frida and kahlo

Obey: austin

volcano choir- unmap
(side project of justin vernon from bon iver)


julian plenti- julian plenti is skyscraper
(side project of paul banks from interpol)


el perro del mar- love is not pop


air- love 2

Devendra Banhart- What Will We Be

DRY soda co.

the houses around me are so beautiful.

a small update. in short.

I am very much enjoying my job. i work thursday through sunday which is perfect for me since i would rather work consecutive days. 4 days on 3 days off. in case we want to take short trips out of town or what not.

because of cutting gluten and dairy out of my diet i have been forced (well, willingly) to start researching recipes and cooking. its been nice because i have never been much of a cook. ever. i have never even had the desire to cook for myself but now i get excited about it. i enjoy grocery shopping for the first time in my life. and i am trying to shop mainly from the bulk and produce sections of our local organic grocery store, wheatsville. its very pleasing to the eyes to have a pantry full of jars (this was very much inspired by our downstairs neighbors brad and sara.)

we have been exploring a lot. mckinney falls state park. zilker botanical gardens. Pinata Party Palace. the fun part of being in a new city. but the best part about that statement is that i dont feel like austin could ever get old. there are endless places to see and things to do here. so many things remind me of richmond, which makes me smile. it doesn't make me miss richmond per say, but it gives me more reason to love it here. i do miss my friends though. i wont deny that. and i definitely miss my family. but its a little better now that we can video chat! never thought that day would come!

we have been enjoying as many meals as possible on our dining room table outside. its pretty nice to have such a big deck. its definitely acted as a second living room for us. but it has been raining a lot here which is sort of a bummer but the deck is perfect for growing things. so i have been thinking about how to take advantage of the weather. what plants are in season right now. what will be able to grow and survive through the winter. what will be able to survive the sap trees above.

Black-eyed pea and collard green soup

2 Tbsp olive oil
1 onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
1/2 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1 bunch collard greens, stems removed and leaves roughly chopped
2 large tomatoes, diced (or 1 can diced tomatoes)
2 1/2 cups chicken or veggie stock (or more for a thinner soup)
3 1/2 cups cooked black-eyed peas (or 2 cans)
10 dashes Tabasco
salt and pepper to taste

Heat oil over medium heat in a large pot. Add onion and saute until tender. Then add garlic, red pepper, cumin, and chili powder and cook for an additional minute. Toss collard greens in the pot, stir well to coat with oil and spices, and let cook for 5 min. Add tomatoes, stock, peas, and Tabasco and bring to a boil. Then reduce heat, cover, and let simmer for 30 min. Season with salt and pepper. Serves 5.

http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com

Austin’s Moonlight Towers

last night stephanie and i went on a ghost tour. austin isnt a very old city so we both knew that there wouldnt be too many hauntings to tell, but we figured that the tour would be a little more historical. which we both didnt mind- being that we dont know too much about austin. one of the more interesting stories was about the moonlight towers.

'After a string of serial murders in 1884-1885, the City of Austin proposed and funded a public lighting system for the City. The 31 Tower Lights as they were called were completed and turned on in 1895. Over the years, some have fallen victim to the weather, others to development (good and bad). In 1976, the remaining towers were added to the National Register of Historic Places.'



'Today there are 17 left clustered around the downtown residential areas of East and West Austin. You can see below that the pattern of extinct moonlight towers (in red) more or less follow the development of the University of Texas, I-35, and the north side of Ladybird Lake. Off to the Southwest is one moonlight tower in Zilker Park that, for a few weeks in December, becomes a tree for the Trail of Lights.'



'Though there are many photographs of the Moonlight Towers, the vast majority are taken during the day. Photography cannot adequately convey what they look like at night, so I suggest that while you are here, you visit one of the towers furthest from downtown to get the best effect.'