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Thursday, November 12.
The maids at the Driskill have piled our pillows and the fake mink cover into a corner of our room behind the chair to give us some space. There would be a lot more space in this tiny room if they would chuck them all instead! We haven't slept very well and put it down to the big fluffy comforter which makes us too warm, so we crank up the air conditioning which makes us too cold, so we don't get much rest. We awoke early at about 6:00 a.m. Kate is not well rested having tossed, turned and fussed with the temperature all night long. Her RHI conference starts at 8:30 and we have tickets to see Robert Earl Keen that night in Gruene at the old dance hall some 40 miles south off the IH-35 before San Antonio.
Reg goes out to find some early morning coffee, milk and cereal for our breakfast. We discover later that the RHI conference has set out a splendid hot breakfast on the mezzanine level with everything one could ever ask for! Today instead we have some cold cereal from a little shop across the street. It will be nice when we move to our long stay apartment (we're only here at the Driskill for the conference). It will be bigger, with less of these silly accessories that we don't need, we'll have a small kitchen of our own and we can stock up a fridge with essentials from a proper grocery store.
We have read about a "Wine and Food" event in San Antonio on Saturday and book it over the internet (which is free at the Driskill). Our tickets for Robert Earl Keen tonight were purchased when we were still home back in Canada.
Kate heads off to her RHI conference at 8:30. It starts with a very funny presentation listed as "Austin Welcome". The guy introducing things has a bar/store on 6th Street. He welcomes conference attendees and then says, "This being Texas, there's a very special person coming to welcome us, but there are security issues." And then next thing is, there's very muscular, very big guy who comes in wearing a spandex outfit, earphone, weapons, bulletproof vest, etc. Then they start playing "Hail to the Chief" and another guy comes in pretending to be George W. Bush. He's actually one of the troupe of comedians from Esther's Follies and he's very funny. He says lots of dumb things, as would the real George W., and picks on the one guy in the audience who is from the UK, "Do you speak the language?" They then did a 15 minute video presentation on Esther's Follies which is also really funny. Especially funny with their street antics — e.g., a fake car salesman with three scantily clad women goes into the street and stops a pickup with two young guys in it and offers, "If you buy this today you can have the two studs too!" The MC then gave a short history of Austin music venues with slides and pictures. Then a panel of Austin fellows talked about the club scene. This included the current owner of Threadgills (who was pissed off at over regulation and the condos going up in the Barton Springs/Riverside area), George W. Bush's "security guard" (he was a police officer in real life, a former bouncer and the winner of a superhero reality show contest which somehow explains the spandex outfit), and George W. himself representing Esther's Follies.
That morning, while Kate is at her conference, Reg explores Congress Street and the State Capitol. Congress runs into the grounds of the capitol at 11th; the grounds are bounded on the north side by 15th. Our hotel is on 6th and only a couple of blocks to the east of Congress. On Reg's way up Congress he passes the Stephen F Austin Hotel at 7th where we had stayed on our last visit. There another panhandler engages him in conversation. Reg is obviously a tourist and the panhandler wants to show him the sites — he thinks Reg ought to go to the Catholic Cathedral at 10th and Brazos. "It's very beautiful, a wonderful Cathedral", he says. But Reg says, "Thanks very much but no, thanks". He doesn't need or want a guide. He tips him some silver coins to get him to go away and he is willing to go but asks if Reg might give him a $1 bill as well. "Sure, here you go!" Alms for the poor.
But Reg does follow up on the suggestion. The St Mary Catholic Cathedral is open and being cleaned by a Hispanic woman. They have a Sunday mass in Spanish, another in Latin, and several in English. It's a nice church, but it's not a cathedral like we've seen in other cites (e.g., the Washington National Cathedral is huge by comparison — so, not everything is bigger in Texas). Speaking of Hispanic ladies, Reg bumped into one in the men's washroom off the lobby at the Driskill (where the urinals have black beach pebbles to match the granite countertops). That was a little awkward. We see lots of Hispanic and other people of color serving as maids, in kitchens, etc. and especially see them waiting for the Metro bus system. There are no "street cars" or subways for public transit in Austin; you need a car to get around and, if you're poor, you take the bus. There is a recent "Capitol Metro" train from the north end of the city but it's only just started and it's only a single line.
At the Capitol Visitor Center, Reg is told that you can tour the legislature building on your own or take a guided tour. He takes a guided tour at 10:00 conducted by a nice lady whose accent sounds like she's from the Caribbean islands. He doubts that she's a native Texan but you never know. On the tour you get a quick lesson on Texas history, especially the battles around the Alamo and the fight for independence from Mexico. There's a big painting of Davy Crockett (who died in the siege of the Alamo) and the surrender of Santa Anna (the Mexican General) to Sam Houston at the Battle of San Jacinto in the lobby. There are marble statues of Stephen F. Austin (he of the hotel at Congress & 7th fame) and Sam Houston (he of "You don't want to go to Houston. No, not never!" fame). The capitol has an impressive dome (yes it's higher than the dome of the capitol in Washington — some things are bigger in Texas) with a "Six Flags of Texas" mural set in stone in the floor below. The six flags which have flown here are Spain, France, Mexico, the Republic of Texas, the US flag, and unfortunately the Confederacy. There are portraits of all of the governors under the dome. It ends with Ann Richards (1991-95) and George W. Bush (1995-2000). Reg guesses the current governor, Rick Perry, has been there a while since George W. is now the president.
The legislature is a bicameral house with a Senate on one end and a House of Representatives on the other end. Reg learns that the house only sits every two years on the odd numbered years! The governor can call a session, but if the governor does, it must last for at least 90 days. This is a very odd hold over from the pioneer days when travel would have been a burden.
There are lots of interesting statues on the grounds of the Capitol including the "Ten Commandments" — isn't there a separation of church and state? There's also a "Confederate Soldiers Monument" which, frankly, is more than a little offensive. It's a Jim Crow Era monument (1903) that celebrates "[the] CONFEDERATE DEAD [who] DIED FOR STATES RIGHTS GUARANTEED UNDER THE CONSTITUTION". Of course the "States Rights" they're talking about is called slavery. This revisionist history should be taken down.
Reg returns down Congress looking for a drug store and acetaminophen for Kate and a camera store for a new battery. On Congress at 5th Reg visited the Mexic-Arte Museum/Gallery where they had a big "Day of the Dead" exhibit. The Day of the Dead is actually several days around Halloween where the dead are honored in Mexico. There are altars to the dead, known as "altares de muertos" or "ofrendas", that are set up for celebrations on November 1 and 2. The idea is to honor the dead and show them they have not been forgotten, something like remembrance service we have at the Walter's Falls cemetery. Some of the altars in this exhibit are to family members, others are to issues like all the dead in Iraq and Afghanistan, or the missing women in Juarez, etc. The lady at the gallery, when asked, suggests that Reg should go to Precision Cameras at 38th and Lamar. She asks, "You have a car?" It's well beyond a leisurely walk.
For lunch Reg grabs a quesadilla and beer on 6th and meets Kate at 1:00 in their room on the off chance that she might skip out for a swim. But she's enjoying the conference and decides to stay. We arrange to meet again at the 3:00 break on the balcony where Reg has been reading. He's reading a book called "The Children" which we found on the street in Miami back in January. It's an historical account of the civil rights movement focusing on a group of young people ("the children" of the title) who are university students and started the lunch counter protests in Nashville around 1960. They went on to become "freedom riders" who went into the deep south to help with voter registration and voting. It's a moving story which brings him to tears by times. Especially when contrasted with the Confederacy statues on the Capitol grounds. There's still a long way to go.
Reg takes the car up to Precision Cameras as recommended by the lady at the Mexic-Arte Gallery. He could have spent hours there. It's a great camera store with an impressive used collection. Reg's battery for the Canon Rebel is replaced for $70 (they aren't cheap). But he could have bought a used Nikon F circa 1965 for only $130. That's a collectible camera he lusts for but he doesn't need to collect any more film cameras. Digital is the way now.
Afterwards he's back down to Waterloo Records on 6th and Lamar where there's no parking spaces as they are sealing the parking lot. Waterloo Records is a music collector's dream. He'll try to go back another day. Perhaps to see James McMurtry who is playing in the store next Thursday at 5:00. James seems to be playing every Wednesday at 12:00 a.m. (midnight) at the Continental club on South Congress but it's not likely that we'll ever be up that late. We see he's playing at Threadgill's South at 9:00 p.m. on Saturday next, our last night, perhaps we'll see him then.
After the conference Kate and Reg head off for Gruene and the show at the Dance Hall. We leave at 4:30 and head south on the IH35. Kate had mentioned to a colleague that we were off to see Robert Earl Keen and he started to describe the "Old Gristmill" restaurant — "We know, that's where we're headed for dinner." Gruene and the Old Gristmill are well marked along the IH-35; we have no maps but it's no big deal to find our way.
We eat outside at the Gristmill. Most of the tables are in fact outside. We are served by a pleasant and attractive young woman from Fort Worth. We have been there (there's the huge Billy Bob's bar and music hall in Fort Worth). Reg has some barbeque baby back ribs and has been assured that no real babies have died for this (c.f., the movie "Fried Green Tomatoes"). They're slow cooked, very smoky, sweet and fall off the bone tender. Kate has some huge fresh Gulf shrimp, lightly battered, and we share a lovely Becker Chardonnay from nearby Fredericksburg. It's oaked and aged "sur lie". It's quite a good wine which we sample several times during our Texas stay.
We queue up to enter the dancehall at 7:00 hoping to get good seats. Kate waits sitting on the curb by the entry while Reg stands in line in the queue. Kate is still nursing a twisted ankle which she injured on our Algarve trip in October. There are several uniformed police and security types but it's not a big deal. It's going to be a big crowd and some security will be required. With all of this security, especially the police, that might explain why we never saw or smell any dope being smoked. We understand Texas has very strict drug laws. Underage drinking, sure that's ok. But dope smoking fiends? No way!
Inside the dancehall there's a bench around the edge of the room but it's standing room only for those who haven't cornered a bench. And those who have grabbed a bench won't able to see much of the show given all the folks who will be standing in front of them. All of the long tables for sitting and chatting have been removed. It promises to be a "full house". The hall has a capacity of 800 and tonight they will probably be over that! They are packing them in.
Kate and Reg do find a spot to sit in the pool table side room near the front to the left of the women's washroom and the stage. A couple of young men, they're in their 40s, are playing pool at the table where we are and we're often in their way. But we have a friendly chat with them and get to know them pretty well. Later they even buy us a glass of wine! This ain't no Fernie bar but you can get Chardonnay and Pinot Grigio as well as Lonestar and Shiner beer! Of the two men, the younger one has just turned 40. The older one is his brother who is visiting from Grand Rapids Michigan. He had changed flights especially so he could see this Robert Earl Keen concert. Later Kate befriends a couple who have come all the way from Galveston (that's on the Gulf Coast just south of Houston, some 225 miles away to the east). That's quite the distance and they have done that on a motorcycle!
The opening act is Buster Jiggs who starts around 8:00. It's a young woman playing acoustic guitar with a band, her husband is the drummer. She looks a bit like Kathleen Edwards and is quite good. We are very impressed by them and they are quite honored to be opening for Robert Earl Keen. The sound system is very good but cannot compete with folks who natter away with one another. If they're not interested in who is performing why don't they go outside to talk? Well, they probably don't want to lose their spot.
There are men's room facilities outside — some "Johnny on the Spot" portables for this event. We noted that perhaps only one in ten or so wash their hands at the stations provided. The old men's room behind the stage, not much better facilities, is being used tonight as the "Green Room" for the performers.
In the packed house there are some young college aged kids. Some folks are very old and gray. It's quite a mix with lots of hats, boots, and fancy cowboy shirts. Reg has his fancy shirt that was especially made for Fred Eaglesmith. He had won it on a draw at the summer picnic. But it's cool out tonight so a jacket hides much of the flash. He wore his cowboy boots. We fit right in.
We bought Robert Earl keen's new album "Desert Rose", some T's, a bumper sticker, and by mistake, a koozie. We learn that a "koozie" is a beer bottle cover/insulator. Fortunately the merch table takes credit cards.
Robert Earl Keen came on about 9:30 or 10:00 and played until 11:00 when we headed home.
The house was crowded, standing room only, extremely full, with no good views. Kate sat and kneeled on the pool table. She did get up to go to the women's washroom and then ended up at the front of the stage when they sang "Corpus Christi Bay". We told our motorcycle friends from Galveston that this was our favorite song, so we were thrilled when he played it. The gal from Galveston, who was the Robert Earl Keen fan of the two, said her favorite song was "Mariano" (from his 1989 "West Textures" album). Unfortunately he didn't play that song:
The man outside he works for me, his name is MarianoHe cuts and trims the grass for me he makes the flowers bloomHe says that he comes from a place not far from GuanajuatoThat's two days on a bus from here, a lifetime from this room.
It was hard to get any pictures with the crowd but Reg was able to get behind the speaker tower at the women's washroom and got some good photos. This standing room only at Gruene Hall is not our idea of fun. We could hang around for an autograph but Kate needs to be ready for tomorrow when she's the keynote speaker. She decides to work in some pictures of the event into her PowerPoint presentation for the next day.
We slept pretty well tonight but awake the next morning with a bit of a hangover and the feeling that we've spent the previous evening chain smoking. They smoke cigarettes and cigars in Gruene Hall. And, although it's open to the elements, it does cling to you.
Transcribed and edited during the OMIGOD! pandemic of February 2022 from notes taken at the time.
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