He's bringing Renaissance back

He’s played guitar at Shiloh. He’s played Forge and Vine. He even played Forge and Vine when it was still Fat Otter’s. He’s played Harpo’s on football weekends.

Prescription: confidence

I have no doubt my mom wanted to strangle her sister when I was about 3 years old. Not because she hated her — they talk once a week if not more ­— but because I adored my aunt so much that I mimicked everything she did, including smoking. A toothpick, a straw, the stick from a lollipop — all were fair game when it came to copycatting her vice.

Pop goes folk

It's alright Ma, I'm only teaching

Phil Overeem doesn’t care for concerts much these days, especially those where no one dances, but this is a special night. He leans against the bar at The Blue Note and chats with his wife, Nicole, but his eyes keep turning to the stage. The Drive-By Truckers, a hip, alternative Southern rock band, is playing its heart out, yet Overeem keeps remembering its acoustic concert at Hickman High School just hours earlier — one he had arranged.

Under the Covers

For some people, going to the bookstore is a quick and easy trip. They walk in, grab the right book, and they’re on their way. But for others, finding the right book is as difficult as solving algorithms. So forget the saying “don’t judge a book by its cover.” With marketing today, there is no reason not to — the reader just needs to know what to look for.

Rock 'n' Pointe

The image of a ballerina is no longer represented by that plastic twirling dancer inside a young girl’s jewelry box. It is time to close the lid, make that squeaky music stop and change the way you think about ballet. The Missouri Contemporary Ballet has traded pink tights for velvet bell-bottoms and Tchaikovsky for Jimi Hendrix in its performance of Rock. Tonight’s encore show (originally performed in November 2007) brings back an unconventional performance to downtown Columbia’s entertainment repertoire.

On the Job: Singing Telegram Deliverer

Remember the days of elementary school when you would pass out Valentine’s Day cards to all your friends? The coolest valentines had jokes or heart-shaped suckers. But how cool would you have been if you were the kid on the playground with a singing telegram? Although your playground days are over, it’s possible to have an envy-inducing valentine thanks to singing telegram deliverers such as Dustin Hampton, 23, of Columbia. Dustin has been singing telegrams for special occasions — and putting wimpy valentines to shame — for two years.

The Good, The Bad & The Ugly

The Good: ¡OlÉ!

The write stuff

No matter the union, nothing says strike like a bushy beard. And in true strike spirit, on Nov. 5, 2007 — when members of the Writers Guild of America walked out — both Conan O’Brien and David Letterman threw out their razors to support the cause.

Nipping the habit in the butt

There is no quick fix for smoking, but for those who want to take a Lucky Strike at quitting, Chantix might be the drug of choice.

Other ways to tame the addiction

Nicotine Gum/Patch/Lozenge: Over-the-counter options designed to wean the smoker off nicotine by releasing steady levels of the drug into the bloodstream.

10 things we wish a pill could cure

Not a day goes by when you aren’t annoyed by something or someone and wish there were a magical solution to make the culprit cease and desist. We share the 10 bad habits that push our buttons. If only there were some way to cure them.

Take Two - The Eye

(Web Exclusive) In The Eye, a remake of the 2002 Hong Kong film Jian Gui, Alba plays Sydney Wells, a blind violinist who lost her sight at the age of 5 in a tragic firecracker accident while playing with her sister, Helen (Parker Posey). She undergoes a cornea transplant that also transfers the morbid experiences of the late donor. Alba regains vision as well as access to the paranormal world and the grim reaper’s calendar of events as her sight develops.

Take Two - There Will Be Blood

(Web Exclusive) There will be sadness. There will be surprise. There will be angst. For Paul Thomas Anderson’s film There Will be Blood, there will be everything but a disappointed audience.

School of Rock slideshow

(Web Exclusive)