A bittersweet day — my last in Austin. Yeah, I want to get home to my comfy, familiar (after 3 months??) home in California and play with my dog; but I’ll be returning to a pretty lonely place, especially after having been part of a rambunctious, funny, loving family here. This is not the kind of family I am used to, and the experience is so foreign yet comforting.
So, here I sit, enjoying a triple shot mocha and blueberry muffin from Jo’s coffee shop, contemplating the end of my mini-vacation and the beginning of airport security. I wonder: why bother packing anything when you just have to unpack it all again for security? I’ll have to disassemble my camera and laptop, take of my shoes and belt, and probably give them a little skin sample from the back of the neck.
And they’ll detain me to ask my why the back of my neck is blue.
I think I’ll wander up and down South Congress Ave. this morning, checking out the weird and wonderful shops; although I only brought a small little carry-on bag, so I won’t be doing any shopping… unless there’s something I must have and they do shipping. Anyway, one thing that Austin still has is fun, neon, googie signs — something that most cities have done away with in favor of relatively boring and uniform corporate signage. Up the street here there’s an old theatre that seems to now be some kind of office building. The marquee is still there, though, and on one side it reads: “The other side is the truth.” Drive a few more yards, and you can see the other side, which says: “The other side is a lie.”
Among my favorites is this strangely phallic motel sign a few doors down:
Surreal: taking a picture of taking a picture…
Later today: off to one of Sara’s benefit shows, then from there it’s time to wing to the west. In about two weeks, I’ll be back in flight to get back home to DC for DC Shorts. I’m wondering what it will be like to be back home. I mean, 3 months isn’t that long really, but how will it feel to be in a place I lived for my entire life, but without a home there? Without a car, without my own bed, without my dog? These questions will be answered on September 21. Stay tuned.
