Youth Killings Reach Crisis Level In Chicago _ NPR

I try to meet as many business owners as possible on a weekly basis.  From time to time, I meet someone who really impresses me for one reason or another.  I recognize the blue tomato graphic design firm as the Business of the Month for the month of December, 2009.

Located in Pittsburgh, PA’s South Side neighborhood, the blue tomato is a graphic design company specializing in high-end graphics for print and the web.  blue tomato is the brain child of Kim Collins,  a former graduate of the Art Institute of Pittsburgh and blue tomato’s creative director and owner.

blue tomato’s portfolio boasts a wide range of vibrant work that is known both for its sophisticated creativity and functionality, creating concepts and designs that get results.  Some of the stunning websites,  market brands, and logos that blue tomato has created can be viewed on its website.

I chose the blue tomato for many reasons but two primary ones are as follows:

• blue tomato has made the renovation of its office space a PR opportunity.
• blue tomato launched the South Side Pittsburgh Tree Project, thereby improving the South Side community while raising awareness of the firm and demonstrating the firm’s quality, creative work.

Renovation of Space as PR Opportunity

1.  blue tomato has made the renovation of its office space a PR opportunity. I love what Kim Collins has created as space for her company.  As her website states, “The firm blue tomato has turned PR exposure into an art form…literally.”

Instead of renting out a space in a high-rise office building downtown, Kim turned a condemned row house in the South Side of Pittsburgh into a sleek, modern and sophisticated space that has garnered more attention from the national and local media than ever anticipated.   Kim and her space were on HGTV’s “My House Is Worth What?” television show.  She has been featured in a Pittsburgh Business Times news article and has been profiled on one of KDKA’s business stories.   I believe these articles and videos  can be viewed under her “News” tab on her website.

With a little help from her dad, most if not all of the work in the home, Kim did herself from cutting and placing mosaic tiles in the shower, to building a deck and landscaping a courtyard, to laying the hardwood floor, to displaying some of her client’s designs as wall decor.  Every detail in the home is sleek, polished and artsy.  Artsy in a stunning, clean way, just like her work as a graphic artist.

She uses her space wisely, further solidifying her company’s brand image.   The building actually is a home as well with living space on one of the upper floors.  The firm states on its website, “We offer our clients the same dedication and attention to detail that went into turning this space and company into what it is today.”  Brilliant.  Also, Kim has hosted various parties or “mingles” in the space.  As you could have guessed, the invitations to the events are always spectacular- very wowsy-like, again promoting Kim’s graphic design work.

TAKEAWAY: What can your firm do to create PR opportunities for your business, while at the same time solidifying your brand image?

Cross-Promotion Through Community Work

2.  blue tomato launched the South Side Pittsburgh Tree Project. thereby improving the South Side community while raising awareness of the firm and demonstrating the firm’s quality, creative work.  The South Side Tree Project is an initiative of blue tomato® design and riverset® credit union who have partnered with Friends of the Pittsburgh Urban Forest and TreeVitalize to help grow the South Side’s green space. So far, on October 24, 2009, 45 volunteers planted 21 trees in front of homes on Wharton Street with 320 tulips around the trees.  Their next planting will be in the Spring of 2010; currently, they hope to plant 25-40 trees.

For those of you not from Pittsburgh,  the “South Side” is a neighborhood of Pittsburgh, less than 2 miles from Downtown Pittsburgh (just a 20 minute walk across the 10th Street bridge over the Monongahela River).  The business district stretches along the South Side’s East Carson Street, which is home to many small shops, restaurants and bars.   The entire length of East Carson Street is designated as a historic district and is one of the largest Victorian main streets in the United States.  See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Side_(Pittsburgh) .

The residential areas have an urban fabric with rowhouses [Full disclosure: when I moved back from Philadelphia 5 years ago, I bought a South Side house and renovated it too].  One of the famous steel mills of Pittsburgh, the Jones and Laughlin Steel Company was located on the South Side but closed in the 1980s.  Today, the land also is home to the SouthSide Works shopping and entertainment complex.  To quote the community’s website, “[The South Side] it’s urban, ethnic, hip, funky, feisty, and historic.”  http://www.southsidepgh.com/live_and_work/index.php

By becoming one of the catalysts for the Southside Tree Project, Kim has raised even more of an awareness and respect for her firm.  Check out the Southside Tree project’s website, which incidentally Kim’s firm designed.  http://www.sstreeproject.com.  The project also has draped an enormous (20′ X 25′), striking banner over one of the commercial buildings in the heart of the South Side that says “Wanna Free Tree?” This is a sign that Kim’s firm designed and that has her firm’s  name at the bottom of it as a community sponsor.  The project has been profiled in the City Paper, the South Side Reporter, etc.; the PR list goes on and on.

Many companies donate to charities (which is great, albeit passive).  blue tomato’s involvement in this project was a fine opportunity for the firm to give back to the Southside community in an active, meaningful, concrete, real way, and at the same time to increase recognition of the firm and demonstrate the firm’s website and print work.  Again, from a business perspective, brilliant.

TAKEAWAY: What can your company do to give back while at the same time cross-promoting your product or service?

I am also highlighting the blue tomato firm because Kim is a charismatic person, very likeable, yet always commanding a professionalism and seriousness about her work.  Design obviously is a passion of hers that permeates every facet of her life.   At only 30, Kim demonstrates remarkable business savvy and a mover-shaker type of personality (which I always like).  She serves as President of Rainmakers, a local chapter of Business Networking International.   Congratulations, Kim Collins and the blue tomato.  I look forward to seeing what you and your business will become.

Community leaders and developers chatter continually about how to attract young professionals to the city of Pittsburgh.  As recognized in that KDKA clip on Kim’s website, Kim’s business story is a great one and should inspire other young entrepreneurs to do the same, not only in Pittsburgh, but in any part of the country.

For more information on blue tomato, check out its website: http://bluetomatodesign.com/

Bruce McFall_ ‘Who’s gonna change it

You can pick up a copy of the CP tomorrow, or…Find out who made the cut in the Pittsburgh City Paper’s  annual “Best Of” tonight at The Rex Theater! The FREE “Best Of” party (over 21 only) includes music by:

Formula 412  @ 9pm

Donora @ 10pm

DJ Hatesyou @ 11pm

And there will also be prizes given out thoughout the evening! There is a private VIP reception at 7pm, but the rest of us can get in at 9pm. Don’t miss a great night of free music in the South Side!

-jp

SOJA put on a great show for Pittsburgh last night at The Rex. As if a great reggae show in December wasn’t enough, they even practically gave away their new album Born In Babylon. At the end of the show they announced a pay-what-you-will price for anyone who wanted to grab it. I think the new album is definitely their best stuff yet. It presents a more polished and mature sound from their previous tracks, which is also evident in their tight live performances. SOJA’s earlier albums also lacked the horn section that has really put them over the top. It adds a fully layered sound that complements the tight reggae guitar, bass and keyboard riffs. And Jacob’s unmistakable voice adds a certain uniqueness that sets them apart from being just another reggae band. This was my third SOJA experience, and I can’t wait to see them again!

You can check out more of our photos on our Flickr page: SOJA in Pittsburgh 12.4.09

-jp

Get rid of those pre-winter blues and head down to The Rex Theater tonight for some warm, summertime reggae with SOJA! One of my favorite reggae bands, hailing from Washington D.C., they infuse a straight reggae pulse with more of a rock feel, with a bass line that will blow out your ear drums. I’ll definitely be headin’ down tonight to get my reggae on for sure (after scoping out Unblurred on Penn of course)!

The 9:00pm / 18+ show is $12 @ the door and  The Universal Roots Band opens.

You can check out more of SOJA at their site www.sojamusic.com

And check out the Rex’s full schedule of shows here!

-jp

I know I need to give up this complaining, but for this one I just can’t.

Some Jack Ass took one wheel off my car. ONE. Who takes one tire? I wish I knew. I want it back. It’s not that I can’t replace it, I can, but the process isn’t as easy as I thought.

Now most people know I’m a man of limited means. I don’t have a lot of cash and I’m a Wisconsin Pollock, which means I don’t like to spend money if I don’t have to. So now I don’t have a choice. I have to spend money on something I never should have. (a stolen wheel)

So first things first. I called every bone yard in the area. Not one had the tire I needed. I didn’t think picking up a factory rim for a Ford Focus would be so hard. It turns out a 16 inch alloy rim is hard to come by on this model. Maybe that is why only one of my tires was taken.

I’m almost tempted to take one off another car…if I can find one. Yet as I looked for a car with the same rims on them I could not find them. It’s a factory rim so I thought it would be simple to find one. I can’t find one at a bone yard. The only thing I could find was a factory 15 inch. Not one 16 that would fit on my car. I can’t be the only one driving one of these? can I?

This is day three with my spare on. I can’t even find a dealer ship that has the wheel in stock. I have to order one. I can’t find anything in town to fix this mess. How can this be so hard.

The last thing I can do is order a tire and replace all my tires. That is the plan. Now all I need is a good three hundred dollars to do this and I’m good.

Insurance isn’t going to cover it. I have a $500 deductible, but the part they stole is only going to cost four, but as we all know you can’t just replace one tire. you have to replace two at least and the robbers didn’t even have the decency to steel the one wheel with the bad tire on it.

Having just come back from a trip to Pittsburgh, I thought I’d give a round up of the best sights to see in case anyone else is planning a similar trip. I made it to most of these points of interest and can vouch for them wholeheartedly. Hope you have a fun time in Pennsylvania too.

1. PNC Park

Dcashman's kids at a Pirates game

“We drove back over to PNC Park, over a bridge. The main bridge is blocked off before game time for pedestrian traffic.  We got in and went right down behind centerfield. Right next to the Yankee bullpen.  The team was warming up and was interacting with the fans.  We saw most of the pitchers including Mariano Rivera, Daryl Rasner, Edwar Ramierz and Andy Pettite.  Daryl Rasner signed Hannah’s ticket.  They were really nice. Mike Mussina warmed up right next to us. The game started and the yanks got off to a 4-0 lead. After 2 1/2 innings it started pouring as thunderstorms approached.  Everyone retreated into the concourse where we intermidetly waited and went back out to seats 2 or 3 times as the rain stopped and started for the next 2 hours.  After all that waiting the game was called.  It was sad but at least we got to see a little of the game and the beautiful ball park.” – Dcashman

2. The Duquesne Incline

Jeremystravels spent a romantic evening with his girlfriend at the Duquesne Outlook

“One of the other things we did was went up to the Duquenese Lookout at night to view the city of Pittsburgh from the surrounding hills.  According to some lists this is one of the most romantic spots in the country [top 10].  I couldn’t complain.” – Jeremystravels

3. The Cathedral of Learning

Lagalag1 outside the Cathedral of Learning in Pittsburgh

“We drove to the university area of Pittsburgh, Oakland. We went to see the Cathedral of Learning,especially the Nationality Classrooms. The cathedral of learning is a 42 story Gothic building. There are 24 nationality rooms. Each room is designed ethnologically as the country (ex–Russian, Norwegian, Hungarian, Syrian etc).” – Lagalag1

4. Carson Street and the South Side

Crashhopper's friend's son, Andrew in Pittsburgh's South Side

“Then we grabbed a bite to eat in this cute area I think is called the south side where all the bars are in the city by Duquesne. It was an artsy area.” – Crashhopper

5. Kayaking on the Allegheny

Jenn_and_dave went for a three mile kayak in Pittsburgh

“After a short introduction to kayaking and how to paddle correctly we were in the water (the Allegheny River). We paddled three miles to a boat ramp next to Pittsburgh’s new baseball stadium. We then jumped back into our kayaks for the 3 mile paddle back. Along the way, Dave and Ben saw a rope swing and decided to dock their kayaks. Yahoooo yells Dave and Ben as they swing through the air like escaped chimpanzees and falling into the river below.” – Jenn_and_dave

6. The Andy Warhol Museum

I loved the Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh

“The Andy Warhol Museum was just as I expected it would be. A big giant loft space, full of pop art. It was like heaven on earth. My favourite art, all in one place. All from Mr. Warhol, but to top it off, the temporary exhibit was Shepard Fairey, the guy who made that famous Obama stencil, and also the guy who did the Obey Andre the Giant stencil and designed some White Stripes album covers and Smashing Pumpkin’s Zeitgeist. Awwwwesome. I could’ve easily spent a few hours just there.” – Starlagurl

7. The Frick Art & Historical Centre

The Frick Art & Historical Centre in Pittsburgh was beautifully preserved

The house was marvelous. Built in the late 19th century, it had a children’s playhouse just as big many regular houses are today. There was a stable (which now houses a museum of automobiles), a greenhouse and lots of fancy stuff inside the house. Most of it was kept as it originally appeared when Henry Clay Frick lived in it back in the day So he had all the latest trends in convenient living. Electricity, one of the first “paging” systems for his staff, flushing toilets, aluminum on the ceilings, you know.. all that awesome stuff. Our tour guide was pretty amazing. It wasn’t that she was in “period” character, she just really talked like somebody from the early 19th century. You could tell she just lived and breathed this house. I WISH I had a video, just of her. I should have asked her to talk to me outside…. After a tour of the rest of the grounds on our own, and a visit to the art gallery, (which had a really great photography exhibit on an old children’s hospital) we were off to the strip district for a kind of walking lunch tour. – Starlagurl

8. Primanti’s in the Strip District

Must eat: a sandiwich at the original Primanti Bros.

“We stopped in at Labad’s for some hummus, then onto Primanti Bros. to try their famous sandwich with the french fries in it. This time, it was moderately delicious, the coleslaw was a lot more vinagery. I wonder if going to the actual original restaurant made the difference?” – starlagurl

9. Carnegie Museum of Natural History

Dinosaur bones at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History

“We had a couple of hours to go through the Carnegie Museum, which I was pretty excited for. We saw some dinosaurs and Steph and I made a new 5 year old friend while hanging out inside a giant plastic Blue Whale heart. We asked him where his parents were, he simply said, “I don’t have any parents.” Oh boy… So I sort of kept an eye on him until the people who actually were his parents showed up. So the whale exhibit was good, even if it was a bit smelling of fish.” – starlagurl

10. Carnegie Museum of Art

Really nice modern art at the Carnegie Museum of Art

“After that, we went to the art part of the museum, which was also good. I especially liked this piece where children’s books were made to look like a flock of birds taking off into the sky.” – starlagurl

Loading “Chicago Teens Encourage Nonviolent Actions _ NPR”

King Cool himself Donnie Iris, Pittsburgh’s favorite local rock legend is throwing a 30th anniversary party and concert tonight at Diesel in the Southside. The show is also the debut of Iris’ eponymous new beer brand King Cool, which is to be poured for the first time tonight!

Iris has teamed with several close friends and business partners to form King Cool Limited, which is producing the light lager beer. The launch party tonight is sponsored by KCL and WDVE. Of course you can only get the exclusive tickets for the show by winning them on WDVE. Keep listening today as you might be one of the lucky ones to get in as there are a few tickets left. But for the rest of us, King Cool Light will be available in Pittsburgh bars beginning in early December.

You can stay up to date with all your Donnie Iris news and show updates at donnieiris.com

-jp

(photo from http://www.donnieiris.com)

]]> http://cocmediajustice.wordpress.com/2009/11/18/mayhem-erupts-throughout-city-after-appeal-to-end-violence/ Wed, 18 Nov 2009 18:58:54 +0000 beyondmeresurvival http://cocmediajustice.wordpress.com/2009/11/18/mayhem-erupts-throughout-city-after-appeal-to-end-violence/

Mayhem erupts throughout city after appeal to end violence – Chicago Breaking News

Fenger students get acquainted on neutral ground – chicagotribune.com

Chicago teens_ Violent endings – chicagotribune.com

Be sure to come out to the Lava Lounge in SouthSide this Wednesday night to help support the Brew House Association’s benefit show. All proceeds from the $6 cover will go to the Brew House to help support them with things like building repairs, general maintenance, etc.  Music will be provided by Short Dark Strangers, Mud City Manglers and Robot Want Chez. This is great way to show your support for a local arts organization in need.

-jp

sometimes i get stuck in my northwest-side-of-chicago bubble and forget what a different world it can be south of roosevelt. last month, i visited two farmers markets on the south shore. i was reminded that as nice as it is to have so many farmers markets nearby on the north side, this exercise in trying to visit as many markets as possible has really shown me so much more about chicago.

my first south side attempt was to the lawndale farmers market. my handy guide said that this market wouldn’t end until the october 15 but there were no stands to be found anywhere in the vicinity of ogden and central park ave. so, i moved on.

next stop – south shore farmers market on jeffery blvd. this trip turned out to be a cultural experience in and of itself. this was not your typical farmers markets full of yuppies or hippies. it was a market to provide affordable produce to people in the area. they were giant bags of potatoes and apples and greens of every kind… mustard green, chard, collard greens, turnip greens, beet greens. in hindsight i wish i would have picked up a few kinds to do a green tasting or something, but i left with a single butternut squash for a meal i was making for my parents who were in town that weekend. maybe next year i’ll learn. i will, however, share the recipe i made for the dinner with my parents because it’s a great fall dish that i’ve made several times. it’s a little time consuming for a salad, but it’s hearty and has always been a crowd pleaser. i can’t take credit for the recipe… it’s from gourmet and it’s delicious. http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Warm-Pumpkin-Salad-with-Polenta-and-Candied-Pumpkin-Seeds-105581

the next day, i went with my dear friend, anitra, to the hyde park farmers market which stood in stark contrast to the south shore market. this had so many high-quality, artisanal booths. it gave me so many ideas for dishes to try. there were tons of apples and apple cider, beautiful eggplant varieties (see pics below), a mushroom vendor with oyster mushrooms, chanterelles, trumpets and many others. there were also several bakeries that made wonderful pastries and breads. i left with a jug of apple cider also for dinner with my parents. i was on a kick to make apple cider sorbet that tastes as good as black dog’s, so this would be my first attempt. it turned out pretty well and was super easy… but of course, not nearly as flavorful as black dog’s version. below is the recipe i used.

visiting a few of the south side farmers markets was well worth the trip. if you’re looking for cheap, fresh produce go to the south shore market and for high-end, artisanal produce, hyde park is fabulous.

apple cider sorbet
ingredients:
6 cups unpasteurized apple cider
1/2 cup sugar
pinch of salt
2 teaspoons strained fresh lemon juice

directions:
in a large saucepan combine the cider, the sugar, and a pinch of salt and boil the mixture for 5 to 10 minutes, or until the liquid is reduced to about 4 cups. stir in the lemon juice, strain the mixture through a fine sieve into a bowl, and chill it, covered, until it is cold. Freeze the mixture in an ice-cream freezer according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

South Shore Farmers Market
location: 7045 S. Jeffery Blvd.
hours: 7 a.m.-2 p.m. Wednesday, June thru October

Hyde Park Farmers Market
location: S. Harper Ave. & E. 52nd Pl.
hours: 7 a.m.-2 p.m. Thursday, June thru October

I generally trust Urbanspoon with my life… At least my culinary life.  It’s the simplest way to keep track of all the places you’ve liked, all the places you’d want to try, and don’t get me started on the slot machine app.  Freaking brilliant.  So it always comes as a bit of a shock to me whenever I find Urbanspoon behind the on the times, the last being when they had Cafe Selmarie (one of my favorite places here in Lincoln Square) listed as closed when it is very much not.  It’s OK, they quickly changed their page but still…

Anyways, that’s why I was surprised to find that Hyde Park Barbeque and Bakery is not even listed on Urbanspoon’s directory.  I don’t pretend to be a Hyde Park aficionado, but judging by its reviews, not only has it been at 55th and Hyde Park Blvd. for at least some time, but it’s also fairly well respected in the neighborhood.  I know Hyde Park is a bit off the beaten path, but it’s still a relatively vibrant place full of families, professors, and college kids.  It’s not like I’m talking about the dearth of Chicago, such as say Englewood or Austin.  Anyways, I felt the need to share this and I hope a page is created for this place soon.

“Chicago Student Deaths Spark Outcry II” _ NPR”

Chicago Student Deaths Spark Outcry NPR

Chicago School Violence Plan Focuses on Potential Victims – NYTimes.com

Attorney General, in Chicago, Pledges Youth Violence Effort – NYTimes.com

It’s the year 2000. My boyfriend gets a phone call. His mother has fallen on hard financial times and her house, located on Chicago’s south side in the Ashburn-Wrightwood area is about to be taken away by the bank.

My boyfriend steps in and purchases this property. He is now the owner of a three bedroom, two bathroom ranch style home.

He worked out a plan with his mother where she would cover 80% of the mortgage while he would cover the rest. She was by all intensive purposes his tenant.

For years this is how it worked out. Then my boyfriend and I got married, purchased our own home in the Wicker Park neighborhood and had a child. The mortgages on both properties were being paid and everybody was happy.

Over the years my mother in law would take in many house guests, but the house was already in a fragile state and in serious need of repair. Lack of money to get the repairs done made small issues larger. Now the house has some pretty extensive internal and external damage. It stands out as the worst house on the block.

A few years ago my mother in law could no longer afford to pay the utility bills and they began piling up. Because of this, my MIL was forced to live elsewhere.

My husband and I decided that it was time to do something drastic in order to save ourselves from this situation. We thought it was best to put the house on the market as is as we couldn’t afford to carry two mortgages on our own. So that’s what we did. Unfortunately this decision is occurring when the market is in a serious decline.  

We got a real estate agent and she listed the house on the MLS as such:

Ashburn delight, 3 bedroom 2 bath ranch needs tlc. full unfinished basement with full bath. loving care will make this a great home. seller is willing to help with some closing cost. property is not a ss or pre-foreclosure. please present pre-approval with offer.

According to dreamtown.com the Ashburn-Wrightwood Neighborhood in Chicago is:

“Located on the southwest edge of the city and is a diverse middle-class neighborhood of manicured lawns and yellow-brick bungalows that was recently cited by The New York Times as a model for successful, harmonious integration in an urban setting. Much like other parts of Chicago, in Wrightwood businesses and restaurants are concentrated mainly along the neighborhood’s major thoroughfares, while the rest of community is filled with neat residential blocks. Affordable housing has long made Wrightwood an attractive place to set up housekeeping, and the variety of architectural styles make sure every homeowner gets exactly what they are looking for in a home.”

We decided to list the house $5,000 above the cost of the mortgage, but that didn’t stop people from approaching us with insulting offers for about $40,000 below what we actually owed on the house. I understand that money is tight right now and I’m not knocking the hustle, but we just can’t afford to take those offers. We don’t want to be in a situation where we sell the house and then still owe the bank $30,000. We realize that this is OUR problem and that nobody is going to step in and help us solve it, but to be honest, we never expected anybody to. And that’s why we’re doing everything we can to get this house off our backs.

The house has been on the market for about a year now. During this year we got one offer on the house. At first we were excited until we found out that the offer was $21,000 less than what we owed to the bank. Oh and we were also supposed to pay the buyer’s closing costs. Then our attorney estimated the closing costs at around $13,000. It was then that we knew we’d have to go another route. $33,000 was way above what had access to.

I don’t know why, but I immediately called my dad and told him the situation. He said, “Don’t sell them the house. I don’t want you guys to be $30,000 in debt after it’s sold. That’s not good.” Then he offered his expertise to us. He wanted to come down to Chicago to help us out by restoring our second property.

I know my dad can do this because he is skooled in old world Polish values – one being hard work. He is one of those people that does everything himself. He is a jack of all trades if you will. He did all of the repairs on the home we were raised in and he also built the house he lives in currently. He is also a mechanic, an artist, and a welder. He does incredible custom work and has a serious eye for detail.

Our goal in this renovation is to fix the house quickly and sell it for what we owe the bank + the cost of renovations. That is all. We are not looking to get rich. We are not looking to put our kid through college. We just cannot afford to pay two mortgages.

We would love to find a buyer who will love and appreciate the house for what it really is – a gem in the Chicago housing market.

My father is the main player in this renovation. He has also recruited my cousin.

Here is the current state of the house:

While there is a super-mega-abundant-plethora of Halloween options this weekend, we’re headed to The Smiling Moose in the South Side tonight to kick off the weekend. Not only is it the monthly Shake, Rattle and Roll ‘50 & ’60s classic rock dance party with DJ Junior, it’s the 2nd annual Halloween costume party! We were costume shopping all afternoon, so we’re ready! There’s no cover and the costume contest is $5 to enter with cash prize!

DJ Junior is a staple at the Rockabilly Riot at Howler’s, The Rock and Roll Spookshow at The Thunderbird, and his own monthly show Shake, Rattle and Roll at the Smiling Moose (last Friday of every month).  He plays nothing but classic ’45s from the 1950’s and ’60s, playing early rock and rockabilly records from Jerry Lee Lewis to Johnny Cash to Little Richard, James Brown and Bill Haley. It’s always a great time. Just grab a Pabst, roll up your cuffs and hit the dance floor!

-jp