Why Can't I Quit You, Austin?

[texasdago 7554]

There's so much bitching on the other thread that I thought I would start something more positive and why not start when Eeyore's Birthday is tomorrow... one of the weirdest, most Austin-like events of the year.  

Hey, while we're at it, there's some kickass music this weekend:

Psych Fest - https://levitation.fm/pages/austin-psych-fest

I really need to find a way to catch at least one day... Courtney Barnett will be awesome today + Psychedelic Porn Crumpets, Levitation Room, Orions Belte...

Austin Blues Festival - https://www.austinbluesfestival.com/

[utee94 15778]

I love the idea of this thread, @texasdago.  Hopefully it can stay clean.

How 'bout:

And

 

[texasdago 7554]

Good God, BSP was a lifesaver last year.  It was so absurdly hot that on days when it was 105+, we would go down to Barton Springs, jump in for a swim and then you could sit in the shade and feel air conditioned for the next hour.  One of my favorite things about BSP is the community feel around the diving board... a mix of people showing off, doing crazy jumps, learning how to jump off of a board the first time and... the best... the whole pool cheering on a kid who is scared to jump off.  Its beautiful.

First visit to BSP this year was end of March...

[crash_davis 23091]

NO NO! Austin sucks. The people in the suburbs in Dallas and Houston need to remember that Austin sucks. There's nothing here.

They need to tour Houston to see which refinery has the least polluting smoke coming out of the top and around Dallas suburbs to see which strip mall has the most parking.

Edited April 26 by crash_davis

[texasdago 7554]

Well everyone knows the bottom of BSP is lined with liberal homeless people who had their bodies draped in LBGTQ flags.

...but when I'm not dodging them, give me a nice cold cocktail under the oak trees at Fresa's on S. 1st.  

[LonghornJones 836]

[South Austin 52374]

There’s no better place to be in Austin than on Rainey Street at 1:30 a.m.

[Snake Diggity 4615]

Good thread.  I often lament how Austin has changed over the last several decades, and the last 3 summers have seeded daydreams of moving somewhere cooler.  But at least once each season I have an experience that reminds me why I live here:

-My birthday is in January, and in the last few years I have started 2 traditions: I go to dinner with my wife at Fonda San Miguel on my actual birthday, and then the Saturday closest to my birthday, I go walk campus, shop the Co-Op, and meet friends for beers at Mockingbird Saloon (formerly Texas Showdown).  Fonda is a reminder that Austin has world class restaurants.  Walking campus and having beers down there is nostalgic, but even outside of that, the weather in January is often fantastic and the vibe of that huge college campus is something you don’t get in most cities.

-The Capitol 10k in March/April is always a reminder of my love of the city.  Tens of thousands of people gathered to do something healthy and fun.  Live music.  Free shit.  Beer.  And many times the weather is perfect.

-Barton Springs Pool, Hamilton Pool, Krause Springs.  As mentioned above, jumping into BSP on a 105 degree day is bliss.  During the aughts I had a tradition of going down there on the week the first college football magazines came out each summer; some of the best solo days of my life.  I can’t wait to take my girls to jump off the diving board now that they’re old enough.

-Every time I walk thru the concourse of DKR at the first home game, I get goosebumps.  Thats my Austin.  And the pregame scene is light years better than it was back when Austin was “cool”.

This list could go on.  ACL, UT baseball, UT basketball, RR Express, endless restaurant choices, live music (even if there’s less of it), running Town Lake, Mt Bonnell…

The traffic is shit.  The culture of the city has deteriorated.  Everything is too expensive.  The politics in Texas is stupid.  And the summer heat might end up forcing me to move in the end.  But I would still easily rank Austin among the 20 or so best places to live in the country overall, and for me personally, I’m still right where I want to be.

Edited April 26 by Snake Diggity

[gofuckyourself 8183]

Is this where we celebrate when Nic...er...the Rainey Street Killer is apprehended?

I'll add this area. I was lucky enough to live off the Butler Hike and Bike trail for a couple years, and it's a beautiful place to view the city.

 

 

Edited April 26 by gofuckyourself
Dammit SA. Beat me to it.

[utee94 15778]

7 minutes ago, LonghornJones said:

Nice.  I raise you, Buddy's Place:

 

[texasdago 7554]

Yeah, you know... its funny... we met up with my brother at Irene's about two weeks ago.  He was at UT in the mid/late 80s.  For me it was 89-93.  I loved Austin back then and let's be honest, I didn't really take advantage of everything it had to offer.  I left Austin for many years but would come back all the time and I watched it change.  Same goes for my brother.  The change was just that... change... and it didn't phase me. Living in Houston, I always laughed at Austin traffic.  It was piddly in comparison.  When we came back, I saw that it was worse but still so minor compared to Houston so I try to use that perspective.

Well, anyway, my brother and I were at Irene's and I asked him what he thought of the Austin of today and he said exactly what I was thinking...

"I love it even more today"

Yeah, its more expensive and that sucks BUT there is more live music than ever before and it is a broad mix of music.  The food is better than it used to be.  East side has all kinds of stuff going on.  Breweries throughout town.  Hiking trails and network has been improved.  BSP has not changed a thing.  There's more to do... UT has stepped up its gameday experience, Austin FC, etc. etc.  Oh... and I hate the 1980s skyline.  Lame ass skyline.  Fight me. The new skyline kicks ass.

I'm thinking of eventually leaving because of the climate and because of the dicks running this state but, for Texas, nowhere else I would rather be.

I'll raise a toast to y'all when watching a show this weekend.  Central Machine Works has some good bands both Saturday and Sunday if I don't make it to Psych Fest (or Briscoe tonight at Stubb's since someone is trying to convince me to go)

Edited April 26 by texasdago

[ztejas 43403]

8 minutes ago, South Austin said:

There’s no better place to be in Austin than on Rainey Street at 1:30 a.m.

[texasdago 7554]

Sweaty summer concerts at the Drop In... worth the humidity.  

Mmmmm burgers.  These dudes better be back this summer... https://www.instagram.com/chuckwagon.burgers/

[MuellerHorn 4203]

15 minutes ago, South Austin said:

There’s no better place to be in Austin than on Rainey Street at 1:30 a.m.

If you’re @Nicole44…

[Parliament 14199]

I was in Austin for the Ohio State game in 06.  Closed down the bars on 6th Street, ate tacos at 3 am close to our hotel and stood in the beer garden at Schmidt’s for many hours on Saturday.  Was fun.  Was hot.  Would do again.

[crash_davis 23091]

Paddle board Town Lake on a summer weekend. You get to cool off and see a band in the middle of the damn lake.

Also one of the best views of Austin is to paddle board/kayak Town Lake at night. Paddle to see the bats and city lights from the lake.

 

[UTPhil2006 3799]

best burger in Austin.. Uptown burger at Billy’s on Burnet. Dans, Casino, crown, and Dirtys all honorable mention

[texasdago 7554]

OK... I have seen the DJ at Party Island but never seen the band.  That is hilarious.

Also love it when there is a band on a Saturday morning along the trail... usually there to support the Trail Conservancy.  https://thetrailconservancy.org/programs/music/#:~:text=The Trail Conservancy is thrilled,to your morning Trail routine.

 

[closetohumping 17429]

*sigh.  Damn I miss it.  But I feel like I"m too old for it.  

[chainsaw 9841]

5 minutes ago, closetohumping said:

*sigh.  Damn I miss it.  But I feel like I"m too old for it.  

Remember being young in Austin and doing stuff and there were a bunch of old guys hanging around doing stuff too? You could be one of those old guys. Pull up a seat.

[HenryJames 65969]

1 minute ago, chainsaw said:

Remember being young in Austin and doing stuff and there were a bunch of old guys hanging around doing stuff too? You could be one of those old guys. Pull up a seat.

[crash_davis 23091]

6 minutes ago, texasdago said:

OK... I have seen the DJ at Party Island but never seen the band.  That is hilarious.

Also love it when there is a band on a Saturday morning along the trail... usually there to support the Trail Conservancy.  https://thetrailconservancy.org/programs/music/#:~:text=The Trail Conservancy is thrilled,to your morning Trail routine.

 

I like the Party Island, Brotilla, or whatever people call it. It's uniquely Austin and is a funny, spontaneous thing which was born out of Covid. I'm usually on my paddle board most weekends during the summer and about half the time on a weekend day, there's a band or some sort of music event happening on a barge/float.

What I don't like is all the shit that people leave on the lake when the sun starts setting: paddles, oars, popped floats, plastic bottles and trash everywhere. 

[ztejas 43403]

6 minutes ago, chainsaw said:

Remember being young in Austin and doing stuff and there were a bunch of old guys hanging around doing stuff too? You could be one of those old guys. Pull up a seat.

[texasdago 7554]

10 minutes ago, chainsaw said:

Remember being young in Austin and doing stuff and there were a bunch of old guys hanging around doing stuff too? You could be one of those old guys. Pull up a seat.

As I said, I went to UT from 89-93.  I have no qualms going to anything... and everything.  F it.  I don't care.

(although I went to Latchkey with a group of friends... yeah, felt a little out of place there)

[Armybrat 40799]

I miss it too…

 

[gofuckyourself 8183]

1 hour ago, texasdago said:

Good God, BSP was a lifesaver last year.  It was so absurdly hot that on days when it was 105+, we would go down to Barton Springs, jump in for a swim and then you could sit in the shade and feel air conditioned for the next hour.  One of my favorite things about BSP is the community feel around the diving board... a mix of people showing off, doing crazy jumps, learning how to jump off of a board the first time and... the best... the whole pool cheering on a kid who is scared to jump off.  Its beautiful.

First visit to BSP this year was end of March...

 

I made student documentary film back in the stone ages focusing just on Zilker Park, using B&W 16mm film.

I may have to dig it up and digitize it for the thread. It included a ride on the train back before they botched it all up, and potentially other interesting time capsule tidbits.

[YChang 3440]

1 hour ago, crash_davis said:

NO NO! Austin sucks. The people in the suburbs in Dallas and Houston need to remember that Austin sucks. There's nothing here.

They need to tour Houston to see which refinery has the least polluting smoke coming out of the top and around Dallas suburbs to see which strip mall has the most parking.

Haha, I applaud your consistent reflex to shit on Dallas and Houston consistently in these threads. 

[crash_davis 23091]

1 minute ago, YChang said:

Haha, I applaud your consistent reflex to shit on Dallas and Houston consistently in these threads. 

Getting ahead of the curve before some dude from Prosper tries to start shitting on Austin.

[utee94 15778]

I have an idea!  Why don't we leave both the preemptive thread-shitting and the reactionary thread-shitting to the doomsayer threads like ___ what the f is wrong with you and the great enshittification thread, and leave this one positive, as it was designed and intended?

I'll go again--

I grew up going here as a kid in the 70s/80s, and my kids have grown up going here as well.  And it really hasn't changed all that much, aside from 1/2 of it becoming an antique mall...

 

[LonghornJones 836]

HSO: Roller blades have no place in a skating rink. Come at me.

[BurntEyes 5937]

Not there anymore, but I loved the more that 2 decades I spent in Austin. I lived at the corner of 28th and Nueces. So.. the picks below all resonate a ton, as they were all stumbling distant.

 

 

[BurntEyes 5937]

11 minutes ago, utee94 said:

I have an idea!  Why don't we leave both the preemptive thread-shitting and the reactionary thread-shitting to the doomsayer threads like ___ what the f is wrong with you and the great enshittification thread, and leave this one positive, as it was designed and intended?

I'll go again--

I grew up going here as a kid in the 70s/80s, and my kids have grown up going here as well.  And it really hasn't changed all that much, aside from 1/2 of it becoming an antique mall...

 

Well, that and vintage clothing stores. 😉 So as to keep the positive going:

Edited April 26 by BurntEyes

[Pato del Muerto 52462]

Is texadelphia still a thing?  

[BurntEyes 5937]

[utee94 15778]

1 minute ago, Pato del Muerto said:

Is texadelphia still a thing?  

There's still one in the Austin area down in Sunset Valley, but sadly that's the last one around here.

[crash_davis 23091]

1 minute ago, Pato del Muerto said:

Is texadelphia still a thing?  

Only 1 location remaining in Austin off of Brodie in S. Austin.

[BurntEyes 5937]

2 minutes ago, Pato del Muerto said:

Is texadelphia still a thing?  

There is one in Dallas (off lovers and upper Greenville) and pretty sure 1 still in Austin and Houston.

https://texadelphia.com/

[Pato del Muerto 52462]

Shame. I used to go down to the Union underground for a sandwich when they had service down there. 

[LonghornJones 836]

4 minutes ago, BurntEyes said:

There is one in Dallas (off lovers and upper Greenville) and pretty sure 1 still in Austin and Houston.

https://texadelphia.com/

Dallas one closed.

[High Plains Drifter 11013]

 

Any of you old timers ever eat at GM Steakhouse? Not the one on Lamar, the one near campus. 

You would order a burger with "everything". They would ask, you sure you want everything? You say yes, and they would whip out some random object, like a carburetor from an old Chevy, and slap that on your plate. 

[utee94 15778]

Just now, High Plains Drifter said:

 

Any of you old timers ever eat at GM Steakhouse? Not the one on Lamar, the one near campus. 

You would order a burger with "everything". They would ask, you sure you want everything? You say yes, and they would whip out some random object, like a carburetor from an old Chevy, and slap that on your plate. 

Yup.  They only had cheeseburgers.  If you ordered a cheeseburger without the cheese, they'd charge you extra.  But, the abuse from the staff, was free.

 

 

[texasdago 7554]

Taco Shack was where I first learned about breakfast tacos.  I feel like it was called Taco Wars back then.  99 cent tacos.

One favor

Can we please please please not turn this into a "I miss old Austin thread?" 

I would love to keep this about Austin today... Austin in the present tense.

Not, "I miss going to the Black Cat... waaaaah"

There are other "I miss Old Austin threads" scattered through surly

Edited April 26 by texasdago

[BurntEyes 5937]

The GM Steakhouse, that was a fun place. I'm brain farting on the coffee shop right down the road with a bunch of smelly hippies and great beans and rice. It's over in Hydepark now, next to a great restaurant: 

[High Plains Drifter 11013]

9 minutes ago, BurntEyes said:

 

Some good memories, and some not so good, in those pics. A piece of me died when I went back to the drag years later and saw that the Showdown had closed. 

Also spent a lot of time, money, and liver and brain cells at Posse East (which was called "The Beach" when I first showed up on the 40) and the bar next door, whose name escapes me at the moment. Or maybe the bar next door was called the Posse East. 

 

 

[BurntEyes 5937]

3 minutes ago, texasdago said:

Taco Shack was where I first learned about breakfast tacos.  I feel like it was called Taco Wars back then.  99 cent tacos.

One favor

Can we please please please not turn this into a "I miss old Austin thread?" 

I would love to keep this about Austin today... Austin in the present tense.

Not, "I miss going to the Black Cat... waaaaah"

There are other "I miss Old Austin threads" scattered through surly

I'm with you hence why I tried to balance it with places still open. 

[High Plains Drifter 11013]

4 minutes ago, texasdago said:

Taco Shack was where I first learned about breakfast tacos.  I feel like it was called Taco Wars back then.  99 cent tacos.

One favor

Can we please please please not turn this into a "I miss old Austin thread?" 

 

 

 

oops, too late. 

[BurntEyes 5937]

Just now, High Plains Drifter said:

 

Some good memories, and some not so good, in those pics. A piece of me died when I went back to the drag years later and saw that the Showdown had closed. 

Also spent a lot of time, money, and liver and brain cells at Posse East (which was called "The Beach" when I first showed up on the 40) and the bar next door, whose name escapes me at the moment. Or maybe the bar next door was called the Posse East. 

 

 

Poss East also had very solid burgers. That was over by the Engineering buildings.

[High Plains Drifter 11013]

 

What is the name of the place next to Hyde Park Bar and Grill? I meet up with friends there for morning margs and tacos whenever I'm back in town. Love that place. I think its the same old woman working the register that has always been there. 

[HenryJames 65969]

7 minutes ago, texasdago said:

Taco Shack was where I first learned about breakfast tacos.

[High Plains Drifter 11013]

2 minutes ago, BurntEyes said:

Poss East also had very solid burgers. That was over by the Engineering buildings.

 

Yep, one block from RLM. One beer and a burger was a standard Friday lunch.