March Forth!

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Tuesday, March 4, is another nation wide 50501 protest. We are at the Texas Capitol and it's our last day in Austin before heading home on Wednesday. We gather to protest the current administration and "March Forth Against Fascism".

We took an Uber to the event and left our cameras at home. These pictures are from our cell phones. I was worried/hopeful that the protest might descend into a riot. There were lots of news reporters and photographers there — I even asked one fellow if he'd share his photos with us. There wasn't a riot although there was some talk about guns and the right for protestors to "bear arms" even there at the state capitol. Not a path I'd want to take.

There is some awareness of the threats and insults 47 has made against Canada — tariff wars, border disputes, threats of annexation, 51st state, "governor Trudeau", etc. I talked with one fellow who had a sign about the tariff dispute, identified myself as Canadian, and discovered his partner was Canadian as well!

Friday past was the disastrous televised White House meeting with President Zelensky (see NPR Report) where Putin's Puppets made it clear where they stand — they don't stand for democracy and treat Ukraine as an extortion opportunity (give us your rare earth minerals, we'll give you up to Putin). The history of cease fire violations by Putin was not something 47 & Vance would hear. The idea that you cannot have a cease fire without security guarantees was a notion that these puppets would not let Zelensky argue. They seemed to have no awareness of the Budapest Memorandum (1994) where Russia, the UK and USA promised to protect UA sovereignty in exchange for giving up nuclear arms. So much for security guarantees. They didn't even seem to understand that this war started in 2014 (Trump thought the annexation of Crimea was 2015, Vance corrected him). The event was an embarrassment but there are many who still side with 47 and Putin. GOP OMG WTF! It was a terrible day for us made all the worse by the news that a dear friend Don had passed away back home in hospice care back in Canada.

There were lots of Ukraine flags; someone was giving out sun flowers (a UA emblem); and I wore my MUGA T-shirt — Make Ukraine Great Again. A popular MAGA translation at this event was "Morons Are Governing America". There were some of the same speakers from the last 50501 protest. A good sized crowd came but we wished there were more. There were some great signs, check the photos above.

After about an hour of people gathering and listening to speeches we marched down Congress. Kate and I trailed the group and, with our aged injuries, could not keep up. It was a very windy day and our hats and signs kept getting blown away. There was quite a large police presence in cars, on bikes and motor bikes, and, ominously leading up the rear, a group on horse back. Fortunately the police presence wasn't required; no riot ensued.

Can it get any worse? Well, yes it can get worse. And apparently it will get worse. We are distressed to see this sad state of affairs in a place where we have so many fine memories. 

BMI Songwriters Series

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Down Lamar, a short distance from our long stay in Austin, is the iconic Saxon Pub. They have several shows each evening from 6:00pm until late (even earlier on the weekend). We've been there many times and keep coming back. It's a short Uber ride to the pub, if we were younger and braver we might ride our bikes (we did years ago), but there's no parking at the pub or nearby so Uber is our best bet.

One of the regular live music events at the Saxon is the BMI Songwriters Series held from 6:00-7:30 on the first Monday of every month. This is a free event, no tickets are required and they don't pass the tip jar. Instead artists are sponsored by their music publisher — BMI Texas. We were here back in February and had first discovered the event in March 2024 (there's more to read there). It's an event we really enjoy in an environment where people listen attentively to the music. It's not well attended, but should be.

Tonight the first three artists are Keith Davis, Mallory Eagle, and Bobby Murray. They each get to play three songs and, after a short break, they are followed by Sachin (of Sachin and the Porch), Drew Harakal and Ty Dillon. Mostly this is a guitar song swap but Mallory and Bobby had rehearsed a song together. Drew through in a few fancy guitar licks for Ty. They were all accomplished musicians at home with their music.

These are signed artists with BMI. Some have published music (and albums); all are thankful for the royalty cheques they receive. Keith Davis lives in Buda, a suburb south of Austin, and sang some very sad tunes which I really enjoyed. Mallory Eagle is from Oklahoma and has several albums out with a new one, "Neon Waltz", just released (see her YouTube channel) — she's pretty authentic country. Bobby Murray is a young fellow from the north east and is dressed the part; he tells us that he actually works on a local Texas farm. Sachin is a performer who has been kicking around Austin for a while with his band "Sachin and the Porch" (see their YouTube channel). Tonight he's solo. Drew Harakal comes from Fort Worth and is a pretty intense performer. He has released several albums — see his YouTube page. Ty Dillon is a big guy, very funny. I recall him singing a drinking song about tequila. Check out his YouTube page.

There is an interesting documentary, Saxon Pub: Saving Texas’ Historic Live Music Venue, on YouTube that tells the story how this iconic bar was saved. Up and down Lamar developers of multi-story condominiums have pushed out small bars like the Saxon. How close they came to being yet another victim and how they were saved is an interesting story.

The Resentments

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Sunday, we went to see "The Resentments" at the Saxon Pub  — one of our last music events as we head home on Wednesday. This is a ticketed event, a regular event (a residency for years now) and we get a table near the stage. 

I understand that one of the "rules" for the "The Resentments" is that the players should just come and perform without rehearsals, without a set list. They have been playing together for years so they know the tunes and can easily follow the rules.

We had been here a few weeks earlier on our trip but this was special as Jeff Plankenhorn was also here. Tonight the band consists of Bruce Hughes (bass), Scrappy Jud Newcomb (guitar), Jeff Plankenhorn (guitars and mandolin), and John Chipman (drums). Miles Zuniga, who Gord wanted to see, wasn't there. I've since discovered he's on holidays in Europe.

Most of the songs came from the front row of Bruce, Scrappy and Jeff. However, John Chipman did a couple of songs: "Just a Step" (by the Resentments from "Switcheroo", 2008)  which he often does with the Purgatory Players on Sunday mornings and "Already Gone" (by Slaid Cleaves from "Ghost on the Car Radio", 2017). Both worked very well with his gravelly voice. I had been in conversation with John trying to get my hands on "Just a Step" and found a copy of Switcheroo on Amazon — luckily as it's long out of print.

At the first Resentments event we attended, a month or so ago (February 9), they joked about No. 47 (aka Agent Kraznov, Don the Con, The Commander and Thief, and more) claiming Canada as the 51st state and suggested that their friend Jeff should be the governor. Jeff is an American but has a connection to Canada living with his wife, who is Canadian, on Vancouver Island. I found this joking around disturbing and deeply insulting. The tariff wars the current administration has unleashed are an awful betrayal and a real threat to Canadian sovereignty.  As a result I had a conversation with John over Facebook Messenger and again this very morning at the Purgatory Players.

We are distressed that people, especially musicians, do not take recent events seriously. While everyone seems to be against what's happening and nobody claims to have voted for him the attitude seems to be that things will return to normal in a couple of years with the Democrats taking back the congress at the mid-terms. We worry that the democracy will not survive that long. 

This isn't a matter of petty politics, what's happening in Washington is morally wrong! Everyone needs to speak up; to be silent is to be complicit.

Tesla Takedown

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Yesterday, Saturday March 1, we were at a "Tesla Takedown" protest in San Antonio and met up with our friends from Blanco. We gathered with several hundred on the IH 10 service road in front of the Tesla showroom/dealership and protested from 2-4pm. This is an international movement to put pressure on Elon Musk where it hurts most. Our protest met with broad support from many passing by (honking, thumbs up, waving, etc.). See  Tesla Takedown Campaign and What to know about the #TeslaTakedown movement targeting Elon Musk and DOGE (Feb 28, 2025).

We do not agree with the chain saw tactics of an unelected billionaire, no mater what his intentions, empowered by Don the Con from Mara-Lardo with a pseudo department. DOGE is not empowered by Congress, Elon Musk is not a cabinet director reviewed and approved by the Senate, his minions in DOGE are not auditors — they're young hackers gleefully wrecking institutions built to protect the vulnerable. The auditors who were in place in the many agencies, the Inspector Generals, were put there by Congress to perform that role and have the ability and training to fill that role.  DOGE does not. The IGs were illegally fired by "He who cannot be named" without cause to give Musk and DOGE the room to do their damage. See The Significance of Firing Inspectors General: Explained (Jan 31, 2025).

This country is no longer a democracy, it's a Broligarchy of the filthy rich who care little for anyone other than themselves. The damage done will not be so easily undone. So much for "American Exceptionalism". For those who voted for this; we hope you're happy with what you got. What's the price of eggs?

We head home shortly, not a moment too soon. Apparently tariff wars begin Tuesday.

Chip Roy Protest

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Usually, when travelling, we'd write about the music, the art, the scenes, and the fun times we're having. Texas this year is not so much fun. 

We arrived in the US on the day Don the Con (the Commander and Thief from Mara-Lardo) was inaugurated (crowned in his imagination) — January 20. Every day since has been a barrage of WTF executive orders (edicts if he were king) that defy decency, common sense, and legality. So while we try to have some fun we are constantly aware that the house is on fire and most don't seem to be reacting. But some do, like our friends in Blanco who we first met on our Galapagos cruise (2019).

We were in San Antonio yesterday to attend a protest at the office of Rep. Chip Roy (Congressional District 21, Republican of course). This small protest was organized by our activist friends from Blanco and the Blanco County Democrats. We were in the city early to enjoy a visit to the SAMA (San Antonio Musem of Art) and lunch at the Tre Trattoria at the musem. We arrived at the protest just before 2:00pm on a cold and windy afternoon.

We met our Blanco friends who had made their signs for the protest. Wendy is the one in the pictures carrying the folded triangle vetrans flag, the vetrans cap and the sign "My Dad fought Nazis - Stop Elon"; Tammy, her partner, carries the sign "F*Elon and the FElon". There were lots of good home made signs including one that quoted extensively from Gov (Illinois) Pritzker (see below). Kate and I are carrying printed signs provided by the organizer — we took one home and proudly display it in the window of our rental in Austin. I especially liked the sign "Make Orwell Fiction Again" and the red "MAGA" hat that reads "Make that Asshole Go Away".

Chip Roy's office is inside the building where we were protesting. Many of the protestors went to his office to register their objections. Of course he wasn't there, he'd be in D.C. voting to increase the debt ceiling, slash social services, and cut taxes on the rich. We stayed outside in the wind and cold — it was only just above freezing. As Canadians we were prepared for the cold with gloves, mitts, scarves and warm clothing. Kate gave out extra mitts, Reg gave his woolen scarf to a fellow protester dressed only in a suit.

We were a small protest group — there were some young folk, and even another Canadian couple. We don't get to vote but we certainly are affected by what happens down here — e.g., the tariff wars No. 47 imagines will be a hardship for everyone — we need to protest and have every right to do so. Cars passing by were sometimes supportive (honking, waving, giving a thumbs up). One kind young woman saw our protest and returned with hot coffee to warm us. Most of the passing cars did not respond at all and I only saw one guy (in a pickup of course) roll by with his window down cursing us and giving us the finger. On balance, I think people were supportive. They'll be even more supportive when the "shit hits their fan" as is sure to happen.

At 3:00pm we all agreed to pack it in; enough of the protest. Some of us, including the Blanco gang, retired to a nearby Chuy's restaurant to warm up, talk about the current chaos, have some margarita's and noshes, and share a few chuckles. The young waitress was a treat and sympathetic to our cause. We enjoyed our margarita's and some apps. Several of us at our end of the table ordered "large" margaritas (the waitress encouraged us to order a $1 tequila bump added as it's "happy hour"; we all agreed). When she came around later to encourage those who had order regular sized margaritas to order another she pointedly said that we at the other end of the table who had ordered large ones (with a bump) were OK (i.e., we didn't have to order another drink). One of our small group picked up the tab, we all contributed to a healthy tip.

Conversations on the chaos and our woes centered around how the recent election had broken up families. The waitress tells us that she, her mom, and grandmother vote for the "right party" (which didn't get in) but the grandfather votes Republican — so they refused to take him to the polls to vote!

In all it was an interesting day ... but, remember the curse: "May you live in interesting times".

See also: 

• the full text of Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker's ‘State of the State' address (posted Feb 19, 2025).

James McMurtry

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Wednesday was my birthday (once again we're in Austin). We had a pretty quiet day as the weather was not cooperating but that evening we were lucky to see James McMurtry solo at his residency at the Continental Club Gallery on South Congress. Amazing show, as always. 

Of the many tunes that we enjoyed that night I was struck when he played "Peter Pan", from "It Had to Happen" (1997). It includes the chorus:

I keep my distance, as best I can
living out my time here in Never Never land
I can't grow up 'cause I'm too old now
I guess I really did it this time mom

That line "I can't grow up 'cause I'm to old now" pretty much captures me and my birthday. This YouTube video (2023) of James performing "Peter Pan" at this club captures the event pretty well; even down to the stage patter. We have pictures of the show, we don't record videos.

We have seen James several times over the years on our visits to Austin (you can search this blog if you're interested). One of our very early experiences would have been at La Zona Rosa (1994) when he was working on "Where'd You Hide the Body" (1995). He has a regular residency at the Continental Club when he's not on the road touring (recently he's been touring with BettySoo). One night he's solo upstairs and another night he plays downstairs with his band. We much prefer the solo show. He started the show with "Red Dress". He's performed that in a red dress while touring with BettySoo as a protest against the repressive drag queen laws in Tennessee (see Bijou Theatre, Knoxville 2023).

There were lots of his hits that night, "Choctaw Bingo" of course. Most we recognize right away although I had to go home to look up where the Peter Pan story comes from. There's another new tune, "Pinocchio in Vegas", that I was expecting but didn't hear that night. Overall I was struck by the melancholy of the music, especially in "Copper Canteen", from "Complicated Game" (2015). The opening lines may get a laugh in Texas:

Honey, don't you be yelling at me when I'm cleaning my gun
I'll wash the blood off the tailgate when deer season's done

But the story is not funny at all. Peter Pan is a story of a young person's relationship, this one is about a long standing relationship and the boundaries and compromises that make it work.

See also our blog, Complicated Game, Waterloo Records (2015), a record release performance we saw on another visit to Austin.

I'm not a musician (Kate plays a bit of guitar) but I've always been impressed by James' guitar work. He can make a single acoustic guitar sound like a full orchestra. Some novelties I see in his guitar work: he often uses two capos (one to tune the bass strings differently); he often tunes down the bass strings; he plays with a 6 string, 12 string and 8 string acoustic guitars! I don't think I've ever seen an 8 string guitar before. He plays with some force and part of the set includes a break so we can go to the bar while he retunes the instruments. He's amazing and a real treat to see.

We met a couple our age at the door from Cinncinnati and shared a front row couch with them for the show. We four were the first in the door at 8pm on a cold winter night. They were on their way to a vacation in Hawaii and had stopped in Austin for a couple of days. They were staying just across the street in the Austin Motel ("So close, yet so far out on South Congress") and had been to some of our favorite haunts — e.g., Guero's and the Magnolia Cafe both down the street a bit. They were really surprised to find that James was playing across the street and pleased to see him in this solo environment. They had seen him before touring with his band. I think it will have been a night to remember for them, it certainly was for us!

Letter From a Friend

Yesterday we wrote a letter to the Austin Chronicle (a local Austin entertainment weekly). It was posted online last night and reads:

Letter From a Friend

RECEIVED Mon., Feb. 10, 2025

Dear Editor,

We are two retired Canadians who love Austin and have been regular visitors since 1990. We love Texas and we love Texans. We are writing this letter in response to the actions taken by your president in the three weeks we’ve been here (a trip planned a year ago — most of our friends and family who had planned trips to the U.S. this year are going elsewhere or not traveling). We have witnessed your president (47) do incredible damage to your Constitution, to the economy and to the world at large. For example, whether or not you support foreign aid (of note — it accounts for less than 1% of the U.S. budget), its sudden withdrawal means many deaths, perhaps millions. But that is just one of many damaging and unconstitutional acts 47 and his co-president, Musk, have perpetrated. Personally, we are deeply offended by the chaos they have unleashed. And let us assure you, Canadians do not want to become the 51st state and will not respond kindly to a hostile takeover via a tariff war — a war that benefits no one.

To our American friends — we know you are tired. We know you have just been through a grueling election. We know you have been constantly fighting disinformation spread by 47 and his cronies. We know that 47 has caused irreparable rifts in families. But you have to fight back. And you have to fight soon — before it is too late. The damage done by his actions so far have affected mostly people outside the U.S. or federal employees, but soon everyone will be worse off except the very rich. WAKE UP! This is not a battle between left and right. It is a battle for your country and democracy.

This new world order unleashed on January 20 cannot be our future.

Kate Graham & Reg Quinton
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At the urging of our Blanco friends we have sent versions of this letter to several local papers. 

This morning (February 12) we read about a recent executive order imposing sanction on the International Criminal Court. Will it never end? The 47th believes he and his cronies are above all laws — state, federal and international.

We sometimes feel like we've taken a 6 week ocean cruise and every day we're hit by hurricane weather. Is there no safe harbor?

50501 Protest, Austin

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Kate's notes on the protest today here in Austin with my minor additions:

Well, something finally seems to be happening down here. We went to the "5051 Protest" (50 states, 50 protests, 1 day). It started at 11am and was supposed to continue until 4pm but we left at 1 (had to use the washroom and then we got some lunch at the nearby Texas Chili Parlor Bar while we were at it). I love a good protest and usually they feel like they might matter. But this one made me sad – even though I am glad to see it happening and we will try to support any other ways of fighting back that happen while we are here or back home. Unfortunately, we can’t stop buying American until we get home. 

A woman at the protest asked Reg if he was from Pflugerville (a north suburb of Austin) and he said no, Canada. She started in on how we should not let Canada be bullied by Trump and we should stop buying American goods – I said people were doing that. She felt terrible that the US was acting like that toward their good friend Canada, and toward Mexico too. Like many we meet she apologized for the sad state of affairs here and asked if she could move to Canada. Not the first, nor the last, to ask for asylum in our home.

But the problem is that Trump is doing his evil works so fast and so crazily that it seems impossible to fight back (see "Shock Doctrine", 2007 by Namoi Klein). While everyone is still reeling from the tariff wars, he starts talking about the US taking over Gaza and people who live there can find “nice new homes” in other countries. Just one dire thing after another.

Even though everything Trump says won’t come to pass, some of it will. Today at the protest, a trans person told the crowd that she had had her passport taken away from her. Another speaker said her parents couldn’t come to the protest because they were afraid of being picked up and deported. Just so many sad and desperate stories.

There were many interesting and meaningful signs (see the photo album above). But the one sign pretty much captured it – it read: “Too much for one sign”. One sign said “People can’t be illegal” – a good point. Here’s a good and relevant song from the first round with Trump ("Who's Going to Build Your Wall?" 2007 by Tom Russell). I think there have already been protests over immigrant raids – we should find out and support them. 

Here's a funny story. When we arrived, we perched on the ledge beside a guy probably in his 30s. Reg noticed he was wearing a pistol and asked him why he brought a gun. He said, well, if counter-protesters came, they would probably be armed and he wanted to be able to defend himself. (I didn’t bother trying to tell him about the people in the crowd who might bet hurt/killed in the crossfire). He said but if the gun made us feel uncomfortable, he could cover it – and he pulled his t-shirt down over the gun. He told us that you can do open carry or hidden carry in Texas – both are legal (which we knew). In fact, he said, you could even take a gun into the capital if you wanted (we were protesting on the steps of the capital building) – I somehow doubted that – I recalled being searched when we went on a tour there years ago. And there were plenty of armed officers at the protest to protect the capitol. Reg told him that we were from Canada and weren’t used people bringing guns. Then the really funny part. I was carrying a lawn chair in a bag in case there was nowhere to sit and he glanced at it. So I told him what it was. He said, "You’ll probably have to turn that in – they’re collecting objects like that over there." We laughed at the irony that they would take away my lawn chair (which they didn’t) but the gun was just fine. He said, "Ya, that’s Texas."

Anyway, it is good to see people fighting back and hopefully it will make a difference. But it does seem a bit bleak right now. 

JWW and the Prospectors

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We were at The Little Longhorn Saloon last night (Saturday January 25) and caught an early show 6-8pm of some western swing by JWW & the Prospectors (Facebook). We arrived early, the band was still setting up, and, as the evening progressed, the dance floor filled. The bar is a tiny spot, with a tiny stage and tiny dance floor but it was quickly jumping, with lots of dancers out to have a good time.

There were many tunes with a funny story line: e.g., there was a song about "Cheese Crackers and Pabst", another about "Insufficient Funds". They seemed to be mining their tunes, or at least the style, from the '30s and '40s. But doing an excellent job.

We didn't know the band and had never heard of them. They are local to Austin and we were pleased to see them; they were way more fun than we had expected. But that's often the case at the Longhorn. It's pretty authentic country; they describe it as "Classic Western Swing from Austin TX". Here's a sample YouTube video of "Happy Hangover". They have a CD "It's High Past Time" (2011) which you can find on many of the streaming services (it's on my iTunes) but it's long out of print. From their Facebook page I see they play around town but not regularly. That's a shame, they were certainly appreciated last night.

Over the years we've been to the Little Longhorn many times; we'll be back — especially for music and dancing like this.

See also JWW & the Prospectors (YouTube Channel)

I had fun taking a lot of pictures with my fish-eye lens; Kate was trying out her new phone/camera; there was another fellow there who took a few pictures on what looked like an old 4x5 film camera.

Hair of the Dog

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Since at least 2016 Kate's brother Gord and his wife Leslie have hosted a "Hair of the Dog" party on New Years day at their home in Ottawa. They move the furniture out of the way, set up some sound equipment (mic's, amps, music stands, keyboard, etc.), and invite their musical friends over to "jam it up". Some not so musical types, like me and Kate, take in the event as well. We drove up on December 30th and returned January 2. It's a party we wouldn't miss. Of course during the pandemic the party was on hiatus.

Kate can play a bit of guitar and I'm always after her to sing a song with me (like "Dirty Old Town" or "The Crawl") but she's usually reluctant. This year was no exception. She strummed along but we never took the mic. Gord has let us know that if he ever hears "Angel from Montgomery" again he may go postal. Dang, we love John Prine.

Of the many tunes played by the many musicians I'll mention some that stand out. Gord did a rousing version of "Auld Lang Syne" in a rasta beat with a spoken interlude thanking everyone for coming. That's Gord in the photo above. A musical friend, who plays multiple instruments, did a moving version of Steve Earle's "Goodbye". Leslie did a couple — "A Bar Song (Tipsy)" by Shaboozey (apparently a big radio hit that none knew) and "Once Every Hundred Odd Years" by Silver Hearts (which I can only find on YouTube). There were some very accomplished musicians who must have put in their 10,000 hours.

We renewed conversations with guests we've met over the years and figured out some connections. Carolyn, an academic, is friends with Leslie (via CEGEP schooling) but also with our "neice" Kait through working on the homeless issue. Gord and Leslie gave a rough head count of 36 musicians and guests. Quite the gang!

As it's January 1 I'm starting my "Dry January" and kept the drinking to a minimum (unlike the night before). Our No.1 son asks if by "Dry January" I mean I'll only drink dry wines? No, Chris that's not what I mean.