Weekday warrior

Anthony Bourdain, some comedy and chocolate: What to do before Valentine's Day

Paramount Theater presents: Good vs. Evil: Anthony Bourdain & Eric Ripert.
The Best of Sex Ed with Owen at Alamo Ritz.
The Encyclopedia Show presents: PFLUGERVILLE! at ND@501 Studios
Beers for Books Bingo Night at Lavaca St. Bar.

The big game has come and gone, and it’s time you rebounded from your increased intake of chicken wings and beer, because there’s a lot of fun to be had before the weekend rolls around once again. From a handful of humor-centric offerings, to a few Valentine’s Day prerequisites, this is a week worth exploring. Here’s our weekly guide to keep you busy during the days that don’t start with S.

Monday, February 6th

Zzang!! Presents: Coming to America @ Alamo Ritz

Eddie Murphy may have fallen far from the glory of his 1980’s self (Meet Dave, anyone?), but it’s important to remember that before he portrayed a family of Klumps, he was a comedy staple. So kick back, get a Big Mc, and let your Soul Glo.

The Best of Sex Ed w/ Owen @ Alamo Ritz

The downtown Drafthouse is kicking the week off right it seems! Get into the groove of the workweek with this “rip roaring collection of some of the most bizarre sexual education films from the 1930's to modern day,” hosted by Owen Edgerton.

Tuesday, February 7th

Delysia Wine and Chocolate Pairing @ The Four Seasons Hotel

The chocolate feast known as Valentine’s Day will be here before you know it, and Four Seasons Sommelier Mark Sayre is pairing up with local Chocolatier Nicole Patel to present a wine and chocolate truffle pairing in the hotel lobby. Both will be on-site to explain the pairings, for those needing a little culinary curating.

Girlie Night Presents: Thelma and Louise @ Alamo Ritz

Girlie Night, the Alamo’s self-proclaimed monthly “Slumber Party” presents one of the greatest tales in female badassery that was ever told. Plus, catch Oscar-nominee Brad Pitt at his shirtless and denim-clad best.

Live TV Tuesday: Dr. Horrible’s Sing-along Blog @ The Highball

From the fine folks who brought Teen Angst Tuesday into our lives, comes DR. HORRIBLE LIVE, an all-singing, all dancing, staged production of Joss Whedon’s epic sing-along blog. So start practicing your harmonization, Captain Hammer fans, because the sexual innuendos aren’t going to sing themselves.

Wednesday, February 8th

Har Mar Superstar + Marijuana Deathsquads + Zorch @ Mohawk

Har Mar Superstar, easily one of the unlikeliest of R&B stars, takes the stage with fellow Minnesotans Marijuana Deathsquads, who have enlisted him to assist on their latest album, being recorded locally.

The Paramount Theater presents: Good vs. Evil: Anthony Bourdain & Eric Ripert

Foul-mouthed and outspoken, Anthony Bourdain has brought an edgy twist to televised culinary adventures, and The Paramount puts him toe-to-toe with Top Chef fixture and Le Bernadin owner Eric Ripert.

Thursday, February 9th

The Encyclopedia Show presents: PFLUGERVILLE! @ ND@501 Studios

The Encyclopedia show commissions local and touring artists and experts from all performance disciplines to present a different verbal encyclopedia entry each month. This month, they present an ad nauseam discussion of our unfortunately-named neighbors to the North — Pflugerville! Performers include Amy Gentry, Lesley Clayton, and the regular fixtures of the Encyclopedia Show cast.

Valentine’s GLBTQ RollerDisco @ Millennium Youth Entertainment Complex

Nothing says Happy Valentine’s Day like a little Roller Disco, so strap on those skates, practice your best backwards moves, and get your Xanadu on, because UNITE! is presenting this special event to bring Austin’s skate-loving LGBTQ community together.

Friday, February 10th

The Late Show Presents: Scott Pilgrim vs. The World @ Alamo Ritz

“We are Sex Bob-Omb! And we're here to watch Scott Pilgrim kick your teeth in! One-two-three-four!” Michael Cera musters all his nerd-courage to battle the seven evil exes of the enchanting Amazon delivery girl in this comic-turned-cinematic gem of a film.

Beers for Books Bingo Night @ Lavaca St. Bar

Libations for a good cause are always justifiable, right? Lavaca Street Bar will donate $1 from every beer and 50 cents from every Deep Eddy regular or sweet tea vodka to Room to Read’s Local Language Publishing program. Bingo will also be played – cards are $2 each or $5 for 3, with all proceeds going to Room to Read.

There you have it! You can drink for a cause, ogle Brad Pitt, and even Touch the Hammer, all before the work week wraps up.

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Self-driving Roller Coaster

More self-driving cars expected to roll out in Austin for 2025

Photo courtesy of Waymo via KVUE

Various brands offering self-driving cars are on-and-off in Austin.

Expect to see more self-driving rideshare vehicles, also known as robotaxis, on Austin roads next year.

Robotaxi company Waymo, which you may have already seen on Austin's roads, is partnering with Uber. At some point next year, customers will be able to use the Uber app to call a self-driving ride.

Austin-based company Avride is in the testing phase and plans to roll out its robotaxis next year.

Currently, Volkswagen ADMT and Amazon's Zoox are in the testing phase in Austin, while Hyundai's Motional is in the mapping phase.

Last year, robotaxi company Cruise paused operations in Austin after the California Department of Motor Vehicles revoked the company's permits to operate driverless vehicles in the state. And last week, General Motors said it would no longer fund the company because of the time and resources needed.

This way of getting around has come with its safety concerns and issues. The city is tracking those concerns. According to the Transportation Department, the problems span from blocking the roads and parking in front of people's homes for weeks with lights beaming through their windows, to actual wrecks.

Since July 2023, robotaxis have been involved in 75 incidents. Only 21 of those incidents happened in 2024. It's important to note that Cruise has not been operating in Austin this year.

Since July 2023, driverless rideshare vehicles have been involved in 22 near collisions, eight collisions and seven instances where driverless taxis ignored directions from the Austin Police Department (APD).

According to the data, at least four of those Austin police incidents happened in recent months. The issues varied from driving through police checkpoints, to malfunctioning and getting stuck at an APD road closure near pedestrians, causing safety concerns.

A Waymo spokesperson said their vehicles have gesture recognition capabilities, which they've been training APD officers on using.

As the report shows, sometimes it does not work and Waymo said it is working to improve that. The spokesperson said that as of just last week, Waymo's First Responder Program has been independently verified by TÜV SÜD, making Waymo the first autonomous vehicle (AV) company to receive third-party validation for our emergency response protocols. They also said the data to date indicates the Waymo Driver is already reducing traffic injuries and fatalities in the places where the company currently operates.

Read the full story and watch the video at KVUE.com.

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