I pulled this from the Oak Hill Association of Neighborhoods' Web site:

OHAN's October meeting will be a candidate forum on Wednesday, October 8th at 7pm. Oak Hill Association of Neighborhoods (OHAN) invites you to attend its 2008 Fall Candidate Forum on Wednesday, October 8, at 7:00 p.m. in the Flamenco Room of Segovia Spanish Restaurant [7010 Hwy 71 W (at the "Y" in Oak Hill), Austin 78735 www.segoviaaustin.com. The Candidate Forum will be preceded by a meet-and-greet opportunity from 6:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. The forum will run from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. and be followed by a Mix-and-Mingle that will wrap up at 9 p.m. Candidates participating in the Forum will be for the offices of State Representative District 47, Travis County Commissioner Precinct 3, and Travis County Constable Precinct 3. All candidates are asked to prepare three minutes of opening. These will be followed by a session in which candidates will be posed with questions collected in advance from the public. A moderator will run the program.

Those Dos XX commercials have it all wrong, Henry Rollins is actually the most interesting man in the world... or at the very least he can tell a hell of a story. Hearing him recount the stories of his youth, his days in Black Flag, his travels, a chance encounter with "Diamond" David Lee Roth and even the simple daily interactions he has with every day people make me think that I haven't done a damned thing in my life. Listening to the stream-of-consciousness flowing from his mouth I couldn't help but think "when the hell does he breath?" I always felt like Rollins was an angry meat-head with the agenda to push his opinion on anyone that he could, but that thought was quickly lost the moment I saw him timidly approach the microphone in a simple gray t-shirt and a much smaller stature that I would have thought. Sure he had his moments of screaming and fist clenching but the majority of the night was conveyed in a very honest and almost meek manner. It was charming. The more that I listened the more that I realized that he has a perspective that I wish more people had. He understands that that people are great and that most people will be your friend if you allow it. "The many are great... the few are terrifying" he said when speaking to a man in Pakistan about his beloved United States and trying to learn more about life as a Pakistani. What I understand now about Rollins is that he understands that the world isn't black or white. There is plenty of wonderful stuff in the world even if you've been told otherwise. Thanks for the perspective Henry. I hope you got to check him out. Congrats to those that won our ticket giveaway for the show. Keep checking our contest page for your chance to win tickets to future shows.

There’s not really a Westside Social Club but it sure seems like Larry Lange is stepping into Ry Cooder’s role by creating San Antonio’s version of the Buena Vista Social Club. When Lange started the Lonely Knights in Austin several years ago, their direction was aimed directly east, along Highway 90 from the Gulf Coast into Louisiana. Their horn-driven retro sound embraced swamp pop and nuggets from regional radio and local jukeboxes. Somewhere, Lange took a turn into South Texas, and his band took on a whole new purpose. Lange, a veteran bassist on the scene best known for playing with Paul Ray & the Cobras and Delbert McClinton, fell in with many of the musicians written about in Ruben Molina’s 2006 book Chicano Soul. An instant rapport developed with them and thus began a joint effort that culminated in the tribute to Esteban Jordan here during the summer. The combination of Lange’s soulful brass-powered band and these wonderful Chicano vocalists is a match made in cielo.

Damn you, Alamo Drafthouse. Every time I think I've finally loosed your death grip on my attentions and my affections, you go and program another typically awesome show. Wait, make that two typically awesome shows.

Sunday noon at the Ritz marks the marriage of two undeniable forces of good in this world – brunch and West Side Story. I've already rhapsodized about WSS in this space before, so let's instead praise chef John Bullington's ingenious-sounding menu, including last course "Officer Crumpet: Crumpets torn between two rivals, guava-lime jam and strawberry jelly." Altogether now: mmm.

But before Sunday morning comes Saturday night and the two-shows-only showcase of Don Hertzfeldt's animation, including the regional premiere of his newest short, "I Am So Proud of You," and Hertzfeldt in attendance for a post-screening chat. If you've never seen his stuff before, watch his Oscar-nominated short "Rejected" below. It's bloody brilliant. Well, and also just plain bloody, but this is stick-figure gore, which is pretty much the only kind I can get behind.

REJECTED

Fans of gruff and tumble singer-songwriters have lots to celebrate this week. Starting tonight, East Nashville’s Todd Snider opens a two-night run at the Cactus Café. Friday, Canada’s Fred Eaglesmith makes a rare South Austin appearance at Threadgill’s. Both have been at it for years, but they remain at the peak of their powers, spinning tales with courage and humor that few of their ilk can match. Snider is set to release an EP, Peace Queer (Aimless), next week. Available as a free download until the end of October, it’s as pointed as anything he’s ever done. "Clearly, anyone who looks at the cover photograph can tell that I had been abducted by an international league of peace queers and forced to write protest music," Snider says. "You know, for their cause." As a listen, it’s a little unfocused and all too brief, but in person he remains one of Geezerville’s favorites. Snider’s past performances at the UT singer-songwriter haven have been clinics on how to keep an audience engaged and enthralled and with several rounds of fresh ammo expect nothing less than brilliance.

History buff and political essayist Sarah Vowell (The Partly Cloudy Patriot) has never been shy about her liberal leanings – in one of her most famous pieces, "The Nerd Voice," she wrote about weeping at W.'s first inauguration – and, honestly, one wishes the Democratic Party could put her on the payroll stat, such an engaging, ingratiating personality she is.

Case in point – last night's appearance on The Daily Show, in which she neatly cut down to size the Republican Party for repeatedly invoking the tragedy of 9/11 in one breath, and then dismissing New York – even the whole Eastern seaboard – as a liberal orgy of unpatriotism in the next:

"I feel like the East Coast was American enough for Al Qaeda, so it should be American enough for them."

The whole six-minute clip is embedded below – and it's good stuff, especially her impassioned defense of elitism – but if you're looking for more, then mark your calendar now – Vowell will be at Book People on Tuesday, Oct. 28, at 7pm promoting her new book The Wordy Shipmates.

Got plans for Halloween night? Cancel 'em. You're going to Hell! No, not that Hell. This Hell! You know, the one with the wonky elevators and Scatman Crothers. Fantastic Fest, purveyors of terror, and Nike Sportswear, purveyors of pricey footwear, have officially announced their "Come Play With Us Halloween Party," billed as "a celebration of The Shining at The Timberline Lodge." From the press release: "In 1980 Stanley Kubrick came to the Timberline Lodge to film one of the all-time great horror classics, The Shining. In the film, Jack Nicholson slowly loses his grasp on reality and loses himself in a hallucination of a 1920s era ball. Twenty-eight years later, Nike Sportswear and Fantastic Fest have joined forces to recreate the very same ball at the very same lodge." Whoa, nelly. How cool-scary is that? Cooler than anything you had planned for this Halloween, we'd wager, and scarier than The Bucket List for certain. Several types of packages (VIP, Gold Room Ticket, Dead Kids in the Dumb Waiter Special) are available, apart from the latter, which we just made up but think would be pretty cool nonetheless, from the official site, so go get 'em right now, before they sell out and you're left trolling Sixth Street with a plastic scythe in your hand come All Hallow's Eve (again).

If any Roller Derby fan claimed they weren't nervous about last weekend's Women's Flat Track Derby Association's Western Regional finals in Houston, Battle Royale '08, they were probably fibbing. Because, like so many events in the gulf region post-Hurricane Ike, there were nerves it might not happen. Yet somehow, hosts the Houston Rollergirls managed to shake off any damage and bring one of the three biggest events on the derby calendar to fruition. Twelve teams from the region (three from Texas, three from Colorado, plus Arizona, California, Missouri, New Mexico, Oregon, and Washington State) gathered to sort out who'll be going to the Northwest Knockdown in Portland, Or., Nov. 14-16. And what a weekend it was, filled with firsts and lasts. It's the last time there will only be two regionals, since the sheer number of WFTDA-sanctioned teams means there will be four regions next year. Rising star Kamikaze Kim of Duke City and retiring icon Snot Rocket of Kansas City both walked away with a new WFTDA record: 25 points and five grand slams in a single bout. There was the unmissable opportunity for many players, gathered in the Verizon Theater, to sit in a balcony and get a unique bird's eye view of the track, seeing the difference that a tight pack really means. It was also the weekend that Austin's own Texas Rollergirls' Texecutioners came back to the top of their region and set their sights on the national championship once again.

Members of the congregation of Austin's St. Elias Orthodox Church have been busy for months preparing for this weekend's 76th annual Mediterranean Festival. Women of the church have spent weekends cooking and freezing authentic Mediterranean dishes that will be served to the appreciative crowds. In addition to traditional foods and fascinating crafts, ethnic music and folk dancing are always an integral part of the festival's attractions. On recent Sunday evenings, longtime festival steering committee member Bill Attal has been teaching folk dance steps to members of the congregation so they can join in the fun. Chronicle photographer John Anderson dropped by the church hall recently to shoot some video footage of the dance action. The renown Pennsylvania-based Greek group Stavros & Maria will be performing and Bill Attal assures us that the urge to get out on the dance floor will be irresistible. The folks at St. Elias invite Austinites out to enjoy the festival this weekend. They will be selling great food and drinks, very entertaining musical performances, and plenty of good exercise on the dance floor! The festival will close an entire block of 11th Street between Trinity and Red River and the cover charge is $5 at the gate. Food and drinks will be for sale. Friday & Saturday, Oct. 10 & 11 from 6pm until 12mid. [video-1]