Post-Tribune

Stax’s past influences future musicians in Memphis

Thu, 16 May 2013 23:03:19 -0500

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — One by one the teenage singers practice the opening lines to “Boogie Wonderland,” a disco-funk hit from an era before they were born, as dancers work on hip-swinging moves that require perfect choreography. In another room, young musicians play the same song over and over on guitar, piano and drums, trying to get in rhythm and in tune before the singers and dancers join them to rehearse for an outdoor concert. The music hits a fevered high as the singers and the band mesh to recreate a pop classic. Scenes like this play out daily at …

Saving for a rainy day can wait for teen

Fri, 17 May 2013 10:24:00 -0500

Dr. Wallace: I’m a 15-year-old young lady. I’m very active in school, and I get very good grades. I’m very thankful that my parents give me an allowance of $15 a week, and I do all of my assigned chores faithfully. But, now comes my problem. My dad is forcing me to put $5 of my weekly allowance in the bank. He says that he is teaching me the value of saving for a “rainy day.” Well, for me, it rains every day. When my friends go to the mall on a Saturday afternoon, I rarely go because I don’t …

Out of the shadows: How ‘Smokey Joe’s Cafe’ dancer picks a partner

Thu, 16 May 2013 02:29:13 -0500

On this night, the woman plucked from the audience for a “Loving You” slow dance is a 70-year-old from Munster, who says the songs take her back to high school homecoming.

UN promotes adding insects to diets

Tue, 14 May 2013 13:50:01 -0500

ROME (AP) — The U.N. has new weapons to fight hunger, boost nutrition and reduce pollution, and they might be crawling or flying near you right now: edible insects. The Food and Agriculture Organization on Monday hailed the likes of grasshoppers, ants and other members of the insect world as an underutilized food for people, livestock and pets. A 200-page report, released at a news conference at the U.N. agency’s Rome headquarters, says 2 billion people worldwide already supplement their diets with insects, which are high in protein and minerals, and have environmental benefits. Insects are “extremely efficient” in converting …

More than just a mother, now she’s your ‘friend’

Sat, 11 May 2013 22:25:13 -0500

Josh Knoller, a young professional in New York City, spent years refusing his mother’s “Friend Request” on Facebook before, eventually, “caving in.” Today they have an agreement: she’ll try not to make embarrassing comments, and he can delete them if she does. “We actually got into some pretty big fights over this,” says Knoller, 29. “I love my Mom to death but she’s a crazy, sweet Jewish mother and I was a little worried about what she might post in front of my closest friends.” As Mother’s Day approaches, 1 in 3 mothers are connected with their teens over Facebook, …

A classic cocktail worthy of Gatsby

Wed, 15 May 2013 10:03:58 -0500

It isn’t the ill-fated love between the fabulously rich Jay Gatsby and the beautiful, but conflicted Daisy Buchanan that whets readers’ palates. It’s everything else manifested in what is now known as the great American novel: a carefully painted portrait of America during the Jazz Age, seductive moonlit parties swelling with lovely girls in even lovelier dresses, orchestras that play swinging two-steps until morning breaks in a dawn of purple and orange, and booze. Pure, intoxicating and highly illegal booze. It is the “incomparable milk of wonder,” according to Fitzgerald. Absinthe, sauternes, gin and champagne—gallons and gallons of the Prohibition …

Cooking with homegrown rhubarb

Wed, 15 May 2013 10:04:50 -0500

Rhubarb is as hardy as a weed. If you are growing rhubarb in your backyard right now, it is probably making its presence known. It is a very beautiful garden plant, with huge extravagant, lush green leaves and pink or red stalks. Rhubarb is an ancient plant as well. Chinese rhubarb has been traced back to 2700 B.C. According to folklore, Chinese doctors recommended it for its medicinal qualities as a laxative, to reduce fever and cleanse the body. Rumor has it that rhubarb grown in the United States does not have the same medicinal value as “true rhubarb” or …

A case of mistaken shih tzu identity

Sun, 12 May 2013 02:09:07 -0500

Dear Ollie: I am a black and white shih tzu like you and I have a strange story to tell. My owners and I just moved from Valparaiso to a new neighborhood in Union Township. Ruby, the cocker spaniel and I were very excited to meet our new dog friends so we got away from our owners and ran to explore the many delicious smells and the exciting sounds of dogs barking close by. These very large dogs were penned in the backyard of neighbors Marcy and Gene. Well, we ran over there, stepped in the flowers and yapped at …

Fitzgerald’s Hollywood ending followed sad death

Thu, 09 May 2013 13:28:00 -0500

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Has-beens in Hollywood usually stay that way. Yet one writer who died there nearly forgotten 73 years ago had one of the most remarkable posthumous revivals in literary history. F. Scott Fitzgerald is back on the big-screen with Leonardo DiCaprio and director Baz Luhrmann’s “The Great Gatsby,” a story adapted for film and television more than half a dozen times since the silent-movie era, when it was published to scant sales in 1925. Within a couple of decades after Fitzgerald’s death in 1940, “Gatsby” was acknowledged as a masterpiece and the author was recognized as one …

Everyone could use a superhero in their life

Tue, 14 May 2013 09:26:40 -0500

I was never big into superheroes and comic books when I was little. My mother was not thrilled with comic books so they tended to be few and far between and always seemed to “disappear” quite quickly. I do remember being intrigued with Wonder Woman. She was really cool. I’ve always wanted a magic lasso. “Mungo and Spiders From Space” by Timothy Knapman and Adam Stower introduces Captain Galacticus and Gizmo. Mungo’s mother has bought him a comic book at a garage sale. It is tattered and taped but still exciting. He begs his mother to read it to him …

Discovery of 3 women recalls past abduction cases

Tue, 07 May 2013 12:06:00 -0500

The discovery of three women in a Cleveland home who all had gone missing separately about a decade ago brings to mind cases of abductions elsewhere. A list of some prominent cases: JAYCEE DUGARD Dugard was abducted in June 1991 on her way to school in South Lake Tahoe, California. Then 11, she was held for 18 years by Phillip and Nancy Garrido. She was raped repeatedly by Garrido and gave birth to two daughters. Dugard was freed in 2009 after she and her two children appeared in public with him and a police interrogation revealed her identity. Convicted of …

Plan a healthy meal for Mother’s Day

Wed, 08 May 2013 02:09:54 -0500

Mother’s Day brings back fond memories. Once my three brothers and I tried to prepare the meal for Mom—back before taking mothers out to eat became so fashionable. I think it ended up being more of a mess than a meal. I remember attempting making breakfast in bed for my Mom one year myself with better success. Of course, Mom told me it was the best! Perhaps this year eating at home can be a treat for moms…if we do the food preparation and clean-up, which are the “hard parts.” Eating at home can also be economical, if the meal …

Make an edible gift for mom with fig preserves

Wed, 08 May 2013 02:09:41 -0500

If celebrating Mother’s Day has reached the point where drugstore bouquets and diner breakfasts constitute a fairly recognizable pattern, then it could be time to bring back the spark to the holiday—for you and for mom. Visions of Mother’s Day celebrations dance in our heads from the earliest days of warm weather. The first spring brunches of the season, freshly snipped flowers from the garden and poignant gifts that speak of crafty talent set the bar. But come Mother’s Day weekend, those very time-consuming parts of the celebration often fall apart. Big aspirations, but little motivation—that seems to be the …

Bogart film festival kicks off in Florida Keys

Fri, 03 May 2013 15:06:01 -0500

KEY LARGO, Fla. (AP) — Several thousand fans of Humphrey Bogart are in the Florida Keys through Sunday to celebrate the legendary actor’s cinematic accomplishments.

New baby challenges dog’s comfort

Sun, 05 May 2013 02:10:52 -0500

Dear Ollie: I’m a loyal, loving and strong English bulldog. My man human and I have been through all sorts of ups and downs and always make it through together. We went to dog parks, to the beach and all around the neighborhood. Then a woman human entered our lives. She seems to like me but I have heard her complain about my “bristly” hair getting on things. She cleans until the house is spotless. When it was my man human and me we stayed together. Now I spend more time in the basement. I do admit they bought me …

A heads-up on headgear for Kentucky Derby day

Thu, 02 May 2013 02:32:07 -0500

The run for the roses is the perfect excuse to be daring with a hat, either subtle or flamboyant and big-brimmed.