Posted September 16, 2015in Featured Story, Political Mercury
It’s one of those moments that cements a friendship, reveals character in a longtime pal, makes you happy to be riding shotgun in his car. My friend Matt, a Cedar Rapids native now living in Texas, pulled up to a stop sign in Florida. We looked to our left and saw an overweight woman who was slowly,
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Posted September 16, 2015in Featured Story, Locker Room
One in seven American men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in the course of his life. That’s one in seven fathers, husbands, sons, brothers and friends. But you can help raise awareness and keep families together by joining in on the ZERO Prostate Cancer Run/Walk this Saturday at Principal
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Posted September 16, 2015in Belly Up To..., Featured Story
Most everyone who’s looking for a new bar adventure is seeking something that sets one apart from all the others. Sports bars and dance clubs are a dime a dozen — and that’s fine — but the only way to survive in a saturated industry is by being different. Even
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Posted September 16, 2015in Art News, Featured Story
Some geographical coincidences are odd enough to make people wonder about genetic connections or if there’s “something in the water.” How else can you explain the number of baseball’s greatest hitters who came out of southern Alabama (Willie Mays, Henry Aaron, Billy Williams, etc.) or great chefs from eastern Alsace
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Posted September 09, 2015in Belly Up To..., Featured Story
Less than two weeks after its opening in the Capital Square building downtown, Sidebar is still working out all the details that come with a new business. At press time, the lunch menu has yet to be established, for example. But the absence of lunchtime sandwiches is hardly noticed, thanks
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Posted September 09, 2015in Center Stage, Featured Story
You might think Alex Scolari is too young to appreciate “Dirty Dancing” and too much of a California girl to care about Iowa. The movie made a sex symbol of Patrick Swayze back in 1987, years before Scolari was born. Yet in conversation, she upends your expectations. “I’ve always been
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Posted September 09, 2015in Civic Skinny, Featured Story
Iowa State University’s three-year fight against basketball player Bubu Palo ended last week in the Court of Appeals. Once again, Palo won. And, finally, the university is giving up. It let pass the deadline for filing a petition with the Iowa Supreme Court for further review. No matter what the
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Posted September 09, 2015in Featured Story, Food Dude
Mexican cafés have overtaken barbecues as the No. 1 growth industry in Des Moines’ restaurant world. The metro can’t get enough Mexican food. It’s reasonably priced, fresher than most cuisines and usually features well-balanced diets. Two businesses sparked this revolution. Los Laureles anchored the marvelous development that was rebranded La
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Posted September 02, 2015in Center Stage, Featured Story
Up in Ames, they’ve joined the new millennium. Over at the Playhouse, the audience creates a Beatles set, while Des Moines Young Artists participate in a high school shooting. Tallgrass, meantime, offers a reading of an all-new homegrown script. The Temple Theater will bring back Dixie in drag, and the
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Posted September 02, 2015in Featured Story, Locker Room
Hear ye, hear ye! Your attention, please. The Iowa State Fair may be the largest in the state, but if you’re tired of being a spectator, get in on the action at a Renaissance Faire. Lords and ladies are encouraged to come out and take part in the merry-making revelry
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