Downtown fun and some more music ...

Looking at the ACL schedule, Mike didn't want to get there until 6:30 p.m. for the Arctic Monkeys. So that meant we had a whole day to kill ... or check out Austin and do the touristy thing. Our tour of Austin started at Stubbs BBQ for lunch. Oh. My. Belly. What a great, tasty meal. We waited in a huge line just to get in, but it was well worth the wait. We had the best, juiciest pork ribs, pork loin and beef brisket, ever. But the very best part of the meal was the Serrano pepper cheese spinach ... creamy, spicy and thoroughly delicious. Mike was in heaven with his fried okra.

While we were grubbing, Bob Dylan's crew was loading in and doing a sound check, since he was schedule to play a show there later on, as part of the ACL after show series. It was pretty atmosphere. Very small and cozy venue, just the place someone would want to see Dylan play. Too bad we don't have tickets.

After rolling ourselves out of Stubbs, fat and happy, we took a stroll down 6th Street. We search for a Johnny Cash shirt for Shelb (she loves to pretend she's Johnny Cash and I'm June Carter and we sing "Jackson" at the top of our lungs). We couldn't find one that was appropriate for a 3-year-old, but we found her a UT Austin shirt and a matching one for me. We figured out the bus system, hopped a ride up to the Texas State Capitol and took a tour of this awesome building.

As we were leaving the capitol, there was an Anti-Bush/Cheney rally going on. Mike wanted to ask someone if he could hold their sign while I took a picture of him. I thought they'd think he was being rude ... so we compromised. He stood next to someone with a sign and I discreetly snapped a photo. That's my husband, the outspoken liberal! Gotta love 'im!

At this point we have had a pretty full day ... but really it had just begun. More shopping, a UT game, tattoo touch up, tapas at Malagas, shuffle board and an ACL "secret" show at Maggie Maes was still ahead ... and I'll tell you all about it later. I'm tired now and need a blogging break!

Oh, I almost forgot. Today was my very last day in the Army. My commitment is complete!!! That's 14 years of my life, officially behind me. A chapter has closed. And some how I avoid a major deployment. How blessed I am. Now, I can focus on my family and our life together. It's such a relief to move on.