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› There’s no City Council meeting this week, but the June 28 (presummer break) meeting is burgeoning with potential: the return of the argument over short-term rentals (see “There Goes the Neighborhood”); the meter still running on taxicab licenses; and the likelihood of dueling charter proposals over geographic council districts (see “Not a Short-Term Meeting”).…

by Chronicle Staff

The Luv Doc: Cat Poo Pom

LuvDoc, Got married recently and with the wife came a cute Pomeranian dog and a neurotic declawed cat, both indoor pets. At issue is that the pom loves to eat cat poo and is constantly digging out those Baby Ruths from the cat box whenever we’re not around. We live in a pretty small house…

by The Luv Doc

Phases & Stages

Alejandro Escovedo Big Station (Fantasy) “I’m a man of the world/It ain’t no thing,” crows Alejandro Escovedo on Big Station siren “Man of the World,” the kick-off rocker’s rejoining rhyme delivered in a full barroom brawl flush. “I can take a punch/I can take a swing!” Austin’s champion middleweight has thrown one roundhouse after another…

by Raoul Hernandez

That’s My Boy

Casting Adam Sandler and Andy Samberg as father and son is a stroke of inspiration, but there’s nothing else cute about this comedy.

by Marjorie Baumgarten

Phases & Stages

Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real Wasted (Tone Tide Records) The reedy familiarity of Lukas Nelson’s voice is a dead giveaway you’re listening to Willie’s kid. In fact on “The Joint,” young Nelson, 23, sounds as if the Red Headed Stranger – fast approaching 80 – had been sipping from the fountain of youth.…

by Dan Oko

Phases & Stages

Amy Annelle The Cimarron Banks (High Plains Sigh) Troubadour Amy Annelle has spent the better part of a decade sowing her rough and tumble folk tunes across the country, but the songstress returned to her Austin landing place to record her latest, The Cimarron Banks. For newcomers to her seven-LP career, her warbling alto commands…

by Abby Johnston

Playback

The Eastern Sea catch the ‘Plague,’ Eagle Claw goes samurai, John Wesley Coleman III wants to direct, and you can’t pee on the Midgetmen

by Kevin Curtin

Brave

Although the animation looks terrific and the story features an immensely sympathetic heroine, Brave lacks the sheer imaginative oomph of prior Pixar pics.

by Marc Savlov

Lola Versus

Greta Gerwig stars in this movie about thirtysomethings’ troubles in life and love, but the conflict teased in the title never clearly emerges.

by Kimberley Jones

Phases & Stages

Nanci Griffith Intersection (Hell No) After 20 albums you know what to expect from Nanci Griffith. There are deep, from-the-heart songs, a couple of sprite turns at folkabilly, and reasoned social commentary – stories of everyday people well-told and well-sung. Intersection is sure to please longtime fans, but it also strikes a more universal chord.…

by Jim Caligiuri

Day Trips

Wolfmueller’s Books in Kerrville carries a large selection of first editions and hard-to-find regional titles

by Gerald E. McLeod

Phases & Stages

Daniel Johnston Space Ducks: Soundtrack Daniel Johnston’s debut graphic novel, Space Ducks: An Infinite Comic Book of Musical Greatness, opens with a poignant foreword from the artist: “In the darkness there’s no other love except you.” That message comes through with flying colors on the accompanying soundtrack, a 12-track collection of new studio recordings coupled…

by Austin Powell

Mr. Smarty Pants Knows

Author Mary Roberts Rinehart (1876-1958) created a costumed supercriminal called “the Bat.” Bob Kane said it helped inspire him to create Batman. The amount of energy in a gallon of gasoline would be enough to charge an iPhone once a day for almost 20 years. The Latin term for “left” is “sinister” meaning threatening evil…

by Mr. Smarty Pants

Oops!

In Mike Kanin’s “Total Utility,” News, June 15, there were two reporting errors. Austin City Council members decided to move forward with Austin Energy work sessions in March, not February as was originally stated in the story. Also, Paul Chernick’s fees totalled roughly $96,000, not $116,000. We regret the errors.

by Chronicle Staff

Quote of the Week

“This is not the military. This is public education.” – Education Austin President Ken Zarifis condemns AISD for running summer STAAR test “boot camps”

by Chronicle Staff

Civics 101

Thursday 21 WATER CONSERVATION SYMPOSIUM How can our region meet its water needs? “The Business Case for Water Conservation” is open to the public. Register between 9am and 9:30am. 9:30am-3pm. Hilton Waco, 113 S. University Parks Dr., Waco. CLIMATE REFUGEES This screening of a climate change documentary is open to the public and brought to…

by Chronicle Staff

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