And so, my week in Austin has come to an end. It was a nice getaway from the country – I really enjoyed my time there. I accomplished what I had set out to do: bring Snuggles to the US, and attend my sister’s wedding. I also ate great food, made new friends, experienced new weather (honestly, I don’t see myself making it through a month of cold weather – I don’t know how you guys do it! I’m definitely taking weather into consideration if I ever decide to migrate to anywhere in the future).

My flight back was uneventful – going as planned with no additional delays. I did have to take a shit on the plane though. I kept farting for most of the journey. I’m not sure why. Might have been some beans I had for one of the meals. No idea if it stank (I couldn’t smell anything), sorry to whoever smelt it.

I watched a few movies on the way back – The Big Lebowski (great comedy) and Office Space (started off pretty good but became kinda meh midway) – I also noticed that both films made prominent use of the phrase ‘Fuckin’ A/ay/eh’, something that I had only heard before in Clerks. I also watched parts of Say Anything, Bad Night at the El Royale, Oceans 13, Mission Impossible: Fallout (while drifting in and out of sleep). They were alright films.

Felt strange coming home to no barking even though I was expecting it.

Josh, Liz and Paul: thank you for being extremely gracious hosts. You guys made sure I always had a place to stay and that my tummy was never hungry. This trip wouldn’t have happened without you. Dad – I didn’t get to spend much time with you but you’ll be back in KL soon and I’ll see you again the next time I visit! Dave, Chance, Tyler – it was great meeting you guys. Looking forward to hanging out again next time!

Have you ever been so cold that your nipples hurt when warm water touches them? Yeah, that’s right. I never knew my body was capable of experiencing such sensations. Apparently, the night I landed in Austin was the last normal day I’d be having in the city. Since then every other day has been getting colder and colder. I definitely take Malaysia’s weather for granted. Today the weather dropped to 0 degrees C. While my arms and legs were doing alright, it was the cold winds blowing in my face that made it unbearable. Also, every time I took my hands out of my pockets. You know it’s real bad when I only smoked two sticks today because I didn’t want to stand out in the cold. I guess if I ever wanted to quit smoking, I know I’ll be able to do it in a cold country.

Yesterday was the ring ceremony and dinner for my sister’s wedding. It was an enjoyable night. Not much to say there I guess, everything went according to plan. Except for the weather, but that was a given. Fortunately there was no rain. Today I went for a day trip to San Antonio where I learned about the Alamo and its significance, traveled around the river walk, drank beers and ate some snacks. One thing I realized here is that people really enjoy their beers. It’s not uncommon to see people ordering beers with every meal. Or just as a casual drink. In Malaysia, beers are reserved for certain occasions or nights out. Then again if beer was this good in Malaysia, I’d probably have it all the time too. I didn’t drink much today because I still have last night’s alcohol in my system.

Tonight is the last night I spend here in Austin and also the last night I get to spend with Snuggles. Don’t know if she knows that she won’t be seeing me again anytime soon but I know I’m going to miss her a lot. Going back home after a long day at work isn’t going to be the same again: no more loud barking, curious sniffing and licking, and her jumping onto my lap or bed whenver she wanted my attention. Ah well. Until next time, farewell Snuggles. <3

What I learned today – finishing Mario Golf on the Gameboy multiple times, many years ago did nothing to improve my golfing skills. Not that I had any in the first place. The last time I held a real golf club was back in GIS when we had golf for our physical education classes. They’d file us into a van and drive us out to the golf club near our school. Then they’d put us on the driving range for us to try to hit the balls as far as possible. I can’t recall how good the rest of my class was but I know I was terrible at it. More missed swings than balls hit, more balls landing a few feet from the tee instead of way out in the range.

Fast foward to tonight, where I found myself putting (heh) all those years of golfing to the test. It was fun and chill night with my sister, her in-laws and friends at this trendy driving range called Topgolf. If you haven’t been to it before, think of it as a bowling alley, but with way more open space, and different skill requisites. Instead of throwing balls at pins, you were whacking balls into colored holes, and taking sips of alcohol in between. It was interesting to see the veteran golfers wipe the floor with everybody else, despite it being a non-competitive night.

No surprise, I didn’t do well. Not that it mattered, and I knew I wasn’t going to be impressing anybody. Then I started thinking about the fun activities I would have before my hypothetical dream wedding (yes, I’ve written about it before) – we’d be doing fun stuff like jamming, playing some Dota 2 local lobbies, and
assembling keyboards together. Sounds like it would be an awesome day. Fortunately for me, I don’t need to have a wedding to do those things with my friends. (LUL)

Less than 24 hours until the wedding ceremony and dinner. I get to wear my tailored suit for the second time (what a great investment!). It’s going to be a real good time.

Photo of the day: this bus with a drawing that reminded me of a shitty ninja drawing I did many years ago in college. Don’t think I can find it anymore but I’ll post a comparison if I do. Turns out, it’s a private bus for people to rent.