SXSW and the Rodeo

So the past few weeks have had me running ragged. The craziness of SXSW just ended a couple of weeks ago, and I’m still recovering. I’ve never actually done it before—gone downtown to enjoy all the free music and festivities. So to sum it up, I RSVP’d to a bunch of newsletters and events online. These venues would then email me the location to pick up a wristband that would get me into free parties downtown. Folks, I spent a week waiting in long lines for free, watered down drinks, listening to a bunch of bands I’ve never heard before. Some of the music was good, some of the food was decent, but the trick to having a good time is tipping the bartenders. I got some free stuff and had a good time with my friends, but doing it all week long was simply not possible. I was actually relieved to go into work on Tuesday and Thursday just so I could relax.

I saw Grumpy Cat and sat on the Iron Throne. I rode a mechanical bull and was proposed to by someone who was surprisingly sober—not that I was. I stood in long food lines, eating before getting more food and going back to the end of the line and doing it again. I was three sheets to the wind and silly enough to remember how fun playing with toys could be. (We will miss you Toy Joy.) I’m glad I did it and can honestly say I will never do it again.

Besides… I like ACL better.

So before SXSW really got going, Cynthia and I decided to go to the rodeo. We bought tickets and were planning on riding the rides at the carnival before watching cowboys getting bucked off of god knows what.

Things don’t always happen the way you envision them. It was raining and cold. I’ve lived in Scotland so I wasn’t too fazed by it, but Cynthia had left her jacket at the apartment so she wasn’t having as nearly a good time as I. Oh, we still rode some rides. Maybe I’m getting too old, but the rides actually hurt. The centrifugal force was putting too much pressure on my poor joints. My shoulders and hip felt the worst of it, and I was honestly happy to climb off of some of the rides.

Everything at the carnival was bought with tokens, including the carny food. I ate so much junk that I told Cynthia not to let me buy the funnel cake. (It’s okay; I got my fix later that week at SXSW).

We enjoyed the rodeo more, at least I did. See, this was Cynthia’s kind of thing—nothing new to her. But me? Oh, it was like Christmas morning. “What’s that?” “What’s happening?” “Oh, look at all the pretty lights!”

I had a great time even if I did get mud all over my Chucks and my clothes smelled like stock yard. It was a Texas adventure and I went for it.