Yesterday marked 173 years since the Texas Declaration of Independence was adopted on March 2, 1836. Since we were talking about real and legitimate stuff yesterday, I refrained from doing a little Texas celebratin'. My sister Emily's friend and Texas enthusiast Patton (yep!) would be so ashamed of me if I don't honor The Republic, so I am compelled to share with y'all some of my the things I love and miss the most about magical, mystical Texas.
1. I love and miss the bluebonnets which I am sure are starting to dance across the state right about now.
2. I miss football games at Amon Carter, cheese enchiladas at Joe T.'s, and strolling Sundance Square in the glow of white lights after dark.
3. I miss Mikala, Stephanie, Adelita, and the BHS classes of 03, 04, and 05.
4. I love real Tex-Mex.
5. I miss real queso. (On a related note, I must point out that if you think all there is to queso is melting velveeta and dumping in a can of Rotel tomatoes and chilis . . . ohmyno.) (Also? In a conversation in the kitchen last week, I came to realize that Kyle has always thought Rotel was the name of queso prepared this way. He didn't realize it is a brand name for canned tomatoes and chilis. It's clear who does most of the grocery shopping in our family.) (But in his defense, he does more than his fair share of the cooking, and is pretty darn good at it. He can call it Rotel if he wants to.)
6. I miss kolache stops in West.
(what are the chances of finding a picture on Flickr of my favorite kolache stop? Courtesy of satanoid)
7. I miss taco stands. (especially the one on Aquarena in San Marcos)
8. I love that the only time a gentleman has ever held the door open for me while saying, "Here ya go, darlin' " was at a gas station in Houston (Humble to be exact).
9. But you don't have to call me darlin', darlin' . . . you never even called me by name
I miss Americana on the radio, particularly KNBT Radio New Braunfels.
10. I miss flip-flops year 'round, and I miss my sister buying new flip-flops for me for my birthday. I really miss Emily being just a short two-and-a-half hour drive down I-10 away.
11. There are no words to adequately express how much I miss freshly roasted coffee beans from Ruta Maya in South Austin.
12. I love the Fort Worth Zoo.
13. I miss Amanda, Keara, Age, and Ingrid and scheduling meet-ups weeks in advance.
14. Oh, how I love and miss HEB and all of its diverse selection and friendly employees glory. And I miss 2/$1 avocados.
15. I love and miss the McKenna Children's Museum, the river center and floating wetlands at Aquarena Springs, and the expansive and shaded wooden playscape in San Marcos.
16. I miss Go Frogs and Eat 'Em Up 'Cats and Gig 'Em and Hook 'Em and the vibrant energy of football in the Lone Star State every fall.
17. I miss driving across the San Marcos river every day.
18. I miss no state income tax and no tax on groceries.
19. I miss the reverence for the weird, the honoring of independence, the celebrating of diversity, and all of the intangibles that just are Texas.
20. I actually could go on and on, but I'll wrap things up. I dearly, deeply miss my friends - Kim, Jennifer, Jeanine, Angela, the Amys, Bree, Ali, Tiffany, Casi, Shaila, Melissa, Mary, Julie Kate, DJ, Brenda, Kathy, Dottie, Lori, Amber, Laura T., Elena, Ken and Jan, Claudia, and (oh I hope I didn't leave anyone out!) the entire community of friends that meant so much to me in our time in San Marcos. I love, love, love y'all and would give anything to hug each of your necks today.
In all fairness, there are a few notable things I do not miss about Texas, and at the top of that list are the bane of all existence and creation - fire ants. Oh what sweet freedom to turn the girls loose in the backyard without worrying over those little jerks.
Thanks for indulging my love that whole other country now to my south.
(bluebonnet photo above courtesy longhorndave)
