Big Hat, No Cattle...or ....The Best Laid Plans of Mice and Wren

Well, I'm just going to come out and say it.

ARSE.

I know, pretty strong language coming from these parts. But I've got good reason. HarperCollins canned the glossary project on The Reagan Diaries so I don't have a job. As they say in North Yorkshire, it all went a bit tits up. I think the hardest part was that no one called me to tell me the news so when I finally made my call to find out when work would commence, as we were a week past the date I was supposed to hear back from Doug, it was with surprise I ended up hearing from his wife that the project wasn't going to happen and that my services wouldn't be needed. I've only been devastated a few times in my life but this time was one of them for sure. Bloody hell.

So there you have it. Jeff's dad summed the whole experience up thusly:

Good thing you didn't buy the book.

Word.

I took the rest of the day off to be miserable and cry. The boss told me to take the war wagon and just go drive around. I did. I went up to the post office and was greeted by an overwhelming surprise from a dear library patron that made me cry even more in the post office parking lot. That was a really wet Monday, even though the skies were clear.

However, you can't let sorrow linger too long. I mean sure, I'm still bummed about not getting to do a cool job but a number of more cool (though not income producing) things have happened since.

First, there was the ride on the Harley. Jeff borrowed Stix's sportster and brought it back to the house to pick me up. It was beautiful out that late afternoon. We were in jeans and light jackets with our sunglasses on.

We stopped at a bar called The Parlor for pizza and to find out about Jeff having an art show there. Those are some of his paintings in the photo above. The crazy bugger, sometimes he just starts painting and you put it all together and it looks pretty great. On the way there he popped a wheelie, drove on the sidewalk when we missed the turn for the street we needed and nearly got hit by a pick up truck trying to get into the parkinglot. That was in the first 2 minutes!

After that, we went to the east side to see Larry and Holly at the tattoo shop. That got silly as well as you can see. Jeff spied the whiskey bottle under the counter and I was called in to photograph. No booze or tattoos were committed during that photo.


Finally it was off to Third Base to drop off the Harley and pick up the truck. We were cruising sixth street when a guy in an SUV cut us off and Jeff had to lock up the brakes causing us to skid sideways a few lifetimes..or seconds. Good thing he is a really good biker or we'd have been sucking that guy's bumper big time or peeling my skin off the asphalt.

Jeff asked me if I felt a rush of adrenaline during the skid. I said I felt a rush of something and if it didn't dry quickly he'd be feeling it too....

Once safely inside the bar and the keys returned to Stix's mailbox, I had a Guinness and Jeff had his usual and all was right with the world. We drove home, laughing as much as we had on the bike.

I mean really..how long can you stay sad after a ride on the back of a Harley with a crazy person? (I look forward to you all sharing your testimonials...)

As you can see from the photo of Jeff's artwork, there's been a lot of painting gone on down in the bat cave. He's doing some really cool tribal stuff and has even sold a piece already. Right on! I've been concentrating on getting the book manuscripts into electronic form so I haven't been painting but I have my stash of canvas and paint up here in the Fortress of Solitude for when the mood hits. But that may be a while because of the next adventure we undertook.

Because I was a bit down, I decided one evening to look for musical instruments on Craigslist. I figured that Austin being such a music town, I might be able to get a little guitar or mandolin pretty cheap from some starving musician. Bear in mind, I don't actually play either of those instruments but I knew I couldn't have a piano so a stringed instrument seemed sensible.

I didn't have a plan to look for a Dean acoustic/electric resonator guitar but when I saw the ad, it just spoke to me. I looked at the ad several times. There wasn't actually a photo so I went on line to see what it would look like and couldn't believe it. I had talked myself out of it and climbed in bed and that was to be that...except that my brain kept buzzing and I finally got up and sent the seller an email asking if he still had it.

I didn't hear from him for a whole day but he wrote back saying yes, he had it. He had three people interested but no one had come for it yet. I called Jeff and asked if we could mobilize quickly if the guy gave me his address and he said yes. So I called but got Kevin's machine and I left a message. Also emailed, too....and then didn't hear from him that evening. I was bummed. Thought I had lost the opportunity, in which case it wasn't meant to be. (This threatened to be a disturbing pattern taking place....)

But then the next day I got an email saying he had saved it for me and let's meet on Saturday morning. The guy who sold it to me was so cool. He had turned the garage of his amazingly beautiful house into the music room and it was FULL of guitars, amps, mandolins, an upright bass, keyboards, recording gear. He plugged the guitar in and played it. He unplugged it and played it. He plugged it in again and did some slide. I was in heaven. Jeff and Wendy and Kevin's wife sat on the floor chillin' while we talked what little guitar talk I knew. He and his wife are moving to Dallas and he's thinning out his herd just a little. She said she was surprised he was selling of one of his babies!

I've been practicing scales until my fingers hurt. It's going gonna take a while to get my callouses but they are coming.

So there you have it.



Oh...and the giraffe's name is Gerald. He was my other pick-me-up. He's from Guatemala but has a rather posh London accent for some reason. I'm pretty sure he's a homosexual....but I'm cool with that. He's always saying stuff like "Jesus, I love those shoes!" or "You are so fabulous." He reminds of Carson, the blonde guy on Queer Eye for the Straight Guy.

So I'm now a poor, under-employed writer/artist/musician with a giraffe in Austin, Texas. We're a dime a dozen.

I have no idea what I'm going to find for work. I'll let you know as soon as I know. I really appreciate the kind words and gifts that came my way for Christmas from you lovely folks. The thank you notes are underway. I'm just waiting for the glue to dry..

I hope everyone has had happy holidays. I wish you all great joy and much laughter in the new year. Rest assured, if YOU need a pick-me-up, I can usually provide you with one. Just be in touch.

I'm going to leave y'all with a music clip that I received on Christmas eve from someone very dear to me. I've included the lyrics in case you can't access YouTube... but listen if you can.

Much love from Austin-

xx wren

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ITM2AKRT9cI




Better Days
(John Rzeznik, Goo Goo Dolls)

And you asked me what I want this year
And I'll try to make this kind and clear
Just a chance that maybe
We'll find better days

'Cause I don't need boxes wrapped in strings
Designer love and empty things
Just a chance that maybe
We'll find better days

So take these words
And sing out loud
'Cause everyone's forgiven now
'Cause tonight's the night
The world begins again

I need someplace simple where we could live
And something only you could give
And that's faith and trust and peace while we're
Alive

And the one poor child who saved this world
There's 10 million more who probably could
If we all just stopped and said a prayer for them

So take these words
And sing out loud
'Cause everyone's forgiven now
'Cause tonight's the night
The world begins again

I wish everyone was loved tonight
And somehow stop this endless fight
Just a chance that maybe we'll
Find better days

So take these words
And sing out loud
'Cause everyone's forgiven now
'Cause tonight's the night
The world begins again

'Cause tonight's the night
The world begins again....

Bright Lights, Big City

As I was creaming butter, cream cheese and sugar together Saturday morning it occurred to me that I am an immigrant now. Landing at Austin-Bergstrom Airport was akin to landing at Ellis Island in many ways. Since my arrival I have had my identity challenged several times by various city and government agencies and as of Friday morning, had my only remaining tangible identification as a person from Maine taken from me when I applied for my Texas driver's license. I had to surrender my Maine license after having my photo taken and my thumb prints digitally scanned. In return, I was given a piece of paper documenting the surrender and another piece of paper with my temporary license. The real deal will arrive in the mail in a week or two. I wasn't expecting to have to give up Maine quite so demonstratively but then I realized heck, I still have to pay Mane state income tax next month so cripes, get over yourself.

Last week was a fairly quiet one. I've been making cards and a few presents to send home so I've been busy with glue and paper and tape and listening to tales of snow from the north. I received an early holiday gift from Jeff quite by accident on our way to the video store Sunday night. Jeff has definite feelings about the whole Christmas/Santa thing and suffice it to say, it's not a warm and fuzzy feelings. It's come up in conversation several times over the past few weeks and whenever I'm tempted to use the word Christmas, I quickly stop myself and substitute the phrase "Pagan Oriented" whatever for absurd effect. So as we were driving to the video place on Airport, I commented on a street of pretty pagan holiday lights. I have a love of Christmas lights that goes back to childhood, riding in the back seat of a station wagon or van with my brother, Ed, while dad chauffered the family through the neighborhoods of Portland. We also had tons of lights at the farm. It's just something I love. But it surprised the heck out of me when Jeff said:

You want to ride around and look at lights? I'll take you to Zilker Park and the Trail of Lights.

http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/tol/

It was a darn chilly evening. Wendy had her sweater on for a little while. Jeff had picked it up for her at Bark and Purr, though it's a dog sweater. The condescending woman at the cash register had said they didn't carry sweaters for cats and we'd have to look at dog sweaters. She was obviously a dog person. But Jeff found a small, pink cable knit number and kept praying for cool weather so he could let Wendy wear it. Things went about as well as you can imagine, given it's a cat in a dog sweater. She kept it on for a little while but reckoned she'd brave the cold.

Thanks to that Chevy Caprice Classic still lodged in Jeff's leg, we got to park not too far from the trail AND after a bit of a wait, we got to ride in a golf cart that was adorned with lights. The trail is nearly a mile long and there were tons of people out. It was quite a spectacle and very festive. The gal driving us weighed more than the cart so we were a rag-tag bunch of celebrities in our electric limo. Jeff had the hood on his sweatshirt pulled over his head. We had an afghan over our legs which was good because I had on capris and no socks (I was in video store garb, not hiking gear!), Wendy kept hopping from Jeff's lap to mine looking at people and the displays, much to the delight of anyone who noticed her. The lights were awesome and it was a fun night out. We stopped at the video store for The Big Lebowski and went home to watch the movie and drink hot chocolate.

Before I went up to the Fortress of Solitude for the evening, I asked the boss why he had taken me to a Christmas event, given the fact that he didn't partake of the holiday. His answer was that he didn't celebrate the holiday but that I did and so he went for me. Plus he had not been since he was a kid and had enjoyed seeing all the lights. Oh the old softie....

Thus, with Christmas just a week away now, I spent yesterday making cookies to give to folks here who have been kind to me. I found my favorite Cranberry Rugelach recipe that Tammy Wilson, my baker friend, introduced me to years ago and I tried a snickerdoodle recipe out of the Junior League of Austin cookbook that Jeff had ordered for me from a friend of Stix's who was selling it as a project for a marketing class. I didn't have allspice or nutmeg but fudged it by adding orange peel and dipping the cookies in dark chocolate.

It was the cookies that got me to thinking about immigrants and traditions. I'm a native Mainer of Welsh and Scottish stock living in Texas baking Polish rugelach cookies on Guadalupe Street. I've brought my traditions with me from a far off land to the north. I have a lovely wreath that Dave and his mum sent down and it scents my apartment like the woods I grew up in.

When Jeff found out I was baking cookies, he came for a visit. Of course the place smelled heavenly and he said that me baking for the holiday was very girlie...very Sharon. And ya know, he was right. It is very Sharon. Tonight, I packaged the cookies up in cellophane bags for the boss to give out as corporate thank you's to our valued customers. Ok, so it helps that it's Bill and Stix and Larry & Holly, all friends, but it sounds funny and silly. I even put little gift tags saying Happy Holidays from EJL World. Martha Stewart isn't the only one who knows how to keep her customer base...

To blow off a little of the craziness earlier this afternoon we went for a walk at the Umlauf Sculpture Garden and then on the grounds of the Capitol. It was in the mid-50s with not a cloud in the sky. Wendy got to investigate all sorts of sights and smells and I got to see a little more of Austin.
.
That



That last picture was taken at the downtown branch of the Austin Public Library. I was doing some work on the Reagan Diaries and Jeff was writing. Wendy, as always, was on duty.

Heaven only knows what the week ahead holds. I hope all the Maine folks are taking care of their backs after all the snow you've had. Wish I could tell you that shoveling sunshine is hard work but so far, it's not. Cleaning the apartment, small as it is, is another story all together....

Texas-sized hugs and kisses all!

sharon

We Couldn't Resist

Hi everyone.


There we were, sitting at a stop light on Koenig or somewhere and a fly was buzzing about and whack! Jeff killed it. He looked at me and said, "Now, Sharon, you've seen me kill." And we decided then and there it would make a funny one line blog, especially given what some of you know of El Jefe.


What made it even funnier is that y'all kept thinking there was more to the blog and that it wouldn't open for various sundry and legal reasons. Aw come on...we're laughing with you, not at you.....


But it's set in motion the crazy machine again.


Due to reasons we are still trying to ascertain, my EJL WORLD boss has been stood up for dates seven times in a row. What began as a self-deprecating soliloqy over the past week evolved yesterday into a personal ad that we posted in the Men Seeking Women column on CraigsList Austin. We were at Third Base, Bill's sportsbar on W. 6th Street having fries and an adult beverage. Jeff had brought in copies of his True Fiction manuscript to share with some of his friends who work at the bar and conversation landed on his shorty story on attempts to have a successful date, success being that a woman actually showed up.


With the help of Shelly behind the bar, we pieced together the ad. Then, as luck would have it, I had my camera with me and since Jeff had already put away two glasses of B&B, we had the props for a portrait of the young man as an artist. I have to tell you, I can't look at the photo without laughing. Talk about being pleased with myself. I think I have a future as a photographer of tortured artists. Here's the ad:


Have you ever wondered what it would be like to go on a date with the epitome of all things manly? Let me tell you aboug Crazy Jeff. Tightly wrapped and yet easily undone, known for his morbidly excessive philosophy and unattainably high standards, he embodies the ultimate conundrum.

Crazy Jeff will take you out for sushi and even pick up the check. How the night ends is limited only to your imagination, from the disasterously memorable to the "oh my God I can't believe I actually went out with that guy!"

If you act now, the first 5 responders will also receive a flower at no extra emotional cost. So click to your email now. After all, there's only one Crazy Jeff and this is a limited time offer.

No animals were hurt in the making of this ad, but Jeff's cat Wendy is pretty upset about Jeff dating.

Offer subject to availability. Residents of North Dalls and West Houston disqualified.





So, it got posted and wow, the worm hit the water and the fish started biting. He got a response straight away and bless him, Jeff followed through with the date. He put on some nice duds. I reminded him he had to stop at the store for a flower, gave him a hug and kiss on the cheek and sent him off into the big world.


They met at Silhouette for sushi and had a good time with laughs. At the end of the meal, he paid the bill, gave the 46-year old divorcee a kiss and said goodnight. He was home by 10, none the worse for wear. See, ladies, he's a man of his word.


However....I'm not going to give a total endorsement quite yet thanks to his actions this afternoon.


I had been up very late with my friends Zman and Adriana Friday night. They had come up from San Antonio to bring me the computer that Zee had built for me. We hung out until around 3:30 am so I didn't get a lot of sleep. You know how it is when you get to sleep that late. Even if you slept 10 hours, it's still not very restful. So I was a bit cranky from being overtired when I finally got up and moving.


Jeff had been out with Wendy all morning/early afternoon and came home full of vip and vim. I'd been fighting with the new laptop, trying to get it to connect to the internet, and was a study in frustration. Mechanical things not working make me crazy. Zee returned a call for help and was trying to do so but Jeff kept up a separate dialogue on the Austin end and I was ready to scream but didn't.


After we finally got things sorted and I thanked Zee, Jeff said he needed me to drive him down to Third Base so he could pick up Stix's motorcycle. Well, you know how I've been feeling about driving the war wagon in downtown Austin. I would be driving back home alone for the first time. Grrrrrr. I walked back to my place to get my license and Jeff came along to talk to my attractive neighbor about sharing wireless fees now that I had a computer. Emily had been holding off getting internet access due to cost and Jeff had broached the subject with her before my arrival. He was being very attentive to me to show Emily what a sweetheart he is and when we finally were getting to the truck he looked at me with the "OH, she's so cute" look. In return I gave him the "I'm not too pleased with you right now" look.


He uttered the quintessential male phrase:


"Why did you give me that look?"


I said I was tired and cranky and he was making decisions that were MINE to make without consulting me and I wasn't half pleased about it.

I even stamped my foot for effect, though the truck was on and my shoes were rubber soled so you couldn't hear it. But I knew I'd done it. So there.


He was in the driver's seat so I climbed in the passenger's seat and we headed out for MOPAC or Route 1. He didn't say a lot and neither did I. As he drove, he pulled out a stack of cds from the storage unit and flipped through them, obviously looking for one in particular. I was paying attention but covertly so. Finding the one he wanted, he slid it in the player and zipped through the tracks. I could tell he was looking for a specific tune. When the music came on he asked if I knew it. I recognized the singer but it took me a minute to place the tune. And when I realized what it was, I had to look out the passenger side window. Here's the tune. Listen to it if you possibly can.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTW5YHbOT3Y


If you don't have music/video access as you're reading this, let me tell you that the tune was country singer Joe Diffie singing Is It Cold In Here, Or Is It Just You? Here are the lyrics.

There's something wrong
Lord I'm feeling it too
That runs through my heart
Like a torch cuts through steel
You haven't said a word
Are you feeling it too
Is it cold in here
Or is it just you

Did I leave the door wide open
And let the chill just kill that old desire
Should I put my arms around you
Or put another log on the fire
Is it my imagination
Or did the temperature just drop a notch or two
Is it cold in here
Or is it just you

There's no warmth at all
When I try to hold you near
You stare into space
As if I wasn't here
Did our love just die
Or is it just about to
Is it cold in here
Or is it just you

Did I leave the door wide open
And let the chill just kill that old desire
Should I put my arms around you
Or put another log on the fire
Is it my imagination
Or did the temperature just drop a notch or two
Is it cold in here
Or is it just you

Oh is it cold in here
Or is it just you




Yes, I'm looking out that window as hard as I can so he doesn't get the satisfaction of seeing me trying not to pee myself laughing, the cheeky bastard. He sang the entire song to me, complete with gestures, as we drove downtown. By the time we got to Third Base, I was so giddy from exhaustion at the laughing and lack of sleep that I didn't care that I had to drive home alone. Just get him out of the goddamn truck, the bugger.


In other news, Wendy is recovering well from her second visit to the vet. She's got staples to keep things tidy where there had been some upset from the first operation. I didn't hear from Doug this week but went ahead and got my library card at Austin Public and have a copy of The Reagan Diaries that I've started working with to get a jump on things. He finishes up at Rice next Friday then has a long stretch of research and writing time ahead.


On Thursday I was part of a work crew at Telepathic Tatto, Larry Da Leopard's tattoo parlor, painting the exterior of the building for a new look. This is Larry with his son, Zoom!

I'll show you our excellent work when I get a photo. And yes, Larry is tattooed with spots over his entire body I'm told!



Jeff and Wendy sharing a turkey potpie


And there you have it. Another week in Crazyville, USA.


Hope you laughed as much as I have.


Mwaaaah!

Wren

IKEA, HEB and The Four Seasons

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
ad·ven·ture /ædˈvɛntʃər/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[ad-ven-cher] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation noun, verb, -tured, -tur·ing.
–noun
1.
an exciting or very unusual experience.
2.
participation in exciting undertakings or enterprises: the spirit of adventure.
3.
a bold, usually risky undertaking; hazardous action of uncertain outcome.







If you take all three of those definitions and apply them simultaneously to the past six days then you have the week that was in Austin, Texas, for your itinerant librarian.







I've visited the DMV in hopes of getting a license but find I have to have my social security card to do that...and I don't, so I couldn't, so I visited Social Security and got a piece of paper saying I'm really who I am and my card will come in the mail. But that was before I'd visited the Heritage Credit Union and I now have a debit card, but only because Judy at the Town Hall faxed a piece of paper with my social security number on it. I even had to go down to Austin Energy in person to set up my power account because they needed to see my social security number-thought the fella never even asked to see my paper when I got there.





Are you seeing a theme here? Identity theft and the influx of illegal aliens makes verifying identities a big, big deal here. (If you don't have a credit card with your photo on it, you will be asked to show your driver's license to use it.) Fortunately, Jeff knew where every office was and waltzed me through all the places with minimal discomfort. In the Ward lexicon...Too Easy. But now I know what 19-year olds go through when they move away to start their lives! Oye. At least being 42, I knew to bring reading material with me and a bottle of water.







That was all the learning stuff and being grown up stuff.







Then there was IKEA.







One of the best parts of being in Austin is life as Jeff's secretary. My job description would be pages long were I to type it. I even have a business card now. I'm the compliance and liability officer for EJL World. Basically that means it's my job to weigh in on whether upcoming and often fast approaching possible situations are going to a): send Jeff to jail or b): get Jeff killed. That's a bit of an exaggeration...kinda sorta, but not really. Given that my employer is former special forces in the military, you can perhaps begin to understand that every day is a mission at work. And so it was when he announced Sunday morning:







We're going to IKEA.







I had never been to an IKEA and Jeff had wanted to go, having heard about it, but having never been. The store is gigantic and you follow a footpath marked on the floor to find your way around. Along with being former special forces, Jeff is also really only about 5 years old and we spent the first hour of our visit in the furniture area trying out every sofa, every chair, every futon and anything else we could sit or put a portion of our body mass on. Plus, not only did we sit and assess comfort level, we thoroughly investigated room configurations and fabric choices. To slip cover or not to slip cover...that is the question. Mind you, this intelligence was gathered for his apartment, not mine.







If you are familiar with IKEA then you know it is full of cool stuff to organize your life as well as furnishings and cookware. The place is amazing. But it became a lesson in self-defense when we got to kitcheware. Forget the often used cast iron skillet. Did you know that an ice cream scoop could be used as a good weapon in a fight? The scoop would be good for a blow to the head. And a vegetable peeler could be sharpened on the outside edges to use as a knife. This was the lesson given to me over the display of kitchen gadgets, much to the horror of several female shoppers. They should have been paying attention. It's a big world out there! Happily, the lessons at IKEA were all presented with great humor and every time I look at my laundry basket, which is a gigantic bag made out of blue plastic tarp material, I'll think of the how far ahead I am of the average IKEA shopper after that trip.





The next mission, complete with briefing and map, was for me to drive the Suburban to the supermarket on my own. This meant facing my fears of driving an ark down potentially narrowed streets in the city. Ok, so the market is only 5 minutes away but I was apprehensive and the boss knew it. He made me take my phone and promise to call in. Off I went with a wee bit of hesitation, especially when I realized you really had to push down for a looooong time before the brakes work! I made it though and once I walked into the HEB, a chain of supermarkets in Texas, I was truly on a treasure hunt. There was so much to look at!





Austin is a college town, a hippie town, a town with a large Mexican population, a yuppie town, an organic town and HEB, bless its heart, reflects that. The variety of food is incredible. More beef than you've ever seen. Cheeses from Mexico. Juices from tropical climates. Tortillas by the stack. Fish from the Gulf. I paid 40 cents for an avocado! Sausages 'til the cows and pigs and turkeys and anything else you can stuff in a casing come home. I spent almost two hours wandering around the store and then paid for it all with my shiny new debit card. I was heady with the power and a hundred bucks poorer! That bloody egg nog for the home office was $5 for half a gallon!





After I filled the back with all the HEB bags--they're as lousy as Shaw's bags my dears--I realized my phone was beeping. I had missed two calls from Jeff and there was a voicemail which told me to check in. I did so with a giggle, telling what fun I'd been having and that I would unload my stuff first when I got back and then park the truck back down where it belonged. With that confirmation of my return route, it was with a laugh that I reached the intersection of North Loop and Guadalupe to find Father Jeff waiting for me on the corner with a big smile on his face. Parking in the lot at my end of the building, we had a quick assessment of my mission and it's successful completion. I got a hug and a kiss on the head and then was informed that I needed to work on my parking skills. Ha ha ha. I was perfectly symmetrical within the spot when I parked down at 6201.





In the middle of all this, Wendy the Cat went to the vet's for her lady operation. Everything went fine, though in the days since she has ripped out a few of her sutures on the inside with her playing so she's got to go back to the beautiful vet Jeff has a crush on for a bit of repair work on Monday. So Ruby and Elaine, a little reiki for Jeff and Wendy Monday would be much appreciated and prayers from anyone else who has the desire to do so. Right now Wendy is sleeping near my feet while I type and we're mellowing out to the tunes of Captain Hotknives who is a musical friend of my friend Jamie in Yorkshire.


http://www.myspace.com/captainhotknives





And since you are clicking about on the internet right now, visit Jamie and Chris (Captain Hotknives) who perform as Pianobong


http://www.myspace.com/pianobong





And especially listen to Jamie's work as Mr Bear


http://www.myspace.com/mrbear





The biggest development of the week, however, was my trip to none other than the Four Seasons Hotel to meet my future employer, Douglas Brinkley. I'd left a couple of calls for Doug during the week and he rang Thursday on his drive back down to Austin from Rice University in Houston. He asked me to call Friday morning and we'd set up a place to meet for a cup of coffee. I called, got his machine, but then a call back and the request to meet him at the Four Seasons at noon at the bar area.





This girl was going uptown downtown!





Jeff dropped me off and I was to call when my meeting was over.





The Four Seasons http://www.fourseasons.com/austin/ is the top place to stay in Austin, matched only by the Driskill Hotel. It's very grand with lots of granite and mexican tile and understated elegance, Texas style. Some of the tables in the lobby area are made from (or made to look like they were made from) gigantic wooden doors from spanish missions. Some of the chairs and couches were upholstered in cowhide. The lobby had a gigantic gingerbread village with a train running through it, created by the pastry staff. Enormous Christmas trees festooned with red velvet ribbons and shiny baubles. And the stalls in the ladies' bathroom were nearly as big as my apartment!





While I was waiting for Doug I sat in a quite corner and people watched. It was to my absolute delight when the elevator opened once and a man staight out of a cowboy movie emerged. Big black hat, leather vest, plaid shirt underneath, jeans, big belt buckle and shiny black cowboy boots. His skin was tanned, his facial features hard but weathered to the look of a sage. He was fabulous! I took an extra sip of my bottle of Four Seasons water the concierge had given me because the bar wasn't open yet and kept watch for Doug.





I saw him before he saw me. Of course, I knew who to look for. He had no idea. He was on the phone and I waited until he was done then introduced myself. We found a big couch near the fire and gabbed for over an hour.






Suffice it to say, this is one busy man. He is currently working on a book about Teddy Roosevelt and the Conservation movement in America. He's also the consulted historian for CBS News...and a million other things. We had a great chat.

What he is looking for in me is help with a contractual obligation with HaperCollins. He is the editor of last year's best seller, The Reagan Diaries which is, as the title says, the written diaries of Ronald Reagan. The paperback comes out soon and the final project is a three-volume collector's edition of the opus. My project, which he will use as a test case to see how we work together and how well I perform, is to create a glossary of people mentioned in the diary entries so the reader has a ready reference of who Reagan was talking about in his entries. This will consist of a two or three line description of each person. And there you have it.

We'll meet at the end of next week and I'll have my full marching orders. At this point, Doug hasn't had a research assistant per se so he is still trying to decide what and how to pay me. That will be discussed next week as well. He wanted to meet me first before deciding whether he even wanted to go ahead with the test project. Fair enough. Our meeting ended with a hug and kiss while he waited for the valet to bring his car around. How Hollywood ending!

So I am hopeful. He was lovely to chat with and there's no missing that this is a man who loves what he does. He has a wife and three kids under the age of four. He's written 18 books. He's only lived in Austin since March. Oh...and we met at the Four Seasons because his in-laws were visiting from New Orleans and he was visiting them there. Hooray for in-laws!

Outside, I put my bag down on a bench to call Jeff when I noticed the Suburban in the parking lot. I knew it was the war wagon from the Purple Heart plate license plate. (Jeff still has part of a Chevy Caprice Classic in his leg courtesy of a suicide car bomber in Baghdad). I called him and he answered, laughing. He was in the bar inside! I had walked right past him while chatting with Doug on the way out. He had been there for most of my meeting and I didn't even know it. Funny thing is, I was talking about Jeff to Doug on the way out. Had the boss been listening intently he would have heard me talking about his books and also would have heard Doug's interest in Jeff's story as an Iraq war vet. However, he was enjoying his glass of B&B, lavishly poured by Ryan the bartender and mooning over Leah, the gorgeous cocktail waitress who looked like celebrity chef Rachel Ray but prettier. I went back inside and had a victory glass of Guinness.

What a week.


It's really good knowing you guys are out there. Thanks for all the support. Enjoy the snow my Maine friends and family and the rest of you, be glad you're not there!

Much love-
sharon