Guides
February 8, 2019
Texas Monthly Recommends: Selena and David Byrne Recorded a Song Together and It’s So Good
Plus, rap from San Antonio, essays from Houston, and landscape photography from across the state.
Being Texan
Best Thing in Texas
February 7, 2019
The Best Thing in Texas: A Scottish Mountain Man Was Rescued—After His Distress Signal Was Picked Up in Houston
70-year-old Ken had been living off the grid for 25 years when he fell ill.
The Texanist
February 3, 2019
The Texanist: Has PC Culture Tamed the Texanist’s Tongue?
A McKinney man thinks our fearless columnist isn't as sharp as he used to be.
The Texanist
February 3, 2019
The Texanist: Revisiting Some Favorites for February 2019
In our February “Love Letters to Texas” collector’s issue, the Texanist takes a walk down memory lane.
Being Texan
January 30, 2019
Love Letters to Texas
Texas Monthly has been giving Texans, both new and old, insights into this exceptional state for nearly half a century. Our February 2019 collector’s issue curates stories from our archives that celebrate the Texas icons and oddities that so many of us treasure, and reflect our love of the state’s
Being Texan
January 30, 2019
Dance Halls, Dive Bars, and More: The Good-Time Gathering Places of Texas
Appreciations by current and former staffers who know them all too well.
Being Texan
January 30, 2019
From East Texas to El Paso, Four Texans Reflect on Where They’re From
Over the years, Texas Monthly’s most celebrated voices have written about the places that shaped them, from the Panhandle to the border. We revisit some of the classics.
Best Thing in Texas
January 29, 2019
The Best Thing in Texas: Thousands Showed Up for Burial of Unaccompanied Veteran
When no next of kin could be located, Texans showed up en masse to make sure this veteran’s service was honored at his burial.
The Texanist
January 27, 2019
The Texanist: What Five Things Should I Do When I Get Back to Texas?
A soldier stationed in Afghanistan is looking forward to coming home.
Best Thing in Texas
January 24, 2019
The Best Thing in Texas: A Cancer Patient Found Out He Won $100,000 While He Was in the Hospital
Cancer sucks, but the timing couldn’t have been more fortuitous.
The Texanist
January 21, 2019
The Texanist: What Do I Wear to a “Western Chic” Party?
A Connecticut Yankee new to San Antonio’s social circuit is vexed by an invitation’s dress code.
Being Texan
January 16, 2019
Fifteen Portraits Revealing the Many Faces of Texas
Icons and archetypes that reveal what it means to be Texan.
The Texanist
January 12, 2019
The Texanist: Are Hot Sauce and Salsa the Same Thing?
A Fort Worth man can’t bottle up his confusion any longer.
The Texanist
January 6, 2019
The Texanist: What Exactly Is a “Hard Freeze”?
An Austin man thinks everyone knows that water turns to ice at 32 degrees.
Texas History
January 3, 2019
Marfa’s Blackwell School Has a Painful Past. That’s Why the Town Wants to Save It.
A segregated school for Mexican American children until 1965, the building now serves as a community center and celebration of Hispanic life.
The Texanist
December 23, 2018
The Texanist: Why Isn’t Chicken-Fried Steak Our Official State Dish?
A Sherman woman thinks the gravy-laden slab of breaded meat deserves its due.
The Texanist
December 15, 2018
The Texanist: What’s So Special About the Texas Chili Parlor?
A Canada man has a few questions about the Austin establishment immortalized in a Guy Clark song.
Meanwhile, in Texas
December 14, 2018
Meanwhile, in Texas: You Got Cocaine in My Bananas!
Plus, moviegoing rodents and a man who thought it was a good idea to steal a police cruiser.
The Texanist
November 17, 2018
The Texanist: Why Is Mother So Unhappy About My Non-Texan Girlfriend?
A young Aggie just wants everyone to like his Wisconsin-raised sweetheart.
Country Notes
October 19, 2018
For Want of a Nail
Without a good shoeing, a horse can indeed be lost. Enter the farrier.
Meanwhile, in Texas
October 19, 2018
Meanwhile, in Texas: Animal Care Officers Seized 136 Snakes and 415 Rodents From a San Antonio Home
Plus, an eleven-year-old’s pet beagle saves her from an abduction attempt.
The Texanist
October 14, 2018
The Texanist: Is It Okay For Non-Texans to Say “Howdy”?
A resident of Phoenix isn't sure her fellow Arizonans should be using that word so cavalierly.
The Texanist
October 6, 2018
The Texanist: What’s So Great About the Shape of Texas?
A Boerne woman wonders if other Americans are as smitten as we are with the outlines of their states.
The Texanist
September 29, 2018
The Texanist: Can We Bury Granddad in the Old Family Cemetery If We Don’t Own It Anymore?
A Houston man wants to know what his options are when that dreaded day finally comes.
The Texanist
September 22, 2018
The Texanist: What’s the Deal With This Willie Nelson Boycott?
A California man wonders why people are angry at everyone's favorite Texas country artist
Being Texan
September 21, 2018
Meanwhile, in Texas: Two Rowdy Alligators Mating Under a House
Plus, a very flattering mug shot and a doggy-door intrusion.
The Texanist
September 16, 2018
The Texanist: Where Have All the Longneck Beer Bottles Gone?
An Austin man is confused by all those new-fangled beer cans at his local grocery store.
The Texanist
September 9, 2018
The Texanist: How Do I Tell the World’s Worst Football Fan to Shut Up?
A San Antonio man is tired of the grouchy guy two rows behind him.
The Texanist
September 3, 2018
The Texanist: How Do I Talk Politics With My Friends in West Texas?
A Lone Star native who has lived in the Northeast for nearly four decades is nervous about socializing when she's back at home.
Being Texan
August 29, 2018
Little Known Fact: Frito Feet
Is it a pleasant smell, or is it just creepy? In this episode of "Little Known Fact," David Courtney finds a link between bacteria on a dog's paws and everyone's favorite corn chip.
The Texanist
August 26, 2018
The Texanist: Help Me Find the Delicious Honeydew Ice Cream of My Youth
A man raised in Sulphur Springs pines for a long-lost North Texas favorite.
Being Texan
August 24, 2018
The Fences Between Us
Nothing comes easy when you’re dividing up the countryside.
Being Texan
August 24, 2018
Meanwhile, in Texas: A Denton Woman Made Cookies on Her Dashboard
Plus, a Houston nursing student was bitten by a nurse shark while on vacation in the Bahamas.
The Texanist
August 19, 2018
The Texanist: Is It Okay to Parboil Ribs Before You Barbecue Them?
A Notrees man thinks dousing meat in boiling water is akin to cheating.
The Texanist
August 11, 2018
The Texanist: What Do I Have to Do to Get Buried in the Texas State Cemetery?
A Brownsville woman wants to spend eternity in close proximity to Ma and Pa Ferguson.
The Texanist
August 4, 2018
The Texanist: Why Does Texas Have So Many Insanely Tall Overpasses?
A visitor from Iowa was baffled by his recent drive through the Lone Star State.
The Texanist
July 28, 2018
The Texanist: Is My Husband’s Devotion to Texas-Branded Foods Crazy?
An Arizona woman just doesn’t get the appeal of Mrs. Baird’s Bread or Hill Country Fare cut green beans.
Meanwhile, in Texas
July 27, 2018
Meanwhile, in Texas: A Semitrailer Overturned and Spilled Its Load of Honeybees
Plus, a pink-diaper-wearing emotional support pigeon was reunited with its owner.
The Texanist
July 21, 2018
The Texanist: If You Can’t Take the Heat . . .
A Montanan turned Houstonian’s first summer in Texas isn’t going all that well.
The Texanist
July 14, 2018
The Texanist: Can a Really Hot Pepper Burn the Tongue Right Out of My Mouth?
A Houston man knows that the Carolina Reaper will cause him pain. He’s worried that it might cause him real harm, too.
Best Thing in Texas
July 13, 2018
The Best Thing In Texas: A Five-Year-Old Celebrated His Birthday at H-E-B
”Here, everything’s birthday,” indeed.
The Texanist
July 11, 2018
And Now, Some Little-Known Facts About Texas
In our new video series, David Courtney takes you into some of the weird, whimsical, and lesser-known aspects of our beloved state.
Being Texan
July 11, 2018
The Largest Word in the World Is in Texas (Obviously)
In the first installment of "Little-Known Fact (About Texas)," David Courtney, a.k.a. the Texanist, looks into a Smithville, Texas, word so large you can see it from space.
The Texanist
July 8, 2018
The Texanist: Where Have All the Horny Toads Gone?
The reasons why our state reptile—and beloved playmate for generations of young Texans—is so hard to find these days.
The Texanist
July 1, 2018
The Texanist: How Can I Drink on the Comal With the Can Ban in Place?
No disposable containers on the river? No problem.
The Texanist
June 23, 2018
The Texanist: Is It Legal to Build a Bonfire on the Beach?
An Amarillo man wants to make sure that his Mustang Island getaway won't go up in smoke.
Country Notes
June 22, 2018
A Land’s End: The Story of Casa Piedra
Ninety-three-year-old Armando Vasquez tells of a place that used to be.
The Texanist
June 9, 2018
The Texanist: Am I a Traitor If I Root for a Rival Texas Team When It Plays out of State?
A Baylor Bears fan is conflicted about what he should do if TCU goes to a bowl game.
The Texanist
June 3, 2018
The Texanist: Can a Born-and-Bred Big-City Boy Learn to Love Fort Stockton?
A Houstonian turned New Yorker’s company is relocating him to small-town West Texas. If life were a sitcom, that would be pretty funny.
The Texanist
May 26, 2018
The Texanist: Should I Let My Kids Splash Around in a Snake-Infested Swimming Hole?
A Central Texas mom tries to strike a balance between innocent summertime fun and her worst slithering, venomous nightmare.