New Tampa Resident Goes Viral With ‘Stuff’ Girlfriends Say!

By John McGurl

 

A recent viral video craze sweeping YouTube.com has been a slew of videos about the … “S–t (or, let’s say, “Stuff”) People Say.” Most of these videos go by unnoticed and are passed by in our browsers. However, some of these videos have received attention among other sites, such as Failblog.org.

One of the most recent viral hits is “S–t Girlfriends Say,” starring Kelsey Darragh, daughter of long-time New Tampa residents Mike and Kristy Darragh. The video had instant success, reaching 2.5-million views in only three weeks. Not only does the video have a continually rising number of views, but the “likes” posted compared with the number of dislikes is almost 14,000 to just more than 200. With more than 2,000 comments posted, the video has certainly been a success. Kelsey and the crew behind the video even gained attention on MostWatchedToday.com; a site that simply tells you what video has been most watched that day.

Kelsey portrays every type of stereotype that can be attributed to a girlfriend. In true satirical fashion, some of the situations are a little exaggerated, but are, at the same time, still somewhat true. Whether crying, yelling, or laughing Kelsey made her character come alive and comically showed the unfortunate side to being a girlfriend.

Capturing things like the classic drunk dial, and the fights in the car gives Kelsey’s video a taste of relationship reality, the video shows everything from the constant nagging questions to the annoyingly loving side. Like other successful videos in this category, the “Girlfriends” video moves quickly from scene to scene. It never leaves the viewer time to really catch up until the end, and keeps the laughs coming.

Kelsey not only starred in this witty comedy, she also wrote and edited it — in one day. Her mother says that she is very proud, but cautiously excited for her daughter. Having spent time in the entertainment industry herself, Kristy (now a Realtor at Florida Executive realty in Tampa Palms,) knows how tough the film industry can be.

“I think she is the next generation,” says Kristy, whether her daughter ends up as the famous actress, or behind the scenes producing or editing. Kelsey attended the New York Film Academy, and graduated from the school’s Los Angeles campus.

As to why Kelsey’s video was so much more popular than the slew of similar videos posted around the same time, Kristy believes its because Kelsey’s short comedy looks much more professional than all the others.

“Its not my exact taste, but I see the humor in it,” says Kristy. That’s the point of the video, of course — to make people laugh. The use of strong language (parents, you might want to keep your young kids from viewing it) gears it towards a more mature demographic, but the video is meant as a joke and should be taken as such. Inappropriate dialogue is O.K. in this type of video. Offensive language can be part of everyday conversation; it’s no different in this satire of real life.

The viral success will hopefully be just the beginning for Kelsey, and the whole crew of her classmates behind the short film. The YouTube video is hopefully just a stepping-stone for Kelsey and her talented crew.

For Kelsey, according to her Facebook fan page, that goal is to make people laugh. Judging by the comments on the “Girlfriends” video, she is on the right track.

More YouTube hits may well be on the way for Kelsey, who recently tweeted that she has been cast in an upcoming video to be entitled, “The Girl with the Bumblebee Sticker.”

SukhoThai Restaurant & Sushi Bar Still Earning Rave Reviews!

By Gary Nager

When Niyom (it’s pronounced sort of like “Neil”) and his wife Pansri Nitayangkul first opened SukhoThai Restaurant & Sushi Bar across Highwoods Preserve Pkwy. from the Muvico theaters in New Tampa seven years ago, I had heard of the very successful original SukhoThai on N. Dale Mabry in Carrollwood, but had never eaten there. I wasn’t yet a huge fan of Thai cuisine, so I wasn’t going to go out of my way to sample it.Continue reading

SukhoThai Restaurant & Sushi Bar Still Earning Rave Reviews!

By Gary Nager

When Niyom (it’s pronounced sort of like “Neil”) and his wife Pansri Nitayangkul first opened SukhoThai Restaurant & Sushi Bar across Highwoods Preserve Pkwy. from the Muvico theaters in New Tampa seven years ago, I had heard of the very successful original SukhoThai on N. Dale Mabry in Carrollwood, but had never eaten there. I wasn’t yet a huge fan of Thai cuisine, so I wasn’t going to go out of my way to sample it.Continue reading

Neighborhood Nibbles — New Tampa’s Best St. Patrick’s Day Parties!

By Gary Nager

When I lived in New York City in the 1980s & ‘90s, you literally had to go to a Mexican restaurant on St. Patrick’s Day because (unless you arrived before noon) you simply couldn’t even get inside any of the city’s Irish bars that day when you wanted to wear your green that day.

But, while Tampa has plenty of packed festivals and events — from Gasparilla to Guavaween, but it seems that there are very few big St. Patrick’s Day parties in the Tampa Bay area and, until recently, almost none hereat all in New Tampa.

This year, however, there are at least three great places to go in our area if you want to wear your “Kiss Me, I’m Irish” T-shirts and stay close to home. We hope you’ll visit these outstanding St. Patty’s Day events to be held on Saturday, March 17 — and please enjoy them responsibly!

 

P.J. Dolan’s Irish Pub

If you’ve lived in our area for any period of time, you probably remember both Remington’s Steakhouse and Cody’s Roadhouse as places that previously occupied the anchor tenant location in the Palms Connection Plaza on E. Bearss Ave., just west of Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd.

Well, that location has since become P.J. Dolan’s Irish Pub & Grille, which is hosting what its management calls “The Biggest & Best St. Patrick’s Day Celebration in New Tampa.”

The event, which begins when the doors open at 9 a.m., in true St. Patrick’s Day fashion, will be held inside the restaurant and out on its covered patio, and will continue until the “wee” hours of the morning (3 a.m.). There will be four bands playing, great food and drink specials and fun door prizes given away all day.

P.J. Dolan’s already has many of your Irish and English food favorites on its unique menu — including corned beef & cabbage, Shepherd’s pie and fish & chips — but will also offer green beer, bangers & mash and even Guinness brats (bratwursts) for this most Irish of days. And, best of all, you can get free admission (the regular price is $10 per person) to the party if you bring in the ad in this issue with you when you check in.

P.J. Dolan’s Irish Pub & Grille is located at 2836 E. Bearss Ave. For more info, call 374-2338 or visit PJDolans.com.

 

Mulligans Irish Pub

The longest-running St. Patrick’s Day bash in our area, however, is probably the party now being held for the fifth year at Mulligans Irish Pub inside the Pebble Creek Golf Club (PCGC) located across BBD from New Tampa’s WalMart Supercenter.

Mulligans, which will be open 11 a.m.-1 a.m. and will have live bands playing 4 p.m. until close, also will feature green beer, great drink specials and an Irish buffet featuring corned beef & cabbage, Shepherd’s pie and bangers & mash at what its management also calls “New Tampa’s Best St. Patty’s Party.”

Promising that the event will be family friendly and featuring, for the first time, Mulligans beautiful new outdoor veranda and its recently revamped ballroom, you can rest assured that lads and lassies and even the “wee bairns” will enjoy St. Patty’s at Mulligans! And, with the ad in this issue, you’ll get $2 off the cover charge per person!

Mulligans Irish Pub is located at 10550 Regents Park Dr. N., inside PCGC. For more information, visit PebbleCreekClub.com or call 973-3870, x225.

 

Ciccio’s Lodge

Unfortunately, we didn’t yet have the details about the St. Patrick’s Day party at Ciccio’s Lodge in the City Plaza at Tampa Palms shopping center, although we do know it will feature live music, great food and drink specials and will definitely be fun for everyone.

Ciccio’s Lodge is located at 16023 Tampa Palms Blvd. W. For more information, call 975-1222 or visit CicciosLodge.com.

 

And, please don’t forget to drink responsibly on St. Patty’s Day and every day! If you know you’re going out to party that day, we hope you’ll call our friends at Tampa Bay Limousine (474-1111) or WC Cab & Car Service (598-2430) and please tell them we sent you!