How One Country Bumpkin Learned The Art of Hipsterism (aka That Time I Moved 2,000 Miles for a Boy).

This is a little detour off the fashion road. In Fashion Capstone (re: Senior Project), we've created a magazine. I was assigned to write a column and do an interview. I wrote the column about my move from Montana to Texas, and I would like to share it with y'all.

Three years ago, I left behind everything I knew--my family, my friends, and the small town of Bigfork, MT. I moved for two reasons: a boy and school...mostly for the boy.

The boy is history. The good news? I’m still in school.

My 2,000-mile move to Austin was a whim. The university I was attending asked me to select a major. As a junior, I was still in the “University Studies” program. I ended up selecting a course of study that the university did not offer: Fashion & Retail Management.

The original plan was to move to Seattle. But after learning The Art Institutes was opening a branch in Austin, where I had lived as a child, my plans changed.

A friend from high-school, my future ex-boyfriend, was living in Austin at the time. After a reassuring phone call and securing a place to stay, I quit my job in Glacier National Park. I immediately packed up my Chevy Aveo with all of my belongings.

Three days later, I found myself at the 21^st Street Co-Op in Austin, with only a trunk full of clothes and a coffee table I had constructed when I was thirteen.

Now, I’ve moved around a few times, but never had I experienced something like “the coop.” The 21^st Street Co-Op is a (clothing-optional) student housing cooperative in the West Campus area, several blocks west from The Drag. Constantly referred to as a treehouse, it reminded me much of a maze. I spent the carefree summer earning my keep at the co-op by cleaning Suite 4B, the smoking suite.

Then the boy and I broke up.

This could be the part in the story where I go all Felicity and chop off my curly locks, circa the late 1990s television show, but that’s not my style.

Instead, I immersed myself into all that is Austin. I went to local events, shopped at second-hand boutiques and farmers markets, and began writing a blog about Austin fashion. I became a full-fledge vegetarian, met Austinites and other gypsies, and adopted a dog I named Biscuit. I have traveled from eastern Canada to southern California, made The President’s List at school, and worked two jobs. I danced in the rain at Austin City Limits Festival, volunteered during South By Southwest, and returned to the 21^st Street Co-Op on Sundays to cook for Food Not Bombs. I’ve moved three times, which is also the exact number of times I’ve fallen in and out of love with the same person.

In the past three years, it’s easy to say I've changed from the 19-year-old that showed up with all of her belongings in the back of her car.

I’ve gone back to Montana twice. But it’s no longer “home”.

There’s truth in the old adage “home is where the heart is.”

As of now, mine is, literally, deep in the heart of Texas.

Austin Weekends are One-of-a-Kind.

Chopping veggies for Food Not Bombs yesterday at the 21st Street Co-Op.

I feel like I've been neglecting my blog, while really on top of being ill (chronic bronchitis), I've been ridiculously busy, and have had a few unexpected things come up (one being a computer virus...gnah!). One of my New Year's Resolutions was to be more active in doing things that fit not only what I want to do with my life (fashion writing/styling, etc.), but also things that entertain the insatiable parts of my life: the want to do things that I used to do with my mother has been gnawing at me for months, namely cooking. This weekend I was able to do things that were both productive for my future career and things that my mother would have been proud of.

On Friday, after coming home from work at 11:30 PM, my roomie told me of an extras casting call for the Coen Brothers' remake of True Grit. The Coen Brothers have a dear place in my heart, as I am an avid fan of their Odyssey-inspired 2000 flick O Brother, Where Art Thou?

The film was a favorite of my mother's and a treasured favorite in my family. In fact, my whole entire town (Bigfork, MT) seemed to fall in love with the movie. Through the years, I have sang various renditions of the O Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack. The last time I sang a song for the film was at my mother's wake in Montana; my sister and I sang "Down to the River to Pray." Here's the scene in the film:

I was excited until I found out the last casting call was the next day, a day which I had to work during most of. However, after some awesome time management skills that included taking a series of headshots in less than 15 minutes, I was able to attend the casting call. I even ran into my friend, Anton, while typing up the requested paperwork at the Art Institute campus.

Ridiculous stories ensued, and I taught Anton how to take his measurements.

Fun Facts about Anton:
He is an Art Institute film major and doesn't drink coffee.

Since I live near 51st Street but didn't know where the Red Building was, Anton and I carpooled.

Also, because the lovely Rose of Pink Sun Drops asked how it went: Since the film is a remake of True Grit and the premise of the film is set somewhere between 1870-1900 the crew was looking for people with "characteristics". They basically refused to see anyone who had chemical/processed hair, and also wrote on the info sheet that they weren't looking for necessarily gorgeous people. I have a gap between my front teeth (I asked my grandmother to pay for a school-sponsored trip to DC & Boston rather than get braces when I was 13), a crooked nose (a girl broke my nose by punching me in the face when I was 16), and a wine-stain birth mark on my right cheek. Along with naturally curly hair, a decent figure, past equestrian experience, and a knack for old westerns (I can't help it: Gary Cooper was born in Helena, Montana, in my great-great-grandmother's house--which is the only reason that house is still standing to this day), and the people there they said they would be surprised if I wasn't called back.

I wore a black spaghetti-strap top (Wet Seal) , a pair of 7 For All Mankind jeans (thrifted from Buffalo Exchange).

I know that doesn't mean anything, as they may have just been trying to not hurt my feelings, and like my dad siad, I shouldn't get my hopes up. The thing is, if I decide to do costuming/styling/consulting for films in the future, I think this would a great insider's view of what a day for the head stylist would be. In all, even if nothing transpires from this, it was a new Austin adventure that could only be this entertaining because it is what it is: an opportunity to be in a remake of a classic film.

On Sunday, which was my day off from both work and school, my friend Alex and I went to the 21st Street Co-Op to cook for Food Not Bombs. Food Not Bombs is a volunteer organization that protests war and povertry through making vegetarian and vegan meals for the homeless. The Austin Chapter meets at the 21st Street Co-Op Kitchen at about 2:30 on Sunday afternoons to serve meals at Woolridge Park (9th & Guadalupe) around 6 in the evening. You can visit the Austin Chapter's Myspace here.

Emily, one of the volunteers I met.

I'm hoping this can be a regular thing for me, as I miss working in a kitchen (my mother was a chef and I have 9 years of restaurant experience), but I usually work on Sundays. Either way, I met new faces and saw some old ones (I briefly lived at the 21st Street Co-Op when I moved back to Austin in 2008), and had a fantastic time. I liked the volunteer aspect as well, as I have been homeless and I think I can give a little back now that I have more control in my life than ever before. Enjoy the photos and tell me about your weekend!

Alex and me, relaxing on the back porch-swing at the Co-Op while taking a break from chopping vegetables.

Alex and Chris, making mashed potatoes without a proper masher.

The apple-banana crisp the rest of the crew made!

Thanks to the Austin Food Not Bombs for the logo!