Tag Archives: Austin
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The first annual Madroño Ranch residents’ reunion
Two Saturdays ago some twenty former residents and members of our Advisory Board gathered at our house in Austin for what we hope will be the first of many annual “Resident Reunions.” We envisioned this gathering as a chance for … Continue reading
Posted in More
Tagged Austin, community, Madroño Ranch, Oliver Sacks, poetry, residents, Sasha West, visual arts, writing
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A tale of two kitties
We lost one of our cats recently. Mr. Allnut (named for Humphrey Bogart’s character in The African Queen) asked to go out at about 4 one morning a few weeks ago, and I let him go. He never came back, … Continue reading
Posted in Nature
Tagged Aldo Leopold, Austin, Austin American-Statesman, cancer, Isle Royale, predators, Susan Sontag, urban wildlife
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A river runs through me
“Oh, it’s all very well to talk,” said the Mole, rather pettishly, he being new to a river and riverside life and its ways. A river, even one as dammed and sluggish as the Colorado in Austin, is a great … Continue reading
Posted in Nature
Tagged Austin, Colorado River, fly-fishing, Kenneth Grahame, stand-up paddling, Tink Pinkard
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Down home and out of place: East Side blues
As regular readers of this blog know, we believe firmly in the pleasures—and, even more, the importance—of cultivating the kind of deep knowledge of people and landmarks and events, present and past, that only comes with long residence in a … Continue reading
Posted in Place
Tagged Antone's, Austin, blues, Fabulous Thunderbirds, Little Elmore Reed Blues Band, maps, sense of place, TC's Lounge, Texas music
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Double vision: prophets, tribalism, eugenics, and the environment
As I dog-paddle through the sea of books threatening to drown not just me but the overwhelmed shores of my bedside table, I found these sentences: “For those who draw near and offer themselves before God, satisfaction of hunger is … Continue reading
Posted in Nature
Tagged agribusiness, Austin, Bible, Ellen Davis, environmentalism, Orion, prophets, Texas Hill Country, Theodore Roosevelt, Wendell Berry
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Adventures in Business-Land
This week, during a solo trip to Madroño, Heather spent much of her time knocking on doors in Kerrville, Bandera, Medina, Tarpley, and vicinity, hoping to convince chefs and restaurateurs to buy locally raised, grass-fed bison meat from the ranch. … Continue reading
Posted in More
Tagged agribusiness, Austin, bison, farming, Madroño Ranch, meat, Texas Hill Country, Thunder Heart Bison
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More on violence: a death in West Austin
Last Thursday got off to a grisly start in our West Austin neighborhood, bringing a stark reminder of the violence inherent in the way we humans live on the land. We usually attempt, more or less successfully, to keep this … Continue reading