Nothing is effed? Lebowski & Paley & OIMBY

A couple of years ago, I 'fessed up to the fact that I was less interested in Lebowski Fest now that it has become something of a nationwide franchise. I called it the opposite of NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard)-- OIMBY (ONLY In My Back Yard), the desire for something super-duper cool about Louisville to stay Louisville weird.

As Lebowski Fest has spread to bigger cities, most of the choice musical and performance acts have been appearing in places like LA and Miami-- not in Louisville.

That being said, this year's musical line-up of Mucca Pazza, Todd Snider, and the Deloreans is nothing to sneeze at.

And in that blog post, I expressed concern that the spread of Lebowski Fests might mark a similar path for the (then-just-announced) spread of our beloved 21C's.

And what did we find out this morning? Our equally beloved Chef Michael Paley of 21C's Proof is leaving us for the new Cincinnati 21C's restaurant, Metropole.

Read my 2010 blog post about my predictions for Best Case/Worst Case scenarios for 21C's expansion. Note that under "Best Case Scenario," I list "Michael Paley stays at Proof."

This is kind of a kick to the gut. Now I have to admit, I was helping the Guy pull together his summer residency for Tourism Honors Academy last night, so I got all of three hours of sleep and may be a little more melodramatic than necessary... but I'm feeling a little "The goddamn plane has crashed into the mountain" about this.

Maybe I need a good nap and some Octopus Bagna Cauda to center myself.

Flat Stanley in Louisville

If you follow me on Twitter, you'll know that I've been hosting a Flat Stanley for a couple of weeks. If you aren't in education or don't have a wee one in your family, you may have no idea what I am talking about.

Flat Stanley is a character from a book from the 1960's, a little kid who is squished by a falling bulletin board (scary, right?) who then discovers certain advantages to being "flat" including the fact that he can be mailed to far away places for vacation. Somewhere along the line some smart educators decided to use Stanley in their lesson plans as a way to teach their little kids about geography and different cultures.  Students are given a Flat Stanley to send to a friend in another city; that friend is supposed to show Stanley around, take pictures of Stanley visiting city landmarks, and then send Stanley and the pictures back to the originating classroom.

My Stanley came all the way from a kindergarten class in Needham, MA and my favorite cousin's son, James.

Even though early on in Stanley's visit my cousin told me that I shouldn't write a blog for Stanley because the kindergarten has sketchy tech... well, heck, blogging is kind of my thing.  I couldn't help myself.

For the actual project, I turned the blog into a powerpoint and send the printed slides back to Needham with Stanley (along with a box of Modjeskas from Muth's because I want James's Stanley to be everyone's favorite Stanley).

If you want to see all the fun things Stanley and I did during his visit, check out the blog Flat Stanley In Louisville. As with all blogs, posts appear in reverse chronology.

Disclaimer #1: I'm writing for kindergarteners... expect simple language and oversimplification of facts at times.

Disclaimer #2: Yes, James calls me "Missy." No, you may not call me "Missy."

Enjoy!

PAL's Iroquois HS Students & Blue Apple Players @ 21c

If you work downtown, here's an after-work, brief event that might interest you for Monday:

The Blue Apple Players have been working with eight students from Iroquois High School to develop original drama pieces inspired by the art at 21c's Cuba Now exhibit.  On Monday, December 19, these works will be performed at 21c at 530pm for free.  The program should last more or less a half an hour.

From the press release:

The mission of the PAL Coalition is to reduce the incidence of substance abuse by young people residing in the 7th Street Corridor of Central Louisville. Through this after-school club, students have taken on a community leadership role in creating strategies and projects that will reduce substance abuse and support a healthy community. These outstanding teens selected drama as one way to communicate their message. But identifying the vehicle of drama wasn’t enough to jumpstart their work; they needed someone to lead them in how to utilize drama to make their ideas come alive. PAL reached out to Blue Apple Players. 

The PAL Coalition met Blue Apple Players Education Director Heather Burns in the fall of 2010. Burns taught the PAL students acting techniques and led them through the process of how to create an original piece of drama for several projects. 

“Teaching drama with Blue Apple is unique because it allows students to bring their own ideas to the table and trust themselves,” said Burns, “The PAL Coalition have shown me a stronger focus than many of the self-described ‘drama kids’ that I’ve taught. It’s all about their personal dedication to the mission of PAL. That’s why it was time to do something really special and partner them with the 21c Museum.”

This is a win, win situation, folks. It's a great little after-work slice of culture for you, one that is bound to reaffirm your faith in teenagers and the power of art. And it would be so nice to give these kiddos a solid audience to perform to.

So please think about going. I'll be there, and I'll head straight from 21c to our skating Tweet Up, so this isn't an either/or proposition.  And look for more on the work of the Blue Apple Players in next month's The Paper.

21c Expansion: Hoping for the Best

If you live in Louisville and are on Twitter, you've no doubt already heard about 21c's announcement that they intend to expand into fifteen cities, starting with Bentonville, Arkansas-- home of the anti-21c, Wal-Mart.  


Most of the people I follow on Twitter have responded with shock at the first location and with cautious congratulations to one of the coolest (and that word is truly applicable) businesses in the city.  The 21c tweet machine has countered with good humor and optimism.  


I personally haven't seen much anger out there about the expansion, but others have mentioned it. And the 21c facebook page already features people questioning the Wal-Mart connection (there is none, instead it is with the Crystal Bridges Museum-- which I will have to look into).  


I've said any number of times that 21c is one of the things that makes me proudest to be a Louisvillager.  (If you read that post, the answer is no-- I never did treat myself to a night at 21c post-chemo-- what's wrong with me?).  I am cautiously optimistic. 


Best case scenario:  21c stays headquartered here and has to hire a whole bunch of creative locals to work in the HQ.  As they expand, they proudly wave the Louisville flag (I jokingly tweeted that all future 21c Hotels should be called "The Louisville 21c Hotel in Bentonville" or what have you).  All major exhibits/events must debut first in 21c's Mother City before moving on to shows at other 21c's.  Chef Paley stays at Proof.  All new hotel initiatives use the Louisville 21c as their incubator... You catch my drift, right?


Worst case scenario:  As 21c expands, the quality of exhibits/events becomes diluted by 1/15th.  The groundbreaking, superstar artists choose to debut their shows at 21c Chicago or Atlanta.  It suddenly makes sense to move the 21c HQ to a larger city. Our 21c becomes "the old model."  Much sadness ensues.


I'm going to cling to the Best Case Scenario as the Only Case Scenario.  I believe that the 21c is committed to our fair city.  I wish them the best, and look forward to our 21c becoming the "mothership."  


Update: WFPL's Elizabeth Kramer allays some of my bigger fears-- good news!  

Tourist in my own town: Downtown Vacation

Can we still call this "Indian Summer"? I mean, we're just about as close to the first day of winter as we are the last day of summer. I, for one, couldn't be happier about this warm spell. Not just because I'm a hothouse flower, but because the heat on my house has been kablooey since Thursday, and I can't seem to get a repairman out here to save my life.

But the house fiasco led to an unexpectedly nice weekend, thanks to Roommate. He's out of town til the end of the month, and as an "I'm sorry you're shivering" gift (it was miserable those first couple of days), he paid for a room at the downtown Hyatt for me for Saturday night. So I had a lovely Saturday playing tourist in my own town.

Faithful readers may remember that this time last year, I was actually a denizen of downtown-- exiled to the Residence Inn on Market for almost seven months because Hurricane Ike toppled a tree onto my house. So my downtown stay was equal parts vacation and "Old Home Days."

I started the day at Bodega on Market, the charming little gourmet market/beer store with a lovely deli/restaurant. If there's any restaurant in Louisville that makes a better bisque than Bodega, I haven't found it. My spirits were dashed when I found out that they were out of Lobster Bisque, but a patron at the coffee bar said that the Roasted Red Pepper Bisque was even better. And it was marvelous (though I still prefer the lobster-- New England girl and all). I always kick myself for not going there more often, and I'm so glad they're surviving the death of sister restaurant Melillo's and the popularity of nearby Toast. Lovely atmosphere, free wifi, and very nice people.

When it comes to nice people though, few can hold a candle to the guys at Scout. I just love, love, love them. And they always remember me and ask me all kinds of lovely personal (but not too personal) questions. I suspect, however, who they REALLY love is Big Mama Lou who, whenever she comes to town, hits Scout like a friggin Yankee Tornado, buying up tons of loot and shipping it home. (Or, bless her heart, if she's feeling the bug, buying a ton of stuff for me.) Both Scout and Scout Home seem to be doing really well. Big Mama Lou is coming next week, and I promised to bring her by. I bought myself an adorable pair of squirrel earrings. (Uh, squirrels love acorns!)

The Louisville Beer Store has just opened up next to Scout Home on Market. What an exciting addition to the Nulu District. I mentioned this upcoming opening in my post about the Nulu Festival. I peeked inside and it looks lovely and cozy. Folks were pretty busy stocking shelves, so I didn't stop in.

The only bummer about that new arrival is that it has popped into the store that used to belong to the adorable Boston Flower shop. Anyone know what happened to that place?

Another new opening, mentioned in the comments of a recent post, is the new Sol Azteca's on Fourth Street, which moved into the funky space vacated by Raw Sushi. Can't find much about it online, and I've never been to a Sol Azteca's, but it looks like it's doing well.

One place that definitely calls for further investigation is the absolutely gorgeous Theater Square Market Place on Fourth Street near the Palace. I stopped in for a (kind of poor) iced coffee, but was stunned at the very sophisticated decor and the awesome layout. Theater Square Market Place seems to be treading the same ground as Bodega in many ways (though Bodega's iced coffees are awesome). Gourmet deli, market, etc. But in the back there's a full restaurant and bar (with beautiful lighting) and next door there's a wine shop.

There's also another new (to me, at least) pizza place on Fourth Street. Little joint. The name escapes me right now. But it smelled divine. UPDATE: It's called Sicilian Pizza & Pasta. Thanks, @funambulator

I spent my evening bar-hopping a little. Manhattan at the hotel bar. Beer and Octopus Bagna Cauda at 21c (it's so simple but so tasty... I can hardly bring myself to order anything else). Manhattans at AJ's at the Galt House-- I think they make some of the best (and fairly reasonable) Manhattans in town. Back to the hotel bar. (Uh, yeah, Manhattans again... Mama loves her bourbon).

Morning = chocolate chip bagel and cream cheese at Einsteins.

All in all, an excellent downtown vacation. And while I don't know what he spent on the hotel room, I do know Roommate got it on Hotwire for pretty cheap. The Hyatt is one of the 4-star options, and it is very nice. Lovely comfy beds, sizable rooms. I do wish they had nicer bathrooms. And, because it is an atrium hotel, it's rather noisy in the mornings. The hotel was booked to full-occupancy-- Yay Louisville!-- and it sounded that way. Often 4-star hotels in Louisville can be booked on Hotwire for as little as $60. That's peanuts when you consider the quality of getaway you can have!

Loueyvillager Powers Activate! Form of A Letter of Support

This weekend is Kentucky Crafted: The Market at the Expo Center. Now, I've never been, and the website is awfully unhelpful when it comes to telling me what to expect (but it is very nice that it features a $3 off coupon), but there's all kinds of good listy thingies that think Kentucky Crafted is pretty special.

Back in December, American Style Magazine named it #2 on its list of Top 10 Arts Fairs & Festivals. And how much does it ROCK that St. James Court Art Show is #6 and Francisco Farm's Art Fair at Midway College (also in KY) is #7. Say what you will about Kentuckians, but we apparently know how to put on an art show. The KY department of tourism lists it in its top 10 events, as does the Southeast Tourism Council. Good stuff, I guess. I will be there with bells on.

(That being said, I really hope Kentucky Crafted isn't a "craft show" like, say, the Ursuline's Art Fair-- which, by the way, is moving to the campus of the Louisville Collegiate School next fall-- or the Cherokee Park Art Fairs are "art fairs." There's some good stuff there, given, but a lot of the stuff is mass-produced and soulless. I'd say the same thing about the St. James Art Show, but I think someone might try and revoke m y citizenship of this city if I talked trash about St. James. Again, some nice stuff. But lots of beads and scarves and pocketbooks. I'm just saying.)

Anyhoo, on to the point: Over at FatLip, Stephen George has posted a... well, I'll just let him explain:

The American Craft Council (ACC), the nation's largest non-profit contemporary craft organization, is planning to relocate its headquarters from New York City. Greater Louisville is one of eight cities asked to respond to a Request for Proposal (RFP) from the ACC as they begin the process developing their short list of preferred headquarter locations. Greater Louisville Inc. (GLI) is working with several local arts organizations, the state, artists and local government to help spread the word.

Part of that process involves gathering letters of support to help make the case for Louisville. In order to demonstrate the support the ACC would receive in Louisville, GLI is asking members of the community to write a short (one page) letter of support regarding the benefits of locating an organization in Louisville. GLI's deadline to respond to the RFP is coming up quickly, so they ask that you send your letter c/o Bobby Ferreri at GLI (614 W. Main St., Ste 6000, Louisville 40202) by February 20. However, please address the letters to: Andrew Glasgow, Executive Director American Craft Council=2 072 Spring Street 6th Floor New York, NY 10012-4019

(Mama's note: that last little bit confused me, but that might just be my burned out chemo brain. He means ADDRESS the letter to Andrew Glasgow-- as in Dear Mr. Glasgow-- but SEND it to the GLI.)

Heck yes! That's a cause I can truly get behind. We want this, Loueyvillagers. Contemporary craft goes very nicely with things like 21c and Museum Plaza and the Arts and Crafts Museum and bourbon (because everything goes well with bourbon).

And if you write a letter, and I think you should, send it along to me. If I like it, I'll post it. If I don't like it, I'll probably still post it. Don't forget, we're lou at loueyville.com.

(If you're wondering what the other Wondertwin power "form" would be, it would be a stamp. Of course.)

Good Riddance 2008: 21c

My gut told me to omit this one because though I would reaaalllly like to go, it's also reallllly expensive. But how could I omit this option when the first sentences of the press release for the 21C New Years party speak so directly to my experience???

I may have to bring a flask of my own hooch to defray the cost! Drinks at Proof run about $8-12 a pop. If you were to do this, it might make sense to stay there, $$-wise.

Pros: One of my favorite places in Louisville. Great food. Cool environment

Cons: Will start 2009 in the hole! Bound to be wicked crowded.

The official press release says:

December 31, 2008
Let's face it, 2008 was a bummer. Bail yourself out of that funk with your friends at Proof on Main and 21c Museum Hotel.

If you'll be watching the ball drop elsewhere, Proof invites you to dine
from our signature Proof favorites. Our ala carte menu will be offered from
5:30pm to 7:00pm.

Beginning at 8pm, Chef Paley will offer diners a special pre-fixe tasting
menu. Enjoy four courses and a sampling of Proof sweets before heading
downstairs to a rocking party at 21c. Local favorite Hay DJ will be providing
the tunes in the atrium-turned-dance-lounge. The co st is $121 per person and
includes a four course tasting menu, party favors, and a champagne toast at
midnight.

Stuck with prior dinner obligations? Join us in the 21c Lounge, created
solely for New Year's Eve, complete with DJ, dancefloor, balloon drop, and space
to kick back and sip bubbly. Eleven dollars and a new or gently used backpack
will get into the party, with the goods going to support Blessings with a
Backpack. (We'll let you in for $21 if you come empty-handed, but c'mon, pick up
a backpack! There are kiddos out there that need your help.) A cash bar will be
available and, of course, a champagne toast at midnight underneath the glow of
disco balls.

Easy Cinderella. There's no reason to rush home when the clock strikes
twelve. Your fairy godmother must have been looking out because 21c is offering
the deal of the century. For just $365 per couple, enjoy the pre-fixe dinner at
Proof, the party at 21c, and a luxurious room to call home for the night. Throw
in late check out plus a little continental breakfast to soak up last night's
fun, and 2009 is already looking up.