Shooting the Moon

If you don't count the fact that I arrived home last night at midnight to discover the dogs had captured and killed (and this time chewed up) another baby possum, and left it out for me... well if you don't count that, last night was a perfect Austin evening. I had about an hour in between performing a downtown rooftop wedding and catching a Fusebox performance at the Long Center, and it was a lovely night, so I wandered up to the Long Center Lawn. A lot of people were inside, listening to the symphony, which I heard bits of myself as I sat gleefully alone beneath those soaring pillars, atop that concrete circle with the changing colored light panels. I was reading an advance copy of my friend Alyssa's spectacular book, there was a lovely breeze blowing, and up, up, up came the moon-- hooray!!

Warren met me right before show time, and I was a little sad he hadn't gotten there sooner to share a few moments watching the sky. By then, though, the symphony goers were outside for intermission, and we had to hurry to get downstairs to our show, and the magic had drifted away. 

Ah, but silver linings! After the show, when everyone had gone from the Long Center, once again my earlier perch was abandoned. We re-staked the spot and music from a Beatles' cover band drifted over from Threadgill's and we alternated between shooting the moon and each other and just sitting and then dancing. Much as I hate to so blatantly point out this out-in-the-open hidden gem of a spot, I'd be a jerk not to share it. Another amazing free spot in Austin, a place to just hang out for the whole night, or after free Night Swim at Barton Springs or on your way to/fro Sandy's. 

They say tonight the moon is going to appear bigger than it has in the past 18 years. I'll be out at the lake doing a wedding and hope to catch it there. I expect no fewer than 2,000 of you to crowd on the magic spot in front of the Long Center and enjoy the view. Please hum Dear Prudence while you're there, take plenty of pictures, and think of me.