Neighborhood Tour

As I wrote in my introductory post, at some point I would probably blog about other things beyond cancer. With my renewed energy levels holding steady, I will now share something totally unrelated…

Let me take you on a tour of my neighborhood here in Austin. If you live in Austin (or lived in Austin), you will probably recognize these landmarks. For those who have never had a chance to visit, here is a something new.

We live near Burnet Road in Central Austin. David and I think of Burnet Road as Austin’s version of San Pablo Avenue in Berkeley, meaning that this street is just an endless unattractive strip of fast food restaurants, appliance stores, car repair shops, furniture stores and other useful yet boring retailers. There are, however, pockets of whimsy and nostalgia on Burnet Road. The nostalgia comes from my memories of visiting my Aunt Mary as a kid. Burnet Road in the 1970’s was still pretty much the same endless strip of urban blah. I just didn’t call it “urban blah” back then.


FIRST THE WHIMSY.......

I have driven by this shop millions of times. This store’s exterior is an odd combination of medieval and western imagery pulled together with a garish yellow color. Not your usual combination, but now because of familiarity, this place just seems normal.







This is the kind of place that I like having around because it makes Austin different than the rest of Texas.














The power of outdoor signs! Without the light bulb man, this store would be just another specialty store. With the sign, I get excited about shopping for light bulbs.











This is an unusual picture of Amy’s Ice Cream. Usually the place is swarming with kids on the cows and grown ups at the tables, but this picture was taken on Christmas Day. Twenty odd years ago, Amy worked at Steve’s Ice Cream in Boston when she was a premed student at Tufts. Now Amy owns the retail ice cream market in Austin. She recently opened up a new location on Burnet road with a playscape. What was she thinking! Does she have kids? Does she know what parents go through every time we drive by with our kids in the backseat?



NOW FOR THE NOSTALGIA......

In most places, a “pit” might suggest a dump. Here in Texas, “pit” brings up images of succulent barbequed meat. This is the restaurant where I first got hooked on Texas BBQ. The meat is served up on paper plates with pickles, onions and white bread--yes, two simple pieces of sliced white bread. The white bread, not the paper plate, is what confused and amused me at first. (Sliced white bread at a restaurant?) Now, like everything else on Burnet, white bread with barbeque seems normal.






This restaurant served as my aunt’s backup kitchen since the 1950's when it first opened on Burnet Road. I took this pic on Christmas Day. Usually the parking lot is filled with big, late model American cars. Inside, waitresses with tall hair call you “honey” and serve up hamburgers, steaks and fabulous meringue pies. I can remember sitting at each of the booths with various family members as a kid when we would visit Austin. My dad’s last restaurant meal was here. This Frisco will soon be moving to a larger location just up the road, but it won’t be the same. The owners must think they just serve food here.





This was the Luby’s Cafeteria where my aunt and others from Austin’s WW II generation probably ate 50% of their meals. Luby’s was close to my aunt’s house and served Texas comfort food (think chicken fried steak, hushpuppies, fried okra, black-eyed peas, pecan pie, etc.) Several years ago, Luby’s closed and the Austin affiliate of Univision (a Spanish language cable channel) moved in.


I often like to think in terms of symbols and this little change in my neighborhood was a biggy: a Spanish language television station replaced a hushpuppies and fried okra type restaurant. To me, this transition was a reflection of the sweeping demographic changes taking place in the US and the emphasis on media over low-tech cafeteria lines. “Telefutura” says it all.


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Don’t want to forget the following important disclaimer! David doesn’t want everyone “out there” to think Austin is just filled with kitsch and comfort food restaurants. Sure, Austin is very beautiful with lakes, hills and nice running trails downtown. Check out what David and the City of Austin want you to know here.