the Antidote to 'Whiskey Dick'.

I've just come home from Austin, TX, where I was helping my sister with some of the preliminary tasks of opening a bar.

A week of working,playing,planning - and OF COURSE - drinking. Straight off of the plane from LA, Emily(my sister) took me to the bar where her girlfriend, Leslie, works. A little, dark hole in the wall called 'Dirty Bill's'. If you go there - find Leslie, and tell her I sent you.

Leslie is a beauty. She has smooth brown hair that is always tied back in a pony tail when she works, giant sparkling eyes, and a gorgeous smile. She works the bar gracefully in jeans and a 'Dirty' tee shirt, and always seems to have things under control - no matter how loud or crazy it gets in there. Her boyfriend, Donny, usually comes straight to the bar to help her and be her guard dog when he's finished working at his restaurant, Fonda San Miguel. (Fonda San Miguel is arguably the BEST Mexican restaurant in Austin, BTW)

Over the course of 5 short days, Emily and I ran around Austin to tons of second hand and vintage furniture shops (including our favorite, Room Service) buying chairs, lamps, beautiful glass pendant lights, wine glasses, mirrors, you name it. Every morning we got up and headed over to the Counter Cafe, decked out in furniture moving clothes and sunglasses, where we had amazing breakfasts - all from local farms, fresh to the table. Then we went shopping all day - Emily's friend, Puff-Puff, helping us out with the loan of her van and her feminine eye. As the days rolled by, Emily's place filled up with beautiful things for her new endeavor, The Butterfly Bar.

Emily has come into partnership with our cousin, Bonnie Cullum. Bonnie owns and is artistic director of the one and only experimental theater in Austin - The Vortex. And in her theater world, there are legions of creative people. From arial gymnasts (think Cirque du Soleil), to edgy stand-up acts, to giant productions involving mixed media and provocative subject matter - Bonnie's world is ALIVE with new ideas. And into this world, my sister is attempting to bring her own, progressive business model. Together, they hope to open a bar that is eco-friendly, open minded and magical. And I have to say - as the third one of the cousins - only involved from far away and very little - I am so thrilled and honored to have either of these ladies ask for my advice or help on ANYTHING.

Along with everything else, our cousin, Bonnie, is a witch.
So, when plans were being discussed for the big opening night party, Emily and I did not hesitate to throw out concepts like fire dancers, or gypsy belly dancers - OR magic potions dispensed by the fire pit. And, of course, my ever practical sister threw out her grand plan to dispense 'The Antidote to Whiskey Dick'. What a wonderful potion to have at a bar! Not only can the bar sell the poison we all crave so dearly, but also the ANTIDOTE to one of it's worst side effects. Brilliant!

"Just THINK about it, Jennifer.." my sister exclaimed in a merry,mellow state of mind "WHAT could be BETTER?"
"Well..." I said, in similar state,all the while staring at her cat, Bowie, who likes to torture me when I'm there - aggressively biting my toes every chance he gets, "I sure have had some problems with that. I'm sure every woman has."
"Yes!" she responded. "Everyone has! And it's so ridiculous! I mean, you go to a bar to drink and meet girls - or boys - and then, if your junk doesn't work - it defeats the whole purpose!"

My sister just wants everyone to be happy. That's her biggest goal in life. And she calls it like she sees it. Not just US - U.S. citizens - but EVERYONE. And she watches BBC and PBS news. So, unlike most of this country's population, she KNOWS that people are starving and dying of polluted water, etc. in other countries. She is acutely AWARE of the wars and warlords in Africa. She knows which countries are experiencing terrible droughts in any given week. And she takes it all to heart. So, where another, less informed person, might think that she was slightly shallow in her excitement about selling an 'Antidote to Whisky Dick' - I know exactly where she's coming from.

You see, one of Emily's big theories, is that people have lost sight of their animal selves. And that that distance - that removal from who we all essentially are - is a HUGE contributor to human downfall. Her view (in part) is that if people could only remember that we are animals mostly, and if we could get in touch with nature and all of the amazing and magical things that nature has to offer - we could heal the world in short order, and ALL be better off for it. And she (along with very well respected scientists and statisticians, and doctors - including Doctor Oz) believe that this country - still the most powerful country in the world - is inflicted with "sexual famine". That phrase is actually Dr. Oz's phrase. But, along with Emily and Dr. Oz, I believe that it's true. I would go further and say "sexual and love famine",myself.

So, in her attempts to make the world a better place - and make a living in the process, Emily strives for people to be comfortable in their own skin. Whatever skin that may be. And she delights in nudging love and sex along whenever possible. After all - love and sex DO make people happier - generally. And happy people make for a kinder, happier world.

So, if you find yourself in Austin, Texas - the 'island' in the stronghold of republican, Tea Party, neo-conservative, gun toting, truck driving, anti-gay,sexist, racist, fast food loving, unhappy,freaks - find my sister's bar in East Austin. The Butterfly Bar.
Ask for the Antidote to Whisky Dick if you need it, and tell her I sent you.