Never bust a pinata over a dance floor. That’s how you ruin a good pair of boots.
—Jennifer R. Smith
DEPRESSING
This is breaking my heart. The City of Austin is to blame, for taxing historic businesses out of house and home. Pretty soon there’s not going to be anything weird left on Barton Springs Road. Except me. :(
TREASURE HUNTING IN EAST TEXAS
This past weekend I got to do one of my very favorite things: antique shopping with my mom in Gladewater, Texas! Just a few minutes down the road from my hometown, Gladewater is an easy trip, and the historic downtown area is full of mom-and-pop antique stores. These are my favorite kind of antique stores — you know, the really junky ones that specialize in what I like to call “Americana”. Whether it’s a Dukes of Hazzard lunch kit or a cool old lantern, I always leave with something good. This time I made out with two old whiskey crates and an antique bb gun from 1904!
Yes, it still shoots. And yes, we shot it in the backyard as soon as we got home.
EMERSON FANS
The new thing in Gladewater is restoring and selling antique kitchen fans. Some of these are incredibly beautiful and they’re really amazing to see in action. They operate so smoothly, so quietly… I know it’s a cliche, but they just don’t make ‘em like they used to! I absolutely fell IN LOVE with the black number at the top with the copper blades. Too bad it was $500. Ouch!
It’s a fine line, really, between cluttered and condemned.
More East Texas Treasures
• create your own mis-matched flatware sets
• these life rings would be cool decor for a nautical-themed event
• kid-sized antique beach chairs! too cool
• Gilchrist ice cream scoop = the real deal.
• antique oil cans
• large Exxon Mobil oil can
• old whiskey crate
DISTURBING
Tonight I went on a fun backstage tour of the Austin City Limits Moody Theater via KLRU Next. Among lots of other cool stuff, I saw this poster. I was AT THAT SHOW. Why do I not have a print of this?!!! New mission in life.
RIP Doc Watson.
BIG TIME, Y’ALL
This just in: The musical based on S.R. Bindler and Kevin Morris’s Hands on A Hard Body is officially moving to Broadway! The 1997 documentary film that ran for over a year at the Dobie Theater in Austin became something of a cult classic among Texans (to say the least.) Now I might be a tad biased, but if you haven’t seen this film about the crazy contest held in my hometown then you haven’t seen one of the best documentaries ever made. Infinitely quotable and outrageously funny, Hands on A Hard Body might be the ultimate proof that truth is indeed stranger than fiction.
Now, how this translates into a musical might be a whole ‘nother level of strange. And, to make it even more bizarre, according to this article the music is credited to Trey Anastasio. Yeah, that’s right. The guy from Phish. This East Texan might be booking a flight to NYC soon… GO BABY GO.
SCOUT GUIDE: CLASSIC TEXAS SUMMER
Howdy y’all, and Happy Memorial Day! I’m pleased as pie to unveil the first-ever “Scout Guide” in what (hopefully) will become a series of posts built around a distinctly Texan-take on different seasons and holidays. This week the Texas public schools will hold those last two worthless days of class, and with the weather getting hotter by the minute I’m all-at-once back there, remembering the excitement and perfection of the first day of summer. Just like Mark Twain’s Tom Sawyer, I wanted to stop that day and hold it there, with the whole of summer stretched out luxuriously in front of me. So here’s to pop-ice and watermelon. Here’s to roadside firework stands and mosquito bites. Here’s to lifeguarding jobs and sleeping in. And here’s to a long, hot summer in Texas! Explore below for all you’ll need to survive:
1. Float the Guad! (And never get a tube with a bottom — that’s for amateurs.) Rockin’ R River Rides in New Braunfels, Texas
2. Texas flag beach towel, available on Amazon
3. Classic aviators from Ray Ban
4. Levis cut-offs
5. Don’t get eaten up! Deet-free Skeeter Screen, available at Thom’s Market in Austin, TX
6. AM/FM crank radio by Lexon
7. Chevron maillot, byLangly
8. “Texas Toothpick” custom-made water ski, designed by World Champion ski jumper, Joe Mueller. Take lessons from Joe’s brother “Buzz” out at Lake McQueeney, see and be seen at the Lake Breeze Ski Lodge.
9. Classic flops from Haviana
10. Work on those high-kicks all summer long so they’re perfect come fall! photo of the Kilgore College Rangerettes
11. Don’t get burned! Use Zinka
12. Spinner bait, available at Academy Sports
13. Make your own fun! Garden hose, $40 at Sears
14. Add to your charm bracelet — Camp Waldemar for Girls charm made by James Avery Craftsman
15. Classic topsiders, Sperry
16. Pick out who’ll you marry! Camp Longhorn summer yearbook
17. A Texan rite of passage: Schlitterbahn in New Braunfels
18. A dollop of whipped cream on one of these is pure heaven! Fredericksburg Peaches
19. Black Cat bottle rockets
20. Get in line! Sno Beach sno scones stand in Austin, TX
21. NO GLASS BY THE POOL, Lone Star Beer
22. Styrofoam cooler, available at 7-Eleven
