Tuesday, March 13, 2007

Family birthday in S. A.

Sunday was my brother Patrick's birthday. He turned the "big four-O"!

Dear reader, you may have presumed from my blog posting of 15 February, that I'm very, very glad to have family living here in San Antonio. You are correct! One of the "downers" of living the past five years in this big city has been having no blood family with whom to share daily life.

But now Patrick and his wife LaRae are here! Yippee! So Sunday I got to help celebrate his fortieth birthday. He said that he wanted a steak dinner, so I tho'tfully considered the various (and numerous -- this IS Texas & cattle country) steak houses and restaurants I knew anything about. And soon the name "Good Time Charlie's" came to mind. This restaurant and bar stands on Broadway at Mulberry, near Brackenridge Park. From the street it looks like a dive. But I've spent many evenings there watching Spurs games on their TV. And I've eaten a few meals there, plus celebrated the state championship of the Alamo Heights Mules football team. Native San Antonians have told me that "Good Time Charlie's" as the best, or one of the best, chicken-fried steaks in town. And I knew the cafe had other steaks on its menu.

So we celebrated Patrick's birthday with supper at "Good Time Charlie's". Interestingly, LaRae and I both ordered chicken-fried steaks, while the "birthday boy" had t-bone. This was just like when I took the two to Jim's on their first evening in S.A.; LaRae and I had c.f.s. while Patrick ate t-bone or some other steak cut. Hm-m-m!

Both LaRae and I made a big deal of our "birthday boy" to the waitress. I knew that I'd been in "Good Time Charlie's" sometime in the past five years for someone's birthday, and that the staff did SOMETHING for birthdays, but I couldn't remember the details. Well, when we had finished off our steaks the waitress brought out a large piece of cake. She begged off singing "Happy Birthday", claiming that she didn't have a singing voice. But let me tell you, the cake was plenty sufficient. It was german chocolate with a caramel and nut topping (not a firm icing), and it had been warmed up. It was melt-in-your-mouth de-e-e-elicious!

After supper I took the two new S.A. residents on a guided tour of Brackenridge Park and the surrounding part of the city. I showed them the renovated southeast portion of the park, where I would take meditative and healing walks during my first year here. Even tho' the city Parks & Rec changed the roadways some and added a few pieces of art, and moved George W. Brackenridge's statue so that it's not as noticeable from Broadway, that section of the park still has a rustic, out-in-the-country feel to it.

I also pointed out the Koehler Pavilion where Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity had its Founders Day picnic. We drove by the Japanese Sunken Gardens, the entrance to San Antonio's excellent Zoo (one of the top three in the country, I've been told) and the "Brackenridge Eagle" train ride.

Then I had us swing by Trinity University, which striking campus is near the Zoo on a hill overlooking downtown S.A. from the north. And I directed us by Mahncke Park, a linear park of tow long blocks, one end of which gets ablaze with wildflowers in the Spring, and the nearby Botanical Gardens.

It's fun celebrating birthdays, especially in San Antonio with family who are new to the city. And ready to be shown around this unique city!

No comments: