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Reach Out and Blog Someone

It's back to school, and chances are you and your friends won't be enrolled in the same college, much less the same city. You'll be making new friends, of course, but as the old saying goes, you'll want to keep the old. This task, once daunting and time consuming (thousands upon thousands of dollars spent on stationary, a long-distance bill that'll take you more time to pay off than your student loans) is made relatively painless by the Internet. There are innumerable, completely free Web services out there designed to help you keep in touch. From weblogs to mailing groups and profile networks, here's a rundown of the best of the best.

Bloom, Improv, Bloom

There is something happening in Jackson: Creativity has met community, and they are embracing.

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Don't Feel Like a Nut

Before we were married, my fiancée dropped by my house with her two teenage daughters one Sunday afternoon. We all sat down, and Michelle talked about her near-death experience she had when she spent the weekend in the hospital after going into anaphylactic shock and had nearly died because she ate a cookie with a nut in it.

Michael Rubenstein

Michael Rubenstein's office in the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame is cluttered with sports awards and pictures, and a little plastic sumo wrestler stands on his desk. Born in Booneville, Miss., he moved to Jackson for a state job in 1974 after graduating from Vanderbilt University. How he ended up in sports broadcasting and working for a sports museum is serendipity.

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Dan Blumenthal

Fast cars have been a passion for Dan Blumenthal since he was a little kid. He inherited the bug from his father, and was reading Road &Track magazine at age 7.

Stylish St. Paddy's Costumes

At the Mal's St. Paddy's Parade, you will see families in jeans, college students in sundresses, and a wide variety of people wearing outlandish costumes. Just about anything goes. To join the throngs of wildly costumed parade participants and spectators, here are some inexpensive DIY costume ideas to get you started.

The WORST of the New South

In the aftermath of the Edgar Ray Killen arrest, the tough-on-crime stalwarts at The Northside Sun fretted over whether the old Klansman can possibly get a fair trial in the state's current "political climate," and seemed very bothered that the climate is changing (presumably for the worse), thus allowing such belated arrests to occur.

Medical Mall Pitches Projects

The Jackson Medical Mall Foundation has several large economic-development projects pending, but Hinds County appears unable to support them, for the moment. Primus Wheeler, executive director for the foundation, asked the county Board of Supervisors at a work session this morning for $1.8 million to support an expansion on the Medical Mall's northern end. The Board has already allocated $2 million in bonds that would be its most likely source of funding, to another project.

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Summer Love

A friend once told me that her dad loved fresh corn so much that he would not pick an ear of corn until he had the water boiling.

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'People Appear Ghostly'

After years of taking photographs as a hobby, Andrew Willis has recently begun to devote more time to his art.

Weekend Events

The water's back on and there's no freezing in the forecast. It's time to get out of the house and enjoy the weekend! Be sure to patronize the local Jackson restaurants and businesses that have taken a hit this past week dealing with the city's water issues. Start your search for dining options on the JFP Restaurant Listings and the Menu Guide. Just make sure to call ahead and make sure your favorite restaurant is open.

McKey Maxed Out

The next time I get a shipment with funky styrofoam packaging too cool to throw away, I'm taking it straight to Studio 3242 North State, workplace of artist Richard McKey. You know the place—you've seen the studio next to Parents for Public Schools on State Street: a cool building of natural wood and ruffled tin sporting wild sculptures of mannequin arms and scrap metal on a lot with a 20-foot drop from the street. A parcel of land unwanted, cast off, seemingly unbuildable, until McKey's vision of a studio created a landmark and a work of art in itself.

GOOD Alternative Gifts

For gift-giving on a wider scale, these alternative gift ideas are great for the global economy and the environment. Plus, you will be creating a wonderful new tradition without having to wait in any long lines at the mall.

Resurrecting Rock

You can barely see Ben Shea's his face when he sings, because it's occluded by a never-ending fount of dark brown curls, and he tends to look away from the crowd.

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Palin: A Woman's Woman?

The lights were low in Hal & Mal's Red Room the night of the vice-presidential debate on Oct. 2. Excited chatter filled the room, along with a big screen set up at the far end.

Checkin' it Twice

Going to college is a big transition for everyone, and even with your preparation, once you're there, you'll find you've forgotten something from home. This semester, check off all your needed items to make sure you start fall 2010 off right.

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2013 Chick Ball Donations

Here are some of this year's Chick Ball donations.

With the 9th Annual JFP Chick Ball coming up on Saturday, July 20, the donations have been arriving fast. Here is a list of the donations and donors we have logged to date; we will update between now and Chick Ball. There's still time to donate, though! Call 601-362-6121 ext. 23, or email [email protected] to give or volunteer. The proceeds from this year's Chick Ball go toward helping fight sex trafficking in Mississippi.

Community Events and Public Meetings

6 p.m., We Are Africa 2010 Road Tour at Afrika Book Cafe (404 Mitchell Ave.). African Ancestry will do a special seminar on tracing your roots with a DNA test. Free admission, $225 DNA test kit; visit We are Africa's website.

Longtime Standards

Cowboy boots, straw hats, a couple of purses and a pair of high-heeled shoes fill the front window at Dennis Brothers Shoe Repair (325 N. Farish St., 601-354-9125). Men's boots sit on top of the glass counter inside. On the side, rows of men's and women's shoes are for sale.