As noted yesterday, there is much jackhammering going on at my house. And I’m paying for it!
I make a lot of calls during the day, so I’ve been out and about town, primarily in Kim’s work’s neck of the woods, the newly gussied up East 11th Street.
Thanks to all the people who’ve given me shelter!
Gene’s Roast Beef Poboy is Pure Gullet Gold You Must Eat One NOW!
As such, I finally got to eat at Gene’s. Their menu is small compared to Sambet’s, but their roast beef poboy is fantastic…even better than Sambet’s.
Still, if I had to give a rating on over-all, Sambets would win. Gene’s is really just a poboy and fried-chicken place. On the other hand, I can’t wait to try their fried-chicken. I bet it rocks your ass.
In a word: Gene’s is best of bread when it comes to the poboy, while Sambet’s is suite-ware….sweet, sweet suite-ware that is.
Do You Have Hipsters?
As long time readers will know, I have a weird fixation on hipsters. It’s probably because they’re the bohemians of my town (Austin, fool!) at the moment. Hipsters everywhere!
East 11th is one of the Hipster Meccas. In general, the first few miles east of I-35 are the Hipster-Hive. You know the story: it used to be (pardon my frankness) the black and hispanic part of town. The land was cheap…but close to downtown and campus. Now it’s becoming a hybrid minority/hipster part of town.
The Longbranch Inn is located on East 11th, as is the place I’m sitting at right now, Dandelion Cafe. Now, I’m sure The Real Hipsters would tell me that these places are so yesterday or some shit. Whatever. Here’s what I IM’ed to Kim a few hours ago:
Dude, this is place is a total East Austin Hipster hangout.
Rolled up cuffs and big sun-glasses.
Hair-gel and mod-dresses.
5-o’clock shadows and brand new cars.
The McHipster Effect
Sure, it’s fun typing hipster, but it makes me wonder, is there a McHipster effect on communities that’s bad? Or is the hipster invasion all good?
Gentrification has always been fascinating topic for me: that tension between revitalizing a neighborhood and pricing it’s original inhabitants out of the market due to that revitalization is a weird real-estate, classiest-loaded colonialism.
The question is, as one of my old junior and high school dice-nerd chums from East Austin (who somehow translated +3 save against venom to a West Point tour…holy crap!) says in his MySpace profile: “Keep East Austin shitty”…? Full disclaimer: I am a cracker-assed honkey that uses hair-gel, but at least I was born here.
Thankfully, I have close friends who are highly trained and paid professionals in figuring out these problems. Kim is a Sociology major, and Sarah is a city planner. Hopefully they, and you, dear readers, can sort out my philosophic worries.
Comments 1
well if someone would have given me a freakin’ job down there (austin), maybe i’d be working on those issues. but noooo… im stuck in fort worrrrrrth. and now i’m thinking about staying here for lonnnnnger…
Posted 05 Jul 2006 at 12:48 PM ¶Post a Comment