The Republicans
"… So this family walks into a talent agency, a father, mother, son, daughter and dog. The father says to the talent agent, 'We have a really amazing act. You should represent us.' The agent cuts him off, "I don't really work with family acts, they're so old-fashioned.' The father says, 'But we're really special'…
Grayum Fest 4 report
This just in from special teen correspondent Charley Snyder: In a Transitions Art Gallery tradition, Grayum Fest 4 did not fail to deliver a great lineup of local bands, and 2 decibels of hearing loss for the teenagers all over Hillsborough County who attended this concert. Opening with Small Talk Death, then following: Inertia, My…
Rearranging Chick Corea (set list included)
ST. PETERSBURG — Chick Corea lives in Tampa Bay, but you can count on one hand, I believe, the number of times he has played here. That alone would make Saturday night's Palladium concert special. But throw in special big band arrangements of his songs as part of the USF Jazz Masterworks series, the excellent…
Don’t Trust Polls
As someone who spent nine years as a political consulant, using polling data every day and designing dozens of polling instruments (the sets of questions asked of voters), I'm always very wary of the way the mainstream media reports about polls. (See my earlier Weekly Planet take on the subject here.) There are just too…
Short List Item of the Day
I hate to break the string of camp out stories, but this was too good to pass up: NY TIMES MAGAZINE REPORTS MADELEINE ALBRIGHT CAN LEG-PRESS 400 POUNDSSecond only to Janet Reno among ex-Clinton staffers (Remember folks, you too can make it onto our Short List each week by submitting your own items. Post your…
7:22 a.m.
There's nothing like waking up to piercing, fluorescent lighting, and then realizing you're at work. How fast can a person break down camp? Pretty darn fast.
Card Sharks
1:55 a.m.: Just got my ass handed to me at Texas Hold 'Em by Scott and Anne. Oh, the humiliation. When you don't have the cards, you don't have the cards.
smores n cigs
12:30We had to do the Smores. Decided against the microwave. Though it might have been fun to explode marshmallows over, say, Angela's car, we doubted it would go over well in the employee kitchen. But nice culinary surprise – marshmallows and graham crackers toast up real good in a toaster oven. Top with Hershey's and…
Give me Cheetos or Give Me Death
I almost had a panic attack before the evening even began. On the way to the Weekly Planet camp in, I made a special trip to Publix to pick up some provisions, most importantly, “Natural†White Cheddar Cheetos — a fundamental camping snack — and couldn’t find the damn things to save my life. They’re…
this would make a good script for The Office
11:46 PM: OK, so the idea of a corporate indoor tent campout at first blush was hilarious. On second blush, it seemed silly. But in actuality, it rocks, and I seriously doubt that the guys over at the Buzz or Sticks of Fire are doing anything like this. All in the interest of quality journalism.…
the dodgeball has begun
11:30 p.m.: There's no telling where this will end.
the corporate weasels will be punished
We figured out who toilet-papered the cars even before the hike into corporate. But thanks for the toys.
we’re actually singing kumbaya now
10:30Thank God. It's over. Now Scott's on to the Beatles songbook. Just in time. And you know what, believe it or not, there's something actually kind of great about sitting around in your conference room with the lights off and the campfire video going and tents pitched and your music writer leading an acoustic singalong…
“oh, that’s grandma – she’s just cleaning her gun”
10:20Actual last line of story told by Eric Snider, one of several yarns spun by campers, including guests Alex ("She was covered with some kind of hair…") and Roxanne ("Do you want to kiss him?") Note: When organizing an indoor campout, be sure someone has "Deliverance" on their IPod… a brilliant accompaniment to any campfire…
“my butt will pop your mattress”
10:15: Actual quote from late-arriving camper Scott Harrell.
The Fire Is Roaring
9:43: The fire has now been nicely stoked. No matches required when one is indoor camping. Instead, just pop in the Ambient Fire CD that Netflix delivered on Monday and hit play. One piece of advice: Turn off the included music and go with the soundtrack of popping fire and chirping crickets. Just trust me.
The Weekly Planet’s First Annual Indoor Camping Trip
Wed. Apr. 19, 8:15 p.m.: Time to start setting up camp. Scoutmaster's arriving, fellow campers as well. Now we have to break down the tables in the conference room.Nature sounds coming through the walls. Either that, or it's the board meeting. 8:40 p.m.: Question arises: Is it okay to watch Lost on a camping trip?…
Going Postal
MADE WITH LOVE Thank you so much for the nice piece on the coffee trail in downtown St. Pete (Food Feature, "The Perfect Day," by Brian Ries, April 12-18), and of course mucho big thanks for what you wrote about the Globe. It was thrilling in an appropriate way to read someone who gets the…
Music Menu
THURSDAY, APRIL 20 FURTHER SEEMS FOREVER w/NEW CRASH POSITION/SELECT START After introducing Dashboard Confessional's Chris Carrabba to the world, helping to define emo before the mainstream got hold of it, giving Jon Bunch a stage to sing on after Sense Field broke up, and generally rocking millions of kids over the last seven years, Miami's…
Winelist
Got an upcoming or ongoing wine event? Send information to: The Wine List, 810 N. Howard Ave., Tampa, FL 33606, fax 813-739-4801 or e-mail winestuff@weeklyplanet.com. *AUSSIE CRUSH HOUR This Friday night's crush hour features an Australian walk-about, with wines from Coldstream Hills, Penfolds, Wynns and Rosemount, paired with cheeses. $25. 6:30-8:30 p.m. Fri, April 21.…
Welles and Watkins Redux
Two films by past masters re-emerge on DVD.
Listen Up, Democrats
Jimmy Carter says Dems have to talk about faith and justice.
Malbec: Star of Argentina
A little-known wine making waves in South America.
Spins
At War with the Mystics THE FLAMING LIPS Warner Bros. When the dust settled on 2002, I had to be honest and admit that the Lips' Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots was a bit of a disappointment. While a handful of its tracks have justifiably entered the Lips' growing pantheon of classics, the record settled…
Labute Lite
autobahn lacks the razor’s edge expected from Neil LaBute.
Bungalow on the Outside
What makes an arts and crafts bungalow stand out from the rest? According to Jane Powell, author of five popular books on bungalows and featured designer on HGTV, it's all in the details. In Bungalow Details: Exterior, Powell and photographer Linda Svendsen identify the finer points and visual characteristics that make a bungalow a bungalow,…
No Gimmicks
At Mise En Place, class and experience count for a lot.
He Was So Beautiful
Paul Swan’s greatest work of art may have been his own life.
Fun Under the Clearwater Sun
FESTIVAL
Dark Cartoons
ART
Makes the World Go ‘Round
A Sundance film by way of its general plotlessness and obsessive urge to talk, but a chick flick in its undeniably female perspective, Friends with Money is full of a small, closely observed moments that never quite add up to much. The movie is the latest effort from writer-director Nicole Holofcener, but while it's several…
Going Long
Plus: Jason the Terrible, a Segway Rider and other tales of Pinellas politics.
Upcoming Releases
The following releases will be in stores Tues., April 25: Agoraphobic Nosebleed, PCP Torpedo (Hydrahead) Ass Ponys, Okra Years (Shake It) Avant, Director (Geffen) Black Tie Dynasty, Movements (Idol) Bombshell, To Hell with Motives (Indianola [Lum500]) Conflict, Turning Rebellion into Money (Mortarhate) Dreamscapes of the Perverse, Gignesthai (Tribunal) Eleventh Dream Day, Zeroes and Ones (Thrill…
Sweet Treat
Up-and-comers Candy Bars are a dark indie-pop snack.
Bulldozers Aweigh!
An Ybor Museum exhibit traces the destructive history of urban renewal.
Happy Together
Two master musicians take on a disc of ’60s covers.
A Man Walks Into A Bar
THEATER
Outtakes
NEW RELEASES ADAM AND STEVE (NR) The New Queer Cinema may not be so new anymore, but great gay films continue to push the boundaries of what the cinema can do. That said, what we have here is just the sort of thing that gives gay movies a bad name. Adam & Steve is an…
Shimmy down to Dali
The Bay area had not seen the likes of SHIM when it hit the scene in the latter '90s. Here was an honest-to-goodness avant-garde jazz ensemble that performed challenging original compositions, played brilliant solos and even delved into free improvisation. The band's first date was at the Salvador Dali Museum, and it's safe to say…
Ships Ahoy!
SPECIAL EVENT
Fanook
JEB IN IRAQ Finds Parliament there more productive than Legislature here. GEENA DAVIS Low ratings as Commander in Chief endanger series. PRESIDENT BUSH Low ratings as Commander in Chief endanger second-term agenda. WHAT SECOND-TERM AGENDA? Just making sure you are paying attention. GAY VITO Sopranos confronts homosexuality; Tony signs anti-gay-Mafia-marriage petition. RAYS' LATE RALLIES Clever…
The Blotter
ESCORT PROBLEMS: A guest at the Renaissance Hotel at International Plaza got a little more than he bargained for when he arranged for an escort for the evening by calling a number in the back of a magazine in the hotel room. Police were called to the scene after the escort reported that her gentleman…
Net Losses
How Malcolm Glazer took George H.W. Bush’s oil company and used it to declare war on the fish that built America.
The Hot Chick
MUSIC
