Austin GDC is next week, Sept. 5-8. I’ll be going. Are you going? That’s great.

Here are some things to do in Austin besides aimlessly wander the halls of the Austin Convention Center. Will be updated as I think of or realize other stuff. Not saying anyone should have enough time to do all this within a span of three days already filled to the brim with convention-related events, but I bet you’ll wish you could.

It’ll probably still be hot, and it might rain. The parking isn’t free, either, but the bus service almost is. Have fun, and be safe. Welcome to Texas, the weirdest state in the union, and its especially weird capital.

Go see movies. This is what I go to Austin to do; this is what I most often end up doing when I’m in Austin. While there are several theaters, most of them connected to malls or large shopping centers, the city is most defined by the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema chain and the Dobie Landmark. The latter is located in the Dobie Mall, in the Dobie Center just south of the University of Texas-Austin campus.

The Alamo is an Austin treasure. Adults only, buy beer and a wide menu beyond popcorn and M&Ms, though they have those, too. (Get the creme brulee and pretend every movie is Amelie.) All kinds of special programming, most of which has traditionally been presented at the Downtown location — which is closed as of this writing, because it’s moving to the Ritz Theater on Sixth Street. (Read about that here.) Fans who remember the original “Mister Sinus Theater” show will be pleased to know that a reduced version with the same format and one original member, John Erler, continues as Master Pancake Theater. Spoofs of “The Day After Tomorrow” will be playing at the Alamo Village location on Wednesday, Sept. 5, at 7 and 10:15 p.m.

Besides having normal-run movies, there are quote a few available that can’t be seen just anywhere. The city’s free entertainment weekly, The Austin Chronicle, has a convenient list by theater as well as by names of films. (And if you pick up last week’s issue, you get to see a painting of Richard Garriott in Tabula Rasa gear. Hilarious.) Here’s just a few:

• The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters. Documentary about the two contenders for the top score on Donkey Kong.
• The Ten. Blasphemous screwball comedy about the Ten Commandments from the makers of Wet Hot American Summer.
• Rocket Science. Nerdy coming-of-age flick. Kid stutters a lot in debate class.
• This Is England. About the rise of skinhead-ism in England, from the perspective of a kid who grows up in a local gang.
• No End In Sight. Kind of like Fahrenheit 9/11, but only about the Iraq war and how a few people knew what was going on at the time of the coalition invasion, but others ignored them. And no one’s trying to make propaganda this time.
• Black Sheep. Weta Digital does a horror comedy about their home country of New Zealand. Were-sheep! Zombie sheep! Craving human flesh! See at the Alamo and order from the special menu, including lamb kabobs!

Go watch the bridge bats. Austin is home to the largest urban bat colony in the world. About a million tiny Mexican free-tail bats roost in the expansion notches under the Congress Avenue bridge (now known as the Gov. Ann Willis Richards Memorial Bridge) that crosses a dammed-up widened spot of the Colorado River, (also known as Town Lake, and most recently known as Lady Bird Johnson Lake.) Every night at sundown, they gradually fly out and go eat bugs. Best natural insecticide ever, great free entertainment.

Best places to watch are on the walkways atop the bridge, or on plots of land on the south side of the lake. Read more here.

Go see the Capitol. Yeah, you could do that. Lots of history in there. Be sure and find the statue on the grounds that blames the end of the Civil War on “coercion” by the North.

Go see the Texas History Museum. Great stuff. Only IMAX theater in town, plus you can learn everything from the independence war with Mexico to the Apollo missions in the main hall. The second-floor mezzanine has a feature on Bob Bullock, the museum’s namesake.

Go see some live music. Austin calls itself the Live Music Capital of the World, so there’s always shows going on all over town. Check out the Chronicle’s list, there’s too many to plug here. AGDC comes one week before Austin City Limits, one of the city’s two major annual music events, so the caliber isn’t quite up to snuff.

Watch some slam poetry. Seriously.

Go have a coffee. There will be Starbucks available for sale at stands inside AGDC, but there are other options, some close by and some not so far. Austin Java, Halcyon and Jo’s Coffee are recommended, as is BookPeople, which has a coffee bar and an excellent selection of books.

Go barhopping. Plenty of that to go around. The Cedar Door is closest to the convention center, but there’s all of Sixth Street and most of Fourth Street as well — just don’t hit the south side of the latter unless, well, unless you swing that way.

Nathan Black thinks the Red River district is coming into its own nowadays. He’s got a guide to it, called Austin Underground.

See a play. Lots of that, too. Not that I’m an expert, but one or two sounded interesting to me.

Go play Guitar Hero II. Or, just watch other people play, at 7 p.m. Wednesday at Creekside Lounge. The local IGDA chapter is organizing it. It was a lot of fun last year, and this is going to be a bigger venue. (Thanks to Nathan for reminding me.)

Go eat something. Barbecue? Salt Lick, though Rudy’s, Artz Rib House and Stubb’s. Tex-Mex? Chuy’s. Lots more, though I’m not the expert. There are even options if you don’t eat meat, though this link doesn’t have directions. Thankfully, I consulted an expert:

• Veggie Heaven (restaurant): 1914 Guadalupe St. # A (on “The Drag” next to UT’s campus)
• Mr. Natural (grocery, freshly prepared dishes, smoothies, ice cream): 1901 E Cesar Chavez St. (east of I-35) and 2414 S Lamar Blvd (south of downtown and the river)
• Wheatsville Food Co-op (grocery, deli, freshly prepared dishes): 3101 Guadalupe St. (about 2 miles from the UT campus)
• Dhaba Joy (coffee, vegan desserts and sandwiches): 2900 Guadalupe St. (near Wheatsville, close to UT)
• Bouldin Creek Coffeehouse (restaurant, coffee and drinks): 1501 S 1st St. (south of the downtown and the river)
• Whole Foods (grocery, freshly prepared dishes, deli): 525 N Lamar Blvd. (on Lamar and 6th. Editor’s note: Their CEO is a huge jerk.)
• Thai Passion (Thai restaurant):620 Congress Ave #105 (off Congress and 6th)
• Titaya’s (Thai restaurant): 5501 N Lamar Blvd #C101 (north of downtown and south of 183, next to Half Price Books)
• Dog Almighty (hot dogs): 3005 South Lamar (south of the river)