Composite photograph by Randal Ford. Retouching by Gigantic Squid. Styling by Bonnie Markel.
September 2012
Table of Contents
Features
The Children of TexasI was never certain how to explain the importance of the state to my three daughters. Now that I have two grandsons—named Mason and Travis, no less—I’ve realized something that I should have known all along. The Education of Mi HijitaMy daughter is only two, but I’m already planning to teach her what it means to be a Texan—and a Tejana. Mother Knows LeastI was thrilled when my daughter began learning a second language at day care. But what was I supposed to do when my three-year-old started engaging in conversations I couldn’t understand? The Exile’s LamentEven after I moved to Los Angeles, there was no question that I’d always be a Texan at heart. But what about my daughter? The Texanist's Parenting QuizHow are you doing as a raiser of authentic Texan offspring? Take this handy quiz and find out. |
Confessions of a Seventh-Grade Texas History TeacherBobby Jackson has taught students in the Aransas County school district about the Plains Indians, the Battle of San Jacinto, and Spindletop since the state celebrated its sesquicentennial. How he does it bears no resemblance to the class I took when I was stuck in middle school. The Boys of the Dipper RanchOn 50,000 acres that they have mostly to themselves (not including their hounds, mules, horses, cattle, chickens, piglets, and parents), Jasper, Trevor, and Tanner Klein live a life almost untouched by the modern world. I Shall Never Surrender or Retreat . . .. . . from teaching my fifteen-year-old daughter about her Texas roots. So when I realized I was failing to accomplish this most sacred of duties, I did what any well-meaning parent would do: loaded her (and her friends, of course) into the car and hit the road. The Kids Are All RightMeet eight of this year’s valedictorians, the products of schools across Texas, from El Paso’s Silva Health Magnet to Houston’s Westbury High. And Away They GoSending a Texan off into the world—and hoping he’ll return. |
Columns
The TexanistOffering Fine Advice Since 2007On tomboys, spiciness, and the end of the UT-A&M rivalry. |
Reporter
ChatGreg Abbott’s WarThe state attorney general on Obamacare, secession, and challenges to Texas sovereignty. CritterThe Horny ToadEducationHullabaloo, Qatar! Qatar!Now that Texas A&M has opened a campus in the Middle East, can it hold on to its traditions? Can the Middle East? |
BusinessCell! Cell! Cell!As cancer hospitals in Dallas try to compete with Houston’s M.D. Anderson, the medical technology arms race is heating up. Is that good news for patients? ScreensQuaid in FullAfter years of bad choices and bad luck, Dennis Quaid—older, wiser, and emotionally raw—proves his mettle in a new movie and his first TV series. MusicNot Fade AwayCan a posthumous release of Waylon Jennings’s last recordings keep his legacy from disappearing? TX JournalA Life at the Movies |
Touts
DatebookSeptember’s must-attend concerts, shows, and festivals. CowhideFrom rugs to bags to pillows, a little hair never hurt anyone. Cowgirl Up!From horseback riding to grilling my own ribeye, three days in Bandera brought out my inner Dale Evans. |
Frito PieCheap, hearty, and eternally beloved. |
Miscellany
Web Exclusives
How to Successfully Release a Conservative FilmMovie distributors of 2016: Obama's America, which is on track to be one of the five highest-grossing documentaries of all time, focused their initial marketing strategy on a Houston release. Why? A Q&A With Brené BrownBrené Brown discusses her book Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead (Gotham Books) and her 2010 TED talk on vulnerability. Andrew Porter’s Novel Has a Houston ProblemThe San Antonio writer's novel, In Between Days, doesn't get its Houston setting quite right. Made in Texas?Lone Star State conservatives may be happy about America’s turn to the right, but that doesn’t mean we can take the credit (or blame!) for it. The Drop Everything ListRobert Rodriguez, the Fort Worth Symphony's American Festival, Black Joe Lewis & the Honeybears, and the 16th Annual Grape Stomp . . . The Renaissance of AnnNearly six years after her death, Ann Richards, who is the subject of a new documentary, book, and stage play, still casts a long shadow. |
The Drop Everything ListAggie Football, Great Recession Orchestra, Marfa Dialogues, and Grossology: The (Impolite) Science of the Human Body . . . Making Something Out of NothingHow McAllen turned a vacant Walmart into one of the most architecturally imaginative libraries in the country. The Drop Everything ListGustavo Arellano, "The Agony and the Ecstasy of Steve Jobs," Kolache Festival, and the Xtreme Hummingbird Xtravaganza . . . Ryan Bingham Strikes Out on His OwnStarting a new label is a dicey proposition, but the country star who co-wrote the Oscar-winning song "The Weary Kind" thinks the time is right. The Drop Everything ListBison Celebration Days, Shawn Colvin, Schützenfest, and Bill Callahan . . . |
Multimedia
|
|
Recipes
Pear Upside-Down CakeFrom Chris Shepherd, the chef-owner of Underbelly, in Houston. |
FACEBOOK
RSS
TUMBLR
TM
Read Later