A Tour of Austin

 View of the Austin skyline from Lady Bird Lake

Last weekend Trey and I went to Austin and had the best time. Here's what we did:

Friday night: We drove in and picked up my old BFF Elizabeth and went to eat at Black Star Co-Op, which had the most amazing food. I ate the Fried Egg Sandwich with fries. Do get the fries -- ah-ma-zing. We also tried bacon toffee, and Trey enjoyed a beer sampler tray with four 5-oz. beers.

Later we met my cousin James and his girlfriend at the upscale bowling alley/entertainment venue The Highball. It has a groovy atmosphere with a dark, sleek 1960s men's lounge feel. Think dark, tufted upholstery, dark wood and retro-mod lighting. It's the kind of place where guys wearing fedoras and skinny ties should be sipping martinis. I can dig it.

A "gunsie" hand block printed by an Austin artist and shown at the Austin Flea.

Saturday: We attended the Austin Flea, which happened to be in front of The Highball. There were a few vendors -- some interesting stuff. Check out One Kolor Designs T-shirts.

The Trailer Park & Eatery

For lunch we went to the South Austin Trailer Park & Eatery. The food was amazing. We ate from all three food carts there: cake balls from Holy Cacao, the Democrat taco from Torchy's Taco's and the Greek dog from Man Bite's Dog.

After lunch we worked out for about an hour at the hotel gym and then met my dad, sister and nephews for another out door dinner at Mandola's Italian Market. If you go, try the gelato: almond, pistachio, strawberry and tiramisu.

Inside at Mandola's

Saturday night: Dad, Trey and I went to Town Lake Metropolitan Park. Saxophone music from a gazebo in the park drifted with the wind as we walked along the shore of Lady Bird Lake. The buildings that punctuate the skyline were lit, as we walked past dusk. Our next stop was SOCO (South Congress) where we browsed shop windows and stopped in Big Top Candy Shop. This place has just about every candy (even nostalgic treats) you can image and ... chocolate covered bacon. Yes! It's so good, too -- sweet and salty. There's also an old fashioned soda fountain inside.

Inside Big Top Candy Shop -- photo found online

Later Saturday night we had drinks at the Snack Bar on South Congress. The service was lousy, but it's a great spot for kicking back and people watching. We didn't eat there, but the menu looks promising, so it's worth a try later.

Sunday: Trey Dad and I made a morning pilgrimage back to Lady Bird Lake and the park as well as to the Trailer Park and Eatery. Later we visited my sister and family in New Braunfels -- home of Schlitterbahn and the Guadalupe River (go tubing for a day).

 Me and Dad

After driving back into Austin, Trey and I went downtown to take in a movie with Elizabeth and her boyfriend, Juan. The Alamo Drafthouse was showing "Your Highness," and if you're not one for dumb humor you probably won't like it. I was let down by the food at the theater (you can order dinner, coffee and drinks off the menu), but the overall experience was good. Our seats were the best in the house -- plush leather couches at the top of the small stadium.

A view from the Swan Dive

Afterward we went to the Swan Dive, a downtown bar that feels like stepping into the 1920s. The Moscow Mule was a tasty libation, and I'm interested in trying the Strawberry Jam. Everyone was dressed in period appropriate clothes. This is a bar I'm definitely going to patron again. Check out their website for better pics.

A Tale of Two Moves & Two Jobs

It's been a while, right? Well, there's a reason for that. My regularly scheduled life has been upended. It's a good thing. Trey and I moved out of our house a couple weekends ago. We rented it to a nice family from Houston with two teenage daughters. We're sure they will enjoy and take care of our home.

Now Trey and I are living temporarily with his parents until Trey graduates on May 21 -- six weeks. A couple days later he'll take the radiologic tech registry and we'll be off to Austin to find a job(s) and a place to live.

Another thing I've had to adjust to are my new jobs. Yep, that's jobs -- as in plural. I'm the page layout wizardess behind a local crime paper. I put together the 16-page paper every week now. It's great because I do my work in bed in front of the TV whenever I want.

And I'm also a personal trainer now! I work for a well-known chain of gyms in my area and in a matter of a week and a half I've gotten five clients. I expect I'll have another couple come on board by next Wednesday, which is awesome because I only get clients if I can sell them on training with me. I feel like I'm doing great! My hourly pay is unbelievable. If I'd have known about this 10 years ago ... :)

So that's about it for now. I'm biding my time as the countdown to Austin begins. Until then I'm planning a weekend trip to New Orleans and I'm learning a lot as a trainer. Basically, I'm happy that I've gotten my two work opportunities, but I'm brimming with excitement for our big move. Eeep!

Day One: South La. Trip

 The park in front of the cinema at Perkins Rowe

Trey and I drove to Baton Rouge Friday afternoon where we stayed the night before he participated in the three-mile endurance challenge, Warrior Dash, in Norco, La. Norco is just outside of New Orleans, a 50 mile drive from Baton Rouge.

Doesn't the cinema clock remind you of "Back to the Future?"

We stayed at the Drury Inn for the second time. We highly recommend it for anyone who plans to stay in B.R. Anyhow, as we only had one night back in our former home town, we went to eat at my favorite pizza place -- Louisiana Pizza Kitchen. It was heavenly. Really, there are no words. 

Perkins Rowe

After we ate dinner we went in search of the Anthropologie store, which is located at the new Perkins Rowe outdoor shopping, dining, entertainment and living complex.

Another shot of Perkins Rowe. I'm pretty sure the upstairs portions of the buildings are apartments.

We had never been there and were blown away by how nice and expansive it was. There was nothing even remotely close to this place when we lived in Baton Rouge.

A grand chandelier in the entryway to the cinema

We stopped at Anthropologie, of course, Z Gallerie and Urban Outfitters where I got a funky hair piece/lapel pin.

I love the graphic quality of this simple sign.

An Anthropolgie window display

Anthropolgie window display. Looks like fun to make and hang.

 Trey inspects a glass bon bon in Anthropologie.

BCBG window display

 Z Gallerie display

 Z Gallerie display. Wouldn't it be strange and wonderful to have one of these tents indoors?

 Z Gallerie display. I love the idea of a cloth headboard, and these colors are very me.

Trey looks like a mountain man in this photo, but he shaved his beard tonight and now he looks like a boy.

After being slightly drizzled on as we walked from shop to shop, Trey and I stopped at the French food cafe La Madeline for a light dessert. See the roaring fire in the background? So cozy.

When I lived in Baton Rouge I worked in a clothing shop at the Mall of Louisiana. La Madeline had a location a couple shops down, and we were often given free boxes full of these fruit tarts. That night at the cafe I settled for one.

When we returned to the hotel, Trey and I took advantage of their gym, which we had all to ourselves. Yeah! We watched D.C. Cupcakes (one of my faves!) while we walked. I think that was one of the biggest perks of the whole trip, well, other than the food :)

In Part Two of this post I'll include photos from Warrior Dash. Woo hoo!

Snow Day

Louisiana, like most of the U.S., has been blanketed by ice. Trey got a snow day off from school today, and I am milking my paid vacation days before my last official day of work next week.

Above is the first thing I saw when I finally stepped out today around 3 p.m. Why we never use our garage, I will never know. Maybe it has something to do with all the junk still piled in it.

Speaking of things we don't need, Trey and I finally sold this 100-year-old post office box we've had in the corner as a decoration all these years. That same day we sold our Airstream and armoire. I must say, selling all of your stuff can be pretty great for the savings account.

So we've been celebrating a lot lately. This is a photo I took of Trey today at our favorite yogurt place.

This is me at that same yogurt place today feeling sheepish about the fact that, once again, I've cheated on my "diet." I'm going to workout now.

Happiness is a New Hobby

 Images from Hoop City Ca.

Today I caught up on my DVR watching and saw an Oprah show about happiness. The subject of happiness and what factors create the most long-lasting contentment fascinate me. I found through reading more on the subject today that one of the tricks to happiness is learning something new. Dan Buettner, author of the book "Thrive: Finding Happiness the Blue Zones Way" said that over time, the knowledge of a skill, be it art, another language or hooping (as I'll discuss in a minute) becomes more fulfilling.

Another interesting tidbit about happiness is that where you live contributes a great deal more to your happiness than other things like money might. Hooray for being Austin bound! Buettner says cities with wide sidewalks in a town center or places with sidewalk dining that bring the community together have the happiest populations.

So on the subject of learning new things for increased happiness, yesterday I took up a new hobby -- hooping. It's basically dancing while hula-hooping. I've seen it done before, but it didn't appeal to me to try until now. I found a hooping website where an Austin-based hooper happened to be featured. She's amazing, and I would love to be able to catch one of her fire hooping performances. Check her out in the video below, see what hooping is all about and hold out until the end if you want to see the fire hooping.

The Beauty of Losing it All

Photo by Bushie

Ah, look at this scene. A lone bird on a bare branch. A bright, clear day. Peace. Tranquility. Unfortunately these qualities haven't resembled my life lately. Instead, it's chaos, clutter and messes in the Crowe household. That's because Trey and I have unearthed boxes from the garage and storage in an attempt to pare down -- way down.

As we will move in about a month to temporary housing, where we'll stay until we move to Austin in May, it's necessary for our backs and sanity to get rid of as much stuff as possible. It's unbelievable how much junk we had -- and still have left to go through.

Above is the pile of things we got rid of the other day. Now more than ever it is clear to me that purchasing and collecting things you don't need is a waste of time, energy, money and useful space, which is probably why it's been so easy for me to dispose of the stuff. However, figuring out what to do with cast-offs can be tricky. Trey and I have decided it all goes to either Goodwill or the trash. We are relying on Goodwill to (hopefully) keep most of what we donate out of the landfill.

If you think the first photo was bad, this pile (above) was collected from a single closet. Shockingly, or shall I say appallingly, there is probably three times as much for us to dispose of. To think that Trey and I moved all of this junk from our old house to our current home and then proceeded to store it for three years without so much as missing it is a little sickening. What was the point of keeping it?

I only wish I had the photos of the table full of stuff I gave away a half year ago. That would really drive home my point. But I think exhibit A and B will be sufficient for the time being. Every haul we rid ourselves of I get closer to grasping a more lasting feeling of peace. Clear the clutter; clear the mind.

By the time we move I hope to have only five boxes of personal items, not including clothing (although my wardrobe is sparse, too). I promise to take photos on moving day to hold myself accountable to my one reader -- or two?

Plans to Move and Workout Results

A healthy breakfast or snack. Add plain yogurt, blueberries and/or banana.

"It's all happening," -- a line from one of my favorite movies, "Almost Famous." And it's true. It is all happening, and suddenly, I might add. The reality of moving to Austin is setting in and Trey and I are making preparations. This week we had a Realtor visit the house to measure and assess its market value. He has suggested that we put it up for sale in either January or February if we plan to move in May, which we do.

In about a week we should have a conclusion about our asking price and when we will put it on the market.  In the meantime, I'm further paring down my belongings to make the move easier. (I got rid of a busload of stuff a few months ago.) As someone who aspires to be a moderate minimalist, this is nothing but a good thing.

 Photo from Austin Monthly of Boudoir Queen's work.

Coincidentally, at work yesterday I happened upon a box full of free magazines -- Austin Monthly and Austin Home magazines. There were 10 in total. Trey and I have been poring over them, trying to get an inkling as to what our life might be like when we finally arrive. It's making us tres excited. Obviously we know what a cool city Austin is and that there's lots to do, but actually seeing from month to month what the city has to offer is great.

A view from my kitchen window.

In other news, I wanted to do an update on the Tracy Anderson workout post. I've been working out almost every day since that post (I've missed two sessions). It's been nearly a month now. So, yes, I'm sticking with it. However, I've gone rogue on Tracy Anderson's plan. It was too static for my taste, so I've been following the workout plans on BodyRock.TV. These workouts are killer intense and I love it.

My workout progress, measurements 
Since day one I've lost 2.5 inches from my stomach, gained an inch of muscle on my arms, a half inch on my thighs and lost 1.25 inches from my bust. These figures are encouraging, and I plan to take this lifestyle the distance. I can't wait to see what changes I'll make in another month, six months and a year from now.

I'm continuing to eat based on the Primal Blueprint, but once in a while (once a week) I treat myself to something really yummy like a cupcake or some other sugary, bread-like confection. This lifestyle is totally doable, and I recommend it for anyone who wants to lose weight and have more energy.

Reasons to Give Thanks

Pictured, from left: Trey, me, Dad, Michelle, Leesha, Jace and Ashley.

Well, life has gotten a whole lot sweeter since I last posted. I have plenty of reasons to be grateful lately. Trey and I recently returned home from visiting my dad and extended family in Texas. It was my first time to see him in months. For the many people who move away from home, a prolonged separation from family is commonplace, but this is relatively new to me (aside from my college years). After all, my dad and I are -- as Trey likes to point out -- codependent.

Michelle, me and Leesha

But maybe the most notable aspect of my trip was not getting to hang out with Dad, which was great. It was the fact that I got to meet, for the first time in 16 years, my half sister Michelle, two nieces and great nephew Jace. What?! How cool is that? I was only 13 when I last saw Michelle, and I hardly remember anything about her before that. I have brief memories of her when I was four or five. She lived with us for a very short time and then moved a half a continent away where she remained until a couple years ago. 

Now, she, the girls and Jace live 30 minutes from Austin. And in just a half a year, Trey and I will move to Austin. I'm beyond excited about how near to them we'll be and about getting to know them. I had so much fun with them on Thanksgiving.

H-E-B is a gastronomic paradise. Yeah Texas!

And to ice the cake, our visit to Texas gave Trey a taste of what our life will be like when we arrive. He seems to have warmed up quite a lot to the idea of living in Austin, whereas before he was slightly reluctant. Now I need to remind myself to focus on the present and immerse myself in activity so the last leg in Louisiana won't seem to drag on.

Following Tracy Anderson's 30-Day Method

So, I have this two-part goal, and only one of those goals can be revealed at the moment. Although, since no one reads this blog, there is actually no one to withhold these tidbits from. Nevertheless, any time I speak about a major goal it seems to get futzed up, so by keeping it to myself, I feel it is most likely to happen. That said, my first goal is to get into the best shape of my life. This will help me to accomplish Goal No. 2, written in caps to denote its awesome importance.

Finally, I have bought something from celebrity trainer Tracy Anderson rather than skating by on her freebie workouts. Today I purchased her book, "30-Day Method," and put myself through the riggers of her challenging, first 10 days strength-training workout, plus 40 minutes of her cardio routine. All told, I worked out for about an hour and a half (plus about 20 minutes of Anderson's YouTube video exercises this morning).

The strength training was KILLER. Then again, I don't often test myself in that manner. I've been known to put in a 45 minute walk every now and again, but lately that's all I've been doing.

  Um, yep, that's the kind of body I'm sweating my ass off to have.

Anyway, the "Method" entails 30 days of working out for 45 minutes to an hour and a half. There are no rest days. It sounds (and as of now is) brutal, but this woman and her clients (Jennifer Aniston, Molly Sims, Gweneth Paltrow, Madonna, etc.) look amazing. They are muscular, yet lean, not bulky. Obviously this is ideal, and it's what I'm aiming for.

Although I'm going out of town for Thanksgiving, I plan to follow this regimen as closely as possible. Anderson gives a menu for weight loss, but as I only have five pounds or less to shed, I'll eat as per usual. Trey and I have followed the Primal Blueprint diet for more than a month and have noticeably slimmed without counting calories or working out excessively. I have a feeling the combo of eating Primal and working out like Tracy Anderson will give me serious results.

I'll post my results here after the first 10 days are up. Ciao!

Austin Bound

Image from Boudist.

OK, I know I said I planned to stay in my hometown for a year or so after Trey graduates, but anyone who knows me well is aware that anything I decide is subject to change. The reason I planned to stay at first was to pool our two incomes (when Trey gets that job), but as it turns out, I'm kind of sick of my job and am ready for a change. So with that in mind, and for other reasons, there's no point in staying. 

 Image found here.

I've wanted to get out of this town since I stepped foot back here in 2002, and, well ... the best plans. It's finally time to make that move, to step out of my comfort zone and into a place where there are more opportunities and more options. Austin is the place. Six more months until we are free.

  Image found here.

Knowing I'm leaving my job presents both scary and exciting possibilities. I don't believe I'll stay in journalism, but you never know. Things are subject to change, after all. At the moment I'm toying with another option -- one in which I'll help people. I don't want to spill the beans yet, just in case. But when things develop, I'll be sure to post it.

Things Change

My breakfast this morning was photo worthy. The sprinkles put it over the top. If you know me then you're probably shocked that (1) I actually ate this and (2) that it was my first meal of the day, which is, of course, the most important meal. See, it's still the same ole me. I only wanted my food this morning to mirror my overall mood this week -- bright and cheerful.

OK, now, swallow down the upchuck if that last part was too Pollyanna for you. I've been on a happy high for the past several weeks, and even I'm shocked that I haven't come off it. I'm not sure if it was purchasing Car (Who says money can't buy happiness?) or  finally making a decision about where I'll live for the next couple of years but I'm suddenly beyond content.

My Dia de los Muertos painting isn't yet complete. 

The only cloud to rain on my one-woman parade is the fact that just two days after deciding to stay in my home town my dad told me he is moving to another state. When he told me over the phone I cried like a little girl. He doesn't know, so, shh, don't tell him. I'll miss him quite a lot, but I'm a very adaptable person. I'm like human silly putty -- malleable. I easily adapt to situations, and I'll get used to his absence. I just didn't want to have to. At least I know he'll be happy, and that's comforting.

And now that I can see the bottom of my coffee cup, it's time to step into the backyard studio and finish my Day of the Dead painting.

Ciao!