Ubu Roy this weekend!

Tonight and tomorrow night are the last two nights to check out Ubu Roy. It's absurd and vulgar (it opens with the main characters having sex against a tree), and yet is full of random playfulness and interesting characters (and possibly a live chicken). The scenes are quick and quirky, which gives you time to process and whisper "what the hell...." to yourself. The experience alone is worth it, as you wander back into the woods of East Austin, sip on homemade sangria, pet the neighborhood dog, watch a chair zipline towards you, and see theater happen before you on a homemade stage in the middle of nowhere. Tickets are $15, bring cash for sangria, and sit in the middle or to the left because you can't see anything from the seats on the right. Playing until the 21st. This is what Austin is all about.

Super Say Yes Birthday Extravaganza!

Happy July! My birthday was an amazing array of friends, entertainment, great food, delicious drinks, surprises, and more!

We started out with lunch at my favorite sushi place downtown, Silhouette. We devoured about ten rolls, and they were all fantastic. My favorites are still the Shanghai Roll, a roll with snow crab that is baked in the oven, and the Hamtaro Roll, which is topped with fresh strawberries. We left there pretty stuffed. My lunch and my boys:

I headed back south to claim all my free birthday goodies, starting with a free car wash at Genie Car Wash:

Then over to Amy’s Ice cream for a free ice cream!

I tried the malted vanilla with junior mints. It was perfect. My friend who is a cake decorator there has also informed me that they make cakes! Those have got to be good.

I wandered up South Congress until I found a .50 cent sale at St. Vincent de Paul. Also, it looks like Rusty’s Swimwear dropped off a truckload of bathing suits, and they are all $3! You definitely have to search through to find matching pieces, but.....$3! 

I walked over to Vulcan Video to take advantage of my free birthday rental, where I ended up renting 4 movies because it was 2-for-1-Tuesday.

I also ran into my friend from work, who talked me into birthday margaritas. Guero’s was next door, so that’s where we went!

I was hoping to get home in time for a birthday nap, but I had to get to Trudy’s for my free Mexican martini! The gang was all there! 

We ate, drank, laughed, chanted, and sang. Beautiful moments!

After dinner and drinks we moved over to 29th St. Ballroom for some slam poetry. We ended up just sitting outside on the patio and checking out the Love Balls Bus. 

My friend was eyeing Toy Joy from across the street, so, all 10 of us held hands in a line, elementary school style on our trek to the store. We found a couple from Portland who joined our hand train to explore with us! Toy Joy heard it was my birthday so I got to rummage through their Birthday Box! 

A few of us had tickets to Terror Tuesday, so we headed downtown to the Ritz see Uncle Sam! It was pretty epic and hilarious. It was the end of my non-vegan scarf-it-down fest, so I ate an entire pizza and a basket of queso fries. I sort of regretted it later, but Drafthouse food is my weakness!

Last stop of the night was Barbarella for Tuesgayz. I’ve been here a few times now, and I just can’t make myself like it. I’m definitely past the point in my life where I want to be in loud, sweaty clubs every night (I mean, come on, I am 26 now, haha!), but when I do, I don’t want to wait in line AND pay a cover AND have to wait 30 minutes for a drink at the bar. The place is connected to Swan Dive, which is always empty except for the huge line at the bar. The combination of clubs is confusing, and it’s really easy to lose a friend in the crowd, as there is an upstairs, another upstairs, an outside bar, etc. The music and dancing is been great, but the ceiling has leaked and dripped on me every time, and it’s gross.

So, I headed home and face planted in bed, thoroughly satisfied with my amazing day!

Sundae Sunday Sundae!

What a weekend I had! Saturday night, I took photographs for a new recurring event called Variety Showcase Showdown. It was downtown at Club 606, a fairly new bar that is attached to Lipstick 24, where Creekside Lounge used to be. They are both small, intimate bars with a great outdoor patio and tons of awesome graffiti (I’m writing a book on graffiti, so if you know of any cool spots...holla!). The event is a Smörgåsbord of music, comedy, slam poetry, and entertainment. The video of the entire show should be up shortly, and after the events you are able to vote for your favorite acts so they can play again at a future date. Donations are accepted for the Groundwork Music Project. Follow the Facebook page for more information on when and where to be for the next show!

After a few hours of sleep I headed to work, and started a pre-birthday adventure immediately after clockin’ out. My friend has been trying to get me to try Indian food for the longest time and I’ve been hesitant because I don’t like spicy food. But, what better time to Say Yes, right? We headed over to Tarka Indian Kitchen on Brodie. I stuck to the vegan options and everything was great! We started with the Madras soup that was so creamy and delicious, I couldn’t believe it was vegan. I didn’t mind gulping down the whole bowl in the middle of this Texas heat. So. Good. I can see myself dropping by this place in the winter and stocking up. My friend had the Tikki Masala (with chicken). The sauce was so tasty! My entree was Aloo Ghobi, made with cauliflower, potatoes and spices. Everything was flavorful, vegan, and not spicy at all! I’m a fan.

Doc’s Backyard was right next door, so we grabbed a table on the patio for some after dinner beverages. I was hesitant at first, because the Doc’s Motorworks location has AWFUL service. But the service at this location was much better. I stayed local and had some Deep Eddy sweet tea vodka and then moved on to the ever delicious Superfruit margarita. They also have a huge playground for the youngins, so bring your kids by and relax with a drink and watch the game.

For dessert, we kept with the vegan theme and tried Sweet Ritual for the first time. I've actually already had one of their espresso shakes, brought to me by a friend, and HOLY CAFFEINE BATMAN! If you need to pull an all-nighter or have a midterm due, just drink down one of these. So, I have been drooling over this place since it opened, and was ecstatic to finally try it. I already knew what I wanted, so I tried to not get distracted by the menu. I went with the new Hot Fuzz sundae, complete with vegan donut holes. My friend got the Peanut Butter Cup sundae, pictured below! I completely recommend this place to vegans and non-vegans alike. They. Have. Edible. Glitter. Yeah, I'll be back. PS: It's inside the Daily Juice at Duval/45th St!

I love Say Yes Sundays!