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This Weekend: Garden Variety
Thursday, March 4, 2010 2:36PM
Last Sunday, in need of some sign that spring was nearly upon us, I trekked down to the Farm Show Complex for the PA Garden Expo. I didn't have much in the way of expectations and the $12.50 entrance fee seemed more than a little bit salty, but in the end, I was glad I went. Some of the displays were absolutely mind-boggling, and as someone who will be redoing a back yard this summer, I got lots of inspiration and more than a few good ideas. I can't believe that some of the companies there were able to accomplish what they did in only a few short days. Fully landscaped "backyards" with massive ponds and waterfalls tumbling over multi-ton boulders, huge decks with pergolas covered in hanging plants. It definitely got me ready for summer. I'm assuming that most of the same presenters will be at the Mid-Atlantic Garden Expo taking place this week at the York Expo Center, so I probably won't go again. But if you didn't make it to the show in Harrisburg, I recommend checking the York show out. If your idea of landscaping is mowing the lawn once every week or so, here are some other suggestions for this weekend: Full Article » -
This Weekend: A Bridge Over Troubled Water
Thursday, February 25, 2010 2:49PMIt's amazing how deep the divide between East Shore and West Shore is in Central Pennsylvania. Sure it's silly, but the attitudes are so pervasive and have been around for so long that it just becomes ingrained in you. The home I recently purchased is in Highland Park, and other than to go to work or go to the bars on Restaurant Row, I rarely cross the river. I eat on the West Shore, I shop on the West Shore and I know the West Shore like the back of my hand. I know there are good restaurants on the East Shore. I know there are lots of things to do. Heck, I know that the Target off of 283 is closer to my house than the one I go to on the Carlisle Pike, but still I rarely cross the river.
I think it's symbolic then, that another attempt to fix the gap in the Walnut Street Bridge was deemed too expensive to undertake according to an article in the Patriot-News today. I'm not saying that I'm in favor of spending $13 million to repair the gap, but it is a perfect embodiment of the disconnect between Cumberland County and Dauphin County. City Island is such a wonderful resource, and it is a shame that it is not readily accessible from both sides of the river. And don't start about walking across the Market Street Bridge – I do it as much as anyone and it is unsafe and unpleasant.
Ideally, a completed span would help breathe some life back into Wormleysburg, which is filled with houses that have seen better days. But I guess in a culture where nobody walks, building walking infrastructure isn't the best investment. Still, I feel like that gap in the span taunts us. So close, but so far away. Anyway, I'd avoid walking this weekend no matter where you'd like to go. Here are some indoor activities to keep you amused: Full Article » -
This Weekend: So You Think You’re Cold?
Thursday, February 11, 2010 1:00PM
As mother nature continues to dump snow on those of us in the Northeast, there are two distinct camps forming. One seems to feel that if it's going to be cold, it might as well snow. It's actually kind of fun. I'm part of this camp. The second has had more than enough and is to the point of advanced cabin fever. My wife is a part of this camp. If you too are part of the latter, before you complain, please remember our poor friend Brett Kelley, who is approaching the halfway point of his camp out at the National Civil War Museum in Reservoir Park. Since Brett started, the world has basically thumbed his nose at his efforts; he's had to deal with some obscenely unforgiving weather. You can see Brett's video blogs recorded by a museum staffer on the National Civil War Museum Facebook page and see transcripts of Brett's handwritten journal entries at the Civil War Soldier 24/7 blog. First and foremost this weekend, why not give Brett a visit and see the winter quarters he has created? Through it all, he seems to be in pretty good spirits. Here are some other suggestions for the weekend: Full Article » -
This Weekend: Hot Chocolate & Snow
Thursday, February 4, 2010 11:22AM
When Hershey Entertainment and Resorts noticed the late-winter dead spot on the region's entertainment calendar a few years ago, they probably viewed it a probletunity. Thus Chocolate Covered February was born. This is the third time they've taken our shortest month and dipped it in a big vat of melted chocolate, and throughout 28 days there are all kinds of special events going on at all of the Hershey properties. If you want the whole schedule, just click on the link above, but for now, on to the weekend: Full Article » -
This Weekend: Go Downtown
Friday, January 29, 2010 11:20AM
We here at Spotobe are suckers for community events, but even more importantly, we are all about supporting Central Pennsylvania's downtown areas. Research suggests that people moving away from towns and cities and into cookie-cutter subdivisions is bad for a number of reasons. It makes public transportation impractical and puts more cars on the roads. In turn, that creates pollution and traffic while stressing infrastructure. All too often, population drain from downtown areas leaves towns and cities gutted and barren, giving no incentive for local businesses to invest in them. What we're left with is the same Target/Kohls/Dicks/Home Depot/Lowes/Best Buy that you see everywhere else, and no sense of place.
We can't help but admire communities that are battling this trend. Lancaster has done a fabulous job in this regard, and there are exciting things happening in Midtown Harrisburg. Even smaller towns like Lititz, New Cumberland, Camp Hill, Mechanicsburg, Hershey and many others have taken steps to preserve their identity in the face of suburban sprawl. With that in mind, if you're looking for something to do this weekend, why not check out the Chambersburg IceFest? It was started eight years ago by Chambersburg Downtown Inc., an organization whose goal is to keep downtown Chambersburg an exciting, vibrant place to live. It's become a big regional draw, and I'm sure it's a lot of fun for any family. After the jump there are some more weekend suggestions: Full Article » -
This Weekend: Playing Nice
Thursday, January 14, 2010 5:21PM
It is our experience that people in Harrisburg don't always like working together. There are lots of wonderful people living, working and playing in the city and many of them have been extremely helpful to Spotobe. Still, sometimes the overall entertainment scene suffers because individual organizers or venues are unwilling to cooperate. There are so many awesome things happening here that simply don't get talked about; frankly, that's one of the reasons Spotobe was started in the first place. Maybe it's all of the politics in this town. There are particularly exciting things going on in Midtown right now, and one such event is a new community celebration called 3rd in the Burg. All the details on that and other weekend suggestions after the jump. Full Article » -
This Weekend: If You Want To, I Can Save You
Thursday, January 7, 2010 5:12PM
There isn't a whole heck of a lot going on around here right now. That's not a knock on Central Pennsylvania. There isn't a whole heck of a lot going on anywhere in the Northeast right now. Doing this for a few years has allowed us to recognize the ebb and flow of event information, and once New Year's Eve is over, people tend to hibernate until April. Until then, you'll have to make due with a steady diet of live music, theater and art, and even that stuff takes a little bit of time to pick up after all the excitement of the New Year. But no worries, while we might not be able to give you quite as wide a variety of options as we could in say, June, the show must go on. Click through for some weekend goodness: Full Article » -
This Weekend: Drop It Like It’s Hot
Thursday, December 31, 2009 10:00AM
Last year, my first New Year's Eve really going out in Central Pennsylvania, I learned a few things:
1. The Strawberry Drop in Harrisburg is actually quite fun in spite of the cold if you've imbibed a few adult beverages.
2. Going out with a huge group of people and trying to stay together generally creates more frustration than its worth.
3. Unless you have to, don't buy a package and tie yourself down to one place. It's more fun to move around. And it's cheaper.
4. Don't stand in line for the bathroom at Ceolta's for too long. You may well get puked on.
5. Don't count on finding a cab home in a timely fashion.
After the jump is a list of all of the community celebrations going on:
Full Article » -
This Weekend: Outlaw the Outlaw
Friday, December 11, 2009 2:24PM
For those of us who spend a lot of time thinking about music, Central Pennsylvania can be a frustrating place to live. The dearth of colleges in the Harrisburg area creates a shortage of younger people that want to listen to the kind of music that I want to listen to. That makes it hard for local venues to turn a profit booking indie shows. When I was thinking about this the other day, I realized that things could be much, much worse.
Since Spotobe launched in March of 2008, bands that have played in Central PA include: The National, Ingrid Michaelson, Over the Rhine, Conor Oberst, Iron and Wine, Frightened Rabbit, Ben Kweller, Spoon, Denison Witmer, Keller Williams, Lovedrug, Gomez, Eric Hutchinson, Joshua Radin, Davy Knowles and the Back Door Slam, Kaki King, Margot and the Nuclear So and Sos, Mae, Bishop Allen, Reginka Spektor, Ben Folds, Missy Higgins, Drive-By Truckers and many others that I simply couldn't remember off the top of my head. That's not New York City good or Austin good, but it's not Portland Maine bad or Billings Montana bad. Venues like the Abbey Bar, Messiah College, Dickinson College, the Luhrs Center, the Pullo Center, the Midtown Arts Center, the Carlisle Theatre, the Chameleon Club and occasionally the Whitaker Center do actually bring in music that I want to see live. But sometimes it doesn't feel like it, and for right now, I'm blaming it on David Allan Coe.
That's right, David Allan Coe. Because he never leaves. If you are a big David Allan Coe fan, you should move to Central Pennsylvania, because you will have no problem seeing him live. He probably keeps an apartment in Elizabethtown for all of the times he's playing somewhere in Central Pennsylvania. He'll be at the Chameleon Club this weekend for what seems to me like his 96th performance in the Midstate in the past three years. Awesome. If you're not in the market for "18 X-Rated Hits" here are some other suggestions for the weekend: Full Article » -
This Weekend: At the BK Lounge
Thursday, December 3, 2009 9:00AM
There's so much going on around Christmas that it's easy to overbook. There are family commitments, old friends who are back in town, office Christmas parties, decorating, writing Christmas cards and community Christmas events in addition to all of the things that keep us busy for the other 11 months of the year. The other day, my wife and I thought we had perfectly balanced the multitude of things that we are trying to stuff into December. It was a good feeling. Then I realized we hadn't set aside a single weekend day to go Christmas shopping. Gulp. I sense a lot of long nights and a lot of Gingerbread Lattes from the Downtown Cafe in my future. Whether you've started climbing that hill or not, here are some suggestions for the weekend: Full Article »
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