Vox Magazine 11.02.17

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The night’s watch At restaurants, hospitals and the post office, Columbia employees sacrifice sleep to keep the city running. Peek into their shifts from the dark of night to the light of morning. PAGE 8 IN ULTIMATE, THEY TRUST

Members of the MU women’s Frisbee team display a sense of unity through sportsmanship PAGE 4

BOOK IT

These local wordsmiths know there is more than one way to get published PAGE 20

IN THIS ISSUE

ONLINE

November 2, 2017 VOLUME 19 ISSUE 29 | PUBLISHED BY THE COLUMBIA MISSOURIAN

FEATURE While most people are asleep, others around Columbia are up doing their jobs. See how working through the night affects employees from all walks of life. PAGE 8 NEWS & INSIGHT These pups show off fall fashions at the Pawject Runway fashion show hosted by Lizzi & Rocco’s and Unchained Melodies Dog Rescue. PAGE 5 THE SCENE Columbia has a new addition to the beer scene: CoMO Growlers & Pints. Buy and fill up a growler, and discover a new favorite draft. PAGE 6 Learn about El Día de los Muertos altars, which feature photos, Day of the Dead bread and sugar skulls. PAGE 7 ARTS & BOOKS Dreaming of publishing your own book? Three authors each share the process of getting their books printed. PAGE 20

‘TIS THE SEASON FOR THE ANTLERS MU basketball superfans, known as The Antlers, are ready for the upcoming season.

Three Antlers share tips for new fans and how they think the team will fare.

STRANGER THINGS HAVE HAPPENED The lovable gang has survived the Upside Down, but there is more to come now that Netflix has released the next season of the sci-fi favorite. Vox reviews season two, and don’t worry, no spoilers.

MISSED CITIZEN JANE? If you couldn’t make it to this year’s Citizen Jane Film Festival, check out this roundup of feminist films available on Amazon and Netflix to get your girl-power on.

EDITOR’S LETTER

MUSIC EDM fans, this one’s for you: Meet up-and-coming future bass artist Whethan before his show this Tuesday. PAGE 21 Q&A: MATT GERDING The Blue Note co-owner discusses his passion for music and the challenges of running a concert venue. PAGE 22 CORRECTIONS: From the Oct. 26 issue, the Alice in Wonderland remake came out in 2010. Director Stefanie Spark’s name was spelled incorrectly.

COVER DESIGN: KEEGAN POPE COVER PHOTO: JESSI DODGE

MADISON FLECK EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

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Working the night shift is rough; I know from experience. When I’m not in the Vox office working on this magazine, I’m at the local broadcast station KMIZ working the 2 to 10 a.m. graveyard shift every weekend.

I try to be in bed by 8 p.m. on Friday so I can get some sleep before I have to work an eight-hour shift. And when I come home, I’m still exhausted.

And there are other aspects of my life that suffer because of this, too. I get snippy with the people I love, and my social life is pretty much non-existent at this point. I’m part of the 26.6 percent of Americans who work the night shift, which is significantly higher than that of Europeans.

On the pages of this week’s feature (Page 8), you’ll find stories from Columbians in similar situations. Through photos, we capture the exhaustion of what it means to work the night shift, and our photographers shooting this piece got to experience that exhaustion, too. People working at places such as Shakespeare’s Pizza and the U.S. Postal Service share their experiences on how working into the wee hours is often cumbersome. One of the night-shift workers even totaled her car falling asleep at the wheel.

But the night shift isn’t always as terrible as it might seem. It’s nice to be able to work in the silence of Columbia when the typical noises and hassles of the daytime disappear. And though there’s a lot of fatigue that comes with staying up all night, there’s also a peacefulness to it.

VOX STAFF Editor: Madison Fleck Deputy Editor: Sten Spinella Managing Editor: Kelsie Schrader Digital Managing Editor: Lea Konczal Multimedia Editor: Meg Vatterott Online Editor: Brooke Vaughan Art Directors: Keegan Pope, Alexandra Wozniczka Photo Editor: Erin Bormett News & Insight Editors: Lauren Puckett, Rachel Treece The Scene Editors: Brea Cubit, Brooke Kottmann, Lily Zhao Music Editors: Lis Joyce, Amanda Lundgren Arts & Books Editors: Karlee Renkoski, Mary Salatino, Micki Wagner Contributing Writers: Taylor Banks, Emma Beyer, Kristin Blake, Alex Edwards, Jasmine-Kay Johnson, Kaylin Jones, Caroline Kealy, Meghan Lally, Rick Morgan, Rachel Phillips, Bianca Rodriguez, John Sadler, Samantha Stokes, Caroline Watkins, Meghan Weinewuth, Catherine Wendlandt, Chloe Wilt Editorial Director: Heather Lamb Executive Editor: Jennifer Rowe Digital Director: Sara Shipley Hiles Office Manager: Kim Townlain

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PHOTOS BY OR COURTESY OF JESSI DODGE AND THE ANTLERS

RADAR

Vox’s take on the talk of the week

A SURREAL COINCIDENCE Three pieces were unveiled at the Tiger Hotel on Friday, including two lithographs and an original piece by Catalan surrealist painter Salvador Dalí. He is known for his bizarre painting style of images such as melting clocks and distorted faces. Catalonia, where Dalí is from, has been in the news for seeking independence from Spain. Dalí’s artwork was revealed to the public the same day separatists in Catalonia’s parliament voted in secret to declare the country’s freedom.

The unpredictable Missouri weather starter pack: It might be fall, but the next week calls for some 70-degree temps. Here are some items to help you handle Missouri’s wacky temperatures.

— A humidifier and dehumidifier to hydrate your dry skin or zap away the mugginess — Convertible pants for when the temperature jumps up 30 degrees by noon — A stainless steel mug to keep your pumpkin spice drink hot or cold, depending on the day — An autumn coloring book to imagine the season we always seem to skip over

THE #METOO MOVEMENT In the wake of the revelations about Harvey Weinstein, more people are sharing their stories.

In addition to the thousands continuing to talk on social media, here are a few high-profile people who have spoken out in the past week: — Actresses Selma Blair and Rachel McAdams accused Hollywood director James Toback of disguising sexual requests as acting exercises.

— Seattle Storm basketball player Breanna Stewart accused an unnamed relative of molesting her for years as a child.

— Actor Anthony Rapp accused actor Kevin Spacey of pushing and climbing on top of him on a bed when he was 14. Netflix announced season six of House of Cards will be its last.

What’s App-ening, CoMo? When’s trash day? Looking for a job? Columbia has an app for that. With 10 city apps, you can track the city bus, report neighborhood problems, pay for parking and more. This week, the Columbia Police Department launched its own smartphone app to allow users to view or report crimes and stay up-to-date on police activities.

View a complete list of Columbia’s apps on como.gov/mobile.

THE NUMBER ONE RADIO STATION IN COLUMBIA! LISTEN LIVE AT Q1061.COM • DOWNLOAD THE Q 106.1 MOBILE APP

/Q1061Hits @Q1061

Written by: Brea Cubit, Brooke Kottmann, Karlee Renkoski and Micki Wagner PHOTOS AND ILLUSTRATIONS BY OR COURTESY OF WIKIMEDIA COMMONS, AP IMAGES AND ALEXANDRA WOZNICZKA

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NEWS & INSIGHT

Setting the ultimate standard Terror Mizzou, MU’s female Frisbee team, sets itself apart through sportsmanship and trust BY EMMA BEYER Armored in sneakers, athletic shorts and new black jerseys adorned with a pouncing tiger, seven female athletes step onto the field on Oct. 7 in Ames, Iowa, for an ultimate Frisbee tournament.

It’s pouring rain and 50 degrees. The field is muddy and wet, but the game isn’t delayed. Players slosh through the mud in attempts to throw a thin plastic disc; it’s coated in water and muck, which makes it even harder to catch than usual.

Each time the disc is dropped, the teams switch sides: from defense to offense, offense to defense. The goal is to get the disc to the opposite end zone by tossing it from player to player. At least 10 minutes go by before any points are scored. But a group of women remains on the sidelines cheering for Terror Mizzou, the MU women’s ultimate team. The sport is popularly known as ultimate Frisbee. Terror Mizzou only wins one out of the four games they play in the tournament.

Several of the team’s players are new, and they aren’t used to these kinds of conditions. But this doesn’t stop the team from cheering on their own members, as well as members of the opposing team. The goal of the game might be to win, but the sport itself is dependent on community, trust and mutual sportsmanship.

The women’s ultimate team has grown substantially over the past year, as the team consisted of around eight to nine players last year and now boasts around 20 members. It’s currently preparing for the annual Missouri Loves Company tournament, one of the largest and most competitive autumn ultimate competitions in the country for college-age players.

THERE IS A LOT OF CAMARADERIE AND SUPPORT FOR ONE ANOTHER. – BETHANY BEEBE, TERROR MIZZOU COACH There will be 87 teams competing in the tournament this year, says Bethany Beebe, an MU graduate and one of two coaches for Terror Mizzou.

It’s the game’s unusual stance on sportsmanship that keeps the team showing up every practice to prepare for the tournament. Ultimate does not use outside referees, which means it is completely self-refereed by the players. It’s their duty to trust and hold one another accountable. Self-refereeing, by its very nature, forces the team to become a community.

“It forces people to be held to a higher standard,” says Alexis Kerman, an MU senior and one of three co-captains of Terror Mizzou. “When players call a foul, they can even be hesitant because they want to make sure they’re calling the foul right. It doesn’t happen just because you’re upset. It makes you think about what kind of player you’re going to be.”

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Alexis Kerman, Bethany Beebe and Genevieve Jones of Terror Mizzou, the women's ultimate team for Frisbee, decribe the team as a close-knit family. “It makes everyone feel valued,” Jones says.

Kerman has been playing ultimate since her junior year of high school. The nontraditional aspects of the game draw members to the sport. Although it is competitive, the team requires honesty that goes perhaps above and beyond other sports.

“The community is really unique,” Kerman says.

“When I first started playing, after each game, the winning team would make up a song to cheer on the losing team.”

Despite the difficulty of developing strong ultimate skills, the team welcomes newcomers with or without experience. There are no tryouts. Interested parties simply need the willingness to learn and support their teammates.

The Missouri Loves Company tournament is one of the most competitive in the region during the fall, but Terror Mizzou sees it as their “learning tournament,” says co-captain Genevieve Jones, a junior at MU from St. Louis.

“The competition is like no sport I have ever seen,” Beebe says. “There is a lot of camaraderie and support for one another while maintaining a culture of intense competition.”

The game is technically a no-contact sport, but injuries aren’t uncommon. When Kerman plays ultimate with male and female players, she worries about being run over by larger men. But this never stops her from playing.

In fact, she says she played sectionals with a broken rib.

That’s some pretty hard evidence against anyone who says ultimate isn’t a real sport.

“It’s very unique, and anyone can play,” Kerman says. “That’s the cool thing. I’ve gone to pick-ups, and there are 10-year-olds and 80-year-olds playing.”

MISSOURI LOVES COMPANY TOURNAMENT Women’s games: Saturday and Sunday, 8:30 a.m.

Gans Creek Recreation Area; free 816-217-6632

GET TO KNOW THE GAME How to Play

Combining the constant movement of soccer and football, ultimate is played between two teams of seven players on a rectangular field 110 yards long and 40 yards wide, including two end zones. The goal is to score points by catching a pass in the opponent’s end zone.

Running with the disc is not allowed, nor is intentional contact, so the disc must be thrown from person to person to reach the opposite end of the field.

The defensive team gets possession of the disc if an offensive team’s throw is not caught by a player of the same team. Then the defensive team becomes the offensive team and tries to score in the opposite end zone.

Fast Facts • Don’t call it ultimate Frisbee. Technically, the name is ultimate because “Frisbee” is a trademark name.

• The start of a Terror Mizzou game is usually determined by disc toss. A representative from each team flips a disc in the air and calls “even” or “odd.” If the discs both land on the same side, that’s considered “even.” If they land on different sides, that’s “odd.” The winner gets to choose whether the team starts on offense or defense.

• The first college ultimate game was played between Rutgers and Princeton on Nov. 6, 1972. The two universities also played the first intercollegiate football game on the same ground exactly 103 years earlier. Rutgers won both of the games.

PHOTO BY JESSI DODGE

NEWS & INSIGHT

This season’s it-dogs Rescued and rehabilitated pups are prepped and pampered for the annual Pawject Runway fashion show BY ANN MARION Jessica Schlosser rummages around her store looking for something red for her next client’s fitting. Like most models, Gus has a signature coat color. In a few short hours, he’ll hit the runway in the season’s latest trends.

Although you probably won’t see this four-legged fashionista popping up at New York Fashion Week, you might run into him at the dog park.

Schlosser owns Lizzi & Rocco’s Natural Pet Market. Each year, she and Melody Whitworth, director of Unchained Melodies Dog Rescue, work together to create the season’s furriest catwalk: Pawject Runway, a canine fashion show that benefits the organization.

Unchained Melodies rescues and rehabilitates dogs that have been chained up, penned, abused and neglected. Pawject Runway features dogs that have been rehabilitated by the organization. They are both adoptable and alumni.

The fall-themed event showcases dogs dressed in the latest trends from Lizzi & Rocco’s. Volunteers from Unchained

Melodies and models sporting items from Plato’s Closet and Belle Mariée Bridal will accompany the dogs.

“There’s a lot of organization behind the scenes,” Whitworth says. The pups were fitted for outfits. Then they were photographed for their profiles that will be featured in the event’s brochures.

The pooches’ pampering didn’t stop there. They were brushed, bathed and groomed to pup perfection. Before the big walk tonight, they will be dropped off backstage with two to three ensembles hanging nearby, which are labeled neatly for each dog.

This year, Schlosser is focused on cold-weather wear that keeps dogs both warm and stylish. Highlights include light, reversible jackets and collars from SLiK Hound, a Kansas City-based company. Many pups will be outfitted with clothing from Kurgo or 100 percent wool, hand-knitted, cruelty-free sweaters from Chilly Dog. But getting a dozen pups ready for the runway isn’t always a walk in the

This is the third year Pawject Runway will be held at the Maplewood Barn Theatre. It was previousy held at Lizzi & Rocco’s Natural Pet Market.

park. A few shows ago, a senior keeshond named Teddy hit the catwalk and loved the attention so much he wouldn’t move, Whitworth says. “He just stopped, stood and took it all in.” On another occasion, a pit bull named Jax wore booties that were slightly too big for him, and the dog shoes flopped in every direction along the runway.

The fashion show is not only adorable but also functional. “Each year, we get at least one adoption,” Whitworth says.

A calendar full of adoptable pups will be sold to raise money for Unchained Melodies and the Spay Neuter Project, a low-cost spay neuter clinic in Columbia.

Many of the model dogs are ready for

PABLO FERRANDEZ

6TH ANNUAL PAWJECT RUNWAY Tonight, 7 p.m., Maplewood Barn Theatre, $25, 445-8249

MISSOURI CONTEMPORARY BALLET: ECLIPSE IN MOVEMENT

Wednesday, November 15 | 7 P.M. Missouri Theatre

Thursday , November 16 | 7 P.M. Jesse Auditorium

adoption, but some have already found their forever homes. This year, a litter of puppies who made an appearance on the 2016 runway will return for a reunion.

“The dogs are adorable,” Schlosser says. “The humans look great. It’s just a fun event, and everyone is happy.”

MU CHORAL UNION: ELIJAH

BY FELIX MENDELSSOHN

Fri. & Sat., November 17 & 18 | 7 P.M. Missouri Theatre

(573) 882-3781 | concertseries.org PHOTOS COURTESY OF PAWJECT RUNWAY

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THE SCENE

Cheers to portable beers CoMO Growlers & Pints, a new business in town, is serving up craft beers to go BY CAMDEN JONES Four years ago, Aaron Banks had a job as an investigator who listened to inmates’ phone conversations for the Missouri Department of Corrections. But his heart was set on another career path that involved working in the craft beer business. In August, he opened Missouri’s first dedicated growler filling station, CoMO Growlers & Pints — a place his wife calls “the Starbucks of beer.”

Walk into CoMO Growlers & Pints, and you’ll find something more akin to a coffee shop than your typical bar. A back wall of windows fills the tasting room with natural lighting, and a shelf holds board games that are ready to be played.

Reclaimed woods and dark metals give the place a cozy atmosphere.

“It’s not like a packed campus bar-type scene, that’s for sure,” Banks says.

“It’s not loud and obnoxious in there, so you can actually have a conversation.”

CoMO Growlers & Pints is the only place in Missouri dedicated to selling and filling growlers while also offering 16 pints of draft beer for patrons to consume on-site. A growler is a 32- to 128-ounce container that can be refilled with beer for on-the-go brew lovers.

Before Gov. Jay Nixon signed Missouri Senate Bill 919 in July 2016, the only places that could sell and fill growlers were those that brewed their own beer, had more than 20 taps and made over half of their money on food sales. But once the bill took effect the following month, stores were allowed to sell and serve growlers with beer from other breweries.

At CoMO Growlers & Pints, Banks serves beer from brewhouses based in Missouri as well as other states. “It’s not just one brewery,” he says. “You can come in, and you can taste a beer from California, and you can get a growler of it to take with you.”

So why sell growlers? Banks says the answer is simple: Draft beer tastes better, and growlers allow beer enthusiasts to take that taste to go. “(People) will taste something in a bar, and they’re like, ‘Man, that beer is really good,’ Banks says. “Then they’ll go and buy a six-pack, and they’re like, ‘This doesn’t even taste like the same beer.’ So being able to take that good draft beer home with you is a nice advantage.”

Banks’ selection of beers changes every week, depending on what distributors are offering and what he thinks customers will prefer. He predicts customers’ tastes based on 6

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IT’S NOT LIKE A PACKED CAMPUS BAR-TYPE SCENE, THAT’S FOR SURE. IT’S NOT LOUD AND OBNOXIOUS IN THERE, SO YOU CAN ACTUALLY HAVE A CONVERSATION. – AARON BANKS, OWNER factors such as the season, the kinds of beers local breweries are serving and even the weather. He also likes to bring in rare, limited-release beers that he predicts most bars in Columbia won’t offer or that aren’t sold in bottles or cans.

This weekly rotation allows Banks to serve more risky flavors than other places. If people don’t like a beer, he can just switch it out with something different the following week. In the fall and winter, Banks says people prefer darker, more full-bodied beers, such as stouts and brown ales.

One ale that Banks had on-tap was the Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Three Blind Mice from Mother’s Brewing Co. in Springfield, Missouri. “It really warms your chest up, kind of like a shot of whiskey would,” he says.

After making the leap from his previous job to opening a new business, Banks is glad to have finally found his place in the craft beer industry.

Patrons can stop by to drink or fill a growler. CoMO Growlers & Pints owner Aaron Banks opened the store after deciding to pursue a happier career.

GROWLERS AROUND TOWN Although CoMO Growlers & Pints is a dedicated filling station, it’s not the only place in Columbia where you can buy and fill a growler. In addition to the new business, here are a few growler options in town:

BROADWAY BREWERY 32–64 oz: $1–6 Typical filling price: $6–25

COMO GROWLERS & PINTS COMO GROWLERS & PINTS 1413 Grindstone Plaza Dr. Ste 107 Hours: Mon.­– Thurs., 4–9 p.m.

Friday, 2–10 p.m.

Saturday, noon–10 p.m.

32–64 oz: $5–10 Typical filling price: $8–24

FLAT BRANCH PUB & BREWING 32–64 oz: $4–35 Typical filling price: $6–15

PHOTOS BY EMILY NEVILS

THE SCENE

How families guide their loved ones home Families construct altars with these six common elements for El Día de los Muertos Every Nov. 1 and 2, families display elaborate creations for El Día de los Muertos to welcome home spirits of loved ones. The holiday, which originates in Mexico, celebrates the lost lives of family and friends. Members of two MU Latino organizations talk about six elements of altars and how they each help guide spirits home.

1. PHOTOGRAPHS

Photographs of familiar faces bring heart and soul to each altar. Altars are personalized and created with a specific person or group of people in mind. “As you are creating this altar, you are talking about them and thinking about the things you did together,” says Verónica Pérez-Picasso, a member of the MU Latino/a Graduate and Professional Network. “It becomes an opportunity to feel better about not having them and realizing that they’re still part of your life.”

2. SUGAR SKULLS

As one of the most recognizable symbols of the holiday, sugar skulls, painted in blues, pinks, oranges and other fun colors, represent the loved one who will be returning. They’re often inscribed with the person’s name. “The idea is to understand death not as something morbid or creepy, but something more like, these are the people we love, and we are happy to see them and to receive them,” says Norma Castro-Guerrero, community outreach coordinator at MU Voz Latina.

PHOTO COURTESY OF WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

3. FLOWERS Bursting with color and sweet aromas, flowers are placed by family members to adorn the altar.

The bloom of choice for the holiday is often the cempasúchitl, a Mexican variety of the marigold flower with striking orange petals. “The idea is that the fragrance is so strong that it attracts your loved ones and leads them toward your home,” Pérez-Picasso says.

Some pluck petals and wind a vibrant trail of them from the altar to the front door to invite spirits home.

4. CANDLES When the spirits of loved ones return at night, glowing candles of all shapes and sizes act as guides to the altar to return each soul to his or her patiently waiting family. “The candle lights the way and shows them where the altar is and where they have to go,” Pérez-Picasso says.

BY LIBBY MOELLER

1.

6. WATER

The souls that return for El Día de los Muertos embark on a long, spiritual journey to arrive at the homes of their families and friends. For their return, the creators of the altar ensure that water is there for their loved one when he or she arrives. “There has to be water, because the trip is so long that they need to replenish their soul after that long trip,” Pérez-Picasso says.

5.

2.

3.

5. DAY OF THE DEAD BREAD Pan de muertos is a traditional sweet bread typically found in the center of the altar. Known as “bread of the dead,” the bread is made differently throughout each region, Castro-Guerrero says. “It’s inviting that soul to come back and enjoy it with you.” Families will create a feast for the returned soul by adding drinks their friends and family members used to enjoy.

4.

6.

Families set up altars for their loved ones with favorite foods, photographs, Mexican marigolds and more.

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A Hard Day’s Night The graveyard shift is not for everyone. Working the long hours between dusk and dawn takes its toll on health, relationships and overall mental stability, yet someone has to cover them. It’s a counterintuitive way of life, but the world doesn’t stop turning after the sun goes down.

Photos by Jessi Dodge and Emily Nevils

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PHOTOS BY OR COURTESY OF

Betsy Fritsche is a late-night employee at Shakespeare’s Pizza, where she says a normal night can go as late as 2:30 or 3 a.m. In her opinion, the pay makes the late nights worth it. She earns minimum wage plus tips, and she says her paycheck is a validation of all the work she puts in.

“Why have a bad mood about it?” she says. “This is just my new normal.”

Still, she struggles to maintain a social life.

Betsy says she often feels she has to choose between resting and hanging out with her friends, but if she goes out after work, she’s exhausted and can’t focus on socializing. Usually, she chooses to sleep. “Only one day of the last four days have I clocked out before midnight,” Betsy says. “My friends have been accepting of my new work schedule.”

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Pam Swain says she drinks two Mountain Dews every night shift to stay awake before switching to Gatorade. Five years ago, she moved from a daytime desk job to the U.S. Postal Service Processing and Distribution Center, where she works between six and seven night shifts per week. She has one 12:30 a.m. “lunch break,� and she once fell asleep standing up while feeding mail into a delivery bar code sorter.

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Broadway Diner employee Easton Mitchell works the 10 p.m. to 10 a.m. night shift as a server and cashier.

Easton has worked at the diner since August 2016. Although he previously picked up extra night shifts, he is trying to cut down on them now. “I like working Sunday morning,” Easton says.“The people are great, and it’s all the regulars. (The overnight shifts) are not too bad one night at a time, but I used to do several in a row. Those were long.”

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Cameron Landreth works the night shift at the Phillips 66 convenience store on East Nifong Boulevard. “I don’t personally like being around a lot of people,” Cameron says. “So I like the night shift. It’s quiet, and I don’t have to talk to anyone.”

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On weekdays, Rebecca Miller, co-owner of Peggy Jean’s Pies, normally arrives at her shop by 7:20 a.m. But when there is a larger order of pies, a big event or holidays such as Pi Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas, she comes in much earlier, often until at 2 or 3 a.m. There are even times when she’ll stay at the pie shop all night.

Rebecca’s employees arrive around 8 a.m., but she likes to come in earlier to arrange the baking schedule and start mixing ingredients. She says Thanksgiving is her busiest time of year, and during the week leading up to it, she won’t go home for two to three consecutive nights because she doesn’t have time to sleep.

Peggy Jean’s Pies reopened in 2014, and the store owners are coming up on their fourth Thanksgiving. They already have 280 orders for pies this season. She mentions that this time of the year tends to be the most emotional and stressful for her.

“It’s only been four years, but I look old and tired,” Rebecca says. “I will admit to trying a few Mountain Dew Kickstarts, but they make your face feel numb.”

She says most days she just drinks a large cup of coffee and takes two Tylenol to get her through the day.

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Double duty Marla Kolostov is burning the candle at both ends. She balances a full-time college class schedule with overnight work shifts in order to support her young family.

By Samantha Stokes Photos by Emily Nevils

Two seconds was all it took for Marla to total her car.

She had just finished her fourth consecutive overnight shift at University Hospital in June 2014 when she stopped at a stop sign, looked both ways, moved her foot off the break and fell asleep. Moments later, she crashed into another parked vehicle.

Although her car — the first car she’d ever bought with her own money — was ruined, Marla suffered only minor injuries. “It was a great blessing that God was watching over me,” she says. Her friends and family worried about her safety, so Marla temporarily switched to daytime employment.

In the years following her accident, Marla, who is now 23, has transitioned to a new job with a more flexible schedule and better compensation. However, she’s still working late shifts every single week.

A 2008 study by the Population Reference Bureau discovered that Latino and black people are more likely to work nontraditional hours — between 7 p.m. and 5 a.m. — than their white counterparts. Men work between 7 p.m. and 7 a.m. more often than women.

Lower socioeconomic standing and educational levels

I

t’s a little before 6 a.m., the sun has yet to rise, and Marla Kolostov is already awake. Although her 4-yearold daughter, Kyla, sometimes wakes her up, this morning Marla is on her feet first, using the extra time to get herself ready before turning her attention to her family.

Her husband leaves for work by 7 a.m., so Marla is on her own to get Kyla and 8-month-old Carmen fed. Kyla is having a good morning; she needs no help dressing herself or brushing her teeth before she sits down to eat the Froot Loops Marla has poured for her.

Carmen recently started daycare, but Marla still breastfeeds her before the three leave the house for the day. Kyla’s preschool begins at 8:10 a.m., and Marla drops Carmen off at daycare directly afterward so she can head to campus and have a few minutes to prepare for her first class at 9 a.m.

In 14 hours, she’ll leave her house again to go make her living. She’ll go to work when most people are turning in for the night.

are correlated with a higher probability of working overnight shifts.

Marla, who was born in Chicago, grew up in Ciales, Puerto Rico, and moved to Columbia in 2011. After graduating from Rock Bridge High School, she learned to draw blood at the Columbia Area Career Center and started working as an overnight phlebotomist at University Hospital in April 2014. Her normal schedule was from 9 p.m. to 7:30 a.m. on Saturdays and Sundays, but after school ended for the summer, she began picking up as many shifts as possible to accrue overtime pay and support herself and her daughter, Kyla, who was less than a year old at the time. Currently, Marla is a full-time MU student who plans to graduate in May 2018 with a degree in health sciences. She eventually wants to go back to study nursing, and her goal is to become a nurse by the time she turns 30.

After her car accident in 2014, which happened right around the corner from her parents’ house, where she was living at the time, Marla went back to work the same week. While covering the night shift, she asked her supervisor if she could give up the graveyard hours

in favor of daytime shifts. Her request was granted — but it didn’t last forever. After she began working part-time day shifts in June 2014, she returned to working nights at University Hospital in October 2015 and balanced overnight shifts with a full-time college schedule.

10 a.m. – Noon When Marla’s class lets out at 9:50 a.m., she likes to spend an hour on campus, getting as much homework done as possible at the MU Student Center or Ellis Library. This is her only time during the day to complete her schoolwork without the distractions of two young children and household obligations.

Kyla’s preschool is only in session for half the day, so Marla’s studying is cut short when she rushes to pick her up at 11:10 a.m. When Marla has afternoon classes, sometimes she’ll bring Kyla with her to the lecture, or she’ll drop her daughter off at her mother’s or her husband’s 11.02.17

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grandmother’s house while class is in session.

Today, though, she’s finished with class in the morning and takes her children home.

It’s only noon, but Marla has already been awake for more than six hours. She’ll be awake for at least 18 more.

Money is a big reason why Marla continues to work nights. She and her husband, Kyle, both work to support their young daughters and afford Marla’s education. When she started working at BioPharma in May 2017, the overnight bonus pay of $3 per hour at her job as a clinical research technician was an incentive for her to work night shifts whenever she could. Since October, the bonus pay has increased to $5 on top of the $14 Marla makes per hour, so she’s more than willing to work a night shift at least twice a week.

Scheduling is also an important consideration for Marla, who forgoes working during the day so she can finish her degree on time and take care of her children.

After she graduates, Marla plans to work full time to support her family and give her husband the chance to go to college.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services cites better pay, more time during the day for recreation or school and employee preference as reasons people decide to work overnight. For Betsy Fristche, who currently works late nights at Shakespeare’s Pizza,

having extra time during the day is a huge advantage to her late-night work schedule. Betsy, who sometimes works at Shakespeare’s until 3 a.m., wakes up between 8 and 10 a.m. most days and likes having her mornings free.

“It’s all about finding balance of doing things for myself versus doing things I’m paid for,” Betsy says. “It’s nice, having my morning to feel whole again.”

Noon – 5 p.m.

When Marla is home in the afternoon, her priorities are cleaning her house, cooking for the week and getting dinner ready with her husband.

Carmen recently started to crawl, but her big sister likes to watch over her. The two girls spend the afternoon playing and keeping each other occupied, which frees Marla’s hands to be more efficient around the house. Marla sometimes tries to get more schoolwork done throughout the afternoon, but when her daughters take their afternoon nap together, she’ll either close her eyes and doze off or use the quiet moments to relax and watch TV. Between 4 and 4:30 p.m., Marla’s husband comes home from his job in home remodeling.

The two of them take turns cooking and watching the children, and her husband takes on even more

Whenever she has time, Marla Kolostov (right) enjoys relaxing with her children and close friends. Trishay Elder, left, is one of the first people Marla met when she started at Rock Bridge High School, and Trishay later became her best friend and matron of honor at Marla’s wedding.

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of the chores in the evening, since Marla has an upcoming overnight shift.

Marla says the hardest thing about working the night shift is that she doesn’t have time to prepare by resting during the day. “I can’t because there’s stuff to do during the day,” she says. “I just tell myself, ‘I know we need the money.’”

Before starting her new job at BioPharma, Marla says her old overnight job at the hospital was almost too difficult to bear. The shifts were longer, the pay bonus wasn’t as high — she only received an extra 70 cents per hour for working nights — and more strenuous job duties took a toll on her health while she was pregnant with Carmen. “I was so tired,” she says. “I don’t know how I’m still even alive at this point.”

Marla stopped working a month before her due date of February 2017 due to back problems, and she used up her maternity leave before telling her boss she wouldn’t be coming back to work in May 2017. “OK, I’m done,” she says about the decision. “I need a less stressful environment.” The strenuous shifts placed Marla in a constant state of tired stupor.

In 2005, NPR reported that one in 10 health care employees work overnight. The American Psychological Association says that the night shift can be extra dangerous for higher-risk occupations like the medical and law enforcement fields because overnight workers

Marla and her husband trade tasks when taking care of their children. When Carmen (above) and Kyla are napping in the afternoon, Marla will try to stay up and finish homework or housework. “It gets overwhelming sometimes,” Marla says. “But I try to push through it. I have to for them.”

might not have the alertness needed to make important, split-second decisions during high-stress situations and emergencies. Working overnight shifts also forces the body into unnatural sleeping and waking cycles, which can be detrimental to employee health. A 2016 article in The Atlantic states that stressful overnight conditions have been linked to more serious health problems such as diabetes, heart disease and some cancers.

Marla says she was lucky to only receive a seat belt burn during her car accident; she says she’s surprised she didn’t hit her head. Others are not so lucky. A 2004 study by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health shows 7 percent of work-related vehicle deaths are directly attributed to drowsiness or falling asleep while driving. The APA, which summarized the study’s findings, also pointed out that other driving problems, such as inattention and speeding, are influenced by fatigue.

5 – 9 p.m.

Betsy Fritsche works at Shakespeare’s Pizza, where she often covers the late-night shift until 3 a.m. She says the hours create unity among employees, which makes getting through the shift easier.

On Wednesdays, the entire family heads to Kyla’s gymnastics practice. On other weeknights, the evening means family time at home. The Kolostovs like to watch WWE together, and Kyla especially likes the strong women who compete on the show.

By 8:30 p.m., it’s time to get the girls ready for bed, a task that Marla and her husband share. Together, the family says a prayer in Spanish, the words to which Marla’s husband has learned from years of hearing Marla repeat them. Although some nights are easier than others, both Carmen and Kyla are normally asleep around 9 p.m.

A support system is key to making the overnight shifts work. Marla says her husband’s constant encouragement keeps her family glued together. Even though he also works full-time, he does his best to split responsibilities with his wife. “He’s amazing,” she says.

“I don’t know what I would do without him.”

Still, even with help, juggling daytime responsibilities such as homework and household chores with a social life, healthy eating and exercise, and the demands of the night shift — all while running on minimal sleep — is almost impossible. This is true for many on the night shift.

“I’m just tired — all the time,” Betsy says about working into the morning hours. She says it’s tough to miss out on evening activities with friends, such as concerts and parties, due to work. Even so, she still views late nights at Shakespeare’s as better than her previous job working the graveyard shift at ABA Textbooks in Columbia. Every school break while she was in college, Betsy says her work schedule ravaged her mental health and caused her to lose between 10 and 15 pounds. “It was easy and paid, like, $12 an hour,” she says, “but I basically didn’t do anything except for work, try to eat a little bit and try to get as much sleep as possible before my next shift. I saw how terrible it was on my body, not eating, no energy,” Betsy says. “It literally destroyed my soul.”

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9 – 11 p.m.

Instead of using the next few hours to rest before her shift begins, Marla stays awake to spend time with her husband. Because they’re both so busy during the day, this is their only time to be alone together without the distraction of the kids. Even though her husband often implores her to take a nap or at least close her eyes for rest, Marla is never sleepy before she begins her night shift; there are always a million things running through her mind.

10:30 p.m. arrives too quickly, and Marla is again breastfeeding Carmen before heading off to work. The 8-month-old only gets up once or twice throughout the night, and sometimes Marla or her husband have to wake her for feedings. After putting Carmen back to bed, it’s nearly time to head to work. Marla drives to BioPharma to start her shift at 11 p.m.

“If I worked every night five nights a week, I wouldn’t be able to do it,” Marla says. “But two to three nights a week isn’t the end of the world.”

When she’s not providing patient care or drawing blood, Marla and the other employees tidy up the clinic and prepare supplies for the next day.

She views her hectic schedule as a sacrifice — but not a bad one. She grew up Catholic in Puerto Rico, and she relates her opinion on sacrifice to the church’s teachings. “We do it genuinely and not complain about it,” she says. “The sacrifice is always worth it.”

For the most part, Betsy agrees that, despite its

Dazed and confused The American Psychological Association found that working overnight negatively affects a person’s health and causes on-the-job sleepiness, restlessness, decreased attention and poor mood, in addition to more serious problems, such as chronic exhaustion, insomnia and decreased cognitive function. According to a 2014 study by economists Daniel Hamermesh and Elena Stancanelli, Americans are more likely to take overnight shifts than their European counterparts.

United States

26.6%

United Kingdom

18.6%

Germany

13%

France

7.2%

Netherlands

6.9%

drawbacks, the night shift has its merits. Although she’s not sure how long she’ll be able to maintain the hours, she stands by her choice to work late, at least for now. “Someone’s gotta work those hours,” she says.

“More power to you if you can make it work.”

11 p.m. – 6 a.m.

During any additional downtime, Marla uses the computers at BioPharma to work on her schoolwork and takes turns napping with the rest of the overnight staff. There are always at least three people at the clinic, and Marla likes working on a smaller team because she’s gotten to know everyone well. Being friendly with coworkers makes the lengthy nights go by faster.

BioPharma lets Marla use her break to go home to breastfeed Carmen. When she arrives around 2 a.m., her daughter is sometimes already awake and waiting to be fed. After about 45 minutes with her daughter and husband, Marla treks back to work to finish her shift.

At 6 a.m., Marla finally goes home for the day. She’s been awake for more than 24 hours and doesn’t know when she’ll have the chance to sleep again. She often doesn’t realize right away that she’s been awake for days without more than a short nap or two. How could she, though? Marla is already moving to her next day of classes, childcare and perhaps another overnight shift.

Marla works nights at BioPharma at least twice per week so she can benefit from the overnight bonus pay. She plans to take a year or two after graduation in the spring to work and save money before starting an accelerated nursing program.

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ARTS & BOOKS

Paths to publishing Local authors describe their methods for moving through the book publishing process The business model for book publishing has been changing as the world becomes more digital, but unlike other print-dominated media, worldwide book publishing revenue is projected to rise over 8 percent from 2015 to 2020, according to Statista. The number of self-published titles increased by 375 percent from 2010 to 2015 and is continuing to climb, according to the Bowker Self-Publishing Report. Today, there are a lot of ways to go about publishing a book, and these three local authors all have their own methods.

Liz Schulte: Do it yourself With 10 years of writing under her belt, Liz Schulte currently has 26 self-published novels, most of which are mysteries and paranormal romances.

“I like to control my career,” she says. Although she enjoyed writing in her spare time, Schulte didn’t know she wanted to be a writer until she read a book by H.P. Mallory, who has become one of the early widely successful self-published authors. Schulte asked Mallory how she published independently, and Mallory responded in great detail. Schulte decided to give self-publishing a try and finished her first book, Dark Corners, in 2010.

STEP 1

Deadlines

Schulte describes her process as “very well-oiled.” She sets a daily writing goal of 3,000 words and doesn’t do anything else until she reaches the word count — even if it takes all day. She has to stick to a strict deadline for projects because she hires her editor, proofreader and designer in advance. They’re all counting on her to get the manuscript to them by a certain date.

Self-discipline is synonymous with self-publishing, she says. You can’t have one without the other.

STEP 2

Peer review and release

She also has a group of “beta readers,” 20 fans who are familiar with her work and give her their opinions of a new novel before it’s published. Once a book is ready for publication, Schulte releases it online through Amazon, Smashwords, iBooks and more. She has a print-on-demand plan with Createspace and orders hard copies of her book to distribute to bookstores.

STEP 3

Connect with readers

Most of her marketing takes place online through several social media sites, blogs and email newsletters.

Schulte has found that readers’ subscriptions to a newsletter is the most effective way to market her books and helps her gauge her audience. She also connects with her readers online. “Social media is important for any author now,” she says. “It’s so very ingrained in my day-to-day life that I don’t know that I really even notice it anymore.”

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John Drake Robinson: Find an in-between

John Drake Robinson has done a variety of writing since 1974, but it wasn’t until 2012 that he decided to write his first book, A Road Trip Into America’s Hidden Heart, and publish it with a local business He finished a sequel, Coastal Missouri, in 2013 and plans to publish the third in the series, 300001: A Road Odyssey, in 2018. Robinson also has three more projects in the works.

STEP 1

Believe in your work

The original manuscript for A Road Trip Into America’s Hidden Heart was about 1,000 pages, and when he approached the University of Missouri Press to publish, he was told to shorten it considerably or divide it into several smaller books. After making the changes, Robinson sent the sample back to the University of Missouri Press but never heard anything back. It was one of the first lessons he learned in book publishing: Persistence is key. “I didn’t pursue it,” Robinson says. “I think one of the things authors really have to do is be determined … you have to believe in it.”

STEP 2 Don’t pause Robinson started looking for other options and happened upon Compass Flower Press, a one-person publishing house in Columbia run by Yolanda Ciolli.

They met and began working together.

Although Robinson hires his own editor, Ciolli has about a dozen independent editors she pairs up with writers. When placing editors, she considers the genre and style of the author and the editors’ passions. Ciolli tries to spend six months or less on a project. “It keeps it fresh; it keeps it moving,” she says. “Any time you have a time-lapse in between when nothing is being done to the book, it’s like starting from scratch again.”

STEP 3

Marketplace management

Robinson is responsible for selling print copies of his books, which he consciously buys from Ciolli through a print-on-demand service. This method allows her authors to print as many books as they need instead of getting one big shipment of copies with the risk of losing money on unsold books.

Robinson says writing and marketing are two full-time jobs, but he’s done it himself instead of hiring a publicist or assistant. “I’ve got boxes of books sitting in my spare room that I’ve got to move, but that motivates me to get out and speak and present these books and try to sell them,” he says. He contacts museums, libraries, schools and other organizations to speak about his book, and he does book signings at bookstores all over the state. He has recently slowed down on marketing and focused his attention on writing, but he says he used to do 50 to 70 events a year.

BY MITCHELL BARTLE

Steve Wiegenstein: Keep it traditional

A strong believer in conventional book publishing, Steve Wiegenstein had his first book, Slant of Light, published in 2012 by independent publisher Blank Slate Press, based in St. Louis. The publishing house was just starting at the time, and “they were fueled by a great amount of enthusiasm but not a lot of experience,” Wiegenstein says.

STEP 1

Build trust

It takes Wiegenstein about two and a half years to complete a novel — a year and a half to two years to do the actual writing and six to eight months of editing.

“It’s a long-haul kind of process,” Wiegenstein says.

Slant of Light was one of the first books published at Blank Slate, even edited by company founder Kristina Makansi, and since then, Wiegenstein has published two more novels. In 2015, Blank Slate merged with Walrus Publishing and is now the Amphorae Publishing Group, though Blank Slate Press still appears on his books because Wiegenstein says it carries some weight in the St. Louis market.

Over the years, Wiegenstein and Blank Slate employees have developed the trust necessary for effective editing. Wiegenstein says he and Makansi are different kinds of readers. She wants books to carry a lot of emotional power and description, and Wiegenstein describes his style as more restrained. “It’s a constant back and forth kind of process,” he says. Inevitably, this contrast leads to disagreements, but their different perspectives make for more dynamic editing.

STEP 2

Enjoy the benefits

Wiegenstein is a big proponent of the conventional methods of publishing. He appreciates the longer time he has to write while the publishing house takes care of most of the auxiliary work. Before Blank Slate grew, Wiegenstein had trouble getting novels onto bookstore shelves, but now Blank Slate works with a distributing company that uses sales representatives to promote the books. He says authors who are trying to get that first book published should “exhaust the possibility of traditional publishing” before trying to self-publish.

STEP 3 Stay small When it comes to whether he thinks going through a big publisher versus a smaller one is more beneficial, Wiegenstein says it’s a trade-off. Although big publishers might be able to get a book into more stores, the chances it stays there for long is slim. Blank Slate keeps his books on the shelves, and that gives readers the opportunity to buy all of the books in the series at once. “I think about my work from a much more long-term perspective,” Wiegenstein says.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF JOHN ROBINSON, LIZ SCHULTE & STEVE WIEGENSTEIN

MUSIC

The fresh face and sound galvanizing EDM Budding future bass prodigy Whethan makes his debut appearance in CoMo BY MADI SKAHILL At 18 years young, Ethan Snoreck has already outgrown the novice term “up-and-coming.”

The Chicago-based artist, known by the stage name Whethan, made his entrance to the EDM scene about two years ago. He picked up early traction on SoundCloud, and within a year, the rookie had earned his stripes when he released the hit collaboration “Savage” with future bass legend Flux Pavilion.

Expanding upon an already respectable repertoire, Whethan has since worked with Charli XCX and opened for The Chainsmokers on the group’s recent Memories Do Not Open Tour.

Whethan now pulls nearly 3 million monthly Spotify listeners and has had his hands full with appearances at Coachella, Lollapalooza and Electric Forest. Mixing clear bass influences with a ripe sound, the attention is well-earned.

Whethan is currently rounding out the last few weeks of his national Good

Nights Tour, making stops at more intimate venues across the United States while accompanied by SAINT WKND and Ashe.

Erin Stark, a fan of Whethan’s, has seen what he is capable of at a massive festival after seeing him perform at Lollapalooza, and is looking forward to his show in Columbia.

“It was a really high-energy show,” Stark says about the set that she saw live.

Josh Goodman, another Whethan fan, remembers when he first heard the artist on SoundCloud and was impressed by how his music stood out.

“The problem with electronic music right now is that there’s so many artists putting out content that sounds exactly the same,” Goodman says. “(Whethan’s music) was really vibe-y and creative. It sounded authentic; it didn’t sound like everything else.”

The young artist isn’t only impressing fans. Critics agree that

Whethan, an 18-year-old EDM artist, has performed sets at Coachella, Lollapalooza and Electric Forest. He’ll perform for the first time at The Blue Note.

Whethan is on his way to being the next big thing in EDM. “Championing a synth-saturated, future bass sound, something we’ve seen rise exponentially over the past few years with the surge in popularity of artists including Flume, Wave Racer and GANZ, Whethan’s growth as an artist has been inescapable,” Hayden Davies wrote in Australian music website Pilerats’ exclusive preview of Whethan’s first original single, “Can’t Hide.”

Whethan dropped an unexpected and somewhat ambiguous tweet on Oct. 23,

when he shared that his current tour is technically a “goodbye tour.” Followed by some jokes about suggestions on a new profession, Whethan offered a final tweet with slight reassurance that his journey with music had only just begun.

Joking or not, Whethan’s future will be something to keep an eye on.

WHETHAN Tuesday, 9 p.m.

The Blue Note $16 in advance, $18 day of 874-1944, thebluenote.com

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The Blue Note co-owner MATT GERDING discusses his love for music and what the industry is like behind the curtain

T

he Blue Note, Columbia’s live-music staple, is approaching its three-year anniversary under the new ownership of Columbia native Matt Gerding and his business partner Scott Leslie.

Gerding and Leslie met in Los Angeles while Gerding was booking artists for Creative Artist Agency, and Leslie was on tour with a band. They opened a concert venue called the Majestic Theatre in Madison, Wisconsin, in 2007 and enjoyed a fair share of success.

But Gerding felt his hometown calling.

The Blue Note’s former owner, Richard King, was too busy getting the Roots N Blues N BBQ Festival up and running to sell his business when Gerding approached him the first time. But after having heart surgery, he felt it was time for a change.

“It was going into the right hands,” King says of handing over The Blue Note’s reigns after seeing Gerding and Leslie’s success in Madison.

Gerding reflects on his three years of co-owning Columbia’s most popular music venue and talks about his goals for The Blue Note.

When did you truly discover your passion for music?

I didn’t really discover The Blue Note until I was in middle school and went to my first show there. I just remember thinking the venue was super cool; I had never seen anything like it. Then I started going to shows there pretty consistently all through college.

I (also) went to a lot of shows in Kansas City and St. Louis. (I was) part of that punk rock culture back then and discovering a lot of new up-and-coming bands. I just remember becoming really passionate about the live music experience in general.

I decided once I got into college that I wanted to do something in music but that I didn’t want to be

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a musician. Something on the music business side was really appealing to me, so I just started studying the “behind-the-scenes” of the music business and doing internships in Los Angeles. I was on the booking committee for MSA (Missouri Students Association) for a year and a half, too.

What made you come back to your hometown?

The hometown connection played a big role in our interest (in The Blue Note), but we looked at it from a business perspective first and foremost; we thought we could replicate the success that we had had in Madison down in Columbia. It was a pretty cool feeling to take a venue that you went to growing up and remodel it and figure out ways to reenergize it. It’s not that it wasn’t a great club. It’s got an awesome history, but I think that we were really interested in putting some new life into it. It was a really cool experience.

Why does The Blue Note have an “artist-first” mentality?

Myself and my business partner, Scott Leslie, met in L.A. We were roommates and best buddies before we decided to open a club. He was in a touring band for a lot of years; I worked on the artist side for a booking agency in L.A. One of the things that we realized from those experiences is that the clubs and people in the music industry that understand the value of relationships and the importance of creating a good experience for the artist generally seem to get more shows. Columbia gets skipped over on tours all the time. You want to take advantage of the opportunities that you have. You shower that artist with love and make sure they have a good experience. Hopefully you make a connection there

and you can build your reputation as a place that artists have a really good experience with.

What are the most and least difficult parts about running a music venue?

The hardest thing about running a venue would be trying to sell the community on artists and promoting shows in the right way. Convincing people, particularly the student body, to take a chance on live music is always going to be our biggest challenge, but that’s what gives us passion to go out and do what we do. The easiest thing is watching the shows. Once you have booked the show, marketed the show, sold tickets and coordinated the show logistics, it’s ultimately a bunch of people in a room that are having the time of their life and watching an awesome show. Once the band is on stage, everyone becomes a music fan again.

What are your plans for the future?

I think we’re just going to keep building and doing what we do. Every concert season, which is primarily the spring season and the fall season, we have a chance to book a show that turns some heads and gets more people excited about live music. We’re doing what we can to position Columbia as a city that bands should be paying attention to when they’re routing their tours and convincing people in Columbia to take a chance on shows and really embrace live music as part of what makes Columbia great. That’s a long play. That doesn’t really happen overnight. But those are things we think about every day as we’re going about our business.

— MAX FILLION PHOTO COURTESY OF CHRIS LOTTEN

THE TO-DO LIST

this week in Columbia

ARTS & CULTURE

First Thursday Book Discussion Become a part of the conversation about the multi-layered book H Is for Hawk by Helen Macdonald. For those who like different genres, the book is part memoir, part natural history and part biography of the author T.H. White. Today, noon to 1 p.m., Columbia Public Library Children’s Program Room, Free, 817-7017

Festival of South African Dance This show combines Pantsula and Gumboot dance groups from South Africa.

One of these is Real Actions Pantsula, which was created in 1992 by Sello Reuben Modiga. His mission was to take the youths of South Africa away from the corruption of the streets by giving them dance as an outlet. Today, 7–9:30 p.m., Jesse Auditorium, $23–33, 882-3781

Stories in Art, Art in Stories Creating an art project based on a picture book is a good way to spark your child’s creativity. Columbia Art League presents this event, which aims to improve listening and imagining skills. Saturday, 3–4 p.m., Columbia Public Library Children’s Program Room, Free, 817-7017

CIVIC

Creekside Pet Center Petacular Look for your new furry best friend while enjoying a variety of vendors, food trucks and more. Cats and dogs adopted during the event will get a free weekend of boarding, a complimentary bag of food and a gift box. Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Creekside Pet Center, Free, 256-7387

50th Anniversary of Rock Bridge Memorial State Park

features a three-course dinner, speakers, live music and a live and silent auction.

This year, the opening speaker is First Lady Sheena Greitens, and the keynote speaker is Liz Hunter, a former foster child, as well as writer and advocate. Today, 5:30–8 p.m., Capital Plaza, $40, individual; $75, couple, 298-0258

2017 Fill Your Plate to Benefit Resident Arts

Celebrate the local art scene at this auction and dinner with local food and drinks. Enjoy live music and buy work from local artists. The money benefits Resident Arts, a nonprofit that aims to help young, professional artists build their careers. Today, 6–9 p.m., Stephens Lake Park Riechmann Pavilion, $30–100, 303-7195

The Missouri Patriot Paws Third Annual Banquet

Get your paws up for this event, which supports veterans and their dogs. The Missouri Patriot Paws, a nonprofit that trains service dogs for Missouri veterans and first responders with PTSD and traumatic brain injuries, will host a banquet with raffles and a live auction. Saturday, 5 p.m., Boone County VFW Post 280, $10, individual ticket; $100, table of 8, 819-2862

MUSIC

Borgore with MERF and Dontis

Dubstep producer and DJ Borgore has been associated with acts such as Miley Cyrus, G-Eazy and more. His performance is sure to be as original as his selfdescribed music, “Gorestep.” Today, 9 p.m., The Blue Note, $15, tier 1; $20, tier 2; $25, tier 3, 874-1944

Listen to music, learn about the park’s history, eat free food and take part in a scavenger hunt, all to celebrate the park’s golden anniversary. There are rumors that Bigfoot might even make an appearance.

Saturday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Rock Bridge Memorial State Park, Free, 449-7402

Funky Butt Brass Band

The Legacy of Black Elk Speaks

Dr. Zhivegas

Black Elk Speaks was written by poet and former MU professor John Neihardt. The book tells the story of Black Elk, a famous Oglala Lakota Native American. Neihardt’s daughter, Alice Thompson, is leading the presentation and will be joined by other family members who will share personal accounts of Neihardt and his creative process. Sunday, 2–3:30 p.m., Columbia Public Library Friends Room, Free, 817-7017

FOOD & DRINK

Forget Me Not Gala The Forget Me Not Gala is Central Missouri Foster Care and Adoption Association’s largest fundraiser of the year. The event PHOTO COURTESY OF AP IMAGES

With a groovy, down-South blues vibe, Funky Butt Brass Band features six musicians from St. Louis. For some foot-stomping fun, visit Rose Music Hall for a lively night with this band. Friday, 8:30 p.m., Rose Music Hall, $7, 874-1944

Proclaimed “the nation’s best dance party cover band” by The Blue Note, Dr. Zhivegas is sure to play some of your all-time favorites. Dance the night away with Dr. Zhivegas music and special effects. Friday, 8:30 p.m., The Blue Note, $10, general admission; $5, students, 874-1944

Chris Stephens World Music Concert

Multi-instrumentalist Chris Stephens will perform music influenced by Persia, China and India. The event, which is limited to 20 people, features music and instruments that can be connected along the Silk Road.

Saturday, 1 p.m., Good Nature, $15, 442-4242

DON’T MISS: DORIS KEARNS GOODWIN Leadership in Turbulent Times: Well-known American presidential biographer and historian Doris Kearns Goodwin is giving a lecture to discuss the Trump Administration, our fractured democracy and how our country’s politics have surived troubled periods many times before. Monday, 7–9 p.m., Jesse Auditorium, Free, 882-7998

Audra Sergel, Saint Gnome and Green Eggs and Hammond Stop by Cafe Berlin to hear pianist and Columbia native Audra Sergel. Sergel’s music will contrast with alt-rock group Saint Gnome along with Green Eggs and Hammond. Saturday, 9 p.m., Cafe Berlin, $5, 441-0400

SPORTS

EnCircle Technologies Melee and Smash 4 Tournament

Still playing

Play Super Smash Bros., and watch professional players compete for a $3,000 prize, all while helping a nonprofit that serves people with autism through technology training and employment.

Saturday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., 204 S. 9th St, $10-25, 228-0218

Missouri Tigers vs. Florida Gators Blackout Football Game MU Football encourages you dress in black to watch the Tigers take on the Florida Gators for the second-to-last home game of the season. Set your alarm to get up early for the tailgate scene before the 11 a.m. kickoff. Saturday, 11 a.m., Faurot Field, Price varies, 882-6501

SCREEN

Thor: Ragnarok (PG-13)

A Bad Moms Christmas (R)

This holiday season, three moms (Mila Kunis, Kristen Bell and Kathryn Hahn) decide they’re going revolt against the stress and chaos they experience around Christmastime and instead set out to have a good time. The trouble is, their own mothers are still expecting them to host the perfect Christmases.

F, R RUNTIME = 1:44

The third installment in this Marvel franchise, Thor (Chris Hemsworth) ends up in a gladiator-style battle against the Hulk on the planet of Sakaar. Thor must figure out how to get back to Asgard quick, as Hela (Cate Blanchett), the goddess of death, is threatening to destroy it.

F, R RUNTIME = 2:10

Battle of the Sexes (PG-13), RT Blade Runner 2049 (R), R Blazing Saddles (R), F Boo 2! A Madea Halloween (PG-13), F, R The Foreigner (R), F, R Geostorm (PG-13), F, R Goodbye Christopher Robin (PG), RT Happy Death Day (PG-13), F, R Have a Nice Day (NR), RT Jigsaw (R), F, R Maineland (NT), F Marshall (PG-13), RT Only the Brave (PG-13), F, R Pokémon the Movie: I Choose You (NR), R Price of Fame (PG-13), F Same Kind of Different As Me (PG-13), R Suburbicon (R), F, R Thank You For Your Service (R), F, R The Shining (R) F The Snowman (R), F, R Victoria & Abdul (PG-13), RT Theaters F = Forum R = Regal

11.02.17

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RT = Ragtag = available in 3D

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