With the US national team not playing in the World Cup, you are probably wondering which team you should root for, well I have an option for you.

Iceland-The Underdog

The Vikings are ready to make history, playing in the World Cup for the first time, a country of a population of 348,580 (Tucson, by comparison, has a population of 530,706), being the smallest country to ever participate in the tournament.

Before becoming assistant manager in 2011, Heimir Hallgrimsson was a dentist in his village.

This team has now become famous for the ‘Viking War Chant’, their signature move with their fans at the end of every match.

One of their biggest moments was when an Icelandic commentator lost it after Iceland beat Austria in the 2016 UEFA EURO Cup when they moved forward in the tournament.

Iceland got into the semifinals by winning against England in 2016 but sadly lost to France.

Sports are all about the little team who made it and that is what Iceland did in the last Eurocup, getting further than teams like Spain, Italy, and Germany.

So do not count them out, it may be their first time in a competition in the World Cup but they may surprise you.

[Gulp!] OK, here goes.

I rarely find people I disagree with more fundamentally than John Huppenthal and the Koch Brothers. But sometimes the universe allows for rare moments of alignment. I'm putting these odd moments of agreement with Huppenthal and the Brothers Koch into one post even though they concern very different issues to amplify the weirdness of the moment (also to spare myself the task of doing this twice). And—this is a plus for me—I find our similar positions are at odds with people and organizations I disagree with as fundamentally as I usually disagree with Hupp and the Kochs.

First, John Huppenthal. A story on public radio station KJZZ talks about one of the major downsides of the letter grades Arizona gives to its schools, namely, schools with lower income students tend to get lower grades, which stigmatizes the students, the teachers and the schools. One of the few nearly undisputed facts in educational research is that no matter where you go, students from lower income families tend to do worse on standardized tests than students from higher income families.

Or, as John Huppenthal put it in the story,

"Here we have this letter grading system that comes in and is beating, to put it bluntly, beating the hell out of schools that are serving the most at-risk populations."

John, I couldn't have said it better myself. To be honest, you said it a hell of a lot better than I did.

Huppenthal's statement is followed by one from Lisa Graham Keegan, who thinks the grading system is not perfect but pretty good. Keegan, like Huppenthal, is an ex-Arizona lawmaker and education superintendent. She has continued to be a player in Arizona's education politics, pushing her destructive privatization/"education reform" agenda forcefully and successfully with a succession of Arizona governors and legislatures. So for a brief, happy moment, I find myself allied with Huppenthal against Keegan. (John, who is a regular commenter here, will most likely rain on my parade and explain how I'm distorting his and Keegan's positions, but I'll savor this rare moment of apparent confluence until the two of us lock horns again.)

Then there's the Charles Koch Institute, which — spoiler alert — is on the same side as I am, lined up against the Goldwater Institute. Imagine my surprise.

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Summer Safari Nights. Come one, come all, especially dads! Because this week at the Reid Park Zoo’s summer program, all dads get in free with paid child admission, in honor of Father’s Day. It’s a great week for the kids too, and maybe even a way to get them interested in a future STEM career, as this week’s theme is “Earth’s Eco-Engineers.” It’s all about the incredibly unique structures like armadillos, anteaters, elephants and alligators build. The Manhattan Dolls are providing the live music. 6 to 8 p.m. Friday, June 15. Reid Park Zoo, 3400 Zoo Court. $10.50 adults, $8.50 seniors, $6.50 kids 2 to 14. Half off for zoo members! Details here.

Dive-In Movie: Moana. The Ott Family YMCA is giving you the option to fully-embrace the aquatic and summery vibes of Moana by allowing you to view it poolside. The giant, bedazzled crabs and The Rock playing a demigod will seem so much more realistic this way! 6 p.m. Friday, June 15. 401 S. Prudence Road. $3 for members, $5 for non-members. Details here.

The Fifty Percenter with Rich Hopkins and William Sedlmayr. Billy Sedlmayr’s words and vocals ache—they’re sincere, painful and put forth because they had to be. It’s pure hard-won experience, each syllable and breathe summoning ghosts of the Sonoran Desert and the barrio shadows of past mistakes. Rich Hopkins’ guitar playing hums and sparks evoking the boundless liberation and melancholy of lives unraveling beneath open Arizona skies. In 2001, these two Southwestern music legends (Giant Sandworms and The Sidewinder/Sand Rubies respectively, at least) teamed up to create a much-lauded single album, The Fifty Percenter, but they never once played it live—until now. On tunes like “Apology,” Hopkins’ guitar rises on stark, warm gestures, upholding Sedlmayr’s voice, ever-tinged with street-corner regrets and a bizarre resilience: “And over by that tall tree, they’ll bury me with thieves/The snap, the sleep, the rope which sings one last apology.” The characters rise, stumble and swagger throughout, and hooks soar, and the whole thing now feels desert mythic all these years later. Friday, June 15, The Owls Club, 236 South Scott Ave. 8 p.m. 21+.—B.S. Eliot Details here.

Avatar, Guardians of the Galaxy, and Star Trek Movie Night. Casa Video Film Bar is going all-out in celebration of Zoë Saldaña’s 40th birthday. Did you know she starred in all three films? Me neither, but once you think about it, yep, that’s her alright. Now’s your chance to get down to Casa Video and start genuflecting the new queen of sci-fi. Avatar plays first, then Guardians, then Star Trek. 7 p.m., Friday, June 15. 2905 E. Speedway Blvd. Details here.

FIFA World Cup with Spain vs. Portugal. The US may be out of the World Cup already, but that doesn’t mean we have to miss out on the excitement of the games. Playground Bar and Lounge is opening its doors early for World Cup watching on its giant TVs in the main bar and the courtyard patios. Turn game day into brunch with breakfast specials and deals on drinks. $5 Negro Modelo USA drafts and $4 cans of Modelo Especial. 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Friday, June 15. Check Playground’s website to see which other games Playground will open early for. 278 E. Congress St. Details here.

Monsoon Duck Party. Local waterfowl conservation group Tucson Ducks Unlimited is keeping it casual at this event. (Maybe you can even get them to put together a game of “Duck, Duck Goose.”) For 25 bucks, you’ll get a craft beer, wine or soda and plenty to munch on. You’ll also have the chance to get involved with raffles, games and an auction, all in support of their conservation mission. Duck, duck, brews! 5 to 8 p.m. Friday, June 15. Barrio Brewing Co., 800 E. 16th St. $25. Details here.

Revolutionary Grounds Coffee and Books, the small storefront on Fourth Avenue near the corner of Fifth Street, is closing its doors for good on Sunday, June 17. But a revival may be on the horizon.

Usually invisible to the average tourist, the store’s red brick walls housed a vibrant local community for the past decade. The place has a collection of leftist and progressive books that are sourced and sold by the owners, Joy Soler and her husband, attorney Paul Gattone.

You can find paperbacks about Marxism, sustainable food sourcing, feminist memoirs, the Civil Rights Movement and much more stacked on the shelves, adjacent to a comfy seating arrangement with faces of famous activists accenting the wooden tables.

Soler received a letter earlier this month from her landlord, Andy Fried, announcing that their rent has been increased, again. The monthly bill has risen to a point where her family can no longer afford it.

“Our landlord sent a letter saying that he had increased [the rent] back in January and we hadn’t been paying it, but he never told us he increased it back in January.” Soler said.

The letter Fried also said he will be increasing the rent again this month, and he expects back rent to be paid from January through May on top of this increased price.

“He wants us out, so he told us if we leave by the 30th he’ll forgive one month’s rent,” she said.

Soler and Gattone have spent the last decade building up their business at 606 N. Fourth Ave. She told me they have been paying on a month-to-month basis, and although Fried has been slowly raising the rent in the last couple of years, it has never been this drastic until now.

Fried, who also owns the connected buildings where Tallboys and Myztic Rootz are located, told the Weekly he increased the rent because Pima County increased the value of the property, and therefore his property tax.

Records from the Pima County Treasurer’s Office showed the property tax was $8,636 in 2017, compared to $7,856 in 2013.

Soler’s regular customers are understandably upset about this news, which she announced through the store’s Facebook page a few weeks ago. Revolutionary Grounds hosts a lot of niche community events and outreach activities that can’t be found elsewhere.

“A lot of people feel like [Revolutionary Grounds] is a safe space on the Avenue for folks who don’t have many safe spaces to go to,” she said.

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Comedians Willie Barcena and Gilbert Esquivel bring their combined 50 years’ experience in high-energy showmanship and irreverent comedy to the Fox stage at 8 p.m., Saturday, June 16. Tickets for the 18-and-over show are $22 to $47 via foxtucsontheatre.com.

Barcena, a 12-time guest on the "Tonight Show," is known to fans for appearances on several TV series, tour stops all over the world, and his own stand-up specials on Comedy Central, Showtime and Netflix. He also hosted Si TV’s "Latino Laugh Festival: The Show." Barcena’s live appearances are said to cover everything we wouldn’t talk about in polite company.

Esquivel was practically born a road warrior having grown up following the harvest seasons across the U.S. with his migrant-worker family. Now he tours comedy clubs, colleges, prisons and the Las Vegas strip, taking time out to reap TV credits and produce a commercially available DVD, "Thou Shalt Laugh."

Take the kids retro!

See "Fast Times at Ridgemont High" at 7:30 p.m., Saturday, June 23, and "Clueless" at 7:30 p.m., Saturday, June 30 at Fox Tucson Theatre. Tickets are $7, $5 for students and free for Fox members and kids under 12. Did you know that the Fox was Tucson's first air-conditioned entertainment venue?

Unscrewed Theatre Lives: Neighborly and kid-friendly.

As its new space in Midway Business Park #39 (4500 E Speedway Blvd.) is being transformed, Unscrewed sustains its fans with free weekly comedy, hosted by two of its new neighbors. Four of the company’s house teams cycle through shows at 7 p.m. Fridays at Dedicated Gluten-Free Coffee Shop, #41, and 7 p.m. Saturdays at Mama’s Famous Pizza & Heros, #79. Visit the Unscrewed Theatre page on Facebook for updates on the new theater’s progress.

Unscrewed also offers summer camps for teens. Two, one-week sessions for ages 12 to 14 and 15 to 18 take place July 16 to 20, and 23 through 27. Kids can have fun building listening and communication skills, teamwork, character development and the selflessness of making their scene partner look good, all within the context of improv games that encourage noisy, active fun. Visit unscrewedtheater.org/teen-workshops/ for more information and to register.

Date Night!

With the fabulous Lola Torch as host, the Tucson Libertine League features a DJ throw down as the sound track for its burlesque show at 9 p.m., Saturday, June 16 191 E. Toole. Tickets are $12. DJ Herm and B-Rad provide the beats. Acorn B-Corn perform live music with dancers and Lela Rose is a special guest among the dozen dancers featured.

Pima Community College Chancellor Lee Lambert laid out the future for the Tucson campus’s scaled-back athletic program from a lectern tucked inside a glass-enclosed lecture hall.

Lambert, who less than a day prior had formally announced the elimination of the school’s football team, along with one of the two tennis and golf programs, said such a decision was a matter of simple economics.

“I think it's very important that we not lose sight that the college is facing tremendous amount of
challenges and pressures that are helping us to make some very difficult decisions,” Lambert told the crowd of journalists. “Our enrollments had been declining for a period of time. This year, fortunately, for the first time, our enrollments were up. But because of the enrollment challenges, it impacts other aspects of our operation and athletics is not immune to that.”

Lambert and Athletic Director Edgar Soto fielded questions about the college’s decision to cut some $600,000 from its $2.6 million athletics budget.

Lambert said their decision to cut the school’s 100-man football squad, which started in 2000, came down to its outsized costs ($406,000 in 2017) and the lack of local competition.


The latter part of that equation became a reality earlier this year when the Maricopa County Community College District announced the elimination of football in 2019 at Phoenix, Scottsdale, Mesa and Glendale community colleges.

The UA Art Museum: The UA’s art museum has several exhibitions up right now, including one on the evolution of women printmakers, one filled with art created by local high schoolers, an exploration of light and photography by multidisciplinary artist Richard Slechta and The Altarpiece of Ciudad Rodrigo, one of the most important works to come out of 15th-century Spain. Check them all out, but do try to see the exhibit "X, Y, Z: Art in Three Dimensions" which features art that’s been formed, molded, carved, cast or otherwise arranged. As you take in the art, you can reflect on what it means to take up space, cast a shadow and have texture. "X, Y, Z" is on display through Sunday, June 24. Museum is open 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, noon to 5 p.m. Sunday and closed Monday. UA Museum of Art, 1031 N. Olive Road. $8 GA, $6.50 seniors and groups of 10 or more. Free for members, students with ID, faculty, staff, military personnel, AAM members, visitors with a SNAP card or tribal ID and children. Details here.

DeGrazia’s Birthday: As if there weren’t enough of a reason to visit the DeGrazia Gallery and stroll through the gorgeous grounds, they’re giving out free cake and ice cream in honor of Ted DeGrazia’s birthday. He would have been 109 this year, and the weather gods are celebrating his birthday by setting the temperature to just about the same number. Admission to the museum,
where you can check out DeGrazia’s art and architecture, is free as well. 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday, June 14. DeGrazia Gallery in the Sun, 6300 N. Swan. Free. Details here.

Meet the Artists: Miniatures by Members of SAME: If you’re ever feeling small, there may be no better remedy than to head over to the Mini Time Museum of Miniatures to feel giant for the day. If you check out the museum’s Community Corner, where work by members of the Southern Arizona Miniature Enthusiasts’ club is on display, you may end up feeling a little lousy and untalented, just knowing what sorts of incredible and tiny art your neighbors are capable of making. Once a week, a SAME member is at the museum demonstrating their work and taking questions from the public. This week, it’s Kathy Grissom! 10a.m. to 1p.m. Thursday, June 14. Mini Time Machine Museum of Miniatures, 4455 E. Camp Lowell Drive. $9 GA, $8 military, $6 students and youth 4 to 17, free for kids 3 and under. Details here.

Red, White and Tuna: Live Theatre Workshop is presenting the third in a series of plays that take place in Tuna, the (fictional) “third-smallest” town in Texas. Hey, every town deserves to have some sort of claim to fame. Tuna’s just happens to be more of a claim to lame… Anyway, Keith Wick and Stephen Frankenfield play a cast of more than 20 wacky characters, both male and female, both young and old, Portlandia-style. In this chapter of Tuna’s tale, new town residents crash Tuna’s Fourth of July High School class reunion, and fireworks and funny stuff ensues. Thursday, June 14 to Saturday, July 21. Shows are usually at 7:30 p.m. Thursday through Saturday and 3 p.m. on Sundays. Live Theatre Workshop, 5317 E. Speedway Blvd. $15 to $20. Details here.

What could be better than spending a mid-summer's night under the florescent glow of stadium lights in the Old Pueblo?

If any of the above tickles your twine, then you're in luck, as the Sun Belt College Baseball League is returning to Tucson.

The league, which consists of eight teams, comprised of recently graduated high school players and college stars from Southern Arizona and other parts of the country, plays under the lights of Kino Veterans Memorial Stadium (2500 E. Ajo Way) between now and July 4.

This year's league includes six teams of Tucson and Southern Arizona players, as well as a squad from Boulder, Colorado and Mexico—starting on Thursday, June 14 through Wednesday, July 4.

Admission to the Tucson festivities is $5 for adults (cash only) and free for kids 12 and under, with free parking for all games.

Game times are at 7 p.m. for single game nights, and 5 p.m. for doubleheaders on June 15 and 16.

Attendees can reap the gut-busting benefits of $1 hot dogs on Tuesdays and half-off sodas and popcorn on Thursdays, with appearances by fan favorites Woody the Woodpecker and Daffy Duck every Thursday through Saturday night.

The Sun Belt season crescendoes with the third annual Fourth of July Diamonds in the Sky Celebration at 5 p.m., which includes an all-star game featuring league players, as well as a convert by Rhythm Edition and postgame fireworks.

Tickets for the year-end celebration are $4 in advance for adults (free for kids 5 and under), with tickets going on sale on June 18, with advance ticket purchases covering parking costs.