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If you missed Lynne Bruning's fashion show at Artopia, fear not. We have video! Yes, video shot by Vija Rogozina and featuring the extravaganza of black light, pasties, hot pants and fur coats. Meow!

During the run-up to the Grammy awards, local media types went on and on about various nominees with links to Colorado -- not just performers who still live in these parts, like members of the Fray, but also those reared here, such as India.Arie. But when it came to coverage of the Academy Awards, local journalists missed the opportunity to laud Lesley Chilcott (pictured), a onetime state resident who earned an Oscar for co-producing the Al Gore documentary An Inconvenient Truth.

A listing of Chilcott's professional accomplishments makes note of her work at MTV Networks, where she helped launch the MTV Movie Awards, as well as her efforts on behalf of the Detroit Project, described as "an action campaign that promotes hybrid and fuel-efficient vehicles." But years earlier, she attended Smoky Hill High School, where she was a friend of Westword photographer Mark Manger. He recalls her as being "bright, responsible and ambitious, but very down to earth."

Today, of course, the earth remains her focus -- but that doesn't mean she attended the Oscars wearing earth shoes. Indeed, Chilcott's wardrobe was critiqued on a live blog overseen by the scary duo of Joan and Melissa Rivers. The entry reads: "Lesley Chilcott's dress looks like the ocean -- in color and cut. Does anyone else picture waves when they look at her neckline?"

Talk about proof that Chilcott's hit the big time. Betcha the folks at Smoky Hill are mighty proud. -- Michael Roberts

The news business is about to get shaken up in a major way. There's an exciting new-fangled media technology hitting the streets, and it looks like it's all going down right here in Denver.

Boulder media consultant Amy Gahran has the scoop on the Poynter blog she edits, E-Media Tidbits. From the way she describes it -- scannable content, no need for cords or batteries, accessibility downright anywhere -- this is going to be big. Real big.

As soon as Westword's blog gets one of these gizmos, we're going to be huge. -- Joel Warner

I know, I know... this is twice in one week that I'm making fun of the New York Times (see "$115,000 Worth of Pointless Revenge" a few blogs below for my first shot at the Old Gray Lady), but I just couldn't let this one go without a comment.

In the February 25 Travel section, writer Michelle Auerbach gave a nice shout-out to Boulder, touching on the alleged sudden profusion of fine, earth-friendly restaurants popping up in the People's Republic. Mateo, Frasca (chef Lachlan Mackinnon-Patterson shown above), The Kitchen -- it was all the usual suspects, and that didn't bother me at all. What did bug me was Auerbach's contention that the Denver/Boulder area has only recently become worthy of notice and that this is all thanks to the relocation of people from New York and California to our fair state -- as if it is only the refined palates and deep pockets of the Coasties that could've possibly elevated the level of cuisine in our benighted culinary backwater and saved us poor testicle-eating, taco-loving, twig-and-berry-chewing hippie savages from our own baser desires.

We're midway through Denver Restaurant Week, and reports are coming in. Restaurant Kevin Taylor? Full to capacity. Barolo Grill? Booked solid. Luca d'Italia? Ditto. Owner Frank Bonanno (above) has said that he couldn't find a table for even his mother if she were to wander into Mizuna one night this week, hungry and looking for a break.

When DRW began, I was eating around the outside of the bona fide phenomenon that this annual event has become, visiting several restaurants that, for their own reasons, have chosen not to participate.

Pizza at the D Note in Arvada, sandwiches from Pat's #1, shrimp two ways and sweet-and-sour chicken from East China, a little barbecue, some corned beef hash and eggs, bagels from the Bagel Store -- all places where $52.80 could easily feed ten big hungry boys and where I (as just one big hungry boy) spent considerably less.

A February 23 blog concerned an admission by folks at the Greeley Tribune that they'd routinely published reports from other area newspapers under an Associated Press byline without going through the AP. The Trib's article about this practice noted that it had begun under the editorshop of Chris Cobler (pictured), who had recently been named the managing editor of Poynter Online, the Internet branch of the Poynter Institute, a Florida school that places an enormous emphasis on ethics.

Things have changed for Cobler since then. Today, Poynter's journalism-news page, overseen by Jim Romenesko, posted a memo from Poynter Online editor Bill Mitchell noting that Cobler would no longer be coming aboard.

In a recent Message column, television weather forecasters such as 9News' Kathy Sabine (pictured) spoke about the criticism they've received from many surly viewers simply because they had to report about two relentless months of unusually extreme weather. As noted in the piece, the overall accuracy of their long-range predictions actually added to the anxiety of some locals, since it gave them extra time to stress about the storms bearing down on them.

Well, those worries are over. None of the major TV seers expected a rather hefty snowfall that smacked the western suburbs and beyond on the evening of February 16, and most anticipated that the white stuff that's been falling across large swaths of the metro area since last night would be confined to the mountains. Judging by the tone of updates that aired last night, 7News' Mike Nelson didn't realize Denver proper was in for significant precip until mere hours before the first flakes were spotted here. And this morning, 9News' Nick Carter was in full defensive mode, complaining that there was lotsa snow in some sections of the city and none in others. "It's so easy to predict weather in Colorado," he grumbled, with maximum facetiousness.

Looks like the prognosticators' run of excellence is over. Back to coin-flipping. -- Michael Roberts

I'd been visiting this stretch for years, following chefs and menus and openings and closings in the rich yuppie/college kid/soccer-mom microcosm of South Gaylord Street. Baked goods, sushi, cheeseburgers, tacos, cold beers, warm sake, expensive wine. There was already plenty to do and plenty to eat. To me, Reiver's was just ancillary, an old-guard, storied but eminently missable landmark once popular among the coke-sniffles-and-Steely-Dan crowd, now slowly slipping into doddering senescence. And the only reason I ended up there a couple weeks back was because of a waiting list, a broken parking brake and an argument about plantains with my darling wife Laura. It was a lunch of last resort...

From last resort to love affair -- that's the course I'm charting this week with my review of the new and improved Reiver's. Further, I'm talking about restaurant neighborhoods and neighborhood restaurants, with news coming from the elder bastions of South Gaylord (BTW, comments are coming fast and furious regarding my review of Chi Bistro) and the side streets of Park Hill. (Come back here later today, or pick up the March 1 issue, to read all about it.) Welcome to Denver, folks, where the only constant is change.-- Jason Sheehan

Offense Report No: 07-100558
Date: 2-15-07
Type of Offense: Attempted Robbery/Unlawful Sexual Assault/Aggravated Assault
Location of Offense: Near City Park
Weapon/Tool Used: Penis

Getting robbed would really piss most people off, and although they say it's better to be pissed off than pissed on, one urinating bandit left his victim not sure which was worse two weeks ago.

It happened in an alley on 17th and Vine, when one woman was celebrating her 22nd birthday. An unknown 5-foot-10-inch, 200-pound Hispanic male wearing a Hooters ball cap, jeans and a black leather jacket ran up to her, demanding her wallet and cash. When the victim refused, the suspect threw her onto the ground and peed on her, then kicked her twice.

Deb Henriksen at Equillibrium just pinged and said that there are photos of the Artopia fashion show over here. It's a great collection of behind the scenes stuff and actual runway images for both Fabric Lab and Equillibrium. More to come later.

If you missed Artopia this year, you missed one hell of a party. At least up on the roof. Except for presenting our annual MasterMind Awards — $4,000 checks to five of the city's emerging cultural innovators — Cat never left the fourth floor.

The Fabric Lab, Equillibrium, Lynne Brunning, Mister Neats and Betsey Johnson all put on full-press productions. In particular Cat was impressed with our local girls for all the showmanship, passion and effort the obviously put into their shows.

How seriously is Colorado Rep. Tom Tancredo's bid for the presidency being taken in his home state? As judged by a recent Tancredo controversy that appears to have been widely overlooked by mainstream media types in Colorado, not very.

During a February 23 appearance on CNN's Anderson Cooper 360, Tancredo denied ever suggesting that if the America was bombed by Muslim extremists, U.S. officials should consider taking out Mecca in order to send a message to terrorists. In fact, Tancredo said something very much like that, according to an Associated Press article from 2005 that's still lingering on the Fox News website. Here's the key portion of that report:

Engineering a second act is looking much more difficult for cast members of Real World: Denver, who have already started slumming for gigs like professional Hollywood burnouts.

The show, which completed filming last fall, is still airing with episodes that are somehow becoming more inane and boring with each consecutive meltdown. Perhaps the most entertaining thing about the whole affair (aside from Westword's Fake Real World prank, which can be accessed here and here) is observing John Wenzel of the Denver Post opine on the Get Real Denver blog. While most of us media observers are in it for the kitsch, Wenzel has cultivated a pure, unironic hatred of the show ever since he was labeled a "stalker" by the MTV crew for snapping photos of the cast while they were out boozing in LoDo. This inspired Wenzel to script a comic strip that seemed less playful and more venomous than perhaps his editors intended, leaving many observers, uh, kinda confused.

Denver Restaurant Week, Day 2. A report by Amy Haimerl:

I have a new culinary love. Not fois grae, not sweetbreads, not chili-infused chocolate or any of the other delicacies I've had the good fortune of trying while dining with Jason Sheehan and my other foodie friends. No, this is something more simple, more pure -- proletariat,even. Celery root puree.

From the moment I took a bite of Duo's slow-cooked pork with celery root puree and broccoli rabe, I knew I'd be back often. I'm one of those people who gets a taste for something and then eats only that for meals on end. I've gone through my pork-fried rice from Min Min phase, and my green chile from Tacos Jalisco phase, and even a chicken Peshwari from the British Bulldog phase.

Now it's a celery root puree from Duo phase. Imagine the most perfect plate of mashed potatoes and then multiply its perfection by ten. Hell, increase its perfection by a power of twenty. It's that good. Same texture, yet smoother and lighter. Same taste, yet slightly sweeter. Same ideal foundation for heavy dishes like the pulled pork, but without the heaviness and carb overload. I'll be hitting the trusty Food and Wine website looking for recipes to perfect this delicacy for myself.

The asparagus soup with saffron cr�me fraiche and green olive tapenade, also served as part of the Denver Restaurant Week menu, were also palate-pleasers. And while I loved my pulled pork, my partner actually preferred his escolar. That's sacrilege on the alter of the celery root puree, I say.

And I'm ready to worship. -- Amy Haimerl

In "Just 24, Another Goes Too Young," published on February 26, Denver Post sports columnist Mark Kiszla wrote about Denver Broncos backup runner Damien Nash, who died shortly after participating in a charity basketball game. Along the way, Kiszla mentioned the New Year's Day passing of another Bronco, cornerback Darrent Williams, whose murder under what appears to be gang-related circumstances constituted another tragedy for the team. In addition, he included some lines that might be interpreted as a dig at Rocky Mountain News scribe Dave Krieger, the subject of this week's Message column thanks to his efforts to raise the profile of Denver's gang problem using an unlikely platform: the sports section.

Here's the key passage in Kiszla's offering: