Monday Night – High Low and In Between

Hello from Austin. It’s about midnight and I just got in to the hotel. I’m down here for just about 24 hours to give a talk at a conference as a favor for a friend. In some ways It’s kind of nice to be back in Austin again The heat and humidity out there reminds me of growing up here.. and feels much more at home  here than it did a few days ago back in Vermont.  It’s also hard for me to be here. This is where I was when Sam rook his last trip down to Florida.   Not sure why,. but I was fighting back tears the whole drive over from the airport.

 

    I used to come here all the time.. When I was in high school. This was the place we’d get away to for the weekends. Once I started with IBM. I started coming here for work frequently…. I think I was here 14 times in 1999 alone. I have hundreds of friends down here from those days and since.. not even counting all my buddies from high school that still live around here..   I usually love to go out and here live music whenever I’m here.. I can remember many nights staying out till 3 or 4 then starting work at 8..  Somehow though, I just don’t feel like going out.. or  visiting or calling anyone right now.  I also have about a million things I should be doing for work while I’m here.. but again.. I just can’t .. I just can’t.  If you’re in Austin and reading this.. .. I’m sorry I’m being sort of antisocial. If you want, you can call me at  802-578-0985.

 

This place brings so much music into my head. Whenever I’m here,  I think of Townes Van Zandt, my favorite songwriter of all time   He used to hang out here. In fact, he once stole my beer in a bar.  This song got stuck in my head today.  

High, Low & In Between

By townes van zandt

I come from a long line
High and low and in between
Same as you
Hills of golden
Hails of poison
Times thrown me through
And I believe Ive come to learn
That turnin round
Is to become confusion
And the golds no good for spending
And the poisons hungry waiting

What can you leave behind
When youre flyin lightning fast
And all alone?
Only a trace, my friend,
Spirit of motion born
And direction grown.
A trace that will not fade
In frozen skies
Your journey will be
And if her shadow doesnt seem much company
Who said it would be?

There is the highway
And the homemade lovin kind
The highways mine
And us ramblers are getting the travelling down
You fathers build with stones
That stand and shine
Heavens where you find it
And you cant
Take too much with you
But daddy, dont you listen
Its just this highway talkin

All things at our life
Are brothers in the soil
And in the sky
And I believe it
With my blood
If not my eyes
I dont know why we cant
Be brothers here
I know we should be
Answers dont seem easy
And Im wonderin
If they could be

You can listen to this and other Townes Van Zandt  songs  here

I’m going to sleep. G’nite all.. G’nite Sam

-me