by Phil Houseal | Nov 9, 2017 | All Articles, Events, Philosophy, Venue
Nov 8, 2017–I was at Ground Zero for the birth of eSports, and didn’t realize it. The year was 1982. The location was Ottumwa, Iowa. More specifically, it was inside a storefront video game arcade called Twin Galaxies. After a challenging day teaching at Evans Junior...
by Phil Houseal | Oct 27, 2017 | All Articles, Events, Music, Venue
As published in the Kerrville (TX) Daily Times Spotlight Oct 19, 2017–The big, bright, brash sound of the seminal rock band Chicago had such an impact on Mason Swearingen, he remembers clearly the first time he heard it. “My earliest childhood memory is sitting in my...
by Phil Houseal | Oct 5, 2017 | All Articles, Events, Food, Music, People of the Hill Country, Venue
Oct 4, 2017–When we first moved to the Hill Country, there was a small rodeo arena on Hwy 16 south of Fredericksburg. I remember pulling in with the kids and letting them experience the dust, grit, and bellowing of bulls, broncs, and barrel racing. There is no greater...
by Phil Houseal | Sep 21, 2017 | All Articles, Events, Music, People of the Hill Country, Venue
Sept 20, 2017–The first time I heard about Fredericksburg’s Rockbox Theater in 2005, I confess I did not grasp the concept. I had no idea how a community would receive a permanent music venue, offering a new show every week, year round. Apparently everyone else “got...
by Phil Houseal | Jul 27, 2017 | All Articles, Food, People of the Hill Country, Venue
July 26, 2017–I was just trying to get my manos on a bottle of Inca Kola. Inca Kola is a soda that is popular in Peru. I don’t remember liking it–it’s a sugary sweet concoction whose color can only be described as anti-freeze yellow, with a name appropriated from an...
by Phil Houseal | Jun 29, 2017 | All Articles, Food, People of the Hill Country, Venue
June 28, 2017–This may be blasphemy, but biscuits weren’t that big of a deal where I grew up. It was not until I arrived in Texas that I realized the foundational role a good biscuit played in a typical southern breakfast. Here, biscuits were buttered, jellied,...
