Did you see him? Were you blessed by his presence? Only a few people each year are so lucky, so count yourself among the exalted, the transcendent. If you have no idea what I am talking about, let me fill you in. Each year, Austin hosts a cultural arts festival known as SXSW or South By Southwest. The 10 day event features music, films, tech bros, and above all, it offers an opportunity for people around the world to observe Austin’s very own crytpid. Like Bigfoot or the chupacabra, more people claim to have seen him than truly have and the stories of these experiences are run wide, often entering the realm of the mystical. We are, of course, referring to Elijah Wood.
Cryptid: an animal whose existence or survival to the present day is disputed or unsubstantiated; any animal of interest to a cryptozoologist.
If you didn’t see the cryptid of Austin while you were here for SXSW, you missed out. However, we didn’t want you to go without a truly wonderful, life-changing experience, so we created a game for you to try and spy the cryptid on your own. You can then tell people that you got to have one of the rarest experiences at SXSW when you’re gathering around the drink robot at your office in Silicon Valley or whatever.
Let’s play SPOT THE CRYPTID.
Can you spot him at the capitol?
What’s he doing there? Maybe seeing how a bill becomes law.
Can you spot him at UT?
What’s he doing there? Maybe he is doing some research on his next role or learning more about Jolkien Rolkien Rolkien Tolkien.
Can you spot him on South Congress?
What’s he doing there? Gotta get a breakfast taco. He really is just like us.
Can you spot him amongst the bat viewers?
What’s he doing there? Probably just visiting some friends.
Finally, can you spot him at Barton Springs? Hint: Frodo always loved sweet back flips.
What’s he doing there? Living his damn life to the fullest, that’s what.
There, now you can brag about this to your friends. You’re welcome.
This was created by Nathan Ellwood, who loves a good cryptid spotting, although its usually other people seeing him and not the other way around. Follow him @NPEllwood.