The Pulse - Vol. 8, Issue 32

Booze It & Lose It : New Crackdown On DUI

August 11, 2011 VOLUME 8, ISSUE 32 WWW.CHATTANOOGAPULSE.COM

Chattanooga’s Weekly Alternative

ART IN MOTION Downtown Shuttles

SCENE & HEARD

August Musical Rundown

ALIEN ROUNDUP Cowboys Going Bust

HAYWOOD

PAT T E R S O N IS DEAD AND GONE Why the story of the Scottsboro Boys still matters today

A look back with Cody Maxwell

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The Pulse | Volume 8, Issue 32 | August 11, 2011 | www.chattanoogapulse.com

Nightfall 2011 - Friday Night!

JD McPherson

AUGUST

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2011

ontents C

VOLUME 8, ISSUE 32 • CHATTANOOGAPULSE.COM

Want to watch a video of this week's Nightfall headliner? Download the FREE "QR Reader" on your smartphone and scan this code.

“One night, the night Haywood was originally scheduled to die, he had to watch as another inmate was fried in the electric chair in a nearby room. Afterwards, he was made to carry out the dead body.”

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“A two-way photographic medium in which one side acts as a photograph while the other side provides a polka-dot window gives proof that not all of the projections given by science fiction writers for our age have been in vain.”

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“What bothered me most about this film, aside from the lack of convincing development of either genre, is the underuse of such a great cast.”

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— Cody Maxwell on the story of 'Scottsboro Boy' Haywood Patterson.

— Michael Crumb on the new 'Art in Motion' electric shuttle buses.

— Film critic John DeVore on why he was left cold while watching the disappointing Cowboys and Aliens.

www.chattanoogapulse.com | August 11, 2011 | Volume 8, Issue 32 | The Pulse

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NEWS Chattanooga’s Weekly Alternative President Jim Brewer, II Publisher Zachary Cooper Contributing Editor Janis Hashe News Editor / Layout Gary Poole Director of Sales Rhonda Rollins Advertising Sales Rick Leavell, Michelle Pih Graphic Design Jennifer Grelier Photography / Videography Josh Lang Contributors Gustavo Arellano, Rob Brezsny Dave Castaneda, Chuck Crowder Michael Crumb, John DeVore Janis Hashe, Matt Jones Kelly Lockhart, Cody Maxwell Ernie Paik, Rick Pimental-Habib Alex Teach Editorial Cartoonist Rick Baldwin Editorial Interns Lauren Haynes, Crystal Kishimoto Contact Info: Phone (423) 265-9494 Fax (423) 266-2335 Email Inquiries info@chattanoogapulse.com Calendar Submissions calendar@chattanoogapulse.com The Pulse is published weekly and is distributed throughout the city of Chattanooga and surrounding communities. The Pulse is available free of charge, limited to one copy per reader. No person without written permission from the publishers may take more than one copy per weekly issue. The Pulse may be distributed only by authorized distributors.

The Pulse is published by

Brewer Media 1305 Carter Street Chattanooga, Tennessee 37402 Letters to the editor must include name, address and daytime phone number for verification. The Pulse reserves the right to edit letters for space and clarity. Please keep letters within 300 words in length.

The Pulse covers a broad range of topics concentrating on culture, the arts, entertainment and local news.

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Pulse Beats

“I live in a basement apartment near the Supreme Court. It’s nice, but it’s lonely. It’s just me, a TV and a can of sardines. That’s the glamorous life of a Congressman.”

Sheriff’s Office Launches New Crackdown On DUI The Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office will join nearly 10,000 other law enforcement agencies nationwide in support of an intensive crackdown on impaired driving August 19–September 5, known as “Booze It & Lose It.” The problem of impaired driving is a serious one.

Data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration shows the number of alcohol-impaireddriving fatalities in America fell from 2008 to 2009, but the numbers are still too high.

In 2009 alone, 10,839 people died in crashes in which a driver or motorcycle rider was at or above the legal limit, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The age group with the highest percentage of alcohol-impaired-driving fatalities in motor vehicle traffic crashes was the 21-to24 age group.

“All too often, innocent, lawabiding people suffer tragic consequences and the loss of loved ones due to this careless disregard for human life. Because we’re committed to ending the carnage, we’re intensifying enforcement during the crackdown. Since twice as many alcohol-impaired accidents occur over the weekend and four times as many occur at night, we will be especially vigilant during these high-risk times when impaired drivers are most likely to be on our roads,” said Sheriff Jim Hammond.

Across the country, it is illegal to drive with a blood alcohol concentration of .08 grams per deciliter or

The Pulse | Volume 8, Issue 32 | August 11, 2011 | www.chattanoogapulse.com

— Rep. Chuck Fleischmann on life in Washington, D.C.

higher. According to the latest data, nearly a third of fatalities in motor vehicle traffic crashes involved a driver or motorcycle rider with a BAC above the legal limit – an average of one fatality every 48 minutes.

The crackdown will include law enforcement officers in every state, Washington, D.C., and many U.S. cities and towns.

Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office said its deputies will be aggressively looking for all impaired drivers during the crackdown and will arrest anyone they find driving while impaired — regardless of age, vehicle type or time of day.

“Not only is it illegal to drive under the influence of alcohol, it is also an offence to drive impaired on illegal and prescription drugs, said State Law Enforcement Liaison Clint Shrum. “Certain prescription drugs can impair a person’s ability to operate just as bad as alcohol and sometimes even worse. Be sure to read your warning labels and check with your doctor before operating a vehicle while taking a prescription” commented Shrum.

According to Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office, violators often face jail time, loss of their driver licenses, or being sentenced to use ignition interlocks.

Their insurance rates go up. Other financial hits include attorney fees, court costs, lost time at work, and the potential loss of job or job prospects. When family, friends and co-workers find out, violators can also face tremendous personal embarrassment and humiliation.

News Briefs • The Chattanooga City Council last week approved a $125 million capital budget for the coming year. It includes $2 million for the Wilcox tunnel, $3.5 million for a new city employee wellness and medical facility, and more than one million for repairs along Ross’s Landing Park.

Councilwoman Deborah Scott was the lone vote against the budget.

She questions the economic timing of the spending. She questions, for example, $250,000 to be spent on a History Center, claiming it is opening Pandora’s Box to approve such funding.

• Tennesseans in 26 counties who suffered losses from the spring storms, tornadoes and floods have been approved for nearly $30 million in federal help. More than 13,000 survivors have registered with the Federal Emergency Management Agency for disaster assistance. As of Aug. 4, the following is a snapshot of disaster recovery: $15 million for housing grants, including short-term rental assistance and home repair costs; $2.7 million to cover other essential disaster-related needs, such as medical and dental expenses and lost personal possessions; $12 million in low-interest disaster loans to homeowners, renters and business owners by the Small Business Administration.

NEWS

Opinion

Organic Farming Budget Questions Send all letters to the editor and questions to While I applaud the According to the info@chattanoogapulse.com young people who have terms of the recently made, and continue to passed budget We reserve the right to edit letters for content make, Williams Island agreement, any tax cut and space. Please include your full name, Farms a viable concern, city and contact information. has to be accompanied I do feel like the kid by an increase in in the parade of the taxes to compensate for the loss of revenue Emperor With No Clothes. While organic farming to the government. This doesn’t allow for the has become trendy, the reality is that large-scale continuation of the Bush Tax Cuts, which are due to organic farming is actually worse for the planet and expire in 2012. This means that they either have to the environment. While it may sound counterbe allowed to expire, or they will require the largest intuitive, the fact is that organic farming requires tax increase in US history to keep them going. four times as much land as scientific farming, and Which of these will our Senators and Congressmen the “natural” fertilizers used contribute far more recommend? to water-table pollution and river run-off pollution Bob Brady that scientific fertilizers. While organic farms provide a welcome mix to food choices, one has to Fishing Fun For Disable Kids acknowledge that all scientific progress, especially City of Chattanooga Parks and Recreation, related to agriculture, crop yields, and diseasethe Therapeutic Recreation Division, Hamilton resistant crop strains are not the enemy of the County Parks and Recreation and members of the environment and, in fact, are what is keeping the Chattanooga Bass Club invite kids 12 and under planet from complete starvation. with a disability and their families for a morning of Charles Whitmire fishing fun. It will take place this Saturday from 8 a.m. till 11 a.m. at Chester Frost Park and the cost Cycling Etiquette and Stop Signs is free. A fishing license is not required if under the I’ll admit, if there are no cars around, I’ll roll a age of 13. The Chattanooga Bass Club will provide stop sign or right on red without stopping; however, fishing equipment and will assist with fishing. For I find few people get more frustrated at cyclists riding like idiots than other cyclists. When someone more information, contact Carla Jones at (423) 697-1334. disobeys the rules of the road and gets motorists Brian Smith worked up, the entire cycling community bears the City of Chattanooga brunt of his disdain.

Nate Champion Parks and Recreation www.chattanoogapulse.com | August 11, 2011 | Volume 8, Issue 32 | The Pulse

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NEWS

Politics & Crime A weekly roundup of the newsworthy, notable and often head-scratching stories gleaned from police reports from the Chattanooga Police Department, the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office, the Bradley County Sheriff’s Department and the Dalton Police Department.

Here is one of the agenda items to be discussed at the Tuesday, August 16 meeting of the Chattanooga City Council.

9. Departmental Reports: a) Department of Human Services b) Department of Parks and Recreation c) Department of Public Works d) Department of Neighborhood Services e) Department of Education, Arts & Culture f) Fire Department g) Police Department h) Department of Personnel i) Department of Finance and Administration j) City Attorney

Each week at the city council meeting, the heads of each department have the opportunity to address the council on any needs or requests. But there’s more than that—the heads of the departments are also there to address citizen concerns directly. So if you have an idea, suggestion or complaint about something covered by one of the above departments, this is a perfect opportunity to direct it to the top person.

The Chattanooga City Council meets each Tuesday at 6 p.m. in the City Council Building at 1000 Lindsay St. For more information on the current agenda, and past minutes, visit www.Chattanooga.gov/City_Council

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• Apparently the investment in those new three-wheeled Police Mobility Vehicles have paid off, much to the consternation of one would-be purse snatcher. Two Chattanooga Police Officers working the downtown district caught a man trying to steal a purse from a woman on Broad Street this past Friday evening. The officers were on routine patrol riding the new Police Mobility Vehicles when they were approached by a citizen telling them a man had just stolen some takeout food from a woman. As officers arrived, they observed the man attempting to steal a purse from another woman who was holding her two year-old child. The officers quickly took the man into custody and found that he was still eating the food that he had stolen from the first victim. The hapless suspect was transported to the Hamilton County Jail where he was charged with two counts of theft under $500, resisting arrest, and disorderly conduct.

• In another case of being in the right place at the right time (at least for law enforcement) a store robbery was rather quickly solved. Chattanooga Police Officers with the Crime Suppression Unit in the East Chattanooga area caught two suspects that had just robbed the an East 3rd Street business. An 18 year-old and a 14 year-old had entered the store wearing masks and wielding hand-

The Pulse | Volume 8, Issue 32 | August 11, 2011 | www.chattanoogapulse.com

guns. Officers quickly responded to the area and observed the suspects running away from the store. After a brief foot pursuit, both were taken into custody, with the handgun and stolen money still in the possession. Both suspects were charged with aggravated robbery, aggravated assault, and theft over $500.

• Alert neighbors help solve crime. It’s really that simple. After a rash of recent car break-ins, East Ridge Police increased both marked and unmarked patrols. As a result, they were able to arrest two suspects in connection with car break-ins. Early Friday morning officers responded to the area of North Mack Smith Rd. in reference to suspicious persons called in by an alert citizen. Police arrived on the scene in less than one minute and found a 19 year-old and his juvenile brother in the parking lot of the a retirement center.

Officers found a GPS unit in the suspect’s pants pockets, the same one that had been stolen from a vehicle which was parked at a nearby motel. The 19 year-old was charged with burglary of an automobile, theft, simple possession of marijuana, and contributing to the delinquency of a minor. The 16 year old juvenile suspect was charged with burglary of an automobile and theft.

• Prostitution remains an ongoing problem for local police, especially when so many of the practitioners refuse to find a new line of work even after multiple arrests. In a constant effort to deal with issues of prostitution and the problems created by it, the Chattanooga Police Department conducted another prostitution sting last week, this one targeted specifically at prostitutes.

Undercover officers canvassed areas of East Lake, Rossville Blvd, East Chattanooga and Highland Park to see if “dates” could be made with suspected prostitutes. The five women arrested in the sting were all repeat offenders having had as many as seven prior offenses, and ranged in age from 25 to 52.

Which makes us wonder what type of John would employ the services of a 52 year-old prostitute. Seriously.

www.chattanoogapulse.com | August 11, 2011 | Volume 8, Issue 32 | The Pulse

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OPINION

Shrink Rap

“Act Your Age!” A

ct your age! Grow up, mister!

How old are you? Stop acting like a baby.

Do these comments sound familiar?

We’ve probably all grown up hearing some version of these at one time or another.

The state of being a kid can be frustrating for adults, and there are moments in child rearing when the idea of offspring becoming less work and less exhausting is very attractive. Of course there are also the moments when those adorable childlike qualities are cherished, and pass much too quickly.

Development can be a confusing bag.

Which of us hasn’t looked back at earlier stages of life and yearned for a time when the biggest worry of the day was whether the popular kid on the playground will be your friend. Or if you’ll be allowed to take the car next weekend. Remember when you got your first apartment and didn’t even think about how you’d come up with the rent until the day before it was due? Such sweet simplicity. Or is that just memory playing tricks?

In our yearning for simpler times, we might sentimentalize the reality of days gone by, allowing the past to shine a little brighter. Hopefully, maturity yields lessons learned, and the ability to soften old wounds: wisdom replacing pain.

But sometimes our development gets stuck. In a tangle of immaturity, we cause problems for ourselves and others with immature behavior, words, thoughts. In a relationship, for instance, this leads the other person to feel like a parent rather than a partner, and plants seeds for resentment. In our professional lives, we may underestimate our abilities, or deny ourselves advancement or a job with better pay, or feel unable to rise to additional responsibility. Socially speaking, maybe our humor, dating

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practices, choice of friends all leave us playing the role of eternal frat boy. And of course, that gets old.

Childish is not the same as child-like.

I was in a store recently and saw a young boy growing tired of shopping with the parental units, and he was starting to complain. In turn, the parents were becoming impatient and aggravated with him. Finally, as the tension in this little triad was mounting, the father said in a stern voice, “Act your age!” The little boy stopped and looked at his father with an expression of total, utter confusion.

As I watched this little drama play out, I had a hard time not laughing. The little boy WAS acting his age, and quite perfectly. But this was one of those moments where the parents wanted him to act older than his age, which of course the boy had no idea how to do.

If they’d said something more specific like, “If you can be patient for 10 more minutes, then we’ll be able to go home and play,” he might have better understood the request.

At any rate, I thought of the conundrum of growing up, no matter what age we might be. Sometimes we want to be older and wiser, sometimes we want to return to the simplicity of our youth. Oh, if only I could be 20 (or 30 or 40) again, knowing what I know now. Well, of course, that’s the rub.

As I pondered this topic of aging, a friend sent me this note: The other day I met this sprightly 68-year-old pixie-like

Dr. Rick

The Pulse | Volume 8, Issue 32 | August 11, 2011 | www.chattanoogapulse.com

lady and she was a real kick in the pants. When I asked her age, she responded with the usual,”What age do you think I am?” And reticent as I was to play that dumb game, she had a certain spark that said to me…play.

So I said a younger age of course, 55, to which she replied, “That too”. And then she said she’s officially 68, but that despite being “officially 68” she’s also 55, and 27, and 14, and 40, and 6. She very casually said that, as I was talking with her, any one of those ages might be engaging with me, but she was never sure which one. Because she’s all of them at the same time. I was rather wowed by that—and I GET IT. I never heard anyone express it that way—but I thought it was genius.

Maybe she’s onto something. Maybe the key to maturing happily lies in being present, and learning to embrace how you feel in that moment. When you feel like a silly, laughing kid, be a silly kid. When you need to be responsible, be responsible. Perhaps the different aspects to our personalities can be seen as different ages, all rumbling around inside, just waiting for the best time to be expressed.

Gives “act your age” a whole new meaning.

“Perhaps the different aspects to our personalities can be seen as different ages, all rumbling around inside, just waiting for the best time to be expressed.”

Until next time: “The key is complete surrender. When there is no desire to control, manipulate or insist, there is simple, joyful allowing.” — Deepak Chopra Dr. Rick Pimental-Habib, Ph.D., is a psychotherapist, minister, and educator, in private practice in Chattanooga, and the author of “Empowering the Tribe” and “The Power of a Partner.” Visit his web site at www.DrRPH.com

www.chattanoogapulse.com | August 11, 2011 | Volume 8, Issue 32 | The Pulse

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COVER STORY

The Scottsboro Boys

Tracing the life and death of a Scottsboro Boy

Haywood Patterson is Dead and Gone Story by Cody Maxwell, Pulse Contributing Writer

I

t was raining and fog rolled up from the river. Under awnings and concrete eaves on 11th Street people hid away in pairs, alone sometimes, and watched the rain fall down on the empty downtown streets. They talked quietly and smoked cigarettes. Some of them drank from brown paper bags and looked up at the sky.

The newspaper house churned out smoke and their workhouse bells rang letting everyone know that the world had not stopped. I was walking down the sidewalk with an old stray mutt dog trotting through the rain behind me. He followed me as far as the railroad bridge then ducked down a bushy trail with somewhere else to go.

I went on a little ways and walked up the front steps of the Chattanooga Community Kitchen.

There were some papers I was to pick up behind the front desk. I also had a man named Haywood Patterson on my mind the street. I went to a bar downtown and ran into an old friend of and thought I’d ask some random person there if they’d ever mine, a well-traveled girl who usually knows a lot more than I do. heard of him. I got my papers and walked out into the dayroom.

“You ever heard of Haywood Patterson,” I asked her.

It was just after dinner, and in a back corner a small crowd had “No. Was I supposed to?” gathered around two men playing checkers. This crowd was hud“I don’t know. He was one of the Scottsboro Boys.” dled over the two checker players clapping their hands and act“I’ve heard of them but I can’t remember who they were. There’s ing up like they were watching a chicken fight in the back yard. I a musical called The Scottsboro Boys I heard was on Broadway.” walked back to their corner.

“Haywood Patterson was from Chattanooga.

I watched the checker game for a minute then “That letter I’d He lived here in the thirties and went to prison asked one of the men if he’d ever heard of Hayin Alabama…” read was none wood Patterson.

“Oh, Lord. Here you go again.” She pointed at of my business me with her thumb and told the bartender, “He “Who?” “Haywood Patterson.” and Haywood needs a beer.” The bartender knew what I drank, “No, I ain’t heard of him.” and that was that, too.

Patterson is “He was one of the Scottsboro Boys,” I tried I tried a few more times to find someone in gone. Nobody town who knew about Haywood and the Scottsto explain, but one of the checker players made a quick slick move and the crowd of men erupted else seemed to boro Boys, but failed just as miserably. come across Haywood Patterson’s name afin howls and laughter. The other checker player give a damn.” terI’dfinding an old tunnel while walking the railroad cursed him and I was shoved out of the way by tracks around the bottom of Lookout Mountain. If you don’t mind the crowd of laughing men. stepping over dead possums or being chased by dogs you can walk That was that.

I left the men alone. I went to sit in a chair near the front door the tracks there and find that old cave-like gothic structure. It was to dry out and wait for the rain let up. Later, I walked back down built in 1918. Vines and weeds hang down from the top and a big

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The Pulse | Volume 8, Issue 32 | August 11, 2011 | www.chattanoogapulse.com

COVER STORY

The Scottsboro Boys

badass freight train is usually rumbling just of a newspaper reporter, Haywood wrote outside. Hoboes sleep in the bushes there. about what happened that day: On the wall just inside the tunnel I found “The freight train leaving out of Chattaold graffiti from the time the tunnel was nooga went so slow anyone could get off and carved out of the mountain. Names, dates back on. and old caricatures were scratched into the “That gave the white boys [also riding the wall by the men who worked there. Intrigued train] the idea they could jump off the train by the old drawings I went to the downtown and pick up rocks, carry them back on, and library and researched the tunnel’s history. chunk them at us Negro boys.

That’s where I found Haywood Patterson.

“The trouble began when three or four In 1931, the Chattanooga Daily Times said white boys crossed over the oil tanker that he was “one of the worst young negroes in four of us colored fellows from Chattanooga Chattanooga.” That year, he and eight other were in. One of the white boys, he stepped “negro” boys were accused of gang-raping on my hand and liked to have knocked me off two white girls on a train that had left Chatta- the train. I didn’t say anything then, but the nooga. They were convicted same guy, he brushed by and sentenced to death for again and liked to have “One night, the me that crime in Scottsboro, pushed me off the car.

Alabama.

“I made a complaint night Haywood Haywood was born in about it and the white boy was originally talked back—mean, serious, 1913. When he was a small scheduled to child, his father moved white folks Southern talk. his family from Elberton, “That is how the Scottsdie, he had Georgia to Chattanooga in boro case began…with a to watch as hopes of finding work in the white foot on my black steel mills. The work wasn’t another inmate hand. there, though, and the fam“Three or four white boys, was fried in the they ily lived in squalor in what were facing us four electric chair in black boys, and all cussing was not much more than a dog shack at the corner of other on both sides. a nearby room. each Main Street and Riverside But no fighting yet.

Afterwards, he Drive. Haywood quit school “We had just come out after the third grade to help of a tunnel underneath was made to work at home.

Lookout Mountain when carry out the When he was 14, he startthe argument started. The ed hoboing on trains looktrain, the name of it was the dead body.” ing for work to help out his Alabama Great Southern, father. Haywood, as would any young boy, it was going uphill now, slow. A couple of the reveled in the scary freedom that came with white boys, they hopped off, picked up rocks, riding the tracks—not knowing where he was threw them at us. The stones landed around going and not knowing what he’d find. His was us and some hit us. Then the white fellows, the American spirit chug-a-lugging through they hopped back on the train. We were gothe dark and hot woods of the South, hoping ing toward Stevenson, Alabama, when the that in the next town he would find what he rocks came at us. We got very mad. was looking for. He dreamed of finding work “When the train stopped at Stevenson someday and returning home to Chattanoo- we got out of the car and walked along the ga smiling and with enough money to take his tracks. We met up with some other young family away from the animal lives they lived. Negroes from another car. We told them But by the time he was 18, Haywood was what happened. They agreed to come in with still looking for work. He and a few other us when the train started again. like-minded Chattanooga boys hopped yet “Soon as the train started the four of us another train, still hoping something would Chattanooga boys that was in the oil tanker come their way. What happened after they got back in there—and the white boys startcaught that Memphis-bound freight train ed throwing more rocks. The other colored changed not only their lives but the course of guys, they came over the top of the train and American history. Years later, with the help met us four guys. We decided we would go www.chattanoogapulse.com | August 11, 2011 | Volume 8, Issue 32 | The Pulse

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COVER STORY

The Scottsboro Boys

and settle with these white boys. We went toward their car to fight it out.

“I don’t argue with people. I show them. And I started to show those white boys. The other colored guys, they pitched in on these rock throwers too. Pretty quick the white boys began to lose in the fist fighting. Some of them jumped off and some we put off. A few wanted to put up a fight but they didn’t have a chance.

We had color anger on our side.

“The white fellows got plenty sore at the whupping we gave them. They ran back to Stevenson to complain that they were jumped on and thrown off—and to have us pulled off the train.

“The Stevenson depot man, he called up ahead to Paint Rock and told the folks in that little through-road place to turn out in a posse and snatch us off the train.

“It was two or three o’clock in the afternoon, Wednesday, March 25, 1931, when we were taken off at Paint Rock…”

Haywood didn’t know there were two white girls dressed in men’s overalls also riding the train. None of the boys did. The two girls were cheap boxcar prostitutes.

One of them was a minor.

The girls made up a story about being gang raped by the black men on the train.

We’ll go to jail if we don’t say something, the older girl convinced the younger. The older girl was worried about being prosecuted under the Mann Act, which addressed taking minors across state lines for immoral purposes.

When they were discovered. they told their rape story to the Scottsboro police.

This is how the Scottsboro boys case began. It ended with eight of the nine boys being convicted of the rape and being sentenced to death.

Their trials went through the courts for years, eventually to the U.S. Supreme Court. One by one, over time and due to national pressure and ridicule, they were released and pardoned by the State of Alabama. But Haywood Patterson had already spent 16 years in the notoriously hellish Alabama prison system. The hopeful young kid who hopped a freight train looking for work one day had already been turned into a prison-bred monster.

His hope and youth was beaten, kicked and starved out of him in prison. He was tied up and whipped like an animal. A prison guard once

paid two other black inmates, friends of Haywood, to kill him. He was beaten and stabbed by his “friends” 20 times, puncturing his lung.

But he didn’t die.

One night, the night Haywood was originally scheduled to die, he had to watch as another inmate was fried in the electric chair in a nearby room. Afterwards, he was made to carry out the dead body.

Deprived of the company of women, and probably having never been with a woman, he became an aggressive homosexual (“a wolf”) with his own “gal-boy.” He attacked another prisoner with a switchblade for having sex with “his kid.”

“He didn’t try to take my gal-boy away from me after that,” Haywood said. “Nobody did.”

His innocence was lost and all his hope was gone. His faith remained in only one thing: “I had faith in my knife,” he said. “It had saved me many times.”

He escaped from prison in 1947. He and a number of other inmates were working a prison farm when Haywood took off running through tall rows of corn, then out into the woods and through snake-infested creeks. He was cornered by three dogs and drowned two of them.

The last one ran away. He made it to Atlanta, then back home to Chattanooga. Eventually he made his way to the home of his sister in Detroit, Michigan.

While in Detroit in 1950, Haywood was involved in a barroom brawl that resulted in the death of another man. He was charged with murder this time, convicted of manslaughter and died in a Detroit prison on August 24, 1952. He was 39 years old.

That’s who Haywood Patterson was. That’s what became of his life.

I was hanging around the library alone one night digging into Haywood’s story when I came across a letter he wrote from a Birmingham prison. He wrote it on October 20, 1937, to a young boy named Bobby. He wrote: “You Have two cute frogs and one is Expecting to Have babies. My How I would like to see those frogs. What sort of things is they? I am happy to Know that you all Have more kittens.

And I can imagine How Beautiful they are, especially If they are very playful. Bobby dear, I Can Not Help but to love you awfully Because you seems Most Kind and considerate to the

“’He was one of the Scottsboro Boys,’ I tried to explain, but one of the checker players made a quick slick move and the crowd of men erupted in howls and laughter.

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The Pulse | Volume 8, Issue 32 | August 11, 2011 | www.chattanoogapulse.com

COVER STORY

The Scottsboro Boys

poor Helpless dogs and Kind to all things. you are Heavenly sweet to Have found a Home for the poor lost dog. its good of you and I too Hope that the poor fellow will be nicely treated where ever he are. I feel very Sad for the poor Homeless dog. Honestly I do and am glad you all Had sympathy for Him and founded him a Home mighty nice of you. god will bless you for your Kindness to everything.”

They called closing time at the library and I went outside. A group of homeless people were on the front steps waiting for all the lights to go out so they could find a spot to sleep in the grass. It was dark outside.

I sat on the steps, too, wondering if I was nothing more than some kind of ghoul dragging up the dead and buried for no other reason than my own ghoulish curiosity. That letter I’d read was none of my business and Haywood Patterson is gone. Nobody else seemed to give a damn.

Why should I? Still, I couldn’t help it. Curiosity got the better of me and I walked down to the corner of Main Street and Riverside Drive where Haywood used to live. I wanted to see the world from his

perspective. Chattanooga hasn’t changed all that much since Haywood lived here. The mountain and river is still here. I wanted to see what he saw when he was a child.

The small shack that he grew up in is not there anymore. There are red brick housing projects on the corner of Main Street and Riverside now. I stood on the corner there and looked up to my left. The lights from the big houses on Lookout Mountain shone bright and proud. Old barges bellowed on the river. I walked

around the corner to where Haywood’s house used to be and looked into the dark rows of the brown brick project buildings.

I saw people watching me there. Some people I couldn’t see moved like shadows behind cars and trees.

People stood under clotheslines that were in every back yard and looked at me. In the shadows behind streetlights people moved. A few cars started and headlights came on. Everyone knew I was there.

People I couldn’t see knew I was there and I was afraid. Very afraid. Two black men came from the darkness and down the sidewalk toward me. “What you need, boy?” someone shouted from an open window. The two black men kept coming toward me down the sidewalk and I saw another black man walking across the street toward me. I heard a woman laugh.

I’m a white boy and I knew I had to get out fast. I hurried back down the sidewalk, around the corner and out to the middle of Main Street. I stayed in the middle of Main Street so someone passing by might see me.

When I got closer to downtown I ducked down alleys and behind bushes and dumpsters, taking every shortcut I knew to get back to where I belonged.

www.chattanoogapulse.com | August 11, 2011 | Volume 8, Issue 32 | The Pulse

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ARTS

Feature

The Downtown Free Shuttle Art Fleet

By Michael Crumb, Pulse Arts Writer

C

ARTA’s Downtown free electric shuttle service has been fairly unique and much appreciated facility. No doubt these emission free buses greatly increase the production of downtown residents, workers, and visitors. People are often surprised that these shuttles are free to ride, but, realistically, there are revenue streams involved. Many workers park in CARTA’s garages at shuttle terminals, and these shuttles get these workers to their jobs quickly. Many local riders and visitors donate to this shuttle service. The shuttles also carry advertisements.

It seems unlikely that a fare system would offset the resulting loss of productivity that these shuttles so efficiently produce in there free state. These shuttles also enhance Chattanooga’s allure to conventions that would locate here.

Recently these shuttles have begun to contribute to the allure of Chattanooga’s Downtown art scene as well.

Oddly enough, the story here begins with those advertisements on the shuttles. Having grown up on the inside of the advertising business and having attended Media College, I do recognize that “art” is not an altogether cynical term when applied to ads, however, rare may be its active manifestations.

Still, the medium here, not the image, amazes because of “wrap” material.

I can still recall the sense of trepidation when I first boarded an adwrapped shuttle, wondering if I was to ride within an interior darkness, for the sake of some dollars.

Instead, an interior texture of small circles clearly provided a functional window view.

This “wrap” material has a seriously contagious quality, and artists welcome this new medium. Are “wrapped” cars being produced even as these sentences are being written? In any case artistically wrapped public vehicles have appeared in Asheville, Toronto, Philadelphia, and Fort Lauderdale, and who knows where else?

Now Chattanooga has its own small fleet of artistically wrapped shuttles. An interesting collaboration initiated by CARTA, Jim Bowen of CARTA joined with Peggy Townsend and Elizabeth Carriger of Public Art Chattanooga and with Lisa Flint of the River City Company to obtain art wrap designs for five free shuttles.

When the call went out for the shuttle art designs it seemed happily pretentious, a natural extension of Chattanooga’s commitment to public arts. The first wrapped shuttle design was done

by Rondell Crier, titled, “Joy Ride.” This design remarkably suited its function as traveling art. Colorful curved arrows, macro landscape elements like distant mountains, and micro landscape elements like leaf forms combined to provide a sense of motion and of anticipation.

“A two-way photographic medium in which one side acts as a photograph while the other side provides a polka-dot window gives proof that not all of the projections given by science fiction writers for our age have been in vain.”

“Wraps” mystery inspires. A two-way photographic medium in which one side acts as a photograph while the other side provides a polka-dot window gives proof that not all of the projections given by science fiction writers for our age have been in vain.

Crier was the first artist to show at the newly opened Camp House venue, and his works displayed a range of sensibilities that included design and media innovation with subjects that communicated such a “Joi D’art.”

Crier was excited by the opportunities both to have art work in motion and to apply to his abilities in digital illustration to a new medium. As for design elements, Crier remarks, “The shuttles are for all. Everybody can relate, from kids to adults.

There are so many brown buildings downtown; I wanted to design with bright colors to communicate excitement.” Crier also will soon install a statue on Main Street.

Since the wrap is a digital medium, it’s very inclusive of diverse sources. Clair Vassort’s “Breath of Life,” a lovely blend of trees and sky originates as paint on silk. This refreshing vision of intimate landscape flows through our downtown cityscape.

Karen Estes, “It’s All Right Here,” portrays cartoon figures of colorful minimalist portrayal cavorting in various downtown destinations. Jaimie Davis’ “Chattanooga’s Urban Connection, Yellow,” Photographically presents views from our downtown scene. Daryl Thetford’s “Proposal 1” achieves a kind mirror aesthetic effect with an expressionist city scape of “Repurposed Urban Art.” I await the “Crab Nebula” wrap to carry us to a saner future!

www.chattanoogapulse.com | August 11, 2011 | Volume 8, Issue 32 | The Pulse

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ARTS

Arts & Events Calendar FRIDAY

THURSDAY

Art + Issues: Our protectors, Our Community and Our Families The series of in-gallery community dialogues continue with Freeman Cooper, retired Chattanooga Chief of Police.

Free admission.

6 p.m.

Hunter Museum of Art, 10 Bluff View.

(423) 266-0944. www.huntermuseum.org

Thursday

Dynamo of Dixie Downtown Tour 10 a.m. Sheraton Read House, 827 Broad St. (423) 228-0448. www.chattanoogasidewalktours.com Chattanooga Gas Free Family Night 5:30 p.m. Creative Discovery Museum, 321 Chestnut St. (423) 648-6043. www.cdmfun.org Art + Issues: Our protectors, Our Community and Our Families 6 p.m. Hunter Museum of Art, 10 Bluff View. (423) 266-0944. www.huntermuseum.org Bluff and Bridges Downtown Tour 7 p.m. Walnut Street Bridge, 1 Walnut St. (423) 228-0448. www.chattanoogasidewalktours.com Mystery of the TV Talk Show 7 p.m. Vaudeville Café, 138 Market St. (423) 517-1839. www.funnydinner.com

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The Pulse | Volume 8, Issue 32 | August 11, 2011 | www.chattanoogapulse.com

Lookouts vs. Birmingham Barons 7:15 p.m. AT&T Field, 201 Power Alley. (423) 267-2208. www.lookouts.com Scenic City Comedy Search 8 p.m. The Comedy Catch, 3224 Brainerd Rd. (423) 629-2233. www.thecomedycatch.com Chattanooga Ghost Tour 8:15 p.m. Walnut Street Bridge, 100 Walnut St. (423) 821-7125.

Friday

Dynamo of Dixie Downtown Tour 10 a.m. Sheraton Read House, 827 Broad St. (423) 228-0448. www.chattanoogasidewalktours.com Fresh on Fridays Marketplace 11 a.m. Miller Plaza, 850 Market St. (423) 265-3700.

Big Brothers Big Sisters 25th Annual Golf Classic 11:30 a.m. The Bear Trace, 8919 Harrison Bay Rd. (423) 698-8016.

Born to be Wild 3D 6, 8 p.m. IMAX Theater, 1 Broad St. (800) 265-0695. www.tnaqua.org Taylors Ruritan Club 30th Annual Rodeo 6 p.m. 221 Old Kinser Rd SE, Cleveland. (423) 476-9999.

Downtown Chattanooga Sunset Paddle 6 p.m. Coolidge Park, 150 River St. (800) 262-0695.

Summer Gallery Show Reception 6:30 p.m. The Gallery at Blackwell, 71 Eastgate Loop. (423) 344-5643.

Ultimate Wave Tahiti 3D 7, 9 p.m. IMAX Theater, 1 Broad St. (800) 265-0695. www.tnaqua.org Mystery of Flight 138 7 p.m. Vaudeville Café, 138 Market St. (423) 517-1839. www.funnydinner.com

Bluff and Bridges Downtown Tour 7 p.m. Walnut Street Bridge, 1 Walnut St. (423) 228-0448. www.chattanoogasidewalktours.com Lookouts vs. Birmingham Barons 7:15 p.m. AT&T Field, 201 Power Alley. (423) 267-2208. www.lookouts.com Henry Cho 7:30 p.m. The Comedy Catch, 3224 Brainerd Rd. (423) 629-2233. www.thecomedycatch.com The Comedy of Errors 7:30 p.m. Ensemble Theatre of Chattanooga, 1918 Union Ave. (423) 987-5141. ensembletheatreofchattanooga.com Luck of the Draw 7:30 p.m. Chattanooga State, 4501 Amnicola Hwy. (423) 697-3207. www.chattanoogastate.edu Chattanooga Ghost Tour 8:15 p.m. Walnut Street Bridge, 100 Walnut St. (423) 821-7125.

Stand Up Comedy! Frank Roche 9:30 p.m. Vaudeville Café, 138 Market St. (423) 517-1839. www.funnydinner.com Scenic City Comedy Search 10 p.m. The Comedy Catch, 3224 Brainerd Rd. (423) 629-2233. www.thecomedycatch.com Female Impersonation Show Midnight. Images Showbar, 6065 Lee Hwy. (423) 855-8210. www.imagesbar.com

Saturday

Missionary Ridge Road Race 6:30 a.m. First Lutheran Church, 2800 McCallie Ave. (423) 304-5258.

Dynamo of Dixie Downtown Tour 10 a.m. Sheraton Read House, 827 Broad St. (423) 228-0448.

Henry Cho

Henry Cho writes and performs his brand of stand up with unique perspectives and hilarious results. $15-$17 7:30 p.m.

The Comedy Catch, 3224 Brainerd Rd. (423) 629-2233. www.thecomedycatch.com.

Brainerd Farmers Market 10 a.m. Grace Episcopal Church, 20 Belvoir Ave. (423) 458-6281.

Chattanooga River Market 10 a.m. Tennessee Aquarium, 1 Broad St. (423) 648-2496. www.chattanoogamarket.com Second Annual “Not ForgottenBring ‘Em Home” Poker Run 10 a.m. Thunder Creek Harley Davidson, 7720 Lee Hwy. Art till Dark Noon. 40 Frazier Ave. (423) 413-8999. www.arttildark.com Rock City Summer Music Series Noon. Rock City Gardnes, 1400 Patten Rd. Lookout Mountain.

(800) 854-0675.

Luau Open House Noon. Georgia Winery, 6469 Battlefield Pkwy. (706) 937-9860. www.georgiawines.com Arts Live: August Cooking on the Rooftop Noon. Creative Discovery Museum, 321 Chestnut St. (423) 648-6043. www.cdmfun.org The Comedy of Errors 2 p.m. Ensemble Theatre, 1918 Union Ave. (423) 987-5141.

ARTS

Arts & Events Calendar

SATURDAY

The Comedy of Errors

Shakespeare comes to the stage at the Ensemble Theater of Chattanooga. $11 2 p.m.

Ensemble Theatre of Chattanooga, 1918 Union Ave. (423) 987-5141.

Mystery at the Nightmare Office Party 5:30 p.m. Vaudeville Café, 138 Market St. (423) 517-1839. www.funnydinner.com Born to be Wild 3D 6, 8 p.m. IMAX Theater, 1 Broad St. (800) 265-0695. www.tnaqua.org Taylors Ruritan Club 30th Annual Rodeo 6 p.m. 221 Old Kinser Rd SE, Cleveland. (423) 476-9999.

Star Night 6 p.m. Chattanooga Convention Center, 1150 Carter St. (423) 756-0001. www.siskin.org Paul Belcher Gospel Concert 6:30 p.m. Memorial Auditorium, 399 McCallie Ave. (423) 757-5156. www.chattanooga.gov Bluff and Bridges Downtown Tour 7 p.m. Walnut Street Bridge, 1 Walnut St. (423) 228-0448. www.chattanoogasidewalktours.com Ultimate Wave Tahiti 3D 7, 9 p.m. IMAX Theater, 1 Broad St. (800) 265-0695. www.tnaqua.org Henry Cho 7, 10 p.m. The Comedy Catch, 3224 Brainerd Rd. (423) 629-2233. www.thecomedycatch.com

SUNDAY

Lookouts vs. Birmingham Barons 7:15 p.m. AT&T Field, 201 Power Alley. (423) 267-2208. www.lookouts.com Riverfront Nights 7:30 p.m. Ross Landing Park, Riverfront Pkwy. www.riverfrontnights.com Luck of the Draw 7:30 p.m. Chattanooga State, 4501 Amnicola Hwy. (423) 697-3207. www.chattanoogastate.edu Mystery at the Redneck-Italian Wedding 8 p.m. Vaudeville Café, 138 Market St. (423) 517-1839. www.funnydinner.com Chattanooga Ghost Hunt 9:30 p.m. Patten Chapel, 615 McCallie Ave. (423) 821-7125.

Stand Up Comedy! Frank Roche 10:30 p.m. Vaudeville Café, 138 Market St. (423) 517-1839. www.funnydinner.com Female Impersonation Show Midnight. Images Showbar, 6065 Lee Hwy. (423) 855-8210. www.imagesbar.com

Sunday

Dynamo of Dixie Downtown Tour 10 a.m. Sheraton Read House, 827 Broad St. (423) 228-0448.

Chattanooga Market 11 a.m. First Tennesee Pavilion, 1826 Reggie White Blvd. www.chattanoogamarket.com Rock City Summer Music Series Noon. Rock City Gardens, 1400 Patten Rd. Lookout Mountain.

(800) 854-0675. www.seerockcity.com Lookouts vs. Birmingham Barons 2:15 p.m. AT&T Field, 201 Power Alley. (423) 267-2208.

Luck of the Draw 2:30 p.m. Chattanooga State, 4501 Amnicola Hwy. (423) 697-3207. www.chattanoogastate.edu The Comedy of Errors 6:30 p.m. Ensemble Theatre of Chattanooga, 1918 Union Ave. (423) 987-5141. ensembletheatreofchattanooga.com Bluff and Bridges Downtown Tour 7 p.m. Walnut Street Bridge, 1 Walnut St. (423) 228-0448. www.chattanoogasidewalktours.com Scenic City Comedy Search 8 p.m. The Comedy Catch, 3224 Brainerd Rd. (423) 629-2233. www.thecomedycatch.com Movie Night 8 p.m. Sluggo’s North Vegetarian Cafe, 501 Cherokee Blvd.

(423) 752-5224.

Chattanooga Ghost Tour 8:15 p.m. Walnut Street Bridge, 100 Walnut St. (423) 821-7125. www.chattanoogaghosttours.com

Monday

Dynamo of Dixie Downtown Tour 10 a.m. Sheraton Read House, 827 Broad St. (423) 228-0448. www.chattanoogasidewalktours.com Bluff and Bridges Downtown Tour 7 p.m. Walnut Street Bridge, 1 Walnut St. (423) 228-0448. www.chattanoogasidewalktours.com 92nd Street Y Lecture Series 7:30 p.m. Jewish Cultural Center, 5461 N. Terrace Rd. (423) 493-0270. www.jewishchattanooga.com Chattanooga Ghost Tour 8:15 p.m. Walnut Street Bridge, 100 Walnut St. (423) 821-7125. www.chattanoogaghosttours.com

Sluggo’s Movie Night

Cult films rule the que at he series of Sunday night movies at Sluggo’s.

8 p.m.

Sluggo’s North Vegetarian Cafe, 501 Cherokee Blvd.

(423) 752-5224.

Tuesday

Book Club 12 p.m. Alexian Brothers Senior Neighbors, 250 E. 10th St. (423) 755-6131.

Songwriter’s Line-up 7 p.m. The CampHouse, 1427 Williams St. (423) 702-8081.

Lookouts vs. Carolina Mudcats 7:15 p.m. AT&T Field, 201 Power Alley. (423) 267-2208. www.lookouts.com Chattanooga Ghost Tour 8:15 p.m. Walnut Street Bridge, 100 Walnut St. (423) 821-7125. www.chattanoogaghosttours.com

Wednesday

Dynamo of Dixie Downtown Tour 10 a.m. Sheraton Read House, 827 Broad St. (423) 228-0448. www.chattanoogasidewalktours.com Lookouts vs. Carolina Mudcats 11:15 a.m. AT&T Field, 201 Power Alley. (423) 267-2208. www.lookouts.com Lookouts Autograph Party 1:30 p.m. Big River Grille, 222 Broad St. (423) 267-2739.

Main Street Farmers Market 4 p.m. Main St. at Williams St. www.chattanoogapulse.com | August 11, 2011 | Volume 8, Issue 32 | The Pulse

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OPINION

On The Beat

Hell Called...Collect I

was knocked out of sleep by the abrupt sound of an old analog phone with traditional bells for a ringer, real metal-striking-metal that clanged like the apocalypse.

Nothing today compares to those ringers, not even the most fiendish of digital styles that are the modern equivalent of sharp nails down a slate chalkboard. Were I in a rush I’d just say, “I nearly shit the bed when the phone rang,” but I’m neither so hurried nor crude; I had to think though…how did people put up with these for so many years? No wonder my dad always seemed pissed off.

The thought was still in my head when I answered it to the sound of static (another bygone sound) then a slowpaced voice asking how I was, apologizing for the late hour of the call. I shuddered when I had the distinct feeling that I was talking to someone who sounded partinsect, then as I recognized the voice I dropped the receiver as if discovering it were radioactive as I recognized the voice: Samuel Campbell. He’d been dead for 11 years.

(Well, he died as I was yelling at him anyway and they carted him off in a bag and his mother apologized to us for what he’d done after his funeral, but I was still pretty certain he was gone, as it were.)

I hadn’t had this nightmare for ages so I shook it off, sat up on one elbow, and thought, “What the hay,” as I reached down beside the bed and picked the phone up to see what was going on with ol’ Samuel. It may seem funny, but I believe in a “Hell”, folks. I don’t necessarily attach any religion’s labels to it, but I’d seen and felt the presence of “real evil” before on two occasions and deduced it needs an ethereal home (being an ethereal feeling that felt tangible enough), but whatever my logic I knew it wasn’t every day it dialed you up on the phone, so why not chat it up?

Alex Teach “Leave it to Hell to hang up on you; terribly rude, but what can one expect from the Charred Pit, yeah?”

“Yell-low?” I said cheerfully enough.

There was a bit of static, a long buzz, then a carrier tone. Call over. Leave it to Hell to hang up on you; terribly rude, but what can one expect from the Charred Pit, yeah?

I went to hang up as well but found my hand was empty and the receiver was gone…only my trusty cell phone was there on top of a book, and my unease quickly faded. (For a second I reflected on how it was once stories from books that scared me, but now brought me comfort and sleep). I rubbed my eyes, still on an elbow, and started that morning as I did every other with the thought of “Well, shit…” and sat up. There’d be no more sleep now.

When did this become “normal” to me?

And come to think of it, was it “normal”?

Bah. Who cared. It was normal to me, and I was a nice guy.

I drive around most days, responding to calls for service and initiating action for the things I see…terribly distracting

(and therefore welcome), but those hours at night when your only company is a ceiling fan and a shitload of unprocessed thoughts and anxieties tactically repressed to allow you to deal with the “now” and put off the “what if” until later…well. It kind of sucks now and then.

I had a friend who recently spoke of seeing a shrink due to a mandatory referral for something he did on the job that was “wildly unpleasant” and the shrink…they just shrunk, and prescribed him anti-depressants, anti-anxiety meds and some sleep aids. Oh, and Viagra.

He said he’d just voiced his concerns about mortality and whatnot, but the shrink had clearly gotten his credentials from high school then college instead of South Willow Street and THEN a college (as I would recommend, for purposes of common points of reference from which to relate). I really don’t think he knew what else to do. Cops…they’re like a whole separate tier of “effed up”, and should be studied in captivity like the lab mice that they are.

My friend was sad at the lack of actual help (prescriptions versus advice) and had no intention of taking said meds under such weak pretenses, but he at least had the sense to fill the various prescriptions anyway for future uses which established his sanity for me—but I wasn’t sure I was the most stable platform from which to judge these things either.

My point? I don’t necessarily know.

But sometimes Hell calls, folks, and you have to be prepared to make that ringing stop. Or learn to live with it, either way… ringing on and on in the background. And if you call back—don’t hesitate to leave a message.

If it calls, it’s expecting you, after all.

When Officer Alexander D. Teach is not patrolling our fair city on the heels of the criminal element, he is an occasional student, carpenter, boating enthusiast, and spends his spare time volunteering for the Boehm Birth Defects Center. Follow him on Facebook at www.facebook.com/alex.teach www.chattanoogapulse.com | August 11, 2011 | Volume 8, Issue 32 | The Pulse

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MUSIC

Feature

Hot Time, (Late) Summer In The City

By Dave Casteneda, Pulse Music Writer

W

ell, the summer is almost over. What an exciting festival season for the southeast and what a monumental summer for the Chattanooga music scene. The Nightfall series was a huge hit and brought some of the best local talent in front of new fans, some new announcements from Track 29 got the entire city excited, and a bunch of sweat nights at JJ’s keep the city at bay. August will be filled with a lot of exciting showcases to keep you satisfied until September.

MISE EN SCENESTERS present tHE HEARtS IN LIGHt and Prophets and Kings $6 Cover Saturday, August 13, 8 p.m. – 1 a.m.

Collective Warehouse, 4015 Tennessee Avenue Collective Clothing has been a staple in the St. Elmo community providing the neighborhood with a great place to shop for clothing and other neat items. This year, Collective grew in a big way and expanded to include a warehouse which is “August will host to many different indie rock be filled concerts and movie showcases.

This showcase is a music video with a lot premier of local visual rock band, of exciting tHE HEARtS IN LIGHt. The band has a solid sound and incorshowcases porates a lot of visual elements to keep you into their performance putting you into a focused trance on satisfied until their music and vocalist. I would September.” highly recommend watching them once to see what they are all about. Playing alongside them is sample-rock band Prophets & Kings who always deliver on a killer performance and amazing stage presence.

Beer is provided by Moccasin Bend Brewery and the venue will be showing the cult classic Forbidden Zone.

20

Elk Milk, Royal Bangs, Ampline $7 Cover Saturday, August 13, 9 p.m. – 2 a.m.

JJ’s Bohemia, 231 E MLK Blvd.

Elk Milk was one of the most talked about bands this summer as they provide one of the heaviest hitting shows and are only getting better and better. Elk Milk is Ben Hobbs, Joshua Hyde, and Isaac Houck and they play music that rocks heavy. Playing alongside Elk Milk is Knoxville’s Royal Bangs which have been garnering a bunch of buzz after playing at festivals like Big Ears, Bonnaroo, and Lollapalooza. Royal Bangs recently made a television debut on the Late Show with David Letterman back and April and have shown no signs of slowing down. This will be a rare opportunity to check out Royal Bangs in an intimate setting before they take off even further in their careers.

I am very convinced that this will be one of the shows this month that you cannot miss.

Sol Sessions w/ Selecta K7 and Flux 308 Free Thursday, August 18, 9 p.m – Midnight The Social, 1110 Market Street I know that the most talked about genre of electronic music in Chattanooga right now is the bass heavy wobbly sounds of dubstep. I’m not here to talk about that. What I am here to talk about is how the Sol Sessions crew has held it down every 1st and 3rd Thursday of the month at one of Chatta-

The Pulse | Volume 8, Issue 32 | August 11, 2011 | www.chattanoogapulse.com

nooga’s hidden gems.

A music takeover of some of the most cutting edge sounds from all over the globe! Selecta K7 and Flux 308 will often drop some sounds from Salsa to Samba to Cumbia to Reggae and Moombahthon. The crowds are equally as diverse as the music being played and you will no doubt run into a high energy party in one of the best bars in Chattanooga. Worth checking out for the price tag of FREE! Ded Baby Robots, Johnny Dropout, Tony Holiday $7 Cover Saturday, August 20, 7 p.m. – Midnight The Backstage Lounge, 5518 Brainerd Road This is a new showcase that is being put together at The Backstage Lounge next to The Holiday Bowl. Each band has a unique sound that they bring to the table and this is sure to be an eclectic mix of music. If punk rock music is more of your thing then Johnny Dropout will be sure to deliver tunes that you can vibe to. Ded Baby Robots deliver more on the jam band sound that will have you guys grooving all night long. If you’re in the area make sure to hit this one up!

There you have it; you have a month of events to look forward to! As the summer finally cools down we’ll all have many surprises to look forward to.

As always send us your letters to The Pulse and tell us what to keep our ears in the ground for and we’ll see you all at the show!

MUSIC

New Music Reviews

Lol Coxhill and Alex Ward

Swimsuit

(Incus)

Wine expert Matt Kramer wrote a convincing article recently in Wine Spectator in favor of “keeping it summer simple” by not obsessing over details too much during the warm months, enjoying unfussy pleasures such as Spanish Rosé or Rieslings. He even states, “On a summer day, there are no bad Rieslings. Like brides and babies, they are all beautiful.” This sentiment comes to mind when listening to certain tracks from the new, self-titled album from the Michigan band Swimsuit, available on vinyl and as digital downloads. In the summer, the social aspect of music seems to be more important than details like sonic clarity from audiophile equipment; when listening to some ’60s garage rock, soul, or jangle-pop songs on the back porch at sunset with friends, it doesn’t matter that the music is playing from some cheap boombox. It’s all about spirit, musical delivery, and capturing a mood.

Swimsuit is comprised of Fred Thomas (best known as the front man of the ’60s-influenced Saturday Looks Good to Me and half of the Panda Bear-esque outfit City Center), Shelley Salant, Dina Bankole (also in Secret Twins), and Amber Fellows (formerly of Dos Hermanos), and the new album is a definite improvement over last year’s full-length cassette, Peace Gull, which felt a little too loose and underdeveloped. All of the roughness hasn’t been shed since then, but the musicianship is more focused, like on the twominute, upbeat fuzz-pop burst of the opening track, “Evaporation,” which uses some vibratoinflected soprano vocals to great effect. Thomas takes his turn singing on several tracks, including “Mongoose” and “Outside Your Windows,” going with an animated, impassioned singing style, somewhat akin to his vocals in the post-hardcore band Lovesick.

Thomas has aptly described Swimsuit’s approach as sounding like the theme song for the TV show The Kids in the Hall (by the instrumental group Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet), and more than a few tracks fall in with that assessment, including “Winter Water” and the album’s finest moment, the tuneful “Sunlight” that has some tremendous pop hooks. The album isn’t perfect, and one could critique it to death—substitute a few throwaways, tighten up the playing—but in the right situation, with the right temperature, it can hit the spot. — Ernie Paik

Old Sights, New Sounds

Certain types of music seem utterly resistant toward having mainstream acceptance, and broadly, they can be placed in the category of “difficult music.” The artminded musician and storyteller Laurie Anderson lovingly poked fun at this idea with her song “Difficult Listening Hour,” imagining a radio show as “The spot on your dial for that relentless and impenetrable sound of difficult music.” Among the types of difficult music are realms such as noise and free improvisation, which is improvisation with no genre in mind. Such music, often extremely abstract by the nature of its creation, is hard to swallow because of a lack of structure or familiarity and often evokes a sense of confusion and uncertainty. However, in this context, being “in the dark” (unsure of what will come next) and being “dark” (in the gloomy sense) are different things. One of the best, recent examples to underscore this distinction is the new free improv album Old Sights, New Sounds from the reed players Lol Coxhill and Alex Ward, which evokes a bright joy and the spirit of curiosity.

Soprano saxophonist Lol Coxhill, aged 78 at the time of this recording, has had a long career, first in the jazz and pop realm before focusing on free improv, peppered with collaborations with diverse artists such as Mike Oldfield, Kevin Ayers, and the punk group The Damned. Thirty-something clarinetist Alex Ward has distinguished himself as an adept improviser, having no trouble keeping up with the veterans with whom he often collaborates. What is notable on Old Sights, New Sounds is the feeling of cooperation between Coxhill and Ward, who clearly are consciously building atop each other’s ideas; on the opener “Establishing Shot,” many phrases seem to reach the end with a shared moment—a long, sustained note or texture. Both instruments have an overlapping playing range, so there is a constant, fluid weaving of notes without collisions, with Ward’s varied playing approaches (from high squeaks to buzzes to percussive tonguing) on “Back Story” complementing Coxhill’s pointed and determined fluttering; perhaps it’s like two dogs in field running in tandem, teasing and sniffing at each other, conveying a healthy, cheerful feeling of playfulness. — Ernie Paik

Swimsuit

(Speakertree)

www.chattanoogapulse.com | August 11, 2011 | Volume 8, Issue 32 | The Pulse

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MUSIC

Concert Calendar

THURSDAY

The Jason Connelly Band with Rosedale Remedy

The Honest Pint continues to fill in their venue with an ever increasing number of shows. A great place for live music. $3 9 p.m.

The Honest Pint, 35 Patten Pkwy.

(423) 468-4192. www.thehonestpint.com

Thursday

Ben Friberg Trio 7 p.m. Table 2, 232 E. 11th St. (423) 756-8253. www.table2restaurant.com Audience Choice Night 7 p.m. McHale’s Brewhouse, 724 Ashland Ter. (423) 877-2124. www.mchalesbrewhouse.com Rick Rushing's Blues Jam 9 p.m. Market Street Tavern, 850 Market Street.

(423) 634-0260.

Michael Allen 9 p.m. The Office, 901 Carter Street. (423) 634-9191 Open Mic Night 7:30 p.m. The CampHouse, 1427 Williams St. (423) 702-8081. www.thecamphouse.com

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FRIDAY

Brock Blues Band 8 p.m. The Lounge at The Palms at Hamilton, 6925 Shallowford Rd., #202. (423) 499-5055.

Jimmy Harris 8 p.m. The Coconut Room at The Palms at Hamilton, 6925 Shallowford Rd., #202.

(423) 499-5055.

The Jason Connelly Band with Rosedale Remedy 9 p.m. The Honest Pint, 35 Patten Pkwy. (423) 468-4192. www.thehonestpint.com The Gist 10 p.m. Rhythm & Brews, 221 Market St. www.rhythm-brews.com

Friday

Jimmy Harris 6:30 p.m. The Coconut Room at The Palms at Hamilton, 6925 Shallowford Rd., #202.

(423) 499-5055.

The Rick Byers Band 6:30 p.m. Southside Bistro & Saloon, 1301 Chestnut St. (423) 757-4730. southsidesaloonandbistro.com.

Ben Friberg Trio 6:30 p.m. Table 2, 232 E. 11th St. (423) 756-8253. www.table2restaurant.com Beyond Bethel, Die to Yourself, Challenger, Chapters 7 p.m. The Warehouse, 412 Market St. www.warehousevenue.com.

Uncle Lightnin’ 7 p.m. Nightfall Concert Series, Miller Plaza, Market Street. www.nightfallchattanooga.com Calvin Richardson 7:30 p.m. Mocha’s Restaurant & Lounge, 3116 Brainerd Rd. The Dirt Road Band 8 p.m. Acoustic Café, 61 RBC Dr., Ringgold.

(706) 965-2065. www.ringgoldacoustic.com JD McPherson w/ Uncle Lightnin’ 7 p.m. Nightfall Concert Series, Miller Plaza, Market Street. www.nightfallchattanooga.com DJ and Dancing 9 p.m. The Lounge at The Palms at Hamilton, 6925 Shallowford Rd., #202. (423) 499-5055. www.thepalmsathamilton.com Strung Like A Horse 10 p.m. Market Street Tavern, 850 Market Street.

(423) 634-0260. www.marketstreettavern.com Husky Burnette 10 p.m. T-Bones, 1419 Chestnut St. (423) 266-4240. www.tboneschattanooga.com.

Big Kitty, Fat Shadow 10 p.m. JJ’s Bohemia, 231 E. MLK Blvd. (423) 266-1400. www.myspace.com/jjsbohemia Fly By Radio 10 p.m. Rhythm & Brews, 221 Market St. www.rhythm-brews.com

Big Kitty, Fat Shadow

The unique sound and inventive song writing of Big Kitty is infectious. This show releases the new LP Florence and it’s highly anticipated. $7 10 p.m. JJ’s Bohemia, 231 E. MLK Blvd.

(423) 266-1400. myspace.com/jjsbohemia Karaoke & Dancing 10 p.m. Chattanooga Billiards Club East, 110 Jordan Dr. (423) 499-3883. www.cbcburns.com

Saturday

New Binkley Brothers Noon Rock City Gardens, 1400 Patten Rd., Lookout Mtn. Jimmy Harris 6:30 p.m. The Coconut Room at The Palms at Hamilton, 6925 Shallowford Rd., #202.

(423) 499-5055.

Our American Cousin, Moonsoes Mumsy, Ramble, Buffalo, Midnight Sun, The Local Group 7 p.m. The Warehouse, 412 Market St. www.warehousevenue.com.

Calvin Richardson 7:30 p.m. Mocha’s Restaurant & Lounge, 3116 Brainerd Rd.

MUSIC

Concert Calendar

SATURDAY

Elk Milk, Royal Bangs

Knoxville based Royals Bangs have been making big waves on tour. Locals Elk Milk are perfectly paired with this headliner. It’s a don’t miss situation. $7 9 p.m.

JJ’s Bohemia, 231 E. MLK Blvd.

(423) 266-1400. myspace.com/jjsbohemia Vaughn St. Clair 8 p.m. Market Street Tavern, 850 Market Street.

(423) 634-0260.

DJ and Dancing 9 p.m. The Lounge at The Palms at Hamilton, 6925 Shallowford Rd., #202. (423) 499-5055. www.thepalmsathamilton.com Elk Milk, Royal Bangs 9 p.m. JJ’s Bohemia, 231 E. MLK Blvd. (423) 266-1400. www.myspace.com/jjsbohemia Frontiers: A Tribute to Journey with Matt Stephens Project 10 p.m. Rhythm and Brews, 221 Market St. www.rhythm-brews.com

Sunday

New Binkley Brothers Noon. Rock City Gardens, 1400 Patten Rd., Lookout Mtn. www.seerockcity.com

SUNDAY

Julie Gribble 12:30 p.m. Chattanooga Market, First Tennessee Pavilion, 1829 Carter St. www.chattanoogamarket.com Irish Music Session 3 p.m. The Honest Pint, 35 Patten Pkwy. (423) 468-4192. www.thehonestpint.com Free Range Mystics 3 p.m. Pasha Coffee and Tea, 3914 St. Elmo Ave. (423) 475-5482. www.pashacoffeehouse.com Woolly Jumpers with Pay the Reckoning 9 p.m. The Honest Pint, 35 Patten Pkwy. (423) 468-4192. www.thehonestpint.com Karaoke with DJ Salt 9:30 p.m. Bud’s Sports Bar, 5751 Brainerd Rd. (423) 499-9878. www.budssportsbar.com

Monday

Music Mondays 7 p.m. Pasha Coffee and Tea, 3914 St. Elmo Ave. (423) 475-5482. www.pashacoffeehouse.com Mountain Music 7 p.m. Market Street Tavern, 850 Market St. (423) 634-0260. www.marketstreettavern.com Big Band Night 8 p.m. The Coconut Room at The Palms at Hamilton,

6925 Shallowford Rd., #202.

(423) 499-5055. www.thepalmsathamilton.com Karaoke with DJ Salt 9:30 p.m. Bud’s Sports Bar, 5751 Brainerd Rd. (423) 499-9878. www.budssportsbar.com

Tuesday

Steve Holy 7 p.m. Chattanooga Billiards Club East, 110 Jordan Dr. (423) 499-3883. www.cbcburns.com Open Mic with Mike McDade 9 p.m. Tremont Tavern, 1203 Hixson Pk. (423) 266-1996. www.tremonttavern.com Karaoke with DJ Salt 9:30 p.m. Bud’s Sports Bar, 5751 Brainerd Rd. (423) 499-9878. www.budssportsbar.com

Wednesday

Jimmy Harris 6:30 p.m. The Coconut Room at The Palms at Hamilton, 6925 Shallowford Rd., #202.

(423) 499-5055. www.thepalmsathamilton.com Ben Friberg Trio 7 p.m. Market Street Tavern, 850 Market St. (423) 634-0260. www.marketstreettavern.com

New Binkley Brothers

Tradiitonal styles and genres blend with modern talent and takes. The results are one of our best local performers for it.

Rock City admission price includes the music series.

Noon.

Rock City Gardens, 1400 Patten Rd., Lookout Mtn, Ga. www.seerockcity.com Open Mic Night 8 p.m. Acoustic Café, 61 RBC Dr., Ringgold.

(706) 965-2065. www.ringgoldacoustic.com Prime Cut Trio 8 p.m. The Lounge at The Palms at Hamilton, 6925 Shallowford Rd., #202. (423) 499-5055. www.thepalmsathamilton.com DJ ScubaSteve hosts Jenntastic Wednesdays- Open Mic/ Karaoke/Poetry/Comedy/Local Music 9 p.m. Holiday Bowl, 5518 Brainerd Rd. (423) 899-2695. www.holidaybowlbrainerd.com Got a gig coming up that you want to tell the world about?

Email the particulars to us at calendar@chattanoogapulse.com at least ten days before the event. www.chattanoogapulse.com | August 11, 2011 | Volume 8, Issue 32 | The Pulse

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OPINION

Life In The ‘Noog

I Love (1970s) Rock-N-Roll O

ne of my fantasy jobs (when I’ve won the lottery and don’t need the money) is to teach History of Rock n’ Roll at the university level. As a self-proclaimed student of rock, I think about stupid stuff related to it all of the time, and there is one prolific period of rock history that I feel many gloss over, but likely shaped everything that came after it. It’s the period between 1970 and 1975.

The late ’50s invented rock n roll. The early ’60s gave us the British invasion and delivered the Beatles and the Stones. The late ’60s was a hippie freak-out. Skip five years and the late ’70s gave us southern rock, punk and disco. The ’80s served up new wave, the ’90s grunge and the 2000’s jam bands. But let’s rewind to the five years I skipped in the early ’70s.

Those five years were a weird time in American history.

We were still fighting Vietnam. Nixon was serving his second term in the White House, and the Watergate scandal during those five years would cause him to resign. No one knew what to do about design or fashion.

Polyester flower print dresses for the girls, polyester leisure suits and wide ties for the guys and kitchen appliances available only in colors like avocado, harvest gold or brown. They were tough times.

Musically, however, things were much, much different.

Artists, both new and known, were recording albums that, forty years later, we still point to as some of the best rock music ever produced. And it all happened in those five years.

First of all, the Beatles break-up enabled the freed-up Fab Four to release the songs they’d written that weren’t going to be wasted on the flailing group. John Lennon released Imagine in 1971, McCartney (& Wings) Band On The Run in 1973, George Harrison’s masterpiece All Things

the LA piano-songwriter scene with Randy Newman, Must Pass (“My Sweet Harry Nilsson, Warren Zevon and Jackson Browne get Lord”) came out in 1970, and even Ringo struck gold noticed.

There are many during that time period that wouldn’t with his self titled first solo fully be appreciated until after their spotlight faded. Gram album (“It Don’t Come Parsons, credited by many as inventing “alt-country” Easy”) in 1973. died in 1973. Back in Memphis, Big Star would see limited Meanwhile, the stoned success before their break-up in 1974, but their song “On Rolling Stones produced The Street” would be used as the theme song of a sitcom two of the top five albums about the decade several decades later. any critic would have Likewise, David Bowie and T. Rex not only spawned the on their Mick & Keith new genre of glam rock with its glittery space-age outfits list—Sticky Fingers in 1971 (with “Brown Sugar,” “Wild and make-up, but musically would stand the test of time in their quality songwriting and musical influence. Same Horses” and “Bitch”) and their own masterpiece Exile goes for Lynyrd Skynyrd and the Allman Brothers Band, who would not only invent southern rock, but would On Main Street in 1972. continue to influence jam bands today. And, as far as hipWhile that double album may have only spawned one radio friendly song with “Tumbling Dice,” it was adored by hop and R&B influences go, none compare to the three legends of the time—Al Green, Curtis Mayfield, and all, and paved the way for the follow-up LP Goat’s Head Stevie Wonder.

Soup in 1973 with it’s hits “Heartbreaker (Do, Do, Do)” and “Angie.”

At the same time, sound-alikes The Faces’ entire “Artists, both new and known, were career exploded and then faded away during that time recording albums that, forty years period—but left a solid body of work, lots of great stories and the ongoing careers of Rod Stewart and later, we still point to as some of Ronnie Wood (who of course later joined the Stones). the best rock music ever produced.”

Hell, even drummer Kenny Jones went on to replace Well, our time is about up for this lecture. I’ll leave Keith Moon in The Who. Speaking of The Who, they released their most beloved you with a short list of albums from that era that I didn’t even get to—Pink Floyd’s Dark Side Of The Moon (1973), single record Who’s Next (“Won’t Get Fooled Again,” Derek & The Dominoes’ Layla (1970), Neil Young’s “Baba O’Reilly,” and “Behind Blue Eyes”) in 1971 and Harvest (1972) and Bruce Springsteen’s Born To Run their second successful rock opera Quadrophenia (“Love (1975). The early ’70s rock, huh?

Reign on Me,” “The Real Me” and “5:15”) in 1973.

Co-starring in the movie Quadrophenia was a singer/ songwriter who was dominating the charts at the time— Chuck Crowder is a local writer and general man about town. His Elton John. Every album he released during that time opinions are just that. Everything expressed is loosely based on fact, and crap he hears people talking about. Take what you just read with period, such as Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, had at least three or four singles on it. He ruled the charts, and helped a grain of salt, but pepper it in your thoughts.

Chuck Crowder

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SCREEN

Film Feature

Cowbust & Alienation

By John DeVore, Pulse Film Critic

What bothered me most about this film, aside from the lack of f I learned one thing from Cowboys & Aliens (aside from convincing developthe apparent importance of gold to intergalactic trade) it was ment of either genre, is this: Harrison Ford is the only actor alive that can convincthe underuse of such a ingly stare down an alien fighter plane while armed with only great cast. Paul Dano a six-shooter. The man is carved out of stone. He comhas proven his skills opmands the screen. That doesn’t mean Cowboys & Aliens is a posite Daniel Day-Lewis good film. It is mostly noise and flash, horses and dust. It is exactly as advertised. The filmmakers are juxtaposing unlike in There Will Be Blood, genres into a single film, hoping that something exciting will Keith Carradine showed happen. It doesn’t handle either genre particularly well. The his hand in HBO’s wonWestern side is typical, while the science-fiction side is vir- derful Western drama tually ignored. The result is an average action film—average Deadwood, and yet they both disappear within only because Harrison Ford manages to make it watchable.

Jake Lonergan (Daniel Craig) wakes up in the desert with the first 30 minutes of a strange wound, a strange bracelet, and no memory of who the film. Sam Rockwell he is or how he got there. Almost immediately, we learn that has been in many very good sci-fi films, like 2009’s Moon, he is a dangerous man, a man with a past and considerable but is underutilized here as the cast’s sad sack. The rest of skill with firearms. Mysterious, tall strangers with violent the cast, excluding Harrison Ford, phones in their performances, which isn’t hard to do given what pasts are common fodder for spaghetti “What bothered they have to work with. Anyone could Westerns, as are enigmatic, apocalyptically been cast in this and produced the named towns like Absolution, where our me most about have same film. Why bother amassing a cast of hero finds himself looking for a doctor. this film, aside great character actors and not give them Absolution serves as a gathering place convincing characters to play? Daniel for the cast, a way to introduce the varifrom the lack Craig is mostly silent or monosyllabic for ous clichés necessary to fulfill the requireof convincing the majority of the film, which only works ments of the western genre. There’s a hard-cussing preacher (Clancy Brown), a development of if he has something colorful to clash against. His closest confidant becomes lowly bartender (Sam Rockwell), a tough either genre, is Olivia Wilde, who spends most of the sheriff (Keith Carradine), and the pridemovie looking confused, which doesn’t the underuse of ful, irresponsible son of a powerful rancher (Paul Dano). Our hero soon learns his such a great cast.” make much sense considering later revelations. identify, meets a doe-eyed girl with crypThe aliens are mostly nonsensical, large, and troll-like. I tic messages (Olivia Wilde), and finds himself at odds with the law and a rough group of quasi-outlaw ranch hands that never understand films that make interstellar travelers, with works for Harrison Ford. Then aliens blow up the town and technology far superior to ours, brutish monsters. I suppose they are trying to make a statement about imperialtake people, because that’s what aliens do in action movies.

I

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ism, comparing alien treatment of humans to human treatment of humans. This becomes readily apparent when we learn the laughable goals of the aliens. This comparison is indicative of the film’s fatal flaw. It takes itself far too seriously. The title suggested a tongue-incheek, amusingly contrasted film that combines traditional genres into a delightful action comedy. Instead, we are given a dead-serious invasion plot. Director Jon Favreau is known for making both good comedies and good action films. Where were the knowing glances and sarcastic characters? Maybe the aliens got them first.

Ultimately, Harrison Ford is the only reason to see Cowboys & Aliens and probably will be the only reason it makes money. I’d see him in just about anything. I had high hopes for this film. It promised to be something somewhat meta.

It should have occupied multiple places in the spectrum of film genre. For it to have worked as a western or as a sci-fi film, would have been a success. If it had worked as both, it would have been a triumph. As it is, it works as neither and is therefore completely forgettable.

Cowboys & Aliens Directed by Jon Favreau Starring Daniel Craig, Harrison Ford, Olivia Wilde Rated PG-13 Running time: 1 hour, 58 minutes

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ENTERTAINMENT

Free Will Astrology

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): For 34 years, a diligent Californian named Scott Weaver worked on creating a scale model of San Francisco using toothpicks. Meanwhile, Eric Miklos, of New Brunswick, Canada, was assembling a 40-foot-long chain of bottle caps. And in 2006, a team of artists constructed a 67-foot-tall gingerbread house, the world’s largest, inside the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota. These are not the kinds of stupendous feats I advise you to get started on in the coming weeks, Leo. The astrological omens suggest that you’ll attract blessings into your life if you launch deeply meaningful masterpieces, not trivial or silly ones.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Storyteller Clarissa Pinkola Estes loves life’s natural rhythms just as they are. She says we can avoid a lot of suffering if we understand how those rhythms work. “The cycles are birth, light, and energy, and then depletion, decline, and death,” she told Radiance magazine. In other words, everything thrives and fades, thrives and fades. After each phase of dissipation, new vitality incubates and blooms again. According to my analysis of the astrological omens, Virgo, you are currently going through a period of dwindling and dismantling. The light is dimmer than usual, and the juice is sparser. But already, in the secret depths, a new dispensation is stirring.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Where do you want to be at this time next year? What do you want to be doing? I encourage you to fantasize and scheme about these questions, and be alert for clues about possible prospects. Here’s my reasoning, Libra: Some foreshadowings of your future life may soon float into view, including a far-off whisper or a glimpse of the horizon that will awaken some of your dormant yearnings. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that these visions must be acted upon instantly. Instead, ruminate leisurely on them, regarding them as the early hints of potential long-range developments.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Let’s say, hypothetically speaking, that you can’t get The Most Beautiful Thing. It’s out of reach forever. You simply don’t have the connections or wherewithal to bring it into your life. Could you accept that disappointment with a full heart, and move on? Would you be able to forgive life for not providing you with your number one heart’s desire, and then make your way into the future with no hard feelings? If so, Scorpio, I bet you would be well-primed to cultivate a relationship with The Second Most Beautiful Thing.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): What images would be most helpful for you to fill your imagination up with? What scenes would heal and activate your subconscious mind, inspiring you in just the right ways? I invite you to make a list of at least five of these, and then visualize them often in the coming days. Here are a few possibilities to get you warmed up: peach trees filled with ripe fruit; the planet Jupiter as seen through a powerful telescope; a magnificent suspension bridge at dawn or dusk; a large chorus animatedly singing a song you love; the blissful face of a person you love.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Scientists have proved beyond a doubt that heavenly bodies cannot possibly exert forces that affect events on earth, right? Well, no, actually, according to research reported in the December 24, 2009 edition of the science journal Nature. It turns out that the gravitational tug of the sun and moon sends significant tremors through California’s San Andreas Fault, and could potentially trigger full-blown earthquakes. Speaking as a poet, not a scientist, I speculate that those two luminaries, the sun and moon, may also generate a lurching but medicinal effect on you sometime soon. Are you ready for a healing jolt? It will relieve the tension that has been building up between two of your “tectonic plates.”

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): “Follow your dreams,” read the headline on some random blog I stumbled upon, “except for the one in which you’re giving a speech in your underwear.” In the comments section, someone named “Mystic Fool” had posted a dissenting view: “I would much rather have a dream of giving a speech in my underwear than of being naked and drunk and inarticulate at a cocktail party, trying to hide behind the furniture.” Mystic Fool’s attitude would serve you well in the coming week, Aquarius. Expressing yourself in a public way, even if you don’t feel fully prepared, will actually be a pretty good course of action—especially as compared to keeping silent and hiding.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Some substances that seem to be rock solid are in fact fluids that move verrrryyy slowly. Bitumen is one example. It’s a form of petroleum also known as pitch. In a famous experiment, an Australian researcher set up an apparatus that allowed a blob of pitch to gradually drip into a container below it. Since the experiment began in 1927, eight drops have fallen. I like to think you’re engaged in a similar long-term process, Pisces. And from what I can tell, a new drop is about to drip.

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Dr. Larry Dossey thinks we shouldn’t just automatically dismiss the voices that speak to us in the privacy of our own heads. Some of them may actually have wise counsel, or at least interesting evidence about the state of our inner world. Besides, says Dossey, “it is vital for our mental health to keep the channels open, because when the voices of the gods are shut out, the devils often take up residence.” This would be good advice for you to observe in the coming days, Aries. Don’t let the nagging, blustering, or unhinged murmurs in your head drown out the still, small voice of lucid intuition. (Dossey’s book is The Extraordinary Healing Power of Ordinary Things: Fourteen Natural Steps.)

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): What are you going to do to attract or induce the phenomena I name in the list below?

At least three of them could come your way in the days ahead: 1. a “limitation” that leads to more freedom; 2. an imaginative surrender that empowers you to make a seemingly impossible breakthrough; 3. a healthy shock to the system that tenderizes your emotions; 4. a tough task that clarifies and fine-tunes your ambition; 5. a seemingly lost chance that leads to a fresh promise through the vigorous intervention of your creative willpower.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Thirteen will be your lucky number for the foreseeable future. In fact, a host of things for which the average person has an irrational aversion could be helpful to you. For that matter, influences that you yourself may have considered in the past to be unsympathetic or uncongenial could very well be on your side, and may even conspire to enlighten and delight you. At least temporarily, I urge you to shed your superstitions, suspend your iffy biases, and dismiss your outworn fears.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Anne Cushman wrote a book called Enlightenment for Idiots. It wasn’t a how-to book, but rather a novel about a spiritual truth-seeker wandering through India. As far as I know, no one has written an actual instructional manual with the theme she named in her title. If anyone could do it, though, it would be you right now. Lately, you’ve been getting smarter by doing the most ordinary things. You’ve been drawing life-enhancing lessons from events that others might regard as inconsequential or unsophisticated. I suspect that this trend will continue in the coming days. Through the power of simplicity and directness, you will succeed at tasks that might have defeated you if you had allowed yourself to get lost in complicated theories and overly-thought-out approaches.

Congrats!

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ENTERTAINMENT

Jonesin' Crossword — "The Orcs Are Here" Across 1 They rush to accidents 5 “Pygmalion” playwright 9 Ditch 13 Domain 15 Rum mixer, often 16 Folded food 17 ___ time (soon) 18 Hard rain 19 Two or three 20 Sci-fi geek who loves a “Deep Space Nine” alien and a Robin Williams sitcom?

23 “Get out, cat!”

24 Suffix for velvet 25 ___ Dhabi 28 Early 1900s music style 31 “___ never work” 33 ___ Lion (beast in one of Hercules’ labors) 35 Fusses 37 Wading bird sacred to Egyptians 39 Robot’s jobs

40 Icelandic singer’s silverware-twisting stat?

43 “___ the Bone” 44 “Divine Secrets of the ___ Sisterhood” (2002 movie) 45 ___ Shaker (band with the 1996 hit “Govinda”) 46 Like some senses 48 Part of CBS: abbr.

50 Dig in 51 Get even?

52 Prof’s helpers 54 Meat served scallopini 56 What a babydelivering bird uses to store meat in bottles?

62 Where Kazakhstan was, once 64 Lickable animal 65 Fashionable Bauer 66 More than a little 67 Break into the system 68 R.E.M. lead 69 “Classic Concentration” host

Trebek 70 ___-Seltzer 71 POTUS’s second in command Down 1 Actor La Salle of “Coming to America” 2 Wine list companion 3 “There it is!” noise 4 Talksh like thish 5 Pupil of sorts 6 Bitter frost 7 The same 8 Thoreau’s pond 9 Take the lead 10 Bizarre and nightmarish 11 Rocks in a tumbler 12 Explosive sound 14 “ER” actor Phifer 21 Recurring theme 22 “Pick a number from ___ ten” 26 “Quantum Leap” star Scott 27 Take to the floor?

28 Classic VW 29 “Diabolique” actress Isabelle 30 Phrase like “zounds,” but cutesier 32 Turkish money 34 Stigma 36 Miss, in Madrid 38 Spirit in a dark blue bottle 41 Actor Yaphet 42 Shocking handful 47 Kitt who played Catwoman 49 Grabs 53 Toast from Scandinavia 55 Flat-screen variety 57 “Jurassic Park” beast 58 Get ready for the move 59 Jon Arbuckle’s dog 60 Good for eating 61 Hold on to 62 Olympics cheer 63 Sun, in Ibiza

Jonesin' Crossword created By Matt Jones. © 2011 Jonesin’ Crosswords. For answers to this puzzle, call: 1-900-226-2800, 99 cents per minute. Must be 18+ to call. Or to bill to your credit card, call: 1-800-655-6548. Reference puzzle #0531

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