After a year of knowing Superintendent Pat Forgione was going, tonight the AISD Board of Trustees is expected to vote to confirm the appointment of Meria Carstarphen as his replacement. The reality is that no one thinks this isn't a done deal, so unless the wheels fall of badly between now and 8:05pm (the scheduled time for the press announcement) Carstarphen will take over the big seat after Forgione retires on June 30.

Between, tributes, panels, and posters, it seemed as if Doug Sahm was the most ubiquitous person at South by Southwest. He hasn’t been with us for 10 years, yet somehow I imagined I’d see his cowboy hat bobbing through the crowd the same way I always think I see Clifford Antone’s ballcap in the crowd at Antone’s. Nostalgia seemed to be the unspoken theme amid the hot young acts, or at least what’s old is new. Metallica, Jane’s Addiction, and Devo are spring chickens, and while the Fireants were the youngest band to perform at the Music Awards, the Dicks, Roky Erickson, and the Doug Sahm tribute garnered the most ink. Surfing the net during SXSW is better than Twitter, especially when you find information such as the reference to “Jimmy Vaughn, Stevie’s little brother.” My highlights were spontaneous and fun. Author and queen of all groupies Pamela Des Barres called me late afternoon at the Music Awards saying Exene Cervenka was in town and wanted to present an award and here’s her cellphone. I said hell yeah and promptly forgot about it. Three hours later, the staff radioed that Exene had arrived and where was her presenter info? Fortunately, Exene is a pro and joined David Yow onstage for the Dicks’ Hall of Fame award, then gave Best Punk Band to One-Eyed Doll.

"It's no secret that [Mike] Martinez is not [Marc] Ott's strongest supporter," stated a Sunday editorial in the Statesman, in a classic bit of damning-by-unsubstantiated-innuendo. The Statesman editorial went on to say that "Martinez, running for re-election, is courting votes by criticizing Ott." Since I'd never heard the always-expressive council member snub the city manager, I called Martinez up to ask if this was true. "It's absolutely news to me!" said Martinez, expressing exasperation at the lame "it's no secret" journalistic gambit. "I dare them to quote me criticizing Marc Ott on the campaign trail. I have never once criticized him!"

How do you know the work week’s arrived in earnest? Why, the occurrence of another Carole Keeton Strayhorn press conference, of course! This morning, Strayhorn appeared outside of Brackenridge Hospital downtown to announce her call for a medical school. Flanked by supporters in the education and biotech realms, she promised “healthcare over headlines, biotech over biomass, and people over politics.” (As the race’s budget hawk, she’s trained her ire on the cost of Austin’s nascent renewables like biomass and the recently-approved solar array.) The school, she said, would create thousands of jobs, muster some $1.5 billion in additional economic activity per year, and be a boon to research, as well as provide assistance to the less fortunate. (Because we all know the University of Texas does everything out of selfless, noble impulses.) Strayhorn was decidedly vague on the funding details for the school, saying her job was to provide the “strong leadership” required to see the project through. But with the state staring down a shortfall of its own, it’s unlikely that dollars will come easily. Still, Strayhorn said “I am certain that we can find the dollars,” noting “I can find it in the city budget right now.” All thism, plus a heavy wind that battered the attendees and speakers this morning. You can read more about Strayhorn's plans here.

Whew! South by Southwest is certainly as exhausting as it was fun which means that we have some serious resting up to do. Subscribe to our newsletter using the link at www.austinchronicle.com/chrontourage to receive this week's newsletter. Maybe you'll discover a few new ideas about how to relax and decompress around town as you ease back into the real world.

It may be seem like an eternity of tinnitus and day parties ago, but during the interactive component of SXSW, the annual ScreenBurn Arcade had some serious buzz moments. There was a lot of player interest in the Nvidia GeForce 3D Vision system, which uses the built-in depth information in games to create a stereoscopic 3D image (How good is it? Well, it's sure no Virtual Boy.) SXSWi even had its own little Metallica moment, with a hands-on demo of Bionic Commando, developer GRIN's reboot of the classic Capcom franchise from the '80s. The game, being developed for PC, XBox 360 and PS3, doesn't ship until May, but the multi-player deathmatch mode demoed was smooth and intuitive. [video-1]

The secret surprise guests? The Indigo Girls. Perez's party is packed – sundresses, great music, and fag hags as far as the eye could see – but there's still room for YOU (if you RSVP'd).

As in, my love for Neil Patrick Harris is ... Just found this video of him guest starring on Sesame Street as a Shoe Fairy. Now, really!!! Click here for the video.

Last night when Margaret Cho took the stage at the Velveeta Room, we thought were ready, but honestly, we weren't ready! Although the set was unnaturally clipped, the folks at the Velveeta Room were movin' the acts through, Cho played three songs and did some traditional stand-up as well. Our favorite moment? A sex-text message sent, by accident, to her mom. Lots of jokes on the multiple meanings of "come" ensued. Enjoy one of the selections Margaret Cho played "Eat Shit and Die" below*