TEXAS

I (Phil) was born in Amarillo, Texas while my father was organizing a steel fabrication plant there for the United Steelworkers. I lived mainly in the Houston area until I was almost 13, with a few years in small-town East Texas.

My mother's family has been in Texas for generations, as mentioned earlier. My grandfather was the County Judge (for non-Texans that is the highest elected office in a county, essentially the same as a Chair of a Board of Supervisors or County Commission) of Orange County along the Louisiana border, and as a young man played on the University of Texas 1909 football team. My grandmother was Dean of Women at UT in the 1930s and 40s, back when they had positions like that.

Both my parents are UT grads; my father was President of the Student's Association in 1946-47. Both my brothers got their undergrad degrees there. I earned my masters degree there. All but one of my cousins on my mother's side got a degree there. The family kind of bleeds burnt orange.

Ann and I lived in Austin from 1982-86. We were living there when we were married and our daughter was born there. There's always been a strong feeling of being "home" for me in Texas. So when we entered the state on April 1, I wanted to see whether that was still the case.

Galveston

We took the road less traveled to get to Galveston, where my cousin and her husband have built a wonderful home on the bay across from Galveston Island. Looping south though my ancestral home of Orange to the Gulf of Mexico coast after entering from Louisiana, we made our way all along the Bolivar Peninsula to the free state-run ferry that crosses the small strait to Galveston.

Driving aboard the Robert C. Lanier ferry.

A wonderful visit with close and extended family came next. My brother and another cousin joined us. We visited the old part of Galveston, which was once the largest city in Texas and is the birthplace of the Juneteenth holiday.

We ate well at my cousin's place; both she and her husband are very good cooks. We fished off their dock, took their boat out, and in general just relaxed. It was the first extended "stoppage time" of the trip so far and was wonderful.

Leaving Galveston and heading north took us through Houston, where I spent most of my young years. It has some really nice parts, but has become way too overgrown for me to want to live there. We didn't stop.

Central Texas

Central Texas can be beautiful in the spring when the wildflowers are blooming, especially with fields of bluebonnets and indian paintbrushes everywhere. Unfortunately this spring has been so dry that there are very few flowers, which is a disappointment.

But there is still a lot of beauty. Rolling hills covered with live oak and other trees give way to farmland and ranchland stretching as far as the eye can see. Another cousin and his wife have a home close to Round Top, which is known for its antique and home decor extravaganzas that draw tens of thousands each year.

A crisp Central Texas morning outside Round Top

Prickly Pear cacti blooming outside Bastrop, TX.

After a couple relaxing days there, we proceeded to Austin. It is a very different city than the quirky place we left 40 years ago. It used to be dominated by the state government and the University, with a great music and party scene along 6th Street as well as some good, old-style restaurants.

Today several high-tech companies call it home, as well as Tesla and other manufacturing giants. There are more than 2 million people now living in the metropolitan area, with downtown skyscrapers where warehouses and old storefronts once stood.

The Austin skyline view from Lady Bird Johnson's old office in the LBJ Library. She fought the University's plans to build an upper deck on the closest side of the football stadium because it would have blocked her view of the State Capitol Dome. She was Lady Bird and she won. It used to be the tallest thing that could be seen looking this way. Can you find it?

The state capitol and the university are still there, and still vital parts of the town. I got a Master's Degree from UT's Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs in 1985, which is right next to the LBJ Presidential Library and Museum. Three other guys and I became great friends during our time there, and we got together for a reunion, which was a lot of fun.

LBJ library with the UT Tower.

A mission that is sadly not a priority in the White House these days.

The Boys

Continuing our chase of Top Chef meals, we ate at Arlo Grey, which is Kristen Kish's restaurant in Austin. The food is really good, although the family-style service presents some ordering challenges. We've never really been a fan of that at a fine-dining restaurant.

We had great visits with lots of family, including Phil's step-mother and several of his step-siblings, and one of our closest friends who was the best man at our wedding. Also we were able to meet our new grandnephew for the first time, which was a real treat.

We leave Texas after being here almost two weeks to kick off Part Two of our trip. We'll be back with some frequency because of the friends and family we have here. But it doesn't really feel like home anymore. So much has changed, some for the better and some not.