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International Women’s Day Celebration Week! March 4-8, 2013 A week of benefit shopping nights for Austin nonprofits, plus the 5th Annual International Women’s Day Awards. Know a local woman changemaker? Nominate her at: austin.tenthousandvillages.com/IWD
The Future of The Future of San Antonio’ s Southside
San Antonio’s Southside
YOURYOUR NEWNEW HOME BASE HOME BASE
benefiting Dell Children’s Medical Center of Central Texas
Chaired by: Mary Miles and Owen Temple
Saturday, January 26 | 6pm Austin Convention Center Grand Ballroom
cocktails | dinner | dancing | casino To purchase tickets or for more information: 512.324.0170 | www.dellchildrensgala.com
Underwriters: Vent-A-Hood | Milestone Distributors
Audi North Austin & Audi South Austin | Austin Pediatric Surgery | Austin Vein Institute, Office of Dr. Chris Brennig Capitol Anesthesiology Association | Emerson Process Management | EZCORP Four Seasons Hotel Austin | H-E-B | Milton Verret | ‘Specially for Children
After Party Trio at Four Seasons Hotel Austin | 11pm to 2am
cocktails, late-night fare, live entertainment, dancing and more
BMW 3 Series
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See Car and Driver ’s exclusive BMW 10Best content. Simply download the Digimarc Discover app and scan this 10Best icon. ©2013 BMW of North America, LLC. The BMW name, model names and logo are registered trademarks.
Contents Ja n ua ry
T:10”
B:10.5”
The evolution of 60 an urban animal
Laura Cisneros on playing dirty, training green and getting tough. By Rachel Merriman.
Feature Photo by Cody Hamilton.
S:9.4”
On the Cover
Time 68 This around...
Three women take a detour from their careers to pursue the jobs they’ve always wanted. By Meng Qi.
austinwomanmagazine.com 11
Contents ja n ua ry
52 on the scene
44 home Refreshing a room from basic to beautiful. 78 money matters Knowing your credit score.
22 5 things you must do this month
gourmet
26 philanthropy
Dell Children’s Gala.
28 Around town Photos from Austin events. 32 making headlines Ruthie Foster gets another Grammy nomination.
50 healthy eating Gluten-free dining.
84 technology How Facebook changed
52 dining Chic Thai at Sway.
friendships.
to your health 58 wellness Thyroid awareness.
must list
opposite sex
36 personal space Make your own creative area.
72 memo from JB Hoarders, Austin edition.
38 on the bookshelf Stick with Exercise.
74 Relationships Back in the saddle.
style
savvy women
40 now trending Revive your look.
76 just passing through Gretchin Rubin of
12 Austin Woman j a n u a r y 2 0 1 3
86 personal best Thirty-one days of enough. 88 last word My 2013 resolution.
56 fitness Focus on nutrition.
34 Horoscopes Happy birthday, Capricorn.
42 fitness Flashy and functional workout gear.
Crain talks home remedies.
The Happiness Project.
on the cover Photo by Cody Hamilton. Hair by Sam Hawkins, Avant Salon, avantsalon.com, 512.472.6357; Makeup by Lauren Lumsden, Rae Cosmetics, raecosmetics.com, 512.320.8732. [on the cover] Asics bra, $42; Nike Dri Fit black tank, $28; Soleus Chicked watch, $55, available at Luke’s Locker, 115 Sandra Muraida Way, suite 102, 512.482.8676. [previous page] Bula top, $50, available at Luke’s Locker, 115 Sandra Muraida Way, suite 102, 512.482.8676. Lululemon black Groove pants, $98, available at Lululemon, 1016 W. Sixth St., 512.474.2659.
Photo by JoJo Marion.
24 spotlight event The Lion King returns.
80 all the right questions Jennifer
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Volume 11, issue 5 Co-Founder and Publisher
Melinda Maine Garvey vice president and Co-Publisher
Christopher Garvey Co-Founder
Samantha Stevens Executive Editor
Deborah Hamilton-Lynne Art Director
Victoria Millner ad designer
Jennifer Day art assistant
Kristen Bramblett marketing and operations director
Sadie Barton marketing and operations associate
TEXAS EXECUTIVE MBA TEXAS EVENING MBA
Arielle Levy Account Executives
Erin Bracken, Kimberly Sanderson, Charmie Stryker, 512.328.2421 associate editor
Molly McManus contributing editor
Julie Tereshchuk copy editor
Chantal Rice Contributors
Rudy Arocha, Vicki Lynn Bohls, Kathy Bolne, Malia Bradshaw, Jill Case, Susie Davis, Allie Eissler, Sonya Feher, Ryann Ford, Adam Fortner, JB Hager, Cody Hamilton, Robert Hopper, Christine Imperatore, Chrissie Jarrell, Caleb Kerr, Eric Leech, JoJo Marion, Deborah Mastelotto, Molly McManus, Rachel Merriman, Meng Qi, Sarah Quatrano, Shelley Seale, Kristi Willis, Leigh Anne Winger, Natalie Yerkovich Interns
Malia Bradshaw, Amory Casto, Jean Yoo, Leigh Anne Winger Austin Woman is a free monthly publication of AW Media Inc. and is available at more than 1,150 locations throughout Austin and in Lakeway, Cedar Park, Round Rock and Pflugerville. All rights reserved. For submission requirements, visit awmediainc. com/contribute. No part of the magazine may be reprinted or duplicated without permission. Visit us online at austinwomanmagazine.com. Email us at info@awmediainc.com. 512.328.2421 • 3921 Steck Ave., Suite A111, Austin, TX 78759
If you are passionate about succeeding in business, advancing or changing careers and building your professional network, the McCombs School of Business encourages you to earn your MBA at The University of Texas at Austin. Our collaborative learning environment prepares graduates to become influential business leaders in a wide range of industries and organizations. TAKE THE FIRST STEP - ATTEND AN INFORMATION SESSION:
Executive MBA session: Tuesday, January 8th, 2013 | 6:30 pm Register at: TexasExecutiveMBA.info Evening MBA session: Wednesday, January 16th, 2013 | 6:30 pm Register at: TexasEveningMBA.info All sessions held at the AT&T Executive Education and Conference Center MLK & University Avenue
TM
From the Editor
deborah hamilton-lynne Executive Editor
Photo by Korey Howell.
I
am in love with words and have been throughout my entire life. I collect and often read dictionaries from different years to see how the meanings of words have changed. Words are powerful and filled with emotion and meaning. New year, new you! Those words have different meaning for each of you, so I thought I would take a look at some words associated with the new year and what they mean to me. Resolved. What a very powerful word. Meaning “determined in purpose,” “resolved” was the first word in the first salvo of the Revolutionary War: “Resolved, that these united colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent states.” And so looking at 2013, I suggest we do not make New Year’s resolutions that are often quickly forgotten, but that we resolve to make powerful resolutions. Take advantage of all the opportunities that come our way and live life to the fullest each and every day. I suggest we be determined in our purpose and committed to being the best we can be individually and collectively. Hope. Another powerful word often associated with the new year. I began to write this letter on the day following the tragedy in Connecticut, flooded by the images of the children and the sadness, yet my mind kept coming back to hope and the power to believe that each dawn is another chance to get it right. Although the dawn of Jan. 1 harkens a fresh start, each dawn brings hope and a chance to strengthen your resolve. Strength. Our cover woman, Laura Cisneros, is the epitome of strength in all its forms: physical, mental and emotional. In addition to physical power and mental toughness, strength is also defined as a source of support. In that sense, I hope AW and this issue in particular can support you, encourage you, educate you and help you realize your goals throughout 2013. Change. Meaning “to make or become different,” change is usually implied in resolutions in some manner. Successful and long-lasting change requires commitment and risk taking as seen in the stories of three women in our second feature who resolved to pursue their passions by making radical career changes. Change is a theme throughout the issue: gluten-free dining, getting your finances in order, eating healthy, getting fit, freshening up a tired room, using natural remedies for illness, letting go of stuff and getting happy. You may not keep your resolutions, but one thing is certain: Change will be part of your life in 2013. It is how you cope with change that will determine the success of your resolutions. You. I tend to favor the informal definition of the word “you,” that which refers to the personality of the person addressed or the suitability to express it, as in, “Love the dress. It’s so you.” I believe that to succeed, you have to put the “you” in to your resolutions. As you contemplate the changes you will make in 2013, look to your heart and trust your gut as to what is really “you.” What are your hopes? Take an honest look at your strengths and begin your statement with purpose and determined commitment. Resolved… At AW, we have resolved to bring you the best and the brightest Austin has to offer. It is our privilege to share your hopes, dreams and strength of purpose. What are your resolutions for 2013? Let us know how we can help. We would love to hear from you. All the best in 2013!
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Contributors adam fortner is a photo stylist and the owner of Creative & Sons. After a career in the magazine industry, he returned to Austin when he realized he could combine his love of architecture, objects and photography in to a career. His work has appeared in magazines from Austin to Japan and a few places in between. Several years, many clients and tons of beautiful photos later, he thinks he might be on to something. This year, he joins us as our home-and-design expert and hopes to inform and inspire us with a variety of topics ranging from products and stores to architecture, interiors and artisans. This month, he made over a room for one lucky Austin Woman reader. See the new look on Page 44.
Malia Bradshaw is a native Austinite and a recent graduate from St. Edward’s University, where she received a bachelor of arts in psychology. A lover of all things creative, she is pursuing a career in writing and currently interns at Austin Woman. Being gluten-intolerant herself, she was ecstatic to write this issue’s article on dining gluten-free. She enjoys the exciting (and often challenging) adventure of finding the best gluten-free restaurants in town and trying new recipes.
Jojo marion was born and bred in the Heart of Texas, and gained his professional chops at the Brooks Institute of Photography in Santa Barbara. Working in the great city of Austin since 2008, JoJo focuses on mobile, web, print design and photography. He is working hard on carving his own path in the creative world. JoJo is honored to be a contributor for Austin Woman magazine. You can see his work for this month’s issue on glutenfree dining and the opening of Sway, beginning on Page 50. rachel merriman is a freelance writer and recent graduate of St. Edward’s University. While she misses the smell of Moody Hall and sitting under the Sorin Oak on sunny days, she’s quite happy to be graduated. She wishes she could say writing the cover story for the New Year, New You issue inspired her to make some new fitness goals for 2013; alas, her New Year’s resolutions are to update her food blog at least once a week and work toward selfpublishing her own cookbook. See more of her work at rachelmerriman.com.
net
Bur Rd
Congrats, Petunia! Winner, Austin’s Best Pet Photo Contest 2012 6 year old American Pit Bull Terrier adopted by Holly L’Italien Learn how you can help Austin Pets Alive! austinpetsalive.org Book your pet portrait in January 100% sitting goes to APA! koreyhowellphotography.com/blog
On the Web austinwomanmagazine.com
set sail with mickey and minnie The Disney Magic is now sailing out of the Port of Galveston, Texas. We’ve got the scoop from AW Publisher Melinda Garvey, who’ll report on her fun-filled family adventure.
Cosmetic & Holistic D e n t i s t r y Comprehensive care with a personal touch...
1 2 2 1 W . B en W h i t e B l v d . , su i t e 1 1 0 A
can’t miss event b Architects of Air Luminarium returns to The Long Center Jan. 19 – 27. Get
your tickets to this amazing adventure, which sold out in 2010. The Luminarium is a sculpture that envelopes people in the beauty of light and color. The experience is one that children and adults alike will always remember. AW has the inside scoop on this labyrinth of color.
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Food b Celebrity chef and author of the bestselling cookbook Blackbird Bakery Gluten-Free, Karen Morgan teams up with Tito’s Vodka to create a glutenfree chocolate-lover’s delight. AW checked in with Morgan for tips, glutenfree recipes and how to begin the new year with a gluten-free diet.
Fitness b Laura Jack of findyourhealthstyle.com gives tips for getting healthy in 2013, juicing and journaling exercises to set goals for the new you. b Join the fitness revolution. Tony Whatley, co-creator of the online health community fitbehavior.org shares the personal stories of real people 40 and older making the effort to alter their behavior and improve their health. Be inspired by success stories of real people and their fitness comebacks.
AW Insider Shopping Tips b Inspired by a visit to Afghanistan, Connie Duckworth founded the nonprofit
Arzu Studio Hope, which seeks to uplift Afghan women from the cycle of poverty through steady employment, education and health care. Products range from handmade rugs to peace cord bracelets. Learn more about her mission. To find these articles, visit the table of contents page at austinwomanmagazine.com.
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on the scene /
5 Things you must do this month
Austin Symphony Orchestra Presents Yefim “Fima” Bronfman
The Austin Symphony Orchestra presents Grammy Award-winning pianist Yefim Bronfman—the perfect way to relax after the holiday season. Bronfman’s talent is impeccable. Performing worldwide, he is well known for his enchanting solo recitals in the leading halls of North America, Europe and the Far East, including Carnegie Hall and Avery Fisher Hall. During his performance at The Long Center, Bronfman will perform Brahms’ Piano Concerto No. 1 in D Minor as well as Brahms’ Tragic Overture and Britten’s Sinfonia da Requiem. Austin’s Maestro Peter Bay will conduct the evening’s performances. The Austin Symphony Orchestra invites attendees to begin their evening at 7 p.m. with a pre-concert talk by Bob Buckalew. Tickets are $23 to $54 and available at austinsymphony.org.
15th-Annual Home and Garden Show
Third-Annual Austin Gorilla Run 5K
Jan. 11, 2 to 7 p.m.; Jan. 12, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Jan. 13, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Palmer Events Center, 900 Barton Springs Road
Jan. 19, 9 a.m., RunTex, South First Street and Riverside Drive
Start your new year off inspired to improve your home and garden by attending the 15th-annual Austin Home and Garden Show. The showcases will include garden, landscape and water features, the latest trends in kitchen and bath, a home-improvement zone, pools, spas and sunrooms, outdoor living, interior design, home technology, fixtures and hardware, furniture, and an art and gourmet area. There will also be limited giveaways, so make sure you get in on the goodies early! The show will include an appearance by Jason Cameron, host of DIY Network’s Desperate Landscapes and Man Caves. Cameron is a licensed home-improvement contractor, carpenter, personal trainer, writer, TV personality and fitness model, and his seminar is sure to entertain. Tickets are available onsite. Adults 17 and older are $8.50, and 16 and younger get in free. Seniors 65 and older and retired military are $6. Active-duty military get in free. For more information, visit austinhomeandgardenshow.com.
22 Austin Woman j a n u a r y 2 0 1 3
Get your gorilla on and kick off your new-year’s fitness resolution by running a 5K in downtown Austin. Who doesn’t love running a race in a gorilla costume? The Austin Gorilla Run is a charity run in which anyone can participate. Gorilla suits are provided with the registration fee, complete with body, mask and hands. And you can keep your suit after the race! The Gorilla Run helps raise funds for the Mountain Gorilla Conservation Fund, the international charity working to save the world’s last remaining mountain gorillas. Children and adults are invited to participate, so make it a family outing or invite your colleagues to be a part of race day (the biggest team of gorillas receives an award). Cost for first-time adult gorilla is $99.95; returning adult gorilla, $50; first-time little gorilla, $50; returning little gorilla, $35. For more information, visit austingorillarun.com.
Text by Leigh Anne Winger; top photo by Oded Antman; bottom photo by Catherine Jackson.
Jan. 11 and 12, 8 p.m., Dell Hall at The Long Center, 701 W. Riverside Drive
No Other School Teaches Them To
SHINE
Into the Sacred City: Tibetan Buddhist Deities from the Theos Bernard Collection
Like This.
When you choose Catholic School for your children, you surround them with a community that shares your faith and your values. Here, your children will learn to shine – with a light that they will carry with them into the world.
Jan. 9 through 13, Blanton Museum of Art, 200 E. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. Discover a new a sense of spirituality to begin the year by joining the Blanton Museum of Art as it presents a spectacular ceremony and sand-art creations by Tibetan Monks visiting from the Drepung Loseling Monastery. They will create a five-foot sand mandala within the museum’s Rapoport Atrium. As the monks construct the sand painting, the sense of beauty will be awe-inspiring, illustrating a unique and exquisite splendor as millions of grains of sand are laid into place. The art will exhibit multiple layers of meaning and spirituality. Throughout the ceremony, the monks will bring life to the audience through the consecration, assembly and distribution/destruction of the piece. The sequences of events are as follows: Opening ceremony, Jan. 9: Ceremonial chanting and music, line drawing for the mandala; Jan. 10 and 11: Sand painting continues; Jan. 12: Join monks for a talk on the meaning of the sand mandala to understand how the artwork brings creative energy in to life; Closing ceremonies, Jan. 13: Sand painting completed and disassembly of sand painting. Monks will sweep up the colored sand and distribute half to the audience and place the remainder in an urn to be dispersed in Waller Creek. Visit blantonmuseum.org for more information.
TEE OFF
WITH ATX MAN! The first year of ATX Man was par for the course and year two is in full swing. Join us as we tee off at River Place Country Club to eat, drink, and chip in for 18 Austin charities.
APRIL 29 th, 2013 River Place Country Club
MomCom Austin Jan. 26, 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., The Oasis, 6550 Comanche Trail MomCom Austin is an event that brings together creative, working and entrepreneurial moms who are looking for a community of likeminded women to kick off the new year. The ambiance of The Oasis will provide for a wonderful day of informative sessions that offer an opportunity for women to connect with other successful mothers in Austin. Speakers at the one-day event include Ari Brown, pediatrician and author of the 411 parenting books; Bernadette Noll and Carrie Contey of Slow Family Living; Elaine Garza, principal of Giant Noise Public Relations; Laura Guzman, entrepreneur and somatic psychotherapist; and Barb Steinberg, teen life coach. Find motivation and inspiration while connecting with the mom community of Austin at this year’s event. Register online through Jan. 20 at momcomaustin.com.
GOLF CLASSIC 2013 18 HOLES FOR 18 CHARITIES.
Sign up to receive details at
ATXMAN.COM/GOLF Sponsorship opportunities available! Contact golf@atxman.com
Elementary Schools (PK-8) in your area: St. Austin Catholic School Cathedral School of Saint Mary St. Gabriel’s Catholic School St. Helen Catholic School, Georgetown Holy Family Catholic School St. Ignatius, Martyr Catholic School St. Louis Catholic School, Austin St. Theresa’s Catholic School Santa Cruz Catholic School, Buda High Schools in your area: San Juan Diego Catholic High School St. Dominic Savio Catholic High School St. Michael’s Catholic Academy Learn about Catholic Schools in the Diocese of Austin
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www.CSDATX.org
on the scene /
spotlight event
The lion king returns Simba. Zazu. Timon. Pumbaa. Everyone’s favorite Disney characters return to the stage this January for the musical phenomenon that will delight the whole family. The African Pridelands and its beloved animals are brought to life by Director Julie Taymor in this Tony Award-winning Broadway production of The Lion King. In its 15th year, The Lion King continues to entertain audiences, recently becoming the highest-grossing Broadway show in history. Can’t get enough? Hakuna matata! Throughout the show dates, several campus and community-engagement events will be hosted for the public, including a brown-bag lunch by company members, a presentation in puppet and costume construction, and a dance master class. For more information, visit texasperformingarts.org.
B See the complete January calendar of events at austinwomanmagazine.com.
24 Austin Woman j a n u a r y 2 0 1 3
Text by Malia Bradshaw; photo by Joan Marcus.
Jan. 16 through Feb. 10, Bass Concert Hall
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on the scene /
philanthropy
Dell Children’s Rockin’ for the Cause One of the first social events of 2013 brings hope and health to life.
Betty Staehr at a shoe drive with donor.
By Christine Imperatore Dell Children’s Medical Center presents its annual gala Jan. 26 at the Austin Convention Center, with a few new elements to bring a truly Austin feel to the evening.
Chairs Owen and Mary Temple
“We want to communicate to folks in Austin through our gala theme—‘You’—that though you may not be a surgeon … it’s you, you are able to perform surgery through your involvement and gifts to this organization,” Temple says. “It may not be your hand giving the medicine, but it’s you, your gifts of time, ideas and resources.” Complete with live and silent auctions, a casino lounge and a delicious dinner created by Iron Chef champ Kent Rathbun, the gala begins at 6 p.m., and sponsorship opportunities are still available. More information can be found at childrensaustin.org/cmcf.
Every year the gala raises more than $1 million for the Dell Children’s Medical Center and more than 142,000 yearly patients from a 46-county area. This year’s event will be no different. The money raised will help the hospital to continue to save and change the lives of so many Central Texans. “We are so thankful that we have been able to learn so much about the hospital and meet so many of the people that make this amazing place possible,” Temple says. “We are proud to help tell the story of this place and the story of you, the people who serve our community here.”
Frontera Fest celebrates its 20th anniversary. With everything from live chickens to wild dancing to the most offbeat theater you have ever seen, Frontera Fest is five weeks of edgy, alternative theater. The Austin American-Statesman called Frontera Fest, “the fringe event of the Southwest.” Produced in collaboration with Scriptworks, a group dedicated to supporting and encouraging emerging playwrights and developing new dramatic works, Frontera Fest will run Jan. 15 through Feb. 16. The Short Fringe at Hyde Park Theatre presents a bill of four to five 26 Austin Woman j a n u a r y 2 0 1 3
short pieces running no longer than 25 minutes each. The Long Fringe at Salvage Vanguard Theater features longer works of 90 minutes or less, with work from emerging playwrights and cutting-edge choreography. Improv comedy, monologues, works in progress, quirky dance and music—you never know what to expect of this most quintessential festival doing its part to feed our creative spirit and Keep Austin Weird. For tickets and more information, visit fronterafest.org.
Photo courtesy of Mary Miles Temple.
“As a new component of the gala this year, we are incorporating live music in to the program. Hayes Carll, members of the Band of Heathens, members of the Trishas and other special guests will be performing songs and helping us tell the story of this hospital,” says event co-chair Mary Miles Temple. Temple and her husband, Owen (a songwriter himself ), have been diligently working on creating an entertaining evening. The gala brings together more than 1,000 donors and medical care providers who have and will continue to help the efforts of Dell Children’s Medical Center. “Dell Children’s Medical Center has touched all of us in Austin, whether it has been the child of a neighbor, a friend, or our own little one,” Temple says. This year’s event will work to raise money to support the growth and development of the hospital, as well as new treatment plans for patients. The focus will be on “you,” meaning anyone who has done their part to help the effort.
Ce le brating wome n
We are proud to ce le brate all the achie ve me nts of wome n past, pre se nt, and future . Whe n women succeed everybody wins. Wellsone Farof goour is p70+ rouAustin-area d to celebralocations te Austinfor Waom an financial Magazinreview. e. Visit free Just come in for a few minutes. We’ll go over your financial accounts and help you determine whether you are making the most of your money. Make an appointment today, and let us help you start planning for tomorrow.
Stop by a Wells Fargo location to talk with a banker today. wellsfargo.com Š 2012 Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. All rights reserved. Member FDIC. 480113 10/12
Clint Hackney, Sandra A. Martin, Carol & Bruce Almy at Austin’s Dancing with the Stars. Photo by Alia Michelle Alsaffar.
ON THE SCENE / AROUND TOWN
Matt Stewart & Carol Adams dancing at Austin’s Dancing with the Stars. Photo by David Wheeler.
Wendy Harvey & Mike Topel perform at Austin’s Dancing with the Stars. Photo by David Wheeler.
Chef Andreas Exarhos of Trento busy at work at the AW holiday launch party. Photo by C. Thompson Photography.
Taletha Jouzdani & Clayton Aynesworth at Austin’s Dancing with the Stars. Photo by David Wheeler.
AW holiday launch party. Photo by C. Thompson Photography. Tje Austin at the AW holiday launch party. Photo by C. Thompson Photography.
Bethany Hegedus, Dean Lofton, Chief Art Acevedo, Deborah Hamilton-Lynne and Hunter & Meredith Ellis at the AW holiday launch party. Photo by C. Thompson Photography.
Thank you, Travis County, for approving Proposition 1. You’ve given your neighbors the opportunity to have access to preventive, primary, specialty, dental and behavioral health services that they wouldn’t have been able to get for lack of health coverage. Proposition1 will allow Central Health to more than double your investment and improve the delivery of healthcare for all who live in Central Texas.
www.CentralHealth.net
Michael & Haley Cihock, Dr. Carlos & Gilda Tirado at Femmes for SIMS. Photo by John Leach and Jerry Hayes.
ON THE SCENE / AROUND TOWN
Choreographer Sassy Delure, with dancers Lady Luck and Lilly LaFleur, performing at Femmes for SIMS. Photo by John Leach and Jerry Hayes.
Heart & Sole Luncheon. Photo by Erik Fossum.
Donna Stockton-Hicks, Sheri Krause and Emily Greer at the Heart & Sole Luncheon. Photo by Erik Fossum.
Nina Diaz performs at Femmes for SIMS. Photo by John Leach and Jerry Hayes.
Performers at the Heart & Sole Luncheon. Photo by Erik Fossum. Ramona and Stephen Finos at One Reason Art Show. Photo by Bernadette Castillo.
Kitty Bird and volunteer Alice May Berthelsen at One Reason Art Show. Photo by Bernadette Castillo.
“I already had type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol when I developed sleep apnea. That’s what finally made me decide to have the weight loss surgery. The support I received from Dr. Basa and her staff was wonderful. They were always there when I needed them. Today, I’ve lost 85 pounds. All those health problems are history. And I’m down to a size 6. I’m so happy with the difference it’s made.” To find out more about our Bariatric Weight Loss Surgery Program, or to attend a free seminar that could change your life, call 512-528-7317 or visit CedarParkRegional.com.
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12/17/12 12:13 PM
Austin Woman is proud to support The First Tee of Greater Austin’s
YOUNG LEADERS NETWORK The Young Leaders Network (YLN) is an exclusive organization for emerging business and community leaders in Austin. To learn more about membership or corporate sponsorship opportunities, contact Natalie Bornowski at 512.236.1001 or natalie@jhlcompany.com.
To learn more about The First Tee of Greater Austin, visit us at TheFirstTeeAustin.org/yln Twitter: @FirstTeeAustin Facebook: Facebook.com/firstteeaustin
aw AUSTIN WOMAN MAGAZINE
on the scene /
making headlines
Ruthie Foster Goes for Two Second Grammy nomination for AW cover woman comes for Let It Burn. Ruthie Foster’s latest album is “a captivating blend of soul, blues, gospel, New Orleans funk, folk, rock and R&B,” according to the Los Angeles Times. And Recording Academy members agree, nominating Let It Burn for a Grammy for Best Blues Album. Produced by Grammy Award-winning producer John Chelew, Let It Burn features a smoky mix of original songs, along with inventive interpretations of an unexpected collection of covers ranging from Adele to Los Lobos, and The Black Keys to Johnny Cash. Also on board as special guests are gospel legends The Blind Boys of Alabama and Stax Records soul man William Bell. Recorded in New Orleans, this CD showcases Foster’s vocal skills sans her signature guitar. Foster concentrated solely on her vocals, allowing her to improvise and stay relaxed and open. Foster created new arrangements and made the familiar songs included on the CD her own. “This CD was pure serendipity,” Foster says. “I carried the idea for it around in my head for years and it finally just happened exactly the way I hoped it would.” Add this nomination to Foster’s list of achievements, which include Austin Music Awards’ Best
32 Austin Woman j a n u a r y 2 0 1 3
Folk Artist in 2004-2005 and Best Female Vocalist in 2007-2008, a 2009 Grammy nomination for Best Contemporary Blues Album and recent back-toback Blues Music Award wins for Best Contemporary and Best Traditional Blues Female Artist of the Year. Awards will be presented at the 55th-annual
Grammy Awards ceremony at the Staples Center in Los Angeles Feb. 10, and AW will be watching. Congratulations and good luck to our 2008 AW cover woman. For more information on Ruthie Foster and her Grammy-nominated album, Let It Burn, visit ruthiefoster.com.
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on the scene /
horoscopes
Happy birthday, Capricorn! Dec. 22–Jan. 20 Your year: This year’s focus is on daily work, co-workers, to-do lists, chores, productivity, physical fitness and feeling useful. Go ahead and set big, ambitious physical goals for yourself and then go achieve them. Expect more clients, more productivity, more achievements and more excitement in your professional life, but maybe also more weight gain. That’s why I recommend Wheat Belly: Lose the Wheat, Lose the Weight, and Find Your Path Back To Health, by Dr. William Davis. He witnessed more than 2,000 patients regain their health after giving up wheat, so Davis wrote a book about it, and it just could be the most important book you read this year.
➺
This time of the year, we like to be able to see a little bit in to the future to make the next year a little more productive (and less stressful), so we’ve suggested a reading assignment for each sign, and these recommendations apply until July 26, 2013. This year, the focus is on your local community, communications, elementary-school level knowledge, small-town thinking, siblings, cousins and extended family, foreign lands, mass media, long-distance travel, universities, global awareness and freedom. After July 26, our focus shifts to our definition of home. Aquarius (Jan. 21–Feb. 19): Creativity is your ticket this year. It’s the answer to every question you can ask, so I think the book that just may be the ticket as well is Austin Kleon’s Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative. The conclusions Kleon reaches may truly surprise you, but you can expect an inspiring, hip, original, practical and entertaining book filled with new truths about creativity. Here’s a startling fact: Nothing is original. So he suggests you embrace the concept of influence, collect ideas, remix and re-imagine your own path.
your communications. Work on your skills. Make every e-mail, phone call, text and face-to-face interaction count. Get the book Messages: The Communication Skills Book, by Matthew McKay, Ph.D.; Martha Davis, Ph.D.; and Patrick Fanning. It’s helped thousands cultivate better relationships with friends, family members, coworkers, partners and even at chance meetings. You’ll discover new skills to help you communicate your ideas more effectively, and even become a better listener.
Pisces (Feb. 20–March 20): This year, good things happen in your home and with your family. Great, right? So, I’m thinking you might get lots of use out of a new book, Young House Love: 243 Ways to Paint, Craft, Update, and Show Your House Some Love, by home-improvement bloggers Sherry and John Petersik. It’s a book full of projects, tricks and techniques, plus photos, easy instructions and great ideas, perfect for do-it-yourselfers of all levels, but also great if you get someone else to do this stuff for you.
Taurus (April 21–May 21): You’re known for your frugality and your appreciation of the finer things in life, so 2013 is going to be an amazing year for you money-wise, with lots of room for financial variety and diversification. The trouble is you are also known for being a little set in your habits and daily routines. That’s why I suggest you study The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business, by Charles Duhigg. The author studies how people achieve success by focusing on the patterns that shape every aspect of our lives, and you’ll get help with your patterns as well.
Aries (March 21–April 20): This is such a busy year for you, but the most important thing you can do for yourself and those around you is to manage
Gemini (May 22–June 20): It’s all about you this year—who you are, what you want, what’s important to you. That’s the reason it’s so vital that
34 Austin Woman j a n u a r y 2 0 1 3
you be very clear about what you want for yourselves (there are two of you in there). Along these lines, I suggest you read The Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond Yourself, by Michael A. Singer. Singer examines the notion of self and the inner dialogue we all live with, and leads you to examine where and how you spend and manage your energy. He effortlessly teaches you how best to manage that energy as it flows through you. Cancer (June 21–July 22): The best thing you can do for yourself this year is research, discover and uncover what usually stays hidden so it doesn’t control you without your consent. That’s why I recommend the book Subliminal: How Your Unconscious Mind Rules Your Behavior, by Leonard Mlodinow. He’s the bestselling author of The Drunkard’s Walk and co-author of The Grand Design, the book he wrote with Stephen Hawking. It’s startling and eye-opening to discover how our unconscious minds shape our perceptions and experiences. You’re good at self-examination, so this book is going to help you have an interesting year. Leo (July 23–Aug. 23): Groups, organizations, clubs and friendships are lucky for you this year, as long as you embrace variety. It might be a good idea for you to take a look at a different way to handle these things, so grab the book Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln, by Doris Kearns Goodwin. Lincoln was brilliant at collecting a variety of people and working with organizations. He brought his disgruntled opponents together to create the most unusual cabinet in history, and marshaled their talents to the task of preserving the Union and winning the war. Sounds like a task you’d enjoy, right? Virgo (Aug. 24–Sept. 22): It’s a peak career year for you, and you’re going to be very busy, so it’s important to manage this rocket-like trajectory correctly. I recommend you study Robert Greene’s new book, Mastery. With Mastery, he picks up where his last book, The 48 Laws of Power, left off, distilling years of research and original interviews to discover the universal ingredients and qualities that are present in the world’s masters, no matter which profession. That’s one thing
that is special about you Virgos: You all pursue excellence with OCD fervor (actually pursuing perfection can make you frustrated). Libra (Sept. 23–Oct. 22): You may have to deal with extreme changes at home, heavy financial responsibilities at work and unexpected surprises in your relationships, but no worries, magic follows the pursuit and development of your higher mind. Overseas travel, exotic locales and higher education should be your primary pursuit this year. You could really maximize this year by reading Super Brain: Unleashing the Explosive Power of Your Mind to Maximize Health, Happiness, and Spiritual Well-Being, by Deepak Chopra and Rudolph E. Tanzi. This book can help you be brave and fearless as you expand your gray matter. Scorpio (Oct. 23–Nov. 21): Trust and sharing, intimacy and fidelity. These things benefit you in 2013. Regardless of your industry, expect your profits to increase, especially if you share. You can also expect to deal with inheritances, wills and/or insurance, loans, lotteries and taxes. But, the dark truth is you’re always fascinated by death and the afterlife, and this year, those things are in your face. So you’ll love a New York Times bestseller, Proof of Heaven: A Neurosurgeon’s NearDeath Experience and Journey into the Afterlife, by M.D. Eben Alexander III, a fascinating account of a cynical doctor experiencing a near-death experience. Right up your alley. Sagittarius (Nov. 22–Dec. 21): I always say that you’re hold-thatthought switch is permanently broken and everything that pops in to your mind comes out of your mouth, which can cause conflicts in your personal relationships. This year, however, you have an opportunity to really expand and improve your relationships. Everyone can use help, though, so try reading Conflict Free Living: How to Build Healthy Relationships for Life. In this book, author Joyce Meyer describes the destructive effects that conflict and dissension can have on your life, and shows you how to recognize and change the result. By Deborah Mastelotto deborah@pinkaustin.com
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must list /
personal space
Design a Room of Your Own How to make 2013 the most creative year of your life. By Sonya Feher Austin is a creative town full of creative people, but you wouldn’t know it by looking at our houses. Most homes don’t have a dedicated space for creativity—unless it’s a drawing table in the kids’ playroom. Where is the creative space for the grownups? At a dark table in the corner of the garage surrounded by whatever else we can’t make room for in the house. Or in a closet, where, to create, you’re staring at a wall and have your back to the room. What about that novel you wanted to write? The tubes of paint drying out in your closet? Maybe you always wanted to learn how to make stained glass, sculpt stone or throw a pot. So, how can you make 2013 the most creative year of your life?
Think about what kind of creating you would like to do. You might want to make jewelry, design clothing, weld metal sculptures or something else. Sit down and make a list of all the creative things you would either like to try or that you already know how to do and want to make time for again. Post the list on the fridge, the bathroom mirror or the inside of the front door.
Determine what you need. b Do you need to take a class? b What kind of space do you need? b How about equipment? b How often do you want to be able to do your creative work? For how long? Knowing what we need space-wise, time-wise or in the way of classes or materials may not be half the battle, but it’s a good start. Then you’ve got a wish list and can go about fulfilling it.
Make space for creativity. Think about how you use the space in your home. You probably have a guestroom or home office
36 Austin Woman j a n u a r y 2 0 1 3
that’s underused or a dining room where no one eats. Find a place to be creative that is easily accessible, well lit and a pleasant room to be in. Your back porch may offer the natural light you need to sketch. You might want to take an ACC class that would offer a kiln so you don’t need one at home.
energy for is Facebook. Making an appointment for your creative time and putting it on your calendar will ensure that you show up for it. Schedule a two-hour block one night a week, or take every Saturday morning so the kids can go out for brunch with Dad and you have the house to yourself. Even 20 minutes of dedicated time each day can yield Know yourself. extraordinary results. You’ll realize you don’t really Clarifying what inspires you and what distracts need to watch TV on Tuesdays, and that you could you will help. If setting up workspace in the living create a monthly crafting group instead of that room means you’ll end up watching TV or talking happy hour, or that if you go to bed at 10:30 instead to your partner rather than creating, opt for a difof 11, you have the energy to wake up earlier and ferent space; put yourself someplace where you start your day by being creative. can be inspired and productive. This is about more than just making a new year’s resolution to be more Make time for creative. It means giving creativity. time and energy to what Learn to design a creative space. Many aspiring you value. Taking the time Sonya Feher will teach the class A Room creatives only get to to honor your creativity of One’s Own: How to Create an Inspiring their work after the and truly make space for it and Productive Writer’s Haven for the kids and everyone else in your life is how you will Writers’ League of Texas Jan. 19 from have gone to bed and make 2013 the most cre1 to 4 p.m. For more information or to the house is quiet. ative year of your life. You register, visit writersleague.org/calendar/ Then you’re so tired can’t just resolve to do it. aroomofonesown. that all you have the You have to actually do it.
must list /
on the bookshelf
StickWith The 7 Steps
ExErcisE
Step 1: Have fun! Hopper guides readers to summon theirnew passions choosing This groundbreaking approachin to health embraces a “workout” as your choice—anything from lifetime activities. Revel ping-pong, bowling, soccer, and golf to hiking, snow- in a boarding, Zumba dancing, and more. In eight easyhundred different recreation to-follow chapters, this step-by-step guide covers: and leisure options ranging ➽ The seven best practices to “Finally! The for tosolution ballroom guarantee exercisefrom success kayaking the millions of people who know they should get more dancing, archery exercise, but haveto yet tobicycle find ➽ How to make the mental shift a way to accomplish it. from “working out” to having fun Dr. Hopper’s riding, bocce ballsimple, toyet highly effective approach allows anyone—of any age ➽ How the exercise secrets of top in reap addition to or ability—to the wellathletes can work backpacking, for you known benefits of increased exercise. A gold medal work!” the tried-and-true standbys ➽ How to discover and empower your own inner athlete of swimming, tennis and golf. ➽ How to find plenty of guilt-free As the new year looms, forget one of the Forget the drudgery and get time for your favorite sports most commonly made resolutions: Get➽more onteam your How to build a winning that dancing shoes.
Learn to exercise for a lifetime and love it.
od y b t wo s d e A ella r o usi ontr W e er S m M r o imm Ji F h Sw ach i t list Co c W eda mpi d M Oly Gol and
Don’t Resolve to Exercise in 2013
RobeRt HoppeR’s
A PersonAl Wellness ProgrAm
Stick With E x E r c i s E For A Lifetime
Stay active for a lifetime with exercise physiologist and wellness expert
michAel FrAmberger
robert hopper, phd
Certified Wellness Speaker, Author of Get Happy, Get Healthy, Be Wealthy—It’s Your Choice!
robert hopper, phD
been doing so well and suddenly you’re hit with the temptation to start slacking off on your routine. This is what Hopper calls the championship moment, a term coined when he was coaching college athletes. He offers four essential strategies for giving your healthy self the edge over that little voice that urges you to hit the couch with a bag of chips. These include the psych-up, the self-con, mental toughness and visualization.
exercise in 2013. It’s time to make a different ➽ The key techniques for overcoming kind of commitment if you want to stick to to yourStep Additional Tips the new challenges exercise plan 2: Get a coach. Think Formula For Fun and an exercise routine after the first few weeks only the Michael Phelpses of Understand the difference Vitality of 2013. For millions of Americans, the the world have coaches? Think between health and fitness. holiday visions of sugarplums are followed again. Your most valuable The two are often used by visions of better health in the new year. asset, a coach is any teacher, interchangeably, but they It’s why so many of us resolve to, yet again, instructor or class leader who guides the development of are not synonymous. Lowered blood pressure, restart and maintain an exercise program. your lifelong exercise program. Hopper reveals what to duced stress, a dip in cholesterol and a reduced risk Unfortunately, by the time February arrives, look for in a coach, what questions to ask and how to get of serious illness are health benefits that accrue most of us find ourselves back where we the most out of your coaching sessions. from exercise. You can get them from low-impact, were in years past, avoiding exercise and leisurely activities like bocce ball or even gardenfeeling guilty and frustrated. Step 3: Get on a team, even if they don’t call theming. Fitness benefits, such as muscle toning, flexsupports your exercise goals
In Stick with Exercise for a Lifetime: How to Enjoy Every Minute of It!, Robert Hopper, Ph.D., a former swimming champion and exercise physiologist who has helped hundreds of adults reach their fitness goals, has a surprising take on just why that is. “While visions of improved health and fitness can get most of us started on an exercise program, they’re notoriously weak motivators over the long haul. Fun is what really keeps us motivated. The more pleasure we get from a physical activity, the more likely we are to stick to it,” he says. The current guidelines of the American College of Sports Medicine include an alternative to the traditional fitness program, allowing participation in less vigorous activities, roughly comparable to dog walking. Psychologists at the University of Wales found “the well-being and enjoyment benefits of exercise should be emphasized.” “Physical activity is an elixir of life,” notes research investigator Michelle Segar at the Institute for Research on Women and Gender at the University of Michigan, not “a punishment for bad numbers on the scale.” In Stick with Exercise for a Lifetime: How to Enjoy Every Minute of It!, Hopper offers seven steps to enjoying exercise for life, and reaping the health benefits that flow from it. “Health and fitness are not the overt goals of this program, rather they are the natural byproducts of it,” he says.
38 Austin Woman j a n u a r y 2 0 1 3
selves one. Working with a formal team or league, joining a class or getting involved with a group of people who exercise together offers companionship, support and an opportunity to socialize. All of these help to make exercising what it should be: fun. Step 4: Take time. Making exercise a priority means making time for it. Hopper offers a three-phase plan for gradually integrating exercise in to your daily life. He also offers lots of handy tips and tricks for protecting your exercise time. Step 5: Supplement your “main dish” activity with a “side dish” fitness program. When you reach the intermediate skill level, you may well develop a desire for greater strength and stamina. Hopper shows how this new motivation for fitness, such as weight training or Pilates, can give you the physical boost to become a better surfer, skier, dancer, tennis player, etc. Step 6: Lose yourself in the zone of continuous improvement. Athletes know of the addictive power of improvement, how it keeps them growing and getting better. Hopper explains the nature of this healthy passion with the Getting Better Cycle, a loop that keeps you enticed and involved in exercising for a lifetime. Step 7: Use the psych-up and the self-con. Win at championship moments. We all know the feeling. You’ve
ibility and greater endurance can be gained from more rigorous activities. If you don’t want to climb mountains or run marathons, don’t worry, there’s still plenty that you can do to reap the health benefits of regular activity while having fun. You don’t need to be a great athlete to learn from one. Stick with Exercise is peppered with examples of how great athletes like Michael Phelps and Dara Torres stick to their training regimens. Few of us will compete in the Olympics, but the mental and physical strategies of Olympians can help us stay on track. Hopper distills the secrets of great athletes and makes them applicable to the rest of us.
Robert Hopper has assisted thousands of adults in realizing their exercise goals. The author and wellness speaker’s previous books include the bestselling textbook The HSA Strategy (2006) and Healthcare Happily Ever After (2007). Hopper attended Ohio State University, where he won an NCAA swimming championship and set the American record for the 200 individual medley in 1965. He earned his Ph.D. in exercise physiology in 1977 at the University of Southern California. His lifetime sports include golf, bicycle riding, walking and skiing.
style /
now trending
Revive Your Look Bold and trendy pieces are the perfect way to give your wardrobe basics new life.
a feminine touch
Coral scarf, $14.97, available at Charming Charlie, 3220 Feathergrass Court, 512.339.2848.
cropped hues Green cropped blouse, $39.90, available at Langford Market, 249 W. Second St., 512.482.8500.
Photos by Caleb Kerr
glam goddess DG white sunglasses, $10, available at Blue Elephant, 4001 N. Lamar Blvd., suite 510, 512.371.3259.
print it out
Printed pants, $39.95, available at H&M, 11410 Century Oaks Terrace, 512.873.0375.
arm candy
Gold-plated Marquise bangles, $120, available at Anna Gray, 6317 Bee Cave Road, 512.328.6600.
statement shoe
Jeffery Campbell horsehair boots, $200, available at Stella Says Go, 500 N. Lamar Blvd., 512.524.5020.
40   Austin Woman j a n u a r y 2 0 1 3
style /
fitness
Turn on the Brights Flashy and functional pieces are the go-to gear for a workout in style.
Nike Volt sunglasses, $89, available at Luke’s Locker, 115 Sandra Muraida Way, 512.482.8676.
Photos by Caleb Kerr Mountain jacket, $159, available at Title Nine, 500 N. Lamar Blvd., 512.322.9902.
Made by an Austin-based company. Handana sweatband, $15, available at myhandana.com.
Leave your wallet at home! High-impact sports bra, $42, available at Texas Running Company, 9901 N. Captial of Texas Hwy., 512.795.2022.
Nathan Vitaband, $20, available at Texas Running Company, 9901 N. Captial of Texas Hwy., 512.795.2022.
Lifefactory glass water bottle, $25, available at Title Nine, 500 N. Lamar Blvd., 512.322.9902.
Cargo tote, $70, available at Title Nine, 500 N. Lamar Blvd., 512.322.9902.
CW-X tights, $100, available at Luke’s Locker, 115 Sandra Muraida Way, 512.482.8676.
Nike fly-knit racer, $150, available at Texas Running Company, 9901 N. Captial of Texas Hwy., 512.795.2022.
42 Austin Woman j a n u a r y 2 0 1 3
Recognize these? They e debuted at th London Olympics.
Made from repurposed wool scraps.
Nuun electrolyte drink tabs, $6.95, available at Texas Running Company, 9901 N. Captial of Texas Hwy., 512.795.2022.
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style /
home
Room Refresh Design expert Adam Fortner takes one AW reader’s office from basic to beautiful. By Adam Fortner, Photos by Ryann Ford Homeowners Rob and Lesley Guthrie moved in to their Northwest Austin home shortly after they married in 2000. After renovations in much of the rest of the house last year, their home office remained unfinished and its renovation was on hold indefinitely—until Lesley decided to enter Austin Woman’s roomrefresh contest. Luckily, her room was chosen for a new-year update. Located next to the master bedroom and bathroom, the room has served different purposes throughout the years, first as a nursery for their two children and then as a home office. After the kids moved in to their own rooms, the office was furnished with a small hand-medown desk and side table, but it wasn’t suited for getting much work done. “Our office desperately needed a refresh,” Lesley says. “The color was all wrong and the furniture wasn’t functional.” Lesley escapes to the room first thing in the morning. But Rob, who sometimes works from home, was using the dining room for his office. “The dining room is the epicenter of our home, so it was difficult keeping two very active children quiet while conducting conference calls,” Rob says. I wanted to give the Guthries a warm, inviting office to serve as an all-around workspace, as well as a place to escape in those early morning hours. Working with contractor Gary Ramirez of GPR Pro-Construction, Warren Clark of World Interiors and IKEA of Round Rock, we gave the room a fresh new look. The result: “We love our transformed home office and we are so happy to have a refreshed room that is both stylish and functional.” -Rob and Lesley Guthrie
44 Austin Woman j a n u a r y 2 0 1 3
Before
Working with Warren Clark of World Interiors, we selected the colonial plantation desk for the space so Lesley and Rob could spread out. The desk is handcrafted from solid mango wood. “Mango wood has the beauty and durability of an exotic tropical hardwood, and is also an ecologically renewable resource. Mangos are the most common fruit tree in the world, and once the trees stop bearing fruit, they are harvested for their lumber and replanted. Mango is ideally suited for furniture in that it has a density and hardness similar to cherry or walnut,” Clark says. The Lara Chair serves as a desk chair and is upholstered in an easy-care gray linen fabric.
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style /
home
Room Refresh: The Details
IKEA’s Emmie Kvist curtains were the jumping-off point for the room. The bold pattern looks like a traditional floral but has a more modern graphic punch in gray and navy. The cotton/linen blend and white field add lightness to the space in contrast to the darker walls.
measure up The vintage carpenter’s folding ruler serves as an unexpected small document holder. It can be used to keep notes handy or as a place to display pieces to show off. Unfolding the ruler provides more length, but keeping it folded gives dimension. 46   Austin Woman j a n u a r y 2 0 1 3
Replacing pulls and handles on furniture is a quick and easy update, and one of those details that really brings a room together. Prismatic Spring pulls in blue from Anthropologie were used to customize the mango wood desk. The navy stoneware knobs with a crackled glassy surface give the desk even more sophistication and are an unexpected hit of color.
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style /
home
Room Refresh: Color and Lighting neutral zone Contractor Gary Ramirez scraped the heavily textured ceiling, added recessed lights to replace the basic central fixture and painted the walls and trim. The paint color is Sherwood Tan by Benjamin Moore. It’s a great neutral, but it has depth and richness that really warm up a room. A smaller room like the office can handle richer, darker hues, which give it a coziness that makes the room inviting.
“Our office desperately needed a refresh,” Lesley says. “The color was all wrong and the furniture wasn’t functional.”
signature pieces The solid mango wood Texas Ranch plasma cabinet from World Interiors was placed on the wall behind the desk. Its substantial size offers great storage and a large surface area for spreading out. The central glass-doorfronted shelves—intended for media components—make a great display area. On top is a large Songe mirror from IKEA, placed to reflect light from the room’s one window. An Aläng table lamp adds ambient lighting and a West Elm lacquered wood tray in silver holds decorative pieces that can easily be moved when more workspace is needed.
Before
For task lighting, IKEA’s Roxmo lamp fit the bill. The translucent spheres and silver finish bring some sparkle to the room while navy grosgrain ribbon trim added to the top and bottom of the shade give it a custom look and tie it in to the room’s color scheme.
48 Austin Woman j a n u a r y 2 0 1 3
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healthy eating
Going Gluten-Free
The Grove’s Grilled Patagonian Salmon with Cilantro Rice, Farm-toTable Vegetables and Salsa Verde Sauce
The best places in Austin for all your favorite glutenfree dishes. By Malia Bradshaw, Photos by JoJo Marion Gluten-free. If you haven’t already made the dietary change yourself, you’ve seen GF on labels, as separate menus at restaurants, or you know a friend or relative who adheres to the no-bread restrictions. So what’s all the fuss about? Gluten, a protein found in wheat, barley and rye, can cause an array of health issues in certain individuals. The diagnoses can range from light gluten sensitivity or intolerance to a severe autoimmune disorder called celiac disease. For these individuals, the only treatment is a GF diet. While the symptoms of gluten-related health issues vary among individuals, signs of intolerance often include gastrointestinal problems, such as bloating, stomach pain or diarrhea. Other symptoms may include anemia, fatigue, depression and bone or joint pain. True to Austin’s reputation as a progressive city, many local restaurants combat this allergy by offering a large range of GF choices. Try one of these notable gluten-free spots for a wide variety of tasty options.
The Grove This charming wine bar and kitchen, located on Bee Cave Road, provides a casual neighborhood spot where you can sit on the porch under the towering oaks while
Best of the Rest Desserts Bee’s Knees Bakeshop: Entirely gluten- and dairyfree baked goods. Gourmet cupcakes, pies, cakes and muffins, along with breakfast and lunch. 109 Cypress Creek The Steeping Room: Several items can be made
GF, such as the crème brûlée, chamomile almond torte and a tea cookie plate. 11410 Century Oaks Terrace, suite 112 Wildwood Bake House: Everything prepared is GF, including cookies, cupcakes, pies, sweet breads, casseroles, granola and more. 3016 Guadalupe St., suite 200
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sipping a refreshing glass from their seemingly boundless wine list. It’s also a place to satiate your appetite for gourmet versions of your breaded favorites, whether bruschetta, pasta, pizza or panini—all offered as GF. Beth Selbe Lasita, who co-owns The Grove with restaurateur Reed Lemons, says the idea to provide GF options came about from having several friends with
Pasta Gusto Italian Kitchen: GF fusili is available for all pasta dishes, as well as GF pizza dough at this chic wine bar. 4800 Burnet Road Trento 360: A great date spot with plenty of GF options, such as the spaghetti alla carbonara and the rigatoni Bolognese. 3600 N. Capital of Texas Hwy.
Vespaio: Offers elegant Italian dishes with many items that can be substituted with GF pasta. 1610 S. Congress Ave.
town spot with great prices and GF sides. Try the Congress Avenue Burger on a GF bun. 800 Congress Ave.
Burgers Bartlett’s: This intimate favorite provides a separate GF menu. Add a GF bun to burgers and sandwiches. 2409 W. Anderson Lane
Hopdoddy Burger Bar: A popular burger joint with hormonefree beef and a lively atmosphere. Ask for a GF bun when ordering. 1400 S. Congress Ave. and 2438 A W. Anderson Lane
Hickory Street: A pleasant down-
celiac disease or who were conscientious of gluten. After incorporating a few GF options to the menu, The Grove has evolved in to a GF hot spot, now offering about 80 percent of their menu as GF and serving 25 to 30 percent of their customers as GF. The restaurant continues to work toward integration of GF and regular dishes. Managing Partner Matt Berendt says they’ve tried to make as many things GF as possible so there doesn’t have to be a choice; it’s just GF to begin with. For example, all of the salad dressings are now made GF for every order. “We’ve had a lot of positive feedback about trying to not make it an inconvenience and singling someone out
at a table. We try and make it easy,” Berendt explains. For first-time visitors, Berendt and Selbe Lasita suggest one of The Grove’s specialty pizzas as the GF must-try. In fact, these pizzas are what spawned the
The Grove’s Grilled Patagonian Salmon with Cilantro Rice, Farm-to-Table Vegetables and Salsa Verde Sauce (pictured left) Salmon Ingredients: 1 six-ounce filet Patagonian salmon or any species of wild salmon (seasoned with sea salt and cracked pepper) Directions: On a hot seasoned grill, place seasoned salmon flesh-side down for three minutes. Next, turn salmon 45 degrees and cook salmon another three minutes until medium rare.
The Grove is the perfect place to take a date or frequent with a group of friends. Enjoy a bottle of wine with your hearty meal, never having to question it being GF. “That is exactly the experience we hope to get, that [customers] didn’t think twice about what was happening, that they didn’t notice Vegetables Ingredients: there was a difference in the 1 small squash, diced food. That’s the best kind 1 small zucchini, diced of compliment we can get,” 1 carrot, medium-sized, diced Berendt says. 1 shallot, sliced “And all of our wine is 1 Fresno chili, sliced gluten-free!” Selbe Lasita 1 ear of fresh corn, grilled jokes with a laugh. 1 tablespoon olive oil The Grove, 6317 Bee Cave 1 garlic clove, sliced Road. For more information, Directions: In a sauté pan over visit grovewinebar.com. medium heat, add oil and garlic, being careful not to burn garlic. Add vegetables and heat until desired texture is reached, about four to five minutes.
Java Dive Organic Bistro
Wouldn’t it be nice to choose from any item off a menu and feel assured that it is GF? Salsa Verde Sauce Ingredients: With every menu item avail1 teaspoon capers with brine able as GF, Java Dive provides 1 orange, segments with juice Cilantro Rice Ingredients: this advantage—a rarity for 1 teaspoon mint 8 ounces cooked rice (cook rice those on a GF diet. 1 teaspoon sambol (Asian chili as instructed and make sure Owners Roni Liberman sauce) there is no wheat or malt listed and Romy Sanders sought to 2 tablespoons olive oil in ingredients) create a place where those 1/4 teaspoon sugar 3 tablespoons fresh ginger with celiac disease or any Directions: Combine 1 teaspoon 1 can coconut milk other food allergy could come capers with brine, orange segments 1 bunch cilantro and eat with peace of mind. with juice, mint, sambol, olive oil, a Directions: In a blender, blend As a certified GF restaurant fresh ginger, coconut milk and cilan- pinch of sugar, and salt and pepper through the Gluten Intolerto taste. Spoon this over salmon tro. Fold mixture into cooked rice ance Group, the food served before serving. and season with salt and pepper. has been tested and the site inspected to ensure that restaurant’s success as a GF-friendly kitchen. every product contains less than 10 parts “People are somewhat fanatical about pizza, so if you per million gluten. In addition, all Java Dive all of a sudden can’t eat pizza anymore, it’s one of the employees are trained in GF procedures and things that constantly makes you sad about the choice their fryer is used only for GF items. you’ve had to make. So being able to eat pizza again is Java Dive began as a small coffee shop really what gets people here the first time,” Berendt says. seven years ago. It didn’t take long for LiberChoose from such delectable varieties as the New man to realize the only way to survive as a Mediterranean Pizza, Meat Lover’s Mother Load, House café was to offer food. BBQ Chicken, Wine Lover’s Pizza or create your own “I’m gluten- and chemical-sensitive, so with more than 22 topping options. For an appetizer, try I was trying to avoid gluten in our food. the bruschetta on GF bread. Out of 11 selections, diners We offered GF options at Java Dive seven can choose three, including roasted artichoke hearts and years ago before it became popular and Romano or fresh mozzarella with tomato, garlic and basil. mainstream, but it made sense for me to Berendt suggests the Sesame Seared Ahi Tuna Salad, make GF choices because I could eat my as it’s one of their bestselling items. Selbe Lasita claims own food,” Liberman says. the spaghetti Bolognese as one of her favorite pasta Java Dive isn’t just a place to go for GF dishes, with its slow-simmered veal and pork ragout, selection. It’s a place to go for healthful, tomatoes and a touch of cream. fresh and organic foods. While Liberman With a relaxed atmosphere and a quaint interior, is gluten-intolerant, Sanders is a naturo-
pathic physician, both of which affect the way their restaurant is run. “We make everything from scratch and we scrutinize all of our ingredients to make sure that it’s just real food. There aren’t fillers or thickeners that we don’t know what they are. If we say it’s a waffle, we can tell you the three to five ingredients that make up the mix,” Sanders explains. The bistro prepares meals free of trans fat, artificial flavoring, coloring, chemicals, MSG and high-fructose syrup. Instead, the restaurant serves organic vegetables, eggs, breads, muffins and tortillas, along with nitrate-free meats. For breakfast, enjoy their specialty organic coffee with a wide range of delectable dishes. Choose from simple oatmeal and cereal, savory breakfast sandwiches, toasted bagels, breakfast tacos and omelets. Liberman suggests the waffles, served with homemade whipped cream and a choice of pure maple or chocolate syrup as their must-try GF item. For lunch, pick from elaborate salads, organic beef burgers, grilled chicken, pizzas and wraps. Liberman suggests the California panini made with goat cheese, grilled chicken breast, sautéed red peppers, avocado and tomato. But save room for dessert: Java Dive employs a full-time Cordon Bleu pastry chef to make in-house GF treats. While the cost of preparing GF, all-natural and homemade foods is much higher than alternatives, Liberman explains it’s a choice that they make for the customers they truly care about. This warm commitment can easily be detected in the playful atmosphere of the bistro, located in the Oak Grove Plaza. “We’re very family-oriented. If you come here, there’s always going to be children playing,” Sanders says. Java Dive is a restaurant where family and friends can gather to enjoy fresh GF meals and feel confident that the food is prepared with their health as priority. Java Dive Organic Bistro, 1607 RR 620 N. For more information, visit javadivecafe.com. Lunch selections from Java Dive Organic Bistro.
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Chic Thai The inviting power of Sway. By Kristi Willis, Photos by JoJo Marion At its heart, Sway is about sharing. From the communal seating at large square tables or on the lovely patio to the plates that can be easily split by two to three people, Sway invites you to be part of a lively dining experience. The restaurant design by awardwinning architect Michael Hsu is modern yet welcoming, including a full view in to the large, open kitchen, where the staff prepares each dish with precision.
Son in Law (crispy farm egg, braised pork shoulder, thick soy, chili vinegar)
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This year I m going to
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gourmet /
dining
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lightly perfumed with lemongrass. The chic Thai restaurant is the newest offering In addition to starters, the menu includes a from restaurateurs Jesse Herman and Delfo Tromsampling of stir-fries, curries, noodles, grilled and betta, also of La Condesa, and their experienced fried entrées, salt-and-pepper dishes and several team of Chef Rene Ortiz and Pastry Chef Laura creative takes on fried rice. Vegetarians will not be Sawicki. Like its sister restaurant, Sway offers food disappointed, as a number of dishes feature tofu and that is refined but approachable. vegetables cooked to spicy perfection. The vegetable Spicy dishes like Som Tam, a green papaya salad, fried rice is flavorful and satisfying, as are the vegand Jungle Curry, a red curry with etable side dishes, particularly the Wagyu beef and eggplant, are balmiso mashed sweet potatoes. anced with cool and sweet flavors Chef Sawicki continues the Sway to provide a taste of the heat delights with her playful and 1417 S. First St. without feeling like you have to experimental dessert menu. The St. 512.326.1999, dive for your water glass. The Tom swayaustin.com banana split, which serves three Kha Gai, a soup ubiquitous on Thai Hours to four people, looks like an oldrestaurant menus, is bewitchingly school ice-cream parlor treat, but Sun.–Wed. 11a.m.–10p.m. complex with a rich coconut broth Thurs.–Sat. 11a.m.–11p.m. Swensen’s never tempted you with
54 Austin Woman j a n u a r y 2 0 1 3
milk chocolate, five spice and cashew caramel swirl ice creams with black sesame brownies. The jasmine tea panna cotta pairs the delicate tea-flavored custard with crunchy aramanth seeds and a light coconut-lychee sorbet. If you’re tempted to try a little of everything, the daily Chef ’s Tasting Menus offer the opportunity to sample seven dishes for $35 per person or 10 courses for $45 per person. The Moo Sway dinner for up to 10 people (a reservation is required) is served at a special table near the bar and features an otherwise unavailable family-style meal of roasted pork, raw oysters and several surprise dishes. A welcome addition to the Austin dining scene, Sway features an inviting atmosphere and inventive interpretation of traditional Thai dishes that are definitely going to light up the ATX foodie radar this season.
to your health /
Focus on Nutrition Simple steps to eat your way to healthy. By Chrissie Jarrell and Natalie Yerkovich Nutrition is one of the most important elements to focus on when tackling goals like “get healthy,” “have more energy,” “lose weight.” In the new year, we want to help you get excited about healthy eating and feeling great as a result. We understand nutrition can be confusing. Everyone has an opinion, there are radical crash diets promising amazing results, food companies are paying for your attention, and then there is daily life that reminds you to just eat something quick. If you’ve ever wished you had a nutritionist on speed dial to help answer your questions, you need to know about the Nutrition Hotline. Jess Kolko, a healthy-eating registered dietitian and culinary educator at Whole Foods Market’s global headquarters, founded the Nutrition Hotline, a volunteer organization staffed by registered dietitians to answer your Jess Kolko, RD, LD, nutrition questions. is a co-founder Kolko shares her expert of the Nutrition tips to help achieve health Hotline, a volunteer and fitness goals this year. If organization to anyou have any nutrition quesswer nutrition questions for those who tions along your journey to may not have the improved health, the Nutrifunds for private tion Hotline is here to help. consultation. Give them a call. Nutrition Hotline: 888.587.3625.
Eat Real Foods.
Modern technology is capable of amazing things. For instance, making foods perfectly round, uniformly colored, inexpensive and shelf-stable for years. Processed foods are convenient, but also
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fitness contain a lot of unnecessary additives and fillers that we don’t need to be eating. Next time you’re thinking about microwaving a frozen, breaded chicken patty, think back a few steps in the process and make your own convenience foods. For example, pre-grill boneless, skinless chicken breasts and keep them in the freezer. Just as convenient and much better for you.
Plan ahead After shopping, chop fruits and veggies before storing. They can be used as a quick snack and save you some prep time next time you’re cooking.
Go Meatless.
You may have heard of Meatless Monday (meatlessmonday.com), the movement created to help people increase their consumption of plant-based dishes and decrease the risk of some diseases. One meatless day per week seems doable to most people, and what better day than Monday? The trend is really catching on. Mario Batali has chosen to celebrate Meatless Monday in all of his restaurants in the United States. Don’t feel like you have to limit yourself to Monday though. Sometimes meatless is best on the days that you have the freshest food on hand. Use your meatless day to explore new restaurants or just a new dish at your favorite restaurant, seek out a new recipe or try a new piece of produce. It’s a great way to mix things up from your normal routine.
Hydrate.
Hydration helps keep your body systems balanced, and when properly hydrated, you’ll have more energy
and you’ll feel great. ➺ Strive to drink two to three liters of water every day. ➺ Pay attention to electrolytes; they are key to keeping the water you drink in the body. ➺ Include low-calorie electrolyte supplements like nuun throughout the day, especially if you’re active.
Rethink Recipes.
Cooking at home is generally more healthy than eating out at restaurants. However, there is always room for improvement. Try to put a healthier spin
on your traditional dishes. ➺ Substitute low- or non-fat or plant-based milks for heavy cream in soups, stews and casseroles. ➺ Cut out or cut back on the salt and sodium-heavy broth bases (like bouillon). ➺ Add a touch of health to dishes. For instance, you can improve macaroni and cheese by adding a whole bunch of steamed broccoli florets or cooked spinach just before baking. ➺ Keep soups broth-based and loaded with seasonal veggies, whole grains, legumes and beans. ➺ Create grain-based dishes like pilaf or risotto with whole grains instead of the refined white variety. Barley and farro are great hearty grains.
Make Additions For Health. Many people think that being healthy means you need to give up a lot of things, like giving up free time for exercise or cutting out favorite foods for something that is better for you. Thinking about food and health in this way automatically makes you feel negative about what you are doing, when getting healthy is an awesome goal. Think of health and fitness in a positive light, adding things to
make us healthier, rather than taking away. Here are a few examples: ➺ Add one serving of fruits or vegetables to every meal. ➺ Add oatmeal cooked in water to your rotation of breakfast items. ➺ Add greens to whatever you are making or eating. ➺ Add a meatless meal once a week. ➺ Add a glass of water between your next meals. ➺ Add 15 minutes of exercise to your daily routine.
Plan Ahead.
Set yourself up for success by making sure you always have access to healthy food options. Planning ahead helps you eat healthy at home and on the go. At Home: ➺ Plan a week’s worth of meals in advance. ➺ After shopping, chop fruits and veggies before storing. They can be used as a quick snack and save you some prep time next time you’re cooking. ➺ When cooking, make enough to have leftovers for the next day’s lunch or dinner.
On the Go: ➺ Pack healthy snacks to help avoid extreme hunger and overeating at meal times. ➺ Look up menus and nutritional facts for restaurants in frequently visited areas and know the healthiest options. ➺ Look for words like steamed, broiled, grilled and roasted. ➺ Skip the soda. ➺ Substitute a side of steamed veggies or a salad instead of chips or fries. ➺ Ask for condiments and dressings on the side.
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to your health /
Thyroid Awareness Fatigued, depressed, losing your hair? The culprit may be your thyroid. By Jill Case Are you experiencing fatigue, depression, weight loss, weight gain or hair loss? These symptoms could indicate many different health conditions, including thyroid problems. The fact that thyroid symptoms are common to other health problems may be why as many as half of all women have thyroid conditions that are undiagnosed or misdiagnosed. Dr. Simona Scumpia, an endocrinologist at Austin Thyroid and Endocrinology, says often women will not mention symptoms such as fatigue and depression to their family physicians because they attribute the symptoms
to their busy lives (jobs, children, etc.). She encourages patients to discuss these symptoms with their doctors in case they are indications of thyroid problems. When thyroid conditions go undiagnosed and untreated, it can lead to serious complications. Thyroid Awareness Month, which is in January, was
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wellness created to make people aware of the symptoms of thyroid problems so more people will bring these symptoms to their physicians’ attention and seek out a second opinion with an endocrinologist.
Know Your Risk Factors According to Scumpia, the key risk factor is family history. In addition, if your close family members have autoimmune disorders, such as insulin-dependent diabetes or rheumatoid arthritis, your risk factor is increased. You are also at higher risk if you are a woman older than 50, if you are pregnant or a new mom. The American Thyroid Association recommends screening for all women older than 55, regardless of whether they are displaying symptoms. Scumpia recommends testing for women at any age who are displaying any of the symptoms of thyroid disorders (fatigue, depression).
Hypothyroidism Hypothyroidism, or underactive thyroid, is the most common type of thyroid disorder in the United States. It is more common in women than men, and also in the elderly. Symptoms of this condition include fatigue, weight gain, hoarseness, constipation, depression, forgetfulness, dry skin and more. These symptoms are often ignored by women and attributed to aging, menopause or other conditions, so they do not report them to their physicians, and the condition goes undiagnosed, which can lead to complications. The good news is that the condition can usually be detected with a simple blood test. The TSH test measures the amount of thyroidstimulating hormone (TSH is produced by the pituitary gland) in your blood. According to Scumpia, more than 60 percent of people with this condition have Hashimoto’s disease. Hashimoto’s disease (also known as chronic lymphocytic thyroiditis) causes your immune system to attack your thyroid gland, which results in inflammation and can even destroy the thyroid if left untreated. This condition can usually be treated with thyroid hormone-replacement therapy.
Hyperthyroidism Hyperthyroidism, or overactive thyroid, is much less common. According to the Austin Thyroid and Endocrinology website, the symptoms of this disorder include irritability/nervousness, sleep disturbances, muscle weakness/tremors, enlarged thyroid (goiter), irregular
Terms to Know Goiter An enlarged thyroid Graves’ disease The most common cause of hyperthyroidism, this condition is an immunesystem disorder that causes the thyroid to produce too much thyroid hormone. Hashimoto’s disease The most common cause of hypothyroidism (in the U.S.), this disease occurs when your own immune system attacks the thyroid gland, causing inflammation. Hyperthyroidism Overactive thyroid where the thyroid produces too much thyroid hormone. Hypothyroidism Underactive thyroid where the thyroid is not producing enough thyroid hormone (or in some cases, none at all). This is the most common thyroid disorder. Nodules Lumps that form in your thyroid. They can be solid or filled with fluid. Most nodules are benign (only a small percentage is cancerous).
menstrual periods, heat intolerance, weight loss, vision problems or eye irritation. Graves’ disease (which many people first learned about when former first lady Barbara Bush developed the condition) is the most common form of hyperthyroidism. While Graves’ disease has the same symptoms as hyperthyroidism in general, patients may also experience symptoms in their eyes, including inflammation, swelling around the eyes, bulging eyes or double vision. While a family physician can treat hypothyroidism, Scumpia says, “Hyperthyroidism should only be treated by a specialist.” This condition requires more complicated treatment and long-term planning, which is best addressed by an endocrinologist.
Goiter A goiter is simply an enlargement of the thyroid. This can be caused by anything from iodine deficiencies or autoimmune diseases to inflammation of the thyroid or infection. Symptoms of a goiter include difficulty swallowing or breathing, choking (particularly when lying down), or a tightness or tenderness in the neck or throat. Anyone experiencing these symptoms should see a doctor.
Thyroid Cancer Thyroid cancer is rare, but it is the fastest-growing cancer in the United States. Scumpia says we don’t really know why that is the case at this time. There are some known risk factors for this type of cancer, including family history, a history of radiation therapy in the neck or chronic goiters. Symptoms of thyroid cancer include a lump (or nodule) in the thyroid (although most nodules are benign), coughing, difficulty swallowing or a swelling in the neck. Not only is this type of cancer rare, according to Scumpia, “it is a very curable cancer, as opposed to any of
Make it a night on the town the other cancers. It’s very easy to treat.” The usual treatment is surgery, but sometimes radiation and (rarely) chemotherapy are also needed.
with live music from the Austin Symphony
Precautions Scumpia says there are no ways to prevent thyroid problems. “Diet and exercise will not really help the thyroid,” she says. However, she does offer these tips for women concerned about their thyroid health: ➜ Do not try to treat your thyroid problems with natural supplements. “It’s very dangerous to go to health-food stores and say, ‘I think I have a thyroid problem,’ ” because, unfortunately, they give you exactly what you don’t need.” They might recommend bladder wrack (a type of brown kelp seaweed), which is full of iodine. Scumpia says this could “acutely block the thyroid gland.” It’s best to leave the treatment of the thyroid to physicians. ➜ Scumpia recommends at-risk patients avoid seaweed because the iodine content is so high it could damage the thyroid. “Now, that doesn’t mean you cannot eat sushi,” she says. Kelp and seaweed should be avoided by people who are at risk for thyroid problems, as well as pregnant women or elderly people. “They are very, very sensitive to the iodine intake, and kelp and seaweed are loaded with iodine.” Although the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists does not yet recommend routine screening for thyroid problems, Scumpia believes women who are trying to conceive should discuss TSH screening with their obstetricians. She says studies have shown that, left untreated, thyroid problems can lead to complications, including miscarriages and lower IQ scores for the baby. If you are pregnant or thinking of conceiving, discuss this issue with your obstetrician. That little butterfly shape in your neck that you probably never gave much thought is doing a lot of important work to keep you healthy. Being aware of it is the most important step to maintaining thyroid health and preventing problems for life. For more information, visit austinthyroid.com, allthyroid.org and thyroidawarenessmonth.com.
Dr. Simona Scumpia (MD, F.A.C.E., F.R.C.P.*), is considered one of the front runners of thyroid care in Austin, and is an expert in endocrine and thyroid pathology, due to her extensive experience during many years in the field. The Austin Thyroid and Endocrinology center also provides public lectures and recruitment for research studies, and is home to the first thyroid support group in Austin. *F.A.C.P., F.A.C.E. are distinctions awarding expertise in internal medicine and endocrinology. The letters indicate the bearer to be a Fellow of the American College of Physicians (F.A.C.P.) and the American College of Endocrinology (F.A.C.E).
Enjoy the best in classical music with your best friends. Slip on the stilettos and have a night out with the Austin Symphony!
2012 – 2013 Season P E t E r B A y, M u S i c D i r E c t o r
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animal Laura Cisneros on playing dirty, training green and getting tough.
by rachel merriman photos by cody hamilton Hair by Sam Hawkins, Avant Salon, avantsalon.com, 512.472.6357; Makeup by Lauren Lumsden, Rae Cosmetics, raecosmetics.com, 512.320.8732.
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sea of brightly colored yoga mats and medicine balls slowly collects under a covered pavilion behind Sanchez Elementary School as about 30 people—some of them wearing T-shirts reading, “My balls are American made,” and “Gyms are for pussies”—gradually drift in just
before 9:30 a.m. Everyone seems to know the drill: After setting down their equipment, they briskly jog down to the track to run a few laps to warm up. After arriving back at the pavilion, they don’t get much down time before boot camp officially begins.
Laura Cisneros, the CEO and creator of Urban Animal, snaps everyone to attention. The large crowd of campers immediately begins running a length of asphalt back and forth between two painted lines, some snapping their knees all the way up to their chests, others seeming far less enthusiastic. “That seriously sucked. Do it again!” Cisneros yells. Everyone sheepishly smiles before obliging her with a second rep, this time in earnest. “OK, guys! Let’s go! On the line!” Something tells me they’re used to these tough-love reprimands, which are dished out liberally by the slender 47-year-old, and often peppered with swear words. Embrace Failure “I’m a big believer in the power of failure. After finishing It’s a part of progress, and the only way you know you’re pushing the first set of drills, boundaries. If you’re not failing, you’re not trying. Prepare to fail, move each person picks up through it and then strive to succeed.” a medicine ball and Have a sense of humor “Instead of beating yourself up over all begins working through your failings or getting down about some BS, find a way to laugh. a series of activities Besides, life is just too short!” listed on a whiteboard at Don’t bullshit yourself “We all have this fairy-godmother or their own pace, creating prince-charming fantasy that involves someone coming in to save a flurry of organized you, makes it all better or helps you make the right choices. Well, chaos. Some are that ain’t gonna happen. You’ve got to be the one to say, ‘You’re throwing the balls back full of shit. Get your ass up and go do that,’ or, ‘You don’t need that and forth with a partner; piece of chocolate cake.’ You have to be your own captain and your others are flinging them own task master.” as high as they can against a wall; a few are Cultivate an alter ego “Fear, hard times and other obstacles heaving them backward can make you feel insecure, incompetent and like you just don’t over their heads just know what to do. Wouldn’t it be nice if you had someone who would know what to do? My advice is to cultivate an alter ego of someone to run after them, pick you really admire, a real-life woman who’s been there and done that. them up, and catapult Whoever you choose—Barbara Jordan, Cleopatra or Tina Fey—I bet them into the air again. that just by imagining moving through a tough spot as they would, Later, while sitting you’ll find you had the answers in you all along.” across from me in a
findng the road to success
62 Austin Woman j a n u a r y 2 0 1 3
café just a few miles away from the University of Texas, where Cisneros earned a degree in history, she explains this constant and diverse motion is what makes the Urban Animal boot camps more challenging than your typical gym workout. “Using the med ball and our athletic-based training drills, you’re moving in multiple planes [that are] varied and unpredictable. When somebody’s throwing a ball at you, you’re not exactly sure what range of motion is going to be required of you,” Cisneros says. There are no leg presses or bicep curls to be found here; a typical Urban Animal boot camp is an expertly designed, intense series of activities that requires total-body involvement at all times. Described by Cisneros as “less prescriptive and more event-driven,” the movements are designed to be more organic and natural than those usually performed in a gym setting with stationary exercise machines. “What we really try to do is get your body talking to you, and try to reprogram those basic mechanics [such as] crawling and squatting patterns that you’ve forgotten over time because you’re not using your body like it evolved to be used. We’ve only been post-agricultural for 200 years, but we have hundreds and thousands of years of evolution in our neuromuscular and skeletal systems. We are designed to be moving in ways we have just abruptly stopped. … That is going to have an impact on us. The closer [Previous page] Lululemon Swiftly Tech shirt, $68; and Groove run shorts, $54, available at Lululemon, 1016 W. Sixth St., 512.474.2659. [this page] Nike Dri Fit half-zip, $60; Nike pants, $55; Nike Pro bra, $30; and Saucony Kinvara 3 shoes, $99.95, available at Luke’s Locker, 115 Sandra Muraida Way, suite 102, 512.482.8676.
move it like laura kettlebell swing Target Areas:Â Glutes and Hamstrings 1. Begin with your feet shoulder-width apart in a base stance, holding the kettlebell straight down in front of you. 2. Bend your knees and swing the ball down between your legs. Then, in one swift motion, thrust the kettlebell up to shoulder height by driving your hips forward. 3. As the kettlebell comes back down, drive your hips back and bend at the waist, making sure to keep your back flat and scapulae (shoulders) retracted. Drive your hips forward to send the kettlebell back to shoulder height again. Repeat to achieve desired reps.
MEDICINE BALL FORWARD ROTATION Target Areas: Glutes, Hamstrings, Core 1. Stand across from your partner with your knees slightly bent, ready to catch the medicine ball on your right side at the hip. 2. As you receive the ball from your partner, drive your hips back and allow for a slight rotation of your trunk, letting your head look over your right shoulder at the ball. 3. Toss the ball back to your partner by driving your hips forward, using your arms to guide the ball toward your partner’s sternum. After completing the set, repeat on the opposite side.
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to nature you can get your body, the better,” Cisneros affirms. All of the Urban Animal boot camps are held outdoors in fields, parks, school playgrounds or anywhere there’s room to run around. Boot campers sweat under the open sky, not inside in a climate-controlled environment. Cisneros purposefully chose an outdoor setting for the boot camps after reading about the Biophilia Hypothesis, a scientific theory concerned with people and their relationships with the natural world. “The idea is that human beings have an innate need to be with nature, and when they’re not with nature, they have a sense of disharmony,” Cisneros observes. “There’s an immediate effect on human beings, physiologically, when they’re outside interacting with nature. I realized that people love being “Play Dirty, Train outside. They’re Green” is the Urban indoors all day Animal motto, which long in fluorescent perfectly describes lighting; they’re lead trainer Laura Cisneros’ commitment in one posture; in to hard work and conditioned air and sustainable fitness. then they get in their Built from the ground car and go home. up starting with just They’re just not part 10 women, Urban of nature.” Animal now offers Cisneros’ first a variety of boot outdoor boot camp, camps for different Tonic Training, skill levels and fitness was established goals at multiple in 2006 after she locations in Central had already made a Austin. Bark Like a name for herself as a Dog, Mexican Hat, successful personal Redneck Mothas—the trainer. Even though endless combinations Cisneros didn’t start of cheekily named out pursuing a career exercises guarantee in fitness, it was you’ll never get bored. always a constant If you’re ready to ditch the monotony in her life, first as of the gym and get fit an athlete during while having fun, visit high school and urbananimalnation.com college, and then as for more information. a job she had on the side throughout her various careers. Tonic began with just 10 women, and within a year grew to 60 people with five classes a week. In the beginning, it was largely a one-woman show; Cisneros wrote newsletters, built the website and even taught classes while
Urban Animal
[left page] Lululemon white No Limits tank top, $64, available at Lululemon, 1016 W. Sixth St., 512.474.2659. Mountain Hardware pants, $80; Nike Free Run shoes, $99.95; and Nike watch, $169, available at Luke’s Locker, 115 Sandra Muraida Way, suite 102, 512.482.8676.
nine months pregnant. At the three-year mark, she was training 150 people per month. “The cool part of [starting Tonic] was that I got to do what I loved to do, which was continue to be involved with fitness, and I got to share my knowledge and passion with all these other women,” Cisneros says. Inspired to find another fitness solution that was more mindful of the tenuous relationship between nature and humankind, Cisneros partnered with a sustainable design company and embarked on a plan to build a completely green, 100-percent carbon-balanced gym in Austin. Her ambitious design included plans to supply water and electricity to the facility and the senior living center located next door, but the project ultimately became too bogged down by restrictive city permits. Unfazed, she applied her newfound sustainable fitness principles to Tonic and re-branded the program as Urban Animal, with the tagline “Play Dirty, Train Green.”
“Play Dirty should imply fun, sweating, running,” Cisneros says. “Train Green is getting outside, using what nature has made available to us, and what this beautiful city has to offer us.” With more than 20 years of experience as a personal trainer under her belt, Cisneros has a keen sense of group dynamics. As the class runs through the drills, she and her trainers remain attentive to each person at all times, regularly pausing to
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move it like laura kurtsy squat Target Areas: Glutes, Quads, Hamstrings, Core 1. Start in a base stance holding the Dynamax medicine ball in front of you, with your arms slightly bent and your fingers pressed into the ball. 2. Keeping your arms outstretched, drop into a reverse squat by bringing your left leg back behind your right leg, dropping your left knee close to the ground. All the stress should be loaded into your right leg’s hamstrings and glutes, with all your weight on the heel of your right foot. 3. Come out of the squat by pushing straight up, bringing your left leg out from behind your right leg, stepping sideways to return to base stance. Repeat on the opposite side, beginning by bringing your right leg behind your left leg.
medicine ball one-arm puts Target Areas: Core, Shoulders, Triceps 1. Start in a base or a split stance standing across from your partner. The Dynamax medicine ball will be thrown to either shoulder. 2. Receive the ball with your elbow up and thumb pointing down, making sure that your elbow is in line with your wrist. Allow yourself to rotate slightly to enable your head to follow the ball. 3. Making sure to keep your elbow in line with your wrist, propel the ball back to your partner using a shot-put motion.
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correct their form or provide alternative exercises for anyone with injuries. Every class is finetuned depending on the group’s skill and energy levels, and the activities change regularly, so boot campers never know exactly what to expect. “What we’re exceptional at is making sure we deliver the right program for the right night. We don’t send someone out with a set list of what needs to happen,” Cisneros says. “For us, it’s almost like a DJ. You create a vibe.” Lisa Barden, who left her job as a computer programmer to work with Cisneros, started out taking Urban Animal classes with a friend. Cisneros’ ability to personalize workouts in a group setting is Founded in 1985 by what Barden says coaches Bruce Evans kept her coming and Jim Cawley, and back week after purchased by Laura week. Cisneros in 2010, “She is Dynamax produces medicine balls made really good at with 70 percent postindividualizing a consumer recycled group workout. materials right here Even though we in Austin. Dynamax were working medicine balls are out as a whole appropriate for any group, she was fitness level; they really good at are widely used by finding people’s professional athletes for weaknesses and strength and conditioning being able to go training, and provide a one-on-one to strong foundation for give everybody Cisneros’ Urban Animal individual boot camps. Guaranteed instruction. I had to last five years or been a soccer more, the durable med player all my life, balls are available in a [and] she could variety of colors and in weights ranging from see that I was 4 to 30 pounds. For an athlete and more information, visit that I was very medicineballs.com. competitive,” Barden says. “She was really able to individually push me even though it was a group environment.” Not long after enrollment in the newly rebranded Urban Animal boot camps began swelling in numbers, one of Cisneros’ friends introduced her to a piece of equipment that would soon become ubiquitous in all her classes: The Dynamax medicine ball. She immediately began to incorporate the medicine balls in to the Urban Animal program and observed powerful results. “When I started using the ball, I was just blown away by how great it was, and how potent it was,
Dynamax
“Made in America is not without its difficulties. It is a challenge to make a product here, but I’m very proud of the fact that we continue to do that.” laura cisneros because it’s all driven behind this partner-based method. It really increased the camaraderie and the total work output of every individual,” Cisneros remembers. Not only is it more fun to workout with a friend, but the partnered medicine-ball exercises force participants to be attentive and fully engaged with the task at hand. In addition to working your brain as hard as your muscles, being in the moment provides a great stress release. “The beauty of the ball is that it really requires your attention. You have to be there, you have to be present. Otherwise, you’re not going to catch the ball; the ball’s going to catch you,” Cisneros says. The Austin-based owners of Dynamax took note of Cisneros’ innovative use of their product and asked her if she was interested in buying the company. After securing the funds from a privateequity partner, Cisneros purchased the company in 2010 and began an aggressive marketing campaign to push the medicine balls in different markets. For the last 25 years, Dynamax medicine balls had been primarily used in men’s athletic training. Having already realized the potential the ball had for group fitness classes, Cisneros began marketing the balls to both Group X fitness classes and personal fitness trainers. “Before I took over the company, 90 percent of the market was men,” Cisneros notes. “The product was largely within the confines of the athletic channel as a professional tool used by professional athletes. The NBA, NFL, MLB, USTA—all of those organizations use the product. Where we weren’t was within the general fitness market.” In just two short years under Cisneros’ direction, Dynamax has grown by 160 percent, and boasts a 73-percent growth rate during 2012 alone. This is largely due to Dynamax’s presence at industry trade shows, where Cisneros and her trainers lead live demonstrations of the Urban Animal boot camps for large groups of up to 150 people ranging from fitness enthusiasts to industry professionals like herself. The response has been overwhelmingly positive. “People come up afterwards and they’re blown away because no one has ever used a med ball the way we’re showing them how to use it,” Cisneros says. Cisneros’ commitment to sustainability in the
Urban Animal boot camps has also carried over to the Dynamax business model. The medicine balls are made of 70 percent post-consumer recycled materials and produced in an 18,000-squarefoot facility in East Austin, which the company just relocated to from Buda last month. Cisneros acknowledges she could have moved the company overseas for a bigger boost in profits, but the way she sees it, producing locally is a gain for the Austin community. “Made in America is not without its difficulties. It is a challenge to make a product here, but I’m very proud of the fact that we continue to do that,” Cisneros says. “My job, I feel, is not only to be responsible for the brand, but to be responsible for the community, and the best way I can do that is keep jobs here. I feel strongly about that.” Even though Dynamax is rapidly expanding, Cisneros balances her role as a CEO and a personal trainer with grace. It’s a wonder that she manages to get any spare time at all, especially as a busy mom to her three daughters: Paloma, Tallah and the youngest, Lila, whose namesake is Mexican singer Lila Downs. When she’s not traveling to international trade shows to promote Dynamax, she continues to stay involved with Urban Animal, leading boot camps when she’s at home in Austin. “I miss coaching as much as I used to coach. Right now, I’m probably down to three classes a week, but when I do it, it revives me. It makes me so happy to be with all of those people. It’s such a blessing to do what I do, and I love it. I love seeing people change,” Cisneros says. Energetic, forceful, tenacious—all of these words describe Cisneros well, but one stands out as most apt. Cisneros is truly genuine, an entrepreneur who embodies everything her businesses stand for. Perhaps that’s the reason behind her success. When I ask her if she has any parting words, she’s silent for a moment, her dark brown eyes serious. “I think it’s important for women to understand that wherever they’re at in their life, there’s something more to come. They’re only as limited as their fear or their faith,” Cisneros says. “It’s so trite, but it’s so true: Do what you love. That love will imbue the work, and then that work will manifest in to a business.”
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This time around... Three women take a detour from their careers to pursue the jobs they’ve always wanted. By Meng Qi / Photos by Rudy Arocha
Follow your heart. It’s a phrase we hear so often that it’s become a cliché that’s easy to ignore. By sharing their stories of hard work, determination and passion as they embarked on a leap of faith, these three women give fresh meaning to those words. Each of them has discovered their personal idea of happiness, proving that in life, there is no one-size-fits-all. Through living their own passions, they also found a way to contribute wholeheartedly to their communities.
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Angela Martin
It never occurred to Angela Martin to be a firefighter when she grew up. A native of San Antonio, Martin was interested in art at an early age, and eventually attended St. Edward’s University to study graphic design. It wasn’t until she went to an outdoor festival that she learned about firefighting as a career. That experience changed her life.
Firefighter
“I was working at a very small graphic-design firm, where I quickly became head graphic designer and head productions artist,” Martin says. “It was a fun job, it was very artistic, but it wasn’t very fulfilling. I felt like I was just a cog in a machine, like I wasn’t doing something for the world.” A woman at the festival was handing out pamphlets to other women in attendance and talking to them about why they might be interested in a firefighting career. “It just sort of resonated,” Martin remembers. “I thought firefighters just sat in a mythological place in the clouds, and then a fire happened and they somehow rushed in. But it’s so much more than that.” It may surprise many to learn exactly how much more. Firefighters are generally the first on the scene of any emergency. They respond to car crashes, deal with broken plumbing for gas pipes, electric issues and help those with medical emergencies. They also actually do rescue the proverbial cat from the tree, though in Martin’s case, it was a bird. “We’ve actually had a woman who had an exotic bird that escaped their house, and we were trying to get into the tree to get her bird back for her,” she says. “Really, anything anyone ever asks for help for, we pretty much show up.” It’s hard not to be inspired when Martin talks about a firefighter’s job. “You show up at somebody’s house, in somebody’s life, in a time when it’s the worst day in their entire life, and you make it better,” she says. “And I just find that incredibly rewarding.” Talking to Martin now, she sounds like a seasoned veteran able to handle anything that comes her way. But her journey to officially joining the force was a long one. The firefighter test includes four components: a written test, a physical-fitness test, an oral test and a psychological evaluation. The physicalfitness test requires each applicant to start by wearing a 75-pound vest around their chest and exercising heavily for three minutes and 20 seconds. They then shed 25 pounds and proceed through a series of exercises, like transporting machinery, taking a sledgehammer to a metal plate, carrying a 175-pound dummy and traversing a maze in the dark. And it all has to be done in 10 minutes and 20 seconds. The 75-pound vest is approximately the weight of a firefighter’s gear, which includes a three-layer bunker outfit that’s “like wearing two oven mittens,” Martin says. Imagine that on a bright summer’s day in Austin. “Yeah, it’s a workout,” Martin says with a shrug. “It’s intimidating, but it’s definitely doable if you exercise and if you prepare for it.” The first year she applied to be a firefighter, Martin failed the physical test by 15 seconds. After that, due in part to bureaucratic hang-ups, it took her another four years to get in. She also had to work hard to pass the written and oral tests, which are more about communication than anything else. “We meet so many different kinds of people,” Martin says. “Like, I would never want to walk up to someone who’s obviously a conservative Jewish man and try to get vitals on him because he can’t, by his religion, be touched by a female. So I need to know certain things about culture, just kind of have interpersonal skills.”
Martin also notes the importance of sensitivity when approaching those making risky health decisions, like addicts, or diabetics who won’t take their medication. “We’re used to frequent flyers, and we’re used to dealing with somebody who’s psychotic and gets off their meds quite often,” she says. “Lecturing them about taking their meds isn’t going to help them; getting them to a hospital will.” Martin refers to the station where she works as her house. The crew works in 24-hour shifts, during which time the firefighters cook together, catch up and work out in between responding to emergencies. Martin is currently the only female firefighter during the shift she works. That’s not surprising, considering that, as of November 2012, only 59 of the 1,006 filled sworn-firefighter positions in Austin were held by females. Still, Martin says the Austin Fire Department is “by far the most progressive and open-minded one” out of the many she’s visited throughout the world. “It’s incredibly hospitable in Austin,” she says. “It’s very friendly. This city has tried really hard to retrofit fire houses with girl bathrooms, and all that kind of stuff.” The hospitality definitely shows when Martin talks about her fellow crewmembers, as well as the people she helps on a daily basis. “There’s a lot of people who are going through horrible, incredible things, but they have such a positive spirit about it,” she says of those she encounters on the job. “And it makes you love humans all over again, you know? So, I think I definitely get from everybody as much as I give. And that really surprised me. It’s more than I ever thought it would be, and I already thought it was going to be the best job in the world.” austinwomanmagazine.com 69
Crystal Dunn
Dog Behavior Consultant
The rumor is that January begins the high season for pet trainers. If Santa brought your family a Christmas puppy this year, you’ll probably understand why. Are your favorite heels in tatters? Is your rug smelling a bit unseemly? Enter Crystal Dunn, pet trainer extraordinaire. Dunn is the owner and founder of Leaps N’ Hounds, a pet-care and training business that provides specialized services on an individual basis.
Dunn loved working with animals from a young age, but her path to the career was not a direct one. “I didn’t grow up in a family that was like, ‘Go to school and be whatever you want to be,’ ” Dunn says. “Going to school alone was going to be a giant challenge for me. So, I really felt compelled coming out of high school to pick a career that I knew was going to be financially beneficial. I was really missing that growing up since we struggled a lot.” Dunn initially went in to account management for a software company, which helped her achieve that sense of financial stability. Six years in to it, Dunn remembers being “left with a very empty feeling, like, ‘What now?’ ” Of course, life is full of surprises, and stability can change almost overnight. “The Monday after we moved in to the first house we’d bought, I got laid off,” she says. “Our company had been bought, so I then had about three months [the length of her severance pay] to reflect. All of a sudden, I went from a 60-hour work week to complete freedom.” Those three months allowed Dunn to get a taste of her dream career, as she spent much of her time walking and training her new dog, Lyla. In the meantime, she found a new job in business development, which, on the surface, was idyllic. Still, Dunn felt there was something missing. “I was back in an office, and I was like, ‘Oh my gosh. I really miss being able to be outside.’ All those things had become really important to me: being outdoors, being active and being involved in something that I believed in.” After some serious soul searching and discussions with her husband, 70 Austin Woman J a n u a r y 2 0 1 3
Dunn decided to give her dream a chance. “I remember the day I gave my notice,” she says. “I told my boss what I was going to go do. And he looked at me like I grew a second head, and he was like, ‘What? You’re going to go train dogs?’ ” At the beginning, Dunn shared some of this skepticism. After getting an apprentice-trainer job at a pet store, Dunn recalls, “I got my first paycheck and I cried. It scared me to death. I was like, ‘What have I done?’ ” Still, she persevered and eventually moved to teaching her own classes and even training other trainers at the store. She also put in her time to learn as much as she could about animal behavior and training. “I went and observed every [trainer] I could for about a two-year period. I wanted to know what they were doing, how they were doing things differently, and, in the meantime, I just read obsessively,” she says. “I read book after book until I got to the point where I really felt like I knew what I was doing.” All that work paid off, and Dunn was eventually able to not only establish a successful business in Houston, but also re-establish it when she moved to Austin about three years ago. Listening to Dunn describe her training sessions, it’s clear that her success lies in the thoughtful one-onone attention she provides her clients. “Most people go through an obedience class and they learn it in a certain way, but applied obedience isn’t necessarily taught,” she says. “I’ve found that being in somebody’s home and actually seeing the environment they live in, I can learn more about the dog’s behavior and the human’s behavior, and how the two affect each other. That’s very hard to get in a class setting.” Dunn’s business has become so successful that she got the opportunity to volunteer her skills in the community. In Houston, she worked with assistance dogs for Healing Species, a non-violence outreach group that visits inner-city schools to teach about compassion, empathy and antibullying messages. “We had assistance dogs that would come in to classrooms with us and help kids loosen up,” Dunn says. “The dogs served as role models because all the dogs in the program were rescues and they had gruesome histories. They were this perfect example of how you could overcome hardship in life, and how when bad things happen to you, it doesn’t have to ruin you.” During the classes, Dunn noticed that pit bulls, often the “underdogs” of the community, seemed to be especially effective with the kids. “A lot of the kids we were talking to had pit bulls at home, and it felt like there was a better connection,” she says. “It seemed like while we were in class with a pit bull, the kids really tuned in because this was not the pit bull they were used to seeing.” When she moved to Austin, Dunn discovered Love-A-Bull, a local pitbull advocacy group. She eventually became the trainer for Pit Crew, the group’s volunteer therapy-dog group. The crew visits hospitals, support groups, elderly care centers and schools. They even do a book-buddy program in which elementary students can read to the dogs in a low-pressure setting. “It’s gotten really popular,” Dunn says. “We’ve had a lot of demand, and we don’t have enough dogs, so we’re trying to get more in the program.” Her work is never done, and that, in a nutshell, is proof positive of Dunn’s passion for her career and cause. To learn more about Crystal Dunn and Leaps N’ Hounds, visit leapsnhounds.com. To learn more about Love-A-Bull, visit love-a-bull.org.
In some ways, Karen Kennedy’s story has the picturesque quality of a blues song with a happy ending. Throughout her life, Kennedy thought, “I want to be a fill-in-the-blank.” She knew she wanted some kind of a profession and a true career, but for a long time, that part of her life was always left unfulfilled. “My husband’s career always came first,” she recalls. Because of that, “we moved nine times in the span of about 30 years.” Through the years, Kennedy would take various jobs, but they were all “just a job for a paycheck,” she says. However, right about the time she turned 50, all that changed. Her long-time marriage was falling apart. She and her husband eventually divorced and, at that point, Kennedy had to make some changes. “I knew, number one, that I had to find a way to support myself,” she says. “And I thought that this time, I should make this about me.” So, like the aforementioned blues song, Kennedy decided to pack her bags and move from a little town in Mississippi to Austin, a place she had always loved. “I’ll never forget it,” she says. “I got in my car with my dog and we drove out of Mississippi. We drove across the Mississippi River, and I looked at my dog, and I said, ‘We are never coming back here.’ And I’ll always remember it because it was such a metaphor. I was not going to go back [to that life].” Kennedy is also quick to acknowledge that her divorce was “the worst thing I’ve ever been through. Here I was, at 50 years old, and ‘Who am I?’ ” she remembers asking herself. Luckily, it wasn’t too long before she found an answer. Almost immediately after arriving in Austin, Kennedy applied for and was accepted in to the Counseling Program at St. Edward’s University. “I will never forget my first day of class,” she says, “because I was terrified. I walked into the class and looked around and there were all these 20- and 30-somethings.” However, she soon found out that there were many other older people in the program. In fact, there was another woman her age in that very first class. They quickly bonded about their shared experience and, even now, “she and I are like sisters,” Kennedy says. “We’re best of friends.” Her interest in helping others through social work actually started from a young age, but it was Kennedy’s own experience in therapy that solidified her decision. “I grew up in an alcoholic family,” she says. “My father was an alcoholic, so I had to do my own work around what it was like to grow up in that family, and to heal from that experience. I knew the power of therapy and I wanted to give that back to other people.” She also knew that therapy was an area in which age is truly an asset. “It’s not that I don’t think there are some wonderful younger therapists out there, because there are, but a lot of what I know about people can’t come from books,” she says. “It comes from life experience. I know now that the world is not black and white; it’s big shades of gray. And that’s something that only
Karen Kennedy
comes with time.” Still, Kennedy admits that the process for getting her license was certainly “a long haul,” and required both persistence and courage. “I didn’t ever really think it wouldn’t work out though because I had found the right thing for myself,” she says. “I think if you look inward and find the right thing, whatever that is, then even if you have the fear and the obstacles, you just persevere.” Kennedy now has her independent practice, her own office and takes pride in “having a little shingle with my name on it.” She has decided to specialize in Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR), a psychotherapy approach that helps people deal with effects of past trauma. Used in conjunction with traditional talk therapy, “it’s great because you can use it for so many different disorders,” she says. “You can also use it to resource clients. We always want to be not just talking, but giving you something that you can leave here with to carry in to your life.” Kennedy seems a bit surprised herself by the career she’s finally been able to achieve, which she calls “an almost sacred calling.” She’s also overwhelmingly grateful. “If you think about it, wow!” she says. “It was such a gift in my life. Here I am at a time where a lot of people are slowing down, and I get to do something that I’ve wanted to do my whole life. “It brings meaning to my life,” she adds. “I can’t believe that I, in the latter part of my life, got to do something that, if I died tomorrow, I will be able to say, ‘I did it and I stand for something.’ And hopefully I’ve helped some folks along the way.” True to form, Kennedy’s not done with exploring new projects. Though she’s certainly happy with her practice, she also looks forward to writing a book that will focus on adult children of alcoholics and will draw from her own life experiences. The idea of writing an entire book is a bit daunting to Kennedy, but if the past is any indication, she’s sure to approach the project with plenty of persistence, courage and wisdom. To learn more about Karen Kennedy, visit 78704therapy.com.
Professional Counselor
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opposite sex /
memo from jb
Hoarders, Austin Edition Something’s gotta give. By JB Hager. Photo by Rudy Arocha “I promise you, honey, when I get some time off over the holidays and going in to the new year, I will go through the garage. Promise.” My wife is terrified that I’m a hoarder. In her mind, I’m just like those people on the TV show Hoarding, Buried Alive. She sees me as a BeanieBaby-collecting, adopt-every-cat-that-walks-downthe-street kind of guy. I’ll explain why this is a serious issue in a moment, but first let’s talk about the TV show Hoarding. If you haven’t seen it, it goes something like this: Adult children of crazy old women, predominantly white (yes, this is a white-people problem), call the program and have them bring their cameras to their mother’s house. Before they go in the house, they show pictures of Mom and kids from 40 years ago, the last time they recall her being “normal.” They aren’t sure when she went haywire, but it usually has something to do with Dad leaving or, like in a cartoon, a giant anvil fell on her head. Then, they go in the house, the adult children cry and Mom wanders around with a big, dumb smile on her face, admiring worthless trinkets. She’s oblivious to the fact her children are upset or that she’s standing knee-deep in fecal matter. It’s great television. God bless America and our first-world disorders. It makes for great content for emerging networks like the Prozac Channel. (It’s right between TLC and A&E.) The reason this is a fear in my house is that both my wife and I have hoarders in our bloodlines and we’re doing all we can to break the cycle. My greatgrandmother lived in the same farmhouse in Kansas for nearly a century and never threw away a single newspaper. The last time I visited her, there was only a tiny pathway through each room. The remainder of the house was filled with newspapers stacked above my eye level. If there was furniture in this house, it had been buried for decades. My last visit was mid-winter in Kansas, so there was a vintage woodburning fireplace heating the entire place. Can you imagine my fear walking through this tinderbox? The highlight was her noticing and admiring my height, asking me if I could head in to the basement to replace a light bulb that burned out somewhere around the first moon landing. I went into the pitch-black
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My wife is terrified that I’m a hoarder. In her mind, I’m just like those people on the TV show Hoarding, Buried Alive. She sees me as a Beanie-Baby-collecting, adopt-every-cat-that-walksdown-the-street kind of guy. basement to just reach blindly for the hanging string at the bottom of the steps. This was undoubtedly my Camp Crystal Lake moment, just waiting for the hockey mask and machete to appear. I replaced the light bulb only to see a basement Full of mason jars of homemade peaches earmarked as gifts for F. Scott Fitzgerald. I made it out alive. If it’s not nailed to the table or I don’t put a “do not throw away” sign on it, my wife will get rid of it. Because of our hoarding fears, we’ve always been minimalists. However, two years ago, we moved in to our first home with a garage. This has given me free rein to hold on to a bazillion things, not because I want them, just because they are items of value. My wife is totally comfortable giving things away. She could easily say, “I noticed you hadn’t driven that Porsche 911 in six months so I dropped it off at Goodwill.” We
don’t have a Porsche, but you get the idea. The items of debate right now are tools I don’t use (I was obsessed with power tools for a while), thousands of CDs when we don’t even have a CD player (I still regret selling all my records in the late ’80s) and tons of bikes and cycling gear (I quit racing two years ago). To her, this is no different than the nut jobs on reality TV. To me, in the new year, I would like to build something, start bike racing again and I still regret selling my old LPs. Something’s gotta give going in to the new year. Roll your cameras as I go through the garage while my wife and daughter shed tears and tell our story. I’ll be the one with the lunatic smile bragging that I have the entire discography of The Cure. JB Hager can be heard as part of the JB and Sandy Morning Show on Mix 94.7 Austin weekdays 6 to 10 a.m.
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opposite sex /
relationships
Back in the Saddle Seven dating tips for divorcees. By Eric Leech Stubborn cowgirls believe that if they fall off their horse, there is only one thing to do: dust themselves off and get back on. A lot of stubborn divorcees live by this same motto. However, if you keep saddling up the wrong cowboy, these stubborn mules are going to keep bucking you off. Every new year welcomes a new start on life, an opportunity to make observations about the previous year and use this insight to find yourself in a better relationship. Here are seven tips to get back in the saddle—and stay put! New Beginning, New Self-Image Divorced women with low self-esteem tend to be drawn to men who view them negatively. When stepping back on to the dating scene, use this awareness to give you the incentive to build a strong image that won’t be susceptible to the men who seek to bring you down to their level. Self “Hard” Love Studies from the University of Washington suggest that one of the worst ways to enter a relationship is with resignation and fear, which is often the result of a poor self-image. Unfortunately, many divorcees have been coddled by friends and family, and end up feeling sorry for themselves as a result. This is no way to prepare yourself for the modern-day dating world. What you really need is hard love, so here goes: Quit being sorry and start regaining control of your time, health and happiness. Whatever you do, don’t feel like a victim, or you’ll only succeed in becoming one. It’s Not You; It’s Me The biggest problem with women who see themselves as victims is when times get tough, they tend to focus on the problems in their relationships rather than what needs to be done to make things better. Learn to trust your instincts and become proactive. Good relationships may be found, but the
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truly great ones are built brick by brick. The first step is to maintain curiosity in your partner. Men are naturally attracted to those who are interested in them, and boredom rarely comes from losing fascination, but rather not taking the time to discover new things about each other to be fascinated by. Adjust Your Expectations When women hear the words “adjust your expectations,” they automatically think it’s referring to them expecting too much in their relationships, and assume they should settle for less. This is not the point (although, sometimes this can be the case). As Les Brown once said, “Most people do not fail at [relationships] because they aim too high and miss, but because they aim too low and hit.” There may be no such thing as a perfect man. However, it is possible to be 80 percent of a good guy, which is the magical number that seems to make most women happy, according to the guys in lab coats who research this stuff. Know Your Limits By giving your new partner everything they want, you may think you’re laying the foundation to future success. However, you’re only sabotaging your identity, self-respect and own needs. A good relationship is 20 percent luck and 80 percent
effort, but all that effort is only worthwhile if it’s being reciprocated. Learn From Past Mistakes, Don’t Repeat Them Dating (and then marrying) a poor choice can become as much a habit as smacking your lips while eating a pan of homemade chocolate-chip cookies. Learn from your past by noting any previous fatal attractions, which could and should have been avoided. The types of men who tend to get women in trouble are selfish, jealous, mysterious and overconfident. Healthy relationships form when you insist on honesty, safety, security and intimacy. Second/Third Time is Not Always the Charm According to Americans for Divorce Reform, you begin your first honeymoon with a 40- to 50-percent chance of divorce, which escalates to 60 to 67 percent the second time around, and 73 to 74 percent by the third try. In other words, the more marriages you step in to, the more likely it becomes you’ll soon be stepping back out. Research suggests you’ll be much happier if you focus on compromising when problems arise rather than keeping an eye out for the exit sign.
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savvy woman /
just passing through
Happier at Home Creator of The Happiness Project provides practical tips for creating a happy life and a happy home. By Molly McManus Nobody knows resolutions better than Gretchen Rubin. With New Year’s Day upon us, many people set out their resolutions. However, do they last an entire year? Do they last the week? In Rubin’s New York Times No. 1 bestseller, The Happiness Project, and her latest tome, Happier at Home, she makes resolutions then experiments with them to determine whether they are workable. Rubin was featured at the 2012 Texas Conference for Women, where she discussed happiness and gave insight to practical, realistic, manageable resolutions that don’t take a lot of time, money or energy, and ways to achieve a happy life through focusing on yourself and your home. Take the word of a woman who has made hundreds of resolutions in her lifetime, and follow the ones that will work for you.
inconspicuous moment of my life. I was standing in my own kitchen unloading the dishwasher. I could hear my husband in the next room, watching golf on television and my two daughters were playing restaurant. I was hit by an enormous wave of homesickness. I felt the way when I went to summer camp for the first time. This feeling was so puzzling to me because why would I be feeling homesick from standing right in the middle of my own home? I realized it was as if suddenly I had been transported 30 years in to the future and was looking back with yearning for what I had right now and right here. This feeling was so strong and so puzzling to me that it got me to focus for the first time on the idea of home. I had been researching and writing and thinking about happiness for years, but I had never really focused on this idea of home. I realized that, for me, and I think for many people, home is really the foundation of a happy life. It’s hard to be happy if you’re not happy at home. And that’s when I decided I wanted to do another happiness project.
AW: The idea of happiness can seem intangible. Where do you begin on the happiness journey? GR: I think a great place to start is with Happier at Home: Kiss More, Jump More, Abandon your own body. In order to be happy, a Project, Read Samuel Johnson, and My Other you need to resolve to get more sleep! Experiments in the Practice of Everyday Life Many adults are chronically sleepdeprived. I’ve talked to people who’ll In this book, Rubin makes the statement, “I didn’t Austin Woman: How did you get the idea for say, ‘I’ve trained myself to get by on want to come to the end of my life and wish I’d paid Happier at Home? five hours of sleep.’ But when scientists more attention along the way.” And in the spirit of The Gretchen Rubin: I got the idea in a very study these people, they are quite Happiness Project, she set out to discover what it takes impaired. A lack of sleep to make the home a happy place by dedicating a school affects your mood, your year—nine months—to making her home a place of greater simplicity, comfort and love. The result is Rubin’s memory, your focus, your The Happiness Project: Or, Why I Spent signature blend of memoir, science, philosophy and immune function; they a Year Trying to Sing in the Morning, experimentation that provides readers with inspiration even think it contributes Clean My Closets, Fight Right, Read and tips for implementation of doable solutions to to weight gain. Aristotle, and Generally Have More Fun practical problems as she pays attention to every detail Second, a key, and that helps create a happy home. Rubin spent 12 months test-driving her perhaps the key, to a theory of what it takes to be happy, happy life, [is] strong taking in to consideration the latest relationships with other scientific research, as well as lessons people. To be happy, we have to have money, something that deepens your relationships or from popular culture. The result is a enduring, intimate relationships. We broadens your relationships is something that is very funny book filled with practical advice for need to be able to confide, we need to likely to make you happy. In my case, to be happier making changes both large and small that are guaranteed feel like we belong, we need to be able at home, I was looking at my relationships that are in to change your perspective on the meaning of true to get support and, just as important my home. For me, it was about my marriage and my happiness. The Happiness Project has spent more than a for happiness, give support. Any children. year on the New York Times bestseller list. time you’re thinking about how to Third, self-knowledge. One of the sad traits about spend your precious time, energy or happiness is that the only person you can change
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is yourself. It’s very tempting to think, ‘I would be happier if other people would behave properly,’ and to come up with a long list of resolutions that other people should follow. But, unfortunately, it doesn’t work like that. The only person you can change is yourself. What I’ve found is that when I change, a relationship changes. And when I change, the atmosphere of my home changes. I can make larger changes by just focusing on myself.
A few of Gretchen Rubin’s resolutions:
AW: Is it ever selfish to want to be happy? GR: Happiness has a surprisingly bad reputation. Some people say happy people are stupid or smug or superficial. But, in fact, research shows that happy people are more interested in the people around them, and more interested in the problems of the world. They’re more optimistic, they give away more money, they volunteer more time, they’re more likely to help out a friend or family member. They’re healthier and they have healthier habits, they make better team members and better leaders. When we’re unhappy, we tend to become isolated, defensive and preoccupied with our own problems. When we’re happy, we have the emotional wherewithal to turn outward and to think about other people and the problems of the world.
possessions are organized, your mind seems less cluttered as well. This small first step of the day creates order and sets the tone.
Get more sleep Seven hours minimum. Turn off
the TV, turn off your phone, turn off the light. Exercise Walk 10 to 20 minutes, especially if you
can do it outside. Jump up and down. Whatever it takes, however small, you will feel more energized. Make your bed every day When your material
Start a tradition Every holiday, Rubin puts
food dye in her children’s food. For example, green eggs on St. Patty’s Day, pink milk on Valentine’s Day. Abandon a project It is OK to abandon a
project. If it’s not something you’re truly in to, if you’ve put it off for years, stop holding yourself to getting it done. Abandon it and you will feel relief. Rubin offers this advice: “Do we use it, do we need it, do we love it?” If not, “Toss it, recycle it or give it away.” Know yourself Do you really love skiing? Do you really love making holiday cards? Are you doing it because someone else wants you to? Get to know
yourself and do the things you truly love. Join or start a group in order to build and
strengthen relationships. Be a tourist without leaving home. Suffer for 15 minutes when starting a
project. “We overestimate what we can get done in a weekend but we underestimate what we can get done in an hour.” Underreact to a problem “You don’t have to
dismiss it; just try to take the reaction down. If I can take my reaction down, I’ve found that everyone else’s reaction goes down as well. Instead of a big blowout, it takes it down and really changes the dynamic.” Gretchen Rubin is the author of several books, including the bestselling Forty Ways to Look at Winston Churchill. She was clerking for Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor when she realized she really wanted to be a writer. On her blog, happiness-project.com, she writes about her daily adventures in happiness.
savvy woman /
money matters
Review Your Financial Profile
Credit Score Steps Before you apply for a loan or credit, obtain a free copy of your credit report from one of the three major credit bureaus—Experian, Equifax, Trans Union—and resolve issues or mistakes on the report before you begin the search for the home or car of your dreams.
Know the factors that affect your credit score.
ways to Obtain your free credit report:
By Kathy Bolner
OnlinE Go to annualcreditreport.com, which is the only authorized source for consumers to access their annual credit report online for free.
If you’ve ever applied for a loan, chances are your lender brought up the subject of your credit score. Many lenders use a FICO score—a numeric calculation of your credit report calculated by Fair Isaac Corporation—to obtain a fast objective measure of your credit risk. By understanding the factors that can help or hurt your score, you’ll have a better understanding of how lenders view you as a credit risk, and how you can improve your score.
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Determine your FICO score. The levels of importance shown below are for the general population and will be different for each individual. Your payment history What is your track record? This accounts for approximately 35 percent of your score. The most significant impact on your score is whether you have paid past accounts in a timely manner (when or before the payment was due). However, an overall good credit profile can outweigh a few late payments, and late payments have less impact over time. Amounts you owe How much is too much? This accounts for approximately 30 percent of your score. Part of the science of credit scoring is determining how much debt is too much. In some cases, having a very small balance without missing payments shows you’ve managed credit responsibly, and may be slightly better than having no balance at all. While you don’t want to have too many accounts open, it’s good to have more than one so that you’re not using too much of one account’s available credit limit. Owing a lot of money on numerous accounts suggest to lenders that you may be overextended and more likely to make late payments or make no payments at all.
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Length of your credit history How established is it? This accounts for approximately 15 percent of your score. In general, a more seasoned credit history will increase your FICO score. Lenders want to see that you can responsibly manage your credit accounts over time. However, even those people who have not used credit for an extended period of time may get high scores, depending on how the other information in their credit report appears. New credit Are you taking on more debt? This accounts for approximately 10 percent of your score. Opening several credit accounts in a short period of time can represent a greater risk, especially for those with newer credit histories. According to Fair Isaac Corporation, FICO scores try to distinguish between an attempt to obtain many new credit accounts and an attempt to obtain the best interest rate. FICO scores generally do not associate higher risk with shopping for the best interest rate. Types of credit in use Is it a healthy mix? This accounts for approximately 10 percent of your score. Your FICO score will reflect your mix of credit cards, retail accounts, installment loans, finance
company accounts and mortgage loans, etc. While a healthy mix will improve your score, it’s not necessary to have one of each, and it’s not a good idea to open accounts you don’t intend to use. Lenders look at many factors when making a credit decision, including your income, employment history and the kind of credit you’re requesting. Yet none of these factors are included in your FICO score. When a lender receives your FICO score, up to four score-reason codes are also delivered. If the lender rejects your request for credit, and your FICO score was part of the reason, these score reasons can help you identify why your score wasn’t higher. These score reasons are more useful than the score itself in helping you determine whether your credit report might contain errors, and how you can improve your score over time. However, if you already have a high score (for example, in the mid 700s or higher) some of the reasons may not be very helpful, as they may be marginal factors related to length of credit history, new credit and types of credit in use. Kathy Bolner is an area president for Wells Fargo in Austin.
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savvy woman /
all the right questions
Real Moms, Realistic Approach Jennifer Crain talks home remedies, following your intuition and taking control of your child’s health care. By Molly McManus Despite what you might think, there’s no one right way to tackle your child’s health care. With an abundance of medical information available at just a click of a button, it can seem overwhelming, disheartening and immobilizing. Good news: it doesn’t have to be. Take the advice from mommaisseur Jennifer Crain of Mommy’s ER (Mommy’s Everyday Remedies). Crain, a licensed acupuncturist and holistic pediatrics specialist, incorporates multiple practices in to her own approach with her business, Mommy’s ER, stressing the importance of diverse opinions. With so many potential avenues and answers out there, Crain affirms that when it comes to a child’s health, the mother is the best judge.
In 2008, Crain founded Mommy’s ER as an online resource for parents that provides safe, easy, at-home remedies to improve children’s health naturally. Users navigating her website feel as if Crain has invited them in to her home. It’s very personal and somehow exudes warmth, despite the fact that it’s on the Internet. From homemade cough lozenges to bug repellant, Crain has turned her house in to a laboratory, brewing up every kind of natural remedy you can imagine, then sharing the results through Mommy’s ER. Her goal is to empower mothers to have confidence in the health decisions they are making for their child’s minor ailments. Instead of having your daughter (or yourself ) take a prescription drug, check out one of Crain’s home remedies. You’ll feel more in control knowing every ingredient you are giving your child, why the ingredient is there and what it does to help.
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“I got in to this in the first place to empower families to take control of their own health. It didn’t feel like I was doing that 100 percent if they were relying on me as much as they were any other practitioner in their lives,” Crain explains. “So what I wanted to do was figure out a way to decrease the dependence. It’s very ingrained in so many Americans to trust what the doctor tells us, looking to them solely for the answers and letting them determine the diagnosis. And we should, to an extent, as they’ve been educated and trained for years. However, it reminds me of a time in college when I went to the university clinic because of a month-long ‘cold’ I couldn’t shake. I was diagnosed with three different possibilities—asthma, bronchitis or allergies—and was given an inhaler, antibiotics and Claritin. I not only felt let down leaving, but I felt that if it was asthma or an allergy, I was going to have to rely on the inhaler or medication for a long time if not forever. It turns out I don’t have either and probably didn’t even have bronchitis. I should probably have been sent home with this advice:
rest, drink lots of water, eat well and stop going out until 4 in the morning. The point is that no one has all the answers and we are far too dependent on the traditional Western approaches. Sometimes just by using common sense, and especially if you are a mom, your intuition is the best resource you have. Crain says she doesn’t think any doctor wants to disempower their patients, but that’s how a lot of the system is set up. “As a medical practitioner, if I play in to that system, I’m not really addressing the problem at its root, which is what holistic medicine is all about,” she says, noting that if a mom is treating minor ailments, if they are treating in alignment with their intuition, if they are checking in with valued resources that they trust, then it is the case that the nurturing, loving caregiver is the best practitioner. With Mommy’s ER, “I encourage moms to be willing to take some risks, not in terms of risky treatments or medications, but in having faith in themselves. Too often we put pressure on ourselves to be exempt from some of these decisions. The best thing in our arsenal right now is our care, our consideration, our willingness to know when we don’t know, and certainly go to practitioners and respect their knowledge, but then be willing to trust ourselves,” Crain says.
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savvy woman /
all the right questions
[Continued from previous page.] he wants,” she says. “That is the pinnacle of what I Crain gives her clients this confidence not only intended to create with this program. Not only have through her work at her clinic, where about 50 I empowered the mama and the family, but I’ve percent of her patients are children, but also online empowered [my son], moving forward in his life, to at mommyser.com. The information available on take responsibility for his own health care. her website is vast and easily navigable for any “I’ve learned how incredibly, incredibly valuable mom. She regularly posts blogs about what she’s it is to connect children with their own health and recently tried and what’s worked, a willing guinea their consciousness around it.” pig of every experiment. Even her 9-year-old son There’s a reason Crain has been featured in has jumped in, feeding off his mom’s excitement, Natural Health, Glamour, and Natural Solutions, and helping to brew up his own remedies that were has appeared on regional Fox News’ Health Edge recently featured in one of Crain’s blog series, morning shows and in a special episode of Dadlabs. Recipe Weekend. Her years of study, training and real-life application The bond between mother and child in becoming underscore her holistic approach. More importantly more aware of what is going into one’s body that though, it’s about the route moms feel comfortable fosters good health practices is another theme taking and the decision the family thinks is best. interwoven with Crain’s work. Either way, Crain will be there to support families “There is a trickle-down effect when we when she’s needed. become more deliberate and perceptive around our children’s health, which we usually prioritize What is a starting point for strengthening above our own. It can help us become more your child’s health? deliberate about our own health as well,” Crain Although there are many things you can do as a explains. “What I didn’t expect to find was the parent to bolster your child’s immune system, connection the remedies create between parents Crain outlines the three most important in terms of and their children.” preventative care. She says parents report slowing down and 1. Provide a loving and low-stress home for your paying more attention to the child. Children who have special subtle and not-so-subtle cues time with their parents, who their children are giving them feel listened to and valued, will Mommy’s ER via their bodies and their receive the most important demeanor. kind of support for their Resources “I love the level of attention immune systems. The creation that’s built in to the process of and implementation of this Mommy’s ER For more using natural health remedies,” type of environment will have information on remedies, easy Crain says. an amazing impact on their acupressure and to follow Jennifer Crain’s suggestions include emotional and physical wellness. Crain’s latest blog post, visit not only edible remedies, but 2. This not only goes for mommyser.com. also using acupressure on a preventative measures but also child to help relieve minor pain for any ailment: Pay attention Mommy’s ER DVD Series This or get them to sleep. It furthers to your child’s digestion. When DVD has easy-to-find chapters that mom-kid connection, you keep an eye on your child’s that will teach you about what to which Crain also teaches to digestive patterns, Crain do when your child is sick with an parents at her clinic. maintains it gives a lot of clues earache, fever, cough, vomiting, rash, “If I’m making that as to what’s going on in the rest diarrhea and more ($47.95, available connection with my hands, of their body because so much at mommyser.com). it’s connecting love with a of the immune system is in the vulnerable area that’s hurting, lining of the gut. Mommy’s ER iBook For in-depth and I don’t think anybody can 3. Use customized dietary information divided by ailment do that better than a mom, changes for the individual needs (including DVD segments that they just can’t,” she says, citing of your child. These can be demonstrate hands-on techniques), another reason she wants to minor changes like adding flax as well as information on how to endow her clients with that seed to the diet or eliminating determine when to go to the doctor, independence to treat their foods that cause constipation. check out this comprehensive ibook. children, which, surprisingly, also creates independence in What should we be on Look out for the Mommy’s ER the child as well. the lookout for in the App, due out in the new year, that “My older son will now beginning of the year? includes all Crain’s favorite easy come to me and ask for what Inevitably, cedar fever will be remedies at your fingertips!
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upon us. Mommyser.com has a ton of information on treating allergies through different remedies, suggestions and acupressure methods. In addition, the temperature starts to drop December through February, and can weaken a child’s immune system. Another factor going in to the new year is the holidays and the unhealthy foods attributed to them. A child’s regular diet may have been disrupted with added sugars and fats. This is a time of the year when Crain focuses—and mothers should too—on preventative efforts addressing the various strains of colds and flu in January that may impact a child’s respiratory, digestive and immune systems. What should moms pay attention to when seeking out medical options? “What happens too often with Western and natural approaches is that they are polarized; they’re in opposing camps. In my mind, both approaches suffer from this narrow perspective,” says Crain. She advises to go in being wary of any natural advice that advises against Western diagnoses and vice versa. Crain offers to instead look for someone or something that balances the best of what every person has to offer, and value both approaches. This doesn’t have to be daunting and can also be as simple as giving your children natural foods. It shouldn’t be extreme; it doesn’t need to involve expensive use of herbs or supplements when it comes to minor ailments. “Natural remedies can be just as potent as a pharmaceutical,” Crain warns. She suggests starting by implementing safe food-based solutions such as ginger, honey and garlic to counter an allergy or short-term tummy discomfort, and build your comfort level exploring with natural and safe alternatives. Who does Crain follow for information and inspiration? “I never trust just one person. I always want a multitude of sources,” Crain stresses. “I love the myriad of mama blogs that are out there right now. I love knowing what’s going on in moms’ worlds. It helps me direct my attention to where I want to go next. I need to know what’s preying on moms’ minds, what they think they’ve gotten figured out, what they don’t and where they aren’t receiving support.” Beyond the blogs, Crain highly values the pediatric advice of Dr. Jay Gordon (drjaygordon.com). She also follows Andrew Weil, who writes in the field of functional medicine, and Aviva Jill Romm, whose books are “delightful, spot-on and measured in their approach,” she says. “For breast-feeding, I love the Kelly Mom website (kellymom.com). It gives away so much invaluable information for free in an area where the info isn’t known to a lot of health practitioners,” Crain says.
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savvy woman /
Changing the Face of Friendship How Facebook altered the way we communicate. By Shelley Seale Marcia Noyes is someone who rarely loses touch with friends. The marathon runner uses the Internet to post stories and photographs of her long-distance races, but last year, the use of Facebook to reconnect friendship was brought home to her in a powerful way. A high-school friend, who Noyes had not seen in 30 years, sent her a friend request on the social-networking site. “She told me how much she appreciated me toting a camera while doing long runs and how much those pho-
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technology tos meant to her,” Noyes says. “She went on to say that she lived through each of those pictures, and as I wrote about what I’d seen along the way, she felt as if she had run that same distance and seen those same sites.” Noyes soon learned that her friend, Karan Vance, was living with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and was in hospice with only months or weeks to live. For Noyes, running suddenly took on new meaning. “As each step rolled in to the next, I drew in long, slow inhales of air, wondering what it must feel like to struggle for each breath,” she says. “Karan died earlier this year, and I’m so happy that she befriended me and I was able to bring some happiness to the last few months of her life.” While most of our experiences with online friendships aren’t that dramatic, the digital age has completely changed the landscape of human interaction and how we communicate. Facebook has made it easier to reconnect with old friends, maintain friendships across long distances, and “meet” new people we might not have found otherwise, sometimes creating very close and meaningful virtual friendships. Facebook takes away the awkwardness of approaching new people and the in-between time of transition from acquaintance to friend, says Lynn Kindler, a professional life coach in Austin. “It’s helped me with acquaintances I’ve known but was too shy to broach cultivating a friendship,” she says. “I now feel completely comfortable getting together and interacting face-to-face because of getting to know them better on Facebook.” The social-network connections have also benefited Kindler professionally, as with time, she felt comfortable enough to invite some friends to be guests on her blog talk-radio show, Hope42Day. By and large, people seem to feel these positive aspects of Facebook bring a new, welcome dimension to their relationships and social interactions. Leila Kalmbach has kept in touch with travel friends from throughout the world, meeting up in such far-flung places as New Zealand and Nicaragua. Dawnene Harper counts as some of her closest friends those she met in online Dharma groups, which extended to Facebook. And she also credits the site with helping her re-establish a relationship with a sister she hadn’t seen in years. “We have been able to share so much of our daily lives through chatting, status updates and photos that we nor-
mally would never have been able to,” Harper says. “I’m thrilled that my sister and I have reconnected. We have both learned a lot about each other.” Yet online interaction has its downside. While we are more networked than ever in a world in which we need not be out of contact for a second, new research shows we have never been lonelier. For many, online socializing has replaced real face-to-face friendship in a way that can be isolating. At the Human-Computer Interaction Institute at Carnegie Mellon, Research Scientist Moira Burke ran a longitudinal study of 1,200 Facebook users and found those who communicated directly with others via comments, chat and personal messages tended to Lynn Kindler’s increase their social capital. Top Facebook They became Rules less lonely, 1. Consider before clicking. while those Do not write anything that who received you wouldn’t want your mother, the president of the one-click comU.S. or your children to see. munication— 2. Keep it professional. for example, You are making a digital clicking the footprint of yourself that “like” button— will be there forever; don’t put out today what could experienced come back to haunt you no change in tomorrow. Would you want loneliness. your boss or a prospective And passive boss to see certain photos consumption in of you or read your political a non-personalrant or cursing? 3. If you have connected ized way had a with well-known people, correlation with treat them with respect. If feelings of disyou “like” something they’ve connectedness posted, like it or leave ocand depression. casional comments. If you “Facebook share a photo or status, give proper credit. can make us 4. Know when to take it feel disconoffline. For any deeper nected if people conversations, take it offline begin to use it in to a private chat or phone as substitutions call. And even then, have a definite purpose for the for real-life person to connect with you. interactions,” says Dr. Julie Gurner, a doctor of clinical psychology. “Facebook can make you feel lonely because often, your true self is never really known. For many, they may feel pressure to portray themselves in a certain light. Showing pictures of your marriage as happy may be masking a true relationship that is struggling, or portraying yourself as more financially successful might be hiding true fiscal security concerns. When you cannot portray yourself honestly, you never feel authentically connected or receive the support that comes with real engagement. How can
others comfort you if they don’t know that you are truly struggling?” There is also the often-detrimental comparison aspect of the online world, in which we compare our everyday lives to the highlight reels of others’ lives shown on Facebook and similar sites. Gurner says this often leaves people feeling that everyone else’s lives are more exciting and successful than their own. And, of course, online-only communication is missing vital aspects of human interaction: facial expression, body language, tone and inflection. “When you take away real-time facial expressions and interactions, you miss a very key element of what makes human relationships satisfactory on both sides,” says Gurner, who recommends using Facebook as a supplement to relationships, not a substitution. In fact, Facebook has provided a new tool for launching virtual friendships in to real-life ones, and often in to more significant relationships as well. Maggie Jochild, an Austin writer and activist, became involved with several blog sites, including her own, on which she posted chapters of her book and acquired a steady readership. She began noticing occasional comments from one reader called Marj. The comments soon became regular, as did their online interactions. Flash-forward a few years to fall 2009, and Jochild
created a Facebook account, despite reservations about privacy. An immediate friend request from a Margot Williams seemed to validate her concerns. “I had no idea who that was and felt dismay. This kind of intrusion from strangers was exactly why I wanted nothing to do with most social media,” Jochild says. She declined the request but soon received an e-mail from Marj explaining that she was, in fact, Margot Williams in real life. Jochild and Williams began communicating daily and, during the next 18 months, eventually fell in love. Although Williams lives in England, the two meet via Skype for an hour nightly and have been able to spend time together in person on several occasions. “We are partnered in every way possible,” Jochild says. “We used every means at our disposal to find each other, that’s all.” As for Williams, she calls cyberspace the modern equivalent of astral flight and the precursor to time travel. Perhaps that really is the truest definition of modern technology’s ability to connect us immediately across vast distances. More people are meeting online in various ways; dating coach Adam LoDolce cites Facebook as one of his top five ways to quickly meet people, especially if you’re new to a city. “Old friends from high school, college or maybe that
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random person you met on your Euro trip five years ago— you never know who now lives in your city,” LoDolce says. The benefit of Facebook in the dating world is that you can usually know quite a bit about a person up-front, including relationship status. “Before the age of Facebook, when you liked someone, you had to take initiative and potentially face rejection if the person was already in a relationship,” he says, adding he believes a little rejection here and there can be healthy, reminding us that it’s not the end of the world. In the end, perhaps it is just being aware that rejection and loneliness exist in online social interaction as well as offline. When we use Facebook as a tool, and not our primary way of connecting with others, it can bring tremendous benefits to friendship. “Sometimes, we can interact with people on Facebook instead of spending time creating or nurturing the relationships that could possibly exist around us, leaving us to miss out on some of the wonderful experiences that make life interesting and unique,” Gurner says. “Hopefully, we can still truly connect at the dinner table with the person we love, or think of more personal touches to those we don’t see often. Still, sending a handwritten note, talking by Skype or phone, mailing a package for no reason at all and visiting when able provides experiences that are impossible to replicate in an online world.”
February 22, 2013
15th annual
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savvy woman /
personal best
Thirty-One Days of Enough Finding more by living with less. By Susie Davis My husband recently came out with a new book that messed with me. A lot. It’s called Enough: Finding More by Living with Less. Because of that book, I got itchy with all the stuff I have sitting around my house. Oh, and then I read an article. It basically declared, “Organizing is well executed hoarding,” or something like that. I know, scary. So early last fall, I decided to join a fellow blogger and write every day about a subject that needed changing. I entitled my series: Enough (And You Get Free Stuff ). For an entire month, I blogged about how I felt about my stuff. And I hosted giveaways. Lots of them. Giveaways in which I send all my neglected, unused lovies out in to the world: a too-small Coach bag, too-big vintage cowboy boots, James Avery charms. I sent this kind of stuff out to blog readers everywhere because, yes, I have enough. At first, it was hard. I wanted to keep my stuff, even though I wasn’t using it. And even though it
Thirty-One Dayers
Blogging to Make Positive Changes
Myquillyn Smith, of Nesting Place (thenester.com), has something to share. “I’ve got a secret that will unlock creativity and hope for your home. Ready? Here it is: It doesn’t have to be perfect to be beautiful. Yep. That’s it. All you have to do is believe it.” Thousands of women do believe. And they flock to her blog daily for a big dose of realism, creativity and beauty.
was sitting quietly in my closet not bothering a soul. But as I kept gifting goodies, it got easier. And easier. I think it’s because I started thinking about my stuff differently. My trainer friend, Dee, always told my girls and me to think of the horses we ride as business partners. To the extent the horses we ride further our riding goals, they’re a good match. But if and when a horse isn’t helping meet those goals, well, it’s time to find the horse a new job and a new business partner. I never liked that analogy because I tend to fall in love with the animals I ride. But Dee was right in helping us understand how to be open-handed to better achieve our riding goals. The 31-day series of Enough (And You Get Free Stuff )—susiedavis.org/category/enough/—helped me see the same thing with my stuff. I fall in love with my stuff. But I need to be open-handed and keep my life goals in mind to continually remember and work toward what enough looks like so I can be free to do the things that are most valuable to my family and me. And to God. If the stuff I own furthers my life goals, then it’s a good match. However, if my stuff isn’t furthering my life goals, then it’s time to find my stuff a new job and a new business partner. Here are just a few of the life lessons I learned from 31 days of Enough:
“Nester,” her pseudonym, started a series called “31 Days of Change” after being inspired by Darren Rowse of ProBlogger, who wrote a 31-day e-book. She started her own 31-day series on her blog four years ago. Now, every October, she invites other bloggers to join, writing their own 31-day topic of change. This year, she had more than 1,200 bloggers join her. Nester’s 2012 topic: Home on Purpose. Visit thenester. com/2012/09/home.html.
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Handmade Business in 31 Days Maggie Whitley is the owner and designer of Gussy Sews, a lifestyle blog and handmade accessories boutique. In her 31-day series, she includes handmadebusiness tips with different prompts and projects that help build a handmade community. She’s all about encouraging small-business owners with wisdom learned. Visit gussysews. com/category/31-days/.
➺ The things in my home should be excellent business partners. ➺ The things in my home should enhance our family life. ➺ My things should complement, not complicate, my life goals. ➺ My things should complement, not complicate, my home goals. ➺ If I gave something away every single day for the rest of my life, I’d still have more than enough. ➺ It blesses and pleases people when you give them things. ➺ Rich is a relative term. I am very rich. (Read Seven Quick Ways to Know if You’re Rich here: susiedavis. org/2012/10/7-quick-ways-to-know-if-youre-rich/). ➺ And finally (this is a big one), having more than enough means I have a responsibility to those with less than enough. Susie Davis is an author, blogger, speaker and church founder. Read more at her blog susiedavis.org.
Thirty-One Days of William Morris Jules Kendall at Pancake & French Fries wrote an intentional home-management series documenting her efforts to live by the William Morris quote, “Have nothing in your homes that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.” Projects include purging, decluttering and DIY projects with a shared goal of creating practical, beautiful solutions for an organized home. Visit pancakesandfrenchfries.
com/2012/09/31-days-ofwilliam-morris-2012/. Thirty-One Days of SlowCooker Recipes Hello Little House’s 31 days of slow cooking encourages you to dust off your slow cooker and enjoy its simplicity any time of year. Perfect for the new year! The only rule during the challenge: No pre-mixes or tins of condensed soup; just basic ingredients for simple cooking. Visit hellolittlehouse. com/31-days-of-slow-cookerrecipes/.
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the last word /
aw view
My 2013 Resolution Time on my hands means I can learn to enjoy watching sports. Forget the weight-loss resolutions of years gone by. I lost 20 or so pounds last summer by dutifully walking around Lady Bird Lake every single day and severely limiting my calories in the evenings. I am thrilled with the results and have kept most of the weight off for more than a year. This past year, I survived the death of my 80-year-old father. We celebrated my dad’s life at his funeral ceremony in a tiny, dusty West Texas town called Coleman, population 2,300, and I now find that with his death, I have some time on my hands. So, this year, I’ve given it a lot of thought. And I have made up my mind. I am going to learn to enjoy sports. I am going to watch football games. Baseball games. Heck, I even may attend a few UT basketball games in the spring. I’ve met Coach Barnes, and I like him. I love his wife, Candy. Isn’t part of being a sports fan simply liking the coach? Don’t get me wrong. With three fully grown sons, I have attended my fair share of sporting events. I have been to so many incredibly long and incredibly boring lacrosse practices and games, I thought my eyes would bleed. To escape the boredom at little-league baseball games, I would bring my needlepoint, until one time when a friend busted me because I was sitting at the wrong playing field. I would drop the kids off at practices so fast, leaving to shop at the nearest Target or World Market, that a coach nicknamed me Coach Drive-by, which embarrassed my children and husband to no end. Most ladies enjoy the company of their husbands at sporting events. I have never
had that luxury. My husband works a ton of hours and on most weekends. If I am to physically attend a game, I am going by myself. Who wants to drive themselves, not to mention navigate the crowds, and then sit by yourself and fight the lines for your own snacks? I once took my youngest, Zachary, to a Rangers game, and at the 7thinning stretch, I went to get pizza for him and a hamburger and French fries for myself. Unfortunately, the idiots who designed the food court had designated stations, with one line for hamburgers, one line for pizza and another line for French fries. I thought I would go postal when I ended up standing in line for one hour, missing the last two innings of the game. But being empty-nesters that we are now, I have the time, the energy and a brandnew smart TV with which to watch all kinds of sports right from my own living room. My son Zack is the mascot for Texas Tech, so I want to watch the Red Raiders, even if only to catch a glimpse of him. But his identity on campus is a huge underground secret, so please don’t tell him about this article in Austin Woman. And my husband? He is Kirk Bohls, one of the sports columnists for the Austin American-Statesman. I hope he will enjoy my company in front of that expensive television because I am determined. In 2013, I will to learn to enjoy sports.
–Vicki Lynn Bohls
March’s Last Word topic will be “My favorite form of ‘March madness’.” To be considered, email a 500-word submission by Feb. 1 to submissions@awmediainc.com. Illustration by Sarah Quatrano.
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