Automatic, supersonic, hypnotic, funky fresh

Now let me see your 1, 2 step!

I had my first taste of Texas country last night. I took two step lessons at The Broken Spoke and I absolutely fell in love! There were only about 7 couples who took the lessons (which was more like an expert dancer giving beginners some tips before pushing us on to the dance floor) but after the lessons were through, the band took the stage and the dance floor came to life!

The Broken Spoke is an adorably gawdy restaurant/dance hall that has some amazing classic country history. There are pictures and memorabilia that include Willie Nelson, George Strait, and Dolly Parton everywhere.

I think I enjoyed watching the other people dancing more than I liked actually dancing myself. My poor partner just wouldn't take the reigns and lead. Apparently I'm a "natural born leader" so I need a strong partner. Hmmmm. I'm sure a few more weeks of practice and we'll be out there whirling around like the rest of them. All in all it was a great night and I made my first official Austin friend. We are trying swing dancing next week.

Texas, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

This is my reality

I must say the 21 hours and 1,300ish mile drive to Texas was not even half as bad as I anticipated. We drove all the way to Lubbock, TX the first day. That left only 6 hours worth of driving the second day. Around Clovis, NM is when the delirium started kicking in. We stopped to wash off the bugs from the windshield and get some snacks. I thought it started raining when the sun set but it was actually bugs hitting the windshield. Disgusting. Oh and Stef ate a bug. I'm pretty sure she is still mortified. I shit you not, two days after the fact, out of nowhere she'd say "Dude! I ate a bug. Like, I TASTED it." Sorry Stef.

Can I just say how charming Lubbock, TX is!? We pulled in pretty late on Thursday night and stopped at the first motel we saw so we didn't really even see the town. The next morning we were starving so we ventured out to find breakfast. We stumbled across the cutest Waffle House and had an even cuter waitress. It was just like sitting in your grandma's kitchen and having breakfast. It was great.

We finally pulled up to my new home around 5 PM. When I walked it, it was like I'd walked into a house I decorated. Tin signs, Jack Vettriano, photos of friends, antiques....sigh. I love this house. It has so many cute and kitschy things. It's like I live in an antique shop or museum. And my roommate is basically a rock star. We became instant friends!



P is for poop. Or pee.






Painting of Sarah Bettens





In case you can't find the front door.





I will have this painting in my dining room someday.





Not sure which I should learn first.





Done by Leslie's mom, Terry. Probably my favorite thing in the house!



One of many cigarette ads throughout the house.



Nobody could have prepared me for the humidity though. The first time I walked outside after it rained I almost suffocated. I'm positive I'll never get to straighten my hair here but that's alright. Aside from not having friends yet (working from home doesn't really help with the whole meeting people thing), I'm loving Austin and can't wait to discover the city. I think I will get used to Brad Womack walking right by me on the weekends. ;)

ZZZZzzzzzzz

I'd love to fill you in on the last five days of my life. I'd love to give you the details of my 1,300 mile trek across Utah, Colorado, New Mexico (longest drive through a state EVER), and Texas. I'd love to tell you how Stef ate a bug in Clovis, NM and will probably be haunted by it for the next year or five. I'd love to show you pictures of the most adorable house I'm living in. I'd love to tell you about my awesome roommate. But the fact of the matter is, I'm SO tired that I can't even THINK of how to correctly put a sentence together.

If I'm being 100% honest, the VMA's are on and I haven't had cable in about a year so I'm pretty distracted. Can I just say that it's no longer fashion if you can't even walk in what you are wearing LADY KAKA er, I mean GAGA!? Ahem. Anyway. I've also been trying to catch up on what's going on in the interwebz universe and I'm a bit overwhelmed.

I came across this blog post from my girl Sue and thought I'd share. I love this girl and I kept myself together this whole move until I said goodbye to her and then I lost it again somewhere in New Mexico when I read her card. I'll be representing during my exploration of Austin and knock the cities socks off until you come and visit me Mija! Thanks for the t-shirt.

Is it me does this t-shirt look Texas orange? It's really red. WEIRD!

Salt Lake City is killing me

Oh life. I've been running around like a chicken with my head cut off with an alarming sense of calm these past few weeks. I'm afraid this is the calm before the storm. Things should get interesting soon. Stress from moving, a death in the family, insomnia, and a best friend in the hospital is what this life has been seasoned with as of late. I do have a fun guest post coming up from Mr. Gill over at Cheesecake. If you haven't read his blog, you seriously need to. His writing and sense of humor is brilliant. I just need to finish my post for his blog and then I'll put his up.

In the meantime, I wanted to share some music because I just spent way too much money planning my final hoo-rah in Utard....that won't be in Utard. Me and a couple of girls are going to road trip it to Vegas this weekend to see Ray Lamontagne and David Gray. RAY LAMONTAGNE!!! DAVID GRAY!! Did I mention I'll be staying in a two bedroom condo with three pools? Oh I didn't? Yeah, there is that too.

Ray Lamontagne released a new album 8.24.10 and I bought that same day and have listened to it so much, I have most of the songs memorized. It's the perfect cooking or house cleaning music. My two faves are This Love Is Over and New York City Is Killing Me. I have replaced the words to Salt Lake City and I'm afraid it has stuck...because it is killing me. Today marks my week countdown until I pack up the ole Scion and make the 21 hour trek.

I can hardly even wait!!