My favorite Thai restaurant on earth is actually located in a strip mall near the Forest Creek subdivision in Round Rock. Thai Spoon is a gem of a restaurant, and frankly one of my 5 favorite places in the general Austin area to eat. The Panang Curry with Chicken, as hot as you can tolerate it, is the dish that made me head over heels in love with Thai food. I’ve had about 50% of their menu, and while I would not complain about a single dish, the Panang Curry is what I inevitably end up going back for time and again. It is one of the few reasons I would ever venture into the suburban wasteland known as Round Rock.

It has been a tough year for local legends. Louie Mueller, Poodie Locke, Stephen Bruton, Danny Young, James Stanish, The Beer Nazi, Farrah Fawcett, and some other people I am sure I am missing.

And the Austin I loved passes a little farther into the distance.

No, he’s saying that even greatness can emerge from the wretched hovel that is Austin High, and Dick Simcoe is an example of how one can overcome the great disadvantage of attending a shit school and still make something great of themselves.