What is the "Austin Lifestyle"? (Dallas, Spring: apartment complex, trip)

[austin-steve]

I was pondering this the other day - what is the "Austin Lifestyle"? More importantly, are we living the Austin Lifestyle? I imagine it might be different for each of us depending on your age, stage of life and interests, but what do you do daily, or on a regular basis, that you couldn't be doing exactly the same in, say Cleveland OH or Anytown USA?

For me, a walk around Town Lake with a friend reminds me I'm living in Austin. Live music in a restaurant. A visit to Mt. Bonell. A trip downtown. Austin Music Fest, the Salt Lick, Barton Springs, Armadillo Bizzare, Matt's El Rancho, a hamburger at Dirty Martins, South Congress Ave, just to name a few.

But I know a lot of Austinites who never get out and do anything at all that is uniquely Austin. Is having an Austin zip code good enough, or does one have to participate in enjoy the unique aspects of Austin to be considered a true Austinite?

[traceyr13]

Neat question!

I will say for me, as a recent lifetime New Englander transplant, the huge difference in the Austin lifestyle is how much people here value and appreciate kicking back and socializing. We have been here 9 months, and have a MUCH busier social life than we ever did in Rhode Island. Literally, every weekend we have plans with friends to get together - nothing exciting, just drinking margaritas, hanging in the backyard, watching the kids run around...but I think the Austin lifestyle/people values this more than where I'm from.

[js63]

The way I've understood it the "Austin lifestyle" involves jogging, going to see live music, smoking weed, voting Democratic, wearing Birkenstocks and patchouli oil, getting tattooed, buying organic food, gardening a lot, hiking, biking, playing Frisbee golf, getting stuck in awful traffic as you take your kid to soccer practice in your SUV, eating outdoors a lot at restaurants, recycling, hanging out at the Lake, paying an abnormal degree of attention to the goings-on of the City Council, crying and protesting when a local business is closed to make way for a national chain--and then patronizing that chain once it opens, etc......

I do very few of these things myself.

A formal event in Austin means the participants wear black shorts, T-shirts, and sandals instead of those of other colors. And they might have bathed in the previous week.

[AustinTraveler]

Originally Posted by js63

The way I've understood it the "Austin lifestyle" involves jogging, going to see live music, smoking weed, voting Democratic, wearing Birkenstocks and patchouli oil, getting tattooed, buying organic food, gardening a lot, hiking, biking, playing Frisbee golf, getting stuck in awful traffic as you take your kid to soccer practice in your SUV, eating outdoors a lot at restaurants, recycling, hanging out at the Lake, paying an abnormal degree of attention to the goings-on of the City Council, crying and protesting when a local business is closed to make way for a national chain--and then patronizing that chain once it opens, etc......

I do very few of these things myself.

A formal event in Austin means the participants wear black shorts, T-shirts, and sandals instead of those of other colors. And they might have bathed in the previous week.

The above is about as stereotypical as it gets. js63 may be describing some people in Austin (or anywhere else in the country), but he certainly doesn't speak for the majority.

To me the Austin lifestyle is great because it embraces all people, regardless of their footwear, their body art, or how they vote. I chose to live in old Central Austin because to me it embraces what I feel is the Austin lifestyle. Going walking or canoeing on Town Lake is one of my favorites. You can just feel how much people love this city and the pride they take in it. I love being downtown, roaming around Whole Foods, and finding new places to eat and drink. I love walking in Rosedale, Brykerwoods and Pemberton and seeing all the cool houses. I love being able to hear the cheering from UT when the Horns are playing.

js63, thanks so much for sharing all your problems about Austin, including your fruitless job seeking and lack of dog friendly apartments. It's no wonder you can't stand this place. But I can guarantee that you are very much in the minority here. Austin is not Utopia but it's a great place to live, even with it's problems. Now, I better go take that weekly bath.

[Trainwreck20]

I consider myself a native Austinite, although my first 9 years were elsewhere (and that is getting to be a smaller and smaller percent ). Anyway, JS63's list is not that far off-base, imho.

• jogging - used to do about 30-35 miles a week...but have become lazy...
• going to see live music - occasionally, usually Nutty Brown or Shady Grove, occasionally Galaxy Cafe.
• smoking weed - really never have
• voting Democratic - Independent, if anything
• wearing Birkenstocks and patchouli oil - nope
• getting tattooed - nope
• buying organic food - organic milk rocks, it tastes WAY better than most non-organic varieties.
• gardening a lot - on my list of things to do more of.
• hiking - yep
• biking - wife does a lot, me - not so much. I stick with volleyball.
• playing Frisbee golf - used to play at least twice a week, then got a 8-5 job
• getting stuck in awful traffic as you take your kid to soccer practice in your SUV - live close to work and 2 minutes from the soccer field . And it is a Maxima, but probably gets about the same gas mileage.
• eating outdoors a lot at restaurants - gotta love it!
• recycling - sure, it is curbside now, I would be embarassed not to
• hanging out at the Lake - no time anymore, but it is a good way to spend a weekend.
• paying an abnormal degree of attention to the goings-on of the City Council - actually starting to do more of this. Someone has to watch those politicians.
• crying and protesting when a local business is closed to make way for a national chain--and then patronizing that chain once it opens, etc - not so much whinning, but not so much patronizing either. Target is my main 'box store', and I won't buy anything 'made in China' (nothing against Chinese, just a 'support our quality of life' issue).

I would say the two best words for Austin are casual and outdoors. Both are somewhat driven by the weather, so I think a lot of the folks moving in are more than happy to embrace those traits, if for no other reason than it makes sense. Hopefully, Austin will continue to be casual and outdoorsy .

[Gypsy-Moth]

AT, have read several of your responses today like this one that were very specific and informative. Makes this forum a good place to keep coming back to!

[js63]

Okay, well, let's see how I stack up:


jogging - No, but I used to bike everywhere and I've never owned a car. Occasionally I'll go to my apt. complex gym.
going to see live music - Not so much.I have some Dallas musician friends that sometimes come down to SXSW, but they didn't this year.
smoking weed - Maybe a dozen times in college, if that.
voting Democratic - Also an Independent.
wearing Birkenstocks and patchouli oil - No, I don;t like to get my feet dirty and I hate the smell of the latter.
getting tattooed - Not in this life.
buying organic food - When I can afford it.
gardening a lot - I have to settle with potted plants on my balcony, but if I had some land, then I would definitely.
hiking - No, but I walk a lot more than the average person.
biking - I did until my bike was stolen. I haven;t replaced it because I live now in a hilly area with crazy drivers.
playing Frisbee golf - Never been asked.I'm not too co-ordinated.
getting stuck in awful traffic as you take your kid to soccer practice in your SUV - I don't drive. Bahahaha!
eating outdoors a lot at restaurants - I love restaurants, but hate dealing with flying insects and the wind in my face and all. I like controlled temperatures.
recycling - I would definitely if my apartment complex was set up for that. My last complex didn't have it either.
hanging out at the Lake - Can't remember the last time I was out there. Like 6th Street at night, it's usually a place I only go to with out-of-towners.
paying an abnormal degree of attention to the goings-I got dragged into this when a friend got a big job in city government. But I still try to not pay attention whenever possible.
crying and protesting when a local business is closed to make way for a national chain-- Mea culpa. I was upset when the Varsity Theatre was closed, but I admit I did shop at the Tower Records that opened in its place. I actually interviewed for a position as head of the Classical Music department there once and the Mgr. said, "This is a very important position. Most of our jobs pay $6 an hour--this one pays $6.25." She intoned that last figure as if it was "$6 million." I almost laughed in her face, and got a big thrill when they closed their doors a year later.

[gigi927]

Great question.

Well, my view of the Austin lifestyle doesn't require doing a specific thing or eating in a specific place. It is a lifestyle that is active, healthy, supports its community, has an appreciation for locally owned businesses and takes advantage of what the downtown area has to offer, whether that be Town Lake or the Children's museum or a farmer's market or whatever else, and equally accepts both the urban and the suburban. It doesn't spend time wishing that this place was more like the last place you lived, or that this place has more of what Anytown USA has. That's what makes this lifestyle different to me than most other cities i've lived in (except San Francisco, but we can't afford to live there anymore).

What makes the Austin lifestyle unique to me is that I can go to the park and people watch and not have everyone look exactly the same. I'm not a tie-dyed Birkenstock wearer, nor am I a biker type, but I welcome the opportunity to sit at a restaurant or event with anyone who is. There is a certain vibe that comes with that type of diversity and I think it's very life-enriching and energizing both for me and my kids.

I think those who live here but don't take advantage of what's happening in the original parts of Austin may as well live in Anytown USA. I don't think you need to live in the middle of it to enjoy it, but to miss it altogether is a darn shame. Our life is pretty different here than it was in Phoenix and I don't miss our old life at all!

[js63]

There is a definite difference between the more central parts of Austin, which are truly unique, and outskirts areas like NW Austin, which could be just about anywhere in the US.

[gigi927]

Well, I don't agree that all of NW Austin is like anywhere else. I think where I live, and the surrounding areas, are pretty unique.