Daily Loaf

She was a smokin’ hot babe. Er… dish.
Savory egg filling. Legs a mile long. A real hot potato.
Er … filled with potato.
And herbs, cheese. A melt in your mouth kind of beauty.
She got me fueled up for the day, and we had that long, slow burn that just sticks with you.
I never went hungry when she was around.
I’m not the jealous type, either. But when she was on my plate … I finished every last bite. No point in sharing a dish this good.
Quiche? Not for a real man. But frittata?
Well, I’m no sexpert, but Rome could give Paris a run for its money romance-wise. And this Italian dish? Frittata? Always the way I want to start my day… Read more “Breakfast Week: Frittata — What a Dish” »

An increasing number of foreigners are visiting Ukraine in search of women. These “sex pats” (a play on expatriates), are becoming increasingly common in developing regions like South America, Asia, and Africa (despite 20% HIV positive populations in some African countries).

The Ukraine has become a breeding ground for “sex pats” for a number of reasons. Read more “‘Sex pats’ in Ukraine: the rise of ‘sex tourism’” »

Most pop singers from the ’60s and ’70s who are fortunate enough to still be touring resort to what I call vocal cheats. That’s when they get to a point in an old hit that has a particularly high note they can’t hit — a note that especially resonates with the baby-boomer audience — so they either drop it an octave or turn it over to the background singers.

There’s nothing really shameful about these vocal cheats — it would be worse, for instance, if Daryl Hall tried to hit that big release note in “She’s Gone” and failed miserably. Or if Roger Daltrey attempted to render the big scream in “Won’t Get Fooled Again” and sounded like a frog.

I tell you all this because I saw Boz Scaggs last night at Ruth Eckerd Hall and he didn’t resort to any vocal cheats. He’s 65 years old. Very impressive. When, on “Lido Shuffle,” it came time for the “Lido, whoa, whoa” part, he was right on it — with the backup singers helping, yes, but not drowning him out and thus protecting him. Scaggs came up a little short or a little thin on some of the high notes, but he went for them all.

It wasn’t just the lack of vocal cheats that made Scaggs’ 75-minute set in front of a near-sold-out crowd a success. His voice still has that full, creamy texture of the old days, and his delivery and phrasing brimmed with nuance. (more photos below; all are by Tracy May)

Read more.

Boon Gueuze, 6%
Brouwerij Boon, Lembeek, Belgium

In the Senne Valley region of Belgium, there’s a town called Lembeek where wild yeasts blow around in the evening breezes. They drift in through the open windows of local breweries, landing in uncovered vats, magically transforming wheat grain, aged hops, and water into a beer that explodes with delightfully objectionable flavors. This spontaneously fermented ale is called Lambic, a nod to the area where the style originated, and is still predominantly produced.

Some lambic brews receive a flavor injection during fermentation - sweet raspberry, peach, apple, cherry, or banana. In the United States, fruited lambics see infinitely more mainstream visibility than their unfruited derivatives. And that’s a damn shame. Without the fruit addition, lambics are tart and funky, with a ton of assertive character and complexity that leaves you stumbling over descriptors. Flavors so wrong that they’re right.

Gueuze is a blend of several different unfruited lambics of varying age, usually 1, 2, and 3 years. The wild aspect of fermentation and the blending means that batches tend to vary from year to year, making gueuze a really collectable, searchable, geekable variety of beer. The full flavored older lambics radiate sourness, intermingling with the younger, mellow toned ones which contain the fermentable sugars that facilitate one more round of zymurgy magic. Like champagne, gueuze derives its carbonation from secondary fermentation that takes place inside the bottle, so after blending, the bottled gueuze conditions for at least 6 months before being packaged. And then there are the nerds like myself that hoard gueuze and store it for an additional 10 years before finally resigning to the urge to savor it. Just like fine wine, gueuze thrives with age.

A 12 ounce bottle of Boon Gueuze sports a caged cork that pops out releasing a gust of vinegary aromas. The clear orange brew decants into a flute glass with active, carbonation, creating a mountain of clean white head. After being poured, gueuze should rest until the temperature reaches around 60 degrees. By then, carbonation has calmed, the best flavors begin to surface, and any sediment displaced during the pour has settled to the bottom of the glass.

To the nose, the beer has the soft aroma of fresh flowers soaked in vinegar and confectionary green apple juice.

Flavors are extremely sour, dominantly reminiscent of malt vinegar, wheat bread, and tart citrus. The lack of hop character lends to a slightly cidery, champagne-like quality, which is compounded by the sparkly, light mouthfeel. It finishes with a lingering outdoorsy tone - dank, dusty, and natural. And more vinegar, of course.

If you are just becoming accustomed to this kind of brew and want to tone down the delicious sourness, pair gueuze with a soft, buttery cheese like brie. The creamy texture and mild funkiness from the cheese’s rind will offset the gueuze’s intense flurry of sharp flavors and allow the earthier elements of the beer to shine through.

As you’ve probably read recently on our site, fireworks aren’t so eco-friendly. According to this article from the Mother Nature Network I recently posted on the Green site, “fireworks often contain radioactive, carcinogenic or endocrine-disrupting substances that seep into soil and water, potentially threatening animals throughout the food chain.” Luckily, new efforts have been made to create “greener” (read: enviro-friendly) fireworks that we’ll hopefully be seeing more of in the future.
Read more “New eco-friendly “green” fireworks may brighten our future Fourth of July celebrations” »

Allen Leepa (American, b. 1919). Homage to Tarpon Springs, 1998. Acrylic on canvas, 5 x 12 feet (2 panels). Courtesy Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art.

Earlier this week, Allen Leepa– abstract painter and founder of the Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art at St. Petersburg College– died at age 90. In celebration of his legacy, the museum will showcase his art in an exhibition scheduled to open on Aug. 2, Allen Leepa: In Memoriam.

In 1997, Leepa and his wife Isabelle donated $2.5 million to St. Petersburg College (then St. Petersburg Junior College) along with an extensive collection of works by Leepa, Esther Gentle Rattner (his mother) and Abraham Rattner (his stepfather). The collection, which is valued at upwards of $20 million, also includes works by Pablo Picasso, Marc Chagall, Georges Rouault and Hans Hofmann.

Read more “Leepa-Rattner Museum founder dies” »

If you love a good celebrity death, you’ve been in heaven the last several days. And if you’re a connoisseur of a good celebrity obit, you need to be reading obit-mag.com.

Obit is a brilliantly edited online magazine that makes for great reading anytime, with all kinds of features that lend themselves to discussion over the watercooler, or your workplace equivalent thereof:  Died on the Same Day (today’s deaths: Jim Morrison and tennis player Pancho Gonzalez); Best Sendoffs (including Top 10 Stupid Death Tricks); and Ask Judy (a Q&A on dying well by Vanity Fair contributing editor Judy Bachrach). And it doesn’t confine itself to the deaths of individuals; there have been essays on the end of a terrorist organization, the demise of journalism, even the death of silence, as well as “the photography, the art, the prose of death” (in the words of founder J. Robert Hillier). Death: It’s a big subject, and Obit means to cover all its facets.

But the mag is most useful as a highly readable digest of obituaries past and present, and since lately there have been a whole lot of obituaries to digest, Michael Schaffer’s “The Grim Reader: This Week in Death” is a must-read. Read more “This week in death: Rating the obits for Michael Jackson, Billy Mays, Karl Malden and more” »

Kreative Key sits down with photographer and gallery owner Marina Williams to discuss TRA’shion Fashion, coming to ARTPool Gallery July 11th…

KK - So Marina, ARTPool gallery is gearing up for another TRA’shion Fashion Show.  If you’ve never been to TRA’shion Fashion, what is it and what’s it like?

MW - TRA’shion Fashion is one of the Tampa Bay’s best creative couture fashion shows. It combines ingenuity with recycling and challenges designers to think outside of the box.  Highlighting high-fashion runway attire and the top models in Florida, TRA’shion Fashion took St. Pete by storm last year and is going to top itself with an even more extreme show on July 11th.  A definite event to pencil in and experience if you love fashion, wearable art & support local art, as this show features designers from ages 18 to 80.

KK - That sounds amazing!  I’m sure anyone into Project Runway would really enjoy this event.  If you came last year and saw TRA’shion Fashion, do you have any new surprises for those party people? Read more “ArtPool’s TRA’shion Fashion runway show: Kreative Content talks to Marina Williams” »

Getting into the position: Crush milky chunks of cactus with sulfur and realgar. Dry this mixture seven times until it can be easily turned into powder. Add in a monkey turd and sprinkle mixture over your lover’s head. Read more “Kama Sutra: the green thorn apple” »

I had low expectations for Stump’s Supper Club and Howl at the Moon at Channelside. I thought about all the half-hearted piano-based lounge acts that I saw in Vegas and New Orleans, and I wasn’t exactly excited to go. After wrestling with the idea, I decided to give it a try and I’m glad I did.

I went on Thursday night, met up with the piano men and got a front row seat while I was waiting for them to start. The place was pretty dead at 10 p.m., but people began trickling in as the set started. It’s important to note that this isn’t your granddad’s piano bar. The songs they play are all pop hits from the last 40 years, and they draw on the crowd for suggestions. Read more “Dueling pianos at Howl at the Moon: You might be surprised how much fun it is (photos)” »

Bust out the sparklers, wear red, white and blue, and celebrate Independence Day in the good ol’ U.S. of A. Aside from the usual parties and explosions in the sky at Channelside in Tampa and around The Pier in downtown St. Petersburg, several other locales host events in honor of the holiday this weekend:

The City of Gulfport 4th of July Celebration features a full day of fun festivities — kid-friendly beach activities like a fishing derby and a sandcastle contest, an auto show for the car lovers, and for those who long for retro tunes and flower power, live classic rock ‘n’ roll by 60sGroove, an abundance of goodies by local artists and crafters, and a community parade and fireworks finale. The Largo 4th of July Festival offers a free day of entertainment that includes a DJ, food and fireworks galore. Check your rowdy hats at the door, though: Largo keeps it simple and safe by prohibiting alcohol, pets and personal fireworks/sparklers. After all, no one likes a drunk wildly waving fire in the air. If you are bursting with love of country and want to celebrate early, Clearwater’s two-day FreedomFest may be just the thing for you. Day one includes live music, family-friendly activities, tasty food and a fireworks show. Day two kicks it up a notch with more live music, a nighttime laser light show and the special “Follow the Flag Tour” hosted by the Post 9/11 Foundation.

Fourth of July events and more after the break:

Read more “Do It This Weekend: Tampa Bay Celebrates the Fourth, SoHo beach party, art independence and more” »

July 2-5. GaYBOR Days 2009.

-Thur. July 2. Weekend Kick-off Social Party. 2 hours of GameWorks fun card. Drag Show. Drinks & Tapas included! Families and adults welcome. $15. Gameworks.
-Fri. July 3. VIP Party at The Nest. 6-9pm. 1430 E. th Ave. Ybor City.
-Fri. July 3. DJ Manny Lehman and Pistol Pete Underwear Fashion Show. 10pm-3am. Steam Fridays 1507 E. 7th Ave. Ybor City.
-Sat. July 4. GaYBOR Poolside Beach Party. 4pm-8pm. $15. Tampa Howard Johnson Riverfront Plaza.
-Sat. July 4. Derrick Barry as Britney Spears. 9pm-3am. G Bar. 1401 E. 7th Ave. Ybor City.
-Sun. July 5. GaYBOR Brunch. 11am-2pm. Streetcar Charlie’s. 1811 N. 15th St. Ybor City.
-Sun. July 5. The GaYBOR Bar Crawl. $20. 5pm- Read more “Sex and love adult events around Tampa Bay: July 3-19″ »

This week, we chat about Top Chef Masters, episode 3: “Offal Tasty”. Again, we were graced with the presence and wit of Jeff Houck (The Tampa Tribune, The Stew), as well as the usual suspects: Taylor Eason, Stephen Hammill, and Katie Machol.

Highlights include: the power of Rick Bayless’ soul patch, Katie impersonating Ludo’s French accent, Jay Rayner’s mole, and Jeff sings for us yet again.

Read more “Top Chef Podcast, Episode 3: “Offal Tasty”” »

A lot of people get excited for the Fourth of July celebrations. Hot dogs, fireworks, a possible day off, friends and family are all fun associations that come with the celebration of America’s independence. Here are some tips to stay green while letting loose and having a great holiday weekend.

Bring your own flatware or use the reuseable kind:

If you are planning on attending a Fourth of July party, bring your own cup, plate and silverware with you. This way you save on excess waste while also being able to spark up a conversation piece when people ask you where you got your plate from. You may get some other people into the habit of doing the same. If you are the one hosting the party, save some money and the environment by laying out all reusable silverware, cups, tableclothes, etc.
Read more “Red, white and green: how to have an eco-friendly Fourth of July” »

Bay area folks aren’t the only ones who consider Old Seminole Heights a noteworthy neighborhood. This Old House, the home improvement rag and PBS TV series, has selected 51 neighborhoods across the country that “have promising futures and homes that truly deserve a long-term commitment,” and Seminole Heights made the cut. In fact, the historic mid-Tampa neighborhood was chosen by the Editors as one of the 10 best. (Photo courtesy of TOH and taken by Mike Pease.) The July/August “Best Old-House Neighborhoods” issue hit newsstands June 29; you can see the complete release and breakdown of winning cities after the jump:

Bruce Marsh, Riverwall (detail). Photo by Megan Voeller.

Downtown Tampa’s Riverwalk gained a public art cornerstone recently with the installation of Bruce Marsh’s Riverwall– a 40-foot long mural composed of photographic images of the Hillsborough River. Fired into porcelain enamel on steel plates, the images show the river– a 54-mile long waterway integral to the region’s ecological health– in a variety of incarnations, from a forking artery seen from above to a forested stomping ground for boaters.

Marsh, who taught art at the University of South Florida from 1969 to 2003, is well known in the region and beyond as an outstanding landscape painter. Though the Riverwall relies mainly on photographic depictions of the river, some of his paintings appear as pictures among the 550 featured images (each 8-inches by 9-1/2-inches). From afar, the grid forms a purposely enigmatic, river-like shape based on a photograph of floating water lilies.

“The whole idea [was to make] something that would offer a visual hook… that would entice and draw people… and function as a gathering point,” Marsh says.

Read more “Bruce Marsh’s Riverwall pays homage to the Hillsborough” »

Random news bites from the last several days (excluding anything about Michael Jackson … well, mostly).

Regina Spektor’s new album, far, debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 this week and the lovely Russian-born songstress is scheduled to perform on Late Night with Conan O’Brien on Thursday, July 30. Slipping to the No. 2 spot this week are the Jonas Brothers with Vines And Trying Times, which held last week’s No. 1 position. Black Eyed Peas have moved to the top of the charts with The E.N.D. And in case you BEP fans were worried, the title doesn’t foreshadow the band’s immenint break-up, but stands for “The Energy Never Dies.” Clever.

Seattle grunge metal makers Alice in Chains have confirmed the dates of their upcoming world tour, sans lead voice Layne Staley, who, if you recall, faded away into reclusivity before he speedballed to his death in 2002. The tour supports the band’s first new studio release in more than 10 years, Black Gives Way to Blue (in stores September 29). The first single, “A Looking View,” is currently streaming on their MySpace page and definitely has the feel of classic Alice in Chains, complete with the hard-meets-soft harmonies by vocalist/guitarist Jerry Cantrel and Staley replacement, vocalist/guitarist William Duvall. Here’s a statement the band released about the new song: “The song basically speaks to any number of things that keep you balled up inside. A cell of our own making with an unlocked door that we choose to remain in. Focusing our attention inward instead of reaching out to a much larger world. I think this is common to us all. It’s funny how hard we fight to hang on to a bone we can’t pull through a hole in the fence, or how difficult it is to put down the bag of bricks and move on.” Current confirmed U.S. stops include Detroit, DC, Chicago, NYC, Milwaukee, Portland and San Francisco. No telling whether the tour will bring them to Florida. (Click here for more.)

Remember 1989? Remember the disappointment? How exciting the mere prospect was, the idea that we’d get more of that magical, hilarious madness. Another two hours worth of memorable quotes – what would replace “When someone asks you if you’re a God, you say yes!” or “Listen; Do you smell something?”

But then we got Ghostbusters 2 in all it’s lifeless, tepid, walking Statue of Liberty forgettableness. Who would want another sequel after that mess? And how could we get it two decades after the fact? Of course you’ve guessed the answer – Ghostbusters: The Video Game, which really is the sequel I’ve been waiting for.

All the original busters are back, Murray, Aykroyd, Ramis, and Hudson playing digital, young versions of their now aged and expanded selves. Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis are even credited as writers of the game, and I can believe it. The story has the same sensibilities as the original movie, the same over the top mythology and paranormal gobbledygook, and I found it a lot more interesting and entertaining than the Ghostbusters 2 plot. Of course it’s spread out over 7 hours of game play, but that works fine. It’s the transition to digital actors and recorded voice overs that’s less satisfying.

More review and video after the jump: Read more “Review: Ghosbusters: The Video Game - The sequel we’ve been waiting 20 years for” »

Jeff Tweedy doesn’t sound any happier. I’ve always found the Wilco leader’s apparent discomfort in his own skin to be one of the reasons the band was capable of compelling music (although by no means always).

On “Solitaire,” one of the many somber, introspective tunes on Wilco’s self-titled seventh studio album, Tweedy sings in his trademark laconic style, “Once I thought without a doubt/ I had it all figured out/ The universe with hands unseen/ I was cold as gasoline/ Took too long, to see, I was wrong, to believe, in me/ Only.”

Does that suggest that Tweedy is now playing well with others? Or has he finally found the others that are willing to follow his vision. I’m guessing it’s the latter.

In any case, Wilco’s approach on the new album hews more closely to standard song structures than some of the avant-garde-leaning work of the past. Only a handful of songs really stick to your ribs, though, and only one will have you singing it in Read more/audio after the jump.

Check out CL’s main music site.

For news and reviews of this summers biggest releases, be sure to check out CL’s Movies & Television site.

The central mysteries of Alain Resnais’ Last Year at Marienbad still baffle critics and audiences to this day. The film is a fixture on most critics’ greatest-movies lists and maintains a strong cult status among cinephiles. Marienbad has just been released as a Criterion Collection special edition DVD & Blu-ray, enabling a new generation of film lovers to ponder how this film could be so loved and be such a cultural touchstone when it can also seem like such a tedious experience.

Read more “DVD Pick of the Week: The Criterion Collection’s Last Year at Marienbad” »

There’s nothing better than a warm slice of banana bread for breakfast slathered with some butter, and maybe even jam. Or peanut butter. I love the two tastes together in a sandwich, so why not put them in bread form? I decided to go a little nutty and combine the two for this quick bread concoction.

Quick breads (like this one) are very versatile and super easy to make, even for you novice bakers, and for those, like me, who are lazy and hate to measure out a jillion ingredients and wait for dough to rise, etc., etc. They also make a great treat for breakfast or a snack.
Read more “Breakfast Week: Peanut Butter-Banana Bread” »

Going to the movies is a fun activity for kids during the summer. However, with high prices, many parents might be debating whether or not to catch a flick on the big screen. The good news is that there are a few theaters offering free and discounted movies for kids.

On Tuesdays and Wednesdays Muvico is hosting a free Summer Film Festival and AMC is hosting a Summer Movie Camp with $1 admissions every Wednesday through Aug. 5. Both movie theater companies are raising money for charity by offering these free and discounted films.
Read more “Going to the movies this summer for a cause” »

Time for a little comic relief after a long ass day of menial work.  A co-worker sent me one of those emails with a lame Mastercard priceless picture joke attached to it.  Like I give two shits about a kitten on a ledge!  It got me thinking about the extremely hilarious and shocking ones I’ve seen.  The world wide web is a marvelous thing! I decided to share my top picks for the Mastercard “priceless” jokes and of course they have to do with sex! (Unfortunately I had to censor the top two because they showed a little too much, even for Creative Loafing, so here are my top 6).

1)  I can’t even imagine the stuff you could catch!  OMG Read more “Top “Priceless” Mastercard sex jokes of all time (NSFW)” »

The Bloody Mary is one of the few acceptable — or even desirable — morning cocktails, perfect as a hair-of-the-dog hangover tonic, or as a way to get the day started off right. Better yet, done right this pungent example of savory mixology is almost a meal in a glass, loaded with the vital nutrients, roughage and vodka that are essential parts of a balanced breakfast.

Problem is, very few people have spent the time to perfect nature’s perfect breakfast cocktail. It’s a complicated endeavor that is usually beyond the amateur mixologist, with a list of ingredients longer than most morning recipes. And don’t even think of reaching for store-bought mixers — you might as well throw some vodka in a can of Campbell’s condensed tomato soup and call it a day.

With a little preparation, some experimentation, and a fair amount of gratifying taste testing, however, even Bloody Mary newbies can learn to make a mean mix. Here are a few tips: Read more “Breakfast Week: Tips for creating a quintessential Bloody Mary” »

This article started out as a way to explore pollution caused by the fashion and textile industry, but quickly became focused um, er…elsewhere…

TheDailyGreen is (gratuitously, fortunately) rounding up a list of designers and companies that are using sustainable business models and practices to help reduce the very large impact the textile industry has on the environment.

More natural materials such as chiffon, hemp, and organic cotton are being used, along with unexpected items such as bamboo and recycled materials like rubber from tennis shoes are all being made into hot, hot, sexy lingerie by designers all over the world.  All in the name of saving the planet, of course.
Read more “Sexy green lingerie will tickle you pink and help clean up the environment” »

Hip-hop seems adrift, with no particular faction dominating the pop psyche (or the charts). Bling-rap isn’t resonating as much lately, these being trying times and all. The current landscape is perfect for a multi-facted, thinking artist such as Mos Def, whose fourth studio album, The Ecstatic, continues his impressive body of musical work.

The 35-year-old Brooklyn native — who has, perhaps more than any other rapper, made a mark in film, TV and theater — has never had much use for rules. And even though Mos Def is a middling music star, he still approaches his recordings with a decided indie hip-hop aesthetic.

That shows in his choice of producers —Madlib, Preservation, Mr. Flash, J Dilla — who collectively let the rhythm tracks breath, allowing room for Mos Def’s relaxed, conversational flow. Complementing the urban scrapyard of sounds, snippets of found dialogue and arcane samples are various jazz elements like vibes and horns and a handful of Middle Eastern-type chants.

Mos Def, a Muslim, avoids clichéd ’hood themes in favor of utopian ideas (“Revelation”) and commentary about everyday life (“Workers Comp”).

The album has moments of clever irony — like, on the intro the “The Embassy,” where a captain addresses his passengers and describes in detail the guns they have in the cabin.

Read more.

Check out CL’s main music site.

Winter Park singer/songwriter Mike Dunn makes music that evokes freedom and wind in your face. His grabby, anthemic tunes send out a whiff of Americana, but at core they are pure, pop-infused rock ’n’ roll. Dunn pulls from a list of 11 confederates to make up his backing band, the Kings of New England, on any given night. No word on how many will show up at New World for this gig, but the safe bet is it won’t be all 11. Atlanta’s Rick Brantley opens, making the same kind of big-gesture rock, buoyed by his appealingly weathered voice. Will Quinlan makes a guest appearance and, well, we all know Quinlan, the dour dean of Tampa Bay’s Americana scene. (Pictured: Mike Dunn. Photo by Tessa Cox) 9 p.m. Thurs., July 2, New World Brewery, 1313 E. 8th Ave., Ybor City, $7, 813-248-4969 (Eric Snider)

Wine guide Charles Visalli leads a series of workshops on wine etiquette, how to sample wine when dining out, wine varietals, the art of pairing food with wine and more. This week’s focus is “tasting and travel around the world.” E-mail timeforwine@tampabay.rr.com to reserve a spot, or visit carrollwoodcenter.org for more info. 6-7:30 p.m. Thu., July 2, Carrollwood Cultural Center, 4537 Lowell Rd., Tampa, $25, $20 for CCC members, 813-269-1310, carrollwoodcenter.org.

Ever since I hit my sexual peak around 30, I have been on a continuous hormonal roller coaster full of sexual peaks and valleys. The onset of my swinger life began on one of those highs. Read more “30 and horny: the high point of the female sex drive” »

[Ed. note: Each week I'll be breaking down the big summer blockbuster movie releases. If you're curious about what's coming out in future weeks, be sure to check out the Summer Movie Preview. For more info on this week's releases, please check out my full length review of Public Enemies or visit our movie site for all things film-related.]

WEDNESDAY, JULY 1ST
Box office gold: Public Enemies
Worth seeing? Absolutely! Enemies is the latest project from director Michael Mann, the creative force behind Miami Vice (both the TV and film versions), the original Hannibal Lecter flick Manhunter, and the Pacino/Deniro face-off opus Heat. Mann excels at stories of crooks and criminals, and Enemies — the story of bank robber John Dillinger’s populist rabble-rousing reign of terror — is right in his wheelhouse. It also doesn’t hurt to have to have Johnny Depp playing Dillinger, Billy Crudup as J. Edgar Hoover and Christian Bale as FBI top-cop Melvin Purvis. Mann’s ambitions can sometimes weigh down his kinetic shooting style (I mean, Heat’s great, but 3 hours? Really?), but there is no doubt that all the 1930s period details, car chases and shoot-outs will be startlingly rendered. Public Enemies is the best movie of the summer (so far).
Counter-programming: A period piece about violent gangsters not appropriate for your family’s weekend outing? Never fear, everyone’s favorite prehistoric explorers are back for Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs. Picking up where the original left off, Dawn of the Dinos follows the continued adventures of Manny, Scrat and the rest of the thawed-out critters. The famous voices behind the scenes include Simon Pegg, Seann William Scott, John Leguizamo, Denis Leary, Queen Latifah and Ray Romano. In addition, two higher-brow flicks hit this weekend: Larry David takes a stab at “the Woody Allen role” in Allen’s latest, Whatever Works; and Michelle Pfeiffer re-teams with Dangerous Liaisons director Stephen Frears for another period piece, Cheri.

Previews for all the movies after the jump …

Read more “This week @ the movies: Public Enemies” »

Once again the news headlines are full of the risks of pharmaceutical drugs. This time it’s that old staple, acetaminophen, the principle ingredient of Tylenol. Seems that every year 56,000 people are running to the ER with overdoses, some intentional, many accidental.

This is a liver toxin with the power to kill. At least 200 people die each year of this over the counter drug. This article from the New York Times states:

While the medicine is effective in treating headaches and reducing fevers, even recommended doses can cause liver damage in some people. And more than 400 people die and 42,000 are hospitalized every year in the United States from overdoses.

We know that aspirin can cause intestinal bleeding. NSAIDs (Aleve, Motrin, Advil) are similar in action. Several of them, Vioxx, Bextra and Celebrex were recalled for causing heart attacks. So what can people do if they have arthritis, or headaches or other types of pain?
Read more “Natural alternatives to acetaminophen for pain relief” »

Brian and Taylor chat with Craig Dean, wine director at Hyde Park’s Wine Exchange, discuss Brian’s review of new downtown spot Rawbar, and discuss what we’ll be drinking on July 4th.

Listen up!

Soon after moving from Gainesville to Tampa only months ago, I began my search for a local poker game. Such illicit activity is not always easy to find.

My old Gainesville poker circuit was pretty robust. There was the Wednesday night game at Damion 2.0’s, Thursday nights at JD’s place and Friday’s at Brother Bill’s, not to mention Mr. C’s debaucherous, bimonthly 17-hour poker binges.

Damion 2.0 Wednesday’s were $20 buy-in cash games with re-buys allowed as long as you had money in your wallet. Things would start around 7 pm, with people coming and going all night long. It was a game characterized by über-aggressive play. With blinds holding steady at $0.25-$0.50, it was rare to see a flop for anything less than $3.25. It was not uncommon to see someone win or lose up to $400 in a single night.

Thursday nights were my original house game at JD’s place, where the liquor was always free-flowing. We’d generally start the night with quarter games, i.e., Five Card Draw, Follow the Queen, In-Between or Screw Your Neighbor. Years back, we’d play tournament style but that slowly made its way to a cash game. A lot of the old school guys dropped out when things got too cutthroat, but the game also gained people as it got more competitive.

Friday nights at Brother Bill’s were much more casual. With as many as 18 players on any given night, Bill’s game was strictly tournament play. A gracious host, Bill’s open bar always kept people animated on a Friday.

I played at all three of these venues for well over a year. The environs were comfortable. Every seat, every table, every format, every friend.

Enter the new house game: Read more “Adjusting to a home poker game in an unfamiliar environment” »

I was so thrilled when I got the email that Creative Loafing was dedicating this week to breakfast. It is my favorite meal. I love everything about it. First of all, I am one of the oft under-appreciated morning person. Frankly, I just don’t understand people who aren’t morning people. A true optimist HAS to be a morning person. I wake up excited about the potential of most days. It is also that time of day where there is tranquility. As the proud parent of a 5 year old, early morning is the only time I can just enjoy a coffee with no interruption.

Setting off to make breakfast after  relaxation time is over is something I look forward to. Our daily lives keep us from having a proper breakfast during the week but on the weekends I love to begin stirring in the kitchen as the sun rises. I have very loose guidelines I like to follow when thinking of breakfast recipes. Simple, because I want to enjoy the rest of the day, is the basic theme. Who wants to fuss for an hour, eat and then have a tremendous mess to clean up? Yes simple is a must. That’s why eggs fried in olive oil is just the perfect way to impress. Read more “Breakfast Week: Eggs fried in olive oil, with parmesan grits” »

Nah. That’s just what one Shakespearean wag mused about in regards to the (mostly) critically acclaimed production of Hamlet that’s headed to Broadway from London this fall:

Rosalind emailed me this morning, wondering if I wanted to go to London to see Jude Law in Hamlet.
That reminded me of feature we long ago joked about adding to shakespeare.com: Naked Shakespeare with Nude Jude Law.These would be brief productions of crucial scenes from Shakespeare’s plays performed with utmost seriousness – except that at a certain point you’d see that one of the actors was totally naked. And that actor would be a nude Jude Law.

The blogger goes on to dream of Kate Winslet getting “her kit off” and joining Jude in the nude, so he’s clearly an equal-opportunity voyeur. Read more “Hamlet in NYC: A Nude Jude Law?” »

Nerds rejoice!  Finally geekdom is not only cool, it’s kind of hot.  I present to you, courtesy of our good friends at Playboy, G4TV’s resident temptress Olivia Munn from Attack of the Show.  The geeky goddess is the magazine’s latest cover girl and here is proof that playing video games all day can be sexy (ok, that’s a stretch).  Also included are some of the Rabid One’s favorite selections from Playboy’s “Sweetest Tweets,” the geekiest hot girls to follow on Twitter.  If these gals don’t make you want to press UP, UP, DOWN, DOWN, LEFT, RIGHT, B, A, START than there is something wrong with your joystick.

Read more “Pics from Olivia Munn’s Playboy shoot. plus Playboy’s top babes to follow on Twitter (NSFW)” »