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5 ways to keep your cool in the scorching Texas heat at Austin City Limits Fest weekend 2

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5 ways to keep your cool in the scorching Texas heat at Austin City Limits Fest weekend 2


Texas heat feels like death, no doubt about it. Nevertheless, us die-hard music aficionados bear the sun’s burden to celebrate our favorite performers at Austin City Limits Music Festival. To avoid a dreaded visit to the medical tent, here are five helpful tips to stay cool during your conquest of the outdoor music communion.

1. A good ole’ fashion reusable water bottle to refill at water stations

It’s imperative to stay hydrated lest you pass out after baking in the sun. Come to the festival with a reusable water bottle. You can’t bring liquids inside, so we recommend chugging your bottle while you wait in line. Once you make it past the gates, head for the water stations around the park to fill your bottle with ample water and refill between sets when trekking to your next stage. A good ole’ fashion water bottle is indispensable at times like this.

2. Stay vibey with Liquid IV or other hydration packets

Thank god for technological innovation. The automobile. The cotton gin. Magic hydration powders choc full of electrolytes and vitamins. While powders like Liquid IV are essential to ease hardcore hangovers, that doesn’t mean you can’t pregame these Kool-Aid counterparts as well. Downing this supplement before you go out drinking and throughout the day will give your body an extra boost of hydration to curb looming alcohol withdrawal and prevent a bad dehydration headache. Even if you don’t plan to drink alcohol the packets are helpful for rapid hydration. Single use sealed hydration packets are allowed in the park.

3. Be a savvy fan with a handheld fan

Standing in the heat is brutal, but having a fan of some kind is essential for long wait times. Luckily, ACL plants huge industrial fans in front of their stages for fans camping out at the barricade, but for those farther back in the crowd a personal paper or electric fan is clutch to keep cool. An accordion paper fan can shade your face from the sun, while electric fans are easy to hold near you face for a steady airstream. Just be mindful of how close you hold it so the blades don’t get tangled in your hair. It’s happened to me!

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4. Don’t go bananas, bring some water-soaked bandanas

Bandanas are a must have to survive Zilker’s dusty conditions, but soaking one in some water and slapping it on the back of your neck offers instant relief to skin that’s getting a beating from the sun. Placing a cool bandana on your pressure points (i.e. neck, inner elbows, back of knees) will quickly lower your body temp in a pinch. At some midday sets, the ACL staff will even hand out water-soaked bandanas to folks standing at the barricade wilting in the heat. When you go refill your water bottle, douse your bandana too for that extra boost of cool relief.

5. Skip stage view, opt for shady vantage points

We all want to get front and center for our favorite performer, but sometimes we need to weigh our options: get borderline heat stroke waiting for hours to score a plush spot for a headliner, or watch from a shady grove with some handy binoculars. In the afternoon, when the sun is at its peak, I would opt for the latter. Of course, you won’t get the detailed videos of your onstage fave, but you will definitely be thankful when that cool breeze hits under the shady tree that has turned Tartarus into a bearable garden oasis.



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Austin, TX

Judge Albright, who oversaw patent litigation boom in Texas, to resign

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Judge Albright, who oversaw patent litigation boom in Texas, to resign


U.S. District Judge Alan Albright, who before relocating to Austin, Texas, last year helped transform a tiny courthouse in Waco into a hub for much of the patent litigation in the United States, ​plans to resign, a person familiar with the matter said.



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Appeals court rules Texas can require public schools to display Ten Commandments in class

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Appeals court rules Texas can require public schools to display Ten Commandments in class


DALLAS (AP) — Texas can require the Ten Commandments to be displayed in public school classrooms, a U.S. appeals court ruled Tuesday in a victory for conservatives who have long sought to incorporate more religion into schools.

WATCH: Texas school board approves new course material that includes Bible passages

It sets up a potential clash at the U.S. Supreme Court over the issue in the future.

The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals said in the decision that the law did not violate the First Amendment, which protects religious freedom and prevents the government from establishing a religion.

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Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Republican, called the ruling “a major victory for Texas and our moral values.”

“The Ten Commandments have had a profound impact on our nation, and it’s important that students learn from them every single day,” Paxton said.

Organizations representing the families who challenged the law, including the American Civil Liberties Union, said in a statement that they were “extremely disappointed” by the decision.

“The court’s ruling goes against fundamental First Amendment principles and binding U.S. Supreme Court authority. The First Amendment safeguards the separation of church and state, and the freedom of families to choose how, when and if to provide their children with religious instruction. This decision tramples those rights,” the statement said.

The law is among the pushes by Republicans, including President Donald Trump, to incorporate religion into public schools. Critics say it violates the separation of church and state while backers argue that the Ten Commandments are historical and part of the foundation of U.S. law.

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The ruling, which reverses a district court’s judgment, comes after the full court heard arguments in January in the Texas case and a similar case in Louisiana. The appeals court in February cleared the way for Louisiana’s law, requiring displays of the Ten Commandments in public school classrooms. The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals voted 12-6 to lift a block that a lower court first placed on the law in 2024.

Texas law took effect on Sept. 1, marking the largest attempt in the nation to hang the Ten Commandments in public schools. About two dozen school districts had been barred from posting them after federal judges issued injunctions in two cases against the law but went up in many classrooms across the state as districts paid to have the posters printed themselves or accepted donations.

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Texas DMV launches authorization system for automated commercial vehicles

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Texas DMV launches authorization system for automated commercial vehicles


Waymo self-driving car navigating city traffic, San Francisco, California, August 20, 2024. (Photo by Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images)

The Texas Department of Motor Vehicles is launching a new authorization system for companies looking to operate automated motor vehicles.

A new goes into effect next month that requires companies using automated vehicles to be authorized by TxDMV with the following requirements:

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  • Complies with all applicable Texas traffic and motor vehicle laws
  • Is equipped with a recording device
  • Uses an automated driving system that complies with federal law
  • Can achieve minimal risk condition in the event of a system failure
  • Has a proper title and registration
  • Maintains motor vehicle insurance

The process allows companies to submit their applications online through the Texas Motor Carrier Credentialing System.

The new laws outlined in Senate Bill 2807 go into effect on May 28.

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Automated vehicles in Texas

The backstory:

Autonomous driving services are already operating in major Texas cities. Dallas, Houston, Austin and San Antonio are all serviced by the driverless ride-share company Waymo.

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In Austin, the service has received dozens of complaints about vehicles stalling, speeding and crashing.

There have also been complaints of vehicles illegally passing school buses.

In March, Swedish company Einride announced plans to bring autonomous freight trucks to Central Texas.

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The Source: Information in this article comes from the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles and previous FOX Local reporting.

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