Waste not more
I’ve been thinking a bit more about food waste, and the several ways it might be reduced, or at least redeemed. While it’s too wet to burn, food waste can be digested by our little friends the anaerobic bacteria to produce methane. (This happens in landfills, but the conversion under those conditions is inefficient and recovering…
Chest-thumping
Further thoughts about the Daily Herald’s forlorn search for a gubernatorial candidate who can “change Illinois history.” The paper believes it found one in Bruce Rauner. As I noted in last week’s column, Bruce Rauner cannot change Illinois history. Bruce Rauner cannot change even Springfield. He can, however, do as he promises and, shake up…
Downey Jr. and Duvall Struggle Mightily to save “Judge”
David Dobkin’s The Judge is a movie that has one thing and one thing only on its mind – to make its star Robert Downey Jr. look good. This should come as no surprise as this is the first film from the actor’s own production company. Obviously the directive was “Make the boss shine and…
“Dracula: Untold” a Worthy Addition to Vampire’s History
Other than Sherlock Holmes, Dracula has graced the silver screen more than any other fictional character. With that being the case, do we really need another movie featuring the cursed count from Transylvania? Probably not, but seeing as how movie studios love going back to proven properties in order to see just how much more…
“Alexander” an Effective Reminder of Our Blessings
We’ve all had them, those days when, not only do things go badly, but circumstances occur that are so outlandish, so catastrophic that we can’t possibly understand how they came to be. These are the days where you not only wish you’d never gotten out of bed but when you start thinking back on past…
“Men” Tripped up by Obvious Intentions
If director Jason Reitman wants you to take anything away from his new film Men, Women and Children, it’s the knowledge that the internet is a very bad thing, I mean a REALLY bad thing, an awful, irredeemable BAD THING! This Pandora’s Box of the 21st century is responsible for all of our societal ills…
vermontpoem #41
vermontpoem #41 this morning the lake is still no ripples mar the surface not even my own as I swim no little swallows (black tops white bellies) dip and wheel to catch their insect breakfast their name I think is “least swallow” usually there’s a dozen no rower in a swift skull near the far…
Grinning gourds
Jack-O-Lantern Spectacular The Jack-O-Lantern Spectacular returns for its 10th year Oct. 17-18. Inspired by a similar festival for professional artists in Providence, Rhode Island, the Springfield celebration will feature at least 2,014 pumpkins, hand-carved by local residents of all skill levels during the Carve for the Carillon event held the previous weekend. Pumpkins will be…
QUINN’S HENS
Harry Lewis with his “girls” on the mansion grounds The chickens have come home to roost at the governor’s mansion. Nine hens donated by a local woman came to live on the governor’s lawn in June, according to Harry Lewis, the mansion’s horticulturist. The chickens’ coop was first filled with leaves. From their scratching and…
Icon for Hire�
Icon for Hire Originally from Decatur, our neighbor city to the east, this ambitious and inventive combo creates pop-punk, near-rap, electronic-alternative rock music that reaches into the collective consciousness of American contemporary sounds. Calling this the Hometown Show on their Rock ‘N’ Roll Thugs tour, singer Ariel, guitarist Shawn Jump, bassist Josh Kincheloe (not always…
Future friend
Curses, foiled againSecurity guards at a Seattle department store had no trouble spotting a shoplifter. She was carrying 23 purses and handbags. When confronted, the woman dropped the items and ran. Police said the suspect re-entered the store by another entrance and grabbed eight more handbags and purses. A security guard stopped and handcuffed her…
October Oddities
Robert Sampson plays and discusses the blues at the Woodlawn Fall Festival near Jacksonville on Sat., Oct. 18. Many a word spent here in this column relates to our bar scene, where much of the live music happens in Springfield. Hence the “oddities” comment in our headline describing these out-of-bar experiences occurring this week. Often…
Stalking wild mushrooms
PHOTO BY LEBRAC FROM WIKIPEDIA.ORG “Stop the car!” exclaimed my daughter, Ashley, shortly after we left home. Hitting the brakes, I anxiously looked around. Both the woods on the left and fields and houses on the right looked the same as always. “I saw sulphur shelves!” Ashley said. Turning around, we crawled along until she…
Fury gets job done, accomplishes little else
Shia LaBeouf, Xavier Samuel, Brad Pitt and Michael Pena in Fury. PHOTO COURTESY COLUMBIA PICTURES Perhaps my expectations for David Ayer’s Fury were a bit too high. Primed by the presence of a strong cast, the strength of the director’s previous film – the tough cop procedural End of Watch – and the realistic aesthetic…
Letters to the Editor 10/16/14
Wes Barr, candidate for sheriff DEBATE DODGER After listening to the radio the other day, it sounds like several local media outlets requested a public forum between the two candidates currently running for sheriff – and it took Wes Barr two months to discuss this with his campaign manager and get back with them. According…
Marriott’s shameful hotel tipping scam
As an old popular song from the 1970s asks, what do you get if you “work your fingers right down to the bone?” Bony fingers. As the hardworking housekeepers for the sprawling Marriott chain of hotels know, that’s more than a cute song lyric; it’s the truth. Mostly women, these “room attendants,” as they’re called,…
Little people, long sentences
15 to Life: Kenneth’s Story The United States is the only country in the world that regularly sentences children to life and death in prison. On Tuesday, Oct. 21, the Springfield branch of the American Civil Liberties Union invites the public to Capital City Bar & Grill for a free Liberty Brew & View screening…
Monumental mileage
Springfield Marathon, Half Marathon, 10K Lace up those sneakers and bust out those energy gels; it’s marathon time! The second annual Springfield Marathon returns on Oct. 19, though runners will need to register no later than Oct. 18 at 4:00 p.m. The picturesque, mostly flat 26.2-mile race begins Sunday at 7:30 a.m. Runners start west…
Will onesies never cease?
My married friend just had a baby and posts what’s essentially the same “Look how cuuute!” shot on Facebook several times daily. Beyond finding this annoyingly boring, I’m 32 and unhappily single and seeing all of her blissful pix is making me envious and resentful. Is it wrong to secretly block her photos? I feel…
IDOT spends $143,000 on zombie-themed seat belt ad
IDOT’s “Driving Dead” short film on seat belt use features an armored Mustang with a machine gun and actor Michael Rooker from the “Walking Dead” TV series about zombies. PHOTO COURTESY IDOT In a dusty, dimly-lit warehouse, a horde of zombies closes in two men with high-powered firearms trying in vain to escape through a…
Editor’s Note 10/16/14
As the State of Illinois cuts back its financial support and hours of operation for parks and historic sites, volunteers and donors are more important than ever. Last week the New Salem Lincoln League, the private group which was established in 1982 to support what has become the state’s most-visited historic site, took a step…
Rauner’s tax fantasy doesn’t add up
The most important question asked of Bruce Rauner during last week’s gubernatorial debate in Peoria was posed by Jamey Dunn-Thomason of Illinois Issues. My pal pointed out that Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback (R) had cut taxes across the board on the theory that it would boost the state’s economy. His idea hasn’t worked. What’s happened…
November’s elections won’t resolve much
Members of Congress are home now, campaigning for the upcoming elections. Their messages are all over the map, and for a good reason: they have very little to brag about. The Congress that recessed until after the elections makes the 80th – the one that Harry Truman blasted as “do-nothing” – look like a paragon…
Ad nauseam
Mailed advertisements for Rep. Sue Scherer cover a variety of populist topics. In politics, no molehill is too small to be made into a mountain. The race to represent Illinois’ 96th House District pits incumbent Rep. Sue Scherer, a Democrat from Decatur, against Republican challenger Mike Bell of Edinburg. Attack ads are flying from both…
The most expensive lawsuit
With a $2.6 million check from taxpayers in hand, the widow of the late Amon Paul Carlock, who died after a struggle with Sangamon County jailers in 2007, says that she doesn’t feel like a winner. “Nothing will bring Paul back,” says Mary Andreatta-Carlock. “There are no winners in this situation at all.” The settlement…
Restoration begins on historic Taylor House
The Taylor House will serve as a jumping-off point for The Springfield Project/Neighborhood of Hope’s green spaces initiative. SKETCH BY MASSIE, MASSIE & ASSOCIATES It’s been a private residence, a home for fallen women and a technical school for African-American students. As recently as a few months ago, it was slated to become an empty…
Adam’s off ox
One of the quainter rituals of any campaign, along with “debates,” is the newspaper editorial endorsement. It proceeds from three dubious assumptions – one, that anyone reads editorials besides the editor’s mother, two, that voters are swayable by argument and three, that a newspaper’s institutional opinion, being better informed than most, is thus automatically wise.…
