I’m ready for ya, #SXSW

South by Southwest – Take II.

Today, I’m ready for it.

Yesterday I was so unprepared for the cold and rainy weather. I came to Austin expecting warmth and sunshine – and packed accordingly. My suitcase was full of dresses, cowboy boots, and light sweaters, not the oversized sweaters or rain boots that this weather actually calls for.

Thank goodness for Target!

Last night we went on a whim and stocked up on rain boots, umbrellas, warmer tops, and jackets.

Much better.

Much, much better.

It’s amazing how much more enjoyable having the right clothes on makes the experience. Now I don’t mind exploring the city a little more and getting all I can get out of the awesome events associated with SXSW.

When I didn’t go to bed until well after midnight last night, I decided to postpone my run this morning until Sunday. I got a full 8 hours of sleep and enjoyed every dreamy minute of it.

For breakfast, I wanted to try the packet of walnut butter i picked up at Whole Foods last night.

I thought it was very fitting considering my current obsession with walnuts.

Eh. The walnut butter was a tad bland for my liking. It really didn’t taste like anything and was lacking that distinct rich flavor that other nut butters hold. You could have told me this was any other nut and I would never have known the difference.

The walnut butter was added to the two packet of original instant oats that I made with hot water from the hotel coffee maker and topped with a peach, and Kashi Go Lean Crisp.

Easy hotel breakfast for the win! 🙂

Rachel met me at my hotel this morning and we carpooled it to downtown. We scored a killer spot near the convention center and it wasn’t long before a Catch a Chevy vehicle pulled up and asked if we needed a ride.

Chevy has this really great program for SXSW called Catch a Chevy. There are dozens of chevy vehicles scattered throughout downtown for the week that are willing to take you anywhere you need to go in downtown (for free!). All you have to do is flag one down or have one find you.

With the cold and the rain, these vehicles are very in demand this weekend. They’re warm and dry inside and have a charging dock in case you need to breathe some new life into your phone on the drive. We only had a few blocks to reach our destination, but not having to walk those blocks in the rain was a huge win! 🙂

The Catch A Chevy wasn’t the only cool thing we discovered this morning. Apparently there’s free food and drinks on just about every corner.

This guy (sponsored by FourSquare) immediately caught my eye.

Free espresso with steamed milk?

Yes, please!

After we grabbed our free hot drinks, we headed to our first sessions in a nearby hotel.

Now this is where the real fun begins!

Time to get my learn on!