Welcome to Forgotonia

Last night when I got home from work, I spotted an Amazon.com box in my downstairs entryway.

On my way to the front door—now with box in arms—I slipped on a sludge-y spot of mud and muckiness (thanks to two or three months’ accumulation of rain and general humid gross-ness piled on top of leaves I’ve still never raked up from last fall) and skinned the absolute @#$% out my knee.

Waaaaa, it hurts!
But damn did it probably look funny to those guys across the street playing frolf.

Well, I’m no Kramer.

But, I can tell you how to get to their web site.

And trust me, you need me to tell you, because you won’t find it very easily on your own.

That’s partly because the name “Rialto” is not even part of their web address for the new Rialto Cinemas in Macomb..

Instead, the url looks like it has your aunt and uncle’s names in it:

www.earlann.net

(Um, okay.)

Then when you get to this site, you have to click on the “Rialto Cinemas” link.

I just went there and figured it all out.

I haven’t, however, tried calling the phone number yet.

(But my guess is, you won’t find anything on their voicemail about a “persnickity ATM”!)

Fer serious: Mormons disco?!?

Check out this event in Nauvoo:

BYU Ballroom Dance Company

The Brigham Young University “Ballroom Dance Company” returns [to Nauvoo] to perform at the Historic Nauvoo Visitors’ Center Outdoor Stage, 290 N. Main Street. This group of 36 world-renouned [sic], award-winning dancers will perform a variety showcase of Latin and international dance styles including waltz, samba, foxtrot, and hustle. These free shows are held Monday through Saturday at 8:30 p.m. All ages will enjoy this free entertainment venue.

I had no idea.

Um, is it weird that I seriously kinda want to go?

Unless they’re just getting a whole new set of kitchen knobs or something, it doesn’t look too promising:

(Classified ad in the McDonough County This Week:

CLOSE-OUT SALE

The Secret Garden Restaurant close-out fixture sale will be held Thursday, June 25…All equipment, appliances, kitchenware and furniture will be sold…

Sniffle.

The one place in Macomb with outside tables, too!

Sniffle. Goodbye, portabello wrap. It’s been real.

The band Living Colour is back!

(According to this item from Rolling Stone, anyway. (But um, judging from the leather jacket, etc., in that pic, it’s a file photo?)

Does anyone out there remember when they played at Western?

One of the bands that will be playing right here in Forgotonia (at Korn-er-stone) in a few days, MewithoutYou, is featured by Entertainment Weekly in a blog post, complete with wonky video.

From one quick look at the video, it appears that this band takes a note or two from the Decemberists.

So, if they’re playing at Cornerstone, are they considered a Christian rock act?

Or is Cornerstone no longer [or was it ever] specifically a required-to-be-Christian venue?

Just wonderin.’

Drop me a line if you know about this.)

This recent mainstream publicity only furthers my fascination with the annual event, which draws people from literally all around the world to spend a weekend on a McDonough County farm.

You can find the MewithoutYou listing on the Cornerstone schedule (click “Stage,” and scroll through the Main Stage band names.)

Interestingly, if you click on the Entertainment Weekly link (above) to watch the video, you can also click on a link for the band’s tour dates– a link that indicates MewithoutYou is a punk band.

I’m intrigued!

hey, one can only hope!)

from today’s Macomb Journal:

Rialto opens

Macomb, Ill. - The screens were lit at Macomb’s new six-screen Rialto Cinemas Thursday night as the business opened to customers for the first time.

A group of about 300 local residents were invited [minus your humble blogger, sniff] to be the first to watch a movie at the new East Jackson Street theater.

Most of those in attendance were local business owners and governmental officials.

After a reception and official ribbong cutting, three of the theaters were opened to the invitation-only crowd for a free movie.

…. Several residents who attended the January announcement, said Thursday they were stunned to see the transformation.

Others said the business was something Macomb has needed for some time. [Nah, who needs more than two screens in a town w/ 10,000 young people, their visiting families, and oh also more than 2,000 employees/faculty?]

Jere Greuel, a representative of Prairie Hills RC & D, which helped with the project’s financing, said he hopes the theater will attract other new businesses, such as new restaurants. [Yes yes yes! This is gooooood positive thinking! Let's keep this up! ]

… As guests began arriving late Thursday former Cinema 1 & 2 manager Larry Jarvis was back in the movie business as manager of the new theater.

As he did at his former job, Jarvis mingled with customers, discussing the merits of each movie showing in the theater.

“(Larry) is the best movie man in the Midwest and now he’s got a great place,” said Bruce Biagini.

[Okay, so growth can and does eventually happen in Macomb.

Now: COFFEE PAST DUSK—let's start a campaign!]

WIU Archives and Special Collections will be starting a cool new blog, “Forgotten Western,” highlighting then-and-now photos from around the area.

Check out this entry on the old WIU Wishing Well here.

This story from today’s PJ Star caught my eye for several reasons, not the least of which being that I just joined Macomb’s own chapter of the Young Business Professionals two weeks ago.

(That and, how, you know, one of my biggest obsessions in life is the fact that I’m a ‘YBP’ in a region I’ve heard state legislators refer to many times as suffering from “the great brain drain” :

(Oh and p.s., there are some real beauties in the comments section!)

Peoria ranked as hot spot for young professionals
Group ranks city a top draw for white-collar types

By PAUL GORDON
of the Journal Star
Posted Jun 15, 2009 @ 09:57 PM
PEORIA —

An influx of white-collar jobs coming into the area at Caterpillar Inc. the last several years and continued growth in the local health care market has brought more young professionals into the city within this decade.

That’s perhaps one reason why Next Generation Consulting, a firm which studies and consults on hiring trends and workplace issues nationwide, has named Peoria one of the 60 top hot spots in the country for young professionals.

Peoria ranks No. 16 in the firm’s top 20 cities with a population of between 100,000 and 200,000 – which NGC tabs its “Mighty Micros” – according to a release from NGC and the Peoria Area Chamber of Commerce.

Springfield ranks No. 5 in that category and is the only other Illinois city ranked in the top 60 except, of course, for Chicago, which is ranked No. 13 in the largest city category.

…Jessica Moroz, the local YPO’s other co-chairman, said she and the group believes creation of a YPO here a few years ago and the activities it undertakes has helped raise Peoria’s image among young professionals nationwide and with groups like NGC. She said she attended a national YPO conference last year at Cocoa Beach, Fla., and found Peoria was known.

“Our group has helped raise the awareness of young professionals by also working to demonstrate all Peoria has to offer, which is actually quite a lot for a city this size,” she said.

In her job with the Peoria Area Chamber of Commerce, Moroz sees the business trends. Noting the continuing growth of the local health care industry and the fact Caterpillar has hired more salaried professionals than assembly line workers the last several years, she said it is important the YPO, chambers of commerce and other organizations do what it takes to keep young professionals in Peoria once they get here.

“We were extremely excited to get this ranking because it shows how much has been done in Peoria to move forward with the things that make it a good place for young professionals. We need to keep doing it,” Moroz said.

In a news release, NGC founder Rebecca Ryan said simply being a cheap place to live or one with an abundance of jobs isn’t enough.

“The next generation is very savvy about choosing where they’ll live. They look carefully at quality of life factors like how much time they’re going to spend in traffic commuting, if they can live near a park or hike-and-bike trail, and whether a city’s downtown stays awake after five,” she said. [Wonder why Macomb didn't make the list? heh.]

For more information or to see the full report, go to www.nextgenerationconsulting.com or to peoriachamber.org and click on YPO.

Paul Gordon can be reached at 686-3288 or pgordon@pjstar.com.

Are you kidding!!!!!! I seen those young professional at CAT they were all from INDIA and PAKISTAN , I mean the majority were from that part of the world. Go up to Bradley university all you see is Indian and Pakistanis students who are majoring in engineering, so they can get those jobs at CAT. But another thing, a lot of them were laid off also. If i was a young hot professional I would not come near Peoria or the surrounding area’s, all thats here is hick’s. Go to Chicago where there is lots to do and people are more open to diversity

Thanks so much to Gburgirl for her commentary on Cornerstone. Not only could she corroborate my claim that MC Hammer performed at the festival outside Bushnell, but nay– she witnessed it!

I’m so happy to know I didn’t make that one up.

But poor, poor MC. It’s kind of a sad story:

Gburgirl said…

I was actually there for the MC Hammer concert! It was so sad because almost everyone from the entire festival showed up to see the spectacle but, after the first song, about 70-80% of the crowd left to go roast hot-dogs & marshmallows back at their campsites. Mr. Hammer, even though a recent convert to christianity at the time (hence the invitation to play) just didn’t fit in with the typical genres of C-stone which typically fit the demographic of white-middle class. (So sorry Mr. Hammer.) Oh, and don’t be surprised by Over The Rhine – they’ve been playing there almost every year since the early 90′s. I have not heard them (live or on a CD) in years but they do put on a fabulous show – you should go! That is, *IF* you can tolerate the craziness that is Kornerstone.

(Now, one more detail: my dear Gburgirl, do you think, if pressed, you could provide a year? Also, thank you for the detail about Over the Rhine. I’ve heard one song and liked it, and had no idea they were Cornerstoners. Also, I have to say, I am lucky/proud to have covered the event twice if not thrice when I was a reporter. Truly some of the most colorful and memorable “work days” of my life!)

In a related matter, I learned from a highly respected news source [ahem] today that Mr. Hammer is not, apparently, too legit to do a reality show–and one that will feature Vanilla Ice!

(Word to your mother.)