This Evening at StyleLab for Men on Magazine St.
On September 30, 2009, In Photo, By dno
On September 30, 2009, In /, By dno
By Todd A. Price
September 29, 2009, 10:25AM
The Avenue Pub (1732 St. Charles Ave.) continues to establish itself as the best place to get a serious education in beer. In October, the Lower Garden District bar will host almost nightly events featuring brews and bottles never before seen in Louisiana.
Kirk Coco, President of NOLA Brewing Co. with a Hopitoulas tap handle at the Avenue Pub. Last August, the Avenue Pub tapped a specially-made version of NOLA Brewing Co.’s blond ale that was cask conditioned. This older style of brewing gives the beer a subtle, rich flavor. The downside is that a cask goes bad after a few days. Polly Watts, the bar’s owner, said that blond ale was probably the first cask-conditioned beer sold in New Orleans since Prohibition.
On Wednesday, September 30, at 8 p.m. the Avenue Pub will tap another cask of dry-hopped NOLA Brewing Co. blond ale. On Saturday, October 3, at 4 p.m. taste an unusual cask-conditioned Lazy Magnolia Sweet Potato Stout brewed with Hubig’s apple pies (the Mississippi-based brewery swears it’s delicious). And on Saturday, October 17, at 4 p.m. try a cask-conditioned version of NOLA Brewing Co.’s brown ale made with Steen’s cane syrup.
If Avenue Pub keeps up this pace, then cask-conditioned beers will soon be as common in New Orleans as Coors.
On Saturday, October 10, the Avenue Pub hosts the official release of Hopitoulas, NOLA Brewing Co.’s first seasonal beer. Only a limited amount of the extra hoppy IPA will be available around town this year.
Finally, from October 20-22, the Avenue Pub celebrates the local arrival of California-made Stone beer with a non-stop 72-hour party.
“This is the biggest beer thing that has happened in the state of Louisiana,” said bar owner Polly Watts, “so long term it will change the face of craft beer in the city.”
Watts will have on tap 11 different Stone beers, including a custom keg made just for the Avenue Pub and two cask-conditioned beers. On Tuesday, October 20, a cask of Stone’s Chipotle Smoked Porter will be available at 8 p.m., while on Wednesday, October 21, at 8 p.m. a cask-conditioned Ruination IPA will be served.
Anyone with perfect attendance at the Avenue Pub’s October events deserves an honorary degree in American craft beer.
(nola.com)
On September 30, 2009, In /, By dno
BY JAMES CARVILLE
“The Mayor shall be a citizen of the United States and a qualified elector of the City, and shall have been domiciled in the City for at least five years immediately preceding the election.”
— New Orleans Home Rule Charter, Section 4-202.
My life in politics spans some 50 years, beginning when I first went door to door for a candidate in my hometown. In my career, I’ve managed campaigns of multiple governors, congressmembers and U.S. senators. And I’ve worked to help elect 14 different heads of state and candidates in 21 countries across five continents.
Any number of times for as long as I can remember, these politicians have asked me, “Don’t you want to run for political office one day?”
I often replied that the only thing I’d run for is the state line. I didn’t really have any interest in running for office. Plus, with two young girls (ages 11 and 14), I’ve long joked that my past is not conducive to the scrutiny of the morally incorruptible. Put it this way, I wouldn’t vet particularly well.
When we moved here some 15 months ago, many speculated that I had political ambitions of some sort in Louisiana. That couldn’t have been further from the truth. At my age, I had never even given it any thought.
Lately, I have been asked that question almost daily by my fellow New Orleanians. At 64 years old, for the first time in my life, I’ve finally found an office I would run for — that is, if I could: mayor.
Even my wife and daughters have asked me to run at this point. The odds of getting three women in the Carville household to agree on anything is slim to none and even less when it has anything to do with me, so this is particularly momentous.
However, due to a protectionist proviso in the New Orleans City Charter that requires candidates for mayor to have been domiciled here for at least five years before the election, we’ll never know how that works out.
The truth is, though, if I could do it, I would do it. And I would not only run, I’d run with enthusiasm and optimism.
Of course, the standard, generic political reasons that most politicians recite also happen to be true. I love my adopted city — the city where Mary and I fell in love and got married — and we enjoy participating in the city’s rebuilding effort. I’d like to secure a future for the city I love so that my kids can have that same opportunity to live here.
On the off chance that I could get elected — and I should note that the Tulane University/Democracy Corps poll showed it is possible for a white candidate to win — the main reason to run is that the next mayor will be in a position to lead the city during its next Golden Era. You’d never be able to tell from the almost-weekly announcements from A-list politicians declining the opportunity to run, but the next mayor will be taking the reins of a city poised for a decade of major investment, international attention and unprecedented funding for capital projects. The foundation for success is so overwhelming that the next mayor almost can’t fail. For a job that few have shown interest in seeking, the next mayor will walk into City Hall with building blocks for growth already in place.
On September 29, 2009, In /, By dno
In a New Orleans neighborhood called Versailles, a tight-knit group of Vietnamese Americans overcame obstacles to rebuild after Hurricane Katrina, only to have their homes threatened by a new government-imposed toxic landfill. A VILLAGE CALLED VERSAILLES is the empowering story of how the Versailles people, who have already suffered so much in their lifetime, turn a devastating disaster into a catalyst for change and a chance for a better future.
Here’s the email we got from Leo:
Hi all,
The screening of A VILLAGE CALLED VERSAILLES at the New Orleans Film Festival is less than 2 weeks away. I will be at the screening and will hopefully see you there. The info again is:
A VILLAGE CALLED VERSAILLES
Sun Oct 11 @ 5 pm
Contemporary Art Center, 900 Camp St., New Orleans
Here is the link to our film on the NOFF website:
http://neworleansfilmfest.bside.com/2009/films/avillagecalledversaillesasongforourselves_neworleansfilmfest2009
I hope some of you will happen to be in town and make it to the screening. Please also help us spread the word by forwarding this information to your NOLA friends. The film’s website is http://avillagecalledversailles.com/.
Hope all is well with you!
Leo
—
S. Leo Chiang
Director/Producer, A Village Called Versailles
http://www.AVillageCalledVersailles.com
http://www.facebook.com/AVillageCalledVersailles
On September 29, 2009, In /, By dno
Dr. Dog performs with the Rebirth Brass Band. Generationals open.
Doors at 8.
On September 29, 2009, In /, By dno
The Walkmen, Here We Go Magic, and Brass Bed
Doors at 9, Tickets $15
On September 29, 2009, In /, By dno
NEW ORLEANS — The beer and oompah music are flowing as ever but there is a mournful tone to this year’s Oktoberfest at the Deutsches Haus, a remnant of the city’s once-vibrant German culture that faces demolition for post-Katrina development.
First opened in 1928 and rebuilt after Hurricane Katrina’s ravages, the cultural center is one of many buildings in a historic neighborhood likely to be torn down for a $2 billion medical complex billed as a centerpiece of city’s recovery.
There’s a different point of view inside the center that has been a gathering place for generations of families with German roots.
“My personal opinion is, this is a land grab, it isn’t necessary, it doesn’t benefit anybody but the politicians in Baton Rouge,” said Frieda Arwe, in German-accented English.
The proposal to clear about 70 acres of a Mid-City neighborhood isn’t without hurdles, or critics. Delivery of a site for a Veterans Affairs medical center hasn’t happened, and the state has yet to fully secure funding for a teaching hospital. Completion of both is now projected for 2013-2014, though demolition to clear the site could begin in 2010.
Preservationists argue scores of century-old houses would be lost. Two lawsuits say the planning process was flawed and should be revisited.
State and local officials counter the hospitals would jump-start the economy, creating thousands of high-paying jobs, attracting new residents and sparking demand for shopping and restaurants near downtown.
“I think using the word ‘transformative’ is in no way overselling this,” said Kurt Weigle, president of the Downtown Development District.
Many of the Deutsche Haus’ 650 members figure it’s just a matter of time. Like other property owners, they expect to be offered a buyout. The state office coordinating land acquisition said owners can negotiate on price but the state has expropriation authority if an agreement cannot be reached.
Whether the Haus can be re-established elsewhere in what was once a German working-class neighborhood or will move to the suburbs isn’t clear.
On September 29, 2009, In /, By dno
Phoenix ranked on the bottom rung in a new bizjournals study of per capita income growth in the nation’s metropolitan areas from 1983 through 2008.
New Orleans took the top spot after falling in last place in a similar 2007 report following the devastation from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
Bizjournals, the online division of American City Business Journals, the parent company of the Phoenix Business Journal, combed through 25 years of federal income data for the nation’s 100 biggest metropolitan areas. The study focused on per capita income, a key indicator of earning power and economic vitality, based on figures compiled by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.
Phoenix ranked 91st in the study with PCI standing at $34,675 in 2008, $29,343 in 2003, $19,724 in 1993 and $12,810 in 1983. That puts income growth at 171 percent over the 25-year period, 76 percent for the past 15 years and 18 percent in the 5-year comparison.
“Phoenix seemed golden until real-estate prices hit the skids. Jobs began disappearing — 135,100 in the past year — and incomes started shrinking. “Phoenix’s PCI slipped 1.4 percent from 2007 to ‘08, the nation’s worst one-year loss,” the report said. “The only other place to drop more than 1 percent was Boise.”
Phoenix ranked 74th in the 2007 survey. Tucson ranked 50th in the current survey.
The turnaround in New Orleans is illuminated by a comparison of income levels at the beginning and end of the 25-year study period.
Personal income averaged $12,404 in New Orleans in 1983, falling 2 percent below the U.S. norm for that year, $12,618. But the local figure soared to $44,136 by 2008, putting it 11.5 percent above the national per capita income of $39,582. That’s a 256 percent increase for the 25-year period.
PCI is defined as the average amount of money received by each resident of a given area in a given year. It encompasses such diverse sources of income as salaries, interest payments, dividends, rental income and government checks.
On September 29, 2009, In Video, By dno
A sampling of the many neighborhood and class-based accents in New Orleans circa 1983 from the documentary YEAH YOU RITE! by Louis Alvarez and Andrew Kolker.
On September 29, 2009, In /, By dno
CLICK HERE to get the free sampler.
FALL TOUR
THE SPINTO BAND, GENERATIONALS, PEPI GINSBERG
10/21 Johnny Brenda’s Philadelphia, PA
10/22 TT the Bear’s Cambridge, MA
10/23 CMJ Showcase! Union Hall Brooklyn, NY
10/24 Rock ’N Roll Hotel Washington DC
10/25 Local 506 Chapel Hill, NC
10/27 Grey Eagle Tavern Asheville, NC
10/28 The Earl Atlanta, GA
10/30 The Marigny Theater New Orleans, LA
11/01 the Bottletree Birmingham, AL
11/02 The Basement Nashville, TN
11/03 The Bishop Bloomington, IN
11/04 Schuba’s Chicago, IL
11/05 Illini Union Courtyard Cafe Urbana, IL
11/06 The Pike Room (Crofoot) Pontiac, MI
11/07 Garfield Artworks Pittsburgh, PA
MINI PTV TOUR
THE HIGH STRUNG, FLOATING ACTION, GIANT CLOUD
10/20 DC9 Washington DC
10/21 the Bog Scranton, PA
10/22 Northstar Bar Philadelphia, PA w/National Eye
PTV CMJ SHOWCASE
THE SPINTO BAND, GENERATIONALS, PEPI GINSBERG, THE HIGH STRUNG, FLOATING ACTION, GIANT CLOUD
10/23 Union Hall Brooklyn, NY
PTV 5 YEAR ANNIVERSARY
NIGHT 1: THE PEEKERS, FLOATING ACTION, GIANT CLOUD
NIGHT 2: GENERATIONALS, THE SPINTO BAND, PEPI GINSBERG
10/29 Marigny Theatre New Orleans, LA
10/30 Marigny Theatre New Orleans, LA