New Orleans

Dylan and I went to New Orleans at the beginning of November for a little vacation and early (one year!) anniversary present to ourselves. I've been to New Orleans once before this, but it was only for a long weekend and I didn't get to do any of the things I really wanted to, so I was especially excited to head back. It's such a cool, lively city, and I think everyone should visit at least once.

There is so much to see and do (and eat and drink) in New Orleans that it's easy to get overwhelmed, so we focused on exploring just a few neighborhoods rather than trying to see the whole city. I figured breaking down my favorite spots by neighborhood would be the best way to share.

FRENCH QUARTER

→ One of the first things on my list for New Orleans was a ghost tour, and Lord Chaz's Ghost and Vampire Tour did not disappoint. Unfortunately, Lord Chaz himself was sick, but Master Thomas stepped in and did an awesome job. (If you've never been on a ghost tour, don't worry—they're not scary! It's basically like a walking lesson in local history and lore. I promise you'll have a good time.)

→ If you feel yourself slowing down after a long day of walking (and probably drinking), stop in at Molly's at the Market and get their frozen Irish coffee for a quick pick-me-up. Pay the extra $1.50 for the large. You'll regret it if you don't.

→ Faulkner House Books, the former home of (you guessed it) William Faulkner, is a charming little bookstore tucked away down Pirate's Alley. Duck in there for a quiet escape from the bustle of the Quarter.

→ Anything covered in powdered sugar deserves your attention, so you have to stop in at Cafe Du Monde. Service moves fast here, so don't feel discouraged by a long line or full tables. You can get an order of beignets and two cafe au laits for less than ten dollars, and it's totally worth it.

BYWATER & MARGINY

→ We ate Sunday brunch at Elizabeth's Restaurant and even though the wait was half an hour longer than we were originally told I would totally do it all over again. Dylan ordered the duck waffle, I had the eggs florentine (with shrimp instead of oysters), and we split an order of the fried boudin balls. It was all to die for.

→ Crescent Park stretches along the riverfront for over a mile with a nice walking trail, cool industrial spaces, and swings to sit on and watch the boats pass by.  (There's an entrance to the park right across the street from Elizabeth's, which is perfect because you'll need a place to walk off that delicious southern food.)

→ Our first night we ate at St. Roch Market, a beautiful and super cool food hall that hosts twelve local food and drink vendors, and walked St. Claude Avenue, stopping in neighborhood bars along the way. (After a couple of drinks, you might feel brave enough to belt out a song at Kajun's Pub's nightly karaoke. I may or may not have sung "Breakaway" with the help of three Maker's and Cokes.)

→ We originally decided to go to Sólo Espresso because it was a short walk from our AirBnb, but we enjoyed it so much we went two mornings in a row. Get there early so you can grab a biscuit and their fig earl grey jam to enjoy with your vanilla latte.

MAGAZINE STREET

→ There are so many great shops along the six-mile stretch of Magazine Street, but my favorite was probably Zèle NOLA, an indoor market with art, clothes, jewelry, and more all crafted by local makers.

→ Sucré is an amazing sweet shop with macarons, gelato, chocolates, and other delicious desserts that are almost too beautiful to eat. They have several locations around the city, but we went to the one on Magazine Street (twice) and I think about their raspberry and cookies and cream gelato every day.

→ We stopped in Hey! Cafe to take a break from all the walking (and shopping), and I'm so glad we did because I had literally the best vanilla latte of my life. It was so good that I pretty much immediately got back up to buy a bag of their Hello Espresso roast (which you can also buy online) and a mug (just because).

→ Octavia Books is a cool little bookshop tucked away off the far east end of the street. I always make a point to buy something from (at least) one local indie bookstore wherever I travel, so I finally picked up a copy of Truly Devious (so good!) and a purple fountain pen when we stopped here.

ELSEWHERE

→ I love visiting museums when I travel, and the New Orleans Museum of Art is the perfect size with a diverse collection and a sculpture garden. It's located in City Park, which is perfect for reflecting after a couple of hours wandering the museum.

→ For our anniversary dinner, we dressed up and went to Cochon in the Central Business District. Most of the plates are meant to be shared, so we ordered quite a few and all of it was delicious. My favorites were the fried alligator with chili garlic mayonnaise and all the cocktails I drank. (Cochon Butcher, the butcher shop and sandwich counter next door, was also recommended to us by several friends, but we sadly weren't able to make it back. You should probably go though.)

-Maggie

Oh, Canada!

Way back in March, Dillon, Natalie, and I ditched Seattle for a couple of days of exploring in Vancouver, B.C. Vancouver is a beautiful city and similar to Seattle in a lot of ways (except it's a lot cheaper and Trump's not president there), and I almost immediately added it to my list of Cities I Would Happily Move To.

Dillon made us pancakes when we woke up, and then we packed his little blue car and hit the road–only to immediately turn around to retrieve Dillon's passport. The drive up there was uneventful as far as car rides go until we realized we were at the Canadian border and completely panicked. Dillon drove straight through the curving lanes leading up to the crossing and we all started yelling and laughing. Quick–turn your phones to airplane mode! Turn off your data! Wait, do we need a customs form?! Get your passports ready!!!

When the border agent asked how we met, Dillon said, "we actually met on Instagram," which isn't actually true, so the irrational part of me that slows down every time I see a cop even though I'm never speeding was for sure we were about to be detained. Luckily, the border agent didn't catch onto the lie or the three undeclared clementines sitting in the backseat and allowed us entry into Canada.

We didn't have very much planned for our trip beyond just getting to Vancouver, figuring we would just wing it, which we never do and our first hour in Canada was a good reminder as to why. Aside from our panic at the border, we also didn't fully consider things like how much we rely on our phones to get around or that we didn't have any change for street parking.

Luckily and inexplicably, Dillon had six dollars worth of Canadian coins in his console so we were able to park on a side street in Gastown and wander into the cozy Six Acres Cafe where we were plied with mulled wine and poutine. Shortly after, we made our way to our AirBnb where we rested, recharged, and reconnected to wifi. We all laid in the same bed while Natalie read Canada's Wikipedia page aloud and I googled the various questions we'd had since losing Internet connection, like "Why do the green traffic lights blink in Canada?" and "Where does Justin Trudeau live?"

After getting our bearings, the next day went much smoother. We started with breakfast at Medina Cafe, which I would definitely recommend if you're ever in Vancouver. I had a great raspberry caramel latte and the Harissa "Burger," and both were delicious. Since we were already in the Library District, we decided to explore the central branch of the Vancouver Public Library before heading over to the Vancouver Art Gallery. Libraries, galleries, and museums are my favorite places to visit in new cities, and Vancouver didn't disappoint.

We headed back to Gastown for lunch at MeeT and wandered the neighborhood, browsing all the shops. Highlights of the afternoon (for me, at least) was meeting a French bulldog in Old Faithful Shop and another dog named Stella walking down the street who was so tiny that I literally stopped speaking mid-sentence and nearly fell to the ground. Her owner saw my reaction and said, "Hold on, Stella, somebody saw you," and led her over to me so I could pet her. (Canadians are so great, guys.)

We ventured out to see the Lynn Canyon Suspension Bridge in North Vancouver, which was gorgeous (and free, unlike the Capilano Suspension Bridge). We couldn't walk any of the trails (because I'm from Texas and don't have proper boots and slipped almost immediately), but it was worth the short drive from where we stayed in Davie Village anyway. Afterwards we witnessed an absolutely spectacular sunset before driving back to Gastown for dinner at Tacofino, which was surprisingly (to me, a Texan who is pretentious about tacos) my favorite meal of the trip. I had a refreshing hibiscus margarita and a fish taco that was so delicious I actually said, "I wish I was still hungry so I could order another fish taco."

We headed back to Seattle the next morning, but not before stopping at 49th Parallel Roasters on West 4th. The colors and light in the cafe were gorgeous, and our coffee and pastries (two each–we were on vacation, dammit!) were delicious.

Fat snowflakes were falling outside as we talked and ate (and Instagrammed). It was pretty magical as mornings go, which made it that much harder to leave. I had such a fun time with Natalie and Dillon (as always) and really loved Vancouver. I can't wait to go back. Hopefully sooner rather than later.

-Maggie

Seattle, Again

The first time I visited Seattle was nearly five years ago. I spent the first half of the trip with my best cousin and the second half with the Blogger Family. It was the first time I met Natalie and Dillon (or any of the bloggers on the trip, for that matter), and five years later we're fortunate enough to still be traveling together. The three of us decided to take advantage of Natalie's spring break from med school and spend the week together in Seattle at the beginning of March (with a quick jaunt to Vancouver, but more on that later).

Natalie arrived later in the day (much later), so Dillon and I had some time to kill while we waited for her flight to land. We wandered the Henry Art Gallery on the University of Washington campus and went for an early happy hour at Saint Helens Cafe, which is very cute and serves great Old Fashioneds and literal mounds of fries. Dillon and I were so tired by the time we went for a late dinner at Ba Bar that we spent much of the meal in silence, mesmerized by the bartender mixing drinks. I couldn't even tell you what I ordered, but I do remember it was all excellent.

The next day, we started with brunch at Tallulah's, a restaurant in Capitol Hill with an aesthetic that can only be described as "on point." (With its mid-century modern furniture, brass accents, and tattooed waiters with deep, reassuring voices, it was like walking into Dillon's brain.) I got the breakfast bowl with carnitas, which was also on point. Afterwards, we explored the Volunteer Park Conservatory, ate vegan donuts at Mighty-O (where I got to hold a tiny, red poodle puppy for fifteen seconds and nearly cried), browsed the Elliott Bay Book Company, and walked all the way to the central branch of the Seattle Public Library (which is #careergoals for me, personally).

We also stopped for ice cream at Frankie & Jo's, and we're just going to talk about that for a second because it was honest-to-God that best ice cream I've ever had in my life. I'm just going to say it–it's better than Salt & Straw. (You can try to fight me on this, but I'm standing my ground.) I got a scoop of Brown Sugar Vanilla and the seasonal special New Roots with their Moon Goo sauce on top, and it was all amazing and all vegan! I still think about it a lot.

Later that night, the three of us went dancing (which I think has become a bit of a tradition now and I love it). We started at Chop Suey for their Dance Yourself Clean night, which was so fun. At one point they played "All These Things That I've Done," and I swear I came out of my body and floated above the dance floor. From there we walked to Neighbours where we danced even more, and I was reminded once again how much better "Dancing On My Own" is when you're with your best friends.

The rest of our time in Seattle was less packed than that first day, but still just as fun. We got back from our short trip to Canada early in the afternoon, so we spent a couple of hours wandering Ballard in the rain. We stopped in at the Secret Garden Bookshop, which I was so enchanted by and had a difficult time leaving (Dillon nearly had to physically drag me from the building), and Ballyhoo Curiosity Shop where Natalie and I failed to convince Dillon to buy a small taxidermic duckling.

We made dinner for ourselves that evening–and by "we," I mean Natalie and Dillon made dinner and I took pictures and was generally useless–before heading to Percy's & Co. to meet my friend Eric. Eric and I found each other on Tumblr six or seven years ago, and I was so excited we could finally meet! We all talked, had a couple of drinks, and then walked down to Hot Cakes for some very good (albeit slightly overpriced) molten chocolate cakes.

We started our last day in Seattle with brunch at The Fat Hen (where I ate an amazing smoked salmon Benedict with avocado and roasted potatoes and Natalie had a whole baguette to herself) before we headed out to Gas Works Park (very cold) and did some general wandering in downtown Seattle, including Pike Place Market, of course. (I also made Dillon and Natalie climb the playground at the Seattle Center, which I know they loved despite the looks on their faces.)

Later that night we dressed up and went out for our traditional "fancy dinner" at Manolin and spent way too much money, but it was totally worth it. We had the plantain chips for starters, and Dillon and I split the rockfish ceviche, mussels (my personal favorite), and the black rice with squid. I also tried scotch for the first time, which was interesting. I love that you can feel it in your face as soon as you take a sip, all warm and tingly. Our bartender was super nice and explained the differences between each scotch on the menu and even gave us small sips of their more expensive scotches. We sat there for a couple of hours, talking and drinking and pretending like we didn't have to leave early the next morning.

It was so fun to visit Seattle again, and I'm so happy I got to spend the week with two of my favorite people. I know I say this a lot, but it will never stop being crazy to me that this silly little blog brought so many wonderful people into my life. See you next time, guys.

-Maggie

2016

I'm just going to say again what most everyone else has about this year–it [expletive] sucked. Between the election and the horrendous shootings and Aleppo and the beloved celebrity deaths and Brexit and literally everything else, it was just awful. The entire year felt like the flashback portion of some dystopian story–like what George Orwell imagined 1983 to be.

It was a rough year for me personally, too. I went through a really hard break-up, my grandfather passed away and my grandmother's health has been poor, half of my parents' house was destroyed due to negligent contractors, and more that I can't really mention here. I swear I'm not trying to complain (or depress everyone); I'm just trying to be real with you. If I was to average out 2016, it was mostly tough times.

But here I am, on the last day of the year.

This year may have been the hardest of my life, but there were so many good times despite that. I sat down with my journal last night and wrote out every good thing about 2016, and I was so happy (and, frankly, surprised) to find that it took up five whole pages. There is so much good in my life, and that's what this blog is really about. Below is a hodgepodge of the good stuff, so prepare yourself for some serious rambling.

I ventured out of Texas twice this year–once on a road trip to California and then for a weekend in Boise. In state, I vacationed in San Antonio with my family, took a day trip to Houston to see an exhibit at the Museum of Fine Arts (and drink the best mimosas ever), and visited Lubbock as often as I could. On a couple of those Lubbock trips, I was able to spend time with my best friend Kiera and her new baby, Andrew, who is very cute and squishy.

Natalie and Dillon stayed with me for a week in March, and we ate a ton of tacos, got tattoos, went kayaking, and danced all night at Barbarella. Natalie visited Austin again with her boyfriend Mikey on their epic #nikeygoeswest road trip in the summer, and Kaylie and Ted stopped for a night on their way back to Portland in the fall.

For my birthday in April, Melany decorated the apartment (complete with Tim Lincecum napkins), and my roommates gave me the only thing I really wanted for my birthday: Drunk Kyle. As a late birthday treat to myself, I got my pictures taken by Chelsea who is as talented as she is sweet. I also started going to therapy in April, and it was the best decision I've ever made. (Shoutout to Alicia, the real MVP of 2016.)

I registered to vote for the first time and was so proud to cast my ballots in the primary and general elections. I celebrated all of my LGBTQIA friends at my first pride parade. I volunteered at the Texas Book Festival, and it was such a cool experience. I can't wait to do it again next year.

I dressed up as super-'90s-civil-rights-activist Hermione for the midnight release of The Cursed Child at BookPeople and handed books out to hundreds of excited kids and adults. (Even though I only get to work at BookPeople one night a week, it's still the coolest thing I get to do.) My book club continued, and we've grown so close over the year. I'm so happy to call them my friends.

I went to a ton of concerts–Vance Joy, The Front Bottoms, The Temper Trap (so good), Mat Kearney, Quiet Company (twice), and The Lumineers (transcendent) to name a few. I caught a few old movies at the Paramount during their Summer Classic Film Series, and saw A Little Night Music and Baskerville at the Austin Playhouse. I also read a lot, of course, and my favorites of the year include Furiously Happy by Jenny Lawson, A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki, Big Girl by Kelsey Miller, and Lust & Wonder by Augusten Burroughs.

My roommates and I dressed up as the Spice Girls for Halloween and hosted the 2nd Annual Friendsgiving at our apartment. Melany, KaCee, and Kyle (and Gretel) make everyday life so ridiculous and fun, and living with them is my most favorite thing. When I was home for Christmas, I spent some quality time with my little brother, marathoned Christmas episodes of The Simpsons with my dad, and talked with my mom over coffee and pie.

I'm hopeful for 2017. I already have so many plans. Melany, Britny, and I are going to see Mamma Mia! at the end of January, and I already know what my first concert of the year is going to be (hint: it's Quiet Company). I signed up to (finally) take the GRE in February and will be applying to graduate schools in the next few months. I already have three trips planned and will hopefully be traveling out of the U.S. for the first time (hey, Canada!) come March.

Most importantly, I still have my people, my city, and too many books to read. Happy New Year, everyone.

-Maggie

Boise Baes

Hey, guys! How was your Christmas? I've been off work and home for a few days, so the break has been nice. I've had a little bit of time to finish a few things I've been working on like revamping my blog (let me know what you think!) and writing this post that I've been meaning to get to for over a month.

At the beginning of November, I traveled to Boise, Idaho, to spend a long weekend with a few of my blogger buds. The trip fell two days after the election, and I was so thankful to get away from real life after such a stressful and upsetting few months.

Boise was so fun to explore–and it was Really Fall there (unlike Fake Fall in Austin), so I was loving the cooler temperatures, colorful leaves, and the fact that I could comfortably wear my peacoat for once. We rented a cute little Airbnb, which Maggie almost immediately lost the keys to, and ate a lot of really good food and had so many cheap drinks (so cheap!). One day we hiked to a waterfall, and the next day three-fourths of us got a tattoo. We went dancing twice, temporarily lost Dillon, and found out that Shelby is a great wingman. Best of all, we had a lot of great conversations and laughed loudly.

I'm incredibly fortunate for a slew of reasons that I hope I never take for granted. The fact that I'm not only able travel, but travel with and to some of my best friends is one of the best parts of my life. My weekend in Boise was so fun, and I can't wait for the next adventure.

-Maggie

2014

A few days ago, I decided that I wouldn't post a recap of 2014, mainly because we are already a week into 2015 and it seemed silly by this point. (2014 was so last year, right?) But after having plans cancelled today on account of freezing rain, I needed a little pick-me-up, and reminiscing on all the good last year brought seemed as good a way as any. Besides, too much happened last year for me to simply let it go without comment. It was a really big year. I think it defies the 365 day boundary that's imposed.

It was a year of change for me–a lot of change. I feel like I should feel a little off-balance, a little dizzy from everything that has happened, but I'm not. I don't know that I've ever felt more here. You know what I mean? I've never felt more aware of my life–everything that has happened, is happening, will happen. There's so much I can do! So many directions my life could take! I'm excited and nervous for all it.

I'm getting ahead of myself though. Let's talk 2014.


In January, I moved into a house with my dear cousin Julia. Our schedules were opposite roughly 92% of the time, but every once in awhile we'd be home at the same time. We'd eat dinner together, vent about our days, or maybe watch a movie. Sometimes we'd make runs to Taco Villa or United in search of the best sugar cookies. It was always fun, and I really wish our time as roommates could have been longer.

The months leading up to my graduation were generally hectic, stressful, and all around exhausting, but it wasn't all bad. I dyed my hair for the first time. On Valentine's Day, Melany, Britny, and I saw Craig Ferguson live and spent the rest of the night dancing at Barbarella. Over spring break, I got to see Mary and meet Whimsy for the first time. Sometime in March, my favorite show ended.

May (finally) rolled around and I graduated with my bachelor's degree. I may have come out bruised and battered (mentally, emotionally, physically) but dammit I did it. It was really difficult for me and I wasn't a star student by any means, but the doing it is reason enough to be proud. I saw it through, toughed it out. I'm very happy I did.

The summer was filled with a lot of trips. Melany and I drove to Arkansas for Shelby and Sam's wedding. After that, I spent a week in Austin as a way to detoxify, to finally rid myself of the stress and anxiety left over from my last few weeks of school. (It was also the week I got my second tattoo.) In July, I drove to Colorado to spend a weekend with Shelby and Dillon, and it was really, really great. In August, I saw Fall Out Boy (again) and Paramore in concert.

All of September and most of October was spent applying for jobs, packing, and saying my goodbyes to Lubbock. (Oh, and I saw Paul freaking McCartney in concert.) Those last two months in Lubbock flew by, and even though I was excited for my move to Austin, everything was going a little too quickly for my liking. It was hard to leave and I miss my friends and family there all the time, but I'm very happy to be in Austin. I love this city, and I have hoped and wished to live here since my eighteenth birthday. Getting to share an apartment with my best friend makes it even better.

After the move, Melany and I went as Wayne and Garth for Halloween. I started my first full-time job, and (thankfully) have really been enjoying it and the people I work with. I was fortunate enough to go home for Thanksgiving and Christmas, and both were wonderful. Then on New Year's Eve I rang in 2015 at 9:00 PM with KaCee and Kyle since they had to work early the next morning, and afterwards Melany and I went to Barbarella for the real thing.

So that's 2014 is a nutshell (a very large nutshell). Overall, it was a great year, and I hope that 2015 follows its lead. Over 300 days of the unknown lay before us. It's pretty daunting, right? We've just got to keep moving forward though. It's not like we really have a choice, but don't be scared! We did the same thing last year.

-Maggie

Colorful Colorado

It's weird how things work out sometimes.

For example: Earlier this year, I devised a grand plan to sneak Dillon and Natalie into Shelby and Sam's wedding. The way I imagined it, Shelby and Sam wouldn't have known they were there until they walked down the aisle and looked into the crowd. It would have been the best surprise, but that didn't work out in our favor. I had accepted I would only get to see Shelby at her wedding this summer, and that I wouldn't get to see anyone else until the next meet-up.

Then Dillon, who is from Seattle and goes to school in upstate New York (a.k.a. Very Far Away), got an internship in Colorado (a.k.a. Way Closer Than Seattle and New York). Just like that, Shelby and I had planned to each make the drive to Colorado Springs to hang out for the weekend.

Dillon provided scones and coffee each morning, of course. We spent our two days driving to cities nearby for shopping, eating, and general wandering. Food and drink standouts include Snooze in Boulder and the Parked Pierogi in Palmer Lake, if you're ever in the area.

We also spent a lot of time talking about plans for Portland, future meet-ups, possible collaborations–you know, the family business. I'm so happy that we all met, and that we're all able to take these trips to see each other. I can't wait for Portland next summer and everything that comes after.

-Maggie