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Yesterday, a small contingency from the City Paper office made is way up Hwy. 17 for a special “sound check” preview of the band-new Hard Rock Park in Myrtle Beach (211 George Bishop Parkway). We were impressed with the handsome layout, which stretched around a central lake from the reggae-themed beach party area
The intense Zep ride stood at 15 stories high, kicked off with a 65 m.p.h. drop, and looped around through six inversions — all to the tune of “Whole Lotta Love.” It was one the biggest attractions and it will surely become the most popular ride and a must-ride for thrill-seekers.
At a more peaceful pace, “Nights in White Satin: The Trip” was a slow-rolling, psychedelic, indoor ride set to the music of the Moody Blues, replete with 3-D glasses.
There were plenty of amusing diversions, game rooms, and mini parks aimed at kids: a “punk pit” inflatable bounce room, a splashy Reggae River Falls jungle gym, a laid-back Shake Rattle ’n’ Roller coaster ride, a musical ice skating show called “Country on the Rocks,” and various playgrounds and arcades. Three wide-eyed mascots called the “Bear Metal Family” waved to kids along the pathways.
At 9 p.m., the “Bohemian Rhapsody Fireworks Show” dazzled the entire park from the middle of the lake with a choreographed display set to the classic Queen anthem.
Be aware: the food is surprisingly good — especially the smoked chicken, mac ’n’ cheese, and the pulled pork barbecue at the Rockabilly BBQ and the desserts at the Amp’d coffee house by the main entrance.
Beware: the beer is terribly over-priced, unless you invest in a huge, plastic Hard Rock Park thermos (with which refills are cheaper). I paid $7.50 for a 16-ounce plastic cup of Bass Ale at the Whammy Bar at the end of the night while Murrells Inlet rock band Ten Toes Up jammed on the patio.

music.ccpblogs.com

TAKE a tour into the heart of South Africa, exploring its unique history, amazing wildlife and breathtaking scenery with ECHO Travel Service. The 16-day trip includes a guided safari in the Kruger National Park, a visit to Cape Town and a chance to explore the beautiful Western Cape’s winelands. Prices start from £1,824 for the trip from July to November. For further details and brochure call 0151 227 5987.

liverpoolecho.co.uk

We are on a green tip here at CD Times at the moment. Not only are we changing our lightbulbs over to energy-efficient versions, we’re also asking record labels to take a long, hard look at their roster and really ask questions of their artists’ short-term carbon footprint.
Can indifferent art still be tolerated? If a song does not truly add to the sum of human contentment, is it worth the scarce resources required to record, press and distribute? We say “No! Think of the unicorns and sea cucumbers!” No more shitty records: only good ones.
To that end, we pit this week’s new singles against classic hits from the past. If they don’t measure up, we demand that drastic measures are taken. Stop the waste. Stop the crap. Save us from mediocrity. Stop releasing songs that aren’t killer. Simple as.
We have, as they say in Denmark, a shit-load of singles to get through this week so without further ado, let’s get this party started.
Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings have some kind of association with Mark Ronson (backing band or something) and “100 Days, 100 Nights” (Daptone Records) has all the cool Motown-isms down pat. Retro with no pretentions otherwise - which is fair enough - but given the new dictat, you are probably as well going to the source rather than encouraging facsimiles. Better than the 1995 re-recording of The Nolans’ “I’m In The Mood For Dancing” - but not better than the 1979 original.
Cats In Paris offer up an intriguing freakout with “Foxes” (Akoustik Anarkhy) with hints of MgMt or perennial weirdoes The Cardiacs in its jazzy breakdowns and prog-rock keyboard chaos. Definitely worth investigating, so here’s their MySpace: Cats In Paris
You know that you’re in trouble when you’re outplayed by a Bowling For Soup record. But that’s the truth, homie. “Girl All The Bad Guys Want” is a better track than “Our Time Now”. Not good enough Plain White T’s. In fact, this sucks like Dyson.

cdtimes.co.uk

Ever since It’sallinthechase ran in the 2002 Kentucky Derby, Darwin Olson’s friends have anticipated a return trip to Louisville. "They always say, ‘Do you have a horse in the Derby this year?" said Olson, who lives in Lake City. "I tell them it was a once-in-a-lifetime thing. Maybe we’ll get there again, but it’s very unlikely."
Which is exactly why 20 horses, a full field, are expected to be entered Wednesday for the 134th Derby at Churchill Downs. As always, there will be a handful of first-time trainers and owners competing against the bluegrass billionaires and celebrity horsemen. And as always, some will scoff at a few horses they deem unworthy — forgetting that commoners, as well as the crowned, have every right to pursue the pinnacle of the Sport of Kings.
Olson and trainer Wilson Brown knew they had a long shot in 2002. It’sallinthechase went off at odds of 95-1, the longest in the field, and finished 16th among 18 horses.
When they think about their Derby experience, though, they remember the parties, the pride, the sheer magic of the week that culminated in the greatest two minutes of their racing lives.
"We were just a couple of country bumpkins who got the opportunity to do this," said Olson, who owns an insurance agency with offices in southern Minnesota. "I’m sure there were people who thought we didn’t belong, but nobody said it. Even though we were a long shot, we felt extremely welcome.
"We always had that hope of making the Derby, just like everyone who’s ever owned a thoroughbred. We decided this was our one chance. To see the gates open, to think, ‘Those are my colors out there,’ it was just fantastic."
Brown spotted It’sallinthechase at a Texas sale in 2001. He was immediately taken by the long-striding bay, but Olson got nervous when the auction bidding hit $25,000 — a pittance for a Derby horse, but a significant investment for him. Brown cajoled him into upping the ante, and Olson got the colt for $27,000.

startribune.com

Nicosia continues to lead the Spartans at the plate, batting a team-high .395 with a squad-high 60 hits, including six doubles, nine triples and six homers. Additionally, Nicosia’s .20 triples per game leads the nation. But junior second baseman Gina Mondo has stepped up to provide offense consistency and efficiency in Nicosia’s absense. Mondo, who averages .381, has a team high 10 doubles - she hit two against the Grizzlies on Wednesday, which contribute to her 56 hits. And with six home runs, Mondo has 31 RBI.
Mejia also serves as an offense force, batting .358 with 48 hits (six 2B, one 3B, eight HR). Additionally, the Spartans rely heavily on the 3-hole hitter to drive in runs, as she paces MSU with 34 RBI this season. On the rubber, senior tri-captain Lesley Noel serves as the Spartans’ ace, throwing nearly 60 percent of MSU’s innings. Noel has fanned 118 opponents this season - a team high - and owns a 2.56 ERA.
Sophomore Kelly Confer and freshman Shae Bass add depth to MSU’s bullpen, having recently helped carry the load in the circle, while junior Megan Hair also contributes. As a team, Michigan State allows 2.81 runs against per game.
THE WOLVERINE SCOUTING REPORT
No. 6 Michigan practically leads the Big Ten Conference in every statistic, including batting (.303) and ERA (0.62). The Wolverines are tied for the top spot with Northwestern; both are 13-1 in the league.
The Wolverines have won 12-straight games, nine of which were league contests. They last lost to Iowa, 2-1, on April 4.
Michigan hulers Jordan Taylor and Nikki Nemitz split time on the mound, and have a combined 387 strikeouts this year. Together, they have given up not a single triple and have walked only 44 batters.
At the plate, Samantha Findlay paces the Wolverines with her .378 batting average, while Alessandra Giampaolo leads the team with 53 hits. As a team, Michigan is out-hitting its opponents 246-49.

cstv.com

How they came
A history of South Asian migration to Canada:
• Mid-1800s: Indentured labourers from India go to Fiji, Mauritius, South Africa and the Caribbean to work in agriculture. Many South Asians in Canada can trace their lineage to these indentured workers.
• Between 1905 and 1908: Some 5,000 South Asians, mostly Punjabi Sikhs, arrive in B.C. to work on the railroad and in logging.
• 1960s and 1970s: After decades of prohibiting Asian and Indian immigration, Canada adopts a point selection system to assess prospective migrants based on employment skills, education and language ability.
• 1981: Census counts 223,000 South Asian Canadians.
• 2001: South Asian Canadian population jumps to 917,000, 47 per cent from India, followed by Sri Lanka (13 per cent) and Pakistan (12 per cent). Seventy per cent of South Asians settle in Toronto and Vancouver.
• 2006: South Asian population surpasses 1.26 million, topping Chinese for the first time as Canada’s largest visible minority group. More than half of them live in Greater Toronto.
When Jagdev Hansra and his wife Preetinder moved to Brampton from Punjab last July, they were unsure of what to expect. They had heard how difficult life was in Canada, about the cold weather and about the pitfalls of being so far from home.
Except that in Brampton, it looked a lot like home.
Instead of being part of a minority, they are part of what is a growing visible "majority" in some GTA suburbs. In the past five years, Brampton has seen the greatest change, with the percentage of visible minorities increasing from 40 to 57 – most being South Asians.
"It made it easier for us to settle," said Preetinder, who works in an auto-parts factory that employs mostly Punjabis.

thestar.com

The Costa Mesa City Council in Orange County, Calif., has taken a piece of parkland designated for additional tennis courts and directed that it instead be used to expand TeWinkle Park’s "large dog" area.
First off, we say a big paws up to the council.
Second off, we say … TeWinkle Park?
TeWinkle, it turns out, is the only park in Costa Mesa where dogs can play, socialize and, well, TeWinkle while off the leash.
That the "Bark Park" there, with its big dog area and its little dog area (also to be expanded, the council decided) could prevail over tennis in health-conscious sunny southern California, is another sign that, across America, dogs are coming a little closer to getting their day.
The council voted unanimously to direct the Parks and Recreation Commission to consider changes to the TeWinkle Park Master Plan, a change necessitated by the rapid growth of the dog park, which easily draws 1,000 people on a weekend day.
TeWinkle Park, by the way, is named after Charles W. TeWinkle, Costa Mesa’s first mayor.
To read the story in the Costa Mesa Daily Pilot, click here.
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John Woestendiek has been a features reporter at The Sun for six years. Previously he worked as a reporter, columnist, national correspondent and editor at four other newspapers, and received a Pulitzer Prize for investigative reporting in 1987 for his reporting on prisons and mental institutions for The Philadelphia Inquirer. Woestendiek lives in South Baltimore with his dog, Ace.

weblogs.baltimoresun.com

Home counseling centers are struggling to keep up with the demand for homeowner assistance after a flood of new foreclosures in Chicago during 2007, as indicated in just-released data by a local nonprofit community organizing agency.
Counselors say they are dealing with the consequences of loan products that took advantage of unsuspecting consumers in the housing market.
“We are swamped with people who are in trouble,” said Ofelia Navarro, executive director of the Spanish Coalition for Housing, a home counseling agency that serves many neighborhoods, including Logan Square and Humboldt Park. “A lot of the cases are difficult–they are upside down on their mortgage [payments], or don’t have the money to pay.”
The data, compiled by Chicago-based National Training and Information Center (NTIC), shows that Logan Square had the greatest percentage increase in foreclosures over other near west and near north side neighborhoods during 2006. Logan Square had a 108 percent increase in foreclosures to 210 in 2007 compared with101 in 2006.  The community ranked 14th out of 77 Chicago community areas in foreclosures.
West Town, which encompasses Wicker Park, Bucktown and Ukrainian Village also saw a huge  increase, up 87 percent in 2007 to 234, compared with the year-earlier period, placing 20th overall, accoding to the NTIC study. Humboldt Park had 57 percent more foreclosures, or 426,  ranking 39

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The Imaginationland three parter was an amazing achievement for South Park. Calling it a feature length movie may be a bit of a stretch, as it’s only 65 minutes long, but then those Disney straight to video sequels always got away with it, and they weren’t half as intelligent, hilarious or profound.
The three parts actually do play together as a whole story, not like the Family Guy: Stewie Griffin movie which was clearly just three loosely associated episodes. This Director’s Cut version claims to have new footage, but even with Trey and Matt pointing out a few extended conversations, I couldn’t tell. The main thing is that they unbleeped the F words, which they should be doing on all the seasonal collections anyway.
For some reason, this version is presented in widescreen. That kind of makes it more cinematic, but since it was produced for standard television, all that means is they’re cutting off the top and bottom. Anyway, it’s a great mini-movie and unbleeping it is cool.
It also features the longest commentary Trey Parker and Matt Stone have done since the first season. They make it about 47 minutes through before they peter out, which is a major improvement over their five minute mini-commentaries on most episodes. They’re down on themselves, but it’s so fun to hear them talk, whether relevant or not, it’s great they were pushed into doing this.

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