Heights Snapshot: Dog Date

Thursday, December 10

Roughly 2 PM

Gen's Antiques, 239 W 19th St

Gen of Gen's Antiques (Left) and Cooley of Carter & Cooley (Right) hanging out at Gen's shop, eagerly awaiting treats. Cooley takes regular walks down 19th Street to visit his friend. The two of them routinely devour a gallon ziplock full of treats each week.

Hayride Happenings

The quirkiness and downright quaintness of this neighborhood never cease to amaze.

On Friday night, my friend invited me to a party at her house and a "hayride". I had no idea what I was getting myself into, but I went.

It turns out that the Heights has a resident--Paul Carr--who will come to your house, pick you up in his tractor pulling a trailer (with hay seats), and drive you around the neighborhood to marvel at the lights. For free.

Paul got the idea back in the 1980s. He offers this activity every Friday and Saturday night between December 1 and 22. My friend called and made a reservation for Friday, December 11, the night before Lights in the Heights.

We dressed nice and warmly due to the dropping temperatures (I thought we lived in the sub-tropics?), and grabbed our beverages. The trailer accommodates up to 30 people and is decorated with white Christmas lights that cast a warm glow.

Paul asks for a "designated rider" to be in charge of the whistle. This person blows the whistle whenever the group would like to stop. On our jaunt, we spotted the leg lamp (if you've seen the movie, you know exactly what I'm talking about). Although we didn't do any caroling, we did ooh and ahh at quite a few different houses.

I highly recommend this quirky and quaint experience. What a hoot! If you're interested, you can call Paul at 713.869.0505 or e-mail him at torturet@aol.com.

Heights Snapshot: Neighborly

Saturday, December 5.

Roughly 5 pm.

W Temple at Norhill

Ray and his two sons are heading out for a bike ride to Antidote. On the corner, they are stopped by their neighbor Harry. Harry and his wife, Stephanie, have lived in in the same house on W Temple for over 45 years.

Moms' Holiday

There are a lot of events in The Heights. Monthly we have First Saturdays. We have White Linen Night and annual home tours. The Holiday season is even more active. Holiday on 19th, Mistletoe Madness, the holiday home tour and Lights In The Heights. When the season starts, The Heights puts on its festive best.

However, there is one annual event that gets minimal notice outside of one small social circle. Well, maybe not so small. Heights Kids Group has over 600 families. That's some social circle. And one night a year 40 moms from the group have a night out and get treated like A-listers.

This was my 3rd year attending "the event"- it doesn't really have a snappy title like "Mistletoe Madness." It's just the monthly Moms' Night Out. However, December is the only MNO the group has where we end up with a waiting list. It goes like this:

Shade provides a 3 course special menu, along with Happy Hour wines by the glass, for 40 people. First 40 to RSVP get their seats. The rest go on the waiting list. A couple spots will always pop up at the last minute, though. Having kids will do that...

Before dinner we get the Oprah treatment, with several stores on the block staying open late exclusively for us. Hors d'oeuvres are passed and drinks served as we shop for gifts and trinkets for ourselves. Sometimes a discount is offered.

Heights Moms getting some private time to shop for themselves or others. Noshies and drinks were served at several 19th St merchants who stayed open late for the group.

After shop/nosh/drink is over, everyone meets at the bar at Shade and waits to be seated. We get a corner of the restaurant to ourselves and fun goodie bags (I guess they're called "Swag bags" by real A-listers) from 19th St merchants.

The tables at Shade set with goodie bags

Gifts, gift certificates and discounts for Heights shops

The set menu starts us out with a green salad and finishes us with a trio of mini desserts. In the middle, there are 3 lovely entree choices. This year there was a vegetarian plate with things like chicken fried asparagus, a shrimp and scallop pasta, and a pan roasted chicken breast. I had the chicken and it was excellent. I think you have to do something really right to make a chicken breast special and Shade does. I have had it on their lunch menu several times and it's excellent every time.

My pan roasted chicken breast

One thing that is nice and interesting about this night is many people come in little groups to shop and eat together. But several people will just show up on their own, knowing that they have at least one thing- motherhood- in common with everyone else. Whether moms come alone or with friends, everyone ends up sitting at large tables and inevitably you meet someone new (or put a face with a name you see post on our forum). It's a great social event. It's fun, good food and a little something extra for moms that really makes us feel special. And we all deserve that.

Mixing with friends and meeting new ones

On a side note: My husband and I took my brother to Shade when he was here for Thanksgiving. We had something great to drink that night and I couldn't help order this amazing bottle to share with my friends at dinner. Want an earthy, sumptuous but easy to drink red wine? Order this Washington state Grenache (90% Grenache, 10% Syrah) from K Vinters: The Boy. You won't be disappointed.

Heights Happenings: Dec 9-15, 2009

It's that time again: Lights in the Heights! This is by far the event the Heights is most known for and even the reason some people choose to live here. While there is a lot to do and see listed on the LITH page linked above, we do want to mention one special tidbit: Visit OoLaLa and Tulips & Tutus; both stores will be open from 10 am to 10 pm and offering a 20% discount all day if you mention their Holiday Code “Deck the Halls”(some exclusions do apply). So, use the discount and shop local!

December 7- 11: 7th Annual City of Houston Holiday Curbside Food Drive

• The City of Houston Solid Waste Management Department (SWMD) and the City Wide Club are co-sponsoring the 7th Annual Trash and Treasure Curbside Food Drive, benefiting the 31st Annual Christmas Eve Big Feast held at the George R. Brown Convention Center on December 24.
• By placing canned goods, non-perishable food items or toys in a grocery bag at the curb on your SWMD garbage collection day during the week you can help feed hungry families this Holiday season.

Saturday, December 12, 4-6 pm: Mathew Rosas book signing and reading at Heights Books-Libros

Monday, December 14; 7:00pm: Houston Heights Association’s Holiday Mixer and Toy Drive

• Bring new toys, a bike, books, or games to put under the HHA Tree!
• Come celebrate with homeowners of the 2009 Holiday Home Tour, Chairs Katrina Stilwell & Amy Brooks, and some of their volunteers.
• Music, Mixing, & Holiday Cheer! Everyone is invited!
• LOCATION: The Historic Houston Heights Fire Station and City Hall, 12th and Yale Streets

Tuesday, December 15; 5:00pm: Prepare and Distribute Food Baskets

• Heights Rotary and the Houston Heights Association annually underwrite, prepare, and distribute food baskets to local families in need, chosen by area charities. You can help assemble and distribute the goodies on December 15 and 16.
• One hundred baskets (actually sets of six bags) will be assembled on the first floor of the Fire Station. Volunteers will be assorting bulk groceries among the baskets for two or three hours; come whenever you can.
• Delivery starts after lunch (approximately 12:00 noon) on Wednesday, December 16. Come by the Fire Station to pick up a set of bags and the name and address of the family to receive them; if you have a large car or a van, pick up several! Delivery should be completed that afternoon. If you are interested in lunch, BBQ plates are available for $10 (cash only) beginning at 11:00 am.
• Please help us make the holidays brighter for local families in need.

OUTSIDE THE HEIGHTS:

Thursday, December 10, 6 pm: The Mayor's Holiday Celebration

• This is rescheduled from the original December 4 date, which was cancelled due to weather.
• The show will be on the upper plaza at City Hall, 901 Bagby from 6:00 - 8:00 p.m.
• The Mayor's Holiday Celebration is a long-standing tradition with music, festivities, fireworks and the lighting of the official holiday tree.
• FREE

Friday, December 11th, 7 pm: MAWFashion with Hello-Lucky

• Angelo’s Houston is pleased to announce the 1st Annual MAWF [Music, Art, Wine and Fashion] Show with local artists and designers working collaboratively and benefitting the Houston Salvation Army.
• The fashion shows will begin at 9pm.

The Guest Bed Conundrum

For some folks in The Heights, the guest bed situation is not a conundrum. Some of you, undoubtedly, can devote an entire room to the comfort of your guests. Lucky you!

Others of us don't have that luxury. Some of us have kids and/or home offices that fill up any extra bedrooms we have.

What about me? Well, I live in a meager two bedroom, one bath house. As a first-time home-buyer whose income comes squarely from the non-profit sector, my partner and I could only afford a comfy, cozy little place in The Heights. We don't have kids yet, so our extra room houses our home office (and a chair for our bloodhound to curl up in). The room isn't big enough to contain a real bed, and we don't have house guests that often.

However, we enjoy when friends come to visit (our families generally opt for B&Bs in the neighborhood), and when they do, we want them to be comfortable.

So, what are some options for comfortably housing guests in cramped quarters? Here are a few we've explored:

1. Air Mattresses: Air mattresses are, theoretically, the ideal solution. When fully inflated, they can be incredibly comfortable. There are even double-decker air mattresses that offer the promise of even more comfort and a more authentic bed experience. Plus, when you let the air out, they are small enough to stow away in the corner of a closet (or a cabinet, if you're not so blessed in the closet department). I say "theoretically" because we have never had good luck with air mattresses, after years of trying. Even after doing extensive internet research to identify highly-recommended brands and models, we still end up with guests who are almost sleeping on our wood floors in the morning, due to constant leaking. Ouch!
2. Murphy Beds: Murphy beds are an interesting solution. They are real beds that fold up into a cabinet when they are not in use. This option is great for converting an office into a veritable guest bedroom in a matter of minutes. The major downsides are cost and aesthetics, although this one from hacked IKEA parts is pretty cool.
3. Fold-Out Couches & Futons: Apparatuses that primarily serve as seating but then swoop in to function as beds as needed can be quite handed. Matt and I looked into the West Elm couch above, as well as some options at IKEA. In the end, we realized we basically don't even have space for a couch/futon with a full-size mattress.
   

So, we opted for a hybrid solution. We decided to buy a futon mattress but store it under our bed when it wasn't in use. We figured it would provide the best of many worlds: affordable, comfortable, storable.

Well, it turns out that a $139 futon mattress from IKEA is quite fluffy. Too fluffy, in fact, to store under our low-to-the-ground bed.

Oy vey.

The search for more storage space in a small house began.

We do have ample closet space, but we don't have a garage, so our closets already store our bikes, lawn mowers, etc. We tried the attic, but a futon really is a lot like lugging around a dead body. It became too perilous too quickly.

Our last resort was to store it under one of the tables in our office. Of course its bulky, beige mass is aesthetically traumatizing under there, but we have a solution. The plan is to hang a suspension rod between the legs of the table and hang some fabric from it. Voila!

Any other creative solutions for making guests comfy in a small home?

Heights Happenings: Dec 2-8, 2009

As if Heights Holiday Home Tour and Mistletoe Madness aren't enough, here are some other fabulous things to do in and around The Heights this week:

Saturday, December 5, 10am-4pm: The Underground Arts Market

• A place to buy beautiful things: Original Art * Handmade Soaps * Culinary Delights * Unusual Gift Items * and much more!
• Artists include: Kelly Conaway, Stephanie Lienhard, Chicago Kim, Susan Lewis Storey and many more!
• 10am-4pm, 802 Rafallen

Saturday, December 5, 12 Noon- 6pm: Craftidote

• This 1st Annual craft market at Antidote Coffee will feature unique handmade crafts by local Houston artists. Craftidote seeks to feature the creations of the rich local artist base in Houston. Artists will be selling handmade t-shirts, ceramics, photos, knitted hats, baked goods, and handbags.
• 729 Studewood St.
• Admission is free.
  

Saturday, December 5, 6- 8pm: The Ggallery invites you to an early reception for the"Blast India" exhibition

• Please join Ggallery to meet the artists and enjoy early viewing.
• Food generously donated by Anita Jaisinghani,Chef and Proprietor of Indika Restaurant
• Show runs from December 5, 2009 thru December 28, 2009
• 301 East 11th Street
• Want more information? Contact Wayne Gilbert 713-822-4842

Saturday, Dec. 5, 7pm and Sunday, Dec. 6, 11 am: The 19th annual St. Mark’s United Methodist Church Christmas Pageant

• The event features beautiful Christmas music, hand bells, a narrated presentation of the Christmas story with live animals and neighborhood children as little angels and shepherds.
• This is a free event for the community. Church volunteers provide cookies, cider, hot chocolate and water. The performance and refreshments are free. Donations are gratefully accepted. The program lasts about an hour – this includes caroling.
• Chairs are set up on the lawn. Spectators are welcome to bring blankets (to sit on or to stay warm) and/or folding chairs.
• Please join us for this wonderful, moving Christmas celebration outdoors on the church lawn at 600 Pecore.

Now thru Dec 17: Nick's Plumbing collecting toys for MDA Children's Cancer Center

• Nick's Plumbing & Sewer Services is excited to announce that they are a drop site, collecting toys for MD Anderson's Children's Cancer Hospital.
• Nick's is asking you to get involved in the giving spirit! From now until December 17th they will be collecting toys at their office location: 1420 N. Durham.
• Toys must be brand new, unopened and factory sealed.
• These kids are fighting everyday to stay strong and focused while receiving their treatments. Some of these kids are far from home and have very little to no family here while at the hospital. These families have stretched their finances to the limits in getting their children the best medical care possible. Let's help make their Holiday a Happy One..even the smallest of toys can help!

December 7 - 11: 7th ANNUAL HOLIDAY CURBSIDE FOOD DRIVE TO BENEFIT FAMILIES IN NEED

• The City of Houston Solid Waste Management Department (SWMD) and the City Wide Club are co-sponsoring the 7th Annual Trash and Treasure Curbside Food Drive to benefit the 31st Annual Christmas Eve Big Feast held at the George R. Brown Convention Center, 1001 Avenida de las Americas, on December 24.
• By placing canned goods, non-perishable food items or toys in a grocery bag at the curb on your SWMD garbage collection day during the week of Houstonians will help contribute to needy Houston families.

OUTSIDE THE HEIGHTS:

TONIGHT! Wednesday, Dec 2, 7 pm: The TUTS Sing-A-Long screening of The Sound Of Music at the Angelika Film Center

• Fox was able to obtain one of the few remaining 35mm prints of this family classic! Join us for this wonderful sing-a-long event!
• With interactive prop bags and costumes encouraged, viewers will have confetti party-poppers for the climactic first kiss between Maria and Captain von Trapp and a souvenir invitation to the Captain's Ball, among other fun and interactive items.

Friday, December 4, 6-7:30pm: The City of Houston and KHOU-TV present The Annual Mayor's Holiday Celebration

• The show will be on the upper plaza at City Hall, 901 Bagby
• The Mayor's Holiday Celebration is a long-standing tradition with music, festivities, fireworks and the lighting of the official holiday tree. Reliant Energy is returning as the Official Tree Sponsor and Reliant is responsible for supplying an energy-efficient tree by using LED (light emitting diode) lights.
• The event is free and open to the public. Come watch our famous skyline come to life with music, lights and fireworks!

A Community Artist

The Heights has a lot of unassuming heroes--like the graffiti buster who helps restore the neighborhood or the woman who selflessly tends to the roses on Heights Blvd.

There's another unassuming hero at the corner of Euclid and Norhill, diligently piecing together a beautiful and intricate community bench in her front yard.

Elena C. Wortham, an artist from Mexico City who has been living in The Heights for more than 15 years, decided to create a community bench in her front yard to encourage folks from the neighborhood to stop by and enjoy the view of the park.

In Mexico City, Elena explained, many of the homes have large walls around them. However, once you enter through the gate, you are welcomed wholeheartedly. In the U.S., by contrast, many of the homes don't have any walls out front. However, there's like an "invisible barrier" that keeps neighbors from visiting each other.

The bench is her way to build community. All are welcome to use it for comfort, rest, and connection. In the time I spent talking with Elena, I found exactly that. I learned about the history of her home, her grandchildren, and other public art projects she's undertaken throughout Houston. I even got a tour of her home and studio--two stories of natural light, bookshelves, and a studio nestled in the backyard garden.

The bench mosaic is made from leftover pieces from Elena's previous projects. She uses cookie cutters to obtain the circle shape, and her grandchildren have contributed specific animals.

Heights Holiday Shop-o-rama, Part 3

Kids. I believe in the end people who are buying for kids- their own or someone else's- are the busiest shoppers during the holidays. My brother wants to go to Toys R Us Friday and get the boys' presents before he heads back to D.C. Ummmmm. No. The parking, the pushing, the crying, the assaults. The last thing I want is to be at a toy store on Black Friday. Well, unless it's one in The Heights. I have several Heights businesses tell me "We don't have a Black Friday" which is both good and bad. I, personally, will be able to enjoy shopping without the insanity of the mall but our wonderful local merchants won't have an onslaught of new business either. So, I will direct my brother to one of these great stores and we'll certainly find something for both of my kids and some of the others we need to buy for.

I have 2 kids, both boys. In the past I have been forced out of the neighborhood due to a conspicuous lack of boyish toy options. However, I definitely did not have this issue on my recent shop trek.

Jubilee is probably one of the girliest stores ever, but there is a certain kind of kitsch that belongs to the boys: ROBOTS. From this fun, fun, fun robot hat to wind up toys for stocking stuffers (and I know some grown men who would love these as well), Jubilee had lots of offer the Puppydog Tails pack.

Shamelessly getting to show off my Wee One again. In robot knit hat. Too cute!

Wind up robots, assorted sizes and styles from $22

$5 wind up toys are perfect stocking stuffers

Olive Anne and The Pink Pokka Dot. Yup, full on girlie, but I guess they have also realized that there are a lot of boys around. While many boys might not be having a birthday party in the Pokka Dot room anytime soon, there are certainly some great gifts that most boys would love. (Gasp- I forgot to take notes on prices for Olive Anne. Sorry!)

Cars and blocks that make noise = boy heaven.

Finger puppets make another great stocking stuffer

If you have an expectant mom or newborn on your list, Olive Anne has some great baby keepsake gifts

For a new little boy. Similar offerings, plus some, in pink.

And I wouldn't want you to think they still didn't offer all-things-sugar-and-spice!

In addition to my own boys, I have 2 nephews and 4 nieces to buy for. Two nieces live in Austin and they are 12, both to turn 13 within the next 2 months. You know how "tween" girls are- they like stuff. Context on 19th is a great option for such stuff. While it looks like a "boutique" it's actually pretty affordable. I must disclose, Context is not "local" as defined by The 3/50 Project. They are owned by a local company who specializes in "boutiques" though, so money does stay in our local economy.

Costume jewelry selection to rival Forever 21 start at $5.00

Scarves and more scarves

Cute jackets like this are in the $60-70 range. Not Walmart prices, but less than you would expect at a boutique. Cute as a splurge item for my tween nieces.

And we can't forget the other kind of children that live in The Heights: Our four legged ones! Teresa at Urban Dog has treats and deals for your furry tail wagger. In addition to all the great toys and treats, Teresa offers 5% off first time bag-food purchases.

For the Foodie Pooch, homemade snacks for their doggy stockings.

A fun variety of beds, bowls, and balls

The Best Seller: Sam's YamsSweet Potato Dog Chews are all natural, human food grade and highly nutritious.

Happy shopping, friends and neighbors.