Residents Share Love of City with New Book

by Olivia Djibo

We are two moms Olivia Djibo (Timbergrove West) and Katie O’Malley (Timbergrove East).

I am Olivia is a mechanical engineer in Oil and Gas and Katie is a freelance Designer (I jokingly refer to her as supermom). We met earlier in 2016 for another fun project and have now have teamed up to create a one of a kind pocket sized guidebook called "Go Here. Do That Houston".

We quickly discovered that among the many things we had in common, we both loved Houston and were very proud to share hidden spots to our family and friends visiting.

We first got started on a list of recommendations for our own family and friends who are always looking for things do around town. After months of research, we realized that the guide could serve for anyone visiting Houston and looking for a glimpse at “the local experience”. While Katie was creating all the amazing hand painted and artistic Illustrations, I (Olivia) was driving around town to vet all recommendations.

The number of places we did not know about was overwhelming. Houston is so diverse, fascinating and much bigger than we thought (that we thought we knew). This made the selection of places to recommend even more difficult.

“Go Here. Do That” as the name indicates is a simple way to point a visitor to a place. The guidebook showcases Houston from our local point of view with Things to do, Places to see, Personal tips from several Houston Chefs and Artists. The guidebook will be published officially on Jan 2 and available via "goherehouston.com". The website will allow us to show additional gems of Houston as a complement to the guide.

Finally, I wanted to share this story through our Newsletter because this project is so personal for me. My family and I moved to Timbergrove over a year ago. It is a very special place inside the loop. Working on this project with Katie reminded me that our neighborhood is filled with good and equally talented individuals. We should all take the time to get to know what our neighbors’ hobbies and passions are. We should also support one another and local businesses as much as we can.

I am certainly forever changed by this experience, all the people I met and interviewed. I am in love with Houston even more.