Storms and sun bring skeeters and weeds! But before you venture out into your jungle of a lawn, armed with a thick coat of repellent and a machete, take the easy way out and get yourself a Weedwacker. No, we're not talking about the noisy lawn contraptions, but rather, the smooth, cold wheat beer from Houston's own craft brewery Saint Arnold. more ›

Obama pays Memorial Day respects to African-American and Confederate Civil War soldiers Advocates awaiting details of Obama vets' programs US troops weathering IED threat with technology, skills, and (at last!) MRAPs Vietnam veteran fights to get benefits for uninsured vets WWII fly girls finally get their rightful props WWII vet still seeking family of fallen friend Unexpected mementos adorn Arlington Cemetery graves Dear Donna: A pinup so swell she kept GI mail more ›

This Memorial Day holiday, we dusted off the Austinist company van for our annual trip down to the Kerrville Folk Festival for a beer-drenched, music-filled, puddle-hopping four-day weekend just two hours outside of Austin. Situated within the meadows and hills of the Quiet Valley Ranch, the folk festival—which started in 1972 as a gathering of a few friends/musicians who decided to camp out and play music for a few days—is now well into its... more ›

All across the Ist-A-Verse (or at least the American parts thereof), writers and editors are in the midst of enjoying their three-day weekend. But after the week we've all had, we feel like the break is not only needed, but deserved. Just look at everything we've been doing! Gothamist headed into the Memorial Day weekend with a number of tasks accomplished. They worried about Long Islanders giving New Yorkers a bad name. They tried a... more ›

*The views expressed in The Laurie Show are those of the author and do not represent Austinist as a whole.* -ed. note I have a favor to ask, if I may be so bold: Will someone PLEASE give me an extra dose of caffeine? Yours truly, hostess of The Laurie Show, has been working double time at KUT 90.5. Today is an extra challenge. I'll be sitting in during the afternoon drive for the... more ›

30 seconds on American Idol are worth more than you will ever be. (Also, the girl won. Apologies to those who Tivoed the finale to watch later. Actually, we don't apologize -- we recommend getting a life, instead.) Veganism kills (sometimes), so make your own burgers this Memorial Day weekend. We're not sure if anyone would want to eat these creatures from the abyss, but the dumbo octopus is totally the Nabaztag of the... more ›

If you have already failed and re-upped your New Year’s resolutions more times than you can count, take heart – tomorrow is another day (to fail). No, but seriously, we're fortunate to live in a town where there's a whole subculture of masochists who organize events around such activities as running, biking, swimming, and various combinations thereof. Looking for a torturous fun way to get outside and get your body moving? Then why not... more ›

What with Memorial Day or Labor Day coming up this weekend, we've teamed up with the lovely folks over at BlogBurst to host an Austin Blogger Happy Hour on Thursday, over at Club de Ville. The product of local tech company Pluck, BlogBurst syndicates some of the internet's top blogggers onto major media sites (think The Washington Post, SF Gate) and other "top-tier online destinations." For bloggers, it represents a tremendous opportunity to have their... more ›

What with Memorial Day or Labor Day coming up this weekend, we've teamed up with the lovely folks over at BlogBurst to host an Austin Blogger Happy Hour on Thursday, over at Club de Ville. The product of local tech company Pluck, BlogBurst syndicates some of the internet's top blogggers onto major media sites (think The Washington Post, SF Gate) and other "top-tier online destinations." For bloggers, it represents a tremendous opportunity to have their... more ›

Throw in some margarita-fueled, sunburned missed connections and you've got the start of some real summertime madness -- just the ones on Lake Travis, at Bull Creek, and at apartment pools alone outnumber all other genres of posts this week. Enjoy this week's delayed Memorial Day MCs, and let us know if we missed any of your favorites. hippie hollow swimmer* me: guy in cowboy hat with radio playing, drinking some beer on a... more ›

Celebrate, it's Memorial Day weekend! You most likely have plans to float down a river, or swim in a pool, or have your rich friends take you out in their boat, all while getting exceedingly plastered and forgetting about your soul-sucking day job.* Good thing, because film pickin’s today are slim and, well, strangely international. Most of you are probably wildly anticipating the release of X-Men Part Trois - one Austinist editor was so... more ›

• There's a serious crisis in Canada. Edmonton bars and pubs are having a hard time keeping their beer on tap and in stock. We guess hockey fans know how to drink beer.
• Tune up your cars and rev your engines. State Officials are planning to raise some speed limits to 80 mph, the highest in the country. We'd like to take this opportunity to let you know that slow drivers suck, too.
• How do you spell Hallelujah? How about S E A S O N I Q U E. Having only 4 periods a year sounds like it could be ideal for everyone.
• David Lee Roth is determined to reunite Van Halen. An act of desperation, perhaps? Did anyone hear his radio show before it was cancelled? We didn't think so.
• Trash is power and we aren't talking about Britney Spears. Landfills are converting their trash gas to useful gas- we know some guys who could sell their...
• Keeping track of MySpace-news is exhausting us, or just getting really old. A couple teenagers hacked into MySpace and threatened to make their how-to public information unless given some money. Kids are just so smart these days.
• We don't want to alarm you (again) but we need to call a super hero, like Super Ozone Action Man to defeat Global Warming Man. According to researchers, the warming of the atmposphere is changing the pattens of the Jet Stream.
• Michael Kitchens of Williamson County won't be able to father either of his children because he'll be spending his life in prison after getting his own daughter pregnant.
• Don't dive in head-first this weekend to any local watering holes (unless it's the saloon kind). Water levels are lower than normal. Happy Memorial Day weekend! more ›

With the 90+ degree days here and scores more to follow, we at the Austinist are beginning to gravitate towards the many watering holes in and around Austin . And with Memorial Day this weekend, so starts the “summer season,” as defined by the Austin Parks and Recreation Department. As you are probably abundantly aware, adult access to Barton Springs costs $3 a day. However, for those of you who, like us, take every... more ›