Last Saturday Brent and I went on the Austin Modern Homes Tour. It was pretty awesome and I was very impressed with most everything we saw! Fortunately/ unfortunately, due to my raging headache from the night before, I had to go with the old "hair of the dog" remedy and indulge in a free margarita from El Chile on Barton Springs. Along with the grub it way helped in my sickly stomach feeling.
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It's that time of year again (sigh). I think everyone simultaneously loves and hates Girl Scout cookie season. Unfortunately for me, one of my co-workers, has become the resident Cookie Crack Dealer, and brings boxes and boxes to the office. I have worked at this place for a cumulative five years and I have seen people that I have NEVER seen before come in our office. So, does this mean that Girl Scout cookies bring people together? My answer is a definitive no; there is no bother for introductions or other social niceties. People are here for the cookies and nothing more.
Once again I have seen how various lives are controlled by food. Needless to say, I was never a Girl Scout. But I was thankful that he brought me a very special box.... We had a nice New Year's Eve this year. A couple of our friends graciously offered up their place for the bash. I'm not going to lie, after years of throwing big parties at our house I must say, I've gotten old and/or lazy and just really dread the next day clean up; especially with the recent reminder after our Halloween party this year. Besides, they have an awesome place at the AMLI downtown with a huge balcony and it's a perfect bachelor pad for parties.
So, being the girl I am I had to bring a few food items. Though I figured they wouldn't cater to the crowds I brought a few selfish veggie items. This year for Christmas Brent and I drove first to Granbury and then to Dallas to spend time with our families. We spent Christmas Eve with my family which includes my mom, stepdad, sister, brother-in-law, and three wonderful, though all now-taller-than-me nephews.
My family has celebrated Christmas Eve in the same manner every since I can remember. We always started with a formal dinner with real silverware, which had to be polished the day before, and china. There were, of course, pre-planned dress up clothes some of which my mom had sewn with visions of little house on the prairie type memories (at least that's what it seems like to me). Then, as children, we were tortured and the family did the dishes together and put them all away. This was followed by a long process of picture taking where each person sat under the tree and were strategically covered in presents. Then, only when all had their pictures taken, were we allowed to tear into the ungodly amount of presents before us. 24 Diner is a fabulous new restaurant opening soon on Lamar. Brent and I had a chance to go to a pre-opening dinner there and I've already gone back, longingly peering in the door doing my best to will them open again with my jedi mind tricks. Unfortunately it didn't work. Needless to say I am in love with 24 Diner and as I write this I feel guilty about my other love, Frank, which I wrote about here. Though I've decided I can love both.
Today was the last home game for the UT football season. Brent and I hadn't had a chance to go tailgating all year and so I really wanted to make sure to head down there this weekend. I'm still not 100% well, so we mostly visited with a few friends and walked around and took pictures. Next year I'll have to remember it's much more fun when you can have a few beers, minus using the port-o-potties of course.
It was also senior day so we attempted to watch the seniors depart their bus and enter the stadium for the last time. You can clearly see how well that worked out for me; if only I was about 3 feet taller! Tonight we went to Beyond Tradition in the 2nd Street shopping district to view a new men's jewelry line by Catherine Nicole. I had the opportunity to speak with Catherine a bit and she was so nice. I really loved her line of men's jewelry with vibrant colors and yet a still distinctly masculine look. My only wish was that she had had some rings but apparently that is something she is working on for the future! She is a local artist and Beyond Tradition is the best place to check out the most comprehensive representation of her work. You can also see more pictures of her collection from the night here, that I took, as well as other items in the store.
Happy Veteran's Day! First of all I would like to thank all Veteran's from the bottom of my heart. Particularly these days everyone knows someone who is in the military. I have personal friends who have been to Iraq several times and everyone I talk to has a friend, brother, sister, etc who has given up so much to fight for our country. All opinions on the war aside, our soldiers believe in the United States and do what it takes to get things done. All of our Veteran's, whether they have been to war or not have given of themselves for our great country. Thank you for your courage, bravery, and selflessness. My only wish is that we took better care of our warriors when they return from battle and my thoughts go out to you all.
We went to a friend's house on Friday night to attend their house warming block party. Their condo is on the east side and the outing was super cool for the following reasons:
1) It's a small complex with 4 units and everyone opened up their places for all to freely walk through and view. The colors painted in the houses were inspiring! Expect to see new colors in my house soon; it's a nice inexpensive way to freshen things up. 2) Brent and I got to lounge in a hammock on a cool evening, viewing a few stars, a beautiful large tree, and a sparkling fire pit to make the experience complete. Plus we didn't really know anyone but the owners and there's something kind of cool and also strangely intimate about being surrounded by happily chatting people and still being in your own world. 3) I had my very first ever caramel apple. Hard to believe, I know. It was fantastic! Thick, sweet caramel contrasted with he juicy tartness of the red apple... how have I not had this before? 4) And last, but not by any means least, they had a food donation at the party and they killed it! I was so impressed with the amount of donations there and when you do anything for charity you are definitely after my heart! Good job! My beautiful and brave friends Sara and Amber put themselves up on the auction block to raise money for Ignite a Dream. I was super impressed with their excitement for this charity and willingness to put themselves out there for a good cause; I was so pleased to be able to attend the event and lend some moral support. They did a great job and raised over $500 between the two of them for the event plus, the $10 each of their friends paid for getting in that added up to another $70 or so; good job ladies!
The auction was held at the Tap Room and Bacardi was a sponsor for the drinks. I haven't had a rum and coke in a million years, not bad. |