Mean Eyed Cat

Living in Austin has been such an interesting experience. At first glance, it's like every other city I've ever lived in, but there are those moments where I realize that I'm in such a bizarre city. A perfect example of this was about a week and a half ago. After meeting for coffee with a friend for the sake of company--fighting loneliness-- I reached the conclusion that I wasn't ready to go home just quite yet. As I drove home on a rainy midweek evening, doing everything imaginable to delay my arrival at home, I made the somewhat spontaneous to go to a bar instead. This was around 10:00 pm. Taking the exit ramp into the downtown area, I skimmed through the viable options. These were places that I had frequented all to frequently pretty indiscriminately under the drunken Friday and Saturday haze, but somehow they just wouldn't do. I drove westward until I hit the the railroad tracks and found the Mean Eyed Cat, a shack of a bar that doubles as a shrine to Johnny Cash. Knowing Cash's tendency towards introspection, it seemed like a perfect place to ponder.

I've been meaning to pay the Mean Eyed Cat another visit, but haven't found the time to do so. Places like the Mean Eyed Cat make it easier for me to live in Austin. At the same time, though, my infatuation with this city is based solely on its idiosyncrasies and these have a tendency to be nothing but superficialities.  With that said, would I feel just as comfortable elsewhere? And is Austin just a transitory place for something else? Quite frankly, this thought has crossed my mind. It's not very surprising that this train of thought presents itself close to the one year mark since I graduated from college. Much can happen in one year, and as much as it pains me to admit it, nothing really has transpired in that time. So here's the real issue: would I be better elsewhere? It's very likely that such might be the case. After all, as much as I love it here, I don't particularly have any real roots here that would make it impossible to leave. 

I think the next month or so will be very crucial. I am making more than a concerted effort to see whether this is the place that I belong to, but if not I'll just pick up and move on.