Things to do in Austin

Bad enough it’s the day before I head out for Austin and work is the least interesting thing I can think of doing right now, but it took me over 3 hours — 2 trains, some walking and McDonald’s for breakfast — to get here thanks to the flooding in lower Manhattan, so my whole day has been thrown completely out of whack.

The worst part is I’m missing a gym day for the first time and after Monday night’s assault on my liver I could really use the exercise and a little time in the steam room. I think I’ll [finally] take my bike out for a ride in the morning after India gets on the bus and before we head downtown for her graduation ceremony* to make up for it, but it won’t really be the same. Except for the steam room feeling, perhaps. It’s nasty humid out there.

Since this trip is partly for the National Poetry Slam and partly to hang out with my friend Eric, there’s only a handful of Slam-related events I definitely plan to check out in Austin:

Thursday, 8/9 @ 9pm
Ego’s (louderARTS vs….)

Friday, 8/10 @ 12:45pm
Antone’s (Nerd Slam)

Friday, 8/10 @ 2:30pm
Hideout Theatre (Revenge of the Nerd Legends Showcase)

Saturday, 8/12 @ 11pm
501 Studio (Finals Night Party!)

At $25 each, I doubt seriously that I’ll check out the Individual Finals (if they’re any good, I’ll see the finalists at 13 eventually) and the Team Finals will depend on who makes it, so Friday and Saturday nights are potentially wide open for other things and there’s a few other things I definitely want to do while I’m there, including eating at the Boiling Pot, visiting Austin Books & Comics, and getting a tattoo, most likely at Black Cat Tattoo. For the latter, I haven’t decided whether to get something new and if so, where, or to freshen up the tribal arm band I got in Mexico on our honeymoon. If new, I’m thinking a stylized tribal lion, possibly on my right forearm, but that would mean no more rolling up my sleeves on work appointments. If refreshed, all I know is I want it bigger, but the style I most like won’t work with what I already have. I’d love to get something like George Clooney’s tattoo in From Dusk to Dawn but that’s a bit much, I think.

Decisions, decisions…

* India’s graduation was misprinted on the first calendar we got from her school a month or two ago and we thought it was next week on August 16th, my birthday, when I booked the trip to Austin. I ended up rescheduling my flights to leave tomorrow afternoon instead of tonight so I wouldn’t miss it but then I’m headed straight for the airport afterwards which is kind of sucky.

Read and post comments |
Send to a friend

Keep blogs alive! Share your thoughts here.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.