The year that was

There is almost nothing us young professionals enjoy talking about more than entertainment and celebrity news (if you can even call celebrity happenings news).

Over the past year, we’ve likely doubled the amount of blogs about celebrity deaths, awful comebacks and CD releases than any other subject.

Since we’ve gabbed about it so much during our inaugural year, we hope you’ll enjoy taking a stroll through our superficial and gossip-filled memory lane. Here’s our top 10 pop culture-related blogs, honorable mentions all about the celebrities we love and the ones we love to hate.

Top Ten:

1) Sunday, Sept. 9 and Monday, Sept. 10

The Comeback that Wasn’t and My Last Rant on the MTV VMA's...I promise!
By: Donecia Pea

"Even as her personal life spiraled out of control, the one thing I figured she could always do was dance.I mean, despite all of the craziness her life has been, the girl is only like 26 or something, right? So youth should be on her side, right?But her highly anticipated opening performance at the MTV Awards was one of the saddest things I’ve ever seen."

So I cheated and name two blogs for No. 1, but c’mon, you already knew she would top the list.

2) Tuesday, Nov. 21
Richards has forever tainted memory of Kramer
By: Stephanie Netherton

"Part of being a stand-up comic is being heckled. I've seen comedians fire back at audience members and it's just uncomfortable for everyone else. After all, we go to comedy shows to laugh. Richards, as a long-time professional, should have been able to handle the hecklers. Instead, he fires off the "n-word" over and over again and with enthusiasm remarks about a time when blacks were victims of civil rights abuses."

This incident got the nation talking and forced everyone to take notice. It served as a catalyst of several other incidents and a reminder that yes, racism and hate speech do exist.

3) Thursday, Feb. 21
Where is her mother?
By: Melinda Williams

"After a week that has included two less-than-daylong stints in rehab (yes, two, read about the latest one here), a shaved head and a couple of tattoos, Britney's mother is no where in sight.I'll admit, I don't know the inner workings of their relationship and maybe she's in this messy mix, desperately trying to save her daughter, but I haven't seen her and all signs point to her not being there.Maybe I'm overstepping my bounds, telling a grown woman how to raise her adult child. But I know if I had two young children, was divorcing a deadbeat husband and started partying all the time with some questionable characters, as soon as my mother got wind of it, she would be on my doorstep."

Another Britney Spears blog entry. Who knew her near-ruined life would warrant so many blog posts?

4) Wednesday, Feb. 28
Enough Tyra!!!

By: yours truly, Ashley Northington

"I think its great that Tyra can be a role model for regular-sized folks like myself. I think its cool that she often tries to encourage young girls to love themselves. But to flaunt around in a bikini and commemorating yourself in the name of (Black History Month) is a stretch to me, regardless of the message.I think I've had enough. Am I alone?"

Good grief. The one thing she does is try to relate to everyone, but she can't. According to her, she's fat, ugly, pregnant, historic, Spanish-speaking, homeless and dead. And she's none of those things. Need I say more?

5) Thursday, Feb. 8
Sometimes shock and Sadness travel together
By: Melinda Williams

"Anna Nicole was a nearly endless source of entertainment for us celebrity watchers, but beneath it all, she was a real person. No matter how crazy and unbelievable her life was, her death is probably the most shocking thing she's done."

Man, oh man. We never saw Anna Nicole Smith’s death coming. Mel said the most shocking thing she ever did in her life was die…

6) Wednesday, Dec. 27
Huh? Beyonce nominated for a Golden Globe
By: Janelle Rucker

"The only times I thought she was good in the two hour musical was when she was performing on stage and, hello, that’s no stretch considering that's what she does for a living.I will be shocked, and lose the last little bit of faith I have that these awards are truly based on talent, if Beyonce beats out Meryl Streep for The Devil Wears Prada, Renee Zellweger for Mrs. Potter, or others in the category."

We all know ‘B’ can definitely sing. But act? Janelle says that’s a different story. I guess sometimes its best to stick with what you know.

7) Tuesday, Nov 21
You know who’s really cool?
By: Joel Anderson

"Jay-Z is cool. Really cool. Probably cooler than Miles Davis, who might have invented the concept of being cool in the early 1950s.Today, Jay-Z released his ninth hip-hop album, "Kingdom Come" after a self-imposed, two-year retirement. And while it's a subpar album - by his standards, of course (it would be a masterpiece for someone like Lil' Boosie), Jay-Z could probably care less."

How could we mention Beyonce without her superstar, mega mogul boyfriend Jay-Z? Ah, the BJay duo (look how I just merged their names like entertainment media do names like TomKat, Bennifer and Brangelina) , I love it.

8) Thursday, April 5

"And they said it wouldn't last!" and I guess they were right...
By: Donecia Pea

"I’ll never forget their impromptu dance routine in a parking lot somewhere in Atlanta where they broke it DOWN as only they could, lip synching, pop-locking and such to the Black-Eyed Peas hit “Shut Up.”
I swear they seemed in tune, entangled in what appeared to be a blend of drug-induced highs, craziness and just plain ol’ ghetto foolishness that only they could understand. I mean, if it weren't for their union, we might not have had classic lines like "Crack is wack." and so on ..."

Wow. When you crash and burn, it really hurts. We’re wondering who’s going to end up looking wackier in the Bobby Brown/Whitney Houston divorce.

9) Friday, June 8
Someone had to post this on here sometime
By: Adam Causey

"OK, if you haven't seen the original, here's a speeded up version of this guy's rant. The name is Chris Crocker. Google it. There's lots out there."

Adam was right; someone had to post it to our blog. I’ve got one word for it: ridiculous.

10) Wednesday, May 23
Leaving Flav and the Girls Alone
By: me—again

"I became a loyal fan of the I Love New York show. I watched because I saw the pain on her face when she was humiliated by Flavor Flav twice when he decided to choose another girl over her. I watched her show because a big part of me wanted her to find a love of her own.Then she was dumped again. This time by a man of her own choosing. And the world watched as she cried. Now the search continues to find her a mate. Viewers can even cast votes for who they think should be on the show.I'm not watching. I'm tired.But the Charm School program takes the cake. I've watched all the episodes thus far and I am not entertained. I'm ashamed."

This show and its spin-offs have sparked more controversy among top-notch media moguls, pop-culture junkies and black leaders. There are still shows on now. When will it end? It already has for me.

Scroll our archives for these honorable mentions:

A little Common sense

Serial adopters trying to save the world

What would you do when face to face with the famous?

Female Chauvanists?

How could we have avoided… a Borat?

One last look at the week that was

Enough Already

Trick or Treat

A day in Hollywood South and many, many more…

What did you think of this year's celebrity news?

We’ve had hits, but here are some misses

Like any younglings, new bloggers can sometimes make mistakes. Looking back on a year’s worth of posts, here are five we kind of wish we hadn’t done. Or that we at least would have done differently. This is only a list, not a ranking.

Nov. 4: Sunny skies...
By Janelle Rucker

“Man, I’ve figured out my favorite thing about Shreveport so far - the weather. I love it.

“I talk to my friends back in Ohio and Virginia/Maryland and they’ve been dealing with Old Man Winter pretty consistently already. I didn’t know how I was going to deal with a place that residents warned only has one season, but it hasn’t been that bad. Though it did get pretty hot this summer, it has cooled off without getting too cold. But I will admit, there were a few days last week that had me wondering if I was back up north.”

To paraphrase the writer’s own recent commentary on this particular entry, isn’t talking about the weather something older folks do? And she has since retracted her statement about liking so called one-season weather. She says she would like a little more distinction.

To be fair, though, this was not the only climate-related entry among the bunch. I contributed at least two (including one from Feb. 21 about driving with the windows down. We’ll try to keep our musings on sunshine, rain and wind to a minimum.

May 8: Want some Cocaine?
By Donecia Pea

“Ok, this is silly, but I was just wondering something.

“When it comes to energy drinks, is it just me or can folks can come up with some pretty random, strange names?

“I mean there’s Red Bull, SoBe, Full Throttle, energy drink-turned anthem Rockstar and please don’t remind me of that god-awful name Pimp Juice. But what do you know about that Cocaine? No, seriously, that’s the name of one of the newest energy drinks out there. Not for long though.

“Now, I’m not even into energy drinks and to me, this name tops ‘em all in craziness.”

This blog – like the product – is silly, according Link222 founder herself .Does ANYONE even drink this stuff?


Nov. 22: Grown and Sexy, No. 1
By Joel Anderson

“This is the debut of a weekly feature on the blog, somewhat childlishly dubbed “Grown & Sexy.” Every week, we’ll feature some of Shreveport-Bossier City’s most “desirable” young professionals, both men and women, on the blog. We plan to rotate weekly between the men’s and women’s picks, running the item on Wednesdays.

“There’s not much of a selection process here. Just whenever one of us sees someone who would make a good G&S model and we happen to have a digital camera, we’ll take their picture and a few notes.

"Here’s our first victim, er, choice. I met Melissa Dameworth through mutual friends, particularly since she used to work here at The Times. Unfortunately for us - particularly me, she’s moved on to a better-paying job with better hours. But we still think a lot of her in here. Certainly, I do.”

I’m not saying the idea of this one actually missed the mark. I thought it could be fun, and maybe bring that local celebrity status some of us secretly hope for anyway. And I certainly don’t intend to disrespect Melissa, the reigning queen of our one-time contest.

The thing that went wrong here was that Link’s Grown & Sexy plane never really took off. I’m not really sure why. It’s not that we discuss it among the group. It was met with some opposition. But we probably should’ve planned better – or at least gotten consensus – if we were going to announce a weekly post that had only one real go.

Should we revive it?

April 18: Blown away…
By Ashley Northington

“Today’s my day to blog. But I just looked at Cho Seung-Hui’s video to NBC headquarters.

“I can not process my thoughts. Maybe I shouldn’t even be writing but its my turn.

“A part of me feels sorry for him. He was obviously dealing with some demons that he couldn’t handle appropriately. His anti-rich diatribe makes me feel sorry for his dry-cleaning store-working parents who probably worked hard to maintain life in their Washington suburb.

“I feel bad that Cho felt it was necessary to cause this magnitude of pain to absolve his own.

“But another part of me is upset...so upset I can’t even begin to articulate my feelings. He didn’t have to kill and injure all those people.”

Writing about this year’s tragedy at Virginia Tech obviously is tough. In Ashley’s on words since then, it was her “poor attempt at a stream of consciousness blog.” I don’t know if I totally agree. There was a lot of honesty in what she wrote, even if it was hard to pull together. But we’re not all William Faulkner, and that style doesn’t always work.

Even if the author thinks her blog will be forgotten, we certainly won’t stop thinking about the events of April 16 for a long time.

Nov. 10: Shameless promotion
By Adam Kealoha Causey

“Janelle and I got the surprise of our blog lives recently: Johnny Q. Public actually knew about Link 222.

“Granted, our new pal Goodwin thought the name was Link 122… but man, it was kind of exciting to find out people are reading this with basically no advertising so far.

“We met Goodwin at Stray Cat (which also happens to be located at a 222 address) through my dear little (but grown) sister. She told him we were Times reporters and he immediately asked if we blogged on … “122 or whatever it’s called.”

“But we knew what he meant.”

The title alone should be enough to say why this one didn’t work. Anytime you have to sell yourself so obviously, it makes you look kind of cheap. And that’s certainly not to say anything bad about Goodwin, who still reads our blog from what I can tell. Wait, did I just shamelessly promote again? Oh great…

Get Linked Up:Young professionals mixer

If you missed the last gathering of Shreveport's young professionals, the Northwest LA Young Professionals are giving you another chance to mix and mingle this week:

WHAT: After Work Party and Food Drive.

WHEN: 5:30 p.m. until, Thursday.

WHERE: Kon Tiki Lounge, 5815 Youree Drive.

COST: Free with a canned good. $5 drink specials.

CONTACT: 677-2505 to RSVP.

Getting hot and heavy

The past year has been filled with some good dialogue.
Initiated by crazy posts and followed up with even crazier comments, we (and by that I mean us bloggers and ya'll readers) have talked about a little bit of everything - celebrities, social issues and personal triumphs.

Below is a list of the 10 blog posts that really got us talking and received the most comments. And feel free to take this walk down memory lane with us. To read the full post and all the comments, either click on the title or check the archives to the left.

April 10: Say What?!
By Donecia Pea
21 comments
"I’m so sick of folks hiding behind everything but the truth. You can’t ever make me believe that (Don) Imus, a man who's old enough to have lived through segregation, the civil rights movement, the second wave women's liberation movement and a host of other milestones in human history, wasn’t fully aware of what he said or the ramifications of what he said when he said it. Words rarely roll of the tongue without some thought behind them.
Whether intentional or not, words reflect conscious thoughts held in your mind based on your own belief system and perception. They're ingrained somewhere in your psyche, waiting to be used."

April 29: No more excuses
By Janelle Rucker
19 comments
"Ashley, our new co-worker Velda and I were at a popular downtown nightclub Friday when we encountered something we’ve come up against many times before – a Caucasian girl doing her best impression of a black girl. Or at least, what they think all black girls act like...
As always, I excused her. Told myself she meant no harm. But I’m tired of that. They always get excused. Always."

Sept. 30: Dr. Phil and the Jena Six
By Janelle Rucker
18 comments
"I thought it was interesting to see the Barkers discuss what has happened. Justin Barker was in the audience, instructed by a lawyer not to discuss the fight, but he said he’s doing OK now.
Dr. Phil asked his parents if they thought his life 'hung in the balance' after the fight where the six students punched and kicked him, to which they replied, 'yes,' to which I replied, 'then why did you let him go to a social function later that evening?'

April 17: A solution for the murderous among us
By Joel Anderson
15 comments
"While reflecting on the almost unspeakable tragedy at Virginia Tech on Monday, I couldn't help but wonder if our country's obsession with gun possession wasn't a major problem.
No one should be able to buy a gun as easily as they can purchase a car or a stereo or a cell phone. If certain drugs are off-limits to our citizens for their own protection, why wouldn't guns merit the same sort of restrictions? We apparently need to protect ourselves from ourselves more than ever. Rolling back some of our gun rights would be a good place to start."

Sept. 13: Ode to Kanye, Verse 2
By Donecia Pea
15 comments
"Yes, he’s known for throwing the occasional public tantrum and saying whatever’s on his mind (i.e. “George Bush doesn't care about black people.) But have you ever really listened to his lyrics?
They’re clever, gritty, humorous and at times relatable.
In case you hadn’t figured it out yet by our blog posts and comments, Kanye has quite the fan base here with some of us Link222 bloggers.
It was difficult to do, but we picked out at least 10 of our all-time favorite Kanye lyrics as well as 10 of our all-time favorite songs."

June 3: Bad Service
By Melinda Williams
14 comments
"At the end of meal, everyone got their checks. Into the little check-credit card holder thingamabob, I slipped at $10 bill to settle up my $4.35 tab. What I got back was a $5 bill -- that's it. The waiter had kept my 65 cents! I would've just asked him for it (not that I should need to considering it's my money) but I had to go back to work. But what he did really, REALLY aggravated me and I remembered his name, so I wrote him a note basically saying that I didn't appreciate what he did and had he not done that, he would have gotten a slightly better tip."

May 1: The final frontier: Help!
By Donecia Pea
14 comments
"Ok, so I haven't fully joined the 21st century yet in terms of technology. As hip as I like to think I still am, there's still one frontier I haven't reached – the land of the mp3 player."

Oct. 5: Missing a meal or two or three
By Joel Anderson
14 comments
"I was only back home for a couple days and I definitely couldn't eat everywhere that I wanted to. Man, if only I could have brought a few of those places back with me to Bossier.
Couldn't we use a PF Chang's? Or a Pappadeaux's (I know my friend Nishia is feeling me on this one)? What about places like Chipotle, Pappasito's, The Aquarium, Black Walnut Cafe?"

March 16: Serial adopters trying to save the world
By Ashley Northington
12 comments
"I had to choke back chunks of vomit when I read Angelina Jolie had adopted her third child. Sorry to be so graphic here but I just don't get it. It's Jolie's right to adopt whoever she chooses but this trend of adopting overseas is annoying at best. Madonna, Mia Farrow, and even Josephine Baker come to mind when I think of the cheesy, "We are the world", rainbow and cookie-cutter families. Maybe these people have good intentions but it seems as if Jolie is working hard to become the poster child for the serial adopters. She's making me sick."

Nov. 7: CNN no news updates
By Diane Haag
12 comments
"CNN Breaking News: 'Britney Spears files for divorce from her husband Kevin Federline, citing irreconcilable differences.' First of all, didn't we all know that was coming? And secondly, since when does that (I refuse to call it "news") deserve to be urgently shipped to my inbox with headlines such as Saddam Hussein's death sentence or a plane crash in New York?"

Link222: One year later (Is it that time already?)

Wow, it’s hard to believe that it’s been a whole year since we let you into our lives, our thoughts, our world.

When we started Link222 last year, we did it with the intention of giving you a chance to see the real people behind the bylines. We wanted to let you in on our thoughts, opinions, experiences, observations. And on top of that, we invited you to share your own thoughts, opinions, experiences and observations with us.

Sometimes you liked us and let us know. Sometimes you strongly disagreed with us and let us have it. Most importantly, you read us…again and again, making us one of the top read Times blogs.

So by now, either you see we’re just normal people, not that different from you or any other young adults you know. Or you think we’re absolutely insane. Whatever you think, we thank you for all of your comments, the mean ones, the nice ones and even the non-existent ones that you didn’t bother leaving. Most of all, we thank you for stopping by to check us out. And we hope you keep reading and keep telling your friends to keep reading as well.

Stay tuned for more. As you can see we’re changing things up around here and there’s a lot more to come. Don’t be afraid to give us feedback, positive or negative. If you don’t know by now, we love that.


In the meantime, check back here throughout the week as we take a look back at the best, the worst, and the funniest moments of Link222: Year One.

Boring, Bobby?

"If I go down as one of the more boring but effective governors, I'll take that as a great compliment. Our people don't want to be amused by our politics anymore. We don't want to be entertained."

--Bobby Jindal at an Oct. 21 news conference, one day after Louisiana voters here made history by electing him, the first Indian-American governor in the nation.

Is it just me, or am I the only one perplexed (and slightly amused) by his comment?

Nothing, and I do mean nothing, about Piyush “Bobby” Jindal is boring. With his name-changing, religion ditching and seemingly race switching, he is far from boring. I could argue that he is entertaining.

Maybe.

I mean I like that he’s vowed to clean up corruption and has embraced his image as a bureaucratic, methodical leader. I admire that he’s only 36 and has already achieved far more than most ever will in a lifetime. Ten lifetimes.

Jindal is setting himself up to be one of our nation’s presidents and I can’t knock him for his tenacity for running for governor twice before he won—outright this time. I can’t say anything bad about his ambition; he’s already served as a congressman and director of health and hospitals for the state. He’s got a young family and seems to have some good ideas about moving the state forward.

But what I can say about Jindal is that his background is storied: converted to Catholicism in college at Brown University. Ditched his given name of Piyush for Bobby (he got that from the Brady Bunch). He is a Republican when most Indian Americans aren’t. It all makes for very interesting conversation. I almost want some type of in-depth look at these things, especially now that he’s the state’s ambassador.

Call me crazy, but maybe Bobby isn’t.

Maybe all that swapping, likening himself to what most politicians are: white and male, is about just that. Maybe he thought he couldn’t win an election, especially in this state, without doing all the things he’s done. Maybe he hasn’t abandoned his culture totally, as some have already suggested, but maybe he was doing what he felt he had to win.

Is that so bad?

Maybe.

When bad things happen to good people...

The whole “Sometimes bad things happen to good people” saying is a fact of life. I’ve heard this before. I know this. I understand this.
But it’s something about when that saying comes to life and lands on your doorstep that phrases like that become incomprehensible. And as you try to process something so horrific, the only thing you find yourself asking is “Why?”

That’s how I’ve been feeling lately. In fact, that’s about the only word that’s played in the background of my thoughts ever since Friday night. See, the spotlight story by Janelle Rucker that ran on Monday’s front page – that was about my church member. That was my church that was affected and those are me and my people that have been completely devastated by the loss of Sandra “Sister” Vanzant Campbell. And we’ve been functioning in a cloudy haze ever since.

See, we’re one of those kind of small, close-knit churches where our members feel more like family than random people we worship with every Sunday. And to know Sister is to know that this hardworking, fun-loving, praise-filled mother, daughter, sister, soon-to-be grandmother didn’t deserve to be shot down like a dog. That kind of stuff isn’t supposed to happen to people like that. Right?

I’ve known Sister ever since I was 7 years old. That’s when my dad became pastor at the church where he grew up in South Mansfield. And just as they said in the story, Sister always kept you laughing and she was one of church’s hardest workers. Funerals, festivals, holidays, fundraisers, whatever, Sister was always there helping out, planning, coordinating.

And she loved to get her praise on. I’m the musician at my church and there were many Sundays when I and the choir members would stifle giggles watching Sister up on her feet rocking her head with her eyes closed, bouncing her shoulders, clapping her hands and two-stepping from side to side enjoying the music and singing her heart out.

Her nickname “Sister” couldn’t have been more fitting because she was definitely like a big sister, aunt or cousin to everyone. Her daughter Jamia shares her same sense of humor and has always been like a kid sister to my own sister and me.

And that's why I struggle to understand what makes a man walk into a house of defenseless women and children, open fire on a woman he once claimed to love as she flees for her life, shoot her down like a dog, then come BACK in the house and shoot her pregnant daughter in front her grandma and young niece and nephew.

It’s taken me awhile to even come to the point of expressing myself on here because I’m so filled with shock, hurt and anger that some of my thoughts toward her killer are just plain inappropriate. I guess I’m in the anger stage of the grieving process.

I know violence is, unfortunately, a sad reality of life. And it’s so sad and wrong that people have to deal with this on a daily basis. That same weekend a 9-year-old honors student Treveon Hunter was gunned down in a drive-by shooting. And I know there’s probably hundreds more all over the country that died by gunfire just this past weekend alone.

And when I hear of this happening to other people I shake my head, I say a prayer and I go on with my day. But when it comes out of nowhere and hits you in the gut like this…The pain is indescribable.

I look at Sister’s mom and sister and brothers. And I visit Jamia who’s lying in a hospital bed crying for her mom, knowing she’ll never see her again and I wonder how we’ve come to live in a world where this is normal.

I mean, what’s the answer ya’ll? For real, what’s the answer?

Moms. Gotta love 'em.

My mom came to visit this week for a little bit of peace and relaxation, meanwhile sending me back 10 years and thousands of miles to Alexandria, Va.

When I would come home from work my bed would be made, the kitchen cleaned, a fresh garbage bag in the trash can.

One day she even gave me lunch money!

Don't get me wrong, I love being around my mom and always miss her. This is the farthest I've been from home and the longest I've gone without seeing her.

I went through that whole phase where I wanted to be very independent and didn't want my mother's help for anything. And, unfortunately, I'm not talking about the Terrible Two's. It was more like the early Troubled Twenties.

But an old journalism professor advised me to enjoy it while I can and let her help me, because it could also be helping her. (I guess he was referring to some kind of empty nest syndrome or something.)

So I look at it that way. Most of my friends call me spoiled, but I consider it helping my mother. Lol.

But on a serious note, moms are awesome - especially mine. It's nice to know I can throw my fits and try my hardest to be a successful adult, but she'll always be there to help me when I need it. (And some times when I think I don't.)

We’re almost a year old!

We can hardly believe it, so it must be hard for you to swallow, too: the Link222 crowd has been at this attempt at harnessing some of the area’s young energy for just about a year.

That seems crazy. But saying time flies sounds more like an old fogie instead of a hip twentysomething, right?

Either way, what’s a birthday without a celebration? To start, we’d like to get your thoughts on our first year of existence. Tell us what you like and what you don’t.

And since we and many of ya’ll seem to be fans of lists, let’s start some. What are your favorite 5 or 10 Link222 blog entries? Which ones did you absolutely hate?

Or how ‘bout the top news or entertainment stories we’ve blogged about? Or maybe even the best photos we’ve posted here?

So come on and digitally chime in to help us into the Terrible Twos. (OK, we hope not too terrible. But that’s why we need your help!)

Glover chats with young proz

Following up on a previous post from Donecia, three of us Link folks attended Mayor Cedric Glover's chat with about 30 young professional-types tonight at the Stoner Avenue Marina.

There wasn't a whole lot said that most of us probably haven't heard. But it was refreshing to be among other people in their 20s and 30s who care about the direction of the city with a mayor who was taking the time to listen to their questions. And no, it wasn't just other journalists and government staffers.

Talk-back topics ranged from downtown development to Shreveport Regional Airport and Cyber Command.

Glover on anyone who doesn't think Shreveport still can improve (referring to his "next great city of the South" slogan): "That's like me telling you I'm not fat."

The fat jokes may get a little old. But although that statement itself wasn't addressing anything specific, it was honest.

One announcement I hadn’t heard but that will be worth checking out: The mayor will give a state of the city talk Nov. 7 at Riverview Theatre. It starts at 4:30 p.m.

Aside from the good company, the food wasn't half bad. The marina apparently is catering now. I've never eaten anything there besides a burger, so I was pleasantly surprised with party food: meat pies, crab cakes, chocolate-covered strawberries and some kind of cinnamon twist dessert I really liked.

Some pics should be posted soon, but blogger's giving me problems tonight.

What's with rain and issues with my car?

This isn't really to gripe, but I guess it's just a little ironic. Overall, I am fortunate when it comes to cars and their related problems. My 2001 Grand Am is the fourth car I've driven. (When my parents were my age, they might have been sharing their second or third.) I've dealt mostly with flat tires, which I can handle, and they usually have been in my driveway.

But the last couple of times something has gone wrong, I've been stuck waiting for a tow truck in the rain. (Or for Pop-A-Lock, like in a previous blog.) Today I was taking my grandmother grocery shopping, and we stopped by the bank first. After handling the financial business I came back and tried to crank the car. And it wouldn't. I'm no expert, but it seems like a fuel-related problem. (And I don't mean I just forgot to gas up, all you wise guys out there.)

We had been talking as we headed west on Highway 80 about how it would be nice if the rain could wet her yard out in Doyline. We hadn't seen too many drops... until I stepped out of the car to look under the hood.

Fortunately a mechanic shop I have used in the past was within walking distance, so I headed over. And now I will wait for my sick car's diagnosis... and the dreaded bill.

The whole deal just felt a little like a movie. The conversation that seemingly jinxed our morning shopping trip. The slow but steady precipitation that soaked me as I scampered across the ditch-of-a-median to the car place.

But, hey, it happens. And at least I have a car to borrow during repairs. And at least I deposited a little money... that I will likely be spending soon. But I was proud I didn't get frustrated or even cuss. (OK, that may have been because Granny was with me.)

Let your thoughts be heard...

So we’ve reported on it, we’ve talked about it on here plenty and we’ve heard many of your thoughts as well.

Well now, it looks like everyone may have a chance to be heard about what you’d like to see in “the next great city of the South.”

My fellow Byrd alum Jeff Everson has organized a meet and greet with Mayor Cedric Glover in which he wants to hear the city’s young adults on their perspective of Shreveport and how to make it better.

Jeff said the idea came from a conversation he and the mayor had about the young perspectives on the city, new ideas for the city and so on.

I thought it was an invite-only type of thing, but it turns out the event is open to anyone, particularly young adults, who want to share their thoughts with the mayor and maybe meet some other young adults in the city. (Yeah, as it turns out they actually do exist!)

He’s only asking that you RSVP just so they can plan appropriately. So here’s the breakdown of it all:

WHAT: Meet and Greet with Mayor Glover.
WHEN: 5:30 p.m., Tues. Oct. 16.
WHERE: Stoner Avenue Marina, 851 E. Stoner.
RSVP: Jeff Everson, 347-2554 or eversonjeff@hotmail.com.

P-funkin' at the Revel

It’s been two whole days since George Clinton tore the roof off the mutha at The Red River Revel Saturday night and I’m still recovering.

My mental playlist is on a continuous stream of George Clinton-induced phrases and choruses like “We Want the Funk” and “Make my funk the p-funk” and “One Nation under a Groove.”

If you missed it, I’m so sorry for you because it looked like all of Shreveport was there, all races, ages, everything. I even saw folks my parents age, black and white, getting DOWN!

I’m telling you, that was one of THE best concerts I’ve ever gone to in my life – and I’ve been to my share of concerts. And I’m not just saying that because I and fellow Times staffers Ashley Northington, Janelle Rucker, Nishia Livingston and Velda Hunter got a once-in-a-lifetime chance to actually dance onstage with George Clinton and ‘nem for their closing song “Atomic Dog.” (Yes, that was us on stage, purses and all.)

Two words for that moment: absolutely surreal! And of course, I didn’t have my digital camera to capture it. So, my blurry cell phone camera had to do. Unfortunately, I haven’t learned how to take a pic of myself while dancing, lol.

Me, Ashley and Nishia with Parliament band member Carlos before we went on stage.

Velda with Carlos

Btw, that's Ashley's hair on the left side of the pic. And yes, she's dancing with George Clinton.

Carlos and Nishia get down to "Atomic Dog."

Anyway, for better-looking, professional pics, check out the photo gallery by Times photographer Doug Collier.

Missing a meal or two or three

I've never had a problem finding a meal, oftentimes a good one, here in the Shreveport-Bossier area.

From Catfish Village in west Shreveport to the new Ta Molly's in north Bossier and all points in between, I've eaten at plenty of decent places during my year and a half in town. I love Ralph & Kacoo's, sometimes I get a craving for Guillaumes’ at the Chateau and every now and again I stop by Sushiko at the Boardwalk. And, hey, my one visit to the Village Grille was very nice.

Then again, after consecutive weekend visits to Houston and then Dallas, I still feel a little deprived. (Disclaimer: I was raised in Houston and lived in the Dallas-Fort Worth area for nearly eight years. Btw, the Metroplex is often touted as having more restaurants per capita than New York City).

I was only back home for a couple days and I definitely couldn't eat everywhere that I wanted to. Man, if only I could have brought a few of those places back with me to Bossier.

Couldn't we use a PF Chang's? Or a Pappadeaux's (I know my friend Nishia is feeling me on this one)? What about places like Chipotle, Pappasito's, The Aquarium, Black Walnut Cafe?

Sure, most of the places I've listed here are chains. But Super Target and Wal-Mart and J.C. Penney are chains and I don't here anyone complaining about their presence in town.

Are there any places that you all would like to see come to the Shreveport area? I get the feeling that Mayor Glover checks out this site from time to time, so maybe if we protest loud enough, he might look into our prospects for luring new eateries.

What places would you like to set up shop here?

Pass the Kleenex

So, I’ve been all geeked and DVR-ready for the new TV season and was all too excited to catch the season premieres of my favorite shows.
My TV show lineup went a little something like this: Last Thursday night ABC shows “Ugly Betty” and “Grey’s Anatomy” on through Sunday with ABC shows “Desperate Housewives,” (Yes, I STILL watch that show,) and “Brothers and Sisters” and then rounding it off Monday night with my CW show “Girlfriends” and my latest addition “The Game.”

And while I enjoyed all the twists and turns of the storylines in each of these show’s episodes, is it me or were they a bunch of sad, tear-jerker storylines?

I mean, I expect to grab some Kleenex for Grey’s Anatomy - that’s just a given. But “Ugly Betty”???! That was one of the cruelest surprises of all because through most of the show, they gave me a false sense of relief that Santos was actually alive and recovering from what looked like a fatal gunshot. Then, in the last five to 10 minutes of the show, we realize it was all in Hilda’s head. I mean that was incredible writing, but so awfully heartbreaking…

And the rest of my shows pretty much continued the same way. I mean there’s Lynette’s cancer battle on “Desperate Housewives,” and the dangling cliffhanger on whether or not Justin survived the bomb explosion in “Brothers and Sisters;” the emotionally explosive and almost violent dissolution of Melanie and Derwin’s relationship on “The Game.”

Then, just when I really thought I was gonna get my laugh on watching one of my favorite shows “Girlfriends” it got all serious at the end when Joan’s fiancée is called to war! I mean, they coulda thrown Joan a bone after all the drama and insanity she’s gone through to find the love of her life.

Man…I need to them lighten up on these storylines. Is anyone else feeling me on this on any of these shows or any of the season premieres of your favorite shows? Or maybe I just need to freshen up my TV lineup.

One Year

I made it!

I've actually lived in Shreveport for an entire year. I can hardly believe it's been12 months since I packed up my familiar Nashville life to trade it in for a confusing, sometimes scary and independent Shreveport life. But I did it.

And I think I'm a better person for it.

Things I've learned: I've gained some culinary skills of which I'm most proud because my Grandmama always said I'd never cook anything. I've learned to find some happiness in silence and loneliness, which is also good because my Mother predicted early on that I'd get homesick and leave here. I know that family will help you through tough times--just ask my Dad's wallet.

A major part of my move was to prove to myself that I can live outside of my hometown. I got so sick while attending college in Chattanooga (which is only an hour and a half away from Nashville) that I left a tuition-paid scholarship to come back home to finish college there. My first newspaper job was even in Nashville, it's a part of the same family as The Times.

I still can't believe it's been a whole year.

It's been so fun. I've met so many great people and I get to cover a beat that I absolutely love. I've seen a new mayor take office (and even attended the party to celebrate), a school district superintendent leave and I'm watching the state's gubernatorial race unfold. I even had a birthday.

Wow.

I imagine these warm and fuzzy feelings will subside once I'm given my yearly evaluation.

Yikes.