BEFORE

AFTER

Go to Ghostprint Gallery for this show tonight or don’t whine to me tomorrow cause you missed something extraordinary. Fair warning to share the bliss tonight.

Once you’ve met a few of rva’s creative finest, it seems inevitable that you’re going to run into them everywhere; it’s just not that big of a place. And as anyone can confirm, few artsy types are only involved in one artistic endeavor. This is a music town and if you play in one band, chances are good you play in other bands, too. Likewise, tattoo artists, photographers, designers and just about everyone else play music. A First Friday is a solid guarantee that I’ll see people we’ve interviewed. A show at the National means I’ll run into a musician we’ve featured. Hell, eating a grilled gouda sandwich at Ipanema is as sure a thing as you could ever hope to bet on. And if I’m going to run into people from whom I’m only separated by a few degrees, I’ll take interesting artistic types over people from my friends’ sexual past any day. Not that I don’t still run into them, too…

She chronicles her 190-day journey on her website where she’s also asking people to submit what they think peace means to them. She hopes to collect one million definitions of the word, so go to www.peacescooter.com and submit.

1. NO children in any restaurants except chain restaurants. I don’t care how well behaved YOU think your child is, I don’t want him in the booth next to me, or being walked up and down the aisle or bothering the wait staff. I go out in the evening to enjoy adult activities in an adult atmosphere and I don’t want to hear your child whining, squealing or otherwise being child like.

2. When I specifically ask for a big glass of water to go with my beverage of choice, I am asking for a reason. I drink a lot of water and if you bring me the typical small water glass, I will have to bother you repeatedly for refills. I don’t want to do this, so please respect my request for a BIG glass and save yourself the extra steps.

3. Music, not TV screens, enhance the dining experience. Even if I choose to sit at the bar when I dine alone (thus leaving a 2 or 4 top for a larger party), I do not want the TV blaring at me while I eat. Let’s just say it’s hard on the digestion and adds nothing to the dining “experience,” which is, of course, the whole point of a restaurant meal to begin with. Music, on the other hand, is a delightful background to good food.

4. No one under any circumstances should be allowed to answer, much less converse, on their cell phone in a restaurant. I am not paying for the restaurant experience to hear your mundane/inane/business/embarrassing conversation. If your phone rings, leave the restaurant and talk away. But spare me having to share the experience.

5. There should always be a chocolate choice on the dessert menu. Enough said.

...sigh...I know it’s a lot to ask for, but it’ll all come to pass once I am queen of the Richmond restaurant world. You’ll see...and we’ll all enjoy dining out more.

MGMT’s psychedelic pop set was exactly what you’d expect after a few listens to their CD, Oracular Spectacular. Fun, poppy and hard not to move to.But it’s Violens I’m looking forward to seeing headline next time I see them so I can hear a longer set of their 80s pop perfection.

Carter Anderson – environmentalist, Save The Trash
He breaks glass bottles for a living – and raises awareness of the environment at the same time. An advocate for reusing and recycling, Carter breaks bottles, mixes it with concrete and creates stunning works of art ranging from stone patio furniture to glass window displays. And he covers up his wounds with cement. Pretty hardcore.

Reggie Pace - musician
Seriously, what band is Reggie not in? Playing trombone for bands like Glows in the Dark, No BS Brass Band and Fight the Big Bull, Reggie brings his enthusiasm and enormous talent to venues all over the Richmond area.

Slash Coleman – artist, playwright
A one man performance artist, Slash offers a humorous and often poignant look at his life and the world around him with performances like “The Neon Man and Me” and “Big Matzo Balls.” He makes us laugh and think at the same time.

Ward Tefft
Chop Suey Books notwithstanding, Ward has been an influential figure in the awareness of literacy and love of old time books. His Books on Wheels movement has collected thousands of used books to donate to needy children and libraries. With increasing technology and general laziness, nobody reads anymore. Ward has been changing that.

Bizhan Khodabandeh & Amanda Robinson – directors of Gallery 5
Gallery 5 has brought no shortage of new and interesting things to the Jackson Ward area. The One Night Only concert series, I Dream of a Richmond and a new resource center are just a few things that come to mind. If not for Bizhan and Amanda, there would be no Gallery 5 and Richmond would seriously be lacking.

Adam Rose – musician
This guy is one very talented musician. Listen to his band Marionette or his solo material and you’ll know what I’m talking about. Adam’s experimental style brings something new to the Richmond music scene that hasn’t been heard before. Plus, Adam is a really nice guy. And you don’t find too many of those around.

Stephen Bowman – G5 Fire
Okay, maybe playing with fire doesn’t exactly create significant change in Richmond. But it is pretty freaking cool. Bowman and the fire performers of G5 Fire perform outside Gallery 5 every First Fridays.

Chris Dorsey – RVA4Peace
The corner of 2nd and Clay would be a much quieter place if Dorsey wasn’t around.  Every week, the group stands outside Rep. Bobby Scott’s office to protest the war in Iraq and elicit cars to honk in support of peace. Whether he has three people with him or 100, he still believes that every voice should be heard by our government.

Ceci Hull – WRIR
Being a volunteer coordinator for an all volunteer independent radio station is no easy task. Ceci Hull makes that task look simple and gives Richmond truly independent radio, which is something we’ve needed for quite some time.

Richmond Craft Mafia
A supportive community of like minded artists, the Mafia provides information and networking outlets for craft makers and independent business owners while they continue to rub out the mass produced.

And for those of you who don’t know any more about Thompson than that his remains were fired out of a cannon, well, too bad for you. They broke the mold after this guy, but his writing will be inspiring generations to come. And for those of you who pride yourself on your pop culture knowledge, a person can’t be truly culturally literate without knowing the story on Hunter S. Thompson. Just so you know.

After feeling very bitter about having to drop out of the competition (stupid actors going M.I.A. and producer having to go to the hospital and having no crew besides myself..... i still say that my film would have been amazing), it was nice to let other people handle all the hassles and frustrations that go with putting together a movie so quickly.

West Grace Productions, headed up by Michael Hagan, picked the “road movie” genre and what followed was a weekend of high-paced creativity, writing, fighting and very little sleep.

The movie follows the character of Sylvester Barlow (played by Josh Hryciak) as a musician searching for his inspiration. His trek takes him to places such as Captain Buzzy’s Beanery, Chop Suey Books and Pony Pastures, among others. I’m not really sure what else happens since I haven’t seen the final product yet.

West Grace’s movie, along with 35 other short films, will be screened at the Byrd Theatre this coming Saturday. Screenings are at 11, 1:30 and 4 for $7 per screening. Or get the all day pass fro $12. Smartest idea ever.

To see what West Grace Productions went though to get their movie finished on time, check out today’s MashUp.