Well...when I said new format, I didn't plan for it to take quite so long. It's been an interesting year, to put it mildly. But I'm back on track! That's the important thing. Without the track, you're wandering aimlessly. Without the track, you're bound to end up in strange places. Which can be fun, granted, and you can learn a lot that way, but it's usually not lit very well and you can't get more than a dial-up connection at best.

In the meantime, several friends from Austin have moved to New York. Brooklyn, to be specific. I just wish there wasn't a 45-minute commute between us so we could see more of each other. There are quite a few of us ex-Texans bopping around here these days. At the current migration rate, it is just a matter of time before we can open our own chain of of taquerias and start bottling Big Red soda on the side.

This summer has been fun, apart from being laid off from my job. Fortunately there are a number of free and cheap things to do in New York in the summer, such as Central Park Summer Stage, Coney Island and assorted dive bars in the aforementioned Brooklyn. There's nothing like a day at the Coney Island boardwalk, with its salty-sweet breezes, Nathan's Famous Hot Dogs, cold beer, and rickety wooden roller coasters, to help take your mind off your problems.