Scott Burton, KTOO

Juneau writer Libby Bakalar’s blog “One Hot Mess” is getting national attention. Boston’s Women in Comedy Festival, where notable comic Lily Tomlin will headline, has asked Bakalar to submit to their blog.

Bakalar is the mother of a 4- and 7-year-old who are often the subjects of her entries which range from rap, to essays, to comics, to flow and pie charts, haikus and more.

Bakalar recited her rap “Who Da Boss?” for us here.

“The funnest part for me about the blog is having a shared experience with the audience about experiences they can all relate to, like getting your kid geared up for the rain and snow,” says Bakalar.

Or not knowing certain etiquette as in “If I Actually Said What I Was Thinking at a Wine Tasting…” she also read for us.

Bakalar says she tries to be revelatory and analytical.

“I try to get to the root of pretentions and phoniness and all kinds of insecurities and things like that that people appreciate honesty about. This whole wine-tasting routine has all of those elements. It’s this first world, kind of pretentious thing that deserves to be made fun of a little bit. And I am going to make fun of myself and it at the same time,” says Bakalar.

But she’s not always rapping, humorous or irreverent. About once a month she writes an earnest piece, too, like in a November post about how cathartic crying can be.

“One of the things I hear a lot about the blog is, ‘You’re always saying what I’m thinking,’ or, ‘You’re always saying what I’m afraid to say,’ and that is the highest compliment I can get because it means I’m writing something that’s resonating with people on a real level,” she says.

Sometimes Bakalar posts as many five entries a day—most composed on her smartphone. She says she’s inspired by her husband and comic writer Geoff Kirsch, David Sedaris, Louis C.K., Margaret Cho and Stephen Colbert.

“There’s a little bit of a fourth wall, sort of Stephen Colbert-esque character developing. I’m not trying to compare myself to someone as awesome as Stephen Colbert mind you, I’m just saying he’s another person I really admire in terms of his ability to straddle that meta-line between reality and fiction. You know it’s sort of in that middle gray area between a character and a biographical representation of me.”

That version of herself recently wrote a flirtatious open letter to a guy who works at Kindred Post. As usual, Bakalar linked to her entry on Facebook and, in a Juneau-way, it’s gone viral. She likes the interactivity.

“It was all very true. Everything I said in there about how I thought this guy was cute and I feel like an old lady every time I go in the store and blah, blah, blah, he’s listening to this great music, et cetera, et cetera. But I wanted him to know all that, and I was good with that. And at the same time I was curious, is all of this going to get back to him and his friends? And sure enough it did and it was very funny and he was hilarious about it and his responses were awesome.”

One Hot Mess posted “Open Letter to Cute Dude at The Post Office Store” on Monday afternoon. Someone responded with his name within an hour and he got the link soon thereafter. It took a little investigating, but he figured out who she was.

Conor Lendrum says,“I was like, ‘Oh! It’s that fox who I made eyes at, like, that day!”

Lendrum, who has adopted the alias C-DAT-POS, says it’s all surreal—an interesting intersection of the virtual and the real. He’s looking forward to talking to her in person.

“How much of this internet personality is her true personality? How much of it is a construction for this art that she works on? She’s a very good writer. She has a wonderful self-deprecating style and very casual but precise and I really enjoy it,” says Lendrum.

C-DAT-POS will get to ask Bakalar about her and the character. After a bunch of Facebook correspondence, he’s committed to making dinner for Bakalar and her family soon.

The producers behind the Women in Comedy Festival like Bakalar’s work, too. They’re posting a “One Hot Mess” entry on their blog. Other than that, she has no agenda.

“I never want to advertise on it. I never want to commodify it in any way. I just want to have fun with it and continue to entertain my friends and family with it.”

The Juneau Pride Chorus will perform its 17th annual concert at Northern Light United church Saturday.

The idea for the chorus originated at a meeting for PFLAG, which stands for Parents, Families, and Friends of Lesbians and Gays. Marsha Buck is known as the “Founding Mother.”

“Somebody said we should start a pride chorus! And then they looked at me because I’m the one with a degree in music,” she says.

Seventeen years later the chorus, which is now the public face of PFLAG, is 32 members strong. Fellow founding member Leslie Wood became the conductor in 2000.

“It’s my passion, it’s what I love to do,” says Wood. “My actions in my body try to portray what sound I want to hear.”

Christine Wallace is another founding member. She says, “If you’ve had a crappy day at work, it’s gone by the time practice is over.”

Wallace also likes the activity’s accessibility.

“Singing is one of those basic human things like walking, running; it’s free, you carry it with you all the time. If you’re berry picking it works, if you’re hiking it works, if you’re out on a boat it works. If you know a lot of songs you have this internal iPod that you can access for whatever emotion or situation you’re in,” says Wallace.

Despite its accessibility, it’s not without challenges.

“We’re vulnerable,” says Buck. “We’re opening our mouths and it isn’t always lovely. We all make mistakes. One time I made a rhythm mistake tonight, the woman behind me said, ‘That’s fine Marsha, that’s what rehearsals are for.’ That vulnerability makes us more open to each other and open to support and friendships.”

And that’s integral to many of the women.

“Some of us aren’t whole people if we’re not part of a music group,” continues Buck.

Members practice at home by singing along with recordings, and they practice weekly as a group. When everything comes together, Wallace says it’s “kind of a mind meld. If you got the timing right, and the pitches right, and you’re listening to each other, it’s a thing that isn’t any one of you.”

This year’s theme is “strong women” and includes an eclectic selection of songs.

“It’s our talent show. We’ve been working since August. We want our friends to come and listen to us and eat cookies,” says Wallace.

The concert begins at 7 p.m. Saturday at Northern Light United Church.

Beau Schooler, chef at the Rookery Café in Juneau, has been nominated for the “Rising Star of the Year” award by the prestigious James Beard Foundation.

“The awards are kind of like the Oscars of the food world. It’s a pretty big deal. It’s about the highest you can get as far as recognition wise and awards in this particular field,” says Schooler.

Back in the fall of 2013, KTOO ran a story profiling Schooler. He described the kind of menu that has gotten him noticed.

“We pickled some grapes with chai tea and we’re doing that with corn flakes and blue cheese. Then we got that bacon panna cotta–we’re doing that with passion fruit and avocado. Rachel is searing off duck livers to make a duck liver whipped cream and we’re going to put that on top of a gruyere cupcake.”

Schooler found out about the nomination yesterday on Facebook. He says the whole thing is still surreal.

“Anyone can nominate anyone. How I actually ended up on the semifinalists’ list–I have no idea. I really don’t think I should even be there,” he says.

According to the foundation’s website, they received some 35,000 nominations. Those have been whittled down to 21 categories with 25 semifinalists in each. Being a semifinalist is big deal, but Schooler says he’s had help.

“I’m really happy for myself and all of the cooks that have worked with me: Travis Hotch and Rachel Barill and Linkus Swinson are my core guys that have helped me get everything where it’s been going. I’m glad that we as a team can get some recognition for what we’re been doing,” he says.

Each of the 21 categories will be narrowed down to 5 finalists in March, and the winner will be selected in Chicago in April. Schooler says the winner gets a plaque and a medal—but he’d just be excited to go eat food in Chicago.

The Juneau Arts and Humanities Council’s Wearable Art show is this weekend at Centennial Hall. Now in its fourteenth year, the theme is “Juxtaposition” and artists have been preparing for months. This will be artist Bobbi McCutcheon’s fourth year–her pieces can take up to a year to create and are made by hand, one bead at a time.

Tickets are sold out for both shows but 360 North with broadcast the event on Thursday, February 19 at 8 p.m. and Saturday, February 21 at 9 p.m.

The Juneau Arts and Humanities Council’s Wearable Art show is this weekend at Centennial Hall. Now in its fourteenth year, the theme is “Juxtaposition” and artists have been preparing for months. This will be artist Michelle Morris’s third year and her piece is called “Southeast Struggle.”

Tickets are sold out for both shows but 360 North with broadcast the event on Thursday, February 19 at 8 p.m. and Saturday, February 21 at 9 p.m.

The Juneau Arts and Culture Center hosts the Governor’s Awards for the Arts and Humanities tonight. Ryan Conarro will emcee, and Gov. Bill Walker will present awards. Two of the winners are based  in Southeast. The Arts Organization award will go to the Sitka Fine Arts Camp, and the Alaska Native Arts award will go to Sealaska Heritage Institute.

Performers will entertain the audience throughout the night. They include Juneau’s Alaska Youth Choir, the Juneau GIANT Puppet Project and a rap-jazz-funk fusion improvisational band from Anchorage called Yada Di.

Allison Warden, a.k.a. AKU-MATU, is Yada Di’s lead singer. Her stage name is an abbreviation of her two Iñupiaq names, Akootchook and Matumeak.

“Part of what I do in Yada Di is rap. We play all genres. We listen to each other. We explore the edges of what is possible in terms of music, and we take the audience on a journey in a very bold way,” Warden says.

Tickets are still available on the Alaska State Council on the Arts website. The awards will also be broadcast on 360 North beginning at 7:30 p.m. Tune into A Juneau Afternoon today for more information. Alaska State Council on the Arts Executive Director Shannon Daut will have more details on the festivities.