Your Evening SIft

We're over the hump and sliding into the weekend. Everyone but Blind Tastes...bottoms up! Enjoy your evening Sift.

A- Grab a drink and click on over to Blind Tastes to find out how he's doing on his 30-day reprieve from alcohol.

Yesterday was my 17th consecutive day without a drop of alcohol!! I'm halfway to my goal of 30 days!! It definitely hasn't been easy. In fact, yesterday was my first really tough day at work where I really would've loved to relax while sipping a bourbon when I got home. Right now things are really busy at work and I have a ton of stuff to do and keep getting distracted or nagged by little things that prevent me from making any real progress on the bigger things I need to get done.

B- Blogging Black Miami comments on voter turnout during yesterday's election.

When I look at the number of votes in this last election as compared to the recall election and the 2008 presidential election, there are two thoughts I can't get out of my head: Marvin Gaye's 1971 hit "Inner City Blues". You know..."Oh, make me wanna holler and throw up both my hands" and that ending scene from Spike Lee's film, "School Daze" with Laurence Fishburne and Giancarlo Esposito, you know the one with Fishburne shouting...all together now...cue the alarm clock..."WAKE UP!".

C- Worst Pizza gets harsh with Ovenella Pizza in Boca Raton in a review that seems more critical of the service that they apparently demand [with fountain drinks, no less] than they are of the pizza.

Our server continued to tell us, and I quote “you won’t find a pizza like this in Boca Raton, it is the best”. Well….not exactly the thing to say to someone who is looking to find the best pizza to, you just set yourself an unobtainable bar. He also asked us to leave reviews on the web about the food, which was truly weird since we hadn’t even gotten our orders in yet. Little did he know that he would get his review wish. I even tried to explain to him that I found out about their opening from a tip to this website, but he didn’t seem to even care.

D- There's a new Italian place open in the Gables, according to Eater Miami.

Opened recently, Il Corso Trattoria offers, yep, you guessed it, homemade pastas, brick oven pizzas and assorted Italian fare via chef LeRoy Bautista, formerly of Angelique Euro Cafe. “We’re focusing on simplicity, authenticity and flavors,” said Bautista. “With fresh ingredients and timeless techniques paired with the restaurant’s warm décor, we’ve created a welcoming setting that truly enhances the genuine Italian experience.”

E- South Florida Food and Wine presents a list of summer dining specials in South Florida.

F- If you have something that dates all the way back to the ancient '90's, visit The Heat Lightning because they might be able to use it.

The talented artist and my childhood friend Venessa Monokian and I will be putting together a zine as part of a project for the Miami-Dade Public Library System’s Main Library. The library system around these parts is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year (congrats!). In honor of this momentous occasion, they’re also paying homage to the 1990s, a big ten years for the library, apparently.

Venessa and I thought it’d be neat to include you and your stories in the THL-Venessa-Liz zine. We remember the ’90s fairly well, the first half of them, at least. You also probably remember something from that strange, tacky, opulent decade that you want to share with the world.

G- South Florida Classical Review shares the story of Nadine Sierra, an emerging South Florida soprano that has worked hard to get where she is today.

Growing up in Fort Lauderdale, where her father was a Broward County firefighter and her mother a bank teller, Sierra practiced every day from the time she was a child. She would sing at least an hour of scales and arpeggios on different vowels, as well as working on arias and art songs. Her mother, a bank teller who speaks several languages, helped her with diction — and with discipline.

“My mother was very strict,” she said. “If I didn’t practice, I couldn’t go out. I couldn’t go to movies. I couldn’t go out with friends. From six to the time I was 18 years old. I didn’t have a normal childhood. But at the end of the day, it was what I wanted to do. If I hadn’t done that, the life I’m having now wouldn’t have happened.”

In addition to spending so much of her childhood and teen years practicing, she also appeared on stage with the Fort Lauderdale Children’s Theatre. She appeared as Witch Hex in Snow White, the Tin Man in The Wizard of Oz and the nurse Nellie Forbush in South Pacific. She was asked to join Palm Beach Opera’s Young Artist program at age 14.

H- Beached Miami informs us that tonight's Beings concert at Bardot is their last.

“The reason for the split is that I have been doing the band thing since 1996, and I just got to the point that I didn’t want to do it anymore,” frontman Ivan Marchena said. “I have absolutely nothing but love and respect for my friends that I play with (Beatriz

Monteavaro and Mike Alen) and I am proud of what we accomplished together. They are two of the most talented people I have ever had the pleasure of collaborating with. Beings had a great run, and we couldn’t have done it without the support of our friends, families, pets, fellow local/not so local bands, and fans.

I- Boy Writes Miami tries out the food offered up by two of Miami's food trucks.

Anyway, I got my quesadilla, which was greasier than the cast of Jersey Shore rolling on a slice of Sbarro mall pizza. That would normally put me off, but I’ve been hitting the gym with a hammer lately and also came to terms with the fact that one day I’ll probably die anyway, so I threw caution into the wind and took a bite. That was some good-ass quesadilla. It had pieces of red meat and pieces of chorizo, but I think the tastiest pieces were those pieces of freedom and supermodel legs. I can’t put my finger on it, but that sauce has something going on which makes doves cry. Not a fan of the fries, they were pretty bland.

J- Justice Building Blog provides some health information for Miami-Dade lawyers visiting the Metro West Detention Facility.

K- Radio or Not has some good news.

I've just been notified that the City of Ft. Lauderdale "declines prosecution on all municipal ordinance violations" arising out of my arrest on April 26, 2011, after I attempted to ask my congressman at a question at an event advertised as a "Town Hall Meeting."

I will be sending out a note to all who donated to my legal defense fund, offering to return your donations or donate them to the ACLU.

I am now exploring any and all options for a civil suit or suits over my arrest, my treatment by the arresting officer and the BSO deputy while held at the Broward County Jail.

L- Eye on Miami gives some advice to Miami mayoral candidate Carlos Gimenez.

In my informal interviews with voters, I found that none of them listened to the robocalls or they were annoyed by them. The voters said they made their decisions based on other things like the newspaper, emails, etc. Carlos, I heard your wife is your greatest asset. My advice is, get her off the phone and have her meet and greet people. You can't be in 10 places at once but you have many volunteers that can get out there and inspire people. This election is going to hinge on community wide appeal.

M- In something you can file under "no kidding," polls that Bark Bark Woof Woof mentions this evening show that most people don't approve of the job that Rick Scott is doing.

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