Cincinnati Rollergirls

You knew the home opener is only a week and a half away right? March 10th vs Arch Rival Roller Girls?
You didn't? And they were voted the best amateur sports team in Cincinnati too.
Get your tickets online or at the door and show up early for tailgating, swing by and say hi, there will be a bunch of us grilling and swilling.
At any rate I've been a huge fan and have my opinions like any other fan. And the game is evolving, some changes I like, some I don't.
One change I like, the costumes over the years have given way to uniforms giving them a very professional look. A change I don't like, one of my favorite aspects is the individualized helmets giving way to a standard look this season.
Oh well, its not about me and as The Librarian explained it hampers opponents ability to single out girls by their helmets like "I'm gonna smash the girl with the red helmet!!"
UPDATE: I should add that this was a team decision and not any kind of league rule, the rollergirls I talked to were either behind the change or didn't seem to care one way or another. They're not to caught up in specific rules, they just want to skate!
Now I've had this idea for some time to photograph their helmets and when I heard of the upcoming changes it gave a sense of urgency to capture them.
I dropped in on a practice one night and shot a mixture of old and practice helmets before they disappeared forever.

This is the helmet all the girls will be wearing this season.

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Moerlein Lager House

I know, the news media has been all over the Moerlein Lager House like a boil over is all over the side of the pot. There's not much left to be said, but I'm going to say some more anyhow. First off, the Lager House is really dramatic, inside and out. Whether you looking at it or out of it, you won't be bored. This place is the real deal, its going to be pretty exciting to visit as the seasons change.
Do you have your Moerlein Beer tokens ready? I had Greg Hardman sign one.


The bartender said "WOW, that's the first one I've seen!" then I had second thoughts. Are people gonna hoard these things?

Then Greg gave me a whirlwind tour, he's like a little kid on Christmas morning and had every right to be. Its probably going to take a few visits to soak in every single detail in this place. Its over whelming.


This is the original sign from the brewery that once stood on Central.

Have you been on one of the OTR brewery tours? If so this will feel familiar, its reminiscent of the underground vaults used to store beer..

Original advertising from Cincinnati streetcars

The event lawn will have full programming beginning March 17th. They're working on getting a webpage and schedule up right now.


How important is the Lager House? they have Mr. Cincinnati Jim Tarbell waiting tables for crying out loud.





[where: 45202]best place to learn how to live downtown cincinnati ohio the ethos of Cincinnati
5 beer token cashed

Carpe Diem: Mary Queen of Heaven

Wednesday 8:12pm Mojojacob announces she's never been to a fish fry and starts the ball rolling.

Wednesday 11:02pm Andi says, "Great idea! I'm in. I feel like I need a fish fry passport..."

Thursday 9:03am the 'Nomerati asks who has photoshop skills?

Thursday 9:06am I admit I can open and close photoshop proficiently

Thursday 9:32am Andi says she won't be able to work on a passport until the evening

Thursday 12:20pm no one else has done anything so I throw out the first design. The first of many back and forthes as the ideas fly fast and furious

Thursday 1:03pm Maureen asks for something that requires actual artistic skills and I ask her if she's seen drag and drop?

Thursday 2:02pm Its done, Laura dropped in on Kinko's and they laid it all out and created the passports with my cover and Laura's inserts.
Now those were just the highlights, there must have been a hundred updates in that stream, it was crazy.
That done all that's left is to wait for Friday and the first fish fry of the season.

I haven't been to a fish fry in a long time and never in Cincinnati. I remember them from when I was younger. They were just things to endure in embarrassment in a church basement with your parents so I wasn't expecting too much out of this although I've heard that Mary Queen of Heaven was probably the best fish fry in the area. No that's not quite right, everyone says its the best fish fry with no qualifications. We'll see.

Every time I start thinking bloggers are just like normal people something like this happens. We can't even do something simple like just showing up at a fish fry, oh no, we have to go large, so passports clutched in hand we walked into Mary Queen of Heaven's fish fry.

My notes, The fish and battered fries were just a touch greasy, but just enough to make you inhale them. The fries were crunchy outside tender inside. maybe some of the best fries I've had anywhere.


They had a bunch of side shows going on, the kids in fish costumes, the cod fathers walking around, and then there was Ben the Beer man, hands down the most popular person in the gymnasium.



This definitely isn't your father's fish fry but I think it helped we didn't take ourselves serious and had a good time with it. You should have seen the look on Fathers face when we all asked him to sign our passports, he was having a good time of it too. at least until the 7th or 8th book. I still think he got a kick out of it.
Once we where there the tweets started pouring in, you wouldn't believe how many suggestions we've gotten for fish fry's to try.
We only have 5 weeks left we won't hit them all, but Lent is going to be just a little cooler this year.[where: 45202]best place to learn how to live downtown cincinnati ohio the ethos of Cincinnati
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Sid Saturday

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a day late and a dollar 5chw4r7z

We have to do this every so often so we grin and bear it. We hit Fields Ertel Rd to meet a coworker of Ms 5chw4r7z for dinner. I hardly drive anymore but when i do I’m in a Zen like laissez-faire state of mind waving people into my lane getting out of peoples way. I don’t have any vehicular axes to grind. But man, Fields Ertel Rd everyone drives with a vengeance and they fight to the death over every inch of pavement like they’ve paid for it in blood and if I add a tenth of a second to someone’s hour long commute there’s gonna be hell to pay.

Which brings up another point, my x-burb coworkers complain about how expensive restaurants are downtown although they've never eaten in one but I realized this. $11 for a mediocre dinner at Carrabba's is expensive. A $10 hotdog at Senate is the bargain of the century!!
Eating in OTR has ruined me for eating anything that isn’t incredible.[where: 45202]best place to learn how to live downtown cincinnati ohio the ethos of Cincinnati
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Washington Park construction

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Final Friday, The Ghost Empire Collective and what you should be doing this Friday

Did you miss the opening for Ghost Empire Collective's show at Neon's a few weeks ago? Have you not been to Final Friday yet or you have but are looking for something a little different? Then look no further, this Friday in OTR Ghost Empire Collective will close down it's wildly successful Die Cupid Die! art show at Neon's with more live art, $5 custom sketches, prints, original art, stickers and t-shirts.
If you were at the opening you know whats in store, if you didn't you can't miss this J:10 Studios video, they grabbed some interviews and captured the action of a dynamic evening.

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Radius, an Oscar like event in OTR

Shot during last years MPMF and Final Friday this short film, touted as the first film based on a location based game and totally crowd based debuts Saturday February 25th at Music Hall. The evening will feature a Red Carpet and a champagne reception before the film and drinks food and dancing afterwards.

UPDATE: ArtsWave's 6 reasons you should attend:
1. Strut your stuff on the red carpet - they're pulling out all the stops for this party: red carpet, search lights, champagne reception and more- it's a chance to dress up all fancy like and pose for the paparazzi.

2. Do you heart OTR? It's hosted at historic Music Hall, and was filmed at last year's MidPoint Music Festival, Emery 11.11.11 event, and a Final Friday - if you went to any of those, there's a chance you might actually be IN the film.

3. Cheap Thrills - $25 ticket gets you in the door, two free drinks, first chance at the film, great food, and fun dancing/mingling/arts stuff. It's a more affordable option than the $150 galas happening that night.

4. Support local - Filmed in Cincy, by a Cincy digital firm (and with the Cincy Film Commission!), at Cincy events, with Cincy performances - doesn't get better than that.

5. It's fairly early - If you have somewhere else you have to be later that night, you can be out the door by 10 pm and on to other things (you socialite, you!)

6. Because I(Artswave) reaaaaaaaally want you to! And isn't that reason enough? Seriously, though... the only thing that would make this already awesome party better is if you were there.
Tickets are available online until 12 noon on Thursday, February 23rd or at the door the night of the premiere.
Tickets can be purchased online or at the door.
[where: 45202]best place to learn how to live downtown cincinnati ohio the ethos of Cincinnati
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"today we're turning the page in Cincinnati..."

So said Mayor Mallory last Friday, this is a project that everyone in Cincinnati can be pround of. As the mayor said this was a grass roots initiative pushed by bloggers, facebookers, twitterers and everyone else who got out the word and helped educatate their friends and aquiantences.
Everyone deserves a little bit credit.


The speaches inside before were jammed packed.



the man the mayor called "Mr. Streetcar." John Schneider

[where: 45202]best place to learn how to live downtown cincinnati ohio the ethos of Cincinnati
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