Goats, Cars and Rain…

On June 25, 2014 By DGThomaIn Animal Stories, Family, Friends, Humor/Light Hearted, Travel, WritingLeave a comment

Working full time, exercising and maintaining friendships keeps us really busy. It seems in my family, we are on the road constantly, definitely many more hours than we would like. Our commute puts us in the car over two hours a day, five days a week. Weekends aren’t much better, as we are always on the road headed somewhere.

We’ve seen some pretty unusual sights, but recently even I was surprised. We were driving in a slight drizzle and I was enjoying the sound of the rain tapping on the windshield, when my husband glanced over and said, “He has a goat.”

“Huh?” I asked, thinking I must have misunderstood what he said. “There’s a goat in that Jeep.” He repeated. Now I was interested!” Looking around I caught a glimpse of white in the back of the Jeep as we passed by.

Glancing back, my husband added, “He’s eating a hamburger.” Now I had to ask, “Which one?” Grinning, he said, “The driver.” Hey, it was a fair question.

Who would think that driving down a busy interstate, even in Texas you would see livestock riding in the back of a vehicle? With all the traffic, I just wasn’t able to get a good picture, but believe me, I was tempted to wave the Jeep to the side of the road, and ask for the story.

Instead I had to be content with finally catching a glimpse of the goat as the driver moved into the far left lane and passed us. The rest of the trip was spent inventing scenarios, explaining how a goat ended up in the back of a Jeep, driving down the interstate, traveling across Texas. A lovely rainy afternoon spent spinning tales of goats, cars and rain.

Texas Traveling – Blanco

On June 19, 2014November 17, 2014 By DGThomaIn Food, News and Reviews, WritingLeave a comment

Traveling the back roads of Central Texas to enjoy the scenery and possibly avoid some major traffic is seldom boring and often entertaining. I like to think of myself as a healthy eater, but I try not to be a fanatic. I don’t eat most meat, so I’ve been called vegetarian. However, I don’t really fit into any typical classification. The carnivores (meat eaters) don’t claim those of us who don’t eat beef in a state where raising beef for food and income is a primary means of survival. The “vegetarian” crowd disavow any connection to me because I do eat fish, and while the term Pescetarian (people who abstain from eating all meat and animal flesh with the exception of fish) is probably the closest, no one wants to be labeled anything that has ‘pesky’ in the name.

On a recent trip from Austin to San Antonio for a haircut, my husband and I stopped in the little town of Blanco for lunch. Avoiding Dairy Queen and Subway led us to the local café. The place was packed, which seemed promising. We were seated quickly and waited patiently to order. About 15 minutes later, we were still waiting to be acknowledged and I already had one foot out of the booth when our waitress finally arrived to ask for our drink choices.

Glancing at the menu, it looked like there were at least a few meatless choices, so when the waitress returned, I asked a few questions.

First I asked, “I think I might like to try the vegetable soup. That doesn’t have meat broth does it?”

“No, ma’am, I don’t think so, but I’d be glad to check on it for you. I know it has carrots, potatoes, tomatoes and ground beef.” She responded.

Frowning just a bit, I asked, “Can you tell me what the choices are for the vegetable plate?”

“Sure,” she said, “There are green beans, pinto beans, salad, or a baked potato.”

Not too bad, I’m thinking. “What about the pinto beans? Do they have ham in them?”

“Oh, yes! They’re really good!” She beamed. Not nearly as excited as she was, I tried again. “What about the green beans? “

“The greens beans don’t have ham ….. Just bacon.” She is starting to glance around, like maybe I have way too many questions.

Thinking she was about to make a break for it to let me think things over, I plunged ahead. “Okay, then forget the vegetable plate and bring me the baked potato.”

Smiling widely, she said, “Would you like bacon with that?”

A Herd of Runners

On June 11, 2014 By DGThomaIn Exercise, Friends, WritingLeave a comment

Running in Austin, Texas can be fun, challenging and seldom dull. You never know whom or what you might see on the trails and streets.

The Ann and Roy Butler Hike and Bike trail winds around scenic Lady Bird Lake near downtown Austin. Most people in Austin still refer to it as the Town Lake trail. The trail includes several pedestrian bridges to allow access from one side of the reservoir to the other. The Pfluger Pedestrian Bridge connects the south side of the trail to the north side at South Lamar and allows access to downtown.

Routinely, the trail is filled with runners, walkers, baby strollers, bicycles, pets, and even an occasional rooster on the northwest end of the trail.

I have collected a lot of fun memories and stories about running the trails in Austin. One of my favorite memories was meeting Hannah as we crossed the Pfluger Bridge. Crossing the bridge from Barton Springs road toward downtown, the scenery is beautiful. The sunlight reflects off the water, flower boxes full of colorful blooms line the sides of the bridge and the downtown Austin skyline is the backdrop for the scene.

On one early morning run, as we neared the center of the bridge, I noticed a group of runners up ahead with a dog trotting along behind the group. I wondered briefly if the dog belonged to someone in the group. It seemed odd that the dog was following behind and not trying to run ahead or keep up with a specific runner. Suddenly, the dog dropped back further and began trotting along behind me. “Poor thing” was my first thought. “She is lost”.

Startled, I felt the dog nudge me from behind. I wasn’t sure if she actually touched me or just brushed me by mistake, but I moved forward toward the dog’s original running group as she moved toward my running partner and actually seemed to push her forward as well. I was confused as I noticed the dog drop back behind several other runners.

I heard a young man up ahead call out, “Hannah? Here, girl!” Hannah, I realized was the dog’s name. Laughing as he looked back for Hannah, the young man explained. “Hannah is an Australian Shepherd. She is a herding dog.”

It seems that even though the young man was running with one friend, thanks to Hannah, he now had an entire herd of runners following him. As we veered to the left and the young man and his entourage ran to the right, we just waved at he and his friend. Hannah fell back to round up some new stragglers.

News and Reviews – a spot of green

On June 3, 2014June 4, 2014 By DGThomaIn Food, News and Reviews, WritingLeave a comment

The Soup Peddler in Austin, TX, on the corner of Lamar and Machaca is a wonderful place to enjoy a pleasant and relaxing out of the ordinary meal.

The View from the Counter - Soup Peddler — The View from the Counter – Soup Peddler

The Soup Peddler has two locations in Austin, Texas. One is 501 W. Mary St and the other is 2801 S. Lamar Blvd. The Soup Peddler has been featured in Food & Wine Magazine as well as NPR’s wonderful The Splendid Table.

The Soup Peddler, David Ansel began delivering soup on his bicycle thus the name the Soup Peddler. But this article is not about the historical beginnings of the Soup Peddler. This article is simply about eating lunch on a lazy Saturday in May at a lovely location with healthy delicious food.

One of my favorite treats is to go to the Soup Peddler for a Veggie Chili-Frito Pie, made with three beans, Fritos and other yummy ingredients. But I decided to try something different last Saturday. I ordered the Busy Bee smoothie, made with orange, mango, banana, goji and local bee pollen. I also had a grilled cheese sandwich made with Muenster cheese and sliced green apples accompanied by a salad of shaved fennel, red grapes, and crumbled Gorgonzola on mixed greens topped with apricot vinaigrette and walnuts. Absolutely delicious!

I sat at the counter and watched two children play on the teeter totter. While I waited on my sandwich and smoothie I enjoyed my salad and the little bit of green on a busy South Austin intersection. Even with the construction on the street and the gentle roar of traffic in the background, it was a wonderfully relaxing experience.