our m i s s i on Thread is just a tool. It’s nothing special, and it can’t do much on its own. But oh boy what it can accomplish when paired up with the right material and a little creativity. This little project is a humble attempt to explore our city and its peoples. Finding those interesting materials that make up our communities, that creativity which provokes, instigates, and inspires. We want to tie it all together and see what happens. We want to ask around and see what’s up. If something is happening that people should know about, we want to make sure they do If something isn’t happening that should be, we want to help make it happen We want most of all to hear from you! What are you up to? What are you seeing? What are you doing? What are you thinking? What is life like out there, and how can we all share in it? Help give us a chance to tie it all
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together, and let’s see what can happen.
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c on t ac t : t h et h r ead s fl d @ g m ai l on l i n e at fac eb ook . c om /t h et h r ead s fl d & i s s uu. c om /t h et h r ead s fl d
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& t h et h r ead - s pr i n g fi el d t um b l r
City Watch Mayor: Ken McClure Kristi Fulnecky
Upcoming Election
City Council Candidates
General Seat A: Incumbent Jan Fisk Jesse Coulter Allen Kemper General Seat B: Incumbent Craig Hosmer Curtis Montgomery
Zone 1: Incumbent Phyllis Ferguson Thomas Quinn Zone 2: Incumbent Tom Prater Helen Gunther Zone 4: Incumbent Craig Fishel Debra Brady
Councilwoman Kristi Fulnecky has raised $102,118 and her opponent, Councilman Ken McClure, has raised $51,950. Candidate Curtis Montgomery has openly described himself as having his own agenda, refusing to respond to his constituents, filling his facebook with derogatory comments, and sparking a facebook group opposing him. Google and facebook search all the candidates. Search old issues of the News-Leader for info on them too. If you have a library card you can do this for free through the library website.
Election date: Tuesday, April 5th Last day to register to vote: March 9th
(You can get registered at the County Clerk’s office and at any branch of the Library.)
State Watch
Fifteen anti-choice bills have been introduced in the Missouri General Assembly so far this year, and Planned Parenthood continues its lawsuit against the State, claiming that two laws violate a recent Supreme Court decision. The Missouri General Assembly and Senate have both passed bills that would make Missouri a Right-To-Work State, limiting the power of unions to collect dues and weakening their ability to collectively bargain. N. Springfield Rep. Crystal Quade introduced legislation designed to mitigate what is called the "cliff effect," or the situation wherein a person receiving state aid is cut off drastically after a small increase in income, a situation that often punishes people for getting ahead.
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2/1 Novel Ladies’ Book Club: Romeo and/or Juliet, 7pm @ Bookmarx 2/1 Springfield NORML Talk, 7pm @ Library Center 2/1 Chinese New Year Celebrations, 9:30am @ Siceluff Hall, MSU...events continue all week 2/2 Community Engagement Talk, 7pm @ Karls Hall Rm 1 01 , MSU 2/3 SLE Teen Players’ Final Friday Improv, 9:30 @ Springfield Little Theater 2/4 Save My Care: Speak Out! 1 0am @ National Ave Christian Church 2/4 Lindberg’s 8th Anniversary Beach Party, 9pm @ Lindberg’sM$1 0 2/8 Community Engagement Fair, 1 0am @ Plaster Student Union, MSU 2/1 0-11 1 9th Annual Swap Meet, 8am-4pm @ Ozark Empire FairM$5 2/1 0-11 Blue Room Comedy Presents: Ben Kronberg, 8pm @ BilliardsM$1 0 2/11 Springfield Creatives Spring Portfolio Review, 1 0am @ eFactory 2/1 6 Unrestricted Warfare: the 1 91 6-1 7 Springfield Streetcar Strike, 7pm @ Library Center 2/1 7 Greene County Democratic Party Chili Cookoff, 5:30 @ IBEWM$1 5 2/1 8 Family Friendly Volunteer Day for Ozark Greenways, 1 0am @ Tal’s Trailhead...RSVP 2/1 8 Chili Cookoff, 3pm @ Ruthie’s BarM$5 2/20 Appleton Estate Rum Tasting, 6pm @ Golden Girl Rum ClubM$1 0 2/21 Speaker Series: Actually Food, 1 2pm @ eFactoryM$1 0 (RSVP) 2/22 Recovering from Religion Meeting, 7pm @ Library Center 2/22 Nonfiction Book Club: “Rules for Radicals”, 7pm @ Bookmarx 2/24-25 Blue Room Comedy Presents: Mike Baldwin, 8pm @ BilliardsM$1 0 2/24-26 Weekend of Gaming, all day @ Meta-Games Unlimited 2/25 Winter Bird Fair, 9-3pm @ Ozark Empire FairM$5 2/25 Sertoma Chili Cookoff, 11 am @ Springfield Expo CenterM$1 5 advance tix 2/25 Masquerade Ball w/ Moon City, 9pm @ Patton Alley 2/25 Get Dusted, 9pm @ Outland Ballroom 2/26 Kinky Cabaret Auditions, 11 am @ Outland Ballroom 2/27 Board Game Night, 6:30pm @ Library Center 2/28 Age Diversity & Stereotypes, 1 0am @ ICW Rm 1 08BC, OTC 2/28 Parent Cafe, 5:30pm @ ECC Rm 1 06, OTC R epeat ab l e
Mondays: Open Mic @ The Flea & Big Momma's Tuesdays: 41 7 Gamers meet-up, 6pm @ Classic Rock Cafe Tuesdays: Adult Coloring Circle, 5pm @ Park Central Library Wednesdays: Springfield Life Drawing, 6:30pm @ 401 W WalnutM$7 Thursdays: 41 7 Gamers meet-up, 6pm @ Meta-Games Thursdays: Ballroom dancing, 8:30pm @ Savoy BallroomM$5 Saturdays: Ozarks Dharma Meditation, 9am @ Dinh Quang Buddhist Temple Sunday & Monday: Moxie Essentials starring Katharine Hepburn...$9 1 st Wednesday: Pagan Group, 7pm @ First Unitarian Universalist 2nd Wednesday: Humanist Group, 7pm @ First Unitarian Universalist 1 st Thursday: Poetry Writing Workshop, 7pm @ The Creamery 2nd Thursday: Sun & Tree Open Mic for all ages, 7pm @ Springfield Improv 3rd Thursday: Poetry Slam, 7pm @ Springfield Little Theater
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2/3 The Detectives, 9:30pm @ Patton Alley Pub aud i t or y 2/4 First Anniversary Show w/ Shapes & Mood Ring Circus, 9pm @ Moon City PubM$5 2/4 Creek Stink, Suzi Trash, Hot MO, River Bucket & The Skoobs, 9pm @ Harvest House..$5 2/5 Pianist Melinda Smashey Jones, 3pm @ Central Christian Church 2/5 Handmade Moments & Rainbow Girls, 5pm @ Shoe Tree Listening RoomM$1 5 2/1 0 Wild Bob’s Musical Book Club: Romeo & Juliet, 6:30pm @ Lindberg’sM$5 2/1 0 The Skoobs & Friends, 8pm @ The Dugout 2/11 Riffs for Refugees, 6pm @ Patton AlleyM$5 2/11 Shaun Munday, 8pm @ Q Enoteca 2/11 Grandma Strange, Sabrina & the Howlers, Witchsister, 9pm @ Lindberg’sM$5 2/1 2 Sunday Concert Series: Queen City Sound, 2pm @ Library Center 2/1 7 Sierra Star & Wavy Davy, 3pm @ Big Momma’s 2/23 Homewrecker, Crux, Primitive Rage, & True Self, 9pm @ the OutlandM$5 2/23 A Bunch of Folks Playin Music, 6:30pm @ Lindberg’sM$5 2/25 JazzFest, 8am @ Hammons Hall, MSU 2/26 Franks & Deans, Introvert Party, & The Results, 8pm @ Outland Bar Vi s ual /t ac t i l e 2/3 Screening & Talk: “Lotawana”, 7pm @ Plaster Student Union, MSU 2/4 Crafty DIY: Lip Balm, 3pm @ Library Station...RSVP 2/4 Weekend Walk-In Theater: “Philadelphia Story”, 6:30 @ Park Central Library 2/6 Starting Your Garden, 6:30pm @ Library Station 2/8 MO Citizens for the Arts: Day at the Legislature, 9:30am @ State Capitol, Jefferson City...RSVP 2/9 Lunch & Learn: Future of Virtual Reality, 1 2pm @ eFactory...RSVP 2/11 Let’s Make Miniatures! 1 0:30am @ Park Central Library...RSVP 2/11 Seed Saver Training, 1 pm @ Midtown Carnegie Library 2/1 7 To the Moon & Back w/ The Kinky Cabaret, 9pm @ Moon City Pub 2/1 7-1 9 Potterfest Film Festival, various times @ The GilliozM$8 per movie ($50 for all 8) 2/1 7-1 8 Screening: “Microcosmos”, various times @ Moxie Cinema 2/1 7 Screening: “Can You Dig This?”, 1 pm @ Midtown Carnegie Library 2/28 “Selma” Screening & Discussion, 6:30pm @ Springfield Vineyard Church
Life Interrupted: Art for Social Change @ Drury on C-Street (6-8pm) Fi r s t Fr i d ay Hearts for the Arts Final Bidding & Closing Reception @ The Creamery (5-8pm) Fascinating Fungi & Slime Molds of the Ozarks @ Park Central Library (6-9pm) Be Here Together @ IdeaXFactory (6-1 0pm) Rule Breaker: The Art of Marty Goodnight @ Obelisk Home (6-1 0pm) Finding Wonderland: Art of Abby Junger Campbell @ Gillioz (5-9pm) All You Need is Love @ Rose O’Neill House (4-6pm) Closely: Art of Heather Puskarich @ Arts & Letters (5-1 0pm) 1 st & 3rd Tuesday: Queen City Ukulele Club, 6pm @ Springfield Music 4th Wednesday: Shamanic Drumming Meditation, 7pm @ Circle on the SquareM$1 0
Born on all Fours
an interview and by chris review w/ Suzi Trash The way they put it, Justin and Kyle just decided they wanted to make music in high school, and then they never stopped. Ten years later the band they started then is still central to their lives. This past December Suzi Trash celebrated their ten year anniversary and released their 7th full-length recording, a tape called Born On All Fours. Kyle describes it as “fluid,” more fluid than previous releases, but also says it's meant to tie into itself, with each song leading into the next. It is made of odds and ends; some songs they tell me they’ve had pieces of for years, some interludes were made up on the spot. You’ll hear existential spoken word lyrics, headbanging riffs, addresses for zoos, and tense subtle collages of sound. The band is tight and explosively creative. In an attempt to capture themselves as they’d like they recorded and mixed the album themselves, and it sounds like a new chapter. They’ve made something that is engaging, whole and complete, but full of unexpected and inventive surprises, treats for the ears. Justin describes the process as way different from recording with someone else: “Doing it by yourself, being in control of every aspect instead of just telling someone what you want ... you can spend as much time as you want, you can spend all night doing it,” he explains. You can hear that work every step of the way on this tape, and you can hear the skill and comfort that comes with 1 0 years of writing and playing music together. They describe a band that formed in Gamaliel, Arkansas, and played shows throughout the ozarks for years before moving to Springfield. They’ve had at least three bass players, including current bassist Dustin. They’ve also spent time as a two-piece, and have taken the show on the road with over a dozen tours throughout the country. I ask them about their life cycle as musicians, and Justin says “We’ll always be working on something, either Suzi Trash or
Slugs*M like getting ready to go on tour or working on new songs, or recording, and when we get done with whatever we’re doing we start doing something else.” Kyle tells me “I really don’t enjoy doing anything that couldn’t be tied to the whole band thing." He lists his hobbies: guitar, drums, and drawing. We all talk about the oversaturation of art on the internet, the legitimacy of George Thorogood's riffs, and getting bored when every song a band has sounds the same. We veer off into talking about writing kids' music, and the potential profitability of being in a “premium” cover band. They tell me about seeing the country on tour, seeing towns and people from small venues and homes instead of tourist attractions. On the surface it is simple, they want to make music so they do, but between the lines there is always more going on. They seem to think about the world through music, and creating music is a part of creating their world. I think that comes out in the panoramic tone and messages of this album, and the lyrical illustrations of daily life mixed with absurdity and sci-fi. Justin talks about it as a balancing, pairing serious songs with less serious lyrics and “goofy” songs with “fucked-up” lyrics. I ask about the politics of their music and Kyle tells me they don’t really try to write songs like that. When I think about it, what they’re doing might be more honest than just politics. When I see such tireless effort and prolific work, I see a constant project to make the world a better place by filling it up with better music, music that is as complex and thought-provoking as it is fun and enthralling, a task carried out beautifully in this latest album and in every high-energy show they put on. *another Springfield band, also featuring Kyle and Justin
listen in at suzitrash.bandcamp.com & keep your eyes peeled for their next show
BROWN EYES
By Emma Matlock I’ ve been told about blue eyes & seen to the bottom of their deepest pools Warned about green eyes the seduction of emerald glimmers Hazel eyes that were colored same as the end of fall But no one ever told me brown eyes Their captivating caramel warmth or the way that it catches the sun j ust right you can see slivers of gold I’ ve never seen brown eyes not truly, no Not before I saw yours Eyes of great earthly depth similar to the forest I explored as a child I was small then, my face level to the bark of the trees My special glimpse at that world so much like down there near the soil That’ s where your eyes took me To a place of wonder safe & calm exploration As if magic & nature surrounded me every last time I caught your stare Cascades of sepia toned cashmere fell over me When you looked at me in love No, they never warn you There are no warning signs of the beholding presence Of those bewitching brown eyes
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