Line up and get it while it's cold! Everyone's favorite local ice cream shop, Amy's Ice Creams, is giving it away today at all locations from 3-7 pm. Guests are welcome to start lining up at 2:45 while they contemplate their favorite flavors and hang out with the neighborhood. Amy's is offering up tiny, tiny + crush’n, small and small + crush’n sizes on the house at all locations. more ›

• Military intervention looms in Egypt
• Peace talks to resume for India and Pakistan
• 2012 GOP contenders gather

To celebrate her 50th birthday, local ice cream mogul Amy Simmons is having an unusual promotion on Monday: there's free ice cream (a small, with a crush-in)...but only if your first or middle name is Amy.

more ›

Now that the temperature outside has become truly oppressive, it's going to take something pretty freaking cool to lure Austinites out of our air conditioning. Lucky for us, the Austin Ice Cream Festival is just that something. This Saturday, August 14, the Austin Ice Cream Festival comes to Waterloo Park for the fourth year in a row. The frosty fest boasts more ice cream-related activities than you can shake a popsicle stick at, including a screaming contest, a homemade ice cream making contest, and faux snow courtesy of local nonprofit Girlstart.

more ›

Pumpkin gelato at Dolce Vita Gelato & Espresso Bar. more ›

All day today, stop by any of the participating stores listed below to get your complimentary scoop. We recommend the downtown Lifeworks shop, as all of their profits go towards helping local teen parents and homeless and runaway youths. more ›

...Obama delineates his popularity, and receives the longest applause yet. Hillary shifts, the glow in her eyes flickers. Something has changed, and she can taste it. Maybe the phrase that crosses her mind is 'tipping point'. more ›

The Hey Cupcake! trailer that used to call the campus area home is now on South Congress, in the parking lot across from Vespaio. At two bucks apiece, the palm-sized treats are made fresh and delivered to the trailer several times a day. The vanilla and chocolate cupcakes are good, but not transcendent — they're basically what you'd think of when conjuring up a basic sugary cupcake in your mind's eye, replete with day-glo... more ›

*Editors' Note: Clearly Austinist does not encourage anyone to get soused in front of their children, thereby damaging their fragile psyches. For those responsible enough to kick a couple back without ultimately taking the kids on a dangerous and terrifying road trip, we offer the following:* If your version of the three martini playdate is to sit and sip microbrew near a playscape in the heat, Austin options abound. Whether you are a stay at... more ›

Bush goes boating, eats lobster rolls and drinks Cape Cods with Le Sark. Could a trip into town to get ice cream cones be next? Will we heart Huckabee? A megachurch in Arlington won't give a gay Navy veteran proper funeral rites, but says they didn't back out because of "hatred, or discrimination", and they still "love the family". They sure have a funny way of showing it. If you're outside tonight, look up:... more ›

How much flesh would a woodchuck eat if a woodchuck were totally rabid? Why would anybody veto children's health? What does CNN think of Austin? (Okay, that's not so hypothetical.) How much property would a president block if a president could block property? What do you mean, benchmarks don't alleviate fear? How much money would a little dog eat if a little dog could eat money? (Given the decline of the dollar, maybe that... more ›

Mohawk, how we love thee. Let us count the ways ... With so many great shows and events, we don't know how you keep up. Yet on any given evening you offer us a great band, a film screening, secret and not-so-secret shows, a cheap drink, or simply a place to hang our hats before we trudge into the chaotic maw of the Red River District. Tearing up here, so we're gonna quit with... more ›

Tomorrow, take a trip up I-35 and get your pants scared off at the Texas Frightmare Weekend, a giant horrorfest being held in Dallas at the Omni Dallas Park West Hotel. George A. Romero will be there, which is, for us, reason enough to brave the hordes of horrorfans (why can't we stop thinking of Comic Book Guy?). But that's not all: you could meet Clint Howard (Ron Howard's weird-ass brother/star of Ice Cream Man);... more ›

Russians plan to stop global warming with vodka--er, sulfur-containing aerosol. However, it sounds like this could also promote global dimming. We may be screwed either way, so drink up. Bush plans to stop global warming by having a series of meetings to set "a long-term global goal" by "the end of next year." The sense of urgency is palpable. Neapolitans' ice cream is melting due to trash fires necessitated by the closure of all... more ›

Hey all you vegetarians – you finally have that chance to fulfill your lifelong dream of winning a hotdog eating contest. (C'mon - you know you've always secretly wanted to.) Not only that, but you can gross out all the carnivores at the same time! (Those guys hate tofu.) Grease up your gullet and come on out to the Scoot Inn for the first ever Veggie Hot Dog Eating Contest this Saturday, May 26,... more ›

THURSDAY [17] theatre • Rubber Repertory presents A Thought in Three Parts at The Vortex (8pm) art • Opening Reception: Denise Prince Martin: Things I Never Told You at Women and Their Work, 1710 Lavaca Street (6-8pm, the artist will discuss her work at 6:30pm) art • Downtown Art Night at Participating Galleries (6-9pm) art • Artist Talk: Ann Connor at Flatbed Press, 2830 E. MLK (6pm) art • Art Fix: Printmaking at The... more ›

You look like you need a cupcake, and that is just what you will get tonight when the Austin Parks Foundation and the Alamo Drafthouse bring you Election, the second installment in the spring Movies in the Park series. However, that cupcake will be laced with arsenic icing and a heavy dose of satire extract. When we first saw Election back in the late 90’s, high school was still fresh enough in our minds that... more ›

Hello fellow humidity monsoon victims. You are still in Austin, and have not been transported to Portland. Although we do thank you for your attempt to drive in a normal manner during this "crisis." We hope that you have had a few chances to get out and get your skill set polished for the upcoming summer connection series. To help you learn what NOT to do we've published the best of last week's Missed... more ›

Have you been too busy staying warm to go soul searching? Sick from too much canned meat product to find a sweetheart? Perhaps you've been too busy grinding out a long night at the Alamo to cruise Craigslist? Well, no problem, we've gathered the best of last week's Missed Connections for you below... I saw you at the zoo eating..... - m4w I saw you at the zoo. You were in your cage eating... more ›

Tomorrow marks the start of the Texas Hill Country Wine and Food Festival. If you had any doubt that our town is becoming more foodie and cosmopolitan, you need only look at the myriad "SOLD OUT" announcements on the THCWFF's site to quickly lose that notion. But while many tastings are already full, we still see two events on the wine calendar well worth recommending as last minute bookings: A Wine Dinner w/ Simi... more ›

Jonathan Richman is many things to many people. To the casual observer, he's the upbeat and silly troubadour featured in There's Something About Mary and on Conan O'Brien. For music nerds, he's the architect of "Roadrunner," a three-chord classic that is sometimes referred to as the first punk song. David Bowie covers his tunes, Lou Reed considers him a friend, and legions of indie-rockers were inspired by him. But none of this truly gives... more ›

We like to have songs on our dance playlists that will outlive this weekend’s party. New Young Pony Club’s “Ice Cream” has been in the mix for quite some time now, and it still isn’t old. The band’s self-titled EP includes three mixes of this gem by Comets, Van She (on Modular with NYPC), and DJ Mehdi. Others on the EP include “Descend” and “Get Dancey,” two other high-quality indie-electro tracks. more ›

The following is a column by staff writer Carly Kocurek, compiled with the help of Elizabeth S., Sam Armstrong, and Shannon Roberts -- Ed Note So, you've waited until the last minute to address the whole "Valentine's Day" situation. Trust me, I've been there. In fact, I'm there right now -- my grandmother will be getting a card from us sometime next week. (I'll put extra stickers on the envelope to make up for... more ›

That's right: it's time to heat up your winter nights again, with the 14th season of FronteraFest. The Short Fringe, the Long Fringe, or Mi Casa es su Teatro -- FronteraFest is five weeks of alternative, offbeat, new, and just plain off-the-wall fringe theatre presented by Hyde Park Theatre and Austin Script Works. For complete FronteraFest 2007 information, including times and locations for the Short Fringe, the Long Fringe and Mi Casa es su... more ›

First Night Austin Schedule 2-5pm Family Festival 5:30-6:30pm Grand Procession 7pm Family Finale at City Hall 7-11:30pm Evening programming Midnight Grand Finale First Night Austin takes over downtown this Sunday, kicking off the second annual festival with three hours of family-friendly activities, performances, and art installations. From hip hop freestyling to Appalachian-style clog dancing, there promises to be enough culturally-rich distractions to entertain even that obnoxious nephew of yours who'd rather stay home to... more ›

Official Poster of First Night Austin 2007 by Peat Duggins After the tremendous success of last year's inaugural festival, First Night Austin returns to downtown this New Year's Eve with an all-day program full of music, art, theatre, dance, and more. Begun in Boston back in 1976 as a massive public gathering to ring in the new year through "art, ritual, and festivity," First Night events are now held all over the world, from... more ›

We have a confesstion to make: We are not expert gift-wrappers. We can admit it; it's cool. While we have always thought that there was a bit of charm in our mishmash newspaper and (visible) Scotch tape wrap jobs, the truth of the matter is, our friends and family were probably just being kind as they gave an obligatory chuckle upon viewing our shabbily-wrapped tidings. Furthermore, if you’re giving said shambles to certain adorable... more ›

If you're walking down Red River tonight and feel a slight tremor in the pavement, don't wig out. To the best of our knowledge, Austin doesn't sit on an active fault line. The more likely explanation is the tectonic upheaval that will be caused by the four bands playing Creepout 2006 at Beerland. Lean on a Chevy and steady yourself friend, then get your ass inside. Local label Chicken Ranch Records is in the... more ›

Tigersblood and Wedding Cake with Cream? Fuzzy Navel with Hill Country Berry? Banana and Chocolate with Cream? Root Beer with Ice Cream on the bottom? more ›

Heading to the Festival this weekend? You’re gonna be hungry, and while the crunchy chicken cones, Amy’s Ice cream and barbeque are all deloosh, you might wanna consider grabbing a P. Terry’s burger on that walk down Barton Springs. Or, maybe just hit it up on the way back from the fest, bleary-eyed and starving. All proceeds from Saturday’s sales at P. Terry’s will go to the Big Brothers & Sisters of Central Texas. Kudos... more ›