What is Louisville Missing?

This just happens to be my 500th post.  A better blogger would have something special planned for this post. We all know I'm not a "better blogger."  But I do want to thank you lovely, beautiful people who read this blog on a regular basis (hi, mom!).  Loueyville.com has shaped my life in Louisville.  It's allowed me to meet people I never would have met, to go to events I never would have gone to... starting this blog is really among the best decisions I've ever made.  Rock on, Loueyville.  I hope you have (at least) another 500 posts left in you.

So anyway...

Over the past couple of days the local Tweeters have been pontificating about the fact that Borders declared bankruptcy, and that we're about to lose two fairly popular (apparently not popular enough) stores.  On the chopping block are the Borders on Hurstborne and the one on 4th Street Live.

The "What do we need downtown?" question has been floating around for years, and with this two-story, high visibility corner storefront opening up, lots of people are dreaming big.  It seems inevitable that a chain store will occupy the Borders space, and many of my Twitter folks rightfully are wishing for a clothing store.  If we can get one great clothing store to anchor in the 4th Street Live space, perhaps more will follow downtown.  The first suggestions I saw were for an H&M, but when I mentioned on Twitter that Roommate wished for a Filene's Basement, I was flooded with RTs and responses.  Everybody loves their Filene's Basements.

We all know downtown needs a grocery store, and the almost universal wish is that Louisville finally gets its own Trader Joe's, but that's not the right space for it.  Parking would be a nightmare, and imagine trying to make a milk and cheese run at 9pm on a Saturday night?

There's also the possibility that they turn the space into another chain restaurant.  If they do, my hope is that it becomes something along the lines of Dave and Busters or Jillian's.  Yes, I know we had a Jillian's before I moved here-- on the outskirts of town.  But I can't help but think it would be infinitely more successful in the heart of tourist downtown.  It would be nice to give people something to do at 4th Street besides drinking... not that there's anything wrong with that, per se.

Ashlee Clark from the fantastic blog Ashlee Eats has a great post on the issue and a poll, so I'm not going to dwell too much more on this specific space.  But this specific discussion got me thinking about the bigger picture.

I've lived in Louisville for 4.5 years now: What is MY Louisville missing?  Above and beyond this one soon-to-be-vacated space... what does Louisville need?

If I'm sitting on the lap of the Great Santa Who Gives Things to Good Little Girls, my first wish is for a Cinema Brewhouse/Gastropub.  It seems like Louisvillagers have collectively decided that we'd like to emulate Austin as much as possible, right down to our "Keep Louisville Weird" campaign.  I have to admit, I've only been to Austin once, like, 15 years ago... and I was less than impressed.  That being said, when I think Austin, I think Alamo Drafthouse.  And when I think "Alamo Drafthouse," I think... heaven.  Once upon a time, there was a push for a Cinema brewpub out by the Mellwood Center.  I don't know what ever happened to that.  And I don't know why someone with a little restaurant/bar background hasn't started to Kickstarter.com the sh*t out of a Cinema Brewpub.  If we can collectively fund a vegan food truck-- way to go Morels!-- we can make this happen with the right people.

Next on the wishlist: besides a cinema pub (and Trader Joe's) the only other thing that would really raise the quality of my Louisville life on a weekly basis would be the opening of a really nice sports bar in the Highlands.  One that's not BWW or UK-themed.  We're talking lots of good beers, lots of big tvs, good pub grub.  Someplace Roommate can watch his college basketball-- multiple games on multiple tvs.  Someplace I can watch my Red Sox at the same time the Reds are playing.  Rumor had it a while back that someone was cooking up a Highlands sports bar, but that rumor has gone the way of the cinema brewpub out by Mellwood.  I have a dream, and that dream takes place in the old Barret Bar space.  Make it so, someone. Make it so.

Speaking of sports, well, y'all know how I feel about minor league hockey.  Or even NHL hockey. Somebody bring Louisville a team of mostly-white, dentally-challenged Canadians on skates please.  Please!

A while ago, Roommate & I had on our wishlist a wine bar in the Highlands, but honestly the Holy Grale has kind of filled that hole for me.  There is a wonderful little place in Salem, MA called the Gulu Gulu cafe that's a wine and beer bar/coffeeshop/charcuterie.  The have live music and movie marathons... in March, they're having a Dr. Who night every week (LOVE!).  We could use a really creative space like that.

When I travel to other cities and see the following chain stores, I get jealous:

• IKEA (duh)
• Trader Joe's/Jungle Jim's (of course)
• Crate and Barrel
• The Container Store
• Restoration Hardware
• Anthropologie

I can't think of a chain restaurant that we're missing... granted, Roommate is recovering from a heart attack, but I still wouldn't mind seeing a Fatburger or In N Out Burger in Louisville.   

What's YOUR Louisville missing, folks?  Email me, tweet me (@loueyville), or leave your wish in the comments. 

Bonnaroo 2011 Line-Up Announced

You know how Mama loves her Bonnaroo...

But I was initially a little lukewarm when they announced the line-up yesterday.  Roommate and I always debate about music festivals.  For me, the best music festivals feature a knock-me-on-my-ass-good headliner who I've wanted to see for SO LONG and a solid line-up beyond that.  Roommate prefers his festivals to feature lots of good new bands.  I want my Pearl Jam.  I want my Springsteen.

What I do not want, frankly, is Eminem.  Or Widespread Panic.  Or Lil Wayne.  Or any of the other "big names" featured at this year's Bonnaroo.  Sure I'm interested in seeing Arcade Fire, but meh.  Neil Young will be awesome, but why do we have to lump the legend in with, well, a whole bunch of other legends? I really get almost halfway down the list before I'm psyched.  My first "ooh, that's cool" outbursts came with Dr. John and then with Florence and the Machine.

Interestingly enough, two of the names I'm most excited about are favorites from previous Bonnaroos.  I can't WAIT to see Low Anthem again.  And I "discovered" Abigail Washburn (with the Sparrow Quartet, including our own Ben Sollee) a few years back at Bonnaroo.

I do like Mumford & Sons, and maybe by June I'll be as wackadoo crazy about them as 95% of my hippest friends.

And as I've admitted before...  I KNOW that My Morning Jacket are a local TREASURE.  I KNOW that.  But I cannot, cannot, cannot get over how annoying the "Yim Yames" thing is.  I just can't.  I've been trying for three or four years, and I... I will continue to try.  For the love of Louisville.  But seriously.... "Yim Yames." I know he's made of puppies and awesome, according to most of you, but seriously... "Yim Yames"?  Ugh.

Here's the full line up, which I have shamelessly cut and pasted from The Nashville Scene:

* Eminem
* Arcade Fire
* Widespread Panic
* The Black Keys
* Buffalo Springfield feat Richie Furay, Stephen Stills, Neil Young, Rick Rosas, Joe Vitale
* My Morning Jacket
* Lil Wayne
* String Cheese Incident
* Robert Plant & Band of Joy
* Mumford & Sons
* The Strokes
* The Decemberists
* Ray Lamontagne
* Bassnectar
* Iron & Wine
* Girl Talk
* Primus
* Dr. John and The Original Meters performing Desitively Bonnaroo
* Alison Krauss and Union Station
* Pretty Lights
* Florence & the Machine
* Superjam ft. Dan Auerbach and Dr. John
* Explosions in the Sky
* STS9
* Gogol Bordello
* Beirut
* Big Boi
* Scissor Sisters
* Gregg Allman
* Ratatat
* Global Gypsy Punk Revue curated by Eugene Hütz
* Robyn
* Warren Haynes Band
* Deerhunter
* Opeth
* Atmosphere
* Old Crow Medicine Show
* Bootsy Collins & the Funk University
* Wiz Khalifa
* Matt & Kim
* Grace Potter & the Nocturnals
* The Del McCoury Band and the Preservation Hall Jazz Band
* Mavis Staples
* Béla Fleck & the Flecktones
* Chiddy Bang
* Javanotti
* Bruce Hornsby & the Noisemakers
* Loretta Lynn
* Cold War Kids
* The Walkmen
* Devotchka
* Wanda Jackson
* Neon Trees
* Portugal. The Man
* Sleigh Bells
* Amos Lee
* Best Coast
* Dãm-Funk
* The Sword
* The Drums
* The Black Angels
* School of Seven Bells
* J. Cole
* Nicole Atkins & the Black Sea
* Wavves
* !!!
* Junip
* Freelance Whales
* Justin Townes Earle
* Ryan Bingham
* Deer Tick
* Band of Skulls
* Sharon Van Etten
* Abigail Washburn
* Omar Souleyman
* Twin Shadow
* Kylesa
* Man Man
* The Low Anthem
* Alberta Cross
* Railroad Earth
* Jessica Lea Mayfield
* Smith Westerns
* The Head and the Heart
* Karen Elson
* Beats Antique
* 22-20s
* Phosphorescent
* Clare MaGuire
* Hayes Carll

Decemberists & Justin Townes Earle @ Iroquois Amph.

Roommate and I saw the Decemberists at Bonnaroo a few years back.  I think I only hit a bit of their show, but I liked what I saw.  And I enjoy what I hear on satellite radio.  And I'm very intrigued by Justin Townes Earle, especially after his big profile in Garden & Gun Magazine.  (Seriously people? Have you still NOT subscribed to Garden & Gun? Best magazine out there right now. It's been brilliant since issue #1.  And they love us here in Louisville.)

They're playing together at the Iroquois Amphitheater on April 26.  Tickets are $36 plus tax and fees.  As of last night there were still tickets available (we snagged two), but I have no doubt-- especially based on the Decemberists history-- that this show will sell out soon.

Beam & Dafoe: Two Classic Gentlemen

Have you seen this really beautiful Willem Dafoe Jim Beam ad?  Dafoe once said, "One of the pleasures of being an actor is quite simply taking a walk in someone else's shoes. And when I look at the roles that I've played, I'm kind of amazed at all the wonderful adventures I've had, and all of the different things I've learned."

Back when I lived in the East Village of NYC, I used to see Dafoe almost every day on my walk to the West Village to work (I imagine he was heading to work to, at the Wooster Group).  I never stopped him and played fangirl, but he (maybe because he) was always so damned pleasant.  A smile, a nod, a comment on the weather, a definite acknowledgement that we passed each other at the same time in the same place nearly every day.  I'm actually kind of impressed I didn't geek out over him at the time; I've always had a big crush.  I mean seriously, he was sexy Jesus.  And he's still pretty gosh darned sexy.

Jim Beam and Willem Dafoe?  I approve.

Save the Date: Feb 25-- Young Survivors Auction

In early January, I asked my readers to consider donating to my favorite local charity-- the Young Survivors Network.  

Only 5% of women who are diagnosed with breast cancer are under the age of 35.  So understandably, most local support organizations for breast cancer survivors cater to women more advanced in years.

The Young Survivors cater their groups and activities to women who were diagnosed at age 35 or younger.  This is their major fundraiser of the year.  The BEST thing about this fundraiser is that you know that ALL of the money raised goes to support women in Louisville and in Southern Indiana.  It doesn't get lumped into a big national pool.

The Young Survivors were a huge support to me when I was first diagnosed and during my treatment.  I no longer take part in events, but I feel passionately about giving back to this organization that helped me so much.

The auction is always fun, sophisticated, and populated by exciting, inspiring women.  And, unlike 90% of the silent auctions I attend, I usually walk away from this one with some pretty good deals!  It's $10 per person in the beautiful Frazier Museum.

Save the date.

R&G Are Dead: Stark raving sane

Rosencrantz: Do you think Death could possibly be a boat?

Guildenstern: No, no, no... death is not. Death isn't. Take my meaning? Death is the ultimate negative. Not-being. You can't not be on a boat.

Rosencrantz: I've frequently not been on boats.

Guildenstern: No, no... what you've been is not on boats.

I can't say why exactly, but Rosencrantz & Guildenstern are Dead has been my favorite play since... college, maybe?  I'm sure it has something to do with the fact that in prior lifetimes, I've taught multi-month units in English classes on Hamlet and Hamlet-derivatives, including R&G are Dead. Two summers, I taught entire courses on Hamlet and Hamlet-derivatives. Some of my friends can quote Monty Python or Star Wars or Big Lebowski verbatim--   my uber-geekout of choice is R&G are Dead.  

Mostly it's because of lines like the ones above.  "You can't not 'be' on a boat."  Think about it.  I'll give you a minute...

... right?  I don't think I've gotten on a boat since my early 20's without thinking of that exchange.  

It doesn't hurt that the movie version is effing brilliant as well (though not as good as the play, even though Stoppard-- the playwright-- directed the movie).  Gary Oldman?  Tim Roth?  Richard Dreyfuss?  That's a hubba hubba cast of theatrical greatness.

But here's the thing: I've never seen the play performed on stage!  I know the darned thing backwards and forward.  It is hands down, my favorite play of all time.  But I've never seen an actual production.

... and that's why I was THRILLED to see that the Louisville Repertory Company is producing the play from Feb 3-13 at the Mex Theater in the Kentucky Center.   

... and that's why I was shocked when I saw the poster for the show.  Click on the link above.  No really, go do it. *eyes bulge out like in a cartoon*  Is this my favorite play?  "The Original Mash-up"??  "A Pirate, a Unicorn, and Hamlet walk into a bar..."  A jester with a clown nose?  I'm super happy to see that someone revised the text that goes along with the calendar.  I wish I'd saved the old text... the old description of the play made the play out to be a knee-slapping, side-splitting, screw-ball comedy.  What?

Listen, this is just me getting all English teacher nerdy and proprietary about my favorite play.  Yes, R&G are Dead is funny, but it's not a Three Stooges routine.  These guys aren't clowns.  It's an existentialist, absurdist tragicomedy... with really more emphasis on the tragic than the comic.  It's a sad freakin' play.  There's nothing clown-like about lines like:  "Whatever became of the moment when one first knew about death? There must have been one. A moment. In childhood. When it first occurred to you that you don't go on forever. Must have been shattering. Stamped into one's memory. And yet, I can't remember it. It never occurred to me at all. We must be born with an intuition of mortality. Before we know the word for it. Before we know that there are words. Out we come, bloodied and squawling, with the knowledge that for all the points of the compass, theres only one direction. And time is its only measure. "

Just rips your heart out, doesn't it?  

All this is just to say... go see this play.  You might brush up on your Hamlet first; it really is much, much more impressive if you've got Hamlet fresh in your mind (Dagnabbit!  I was going to suggest you rent the Mel Gibson version because it's really quite good for what it is. That, of course, was filmed before (we knew) he was a misogynist anti-semite arsehole. Sigh.  Well, then, I recommend the Campbell Scott version.  The movie itself is kind of a shitshow, but Campbell Scott does a stunning Danish Prince.  Stunning. And it's Campbell Scott-- delicious!)

I'm trusting that the Louisville Repertory Company just put their poster design into the hands of someone who didn't "get" the play. I'm trusting that they don't plan to strip the tragic from the tragicomedy. I truly can't wait to see this.  It's February 3-13 at 8pm with a 2pm matinée on the 13th.  Tickets are $10-15.  Cheap indeed for having your mind blown by Stoppard's brilliance.

In Which I Get to Be "Roommate"...

So it's been a little quiet around these bloggy parts.  Sorry for that.  If you follow me on Twitter (@loueyville), you know that here at Casa Lou we've been dealing with a serious health crisis.  Specifically Roommate's health crisis.  More specifically, the heart attack that he had last Friday/Saturday.

Roommate has started a new blog, Heart Attack Colored Lens, to share information with his friends and family and to generally address what it means to be a 39 year-old heart attack survivor.  Knowing Roommate, when he gets bored with talking about his health, he'll probably start blogging about other stuff-- music, movies, the Louisville scene.  And in his blog, I get to be "Roommate."

I'm biased.  But I think you should plug his blog into your Google Reader.  Oooh.  That sounds nerdy-dirty.

I tell ya, Roommate is doing great-- super good spirits, good energy, chipper on all levels-- but sometimes I feel like I'm still recovering from his heart attack.  I fancy myself something of a "writer" (at least sometimes I do), but I find it hard to put this experience from my perspective into words.  I've lost people who are dear to me-- grandparents mostly.  And I've sat vigil by the hospital beds of those that I've loved.  But last weekend there were moments-- however brief, however marginally warranted-- when I thought Roommate might suddenly wink out of my life.  Forever.  And it was literally (I know we overuse the crap out of that word, but this time it is the perfect word) the worst feeling I've ever had.

I don't think I take Roommate for granted. We do a pretty good job of reminding each other how lucky we are to have each other. But what I DID take for granted is the idea that Roommate would always be here.  Maybe not always my housemate, my partner-in-crime, my favorite travel companion, my sounding board, and sometimes my foil... but always here. Those moments when I thought he could suddenly not be here... perhaps the worst moments of my life.

So, my PSA before I get back on the blogging horse and tell you about fun stuff happening in the 'Ville and other nonsense: In the almighty words of the great philosophers Bill & Ted-- Be Excellent To Each Other.

Party on, Roommate.

Wednesday Afternoon Randomness: OMG SNOW! Edition

[Insert hysterical snow talk here.]

This past Monday was "Blue Monday;" supposedly the third monday of January is the most depressing day of the year.  As it happened to coincide with a day off, I didn't feel the full thrust of the cosmic tug toward the dark side.  But I swear, there's something to it. Maybe it's Blue Monday a little late, or maybe it's just the oppressive GRAY that we've been experiencing in Louisville, but I'm more than a little out of sorts these days.  So what better time than a clearinghouse post of all the good things coming up here in town?

• You know one thing I love about Louisville in January? Consuming Louisville's "One Thing I Love About Louisville" series.

• Speaking of Michelle Jones: Next week Let Them Tweet Cake is taking a field trip to LVL1 to build our own mintiboosts.  If you're a nerdy chick, you need to be there.  Read this great article about LVL1 in the LEO.
  
• Got the blues? I do. So it's a good thing Actors Theatre is breaking out Ma Rainey's Black Bottom this week.  It runs through February 13.
  
• Feel like banging your head against a wall?  How about a just a little head-banging?  I can't believe how excited I am to see Broadway Across America's Rock of Ages next week.  It's at the Kentucky Center from January 25-30, and it sounds like it will be good, pure, goofy fun.
  
• There's another IdeaFestival sponsored adult spelling bee at Zanzabar next week on the 27th.
  
• According to the folks at the Visitor and Conventions Bureau, we'll be seeing some additions to the Urban Bourbon Trail in the near future.
  
• Speaking of bourbon: Baxter Station is now open on Mondays and features a special "Bourbon Flights & Bourbon Bites" menu.  Door prizes, visits with Master Distillers, and other special events.  This looks like it's poised to be a regular Monday night thing for yours truly!

What did I miss?  Here's hoping for snow days and blue skies and good friends and warm places for all of us... soon!  Get out there and do something fun. 

Walden's TKAM: The Perfect Play for Imperfect Times

You know I love me some Walden Theater.  So I'm super excited to see their production of the play version of one of my favorite books ever (probably one of yours too).


To Kill a Mockingbird had such an impact on me when I was a 7th grader that for more than a decade whenever a friend or family member was pregnant, I lobbied passionately that they name any boychild "Atticus." When I first met Roommate and we started dating, I found out that he hadn't read TKAM, I freaked out, bought him the book, and hovered over him til he read every last word.  (He loved it.)


It's the perfect book for imperfect times.


Times where we're publishing revisions of classic novels and sanitizing history.  (I'm told that the Walden production does not excise the n-word.)  Atticus says: "When a child asks you something, answer him, for goodness' sake. But don't make a production of it. Children are children, but they can spot an evasion quicker than adults, an evasion simply muddles 'em."


Times when our government officials seem to care more about being "right" and getting their way than they do about doing what's right and finding common ground.  Atticus says:  "You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view--until you climb into his skin and walk around in it."


Times when we're talking an awful lot about "civility," but not necessarily practicing it.  Again, the font of wisdom says, "It's never an insult to be called what somebody thinks is a bad name. It just shows you how poor that person is, it doesn't hurt you."


For those of you who are unfamiliar with Walden Theater, it's one of the premier young adult theaters in the country and an absolute treasure for this city.  Read more about it at their website.  And we live in a time (honestly, was there ever NOT a time?) when young people seem to get way more bad press than they do good press. As someone who has devoted her life to working with young people, I rise up like an angry mama lion when I hear people patently shit-talking the kids.  So if you find yourself in the "goddamned kids these days" camp or worrying about the future of America, Walden is a good place to put your concerns to rest.  These are talented, creative, imaginative, devoted young people who will inspire your faith in "kids these days."  Once you see how hard they work, you'll quit your worrying.  (100% of Walden kids graduate from high school.  They go to school all day and devote hours and hours of their after school time to classes and rehearsals-- and still have to do their homework.  88% go on to higher education.)


I'll get off my soapbox now.  Support Walden.  Go see To Kill a Mockingbird.  Renew your faith in humanity.  

To Kill a Mockingbird

by Christopher Sergel, adapted from the book by Harper Lee
directed by Charlie Sexton 

Synopsis
After a black man is accused of a terrible crime, lawyer Atticus Finch and his intrepid daughter Scout have to navigate the color lines drawn in a sleepy Alabama town to defend the accused and protect the townspeople from themselves. The book, a sensitive, bold look into a small town during the civil rights era, just celebrated its 50th anniversary.

Dates: 2011

January 20, 21, 22, 27, 28, 29 @ 7:30pm
January 22, 29 @ 2:00pm

Venue
Walden Theatre, 1123 Payne Street


Ticket Information
Walden Theatre: (502) 589-0084 

Actors Apprentice/Inter Co: The Tens

Speaking of Actors...

This week, Actors' Apprentice/Intern Company is presenting The Tens, an evening of 10-minute plays.  Like sketch comedy, 10-minute plays are ideal for the reluctant theater-goer.  If you find you don't like something, hang in there... you'll have something new to consider in nine minutes.

I am always impressed by the Apprentices/Interns at Actors, so I'm putting this on my calendar, for sure.

It Takes A 'Ville @ Actors Theatre

The first few minutes of Second City's IT TAKES A 'VILLE are a little painful, you have to admit.  You've taken off your big bulky coat, and you're enjoying that lovely fleeting feeling of liberation from your clothing (it's almost like stripping naked in the summer-- take off your big, bearskin, down-of-a-thousand-geese coat and you feel all hanky-panky, woo-I'm-nekkid!, for just a little while).  You're all tucked into your nice little seat in the round where there really is no bad seat.  You've got your nice little glass of bourbon-- you know, because you're a Louisvillager.  You're done with reading the Playbill.  Maybe you're chatting up your theatre companion, and then...

Whammo!  These stinkin' out-of-towners from the Big City of Chicago take the stage and start maligning our fair city. What the hell do they know?  They don't live here; they don't know us.  Screw them, right?  Sonsabitches.

Because Louisville is like your mamma, right?  It's all fine and good for you to lay out your mamma when you're talking to your friends. Human nature. We talk smack about the people we love who drive us crazy... But if your FRIEND talks smack about your mamma?  Oh no.  No no no.

And that's what the first few minutes of IT TAKES A 'VILLE are like.  It's like listening to a friend talk smack about your mamma.  It stings. It makes you not like them.  It makes you want to punch these folks in the nose, in fact.  And then... it starts to be funny.

And it stays funny.

After just a couple of weeks of intensive research into our fair city, the Second City players have crafted a remarkably on-the-nose, mostly-scripted comedy. There are jokes that will stick with you (it's going to snow tonight, and the mere thought of Louisvillagers driving in the snow makes me snicker now).  And like most sketch comedy, if something isn't working for you, hang in there and the sketch will change soon.  The improv portions of the program were by far the most remarkable displays of talent.  There were a few big misses: my goodness, if they milked the joke about KY-IND relations one more time, I was going to have to stand up and shout: For the most part, we don't hate Indiana; we just don't ever want to have to go there!  Leave it alone already!


IT TAKES A 'VILLE is at Actors through February 6.  And you really should go.  You should go if only because this is your one chance to see it (I imagine).  No one's going to produce this script again-- the jokes are too "of the moment."  It was a ton of fun, and as I said, the talent is impressive.

Just brace yourself for that initial slap.  Hang in there.

Donations Needed for Breast Cancer Fundraiser Auction

Friends and dear readers,

If you read this blog with any regularity, you know that I'm a happy, healthy breast cancer survivor.  Likewise, if you read this blog, you'll know that I've gone on something of a "pink diet" (or really, "pink fast") in the past year or so.  When I was newly diagnosed and in treatment, I felt compelled to show up at every "pink" event, to walk in every "pink" walk, and to avail myself of all the fantastic free services offered in our city to cancer patients and survivors. But I always ended up getting crazy weepy at those events, listening to other breast cancer survivors tell their stories.  I'm also the kind of person who is deeply uncomfortable with the idea of being called "heroic" just because I survived cancer-- and a lot of survivor rhetoric lapses into that (the doctors were heroic; my friends and family were at times heroic; I just muddled through the best that I could).  Because I'm so shy, support groups and organizations made me snap over to social anxiety overload as soon as I walked into the door.

But when I was first diagnosed-- like the very day that I was diagnosed-- Norton Hospital put me in touch with Megan Schanie of the Young Survivors Group.  And she took me out to lunch and told me what to expect from surgery, chemo, fake boobs, the works.  And for the course of my treatment, the Young Survivors group was a fabulous source of support to me (right down to Megan's mother-in-law who fed me and took me to treatments when my own mom or Roommate couldn't be around).

And the Annual Young Survivors Auction is one "pink event" that I feel passionately about supporting.  First of all, it's a damned good time, and most years I come away with really good deals on silent auction goods.  Secondly, it supports a cause that truly helped me and truly helps a lot of young women.

So if you're a business owner or your make stuff or you have services you can offer to this group, I humbly ask that you donate something to the silent auction to be held at the Frazier Museum on February 25.  It doesn't matter how small your donation is.  Goods, services, gift certificates, experiences...  And I'll make it as easy on you as possible; I'm happy to come to you at your convenience and pick up the item.  These donations are tax deductible and a Young Survivors rep will provide you acknowledgment in writing of your donation.  Email me at lou [at] loueyville.com if you are interested or if you have any questions.

And for the rest of you, mark your calendars:  February 25 at the Frazier.  A good time and a great cause.

Thanks.  Y'all rock.
xo
Lou

A Few of My Favorite Things: 2010

I swear I wrote the bulk of this post on 12/31/10... I just kind of got overwhelmed and gave up.  But here it is, a day (or 4) late and a dollar short, I'm sure... my "End of Year Post."

I don't have the attention span for making "Top Ten" lists.  I'm also not otaku enough (to use a term recently brought to light by Patton Oswald in his controversial Wired article) to be able to make a masterful list.  I couldn't name my top ten anything without scraping the barrel for the last three or four.  So instead, I give you my "highlights" post-- the best of everything this year, big or small, local or personal, noteworthy or silly.

I'd be remiss if I didn't start out with the fact that 2010 was a relatively drama-free year for me (granted, there's still 21+hrs left).  I'd started to get a little too comfortable with the fact that I had become something of a crisis magnet.  Just in the past couple of years, I've had cancer, had my house destroyed by Hurricane Ike... if we go back as far as 2005, we've got Katrina and job loss and heartbreak and a move to a city I knew nothing about.  2010 was basically a piece of cake.  I had a surgery in February.  I had pneumonia this past fall.  A couple of deaths wrecked me.  Otherwise, we're good here at Casa Lou.  It wasn't a banner year, but it wasn't scary or deeply sad or traumatic. That's a win.

It's been a great year for Loueyville.  Man, I love this blog and the doors-- personal and "professional"-- it's opened for me.  I've said it before, and I will say it again, I'm sure: 80% of my life in Louisville-- the friends I've made and the cool ass things I've done are thanks to this blog and to my Twitter presence.  Although I didn't make any really close friends, I had a great time meeting one blog-follower/Twitter-friend each week during my Lenten Promise.  And I plan to repeat that promise again this year.  The blog/Twitter helped me take people I didn't know to shows at Actors Theater and the Kentucky Center.  It also allowed me to have my first ticket contest and treat two great couples to the Cirque Dreams Holidaze show at the Palace this winter.  I LOVE that Loueyville is featured on the home page of the Possibility City website; it makes me so proud.  This little labor of love is a huge blessing in my life, and it's been a highlight of 2010 to keep plugging away at it.

Speaking of the blog, I have to admit that perhaps the best thing that I have done in service to the blog is cover the HullabaLOU Festival at Churchill Downs.  I know the event lost a Bieberload of money, and I am so sorry that it will not be coming back next year (read my posts re: why I think they were wrong to throw in the towel), but I had a damned fine time at HullabaLOU.  Great performances, sometimes from unexpected talent.  Not to mention the fact that it was the first time that I felt like I was "big girl press" = free tickets, parking passes, buffets, access to performers (though I was too shy to pipe up during the press conferences).  A milestone, indeed.  And a good time in general.

That being said, I can't underestimate the impact that having press passes to all of the Humana Festival plays had on me. I was thrilled beyond thrilled to attend every single play during the Humana Festival run.  And actually, I've hit every Actors play this year save A Christmas Story, which I caught last year.  We are so lucky to have Actors.  I am insanely lucky to have people at Actors who view my blog as honest-to-goodness "press."  Likewise the Broadway Across America folks at the Kentucky Theater.  Who on God's green earth would have thought one of my theater highlights for the year would have been Legally Blonde?! But it was! So. Hugely. Fun.

I moved to my neighborhood, the Original Highlands, because it seemed like the best 'hood in the city.  And lo and behold, this place gets better every year.  Sure we lose a place or two (Barret Bar, I'm thinking of you!) but we gain so much more.  Papalino's and the Holy Grale have vastly improved my quality of life this year.

My New Year's wish for 2011 = Original Highland's Neighborhood Association, please back the eff off of great places like the Grale and the Monkey Wrench and let 'em have their 4am licenses.  It's embarrassing to put the brakes on quality businesses like these.

As I said, I can't do "top ten" lists, but I can tell you some of my favorites.

• Music-wise: My favorite album of 2010 is Trombone Shorty's Backatown.  Seriously, I dare you to listen to the first 60-seconds of the CD and NOT want to boogie. Im-possible!  Also: Cee-Lo Green's Ladykillers.  His "F++k You" is the song of the year, in my opinion.  
• Movie-wise: I see a lot of movies, and I know my tastes are strange.  But no movie really tweaked me this year.  Not one. Honestly, I think the best movie I saw in 2010 is How to Train Your Dragon.    
• TV-wise: I'm still madly in love with Modern Family and Parenthood.  But you can't ever go wrong with watching an episode of Castle or the Closer.  I have to admit, for the 2010 season, I'm just loving the heck out of Raising Grace.  Man, I miss LOST something awful.

Overall, 2010 was a pretty good year.  I'm not particularly sad to see it go, but I had a lot of great times. My Louisville family of friends is full of spectacularly smart, funny, nerdy people (yeah, I'm looking at you!), and I've enjoyed their company heaps this year.

Bonus favorite pop culture thing: The Man of My 2010 is Craig Ferguson. He's friends with the Mythbusters, he hosted Shark Week, and he put on a hell of a live show in Cincy this year.  He has a robot sidekick, for godssake!  You can have all the Team Coco you want; I am firmly in the camp of Team @CraigyFerg.  

And Bonus bonus favorite pop culture thing:  Nothing had made me smile and laugh as hard this year as Craig Ferguson's "Secretariat" schtick.  It never gets old.  Add a little Kristen Bell or Neil Patrick Harris to the mix, and it's sublime.  Watch here.  

Happy New Year, Louisvillagers.  Love you guys.  

xxoo Lou

Advanced Warning: KAAC's High School Musical

I have to admit, the whole High School Musical thingie totally passed me by (which is probably a good thing, seeing that I'm thirty-mumble-mumble years old).  So this really isn't my bag.  But it sure is someone's bag given the popularity of the movies and now the stage musical.

Kids Acting Against Cancer (KAAC) is an impressive local charity founded and staffed by some really impressive local kids.  (Seriously, bitch all you want about teenagers, but I am grateful every day to work with young people and to see the kindness and empathy they're capable of).

As much as I wish I could kind of just give this show a plug on the blog and let it happily pass by, I think I'll have to attend.  Not only is KAAC a great cause that I want to support, I can personally attest to the fact that the cast features some truly talented young actors.

Their website is woefully out-of-date, but here's the skinny on their upcoming production:

Kids Acting Against Cancer presents its production of Disney's smash hit "High School Musical"! Proceeds benefit Gilda's Club of Louisville & UofL Pediatrics Oncology Specialists!

January 15


Producers' Reception: 75$, 6:30, (Preferred Seating, Drinks, hors d’oeuvres)
House Opens-7:30 PM
Curtain-8:00 PM
Tickets-Students 15$, Adults 20$
Clifton Center


Grab the teenagers in your life and take 'em!

Over the River: Habana Blues

I'm not really a "foodie." My food interests tend toward the plebeian.  For example, over the holidays, I was one of the poor unfortunate souls stuck in the New England HellaBlizzard (though, thankfully, not one of the poor unfortunate souls STILL stuck in the HellaBlizzard), and when Mama Lou asked what I wanted her to chef up for some cabin fever comfort food, I said, "Remember that thing you used to make with the Velveeta and the canned tomato soup?"  (It's good. Mmmmm.... )

Anyway, so my food/restaurant posts can always be viewed with a bit of skepticism, I'm sure.

Two nights ago, Roommate and I availed ourselves of cheapo rates at the Horseshoe Casino and did an overnighter.  Casino trips, especially non-Vegas trips, are always a pretty even mix of depressing and fun.  But we found the cheap drinks at the Envy bar and a dolphin slot machine that liked to give us money (pretty dolphins, good dolphins, we like the dolphins), so a good time was had by all.  I'm not ashamed to admit that one of the draws to the casino was the Savannah-toned siren call of Paula Deen's buffet.  And we weren't disappointed.  Good southern comfort food.  Fresher and better done than most big ass buffets.  And (really) a totally cute little Paula gift shop.  Hey y'all!

But, it turned out that the culinary highlight of the trip was not the raw oysters on Paula's salad bar, but the great little Cuban restaurant in New Albany where we had lunch the next day.  Habana Blues is right in downtown New Albany on Market Street.  For lunch, all sandwiches come with either black bean soup or a side salad for just $7.50.  Roommate had the Cuban sandwich, and I had a wonderful grouper sandwich.  And... best of all, the dark, strong, fruity sangria is only $11 a pitcher all day Monday-Wednesday!  Super great deal considering a single glass was $6.  Half a pitcher of sangria-- three glasses or so-- and I was zonked for the afternoon.

What I liked best about Habana Blues was not the great, reasonably-priced food or the good, cheap sangria, but the fact that our waiter clearly LOVED where he worked.  He chatted up the place to us with a huge smile.  Outdoor patio.  Live music til 2am.  DJs on weekends.  And most exciting of all: a dinner paella that takes an hour to cook-- you can call in advance, and they'll start it for you!

Really, when your waiters are as happy as this guy was, you're doing something right.  I'll totally make the bridge trek to visit Habana Blues again-- especially for the paella and definitely during the summer when I can eat outside.

Happy Annual Gift-Giving Holiday To You!

Great minds think alike.  The annual gift exchange between me & Roommate is always a highlight of the Christmas season for me. He knows where to shop for me (Why Louisville? Scout) and what I like (Deadliest Catch Wii Game?  Hell yes!).

But this year we ended up gifting each other the SAME Why Louisville? t-shirt!  Look for us some Waterfront Wednesday looking like Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum (not gonna happen).

But how could we NOT buy this shirt?  It's so damned cute!  See it here.

Hope your Culturally-specific Gift-Giving Holidays were likewise good to you!

Did Anyone Ask if YOU Want an NBA Team? (Try NHL!)

So there's an editorial in today's CJ about the city's plans to woo the NBA.  Again. (As @eekshecried said on Twitter, "They've been pouring money into this question for years.  It's the city's second-favorite hobby after drinking.") And my first reaction is to generally shrug and say, "Whatev."

Right?  I'm SO not a fan of the NBA (except for my boyfriend "Big Baby" on the Celtics.  I loves me some Big Baby.).  Could not care less about the NBA. I'd go so far as to say that I WOULDN'T go to an NBA game at the Whale... but that would probably be a lie.  As I told someone early this week as we entered the Kalightoscope exhibit, "My mama always said that I'd go to a pig calling if someone invited me." (And come on people, that's hardly a stretch.  A pig calling would be FUN!)  (More fun than the Kalightoscope maybe?)  (I'd like to take this opportunity to mention the fact that my Meatspace Workplace's firewall BLOCKs that Kalightoscope website-- rightly or wrongly-- because of the amount of advertising on it.  Hm.)

Anyway, so first reaction to NBA news: "Whatev."

But after thinking about it, I'm a little steamed.

Here's why:  Did anyone bother to ask us?


Did anyone bother to poll Louisvillagers and say, "How'd you like an NBA team?"

Because if they had polled ME, I would have said, "Nope.  No thanks.  Use that money elsewhere.  Or hey.... waitaminnit... how's about an NHL team!  Now THAT I'd love!"

Because who doesn't love hockey, right?  (Ok, sure, some of you.  Most of you who claim NOT to love hockey have probably never seen a game.)  Earlier this year, I tried to get Louisville Slugger Field on board with the whole hockey thing.  Remember?  Got no response at all.  (I've batted zero-- pun intended-- with the media folks at Slugger.  They NEVER return emails from me.  And I'm such a big Bats fan.  If any of y'all can pull any strings...)

But this is actually a really good idea for the YUM center.  And if not NHL, what about a smaller league?  Louisville actually had a hockey team from the 40's til the 00's.  The Blades, the Shooting Stars, the Icehawks, the Rebels, the Riverfrogs, and the Panthers.  Most of the teams played out at the Fairgrounds, but a couple of them played at the Louisville Gardens.

Anyway, out of curiosity, I did a VERY informal poll on Twitter.  And a couple Tweeties were good with the NBA, but the vast majority of people who bothered to respond to my tweet were overwhelmingly in favor of the NHL.  Overwhelmingly.  In fact, most responses included the words "HELL YEAH!"  (We're a profane group, us hockey fans).

So seriously, Louisville.  Give me that $89K, I've just done your feasibility study for you.  Most people have responded to the NBA idea with a giant thudding "Meh."  But the idea of the NHL gets people psyched.  And people who aren't psyched have probably never watched hockey.  Start the season out with cheapo tickets, and people will check it out for curiosity.  One game and they're hooked, I betcha.

Seriously.  I'm brilliant.  Right?  Right.  Louisvillagers Powers Activate!

(Those words... I do not think they mean what I think they mean.)

Ho Ho Holiday Stuff! Happy Snow Day!

Happy snow day, y'all!  Been sitting in a coffee shop for the better part of the day, and it's so adorable seeing moms and dads coming in with little ones off of school... playing cards and board games, having long post-snowman-building hot cocoas.

But, I still have more of the Scrooge than the Spirit in me right now.  This despite watching a marathon of Christmas specials in my pjs last night:  Muppets Christmas Carol, Shrek the Halls, the Family Guy Christmas (ugh), and something involving a baby reindeer who was abandoned by his asshole Santa-pulling reindeer dad, ends abandoning his own mother, and by the end decides that his "real" dad is a flying squirrel.  You can't make this shit up, kids.  

Anyway, I'm working on filling my ho ho ho gas tank.  Tonight I'm headed out to see Kalightoscope at the Galt House.  The Galt House et al have been hyping this holiday event since last Christmas, and I'm pretty jazzed to see what it ends up looking like. If somehow you've missed the major advertising push behind this, Kalightoscope is, according to the website:

... a landscape of larger-than-life, lighted holiday sculptures inspired by ancient Chinese art. Made of sheer, painted fabrics, each towering sculpture is enhanced by light, color and an imaginative setting. Some even reach 24 feet high!

Santa’s Midnight Flight over the World, Toyland and the breathtaking Nativity are just some of the twelve areas designed to awe and delight. Holiday music, aromas and little surprises make it an unforgettable experience for anybody. And it's all inside a temperature controlled, 16,000 square foot pavilion.

There's also a dinner show and special overnight Galt House packages available.  At the very least, the Galt House bar is always a spectacle during the holidays with the real candy gingerbread house that's bigger than my first NYC apartment and the beautiful Santa display.

This is my fifth holiday season in Louisville.  I find that so hard to believe.  But what's even more hard to believe is that there are so many local holiday traditions that I am just now getting around to.  This Halloween was my first Dracula at Actors Theater.  And while last year, I did see A Christmas Story, this was the first year that I went to see the more traditional A Christmas Carol.  Despite the fact that I spent the Christmas season of 2008 living a block away from Slugger Field, this was the first year that I went to the Festival of Trees.

A Christmas Carol is totally worth working into your schedule in the next couple of weeks.  After seeing the show, I immediately tweeted that, corny though it sounds, watching the play made me feel all warm and Christmasy.  (It didn't last: no fault of Actors Theatre).  There's a lovely trailer for the play at Actors' Theatre's YouTube page; watch it, and you'll want to go.  Unfortunately, I left my Playbill at home otherwise I'd cite particular performances, but the most stunning change (so I've heard...  as I said, first time for me) was the casting of an aerialist to play the Ghost of Christmas Past.  Beautiful.  Oh and hey, somehow Actors landed Stephen Colbert to play Cratchitt.  (I kid.  But seriously.  I did a double take.)

This week is going to be a crazy one.  Somehow I need (perhaps "want" is a better word) to work in seeing Barefoot in the Park at Actors and The Looking Glass Wars at Alley Theater.  Tonight is Kalightoscope.  Tomorrow is Let them Tweet Cake.  And I'd really like to get a Christmas tree in time to enjoy a little of its piney goodness before I leave.  Oh and shopping and shipping and packing and...

Ho ho ho!  Stay warm, Louisville!

What Do Sydney & Louisville Have In Common?

Sometimes press releases are like time machines.  I just got the greatest press release in my emails box, and it's full of all kinds of good news for the city and for various events and festivals. Awards. Kudos. Laurels. Pats on many backs.

But the events described in the press release haven't ACTUALLY happened yet.  They happen tomorrow.  At 1:30p.  In the Lobby of the Whale.  With Uncle Mayor Jerry.  

Oh, I can't keep this good news in.  Because you know how much Mama loves her some festivals, right?  I'll publish more details on the news tomorrow after the awards/kudos/laurels/pats have already been handed out.  (WHAT IF THESE PEOPLE CHANGE THEIR MINDS?  You don't want to jinx this, Louisville).

What do Sydney & Louisville have in common?  We're the only two recipients of the designation of "World Festival & Event City" in the "over 1 million" category.  That's pretty damned world class, kids.  Sydney and little ol' LOU?  So says the International Festival and Event Association. Earlier this month we got ourselves one of the ugliest buildings and now this... 

It's been a good month to be a Louisvillager.  So say we all.  

Aglow Tonight (I sure will be!)

I spent yesterday at my Meatspace Workspace reminding people that tonight is Bardstown Road Aglow.  A little guiltily because I probably won't make it Aglowing this year.  Very few things would keep me from one of the best nights in the 'hood (see my review of my first Aglow), but some of my favorite people in town are having conflicting Holiday Ho-Downs, and it's going to be buggy enough trying to do justice to both of the shindigs without throwing a little shopping in there too.  

(Personal note to said friends and all of the pals who share my conflict: let's rent a bus next year!  Shuttle our noggy butts between parties!  Maybe add a third party to the mix! [NOT IT!])

Aglow is not only a fabulous time, but this year Four Roses Bourbon is a major sponsor, and there's all kind of bourbony goodness happening along the route.  AND Aglow is the perfect time to nail your entry for the LIBA Holiday Passport Contest.  Submit receipts from five LIBA member businesses and you're entered into a drawing for $1000 gift certificate and a host of other lovely runner-up prizes.  Enter as many times as you want.  Details here.  

Go forth and shop local, Louisvillagers!