It’s that time of year. If you haven’t been to the Austin’s 37th Street display of lights, this video from illustrator Doug Potter gives you an idea of what it’s like.
Merry Christmas!
Archive for the ‘Austin’ Category
Austin: Christmas on 37th Street
Thursday, December 22nd, 2011Recipe for Frustration
Tuesday, December 20th, 20111. Have flat wheelbarrow wheel.
2. Buy solid, never-go-flat replacement wheel.
3. Unscrew bolts holding on flat wheel.
4. Wrench flat wheel off axle with difficulty.
5. Be unable to remove rotatory cuff for old wheel that has fused to axle, and thus be unable to replace old wheel with new wheel, which has its own rotatory cuff.
6. Just when the trees finally decide to shed their leaves.
7. Be unable to find a suitable replacement axle anywhere online.
A Frozen Pizza Home Run
Monday, November 7th, 2011I don’t tend to buy frozen pizza (for a lot of reasons), but I did recently pick up a Home Run Inn Meat Lovers Pizza at Central Market when I went there for salsa fixing. Though it does cost more than average (about $7.50), it turned out to be significantly better than your average DiGiorno’s/Red Baron/Tombstone “premium” meat pizza, with both better meat and a better crust. Anyway, if you’re near a Central Market and have a hankering for pizza, you could do worse…
Actual, Real, Honest to Goodness RAIN
Saturday, October 8th, 2011For the first time since it rained about five minutes one night three or four months ago. And before that it might have been another three or four months.
A good thing, too, since it’s been so dry here the cacti have been dying of thirst:
I took that picture along the Rattan Creek greenbelt earlier this week…
Armadillocon 2011 Photos for Sunday, August 28
Saturday, September 17th, 2011Just a handful, as I left my camera recharging for the con itself, so all of these are from the dead dog party.
Lou Anders’ wife makes him presentable.
Willie Siros, Scott Bobo and Emma Bull get their Shiner on.
Emma Bull fiddles with a confounding electronic device.
Willie listens to Bobo tell the punchline. “And that’s when I gave him back the duck.”
Another Armadillocon survived.
Armadillocon 2011 Photos for Saturday, August 27
Wednesday, September 14th, 2011
A chipper-at-all-hours Kasey Lansdale, having no pity on us poor souls discomforted by having to get up at the crack of noon.
if we’re going to show Kasey, I suppose we should show her father, Joe R. Lansdale. I think he’s written a book or two.
Neal Barrett, Jr. “You working on anything right now, Neal?” “I’m a writer, I’m always working on something. That’s what writers do.”
Howard Waldrop, relieved that we only have to review Cowboys & Aliens once.
Rob Landley, the man who helped found both Penguincon and Linucon. And yet, somehow, he still walks among the living.
Paolo Bacigalupi, wondering just where that alligator might have gotten to.
Brad Denton, who foolishly exposed his skin to direct sunlight for almost 15 full seconds.
Martha Wells, reclining in the position usually reserved for her palanquin.
Elizabeth Moon’s expression shortly after hearing that she wouldn’t have spend three days being condescended and lectured to by dour, joyless feminists.
Jayme Lynn Blaschke, who’ had to cut back on his previously extravagant vest budget.
Kurt Baty towers over Lego creations. Deep in the night, he sneaks into his unfinished mansion to loom over them and shout “I’m the God! I’m the God!”
With his portable manual typewriter, Lou Antonelli may be taking his emulation of role-model Howard Waldrop a little too far…
Just one of the many, many martinis Scott Bobo drank that weekend, not all of which had Ed Scarborough looking on.
Scott, Ed and Dwight wait for dinner.
Dwight, Rich and Milton.
Little Chuckie, Emma Bull and Stina Leicht just before the Elizabeth Moon and Wiscon panel, more about which at a later date. No one was killed during the panel, which counts as a rousing success.
Ben Yalow and Emma Bull.
Matthew Bay, with beer and wearing a utility kilt, key clues for the police to piece together the horrific orbital belt sanding disaster that befell him moments later.
There used to be a picture here. Now there’s not.
Lovely con newbie Jamie Hott and here +5 Camera of Smiting.
Paolo attempts to re-enact the cover shoot from Peter Gabriel I.
The second of my blackmail photos of Mark Finn, this time cavorting with shameless married hussy Emma Bull.
The unsuspecting Will Shetterly sits next to his wife, none the wiser to the lascivious gyrations performed shortly before.
Oh yeah, baby! Finn and Dave Cake demonstrate that Fezes are TOTALLY coming back! It’s only a matter of time!
Brad offers Paolo the traditional SFWA Salute of Respect.
“I just ate what?”
Here serial cavorter Finns plys his oleaginous charm on the unsuspecting Jessica Reisman.
“Tonight the monkey dies!”
Kasey Lansdale reacts with calm, cool aplomb to Brad Denton missing a deadline.
This is what happens when you attempt to photograph the Tetragrammaton.
And finally (two base notes) in a world…where dinner can take three hours…one man…will drink…a martini!
Armadillocon 2011 Photos for Friday, August 26
Saturday, September 10th, 2011
Mark Finn, rocking the cutting edge of FEZ NATION!
Howard Waldrop.
Dwight Brown gets the pre-convention lunch off to his usual facepalming start. What set him off this time was Todd saying “Look! We’re haircut twinsies!”
DUFF winner David Cake.
Early Turkey Citizen Joe Pumilia.
There was a picture of William Browning Spencer, but he has evidently grown disenchanted with his own visage, and asked that it be removed..
Al Jackson. For once I snapped a picture with his eyes open. Thanks for lunch, Al!
Dwight, mournful that his mama took his Kodachrome away.
Michael Sumbera, taking a break from assembling his retail sales empire.
Aaron Allston. Generally, I only see Aaron at: A.) Cons, or B.) Indian restaurants.
James Reasoner.
John DeNardo: “You know I hate having my picture taken.” Naturally, after he said that, I’m required to take his picture several additional times.
Like this one.
And this one.
Bruce Sterling was having a garage sale of books at the con. Here he is holding aloft the (true story) Rudy Rucker books I had pulled from the pile, refusing to sell them to me. Including the copy of The 57th Franz Kafka I had given him as a gift 15 years before. “I’ve got to donate these to UT.” Thanks a lot, Bruce.
Bill Crider, reenacting a scene from Daredevil.
Bill again, now with added sight.
Stina Leicht, with her hair in the traditional Blue Con shade.
Two people, both of whom complained that I took their picture too much. You can see how well those complaints worked out for them.
Rocky Kelley, artistic dandy and man-about-town.
Jessica Reisman. The camera is set properly, it’s just that Jessica lives her entire life in soft focus. Doctors keep doing tests to determine the cause.
Jasmina Tesanovic and Bruce Sterling. “It’s a 110° out today! I’m feeling pretty darn good about my Global Warming predictions!”
Derek Johnson. You can’t see it, but just below the frame of this picture, he’s clutching a snifter of brandy with one hand and stroking a white cat with the other.
Gretchen Peterson Johnston shows that she is totally ready for the Fetish Boot Ball.
Chris Nakashima-Brown n. Brown this guy I know.
Yvonne Daily and Phil Brogden, who you may remember from such hits as “Goddamnit, Lawrence, you sure take a lot of freaking convention pictures, don’t you?”
Robert Jackson Bennett, author of the spiffy first novel Mr. Shivers, copies of which can be obtained in the usual manner.
Bradley Denton assumes the now-traditional “Oh yeah? Then I’ll take YOUR picture!” position.
Jessica Reisman Redux.
Paolo Bacigalupi and Bruce Sterling, debating whose global warming future is more wretched and dystopian.
Rich Simental.
“NEVER MIND!”
The Space Squidians, shortly after freebasing some ink.
Brad Foster, with a Hugo that might seem familiar.
“You so naughty!”
Kasey Lansdale, mooning over Mark Finn. (I warned you, Finn! I said UNMARKED twenties!)
Scott Cupp, James Reasoner and Joe R. Lansdale, talking about F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, and why you can’t get good belt onions anymore.
Ben Yalow.
It was….the unnameable.
So This Is What They Mean By “Spreading Like Wildfire”
Wednesday, September 7th, 2011Scary.
(Hat tip: Ace of Spades.)
Central Texas Fire Updates (with video)
Sunday, September 4th, 2011Some YouTube videos I grabbed:
Removed the KVUE video embed because it’s farking up my page loads.
Keep safe…
10 PM Update: 25 homes lost in Steiner Ranch.
10:55 PM Update: Parts of Dripping Springs being told to evacuate.
More video, this time from the Southeast corner of the Griffith League Scout Ranch property near Lost Pines:
Also got an email back from Michael Moorcock, who says he’s OK, and that they haven’t been asked to evacuate yet.
Steiner Ranch Evacuated Due to Fire Hazard
Sunday, September 4th, 2011So I’m hearing. Drought + high winds = fire hazard.
And Steiner Ranch is only about 15 miles from here. On the other hand, the land around here is flat rather than the hill country arroyos that make fires easier to start and harder to fight. And I have managed to keep the overwhelming majority of my lawn alive.
Be safe, everyone. And if you haven’t done it before, now might be a good time to figure out what you need for a “bugout bag” and make sure you have at least one fire extinguisher in your house…