New City!!

It's been so long since I lived in/near a city, I'd forgotten how great it is. I've been going a little overboard since moving to Austin four days ago...

That's right, I live in Austin now. After six months of small Texas towns in the middle of nowhere, I'm THRILLED to be here! My Groupon account has been reactivated and is already my best friend again; I've already used two. I haven't eaten anything I've gotten at the (wonderful, organic, has EVERYTHING on my list) grocery store yet, because I've been too busy being excited every five minutes when I drive by a new restaurant (or dive, or food truck) I want to try; I've eaten out or ordered in for almost every meal. (Groupon has also come in handy for this.) I ordered pizza the other night, from a non-chain place, it was AMAZING. Everywhere on every menu in every eatery in town there are multiple vegetarian options, so I never have to eat cheese enchiladas three days in a row ever again. Next week I'm taking my boyfriend to a concert of an actual, nationally-known musician. And we don't have to drive 2+ hours to get there, it's more like less than 2 miles away. I've been researching yoga studios (yes, plural, so awesome) to find which one best mirrors my favorite yoga style, setting, etc. It's so great to have choices again, whether in food, exercise, or entertainment. Already loving this place!

Although I do love being in the city, Austin isn't just any city. More to come on why I wanted to move here over other choices, and why Austin is already my favorite city of all the ones I've visited so far. So glad I'm here to stay for a while.

What I Saw When I Wasn't Looking

I was trying to park my car at the eye doctor's office today, driving slowly through the parking lot so as not to run over all the old people. (I'm always the youngest patient at the eye doctor's office, by about 30 years.) I was lost in my own little world when I saw something that stopped me in my tracks. Literally, I stopped. Well, I had to, because what I was looking at was this elderly couple walking right in front of my moving car. So I stopped and let them pass, but after they had walked away, my foot stayed on the brake as I turned to follow them with my gaze. Something about them arrested my attention.

The man had large, dark glasses on, the kind that you get after they've dilated your eyes and you can't stand the sun. He was having obvious difficulty seeing. The woman was wearing normal corrective lenses, but she was having quite some difficulty walking, taking small, unsure steps to maintain her balance. She had her arm through his, and his other hand grasped hers as she leaned into him. In a similar manner he leaned into her as she guided him. They clung to each other for dear life as they painstakingly helped each other across the parking lot.

I couldn't tell you anything else about them, what they were wearing, the average age they appeared to be, the type of vehicle they got into. I didn't notice. In that moment, the only thing I saw were two people, close enough to be one, counting on each other for each step they took. Something about it was so poignant that it was overwhelming. In that one glimpse, I learned something about life, the beauty and sorrow it holds, about true love and compassion and companionship. And I sat there, not trying to understand why I was overwhelmed with emotion, but just thankful that I had been.

Unstuck in The World

"There was once a man who became unstuck in the world – he realized that he was not his car, he realized that he was not his job, he was not his phone, his desk or his shoes. Like a boat cut from its anchor, he’d begin to drift."

"There was once a man who became unstuck in the world – he took the wind for a map, he took the sky for a clock, and he set off with no destination. He was never lost."

"There once was a man who became unstuck in the world – instead of hooks or a net, he threw himself into the sea. He was never thirsty."

"There was once a man who became unstuck in the world – with a Polaroid camera he made pictures of all the people he met, and then he gave all the pictures away. He would never forget their faces."

"There was once a man who became unstuck in the world – and each person he met became a little less stuck themselves. He traveled only with himself and he was never alone."

"There was once a man who’d become unstuck in the world – and he traveled around like a leaf in the wind until he reached the place where he started out. His car, his job, his phone, his shoes – everything was right where he’d left it. Nothing had changed, and yet he felt excited to have arrived here – as if this were the place he’d been going all along."


-Castles in the Sky