Bartletts

The other day I got the privilege of being invited out to eat at Bartlett’s (formerly known as Houston’s) with my girlfriend and her family. Bartlett’s is located conveniently in north Austin on the corner of burnet and West Anderson lane.

If you have some extra money and love to eat at nice restaurants, Bartlett’s is the right place for you. As you walk in the place you have to notice the dim lighting, which I prefer while, I eat. Everyone working there was in there mid 30’s; you can tell right away they know the menu front and back. Our waiter that night was explaining the entrée’s with specific details and never took a chance to look at the menu. Bartlett’s offered entrée’s such as hamburgers, soups, salads, pork ribs, steaks, fish, and even crab cakes. Good pork ribs are hard to come by in my opinion so when I heard good things about Bartlett’s I decided to take a risk order them. The waiters and waitresses were always looking for a person to help. Our waiter at one point gave me a new glass of lemonade when mine was only half full. I thought that was a bit over the top but I did not complain. My ribs were amazing; the meat literally fell off the bone when I touched it (one would have to expect quality for 27 dollar ribs). After our waiter saw that I was done with my meal he brought over hot towels to help clean myself up. I do not see this much in restaurants and am surprised not all of them do this. The hot towel tops off any good meal and even makes up for the bad one.

Besides the high prices (hamburgers are the cheapest entrée at 13 dollars), Bartlett’s is the perfect spot to have dinner at. The food is prepared with care and the service is exceptional.

Juan in a Million

If you like the Torchy's Tacos that are sold in The Coffee Haus on campus, then you should have a meal at Juan in a Million. Its a Tex Mex restaurant that sells the best breakfast tacos I've ever had.Juan in a Million is a Tex-Mex restaurant that i discovered soon after moving to Austin. They are famous for their breakfast tacos, the "Don Juan". I wrote my profile paper on the place but I guess it wasn't enough. I went for the first time while doing the observing for the paper and loved the place. The Travel Channel's Man Vs. Food had an episode their and the host failed to beat the Don Juan record holder at 8 of their massive tacos. Their business hours are 7am-3pm. They may have the greatest tacos, but their hours may be the worst. If you can make it their in that time range any day of the year, then you should stop by for the best breakfast taco you will ever have.

Easy A..."A is for awesome"

Olive Penderghast ( Emma Stone), an invisible, smart high school student who does not receive attention from the guys become the center of attention when she tells her bff Rhiannon ( Aly Michalka) that she had lost her virginity to a college student over the weekend, but in fact she spent the weekend home alone in her room. When Jesus freak, Marianne (Amands Bynes) overhears the conversation between Olive and Rhiannon Olive's little lie traveled around the school like wildfire and the once invisible girl is now the talk of the school. When her gay friend comes to her and asks her to pretend to have sex with him so people would stop bullying him for being gay, soon all the school "losers" come to Olive asking to "fake rock their world". In return her "lovers" have to give her a gift card to one her favorite stores like Old Navy and Bath and Body Works. Olive becomes known as the school slut even though she really isn't having sex with all the people. Although the guys of the school love Olive, the girls however call her a slut, tramp, and every other word you can think of. Sick of people judging her she decides to embrace the label she is given and begins to wear provocative clothing and stitching a red A on it.

Ironically Olive is reading Nathaniel Hawthorne's'The Scarlett Letter in which a woman Hester Prynne is made to wear a red A stitched on her clothing, showing that she has committed adultery. Unlike Hester Olive is not ostracized, instead she is glorified. Olive begins to get sick of being used by the guys, and not having any of the them actually asking her out on a date. She realizes that her life is not like the 80s teen comedies like The Breakfast Club, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, and Sixteen Candles.

Easy A is a funny, quirky teen comedy about what can happen when little white lies spiral out of control. I recommend anyone and everyone to see this movie!

Postseason "Playoff" Baseball

Postseason baseball is back! as the end of the season nears we come to see how the playoffs will be played out this year and who the contenders are. This year the playoffs both look the same as the past years and is different also. The usual faviorites to be in the from the American League of course are the New York Yankees, Tampa Bay Rays and the Minnesota Twins. The new edition to this playoff race was the Texas Rangers who had improved drastically from last year. Normally the Angels make the playoffs from their division, but they had fallin out of the race early on in the season due to injuries. The usual faviorite from the National League are the Philidelphia Phillies who are in the playoffs and the Atlanta Braves who are still competing to get into the playoffs through the Wild Card. A new edition this year to the playoff race for the national league was the Cincinnati Reds, who have not been in the playoffs since 1995! competing for the last spot in the playoffs for the national league are the San Diego Padres and San Francisco Giants, the final spot will be decided up until the last game because that is how close the race has been this year. all in all the playoffs this year are going to be very interesting this year because of the new teams in it and the excitment it brings knowing the playoffs could be vertually unpredictable. In my opinion i see it being a rematch of last years World Series, New York Yankees against the Philidelphia Phillies, and the Yankees winning their 28th Championship!!!

"El Estudiante", An inspiring Mexican movie.

During the summer I had the oppotunity to watch one of the best Mexican movies which really inspired me for the upcoming college experience that was waiting for me. The movie is called "El Estudiante" ( The Student) and it takes place in the University of Guanajuato, Mexico. It is about a group of young students and a 70 year old man called "Chano" who just got registered to start the whole college experience again. He wanted to study Literature but focus mainly in a famous Mexican book called Don Quijote de la Mancha. By going back to college he notices the differences in culture and in traditions since the last time he was in college. He becomes the best friend of 5 young students and teaches them about life and the importance of taking advantage of the opportunities that were presented to them each day. Together they overcome problems related with love, with new friendships and with life in general. It is a really inspiring movie that is worth watching specially right now that we are just starting our college journey.

Gossip Girl Season 4

The long awaited for season of gossip girl is finally back. As the show begins its fourth season, there are breakups, makeups, and life changing secrets. The show first starts off in Paris, where Blaire (Leighton Meester) is trying to get over the love of her life, Charles Bass (Ed Westwick), while Serena (Blake Lively) is still deciding whether she loves Dan Humphrey (Penn Badgley) or Nate Archibald (Chase Crawford). The exciting thing about this show is that there is a different surprise every episode, which leaves you on the edge of your seat, or sofa, until the show is over. One of the girls meets a prince, and shows that not even she has enough class for someone of that stature. Dan’s life gets just a little more complicated with a possible son, and the struggle of choosing between his girlfriend,Vanessa, and his ex-girlfriend, Serena. Gossip Girl is a very addicting show due to the suspense episode after episode leaves you. The season premiere was a good preview of what to expect for the rest of season 4: betrayal, makeups, and more conflicts. If you’re looking for entertainment this semester, look no further than the fantastic show, Gossip Girl, but beware, you can’t just watch one episode, you’ll always want more.

A visit to The Chinati Foundation, in Marfa, Texas, is a completely unique experience. This small contemporary art museum is housed on the grounds of a former Fort, located in a small town in the middle of the West Texas Desert, just a short drive away from the United States’ border with Mexico. Founded by the sculptor and architect Donald Judd, after his re-located to Marfa in the wake of his growing dissatisfaction with the New York art scene, Chinati houses several permanent installations by a variety of contemporary artists, many of whom were friends or associates of Judd’s. The Foundation also sponsors a variety of programs that showcase its involvement in both the local community and the contemporary art scene, including several residencies for both emerging and established artists, internships for college-aged and graduate students, summer art classes for young students, and an annual Open House weekend with talks on art-related subjects and other events.

A voyage to Chinati is not without its difficulties. The nearest major airport is in El Paso, approximate 2 1/2 hours away, although there is a train station in the next town over, Alpine. Generally, travelers come by car, either on a road trip, or having flown to El Paso and traveled to Marfa from there. Because the trip is so long, it’s important to make arrangements to see the museum in advance. Access is available only by guided tours, which are available only Wednesday - Sunday. Reservations can be made at http://www.chinati.org/visit/visiting.php The tours are relatively inexpensive, only $10, or $5 for students/seniors, but are quite lengthy. Divided into two parts - a morning tour, and an afternoon tour - each part of the tour involves around an hour and forty-five minutes of walking out in the mercurial West Texas weather. It’s important to come prepared, in comfortable shoes.

The tour will take you through an assortment of buildings associated with the former fort, from former mess halls, to a converted stable, to the barracks the soldiers used to sleep in, as well as what used to be an artillery shed. The art you will see at Chinati includes rectangular aluminum boxes, groupings of concrete “works,” installations of fluorescent light, an exhibit meant to resemble an old abandoned Soviet elementary school, and obscure barely visible pencil mark drawings by an Icelandic artist. Even for those who are not interested in contemporary art, the experience of seeing such a strange mix of art and setting is worth having.

Marfa itself is full of odd sights - from the ruined hospital associated with the fort (which is easily accessible to the public), to the renowned “Marfa Lights,” which have their own viewing station, to the luxury trailer park - El Cosmico - for hipsters looking for a unique place to spend the night, which is just across the street from a real trailer park where actual Marfans live year-round. There is a strange clash of cultures visible in Marfa, between the New York art culture and the West Texas surroundings. If you’re ever traveling down I-10 between Austin and El Paso, I highly recommend you take a detour - it’s just a left on US-67, and about eighty miles travel will take you right into the center of town. There’s not much there, so what there is is hard to miss.