east texas

On the heels of our trip to see Bernie in theaters, which I highly recommend, we headed East. Having lived in East Texas for 10 years each, Matt and I completely understood the movie and found it humorous, sad, and strangely endearing. Without turning the oddities of East Texas into a set of caricatures, it lets the outsider “in” to the wonderful world behind the Pine tree veil.

We punched through the veil for a purpose: meat. Yummy, grass-fed, hormone, antibiotic free meat. Which is tastier than you can imagine. And if you can imagine then you’re salivating right now as I am while typing. My taste buds aren’t the only part of me that loves this meat, so does my stomach and my intestines, etc. :D My body can tell the difference and that fact has fully converted me to the superiority of grass-fed meat.

 

Since we were already in East Texas (having left the concrete and BMW’s of central Texas behind), we decided a lengthier visit was in order. A night in a quaint little town known for it’s Bed&Breakfast places was the ticket. Quiet green spaces, old porches, wicker furniture, ancient trees, stone hedges, and vines draping block by block and I could almost imagine I was in Oxford again (it wasn’t misty enough to fully convince me). After a soak in the claw-foot tub, some chapters of the Mayflower devoured and a fluffy night’s rest, we checked out the local fare, historical museum and some antique shops. Though we didn’t talk to too many folks, just being in East Texas, well, was enough to encounter East Texas. :) And while we were there and after we left, we could honestly say: we missed it.

beauty

Its often quoted but for good reason.
‘Earth laughs in flowers‘ Ralph Waldo Emerson.
Hydrangeas are so delicate looking, small in their petals and silky fragile. I love them and used them in my wedding. I discovered a bush in full bloom in a small corner by the library and sneaked a bunch for my office.

Sometimes you need a punch of beauty in your day/life, a strong reminder that one day the new heaven and new earth will come and that all you need to do is hold on.

manliness

In the absence of anything interesting to say, I leave you with these tidbits for the weekend:

Who killed men's hats?

And if you're inspired to start wearing hats (or get your husband to wear a hat) or grow a mustache or some other manly pursuit, you can refer to this wonderful website.

To close: here's a manly picture for you. This is what my husband and I would've looked like had we been born a couple decades earlier :).