Salt and vinegar
Sometimes Larry Beckom gets excited — most noticeably when he’s talking about what Beckom says is a mandate from God. Beckom, a self-described miracle, says he didn’t used to be a very nice guy. Now he’s giving back, although some residents of the Vinegar Hill neighborhood, on Springfield’s west side, say Beckom can keep his…
Stuck in neutral
After spending millions of dollars on unanswered television ads, Gov. Rod Blagojevich has only an eight-point lead over Republican nominee Judy Baar Topinka, according to the latest poll. The Research 2000 poll of 800 likely voters was conducted Aug. 28-31 for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and had a margin of error of 3.5 percent. The…
War and peace
During her long life, Poulina Samoylovskaya has lived in four countries, but she’s actually emigrated only once — when she took off for the United States in 1992. She lived in the three other nations without ever having to leave her hometown of Kiev. Born in imperial Russia in 1904, Samoylovskaya became a citizen of…
Homeland hokum
In his attempt to puff up his bad poll numbers and give his beleaguered party a boost for this fall’s congressional elections, George W. Bush keeps wrapping himself in the bloody flag of 9/11 and posing as America’s valiant defender. For example, he scooted over to the National Counterterrorism Center last month for a PR…
Vinyl Static
SHOWS-A-GO-GO! There are rock shows aplenty this week, but fans will have to rack up some mileage to attend them all. Devotees of Built to Spill will undoubtedly release a huge sigh this weekend when the band takes the stage at Mississippi Nights in St. Louis on Sunday, Sept. 17. The indie-rock demigods nixed the…
Letters to the Editor
We welcome letters, but please include your full name, address, and daytime telephone number. We edit all letters for libel, length, and clarity. Send letters to Letters, Illinois Times, P.O. Box 5256, Springfield, IL 62705; fax 217-753-3958; e-mail editor@illinoistimes.com. BUCKED BY OUR RODEO COLUMN IllinoisCorruption.com exposes the cruelty and corruption of high-school rodeo finals held…
Not just a crank
Jason Statham (pronounced “stay-thum,” with a hard “th”) is a different kind of action star. Unlike Schwarzenegger or Stallone, he speaks fluent English, although it is Cockney. Statham’s latest action vehicle, Crank, opened quite well despite his low level of recognition here. British crime-movie virtuoso Guy Ritchie discovered Statham when he was a model and…
Shift change
Rickey Davis’ career with Springfield Police Department may be over. Davis, known for his outspoken leadership of the Black Guardians Association, has applied for duty-related disability, citing depression. If his request is approved, he will receive 65 percent of his pay grade tax-free — a formula designed by the pension board to equal an active-duty…
Great performers of Springfield
I made it to Chicago last Thursday, Sept. 7, for the Great Performers of Illinois festival to see my dear friends and fellow bandmates Black Magic Johnson open the blues night on the Millennium Park stage. The guys did great and it was wonderful to see them perform in one of the grandest venues in…
Juxtaposition
With less than eight weeks to go before the November general election, Green Party gubernatorial long shot Rich Whitney has 6 percent support among likely voters, a Chicago Tribune/WGN-TV poll released Monday finds. Most third-party candidates pray to get 5 percent on Election Day, and it wasn’t long ago that Whitney was an afterthought, relegated…
Here and there, part 2
He was not from here; he was from there. He’d been here once before, with, at best, confusing results [see Bybee, “Here and there,” Feb. 23]. His previous visit had been a medical matter; this time he was here on business, and he expected a more logical conclusion. His company’s human-services software (job-application process, personnel,…
Making a connection
As the school year gets in gear and your evening queries to your kids about what they’re learning are met with unintelligible and less-than-enlightening answers, it’s up to you to create ways to get information. To connect to your kids, to help them connect to their schoolwork, and to build some family time, plan visits…
Renewing the spirit of Atlanta
Just over a decade ago, in October 1995, Springfield saw a huge outpouring of civic energy into what has become known as “the trip to Atlanta.” That’s when 39 of Springfield’s movers and shakers — leaders from the fields of politics, business, education, and religion — miraculously came together for a 24-hour adventure in the…
By the playbook
Surely director Phil Joanou had nothing but the best of intentions while making Gridiron Gang, yet another in a long, long line of inspirational sports movies. Based on a 1993 documentary about violent juvenile offenders in the Los Angeles area who are given a chance to excel on the football field, the story is one…
Ten BIG stories the media missed
Last month, two news stories broke on the same day. One was meaty, the other junky. In Detroit, U.S. District Judge Anna Diggs Taylor ruled that the Bush administration’s warrantless National Security Agency surveillance program was unconstitutional. Meanwhile, in Thailand, a strange bird named John Mark Karr claimed that he was with 6-year-old beauty queen…
She’s special, not ’cause she’s a she
Guitar dorks are guys mostly, weird guys with ickily long fingernails who stink of cannabis and complicated tablatures. If they’re not droning on about the awesome tuning that they just discovered, they’re arguing about stupid stuff that no one else cares about, such as whether a particular mode is Dorian or Mixolydian or the exact…
And more chicken!
“Hi, Mom! Hey, how much do chicken wings cost? Some guys are coming over tonight to play cards, and I want to make hot wings. I’m going to have to get them at the grocery store, ’cause the farmers’ market hasn’t started yet.” It was my son, Robb, calling from New York last April. I…
Crazy actors
Hollywood’s biggest recent controversies stem from the behavior of two of its biggest stars. Ironically, the one who committed the lesser crime is the one who was fired. Why is a major studio so shocked at the odd behavior of an actor? Are people who spend their lives pretending to be other people normal? Of…
Beyond tulips and daffodils
Looking for something different to add to your spring garden? Try fritillaria. Varieties of this old-fashioned spring-flowering bulb, which puts forth interesting bell-shaped hanging blooms in middle to late spring, range in height from 1 to 4 feet. Most fritillaria prefer a sheltered garden location in a partially shaded area. The unusual flowers will draw…
Buzzword
Dear “Earth Talk”: The term “sustainable” seems to be the new green buzzword. What exactly does it mean, particularly when applied to such things, say, as transportation or agriculture? — Steve Nezhad, Portland, Maine “Sustainable,” quite simply, is the positive result of conducting economic, social, or environmental activities in such a way that current needs…
The pesto pinch
Hailstorms recently pounded northern Italy, and, as a result, much of the country’s basil crop was obliterated, making the preparation of pesto, the beloved summer herb purée, impossible. The area close to Genoa, long considered basil’s mecca, was particularly affected, an act of Mother Nature that inevitably will throw pesto off restaurant menus in that…
Cleaning hardwood floors
Dear Gene: What is the best way to clean finished hardwood floors? Should we use plain water, vinegar-water mix, oil soap or what? I get a lot of conflicting advice. How you clean depends on the type of floor finish. Here are some guidelines based on recommendations by NOFMA: The Wood Flooring Manufacturers Association (www.nofma.org),…
Depth charge
People love pirates. They prove it by stampeding to see the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, by chomping down on their R’s (arrrrrghs!) on Talk Like a Pirate Day. Piratemania is so widespread, in fact, that a backlash seems inevitable. How much longer before pirates join Pet Rocks, Beanie Babies, and the “You can call…
A couple of couples
This week, for your listening pleasure and knowledge enhancement, we feature two acts consisting of couples who live, write, and perform together. All four musicians play guitar and other instruments and sing lead and harmony. Both couples have performed at the most prestigious folk and Americana festivals in the nation and have managed to develop…
People’s Poetry
lakepoem #10 two flies swimming in my orange juice after I’d left it a few minutes unattended made me haul the ol’ flyswatter off its hook to smish a score more who’ve suddenly claimed the screens got most too some even backhand I am reminded of my usually mild mother once chasing my oldest sister…
Tinseltown tragedy
If you haven’t already figured it out from the previews, the jumping-off point for Allen Coulter’s Hollywoodland is the 1959 death of Superman actor George Reeves (Ben Affleck). Many believe Reeves committed suicide, despondent over his stalled career and being typecast as the Man of Steel; others say there’s evidence he was murdered. In the…
