The Best of Cincinnati issue is an excellent place to find the kind of information you need to refute Know Nothings, people who like to tell you (and the world) how Cincinnati is a boring city where nothing new ever happens. Take the readers poll category "Best New Thing," for instance. As a snapshot of where Greater Cincinnati is circa Spring 2010, the top vote-getters form an impressive list.  

Erin Deters picked a bad time to get her undergraduate DAAP degree in fashion design and seek to start a career in New York City. She ran smack into the hurricane-force arrival of the great recession. Now she's back in Cincinnati and has curated 'Short Straw,' a recession-theme exhibition at the Clifton Cultural Arts Center.  

When Michael Riley died in June from a massive stroke, it was clear his passing would leave a gaping hole in the Cincinnati scene and that his life and talents were worthy of significant tribute. His longtime professional and personal companion Tebbe Farrell has been planning that tribute for months, and it comes to fruition Saturday at the Clifton Cultural Arts Center with "Man of Music: A Tribute to Michael W. Riley."