Avid, “Records” on Broadway?

I don’t know about you folks (why don’t I start every post that way?) but I’m pretty excited about Avid Reader and “Records” moving in to the former home of the dearly departed Tower stores on Broadway. (Can I get a RIGHT AWN!! to Bob Shallit zinging the departed Tower chain’s lackluster employees? Gutsy.)

To me, the only thing cooler than a corner anchored by “Records” and Avid Reader would be a “Meet the cast of Battlestar Galactica” kiosk inside an authentic Philly cheesesteak joint, but I digress. Here’s hoping that a couple of independent secondhand stores can succeed where a worldwide retail music chain could not. But seriously, good luck.

“Monster Teacher” reporting

I was a lot more fired up to write about female teacher-male student molestation scandals last night, when I thought there was a brand new scandal on the heels of the Dry Creek situation. I swear there was a teaser for a story about an “FTMS” scandal with a mugshot of a completely different woman. But that was right before bedtime. Turns out, like many stories are on the Sacramento news, that was a flub. I just confirmed with RonTopofIt, he saw the same thing. Get it together, people.

But still, there’s much to discuss. It’s a shame that the reporting on cases like this always has to highlight the “double standard” controversy, but it’s still shocking when you hear the double standard working in soundbites and it goes completely unremarked. Like the neighbor of Kelly Spaich, who was quoted on the evening news saying “She’s an attractive woman… seems like she could get a man.” Or the numerous acquaintances with the perp who say “she’s a good person… I’m not going to judge her, I’ll leave that for the jury.”

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Sacramento Brewing Company: Two Saturdays, Same Result

It’s that time of year again. No, not spring. No, not your mother’s birthday. No, will you just let me finish for chrissakes? It’s that time of year when Mrs. Eats and I whip out the Entertainment book and start feeling a little guilty that we haven’t used it much in the six months that we’ve had it. It’s the time when you remember how sad you were the previous November when you looked through the dining coupon section of last year’s book and said, “I didn’t know they were in the Entertainment book!”

So, wanting to raise our EQ (Entertainment quality) we opted for two meals with savings written all over them, one dinner last weekend at the Sacramento Brewing Company and one at SBC’s Oasis the week after.

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Customer service sighting in Sacramento

I had a rough experience the other day at my local gymnasium. I needed to drop an add-on feature from my account. I wasn’t using this feature and therefore felt my money was being thrown away each month. A simple request, right? You would think. I was told by the front desk employee that this wasn’t a simple request and I would have to meet with a sales representative at their convenience (they work from, uh, 9 to 6, fancy that, so do I!). I am sure you see where this is going so suffice it to say that when I finally sat down with the sales rep I was none to pleased to find out I was going to be charged $10 to make a simple notation on my account via a keyboard stroke.

I wanted to go home and rant about this on the Sac Rag, but alas the customer service Gods saw my dismay from up above and threw me a celestial bone. A few days later I visited the Jack’s Urban Eats restaurant at Loehmann’s Plaza as I do enjoy me a Jack’s salad. It was a crowded evening (I know, shocker) and we were dining with another couple so finding a table was imperative. As such, I sent Mrs. TopofIt to scout out the scene. She left me with specific instructions as to the type of salad she prefers. The list of ingredients is a simple one, but it all hinges on the salad dressing. Short story long, I finished up my order, paid, and sat down with my party salad in hand. My wife took one bite and quickly realized that I had chosen the wrong dressing.

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News10 news director weighs in on inform vs. exploit

The Bee’s Sam McManis clued me in tonight to a blog post by Stacy Owen, News Director at News10, about the interview of the daughter of Annette Brodovsky that I ranted about earlier this week. She has some interesting things to say: “In the newsroom, we even alerted each other to local blogs about that interview.” Heh.

I love reading that Karen Massie expressed reservations about the assignment; I was right about her. About Owen’s conclusion though, I’m not sure. The family told you they wanted to talk on camera…after you asked them. Obviously I don’t have to deal with that moral dilemma so I have no idea what I would actually do with this situation. I do think it’s a great thing for a news director to explain the newsroom thought process because it goes a long way toward making cynical folks like me understand.

Let’s get physical, physical

That’s the song the obnoxious person was singing at El Palmar about 15 minutes ago.

Even a regular margarita, chased by a banana margarita, did not lessen my annoyance for said person with the booming voice across the room. Not that I expect El Palmar to be a quiet haven, nor have I never not been on the receiving end of a public shushing, but where do we draw the line? Continue reading “Let’s get physical, physical”

CSU Strike Update

Just a quick note to let you all know that the labor dispute at the California State Universities has been all but settled with negociations to be finalized over the next few weeks.

The deal gives all CSU faculty guaranteed base salary increases of 20.7% over four years (retroactive to July 2006) and step salary increases of up to 2.65% each year. In addition, it assigns $28 million to fund two new merit-based programs that will provide raises for senior and junior faculty. As part of the deal, faculty would receive an extra 1% raise for each of the last three years of the contract, contingent on additional state budget funds for the university system.

A labor dispute is still brewing, however, over at the University of California over equitable pay for janitors and other maintenance staff.

Enjoy the silence

Frequent Sac Rag readers know that the Man loves to put his foot down on the people. From preventing our hearts from indulging in heaping helpings of trans fats to sticking hard working, tax paying citizens with bills to fix sidewalks, the madness continues. So much so that this story about banning screaming on thrill rides has me perplexed. Am I shocked? Am I amazed? Or am I just so numb to the comings and goings of government interference (I realize that Scandia is not the Government, but it’s close enough, work with me on this) that I’m better off just pointing my web browser back over to nbc.com so I can watch that hilarious Peyton Manning sketch from SNL a few weeks back for the 100th time?

The new no-screaming policy took effect less than a week ago. Neighbors across Interstate 80 complained the screams were constant, rattling their homes and their patience. Scandia owners took community suggestions and came up with the no-screaming policy and say so far visitors have complied. For those who don’t follow the rules, the ride is stopped immediately and the riders must get off and get back in line.

Now this I gotta see. What level of screamage warrants a ride stoppage? And is it too obvious to mention the name of the ride? You know what I’m thinking Sacramento, right? It rhymes with Play Sassy…

Victim reporting hits rock bottom

Mike TeselleBetween the DUI-related fatal crashes and the dangers of highway 12, it’s been a tragic month in the area. Each story is accompanied by on-camera appearances by the victims families–not family spokespeople, but spouses and children. In their rush to be first to the scene and get the highest level of access, I think local news agencies are throwing common sense and good taste to the wayside.

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Me check e-mail? That’s unpossible

The Bee reports today about teachers, specifically a few at Del Oro High School, using the ‘net in the classroom.

Dylan Holcomb’s 10th-grade English students shouted the names of Shakespeare’s plays as they identified them while watching a YouTube clip of “Jeopardy!”

Earlier, Holcomb used Google Earth to show his Del Oro High School students the distance between Venice and Cyprus, where the play “Othello” is set, and had them calculate the distance.

If you haven’t read it in a while, it’s hard to remember how difficult it is to understanding the deep themes running through “Othello” without knowing precisely how far it is from Venice to Cyprus.

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