Friday, February 28, 2014

Posted By on Fri, Feb 28, 2014 at 4:30 PM

The Weekly's Bill Frost is our personal TV Guide. When he's not in TV Land writing True TV, Frost and Tommy Milagro host a weekly podcast called TV Tan. In this episode they discuss the beautiful Téa Leoni, Game of Arms (reality show about semi-pro arm wrestlers,) WWE and Justified.

Click here to subscribe. You know you want to. Just do it.

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Posted By on Fri, Feb 28, 2014 at 3:31 PM

The Retro Room is located on 337 E. Ft. Lowell Road.
  • Courtesy of The Retro Room.
  • The Retro Room is located on 337 E. Ft. Lowell Road.

Remember the good old Atari days? Do you miss smacking the small white dot from the left to the right side of your tube television. Do you miss games like Flappy Bird? The world is moving from big screen television sets to smart phones and tablets, but some are going back to the arcades.

Christopher and Michelle Hall decided to leave the medical field to pursue their passions: video games, clothing and jewelry.

The 33-year-old couple will celebrate the grand opening of their new business venture this Saturday, March 1. "We have a huge library of games," Christopher said. "These are the classics people don't usually have anymore." Christopher says gamers will be able to play their old favorite Atari, NES, SNES, N64, Playstation, PS2 and Xbox games on the televisions from the era the console was popular. There's a gaming room for large parties and gatherings, and a full snack bar.

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Posted By on Fri, Feb 28, 2014 at 2:00 PM

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I'm winging my way to the Network for Public Education (NPE) National Conference at the University of Texas, Austin. A few days of panels, speakers and getting together with some of the heavy hitters in progressive education. I'll be sitting on a panel, "Charters, Virtuals and Privatization." TUSD Superintendent H.T. Sanchez will be joining other superintendents in a discussion about district leadership. Tucson's Robin Hiller (Voices for Education), one of the founders and directors of NPE, will also be participating in a panel (Sorry, can't remember which.)

The Conference will be live streamed, so interested folks can tune in 9:30am-5:30pm Saturday and 9am-2:15pm Sunday. Keynote speeches: Saturday, 1-2:15pm (John Kuhn and Karen Lewis) and Sunday 10:30am-noon (Diane Ravitch). That's all in Austin time. Adjust accordingly.

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Posted By on Fri, Feb 28, 2014 at 1:00 PM

The first Best of Tucson™ issue, from July 1987.
  • The first Best of Tucson issue, from July 1987.

Best of Tucson™ voting kicks off tomorrow (don't worry, we'll send out approximately eight hundred reminders to vote before the process is finished), but hey, let's give you, the reader, one last chance to get a new category added before the ballot goes live.

Is there something we're missing? You can see the categories on our page of last year's issue (just click on the sections to the left) and if there's some sort of superlative we should include, say so in the comments. Who knows? Your "Best Tucson [fill in the blank]" could be on this year's ballot.

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Posted By on Fri, Feb 28, 2014 at 12:00 PM

We've been previewing some of the bands you can see at March Radness (ONE WEEK AWAY OMG OMG), but hey, let's give some tickets away, so you can see the show yourself.

Frankly, I'm not entirely sure why you haven't purchased tickets yet...they're only $15, which is what you'd pay to see someone like Iamsu! or YACHT or Pinback anyhow, but you get to see all three and a whole lot more, but hey, people and their decisions can be a mystery.

We'll be giving away tickets in a variety of manners ahead of the show, but first off, we'll give a pair today for tweeting a link to this post or any of our others about March Radness. Just include us (@tucsonweekly) and throw in the hashtag #marchradnesstucson. We'll pull a winner today around 5 pm and notify them via a tweet. If you don't win today, we'll have more tickets to give away every day next week (OR YOU COULD BUY THEM CHEAP-O).

Good luck!

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Posted By on Fri, Feb 28, 2014 at 11:30 AM

The Tucson Police Department issued a statement asking for your help to catch three hispanic males that are involved in multiple Circle K robberies in the last year. The suspects have stolen change dispensers from 11 different local Circle K's since Feb. 21. One suspect enters the store and removes the change dispensers from the cash register area while the other two assist or act as lookouts, according to the statement.

From the press release:

The main suspect in this incident is described as a Hispanic male in his late 20’s to early 30’s, 5’08” to 6’00” tall, 175 pounds, black hair and a mustache. His two accomplices are described as heavy set Hispanic males in their 30’s. In one of the incidents, the suspects were seen leaving in a silver or grey colored, 1990’s model Station Wagon.
Call 911 or 88-Crime if you have any information. Here are photos of the suspects:




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Posted By on Fri, Feb 28, 2014 at 10:44 AM

Sen. Al Melvin's weird exchange with CNN's Anderson Cooper makes the Daily Show as part of a roundup of the news surrounding the now-vetoed SB 1062. Saying the bill was not good for Arizona is certainly no understatement.

Posted By on Fri, Feb 28, 2014 at 9:20 AM

Here are four reasons why you should stop what you're doing and go to the Reid Park Zoo.The four African lion cubs that were born on December 23 made their public appearance on Thursday, and they are to die for. You can catch Baako, Jelani, Sango, and Nayo frolicing in their exhibit every morning from 9 a.m. to noon.

From the press release:

While on exhibit with Kaya, their mother, the pride may choose to rest behind-the-scenes - so viewing is not guaranteed at all times. For best viewing, visiting early is suggested. Shombay, the father, will be on exhibit each afternoon noon- 4 p.m. This routine will continue until further notice.
UPDATE: Unfortunately, the website says one of the cubs is feeling under the weather, so they will not be on exhibit today.

So, here's five photos of the most delightful little cubs in Tucson:

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Thursday, February 27, 2014

Posted By on Thu, Feb 27, 2014 at 5:00 PM

As I read details of the new GOP tax plan in an AP article in the Star, it sounded, well, not too bad — grading on a Republican curve, anyway.

Then I read elsewhere the plan would hit blue state taxpayers harder than red staters. I shoulda guessed.

Politico has a good, short breakdown of how the tax plan would affect teachers, students and people carrying student loans. The first two items sound OK. It gets pretty grim after that.

EDUCATION IN TAX REFORM IN 30 SECONDS: The House Ways and Means proposal for tax reform would (take a deep breath): make the American Opportunity Tax Credit more refundable; stop taxing Pell Grant refunds as income; end tax deductions for tuition, student loan interest and teachers’ classroom supplies; tax student loan forgiveness for public servants, “section 127” programs that contribute to paying for employees’ higher education, and tuition discounts for college employees; and kill Coverdell savings accounts and zone academy bonds. In all, it would slim 15 higher ed tax provisions down to five. Teachers would be particularly hard-hit, losing two special set-asides, although the plan’s author, Chairman Dave Camp (R-Mich.), says the classroom deduction would be more than offset by lower rates and overall simplification. All the details in this document: http://politico.pro/1kkPdcK.

—The NEA isn’t convinced of the plan's wisdom: Mary Kusler said collectively last year, teachers spent $1.6 billion on classroom materials out of their own wages. “We see the elimination of this deduction as a direct harm to public school students in this country.” And the student loan proposal “defeats the purpose of using loan forgiveness as a way to attract teachers,” Kusler said. And, she said, Camp's plan shouldn't be so quickly dismissed, as some have already done, because it could be the point of conversation in the future.

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Posted By on Thu, Feb 27, 2014 at 4:00 PM

SuperJewwithBrewersign.jpg

Those out there working on behalf of immigration reform already think Mo Goldman is pretty cool, or at least an attorney who does such great work he helps people rethink all those lawyer-shark jokes they love to tell when lawyer friends aren't around.

But early in the week, Goldman finally came out, so to speak, when he and his friend Rebecca ventured downtown to pay Brewer a visit with some rainbow Hamantaschen as his other badass self—SuperJew. Hamantaschen are Jewish cookies a poppy-seed or fruit filling and folded to resemble a triangle or Haman's hat. And they are delish—a revolution in your mouth.

You can read all about SuperJew's exploits here, but here's a snippet of the red-capped one's adventure and rejection:

SuperJew and Rebecca ventured into the state building and made it to the 4th floor where Governor Brewer's office is located. A woman commented to her friend after seeing SuperJew, "you see, we really need better security in this building."

Disappointment as Governor Brewer's office was closed and posted on the door was this message.

SuperJew's visit and cookie delivery timing is perfect, after all the Jewish holiday of Purim is just around the corner and happens to commemorate a time when rocking Queen Esther saved her people by taking down evil Haman. In Arizona, we have our Hamans, but word is out on the Queen Esthers—voters?

Want to make your own rainbow Hamantaschen? Of course you do. This is a cookie made for the current times we live in Arizona my friends. So get baking and get delivering—release your inner SuperJew.

Recipe at Kitchen Test right here.

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