There is, let’s be honest here, just too much fun to have/see/do in Austin this weekend (poor pitiful us, right?). The Austin Film Festival has been going great guns since Thursday evening, with a couple of screenings this afternoon we’re looking forward to immensely — Katsuhiro Otomo’s mind-bogglingly gorgeous anime “Steamboy” and James Wan’s “Saw,” an powerful horror show starring no less than the Dread Pirate Roberts himself, Cary Elwes (who was going to be in attendance but has cancelled for unknown reasons). Last night held a blistering live show from PhD punk rockers Bad Religion which was followed, we kid you not, by old skool hiphoppery from De La Soul right across the street. During lunch today at the lovely and historic Driskill Hotel we eyeballed everyone from Garry Shandling to Shane “The Last Action Hero and all four Lethal Weapons” Black, and, we could only presume, a raft of soon to be outrageously successful screenwriters madly downing espresso shots and trying in vain to manage the requisite festival hangovers. And to top it off, today is Blue Dog Rescue’s “Dogtoberfest” at the Arts District pub The Ginger Man (http://www.bluedogrescue.com/dogtoberfest.htm for all the particulars).

Dogs, beer, film, and more dogs. Is this heaven or what? (However, we really need to get working on that 36-hour-day proposal to add much-needed sleeping time to Austin’s madhouse social schedule…).