A group hoping to capitalize on the anti-gentrification push in East Austin is now peddling a line of clothes emblazoned with the slogan "Defend East Austin."...

Austinite John Langmore spent more than a year capturing on film the lives of those in East Austin. The result is a collection of intimate photographs that document the people, places and culture of the gentrified area where condos and new homes are replacing century-old houses and crumbling taquerias....

To quote the poetry oft-spewed by Tim's Molson Gold-swilling step-dad, we were "Young, dumb, and full of come."...

The Democratic party of Williamson County didn't order enough ballots; some precincts had used half of their ballots before the afternoon and evening rush. Today is the day of judgment for some of Craddick's Democratic supporters. Austin's Pluck purchased by Demand Media. Alfonso Royal, aide to Gov. Perry, named as chief of staff for TYC. The man who tried to steal copper from an East Austin electrical substation last week has died. ...

Reason the power was out in East Austin Wednesday afternoon: a copper theft gone seriously wrong. The Cowboy Breakfast this morning kicked off the rodeo in town by providing a free breakfast to everyone there at 6am. Slightly reminiscent of "Daisy": Obama campaign unhappy with Hillary's new "Children" campaign ad. Clinton attends funeral of Dallas cop who died while serving in her motorcade. Huckabee makes campaign stop in Waco today. Show your voter registration card and ride the bus for free on election day....

"We're not publishing the list in our news columns, period": Statesman Editor Oppel on why the paper will not include a listing of precinct voting locations on election day. McCain stopped in San Antonio today. Bill Clinton spoke in town today. On the primary race between Glen Maxey and incumbent Nelda Wells Spears. Power outage in East Austin this afternoon. While her father was tied up, a robber sexually-assaulted a 15-year-old girl in a South Austin apartment yesterday morning. Semi veers off Dallas highway ramp and falls onto Continental Avenue; at least 3 are dead. ...

Modern art can baffle and delight, and sometimes leave you wondering, "What in the what was that artist thinking?"...

We hadn't ever been to a Foot Patrol show before, but we can't resist after someone says, "It's fantastic, the piano player is blind, and not only is he a fantastic performer, the entire focus is centered around his foot fetish. Oh, and the dancers wear hot cop costumes and the drummer plays with gavels." ...

Local production company Action Figure might not be a household name yet, but we bet you know their work. The group, based in (where else) East Austin, has produced shows like "Rollergirls" for A&E, and the Lone Star Grammy nominated show "Downtown" for KLRU/PBS. They're also not too shabby when it comes to dabbling in the music video market: their work for Okkervil River's "Our Life Is Not a Movie (Or Maybe)" made the e-rounds late last year, and this year, a company video they produced found its way into the hearts of local DJ duo Ocelot Mthrfckrs. ...

City Council is considering a proposal that would revise the zoning regulations on East 12th Street along the lines of the recent revisions to the zoning regulations on East 11th Street (item 44 on the agenda). The new regulations would apply between I-35 an Poquito St. and would generally allow for mid-rise construction along 12th Street. ...

Former Dallas resident Nancy Rose McGowan, 26, was thrown in Travis County Jail yesterday after authorities discovered that she lacked a state board license and, more disconcertingly, any kind of formal education in pharmacy work whatsoever. McGowan had been working at the CVS Pharmacy at 4405 E. Riverside Drive for the past two months, and actively filled prescriptions using the names "Amber Mclendon" and "Amber Shcherbelis."...

The Planning Commission approved a proposal by the Organization of Central East Austin Neighborhoods to tighten the McMansion restrictions applicable to the smallest lots in Central East Austin. The proposal would remove the current McMansion rule allowing a house up to 2,300 square feet on any size lot. Instead, these lots would only be allowed to build floor area equal to 40% of lot size (e.g. a 1,500 square foot house on a 3,750 square foot lot). City Council may take up the issue tomorrow, but will probably wait until next month....

Photo by Annie Gunn on flickr {{{Sunset}}} and Gulf of MexicoTuesday, December 11Beerland (711-1/2 Red River)[info] Bill Baird is starting from the ground up. After his previous band Sound Team imploded under the weight of diminished returns for their major label debut, Monster Movie, Baird has assembled a new band, and is recording anew at his Big Orange studio in East Austin. While the name of Baird’s projects are subject to change, from just Bill......

The run-up to the 2058 mayoral election will see Austin’s first competition between two ‘green’ candidates. No, I mean literally. Competition for the mantle of ‘most green’ will compel contenders to start taking a chlorophyll-based diet supplement that gives their skin a greenish pigmentation. On the downside, both candidates will be notoriously unproductive after sunset....

Logo from Edible AustinEdible Austin’s first annual Eat Local Week celebration runs from Saturday December 8th through Saturday December 15th. While you’re nourishing body and soul with locally-grown and handmade foods from an extensive list of participating restaurants and markets, a portion of proceeds will go to Urban Roots, a program which teaches sustainable agriculture fundamentals to East Austin youth. 15-20 participants aged 14-18 will be awarded a paid internship to grow food on an......

Photo from ImageAfter Starting today, we'll be publishing a weekly roundup of various arts & entertainment news that we've come across. Most of these developments, whether national or international, have a direct relationship with something local, whether it be an organization, individual, or our collective culture. In any case, it's a nice chance to broaden our world view -- a definite bonus (or necessity, some might argue) for a city that revels in creativity! --......

The APD could adopt a more compatible attitude, one that sees violent crime on the East Side as another inevitable casualty of gentrification, one that will eventually succumb to the gradual transition. Essential to all parties accepting responsibility for these mixed-race, mixed-income neighborhoods is that transition from negative stigma includes a reduction of all forms of violence....

Photo by punchup on flickr East Austin halfway/"sober" house to close after neighbors complained. Mother and child hit by truck in Georgetown HEB parking lot. Double B Foods recalling 98,000 pounds worth of sausage roll products for listeria contamination. After a fight at Taylor High School, the police tasered a girl, arresting her and two other students. 109,263 mistakes in the math textbooks proposed to be used for the 2008 school year at Texas elementary......

Photo by Patrick Dentler Barack Obama "Texas Countdown to Change"Saturday, November 17The Backyard (13101 W Highway 71)$25 General, $15 Students, 3pm[info] | [tickets]Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama dazzled over 20,000 Austinites last February at his Auditorium Shores rally, and this weekend he aims to do the same. Tickets to this Saturday's "Texas Countdown to Change" rally at the Backyard are still available for $25, and even cheaper ($15) if you're a student. Still, if you......

Image from EAST East Austin Studio TourSaturday, November 17 - Sunday, November 18Various Venues (Austin)Free, 10am-5pm Daily[info]The 2007 East Austin Studio Tour (E.A.S.T.) is happening this weekend, and over the next two days we'll be previewing a handful of the artists whose works you'll be able to check out. Here's our guide to E.A.S.T. 2007: The tour runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. With 113 studios and over 200 artists......

Image courtesy Okay Mountain Opening Reception for Introduction to Mountain Making: Okay Mountain StaffSaturday, November 17Okay Mountain Gallery (1312 E Cesar Chavez)7pm[info]In its two years of existence, East Austin's Okay Mountain hasn’t been big on exhibiting pieces created by the small group of local artists who run the place—instead, the gallery usually brings in artists from around the country to show work. But this weekend, Okay Mountaineers will have their day in the sun. In......

Photo from official website Tales of the Really White Vigilante Issue Release PartyWednesday, November 14Rio Rita Cafe y Cantina (1308 E 6th St)(7pm-2am)[info]Last month, we previewed the new graphic novel project by Austin artist Michael Schliefke, of Bolm Studios and one of the folks behind this weekend's E.A.S.T. Focusing on the development shenanigans happening on the eastside, Tales of the Really White Vigilante is narrated by a young man who, disguised behind a Mexican wrestling......

Sol-Art SOL-ART @ E.A.S.T. Austin Studio TourNovember 17 from 10am-11pm and November 18 from 10am-5pmSOL-ART (1141 Perry Rd)[info]Central Texas living meets sustainability in a new development project called SOL, or Solutions Oriented Living. The new green oasis is three miles east of downtown and will consist of architect-designed, environmentally conscious homes surrounded by 5 acres of oak trees. Some of Austin's finest artists filmmakers, writers, photographers, musicians, and other creative souls will gather in full......

Flyer from BGirl City Championships Home Slice Pizza celebrates its second anniversary (happy birthday, guys!) with a giant Pizza Carnival—expect pizza tossing acrobats, pizza eating contests, "Great Calzoni the Slice Reader," and more, with proceeds going to benefit Young Texans Against Cancer The 6th annual East Austin Studio Tour returns, featuring more than 200 artists at over 100 studios—ride your bikes this year! VICE Magazine, Gomikitti, and Scion throw a killer free party at Antone's......

Album cover of McLemore Avenue, Booker T. & The MG’s The hilarious kids of ColdTowne bring their audience-driven film/music/improv spectacle, 3, 2, 1 Kill!, to the new downtown Drafthouse digs Austin Music Commission hosts a very important town hall meeting tonight at Momo's on the resurrected sound ordinance proposal, which could dramatically transform our city's live music landscape -- and not in a good way Stitch, Austin's ultimate gathering of D-I-Y fashion and design, takes......

Brunch: the perfect weekend meal. You sleep in, roll out, and eat the best kinds of foods at a different and superior hour than the rest of the week. Anything that involves the illicit acts of consuming loads of carbohydrates and drinking firewater before noon while not at a sporting event has our votes. There are a number of places that one can find such a wondrous meal, ranging from holy-fuck-that's-expensive to the hey-sure-bring-your-dog. We've......

Artists need plenty of space to think, build, paint and flex their creative muscles. One such place is the new Pump Project Art Complex in East Austin, where 39 local artists fit under one roof to work, play, and create. “Being in this environment, there is always a great support system for your creativity,” said Pump Project artist Debra Broz. “Being around other artists, you can really feed off that.” Formerly Shady Tree Studios, the......

17-year-old Hannah Hawley (photo at right) has been missing since Monday afternoon and has a heart condition requiring medication. She was last seen at South 1st and W. Stassney Lane. Police ask anyone with knowledge of her whereabouts to call 911. Texans for Public Justice says that our city is losing money on incentive deals. Citizens of Northeast Travis County are opposed to the possible expansion of the landfill in their area. The odor......

Austin artist Michael Schliefke—of Bolm Studios and one of the driving forces behind the annual East Austin Studio Tour (E.A.S.T.)—recently unveiled a new comic book side project that takes aim at all of the development shenanigans happening on the eastside. "Towards the beginning of this year, I got the idea to do some drawings of East Austin before it was entirely cleaned up and was completely overrun by condos and lofts," said Schliefke. "My idea......

Few things are as restorative as the perfectly lazy Sunday brunch — for us, it's the ideal tonic for those especially brutish weekend ragers, which, in this town, happen all too often. Starting this weekend, East Austin's Blue Dahlia Bistro will be serving up its own version of the classic Sunday brunch, with DJs spinning a variety of vintage tunes and cheap mimosas on the menu. The "European-style bistro" takes over the space formerly housing......