Philadelphia City Paper, November 28th, 2013 by Philadelphia City Paper

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Publisher Nancy Stuski Editor in Chief Lillian Swanson Senior Editor Patrick Rapa Arts Editor/Copy Chief Emily Guendelsberger Digital Media Editor/Movies Editor Paulina Reso Food Editor/Listings Editor Caroline Russock Senior Staff Writer Daniel Denvir Staff Writer Ryan Briggs Copy Editor Carolyn Wyman Associate Web Producer Carly Szkaradnik Contributors Sam Adams, Dotun Akintoye, A.D. Amorosi, Rodney Anonymous, Mary Armstrong, Meg Augustin, Bryan Bierman, Shaun Brady, Peter Burwasser, Mark Cofta, Alison Dell, Adam Erace, David Anthony Fox, Caitlin Goodman, K. Ross Hoffman, Deni Kasrel, Alli Katz, Gary M. Kramer, Drew Lazor, Gair â&#x20AC;&#x153;Dev 79â&#x20AC;? Marking, Robert McCormick, Andrew Milner, Annette Monnier, John Morrison, Michael Pelusi, Sameer Rao, Elliott Sharp, Marc Snitzer, Tom Tomorrow, John Vettese, Nikki Volpicelli, Brian Wilensky Editorial Interns John Corrigan, Taylor Farnsworth, Melvin Hayes, Sara Patterson, Brooks Phelps, Julie Zeglen Production Director Michael Polimeno Editorial Art Director Reseca Peskin Senior Designer Evan M. Lopez Editorial Designers Brenna Adams, Jenni Betz Staff Photographer Neal Santos Contributing Photographers Jessica Kourkounis, Mark Stehle Contributing Illustrators Ryan Casey, Don Haring Jr., Joel Kimmel, Cameron K. Lewis, Thomas Pitilli, Matthew Smith Human Resources Ron Scully (ext. 210) Circulation Director Mark Burkert (ext. 239) Sales & Marketing Manager Katherine Siravo (ext. 251) Account Managers Colette Alexandre (ext. 250), Nick Cavanaugh (ext. 260), Amanda Gambier (ext. 228), Sharon MacWilliams (ext. 262), Megan Musser (ext. 215), Stephan Sitzai (ext. 258) Office Coordinator/Adult Advertising Sales Alexis Pierce (ext. 234) Founder & Editor Emeritus Bruce Schimmel citypaper.net 30 South 15th Street, Fourteenth Floor, Phila., PA 19102. 215-735-8444, Tip Line 215-735-8444 ext. 241, Listings Fax 215-875-1800, Advertising Fax 215-735-8535, Subscriptions 215-735-8444 ext. 235 Philadelphia City Paper is published and distributed every Thursday in Philadelphia, Montgomery, Chester, Bucks & Delaware Counties, in South Jersey and in Northern Delaware. Philadelphia City Paper is available free of charge, limited to one copy per reader. Additional copies may be purchased from our main office at $1 per copy. No person may, without prior written permission from Philadelphia City Paper, take more than one copy of each issue. Pennsylvania law prohibits any person from inserting printed material of any kind into any newspaper without the consent of the owner or publisher. Contents copyright ÂŠ 2013, Philadelphia City Paper. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written permission from the publisher. Philadelphia City Paper assumes no obligation (other than cancellation of charges for actual space occupied) for accidental errors in advertising, but will be glad to furnish a signed letter to the buying public.

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Naked City ...................................................................................6 A&E................................................................................................18 Movies.........................................................................................24 Agenda ........................................................................................26 Food ..............................................................................................31 SCULPTURE BY EVAN M. LOPEZ COVER PHOTOGRAPH BY NEAL SANTOS DESIGN BY RESECA PESKIN

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naked

the

city

thebellcurve CP’s Quality-o-Life-o-Meter

[ +1 ]

City Council votes to ban the 3-D printing of guns. Also: No teleporting, and wizards have to promise to be nice no matter what!

[ 0]

A tied election in Montgomery County is settled by candidates pulling numbers from a jar. Long story short: The jar ends up winning and ushers in an era of unprecedented transparency.

[ +1 ]

Executives from local banks and corporations sleep out on the street for a night to raise money for homeless charities. “I just had to do something,” says one exec. “Something other than have my firm pay its appropriate share of the tax burden, which would surely benefit social services like mental-health care and shelters. But, yeah: Hoo boy. Long night.”

[ -3 ]

[ +1 ]

The city declares a Code Blue emergency due to frigid temperatures. Police begin gathering the city’s most vulnerable people off the street, and escorting them back to their McMansions in Wayne. The roast pork sandwich at John’s Roast Pork is named one of the top 10 sandwiches in the country by Askmen.com. Askwomen.com rolls its eyes. Some web sites seem to have a lot of opinions about stuff they don’t know anything about. Fitler Dining Room and Luke’s Lobster are named to a list of the 100 best new restaurants by mobile app Urbanspoon. Which is a big deal, because Urbanspoon is basically the Askmen.com of apps.

[ +3 ]

A police officer helps deliver a baby in a cab on Broad Street. At that moment, a $1.50 egress fee is added to the meter.

[ -3 ]

A security guard waiting for the El at 40th and Market accidentally fires his gun while rooting around in his duffel bag, grazing a woman in the face. The question on everyone’s mind: Could this be part of the nationwide “knockout game” trend?

This week’s total: +1 | Last week’s total: +6 6 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

EXCLUDED: Andrew Stahler says that Circle of Hope’s leadership asked him to leave the church for speaking too publicly about homosexuality. JESSICA KOURKOUNIS

[ religion ]

A HIDDEN SIDE Circle of Hope attracts members with its progressive image. But some attendees said the church’s stance on gay issues made them feel unwelcome. By Ryan Briggs ircle of Hope, a growing church that has attracted hundreds of young, hip congregants with a progressive message and relaxed religious services, has come under fire for what some describe as intolerant policies aimed at silencing gay congregants. Though Circle of Hope has painted itself as an accepting and compassionate “next generation of church,” former attendee Andrew Stahler says that Circle’s leadership asked him to leave for speaking too publicly about homosexuality. Troubled by a City Paper article on Oct. 17 that portrayed Circle as open and welcoming, Stahler and other former adherents say the church is trying to have it both ways: drawing in members with a modern image that skirts conservative tenants held by leaders who are fearful of reconciling progressive social-justice values with scripture. Stahler says that in early 2009 he started attending a “cell,” one of dozens of Circle’s home-based prayer groups, led by Jonny Rashid, who later became a pastor in the church. “I really liked that they had a social-justice message and that they had a conscience,” said Stahler, explaining his initial attraction to

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Circle. “I was pretty much in line with a lot of the things they believe.” Stahler says he “told [Rashid] I was gay the day I met him,” and that Rashid assured him his sexual orientation wasn’t an issue. And, for a time, being openly gay in the church wasn’t a problem; Stahler says most members he encountered seemed to be accepting of who he was. “They never let on that there could be a problem. … I went to [Rashid’s] sermons, sat in the front row, engaged in conversations about lots of things — but never about [homosexuality],” said Stahler, who works with ACT-UP, an advocacy group for people living with AIDS. But these pleasant months in the church made what happened next even harder. At Center City’s annual OutFest in 2009, Stahler says he assisted a group of activists distributing fliers that listed LGBT-friendly churches. As he handed out hundreds of leaflets, Stahler saw that his own church wasn’t listed. Assuming it was a simple omission, he raised the issue with church leaders later on Circle of Hope’s email list. A response came swiftly from Circle of Hope founder and senior pastor Rod White. “We do not want to be divided up by gay political activism,” wrote White in an email. He criticized Stahler for sometimes attending another church and said that if he were truly devoted to Circle, he

For a time, being openly gay in the church wasn’t a problem.

>>> continued on page 8

[ is eating sel roti ] [ a million stories ]

✚ SMILE FOR THE CAMERA This week, City Council will consider five pieces of legislation written in response to this year’s devastating Market Street building collapse, which claimed six lives. While much of the proposed legislation focuses on tweaks to work-site regulations to avoid future tragedies, it also includes a controversial and far-reaching regulation that would require all construction workers to obtain special photo ID cards from the Department of Licenses & Inspections. The “wallet-sized ID cards” would indicate that a worker had attended a 10-hour Occupational Safety and Health Administration course on construction safety, training that would also be mandated by the bill for anyone working at any construction site in Philadelphia. While the bill has its positives, the ID requirement has generated broad concerns from builder’s associations, Philadelphia’s large immigrant communities and L&I itself. James Engler, director of legislation for Councilman Jim Kenney, who sponsored the bill, said the legislation was aimed at clamping down on “unscrupulous contractors,” saying it would make it easier for L&I to shut down unsafe job sites. “There’s no other way to do that,” he said, curiously adding that he had heard few concerns about the proposal. But Erika Almiron, executive director of the immigrant-rights group Juntos, worries that the proposal would create needless obstacles for impoverished, undocumented immigrant laborers — especially when it comes to the cost of obtaining the cards. “Most workers who are day laborers are not making a ton of money on any given day, so anything that is a high cost is going to be a concern,” she said. “We’ve seen immigrants and all kinds of people

in this city who don’t have access to identification.” Almiron added that while her group supported worker-safety training for all, it was “concerned” about the lack of details behind the mandatory ID-card provision. “It all depends on what the requirements would be to obtain the cards,” she added. But right now, those details are scant. Engler said Council does not yet have figures on how many laborers would be affected by the legislation, the potential fees for training and obtaining the cards, or the costs of implementing and enforcing such a requirement. It was also unclear if workers would need to already possess a valid form of identification in order to apply for the worker IDs. An interestingly timed piece of legislation introduced last week by Councilwoman Maria Quiñones-Sánchez would allow the city to begin issuing municipal ID cards that could serve as proof of residency. While that bill was widely praised as a needed step toward integrating undocumented immigrants, Sánchez, who represents a district with a large Hispanic immigrant population, may also be fearful of blowback from constituents who might be unable to apply for worker IDs. Engler insisted Council and L&I would work out all of these issues and determine a funding source for the worker ID program over an 18-month timeline for implementation, assuming the bill is passed. But L&I, whose staff shortages and mismanagement many blame for the Market Street collapse, doesn’t seem to be sure of its own abilities to operate as an ID issuing authority.

The bill is aimed at “unscrupulous contractors.”

>>> continued on page 10

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DISH IT OUT: About 200 people were served free meals at Councilwoman Maria Quiñones-Sánchez’s community Thanksgiving dinner on Saturday in Feltonville. MARK STEHLE

citybeat By Sam Seifman

THEIR FIRST THANKSGIVING ➤ ON SUNDAY AROUND 2 P.M., in the hall outside Old Pine Community Center’s gymnasium, the murmurs of about 100 people mixed with the sound of bluegrass music from a band in the corner. This is hardly what you’d expect, but exactly what you get from the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society’s (HIAS) 5th Annual Refugee Thanksgiving Dinner. “We’re here to get people to come together,” said HIAS board president Linda Harker. Giving thanks is at the heart of this uniquely American holiday, and HIAS executive director Judith Bernstein-Baker started her speech to those gathered in the room on that theme. “Thank you for letting us bring you to America,” she said. Hailing from Bhutan, Sudan, Iraq, Myanmar and elsewhere, about 200 refugees attended the dinner over the course of the afternoon — sitting at tables set up in the gym, coming and going, mixing and mingling despite the language barriers. Many of the refugees have been in the United States for less than a year, and some of the children had spent their entire lives in refugee camps before coming to the United States. American volunteers served the traditional standards of turkey, sweet potatoes and pumpkin pie, plus many refugees brought foods from their native cultures to share. It wasn’t uncommon to see sel roti, a fried-dough dish from Nepal and Bhutan, on the same plate as mashed potatoes and stuffing. Mostly, the children were the first to reach out to people from other cultures. As youngsters from all sorts of different backgrounds colored in Thanksgiving-themed pictures of gourds and turkeys, their parents smiled at seeing their children playing together and introduced themselves. HIAS, a Jewish organization founded in Manhattan in 1881, initially provided aid to Jewish immigrants, but since then has expanded to help refugees from all over the world. Ashok Rai, from Bhutan, works for HAIS as a translator, aiding refugees in the same way the organization once helped him. “I work with the community,” said Rai, “so I love what I do.” When Bernstein-Baker asked the room, “How many people have never been to a Thanksgiving before?” the question was translated into four languages. Nearly everyone’s hand rose into the air. (editorial@citypaper.net)

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✚ A Hidden Side

[ the naked city ]

<<< continued from page 6

never would have broached the topic of homosexuality at all. “You are not in covenant with us,” White continued, referring to an “oath” some congregants take to bond with the church. “Certainly not enough to resist promoting a divisive issue we have been successful at avoiding, so far.” Stahler says he started receiving emails from Rashid, who wanted to set up a personal meeting to discuss his “role in the church.” At that meeting, Rashid gave him two options: stop talking about homosexuality or leave the church. Rashid refused to confirm or deny these events, saying he has hazy memories of Stahler. “I don’t really remember [the meeting] that well, so I’m not able to speak to Andy’s experiences,” said Rashid. “[Andy] never really connected, I don’t have a clear memory of him.” However, Stahler produced numerous correspondences he had with Rashid related to church business, beach trips, their final 2009 meeting and even recent emails about City Paper’s story last month on the church. Asked to explain Circle of Hope’s stance on homosexuality, Rashid said flatly, “Our policy is that we don’t have a policy.” Stahler is not alone in having clashed with this “non-policy” over the years. John Bright, a theology student who is also gay, got involved with Rashid’s cell a few months before Stahler. He, too, was drawn to the church’s social values, but was wary of the young pastor’s zeal. “I sat down with [Rashid] in my apartment and said, basically, ‘I’m gay, and you remind me of evangelical culture. If this is going to be a problem, tell me now,’” said Bright. He was assured enough to attend several church services. But he didn’t stick around long enough to get kicked out. “After bringing [homosexuality] up several times in non-public situations and getting obviously fearful and evasive reactions, I left,” Bright says. “I had little tolerance for being treated like a second-class citizen in a religious context.” Bright says he knows at least five other people who left the church over the same issue, describing Circle’s attitude as a sort of “soft bigotry.” He says he believes the church’s mostly feel-good messages and promotional materials featuring friendly youngsters mask deep-seated beliefs dictated by a larger organization. When White founded Circle of Hope in Center City 18 years ago, it was as an offshoot of a littleknown church with Mennonite roots called Brethren in Christ. Circle has maintained a connection to that larger body, which has an estimated worldwide membership of around 80,000. A treatise that the group released on homosexuality condemned homophobia, but ultimately concludes that “homosexual acts” are sinful and that people “choose 8 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

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these acts and they are acts of … rebellion against the pattern of life God wants people to live.” While Stahler says he believes that, deep down, Rashid is a “gayaffirming” person, he saw the pastor as struggling to reconcile those feelings with White’s demand to maintain BIC’s harder line on open discussion of homosexuality. Bright put it more bluntly, saying he believes Rashid was just “doing Rod’s dirty work.” When White was asked by City Paper in an email to comment on the former member’s experiences, he referenced a Bible verse and said “as Christians, they need to come to me directly with accusations.” When told that Bright and Stahler had, in fact, suggested meeting with the senior pastor in person to mediate their issues, White did not respond. While it may not be surprising

“Our policy is that we don’t have a policy.” that a Christian organization would have trouble devising a coherent position on homosexuality, Stahler said it was important to speak out now in order to help future members avoid the experience he went through. He also hopes to reach current members who are uncomfortable with Circle’s stance, noting that there is no shortage of genuinely LGBT-friendly churches in the Philadelphia area. But both Bright and Stahler also said Circle members need to examine the role they play in supporting a church leadership that embraces anti-gay Biblical teachings and enforces a code of silence. “Circle of Hope does a lot of good things. That’s not the issue. The issue is that the ends don’t justify the means when you exclude or ignore whole communities of people,” said Stahler. (ryan.briggs@citypaper.net)

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PHOTO BY NEAL SANTOS

[ the naked city ]

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✚ a million stories

<<< continued from page 7

OSHA already issues its own trainingcertification cards. L&I Commissioner Carlton Williams said, in Council testimony on the worker-ID legislation, that “these provisions are well beyond the department’s core enforcement capabilities.”

Williams also raised the specter of possible legal conflicts, saying, “federal law would pre-empt the city from carrying out the provisions.” Meanwhile, the Building Industry Association of Philadelphia (BIA), which represents developers, called the bill “redundant,” noting that OSHA already issues its own training-certification cards. “Forcing even workers sweeping up the job site to have the same training as a designated safety official is just too sweeping,” said Anne Fadullon, BIA vice president. Engler noted there have been problems in other cities with workers forging the OSHA-issued cards, which do not feature photos of applicants. However, he also confirmed that no other city has gone as far as issuing its own photo IDs for laborers as a way to combat this fraud. Reports have swirled that the bill is being pushed by the city’s building trade unions, who view the IDs as an avenue for L&I to crack down on undocumented workers, sometimes viewed 10 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

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as unfair competition. “There are a set of unions that see undocumented workers as competition instead of a strength,” said Almiron. “We’re concerned when we see unions that have not historically supported immigrant workers trying to make legislation around this, and how this will impact our people’s ability to make money and put food on the table.” Engler countered that the legislation was “something we have to do to ensure everyone, union or non-union, is safe on a job site.” While Almiron agreed that all employees deserve a safe workplace, she said that the bill seemed to be more about clamping down on those at the bottom rather than those at the top. “It should be on the people who are in charge of those

sites to make sure their workers are trained,” she said. “I don’t think workers should be worried about carrying around ID cards.” —Ryan Briggs

w h at n at u r e d e s t r o y e d it also preserved

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hough Gov. Tom Corbett has never visited Feltonville School of Arts and Sciences, his presence there looms large. “Our staff is starting to fall apart,” says teacher Amy Roat, who provides a rapid-fire audit of her middle school’s condition during a short break between classes. “We probably have lost about 40 percent of our staff over the last three years,” even though the city school enrolls about 610 students, nearly the same number as before, and mostly all of them are poor. Like many teachers, Roat blames the problems at her school partly on Gov. Tom Corbett’s 2011 budget: It cut more than $865 million in K-12 public education funds. This year, the School District of Philadelphia, by far Pennsylvania’s largest with 135,149 students and 58,643 more enrolled in charters, had to make deep cuts to close a $304 million shortfall. In a scramble to cover the staffing gap, the Feltonville school has been forced to teach students from two different grades in combined classes, Roat says. Math instruction has been cut in half. There is no music teacher and only one art teacher. The school is much dirtier and sometimes dangerous because cleaners, counselors and a police officer have also gotten pink slips. During a recent out-ofcontrol fire drill, a teacher tripped and sustained a concussion. The nurse is part-time. “It all flows from the state and its unfair funding formula,” says Roat, referring to the fact that Pennsylvania, under Corbett, scrapped a measure that considers needs, like the number of students who are living in poverty or are English-language learners. The result: huge shortfalls in poorer districts like Philadelphia, and teachers continuing to spend hundreds of dollars out of their own pockets to buy paper and other basic supplies. Remarkably, the governor has not made one documented visit to a district-run Philly school during

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PENNIES FROM HARRISBURG How education funding became Gov. Corbett’s big problem. BY DANIEL DENVIR

his time in office. As Corbett, one of America’s most politically vulnerable and least popular governors, launches his 2014 re-election bid, the nightmare school scenario that Roat describes is sure to haunt his campaign. Over the past three years, Corbett has defended the cut to education funding, denied making the cut, and even tried to turn the budget crisis to his political advantage by attacking the teachers’ union. So far, all of his strategies have failed. He blames his predecessor, former Gov. Ed Rendell, for plugging his budgets with one-time stimulus funding, which is why, Corbett insists, the nearly $1 billion education-funding cut is a myth. He also blames predecessors from both parties for forcing him to spend a ton of money on long-underfunded and Wall-Street-wrecked public-employee pension funds; and he contends that the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers is selfishly refusing to make sacrifices. For voters, however, it is the stark reality of the situation that seems to matter most: Pennsylvania schools had been operating in a state of austerity for years; under Corbett, some have

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tipped into starvation. In an October poll by Franklin and Marshall College, the Republican governor’s approval rating among registered voters — those who think he was doing an “excellent” or “good” job — sat at 19 percent. An August poll found that voters rank education as their number-two priority, just behind unemployment and the economy. When it comes to “improving public education,” 83 percent of respondents graded his effort a C or worse. Today, Corbett seems weary of the discussion about public education. And he evinces little empathy. “We’re here in Philadelphia, and certainly education is on the front page every day. And I know that. And I want to commend the SRC [School Reform Commission] and I want to commend the School District for the work that they have been doing. And we’ve been working hard to find money for them,” Corbett said on Nov. 7, kicking off his reelection campaign inside a Northeast Philadelphia American Legion Post as teachers and students protested loudly outside. “But, you know, right now in Philadelphia, we send $1.3 billion to one school district. We have other school districts. We have 499 other school districts.” Corbett wants to move on. The governor’s campaign slogan is standard Republican fare: “Less Taxes. More Jobs.” The message is simple, though factually debatable. Corbett claims to have added nearly 140,000 jobs, though an Arizona State University analysis pegs Pennsylvania’s growth rate at 45th out of 50 states. Pennsylvania lost 27,108 public-school jobs over the past three school years, according to federal data. And cash-strapped localities have been forced to enact record property-tax hikes to make up for the state cuts. Though the state constitution requires the General Assembly to provide for public schools, the state’s less affluent districts have had to fend for themselves. The question of whether Corbett can win re-election will ultimately come down to whether he can convince Pennsylvanians that the school-funding mess is not his fault.

other line items that schools depend on to operate? Corbett maintains that the federal stimulus funding that Rendell used to bolster the education budget should not be considered when looking at budget changes. In addition, he makes his case by counting only the state contribution to one line item, “basic education.” In 2013, the state contribution to basic education was $5.53 billion — which is, indeed, $300 million higher than its 2008 peak under Rendell. But even accepting Corbett’s argument that federal stimulus dollars should be excluded, the state contribution to six key line items for education totaled $5.8 billion under Rendell in 2008, compared to $5.6 billion under Corbett in 2013. And though Corbett restored $172 million in annual basic-education dollars over the past two years, they are no longer allocated via a needs-based formula. What replaced it? The nontransparent distribution of supplemental funds to allegedly politically favored districts — and Philadelphia is not among the chosen. “There are only so many dollars you can get out of the taxpayer to pay for a system that is hemorrhaging money,” says Corbett’s campaign manager, Mike Barley. “What is the right number for education? I don’t think anybody knows that. And to that

“This budget sorts the must-haves from the nice-to-haves.” Rohrer, then a state rep from Berks County. Like other establishment Republicans, however, Corbett moved quickly to mollify the party’s mobilized right wing. The conservative movement was afire, and a rising Tea Party movement pledged to take over government — and radically shrink it. In February 2010, Corbett signed a pledge drafted by Washington anti-tax icon Grover Norquist to “oppose and veto any and all efforts to increase taxes.” The election that November brought Corbett to power, and put both houses of the legislature under GOP control. The Republicans refused to raise taxes — indeed, they continued to cut them — and their 2011 budget cut more than $1 billion to schools and universities. “This budget sorts the must-haves from the niceto-haves,” Corbett told the legislature in March 2011, in unveiling his proposed spending plan. “I am here to say that education cannot be the only industry exempt from recession.” In the following months, the governor dismissed concerns over school-employee layoffs, telling school districts that they had only themselves to blame: “Many of them took federal money, were told the federal money would go away, made their budgets based on that, and now that money is not there,” he said. But by 2012, protests mounted, local budget gaps widened, and school districts planned property-tax hikes to stay afloat. The Corbett administration tried a strategy that was counterintuitive: They said there had been no cut to education at all. “Political opponents of the governor will cling to this myth of a $1 billion cut so long as the media goes along with the fiction,” spokesperson Kevin Harley complained to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that May. That’s what Corbett is sticking with, and upon which he is banking his re-election in 2014: convincing voters everything they know about education funding is wrong. “We spend more money on education than any time in the history of Pennsylvania,” Corbett said at his Northeast Philadelphia event earlier this month. How is that possible if the 2011 budget cut $421 million to basic education and another $444 million to five

>>> continued on page 14 MARIA POUCHNIKOVA/NORTHEAST TIMES

n October 2010, as Democratic Gov. Ed Rendell neared the end of his second and final term, he realized that his legacy was in trouble. “If the Republicans have both the governorship and both chambers of the legislature, then I think education funding is in real jeopardy,” he told the Philadelphia Public School Notebook. Rendell had made public schools his top priority, increasing annual state basic-education funding by a total of $992 million during his last four years in office. Much of that increase came in response to a “costing-out study” commissioned by the legislature, which determined that schools statewide were underfunded by $4.4 billion; in Philadelphia, the shortfall totaled $1 billion. Rendell pledged to begin closing the gap, and dispensed the new funds through a formula enacted in 2008 that awarded money based on student need. Rendell made his spending commitments in the midst of a recession, when tax revenues were dropping fast. He tapped $1.3 billion in one-time federal stimulus dollars to pay for two years of basic-education increases. Some of the stimulus dollars (including $355 million in 2009) also made up for reductions in the state contribution. The stimulus funds were intended to avoid tax hikes and spending cuts amid the recession. But Republicans protested the use of one-time federal dollars to pay for recurring costs. “I don’t see, from what we’ve seen so far, how you’re not going to leave the next governor with a disaster on their hands,” said Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Jake Corman (R-Centre County) in March 2009. “We know they’re going to cut our [stimulus] funding in two years. We need to be prepared.” Rendell proposed ways to make up for the expiring federal dollars, including cracking down on the use of Delaware as a corporate tax haven and the imposition of a severance tax on natural-gas drillers. But a backlash was in the making. In his race for governor in 2010, Corbett, then state attorney general, was the clear favorite over Tea Party challenger Sam

NOISY PROTEST: When Gov. Corbett kicked off his re-election bid on Nov. 7 inside an American Legion Post in Northeast Philly, teachers and students protested loudly outside.

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point, more isn’t always better. If my neighbor buys the same exact car and pays $5,000 more for it, that doesn’t make it better.” Barley would not comment on the costing-out study’s proposed figure. “If there’s a fault, it’s that we didn’t communicate the situation well enough in the beginning, and we’re going to work to tell that story,” Barley says. He blames the misinformation on “an agenda that’s pushed by union leaders, who are making a significant amount of money off the taxpayers, to advocate for more spending.”

The heated educationpolitics debate is about a lot more than funding.

pledged to abolish the state-controlled SRC, which took over the city’s schools in 2001. The heated education-politics debate in Pennsylvania is about a lot more than funding. A bipartisan group of self-described school reformers seeks to curb teachers’ unions, expand privately managed charter schools and raise the stakes of standardized tests in evaluating teachers and schools. In recent years, public-school advocates, students and teachers have pushed back — and hard — criticizing an agenda they say ignores poverty and inequity in the name of private efficiency. Just last Friday, Republicans on the Pennsylvania Independent Regulatory Review Commission won a party-line vote that will require all students to pass a Keystone graduation test to receive their diplomas. Critics said that it is absurd for the state to require students to meet higher standards while cutting funds to their classrooms. The disagreement, fought out in school boards and statehouses nationwide, is known as the “education wars.” It’s not an exaggeration. Some charter schools are excellent, while others are low-performing — or even corrupt. All benefit from a generous funding formula, the reform of which a 2012 Auditor General report estimates could save $365 million. In Philadelphia, where nearly half of the state’s 176 charter schools are located, the district has estimated that it costs an additional $7,000 for each student who attends a charter. This year, the district will pay at least 30 percent of its budget, or $729 million, to the privately managed schools. Corbett seeks to decrease the already weak oversight of charter schools, and has expanded voucher-like tax credits to businesses that donate money to privateschool tuition. He has also tried, and failed, to turn the education-policy warfare to his political advantage. The big opportunity came in July, when the Obama administration forgave $45 million in state debt to assist Philadelphia schools. The Corbett administration conditioned the release of the onetime funding on “a new collective-bargaining agreement with the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers

MARIA POUCHNIKOVA/NORTHEAST TIMES

n Saturday, five of the eight Democratic gubernatorial primary candidates appeared at a forum hosted by labor unions and school-advocacy groups in Philadelphia. It was not really a debate, but more a friendly competition to determine which candidate could most forcefully denounce Corbett’s education policies — and not just the budget cuts. Former Rendell revenue secretary and York businessman Tom Wolf pledged “charter-school accountability so that we’re not diverting funds unfairly from our public schools,” former Department of Environmental Protection Secretary John Hanger decried the campaign to “privatize public education” and Congresswoman Allyson Schwartz

NEW MATH: Corbett has defended the cut to education funding, denied making the cut, and tried to turn the budget crisis to his political advantage.

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that makes substantial progress toward achieving the fiscal savings and academic reforms” called for by the SRC. Among the changes being sought were ending teacher seniority and getting $133 million in union concessions from teachers. Though most Philadelphia teachers, unlike most others, do not contribute to their health-care coverage, they are paid 19 percent less than many of their suburban counterparts. Reform groups, like the Philadelphia Schools Partnership and StudentsFirst, quickly backed Corbett’s move — even though it meant withholding critical funds from city schools. “We support Governor Tom Corbett’s unwavering determination to deliver meaningful reforms prior to the release of funds,” read a statement from StudentsFirst Pennsylvania, the state chapter of the national group founded by former District of Columbia Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee. “Continuing to invest in a broken education system only hurts the very people it serves: our kids.” The plan’s general outlines may have been laid out months in advance. In June, City Paper obtained a secret report written by a major Republican polling firm proposing that Corbett launch an attack on the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers. Conditioning state aid on union concessions the firm suggested could boost his flagging re-election prospects. “With Gov. Corbett’s weak job approval ... the current Philadelphia school crisis presents an opportunity for the governor to wedge the electorate on an issue that is favorable to him,” the report, commissioned by the education-reform group PennCAN, concludes. The report identified opposition to seniority protection for teachers. But it also found that 63 percent of Pennsylvanians opposed Corbett’s handling of public education. “Staging this battle presents Corbett with an opportunity to coalesce his base, focus on a key emerging issue in the state, and campaign against an ‘enemy’ that’s going to aggressively oppose him in ’14 in any case,” the report said. But the plan fell flat, and on Oct. 16, Corbett released the $45 million. >>> continued on page 16

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The administration cited Superintendent William Hite’s decision to limit the use of seniority in mid-year teacher reassignments. But the decision was widely described as a capitulation in the face of a mounting public-education disaster. (Notably, Corbett maintains that the $45 million in forgiven federal debt directed to city schools is part of a state-funding package while the federal stimulus funds were not.) Though the state’s Independent Fiscal Office forecasts a state budget shortfall of $839 million for the coming year, no new education cuts are likely for the next state budget. “Since the education budget has been so controversial and now looms as one of the big issues on the campaign, I don’t think there will be cuts,” says Terry Madonna, a political scientist at Franklin and Marshall College. “Politically, that’s the last thing the governor needs. The governor does not want the narrative next year, as school opens, to be cuts to programs, layoffs to staff and the like.” But there will be little chance for new funding either — not from a state legislature dominated by increasingly conservative and anti-tax Republicans who are locked into seats made safe via gerrymandering.

he School District of Philadelphia is now in the process of restoring 400 jobs, thanks to the $45 million that Corbett released. The District will need far more,

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“In Philadelphia, we send $1.3 billion to one school district. We have 499 other school districts.” however, to climb out of a financial hole projected to be $1.1 billion over five years. According to a Philadelphia Public School Notebook analysis, the district began this school year with nearly 7,000 fewer employees than at its 2009 peak. But this is far from the first crisis for Philadelphia public schools, and Pennsylvania voters have a reputation for hostility, some of it racially tinged, toward the city. Often, they characterize Philly as a cesspool of corruption and incompetence. In the case of the schools this is puzzling as they have been under been state control since 2001. Either way, the question remains: How have education cuts, of which Philly schools are the icon, become Corbett’s greatest political liability? It’s because this isn’t just about Philadelphia. The 2007 costing-out study says 471 districts statewide spend less per student than needed, and the rise of charter schools, expired federal dollars, and rising pension costs pose a growing fiscal challenge to poor and middle-class districts across the state. “The problems that confront the school district in

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Philadelphia are the same problems that confront school districts across the state — except 60 times larger,” says Mark B. Miller, a school director with Centennial School District in Bucks County and vice president of the Pennsylvania School Board Association. “My district might have 600 students in charter schools that we don’t like having to pay for. Philadelphia’s got 60,000.” Municipalities throughout Pennsylvania are also wary of further property-tax increases. In 2011, a record 135 school districts raised property taxes above the normal legal limit. The education-funding crisis, deepened by the budget cuts, has made Philadelphia’s predicament uncomfortably familiar to people in towns and cities statewide. Pennsylvania’s constitution requires the state to “provide for the maintenance and support of a thorough and efficient system of public education.” Over the next year, it will be hard for Corbett to convince voters that it is doing so. (daniel.denvir@citypaper.net)

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icepack By A.D. Amorosi

➤ IF YOU’RE THANKFUL for anything this Thanksgiving holiday, show it. If you’re grateful you haven’t been punched in the face, say it. If you’re overjoyed that the Eagles’ defense is getting things done, shout it. If you’re wild about Hanukkah and T-day happening at the same time (for the first time since 1888), shout hallelujah.There’s nothing wrong with being much obliged. ➤ Here’s some follow-ups on stories from last week. Regarding all those vacant storefronts in South Street: Help is on the way. The old McDonald’s at the corner of Sixth and South is being rehabbed for mixed-use restaurant/retail and apartment rental, and the old Pearl art supply space in the middle of the block is, according to rumor, going to be turned into a familiar art-studio co-op before month’s end. Yay, that. Meanwhile in last week’s Icepack Illustrated (the web version of this column), I mentioned that Alex Carbonell, the chef-owner of New Hope’s Lola, would take over N. Second Street’s Liberties for a new cocktailconscious gastropub, Bourbon and Branch. The orange sticker should be up, and additional details are as follows: Lola’s mixologist, Mr. Righteous Jolly, will be managing and handling B+B’s handcrafted cocktails. Carbonell’s menu will be heavy on appetizers with his kitchen smoking its own meats, save for the game and sausage they’re buying from Sonny D’Angelo in the Italian Market. Plus, B+B’s upstairs will handle live music on a regular basis once the place gets cranking come January. ➤ The aforementioned Eagles and Ventresca LTD couture suit makers will join forces with Michael Barkann and family for the Healing Hearts Foundation soiree on Dec. 4 at Griesing Law on the 36th floor of 1717 Arch. Visit thebarkannfoundation.org and look up the “Green Is the New Black” event. ➤ The Arden Theater on N. Second Street opened its new theater space and educational training center last week, but this week the house that Terrence J. Nolen built will lose one of its longtime favorites when Leigh Goldenberg leaves the building. After “four wonderful years,” she moves on to become director of marketing at Wash Cycle Laundry, a bike-centric sustainable laundry-delivery service in Philly. “I’m excited to support this mission-driven company in their expansion.” ➤ Ooh, another thing gone from Old City, after 24 years, is Mexican Post. When I used to live on Letitia Street, before the OC’s renaissance (Continental, etc.), the Post was the only place for cheap booze and faux border-town fare. Rest in peace, oh Post. ➤ More Ice? See citypaper.net/naked city. (a_amorosi@citypaper.net) 18 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

NO REMORSE: Lovebirds Derek Watson and Izzy Almeida moved here from Brooklyn because they think we’re all really fun and awesome so keep it up, you guys.

[ metal/rock/pop ]

GOOD HUNTING Izzy Almeida and Derek Watson of Hunters move to Philly and fall in love (with us). By A.D. Amorosi can’t plan out the songs I write,” says Hunters singer Izzy Almeida. “I just do them. With him, it just became easier to do.” “If I had to diagram a song before we just started playing one, it would go horribly wrong,” says Hunters guitarist Derek Watson. “With her, I didn’t need to sit down and think about it. It just happened.” Maybe this is corny, but from what those two say about their band and its newly released eponymous debut album, Hunters is the sound of love. Hunters’ songs, like the angry, slacker-filled “Deadbeat,” may not speak directly to bliss or sensuality. It’s a noisy, gruff and feedback-driven romance for certain. But love is funny that way. Their relationship evolved from pals and players to romantic partners not too long after they started playing together seriously. “It was a slow evolution from friends to partners for sure, but our relationship did change,” she says. Watson laughs when asked how love affected their music. “I think it was important to make sure that what we had between us at the very start of getting to know each other stayed a part of our relationship. We’re really lucky that we didn’t start the band while

“

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were [first] dating. That could have turned into a whole mess.” The main thing that didn’t change between the two: heavy metal. “Actually, it was metal that brought us together,” says Almeida. “That’s what we were talking about when we decided to hang out in the first place.” Sure, they’ll mention Sonic Youth and godheadSilo as influences on their catty sound, and you can hear My Bloody Valentine in their approach to fuzz, but the pair really perk up when you say you hear a bit of Metallica in some of their crunchier songs. “Metallica was one of the bands I was listening to when I learned how to play guitar, so it’s in there,” says Watson. “It would be fun if every time we wrote a song we were trying to write a Metallica song. It would be our songwriting secret,” says Almeida. After living in Brooklyn for a decade, the two moved to Philadelphia earlier this year. Once upon a time, bands had to be from New York City or one of its boroughs to be considered vanguard, cool or worthy of being signed. Acts were willing to hole up in the dingiest, most cramped conditions just to say they were from the Big Apple, Brooklyn or Queens. One thing they love about Philly: all the house shows (like the one they’ll play this weekend, for which we cannot print the name and address). “House shows and all-ages, DIY venues are usually the best way to go, even considering the fact that the locations have

“It was metal that brought us together.”

>>> continued on page 20

[ the eagle on the dollar’s gonna fly away ] soundadvice

[ album reviews ]

➤ cut copy | A-

➤ dave van ronk | A

There’s some serious aesthetic boundary-testing happening on Free Your Mind (Modular.) In less perfectly calibrated hands, the album’s unmitigated Day-Glo positivity could’ve easily trainwrecked into treacly insipidity, full of psychonautic pseudo-spiritualism and empty affirmations. But these guys are exactly the kind of expert electro-pop technicians to pull off an all-in, over-the-top reincarnation of circa-1988 acid house, with every bongo, every break beat, each chunky piano riff, 303 squelch, diva wail and analog birdcall perfectly in place. —K. Ross Hoffman

Every generation stumbles onto ’60s East Village acoustic wildman Dave Van Ronk in its own way; for the current crop, it’ll be via the Coen brothers’ Inside Llewyn Davis, a thinly veiled week-in-the-lifetype deal. For the real stuff, I recommend you dig into Down in Washington Square: The Smithsonian Folkways Collection, a three-disc career-spanner that hits on D.V.R.’s many moods: bluesy, folkie, —Patrick Rapa freaky, bawdy, raggy and rockin’.

➤ bongos | BThey may take a close second to The Feelies when it comes to Hoboken indie rock luminaries (pre-Yo La Tengo division), but the recently reunited Bongos offered their own sharp, gutsy brand of ’80s jangle-pop that’s too good to be forgotten. Let Phantom Train (Jem) — a “lost” LP recorded in 1985-6 but unreleased until now — serve as exhibit A: an unmistakably vintage but still plenty fresh set of catchy, treble-heavy tunes and muscular grooves capped —K. Ross Hoffman with Richard Barone’s potent vocals.

flickpick

By Mike Pelusi

➤ sly and the family stone | A Sly Stone is still among us at age 70, but his personal foibles threatened to place him alongside Hendrix, Morrison and Joplin as early 1970s rock casualties. The new four-disc compilation Higher! (Epic/Legacy) reminds us how, before his decline, he and the integrated Family Stone seamlessly blended soul and funk to create some of their generation’s greatest anthems (“Everyday People,” “Dance to the Music,” “Family Affair,” “Stand!”). —Andrew Milner

[ movie review ]

PHILOMENA [ B ] IT’S USUALLY EASY to tell when a movie is dinging its own awards-season bell,

but in the case of genteel director Stephen Frears’ latest, that bell has been replaced with a gong. Philomena, based on British writer Martin Sixsmith’s 2009 nonfiction heartbreaker, is not exactly subtle in this regard — cynics might diagnose the twinkle in Judi Dench’s eye as the covetous glare off an Oscar statuette. But only the most heartless will find zero emotion in this true story bolstered by earnest performances. In the early ’50s, when Irish teenager Philomena Lee (played later in life by Dench) finds herself with child, she turns to a remote convent, where her sin is shrouded. For decades, she hides knowledge of the baby, who was given up for adoption against her wishes, quietly searching for him with no luck. Then she becomes acquainted with sneering journalist Sixsmith (Steve Coogan), recently sacked from a cushy position, and convinces him to organize a new investigation. What transpires is essentially a parent-friendly road-trip film, with Sixsmith’s jaded atheism going round for round with his subject’s simple tastes and guilt-soaked faith. While criss crossing the gorgeous Irish countryside to butter up bitter nuns for clues, they have the one-on-one time to break bread over multiple subjects, most of them rooted in deep religious differences. Traveling to America to follow up on a promising lead furthers the fish-out-of-water antics, dropping folksy Philomena into ordinary situations she finds extraordinary. These are the moments Frears lays it on thickest, coaxing Dench to kick Philomena’s adage output into overdrive. Still, it’s difficult to discredit the genuine warmth the director develops between this broken mother and her reluctant surrogate son. It’s a sentimental affair, but it can’t be called insincere. —Drew Lazor

Buttering up bitter nuns for clues.

ODD COUPLE: A sneering journalist (Steve Coogan) helps the folksy Philomena Lee (Judi Dench) track down her long-lost son.

THE NEXT WALTZ

➤ ON THANKSGIVING DAY 1976, The Band put on The Last Waltz concert, with guests like Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Neil Young and many others. Martin Scorsese made a movie out of it. The show was a self-stylized farewell concert masterminded by guitarist/primary songwriter Robbie Robertson. In the ensuing years, the myth of the group all agreeing to retire in grand style would be capsized by bitter feelings amongst them. Drummer/singer Levon Helm was the most vocal in his distaste for the concept, and he put his words into action by playing live music tirelessly in later years, even as he battled cancer, until his death in 2012. Nevertheless, The Last Waltz is filled with memorable music. On the Saturday after this Thanksgiving, a group of local musicians organized by Fergus Carey, Bryan Dilworth and Andrew Lipke will recreate the concert, to support the beleaguered students of Philly schools. The core band includes the likes of Jim Boggia, Pete Donnelly and Lipke. The Band’s own keyboard wizard Garth Hudson (pictured) will also perform. Ben Arnold, Wesley Stace and Joey Sweeney are just some of the other special guests. Intrigue abounds: Will Jose Pistola’s owner Casey Parker don the Van Morrison spangled purple jumpsuit for “Caravan”? Will Fergie play up his slight resemblance to poet Lawrence Ferlinghetti and recite his poem “Loud Prayer”? Who will recreate the concert’s most head-scratching moment, Neil Diamond’s performance of “Dry Your Eyes.” (The rumor is Martha Graham Cracker, and actually I think that song’s secretly awesome.) Proceeds from the concert will benefit local organizations focused on education. (editorial@citypaper.net) ✚ The Last Waltz Tribute, Sat., Nov. 30, 9 p.m., $20-$100, Trocadero, 1003 Arch St., 215-922-6888, thetroc.com.

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[ arts & entertainment ]

✚ Good Hunting <<< continued from page 18

to change because they get found out and closed. There aren’t too many house shows in New York, though.” The cost of living was a big factor. “Philadelphia is more affordable with way more space, and it’s completely mellower,” says Almeida. “We can be more productive that way.” Besides, why pay rent if you’re always on the road? The bigger Hunters has gotten, the more they’ve toured — especially since they signed to the Mom + Pop label. “We really got tired of subletting our apartment in Brooklyn, and quite frankly were annoyed to have to rent it out to total strangers,” she says. “Philly is just really fun and everybody here is awesome,” she concludes with a giggle. Give ’em another year. (a_amorosi@citypaper.net)

➤ irish/holiday

✚ JAMESON SISTERS Singers sessions at the Irish Center are all about keeping things cozy and casual. Once a month the Ceili Group has Terry Kane, sean-nós (old-style) singer of great renown, host an open circle in which a featured singer leads a few, but mostly everybody takes turns proposing familiar songs or teaching new ones. “It’s free, and people are encouraged to wander in and out,” says Kane. The theme this month is Irish Christmas, featuring local duo the Jameson Sisters. Kane — the mandolin/ guitar-playing Sister — and harper Ellen Tepper will perform the historic Wexford Carols. Tepper notes that she and Kane are classically trained but deeply steeped in traditions, so they restore the original feel to these carols collected in classical notation some 250 years ago. Kane favors a highly ornamented melodic style, the sort that a transcriber is hard-pressed to notate but a traditional singer will instinctively embroider around the written lines. While she loves the deep tradition, Kane expects the joy of collective singing will probably include a few more familiar carols to usher in the season — depending on what the circle decides. —Mary Armstrong Wed., Dec. 4, 7:30 p.m., free, Irish Center, 6815 Emlen St., 215-704-5982, philadelphiaceiligroup.org.

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The Great Beauty

✚ NEW HOMEFRONT | C Jason Statham takes on a hand-me-down role screenwriter Sylvester Stallone originally envisioned for himself and launches Homefront with a literal launch, propelling the motorcycle he’s riding into a speeding car while also shooting at the car (obviously). Everything that unfolds after this is comparatively humdrum, save for the discomfort cultivated by watching James Franco play a bayou meth dealer named Gator. A retired DEA agent in search of a quiet life with his young daughter, Phil Broker (Statham) purchases a parcel in small-town Louisiana, but he runs into trouble in the form of Gator and the Gang. The good ol’ boys don’t take too kindly to their new neighbor and try scaring him off, unaware that he’s tough to spook. Statham wears a slightly looser collar than usual here, playing a well-intentioned dad instead of an unblinking face pulverizer, but he delivers his usual formula of fights and furrowed-brow declarations. It’s Franco, his character one step removed from an SNL skit, whose moves are most confusing. We should just sit back and enjoy the bizarre novelty of straight-faced trailers touting a “Statham versus Franco!” showdown before the latter ends up declaring this another one of his performance-art projects. —Drew Lazor (Wide release) THE GREAT BEAUTY | A A monumental act of hubris made more impressive by being pulled off so splendidly, director Paolo Sorrentino’s dazzling fantasia positions itself as a sort-of sequel to Federico Fellini’s La Dolce Vita, one of the greatest films ever

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made. Sad-eyed Toni Servillo stars as Jep Gambardella, a one-time novelist and dapper darling of Rome’s social scene who has drifted through the past four decades in a haze of beautiful women, extravagant luxury and killer parties. But Jep’s 65th birthday has thrown our old hedonist for a loop, and suddenly the sweet life ain’t what it used to be. Sorrentino appropriates Fellini’s rambling, anecdotal structure and pet obsessions: curvy ladies, dwarves and juxtapositions of the sacred with the profane. (Yes, there’s even a circus.) But The Great Beauty is more than mere homage. Filtered through Sorrentino’s own rambunctious sensibility, it’s a richly symbolic meditation on aging, mortality and precious time wasted. There’s a tremendous musicality to the filmmaking; individual setpieces have their own distinct rhythms while all unmistakably being part of the same song. Cinematographer Luca Bigazzi’s camera hurtles through surreal spectacles of exhausted decadence, as Servillo’s bemused gaze reveals an existential ache for all that might have been and a weary acknowledgement that every party must eventually end. —Sean Burns (Ritz at the Bourse)

PHILOMENA | B See Drew Lazor’s review on p. 19. (Ritz Five)

✚ CONTINUING 12 YEARS A SLAVE | B+ The most painful portrait in Steve McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave, based on the true story of a criminally enslaved

freeman, is one of its stillest. Noosed to a low-hanging tree branch after scrapping with cruel overseer Tibeats (Paul Dano), Solomon Northup (Chiwetel Ejiofor) struggles to breathe, his muddug tiptoes the only force preventing his trachea from being crushed. All the while, McQueen’s staid wide shot reveals Northup’s fellow slaves in the background, aware of their friend’s plight, but too fettered to do anything about it. It’s these difficult observations of powerless people that give McQueen’s third feature such teeth. John Ridley’s screenplay, largely faithful to the 1853 source material, follows Northup’s journey, from blissful family man to Louisiana field hand, at a pace that seems to disregard the rudimentary passage of time. While both his captors (Benedict Cumberbatch, Michael Fassender) and companions (standout Lupita Nyong’o) prove fragile and impressionable, the steadiness of Northup’s humanity is almost superhuman. McQueen is not a perfect filmmaker, but he’s succeeded in building an unflinching visualization of America at its most shameful. —Drew Lazor (Ritz Five)

BLUE IS THE WARMEST COLOR | AFirst love’s seismic qualities have seldom been captured with such abandon as in Abdellatif Kechiche’s Palme D’Or winner, a 179-minute sprawl of heartbreak that scarcely strays more than 6 inches from a young woman’s face. Adapted from Julie Maroh’s graphic novel, Blue is the Warmest Color charts the ardent sexual awakening and eventual crushing despair of Adèle (Adèle Excarchopoulos). She’s a book-smart teenager who can already tell things aren’t clicking with her boyfriend when one day she’s gobsmacked by the sight of butch, blue-haired Emma (Léa Seydoux). What follows is a rapturous exploration of love, rendered in giddy, almost impossibly shallow-focus closeups that make the rest of the world go away, plus a few super-heroic sex scenes. Excarchopoulos’ performance is something of a miracle, with every raw, unfiltered feeling rippling across that yearning, endlessly expressive face. Kechiche’s camera never flinches, filming a fairly familiar coming-of-age tale as if through a microscope, the proximity pumping up emotions so everything feels like it’s happening for the very first time. —Sean Burns (Ritz at the Bourse) THE BOOK THIEF | BConsidering that Markus Zusak’s

World War II-era bestseller is narrated by Death, it seems almost too demanding to hope for subtlety in Brian Percival’s adaptation. But as hard as this version tries, its individual performances save the ship from a schmaltzy demise. Death, here voiced by British character actor Roger Allam (of course Death is British!), takes a particular shine to young Liesel (Sophie Nélisse), the daughter of a Communist on the run in Nazi Germany. Taken in by blue-collar foster parents Hans and Rosa (Geoffrey Rush and Emily Watson), she proves to be mischievous and academically curious, her appetite for words encouraged by Hans, the mayor’s lonely wife (Barbara Auer) and Max (Ben Schnetzer), the Jew concealed in Liesel’s basement. As war and violence touch each character in varying degrees, Liesel becomes more dependent on reading and writing, though here the language-arts focus is underplayed in comparison to the source material. It’s Nélisse, in her first major role, who distracts from such cinematic shortcuts. More likable than pitiable, she raises the game of veterans like Rush and Watson, who understand how to craft a brand of love complicated by time and circumstance. —Drew Lazor (Ritz Five)

DALLAS BUYERS CLUB | B+ In the most miraculous career resurrection not precipitated by Quentin Tarantino, Matthew McConaughey has abruptly transformed himself from half-forgotten rom-com himbo to an electrifying screen presence. These days, he’s exuding an infectiously naughty sense of self-delight, one that serves him well in director Jean-Marc Vallee’s tad-too-crowd-pleasing take on the early days of the AIDS crisis. McConaughey, starved to an alarming fraction of his body weight, stars as Ron Woodruff, a hard-partying rodeo fixture diagnosed with HIV and given 30 days to live. Never one to follow protocol, Ron starts out buying stolen AZT from crooked hospital orderlies, and eventually ends up smuggling unapproved drugs across all sorts of borders. Scamming his way around the FDA, turning a quick buck and staying alive in the process, Woodruff gamed a broken system for as long as he could. Yes, this subject was covered in much greater depth in last year’s essential documentary How to Survive a Plague — and of course, when Hollywood told the story, they had to pick the time it happened to a straight guy — but Dallas Buyers Club still knows how to work a crowd. —Sean Burns (Ritz East)

THE HUNGER GAMES: CATCHING FIRE | BWhat a difference a director makes. When we last caught up with Katniss Everdeen, she was reluctantly killing kids in Seabiscuit director Gary Ross’ aesthetically ugly, sloppily staged, cheapo adaptation of Suzanne Collins’ YA mega-seller. One year and a few hundred million dollars later, the series has fallen into the hands of filmmaker Francis Lawrence (of I Am Legend and the underrated Constantine). Lawrence has an eye for striking visuals, but has never found a script to match his talent. He doesn’t find one here either, but Catching Fire is still a huge improvement over its predecessor. Jennifer Lawrence’s Katniss is back, shouldering the burden of martyrdom in a dystopian future where the rich enlist the poor to kill each other in televised spectacles. Donald Sutherland and Philip Seymour Hoffman go to town with the moustachetwirling villainy, attempting to quell rebellion by pitting dear Katniss in another tournament against her fellow survivors. Pulpy melodrama continues apace, but this time with lush, burnished images and a budget to match the ambition. Woody Harrelson returns as the cheerfully blotto mentor, supervising Katniss’ phony love story that conned a blighted nation. It’s quite engrossing until the movie abruptly stops mid-scene, teasing another sequel coming soon to a theater near you. Sigh, the perils of franchise maintenance. —Sean Burns (Wide release)

KILL YOUR DARLINGS | BMomentous performances can’t trump momentum problems in first-time director John Krokidas’ exploration of the Beats as babies. Escaping a troubled home life by enrolling in Columbia, young Allen Ginsberg (Daniel Radcliffe) falls in fast with charismatic classmate Lucien Carr (Dane DeHaan), who introduces him to Jack Kerouac (Jack Huston), William Burroughs (Ben Foster) and the liberated creative life. Spending their days rebelling against academic doctrine and their nights drinking and drugging, the clique and its selfmythologized “new vision” appear ripe for the harvest — but progress is complicated by David Kammerer (Michael C. Hall), whose relationship with Carr is an intellectual and romantic anchor. Even casual Beat Generation observers know how this story goes, but Krokidas’ decision to steer emphasis away from “the work”

allows his young cast to lay out meaty personal investments in their portrayals. The problem lies in pace. At a certain point, the narrative splinters so dramatically that it’s difficult to observe the characters’ choices with anything more than a glance. —Drew Lazor (Ritz at the Bourse)

MOTHER OF GEORGE | ADirector Andrew Dosunmu’s vivid Mother of George opens with the wedding of a Nigerian couple living in Brooklyn. Although Ayodele (Isaach De Bankolé) and Adenike (Danai Gurira) are given blessings for fertility and prosperity, 18 months later, they are still childless. After Ayodele refuses to see a fertility doctor, Adenike, feeling pressure to deliver a grandson named George to her mother-in-law, seeks a risky solution to their problems. Dosunmu captures the escalating drama artfully, shifting the film’s buoyant African rhythms to a bluesier soundtrack and dulling the rich colors of Adenike’s bold dresses to more muted tones. The visual cues are made even more distinct by Bradford Young’s phenomenal cinematography. Mother of George unfolds in a world that is rarely seen in American cinema, and this, along with Gurira’s miraculous, immensely expressive and sympathetic performance, is what makes this film so absorbing. —Gary M. Kramer (Ritz at the Bourse)

NEBRASKA | B After trekking to California’s wine country for Sideways and Hawaii for The Descendants, Alexander Payne returns to his home turf for his latest, the father-son road trip Nebraska. And like any homecoming, it’s a combination of nostalgia and resentment. Against a stark Midwestern landscape, the Omaha native sets the withered features of Bruce Dern as Woody Grant, an aged alcoholic who is determined to walk from Montana to Lincoln, Neb., to claim a million dollars supposedly won in a mail-order scam. His aimless son David (Will Forte) eventually agrees to shepherd him on his fool’s errand, hoping they’ll form that elusive bond. The pair detours from their quest for a reunion with Woody’s extended family in his hometown, where secrets from his past begin to come to light. The film’s uneasy divide between heartfelt drama and broad comedy so perfectly fits with Payne’s oeuvre that it’s surprising to learn that he didn’t write the screenplay. But that balance is particularly precarious here as Payne depicts small-minded, small-town folks

[ movie shorts ]

with both condescension and intimate understanding. Woody’s grasping clan and forgotten hopes are meant to form a bridge between a lost past and his embittered old age, but Payne never quite manages to make that connection palpable. —Shaun Brady

✚ REPERTORY FILM BRYN MAWR FILM INSTITUTE 824 W. Lancaster Ave., Bryn Mawr, 610-527-9898, brynmawrfilm.org. Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953, U.S., 91 min.): Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell play lounge singers en route to Paris in Howard Hawks’ classic comedy. Wed., Dec. 4, 7 p.m., $10.50.

COUNTY THEATER 20 E. State St., Doylestown, 215-3456789, countytheater.org. The History of Future Folk (2012, U.S., 86 min.): A doc about the bluegrass duo that claims to be from another planet. Wed., Dec. 4, 7:30 p.m., $9.75.

INTERNATIONAL HOUSE 3701 Chestnut St., 215-387-5125, ihousephilly.org. Traduire (2011, France, 70 min.): The secret lives of translators. Tue., Dec. 3, 7 p.m., free. Northern Lights (1978, U.S., 95 min.): A history of revolutionaries on the North Dakota prairie. Wed., Dec. 4, 7 p.m., $9.

PHILAMOCA 531 N. 12th St., 267-519-9651, philamoca.org. Enter the Game of Death (1978, Hong Kong, 88 min.) and The Return of Bruce (1978, Hong Kong, 79 min.): A 16mm kungfu double feature starring “Bruce Le” made to cash in on the legacy of, well, Bruce Lee. Fri., Nov. 29, 8 p.m., $10.

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f&d

foodanddrink

miseenplace By Caroline Russock

THANKS SIPPING We suggest that you break out of the (Franzia) box. ➤ ACCORDING TO THE 2012-13 retail yearin-review report from the PLCB, the people of Pennsylvania are drinking a whole bunch of not very good wine — we’re lookin’ at you, Yellow Tail. Getting into the drinking, er, holiday season, we suggest that you break out of the (Franzia) box and dig a little deeper at the state store. We tapped some of our favorite sommeliers in town for a few Thanksgiving-perfect suggestions readily available at your finer Fine Wine & Good Spirits shops. Tim Kweeder, beverage director at a.bar/a.kitchen, has plenty to say about the lackluster state of our wine scene: “Well, the PLCB isn’t progressive enough to have picked up the Hello Kitty wines yet.” Fortunately, Kweeder was able to turn up a few hidden gems. His pick? Azienda Agricola COS, Cerasuolo di Vittoria, 2010 ($34.99). “This is not a wine with globs of fruit and massive structure. This has character and nuance,” explains Kweeder, confident of its pair-ability. “It’ll do the watusi with the dark meat cranberry sauce.” Vedge co-owner Kate Jacoby goes with an old standby, Beaujolais, both newly released and vintage. “Everyone would agree that the Beaujolais Nouveau releases are a welcome, bright addition to any Thanksgiving table. Their bubble-gum, carbonic- maceration juiciness is a pleasant sip through a belly-bursting meal. It’s like a touch of nice cranberry sauce to lighten things up! But the non-nouveau wines are great, too. Jacoby's go-to is Beaujolais l’Ancien Vieilles Vignes, 2011” ($16.99) from natural wine maker Jean-Paul Brun. While we’re certainly not the type to tote along a bottle for bragging rights, this suggestion from Fork and High Street on Market’s Paul Rodriguez is sure to land you a bit of oeno-cred. López de Heredia Rioja Crianza, Viña Cubillo, 2005 ($29.99) is a great turkey wine with wonderful earth and acidity. “It’s a classic, long-aged Rioja from the best bodega producing that style,” Rodriguez tells us of this cult favorite. “It’s the new Burgundy for Thanksgiving, even though everyone is convinced pinot noir is best with turkey. Go this route and you are much cooler.” (caroline@citypaper.net)

LAMB-TASTIC: Smoky barbacoa with housemade tortillas and chickpea consomme. JESSICA KOURKOUNIS

[ review ]

BIENVENIDO A MAIN ST. Taqueria Feliz brings Mexican to the masses in Manayunk. By Adam Erace TAQUERIA FELIZ | 4410 Main St., 267-331-5874, taqueriafeliz.com.

Sun.-Thu., 4-10 p.m., Fri.-Sat., 4-11 p.m. Appetizers, $1.50-$12.95; mains, $9.95-$18.95.

he hostess frowned, but remained polite. In the snug glass vestibule separating Main Street and the Technicolor dining room of Taqueria Feliz, the hopefuls approached her podium like plaintiffs in a courtroom. Table for four? Tacos por dos? “The wait’s about an hour and half,” she apologized with a shake of a shampoo-commercial mane. Group by group, they left rejected: the spangled More on: and bangled, mom’s-night-out posses, King of Prussia finance jocks huddled in shearlinglined coats. All of them went back out into the cold Manayunk night in search of food, drink and shelter. I was almost among them, but a reservation saved me. It was a lastminute insurance policy just in case this month-old Mexican restaurant, the third in the Feliz family from Garces vets Tim Spinner and Brian Sirhal, was busy on this Saturday night. Walking down Main

citypaper.net

Street to the restaurant, I wondered: Where were all the people who usually prowl Manayunk’s central drag? Answer: At Taqueria Feliz. When I approached the double-wide, windowed-and-turquoisetrimmed storefront, the restaurant shocked me. I was expecting Calaca Feliz Lite, a small and casual place with a very abbreviated menu; I thought I’d be having a couple of chef Lucio Palazzo’s tacos in a plastic basket, some chips, a bottle of Jarritos… Not an exquisite pillar of seared snapper “enchipotlado,” its smoky, red-freckled, corn-stock, lime-and-crushed-chipotle sauce endowing the mildmannered fish with Hulkish power. “The name can definitely be misleading,” says Palazzo, who adorned the snapper with roasted corn, pickled jalapenos and diced avocado and served it next to moist, tender red rice. “The idea was to take our greatest hits from the other restaurants, but we wanted to make sure Taqueria was its own full-service restaurant at the same time [and] make a menu for people with all tastes.” MORE FOOD AND Judging from the masses packed into DRINK COVERAGE the dining room and little tequila bar up AT C I T Y P A P E R . N E T / front, they’ve succeeded. What Cantina Los M E A LT I C K E T. Caballitos is for South Philly, Taqueria Feliz is for Manayunk: a community clubhouse that’s whatever you want it to be, whether the setting for an intrepid meal of crispy grasshopper tacos (no, thanks) and medium-rare, plancha-ed lamb hearts marinated in parsley, serrano chili and olive oil (yes, please) or just an acceptable place to take your in-laws who think Chili’s has the >>> continued on page 32

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[ food & drink ]

✚ Bienvenido A Main Street <<< continued from page 31

What Cantina Los Caballitos is for South Philly, Feliz is for Manayunk. best Mexican food around. You can come here for margaritas or for Corona Light on tap and a giant mountain of nachos carefully layered with four kinds of melty cheeses, crema, cilantro, tomato, pickled jalapenos, rajas of poblano pepper and, if you wish, juicy ground brisket braised picadillo-style with potatoes, carrots, chopped green olives and ancho chile. When I think of great nachos, those served at Distrito come to mind, arranged in a single layer to avoid the dreaded naked chippage. Spinner, Distrito’s chef before embarking on his Feliz adventures, and Palazzo have one-upped those nachos with a family-sized approach. For the nachos, as well as the salsa and guacamole apps, the kitchen crew goes through so many chips that it brings in pre-made tortillas, then cuts and fries them inhouse. But for the tacos, the heart of the menu, the corn tortillas are Palazzo’s from-scratch recipe — tender, light blond and warmed on the plancha. Just as sushi is less about the fish than the rice, tacos are less about the fillings than the tortillas, and Palazzo’s can hang with any little old Mexican granny's from the Italian Market. Back to the tacos. Palazzo does six styles — seven if you count the grasshopper — including an unconventional vegan taco starring deep-fried florets of cauliflower with accents of guajillo salsa, nopales and avocado-lime puree. Meat, meanwhile, came in the form of pork shoulder al pastor that started with an overnight marinade of achiote paste, apple and pineapple juices, charred onion and garlic, chilies and spices. The crispy, fatty texture of pork mimicked the traditional style achieved from spit-roasting. Pineapple and raw salsa verde cuts the richness. Another prep-intensive classic that Palazzo modified for the restaurant kitchen was lamb barbacoa. Unable to dig a pit to cook the animal on underground embers, he smoked two-day-marinated, banana-leaf-wrapped shoulder and belly on the stovetop over cherry chips “to remember that barbacoa is a live-fire thing,” then transferred the meat to the oven. There it slowly steam-roasted over a pan of dried chickpeas and chicken stock; the drippings mingled with the beans, creating a broth Palazzo clarified like a consommé, which came in a cup alongside the succulent pulled lamb, refried beans and tortillas. Some people drink the consommé like a soup, but I found it much too salty. Better to take Palazzo’s advice and dunk the DIY tacos in it a la French dip. I tried some sides (sticky sweet plantains streaked with crema and queso fresco, brothy esquites) and desserts from Sweet Elizabeth’s Cakes across the street, but Taqueria’s intense, savory meat mains were what I carried home in my brain, and in a doggy bag. I considered handing over the leftovers to the sad sports still waiting for a table, but quickly came to my senses. (adam.erace@citypaper.net) 32 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

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merchandise market BRAZILIAN FLOORING 3/4", beautiful, $2.75 sf (215) 365-5826

33&45 RECORDS HIGHER $ Really Paid

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LAZYBOY MATCHED SET reclining sofa & loveseat (excellent condition) brown microsuede $750 o.b.o. (215) 538-9205

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Dr. Sonnheim 856-981-3397

1408 Ellsworth St. Lg. Effic. Clean 2nd flr front. No pets Call 215-549-4279

63XX VINE ST. 1BR $630+utils Nice Kit/Bth/Clsets! 267-357-0250

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Apartment Homes $650-$895 www.perutoproperties.com 215.740.4900

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20xx S. 68th St. 1BR $500 +Utils 2nd floor of tri-plex 610.534.4521

32xx W Huntingdon 2BR $850+utils lg 2nd flr, HDWD Flrs, 2+1, 215.463.2403

65th & Chester 1 BR $500/month. $1000 move-in. Avail now 215-920-7777

53xx N. Broad St. furn, Room & Apt. fridge, 27" TV, A/C. 480.822.7472

Labrador Retriever Pups, AKC, field trial bred, health guarantee. Ready for Xmas. Shots & Wormed 609.374.1055

OLDE ENGLISH BULLDOGGE PUPPIES 10 weeks. Call 215-817-3739

RAGDOLL KITTENS: Beautiful, melt in your arms, homeraised, 1st shots. Call 610.731.0907

American Border Collie Pups, Reg., ready. 215.822.7014 or 267.471.8573 German Shepherd PUPS, AKC, Family-raised, BLK/Tan & Sables $800-1000 (215) 529-7935 34 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

1, 2, 3, 4 BEDROOM FURNISHED APTS Laundry-Parking 215-223-7000

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MT. AIRY 2BR/1BA $1250+ in restored mansion w/ fp, modern kit, c/a, w/d, off st. parking, 215-849-4343 W. Mt. AIRY 1Br/1Ba $625 + Util., 3rd Fl., W/D in apt, 215-500-4973

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5622 Cherry St. 2BR $750 + utils. Renovated. Chris, 215-498-2891

pets/livestock Please be aware Possession of exotic/wild animals may be restricted in some areas.

63xx Germantown Ave. 2BR $700 Lg, low utils, w/w cpt, yrd, 215-681-3896

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40TH/FAIRMOUNT AVE 1BR $400 2nd flr, refrig, own gas/elec 1+1 mo rent. 267-258-6924 & 215-222-2403

33 & 45 Records Absolute Higher $

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S PHILA 2BR/ 1BA $845 Heat incl. No pets. 856-858-4830.

DOMINO LN 1 & 2BR $750-$895 Renov., parking, d/w, near shopping & dining, 1ST MONTH FREE! 215-500-7808

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PARKSIDE 1-6 BR $850 & up Newly renovated, hardwood floors, new kitchen. Section 8 ok. Call 267-324-3197

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W. Phila. Apts for 62 & older, brand new eff, 1 & 2BR units. Call 215.386.4791

YORKIE PUPS: Purebred, vet checked home raised. 215-490-2243 - $650 YORKIES - AKC. Teacup. 8 wks old. F $1200, M $1000. 302-697-3515

5846 N Marvine 2BR/1BA $700 + Utils 1+1, Near Trans, 215-480-6460 5XX ELEANOR ST 1BR/1BA $525/ MONTH $1050 TO MOVE IN. NEAR BVLD. AVAIL NOW (267) 338-6078

1684 MARGARET STREET 1br 2nd floor. Call 267-257-0144 4645 Penn St. Lg 1BR $650. gas/wtr inc. 215-781-8072

60XX Warnock 1BR $630+ nr Fernrock Train Station 215-276-8534 Front & Olney 2BR Clean. Must See! Sect 8 ok. 267.254.8446

47xx Penn Studio $695 Utils Incl 47xx Penn 2BR $795 Utils Incl HDWD floors, Large Rooms, Pets ok, Newly Renovated, 301.318.8984

13 W. Wyneva 2BR $600 + Utils. 2+1. Call 610-454-0292

Frankford 1BR $600 Also Efficiency, $500, utilities included We speak Spanish. Call 215-620-6261

3XX WEST COULTER ST. 1BR $575+ utilities. 3rd floor. Call 215-817-7188 50th & Walton. 2 bd $750 inc water 267-266-3661 or 215-474-1233.

N O V E M B E R 2 8 - D E C E M B E R 4 , 2 0 1 3 | C I T Y PA P E R . N E T

GARDENIA ST. 1BR/ 1BA Modern Apt. Call 215-432-0980

Frankford & Cheltenham 1BR $525+ Will not last! Call 267-226-9057

1613 Dyre St. 1BR $525 2nd floor, near transp.. 215-694-8056 ACADEMY KNIGHTS 2 bd Duplex $900 incl water & pets, bsmt, 2nd flr, crpt, gar, A/C, yd. 267-342-1993

Bridge & Pratt Effic. $475+elec 215-613-8989 or 267-746-8696

Cottman & Torresdale 2BR $790+ 1st flr, w/w, c/a, w/d, refridge, g/d, d/w, yard, 1+1, No pets, 215.287.2121 Fox Chase/Chandler 2BR $850-$900 1st/2nd flr W/D hkup, bsmt, 215.785.0819 LAWNDALE 1BR/1BA $635 +utils, balcony, A/C. Call 609-408-9298

6852 Marshall Rd., 2BR/1BA $800/mo, wtr incl. 1 car gar & bsmt. 484.716.9808

Glenolden 1BR / 1BA $700 heat & H20 incl, nr train. 917.406.2868

Wallingford 1BR $900+utils A/C, W/D, pool, tennis, no pets, sec. sys. credit check. 610.399.8491

Penn Valley-Tower at Oak Hill 1BR/1BA $1050/mo. All ammenties & utils, on site exercise rm. Avail 11/15. 610-296-5766

Vicinity of Laselle University Newly refurbished rooms & apartments for rent. Laundry service, near transportation. Call 267-588-2440

19th & Erie $90/week, private bath, SSI ok. No drugs. Call 215-920-6394 Allegheny near L Train. Furn, fridge, quiet $90 week. $270 sec dep. 609.703.4266

Brewerytown, Rooms For Rent $100/week. (570)294-7405 Broad & Wyoming - $100-$125/Wk, $200 Sec. Furn, SSI & VA Ok. 267-339-2101 Frankford, nice rm in apt, near bus & El, $250 sec, $90/wk & up. 215-526-1455

apartment marketplace Germantown Area: NICE, cozy rooms. Private entry. No drugs. (267)988-5890

G’Town - Furn & Unfurn $400/Mo utils incl, seniors & vets welc 215.840.3473 Mt Airy 61xx Chew Ave, W. Phila 42xx Girard Ave. $85-$125/wk. 215.242.9124 NE - Clean, safe, secure, new reno, nicely furnished, A/C, cable, wi-fi, w/d. Please call (215)645-4962

NICETOWN Large clean room w/cable, Micro & fridge, $110/wk. 215-225-5680 N. Phila. $75 & up. SSI & Vets + ok, drug free. Avail immed. 215-763-5565 N.Philly $75-115/wk,Utlities included Clean/safe newly ren.,furn rms., shared bath/kit. cable avali. call Tee 2675754088

N. Philly, nr trans. furn rms, fridge, micro, $95-$105/wk, $175/mvn. *HOLIDAY SPECIAL!!* 215-416-6538 S 59th St. near El, furnished, fridge, $90/wk + $90 sec. 215-472-8119

4xx S. 57th St. 4BR/1BA Newly renovated throughout, C/A, D/W, W/D, Section 8 ok. 215-605-8747

51xx Reno St. 2Br/1Ba $650 1st/last/security. Call 215.327.5200 659N Yewdall Street 2BR/1BA $625.00 monthly. new bathroom and security door. (215) 900-9938

West Philadelphia $85-$125/week Kitchen privileges, 267-816-2715

homes for rent 25th & Parrish, 2BR/1BA Brownstone Rehabbed Brownstone, 2 floors, all appliances and yard. Basement with laundry and storage. New kitchen and bath with granite; hardwood floors throughout. Call 215-582-4793 or Contact bmellon@hotmail.com

59xx N. Norwood St. 2BR/1ba $850 Section 8 OK.Call 267-467-0200

1509 S Marston 3BR New Reno, Sec 8, Must see, 215.885.1700 YEADON 3br/1ba $1200/mo ,Section 8 Ok. 610-996-2895

14xx S. 56th St. 3BR/1BA $900 Garage. Call 267-255-1895

52xx Rodman St. 3BR 1BA $800 +Utils Pvt yard, hdwd flrs, W/W Carp, W/D hookups, New reno, 2 + 1 215.473.1560

Austin 2004 Mini Cooper 2 dr sports coupe, 4 spd, A/C, fully equipped, orig mi, stored in htd garage. Senior citizen must sacrifice today!!! $6975. 215-922-5342 BMW 325xi, 2003. $6200 4 wd, sun roof, new water pump/hoses, tires & body good cond. 410.353.1466

CORVETTE COUPE 1987 - BEST OFFER Removable Glass Top, FEW ORIGINAL MILES, Matching #, fortune invested. Senior Citizen must sacrifice 215.922.6113

WANTED: Clean, 15 passenger van for senior citizen group. Carol, 215-922-5342

214 N Simpson, 3BR/1BA, $775+utils Credit Check, 215.464.9371

17 XX GEORGES LANE 3br/1ba $850 2 mth sec+1 mth rent 215-421-4849

We Buy Junk Cars! Pay $300 & Up! (215)768-9061

Hyundai Tucson 2012 $20,999 Mint cond, loaded, 29K, 484.681.1287 Lincoln 2000 Luxury 4 door Presidential Edition Towncar with sunroof, Like NEW. FEW ORIGINAL MILES, QUICK PRIVATE SALE, $3985. Call Lynn 215-928-9632

We Buy Junk Cars! Top Paid! $500 & Up! Call Now!!! (215) 783-6919

2BR 3BR Houses Sec. 8 Welcome Beautifully renovated Call (267)981-2718

ADOPTION: Childless, loving couple pray to adopt. Stay at home mom, successful dad, great dogs & devoted grandparents. Legally alowed expenses paid. Bill & Debbie 800-311-6090.

28xx N. Stillman St. 3 BR/1.5 BA $700 Jacuzzi, alarm sys inc, (610) 547-1807 3051 JUDSON ST 2BR house $600/mo. $1200 to move in. Call 267-237-3335. 6015 Charles St. 3BR/1BA $900/mo. 135 E. Lippincott 3BR/1BA $650/mo. 3353 Amber St. 3BR/1BA $750/mo. Section 8 Welcome. Call 516.361.5005

Temp Hosp area 3/4BR Sngl Fam Avail Now. Move in Special 215-386-4792

11XX Wagner 3BR/1BA $950+Utils New reno, Appls, 215-748-3076

XX N. Ithan St., 3BR/1BA, $747/mo Free HDTV! Text "Virtual Tour" to 609.234.0079. For appt, 215.354.0404

62xx Morton St. 4BR/2.5BA $700/mo + utils. 1 car garage, 2 mo sec, 1 mo rent. 215-242-6910

26xx Somerset 2BR $975+utils Ex lg, new reno, lg pvt yrd, 215.518.6631

KENSINGTON 3br/1ba $750 Entirely renov, Sec 8 ok. 215-852-8543

3300 Frankford 2BR/1BA $700 Front porch, no pets. 215-289-2973

A1 PRICES FOR JUNK CARS FREE TOW ING , Call (215) 726-9053

277 East Lake Road, Pilesgrove NJ 5BR/ 4.5BA $3200.00 per month Beautiful NewHome on a golf course. 5 BR 4.5 baths. 1st and 2nd floor Master BR's. Walk out basement and 3 car garage. All info can be found at www.6thGreen.com stevewilkinson@comcast.net

EARN $500 A DAY: Airbrush & Media Makeup Artists For: Ads-TV-Film-Fashion Train & Build Portfolio in 1 week. www. AwardMakeupSchool.com PREGNANT? THINKING OF ADOPTION?

low cost cars & trucks Buick Park Avenue, 1995, 115k, $1350 Chevy Cavalier, 1998, 72k, $1250 Hyundai Excel, 1993, 72k, $850 Saturn SC2, 1999, $1150 Many More! 215.620.9383 Cad Convert 1969 $2,700 New top, rugs, etc. 215-920-0929 Chevy 1500 Pickup 1989 $1100 Auto, 4x4, new insp., 215-620-9383 Chevy Camaro RS 1992 $1,650 Auto, 5.0, 107K, Runs exc. 215-620-9383 CHEVY MALIBU 2003 $3800 86k, 1 owner, very clean. 610-506-5759 Ford E150 Cargo Van 2000 $2350 Auto, 38K orig., 1 owner, (215)620-9383 Ford Explorer Luxury 4 door 2004 Fully equipped, A/C, too nice to trade in, sac less than book value $4975, 215.928.9632 Ford Explorer XLT 2000 $1850 4 Door, 4x4, loaded, clean, 215-518-8808 Ford Windstar 2000 $1750 All pwrs, 107k, new insp. 215-620-9383 Honda Accord EX 2 door, 2003 $3,295 200k, Sunroof, Gorgeous, 610.524.8835

Infiniti I-30 2000 $2995 Lthr, sunroof, gorgeous 610.524.8835 Jaguar S Type 2002 $3575 v6, gold, lthr, etc. 1 owner. 267-592-0448 Lincoln Navigator 2001 $4800 OBO Black, 139k mi, 1 owner. 302-932-7124 Mazda 626 EX Sedan 1999 $2650 auto, leather, new insp. 215-901-6521 Nissan Altima GXE 1997 $1350 Auto, new insp, runs exc. 215-620-9383 Saturn Ion 2007 $1750 4 door, auto, loaded, clean, 215.280.4825 Subaru Outback Wagon 1997 $2650 AWD, new PA insp, 484-535-3001 Toyata Avalon XLS 2000 $4,650 New PA Insp, Leather, 484-535-3001 Toyota Camry 1996 5 speed $950 Volvo 850 1997 5 speed $950 Inspected, runs exc. 215-620-9383

Volkswagen Passat GLX 1998 $1995 Excellent mechanical condition, good appearance. (215)605-8682

Talk with caring agency specializing in matching Birthmothers with Families Nationwide. LIVING EXPENSES PAID. Call 24/7 Abby’s One True Gift Adoptions. 866413-6293. Void in Illinois/New Mexico/Indiana.

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Lessons & Workshops

FIT A CAR INTO YOUR POCKET

Delaware County 2-3 BR’s $900 + Avail now. Sec 8 ok. Call 610.394.0768

SICKLERVILLE 3BR TH $1325 All appl. 609-386-5508, 646-772-8416

Public Notices EDUCATION

3431 Hartville St., 2BR/1BA Nice 2BR, 1BR Sec 8 ok. 732-267-2190 8xx Westmoreland 4BR/1.5BA $800 Freshly painted, porch, backyard, hardwood, nice location, 267-210-5810

CONSIDERING ADOPTION? Call us first. Living expenses, housing, medical, and continued support afterwards. Choose adoptive family of your choice. Call 24/7. (877) 362-2401.

HELP WANTED DRIVER

$1,000 Sign-On Bonus for Regional Drivers! Averitt Offers Excellent Benefits & Weekly Hometime. CDL-A req. 888362-8608 apply online at AverittCareers.com Equal Opportunity Employer. Job based in Harrisburg, PA. HELP WANTED DRIVER

CDL-A Drivers: Looking for Higher Pay? New Century is Hiring Exp. Company Drivers and Owner Operators. Both Solo and Teams. Competitive pay package. Sign-On Incentive. Also looking for experienced drivers willing to train. Call (888) 903-8863 or apply online at: www.drivenctrans. com HELP WANTED DRIVER

Pontiac Bonneville 2004 $6200 Grey, 4 dr, 6 cyl, auto trans, 59k miles, exc condition. Call only, Mon/Weds/Fri or Sat between 10am-1pm. 215.335.1644 Porsche Cayenne 2006, Twin Turbo S, excellent condition. 520 HP, only 1 of 600 sent to U.S., 57,935 miles, $38,500 with 1 year warranty. Call 609-670-8107

UPPER DARBY 3BR $1275 Call 610-642-5655 58xx Warrington Ave 3BR $900+Utils New reno, HDWD Flrs, 610-626-3855 6532 Glenmore, 3BR, $800, $2K Move In. Quiet block, nice house, 215-920-7777 South West Phila 2BR /3BR House "Modern." Elmwood Area. 215.726.8817 SW PHILA 3BR/ 1 BA $800 new carpet, backyard. Available immediately. Call 215-397-5217

ADOPTION

PREGNANT?

S. Phila, Broad & Reed $500/mo, Share Everything, Free Cable, 215.350.4997 SWP 68xx Woodland 2BR/1BA $650. 2bdrm,1st fl, $650. plus g/e; 3room eff. $450. elec. 856-589-0403

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AIRLINE CAREERS

begin here-Get FAA approved Aviation Technician training. Financial Aid for qualified students. Job placement assistance. CALL Aviation Institute of Maintenance 1-888-834-9715.

Help Wanted GORDON TRUCKING

CDL-A Truck Drives. Up to $5,000 Sign-on bonus & $.56 CPM! Solos & Teams. Refrigerated Fleet, Great Miles, Full Benefits, Great Incentives. No Northeast! EOE. Call 7 days/wk! 866554-7856 Gordontrucking. com HELP WANTED

Heavy Equipment Operator Training! Bulldozers, Backhoes, Excavators. 3 Weeks Hands On Program. Local Job Placement Assistance. National Certifications. GI Bill Benefits Eligible. 1-866362-6497.

Dedicated Class A CDL Drivers Wanted! Weekly Home Time, Competitive Pay, Excellent Benefits Package. Apply online at www.DriveJTC.com or call 866-511-1134 for more information. HELP WANTED DRIVER

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tact: Katrina Thomas (267) 523-5875. PAID IN ADVANCE

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For Sale VINTAGE~ HANDMADE~ GIFTS

PEACH STREET BRIDGE *vintage*handmade*gifts* 601A Convent Road Aston, Pa 19014 *corner of Convent and Aston Mills Roads* Wed-Fri 16, Sat-Sun 10-4 & by appointment 610-848-0007 “Like” us on Facebook Online Store: www.peachstreetbr idge. etsy.com

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Regional Owner Operators for dedicated run hauling plate glass needed. All Miles Paid! Also need regional stepdeck and RGN Contractors. Contact Daily Express 800-6696414. HELP WANTED!

Make extra money in our free ever popular homailer program, includes valuable guidebook! Start immediately! Genuine! 1-888-292-1120 www.easyworkfromhome. com HELP WANTED/SALES

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Land/ Lots for Sale LAND FOR SALE

On Twin Ponds w/34 Acres$39,995 Beautiful Woods w/ Large Wildlife Ponds Full of Ducks, Geese & Deer. Minutes to Syracuse, Salmon River, Oneida Lake. Call 1-800-2297843. Financing Available. Or visit www.landandcamps. com LOTS

Grand Opening Land Sale! Beautifully wooded lot near golf course. Only $59,900. Adjacent lot sold for $339,900! Close to ski resort & spectacular mountain lake. ALL NEW INVENTORY- Must see! Excellent financing. Call now 877-888-7584. x178.

One Bedroom ROOM FOR RENT

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C I T Y PA P E R . N E T | N O V E M B E R 2 8 - D E C E M B E R 4 , 2 0 1 3 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

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[ i love you, i hate you ] To place your FREE ad (100 word limit) ➤ email lovehate@citypaper.net 10 THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU 1. Your lies 2. Your hidden cross-dressing,there is nothing more nauseating than watching you tuck your junk into a pair of women’s panties. 3.your manipulation disguised as devotion. 4.your 2-hour showers! 5. your stupid tramp stamp. 6.your inability to have sex any other way than strangling while banging me 7. pulling your long hair out of the shower drain after it becomes so backed up it feels like I’m taking a shower in a river. 8. your negativity. 9. Your constant criticism of women’s attire we see around the city even though you’re not exactly a fashion icon. 10.The disappearing act you just pulled after two and a half years together. I guess you were too much of a coward to give me the closure that I deserve. Good luck finding someone else who is going to put up with the hellish confusion that passes for a relationship with you.

shed a tear over you...you are my ex-boyfriend for a reason...and you kept telling me that you changed, trying to convince me that you have changed...you need to know that you are a piece of shit...always will be...you were raised to be a piece of shit...I just hope that I am not getting sick...but always remember this shit will come back...trust me...bye bitch...

GET OVER YOURSELF Dude get the FUCK over yourself? wanna know why those women hate you so much, cause they don’t

are out your league)...another prize product of the Philly education system right there, champ!

don’t have any worries...your the only person who has my heart. I love you!!!

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HIGH SCHOOL IDIOTS

Baby I’m so happy I decided to go on the date with you after all instead of standing you up! Baby I love you so much and feel like you were sent to me from God, you have accepted me with all my crazy history and you have loved me even though its sometimes hard to. I know I’m far from perfect but when I’m with you I am pretty close to it!!! You have shown

You call yourselves high students.What the fuck,i`ve seen 5,6 year-old act better than you do.That high school. slogan is “A school for success,Excellence is our only Option.” That is total bullshit.Half those students won`t even make it to graduation. Only thing they’ll achieve is in the fuckin welfare line. Can’t even act like young fuckin adults on the bus in the morning or afternoon.Sit on the bus being all “Gansta.” I`ll smack the fuckin shit out of you assholes.I don`t know who is worse though, Guess, your IQ`s are lower than a fuckin flea. So-called young adults my ass. Now I see why Catholic schools are better than public schools. All the boys,pull your fuckin pants up. No one wants to see your damn underwear,that your wearing days at a fuckin time. The girls need to stop acting like your all grown the fuck up. Acting more immature as you get older.City should open more reform schools for these peckerheads.I know none of these students know how to read past a 2nd grade level,judging by the way they act on the bus.

AS I READ COLUMN said to myself what a BITCH ASS MOTHERFUCKER this ASSHOLE is... Your proud that u are fucking another mans wife??? How low and scum that is, but if your a REAL MAN tell him to his face what you are doing... You probably won’t, knowing he would most likely stomp your fucking head into the ground. I know If it was me I’d hand your BALLS to you in your HAND, PARTNER, and blow your BRAINS OUT! .. After reading what u wrote I sence PUSSY AND BITCHISM in you. And what makes you a PUSSY you had to come to a column to express what u are doing to another mans wife. That right there shows how much of a BITCH u truly are. Don’t be the real Bitch that u are, be the fucking Man U hope to be... Go to him and look him in the eyes and let him know what u and his slimy-ass wife are doing behind his back... Don’t got the balls do u??? I wish I knew who u were I’d tell him and stomp u myself just for the thrill of it PUSSY!! And for his wife I hope he finds out and take you for everything u own and leave u pennyless... U now have really made the list of being called a tramp,whore,slut,bitch! but it’s your ASS he should KICK First!.

HOROSCOPE Today your horoscope said “You’re one of a kind.” You think you can’t possibly be that unique, but you are. You’re seeing the world differently than anyone else is seeing it”. And it’s true. You are one of a kind. For that, and so many reasons more, I love you. I look up to you. You are perhaps the most clever person I have ever met and the conversation is never dry. Try not to worry so much because you are wonderful. You look wonderful. You smell wonderful, except for your breath sometimes, but I will still kiss you anyway stinker. Your life is in your own hands so don’t worry about being in control of it because you are. The decisions you make will lead you to where you belong and I highly doubt that will be a boring or unfulfilling place. I can’t wait for our awesome underwater pool party wedding! Love you always and forever.

BLAME YOURSELF To the ignorant man i work for. Here are some tips for life. Take responsibility for your own actions. Treat others the way you would like to be treated. And for FUCK SAKE do not blame me for shit i did not do, especially when i find proof on our computer systems that i didnt. Why don’t YOU do your job right the first time so that i don’t have to re-do EVERYTHING and take the blame EVERY DAY for what you have done wrong. Fix the way you treat people.

CAR SHIT Yo Troy....prepare to meet your maker...I just wanted to send you this quick message you know that you are a piece of shit for putting me out of your car on Friday night when it was 9 fuckin degrees! Little do you know I had my fucking wallet on me so I was able to take a cab home. Karma is a bitch and you can eat shit and die for all I care...I wouldn’t even

LET’S FIGHT!

want to be bothered by some grammar-abusing, illmannered jackass who thinks whistling at women like they are stray animals will get him somewhere! with park rapists and murderers running around after women of course they will give you attitude, idiot! as a matter of fact I wouldn’t be surprise if I turn on action news and see your ugly mug doing the perp walk! get hooked on phonics and get some home training you loser! I hope you get a face fulla mace the next time you harrass a woman and for the LAST time: apostrophes are for POSSESSIVE nouns (as in this bitch’s brass knuckles for your nasty ass) not collective nouns (as in the bitches who

me so much in our few months together, and have learned so much, I thank you so much for everything you have done for me, and hope that our relationship stays strong through everything that gets tossed at us. Tony I love you so much and hope one day I will become your wife, I cant imagine my life without you and don’t want to ever think of being apart from you. I am the best woman I can be when I am with you and I will continue to try and improve everything I need to to become the perfect woman you want me to be. Don’t worry about nothing else, its just me and you baby. Me and you against the world. I love you so much and I know the two weeks we’re apart, you

We fight then make love, how does that sound to you. I don’t think that you don’t want to make love. I love that fact that we do fight and make love. When you meet my folks, don’t tell then that we fight and then make love. This is our personal thing that we do, and when my dad ask are we going to sleep in the same bed don’t give him that stupid grin that you always do, cause we definitely can’t sleep together while we are there. You know how my family cares about you please don’t do anything to hurt that..but we will fight in our bed when we return home. As soon as we hit the front door to the apartment. Take your clothes off and let’s have it! Cause I am ready!

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