austinTX.

I like Austin.

This city is San Francisco in Texas. It's art with no pretense. Dallas is full of snobs, San Antonio is a stone shack and alot of forgotten patriotism; Houston is big, hot, and ugly. Austin is the liberal oasis proudly stuck in the middle of the Texas compass.

It's a city not without problems though.

Defensive driving should be a requirement for moving to Austin. For a state where everything is made BIG, there is no better proof of city-wide feelings of inadequacy than the amount of road rage I see daily. Soccer moms in their suburban assault vehicles cutting off yuppies in their leased beamers. The lack of rudimentary knowledge of what a "directional signal" is, nevermind how to use one.

What else is wrong with this city? It's growing too fast. It's become the Silicon Valley of the South, and the lack of infrastructure to support such a socioeconomic model is extremely apparent. The fucking traffic sucks! There's inadequate housing, rising pollution, and a widening gap between the lower and upper classes. I saw a guy with a t-shirt that said "Don't Move Here", the other day. It was probably the best advice I'd been given in the past month. Too late.

If you're reading this, and living in the northern US, here are some brief facts you can memorize for future reference..if you're ever forced to have a conversation about Austin:

Everyone in Austin smokes pot. If they deny it, they're already stoned, running for President, or both.
In recent years, crime has actually lowered. Transvestite guitar-toting homeless men now outnumber real criminals.
I don't care what kind of man or woman you are, if it's May and you drive slowly down Guadalupe through UT around lunchtime, you will ALWAYS see something you like.
6th Street on a Friday night resembled anarchy in its most Austin form. Cops in Austin are no joke. They are first rate assholes, and they revel in this fact. Don't even think about fucking with them - the pricks will turn on you faster than you can say probable cause.
Threadgills has really good food - who can beat unlimited servings of vegetables?. But, it's all fast food compared to Hoovers. Sorry Janis..