Spins
The Sunshine Fix Age of the Sun As a rule, neo-psychedelic side projects by today's indie rockers either come off as lab experiments or tongue-in-cheek takes on the trippy sounds of yore. Not so with Bill Doss. The co-founder of Olivia Tremor Control is serious about his psychedelic pop but not so much that he…
Outtakes
Amelie (NR) Plucky, quintessentially quirky Amelie (saucer-eyed Audrey Tautou) spends her time choreographing good deeds and love connections for her neighbors and, eventually, herself. Amelie, which is as much a fairy tale as it is a cartoon, brims with imagination and emotion. A Beautiful Mind (PG-13) A Russell Crowe performance that has Oscar written all…
Freebie of the Week
Literature Out Loud A night of poetry and prose recalls the emotional history of the 1940s to 1960s — the post-war era and a time of great creativity in reaction to the world's changing. The event, Words for the Wind, is part of the Community Foundation-sponsored multimedia arts and humanities festival Bernstein, Broadway, The Bomb,…
Bizarre Love Triangle
George Bernard Shaw's Candida is such a simple play that any one misdirected element can make the whole thing go wrong. The play is about a love triangle, the three corners of which are the Rev. James Morell, his wife, Candida, and the poet Eugene Marchbanks. The Rev. Morell, Shaw tells us, is "a vigorous,…
My Randy Valentine
Tampa police officer watches through an illegal surveillance camera as a woman pleasures herself. An Ybor City-based photojournalist makes love to a woman under the pier at St. Pete Beach. Two University of South Florida professors carry on an illicit affair in the campus library, and a good Greek girl from Tarpon Springs has naked…
The Wine List
La Dolce Vita The folks at Vintage Wine Cellar want you to take a break from the rat race and your everyday routines to live the sweet life for a change. Start with fruity and sweet wines that are affordable indulgences. Taste 10 tempting wines along with various confectioneries to complete the experience. Friday, Feb.15.…
Culinary Events
French Romantic is the theme of the vegetarian cooking class taught by chef and cookbook author Debby DeGraaff. Wednesday, 7-8 p.m., Feb. 13, and Thursday, 10-11 a.m., Feb. 14. Free. Nature's Harvest Market, 1021 N. MacDill Ave., Tampa. 813-873-7428. Valentine's Evening Dinner Party La Maison Gourmet transforms its new kitchen into an intimate fine dining…
The Tao of Poo: 10 Show Certainties
Going to see a live band is always a foray into the unknown. It doesn't matter how many times you've seen 'em. It doesn't matter if it's a local club show or an all-ages basement blowout. There are just too many variables. Now, having said that, there are certain elements you can count on; band…
Books
Specialties of the House: Recipes for Busy People on the Go! By Sandy Freedman Seaside Publishing/$14.95 Even if you've been around long enough to remember life before Dick Greco, you might not recognize former Tampa Mayor Sandy Freedman on the cover of her new cookbook. To those who didn't know her personally, she was a…
Papaya’s Cafe
One of the many beauties of living in Florida is its nearly year-round selection of fresh, seasonal fruit. Avocado, guava, orange, tangerine, grapefruit, lime, lemon, mango. Some adept gardeners grow gigantic, juicy pineapples in their back yards. You even see banana trees. Used in downtown landscaping for decoration, their great burdens of fruit hanging like…
A Comedy of Bad Manners
With war and rumors of war dancing through pretty much everybody's heads lately, what better time for the appearance of an absolutely first rate war movie? What's that? You hate war movies? Well, maybe it's time to give war a chance. No Man's Land may be a lot of things, but make no mistake about…
Cut the Puppet Strings
""The ultimate test of a man is not where he stands in time of comfort and convenience … but where he stands in time of challenge and controversy.' The same is true of great universities." That was University of South Florida President Judy Genshaft quoting Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. at her inauguration — the…
At Your Service
There's a hilarious scene in The Muppet Movie where Kermit and Miss Piggy are enjoying their first romantic dinner date together. Kermit is decked out in a red velvet smoking jacket, Piggy is draped in a shimmering pink gown, and expectations are running high. Kermit summons the waiter, played with delicious sarcasm by Steve Martin…
Web Site of the Week
X-Entertainmenthttp://www.x-entertainment.com The pop-culture cycle is very simple to decipher. Every 20 years, things come back into style. The '80s had the '60s, the '90s brought back the '70s, so simple math dictates the '00s recycle the decade of greed: the '80s. On the plus side, we don't have to deal with bell-bottoms or disco anymore.…
Steve Takes His Leave
There could be a meeting with the feds in Steven A. LaBrake's future. If there is, the G-men and G-women will have questions for Tampa's former director of business and community services. Downright insulting questions. Like, how'd you like to do five to 10 years in federal prison? Before answering those kinds of questions, LaBrake…
Letters
Laurels for Luanne Re: "Not Child's Pay" by Francis X. Gilpin (Feb. 6-12) What exactly is the Big Deal? Someone believes $115,000 a year is too much for her to be paid? Did anybody read the article? Did they pay any attention to how much she does: How many personal sacrifices she's made? How dedicated…
