July 15, 2019 – Keith Robertson

“A Dull Boy”

Another week of long work days for both of us. Becoming too much of a trend lately. We need to fix that soon. “All work and no play, makes Keith a very dull boy!”.

My comment about steak tartare last week prompted Raj to send me this hilarious clip of Mr. Bean about to enjoy the same:

We were paying close attention to Hurricane Barry on Friday, as it started to head towards New Orleans and surrounding areas. Denny and Anne returned form their European jaunt on Monday and had to move their cars out of their flooded street, and get ready for several days of being home bound.

Webster Street has never been this much flooded before, and the storm hadn’t arrived yet.

My friend Norma, from Guatemala, was trying to get to New Orleans on Saturday to see the Rolling Stones at the Superdome. This is the rescheduled concert from the Jazzfest 50th anniversary show that was canceled due to Mick Jagger’s illness. Wouldn’t you know she had to fly on Friday afternoon to get in ahead of the storm, only to find out that the concert was pushed back to Monday. We’re hoping she finally gets to see the band after so much effort. She was in Lima, Peru this week, planning for our new system to be implemented, and was complaining that it was mid winter and very cold. It will not feel like winter in New Orleans for sure.

Thankfully, New Orleans was not too badly impacted by Barry.

Out in San Diego, Campbell reported his best sales month ever, and best week ever to close out the quarter. Look at the salesman extraordinaire go!

This screensaver on my computer took me back to the gorgeous Scottish hillsides, covered in heather. Also made me picture Bramble, Elspeth and David’s new Labrador, out for a run and having fun. Correction – maybe she’s really Heather’s dog.

Our neighbours across the street are moving to a house with better “outdoor living” after 15 years in their current house. We’re very sorry to see them go – such happy people who would help us with anything. It’ll be interesting to see who moves in next.

I always enjoy waking up to the sunrise view and the Friday morning edition was very impressive.

Diana arrived on the afternoon bus on Friday and it reminded me to share this picture I snapped earlier in the week. One of the luxury Vonlane buses had broken down and the Corvette the mechanic drove over to repair it was hilarious. Zoom in and check out all that crazy air intake equipment.

Less than two hours after arrival, I had Diana over to Antone’s to see the amazing Marcia Ball. I just told her that I had a fun activity planned, and didn’t provide any more details. She was quite excited on seeing the billboard.

Part of the entertainment of a Marcia Ball concert is the way her legs and feet keep the beat. On good display in this clip:

We always laugh at the song, “Just Kiss Me Baby”:

Given Hurricane Barry bearing down on Louisiana, Randy Newman’s “Louisiana 1927” was quite poignant:

It’s amazing that a song about the flood of 1927 still seems relevant today. Here Marcia makes the song her own, following an excellent saxophone solo:

Ball is an impressive performer at the age of 70, having played in small clubs across the South for more than 50 years. Equally impressive are the charities she runs to provide housing and healthcare for Austin musicians.

The Boogie Kings, a band formed in Eunice, Louisiana in 1955, were billed as the headliners, but the crowd had cleared out a good bit for their set – most folks came to hear Marcia Ball.

Their soul music was very good, particularly the three horn players who had clearly being doing it for many years. Here’s the “Harlem Shuffle” showcasing the horns:

As we arrived back home to the apartment, the dull sheen of the work week was starting to wear off.

Saturday began with a swim and sauna, followed by a delicious Mediterranean lunch, coffee and crossword at Opa. Then a Target shopping run and back to the apartment for a nap for me, while McD joined the craziness of the monthly pool party, including a DJ playing music she didn’t enjoy.

Diana was in charge of entertainment on Saturday night, and she opted for a walk down South Congress. We paused outside the Continental Club to listen to a very good swing band – it wouldn’t have taken much to convince D to head on inside – and then continued our walk on down to the South Congress Hotel. There really are so many interesting stores and restaurants on this street – very unique. We enjoyed a drink at Craft and Commerce – commenting on the beautiful decor, and then walked across the street for dinner at June’s. We sat on the patio and enjoyed the people watching.

I was up early on Sunday to watch the Gentlemens’ Final at Wimbledon. Going to bed on Saturday, Diana said it started at 8am, and of course I had to argue – believing that was 8am Eastern. When I got to the TV at 7am Central, the pre-game show was just starting. Diana was right again. She always says, “What was that?”. I’ll repeat – Diana was right again! What an excellent tennis match. Federer’s single handed backhand is superb, but his forehand let him down too often to prevail. I think we shared the Duchess of Cambridge’s emotions.

Sunday morning continued with a swim and sauna, followed by brunch at El Alma – so good. I enjoyed an afternoon nap and some reading time. In the evening, we walked across to the lawn at the Long Center to enjoy the Austin Symphony brass section in a free outdoor concert. They really do take full advantage of the open spaces in downtown Austin. The concert was a good mix of Renaissance music, film scores, Texas songs, and marches. The crowd was the typical Austin mix of lots of dogs, kids, and even a guy doing yoga next to us. Here’s a view of the almost full moon over the Catherine from my lawn chair, as the sun set on activities.

Here’s a short video of the brass section performing the “Yellow Rose of Texas” with some views of the apartment and downtown:

I enjoyed the book, “Machines LIke Me” by Ian McEwan, very much. What an excellent writer and a creative premise. The novel is set in 1982, the miners are on strike, unemployment is soaring, and Margaret Thatcher has dispatched the Navy to protect the Falkland Islands from take over by an Argentinian junta. These are all historically accurate, and then McEwan puts a twist on things – the war in the Falklands is lost with 3,000 casualties, Lennon and JFK are both alive, and Tony Benn is challenging Thatcher for leadership of the country.

The biggest tweak to history is that Alan Turing is still alive and treated as a hero. He has built on his famous World War II code cracking machine, and created many of the foundational components of Artificial Intelligence, which he provides to all via open source. Charlie, the hero of the story, acquires one of 25 new androids, capable of developing a human-like personality over time. The novel deftly explores what can go right and wrong as androids become more and more human-like.

This book reminded me a lot of Roth’s “The Plot Against America”, with the slight tweaks on history. This one is equally well done. McEwan has certainly become more of a crowd pleaser with his last few novels, but still highly enjoyable and unique.

I include this first song just so that I can tell a short story that I learned recently. When receiving the rite of Catholic confirmation, participants choose the name a Saint that they admire. Diana chose “Bernadette”, best known for her visions at Lourdes.

Returning to Antone’s on Friday reminded me of my first visit there after moving to Austin, and the excellent Doyle Bramhall II show, featuring special guest Lukas Nelson.