It's a hot summer afternoon and you're grooving to some outdoor music. Only one thing threatens to interrupt your plein-air pleasure: the increasing urge to pee. You tear yourself away from the tunes in search of relief, through mosquito-infested woods and past poison-ivy patches to a spot that no one else has yet discovered -- you hope.... Read more

BURLINGTON -- Guns don't belong in schools. And in the opinions of concerned parents Laurie Essig and Eric Hart, neither should the logos of companies that make them. General Dynamics, a Virginia-based weapons contractor with a division in Burlington, has been involved in recent litigation with parents and some school board members who feel the company should not openly brand products it donates to Burlington schools as part of the national "Reading is Fundamental" program.... Read more

(Self-released, CD)

Certain musical artists are gifted enough to produce all aspects of an album -- from writing and singing their own lyrics to playing all the necessary instruments. Trent Reznor kicked off his career in this fashion, and has since become one of the most recognizable names in modern rock.

While Reznor had a fully developed musical vision, however, all Aquadora offer is a series of unintelligible lyrics in an annoying falsetto, set to half-baked riffs and drumbeats.... Read more

You're driving along when you suddenly come upon an intersection where police officers have blocked off the road with cautionary cones, yellow tape and their cruisers' flashing lights.

Are they thwarting would-be terrorists? Hunting down a deranged axe murderer fleeing to Canada? No, they're cracking down on a much more common deviant: the driver who doesn't wear a seatbelt. You know, that strap next to your seat -- it's a safety harness, not a mechanism to keep your hair out of the way.... Read more