This year’s April Wildflower Issue, 22 pages of the best of Texas’ spring color, marks my 15th year designing this spectacular feature. One of my biggest challenges each year is in presenting flower photos that are fresh yet timeless, and composing striking image combinations. This could not be possible without the hundreds of photo submissions we receive from photographers throughout the state. Much, if not most of the credit goes to Photo Editor Griff Smith for reviewing all of the submissions and paring them down to just over a hundred. Of these, only 22 were selected for ...

It’s becoming a familiar scenario: A friend comes in from out of town, and I discover a new Austin restaurant. Usually, it’s just a matter of my wanting to try a place I’d heard about and good timing. Recently, though, when my friend Candy was here for a convention, she came armed with her own recommendation. Of course, this particular friend knows Austin better than I do (although she lives in Victoria now), so it didn’t surprise me. What’s more, she’s a foodie, so I figured her choice would be a good bet. Candy’s recommendation was Buenos Aires ...

I give a solid thumbs-up to a City Weekend in Dallas. I’d heard a lot about the new developments in downtown and the nearby Arts District, so I decided to investigate this past weekend. My husband, Randy, and I booked a room at the beautiful new Joule Hotel, a few steps away from the original Neiman Marcus, on Main Street. Downtown Dallas—with its gargoyle-festooned buildings that date to the early 1900s—is still primarily a financial district, but that’s gradually changing. Restaurants, clubs, and hotels are drawing more nighttime visitors downtown, imbuing the ...

One of the Oscar Mayer Weinermobile fleet landed near our magazine offices recently and created quite a buzz. When it drives by, or pulls up and parks, the vehicle elicits warm, fuzzy, happy smiles like no other. It also made me hungry for a Chicago-style hot dog. Do you relish hot dogs as much as I do? Where’s your favorite Texas hot dog stop? A ballpark? A drive-in? Let us know. And pass the mustard.

Thoroughly enjoyed Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Dave Mason over the weekend at the One World Theatre, a nouveau Italianate villa/concert venue in the hills of southwest Austin. The venerable singer/songwriter/guitarist still delivers the goods and produced an excellent show ably assisted by his crackerjack 4-piece band. Mason’s vast catalog of memorable tunes were in evidence–Feelin’ Alright, World in Changes, Shouldn’t Have Took More Than You Gave, and many others, as well as compelling compositions from his latest recording, 26 Letters-12 Notes.

Two hundred years ago, the “poet of the piano” was born. In honor of his bicentennial, Tarleton State University’s Langdon Center in Granbury will present A Chopin Festival at the United Methodist Church in Acton, February 27-March 1. Highlights of the 3-performance program include Chopin’s Cello Sonata, Grande Polonaise Brillante, Fantaisie-Impromptu, Nocturne in C minor, Ballade in G minor, Scherzo No. 2 in B flat, and much more. For reservations and additional information, call 817/279-1164.

Snow-covered steps to the Texas Travel Information Center in Denison. Submitted by Center Supervisor Robbie Dudley. Chilly day at the Texas Travel Information Center in Texarkana. Submitted by Linda Vaughan. Snowy day at the Texas Travel Information Center in Waskom. Photo by Melissa Wilson. Winter wonderlands are hardly cliché in Texas. That’s why drivers freak out when the flurries start to fall. We don’t know how to drive (or walk!) in icy or snowy conditions. Northerners like to laugh when us southerners become incapacitated by the weather, but that’s like ...

Photo by Alice Liles A few weeks ago, while visiting friends at their lake house in Kingsland, I finally went to see the American bald eagle nest off Texas 29, between Burnet and Llano, that has been in the news in recent years. (My friend Alice Liles supplied the photo.) There were already a few cars parked beside the road when we arrived at the site. One of them belonged to an accountant from Brenham, who had set up two tripods, one with a camera and the other with a spotting scope. Wearing a heavy coat and wool cap to ward off the cold wind, he had obviously been there a while. He ...

For my son’s seventh birthday, we forewent Chuck E Cheese’s, and packed up the car for a San Antonio daytrip. Our main destination—the San Antonio Zoo, which we had only half-explored when he was three. I visited the zoo many times as a child on summer stays with my grandmother, who, in the interest of preserving my good time, gracefully masked her sadness over the pacing cats and other creatures in tight enclosures. Fast forward to last Saturday, one of those rare, rain-free days of late—contented grizzlies snoozed in the sunshine, Lucky the elephant trumpeted ...

A few months ago, I joined a group of my girlfriends at the Blanton Museum of Art for one of the museum’s monthly “Third Thursday” programs. We enjoyed the opening of a new exhibit, a stroll through the museum’s permanent collection, and live music in the foyer, but the main draw for us was the opportunity to take a yoga class in one of the galleries, surrounded by beautiful paintings. The refined ambiance lent a whole new energy to our poses, and we were able to view the works from a new perspective. I mean this quite literally, as we were standing on our heads at ...

While children get to have special mail that’s postmarked from the North Pole, lovers can look forward to sending their sweetheart a valentine postmarked and stamped from Valentine (Texas, that is)? More than a dozen post offices across the United States –– including Valentine, Texas –– offer special postmarks for the lovely occasion, to help impress your loved ones. This special touch is easy as pie to achieve, and the effort could yield priceless benefits. Simply place your pre-stamped and addressed valentine(s) in a Priority or Express Mail envelope or box ...

Everything’s big in Texas, in fact, Texas is so big, it’s gone global Or so it’s been pointed out in a Facebook thread that started with “Good morning, Texas!” New Mexico and Australia chimed in - “What about us?!” To which we replied with the simple truth: “If you love Texas, you ARE Texas.” That good morning goes a long way. That’s how Texas rolls.:) So now, I’m curious where, in the world, are you if you’re not living in Texas now? Did you use to live here? Just wish you could live here? What is it you love so much ...

Having just made my annual end-of-January trip to southeast Texas, I can report that despite any prognostications from Punxsutawney Phil, the signs of spring’s approach are visible in at least parts of the Lone Star State. I didn’t see any wildflowers except for dandelions and henbit, but peach trees are beginning to bud and lettuce is harvest-ready in backyard gardens. Best of all, bluebonnet seedlings are popping up in pastures and along roadsides. I know, we’ve got at least a month of winter left and probably some nasty weather ahead, but I love the anticipation of ...

The trailer-café craze that has consumed Austin tends to be a mostly daytime affair, with many if not most in my neighborhood rolling up their windows by sunset. I was delighted to discover that Odd Duck Farm to Trailer at 1219 S. Lamar begins serving at 5 p.m., perfect for “cook’s night out” (the “cook” in this case being me). An intriguing menu, which changes daily, also piqued my interest. Odd Duck offers up appetizers and entrées that adhere to the rediscovered “nose-to-tail” philosophy, which means using ingredients from local farms, ...

We’re starting to put together the March issue, and one story about sustainable travel especially holds my interest. The author makes the point that people in general are growing more aware of lessening their impact on the environment when they travel, and she provides suggestions on restaurants that source their food locally, hotels that make an effort to be energy-efficient, and destinations that focus on conservation. It’s a topic I suspect we’ll revisit from time to time, especially since most places don’t expect us to relinquish any of our creature comforts. ...