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Interest in organic food may not be all good
As the eating patterns in America shift towards healthier foods, the demand for natural and organic products is rising. No one wants to support the food industry using unnatural, cheap, and secretive methods to produce our country’s food. So people instead head for the foods that are produced by everyday people, the average ruralites more like them.

Holy inkwells
Many years ago, I made my first visit to the Illinois State Historical Library in its handsome but cramped new quarters beneath the Old State Capitol. Having time to kill while waiting for the staff to fetch me a book, I wandered up the stairs to the mezzanine that overlooked the reading room.

Republicans out of touch as middle class sinks
For example, who needs Jay Leno or Conan O’Brien for comic relief, when we’ve got Andre Bauer? He’s the lieutenant governor of South Carolina (a state, by the way, that really is a comer on the political comedy circuit — especially after Gov.

LETTERS
The Comptroller (Dan Hynes) only decides what bills he can pay with what revenues the Treasurer (Alexi Giannoulias) has actually collected. Not allowing the governor to borrow is being fiscally responsible.

lovepoem #7
I long to be back with pam hiking the cornwall coast the waves far below curling then crashing but there’s no pam to hike with anymore I long to be back with jessie amid the bluebells in the dorset lanes laughing at what her mum had to say on...

Pat Quinn’s amazing comeback
Every night before an election day, I spend four or five hours on the phone with people I trust asking what they think will happen. There are always a couple of races that will have them stumped, but I’ve never seen everybody perplexed about so many outcomes until the night before last week’s election.

CHILLY? TRY CHILI!
When you’re buried in snow, a hot bowl of chili goes a long way toward curing the winter blues. Springfield’s Sparc developmental disability advocates are holding their 21st annual Sugar and Spice Chili Dinner just in time to help bid winter an enthusiastic farewell.

LOVE SONGS AND LARGESSE
“I heard about the Hoogland’s financial situation, and since I’ve performed there, I decided to start this fundraiser to benefit them and the Red Cross Meals on Wheels program,” Tosh said. “I really love the Center. I think it’s important for any community to have that connection with the arts.

Throwing insurance reform out with the bath water
In a 4-2 decision released Feb. 4, the state’s highest court called the 2005 “tort reform” law unconstitutional under the state constitution’s separation of powers clause, saying the law took away the judicial branch’s authority to reduce award amounts – essentially a “legislative remittitur,” according to Chief Justice Thomas Fitzgerald.

Don’t just stand there, create a commission
When Illinois faces a problem or controversy, the solution is often to create a commission, task force or panel to study the issue. But many of the state’s numerous panels have multiple vacancies or no members at all, and the recommendations made by these panels are sometimes ignored for political reasons.

Composting digs deep into sustainability
Wes King, policy coordinator for the Stewardship Alliance, said he hopes people will leave the event with a better understanding of what they can do to promote local food and agriculture, whether it’s starting their own compost pile or purchasing organic produce.

High price for high schools
Students at Springfield High School squeeze into 93-year-old classrooms that were meant for their grandparents and great-grandparents’ generations. Even at four stories, the building lacks modern necessities like computer labs and art spaces.

Milton wants to pick low-hanging fruit
The superintendent of Springfield Public Schools told school board members recently that Matheny-Withrow Elementary School, 1200 S. Pope Ave., and Enos Elementary School, 524 Elliott Ave., could be replaced on their current sites using health/life safety bonds.

A yen for Yanni’s
My first was at the U of I campus town in Champaign back in the ’70s. The place was Zorba’s, a dark and dingy dive that smelled of stale beer and broiling meat. It was my first gyro. Waiting in line, I saw a cylinder of ground meat rotating slowly in front of a vertical broiler.

Movie times
PLEASE NOTE: Kerasotes listings are for Friday, Feb. 12 through Thursday, Feb. 18. Bracketed show times are Sat-Sun-Mon only matinees or Fri-Sat-Sun only late shows. All times are subject to change. For updates on Kerasotes films, call 1-800-FAN- DANGO. For reviews of other films, visit www.

Firth gives a singular performance in Ford’s Man
When designer Tom Ford was charged with pulling Gucci back from the brink of bankruptcy, he wasted no time reintroducing a sense of style and daring to the venerable fashion line. So, it should come as no surprise that he would take a similar approach when directing his debut film.

Mardi Gras and all
Slowly but surely the whoop-it-up holiday known around the world as Carnival season has taken hold in Springfield. Just a few years ago some hardy souls around town were determined to make a local annual party of this centuries-old, global celebration leading up to Lent.

PUB CRAWL
Submit calendar listings at www.illinoistimes.com.

BAND SPOTLIGHT
A world-class jazz vocalist and her equally celebrated bassist husband makes Valentine’s Day weekend a special event at Remy’s on Monroe. The Chicago-based couple entertains with a drummer and pianist filling out the band and your hosts at Remy’s promise hors d’oeuvres, champagne and strawberries plus roses for the ladies.

THE CALENDAR
Band of the Irish Guards - Royal Regiment of Scotland.

MUSIC
Hear and see the unique sounds and costumes of Celtic culture and pageantry as The Band of the Irish Guards and the pipes, drums and highland dancers of The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, 5th Battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland perform on stage at Sangamon Auditorium in their first U.

HISTORY
Several free programs are scheduled this week for Black History Month. Nationally known author/historian Marc Aronson discusses his book, Race: A History Beyond Black and White,.

HOLIDAY
Looking for something special to synchronize your beating hearts this Valentine’s Day? A scrumptious, intimate candlelight dinner followed by romantic music is planned by Gordon Productions and the Hoogland Center for the Arts.

PUBLIC NOTICES
NOTICE UNDER ASSUMED BUSINESS NAME ACT STATE OF ILLINOIS COUNTY OF SANGAMON TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN: Notice is hereby given that on 15th day of January, 2010 a Certificate of Ownership of business was filed in the Office of the County Clerk of Sangamon County, stating that MELANIE J.

WORKSHOPS
Promote your class, workshop or fundraiser here. Up to 30 words $10 per week; additional words .35 per word, per week. Contact your display ad rep OR email your ad (and contact info) to cenlow@illinoistimes.com.

NEWS QUIRKS
Police said Raul Gaucin-Valenzuela, 33, and a friend broke into a home in Evans, Colo., intending to beat up the friend’s ex-wife’s new boyfriend. The plan failed because the woman living there was baby-sitting Gaucin-Valenzuela’s two children, ages 8 and 11, who recognized their dad, even though a bandanna covered his face.

THE ADVICE GODDESS
I had a disturbing conversation with this older married woman at a party. She asked my boyfriend how long we’ve been together (two years). Before he went to get us drinks, he made a crack about how different our apartments are.

FIND LOCAL BIZ
Ask about our free private room for parties over 25. Choose from our regular menu or special buffet options. 787-5222. www.amberjackalehouse.com.