Summer entertainment limbo

DISPATCHES FROM

REBEL BASE ONE

Matt Sanders, editor of OFF Magazine, enjoys taking abuse from angry readers and disguising himself in public.

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So the Fourth of July is over, and with its passing comes two more months of blistering summer heat.

Well, that's the price you pay living in Southeast Missouri.

Of course, this being summer, there's not a whole lot of news on the entertainment beat. What will probably be regarded as the biggest local entertainment news has probably already passed -- a June packed with three concerts by big-name artists. Martina McBride, Tool and Merle Haggard, in that order, all performed at the Show Me Center during June. And as is expected in Southeast Missouri, McBride whipped the others by far.

Of course, rock 'n' roll fans like me were hoping for Tool's show to sell out, but it didn't even come close. The show was a good one, though, but I think the crowd was utterly confused whenever Melt Banana took the stage to open the night. If you haven't heard this Japanese noise-rock combo, check them out online or something. Warning: it's pretty weird.

Now that Tool has come and gone, I'm gearing up to see Queens of the Stone Age in Memphis. I bet that show WILL sell out. And if you haven't heard their new album, check it out.

Yes, things can get rather slow around Cape in the summertime. Right now we're sitting dead in the middle of the doldrums between the Fourth of July and the start of the SEMO District Fair. So what do you do when there's not much going on? You entertain yourself.

One way to do that is to take a little jaunt out to a winery. Here in Southeast Missouri we're lucky to have plenty of them to choose from within just a short drive: the Ste. Genevieve cluster, the Shawnee Hills Wine Trail in Southern Illinois and a few more scattered a bit more closely to Cape. I can't tell you they're all great, because I haven't been to them. All I know is what other people tell me, and I've never heard a bad word about any of them.

And, of course, there's always swimming. No better way to make your own entertainment that to chill out by the pool, jumping in every now and then for a quick cool off.

Isn't summer great?

Oh, by the way, you'll notice some shots of scantily clad women on the last page. Another mark of summer: the bikini. These photos were taken at Show-Me's recent bikini contest, and we included them just for your enjoyment. Hope you like 'em. Now here's OFF.