Favorite Fever Foto of the Week

[click on image for full-size]

- miami fever
- miami-fever.com

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Your Evening Sift

Broward County got whacked with summertime-like thunderstorms and rain this evening. It was nice, however, to stay in and do an evening Sift...

A- The Street has returned from vacation.

B- It's snowing at Dolphin Mall through January 4th, according to The South Florida Traveler.

From November 26th until January 4th, Dolphin Mall’s Magical Snowfall will take place in the Ramblas Plaza. This will take place at 7 pm daily and at 9 pm on the weekends. Children are encouraged to participate in this magical experience by waving magical wands (available to children under 12 whose parents sign up for the mall e-bulletin). When they wave their wands at promptly 7:00 pm, the snow will return during the daily holiday show.

C- This is how we do Christmas in the 305, from 305. [higher ISO or tripod next time...pretty please? :)]

D- The Phin Phinatic is wary after the Dolphins win today.

Make no mistake, there is no smiling after this close win that once again came down to a final drive defensive stop.

While a win is a win, for this team they once again played down to a lesser opponent all the while keeping alive their hopes of a playoff spot. The bigger news however was not the victory in St. Louis but instead the likelihood that the Phins have lost LG Justin Smiley for the rest of the year.

Smiley went down in the first quarter and had to be helped off the field. He did not return.

E- Everglades National Park's Chekika day-use area opens on Monday, according to this Herald link from Homestead is Home.

F- All Purpose Dark links to a New York Post article that names the best Art Basel parties to crash.

G- Coconut Grove Grapevine...unhinged!

There is this guy working at the Hiawatha Project, that Residences of Vizcaya condo thing (which is not anywhere near Vizcaya). Well, he blows a whistle all day long, I think to direct the workers.

One day soon, I am going to walk over and shove that freakin' whistle down his freakin' throat. Trust me. This is going to happen and I'll take pictures.

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SFDB Post of the Week

SFDB selects its Post of the Week by going back and reviewing all the Sifts that we've done during the past 7 days. We find the best post of the week and note the runners ups as we judge them to be.

Posting was a little thin this week due to the holiday, but we still had some quality blogging to pick through for this week's Post of the Week. And as you'll see, images won out over the written word this Thanksgiving week.

Winner: Depth of Field has been contributing some quality photography of the Miami-Dade County area to the South Florida blogsophere for quite some time. This week he put together a dynamite photo exposé of the Miami-Dade Parks Ribfest that was held earlier this month at Homestead Air Reserve Park. The photos perfectly capture the emotion, the flavor, and the people that attended this event in such premium fashion that it rightfully deserves to be the SFDB Post of the Week.

Runners-Up: After the recent death of a Hollywood cop in an exploding police car, Carlos Miller asks what should be a fairly easy question in a post called Why Are Police Departments Still Using Crown Victorias? Justice Building Blog goes to the movies and winds up seeing a movie so powerful that he names a post after it. Always good for a decent story, Hidden City tell us one about his father's carambola tree in Starfruit.

Look for the November Post of the Month poll coming up early this week.

'Till next time, people, keep on blogging!

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A Couple Blog Thangs

It's time again to update the blogroll. I have a number of additions and a couple deletions that need to be taken care of so let's get to it.

First the additions...

Dente Press: After a hiatus, Dente Press is apparently back to a normal posting schedule, so they return to the blogroll.

Miami Metblogs: I'm liking what I'm seeing from Miami Metblogs in its latest incarnation. Daniel M. Perez has taken over the writing and so far, so good. Although he's only been there for a very short time, Perez has generated some unique content that is well-written and informative. I may be pushing it, but I'm going to give Miami Metblogs a shot and add them to the blogroll.

The South Florida Music Scene Past and Present: Man, how I can't stand long blog names. That's one reason why I like Ipanemic so much.

Anyway...SFMSPP came to my attention through the recent City Link Metromix Best Of selections that I recently posted on here at SFDB. Here's how they describe the blog...

This blog is meant to document the South Florida Music Scene of the past and present as well as some bands from North and Central Florida. All the music posted is out of print. [...] This blog is meant to document a scene I have grown up with and still love so I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

Pretty simple. SoFla Music Scene, as they will from now be referred to on the blogroll only updates on Monday and Thursday and uses the Blogger platform.

Miami City Diggs: Miami City Diggs is another real estate blog addressing the very dynamic South Florida real estate market. Jamey Prezzi of Keller Williams Realty, is this Wordpress blog's author and she covers not only Miami but South Beach as well. Miami City Diggs has been active since July of this year.

Jen Stark: Follow along on Miami artist Jen Stark's Wordpress blog as she gets more and more attention for her unique and colorful creations. Stark doesn't post all that often, sometimes taking months between entries, but it's all quality stuff. You'll be able to find Jen Stark in SFDB's Art Blogs blogroll.


And now the deletions...

Cup of Joe: Democrat Joe Garcia's blog is inactive.

Art of Hunger: Last post August 21st.

The Rockford's Miami Art Blog: Last post October 3rd.

Kate's Plates: Last post October 10th.

Haute in the City: Last post October 5th.

Old Grover: Last post October 8th.

We'll continue to monitor these blogs and if they do become active once again, we'll make sure to move them to the regular blogroll.

That's it for now.

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A Set Of Values

George W. Bush...

"I came to Washington with a set of values, and I'm leaving with the same set of values. And I darn sure wasn't going to sacrifice those values; that I was a president that had to make tough choices and was willing to make them," he said.

To which Digby says...

No, it wasn't a tough choice to invade Iraq or ignore Katrina or allow the financial system to run completely amuck. It was a unique combination of stupidity and malevolence, which will be studied for centuries by historians struggling to imagine how such a person was ever given such power by a supposedly democratic people.

I believe he did go to Washington with a certain set of values -- after all he'd signed over 150 death warrants without even reading the paperwork. That's exactly the kind of person who would legalize torture and suspend the constitution. And naturally a man who would steal an election and then govern like he'd won in a partisan landslide would politicize the Justice Department. Surely anyone who would hire a thug like Karl Rove could be expected to spy on Americans and use the presidency for political purposes.

Yes, his values are intact, no doubt about it, and his legacy is intact.

Word.

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The Cooler

Kind of a slow day in the news, folks. Some of the more noteworthy stuff follows...

A- Sun-Sentinel: This should win them loads of sympathy from the public.

The lines for a ride from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport grew longer and longer as the hours passed on Saturday, and still no cabs arrived.

The lane where taxis wait to pick up fares was empty while a mile away at the taxi parking lot, more than a hundred cab drivers stood or sat - and groused.

Taxi drivers that service the airport and Port Everglades went on strike Saturday morning, refusing to answer the dispatcher until their complaints had been resolved. The grievances focused mostly on their competition - Town Cars and shuttle vans - as well as access to Port Everglades.

B- Sun-Sentinel: It's over. Start eating your stockpile of Chef Boyardee.

For the third year in a row, South Florida escaped feeling the wrath of a hurricane yet had a number of close calls.

[...]

In short, we were lucky, said emergency managers and forecasters. The hurricane season ends today.

C- Sun-Sentinel: And the parents were....where?

A 2-year-old girl was shot in the hand by her 5-year-old brother Saturday morning, authorities said.

The boy found the gun belonging to his father, Dominick Scotto, 23, who was home at the time, just before 10 a.m., authorities said. The gun went off as the boy held the weapon, said Alesia Russell, a spokeswoman for the Broward Sheriff's Office.

D- Palm Beach Post: Why the Dolphins won't make the playoffs this year.

E- Herald: From boom to gloom.

TALLAHASSEE -- For the dozen state economists huddled around a table this month to fine-tune Florida's annual revenue forecast, something was different and disturbing.

Their projections from just a year ago were way off. Their new math: In the next four years, the state will take in $31.4 billion less in taxes than expected. That's more than four times the size of the annual Miami-Dade County budget, the equivalent of building about 61 retractable-roof stadiums for the Florida Marlins, and almost half of this year's state budget.

The free fall in revenue that the economists saw Nov. 21 was not as shocking as what caused it: For the first time in decades, fewer people were moving to the state. Florida's legendary growth machine had ground to a halt, compounding the troubles brought on by the global recession.

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Your Morning Sift

Good morning.

I think we're supposed to get some rain today for like the the first time in how many weeks? Here's your morning Sift...

A- Carlos Miller contemplates who is to blame for the Black Friday Wal-Mart death.

Knowing the potential for serious injury, Walmart did nothing to change its opening Black Day tactics. In fact, all it did was hype up Black Friday by pasting a handwritten sign outside the store, stating “Blitz Line Starts Here” to set the mood for customers as to what will happen once the doors open.

B- En Vivo y en Directo posts an excellent video of a recent public television piece on Miami artist Jen Stark.

C- Artlurker takes a look at Rodney Graham, who will be showing his "Mini Rotary Psycho Opticon" at ABMB.

Unlike the Rotary Psycho-Opticon whose circular illusory components are set into a broad metallic façade and powered from the back, the Mini Psycho-Opticon–which first appeared in the solo exhibition Its All Black and White at Rüdiger Schöttle Gallery–has a circular façade and is powered from the front. Although both works are essentially pedal powered machines, the front powered Mini Psyhco-Opticon presents itself at eye level and rather than wooing crowds, its optic chaotic is focused solely on the individual. This, combined with the cardio vascular effects of riding a modified exercise bike allows viewers to pedal themselves into a frenzied psychedelic bliss.

D- Yet another Gridiron Griller presented by the Phin Phanatic. This time they grill up New York Strip Steaks.

E- Flablog finds an old IBM Model M keyboard in a thrift store.

He worked on one of these for years and he always loved the solid, typewritery feel of the thing. And its loud, satisfying sounds. Each key issued two sounds: one on the downstroke; another, slightly softer, on release. A room full of these things sounded like real workplace just before deadline. They're heavy, too. This is not keyboard that slides around on your desk. Slightly bigger keys than present-day keyboards, so they're more forgiving to a heavy handed sloppy typist.

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SFDB Saturday Night Turndown Service

Bonnie Raitt, Thank You

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Your Evening Sift

Man, I'm going to be bummed when this Thanksgiving vacation is over. I'm getting real comfortable doing nothing.

Here's your Saturday evening Sift...

A- Justice Building Blog gets moved by The Boy In The Striped Pajamas.

But what does happen during the last twenty minutes becomes quickly evident as the final scene unfolds. The ending is not a surprise, but it is spellbinding as the movie relentlessly marches towards what becomes a forgone conclusion once a rubicon is crossed.

And then the screen fades slowly to dark and the movie is over, and people in the theatre are just sitting there, exhausted, silently crying, shaken in a Shakespearean tragedy circa Germany 1940.

B- Miamism Pix makes mojitos the old-fashioned way.

C- Reidblog thinks about George W. Bush's belief that history will treat him as a Liberator.

Adolf Hitler claimed he was decimating Europe in order to usher in 1,000 years of peace on earth. Pol Pot died saying his conscience was clear. John Wilkes Booth thought himself a patriot, whose only wrong was in "serving a degenerate people." The murderous Crusades were fought by the Catholic church. Often, men do evil believing themselves to be doing good, or even God's will. Which brings us to the latest in the long line of deluded historical miscreants...

D- South Florida Classical Review takes a critical look at last night's "From Classics to Tango" at the Broward Center’s Amaturo Theater by Misha Dacic and Ilya Itin.

The arrangements (four by Dacic for this event and two by Ziegler) were skillfully executed, but these works can get rather clangorous. I’m not sure that two pianos is the best vehicle for such allusive, genre-traversing music, which benefits from the added colors and flexibility of small ensembles, particularly those with violin and bandoneon.

E- The Phin Phanatic finally completes his tour of the Dolphins locker room. Slowest website in the South Florida blogosphere, by the way.

F- Ipanemic is going to be an author.

So I'm going to go ahead and announce this: I'm putting together a book. A photo book. A coffee table book. The book will contain a host of images centered around one theme that I shoot a lot. And it will contain mostly images that I've never released and doubtfully will other than in printed format. I may make some of the images available for sale as prints, but it's highly unlikely that they'll ever see a digital screen.

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A Black Friday On South Beach...

...is pretty much like any other Friday on South Beach. There was a line outside the Apple Store on Lincoln, however.




For the most part, everyone was just chillin'...



...even the homeless guys...



...as life went on for the residents and visitors of Miami Beach...







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The Cooler

The mainstream media is all over Black Friday as you might expect. Here's some of what I could dig up this morning.

A- Herald: Sudden impact.

Airline passengers traveling aboard a Miami International Airport train Friday were violently tossed from where they stood when their automated vehicle overshot a stop and slammed into a building near a concourse.

The passengers had only the metal poles and handgrips to hold on to when the hard shock rocked the train as it slammed into the structure and injured several, authorities said. The passengers were on their way to catch flights.

[...]

Three were in serious condition and one was listed as critical, according to Miami-Dade Fire Rescue spokesman Lt. Arnold Piedrahita.

B- Herald: Q & A on the new I-95 express lanes.

Q. Can I get in the express lanes from the Julia Tuttle Causeway?

A. Not legally. If you live in Miami Beach and want to use the express lanes to get to the turnpike or the Palmetto Expressway (State Road 826) or points north, you maneuver south from the beach side and enter I-95 north via Interstate 395, a k a the MacArthur Causeway. Translation: The Express won't be worth it to most people whose journey starts north of 23rd Street.

C- Herald: Hey, what about the 1st Amendment? Where's Carlos Miller?

The NFL apparently isn't only interested in curbing overly aggressive behavior -- it is also interesting in getting rid of overly aggressive trash talk.

The league hit Dolphins linebacker Joey Porter with a $7,500 fine for unsportsmanlike conduct during the fourth quarter of Sunday's loss to the Patriots.

Porter was fined specifically for verbally abusing the opponent after the play was over.

D- Herald: Morin.

E- Sun-Sentinel: Chan Lowe.

F- TCPalm: Photos, Black Friday shopping along the Treasure Coast.

G- NBC6: We're #2!

MIAMI -- Nearly 19 percent or 797,000 children in Florida do not have health insurance - the second highest percentage in the country - and experts expect the number to rise as more parents are laid off, according to a report released this week.

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Your Morning Sift

Good morning.

It seems like everyone was opining on the Black Friday trampling death at a New York Wal-Mart yesterday, so you'll see a lot of those posts in today's Sift.

A- Incertus believes that Wal-Mart bears the most responsibility when customers stampede the door to buy sale items on Black Friday. I give my opinion in the comments.

Let me be clear here--I have nothing but loathing for the people who were in such a hurry to get to the sales that they trampled a man to death, and then complained later when they were told they had to leave because the store was now a crime scene. But let's not pretend like they're the only ones responsible here. Shopping on Black Friday (which has a slightly different meaning to a lot of people now, I think) has been a tradition for quite some time now, but every year, the stakes get higher, and the early shoppers get more desperate.

B- Carlos Miller posts a poem he wrote back in 2005 about Black Friday in which he makes a very good point.

Yesterday’s story about a Walmart worker getting trampled to death by a mob of crazed shoppers in New York prompted me to dig up a poem I wrote on Black Friday 2005, which almost could have been written yesterday. In fact, I have not changed a single word before posting it here.

It’s not my best poem but it was probably the quickest poem I’ve ever wrote, considering I banged it out in minutes after reading an article from the BBC that was reporting news that wasn’t being reported by the American media.

C- I think I tend to agree with Justice Building Blog when he gives us his take of the Black Friday Wal-Mart travesty.

Rumpole says: this is madness. Don't people have anything better to do than leave their Thanksgiving dinner to go stand in line at a store throughout the night just to get in a 5AM and get an extra 10% off some dopey gift? A man lost his life to this greed and excess. Enough is enough.

D- Computer Colonics leaves the Keys and travels to Miami to do some Christmas shopping.

I confess I have never shopped on Black Friday until this one. Driving up to Miami on a non-work day is generally not my thing ever. However, THIS year the sales were just too irrisistable on many practical items I’ve always wanted to get, but never got around to buying. Clothes steamer, Pressure cooker, Meat Grinder for the Kitchen-aid Mixer, semi-luxuries that I could live without, but life would be nicer “with”. PacSun had the best deals on kid clothes. Kohls was just insane with the crowds and the lines. We did not really shop there so much as grab the one thing we wanted to get and then suffer the line for half an hour. TO2 found out that the line at Kohls in Kendall was twice as bad as the one we were in at Homestead.

E- John Offerdahl grills up some bacon-wrapped shrimp in the latest installment of the Gridiron Griller as posted by the Phin Phanatic.

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Your Evening Sift

It was another beautiful South Florida day. A little warmer than days past but not bad at all. The SoFla blogosphere picked up today...just in time for the weekend slowdown.

Here's your leftover-turkey-free evening Sift...

A- Man or Maniac has my back and I appreciate it.

B- Jeff Eats visits Pie Ducks in Miami.

Pieducks is a “brick oven pizza” joint. Actually, it is a “take-out-brick oven pizza” joint, because, maybe it’s got 10 seats for in-house eating. Super-modern looking, with an absolutely awesome looking brick-oven as the focal point. Trust me on this, this joint doesn’t look anything like your favorite neighborhood pizzeria or any pizza joint that you grew-up on…when you see this joint, you’ll know what I am talking about.

C- Ipanemic introduces another movie of the behind-the-scenes action of one of his model shoots.

D- A carambola tree story, as told by Hidden City.

Some years back my father bought at carambola tree, commonly known as starfruit. He liked having it quite a bit. I think the fact that is grew easily in South Florida appealed to him, and he liked the way they taste, too, a kind of citrus flavor with an apple texture.

E- The Phin Phanatic presents the 5 keys to a win for the Dolphin against the Rams this weekend.

Don’t think for a minute that the St. Louis Rams are a bunch of teddy bear pushovers. This is the same team that beat the Dallas Cowboys and almost upset the NE Patriots who probably won because they taped the walkthroughs prior to the game. Sorry, I digress.

What I’m saying is, the Miami Dolphins can not look beyond the Rams to the following weeks match-up with the Buffalo Bills. The Phins need to bounce back from the embarrassing loss to the Patriots a week ago and regain the focus that has won them 6 games.

F- The City of Miami has plans for World AIDS day on December 1st, according to Mayor Manny.

In honor of World AIDS Day and its 20th Anniversary, the City of Miami would like to invite the community to a candlelight memorial and tree lighting ceremony.

Please join me, the City of Miami Commission, the Miami-Dade County Health Department and Walgreens, Co. in commemorating World AIDS Day on Monday at 5:00pm at the Miami Riverside Center on 444 SW 2nd Avenue.

G- The Chowfather visits Smith & Jones on Las Olas again and finds an improvement.

In summary, I do not advocate waiting a couple of weeks and/ or months before visiting a new restaurant in order to allow them to find their stride. That is silly and unfair to the new restaurant trying to succeed. Go but don't write a place off after one early bad experience, especially with a well know chef. Moreover, Smith & Jones has an extensive menu and I suspect there will be some hits and some misses. I'll post back as I locate them...

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Friday Flashback

R.E.M., Talk About The Passion

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Best International Blog: Generación Y [UPDATED X3]

As long as we're talking about blog awards...

The jury for the Deutsche Welle International Weblog Awards -- The BOBs -- has announced the winners in all 16 of the competition's categories.

Of the 11 finalists in the Best Blog category, Generación Y, a Cuban blog written by Yoani Sanchez, claimed the Jury Prize for Best Blog.

The jury said that Sanchez gives voice to an entire generation of Cubans and provides the world with a window into Cuba through her clear and poetic writing.

In addition to a slew of other obstacles in her way, Sanchez can't even post her own entries to the blog. Instead she is forced to e-mail them to friends outside of Cuba in order for her words to go online. Despite the challenges she has to overcome, she's managed to keep in contact with her readers and create a huge international community around her work.

Here's what babalu's Ziva had to say about Yoani, pictured at right, back in December of 2007 in the comments section of a babalu post that first announced Yoani's blogging.

"A recurring feature is her 12-year-old son's school. Recently, he participated in a military shooting exercise there. Her son enjoyed playing soldier, but she was outraged."

What did she expect him to learn when she brought him back to Cuba? I'm sorry, but I have to question the character of a women who would purposely return her child to be indoctrinated, to learn to be "like che." Because it was too hard on her husband, and she couldn't bear family separation? Well they are all together, in Cuba. The price? Her son, because now he belongs to castro, inc.

And a couple other babalu reader comments from that same post...

R. Martel: This woman is so full of it. Whoever wants to be blind so be it! What a bout the thousands of Cubans who were honest about their feelings in Cuba and ended up in front of a firing squad or with a sentence of 30 years. What about the 75 who received sentences up to 30 years in jail precicely because they were honest. It's obvious this woman is a tool of the inteligence aparatus.

Alberto de la Cruz: God knows I hope she is for real. I find it interesting though, that she and her family had no problem with the "revolution," in fact they believed in it, until it began hurting them during the "special period."

To be fair, babalu has since embraced Sanchez and features her posts regularly. But I find it interesting that had it not been for the rest of the world who believed in and promoted Sanchez and Generación Y from the beginning, the Cuban-American hardliner community might have well written her off as a tool of Castro and dismissed her writings as nothing more than manipulative propaganda.

- story

******

In a response to this post, babalu's Henry Gomez resorts to his typical callow name-calling and characterizations before he points out exactly what I brought up in the post...that babalu is now fully supportive of Sanchez and her efforts. I'm in total agreement with him on this issue.

However, in his retort, Gomez attempts to frame Ziva's attacks and the other comments that were directed at Sanchez as babalu's attempt to figure out who Sanchez was...

But today a genuine pig of a person has decided to go back in the Babalu archives and retrieve comments from Babalu contributors and commenters from the period during which we were trying to assess who Yoani is and what she is about.

Actually, the pigs of which Gomez speaks are the ones that attack people, like Sanchez, by questioning their character, their intentions and their loyalties when they know little or nothing about them. Those are the real pigs of the internet. And those are the pigs of Miami's proud, hard-working and respectful Cuban-American community, a community that regularly disowns these thugs even as they risk being attacked and maligned as Castroites and communists themselves.

The fact of the matter is that babalu contributors and commenters criticized, questioned and maligned Yoani Sanchez when she first started blogging. Now they support her. Those are the facts and the points I articulated in the post. Gomez can call me every name in the book for pointing out those facts and he can also play the poor victim to "the lonesome loser" [just how pitiful does that make him?] but when it comes down to it, the facts are the facts. Right there in black and white for everyone to see and judge for themselves.

And, uh, hey Gomez? Thanks for reading SFDB, bro.

******

Alex says it in the comments...

The fact remains that of all the people in the world who were reading and marveling at Yoani, it was some Cuban exiles who made her wonder "maybe I should be in jail to prove I'm legit" -and it all came from her returning to Cuba after living abroad. That's the extent of the paranoia and it's pretty sad. It takes a big stretch of the imagination not just to think Yoani was a plot to advance some supposed Raul-as-reformist PR effort but also THAT was their first thought! It has to be! Cuban's can't access internet! Cubans are thrown in jail the second they write something critical! There are spies amongst us!

******

Most appropriately, Ziva announces Yoani's award in a post today.

Her beautiful brave writing does much more than that; her writing bridges 50 years of violence enforced silence and separation of the Cuban people by the castro dictatorship. Her writing verifies the failure of the Revolution.

Ziva does not mention her previous suspicions of Sanchez and her character, nor does she rescind them.

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City Link Metromix: South Florida's Favorite Local Blogs

On Monday, City Link's Metromix South Florida named South Florida's Favorite Local Blogs in their annual Best Of edition and I'm happy to report that the South Florida Daily Blog was given recognition in the very competitive "Best Blog About Blogs" category. Here's what they had to say about, well, me and SFDB...

Run by a former blogger at the late but well-read blog Stuck on the Palmetto, The South Florida Daily Blog appeared this year and quickly met its mission to provide "a daily review and discussion of South Florida blogs." Rick, the man behind the SFDB, rummages through scores of blogs and Web sites in order to share news, commentary and assorted distractions (including a recently posted video of Jane's Addiction performing "Jane Says").The site's sizable blogroll offers links to blogs that focus on politics, food, sex, art, cycling, veganism, photography and a number of other subjects. The blog's name is a bit of a misnomer, however, as Rick posts throughout the day, whether he's linking to news stories on local media sites or simply letting readers know that he plans to spend a night outdoors looking at the moon. As obsessive as Rick may seem to be, his enthusiasm and good humor prove that while blogging about life can be a worthwhile endeavor, nothing compares to getting up from the computer, going outside and actually living it.

Very well said.

Other blogs recognized by City Link Metromix were...

• Best Miami Nightlife Blog: MiamiNights.
  

• Best Blog For Longtime Local Music Fans: South Florida Music Scene: Past and Present.
  

• Best Blog Of Riveting Randomness: Wide Lawns and Narrow Minds.

• Best Food Blog: I Shot The Chef.

• Best Everyday Restaurant Review Blog: Jeff Eats.
  

• Best Cycling Blog: Miami Bike Scene.
  

• Best Political Blog: FLA Politics.

You can review the entire City Link Metromix Best of 2008 for South Florida right here.

Thanks to Citylink Metromix for the recognition and for supporting blogging in the local community.

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The Cooler

I can sum up most of today's news just by saying, "Careful if you stop by Dunkin Donuts while doing your shopping."

A- Sun-Sentinel: X is back, but now with a little surprise.

Local police say they've come across more Ecstasy pills on the street lately, and more often than not they're laced with methamphetamine.

The added ingredient turns Ecstasy from a mellow stimulant — and so-called "happy drug"— to one with the potential to deliver jolting, heart-racing effects.

"Many people who are taking it aren't aware the pills are laced with methamphetamine," said Fort Lauderdale Police Sgt. Frank Sousa.

B- Sun-Sentinel: SoFla Dunkin Donuts are giving extra shots.

For the second night in a row, police said, armed robbers burst into a South Florida Dunkin' Donuts coffee shop and opened fire.

The latest shooting happened about 9:15 p.m. Thursday in Tamarac, in the 4900 block of North State Road 7.

It is not yet known whether this shooting is related to one Delray Beach on Wednesday night that police described as a "takeover-style robbery." Four people were shot in the shooting at 4800 W. Atlantic Ave.

C- Palm Beach Post: Madonna Miami concert photos. And here is the Herald's.

D- Herald: Because Christmas is still all about spending the money you don't have. CBS4 has the video.

You couldn't tell we are in the midst of a recession based on the crowds Thursday night kicking off the holiday shopping season at Sawgrass Mills.

South Florida's first attempt at jump-starting Black Friday with a midnight opening was a definite success, judging by the well over 30,000 customers that jammed the mall in the first two hours. Within a half hour after the midnight opening, the entire parking lot was full and the crowds just kept coming.

The biggest attraction was BrandsMart USA, which had a line well into the early morning hours that snaked around the mall. The store was only letting in about 20 people at a time so the lines moved very slowly, with some customers who had arrived at 10:30 p.m. still not inside by 2 a.m.

David Maris, 23, of Hallandale, camped outside of BrandsMart with a group of more than 15 friends starting about 6 p.m. Thursday so they could be one of the first inside the store. He was on a hunt for a 50-inch LG plasma television that was on sale for $798.

E- Herald: Morin.

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Your Morning Sift

Good morning.

It's Black Friday and right now as I speak there are people being trampled in Kmarts across the nation. Okay, probably not, primarily because Republicans have been in office more than 4 consecutive years which means that the economy is crap. But part of the Black Friday tradition is to make the day a big deal, no pun intended. And so I've done my duty.

Here's your morning Sift, which is definitely not a big deal...

A- Swampstyle discusses parking on Miami Beach and covers the unveiling of this year's Art Deco poster on Ocean Drive.

B- Carlos Miller files his appeal in dramatic fashion.

On Monday, as I sprinted through the streets of downtown Miami from Absolute Video, lugging my loaded briefcase and panicking that I would not make it to the courthouse by 5 p.m., all I could do was think of that scene from Rocky where he runs through the streets of Philadelphia and up the stairs of the Museum of Art, especially when I ran up the stairs to the Dade County Courthouse.

Yes, I know it’s a corny, but I needed something to keep me going. In fact, during that week of intense research and writing, when I felt I could go no longer, when my body was screaming for me to go to sleep and my brain was muddled in a haze of legalese, I would play Going the Distance for motivation, to keep that drive going, that fighting spirit alive in order to finish this brief which I believe will ultimately prove my innocence.

C- Volando vengo, volando voy posts on yesterday's Turkey Bowl.

The annual Thanksgiving Day football game held "between the Palms" (McMillan Park) bringing together Sunset/Braddock High alum was as always entertaining.

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Your Evening Sift

Hope that cranberry sauce hangover is going okay for you. There was, believe it or not, some posting around the SoFla blogosphere today so pull up that bowl of leftover stuffing and let's take a look at your evening Sift...

A- Computer Colonics posted a nice Keysy graphic for the day.

B- I think Bark Bark Woof Woof had the most readable Thanksgiving post today...and he kept politics totally out of it.

C- Jeff Eats gives Miami's Out of the Blue a glowing review even though it's a "yuppie place."

Anyway...every so often I come across what is basically a Yuppie-joint that is the exception to the rule…say hello to Out Of The Blue Cafe located in Miami. This joint, which does breakfast-lunch-dinner is absolutely terrific. Great omelettes, breakfast sandwiches, waffles, sandwiches, soups, salads and desserts…and guess what?…all at very reasonable prices. For sure, it has that “Yuppie” coffee-house ambiance with the requisite wi-fi, but the great food/reasonable prices made me forget about the “ambiance.”

D- Miami-Dade Dems is thankful to the Miami Herald this Thanksgiving for keeping track of Jeb Bush's slime trail even though he's not our governor any more.

E- All Purpose Dark has a flyer up for the Design District's Art Basel events.

F- Lots and lots of Thanksgiving Day photos from around South Beach were posted today by the South Beach Bum.

G- Depth of Field does a real nice job with this series of photos from the recent Miami-Dade Parks Ribfest 2008.

As a little bonus, I give you this video of a turkey-eating contest that was held in New York City last year during Thanksgiving. Hopefully, this didn't look like your dinner table today.



-video via AMERICAblog

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Thanksgiving 2008

I suppose I have a lot to be thankful for this year. I didn't lose any family members. My house hasn't been foreclosed on [yet]. I haven't lost my job [yet]. And today is a gorgeous day in South Florida.

But I guess the thing that I am most thankful for is that America's political nightmare is almost over. Despite all the economic turmoil, it's been a great year for this country and the future looks even brighter.

We should all be thankful for that.

Happy Thanksgiving, readers. Now go have some pi.

-photo via mathmandan flickr

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The Cooler

Did my best to find stories without "turkey" and "pilgrim" in them.

A- Sun-Sentinel: This has "good idea" written all over it.

Miramar residents may soon have another option for transport: the golf cart. The City Commission late Tuesday gave first approval to an ordinance allowing golf cart use on public roads, with a 30 mph speed limit. The carts must meet brake, mirror and reflector requirements — and they can't have souped-up tires or hot rod engines.

[...]

Drivers, who must be at least 14, may operate the carts only between sunrise and sunset. Certain busy roads are off limits.

B- Sun-Sentinel: Chan Lowe.

C- Herald: The Material Girl does Dolphin Stadium.

How fitting that Madonna would end the U.S. leg of her latest concert tour in Miami, which famously was once her nightlife playground.

The Material Girl-turned-Spiritual Mom wrapped up her Sticky & Sweet Tour Wednesday night at a sold-out Dolphin Stadium with a two-hour journey through her many styles, starting with her new hip-hop vibe.

D- Herald: Hollywood Police Officer Alex Del Rio goes 10-7.

E- Herald: Restroom baby hangar.

Say you're carrying a baby and you need to use a public restroom stall. What do you do with the baby? Obviously you can't leave the baby outside the stall, because there's no telling what kind of sicko pervert or U.S. senator might be hanging around. But if you take the baby into the stall, what do you do with him or her?

F- Herald: Morin.

G- Herald: Opinion...More McCain/Palin Supporters.

Every American president is at risk of an assassination attempt. But because of the historic nature of President-elect Barack Obama's victory as the African American in that office, the risk of assassination is greater.

Mr. Obama is a target for the deranged, the politically extreme and other would-be assassins. He also arouses the hatred of bigotry, as evidenced by the ugly underside of the election. He has received more death threats than any other president-elect, authorities say.

H- CBS4: Video, SoFla airports slow.

I- WPTV: How to say grace at Thanksgiving dinner.


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Your Morning Sift

Good morning and Happy Thanksgiving!

As you might imagine, there isn't a whole lot to review this morning, so it's a day like this that can result in Artlurker having the entire morning Sift to themselves.

A- Artlurker introduces the Dorsch Gallery's Shapeshifter to us.

As a premise, Shapeshifter puts forth the idea that change can come in many guises. The act of shapeshifting can be seen in morphing shapes or in trompe l’oeil. In fairy tales and horror stories special beings have the power to appear as an animal, a bat, dragon or dog, as a means to do something which they could not in their primary form. The exhibition presents artworks that, in using disguise or shifting states and forms as means, beg questions whether the process can ever end, or if we want it to.

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Your Evening Sift

So, um, yeah, I guess you can say that the blogosphere is officially set in "holiday mode." Here's your Thanksgiving Eve evening Sift...

A- Shorter babalu...

We helped elect and enabled an imbecile who destroyed America's economy and now we feel qualified to mock the man, before he even takes office, who has been given the monumental task of cleaning up the sh*t storm our guy left behind.

B- Transit Miami provides us the link to the Bike Miami blog.

C- Hurricane Harbor points out why lighthouses are so special to South Florida.

I remember after Andrew I went with my brother over to Key Biscayne to look around. The Australian Pines had fallen down, big hotels at the water's edge were smashed apart... there was talk of total devastation at the tip of Key Biscayne but supposedly the lighthouse stood strong. When the helicopter from the News Stations sent up helicopters to survey damage I remember the voice of the on air person in the air when he saw the lighthouse standing, he was so excited. But, we went and looked for ourselves. It was awesome. Talk about giving thanks. In the middle of tremendous devastation we made our way down towards Cape Florida. It was all gone. The beautiful canopy of trees, roof tops ripped at on the condos.. the northern part of the eye wall of Hurricane Andrew reached out and touched the southernmost end of Key Biscayne. Raccoons scurried about at the park's entrance scourging for food that locals were leaving for them. We got out of the car and stood there in silence, sort of in shock to see the beautiful park we loved so stripped of vegetation but oddly...the image of the lighthouse standing at the end of the park, the only thing left standing was more humbling, more amazing... the lighthouse stood.. like it has after every storm that has come and gone though none were as strong as Hurricane Andrew. But, still.. it stood.

D- South Florida Theatre Scene gives us his weekly wrap a little early because of the holiday.

E- A Tropical Park sunrise, presented by Depth of Field.

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Six Random Things

I don't do memes. I find them annoying and uninteresting for the most part, both for me and my readers.

But because SFDB is all about supporting the SoFla blogging community, I will acquiesce this once to an Incertus "tag" [ugh] and list six random things about myself.

What I won't do is "tag" anyone else and put them through this misery. Bear with me.

1. I'm an Army brat. Moved around every 3 years growing up and lived overseas for 1 "tour," as the Army calls it. My family also did a tour in Hawaii.

2. I eat pasta for dinner virtually every night of the week. It's a habit that I've found hard to break since my running days.

3. It's a tradition for me to watch National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation every Thanksgiving.

4. My beer of choice is Yuengling.

5. I've run 2 marathons (Pittsburgh '00, Disney '02).

6. Favorite fast food: Pollo Tropical Tropichop Max [white rice, black beans and chicken] with 2 curry/mustard sauces. To go.

Thank God that's over with.

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Last Train Home

FYI, I'll be sticking around these parts for Thanksgiving and will continue to bring you the Sifts on a regular basis.

All my family is located, for the most part, in the Northeast, and it's hard for me to reconcile leaving South Florida to fight the holiday traffic and deal with everything that is air travel these days in order to eat a big, uncomfortable meal and freeze my a** off.

But kudos to those of you who have the patience and the motivation to take it on. For you, I have the following video of what is probably my favorite Publix commercial ever. Between the music, which is Pat Metheny's Last Train Home, and the overwhelming joyous feel to the thing, which is really what the holidays are all about for most everyone, it is one heckuva clip. And, really, you have to love the Florida touch at the end.

Enjoy it and happy and safe travels to those of you who are hitting the roads, rails and skyways today. If you feel like it, feel free to use the comments to share your thoughts or plans for the holiday.



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The Cooler

Here's a few mainstream media stories to get you started this morning.

A- Palm Beach Post: Forgive me, Team, it has been 24 hours since I sinned.

MIAMI GARDENS — A day after his fourth-quarter meltdown in a loss to the New England Patriots, Dolphins linebacker Joey Porter apologized to his teammates and coaches for his actions.

"Everybody's good," nose tackle Jason Ferguson, a team captain, said Tuesday during a charity event at Dolphin Stadium.

B- Palm Beach Post: Yeah, but is it Starbucks?

ORLANDO, Fla. — Florida's Turnpike system is again offering free coffee on the heaviest travel days during the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday weekend.

Officials are urging drivers to take a "safety break" if they become fatigued. Beginning Wednesday, motorists may stop at any of the eight Turnpike service plazas and help themselves to a free cup of coffee. The offer extends through Sunday during select times on the Turnpike.

C- Herald: That will teach him.

A Broward County schools art teacher is in jail on child-abuse charges. He is accused of hitting an 8-year-old pupil at Sunland Park Elementary, Fort Lauderdale police said Tuesday.

David Adam Grant, 36, struck the boy with a loosely closed fist Nov. 5, leaving him with a bruise over his left eye, police said. The boy went home and told his mother, who called police, said Detective Yvette Martinez, a police spokeswoman.

D- Herald: Better late than never?

The Florida Marlins said their dream 37,000-seat retractable roof stadium won't be ready until Opening Day 2012, a year later than planned, as team officials blamed a legal challenge for pushing back the deadline.

Marlins president David Samson said the stadium's designers thought the ''risk of cost overruns had become too high'' for a 2011 opening.

''It's realizing we had run out of time,'' Samson said in an interview Tuesday. ``They were not comfortable building a stadium with a retractable roof that quickly.''

Samson said the Marlins were ''disappointed'' with the delay, which he attributed largely to auto magnate Norman Braman's legal challenge to the stadium financing plan. That suit has since been dismissed, with the last count tossed last week, but Samson said the legal wrangling prompted the team to recalibrate the targeted opening.

Stadium construction must begin by May 2009 for a 2012 opening, Samson said, and team officials must secure other approvals before then. Among them: extending the lease at Dolphin Stadium for another year.

E- Herald: Morin.

F- Sun-Sentinel: Greasy hand alert!

According to the police report, northeast Fort Lauderdale resident Helen Artim was followed from Publix on North Federal Highway by two men in a silver Ford F-150 pickup truck at about 4:30 p.m. Nov. 14.

As Artim approached the traffic light at Bayview Drive and Oakland Park Boulevard, the duo hit the rear bumper of her Chevy Impala. One of the men got out and told her to follow the truck, so she did.

She followed them north on Bayview, east down an alley, around a row of businesses, back out to Oakland Park Boulevard, then back onto Bayview Drive and into a parking lot in the 3200 block.

She was summoned to the back of her Impala, and one of the men, the one with the greasy gloves, got out of his truck and told her to open the trunk to check for damage. He ran his hand over hers, "covering it with some type of lubricant," the police report says.

Then he used a towel to wipe her hand off. As he wiped, he pushed her to the ground and slipped the ring from her finger. He jumped in the truck and fled.

The ring was valued at between $20,000 and $30,000.

G- South Florida Business Journal: Black Friday shopping hours.

Local retailers plan to burn the midnight oil, literally, as Black Friday gets under way, at, well midnight.

Sawgrass Mills in Sunrise will open when the clock strikes 12 and stay open until 9:30 p.m.

As many as 128 million people could hit the stores this Friday, Saturday and Sunday, according to a survey conducted by BIGresearch for the National Retail Federation. Of those, 49 million said they definitely will go shopping, while 79 million said they would scope out the sales before making a decision.

That’s down slightly from the 135 million who said they would or may shop over Black Friday weekend last year.

Kohl’s is getting a little later start. Its doors are set to open at 4 a.m.

In Miami-Dade, Dadeland Mall plans to open at 5 a.m. Friday morning, and stay open until 10 p.m. Broward Mall in Plantation and the Mall at Wellington Green in Wellington plan to open at 6 a.m., while Aventura Mall is to open at 7 a.m. and close at 10 p.m.

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Your Morning Sift

Good morning.

And Happy Day Before Thanksgiving. The expected slowdown in postings has started so I suspect the Sifts are going to be rather slim for the next several days. Here are a few of last night's highlights gathered together for this morning's Sift.

A- Obalesque has a tale from overseas and a reason for us to be thankful this Thanksgiving.

B- Yet another clip from Clubland posted at Rakontur.

C- Artlurker wonders whether the rumors about a smaller Art Basel this year are going to put a damper on its nightlife.

However, fine arts and gold have always been said to withstand even the most exaggerated economic fluctuations, and with an increasing number of exhibitors and parallel fairs like SCOPE occupying larger venues and operating ever more commanding programs is it clear that not everyone is feeling the pressure.

There is much talk of events and much bustle and commotion in the cities gallery districts. Even if the late night throb of ABMB does not radiate as far as in previous years there are a number of very note worthy gigs to attend throughout the week where a nifty drink of two could very well be snagged in defiance of recent party pooping economics.

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Your Evening Sift

As a reminder, you can join the others who are following SFDB on Twitter right here.

I thought we would start experiencing some slow down in posting with the coming holiday but no, still going strong. Here's your evening Sift...

A- Tilefortlauderdale leaves Penny at Charlie's Bar-B-Que in Dania.

Sometimes Penny Petersen wishes she didn't have to be so color-coordinated. Her shirt always matches her socks, and her purse. Her very big walk-in closet closet is organized by colors, all the blues in one area, the pinks in another, the reds in yet another etc. She tries to never wear the same color twice in one week. She has a lot of rules about clothes, and even has color contacts so her eyes will match her outfits. If her colors don't come together in just the right way, she feels like her whole day is cursed and will go badly.

B- Superbee undergoes the requisite TSA security check at MIA as he gets the hell outta Dodge.

Finally, fifteen minutes later, the process that used to take 2 minutes, even during Thanksgiving, was complete, and, in bare-socked feet, wondering how many cases of athelete's foot are transmitted daily by that space right in front of the metal detector, I was done.

And I began that process of, eyes cast down at the shame of re-tucking, re-belting,and re-shoeing under the cold, high-lumens flourescent lights, re-assembling myself and getting the hell out of security.

C- Ipanemic introduces his latest video to us.

D- Incertus has a couple good posts up today. First, they discuss how America has been especially kind to dimwits...

Forget the economy, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the health-care crisis--our biggest problem in this country for the last, well, as long as I've been awake to the world of politics it seems, is that we have lionized dimwits. We have not only made anti-intellectualism socially acceptable, we've praised and honored it.

...and then they note the the way some right-wing bloggers are wanting to cleanse the Republican Party of any hint of moderation.

It's still fun to watch right-wing bloggers puff their chests out and talk tough about cleansing the GOP of any semblance of moderation. The article that has them up in arms today is this one from Politico, wherein an unnamed Republican Senator says that the Republican party hasn't learned from the last couple of beatings it's taken at the polls. He calls for a bit more moderation, and then the howls arise.

E- The Phin Phanatic continues his video tour of the Miami Dolphins locker room.

F- In the wake of yet another police officer being killed in an exploding Ford Crown Victoria sedan, Carlos Miller questions why SoFla police departments are still using them.

As the Hollywood Police Department and local media probe to find out what caused a Hollywood squad car to engulf in flames, killing an officer Saturday night, it’s surprising that more emphasis has not been placed on the make of the squad car Alex Del Rio was driving that night; the Crown Victoria.

In fact, the first question that popped in my mind after I heard the news was whether or not the officer was driving a Crown Victoria, one of the most widely used models for squad cars in police departments throughout the country.

And one of the most dangerous cars ever introduced in this country, prone to fires and explosions after rear-end collisions.

G- MiamiNights is hearing that Yelle might be back in town for Art Basel.

H- Coconut Grove Grapevine loves him some Basil in the Grove. Check out the discussion in the comments.

Basil in the Grove (3301 Grand Avenue) has to be one of the biggest secrets in the Grove. I know I have written about them before, but I am so addicted to their food, I just thought I would mention them again. Keep in mind, they are under new ownership, so many of you may have visited in the past, but this is a new place, with a new menu.

I- Rakontur has a clip from another Clubland episode.

J- Transit Miami is dead set against the Palmetto/Bird Road expansion project.

If traffic engineers and transportation planners were to learn one thing in the last sixty years, they should have learned that we cannot build our way out of traffic congestion. That is to say, expanding roadways with additional travel lanes only induces demand for ever more road space, which gets us back into the exact same situation of congestion.

At what point will the omnipresent negative externalities of more traffic congestion, pollution and noise cause the people of South Florida to revolt? Highways in San Francisco, Milwaukee, New York City and Boston have all been replaced with human-scaled surface boulevards. Do you think they miss their freeways? How about the traffic?

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SFDB Ecard Of The Day

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Easy Choices For Republicans

$35 billion to improve the healthcare of American children or $810 billion to reward corporate malfeasance?

Easy choice.

Piece. Of. Cake.






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The Cooler

A bunch of interesting news out there this morning, although I'm detecting a definite shift to turkey-related stories.

A- Sun-Sentinel: Fort Lauderdale's Las Olas Boulevard is feeling the pain.

Businesses on Las Olas, meanwhile, say they've been feeling a double dose of pain: the weak economy and fewer stores to draw visitors downtown. About 70 percent of the stores owned by The Las Olas Co. have tenants, down about 9 percent year-to-date.

"The street — it's deadly quiet," said Sue Gordon, owner of Sue Gordon bridal store.

Across the street from her store, between Sixth and Seventh avenues, are a string of blank storefronts that once drew steady foot traffic. Gordon, who has been on the strip for nearly 30 years, plans to move next month into a new location on North Federal Highway in Fort Lauderdale.

"I'm very happy to be leaving," she said, noting her customers have been coming into the store saying, "'What happened to Las Olas Boulevard?"

B- Sun-Sentinel: People are buying homes in Broward.

Bargain hunters continue to respond to plunging prices, with October sales of existing homes in Broward County Click here for restaurant inspection reports rising 46 percent, to 625 from 428 a year ago, the Florida Association of Realtors said Monday. The median price plummeted 29 percent, to $252,500 from $354,000 last October.

C- Sun-Sentinel: Cold turkey.

For the rest of us, it should be a sunny mild day, with afternoon temperatures in the mid to upper 70s and light breezes, the National Weather Service said.

“It does look like a beautiful day in store for Thanksgiving,” meteorologist Dan Dixon said.

The morning might be a bit nippy, in the mid to upper 40s in Palm Beach County and in the low to mid 50s in Broward and Miami-Dade counties.

But, hey, many of you were craving some brisk weather for the holidays, right?

In all, most of this week should be glorious, with somewhat chilly mornings, temperate afternoons and cool evenings. We probably won’t see the temperature reach 80 degrees until the weekend.

D- Palm Beach Post: Twittering Black Friday.

Join our Black Friday Twitterthon!

It’s the day after Thanksgiving: Just you, your shopping bag and a menu of pre-dawn sales.

But where to go?

Follow the Post’s Black Friday Twitter team on your cell phone, PDA, laptop or desktop, as we scout local stores and give you the 411 on who’s open, who’s closed, and who just ran out of $99 BluRay players.

E- Palm Beach Post: Ahhhhhh, run for your lives! It's Splenda!

A white powder that forced the evacuation of about a dozen Palm Beach County Sheriff's employees has turned out to be a sweetener.

F- Herald: You get a car! And you get a car! And you get a car! [My Oprah impression.]

With the state facing a potential $1.4 billion tax shortfall, Miami-Dade Schools chief Alberto Carvalho called on the federal government to consider a bailout for the nation's public schools.

''The question in my mind is this: At a time when we're continuing the bailout of key industries, at what point do we have a bailout of public education?'' asked Carvalho.

G- Herald: We heart Miami...and it's crappy school system.

Outsiders may view Miamians as strictly easy-on-the-eye-and-mind types but perhaps they should consider this:

Miamians love their metropolis -- multicultural and all.

So says a new Gallup study that links economic growth to residents' ''loyalty and passion'' toward their neighborhoods. The report came out Monday.

In a study called Soul of the Community, researchers found that the No. 1 quality that makes Miamians enamored of their area is its ''openness to diverse and different people'' -- almost an inevitability in majority-minority Miami-Dade.

The report also included these surprising results: Residents of the Miami metropolitan area boasted of good schools and higher education, physical beauty and social offerings, like entertainment venues.

H- CBS4: Wyclef Jean goes into foreclosure.

On the outside, the home being built on Miami Beach looks like any other luxury home. But a quick records check finds the property, owned by a big name, is in trouble. Jean has sold 30 million albums, but apparently couldn't keep up with his mortgage.

The $2.4 million waterfront mansion on Pine Tree Drive is now owned by a bank. The house is scheduled to be sold at the Miami-Dade Courthouse next month, along with a handful of liens by the construction crews, who never finished, and more than $100 thousand in unpaid taxes.

I- CBS4: #13.

MIAMI GARDENS (CBS4) ― Miami Gardens ranks number 13 in the list of cities with the highest crime rate in the U.S. and Orlando number 18, according to City Crime Rankings 2008-2009 book.

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Your Morning Sift

Good morning.

I published the Evening Sift rather late last night so, as a result, this morning's Sift is rather lightweight. Make that very lightweight. Here you go...

A- Miami Fever posts some leftover Halloween photos which, as leftovers go, are pretty darn good.

B- The Street signs off for the holidays in unique fashion.

C- Bark Bark Woof Woof on what might help this economy.

There's been a lot of discussion about whether or not this financial situation is comparable to 1932 when Herbert Hoover did too little too late to try to bring the nation out of the Depression. The nation and the world waited on the verge of panic for the new administration to come into office in March 1933, and when Franklin Roosevelt took the oath of office and declared that we had nothing to fear but fear itself, it was almost cathartic. It wasn't his solutions that worked -- many of them put in place in the first 100 days and the years after didn't do all that much. It was just his attitude of confidence and belief that Americans would be able to get through it, and he was the leader to get us going again. As Will Rogers noted at the time, "If he burned down the Capitol, we would cheer and say, 'Well, we at least got a fire started somehow.'"

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Your Evening Sift

Is it still Monday? Here's your evening Sift...

A- Click on over to Wide Lawns and Narrow Minds and give her your Nasty Assed Recipe.

Readers, it's almost Thanksgiving. You know what that means around here. Nasty Assed Recipes. All week long I'll be tracking down the worst offenders and I want you to contribute as well. The rule is that any Nasty Assed Recipes you share must be real things that your family or you or someone you know really makes and eats. You may also give links to blogs that have nasty assed recipes on them. Tell us about them in the comments section.

B- Mambi Watch posts the Nine Ways to Improve U.S.-Cuba Relations as set out by the Brookings Institute.

C- Foodtastic visits a barbeque place on South Beach and comes away impressed...and surprised.

This is definitely not typical South Beach fare, but it is delicious, flavorful, stick-to-your-ribs barbecue at a very reasonable price (uh, Shorty’s who??). I would definitely give this place a thumbs-up and am looking forward to eating there again.

D- MiamiNights has the 411 on Ultra tickets.

E- Miami Beach 411 takes a look at the Dexter TV series including its "Miami accuracy."

One nice piece of authenticity, however, is the lack of Spanish subtitles. For instance, when some of the Hispanic police are talking to each other, or to witnesses, or to anyone else, and they are speaking Spanish, the audience doesn’t get an instant translation. This, I think, does do a nice job of capturing life in Dade County. I mean, some of these conversations go on for 2 or 3 minutes and your average English speaker has absolutely no idea what’s going on and feels left out of the plotline. That three minutes is pretty much every day for your average non-Spanish-speaking Miamian.

F-SFLTV has the news that WTVJ anchor Tony Segreto is retiring.

G- Buried deep in a post about the latest tropical happenings, Hurricane Harbor tells us about the Miami Strip.

In Miami this time of year we do the Miami Strip. We leave the house bundled up, the sun comes out.. we take our layers off. Enjoy the noonday warmth, walk around like we are living in the tropics and then late in the day when the sun goes down early we bundle back up again.

H- Check out the customized Smart Carts that you might see running around town next week at All Purpose Dark.

I- MenuPages Blog: South Florida informs us that there are seven restaurants in the new Fontainebleau Hotel.

The Fontainebleau Hotel has re-opened in all of its renovated glory with seven restaurants for your dining pleasure. Only five — Gotham Steak, Scarpetta, Vida, Solo and Fresh — are currently open; the first two officially open tonight, while the other three have been serving customers since Friday. La Cote, a French Mediterranean restaurant, is due December 20, and Hakkasan, with an upscale Chinese theme, won't be open until the new year.

J- More down and outs over at The Street.

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Tree Tops Park, Et Al.

Volunteering at Fairchild pointed me to this nicely done piece on Broward County's Tree Tops Park that was recently posted on something called Examiner.com, which appears to be a repository of reader-submitted stories.

There are a number of activities you can enjoy at Tree Tops. There are lengthy equestrian trails for the horse crowd. Numerous picnic sites seem popular for weekend children’s birthdays. There was a pond for catch and release fishing, in which I noticed several juvenile largemouth bass. At the pond are rentals for canoes and pedal-boats. During weekends there are pony-rides for children, and there are several nature trails for the casual amble.

You'll note that there are other South Florida related submissions linked to at the bottom of the article.

Looks like Examiner.com and the park could be cool places to hang out at every now and then.

Tree Tops Park
3900 S.W. 100th Ave.
Davie, FL 33328
954-370-3750

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Art Basel Miami Blog

I'm not sure if it's officially sanctioned, but Art Basel Miami has a blog. Written by Miami Art Blogger Grrl, it uses the Blogger platform. So far, only one post, but hopefully things will pick up over the next week.

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The Cooler

Kind of a light morning in SoFla news. Here are some of the more interesting items I could find.

A- Herald: Dolphins lose.

The fury was clear. It was clear from the words that were spoken in the Dolphins' locker room as much as it was from the ones that were not. But the reason for that anger, the reason players such as Ayodele chose to chill rather than roar, was instead a matter of debate.

That's because there were just too many reasons to pinpoint just one. The embarrassment of their own performance? The disrespect from their opponent? The feeling that Miami was slighted by the officiating?

Or better yet: All of the above.

B- Herald: Miami Beach's Mango's continues to be popular.

David Wallack said the business is still ''very healthy'' and the economic climate calls for a ''lean and mean'' strategy. He said the real satisfaction has come from the symbiotic way Mango's has both given life to and been given life from a mostly young staff of hopeful, hardworking immigrants.

''As a business, this is a miracle,'' Wallack said. ``I have people who have come here in a raft and now they're making a very nice living. That is success.''

C- Herald: Why Pembroke Pines is the best place in the country to raise your kids.

''What's great about Pembroke Pines is that it's so close to Fort Lauderdale and Miami,'' Gopal said. ``That's a good thing because there are so many amenities nearby.''

BusinessWeek's designation is just one of a slew of awards Pembroke Pines has received in recent years. In 2004, the National Civic League named Pembroke Pines an All-American City. The charter school system has won at least four awards since receiving accreditation from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools in 2002.

The charter schools aim to educate the whole student, academically and socially, said Sean Chance, principal of the Pembroke Pines Charter Schools East Campus. Most of the city's schools are A-grade, based on the state's grading system, he said.

Chance, a nine-year Pembroke Pines resident, said he especially enjoys the abundance of city-run sports programs for youth.

After the post-Hurricane Andrew population boom, Pembroke Pines has remained a family-oriented city, said Chance, who has two children.

''As fast as it's grown and as large as it's gotten, it still keeps that small-town feel as best it can,'' he said. ``The city takes family into consideration and finds ways to keep them together.''

D- Herald: They write letters...

One-way respect

In the wake of President-elect Barack Obama's victory, many of his supporters have urged the Americans who did not vote for him to join them in respecting and standing behind him as he tackles important issues.

I commend Obama supporters for this spirit of decency, inclusiveness and cooperation. However, I wonder why many of them failed to speak out during the past eight years as President Bush and his family have endured one despicable attack after another by liberal news commentators, comedians, Hollywood actors and the public. Perhaps they disagreed with the attacks but decided to remain quiet, or maybe it's just easier to show and ask for respect when you're on the winning side.

ROBERT MOLLEDA, Miami

I'm thinking, Robert, that some people's distaste for torture, wiretapping and unjust wars overrides their penchant to hold hands and sing Kumbaya, but I'm just guessing.

Note: Robert "Ciclón" Molleda contributes to babalu as Robert M., where, of course, they are the models of respect for past Presidents like Clinton, Carter and JFK.

E- Palm Beach Post: "Wrap rage" makes prominent headlines in the Post.

Gary Cowles was frustrated and angry.

He had just returned from a business trip to Denver and had brought home three packages of Disney princess figurines for his three young daughters.

But as his own little princesses huddled around excitedly, Cowles struggled to break open the packaging.

"The package looked really easy to open," the West Palm Beach resident said, "but there was that hard-to-open plastic and all kinds of twist ties."

As he worked to liberate the figurines from their plastic captivity, he snapped or broke several. "There were four casualties in the first package, and a few more in the other two," Cowles said. "Some had been decapitated; some now had to have prosthetic limbs. And wings - wings were the biggest casualty."

It's called "wrap rage."

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