MOVE Issue 016

MOVE 02.01.13 VOLUME 11 ISSUE 16

THE KEY TO YOUR ENTERTAINMENT

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FAB ABSTRACT COMO GETS EVEN ARTSIER WITH THIS STUDIO'S GRAND OPENING BACK TO WORK SLACKING ON THAT WORK-OUT RESOLUTION, ARE YOU? FIX IT NOW. MOLLIE IN MILAN AND ALL SHE REALLY WANTS IS A TOWEL, STAT.

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JACK HOWLAND

on why 'Girls' doesn't deserve it's stigma

Guys, watch 'Girls' My friends seem puzzled when I recommend “Girls.”

Based on its first season poster with four attractive New Yorkers making eyes with the camera, the HBO dramedy looks like its target audience could be prepubescent females. It looks like it could pass for an ABC Family series that leads into “Pretty Little Liars.” Maybe it’s because of my overwhelming masculinity or that bold M on my driver’s license, but my friends think I’m too much of a man for a show filled with X-chromosomes.

Well, they’re wrong. Lena Dunham’s “Girls” isn’t the tawdry, runof-the-mill melodrama my friends think it is. The plot isn’t filled with insignificant first world problems, and The Fray doesn’t play during the end credits. More than anything else, “Girls” is a compelling story about trying to make it in our generation. It’s a poignant, messy, remarkable study of the 21st century -- like a sexed up version of FX’s “Louie.”

Yes, I get that some guys may not understand. Female characters gripe about their female problems, and there’s more than one trip to the gynecologist. But right now — being of sound mind and body — I will attempt to defend my self-professed love of “Girls” and maybe convert a few dudes too.

Here are three easily-digestible reasons why “Girls” is top-rate TV even for those who pee standing up.

Judd Apatow and company: I don’t care if it’s an infomercial selling pictures of dogs who look like famous people — if Judd Apatow’s listed as an executive producer, it’s almost certainly going to kick ass.

With “Girls,” Apatow has put his name on something truly magnificent. And his rat pack of celebrity pals — well, they want in on the action. Donald Glover plays a black Republican. Mike Birbiglia plays a hapless douche bag. Rita Wilson plays a high-society prick. There are so many funny people in the show it’s like a comedic “The Expendables.”

Now if only they can get Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Relevant commentary: Great TV programs have something to say about the times they’re in. “The West Wing” intelligently commented on a modern political process just as “The Dick Van Dyke Show” provided insight on married life in the 1960s. “Girls” is no different. Dunham’s generational comedy is like an open letter to the 21st century’s smartphone-savvy, complacent douche bags. It pokes fun at youth culture while also exploring the perils of being an unemployed 24-year-old. Like great programs before it, “Girls” comments on relevant issues with wit and depth — like “The Dick Van Dyke Show,” with nudity and cocaine.

Perfectly raunchy: There are many reasons why subscription-only HBO is a great network for “Girls.” Viewers don’t have to suffer through an endless loop of 5-Hour Energy commercials. Curse words don’t have to be bleeped out like an explicit rap album. Among other reasons, it allows writers to get raunchy. Sex scenes are beautifully awkward and cringe-inducing. Dialogue is gleefully profane. And the scene where Dunham’s character has to help her dad up after he injures himself having shower-sex — it’s a damn cinematic achievement. When Dunham says, “That is fully your wet butt,” I think I cringed, cried and laughed at the same time.

But many of my fellow men still can’t see the light. The show has won two Golden Globes, is in its second season and still has an unfair stigma attached to it. I know that I shouldn’t feel personally invested in people tuning in. I know there are plenty of other good TV shows out there. But this argument for “Girls” — a show literally named for its primary viewer — is profoundly important for all men like me.

This is for the guys who love “(500) Days of Summer.” This is for the guys who watch “Downton Abbey” with a cup of lukewarm tea. This is for the guys who snuck in a side door to see “Les Miserables” a second time.

Often a pop culture staple can cast off an entire demographic of people from a false reputation. Well I’m here to say that I shave my face, I love “Die Hard,” I have way too much hair on my legs and I am hooked on “Girls.”

So don’t seem so damn confused when I recommend it to you.

/cover PHOTO/Tim nwachukwu design/Brendan Wray AND CASEY PURCELLA EDITOR/DELIA CAI Photo editor/Lauren Kastner

North Village Arts family gains a new member

PHOTOS COURTESY OF MORLI WILCOX

When: Tonight at 6 p.m.

Where: ARTlandish Gallery Whether it was selling lemonade or raking leaves, your first business ventures probably profited by mere pennies. Local artist Morli Wilcox was no exception.

As a child of a surgeon, Wilcox flipped through her father’s medical journals and was allowed to peek through the window during operations.

“That was where I first started contemplating abstract expressionism through having an understanding that there was much more on the inside of everything that was going on besides what you can see on the outside,” Wilcox says.

At the age of 8, she went door-to-door selling her collection of abstract paintings for a few cents. It was then she realized bringing art to others was her calling.

Today, Wilcox does just that. Abstract work that once sold for pennies now sells for hundreds — but, obviously, she’s improved artistically. After collectors began expressing interest in her work and a stint on display at Make Scents last spring, Wilcox was inspired to pursue a studio space.

Tonight marks the official grand opening of the Studio of Morli Wilcox in the North Village Art Studios. The event, as part of ARTlandish Gallery’s First Friday LoveFest, also happens to be Wilcox’s birthday. Great birthday present, right?

“I was shocked to find out in December that I was nominated for (Inside Columbia’s) Best Visual Artist of 2013,” Wilcox says. “That blew me away and was very exciting and encouraging. Those were all pointers to show me that I’m making the right decision by opening my own studio” For Wilcox’s longtime friend Billy Cabral, the nomination didn’t come as a surprise. After working with Wilcox at Village Wine and Cheese, Cabral says he knew Morli was special.

“It never really surprised me when I started seeing her stuff because she’s ridiculously creative and always kind of awesomely eccentric,” Cabral says. “It seemed like a logical transition to me. You can talk to her for

five minutes and tell that she’s brilliant. There’s an eccentricity there that’s awesome, and it’s in everything she does. She’s one of those all-around people.”

In 2009, Wilcox launched her Etsy page and quickly sold to collectors around the country.

“Once I got to about 35 paintings sold, I became more confident,” Wilcox says. “That’s when I just decided that this is what I’m going to do.

That was around 2010 when I broke out into the local art scene.”

That same year, Wilcox met Kenney Greene, owner of Monarch Jewelry in the North Village Arts District. Ironically, they met at the 2010 LoveFest where her work was on display.

“I was totally enamored with several of her pieces,” Greene says.

There’s a piece Greene purchased from Wilcox that now resides in his eccentric and cozy shop. The story behind the transaction is one Greene won’t tell, but he says it’s one that will endear them to each other forever.

To achieve her distinctive, organic aesthetic, Wilcox uses tinted gesso (a base for the canvas that “gives it direction”), vintage collage clippings, oil and acrylic paints and sometimes even scribbles added by her kindergarten-aged son.

“I feel like I could pick her stuff out of line-ups,” Cabral says. “There are always a lot of reoccurring shapes. There is a fluidity and continuity to her work. They’re all unique but of a similar style.”

For Wilcox, inspiration for abstract expressionism comes in unique forms. She says it’s spontaneous inspiration from what her mind sees that doesn’t require her eyes — it’s fractal, molecular biological and organic.

She says an enormous inspiration in her work is what the universe already has out there for us to find under the surface. From stars to life forms, Wilcox says she believes she is connected metaphysically through her art to the all-encompassing force of life.

“I try to draw from the most uninterrupted creative source of my mind,” Wilcox says. “Sometimes when I’m going to sleep at night, I close my eyes, and it isn’t just darkness. Sometimes I see fractal patterns and different images and things that just dance around on my eyelids in the dark. I freeze-frame those, contemplate those and take them to the canvas the next day.” lauren rutherford | staff writer

6 TIPS TO STAY ON TRACK TO A HEALTHIER YEAR

As the shine of 2013 begins to fade, many have already abandoned their New Year’s resolutions – and it’s barely even February. Pathetic? Slightly. The ones that are most notoriously dumped are the ever-positive pledges to maintain a dutiful workout program while managing a school, work and social schedule. It’s a task so daunting that many merely give up instead of taking on the challenge.So, how can we avoid ditching our resolutions while maintaining a demanding schedule? There are two options: (a) we don’t, or (b) we find small ways to stay motivated to make the process of balancing our lifestyles and healthy habits easier. (Hint hint, read below.)

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SCHEDULE YOUR WORK OUTS

Instead of dealing with a resolution as, well, a resolution, make it a priority. Think of working out as an interview. If it’s not acceptable to be a no-show to an interview, (news flash: it isn’t), then the same rule applies for a workout: don’t bail. Make it happen. sophia conforti | reporter

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GET A MOTIVATOR Amidst a busy schedule, motivation can wane. Enlist a friend as a workout partner/constant motivator. Whether it’s just texting each other to get off the couch, going to the gym, or making a workout video together, having someone pull a Jillian Michaels on you will “work out” in your favor.

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BRING YOUR GEAR When leaving for class, pack accordingly. Bring your workout clothes, water bottle, headphones and anything else you see fit. A trip home to grab your things will just turn into a date with Netflix, and we all know how that ends — four hours later, and you still haven’t made it to the gym. Carrying things with you will help eliminate those distractions.

ciao for now

MAGIC

MOLLIE BARNES

on holding true to American bathing habits

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Europe is trying to turn me into a European

dead Illusionist Jeff Copeland explains why we need wonder in our lives. jack howard | reporter Jeff Copeland prefers to be called an illusionist.

“Illusionist is a fancy word for magician, which is a fancy word for liar,” he says.

MOVE caught up with the CoMo resident to discuss how the awe his tricks inspire can fill a hole in our lives where the unexplained used to reside.

MOVE: So … magicians are still around?

Jeff Copeland: Yeah! You know, there’s been headlines ... there was one last year that came to my attention that magic is dead. People are always saying, “Magic’s dead. No one believes that anymore.” But (I) welcome it. Bring it on. More headlines like that. Makes my job easier.

TIM NWACHUKWU | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

M: How so?

destination I’m going to get to, but every time it’s different.

JC: An educated person thinks that they can’t be fooled — and therefore they become the easiest target. So, it is my responsibility to take care of them, to be gentle with them. Because that’s a good way you can offend somebody. My show’s not about offending people. It’s about lifting them up and giving them a good time.

M: How do you develop that road map?

JC: A lot of it’s trial and error. It’s a little bit like being the conductor. I don’t think I’m stretching it too far. If I do my part, we can all finish the song together.

M: At your shows, why do you ask the audience to clap for you?

JC: Well, I don’t ask them particularly, “Would you please clap for me?” (laughs) I say that you now have the opportunity to.

The reason being is that in some of the stuff I’m doing, there’s tension. There’s a tension building. The coin vanishes — and people don’t know how to respond to that. You have to give the audience this release.

M: Usually, people expect a magician to just try to fool people.

JC: If you’re in somewhere like Columbia, you’re not going to find too many people that still believe in witchcraft and magic or dark arts. So I don’t think there’s any reason to come up and say that everything I’m doing is fake. But there’s no reason to try to assume that people believe what you’re doing is enchanted by spirits.

M: You also interact with the audience a lot.

JC: Oh man, it’s everything. Every show’s different. There’s never a repeat with all the audience participation. The audience writes my best lines. My best jokes come from the audience. You talk to any entertainer who does this style of work, and they’ll tell you that from that interaction you never know what’s going to happen … I’ve got a road map, and a

M: But it seems like your act transcends simple entertainment.

JC: There’s not enough mystery in the world. There’s just not. I perform a lot in churches. I am a Christian, and I have a faith base. And I see the world around us i

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M: What can college students expect from your show?

JC: If you think magic is just for children, this show is for you. If you think magic is just for the uneducated, this show is for you. Or, if you just enjoy trying new things, this show is for you. So, for anyone listening, you are invited to come have an experience. There is no real consequence to coming to the show, but the reward ...

The reward is the opportunity to be a part an experience so astonishing that you will be filled with wonder and joy and marvel at moments to remember for the rest of your life.

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losing a lot of faith. So I enjoy bringing back some of that sense of wonder. We’re taught from a very young age, all throughout school, explanations for everything.

And we’re educated people. Those emotions belong inside of our head. They belong in our body. They’re good for our soul — and we’re missing them. My show is to gift you with that emotion, maybe a little therapy. I’m not licensed though. (laughs)

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When: 6:30 P.M., and 8:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 8 Where: The Berlin Theatre tickets: $15

Italian word of the week: asciugamano - towel You never know how much you rely on certain items until you don’t have them. In this instance, I am referring to a towel. To get to Italy from St. Louis, I had to take three flights — from St. Louis to Chicago to New York to Milan — which added up to about 22 hours of traveling.

I don’t know if you have ever traveled for that long, but usually what I crave most after traveling for an extended period of time is a hot shower, which is pretty hard to do without a towel. And unfortunately for me, Bed Bath & Beyonds do not exist in Milan.

After trying downstairs to see if my dorm had any towels, I asked the doorman where I could buy one. Just my luck — the doorman didn’t speak much English, so he had no idea and simply pointed outside. So outside I went.

It might have been helpful if I had looked up how to say towel in Italian in my dictionary before I left, but of course, I did not.

Off I set with no destination or direction in mind and no clue how to say what I needed in the local language. Some people will call this setting yourself up for complete failure, but I like to think of it as ignorant, wishful thinking that the magical towel fairy would give favor to me on this jet-lagged day.

The first place I tried was a pharmacy. I tried to inconspicuously look around for a towel on my own by carefully avoiding the sole employee inside. However, seeing as I was the only one in the store, she obviously found me and started asking me in questions in Italian.

My jet-lagged brain could not comprehend at all.

I just started saying “Do you have a towel?” while weirdly miming what a towel might do. When she responded “Si, si,” I think my heart grew wings and flew out of my body. I found a towel? Really?

At the first place I tried?

She proceeded to bring me over and show me their finest shampoos. It seemed the towel fairy had the day off. I shook my head and tried again. She told me that they didn’t sell whatever she thought I needed there but tried to direct me to a place that might.

I left the shop and got utterly lost for an hour before giving up and going back to the dorm. But I refused to let Europe make me into a non-showering European. So I gave in and took a shower and dried off without a towel and passed out.

Jet lag = 1, Mollie = 0.

January in Milan is a wonderful time full of sales because all of the stores are trying to get rid of all of last season’s clothes. After orientation today, some of my new Australian friends and I went shopping along Corso Buenos Aires, a major shopping street in Milan.

After going in all the shops with various items of fabulous Blair Waldorf-worthy clothing, guess what I actually ended up buying.

The cheapest one I could find to buy separately was Lacoste brand. Only in Milan, I guess, would the cheapest towel be Lacoste, but I felt rather silly buying a brand-name towel like that. So I settled for a set of two towels on sale for about €10.

I think my first problem in Milan could have been a lot worse.

Another student I met encountered a man who tried to steal her money as she bought a metro ticket. He got her change before she could, and when she tried to get it back from him, he stuck it in his mouth.

So I think I’d rather dry off with a spare Mizzou T-shirt than have a strange man playing kiss and tell with my change. Just some advice for any of you thinking about studying abroad: take a towel!

It might take up a lot of room, but it’s worth every millimeter of space. I promise.

Ciao for now!

Follow us on Instagram + twitter: @ManeaterMOVE

commit to fit

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USE AN APP

In technology we trust, so make it your best friend. Apps like MyFitnessPal and Fitocracy are designed to track workouts and log the day’s caloric intake, visually laying out individual progress.

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GIVE YOURSELF AN INCENTIVE

Give yourself incentive to workout. If you put forth a certain amount of effort, is it finally acceptable to buy the Jeffrey Campbell shoes that have been sitting in your online shopping cart for a month?

Yes? Please?

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GET CREATIVE AT HOME For those days when you can’t make it to the gym, get creative at home. Plank while studying, or have a solo (or not-so-solo) dance party. Keep it interesting.

As Elle Woods once said, “Exercise gives you endorphins.

Endorphins make you happy.” So stick with your resolutions, and come 2014, you’ll be happy you did. sophia conforti | reporter 02.01.13• MOV E

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pop track JOYCE PENG

on the new high-tech MagicBands

Enjoy a stress-free Disney vacation They call it “the happiest place on earth.”

Even though I have only been to Disneyland a few times, I remember how hectic it was. Before setting foot in the park, my group would devise a strategy for which rides to go on most, which rides to grab FastPasses for, when to grab them and which other rides to cram into the day.

It was kind of like chess. Each move was calculated and devised to earn a victory at the end, which for us was a wonderful and magical time at Disneyland.

I’m pretty sure I’m not the only one who finds this stressful process an ugly and inevitable part of the Disney experience.

Considering the soaring prices from Mickey Mouse-shaped lollipops and the cost of admission itself, going to Disneyland or WalT Disney World can be more of an annoying chore than a vacation.

So what’s the solution? MagicBands.

MagicBands, a new high-tech wristband, will launch in a few months at Walt Disney World. It’s part of Disney’s new program, MyMagic+, which hopes to enhance visitors’ experience, making their trip easier, more convenient and more satisfying.

And it sure seems pretty magical.

MyMagic+, which includes MagicBands, FastPass+ and My Disney Experience, includes a whole world of perks. For starters, the FastPass+ is a totally evolved and improved system that eliminates the mad scrambling for paper FastPasses. You can reserve a spot online for a ride, event, character, attraction or restaurant.

And when you get to your chosen destination — Space Mountain, for example — all you have to do to is to tap your MagicBand against a post with a Mickey head on it and _voila_!

You get your pre-assigned admittance.

In addition to these perks, the MagicBand can also be used as a room key (if you are staying at a Disney resort), credit card, park ticket and PhotoPass. And since it’s a rubber band, it can be used multiple times.

And dig this. You can enter your personal information into the MagicBand, and characters such as Snow White may tell you “Happy Birthday, Joyce!” without ever having met you before.

Okay, so maybe the last perk is a little creepy, but it doesn’t undermine the wonderful innovation in technology Disney has created. MyMagic+, along with the versatile (and fashionable) MagicBand, will really transform the way we vacation at Disney.

No more running for FastPasses. No more neck-craning to see the parade floats just because there’s this huge pack of basketball players right in front of you. And thankfully, waiting in those horrible, why-did-I-ever-come-here-in-the-first-place lines will be less of a drag.

The MagicBand system certainly seems like a dream to many Disney fans, but while you chit-chat with a seemingly psychic Snow White, just know that Big Brother will be watching you.

Even though guests can refuse to use the new system or limit the personal information they input, Disney, at the very least, will still use MagicBand to track guests throughout the park.

Okay, so Disney won’t try to brainwash the guests into becoming their minions to help take over the world. Understandably, Disney just wants to maximize profits by learning about and tailoring to customer needs. But this is one feature I’ll find uncomfortable under the new system, since Disney’s basically stalking me around the park.

Overall, the upcoming MyMagic+ system, with the exciting and multi-purpose MagicBand, will be a huge improvement at Disney World. It allows perfectionist, stressed visitors (like me) to chillax without forcing the more carefree visitors from being bogged down by a schedule. I have a feeling it will make Disney World even more magical.

Dear Justin taylor weatherby | senior staff writer Dear Justin, This letter is long overdue. We have held our feelings inside for 15 years, and you should know you have had us completely lovestoned since the day you stepped onto the boy band scene with *NSYNC and those irresistibly-bleached, curly locks. It is time to let those feelings float into the air — the air of love, sweet Timberlake.

Now, let’s be honest, darling. Your brand new single, “Suit & Tie,” is a preview of what’s to come when you finally meet one of us — an extravagant Italian wedding. You’ll wear your suit and tie and whomever you choose as your lucky señorita will wear a beautiful ruffled pink dress. It will be magical.

We were just informed this already happened with some other woman named Jessica? Considering we know that, since your days with Britney and your matching denim red carpet outfits (that was a fashion faux pas we shall ne’er commit, love), you have never loved another woman in hopes you shall one day meet all of us and fall madly into a passionate love. This Jessica woman is simply a figment of Hollywood’s imagination. If she’s not, well, frankly, she can cry us a river.

Carrying on, we’d like to take a second to commemorate your wonderfully amazing talent that has taken our breath away over the last 15 years. God must have spent a little more time

4 MOV E • 02.01.13

Bringing Texas

PHOTO COURTESY OF DAVID MCCLISTER

country to Missouri The Randy Rogers Band will get outlaw-country on your radar. maggie angst | reporter Growing up in the heart of Texas, Randy Rogers found a love for country music at a young age. He created the Randy Rogers Band with a few local musicians about 13 years ago. Although the original band members have moved on, the band members you’ll see at The Blue Note this week have been performing together for almost 11 years.

“Our first album together with the current band members was Rollercoaster in 2004,” Roger says. “Each starting with separate musical careers, we came together and split up roles even-steven.”

Since then, the band has received a great deal of critical acclaim for its unique sound and its members’ musical talents. In summer 2007, Rolling Stone ranked the band alongside groups like U2 and The Rolling Stones in its Top 10 Must-See Artists list.

Throughout their careers, the members of the Randy Rogers Band have played alongside legends like Gary Allan and Willie Nelson.

Rogers says, after growing up in Texas, playing with these artists is a dream come true.

Numerous bands and singers, including Nelson and The Beatles, influence the band and its music, says Rogers.

But unlike most country bands on the radio today, The Randy Rogers Band is a true Texas country music group. The band uses fiddles and a mandolin to balance its outlaw-meets-traditionalist

sound.

“All of us play on every single record,” says Rogers, who does the lead vocals. “One big way that we’re different is that our band is full of actual studio musicians, instead of just a road band.

There are very few of those coming out of Nashville today.”

The band’s newest album, Trouble, is set to come out in April.

It’ll be a change of pace from the band’s previous music as they focus on deeper issues and personal conflicts.

“Expect to be impressed and surprised,” Rogers says. “Big names like Willie Nelson appear in different tracks within the album.”

Having completed the band’s eighth album, Rogers says the members have grown as musicians. As the band’s primary songwriter, Rogers writes 80 to 90 percent of its songs. He hopes to become a better songwriter as his career continues.

“I think that the more the more you play, the better you get,” Rogers says.

The band performs about 200 shows every year, so Rogers says when it hits Columbia in February, college students will have no problem enjoying themselves.

“You’re gonna want to make sure and bring your beer,” Rogers says. “And party hats.”

When: thursday, 9 p.m.

Where: the blue note tickets: $12 in advance, $15 at door

Two weeks ago, JT published an open letter to his fans online. Here’s our adoring reply: on you, love, because the way you brought sexy back after you and your band mates parted ways nearly eight years ago was astonishing. Then you proved to the world you are not only the smooth, handsome crooner we all knew you were, but you are a ravishing actor, too. Stepping into a whole new scene, willingly putting your family jewels in a box on “Saturday Night Live” and completely owning it is Oscarworthy in our eyes.

Yes, of course we loved your acting, but knowing you are returning to your musical roots has us more elated than ever before. On March 19, when you release _The 20/20 Experience_ -- your first album in almost seven years -- we may just die and go to heaven (as long as you’ll come with us). If not, we’ll find some other way to celebrate your long-awaited return. We refuse to die without knowing what new musical ingenuity you have up your sleeve.

In the (modified) words of Shakespeare, Justin, if your music is the food of love, play on, you beautiful ex-boy band suit-and-tied dreamboat. March 19 cannot come soon enough, but watching you perform at the Grammys next Sunday will tide us over until then.

All our Justified love, Your legion of devoted fans

PHOTO COURTESY OF JUSTINTIMBERLAKE.COM