Photo-of-the-Week #86 - A Casual Afternoon With Friends, Austin, Texas, September 2003

This photo was taken from one of the multiple level decks of a great restaurant and watering hole overlooking one of the lakes in the Austin lake region. The restaurant is located high on a hill over the lake providing an awesome view and a perfect perch for a casual afternoon with friends.

That's yours truly in the foreground with my back to the camera. My friends are local Austin residents. I met Bill around 1974 in Maryland. He was a young guy (as was I) who worked at a local piano store as a salesman and piano technician. He and his brother-in-law, Al, were starting a small recording business and came to my recording studio in the Washington, DC area for assistance with their business. Ultimately, Bill ended up as a recording engineer for me and Al became my tape duplication manager. Time marches on and we met up again nearly 30 years later in Austin, Texas.

Diane is the Director of Administration for the Lt. Governor of Texas and works in the Texas State House. After Bill and I lost contact he did various things including playing piano at a lounge in the Washington, DC area. Diane was in DC for a conference and happened upon Bill at the lounge he was playing at. Bill had been divorced for a while and cupid shot his arrow. Bill moves to Austin, marries Diane and fate reunites us as friends and I get to experience a very enjoyable afternoon at a place I would have never been otherwise. Bill now has an audio and video production business in Austin. Serendipity is a wonderful thing.