Vol. 1 No. 15 by Waco Weekly

02.19.14 - VOL. 1, NO. 15 - WACOWEEKLY.COM

contents

02.20-02.26 meet the team PUBLISHER/EDITOR IN CHIEF Chris Shepperd EXECUTIVE EDITOR Matt Shepperd EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Sara Gilmore BUSINESS MANAGER Leisha Shepperd MANAGING EDITOR Chris Zebo CREATIVE DIRECTOR Bekah Skinner ASST. CREATIVE DIRECTOR Kaitlin Vickers WRITERS

Essentials: Listen Discover Taste Play Look

3 6 10 11 14

Randle Browning Sara Gilmore Cheyenne Mueller Luke Murray

Cover Story:

Downtown Waco is being revitalized. This dramatic 6 shift has happened in less than a decade and is changing the landscape of the entire area.

INTERNS Haley Clark Katy DeLuna April Elkins Alex Gieger Brittany Holm Megan Ingram Avery Moore Kelly Porter Heydy Sanches Kyla Spaugh Camille Youngblood

Waco Weekly is an independent, publication and is not affiliated with the city of Waco.

Taste 9 - Randle doubles the

delight with this week’s Our Town Table.

Listen 4 - Robert Ellis gets

soulful on his new album, Lights from the Chemical Plant

Look 15 - Cheyenne gives a rundown of this week’s top 20 box office films.

Opinions are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the editor, publisher or the newspaper staff. Waco Weekly is not liable for omissions, misprints or typographical errors. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the express consent of the publisher. © Copyright 2014 Campus Press LP

LISTEN

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Motorcross/Monster Trucks at Extraco By Haley Clark

Metal on metal, oversized tires, loud crashes, revving engines—it's Motorcross/Monster Trucks Rally at the Extraco Coliseum. Some of the biggest, toughest, most outrageous vehicles on steroids will be there, including Amsoil Shock Therapy, Stinger, Ground Pounder, and Mighty Monster Bus. For more than 30 years, MAP Motorsports has electrified audiences all over the nation, and this event will showcase monster trucks, arenacross, and quad racing. Before the insanity and crashing of metal takes place, check out the Pit Party on Friday, February 21 from 6-7pm. This is open for fans to come down to the track and get autographs from arenacross riders and monster truck drivers, as well as see some of the jaw dropping monster trucks. The Motorcross/Monster Trucks show will be coming to the Extraco Coliseum on February 21-22. Gates open at 6pm and the show will start at 7:30pm each night. If bought in advance, tickets are $22 for adults (ages 12 & up), $12 for kids, and free for ages 2 and under. Tickets are available for purchase at local O’Reilly Auto Parts stores and at ticketmaster.com. On the day of the event, tickets will be $24 for adults and $14 for kids.

Country singer/songwriter Jon Wolfe has come a long way since he quit his job as an oil commodities trader for British Petroleum. Growing up in small town Oklahoma, Wolfe was inspired by greats like George Strait, Garth Brooks, and Alan Jackson. Now, he’s done over 400 shows in Oklahoma as well as Texas, and he even got to co-write with Tim Johnson, who worked with one of his inspirations - George Strait. In 2013, Warner Music Nashville re-released It All Happened in a Honky Tonk (Deluxe Edition), where Wolfe refined his style hints at his heroes. Wolfe will be performing at Wild West Waco on Friday, February 21 at 8pm. Tickets are $8 (“plus applicable fees”) in advance, $10 (if you’re 21 or older) or $12 (for individuals 1820) on the day of the show. Tickets can be purchased online at wildwestwaco.com. Be sure to check out the drink specials Wild West has exclusively during concerts.

the scoop WHAT: JON WOLFE WHERE: WILD WEST WACO WHEN: FEB. 21 wacoweekly.com • February 19, 2014 • WACO WEEKLY • p 3

Reviewed by Haley Clark

ROBERT ELLIS Album: The Lights from the Chemical Plant

Release Date: February 11, 2014

Rating: Sounds Like: The Isaacs Alison Krauss Dierks Bentley Over the past three years, Lake Jackson’s Robert Ellis has released two albums, the latest of which is The Lights from the Chemical Plant.

Tracklist:

Ellis is known as a folk singer, but for his latest album, he exudes are far broader range of influences-everyone from Paul Simon, Randy Newman, and Bill Withers, to jazz artists like Ornette Coleman.

TV Song Chemical Plant Good Intentions Ellis expresses his appreciation for Simon’s work by Steady as the Rising Sun covering “Still Crazy After All These Years”. “Chemical Bottle of Wine Plant” is a heartfelt storyteller about a young couple Still Crazy After all these Years trying to hold on to one another as the world around Pride them changes. Only Lies It’s a fine release from a multifaceted artist once relegated to a single genre. Houston Sing Along Tour Song

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pg 4 • WACO WEEKLY • February 19, 2014 • wacoweekly.com

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Chemical Plant Steady as the Rising Sun Houston

LISTEN

Recommended Tracks:

Cole Swindell

“Cole Swindell”

Release Date: Feb. 18, 2014

Reviewed by Haley Clark is about to release his self-titled debut album and will be opening for Bryan on his That’s My Kind of Night Tour. With a single that hit the Top 10, became certified gold, and was the highest debut for a solo male country artist in 2013 (selling more than half a million copies), Cole Swindell’s year is looking pretty bright. The Georgia native who once sold merchandise for Luke Bryan

Candice Glover

“Hope You Get Lonely Tonight” and “Ain’t Worth the Whiskey” were among the first songs released from the upcoming album, which has a total of 12 tracks. With songs about friends, his roots, and wild nights, Swindell has a trademark laid-back style that separates him from his country music peers.

“Music Speaks”

Release Date: Feb. 18, 2014

Reviewed by Haley Clark

As the 2013 winner of American Idol, Candice Glover has already shown her audience her dominant and powerful voice week after week. Glover’s attention-commanding vocals can now be heard on her highly anticipated debut album, Music Speaks. She released her American Idolwinning single “I Am Beautiful” last

fall, which debuted on 8 different charts and was the teaser for the album to come. An acoustic version of “I Am Beautiful” will be one track on the new release, and “Cried” will be on the album as well, an R&B track about love gone terribly wrong. The soul singer who hails from South Carolina has transformed from a shy songstress who first entered center stage on Idol to a confident, powerhouse vocalist, which she proves track after track on Music Speaks.

wacoweekly.com • February 19, 2014 • WACO WEEKLY • p 5

Developing Downtown: Waco’s dramatic shift in under a decade By Sara Gilmore Photos by Rita Hogan

In less than 10 years, Waco’s predominant downtown stretch of Austin Ave. has gone from run down and mostly vacant, to mostly inhabited and brimming with new life. Since 2010, data analyses have shown that more than half of our country’s 51 largest metropolitan areas are seeing greater growth within city limits than in suburbs — for the first time since the 1920s. Is Waco following suit?

or underway in Downtown Waco and along the riverfront.

downtown right now: businesses are popping up faster than any of us can keep up with.

“We set out for what we were calling a billion dollar decade, and we’re going to blow that out of the water,” said McGowan.

McGowan took us on a sort of virtual tour of Austin Ave. when we sat down to talk last week, to prove just how much has changed in so little time. From Heritage Square on up to 8th St., here’s what we learned:

Waco Chamber director of urban development Chris McGowan has been here since 2007, and in seven years, he’s seen downtown completely transform.

The difference, he said, is that in the last five or six years, a community of people has grown around the developing downtown area. There are young people, artists, freelancers and creatives all living downtown and building community together.

“It’s been dramatic, and very fast,” said McGowan.

McGowan said, “It’s almost like a movement, really.”

In the Austin Ave. Flats building, the street front space started out as Square Bar, and then turned to Sam’s on the Square. Recently closed, it hasn’t officially been decided what will move into that space, but McGowan suspects it won’t take long, and will likely remain a restaurant.

In seven years, there have been over $600 million worth of new development activity either proposed

Growth begets community, and community begets growth, which is why we’re seeing what we are

On the next block, the Roosevelt building has been renovated within the last 7 years for office space.

pg 6 • WACO WEEKLY • February 19, 2014 • wacoweekly.com

On the 500 block, Ice House has popped up since 2007, and in the next building, a lingerie shop and a menswear shop (The Hub) have come and gone, which remains vacant. On the same block we’ve seen Dichotomy Coffee & Spirits move in this year, and a little ways down, Treff’s has recently closed but is already leased to someone new. McGowan couldn’t say who, but speculation says it’s likely to be a restaurant.

that way for long. And if the Hippodrome was a catalyst to new life on Austin Ave. when it was only housing activities a couple of times a month, it certainly is expected to draw new life downtown when it’s got something to offer every single week. So, where do we go from here? McGowan said we are growing, but we still have a long way to go.

“We set out for what we were calling a billion dollar decade, and we’re going to blow that out of the water.” - CHRIS MCGOWEN, WACO CHAMBER DIRECTOR OF URBAN DEVELOPMENT

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Growth begets community; community begets growth. Our city’s growth spurt will continue on its upward trajectory if we buy in.

The best way for us to see the downtown area continue to grow is to become a part of the growth. The community of people living and gathering downtown needs to grow so that everything else can continue to grow.

Now, we’re seeing revitalization of the 700 block around the renovation and reopening of the Hippodrome (Not to mention the soon to be renovated Stratton building). Muddle has just opened across the street. Portofino’s is moving in on the same street. The Croft Gallery is empty, but McGowan suspected it won’t remain

Instead of, “Let’s go see what’s going on at the Hippodrome tonight,” McGowan said he wants people’s first thought to be, “Let’s go downtown and see what’s going on,” knowing there will be enough activity to choose from.

O W

When the Hippodrome previously reopened, the first business in was the Green Room, a restaurant across the street. Down from there, where Metro is now, was another restaurant called Austin’s on the Avenue. Lack of activity from the theater created lack of activity to surrounding businesses, which is why they didn’t last either.

The ultimate goal is to go from having a few places downtown that have things going on, to a downtown with many places where you can count on something going on.

“It creates a new anchor on the other end of Austin. Ave.,” said McGowan.

“The change is significant enough to say it’s transformed, but we’re just getting started.” He said. “We can’t have people get complacent with where we are.”

On the 600 block of Austin Ave., the Woolworth’s building that used to house CrossFit Waco is soon to become a small performing arts space. Moving down to the 700 block, this is where we’re seeing a real boom right now, and it’s most likely due to the approaching reopening of the Hippodrome Theater.

wacoweekly.com • February 19, 2014 • WACO WEEKLY • pg 7

Toledo’s Brings Craft Beer Culture to Waco By Randle Browning

DISCOVER

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Meet Jeremy Toledo: Wacoan, beer lover, and small business owner. In December, he opened Toledo’s Hop Shop, Waco’s first craft beer store. Part of the growing revival of small businesses in Waco’s downtown, the shop sits at the corner of 8th Street and Austin Avenue, in the shadow of the Hippodrome and across the street from the Stratton Building. At the Hop Shop, Toledo stocks over a hundred 12 oz. craft beers. The shop specializes in American craft beers, with a focus on Texan craft breweries, but Toledo also likes to represent interesting beers from across the country. He sells a hand-picked selection of international brews and ciders, and a few wines. For the homebrewers out there, the Hop Shop carries brewing and bottling supplies as well as tools and supplies for local cheesemakers. Toledo was born in Waco and grew up in China Spring. He spent two years in Austin working in the distribution industry and returned to Waco in February 2013, when he started thinking about opening his own store. “After moving back [home] and being disappointed with the craft beer landscape at the chain grocery and liquor stores,” Toledo says, “I decided Waco needed another option.”

pg 8 • WACO WEEKLY • February 19, 2014 • wacoweekly.com

Before Toledo opened the shop a few months ago, the property housed an old payday loans business for as long as locals can remember. “It definitely was an eye opening experience opening the shop,” Toledo says of fixing up the store and opening for business. “Just when you think you have everything ready to go, something always seems to pop up to delay the opening.” Toledo was excited about the neighborhood, though. “I really like the downtown area and the direction it’s heading,” he says, “There seems to be a higher concentration of small, independent shops down here, and I thought I would be a nice fit in this area.” As much as Toledo is a part of the growing momentum around Waco’s downtown, his motives grow out of his appreciation for good beer. His dream is to bring the experience of craft beer out of the bar and into the outdoors, off of barstools and onto couches and lawn chairs. “I hope the shop will help promote and grow the craft beer culture here in Waco,” Toledo says. “There are some great beer bars here but there is something special to cracking open a nice, Texan-made beer while you’re smoking a brisket, out playing disc golf, or just hanging out on your patio.”

In March Toledo will begin stocking dart and disc golf supplies.

Toledo’s makes it easy to find out what you like. Cases of singles line two walls of the shop, making unique or bold beers more accessible to consumers. “That’s the main reason why I wanted to give people the option to buy all the brands that I carry in singles. It’s much easier to spend a couple bucks on one beer to try it than to buy a six pack, hate it, and be stuck with it.” For drinkers used to classic light beers, Toledo recommends trying a 1st Street Ale by No Label Brewing out of Katy, TX. “It’s an easy-drinking blonde ale that is brewed with a little bit of rice to lighten up the body,” he says. For European lager lovers, Toledo suggests a drinkable pilsner, like Austin Beerworks Pearl-Snap. And for lovers of Shiner or Newcastle, Real Ale Brewhouse Brown Ale out of Blanco, TX is a next step. Even with a curated selection of established and up-and-coming craft beers, you won’t need to worry about encountering a “beer snob” at Toledo’s. “Don’t be afraid to talk up your local shopkeeper or bartender”, Toledo says. “I personally love to talk to people about beer, and I’ll give you straightforward answers as well.” Looking out the windows of the Hop Shop, it’s not hard to imagine a downtown Waco full of artists and small businesses. And it feels right to know that Toledo’s is homegrown, born and raised on local soil. Besides becoming a new neighborhood hangout and a much-needed resource for craft beer enthusiasts, what Toledo’s holds most dear is the simple pleasure of the sound of cracking open a can of cold beer, putting on a baseball cap, and slowing down to enjoy a local brew.

DISCOVER

For those with limited experience drinking craft beers, Toledo takes the pomp and circumstance out of learning to appreciate more complex flavors. “The best advice I can give is to just try anything and everything,” he says, “No one likes every beer style out there but that shouldn’t keep anyone from trying them.”

••••••

If the Hop Shop becomes a one-stop-shop for the local beer aficionado, Toledo has plans to bring in more of the community and introduce craft beer to new audiences. He plans “tastings, tastings, and more tastings,” including monthly events starting in March and merchandise giveaways. He also hopes to bring in beer reps from nearby craft breweries to host small events.

By Megan Ingram

THE MARTIAN by andy weir Imagine you’re an astronaut on Mars that’s been swept up by the planet’s rust-colored dust and then abandoned by the team you arrived with, leaving you for dead as they head back to Earth. Except you’re not dead--not yet. Mark Watney represents the classic archetype of a courageous and resourceful American male. And yet as an esoteric botanist and mechanical engineer, his character is infused with universal geek humor we can all relate to. Trapped on Mars millions of miles from another human being and with no way to signal his home planet, Mark produces water from fuel, works up a hot bath, a sextant, and even makes a mini-torch from a wooden cross saying, “I figure if there’s a God, He won’t mind, considering the situation I’m in.” Mark’s story is told largely through his incredibly detailed work logs. As he confronts one impossible obstacle after another, he somehow remains a cheerful yet lonely soul, drawing on his instinctual gumption, engineering skills, and an undying refusal to quit. Weir leaves the reader hooked time and time again as they wonder if Mark’s resourcefulness will be enough to save him.

The Village Herbalist Herb Shop & Holistic Health Center Bulk Herbs, Holistic Massage, Tea Bar, All Things Herbal www.wacoherbalist.com wacoweekly.com • February 19, 2014 • WACO WEEKLY • pg 9

I’ve known Jeremy Toledo, owner of Waco’s new craft beer store, Toledo’s Hop Shop, almost as long as I’ve lived in Waco. I first met him in my college days, when we worked together at a local drafthouse. In my early years in town, back when we were all working in a bar and dreaming of our futures, I remember Jeremy’s passion for craft beer. Even if we didn’t know it at the time, in retrospect, it feels like we have all been hoping for the same thing -- to bring something to Waco we didn’t have before. I got the chance to sit down with Jeremy last week. We reminisced and talked about Waco’s future, and I tested his craft beer expertise and quizzed him on his plans for the shop. It wasn’t long before we were talking about food, rattling off our favorite recipes for what to eat with beer, or what dishes to pour beer into to make them better. Pretzels and beer cheese came up a lot, but we kept coming back to beer bread--a quickbread known for its short ingredient list and easy preparation and one that I’ve always known as a tool for sopping up bowls of chili. With a six-pack of Austin Beerworks’ Peacemaker in hand, I decided to bring beer bread into the limelight. This savory, biscuit-y loaf gets some serious flavor from the yeasty beer, cheddar, and jalapenos I threw in. I topped the loaf with bacon, just for good measure. The result is a fluffy bread that’s like a cross between a biscuit and a loaf of sourdough. With a nod to all those Whataburger Honey-Butter Biscuits I ate in those college days we were talking about, I took it to the next level with a honey butter spread. Served with scrambled eggs, this beer bread makes for a stick-to-your-ribs breakfast or a serious sidekick for soups and stews.

TASTE

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Randle Browning is a food writer and photographer who grew up in Houston, graduated from Baylor in 2010, and studied and cooked in kitchens in New England and the UK before coming back to Waco. When she’s not blogging, you can find her at Shorty’s Pizza Shack, where she slings pizza dough and serves frothy pints with her husband. Find her food blog online at crandlecakes.com.

Jalapeno-Cheddar Beer Bread with Bacon and Honey Butter

Contrary to what you might think, good beer bread doesn’t require strong beer. In fact, it does better with lighter brews, and an old can leftover from a BBQ will do just fine. Using a stronger beer will result in a beer bread with more “hops” or bitterness.

over paper towels, finely chop or crumble, and set aside.

Ingredients: 3 cups all-purpose flour 2 tablespoons sugar 1 tablespoon baking powder* 1 teaspoon table salt 3 tablespoons fresh, finely diced jalapeno ¾ cup grated cheddar cheese + ¼ cup for topping 12 oz. light or mild beer 2-3 tablespoons (about 3 strips) bacon, crumbled, for topping 1 egg + 1 teaspoon water, for glaze 8 tablespoons salted butter, room temperature 4 Tablespoons honey

4. Turn dough out into the prepared loaf pan, spreading with a spatula to form an even layer. In a small bowl, whisk together egg and water, and apply to the top of the loaf with a brush or the back of a spoon. Spread bacon crumbles over the top, pressing down very slightly so that they stick.

Directions: Beer Bread 1. Preheat the oven to 375 F. Grease an 8 x 4 in loaf pan and line with parchment paper. 2. In a large skillet, crisp bacon over medium heat. Drain

3. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, ¾ cup grated cheese, and diced jalapeno. Add beer slowly, mixing just until combined. Do not overmix.

5. Bake for 40 minutes, then remove the loaf from the oven and brush with a bit more egg wash (if it looks pale) and top with remaining grated cheese. Return to the oven for another 5-15 minutes, testing for a skewer or knife to come out clean. Cool on a rack for at least 15 minutes, then use a serrated bread knife for clean, even slices. Serve with Honey Butter. Keeps wrapped in plastic for 2 days. Honey Butter 1. Whisk butter and honey together until combined. 2. Serve immediately on sliced beer bread, or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for one month.

Design | Branding | Web

3 Apps You

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Won’t Regret

PLAY

Downloading WIBBITZ - BY HALEY CLARK We all want to be kept up to date on what is happening in our world, but sometimes we’re too busy or don’t feel like scanning through endless words in articles. The Wibbitz app lets you watch the news rather than read it. Wibbitz transforms those long stories we don’t want to read into short videos. The app lets you watch the latest news stories from top news sites or your own favorite sites. It uses images, video clips, animations, and narration to bring you news in this visual way. So if you’re on the go, have some extra time, or want to see what’s going on around you, Wibbitz offers a variety of news clips to keep you in the loop about what’s happening. - FREE WINE SPECTATOR + - BY MEGAN INGRAM Whether you’re ordering a bottle of red at a restaurant or picking one up from the store, WS + helps you to choose the best vino for any occasion. Covering 55 of the world’s prominent wine regions, the app features vintage charts detailing the quality of each season’s weather and grape harvest. Wine Spectator magazine is one of the most respected publications in the world of viticulture. And now you can have a virtual wine steward in your pocket and benefit from over 300,000 reviews of bottles around the world. Uncork this free app and get the perfect bottle for your next shindig. - FREE RAP GENIUS - BY KELLY PORTER Rap Genius breaks down lyrics from millions of your favorite rap songs. With annotations for every line, you’ll be able to listen to your favorite songs in a new light. Some of the explanations even come from the artists themselves. If there are any references or inside jokes hidden inside the lyrics, Rap Genius will key you in. It will also define unusual terms and give you specific contexts. For any song that’s playing around you, Rap Genius will find the lyrics for you; it can also find the lyrics for all of the songs in your iTunes library. But Rap Genius doesn’t just stop at music - it gives you meanings for different lines from books, breakdowns of speeches, it even explores Bible verses. - FREE

wacoweekly.com • February 19, 2014 • WACO WEEKLY • pg 11

TEXAS BACK ROADS facebook.com/TexasBackRoads

CLIFTEX Theatres in Clifton, TX Offers a Hidden Gem By Jeremy Rinard of txbkrds.com When was the last time you enjoyed a night out at the movies? With all of the big-box, stadium-seating, multi-plus screens you find everywhere now, it’s hard to always have a great time. After all, the focus of those theaters is to get you in, get you to spend money, and get you out and on your way. The lines for tickets are always long, there’s another entire set of long lines if you want to purchase overpriced snacks and sodas, and most times the staff seems to be more preoccupied with what time their shift ends than ensuring you had a pleasant experience. Now imagine this instead: You pull up outside this little theatre in Clifton, Texas you heard about and park your car. You arrive early, not because you know you have to fight long lines, but because you’ve heard the lobby is a mini-museum of what it was once like to go to the movies. You want to be able take a few minutes to pour over all of the displays and photos. As you walk toward the theatre, you admire a neon sign with its period-correct colors and listen to its soft electric hum as you walk up to the ticket booth. The line’s not long--maybe a few folks at most--and as you enter the theatre, you feel as though you’ve stepped back in time. The smell of fresh popping popcorn fills the air, and after the helpful staff has got you everything you want, you head through the doors of the theatre to find your seats. Before the lights dim and movie starts, you take the time to notice all the little details that add to the charm of this old place, from decorated plaster walls to the front three rows of seats original to the theatre. That’s what a trip to the CLIFTEX Theatre in Clifton will feel like. Originally opening in 1916 as the Queen Theatre, the CLIFTEX is Texas’s oldest continually operating theatre, harkening back to when movie theatres were cathedrals of the silver screen. In 1927, the theatre was moved to its current location and was completely renovated in 2008 by current owners Phyllis Gamble and Mechelle Slaughter. New movies debut every week, about two weeks or so behind the big theaters--but that works to your advantage. The price for tickets, drinks and popcorn or candy is about what you’d pay just for your ticket at a big theater. And if you’re worried about the theatre being family friendly, the CLIFTEX only shows movies rated PG-13 or below. If you’re looking to escape the kids, Thursday night showings are adults only. Insider Tip: Don’t worry, you’re movie didn’t end abruptly. As part of its charm, the CLIFTEX Theatre still has an intermission about midway during the movie. It’s a trademark of the theatre that pays homage to its past when the 35mm movie reels had to be changed over. It was taken out when the theatre switch to digital projection, but added back due to its popularity. Just know it’s a popular time for folks to use the restroom and get refills. The CLIFTEX Theatre is located at 306 West 5th Street (Hwy 219) in Clifton, Texas and features films on Thursday – Sunday at 7pm. If you have any questions, you can call 254.675.1229. For additional information, check out cliftextheatre.com

pg 12 • WACO WEEKLY • February 19, 2014 • wacoweekly.com

“We’ve got clout”

- yes, that’s right, out

Across 1 ___ fly (baseball play) 4 Junkies 11 Took a chair 14 Elec. text-reading method (hidden in SOCRATES) 15 Store that sells golf balls 16 One of the five W’s 17 Where to hold your hands while guiding a horse? 20 Muppet friend of Rosie 21 ___ buco (Italian veal dish) 22 Actress Meg or Jennifer 23 Slumber 25 Nintendo princess 26 Acted like the “Supermassive Black Hole” band? 32 Cray or pay ender 33 Jai alai balls 34 “All in favor” word 37 Treater’s pickup 38 Make trivial objections 39 Actor Chaney 40 AARP group 41 Laugh-worthy 43 Big klutz 44 “I couldn’t be there--I had to sell my steam press” and others? 46 “Funeral Blues” poet W.H. ___ 50 Volks ender 51 Play a mean guitar 52 Put your hands together 56 Word before mail or monger 57 Shaw or Lange, no faking? 60 Sweeping under site 61 Deal incentives 62 Paddle’s cousin 63 Startled sounds 64 Fortitude 65 Abbr. in an apt. classified

Down 1 Sensitive areas 2 Lacking the basic structure of life 3 “Law & Order” settings 4 Bee-related prefix 5 007’s first film foe 6 Four-footed furry friends 7 AOL and NetZero, for two 8 Jimmy of shoes 9 How-___ 10 Canines with puffy tails 11 Sty food 12 “Get ___ of yourself!” 13 Harding who made headlines in 1994 18 Gallagher who didn’t smash melons 19 0-0, say 24 High school assembly goal 27 Designer’s concern 28 Davy Crockett died defending it, with “the” 29 “___ On Up” (“The Jeffersons” theme) 30 New York State Thruway city 31 Course with lettuce 34 Everglades critter 35 Really ramped-up response to “Ready?” 36 Electrical ___ 41 Grate remainder 42 Murphy has one 45 “If I Only Had the Nerve” singer Bert 46 “The Jetsons” dog 47 “I’m listening” 48 Barrel scrapings 49 Mental picture? 52 Largest island on the Caribbean 53 “The Grey” star Neeson 54 Prefix with matter 55 Ball-___ hammer 58 Drift boat attachment 59 “My Life ___ Dog” (1985 film)

Answers

2014 Jonesin’ Crosswords (editor@ jonesincrosswords.com)

by Matt Jones

wacoweekly.com • February 19, 2014 • WACO WEEKLY • pg 13

By Cheyenne Mueller

Upcoming: Pompeii Romance will prevail. So don’t worry about lava raining down from the sky or poisonous volcanic ash - just get the girl. All you need is love. Really.

Vampire Academy DRAMA (PG-13)

If you’re having vampire-movie and terrible-acting withdrawals, Vampire Academy is right up your alley. The film, an adaptation of the widely successful teen novel series by Richelle Mead, follows the lives of Dhampir Rose Hathaway (Zoey Deutch) and Miori Princess Lissa Dragomir (Lucy Fry). I hate to confuse you, but this vampire flick has some terminology that needs explication before it can be reviewed. The good guys, first: A Dhampir is half-human, half-Miori and whose sole purpose in life is to keep a Miori out of trouble. Mioris are peaceful, mortal vampires who also possess elemental magical qualities: fire, water, earth, air, or spirit - which is rare. The villains are the Strigori - Mioris who went bad by killing. There wasn’t much classification in the film into whether the Strigori turned into red-eyed monsters because they killed someone innocent, or if they just killed someone all together. While my money’s on the innocent killing, it’s not spelled out explicitly. The film opens with Lissa and Zoey in the real world having escaped from St. Vladimir’s Academy after the death of Lissa’s parents. Pursued by Dhampirs, the duo attempts to outrun them and avoid returning to the academy. But because of Zoey’s novice training, the two are captured by renowned Dhampir Dimitri. Zoey’s sharp wit and Dimitri’s quiet demeanor automatically link the two as an unlikely potential romantic couple. Throughout the film, there’s a tension between the two that becomes an almost-sex-scene. Speaking on my own behalf, the scene made me uncomfortable, mostly because Rose is 17 and Dimitri is in his late 20s. Director Mark Waters seems to have been a one-hit wonder with his millennial cult classic, Mean Girls. Waters tried to bring the beloved cattiness from Mean Girls into Vampire Academy. Waters focused more on the element of high school as opposed to the vampires themselves, and the special effects for the supernatural powers were cheesy at best. If you’ve read the books, then this movie probably makes way more sense. Otherwise, the plot is pretty much absent and there’s no way of knowing what to fill the gaps with. The scenes move quickly, and if you’re unfamiliar with the novels then it’s going to be difficult to follow what’s happening and why. Waters took a chance by using actors that aren’t big names, but the acting is subpar. Scenes that were supposed to inspire fell flat and weren’t natural.

pg 14 • WACO WEEKLY • February 19, 2014 • wacoweekly.com

Set in 79 A.D., Pompeii tells the story of slaveturned-gladiator, Milo, who finds himself in a race against time to save his true love Cassia, the beautiful daughter of a wealthy merchant who has been unwillingly betrothed to a corrupt Roman Senator. As Mount Vesuvius erupts in a torrent of blazing lava, Milo must fight his way out of the arena in order to save his beloved as the once magnificent Pompeii crumbles around him. Before production, filmmakers spent six years researching the disaster of Pompeii to make it as historically accurate as possible. Then, after having gathered all of their information to film a historically correct-ish movie… Pompeii was filmed in Toronto, Ontario. Pompeii is director Paul W.S. Anderson’s fourteenth film, and he has quite a history with action flicks: Resident Evil, AVP: Alien vs. Predator, and Death Race. Pompeii is the fourth time that Paul W.S. Anderson used 3D cameras in his films, so if you’re really craving a genuine Pompeii experience without all of the inconveniences (AKA death), here’s your chance. Pompeii is 105 minutes long and rated PG-13 for intense battle sequences, disaster-related action, and brief sexual content. Staring Kit Harington (Game of Thrones) as Milo, Emily Browning (Sucker Punch, The Uninvited) as Cassia, and Kiefer Sutherland (The Lost Boys, 24) as the corrupt Roman Senator, Corvis.

1. The Lego Movie

An ordinary LEGO, mistakenly thought to be the extraordinary MasterBuilder, is recruited to join a quest to stop an evil tyrant from gluing the universe together.PG (100 min)

permanent winter, a young girl voiced by Kristen Bell teams up with a mountain man to rescue her sister and stop the curse in the latest Disney animated adventure. PG (102 min)

2. About Last Night

9. Lone Survivor

Two couples journey from the bar to the bedroom, and their ties are eventually put to the test in the real world. R (100 min)

3. RoboCop

In 2028 Detroit, when Alex Murphy - a loving husband, father and good cop - is critically injured in the line of duty, the multinational conglomerate OmniCorp sees their chance for a part-man, part-robot cyborg police officer. PG-13 (108 min)

4. The Monuments Men An unlikely World War II platoon are tasked to rescue art masterpieces from Nazi thieves and return them to their owners. PG-13 (118 min)

5. Endless Love

The story of a privileged girl and a charismatic boy whose instant desire sparks a love affair made only more reckless by parents trying to keep them apart. PG-13 (103 min)

6. Ride Along

Fast-talking security guard Ben joins his cop brother-in-law James on a 24-hour patrol of Atlanta in order to prove himself worthy of marrying Angela, James’ sister. PG-13 (100 min)

7. Winter’s Tale

One night in winter, Peter Lake, orphan and master-mechanic, attempts to rob a fortress-like mansion on the Upper West Side. But through a happenstance meeting, Peter falls in love with the daughter of the house, a dying woman named Bethany. PG-13 (118 min)

8. Frozen In

kingdom

cursed

endure

the high life to his fall from gold-plated grace, this Scorsese film is like The Godfather for investment bankers. R (180 min)

15. The Nut Job

Based on the failed 2005 mission “Operation Red Wings”, four members of SEAL Team 10 were tasked with a mission to capture or kill notorious Taliban leader Ahmad Shahd. R (121 min)

Surly, a curmudgeon, independent squirrel is banished from his park and forced to survive in the city. Lucky for him, he stumbles on the one thing that may be able to save his life and the rest of park community as they gear up for winter. PG (86 min)

10. That Awkward Moment

16. Philomena

11. American Hustle

A con man, Irving Rosenfeld, along with his seductive British partner, Sydney Prosser, is forced to work for a wild FBI agent, Richie DiMaso. DiMaso pushes them into a world of Jersey powerbrokers and the mafia. R (138 min)

12. Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit Jack Ryan, as a young covert CIA analyst, uncovers a Russian plot to crash the U.S. economy with a terrorist attack. PG-13 (105 min)

13. Vampire Academy

Rose Hathaway is a Dhampir, half human/vampire, a guardian of the Moroi-peaceful, mortal vampires living discretely within our world. Her legacy is to protect the Moroi from the Strigoi, bloodthirsty, immortal Vampires. PG-13 (104 min)

14. The Wolf of Wall Street Based on the true story of Jordan Belfort, from his rise to a wealthy stockbroker living

A world-weary political journalist picks up the story of a woman’s search for her son, who was taken away from her decades ago after she became pregnant and was forced to live in a convent. PG-13 (98 min)

17. Labor Day

Adele, a depressed single mother, and her son, Henry, offer a wounded escaped convict a ride from the supermarket. As police search the town for the convict, mother and son gradually learn his true story and their options for escape become increasingly limited. PG-13 (111 min)

18. Gravity

A medical engineer and an astronaut work together to survive after an accident leaves them adrift in space.PG13 (91 min)

19. August: Osage County A look at the lives of the strong-willed women of the Weston family, whose paths have diverged until a family crisis brings them back to the Oklahoma house they grew up in, and to the dysfunctional woman who raised them. R (121 min)

20. The Marked Ones

Jesse begins experiencing a number of disturbing and unexplainable things after the death of his neighbor. As he investigates, it isn’t long before Jessie finds he’s been marked for possession by a malevolent demonic entity. R (84 min)

wacoweekly.com • February 19, 2014 • WACO WEEKLY • pg 15