Monthly Archives: March 2013

Where to eat during SXSW (if you don’t want to fall apart)

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SXSW is the craziest time of year for dear old Austin Texas, the live music capital of the world. Most of the year the weather is walkable, the beer flows cold, there is a seat for you at every table, and the tex mex is cheap. During Southby (as we call it) this town becomes a drunk 20 year old with a great fake ID, a penchant for mixing beer with liquor and waking up in unfamiliar places. It’s very attractive and fun, but unpredictable. I have put together a list of my favorite places to eat. I want you to eat your veggies during the day so you can hang later at night to see Prince at La Zona Rosa (wha??!?!!).

HEALTHY HIPSTERS PARTY HARDER (where to eat in Austin):

  • El Primo & Once Over Coffee Bar (South 1st & Live Oak, 78704)- best coffee in town, and this is coming from a dyed in the wool Portland-bred coffee adict. I would also stake my reputation on the fact that El Primo, the trailer in the parking lot, has the best breakfast tacos in town. I’m serious.
  • Thai Fresh (South 5th & Mary, 78704)- healthy, homegrown thai food in a wide open space with a kids corner. This place is run by a wonderful woman of Thai descent. They also have a large case of gluten free and/or vegan deserts. This is where i went for my birthday.
  • Elizabeth Street Cafe (South 1st & Elizabeth, 78704)- this is gourmet Vietnamese food. If you have a meeting with a fancy record exec, meet them here and come off as pretty cool. it’s loud, so you’ll have to lean in close.They have amazing french pastries as well. This is where we went for Andrew’s birthday.
  • Curra’s Grill (614 E Oltorf, 78704)- this is real tex mex, y’all. Get the Avocado Margarita if you are tequila-inclined. i hate margaritas and i love these.
  • Fresa’s Chicken al Carbon (915 N. Lamar)- pieces of amazing chicken to go. this is our newest addiction. Locally sourced and delicious.
  • East Side Kings (there are multiple eastside locations: www.eskaustin.com)- Home fried beets with sour cream sauce among other deliciousness.They have multiple trailers behind various dive bars in East Austin. This place is run by the guy who used to cook for the fanciest sushi joint in town. it’s real.
  • Wheatsville Co-op (N. Guadalupe & 31st, 78705)- It’s our one and only grocery co-op and they do it right. Yes, the Whole Foods is shiny, but it’s downtown and that is going to be a battle. Also, this is LOCAL. put your money where your mouth is. Also put the popcorn tofu where your mouth is… ohmygod.
  • P. Terry’s (multiple locations)- It’s a fast food burger, but a good one. They actually care about what they’re serving you.
  • Blue Dahlia (1115 E 11th S, 78702)- yummy french food. They will give you a fresh salad with every item. If you can’t get in, there are a 5 great cafes within two blocks of here. Including Franklin’s BBQ which sells out by 11am every day, prompting people to line-up at 8am. I think they’re crazy… I wouldn’t wait in line for 2 hours for any kind of food.
  • Taco Deli & Houndstooth Coffee (4200 N Lamar Blvd, 78756)- Ok, there is another place to get a great cappuccino and a great taco up north. if you can’t make it to Once Over & El Primo, this will certainly do. The taco place closes by 3pm, so if you’re super hung over, you may not make it.

Eat well. Have a good time. Stay hydrated. Keep your eyes open. Don’t cross the street against the light. Be nice to all your servers & bartenders. don’t fuckin talk over a quiet show!!
Love you Southby, glad you’re here!

a little perspective

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The grownups over here at the Rose-Press house are under the weather today. Emmett is a wind-up toy spinning about the house. or maybe he’s a pinball in a shabby chic pinball machine. he’s howling with the police sirens and barking with the neighborhood dogs. I’d love for someone to bring me some ginger ale, give me a neck rub while i feel a little sorry for myself and put on a pouty face…

And i got turned on to a blog today by a woman named Lisa who has stage 4 metastatic breast cancer. That’s not just a little sick. She has 3 kids and an illness that won’t just go away with a few days of couch time. I immediately run over to Emmett and kiss him until he grunts and pushes my face away. My energy level rises knowing that this minor inconvenience of an illness will vanish within a few days. This woman Lisa doesn’t have that luxury. My heart breaks for a mama who doesn’t get to watch her kids become adults. And going through a very intimate thing out in public. It’s very good for all of us. Thank you Lisa for including us in your journey. It certainly helped me today to read your beautiful perspective.

i think i’ll go kiss my kid some more and be thankful for every second that i get to watch him figure out the world.

Bug&mom by schmidt

photo by the amazing Danny Schmidt in November 2012.

worries

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Some days i’m not sure i can do it. Taking care of an enthusiastic, bright, and beautiful toddler takes all my energy most of the time. Even with my focused partner. This. Is. Hard.

We have two 14 day tours booked in the upcoming future. April on the east coast and May on the west coast. i am honestly terrified about those two tours. Emmett is still nursing to sleep and most shows start right at his bedtime. He requires most of the day time to run in circles, and explore his environment, most tours (even the most thoughtfully booked) require at least 3 hours of travel time a day. At LEAST.

I often wonder if it’s worth the uphill push it requires being a mommy-musician. It is obvious which title would get the back burner. I never attended a day of college so my options are limited in terms of finding another job; i am trained for nothing. I have worked at summer camp, at a preschool, as a nanny and then as an itinerant musician. While i have adored doing all these things, they certainly aren’t jobs that inspire a banker to give you a mortgage. But it’s less about the unsteady pay (i have often said that music is not a great living but it’s a wonderful life) and more about the exhaustion. It takes all my energy to write a song a week while building block towers and attempting to educate, clean and shove some vegetables down my son’s throat. And i’m pretty sure he’s an easy baby. And i’d like to have another in the next few years! what am i, insane?

No, i’m not crazy, i’m just trying to live an authentic life. I always wanted to be a mother and i always wanted to be a musician. As much exhaustive & unsure work as it is, i still don’t see a reason i can’t do both. I hope that my child/ren look at their mother and see someone who gave to them and herself all she had. I think it’s important that our kids see us attempt at things we love, stumble or stride and still feel good about ourselves.

but godamn i could use a day in a spa or something. or a bigass tour bus with beds instead of a minivan.

Home for a few days

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We have been home from Toronto for a few days now.  The weather is perfect.  Emmett is running around like a lunatic, making stacks of blocks and destroying them and saying all kinds of interesting things.  Raina and I are enjoying downtime at home before the chaos of the spring starts.

This week has been spent almost entirely together.  We haven’t really left the house much, except for some errands, dinner at a friend’s house and a nice hang at the Once Over Coffee Bar yesterday.  It seems to be easiest to exist at home with Emmett these days.  He is no longer interested in being held for more than a few minutes at a time.  Running around is far more important.

Next week I will do a 6 night tour with Nancy & Beth.  We are playing Largo in Los Angeles on March 6 (opening for Rhett Miller), The Birchmere in Alexandria, VA on March 8 and the Wilbur Theater in Boston, MA on March 10.

Then I fly back to Austin for 4 nights of SXSW (overcrowded indie rock party that takes over the entirety of Austin, TX). I have about 6 or so gigs and parties to attend.  Lots of friends are coming to town to play shows.  My parents will be here helping with Emmett, which is a huge relief for me and Raina.

Then I fly back to Los Angeles for the night of March 15 to play at Largo with Nancy & Beth.  I’ll be back in Austin before noon on March 16 to play a couple of afternoon gigs and see a few other shows before SXSW closes down.  After that, throw in a quick trip to Houston, a recording session and an SF trip.  I’m already so tired of the airport and I haven’t even packed yet.

It’s going to be a pretty insane couple of weeks.  I will literally fly all over the country.  I will spend 7 of those nights away from Raina and Emmett.  That is definitely the most challenging part of my job.  It puts a strange tax on the entire family.  Emmett is too young for me to explain that I’m even leaving.  I just get out of the car at the airport and show back up a week later.  I wonder what goes through his mind.  Is he wondering where I am?  Is he waiting for me to get back?  Does he even notice I’m gone?

Raina is amazing.  She handles parenting without me like a champ.  She has high morale.  She has amazing patience.  Her comfort in the situation shows Emmett that there is nothing to worry about.  Papa will be home soon.  So he seems to go about his business building block stacks and knocking them down, eating yogurt and sweet potatoes, climbing on Hopi (our dog) and saying fascinating nonsense.

This will be a good trip, though.  The shows are at excellent venues.  The band is sounding great.  The people are some of my favorites.  But I will miss my boy and my lady.  I will think about them constantly when I am sitting, waiting for the next show to start.