Lands of Enchantment

If you're a person who thinks ticket prices make it too costly to travel, try buying this $60 tent, packing up your car, and driving over to the next state. You just might find yourself in another world.

Sometimes you can camp for $10. Sometimes you can camp for free. Sometimes it will be too windy to camp and you'll get to sleep in your car, which could have been free, if you hadn't already reserved a campsite.

However you choose to sleep in the great outdoors, get out there! There's a lot to see. 

The Good & the Green

Just when I think I have swum in all of the majestic swimming holes around here, I find myself stumbling upon another majestic swimming hole. 

People are coming to Austin for the brunch and the jobs, and they are staying for the good and the green things that are very nearby. McKinney Falls State Park is one of those good, green things, which also happens to not be very crowded on an overcast spring day. You had better get here before summer when all the water might go away, but for now I'm giving it all the thumbs up.

Waiting on WEST

This weekend, many of Austin's best galleries, museums, event spaces, and regular people's houses will open their doors to invite us all to come hang around and check out some really incredible art from art-makers all around the city. What's better than that? This will be my first year attending and volunteering at the West Austin Studio Tour, but I have been able to view and help at EAST for a few years now, and I imagine that its Spring counterpart will be equally magical. 

Big Medium puts on some of the most wonderful art events in Austin, and these bi-annual studio tours have a particularly special way of making everyone feel like part of this giant community. You can pick out a catalog/guide from a nearby library, or plan out your route on the official website. 

Come hang out with me at Saturday's Community Breakfast! And if you wanted to help out by volunteering, I think you could join in here.

On Retreat

Lainie's getting married, so we dropped everything and flew over to Denver. After the initial cold and snowy shock to my system, the weekend was otherwise magical. We celebrated a beautiful being and looked pretty good doing so.

Enjoying an adventurous getaway with such fun, positive, lovely women had me wondering why we only rarely find the time to come together like this. What makes us wait until once-in-a-lifetime events happen to gather wonderful groups of ladies (or gentlemen) together?

Let's do it more often.

40 Hours

If you're going to drive from Texas to Georgia, you'd better make sure you've got some entertaining traveling companions on the road and an amazing hostess of a mom waiting for you when you get there. Lucky for me, I was blessed with both, so I was miraculously able to survive the longest car trip of my life. Waking up for school on Tuesday morning was a bit grueling, but enjoying a Spring weekend in Savannah is always worth any amount of hours spent traveling.

A stopover in New Orleans more than satisfied our party requirements for the trip. Apparently the bars never close there? And the next few days in Savannah brought us back to nature. We trapped a snake, viewed alligators from afar, and watched dolphins swim in the sea.

It's hard to beat the beauty of Spanish moss, southern hospitality, and fried chicken paired with mac and cheese. I'm so glad my mom has chosen to make a little home down here.

Twenty-nine

"May you have enough..

Enough happiness to keep you sweet,

Enough trials to keep you strong,

Enough sorrow to keep you human,

Enough failure to keep you humble,

Enough success to keep you eager,

Enough friends to give you comfort,

Enough wealth to meet your needs,

Enough enthusiasm to look forward,

Enough faith to banish depression,

Enough determination to make each day better than yesterday.

May you have enough."

Chapel Hill

One positive part of growing up is that you might have more friends scattered about in more appealing places, so you can stretch your roaming limits (and budget) further than your younger network may have allowed. My friend Matt is the best kind of faraway friend who will even offer to sleep on the couch and give up their bed to let you rest your weary traveling bones. A gigantic thank you to him for taking me to all of the breweries, wood-fired pizzerias, and string-lit bars that are making Raleigh-Durham the next Austin/Denver/Brooklyn/Place for people who like food trucks and Snapchat. I didn't mind it one bit.

Being in Chapel Hill during spring break offered a time of reflection for me. Back when 16 year old Cori was checking out schools and planning her future, baby blue t-shirts and tar-covered heels were expected to be a major part of it. I did all of the AP-ing and SAT-ing asked of me. I went to their volleyball camp. I bought a lot of blue clothing items. I learned to appreciate vinegar barbecue. But still when the decision mail came, my envelope was disappointingly skinny instead of invitingly thick.

I was devastated and confused. I cried in my room a lot and quickly formulated plans to move in with my uncle so I could apply again as an NC resident. I'm pretty sure my best friend and I forged notes from our parents to skip Chemistry class and eat waffles, because we did that a lot anyway and because there is still nothing like waffles to heal a broken teenage heart. I think I only chose to go to Delaware later on because it had flowers and brick buildings and vaguely resembled UNC.

It was a long while before my focus started to shift. During Fall semester of sophomore year, I remember gathering my printed transfer applications, ready to be filled-in and sent off in the Spring. I was so sure that I knew where I was going and that there had to have been some strange mistake. It took a few years, a trip to Argentina, and a lot of new friends to convince me otherwise. I never ended up sending those transfer applications and I stayed at Delaware for two extra years. Now I only think about Chapel Hill once a year, in March, when I become a short-term college basketball fan.

Walking around the campus during my visit with Matt reminded me the importance of letting go when my thinking mind is so certain that it knows what's best for me. I realize how much we might miss if we try to squeeze our lives into the perfect plans that we've doubtlessly determined for them. Looking back, I can't imagine my path having gone any other way than it has. If I had transferred to North Carolina, I probably never would have met so many of my best friends, checked as many study abroad countries off my list, or become the mostly well-rounded person I am now. Or maybe by some universal magic I would have ended up as the same me in exactly the same place, but I definitely don't think I would have gotten to shake former Vice President Joe Biden's hand.

So I'm sending love to you, hoping you can always find the very, very good no matter how unexpectedly your path seems to be twisting. I believe it's all working itself out.

Saying Yes

Planning my visit to Asheville had me thinking back to this time last year. Lainie and I had just moved into a new house together in Austin without any solid expectations of what the upcoming twelve months would bring. Our two original plans, of living in a rat-free home and buying a functioning washer/dryer, had already fallen through, so all we really had was a signed lease and the hope that things could only go up from there.

Since then, after exchanging appliances and putting up with many visits from the pest control man, we buckled in and sat back while life did its thing. We had a lot of fun in our house. Lainie got engaged and started planning a wedding. We moved a bunch of furniture. She changed cities while I changed neighborhoods, and, for the most part, we both spend our days in wildly different ways than in early 2016.

I'll always admire Lainie since, when the world presented her with a completely new and exciting plan, she said "Sure, ok, I'll try it" instead of fearfully retreating back to her comfort zone. And now she lives in a cool house in a cool new city with a cool dude. I'm glad I have a lovely new place for visiting and the steady reminder that however good our known surroundings might be, there's always the fun chance that the unknown might be even better.

Thanks for having me, Asheville!

Easing East

After Nashville, the east coast was calling us back, so we packed up Gillie and hit the road to North Carolina. I was ready to put my National Park annual pass to work once more before its April expiration date, but we found out that the Great Smoky Mountain is free because this. Our visions of long hikes and stretching the legs were cut short by rainy snow, and we only left the car for a few moments to do dog things and snap some photos.

I imagine things were looking very pretty underneath all those clouds. Maybe I didn't pick the ideal time of year for my visit since the Blue Ridge Parkway was closed, too, but that only gives me another reason to go back.

Thank you to the friendly people who took our family portrait. Thank you to the National Park Service for having $80 annual passes. Thank you to Lainie and Warren for wearing my handmade hats.

Next stop, Asheville!

Southeastern Spring

Spring Break happened last week, and as a person who has not had a spring break in some time, I can tell you that it was a miraculous feeling. Spending your hours with 4-8 year olds can be a ton of fun, but I was pretty excited to only interact with humans in my age range for 7 straight days. Not needing to set an alarm was pretty great, too.

The first stop was Nashville, which I knew would be a marvelous place since everyone I've ever met from Tennessee has been of the friendliest and most down-to-earth nature imaginable. Lainie (you already know her) met me at the airport, and her amazing friend Lindsay let us stay in her amazing apartment for the whole weekend.

It was cold[er than Austin], yet sunny, which turned out to be the perfect weather for walking around and snacking on scotcheroos (link warning: very, very addictive), hot chicken, and the most incredible donuts you'll taste in your lifetime.

Anyway, we two-stepped a bit, too, so it must have all evened out.

Family Firsts

I'm very thankful that my mom was able to come visit last weekend. This was her fourth or fifth time in Austin, but we always manage to find different things to do, like trying new restaurants and checking out art. I'll be returning to many of those places as soon as possible (looking at you, Round Top!) It was nice to have a piece of home here for a few days.

Heart Byrne

This weekend we got to see a Talking Heads cover band at a very cool brewery. David Byrne proposed to his girlfriend in the middle of "This Must be the Place", and it was all pretty magical.

There are real pictures here.

Phone home

While I was home in New York over Christmas break, I had the rare opportunity to grab brunch with two of my girlfriends whom I've known since elementary school. As the years go by, the number of times the three of us are in the same place at the same time grows smaller. It had been about 18 months since the last time we'd found ourselves seated around the same table.

Of course, we'd "kept in touch" via social media, receiving glimpses into each other's lives through vacation photos and status updates. We knew the picture-perfect, edited-down versions well. Over eggs and toast, however, the hidden realness started to come out. As we shared more, it turned out that all of our lives had been pretty life-like during the time we hadn't seen each other. In our separate corners of the country, we had each experienced our fair share of career questioning, relationship struggles, and general growing up anxieties. One friend joked that, before coming to lunch, she had made a bet with her mom about which of us would end up engaged first, a bet which ended up being comically far from the truth. But for some reason, even when we had been crawling through the same muddy challenges, we hesitated to pick up the phone since we assumed that the others had been doing everything right, floating through the world with ease.

This year, I've heard more and more of my friends vowing to stay off social media, or to only check one app one time per day, resolving to get more in touch with the real world. While I haven't imposed strict limits on myself for 2017, I have made a pledge to text, call, or invite my friends to have actual conversations more frequently. As we get older and our sense of home becomes a bit blurred, our connections to the people we love become that much more important. A couple of cups of coffee, even when shared in silence, can often say a lot more than 140 characters.

The Skylark Lounge

I visited a new place last week.

If you get tired of Dirty 6th Street or restored houses designed as bars that all feel the same, you could go here:

Maybe you like music. They have it. Maybe you like pizza. They have it. Maybe you like large backyard patios where you can hang out with friends or smoke things from any of your different devices. They've got that, too.

Enjoy your weekend, Austin!

Intentions

Do y'all have any resolutions for this year?

I made it through 2016 without buying any new clothes, like I said I would, but my mom bought me quite a few new items, so I'm not sure that one counts. It might be back on the list. While I haven't been able to settle on many specific goals, my intentions for 2017 are to figure out my intentions for all the years hereafter. 

Artwork from the East Austin Studio Tour in November 2016

One thing I have been feeling more and more connected to in recent years is the desire for creative expression. I've been taking art classes and practicing some instruments, and I hope to keep that going this year. As I've learned more about the world and the people in it, I've become convinced that we all have a creative spirit inside of us. Of course, some people have easier and better access to it than others, but I think the potential exists in all of us.

My sister accessed hers and freehanded this awesome drawing from Instagram for me!

I feel lucky to be in a place where the arts community is so active, and where you can pay $10 an hour to go somewhere and use any crafting supplies you need. That's the sharing economy at its best, in my opinion. Austin has so many fun events and spaces dedicated to the arts, along with amazing artists to learn from and check out. I'm looking forward to exploring and making more this year.

“Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up.”

A New Year

While the end of this past year was a little unexpected and left me feeling scattered, it's hard to look past all the magic that 2016 had to offer.

I went here for the first time!

I finally checked a lot of things off of the to-do list of life... including semi-leaving my job and joining AmeriCorps, an idea that had been dancing around in my head for a while. I visited 6 foreign countries and 8 brand-new-to-me national parks. I watched a small handful of my best friends get married and was able to be a part of some of their weddings. I became a certified yoga instructor and some of the loveliest people came to my house every week to share their energy and help nurture each other's spirits.

My family members all seem to be happy and healthy. I met a bunch of amazing people to keep me laughing and growing. The blessings were plenty and the bad times were few.

2017 has a lot to live up to.

To All of You

Merry belated Christmas! /// Happy belated Holidays!

Thanks for keeping me cheerful the whole year through.

The Best Laid Plans

This past weekend fell far short of my expectations.

My sister, Elayne, and her boyfriend, Will, were supposed to come visit me in Austin. They bought their tickets months in advance. I planned out our itinerary. I borrowed, inflated, and dressed an air mattress. I hung up tapestries and scarves over the windows of the "guest room" since the only mature adult home dweller has left and took her curtains with her. I went against all known habits and packed my suitcase to NY a week before departure. We even bought tickets to do yoga at the local cat cafe. My sister is a yogi, a cat mom, and a vet-to-be, so you can imagine her excitement about this event.

On Saturday morning, Elayne and Will drove to the airport. They waited and waited, hoping against more delays, until the icy weather canceled their flight. These are savvy travelers and problem-solving people, so they shrugged it off and got on another flight later in the day. On 0-2 hours of sleep, they waited, and, somewhat less patiently, waited again. Their second flight was canceled. With confidence, they booked themselves on a flight the next day and drove back to Will's apartment to catch up on much needed rest and sanity. The next day, they drove to the airport again, and waited, and sent me text messages of increasing annoyance, and waited some more. Their third flight was canceled.  They braved the swarms of irritated travelers and resisted urges to cuss out customer service employees, and were rewarded with spots on the list of stand by passengers headed to San Antonio later that night. After another day spent at Newark Airport, they stood at the gate, eager to find out if two empty seats would miraculously appear. They didn't. One did, and, like any kind and loving sister, I told Elayne to send Will on his own. He was most excited about good barbecue and breakfast tacos, which are far more scarce in this world than cats and yoga.

So, instead of putting in more hours on hold and in long lines, they decided not to risk another day in the airport for a one day visit to Austin, and I cannot blame them. I laid in bed, rolled around on my fascia-releasing tune up balls, drew cartoon pictures of pugs, and did all the stuff I normally do if I have extra free time when carefully drawn out activities go to waste. Sometimes our longest awaited visits and our most planned out fun never comes to be. The three of us counted our blessings, them building a stronger bond and having time to visit the tree at Rockefeller Center, and me going to cat yoga by myself. Then we started counting the few days til Christmas week when we would all be together again.

I can only hope that your winter travels go much more smoothly than theirs. Happy holidays to all!

How-to: Campfire Thanksgiving

This is coming a little late, but fortunately for you and for all of us, campfire meals needn't be limited to the end of November. Here's how to make a good one at any time of year, and particularly for that one special day when turkey is required.

1. Spark it up

Light a fire, bring a camp stove, or, better yet, combine the two and cover all your bases. We cooked our sweet potatoes, sausages, and dessert over the fire and saved room on the stove for crucial sides like stuffing and mac & cheese.

2. Improvise

Unless you are much better at packing than we are or you are camping in your yard, you probably won't be able to roast a whole bird over your flames. We ended up with turkey sausages, but you could try breasts for a more authentic experience. There's also bacon, cold cuts, or the option to become a vegetarian for the day. 

3. BYOB

You can skip cranberry sauce and still get your servings of fruit by adding juice to your mimosa! Bonus tip: this will help shield you from any doubts that your meal might be subpar and erase any homesickness about what your relatives used to make*.

*Dad, if you're reading this, I hope you will still make me real turkey at Christmas.

Wandering West

If you thought I would be tired of visiting national parks after this summer's road trip adventure, think again. I'm fully prepared to max out my annual pass and will accept any invitation to visit more before its April expiration date.

Marfa and Big Bend were both magical. 

If you didn't know, Marfa is a little west Texan town full of art galleries, tasty restaurants, and quirk. It was a little unsettling to eat a most excellent meal and then go sleep on the cold ground in our tent, but we made due. 

Then we headed south to see all of this:

I got to soak in my first natural hot springs and then jump into the mighty Rio Grande. I've never felt anything like it. Many thanks were given this year!