A Little Texas in DC

My favorite restaurant in Texas is Chuy's. A cute little Tex-Mex restaurant in Austin (It has now expanded to have chains all over Texas, but the original is in Austin). There whole menu is amazing, but since I was 10 I have only ordered one thing, a "big as yo face" burrito with chicken and Deluxe Tomatillo Sauce. The sauce is what makes it all worth it. It is so delicious. Everything is homemade in the restaurant. There are very few Tex-Mex restaurants in Texas that don't make their own tortillas. And like most Mexican restaurants, you start off with the delicious chips and dip and always request the jalapeno ranch dip with your chips.I love Mexican food and could easily eat it every day. This is the only thing I miss terribly about Texas.

Well, I found a recipe for Deluxe Tomatillo Sauce and am going to give it a try tomorrow. My sister and her family are coming to town tomorrow and I already had plans to make enchiladas, so the sauce will be a fabulous addition. I'll let you know how it goes.

My Theme Song

This is my new theme song. Gotta have faith faith faith!! Plus a little George Michael never hurts. 

Meeting My Literary Hero

This weekend, my boyfriend and I attended the National Book Festival, solely to meet my hero, Judy Blume. She has sold over 80 million books, for children, young adults and adults. She is a genius. During a routine trip to the library during 8th grade, I discovered Forever. I believe I saw it on a banned books list and sought it out.

Attention Book Banners: There is no faster way to get your child to search out for a book you don't want them to read than by attempting to ban it.

 This book introduced me to so much in life. It is about a girl in the 1970s who is experiencing love for the first time and all the things that go with it, teen pregnancy, drugs, peer pressure... It was the first place I heard about Planned Parenthood and birth control. The love story was the greatest of all. 

I passed the book on to everyone I knew, including my cousins. I have one younger sister and 6 girl cousins. We all grew up together and we are all close in age, stair stepped--one year apart. It quickly became a right of passage for girls in my family. When you hit 8th grade you could read the book. I remember getting a call from a younger cousin begging to read the book before 8th grade. Hilarious, since she could have read it without telling anyone, which is what I would have done. I am a bit of a Judy Blume pusher, I even had my 27 year old roommate read the book a few years ago.


On Saturday, we went directly to the book sales tent on the Mall to buy an additional copy of the book, I had brought along my own personal copy as well. A few years back I had to purchase another copy because the small, hardcopy I had from middle school, which I kept and paid for on the last day of school, had gotten lost in one of my several moves in college. Judy Blume was not scheduled to start signing until 11:30am, but I knew the line would be insane well before that time. So, my boyfriend and I went and stood in line. By the time she started, we were in the third line of six. As the classy and gracious woman she is, she started about 20 minutes early. 

Standing in front of someone who has such an impact on the woman I have become, but have never met was euphoric. The two hours in line was well worth it. And I will continue my own tradition and continue to read the book every summer.


Thank you Judy Blume.

Oprah to the Rescue

Whenever I need a little hope, a little pick-me-up, I watch Oprah's Legend's Ball. That is one of the most influential things I have ever seen on television. There were so many strong Black women who came before me and opened doors. This show just reminds me that I can do anything; anything I work hard for and set my mind to I can achieve. And the Gospel brunch video is so spiritual, so moving, it always makes me feel better. Everyone has those moments when they have worked hard for something and there is nothing else they can do but hope for the best. In those moments when I have to let go and have hope, this clip is always my bright light.

I have the original recording on my Tivo from May 2006 that I transferred onto my computer and pull it up anytime I feel the need.

Fall is Here--Coat Season

Last year, I purchased the perfect winter coat. It is a bold, deep green and I get complimented on it every time I wear it. It is the perfect coat and has been worn with everything I own. And just to make a perfect situation better, I bought it on sale at Banana Republic half-way through the winter season.

As much as I love my green coat, I need another one. Here are a few I love.

J.Crew

I love this look. I want an every day coat with a taste of chic uniqueness. I love the ruffle. As Rachel Zoe would say, "I Die."
And I am not the only one that is in love with this coat.

Steve Madden

I do like the A-line shape of this jacket and I have been dying for a toggle coat with a hood. And bright colors in winter is another must for me. It may be that I grew up in a seasonless place (Texas), but winter does not mean drab to me.

DKNY

This is a great classic knee-length coat. I love gray, even though I just said no dull colors, but I love this classic, chic look.

Mackage
I spotted this neckline last year, I just knew it would be a hit. You can wear it up, fold it down, I love a versatile coat.

Guess
The color is BA-NANAS (another Rachel Zoe soundbite). And my new favorite signature neckline. I also LOVE the A-line body.

True Blood

There is nothing hotter right now than vampires. I am not completely sure of the appeal, but I gave it a try. I have been catching up on Season 1 of True Blood with Netflix. We have HBO, so I am looking forward to watching Season 2 OnDemand.

So far, I am really liking the show. I like how they portray the vampires as an oppressed race of people who are just trying to live their lives, but are being discriminated against. At the same time, they do go around killing people, so I understand people's apprehension toward them. I have always loved Anna Paquin, she is one of my favorite actors. They have VERY attractive male characters in the show. AND, it is a "bit" provocative, but its HBO. If they weren't going to push the envelope it might as well be on TBS.

I am absolutely obsessed with New Orleans. I spent Thanksgiving there the year before Katrina hit and absolutely fell in love with the history of that amazing city. But it wasn't until Benjamin Button that I became completely obsessed with the history of New Orleans. I saw the movie for the first time this summer and bought 4 books on the history of Blacks in New Orleans immediately after. It was one of the only cities in America pre-Civil War, that Blacks could be truly successful. They didn't live completely "normal" lives, of course. But there are many Black families that were business owners, politicians, were accepted into society and that interested me greatly.

I do have one small complaint about the show though, the accents. Well, being from Texas, I am very familiar with the different types of southern accents. Anyone from the south knows that the different accents can be very similar, but you can ALWAYS tell someone from Lousiana, it could never be mistaken for something else. They have a deeper, longer drawl to their speech. It is definitely borderline "not english". They don't even say New Orleans, they say "Nawlins". But the characters on the show appear to have just done what they think a southern accent should sound like. I think they should do a little more work on that and then I will be fully roped in.

Plus, as I have stated before. HELLO! Sookie Stackhouse is the greatest name in the history of television.

Clarity

I do know that all of life's lessons are out there and the answer is present just waiting to be seen. Today, in the gym, I had a moment of clarity and I am not ignoring it.

1. Women no longer need to apologize to anyone for our bodies. They may not be ideal, but it is a work in progress. Make your new goal is health, not size.

2. The best revenge is living a happy life.

3. Stress can take you down (permanently) and it takes waaay too much energy to fight it. So save the drama for the real heavy stuff.

4. Stand for something more than yourself. A life without a mission is no life.

5. I love music. It really does take all my baggage away. It makes everything better for at least three minutes.

Boots Season

The weather is changing and it will soon be fall, boots season. Last year I became completely obsessed with boots, mostly riding boots. I love that they have a flat heel, in DC a necessity for walking to and from the metro, but can still have a fancier appeal. You can wear boots with absolutely anything.

Last year, my boyfriend surprised me with a pair of light brown riding boots for our anniversary that I may or may not have pointed out to him 300 times in Macy's. "Forget the jewelry, can I have a new pair of boots please?"

Here are a few great styles I found online. (Designers: Marc Fisher, Ralph Lauren, Geox)

She May Have Outdone Herself

Every time I think she has shown me all she has, First Lady Michelle Obama pulls out something more stunning than the last. She is amazing. She embodies class and elegance.

I Had the Time of My Life: Patrick Swayze

Pure sadness. When my sister called me last night and shared the news about Patrick Swayze's death, I was in shock, completely silent. I can't remember the first time I saw Dirty Dancing, probably 4th grade. I, of course, had little comprehension of the controversial abortion issues in the movie, but I knew the love story and the dancing was right up my alley. Dirty Dancing has been my favorite movie ever since. Over the last 16 years, I have probably seen the movie 1,000 times. In 2007, I received the 20th anniversary edition of the movie. I know every single dance move in that movie. I remember practicing the "lift scene" in the pool with my cousins.

"Me? I'm scared of everything, I'm scared of what I saw of who I am, and most of all I'm scared of walking out of this room and never feeling the rest of my whole life, the way I feel when I'm with you. Dance with me..." --Baby (Frances)

There has been waaaay too much loss this year. I will miss you forever Patrick.

Shopping Time for the Wedding of the Season

Our really close friends in DC are getting married in October in Chicago, so I am trying to find a dress that can be paired with some opaque black tights since it will be cold by then. I have a great coat to wear when we are outside the wedding and I will be sure to bring a pashmina to wrap around my shoulders while in the ceremony and the reception. It is a bit difficult to find a nice, young, chic dress appropriate for a wedding that isn't sleeveless, but I think the wrap will be enough.

Here are two options from J.Crew. I think the yellow one would look fabulous with black tights and I wouldn't have to be too concerned about my (um, sizely) chest being overexposed. I should add, both are at a MAJOR discount. More options to come.

Kate is Enough

She is so funny! This is the Jimmy Kimmel skit Kathy Griffin was doing dressed as Kate Gosselin poolside. George Takei is playing Jon "Tool of the Year" Gosselin.

I am about halfway through her book now and it gets deep. It is not all fun and games, no ones life ever is. She is so much more real to me now. Of course, I am someone who thinks I know people I see on TV, it is a sickness I know. I just love her even more. I like strong women who really fight long and hard for what they want and deserve. I doubt her family will be too happy about her airing their dirty laundry, but I think she does it in a respectful way. They know how she is. Plus, they went through things just like everyone does. She had a brother who had a serious addiction problem and an "alleged" pedophile. This was very hurtful to their family, but it seems that they all made it through okay.

Her childhood stories are the best though. She talks about the time her and her brother were taking horse riding lessons and the instructor thought she was a boy. She cried, "but I'm a girl, I'm a girl" the entire lesson. I was laughing so hard, I was crying and literally had to put the book down to get it together. She is just so freakin hilarious. I am really excited to finish reading.

Here is the full interview with Jimmy Kimmel. I just can't get enough of her.

Flash Mob Deep in Chi-town

Watching the Oprah premiere on my DVR now. And they did the coolest "flash mob" performance on Michigan Avenue in Chicago with the Black Eye Peas and 20,000 PEOPLE. I love these things. One random person starts dancing and then slowly a few more and eventually everyone in the crowd busts out with this intricate choreography. Just one more reason why I LOVE Chicago.


My favorite flash mob was the one in the train station. A few people start dancing in the middle of the huge and crowded station and people form a circle around the dancers and are looking at them like they are crazy. BUT, the kicker is, 90% of the people in the crowd also start dancing, there were very few people that weren't in on it. I love it.

Also, Jennifer Hudson performed and she looked great for someone who just had a baby. I am so happy for her and her hubby (Punk from I Love New York, he was my fav, but WAY too good for nasty NY).

Kathy Griffin--Hilarious!

 

There are no words for how much I love Kathy Griffin. Kathy dressed like Kate Gosselin is hilarious. (Team Kate, for the record) I have been to see her in concert twice, even dragging along my boyfriend once, which he loved (but won't admit). My "manly-man" boyfriend is a huge fan of inappropriate jokes, so she was actually a great fit for him. She will say anything for a laugh. I love the celeb stuff, I am a celeb gossip crazed woman and her stories are the best. I have an aunt in the movie industry, her movies are pretty well-known and her ex-husband is a very popular director of which she is the executive producer of all his movies. All throughout my childhood, every time she came over, I would hit her with a billion questions about the latest actors she was working with. I wanted all the juice, I can't get enough. 

Now, she has an autobiography, Official Book Club Selection. I am headed to Barnes and Noble for lunch today to grab it. She is all about the publicity, so I am stoked to see all of the coverage she is getting. I remember the episode of her reality show when she met with the publishing executives and they talked about all the shows she wouldn't be able to get on, like the Today show. Of course, most of the shows she should do publicity on she is banned from, but the best they could do with her D-List status is get her on the 4th hour of the Today Show with Kathy Lee and Hoda, but that was the best they could do. Kind of ironic because she talks about how she is mistaken for Kathy Lee all the time, which is why she is D-List.

So You Think You Can Dance

I am so happy that they are bringing 'So You Think You Can Dance' back for a Fall Season. I hate waiting a whole year for it. It is worse than waiting for Fox to bring back '24' every January. I love this past season's Top 12, they were all amazing. I wish Brandon would have won, but I love them all. This show really represents a true art, so much better than 'American Idol', which I stopped watching years ago. I am a little embarrassed, but I actually voted a few times this season for my fav SYTYCD'er.

Here they are on Ellen, so awesome.

Need a Pick-Me-Up

Whenever I need a pick-me-up, this always does the trick. The song is fabulous, but the side "butt-shot" (about halfway through) doesn't hurt either.

Wait…You Mean that Isn't Normal Conversation

I received an email today from a political group that I am a member of, asking for all its supporters to post a message in support of the healthcare reform as their Facebook status. I had originally wanted to keep political discussions away from my blog, but simply put, that isn’t me. I live in DC because I am drawn to these types of debates. From a very early age, I have enjoyed controversial conversation. This got me thinking that DC has a culture based in completely inappropriate conversation, according to American norms. There are so many normal things that DC folks do everyday that are even considered disrespectful everywhere else, and all of these things can be found at happy hour or whatever “fill-in-the-blank” organization reception/mixer, a serious DC institution. DC is a social city and happy hour is where it all happens.

• The first thing you will ask anyone the second you meet them is, “What do you do?” Now, most of Americans can think of about 5 questions that would be appropriate to ask before ever thinking about asking someone what they did for a living. But in DC, that is your identity. You can find out everything you need to know about a person with that one question. Where they work, political affiliation (usually, if not you judge them based on it anyways), how much money they probably make (at least a range) and what you can probably get from them. Now, I don’t condone the last one, but this is DC, you never know.
• Political Discussions—I love discussing the top divisive topics of the week with a stranger. Religion and Politics are still the top things not to discuss with anyone outside of your family (and that may even be an issue), but in DC politics is king, why not? I do come from a family that encourages debate. I once had an hour-long conversation with my uncle about abortion. It got heated, as everything does in my clan, but at the end I knew he looked at me as an adult with a valid opinion for the first time in my life. I was no longer just the loud-mouthed 12-year old who he had disciplined countless times, I was an adult that he respected.

So, in normal fashion, I will post what I believe to be true.

"No one should die because they cannot afford health care, and no one should go broke because they get sick. If you agree, please post this as your status for the rest of the day."

Voodoo Experience

This is the best news I have gotten all week. Lenny Kravitz, the love of my life, just announced that he is playing the Voodoo Experience in New Orleans this fall. I haven't seen Lenny in concert in years because he has been in Europe touring and hasn't played the US in a while. I am by far his biggest fan. Of course, I probably can't afford to go to New Orleans anyways, but I would die to go. The really funny thing is, the hotel, tickets and flight aren't even that expensive. If this was last year, it would be a no-brainer, but money is tight this year (Thank you recession). Also, it is the same weekend as my 5th anniversary with my boyfriend, and five is kind of a big deal, huh?

The line up for the show is insane. Kiss, Eminem, Robert Randolph and the Family Band. I am a music lover, all music, an appreciator of sound. It is a perfect mesh of all music genres, plus it is in New Orleans, a beautiful city with an amazing history. After seeing Benjamin Button last year, I became obsessed with the history of blacks in New Orleans. It was one of the only cities in America before and after the Civil War where blacks could be successful.

It would probably take a miracle to get me to the concert, but I will keep my eyes open for it.

Mothers and Daughters

I just watched Whitney's comeback performance on GMA this morning and she brought out her daughter, Bobbi Christina on stage to sing with her. It was crazy to see how grown up she was. I hear amazing things about her new album and I am so happy to see her back and healthy. I am very close with my mom and love seeing happy moms and daughters. But, when I was a testy teenager, we weren't exactly besties.

The other day at her concert in Israel, Madonna brought out her look-alike Lourdes on stage. She is so cute. Every time I see a picture of her I just can't believe she is so grown up and has such AMAZING style. She is definitely another young girl that is waaaay cooler than me. The only thing more shocking than how much she looks like her mother is seeing her with her gorgeous father. She is a mirror image of her father. People say I look exactly like both of my parents (who look nothing alike), Lourdes definitely falls under than category too.

Carrie Bradshaw is Back and Looking FAB!

Are you a Carrie, Samantha, Charlotte or Miranda?

I am so excited to see pictures of SJP and Big filming in NYC. Sex and the City is definitely one of my favorite movies. I just have to make sure I am careful when checking Perez Hilton (500 times a day) not to see the dozens of scene spoilers he posts. I remember last time they tried so hard to cover up the wedding scene in the movie as a "dream scene" and Charlotte's pregnancy was a "fake scene".

I am not sure who my favorite character is, Carrie, Samantha, Charlotte, Miranda OR the other two main characters in the show, New York City and the WARDROBE?

Can't wait to see the sequel.

Reconnecting with Old Friends

I am not the best at keeping in touch with old friends and I am someone who seems to have a lot of "old friends". When I graduated high school, I had very few friends that I stayed in touch with. I left Austin for college in the DFW area and many of my friends stayed in Austin, few attended college right away, so we had little in common. I had a huge group of friends my senior year, but not many had the base to be long-lasting friendships. There was one friend that I did remain in contact with all through college, but once I moved to DC life quickly got in the way.

I have spoken with her sporadically over the years, the last time we connected was Christmas time. We had made plans to meet while I was in Texas, but it never ended up happening. Last time we spoke she told me she was getting married, which was expected since she had been dating her fiance for many many years, and she would keep me posted. Well, I had the date circled on my calendar, but no invitation arrived.

Today, I decided to search her on Facebook, since for some reason she hadn't had a Facebook account in the past. I searched her several times before, but this time she came up. I quickly sent a request for friendship and a few hours later she accepted. I took a few minutes to look over her page. She was married and further down on the page I discovered, she was also expecting her first baby. WOW. I was shocked.

Honestly, I have no clue why I became upset over this news. I am at the age where I find out about an old friend or acquaintance getting married and having a baby every day. I can only imagine that I am just upset that I am no longer a part of her life. I love her and she is definitely one of the closest relationships I ever had. I haven't had any major life occurrences yet, so I haven't had much to announce, but she would definitely be one of the people I would call when I do.

But, the time has come to write her an email to catch up and congratulate her on everything and hope that we are able to stay in touch. I would jump on a plane in a heart beat to make it for her shower.