Thanks! (to The Austin Young Chamber of Commerce)

I'd like to give many thanks here to the Austin Young Chamber of Commerce ("AYC"), which was once again very cool to Habitat Young Professionals ("HYP").   Specifically, we enjoyed the opportunity to have a booth at the AYC Charity Fair on Wednesday April 14th.   There were a lot of other interesting groups in the room, and we got quite a lot of visitors asking us about HYP, getting information on membership and volunteer opportunities, and getting directions to our upcoming (as in 4/21) happy hour at the Belmont.   And, of course, we got the word out about the HYP Gala. 

Furthermore, thanks to AYC for making Catalyst 8 the first arts group to be highlighted by AYC's new Imagine Austin arts committee.

AYC, the folks at HYP and Catalyst 8 truly appreciate your support!

Food: Frank

I'm not sure when or why I decided I really like Frank.  There are a lot of late night hot dog options downtown, but only Frank:


1. Proclaims itself: Proud Puryeor of Pork and its Tasty Friends


2. Serves bacon infused Makers Mark


3. Serves cookies containing candied bacon


4. Has a cool dachshund mural on the wall


5. Has nacho and frito pie themed dogs on the menu

These are all great reasons to love Frank, in addition to the fact that their Vienna Beef dogs are extremely tasty.  Now, add to the list the fact that Frank is one of the sponsors of this year's HYP Gala (coming up on May 21st).   So, in addition to providing good food, Frank is also helping to build an affordable house for a hardworking family in need.

Making Austin a little more delicious, and making Austin a better place to live.  That's a winning combo that deserves your patronage and support.  Stop by Frank next time you're in the vicinity of 4th and Colorado.

[Note: your pals at Makers Mark are also a sponsor of HYP Gala.  They continue to be super cool, as they were with their sponsorship of the Catalyst 8 Mad Hatter Tea Party back in February.]

Upcoming Events

Wednesday, 4/21

HYP Happy Hour @ the Belmont. 6p-9p. 1/2 Price Drinks. Be there to find out how to Have Fun, Build a House, and Change Lives.


Thursday, 4/29

YMBL Spring Fling @ The American Legion House. 6p-9p. I've always had a great time at the YMBL Fall and Spring Flings. There is a small price for this fundraiser, but de minimus for what you get in return. Proceeds will go toward the Austin Sunshine Camps.

Catalyst 8 Happy Hour @ El Sol y La Luna. 6p-8p. Come out and learn how to support the arts in Austin. Get details on the upcoming Summer of Catalyst 8.


These are all good events. Make plans to hit any and all which look appealing.

Happy Hour: Habitat Young Professionals

Austin Habitat Young Professionals ("HYP") has a happy hour coming up on April 21st at the Belmont. There will be drink specials, but more importantly, there will be information and opportunities regarding becoming more involved with Habitat. HYP is a lot of fun, and HYP does a lot of good. Moreover, I've been adding this line to many HYP annoucements:

Have Fun. Build a House. Change Lives.

There is a lot more to building the house than the actual build days. Houses require land, lumber, fixtures, and a host of other items in order to get built. These items aren't free, and thus the process of raising funds to support the volunteer build days is a vital part of "Build a House." Money comes from a variety of sources, with HYP membership dues and HYP Gala tickets being a large component. Thus, if you want to help a family obtain the dream of owning a home, signing up as a paying HYP member is a great way to get started.

See you at the Belmont on the 21st (or, if you can't come but want information, email: floydaustinblog@gmail.com).

Rugby is Awesome

Rugby is a lot of fun to watch. If you haven't seen a match before, I highly recommend it.

I took these today out at Burr Field. Teams are the Dallas Reds and the Austin Huns.

Car2Go

As you may know, I'm really looking forward to the launch of Car2go. Not that I plan to sell my own car, but I do plan to take advantage of the convenience of the Car2go model when going downtown. If you aren't familiar with the program, watch this: video segment on Car2go from the Texas Tribune

Flummoxed

There is a cluster of subjects about which I have yet to obtain any understanding. One of them if Farmville. I cannot see the appeal of this "game." Real farming is tedious, hard work. Unlike ranching (which is very hard work), farming lacks the awesome elements of cowboys and herds of dangerous yet tasty animals. Rodeos are exciting. Farmers' markets are not. [note: admittedly, a virtual law firm game some probably bore people into catatonia]

So, I am truly flummoxed as to why millions of people play Farmville on Facebook. And by millions, we're talking about 75M+. That is more than the entire populations of Texas, California, and Florida combined. Adding fuel to this inferno of banality, I have just learned that crops on Farmville may become branded and soon "credits" for Farmville may be purchased in cash at 7-11 (so kids without credit cards can participate).

I don't understand the appeal of tending virtual crops. At least real crops can be eaten or monetized. Then there are the sad lost cows and turtles. How do I know this? Because they show up in my Facebook news feed. I don't care about seeing this; after all, I sometimes bombard Facebook with my Foursquare check ins. I am concerned, though, when I see that instead of being occupied on Friday night (by movie time with spouse/kids, binge drinking, poker, visiting lesbian bondage clubs with RNC staffers, whatever), some people, somewhere are planting virtual crops and milking cartoon cows.

Now, while players of Farmville confuse me, I'm pretty damn impressed by Zynga (the game developer) and its ability to squeeze sizable amounts of cash out of a product I would have considered repellent. Then again, I would have rejected Snuggie if asked to fund it. I may just be out of touch with the pulse of society.

[note: some people don't understand Foursquare and/or GoWalla. They obviously don't know the thrill of getting positive reinforcement (or validation, as some might say) for one's frequent bar visits, or the titillation of finding a Wild GoWallaby.]

Public Transit

I'm happy to see that Austin's MetroRail is finally in service. It is certainly a step in the right direction. If I lived in Leander and worked downtown I'd probably ride it. However, since I don't and don't, there is not going to be much Red Line use in my near future.

Having used public transit on both coasts and in various states between, I can easily say that may favorite form of railed transportation is the St. Charles streetcar line in New Orleans. So, in case you are wondering:

-Is it modern?
A: No, absolutely not. Moreover, I don't even think it's air-conditioned. The cars have been in service almost continuously since 1923-24.

-Is it practical?
A: I have no idea. I rode it from Canal Street to Emeril's DelMonico, not exactly the most frequent or practical route for commuters.

-Is it just for tourists?
A: While there were a lot of tourists on it, I did see some very authentic looking people as well. But fear not, as I didn't see anyone I thought had the authentic desire to stab me and my friends. In fact, it was much safer than the bar our busboy at DelMonico recommended.

-What then places the streetcar at the top of my list?
A: The streetcars are so old school they seem surreal. Seriously, these things look awesomely retro as the cruise around NOLA amongst modern vehicles. They have this deco-modern look which was probably seen as high tech and futuristic back in the 20's. Unlike the trolleys of San Francisco, though, they don't seem cute (maybe it's the lack of an associated rice product and it's national advertising). And, like NOLA, a city which seems to age at its own slow pace, they look ancient compared to the people and the cars in the street, but kind of at home as they cruise past the old buildings and then the historic homes of the garden district. They've survived all sorts of disasters and still keep running. So, we'll give it the label of "character."


All of the above being said, I would prefer that Austin stick with climate controlled, laptop friendly railed transportation.

Fun: Freddie's Place

If you're looking for a lazy but entertaining way to spend a few hours this spring, I highly recommend a trip over to Freddie's Place on South 1st. Here you can buy cheap drinks, play washers, and eat an enormous burger served on Texas toast. You can also bring your dog, thus ensuring that he won't defile your home in anger for having left him inside on such a nice afternoon.

Freddie's is pretty cool about hot weather. Various specials kick in when the thermometer breaks 100 degrees, including the every popular 100 cent margarita.

[note: I took the about video on my iPhone while engaged in my first game of washers, ever. Shocking, I know, as I've enjoyed countless hours playing horseshoes and the unfortunately named (bean bag tossing game) cornhole]

Austin Pub Quiz

[video: Duffy, your trivia host]



I often refer to Austin Pub Quiz as "Tavern Trivia," but actually our fearless host Duffy does the trivia nights at the Mean Eyed Cat (every second Monday of the month). Also, Tavern Trivia is now The Tavern's Most Interesting Man Trivia Challenge.

Trivia is at The Tavern every Wednesday night, from 8p-whenever it ends. Be there.

Long Center Anniversary Party

video:Oates runs off stage after their second encore


I don't know where to get started when trying to discuss this event, so here's the summary: it was awesome. The Grand Opening on 2008 was awesome, but last Saturday was better. Was it an incredible performance by Hall & Oates? Maybe. Was is the laid back event which unfolded after H&O left the stage, or was it the swank but open environment? Probably. I can go on for a while about this, so I'll cut myself off now. Congrats to the Long Center and all of the folks who planned this event. And, you know, don't forget to revive that Frito Pie bar next year. It was magically delicious.

Back to Hall & Oates: they are unbelievably good live. I did not expect these guys, who are 63 and 60 respectively, to come out and blow away the versions of their songs which had been recorded back in the early 80's. You just don't expect older rock singers to come out and upstage their work from 30 years ago, but the progenitors of "Rock and Soul" did just that.

Events: HYP/YE Happy Hour at the Kung Fu Saloon

The Austin Habitat Young Professionals and the Austin Young Execs will be hosting a happy hour @ Kung Fu Saloon on March 24 from 5:3-9pm. Here's the text from the Facebook invitation page:

HYP and YE are joining together on March 24th for a happy hour at the Kung Fu Saloon. Vintage arcade games, skee ball, drink specials, and entertaining people all in one place. Everyone knows that's the formula for a fun event.

Plus, if that's not enough, the Kung Fu will also be donating a percentage of sales back to HYP. That's money which will go to build this year's HYP sponsored house.

Here's a list of the specials:

$3 Wells
$2 Domestics
$2 Off Everything Else

Enjoy happy hour while helping to Change Lives. It's good for everyone.

Habitat Young Professionals: Have Fun. Build a House. Change Lives.

Music: Nash Hernandez Orchestra

So... for a variety of complicated reasons I was unable to make it over to Club DeVille to see AMODA's showcase event last night. Maybe it was the fact that McLovin was sighted at Star Bar. I don't know. But, in any event, a couple of us ended up at Donn's Depot around 12:30am.

Man, it had slipped my mind that Saturday night is when the Nash Hernandez Orchestra plays at Donn's. The video clip is of "Sitting on a Dock on the Bay", by Otis Redding. That sort of old school big band music is all right, but the really fun stuff comes out when they play Latin big band numbers. I love it. It's like being in 50's Havana, except without casinos and cool finned Chevy convertibles. The delicious Donn's cocktails and free popcorn are nice, though.

The Nash Hernandez Orchesta is at Donn's from time to time. Check out the Donn's Depot music calendar to find out when they'll be back. It's worth the trip to see them. And, like the girl in the video clip, drop some cash in the jar. There are a lot of dudes who share from that tip pool.

Music: Nouvelle Vague

Last Saturday, I was wondering what would be more fun than spending the evening watching a couple of French ladies dance and sing lounge style covers of 80's New Wave hits. Answer: nothing. Thus, I was compelled to go down to The Mohawk with the gf and some amigos in order to see Nouvelle Vague in action. The show was a lot of fun. I was hooked at the opening number, wherein they covered Depeche Mode's "Master and Servant". My favorite, though, was their version of the Talking Heads' "Road to Nowhere". The Talking Heads' is one of my favorite groups, but when you replace David Byrne with the two ladies in the above photo and their Snidely Whiplash mustache sporting guitarist... man, it is groovy stuff.

Scary French facial hair aside, Nouvelle Vague's music is quite good. The fact that their songs are interesting interpretations of familiar New Wave songs is an added bonus. Check them out on iTunes and download a few of their songs (starting with the two I mentioned above).

Retro: The McDLT

So, I was talking to the gf a couple of days ago and I made a reference to the McLean (as the linked ad explains: the 1980's McDonald's attempt at a healthy burger). While in this conversation, I mentioned the McDLT. I was horrified to find out that she didn't remember this amazing product. I then thought: what if in the way law school replaced my knowledge of Spanish with my less useful knowledge of torts and contracts, her law school experience replaced memories of a burger delivered in packaging designed to keep the hot side hot and the cool side cool with information about property and civil procedure? Aye Caramba! I knew it was time to remedy the situation, so I turned to the internet for help.

While searching for some links to the McDLT, I came across an ad for the burger which features Jason Alexander (aka George Castanza of Sienfeld dancing and singing a song about the McDLT. I lack the ability to appropriately describe this, so watch it for yourself: 1980's Jason Alexander McDLT ad

I'm glad that Mr. Alexender's success on Sienfeld means we will (probably) never again have to see him in a dance routine about McDonald's products.

Bonus: The McDLT didn't die because it wasn't delicious, but rather because McDonald's decided to discontinue Styrofoam packaging. Without the convenient Styrofoam packaging to fold over and thus easily form the burger with a piping hot patty and cool, crisp veggies, the McDLT was basically pointless.

Food: Taco Deli

Man, do I love TacoDeli. I been going there since 1999, right before I went to law school. I avoided it at first, mostly because every cafe/restaurant which had previously been in that location would crash and burn promptly after starting up. I didn't want to get hooked on a doomed taco. Fortunately I was wrong about the location, and once I visited I was instantly hooked. Moreover, thousands of other people are apparently hooked. TacoDeli has won six Austin Chronicle readers' choice awards. It's even quite popular on FourSquare (I'll have to check on GoWalla).

I'm most fond of the steak frontera funditos (pictured above). I also like the Mexico City and the al pastor tacos. Furthermore, the have excellent queso and they stock the fridge with delicious Mexican Coca-Cola (the kind with real cane sugar).

The gf and I ate lunch there today. I was initially concerned about the weather; however, the patio was quite comfortable in the sun and their were plenty of outdoor propane heaters on standby. The only unpleasant aspect to the entire meal was the loud woman who kept describing her last child birth experience in graphic detail (i.e., only an obstetrician would not mind hearing this while eating). It was freaking out me, the gf, and several other diners.

I plan to hit TacoDeli quite often once the weather warms up. Tacos are great before heading into Barton Creek for photos, biking, and other amusing activities.

Blown Out Boot

Yes, you apparently can blow out your cowboy boots while at The Tavern. I wear my Lucchese cowboy boots very often, and apparently I heap abuse upon them. I bought this pair last April, and I didn't expect to have severely damaged them within a year of purchase. Fortunately, for about $75, Austin Shoe Hospital can re-sole, re-heel, and re-condition these bad boys.

If you don't yet own a pair of cowboy boots, I highly recommend Lucchese. The first week is very uncomfortable, but once broken in you will find your Lucchese boots to be among the most comfortable shoes you own. And they look cool.

I'm not joking when I say I wear mine everywhere. I wore them last week, when I walked for three hours taking photos. I've worn them on multi-mile hikes around Vegas. I generally wear them whenever I go downtown. Moreover, I'm currently looking into buying a new pair to add into the boot rotation.

Austin Pub Quiz

[video: Duffy, your trivia host]


I had a good time at The Tavern last night, playing Austin Pub Quiz's 8 round trivia game. I excel at the grab bag and nerd rounds; however, I generally crash and burn at the movie quote, TV trivia, and TV theme song rounds. Fortunately, I know some ringers in various categories. I'll be playing in the finals next week, though I'll probably take some photos during the rounds in which I'm dead weight on the team.

Events: Plucker's Party With a Purpose to Benefit HYP

If you're looking for a good time on 2/18/10, look no further than Plucker's Party With a Purpose benefiting Habitat Young Professionals. Plucker's will donate 20% of non-booze sales to Austin Habitat Young Professionals... and there will be a beer pong tournament for which the winning will receive $1000 donated to the charity represented by said team. Plucker's is super cool for organizing and sponsoring this event. Come out to support HYP and Pluckers, as well as to engorge yourself on Jamaican Jerk flavored wings.

[note: I started eating at Plucker's when I discovered the Jerk flavored wings and because Plucker's will serve an order of only the little drums. Mmmmmmm.]

Groundhog Day < Armadillo Day

Armadillo Day at J. Black's

Apparently, Punxsutawney Phil has seen his shadow and thus we can expect six more weeks of winter. I'm nonplussed, as winter in Austin is a mild and sometimes delightful time of year. I was much more concerned during last August when Archie the Armadillo (the fat one on the left; pictured with his posse and their liquor) waddled in front of J. Black's Feel Good Lounge on West 6th whereupon he saw his shadow (thus predicting, accurately, several more weeks of hot weather). After months of triple digit temperatures, I was ready for things to cool off. Unlike the mild winter, I find late summer in Austin to often be brutal enough to send me indoors for extended periods of time. I'm hoping that this year's Armadillo Day will have a different outcome.

Speaking of armadillos: despite being considered pests and being seen most frequently as road kill, it is astonishingly hard to find a licensed armadillo handler to wrangle armadillos for an event.

Found: Sign

[photo: by WDFloyd's iPhone]


Niiiiice.

Found: Dr. Pepper with Real Sugar

I realize that this may not be Earth shattering news. After all, the famous Dublin Dr. Pepper has always been made with real cane sugar. However, Dublin Dr. Pepper is often sold at a premium and can be relatively inconvenient to obtain in Austin. The green bottles in the photo, however, were in the cooler at the 7-11 on 15th and San Antonio. No special effort necessary; they were on the shelf next to the Diet Dr. Pepper and priced exactly the same.

I'm not on the anti high fructose corn syrup bandwagon, nor am I convinced that it's Satan's own sweetener. I do, however, think that real sugar tastes MUCH better. Compare, for example, a Coke bottled in Texas (corn syrup) to one from Mexico (made with real sugar, and extremely delicious). Same thing with DP. I picked up one of the green bottled Dr. Peppers and drank it after my Leadership Austin meeting. It was very good, a definite cut above it's corn sweetened cousin.

Peeves: Twitter Applications

I've had nothing but trouble with these things. Yes, the idea of having the multiple columns of twitter feed categories and the URL shorteners built into the send bar is nice. But, stupid things keep happening with mine.

First, there was Tweetdeck. I really liked it, especially that submarine noise it makes when a new tweet comes in. But, my relationship with Tweetdeck began to go south with the iPhone app locked me out. This was less annoying than when the first version of ETrade Mobile for iPhone would shut the phone down, but nevertheless irksome. Then, after upgrading to Windows 7, Tweetdeck on my laptop decided to lock me out completely. I tried a couple of uninstall/reinstalls, but Tweetdeck will also say that my Twitter handle is taken and/or I don't have the right password. While the former is true, the latter is not as I know exactly what the password is. Thus thoroughly annoyed, I switched to Seesmic.

It wasn't the cute raccoon logo which sold me, but rather CNET's recommendation of this application. For the most part, it functions well. Sometimes it freezes up if I turn it on after my computer has been in sleep mode for a while. Also, sometimes the bit.ly URL function does weird things. These are minor problems. What's really annoying is that it is inserting feeds of people I'm not following. And, they seem to be porn links, or bad bands, ridiculous people, or possibly some combination of all of these things. Since there is a commonality, I'm assuming that someone has figured out how to trick Seesmic into inserting their non-sense into Seesmic organized feeds without the consent to the Seesmic user. It would be nice if Seesmic can figure out how to put the kybosh on this.

Events: HYP Build The Love

The HYP Build the Love fundraiser is around the corner. Here's the text from the Facebook event page:

Join us Wednesday February 3rd at Moonshine Grill for HYP Build The Love 2010 !!!!
Anyone who had the chance to come last time knows what a fun event event this is, and this year should be no exception. Come by any time between 6pm to 9pm for Wine Tasting, Delicious Food and Live Music! Tickets are only $25 for HYP Members & $35 and are available on the HYP blog, as well as at the door for the event itself.

Or, click here to get your Build the Love tickets.

Food

The gf and I finally made it to the 24 Diner on Saturday night. This place is quite good. Not only is the food delicious (what else would you except from a restaurant with the same owners of Paggi House), but moreover everything on the menu is locally grown and/or organic.

I ordered the patty melt and was quite pleased. The burger itself was made from organic ground brisket. Very good. By the time I was finished, there was no room for the peanut butter and chocolate milkshake I had initially considered. I thus put it on the list for the next visit, along with the pork chop.

Events

Planning continues for the Catalyst 8 Mad Hatter Tea Party, set for February 24th at the Allan House. This is going to be a good one. Maker's Mark and Tito's are the liquor sponsors. The Southern Sirens burlesque group will be performing, and we will have models dressed up as various characters from Alice in Wonderland. Need I say more? Ok, one more thing: Catalyst 8 runs the Boost Rental Subsidy Program, which helps emerging performing arts groups pay for use of the Rollins Theatre at the Long Center. We're funding over 100 nights of performances this year.

Also, Austin Habitat Young Professionals will have our annual Build the Love fundraiser on February 3rd. Like last year, our generous pals at Moonshine are giving us the venue. It will be a lot of fun as well. You can't go wrong with an evening of live music, wine tasting, and tasty food all for $25/$35 (member/non-member). And, of course, funds raised go to help build affordable housing in Austin.

Food

I may be addicted to hot dogs from Chris' Little Chicago. I've been there twice this week, and I could easily go back for more. I am restraining myself, though, by not ordering the deep fried dogs anymore. I don't think enough fish oil exists to counteract that.

Here's the deal with Chris':

-delicious Vienna Beef dogs
-tasty homemade chili
-Chicago style dressings, for those of you who like that sort of thing
-other Chicago products, like "Italian Beef" sandwiches

Events: Planning for Catalyst 8's 2010 Bash Is Already Underway

2009 Catalyst 8 Bash, seen from outside The Long Center

Plans are underway for the 2010 Catalyst 8 Bash, which is scheduled for August. This year's theme is going to be digital art. As a digital photography enthusiast, I'm looking forward to scouting for digital art to feature at the event.

Bash '09 was one of my favorite parties of the year. Our featured artist was Steve Dubov, and we had a private performance by The Black and White Years.  Also, Illios Lighting blew things up with an incredible LED wall synced to the DJ's music.

I'm expecting this year's Bash to exceed the already high bar set last year.

Interesting

The Hideout Theatre is running a project called Austin Secrets. Austinites are invited to anonymously send in personal secrets on postcards. Secrets will be incorporated into weekly shows (10pm, Saturdays now through the end of February). Here's what the Hideout has to say about the shows:

In every show we’ll use improvisation to explore secrets anonymously submitted by you and other Austinites. Serious secrets will be treated with proper respect, and more lighthearted secrets will be a chance to cut loose, so expect a mix of drama, comedy, and everything in between.

This looks very cool and I plan to attend one of the shows.

Fun in Austin

Tavern Trivia

If you haven't been yet, I highly recommend trivia night at The Tavern (Wednesdays at 7pm). Austin Pub Quiz runs the event and uses an 8 round format. I'm only good at the nerd rounds, but there is plenty of opportunity for those of you good at movie and TV quotes, name that tune, and movie and TV theme songs.

Sadly, during the last game, the only TV theme song I could identify was Airwolf.

Winners get to take home and decorate the trophy. Look closely for the Captain Kirk bobblehead and the Imperial Palace casino chip. Those were my additions.

Highball

If you've been in laid up in the hospital, or incarcerated in the third world and just cleared of your trumped up charges, then I understand how you can be in Austin but haven't yet been to The Highball. I'm not sure why it took the Austin Chronicle until January 8 to write a review. If you have been, then you know how much fun this place is. Needless to say, if you haven't been yet then get down to Highball to bowl on lanes imported from New Orleans (formerly of the famous Rock n' Bowl) and to hit one of the karaoke rooms. Also, order the fried shrimp plate. Trust me on this one. Furthermore, if Broken Lizard is there: even if their female friends offer you a cupcake, the guys probably do not actually want you to eat it.