It’s been a long time since we’ve had a Missed Connection post–winter, to be exact. But with the temperature rising, it isn’t surprising that the weather isn’t just causing sweat glands to react. It seems excess sun and  exposed skin also inspire poetic hearts to flutter. And instead of trying to stutter out affections, a lot of Austinites are hitting up the Craig’s List Missed Connections.

Yup, it seems the beautiful weather (and a little flesh) inspired THREE Austinites to write poems on their quest for lost love. To help them find that special someone, we’re spotlighting their personal ads in a very artsy Hipster Poetry Edition of Missed Connections.

The Birds and the Bees

Barbers, stylists or hairdressers, we trust these fine folk to make us look good. Month after month we see them, and over time, we build a relationship that goes beyond the haircut. And only our stylist (and the people we’ve slept with) know whether the carpet matches the drapes.

Maybe it was the combination of these–and a lively discussion about carnal treasures–that turned this Birds customer into a friseurphile. Check it:

Our Advice: Look for a ring. No ring? Ask her if she wants to grab a drink sometime. Get the drink, be cool, and then later she might let you take your pontoon and dig for carnal treasures.

Mustache Wax My Battle Axe

Cycling in the heat means wearing as little as possible. And while baring exposed legs on bikes may be questionably legal in New York, here in Austin we wear our jorts with pride. But did a flash of flesh convert this gipster into a fixie fetishist?

We were able to find a sketch of this missed connection’s hottie:

Our Advice: Get a bike and hit the Thursday Night Social Ride. The guys are pretty open-minded, occasionally visiting the gay bars after the ride. Still too scared to hit on them? You’ll have plenty of masturbation material after the nights when the ride ends at Barton Springs. But if actually riding a bike is too much work, check out Cheer Up Charlie’s, Austin’s East Side gipster mecca. BTW: Unless he’s using coconut oil to wax his stache, you might not want to do any sautéing with it.

Love in the Time of Fixed Gears

A fixie is more than just a fixed-gear bicycle, it represents a way of life. A rejection of mainstream consumerist society, a fixie tells the world that you don’t give an eff about material things or social status. And for our next missed connection, it also includes sharing Lonestar and freewheeling through traffic on a quest to find some summer lovin.

Our Advice: Pockets full of numbers? Almost as cool? Sounds like you’ve got a lot of esteem, but what’s really keeping you from putting the moves on this hottie? Wear jeans that aren’t quite so tight, and maybe you’ll have enough balls to actually hit on her instead of just talking about it. And if she shoots you down, drink a few more Lonestars and answer the ad from the dude above

Are Fixies the new Ferraris?

Are jorts hotter than normal shorts?

Can you really tell penis size by the number of keys on a carabiner?

Where’s the best place in Austin to find free mustache rides?

.

Find something Austin-related that you want to share? Photos, screen shots, articles, news? Email us at tips@republicofaustin.com.

Want more RoA? Be our friend on Facebook. Add our RSS feed! [what’s that?]. Start your morning with Republic of Austin in your InBox. Or read us 24-7 on Twitter!

Chris chats with Alison Narro about her new ad campaign and love of facial hair.

We have a lot of great photobooth photographers in this city. You see ‘em at parties. You post their photos on your Facebook. You try to hide them from your mom.

One of my favorite photographers is Alison Narro. She brings a studio feel to the photobooth genre. And while her style gives her photos a classic feel, her subjects are anything but. In fact, Alison’s favorite subject to photo are dudes with beards and mustaches. She’s even a member of the Austin Facial Hair Club.

Alison was recently commissioned by Bird’s Barbershop to do a series of portraits showcasing everyday people who get their hair cut at the local barbershop. Shot at the various Bird’s locations over four days, the photos do a great job of giving zine like sensibilities to an advertising campaign. Scroll down to see a few of our favorites. This weekend, Alison will be displaying some of the fun outtakes from the series at Bird’s on East 6th.

WATCH: In the four-minute video below, we meet Alison at Liberty and chat about the Bird’s campaign and her undying love of facial hair.

EXPERIENCE: “Art and Outtakes by Alison Narro” (05.22.10); Bird’s East (1107 E 6th, 78702); 5-7P; Free snacks and adult bevskis; Facebook Event

Like what you see? Be our friend on Facebook. Add our RSS feed! [what’s that?]. Start your morning with Republic of Austin in your InBox. Or read us 24-7 on Twitter!

Chris talks to Rev. Julie Gallagher, AKA the Squirrel Lady of Town Lake

Last Thursday, Jasmine and I met up with Rachel, our new Personal Finance blogger, to pop her First Thursday cherry.  Yup, just like Jasmine in June, Rachel had never been to the monthly fiesta down on South Congress.  For the record, this was probably one of the craziest First Thursdays EVER, and we were glad she was a part of it!

Our first stop: Bird’s Barbershop for free mojitos and Lone Star.  They’re celebrating their inclusion into Elle Magazine’s 100 Top Salons with Ladies Month, featuring parties EVERY Thursday throughout the month of August.  After filling our glazzies with 3-D art and our bellies with a couple cold ones, we went back out into the 100+ heat to hit up some of the art booths.

Have y’all ever been out on Town Lake and seen the lady feeding the squirrels? Well, her name is Julie Gallagher and she’s got a booth in the lot between Vespaio and Austin Art Glass.  According to Mayan mythology, squirrels protect the sun, so Julie protects the squirrels to keep the universe in balance.  She also takes cute pictures of them to help promote peace. [Check out the full, unedited video interview with Julie here.]

Timothy Hassell plays his steel guitar in front on MamboBerry on South Congress

As we made our way North down South Congress, we were thrilled to encounter so many buskers out strumming and singing their little hearts out.  This magic quickly faded as the Free Huggers, out in full force this month, tried desperately to share their patchouli-coated warm fuzzies with us. Jasmine and I managed to successfully evade them, but Rachel was not so lucky.

Check out the video for a mind-boggling trip into the sights, sounds and people of August’s First Thursday.

Thanks to all of our readers who met us out. We had a great time and we’ll see you next month!

In the 3.5-minute video, try to spot the following:

• 

  Image of Jesus with squirrel by Julie Gallagher

  Squirrels in cute poses

• A steel guitar, a fiddle and some drums
• A poolside warning sign
• CareBear Tattoos
• Jas and Chris running from Huggers
• Fran, aka Kipp’s/Bob’s Big Boy’s kid sister

With rockin haircuts at affordable prices, it’s no wonder that Austin’s own Birds Barbershop has grown from one shop to four in 3-years.  And not only are the shops the coolest we’ve ever been to, but they also throw one heck of a party!  Case in point: Last Friday’s opening party for the South Congress Shop.

Since the murals for this shop are all in 3-D, the theme for the party was, um, 3-D!  They handed out Birds customized 3-D glasses, and (apparently) played 3-D movies.  Although Noe found the 3-D photo booth, I managed to miss it completely; I was too obsessed with trying to win a Lone Star Coozie from the Skill Crane.

The lyrical stylings of Seattle-based rapper Astronautalis were the highlight of the evening.  His rhymes were totally based on themes and words suggested by the audience.  You can watch three minutes of his set in the video, below, to see him rap about Tupac, the Swine Flu and 3-D.  As if that wasn’t enough, you can also check out pics from the event.  Imagine a hot, steamy room with the scent of sweat and booze, and you’re practically there!

Thanks, Birds Barbershop, Lone Star, Tito’s and Sweet Leaf Tea for a great evening!

3-D glasses and coins for the crane

Trying to line up the Skill Crane and get that Lone Star Coozie

Birds logo in 3-D

The Birds' Crew takes a break from slingin drinks

Dayum, Birds is C-H-E-A-P!

The crowd watches Astronautalis