Eeyore's Birthday

Before I moved here 3 years ago (this year) I started looking at what things make Austin what it is.
*Trail of Lights - cool, especially twirling under the tree at the end of the trail
*SOCO - very cool to just wander around and look at the eclectic shops.
*SXSW (South by South West) and ACL - again very cool music festivals.
*The Bats under the Congress bridge - the largest urban bat colony in the US.
*The University of Texas - I don't think the city would be the same without it. The UT tower...everything under the sun is burnt orange... nope, definitely not the same.
*Town Lake - or Lady Bird Lake and the assorted paths where you can walk, jog, run, ride bike...etc. Beautiful!
*Marathons - oh boy are their marathons!
*The gay pride parade is the same day as the motorcycle parade - they run down parallel streets, one block apart - only in Austin would that work.
*Amy's Ice Cream - it really is too bad that they are not allowed to fling icecream across Congress any more.
* and the one that I have been thinking about every year... Eeyore's birthday. It sounds like fun, like a true Austin festival. Drum circles, family friendly activities held at a local park in our beautiful city.
but...
but...
it seems that all is not as it seems. As I speak with those here at work, I find that this party is a hippy celebration, and on that day, the cops look the other way. This does not mean that I think it is completely bad - for not much really is. What it does mean is that I will approach with caution.

I think we really need to let people with families know what they might find at this festival. It is touted as family friendly, with lots of activities for kids...and I would hate for people to get there and find things they did not expect in an environment that is supposed to be for kids.

I would love to say more...but it is time to go...

Christa

Books...

I just got an email from Amazon advertising the most recent version of the Kindle. A device that will download books and allow you to read them electronically.

I can think of many reasons that this is a good thing. Things like, saving our environment, lessening the amount of storage space needed in our homes, and...well, holding them might actually be more convenient than holding an actual book.

Here's the problem. I like putting my nose in a book (yes, literally...) I like the smell of the pages, especially when they are older. I like knowing that I can touch and feel and have that brief moment of excitement as I turn to the next page. And, it is impracticall to fall asleep on an electronic book - I don't even want to think of the damage a little bit of sleep-drool would do to the device!

So, I throw my attitudes about books in with Captain Kirk. I just want the real thing.

Christa