbors and I took our dogs (all five of them!) to the dog park for a "puppy party", which was fun for all of us! Once again, I'm taking advantage of the Austin music scene. My first weekend here I went with my friend Grace to see Tapestry Singers, the Austin Women's Chorus. I got to go to a really fine Michael Smith house concert (Bob Dylan's favorite songwriter). And Nancy and I went to hear Tommy Byrd and Kathy Street at the Arhaven house concert. I hadn't been to one of Joe and Bev's house concerts before, though I had seen Joe every time I went to the Rouse House. The Rouse House started the whole house concert thing in Austin. For years, once a month, the Rouses would clear all the furniture out of their living/dining room, move it out onto the patio, set up maybe 60 chairs, invite some of their favorite folk musicians and songwriters to come and sing, and invite some friends in, to come and listen. The "green room" would be one of the bedrooms. When the artist came out to play, the first row of seats was definitely within spitting distance (one of the performers jokingly offered towels to those in the front row), almost touching distance. Bruce and Liz asked for a reasonable donation at the door (around $10), all of which was given to the artist. Bruce would pass the hat during intermission, asking for donations to reimburse him and Liz for their minimal expenses (they offered lemonade, tea, and always a treat of some kind, maybe ice cream bars, or pie, during break). Occasionally, when they brought in a really popular artist, there would be two concerts in one weekend. There were many years when I lived here that I went regularly. I got spoiled by the opportunity to really hear the artist, in such an intimate setting, without drinkers or smokers around. And it was a concert, so no one talked over the music, everyone listened. Such a treat, compared to the usual bar or concert scene. Bruce and Liz Rouse got some of the country's best up-and-coming folksinger/songwriters, from all over the country. I knew I was always going to enjoy the performance, and often it was exceptional. For years, the Rouse House was the only house concert around. Then there were three, and now now there are many. The Rouses would give workshops on "How to Do House Concerts" and got many in the area interested in this form of entertainment. Sadly, the Rouse House is no more, since Bruce died suddenly and unexpectedly a few years back. But they were a force in the Austin music scene for many years, and their legacy lives on. I know of two couples who built homes in the past few years designed in such a way that they would accommodate house concerts (Sycamore Creek and Arhaven) and there are probably more. I only enjoy the Austin music scene when I am in town now, which is normally once or twice a year, so I am out of touch with most of what is going on here.
I see evidence of the summer heat and drought here on my walks - lots of smaller trees and bushes dead. Dry grasses everywhere. I never made it over to Bastrop, where all the fire damage is.
The weather was nice most days, though a few were too humid for me. As my friend Jim explained to me, on the days that the wind blows from the south (most days), the winds carry the Gulf moisture, and it can be so humid in Austin. Even when it's in the 70s, I am sticky and sweaty. Whereas I can walk outside comfortably when it's 80 degrees in Mesa, often it's not comfortable walking outside when it's 70 here. You start sweating immediately. I've been spoiled by those lovely winters in the Arizona desert.
All-in-all, though, another wonderful visit in Austin.
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