We’re way past having to defend the whole “graffiti is art” discussion. But the dozens, if not hundreds, of empty spray paint cans strewn next to even the most spectacular graffiti walls is still a major buzzkill. Luckily, a couple of South Florida boys now living in L.A. are presenting…

With all the martial arts out there (karate, tae kwon do, muay Thai, jujitsu, etc.), it’s difficult to know what sport you’re looking at anytime you see somebody in a gi (a karate training uniform). And now with images of The Karate Kid (both Ralph Macchio’s and Will Smith’s son’s…

Miami doesn’t have a homogeneous population, but that doesn’t mean we all can’t be filled with patriotic spirit to celebrate the Fourth of July. Truth be told, we probably have more celebrations planned per capita than most cities in the nation — if you count every homeowners association and dude…

Not counting seemingly irrational aversions to personal hygiene and ice, there’s a lot we can learn from Europeans. They vacation longer, sit at cafés for hours on end (and not Starbucks either), and generally are more in tune with life on the street. Maybe that’s why their street performers, also…

The FDA just announced that soon cigarettes would come with large picture warnings on packages to go along with classic written warning they’ve had for decades. Disturbing images of people on respirators, rotting teeth, damaged lungs, and a hole in the throat will soon adorn packs and are likely to…

Dad might not have been to all your little league games (what with his busy “work” schedule) and he might not have been supportive initially when you told him you play for the pink team. Heck, maybe he even frittered away your college tuition with his penchant for the ponies…

Miamians like to think they have the market on second-generation Cuban experience pretty much monopolized. Too bad Oscar Hijuelos didn’t grow up in Little Havana, Hialeah, or even Kendall. No, the Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist was raised in East Harlem. But his true story of growing up in America and trying…

Miami’s got more than 15 rounds of boxing history in it. The Greatest, Muhammad Ali, trained at the erstwhile Fifth Street Gym in South Beach, while the Orange Bowl hosted the Battle of Champions pitting legend Alexis Argüello and Aaron Pryor in 1982 (later named the fight of the decade…

Historically, fashion mavens are not exactly salt-of-the-earth types. More like caviar of the sea. They’ve been known to raze the land for cotton and rape the animal kingdom for hides and furs. They don’t exactly mind taking advantage of mankind either, with sweatshop workers slaving away so we can have…

The squeamish need not apply. But if you like some barbarism with your sports spectating (and who doesn’t), then sign up for a chance to win two free tickets to the Bellator 46 Fighting Championships at the Seminole Hard Rock Casino next week. Who knows you might even catch some…

Uh, well, there’s been an update to that parade-route post that some lout came up with on this blog last week. The Dallas Mavericks opened a Texas-size can of whoopass on the Miami Heat last night and stole what was rightfully ours, if by rightfully we mean we didn’t really…

We know what you are thinking: Stuffy museums descriptions in old newspaper clippings. You’d rather somebody gouge your eyes out with those tiny gelato spoons than read them. (Okay, so you probably weren’t thinking that.) And normally, we might agree with you. But we are the New Times, people. We…

Maybe Cultist was partially responsible for the jinx of all jinxes or our own self inflicted sports hex when we revealed a suggested parade route for our hometown Miami Heat, but can you blame us (don’t answer that!). Truth is we still have this series in the bag and all…

There’s no better way to say, “Dad, you’ve never been there for me when I needed you,” than to take him to a botanical garden on Father’s Day. That’ll show him. But this Sunday expect Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden to be brimming with daddies who aren’t looking for excuses to…

Good luck having a career like Rubén Blades. The world famous Panamanian salsa singer and songwriter has been in over 35 major Hollywood movies, is a lawyer (with a master’s in International Law from Harvard University), and received 18 percent of the country’s presidential vote in 1994. The dude gets…

If former President Bill Clinton wrote a novel about a fictional prez’s dalliances with a cherub-faced White House intern, you couldn’t help but think he was making a statement about what actually happened with Monica Lewinsky, right? Same goes for former senator and two-term Florida governor Bob Graham and his…

Yeah, we know what you are thinking. Parade? Doesn’t the Miami Heat have to win the championship, or even a third game, first? Nah, that’s just how we do. We celebrate the season before playing a single game. Then we party like it’s 1999 when we beat the Boston Celtics…