SND STL - The Society for News Design 2011 conference in St. Louis, Missouri

Are you ready to rock SND STL? It’s going to be a blast! As you’re packing up and getting ready to make your trip, below is a gaggle of important and valuable links you might be able to use:

WEATHER LOOKS GREAT, PACK A JACKET OR SWEATER FOR THE EVENINGS THOUGH
This weekend is looking pretty nice — 70s and sunny during the day! Maybe bring a light coat or sweatshirt for the late evenings, lots of bars and restaurants on Washington Ave. (the popular entertainment district the hotel is next to) have nice outdoor patios and the City Museum has the “MonstroCity” creation that is outdoors too.
CARDINALS PLAYOFF AND/OR TIE-BREAKER TICKETS
Yes, the Cards are on the cusp of making it into the playoffs by snagging the other wildcard spot from the Atlanta Braves. Here are details about the tickets and when the games might be if the moons align (and they are after so far the Cards beat Houston on Tuesday and Atlanta lost) to Philadelphia). You can buy tickets here (good seats are still available as of Tuesday night).
WEAR COMFORTABLE CLOTHES TO THE OPENING RECEPTION
Speaking of the City Museum, if you want to get the full experience, wear comfortable clothes and shoes to the opening reception. There’s all sorts of fun things to climb, slide and play on at the City Museum.
HOTEL DETAILS
Hopefully, you’ve already secured accommodation because the hotel is PACKED this weekend, but if you need an address or want to scope it out we’ve included the info in this list.
METROLINK LIGHT RAIL
This offers a super easy and cheap way to get to the hotel from the airport, as well as connect with other public transport to get around the area and see other neighborhoods.
DOWNTOWN TROLLEY
This is a great way to get to the Opening Reception at The City Museum if you are running late or don’t want to walk the 8 blocks, or around downtown and Washington Ave., in general.
HOTEL LAYOUT & REGISTRATION DESK
Yes, getting to the registration desk involves tunnel. It’s not as crazy as it sounds, there’s a ‘hotel’ building and a ‘conference/concorse’ building. Make sure you review this map to avoid the snake pit though.
LOCAL FOOD, DRINK, ENTERTAINMENT & SND STL MAP
We’ve build a very handy travel/logistics/food/drink details and posted it to the site digitally (this will be included in the print program guide, but you might want to check it out beforehand to get your bearings).
SAVE YOUR DIGITAL SCHEDULE
For real, bookmark this on your mobile device: http://schedule.sndstl.com You can also create an account and customize, save and share your own personal schedule with friends. Or stalk your future employer and what they’re going to!
FOURSQUARE LIST OF SND STL LOCATIONS & TIPS
I’ve created a recommended list of 33 food, drink and area attractions (including the train stops to get to the hotel, opening reception, pub crawl, trivia night and happy hour locations, as well as dozens of more favorites). The number 33 is selected in honor of SND STL being SND’s 33rd annual convention. Thanks to Bill Couch for suggesting this!
MORE ST. LOUIS INFO/TRIVIA/FACTS/BACKGROUND THAN YOU COULD EVER WANT
If you need some light reading for your flight, Instapaper some of our local guide info: http://sndstl.com/category/blog/st-louis/ We have oodles of interesting info about the city, attractions, culture and more — we’re even teaching people from here things they didn’t know. It might also save you from burning the roof of your mouth on a certain popular St. Louis food. (You’ll have to read the guides to find out which one to watch out for though.)
SERIOUSLY, READ CHARLES APPLES’ SND STL GUIDE
Print it out, Instapaper it, just do it. There’s lots of good networking and logistical tips to prepare you for SND STL (or any conference) .
HASHTAG & SOCIAL MEDIA
#sndstl everywhere! There will be a gaggle of people posting to Twitter (especially to twitter.com/sndstl for breaking conference news updates) as well as and to Facebook, Vimeo, Youtube, Flickr and Storify. Please join in and share your thoughts, photos/vids/tidbits or follow the stream. You can also follow the Twitter list of SND STL speakers (or at least about 64% of them).
REST UP TONIGHT AND ON YOUR FLIGHT OR RIDE HERE!
We have a bunch of exciting events in the Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings, so get ready to party and network until the early morning. Many bars in St. Louis don’t close until 3 a.m. (And across the river some don’t close at all.) So get some sleep, pack some Red Bull and get ready to enjoy an amazing event we’ve worked really hard pulling together.

If you have any other questions or need anything, holler at me @Journerdism or @SNDSTL and I’ll do the best I can do to help. We’ll see you soon!

A few pieces of STL fun (15, to be exact)

Sara Bondioli — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 15:10:54 +0000

Urban Chestnut Brewing Co. is one of the newer breweries in Missouri.

5 Fun Facts

St. Louis City vs. St. Louis County: St Louis City seceded from the county in the 1870s, becoming an independent city. Outside of Virginia (where the state constitution incorporates all cities as independent cities), only three independent cities existed as of 1990: St. Louis, Baltimore, Md., and Carson City, Nev.
Where’d you go to high school?: With lots of private Catholic school sprinkled around the region and various neighborhood schools, St. Louisans tend to ask this question when meeting someone for the first time. (Even if they’re 40 years past their teenage glory days.)
St. Louis accent: It might not be as obvious as hearing a Chicago, New York or South Carolina accent, but some St. Louisans have a noticeable lilt. Words to listen for: “farty” (as in Highway 40), “warsh” (as in washing the dishes) and “fark” (that utensil you eat with).
Breweries everywhere: St. Louis was once crammed with breweries — and it still has quite a few! Some historians estimate the city had 40 to 50 breweries at one point in the mid-19th century. For example, in 1889, 18 St. Louis breweries merged to form the St. Louis Brewing Association. Today, St. Louis’ most famous brewery is Anheuser-Busch. But it supports a number of microbreweries as well. (Perhaps you’ll have some time to appreciate the beer culture while you’re in town?)
A neighborly state: Missouri is tied with Tennessee for the U.S. state bordering the most other states. (Each shares lines with eight.) Missouri borders: Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska and Iowa.

Chuck Berry still plays at venue Blueberry Hill once a month.

5 People to Know

Nelly: If you’ve heard Nelly’s songs, you probably know he’s from the Lou (and he’s proud). He formed the St. Lunatics while in high school here (University City High School, that is). Nelly once owned a bar, Skybox, on Laclede’s Landing. It has since closed, but he announced recently that he is teaming up with Vatterott College to open a music recording school in the space.
Jon Hamm: Yep, Don Draper himself grew up in St. Louis (and went to John Burroughs High School).
Chuck Berry: The Father of Rock ‘n’ Roll was also born in St. Louis. With hits such as “Johnny B. Goode,” “Roll Over, Beethoven” and “Memphis,” Berry still plays at Blueberry Hill (on the Loop) once a month. (Berry’s next gig there is on Oct. 12.) He is honored along the St. Louis Walk of Fame in that neighborhood, along with more than 100 others who were born or spent formative or creative time in the area, including Maya Angelou, Jack Buck, T.S. Eliot and Albert Hirschfeld.
Jack Dorsey: Yep, Dorsey (this one — not SND President Steve Dorsey, though we know he could do it) founded Twitter AND grew up in STL. (He went to Bishop DuBourg High School.)
“The Office” actresses: NBC’s “The Office” is chock full of St. Louisans. Pam, Phyllis and Erin are all from the area. Jenna Fischer (Pam) was raised in St. Louis and went to Nerinx Hall High School, an all-girls Catholic school in the suburb of Webster Groves. Phyllis Smith (Phyllis) went to Cleveland High School (which no longer exists) in St. Louis. She is a former St. Louis Cardinals cheerleader. Ellie Kemper (Erin) is another St. Louisan and went to John Burroughs High School.

St. Louis' Mardi Gras celebration is one of the largest in the nation.

5 Things to Do

Mardi Gras: OK, maybe not during this trip. But if you want to come back, do it Feb. 18, 2012, when the Mardi Gras festivities will take over the Soulard neighborhood of St. Louis. The celebration is recognized as one of the biggest in the country.
The Hill: This Italian neighborhood is home to many Italian grocers, bakeries and restaurants. Yogi Berra and Joe Garagiola Sr. both grew up in this neighborhood.
Ted Drewes: This frozen custard stand has been serving the cold treat in St. Louis since 1930. If you have time, swing by and order a concrete.
Fox Theatre: This elaborate theater opened in 1929 as a silent theater and live performance space. Through the years, many famous acts, ranging from Nat King Cole to Frank Zappa, performed here. “The Addams Family” musical is current playing. Upcoming shows include Chris Tucker and Tony Bennett.
Peabody Opera House: The venue, formerly the Kiel Opera House, was just remodeled and will hold its grand opening Oct. 1, headlined by Aretha Franklin and Jay Leno. Wilco will play a sold-out show on Oct. 4.

The best of the rest of St. Louis neighborhoods

Sara Bondioli — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 15:10:20 +0000

The Loop in University City is one of many neighborhoods that are perfect for a night out.

The SND conference is focused around Washington Avenue so you can walk to the events and bars. But if you have more time to get out and about in St. Louis, here are some great neighborhoods to explore.

Laclede’s Landing

This tourist destination is a short walk from Washington Avenue. The area is by the riverfront, between the Gateway Arch and Lumiere Place casino. Expect to run into more than a few bachelorette parties if you spend a weekend night in this area. The Old Spaghetti Factory is a popular dinner spot. For sushi, visit the Drunken Fish. When it’s party time, hit The Big Bang dueling piano bar, which is always hopping. Morgan Street Brewery offers food and drinks downstairs, a bar and pool tables upstairs and a back patio area. On weekends, walk through the back patio to the back building and you’ll find a rocking dance floor.

Soulard

This neighborhood located south of downtown and Busch Stadium is the location of the city’s Mardi Gras celebration. But you can find plenty of places to eat and drink the rest of the year, too. To get there, you’ll need to drive or take a short cab ride. Tucker’s Place is an excellent steak joint. McGurk’s Irish Pub has good food and drinks with live music seven nights a week (often brought in from Ireland). It has an authentic pub feel inside and two bars in its large outdoor area. Another place for food and drink is Molly’s, which includes a bistro and bar buildings and serves a French-Creole-Louisisana menu. The Shanti is a laidback atmosphere with a large outdoor area. If it’s beer selection you’re looking for, try iTap, with its 40 taps and 500 beers.

For a more eclectic and island atmosphere, visit Venice Cafe, a mostly outdoor bar near Soulard. (Be sure to hit an ATM first; this place is cash-only.)

South Grand/Tower Grove

South Grand, also a drive or short cab ride away, has many food options, including City Diner, LemonGrass Vietnamese, Al Waha Afghani and Bedouin cuisine, and Mojo tapas restaurant. Mangia offers great Italian food and a bar. CBGB is a cash-only dive (and one of the few places in St. Louis where you can still smoke in the bar). Urban is the place to go for freshly muddled drinks.

Just down Arsenal Street, you’ll find Riley’s, a neighborhood pub with St. Louis-style pizza and often live music.

In the other direction are more establishments, including The Royale (a neighborhood bar with a great outdoor space), Tin Can Tavern (a bar that specializes in canned beer) and Three Monkeys (great for a drink or wood-fired pizza — or the Sunday brunch buffet).

Central West End

This hip area between downtown and Forest Park is a great place for dinner and drinks and is accessible by Metro or cab. Check out Duff’s for dinner. You can catch a show at the Chase Park Plaza Cinemas. (While you’re there, sneak a peek at the ritzy hotel or sip a drink at the hotel’s Cafe Eau.) Afterward, grab a drink at the trendy SubZero Vodka Bar. (Sit at the ice bar!) For someplace a bit more laidback, try Dressel’s. If wine, scotch and a cigar is more your speed, visit Brennan’s. Then check out Club Viva for some Latin dancing. Salsa, anyone?

University City

U. City, just outside the St. Louis city limits, is home to the Delmar Loop (often called just “The Loop”). This shopping and dining area is accessible via Metro or cab. You can catch a movie at the Tivoli Theatre or a show at Blueberry Hill or The Pageant. Fitz’s is famous for its root beer, and Cicero’s has a good selection of grown-up beer. Pin-Up Bowl lets you sip a cocktail while you knock over some pins. Pi Pizzeria also has a location on this stretch. The area also offers some stellar shopping options. Check out TAG (for vintage clothes), Vintage Vinyl (for new and used music) or Subterranean Books (an independent bookstore).

Across the river

OK, this area is really only good for a couple things. One, we mentioned in our 7 Deadly Sins post (under lust). The other is almost as seedy. If you want to party late — we mean, really late (after the downtown bars close at 3 a.m.) — you’ll want to head over to Pop’s in Sauget, Ill. This “nightclub and concert venue” on the East side does host concerts — sometimes quite good ones. (Upcoming shows include Taking Back Sunday and Panic! At the Disco.) But mostly the draw is its hours — open 24 a day, that is. With that comes the expected sticky floors and crappy beers. But for entertaining people-watching, this establishment gets a full five stars. (It’s especially useful for those wanting to drink for a while after putting the paper to bed.) You’ll need to drive or take a cab to get here.

Forest Park and the 1904 World's Fair

Sara Bondioli — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 20:32:22 +0000

Crowds gather in front of the Illinois Building at the 1904 World's Fair to watch the arrival of Illinois Gov. Richard Yates.

The 1904 World’s Fair was held in St. Louis, centered on Forest Park (one of country’s largest urban parks — larger than New York’s Central Park), and remnants of the fair can still be seen today. (Check out this map.)

The fair was originally scheduled for 1903 to celebrated the centennial of the Louisiana Purchase and was also known as the Louisiana Purchase Exposition. The celebration was pushed back a year because of delays in construction and the delivery of exhibits. In preparation for the fair, Forest Park was transformed from thickets and swamps into a great landscaped exhibition area. (See the official guide.)

(The 1904 Olympic Games were also held in St. Louis but were overshadowed by the fair.)

The St. Louis Art Museum is one of the only permanent buildings from the World's Fair. Art Hill, in front of the museum, is a popular sledding spot for St. Louisans.

Many buildings were constructed for the fair, though the only one meant to be a permanent structure was the Palace of Fine Arts, which now houses the St. Louis Art Museum.

The Smithsonian Flight Cage from the World’s Fair still stands as well and is part of the St. Louis Zoo in Forest Park. Visitors can walk through the huge flight cage to view the cypress swamp and birds now on display there. (Note: If you visit the zoo, be sure to check out Penguin & Puffin Coast!)

Also, some of the buildings under construction at the new and nearby Washington University were leased for use by the World’s Fair. For example, the fair’s Administration Building is in what is now Brookings Hall.

In the time the fair was open, from April to December, about 20 million people visited the grounds.

Fun facts about the 1904 World’s Fair:

The ice cream cone, iced tea and the hot dog were invented before the World’s Fair, but they became popular at the 1904 fair.
Dr Pepper may have made its national debut at the 1904 fair.
The first successful run of a dirigible airship occurred.
The fair covered 1,272 acres and was more than twice the size of the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair.
The X-Ray machine, baby incubator and electric typewriter debuted at the 1904 World’s Fair.

Want some more World’s Fair fun? Try this quiz on World’s Fair food.

Other attractions in Forest Park today include:

Jewel Box greenhouse
Muny outdoor theater
St. Louis Science Center
Missouri History Museum
As well as numerous biking and jogging paths, a golf course, a tennis center and an ice skating rink (in the winter).

Learn more about the history of St. Louis.

RIP Bob Cassilly, St. Louis innovator, artist, entrepreneur, founder of The City Museum

Will Sullivan — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 18:13:32 +0000

City Museum founder Bob Cassilly perched atop the iconic praying mantis perched atop the City Museum

We regret to inform you that the world lost an amazing artist and entrepreneur today, Bob Cassilly, the founder of The City Museum. It was reported this morning that he was found dead from a bulldozer accident at one of his new creations-in-progress, Cementland.

On Thursday at the SND STL opening reception, you’ll get to experience one of his remarkable creations and one of the greatest man-made attractions in the world. Hopefully his work will inspire you as it has us, and the countless visitors from around the world.

Here’s a sampling of photos, video and more:

City Museum photo gallery

Bob Cassilly photo gallery

Bob Cassilly and public art photo gallery

Bob Cassilly discussing City Museum rooftop additions

360-panorama from the top of the City Museum

The view from the Gateway Arch

Sara Bondioli — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 05:41:25 +0000

St. Louis’ most recognizable sight is the Gateway Arch. The 630-foot arch along the Mississippi River was designed by architect Eero Saarinen and built in the 1960s. It commemorates Thomas Jefferson and the city’s role in the country’s westward expansion and is operated by the National Park Service as part of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial.

The distance between the outer sides of the triangular legs at the bottom of the arch also measures 630 feet. The arch is a catenary curve, meaning the shape (upside down) is the shape that would be formed by a chain hanging from two supports. (If there are any math geek designers out there, check out the mathematical formula behind the arch.)

A trip to the base of the arch offers plenty of photographic opportunities, and entry to the base of the arch is free. The Museum of Westward Expansion and some theaters are located beneath the arch. Hours are 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

A trip to the top of the arch takes visitors on a four-minute narrated tram/elevator ride up the leg of the arch to the observation area with windows in the top span of the structure. Tickets are $10 for adults.

The theaters beneath the arch show “Monument to the Dream,” a look at the construction of the monument, and “Lewis and Clark: Great Journey West,” a documentary about the Louisiana Purchase. Tickets to each film are $7 for adults.

Old Courthouse
Near the Gateway Arch (and prominent in many photos of the monument) is the Old Courthouse, (also part of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial) famous as the site where slaves Dred and Harriet Scott sued for their freedom — the first two trials for that case (1847 and 1850) were held here. And Virginia Minor’s trial for a woman’s right to vote in the 1870s was also held here. At one time, slaves were auctioned from the front stairs of the building. (These were re-enacted in January 2011 as part of the Civil War sesquecentennial.)

The Old Courthouse went out of use in 1930 as the city had outgrown the space. Today, two restored courtrooms can be viewed on the second floor along with other exhibits about Dred Scott and the history of the area.

Entrance to the courthouse is free, and the building is open 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Citygarden
Also downtown near the Old Courthouse is Citygarden, a downtown park with sculptures, video art, plants and fountains. It’s a great place to lunch outside! Citygarden is free to visit and is open from sunrise to 10 p.m.

Walking Tours
To explore downtown St. Louis on your own, consider printing out a map for an architecture tour or visual arts tour.

Helicopter Tours
If you want to go a little more high-class, you can take a helicopter tour of St. Louis. Tours start at $35 per person (with a minimum of two people and maximum of three) and are available from 11 a.m. to sunset. Reservations are not required, and the office is located below the Gateway Arch Grand Staircase.

Riverboat Cruises
Another option is to take a cruise on the Mighty Mississippi River. One-hour sightseeing tours are $14 per adult and tell about the history of the riverfront, Mississippi River, Gateway Arch and historic sites. Reservations are required, and boats leave from the levee below the Gateway Arch. Book online or call 1-877-982-1410 for information and reservations.

Or perhaps the Oktoberfest Cruise is more your style. At $38 per adult, the cruise runs 1-3 p.m. Sunday and includes a buffet of German food and a live German band. Book online or call 1-877-982-1410 for information and reservations.

Find a walking route to the Gateway Arch or other downtown attractions with our Washington Avenue & Downtown Guide.

MoBar: a journalism (drinking) institution

Sara Bondioli — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 16:03:05 +0000

View Larger Map

“Those were the days …”

A proper newspaper town (such as St. Louis was, which once had a number of competing morning and afternoon papers) must have a proper newspaper bar. A few have floated around Tucker Avenue just north of Washington Avenue, an area that was home to the old Globe-Democrat and is still the site of the Post-Dispatch newsroom.

The one that remains is Missouri Bar & Grille, also called MoBar (701 N. Tucker Blvd.). When I solicited stories that made MoBar, well, MoBar, from Post-Dispatch veterans, I got a lot of the same comments: “Those were the days.”

MoBar began as a hangout for Globe-Democrat journalists, while the Post-Dispatch had a bar across the street from it called The Press Box.

An Terry Ganey was an Associated Press reporter in the 1970s and worked out of both the Post-Dispatch and Globe-Democrat offices. He says Globe staffers would frequent Missouri Bar & Grille after the deadline for the morning paper.

“Sometimes, people would drink at the Grill until it closed, and then they would buy a six-pack there and drink beer on the sidewalk in front of the place until the wee hours of the morning,” Ganey adds. He recalls a city editor from the Globe “chewing out a reporter at the Grill when he found out the reporter didn’t subscribe to his own newspaper.”

When The Press Box closed, P-D employees shifted to Missouri Bar & Grille.

“Mostly, I remember going there on the day the Globe-Democrat announced that it was folding,” longtime Post-Dispatch reporter Harry Levins says. “Along the bar, any sense of rivalry died along with the Globe.”

“There were two Greek brothers (Ernie and – heck, I cannot remember the darling one) who presided over the Mo. Grill and took it in stride when a member of the sports department had a canoe stretching across several tables for weeks, as I remember,” says Sally Bixby Defty, another former Post-Dispatch employee. “There were stringent social standards: fifth floor people (news, features, sports) socialized together or with printers. NOBODY socialized with the (despised) advertising types from the sixth floor.”

Repps Hudson, a former reporter, recalls that MoBar is where the publisher met with newsroom staff over the course of months to hear complaints about the editor, which resulted in the editor being fired.

Tony Lazorko is a former art director at the Post-Dispatch. His major memory of MoBar is an evening when journalists downed six rounds of Schnapps shooters “and went behind the bar to ‘assist’ a young lady who had a whip to keep people in line.” One of the journalists thought the crowd was getting out of line, so he took the whip. “In the ensuing mayhem of snapping whip and people trying get outta the way, every table and its contents came crashing down on the floor. The two young owners came out of the back room to see what the ruckus was all about, and broke into loud laughter!”

A more recent memory comes from former Post-Dispatch page designer Danielle Newman, who recalls sitting in MoBar in the early morning hours of the 2000 presidential election “after we’d put the paper to bed with George Bush as the winner.”

“Around about 2am, the TV news on at the MoBar started showing headlines along the lines of ‘Al Gore retracts concession.’ That’s when the higher ups started to get worried looks on their faces. I think we ended up going to the office at 6 the next morning to do an extra.”

Today, MoBar is still frequented by journalists, but the plethora of fancier bars that sprang up along Washington Avenue has diluted its title as the one destination bar for journalists.

As Levins says: “Switching to morning publication seemed to put a dent in Post-Dispatch drinking. In the P.M. days, most of us got off around 3 p.m., leaving a few hours to drink before the dinner hour. But the A.M. schedule kept people at work later. What’s more, the composition of the newsroom was changing. Instead of the largely raffish batch of 1971, the younger reporters were better educated, came from higher up on the socioeconomic ladder and, in their Yuppy-ish way, preferred a glass or two of white wine to five or six bottles of beer. Also, many of the new young reporters were women, less given to hell-raising.”

Bixby Defty recalls: “That was back when people drank a LOT… before the New Prissiness came in. My, but we had fun.”

(Looking for MoBar’s exact location? It’s noted on this map of Washington Avenue and the downtown area.)

Dorsey dishes with Tim Harrower, SND STL presenter & MC for awards ceremony

Steve Dorsey — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 19:21:53 +0000

Wow, that's a big picture.

We caught up with the legendary Tim Harrower as he was gearing up for SND STL and wanted to know a little about what it’s like to be him — and what’s on his mind heading into his big double-header appearances at the workshop…

STEVE DORSEY: You’ve taught all over the country — high school and college student, and lots of pros too — what’s the most common question people fail to ask you?

HARROWER: The most common question nobody ever asks me is, “Where are the bathrooms?” That’s probably because most buildings have signs that say where the bathrooms are.

DORSEY: Desert island disc time: You’re stranded and you can only receive one newspaper for the rest of your life (don’t look too deeply at the logic in this question, please, I mean, I KNOW the news carrier would be able to rescue you, but this is theoretical, right?)… anyway, which paper and why?

HARROWER: If I were stranded on a desert island, I would obviously need a daily newspaper to provide fresh bedding material and fuel for my smoke signal. So I would want the biggest possible newspaper — of course, that would be The Miami News, which holds the record for the largest page-count of all time: a 508-page edition published back in 1925. (Though I think they may have downsized since then.)

DORSEY: Ever been to the Lou (St Louis) before? What are you most looking forward to, aside from the conference?

HARROWER: My old college roommate — I’ll call him “Grant” — now lives in St. Louis. When we meet for dinner, we’ll reminisce about those crazy times, right before I got married, where the three of us shared an apartment: Grant, my fiancee and me. And this time, if he fails to surrender the videos, I will have him whacked. Seriously.

DORSEY: You’re going to emcee The Big SND Show this year. Folks are psyched. I hear some groupies stood in line overnight just for tickets. (No, not really, we’ll sell tickets right up until the doors open, but play along please)… Can you tip your hand at all? What can we expect? What are YOU excited about?

HARROWER: I’m going to try something I’ve always fantasized about, but I’ve never seen anyone actually do — at least, not at an SND banquet. It’s the kind of thing I would love to watch someone ELSE do. But since nobody else is crazy enough to try it, I’ve got to cowboy up.

I don’t mean to sound cryptic, but two words keep playing in the back of my mind when I think about next Saturday night. And those two words are: “career-ender.”

DORSEY: Seriously, once and for all, what IS your favorite font?*

HARROWER: Nowadays, I use only D’Addario Extra Light. Oh, wait… those are guitar strings.

Be sure to see Tim at SND STL — first at his “FUN 101″ session Friday morning and then Saturday night at the SND 2011 awards gala.

Catch a game in STL

Sara Bondioli — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 04:22:00 +0000

Stan "The Man" Musial is one of St. Louis' famous sports figures. He played his 22 seasons of major league baseball with the Cardinals.

St. Louis is a baseball and sports town. Unfortunately, SND picks up just after the end of the Cardinals’ last home series of the season. (They play their arch-rivals, the Chicago Cubs, Sept. 23-25.)

The Cardinals aren't in town, but you can still take a tour of Busch Stadium.

BASEBALL

You can, however, still take a tour of Busch Stadium for $10. The new Busch Stadium opened in 2006, the same season the Cardinals achieved their most recent World Series championship. The footprint of the new stadium overlaps with the footprint that was the old Busch Stadium. The stadium hosted the 2009 Major League Baseball All-Star Game.

In September (Thursday and Friday of the conference), tours are generally given at 9:30 a.m., 11 a.m., 12:30 p.m. and 2 p.m. In October (Saturday and Sunday), they are at 11 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. Tickets can be purchased online or at Gate 5 on Clark Street on tour day.

Baseball fans might be interested in learning more about the history of stadiums in St. Louis.

Looking for more baseball? The St. Louis area has two minor league baseball teams, and both play in the Frontier League.

The River City Rascals of O’Fallon, Mo., (a western suburb of St. Louis) competed for the league championships in mid-September but lost the title to the Joliet (Ill.) Slammers.

The season ended earlier for the Gateway Grizzlies of Sauget, Ill. (just across the river). But, if you’re under 27 and spry, you could show up Saturday (Oct. 1) for team tryouts.

The St. Louis Rams with quarterback Sam Bradford play at home the Sunday of SND weekend.

FOOTBALL

If football is more your thing, check out the St. Louis Rams. After Monday night’s game against the New York Giants, the team, led by quarterback Sam Bradford, is 0-2. The team might not have had a winning record in recent years, but last year it improved to a 7-9 record (better than the previous year’s 1-16). The Rams play the Washington Redskins, who have also had a rough time in recent years but started this year with a 2-0 record, on Sunday (Oct. 2) at noon. And the Edward Jones Dome, home of the Rams, is just blocks from the conference hotel.

If you can’t make the game, but want to get in the spirit, you can find tailgaters near the stadium before the game, or check out the game at one of the nearby sports bars, such as Over/Under Bar & Grill (911 Washington Ave.), Hair of the Dog (1212 Washington Ave.), Jack Patrick’s (1000 Olive St.) or Flannery’s (1324 Washington Ave.).

You could catch a St. Louis Blues preseason game while you're in St. Louis.

HOCKEY

Or perhaps you’d like to catch a preseason hockey game. The St. Louis Blues play in the Scottrade Center downtown. You can catch them on Thursday (Sept. 29) at 7 p.m. versus the Colorado Avalanche. (Though we recommend checking out the amazing opening reception at the City Museum instead. Hockey is cool, but it can’t compete with a 10-story slide.) Or, if you feel like skipping a few sessions, try the 1:30 p.m. game versus the Dallas Stars on Saturday (Oct. 1).

BOWLING

If playing sports is more your style, we recommend checking out Friday night’s happy hour at Flamingo Bowl. (Fun fact: St. Louis was home to the International Bowling Museum and Hall of Fame until it closed in 2008. It reopened in Arlington, Texas, in 2010.)