It's fresh and local at the Triangle Farmers Market.

For a city its size, Austin seems to have an abundance of great farmers markets. It’s no wonder, though. Austinites seem particularly keen to eat well– and the freshest and often most nutritious produce comes from farmers markets. It’s possible, too, that folks in Austin find supporting local growers fulfilling.

We told you about a the very fine Manor Farmers Market to the west of our home at the Mosaic at Mueller Apartments. You can head the other direction, into town, and find an equally good, but slightly more urban farmers market– The Triangle Farmers Market, which meets at Triangle Park at 46th Street.

By “urban” we mean that the Triangle Farmers Market is designed to be an experience as much as a commercial space. Of course, the experience is exactly why some folks might enjoy shopping at the Manor market, but the one in Manor probably wasn’t intended to be an “experience”. In the case of the Triangle Market, in addition to the good, locally grown produce, you can also count on some live music to serenade you as you peruse the fruits and veggies. And there’s a place for kids to play.

In fact, since it’s in a park setting, the organizers urge you to bring a blanket, buy some tomatoes to go with your sandwich, and have a picnic.

The Triangle Farmers Market meets Wednesday evenings 4:00pm to 8:00pm– perfect for after work. It happens at Triangle Park, 4600 Lamar Blvd. at 46th Street. That’s a very short trip from the Mosaic at Mueller apartment community.

Go to the Triangle Farmers Market website for more information.

Photo used under Creative Commons from Laura Taylor.

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It’s a big weekend of bargains coming up.

A lot of people are bracing for the annual Texas Sales Tax Holiday, which is Friday, Saturday and Sunday (August 20 – 22). Most items of clothing, footwear and school supplies under $100 will be exempt from the 6.5% state sales tax this weekend.

That’s excellent. But here’s something else that’s potentially a major money saver… and probably more fun than braving the tax holiday frenzy at the mall– the totally awesome Trash to Treasure Garage Sale on the UT campus.

You just might find the perfect lamp.

It’s a giant garage sale with everything you might want for your dorm, or in the case of the good people of Mosaic at Mueller,  your lovely, well appointed apartment.

There will be furniture, area rugs, clothes, books, lamps, mirrors, electronics and other stuff, all in good working order. It’s an annual project that collects items UT students plan to leave behind when they move away for the summer… and then sells them to UT students– and the general public– as the students return to Austin for the new school year.

It helps poor students– and the general public– save some bucks, and it  keeps a lot of otherwise good stuff from ending up in the landfill. And all the money raised from the sale goes to the UT Campus Environmental Center to fund student-led environmental projects. Not bad, eh?

The Trash to Treasures Garage Sale happens Sunday (August 22) from 9am to 3pm at the UT Recreational Sports Center, 21st and San Jacinto.

The key is to get there early. Most of the really good stuff goes fast. Shoppers know this. However, to sort of separate the serious bargain hunters from the amateurs, there’s a small entrance fee in the early hours– $4 for regular people, and $2 for current UT students. After 10:30, it’s free to enter.

Have a good time, and here’s hoping you find that perfect lamp for the bed side table.

Photo used under  Creative Commons from bark.

It feels good to be healthy

We all want to live a happy, healthy life. And Mosaic at Mueller wants to help you!

On Thursday, August 12 we’re bringing together the resources you need to stay healthy, look good, feel great and live the good life. And we promise you’ll have a fun time, too.

Join us at the Mosaic clubhouse for free chair massages from Whole Family Chiropractors. Eye Masters will be there, offering free optical screening. Pediatric Dentist and Dental Smiles will be handing out freebies.

Eastside Yoga will be there, as will Pilot House Coffee, Greenling Organic Foods and Certified Personal Trainer Eric McMurray.

And did we mention the free chair massages?

Live music will be provided  by Peter Minda.

We’ll also have a raffle– tickets are $5– to benefit HAAM, (Health Alliance For Austin Musicians), an organization that helps provide affordable health care for Austin’s low income musicians.

And chair massages. Free ones.

Come on down,  and bring your friends.

It happens from 6:30 to 8:30 this Thursday, August 12 at the Mosaic at Mueller Clubhouse.

Please RSVP by e-mailing mosaicmgr@greystar.com.

(Chair massages.)

Photo used under Creative Commons from julien haler.

You could help brighten a child's day at Dell Children's Medical Center

Mosaic at Mueller is obviously very conveniently located for anyone who works at Dell Children’s Medical Center. But you don’t have to have a medical degree, or even have employment at the hospital to be involved in the good work done there.

The Hospital has a number of programs for volunteers to provide very important services to the young patients and their families, as well as the medical staff.

The volunteer jobs for adults range from manning the information desk to assisting customers in the hospital toy shop and coffee shops, serving in the hospital’s resource library and even playing with– and occasionally comforting– the children during their hospital stay.

The Hospital will ask that you commit to a certain number of hours per week, but it could be a very rewarding experience,  and it would certainly be a very short commute from Mosaic at Mueller.

Go to the Dell Children’s Medical Center’s volunteer web page for more information. on the programs.

Photo used under Creative Commons from adwriter.

Head to Zilker Park for a musical under the stars

It took a while, but summer finally arrived in Austin. We mean the REAL summer– with temps scraping up against the 100 degree mark.

It’s too hot to spend much time in Zilker Park during daylight hours. But it’s a great time to be there after dark– for a show.

Continuing a 52-year tradition of outdoor summer musicals in Austin, Zilker Theatre Productions is presenting the much beloved Annie.

Zilker Theater Productions is a non-profit organization that produces the annual musicals for the sheer love of it. And they do an amazing job. They also do a lot to keep Zilker Park’s Hillside Theater in good shape–  including improvements to its wheelchair accessibility.

Annie is on stage Thursday through Sunday evenings through August 14. Curtain time  is about 8:30 (sundown). It’s free– and a lot of fun. See the comments audience members are leaving on Zilker Theatre Production’s Facebook fan page.

Zilker Park’s Hillside Theater is an easy drive from Mosaic at Mueller.

Kathy Griffin claims she is, but with her recent popularity, she is fast approaching A-List status.  And she is coming to The Long Center in Austin, TX on Thursday, August 5^th.  Her sassy wit, and flowing red hair will make for a comical good time when she arrives in town.

August 5th, The D-List comes to Austin, TX

With a set of Jokes ranging from skits about her mother, other pop icons and the current state of the U.S.A., this performance is sure to pack a punch!

Kathy also works as an actress, voice character and pop culture commentator.  Little known fact is that she even made a cameo appearance in 1994’s Pulp Fiction.  While her current claim to fame is her hit show on the Bravo Channel, My Life On The D-List

Tickets will range from $49-$89, but if you get a front row seat, prepare to be roasted by one of the finest comedians we have today!

Everyone knows the best fireworks show in town will happen Sunday night over Town Lake. Lots (and lots) of people will gather at Auditorium Shores to enjoy the Austin Symphony’s annual concert of patriotic music and then the fireworks.

But here’s a new place to check out the fireworks, and enjoy music more in a bluesy funky vein. It’s the Fourth of July Celebration at Seaholm Power Plant.

Live (very funky) music will be provided by T Bird and the Breaks and the Bright Light Social Hour and Til We’re Blue or Destroy. There will also be plenty of great food, cold beer and soft drinks. And this will be a terrific spot for watching the fireworks over the lake.

Admission is free, but donations will be gratefully accepted to benefit Anthropos Arts, a non-profit organization that brings professional musicians into low-income middle and high schools to teach free music lessons.

The festivities begin at 4pm and continue until the end of the fireworks. It’s all ages and family-friendly, too. Access to Seaholm Power Plant is at 214 West Ave. There will be valet parking available, we’re told.

(Power Plant photo: Some rights reserved, Evan Doyle)

Excuse us while we toot our own horn

You might notice some particularly big grins on our faces in the office today.

That’s because Mosaic at Mueller was named Property of the Year in our category by the Austin Apartment Association.

We were up against ten other excellent Austin apartment communities. But it wasn’t just a popularity contest. All the nominees received an up close inspection by a team of industry experts. But also, a secret team of judges also made anonymous visits to all the communities to request tours.

We are extremely proud of this achievement. But it just means that we’ll have to work even harder so that the 2011 trophy will be ours, too.

So, let’s get started. How can we make Mosaic at Mueller an even better place to live?

Thank you for living at Mosaic at Mueller. We have the best residents in the world.

I don't have one of these

We all know that Austin is the center of the music universe. We have SXSW and the Austin City Limits Festival every year.

But you have to give credit to the organizers of the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival. It just might be the biggest and bestest music festival in the country. It’s huge. And it always has a terrific, eclectic line up of bands to see.

It’s happening this weekend in Manchester, Tennessee. Unfortunately, I’m not going, and apparently neither are you.

Too bad. But there is a nice little consolation prize for us. National Public Radio is offering a free sampler of songs from performers scheduled for this year’s Bonnaroo.

Yes. It’s free. If you don’t already have an iTunes account, you’ll have to register for one in order to download. But other than that, there are no strings attached.

It’s eleven tracks by eleven excellent bands that are among the up-and-comers of the festival, including The Black Keys, Ozomatli,  The Dodos, and others. Don’t worry if you don’t know these bands. I’m reasonably hip, and I only knew two of the artists on the list. The music is all at the very least interesting, and it’s FREE. You have nothing to lose but a few minutes of bandwidth.

NPR’s Bonnaroo music sampler will be available for download through July 31. Click –> here <– to go to the relevant NPR web page.

(Photo: Some rights reserved, Amy L. Riddle)

Don't forget the sunscreen

Will we be seeing you at the Mosaic at Mueller pool this weekend? It certainly is a great place to relax when you have some down time, and we suspect you’ll be spending more time in the sun now that summer is here.

Of course, you’ll be protecting your skin from the intense Texas  sun. So, let’s clear up a common misconception about sunscreen.

We all know too much sun exposure can lead to skin cancer, as well as leathery skin. So, it’s important to get highest SPF rating we can when we buy sunscreen. Right?

Wrong.

There’s actually some evidence that higher SPF sunscreen can paradoxically lead to less sun protection. It’s not a problem with the sunscreen. It a problem with human behavior. When using super high SPF sunscreen, we often let our guard down by applying too little sunscreen, and we are lax about reapplying it throughout the day.

Plus, many of us don’t understand what the SPF numbers mean. A rating of 100 is not twice as good as a rating of 50. Actually, the higher you go on the SPF scale, the less added protection you receive. After you pass a certain point, any added SPF value is pretty minimal.

The consensus seems to be that anything from SPF15 to SPF30 is going to be plenty. If you’re especially fair skinned, stay on the high side of that scale. But there’s really no need to purchase super high SPF sunscreen.

What’s more important, regardless of the SPF, is that you apply the sunscreen liberally… and often.

Read all about SPF factors, and about the different chemicals used in sunscreen in this WebMD article. It also has some advice on what brands to consider.

(Photo: Some rights reserved, Teresa  Rodríguez)