To have a good 24th birthday,

I recommend that you try any one of the following...

1. Take the day off of work

2. Go for a leisurely run through Great Hills Trail

3. Buy yourself an orchid.
4. Find yourselves some great friends and family to send you birthday love through messages like:
"Happy Birthday Brooks! I hope you have a party the size of TEXAS!", "HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY OH HAPPIEST OF HAPPY BIRTHDAYS!Love you to bits--", "Happy Birthday! Here's hopin' that you were able to rock that candy shop.", and "Hey Cate. So glad you were born...Love you."

5. Of course I would recommend getting some great cards that have lovely double layer birthday cakes on them dreamy beautiful cake stands, or cards that actually say happy birthday when you open them...you get the idea

6. Take some generous donations to your "Road Bike Fund" (only if you have one of course)

7. Try a Hut's burger and most importantly their cracked pepper onion rings.

8. Eat a slice of La Madeleine's "Sacher Torte"
Yep. That about does it. You are bound to feel pretty dern special if you do any one of these things. Happy birthday to me! Thanks everbody!

Who is this guy?

From left to right, actress Amy Poehler, actor Will Arnett, an unidentified man, and actress Drew Barrymore at the HBO Golden Globes after-party on Sunday, Jan. 11, 2009, in Beverly Hills, Calif., U.S.A.

Kudos for the stealthy insertion of yourself with a bunch of famous people. Nice hat.

One man's trash is another man's junk.

This is treasure of a place Matt, our friends the Costellos and I stumbled upon while trying to get some ideas for our new "Johnson Film Fest" movie. Indeed it is called the Cathedral of Junk and it is not too far from our beloved Austin. Just head a little West of South Congress and you will find yourself all kinds of junkie treasures. I would recommend taking the time for a visit as there is nothing quite like this anywhere I've been. All you do is show up the and pay what you feel the experience is worth - it's worth more than you might think. The guy who started this whole thing in his backyard must be the creative kin to Mr. Smith and Mr. Edwards.

And just so you know, the sight really lives up to its spiritual name. Truly the Costellos and us Sweeneys received great inspiration for our upcoming film. More to come on that shortly...

To Look at Any Thing

To look at any thing,
If you would know that thing,
You must look at it long:
To look at this green and say
'I have seen spring in these
Woods,' will not do - you must
Be the thing you see:
You must be the dark snakes of
Stems and ferny plumes of leaves,
You must enter in
To the small silences between
The leaves,
You must take your time
And touch the very peace
They issue from.

-John Moffit

Is it really December?

Austin, TX gave my mom a hearty, warm welcome when she flew in for a visit. With sunny skies and highs in the mid-seventies, I had all kinds of things to show off here. Weather like that makes everything so utterly charming and pleasant.

We walked the green belt along Town Lake, ate some great soul food and fish tacos, walked South Congress Avenue where my we were given a timely sighting to Leslie wearing a mini skirt and faux sheep skin boots. There were all kinds of adventures to be had.

Yep, there was even some tree climbing. It turned into a bit of an extreme sport.

It's too bad she has to leave tomorrow morning because I really believe there just won't be no sunshine when she's gone...

Christmas time is here...

DO DEE DO DEE DOooo

I have to say that this season has been a good reminder at how marvelous it can be to push obligatory Christmas traditions aside and do whatever it is that seems like a good idea. Really, it was so liberating to not feel like I had to bake a huge number of cookies to send out to all friends and neighbors while listening to every single Christmas album I have collected over time. Nope. There was no necessity to watch my favorite Christmas flicks or make sure I found myself a glazed ham to have a slice of before the 25th. Nope. And thank goodness I got through without even so much as watching one scene from "A Christmas Story". Sorry, I know it's a classic for lots of you but for me it has become as cliche and painful to try and enjoy as it is for many to receive a fruitcake or an ugly reindeer sweater on Christmas morning and feign excitement.

This is not to say I have ba-humbugged the whole season. (I've tried that somewhat before and it really just left me as frustrated as it had buying in to every little Christmas requirement) Quite the opposite happened really because with all those demands pushed aside I was able to make way for some great new events that gave me all kinds of holiday cheer.

Austin's "Trail of Lights" was one. I guess this could be considered a pretty traditional Christmas activity but it felt like a new experience to me. After rounding up some of our favorite peoples from the Shoal Creek Ward:), we headed downtown to pick up a shuttle that took us to Zilker Park's light spectacle. You can just imagine how excited we all got when we saw this amazing little number waiting in line for the shuttle. We knew there would be something really breathtaking when we got there if we were already seeing such fine holiday light workmanship...

It was really pretty dazzling though when we got there. With the meticulous lighting and the thematic scenes every few feet it seemed a bit like the Temple Square lights met up with O.C. Tanner candy windows. I was pretty overwhelmed.

And would you believe that this year it turned out to be the best idea ever to have a Crab Boil for Christmas Eve dinner than a ham or a turkey? Well, maybe that doesn't apply to everbody but it seriously applied to all us Sweeneys here in Ada. My gosh! Kielbasa, King Crab legs, corn on the cob, boiled potatoes and shrimp really was the good and proper way for us all to celebrate this fine season. There were traditional moments. We did use nut crackers to open up the crab claws and we ended with homemade pecan fudge.

YACK!

Today I grocery shopped to a mix of flamboyant Christmas songs. I know. I know. The controversy of when it is time to bust out Christmas yore is an old one. You either find Christmas the delightfully ubiquitous holiday that should last all year long, or you find it is insufferably dominating of any event after the 4th of July. All the same, I have to express my two concerns about shopping to "Santa Clause is Coming to Town" and "Let it Snow" this afternoon.

1. It is November 8th.

2. It was 81 degrees today.

Keeping it weird this Halloween season.

Yep. It's true. Austin just broke the record for the largest Thriller dance in the world. Something like 880 people? Check it out.

Texas Football Season

Football gets a whole lot cooler when you move to Texas. I still can't tell a holding penalty from a first down or what determines whether the clock is running or not - and who came up with the scoring system? No matter really. Because when you move to "Longhorn Country" all you have to know is how to eat several hotdogs in one sitting and when to yell at the refs with your fist in the air. Once you've got that down and put on your burnt orange T-shirt you fit in with all the rest of the veteran crowd. A big thanks to the Livingston's next door for showing us how it is done this afternoon. It was a pretty sweet upset when O.U. got hooked by them horns. Sorry Sweeneys. You chose yourself the wrong state to live in this season.

GRE scheduled for Dec 6

Right before I signed up last Saturday I took a verbal practice test. I did fine, I think, for a first time but I can't help counting on the non-competative nature of library science schools to calm my admissions-thoughts. Given the choice what would you guess about me and tests?

Cate : Computer Adaptive Standardized Tests

A. Peas : Carrots

B. Andy Rooney : Misanthrop

C. Humanities Undergraduate Degree : Lucrative

D. Michael Moore : Weight Watchers

E. Black Cats : Augury

Could it be true that I the most in common with Michael Moore and his eating habits when it comes to test taking abilities? I don't know. Maybe you have a better idea of the relationship between the stem pair...