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After accusing state Rep. Daniel Patterson of domestic violence, Georgette Escobar has now recanted the charges via Facebook:

Statement of Georgette Escobar about Daniel Patterson

I had a breakdown recently. I’m now stabilized and working on getting better.

Daniel Patterson never hit or committed domestic violence against me. I never needed an order of protection against him. I’m sorry.

I disagree with the ethics complaint, investigation and charges against him. He should be found innocent.

Georgette Escobar

Escobar was arrested on charges of meth possession in La Paz County after making the allegations against Patterson. She recently announced, via Facebook, that she was now embracing the Republican Party and has claimed Ronald Reagan as an "inspirational figure."

State Rep. Ted Vogt, the Republican chairman of the House Ethics Committee, tells TW contributor Hank Stephenson that the ethics investigation into Patterson is continuing and that the investigators who are looking into the allegations have asked for more time.

More background on this story here and here.

A new Villa Pizza location is opening at Park Place Mall. You can check out the menu here.

Meatball sandwiches. Standard salads. Slabs of pizza. Fountain soda. Ho-hum.

There's more on the restaurant here.

You could be forgiven for forgetting what on earth has happened up to this point on the series Mad Men, which comes back Sunday night with a two hour episode kicking off season five. After all, it has been eighteen months since the last new episode aired. Thankfully, the internet comes through in pop culture emergencies such as this, so you can choose from (at least) two different ways of jogging your memory:

Jezebel runs through the show's history character by major character, which was helpful since I would have been very confused by any future references to Abe Drexler.

OR

New York Magazine goes through each episode in condensed form, giving more extended treatment to the show's ten best episodes.

Or, just read both and regale your friends with your exceptional mastery of the show's backstory. Assuming your friends spend quite a bit of time talking about Mad Men. If that's not the case, perhaps there are better uses of your time.

Tonight on Arizona Illustrated's Political Roundtable: Pima County Democratic Party Chairman Jeff Rogers and Republican strategist Brett Mecum hash out the latest in the GOP primary in the race to complete Gabrielle Giffords' congressional term (including some of Jesse Kelly's eyebrow-raising assertions and Frank Antenori's driving record), talk about the contraception and abortion bills at the Legislature and predict whether Russell Pearce can make a successful comeback.

Surely the next step is to bring in the kid's pants and socks as accomplices, right?

From Rivera's Twitter:

followed by this gem:

Ignoring his felonious abuse of grammar, a part of me would rather believe that these comments are all part of a meticulously planned career arc that started immediately after the Capone vault stunt. I start to think that, at this point, he's a few short steps from finishing his transition out of legitimate journalism and into absurdist performance art. I realize that all he needs now is an Andy Kaufman-esque feud with Jerry "The King" Lawler, and he can call it a career.

Then he tweets "Its sad that I have to be the one reminding minority parents of the risk that comes with being a kid of color in America—channel the rage," and I realize that he's too much of a damned fool to be that clever.

But seriously, kudos to him for not only finding a way to make himself relevant, but for spinning the discussion away from race and violence and into cotton outerwear. It takes some real work to make your own son ashamed of you.

The Spring edition of Club Crawl, which brings thousands of people who enjoy music, drinking while standing on city streets and fun to Downtown Tucson is less than a month away, so we're starting to get more information about the venues involved and the featured acts. Sure, you were probably going anyway, but I will admit that I let out a little yelp of glee when I saw that Jurassic 5 and Ozomatli's Charlie 2na will be performing (with a live band!).

The press release:

Wristbands on now on sale for the Tucson Weekly’s Spring Club Crawl taking place on Saturday April 21st. It’s Tucson’s largest music festival with over 25 stages of live music covering over 8 blocks of the entertainment district. There will be six outdoor stages and numerous venues downtown off Congress Street and on 4th Avenue. Venues include Rialto Theatre, Hotel Congress, Vaudeville, The District, O’Malley’s, The Hut, Sky Bar, Mr. Heads, Screening Room, Sharks, Sacred Machine Museum, The Hub, Play Ground, Enoteca, La Cocina, Iguana Café, Cushing Street, Casa Vicente, Café Passe, Delectables, Chocolate Iquana, Magpies, La Cocina, and Martin’s. Club Crawl gates open at 7pm.

Headlining this year’s Club Crawl will be MC, painter, musician, actor and Renaissance man, Chali 2na. As one of the founding members of both Ozomatli and Jurassic 5, he will be bringing his four-piece Soul, Funk and Hip Hop band to play at the Rialto Stage. From Phoenix will be the alternative rock of Ladylike. Elmo Kirkwood, son of one of the seminal Phoenix rock bands the Meat Puppets, will perform at Hotel Congress. Also returning to Tucson from Atlanta Georgia to play Club Crawl will be former U of A Football and NFL star Steve McLaughlin. Some of the confirmed local acts are, Cosmic Slop, 8 Minutes To Burn, Crosscut Saw, Al Perry, Planet Jam, Early Black, Broken Romeo, Sugar Stains and Flagrante Delicto. A complete list of acts, times and maps will be available at www.clubcrawl.net.

Wristbands for the Tucson Weekly's Fall Club Crawl will be available at both Zia Records locations. Advance price is only $8 and it will go up to $10 the night of Club Crawl at all the entrances. Club Crawl is sponsored by The Tucson Weekly, Ch. 11, My 92.9, KRQ, Tejano and La Preciosa, Budweiser, Cuervo Silver and Captain Morgan.

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A note to Tucson artists: if a man can create a viable butt-drawing business in Sioux City, this concept certainly seems portable enough to bring to our somewhat larger burg. Assuming someone in town has the gift of capturing the rare essence of local derrieres.

[HT: The Awl]

If you have some time to kill at work today, you can embrace your inner Jacques Cousteau and travel the Amazon River via Google Street View, which recently took to Brazil with their camera and a boat to capture the area. The experience doesn't nearly approach the experience of being there, I imagine, but there is a certain thrill to seeing something previous inaccessible.

The new restaurant Agustin Brasserie opens today at Mercado San Agustin. More via a press release:

Agustin Brasserie features classic bistro food in a casually elegant space. The welcoming interior at Agustin includes a dining room with intimate tables and banquettes finished in warm wood tones; crisp white walls — and strikes the perfect balance between vintage and modern. The adjoining bar area has additional table and bar seating, and is highlighted by a gorgeous custom made marble bar. Outdoor dining includes courtyard patio seating as well as a roof top lounge with an up close view of A Mountain — and will quickly be discovered as one of the most special places to watch the spectacular Tucson sunsets.

Owner and Culinary Director, Glen Stosius is excited to see it all come together. Stosius has overseen the development of the menus (lunch, dinner and the afternoon menu) which include many classic Brasserie -inspired dishes, like: housemade Country Pate, Nicoise Salad, Duck Confit, and more. Agustin has wide appeal with many special items for seafood lovers — including Whole Grilled Fish, Sea Bass Carpaccio, Soup de Poisson, Soft Shell Crab BLT, a fresh daily selection of Raw Bar items and more. The menu also includes a variety of, meat and poultry and options including Pepper Crusted Black and Blue Burger, Roasted Chicken, Tenderloin and more. Many of the ingredients used in the dishes at Agustin are purchased at the weekly Mercado Farmers Market held in the courtyard — it doesn’t get more “local” than that!