a four-part harmony for you and me

First: Happy graduation to Becca! Aloha and buneos dias to the traveler!

I am scrolling through the music available on the network here at the office and am finding nothing to suit my ears today. That seems to be the trend lately. I can't find any melody, any lyric, any bridge or any note to hum. What is the deal? Here are some options:
CRASH: a playlist of Alice in Chains, Stone Temple Pilots, and Silverchair. Oh and don't forget George Strait.
Carol's MuZak: highlights including Johnny Cash: Unearthed I-V alongside the Pussycat Dolls
Traci's Tunes: of the bubblegum variety, featuring Britney, Christina, and Ashley Parker Angel
Wordless Chorus: aptly named for the apperance of My Morning Jacket, this list also includes personal favorites, Jeff Buckley and Explosions in the Sky, and golden oldie Miles Davis

Nothing is doing it for me these days. I need some new music. The Maroon 5 album is out today, maybe that will be a good alternative. Since I haven't been able to be satisfied through muisc, I've started watching back episodes of TV shows online while I work; this way I have background noise and I can catch up on whatever I've missed. I watched The Bachelor this morning, and since I'm on Carol's MuZak, looks like Rascal Flatts is my poison until the shuffle setting settles on something else. I hardly listen to my own playlist anymore, it just makes me restless and usually annoyed. But I sure miss listening to Elvis.

This week I am preparing to go to Austin for a wedding. I couldn't be more excited. I'm so happy for Joanna and Tanner, and I can't wait to be a part of the celebration.

I'll be staying with Lindsay Thursday night, then trekking down to an awesome city that I love on Friday. A six hour drive from OKC, I think it will be more tolerable in two doses, with one big haul made back north on Sunday. I do have reservations about my trip though. How strange it will feel to be there again. I haven't been there since January when I waved goodbye to a dear friend, leaving to chase the life he's always wanted. Different things in our lives often absorb different meanings for us. To me, Austin is one of those things, which may sound completely ridiculous to you, reader, but it is a city close to my heart. It represents a new horizon, open doors, open minds, open hearts. Big defining moments of my life have managed to occur in and around Austin, and I don't just mean something I was involved in, I mean things said, things done, people met.

I've gained friends that are like family, a "summer family'' I would do anything for, a mentor; I've been to court there, seen friends fall apart there, fallen apart myself; I have memories of friends who have drifted away; some of the most kind words I've heard have been spoken there; I've cried there for my losses, I experienced the suprise of another chance at something I thought was long gone, something that has now taken another turn. I don't have a single bad memory of the place, and I've experienced quite a few different things there with different friends and different circumstances; and the opportunity for bad memories has most definately been present, but all I've ever found myself leaving with is a new opportunity, a new outlook, a new thought, and the need to act. I'm not sure if it is fair that I've so many happy, growing memories there. Something about being there makes me brave. Nerves have begun to surface about the visit, for reasons I'm not quite sure of, becuase I sure don't have anything to be nrevous about except for traffic on I-35, but I look forward to the peace that I think will come with absorbing whatever love affair I have with the place. Just for a little while at least.