🎁 Get your favorite local shop into our Holiday Gift Guide, plus Halloween weekend

Our first Holiday Gift Guide is filling up, with 14 local shops and makers already in. If your favorite isn't yet, forward this to them before Nov. 13. Also this week: MJ Reviews on the podcast, what to know before you vote, and every way to celebrate Halloween weekend.

■  Local shops: get into our first Holiday Gift Guide
■  Before you vote: Election Day is Nov. 3
■  20 things to do this week, including Halloween weekend
■  MJ Reviews on getting paid to eat, and staying honest
■  Where to eat in Midland, by meal and craving
■  Spot of the Week: the coffee stop before curtain call
■  Meet Jax, this week's Pet of the Week

Ryan & Terra Best of Midland

Holiday Gift Guide

Presented by

Our first annual Holiday Gift Guide is all local: makers, boutiques, bakeries and market booths from Midland, Odessa and the Permian Basin. Every gift gets a real photo, the price and where to buy it.

• Free for locally owned businesses, one gift each
• One quick form: the gift, a photo, the price and where to buy it
• Submissions close Friday, Nov. 13
• The guide goes out Tuesday, Nov. 17

Not a shop owner? Forward this to your favorite one.

Here's what to know before you head to the polls in Midland County:

• Early voting ends Friday, Oct. 30. The Elections Office on N A Street is open 7 AM to 7 PM this week. The other four sites are open 8 AM to 5 PM.
• On Election Day, polls are open 7 AM to 7 PM at 20 vote centers across the county.
• Bring an approved photo ID, like a Texas driver license or a U.S. passport.
• Leave your phone in your pocket. Phones aren't allowed in the voting room, but a printed sample ballot or handwritten notes are fine.

Our guide has every location, the full ID list and a link to your sample ballot, all from the county and state.

P.S. Forward this to someone who hasn't voted yet so they're ready too.

Everything worth getting out for, Tuesday, Oct. 27 through Sunday, Nov. 1. Our 20 picks for the week, plus the full calendar at the bottom.

Don't miss T.I. featuring Waka Flocka Friday, Oct. 30 · Midland County Horseshoe · Two hip-hop headliners on one bill, the night before Halloween. Starts at 6 PM.

Don't miss Halloween Market at the Downtown Farmers Market Saturday, Oct. 31 · Midland Downtown Farmers Market · The downtown market goes Halloween. Shop local vendors from 8 AM to noon.

6 PM  United Way of Midland: Power of the Purse
Bush Convention Center · Community

6 PM  Trunk or Treat at Juji's Kitchen
Juji's Kitchen · Family

7 PM  UTPB Symphonic Winds: The Stars and Stripes Forever
Wagner Noel Performing Arts Center · Free

8 PM  Bo & Mia Z at Pi Social
Pi Social · Free

4:30 PM  Pumpkin Walk at the Bush Family Home
Bush Family Home State Historic Site · Family

9 AM  Every Neighbor Valued Workshop: The Power of Moments
Stonegate Fellowship · Tickets

6:30 PM  Family Science Night: Mad Scientist's Lab
Permian Basin Petroleum Museum · Free

7 PM  Practical Magic Trivia
The Blue Door · Trivia

4 PM  Plains Fall Festival Car Show & Trunk or Treat
Plains Pipeline · Free

7 PM  Friday Night Live: The Ric Carr Band
The Destination · Music

7 PM  Sci-Friday: The Time Machine
Museum of the Southwest · Arts

7 PM  Roaring 20s Halloween Party
The Oso Room · Tickets

7:30 PM  Meteor Shower
Midland Community Theatre · Runs through Sunday · Theater

2 PM  Once Upon a Spooky Tale
Midland County Public Library (Centennial) · Free

2 PM  Trunk or Treat at VFW Post 4149
VFW Post 4149 · Free

5 PM  Fall Festival at Holy Cross
Holy Cross Lutheran Church · Free

6 PM  UTPB Football Homecoming vs. Angelo State
Astound Broadband Stadium · Sports

7 PM  Daring Greatly Halloween Party
The Destination · Tickets

7 PM  Halloween Karaoke Night at the Boowery
Tall City Brewing Co. · Free

2 PM  Día de los Muertos Open Studio
The Studio · Arts

Just opened Layne's Chicken Fingers Opened Oct. 20 · Hand-breaded chicken fingers, crinkle fries and Texas toast in the old Wendy's building on Rankin Hwy.

Ribbon cutting Stillwater Wellness & Med Spa Ribbon cutting Oct. 22 · A newer med spa on North Midland Drive, open six days a week.

Just opened Barnes & Noble, Odessa Now open · The bookseller's new Odessa store is in the Chimney Rock shopping center on Hwy 191.

See everything new →

Layne's and Barnes & Noble first spotted by Maybe In Midland-Odessa.

The Half Acre BBQ · North Midland Brisket, beef and pork ribs and green chile sausage, smoked with Scharbauer ranch beef. See their page

Midland Yoga Works Fitness · North Midland About two dozen classes a week on North Garfield. Your first class is $10. See their page

The Venue At Live Oak Event and wedding venues · East Midland Indoor and outdoor event space among live oak trees on Elkins Road, with get-ready rooms. See their page

Own a local business? Become a Local Member →

A little over a year ago, MJ was a barber posting his first food video to about 800 followers. Now he reviews restaurants across West Texas for more than 36,000 on TikTok. He gets into what counts as a real review, whether you can get paid and still be honest, and what business owners should know before they call a creator. He closes with his five favorite places to eat.

Know someone in Midland or Odessa with a story to tell? They can apply to be on the show.

If someone has ever asked you where to eat in Midland and you froze, this is the page to send them. It's organized the way you actually decide: breakfast and brunch, lunch downtown, Mexican food, barbecue, steak, pizza and a night out, with one of our full guides behind every section. It pairs nicely with this week's episode.

One of you wrote Vibes2Go into our coffee poll, so we went to find out more. It's a Midland family business built around white coffee, a lighter roast that tastes smoother and nuttier, with less bitterness and more caffeine than a regular cup.

Their counter is inside Midland Community Theatre on W Wadley, so it's an easy grab before a show, and the menu has drinks themed to what's on stage. You'll also run into them popping up at local markets, and their ground white coffee is sold online if you want to try it at home.

Good to know: hours vary, so check their Instagram before you go.

Jax has never met a stranger. He's an older guy who doesn't act like it, and his favorite place in the world is a warm lap. He takes a daily medicine for a heart condition, but you'd never guess it from his attitude. He's fixed, microchipped and vaccinated for his age, so he's ready to go home.

Jax is at Grand Companions' Fort Davis adoption center. Call 432-426-3724, any day 9 AM to 5 PM, to ask about meeting him.

Vet, groomer or pet store? Put your name on Pet of the Week and help a Midland pet find a home every Tuesday. Become a partner →

See you next Tuesday. Happy Halloween, and save us the fun-size Snickers.

Ryan & Terra

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Want to reach Midland with us? Become a partner →