Saying goodbye to Austin

Today was my last day at work. I kept it together up until the last 10 minutes of work, then all the parents came to say good-bye and I got all weepy. It was hard to say goodbye to SLICC (St. Luke Infant Care Center) and it will be even harder to say goodbye to Austin tomorrow. Here's what I'll miss about Austin:

-Barton Springs
-The best Tex-Mex!!! (Chango's, Trudy's, Polvo's, Chuey's)
-The Alamo Drafthouse
-Driving around Austin with you windows down
-Spiderhouse/JP's Java
-Austin in the summer, when everyone is gone from UT
-Mt. Bonnell
-SLICC
-The Bats
-KVRX
-Korea Garden's incredible sushi lunch specials
-Hyde Park
-Bluebonnets in the spring
-"Keep Austin Weird"
-The incredible liberal, earth-concious, free-spirited vibe!!!
-The parties
-I luv video/vulcan/the movie store - how can I go back to Blockbuster now????
-Shopping on South Congress
-Being able to go anywhere in this big city and run into someone you know

Things I won't miss about Austin:

-TRAFFIC!!!!!! (Why is every road under construction at the same time?)
-Sorority girls talking on their cell phones while driving
-HUGE SUV's and Pick-ups that try to cram into "compact car only" parking spaces
-Being associated with George W. (Boo!!)
-Cedar Fever!
-Fighting to get books the first week of class at the Co-Op
-Frat boys on 6th street
-Outrageous rent prices

...well i know there are more things about austin that piss me off, but obviously the pros outway the cons. If you've never visited Austin before, pack your things and come on down...you won't be disappointed! It's been my home for the past 5 years and I'm sad to say goodbye. But hey, leaving Austin gets me one step closer to France.....so, Adios Austin!!!!!

What a Great Weekend

This weekend has been crazy and fantastic.  My girls were back in town and we spent saturday night at Arkansas Bend.  It's right on Lake Travis so we spent most of the time swimming in the lake (which means we all left with tans, and some of us with sunburns).  I went down to Houston on Sunday night.  I stayed at The Dentist's new apartment and went and applied for my Visa.  I must admit I was expecting more of the Consulate.  Instead of some stately building, with french flags flying in front, I found a tiny office on the 6th floor of some bank building.  I was assuming I could just wait and get the visa while I was in town, but apparently it takes 10 days to process.  So they'll fedex it to me sometime next week.  Fingers crossed they don't lose my stuff.  It's nice to be one more step closer to leaving for France.  (Less than 2 months till take-off)
Moving prepartions continue without end.  I've almost finished painting the apt and i never realized how much cozier the paint made it seem.  The white is so stark and sterile.  Sorry to end here, there is so much to talk about, but right now the lure of my cozy bed is stronger...nighty night.  Enjoy some pictures in my absence!
Arkansas Bend...me and the crew 
 
 
I've been meaning to post this pic for a while. This mini-eiffel tower is in front of a french antique store here in austin. Every year the owner puts up this banner...Vive Lance!  
 

The end is nigh!

It finally hit me this week that my time here in austin is RAPIDLY coming to an end.  Two weeks to go and I feel like I haven't gotten anything done.  What have I been doing the past two months? Sitting on my ass, that's what!  I guess the car accident set me back more than I realized.  This weekend is going to be devoted to packing and *gulp* repainting my apartment.   I'm going to try to make it down to houston and get my visa at some point, but that would require translating a bunch of stuff into french...an idea that has become more and more terrifying.  I've hardly spoken any French theses past seven months and when put on the spot yesterday, I totally choked.  My physical therapist introduced me to one of his co-workers from Nancy, who's doing an internship here in Austin.  He was very nice and very helpful (spoke PERFECT english).  He has three kids and wife who are coming to visit next week and he needs a babysitter...I offered, and we'll see if he calls!  Before I attempt to babysit in French, I better get some studying in...

Scary Stuff

U.S. Mulling How to Delay Nov. Vote in Case of Attack

Natalie's New Ride

 


So, i flew up to denton on saturday and picked up my new car! My dad found a great deal on a 2001 Corolla. No more bumming rides and taking the bus for natalie!! The flight was fine except for the frisking by airport security. It seems that everyone with a one-way ticket is patted down and their baggage is searched. They do it right in the open, in front of everyone going through security, so i guess it was good i didn't have anything embarassing in there.

Body cavity searches aside, I actually love flying. I guess I'm one of the few people that actually enjoy airports. Maybe it's the excitement of going somewhere new, the hope of a tall, dark and handsome seatmate (alas, no such luck this time) or the great news stands (i have a magazine fetish!). I guess it was just exciting to realize that the next time I board a plane I'll be winging my way to France!!! This past weekend was a dress rehersal for September! I really wish I had brought my new camera (I finally go a Nikon FM10), we flew through some of the most amazing clouds.

The Mountain Girl came back from Brazil on friday. We got to hang out at spider house briefly before my flight on saturday. Sounds like she had a blast and it got me even more excited about iving abroad.

I started physical therapy here in Austin on tuesday and it's actually working!!!! One of the parents I babysit for is a P.T. and she recommended the McKenzie Technique for my whiplash. Check it out, it's a pretty interesting method for dealing with back/neck pain. I just hope I continue to improve, I've got A LOT of luggage to haul to Lille. Maybe I'll meet some cute frenchman on the plane who can help me carry all my bags...

long time, no post. I swear, I have a really good excuse....

Sorry for taking so long to update. This past week, however, has been a little nutty. Last weekend, while going down to dallas to visit No Doze and The Dentist, I hydroplaned out of control and wrecked my car. Thank goodness i didn't hit someone else and no one was in the car with me. I lost control of the car, under a bridge, and slammed into a pillar. The passenger side is completely crushed....pretty scary. Luckily, no bones were broken, just whiplash...which i've had before. I'm doing physical therapy (lots of massages....yessss!!!). So the past week i've been in denton, letting my mommy take care of me.

Since i'm car-less, my mom drove me back to austin yesterday. I went up to work and all my kids in my class room gave me these looks like, "who the hell are you?"...geesh, i've only been gone for a week and they've completely forgotten me. It seems kind of pointless, now, coming back to austin. I'm moving in 4 weeks...so it hardly seems worth coming back to work, especially since i'm not sure how much i'll be able to do w/my back hurting like it is. we'll see...