“The Shiner Song”

Every Texas Czech knows the Shiner song, even us “dry” folks. You can read about it here, here, here, here, or here.

So when I saw this sign at the restaurant we went to last night, of course, I had to get a photo. See that star? Yeah, that’s right in the heart of Texas “Česko”, very close to where we used to live from 2010-2013. It was a really neat thing for me to have the chance to live so close to El Campo, Ammannsville, Fayetteville, La Grange, and the other places where my recent ancestors lived. I am very, very lucky. I miss Texas sometimes. Perhaps especially in the winter, when it gets really cold here in central Iowa.

I was born in Texas, as were two of my children. My dad says you cannot be a “true Texan” unless you go to “THE University” (the University of Texas at Austin). Pff, I’m sure the Aggies would beg to differ. My friend who recently went to visit her son in law’s family came back and brought us some Texas Blue Bell icecream, because “we would appreciate it.” It was awesome, and yes, we did appreciate it.

Other things I miss: pecans sold by the side of the road, Texas Czech sausage and kielbasa sold in any grocery store you would go to, and of course being able to have such easy access to the cemeteries, churches, records, and people who share my niche interest. I miss that a lot.

I don’t miss the commute. It was a horrible commute for my husband, and he really was not interested in staying in academia for his career. His commute now is only 9 minutes from home, here in Ankeny, Iowa.

It’s funny to me that where we live now also has many Czechs (though there are more towards Cedar Rapids or Omaha). In fact, some Czechs went first to Iowa then migrated south to Texas precisely because of the harsh winters! The farm land might be better up here, but is it worth the -10 degree F winters with no snow for insulation? I’ll let you decide.

/: Kdzž jsme opustili prahu, slunce svitilo :/