Blurbex

Bucs cornerback Ronde Barber did a phone interview with sports radio host Jim Rome this afternoon, and after the amiable Q&A about training camp and the obligatory Brett Favre question, it was time for the plug. Ronde and Romey commiserated for a few minutes on the “Beat the Heat” campaign, which aims to educate coaches and parents about the importance of hydration at football practice.  The co-sponsors: NFL teams … and Gatorade. 

Bookmark to:

Queen of Grunge: Just close your eyes and try to imagine Chris Cornell singing “Fat-Bottomed Girls.”

Venomous: As if Spider-Man 3 weren’t bad enough.

Does this mean the next Austin Powers won’t be shag-a-delic?

Mighty shield, yeah, sure: But who will wear that ridiculous costume?

The votes are in: Dark Knight is the greatest movie ever!

More to meet the eye: Superbabe Megan Fox ordered to gain weight for Transformers sequel.

Bookmark to:

Uh oh, I’m now doing what I warned the Rays against: watching the standings. It started two nights ago when the Rays beat the Blue Jays while the Red Sox and Yankees lost. I thought, “Hmmm, they gained a game. Good.”

I peeked this morning and saw that that Sox lost again, and the Yanks won. Not too bad. Rays have a three-game lead in the AL East.

But like I said a few days ago: There are more than 50 games left to play (55 to be exact). I think it’s counterproductive for Rays players to start a daily vigil on how the Sox and Yanks are doing.

I know it’s impossible to ignore those scores — the news is everywhere — but the St. Petersburg team has to do its best to downplay the day-to-day importance.

For fans, on the other hand, it just adds to the excitement.

The Rays fared pretty well on their road trip, going 4-3 and taking two out of three (close games) from division foe Toronto (although, collectively, the offense has yet to kick into gear).

The Rays play their next six games at home, three each against the increasingly dangerous Detroit Tigers (6-4 in their last 10) and then the Indians.

I like that Kazmir opens the series on Friday, not so much that the increasingly shaky Andy Sonnanstine pitches against crusty veteran Kenny Rogers on Saturday. Then again, L.L. Cool J performs after that game, and the Rays haven’t lost on concert Saturday nights.

I’m wondering if my bud Sean Daley of the St. Pete Times has started watching the standings? I’m also wondering if he’s excited about watching L.L. shirtless.

Bookmark to:

1. Three Bay area movie theaters present single-night screenings of Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman’s latest motorcycle-riding documentary, Long Way Down. Pictured: McGregor looking cool in Africa.

2. After 25 years of doing their own thangs, keyboardist Chick Corea, bassist Stanley Clarke, drummer Lenny White and guitarist Al Di Mieola have reunited as Return to Forever. The foursome performs at Ruth Eckerd Hall tonight. 

3. Comedian Phil Palisoul kicks off a four-night run of stand up at Side Splitters Comedy Club. 

4. Inkwood Books welcomes Mississippi writer Mary Anna Evans, who reads from and signs copies of Findings, the fourth installment in her Faye Longchampe archaeological mystery series.

5. Atlanta garage rockers The Hiss bring their psychedelic sounds to New World Brewery. Strangers and November Foxtrot Whiskey provide support.

Bookmark to:

You shelled out a car payment for those high-end pots and pans I talk about in today’s Essential Kitchen Gear, so you better take steps to protect your investment. Although you might be tempted to grab the steel wool or belt sander the next time you have to remove a layer of solidified bacon grease or burned sugar from that formerly gleaming stainless steel, just put the power tools down. It doesn’t have to be that way.

For stainless steel cookware, typical dish soap and water will take care of daily use – and you can even throw most brands in the dishwasher — but you’ll want to have an abrasive cleanser on hand. Don’t scrub with anything metal and stay away from harsh powders and liquids like Comet or Soft Scrub; those will clean well enough but could scratch the surface of your beautiful pans. (more…)

Bookmark to:

 
1. Illusionist Criss Angel (pictured) brings his Houdini-style antics to Clearwater Beach. His latest stunt – escaping from the Spyglass Hotel, 215 S. Gulfview Blvd., before it is impoloded – will be broadcast live on tonight’s epssode of Criss Angel Mindfreak on A&E at 10 p.m. For those who want to witness the spectacle in person, City of Clearwater officials advise arriving between 6 and 7 p.m. The stunt can be viewed from behind a 500-foot safety perimeter on screens that are set up on the north and south ends of the beach.

2. Mark Knopfler plays Ruth Eckerd Hall.

3. St. Pete for Peace continues its Wednesday evening documentary screening series with 9/11 Chronicles: Part 1 - Truth Rising, which follows Alex Jones, Luke Rudkowski and others as they set out to find out the truth about 9/11. The screening starts at 8:30 p.m. and takes place at Cafe Bohemia, 937 Central Ave., St. Petersburg.

4. South Florida’s pot humor comics perform as part of the 420-Friendly Comedy Tour. The two-show run kicks off tonight at Tampa Improv.

5. Journey headlines a classic rock bill at Ford Amphitheatre; Heart and Cheap Trick provide support.

Bookmark to:

It’s been two weeks since the Red Bull Flugtag rolled up its runway and left the Tampa Convention Center and more than 100,000 (mostly) happy, (mostly) drunken spectators behind. Except for the folks at the sixth annual Metrocon, who recently e-mailed CL to complain about the Flugtaggers who wandered into their event.

Attendees at Metrocon — Florida’s largest anime convention held inside the convention center as people were attempting to fly unflyable homemade vehicles — were repeatedly harassed by crowds of rowdy flugtaggers who made catcalls at young girls and tried slipping cameras up their skirts. The Red Bull fans shouted “freak” and “fag”at participants, ruined artwork and spilled beer on costumes, said Allison Rexrode, who attended the event for the sixth year in a row.

The convention is normally a family-friendly celebration of Japanese culture where fans can come dressed in homemade costumes, participate in skits and contests and meet fellow anime-lovers.

“It was completely different (this year),” Allison said. “It was a constant hassle… a constant influx of people coming in and out, and there was no way to control it.”

The convention center double-booked the Red Bull and Metrocon events, assuming Flugtaggers would stay outside on the Riverwalk while Metrocon carried on inside. But security was unprepared for the number of people and the amount of drunken stupidity.

“I just think it was a really bad decision for the convention center to book both events at the same time,” Allison said, “especially a family-friendly event and [another] event where they were selling (alcohol).”

Her mother, Bonnie Rizzo, was equally disappointed with the double-booking. Bonnie, who has attended numerous anime conventions with Allison, said “It’s a really wholesome event that these kids look forward to every year. As far as the way the convention center and Red Bull handled it, I think it’s appaling that they would jeopardize people’s kids like this.”

Metrocon 2008’s Director of Operations Alex Craddock issued this apology on its website last week:

I have received countless emails detailing reasons that people were displeased with METROCON, or this weekend in any capacity, and I personally would like to address the big one: Red Bull Flugtag.

… It’s unfortunate that there wasn’t more we could do to prevent some of the incidents that occurred, but at this juncture, I feel my best course of action is to apologize. The staff of METROCON (and those of you that saw us on Saturday will more than agree) did everything short of miracle-working to stop the multitude of disrespectful and irritating things that many of you saw or unfortunately, were involved with. Please keep in mind that the METROCON staff places your interests and well being above all else, and are doing everything we can to make right every single act of injustice that we saw taking place this past weekend.

Do not misunderstand what happened this weekend, however. I have spoken with several individuals from the Red Bull Corporation, who had worked so well with us prior to the event, and they are just as unhappy with everything that happened the way it did as we are. They have asked that I pass on their apologies to our convention-goers as well, and to let it be known they are also currently pursuing a course of action that will prevent anything (and I do mean anything) like this from ever happening to our valued attendees ever again so long as we are in this venue. Please trust in the fact that we at METROCON did everything we could. We are continuing to do everything we can to right these wrongs, and to make sure that you know it will never happen again. METROCON will continue to be a safe, fun, exciting place for the die-hard fan or casual anime watcher, and for parent and child, alike

Christine Pena, who dressed in a Parasite Eve costume at this year’s Metrocon, detailed her experience in an e-mail:

The costume contest pre-judging was held in a room close to the riverwalk. After pre-judging, I was trying to make my way back when a group of about 5 guys passed me, bopping my wig … When I went to grab a snack in the food line, I felt my wig get tapped again. The guy who did it ran away, to which I heard, ‘GET A TAN!’ He looked familiar.

The third time it happened, I was standing relatively close to the information desk. The same group of guys were lined up to walk by. They each bopped one my wig’s horns. I was not about to walk onstage with a broken wig; after all, presentation is a big part of the costume contest and I had worked very hard. I yelled quite a few profanities at them as they walked away. I hated to be so nasty, but from that moment on, no one else bothered me the rest of the convention. Despite there being so many jerks, there were also a lot of (nicer) Flugtag people asking me for photos.

It was unfortunate that these events happened to so many other cosplayers and that TCC Security, from what I observed, did nothing to stop it.

John Moors, administrator for the convention center, said that “coinciding events happen all the time, and with the number of people in attendance (at Flugtag), it put pressure on all the downtown facilities.

“It was a great event,” he continued. “It was great to see people out and enjoying the day. Maybe some people enjoyed their day more than others, but there was 100,000 people there. There’s always going to be a few that stick out.”

(Photo credit: rcmaclean via flickr)

Bookmark to:

Snapped a photo of this little piece of illegal art earlier today on Second Street North and Central Avenue. It’s allegedly a calling card left by the Southern California band OPM, who stopped by Jannus Landing last week on their tour with metalcore outfit Hed PE.

According to Ultimate-Guitar.com, this tag earned OPM frontman John Necro (aka John Charles Edney) an arrest by St. Petersburg Police. He spent a few hours in jail and was released on $1,000 bail (see mugshot here).

“I find it kind of ironic that Saint Petersburg, FL, home to the Salvador Dali museum, could be so insanely uptight about spray painting,” Necro says in the article. “In some areas Graffiti is regarded as a form of art worthy of display in galleries and exhibitions, but obviously the state of Florida feels differently.”

Yep, graffiti is against the law here. I thought that was half of the fun.

Bookmark to:

Wanna go to a poetry slam next Monday?

I said yes, as I wasn’t going to disappoint a friend, even if it meant (as I thought it might) having to suffer through self-absorbed poseurs with limited knowledge ranting about how fucked up the world is while having little in the way of honest answers or solutions. But because I’d never been to a poetry slam – or any other kind of reading – before, I was honestly intrigued.

When we arrived at Studio@620 a little after 8 p.m. last night, only two or three people were in the audience, sitting patiently in front of a stage bearing two microphone stands. The host for the evening, David, didn’t bother using either mic as he circled the chairs and delivered a brief history of poetry slams (they apparently emerged as a response to the academic beats like Kerouac). He then warmed up those in attendance with a poem titled “Fuck a Poet,” which brought a smile to my face as it addressed all of the unspoken prejudices I harbored about spoken-word artists — self-styled tortured artists articulating their unfathomable ennui. As I listened, the thought crossed my mind, “Was this just irony designed to pander to close-minded first-timers?” No, I decided. David had admitted that spoken-word poets are, by the nature of what they do, egotistical. And so his words rang sincere as he knocked himself and his fellow artists down a few notches with an honest reality check.

And yet …

While the topics from the seven poets who took the stage over the course of two hours hit upon subjects I might have expected — the Iraq war, religious hypocrisy, former lovers — the quality of their work far exceeded my expectations. I could tell the performers had spent considerable time honing their prose, and I was left admiring this rather unassuming, brave and decidedly unpretentious group I never would have pegged as “artists” had I met them under different circumstances.

So to David, Brian, Patrick, Jimmy, Emma and Ozell (hope I spelled that right) — thank you for an enjoyable, intimate, mind-opening and artistically satisfying evening. While I’m not a poet, I felt I was among friends. Something tells me I’ll be back next month.

Bookmark to:

1. Tom Waits (pictured) performs the last few concerts of his “Glitter and Doom” tour this week. NPR Music keeps the magic going with a new installment of its “Live in Concert” series, this one of Waits’ complete two-and-a-half hour July 5 performance at Atlanta’s Fox Theatre. The show streams throughout the day today; interested listeners can also nab a podcast.

2. Dunedin Fine Art Center opens Wearable ART: the Exhibition and The Alice Project: Silent Auction of Works by Viv Ruegger.

3. Hillsborough County Democratic GLBTA Caucus in partnership with the Northwest Hillsborough Democratic Club, DFA Tampa Bay and Hillsborough County Democratic Black Caucus  host a Judicial Candidate Forum tonight at the West Tampa Library.

4. Central Avenue Antique Marketplace presents its second annual “Hotter Than July Sale,” an evening of shopping and wine tasting.

5. The Rockstar Mayhem Festival stops at Ford Amphitheatre today and brings a jamp-packed bill of hardcore music by Slipknot, Disturbed, Mastodon, Dragon Force, Underoath, Machine Head, Walls of Jericho and several others.

Bookmark to:

Apparently, the culinary world does not stop when your CL Food Editor steps out for a little staycation. Here’s your guide to the wide world of food for the past 10 days.

Bookmark to: