Why You Should Love Deep Ellum

As you’re reading this, you’re probably wondering if I will continue to post once every 6-8 months, or just when the fancy strikes me. I know, I know... I’m horrible sometimes about following through with certain side projects.

I will try my best to keep posting wonderful things for your reading pleasure... but I guess that artistic, creative side to me is what makes me kinda flaky sometimes.

For those of you that don’t know, Jason and I now live in the wonderful community of Deep Ellum. It’s still in Dallas, on the east side of downtown. We live in a very cool, very concrete, very small loft and we love it!! Jason would add that it’s very noisy, but don’t listen to him. :)

Our very concrete loft

Deep Ellum is rich with unique history, especially in music. For all of you wondering what kind of crazy name this community has, it actually is a corruption of the phrase “Deep Elm Street.” Check out this Wikipedia page for more history.

Since I am such a list maker-extraordinaire, here’s one for today, a list of Why we Love Deep Ellum so much. Enjoy--

1. The People

They’re creative. They’re weird. They like to have fun. Deep Ellum attracts these types of people. And everyone has that sense of good ol’ southern friendliness.  Forget the old reputation of being scary... everyone is looking out for each other. Even for the bums. And Creativity is the norm around here ... we have neighbors that make soap, another that makes hair barrettes, in addition to a smattering of artists, designers, and me of course... flower shop girl.

Being Brave at Recycle Revolution

2. The Sights 

Outdoor murals, tattoos, art, festivals, and the just plain weird....I once saw a baby goat being walked on a leash down Elm Street. But my favorite sight would have to be the downtown view from our rooftop terrace.

Rooftop View of Downtown

More Rooftop View

3. The Food

 My favorite taco stand {Santiago’s} is right around the corner, and if you go down a little further, you’ll find the best little folksy cafe with the best breakfast {The AllGood Cafe}...which has a very Austin-ish, quirky vibe to it. Or if you want Mexican, go to {Monica’s Aca y Alla}, which has a fun history itself. There’s even a couple places down here that have been featured on Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives.

Yummy Poblano Chicken @ Monica's

4.The Music

 Deep Ellum has always been a hotspot for music. It started with jazz and blues around the 1930s, and in the 90s, it was a big punk rock scene. Now it’s a mixture of music genres including folk, jazz, metal, rock, and whatever else just happens to travel this way. In addition to the clubs and bars, almost every restaurant has nights where they feature live music. There’s nothing like walking around the neighborhood on a weekend and hearing all the sounds emanating from every corner.

Arts Festival

5. The Personality

Everything here is unique. There are no chains (except for the recent addition of a sandwich chain down the street. Boo). It’s all small business, and they all have personality and something special to present that you can't find just anywhere. The most recent addition would be {The SandBar Cantina}, a bar/restaurant with full-size volleyball courts to play on. The sand there is so nice and soft, you could sleep on it.

Deep Ellum Tunnel Artwork

6.The Church

 This one is the curveball. Wait a minute... church?? in Deep Ellum??? Yep. I said it. It’s so unexpected, but since moving to Deep Ellum, Jason and I have grown so much in our faith because of a wonderful place called {Life in Deep Ellum}. A place to worship, find community, drink coffee, view art, listen to music, or just hang out. It’s a little more alternative than your traditional church... people can wear whatever they want or don’t want. I have seen many bare feet during a Sunday service. If you’re tattooed or pierced... well, you’ll fit right in. It’s a small church with amazing pastors (a young husband and wife team), amazing musical talent, and messages that are relate to real life and will grab you through to the core. Not to mention that these people also put great support into the community and local businesses/artists. LIDE has been probably the best thing to happen to us since moving here.

My Blues Singin' Man

So, the next time you find yourself in the midst of Dallas, just travel a little southeast and come see us. We’ll show you why you should love Deep Ellum too.

When you go down on Deep Ellum,

Put your money in your socks

'Cause them Women on Deep Ellum

Sho' will throw you on the rocks. (chorus)

Oh, sweet mama, your daddy's got them Deep Ellum Blues.

Oh, sweet mama, your daddy's got them Deep Ellum Blues

 (from a song called Deep Ellum Blues)

Why We Can Never Return to B's Buffet

This post is dedicated to all my friends and family that are or ever have been in the military, including my Air Force/Army/Marine wife friends that I know.

Yesterday afternoon, Jason came through the door with one of those awkward looks on his face, like a child who just got in trouble. You know something is wrong, but they don't want to admit it. He handed me a tall coffee that he had promised, and when I inquired about what was going on, he said everything was fine. Hmmm... I didn’t think so, but I knew it would come out eventually. He apologized for not bringing me lunch... Was that the reason for his guilt-stricken face?? I explained that was fine because I wasn’t expecting any lunch and wasn’t hungry... Finally it started to spill from his mouth.

“I got kicked out of B’s Buffet.”

“Whaaat?? Why??”  I couldn’t imagine what in the world he would have been doing to get kicked out of a dinky Chinese restaurant. Did he eat too many eggrolls? Complain about their poor decorating skills? Weeeellll.... apparently he got into an argument with one of the other patrons. Jason is not one of those people that start fights or arguments with just anybody, so I was very surprised and ready to hear his explanation.

Jason went to the Chinese buffet around the corner from us, intending to eat and bring a box of food for me. However, his lunch got cut short when the large man at the booth next to his started badmouthing the United States military. I don’t know the details of what was said, but he did not have anything good to say about our nation’s men and women that are fighting for us overseas. Jason is not hardcore into politics or anything, but he believes you should support those who are in our military. We may not agree with why the President sends them to dangerous places to fight for various reasons, but those brave men and women are risking their lives for our country!  Apparently, the man at the buffet did not see it this way, so Jason stood up and said something to him. And dropped the F bomb. Therefore, he is now banished from B’s Buffet.

Jason apologized for his behavior and what it had resulted in, but after giving it some thought, I decided it was perfectly okay. While he did something that I would never have the guts to do, I was proud of him for standing up for something that he believed in, and something I believe in as well. I made light of the subject and even drew a little cartoon (Please excuse all the eraser marks, I only had a crappy pencil on me).

My Draftsmanship Talents

I know that there is a lot of turmoil and bad stuff going on with our country that people don’t agree with. I’m not here to talk about the politics about it. I just want to say THANK YOU to all of those who are in the military, defending our country. They are doing a job. A dangerous and controversial one that they must do whether they agree with it or not. And we should all be supportive and thankful.  

I have lots of friends whose husbands are on active duty, and I know that being a military wife is a difficult job in itself. So cheers to you all and THANK YOU!!

Much Love, 

Bianca Faye