Will Myspace Trump The Social Networks Or Fail For A Second Time?

Ask anyone who knows anything about the media and they will tell you that Myspace, the once-dominant social networking site, has been declared dead since as early at 2006. Myspace is like that one girl in high school who once fit in with the ‘popular crowd’ but tried overly hard to fit in resulting in people making fun of her.

Thanks to Justin Timberlake, teen pop explosion from the 90’s and early 2000’s, Myspace is staging a comeback by using the pre-timeline version of Facebook everyone loved. Just kidding about the last part. No but really, just last fall Justin Timberlake was revealed as one of the top investors in this forgotten social networking site, which became ridden by spammers, known as Myspace.

After Facebook’s easy-to-use interface and more user-friendly features won over the hearts of millions of online users, Myspace instantly became a thing of the past. This week, Timberlake and co-owners Chris and Tim Vanderhook presented the new Myspace in Los Angeles. According to Rolling Stone, “the site is now a crisp, design-forward presence full of high-resolution images and a horizontal activity stream.” Picture a specifically social driven music player and discovery engine, which looks something along the lines of a magazine that collided with Facebook all while intertwining Pinterest and Instagram within it. “The site now strives for simplification,” says Rolling Stone, “[and] instead of friends, followers or like buttons, Myspace users ‘connect’.”

It might just be me, but I think Justin Timberlake’s roll as Sean Parker, founder of Napster, in The Social Network got to his head a little too much. Possibly promising “artist-to-artist communication and collaboration, giving fans the opportunity to listen in,” all of these new and possible features depend on “the revived site’s success in winning over former users and a younger generation raised on the likes of Instagram and Tumblr.” For the time being, Myspace will remain invite-only; however, it is now integrated with Facebook, which will allow new users to sign in using their Facebook accounts instead of going through the hassle of creating/remembering a new username and password.

The question on everyone’s mind is, will this revamp really be newer and better? Myspace is the home to 5 million plus unassigned acts, who obviously will benefit from the in-depth analytics that will reveal where fans are listening from; however, is it just going to be an outlet for aspiring musicians or will it trump Facebook and Twitter, becoming the ruler of the social networks again? After a few months or even weeks of messing around with the new Myspace, it is unlikely people will make the transition from Facebook and Twitter, even with all of its new features.

A Feast Fit For A Roman Emperor

Imagine being in a rustic, Tuscan-style home, barefoot in some sort of old(ish), wrinkled-yet completely chic-long, linen dress, in a kitchen with no air conditioning that’s older than my great grandmother, and you’re there cooking under the guidance of a sweet Italian old woman you can barely communicate with.

Regardless of the fact that this explains my great grandmother more so than my actual grandmother, I still like to imagine that this is how and where I learned to cook. It’s really not far off, though. Simply replace the Tuscan-style home with a one-story house in the countryside of upstate New York and it’s basically the same situation.

 

 

 

 

 

At the end of every summer-for the better part of a month- my older sister and I would leave Chicago and head to a little place called Hillsdale, a town in Columbia County consisting of rolling hills, open farmland and wooden tracts. We did what any normal kid would do during summer break: go fishing, swimming, hiking, tree climbing, and mow the lawn on my grandpa’s tractor, my personal favorite. Aside from that I would always make time to cook with my Grammy (as I like to call her). When I think about cooking I am immediately brought back to her kitchen, and if there is one thing I’ve taken away from her cooking it is that you must put love into every dish you make.

Today was one of those days where I woke up early, went grocery shopping and spent the better part of six hours cooking. Since it was such a nice day in Austin, and probably one of the last warm days for a while, I decided to turn off the air conditioning, open the door leading out to my deck, and cook barefoot, which has now resulted in my feet turning a disgusting shade of black. TMI, I know, but it was well worth it. I had a whole meal planned out: brussels sprout soup topped with candied pancetta, crispy parmesan biscuits filled with lemon butter, baby arugula and smoked salmon, and dark chocolate cupcakes with matcha green tea frosting.

I know, I know, it’s a lot of food but my friends and I decided we would have a mock thanksgiving, even though none of the food we made resembled anything that would be on a thanksgiving table… that’s beside the point though. What really matters is that overall the dinner was a success, I was surrounded by close friends, and we pretty much had a feast.

Unique Finds Within The Streets Of Austin

I always seem to plan my life a certain way and then end up taking a wrong turn ending up in a completely different place than I originally thought I would be at. I’m not going to say it’s ‘destiny’ since that sounds cheesy to me, however, I always wonder if those wrong turns end up taking me somewhere that is far greater than where I was originally going.

This happens to me quite often, particularly occurring about two weeks ago. I was supposed to go to The Counter Café to write a review but was too hungry to wait in line for 40 minutes in order to finally get something in my stomach, especially after the long night I had.

My friends and I decided to walk north on Lamar in search of food and came across a quaint walk up called Fresa’s. Once we ordered our food we kept trekking until we came to the cross streets of Baylor and 12th only to come upon massive, abandon, broken down condos.

Officially known as the Local to Global Outdoor Gallery Project, Austin’s Castle Hill graffiti (named after the castle-looking building that used to be the Texas Military Institute) originally showcased 6 brown and beige square panels in the 1980’s representing the HOPE campaign’s mission to connect artists to global issues. With the support from the property’s owners, Dick Clark Architecture and Castle Hill Partners, Shephard Fairey’s professional and highly commercialized posters covered the center level of Castle Hill.

From Shephard Fairey to the anonymous street artists who have tagged these crumbling walls and pipes with their colorful hues, graphics and bold colors, Castle Hill is a haven for artists and dreamers, a place that is filled with inspiration, and a place where self-expression is painted within the weeds and concrete ruins of this abandon lot. Castle Hill never intended on being a habitat for graffiti artists to paint/tag highly complex pictures, which as of July 2012 had over 100 pieces and over 300 tags, but then again that is the nature of street art.

This Ketchup To Fry Ratio Is A Serious Problem

Fast food is like crack-once you put that first fry into your mouth all hell breaks loose. There is no stopping that food baby that is about to grow from one week to 9 months in, lets be honest here, a span of minutes. Whether you enjoy that creepy dude Jack in the Box’s curly fries or Mickey D’s hot and crunchy fries that are really only good for one second, there comes a moment in everyone’s life when they must try P. Terry’s.

If I could eat P. Terry’s everyday, I would; however, loading my body with several tons of shoe string fries is not in my best interest. Now, normally I speed through a fast food restaurant-if I can I even call it that-as fast as I can, while covering my surroundings with my peripherals, to make sure no one I possibly know sees me. However, when it comes to P. Terry’s I make sure to get the whole shabang for my buck.

We all know that one moment when we finish our sauce only to realize we still have ¾ of our fries left. I mean it almost ruins the whole point of consuming the 10:1 oil to actual food ratio. It worries me so much that I make sure to ask for EXTRA fist fulls of sauce just to be safe, because you never know how many times you will want to double dip. I have perfected this art, since P. Terry’s is always stingy with their sauce, to the point where my kitchen drawer is now a black hole for unopened ketchup packets because I can never actually offer them to the public. As for me, opening that drawer at 2 am after a long night is like waking up on Christmas morning… only to ketchup…

The Blue Hawaiian

As my friends and I were having, what I thought was, a normal and relaxing lunch at the abandon and graffiti filled Castle Hill, a car that was bizarre on a level that cannot be explained in simple terms pulls up.

Have you ever woken up one morning and decided you would glue objects to your car in an effort to make it ‘fancy’? Holly and daughter Gena Klemm have done just this.

In 1997, Holly and Gena were instantly inspired with the idea of art cars after, “seeing the mayor decked in a red tux, with his red hair, in his red car,” at the Mayor’s Parade in Hampden.

They decorated their first car for Baltimore’s Art Scape Festival in 1997; however, Holly said, “they never qualified because they had to have it towed since it wouldn’t run.”

Although their neighbor had no interest in art cars, he gave them two cars, one of which is the exact car they pulled up in today, “The Blue Hawaiian”. For the past 11 years, Holly and Gena have turned heads as they stroll around in their 1988 Chevy. Originally created in Baltimore, it now permanently resides in Austin where it’s sand castles, murals of the sea and it’s interior filled with tropical colors, instantly make you feel as if you are at the beaches on the islands of Hawaii.

The Klemms exhibit their cars at classic shows annually; especially the Annual Art Car Parade in Houston, where around 300 cars are displayed and over 300,000 people show up.

Some might think gluing ‘junk’ on a car is just part of the whole ‘Keep Austin Weird’ vibe. This kind of stuff is all over the South, and although it may be weird in Baltimore, Holly thinks, “its something people enjoy because it is an old car. It’s touchable and sits right on the street. Even if the cars are weird, people still relate to them.”

Despite originally being baffled by this unusual car, talking to Holly gave me insight on something I really didn’t know much about; and, turns out, she was right. Sitting in an art car, regardless of how strange it may be, enabled me to gain an appreciation for it on a deeper level that I normally wouldn’t have had.

I Told My Kid I Ate All Their Halloween Candy

Halloween is by far one of my favorite holidays. My favorite part as a child was trick-or-treating. Not just that, though. The best part of it all was running to my room with my sister, after hours of going house to house collecting as much candy as my bag could hold without breaking, and dumping out everything to see the final result. We would sit in our room for hours, comparing each of our bags and trading the pieces we didn’t want, stuffing our faces with more candy than either of our stomachs could handle.

For the past two years, Jimmy Kimmel issued a challenge to all parents to: tell your children you ate all their Halloween candy, film the whole thing and then post it to YouTube. Previous years the challenge became famous, gaining over 34 million views. Since there was such a great response, he decided to do it again this year.

Here is the clip

Despite the last three kids’ remarks, one of whom says, “Its alright, I just want you to feel happy,” I, honestly, would have probably been one of those kids to throw a huge fit. I hope everyone had a great Halloween!

Halloween Candy

SOCO FOOD TRAILERS KICKED OUT

We all love heading to South Congress during the weekend. Foodies, locals and tourists have come to this spot since 2009 to spend time shopping, while getting a quick bite to eat at the ever-famous food trailers. Four years ago after, the company who houses C3 Presents (the organizer for ACL), plans to build a hotel failed, trailers took over to rent space on the property; however, last week, the dreaded notification finally came that come March, the owners must pack up their trailers in order to make way for a new hotel.

With the rising number of people moving to Austin in the past few decades, will making way for these new hotels change the vibe of Austin from “weird locals” to a more business corporate crowd? While growth of hotels are needed in order for Austin to be more successful, the food trailers are a local iconic spot and have become a well known spot for tourists in Austin. They can only hope customers will follow wherever they move to… wherever that will be.

Take A Walk Down The PINK Carpet

A photographer welcomes you as you walk down the pink carpet. As you approach the giant glass doors, you are handed a grapefruit and champagne cocktail that added vibrancy to the already bubbly mood going on inside of Saks Fifth Avenue Austin, which was decked in pink.

Tonight, NSIDE Magazine hosted the “2012 Key To The Cure” launch party benefitting the Susan G. Komen breast cancer foundation. Complementary food from PBK Stem and Stein nourished the hungry and diverse crowd as they perused through the cosmetics, shoes, clothes and silent auction items. Making their way through the racks, they came upon a table hosting The Cupcake Bar that individually designed each cupcake by hand.

Anne Hudson and Wes Womack were found among the crowd as well as Bevo, a personal favorite. Overall the night was a great success, as they not only raised money but also awareness for Breast Cancer and their survivors.

 

2012-2013 Winter Must Haves

Fall is just around the corner, as those warm summer days turn into sweater worthy nights. For most of us, its time for our summer styles to make their way back to the darkest corners of our closets in order to make room for the chic trends that come with the winter season.

Before you toss your whites and brights, lets take a closer look at the collections New York fashion week’s designers produced. When paired correctly, some of summer’s essentials take those dark and neutral tones, we so deeply adore, to the next level.

In February 2012, jumpsuits, dramatic collars and leather galore turned the runways of New York Fashion Week from conservative into ultra-liberal.

Whoever said to never mix navy and black has clearly never met Upper East Side designers. Head-to-toe black is out… almost. Paired with navy or burgundy, bleak turned chic.

The winter season brings us not only navy, burgundy and black, but also, dark greens and, dare I say, WHITE…winter white to be exact. Accessorizing with a dark shoe appears to be the perfect mix, where sweet meets sexy… No one will ever question the fact that its after Labor Day, trust me on this one.

If you’re willing to be a little more daring, don’t be afraid to mix and match textures. Grab an oversized knit sweater that falls perfectly over a chiffon or silk skirt, and you’ve got “the look”. Just remember, this pairing only works if all items are within the same color tone family.

Black Leather + Black Jumpsuit = The Black Leather Dress is ‘out’. Add an asymmetrical blazer or double breasted jacket to your wardrobe, just make sure it has an overly dramatic collar, and you are set for the 2012-2013 winter season.

Not Your Typical Eats

 

 

Now, I know the majority of us are going to ACL for the music… hence music festival; but, those wishing to not get trampled by sweaty bodies, in hopes of getting close enough to Florence that you can smell her; ACL’s food lineup is just as good, if not better, as the music lineup.

You know when you go to a festival or fair you normally find foods whose motto’s are “the greasier, the better”; well ACL Eats’ motto is clearly “the weirder, the better”. Since we are in Austin, expect everything to be out of the ordinary. You’ll still find traditional Austin favorites like Amy’s Ice Cream, Freebirds, P.Terry’s, SweetLeaf Iced Teas, The Best Wurst and The Mighty Cone; however, don’t be shocked if you come across someone eating rabbit and rattlesnake sausage or elk and beehive sausage, courtesy of Woodshed Smokehouse.If you prefer more traditional food, stop by Mandola’s for a sausage and pepper sandwich, Stubbs for a pulled pork sandwich or The Salt Lick for some sloppy nachos.

Looking for a Gluten Free or Vegetarian option? Not to worry, there are over 15 options to choose from.

Have a sweet tooth? Make sure to find your way to Tiff’s Treats for a Tiffblitz, or get your frozen pop fix in with GoodPop or Snowie. Finally wash it all down with some Fresh Squeezed Best Lemonade, Maine Root Handcrafted Beverages, or Daily Juice.

These are only some of the many food options that Austin EATS has to offer. Without a doubt, you’re sure to find something that will satisfy your taste buds, after working up an appetite from wandering around the 46-acre park.

The waiting is over. The three-day music festival austinites have been anticipating since last September is officially less than 24 hours away. We’ve figured out how to be at 2 stages at once… if we run fast enough… and have our outfits planned out for the ever-famous Zilker-runway. Just bring a poncho and rain-boots, since the weatherman clearly isn’t doing his job very well I’m forecasting a mud fest folks, and an empty stomach – ACL 2012 here we come!