ADVENTURE 30

My favorite Christmas gift (besides my retainer from my uncle ... I'm not joking) was from JaLynne Murray, my old Young Women President's sister. She's incredibly talented and generous beyond belief. In her spare time she embroidered these in honor of my recent move to this blessed state. The running joke is that I work in "SoHo", aka. Southern Houston. But as us New Yorkers know, the Hobby Airport area is no authentic SoHo. This is a tribute to holidays and one of Manhattan's finest neighborhoods south of Houston (how-stun) street. 

Thank you so very much JaLynne! Me and my new kitchen love you.

ADVENTURE 29

Took a pit stop in Salt Lake City on the way home to Houston. 

Went to a fabulous party (kudos to Dave Byrd) and reconnected with friends from ages ago. 

No one believed me when I told them I moved to Texas. So I had to prove it to them. 

Dave knew this and kindly provided the ammo and coon hat.

Aimee, my new Houston friend (woo hoo!), looks sweet, but with both of us in Houston, the city is on the look out.

This is a first at a party. Maybe not my last. Best photo shoot ever!

ADVENTURE 28

Sometimes grocery shopping can be exhausting. Right? Texans know this. 

And they've got the secret to endurance . Hydrate while you shop!

You never know when and what aisle you'll need a sip in. 

Genius! Brought to you by Texas. 

ADVENTURE 27

NAME THAT CITY

A new game for a new year!

1. Look at the photos below

2. Guess which city Mala is in

3. Guess Mala's mood the day these were taken

The winner gets a Texas surprise gift from a Yankee.

Ready go!

NAME THAT CITY -  LA? Fort Lauderdale? San Francisco? 

Guess again people. The answer is Houston, Texas. Today it gave me Starbucks, sunlight, BMW's, palm trees, and mani pedi's. When I looked up at palm trees for lunch and down and my freshly painted toes after dinner, I felt like I was in San Diego and New York City. And I couldn't have been happier. Thank you Houston!

And because I couldn't resist, laugh it up. I die every time.

Latin clip is first half (which gets overlooked), Vietnamese clip is second half. Take your pick.

ADVENTURE 26

Right before Christmas break I had a true Texas experience. My very first TEXANS game! 

This equation naturally includes American beer, the Texas flag, a fried item (or ten), the NFL, space, trucks, the American flag, and ... more beer.

The Texans have mastered the party + sport combination. Sell 80,000 tickets, put 90% of the fans in red white and blue jerseys, serve alcohol in large quantities, own a playoff football team, put them in a state of the art weather proof stadium (hello retractable dome, rain you will not mess with us!), provide a parking lot the size of the entire west side of Manhattan to fit their trucks, spice it up with strong Texas attitude and we've got ourselves a game! They take tailgating to an ENTIRELY new level. I've got evidence to prove it.

Reliant Stadium

Really big trucks.

A full size bar set up by tailgaters in the parking lot.

The bar goes on.

As do the really large trucks. With NFL flags.

A living room. In a parking lot. "A" for effort. "F" for strategy? 

Guess you gotta be really close to the game.

A trailer. I mean kitchen. I mean trailer kitchen. In a parking lot. 

Might as well bring everything AND the kitchen sink.

And for those confused about transporting your kitchen sink, just hitch it to your very large truck.

Kitchen sink is literally in tow.

Game 7 baby. Colts, try again next year! We won.

Lowell thanks for teaching me what real fans wear.

We love the NFL!

The Manhattan transplants. Never thought Brain Moss and I would be posing in front of this skyline.

If you look really close behind the buildings you can see a few hills. They call them overpasses here. Hands down the flatest place I've ever lived! At least we win in the important things - FOOTBALL.

ADVENTURE 25

Ever been to Huntsville, Texas? There are a couple things you'll see and hear when you tell folks you're going:

"Huh? Really? Why?"

"Look out for hitchhikers! And don't go to prison."

"Wow, yeah man, there's a jail there."

Expressions include confusion, blank stares and concern.

But when you tell them you're going to visit the fabulous Sharon Harris who drove all the way down here to meet you from Dallas, cheers go off. Couple that with the Farmhouse Cafe and rolling hills, and Hunstville is sittin' pretty.

I wonder how many cities bearkats and their kittens have felt unwelcome in. Not in Huntsville!

You may be questioning my photo uploading skills at this point, but have some faith in me please. This photo is obviously of a street at an incline. A hill. Plus Car & Drivers reject shots. I was sitting at a traffic light and thinking to myself, "I don't see a prison. And actually I kind of like the feel of this place. Something feels right, it's quaint, there are trees, crisp air, and then it dawned on me as my car began to roll forward on a decline...THERE ARE HILLS!" I wish I had an audio clip so you could have heard my enthusiasm. Houston is flatest place I have ever lived. And it's great for beginner runners I guess. But that's about it. And here I was a little over an hour outside of flatville and found hills. I was so relieved! Life's simple pleasures make rough weeks smoother.

This is a restaurant New York City tries to imitate and charges you 4X as much per plate. Hill Country BBQ ringing a bell anyone? I'm saving my dining dollars, plus city and state tax in Texas. Yeehaw!

Sharon Harris makes me a better person. And she found this gem. Three cheers for memory making!

These rolls had a little Utah in 'em. Cornbread was all Texas. Both worth the drive.

Lemon Icebox Pie. Ohhhhhh my!

We're not celebrating Christmas in Europe. Or Canada. Just in case you were confused, Hunstville is clearing it up for us all. Phew!

Snow doesn't work too well in Texas. But paper snowmen are wildly successful. :)

ADVENTURE 24

Things keep getting bigger! The cup to the left of the salsa is holds 24 oz. You do the math.

Public restrooms abound in this state!