The Chaible

I LOVE autumn. I love wrapping my hands around a hot steaming cup to warm them in the crisp, beautiful clearness of a fall day.

But this past weekend when I headed 5 hours south to visit my sister during parents' weekend at Georgetown, the weather was not crisp or beautiful. It was almost brutally cold for this time of year, and the endless rain fell for two days straight in a fine, chilling, dampening mist. On Sunday, Mimi gave my parents and I a tour of the campus, and we ducked into the library to dry off and warm up at the artsy student-run in-library cafe called The Midnight Mug.

photos courtesy of The Midnight Mug

I wanted something to warm me up, but I didn't want a whole coffee since I'd already had one that morning. I wanted something autumnal. And then something perfect and original and unknown caught my eye: The Chaible. A chai tea latte with a shot of espresso and a bit of pumpkin spice, the Chaible sounded amazing. And it was. My sister and dad were both jealous of my smooth, rich drink and Mimi vowed to get the Chaible every time she goes to the Midnight Mug throughout the cold months.

I know a lot of people who look forward to all the pumpkin-flavored treats as the weather turns colder. A Starbucks pumpkin spice latte is smooth, delicious heaven ... but a 12 oz tall latte, the smallest size, is also 300 calories with 11g of fat, 7g of which are saturated fats.

Today, inspired by the Midnight Mug Chaible, I went to Starbucks to recreate it. I asked for a tall chai tea latte with a shot of espresso and a little pumpkin spice, and despite a weird look from the barista, I have to say the results were pretty damn good. Plus, this perfect autumn hot drink, a 12 oz tall is only 180 calories with 3g of fat. You save a lot compared to the pumpkin spice latte and get a better drink, in my opinion. Thanks Georgetown!

Mat Kearney & Diane Birch

On Tuesday, KH and I went to go see Mat Kearney at the Fillmore at Irving Plaza, a small and relatively intimate venue. My sister Mimi actually introduced me to Mat many years ago, and I've enjoyed his tunes ever since. He's somewhat of a rhyming lyrical savant - for a white dude, if you don't mind me saying. He calls himself the hip hop kid and blends beautiful melodious choruses with the occasional lite rap verse.

One of my favorite songs that showcases this versatility has always been "Renaissance." It's chilling to actually listen to the fun rhymes of the first verse and realize he's talking about a horrible car crash. I was so happy when he performed "Renaissance" and many other favorites on Tuesday night. Give "Renaissance" a listen - you have to sign up for lala, but I highly recommend the free music service for one-time streaming full songs (unlike imeem which often only allows 30 second previews):

Renaissance - Mat Kearney

As much as I love Mat, I didn't expect him to be a great performer. He seemed like one of those guys that just sounds great on an album thanks to heavy production, but I am happy to say that he sounded incredible live. No gimmicks or tricks - he was pure and talented, and his voice sounded just like it does on his albums. He was backed by an awesome band, and all in all they gave a non-stop, high-energy performance. It was over too soon.

But to backtrack, before Mat took the stage at 9:15, there was an opening act that took me by storm. Diane Birch didn't keep the crowd waiting and walked onto the stage promptly at 8pm. I was immediately struck by how pretty she was, with a heavy fringe of bangs and long tumbling brown hair crowned with a flower headband, big doe-like eyes that were reminiscent of Twiggy, and a cool hipster outfit right down to the best Chloe Sevigny for Opening Ceremony wedges that I have loved forever.

But it was her voice that would blow me out of the water.