Saturday, October 3, 2009
Thursday & Friday
I worked Wednesday night and had my extra job Thursday morning. When I got off at 3:30 PM, I went home and loaded up the Hybrid for the trip. I picked up Jen at her school and we headed for Austin. The traffic was not bad. The new lanes on the Katy Freeway seem to have really helped with the traffic out west. We made good time to Austin and checked in at the hotel at 8 PM. We arrived at Chuys at 8:30 and there was a 30 minute wait for a party of two. Crazy. Dinner was excellent as usual at Chuys. We made it back the hotel and crashed early. We were both extremely tired. The plan for Friday was the San Marcos Outlet Mall. We made it to San Marcus at 11 AM. We picked up fall clothes for Austin and Addy from Gap Kids, Carters, and Gymboree. They should be set for at least a little while. They it was Jen time. This has become a little of a tradition. For the last three years we have been in Austin for a weekend in October. One of those days is always spent at the outlet mall. First stop for Jen was Ann Taylor, her store of choice. She went one way and I another. We each picked out clothes and then she began trying them on. I get some very funny looks from people as I am picking out clothes for her. I get the feeling that there are not many men that pick out their wife's clothes. We found some keepers, dropped them off at the car and went to White House Black Market. We got there at 3 PM and left after 5. Jen was in the dressing room for over an hour. I walked around finding other things and getting other sizes. They had a ton of cool clothes for her. They were all on sale and we had an extra 20% off coupon. Can't beat that. She had a great time. While at White House I made reservations for Perry's Steakhouse in downtown Austin. It is a gorgeous restaurant. They bought a bank and turned it into a restaurant. They kept the vault and the vault door. It is now a small private room. Very cool. The food was outstanding. I had a cucumber and blueberry martini. Sounds very strange but tasted great. It might have been our best eating out experience. We returned to the hotel and watched Confessions of a Shopaholic. Appropriate movie after a day at the outlet mall.
Our view of two stages
The Livestrong stage. The main stage where Dave Matthews is playing tonight. And the Dell stage where the Decembrists are currently playing.
Sent from my iPhone
Friday, October 2, 2009
The Wine Wall
This is a picture of the wine wall at Perry's Steakhouse in downtown Austin. Very beautiful restaurant.
Sent from my iPhoneThursday, October 1, 2009
Frustration
A few minutes after I posted my last entry, Ron and I were dispatched to a minor accident in a Midtown parking garage. The call sounded exactly like one that another unit had been sent to about 45 minutes earlier. I asked the dispatcher, and yes, another unit had been dispatched to the same call, cleared the call "cancelled" without arriving, and was now out on another call. The dispatcher did not know why he cleared the call cancelled, the call had not been cancelled. Now, the person was calling back asking where the police were. Outstanding. I get to do another officer's work.
We arrived to find a very annoyed security supervisor. He was upset because he had someone in custody and had been waiting for an hour. Understandable. I asked him what was going on and he told this tale. The suspect in custody, Tom, had a few too many beers. He drove home to his nice Midtown apartment complex. He stopped at the gate to the parking garage. Once the gate opened he pulled his 2007 black BMW into the garage. Then Tom apparently got into a hurry. He slammed on the gas, lost control, and plowed into a parked Toyota truck. Which was pushed into a black Mustang which was pushed into a red BMW which was pushed into a white Maxima which came within a whisker of a green Honda. All of the airbags in Tom's vehicle deployed. But Tom kept driving. He wound his way to the top of the parking garage, somehow avoided hitting other parked vehicles along the way, and slammed into a wall. The security guard observed Tom driving the vehicle into the wall. The guard asked Tom if he was ok, which he was. The guard immediately noticed that Tom could not keep his balance, had bloodshot eyes, and smelled like a brewery. Then Tom gave the guard his driver's license and insurance information. Tom admitted to drinking 5 beers and then driving. Tom then decided that he needed to make a phone call in his apartment. Tom began walking away and the guard told him to stop. Tom continued walking right into his apartment. About 2 minutes later when back-up had arrived, the guard knocked on Tom's door and he answered the door. The guards then took Tom into custody and called the police.
After hearing the story, I called a DWI task force officer who came to the scene and video taped Tom doing the standardized field sobriety tests. Ron and I completed the 5 car accident. The DWI officer transported Tom to Central Intox for processing. There Tom refused the breathalyzer test. Well, as of September 1st, 2009, if the breath test is refused and an accident occurred, an officer can take a blood sample following a subpoena. Blood was not taken from Tom, I have no idea why. The DWI officer called the district attorney's office who then declined to take DWI charges against Tom. The DA refused because Tom did not give a breath sample and did a decent job on the field sobriety tests. The DA wanted the DWI officer to file failed to stop and give information after being involved in an accident on Tom. The only problem is, Tom did give information. To the security guard. I realize that Tom would have just gone inside his apartment if he had not been seen by the guard, but he was seen and stopped and gave information. So the DA would not take DWI even though Tom was drunk and wanted us to file FSGI even when he did give information? Now I did not go to law school and I do not play a lawyer on TV, but this was crazy. Right after I left for the night, Ron sent me a text saying that he saw Tom leaving the police station.
So Tom was able to drink at least 5 beers, drive home, cause a 5 car accident, try to leave the scene, then admit to drinking and driving, and go home in the morning. Absolutely amazing.
Preparing for the weekend
This weekend Jen and I are heading to Austin for the Austin City Limits Music Festival. It is a three day festival taking place at Zilker Park in Austin. The Dave Matthew's Band and Pearl Jam are the headline acts. I imagine that it will be a lot like Lollapalooza. When Courtney, Deborah, Sam, and I went to Lollapalooza in 1996, Metallica and Soundgarden were the big names. Over the course of the afternoon, we made our way towards the main stage. We were about 50 feet from the stage when Soundgarden came on. At that point the crowd surged, and we ended up 25 feet from the stage. We had no choice but to move forward. It was a surreal feeling. I am not sure that Jen has any idea what is in store for her, but I imagine that we will hang out safely towards the back and just watch the huge screens. Getting ready to go on a trip is always an adventure for us. It is especially difficult on Jen. The responsibility falls on her to pack for everyone. All that I have to do is get the suitcases down out of the attic and take out the clothes that I want packed. Jen has to get everything together for herself and the kids, which is no small task. Especially when you are like Jen, and want the kids to be prepared for every possible circumstance. She always ends up staying up very late the day before we leave. By the way, we are very thankful to those that are watching our children while we go out of town. Big props to Rob and Pam and Jim and Cathy. Also to Terry and Mary for having Addy over for a play date on Saturday to give Jim and Cathy a break. I had a few things to accomplish earlier today before we left town. The Camry needed an oil change and the check engine light was on, and Austin needed a flu shot. We dropped off the Camry at the dealer last night. My Dad was nice enough to call the dealer for me to check on the car. I wanted to make sure that they realized that I needed the car back today. I did not want to take a dealer loaner Corolla to Austin. Nothing against a Corolla, I just like my Hybrid. They told my Dad that the car was ready and that the check engine light was due to a loose gas cap. That made me feel like a moron. At least it was nothing serious. Two weeks ago, Jen, Addy, and I got the flu nasal mist at Jen's school. Austin was in school at the time, so he was not with us. So, he needs a flu shot and Walgreens does them every day until 4 in the afternoon. Strange that they stop at 4 PM, since most schools get out around 3 PM. It does not leave parents very much time, let alone families where both parents work normal schedules. Austin was less than excited about getting a flu shot. I told him that if he was brave and did not whine that I would get him a treat after the shot. On the way to Walgreens, Austin said "I hope that the treat comes from Game Stop." I told him that I had something like a dessert in mind and not a new video game. Crazy kid, where does he get these ideas? Sounds exactly like something I would have said at his age. We go back to the pharmacy in Walgreens and are told that Austin is too young. Walgreens will not give flu shots to kids that are younger than 9 years old. Suck. The new plan is to take Austin to whatever Pasadena ISD school is doing flu shots on the Monday we get back from Austin. Austin was disappointed that he did not get a shot. He thought that no shot meant no treat. I surprised him with a Chick-fil-A milkshake. Big mistake. I gave him a sip or two of it before we left for dinner. Once we got back home after karate, he ran to the refrigerator and began sucking it down. Then Addy wanted me to chase her around the house. She will walk up to me, get a big smile on her face, and say "Daddy, chase me." Like I have a choice after that. Austin does not want to feel left out, so he runs around the house as well. Lets just say that milkshake in the belly and then running around the house is not a good idea. Milkshakes and Austin do not get along, at least not in abundance. I apologize for the lack of work stories. Work has been rather bland and boring lately. Tonight is positively SLOW. Absolutely nothing going on. I better enjoy it while it lasts.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)