Buttermilk & Molasses

Michael Paul Williams, Accidental Truth-Teller

It's probably not accurate to call Times-Dispatch columnist Michael Paul Williams an "accidental truth-teller", but the truth is that there was no design that landed him in the seat he inhabits downtown. Which makes the fact that he survived the columnist culling that took place at the TD in recent years – probably a dozen columnists vanished, turning up (seriously) in the pages of Boomer Life magazine, and Mike and political columnist Jeff Schapiro trudged forward.

Now the local troublemaker and ne'er do well has a serious feather in his cap. He's the winner of the 2010 George Mason Award, which is given by the Society of Professional Journalists each year to someone who has made significant and lasting contributions to Virginia journalism.

Williams’ reporting and columns about minority issues in central Virginia have given voice to, and focused attention on, an often-overlooked part of the community, earning him a steady flow of passionate reader response.

“Williams has demonstrated courage in reporting news and publishing his opinions despite death threats and hate mail,” said Brian Eckert, chair of the chapter’s award nomination committee. “His passion for, and dedication to, journalism are undimmed.”

“Williams gives Richmond and all of Virginia a look at itself through the eyes of its minorities and downtrodden. On the eve of the 150th anniversary of the Civil War, we believe his work reflects George Mason’s principles in a timely and meaningful manner,” Eckert said.

Mike is a smart thinker, and unafraid of speaking and writing with deep honesty and candor. He even gets righteous and indignant at all the right moments. The award is well-deserved.

Go read more about the award, and weigh in with your comments here.

My World Cup Fantasy, Dashed By Global Competition

In 2006, when I dipped my toe into World Cup fantasy football – selecting players round by round, and accumulating points based on their performance – I was lucky that it was largely a regional pool of competitors facing off through the Washington Post. I ranked as high as eighth place going into the final 16. Now that the Post is out of the fantasy World Cup business, I've discovered what it means to be a neophyte in a sea of global football experts.

A third of the way through the first round of the 2010 World Cup finds me ranked 16,546th in the McDonald's/FIFA World Cup Fantasy. (I was ranked 1,200th after yesterday's two openers.) I'm still looking for Cesar, Kaka and Ronaldo to pull my fat out of the fire, and have confidence that Round Two will be slightly easier, but what a tough start!

As you can see above, I actually didn't do too poorly with half my picks – Lugano, Sagna, Messi and Marquez all ranked well in the scoring. My midfield, though, sucked wind.

Am I Hyper Enough? Superchunk Is Back!

It's pretty fair to say that no one rocked it like Superchunk rocked it in the 1990s. It seems a lifetime ago that indie rock's favorite musicians were screaming up a poetically charged storm of guitar-drenched music.

Well, they're back. And they sound like they haven't missed a beat. Majesty Shredding drops in September. Take a listen.

Superchunk - Majesty Shredding from Merge Records on Vimeo.

BP's Coffee Spill

A mighty tip of the hat to Talking Points Memo for drawing my attention early this morning to this sadly amusing video about BP's crisis management mentality.

The Politics of Dancing

The mighty Sarah Kaufman scores again! This time, the Washington Post writer pens a mighty social missive about the nature of dance – and the politics of art. In her latest piece, Kaufman reminds readers that dance was at the leading edge of social and political commentary almost a century ago. It's a must read. Here's a sliver that speaks of Martha Graham Dance Company's Political Dance Project, currently in D.C.

Thus, on Wednesday's program of solos assembled under the title "Dance Is a Weapon," we saw a searing portrait of assembly-line slavery in "Time Is Money," from 1934. A voice-over and photographic montage introduced each of the works, placing them in the context of what was going on in the nation and the world at the time (a smart move). During a labor protest in Chicago, "50 workers are shot," the narrator intones. "Ten die.

"Jane Dudley made a dance."

Did she ever. "Time Is Money" is a psychological study of industrial deadening, a soul in rigor mortis while the body still twitches to the clock's demands. There's nothing self-aggrandizing in this work; in an extraordinarily captivating performance, Maurizio Nardi hinted at a factory worker's repetitions, the monotonous ticking away of his life, the silent anguish inside. At one point he hunches over, pumping one shoulder up and down like a piston; but that muscular vigor dwindles and weakens, until he's just circling a limp hand, watching as the power spins out of his body, out of his grasp. Adding to the innovations of this bit of bottled despair was the accompaniment: not music, but a spoken poem by Sol Funaroff, with deliciously vintage lines about "the bourgeois formulas for increased dividends." Actually, given our own financial crisis brought to us by Wall Street greed, that doesn't feel so vintage.

If dance can indeed be a weapon, this was the sharpest blade of the bunch.

Amazing writing. Even more amazing is a reminder that dance – that art – is a weapon.

I've Got It (World Cup Fever)

It's that time when Air Miami's "World Cup Fever" starts playing (Here's a nice Scandinavian video version) in my head, and I start to actually read the sports section of The Washington Post. That time when my attention turns to global contests of prowess and athleticism, and become an expert on the international sport of football.

I also start watching cool commercials on the Internet.

Long-time readers may remember that the last time the World Cup rolled around, I was on the verge of sweeping The Washington Post's fantasy World Cup league. This year, sadly, the Post has punted. I'm currently plying my periodic expertise at the more commercial – but decidedly fancier – McDonald's FIFA World Cup Fantasy site, and I'm not at all convinced that I have a snowball's chance of staying at the front of the pack.

But about those commercials.

You've probably seen Nike's World Cup ad – 22 million people have. But I really love the heart and humor inherent in Pepsi's World Cup ad. It makes me feel good – about soccer, about Africa, even about Pepsi. Here it is:

Visible Measures blog has five of the top online video ads associated with the World Cup; tip of the hat to Alltop for the link.

Waging the Garden War

It been barely a month since a bit of friendly Twitter trash talk between me, @scottpharr and @rsmartt quickly turned itself into the singular sensation known as RVA News' Garden Wars. In the weekly face-off, three gentlemen farmers (and their precocious offspring) go toe-to-toe through photos and clever captions to win the hearts of millions – photos and clever captions about our gardens, that is.

Scott, co-owner of PharrOut and RVANews, soundly trounced us during Week 1, and Connect Richmond's Ryan scored a lopsided victory last week. This week is my chance to score a win – and I flipped the script to do it, turning attention away from the vegetable patch to the flowers growing in our yard.

Go check out Week 3 of Garden Wars, and cast your vote in the comments section. The contest runs weekly at RVA News until at least two of us stop watering our vegetable beds.

Speaking of Ukrop's (Still Kickin')

The stores might be gone, but the name's still around. Ukrop's Homestyle Foods reflects an attempt by Bobby Ukrop and associates to keep the flavor going – and apparently to slog potato salad all around the country.

The Retail Merchants Association's First Friday Forum in June is going to let the company that replaced Ukrop's in the grocery business and the founder of the new Ukrop's Homestyle Foods tell the story of the new company's reinvention as a food producer and distributor.

It all happens from 7:45 until 9:15 a.m. on Friday, June 4, at The Westin Richmond at 6631 West Broad Street. Tickets are $30 for the general business/retail public; $25 for RMA members.

Ukrop's Has Finally Gone to the Birds

Rachel DePompa files her final Ukrop's story commemorating the official end of the multi-generational grocery saga that employed and captivated countless Richmonders over the years, including many who never realized how dreadful the local chains' birthday cakes truly were.

The Ukrop's name is still on the cafe's and on several food products, but make no mistake Martin's is now in charge.

Scanlon says, "We're finally done with the construction and now we can start doing what we do best serving customers and selling groceries."

It took millions of dollars and the re-hiring and training of 3,600 former Ukrop's employees. Twenty-five stores were changed over in six weeks. Each closing for a week and cramming in a cleaning, fresh coat of paint, new construction, new lighting, bigger aisles, and even new food products.

Customers appear to be taking to the change. Eugene Doughty said, "I am impressed. there's lots of people around here." Shirley Wilcox added, "We think it's wonderful. We think it's beautiful. They've done a wonderful job. The decor is nice and one thing it is it's bright."

Bright, it is. And a poll running along with the NBC12 story shows Richmonders split on whether they truly miss their old hometown grocer. If this were politics, a 59-41 split against Martin's would be a landslide; I wonder how it plays out in grocery land.

This I can say with some confidence – the next Times-Dispatch report on local grocery market share is going to be a must-read.

The You're Still Very Richmond If... Results Are In

Just in time for the next issue of Style Weekly to hit the streets, I arrive with news from the last issue – last week's special "You're Very Richmond If..." contest issue, which featured some mildly amusing entries that reminded me that in so many ways today's Richmond is not your father's Richmond.

The demographic shift that has happened in Richmond over the past handful of years has done wonders to strip away the veneer of social status that ruled the roost for so many generations. And while many – myself included – periodically pause to mourn the demise of Richmond institutions, their loss has created space for some new identity to emerge in Central Virginia.

When it finally materializes, I pray that it has no particular allegiance to the past – especially where you went to high school, or who your parents were.

With all of that behind me, here are a few gems from what editor Jason Roop promises will be the last "You're Very Richmond If..." contest ever. Or until it becomes very Richmond to hold the contest again.

• Your favorite monument is Arthur Ashe because it proves Richmond isn’t racist. — Mark Schairbaum (First place)
  

• You’re a runner and a smoker. — Lesley Bruno (Second place)
  

• An ex-boyfriend waits on you at every bar in town. — Susan Howson