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Want to learn about the art of writing short stories from a successful Madison author? Then you may be interested in a free copy of “How to Write A Short Story” by Leslie W. Quirk.
That’s right! Not Lorrie Moore. Leslie W. Quirk.
Leslie Quirk graduated from Madison High School in 1900, attended the University of Wisconsin (but didn’t graduate), and went on to become a successful author of novels for young people, as well as a short story writer. In 1906, The Editor Publishing Company in New York published Quirk’s book of advice for aspiring short story writers — and most of it is still valuable, even if the market for short fiction may not be as welcoming as it was a century ago.
Quirk’s book is now available for FREE download at Internet Archive in a variety of formats, including PDF, which we think is the most convenient form. You may also read it online.
Alternately, for a couple of dollars you can purchase a rather pricey reprint of How to Write a Short Story; An Exposition of the Technique of Short Fiction.
There is also a FREE download of “How to Write a Short Story; An Exposition of the Technique of Short Fiction” available from Google Books.
Jamba Juice is offering a coupon for $1 off its Five Fruit Frenzy smoothies, good at any participating location. We telephoned the Jamba Juice store at 401 State Street this afternoon and confirmed that they are indeed a participating location.
The coupons are only valid until April 10th, so you have less than a month to print this coupon and use it for a Five Fruit Frenzy smoothie.
From 4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Wednesday, March 17th, kids ages 6-12 can enroll in a class at Whole Foods Market, 3313 University Avenue, that will teach them how to make traditional Irish soda bread and homemade butter. Participants will also create their own Leprechaun ice cream floats.
There is a $5 fee for the course. If you’d like your child to participate in this class, please register and pay 48 hours in advance. Register in person at the Whole Foods customer service desk or call (608) 233-9566.
 Turner Collins
Turner Collins performs from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Friday, March 12th at Wild Hog in the Woods, 953 Jenifer Street on Madison’s near East Side. According to his website, “Turner began his performing career with the Chameleon Puppet Theater in the early-1980s and progressed to the festivals and fine arts series he enjoys today. Turner performs on whistle, bombarde, bodhran, button accordion, and harp.”
Admission to this family friendly event is just $3. Admission pays the rent. Performers are paid from the money the audience puts in the Wild Hog’s ceramic wild boar piggy bank, affectionately called Phillup the Pig (pronounced fill-up).
Seating is limited, so you may want to arrive a bit early.
Rebecca Skloot will discuss and sign copies of her book, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 11th in Room 1306 of the Health Sciences Learning Center, 750 Highland Avenue.
For those of you unfamiliar with the true story told in Skloot’s book, here is a brief description from her website:
“Her name was Henrietta Lacks, but scientists know her as HeLa. She was a poor Southern tobacco farmer who worked the same land as her slave ancestors, yet her cells—taken without her knowledge—became one of the most important tools in medicine. The first “immortal” human cells grown in culture, they are still alive today, though she has been dead for more than sixty years. If you could pile all HeLa cells ever grown onto a scale, they’d weigh more than 50 million metric tons—as much as a hundred Empire State Buildings. HeLa cells were vital for developing the polio vaccine; uncovered secrets of cancer, viruses, and the effects of the atom bomb; helped lead to important advances like in vitro fertilization, cloning, and gene mapping; and have been bought and sold by the billions.”
Until now, Henrietta Lacks remained virtually unknown, buried in an unmarked grave.
This event is free and open to the public. Some lots near the Health Sciences Learning Center, including Lot 60, offer free parking after 4:30 p.m. on weekdays.
Sign up for their newsletter, answer seven questions about your buying habits, and the folks at Snikiddy will send you a free coupon. Be sure to click on the “Get a Free Coupon” image to be directed to the page with the form for your name and address; just entering your e-mail isn’t sufficient.
What is Snikiddy? It’s a new line of kids snacks from a woman-owned company. You’ll find more information on the Snikiddy website, as well as in this recent article in The Wall Street Journal.
There’s no indication of when this offer expires, but it’s always best to snatch these offers up as soon as possible.
Starbucks is running a special promotion to encourage customers to explore its “Bold Coffees” during the next eight weeks. If you buy at least one cup of the featured flavor each week, you may be able to earn a FREE pound of whole bean Bold Coffee.
In order to participate, you must ask your Starbucks barista for a special “passport” that will only be available until March 14th (the end of the first week of the promotion). Then, each week when you buy a cup of Bold Coffee for just $1.50, you’ll have to ask the barista for a sticker to paste on your passport. If, at the end of the eight week promotion you’ve acquired all eight different stickers on your passport, you can take home a free pound of whole bean Bold Coffee.
This offer is valid at participating Starbucks in the United States and Canada. You’ll find additional fine print at the bottom of the Starbucks website page about this promotional offer.
Offer expires in 2 days, 20 hours, 54 minutes
Join master printmaker Warrington Colescott and Mary Weaver Chapin, associate curator of prints and drawings at the Milwaukee Art Museum, at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, March 10th UW-Madison at Main Lounge in the Memorial Union, 800 Langdon Street, for a combined discussion, exhibit, book signing, and reception to welcome the publication of The Prints of Warrington Colescott: A Catalogue Raisonne, 1948-2008.
Colescott and Chapin will discuss the career and artistic process of the self-described “research printmaker and mad-dog attack artist,” who who taught at the UW-Madison from 1949-1986.
Colescott prints from the Wisconsin Union’s permanent collection of the Wisconsin Union will be on display at the event.
This event is free and open to the public.
The next Winter Dane County Farmers’ Market “Taste of the Market” Breakfast will be served from 8:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. on Saturday, March 13th in the Madison Senior Center, 330 West Mifflin Street. The price is $7.50 or $3.75 for kids and senior citizens.
This Saturday, Guest chef, Tory Miller (L’Etoile and Café Soleil), will be working with students from Sherman Middle School at the “Taste of the Market” breakfast. According to “Taste of the Market” Breakfast Coordinator Judy Hageman, their menu will feature: “breakfast burrito: with pork and emu chorizo, scrambled eggs and cheese topped with Tomato Mountain salsa; vegetarian option: breakfast burrito with scrambled eggs, cheese and chef’s choice option; fresh greens with lemon pesto vinaigrette; rice and beans “hash browns”; and Oaxacan chocolate croissants made by the Sherman Middle School students. Beverages: organic fair trade coffee or tea; and apple cider or cranberry juice. Milk is available upon request
For those of you who like to know the source for what they eat, here’s a list of farmers providing the food for this breakfast:
- Fantiago Cheese– Forgotten Valley
- Salsa – Tomato Mountain
- Pork – Jordandal
- Emu – Valley View Emus
- Eggs – Pecatonica Valley Farm
- Lemon Pesto Vinaigrette – Renaissance Farm
- Mixed Greens – Dons Produce
- Apple cider – Greens Orchards
- Oaxacan Chocolate Croissants – Compliments of Tory Miller, Café Soleil and made by students from Sherman Middle School
NB: The Winter Dane County Farmers’ Market Hours are from 8 a.m. until noon, so there’s time to shop before and after breakfast. For those who prefer to forgo a full breakfast, coffee and tea are available during these hours. Hageman says, “While we try to serve the menu that is listed in our promotion and this is most often the case, parts of this menu may be substituted or changed.”
It takes many volunteers to make this event successful. If you interested in volunteering, contact Ruth Miller at ferngulley
The 2010 World Championship Cheese Contest will be held at the Monona Terrace Community and Convention Center from March 16th-18th — and this year you can do more than watch the professionals taste and spit their way through scores of cheese samples.
From 6 p.m. until 8 p.m. on Thursday, March 17th, Wisconsin Cheese Originals is sponsoring “a once-in-a-lifetime event to sample and compare 15 unique, rare, international cheeses vs. their Wisconsin artisan counterparts, side by side” at Monona Terrace. Tickets to this tasting event are $20 and include an opportunity to “meet 30 cheese judges representing six continents, as well as 11 award-winning artisan Wisconsin cheesemakers.”
This event is definitely not as cheap as enjoying the free tastings available by a slow stroll through your local Brennan’s Market or Whole Foods Market, but it undoubtedly offers more varieties, bigger chunks of cheese, and less need for surreptitious sneaking of second samples.
Tickets for this event must be purchased in advance through the Wisconsin Cheese Originals website
Visit the Ghirardelli Chocolate website for its “A Million Moments of Timeless Pleasure” promotion if you want a coupon for $1 off any 2 bags of Ghirardelli SQUARES® Chocolates.
Scroll down to the bottom of the page and you’ll find the link to the coupon on the left hand side. This is a Bricks Coupon, so you’ll need to have Coupon Printer software installed on your computer. If you don’t have this software, you’ll be instructed how to download it after you click on PRINT COUPONS.
There is no indication of how long this offer will be available. The coupon we printed expires on 5/8/2010.
Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Stores are offering customers a series of printable coupons good for 40-50% off regular-priced items, including fabric, notions, and custom framing. The coupons may be used for both in-store and online purchases.
Some of the coupons are valid through Saturday, March 13th and two are valid through Saturday, March 20th. Be sure to read the fine print for exclusions.
An invitation to a birthday party from the folks at Mattel: “Ready for some absolutely heart-tastic news? Cue the confetti, balloons and music! To celebrate her birthday on March 9th, Barbie will be debuting once again as SuperStar Barbie” and for one week only (March 6th-13th) SuperStar Barbie will sell for the special price of just $3, “the original price of the Barbie doll in 1959.”
And some more hype: “In 1977 SuperStar Barbie doll bedazzled you with her SuperStar long locks, disco-ready halter gown and luxurious boa. This year, she’s back and redesigned in a modern way with all the fashions and accessories you loved as a girl – including that pop-in “diamond” ring!”
Izzy the Intern refuses to take a field trip to find out which Madison-area stores are stocking this bargain-priced Barbie. If you sight some (or buy a couple), let us know where they are/were/
Update (3/9/2010) Barbie Superstar Doll is available from Amazon and is eligible from FREE Super Shipping on orders over $25.
Thanks to Teresa at Miami on the Cheap for this tip.
Offer expires in 2 days, 7 hours, 54 minutes
Billed as “the most sought-after trio in the world,” the Grammy-Nominated Eroica Trio will perform in Madison several times this week — and we’re going to tell you about some inexpensive ways to hear them in person.
The first Eroica Trio concert is at 8 p.m. on Thursday, March 11th in the Wisconsin Union Theater, 800 Langdon Street. Tickets range from $18 to $35; but if you’re a UW student with a valid i.d., tickets are only $10.
If you’re not a student, you can qualify for a sweet deal if you buy one of the regular-priced tickets to Thursday’s performance: a FREE ticket to hear the Eroica Trio perform with the UW Chamber Orchestra at 8 p.m. on Saturday, March 13th in the Wisconsin Union Theater.
If you don’t want to buy a regular-priced ticket for Thursday, you can buy a ticket for the Saturday night concert for just $10 (general admission).
As always, we recommend purchasing your tickets in person at the Wisconsin Union Theater Box Office in order to avoid the processing charges associated with online and telephone orders. If you buy your tickets at the box office and you’re a Union Member, be sure to mention this to the people working at the box office. In many (but not all) instances, your membership will qualify you for a small discount on ticket purchases.
Finally, the Eroica Trio’s website’s schedule page lists a TBA Master Class in the Wisconsin Union Theater on Friday, March 12th. If you’re interested in attending this event, check Today in the Union (TITU) later in the week to see if a time has been posted. Master Classes are usually (but not always) open to the public.
From March 7th to 13th, you can download a free copy of Human Goodness by Yi-Fu Tuan, Professor Emeritus of Geography at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, courtesy of the UW Press.
Here’s why: “UW Press has begun selling its e-books through its website for the first time, offering everything from novels and poetry to scholarly works on Classical literature and African history. Throughout the month of March the Press will introduce hundreds of new e-books on the site, making over 400 titles available by the end of the month.”
And here;s a bit more information about Tuan’s book: “Combining autobiographical reflection and philosophical investigation with sketches of exemplary men and women throughout history, Tuan probes the many faces of goodness—from simple courtesy to heroic acts of altruism—and suggests a common and complex thread which unites them.”
The download is available as a PDF. It’s 246 pages, but it didn’t take us long to download using our DLS connection.
The UW Russian Folk Orchestra will perform at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 13th in Tripp Commons in the Memorial Union, 800 Langdon Street.
The performance is part of World Languages Day for the Commnity, which will take place from 1 p.m. until 4 p.m. on Saturday, March 13th in the Memorial Union. World Languages Day features workshops and performances highlighting diverse languages, cultures and societies from around the world. A complete schedule of events is available on the UW-Madison Language Institute website.
World Languages Day for the Community is FREE and open to audiences of middle-school age and older. Advanced registration is not required.
Coupons aren’t just for people food. Right now, COUPONS.com has almost a dozen coupons for pet food. In addition to coupons for Milk-Bone Essentials, Meow Mix, and Cesar brand foods, there’s a coupon for $2 off Wardley Advanced Nutrition Fish Food.
Use the link at the end of this post to visit the COUPONS.com site and select from over 150 coupons. Once you reach the site, click on the “Pet Care” link in the column on the left side of the page to bring up the coupon for the Wardley Fish Food.
Print Free Coupons
Ever wonder why butter makes a better burger? Or what makes frozen custard different from its ice cream cousins?
Learn about the history and tradition behind these tasty Wisconsin treat traditions from a leading expert — Craig Culver — by attending the next “Wisconsin’s Best” lecture at 4:45 p.m. on Tuesday, March 16th at the Ebling Symposium Center, 1550 Linden Drive.
After the lecture, you’ll have an opportunity to sample some Culver’s products.
This event is free and open to the public, but registration is requested so that there are enough post-lecture treats for everyone in attendance.
At the end of a week when we’ve posted lots of Facebook fan offers for junk food, here’s a last-minute “Facebook only”special for something that sounds as though it would be healthier, as well as more satisfying and delicious. It comes from proprietor Tami Lax, Executive Chef Derek Rowe and the rest of the folks at Harvest Restaurant, 21 N. Pinckney Street:
“When YOU and THREE other friends join us for our $25 Three-Course James Beard Foundation Fundraising Dinner tonight [Sunday, March 7th] you will enjoy a bottle of 2007 Domaine de Gournier Merlot or 2008 Domaine du Tariquet Sauvignon Blanc ON THE HOUSE! This is a FACEBOOK EXCLUSIVE! Call to make your reservation and mention this special offer. Dinner will be served from 5 p.m. until 10 p.m. We look forward to seeing you this evening. Call (608)255-6075.”
This is a a great price for a dinner at Harvest, where main courses alone start at about $18 and currently range up to $42. The bottle of wine makes it an even sweeter deal.
Of course it’s Oscar night and despite a menu that features beef brisket and homemade licorice gelato, it’s not easy to pull die hard movie fans and celebrity gawkers like Izzy the Intern (who’s already stocked up on Sprecher root beer and Doritios) away from their televisions. You, however, may want to consider abandoning the junk food, recording the Oscars for later viewing, and enjoying some fine dining.
If you can’t attend tonight’s dinner, there are two additional $25 Three-Course James Beard Foundation Fundraising Dinners still on tap: March 14th and March 21st.
 UW Arboretum on New Year's Day 2010 Photograph © Nadine Goff
Join a tour of the UW -Madison Arboretum from 1 p.m. until 2:30 p.m. on Sunday, March 7th that will show you “the places where Aldo Leopold, the Arboretum’s first director, conducted wildlife research and helped to establish the first-ever restoration of Wisconsin’s natural ecosystems.”
Participants will hear brief excerpts from his writings at appropriate points along the way.
The free tour starts at the Arboretum Visitor Center, 1207 Seminole Highway.
If you’d like to learn more about Aldo Leopold, considered by many people to have been the most influential conservation thinker of the 20th Century, visit The Aldo Leopold Archives online at the University of Wisconsin Digital Collections.
You may interested in reading some of Leopold’s books, including A Sand County Almanac.
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DISCLAIMER We post deals as we find them, but schedules sometimes change and everything has an expiration date. Prices and promotions are always subject to change without notice. It's always wise to call ahead and make certain a bargain is still available or an event has not been canceled.
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