Daily Loaf

Miss Destructo: Zombie Hunter

When you think of Orlando, you may think of Mickey Mouse and the tourist-filled, neon-lit strip of International Drive.  However, now all I see is Mickey’s zombiefied clone terrorizing tourists and International Drive becoming a twisted nightmare of ghoulish zombies … oh and Jake Busey.

My family has some strange traditions. For the last three years, we’ve packed up the whole crew to  go to Orlando for the horror-themed convention Spooky Empire (formerly known as Screamfest).  It’s a three-day-long event full of celebrity panels, vendors selling gory goods and infamously wild late night pool parties. Read more about Spooky Empire and watch the video after the jump…. Read the rest of this entry »

Catherine Durkin Robinson is a handful creating quite a scene over at Out in Left Field.

Last week I got a request to appear on Studio 10, a local morning talk show in Tampa, hosted by Holley Sinn and Jerome Ritchey. They wanted to discuss my review of Capitalism: A Love Story and maybe even my blogging adventures here at CL and Out in Left Field.

Despite the fact they have no open bar, I agreed to go on the show.

Thursday morning, I arrived early and asked for the makeup room.

Lovely Receptionist blinked a few times.

“Where do you think you are?” she asked. “Oprah?”

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Many of us are so used to using social networking sites daily that we forget that there is a big world out there. I admit, I have also become accustomed to living life at 140 characters or less. The allure of being able to network in my underwear has become all too tempting. Finally, having enough of staring at status updates about someone’s lunch, I put some pants on and attended the Tech/Social Media conference BarCamp Tampa Bay 2009 on Sunday, September 27th at USF.

The local social media driven event was running two consecutive days, Saturday was focused on Tech/Development and Sunday was geared towards the Social Media/Marketing crowd. Each day is filled with attendee driven panels and discussions, making BarCamp a unique experience. Unlike most conferences, every guest at Barcamp has a chance to sign up for a panel spot to speak their minds about the hottest tech/social media topics. Best of all, it’s free!

Video below the jump. Read the rest of this entry »

Aug. 1 marked the opening of Creative Loafing’s new multi-use facility with an event welcoming members of the Tampa Independent Business Alliance (TIBA).

Two winners were announced as part of the “Shop Local & Fill Your Passport” contest (customers spent money at locally-owned businesses during the summer to be eligible).

The Brett Alan Trio also performed. Video and more pics below the jump:

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Hi, my name is Amanda and I am an American Idol super-fan.

I can make a compelling argument for or against pretty much any contestant in the top ten, based upon singing ability, showmanship and marketability. I gasped in horror the first time Adam Lambert landed in the bottom three. I love Kelly Clarkson’s entire musical library, more than any self-respecting, 27-year-old woman should. Also, I have no musical talent whatsoever.

My younger sister Caitlin, on the other hand, can sing and has a dream of getting famous on a reality show, any reality show.

So, after some persuasion, which basically consisted of her telling me that there was a chance Ryan Seacrest would be there, I agreed to take a vacation day and see what my favorite reality show is really all about at the first round of American Idol auditions (insert excitable “Woo!” here). Creative Loafing gave us a video camera, we headed to Orlando, woke up well before dawn, smuggled said video camera into the arena and spent all day surrounded by people with one goal, to be the next Ruben Studdard, or something like that.

This is Caitlin’s American Idol story. Video after the jump: Read the rest of this entry »

“It would be my honor to be your new step-father.”

Sure, Saturday Night Live has been in the doldrums longer than most of us can remember, but Justin Timberlake’s guest-host appearances have served up some comedic gems over the past six years. As a sequel to the insanely viral “Dick in a Box” music video from 2006, Justin Timberlake and Andy Samberg recruit Susan Sarandon in a very funny new joint: “Motherlover.”

Video below the jump:

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Watch the CL Street Team snuggle, drink and “sausage” their way through the tailgating parties at Super Bowl XLIII.

More CL TV

Watch the Creative Loafing Street Team endure a nighttime challenge that includes mysterious clues, creepy motorcyclists and dead camera batteries. See how they make out!