Independent News | September 12, 2019 | Volume 20 | Number 36
FREE â–¶
winners & losers
outtakes
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5
news 6
It excites me— and it terrifies me, too.
buzz
cover feature 13
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publisher Rick Outzen
graphic designer Michael Daw
editor & creative director Joani Delezen
contributing writers Savannah Evanoff, Jennifer Leigh, Jeremy Morrison, C.S. Satterwhite, Stephanie Sharp, Sydney Robinson
contact us info@inweekly.net
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Independent News is published by Inweekly Media, Inc., P.O. Box 12082, Pensacola, FL 32591. (850)438-8115. All materials published in Independent News are copyrighted. Š 2018 Inweekly Media, Inc. All rights reserved.
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winners & losers
Martha Saunders / Courtesy Photo
winners MARTHA SAUNDERS The University of
West Florida president has been awarded a contract extension through the end of the 2020 calendar year. A Board of Governors' regulation put in place in 2017 limits contract extensions or renewals for presidents of academic institutions to one year after the initial three-year agreement. The Board of Governors unanimously approved the one-year extension on Thursday, Aug. 29. Dr. Saunders took office as the sixth president of UWF in January of 2017. She signed a three-year contract at a base salary of $333,125. In her new agreement, the Trustees approved raising her pay to $405,000 in 2020.
SCOTT LUNSFORD The Florida Tax Collectors Association (FTCA) presented the Escambia County Tax Collector with the Legacy Award for Continued Excellence in Financial Operations at the Fall Education Forum in Orlando. The award recognizes offices that have achieved innovation, customer focus, a well-managed budget and a clean audit in finance operations. The award is given only to those tax collectors previously recognized with the Excellence in Finance Operations Award. DOUG BALDWIN, JR. In an era when so
many people, not just pro athletes, are afraid to discuss mental health issues, the retired NFL wide receiver and Pensacola native last week tweeted, "Nobody wants to talk about it, but I wish more people did. I have been, and I still am seeing a therapist, and I don't know where I'd be without it. To anybody who is on the fence about therapy, don't underestimate the value of your mental health." Thank you, Doug.
Mike Hill / Courtesy Photo
losers MIKE HILL Florida House Speaker Jose Oliva has removed Rep. Mike Hill, R-Pensacola, from the House Public Integrity & Ethics Committee. Hill drew bipartisan criticism after Inweekly reported that he laughed this spring when asked if he could file legislation that would impose the death penalty for men who have affairs with other men. The exchange was condemned in a joint statement by Oliva, R-Miami Lakes, and Rep. Chris Sprowls, a Palm Harbor Republican who is slated to become House speaker after the 2020 elections. Hill later texted the House GOP leaders, "You should have called me before you joined the mob." Don't expect much from Rep. Hill in the 2020 session. RON DESANTIS The governor of Florida has yet to appoint a replacement for ECUA District 3 representative Elvin McCorvey, who passed away last January. One-fifth of Escambia County is left without a voice while critical decisions are made regarding the utility. STEP UP FOR STUDENTS Florida's
largest K-12 scholarship funding organization put at risk assistance to more than 500 students with special needs ahead of the 2018-2019 school year because staff members made a "processing error" involving enrollment documentation, a Florida auditor general report found. The audit, issued at the end of August, said special-needs students who were eligible for awards under the Gardiner Scholarship Program saw a delay in funding due to the error by the organization Step Up for Students. The glitch affected 583 students before it was fixed.
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outtakes
By Rick Outzen
A PIVOTAL DAY Sept. 5, 2006, was a pivotal day for Pensacola. A city-wide referendum for the Community Maritime Park was on the ballot. Here is an abbreviated version of the column I wrote to get out the vote: The Sept. 5 primary has special importance to the Pensacola Young Professionals and other under-40-year-olds in this community. For months, I have written about the importance of this age group to the vitality of the greater Pensacola area. Now it's time for them to stand up and be counted. In the Independent News, we've identified the up-and-coming young leaders. We helped facilitate the founding of the Pensacola Young Professionals. We also wrote about the young adults that we've lost to more prosperous communities and those who have stayed here after graduation from the University of West Florida. If the next generation wants to be heard by politicians and community leaders, more than 8% of the eligible voters in the age group must vote this time. The message to the PYP and their peers is clear—it's your vote that gets you a seat at the table when decisions about the future of this community are being made. No vote means no seat, no respect. Save Our City, the political action committee out to stop the Vince Whibbs Sr. Community Maritime Park, has no fear of the young people. They aren't worried about
these upstarts, who can't remember to vote. None of the SOC leadership is under 40. The Pensacola Young Professionals are completely irrelevant to them. Meanwhile, I have listened to our readers complain about how backward this area is, how little opportunity there is here and how they aren't able to find affordable housing and decent wages. Many have confided they plan to move elsewhere if the Community Maritime Park fails. It's fine to complain, but bitching about the problems won't change them. It's the polls that matter. Everyone in this age group needs to vote. Then they need to be sure that all their friends also vote. They need to call them. No, better yet, hound their friends until they cast their vote. Too often, we con ourselves into thinking our individual vote is meaningless. It's true that a single vote might not sway an individual race, but this time, it's the accumulation of votes by younger voters that will ring loud and clear with those in power. If we can increase the turnout among the under-40-year-olds to more than 8%, then people will start listening to their voices, and they can have a tremendous influence on the future of this community, possibly even electing one of their own in 2008. Vote! The referendum passed, 9,684-7,701, and Pensacola was set on a new path. {in} rick@inweekly.net
It's the polls that matter. Everyone in this age group needs to vote.
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SO MANY STORIES “Every bit of investigating we do raises a dozen more questions,” Singley said. “A lot’s going on here. Which path do we take, and when do we take it?” When Hill moved back home to the Belmont-DeVilliers neighborhood from college, she decided to start a zine. It was a homespun publication called the Belmont Underground. And Teresa Hill and John Singley at ECW Live / Photo by Jeremy Morrison people ate it up. “It was just amazing, because no matter how many I printed, people wanted them,” Hill recalled. With her partner John Singley loading “Clearly, there was a need for that story. up the last of the equipment into the car, And I think that’s where it hit me, that that Teresa Hill pauses briefly, squints into the first-person, human-interest kind of story, sun-drenched September afternoon and people connect to it.” considers the future. Over the next few years, Hill became “Who knows where this is going?” Hill an active participant in community affairs. shrugged. She grew comfortable navigating the social The reflection is fleeting. There’s no media landscape, diving into issues like the time for that now. Too many stories to city of Pensacola’s protection of historic tell. Maybe eventually they’ll map out the structures and then later honing those future for ECW Live, but for now, it’s off to online communicative skills working on her Perdido to talk with fishermen about the mom Ann Hill’s successful run for the Disenvironmental impacts associated with trict 6 seat on the Pensacola City Council. International Paper. That was when Singley took notice of “A lot of these nice-to-haves or Hill. With a media background and retired should-haves fall victim to the tyranny from a career working public affairs with of today,” Singley noted earlier inside the the U.S. Navy, he had realized of one of studio. “You know, we’ve got a story that the region’s lopsided equations—too much needs work today; she’s got a video that news for too little news organizations. needs editing today. What you see is what “I was thinking, you know, this is a you get here.” little bit dysfunctional around here, what’s Since beginning their venture about a going on in city government and county year ago, ECW Live has found no shortage government; it’s really weird,” Singley said. of material. The Escambia County region “And the media organizations are shrinkhas a wealth of stories to tell. It’s just a ing; they’re cutting back. So, I said, there’s matter of deciding which ones to chase. a huge void.”
By Jeremy Morrison
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Singley felt that filling such a void would require a guerrilla-esque approach built to thrive in a social media world. In Hill, he saw a master of such domain. Before long, Singley invited Hill on a journey, “Why don’t we take your know-how and create this niche? Let’s use streaming media to fill the void left by fewer reporters in the newsroom, less money being spent on newsgathering. And she said, ‘Hey, I’m game. I’m good with that.’” Initially, the pair set up shop in a room at the downtown public library, where they would conduct no-frills, sit-down interviews with the area’s relevant players about whatever topic seemed to be lighting up the community at the moment. Then Hill suggested the operation broaden and begin live streaming government meetings so she and Singley began taking their cellphones to meetings. Realizing they needed a venue on Facebook that could deliver the largest possible local audience, Hill and Singley chose to use Escambia Citizen’s Watch, where locals dissect local issues, especially those concerning local government. “If we stream from a group like this,” Singley remembers thinking, “it goes immediately to all 6, 400 members. That’s pretty good circulation from the get-go.” Of course, operating out of the realm of social media does have its challenges. For starters, it’s meant that Singley and Hill have had to overcome any negative associations people attach to the wild-west environment of Facebook. “There’s been a growing curve with institutions around here about who we are, what our street cred is and what it is we’re really doing,” Singley explained. “Social media carries a certain stink with it because of its rambunctious nature, not just here, but everywhere—unfiltered—so a lot of organizations that are rightfully careful with their reputations approach social media very carefully.”
From the beginning, ECW Live has had a mission reminiscent of C-SPAN. “It was all about informing the citizen without being an editorial page,” Singley said. “I thought the cleanest, safest, smartest way to do this was to be a C-SPAN—wall-towall, uninterrupted video streaming of meetings, interviews, boring mostly, of newsmakers, authors, scientists, whatever, in the middle of the night, giving the viewers more information than they really probably needed.” Gradually ECW Live has evolved, venturing outside of meetings and the studio to do on-site explorations into issues like education, water quality, pedestrian safety or police relations. The feedback has been reaffirming. “Our content has been on a vector of a 45-degree angle almost, you know, our reach, the impressions, all the metrics that Facebook loves to give you,” Singley said. “Facebook floods you with data. And we catch ourselves like sitting at Sardi’s restaurant after the play is over and waiting for the New York Times review. We are data crunching on whatever we did the day before.” Recently, Singley and Hill have decided to springboard their work to another level. They have launched Studio 850 Productions that will tackle longer form, documentary projects. Their first documentary concerns the environmental impacts of the International Paper on Perdido Bay. So far, the response to online previews of the project has been encouraging. “We’re noticing that the edited film documentary that we’ve just started doing is blowing away everything else, as far as reach goes, we’ve done by hundreds of percentage points,” Hill noted. It’s uncertain where exactly Hill and Singley are headed with this venture. For the moment, they’re way too busy to figure it out. Hill smiled, “It’s hard to know where it’s going to go.” Check out ECW Live’s work at facebook.com/ ecwlive. {in}
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Pensacola Metro Area Entrepreneur Initiative Steps to grow and foster our Entrepreneur Ecosystem Why are we doing this? With the size of the Pensacola Metro Area, we have a great chance to grow our entrepreneurial ecosystem. Larger cities are more expensive to live in and to start a business. Our affordability, opportunities and vibrant downtown is what attracts entrepreneurs.
We want the Pensacola Metro Area to be the winner. This initiative will focus on on what programs are currently offered to start-ups and those wanting to start a business to identify any gaps or overlap. The final results will show what a great economic ecosystem should look like in Pensacola and the steps to get there!
2019
SEPTEMBER 12
TIMELINE n Survey of local entrepreneurial ecosystem stakeholders.
WE WANT YOUR INPUT We would love to hear your feedback, enthusiasm, experiences in our ecosystem and your concerns.
n Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, Threats (SWOT) Analysis. Recommendations for filling gaps in ecosystem.
SEPTEMBER 25
EMAIL: D.C. Reeves dcreeves@quintstuder.com SURVEY:
OCTOBER 15
n Gather and summarize feedback on implementation of recommendations.
n Publicly announce draft initiatives and collaborations on ecosystem gap improvements.
surveymonkey.com/r/2019Ecosystem
NOVEMBER 20
D.C. Reeves, Chief of Staff for the Studer Family of Companies, led the SCAPE project to recapture Pensacola’s waterfront and was instrumental in completing Mayor Grover Robinson’s Transition Plan. In addition, he has experience in starting his own business in the local community, opening Perfect Plain Brewing Company in 2017. He is detailing his experience and processes as well as tips in a book, The Microbrewery Handbook, published by Wiley & Sons Publishing, that will be released in November.
September 12, 2019
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BEACH PROTECTIONS PASSED After
months of hammering out the details with local beach advocates, Escambia County officials have passed an ordinance offering protections for Santa Rosa Island. The formal moved followed the passage of a non-binding voter referendum affirming such protections against over-development last November. Commissioner Robert Bender, who oversees Pensacola Beach in his District 4, said he felt like the final ordinance was palatable to the various parties plugged into the conversation and offered the beach the protections necessary to prevent it from slipping toward more trafficked and developed territory, such as Panama City Beach or Destin down the coast. "I do think that this is the protection we need for Pensacola to preserve it," Bender said, "to preserve our access, to preserve the way it is today." The ordinance, like the referendum, affirms a 1947 federal deed, which requires that the county manage the island for the benefit of the public and not sell off private parcels, as a failed 2017 federal legislative effort spearheaded by Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) sought to allow for. The new ordinance also preserves conservation and recreation lands and includes a building cap that renders the island built-out, with the exception of a few limited properties. The commissioners' public gallery was full of beach advocates wearing yellow shirts in a show of support for the passage of the ordinance. The wave of yellow—vocal and persistent—has been ever-present throughout the discussion, or what Save Pensacola Beach President Dianne Krumel called a "long, hard-fought battle." "I'm so excited we have reached this moment," Krumel said at the Sept. 5 county commission meeting, reading Bender's yellow necktie as a "good sign." "I see the end of this battle on the horizon. I think it's going to happen here tonight." Krumel said the ordinance included the
necessary language to offer the beach a "layer of protection" and that it adequately reflected the "will of the people" expressed through the passage of last year's non-binding referendum. "The proposed ordinance will make it more difficult for any future elected public officials to steal our beach," said Krumel, who launched Save Pensacola Beach and fought for the referendum and ordinance in response to the 2017 effort to pass federal legislation allowing individuals to own the properties they currently hold on recurring 99-year leases. It was obvious ahead of last Thursday's commission meeting that the beach ordinance had all the support it needed. The new ordinance—which passed on a 5-0 public hearing vote—had been discussed earlier in the day during an agenda review session, with Commission Chairman Lumon May commending Bender and commenting that he was glad the heated, long-running discussion was wrapping up with an easy vote. "I'm just glad we want have a long public forum," the chairman said. Though the ordinance's passage was a foregone conclusion, the evening's public gallery was no less filled with yellow than usual. May noted that their prospects were solid and suggested that not everyone needed to take their three-minute public speaking allotment. "If you want to just wave a show of support you can," May said. While most of the beach advocates bowed out of public speaking, there were a few aside from Krumel that took to the public lectern. They quoted the Rolling Stones. They talked about seeking refuge on the beach after their father was transferred to Pensacola from 1962 Cuba. One speaker, Terry Preston, president of the group Pensacola Beach Advocates, which supported the ownership concept, talked about how she didn't accept the premise of the referendum but did appreciate some of the protections ultimately offered in the ordinance.
She also thanked Bender for "keeping his cool" in the face of "hateful rhetoric and threats." Though she did not elaborate on what this was in reference to, it's possible it was a nod to what Commissioner Doug Underhill has previously described as the yellow-shirts' "antifa behavior," specifically telling Krumel she'd "have to trade in that yellow shirt for a black mask." After the commission's unanimous passage of the ordinance, the crowd of yellow shirts stood and filed out of the public chambers. "Thank you so much! This is so awesome!" Krumel yelled. "Thank you for listing to the people!"
CERVANTES BARRIER CONCERNS
The prospect of a physical barrier running down the middle of West Cervantes Street doesn't sit well with local officials. Escambia County commissioners last Thursday piled onto Pensacola Mayor Grover Robinson's recent critique of the concept. "I don't think they're on the right path for the folks of Brownsville," said Commissioner Doug Underhill during the Community Redevelopment Agency meeting held Thursday, Sept. 5. The Florida Department of Transportation is planning a number of improvements for a two-plus-mile stretch of West Cervantes, including slimming lanes and adding crosswalks, traffic signals and lighting. The $7.5 million project, meant to improve safety along the roadway, also includes the physical fence-line barrier that would have the effect of limiting the points at which pedestrians and vehicles could cross the street, thus cutting off the community's connectivity. "I think they probably solved a problem but created a bigger one," Underhill said. "Doug, I'm with you 110%," agreed Commission Chairman Lumon May. Underhill expressed a number of the concerns consistently raised during a pair of community workshops over the summer,
where residents and elected officials alike were objected to the hard division and lack of flow. The concerns included the impacts on both drivers and pedestrians, as well as the community overall. "It does not give us the quality of place," Underhill said, adding that such a barrier would not fly in other areas of the county, such as Perdido Key. FDOT has thus far maintained that the planned improvements prioritize safety over other concerns and signaled that the barrier will likely stay. After the lack of crossing options were pointed out during the first community workshop, revised plans presented at the following event featured a number of additional openings, but the barrier remained. "This is safety, safety, safety," said FDOT Spokesman Ian Satter at the time, explaining that the agency was sensitive to local concerns about the barrier's impact on the street grid, but only to a point. "Safety is always going to outweigh that, but we're trying to find compromises." Mayor Robinson wrote an Aug. 27 letter to FDOT expressing the city's concerns regarding the barrier—"Connectivity will be lost. Multiblock barrier fencing decreases connectivity." "The most vulnerable roadway users— people walking, people using wheelchairs and mobility devices, and people riding bicycles— will be negatively and significantly impacted by the erection of raised medians and barrier fencing," Robinson wrote. "In theory, safety may be improved when barriers are erected, yet it is certain traffic flow will not be improved for people walking. Traffic flow will not be improved for people with disabilities using wheelchairs. And traffic flow will not be improved for people riding bicycles." In defending the use of a barrier fence, FDOT has pointed to a similar barrier in Tallahassee, where the structure was employed in an effort to keep college students out of the roadway.
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Chairman May said Thursday that the safety issues being addressed on West Cervantes—where there have been a number of pedestrian-vehicle incidents—may require different solutions than those relied on in Tallahassee. "I know there are some models in Tallahassee," May said, "but unfortunately, Brownsville doesn't have the same demographics as Florida State school." County Administrator Janice Gilley told the commission that she planned to meet with FDOT representatives this week. While she allowed that the state's planned improvements may amount to "a bridge too far," the agency was ultimately delivering on a local request as it saw fit. "I think they responded to what this community asked for on the front end," Gilley said, telling commissioners she would reiterate the local concerns about the effects of a barrier on the community. Because FDOT revised its planned improvements for West Cervantes, adding the additional barrier brakes and crossing options, there will also be another public hearing where the community can weigh in on the project. Satter said at the workshop that the hearing would be scheduled for later this fall. Work on the project, involving improvements from Dominguez Street to A Street, is projected to be commence in the fall of 2020.
JERRALDS RETURNS The Pensacola
City Council last week selected former Councilman John Jerralds to replace District 5 representative Gerald Wingate, who passed away in August. "It feels good to be home," Jerralds said, taking his seat on the council. Jerralds, a retired educator, previously served on the city council from 1999 to 2012, when he lost the seat to Wingate. Council members appeared to base their appointment of Jerralds on his past experience, contending that he had the necessary experience and would not have as steep of a learning curve as the other candidates vying for the seat. "Being on the council is not easy," said Councilwoman Sherri Myers. "There's a lot to this; there's a lot you have to learn." Jerralds, too, relied on his experience when pitching himself to the council, describing his re-entrance to council's chambers as "kind of like deja vu." "Please consider my experience," he said, "because you wouldn't have to start over, but I think I could hit the ground running." The former councilman, who said he would not seek the seat in the 2020 election, was selected from a pool of 10 nominees. That pool shrunk to nine prior to council's selection, folSeptember 12, 2019
lowing the withdrawal of Ron Helms, who said he didn't want the seat because he was seeking it in 2020 and had decided to heed Mayor Grover Robinson's suggestion that candidates seeking the seat in the next election not be considered for the immediate appointment. Among the remaining nine nominees, there were two that received multiple referrals from members of the public who spoke during Wednesday's special council meeting. Both Teniade Broughton and Haley Morrissette saw multiple supporters speak on their behalf. Broughton, in fact, had two members of the mayor's transition team—Christian Wagley and Drew Buchanan—back her nomination. Broughton survived the first round of council's voting, along with Jerralds, Betty Allen and Taran Black. In that initial round, Jerralds received three votes, with the others receiving one vote each. In the next round, Jerralds garnered the fourth vote he needed to clinch the seat, with Allen and Broughton maintaining their single votes. Like the rest of the nominees, Jerralds listed off a number of District 5 priorities he intended to focus on, such as employment and neighborhood issues. After securing the seat, the new councilman said he was looking forward to serving both his district and the city as a whole. "I'm interested not only in District 5 but also the concerns of the city of Pensacola," Jerralds said following the meeting.
40-40-40 FavorHouse of Northwest Florida, a certified domestic violence center for Escambia and Santa Rosa counties, has announced its 40-40-40 campaign, an initiative that celebrates the commencement of the organization's 40th year by setting the goal to raise $40,000 within 40 days. The initiative will begin with a Campaign Kickoff Event 5-7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 20, at The Palafox House, 196 N. Palafox, and conclude with the Faces of Domestic Violence Benefit Show at 6:30 p.m. at Jean and Paul Amos Performance Studio, 1000 College Blvd. "All funds raised will be used to provide safe, emergency shelter for domestic violence victims—a sanctuary providing healing and hope," said Sue Hand, executive director of FavorHouse of Northwest Florida. "Survivors and their children do not pay for any of the services they receive." The Campaign Kickoff Event will include a performance by Jess Meuse, a Top 4 National Finalist on season 13 of American Idol. Meuse will also be featured as the opening performer for the Faces of Domestic Violence Benefit Show, which will be headlined by Wade Cota, the third runner-up on American Idol's 17th
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season. Both performers are domestic abuse survivors and will be sharing their stories. "My songs are all written from real experiences," said Meuse. "Although many of them are inspired by my personal experience with an abusive partner, at the heart of them is always this message—you are never really alone, and you are stronger than you think. That's what I want people to take away from me being at the Campaign Kickoff and Benefit Show." The benefit show will cost $40 for general admission tickets and $1,000 for a VIP table with eight seats, which includes a formal plated dinner, a private show and a meet-and-greet event. To purchase tickets, visit favorhouse.org.
VENDORS SOUGHT Escambia County
will be teaming up with several agencies and nonprofit organizations to host the fifth annual Escambia Cares Community Resource Expo, a free event designed to provide a one-stop shop for community resources and services. The expo will take place 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 21, at the Brownsville Community Center, 3200 W. De Soto St. The Escambia Cares Community Resource Expo will provide free health
assessments, free food, giveaways and information about a variety of services available through community organizations and the county. The expo will provide valuable information on healthcare, education, employment opportunities, home-buying assistance programs, job skills training, GED information, neighborhood safety, housing programs and more. If your agency or nonprofit organization would like to participate and/or for more information about the event, contact Leroy Williams at lewilliams@myescambia.com.
SPECIAL EDITION CARD West Florida Public Libraries is offering a special edition library card this month in honor of Library Card Sign-up Month. The card features DisneyPixar's "Toy Story 4" characters joining the American Library Association on an adventure to promote the value of a library card. While library cards are always free for Escambia County residents, the usual $3 replacement fee for lost or damaged cards will be waived during the month of September, as part of the celebration. September was designated as Library
Card Sign-up Month by the ALA in 1987, after then-Secretary of Education William J. Bennett issued a challenge. The challenge was for a national campaign encouraging every child to obtain and regularly use a library card. Escambia County residents can find information about getting a library card or sign up at mywfpl.com/borrow/card.
RBI PENSACOLA RBI Pensacola is sponsoring a workshop for coaches of all sports. This interactive workshop, presented by the Positive Coaching Alliance, begins by defining the Double-Goal Coach as one who strives to win and works to prepare his/her team to play at its highest level and, at the same time, teaches life lessons (teamwork, dedication, bouncing back from mistakes, etc.) to his/her players. All coaches who attend will receive a Double-Goal Coach certification card and a copy of the new Power of Double-Goal Coaching book from Positive Coaching Alliance Executive Director Jim Thompson. The Double-Goal coaching workshop is open to all coaches and is limited to 30 participants per event. Attendees may choose to attend the workshop on either 7-9 p.m.
Thursday, Sept. 12, or 10 a.m.-noon Saturday, Sept. 14, at the Main Street Lounge, Pensacola Blue Wahoos Stadium, 351 W Cedar St. To register, visit tinyurl.com/yynn9aad.
MARK YOUR CALENDARS Baptist
Health Care will host a blood drive from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 12, in the Gulf Breeze Hospital team member parking lot behind the Medical Office Building, 1110 Gulf Breeze Parkway. Donors must be age 16 or older, weigh at least 110 pounds and be feeling well that day. Photo identification is required. All donors will receive a $3.50 Breezeway Cafe card, cookies and a gift. District 4 Commissioner Robert Bender will host a Ferry Pass town hall from 5:307 p.m. Monday, Sept. 16, at the Ferry Pass Middle School cafeteria, 8355 Yancey Lane. Zoning Board of Adjustment will meet at 3 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 18, in the Hagler-Mason Conference Room, 2nd Floor, Pensacola City Hall. Architectural Review Board will meet at 2 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 19, in the Hagler-Mason Conference Room, 2nd Floor, Pensacola City Hall. {in}
Pensacola Little Theatre Presents
September 26-29 2019
September 20-22 2019
Written by
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By Jennifer Leigh
Fall tends to feel like a season of new beginnings—a new school semester, a change in the weather (fingers crossed) and, here in Pensacola, the opening season of five culturallyrich nonprofit organizations. Some cities count themselves lucky to have a theatre company— we have that and more. While most locals were on vacation or lounging at the beach, hundreds of talented people were working to plan their
upcoming season of performances that run the gamut from traditional operas to a ballet based on the music and life of Elton John. In our Fall Arts preview, we give you a rundown on what to expect this season. It's impossible to catch every show, but we encourage you to check out the schedules and try something new to enjoy and support the talent in your city. You won't regret it.
Xiaolun Chen / Photo Courtesy of The Choral Society of Pensacola
BALLET PENSACOLA PERFORMANCES
Performed at Pensacola Cultural Center unless noted When heading into a new season at Ballet Pensacola, Artistic Director Richard Steinert says he thinks about what he wants to say and who he wants to reach. "I want the shows to meet as many kinds of people as possible. I want the season to be diverse," he said. "I'm kind of like a rebel, but a rebel with a cause." Steinert said he can dream wildly, but with a nonprofit budget, it takes a team of people to take his wildest dreams and make them reality. "Sometimes it comes down to what can we do financially and can we sell tickets," he said. "That's the much less creative end of the job." Choosing shows can be a formulaic process, Steinert said. There's typically a Halloween-centered show to kick off the season. This current season begins with "A Nightmare Before Christmas," which brings the Tim Burton classic to the stage. "It's always been a huge success," Steinert said. "Unfortunately, we really can't afford to keep all of the sets in the warehouse, so each year, we often look to see what we want to kill. We'll probably retire this show after this year, and then it will go back in the vault." Another regular success story for Ballet Pensacola is "The Nutcracker." With its broad appeal and seasonal relevance, it's "a given," Steinert said. September 12, 2019
"Across the board for most (ballet) companies, 'The Nutcracker' is responsible for 40 to 45% of annual ticket sales," he said. "And that's true for us. Part of that is because we have a bigger venue (at Saenger Theatre)." Part of any arts organization's mission is to get more supporters and introduce art to a wide range of people. Steinert has found a way to do that with music. In the past several years, the company has had success with shows like "DIVAS, We Will Rock You" and "Thunderstruck" that use contemporary music and choreography. This year, the ballet will present "Rocketman," celebrating the music of Elton John. "I always try to see how dance can pique someone's interest," said Steinert. "If you loved the movie 'Rocketman,' you'll love this." For fans who still love a classical ballet, the first half of the show will be "Paquita," a romantic ballet dating back to 1846. "It's a good, old-school ballet with classical tutus," Steinert said. "The night will be a good mix of classical and contemporary." Closing the season will be "Mary Poppins," and yes, she does fly, thanks to technological advances. During the "sort of off-season," as Steinert calls it, the nonprofit is focused on training and developing young talent with the Ballet Academy.
From the academy, new faces emerge with the Ballet Pensacola company. This year, five graduated students have been hired on to join the season. "Our dedication to developing young talent is our biggest impact on the community," Steinert said. "And not only do we train them; we hire them. We want to teach young people, and the community, that you can pursue your dream. You can do it." For Steinert, working in a culturally-rich area like Pensacola adds a greater responsibility to his job as artistic director, he said. That means being mindful of the productions around you to not try and compete, especially when it comes to Pensacola Little Theatre, where most Ballet Pensacola performances are help. "You want to be mutually supportive," he said. "For instance, we wouldn't do our 'Mary Poppins' ballet the same year PLT was doing the play." Steinert's first experience with Pensacola was 15 years ago as a guest artist for Ballet Pensacola. Now, he's entering into his 13th season as artistic director. Still, he looks to each year as a "wide-eyed optimist." "I'm 61. I started in this business 40 years ago, and it just keeps getting better," he said. "It excites me—and it terrifies me, too. But it's not hard for me to find the joy in it."
A Nightmare Before Christmas Oct. 18-27 Ballet Pensacola returns to Tim Burton's Halloweentown for a perfectly seasonal kickoff show.
The Nutcracker
Saenger Theatre, 118 S. Palafox Dec. 20-22 The holiday classic shares the story of Clara and her Nutcracker Prince as they embark on a whimsical adventure.
Paquita & Rocketman: The Music of Elton John
Feb. 21-23 It's a night of classic vs. contemporary with the romantic ballet "Paquita" in the first half and a new ballet inspired by the life and music of Elton John in the second half.
Mary Poppins
April 17-26 The story of Mary Poppins is interpreted through dance and some stage magic.
BALLET PENSACOLA WHERE: 400 S. Jefferson St. DETAILS: balletpensacola.org 13
There are several choir groups in Pensacola but only one with an 84-year tradition of singing classical music. "We love being part of such a lively arts scene and are proud that we play a distinctive role," said Charlie Smoke, executive director of The Choral Society of Pensacola. "Even though the community boasts several choral groups, none duplicate what we do." In its 84th season, the Choral Society is not likely to break away from its classical repertoire, but there are some additions, including musical theatre, pop and jazz. Also, the choir will be doing something different this season by hosting "Choir! Choir! Choir!" during Foo Foo Festival. "It will be a fun, high-energy event, led by two phenomenal guys from Toronto, who involve everyone who attends in the music-making," Smoke explained. "The audience is the choir is the audience." What you can always look forward to with each season is Handel's "Messiah." The piece dates back to 1742 and is a reflection on the birth, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It's also a significant piece for the organization. In 1935, the Music Study Club of Pensacola performed selections from "Messiah," which led to the formation of The Choral Society of Pensacola. The choir currently has a roster of 80 volunteer singers ranging in age from high school to retirees. You can try to join for the 85th season at the next audition Saturday, Jan. 4, at Pensacola State College.
Another notable performance includes "My Favorite Things," which brings a variety of music from different time periods. The show will also feature winners of Young Voices singing competition for high school and college students. Artistic Director Xiaolun Chen selects each season's programs keeping in mind previous programs, budget and the overall sound of the season, said Smoke. While Chen honors the tradition of classical music, he keeps his ears open for "fresh repertoire," said Smoke. "For instance, not long ago on YouTube, he discovered a version of Vavilov's 'Ave Maria' by a young French composer/arranger," Smoke said. "(Chen) tracked him down online, obtained his permission to perform the arrangement, had it shipped
Many locals may be hard-pressed to think of Pensacola without the Pensacola Little Theatre. Dating back as far as 1926, it's one of the oldest cultural institutions in the city (second only to Pensacola Symphony Orchestra). And each year, it continues to present new and exciting ways to bring that "little" theatre to life. Preparation for a new season begins far in advance with PLT's artistic committee spending a year reviewing works before making final recommendations, said Executive Director Sid Williams-Heath. A final list of shows is sent to the Board of Trustees for approval nine months before a season begins. When it comes to final selection, Williams-Health said it's about finding something to engage all audiences. "I love the diversity of the season," he said. "We all know 'My Fair Lady' and other timeless classics in our Mainstage series, but we also offer extremely thought-provoking (often downright dirty) content within our Studio 400 series. We target families and younger audiences
through our Treehouse series (shameless plug to our upcoming performance of 'Winnie-the-Pooh'), and truly stick by the "something for everyone" mentality when selecting our lineup." And part of that early planning means budgeting—it is a nonprofit, after all. "Just like the art we put on stage, there's an art to raising funds to keep the curtain rising," Williams-Heath said. One thing that helps to keep the curtain rising is volunteers. "Other than a small staff to operate the theatre, everything done in this organization is by volunteers," said Williams-Heath. "Nearly 1,000 volunteers come through the doors of the Cultural Center each year and with over 80,000 hours of volunteer service executed within a year. We know the power of community." PLT works to give back support in creative ways, from incorporating a winter jacket drive in conjunction with the production of "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat" or hosting a Pensacola Humane Society pet adoption during the production of "CATS."
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Smoke recommends "Messiah" to any choir first-timers. "It's a signature piece that we perform every holiday season with soloists and orchestra," he said. "This year, we'll present the work in its entirety. It will be a longer evening than most of our concerts, but the emotional range of the music, I think, will keep everyone engaged. It's a beautiful, powerful work."
"It will be a longer evening than most of our concerts, but the emotional range of the music, I think, will keep everyone engaged." Charlie Smoke
from France, and we'll include it on our May concert with the Brahms 'Requiem.'" This season is a special one for Chen as it will be his last after 21 years with The Choral Society of Pensacola. Smoke credits Chen for carrying on the tradition of previous directors while adding his own style. "(His) passion is large-scale classical works for soloists, chorus and orchestra, and, through his tenure with the group, he has ensured that that area residents have had the opportunity to experience, as performers and as audience members, some of the great masterworks in concert," said Smoke. "This season, he's conducting 'Messiah' in its entirety for the first time in his career, and he's conducting the Brahms 'Requiem' for the first time. His final season is also a season of firsts."
THE CHORAL SOCIETY OF PENSACOLA PERFORMANCES Choir! Choir! Choir!
Rex Theatre, 18 N. Palafox 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 6 This Foo Foo Festival event puts the audience in the show. With Toronto-based musicians Daveed Goldman and Nobu Adilman, each admission ticket is exchanged for a lyric sheet. No auditions necessary.
Handel's "Messiah" Complete Saenger Theater, 118 S. Palafox 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 7 Enjoy a rare opportunity to hear Handel's
Being a community theatre, WilliamsHeath said the mission of PLT is not about finding the next Broadway star but giving people a creative outlet to step out of their comfort zone. "We do what we do to help others garner self-confidence, public speaking abilities, sense of perspective, understanding of differing viewpoints and cultural development—and that's why community theatre is so important," said Williams-Heath. You can travel to bigger cities or go to the Saenger Theatre and watch a traveling Broadway play, but you won't get to meet the cast or playwright. At many PLT shows, you can meet the talented people behind the shows—in fact, you might already know them. Take, for instance, Dr. Stephen Lott. He's a local child psychologist and one of the founders of PLT's children's theatre group, Treehouse Theatre. "If you frequent PLT, then Dr. Stephen Lott needs no introduction as the brilliant director of 'Shrek the Musical' and 'Mary Poppins,'" said Williams-Heath. "Dr. Lott will return to the stage as Van Helsing
masterpiece in its entirety. Four soloists return to perform with the 60-voice community chorus accompanied by an orchestra.
'Tis the Season to Sing Along
Generation Church, 18 N. Palafox 5 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 15 Join the choir for an hour of holiday songs followed by hot chocolate and cookies. Ugly sweaters are encouraged but not required. Admission is free, but attendees are encouraged to bring a nonperishable food item for Manna.
My Favorite Things
First United Methodist Church, 6 E. Wright St. 7:30 p.m. Saturday, March 14 During his final season, Artistic Director Xiaolun Chen presents some of the music he has most enjoyed conducting during the past 21 seasons.
Brahms "Requiem"
Cokesbury Church, 5725 N. 9th Ave. 7:30 p.m. Saturday, May 2 The choir's 84th season closes with the 150-year-old masterpiece. The show will also play homage to the 250th anniversary of Beethoven's birth.
CHORAL SOCIETY OF PENSACOLA
WHERE: 1000 College Blvd., Rm. 83 DETAILS: choralsocietyofpensacola.org
in 'Dracula: A Real Pain in the Neck' this October, his own true comedic studio romp through the myths and fantasy of Dracula." At the end of the day, the theatre stage gives "a voice to the voiceless," said Williams-Heath. He's proud of that. And he's proud to be among the "big five" arts organizations in Pensacola.
"It's so fascinating to me—not only how many arts organizations Pensacola sustains but also the quality of those organizations." Sid Williams-Heath "It's so fascinating to me—not only how many arts organizations Pensacola sustains but also the quality of those organizations," he said. "Even from my time spent working with the Savannah College of Art and Design both domestically and abroad, I've never experienced so much bang for your artistic buck in a town this size." inweekly.net
PENSACOLA LITTLE THEATRE PERFORMANCES
Performed at Pensacola Cultural Center
Five Women Wearing the Same Dress
Sept. 20-29 In Alan Ball's comedy, five bridesmaids hide together in an upstairs bedroom, hoping to escape the wedding reception of a bride they don't like.
Dracula (A Real Pain in the Neck)
Oct. 4-12 In this original piece from Dr. Stephen Lott, the story of Dracula is reimagined as a comedy with lots of blood and puns.
The Savannah Sipping Society
Nov. 1-10 Four Southern women looking to escape their day-to-day routines are brought together by fate—and an impromptu happy hour.
Miracle on 34th Street
Dec. 13-22 Kris Kringle is an old man living in a retirement home who gets the chance to play Santa at Macy's department store. When his goodwill is questioned and seen as delusional and dangerous, everyone's belief in Santa Claus is questioned.
Schoolhouse Rock LIVE!
Jan. 24-Feb. 9 You know the songs from the Saturday morning cartoons. See them come to life in this play that is both educational and entertaining.
Short Attention Span Theatre
Feb. 14-Feb. 23 An annual favorite which features an evening of one-act plays.
Winnie The Pooh
March 20-29 The literary classic is brought to the PLT stage including all of Pooh's friends in the Hundred Acre Wood.
Other Desert Cities
May 1-9 A woman visits home for the holidays and announces she is publishing a memoir about a tragic event in the family.
Rock of Ages
May 22-June 7 A story of fame, heartbreak and big hair. The Broadway musical is full of '80s hits from Night Ranger, REO Speedwagon, Pat Benatar, Twisted Sister and others.
Hand to God
June 12-20 After the death of his father, a young man finds an outlet for his anxiety at the Christian Puppet Ministry. His relationships are soon turned to upheaval when his puppet, Tyrone, takes on a personality all its own.
PENSACOLA LITTLE THEATRE WHERE: 400 S. Jefferson St. DETAILS: pensacolalittletheatre.com September 12, 2019
Photo Courtesy of Pensacola Opera
Where would we be without some drama in our lives? As one of Florida's four professional opera companies (and the only one in North Florida), Pensacola Opera delivers all of the heartbreak, comedy and thrills you can handle featuring the talent of nationally-acclaimed opera singers and local performers. When it comes to setting the stage for upcoming opera season, Executive Director Chandra McKern says it's all about a mix of classic and contemporary. And this upcoming 37th season will be no different. "Puccini and Verdi are always here to stay, as are other famous classics like 'Carmen' and 'The Barber of Seville,'" she explained. "However, much of today's programming also emphasizes new works and commissions, as well as occasional lesser-known masterpieces. It is important to have the balance of both and know what your audience wants to see." One performance McKern is looking forward to most is Verdi's "Il trovatore," As described on the Pensacola Opera website, it "puts the 'grand' in grand opera." McKern admits the love triangle story can be confusing at times, but the music is "captivating and exciting." Nashville Opera's John Hoomes will be directing. "Pensacola Opera has not performed the work since 1996," said McKern. "Verdi's classic grand opera will be re-imagined by Hoomes, set in an apocalyptic setting with video and projections created by Barry Steele. If you are looking to step out of the box and into opera with an edge, this one is not to be missed." One of the most exciting parts of the season is undoubtedly opening night. There's a lot of build-up to that moment from set design and rehearsals. "There are few occasions to match the excitement of an opening night performance at the opera," McKern said. "After all the stress and hard work your company has put into
producing the show, hearing the audience's excitement makes it all worth it. It's an exciting experience that only comes once." If you've never seen Pensacola Opera—or any opera for that matter—it can be intimidating. Part of the nonprofit's mission is to make opera accessible to everyone, said McKern. Alongside partnering with local charities, Pensacola Opera reaches out to the public through its community and education engagement programs. Last year, Pensacola Opera visited more than 47 schools. This season, they'll also continue the Brown Bag Opera Series, which is a free lunch break performance by artists in residence. "You bring the lunch. We bring the opera," McKern said. Seeing a Pensacola Opera performance also means engaging with other cultural nonprofits. It's not uncommon for the opera to collaborate with Ballet Pensacola, Pensacola Symphony Orchestra or Pensacola Children's Chorus. It takes a community to support them all. "Few cities of Pensacola's size can boast its diversity of arts, culture and entertainment," said McKern. "For nonprofit organizations, local support is the most important, and we are very fortunate to live in a city that supports what we do and believes in our mission." A great performance can bring an audience to its feet, but real community support runs deeper. That's why McKern says she wants to continue telling the story of Pensacola Opera and the impact it makes, which can sometimes be a challenge. "In telling our story, we need to make sure our community partners know how important they are and the impact they're making," she said. "For nonprofits, the story doesn't end here. Once we have shared your story with our audience, what do we want them to do? Once you've captured their hearts and minds, it is our responsibility to give them a
Like any of the arts organizations, the summer season is hardly a break for the Pensacola Symphony Orchestra. "From writing grants to planning, editing the program book, selling and mailing
tickets, raising support through sponsorships and individuals, the staff stay busy all summer," said Executive Director Bret Barrow. "While we become more visible during performances, which we all love, we
clear call to action to respond to—as a donor, volunteer or advocate."
PENSACOLA OPERA PERFORMANCES
Performed at the Saenger Theatre unless noted
As One
Pensacola Little Theatre, 400 S. Jefferson St. Nov. 1-3 In collaboration with Sunday's Child, "As One" shares the story of a woman uncovering her true self. Performances will be preceded by a showing of Kimberly Reed's autobiographical documentary "Prodigal Sons," about her reintroducing herself to her small town as a transgender woman.
Don Giovanni
Jan. 24 & 26 Mozart's masterpiece returns to the Saenger stage in a new production created by Papermoon Opera Productions and Stage Director Fenlon Lamb.
Easy to Love
7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 13 This special one-night performance features the songs of Cole Porter, Jerome Kern, Rodgers & Hart and Rodgers & Hammerstein performed by Pensacola Opera artists in residence.
Il trovatore
March 20 & 22 Verdi's thriller explores the love triangle and emphasizes the "grand" in grand opera.
PENSACOLA OPERA
WHERE: 75 S. Tarragona DETAILS: pensacolaopera.com
stay moving all year working towards the next project." With each new PSO season, there are the annual traditions to look forward to such as Beethoven & Blue Jeans and the 15
New Year's Eve Pops Concert. Each year, the symphony and Music Director Peter Rubardt also work to make classical music feel new and fresh. "Our artistic imperative remains to create transformative concert experiences," said Barrow. "We are always considering ideas and developing concepts and shortlists of pieces and artists." The key to that is collaboration and inspiration. In this upcoming season, PSO will perform Verdi's "Requiem" with the University of Southern Mississippi's choir— a collaboration that was several years in the making, Barrow said. January's Beethoven & Blue Jeans performance will feature electric violinist Tracey Silverman, who will share a piece called "The Dharma at Big Sur," which was written for her to perform at the grand opening of the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles. After Rubardt heard and saw the piece for himself, he decided to bring it to Pensacola. Sometimes inspiration can come from an internet playlist. "We also take suggestions from our musicians, patrons and all sorts of places," said Barrow. "One of Peter's new places for inspiration is to listen to Spotify's algorithmic suggestions while working out." For Barrow—who plays the trombone— choosing a favorite piece from the upcoming season is two-fold. There's the piece he can't wait to perform and the piece he can't wait to hear. In April, Barrow said he's looking forward to PSO's season finale where the orchestra will play Sibelius' Second Symphony.
"(It's) one of the pieces that I listened to incessantly as a youngster," he said. "It has one of the most magical conclusions of any piece in our repertoire. We also have as our special guest for the performance the composer Libby Larsen. It should be awesome to hear her thoughts on the orchestra and our interpretation as we present her composition 'Water Music.'" And in November, legendary piano soloist Garrick Ohlsson will join the orchestra for Ohlsson Plays Brahms. "(For) this concert, I'll be in the audience. I am thrilled to get this opportunity," Barrow said. What also keeps PSO busy throughout the year is their community engagement programming, Beyond the Stage. Musicians partner Escambia County middle and high school orchestras and band directors to provide one-on-one coaching, group instruction and mentorship, Barrow said. PSO also gives 6,000 fifth-grade students in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties the chance to attend free concerts at the Saenger Theatre. PSO also partners with Pensacola Community Music School bringing music to patients at Nemours Children's Specialty Care and the Studer Children's Hospital at Sacred Heart. "Throughout the season, we project that Beyond the Stage services will impact more than 15,000 community members," Barrow said. Behind the opening night excitement is the orchestra's service to its mission, said Barrow. "We exist to serve our community with music," he explained. "We don't force music upon the community. It has to be provided thoughtfully so that it can speak to us in unique
ways. That's different than existing to entertain or even to educate. We want to promote the wellbeing of our community through music— that's the challenge that I want to meet."
PENSACOLA SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA PERFORMANCES
Performed at the Saenger Theatre unless noted
Opening Night!
7:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 5 Bella Hristova returns to the Saenger stage to perform Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto.
Ohlsson Plays Brahms
7:30 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 2 Legendary pianist Garrick Ohlsson joins PSO Brahms' Piano Concerto No. 1.
Celebrate the New Year!
7 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 31 Say hello to a new year with an evening of classics like George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue.
Beethoven & Blue Jeans
7:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 11 A variety of musical styles from Beethoven's Egmont Overture to Gershwin's Porgy and Bess, with guest Tracy Silverman on electric violin.
Mozart Madness
First United Methodist Church, 6 E. Wright St. 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 1 An hour-long, intimate concert that features Mozart's Violin Concerto No. 3 and Symphony No. 41, "Jupiter."
From Hollywood: John Williams and More
7:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 8 A performance featuring legendary music from movies like "Star Wars" and "Jurassic Park."
Russian Spectacular
7:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 29 PSO's annual celebration of Russian composers includes Tchaikovsky and RimskyKorsakov. Guest Bion Tsang on cello will join the orchestra.
Verdi: Requiem
7:30 p.m. Saturday, March 28 This performance is a special collaboration between PSO and more than 120 voices from The University of Southern Mississippi Chorus for Verdi's Requiem Mass.
The Music of Triumph
7:30 p.m. Saturday, April 25 PSO's 94th season comes to a close with Respighi's Fountains of Rome and Sibelius' majestic Symphony No. 2. Composer Libby Larsen will also discuss her own work, Symphony No. 1, Water Music, and composers that have inspired her. {in}
PENSACOLA SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA WHERE: 205 E. Zaragoza St. DETAILS: pensacolasymphony.com
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Arts & Entertainment art, film, music, stage, books and other signs of civilization...
Parker Millsap Has "Other Arrangements" By Savannah Evanoff
Photo by Tim Duggan
Parker Millsap didn't necessarily write his latest record to cheer everyone up; he just wanted to stop bumming people out. The Americana singer-songwriter from Oklahoma put out "Other Arrangements" in 2018 to give people something to dance about. He wrote most of the songs on electric guitar. "It made the whole record lean a certain way," Millsap said. "The previous three records have a lot of bummer songs or songs with darker themes. I wanted to lean away from that a little bit just for the live show— just to have stuff that's fun to play every night, not feel like I'm bumming everybody out for most of the set. It worked. We've been touring on these songs for a year and a half now, and I'm still having fun." When it comes to exciting the crowd,
"Hades Pleads" from his 2016 album, "The Very Last Day," always works, too. Millsap is in relax and repair mode after rousing up crowds during a monthlong tour that stopped in Canada, New York City and Detroit. He surmises he has a story for every day of the tour, but only one comes to mind. "I got to see Sheryl Crow play, which maybe seems like a weird highlight," Millsap said with a laugh. "But in Newport, we got to see Sheryl Crow do an awesome set. I grew up listening to Sheryl Crow's records, so that was pretty cool." Millsap admires other musicians and was influenced by many. "Growing up, I listened to a lot of gospel music because we went to church and I played in church a lot," Millsap said. "My dad was really into blues music, so I got to a listen to a lot of cool old blues music like Howlin' Wolf and Muddy Waters, Mississippi John Hurt—all kinds of cool that maybe other people my age weren't listening to." Millsap rattles off "alternative country songwriters" John Hiatt, Lyle Lovett and Robert Earl Keen for further proof from his dad's playlist. Other musicians are a fan of his, too. Millsap bonded with Elton John over their shared musical tastes. "It's kind of surreal," Millsap said. "All of
quiet. It has to be quiet to make a noise that my interactions with Elton have been really becomes a song." awesome and life-affirming. He's a sweet As Millsap wades through originals, he guy. He really loves blues music. We really recorded a cover song for Amazon Music. connected talking about blues music and He chose Sly & the Family Stone's "Everylistening to blues music." day People." Perhaps taking a note from John, Millsap "'Everyday People' seemed to be the started writing songs on the piano. one enough people knew and that I could "I think even calling myself a novice would pull off," Millsap said. be an overstatement when it comes to piano," Amazon and Millsap shot a music video Millsap said, followed with a loud chuckle. for the cover in Nashville. "But I've been using it as a writing tool, and "I lose my dog—not my real dog; we got it makes me approach melody and chord an actor dog," Millsap said. "And then I'm structure in a different way. It also lends itself going around on my bicycle looking for my to more R&B stuff. This piano I've got has dog, and I recruit a bunch of randos off the all these crazy built-in drum loops and stuff street to help me find my dog." that are a little bit electronic sounding. I don't And that's his video in a nutshell. know if any of those sounds are actually going Millsap digs it. His real dog, Mavis— to make it onto the record, but it's making part Jack Russell Terrier and part Border for some interesting songs that I think can be Collie—might not have been up for the taken to a band and made really nice." challenge. She was named Angel at the His latest songs are written with a simple shelter, but Millsap quickly realized it didn't form, rooted in blues music, he said. fit her quirky personality. "That's exciting me because those are "Mavis is a special creature," Millsap the kind of songs that can be taken any said. "I have a lot of friends who have had a direction stylistically," Millsap said. "That lot of dogs, and they're always like, 'That's blues form is so universal. You can do it a weird dog.' She's just a very strange, neugypsy sounding; you can do it like a rock 'n' rotic little creature." {in} roll song. You can do it as a shuffle." Millsap has 20-plus songs in various stages of completion, but no rush. "I've kind of figured out that I'm a slow writer," Millsap said. WHEN: 7 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 15 "I'm making peace with that … WHERE: Vinyl Music Hall, 2 S. Palafox There's an element of songwritCOST: $18 ing that's kinda like building a DETAILS: vinylmusichall.com puzzle—that requires weird
AN EVENING WITH PARKER MILLSAP
夀漀甀爀 䴀漀琀漀爀挀礀挀氀攀 䰀愀眀礀攀爀⸀
䴀䤀䌀䠀䰀䔀匀 䈀伀伀吀䠀
䄀挀挀椀搀攀渀琀 ☀ 䤀渀樀甀爀礀 䰀愀眀礀攀爀猀
ⴀ㠀 ⴀ㐀㌀㠀ⴀ㌀㘀 㘀 簀 䘀漀爀吀栀攀嘀椀挀琀椀洀猀⸀挀漀洀 倀攀渀猀愀挀漀氀愀 ⴀ 䘀漀爀琀 圀愀氀琀漀渀 䈀攀愀挀栀 ⴀ 䌀爀攀猀琀瘀椀攀眀
September 12, 2019
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calendar WORK ON THE FLORIDA TRAIL 8 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Every Thursday. Three miles north of Deaton Bridge Road. meetup.com/ftawesterngate YOGA WITHIN REACH 9-10 a.m. Free. Community Health Northwest Florida, 2315 W. Jackson St., Room A. healthcarewithinreach.org BANNED AND FORBIDDEN—PROHIBITED MUSICAL MASTERPIECES Noon-1 p.m. Free and
open to the public. Old Christ Church, 405 S. Adams St. uwf.edu/cash SUNDAY'S CHILD POP-UP 4-8 p.m. Meet Sunday's Child members and learn about the organization. Dolce & Gelato, 2050 N. 12th Ave. facebook.com/dolcegelatopensacola YAPPY HOUR 5-10 p.m. Through Feb. 27. 5% of proceeds benefit Escambia County Animal Shelter. Red Fish Blue Fish, 5B Via De Luna Drive. redfishbluefishpensacolabeach.com AWM WINE TASTING 5-7 p.m. Free. Aragon Wine Market, 27 S. 9th Ave. facebook.com/ aragonwine SUSHI 101 COOKING CLASS 6 p.m. $60. So Gourmet, 407-D S. Palafox. sogourmetpensacola.com BREAD BAKING WORKSHOP 6-7:30 p.m. $30, includes recipe and starter ingredients. Studio South, 955 E. 9 Mile Road, Ste. 101. studiosouthon9mileroad.com WINE AND UNWIND 6-7 p.m. $12. Frazier's Country Wines, 3130 Barrancas Ave. END OF THE LINE THURSDAY DINNER 6-9 p.m. End of the Line Café, 610 E. Wright St. Sign up for the newsletter for menu. eotlcafe.com
ZUMBA WITH SHANNON AND FRIENDS 6-7 p.m. $4. Homestead Community Center, 7830 Pine Forest Road. MEDITATION AND ENERGY HEALING 6 p.m. Free. Ever'man Educational Center, 327 W. Garden St. everman.org AN EVENING WITH CARL HIAASEN 6-7:15 p.m. Free and open to the public. New World Landing, 600 S. Palafox. uwf.edu/cassh ADRON CHAMBERS YOGA 6:30 p.m. Donationbased yoga with Adron Chambers every Tuesday and Thursday. Asher & Bee Apothecary and Tea House, 7 E. Gregory St. facebook.com/ asherandbee BAND OF SKULLS 7 p.m. $18-$22. Vinyl Music Hall, 2 S. Palafox. vinylmusichall.com CAROL AND GOOSE COMEDY NIGHT 8:30 p.m. $5. Dolce & Gelato, 2050 N. 12th Ave. facebook.com/dolcegelatopensacola
FRIDAY 9.13
ALYSSA'S TWO-DAY MARKET 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Handcrafted, new items, and furniture. Alyssa's Antiques, 4586 Chumuckla Highway, Pace. shopalyssas.com ONE-ON-ONE TECH HELP 10 a.m. Pensacola Library, 239 N. Spring St. mywfpl.com EVER'MAN COOKS: 30-MINUTE MEALS WITH BACKYARD BOHEMIAN 11 a.m. Ever'man
Educational Center, 327 W. Garden St. everman.org HAPPY HOUR COOKOUT 5 p.m. Seville Quarter, 130 E. Government St. sevillequarter.com GREG BOND 5-8 p.m. Dolce & Gelato, 2050
EATS, DRINKS & SMILES BIG ASS SMILES @THEMAGNOLIAEPH
N. 12th Ave. facebook.com/dolcegelatopensacola FULL MOON PARTY 6-10 p.m. Free. LandShark Landing, 165 Ft. Pickens Road. margaritavillehotel.com FUMANA INTERNATIONAL WINE DINNER
6 p.m. $86. So Gourmet, 407-D S. Palafox. sogourmetpensacola.com
EVER'MAN COOKS: COMPASSIONATE CUISINE VEGAN COOKING 6 p.m. Ever'man
Educational Center, 327 W. Garden St. everman.org THE 13TH BOOK 6:30-7:30 p.m. Donationbased guided meditation. Asher & Bee Apothecary and Tea House, 7 E. Gregory St. facebook.com/asherandbee BIG DEAL BURLESQUE 8 p.m. $12-$45. Vinyl Music Hall, 2 S. Palafox. vinylmusichall.com GLOW BOWL 9 p.m.-1 a.m. Every Friday and Saturday. $12 per person. Strikerz Entertainment Center, 3200 N. Palafox St.
SATURDAY 9.14
PARKRUN/WALK MEETUP 7:30 a.m. University of West Florida, Rec Plex North Field, 11000 University Parkway. parkrun.us/ recplexnorth FRANCIS M. WESTON FIELD TRIP 7:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Fort Pickens - Gulf Islands National Seashore, 1400 Fort Pickens Road. fmwaudubon.org PENSACOLA'S FINEST 5K 8 a.m.-noon. Seville Square, 301 South Alcaniz St. SANTA ROSA FARMERS MARKET 9 a.m.-1
p.m. Fresh local produce, honey, baked goods and live music. Pace Presbyterian Church, Woodbine Road. PALAFOX MARKET 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Fresh produce, live plants, baked goods, fine art and antiques. Items originate directly from participating vendors, including dozens of local farmers, home gardeners and area artists. Martin Luther King Jr. Plaza, N. Palafox. palafoxmarket.com YOU SELL IT HERE FARMER'S MARKET 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Free admission. Every Saturday. 8600 Pensacola Blvd., facebook.com/yousellithere OCEAN HOUR CLEAN-UPS 9-10 a.m. Two sites on Scenic Highway—Bay Bluffs Park at 3400 Scenic Highway and Chimney Park at junction of Langley Avenue and Scenic Highway. oceanhourfl.com SCOUTS IN THE STUDIO 9 a.m.-2:30 p.m. $10, includes a painting lesson, materials for artwork and a Studio South painting pin. Studio South, 955 E. Nine Mile Road, Ste. 101. studiosouthon9mileroad.com ALYSSA'S TWO-DAY MARKET 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Handcrafted, new items, and furniture. Alyssa's Antiques, 4586 Chumuckla Highway, Pace. shopalyssas.com 5210 DAY OF PLAY 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Community Maritime Park, 351 W. Cedar Ave. facebook.com/5210nwfl COMMUNITY PING PONG TOURNAMENT CHARITY EVENT 10 a.m.-5 p.m. $10-$40
individual/team registrations. Free to spectators. Downtown Pensacola. zarzaurlaw. com/ping-pong-on-palafox
ROMAN STREET
THURSDAY 9.12
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19
calendar PENN STATE VS. PITTSBURGH FOOTBALL WATCH GAME 11 a.m. Seville Quarter, 130 E.
Government St. sevillequarter.com HUMANISTS OF WEST FLORIDA 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Ever'man Educational Center, 327 W. Garden St. everman.org ANIMAL ALLIES KITTEN & CAT ADOPTIONS 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Pet Supermarket, 6857 N. Ninth Avenue. aaflorida.org NATURAL HEALING 2 p.m. Ever'man Educational Center, 327 W. Garden St. everman.org FIBER FREESTYLIN' AT STUDIO SOUTH 3-5 p.m. Saturdays. Open to all knitters, crocheters, weavers and more. Studio South, 955 E. Nine Mile Road. studiosouthon9mileroad.com BIKE PENSACOLA SLOW RIDE 5 p.m. Bruce Beach, 601 W. Main St. facebook.com/ bikepensacola WALKING CEMETERY TOURS 5:30 p.m. $12 plus tax. St. John's Historic Cemetery, 301 N. G St. goretro.us THE BUSINESS ROUND TABLE 6-7:30 p.m. Henny Penny Patisserie, 4412 W. Jackson. facebook.com/hennypennyspatisserie PENSACAPPELLA PRESENTS: A NIGHT OF A CAPPELLA 7-9 p.m. $7-$10. Northminster
Presbyterian Church, 1100 E. Nine Mile Road.
SAENGER CLASSIC MOVIE SERIES: CITIZEN KANE 7 p.m. $6. Saenger Theatre, 118 S.
Palafox. pensacolasaenger.com
DANCE PARTY 7 p.m.-midnight. $10 work-
shop, $10 party. DanceCraft, 8618 Pensacola Blvd. dancecraftstudios.com
JERRY GARCIA BAND COVER BAND 7 p.m.
$12-$25 Vinyl Music Hall, 2 S. Palafox. vinylmusichall.com
DOLCE AND DRAG AROUND THE WORLD... IN THREE HOURS 7-10 p.m. Dolce & Gelato,
2050 N. 12th Ave. facebook.com/dolcegelatopensacola SATURDAY SWING OUTS 8 p.m. $5. Saturdays. Breathe Yoga Studio, 505 S. Adams St. AUTO RACING 8 p.m. Five Flags Speedway, 7451 Pine Forest Road. 5flagsspeedway.com CHIZUKO FULL MOON DANCE PARTY 8 p.m. $5. chizuko, 506 W. Belmont St. facebook. com/chizukopensacola GLOW BOWL 9 p.m.-1 a.m. Every Friday and Saturday. $12 per person. Strikerz Entertainment Center, 3200 N. Palafox St.
SUNDAY 9.15
THEMED BRUNCH AT PERFECT PLAIN 10 a.m. Perfect Plain Brewing Co., 50 E. Garden St. facebook.com/perfectplainbrewingco BRUNCH WITH LIVE MUSIC 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Café Single Fin, 380 N. Ninth Ave. facebook. com/cafesinglefin VEGAN BRUNCH 11 a.m.-2 p.m. End of the Line Café, 610 E. Wright St. Sign up for the newsletter for menu. eotlcafe.com SUNDAY BRUNCH AT H20 11 a.m. $28.95 for adults. Free valet parking and 15% off with local ID. H20 Hilton, 12 Via De Luna Drive. facebook.com/hiltonpensacolabeach GROVE & BROWN MARKET 1 p.m. Sundays through Nov. 17. Local vendors, artists and
the
farmers. Henny Penny's Patisserie, 4412 W. Jackson. TRANSGENDER ALLIANCE 4 p.m. Ever'man Educational Center, 327 W. Garden St. everman.org AN EVENING WITH PARKER MILLSAP 7 p.m. $18-$20. Vinyl Music Hall, 2 S. Palafox. vinylmusichall.com
MONDAY 9.16
RESUME HELP 11 a.m. Molino Branch Library,
6450-A Highway 95A. mywfpl.com PILATES MAT 1:30 p.m. Ever'man Educational Center, 327 W. Garden St. everman.org RESTORATIVE PILATES 5:15 p.m. Ever'man Educational Center, 327 W. Garden St. everman.org HOMEMADE PASTA COOKING CLASS 6 p.m. $60. So Gourmet, 407-D S. Palafox. sogourmetpensacola.com SEVILLE QUARTER MILERS 6 p.m. Runners meet in front of Seville Quarter for a run around downtown Pensacola. Seville Quarter, 130 E. Government St. sevillequarter.com CROHN'S AND COLITIS SUPPORT GROUP 6:30 p.m. Ever'man Educational Center, 327 W. Garden St. everman.org
TUESDAY 9.17
YOGA WITHIN REACH 9-10 a.m. Free. Commu-
nity Health Northwest Florida, 2315 W. Jackson St., Room A. healthcarewithinreach.org BLUE ANGELS PRACTICE 11:30 a.m. National Naval Aviation Museum viewing area, 1878 S. Blue Angel Parkway. Use West Gate Entrance.
TRYON FAMILY MOVIE NIGHT 4 p.m. Tryon Branch Library, 1200 Langley Ave. mywfpl.com COMPLIMENTARY WINE TASTING 4-6 p.m. Bodacious, 407-D S. Palafox. sogourmetpensacola.com PILATES FUSION 4:30 p.m. Free. Ever'man Educational Center, 327 W. Garden St. everman.org RALLY FOR CHILDHOOD CANCER RESEARCH
5-9 p.m. Perfect Plain Brewing Co., 50 E. Garden St. facebook.com/perfectplainbrewingco VINO MAGNIFICO 5:30 p.m. $12 per person. V. Paul's Italian Ristorante, 29 S. Palafox. vpauls.com FIBER FREESTYLIN' AT STUDIO SOUTH
5:30-7:30 p.m. Tuesdays. Open to all knitters, crocheters, weavers and more. Studio South, 955 E. Nine Mile Road. studiosouthon9mileroad.com WALKING CEMETERY TOURS 5:30 p.m. $12 plus tax. St. John's Historic Cemetery, 301 N. G St. goretro.us FUNKY YOGA 6 p.m. Free. Ever'man Educational Center, 327 W. Garden St. everman.org ZUMBA WITH SHANNON AND FRIENDS 6-7 p.m. $4. Homestead Community Center, 7830 Pine Forest Road. LADIES CHARCUTERIE AND WINE NIGHT 6 p.m. $60. So Gourmet, 407-D S. Palafox. sogourmetpensacola.com for more listings visit inweekly.net
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free will astrology WEEK OF SEPT. 12 ARIES (MARCH 21-APRIL 19): Hi, I'm your
sales representative for UnTherapy, a free program designed to provide healing strategies for people who are trying too hard. Forgive me for being blunt, but I think you could benefit from our services. I don't have space here to reveal all the secrets of UnTherapy, but here's an essential hint—every now and then, the smartest way to outwit a problem is to stop worrying, let it alone and allow it to solve itself.
TAURUS (APRIL 20-MAY 20): People in
Northeast India weave long, strong suspension bridges out of the living roots of fig trees. The structures can measure up to 150 feet and bear the weight of hundreds of people. In accordance with astrological omens, let's make these marvels your metaphors of power for the coming weeks. To stimulate your meditations, ask yourself the following questions. 1. How can you harness nature to help you to get where you need to go? 2. How might you transform instinctual energy so that it better serves your practical needs? 3. How could you channel wildness so that it becomes eminently useful to you?
GEMINI (MAY 21-JUNE 20): If you climb to the top of Mt. Everest, you're standing on land that was once on the floor of a shallow tropical sea. Four-hundredmillion-year-old fossils of marine life still abide there in the rock. Over the course of eons, through the magic of plate tectonics, that low, flat land got folded and pushed upwards more than five miles. I suspect you Geminis will have the power to accomplish a less spectacular but still amazing transformation during the next 10 months. To get started, identify what you would like that transformation to be. CANCER (JUNE 21-JULY 22): In 1996,
when Gary Kasparov was rated the world's best chess player, he engaged in a series of matches with a chess-playing computer named Deep Blue. Early on in the first game, Deep Blue tried a move that confused Kasparov. Rattled, he began to wonder if the machine was smarter than him. Ultimately, his play suffered and he
By Rob Brezsny
lost the game. Later it was revealed that Deep Blue's puzzling move was the result of a bug in its code. I'll encourage you to cultivate a benevolent bug in your own code during the coming weeks, Cancerian. I bet it will be the key to you scoring a tricky victory.
LEO (JULY 23-AUG. 22): American hero Harriet Tubman escaped slavery as a young woman. She ran away from the wealthy "master" who claimed to "own" her and reached sanctuary. But rather than simply enjoy her freedom, she dedicated herself to liberating other slaves. Nineteen times, she returned to enemy territory and risked her life, ultimately leading 300 people out of hellish captivity. Later, she served as a scout, spy and nurse in the Union Army during the Civil War, where her actions saved another 700 people. In 1874, the U.S. Congress considered but then ultimately rejected a bill to pay her $2,000 for her numerous courageous acts. Don't you dare be like Congress in the coming weeks, Leo. It's crucial that you give tangible acknowledgment and practical rewards to those who have helped, guided and supported you. VIRGO (AUG. 23-SEPT. 22): Novelist
Wallace Stegner wrote, "Some are born in their place; some find it; some realize after long searching that the place they left is the one they have been searching for." I hope that in the last nine months, Virgo, you have resolved which of those three options is true for you. I also trust that you have been taking the necessary actions to claim and own that special place to acknowledge it and treasure it as the power spot where you feel most at home in the world. If you have not yet fully finished what I'm describing here, do it now.
LIBRA (SEPT. 23-OCT. 22): Earth's spe-
cies are going extinct at a rate unmatched since the dinosaurs died out 65 million years ago. Among the creatures on the verge of being lost forever are birds like the cryptic treehunter and Spix's macaw, as well as the northern white rhino and the vaquita, a type of porpoise. So why don't we clone the last few individuals of those beleaguered species? Here are the answers. 1. Cloned animals typically aren't healthy. 2. A species needs a
sizable population to retain genetic diversity; a few individuals aren't sufficient. 3. Humans have decimated the homes of the threatened species, making it hard for them to thrive. Conclusion: Cloning is an inadequate stopgap action. Is there a better way to address the problem? Yes: by preserving the habitats of wild creatures. Inspired by this principle, Libra, I ask you to avoid trying halfway fixes for the dilemmas in your personal sphere. Summon full measures that can really work.
SCORPIO (OCT. 23-NOV. 21): Though
patched together and incomplete, the 2,200-year-old marble sculpture known as the Winged Victory of Samothrace is prominently displayed at Paris's Louvre Museum. It's a glorious depiction of Nike, the winged goddess of victory and is regarded as one of ancient Greece's great masterpieces. For hundreds of years it was missing. Then in 1863, an archaeologist discovered it, although it was broken into more than a hundred pieces. Eventually, it was rebuilt and much of its beauty was resurrected. I see the coming weeks as a time when you, too, could recover the fragments of an old treasure and begin reassembling it to make a pretty good restoration.
SAGITTARIUS (NOV. 22-DEC. 21):
"I've learned that I must find positive outlets for anger or it will destroy me," said actor Sidney Poitier. That can be a dynamic meditation for you during the next three weeks. I think you will derive substantial power from putting it into action. If you're ingenious and diligent about finding those positive outlets, your anger will generate constructive and transformative results.
CAPRICORN (DEC. 22-JAN. 19): In 1905,
at the age of 30, Lucy Maud Montgomery wrote the novel "Anne of Green Gables." It was a tale about an orphan girl growing up on Prince Edward Island. She sent the manuscript to several publishers, all of whom rejected it. Discouraged, she put it away in a hatbox and stored it in a closet. But two years later, her ambitions reignited when she re-read the story. Again, she mailed it to prospective publishers, and this time, one liked it enough to turn it into a book. It soon became a bestseller. Since
then, it has sold over 50 million copies and been translated into 36 languages. I figure you Capricorns are at a point in your own unfolding that's equivalent to where Montgomery was shortly before she rediscovered the manuscript she'd put away in the hatbox.
AQUARIUS (JAN. 20-FEB. 18): The Toxorhynchites are species of large mosquitoes that don't buzz around our heads while we're trying to sleep and will never bite our skin or suck our blood. In fact, they're our benefactors. Their larvae feast on the larvae of the mosquitoes that are bothersome to us. In accordance with astrological omens, I propose that you be alert for a metaphorically comparable influence in your own life—a helper or ally that might be in disguise or may just superficially seem to be like an adversary. PISCES (FEB. 19-MARCH 20): Audre Lorde identified herself as a black writer, lesbian, librarian, mother, feminist, civil rights activist and many other descriptors. But as ardent as she was in working for the political causes she was passionate about, she didn't want to be pigeonholed in a single identity. One of her central teachings was to celebrate all the different parts of herself. "Only by learning to live in harmony with your contradictions can you keep it all afloat," she testified. These approaches should be especially fun and extra meaningful for you in the coming weeks, Pisces. I encourage you to throw a big Unity Party for all the different people you are. THIS WEEK'S HOMEWORK: "We have been raised to fear the yes within ourselves, our deepest cravings," wrote Audre Lorde. True for you? freewillastrology.com.
freewillastrology.com
freewillastrology@freewillastrology.com Rob Brezsny © Copyright 2019
Adoption • Paternity • Dependency/DCF Hearings Prenuptial Agreements • Postnuptial Agreements Divorce • Child Custody and Timesharing Child Support • Child Support Modifications Alimony • Collaborative Divorce • Divorce Mediation • Pre-Suit Family Law Mediation
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news of the weird EWWWW! A Whataburger location in Bastrop, Texas, was the scene of a gruesome plunge to an oily demise on Aug. 31. As customers waited in line at the counter, the Austin AmericanStatesman reported, kitchen workers tried to catch a mouse scampering across the food prep counter. A customer captured the scene on video as the mouse, fleeing a person trying to trap it, leapt into a fryer full of hot grease. On the video, an employee can be heard asking, "Who else needs a refund?" The video was posted to Facebook, prompting Whataburger to comment that the location had been closed and "the entire restaurant has since been cleaned and sanitized." MYSTERIOUS Police in Hamilton Township, New Jersey, say an unnamed 80-year-old woman snoozed right through an apparent carjacking on Aug. 28—even though she was in the car. The victim told police she had fallen asleep in her car, parked in her driveway, around 9 p.m. that evening. She called police around 4 a.m. to say she woke up on the driveway and her car was gone, but she had no recollection of how she got there, the New York Daily News reported. Police observed a fresh abrasion and bruise on her face. The car was recovered later that day in Trenton, but the search is still on for suspects. BRIGHT IDEAS In the Mexican state of Tlaxcala, high school instructor Luis Juarez Texis inflamed the ire of parents when he made students wear cardboard boxes (with cut-out eye holes) on their heads as they took an exam in order to deter cheating. Parents are calling for Texis' removal, OddityCentral reported, saying the boxes amounted to "acts of humiliation, physical, emotional and psychological violence." Others, however, applauded Texis' idea, with one saying the boxes "teach them a great lesson." Texis told reporters the students consented to the anti-cheating method. •A graffiti artist in Frankston, Australia, has been painting the Melbourne suburb purple with a message to someone named Chris, saying "u need 2 talk 2 me B4 baby is born, or don't bother after," according to a July 30 report from the Australian Broadcasting Corp. The messages have appeared on several public spaces, such as sidewalks and the sides of buildings. Frankston Mayor Michael O'Reilly said the city council "would encourage those involved to consider more constructive, and less illegal ways of communicating in the future. ... I hope Chris and this mystery person can work through their issues." INEXPLICABLE Uber driver Yasser Hadi of Atlanta was going about his business, dropping off a fare on Aug. 25, when a woman "came out of nowhere, threatened to kill him, and then violently bit him," Fox5 News reported. Hadi told the station: "She's acting weird, she's acting wild, and
By the Editors at Andrews McMeel
she's on the car hitting it, telling me I need to die...." Next the woman climbed inside the car, and scratched and bit Hadi as he tried to pull her out. "I said, 'God, just let her take my flesh, I don't care.' I want her to go away from me," Hadi said. Later, Atlanta police arrested 26-year-old Tasheena Campbell, who already had a warrant for an assault charge, for battery and criminal trespass. But Hadi is left with a damaged car, medical expenses and no insurance. "She's hit me in my job, my health and my financial pocket money. It's hard," he explained. NEWS YOU CAN USE In Jacksonville, Florida, as Hurricane Dorian approached on Sept. 3, Patrick Eldridge became concerned that his Smart car would "blow away." So he proposed to his wife, Jessica, that he park it in their kitchen. (Her car was already in the garage.) She doubted he could do it, but "he opened the double doors and had it in. I was amazed that it could fit," Jessica told the Associated Press. She said there was still room to move around and cook, but "my dogs are confused by it." Dorian narrowly missed Jacksonville as it moved up the East Coast. IRONY The former Spearmint Rhino Gentleman's Club in Trenton, Wisconsin, has found an unlikely new life as the Ozaukee Christian School, opening on Sept. 16, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports. Kris Austin, the school's administrator, said the stripper pole had been removed, along with the leopardprint carpet, but the stage and bar are still there, and the building is still owned by the Spearmint Rhino chain, based in California. It's an arrangement school leaders have had to come to terms with. "Our take on it is that people are people," said school board president David Swartz. "We're sinners, too. Even though we don't agree with their business model per se. ... Now we're going to transfer that place into a place where boys and girls are raised to be our next leaders with character."
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CRIME REPORT Izaebela Kolano, 49, of Nutley, New Jersey, pulled a fast one on Costco employees in two stores on Sept. 1, police said. Kolano first visited a Costco in Wayne, New Jersey, where she allegedly stole a $2,000 diamond ring. Then, authorities say, she went to a store in nearby Clifton, where she asked to see a $28,000 diamond ring—and handed back the $2,000 ring, which was similar. Costco employees didn't notice the switcharoo until Kolano was out of the building, the Associated Press reported. Police found Kolano at home, and eventually recovered the ring. Kolano was charged with theft. {in}
From Andrews McMeel Syndication News Of The Weird © 2019 Andrews McMeel
Send your weird news items to WeirdNewsTips@amuniversal.com September 12, 2019
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