Long Hollow

Where seeds of thought have room to grow

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Realtor, writer, blogger in Austin, TX

Category: Food and Drink

  • Being a Mom…and sweet!s of the week

    For most of this day, I sat at my kitchen table, close to all of my kids plus my mom, constantly giving thanks that I could do so. I can't think of a better way to spend Mother's Day. I am blessed and I know it.    "I got to grow up with a mother…

  • Canyon Wrens, Laptops, Irish Beer, and other Sweet!s

      I sat on the front porch for a few hours this afternoon. The sunshine and blue sky were so crisp I couldn't stand to be inside any longer. I grabbed my laptop and planted myself in a rocking chair to listen to training webinars while watching a cardinal and tufted titmouse take turns at…

  • Life in the Underground (and other sweet!s)

    Austin is a wild place right now, caught up in South by Southwest fever. I wish I had the time to just hang out downtown all day and night, catching interesting seminars and random stars performing. Maybe next year… But I moved a little closer this year by attending a kickoff party downtown for Austin…

  • A Saturday Morning at Austin’s Franklin Barbecue

    On the surface, getting up extra early on a Saturday morning to wait in line four hours for lunch doesn't sound very appealing, especially when the weather is kind of chilly and drippy. But I did it this past Saturday anyway, just to experience Franklin Barbecue for myself. I'm on a continual quest to discover…

  • Signs of Spring…and other sweet!s

    Cedar Waxwings have returned to the Hollow! A huge flock of them graced the tall leafless willows near the pond most of the morning, just kind of hanging out. I ventured as near as I dared and snapped about a thousand photos with my zoom.  I'm not sure if any of the pics will do…

  • Simple Sweets

      Steve and Lisa, a couple in my church, took it upon themselves to form what they call a "hospitality" ministry several months ago. Almost every Sunday they prepare and offer some special brunch item after each Mass. Just the two of them.   Today it was French toast. Yum! They also offer fruit in…

  • Galas, Volunteering, Photography and other Sweet!s

    Last night I spent hours with a camera around my neck, stalking guests at the local Women's Club fundraising gala. Now, mind you, it's pretty standard for me to have my camera hanging around my neck at any function I attend…well, anywhere I go… but last night was different: instead of complaining about me taking…

  • A Cousin, a Mom, and Mexican Food. Sweet Sunday!

        Tomorrow is my cousin Patricia's birthday. She's always held a special place in my heart, beginning when she was a teenager. Unlike some of my other teenage cousins, she was consistently nice to me when we went to visit, even though I was a brat. I haven't forgotten. Her dad was one of…

  • Epiphanies (and other sweet!s from the past week)

      epiph·a·ny  noun \i-ˈpi-fə-nē\ Epiphany : a Christian festival held on January 6 in honor of the coming of the three kings to the infant Jesus Christ : a moment in which you suddenly see or understand something in a new or very clear way   Yesterday was Epiphany in the Catholic world. It's the 12th day after…

  • (Bitter)sweet

    Tomorrow is going to be a day of transition, of goodbyes and new beginnings. I'm traveling to Houston and bringing my mother back here to live in a nursing home minutes from my house. Except for occasional weekends in her house – my childhood home – she has been living in a nursing home near…