Yesterday I had to take off work to do some boring personal stuff, but in the end, there was lots of time in the day left over. Since I will be out of town for Anita’s birthday on Saturday, I decided to take her to some places in Austin she’d never been. The first was the Contemporary Austin museum at Laguna Gloria, which I just shared some photos of flowers from.

I hadn’t been to Laguna Gloria since some art classes when my children were small. It’s changed a lot since then, and they have added some fancy new, but not quite finished, buildings there, like a cafe (we had a nice light meal from there, though we had to eat in the car due to no seating), a cute gift shop (where Vlassic got a new “dress collar”), and such.

But we were there for the sculptures (and plants), so off we went. The day got warmer and warmer, but we persevered.
All the modern sculptures were interesting, at least, and some I just loved. The settings in and among all the native and other plants was really pleasant. Plus, I’m just glad there is still a little space where people can see Lake Austin from the ground. Most of it is full of giant, fancy houses.
My favorite one didn’t photograph well, but it was party of a trio of pieces hanging from one of the many huge trees on the property. I guess you’ll just have to go to see it.

I also liked the huge old car that played music and shone its lights in the middle of the plants.

Two favorites were the one that resembled a big pile of poop, but it gave off the most comforting vibe. I have no idea why. The other one is just some rocks, but from the side, looks like a friendly person.


The “twins” cracked me up, and I joined them for a moment of fun.

I liked that there were multiple tree sculptures, too, including a huge one carved out of limestone.

And the views, ah, the views. All the lotuses and other water plants frame Lady Bird Lake so beautifully (sorry I keep wanting to call it Lake Austin).

We also tried to go see Mayfield Park, which has beautiful peacocks and ponds, but the ponds were being resurfaced and we could only walk on the trails, which was nice, but it was really hot by then. And to add to our indignity, we got to the end of the trail only to find we could not get off! The gate was locked.

So, I tromped through the woods like the woodland nymph I am, and found a place where we could squeeze through the fence. You can’t stop me and Anita!
Card o’ Day
The card for today is the 8 of Cups. It fits right into the theme I am working toward, where I’m just not investing in energy for family members who don’t want to interact with me, situations I can’t change, and settings that don’t help me improve.

Aeclectic Tarot says:
…the card tells the querent that whatever they’ve been investing their emotions in, it has brought them down, made them less of a human being than they want to be. They need to give their feeling to that that which will en-noble them. This something will not be found in any familiar places. They must have the fortitude to search for it elsewhere.
Aeclectic
And now that I have done this, situations have begun resolving themselves. Bingo.