Thursday was a long day filled with a LOT of cows. In total, we saw an additional 33 cows!

The morning was nice and laid back, with our first stop being Whole Earth Provisioners on Lamar. Mom really liked the store and some of the neat stuff they had. Our first cow was just across the street, the "Kaleidoscope Cow".

This cow was covered in fabric, which was pretty unique. It had holes cut through it and kaleidoscopes that you could look through and turn... That is, it would have had more than one if people hadn't torn the other two out. Jerks.

Unfortunately, taking pictures of the kaleidoscope itself doesn't do it justice, it was better (though not a LOT better) looking through normal.

We grappled for a parking space at Whole Foods next, since there were a number of cows in their area. I hate driving downtown and I hate parking downtown even more. We ended up on the lower level of their garage, which isn't too terrible, but since we had lunch plans for 11:30 at Shady Grove with a friend of mine from work and it was already 11, I really was hoping for a more convenient parking space.

The cows around Whole Foods were a mixed bag, and we even missed one in our rush to get to lunch. There was a very pretty flowery one that I liked, "Flower Power Cowlection", and a skeleton cow, "Morning Glory and Death", I thought was cool but mom didn't care for.

Then there was the tourist cow, "Tacky Taurist", which was intentionally... Tacky. The continental spots were neat, though.

And the "Discow". Shiny and sparkly and certainly a lot of work.

...but very similar to the "John Hancow" from the Boston showing.

Also reminiscent of one we had seen before was the "Cow Quarium".

...Except I have to say I think the Boston version was more impressive.

Many of the cows in Austin cannot compare with the Boston cows at all, though. There are themes that are pure Austin or simply Texas. From Wednesday's "Texicow" sayings and pictures to cows Thursday...

Music runs deep, as seen in many places, such as on the "Moosical Moosaic", "Flamencow", "Moosaic", "Peace, Love, and Harmooony", and "Cowjunto Music".

 What would Austin be without its bats? "Udderly Austin", "Batsy at Twilight" and "Batcow" (hopefully a better picture later) feature or highlight our fondness for our bats.

 

 And some things are just typical Austin... Keep it Weird and bluebonnets, for example, from "Moosic Capital" and "Flowerida".

But this Cow Parade has had some rather unique cows, such as the "Cowch" in the lobby of the Driskill, and it actually fit in rather nicely and didn't seem at all out of place. The seat was even somewhat comfortable, if a bit low.

Or the "Cowcycle"! The streamers on the handle bars were a nice touch.

And the "Psy-cow-dellic Cowsward Puzzle" was cool and one of the ones we made a point of finding because mom is a crossword puzzle fan.

And finally there was this bizzarre thing, which almost defies understanding. The lower boot even has part of an animal jaw with teeth, tucked in among the fishing lures and feathers.

Austin Cow Parade

My family's obsession with cows started many years ago with a comment my mom made to her then boss. He was portly and made the mistake of wearing a shirt with up-and-down stripes. When he asked what he should have worn instead, she commented, "Cow clothes!". He thought she was crazy (which, sure, she is, but that's besides the point).

A department store flyer not two weeks later showed a kid in a white shirt with black cow spots. Proof of her lack of insanity? No, but it started the cow craze.

For years afterwards, mom was gifted with all manner of cow things. Stuffed animals and figurines, calendars, wooden eggs with cow spots, framed pictures of mom with a calf at an orchard, flags, and so on. She became so inundated with cows that eventually, she insisted "NO MORE COWS!". It didn't work, but the flood did recede some... My cow gifts have scaled back to the occasional book from different places I visit. There are surprisingly quite a few, actually...

• Don't Eat the Bluebonnets by Ellen Leventhal
• Shamoo, a Whale of a Cow by Ros Hill (signed by the author!)

In 2006, the Cow Parade was in Boston, MA and I happened to be visiting while it was on display. There were 100 cows primarily in downtown Boston - and it took us a few days, but we managed to track down about 90 of them. It was a family outing, with everyone participating at some point over the few days.

For those unfamiliar with the Cow Parade, it is a collaborative art exhibit. Artists are given a cow sculpture in one of 3 shapes to decorate. The cows are placed around a city and are on display for a few months. At the end of the exhibit, the cows are auctioned off, with proceeds benefitting charity.

Some of the Boston cows were incredibly beautiful, some were very simple and others we certainly didn't understand. To each his own, really. All the cows have a lot of effort put into creating them. Here are a few examples of my initial Cow Parade experience...

The night I heard the Cow Parade was coming to Austin, I called my mom and said, very excitedly, "THE COW PARADE IS COMING TO AUSTIN!!!". I apparently was too excited and bubbly to be clearly understood as I had to repeat it two more times before she understood what I was saying. Immediately, she started making plans to come visit before it ended.

Our cow hunt began moments after she pulled her suitcase off the luggage carousel. The airport was host to three cows. While we didn't like the first two much (just a matter of personal taste, really), it was honestly a good start to reset ourselves for the Austin culture instead.

Our third cow at the airport was titled, "Happy People" and was more in line with what we anticipated. Mom sure was happy with it.

Our goal is to see all the cows, so today we targetted the ones that were less central and would require a lot of driving. With over 50 cows in town, we visited 13 today. From having lunch at Hut's and driving through downtown, we spied a few more, but didn't stop.

The Cow Parade is always a surprise. You never really know what you'll find or where you'll find it. Some cows are easy to find, like the ones at the airport. Others, you have to look around for a bit more, like the "Texicow" at the Austin Film Studios.

We drove in the driveway where their main Red Building was... No cow outside, so we went in, where a girl actually asked if I was there to audition. We walked through the building (empty save for the folks sitting in a room waiting to audition) and even out back where there were lots of RVs in a reallybig parking lot. No cow. Going back out front, we thought maybe it was on the roof of the building or someplace odd. No deal. Sometimes things happen to cows. In Boston, there was this:

We speculated that perhaps this had happened to the "Texicow". As we were walking back across the parking lot, though, I spied it! It was a good distance from their parking lot, up near the next driveway that seemed to require a security pass to get beyond the fence. We trekked across the crunchy grass to see the details of the silouhette we could only see from the parking lot.

The sayings were quite cool, and the "Don't Mess With Texas" was done in the reflectors like on street  signs, so it would be very visible at night.But the other side of the cow was covered with pictures.

Some cows are very interactive. One of my favorite cows from Boston, "Moo Indigo", had a sensor in its mouth. When you walked in front of it, music would begin to play. My nephew, Ayden, loved this cow, too. Mom and I both think he would like the "I've Got the Moosic in Me" cow...

A large group of folks came out of the radio station and asked us to take a group photo. Mom asked if they wanted the cow in it - and sadly, the answer was no. But many of them had no qualms about playing with the xylophone inside the cow.

Another interactive cow was the "Magnetic Cow". It hasn't had much magnet love, but some... folks are invited to add their own magnets to the cow. It is out by the visitor center at Mueller Lake Park.

Having a sense of humor is almost a necessity with the cows, too. In Boston, mom was made fun of for her frequent photos of the backsides of the cows. But some great art is here! This was true with the "Magnetic Cow".

And one of my favorite cow tails of the day, "Got Color?"...

The "Got Color?"cow was outside the George Washington Carver museum in east Austin. Not only was it really cool (the sides were done really well, with very different effects close up and from a little ways away), but we got to meet the artist, Bob Jones. He was a very pleasant man, and his daughter even lives in the Boston area. It was one of my favorites for the day.

While some cows are simple, almost plain, others are quite inventive. Another of my favorites for today was the "Mooquet" cow displayed outside Breed & Co.

In addition to the flowers in the top, there was a good amount of detail on the actual cow.

 And sometimes the detail on these cows is utterly amazing. While they are all a labor of love, some really have to of taken a serious amount of time. "Partying with Picowsso" in front of the Bob Bullock museum was certainly one of these. From a little bit back, you can see it took effort...

But when you get a little closer, you truly see what went onto this canvas.

As I was writing this tonight, I noticed the map we had been using was actually outdated and from July. In September, they released a second herd of cows into the city, bringing the total from about 50 to about 70! We actually missed one at one of our stops today. We may or may not make it back to search it out, but tomorrow we'll certainly have our work cut out for us in finding some of the others.

It's a good thing I found the new map, because some cows have mooooved. Others may be missing entirely... Because for some reason, some Austinites feel a need to vandalize these poor cows. Apparently, Austin has even been the worst city for vandalizim - worse even than cities like New York or Chicago where you'd expect that sort of behavior more. On the one hand, it makes me proud to have come from Boston where it was lower, but ashamed to now consider myself an Austinite.

Disaster Preparations

Growing up in the Boston area, threatening things to be prepared for included bad drivers, muggers, and the occasional hurricanes and blizzards. Travelling to the mid-west, your primary fear is a tornado, which having lived on the southern edge of tornado alley, I've become accustomed to. (While I don't know anyone that has one, if you drive up the road just a few miles, there is a place that sells tornado shelters. I have a closet under the stairs that is too full of stuff to possibly be any good, assuming anywhere in this house of sticks is actually safe.)

The places I lived in New England don't tend to experience storms like Katrina or Rita. And even with those storms, you could see folks along the Gulf coast treated them very much like we did in New England, with many folks not evacuating, but they were not typical storms. Even Irene's whallop this year is uncommon.

Being ready for a typical hurricane isn't so bad if it's not a high-category storm and if you're not on the coast. For the lazy and unconcerned, making sure they have enough stuff to stay entertained and fed for the duration is typical. For the somewhat more responsible, you also put tape over your windows, maybe even plywood, and you make sure your lawn furniture and potted plants and such are secure. Having a flashlight and even a battery-powered radio is certainly advisable if you lose power. Most people won't even consider flooding a potential issue and evacuation isn't generally necessary. Kids will be excited by the prospect of a forest of downed branches (I loved my jungle!).

Blizzards are very much the same with the addition of having to dig snow and if you lose power, you also need to consider a way to stay warm. Rural folks will try to make sure their roof is kept shovelled to keep it from caving in, but the city folk will find it a relatively foreign idea. Kids will be excited by the winter wonderland of sledding and snowball fights and the thrill of school being cancelled.

In both cases, if you do need to evacuate, it likely won't be in a considerable hurry and would be more due to loss of power than anything. A couple days worth of clothes and toiletries will be assembled, and you'll make sure your doors and windows are locked before you leave. Almost like a vacation. The chances are very good your house will be fine or only minorly damaged upon your return. In general, though, you just stick it out and wait.

This year, we have broken a 1920's record for the number of days to reach 100 degrees or higher. The previous number was 69. Summer started particularly early this year - back in late April/early May. And we're likely not done yet. We blew the record out of the water with 80 days at or over 100. Well, that's if there was any water to be had...

Back in September, we had plenty - there were roads with water on them that we hadn't seen flooded before. The start of the year, things were pretty lush, the lake nearby had been stocked with fish, and we were looking forward to summer thunderstorms (even if they brought a risk of tornadoes). You may recall my post from when we were travelling to New England in the RV. Already at that point in time, you can see on the rainfall map, that central Texas was below average for the year. It didn't get any better. Any possible chance of rain continually evaporated with the intensity of the blazing ball of fire in the sky.

Tropical storm Don made it to Galveston, but didn't make it far enough inland to bring any water to us. Despite the path being totally wrong, we wished for Irene to change course and visit us. We hoped hurricane Lee would bring relief but he didn't and it was dumped just a little too far east.

We are currently nearly 13 inches below the norm. And there is no rain in the forecast. And Texas is on fire.

We're hurting in a bad way, as I'm sure you've noted in the recent Facebook activity and venues like CNN if you pay attention to national news. This is a snapshot of the larger fires in Texas... I say larger because there were at least three in the Austin area today that did not make this map.

The largest fire right now is burning in Bastrop, which is just south east of Austin. A picture was circulating of the Austin skyline with the smoke from the Bastrop fires in the background. The smoke is so thick in places, it actually shows on the radar in green and yellow and thus appears we are getting rain there. This morning, it was 25 miles by 6 miles, with thousands of people evacuated and 2 known deaths. It has crossed highways and even the Colorado River.

More immediate to me and Ed, there was a fire about a mile from our house just yesterday/last night, that was still active today in a few places, including attics. You can see where the fire was, and we are the green dot. We are more on edge because earlier this summer, there was a fire just beyond the edge of the greenbelt that runs behind our house, on an undeveloped lot. This is indicated by the blue dot.

The situation has certainly become more dire, so we are rather nervous. These fires can move very quickly, as seen in this video.

So what do we do, with the threat of wildfire looming?

The first thing is very mental and emotional - facing the fact that unlike with a hurricane or blizzard, there is a very real chance that we could lose everything if we are truly threatened by a fire. Being mentally prepared to leave knowing there may be nothing to return to, but as long as I, Ed and the dogs are safe, that is all that really truly matters.

We will be trying to adjust our work schedules so one or the other of us is home until the fire risk diminishes. In the last couple of weeks, we have been out and roads between us and our destination have been closed due to fires. When a community is evacuated, if you aren't home preparing to leave, you aren't allowed in. We don't want to risk not being able to get back to the house and the dogs. We made sure to sign up with our cell phones for the reverse 911 service available in our area for alerts on nearby fires.

We have a small suitcase packed with a couple days worth of clothes and medication, as well as all our important documentation close to the door so we can grab it and get out quickly. If we have to leave so quickly that these can't be grabbed, the documents are at least in a fire safe. Our computer bags are packed as much as possible while still using the machines. We also have a couple of other bags of hard to replace items as a fourth priority. The car already has spare pillows and blankets for some small amount of added comfort.

With extra time, we have identified a handful of items to try and take, such as my great-grandmother's paintings. It is difficult to decide what is most important and valuable in a short span of time. While I like to think I would have had my priorities right if I was unprepared and only had 10 minutes to get out, I have read stories of people who found themselves frozen and unsure. And indeed, when I first started packing, once I was beyond the obvious documentation gathering, it did take me a few minutes to sort out priorities and what to prepare next. Even now, I doubt that I made all the right choices with what I packed.

There are road signs along some of the highways here for hurricane evacuation routes. We cannot plan ahead and choose where to evacuate to because our destination may also be threatened by fire or the roads closed. We have to play it by ear and keep a close eye on the sky, web, and news. We have to be flexible.

Despite all the preparation, there is also dealing with the uncertainty. Being in a near-constant state of heightened awareness of what is happening beyond the immediate neighborhood, paying attention to a 5 mile radius... And still going about normal daily life.

Because regardless, life goes on. Work still needs to be done, food needs to be eaten, and we still need to take time to relax and not let the stress of the situation eat us from the inside. If there is a fire, life will continue and we will rebuild.

We continue to hope for rain, a lack of wind, and for the safety and success of those fighting the fires.

Boston Visit

The weekend before Memorial Day weekend, we went to visit my family in the Boston area. I'm the oldest in a family of 5 kids (sisters Tara and Eranthe, brothers Cory and Fred) in a divorced home. We grew up in a small apartment, so the 6 of us are all rather close and family time is very important to me - especially when I only get to see them about once a year.

We went down on Friday, stopping on the way to have lunch at one of our favorite Italian places - Cafe il Cipresso in Tyngsboro, MA. Ed found this place while he was working on-site at Red Hat a few years ago. These folks make some of the best ravioli I've eaten, including sweet potato and squash filled delight, which is what I ordered...

Ed got the excellent overstuffed lobster ravioli with their Il Cipresso sauce...

Friday afternoon/evening was laid-back and included a visit to see my dear Gram. She is 94 and has finally shrunk to be below 5 feet but still has a lot of spunk, albeit less than she used to have. The rest of the evening was spent with most of my immediate family (except Tara and her sons) playing card games like Anomia.

On Saturday, the weather cleared up beautifully at my mother's house... The first truly lovely day we'd seen our whole time in New England at that point - featuring blue sky, sunshine, an almost-hot temperature, and a nice bit of a breeze. Tara and her boys came over and we played in the yard with them some while waiting for the rest of the family to assemble.

I even got to have another Boston-area treat... Ed went to the store and came back with Italian ice!

 

Once everyone was together, we all thought it would be a perfect day for the beach. It was plenty sunny and hot (not compared to Texas standards, but for the area and time of year, 85 is hot). We decided who would ride in which car and set out, stopping on the way for pails and shovels for my nephews and sunscreen for Ed.

Now, Revere Beach in the "old" days had quite the boulevard with amusements, especially roller coasters. They are all long-gone now, with no real trace left of them (the last, a carousel, closed in 1973), but the lovely bandstand and pavillions built in 1895-1905 remain.

While we missed the real heyday of Revere, it is still a nice beach and is home to Kelly's Roast Beef, where we get the fried clams over the beast. Every time Ed and I come up, we make a point of trying to make it out to Revere for some clams, no matter how miserable it is. We've even sat huddled on a bench at the pavillion across the street eating fried clams while there was snow on the ground and a miserably cold wind coming off the ocean.

 

Of course there was no snow this time, but the sunscreen was completely unnecessary. Approaching the beach on the highway, we noticed a thick cloud bank... By the time we made the boardwalk, it was clear that there would be no sun. The clouds melded into the fog that shrouded the sea, and it was all moving inward. The visibility was not much more than a hundred yards or so... There was no rain, but we were all left damp from walking through the fog.

 

We did get our clams, and ate them under the pavillion as usual, then took my nephews for a stroll up the beach near where some wind surfers were standing around not surfing. Not sure why they weren't - there was a decent wind, but perhaps not quite enough for them to go out with. Or maybe it wasn't safe with all the fog. Even though the surfers looked disappointed, the boys had fun just running along the beach and throwing rocks into the water.

 

And horsing around a little bit, too...

Saturday evening we went to see my big "brother", Paul, his wife Amy, and their dog, Kato. Paul and I have been friends since high school and he's become an extention of our family.



In past visits, we've stayed with them, so Lu and Gideon are very familiar with their house... and Kato is a recent addition to their family whom we hadn't met yet, so we weren't sure how the dogs would react to someone new in "their" home.

We didn't have much to worry about, aside from the fact that Kato is barely out of puppyhood and is a typical Australian Shepherd... that is, she is VERY energetic and rambunctious. With Lu being 10 and Gideon being 9, and both rather mellow regardless of their age, they were much more annoyed with the energy level of the whippersnapper than anything.

Sunday morning, we met up with one of my college roommates for breakfast at Sound Bites, where I had the berry pancakes, which had blueberries and cranberries in them. It was a very nice visit, just not long enough. But we all had other plans for the rest of the day.

Paul and Amy met us at the house with Kato, where we again waited for the family to gather. This time, we headed out to Castle Island, which is just south of Boston and is home to Fort Independence.

Everyone learned their lesson from the previous day and bundled up (except Ed, who we somehow only managed to bring one long-sleeved shirt for). Fort Independence was closed, unfortunately, but we were able to traipse around the island until we were all pretty worn out. The boys loved seeing the planes as they came in to land at Logan Airport, and the ships as they docked.

Monday came much too quickly, and we headed back north... but not before making a few stops. First, the mall to go to Lush and get some of the soaps I like. Yeah, I can order online, but it's nice to be able to smell them! While I was in Lush, Ed was making an unplanned stop at Teavana, buying some cannisters of tea. The next stop was Russell Orchard in Ipswich, where we got 15 (yes, 15) bottles of wine, primarily raspberry wine that Ed actually likes, as well as blueberry, black currant, cherry, and dandelion.

Overall, it was a great visit with my family. Hopefully the bunch of us will get together again before another 2 years have passed.