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Few Austinites can avoid nostalgic recognition when the famed name of Toy Joy is spoken. It’s an Austin icon that has been exuding weirdness and evoking happiness for decades.
But Toy Joy’s reach is most definitely not limited to Austin. Shipping worldwide, Toy Joy has throngs of fans across the globe. [Read more…]
Situated two hours southwest of Austin, Kerrville, TX was placed toward the bottom of our day trip list because of its distance away. But after visiting Wimberley, Gruene, multiple state parks and so many Hill Country gems closer to us, we still kept hearing good things about Kerrville.
We woke up on a recent Saturday morning and spontaneously decided that our Kerrville day had arrived! I’ll jump to the end of the story and tell you that we had an amazing day and can’t wait to visit again. In hopes that you can have as stellar of a day trip as we did, here is my guide to having a perfect day in Kerrville, TX. [Read more…]
Dave Lowe, Uberpong Founder
This guest blog article is by Rachael Edwards.
Many people are unaware that ping pong is the second most popular sport in the world. Most of us do know that it may also be the most visually unappealing game out there.
That was the case until Uberpong came onto the scene right here in Austin. And it’s literally changing the face of the game forever.
Uberpong started out as an Origin of Cool Kickstarter project. The project quickly exceeded the original funding goal of $10,000 in August 2012, which helped launch Uberpong three months later in November. Let’s face it, the second most popular sport in the world shouldn’t be resigned to black and red paddles, right? That just ain’t gonna cut it, especially not in a city like Austin. [Read more…]
Entrance to the Inner Space Caverns
Driving around Austin, there is so much to see to engage your imagination. Flashy neon signs, funky graffiti, natural parks.
But you may have missed one of the most natural beauties in the Austin area, just feet away. Seventy feet, to be exact, down below you as you pass along I-35 right outside of Georgetown.
The Inner Space Caverns were discovered in the 1960’s. Construction crews bore down while expanding the highway, only to realize that not only was their drill much deeper than they’d expected, but it was stuck! They drilled a 24″ hole nearby and lowered a man down to see exactly what was going on. Imagine drawing the short straw that day! [Read more…]
Austin Reptile Shows’ Michael Foux teaches school children with Titus the Tortoise on the floor
This guest blog post is by Michael Foux.
The final school bell rings. Minutes later, children start arriving in the science lab. They scan the room, faces beaming with wonder.
A man wearing a t-shirt that reads “Keep Austin Scaly” invites them to take a seat near a table holding a number of plain brown plastic totes. Except these totes have dozens of air holes drilled in their sides. This is what the kids are here to see. This is Discovering Reptiles!
“Are those the reptiles?” they ask. Yes, indeed. Those are the reptiles. The next hour is spent discussing what reptiles are: scaly, cold-blooded, air-breathing vertebrates, most of whom lay eggs.
The dry erase board is filled with lists of characteristics and examples of reptiles. But this is where the similarity to a regular classroom lesson ends. [Read more…]
Though everyone is using the same inspiration, paintings can turn out very different!
I once decided after a friend gifted me with his old easel that I was going to paint.
I went out to the local craft store and bought a starter kit, some brushes and some really cheap canvas. I wore an old white button-down shirt, ready to have it creatively splattered with paint. [Read more…]
Brad’s tall bike
Austin is known as a bike friendly town. Bike lanes are all over the place, even in areas that see almost no bicycle traffic. City buses and MetroRail accommodate cyclists and there are seemingly countless bicycle shops in the Greater Austin Area serving countless riders with different preferences and riding styles. So it’s no surprise that an event like FrankenBike exists in Austin.
On the morning of January 25, 2013, my girlfriend’s son and I loaded up our bicycles and headed south to 5th and Comal. We were going to FrankenBike. After a pit stop at McDonald’s, we parked near the corner of 5th and I-35. We unpacked the bikes and started our seven block trek through drizzling rain, construction and traffic and lions and tigers and bears, oh my! Sorry, I lost myself, though there was construction going on around 5th and San Marcos. [Read more…]
Hand-rolled in Austin by master cigar rollers
“And a woman is only a woman, but a good cigar is a smoke.” -Rudyard Kipling, The Betrothed
Historically, Christopher Columbus is credited with introducing tobacco smoking to Europe. It is recorded in the annals of history that two of his crewmen, Rodrigo de Jerez and Luis de Torres, encountered tobacco for the first time on the island of Hispaniola.
As for the word cigar itself, it comes from the Yucatec Mayan word for smoking, sikar, which became the word cigarro in Spanish. It wasn’t long before many conquistadors, noblemen and royalty made cigars a part of their daily life. [Read more…]
The Alamo Springs Cafe
For the longest time, Alamo Springs Cafe didn’t have a website. AlamoSpringsCafe.com redirected to a Facebook page. They are out in the middle of nowhere. And none of this bothers them in the least.
When your burgers are this good, you don’t need to worry about silly little details like location and a functional website. I mean, who needs all that to be successful, right?
From the Alamo Spring’s Cafe Facebook About page:
“Inconveniently located in the middle of nowhere” between Fredericksburg and Comfort. Laid-back atmosphere, serious food, and ice cold beer. We were on the Cover of Texas Monthly “Best Burgers in Texas ” issue (August 2009) [Read more…]
Co-founder Jay Panchal demonstrates the Goodybag system with a card and tablet
You’ve probably walked into a local business and seen an iPad by the register, giving you the chance to earn points or save money by swiping a rewards card. There are a handful of these loyalty programs on the move in Austin, but only one of them was founded here: Goodybag.
If you’re the one oddball Austinite opposed to our mantra of “keeping it local,” Goodybag has something else going for it. Every time you “tap in” at a business through Goodybag, 5-10 cents is donated to a local charity of the business’ choice. Ten cents is donated if your Goodybag account is connected to Facebook, five cents if it isn’t.
To date, Goodybag has donated more than $3,000 to Austin Pets Alive!, HAAM (Health Alliance for Austin Musicians), Austin Children’s Shelter, Austin Humane Society, Please BE KIND to Cyclists, and Meals on Wheels and More. [Read more…]
