Twitter – For the birds.
No, really, it’s for the birds. For months, my smart phone-, Mp3-, cable-less self was reluctant to join, even explore the world of Twitter. Constant updates on Lindsay Lohan’s latest faux pas? No, thanks. I only signed up for the service in January as a way to keep track of some politicos in the statehouse…
I ate one Skittle today…
My sister Natalie is awesome. (Both of my sisters are awesome, of course, but only one of them is relevant to this post.) A dietician by trade and an avid fitness enthusiast, Natalie recently turned me on to an online tool that holds a lot of promise for my future fitness. For a very long…
Outkast and the eternal glory of
Big Boi formerly of the hip-hop Beatles, actually known as Outkast, just released his stupendous solo album, “Sir Lucious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty.” It’s really good, and it lends even more credence to the rumors of an Outkast reunion. Which is the greatest thing ever. I’m not the world’s biggest Outkast fan.…
Green for governor
If you knew where to look you might have seen him – bearded, bespectacled and biking through Springfield. Looking more like a college professor than a politician, the Green Party candidate for governor, Rich Whitney, spent May 20 through 28 riding his bike and various trains on a 650-mile tour across the state to promote…
Opening the books
A limited government group is asking District 186 schools to give community members more information before seeking a sales tax increase in the November election. Americans for Prosperity, a conservative anti-tax advocacy group, last week sent school board members a letter requesting that they consider developing an online check register, a database that would provide…
Many want micro loans
Having a great idea does not an entrepreneur make. Turning an idea into profit takes business acumen and quite often a little bit of start-up cash. That’s the idea behind a micro loan program administered by the Springfield Black Chamber of Commerce with the Quantum Growth Partnership, The Springfield Project, The Springfield Chamber of Commerce,…
Shrimp and Corn Soup
Shrimp and corn soup is as commonly found as gumbo on Cajun restaurant menus. Most – in fact, all – recipes I’ve seen for this classic use canned creamed corn, and usually canned corn as well. I developed this recipe using only fresh (or fresh-frozen) corn. The puréed corn has a surprisingly velvety texture and…
Two famous Unitarians
Sunday service includes a program by Springfield Psychiatrist Jeff Bennett and local author Rodd Whelpley. They will discuss Dorothea Dix and Sylvia Plath, two Unitarian women whose experiences with mental illness offer us models of creative compassion and empathy for the plight of people who struggle with inner turmoil. Dix was a social reformer for…
Letters to the Editor 7/15/10
PREVENTION EDUCATION This is an excellent article [“Gaining on drunk drivers,” by Jolonda Young, July 8]. However, there is a key piece that is missing – alcohol prevention education. Tougher laws, stricter enforcement, etc. are all deterrents to keep drunk drivers off our roads but without proper education and awareness the impact may not be…
A family farm’s market
Just a short 15-minute drive northwest of Springfield is a unique roadside market that offers freshly picked sweet corn, a variety of garden-fresh produce and Illinois agriculture products. Seaney Farms, at 10544 State Highway 97, Tallula, is owned and operated by Roy and Beth Seaney. In 1985, Roy moved from Newfield, N.Y., to a 325-acre…
Pay raises show Quinn doesn’t get it
I was talking to my mom on the phone last week and just as I was about to hang up she stopped me short and insisted that we talk about Gov. Pat Quinn’s bigtime raises to his top staff. If you’ve missed the story, Quinn gave out raises of as much as 20 percent to…
Predators reboot a pleasant, gory surprise
Up is down and hot is cold during this summer movie season. Films that have looked like sure things have failed while those that shouldn’t work have come out of left field to deliver the goods. Case in point: Nimrod Antal’s Predators, a pseudo-sequel/reboot of the sci-fi action franchise that manages to pump new life…
Dan Rivero Trio
Nary a band around can compete with the flexibility and diversity of the Dan Rivero Trio set list. For more than 15 years, Rivero as drummer, booker and organizer (and namesake as well) has steered his group through every kind of gig scenario one could imagine. With the variety of material available to the well-schooled…
Birth records opened, but not enough
Michelle Edmunds knows the problems that adoptees can face gaining access to their birth certificates. She was born in Illinois and currently lives in Toronto and wanted to retrieve her birth certificate after her mother died. When she attempted to access the document, she was told that she would need to prove her mother’s death…
NEED A HAIRCUT?
Here’s a riddle: What is red and always in high demand? The answer could be a lot of things, but the most important answer is blood. The American Red Cross estimates that only 3 out of every 100 Americans give blood, yet more than 38,000 pints of blood are used to save lives every day.…
A vision for Illinois: reviving manufacturing
I am the Democratic candidate for Congress in the 19th District. I first ran for Congress in 2004. A part of my platform at that time looked 20 years into the future toward the construction of commuter rail lines linking the communities of Mt. Vernon, Vandalia, Salem and Centralia to the Bi-State Metro system that…
Reassembling America’s democracy
On the Fourth of July, we celebrated Jefferson, Franklin, Adams, Madison and all the other great men who created our democracy, right? Not exactly. The founders did create the framework for a democratic republic, but they didn’t create much democracy. Indeed, in America’s first presidential election, only 4 percent of the people were even eligible…
Romantic musical
Theatre in the Park and Over the Moon Productions debut The Light in the Piazza, a musical with a critically acclaimed, award-winning score. Set during the summer of 1953, mother and daughter, Margaret (Cynda Wrightsman) and Clare (Kelsi Frost), travel to Italy where Clare falls for a young, handsome Florentine Fabrizio Naccarelli (Harry Williams) and…
Wine with white meat
The advertising graphic for this dinner and musical performance is a classic — a hog in cowboy boots holding a wine glass. If that doesn’t tweak your senses enough to drive you downtown for the evening, consider that for only $20 (even less if you pre-order) you get a pork entrée with one side made…
Illinois’ Imelda
First, the public confession. “My name is Milorad Blagojevich, and I’m a shopaholic.” Next comes the recovery, and the book recounting how he hit bottom – a landing cushioned by piles of $200 neckties but painful nonetheless – and then the announcement that he’s been named host of the daytime talk show on Lifetime. Finally.…
Visiting vehicles
The Springfield Park District brings out the big vehicles to Lincoln Park so kids and their families can see some of the machines up close. Attendees can learn how a firetruck operates, how a helicopter lands or how a tractor works. You won’t want to miss this opportunity to Touch a Truck. Touch a TruckSaturday,…
Springfield’s finest
View art throughout the rooms of the historic grand old Springfield home, The Virgil Hickox House, located above Norb Andy’s. Fine art by Felicia Olin (pictured is Inner Sanctuary, above the building’s fireplace), organizer Michael Mayosky, Jeff Williams, Eric Fliege, Melanie Edmondson, Philip Ackerman and many more will be on display and for sale. You…
Supe’s on
I met Michael Granda, known to the world as “Supe du Jour,” in 1990 while playing around 2:30 a.m. at Bruce’s Tavern. Supe, bassist for and a founding member of the Ozark Mountain Daredevils (celebrating 40 years as a band in 2011), had a beer tent gig for the duration of the Illinois State Fair…
Gulf tragedy gets personal
“The Cajun…. may be forgiven for being proud: for at one time he was the “poor folks” of the swamps. Then he took a land that nobody else wanted and turned it into something special: he made it his.”- From The Longest Street by Tanya Brady Ditto It’s personal for me – the Gulf oil…
Despicable buoyed by clever script
Clever, sentimental and oh so funny, Despicable Me has its heart in the right place as it reminds us that Pixar isn’t the only studio capable of delivering a solid animated feature. Sporting an aesthetic reminiscent of “The Addams Family” cartoons, the film deals with a villain who’s not as bad as he thinks he…
POINTING THE WAY
It’s not pretty, but it works, says Jeremy Thomas about a spray-painted, plywood sign pointing customers toward Norb Andy’s Tabarin. About seven months after Thomas and his business partner opened the pub last October, crews demolished Capitol Avenue between Fifth and Sixth Streets, where Norb Andy’s sits. Thomas says that before construction began business was…
