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July 2008
Your A-List: Best Place to Rent a Canoe/Kayak
When you’re driving over one of the bridges crossing Lady Bird Lake on a sunny day, you’ve probably noticed that the lake is often spotted with canoes and kayaks. Ever wonder where all of those watercraft come from? A safe bet would be that many of them originated at Zilker Park Boat Rentals, with 50 percent of the vote, the winner of the Your A-List poll for Best Place to Rent a Canoe/Kayak.
From 10 a.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. on weekends until the summer sun sets over West Austin, you can rent a watercraft from the folks located inside Zilker Park for either $10 an hour or drop $40 and paddle all day to your heart’s content.Whether you and the family or a date want to head out for a leisurely paddle or you’re just looking for some alone time on the water, with a fleet of 17-foot Alumacraft and Grumman canoes and both Frenzy and Malibu Two Ocean Kayaks, Zilker Park Boat Rental has you covered.
Others receiving votes
- Texas Rowing Center, 17 percent
- Austin Canoe & Kayak, 20 percent
- Rowing Dock, 11 percent
- REI (north location), 3 percent
- Lone Star Kayaks, 3 percent
- Kozmik Kayaks, 1 percent
- Capital Cruises, < 1 percent
- Mud Outdoor Center< 1 percent
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Your A-List: Best Arcade
Live music, art exhibits, comedy? Sure, those things are nice, but who doesn’t like a good old-fashioned night of video game playing? Add to the mix food and cocktails, and Dave and Buster’s has come up with the recipe for alternative adult entertainment. With 56 percent of the vote, the arcade that doubles as a bar and restaurant serving a variety of standard pub grub and a host of cocktails and assorted beers, is the winner of the Your A-List poll for Best Arcade.
Others receiving votes
- Main Event, 21 percent
- Austin’s Park and Pizza, 15 percent
- Blazer Tag Adventure Center, 5 percent
- Millennium Youth Entertainment Complex, 3 percent
Write-in: Einstein’s
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Austin author appears on ‘The Daily Show’
If you were watching “The Daily Show” last night, you may have seen a silver-haired gentleman with a bit of a Texas-Kentucky hybrid accent talking to Jon Stewart about how Americans are becoming segregated by their beliefs. That kindly gentleman was Austinite and former Statesman staffer (and O.G. blogger) Bill Bishop, author of “The Big Sort: Why the Clustering of Like-Minded America is Tearing Us Apart.” Bishop examines how people sort themselves “largely according to lifestyle, and that correlates these days with politics. The net result is that moderation is out and homogeneity is in,” according to Bishop.
In a nod to his city of residence, Bishop even referenced a Statesman article about how gun sales have been strong in the Austin area this summer due to some buyers’ fears that the next administration could tighten gun regulations.
Check out the video of Bishop below, as well as this informative article from The Economist. If you are more aurally inclined, check out the engaging podcast my good friend did with Bishop for the The Economist, direct from Austin’s own The Green Muse coffee shop.
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Oliver Stone’s ‘W.’ trailer
The trailer for Oliver Stone’s new film “W.” has hit the Internets. I am sure the White House and Republicans in general will be thrilled at the depiction of the 43rd president. From the trailer it seems as if Stone will portray the former Texas governor as a rudderless young man hooked on booze, women and general good-timin’ who failed his way upwards, disappointing his family at every turn before finally getting his act together and ascending to the nation’s highest office. Sounds like one of those it-would-be-funny-if-it-wasn’t-true type stories.
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Review: Kathy Griffin at The Long Center
Kathy Griffin has had a long, if not illustrious, career in entertainment dating back almost 20 years, as evidenced by the mildly humorous and somewhat self-serving montage of clips that ran prior to her introduction at The Long Center Friday night. But her true rise to stardom, and the reason she is now able to sell out shows for over 2,000 people, can be attributed to her hit reality television show, “Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List.”
Apparently, after considerably minor television success left her wanting, Griffin figured out the best way to get more fame was to be shameless and extremely self-effacing in promoting herself as a fringe star who could get no respect from an industry that she in turn decided to deride on any and every occasion. Call it a variation of the Rodney Dangerfield syndrome. If she was going to get little respect, she was going to call attention to that fact and then dice up those who were getting the star treatment despite marginal talent and gigantic egos.
Say this for Griffin, her strategy has been a huge success thanks in large part to her ability to swallow enormous amounts of pride that most celebrities would find unthinkable. As a result, Griffin has positioned herself as the dissed everywoman. Unfairly overlooked for bigger talents, she’s used her animus to fuel her hysterical cries that the emperor has no clothes, the role of emperor in this case played by much of the Hollywood establishment.
After a few local references to get a crowd that needed no cajoling even more smitten with her, Griffin began her show by discussing rumors about Lindsey Lohan’s sexuality. “Let’s get her, shall we?” Griffin asked the audience. This line of interrogation more or less set the mood for 90-plus minutes of celebrity gossip and bashing. From Lohan to Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes, from “The View” (from which she has been banned) to “The Hills” Griffin’s entire act played out like an audio version of US Weekly or a gossipy blog. Truth be told, one who does not kneel at the altar of celebrity chat might have a difficult time navigating the name-infested waters of a Griffin show.
Some comedians mine comedy gold using irony, wit, high-brow satire or prescient observations about the human condition. Griffin? Not so much. She plays to the audience’s most simple natures, taking a four-letter-word knife to the heart of their dual fascination and disdain for the culture of celebrities.
Not a joke teller, Griffin simply shares stories about her brushes with celebrities and the personal opinions she has about them. And she’s got a lot of both. To her credit, Griffin knows her audience and she has them eating from her hand from the first riff to the last as she impressively meanders in a stream-of-consciousness manner. In her acerbic style, Griffin demystifies celebrities, and calls them out for their flaws, and here is where she really finds her connection with the audience. These celebrities are overpaid, over-privileged cartoons who need to be taken down a notch, and revealed as flawed human beings — just like the rest of us. In the old days, she’d be called a sassy broad who doesn’t take any guff. She’s the girl at the dinner party who calls it like she sees it and says what others are too scared to utter for fear of being considered callous or politically incorrect. Unfortunately, all of her targets are so obvious and generally such caricatures of themselves already that their mere existences are the joke. Oprah Winfrey is an omnipotent narcissist? Tom Cruise is delusional? Kim Kardashian is famous simply for having a sex tape? Well, knock me over with a feather.
Griffin has become one of the head contractors in the cottage industry of celebrity gossiping. That combined with her unabashed self-promotion and ability to make jokes at her own expense have led her to a level of fame she probably only once imagined possible. And, if anyone’s got a problem with that recipe, in the words of her recent DVD (and much of her merchandise on sale Friday night), “Everybody can suck it!”
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United States Art Authority closing
What started out as a catch-all performance venue to help promote the Austin arts scene is no more. At least for now. The United States Art Authority announced today that it is closing its doors effective immediately and indefinitely. The space, owned by the proprietors of I Luv Video, Spider House (to which it is adjacent) and Eco Clean, has hosted myriad creative endeavors over the past year, from fashion shows to lounge acts, with attendance ranging from sparse to sold-out.
Details from the owners are a little vague regarding the shuttering of the performance space and bar, but it apparently stems from problems with the city.
“We really thrive on the vibrant culture of Austin, and our efforts have always been to participate and promote this scene in our own small way,” said co-owner John Dorgan. “That’s our great strength, and that’s why we’re hopeful that we’ll be able to work with the city to reopen the Art Authority in the coming months.”
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Is ‘Wall-E’ overrated?
Statesman film critic Chris Garcia and I both coincidentally ended up seeing the Pixar film “Wall-E” Thursday night, about a month after its release. I had pretty high expectations going in, as the film had received boffo response from critics and audiences alike. Leaving the movie, I was mildly entertained and maybe a little touched, but I was puzzled by the incredible response to a film I thought to be only a little above average. With that in mind, I e-mailed back and forth with Garcia today (Friday) to get his take. What follows are the printable parts of our conversation.
Matthew Odam: OK, so maybe something is wrong with me, but I don’t quite understand all of the fuss surrounding “Wall-E.” Critics were uniformly wow’d and Rotten Tomatoes has it as its highest rated film, just barely beating out “The Dark Knight.” Wow! I appreciated the message, and the lack of anthropomorphism, but I thought it was kinda boring. Is something wrong with me?
Chris Garcia: First, yes, there is something wrong with you. You possess a heart of coal. Second, forget Rotten Tomatoes. They gauge on a “thumbs-up/thumbs-down” system, so even if you sorta liked a movie, it registers as a positive review. I would give “Wall-E” three stars, despite experiencing yawning (and I use that word deliberately) chasms of boredom watching it. I started thinking of the weather and moose during the middle part of the film, not a good sign
M.O.: I would agree with three stars. The first part did not have dialogue for maybe 15 minutes, save for Fred Willard’s character doing that speaking billboard thing. It bored me a little, but I did like the neo-realismo slant to things: A war-ravaged country in which people (a robot) searches for human connection and identity. Maybe that’s a stretch, but I liked the post-apocalyptic visuals, although was bored by the lack of dialogue. But the second and third acts spiraled into the expected.
Chris Garcia: I’m a little tired of the knee-jerk hosannas for all things Pixar. “Ratatouille,” in my estimation, is pretty lame, yet the critics and crowds went equally gaga over it as they are on the charming if emotionally hackneyed “Wall-E.” Don’t get me wrong: Pixar makes MIND-BLOWINGLY quality films — I adore both “Toy Story” movies, “The Incredibles,” “Finding Nemo,” “Monsters, Inc.” Still, I expect a little more critical vigor applied to them, not just responses guided by sheer gut delight. Now, I think the first 20 minutes of “Wall-E” are by far the most hypnotic, charming and conceptually interesting. (Small correction, MO: It’s not a ‘war-ravaged’ Earth; it’s just been polluted and poisoned by its own inhabitants for livability.)
M.O.: You say ‘tomato’ … I KNOW it’s not actually war ravaged, but the idea in the sense of destruction is somewhat similar, despite the thematic importance in both of how that ravaging ocurred. I have not seen an animated movie in the theaters since “Ants,” but I did like how this one was not about cutesy animals talking and going for cheap laughs. But between that (fortunate for me) absence and the fact that the movie is very a much a meditation on how humans are becoming lazy and absorbed in and by technology and losing our ability to relate to others, and even ourselves, I don’t see how in the world this movie was attractive to children. I know it should be G-rated because there is no real violence or lewdness, but I can’t imagine how or why a 9 year-old would like this film. Maybe kids are a lot smarter and more conscientious of socio-political and psychological matters than I was at that age, but, I just don’t see its appeal to kids, especially with the plodding open and its complete lack of dialogue.
Chris Garcia: And also let’s make it clear that we are only having this discussion out of MILD puzzlement over the angelic choruses we’ve been hearing about “Wall-E” and how it doesn’t quite live up to such blinding, high-wattage enthusiasm. That said, I do think kids are more aware and downright smarter about these things today. And I think the film’s message is nicely integrated into good old fashioned storytelling. Maybe it’s the pacing that’s off and could possibly bore kids. For me, it was when people entered the story that things got predictable and followed old cartoon story patterns and my sense of wonder waned. Suddenly even the robots were acting like people and the film stopped taking chances.
M.O.: Sure. I only thought it worthy of a little bit of discussion because we both saw it on the same night several weeks after it came out to some serious, serious praise. I did think there were some interesting similarities between the “Buy-N-Large” world in “Wall-E” and Mike Judge’s film “Idiocracy.” Yet, with one, “Wall*E,” the stuido gets behind it and pushes it like crazy, and in the other, “Idiocracy,” the studio did everything it could to prevent the film from being finished and distributed. Maybe Judge should stick with animation.
Chris Garcia: The analogy to “Idiocracy” is unavoidable and germane. Pixar’s lucky NO ONE saw the (underrated) Judge flick.
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Your A-List: Best Morning News Anchor/Team
When you wake up in the morning, you want to be greeted by a television personality with whom you can connect, someone who feels like a friend or part of the extended family. In a competitive market with several familiar faces, it is with distinction then that Univision 62’s recent addition Leslie Montoya, host of “Despierta Austin” (“Wake Up Austin”) has earned the top spot in the Your A-List poll for Best Morning News Team/Anchor.
One of Ms. Montoya’s already loyal viewers shared her opinion of the broadcaster with us via email: “I love Leslie. I think she’s very articulate and her enthusiasm is contagious, and we really like when she’s on the air.”
Others receiving votes
- KXAN: Sally Hernandez and Chris Willis, 32 percent
- KEYE: Fred Cantu and Elizabeth Dannheim, 17 percent
- KVUE: Melissa Gale and Jason Hill, 5 percent
- Fox 7: Joe Bickett and Katherine Kisiel, 3 percent
- News 8 Austin: Todd Boatwright, < 1 percent
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Your A-List: Best Sno-Cones
The Your A-List poll for Best Sno-Cone was a classic north vs. south battle. Representing South Austin was the popular SnoBeach Hawaiian Shaved Ice. But hailing from North (north-central) Austin, it was Casey’s New Orleans Snowballs, with 33 percent of the vote, that took home the honors.
Built out of an old white house, Casey’s sits at the corner of 51st Street and Airport Boulevard. Bringing the snowball tradition of Southern Louisiana to the hot climates of Austin turned out to be a no-brainer for original owners Suzy Casey Gallagher and Kit Thompson. The stand has been serving up soft flavored ice with vibrant flavor and color now for over a dozen years in the eclectic neighborhood it calls home. With over 60 flavors of shaved ice, ranging from Bostom cream pie to bubble gum, there is something for every sweaty body with a sweet tooth.
Others receiving votes
- SnoBeach Hawaiian Shaved Ice, 32 percent
- Raspas, 20 percent
- Jim-Jim’s Waterice, 8 percent
- Sno-Cones, 3 percent
- Snocones, 2 percent
- Shelby’s SnoCones, < 1 percent
- Baety’s Snocones, < 1 percent
- Snowcones, Etc., < 1 percent
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Your A-List: Best Tapas
Sure Texans love steaks and barbecue and other hearty foods. But we’re not some kind of barbaric class who can’t enjoy small plates with a more international flare. Even someone in cowboy boots on can admit to enjoying the convenient delicacies of tapas. With 39 percent of the vote, the winner of the Your A-List poll for Best Tapas in Malaga.
The beauty of a tapas restaurant is that if you don’t like what you’re eating, try a bite of something else. The menu is vast, from red peppers stuffed with goat cheese to warm artichokes with manchego to smoked chicken raviolli, and with an extensive wine menu, you can spend all evening mixing and matching flavor components until you feel as if you couldn’t eat another bite (read: plate).
Others receiving votes
- Saba, 19 percent
- Fino, 12 percent
- Louie’s 106, 11 percent
- Tierra del Fuego, 5 percent
- Segovia, 4 percent
- Hyatt Regency Austin’s Marker 10 (write-in), 4 percent
- Taste Select Wines, 3 percent
- Wine Cellar at Barton Creek Wine Bar, 2 percent
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Matthew McConaughey: Public Frienemy #1
With Michael Barnes of Out and About fame out of town enjoying some much deserved time off, I guess this little piece of “news” falls to me. The oft-mocked sometime-Austinite Matthew McConaughey and his girlfriend Camila Alves are featured in the latest OK! Magazine, as the actor who came to fame playing Wooderson in “Dazed and Confused” opens up to the magazine about the details behind the birth of the couple’s son, Levi.
And, per his M.O., McConaughey left nothing back in his ecstatic oversharing of the ritual of chilldbirth. Some of the pure gold from brutha Matt:
“Contractions started kicking in, and we found a great rhythm,” McConaughey told OK! “We had a 14-hour session, her and I did. I sat there with her, right between her legs. We got tribal on it. We danced to it. I was DJing this native Brazilian music.”
Alright, alright, alright.
Matt Mc also shared his thoughts on realizing that his child was a boy, just as the couple had expected.
“I had him for the first 15 minutes because they had to take care of Camila,’ he relates. “I said, ‘Come here, little man.’ I saw the [male appendage] and screamed that we’d been right all along about him being a boy. Then I brought him over to her.”
The story in OK! will probably lead to more sarcastic jabs at JKL for being an oversharer and a self-involved, country boy neo-hippie. But I must admit, despite the fact that I don’t really need to know the details of his child’s birth (nor, probably does anyone), in a world of celebrity artifice and careful calculation, Public Frienemy #1 generally just lets ‘er rip, critics and public opinion be damned. Whether he is doing a bit with his panphilosophical, earth god shtick or just loves sharing his unabashed joy of his life, the wonders of the universe and his body, you gotta admit the dude commits and seems content to leave the inordinate amount of psychoanalysis, judging and critiques of his perceived narcissism to waft away on the wind.
JKL,new dad.
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‘The Dark Knight:’ This comic book movie ain’t no joke
Leaving a comic-based action movie, it is rare that the first thing you find yourself discussing and marveling over is not the mesmerizing action sequences, the incredible set designs, the tongue-in-cheek humor or the special effects. Such was the case with ‘The Dark Knight.’ Upon exiting the screening with Statesman film critic Chris Garcia, we immediately began to ponder the complexity of the morality play unfolded by co-writer/director Christopher Nolan.
As we attempted to untangle the web of messages and their allegoric intent, I began to wonder whether our struggle was a testament to Nolan’s accomplishments or failings as a filmmaker. In the end, I would say it was a little of both, although more the former than the latter. For as much as ‘The Dark Knight’ causes us to think about virtue, villainy, and human nature (wrapped in a dazzling and, for a comic book movie, very realistic visual package), it also confounds at times, partly because Nolan jumbles myriad complex ideas into his overly-lengthy film and introduces and removes said ideas, plot devices and characters at break-neck pace.
That said, the film, while falling short of the absolute masterpiece for which the talented Nolan, whose skills of labyrinthine storytelling are legend from movies such as “Memento” and”The Following,” seemed to be aiming, is fantastic … the best comic book movie I have ever seen. Rare is the movie that can hold up a mirror to the audience and make us ask questions about the choices we make as a society, questions regarding our safety, our perception of virtue, our honest with ourselves and our need to be protected to the point of being coddled. There are certainly overtones of terrorism that pervade the movie, almost all in the form of the sadistic Joker played by Heath Ledger.
In the months leading up to the movie, there were whispers of whether Ledger could be nominated posthumously for an Academy Award for his portrayal of the character played most famously in film by Jack Nicholson. I was skeptical to say the least when I heard what I considered must be sentimental postulating. After seeing the movie, I would almost be surprised now if he doesn’t get a nomination, although it is obviously early in the race to project. Ledger plays the sadistic villain whose past is an ever-evolving string of meaningless lies that vary depending on the intent of his manipulation with a psychotic’s glee, but relies more on subtlety in his mannerisms than did Nicholson. A flick of the tongue here, a crooked giddy-up in his step there, a face covered in make-up that looks like it was applied by Dameon, all riding shotgun to the perverse, intriguing and slightly effeminate lilting that reminds one of Marlon Brando doing a straight imitation of Jimmy Cagney. Straight up creepy.
Ironically, despite his sociopathic behavior, the Joker is one of the few characters who appears as he is. He is the least troubled and the most self-aware. His purpose is to be a catalyst of chaos, not to scheme and deceive or struggle with questions of right and wrong. I can not remember a character in recent cinema who has amused and disgusted simultaneously as Ledger’s Joker does. And, considering the serpentine philosophical quandaries in which the other characters in the film find themselves, the Joker’s honesty, lack of vulnerability and certitude are somehow a breath of fresh air. Air that just happens to be filled with sarin gas.
Read Statesman film critic Chris Garcia’s excellent review here.
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Your A-List: Best Art Gallery
The Live Music Capital of the World has been making inroads in all of the arts over the past decade or so. A burgeoning film scene, the new Long Center, a soon-to-be-built new home for the Austin Museum of Art, and a host of art galleries of all stripes popping up around town speak to Austin’s emergence as an art force in the Southwest.
The winner of the Your A-List poll for Best Art Gallery, Art on Fifth speaks to the fact that one not need a degree in art history or have spent hundred of hours touring the Louvre to appreciate the beauty and vitality of visual art.
With 39 percent of the vote, the gallery on (naturally) Fifth Street promotes itself as Austin’s largest contemporary art gallery, boasting a rotating schedule of exhibits and the works of Theodor Geisel, i.e. Dr. Seuss, attracting locals and out-of-town guests. The gallery also offers framing services, making the place your one-stop shop for getting a new piece for your house or office.
In addition, Art on 5th has also made a name for itself by bringing in some big names in the entertainment industry to exhibit their art. To wit, Grace Slick of Jefferson Airplane had a popular exhibition at the gallery last year. A rock star visiting an art gallery in the Live Music Capital of the World … a natural fit.
Others receiving votes
- Blanton Museum of Art, 23 percent
- Austin Museum of Art-Downtown, 9 percent
- Austin Museum of Art-Laguna Gloria 6 percent
- Harry Ransom Center, 6 percent
- Women & Their Work, 7 percent
- Artworks, 6 percent
- Austin Galleries, 6 percent
- Gallery Soco, 5 percent
- Art Palace, 4 percent
- Flatbed Press, 4 percent
- Arthouse at Jones Center, 3 percent
- Davis Gallery, 2 percent
- Russell Collection Fine Art, 2 percent
- D Berman Gallery, < 1 percent
- f8 Fine Art Gallery, < 1 percent
- Gallery Shoal Creek, < 1 percent
- Haven Gallery, < 1 percent
- Lora Reynolds Gallery, < 1 percent
- Slugfest Printmaking, < 1 percent
- Stephen L. Clark Gallery, < 1 percent
- Studio 107, < 1 percent
Write-in: 4 Walls Fine Art
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Your A-List: Best Place to Picnic
Austin’s signature park hosts a slew of events and activities that run the gamut, from friendly soccer games to gigantic concerts, but when its not overrun with folks, it’s great for a picnic, from the grilling out and eating at a picnic table variety to the bare-bones basket on a blanket in the grass endeavor.
From the City of Austin’s Web site:
In 1918, A.J. Zilker deeded the 35 acres surrounding Barton Springs to the City of Austin. In 1932, Zilker agreed to give the military school established during the First World War an additional 330 acres, joining the 35 acres on the north side of the original tract if the city would buy the acreage from the school for $200,000. This action was approved in a bond election and despite the economic depression of the 1930’s, the land was developed into Zilker Park.
Others receiving votes
- Mount Bonnell, 17 percent
- Capitol grounds, 8 percent
- Barton Creek Greenbelt, 7 percent
- Lake Austin, 6 percent
- Auditorium Shores, 5 percent
- Pease Park, 5 percent
- Shores of Lady Bird Lake, 5 percent
- Little Stacy Park, 2 percent
- West Enfield Park, 2 percent
- Waterloo Park, 2 percent
- Brushy Creek Lake Park, 1 percent
- French Legation, 1 percent
- Republic Square, < 1 percent
- Gillis Park, < 1 percent
Write-ins: Lake Travis, Mayfield Park, Westlake Beach
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Josh Hamilton reminds us why we love sports
Something amazing happened last night. My fiancé actually watched close to 10 whole minutes of a sporting event. She cares not for sports, and that’s fine with me. I don’t care about fictional cat wars. The only time it becomes slightly problematic is if she wants to watch a little TV while we eat dinner and there is a game on I want to watch. Such was the case last night.
As she prepared an amazing dinner last night, I flipped on the MLB Home Run Derby. With steroids (allegedly) out of the picture in MLB and this being the last All-Star Game in Yankee Stadium, it seemed historic, if mildly so. While some of the big names — Manny Ramirez, Alex Rodriquez — unfortunately skipped the event this year, with special shame going to A-Rod for skipping the event in his home park, there was a pretty good list of up-and-coming youngsters and established boppers taking part. I really just thought the Derby would be a diversion for me until dinner was ready. Then Josh Hamilton stepped to the plate.
(For those of you who are not sports fans, let me quickly run down Hamilton’s back-story. The twenty-seven year-old Hamilton was drafted by the Tampa Bay (Devil) Rays with the first pick, directly out of high school in North Carolina. Some scouts were quoted at the time as saying Hamilton was the most talented baseball prospect they’d ever seen in their lives. After a brief career in low-level pro ball in 2000 and 2001, Hamilton was involved in a car accident that eventually shelved him for the 2002 season. That is when his problems began. The left-handed phenom ended up getting brutally addicted to booze and drugs, and his life spiraled out of control. Long story short, in October of 2005, he finally kicked drugs and alcohol and got another shot in the big leagues in 2006, after five years without playing professionally. He spent the 2007 season with the Cincinnati Reds before being traded last winter for Edinson Volquez. (Oddly enough, the trade may work out perfectly for both teams, as Volquez is a candidate to win the Cy Young this year and Hamilton the MVP.) You can read here about Hamilton’s struggle in an interview he did with ESPN’s Tim Keown last year.)
After his unbelievable climb back out of the hole of addiction (granted, it was a hole he dug himself), Hamilton has once again taken the baseball world by storm. He is batting .310 (9th in AL) with 21 homers (4th) and an eye-popping 95 RBIs (1st) at the All-Star break.
Anyhoo… his story is widely known among even casual sports fans and is documented all over the internet.
Back to last night: While A-Rod stayed on the shelf to keep from messing with his swing, Hamilton took the opportunity that he called a lifelong dream to bat in front of 54,000 screaming fans at the Derby. And he put on arguably the greatest power hitting spectacle in baseball history. A myth-making performance, that, setup against the backdrop of his story of addiction and recovery, left broadcasters speechless (following their hyperbole), fans breathless (after cheering wildly), and reduced the other competitors to cheerleaders. In a nation of second chances, we were all reduced to the starry-eyed hayseed kids who watched “The Whammer” crush balls outside of a train depot in ‘The Natural’ (before Roy Hobbs struck him out).
Hamilton ended up hitting 28 home runs in the first round, more than the next three players combined, breaking the old record by four. And Hamilton’s home runs were not cheap, not a one. He banged balls 20+ rows into the upper deck. He hit balls to dead center that people didn’t think possible. He banged once off of the facade of the building in right-center. It was the stuff of absolute legend. See ball, kill ball. And, to add to the dramatic backdrop, the man throwing the balls to Hamilton was 71 year-old Claybon Counsil, an old friend and coach from North Carolina who had helped Hamilton get back into the swing of things (literally) during his comeback. Counsil, the lifelong baseball fan who had been to Yankee Stadium only once in his life … the day Don Larson pitched the only perfect game in World Series history, almost 52 years ago.
Between Hamilton’s tragic and heroic back-story and the feat of physical dominance, it was a moment that comes around very rarely in sports. A moment that leaves you with goose bumps and a lump in your throat. A moment that gets even the completely sports-apathetic to well up with tears. Let’s hope Hamilton can stay clean.
Post script: Justin Morneau of the Minnesota Twins won the Derby. Not that it mattered.
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Interview: The late-blooming Nels Cline
Cline visits Austin Sunday night to play inside at Stubb’s with his avant-jazz trio, The Nels Cline Singers. I caught up with the thoughtful and modest Cline on Friday to talk about his musical influences, his love of sound and being a late bloomer.
M.O.: I know you grew up in California and were probably entering junior high during the Summer of Love. How did the music out there in California in the late sixties affect you as a child, as a listener and in the nascent stages of your guitar playing?
Nels Cline: Wow. What a great question. At the risk of overstating it, I would have to say that I am permanently damaged by the incredible creativity and by the colorful nature of popular music of that time.
That’s pretty good damage to have…
Yea, I think so. I think that at that age when one is — at this point my twin brother Alex and I were becoming completely obsessed with rock ‘n roll — and at that age, when you have that sort of voraciousness and that openness, to have the sort of operating rule of the day being ‘be mind-blowing’ or ‘be creative’ or ‘be eloquent’ or ‘protest,’ of all these different things, with wide-open non-formated radio, the beginnings of underground radio coming in right after this — for us it was KDPC, one of the great underground radio stations. It’s basically the thing that I draw from to this day: psychedelic music, folk rock, later on acid rock, and inevitably, what I think led me and my twin brother to a love of sound, and as such, to instrumental music and later jazz and jazz rock.
Speaking of growing up in that heady period for music, people think that with MySpace and the ubiquity of online music, that the options are more wide open for kids to find music. But it seems that things are becoming more niche. Do you think as a kid growing up today it would be harder for you to find music that inspired you?
I don’t know because I’m a little behind because I don’t spend a lot of time online searching for music. Not because I’m no longer curious, but it is daunting because there’s so much more out there than when I was growing up. You know, one did not realize necessarily what all the options were back then. But I think when you went to a decent record store you were pretty much looking at a lot of them. Whereas now, just the amount of online information to download, let alone walking into a place like Amoeba Music, there’s so many artists, so many releases, and even genres that I haven’t heard of. That said, I think that at a certain age, with the kind of curiosity I was describing earlier, that people do find things, and that’s there milieu. They understand it, so they’re able to find all kinds of stuff.
I’d say slow wins the race.”
I was actually a buyer at a record store in Los Angeles for many years, and at one point I was the independent rock and import buyer, and at that time, which was the early eighties, one could listen to pretty much everything that was ordered. You couldn’t do that now. That said, at least it’s nice that people are being creative. (Laughs) There’s just a lot out there. But truly, what you said about niches has just become increasingly true and I think the reasons for that can be traced back to the eighties in the Reagan years when everything became extremely formatted on FM radio, and really segregated. And I think that had to do with advertising, with targeting an audience with some kind of marketing. And it was also easy to do then because, not to say anything against eighties music, because there’s plenty of eighties music that I like, a lot of the bands at that time that were very popular did whole albums of the same song.
So it was really easy for a promotions department of a record label or a programmer at a radio station to get behind these records, because it didn’t really take a lot of attention to listen to the whole record as opposed to a Jimi Hendrix record or a Jefferson Airplane record, where you’re listening to all different kinds of material on one album.
Or your new record, “Draw Breath,” there’s some very disparate styles on it.
I think ultimately what you’re hearing there is kind of the same mixture and the same compositional improvisational parameters, if you will, that I was attempting to work on with my twin brother in high school. Those things haven’t changed all that much for me. I think that stylistic diversity, where it was once daunting and perhaps anxiety-producing, because people like reviewers, or even me, were saying, “Where’s this going?” I think that now it’s not so odd. I think because of world communication, because of a lot of interest in new things, and because generations come up that have absorbed a lot of different information, this kind of diversity is perhaps less suspect. And in my case, I think I’m just lucky that I’ve lived long enough and continued playing long enough to have it not be nonsensical.
Yea, imagine Coltrane living in this post-modern world. Speaking of Coltrane, you grew up listening to a lot of rock, obviously, at what point were you introduced to jazz and to Coltrane and what did that do to the way you thought about music.
One thing I’ll say about Coltrane related to what we were talking about before is I think, in terms of a post-modern world, he was already going there. In his later life, his interest in Indian music and in the harp and African percussion and all these different things was, I think, leading him to a palette definitely beyond the so-called traditional jazz. But, anyway, what happened with the jazz exposure was that because my twin brother Alex was such a Frank Zappa and Captain Beefheart obsessive, a friend of ours who also played guitar lent us a John Coltrane record that was his dad’s and thought my brother might like it because he liked all that instrumental Frank Zappa stuff. (Laughs) So we put on the record and “Africa” was the first piece, and it was definitely like an entire world that we had never been aware of was revealed. Pretty much from that moment on, we set out to investigate where this music had come from, because we had no clue, living in West Los Angeles and a quasi-suburban life, that this music had been developing. When I found out that Coltrane had already passed away, I felt so gypped. I thought, “Wait a minute. No one told us about this.”
And around the same time, on underground rock station KDPC, my brother heard the opening track from the Tony Williams’ “Lifetime: Turn it Over” record called “To Whom It May Concern (Them),” and that completely blew his mind, and he ran out and found that record. And that’s how we traced Tony Williams to Miles Davis, and John McLaughlin back to Miles Davis, and pretty much connected the dots from there. Then my brother got really into Eric Dolphy and the Art Ensemble of Chicago in high school. At the same time we were listening to progressive rock, which was flourishing in the early to mid-seventies, all those aesthetic young British lads. So, again, as was the case in a lot of that sixties pop and rock, sound was the order of the day and instrumental texture and creative expression that was wide open — you know, early Weather Report, Herbie Hancock’s septet, you know what I mean?
I heard (Carlos) Santana say one time, and it seemed really pretentious at that time, how guitarists are just born with their talents and it’s kinda something that’s just either in your DNA or not. You didn’t receive much formal training … what do you think about that statement?
I think that in my case, all I was born with was a love of sound, and I don’t think I evinced any high degree of talent early on at all. As opposed to my brother Alex who was really always good, and he’s one of those guys who can pretty much pick up any instrument and get his way around on it rather quickly, and I never had that ability either. I think that if I believed in “the race” or if I believed in “winning,” I’d say slow wins the race. My life has been a very late-blooming, slow and circuitous path. I think I just gradually improved because of my desire to play the guitar, and I don’t think I was born with any flash of brilliance that then led me to be who I am now. I think it’s rather the opposite for me.
There’s something beautiful about that in the sense that it’s a testament to faith and persistence and there’s kind of fearlessness in that, and I wonder how you deal with fear and what inhibits you most.
Oh my god, you’re asking really good questions. They’re really kinda deep, and that would be a hard one to get in to adequately, but I can say that what speaks to this is that I just finished a recording of me doing overdubs that I’d been thinking about for over 20 years, the material of which is completely not from 20 years ago except for this one piece, but just the idea of it is old, and it’s called “Coward.” And the whole idea that you asked about, the whole question, is part of the name of the record. And I think, as opposed possibly to Carlos, who maybe had some kind of warrior-like fearlessness that catapulted him into the scene in San Francisco and made him rise so quickly, I on the other hand was always unsure of myself and rather a neurotic kind of self-doubting person. The one thing that I never really doubted was my desire to play and my desire to play some kind of original music. So, I’m not really an agonizer aesthetically, as much as I’m an agonizer sort of personally.
of original music.”
Although I played with a lot of my musical heroes, even in my twenties, I’m not sure how I did that because my abilities are certainly not that of some of the greats. I definitely never hustled to get gigs. I never tried to get gigs; I don’t have any business sense at all. Seriously, the one thing that I’m not afraid of is sound. So the one thing that I’ve maintained is my desire to make sound and to create mostly spontaneously, if not partially spontaneously, with like-minded individuals, which I think is a good thing.
Music is not, like some artistic endeavors, a solitary act, I guess unless you’re a composer. So I think that by playing with people better than me, by playing with people who are sympathetic or inspiring, I’ve been able to just keep going and always be happy in the moment, when the music is happening. So that’s the thing that keeps me going, where I’m not afraid. When the music is happening, life makes much more sense to me.
Can you talk about the difference with the song writing process with the Nels Cline Singers versus with Wilco? To what extent does Jeff (Tweedy) allow you to contribute to the writing process, and when you do step away from Wilco to play with your trio, do you find it hard to stretch back out from the confines of Wilco and back into a more improvisational style?
I think that, for me, any amount of soloing or finger wiggling isn’t really a requirement for enjoyment. Playing with Wilco, just like any other thing, even if it’s me improvising in a duet with someone, is about being part of the orchestra or being in the moment. And I think I have a lot of latitude in Wilco. And I don’t feel reined in; a lot of people think I probably do, but if anyone reins me in, it’s me. And I do that by choice because I’m trying to serve the song and trying to serve the music. And, currently, in Wilco at this moment, Jeff’s writing a lot of songs, so what we’re doing right now is learning Jeff’s songs and coming up with some at-least-temporary arrangements that everyone can enjoy listening to played back on tape. How they end up sounding when we go to record them after sifting through them … it may change. I ask a lot of questions. Sometimes I’m not sure exactly what to contribute, so I might lay back for awhile before I decide what’s gonna possibly work in any given situation. That is all fine for me, and it’s not inhibiting. It’s all part of music making. And as long as I enjoy the music and the people with whom I’m playing music, I’m happy to play three notes if that is what’s required.
makes much more sense to me.”
In fact, I don’t really enjoy listening to myself solo all that much, and I got some constructive criticism from a record producer one time who said that my records of my own music don’t have enough of my soloing on them. And I had to tell him, “Well, I don’t really like listening to that as much as I do to a piece, say, on ‘The Giant Pin,” “The Ballad of Devon Hoff,” which doesn’t have any guitar solos but is a satisfying piece of music to listen to, with the open-tuned guitar.
I wonder if there’s a connection there, between growing up a “mirror twin” and the way you feel about being in a band, in that you learned and felt comfortable early on in life as being part of a unit and being supportive and not being self-serving.
Well, I think I can say with some confidence that my brother and I are both kind of like these caring-nurturing types of players in different situations. And sort of enablers, if not catalysts, for chemistry. So I think maybe you’re on to something there that I hadn’t really wanted to ponder too much. But to answer your earlier question about composition in The (Nels Cline) Singers, yea, they’re my tunes, and I usually boil them down in to two categories: one being the obsessive, fascistic, didactic category where I have some very specific ideas and they tend to be something maybe related to the idea of resonance, emotion, maybe a sense of drama that I think both my brother Alex and I seem to be drawn to. I think a piece like “The Ballad of Devin Hoff” is a good example of that. I think pieces like “The Angel of Angels” on “Draw Breath,” they’re not so jamming or solo-driven. They’re really about expressing a mood or a feeling or some sort of sound that I like to live in.
And then there are the pieces that are much more about blowing and three-way interplay where Scott (Amendola, drummer) and Devin contribute equally, sometimes to the destruction of my structure as much as to the construction, and I get out of my own way as the didactic fascist and we just blow. That’s where the free jazz comes in because although stylistically we may sometimes start playing dark metal, it’s not always structured. It’s arrived at spontaneously. I try to do both because truly my desire in having my own band is to play things that are enjoyable to listen to and fun to play with people that I like to play with. So there’s sort of that mixture. The electric guitar, also, I think is quite serviceable in this manner. It’s able to go to a lot of different areas.
Yea, if it doesn’t give you an anxiety attack thinking about all the different places you can go with it.
It’s funny that you say that because many, many years ago, one of my favorite guitar players in the world, John Abercrombie, was interviewed and he was describing what he called “option anxiety,” which is just thinking about how many different ways one can change the sound of the electric guitar. Even just changing, like he has done, from pick to finger. Or changing the string gauge or changing the amplifier or the pick up. Let alone the introduction of reverb, delay, effects pedals, distortion. It’s an interesting thing. To me, that’s the beauty of it.
There is a beauty about instrumental jazz, in that, unlike novelists or songwriters whose ideas and words may get stale or boring, there seems to be infinite possibilities to create.
And then in my case, as the sort of poster boy for the late bloomer, literally I look at ever year that I live as better than the previous year. And I think that right now I have so many marvelous opportunities, and really more work than I can actually do, I feel like I’ve just begun. I’ve got a lot yet to accomplish.
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Your A-List: Best Golf Course
Central Texas has been exploding with golf courses over the past two decades. Most of them, in this writer’s opinion, are overpriced and have a warped view of themselves. Ninety-six dollars to play a slightly-above-average course on the weekend? Give me a break.
Fortunately, there are still some courses in town where you can play and not be surrounded by pretense — or lose your shirt in the process. The standard bearer for reasonably priced golf in Austin is the winner of this week’s Your A-List poll for Best Local Golf Course, Lions Municipal.
I have played the course a dozen times or so, and while the fairways may not be up to the level of some of the area’s ritzier courses, and the rounds may take five hours or more, there is something wonderful and beautiful about the course located just west of Downtown Austin. While I definitely appreciate ‘old muni,’ I thought I’d turn this space over to my friend Casey Haverstick, who can do the course much better justice than I.
A 1992 graduate of Austin High School, and a 4 handicap (at least at Lions), Haverstick’s love of the 75-year-old course is unparalleled (at least among anyone his age) and the tournament he and his friends put on each spring is absolutely legendary. What follows are Casey’s thoughts and feelings about his “home” course:
I first played Lions in 1987, as a seventh-grader attending O. Henry Junior High. The pro shop was a converted trailer home with vending machines that popped out ice cream sandwiches and fountain Cokes. We’d play 36 holes for under $4. Over the years, I never strayed too far. Often, it felt like my classes at Austin High and then UT got in the way of my time at Lions. I guess it felt that way because they did. As I officially became an adult, my feelings for the course grew stronger. There were other courses in town, sure. Lions is family. And it made my being an adult feel less official, I suppose. Teeing off on No. 2, I’ve seen Lance Armstrong ride by on Lake Austin. I’ve seen Ben Crenshaw hit a draw down the first fairway. I’ve seen grown men get choked up after winning the Firecracker. I’ve seen a fox. I’ve waited an hour to tee off on No. 12 and enjoyed every minute of it. I’ve seen over 39 bets booked on the 18th tee. I’ve seen many holes-in-one, including my own on No. 7 and my dad’s on No. 13. I’ve heard at least 19 different old guys explain why the 16th is called Hogan’s Hole, no two stories the same. I’m not the only one who feels this way. There’s a reason more rounds are played at Lions than any other course in Central Texas. It’s walkable and affordable. The layout is short, but challenging — you won’t find harder greens to read. The staff is courteous and friendly. The list of champions is impressive, including a two-time Masters winner. And you’re basically playing in Downtown Austin. Which, sadly, could be the course’s undoing.
Others receiving votes
- Avery Ranch Golf Club, 16 percent
- Falconhead Golf Club, 7 percent
- ShadowGlen Golf Club, 5 percent
- Riverside Golf Course, 5 percent
- The Golf Club at Star Ranch, 4 percent
- Teravista Golf Club, 4 percent
- Wolfdancer Golf Club, 4 percent
- Forest Creek Golf Club, 3 percent
- Jimmy Clay Golf Course,3 percent
- Roy Kizer Golf Course, 3 percent
- Grey Rock Golf Club, 3 percent
- Morris Williams Golf Course, 3 percent
- ColoVista Country Club, 2 percent
- Lago Vista Golf Club, 2 percent
- Blackhawk Golf Club, 2 percent
- Bluebonnet Hill Golf Club, 1 percent
- Plum Creek Golf Course, 1 percent
- Delaware Springs Golf Course, < 1 percent
- Pine Forest Golf Course, < 1 percent
- Quail Creek Country Club, < 1 percent
- White Wing Golf Club, < 1 percent
- Yaupon Golf Course, < 1 percent
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Your A-List: Best Place for Dessert
Following dinner at one restaurant, many folks like to head to another locale for dessert. Some folks may choose to go out only for dessert, whether it be for a guilty pleasure after dining at home or for a simple getting-to-know-you slice of cake on a first date. Whatever the case may be, Mozart’s Coffee Roasters on Lake Austin has become a favorite of many Austinites looking to satisfy their sugar urges, and, with 25 percent of the vote, is the winner of the Your A-List poll for Best Place for Dessert.
The lovely little brick-walled building with warm wooden floors spills out onto a patio that sits on the lake and regularly boasts crowds late into the evenings, especially on nights with good weather. From the Mozart’s Raspberry Delight (an almond tort layered with raspberry preserves and covered in dark chocolate) to a host of cheescakes (nine in all) and the famous Chocolate Decadence Cake, the cafe on the lake has something for all tastes.
Mozart’s Coffee Roasters [site]
3826 Lake Austin Blvd. [map]
512.477.2900
Others receiving votes
- La Dolce Vita, 16 percent
- Driskill Grill, 10 percent
- Teo, 8 percent
- Hudson’s on the Bend, 7 percent
- Jeffrey’s, 7 percent
- Austin Java, 7 percent
- Wink, 6 percent
- Starlite, 5 percent
- Pachugo, 4 percent
- Quack’s, 3 percent
- Aquarelle, 3 percent
- Zoot, < 1 percent
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Wilco’s Nels Cline playing Stubb’s this weekend
Sunday, July 13
Stubb’s inside
Doors at 8 p.m.
[Tickets]
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Sacha Baron Cohen as ‘Bruno’ fires up Arkansans with gay gag
Say this about British comedian Sacha Baron Cohen, dude is brave. After making a mockery of some pockets of American society (and inspiring lawsuits) with his movie “Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan,” the satirist is back at it with filming of his new movie based on his character Bruno, a gay Austrian fashionista made famous on Cohen’s “Da Ali G Show.”
Cohen has refocused his aim on familiar ground fertile for satirizing, the South. The hoax this time was perpetrated on over 1500 people in Forth Smith and Texarkana, Arkansas, who were “lured by $1 beer and the prospect of prospect of ‘hot chicks’ and ‘hardcore fights,’” according to The Smoking Gun. Using ads on CraigsList, Cohen’s team promoted an event called “Blue Collar Brawlin’ Cage Fights.” Nothing like cheap beer and capitalizing on anything “blue collar” to draw out a big crowd.
According to the post on The Smoking Gun, “both cards ended with two male grapplers (one was identified as ‘Straight Dave’ and wore camouflage) tearing each other’s clothes off and, while in underwear, kissing down their opponent’s chest. This man-on-man action triggered Fort Smith fans to throw chairs and beer at the ring, according to one cop present at the city’s Convention Center.”
Attendees, who were told they were being filmed, with some being asked to sign releases, were not allowed to bring in cameras or cell phones, so there is no footage floating around the Web, as far as I can gather. One can only imagine the scene.
It’s a wonder Cohen, who ironically co-starred in the Will Ferrell comedy about NASCAR, “Talladega Nights,” has not yet been jumped by any of the targets of his wit and derision. It probably helps that the only time he ever ventures into middle America is when he is in character.
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Video: 4th of July Hot Dog Eating Contest
What better way to celebrate America’s independence than by indulging in one of our country’s most prolific vices — gluttony.
John Pope had several dozen people over to his and his wife’s house last Friday to partake in the inaugural (and maybe last) Fourth of July hot dog eating contest. Although close to 40 people were in attendance, only seven brave souls dared tackle the hot dogs. And of those seven, only two saw their count reach double digits. To the victor (and the canines) went the spoils, and to second place, Todd Whiteford, went some time spent in the bushes “reliving” the momentous moment. (Warning: The video below has some graphic images that may not be suitable for the faint of heart, or stomach.)
At least one competitor was overheard saying he would never eat another hot dog again. I may be in the same boat. (Click here for some photos from the day’s events.)
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Fruit as Viagra?
Fourth of July parties may get a lot more exciting this year. According to researchers, Watermelons, a staple among picnickers and barbecue enthusiasts during the summer, contain an ingredient called citrulline, that may have similar effects to the erectile dysfunction drug Viagra.
Apparently “citrulline reacts with the body’s enzymes when consumed in large quantities and is changed into arginine,” which relaxes the body’s blood vessels, much the way Viagara does, according to scientists in Texas, says this AP story.
From the article:
Found in the flesh and rind of watermelons, citrulline reacts with the body’s enzymes when consumed in large quantities and is changed into arginine, an amino acid that benefits the heart and the circulatory and immune systems. “Arginine boosts nitric oxide, which relaxes blood vessels, the same basic effect that Viagra has, to treat erectile dysfunction and maybe even prevent it,” said Bhimu Patil, a researcher and director of Texas A&M’s Fruit and Vegetable Improvement Center. “Watermelon may not be as organ-specific as Viagra, but it’s a great way to relax blood vessels without any drug side effects.”
But don’t expect to eat a slice of Watermelon and then sit back and wait for the proverbial fireworks. According to USDA researcher Penelope Perkins-Veazie, one would have to eat about six cups of the fruit to get enough citrulline to get the body’s arginine level to get the desired effect. That’s a lot of watermelon. And, as its name implies, watermelon has a very high water content, so even if you slugged down a whole watermelon, you may find yourself in the bathroom more often than the bedroom.
According to the article, “citrulline is found in all colors of watermelon and is highest in the yellow-fleshed types.” So, if you’re bored on this Fourth of July weekend, head over to the grocery and watch a bunch of 50-somethings fight to the death over yellow-fleshed watermelons.
Of course, beyond the elusive enhancement, the study reveals there may actually be some health benefits associated with relationship between citrulline and arginine, such a reduction of blood pressure and an agent to fight diabetes.
Yea, yea, yea.
Viva watermelon!
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Your A-List: Best Place for a Cheap Lunch
Going to Sullivans for steak sandwiches and a bottle of wine is certainly a nice way to while away the day. But, let’s face it, not everybody has that kind of time or money. Often, we find ourselves eating quickly and on the cheap when it comes to lunch, and when it comes to getting a good cheap lunch, Freebirds is tops in your book, with 31 percent of the vote.
The small chain, with restaurants in seven Texas cities and one in Oklahoma (psh posh), opened its Texas operation in 1990 in College Station, but Austinites have not held the ignominious distinction against the restaurant, as proven by the massive lunch and dinner lines at the restaurants here in Austin. With burritos ranging from the almost snack-size to the seriously oversized, Freebirds can accommodate any appetite, and with the recent addition of their steak and chicken salads, are attempting to prove that one can dine on Tex-Mex while still watching their caloric intake.
Beyond the food, Freebirds, which outdistanced Austin landmark Thundercloud in the polling, has built a local reputation for strong customer service, as each customer who reaches the burrito-making assembly line is greeted and told they will be served shortly. A cynic may call it a contrived corporate mandate, but I have heard from many people that said simple recognition helps get their experience off on the right food. So take that, cynics.
Others receiving votes:
- Thundercloud, 25 percent
- Zen, 8 percent
- Maria’s Taco Express, 6 percent
- Hut’s Hamburgers, 6 percent
- El Meson, 3 percent
- Lulu B’s, 3 percent
- Tam Deli, 3 percent
- Artz Rib House, 3 percent
- Green Mesquite BBQ, 3 percent
- Fire Bowl Cafe, 2 percent
- Billy’s on Burnett, 2 percent
- Iron Works, 2 percent
- Hai-Ky, 1 percent
- Buffet Palace, 1 percent
Write-ins: 10th Street Tacos, 620 Cafe, Cafe Java, Enoteca Vespaio, Galaxy Cafe, Little Deli in Crestview, Maru, Tamale House, Tino’s Greek Café
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Your A-List: Best Place to Smooch
Located in West Austin, Bonnell offers an exquisite view of Lake Austin and homes with prices that put them out of my (and probably your) price range. And, when the beauty of the lake and its homes overwhelms (or bores) you, and you want to rest before enjoying the surrounding trails, turn to that special someone and get to kissin, ya exhibitionists.
Bonnell also seems like a pretty cool place to shoot a music video, as evidenced by this one of local talent Bill Callahan playing “Nothing Rises to Meet Me.”
No. 6 Bill Callahan - “Nothing Rises To Meet Me” from Retread Sessions on Vimeo.
Others receiving votes:
- Eeyore’s Birthday, 12 percent
- Town Lake, 11 percent
- Barton Springs, 9 percent
- Zilker Park, 7 percent
- Botanical Gardens, 6 percent
- UT football game, 6 percent
- 360 Bridge, 5 percent
- Umlauf Sculpture Garden, 5 percent
- Capitol grounds, 4 percent
Image from Larry Kolvoord/AMERICAN-STATESMAN
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Online documentary about tree removal to make way for Barton Place condos
If you’ve been paying attention, you’ve probably heard about the debate raging over the 100 year-old pecan grove in South Austin that is being partially felled for the Barton Place condos.
The debate over how the land is being treated by developers even led to an indictment of the developers and Austin Java (owned by one of the co-developers and located amidst the chaos on Barton Springs Road) by musician Marcia Ball at Blues on the Green last week, which in turn led to a written response from Austin Java owner Rick Engel to Ball.
Well, it turns out Ball and her suggested boycott of Austin Java, which Engel said led in part to a 50% drop off in business at the restaurant last Thursday, is not the only one raising a stink over the tree removal.
A documentary about the tree removal is making its debut online today. According to a press release:
“At What Cost?”, a short film about the demise of a 100-year-old pecan grove in the center of Austin, debuts today on the internet. The film, by Tom Suhler, takes the form of an obituary for one of the 50 trees that were toppled to make room for the Barton Place Condominiums.”
Shuler goes on to say, “I don’t consider myself an environmental activist. I’ve owned land; I believe in property-owner’s rights. But once I started documenting the land-clearing I was surprised how much the take-down affected me and those of other Austin residents. So I put this piece together to try to resolve some of those feelings.”
Check out the film’s Web site here.
The truncated “trailer” of sorts is below:
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