Good Old War – Better Weather
So you leave St. Louis in the dead of winter, when sub freezing temperatures threaten your take off, and snow storms await your return……and what happens in Austin….flurries. Ok Ok, that was only on the last day that we were there, but really? You go south because you’re worried about the weather in the Northeast for your baby moon, and what happens, it snows. Worst off, you’ve walked to your Sunday morning breakfast at your recently reviewed restaurant on “Diners, Drive Ins and Dives”, and it friggin starts snowing after your 45 minute wait outside. I hate to start this post with such a negative tone, but really I just wanted to use this song from the new Good Old War album and this made sense.
So for the second half of our trip, I’d like to think that my wife had my interests at heart. We spent the afternoon at a great bar after whole foods. We talked life, career, happiness about the new baby, how annoying it was that the fire alarm sensor next to us kept going off, and all the fun parts of being young and free of commitment. We walked back to the hotel late in the afternoon only to stop by Brooks Brothers in hope to find some baby clothes for some friends that had just told us that they are having a boy (FYI, no luck unless your kid comes out 7 years old). We then prepped for one of the most interesting nights I think I’ve had in a while. On a recommendation of a friend we purchased tickets to a show at the Alamo Drafthouse to see the new Denzel and Ryan movie (if you’re asking who that is then you’re not a fan). This turned out to be one of the best decisions we had made since we decided to trounce around Livermore, CA wineries a few years back (like 4 years back). The place is awesome, and other than the unfortunate trip to a nearby bar for plastic cup draft beers and “too soon” Whitney Houston jokes, all I can say is that we had a blast. All I can do is link to their information and hope that you read into some of their awesome events….and that they are now franchising. Imagine a movie with only grown ups, a full bar and food menu, and hilarious pre movie content. Check it out, visit if you’re around any of their locations, and pray that St. Louis and other major cities catch on. Alamo Drafthouse.
So after a great evening, I unfortunately then had the pleasure of waking up to the “plastic beer cup” stomach issues, which caused just enough discomfort to keep us in the hotel room all day after the breakfast listed above. But before the complete waste of the day, we were able to visit an awesome local shop that celebrated local artists……and awesome sh*t. It hurt more to not buy the amazing assortment of baby clothes than it did to not be able to keep food down. Parts and Labour. All I can say is that they had one of the best Onesies (spelled wrong) in the world which I will probably save for a future post. Let’s just say that it’s brown, and hilarious.
After a day in bed, we decided to hit up our last nice dinner at a Japanese/Sushi restaurant named Uchi, which used to have the privilege of employing the most recent Top Chef winner Paul. We stretched the borders of sanity by having preggers try some “raw fish” items. As we tempted fate, we referenced some great blog posts online from pregnant women in Asia as our support. “I’m pretty sure women in Japan and China whose diet is primarily raw fish…..still have healthy babies. ” That being said, apparently people that have bad beer from plastic cups don’t have the same positive reactions to raw fish, and after a couple close calls on the way to the bathroom, we made it through dinner.
So all in all, Baby moon was a success. We ate, I drank, and she slept. Seriously though, it was a great non work visit to Austin, and I think that we decided that one day it might even be a contender for a place to live if the right opportunity came along. We may have to bathe a little less before visiting certain areas of the city to fit in, but I think it’s got great people, great fun, and apparently one of the best movie theaters in the world……for serious. Here is one quick shot from the trip that sums it up, thanks Austin, and thanks to all of those people that gave us great spots to visit:
traveling daddy 