Long Hollow

Canyon Wrens, Laptops, Irish Beer, and other Sweet!s

March 17, 2014

I sat on the front porch for a few hours this afternoon. The sunshine and blue sky were so crisp I couldn't stand to be inside any longer.

I grabbed my laptop and planted myself in a rocking chair to listen to training webinars while watching a cardinal and tufted titmouse take turns at the birdfeeder, always keeping one eye on me.

Eventually I also had my camera and a glass of wine with me. Unfortunately, as soon as the cardinal spotted the zoom lens, he disappeared into the oak trees. They are such chickens.

But the little bird above appeared, hopping around on the rocks of the retaining wall. One often appears on the window of my office, intent on cleaning bugs off my screen. I love watching it, but didn't know what it was. So tonight I searched and searched until I found its name.

It's a Canyon Wren. Of course.

The titmouse was a bit of a chicken, too, but I managed to capture this photo when he flew into the tree to groom himself. He thought I couldn't see him.

For me, it was a gloriously sweet! way to spend an afternoon.

But, except for the concert of Irish ballads I caught at my mom's nursing home today, it didn't feel much like St. Patrick's Day to me until my son came home, bearing Irish beer and pulling up Irish music on his computer.

Having adult kids living at home isn't so bad. Erin Go Bragh!

Here are some other sweet!s from the past week… (remember to share yours in the comments!)

Tuesday: enjoying "margaritas" and a musical performance with your mom at her nursing home

Wednesday: finding out your daughter-in-law sang onstage for the audience at Jimmy Kimmel's SXSW show; a stranger in the eye doctor's waiting room offering to let you show it to your mom on his iPhone because your phone is dead; your mom's successful eye surgery

Thursday: beautiful cards and letters from your friends to your mom; news that your cataract hasn't grown or moved; your daughter entertaining a client's children; grilled shrimp tacos

Friday: glowing recommendations from clients on your website; showing homes to clients; popcorn and movies with your daughter

Saturday: a baby shower to welcome a friend's first grandchild; winning a game at the baby shower!

Sunday: taking time to catch up with a friend after church; visiting a recently widowed neighbor; helping a precious young family get into a home; your husband and sons making it back from Florida, safe and sound; surprising your mom and her roommate with brownies; courtesy of your daughter

Monday: getting back on your exercise schedule; paychecks; hugs from friends in your office; listening to Irish ballads and eating tiny cupcakes with your mom; an afternoon of birdwatching/working on your front porch; Irish music, thanks to Pandora, and Irish beer, thanks to your son

Here's an extra sweet! …

Spring is finally getting the best of Winter, here in Austin. Hallelujah!

St. Patrick's Day is an enchanted time – a day to begin transforming winter's dreams into summer's magic.

~Adrienne Cook
Irish Blessings on St. Patrick’s Day

March 17, 2014

Bridget Shallue was just 52, younger than I am now and already a widow, when she said goodbye to Ireland in 1852 with her grown children…chased away by the potato famine, I'm sure.

If she ever returned, it isn't mentioned in the family lore.

Accompanied by two daughters and two sons, Bridget first arrived in Quebec, traveled to New York, and finally settled in Wisconsin in 1856.

One daughter died on the passage from Ireland and was buried at sea. Two older sons chose Australia over America to begin their new life. I doubt if she ever saw them again; her goodbye to those sons was probably as final and heartbreaking as her goodbye to her home, her homeland and her husband Thomas's grave – he had died just a few years before, at age 45.

And then the added heartbreak of watching a daughter's lifeless body disappear into the ocean…heartbreak I just can't imagine.

My own Tom Shallue and I found all of this out shortly after we were married, by talking to relatives and researching in libraries. We traced his family back to Ennistyman, County Clare…to that first Tom's grave, but that was as far as we could go. There was no Internet twenty-five years ago, no Ancestry.com, and we couldn't afford a trip over to do our own research or to hire a professional to do it for us.

It hit me that I knew more about the Shallue history than my Wilson's, so the next few years I focused my genealogical fervor on that line and other branches of my family … for example, my great-great grandfather George, memoir writer and protagonist of (one of) my book-in-progress.

But today is St. Patrick's Day and my thoughts are green…drawn toward the Shallue family and Ireland. Tom and I dream of traveling there one day, visiting the places that are only names on a map to us right now.

The photo above isn't the final resting place of a direct descendant – it was taken by an aunt or cousin on a visit to Ireland several years ago – but it's no doubt a relative because every Shallue is related. There just aren't that many!

Even these very names…James, Margaret and Denis Shallue…are echoed on tombstones across the ocean in America.

The Australian Shallues were always a mystery to the American branch. Rumor had it those brothers got on the wrong boat…they went to Australia totally by accident!

The funny thing is, the American and Australian Shallues have connected on Facebook, of all places, but I still haven't gotten any clear answers about how they ended up there.

I have no big celebrations planned today, unfortunately. If you do, have fun and be safe!

Here's wishing all of you a happy St. Patrick's Day!

May you always walk in sunshine.
May you never want for more.
May Irish angels rest their wings right beside your door.

If this sounds familiar, thank you for being a longtime reader! It is an old post, just updated a little.
Life in the Underground (and other sweet!s)

March 10, 2014

Austin is a wild place right now, caught up in South by Southwest fever. I wish I had the time to just hang out downtown all day and night, catching interesting seminars and random stars performing.

Maybe next year…

But I moved a little closer this year by attending a kickoff party downtown for Austin Realtors who are members of an exclusive Facebook group called "Brokers Underground". Mainly we just share information about listings and learn from each other's experiences, but it's a wonderful, supportive group, and it was so cool to meet some of the other members face to face on Thursday night at The Market, a downtown, multi-level bar.

Free food. Open bar. Music by Johnny Gray who performed on "The Voice". A gorgeous Austin night in a rooftop bar, surrounded by familiar faces and meeting new friends.

Sweet!

Here are a few other sweet! moments from the past week…

Monday: watching your mom and her friends play dominoes

Tuesday: your Hollow sparkling in ice

Wednesday: an email requesting a listing appointment; your son meeting you at your office

Thursday: catered lunches and new home tours; a rooftop Realtor party in downtown Austin kicking off SXSW, and featuring Johnny Gray from The Voice; free food and drinks and music; familiar faces and new friends; caviar for the first time

Friday: a Keller Williams Annual Awards lunch; photobooths; inspiration from colleagues; friends sending your mom cards and letters, even if they don't know her

Saturday: helping a client get the home she had her heart set on; your husband and sons arriving safe and sound in Florida; the rain ending just when you need to bring groceries into the house; dinner at a friend's house

Sunday: a morning walk with your puppies; homemade kolaches; Sunday sign inspiration; news that your client's lease application was accepted; your daughter getting a fire started when you're about to give up on it; eating Caramel Turtle Cheesecake ice cream and watching "Girl With a Pearl Earring" with your daughter; a call from your mom to tell you she loves and appreciates you

Monday: sleeping in until 7:30 am on a Monday; being able to work from home; a smile on your mom's face; ice cream and popcorn for dinner, while watching "Shawshank Redemption" with your daughter

I hope you had a fun week, although I hope it didn't zoom by as fast as mine. And I hope you're getting more sleep.

No matter what's going on, don't forget to open your eyes to the blessings around you!

I have sometimes been wildly, despairingly, acutely miserable, but through it all I still know quite certainly that just to be alive is a grand thing.

~ Agatha Christie
A Lenten Rambling

March 5, 2014

The simplicity of winter has a deep moral. The return of Nature, after such a career of splendor and prodigality, to habits so simple and austere, is not lost either upon the head or the heart. It is the philosopher coming back from the banquet and the wine to a cup of water and a crust of bread.

~John Burroughs, "The Snow-Walkers," 1866

Tuesday morning, just days after spring-like temperatures which tempted yellow flowers and redbuds alike to blossom,

I woke to a world sparkling in tiny icicles.

That's like life, isn't it? Things are progressing quite well and we take it for granted it will continue.

Then winter returns.

A friend said goodbye to her mother today, so mortality was on my mind more than ever on this first day of Lent.

For my peers, this past year has been one of saying goodbye, of watching loved ones laid to rest, including my own precious Daddy. I guess we've just reached that age.

Ah, if you knew what peace there is in an accepted sorrow!

~ Jeanne Marie Bouvier de la Motte Guyon

Sorrow sits on my shoulder. You might not see it, but it settled there more than a year ago when we said goodbye to my father-in-law, and remained as we watched the steady decline of my parents.

I've come to accept its presence. After all, death is part of life, and feeling sorrow is just proof that we love.

But I've learned that sorrow and joy can live together. In fact, the presence of sorrow often heightens the feeling of joy, by reminding me that life on this earth is short. Time is precious, not to be wasted by half attempts at anything or on things that aren't important in the grand scheme of things.

We offer You our failures,
we offer You attempts;
The gifts not fully given,
the dreams not fully dreamt.
Give our stumblings direction,
give our visions wider view,
An offering of ashes,
An offering to You.

~Tim Conroy

Lent is a time to reflect, to consider what is important in the grand scheme, so you don't waste time on what isn't. To step back and see how well you're doing with the gifts you've been given … to recognize the rough edges that need sanding … to take a breath, and refocus …

… to vow to love fully and completely.

And what could be more important in the grand scheme of things?

"Spread love everywhere you go: first of all in your own house. Give love to your children, to your wife or husband, to a next door neighbor… Let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier. Be the living expression of God's kindness; kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile, kindness in your warm greeting."

-Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta
A Saturday Morning at Austin’s Franklin Barbecue

March 3, 2014

On the surface, getting up extra early on a Saturday morning to wait in line four hours for lunch doesn't sound very appealing, especially when the weather is kind of chilly and drippy.

But I did it this past Saturday anyway, just to experience Franklin Barbecue for myself. I'm on a continual quest to discover all the gems Austin has to offer, and from all reports, this sounded like one.

So I met my sons, daughter-in-law, her sister, and two of their friends in Franklin's parking lot down on 11th Street in east Austin at 8 am. I forgot a chair, but fortunately they came prepared with chairs, mimosa ingredients, and the game Uno.

Drinking mimosas and playing Uno with my grown kids would be enough fun for me anytime and anywhere, but doing it in a downtown Austin parking lot where you can watch people and make new friends and eventually eat your fill of delicious barbecue…well, that's my kind of Saturday morning.

Four hours is also plenty of time to take lots of iPhone photos, too…

Our little group is just this side of the building…in front of all the UT orange.

The females in our group.

The line.

My boys playing Uno. My oldest gave me his chair and his jacket. What a sweetheart!

Meet Kenzie. She was so good the whole time.

If you saw the movie "The Help" then you know what this means.

Another group played horseshoes instead of Uno.

My oldest and his love. Getting close to the door!

We made it inside!

So close. We were drooling by this time.

Now that's a pile of meat! Sausage, brisket, pork ribs, a beef rib, smoked turkey, and pulled pork.

Add bread and sauce and that's a meal, right?

Franklin Barbecue is good about communicating with the people in line about when they can expect to be served. And they give samples.

They also go down the line getting a guesstimate of what each group is going to order so they can figure out who the last person is who will be served…that's the Last Man Standing. That way the latecomers don't stand in line for hours only to be told at the last minute "Sorry! We ran out!"

Good business!

That was a sweet Saturday morning, for sure. Here are some other sweet!s from the past week…

Monday: turning on the television just in time to catch an amazing lip sync battle between Jimmy Fallon and Paul Rudd

Tuesday: baby goats; touring new homes with a friend/colleague; hearing from old friends

Wednesday: rainy days; the return of blue skies, in time for a glorious sunset

Thursday: hearing a hawk and watching it fly in a cloudless blue sky; your mom receiving cards and letters from your friends to boost her spirits

Friday: somehow reining in your temper when people haven't done what they said they were going to do; showing your mom her birth certificate; getting an iPad on sale; watching "Ghostbusters" with your daughter

Saturday: spending the morning with 3/4 of your kids, drinking mimosas and playing Uno; Franklin Barbecue, especially when you are really, really hungry; picking up good clients while on phone duty; watching "Ghostbusters 2"** with your daughter

Sunday: Texas Independence Day; Mass with your husband; helping a friend with an open house

Monday: watching your mom play dominoes with Margarite, Jewel, and Lila Sue; your son vacuuming the dog hair from the laundry room without being asked; the sound of thunder, lightning, and rain outside your window, when there's a warm fire nearby

**Have you ever watched "Ghostbusters 2"?

All I had really remembered about it was the baby being kidnapped by the evil guy, which freaked me out because Daniel was a baby when it first came out.

Apparently baby-kidnapping was a going theme in the late 80's because that's also what happened in "Willow". What the heck??

Anyway, this time what struck me was its overall message that love and good-will toward one another can conquer evil.

I wish they could have conveyed it without kidnapping a baby, but oh, well.

“I hope that real love and truth are stronger in the end than any evil or misfortune in the world.”

― Charles Dickens
On the Northshore of Lake Travis…

February 26, 2014

…you'll find homes in just about every size, style, and price you can imagine, from simple vacation cottages to million dollar homes in gated communities.

There are homes lining golf courses, homes perched on the edge of the lake, homes in perfect suburban neighborhoods, and homes on acreage down winding dirt roads (like mine.)

That's what makes the property tours so much fun!

We started Tuesday's tour in the town of Lago Vista visiting modest homes like the one below, which had a unique tile design in the dining area.

…and the view of the woods behind the house from the kitchen and breakfast room.

I've always loved a bow window.

Behind the house there was a huge stained concrete patio. I could imagine sitting out there enjoying the warmth of that portable firepit below a sky filled with stars.

The tour finished outside of town in a gated community on the lake.

I wish I could post photos of the first house we toured there.

It was "Texas" through and through, from the weathered-green-painted front doors to the stone Texas star above the fireplace and on down a gravel path to this gorgeous view of Lake Travis…even though the lake is currently down about 50 feet because of the drought.

I could have stood there clicking all day, it was so peaceful, but we had one more house to tour…and lunch was waiting for us there.

Yum! Thank you, Emma!

The perfect yard when you're dealing with a drought, right?

Imagine that view with a lake full of water. And it will fill up again!

Even now it's still beautiful.

I loved this fan on the back patio!

But the most unique thing about this house was the huge, open master bathroom/bedroom.

See the fireplace?

It's the only dividing wall between the tub and the bed, which is in the lower left corner of the following photo…

One of the other bedrooms had a Murphy bed. I just thought it was cool!

I hope you enjoyed the tour! This past Tuesday I explored some new homes in my area with a friend. Gorgeous! I hope to be able to post those soon.

As always, if you want more information about any of these homes, just let me know. I'd love to play matchmaker!
Signs of Spring…and other sweet!s

February 24, 2014

Cedar Waxwings have returned to the Hollow! A huge flock of them graced the tall leafless willows near the pond most of the morning, just kind of hanging out. I ventured as near as I dared and snapped about a thousand photos with my zoom.

I'm not sure if any of the pics will do them justice – it was a gray morning and I was still pretty far away, because I didn't want to spook them. But it doesn't matter. It was enough to just stand there and exist with them for a little while.

If any are worth sharing, I'll post them later over at Confessions. In the meantime, here are a few definite signs that Spring is moving back in..

I spotted this odd couple Saturday morning…a Cedar Waxwing and a Robin.

Rosemary is blooming in front of one of my listings. Bees were going crazy!

And here are a few other sweet!s from the past week…

Monday: getting to watch a portion of your company conference in Phoenix from the comfort of your Austin office with friends, while sipping on a cocktail and snacking; coupons for free Chik-Fil-A sandwiches; dining outside on a balmy Austin evening with your daughter

Tuesday: property tours; gorgeous Lake Travis scenery; a call from a neighbor you didn't know before, thanks to the neighborhood group you formed; a new haircut and re-blonding

Wednesday: your son's help in getting a copy of your mom's birth certificate easier and faster than it was going to be; your errant puppies heading home with just a single "Go home now!" command given through your car window

Thursday: the Flight Path coffee shop; a Turkey Reuben eaten outside at Avenue B Grocery; your adventuresome puppies (apparently) staying home without their shock collars; learning how to add emoticons to your text messages

Friday: classes with free lunches; a referral by a friend; picking up a lead at the grocery store; warm brownies, thanks to your daughter

Saturday: Robins and Cedar Waxwings returning to your hollow; meeting with potential buyer clients; watching and critiquing movies with your kids

Sunday: inspiration on an A-frame sign; Quiche Lorraine; encouragement for your writing; a visit with your mom, son, and daughter-in-law, all at the same time; writing critique group meetings; quesadillas for dinner, courtesy of your daughter

Monday: taking time to just watch a flock of Cedar Waxwings; a glimpse of bright yellow bird in the bushes; your mom just suffering a couple of bruises from a fall; taking 10 minutes from an over-busy day to play your neglected drums

I wish I could send our warm weather, bees, and blossoms up to those of you in the north still stuck in signs of winter! I hope you still find plenty of sweet!s in each day.

"Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience."

~Ralph Waldo Emerson

"Patience and perseverance have a magical effect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish."

~John Quincy Adams
Number 1: Laughing Hard Times into Wine

February 21, 2014

1. This is my new favorite quote:

“The woman had laughed the hard times into wine.”
-Ann Voskamp

I'm not sure if it's possible to laugh hard times into wine, except theoretically, of course… but I love the imagery of it. Thanks to Jennifer at Ripplespeak for posting it. (And for all of her own beautiful words full of imagery and inspiration!)

2. I've had to spend a lot of time dealing with the Social Security Administration and other agencies lately, trying to get things straightened out for my mom. It can be pretty frustrating and confusing.

So when I was having trouble getting my mom's birth certificate last week at the Bureau of Vital Statistics, my son Daniel moved up to total Rock Star status with me when he provided the information and advice via text that I needed to help the Bureau employees figure out what to do in only one trip!

I forgave him any headaches he gave me when he was little.

3. Have you heard of Sundown Syndrome? I hadn't until my mom started showing signs of it. Sigh.

4. I just created a Nextdoor.com group for my neighborhood. It's kind of like Neighborhood Watch, only online.

"Nextdoor is the private social network for you, your neighbors and your community. It's the easiest way for you and your neighbors to talk online and make all of your lives better in the real world. And it's free." (from the website)

I heard about it in a real estate class and thought it would be perfect for my little area where walking next-door is a bit of a hike and the potential for wildfires is very, very real.

(photo from the Duluth Animal Hospital Facebook Page)

5.And last but not least, just in case I'm NOT the last person in the world to meet this adorable couple, I'm introducing you to Roo and Penny, best buddies who were both adopted by Alicia Williams of the Duluth Animal Hospital. Daniel introduced them to me.

I have fallen totally head over heels, wanting to reach in and cuddle both of them, in love with them!

If you're like me and can't get enough of their cuteness, go HERE to learn more about their stories.

God bless Alicia for saving them.

Joining with Nancy's…
A Home with History in Old Town Pflugerville

February 20, 2014

Beginning in my teens, I dreamed of renovating an old house. My aunt joined in on the dream project, picking out potential projects in the countryside around Killeen, where she lived.

Tom picked up on the dream. We loved touring Victorian homes that had been lovingly restored…or sneaking into neglected ones and imagining their potential.

We ended up building our country home from the foundation up. It's a perfect fit and I no longer dream of renovating anything.

But roomy front porches, leaded glass windows, metal roofs, spindle railings, clapboard siding…they still make me swoon. So when I saw that the one home on our office property tour Tuesday before last was this gray-headed grandmother of a house, the raindrops falling from that steely sky couldn't dampen my excitement.

The original house was built in the '30's, but the current owners added a two-story section onto the rear which included more bedrooms, bathrooms, and a huge playroom upstairs.

I doubt the view out of this kitchen window has changed much at all in the past 80 years.

This bar with the gorgeous metal counter and sink are in the huge upstairs family room.

The perfect front door for this house, dont' you think?

I couldn't help lingering on the front porch a little while before running back out into the rain.
All it's missing is a swing right over there.

This property is listed by another agent, so contact me if you have fallen in love and I'll play matchmaker for you!

And stay tuned for my property tour adventure out into the hill country from this past Tuesday. I'll post it this weekend.
Not the Sweetest Valentine’s Day…

February 17, 2014

I received my Valentine's Day surprise early Friday morning – a stomach bug. It knocked me out all day and left me feeling like a ragdoll all weekend.

Thank goodness my son Daniel was able to deliver the fancy box of Millionaire candy I bought for Mama, so she still had something special, and I'm so grateful to TG for staying home to take care of me and the puppies.

But I had to cancel appointments, scrap my plans of dropping Valentine surprises by my clients' houses, and didn't even have the energy to work on my computer or read.

If you've already had this cursed virus, I give you my full sympathy. If you haven't, I pray it misses you!

And I hope your Valentine's Day was a lot sweeter than mine! Share them with me in the comments.

I still collected a few sweet!s this week, though…

Sunday: helping a dear friend celebrate her birthday; sitting with friends on a deck, watching deer watch us

Monday: your clients pleased with the photos you took of the Women's Gala; picking up an extra phone duty; getting to see your mom for the first time in three days; learning that one of the ladies your mom eats with every day is a friend's mother-in-law

Tuesday: property tours; the photo you took on a friend's beautiful business card; enough hot coals still alive in your woodburning stove when you get home to get a fire going easily

Wednesday: yellow flowers that continue to bloom along your path despite the freezing temperatures; support in your new career; picking up another extra phone duty; hand and arm massages; listening to your mom's memories

Thursday: nurses who keep you posted on your mom's health issues; subbing in a high school classroom and listening to their mock job interviews (impressive!); getting a potential lease client while on phone duty

Friday: your daughter taking care of you and the things that need to be done around the house when you get knocked out of commission by a stomach bug; get-well wishes from friends on Facebook; your son delivering your Valentine's Day box of candy to your mom for you; finally being able to take some medicine for a day-long headache without fear of it coming back up again; your mom's fever staying low; care givers who keep a close watch on your mom, especially when you can't

Saturday: a full night's rest and waking to sunlight splashing into your bedroom; breakfast, after a 36 hour involuntary fast; enough energy for a morning walk with your puppies; a Mexican Jay posing for you; your mom testing negative for pneumonia; relaxing on your porch, watching the cardinals visit your birdfeeder, even though they wait until it's too dark for you to get a good photo of them

Sunday: Mass with your kids; Shirley Temple movies; visiting your mom after not seeing her for three days – again!; listening to your body and going to bed at 8pm

Monday: realizing you slept for 10 hours!

The best things in life are nearest:
Breath in your nostrils, light in your eyes, flowers at your feet, duties at your hand, the path of right just before you.
Then do not grasp at the stars, but do life's plain, common work as it comes, certain that daily duties and daily bread are the sweetest things in life.

~Robert Louis Stevenson

P.S. Happy Presidents' Day, by the way! Whether you have the day off, or you have to work (like me) I hope you enjoy it!

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