7 years in ATX

Sorry for you folks out there enduring those horrible winter storms. Very treacherous -- dangerous. The day we left St. Louis for Austin was back around December 18, 2000. They had just had a bitter cold front come through following snow and ice, and it was about 2 degF when we were packing up the moving van. We just had our "efficiency" stuff, enough to live in a one bedroom apartment, and our 3 cats, Alex, Henry and Duncan. I drove a car with Henry and Duncan in it, and MrB drove the Penske truck with Alex.

Alex was hyperactive and loud. We got valium from the vet to help him make the trip, but even after a human-level dose he was wide awake and meowing himself sick. He was obsessive. He did not sleep -- at all. My cats were pretty scared and quiet, petrified with fear I guess, and as soon as Henry's carrier was opened for his litter pan break, he peed on the car floor instead.

There was another big winter storm expected to impact the trip, and we were super-lucky to have made it to a motel in Oklahoma before the highways became impassable. Otherwise we would have had to spend the night in the car/truck... each of us with VERY unhappy cats... not to mention freezing in a snow/ice storm. For an auditory impression of how he sounded, imagine Granny Clampett yelling "JED!!! JED!!!" at the top of her lungs.

Even in the motel, Alex continued to cry. He did doze off a little, but meowed in his sleep. I am not making that up. I didn't think it was possible. And he had been tranquilized.

The next day was thankfully fit for travel, hard to imagine repeating that evening, and I don't think Alex would have survived it. He meowed for the whole rest of the journey into Austin, and by that time we had almost completely lost his voice. I think the trip added a year or two onto him. He wasn't one to go with the flow, he was always as obsessive as a Terminator, didn't give up. He eventually got his voice back, but a little of the piss and vinegar was gone (only a little).

Our temporary apartment (until we could get a house in Austin) was in Georgetown, a good commute north of town. It was the only place I could find that would let us live there with 3 cats. There was sunshine and it was very pleasant, in the 70s in the daytime so a denim jacket was plenty for day or night. Back in the midwest, you don't get much intense sunshine in the winter, it's pretty gray and overcast, day after stinkin' day. The other thing we noticed is that it stayed light for about 45 minutes later in the evening. All in all, an excellent way to spend the solstice by having some sunshine (not to mention nice temperatures) to celebrate.

Feels like home to me, and we see friends every where we go. However, I fully understand and accept that it will take at least 7 more years before we are considered "local", and as far as some folks are concerned, it will NEVER happen. (I can't help those folks, and will never see eye to eye with them on that point) But -- if you bring something good to the table, something creative that nurtures and supports the local culture and the good things about it, you can get your Austinite credentials a little sooner.