RFT 📰

The St. Louis metro area tends to get a bad rep in the rest of the state. We’re “criminals,” crazy “libs,” or inferior to our Kansas City rival. The haters can say what they want.

Community leader, pioneer and "Angel of the Rockies" Clara Brown lived in the 1800s. Born enslaved, she was freed in 1859 and moved to Colorado, becoming the state's first Black resident.

Even if you're not a regular hiker, there are few better ways to set the tone for the new year than getting outside, getting your body moving and checking out the (undoubtedly frozen) glories of Missouri. The St. Louis area is flush with excellent parks, but one of the best is the Dr. Edmund A. Babler Memorial State Park (800 Guy Park Drive, Wildwood; 636-458-3813), which is hosting a First Day Hike.

The Soulard Art Gallery (2028 South 12th Street, 314-258-4299), a co-op gallery space located in the heart of the historic neighborhood, has long been known for its resident artists and its monthly themed shows. The latest is the Art of Whimsy, a showcase of "fantastic images, fanciful and playful ideas and vintage retro design."

End-of-year partying isn't only for New Year's Eve — at least that's the premise held by Blank Space (2847 Cherokee Street, blankspace314.com). This year, the community arts space is making the last Friday of the year all that and a bag of chips with its That 90's Jam, a dance party evoking the decade of TLC, OutKast, Beastie Boys, Oasis, Ace of Base and other equally phat jams.

A 40-year-old woman has been charged with attempted robbery and armed criminal action for allegedly attempting to take Ward 3 Alderman Brandon Bosley's car last night in the Old North neighborhood. Bosley started live streaming shortly after he says Bianca Robinson approached him outside his car and demanded his keys, which Bosley refused to hand over. He alleged he heard gunshots as he fled on foot.

Late Thursday night, the House  select committee investigating the January 6, 2021, insurrection released its final report. The committee was investigating an attempted coup at the Capitol on the day that President Joe Biden's victory in the 2020 election was supposed to be certified. Missouri's own Senator Josh Hawley is closely associated with the events of that day, as he was photographed raising a fist in support of the election-deniers gathered in D.C. and was also filmed running from them after they breached the Capitol.

Last night, Ward 3 Alderman Brandon Bosley posted a nine-minute video to Facebook, beginning with what he says was the immediate aftermath of a woman attempting to rob him and continuing to show Bosley chastising the alleged robber after she gets knocked to the ground by another would-be victim. A warrant has since been issued for the woman's arrest by the Circuit Attorney's Office. "So, this the problem with St. Louis city, sometimes," Bosley opens the video by saying.

The storied Magic Chef Mansion is getting a $1.6 million glow-up — but even six figures don't go far on a house this big. The Compton Heights mansion apparently had its roof damaged in a storm. And that's a costly problem.

Amateur Night — better known in most circles as New Year's Eve — is almost upon us again, and with it of course comes the usual batch of soused lunatics piloting 4,000-pound four-wheeled missiles haphazardly across the city's roadways in a bloodsport of squealing tires and failed breathalyzer tests. For those poor souls unfortunate enough to find themselves driving alongside these maniacs, the experience can range from a stressful time to a fight for survival.

I wanted a couples costume that was of the moment this past Halloween. We’d been invited to a truly epic bash, but all my funny ideas felt a bit fraught — and it doesn’t help that my husband is an incurable stick-in-the-mud. Whatever I came up with needed to be simple.

A hotel near Lambert International Airport was evacuated last night after someone set multiple fires in the building. KSDK reported that crews from multiple fire departments responded to the St. Louis Marriott Hotel in Edmundson around 5 p.m. There were six fires burning in the building at one point, at least one of which officials said started in the hotel's human resources office, Fox 2 News reported.

Update: The Food and Drug Administration on Friday updated information included on Plan B labels to specify that the emergency contraceptive does not prevent fertilized eggs from implanting in the womb. Pamphlets purchased with the pill and the FDA’s website previously stated that Plan B may prevent a fertilized egg from implantation.

Late last month in federal court, a St Louis man who graduated from Washington University in the 1970s filed a lawsuit against the City of St. Louis alleging that their ParkLouie mobile parking system uses technology for which he holds the patent. Attorneys Chuck McCloskey (no relation to Mark) and Chris Swiecicki, who are representing Gil Bashani's company Parking World Wide, say that the patent is on a "parking status system" that determines if a parking space is occupied by a motorist who hasn't paid, in which case the system sends out an alert to law enforcement or parking attendants. Bashani immigrated to the United States from Israel,  graduating from Washington University in the 1970s with a degree in computer science.

If you made it through the bitter cold last night in St. Louis without too much issue, consider yourself lucky. Having adequate shelter is always a blessing. But even if they managed to keep their bodies warm through the night, many people across town are waking up this morning to frozen pipes, dead car batteries and other consequences of this extreme weather.

Remember when you were a kid and your parents would take you on trolley rides at Grant's Farm? Or when you rode the train at the City Museum for a slow but gloriously fun loop?

A long time ago, I had a friend who started growing cannabis. They went all-in on the space, the equipment and genetics.

Around 1 p.m. on a cold Monday in December, a man walked up the steps of the Old Courthouse, a camera around his shoulder. He turned around to take a photo of the Arch when I stopped him.

At some point during your Wednesday night Whisker Station stretch sesh, you'll find yourself with a tail between your legs. Or in your ear.

If one of your new year's resolutions is to start doing more handicrafts so you're not completely useless when the inevitable apocalypse hits, then get a jump on things with Wooden Bowl Turning with Carbide Tools at Rockler Woodworking and Hardware (11977 St. Charles Rock Road, Suite 110A, Bridgeton; 314-209-1116). In this two-hour workshop, you'll learn how to make a wooden bowl with easy-to-use carbide turning tools.