Could Dems take the State House this election? Related: Hail to the Hustle video on the right. So single-stream recycling has started, but when will there be a facility for it in Austin? South Congress gas stations seem to have the lowest gas prices in the city. Kurtiss Colvin sentenced to 10 years probation on an aggravated assault conviction. U.S. Transportation Secretary Peters is releasing $70 million in emergency funds to the state for......

Candidates for U.S. Senate Cornyn and Noriega will participate in a debate to be televised statewide on public television tomorrow evening (KLRU, 8pm). See Noriega and his mom cook Spanish rice in the video to the right. Record number of Austinites registered to vote in the crunch-time Oct. 6. Five people taken to Brackenridge Hospital after a multi-vehicle wreck on IH35 today. City of Austin sets up website to plug locally-owned small businesses. State Court of Criminal Appeals refuses to hear Pitonyak's case. Too bad if you wanted to get one of those fish pedicures in Texas. Death toll from Ike in Texas up to 37....

It's looking more and more likely that KXAN will go off Time Warner Cable at midnight. APD Chief Acevedo says that ARCH should be moved because it's too close to "temptation" for the homeless. Voter registration at ARCH is up this year. Hillary Clinton will be fundraising for Democratic candidate for Senate Rick Noriega in McAllen tonight. AG Abbott suing two hotels for price-gouging during Ike....

Schoolkids from Allison Elementary found a used needle in an outside restroom during their recess yesterday and played with it. 2 young soldiers from Ft. Hood arrested after joy flying(?) a stolen plane and then crashing it into some mailboxes in Killeen. Texas Supreme Court rejects Libertarian Presidential candidate. Bob Barr's lawsuit. Galveston ends state of emergency declaration, but now may go under a "state of disaster". Homeowners in Bridge City finding jellyfish displaced by Ike in their pools....

UT game + ACL Fest + Ike evacuees = a hard time finding a hotel or motel room for this weekend. FEMA setting up a disaster center off of 12th Street to help Ike evacuees register for aid. Rep. McCaul won't participate in a debate (hosted by the Statesman) with the two other candidates running for his current position in the House. Former staffers from Ron Kirk's Senate campaign now working for Obama. Stevie Ray Vaughan not chosen for Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility. Bobbie Lee Nelson on playing with brother Willie and releasing her first solo album at the age of 77....

Deadline approaches for evacuees to leave Austin Convention Center. APD officers head to Houston to help police streets. Some Ike victims may not be allowed to rebuild. Polls show Palin is starting to drag down McCain. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson to take "tactical steps" in dealing with financial woes. Stocks soar worldwide on U.S. action. Here is the music lineup for the Pecan Street Festival this weekend. Happy Friday to all.......

Central banks doing their part to help world's money markets And just how did we get into this mess, again? AP isn't handing hacked Palin emails over to the Secret Service. Rachel Maddow on McCain and the women's vote (video). Are you a C.J. or a Charlie? Ike has claimed 55 lives - 6 of those in Texas. Use of female suicide bombers growing more prevalent in Iraq.......

Capital Area Food Bank still needs your help and donations for Ike evacuees. The Office of the Attorney General warns Texas hurricane victims to be wary of possible clean-up scams. Bob Barr (Libertarian candidate for Prez) suing to get McCain and Obama's names removed from the Texas ballot. One of the largest drug seizures in American history today; 175 suspects arrested (22 of them from the North Texas area.) Police looking for 3 men who assaulted a CapMetro driver in August....

Searching for a generator in Houston. Haunting photo-set of Ike-affected areas. After slight delay, FEMA has set up distribution spots in Houston. The state is running distribution centers in harder hit areas of Texas. Galveston says that current conditions are reaching a public health crisis. Some Galveston evacuees in Austin won't go back. AISD trying to figure how many student evacuees will enroll into classes here, even temporarily. Austin Children's Museum headed to Mueller....

The Capital Area Food Bank just put out an urgent call for emergency donations, saying that their donations are depleted, and that as of 2pm, no more emergency boxes could be filled onsite. They are using funds donated to buy more food, but if you are able to drop any food items off at the Food Bank, they are in desperate need of: peanut butter, canned meat (with pop-top lids), bottled water, and personal care......

As some Gulf Coast residents and evacuees grapple with what to do after Ike's landfall over the weekend, United Way Capital Area is in need of volunteers to staff the 2-1-1 Texas Call Center. The call center provides disaster response support statewide, and is especially necessary in such a time as now. Volunteers are needed to fill four-hour shifts (9am-noon, 1pm-5pm, 5pm-9pm) throughout the week. [Hands On Central Texas]......

Surfside Beach's last offer of escape before Ike hits land. Some Galveston residents linger as storm nears. 13 shelters open as evacuees continue to flow into Austin area. Resource Center opens Friday in Austin to train Ike volunteers. Houston to stare down Ike instead of evacuating. Current satellite image of Ike. Here is your weather for the weekend.......

It seems that the projected path for Hurricane Ike moved eastward overnight. Now instead of being smack in the middle of the path (as was projected yesterday), Austin appears to be on the farthest west edge of the path as Ike aims for Galveston. The hurricane is still expected to hit the Texas coast late Friday night and leave Austin residents with, at the least, a rainy weekend....

Texas prepares for Ike. The lipstick controversy continues.... So, Bin Laden wasn't the mastermind of 9/11? White House can't decide. 7th anniversary of 9/11 Excuse me, sir - what did you say? Woohoo! Party at the Interior Department, y'all! Good things come in small packages......

Uncle Sam takes guardianship of Fannie and Freddie Cuba: We Don't Like Ike We can put a man on the moon, but what's the deal with these damn elections? Kim Jong Il: For real? Palin, Gibson. Gibson, Palin. OMG it's BRITNEY Y'ALL! Judge: Don't come in here like BRITNEY, Y'ALL! ...