Out and About, Maru edition

I've been sick for almost a whole week, and it sucked. I mean, of course it sucked... I don't think anyone is ever "yes, body aches! this fever fuckin' rocks!" (except of course for people who think that being sick is sexy. Seriously, I read about that fetish somewhere. Not judging!). yeah, so it sucked. I finally went back to work after 4 days of laying on the couch and had to take it easy still... I would walk around while teaching as I usually do, and have to sit down every now and then because talking and walking left me feeling winded. Wow, that's weird.

Friday was good though, after I was done teaching my friend Roberta came by the center to pick me up and we went to one of our favorite places for lunch, Maru. It's a little hole in the wall sushi place on Burnet road a little north of 45th street that I discovered a few years back with some of the girls from the yoga center and it's been my favorite ever since. Because I'm a creature of habit, I usually tend to order the same thing...

The roll that you see is a philadelphia roll... and one thing that I love is that the salmon is a pretty generous portion. it was so good that we had to order another one. Now the thing that really is amazing is the J-bomb...

Oh, J-bomb. You are truly magnificent. Your mix of textures actually works! Normally I would hate something that was crunchy-squishy-saucey, but in this case I'm all "NOM NOM NOM" instead. It's a jalapeno that is stuffed with salmon, crab meat, and a little cream cheese, then covered with rice flour and deep fried... not enough to cook the salmon (digression: cooked salmon is the worst fish ever, I can't even stand the smell... but raw salmon?? Best ever, hands down), but it just makes it light and crispy. Man, those things are great.

If I could arrange the best sushi meal ever, it would involve: almond milk tea with pearls from Coco's Cafe, J-bombs from Maru, and the Japanese bagel roll from Kenichi... that is THEE best roll in town in my opinion. Salmon, cucumber, cream cheese, avocado (I could be wrong on this point), and topped with a thinly sliced strawberry and some honey miso glaze. I just died from writing that.

The decor of the place is nothing special, and the parking lot is a nightmare, but I really love that place. I've always had good service there too. Best of all, the food is great. It was made better by having a friend with me, someone who doesn't look at me like I'm crazy for going all yampy over a fried jalapeno crab thing...

A love letter to Austin, TX

Dear Austin,

I love you. I honestly love you. I moved here in 1995 with my best friend Kristin and together we moved in with another close friend Laura. We didn't live together for long, but we'd actually made plans to move to Austin back in 1990? 1991? We were kids, and also a bit angsty yet quirky. We would have been goth, except that makeup melts off of your face in south Texas. Anyway, we of course did that whole "ugh, when we get out of school we have to move to Austin to be free, man..." thing, and we actually did it.

The first day that we were here, I unpacked my car, and then went to Notorious Ed's underground piercing where I got my tongue pierced by Scott Ellis (Scott now owns Triple Crown Tattoo). After that, we drove around to see our new hometown....

Kristin and I had talked about stuff... which is what you do with someone you've known since before puberty. Yeah, we met in junior high, but I didn't actually hit puberty until I was 15 (and I started going grey when I was 20, how twisted). We had talked about how we'd move to New Orleans if Austin didn't work out, but I knew that weekend that I had found home. Something just clicked, and I knew it.

Over the past few years, I've only come close to moving twice. Once after a bad breakup I almost moved back home, but fortunately my friend Tami found me packing up and said "I refuse to let you turn around and go home, you hated it there. You're moving in with me and that's that." I owe that woman something big. Another time was about 6 years ago, with my partner Rich. We decided to stay in Austin so we could buy a house (the housing market in San Diego was INSANE). So yeah... Austin has a big spot in my heart.

There are so many things that I love about this city. I love that it can feel like a big city to me at times... SXSW is one of those times, as well as the Austin City Limits festival (which is going on as I type). I love the awesomely vibrant and diverse yoga community. I love how crafty and craft friendly this city is. One of things I love most about traveling is coming home. When I see the downtown skyline, I know I'm home. Thanks Austin for being here for me. I've met the most amazing people and been transformed by them. All the while, you were there giving them what they need too. You rule.

I've been thinking about this city a lot this month. I've given up on driving, even my scooter. I've been riding my bike and taking the bus everywhere, and while it might take a bit longer to get where I'm going, I do get there. I'm seeing things that I have missed over the past 14 years, and sometimes I'm seeing things I forgot and it's like seeing an old friend. I suppose I could have these observations anywhere, but the truth is that I love this city like no other place I've lived or visited.

I'm getting ready for a vacation in the spring. A whole month in Europe. It's weird, but I know that I'm going to miss my little house, and my job (I haven't gone more than 5 days without teaching a yoga class since 2002), and my pets, and my softball team, and the crazy bus folks too. But they'll all be here waiting when I get back, and I know it will feel so comforting to land. That's going to be awesome.