SXSW Photo Update!

Finally got back from the beach and I feel amazing! It's been years since I've been on a vacation and spending a few days enjoying a sunny shore with my boo was exactly what I needed. It is hard to adjust to being back but I'm slowly getting back into the swing of things.

As promised, here is another photo update and this one is still (relatively) current! For those of you who don't know each year during the middle of March Austin hosts a GIANT festival called South by Southwest (or SXSW or just South by). Shit gets cray. People are everywhere and bands are playing where ever (the street, door ways, retail shops, on the backs of trucks driving through town). Due to a major case of being broke (aka my life) I couldn't afford the $150-$200 for a wrist band to get into shows, let alone the $500 or whatever for a badge. BUT, the great thing about SXSW? So many free shows you don't even need to drop any money to enjoy music. Websites like do512 or Austin's free paper The Chronicle listed (almost) every party, event, and showcase and there were so many free one's because labels and companies want to splash out their band or product in a big way.

I worked a ton of extra hours at my second job because it's a retail shop that focuses on music and it's located in the heart of downtown. We were crazy busy but the money was awesome. I did manage to get Saturday (St Patrick's Day) off from both jobs so I wanted to experience a bit of music fun. First thing first, I had to buy some Irish whiskey (I'm Scot-Irish so I gotta rep my roots). There was a free afternoon/evening show on Auditorium Shores that I went to. The only thing I paid for was a pint of Fosters ($9!! But, honestly, can you really enjoy a beautiful Texas afternoon and wonderful music without some beer? No.).

There are sometimes I am so blown away by my town. I saw an amazing line-up of bands while standing on the shores of a river with the gorgeous Austin skyline in the background. Also, besides kick ass free parking because of my job I also enjoyed free food; Sabra hummus and Sun Chips were handed out to everyone. Can't really beat free music and free snacks.

Even though they don't have to, Auditorium Shores provided a ton of free porta potties which was awesome because a pint of beer can cause some gotta pee NOW issues.

As the sun set The Cult took the stage. The screen had a giant, really cool looking, skull on it but my iPhone obviously didn't manage to catch it. But look at that crowd! Thousands of people lined up to enjoy the show which was great and also featured a surprise cameo from Matthew McConaughey on the bongos (seriously, I can't make this stuff up). Don't believe? Here's a YouTube video.

Even though I'm young and fun and a giant fan of music after a 60+ hour work week I didn't want to deal with crowds or downtown or even people anymore. So I did the only thing I wanted to do:

I went home and enjoyed frozen pizza, bread sticks, whiskey, and yogurt pretzels with my boo. Sure, it's not as cool as some Vice or Perez Hilton after party or pre-party or whatever but my feet were the size of a beast and my sunny disposition was fading real fast.

So, there it is, my SXSW 2012. I managed to fit in work and fun and spent less than 10 bucks on everything. Now, obviously, if you were coming into town for the fest you would spend more (flight, hotel, etc) but for those of you that live close it's incredibly easy to not waste money or spend a lot.