There were good winds today, pretty steady at 20 knots, so we headed to the lake. We washed a thick layer of pollen off the boat and then we were good to go. We sailed for a couple hours and then picked up Michael and Amber for more sailing and then enjoyed sunset back in the slip.
A good day…
I love this time of year in Austin. The hills look like broccoli.
And the golden-cheeked warbler returns for nesting season.
I wish it lasted longer, but I’ll enjoy it while I can.
I’m still going through photos from our recent road trip. In the mean time, I’ll share a moment from today…..
A month or two ago, I bought tickets in advance for the 2018 Best of Texas Hot Air Balloon Festival (and wine & food festival, AND polo match). I really just wanted to get some pictures of the hot air balloons. The festival is today, so this morning, before the sun came up, I headed to the polo grounds for the photo opp. It was a tad underwhelming, as the balloons didn’t actually launch. They simply inflated six of them, left them up for about an hour, and then deflated them again. Nevertheless, it was a beautiful sight, even if a fleeting one.
We passed this set of barges as we motored by Texas City Dike in Galveston Bay last week. The fog had lifted enough to see him. Other boats this big were a similar distance away when we passed them in the ship channel earlier in the morning, but the fog was so thick at that time that we couldn’t see them.
My friend, Irene, called me up over the weekend to ask me to meet her in Lubbock today. Her son is competing in a track meet and she’s flying in to watch him. I said yes. It’s about 350 miles northwest of Austin. So I hit the road this morning. Here’s some of the sights I took in today.
At some point I was surrounded by giant wind turbines as far as the eye could see. This picture captures the old with the new, all planted in the middle of a freshly harvested cotton field.
There are prairie dogs everywhere in Lubbock! (And meadowlarks, too)
It turns out one of the best places to go birding in Lubbock is the cemetery. So I had to check it out. And sure enough, I saw many. Buddy Holley was from Lubbock, and is buried here. I stopped by to pay my respects.
Tonight we went to dinner with Mike and Amber at the Pour House. A fun evening. And we ordered a colorful variety of draft beers. Monte seems to be a bit ahead of us before the toast, though. Cheers!
One last photo of the Christmas tree before I take down all the lights and decorations. Oh, have I mentioned that I love tulips?
After dinner last night we cruised by some Austin neighborhoods that light it up during the holidays…37th street, Clarksville, and a few in between.
Enjoy a bit of Austin weirdness:
An homage to a scene from the movie Stranger Things:
Now, THIS is weird:
R2D2 lights:
Sock-monkey nativity scene:
Just a mess-o-lights:
Not weird:
Merry Christmas!
My sister, Fran, sent this Christmas ornament. I love it!
Who’s with me?!?! 🙂
Last night Mike and Lori joined us to watch the Lake Travis Christmas Boat Parade. We put a few lights on Nirvana and cruised along with the other boats. It was a beautiful, not-cold night; fun!
We are ready!
We watched the Seahawks game at a bar downtown today. Our Hawks won! On the way home we stopped in at Mozart’s coffee house to check out their Christmas light display. I’ve never been. But it definitely is a thing to see this holiday season. 🙂
I was awoken this morning by 6 fire engines on our street, sirens and lights going. Apparently a house fire, though it must have been a small one, as no flames were visible, just smoke in the air. No one was hurt, thankfully.
Sheila365 