2013 Highlights

Last year was full of ups and downs just like any other. I hate to be one of those people who constantly bitch about the negative things in their life or one of the people who pretend their life is perfect. Nothing is without faults, especially life! Every new year brings us a chance to start fresh. I’m not crazy about resolutions so I don’t make them. My goal is to always be a good person no matter what and not make it into a contest or condition. I am just very grateful to have had another year with my wonderful family and friends. I can only hope for another happy & healthy year. Without sounding too braggadocious, I thought I’d share some key highlights for me.

In no particular order:

Texas Frightmare Weekend 2013
I’ve always wanted to go to Texas Frightmare Weekend, but never got a chance. Last year we were lucky enough to win tickets. It was a ton of fun! I got to see so many great horror icons like Tom Savini, Danny Trejo, Virginia Madsen, and Chris Sarandon. It was also nice to get out of town for a bit. I got to eat breakfast at Grandy’s which was one of my favorite places to eat as a kid. I certainly hope we get to make it out this year!





My Bloody Valentine
I love MBV and was so bummed I missed them last they came to town. I was not missing them this time. Kenny and I had a great time at the show. After all these years, they still sound great. They were so loud; I could feel it in my teeth!





Washington DC
Last summer, we got to visit my friend John and his wife Erin in DC. We had a wonderful time catching the sights and watching fireworks on the Mall for Fourth of July. More importantly, it was great to catch up with old friends. I really love to travel and hope to do more of it in the future.



New Order
I was fortunate enough to see New Order in 2012 with my friend Ruth & her husband. Less than a year later we got to see them again, this time in Austin. I can’t even decide which set I enjoyed more because they were both incredible. However, this time around they did play my all time favorite song, “Regret.” I can’t tell you what an awesome experience it was.







Arizona Adventure
We try to make it back to Arizona at least once a year to visit Ross’ family. Due to work constraints, we haven’t been back for Christmas in nearly five years. The weather in Tucson was just lovely this time around. This also marked Zira's first visit to Arizona. We had a great time celebrating the holiday with family and friends. I come from a very small family and our holidays are very low key. Ross has a lot of extended family so we had a few parties to attend. It’s really nice to be apart of that because truth be told, I miss it sometimes. We also got to spend some time in Bisbee and Tombstone.



We’ve been to Tombstone before and had a great time. We watched the shootout at the O.K. Corral again which is always fun. We also did the tour of the Birdcage Theater Museum and the Tombstone Ghosts and Legends Tour which was my favorite.



Bisbee is an awesome little town filled with antique shops and other tourist attractions. The highlight was the ghost tour we went on at night. Before our tour, we wandered around exploring various locations. We came across this empty city park in the middle of the town. As we walked around I got such an eerie feeling about the place. How could a place for children to play be so creepy? Come to find out on the tour, the park is the former location of Bisbee’s cemetery. They moved all the graves to another site with the exception of a few unmarked graves that were unable to be found. Totally creepy! Ghost tours are awesome and a favorite activity of mine. Even if you don’t believe in supernatural occurrences, you end up learning a lot about the place you visit.



Austin Comic Con
I usually go to comic con every year and this year was bigger than ever. I’ve never seen that many people in the convention center (except for SXSW). There were so many great guests including Stan Lee, James Marsters, Robert Rodriguez, and Bruce Campbell. Bruce Campbell’s panel was by far the best panel I have ever been to. My biggest pet peeve about conventions is the asinine questions people get up to ask. Eighty percent of questions are things one could find out by reading IMDb or watching audio commentary. The other twenty percent of questions are wasted on professions of love and shameless ass kissing. Bruce Campbell ripped all these questions apart! He’s even funnier than I ever thought. If this whole acting thing doesn’t pan out for him, he has a solid career in stand-up comedy.



ACL Fest
I know I have denounced ACL Fest and the people who attend it many, many times. I still stand by my arguments. On the other hand, I couldn’t miss an opportunity to see Depeche Mode AND The Cure in one weekend.

Depeche Mode played all the hits and let me tell you, Dave Gahan can still shake it like nobody’s business.. Even Martin Gore looked good! The dog video during “Precious” was amazing; it even had a pug! I thought my head would explode from excitement.

Setlist: Depeche Mode, Austin City Limits Music Festival, Austin, Texas, 10/11/13

1. “Welcome to My World”
2. “Angel”
3. “Walking in My Shoes”
4. “Precious”
5. “Behind the Wheel”
6. “World in My Eyes”
7. “But Not Tonight”
8. “A Pain That I’m Used To”
9. “A Question of Time”
10. “Enjoy the Silence”
11. “Personal Jesus”

12. “Shake the Disease”
13. “Just Can’t Get Enough”
14. “I Feel You”
15. “Never Let Me Down Again ”

The Cure played for more than two hours! They also churned out all the hits and several B-sides. After the first hour, it began to rain. At first, it was a bit surreal standing in the rain watching The Cure (how poetic). Obviously, the last song was “Boys Don’t Cry” and since they went over their set time, the sound was cut. Robert Smith kept grabbing microphones on the stage to see if they worked, but the whole audience kept singing along without missing a beat. It was truly a beautiful experience.

Setlist: The Cure, Austin City Limits Music Festival, Austin, Texas, 10/12/13

1. “Open”
2. “A Night Like This”
3. “The End of the World”
4. “Lovesong”
5. “Just Like Heaven”
6. “From the Edge of the Deep Green Sea”
7. “Fascination Street”
8. “Pictures of You”
9. “Lullaby”
10. “High”
11. “The Lovecats”
12. “Close To Me”
13. “Hot Hot Hot”
14. “The Caterpillar”
15. “The Walk”
16. “Stop Dead”
17. “Push”
18. “Inbetween Days”
19. “Friday I’m In Love”
20. “Doing the Unstuck”
21. “Want”
22. “The Hungry Ghost”
23. “Wrong Number”
24. “One Hundred Years”
25. “Give Me It”
26. “End”
27. “Boys Don’t Cry”

Granted the torrential flooding was horrible and I would never do that again, but it was worth it to see two of my favorite bands. The best part about the third day being cancelled (we had no intention of going anyway) is that we got a partial refund!

Blake Schwarzenbach
It’s hard to say if this was a highlight for me; it certainly was out of the ordinary. Jawbreaker has always been important to me. It’s the backdrop to my adolescence and the soundtrack to my love life. I’ve supported every musical project Schwarzenbach has embarked on since Jawbreaker (especially JTB). I’m not sure if I can support his solo music efforts. Something about it seems so self indulgent and narcissistic almost like Morrissey (it’s appropriate & expected of Moz). Schwarzenbach has always written very sardonic songs (that’s what we love about him), but this performance just seemed a little awry. Is this a paltry ploy to stay relevant? I don’t know. What I do know is that I hope we don’t see a Jawbreaker reunion anytime soon. At this point, it will only tarnish a once beautiful thing. I could be wrong, and if I am please help me understand but I get the feeling it’s about making a buck now. You never want to see your heroes fall from grace.



Veronica Mars Kickstarter Party
I couldn’t be happier to see the Veronica Mars movie finally come to fruition. To see everyone rally around such a beloved show like this has truly been a Firefly moment. I’m so lucky to have been able to be apart of it. Rob Thomas hosted a party at the Dog & Duck Pub last spring to celebrate the close of the Kickstarter campaign. It was so much fun! No one really knew what to expect. As a surprise Jason Dohring flew in to celebrate with all of us. When he showed up, the whole bar erupted in high pitched screams (including my own). That’s right folks; I got to meet Logan Echolls himself. You can’t imagine how stoked I was!



Dr. Zira
As most of you know, I am an avid pug enthusiast. I’ve wanted a pug of my own for years. I had to wait a while due to housing constraints and funds; I needed to be completely ready for a new fur baby. My only condition was that I wanted a pug that needed a good home. I absolutely refuse to go through a breeder or worse, puppy mill. The adoption process is a long, stressful road, but in the end it was completely worth it. I can’t stress the importance of adopting a dog no matter how hard it can sometimes be. The process is often difficult because these dogs are coming from abused or neglected homes. The rescue groups want to be certain that this will never happen again. It was truly fate that Zira came to us and I could not imagine our lives without her. She fit in nicely with our little family. She loves us endlessly, even her big brother Spike. I think Spike would still like to be an only child, but he warmed up to her quickly. She keeps him active and young. It was a struggle at first getting her adjusted to her new home. In less than a year, we were Zira’s third home. Sometimes I wonder what her life was life before, but then I remember she will only have the best life possible with her fur ever home from now on. We still have challenges with Zira, but it takes patience to really take care of a dog. I look forward to our years together.

Feel free to follow Zira & Spike's adventures on Instagram!



I hope you guys have a wonderful year full of happiness!

Washington DC

Last week I had the opportunity to visit our great nation’s capital and really explore the city of Washington DC. I had been to DC prior to this trip, but just in passing. This time around I got to visit some dear friends who live in the city and finally experience Fourth of July festivities at their finest.




Most people visit the monuments during the day; however we explored them at night. The cool evening breeze was much more comfortable and the monuments just look beautiful lit up at night. We saw the Vietnam Memorial which was incredibly surreal. My father was a Vietnam veteran so this was extremely emotional to witness. We also visited the Korean War Memorial which is very eerie at night. Many people forget about the Korean War, but it was filled with so much loss and just as tragic. The MLK memorial is fairly new and done really well. I enjoyed the FDR memorial since it had a statue of his beloved Scottish terrier, Fala. The Capitol building did not impress me much since we have our own here in Austin. Although, out capital building has a more pinkish hue to it. All the monuments are filled with really inspiring quotes that strangely still seem relevant in this day and age.






Not too long ago, I decided that traditional ramen just wasn’t for me. I know it’s the big food trend right now so I bought into the hype and decided to give it a try. I was less than impressed by the ramen I had here in Austin. I had previously written it off completely until our friends recommended Toki Underground. I gave ramen another chance and was thoroughly surprised. The usual wait at Toki is 3-4 hours even on a slower weeknight, but it was well worth it. The vegetarian ramen was really flavorful and the noodles were delicious. If you get a chance to visit this place, I highly recommend it. It’s also right next door to a bar called The Pug and you can’t go wrong with pugs. I’m back on the ramen train guys!

Fourth of July was spent grilling and drinking. I was introduced to my new favorite beverage: RumChata. Horchata flavored rum, what could be more heavenly than that? At night we walked down towards the National Mall to watch the fireworks. It’s as if the entire city stopped for a moment just to watch the glorious spectacle. After the fireworks ended, the whole city of DC erupted into one big party. People were setting off fireworks & partying well into the night and the one after that and the one after that. I did not even know they could sell fireworks that big on a commercial level! It was truly a momentous occasion.



The next day we hit up as many museums as possible starting with the Museum of Crime and Punishment. This was by far my favorite museum! They had so much more exhibits than I ever anticipated everything from medieval torture devices to Old West & pirate memorabilia. The lobby of the museum holds Ted Bundy’s WV Beetle. The very car he used to kidnap women in. We also saw the car used in the Warren Betty/ Fay Dunaway film about Bonnie & Clyde. There was John Dillinger’s death mask as well as the machine gun (his little friend) used by Pacino in SCARFACE. The most fascinating memorabilia were the letters and personal belongings of several infamous serial killers. There was a card from David Berkowitz (son of sam), Jeffrey Dahmer’s intake sheet, a baseball signed by Charles Manson, and John Wayne Gacy’s paint kit and wallet. The most disturbing thing I came across was Gacy’s Pogo the Clown costume. The fact that I hate clowns and that this suit was worn by a man who buried several young men under his house sent shivers down my spine. There was an exhibit about dog fighting and the repercussions of offenders like Michael Vick. As an avid dog lover, I could not bear to look at any of it. As far as I’m concerned, Michael Vick is the poorest excuse for a human being and got off much easier than he should have. If I were ever to see him on the street, I would love nothing more than to spit in his face. The Museum of Crime and Punishment is truly engaging and I highly recommend visiting it if in the area.












We visited a few of the vast Smithsonian museums including the Natural History Museum, American Indian Museum, Air and Space Museum, and American History Museum. One could spend an entire week just exploring the Smithsonian Museums. The best part is that they are free of charge to visit. The natural history museum has some really awesome dinosaur skeletons. Seeing them up close and personal really puts into perspective how enormous these mysterious creatures once were. The mammals section looked exactly like any Cabela’s across the country with its great array of taxidermy. I really enjoyed the American Indian Museum since it actually relates to my heritage. The building itself is really beautiful and the exhibits are incredibly appealing. I thought the Air and Space Museum would be less than impressive since we have our own Space Center in Houston that I just recently visited for the third time. The museum was actually pretty interesting. I saw the plane Charles Lindbergh flew around the world and even a replica of Amelia Earhart’s plane. At the American History Museum, we got to see the actual counter from the famous Greensboro sit-ins. We also saw Dorothy’s (aka Lucille #2’s Mom) ruby slippers, the original Kermit the Frog, and a cassette tape of Pretty Hate Machine that I already have at home.













We got to see the White House, but you cannot get too close for security reasons. I merely wanted to catch a glimpse of Bo. The Washington Monument actually looks really cool with all the scaffolding attached to it to repair the damage done by the 2011 earthquake. I think it looks less phallic with the scaffolding. We also came across Ford’s Theater where Lincoln was shot and the house across the street where he subsequently died. There’s a ton of food trailers around the Mall area. Many of which have old school ice cream like from the truck that would drive through the neighborhood. We need more ice cream carts around Austin.










My second favorite part of the trip was visiting Georgetown. Georgetown is the site of one of my all time favorite films, THE EXORCIST. We got to see the steps where Father Karras fell to his death in the climatic scene. Originally called The Hitchcock Stairs, this famous location is a Mecca for any horror fan. The staircase is rather steep and a little intimidating. There are 75 steps that were padded with a thick rubber when the original stunt was filmed. The stunt was performed only two times. These days, people jog up and down them to feel the burn. I can’t tell you how excited I was to finally see this historic landmark! We also saw the bar from the book The Exorcist and its sequel Legion, The Tombs. Apparently it’s a bit of a frat bar now. Georgetown is just absolutely gorgeous. There’s so much lovely architecture and rich history. We visited a really great coffee shop/bakery called Baked & Wired. They had so many delicious treats that I did not have to wait hours for like at DC Cupcakes down the street.








Overall, I had a really wonderful time exploring Washington DC. I had an even better time visit old friends. I’d love to go back and visit during the Cherry Blossom Festival. Special thanks to John, Erin, and Finnegan for being amazing hosts! I love you guys.