Lawrence.com

AREA MUSICIAN BIGGER THAN BIGGIE: Rolling Stone magazine recently featured Lawrence musician James Dewees - a.k.a. Reggie and the Full Effect - with an article and photo that is significantly more prominent than photos of widely renowned megastars. The May 5 issue of RS calls Dewees a "emo hero" and devotes, oh, about 50 percent more of the page's surface to him than to Curt Cobain, Bruce Springsteen and Biggie Smalls COMBINED. Though we're not privy to the inner workings of the music industry, we feel safe in reporting now that Reggie may be approaching megastar status. We did not even bother to call him for comment since he never returns our calls. This latter fact confirms that Dewees indeed has what it takes.

REACH REIGNS:The bands brought the rock but the solo performers took home the bling at KJHK's Farmers Ball last weekend. Kansas City rapper Reach became the first hip-hop artist to win the annual competition, while singer/songwriter Matt Rice took second place with an intimate solo acoustic set. Reach won a free day of recording at Black Lodge Studios and Neighborhood Studios, while Rice earned a free day at Underground Sound Studios. The other winner: KJHK 90.7 FM, which earned $1,600 to spend on new equipment and missing CDs at the student-run station. Now they'll HAVE to play that Flock of Seagulls song you requested three months ago.

THESE KIDS BETTER SLOW DOWN, OR THEY'LL FAIL TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE OBESITY EPIDEMIC: Colin Phillips doesn't necessarily care that running can improve his heart or that it's considered good exercise. But twice a week, the 12-year-old reports early to Quail Run School to run, jog and walk with his buddies in the school's track club. "I like it because I get to run with my friends," he said after completing a 1.4-mile run last week. About 80 Quail Run fourth-, fifth- and sixth-graders are in the club. They've been running on trails near the school, 1130 Inverness Drive, since the program started in early April.

OVER THE WEEKEND, A CONFUSED SANTA CLAUS FLEW OVER THE CITY: The asparagus is gone, the corn is at risk, and the greenhouses are quiet. Last week's cold, gray weather in the area brought gardening to a near-halt and caused concern for farmers. On April 23 there was a record-low temperature of 26 degrees. As the week went on, the temperature never topped 65 degrees. Although the threat of frost usually passes by mid-April, late frosts aren't unprecedented - the latest area reading of 32 degrees is May 6, a record set in 1944.

ON THE OTHER HAND, THESE FARMERS WON'T TAKE ANY CRAP FROM MOTHER NATURE: The Lawrence Farmers Market opened for the season at 6:30 a.m. Saturday with 54 vendors selling produce, meats, prepared foods, artisan crafts, herbs and body care items. Over the course of the season - which ends Nov. 12 - more than 70 vendors will sell at the market. The farmers market will remain in the 1000 block of Vermont for the entire season. But market coordinators continue to work with city officials with the hopes of moving to a larger location next season.

The farmers market will keep the following hours:

¢ 6:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. Saturdays

¢ 4 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays

BOTTOM LINE: IT'S CHEAPER TO ALTER THE CLIMATE AND DESTROY MANKIND'S FUTURE HOPES OF SURVIVAL. ALSO THE FOLKS AT CITY HALL - BIG FANS OF THE 'MAD MAX' MOVIES: It's still not easy - let alone cheap - to be green. A new city report has found that now isn't financially the right time to switch the majority of the city's vehicles to more environmentally friendly gas/electric hybrids. But with rising gasoline prices, the time is inching nearer. "I think in 15 years we'll be looking back at an all-gasoline fleet as an antique," said City Commissioner David Schauner, who requested the city report on the feasibility of hybrid vehicles.

GOOD NIGHT. SLEEP TIGHT. DON'T LET THE BEDBUGS SUCK THE BLOOD FROM YOUR BODY: Bedbug infestations have not only been reported in homes and apartments but also in high-class hotels and motels. And they are biting. "It's definitely on the rise," said Ludek Zurek, Kansas State University professor of medical entomology, about the growing problem of bedbug infestations. Bedbugs, or Cimex lectularius, usually only come out at night. They get into mattresses and then come out to chew on sleeping humans and suck their blood, although they do not transmit disease. They also can get into cracks in floorboards or walls. An adult bedbug is about the size of an apple seed, while a younger bug may be too small to see. If you have a bedbug problem or suspect that you do, the best thing to do is call professional exterminators.