"...the streets of Vienna are paved with culture...." Karl Kraus

 Kraus was mainly a satirist, though he dabbled with being a playwright and a poet. His targets were usually political and cultural -- and mostly German and Austrian (he was Czech, before Czechoslovakia actually existed). Would have been interesting to see what he would have had to say about the Nazis, but he died in 1936.

We're getting accustomed to new schedules and priorities and, at least in this early going, getting sick of the Stephansplatz. Like the French Quarter in New Orleans, it is a tourist Mecca and home to so much of what the old city is about (the glorious St. Stephan cathedral and the Karlskirche, plus other bonafide attractions). But it is also overrun with high-end, name-brand schlock and an attendant international melange of the clueless in a hurry to see things only to say they saw them and take photos before running a half-block to do the same thing again. The real issue for me is it's also home to one of the best charcuterie/cheese places in the world, thereby mandating my periodic attendance. There is a also a world-class tea operation nearby, demanding the same thing from Denise. The fact is we are both already spoiled and everyone else should just go the hell home so we get easy access.

I heard from my high school friend Bob, who arrived with his wife Christine in Ireland last week. Bob has spent much of his life living and working in Europe, so I immediately pay attention to his opinions and observations about where we are. He mentioned today how "civilized (my term in a Facebook post)" the locals in Europe can be (or appear) when compared to Americans and I have to agree. To a point. I have always been something of a dandy and can tend to overdress in unfamiliar situations. Or sometimes just for the hell of it. I get it. But I tell ya -- these folks over here just love their damn designer labels. I had never seen a Gucci bucket hat until today. Seems everyone has on a $75 t-shirt with LOS ANGELES or something on it. I also saw a full-blown adult wearing a Tampa Bay Rays cap sideways and I can guarandamntee you he couldn't tell a foul ball from a double play.

...not that the US is any better. With the World Cup coming up in Qatar, soccer fashion will again inundate the Sweet Land of Lib-er-tee for awhile. And we do love our Adidas and Puma gear anyway. So there ya go.

This is a photo Denise took on the Metro a coupla days ago. This style for young men is more predominate here than other places I've been. It has been around for a couple of decades (my nephew sported it in like 2006). I'm a longhair myself. I'm just mystified by the logistics of how it works. Seems this is the only way to wear it. Otherwise the topknot slaps forward to slug you in the chin. I should ask.

I am reminded daily of the nearness of things here. In the time it takes to drive from downtown Fort Worth to downtown Dallas, we can leave this country on a train and be in the capital of another. We plan lunch in Bratislava (Slovakia) next week. The same as a flight from DFW to Atlanta, we're in Paris. We are as close to Milan and Venice as is Dallas to Chicago. We're planning some side trips as we go, but also taking days off to just relax. I think the best idea we've had is to build in time to Just Stop and not feel guilty about missing something. We're facing the reality we're not as mobile and agile as two decades ago, so we're underselling ourselves. But the most important thing so far has been the lack of a car. Since leaving New Orleans a decade ago, I have lived in areas where access to a motor vehicle of some sort is pretty much mandatory for work and daily errands (we avoided it for a year in Southern California, but we were the exception). It's good to not rely on it here and it will be a major factor in choosing wherever we decide to land. If we ever do.

While time seems to have pretty much stopped for us, it clearly moves ahead elsewhere for our families, friends and the world in general. We've managed to get out the first batch of postcards and we know where/how to send along anything we want. A mail service keeps us up to speed on any of our own affairs that can't be managed online. We're told we'll be getting a TV in here later in the week, though we're unsure how much it'll actually be turned on. The delivery of the delayed suitcase has been a major step forward, allowing us to organize some things for the longer term. Not that we'll be buying artwork for the walls, but we've been able to get a few small things to make the place ours, at least for a little while.

I've always been most comfortable outside your typical comfort zone. I have been lucky enough to have a life on all three US coasts, in seven states and in three of the four US time zones. Being here on unfamiliar ground with an unfamiliar language feels right, even if I don't always pull things off with the best of aplomb. I sure as hell don't have things figured out and the longer I'm Out Here, the more true that'll be. I'm good with that.

"...too much just ain't enough for them old five-and-dimers like me..." -- Billy Joe Shaver