The Domain
Austin is finally turning into Dallas. They’ve now opened a shopping center that just REEKS of Dallas over on Mopac and Duval called The Domain. It’s a nice outdoor mall with a Neimans and Macy’s. You can buy high end purses, clothes and much much more. We ate at the restaurant Kona Grill that was good but very “corporate”. I’m excited about a new place to shop and eat, but a little saddened over what this place represents. So much for keeping Austin wierd!
Furniture needed!
I need the following pieces of furniture in order to have things the way I want them: coffee table, kitchen table and sofa table. I went to a couple of stores today and didn’t find anything. Where are the good discount furniture places? I want nice furniture for a good deal.
Mean-Eyed Cat
Johnny Cash seems to be the central theme of the Mean-Eyed Cat on 5th and Mopac. He’s on all the walls and on the Juke Box. When I was a little, Johnny Cash was my favorite singer. I loved “A Boy Named Sue” because it was such a silly song. (It was written by Shel Silverstein, so that kind of explains it for me now!)
The Mean-Eyed Cat is one of my favorite places to go because it has a nice patio that’s not so loud that you can’t talk. However, their picnic tables are pretty uncomfortable and I felt like I was hunching all night. I liked that they have Mexican blankets all over the place that you can sit on or wrap yourself up in if you are cold.
I saw a sign out front that said someone was moving, but I’m not sure if it was them or another business nearby..
There’s no crying in baseball!
It’s been a long time since I went to a girl’s softball game. Probably the last time I went to one, I was playing. Hmmm…That’s been about 30 years or so… Anyway, I think they must’ve changed the rules or something. We used to have to pitch to the other team and they pitched to us. At this game, our coach pitched to our team and the the other coach pitched to his team. When did that happen? Why did that happen? When do the girls start pitching for themselves? It was a lot of fun and I’m glad I went.
Ready to break free!
Tollway
This weekend I had my first opportunity to go on the new tollway (with my toll tag.) I rode on it one other time without the toll tag. At that time, I was amazed at how expensive it was! In Dallas it’s $.75 per stop and a discount if you have a toll tag. (I don’t know what the discount is, though.) Having a toll tag gives you a 10% discount here in Austin. Even with that, it’s REALLY expensive. $1.35 per stop is the discounted rate.
I’m still not sure how far the tollway goes. I hopped on in Georgetown and got off on 290. I don’t think it goes much further than that. The sign says it goes to Austin or Waco. I don’t know why it says it goes to Waco, because it doesn’t. It goes to Georgetown. False advertisement.
The only thing really nice about the road is that no one else was on it. I paid to have the road to myself. I guess that’s worth something.
grooming
I’m going to Dallas this weekend. Jack needs a good grooming. His hair has gotten so long and he is kind of shedding in my new house. He’s going to get his summer cut in March. I’m sure he’ll be fine. We are in Austin. I really don’t expect any deep freezes or anything.
I called the Pet Boutique in Dallas to set up his appointment. When they heard his name, they said, “That’s Mr. Brown Dogs brother, no I mean cousin.” How do they remember that kind of stuff. I’ve seen his file. It doesn’t mention Mr. Brown Dog. Why does everyone like Mr. Brown Dog? What’s up with that?
Obviously, I can’t take him to Dallas everytime he needs a haircut, so if anyone knows any good pet groomers in the Austin area, feel free to share!
Keys
Mike locked his keys in the truck this morning. I vaguely remembered that my phone service used to have roadside assistance attached to it when I was in Dallas. So, I looked it up on the internet and it looks like we have it here too. I am paying an extra $2.99 a month for this service and I’m not really even sure why I chose to pay extra, because that really isn’t in my nature. However, I’m sure thankful that I did! Thank goodness Cingular offered this option!
Jack
Jack loves his new yard! If only I could get the grass off before he comes in the house!
Fabulous after FIFTY 
