Bryker Drive

I guess because starting a new job just wasn't enough change, even when combined with turning 40, I have bought a house and sold mine.

Regarding why I'm moving, I am super stoked about the new place. It is 4 blocks from where I live now, and has a great vibe. You can check it out at:

http://tours.tourfactory.com/tours/tour.asp?t=411589

I sold my house to some folks who we are not sure are so nice based on their behavior late in the negotiations. Nonetheless, I believe what goes around comes around, and I hope they'll be as happy here as I was.

My closing on the new house is tomorrow, and it seemed wise to reflect for a few moments on what Bryker Drive has meant to me.

I moved here five years ago when I was feeling pretty bad, both physically and mentally. I had been through a divorce which though not messy, was a divorce all the same. I had undergone major surgery less than 60 days before, and was just getting my strength back. My mom was, as always, the best moving helper you could ask for. The house needed a lot of help. Here are some photos of "before."

I gave a lot of love to the house. I realize now as I did all these great things to the place, it made me get stronger. And I'm really proud of how it turned out. Here are some photos today:

Just this past May, a giant hailstone came through the window - check this out:

There are so many good memories of this house, it's hard to know where to start. It's where I've had many fantastic evenings with my friends and family. It was home away from home for Susan and Pablo when they were living in Ecuador and in the process of moving to Texas. I spent my year off here, and wrote my book. Not long ago, I said goodbye to my longtime friend, Hugh, whose ashes we sprinkled in the yard.

All good things have to come to an end, and Bryker Drive was one of the best. Thanks for the memories.

Now, let's go put the Fun in Funston.

Houston Austin Texas [Cat], August 1992-January 2008

Today I have sad news to post on the blog, a departure from the norm. In the last ten months, I'm proud that the blog has been upbeat, during a time when it seems things in the rest of the world is falling apart. But today I lost a really good friend, and that's what I'm writing about.

On Halloween 1992 I adopted a kitten who I named Houston. Amy, one of my best friends, went with me to pick Huey up from his foster home. We picked the name when we realized he had been born diring the Republican Convention in Houston, which was that year in August. Huey became his nickname almost immediately.

Huey (aka Hugh, a man of many aliases) lived with me in my 400 square foot studio aparement in Washington, DC. While I was there, he fell out of a third story window one day when my friend Sheila and I came into the apartment squealing and scared the daylights out of him. When we realized what had happened, I had to call the guy and cancel the date. He thought I was blowing him off at first, until his roommate pointed out the story was so crazy it had to be true.

The next year, we moved to North Carolina, where he had to travel back and forth to Washington on holidays in my 1986 Mazda which had no air conditioning! That was pretty toasty. When I lived in Colorado for my summer internship in 1994, he stayed in North Carolina, not being a fan of car trips. Susan Dettmar, my dear roomate, was his caretaker. Hugh did not remember me when I first got home after being gone 8 weeks, but soon we were friends again.

In 1995 Hugh moved with me to his mother state of Texas, where he lived for the rest of his life. He had to take a plane here, because no one wanted to travel in the car with him! My mom and I moved him into my first apartment and he was lost for several hours. We were distraught with panic until we realized he had climed into the wall behind the cabinet. We decided to leave him there to come out when he was good and ready, which of course he did.

Huey lived at several other locations in Austin until we moved to Brykerwoods in 2003. Here is he helping me with some work on Deer Hollow:

Susan and her husband Pablo were Hugh's mose recent caretakers, in addition to my awesome Mom, Carolyn. Susan has sat for Hugh for many years, but this summer when I was in Asia she and Pablo got to have him in all his glory. Somehow, he was always getting fleas even though he was declawed and an indoor cat! Also, in 2003, we found out he was going blind. He still got around great using his memory and whiskers, and he taught us a ton about how much you can see, even when you can't.

Most of all, Hugh was the most loving cat I ever met. He was 15 and a half years old today, and his time had just come. I plan to remember him as a cat who loved life as much as I do, and always had affection for others. As he started to become ill, this was no longer possible and I wanted him to have a peaceful end.

Thanks to all of you for your support and prayers. Houston Austin Texas was a truly great cat, friend and companion, and he will be missed.

-Gretchen