Café Con Monica -

Three on Thursday!

October 25, 2018

Another Thursday post of Favorites thanks to Steph @ Not Entirely Perfect

Devacurl Ultra Defining Gel…Im kind of obssessed now. I was not taking all that great care of my hair for a while out of pure laziness. So when I got it cut last month I promsied myself I would do better. I started using this gel and I love it. It holds, it doesn’t leave my hair super crunchy and it 100% does not make my extra oily which is great since I only wash it 2x a week.

Tiffs Treats…I love cookies. Its a real problem. This place delivers warm freshly made cookies to you. THEY DELIVER!! People send them as gifts all time and they are so freaking good. I have gotten them by the dozen as gifts from parents at work and I basically need to swear off cookies or I will never lose a pound. My favorites are the chooclate chip and the peanut butter chocolate chip!

Libby, by Overdrive….My friend K recently introduced this to me and it has been so helpful! I still have my Chicago Public Library account and recently got my Texas Public Library card so I can use both of them on the app and get my books all in one place. I also love the combo of audio and e-books and it helps me keep track of all them too!

What are your favorites this week?

Austin Eats: Part Tres!

October 24, 2018

You guys know this! I really do. So i’m sharing some of the great food we have had in Austin!
You can find my previous Austin Eats post here!

On to the yummy food….

Piranha Killer Sushi – We were in the mood for sushi but also wanted to go to the Beto rally afterwards so we decided on this place. It was pretty good. Not amazing but we would probably go back if we were downtown and wanted sushi! I do want to try their happy hour though!

Perla’s Austin – While my friend K was in town we managed to hit quite a few happy hours and while strolling around South Congress we decided to get some lunch at Perla’s. It was fantastic and expensive so 100% do happy hour there!

This is Pozole!

Grilled Octopus

Loro – Another of the stops while K visited. We had some of their $4 boozey slushies during happy hour, went somewhere else for more drinks then went back for dinner! This place might be one of my favorites in Austin! I can’t wait to take A to try it because I know he will love it!

Left to Right: Thai Green Curry Sausage w/Papaya Salad, Char Siew Pork Belly, Edamame, Char Siew Pork Belly Bowl, Crunch corn Fritters, more papaya salad

The Doughminican – We found this food truck in a park I had passed a couple times. Sooo glad that we stopped because the food was delicious…also the name is fun!

Empanadas w/salad

Beef w/rice, plaintains, beans, salad & avocado

La Barbecue – On a quest to try all the sushi and BBQ places in Austin so, of course, I tried this place. The wait wasn’t too bad (about 20 mins) and the food was pretty good. I am sort of obsessed with their potato salad it was so good!!

Brisket Sandwich, slaw, potato salad, El Sancho Loco sandwich and ribs

There are a few more but I think I’ll save them for the next round!

If you find yourself in Austin check out these places, you won’t regret it!

Bookish Questions: Q&A

October 22, 2018

http://www.amindfulmigration.com/some-bookish-questions-for-me-and-you-too/#comment-3350

I saw this and I had to share. We all know I love to read and have been putting books on my list for my entire life. I think I have honestly read more than anyone I know IRL…not in the blogging world though because some of you are light years ahead of me!

Hardback or trade paperback or mass market paperback? I prefer a paperback or ebook. Always. Hardbacks usually take up too much space and also I bend my books up and can’t do that with a hardback.

Amazon or brick and mortar? Hmmm well I like to usually get my books from the library or a book store. If I am going to buy an actual book I like to buy them at a brick & mortar store otherwise everything else gets put on the kindle.

Locally owned bookshop or big name chain store? It definitely depends what I am looking for but I always check the local bookstores and goodwill before I buy it at a big name store. Does Half Price Books count as big name?

Bookmark or dog-ear? Both but more often dog-ear which I know people are like OMG but my books get used and abused but still loved.

Alphabetize by author or alphabetize by title or random? My books are in order by size. I don’t have any interest in organizing them otherwise…although I think A might have alphabetized them when we moved into the new place. They are stacked on each other, in front of each other..just a mess.

Keep, throw away, or sell? I used to have about 200+ books before the “great breakup of 2013” and then I donated/sold to Half Price all but my favorites. Now I try to keep it to one bookshelf…although as I mentioned they are overflowing! My kindle currently has 1000+ books on it though.

Keep dust jacket or toss it? I don’t toss it but I take them off while I read and then put it back on when they get to the shelf.

Read with dust jacket or remove it? Oops answered that already!

Short story or novel? Novel. always.

Collection (short stories by same author) or anthology (short stories by different authors)? I don’t like short stories, never have so I try to avoid them but if I am stuck reading something with short stories I prefer anthologies.

Stop reading when tired or at chapter breaks? OOhthis is hard. So I will not stop until I have to so usually I keep pushing to at least get to a chapter break but sometimes I just can’t keep my eyes open anymore.

“It was a dark and stormy night” or “Once upon a time”? Both. But I like “It was a dark and stormy night” better than happily ever after.

Buy or borrow? Now that I am trying not to hoard books I borrow as much as I can. If I love a book Ill buy it. If im dying to read it and im #2347 in the library then I will buy it.

New or used? I will always try to get a used book simply because I want to pay less. BUT there is something nice about a brand new book.

Tidy ending or cliffhanger? I like a tidy ending unless the book is in a series and the next book in the series is already out. I HATE when i finish a book and realize its part of a series and the next book isn’t out for months. I also get super angry and endings that don’t make any sense so there is that.

Morning, afternoon or nighttime reading? ALL the time. Anytime I have a free moment I am trying to read. I do most of my reading in the evening but I also read almost every day during lunch.

Single volume or series? I love a good series but I also think single volume books are awesome.

Favorite series? OOh this is hard. I love HP, Anita Blake Series, Sookie Stackhouse, The Chronicles of Narnia, Hunger Games..I have to think of more

Favorite books read last year? Hmmm the Alice Network is top of my list, I really liked Crazy Rich Asian series, The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, The Good Daughter…

Favorite books of all time? Ok. so again HP, the Anita Blake series, A Map of the World, The Doctors Wife, Of Mice & Men….Im blanking but there are many more.