High: Spending quality time (eating) with my boy. Adrian and Wynne joined the big birthday dinner at Justine's where he enjoyed his steak slathered with butter at the coaxing of the older guys who could no longer indulge; he and I lunched on healthier fare at Mr. Natural before picking up the settlement from his bicycle accident: justice was served with a side of spinach salad; and I met the two of them at the Round Rock Chuy's for a cheesy-good dinner on my last night before heading out to see Adam Ant. I know the way to my boy's heart.
Low: Having to say goodbye to my pet fish of the past twelve years. For most of that time a fourty gallon tank was home to four South American fish, but for the past few years it's been down to just two. I had no idea of the life expectancy of tropical fish, and despite multiple suicide attempts by Shiny the gigantic tin foil barb, they had outlived their welcome. Neither the tank nor its occupants were wanted by the current residents of my Austin house. I scooped them up in a bucket to transport them to an aquarium store that accepted 'used' fish. The bucket wasn't manageable with the lid, and the second I set them down on the sidewalk to open the car door, Shiny made one last attempt at freedom or death. He leapt out onto the sidewalk and flopped around on the grass while I searched for a way to pick him up (it's harder than it looks: they are slimy and strong); I hoped he wouldn't die in this stupid way after all these years. Before I knew it he was in the street and flopping his way under my car. I grabbed the lid, caught him on it mid-flop, and quickly dropped the huge fish back into the water. I felt like I had to explain why there was grass and dirt in the water once we made it to Aqua Tek, but the clerk wasn't deterred by the trauma we had just been through. He carefully lowered my two longtime companions into a very large, very clean tank that held only two other fish. I said my goodbyes through the glass while Large Marge, the sweet severum, lingered in front of my face trying to make me cry.
High: Getting to see not one, not two, but five great bands from the past. Paul's band Superego played their annual reunion show with Sin Pelo, and I was fortunate to be in town for the Blondie/Devo and Adam Ant tours. It is ridiculous how much music there is in Austin, and I have always enjoyed this particular aspect of life there. I danced at all of these shows and had a blast.
Low: Everything I had to deal with in going to these shows. Traffic was cut down to two lanes on I-35 on the way to see Adam Ant from dinner in Round Rock. A distance that should have taken me 20 minutes took about 45, and I missed the first half of the concert. My car actually overheated just as I was exiting the highway and able to drive at a normal speed. Lucky for me, it quickly cooled down and I was able to make it to the club just in time for 'Ant Music'. It wasn't a complete surprised when my car was hit in the parking lot after the show; I had been put on edge by aggressive drivers for much of the visit. The worst part was thinking that I wouldn't be able to drive my car back or that my return would be delayed. Taping the bumper back on with zebra-striped duct tape was a mini-high in this low.
Other Highs: chocolate cake from Upper Crust, seeing my old cat Bob, hanging out after the Hole in the Wall show like college students, dinner at Sagra...
There were a few other lows, but let's focus on the positive! I'll always have mixed feelings about my home of 30 years, but will continue to go back for visits very regularly. I feel perfectly fine being in a state of limbo for the time being. My life has been full of big decisions; I'm going to let this one work itself out.
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