Despite the light rain, which lessened and then disappeared before the parade ended, turnout was fine and spirits were bright for Chuy’s parade today, collecting toys to benefit Operation Blue Santa.

We found the Austin Public Library Bibliophile Book Cart Drill Team to be particularly amusing, with those revolving lectern headpieces. We love the musical entries in the parade; some were Austin Girls’ Choir, a marching band from the Ann Richards School for Young Women Leaders, ESPADA pipe & drum corps, a lion and dragon dance team accompanied by drummers, Los Texas Wranglers, Franksten High School marching band, the Biscuit Brothers, Janie Balderas, St. Michael’s school band, and our local favorites, the Travis High School marching band.

Shown here is the polar bear balloon; others were a muppet, a smurf, and a reindeer; view these and additional images from the parade, as well as unedited videos. Anyone who missed the parade may still donate on line to Operation Blue Santa or donate at the December 1 event on South Congress, where you may have your picture taken in the human snow globe. Operation Blue Santa needs everyone’s help.

Right at Evergreen Avenue, a very proper and appropriate location for an enterprise selling Christmas trees, Rudolph’s is now open and has been since yesterday on South Lamar across from Mr. Natural.

The inventory’s larger than last year’s and the prices seem to be even more reasonable than they were then. These trees are as fresh as can be, and the friendly people there will prune lower branches so that a tree will fit better in the stand. The boughs are yours to take home for added evergreen scent. Ask to have an inch or so sawn off the bottom of the trunk for better uptake of water.

For those without a tree stand, Rudolph’s offers inconspicuous and very stable dark-green plastic ones with four sturdy eye-bolts to hold the trunk upright. See photos of this year’s and last year’s selection of hand-painted signs on display. Rudolph’s is open seven days a week until all trees are sold.

This was a perfect day for the Veterans Day parade, crisp and sunny. Del Valle, which never fails to participate, led off the order of March.

Mayor Leffingwell was among the dignitaries. We were treated to stirring music, most particularly from Del Valle (which never fails to participate), a City pipe band, and, grandest of all, a large and prime band all the way from Bastrop High School.

Various school ROTC groups were snappy and polished, with perfect posture. All the children participating in the parade and along the route were a treat to see.

Some toy-camera photos have been uploaded and so have some unedited videos, with more on the way. Congress Avenue was specifically designed as a route for parades and processions. Next parade up is Chuy’s.

First on the scene was the intrepid squirrel, racing across from the mostly pecan side of the street to the mostly acorn side of the street, in the midst of which venture he met his untimely end.

Within seconds of his demise, two black vultures were on the scene, in a contest to be the first to have at his remains. One drove the other away a short distance and began his banquet. Viscera were the appetizers (or “starters,” as so many say these days). The sound effects were akin to those of an over-stretched elastic band being pulled to the snapping point.

Vulture number two was intermittently driven up onto a tree limb when it approached too closely, but would return for overlooked tidbits of squirrel on the pavement.

Three other vultures arrived, to make five, but they never succeeded in approaching as near as number two and had to be satisfied with watching from tree limbs and the utility pole.

Black vultures are smaller and less fearful than the larger red-headed turkey vultures. They seem to be more common these days than they used to be.

It’s astonishing how oblivious passers-by can be, even pedestrians, with their earbuds and their texting. Of the several who passed within inches of this sight, only one noticed, did a double-take, and hurried on at a faster pace.

Advice to squirrels would be to look both ways before crossing.

Time’s running out, and so are the pumpkins. Pumpkin patches can be overwhelming for the little ones, but one block east of South Congress is a patch set up on an intimate scale that keeps everyone smiling while those pictures are taken. Every year there are more scarecrows in the backdrops for photographs, so someone must be an expert at making them. Wagons are available for ferrying the larger cucurbits to a vehicle, although we saw a wagon employed to carry a load of small pumpkins, not too heavy for the little boy pulling them along. Make sure you’re ready for the national holiday of Austin, which reaches its peak observation tomorrow evening. Look for the signs at Grace United Methodist Church, 205 East Monroe. It’s all for a good cause, and a trip to the pumpkin patch combines very well with one to the H-E-B on South Congress, where early voting is in progress.

The page has been up for several days now, and it seems to be a live one, with more “likes” and more content each day.

Here’s one stated purpose:

The APD Burglary Unit is asking for the public’s assistance in locating the victims of a theft or burglary. The following images are of property recently recovered. Anyone having information as to the owner or claiming ownership can contact us by email APDBU@austintexas.gov and please include your case number when responding.

In addition, we’re told this:

Soon we plan to post images and videos of suspects asking for the public’s assistance in identifying them. We will also be posting images of recovered property so that we can locate the owners, and we’ll be sharing success stories. In the next week we will begin posting the APD Burglary Top Property Offenders as well. Stay tuned and spread the word.

Content so far consists mainly of recovered electronic items for which ownership is sought by the Austin Police Department burglary unit. At this moment, 665 “like” this site. Do you?

In the center of Wooldridge Square there is a bandstand. Occasionally, the bandstand is actually used as intended. Today was one of those days. At 2:30 pm, a professionally trained brass quintet took to the bandstand and played an entire hour of music by John Philip Sousa, to the complete delight of all assembled, children included, in this historic natural amphitheater, where the acoustics are excellent and there’s no street noise to be heard.

Among the marches played were “The Washington Post,” “The Liberty Bell,” “El Capitan,” “King Cotton,” “Semper Fidelis,” “Sabre and Spurs,” “U.S. Field Artillery,” “Hands Across the Sea,” and “Gallant Seventh.” We also heard our national anthem and a piece called “The Messiah of Nations.”

This free concert was one of a series of events marking the centennial of the Austin Symphony and the opening of a commemorative exhibit at the Austin History Center (the old library) called “Sounding Together: 100 Years of the Austin Symphony.”

Detective Dee: Mystery of the Phantom Flame is a spectacular extravaganza that has been in very limited release. Thank you, Alamo Drafthouse, for giving us the opportunity to see this wonderful movie, with a stellar cast directed by Tsui Hark and action choreography by Sammo Hung, in Mandarin with English subtitles.

Following this enthralling entertainment, we were inspired to check out Taste of China Express, 2510 South Congress, just south of Oltorf (telephone 326-8808). This is certainly one of the best values in town, allowing a choice of steamed rice, fried rice, or noodles, plus one entree for $4.99, two entrees for $5.99 (including soup and an egg roll), or three entrees for $6.99 (adding a beverage to soup and an egg roll). The entrees and rice or noodles are dished up in massive quantities for dining in or to take home, either picked up at the counter or at the busy drive-up window. Those willing to wait a bit may place orders for takeout from the larger menu, and entrees will be cooked to order.

For those dining in or for takeout patrons with time and money to make a selection beyond what’s ready on the spot, there are additional appetizers and many additional main courses. The hot and sour soup did offer flavor and heat; the egg rolls were like small spring rolls and we found them to be very appetizing. Today, we tried moo goo gai pan (among the vegetables were coins of fresh zucchini) and double cooked pork (the fresh carrots that were part of the dish were delicious). Next time, we’ll try the jalapeno chicken, that favorite of the massive buffets so popular these days.

Dishes that aren’t already prepared and ready in small quantities can be heard being cooked to order. Today’s ready entrees included sesame chicken, jalapeno chicken, shrimp wit vegetable, green beans with port, and others. The staff was jolly and peppy; among them is at least one fluent speaker of Spanish. Little samples of the ready dishes were offered on a toothpick for those wishing to try before ordering.

I found no Web presence for Taste of China. Its little menu says “Fast, Fresh, Tasty and Good Price,” which is a very fair assessment, particularly the quantity for the price.

Tucked away on Hancock Drive is a beautiful bower created by friendly people who are there to help you beautify your outdoor surroundings. Shoal Creek Nursery seems to stock every single variety of lantana that I’ve ever seen. Plants attractive to hummingbirds and butterflies appear to be a specialty, and the nursery even makes available a list of what appeals to these colorful visitors.

Shoal Creek Nursery offers many plants not often seen for sale elsewhere in Austin; an example is ruellia (the so-called “Mexican petunia”) in several colors. Shoal Creek Nursery carries more seeds for more types of herbs, vegetables, and flowers than I’ve seen anywhere else. They aren’t the Italian, Japanese, or Korean seeds found elsewhere from time to time, but an extremely wide array of varieties, including seeds for wildflowers, packaged by several seed companies may be found there right now.

New-season bedding plants already present in variety are dianthus (pinks) and Johnny jump-ups (violas). Spring bulbs of many kinds are expected soon. We’ve usually found a fine selection of high-quality ranunculus (also known as “Persian buttercups” and the model for Mexican paper flowers) tubers at Shoal Creek.

It’s a pleasure to see thriving plants after our tough summer and to plan for the cooler weather that’s on its way. Shoal Creek Nursery is one of Austin’s treasures for gardeners.

This is the cast-bronze sculpture greeting library patrons at the Windsor Park branch. It’s called “Reading Between the Lions,” by Paul Bond.

We hadn’t been to this branch for a while and were glad we had consulted a map before heading for it, since it’s not that far from the old Mueller airport and there are several dead-end streets nearby.

I still think of it as a “new” branch, even though it’s now more than a decade old. It seems more spacious than some of the newer branches, and it’s very busy, as they all are.

Windsor Park has a fine collection of mysteries and thrillers, a substantial collection of jazz CDs, and ample accommodation for computers, both those at the branch and those brought by patrons. We found some fine DVDs from the Golden Age of Mexican movies (those who love them should remember that the Mexican American Cultural Center is showing a series of comedies starring the great Cantinflas, by the way).

This is one of the branches that welcomes magazines for exchange. Many of ours were gone almost before we set them down.

When Austin begins to seem like one big amusement park, complete with tourists everywhere, obscure and peaceful corners of town are welcome retreats.

One of my favorite obscure corners is Sparky Park. Living beings to be encountered there seldom, if ever, include tourists. A grackle or a squirrel may share this peaceful spot with a visitor, but otherwise it always seems to be a place of solitude.

Sparky Park is a work of art. The photograph here does not do justice to the art wall; neither do the other images captured by my toy camera. Go see it for yourself. It’s a wonderful place for uninterrupted thinking, reading, or quiet conversation with a friend or a dear one.

The art wall at this former electrical substation, now a pocket park, contains many other vignettes in addition to the one depicted. Berthold Haas is the artist.

Sparky Park is to be found at the official address of 3701 Grooms Street. That’s in Hyde Park, just south of East 38th Street, between Duval and Speedway.

Tonight at Threadgills they are celebrating Leslie’s 60th birthday.

Location: Threadgill’s World Headquarters Restaurant
301 W. Riverside Dr., Austin, TX

TONI PRICE(*) will perform in celebration of Leslie’s 60th birthday party.  The warm-up band will be The Mayeux Broussard Band, consisting almost entirely members of SaySaySay, a local metal band, who are performing for the first time in a more country, blues style.

$10 requested donation to benefit The Challenger Street Newspaper – a publication the homeless sell for commission.

Come on out and wish the QUEEN of AUSTIN a VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

The three-time Austin mayoral candidate, Leslie has a wikipedia entry if you want to know more.

(*) http://www.toniprice.com/

The weather was perfect for a perfect Juneteenth parade commemorating Emancipation Day.

Led off by the color guard depicted, which stepped lively to its own accompanying drum cadence, the procession included church groups, civic associations of many kinds, politicians galore, members of several riding clubs astride those beautiful gaited horses, the Spirit of the Drum percussion group, and our own Austin All Star Band.

The results of Saturday’s election seemed to be foreshadowed at the parade: one candidate rode inside a closed car and elicited no response from those lining the sidewalks; the other rode in an open car along with Sheryl Cole and Nelson Linder and was greeted enthusiastically.

We took up our customary viewing post across from the sign for the old Fresh Up Club. It’s easy to miss opportunities for photographs and videos, but there’s at least one (unedited) video of the All Star Band and also some extended views were captured along with glimpses of such sights as the Wells Fargo stagecoach, the H-E-B and Fiesta Mart floats, and handsome gaited horses in motion.

All registered Austin voters are eligible to cast a ballot in Saturday’s run-off election whether or not they voted in the original election. The League of Women Voters supplies non-partisan information about the candidates’ views. The elections division of the Travis County clerk’s office shows polling places and furnishes additional information to voters.

A vote may be cast only at the voter’s home precinct now that early voting has concluded. Polls are open from 7 am to 7 pm. Voter turnout was very low in the original election and is expected to be even lower in this run-off election.

I’ve seen no altered Tovo signs and this is the only altered Shade sign that I’ve noticed (at Flores Street, north of the river and just east of IH-35), but I do know that people have been reporting stolen and torn-up signs from both campaigns.

This election does matter. Your vote will count.