Dave's Family Visits the Austin Area – March 2003 (Part One: The Arrival)

I’d been living in Texas for about six months when my parents decided they wanted to come down and visit.  It sounded like it would be fun.  Since I was still exploring the area to see what there was here, we could all do that together.  I made the arrangements to take the time off from work so I could give them my undivided attention, then Mum let me know of an alteration to the plan.  She let me know they’d mentioned to Uncle Bruce & Aunt Sue, and they wanted to come along.

Hell, the more the merrier, I thought.  Since it was going to more than what fit in my Sunfire, they could share the car rental cost.  Bruce had reserved a respectable-sized SUV.  A few days later Mum let me know that Aunt Mary wanted to tagalong also.  Sounds good to me.  Arrangements were made for them to all get the same flight together, and a series of rooms were secured at the Springhill Suites (overlooking the Mopac Expressway, near where Braker Lane crosses it).

Then I was informed my Uncle Earl also wanted in on this trip, but he’d made his own plans to get here.  Okay, Earl’s always been the lone traveler, so I knew this would be interesting.  Earl liked to travel by bus, as he said he got to meet the most interest people that way.  That’s true, but I find you meet the scariest people at the bus station.  As Earl already had plans to see some people in the center part of the country, he’d just take a bus from there and meet us in Austin.  Everyone else was coming in by plane, but Earl would still be arriving the same day, just later towards the evening.  Fortunately this was not the week of South By Southwest (one of major times where Austin goes completely crazy and every available space is booked), so Earl was able to get a room at the same hotel as the others.

Here was the plan.  Each morning I’d drive over to the hotel, park my car there, and meet the family as they were having breakfast.  I’d be their guide as we traveled around Austin, and the surrounding area.  I offered to drive, too, but Bruce said he preferred to do so.  I did state the point that it’s harder for him to enjoy the scenery if you have to keep your eyes on the road.  Bruce countered, noting by being a navigator, it would be my job to make sure I knew where we were going.  Well, can’t argue with that bit of logic.  I’d only scratched the surface of the area so far, and my driving had been limited for the most part to interview locations, and a few of the major routes.  Having the trusty MapCo book handy, and the ability to study it as we went along, should ensure a smooth trip.

DAY ONE (Thursday, 13 March 2003):  ARRIVAL OF THE CLAN

When flying from Albany to Austin, there’s always going to be a layover, and you’ll spend a large portion of a day just in the travel.  My family was smart about making the arrangements, as they’d planned it so they’d arrive about noon.  I tried not to think about what unnatural hour they had to get up at to make their flight.  Okay, I was still at work when they came in, so I couldn’t meet them at the airport.  That also meant they’d have to drive across Austin themselves, and find their way to the hotel.  Weeks earlier when Mum told me where the rooms were booked, I drove down to the area so I could find where exactly it was, and provide information on the necessary landmarks.

I’d given them directions on how to get there, but that section of northwest Austin could be potentially confusing (because it’s where Mopac and Route 183 cross each other, and Route 360 springs out from that mass).  Part of the information I mentioned was the street the hotel was on Stonelake Blvd appears to end at Braker, only to extend a little farther a distance down from the intersection.  It was so much a separate street that I don’t know why it didn’t have a different name to begin with.  Because I’d taken the wrong turns and spent the time figuring that shit out meant they didn’t have to.

Being of Scottish descent, our family traces back to some of the Highland Clans.  Growing up in an area in northern New York State with people of similar descent, we don’t think anything about commenting about our ancestry.  So when I was at work and mentioned that I’d be spending the week “with the clan,” I got a lot of bizarre looks from people.  It took me a moment to realize they thought I’d said “with the Klan.”  Quickly realizing the different meaning (and Southern connotation) of my common-use word, I explained this was “kilts, not white sheets.”  Once that was done, my co-workers got a good laugh about it.

Where I worked (a call-center called Unisys) was located on the southwest side of Austin, and I lived on the northwest side (and didn’t enjoy that 30-50 minute commute).  The airport was located on the southeast side of the city, so I knew my family would enjoy the high-speed highway drive to get to their hotel (insert sarcasm here).  After work, I drove up to meet them, and see how well they found it.

Mum let me know the first set of directions I’d given was confusing because of all the roads criss-crossing one another, but the alternate set was useful.  She also said they were thrown off a bit by the frontage road concept.  For example, I’d said “take the Braker exit off 183, go right (by the Boston Market), and then after two stop lights, look for Stonelake on the left (by the Burger King).”  When they exited 183 on to the frontage road, they thought they were then on Braker, not realizing the frontage road was considered part of the route they were on.  They figured that once the first intersection and saw the crossing road was different than what they thought they were on.  See, there’s wisdom in providing physical landmarks to know what to turn by.  Many times those are far easier to spot than a street sign.

After they’d unpacked and gotten settled in, Sue had already noted there was a bar next door (called Sam’s Boat) that she wanted to wander over and check out.  I never realized my aunt was such a lush.  There’d be time enough for that, but first five hungry jet-lagged adults needed food.  I opted for the easy location and known menu, so we went back down Braker to the aforementioned Boston Market.  It’s pretty cheap and filling, and will be enough to carry them through the night.

Once we ate, it was about time work our way down to the bus station to await Earl’s arrival.  I’d never been to the Greyhound depot in Austin, as I’d never had any reason to do so.  It was fairly easy to get to, due to its proximity to Highland Mall.  I’ve never seen a bus station that looked nice, and I truly believe they’re purposely placed in the scariest parts of the city.  (Perhaps the bus station is placed in a nice area, and later becomes scary due to the elements it attracts?)

Earl’s bus arrived on time, and as soon as he came out he was asking where was a place he could get a good piece of catfish.  Everyone looked at me.  Hell if I know, most of the food I eat from the water is tuna and lobster.  Since everyone had spent the day in transit, the best plan would be to put everyone to bed, so we could get a nice early start the next morning.  Considering I tended to rise pretty early in the morning, I could be shower at home and at the hotel by the time they were still having breakfast.  When you have a limited amount of time at a location, it’s best to use it as wisely as possible.

For current information on the places visited or mentioned:

            Austin (TX):  http://www.austintexas.org/

            SXSW (South By South West):  http://sxsw.com/

            Sam’s Boat:  http://www.samsboat.com/home.html

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