Fall is here!

And I was ready for it to arrive. Summer was hot. Humid. And six months long. By mid-October, I was practically begging for a cold front to whoosh through Texas.

Wish granted.

The air is finally cool, and I get to trade in my summer dresses for leggings, scarves, and jackets. But even with the changing weather, one of the best things about Austin is that -- no matter the season -- there is always plenty to see and do. A quick digest from October and early November...


Mountain biking. Austin and the hill country are great places to ride some amazing trails.



ELECTION DAY. (Which, in retrospect, could have been renamed "Demogeddon" or "Democralypse" this year. I'll refrain from further commentary and point you here instead for all the details on the Texas midterm results.)

For the first time in my voting life, I was compelled to phone bank for the Democrats. This isn't California, folks, and winning back those blue seats was not something we could even come close to counting on.


A few photos from the Travis County Democratic Party HQ in Austin. I called 75 voters to remind them to vote, and to encourage them to vote for all the Dems on the ballot. People were super nice! Even a few conservatives pledged to vote for Bill White for Governor (sadly, he lost... and Texas is even redder than before).



And finally, the Gypsy Picnic! Austin is famous for serving food out of a trailer (there are over 1,000 such businesses in the city limits alone). So what better way to celebrate this food culture than by bringing together over 30 food trailers and serving up $3 sample sizes of all these dishes!

The lines were crazy long (and usually I can find many of these trailers are in my neighborhood), so I passed on this delicious fare and just browsed the event and enjoyed the live music... but rest assured you can find me at Gordoughs, Odd Duck Farm to Trailer, or Torchy's on a nice evening.



Happy Fall!

My doggie

Okay, she's not really mine. But she's pretty much my favorite dog on earth.

Meet my neighbor's dog, CJ.

She loves hiking in the greenbelt and fetching plastic water bottles.

Oh, and dog treats from Whole Foods. A true Austin dog.

Welcome home.

I brought this baby home from the bike shop tonight. Isn't she gorgeous?

It's going to be a great fall.

What would make you give up your car?

Here's an important and fascinating discussion: What would make you give up your car?

I'll admit my perspective has changed a bit since I moved to Texas. But in seeking alternatives, the following things rank high on my list: safety, convenience, and, perhaps most importantly, time. If I could get to work by public transit or bicycle in a reasonable amount of time, I'd do it. But right now it breaks down like this...

Commute distance: 12 miles.
Time it takes to commute one-way...

By car: About 15 minutes in the morning, 35 in the evening.

By bike: About 1 hour (Uphill. And add another two miles to the distance).

By bus: Between 1 hour & 20 minutes and 2 hours (including one to three transfers to different bus lines.)

Keep in mind that my commute is along one of the most popular roads in Austin -- it's a major commuter route for many Austinites and those living in nearby suburbs. Even after a year of living here, I'm still amazed that there aren't any better alternatives.

I didn't own a car before I moved to Texas. BART, buses, Amtrak, ZipCar, and carpooling made getting around fairly quick and cheap. I could commute to work, go shopping, and hang out with friends without worrying about finding and paying for parking, or (after a night on the town) who would be the designated driver. Granted, I grew up a block from a subway station, but despite the downsides to public transit, it has always served me well.

Here, I've used public transit only once. I use my commuter bike on the weeknights and weekends to cruise around town, but never to get to work. It's SO EASY to drive a car here, it's what I generally do.

Click here to read the discussion. I think it's fascinating... and hopeful. I think we can design cities better, make cycling easier and "cooler," provide better access to efficient public transit, eliminate stigma, and ultimately convince folks to get out of their cars.

Motodiva

A little present to myself to celebrate fall. I picked these beauties up at Bicycle Sport Shop's Annual Garage Sale Event (40% off!).

The mountain bike I want is still backordered... but it's going to be a 29er!

Austin City Limits

When I moved to Austin a year ago, I was hardly aware of the excitement (and chaos) of the ACL festival -- but I ended up moving into an apartment just down the street from its epicenter: Zilker Park.

ACL has been running for 9 years, and one memory that stands out from the October 2009 weekend (that I spent apartment hunting) is driving past the park and witnessing the aftermath of Austin's biggest party. In just three days, the lush, green, newly-sodded lawn at Zilker Park was transformed into an enormous mud pit, all thanks to the stomping feet of 70,000 music lovers and several days of rain.

It was a near scandal. News stories ran for days about the poor lawn, Austinites lamented over the state of their beloved park, and everyday on my way to work I would monitor the mud pit's status. Eventually, Zilker dried out and the concert promoters agreed to foot the $2 million cost to re-turf and improve drainage on the 46-acre "great lawn."

This year's festival rolled around and the lawn was in pristine condition. And of course, everyone eagerly awaited the weather forecast: would torrential rains create a muddy disaster like 2009? Would it be scorching hot and tranform the grass into a dust bowl like 2008?

As luck would have it, I was able to attend ACL in a year with weather that organizers called, "the best we've ever had." Concertgoers agreed. Cool evenings, beautiful sunny afternoons... just perfect.

In my opinion, the line-up wasn't as stellar as last year, but I wanted to check out the scene, 1) because my neighborhood was invaded for three straight days by thousands of people and their cars, and 2) it is one of those quintessential Austin experiences that makes you grateful to live in this wonderful Texas town.

My friend, W, used to be active in the music scene and has some nice connections, and she was kind enough to share a VIP wristband with yours truly. This got us backstage access to some (not all) of the stages, which meant getting a seat at Martin Sexton. Here we are, enjoying the music:


A few snapshots of the the scene, including Norah Jones on one of the seven stages set up in the park.


After Martin and Norah, we scrambled over to the Budweiser Stage where The Eagles were scheduled to perform. We were on the fence about staying to watch -- it was 7pm, and their set was supposed to last from 8-10pm. And honestly, we thought, "The Eagles... eh."

We ended up taking the plunge and staying for the evening's headliner, even after getting squeezed into the VIP "bull pen" (next to the soundboard -- good; no seats -- bad) and being told that if we came in, we weren't allowed to leave until the performance was over. We agreed.

Turns out The Eagles were awesome. They sounded AMAZING -- tight harmonies, insane guitar solos, and a bunch of classics that made us say, "oh, that's an Eagles song!" You'd have been hard pressed to find a person in the crowd who didn't enjoy that show.


After The Eagles, we used our wristbands one last time to get access to the Artists' Lounge. Free booze, restrooms with A/C, and places to sit. Not too shabby.



'Til next year...

Picture of the Week