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Report: A 4-Party Friday
Shy by nature, authors, agents and literary hopefuls danced around each other at the Writers League of Texas reception on Friday. When anyone approached me at the Hyatt Regency Austin ballroom, it felt like an act of supreme will, the inner command sounding: “I will be social!”
Jud Laghi and Cyndi Hughes
It’s easy to empathize with this tribe of 200 or so, forced to market their talents.
Lupe Zamarripa and Fr. Louis Brusatti
Still, they told scintillating stories. I spoke with a geneticist, a humanities dean, a literary publicist, an attorney and a former journalist, among others. I predict that columns will follow about more than one.
Shane and Shelby Sledge
Over at the Carver Museum and Cultural Center that night, a few dozen folks gathered in the atrium, all-agog over the imminent arrival of Leonard Pitts Jr.
Sedora Jefferson and Susan Stotesbery
In town for the African American Book Festival, Pitts has become a media celebrity by just doing his job, writing clear, reasoned and practical columns, which are syndicated and published in the American-Statesman. He graciously signed books and chatted with fans at the Links of Town Lake reception.
A.J. Bingham and Revlynn Lawson
Among my conversation mates were chef Toni Tipton-Martin, illustrator Don Tate, KLRU station director Bill Stotesbery, Links social star Gerry Tucker, and Facebook chum Revlynn Lawson.
Gina Harris and Toni Tipton-Martin
Mere blocks away, the East Village opened to a jumbo, groovy party. Guests, most of them in the 20s, swarmed over the modernist building on East 11th Street that blends retail, office and residence spaces.
Brandyn Balmos, Sandra Antoun and Jesse Adler
Thanks to swarming social media by Taylor Perkins (Rare) and Blake Shanley (East Village), hip met hauteur in equal measures, sampling food from area eateries and sipping local drinks to ward off the equatorial heat. (Hydrate, kids, hydrate.)
Frank Estrada and Kristin Owen
The residences and rooftop offer sweet views of downtown and East Austin.
Jamie Rix and Valerie Nies
My final stop of the evening was M Two. This is the former Saba, which owner Joe Reynolds has revised as a gay-themed restaurant and lounge.
Aaron Lofton and Brian Dillard
Why? Because it makes some sense to add a gay-friendly gathering place that’s not strictly a bar or club to the nightlife mix in the West Fourth Street area. Interestingly, the space above Cedar Street Courtyard opened in the 1990s as Soma, a gay-themed eatery.
Barbara Kimbel, Cecilia Schmidt, Joe Reynolds and Josie Rodriguez
A chat with a young married gay couple from Santa Cruz, Cal. took me back to the Voices of Gay Austin survey and series of articles that the American-Statesman ran in 2001. The findings: That gay men and lesbians felt generally safe and happy in Austin, but missed the trappings of gay culture found in some other cities. One of those missing links: Gay restaurants.
Frank Carmona and Jeffrey Lane
Well, guys and gals … it’s yours to use or lose.
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