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First things first…

Congratulations to Molly and Caitlin for winning the two copies of Why We Love Dogs, Eat Pigs, and Wear Cows! I hope you both enjoy the book and “pay it forward” by not only lending the book to others, but also encouraging others to question their carnistic beliefs.

PS – To be fair, I used Random.org to select the winners.

Now on to other things…

I’ll be taking a little break from posting for the next 2 weeks as I move from Washington, DC to Austin, TX.

This coming week I’ll be enjoying a between-jobs vacation in one of my favorite places on Earth: Palm Beach, FL where the ocean is crystal clear blue and a comfortable 84 degrees!  The following week Ed and I will be road-tripping it from DC to Austin. We have a tentative itinerary, but  it is subject to change. I’ll post about our travels when we arrive in Austin! (Finding veg food on a road trip through the south… this is going to be interesting.)

This move is extremely bittersweet.  While I’m VERY EXCITED to be closer to my family and friends (I’m from San Antonio, went to undergrad in Austin), I’m at the same time VERY SAD to be leaving such an amazing group of friends here in DC. Ed and I will miss you all tremendously and hope you’ll come crash on our couch as much as we plan to come back up here and crash on yours!  We love you guys!!

Things I’ll miss in DC (besides the friends):

1. All the free museums!
2. Playing sports right on The Mall (pretty awesome to see the Capitol in the outfield when up at bat)
3. Running around Hains Point and the Tidal basin
4. Cherry Blossoms
5. Ethiopian food and all of the other wonderfully diverse cuisines that help keep DC at the top of the vegetarian-friendly cities list
6. Being able to walk and take metro everywhere
7.  All of the arts & crafts and farmers markets
8. Taking the bus to Baltimore, Philly, and New York
9. The U Street Corridor (my favorite neighborhood in DC)
10. The “we can make a difference” mentality and “important things are happening here” energy of the city

If you’ve never been to Austin to experience it for yourself, you’ve probably at least heard talk of how great it is! Although I lived in Austin during college, I definitely didn’t take advantage of all it has to offer (apparently I was too absorbed with campus activities, frat parties, and eating gobs of Freebirds) so I can’t wait to get back and fully enjoy it!

Why I’m excited about Austin:

1. Swimming at Barton Springs
2. Watching the bats fly out from under the Congress Bridge
3. South By Southwest, Austin City Limits, Austin Reggae Festival and the many more music & movie festivals in Austin
4. Authentic Mexican food and the Austin food trailers (Ed and i have already come to the conclusion that we’re going to get fat in Austin!)
5. South Congress (shopping & eating, two of my favorite things)
6. Town Lake running trail
7. The ultimate Whole Foods
8. Veggie Dog eating contest and Austin’s general veg-conscious state of mind, as they continue to make the list as one of the top vegetarian-friendly cities
9. Cheap beer (hello, I haven’t paid under $4 a beer since moving to DC)
10. The “Keep Austin Weird” mentality and general eccentric energy that radiates from the city!

____________________
Breakfast: Two peaches
Lunch: A pulled BBQ sandwich with Gardein’s pulled BBQ shreds – not too shabby!
Dinner: Bar appetizers at my work going away party – nachos, soft pretzels, mozzarella sticks, potato skins (we asked for no bacon)