Dress Differently

I have a bad habit of taking detailed shots of shot windows where you can't see the shop as a place to shop but more as an abstract reflection. I try to confine those to my more personal space, of course. But for Austin Daily Photo I think I should show you places you might like to shop. Big Bertha's might be the place for you if you are looking to have a unique outfit. There are many unique outfits in South Austin (this shop is in the center with Alamo Drafthouse Cinema South and other cool stuff). The shop is on the north side of the center. (Just in case there sign has succumbed to the wind before you get there!)

Icon or Eyesore?

When I stopped on Sunday on South Lamar to snap a picture of the Broken Spoke, the friend who was with me said "icon or eyesore?" I thought she was clever but she said she stole it and she surely did, from the Austin Chronicle (see here). Anyway, the Broken Spoke, a boot-scooting C&W bar on South Lamar is supposed to remain, um, iconic amid some new development. They weren't open Sunday afternoon. (No big screens for a Super Bowl event?) My friend said that they advertised the best chicken-fried steak in Austin or something and she had one and it wasn't. It's been so long since I had one anywhere that I could be no judge. But if you want to two-step and hear music about cheating hearts? This is your place.

Do You Have Any Tattoos?

There seem to be a lot of tattoo parlors (as I've always heard them called) in Austin. You would therefore expect to see a lot of tattoos. And you do. Especially if you go to the right places. Shop at Whole Foods, Wheatsville, Thundercloud, Amy's and most independent coffee shops and you are likely to be waited on by people with tattoos, piercings and hair colors not found in nature. I wouldn't do any of these things myself but I enjoy the show.

On Sunday while the world hung on the Super Bowl, I went shopping and to a movie with a friend, getting home in time to see the dramatic final minutes live instead of watching off the DVR. We were on South Lamar and needed a refreshing drink so we went to a coffee shop in a small strip center. The shop shared the space with a tattoo parlor, a piercing salon and a hair salon where I bet you can get purple or green hair. I shot this picture of the tattoo parlor's window (it is Rock of Ages Tattoo) and, when we'd settled into Irie Bean Coffee Bar for our drink, I mentioned that the place was pleasant and, what's more, you might see people with interesting tattoos while sitting there. A large man in overalls came in with hardly any visible skin not decorated. "Sometimes you say something and it materializes," said my companion.

Late Night Ice Cream

It wasn't late when I took this picture of the Amy's just west of Lamar on Sixth Street but it was dark enough to show the neon to good effect. This Amy's, our local ice cream success story, however often has a line late at night. In the past we've featured the Amy's on Burnet where they have a hamburger joint (Phil's Ice House) and a playground, and we showed the selection board of the SoCo location. So I guess we are doing a pretty good job of promoting Amy's even though they don't advertise much in traditional ways (according to their WEB site) preferring to get PR through participation in charitable works. We aren't big ice cream eaters in this family. One of us can't eat it, one eats some a few times a year. That would be me. My favorite is usually a coffee flavor but once Amy's made a Guinness one and it was great!

Hamburgers

Hut's is an Austin classic. I haven't had a burger there in a long time, but last night I walked by the West Sixth location of this burger joint. It was between 6:30 and 7:00 and FFP and I were going to a fund raiser that started at Aquarelle (just north of West Sixth and Rio Grande) and ended at Nest Modern in the Whit Hanks center (just west of Lamar on West Sixth). The weather last night was cloudy but warm (over 70) and we decided to park near the second location and walk to the first. Hence I captured Hut's neon and peeked through the big front window to see crowds inside. Classic burgers? It's been too long since I had one for me to give an opinion. But classic neon anyway.

Charo!

We crowded into a sold-out Mansion at Judge's Hill ballroom for dinner seating to see Charo. Yes, Charo. She is still alive and well and singing and joking around playing flamenco guitar. She played "Bolero." I'm not kidding. There were no admonitions about cameras. In fact, she mixed and danced with the audience and posed for our flashes. Songs, dance, and guitar arrangements with her fab band boys. A benefit for Austin Cabaret Theatre the event was good fun. A college friend of FFP's came and sat with us and brought her UT student son who had great fun. Fun for all ages as they say. We saw old friends and also sat with the owners of The Chocolate Bar and Candylicious in Houston who are quite the bon vivants.

Austin is Known for...Music

Meet Margaret Wright. She can be found just about any place in Austin on any given night, tickling the ivories and singing standards and show tunes. But I admit that I did not expect to see her playing a keyboard smack in the middle of a disco dance floor with lights underneath and a mirrored ball above. In a gay bar (Rain, 4th St. downtown in the Warehouse District). I have seen Margaret play a piano worth six figures at a magnificent home full of antiques and decorated elaborately for Christmas. At at lots of other venues, private homes and private clubs especially. She belted out "Summertime" last night. We were headed a bit later to the new Austin Music Hall to see the Zachary Scott Theater's "Porgy and Bess" so that was appropriate.

I really think that when people think about Austin they think about the music they love. They think about SXSW, Austin City Limits and ACL festival, Antones and many clubs with their favorite music live. Our tastes are a bit old-fashioned (cabaret, jazz, the rock of our youth). Our first date was at Armadillo World Headquarters. Listening to the Louisiana blues country style of Marcia Ball (no relation) and the Misery Brothers.

So, it's not the lakes, hill, the Capitol or the UT tower. It's music. And in spite of the whining about smoking bans and cost of living for musicians, it's still there. And maybe not just what you expect on any given night!

This is City Daily Photo's Theme Day. These other sites signed up to show you what their city is known for.
Portland (OR), USA - Menton, France - Monte Carlo, Monaco - Memphis (Tennessee), USA - Manila, Philippines - San Diego (CA), USA - Anderson (SC), USA - New York City (NY), USA - San Diego (CA), USA - Mexico City, Mexico - San Francisco (CA), USA - Mumbai (Maharashtra), India - Mainz, Germany - Weston (FL), USA - Minneapolis (MN), USA - Turin, Italy - Las Vegas (NV), USA - Hobart (Tasmania), Australia - Bicheno, Australia - Durban, South Africa - Joplin (MO), USA - Nashville (TN), USA - Stockholm, Sweden - Kyoto, Japan - Tokyo, Japan - Brussels, Belgium - Chicago (IL), USA - Montpellier, France - Seattle (WA), USA - Mazatlan, Mexico - Saint Paul (MN), USA - Sharon (CT), USA - Sesimbra, Portugal - Toulouse, France - Tuzla, Bosnia and Herzegovina - Susanville (CA), USA - Maple Ridge (BC), Canada - Saint Louis (MO), USA - Prague, Czech Republic - Helsinki, Finland - Pilisvörösvár, Hungary - Lisbon, Portugal - Mexico (DF), Mexico - Trujillo, Peru - Dunedin (FL), USA - Albuquerque (NM), USA - Port Angeles (WA), USA - Cottage Grove (MN), USA - Saint-Petersburg, Russian Federation - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - London, UK - Baziège, France - Jefferson City (MO), USA - Greenville (SC), USA - Selma (AL), USA - Mumbai, India - Naples (FL), USA - Norwich (Norfolk), UK - Silver Spring (MD), USA - Setúbal, Portugal - Stayton (OR), USA - Bellefonte (PA), USA - Sofia, Bulgaria - Arradon, France - Montego Bay, Jamaica - Athens, Greece - Austin (TX), USA - Singapore, Singapore - West Sacramento (CA), USA - Jackson (MS), USA - Wassenaar (ZH), Netherlands - Budapest, Hungary - Rotterdam, Netherlands - St Malo, France - Chandler (AZ), USA - Melbourne, Australia - Port Vila, Vanuatu - Cleveland (OH), USA - Nottingham, UK - Kansas City (MO), USA - The Hague, Netherlands - Crystal Lake (IL), USA - Wrocław, Poland - Chateaubriant, France - Cheltenham, UK - Moscow, Russia - Monrovia (CA), USA - Saigon, Vietnam - Toruń, Poland - Grenoble, France - Lisbon, Portugal - New Orleans (LA), USA - Sydney, Australia - Boston (MA), USA - American Fork (UT), USA - Boston (MA), USA - Montréal (QC), Canada - Wichita (KS), USA - Radonvilliers, France - Buenos Aires, Argentina - Christchurch, New Zealand - Rabaul, Papua New Guinea - Wailea (HI), USA - Aliso Viejo (CA), USA - St Francis, South Africa - Port Elizabeth, South Africa - Seattle (WA), USA - Pasadena (CA), USA - Vienna, Austria - Orlando (FL), USA - Torun, Poland - Delta (CO), USA - Santa Fe (NM), USA - Minneapolis (MN), USA - Haninge, Sweden - Paris, France - Stavanger, Norway - Niamey, Niger - Le Guilvinec, France - Bogor, Indonesia - Saarbrücken, Germany - Auckland, New Zealand - Wellington, New Zealand - Budapest, Hungary - Juneau (AK), USA - Bucaramanga (Santander), Colombia - Glasgow, Scotland - Chicago (IL), USA - Jakarta, Indonesia - Adelaide (SA), Australia - Sydney, Australia - Riga, Latvia - Subang Jaya (Selangor), Malaysia - Terrell (TX), USA - Terrell (TX), USA - Inverness (IL), USA