Mobile
Thursday, May 29, 2014
Arts / Today's Top Five Today's Top 5: Thursday
Posted By Anita Overcash on Thu, May 29, 2014 at 9:57 AM
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today, May 29, 2014 as selected by the folks at Creative Loafing.
* Manchester Orchestra at The Fillmore
* The Sweet Spot Charlotte: Masquerade Edition at Chop Shop
* Party in the Park at Mint Museum Randolph
* "Winning the Freedom to Marry in North Carolina" discussion at Levine Museum of the New South
* Shiprocked presents Lipgloss at Snug Harbor
First Drip First Drip (5/29/14): Senate releases budget, Snowden wants to come home, more
Posted By Ana McKenzie on Thu, May 29, 2014 at 9:30 AM
Second and third grade teaching assistants and the state's Department of Public Instruction and Justice Department took big hits in the Senate's budget, released Wednesday. The budget also calls for an increase in teacher pay, though legislators gave a vague explanation as to how they would fund the raises. Also, this: "To lower local taxes on businesses, North Carolina lawmakers may force cities and towns onto a $62 million fiscal cliff."
Wake Forest English professor Mary DeShazer spoke of her friend, the poet Maya Angelou, who died in her Winston-Salem home Wednesday. Angelou was planning on teaching at the university in the fall, and the most common question DeShazer got from students was, how do we get into her class? "She did require personal interviews because she wanted to get students, often seniors who would not have another chance to study with her," DeShazer says. "And she wanted people whose commitment to very intensive rehearsals and to the power of poetry would be evident to her."
The Department of Veterans Affairs is coming under fire after a report found systemic problems at its health care facilities, including "improper procedures for scheduling patient appointments and efforts to hide excessive wait times." The findings have jeopardized VA Secretary Eric Shinseki's job.
If Edward Snowden could go anywhere in the world, it's back to his home in the U.S., he said in an interview with NBC's Brian Williams. But the NSA leaker acknowledged his fate upon arrival is up for debate. "Now, whether amnesty or clemency ever becomes a possibility is not for me to say. That's a debate for the public and the government to decide." Snowden also claimed in the interview that he had served as a spy for the CIA and NSA, a claim national security adviser Susan Rice denied. Before the interview aired, Secretary of State John Kerry called Snowden nothing short of a coward, telling him to "man up" and come home.
Wednesday, May 28, 2014
Politics Jennifer Roberts announces her bid for Charlotte mayor
Posted By Kimberly Lawson on Wed, May 28, 2014 at 2:17 PM
Is this a case of the early bird gets the worm? This morning, former county commissioner Jennifer Roberts announced she's running for mayor in the next election - which is in, uh, November 2015.
- Jennifer Roberts for Charlotte Mayor Facebook
Interesting tidbit I learned from an episode of Pillow Talk with Joanne with Roberts guest-starring: In the 2013 mayoral election, when Charlotte voted in Patrick Cannon, Roberts received 18 write-in votes.
Arts Maya Angelou: In her words
Posted By Matt Brunson on Wed, May 28, 2014 at 12:46 PM
Author, poet and Winston-Salem resident Maya Angelou passed away today at the age of 86, leaving behind a large and varied body of work that included autobiographies, essays, poems, screenplays, albums ... and lots of choice quotes. From the hundreds of memorable phrases she uttered, here are 25 of the best, touching on friendship, feminism, food and other assorted topics.
- Photo: Dwight Carter / Random House
- Maya Angelou
1. "I've learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way (s)he handles these three things: a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights."
2. "A friend may be waiting behind a stranger's face."
3. "I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel."
4. "Never make someone a priority when all you are to them is an option."
5. "I am grateful to be a woman. I must have done something great in another life."
Comic Afterthoughts The Pull List (5/28/14): Ellis unleashes Trees
Posted By Andy Smith on Wed, May 28, 2014 at 10:55 AM
I'll usually pick up any new comic from writer Warren Ellis, even when the preview blurbs are vague. Case in point: Trees, a series that debuts today. No promotional art or preview pages have provided clarity to exactly what we can expect from the book, but as usual, just a broad stroke of a concept puts an Ellis book at the top of anticipated releases. Here's what Image is offering us:
"Ten years after they landed. All over the world. And they did nothing, standing on the surface of the Earth like trees, exerting their silent pressure on the world, as if there were no-one here and nothing under foot. Ten years since we learned that there is intelligent life in the universe, but that they did not recognize us as intelligent or alive."
Good enough for me. Also: Look out for the second issue of Southern Bastards, which features the art of Charlottean Jason Latour. Latour was recently featured in an issue of Creative Loafing. You can find that cover story here.
First Drip First Drip (5/28/14): Maya Angelou dies, Houston school district hosts job fair in Raleigh, more
Posted By Kimberly Lawson on Wed, May 28, 2014 at 10:25 AM
Despite the new rules set by legislators limiting protests at the Capitol, 14 people took House Speaker Thom Tillis' office yesterday for a five-hour sit-in, where they sang and chanted, waiting for Tillis to return. They were arrested this morning.
Renowned author and poet Maya Angelou passed away today in her North Carolina home. "Her death was confirmed by her longtime literary agent, Helen Brann. No immediate cause of death had been determined, but Ms. Brann said Ms. Angelou had been in frail health for some time and had had heart problems."
North Carolinians aren't the only ones who know the state sucks at teacher pay: A Houston school district is hosting a job fair in Raleigh this weekend. "A newspaper classified ad promoting the event notes the district pays a $46,805 starting salary, which is about 20 percent higher than the starting salary for a Wake County teacher." (Republicans are set to propose legislation that offers "substantial" teacher raises - but only if they give up tenure.)
Bank of America is looking to pull out of the transit center, which it runs with the city. The bank built Charlotte Transportation Center free of charge, in hopes of luring more bankers to the city 20 years ago.
The self-driving car - it's coming. And of course, from Google.
Arts / Today's Top Five Today's Top 5: Wednesday
Posted By Anita Overcash on Wed, May 28, 2014 at 9:42 AM
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today, May 28, 2014 as selected by the folks at Creative Loafing.
* We Will Rock You at Belk Theater
* The Louder Milks at Snug Harbor
* Zipline & Dine at U.S. National Whitewater Center
* Danity Kane at The Fillmore
* Van Gogh Alive at Discovery Place
Tuesday, May 27, 2014
News / Politics Raleigh Round-up: A week of heavy blows to the environment, press
Posted By Erin Tracy-Blackwood on Tue, May 27, 2014 at 2:53 PM
Before we collectively unplugged for the long weekend, legislators in Raleigh were busy. Environmental safety, drinking water and freedom of the press all took a big hit last week when SB786 - the bill to allow fracking - was fast-tracked through the Senate.
- Flickr (Creative Commons)
Comic Afterthoughts Comic Afterthoughts FAQ: Who is Apocalypse?
Posted By Andy Smith on Tue, May 27, 2014 at 12:45 PM
Warning: Spoilers ahead. I mean it, fellow nerd. If you haven't seen X-Men: Days of Future Past, you may not want to continue. But if you're like me, that wouldn't matter too much, anyway.
So, you've heard a lot about this Apocalypse guy, huh? Before the latest installment in the X-Men franchise hit theaters, X-Men: Apocalypse was announced as the next film in line. And in the post-credits scene from Days of Future Past, you saw a funny-looking gray man with blue lips, willing the formation of the pyramids. You may have even noticed four horsemen in the background. So what's up with all of that? Creative Loafing is about to tell you, using the oldest Internet template in the world: the FAQ.
So, first things first.
Who was that guy?
That was Apocalypse.
But wait, weren't those people chanting something else? I know it wasn't the word "Apocalypse."
They were chanting "En Sabah Nur." That's the "real name" of Apocalypse.
OK. So who is Apocalypse/En Sabah Nur/the gray guy?
He was introduced in 1986's X-Factor #5, as the new big baddie for the X-Men. Depending on which X-writer you ask, Apocalypse was the first mutant, born 5,000 years ago in Egypt. He's a huge proponent of "survival of the fittest." Sure, mutants are the next step in evolution, but even they must prove their genetic worthiness.
The character would go on to become a primary villain for the X-Men. And in the event known as Age of Apocalypse (which will somewhat influence the upcoming sequel), an alternate timeline was introduced, in which the villain reigned and both humans and kindhearted mutants were afraid.
Music First notes (5/27/2014): Mike Patton is the greatest singer?
Posted By Jeff Hahne on Tue, May 27, 2014 at 10:46 AM
Editor's Note: First Notes is a weekly update of recent happenings in the world of music.
* Judging singers by their octave range, it turns out that Mike Patton of Faith No More fame is the "world's greatest singer." A published chart compares the range of well-known singers. While Axl Rose topped the initial list, VVN Music claimed Patton after examining more vocal ranges.
* Speaking of being judged, Charlotte's own Funky Geezer will appear on America's Got Talent, which premieres tonight at 8 p.m.
-
Today's Top 5: Wednesday
Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today.
-
Question the Queen City: The unsolved death of Delette Nycum 2
The trial that followed was nothing short of a Charlotte version of the O.J. Simpson spectacle.
-
Question the Queen City: The historic Wearn House can still be saved 2
Though it's been on the chopping block for years, there's still hope for the historic structure.
