aka The ATX, the City of Ideas, Silicon Hills
The eighties was a great time for dumb summer movies — the kind of flicks you want to watch on VHS after a long day of indulging at whatever luxurious summer beach cottage you’ve managed to crash. There are tons of obvious hits in this category, but skip the old shtick and delve deeper into your pal’s childhood tape collection for some truly amazing gems. Read More
Why, for the love of God, hadn’t anyone told me about the awesomeness of David Byrne’s 1986 musical film True Stories until a few weeks ago? This film features an unbeatable array of things I love– cheesy interpretations of Texas culture, John Goodman, and rock n’ roll? Does it get better than that? Read More
In the summer months, when it turns far too hot for exercising outside, I am forced into the gym to run on the treadmill. So how do I pass the monotonous minutes without feeling like a gerbil in a cage? Easy. Foodie TV, of course! Read More
When I moved to Austin, I imagined I lived in a bubble far away from the rest of Texas. The state, frankly, scared my east coast blood cold. It wasn’t until last year that I finally discovered the awesomeness that is San Antonio. Barely an hour from my adopted home town, this historic city is rich with culture, specifically contemporary art. Read More
Why, oh why, is summer the worst movie theater season for anyone with an IQ higher than a rock? Lucky for us non-neanderthals, Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s new film Micmacs is a welcome breath of fresh air during these dreadfully stifling summer blockbuster months. Read More
Ever since reading about fashion websites that offer public feedback, I have been completely obsessed. A massive gallery of internet viewers ready to critique my outfit and tell me how awesome or awful I look? Don’t mind if I do! Read More
What could be better on a hot summer night than speeding down a wide Texas boulevard with your lady pals cranking 6o’s girl groups? As the weather starts to make everyone in Austin regress into a feverish summer childhood, these are the tunes I’m consistently rocking at full volume.
A Contemporary Claudia
If you were born in the eighties and you’re an American lady, there seems to be a fair to excellent chance that you read the Baby-sitters Club book series as a girl. I know I consumed these novels with an almost unnatural religious fervor, and these “tweens” totally changed my life forever. Claudia Kishi, in particular, was, is and will be one of my ultimate fashion gurus. Read More
Ok, so Texas is huge and Austin ain’t exactly close to any real ocean. So where’s a girl to go when she wants to beat the heat? It turns out that this crazy state is home to some of the most heavenly swim holes on the planet. You just have to know where to look! Read More
Yes, I’m pretty damn late on this, but why didn’t anyone tell me about the amazing TV show Trailer Park Boys sooner? It’s freaking hilarious! Since becoming obsessed with this show, I’ve had a real epiphany about a fact many Americans might need a moment to process: Canadian comedy shows have been at the core of my love for absurd television since a young age. Read More
There’s nothing better than sitting in a dark, old movie theater on a brutally hot evening. It’s just so…decadent. Austin has a virtual plethora of movie houses to choose from, but the Paramount Theatre is the oldest and best location in the summer months because of their classic film series that runs practically every night from June through the end of August. Read More
I try my damndest not to get sucked into guilty internet pleasures as ubiquitous as blogger Perez Hilton, TMZ or Gawker. Read More
Austin is a lucky, lucky town to have the incredible Alamo Drafthouse movie theaters. There are now nine throughout Texas, but Austin’s are still the best. These folks know what makes a movie experience special, and I am fortunate that they cater to people like me. If I’m going to spend $10 to go to a film, I want it to be something unique. I want to drink a local beer, eat something fresh. I crave an EXPERIENCE — not a corporate, cookie-cutter Saturday night.
As sites like Hulu and mailing services like Netflix continue to gain influence and technology, the immersive movie-watching adventure is the future of watching cinema in a public environment. Show me something new or weird and make it an adventure. 3D could be a part of this future. Although I watched Avatar in 3D for the campy experience, not because I actually took the film or the technology seriously. Still, I admit it: It was a fun ride. Don’t tell anyone, ok?
Oliver Lutz nascar painting
I have never, ever known a single soul who watched NASCAR, although I am totally fascinated (and disgusted) by the disturbing racist, nationalistic character of this sport. My only contact with the sport in my entire life came last year while attending a fascinating museum exhibition, Oliver Lutz: Paint it Black at San Antonio’s fabulous Artpace. Who knew that fans of this bizarre American pass-time are almost deafened by the experience? That “the headphones are typically tuned into race scanners that track communications between drivers and pit crews and also pick up the audio from radio and television broadcasts of the race? Or that some fans additionally tune into live video feeds on handheld devices offering a driver’s-eye view of the action?
Aw...
The whole thing sounds so terribly isolating. Aren’t sports events supposed to bring people together for a collective experience? The only sport I only enjoyed watching or following is baseball, possibly the least sporty sport there is. This was once upon a time when I was a New Yorker, and I fell hard for the underdog spirit of the Mets. I loved going to games, eating hot dogs and people-watching. Admittedly, the sport-watching was last on the list, but I loved experiencing it with a large group of people. Sharing the highs and lows is what makes a live sports event exciting!
Sorry I'm a luddite!
I have to admit, I’m not much of a gamer. The most advanced gaming I do is on my treasured Sega Genesis, the same console I’ve had since I was ten. That said, I have two little brothers in my life (ok, not so little– they’re 17 and 22) and I am fascinated by the way social media and gaming overlap in their lives. They might be playing some game on their Wii with a “real” friend or someone in Shanghai. I’ll be watching something on Netflix, streaming through their console, and they’ll get some nonsensical invite from halfway around the world challenging them to a game.
The bain of my Facebook existence
I’ve been using social networking websites since the dawn of Friendster in 2002, but I never use it to play games. And it seems that only the weirdest, lamest “friends” of mine post their Farmville (or whatever) statistics on their Facebook profiles. Generally when this happens, I block out this content from my newsfeed. I’m just too busy to consider engaging with social media in this context. Foursquare seems interesting for those living in giant metropolises where friends hop from place to place with a rapid frequency, but here in Austin, where we tend to move a bit slowly, this technology has yet to catch on.
