Rearrangement after moving chairs to 424: Memories of living in Austin• November 20-21, 2018 - August 29, 2024 Sunset from balcony Eating on balcony Walking Brooklyn along the river Pfluger pedestrian bridge Public Library: lunches, writing Zilker Park Day trip with Donna: Kerrville, Johnson City Lunches with Tom’s Drive to Kerrville, Jim & Johnny Waco Silos, museums Wildflower Center Descriptions of furniture, accessories, and artwork. November 2018 - October 2021 October 2022 - January 2023 Febuary 2023 - Febuary 2024 Different plans with shorter hallways and more living space: Improvements Mounted a basket on the Laundry Room door to store detergent and dryer sheets in a convenient location, rather than on top of the machines, on the floor, or in another closet. Open the door to do laundry and there is the detergent right by the washing machine. Nice. The bath vanity is quite deep (almost 23" - way too deep for a studio apartment) and the only lights are above the mirror or in the high ceiling - lighting the tops of heads from a distance. Design note: users like to get up close to a mirror and they like their face to be well lit. Solution: mount a lighted mirror on the wall so the user can get close. When not in use, it folds out of the way. Two cloth bins on the bath counter help organize toiletries and keep the top uncluttered. Seaholm Residences logo Left: Seaholm, Middle: Poland Abortion Rights, Singapore People's Action Party, British Union of Fascists. Right: Fascist symbol rotated 180º Name card mounted in the mailbox, extended font (left) looks regular when seen from the side looking into the mailbox (right). Above: Text message and infomap sent to nabors who asked to borrow a parking place. Below: 2nd St sidewalk improvements. Specs     Location: Seaholm Residences/2nd Street District, Austin     30 floors, 280 units     Square feet: 558 interior, 52 Observation Deck     Previous/First owner: August 15, 2016 - November 21, 2018 November 2018     Former student: Jim, we are surprised you're still here (in OK). We thought you'd have moved by now.     Friday-Monday November 2-5, Austin: "I wanna buy a house."         Saturday 3, am: walk to Public Library, see 222 West Ave (Ooh, that could be cool); pm: tour East Austin         Sunday 4, pm: tour East Austin (what about a condo?), downtown, 222 West condos, sunset on 15th floor         Monday 5, 8:40a: return to 19 & 29th: view of Zilker Park, river, hills; "This is it. I can't find any negatives."         Tuesday, 6: submit offer, counteroffers     Wensday, 7, 11:44a: offer accepted     Wensday, 21, 10:00a: Closing     Nov 29 - Dec 2, 2018: Move in, unload car, unpack, IKEA, assemble furniture, settle 2019 Sat, Oct 12: Confirmed decision to change address: Researched procedures, Changed addresses     Wensday 10-16, Edmond: Gathered documents, Completed applications     Monday 10-21, Austin: Vehicle inspection; Voter registration; Title/registration; Mounted plates     October - November: Got new Passport     Thursday December 12, Austin: Received Voter Card, Submitted Driver's License 2020 Friday 1-24: Received Driver's License     Monday 1-27, Austin: Temporary tag extension     Friday May 8, Austin: Vehicle inspection; Applied Car title/registration; Got & mounted plates 2021 October: Move to Edmond: Mies Pavilion chair, Corbusier Petit Cube chair, Breuer table 2023 January: officially back to Oklahoma 2024 July 2: Listed condo for sale     Move clothes, dishes, stuff to Edmond; charity picks up furniture: August 26-29 2024:     January 23: Brooklyn dies, Drive Austin, decide to sell     July 2: Clean, prep apt for showings     July 2: MLS listing is active: Zillow, Seaholm bulletin     August 26-29: Move clothes, dishes, stuff to Edmond; charity picks up furniture Reasons for selling • Couldn’t leave Brooklyn alone in the apt • Covid limited visits • Old age - enjoying travel less, can’t take long walks anymore, the drive is more tiring now • Simplify my life; want to consolidate into one residence • More money available • Prefer not to bring a dog to Austin • Feel more alone in Austin Living in downtown Austin Texas Early introductions to Austin Texas were learning about state capitols and the fight for independence from Mexico: the Alamo, San Jacinto, and the seat of the new government in Washington-on-the-Brazos and then Austin. In 1966, my mother drove the two of us to Monterey Mexico. We stopped in Austin to look around the campus (I was a sophomore in high school). A sniper had shot people from the UT Tower only 3 weeks earlier. My next time to see Austin was August 4-8, 1968 when I went to Freshman Orientation at UT. I stayed in Kinsolving Dorm and had time to explore the campus. A few weeks later, mid-September, my parents drove me and some of my stuff to Prather Hall dorm so I could move in. I lived in Austin most of the year for the next 6 years, Fall 1968-Spring 1974, and a few months in the fall of 1979. I lived 2 years in campus dorms - Prather and Jester (then the largest dorm in the country with 3,000 beds), over 2 years in the fraternity house, an apartment off Riverside Drive, and a rental house on Ridglea Drive. Later, I would go back to visit friends and enjoy the city. I once read, "Every Texan has 2 hometowns - their own and Austin." Texans from all over the state seem to feel Austin is home. After I sold the apartment in NYC and I was itching to move back to Texas (I never relinquished my Texan citizenship during the 30+ years in Oklahoma). I had my realtor fraternity brother friend show me some naberhoods in Austin. My criteria was a pedestrian environment; walking distance to stores, coffee shops, and restraunts. A place that was unique to the Austin Experience. Well, those areas were, of course, also the most in-demand and, therefore, the most expensive. Priced out of my desired range. I later turned my attention to Denton, "The Affordable Austin." I made offers on 2 houses within walking distance to the Denton Courthouse Square. A concept that I considered while in NYC was to downsize from the 1-bedroom to a Studio. I really didn't need 2 rooms for visits to the city. I also considered selling the NY Apt and buying a Studio apt in Los Angeles and live there for a few years to experience Southern California (and go to Disneyland multiple times). So, years later, 2018, while looking at houses in Denton and East Austin, I realized I didn't want a second house with 2 lawns to mow, and 2 houses to maintain. Buying a house in an older naberhood would also 'require' extensive remodeling - I had just finished remodeling the Edmond kitchen and didn't want to deal with that again for a long while. In late fall of 2018, I had some free time from Orientation Advisor Reunion events. While walking to the new Austin Library, I saw these condo towers and noticed one on the west - I looked up and told myself, I could enjoy living there. So, I looked at condos in Downtown Austin. The next day, Tom, the realtor, took me up to view 3 of them. Each was nice, but it had gottewn dark so we agreed to meet the next morning to check the views in the daylight. That morning, when I walked out on the balcony of the one on the 29th floor, I said, "This is it". “I can’t think of any negatives.” Tom, “You were looking for the Austin Experience - you found it.” It is a Studio, or, as I call it - a GHR - a Glorified Hotel Room. It is in a pedestrian area: Trader Joe’s, pet store, coffee house, 2nd Street, and parks, trails, and the lake. Before I could commit, I told the realtor that I needed to get out of Austin and process the future on the drive back to Oklahoma (6 hours in the car). Within 2 hours into the drive to Fort Worth, I realized, "This feels so right." "This is something I want to do." I never felt nervous, any regret, or hesitation. It was confirmed. I plan to experience Austin, San Antonio, and the Hill Country for 4 or 5 years, then maybe consider something else. Concept: Focus on the view, the height, and the brightness from the west. Minimal, classic, straight line furniture - few knickknacks and geegaws. Seaholm Residences • SeeHome • C-Home Complex: Merit Coffee, True Food restraunt, Trader Joe's, Healthy Pet, Malibu Poke, Nektar juice bar, Baked Bear ice cream. https://www.jamesrobertwatson.com/condo2908.html

Specs