November 20, 2011

I'm a very lucky person.  While I don't take advantage of all of them being in the same city often enough, I am blessed to continue to have my core group of friends from high school still be a significant part of my life.  We have added a few more friends in the years since graduation, which makes the group just that much more incredible.  Today we got together for a pre-Thanksgiving feast at Alice and Dustin's house.  Loving each of our previous "family" pictures from gatherings past, we decided to continue the tradition yet again.  Unfortunately, not everyone was able to come and thus, the picture is a bit incomplete, but the heart of the moment remains. 

November 19, 2011

I was never a fan of beer until my time in Moscow.  In fact, I took pride in my defiance of the concept of drinking a beer.  Recognizing the potential of a delicious beer upon drinking Russia's version of a Bud Light, I instantly changed my tune.  Eventually, I developed a preference for particular beers, opting for less-hop fused brews like Shiner Bock, Ziegenbock, and Live Oak Hefewiesen.  Conveniently, the Live Oak Brewery, my absolute favor brew, is just outside of downtown Austin.  After trying to plan a weekend trip for months now, I finally found the perfect brewery tour weekend:  the weekend of my birthday.  So, at noon today, half a dozen or so of my closest and dearest joined me at the Live Oak Brewery in East Austin to taste some delicious brews and listen to the brewery's German brew master talk about each beer we were tasting.  The best part?  Being reminded that Live Oak soon will be bottling their beer so I don't have to find one of the few bars in Austin that continually offers their Hefe on tap!  Happy birthday to me!

November 18, 2011

Birthdays have evolved into an interesting event for me.  Ten years ago, I was jealous of others' birthdays and wouldn't shut up about my own; these days, I am more excited about someone else's birthday, and would rather skip my own entirely.  Rather than elaborate plans and parties for my birthday, I looked forward to a relaxing evening over dinner and a trip to the Long Center to see what the Austin Symphony has to offer.  We had an incredible meal of calamari, crab cakes, trout, mac 'n cheese, and martinis at Truluck's, followed by a sleep-inducing, yet beautiful, concert by Anton Nel and the Austin Symphony.  The evening made for a perfectly relaxing birthday, if I do say so and a perfect way to ring in my twenty fourth year.

November 17, 2011

Over the past two years I always expected this particular moment to be more full of pomp and circumstance, I suppose.  Then again, from what I've learned in this short lifetime of mine, life is more ordinary and blunt than the movies and popular culture may lead you to believe.  Rather than a well planned and carefully chosen moment, I accepted my first job over a burrito bowl at Chipotle on Congress today, amidst chattering about the Texas football program and running shoes.  With six months ahead of me before I finally graduate from law school, I'm looking forward to getting to work once and for all. 

November 16, 2011

If it is not in my planner, it is not happening.  It's a terrible personality flaw to have, but it is what it is.  For as long as I can remember, I've maintained at least two calendars at a time, but anywhere up to four or five.  At the moment, I have three calendars:  one on my iPhone, which is synced with iCal, and then my Moleskin planner for the day-to-day tasks.  My iPhone and iCal calendars keep track of work and Journal deadlines and upcoming projects.  Unfortunately, my reliance on three separate calendars also means I trust they include everything I have on my agenda at any given moment throughout the day.  Thus, I was surprised to receive a text message letting me know I was expected at the Journal office negative two hours ago as I was doing my hair and watching Dr. Phil this afternoon.  For someone who is a stickler for deadlines and being on time, these moments when my litany of calendars fails to keep me apprised of my responsibilities are especially embarrassing.