June 2010

  • Dueling Fiddles: Back in Black

    By lisala on 6/30/10 7:55pm
    Add Comment



    Read more >

  • Jeweler Interview with Cassandra Bazos Part 2

    By sparklyscotty on 6/30/10 9:15am
    Add Comment

    Part Two of our interview with Persephonie Studies owner, Cassandra Bazos.

    Do you get more excited about the design or technical aspects of jewelry art?

    To be honest I get really excited about both.  It’s great when I get a new idea, it just bugs me until I get a chance to put it on paper.  Then there’s the excitement of building a new piece just for the person who’s going to come a long and buy it and cherish it for a long time to come.  I love being an artist because it allows me to make people feel happy about what they wear and give as gifts to others.

    Can you name another jewelry designer whose work you admire?


    Read more >

  • What Does The 4th of July Mean?

    By ecoscott on 6/30/10 1:02am
    Add Comment

    So 4th of July will be the topic of discussion across the country this week- not what it means, but what you are doing to celebrate, what kind of fireworks you’ll be watching, and what kind of cookout you’ll be attending. Sunday the 4th of July will be a day of relaxation and beer drinking, a day of fireworks and baseball, and hopefully a world cup game. What it will not be is a day when people really reflect o n what the 4th of July means. I do that, and there are a few things that strike me as rather strange or questionable about this venerated holiday.

    Read more >

  • Lee Market: Bet the Over (1)

    By jemanji on 6/16/10 3:10am
    Add Comment

    ....Q.  What is Cliff Lee's trade value this July?  Is it really only one high-quality prospect and a few fillers?

    A.  This is the kind of thing that jemanji used to win closets full of baseball caps wagering on.  ;- )  If that's the early line, gimme the OVER, with gusto. 

    Here's a different article that, um, pegs the value of a sizzling-hot rental player at four, not one, high-quality prospects.  It's not back-of-the-envelope math; it's a review of this trade:

    Read more >

  • TWOFR: The Nu Mutants x DJ Mayonnaise

    By cobwebsandstrange on 6/15/10 7:42am
    Add Comment

    The Nu Mutants

    Fire Starter

    (Self Released, 2004)

    It’s hard to dislike a group that so obviously has their heart in the right place. The Nu Mutants – which may or may not be a covert nod to the X-Men -  seems to be a collective made up of friends and associates from the Toledo area that are rather critical of the current climate of hip hop. To call this particular EP reflexive would be an understatement. Its first track, featuring the rant by Natural, takes the form of a press conference on aptly named “The State of Hip Hop” and utilizes the idea that if hip-hop were a state, this man “would govern that shit.” Chyna Black is featured on the following track, which also exhibits some very poor mixing and leaves the vocals sounding ridiculously high when contrasted with the beat, which itself is somewhat cheese related. Spoken word can get tedious, as this album exhibits again and again, but at least Jesus Bayano makes some poignant statements like comparing religion to gangs. That, however, isn’t quite as rich as the contrast between law enforcement and criminals, which should have cropped up of the course of the album somewhere. A bit further on, Imani Lateef, while having the most ethnic sounding name, has the least interesting sounding track and leads into the much welcomed “Outro” consisting of a group of people warbling over a simple and pretty boring beat. Only in dreams can I comment positively upon this slab, which is unfortunate due to the effort that no doubt was poured into it. But, maybe I just have bad taste. Maybe I’m not in tune with whatever the hip hop nation is. Who knows?

    Read more >

  • NY High School Crowns Gay Friends Prom Queen And King

    By lisala on 6/10/10 10:16am
    Add Comment

    In a refreshing reversal from more hetero-normative and terrified school districts, Hudson New York High School seniors Charlie Ferrusi and Timmy Howard were voted prom Queen and King in a land-slide event at last Saturday's Prom. The two friends started thinking about running a month or so ago, and when they ran the idea past the high school principal Steven Spicer and advisors, were given an ok to go ahead. The two won by such a large margin that the school didn't even bother with runners-up.

    It's particularly heartening to read stories like this one. In 2008 another Hudson high senior ran for Prom Queen, and won, but school officials denied him the crown. This Ferrusi and Howard said that one of the hardest parts of their experience "was deciding who would be king and who would be queen."

    Read more >

  • Bernard Madoff, the Outlaw in Prison

    By dfunzy on 6/7/10 7:17am
    Add Comment

    Bernard Madoff: OutlawBernard Madoff: OutlawBernard (Bernie) Madoff is sending his love to his victims by way of a New York Magazine piece? Bernie or should I called him, Mr. Madoff, sent a message to his victims: "F-you!"

    Big Bernie, serving long time, one hundred and fifty years, for swindling billions in a Ponzi scheme, reportedly told a fellow inmate, "F--- my victims. I carried them for 20 years, and now I'm doing 150 years."

    Read more >