The SXSW Interactive Festival never ceases to amaze me. Have an empty parking lot downtown? OK, we will install a Ferris Wheel for fun. Or maybe an upside down church building. Presidential traffic jams got you down? Try to out grumpy old Grumpy Cat who is coming to town. We also have R2-D2 and parties galore to boost your spirits. This Festival is awesome, and it’s only the first day so far.
Getting near the Presidential Motorcade is probably the closest I will ever get to President Obama. The Presidential Limo was looking pretty good today. It was reported that he stopped for some Torchy’s Tacos in South Austin on his way to the SXSW event at the Long Center. The crowds were out in force this afternoon, along with a few protesters and tons of security. There were police motorcycles, vehicles, horses, foot patrol, boats, and helicopters. President Obama then took off across an empty 1st Street Bridge on his way to the next event of the day.
In a post from June of last year, I praised Google Photos. I said it was good for backing up, organizing, and storing photos – and it still is! I recently read an article that said the editing process was pretty cool. I thought to myself, why would you use Google Photos to edit your photographs. There are so many other applications available. Oh well, why not give it a try? It is super easy. There are options in my Google Photos iPad App to fine tune, crop, rotate or add filters to your photos. Using the “Back to original” feature, you can easily revert to the original photo in case you don’t fall in love with your edits. What you see above is an edited shot from my walk along the Town Lake Hike and Bike Trail in Austin last weekend. Below is the original photo. This will give you an idea of some of the fun you can have with their simple photo editing process. I suggest that you give it a try and see how you like it. 🙂
The World Market has useful things – like tea and chocolate from different parts of the world. You can go there and pretend that you are on a multinational trip. They also have things that are less useful- like elephants, chocolate banana Pocky sticks, and champagne flavor jelly beans. I find that I tend to gravitate to the less useful items when making my purchasing decisions. At least my next snack time should be fun.
Chicken, Chicken, Goat, Dragon, Rabbit, Horse, Chicken, Snake, Goat, Monkey…
Hey, Monkey is a new one. Today’s drink flavor is Chocolate Mint Smoothie with tapioca pearls. Pretty tasty.
I just noticed this lighted cross today for the first time. It is a forty foot tall, free standing structure built by the New Hope Community Church. If you climb to the top of the hill, there is a great view of the City of Round Rock. Imagine the sunrises you could catch from here, looking East over the city. I may have to return early some morning.
The Zilker Kite Festival was as crazy as ever! The weather was a perfect overcast, cloudy, and windy day. There were tons of people, dogs, kites everywhere, bubbles, a biplane buzzing by, food trucks, beverages, kettle corn, free ice water, t-shirt sales, and art. I met the artist who submitted the design for the official t-shirt, Aileen Fitzgerald, and she was super nice. I thought her artwork really captured the spirit of Austin. All in all, it was a most successful Kite Festival.
I stayed till closing time tonight. Not only did they have Atash tonight, but they also had the Flying Balalaika Brothers ripping it up. Two great bands that specialize in music from around the world. The Hole in the Wall may not be a fancy club, but it is definitely a fun one.
The Round Rock ArtSpace had an art show this afternoon to celebrate Spring and New Beginnings. The intent was to celebrate “themes related to spring, growth, new beginnings and change”. I liked the art. My favorite piece below with the funky birds was called “Angel Garden” by Kristin Kim. The show inspired me to strike out on a walk around the local neighborhood as the sun was beginning to set. I just caught some new Springtime tree blossoms as the tree limbs were blowing in the wind with a beautiful sunset in the distance. I think this brief moment was on point with the celebration that ArtSpace had meant for us to enjoy.
earthrobert 