…when you let rhubarb have its way. This plant made itself a home on the brick patio when I was a kid, and on a clay/sand bed, no less. It sits next to canisters of oil and fuel. We’ve done everything to oust it, but it always comes back. Not that I really want to get rid of it since I like the stuff, but talk about a hardy plant. The vertical woody stems are around 8.5 feet. Suggestions? Other than digging out the whole yard?
Some more vintage Duluth TV newscasts have been posted on YouTube (they’ve been there a few weeks, but I just noticed them today). Red Owl, Jack McKenna, Kirby Puckett… enjoy (though some of the news in these clips is kind of grim)…
My favorite question on the Hells Angels Web Site FAQ page: ” Shouldn’t there be an apostrophe in Hells Angels?” I don’t think the answer is correct, but, uh, do you wanna tell ‘em?
Fun fact: Elvis made no money from having his hits played on the radio. You see, although songwriters receive royalties from radio play, performers don’t. Think about it; for all the years you’ve heard “Louie, Louie” on the radio, Jack Ely and the Kingsmen never made a dime. (Any money they made would have been on record sales, and few people bought their albums for the sake of one song. In fact, Richard Berry, the song’s composer, offered to help out Ely, who was living in poverty.)
A bill currently in Congress, H.R. 848, is attempting to address this issue by requiring royalties be paid to the artists who recorded a song, as well as the songwriter. Needless to say, Big Radio opposes the measure, and has been running quite a few commercials lately, urging you to call your Representative, etc., to oppose H.R. 848. I’m urging you to call Senators Franken, Klobuchar, Kohl and Feingold, and Representatives Oberstar and Obey (depending on what state you live in) to SUPPORT H.R. 848.
Here are a few of the mis-truths corporate radio commercials are claiming:
This is a tax on radio stations. (No, it’s a royalty payment to performers.)
The money will go to big overseas record companies. (Only so that it can be distributed to the performers.)
This will kill independent radio stations. (Small, independent stations have an exemption.)
What really steams me is that this last argument was being made this morning on KDAL, a news station. Seriously! When was the last time KDAL played music?
There’s a pretty good op-ed on the Huffington Post today by Dionne Warwick about the bill. (She feels that the lack of performance royalties has hit black artists particularly hard.) The article can be found here.
Again, please call or e-mail your Reps and Senators to support H.R. 848, or at least call out the radio stations when they run their misinformation campaigns.
Teague Alexy, Flam Sharam & The Rez
Spearhead Benefit for Maki Family
Friday, July 31 @ Bohemia Arts
7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.
DULUTH, Minn. (July 31, 2009) – Renowned local musician Teague Alexy will perform at a benefit for Nicole (Cole) Maki and her family.
Cole recently suffered the sudden and unexpected loss of her step-father. Funds raised will off-set the costs involved for funeral expenses.
Flam Sharam, a legendary Twin Ports jam band, will perform its first show in four years. This benefit will also feature music by former members of The Rez.
In addition to band performances, there will be a fire dancing performance by The Spin Collective and live drumming. If you do or do not own a drum, participation is welcomed. Numerous local businesses are also participating in a silent auction to benefit the Maki family.
WHO: Benefit for Nicole (Cole) Maki & her family.
WHAT: Concerts & Silent Auction
WHEN: Friday, July 31, 2009
WHY: To raise money to off-set memorial and other costs
On August 15, 2009 the YWCA will participate in the 2nd Annual Bikers for Boobs motorcycle ride. The riders will depart from Rapids Riverside Bar and Grill at noon on the 15th, and travel to 5 stops along the scenic south shore of Lake Superior. Following the ride, a full pizza and soda buffet will be provided by Rapids Riverside, and your meal is included in the 15.00 event ticket price. There will also be live music, grand prize drawings, and a silent auction filled with great prizes. T-shirts for the event are $10.00 and raffle tickets are $5.00. You can purchase any of these items at the YWCA (32 E First St. Suite 202) or at Rapids Riverside (4385 S Cty. Rd. South Range, WI). All proceeds from this event will stay in our area to provide assistance to local women with the costs associated with breast health.
Compassionate Action for Animals hosts an annual Veg Week in the Twin Cities and we would like to kick one off in the Duluth area! The event includes a “Pledge to be Veg” element in which people either sign up to be vegetarian or vegan for the week depending on their current diet, and receive a vegan care package and a Pledge to be Veg Card that offers discounts at local veg-friendly establishments. There are many things that we could plan including film viewings and veggie cookouts. The more help and ideas the better this event will be. Help put together Duluth’s first annual Veg Week! Email for more details: tinahigginsjohnson @ gmail.com
Vintage Orientale dance instructor Brea Morgiane will be holding a final beginner’s bellydance class in August prior to her move overseas. $42 for a four-week session, coin belts available for purchase in class. Male and female students welcome.
Local hater and ne-er do-well Chuck Horton is rallying the troops to the steps of City Hall today to protest corruption in city government and to demand the resignations of a couple of councilors. (6:00 pm). To make this my perfect Duluth day, I’d like to see some counter-protesters holding up signs with snappy slogans, like “Hey Horton, Get a Job!” or “Carinda is hotter than Sharla” or “Taxes = Anarchy.” I’m sure you guys get the idea. If you are too busy to counter-protest, at least share your pithy placard pronouncements on Perfect Duluth Day!
Saturday evening, a fabulous time to head over to Brighton Beach. A few other families thought so as well. We get out of the car and basically have to navigate our way over a few raspberry bushes to get to the beach. This being Duluth, they were still full of berries. They are no longer, so no need to consult there in your berry quest.
What else is out there? Are we the only ones? Explore some of these big questions with staff from the Alworth Planetarium as they guide you through an exploration of our solar system’s planets and moons.
The U.S. Defense Secretary — and, to a larger extent, the Obama administration — tried to fool you Tuesday by lauding their hard stance on the F-22 fighter jet program.
The warmongerers said the move to cut the $1.7 billion expansion showed their efforts to rein in military spending, but a day earilier they had pushed the $1 billion expansion of the army by 22,000 members.
Gates called it essentially a trade-off, but spending will increase further with a multiplier effect placed on the added “temporary” fighters.
There will undoubtedly be other authorizations to train and equip them, and who believes the Department of Defense, i.e. the Department of War, will shrink its ranks in the future?
The endless wars and the military industrial congressional complex rage on.
Following months of unsuccessful negotiations and numerous unfair labor practices, Workers United Local 99 is asking that the public boycott the Pickwick restaurant. (more…)
Tickets to Daniel Johnston at First Avenue are $14 each. So, two tickets would be $28, right? That seems reasonable to me.
What? Oh, there’s a service charge. Well, I suppose that’s not a big deal. How much more could it be, really?
What? Over 60 percent more? All right, in that case I guess I’ll just throw my keyboard through my monitor and change my plans for Aug. 13.
Advance tickets/ages 18+ with valid ID — US $14.00 x 2
Total Building Facility Charge(s) — US $1.00 x 2
Total Convenience Charge(s) — US $4.95 x 2
Additional Taxes — US $0.74
Order Processing Charge(s) — US $4.57
Standard Mail — No Charge
TOTAL CHARGES US $45.21
Last weekend was the 50th reunion of the Hibbing High School Class of 1959.
Why is that notable? In that class was Bobby Zimmerman, later to become Bob Dylan.
It appears Dylan did not show – but a British journalist did, and he wrote a pretty long story about it that’s posted on the Daily Telegraph Web site this morning. (more…)
