Oh, Austin... there's no place quite like you. The aggressively liberal capital of the biggest and strongest of the red states, filled with your free wheeling, unfriendly, mostly effeminate, "let's change the world" folks. Anything goes in you, Austin!! You keep it weird. You are incredibly pretensious and more judgmental than you would ever, ever admit, but you are a lot of fun. You have, probably, the largest, most vibrant independent music scene in the country. You are also home to the massive University of Texas. Both of those go a long way to explaining precisely what is so wrong with you, because there are few things more insufferable than indie musicians and college students. Unfortunately, they are also the basis of everything that is so right.
The sheer volume of delicious eateries, music venues, bars, coffee houses, music stores, indie video parlors, green spaces, organic and vegan markets and vintage shops couldn't exist without the unique mixture of people who inhabit you. You are very fun, Austin. There are many reasons to recommend you. For a visit, you are top notch. To live in you would require a complete lifestyle change and a world-view akin to a Kerouac novel. You are very accepting, Austin, as long as everyone is just as offbeat as everyone else. When I'm tired and hungry and broke, Austin, I don't give a rats ass if something is eco-friendly or local. When I have money, sure, but you require a devotion that I personally do not have. Thank you, Austin. I've enjoyed my time here. But now, it's time to go.
Devil Town
Texas State Capital
University of Texas
I'm going back to New Orleans, Austin. Right now, I feel like that is both where I need and want to be. You know New Orleans, Austin, don't you? I'm sure... your aggressive campaign to become quirky seems like a thinly veiled attempt to emulate that wonderful place. But there's one major difference. New Orleans exists, for the most part, in the real world. Hurricane Katrina made sure of that. You, Austin, live in a late-60s super-liberal bubble of pipe dreams and lost causes. You are a delight, Austin, but reality is also swell. Come join us, won't you?
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1 comment:
:D
Austin ain't for everyone, I reckon. I like Austin's idealism and optimism. Some may see that as a "bubble of pipe dreams", but I like living in a city full of dreamers. They (we?) may seem like a bunch of wanna-bes... but the wanna-be of today is the be of tomorrow.
Comparing any city in the west to NOLA isn't exactly an apples to apples contrast. New Orleans (as place settled by Europeans) is hundreds of years older than Austin, Tucson, Salt Lake City and even San Francisco.
New Orleans may be real... but reality is in the eye of the beholder. It's unfair to compare the BEST of NOLA with the WORST of Austin (or any place else). It's also unfair to compare a few weeks of Austin to a few years of New Orleans.
I'd like to hear your thoughts on some of NOLA's less than charming aspects - like it's status as a hotspot for crime, overt corruption, horribly hot/humid weather and natural disaster.
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