Regional Chamber of Commerce meeting in Lajitas

This past weekend I attended the Regional Chamber of Commerce symposium/meeting at Lajitas Resort down on the border. I always love going there- great memories and beautiful everything. They have new management (again) and it looks like they may find a way to make that place appealing to the masses while remaining a very, very nice escape for people living in the big cities.
I met a lot of interesting people at the get-together. Most in attendance were from Alpine or S Brewster county, but people from Ft Davis and Van Horn were there as well as representatives of Big Bend National Park and the McDonald Observatory. Much info was exchanged and I felt like I learned a lot about how some of the local leaders I don't know so well think. One theme that was repeated throughout the day is that the regional economy is so small, relative to the rest of the world, that everyone is inter-linked and, therefore, we all really need to work together for the betterment of the region. I agree with that, and of course it's easier said than done...

Interesting topics otherwise included new information (to me) on development in Presidio, the expanded and successful Dark-Sky efforts by Alpine (headed up by residents of Sierra La Rana- already Dark Sky certified), energy efficiency projects, a new industrial plant in Alpine, and the word that Congressman Ciro Rodriguez would help support creation of a regional economic development corporation. All in all, I felt like the trip down there was well worth it, both for the information I got and the company I shared. I'm looking forward to working with some or all of these folks in the future on ideas and issues pertinent to our area out here.

After dinner I headed over to Terlingua, where i drank a few beers and spent the night at La Kiva, my favorite bar in the Trans-Pecos. I had a great time playing a guessing game for money about which 90's band's song would play next on the Satellite radio. Camped out in the campground behind the bar- a favorite place of mine among many favorites down along the river...

I returned Sunday to Marfa to catch the final day of the Marfa Jazz Festival. The Gospel showcase was at the Goode-Crowley Theater at 1 PM. An excellent show! No surprise there.
At 2:30 I met Cory Van Dyke and a couple of other friends to rehearse for my role as a drug dealer in the upcoming Marfa Film production "Far Marfa". Cory is the writer and director and it's going to be a really fun project. I'll be spending a lot of the end of September here filming.
Got back to Padre's at 4:30 and cooked food in the kitchen until 10:30. We hosted a "jazz Jam" with many of the Jazz Band musicians and some local stars including Paul minor and Miles Zuniga; the music was great- a really good Sunday event for us- mellow and cool. Closed the bar with Jon C and finally made it to bed around 2 AM- exhausted...

Back to work today before 10 AM...

Austin and Houston this weekend- David