GET INTO THE CELLAR This week's local plug is for my favorite wine shop in town, River City Cellars on Cary Street. I think my affection goes back to the early 90s when Mary Sweezey was working at Integral Yoga Co-op with Peter, who is now winning people over with his quick smile and on-target wine. Plus, they have beer tastings every Thursday and wine tastings every Friday. Go, Speed Racer, go!

KISS OF THE SPIDER WOMAN INDEED A friendly review of the Richmond Triangle Players' latest production spotlights an old friend who sidelines as a manager of a local club, but since he goes by his acting name (they always have an acting name) in this production, I'll assume he wants to be anonymous. But, he was pleased enough to be called the star of the show. Too pleased, in fact. It runs through May 4, which is probably when I'll go see it. Call me if you want to tag along.

DAMNED GAIJIN SELL-OUTS Click on the link for "sold out" and see the American stars who wouldn't dream of being seen hawking crap on the streets of Denver, but get all giddy when asked to sell, oh say, Roots coffee drink in Tokyo. Pretty amusing. Sometimes we forget that there's an entire world of products out there needing to be shoved down people's throats. (The link to Sold Out is courtesy of My Blue House, a weblog maintained by an amusing mother-cum-lawyer who lives in France.

QUISP REDUX "Quisp were those little golden flying saucers of sweet crunchy corn, pitched on tv by a pink, propeller-hatted space guy in cartoons by Jay Ward, the creator of Bullwinkle. Quisp and Quake (a competing cereal) fought mercilessly for kid's attention in quazy cartoon combat..."

CEREAL OF MY YOUTH If you stopped sucking your thumb after about 1975, you might not even have a cultural memory of Quisp cereal or of the little alien-monster fingerpuppets that were the featured toy in the cereal boxes during the early 1970s. Obviously, I was a little surprised to see that Quisp is making a comeback, and that you can order it online. After you order my case of Smints, you can get some cereal for me. How's that for retro-fresh?

WHY POLLEN MAKES US BITTER So, let's start with the facts: Allergists says a pollen count of 90 is high. The current pollen count is, is in the neighborhood of, oh... 2,500!!! It's all downhill from there. But, in my own self-interested way, I rejoice. For I remain relatively unafflicted. For the first time in my life. It must be the karma...

SHAMELESS LEE HARRIS PROMOTION GOES HERE
Yes, Lee Harris, king of rock, has finally released his new CD and he's whori... selling it at MP3. com, which always makes me think of MC5's "Kick out the jams, muthahfu**ah." But that is neither here nor there. Stop by and peruse, and if you're really lonely, visit Lee's permanent home.

SMINT IT! If you love me, you will buy a box of Smints and mail them to me. They're only 30.10 Euros for a box of 24 containers, which is a heck of a lot less than they cost at Heathrow. Check out the UKs best mint in the smart little dispenser at this interactive, colourful website. I like the lemon and the mint best, by the way. Cheerio!

EARL AND THAT FANCY BANJO Take a trip down Foggy Mountain and wish you were in Dayton this weekend. If you thought bluegrass was invented just last year by those crazy Coen brothers, you were almost right within 70 years or so. Earl Scruggs: a better man than Ralph Stanley? The critics answer.

Bin Laden, Back on the Air (washingtonpost.com) That Howard Kurtz, always dancing on a dime. He presents a good media round-up of the news that Osama bin Laden is alive and well. But buried within his piece is this: "He really does seem like a figure from another era, so deeply have we been immersed in the Mideast instead of Aghanistan." It's easy to forget, as we blithely talk about our jihad against terror, just how different these regions are -- in the world of snapshot news and headline writing, a Moslem is a Muslim is a Islamic fanatic. But that's like saying a German Catholic and a Catholic from San Francisco are alike. The Mideast is not Afghanistan is not Singapore. Thus ends the lesson. Read the link anway. It's good learnin'.

GERMANY'S THROWING A GREEN PARTY Sometimes we forget that the produce we buy in stores in the U.S. has been liberally tossed with pesticides, hormones and chemicals; the meat has been raised in brutal, disgusting conditions; or that the drinks are laced with chemicals and additives. And sometimes we remember. Which is usually when I start wishing I lived in Europe, where the minimal standards for organic and "bio" food are the norm, not the "pay twice the price" exception. Then I go back to my apple with its shiny wax coating designed to heighten my appreciation for it, and to keep the alar from washing off.

MATT, HAVE YOU SEEN THIS Hello, everyone else. This is me being too lazy to email Matt. Also, some of you might be into Perl and CGI and what have you. Moveable Type is a content management system for websites, folks. But I don't have version 5.004 of Perl, so I can just admire it from afar. Which is probably better for me.

BET YOUR BOTTOM DOLLAR THAT TOMORROW The Sun will come out. They New York Sun, I mean. Yes, tomorrow, New York will get its fourth daily and this one is a rightward tilting ship. The Sun promises to focus on less sexy issues (no nude photos of Donna Hanover!) and focus more on NY than the city's flagship paper. In 12 hours, we'll know. P.S. - Does anyone else think that Richmond needs a good tabloid trash rag?

MORE FUN THAN THE CIRCUS Yes, One Ring Zero has their own website -- and they're going to be playing to the masses at the Knitting Factory in NYC on April 26 at 11:30 p.m. The group, featuring the squeezable Mike Hearst and friends, play cacophonic sounds bolstered by the zoopy looping groans of the claviola. You can order their CD, listen to their music or "meet the band" while you're on the site. Hey, the New Yorker magazine loves them. You might, too.

THE ROSETTA PROJECT You're thinking: Why should I click that link? Well, because it's cool. The Rosetta Project is designed to save the world's dwindling languages (which are vanishing, incidentally, faster than whales or the ozone layer). Sad pessimists think that 90% of the world's languages are going to vanish before you or I do. This project is attempting to catalogue more than 1,000 individual languages. I bookmarked the concept page for your pleasure -- scroll down and follow links to the seven components. I think the detailed descriptions section is pretty fab. Merde!

FREEDOM OF SPEECH There's at least one thing to love about this country: organized protests NOT designed to bring down our government. Washington is bracing for days of protests this week, as reported by the Washington Post: "The World Bank and International Monetary Fund will have annual meetings, representatives of the G-7 group of leading industrialized countries are meeting as well, about 800 federal judges will assemble for a conference, at least four protest marches are planned, and Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is scheduled to be in town for a public appearance. The protesters are expected to rally against globalization, war, racism and U.S. foreign policy in Colombia -- and to line up on one side or the other in the current Middle East crisis." Now, if only the police can go easy with the batons, and the kids can keep from setting fire to the Dupont Circle MacDonald's...

GAS-POWERED POLITICS Back to the realm of world affairs, but now with a focus on instability in Venezuela, which continues to teeter on an amazing brink of ever-changing events, as this Washington Post piece notes. Since the article, more protests have been launched, this time commemorating a 1989 massacre. Behind the curtain, lots of questions about U.S. efforts that have contributed to the current crisis -- Chavez is not much-loved in the Bush White House, thanks to his friendship with Uncle Fidel, his outspoken stance on the "war on terrorism" and his refusal to allow U.S. military overflights of Venezuelan airspace to combat drug running in Columbia. Look for rising fuel costs as our number four supplier continues to teeter.

POP ART AND PLYWOOD Well, most of you have gotten one or two of Steve's paintings thrust into your hands as a gift from me in recent years. Steve has painted some 70,000 pieces of art in the past decade, most on 8x8 pieces of plywood that he then cuts down into wall-sized art. It's bright and choppy, and grows on you even if you don't love it at first sight. And the prices range from $8 to $10 per piece. I usually order in bulk.

MURAL MANIA Today must be Art Day, so point your browser to Ed Trask's site. Ed is responsible for many of the murals you see around Richmond as you careen up Main Street, and he is also responsible for Egg Gallery and can be seen (or heard) in several local bands. But, above all, he's a fine painter. Browse his online gallery, or follow the links to dozens of other Richmond artists.