To me, some of these photos are Austin landmarks ... South Austin landmarks that have been etched in my memory (visually and/or emotionally/psychologically) since the mid nineties. If that sounds cryptic or disturbing, I don't mean it to be. I have so many positive, thoughtful memories from the 17 years I've been here (on & off). Holy moly, that is an unbelievably long time! Many cities have seen their independent businesses disappear - Mom & Pop stores get replaced by big chains. It happened on the drag, here in Austin and it even happened in New York. I always tell myself I need to photograph a sign, building, or business that looks like it's on its last leg here in Austin and sometimes I actually get around to doing it. I got a small handful of them, here. Something else that can quickly disappear - graffiti art. It can quickly get "cleaned" up or replaced by another piece ... so the sense of urgency to capture it before that happens is even stronger. I absolutely am so in love with the graffiti art I saw on this day.
Austin is an amazing city. I think it's changed a lot. I can't tell. I can't tell because I'm in it. That's not true. You know though, how they say it's good to have an outside view of a personal situation? Well, I guess that wouldn't work because if you haven't been here then how would you know? I'll stop being lazy and just talk about it, then. I started writing this so I may as well finish it. It's what I used to say about exercise - Just put your shoes on and the rest will fall into place.
So.
I think there are more hipsters in Austin. More young professionals. Or maybe I've grown up. Maybe it's just a trend (the hipsters) - a sign of the times. Nobody really escapes that anymore. OK, what it really is is that I've had 1/2 a margarita and I totally feel it. So I'm looking around, thinking about the rowdy days with friends - would that fly here? Because although everyone is totally chill and just in their moments, it seems a little stiff. Like being at that Dale Watson concert in New York somewhere between 98 & 01. Little round jazz tables where Stubb's dirt ground should have been; people hootin' 'n hollerin' and flyin' around. Instead, everyone just sat quietly and watched like we were at the theatre or something. I wore a dress that night that was totally see-through. I didn't realize that or else convinced myself you could only see things in a certain light and it was night time anyway.
So, has Austin changed? Yeah. But more than that, I've changed. I'm exactly the same as I've always been as far back as I can remember - to about age three or four. I have the same spirit, the same soul. It's hard to explain how I've changed . Do I talk about it as relates to what happens inside of a relationship? That's way too much. Hmm. How I've changed? I have a lot less to react to at this point - maybe. OK, here it is: I have different things to react to now. Oh my god. Life is amazing.
