This morning I went with Kiki, my 2007 BMW F650 GS motorbike, on a ride to downtown Austin. I wanted to leave early to beat the traffic, but unfortunately got a late start at 9am. When we arrived downtown, there were so many cars. It’s no fun to be stuck in stop-and-go traffic on a motorcycle.
However, it was pretty cool to see so many people out and about having a good time. When I rode up Congress Avenue towards the capitol, I saw lots of tourists and it made me feel pretty good knowing they are visiting at the perfect time of year when the weather is not too hot. And of course us locals really enjoy it too!
I made a video of the ride, so if you have spare time, please watch 🙏 (at the end of this blog post)
Tonight I saw a band I really like play a show at Stubb’s. Tennis was awesome! They sounded great, with Alaina Moore singing perfectly and her husband Patrick Riley’s guitar work excellent.
The setlist was really good, and I got to hear most of my favorite songs. They pretty much spread out the setlist over their entire discography, which I prefer over setlists that just focus on the latest album.
Here’s one of the “oldies” from 2013 that they played:
Stubb’s Waller Creek Amphitheater is a cool place to hear live music. It’s outdoors so if the weather is nice, it makes for a great time. Tonight happened to be clear and in the low 70s so it was perfect. One bad thing about Stubb’s is that people tend to talk a lot during the show, so if you want to just hear the music, you should move close to the front. Otherwise all the talking can get really annoying. I moved around a few times just to get away from loud conversations.
This was the first concert I’ve been to since the pandemic started. The band required negative COVID tests or proof of vaccination, and the staff was indeed checking everyone at the gate. However, I still wore a mask the entire time. (I was one of only a handful people masked up)
I was a little nervous going to the show because of COVID, but I’m really glad I did. It was a lot of fun and I even came home with a new t-shirt. 😄
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/100 sec, ISO250 “Broken Tree” Cedar Park, 2021
The ice storm in Texas is over, and fortunately the only damage we sustained was to one of the trees in our backyard. Two of it’s large branches broke under the weight of the ice so today I cleaned up the debris.
It took a few hours to cut the branches into small pieces using the hand saw and small pruners, then tie them into bundles and the work went smoothly. I ended up with 14 bundles, and now they are by the curb ready to be picked up with the trash. We’re allowed to normally put 7 pieces of trash out in addition to our large bin, but I am curious to see if they will take everything.
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/6.4, 1/100 sec, ISO1600 “Big Logs” Cedar Park, 2021
I saved the larger branches and logs to use as firewood when we go camping. The firewood for sale at the park or even the supermarket can be expensive!
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/100 sec, ISO320 “Firewood for Camping” Cedar Park, 2021
The damaged tree will probably have to be removed because the limbs that came down make the tree unbalanced, and I am worried that it will fall into the deck. So, when we get our trees trimmed in a couple of months, I’ll have them take that tree away.
The last picture in today’s post is of one of the last pieces of ice I found today. It’s shaped like the United States, don’t you think?
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/100 sec, ISO2000 “America-Shaped Ice” Cedar Park, 2021
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/5.6, 1/1100 sec, ISO200 “Chilly Sunset” Cedar Park, 2021
It appears that the terrible mess we have in Texas has an ending in sight, but many people still do not have electricity to keep warm, nor clean water to drink. I’m hoping tomorrow brings good news, but this evening, I will just take a photo of the hazy sunset to remember the day.
