Weekend Briefing: Drug Court Graduation, Next to Normal Musical, Adam Trent Magic, RPOF Annual Meeting, Democrats' New Leader

Weekend: Partly cloudy throughout, highs in low to mid-70s, lows in the 50s. Details here.
Drought Index is at 353.
Today’s tides: at the beaches, at the Intracoastal Waterway.
Today’s document from the National Archives.
The OED’s Word of the Day: perfriction, n..
The Live Community Calendar
Today’s jail bookings.

Today’s Briefing: Quick Links

First Light
In Flagler and Palm Coast
Flagler Jail Bookings and Sheriff’s Crime Reports
In State Government
In Coming Days in Flagler, Palm Coast and Beyond
The Day’s Best Reads
Fact-Checking the Knaves
Palm Coast Construction and Development
Local Road and Interstate Construction
Cultural Coda

“For most of my life Appalachia confused me. When I met people around the country and said that I was from West Virginia, they would sometimes say, “Ah, Appalachia” in a peculiar way. They seemed to think that I had come from—or perhaps escaped—some exotic dreadful place, but for the longest time I did not know where Appalachia was exactly or what it meant to be Appalachian. As a boy, I don’t think I ever heard the word “Appalachia.” My parents and relatives of themselves as West Virginians. Years later, when I went to school in Morgantown, West Virginia, I began to hear the word in reference to the state and region but I never understood what it had to do with my family. My parents and Piedmont relatives, like most West Virginians, shared this confusion. If someone had asked Grandfather Bell what Appalachians were like, he might well have said, “Beats me, by jacks. Never run into one.” In time I would learn that Appalachia was an imaginary place and that being Appalachian was imaginary but terribly damaging. If the subject had a discernible starting point for me, it was on these early trips to Piedmont with my relatives trying to dodge the hillbilly identity.”

–John O’Brien, from At Home in the Heart of Appalachia.

In Flagler and Palm Coast:

Note: all government meetings noticed below are free and open to the public unless otherwise indicated. Many can be heard or seen live through each agency’s website.

Closure Notes: All government offices and schools are closed on Monday, Jan. 16, in observance of Martin Luther King Day. Banks will also be closed, and the Daily Briefing will not be published that day.

Friday: 27th Drug Court Graduation Ceremony, in Courtroom 101 at the Kim C. Hammond Justice Center, 1769 E. Moody Blvd., Bunnell. Presiding over the graduation will be Senior Judge J. David Walsh, who had been the Drug Court judge in Flagler County before his retirement. The guest speaker will be recently retired Judge Joe Will, who served for many years as the Drug Court judge in Volusia County.

Julia Davidson Truilo and Lloyd Bowers in 'I Do! I Do!' at Palm Coast's City Repertory Theatre. — Julia Davidson Truilo, right, returns to CRT.

Friday: City Repertory Theatre announces the opening of the award winning, ground breaking musical, “Next to Normal,” at 7:30 p.m., for one performance only this weekend, but four performances in the following two weekends, at its intimate 50 seat theater at City Market Place, 160 Cypress Point Parkway, Suite B207 in Palm Coast. The show runs for six performances culminating in a 2 p.m. matinee on Sunday, January 29. Julia Davidson Truilo headlines a star studded cast featuring Chelsea Jo Conard, Everett Clark, Max Wolf, Sara Humbert and Beau Wade. John Sbordone directs with Musical Direction by Ben Beck. “Next to Normal” is a rock musical that won the Tony for Best Score in 2009 and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama the following year. It creates something phenomenal out of an unconventional subject. Tickets are available by calling CRT’s Box Office at 386/585-9415 or, even easier, by clicking here for immediate ticketing.

Friday, Saturday, Sunday: The 4th Annual Flagler Film Festival features 60 films (shorts and features) from several local Flagler County filmmakers and films from around the world. Films from first time filmmakers, students and multi-award winning filmmakers will be screened. Hilton Garden Inn, 55 Town Center Blvd., Palm Coast. Tickets available at the door and on the festival’s website soon (www.flaglerfilmfestival.com) or by calling the box office 386-597-0260. Advance ticket prices are $5 in advance for one block of films, $10 for one day of films or $25 for the entire weekend of films.

4th Flagler Film Festival Strings Variety of Themes, With Benefit to Tommy Tant Classic

Friday: Adam Trent Magic and Illusion show at the Flagler Auditorium, 7:30 p.m., Adults $29.50, Youth $18.50.

Monday: Dave Mason, Alone Together, a show at the Flagler Auditorium. Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Dave Mason will revisit his classic 1970 masterpiece Alone Together on his new ‘ Alone Together Again’ US tour. As one of America’ s most beloved classic rock albums, Alone Together– Mason’ s debut solo album – is represented on eight timeless tracks that are as satisfying and inspiring now as they were when they were released 46 years ago. 7:30 p.m. Adults, $45.50, Youth, $38.50.

In Florida and in State Government:

Note: Some proceedings below can be followed live on the Florida Channel. Most legislative proceedings can be followed through the Senate or House websites.

The Florida College System Council of Presidents will meet. (Friday, 8:30 a.m., Tallahassee Community College Capitol Center, 300 West Pensacola St., Tallahassee.)

The Republican Party of Florida will start a two-day annual meeting that is expected to include electing a chairman. (Friday, 9 a.m., Rosen Centre, 9840 International Dr., Orlando.)

Jonathan Altman, a senior analyst and assistant program manager at Systems Planning and Analysis, Inc., will discuss foreign-policy issues during a meeting of the Economic Club of Florida. (Friday, noon, FSU Alumni Center, 1030 West Tennessee St., Tallahassee.)

The Florida Democratic Party will hold an election to replace outgoing Chairwoman Allison Tant. (Saturday, 10 a.m., Rosen Shingle Creek, 9939 Universal Blvd., Orlando.)

–Compiled by the News Service of Florida and FlaglerLive

In Coming Days in Palm Coast, Flagler and the Occasional Beyond:

♦ Jan. 17: Learn about historic and interesting Flagler County sites with local author Bill Ryan as your guide on this latest Historic Flagler County Bus Tour. The bus leaves at 10 a.m. from the Holden House, 204 East Moody Boulevard, Bunnell, and returns at 2:30 p.m. The cost is $20, which does not include lunch at Bull Creek Fish Camp. To make reservations or for more information call 386-439-5003.
♦ Jan. 21 and 22: Flagler County Home and Lifestyle Show, the annual event and fund-raiser for Flagler Technical Institute, the adult education division of the school district, takes place at Flagler Palm Coast High School.
♦ Jan. 23: Doughnuts with Doughney: Similar to “Coffee with a Cop,” Doughnuts with provides the public an opportunity to meet and speak openly with Flagler Beach Police Chief Matt Doughney about issues or concerns in Flagler Beach. The location of the meeting provides citizens easy access to both the 7-ELEVEN and Chief Doughney, in a relaxed, non-threatening atmosphere. From 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. at the Flagler Beach 7-ELEVEN convenience store, 408 South Oceanshore Boulevard.
♦ Jan. 26-27: Volunteers conduct the annual in-person census of the homeless population in Flagler County.
♦ Jan. 27: The Florida Ethics Commission considers a final action in the ethics case against former County Commissioner Barbara Revels, who has agreed to a settlement and a fine of $4,500 over several issues brought forth by complainant John Ruffalo. The ethics commission board, however, must approve the settlement. 8:30 a.m. Third Floor Courtroom, First District Court of Appeal, 2000 Drayton Drive, Tallahassee.
♦ Feb. 6: The great violinist Itzhak Perlman opens the 2017 season of the Amelia Island Chamber Music Festival with a 7:30 p.m. performance at First Baptist Church, 1600 South 8th Street in Fernandina Beach. Tickets here.
♦ Feb. 8: Jonathan Canales, the man accused of shooting his girlfriend in the neck and leaving her to bleed in a bathtub for hours in their Mondex trailer in Nov. 2014, is scheduled for a pre-trial at 1:30 p.m. in Courtroom 401 at the Flagler County Courthouse. Canales had been judged incompetent to stand trial previously.
♦ March 7: Bunnell and Flagler Beach hold their municipal elections.
♦ March 22: The boy Scouts Council holds its Golden Eagle Dinner at 6 p.m. at Hammock Beach Resort, honoring Bob Cuff, now a Palm coast City council member.

The Day’s Best Reads:

From aid recipient to aid worker: is it an impossible leap? https://t.co/xifcBjQVp4 via @GuardianGDP

— The Guardian (@guardian) January 11, 2017

Germany: 280,000 new migrants last year, far lower than 2015. https://t.co/Vf980D65BT

— The Associated Press (@AP) January 11, 2017

For the first time, a bee species in the continental United States has been declared endangered https://t.co/SY8s9hKish

— CNN International (@cnni) January 11, 2017

Bedrooms for burrowing owls https://t.co/5dFjkGGhub pic.twitter.com/bQhw89vsrP

— High Country News (@highcountrynews) January 11, 2017

As the iPhone turns ten, a look at how it has changed the way people live—and how it may continue to do so: https://t.co/maZDKHmuSm pic.twitter.com/DnrhHICQy3

— The New Yorker (@NewYorker) January 11, 2017

Netflix vs. Amazon vs. Hollywood vs. … Apple? https://t.co/8X6CbvKpYT

— USA TODAY (@USATODAY) January 12, 2017

Vegan denied passport for being 'too annoying’ https://t.co/qUCScHGjn2

— The Independent (@Independent) January 12, 2017

[Selected by L.T.]

A Twitter List by PierreTristam

Palm Coast Construction and Development Progress Reports

The following is an update of ongoing permitting, construction and development projects in Palm Coast, through Dec. 22 (the city administration’s full week in review is here):

Click to access development-palm-coast-dec-2.pdf

Road and Interstate Construction: