Stargazer
For All Signs Mercury, planetary ruler of travel, routine business and communications, turned direct on January 6. After a four-week period of revisions and reorganizing, the general functions of life will now move along more smoothly. Decisions, temporarily shelved, can now be settled and contracts are more likely to be viable. Now is the time…
Dragonfly
The Poons wanted to name their restaurant Flying Dragon, a name that is “very Chinese” according to Helen Poon. “But we changed it to DragonFly so it would have a local sound to it.” Compromise is one of the keys to survival for any ethnic restaurant. And whether you associate flying dragons with Chinese cuisine,…
Riches and Rubbish
The rule of thumb is that it takes Hollywood two to three years to jump on any given bandwagon. In 2003, many of the year’s movies made that rule seem like prophecy. Because of the time involved in making a motion picture, studios are forced to cool their heels as they wait for their own…
Glory Hallelujah
The Russian Revolution of 1917 brought an end to the production of Russian religious icons, which had been revered for centuries and respected outside of Russia as works of art. The intentions of the makers of these icons were that they not be seen principally as artwork; therefore, artistic innovation wasn’t encouraged and, in fact,…
What Kind of Equity?
School is the last place kids should be afraid to go. But every day, thousands of this county’s poorest kids apparently walk the halls of our schools in fear. It’s a problem most school board members Creative Loafing talked to weren’t even aware of, and weren’t exactly eager to solve. Safety goals set by school…
A Whole Lava Love
Usually known for writing World War II-based thrillers, Robert Harris now turns his talents to engineering, plumbing and the writings of Roman scholar Pliny the Elder as the foundation for his narrative. Powered by the rumblings of the soon-to-blow Mount Vesuvius, Harris’ new novel, Pompeii, offers a delightful ride through the Roman Empire as disaster…
A Tale of Two Mayors
When Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory offered to place a wager with Dallas mayor Laura Miller on last weekend’s Panthers-Cowboys NFL playoff game, she blew him off quicker than you can say “What’s that gnat doing in here in January?” A few local pundits, of course, declared Miller “chicken” or some other adolescent witticism. Now, we’re…
Arts Agenda
Classical Music Davidson College Concert Choir & Chamber Singers A performance of works ranging from the Renaissance to the twentieth century, and from motets to spirituals. Davidson College Presbyterian Church Sanctuary. Thu., Jan. 15, 8 p.m. Free. 704-894-2357. Daybreak of Freedom The Charlotte Symphony will present its Seventh Annual community concert honoring the memory of…
View From The Panthers Booth
Now that the Cowboy bustin’ Carolina Panthers head to St. Louis in the playoffs, even occasional football fans are tuning in to see how far they’ll go. The man who’s had the best view of the Panthers’ big picture is Bill Rosinski, the radio play-by-play man in the booth since the team began. Make no…
Another Magic Dragon
The Poons wanted to name their restaurant Flying Dragon, a name that is “very Chinese” according to Helen Poon. “But we changed it to DragonFly so it would have a local sound to it.” Compromise is one of the keys to survival for any ethnic restaurant. And whether you associate flying dragons with Chinese cuisine,…
What Malpractice Crisis?
There you are on the operating table, sliced open and fighting for your life. It was supposed to be a fairly routine surgery, and things were going fine until the surgeon, who has a drinking problem, accidentally sliced into a major artery. Oops. If your operating table was in North Carolina, you would have no…
The Skinny on Wine
I’m a food-obsessed individual, so, for me, the latest no- and low-carb diet crazes are just this side of torture. Life’s too short to deprive your body and mind of what they crave. Especially wine. On the Atkins diet, you not only have to avoid alcohol in the beginning “Induction Phase” to allow your body…
Bring Me The Head of Poor Richard
Not to be outdone by the Canadians’ banning of fruitcakes on airplanes, the FBI issued a Christmas Eve bulletin to 18,000 American police departments to be on the lookout during searches, traffic stops and other investigations for people carrying almanacs. Yes, almanacs. The memo warned that terrorists may use almanacs, which contain profiles of cities…
Good Eats
All Around Town Anntony’s Caribbean, 400 S. Tryon St., 704-339-0303; 2001 E. 7th St., 704-342-0749. All locations have different owners. A hint of the tropics; rotisserie chicken with Jamaican jerk sauce, ribs, Paradise Island fish special, curries, and Caribbean styled greens. $$ Azteca, 116 Woodlawn Rd., 704-525-5110; 9709 Independence Blvd., 704-814-9877; 1863 W. Franklin Blvd.…
Wishful Thinking
The New Year’s begun, but there’s still time to sneak in a few wishes. Some of you might think mine are fantasies, but everything listed below is a reality in some part of America, or somewhere in the western world — just not in Charlotte. Yet. Wish #1: First, in this election year, I wish…
Doing It Themselves
“(Punk) is a statement of self-rule, of ultimate independence, of do-it-yourself.” — Malcolm McLaren D-I-Y. Do It Yourself. It’s been a punk credo since the movement’s inception, as vital an element as agitprop and anarchy, two-minute-and-out songs, and snarled vocals and three-chord guitar riffs played at full speed and volume. For some punk rockers, it’s…
Letters
Body Counts Count Seems like an article on US casualties in Iraq (“The Bodies Come Home,” by Sydney H. Schanberg, Dec. 31) ought to contain a number, or a number of numbers. Here’s what I got in a few minutes. 1. Iraqi civilians. As of Friday, 26 December 2003, reported minimum 7960, reported maximum 9792.…
Manifest Records & Tapes to Close
After three years of declining sales, the Carolinas-based independent music retail chain, Manifest Records & Tapes, will cease operations by April — including those at the profitable Charlotte location on South Boulevard, which is expected to close by “mid-to-late February,” according to founder and owner Carl Singmaster. With the Charlotte closing, 17 full-time employees will…
The Blotter
IF I HAD A HAMMER: A possible Pete Seeger fan took one of the singer’s songs quite seriously when he told someone: If I had a gun, I would shoot you in the head. TOE TRUCK TERROR: A woman called medics to report an injury to a tow truck driver recently. After she wrecked her…
Nightmarish CD Release Party
The Avett Brothers’ alter-egos — the (very) non-acoustic “Oh What a Nightmare” — are hosting a CD release party Saturday, Jan. 17, at The Room. The 13-song, self-titled Ramseur Records release will probably blow out your speakers if you play it at Avett Brothers’ sound levels; think Black Sabbath (Paranoid-era) meets Lynyrd Skynyrd and you’re…
News of the Weird
Cheapskates: In December, the 200 employees at SAS Shoemakers in Pittsfield, Mass., and the 270 workers at Stine Seed Co. in Adel, Iowa, were each given Christmas bonuses of $1,000 for every year of service to the company. In other bonus news, Tower Automotive of Traverse City, Mich., gave employees $15 Thanksgiving grocery gift cards,…
Sit & Spin
Ryan Adams Love is Hell (pt. 1)/(pt. 2) Lost Highway There’s nothing wrong with a musician being prolific. The Beatles, if you’ll remember, put out a fair amount of recordings in their short history, as did folks like The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan and Prince (actually, “The Artist” still is putting out records semi-annually, it’s…
New Years and NoDa
An admission: New Year’s Eve has never been my favorite “holiday,” if one may afford it such status. Now, New Year’s Day I’m perfectly fine with — a day off work, plus home cookin’ and bowl games. New Year’s Eve? Amateur night, mostly. (It should be mentioned that most of the people I’ve heard call…
Music Menu
WEDNESDAY 1.7 Jerry Chapman & His Evil Herbivores — Jerry Chapman fronted the regional power-pop band Life In General before forming the current outfit. There are no tricks up his sleeve, just energetic barroom rock that relies on solid songwriting and playing. The music wouldn’t be out of place on either classic or alterna-rock radio…
Who’s Cruisin’ Who
I got cruised in Best Buy the other day. At least I think I did. I’m kind of rusty on this stuff because I’m currently serving a life sentence without parole in the correctional institution of matrimony. What marriage does to you isn’t correct, exactly, so much as shutter your senses to the electrons of…
Soundboard
Wednesday, Jan. 7 Big Al’s Pub, Mooresville Jes & Sherry Blue Carl DiPonziano Cajun Queen 7th Street Gator Band The Evening Muse Jerry Chapman & His Evil Herbivores w/ The Bad Daddies & The Saving Graces Horse Shoe, Clover Tommy Hudson & Marty Cofield Jeff’s Bucket Shop DJ Super Duper Bad Ass & Mental Militia…
Karma Cleanser
Dear Karma Cleanser: I have a bad feeling that things are about to go wrong. I tell myself to just breathe and relax. But then the bad feelings come back. I have a feeling that the bad things I’ve done to people in my past are all about to resurface and bite me on the…
In America, In Character
By Samantha Morton’s own admission, it may be time to lighten up already. After all, it’s been several years since the 26-year-old British actress first made her mark in frilly, fanciful BBC mini-series like Emma or Tom Jones. And, following her radiant Oscar-nominated turn as Sean Penn’s mute love interest in Woody Allen’s Sweet and…
See & Do
JANUARY 7 – WEDNESDAY OK, you’ve piddled around long enough. This is the last week for one of the finest visual art exhibits we’ve had in town in years so get over to the Mint Museum of Art and check out Raphael To Monet. This glorious exhibit includes 58 masterpieces of European painting and sculpture…
View From The Couch
AMERICAN WEDDING (2003) Forget the Oscar contenders and art-house endeavors for a moment: Even the most elitist of critics should occasionally let their hair down and allow the inner party animal to emerge. So while many scribes have taken to the Austin Powers trilogy to fill that need, I’ve actually obtained more chuckles from the…
Ask the Advice Goddess
Some Unkinda Wonderful I’m dating a guy who’s sweet and attentive when we’re together, but frequently stands me up. Once, when he didn’t show for our date, I called him on his cell. He said an emergency had come up, and he’d be over later. He never arrived. The next day, he said his sister…
Film Clips
NEW RELEASES BIG FISH We’ve seen this before: A wildly imaginative filmmaker who has spent his career making entertaining flicks that don’t win major awards (but should) suddenly gets bitten with the desire to do something more profound, precisely in order to start collecting those elusive Oscars, Golden Globes and anything else considered more reputable…
