Reviving the Texan in Adam: the Finale

For the final leg of Adam's Houston adventure, we went straight to the meat of it. Following afternoon chai tea at Agora, we headed downtown for a fancy dinner. We checked out Samba Grille, a relatively new churrascaria in the theater district. I had never experienced the all-you-can-eat meat extravaganza, so my belly went into a bit of shock as it was stretched taut.We had fabulous assorted veggies, soup (mine was the Jade soup: spinach + broccoli cream + crabmeat gratin = heaven), and coconut rice (swoon!). Then the meat parade began with over a dozen cuts/types circulating on skewers. The carvers would come by and shave off a few slabs of juicy goodness until we had our fill and flipped our green coasters over to red (aka- stop... must digest... meat).Following the feast we waddled over to the Hobby Center to see Hairspray. The show was lots of fun, especially the ad-libbing in the father and mother's duet "You're Timeless to Me." Unfortunately, Adam timelessness was realized on Tuesday when he set off to Dallas for a couple days before returning to life as a surfer boy in California. Of course, the blog wouldn't be complete without a commemorative arm-length self pic shot:

Reviving the Texan in Adam: Take 2

Adam's Texas adventure continued with a trip to the Bayou City Art Festival. We met up with Sarah after she finished her shift at the CultureMap booth then browsed the art together. I was pretty impressed with the turnout for the downtown Houston event, which was just like the Utah Arts Festival I visited in June with Chelsey and Joel.After browsing the paintings, photographs, sculptures, and wacky performance art, I felt completely uncreative. Still, it was a gorgeous day and all that walking around worked up an appetite. To satiate our hunger, Adam and I went to Cyclone Anaya's in Midtown for taquitos and tequila- I mean a mango margarita.As the sun started to set on the eve of the third day, we paid a visit to our alma mater. Rice certainly has grown up in the last few years: new basketball court ('field house'), fancy schmancy new gym, TWO new residential colleges, a new glass pavilion, new sculptures sprinkled throughout campus, and more! Adam was very relieved to see that Lovett was quite the same as when he left it over three years ago. To which I reply: Lovett?! Lovett?! Lovett sucks! Hanszen, Hanszen- YEAH! Hanszen, Hanszen- YEAH!After visiting Rice haunts we visited Rice friends. We stopped by Brandi and Peter's lovely condo and played some rousing rounds of Bananagrams. I highly recommend this fun, fast-paced, Scrabble-like game. Amy and Aaron got wind of all the fun we were having and sped over to join in on the games.Marty was also around- playing it cool on the couch and getting all sorts of belly rubs. Just when I thought the perfect evening couldn't get any better- we added ice cream! With nights as complete as these, why would anyone ever go back to California? :)

Reviving the Texan in Adam: Take 1

For the first time in over three years, Adam Tuttle made it back to Houston. His first request for his Texas re-initiation was for some quality barbecue. We drove straight from the airport to Goode Company BBQ and chowed down. As you can see in the picture above, Adam was overcome with emotion upon clearing his plate.After our smokey Texan dinner, we met up with Peter and Nya for frozen yogurt at Berripop. Fellow former Lovetteers Peter and Adam had plenty to chat about: life since Rice, mutual friends, and memories of their beloved residential college. Baylor MD/PhD Nya easily fell into conversation, bringing her shared experiences of life in Idaho, California, medical school, and grad school.Adam continued to rally after his day of traveling by tagging along with me to 13 Celsius where we met up with Amy and Aaron. Adam bonded with Amy over Taiwan (where both of their parents are living), and then he bonded with Aaron over nerdy guy stuff while I sipped wine and observed the bonding. We were soon joined by gym buddy Gretchen (above).I had to go to school/work on Friday, so we didn't meet up again until dinner. We went to Star Pizza for some intense deep dish dining. Afterward, we went to Kroger to pick out the perfect pair of pumpkins. We set up shop on the patio and started carving, a seasonal ritual I haven't enjoyed in several years. Even Wentworth tried to participate in the festivites (see if you can spot him in the picture below).Though neither of us claim to be expert carvers, we were both pretty satisfied with our efforts. As the jack-o-lanterns flickered on the porch, we cleaned and roasted the seeds. In my first attempt at pumpkin seed baking, I found the final product tedious to produce but tasty to eat.

Things that make me smile

Saturday, October 2, was a big day. I kicked off the day with Race for the Cure downtown. If memory serves, this is my fourth time doing the race in Houston. I am happy to report that this year's 5k was more of a jog than my typical walk-jog. I moseyed through the post-race festivities with Teresa and Dane before heading home.At home I showered, scooped up Wentworth, and headed back on the road in the direction of Christ the King Lutheran Church. Wentworth received his second St. Francis of Assisi blessing. This year Marty the dog (of Brandi and Peter Scully) accompanied Wentworth and the rest of my congregation's furry friends. Wentworth was exceptionally well behaved, though a bit timid.After the pets received their blessing, Brandi and I stopped at Berripop for some celebratory frozen yogurt. We lounged on the patio as folks raised their eyebrows at my cat and his harness. Why is it perfectly normal to have a dog out in public, but a kitty companion is just crazy?Brandi and I parted ways briefly to beautify ourselves and deposit our pets at their respective abodes. Then we reunited and went to the Wortham center for the Houston Ballet's production of Jewels. Our wonderful seats were complimentary thanks to the annual Free Night of Theater promotional event. Watching the dazzling performances of emeralds, rubies, and diamonds dancing and glittering across the stage was my kind of childhood dream!After the curtain closed, I stopped by Amy's place for dinner and Korean drama. Javier and Max also joined in on the wining, dining, and subtitle reading. The menu included Chilean lemon chicken drumsticks, brussels sprouts with bacon, and yogurt tartlets. Yum!While we stuffed our faces, we watched a couple episodes of Coffee Prince on Hulu. The Korean show featured a cast of quirky characters who struggled with love, money, and gender identification. After just a couple hours of watching, I am practically addicted!

Oh, What a Beautiful Weekend!

Last weekend, I enjoyed two magical days of splendor post-Internal Medicine and pre-neurology. I took advantage of Museum District Day by stopping by the Rice Gallery in the morning to see Sarah Oppenheimer's installation D-17, which involved a plane (the shape, but also like a jet wing) dramatically cutting through two panes of glass. It was a nice stop at one of my favorite Houston/Rice places, though truth be told, the gallery has seen better installations.I spent the afternoon at Bayou Bend Collection and Gardens with friend Sarah. After stepping foot into the cozy, secret-garden-like grounds, I was at peace! I could not believe that I had never visited this lush little oasis in my 7+ years in Houston. I crossed the swaying wooden bridge over the bayou to get to the manicured gardens and sloping lawn and was positively enchanted. Sarah and I toured the former home of Miss Ima Hogg (true name) and observed the impressive assemblage of American decorative arts dating from 1620 through 1870. Then we learned a bit about the history of the Hogg family at the new education center. Much to my surprise, Harry C. Hanszen married Mike Hogg's widow (and sister-in-law of Ima Hogg) Alice. Alice was an important Houston socialite and even donated a Monet Water Lilies painting to the MFAH. Mr. Hanszen, of course, left his legacy at Rice in the form of my residential college.That evening I joined up with a group of Baylor med students for Matthew Carter Service Day. We volunteered at Covenant House, a home for kids in crisis and Houston's homeless children. We played bingo, which was a big hit. I was able to unload a large portion of my toiletries stash (built up from all that couponing), which went into the prize pile with other contributions like toothbrushes and socks.