What did you do this weekend? Laundry, grocery shopping, maybe caught a movie? Great! But if you had been really ambitious, you might be greeting Monday morning hitched -- like British singer Amy Winehouse, who spent a week telling tabloids she was was just going on vacation and then got hitched this weekend at the Shore Club while Winehouse was in Miami for a photo shoot. She told us she wouldn't go to rehab (as detailed in her hit single), so her resolve had crumbled by "get married."
Winehouse got engaged to video music honcho Blake Fielder-Civil last month, although they have a history -- in fact, he inspired her break-up-shaded best-selling album "Back To Black." It only costs $93.50 to get a marriage license in Florida, though, and you don't have to be a resident -- pretty handy for those two Brits. No wonder Miami quickie vacation weddings are the new "we're getting married in Vegas".
Yesterday's New York Post only confirmed what rap insiders have known for a while: There's a feud a-brewin'! The '90s had East Coast vs. West Coast, and in 2007 we have... Timbaland and Scott Storch, two record producers whose rivalry has recently been fleshed out with Timbaland's new song "Give It To Me" (watch the video here).
At a recent party at New York's Marquee nightclub, Timbaland disregarded statements that refused to name the man he was dissing in the song, and named Storch, with whom he had a falling out over who created the beats for Justin Timberlake's post-Britney ballad "Cry Me A River." Don't cross these battle lines: instead, pick sides with our handy battle guide.
Team Timbaland has already claimed Marquee, but he performed pre-Grammy Awards at Hollywood's Avalon club and held his East Coast record premiere at New York's PM.
Team Storch: When he's not traveling in Paris Hilton's entourage (he produced her debut album), Storch favors Mansion in Miami, Prive in Miami Beach and (reportedly) the members-only multi-location party Xenii in the Los Angeles area.
The latest edition of The Amazing Race kicked off on Sunday, and we're sure you checked on the teams' progress on our Chasing Racers map. But what about the teams themselves--could they have checked Jaunted to brush up on seasons past while cruising around the globe with Phil?
The first leg of the race took teams from Miami to Quito, Ecuador. At Miami International Airport, options for getting online are old-school indeed: data ports on pay phones or a stop in the Admirals Club, where a T-Mobile Hot Spot account is required. Not good, though word is MIA is developing a WiFi network.
Options get a bit more interesting on the other end. There's no terminal-wide signal at the International Airport of Quito. But for a smallish fee, the racers could've scored a day pass to the VIP room. In addition to wired and WiFi connections, they'd also get drinks, newspapers and free local calls.
The Raleigh Hotel in Miami Beach is throwing quite a New Year's party, and there's still time for you to lock in your attendance. For $225, you'll get admission, "complimentary" cocktails, a "complimentary" champagne toast, "party favors," and a supposed slew of celebrity guests. Oh, and you'll also get Jordan Catalano. He's hosting.
If you're dying to get close to the Catalano, a.k.a. Jared Leto, it'll likely cost you a pretty penny to fly into the area, even Ft. Lauderdale. As for lodging, good luck with that. Anyone who videotapes themselves heckling Leto to his face, however, will receive a rebate from us for the public service. We provide rebates in love, not cash, by the way.
We'll also pay you--in love, natch--if you decide to crash the party at the Hilton Miami Airport, because it just sound irresistible, and we really want to know what that scene is going to be like. Tickets are apparently sold out--with a promo like "Join us in the elegant International Ballroom as it transforms into an exciting high energy party!," how could they not be? Please, please go check this thing out for us.
We finally got around to the latest issue of Departures, and it's jam-packed with the usual hot (and haute) destinations and gear. And though we're already getting over Miami Beach, Craig Robins' article on the topic snagged our attention. It's all about Art Basel: the more-or-less week long excuse to slink around Miami gulping canapes and scoping modern art.
Since the online version is only available to American Express Platinum and Centurion cardholders, we'll have to fill you in on the best bits. First, concentrate your efforts on the Design District, slipping over to South Beach when the need arises. (The Moore Space Loft has your art and Elements has your lunch.) Make sure you visit Design Miami, being hosted at the Moore Building and then skip to some of the smaller nearby galleries. Finally, don't miss the Saturday night block party "Art Loves Design." Who knows, a week of this, and we might fall back in love with Miami.
It's interesting to see which nonspecific places grab the most craigslist Missed Connections in which cities. In L.A. it's the Starbucks or the gym, and in Seattle, it's car to car. In Miami, most love matches seem to be made either at the airport or in the sky above Miami, or at a grocery store called Publix. Live and learn.
If you've done your shopping for the week and don't plan to be heading to the airport anytime soon, here are the other locations where the most craigslist Missed Connections take place. But don't hold your breath: Miami residents seem to be less enamored of craigslist Missed Connections than those from other towns. It must be the heat.
Mangoes
700 Duval St.
Key West
You can have the mango! As described by the Miami Herald "The perfect place to enjoy delicious Caribbean-style seafood, outside of course, while sipping a cold drink and watching people wander on Duval Street. This is one of the most popular lunch spots in the Key."
HG Roosters
823 Belvedere Road
West Palm Beach
"A Great Place to Bring a Date...Or to Find One!" is the motto on this bar's site. Good for the m4m sightings as you enjoy some wings or a drink special.
Mansion
1235 Washington Avenue
If you want the flashy, noisy, sexy Miami nightlife experience, then this 'superclub' is the place to find it. With "three meticulously designed rooms of music as well as regular celebrity hosts," you're sure to find somebody to welcome you to Miami.
That new Dynamic Duo, Matthew McConaughey and Lance Armstrong, were out and about in Miami this past week--looking like a pair of overgrown frat boys, to be honest. One night in particular was a testament to their "we've still got it"-ness, as they bounced around town hitting up clubs both awesome and not so.
BED We're actually a little embarrassed for the guys that they were seen here. It is, like, so totally dead in there. The food was getting good marks for a while, but if only tourists are going there now, it loses a certain cachet, no?
Shoreclub Ah, this is more like it. The manly men ended their night at Shore Club, this bastion of all things hot and pricey in Miami Beach. Skybar is particularly happening right now, yet miraculously the service is supposed to be pretty good, too. Nobu, by now a reliable old standby, is also in the compound.
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by egw
It's interesting to see which nonspecific places grab the most craigslist Missed Connections in which cities. In L.A. it's the Starbucks or the gym, and in Seattle, it's car to car. In Miami, most love matches seem to be made either at the airport or in the sky above Miami, or at a grocery store called Publix. Live and learn. 
