Lone Star

Lingering about the Lone Star State.

Texans sure love their star. On the last day of a work conference in Austin, I finally found time to visit the Capitol ...

... and caught a good selection of the state star motif incorporated virtually everywhere there, ...

...those artificial star sightings bookended by our big natural star rising in the morning ...

Sunrise over Austin, Texas, through the hotel window.

... and setting in the evening. The shortening days mean I am actually up when the sun is now, and we happened to be taking off for home (delayed) just as the sun was heading over the western horizon.

Sunset over Austin, Texas, from our ascending plane.

In contrast to the natural "star" light, check out the on-theme light fixtures!

And, from the beautifully skylit underground extension, the state flag atop the cupola.

With all the work meetings, there wasn't really any opportunity to play tourist. I didn't even lay eyes on the hotel pool, nor set foot in the gym, nor use any other hotel amenities. I only managed to squeeze in a couple of sights, one before the start of the meeting on day 1, ...

The Boardwalk along the Colorado River near Lady Bird Lake.

...a group outing to an art space with my colleagues as part of the conference,...

... and then after the conclusion, when we got word of the flight delay, on day 3 - when I headed to the Capitol not far from the hotel where the conference was centered. 

A too brief stay, but I did manage to sway my extended family to schedule our mini reunion around this work trip, and Lil' Bro and I worked from Texas for a day around that. The rest of that weekend was spent with extended family - uncles who are no longer so mobile (and therefore can't travel), cousins born much later than the rest of us out of a young uncle's second marriage (they could be my children had I had children at the start of my legal career, and are about the age of my friends' eldest), and a first cousin once removed - a "niece" - whom I had never met for various reasons. Family dynamics can be funny, and sometimes a little uncomfortable. But family reminds us of where we came from, and some of the values that are most important. It's my extended family that, directly and indirectly, helped us establish our footing here in the States so very long ago. And undoubtedly would be there in a pinch. It's good to reconnect every so often, good to see Papa Rooster gets to reconnect - these were the people who were once as close to him as Sissy and Lil' Bro to me, and I can't imagine not seeing them for so long.

So creative scheduling got me close to a week in the Lone Star State, and a nice balance of professional obligations and personal duties fulfilled.

 

Midweek Mariner Munchies

Sailing past tragedy in Battery Park City 22 years after 9/11.

Throwing back to this past sunset-perfect Wednesday, when I met up with two friends/classmates/colleagues on the Westside at a boat on the Hudson for a most lovely catch-up.

Photos are unfiltered. The hues were just like that in real life. The city was all aglow.

As I waited for my friends to arrive, I watched the boat with trepidation as it rocked periodically. Learning from past outings at similar venues, my choice of juice and water only libations staved off any motion sickness, thankfully (better for my health, anyway). Not an issue for my one friend who I learned during our catch-up went to sailing camp over several summers in high school, and crewed boats during those years.

It happens that the pier was just north of where I might have finished out high school, had construction actually kept to schedule (but in the nation's largest school district, how realistic was that?).

My alma mater - in this location - became a staging ground for the recovery efforts 22 years ago. And then all of New York City, and the students who attended at the time, were called to resume normal life while the wreckage was still smoldering. That became their service to City and country.

Note the photo with the sailboat; in the background, over New Jersey, is a plane ... how low it appears in that perspective.

And as we dined and talked, we saw the test lighting of the Tribute in Light ahead of this Monday. The test lights were turned off at one point. But they were back on as we left, and as we walked to the subway, we all remembered where we were that day, freshly minted from law school - one of us having already started at our first firm; one of us abroad finishing out the post-Bar trip; one of us in the air in a plane over the Pacific and oblivious to that morning's events as they unfolded, until unexpectedly landing in Canada 6 hours later. 22 years, and we each remember it like it was yesterday. It is how trauma works, they say. 

That shaped our lives in so many ways - ripple effects. Knowing how arbitrary is the Grim Reaper, I had consciously endeavored to keep my work in balance with my outside life. But with the long recession and all the layoffs, the fear of unemployment was pervasive - I had tons of work, for which I was grateful, and I put my head down and did it like a good little worker bee. And set a horrible precedent - that I only managed to crawl out from under last year. This midweek meetup was one direct result of trying to recalibrate.

To sailing past the rough waters, but never losing the lessons of the seas.

Night at the Museum