Happy Halloween/Biking thru the Park.

 

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On Saturday, we went for a little bike ride along the river/lake and through Zilker Park. For those curious if we biked directly from our place, the answer is sadly no. That adventure is still to be completed. However, we packed the Jeep with our bikes and had a nice little Saturday stroll through the park with a pit stop that included a rootbeer float and sno cone. Above is the skyline view from the trails and below is Barton Springs Pool. Ill copy and paste a blurb about this natural pool below the pics. Happy Halloween Y'all. And aim for the treats instead of the tricks.  ;)

[brief info| In Zilker Park, just off Barton Springs Road, Barton Springs Pool is one of Austin's famous landmarks and easily the most popular swimming hole in the city. Spring fed and over 900 feet long, the pool was formed when Barton Creek was dammed up, so it has a natural rock and gravel bottom. There are varying depths, diving boards, and stairs and ladders for entry. The water temperature averages 68 degrees F' throughout the year, so enter the pool gingerly. As you swim across, feel how some spots are colder than others. A more refreshing swim is hard to find, but the pool is often crowded, especially on summer weekends.


[For the curious inclined some expanded info] Within Zilker Park's 358 acres, lies one of the crown jewels of Austin, Barton Springs Pool. Three acres in size, the pool is fed from under ground springs and is on average 68 degrees year round. Over the years, Barton Springs Pool has drawn people from all walks of life, from legislators who have concocted state laws there to free-spirited topless sunbathers who turned heads in the seventies. Even Robert Redford learned to swim at the pool when he was five years old while visiting his mother's relative in Austin. Today, Barton Springs still attracts a diverse crowd of people.

Millions of years ago Barton Springs, the fourth largest natural springs in the state, was created as a result of a landshift that created the Balcones Fault.  Named in honor of Andrew Jackson Zilker. "Colonel Andy", as friends called him, donated the land now known as Zilker Park. In 1884, at age 18, Zilker, who had left his native Indiana to seek his fortune, came to Austin with only 50 cents in his pocket and got a job at an ice plant, which he eventually bought. He then became the first Coca-Cola Bottler in Austin. Shortly after Zilker bought the land in 1901, he built a small concrete pool and amphitheater for members of his Elks Club organization, at the site of one of the three springs, where people had gathered for centuries.

Native Americans called them the Sacred Springs and came there to heal their wounds. Spanish friars believed to be the first European settlers in the Austin area set up three temporary missions at the springs in 1730-31 before they moved to San Antonio. In 1837, William "Uncle Billy" Barton, built his rustic cabin on a tract of land which included the springs. Since he owned several adjoining tracts, the area came to be known as the "Bartons". He named the three springs after his daughters Parthenia, Eliza and Zenobia. The largest spring became known as the main spring at Barton Springs Pool. Another spring feeds the Elks Amphitheater pool that Zilker built near the present day Barton Springs Pool. A third spring bubbles up from the Sunken Garden on the east side of the park. 

*[Both info's copied and pasted from the www]

To The Sea

For work Summer went to NASA for a 2 day workshop/meeting last Thursday and Friday. Friday afternoon, while she was daydreaming of it being space camp instead, I can only assume, I drove down to meet up with her afterwards and see what the sea/ocean/gulf a four hour drive from Austin looks like. Here's a map for you visual folks.

Our travels began in NASA town, right off Houston. We stopped at a Boardwalk, as I was a bit tired of being in a car after a four hour straight drive. Summer thought this would be an interesting photo op. The shark was happy because it was ShinerBock in the container instead of water. (My first of the vacation, no I didn't drink beer on my drive down. ha) I reckon this boardwalk was destroyed by the hurricane a few years back and semi recently rebuilt, but I don't know the details on that situation.

Evening one, we walked along the gulf to a restaurant down the street for some seafood. I had some sea bass which was tasty. The night ended with some souvenir store browsing and drinks near the pool. Going to bed at a decent hour meant awaking at an indecent hour but the sunrise was worth it.

oooooo scary haunted hotel in the wee hours of the morning. haha......

took 8 hours of sleep to rock this hair style.

Old man fishing and the sunrise sea

After that we had a mediocre breakfast, and then I went back to bed, Summer went to the pool.

Later we drove the town. Starting with the end of the island.

End of the Island on one side...

Tres ships

A pic of the palm tree lined streets for my palm tree obsessed fam, they actually were abundant down there...

old house

another old house

one last old tropical mansion

the "downtown" area

It may look like Bingo in the streets, but we stumbled upon a Oktoberfest fundraiser.

Since proceeds were going to the Church's hurt from the hurricane and we wouldn't be making a mass the next morning, we decided to purchase one of their large, collectible mugs filled with beer and be altruistic.

Mr. Nerd.

Ms. Nerd

Next was Mini-Golfing, nothing like a huge seashell in front of the sea for a hole. The front of this hole/seashell is just asking for dirty references and Austin, Taragos is a family blog so sorry folks.

Summer kicked some sand the first half...

However, at this mini-golf staple setup, I got a hole-in-one and then continued to take the lead, but its all in fun, who cares if I won ;)

 

Later that evening we continued the seafood by the seaside theme and had some delicious mahi mahi and relaxed the rest of the night. The next morning, we slept through the sunrise, but did a closing walk on the beach before breakfast and our departure.

This hotel looks pretty cool but still needs to be fixed from the hurricane damage, you may not be able to see it but some chunks of the walls were missing. Oh how cool it would have been to tour it. That be one way to raise money. I'd pay like 10 bucks to safely walk around in it.

Ending the Trip with breakfast at a sea-side Sonic.

Houston Skyline.

Conclusion: Our trip to Galveston was quite enjoyable. It's nice to know that the gulf of mexico is only a four hour drive away. I tried to keep this like a blog instead of a photo album so I didn't post tons of photos of the beaches, but I did see some people hop in the waves. As you may or may not know, wave jumping is a huge past-time of mine. However, the water was a bit dirty, there was that oil spill and it was October, so I didn't hop any waves this trip. I believe I could of, but it just didn't happen. My take is that the gulf at Galveston is more to look at and enjoy visually, instead of jumping in. However, I look forward to driving a few hours longer next trip to re-unite with my college spring break destination of South Padre Island (see map at top), where at least 5-some years ago the water was pretty clean and I splashed away. Galveston is a perfect destination for a weekend trip, its not too far away and its a nice sea-side island. On the way back you can always hit up Houston's Ikea or the Outlet mall as well. That's all for now folks.

The Great Outdoors in the Spirit of RedWing

Minnesota is a great state. It has a little bit of everything, however everything is a little far away from the metropolitan area. Here in Austin, vineyards are less than an hour away, a Lake Minnetonka size body of water is less than a half-hour away, and parks and trails are in our front and backyard. I love the weekend trip traditions that still dazzle the October calendar of my family, however, this year, I took a break from Red Wing. The reason, here in Austin, it was 20 degrees warmer and walking through trails didn't require an airline ticket, nor even a hotel stay. Here is how Summer and I helped keep the outdoor tradition of Red Wing alive, even though we were many miles away.

Saturday Morning Bike Ride

 The Map makes the trail look larger than it was and the temp makes it seem hotter but it was a great short ride. After this trail, we went through the trails on our apartment property which are quite long as well.

Sunday - 40 Walk. Background - there's a tradition where we picnic on top of a hill in this park and then either before grilling or after, we go on a walk. When it was legal for us to drink, we would bring a beer on this trail walk. However, once we were through the trail, down the hill, in the city, we had nothing to drink on the way back. A gas station/liquor store was discovered a few blocks after where the trail ends so a bonus tradition was born where we would purchase "40's" which in most cases are 24oz RedStrips but nonetheless, they are placed in a brown paper bag and are used to quench our thirst on the walk back. Therefore, I grabbed a few 32oz of Sol at the grocery store and we walked through the woods on the south side of our apt property and took a dip in the pool afterwards. This also doubled as a nice pre for the Vikings game. Which in after thought was a sad win. I hope we don't suck this year like we have in the years before last...

Got our brown bag beers

Look at the wide open practically private areas right in our front yard.

Summer takes a break at one of the many Picnic areas.

This is the 2nd pool area, not as well-kept up but serves its purpose none the less.

Our walk has almost come to an end.

In the tradition of the outdoors, I'd like to share with you our Front Porch area. Part garden/part relaxation area. All it needs now is a nice lil citrus tree.

$40 at a local nursery, and its container friendly =)

Left side includes the Sun plants and eating area.

Right side includes the Part Sun/Shade plants and more seating area.

 Now's the time to board a plane and go far far away to come visit our Oasis ;)

Austin City Limits Music Festival

Austin City Limits music festival is a fun festival. It's like a Jason's Deli salad bar style of musical entertainment. The selection of entertainers was vast, attracting crowds of all kinds including the strange characters. But all that made it interesting. Now mind you, I was a volunteer part of the time, so part of my observance and participation in the festival fun was taking from an observers point of view. Unlike, the guy that sold me a chicken avocado cone wrap drinking a Heineken while working the cash register, I was sober during my shifts. Below is the long list of all the performers. I may comment next to some of the performers after my typing is complete.

    * The Eagles - more like bald eagles. lol. they played sun night while I worked. ok set...
    * Muse - didn't really catch, sat night, we were tired
    * Phish - I was alone, walked around the crowd, didn't really get into it.

    * The Strokes
    * M.I.A. - Summer wanted to hear the gun song, but it wasnt worth waiting till the end of her set.
    * The Flaming Lips

    * LCD Soundsystem - I'm not an electronic sound person, but i liked some of their songs. Could be good workout music.
    * Spoon - was hoping to hear a couple of the songs I like from them but didnt stick around too long
    * Vampire Weekend - Caught the full set, awesome show, good tunes. Wish I was kinda drunk during so I could be in the front and sing along with all the songs without a care. I did get close but didn't wail away with them.
    * Norah Jones - haha

    * Band of Horses - heard of, supposed to be good, I need a few more listens.
    * Monsters of Folk - heard of, supposed to be good, I need a few more listens.
    * Deadmau5 - how people know this band is called dead mouse is beyond me.
    * Sonic Youth
    * Gogol Bordello
    * The National - Summer caught their set and she is now a fan.
    * Robert Earl Keen
    * The Black Keys
    * Broken Bells
    * Yeasayer
    * Pat Green
    * Slightly Stoopid
    * The xx
    * Silversun Pickups
    * Beach House - caught there set, it was pretty good.
    * The Sword
    * Matt and Kim
    * Portugal. The Man
    * The Temper Trap
    * Rebelution
    * Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros
    * Girls
    * Miike Snow
    * Ryan Bingham & The Dead Horses
    * Local Natives
    * The Gaslight Anthem
    * Lucero
    * Devendra Banhart and the Grogs
    * Blues Traveler
    * Pete Yorn- Caught his set, he played most of the songs I liked, good times.

    * The Soft Pack
    * Gayngs
    * Amos Lee - he seemed to play my least-favorite songs this night.
    * Robert Randolph & The Family Band
    * Ozomatli - Great band, bit of spanish music, hip-hop all in a groove that makes you want to move.
    * Richard Thompson
    * Martin Sexton - He played Black Sheep and some others that I like.
    * Manchester Orchestra
    * Black Lips
    * The Mountain Goats
    * Bear in Heaven
    * Mayer Hawthorne & The County
    * Midlake
    * Foals
    * Switchfoot
    * Cage the Elephant
    * JJ Grey & Mofro
    * Kinky
    * Angus & Julia Stone
    * The Morning Benders
    * Donavon Frankenreiter - missed his set.
    * Ted Leo and the Pharmacists
    * White Rabbits
    * David Bazan
    * Asleep at the Wheel
    * Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue
    * Nortec Collective Presents: Bostich + Fussible
    * The Very Best
    * Beats Antique
    * The Henry Clay People
    * Blind Pilot
    * Grace Potter and the Nocturnals
    * GIVERS
    * Warpaint
    * Dawes
    * The Band of Heathens - Austin Country Rock. I like this band.
    * Charlie Mars - I like his Listen to the darkside song, curious if the others are any good...
    * Two Door Cinema Club
    * Lissie
    * First Aid Kit
    * Sarah Harmer
    * The Constellations
    * T Bird and the Breaks
    * Chief
    * Frank Turner
    * Shearwater
    * Those Darlins
    * Carolyn Wonderland
    * TV Torso
    * NINJASONIK
    * Kings Go Forth - a band full of instruments, I liked it.
    * The Relatives
    * The Ettes
    * Vonnegutt - has a single called Bright Eyes, catchy, poppy, good summer tune.
    * Qbeta
    * The Dough Rollers
    * MyNameIsJohnMichael
    * Basia Bulat
    * Sahara Smith
    * Balmorhea
    * Dan Black
    * JD & The Straight Shot
    * The Jane Shermans
    * The Kicks
    * Ponderosa
    * Two Tons of Steel
    * Caitlin Rose
    * SPEAK
    * Run With Bulls
    * Maxim Ludwig & The Santa Fe Seven
    * Gospel Stars
    * Heavenly Voices
    * Wesley Bray & The Disciples of Joy
    * Jones Family Singers
    * Ashley Cleveland & Kenny Greenberg
    * Buddy & The Straight Way Travelers
    * Ruby Jane
    * The Verve Pipe - i wonder if they played Freshman, they probably ended with it...
    * Frances England
    * The Jellydots
    * Elizabeth Mitchell
    * Okee Dokee Brothers
    * Tom Freund
    * The School of Rock All Stars
    * Q Brothers 

The Weekend....

I was a Rock and Recycle volunteer. Whats that mean? Well I got a nice green organic t-shirt instead of the regular baby blue. That was only one of the bonuses though, so for volunteering a 3.5-4 hr shift, you get into the show for free before and after the shift. Since we just moved here and tickets were sold-out it was a no-brainer. What I did was partly host the rock and recycle tent. If a patron filled a branded plastic garbage bag full of recyclable drink leftovers i.e. bottles, cans, etc, they could turn in the full bag and receive a concert T-shirt, which was very nice and close to the design of the one that was selling for $30. Less trash on the ground, free t-shirt for the collector, less trash collector hirings for the concert - a true win win win. Plus it wasn't all that hard, all you really had to do was walk near where a concert was ending and people walked over and placed their disposables in your bag. Hell I even did it for a free shirt. So in the tent, I handed out bags and took in full ones for shirts. My other task was to man the water filling station. This was also a great and kind concept. Since water at shows can be expensive $2-3 each, plus all the trash it accumulates, here, if you brought a re-fillable container, you could stand in a short line and get your bottle re-filled with filtered cold water. The concert go-ers loved this and so did I went I was on the thirsty side. (The pic to the left is the water station, but since its dark, it's kinda hard to see). So that's what I did to volunteer. What was also cool about it was I was near two stages so while I was on shift I caught some acts. Summer was volunteering at volunteering HQ which was outside the concert but she got to sit her whole shift. I still like what I did better but anyways, we both got in. 

Friday, my shift ended at 3pm. After, I caught a few songs from Kings Go Forth.

Then I caught a few songs of Miike Snow

Then I turned in my mostly filled trash bag for my free shirt =) and bought a late lunch brat.

Then I caught some the set of the Beach House, during this set, since I was alone, I thought it be a fun journey to see how far I could sneak up through the crowds. The easily way to do this is just follow a group of 2+ that look determined to snake their way up. I thought it be fun, to take a snapshot at each stop to show my progress. Reviewing the photos now, its not as cool as I would have hoped so I wont post them all.

Then I was hungry again so I got a pulled pork sandwich with a sausage add-on (which was nasty, I love my sausage meats but this one was gross) I ate this while listening to Spoon with my right ear and Amos Lee with my left.

Next was Vampire Weekend. It was a great set. I like how my photos turned out. Explains a bit about the jumping and good time that was had.

After that Phish played, I wandered and listened to a few songs but by then I was ready to go home.

Saturday:
We started Saturday by both going to the festival before our shifts started to catch some tunes. We started with a little Pete Yorn and then I went to my shift.

 After my shift, I caught a little of LCD soundsystem and Ozomatli.

 Then Summer was done with her shift so we had an avocado chicken wrap cone and wandered the festival for awhile while enjoying some after-volunteering beers. What was nice is there was a little market area with people selling their wares and also about 30 local restaurants had food stands so there was plenty of food to chose from.

Sunday. By the time Sunday came, we were a bit tired, Summer's shift was earlier so I dropped her off and then came back an hour before my shift to meet up with her and we caught a bit of Martin Sextons set. My friends band used to cover a few of his acoustic tunes, so it was fun to see him live. After I went to my shift during the bald eagles set, while Summer also caught some of Band of Horses set and The National (which she became a fan of)

And that was ACL 2010. It was a fun time, we experienced the festival, learned of some new tunes and learned some festival tricks for next year. I tried to get the early bird 2011 3-day passes for 50 bucks each but my browser messed up and I wasn't one of the few quickest. Made me a bit bitter but I'll get over it before next September. Aside's from getting into the show for free, I also got some souvenirs. Funny thing is, I thought the koozy's were free, hell a pint can of beer was $7 so it made sense. Therefore, I took one with each of the 3 beers I bought that night, the next day I discovered they were 2 bucks a piece. Nobody stopped me though so how was I supposed to know =)

For 7 bucks, the beer should come with the Koozie.

My Rock n Recycle Volunteer shirt.

Fill a bag get this shirt. Front.

Back.

They were selling these for 15 if you didnt have a re-fillable container. Nicely, since I was the last volunteer shift, they each gave us one.