Well, with the Herve Villechaize reference from our July 3d installment fresh in mind, I figured we had to give ole Mr. Rourke a little bit of play, too. Here at the Odyssey, we have a strictly-enforced policy of equal access for all stars of long-running TV series that once occupied the coveted Friday, 10:00 PM timeslot. "Fantasy Island" certainly fits that bill; also, we can't help but celebrate a series which single-handedly kept the career of Barbi Benton afloat. For those of you wondering, we will be devoting future references to not only the principals of "Miami Vice" (Don Johnson, Philip Michael Thomas, and Edward James Olmos), but also to some of the more peripheral characters (for example, Switek, Zito, Trudy, and possibly even Gina). The burden of duty can be a heavy one, but we shoulder it gladly for you, the Odyssey reader.
Now, we've heard a few complaints about the somewhat surreal nature of our Fourth of July episode. "No information," you said. "No facts. Just a lot of pointless meandering and blathering on about nothing." Though I can't readily see how that sort of criticism really distinguishes yesterday's episodes from any of our others, we still take it to heart. That's why we offer this synopsis of yesterday's events:
There -- how's that? All informed now? Cool.
| After an activity-filled day like that, you can see that we might have been pretty tuckered on July 5th. And we were. That's why after a nice brunch of Mexican food at our favorite Austin restaurant (Guero's...it's fantastic, if you happen to be in Austin), we retired to Sean's pool for a rousing afternoon of sipping on beer, napping in the sun, and reading the newspaper. Pretty much just what the doctor ordered for a lazy Saturday afternoon. |  |
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After some hours, Kristanne and I were finally able to rouse Sean and Jill from their slumbers and we headed off to a restaurant with a view of Lake Travis to watch the sun go down. There, the real excitement of the day took place. Our table overlooking the lake was draped by a leafy tree of some variety unfamiliar to me ("oak," I think they called it). In the course of their web-building, large spiders would periodically come spiralling down out of this tree, perilously close to the heads of a nearby dining party. We considered warning them of the danger that they were in, but at Jill's urging, eventually realized it was far more fun to watch the spiders come zinging down at the unsuspecting patrons, only to stop mere inches from their heads. Our "oohs" and "ahhs" at each new spider foray didn't seem to alert them at all, as they leaned back innocently in their chairs, outstretched arms nearly brushing the wily arachnids. It was high entertainment, I tell you. We started a small pool on which person would get hit by a spider first. |
It's exactly that kind of reckless naivete that puts you in harm's way. As we sat enjoying the endangerment of others, we could not have guessed that we were next. As Kristanne reached for her glass of water, the rest of us noticed the huge spider screaming down from the tree, straight at her uprotected noggin. Sean and I could only watch as the spider continued its inexorable descent, our voices lumped in our throats. It took the quick-thinking Jill to put idea into action. With an extension of the arm so quick as to deny human sight, Jill seized Kristanne by the collar and hauled her to safety. It was beautiful and heroic, something you read about in a Reader's Digest Condensed Book but rarely see. Though her valor was somewhat marred in my eyes by her need to take several "victory laps" around the deck, high-fiving restaurant patrons, we were still grateful for her alertness and agreed to buy her one of the $5 margaritas featured at this establisment by way of thanks.
Jill modestly turned that down and we left, though not before getting Today's Scenic Shot of the sun going down over Travis Lake. Pretty nice, eh?
See you tomorrow for more daredevil stunts and sweatiness in the sunsteamed paradise of Austin, Texas.
Total Miles for 7/5 = 0