Austin Rugby: The Huns, and Lessons on How to Take a Hit

One of the things Lennon was most excited about when coming to Austin was rugby.  Our first visit out to Burr field was to watch a Hawaiin shirts vs. skins game, (after we finally found the field while humming the banjo tune reminiscent of Deliverance during the dirt road drive). 

The Austin Blacks are the team of the Austin Rugby Club, but this weekend we watched the Austin Huns play at Burr against the Dallas Harlequins.  I don't have much interest in rugby beyond the cuteness of the striped polo shirts that comprise the traditional uniform, but Lennon is quite the enthusiast, and now that he has a new 9-5 job, he has no excuse not to start getting his butt kicked by cleats during evening practices. 

Despite my lack of interest in most sports, there is something to be gained, though, from watching men (or women) run full throttle into each other sans padding.  So, as a non-competitive sport viewer, I offer up the universal lessons that rugby has to offer for all people:

How To Take A Hit Like A  Champ

1) One must always know what they are in for.  Observe a situation before stepping into the foray.  This is the equivalent of studying a play book, or taking a deep breath before the buzzer sounds in a race.  If you're going to get the wind knocked out of you, make sure you've got wind to spare.

2) Avoid friendly fire.  Ther's nothing more frustrating than being knocked out by your own team.  Be aware of the location of all your chess pieces at any given time. 

3) Kick like you mean it.  Punting is for chumps.  I used to punt in PE class during dreaded kick ball games so that I could outsprint the person going for my one-inch kick to get to first base.  This wasn't a strategy - it was a fear tactic.  I didn't want the ball thrown at my face.  If you've seen the movie Julie and Julia, then I advise you to take away this one mantra: "No fear, Julia." 

4) Even when you're in the game, remember the outside world.  Sometimes what seems most important at the moment is put into perspective when you stick your head up above the squall-of-work bubble for just a minute.  Clarity often ensues.   

5) Team work.  Nothing pads a hit like a good team mate, (although, refer to point number two), especially if the guy in front of you has a really cute butt to look at.  Maybe this isn't applicable to all people... 

6) Don't hedge the field.  If the ball is your target, go for it.  In first grade I stood in front of a field kick during a pee-wee league soccer game and blocked the ball with my belly button.  From that point on I never went near that nasty thing.  Thank goodness for participation trophies.  Regardless, I never made a single goal; I was too infatuated with the risk. 

7) Get a leg-up.  Go further, read more, study harder, get up an hour earlier... however much you can push yourself to get ahead of where you were before - do that - but not more than that.  Review point number four. And if you fall from your vantage point, get up gracefully. 

8) Remember, it takes patience to get where you are going.  So don't rush the field if you aren't ready, and don't brawl just because something doesn't go your way.  Some things are a long way off but very few things (on this planet, at least) are in the distance of infinite. 

Flapper Dress: 101 + Female Writers of the 1920's

To paraphrase the Austin Eavesdropper, tomorrow night is when gardening meets Gatsby at The Liberty bar in East Austin.  This means it's time to break out the fringe, feathers, and fedoras to go out on the town and have a "hotsy-totsy" good time.  I love dressing up, I love sustainable gardening, and I certainly love a party.  Also, keeping in mind that once an English teacher, always an English teacher: I love female writers of the roaring twenties. 

Dorothy Parker - Often recognized as a member of the Algonquin Round Table, Dorothy Parker is an author who is often quoted but too little read.  She had a sardonic wit, a tumultous love life, and a busy pen, seeing as she wrote short stories, novels, poems, screen plays, magazine articles... a sad theme of her work was typically along the lines of "you're born, you think life is great, really it sucks, then you die," but in between the start and the finish, she's really funny and painfuly astute.

Zelda Fitgerald - "The Flapper awoke from her lethargy of sub-deb-ism, bobbed her hair, put on her choicest pair of earrings and a great deal of audacity and rouge and went into the battle. She flirted because it was fun to flirt and wore a one-piece bathing suit because she had a good figure ... she was conscious that the things she did were the things she had always wanted to do. Mothers disapproved of their sons taking the Flapper to dances, to teas, to swim and most of all to heart." - Z. Fitzgerald, 'Eulogy of the Flapper.'  A dancer, a writer, a drunk, a hell-raiser, a muse, and an entrenching subject of biography. 

Gertrude Stein - While I don't understand her tender-buttons type writing, I felt like The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas was peeking into a 1920's Paris salon through a telescope.  I have monolithic respect for a lady who didn't need a man to take care of her, kept the egos of the day in check, was a proprieter of art and literature, and didn't feel the need to follow the rules of "ladylike" behavior.

So, in celebration of the flapper era and the swell women who occupied it, here are my tips to dressing up like a genuine, renaissance lady of the roaring twenties:

1) High-heeled, strappy shoes with round toes.

2) Strings and strings of faux-pearl necklaces.

3) Swirly skirts, drop waist dresses, sleeveless blouses, sequins, and fringe that emphasizes the swing of your hips when you do the Charleston.

4) GIN.  (bathtub optional).

These are items I dug out of my closet, but if you want a true education on dressing in vintage style, then it is imperative that you visit the Vintage Vivant herself: a fellow Austinite, and also a former Arkansas girl (and U of A alum, too!) Amelia.  You can find her at Toy Joy, her daily fashion blog, or at her Etsy shop, where you can purchase hand sewn, lovely, (and sometimes naughty), items, such as this tidy-cloth.  Also be sure to read her post on how to apply 1920's style makeup, it's very important for proper appearances tomorrow night!

It seems only appropriate to end this particular post the following way:

My candle burns at both ends;

It will not last the night;

But ah, my foes, and oh, my friends--

It gives a lovely light!

 

Because first and foremost, Edna St. Vincent Millay is my homegirl.  See you tomorrow!

Perks of the Job: Free T-Shirts, and a Wee Bit About the Austin Film Society

Working in a non-profit may not come with glamour or high-pay, but one thing I do get plenty of: free t-shirts!  Earlier this week, Jonny Stranger game me this one from the Austin Film Society.  At first, I saw it was a large and was afraid I would swim in it, but to my glee (surprise!?) it fits perfectly.  To my chagrin, upon viewing this photograph, I realize I neglected to consider that using a mirror would result in the words coming out backwards... sigh.

I didn't know this when I first moved to Austin, but it's quite the film hub.  My step-sister's first job interview was with Troublemaker Studios, and then I was informed that all of the celebrities staying in town can be spotted on South Congress because they stay in the Hotel San Jose.  I've never been much of a celeb-spotter, but I did work at the Bunch of Grapes in Martha's Vineyard one summer, and I checked out Spike Lee and Michael J Fox; I certainly felt special at the time. 

I've never been much of a film buff - but I am snob enough to turn my nose up at beloved movies such as Elf, (no matter how much I love Bob Newhart), and my students' first question when I brought in a movie was "Does it have subtitles?" (with a long groan). 

Nonetheless, I regret having missed the Austin Film Festival this year - but it won't happen again.  Until then, I'm happy being a patron of Austin orignals I Luv Video and the Alamo Drafthouse, and now that I'm signed up to follow AFS tweets, maybe I'll be more up to date on screenings and premieres, or accidently swagger into the background of a movie set - seeing as Austin IS a "blockbuster location."

Oh - and I can't forget my hand delivered copy of P.O.V. - I appreciate every little bonus I get.  And I doubly appreciate Jonny's comic on claymation, as he's been working on claymation with my students, and I enjoy his Prometheus reference, being an English teacher at heart.  Bottom line: yay free stuff.  I'll call it my non-profit swag. 

I also get to beam over cool things my kids make with Jonny, like this!  Wish I had this program in Arkansas ten years ago...

The Flying Saucer UFO Club's Newest Member & Plan Your Week

Last night, a friend from Arkansas drove down to Austin, and it was just in time to attend our friend JB's UFO party at the Flying Saucer.  JB has, over the course of many months, tasted 200 beers at the Saucer, earning himself a gold rimmed platter with his name on it (in the corner, above the hallway to the restooms!).  The Saucer in Little Rock was a second home, as many a Monday Pint Night, Tuesday Trivia Night, It's-sleeting-and-work-is-cancelled-tomorrow night, and weekend no-good-bands-are-playing-elsewhere night were spent drinking Shiners and Blue Moons in the warm glow of the copper penny back splash.  So, who says you can't go home again?

This weekend/week in Austin is going to be nuts, there's so much going on.  Here are my picks for the week:

Friday - While my friend might have driven in to see Mastadon and Dethklock at the Austin Music Hall, I'll take the Monsters of Folk with Conor Oberst of Bright Eyes playing at Stubbs.  Plus, Bishop Allen is at Mohawk, but I've already seen them in Little Rock.  Leave it to Beverly at The Off Center is also happening tonight - a play about 60's sitcoms gone wrong.  Either way, I'll be at a birthday party, bringing a six pack as a present.  I should also mention that it's the Boys and Girls Club Fall Gala - which I could never afford a ticket to, but if I didn't already have plans, I could go to for free/as a volunteer... and the menu, steak aside, was certainly tempting. 




Saturday - The East Austin Studio tour kicks off!  Be sure to stop by the studio of Michael Long, an artist and photographer who teaches art to my kids after school five days a week.  Even some of our toughest, don't-like-anybody-in-authority teenagers, like Michael Long, so you should too. 

Sunday - The Swell Season at the Paramount!  If you've seen the movie Once, then you probably love them.  I got to see them play at BU in Boston last year, which is lucky because I certainly can't afford a ticket to the Paramount.  Last year, I used the movie to do a compare/contrast essay with my senior English class over James Joyce's short story Eveline.  A few soundtracks were purchased afterward.  Seeing as I am poor, I will be attending the Flipside Flyers aerial silk performance at 4:30, and then the Austin Garden Party at 6:00, both more within my budget.

Monday - Bob Schneider and Rosie Flores at the Saxon Pub.  Enough said. 

Tuesday - Eisley at Emo's.  They aren't the featured act - but I love their vocals, plus they're a Texas band. 

Wednesday - The Get Up Kids at Emo's!  Get out of my way, because I will be front row and center.  I've loved them since the tenth grade, and Something To Write Home About is still the only CD I've ever had to replace because I played/play it so much. 




Thursday - Girl crush night - Holly Miranda playing solo at Mohawks.  Tickets: bought. 

What are your plans this week?

Butterfly Necklaces + Urban Decay Love Affairs

The butterfly necklaces I ordered finally came!  A few weeks ago I purchased this orange pendant along with a black and blue butterfly pendant from Butterfly Senses on Etsy.  They had taken a while to arrive, so I'd gotten nervous they were lost in the mail until I re-checked the seller's web site and noted that these pendants are made in Malaysia, so I should be probably be a little more patient.  The patience was worth it, because they got here yesterday and they are lovely - my new favorites. 

I've been trying very hard lately to not shop, but I have indulged a few purchases.  I'm finished with clothes buying, seeing as my Austin closet, compared to my wall-o-closet and then my walk-in-closet from my two Little Rock apartments, is paltry in comparison, so nothing new will fit inside.  But, there's always room for jewelry and makeup.

While in Killeen last week, I stopped by the new(ish) shopping center in Harker Heights to go by Ulta, a makeup store that is like Sephora, but with more drug store brands.  Can I also note, that when I lived in Harker Heights in 3rd grade, there was a Wal-Mart, a Win-Dixie, a local rodeo... and that's about it.  Now the Win-Dixie is gone, but it has Club Rodeo in the parking lot, so that sort of makes up for my loss, and with the cigarette burn scar I have on my elbow from the creepy guy who hit on my step-sister, that place is eternally "burned" in my memory... (ha, sorry).

Moving right along... I usually skip the drug store makeup since I can buy it at Walgreens, and head straight for the Urban Decay display.  I've lusted after the mica powder and glitter pressed into Urban Decay cosmetics since the only place I could find it was at Nordstroms in the Galleria when I was in Jr. High, (my love of sparkles is a long-standing affair).  Today, I love Urban Decay even more because it's vegan-friendly and cruelty free, which is to my detriment, because it further justifies my decisions to buy products with money I should be saving. 

This trip, I picked up the Ammo Shadow Box, because I couldn't decide on one color, and truth be told, the box itself was so damn cute that it influenced my indulgent decision.  Even though I rarely wear more than mascara to go about my day, I will take any excuse to wear rock-star glitter... even a trip to a cowboy bar like Club Rodeo.

My favorite item by Urban Decay is their Heavy Metal glitter eyeliner... a discovery made after I tragically used up my entire stick of glittery purple eyeliner pencil from Hot Topic after owning it and using it sparingly for three years.  If you see me wearing this stuff, rest assured I feel on my A-game.  And just so we're clear, I've never been paid by Urban Decay or given free samples - they have more of my money than I care to admit - so if they ever feel like sending me something in reward for being a loyal customer, I'll be camped out by the mailbox. 

Now, about being a saver not a spender...

Adrian & The Sickness, a Salad, and Girl Crushes

It probably would have been obvious to anyone else that eating a dinner of cheese sticks and beer on Friday night, and then not eating again till Saturday night, would merit a sick feeling in one's tummy.  Luckily, the easy cure for this is to eat again.  I fixed my discomfort with a salad-by-the-pound dinner from Central Market, an HEB answer to Whole Foods and people who don't want to sift through the coupon specials for gourmet fare.  I love the place.  And - news to me - they do free live music on the weekends - so I got to enjoy my heavy and expensive salad on the patio of the cafe while a live band played.  I'll be doing my grocery shopping on Saturday nights from now on!

After dinner, I went with Phil to Momo's to see the Adrian and the Sickness CD release party. A lot of the Girls Rock coaches, admin, and attendees were there, so I met up with a drum player from my weekend at Ladies Camp - Angela.  This is Angela and I on the patio of Momo's with the Austin skyline as a backdrop, complete with crane in place to construct more new condominiums. 

One of the opening bands for Adrian & The Sickness was a group formed at Girls Rock Camp - and they really did rock - if I was still my shy high school self, these would be girls I'd look up to in the hallway.  I'm 25 years old and I still admire them.  I can't find the name of their band so I must be spelling it wrong - Chemillion?  Shemillion?  Chamillion?  Plus the parents rocking out front and center to their daughters' music was double adorable.

Kathy Valentine, of the Go Go's, produced the Adrian & The Sickness new album, BFD, and played on stage with the band for a few songs at the beginning of the set.  They also played a Go Go's song in tribute, which I didn't recognize, so Phil called me a baby. 

I've been playing the album, BFD in my car since I bought it a couple weeks ago.  Adrian has a sweet voice when she sings that is in huge (but perfect) contrast to the incredibly dexterity with which she (and her bandmates) plays classic-rock-on-speed melodies.  The edge in their sound comes out harder on stage than on the CD, but not in a negative way, because the difference is simply that I can sing along with the CD.  If you haven't seen them play, then what are you waiting for? 

Fun Fun Fun Fest was also this weekend, and Tolly, over at the Austin Eavesdropper, wrote about her girl crush on Alice Glass of Crystal Castles.  The girls of Adrian & The Sickness are great inspiration for girl crushes, so I thought it appropriate to include my other on-going girl crush: Holly Miranda of the Jealous Girlfriends - who is coming to Mohawk on November 19th (a day after the Get Up Kids - I don't know if I can handle so much heart throbbing in one week) ! 

Who makes your heart do somersaults?

The Austin Bleet-Up at Mohawk.

The Austin Bleet-up!

This Thursday, temporarily setting aside thoughts of tragic events in Killeen, I drove home from my conference to attend Austin's Bleet Up at Mohawk, downtown.  I went with my friend the breakfast taco blogger, Elizabeth, and her girlfriend, Andrea.  Being afterschool program workers, Elizabeth and I are both weary by 8 o'clock at night, and haven't frequented the downtown scene (yet), so we took our time getting ready to go, finishing dinner, and driving down there.  When finally in the vicinity, we circled the perimeter of downtown Austin at least twice before conceding that we were not going to find a free parking meter, so we paid the $6 to park a good five blocks away.  Thank goodness for flats. 

Mohawk reminds me of a doll house because it has all of these little "compartments" like the green room, the downstairs indoor stage, the upstairs patio, the side patio, the outdoor stage...

We waited in a long line for fifteen minutes at the entrance marked "blogger party" before we finally wound our way up the side stairs to the ID checker.  No one questioned our identity as bloggers, and I was later disappointed to see some people walkin around with prominent "blogger" stickers on their chest.  I wanted one, too!  But being given a ticket for a free drink - Tito vodka with Sweet Leaf peach tea - atones for all wrongs.  My drink mix-master must have either been hurried, thought I was cute, or saw me as a girl who can handle her booze - because she mixed about 1 part tea with 8 parts vodka for my drink.  I'm a lucky girl.  Nonetheless, I tempered my vodka-with-a-splash-of-tea using Andrea's tea-with-a-splash-of-vodka. 

The upstairs patio also had food set out, a few vendors, and enough people packed together to merit a spot by the balcony in order to find air to breathe.  When trying to find a bathroom, I went down the indoor stair case to walk into what appeared to be a completley separate concert.  Seeing no free drinks there, I quickly went back upstairs. 

Girls Rock Camp Austin was there, raffling off this red guitar signed by Debbie Harry and the Donnas.  I'm a terrible person and can't remember this girl's name, but she's super cute and helped coach my band during my weekend at Ladies Rock Camp. 

I also don't know the name of this band, (what a terrible blogger!), but they were awesome, because part of the time they were playing I was standing on the balcony above them, and the lead guitarist says to the audience "This is an oldie but a goodie," then turns around away from the mic and says to the band, "Just watch me for the changes and try to keep up."  Back to the Future reference for the win!

There was a photographer there, taking pictures with this glitzy backdrop.  I have no idea where those pictures are going to be posted... again, I am so uniformed.  But there was this giant glitter disco ball available as a prop, so this is Elizabeth being metal and about to smash it, while I exclaim how much more awesome Lonestar is than PBR, but remind everyone that free drinks are the best. 

My friend Phil came to Mohawk after his band practice let out.  I'm supposed to go with him to see Adrian and the Sickness at Momo's tonight, but at the moment I feel inexplicably queezy, so that may not pan out. 

Elizabeth held on to her souvenir cup for a while, but I don't think it actually made it home with her.

This is the last photo in a series of pictures involving Andrea making grumpy faces and Elizabeth looking upset.  To avoid being chastised later for posting them, I offer this resolution picture, as no parties look silly here, but instead disgustingly sweet.

Here I am posing as the cyber (that's a golden computer mouse around my neck) queen that I aspire to be.  Phil and Andrea are cyber fans with flashy googly balls on top of their heads.

The fantasy over, we take an (almost) normal picture.  And having to head back to Killeen for day 3 of the conference in the morning, I called it a night shortly after this photo was snapped and headed home, to get my four hours of sleep. 

The Ft. Hood Shootings

I've been in Killeen, Texas since Tuesday for a conference with the Boys and Girls Club.  Going to Killeen was a treat because my dad and step-mom live there, and they just moved into a really swanky new house that I got to stay in.  It's also the last city that my mom lived in before she had to come up to Arkansas, where she died at Springdale Hospital.  My mom, my dad, and I had also lived in Killeen/Harker Heights when I was in 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade, (they later moved back when I went to college), because my dad was active military and stationed at Ft. Hood. 

Now, both he and my step-mom work on Ft. Hood as civilians, my step-sister's husband is deployed active military, and I have a few friends who are military, deployed, or about to deploy.  My dad left TDY yesterday, but my step-mom was at work today and one of my step-sisters was on post doing some paper work.  I got a text message from my step-mom today around 2PM that said there had been a shooting on post, she was ok, and that the post was on lock-down, (and yes, it's called  a POST, and NOT a base - dear media, please stop calling it a base).  She and my step-sister didn't get to go home until 8:30PM.   

It's terrible to think of such a familiar place (or ANY place) facing violence and heartache.  The media kept reporting that no children were harmed during the shooting, but, hello - lots of soldiers are PRACTICALLY children, 18 - 23 years old.  The last I checked, not many details were released, but they do know the name of the primary shooter - a 39 year old major in the US Army, Muslim by birth, about to deploy, psychiatrist, (on anti-depressants?), and the victim of harrasment, (unspecified, but open to easy speculation), in the work place. 

When the news broke on TV, everyone at the conference gathered around this one TV in the BGC rec room, with this sign beneath it, as the BGC, along with many schools in the area - including the elementary schools I went to - are "adopted" by military units.  We used to have field days on post where we got to explore helicopters and tanks, try simulation units, and eat the M&M packets out of MRE's.

I suppose what I am getting it, is that today was terrible, and my heart breaks for everyone affected by today's events.  Ft. Hood has always been good to me, and I hope that it recieves the same good energy from the rest of humanity right now.     

Useful Procrastination

This weekend, my church's choir appropriately sang Rutter's Requiem on Dia De Los Muertos, along with a winds accompaniment, which makes me wish I still played the clarinet.  No one ever told me that my clarinet could be so much cooler than a marching version of Louie Louie would allow.  Afterwards, having spent thirty minutes before the service trying to secure a parking space downtown, (always frustrating), it seemed wasteful to just go home, so Lennon and I walked towards the capital to see the Texas Book Festival.  It was warm and the tents were crowded, so I didn't stop to explore books or talk to authors like I would have liked, but it was a beautiful day and I was eager to go home and find a sunny spot to nap.

Sunday also marked the kick off of NaNoWrMo.  Being the world's worst procrastinator, I didn't open a word document until 11:33PM, after which I only wrote 600 words, a bit short of the 50,000 goal.

So, in case anyone out there has similar procrastinating problems, I thought I would point out a few of the ways in which procrastinating can be productive.  Thus, I offer up the following list of useful procrastination tasks, and yes, reading the list counts as one:

1) Start a blog.  Seriously... picking your favorite template, finding pictures for your banner, all set up a perfect blank canvas on which to project your ideas.  And if you already have a blog, then go post in it.  Writing a few paragraphs for a blog is much easier than trying to think up a thrilling novel plot, with instant publishing gratification.

2) Clean.  I can't work with the apartment in a certain degree of messy.  And while I may not categorize the memorable moments of my life as the ones I spent vacuuming and cloroxing when I'm on my death bed, those moments certainly make all of the others more pleasant.  So do vanilla scented candles.

3) Build your perfect modern author outfit on Polyvore - then post it to your blog!  If you're procrastinating writing, you could also build outfits for the characters you create - then post it on your (new) blog!  Visual stimulation helps spark my muse. 

4) I've always wanted to take a few lessons in vocal harmonies.  Now seems like a good idea to go research if classes like that are offered around Austin, and then consider signing up for one.  Or maybe there's a massage therapy class, or ceramics.  Can't hurt to check...

5) Write a poem in the voice of one of your characters.  Preferably a spoken word piece.  And then come read it at the Independent on Wednesday.

6) Go about making plans the old fashioned way.  Get some index cards, brightly colored pens, tell the dog not to step on you, lay on the floor, and jot notes on the cards.  Then rearrange them to make different stories until you find one you like.  Feel free to doodle on the cards.

7) Cook!  Urged on my procrastination, I made dinner for the first time in two weeks tonight.  So, for your culinary pleasure, here is my procrastinator-perfect Broccoli Rice Cheese Casserole:

Ingredients:

3 cups cooked rice (I like to mix white and brown)

1 stick of butter

1 yellow onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 broccoli crowns, chopped and steamed

1 can fat free cream of mushroom soup + 1 cup fat free sour cream OR 2 cans cream of mushroom soup

1 bag of shredded cheddar cheese

salt & pepper to taste

                              

1. Cook rice with 1 part rice to 1.5 parts water for fifteen minutes, covered while oven preheats at 350

2. Chop onion and mix with garlic, sauté in butter

3. Steam broccoli

                              

4. Mix rice with soup and sour cream in a large bowl

5. Add onions, garlic, broccoli, and most of the cheese

6. Spread into a large casserole dish, top with cheese and bake at 350, covered in foil

7. Take off foil, and keep baking for ten more minutes.  Then, yum!

      

Now that I'm fed, have tidied up, and watched several reruns of House on DVD, I should pull out my index cards and get back to my non-existent novel. 

Halloween & Dia De Los Muertos In Austin + the Blue Skirt Chronicles

I think the year should be structured so that Halloween always falls on a Friday or Saturday, sort of like Easter is always guaranteed to come on a Sunday.  Being monetarily challenged, I didn't get to do all of the things I wanted to participate in this weekend, (thus I'm blogging rather than watching Gogol Bordello), but I did try to take in as much free excitement as Austin afforded me.

Friday night, I attended a party hosted by the lovely Katie and Jo, who win the best costume category hands down by dressing as the too-oft overlooked rap dynamic duo, Kriss Kross... backwards pants and all.  The girls of the party also won the flip-cup showdown, beating the boys five times in a row.  N00bs. 

I hadn't actually put any thought into a costume, so when I went to work on Friday and saw one of my staff (who is also a teacher at the school during the day), wearing a cheerleading outfit with zombie make-up, I immediatley ran to the dance teacher to ask to borrow an old cheer ensemble.  Most of the tops were fringed and silly, so I just took an old high-stepper skirt and glittery belt.  I matched it with my sailor top and thigh high tights from my beer wench costume of last year, and topped it with my starry antennea headband, found in a box of my childhood belongings, original origins unknown.  I think I make a great American flag, and yes, slutty is part of the statement.  The real point here is: free costume!

Saturday night, one of my coworkers, Julie, played a guitar set, representing Girl Guitar Austin.  The next item on my agenda after finishing this post is to sign up for lessons. 

She played at Jovitas, which had an amazing spinach and mango salad.  I also enjoyed my $2.50 bottle of Dos Equis lager with lime - which I'd somehow never tried before.  It also made me really happy to see one of my busy co-workers pursuing her passion for music and songwriting, (she has a beautiful voice), as sometimes it seems like I'm not working hard enough if I'm not letting work consume my life.  And that's just not healthy thinking. 

Today was Dia De Los Muertos, and the Mexican American Cultural Center hosted an event with live music, arts and crafts, vendor booths, colorful altars, lots of sugar skulls, and a custom car show. 

My roommates especially enjoyed this particular custom job because, (Lennon), "it is riDONKulous," (Eirik), "in a way that is glorious."  A car with love making on it is obviously pure sex on wheels.  It even beeped if you stood too close to it, kind of in a moaning frequency. 

Everyone there was walking around with cameras hangin from their necks or in their hands, so I felt a little toolish being the thousandth camera happy non-Hispanic attendee, so I didn't take as many pictures of the event as I actually wanted to.  This was a mistake, and a foolish thing to worry about.  Next time, I won't let myself be hindered by feeling self-conscious. 

The blue skirt makes its second appearance.  I may never give it back. 

I was also amused by this seemingly random giant ear of corn, and then Eirik joked that Lennon had finally found ears bigger than his own.  Snap!  Here is where I have to insert a comment by Eirik about the beauty of the light shining through Lennon's ears. 

Last week my friends Elizabeth and Andrea threw a Dia De Los Muertos apartment warming party, and we got to decorate sugar skulls.  Mine is the furthest one back, with a candy pumpkin stuck to to its head.  I gave the pumpkin a frosting smiley face and called it a conjoined twin. 

It's also important to note that today marks the FIRST DAY of National Novel Writing Month!  Now I'm regretting not reading the book No Plot No Problem prior to today, as I am indeed facing just such a conundrum.  I'll write about space invaders when I get stuck. 

And of course, I have to end with another photo of my beloved skirt, taken Saturday.  I will miss it dearly when it goes back to its lonely storage bin on campus.  It kind of looks like a space girl skirt.