The norm has never appealed to Gina Vivinetto.  Going against the grain has its repercussions but tragic turns of events are sometimes just what we need to peel open our eyelids.  So after her sudden termination from a major local publication occurred, she shifted her focus to her St. Petersburg art house, The Bombshell Gallery, where convention is all but a stranger. 

The Bombshell hosts a variety of events from movie night to art and music shows to just casual hang-out sessions where patrons come to read the many books that fill the shelves.  And on Wednesday nights, the doors are open to pretty much anyone who wants to strut their stuff.  It's not open-mic, it's B.Y.O.T., as in Bring Your Own Talent.  "I don't do anything the ordinary way.  I want non-musicians who have a talent to come.  I am eager for a puppeteer, a mime, a comedian.  It doesn't have to be only music so I am not marketing it that way," said Vivinetto. 

Hosted by coffee-house habitué' Geri-X, the night always begins with a small set of new material from the acoustic performer and then remains open to the floor.  Never just a locals only crowd, B.Y.O.T. nights tend to draw poets, artists and musicians from places as far as Bradenton and Sarasota.  Still, the weekly event has become a testing stage for mostly bay area musicians.  "I'm really pleased that people travel for it," Vivinetto adds,  "a lot of the neighborhood musicians drop in.  It's become a haven for local bands to come try out new stuff or solo stuff without their bands.  Tonight we had John McNicholas, Natty Moss Bond, Rebekah Pulley, Corin from Incredible Crisis, Mike from The Satsukos and Joey Neil and Scott Harrell from Nessie."

The rules of the night are pretty simple:  Performers sign in to regiment the order and everyone gets 10-15 minutes of stage time and Vivinetto is a stickler when it comes to respect and politeness from the crowd during each set. 

Running modestly as a cultural safe house since the end of 2005 and progressing vibrantly with an appeal to the eccentric and creative minds of the local art scene, The Bombshell Gallery is an underground favorite and the B.Y.O.T. nights are just one of the many events that are tweaked to Vivinetto's peculiar tastes.  With the eclectic mix of books, music, art displays, board games, furniture and films, even the norm of a regular night at Bombshell is something unusual.