Stargazer
For All Signs We experience our lives in multiple spiraling threads. As any one cycle comes to a conclusion, we often feel an element of sadness and grief over the loss of an era. This is followed by a period of time that is empty, devoid of spark and inspiration. It is something like a…
Holier than thou
Five years ago, John Ashcroft told the Conservative Political Action Conference that “the Founding Fathers’ vision was for a constitutional republic where the will of the people would be imposed on Washington, not the views of Washington imposed on the people.”Like every politician, he is unwavering in his belief that the people’s views and his…
Sealed & Delivered
Gallery L at the Public Library is proving to be a fine addition to Charlotte’s various viewing venues. All of the exhibits I’ve visited there have been accessible and enjoyable while at the same time offering something more if you look beneath the pretty surfaces and consider the underlying meaning as well as the physical…
State to Investigate Charter School
The final grades received by graduating seniors at a local high school will soon get a closer look from officials at the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction. Dr. Otho Tucker, director of the state’s Office of Charter Schools, says he has been in contact with officials at Crossroads Charter High School and plans to…
Ain’t that a man?
On the last day of August 1941, folklorists Alan Lomax and John Work III stopped at a Mississippi plantation to record a field hand who was gaining a reputation in the Delta for his blues playing and singing. Afraid that the white man, Lomax, was a government official or con man, the field hand –…
The Rockets’ Red Glare
Independence Day 2002 –loaded with patriotism and celebration — creates an attractive target date for terrorists, as the Bush administration has warned us. But if those fireworks are exploding anywhere near the nation’s 103 operating commercial nuclear reactors, including the McGuire plant on Lake Norman or the Catawba plant on Lake Wylie, you might want…
Arts Agenda
Classical Music American Guild of Organists Summer Recital Series with recitalist J. Samuel Hammond and John Hammond, Carilloneurs. Thu., July 4, 8:30 p.m. Free – a free-will offering will be taken to cover the costs of the series. Covenant Presbyterian Church, 1000 E. Morehead St. 704-588-1290. American Guild of Organists Summer Recital Series with recitalist…
Snuffaluffagincubus
The band Clutch is a curious breed. In fact, the band may not even be a breed at all. Ostensibly, the band plays stoner rock, but without the references to pot or evil wizards or Conan the Barbarian. Mixed in with this is a jam-band mentality, as the group often improvises during songs, does the…
Dogs, Games & The Fourth
What could be more American than baseball, hot dogs, and the Fourth of July? Well, I guess counting your insider trading profits while taking a break from counting the threads on the percale sheets that bear your name (potentially from your tastefully decorated federal prison cell) might qualify. And maybe shooting off some Chinese fireworks…
Larson’s In, Laura’s Out
There’s a new local sound back at last on WBT-AM’s 9am-12noon weekday slot, and Keith Larson is the guy who’s supposed to make things happen in Life After Dr. Laura.We chatted about a number of things, including how he hopes the “Keith Larson Show” will fit into Charlotte’s radio landscape, and how he found his…
Wines For The Fourth
It’s that time of year again, when hot sunny days inspire the primitive urge to make fire and roast up large hunks of meat for tribes of hungry carnivores. In other words: barbecue season. Now when I say “barbecue,” I’m not talking about the kind they have in Memphis or Kansas City. No, I mean…
Letters to the editor
LOVE TAKES WORK In response to Tara Servatius’ article “So You’re In Love, Huh?” (CL June 19,2002) I too once found myself wondering about our notions of love. For me this was brought on by 60 years of regrets, failed relationships and bitterness. Having grown up in a different era, when things were supposedly simpler,…
Good eats
Dilworth/Southend 300 East, 300 East Blvd., 704-332-6507. Locals have long gathered at this casual neithborhood bistro in a vintage house featuring an eclectic menu. $$$ Berrybrook Farms Natural Foods, 1257 E. Blvd., 704-334-6528. Homemade soups, herbed tofu sandwiches, bean burritos, and freshly squeezed fruit and vegetable juices found in a natural food shop. $ Bistro…
So You’re Not In Love, Huh?
They’re out there and they’re everywhere. They are otherwise rational, intelligent people who are single, married and divorced. Some have had many relationships, some very few. But what binds them is their terrible secret: they haven’t been “in love” and doubt, based on what they have seen of life, that such a state of being…
Old Skool Cool
James Todd Smith — the estimable LL Cool J — has been rapping since somewhere around 1980. He’s 34 now (or 33, depending on whom you believe). He doesn’t lack for Grammys or street credibility. He doesn’t lack for hats, either (he owns some 2,000). He leaves ladies swooning in his wake (his moniker stands…
Ever vigilant, partying down
In contrast to emotionally loaded holidays like Christmas and Thanksgiving, I’ve always appreciated the light-heartedness associated with the Fourth of July. Cooking out, swimming and fireworks are just more fun than the prospect of glaring at family members across a giant roasted bird. Naturally, many people still spend time with their families on the Fourth…
Music Mementos
Ask just about any music fan — and remember, fan is short for fanatic — if they’ve got a memento or two tucked away in their closet from their favorite artist or concert, and chances are they’ll bend your ear for a minute or two (more likely 10 to 15) on what they’ve got and…
Letter from England
George Bush has done it again, managing to send his European allies up in arms one more time. In a single short speech on the Middle East, Bush has further dismayed his political friends in Europe (let alone alienating the Arab world) with what many here regard as another example of his “distressing ineptitude” in…
Get Shorty
Whether you know it or not, chances are you’ve been listening to Randy Newman’s music for decades. Over 100 singers have covered his songs, including Judy Collins, Etta James, Joe Cocker, Bonnie Raitt, Dusty Springfield and Three Dog Night, who had a number one hit with Newman’s “Mama Told Me Not To Come” in 1970.…
Whence QWERTY?
Much like President Bush’s mangling of words over two syllables, or the ubiquity of Britney Spear’s navel, the key configuration on today’s typewriters is just something we take for granted. While Dubya’s verbal troubles can surely be traced back to his partying college days, and Ms. Spear’s belly button prominence is no doubt the brainchild…
Music Menu
WEDNESDAY 7.3 Bellglide / Pyramid –Bellglide are ever improving, thanks to vocalist/keyboardist Slappy gaining her stage legs. John Cates, Taylor Short and Adam Roth aren’t exactly long in the tooth, but they provide a solid bed for their singer to lay her Brit-pop-style lullabies. Pyramid are semi-new to the scene, but already a can’t miss:…
The Blotter
Surprise Visitor: A woman and her husband received quite a surprise when they attempted to leave their home through their garage door. As the husband was about to place his hand on the doorknob, he looked down and realized that the knob was already turning. As the door opened, they came face to face with…
Soundboard
Wednesday, Jul. 3 * Amos’ Southend Tim Krekel & Pat Haney Arnie’s Tavern, Huntersville Scott Johnson Bayou Kitchen Bill Noonan Cajun Queen 7th Street Gator Band Cajun Queen, Pineville 7th Street Gator Band II Charleston Chops, Cornelius Kent Steel Connolly’s Craig & Rich Acoustic * Dixie’s Tavern Uncle Sam Jam: Joan Jett & The Blackhearts,…
At least they have Footbol
Panic rooms: Uncontrolled crime (eight times the murder rate of New York City) and a huge wealth disparity (most people either fabulously rich or appallingly poor, with few in the middle) have caused the 1 million wealthiest residents of Sao Paulo, Brazil, to protect themselves by living in 300 gated communities (and have caused some…
Back in Black
Stop the presses!Will Smith is a crackhead!! OK, now that we have your attention, allow us to explain. It wasn’t too long ago — just back in December, actually, when he was promoting his soon-to-be-Oscar-nominated turn in Ali — that Smith was referring to movies like Independence Day and Men In Black as so much…
See & Do
JULY3 WEDNESDAY The WNBA Charlotte Sting are back in action against the Portland Fire at 7pm tonight at the Charlotte Coliseum. Tickets are $8-50, available by calling 877-WNBA-TIX. If you’re aching to start celebrating Independence Day early, the First Charter Celebrate America is your event. The celebration will take place at UNC-Charlotte on the playing…
Movie Missives
SUMMER SERIES This upcoming week is when three local film series will all kick off their new seasons. The new kid on the block is “Monday Night Movies at Spirit Square,” which will feature eight of this year’s Oscar-nominated films at 6:30pm every Monday from July 8 through August 26. Titles include In the Bedroom…
Ask the Advice Goddess
Growing Mold Together My boyfriend of two years wants me to move in with him. “Count your blessings,” my girlfriends tell me. Well, that’s exactly what I’m NOT doing … even though I’m very much in love with him and happy with our relationship, which I’d describe as “committed and stable.” I just got out…
Film Clips
NEW RELEASES THE DANGEROUS LIVES OF ALTAR BOYS Can this be? Director Peter Care has previously spent his career helming TV commercials and music videos, but rather than taking the usual route and making his feature film debut with, say, Armageddon 2, he has elected to oversee this soft-spoken adaptation of the late Chris Fuhrman’s…
Karma Cleanser
Dear Karma Cleanser: I don’t know how to tell my girlfriend this, but I have become slightly addicted to chatting with women online. It started out pretty innocently and has grown into something I do at least once every day now. Usually, I wait until my girlfriend goes to bed, then I fire up the…
Needed: Smaller Planes, Cheaper Flights
While Charlotte leaders chew their fingernails over US Airways’ struggles to stay afloat, many industry analysts say a new trend in the airline industry could make hub airports like Charlotte’s obsolete, or pretty darn close to it, over the next decade.Even if US Airways, which is losing over a billion dollars a year, gets the…
