Dear Mikey,

George Strait is amid a two-year tour before retiring from the road, but new album “Love Is Everything” proves he still has plenty of great new country music in him.

The success of the spring sports kept me away from all but one day of three weeks of spring football.

Kick-off river season in style with Salt River Tubing’s annual launch event. This western-themed shindig offers free cowboy boot koozies and bandanas to the first 500 tubers, live music from 98KUPD, line dancing and lots of giveaways, not to mention a leisurely float down the scenic Lower Salt River.

"Mud" has the feel of a classic, although it's perhaps not enthralling enough to be one. The third and most elaborate feature to date from writer-director Jeff Nichols seems to have been adapted from a novel that doesn't exist -- something by James Lee Burke, perhaps, or Cormac McCarthy, or some other specialist in frequently violent tales about the challenges to masculinity and the forging of new identities that face rural people who belong to a sprawling modern world -- who might be hanging out in a supermarket parking lot one moment and falling into a creek full of deadly cottonmouths the next.

While Thursday's opening day at Country Thunder was the shortest day concert-wise, there was no disappointment in the four acts that took the stage – especially not when it came to headliner Brantley Gilbert.

Does your outfit blend into the woodwork?

Ahwatukee Music Maker Workshops has summer camps for all levels to get kids rocking, moving and mastering music.

Wondering what became of that New Year’s Resolution? Or just need a little motivation to stay on track?

Blaze was originally adopted from Lost Our Home Pet Foundation, but she came back because her adoptive mom could no longer take care of her. Blaze is a wonderfully sweet cat that just wants to be near you. She will steal your heart with her expressive eyes and may even find her way into your handbag.

Roots and Boots: Featuring Sammy Kershaw, Joe Diffie & Aaron Tippin: Enjoy a night of throw-back country music when these stars unite for one evening in Chandler. Pictures are allowed, though audio, video and cell phone use is not. The musicians will sign autographs after the show.

Enjoy this annual rodeo extravaganza where there’ll be a PRCA rodeo competition, a petting zoo, an RV show, a draft horse show, mutton bustin’ and a whole lot more.

In a room at the School of Ballet Arizona, this phrase is tacked onto a bulletin board and followed faithfully: “There are three ways to build a costume — good, fast and cheap. Of these three options, only two of the three are possible at a time.”

When most of the country is shivering in their boots, Mesa is bursting with blue skies and the smell of orange blossoms.

Stomp, on stage Wednesday and Thursday in Phoenix, has been making international headlines since it burst onto the music scene in the early ’90s. The renowned street performers continue to wow audiences, using everything from brooms and boots to trash cans and Zippo lighters to create a percussive experience like no other.

A: I have an old computer with (Windows) XP that is running very slow (I think it has a virus). I would like to get a new computer and transfer things to the new computer but I’m afraid it will transfer the virus. What should I do? — Maureen

It’s that time of year to hand out some honors for the year’s best. So it is without further ado that I bring you the Third Annual Hammer Awards.

The good, the bad, the kitschy. A “seasonal sweater” is one way to start a conversation at a holiday function.

Have you ever said “thank you” through clenched teeth? The gift in that nicely wrapped box was so not what you wanted: comfy clothes instead of designer duds, or a kitchen gadget instead of a shiny piece of jewelry.

Yuma Cibola earned an automatic berth into the Division l playoffs by finishing third in its section despite being outside of the final 16 in the seeding.

My parents were fairly normal, back in the ’60s. Like something out of “The Donna Reed Show,” they’d get together with their best friends and play bridge.

Desert Vista built a 31-0 halftime cushion and then emptied its bench in the second half in a 54-17 victory over Mesquite on Friday night.

For two weeks this summer I made it my mission to improve my 8-year-old son’s tolerance of vegetables.

‘Frankenweenie’