30 Things

"Things are speeding up here near the end." – Slacker (1991)

Our 30th anniversary issue (Sept. 2, 2011 – the actual anniversary is Sept. 4) is a scant week and change away. Naturally, we're piling on with our "30 Things" – lists of 30 notable (or laughable or lamentable) takes on the Chronicle's coverage, culture, and commentary from the past three decades. It'll take a major surge for us to reach 30 "30 Things" by our 30th anniversary. But, hey, as lifelong last-minute deadline-beaters, we're up for it.

As we go to press, we're at 22 and counting. "30 Margaret Moser Covers" is testament the breadth and depth of both Austin music and her role in its development; "30 Mr. Smarty Pants Factoids" will delight Pants fans with its ATXentric offerings; Virginia B. Wood's excellent "30 Austin Culinary Milestones" captures the evolution of local food culture with expertise and experience few can match; and "30 Telephone Calls" is our front-desk masters' hilarious account of the many, um, idiosyncratic Austinites they encounter on a daily basis.

Like time's winged chariot, fast on their heels will be "30 Favorite Movie Bombs," "30 Alejandro Escovedo Raves," "30 Cool Art Spaces That Aren't Around Anymore," the insiders' views offered by "30 Examples of Cutting-Edge Technology at 'Austin Chronicle' HQ" and "30 BRNNRs," plus a couple of surprises.

And don't forget: Our Year 30 page also wraps up our Spot the Vintage Ad contest and features PDFs of all the issues from our first year.

You can find it all on our website: austinchronicle.com/year30.