Yeah, yeah I’m talking about Austin again. I can’t help it. I’ve always been a stickler for chronology. Even when I was young and kept a journal I couldn’t write anything until I was caught up with my dates. It was frustrating and is a habit I still can’t shake. So here we are headed back to May and those 3 weeks I was in Austin.
My last week in town was basically a wedding week extravaganza. Our good friends Tom and Allyson flew in a week early to start wedding prep and to visit some of their favorite places. Early in the week I helped them with centerpieces (the adorable dinosaur planter below) and we got some tasty burgers while braving the torrential rain that was happening. The downpour lasted a couple of days and one night I actually had to check the backyard and make sure it wasn’t flooding. Here in Seattle I’m not used to such heavy rains.
A couple of days before the wedding we did a bar/brewery hop around Austin. Second on the tour (I can’t remember the first) was The Draught House Pub and Brewery, one of my favorite places for pints with a really great beer garden. Then we headed to Austin Beerworks which has quickly become one of my favorite Austin breweries (also I know the owner). They open the tasting room Thurs-Sun and you can buy a glass and get 3 pints for $10. That’s a pretty good deal.
We ended our night with some tex-mex at Maudies because when you’re in Austin you need to eat lots of chips and salsa and drink a really big margarita (although perhaps this time I should have gotten a smaller one).
A few weekends ago Walker and I went to Oregon with a couple of our friends with a mission to visit Bagby hotsprings. From the title you probably guessed we didn’t make it there and I’m sure you can also assume that everything worked out well because I’m writing about it now but at one point we weren’t sure how our day would end.
Let me go back a little ways. We woke up pretty early on Saturday so we would have plenty of time to drive to the springs and enjoy them before heading back to Portland for the night. I figured that at some point our cell phones would stop working so I wrote down some rough directions from google maps. Once we left the main road I started calling out directions. The day started out with rain but at some point it turned to snow. This was also after the second time we didn’t turn left when my directions said to. The car as a whole wasn’t too concerned about the snow until we could no longer see the road ahead. I suggested we stop and play with the snow and decide if we should go on considering the snow and the “not sure we’re even going the right way” thing.
At this point I noticed a tiny trail of red fluid behind the car. Uh oh. Can you guess what it was? If you guessed transmission fluid you would be right! We collectively decided that was not good and we should turn around. If only it had been that easy. The car would not go into gear. When it finally did it would only go about 20 yards. Yikes! Images of us walking down the mountain being chased by bears in the snow flashed across my mind. Somehow we got the car turned around and somehow we got the car up the first little hill. On the downhill we cruised in neutral. Then we came across another little uphill…
We knew if we could just make it up the little hill we could cruise the rest of the way down in neutral. We tried pushing the car, we tried everyone but the driver walking along side the car, and we crossed our fingers a lot. Finally we made it over and we all yelled for joy as we went as fast as was safe in neutral down the mountain. At the end, where the dirt road meets the paved road, we flew by some people who were getting ready to raft. I think they were a little confused and probably angry as we went flying by but we couldn’t stop. Once the road leveled out that was it, the car had had it and was bone dry as far as transmission fluid was concerned.
So at this point we had made it out of the mountain but we were still about 20 minutes from the closest town and still without cell service. We asked the rafters for help but since they were about to head into the river there wasn’t much they could do for us. They suggested we hitch a ride since it tends to be common in the area. Would you believe that the second car that stopped agreed to take all 4 of us plus our bags? We were super excited and thankful. He drove us into town and dropped us off at the gas station.
We found a napa auto parts store and purchased an entire case of transmission fluid. Then we had to jump the next hurdle. We had to find someone to give a ride to our friends back to the car. The hard thing about that was just about no one seemed to be traveling that way. We suggested a small intersection where the road split for them to stand and we stood by until they got a ride. After maybe 20 minutes of trying they got a ride. Turns out the man who offered them a ride was not going in their direction but after he asked what they needed he decided to just take them. How amazing!
There wasn’t much for Walker and I to do but wait so we took a walk around the town and discovered some pretty cool murals. Oh right and then we found a brewery. Thank goodness! We felt a little bad about drinking while our friends were still dealing with the car but there wasn’t anything we could do to help so why not? In about an hour our friends were back. They had filled it with fluid and drove it back to town without a hitch! Phew! The day was saved. We drove back to Portland and we all took a nap because we were exhausted. It was a crazy day. Not at all how we planned it but in it’s own way it was pretty exciting.
^My necklaces in the shop! ^Having some wine and catching up with Erika. ^Sunglasses! ^Moorea being silly! ^My necklaces up close. ^Pretty displays and bags.
^A place to hang your jewelry
^pencils and stationary.
A few weeks ago the Moorea Seal store in downtown Seattle opened! I’ve been following the progress closely because I helped them move from their last location to the new space and it was so neat to watch it take shape. I saw bits and pieces come together in the few short months before they opened but even I was shocked at all the work they had done for the opening day.
A week before the public opening they held a soft opening for artists that sell in the shop, bloggers, press, and movers and shakers in Seattle. I had so much fun catching up with some of the ladies I have met from around town (Erika from Rouge and Whimsey and Jess of Pine and Boon) and getting to meet some new faces (Elizabeth from Delightfully Tacky). It was kind of funny because I brought Walker along just in case I was nervous and I barely talked to him the entire night. Whoops! He was fine though, I had him take some pictures (most of the ones above).
I am so excited to be a part of the Moorea Seal store and have my necklaces hanging in the shop. I’m honored they are among some of the most beautifully curated items. So please next time you’re in Seattle stop by the shop and get yourself a treat! The shop is located at 2523 Third Ave, Seattle, WA 98121. Or better yet lets go together!
One other note, if you’re wondering did I have a costume change during the event the answer is no. The top photo is from the public opening and the rest are from the soft opening. Although that would have been pretty funny.
