So my friends Michelle, Frank and I travelled to Marfa to relax...

and to laugh. These pictures were taken one night when we were playing with Frank's computer. Hot huh?

My goals for my mandatory vacation time were to read, ride horses, look at cacti, go hiking, write in my journal and sit on a wooden front porch in the wooded mountains and meditate about my life.

I did get to read,



a rad, but intense book called The Kite Runner. It's been highly recommended by two of my friends, Nancy and Sam, so it must be good. They're right. I'm 150 pages in and they're right.

I also journaled each morning at the Brown Recluse,



but I didn't process much about my life or my future or my job, which may be all for the best. Loser Ann gave herself a backache worrying about work on Tuesday night at dinner when she was supposed to not be thinking about workat all. She was supposed to be relaxing. Sigh. Her friends were irritated with her, but the food was delicious and the waiter very nice and well informed about the "cool" spots in Marfa.

My friends and I visited a winery via Michelle's request (she want to be a vine-a-tician or grape bearer or something - correct me on this jargon too michelle).



Some of the wine was good and some I could have done without. The funny part was that the woman who poured our tastes was new, and we were her first wine-tasting. She picked up the first bottle with her supervisor behind her and carefully poured Frank, Michelle and I each a glass half full of wine. Now, if you know much about wine-tastings, you're only supposed to receive about a quarter of that amount. Otherwise you're drunk by the fourth bottle. And we were tasting eight! So her supervisor gently informed her that she was not really supposed to give us that much wine each time. We all looked at each other and laughed. She spent the rest of the time trying to pour less and less. It was pretty amusing.



We also visited Fort Davis



where we went up to the MacDonald's Observatory to view the mountains.



B-e-a-u-tiful. It was pretty cool. Although my ears never popped, this is how high we were.



Back in Marfa, we ate dinner at the Paisano Hotel (remember the pic of Mich and Frank with their wine looking very chic and sophisticated?) where the actors from the old classic Giant all stayed.



(Did I tell you that already?)

Anyway, I do believe I covered the basics. Although there were no trees or snow like I expected, walking in the dusty streets was a welcome change to the hustle of austin's tar and traffic. And though we didn't have time for horses, the winery was a welcome addition that I never would have thought of. If I had to sum up this trip I would use the words, laughing, playing, eating and surprise to describe it. My friends and I had a great time (so did Janie). And if I think of more to tell you, rest assured, I will.