Archive for the ‘Austin’ Category

This Is My Shocked Face

Friday, January 18th, 2013

Whenever the topic of performance enhancing drugs come up, I’ve always half-seriously said that my working assumption is that all professional athletes are doping, a position that renders me immune to disappointment when someone tests positive for a PED

However, looking at the Wikipedia entry for “Doping at the Tour de France,” it appears that my supposition is in fact pretty much correct, at least for cycling. In particular, not only did every winner between 1991 and 2007 test positive at one point or another, but in 2006, every top 10 finisher was either caught doping, admitted doping, or accused of doping. And the very earliest races were soaked in alcohol, ether, strychnine and cocaine.

Was it Jon Stewart who said “The first sign that Lance Armstrong was doping when he won the Tour de France? He won the Tour de France!”

Steven Utley, RIP: 1948—2013

Sunday, January 13th, 2013

I just received word from Jessica Reisman:

Molly let me know that Steve passed last night at about 10:40 pm, eastern. His family was with him.

I’ll miss him.

As will we all.

Utley announced to his friends that he had been diagnosed with Type 4 cancer in his intestines, liver, and lungs, and a lesion on his brain on December 27, 2012. On January 7, he sent out an email saying that he was losing his motor skills and designated Jessica as his literary executor (and hopefully she’ll be able to get some of his swell stories back in print). On the morning of January 12 he slipped into a coma and died that night.

Disasters of Event Planning

Wednesday, November 21st, 2012

November 16 next year, there will be a UT home football game (against OSU) and a Formula One race in Austin on the same weekend.

What could possibly go wrong?

The biggest winner? Hotel and motel owners in Bastrop.

If you plan on attending either of these events, you might want to make your reservations now…

Pictures from the 2012 Armadillocon

Monday, August 13th, 2012

Continuing my acclaimed series “Lawrence’s Continuing Efforts To Justify The Purchase of a Digital Camera,” here are pictures from the 2012 Armadillocon:


The lovely and talented Urania Fung, who joined us for lunch with…


…her sister, the lovely and talented Cynthia Fung.


Fung & Fung, together at last. “Soon to be a new hit series on the CW!”


Master of Toast A. Lee Martinez showing off his spiffy Cthulhu vs. Godzilla T-shirt.


Andrew Wimsatt, already looking like his brain has fled.


Jayme Lynn Blaschke standing over Andrew, with the interior of the Austin Renaissance looming in the background like a Lovecraftian tomb (assuming the tomb had balconies and accent lighting).


Michael Sumbera, Scott Bobo and Ed Scarborough, hanging out in the bar.


Mark Finn. “Penis goes where???”


Picture from Family Feud, where the pros kicked the fan butt. “How could the topic be ‘Vampire Novels’ and not one of us thought of Dracula?”


it wouldn’t be an Armadillocon photo gallery without the requisite Stina Leicht Pantone Hair Color Reference Shot.


Now with Slightly Smugger Expression.


Editor guest of honor Liz Gorinsky, who appears to have part of Fry’s non-paraodoxing time travel algorithm tattooed onto her bicep.


Jayme Lynn Blascke, Troyce Wilson and Martha Wells. Maybe it was just this spot that made people look tired.


Con Chair Sara Felix taking a break from the madness with noted lush Scott Bobo.


With folded plate…


…and without.


John W. Campbell Award nominee Stina Leicht with Zillion time best Artist Hugo nominee John Picacio.


I had Stina lean in close so I could see exactly where her hair color matched his shirt.


“Sure, I’ll chair Armadillocon! How hard could it be?”


John “Two-Time Hugo Nominee” DeNardo


Ladies and Gentlemen, the worst picture ever of Joe R. Lansdale!


This time, his brain is fried.


Michael Sumbera and Rich Simental.


Mark Finn and Night Shade Press head honcho Jeremy Lassen, who needs to hire a better shipping department.


Matthew Bey with two people whose names I should remember.


Gabrielle Faust, looking remarkably calm and poised considering the horrific, unspeakable doom that was about to befall her. Best not to talk about it…


Denman Glober, who finds me endlessly entertaining.


Rob Landley, once and future chairman of Linucon.


Bradley Denton, who had a wee bit of a tough 2011.


Doug Potter, showing off a T-shirt with a drawing by Doug Potter, from a book illustrated by Doug Potter.


And another Armadillocon slouches to an end…

Shoegazer Sunday: I Break Horses’ “Winter Beats”

Sunday, May 20th, 2012

I was able to catch most of the M83 show here in Austin. While good, I was equally impressed with Swedish opening act I Break Horses (not to be confused with the Seattle band of the same name, or the Portland band Sparkle Pony), which played a very tight set.

Their online music is good, but they’re much better live, and I’d recommend catching the M83/I Break Horses tour if they come around your neck of the woods.

That’s One Hell of a Kick

Wednesday, May 2nd, 2012

Back when I moved into my house in 2004, Steve Jackson was one of the people helping tote those hundreds of boxes of books. I used to contribute pieces to The Space Gamer, and helped playtest Shockwave, and we bumped into each other at various SF events around Austin. He also generously agreed to proof read Nova Express back when it was a going concern, and did an excellent job.

Steve decided to go the Kickstarter route to fund the “Designer Edition” of Ogre. His initial funding goal was $20,000. Actual amount pulled in? As of this writing, $422,719 (and no doubt it will have gone up by the time you click that link).

Congrats Steve!

Austin Dining Review: Chagos

Tuesday, April 3rd, 2012

(Note: This is a restaurant review that will eventually end up on The Logbook of the Saturday Dining Conspiracy, but since: A.) We’ve pretty much sucked at keep that up to date, and B.) We both have blogs, and, hey, content!, I thought I’d start putting my reviews up in transit to the main SDC pages.)

Chagos Caribbean Cuisine
7301 N Lamar Blvd.
Austin, Texas 78752
(512) 275-6013
http://www.chagos.biz/

Dining Date: March 24, 2012

This is a nice, cheap, hole-in-the-wall restaurant on a stretch (north Lamar between Airport and 183) that has traditionally been hostile to any restaurant not named “Kim Phung.” Although the plantano and yucca chips didn’t grab me, the chicken appetizer was sort of interesting, the salad wasn’t bad, and my Bistec Encebollado was reasonably tasty.

My Tres Leches cake was quite deliciously sweet but undersized. Service was attentive and personal, but they weren’t particularly busy.

If you live nearby, and are in the mood for something both cheap and not bland TexMex, Chagos is worth a try.

Book Signing and Party for Three Messages and a Warning

Sunday, January 29th, 2012

I attended a signing at BookPeople for Three Messages and a Warning: Contemporary Mexican Short Stories of the Fantastic, co-edited by Turkey City’s own Chris Brown (formerly Chris Nakashima-Brown, now renamed after a long and painful de-Japanization process).

The event was fairly well attended, with about 40-50 people showing up.

Two of the authors flew up for the event: Pepe Rojo of Tijuana:

And Bernardo Fernandez of Mexico City (who also works as a graphics artist and teacher, as well as a crime writer):

(I’m not sure if you can tell, but Bernardo’s shirt features a robot (or possibly an android) and an electric sheep.) I believe he mentioned that he was working on a graphic novel about William S. Burrough’s time in Mexico. I bet it ends with a bang.

I also found it interesting that both of their fathers were engineers.

In attendance were also many members of the Austin SF community, including a few that my pictures of weren’t completely awful:


Stina Leicht and Sara Felix.


Jessica Reisman, a few moments before the police arrested her for the Hollywood scriptwriter they found dead facedown in her pool.

On Saturday, there was a party at Chris Brown’s newly opened East Austin hipster-pad-cum-1970s-science-fiction-movie-set. Sadly, none of my photos of the house (taken at dusk) came out well. But I did get a few pics of the party attendees:


Don Webb, who co-edited one of the most influential Spanish-language anthologies of speculative fiction, for which he was paid $50 and three bottles of Tequila.


Stina and Jessica redux.

The rest of my pictures were various degrees of crappy. (Hopefully Jayme Blaschke, who was there with a bigger, better camera, will put some up.) Sadly, one picture that didn’t come out was that of Bernardo wearing a t-shirt depicting Mexico’s most famous science fiction character: Bender Bending Rodriguez.

Finally, no expects the Spanish Steampunk Zeppelin!

Shoegazer Sunday: Ringo Deathstarr’s “You Don’t Listen”

Sunday, January 15th, 2012

Here’s the earcatchingly-named Ringo Deathstarr (note the double r at the end of Deathstar; there’s evidently a New Jersey rapper that goes by the single r version of the name) with “You Don’t Listen.” The band hails from Austin, which has not been a hotbed for Shoegaze (though The Swells have been here a while). My friend Andrew said he enjoyed seeing them at Psych Fest.

And here’ the live version, not because it’s particularly good, but because it provides proof of the maxim that just about any Shoegazer band is improved by including a hot redhead.

2011: Texas’ Dryest Year Ever

Wednesday, January 11th, 2012

Official confirmation, just in case you needed it:

Federal scientists confirmed Friday that Texas had its driest year on record in 2011.

The statewide average rainfall for the year totaled just 14.88 inches, according to the National Climatic Data Center, beating the previous low of 14.99 inches set in 1917.

And keep in mind that it was even worse than it seems, as several inches in that final tally only turned in the last few weeks of the year where, as welcome as it was, it did jack-all for farmers.