Daily Loaf

I’m still amazed when I hear about someone getting married because of faith and not love.  That fact that people are still marrying out of necessity to their religion is astonishing. Take Alex for instance.  I don’t personally know Alex, but he is a friend of a friend.  Recently his story reminded me how some people still hide who they are in order to be accepted by church or family.  Alex is gay, yet he lives the life of a straight man to his friends, family, church, and even his fiance. Read the rest of this entry »

Creative Loafing, Inc. announced today that Marty Petty, the former publisher of the St. Petersburg Times and Hartford Courant, has been named chief executive officer for the alternative newspaper weekly chain.

The announcement was made this morning by interim CEO Richard Gilbert at the Tampa paper’s headquarters in Ybor City.   In a press release, Gilbert called Petty’s experience “an unique mix seldom found in one publishing executive.  She has solid journalistic values honed from her early career in the newsroom and her long-standing commitment to hard-hitting journalism.  All three of her last papers earned Pulitzer Prizes during her leadership.   As publisher of two of the nation’s most highly respected newspapers, she has also earned a reputation as a skilled and creative marketing and sales executive who knows how to build strategic alliances to ensure success.”

Petty will be working on a part-time basis until January as she gets up to speed on what is happening with the six-paper chain.  Speaking to the staff this morning, she said, “I love this business.  It’s about great stories — and making the money to pay for them.”

When asked what she thinks of the quality of Creative Loafing’s papers, which include the Washington City Paper and Chicago Reader as well as the CL papers in Tampa, Atlanta, Charlotte and Sarasota, she said she could not give a full evaluation until she is looking at them on a regular basis.  “I have not gone deep yet,” she said to the assembled staff. Read the rest of this entry »

I had so much fun in Key West for Fantasy Fest it should be illegal (though I’m sure some of it was, or very damn close).  The boat ride on the Key West Express was well worth it. We got there in a fraction of the time and my friend Melissa and I got a head start on the festivities by sucking down White Russians and talking to Fantasy Fest veterans and fellow virgins. My favorite old pros were Bob and Rita who gave us a heads up on the freaky crazy fun of swinger groups who meet in Key West just to have sex with one another and go to kink parties. We quickly realized how true their anecdote was when we stepped off the boat and were promptly offered a free room by some NYC cops. Unfortunately they were a bit vague as to the terms of their offer.

The best word to describe what I saw in Key West is WOW!! I knew I was going to see some weird shit at Fantasy Fest but no amount of preparation or pictures can ready a person for the real thing: a celebration of parades, naked people, drunken stupors, and casual sex. Read the rest of this entry »

“Hi Dream Momma, I like your blog and was hoping you can help me as I think about this dream a lot. In the dream, I went with my family to visit my first love (of nearly a decade ago). I went in the house, and it was empty. Saw some things of his, then he appeared. We talked a little, all politely, openly, heart-achily. He wasn’t happy in his life, then his sister came in the room. She was really sweet, and was also stuck in a less than desirable situation. My current love joined us in the room and convo, and we ended up sitting and hugging all together, knowing that the shit was over, and we would help each other escape into happiness back in Atlanta. It was amazingly emotional.” (sic)

Dream Momma likes this healing dream. Read the rest of this entry »

“Dream Momma, A reoccurring dream I had as a child was that I was riding in a van (sitting on the floor) with Punky Brewster and the black guy on the
 show. It was a hula-hoop van, don’t ask. We stopped at this bank, and the driver tried to catch me with a hula-hoop as I got out, he was trying to keep me from going and stopping a crime. Punky and dude and I went and hid behind a bush, and these three bank robbers were walking from the bank all pink panther like. Their faces were like those you see on neighborhood crime watch signs. Then I woke up.” (sic)

Hmmm. Dream Momma will help you. Vans, unlike let’s say, a sports car, are symbols of two things. One is work and the other is a group of people. Sitting on the floor of a van indicates your status in the family or at work. Perhaps you were the youngest or in now-time at work, the newest hire.

For other readers out there, if, in a dream, you are in a car, pay attention to the type of car. Read the rest of this entry »

A veritable dance party erupted at Crowbar this past Tuesday evening during and between splendid sets by Vivian Girls (NYC), and Tampa’s Sleepy Vikings and Hippodrome.

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Republican blogger, daughter of John McCain, and overall minx Meghan McCain, almost pulled a Miley Cyrus this week after a racy photo on her Twitter account sparked outrage from conservatives.  With all the problems Americans face these days, why are we worried about a little cleavage?

Full “racy” shot after the break

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. Read the rest of this entry »

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 »

“ Dream Momma, I dreamt I got a phone call from an old boyfriend (my first if ya know what I mean) from 27 years ago. The phone call went something like this – he says ” sorry. I. have not called. in.. a while….somebody……hurt me.” long pauses in the phone conversations and the “hurt me” was evil & drawn out…..I had fear. when I woke up my hand was in a position to have held a cell phone and it was locked like that for awhile. the weird thing is I was young – I never loved the guy & he never loved me (we just had sex for several months), so it was no great significance or loss when it was over. I cannot believe my subconscious would send me info from a casual affair when I have two men in my life (long term love relationships) that are more prominent & more recent. Even in my dream I was confused as to why this guy would be calling me. REally it was nothing special in real life.” (sic)

Dream Momma just loves those unconscious typos (“REally”).  Talk about denial of a tremendously significant passage in a young woman’s life. REALLY! So what’s up with that? Read the rest of this entry »

I’ve had many emails asking how to successfully approach other swingers.  The answer isn’t the same for everyone.  Approaching a stranger for sex is awkward at best, let alone  incredibly intimidating.  What if they say no?  What if they don’t like you?  How do you know if they like you? Read the rest of this entry »

Three rounds, nine bands, one fatty recording studio package for the winner. Yes, it’s a battle of the bands competition. Yes, I generally think these things are bullshit maneuvers staged by sponsors with questionable motives to get the word out on bands that no one really knows or cares about.

But “The 9” isn’t your run-of-the-mill band vs. band playoff.

First, respected Vermont craft brewery Magic Hat — known for its support of emerging acts across the country — is staging the affair, and in association with Skipper’s Smokehouse, Creative Loafing and Morrisound Recording.

Second, the competition isn’t meant for young unknowns, but for bands that already have a buzz going and can really benefit from the chance to record at Morrissound. Read the rest of this entry »

Two years ago, Creative Loafing unveiled “Project: ReCover,” in which local artists re-painted (or otherwise recovered) four of our distribution boxes. Local artists Blue Lucy curated the project and each box was modeled after one of the four elements (earth, air, fire and water). The boxes were then placed along Central Avenue in St. Petersburg. This week, we discovered that one of the two remaining boxes, the “fire” box produced by Blue Lucy (pictured below), located outside Daddy Kool at 657 Central Avenue had gone missing.

Any information succesfully leading to the “recovery” of the missing box will result in a free Bites certificate from our CL Deals store. That’s right, a $30 meal (on us) in exchange for the safe return of our beloved box. If you have any information (or the box itself), please leave a comment or e-mail us and we will arrange the drop (no questions asked).

Video from the “Project: ReCover” unveiling after the jump.

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I hate when guys tell me they don’t have girlfriends when they do. I don’t care. If I’m attracted to you, I’ll fuck you. Just don’t lie to me. I want to know the risks upfront. Some women flip out on you if they catch you with their man. I ended up with a pit bull and a mountain of clothes four feet high on my doorstep once because I was fucking someone‘s boyfriend. Of course at the time, I denied I even knew him and made her take it all back. I learned my lesson though: if he has a girlfriend, only fuck him once, or there will be drama. Read the rest of this entry »

The Loafies — our annual celebration in honor of the Best of the Bay issue — are your chance to meet the winners and mingle with the tastemakers of Tampa Bay at our homecoming/house party/awards show (no word on whether Kanye’s gonna ruin my award presentation). Come out for food, fashion, drink, dancing and more, with live music by Best of the Bay winners Nervous Turkey (pictured) and Shunda K, 500 Wolves and more. Rumor has it that The Senator will be making a guest appearance, though how he could possibly top last year’s show is anybody’s guess.

Creative Loafing Editor David Warner made this announcement today:

Mitch Perry, who served for over 9 years as assistant news director of WMNF-FM and created the WMNF Evening News in 2003, joins the staff of Creative Loafing as News & Politics editor beginning September 21.
A respected voice in Bay area journalism with broad experience in covering local, national and international news and community affairs, he brings multi-media expertise and deep knowledge of the local scene to CL’s print and online publications. He has already won readers as a contributor to the Daily Loaf blog, where he worked with former CL Political Editor Wayne Garcia, and his appointment as Wayne’s successor reflects CL’s continued commitment to fair, thorough and intelligent coverage of the issues that are important to Tampa Bay residents.
“I’m thrilled that Mitch is joining our team,” said CL Editor David Warner. “I’ve long admired his work as anchor and reporter on the Evening News, and I’m looking forward to the new dimensions he will bring to CL — including that unmistakable Mitch Perry voice.” That voice will continue to be heard in a new daily CL podcast hosted by Mitch, along with a weekly print column, in-depth feature reporting and daily coverage in CL’s news & politics website, cltampa.com/news.
“The new owners of Creative Loafing have expressed strong support for good, solid journalism,” said Warner, “and this hire more than meets that standard. I’m looking forward to adding further depth to the newsroom as the year progresses.”
Perry, a San Francisco native, worked as an anchor and reporter for KPFA Radio in Berkeley, CA before his tenure at WMNF. He has moderated candidates’ debates in the Tampa Bay area, and regularly appears on local news and public affairs television and radio programs. He is a graduate of San Francisco State University and a member of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists.

Soccer Dad and I are off to another swingers party this weekend filled with couples we know and many we don’t.  So how do we know a swinger’s party will be worth the trip and the price of admission if we have no idea if there will be anyone there we want to fuck? We don’t.

Vanilla couples may never completely understand swinging.  The lifestyle is based on looks, confidence, and sexual prowess.  You can be a perfectly nice person, and even attractive, but that doesn’t mean I want to have sex with you just because I arrive at a swinger’s party with a choker that reads, “I love cock.”  Swinger parties or clubs are similar to regular bars on Saturday nights: They’re meat markets, except for married folks. Read the rest of this entry »

Mary’s open suitcase lay flat on her bed, empty as the thoughts in her mind. He’d left three messages on her machine just that day alone. The light on the machine blinked incessantly, matching the pounding inside her chest. It was a situation she could no longer avoid dealing with. The ringing phone could be ignored but soon enough, she knew he’d be at her porch door. Then she’d finally have to let him know which way her decision swayed. Read the rest of this entry »

Jen and I had our weekly meeting (READ: daily IM-ing during work hours) regarding our posts for CL and decided that since I am suffering through an injury I could provide you all some insights on how to make it through an injury of your own. Physically making it through is one thing, mentally making it through is another.

The week before last I headed out with the running group to get in a nice 22 mile training run. At about mile 9ish the ankle starting hurting. By mile 13 it really hurt. Did I stop? Hell no. At 18 miles I had to throw in the towel and have been babying it ever since. Read the rest of this entry »

Sex and rock ‘n’ roll go hand in hand, and when it comes to rockin’ and lovin’, no one does it better than The Boss. Any number of Bruce Springsteen albums will send you zooming off in your car to the nearest body of water, to put your hands all over your lover’s engine.  Below are the Rabid One’s Top 5 Sex in Springsteen Songs. Read the rest of this entry »

Dr. Pek Van Andel had a common idea: to film sex. However, because Andel is a scientist and not an amateur porn director, he had to mask his desire in a scientific project that would garner public funding. Thus was born the scandalous video, “Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Male and Female Genitals During Coitus and Female Sexual Arousal.”

While you won’t find this title at your local adult video story, it’s on Youtube. Why, you may ask, is a video of intercourse available on Youtube, and CL for that matter? Aside from the fact that this video is less sexual than an emaciated celebutant in a blurry sex tape, what is portrayed in the video in no way resembles the common image of sex. After watching what looked like two beating hearts pounding together, I had serious doubts about if what I was doing in my marital bed even constituted sex. Read the rest of this entry »

ThxMgmt’s Summer Jam 5 was a resounding success with a plethora of diverse bands, acts and DJs — The Honorary Title, Cory Branan, Damion Suomi, Carter Hulsey, The Beauvilles, Shunda K (formerly of Yo Majesty!), Da Goldminerz, How Dare You, S.L.I.M.M. H.U.S.T.L.E, Blind Man’s Colour, Larcen, GreyMarket, The Tape Delay, The Sheaks, Deficit, Alexander & The Grapes, StereoType & The Treble Makers, DJ Sandman, DJ Mega, DJ Deacon, DJ Colonic, and DJ Chris Golden — at two Ybor City venues, New World Brewery and Crowbar this past Saturday, August 29.

Read the rest of this entry »

This week, life threw a massive curve ball at Creative Loafing Media. Taken over by the NYC-based hedge fund to whom we owed a ton of money, each employee processed the news in a different way: sadness, optimism, relief. Me? I got shit-faced. On great wine. I figured if my family’s legacy is going down [my parents founded Creative Loafing and my brother was CEO until last Tuesday], I should consume voluminous amounts of quality juice. Fast. However, the questioned remained … which ones? So many choices, so little time to race and get to the promised land.

Obviously, I needed something high in alcohol. These sorts of wines emerge from hot areas, where the grapes grow fat with sugar and the resulting wine has more punch (sugar converts to alcohol in fermentation). Napa, Sonoma, Barossa Valley (Australia), Washington State (yes, there are areas where it isn’t miserably rainy), and a host of other delicious choices for the perfect Zen state of non-thought. Read the rest of this entry »

Things are really starting to get organized at the CL office as we’ll continue to show you with part 3 of their green office makeover. The Sales, Marketing, and Classifieds departments get into the action next! I had the pleasure of working hands-on with James (Ad Director), Joran (Marketing + Promotions Director), and Terri (Classifieds Manager) in their workspaces. My plan for each department was to follow the 4 Rs (Reduce, Reuse, Repurpose, Recycle) to create more space and better organization in their areas.

The video starts off with London (Operations Manager) painting the stage in CL’s new event space – that’s just for fun! As the camera pans through the lobby, I’d like you to note that the very special “something” we created for the community is finally revealed. It’s CL’s Community Center! It’s a very cool place for members of the community to bring their business and event flyers and place them on the table or bulletin board to share with others. This center also contains CDs and other items that CL wants to share with you – for FREE! So stop by and take a few! This is one way CL is recycling items and giving back to the community at the same time. A pan to the main hallway of CL’s offices shows that items previously blocking a clear passageway through the offices have been strategically moved to other more appropriate areas to allow for an easier, safer, and more visually appealing walk through CL.

Video after the jump
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Living with a small cock must be something like being a zombie.  You are stricken with a horrifying disease that controls your every move, causing you to perform inane acts all around town and in the barns of Pasco County. Contrary to popular opinion, you don’t have to have a small dick to suffer from this condition. All you really need is insecurity. This can be caused by any number of things: lack of intelligence, lack of hair, lack of funds, and yes, a lack of penis.

Read the rest of this entry »

Atalaya Capital Management this morning doubled Creative Loafing Management’s bid to retain the alternative newsweekly chain, ending months of legal wrangling and 37 years of control by the Eason family.

Michael Bogdan, managing partner of the winning New York-based hedge fund, said he is committed to keeping the chain’s 230 employees and 400,000 readers in six cities.

“We are here for the long haul and we want to make this work,” Bogdan said minutes after Federal Bankruptcy Judge Caryl E. Delano accepted Atalaya’s $5 million cash bid.

Creative Loafing bid $2.32 million in cash and other securities. The deal is expected to close within 10 days.

Bogdan and other Atalaya officials are tentatively set to meet Wednesday morning at the Marriott Waterside with publishers and other managers from the papers in Tampa, Sarasota, Atlanta, Charlotte, Chicago and Washington, D.C. Read the rest of this entry »

Maybe it’s my age, experience, or perhaps I’m not as kinky as I thought, but a recent blog, “Rape Fantasy: the ultimate taboo,” caught me off guard. It revealed that some women fantasize about being raped. Fantasies are great. They’re fun and they enhance sex, but I also think they are best shared only with a trusting partner. Victims of rape or sexually assault don’t want to know how some women enjoy role playing games involving forced sex. It’s also not a good idea to tell potential rapists that some people like to imagine being “overpowered and forced to surrender.” Some men may take this controlled fantasy out of context, and transform it into a harsh reality. Read the rest of this entry »

It’s fitting that one of the most high-profile events of the fall arts season is a musical adaptation of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, because lately it’s seemed we’ve all been headed down the rabbit hole. The No-Bama crowd calls for the truth about healthcare, but traffics in outright lies. The president says the so-called public option is a key aspect of his plan, then says it isn’t, then says it is. The St. Petersburg Times wins a Pulitzer for PolitiFact, then backs a mayoral candidate, Bill Foster, who believes in such “facts” as this statement: “None of Darwin’s theories can be replicated or proven in a laboratory…”
So what’s all this got to do with the fall arts season? Easy. If you’re starved for the truth, start listening to artists. Read the rest of this entry »

I was sitting in front of my laptop Monday morning, putting the finishing touches on Dirty Talk 301, when the number to my chat line rang.

“Hello Sweetheart,” said the sexiest voice I’d ever heard.

“Hi there,” I said in my most seductive tone.

The caller told me he’d been thinking of me and finally found my number.

“That sounds really great sweetie, but WHO are you?”  Read the rest of this entry »

Eccentric and uber-funny English and German art punk/wave band Art Brut are named after French painter Jean Dubuffet’s definition of outsider art: art made without thought to imitation or presentation by prisoners, loners, the mentally ill, and other marginalized citizens.

Art brut is fronted by “Top of the Pops” fan Eddie Argos (vocals), and is currently rounded out by Jasper Future (guitar), Ian Catskilkin (guitar), Frederica Feedback (bass), and Mikey Breyer (drums). Legend states that they began writing songs five minutes after they formed.

The band, contemporaries of acts like Franz Ferdinand and Bloc Party, formed in 2003. Blender Magazine soon described them as the best unsigned group in the UK. The band released their first LP in 2005, Bang Bang Rock and Roll, and it’s follow up, It’s a Bit Complicated, in 2007. Read the rest of this entry »

James Cameron’s Avatar doesn’t hit theaters until December, but that hasn’t stopped hyped-up fan boys and girls from getting excited now. With a wall of secrecy around the project, the desire to see something (anything!) from the flick is at such a fever pitch that a free ticket giveaway today for a special preview of the film throttled the Avatar website.

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Saigon Deli’s four varieties of Vietnamese Banh Mi — meatball, beef, roast pork, pate — all have the same garnish piled on crusty French-style bread: lightly pickled carrots, cucumber and daikon radish; a heaping mass of bright green cilantro; sliced, fresh jalapenos. A simple combination, but those ingredients contain three of the four fundamental facets of most Southeast Asian cuisine: spice from the jalapeno, sour from the pickle, sweet from the veggies. Add savory and salty meat, and you’ve hit the jackpot, all for a mere $2.99. It almost justifies the years of French colonial influence over Vietnam.

Saigon Deli, 3692 W. Waters Ave., Tampa, 813-932-0300

[About Daily Best of the Bay: Creative Loafing is posting writers' and editors' picks for Best of the Bay 2009 each day until the BOTB issue is released on Sept. 16. Vote now for your own BOTB choices in our Readers' Poll!]

“The Wedding Date” began when long-time friends Sarah and Christian shared their first romantic experience…

It didn’t take long for Christian to feel the effects of the gin dancing in his glass.

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The campaign for Best Local Blog in the Creative Loafing Readers’ Poll is getting serious; note the campaign photo at right.

Not everyone’s a fan. One jaded voter responded to the question this way:  “There’s no such thing.” We also got “no,” “none” and “I hate blogs” (which may be the name of a blog, I’m not sure).

But the 100-plus blogs nominated so far in the category suggest plenty of our readers would disagree.

The leaders at the moment? Here they are in no particular order (as the host says on I can’t remember which reality show): Read the rest of this entry »

After reading Dirty Talk 101 and Dirty Talk 201, you’re ready to turn the heat up.

I’ll admit that a few times while working on a chat line, the caller would actually turn me on with vivid details of what he looked like, at least in both of our minds. I’d react to his voice and start imagining myself what it would be like to fuck him. Men like these made me enjoy talking dirty and making callers cum with just my words. The excitement of making a man with just your voice is orgasmic. When done right, the rush is orgasmic!!

(language below NSFW)

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