Showing posts with label Entertainment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Entertainment. Show all posts

Sunday, November 23

J.K. Rowling's New Potterverse Book Coming Soon!

"The Tales of Beedle the Bard" by J.K. Rowling is set for release on December 4th this year, and it's now available for pre-order!

A book of fairy tales, which was written to supplement the Harry Potter series comes in two distinct versions for your reading pleasure. Buy the standard version for the kids, and for daily reading, and get the special collector's edition for your own personal collection.

The Standard Edition features all five fairy tales from the original The Tales of Beedle the Bard, a new introduction by J.K. Rowling, illustrations reproduced from the original handcrafted book, and commentary on each of the tales by Professor Albus Dumbledore.

The exclusive Collector's Edition includes a reproduction of J.K. Rowling's handwritten introduction, as well as 10 additional illustrations not found in the Standard Edition.

Remember, collector's editions are an investment in the future, and look fabulous on the shelf.

I'm so excited to see her publishing another book in the Harry Potter universe, aren't you?

Monday, September 15

Review: Ground Zero Night Club

Ground Xero, Springfield's only gamer-friendly club, features non-stop EBM, Goth, Electronic, Synthpop, DarkWave, Metal, and Industrial music, and hosts regular live concerts from both local and internationally acclaimed performers and bands.

There's plenty of room to dance, and two lounge areas if you want a little seclusion. With plenty of tables and comfortable seating, you can play any tabletop game, from dice to card games and more, as it suits you, or have a go at a video game in the caged lounge. You are even welcome to bring your own gaming system and share the fun. Bring a set of darts, and play a few rounds with friends on their resident dart board, or bring in your laptop computer and surf the net with their free WiFi.

Offering four different juices, coffee, and several soda options, you can stay as long as you like and not let liquor touch your lips. If you want an alcoholic drink, Zac at the bar mixes the best Bloody Mary in town, and can whip up something to suit your tastes if you tell him what you are in the mood for, even if you don't know what it's called. One of the only places in town that offers Absinthe and other rare liquors, the drink prices are quite reasonable.

The decor is ideal; black with red accent fabric, muted lighting, and chains hanging from the ceiling for spice.

Everyone over 21 is welcome, and the owners of GX don't believe in prejudice, so no matter your lifestyle, gender, faith, race, status in life, or sexual preference, the folks at GX want you to drop in for a fun time. The average crowd includes hippies, goths, punks, freaks, geeks, and professionals, and there's always time for a little one on one chat with a new friend.

Some fabulous bands play at GX on a regular basis, and I've been privileged to be able to see several amazingly talented groups. New bands and those on tour are welcome to ask if they can preform at the club, but they are picky about who they let play, so applying bands had better be good.

Ground Xero is open from Wednesday to Sunday each week, from 7pm to 1:15am. They're also available for venue rental by appointment for private events like weddings, parties, and more on Mondays & Tuesdays, and all other days of the week if their schedule is clear on your preferred day. They fill up quickly, so be sure to book ahead to get your spot.

Current weekly events include Zero Lounge (downtempo music and hookas) on Wednesdays, Industrial Dance Machine on Thursdays (EBM & Industrial music), and World of Darkness gaming on Sundays (18 and up, no liquor). Fridays and Saturdays are the days when you are most likely to find a concert, and there are specialty events that can be found on their calendar regularly. Wednesdays & Thursdays are both lady's night, ladies get in free.

A little known night club on north-central Springfield, Ground Xero is the only locally-owned bar that started up with less than $75,000, but you wouldn't know it to look at the place.

You can find Ground Xero on Myspace at GXProductions and on Second Life via the link on their website. Find out who's performing this week by calling them at 417.865.1787.

[where: 1107 east commercial, Springfield, MO 65802] Map
* Photo used with permission. © GXProductions

Saturday, January 26

The Well Fed Head Bookstore: Downtown Springfield, Missouri

Well Fed Head Books

A really classy bookstore with solid wood floors and shelving. Very pleasing, comfortable atmosphere, almost imperceptible calm music, excellent customer service, and clear section labeling.

This is how I expect a proper book store to feel. Personal, comfortable, and friendly. Like they used to be before the onset of huge commercial mega stores and garish fluorescents.

Well Fed Head buys, sells and trades high quality books in all subject areas including mysticism, and also offers community events like poetry readings, book signings, a book discussion group, monthly art exhibits, book release theme parties, and live music. They go the extra mile by having an online catalog of all of their books available, just in case you want to shop from your home or office. Now that's what I call above and beyond great service. I have never seen another used book store in Springfield do it.

Stopping in is a pleasurable respite from the usual harried bustle of downtown.

Well Fed Head is located in downtown Springfield at the corner of Campbell and Walnut (331 south Campbell) and is open from 11 am to 6 pm on Monday and 11 am to 9 pm Tuesday through Saturday. Their phone number is 417.832.9333

Interesting Factoids
Well Fed Head is housed in the historic Wallenburg Building which was constructed in 1892. It is the second oldest building in the Historic West Walnut Street Commercial District and was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on March 20, 2002.

Originally home to the Max Scharff wholesale liquor distributorship and later the prominent Parisienne ladies apparel store, the building served as the home of the Farmers and Merchants Bank throughout the 1940s, and later spent two decades as a Halloween haunted house. The building was restored in 2002 by Tillman Redevelopment LLC.

(photos copyright MSU Paper, Drury Paper, Well Fed Head Books) [where: 331 S Campbell Ave Springfield, MO 65806-2049]

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