Smilez.

Honk!TX 2012

Greetings again, future Austinites!

Here is another awesome festival to look forward to!!

What is a HONK! Band?

Across the country and around the world, a new type of street band is emerging.
Acoustic and mobile, HONK bands borrow repertoire and inspiration from a diverse set of folk music traditions, including New Orleans second line brass bands, European klezmer, Balkan and Romani music, and Brazilian Afro Bloc and Frevo traditions, as well as the passion and spirit of Mardi Gras and Carnaval. These unique bands all share a commitment to several core principles: everywhere they go, they perform to celebrate; some to protest; some to proclaim; and for all of them: to have fun.

HONK!TX is a different kind of festival that presents music to Austin in an unprecedented fashion. Twenty community street bands participate in transforming everyday locations into organic stages where the line between crowd and performers dissolves. HONK!TX’s unique format demonstrates the potential for creative use of our public spaces without the need for amplification or artificial stages.

A festival of this scope requires extensive collaboration with the iconic businesses and people that make Austin what it is. And because the festival requires extensive planning and accounting, meetings with stakeholders – neighborhood associations, city staff, local businesses, and interested citizens – have become an integral part of the planning process. Additionally, several local businesses and cultural institutions, have expressed support in the form of generous donations.

HONK!TX also depends on the generosity of Austinites and asks them to join the team of volunteers and offer to host visiting musicians, help transport the bands, consider in-kind food donations or invest time and energy to help make sure the festival runs smoothly.

Want more info??->    http://www.honktx.org/

Apartment Spotlight: Promontory Point

1.       Why did you choose to live at Promontory Point? How long have you lived there?

·         When I was first looking for a place to live, I searched everywhere on craigslist, but I still was not sure how to actually find an apartment because I was not familiar with Austin yet. Lucky for me, Michelle, who is a 2^nd year College Coach, posted on College Forward Facebook group that she already signed the lease with Promontory Point and was looking for a roommate. I emailed her to see if I could be her roommate and she said YES! I have lived at Promontory Point since August 2011. J

2.       What are a few things you like about the complex?

·         It is a 2 bed/2 bathroom and the layout is perfect for roommates because the bedrooms (and bathrooms) are on opposite sides of the living room and kitchen, so both people have their own space. Also, both bedrooms have walk in closets! There is a washer and dryer included. We have a small balcony where I occasionally do jump ropes and Michelle planted colorful flowers in two little pots. We also have a fireplace!  We never thought we would use it, but we used it whenever we felt like it was cold enough to light the fire and made some s’mores J The complex is basically at the corner of Hwy 290 and 183 and I-35 is only about a mile from the complex, so we have easy access to everything. Our drive to College Forward office is just a little over 10 minutes.  We live near gas stations, Target, Walmart, HEB, Hobby Lobby, the post office, movie theatre and etc.

3.       What are a few things you do not like about the complex?

·         We have a fitness room, but the treadmill and elliptical machine doesn’t work properly L

·          The maintenance people are super friendly, but they are inconsistent… When we place a work order, sometimes it might be fixed the next day, but sometimes it might not be fixed for a week. We usually have to call again to remind them if they don’t come fix stuff right away.

·         Whoever was living above us never slept!! We could hear them walking or running around even at 4am. Thankfully, they recently moved away.

4.       What are your neighbors like?

·         We don’t know our neighbors too well, but I’ve seen families with small children. Kids play outside whenever the weather is nice. I’ve also seen people in 20s-30s who could be working or attending school.

5.       How much does it cost to live in a 1 bedroom? 2 bedroom?

·         I think 1 bedroom is about $600. We pay $730 for 2bed/2bathroom. When we pay for rent, water, internet, and electricity bills every month, it comes out to about $450 per person.

6.       If some of our future Austinites have more questions, would you mind if they contacted you via email

·         Sure! Since Michelle will be leaving me L and I am hoping to stay at College Forward for another year, I might need a new roommate if anyone is interested.

elee@collegeforward.org

SXSW 2012

Greetings again friends! It has been over a week since our last post because last week was our Spring Break. Some CoFo coaches decided to ditch the crowded streets of Austin and head out of Texas. For many of us music, film and technology fans we stuck around and tried to find as much free entertainment as possible.

Below is a brief history of the event.

The first South by Southwest Music Conference and Festival (SXSW) was held in 1987 in Austin, Texas. Despite the fact that Austin was not a Top 20 major market at the time, the background and character of the city made it a perfect location for the conference. Austin was considered a fairly cosmopolitan town for its size because of the University of Texas, which draws people from all over the world. As home to the state government and Texas Legislature it has also always been a popular party town, with a reputation that goes back to the 19th century when numerous nightspots and bars were populated by General Custer's troops after the Civil War. These nightspots are located in the same areas where the 6th Street and 4th Street club and bar scenes now exist.

Austin's eclectic music scene goes back to early in the city's history (from Mexican, German and colonial origins) and encompasses a wide variety of music including country, folk, jazz, blues and rock. Central Austin boasts more original music nightclubs in a concentrated area than any other city in the world.

The classic problem facing Austin musicians was being isolated from the rest of the world here in the middle of Texas. SXSW was a way to reach out to the rest of the world, and bring them here to do business. To do that successfully, SXSW needed to appeal to people other than local artists whether they were from Austin, Ft. Worth, Chicago, Toronto, Munich or Tokyo.

National interest in SXSW was immediate. For years, music businesses on both coasts had been intrigued by what was going on in Austin. The cosmic cowboy, blues, punk and other scenes had already proven that Austin was a receptive place for bands to be creative. With SXSW, music industry executives gained a good excuse to visit.

International interest in SXSW began the second year due to many Austin and American bands finding their first success in Europe. Conversely, there was a lot of interest from SXSW registrants in the international bands who came to perform. SXSW now has offices in Ireland, Germany, Australia and Japan who help bring SXSW registrants to Austin.

The music event has grown from 700 registrants in 1987 to over 16,000 registrants. As Austin has grown and diversified, film companies and high-tech companies have played a major role in the Austin and the Texas economies. In 1994, SXSW added a film and interactive component to accommodate these growth industries. SXSW Film and SXSW Interactive events together attract approximately 32,000 registrants to Austin every March.

SXSW's original goal was to create an event that would act as a tool for creative people and the companies they work with to develop their careers, to bring together people from a wide area to meet and share ideas. That continues to be the goal today whether it is music, film or the internet. And Austin continues to be the perfect location.

Office Events: Employee Appreciation Day

Friday, March 2nd, was Employee Appreciation Day. We celebrated by leaving the office at 3:30 and heading to the beautiful East Metropolitan Park in Manor, TX. We had an ice cream social, played beach volleyball, basketball, and smiled a lot. Above is the proof.

Happy Monday!

Interview with a CoFo Rockstar: Max Parrott

Classy Nudes performing @ Trailer Space Records

Max Parrott, seen above playing bass, is a Senior College Coach @ Connally High School

1.      How would you describe your bands ‘sound’?

                  

      Always a challenging question. I’m going to say DIY (do-it-yourself) rock n’ roll with elements of punk rock. We definitely play loud and it sounds real raw and there’s signing that verges on shouting, but there’s also melodies and stories buried in there.

2.    What instrument do you play?

      I play the bass guitar. I have a Mexican made Fender J bass, which I’ve modified with new pick-ups. It sounds ok if you turn up loud enough but it’s getting to the point where I need a new American-made bass.

3.   How long have you guys been playing together?

 We’ve been pumping out loud music of our house since August when we moved in. But we’ve only been playing shows since around Christmas. We’re still in the process of making all the booking contacts which bands need to play on the reg.

4.   Are you playing during SXSW?

Yep, we’re playing one house party on Thursday and then a gallery show on Friday. We’re also going to be giving out home-made tapes at those shows.

5.  If you could meet any musician, who would it be and why?

    

 Any musician? I ought to pick someone who’s dead to make things interesting. It’s toss-up between Aaliyah and Kurt Cobain. I’m a 90’s nostalgia freak.

6.  What are some of your favorite Austin bands?

 Austin Bands: Bad Sports, Literature, White Denim, Unknown Relatives, Hatchet Wound, Grape St.

7.  What are some of the best Venues to see live music in Austin?

Venues: For Austin bands I like Cheer-up Charlie’s, Hotel Vegas, and 29^th St. Ballroom. For out-of-town bands, it’s all about the Mohawk.

8.   What is your spirit animal?

     

I feel like my spirit animal changes daily. I had a student tell me I was a koala, lately I’ve been feeling like a prawn, check this guy out, it’s a foot-long! That’s me, I’m a super-prawn, mysterious and majestic.

9.   How much does College Forward ROCK?

College Forward rocks harder than diamonds. It’s like all the embers of Van Halen had one collective baby with Andrew W.K. and then that baby got possessed by Elvis. It’s great.

Student Spotlight: Stephen Dominguez

One of our College Forward studnets made the paper recently! Check out Stephen Dominguez from Manor New Tech High School! The link below will take you to the article and a video.

http://www.statesman.com/news/local/born-to-dance-manor-student-brings-his-skills-2184944.html

Apartment Spotlight: Eastside Commons

1.       Why did you choose to live at Eastside Commons? How long have you lived there?

I chose to live at Eastside because I love the location; I’m five minutes from UT’s campus and a 10 minute bike ride from downtown! Plus, it’s the only apartment complex on Manor Road that has a pool! Rent prices are going up but with a roommate, it’s still manageable.

2.       What are a few things you like about the complex?

The location is awesome. There are lots of restaurants within walking distance and the variety of food is spectacular; anywhere from greasy grimy b-fast tacos to fancy-shmancy organic delicacies. There is a community garden just a hop, skip, and a jump over from my apartment that I often walk my dog over to because he likes to stare at the chickens. There is an elementary school and family-infested zone in the neighborhood. So for the most part, it is a really safe area. My landlord is also very friendly and works hard to help me with any issue I may have. There is also a bar RIGHT NEXT to my apartment, so walking home is easy peasy. It is also a very pet-friendly place. Almost everyone owns an animal in some form.

3.       What are a few things you do not like about the complex?

Sometimes, my lovely neighbors… tend to stay up waaay later than me and are loud.

4.       What are your neighbors like?

A lot of great people live right next door to me. Almost every night I’m invited to play a board game, climb the roof to look at the skyline, or eat some yummy grilled food. Everyone is so friendly and looking for a good time with good people. I often arrive home to the sound of great music blasting from someone’s window and I can’t escape several kind salutations as I unlock my apartment door. And everyone is different in their own unique way, so I love getting to meet new neighbors!

5.       How much does it cost to live in a 1 bedroom? 2 bedroom?

Funny you should mention it… rent is of-course going up. A one-bedroom is now $720/mo and a two-bedroom is $799/mo. I typically have to pay around $450/mo and that includes utilities! I suggest if someone is seriously considering Eastside, to go ahead and contact the landlord to see what apartments when be open when they move because they may be able to keep the lower rent cost if they reserve for July/August now…

6.       If some of our future Austinites have more questions, would you mind if they contacted you via email?

Sho-nuf. That means, sure enough. And yes, they can contact me. thavlin@collegeforward.org

Check out the website, http://www.eastsidecommons.net/