Design for Living

Mon 5/19

Miami’s urban neighborhoods are changing faster than you can say obstructed waterfront view. One second the Biscayne Boulevard Corridor is dubbed the hot new place to own or rent property. The next moment the hookers have been magically displaced as 50-story condos rise quickly from the ground. Residents who live near Biscayne and feel powerless can have some say about what will happen in their neighborhood by attending a charrette (an intensive public workshop where citizens and designers brainstorm in an attempt to make the area seemingly better). The City of Miami has charged the firm Hellmuth, Obata, & Kassabaum with the task of translating what will surely be conflicting desires into a tangible plan for Biscayne Boulevard’s future. From Monday, May 19, to Thursday, May 22, a series of four charrettes will be held at the American Legion Post, 6445 NE 7th Ave. The first begins tonight at 6:00. Admission is free. Call 305-416-1400 for updates. — By Nina Korman

Ugly Americana

Hey, you. Yeah, you, the guy with the cell phone glued to his ear. The music is blasting in this place. How can you hear a damn thing? But hearing doesn’t really matter, does it? What matters is that you’re standing in the middle of a club, talking on your tiny phone, trying to seem cool amid the ear-splitting decibels and preening people. Well, if you ask us, you look pretty damn stupid. Oh, gee, maybe we’re being a little too hard on you. Maybe you’re a compassionate doctor taking a moment out of your evening to answer an emergency call from a SARS-afflicted patient. Maybe you’re a high-powered mogul, trading currency on the Asian market. Nah, you’re none of those. You’re just another dumb schlub attempting to appear important by publicly making and taking calls ad nauseam. We’ve got your number. — Nina Korman

Material World

What are you asking for this (insert funky item here)? Is that your rock bottom? Would you take (insert dollar amount here)? Three questions often uttered on Miami Beach’s Lincoln Road during the twice-a-month Outdoor Antique & Collectibles Market. For ten years, from the fall to the spring, Productions Sud has been uniting dealers of vintage clothing, furniture, jewelry, postcards, and various objets d’art, plus pet-adoption groups and lemonade peddlers, under the sun. Lighten dealers’ loads by hauling away bunches of bargains from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at this season’s final event. Call 305-673-4991. — Nina Korman