Shooting through thick glass into the narrow box of a prison interview cubicle, John Holbrook had few options as a photographer. On Texas’ death row, the inmates’ uniforms were routinely white, the walls barren, the lighting harsh. But there were faces, body language, hands. And so he used those things to tell the story: hands clasping each other, or pressed against the glass, folded in prayer, spread across a chest. Eyes looking straight at the camera, or giving a sideways glance. Holbrook, who also is a private investigator, is a confirmed opponent of the death penalty, and his photo essay was originally suggested by fellow... (more)

For the past year or so, economists have been saying that North Texas seems immune to many of the money problems facing the rest of the country. Housing prices have not suffered as badly as in many places, job growth is high, and the Barnett Shale gas drilling is pumping billions of dollars into the economy. Many folks, therefore, think it odd that Fort Worth is planning to reduce its services over the next five years. A recent study by the city staff and economist Becky Brooks Grimm, executive director of the Government Finance Officers Association of Texas, predicts the city could face a $24 million budget shortfall by 2013, and... (more)

Veria Natural Cafe 4001 Arlington Highlands Blvd, Arlington. 817-557-1796. 7:30am-8pm Mon-Sat, noon-6pm Sun. All major credit cards accepted. Sitting along the north side of I-20 in Arlington at Matlock Street, Arlington Highlands has been quaintly described as a “shopping center,” which is a considerable understatement. A constellation of upscale restaurants, electronics outlets, bookstores, and music, clothing, and furniture retailers make up the Highlands compound. For better or worse, it’s a teeming retail metropolis, with its own street signs, honking and halting traffic, and a South Arlington clientele that has long... (more)

Seven years ago, David Mamet capped a winning streak as a film director with his engaging farce State and Main, following his twisty 1997 thriller The Spanish Prisoner and his elegant 1999 period drama The Winslow Boy. At that time, his success moved me to write, “Mamet is poised to conquer the screen as he long ago conquered the stage.” So how’d the conquest go? Uh, not so well. After 2000, his only films were the caper flick Heist and the political thriller Spartan, both arid exercises with some witty moments. Now he’s back, with — of all things — a martial-arts movie called Redbelt, inspired by Mamet’s real-life study of... (more)

More than a dozen years ago, musician Beth Wood was your typical student struggling to earn a degree in literature from the University of Texas. She worked two part-time jobs but also found time to read the assigned novels of authors such as Sandra Cisneros and Louise Erdrich. At the same time, she was teaching herself the acoustic guitar and writing original songs. She had spent her childhood studying the European classical masters. “I studied voice, piano, violin, and harp for years,” said the 36-year-old Arlingtonian. “But it was always so intense and competitive. The schedules wore me down. I needed something... (more)