Happy Labor Day!

Have a good one. Wear your whites and keep wearin' 'em after Monday, rebel readers!

Awkward Clinton

So, I've been on a work-related retreat in San Antonio for the past few days. It was way more fun than I could have ever expected and I'm looking forward to the rest of the program, which lasts until May 2009.

Being in San Antonio made me excited to visit on my own terms. I lived there my first year in college and didn't start appreciating the city until I left. It's such a neat, laid back town and I hope I'll have a reason to live there again.

On our way out of the city, we ate at the famed Mi Tierra Mexican restaurant where I found this gigantic, strange oil painting of President Bill Clinton jogging in a Mi Tierra t-shirt. You can't tell from the photograph, but it's at least eight feet tall. Enjoy.

Monosaccharide Overload

Unfortunately, I think I'm going to develop diabetes. This past weekend was filled with SUGAR!

1. margarita cupcakes and raspberry sorbet from Jon's Mother's birthday
2. chocolate flan from The Chocolate Bar(also of West Alabama fame)
3. crème brûlée from Whole Foods
4. peach cobbler from Hermann Memorial Hospital (Mommy got her appendix out, is doing A-OK)

All I can think about right now is that I want fish and veggies for dinner, no dessert. Give me bland bland nutrients please! Note the hugeness of the chocolate cakes from The Chocolate Bar-- that is an 8x10 sheet of paper to the right of the cakes.

Parking in The Numbers

When was the last time you saw a parking garage that wasn't an eyesore for your city? This Stockholm garage is a reminder that not all necessary evils have to be ugly.

Each floor has a distinct numeric pattern for those of us who are scatterbrained and spend 20 minutes finding their car. That would be me, thanks. I mean, who could resist the sexy patterns the light will kiss upon your car?

West Alabama Ice House

What better way to beat the heat than to drink a cold beer in Montrose and watch the people go by. West Alabama Ice House is a Houston original that's stuck around for more than 80 years. We hear on Friday nights there's live music and free hot dogs. Speaking of dogs, I met a cute little 10-week old puppy named Boo. See the little guy in the background? The sprinkler-fans were heaven, the people were friendly and the neighborhood is a dream. I have very loose plans to move down the street from this joint.

Remembering the Dorm....

I found this OLD picture of a college dorm on shorpy.com. It's from 1911. Not too much different from my Texas State University Arnold Hall dorm circa May 2005.


I was packing my things up to return home for the summer and I took this picture thinking, "I might want to remember this for some reason.."

It wasn't to remember how much space I didn't have. If you look closely you can see that I'm on instant messenger-- Does anyone use that anymore? I find it ironic that my room is decorated with Eiffel Towers and I'm going to Paris (for the first time) in nine days. I'm hoping to visit a fabulous flea market and bring home some authentic Parisian decor to replace the fake fake fake stuff that I've gotten rid of over the past few years.



And here's a picture of a beautiful, modern dorm from Swathmore College:

We've Made it to the Future

I found this 1956 image of the future from Plan59.com, a website with a bank of retro images. A quick evaluation of what they got right:
-flat screen TV panel
-iChat
-bio-engineered fruit (can we give this one back?)
-natural light makes people HAPPY.

Click on the image above to get full size.

If this kitchen was materialized for today, it might look like this mid-century modern space...