SXSW 2011 and St. Patty's Day

Originally we were going to stick to a local bar for St. Patty's day but then we found out that our friend Erin's company was hosting a SXSW showcase at the Side Bar. This was my first time at the bar, which seemed pretty cool... decent size inside and a good back yard type patio. We watched a few bands, drank some beer, chatted with friends and had a good time!

Lindsay, Chris, Katie, Jen and Jim

Charlie, Jim, Mike and Chris

Me, Jim, Lindsay and Chris

Excuse the wild eyes...

Doing their best Zoolander

We left The Side Bar in search of more music and fun.

During our search for music we came across this food cart..... Jim got a hot dog and I got a potato pancake. Decent potato pancake... reminded me of hash browns in the shape of a pancake. The fun came with Jim's hot dog

Jim's hot dog was covered in mustard... the guy put it on for Jim and he had a heavy hand. That heavy hand left Jim with mustard fingers. It was every where! We got the case of the giggles watching Jim and his yellow fingers

Because one food cart wasn't enough, we stopped at the Austin Daily Press. We have known about them for awhile thanks to a Food Network TV show. I ordered the ham and jalapeno jack cheese sandwich, and it was damn good. They seemed to have a limited menu, so I'm not sure if that was just a SXSW thing or if that is all they normally have on the menu. I did a HORRIBLE job of taking pictures of our food that night, they all came out blurry. I slightly blame my camera, it has been acting up while talking low light pictures. I think it is time for a new camera... this guy has been around 2 years which is a LONG time for me. :) Not that I am hard on them, they just get a lot of use.

Friday was our big party day. This is our third year of enjoying SXSW music and I hope we continue on with this tradition. We only partake in a very small portion, typically on Friday during the day. We don't want to spend the money on wrist bands so I searched the interwebs for the best free shows during the day. I typically RSVP to about 6 shows so we can have options :) I am slightly worried about the availability of the day show next year because there is talk that SXSW might try to limit the amount of free shows. That is a HUGE bummer because that is the only way we want to experience SXSW--the free show way. I'll do my best to ensure that we can keep our Free Friday SXSW tradition alive!

Each year we started off our SXSW adventure at Counter Cafe, an incredibly cute and delicious sliver of a restaurant off of Lamar, North of 6th street. We haven't strayed from our go to order of Eggs Benedict. They are sooo delicious with the twist of putting the eggs on a biscuit instead of an English Muffin. One of these days I'll try their hamburger, but passing up the Eggs Benedict will be hard!

Our first stop of the day was at Maggie Mae's for the Sonicbid show. We went there a couple of years ago and had a really fun time. They have bands on their patio upstairs as well as downstairs.

View from the Maggie Mae's patio, 6th street


This was our first band of the day, the Seedy Seeds. They had an indie alternative sound to them which was pretty catchy. We listened to the last few songs of their set before going downstairs.

We headed downstairs and waited for this band to set up. Eventually I will figure out their name but they were from the Netherlands. We had really high hopes for their music as they tuned their instruments and got ready.

Musically they were a good band... but I can't really comment on their singing. They did a lot of ooOOOooOOOooOOoo-ing and that wasn't really our thing. Sure it sounded good, but I could only handle about 1.5 songs before we moved on.

We had passes to the show at Stubbs, so we left Maggie Maes to head over there. We walked since the streets were a mad house with random closings and people walking around.

We walked by this venue (aka a parking lot) and stopped in to listen to the music. They were a metal band that had promise, but we only heard about the last half of the last song they were playing. Well damn. We ended up leaving for Stubbs, but we ran into the band later and Jim went up to talk to them. He found out they are an Austin band and once again... totally forgot their name.

On our walk to Stubbs I found myself checking out the 3 people walking in front of us. There was something very photogenic about them walking together... kind of like they just looked like the essence of SXSW.

Once we got to Stubbs we found our friends Sarah and Orly. We had fun afternoon of catching up and listening to music.

Our view of the music.

We had passes to a section of the concert that had shade, access to free booze, and where we could watch bands getting interviewed. Kind of rock star cool! I could get used to being "on the list".

Hipster watching the concert

Orly, Jim and Sarah

No freaking idea why Yo Gaba Gaba was on stage with the band

I don't know who this little girl is but she was very photogenic. She looks a little like Caden, my nephew, doesn't she?

I took 5 days off at work last week to paint the living room and to enjoy SXSW. I didn't want drastic changes in the living room but I did want a lighter color. I am about 92% done... Some touch ups and part of the ceiling. I am now debating on what color to paint the ceiling because I want more of a contrast. I guess I should mention that I bought fabric a few months ago to make curtains for the living room and the color we had on the walls wouldn't match. Painting is the easy part.... actually making these curtains and relying on the skills I learned while in Home Education in Junior High is going to be the hard part.

I took a butt load of photos at SXSW so it will take me a couple if days to filter through and pick the best pictures to share!

Abbey looooooves chewing sticks while in the backyard

Chewie!! I wanted to post a picture of Abbey and Chewie but my application will only add one picture per post. Boo

Getting in shape sucks

I have started to jog twice a week, and I have to say I'm not a fan of running. Maybe I just haven't hit that point where is is easy to run miles and miles because I am still huffing and puffing after the first half mile. My boss told me about a program on the iPhone called Cycle Meter which has a lot of cool features like a stopwatch, calculating your times, there is multiple activities that you can choose skating, mountain biking, hiking, cycling, jogging, etc. The program also uses GPS and it will send you an e-mail when you are done with the stats of your jog/cycle/etc. The application also keeps track by date and also by any route.

The picture above is what the stopwatch looks like. This is the furthest I have run in awhile but I'll be honest... I did walk about a quarter of it (if not more). I just don't have the endurance. My goal is to reach 3 miles, then my goal will be to improve my time and not die during the run :). Hopefully soon I can post another picture of my stopwatch and have it be far more impressive

Technology

I downloaded a new Application to my IPhone that will allow me to post from my phone. This is the photo that was supposed to go with the last post :) My new tool wouldn't let me edit the photo(good to know) so here I am with another post :) Hopefully with this new tool I'll be posting more since I can easily post while on the go!

Monkey's Nest

I tried a new coffee house in the hood called The Monkeys Nest. It is a great space that was renovated, it used to be a thrift store. They have a few large and small tables along with cushy chairs and couches. My first trip was a quick one, a latte to go. I tried their special which was a spiced brown sugar latte which was spiced with cayenne pepper. The pepper play on the back of your throat but wasn't really a strong flavor. Overall it was a tasty latte. I look forward to coming back and trying one of their sandwiches.

Hearty Pork Soup


I have had a couple of cans of Hominy in my pantry for months now. I have wanted to use it, but I either forget to add it to a dish or I just plain ol' forgot I had it. I had hominy in dishes at a few restaurants and knew I liked it so I wasn't worried about that. I found this recipe at the right time... I had just made carnitas (shredded pork) and I had a bunch left over. I used the shredded pork instead of cooking the pork tenderloin. I simply used the same spices by sprinkling them on my shredded pork while heating them up in the pan. You could also just add the spices to the veggies while they are cooking if you are using left over pork for this recipe.

This soup was hearty yet not heavy since it is broth based and not cream based. I look forward to making this again because it was so easy and very tasty.

Ancho Pork and Hominy Stew
Adapted from: Cooking Light, December 2009
(found here http://tinyurl.com/4mt6ky2)


2 tablespoons ancho chile powder (Central Market has this in bulk, but for those of you living outside of Austin, check with Whole Foods in their bulk section. This is a spice that gives a smoky flavor without the spiciness)
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 1/2 teaspoons smoked paprika (see above about finding it in bulk sections at your grocery store)
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 pound pork tenderloin, trimmed and cut into bite-sized pieces
1 tablespoon olive oil, divided
1 medium onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 1/2 cups fat-free, reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 (28-ounce) can hominy, drained
1 (14.5-ounce) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes, undrained (such as Hunt's)

In a large bowl, combine first 5 ingredients (ancho chile powder through salt). Set 1 1/2 teaspoons of the spice mixture aside. Toss pork with remaining spice mixture in bowl, making sure each piece is coated.In a large Dutch oven, heat 2 teaspoons oil over medium-high heat. Add pork to dutch oven and cook 5 minutes or until browned, stirring occasionally. Remove pork from pan; set aside. Add remaining 1 teaspoon oil to pan. (This is where I started since I already had my left over shredded pork ready to go) Add onion, bell pepper, and garlic; sauté 5 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally. Add the pork back to pan along with the reserved 1 1/2 teaspoons spice mixture, broth, hominy, and tomatoes; bring to a boil. Partially cover, reduce heat, and simmer 25 minutes.Serves: 6

Baileys & Chocolate Chip Cookies...

yes they are as good as they sound!

I found this recipe on Batter & Beat's blog through Foodgawker.com. Foodgawker.com is a great place to find recipes and great food blogs to follow. As soon as I saw this recipe I knew I had to make it. I substituted the generic brand of Baileys and it worked out perfectly. The house smelled WONDERFUL while these cookies baked, it seriously should be the next Fabreeze candle sent.


Baileys Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies
Adapted from RecipeZaar


1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup Baileys Mint Chocolate Irish Cream
2-1/4 cups cake flour (sift before measuring) (I used regular flour and the cookies weren't as puffy but still delicious)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 pkg. (6 oz.) bittersweet chocolate chips (Used Milk Chocolate chips since I already had them)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 375º F.In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugars until smooth. Add egg, vanilla and Baileys; blend well. Combine flour, baking soda and salt; add to mixture a little at a time, until thoroughly blended. Fold in chocolate chips and walnuts.Drop by the spoonful onto a greased cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown.Makes approximately 3 dozen cookies.


My cookies didn't spread as well, and perhaps that is due to the different type of flour used. I smooshed my batter down a bit once it was on the pan or else you'll have a bunch of ball shaped cookies to eat. But that being said... shape didn't matter, these cookies are wonderful.

2011 Austin Marathon

Ever since we have lived in our house, the Austin Marathon's route has gone by the house. I enjoy watching the runners go by because I am always in amazement that they have the determination to run 26 miles. This gal is lucky to run 2 miles without having my body revolt against me. There are runners of all shapes and sizes that run this race. There are looks of pain, joy, exhaustion, blank stares, determination, and wariness on the faces of the runners. I love to go to the corner near our house to join the rest of the people who showed up with signs to cheer on their loved ones. They all get so damn excited to see their friends/family run by, and it seems to give the runners an extra boost with the cheering.

I went out back with the pups to enjoy the cool morning and to keep an eye out for the runners. Chewie was watching with me :)

This was the first person we saw competing in the marathon. As he rolled by he waved at me and said Good Morning :) He was holding a conversation with the motorcycle cop while going down the street.

This is how I enjoyed the marathon this year, with my coffee

This lady jumped out of her seat to cheer on her friend/brother/boyfriend/husband and he ran by. She was quite the cheerleader and it put a huge smile on my face to watch the sweet interaction

I did a double take when I saw this guy run by... ummmm... Now I know I already said I'm not much of a runner, but isn't he supposed to be wearing his shoes?

While watching the runners our neighbors dog Romy came out to visit. I ended up walking her back to their house because she was perfectly content staying by my side while watching the runners.
If it wasn't for the marathon tag he was wearing, I would have though he woke up, saw the marathon going by and figured he would join wearing just normal clothes

Polka Dots?

After spending a couple of hours watching the runners go by, I went out to meet friends at Union Park to enjoy some mimosas. Our friend Mike ran in the Half Marathon and a few people met up to congratulate him.

Lovin the weather

This past Sunday we headed out to the Barton Creek Greenbelt to enjoy the sun and get in some exercise. The dogs were ecstatic to be out and about. There are parts of this trail that get pretty narrow, which makes it a little bit of a nightmare because there are mountain bikers that zoom by. Chewie and Abbey don't really get that when a biker is coming right at us, they need to move to the side. We walked through the river bed for a bit because of the open space so the dogs could roam without us worrying about the bike riders.

A couple of weeks ago I took Abbey to the vet for a little rash on her tummy (turned out to be dry skin), and I found out that she was a little overweight. Our baby girl is 65 pounds. 65 POUNDS, she is a damn chunky girl! :) Her chest has started to barrel out a bit, and her legs stopped growing. So we have been feeding her a little less each day and we have been exercising more with her. Looks like Abbey and I will be on a quest to slim down for summer :)

Chewie sniffing the air

The hubs and I
No matter what type of noise or stomp of my foot I did, they would not look at me at the same time. Damn them, don't they know mama wanted to take a picture??!?!

We walked for about 45 minutes to an hour, and could tell that Abbey was done. She was panting but still prancing along the path. However.. as soon as we stopped at the car, she laid down on the cool ground and stayed there for a bit. Doesn't she look like some type of crazy dog in the picture?

After 5 minutes on the ground, and a lot of water, she perked back up

We decided that we weren't ready to go home, so we went to Cuatros to enjoy some lunch and drinks while the dogs rested below the tables. Well, they did a lot of standing but they did behave.

Cuatros was nice enough to bring over a large water bowl for the pups. We had a great afternoon out in Austin... I look forward to many more of these afternoons this spring