A Timeless Tale Remixed
As I swung open one of the massive white doors into New Stage Theatre, the buzz of young voices immediately greeted me.
Grappling with Inertia
When most people think of symmetry, perfection often comes to mind. But Audrey Niffenegger confounds this definition, as the title suggests, in her latest novel, "Her Fearful Symmetry".
UMMC to Lead Alzheimer's Study
The University of Mississippi Medical Center will lead a comprehensive $26 million study to identify risk factors for Alzheimer's disease and other forms of cognitive decline. Funded through a grant from the National Institutes of Health, the medical center joins four other research centers to conduct the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities neurocognitive study by examining thousands of patients using brain testing and imaging.
You Can't Even Call Me Shallow for It
Youth Media Project
Though I bet some of you are going to try. This is a true recount of my weekend in New Orleans, a city whose vibe I really feel. And had things been different (financially), I would be attending Tulane. Can you believe 40k in aid and scholarships and still being 10k short? But I digress. This all started because I am a smart chick who has figured herself out, and therefore doesn't have to act a way she THINKS she should act.
Athena Protects Her Children
Sunday, I sat, twirling the hair at my right temple around my index finger, until I saw something that startled me. Walking into the room was a young woman wearing the exact blush-colored, silk duponi ruffle-neck dress with subtle box pleating at the waist I was wearing. My heart stopped. This had never happened to me before. My head was spinning. Do I run home and change? Do I hope my styling choices--topping the dress with a signature black cardigan, tossing the blush-colored sash and opting to wear a black rhinestone-buckled belt and Betsey Johnson Athena pumps--are enough to differentiate the two of us? This had never happened to me before. I've heard of this horror story happening to others, and I felt bad for them. But I never made a plan for what I'd do if it were to happen to me. Athena helped me save face, but be still my heart if that ever happens to me again.
George Steinbrenner (1930-2010)
Yankees owner George Steinbrenner died on July 13. He drove some of the major changes in sports over the last four decades. He meddled with his team's chemistry, bringing in high-priced players and calling out stars in the press. His Yankees teams won 7 titles between 1973 and 2010, which is remarkable by almost any standard except the one Steinbrenner demanded. Sports franchise owners like Mark Cuban (NBA), Dan Snyder (NFL), and Jerry Jones (NFL) are in the same mold. The following are my favorite seven Steinbrenner factoids.
PEER Peering into Levee Board
The legislative Joint Committee on Performance Evaluation and Expenditure Review is investigating the process by which the Rankin-Hinds Pearl Flood and Drainage Control District Levee Board settled on a recent decision for flood control for the Pearl River.
Barbara Ann Harris Johnson
Instead of only recognizing African Americans in February each year, Barbara Ann Harris Johnson decided that African American accomplishments should always be honored. Through her column, "Black History Every Month," which appeared monthly in the Jackson Advocate, she upheld that belief.
Business Law, Restaurant Raves
One of the more common obstacles to fledgling entrepreneurs is a lack of adequate legal advice, Michael Harris, program manager of the Jackson Business Accelerator, said today.
Jacksonian Featured by JFP Auditions for American Idol
Santore Bracey was featured as a Jacksonian in the Jackson Free Press back in March 2006. On July 3, he participated in Fox 40's American Idol auditions and was chosen as one of the five top contestants for that day. (You can see his audition here.)
Interior Department Issues New Drilling Ban
The U.S. Interior Department issued a new offshore drilling moratorium yesterday that will be in effect until Nov. 30.
Council To Vote on Bigger JPS Board
The City Council is set to vote tomorrow on an expansion of the Jackson Public Schools Board of Trustees from five to seven members. Proponents of the move argue that it will make the school board more accurately represent the city, with one member corresponding to each of the city's seven wards.
Vashti Muse
When Angela Hite met Vashti Muse 20 years ago while dancing for Hinds Community College Hi-Steppers, she received encouragement and support from Muse to continue dancing.
Doing Good: Mississippi Commission for Volunteer Service
Several state nonprofits received a boost to their programs July 7, when the Mississippi Commission for Volunteer Service announced $10 million in federal grant allocations for the state's AmeriCorps program.
Community Events and Public Meetings
5 p.m., America Reads-Mississippi Member Recruitment at Jackson State University (1400 John R. Lynch St.), at the Sally M. Barksdale Educational Resource Center. ARM members tutor full-time during the school day, before and after school, over breaks and in the summer. Members support school and community efforts to increase parental and community support and involvement, recruit volunteers and attend monthly training to gain skills necessary to meet service obligations. Members who successfully complete 1,700 hours in one year will receive the Segal AmeriCorps Education Award worth $5,350, which can be used to attend college and/or pay off current qualified student loans. Call 601-979-1474.
BP Installing New Cap
In the company's newest effort to contain the oil gushing into the Gulf of Mexico, BP officials said Sunday that they are making progress with a plan to place a new cap on the geyser, The Associated Press reported yesterday.
James, Wade, and Bosh Land in Miami
LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, and Chris Bosh have decided to bring together their talents in Miami. The city of Cleveland, including Cavs owner Dan Gilbert, is heartbroken. Gilbert fired off such personal invective that I doubt LeBron James will ever consider returning to the Cavs, when his Heat contract expires.
Breathe!
One of the items on my Road to Wellness list is to do deep breathing exercises. I must admit that I had forgotten all about this, but I remembered it after having a pretty rough week, especially when I accidentally turned off my computer while modifying an 84-page PDF file. The power strip was next to my foot, and I accidentally shut it off with my toe. After restoring power and kicking the power strip in anger, I decided that I must take steps to release tension.
ProPublica Photographer: I Was Followed by BP Security and Then Detained by Police
Freelance photographer Lance Rosenfield was working on assignment for ProPublica in Texas City, Texas, last week, when a BP security guard began following him. Rosenfield was later detained by police after taking photos for two ProPublica stories. One revealed that BP's Texas City refinery had illegally emitted 538,000 pounds of toxic chemicals into the air in April and May. The other reported that the Texas City refinery continues to have serious safety violations five years after an explosion at the plant killed 15 workers. What follows is Rosenfield's account of what happened on Friday night after the police, accompanied by the BP security guard, stopped him at a local gas station.
Katie O'Neal Sorey
Katie O'Neal Sorey began to get a sense of her life's purpose when she was 14 years old. While attending the Galloway Memorial United Methodist Church's annual Mission Fest, a conference based on service and worship, she had the opportunity to work with the homeless at Gateway Rescue Mission.