I live in Austin. I love it. I'm active in progressive politics. I love that, too. Given both those things I can not tell ya'll how excited I am that the Netroots Nation Convention will be in Austin next year.
Man, ya'll are going to have fun.
My condolences to New Orleans. I would have loved to have gone there. And I know they need all the help they can get. I personally promise to go there within the next year to eat and drink my fill. I hope ya'll we'll do the same.
Now, on to the fun stuff.
First, let's dispell some myths.
- Texas doesn't suck. Some Texas politicians do. The people here are just as decent, hard working, fair minded and fun as those from any part of the country. There ARE large sections of the state that seem to be under the control of conservative right wing cabals. AND it's hard for the progressive agenda to get an even break. BUT keep in mind, Texas has been progressive a lot longer than you have. We've had a 120 year head start. The Progressive Party actually started here. It's first president, Evan Jones, was actually from my home county, Erath. Go ahead, look it up. But, the conservative reactionary take over of the Republican Party actually started here, as well. So we've been suffering under the domination of social conservatives for almost 15 years now. Fortunately, we're starting to grow out of it. Give us a chance.
- Not everyone in Austin walks around naked, wearing hippie beads, and smoking pot. And I must say I am dissappointed by that. There IS a local nude beach, the only one in Texas. And women can go topless anywhere in town that a guy can unless a cop asks her to cover up. There is all that local sustainable agriculture, farmer's markets, etc. Tons of musicians. And Austin does have the greenest electric utility in the country (all my electricity comes from windmills-at least in theory). But you won't find too many hippies. We've got our share of the vague hippie/redneck category (think Willie (yes, THAT Willie)0, and then yuppies, yippies, punks, techies, politicos, new agers, vegans, musicians and corporate types. Hell, we've even got our share of movie stars.
- You don't need a car to get everywhere. There is public transportation in this state, even this town. There's a quite adequate bus system in town. There are, however, wide swaths of subburban and "out of town" venues that you might want to get to. Mostly, so do other people so it should be easy to convince someone to drive you there. Places you'd want to go out of town, mostly dance halls, barbeque joints, nature preserves and parks, and the aforementioned nude beach. Otherwise, you can hoof it, take the bus, or bum a ride.
Now, some advice:
Just a note for our friends coming from the Southeast. Those little green things on the nachos are not okra. You've been warned.
If you can, plan on spending an extra day or two in town before or after the convention. There's too much to see in this town to do the town, or yourself, justice during a convention. There are TONS of music venues, swimming holes, hike and bike trails, places to rock climb, barbeque joints, Mexican food (by which I mean Tex-Mex), canoeing, kayaking, etc. There's some alternative theatre, high falutin fancy restaurants, art museums (Blanton), the Ransom center (think Gutenberg), and the best thrift store shopping in the country.
The weather has been crazy lately, but the odds are it's going to be HOT in July, but not that humid. Now, my hot is a little bit different than yours. I fell in love with my wife because we were both out biking one day when it was 113 degrees. That was hot. But if you're from any place north of the Mason Dixon (and you are if you don't know where that is) then I suspect you think hot is like 80 something. Well, it's November and it was 84 yesterday. 80 is comfortable. 90 is starting to get warm. 100, now that's hottish. People deal with this heat in various way. Some wear fewer or lighter clothes. Some stay in the air conditioning all day. Some only go out in the morning or evening. Then, some of us just play through and drink margaritas and beer. I recommend that last strategy.
I'll only say this once. If you're coming to the convention and you have money, book a room at the San Jose Motel. If you have a little, the Austin Motel. If you've got nothing, the hostel is the way to go.
One word: Amy's. If you know what's great for you, you'll figure that out.
I'm too damned old to know much about music anymore, but while you're here you're very likely to bump into bands playing in coffee shops, book stores, libraries, restaurants, etc. I'd say you be hard presse NOT to hear a local, or famous band while you're down here. IF you're lucky, the band will be both.
BRING YOUR BATHING SUIT and make a pilgramage to Barton Springs. (you can walk). Unless you're just going to Hippie Hollow-you have to drive there but at least you don't need a suit.
While you're here, eat some Tex-Mex. Lots of it. It's bad for your body but good for your soul. Now, I'm a native Texan and my honest opinion is that the Mexican food is better in New Mexico (yes, I said that). The best of New Mexican food is one of the two great native cuisines of this country. The other is Cajun and Creole food in New Orleans. Having said that, the Tex-Mex version of Mexican food is comfort food. Spicy. Probably greasey. Heavy. Full of carbs. etc. And, if you try the right stuff, you'll get addicted to it. My wife is a Maine Yankee, and she confessed to me one time that she never would have imagined that she could get addicted to a bowl of melted cheese. But she did. And it just doesn't get any better than that.
If your vegetarian, I'd seriously think about giving that up while you're down here. Sure, there's lots of vegetarian food down here. Great stuff. Home grown. Macrobiotic. Sustainable. You name it. But, hell, there's also barbeque.....
Finally, the important part. WHY AUSTIN.
Quite simply, there are a lot of us progressive folks down here working our asses off to advance the cause. We are on the pointy end of the spear in national politics. Look, I'm a straight man working as an LGBT activist in TEXAS. I don't want to hear anyone else whining about how tough it is in California, or Massachusetts, or whereever. Truthfully, Texas is the BIGGEST pain in the ass to progressive in national politics. And I know it. But, if we can win the progressive fight here, we can eliminate the biggest bastion of right wing social politics and kick ass on a nation wide basis. The fight HAS to be here, because otherwise those scary conservatives are coming to get you. Just where the hell did George W. get his start in politics, anyway. I say kick 'em where it hurts. Make Texas true blue, again.
So, come down here. Drink margaritas. Rally around the cause. And fall in love with one hell of a town.