New Stage In The City

New Stage Collective has announced their 2008-2009 season and to celebrate they are having a party only Mr. Big could love: New Stage in the City/Sex and the City Party
Season Subscription Kickoff Party
Friday, May 16 8-11pm at Below Zero Lounge

Celebrate NSC’s new season with a swanky party worthy of Carrie Bradshaw! Below Zero Lounge (12th & Walnut St., downtown) hosts the celebration on Friday, May 16 from 8-11pm, featuring a raffle of New Stage in the City subscriptions, Sex and the City Movie swag, Sarah Jessica Parker fragrance gifts, and much more!

Also on tap is an incredible evening of music with Terry LaBolt at the piano, and featuring a slew of special guests, including performances by Richard Oberacker, Amy Warner, Charlie Clark, Taylore Mahogany Scott, Sherman Fracher, Steven Milloy, Alan Patrick Kenny, Sherry McCamley, cast members of NSC’s upcoming Jerry Springer: The Opera, and more. Hosted by Cincinnati legend Penny Tration!"

Best of Taste Award Winners

2008 “Best of Taste” Awards

Appetizer
Best of Taste: Burbank’s Real Barbeque - Southern Smoked Chicken Tenders
Award of Excellence: Buffalo Southwest Express – Wings & Egg Rolls
Award of Merit: Bangkok Bistro – Crab Rangoon

Soup & Salad
Best of Taste: Indigo Casual Gourmet Café – Black & Blue Tuna Salad
Award of Excellence: Carrabba’s Italian Grill – Mama Mandola Sicilian Chicken Soup
Award of Merit: Market Street Grille – Potato Soup

Entrée
Best of Taste: Carrabba’s Italian Grill– Chicken Bryan
Award of Excellence: Taz Restaurant – Chicken Kabob Sandwich
Award of Merit: Pit to Plate BBQ – Hickory Smoked Pulled Pork

Seafood Entrée
Best of Taste: Shanghai Mama’s – Seafood Shanghai Noodles
Award of Excellence: Carrabba’s Italian Grill – Grilled Salmon
Award of Merit: La Petite France – Crabmeat Crepe

Vegetarian Entrée
Best of Taste: Arloi Dee – Vegetable Pad Thai
Award of Excellence: Balboa’s Philly Steaks & Pizza – Slice of Cheese Pizza
Award of Merit: Bella Luna – Grande Ravioli

Dessert
Best of Taste: Buca di Beppo – Tiramisu
Award of Excellence: Bella Luna – Dark Chocolate Bread Pudding
Award of Merit: La Petite France – Chocolate Berries & Fruit Crepe

Best Damn Dish: Chicken Bryan

I'm sorry. I really am, but non-Cincinnati based restaurants shouldn't be able to win "Best Damn Dish" at The Taste of Cincinnati. I know, I know, they say it's "Best of Taste"-- but I'd prefer La Rosa's or Skyline to win over Carrabba's. I know that logistically, it would be hard for a restaurant to do taste if it is fairly small (though Bella Luna and La Petite France seem to do well), but I'm thinking Jeff Ruby's could do a booth (potatoes Anna, anyone?), and Jean-Robert Group does The Flower Show every year. I don't mind if national chains are present, but they shouldn't be able to win awards.

The Dannimal

I'm a Democrat (although I'll admit, I've been having second thoughts about that lately) and a defense attorney. I was pleased when Marc Dann won the election for Attorney General. (I had been particularly offended by the Republicans' repeated suggestions that Dann was unsuited for public office because he had represented defendants in criminal cases).

I'm now horrified by what Dann has done in the Office of the Attorney General. Everyone around him agrees that it's time for him to go. (Ironic, isn't it, that Dann's campaign blog was called "Coins for Change: Returning Trust to Ohio"?) Whether Dann should resign seems beyond debate. Instead, I'm more interested in the answers to two other questions:

1. Why won't Dann go? Could the reason be financial? I don't know what Dann's personal or family wealth is. As an attorney, he'd been in practice at a relatively small Youngstown law firm. A comfortable living, no doubt, but not Stan Chesley dollars by any means. Could Dann be worried about what he'll do to earn a living if he resigns?

2. What impact does this have on Ted Strickland's chances of becoming the Democrats' candidate for Vice-President? There's been lots of discussion that HRC might ask him to join her on the ticket if she won (though we now know she's lost). Today, some of the Sunday morning talking heads suggested that Obama could also tap him as his running-mate, on the theory that Obama should choose a Clinton-supporter as a means of extending an olive branch to those who voted for her during the primary season. Is there fear that Strickland could be tied to Dann? And will Dann hurt Ohio Democrats in down-ticket races? Remember, we won on a wave of anti-Republican-corruption sentiment. Now the Republicans can remind voters of Philanderer General Dann's obstinate refusal to leave his office.

How Does This Happen?

The Reds batted out of order in the 9th inning this afternoon in the third game of their series against the Mets. It didn't make a big difference in the game; David Ross hit when Corey Patterson should have, and lined out. Patterson was charged with the out rather than Ross (it's scored as a put-out by the catcher). And then Ross, who should have batted immediately after Patterson, batted again, this time hitting a single. Still, though, there's a lineup card in the dugout (that Dusty says was correct). Not to mention the big scoreboard in center field, which generally lists the first three batters due up in an inning. Once all the dust settled, the Reds lost the last game they'll ever play at Shea Stadium.

As long as I'm polluting Griff's blog with sports news that has nothing to do with Miami (OH)*, congratulations to the Cincinnati Cyclones, who yesterday scored four goals in the third period to force overtime against the South Carolina Stingrays and then scored again, thus taking a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven conference finals. If the Cyclones win the series, they will face the winner of the Las Vegas Wranglers-Utah Grizzlies series for the league championship and the Kelly Cup. If the Stingrays manage to rally, the next contest in Cincinnati would be Game 6 on Monday, May 19.

* Yes, I know the parenthetical strikes anger and resentment in the hearts of Miami (OH) fans everywhere. Muhahaha.

(Re)Introducing: Number 23

For three years in the 1990's, I lived in Chicago. It was the first city I'd lived in with an NBA franchise. Like most of my fellow students, I quickly adopted the Bulls as "my" team. It wasn't hard: the Bulls of that decade were perhaps the most dominant team of all time. Michael Jordan was amazing. I remember marveling at him. We even cheered for him after his brief dalliance with baseball. Particularly memorable was the night, back from his "retirement," when he lit up the Knicks for 55 points at MSG.

A few years later, though, his glory days as a player clearly over, he started wearing a Washington uniform (I don't recall if they were the Bullets or the Wizards then). He was still MJ. You couldn't root against him. But it was tough to see him, playing in games that his team would certainly lose. He remained a professional. He stayed committed to winning. You just knew he wasn't going to get there. He could have had lots of other roles in the game at which he'd excel: as a coach, a general manager, even, with his millions, an owner. But he shouldn't have been out on the floor dunking anymore.

Today, I feel the same way about Hillary Clinton. I came of political age when the Clintons were in their glory years. I cheered when she was elected to the US Senate. I think she'll ultimately be one of the most brilliant Senate majority leaders in history.

But now she's leading a team that can't win. She still Hillary Clinton. I can't root against her or her husband even as I root for Obama). But as I watch her, I wonder why she doesn't realize her role in the game has changed. She's no longer destined to reside in the White House. It's time to play out the rest of her career in the Senate. But the presidential game has passed her by.

Hillary: you're starting to resemble the heavyweight boxer who kept fighting for too long. Time to pass the torch. But Barack: you'd better be more ready to carry that torch than you've appeared these past few weeks.

Eric Flack vs. Reality

Brian beat me to the punch with respect to Channel 5's hit-piece on downtown progress earlier this week. I really wanted to pull the "news story" apart piece-by-piece, but just don't have the time (and besides, I think its unfairness is manifest). I thought I'd point out my favorite part, though.

At one point, Flack suggests that few people stay downtown after attending a Reds game. To support this, he approaches a twenty-something-looking couple with a baby (who appeared to be six to nine months-old at most), coming out of GABP. Flack reports the time to be about 10:00. The couple says they're headed home. For Flack, that's good enough, quod erat demonstrandum.

What? At 10:00 at night, a couple with a small baby isn't going to stay downtown? They're not going to the Cadillac Ranch to set the little tyke on the bull for a ride? If downtown isn't the place for six-month-olds to hang out until the wee hours of the morning, then there's no hope at all for the future of the Queen City. (I've never really understood parents that take children that young to night games, anyhow, but that's for another post.)

Finally, why didn't Flack's piece show pictures of places where people are? On a temperate evening, for instance, on the patio of the Cadillac Ranch? Lined up to get into Bang on Fourth Street (in fairness, I think one of his shots showed the valet line at the end of the night)? On Fountain Square?

WLWT is apparently taking its "fair and balanced" cues from Fox News.

UPDATE: Just to be clear, this post discusses the Flack-attack that was on the 11:00 news. I hadn't yet seen the piece archived on WLWT's website (which apparently aired somewhere in the 5:00-6:30 local news marathon). While the linked piece is a little more balanced than what aired at 11:00, it's still laughable that Flack seems astonished that there's not much police presence at 2:00 am in a stretch of downtown that a) isn't residential and b) doesn't have any businesses that are open in the evening (that section, in fact, is mostly law offices, with a few eateries that cater to the courthouse crowd, notably absent at three in the morning).

Second Sunday On Main - Mothers Day

Tomorrow this year's first installment of Second Sundays on Main, a charming event that brings together a great neighborhood. It includes great music as well, come out and hear the likes of: Tupelo Honey, Tracy Walker, Seedy Seeds and Messerly & Ewing. It starts at Noon and runs until 5PM. Since it is also mother's day, bring her out to a cute area with nice shops. The first 200 moms get free flowers. Check out www.secondsundayonmain.org for more.