Time in Austin, at last.

I've been busily on task here in Austin for the past 8 days as I set-up a semblance of "real-life" so I can stay a while. In my naive (optimistic?) manner, I arrived thinking it would be easy to find a room to rent for 2 months or so. I had no idea that housing is very tight here ( & $$$), coupled with the fact that South by Southwest is a March event that draws over 20,000 people looking for a room. Some locals even leave their homes during SXSW because they can rent them for great income. 

All that said, I ended up with 2 options that were both just fine (I did have to contact about 12-15 people to get to 2!). This is when I toured neighborhoods for bike friendliness, safety, and proximity to commuting. I've now moved into a small townhouse (2/1.5) with Katie; a very relaxed gal in her 30s who moved here last year from, are you ready?, Bethesda, Maryland! I can't make this up.  More photos to come. 

SO, I mentioned commuting. I indeed have a seasonal job starting on March 9 with the IRS! Don't you wish you had been nicer to me? :)  I will be working M-F 7:30-3:30 as a clerk in the Document Perfection Operation, and as you can imagine this is NOT going to interfere with my post-work & weekend enjoyment of Austin. It's a means to an end! I could not afford to live here for 2 or so months without this income, and there is so much to do here that a couple of months is just about right. I'm excited! 

P.S. My sister, Eileen wins the award for the only person to attempt to answer the question, "What was I singing crossing the Mississippi through Baton Rouge?" She had some good guesses but no prize.  The answer is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OTHRg_iSWzM