Friday, March 26, 2010

The Weekend Has Landed - March 26th

*Friday*

Live Music @ Broad Street Cafe - Chris Bryant at 8pm, The Crossover Blues Band at 10pm.

Rebecca & the HiTones @ Papa Mojo's - Rebecca and the Hi-Tones combine swing, R&B, early jazz, standards, and 50's rock to create a sound they call "Modern Swing." 9:30pm/$8.

Duke vs. Purdue - NCAA Regional Semi-finals, coming soon to a bar near you. 9:57pm/CBS.

Live Music @ The Pinhook - The Deleted Scenes at midnight, Lands of Wonder at 11pm, Lille Bronze at 10pm.

*Saturday*

The Great Human Race
- The Great Human Race is a nationwide community fundraising event for nonprofit organizations. The Triangle area race features a 5k competitive run and a 5k community walk through downtown Durham. It provides an opportunity for any nonprofit agency, school or faith based group to raise money for their programs and enables businesses and individuals to support the nonprofit of their choice. 7-8am registration.


Family Farm Day @ Elodie Farm - Durham Central Market is sponsoring Family Farm Day at Elodie Farms in Rougemont. Included will be a tour the farm. Pet the baby goats, sample farmstead cheese, and taste local wine. 2pm/$5.

A Salon of Music, Poetry, and Theater @ Common Ground - Fleur de Lisa, a female vocal quartet performing original music that blends elements of jazz, choral, blues, and folk with lyrics based on poems by Kathryn Stripling Byers, Jaki Shelton Green, and others. Durham poet Grey Brown will be reading her funny and inspiring poetry, and there will be a staged reading of Cluck Variations, a play by Richard Krawiec. 7:30pm/$10.

Live Music @ Broad Street Cafe - The Whiskey Smugglers at 10pm, Skeedaddle at 7:30pm.

Karaoke Night @ The Pinhook - Sing the night away. 9pm/$5.

*Sunday*

Flying Hippo (band) @ Broad Street Cafe - Music, Poetry, Art, Drama, Dance, Story Telling, Improv. Kids Songs for Adults, Adult Songs for Kids. 4:30pm.

Heels on Wheels Roadshow + Humble Tripe @ Monkey Bottom Gallery - The Heels on Wheels Roadshow is a flashy femme caravan from Brooklyn touring the South with a queer performance-art cabaret. The show features a multi-media format of high femme drag, electro music, and piercing, poetic theatre. Expect a trashy-fancy night of radical extravagance and thought-provoking glamour. Humble Tripe, with a new CD out this year, is a musical tribute to life, love and Southern celebration. 8pm/$5.

Friday, March 19, 2010

The Weekend Has Landed - March 19th

Mama Juggs @ Common Ground Theatre - Princess Dragon Productions Presents: Mama Juggs: Three Generations Healing Fractured Body Images. Sat and Sun, 8pm/$25.

*Third Friday*

Transient Memories & Under the Influence: Closing Reception @ DAC - Transient Memories, Photographs by Steven Gregory, Allenton Gallery. Under the Influence, Abstract Paintings in Acrylic by Don Mertz, Semans Gallery. 5pm/FREE.

Mask by Laura FarrowOpening Reception @ Claymakers - Faces/Time: New Works by Laura Farrow. In this series of sculptures and sculptural works, including plates and tiles, Ms. Farrow explores expressions that capture a snapshot in time. 6pm.

Looking In, Looking Out @ Through This Lens - Photographs by John Rosenthal. 6pm.

Mixed Media by Rachel Freeman @ Durham Central Market - Mixed media from an artist who is stylistically inspired by urban art, illustration, and graphic design.

Third Friday @ Golden Belt - In Room 100, Down the Rabbit Hole will be opening, composed of Alice in Wonderland inspired composite photography. In the Cotton Room, the American Dance Festival will be announcing their 2010 season. LabourLove Gallery will have a new show, Progression or Recession?, featuring artists artists Luke Miller Buchanan, Michael Mills, Jenifer Padilla and Jeff Bell. In Building 3, many artists will be holding open studios, with OnlyBurger and Wine Authorities present as well. 6pm.

Third Friday @ BCAC - The foyer gallery will contain Ricky Davis's birding photography exhibit, Through One Birder’s Lens. Horse & Buggy Press will be having open studios, with Fullsteam Brewery pouring samples of their fine brews. There will also be a raffle for Full Frame tickets. 6pm.

Shedding Light on Metal and Assemblage @ Scrap Exchange - The show's three components of light, metal and assemblage are representative of each of the artists work. Look for Michelle's cigar light boxes, David Rogers metal sculpture, and Pat Schneible's historic and personal assemblages. 6pm.

The Obama Collection - Faces of Change @ Blue Coffee Cafe - Local artist Eric Kelly III captures the 44th President of the United States in expressionist and abstract acrylics. 6pm.

Art Hanging @ Kung Fu Tattoo - Art Hanging Featuring the Works of Alexie Phillips and Pamela Strand. 7pm/FREE.


TIE Resource Centers Inc. Benefit Concert @ Broad Street Cafe - The concert, featuring jazz vocal musician Lenora Zenzalai Helm, is a benefit for Durham based nonprofit, T.I.E. Resource Centers, Inc. There will also be fresh art on the walls from local artist Tom Dunne. 7pm.

Untitled @ 715 - The latest Third Friday art and music installation at 715 Washington. 7:30pm.

Choice USA Benefit @ The Pinhook - Performance by Mary Johnson Rockers at 10pm, followed by a dance party.

*Saturday*

Bike Show & Chili Cook-off @ Shelton's Harley-Davidson - Featuring a motorcycle raffle and a performance by the Crossover Blues Band. 9am-4pm.

Gardening Workshop @ Holden Career Resource Center - Sunshine Garden Group is for both new and experienced gardeners to learn and share about flower and vegetable gardens, edible landscaping, urban gardening, container gardening and healthy food. 10:30am/FREE.

Live Music @ Broad Street Cafe - Paul Daniel at 8pm, Bitterman at 10pm, Bobby's Fever at 11pm.

Fundraiser Dance Party @ The Pinhook - A Fundraiser to send folks to the Human Rights Conference at the Hague. 10pm/$5.

*Sunday*

Club Boulevard Humanities Magnet Elementary School Fundraiser @ Broad Street Cafe - Rags to Riches will be performing Aesop's Fables, with some Ragsters who just participated in their most recent Academy. They will perform, The Lion and the Mouse, The Country Mouse and the City Mouse, and The Tortoise and the Hare. 4:30pm.

Friday, March 12, 2010

The Weekend Has Landed - March 12th

Going on all weekend will be Sophitome 2010, an event for women in and of the culture of Hip Hop. The event goals are to promote unity for women in hip hop, recognize & honor women in and of the culture of Hip Hop, and to bridge the gap to the next generation in Hip Hop.

*Friday*

Live Music @ Broad Street Cafe - Spencer Sholes at 8pm, D-Town Brass at 9:30pm, The Transvesties at 1o:15pm, The Loners at 11pm, The Pneurotics at 11:45 pm, The Love Language at 12:30am. $5 cover.

Mysti Mayhem @ Six Plates - Mysti will be playing her originals and some amazing covers. 9pm.

Gary Allan @ The DPAC - Critically acclaimed hard rockin’, no apologies country artist. With Special Guest Jason Marks Band. 8pm/$35.

Transactors Improv Presents: City of Medicine @ Common Ground Theatre - The latest installment of the completely improvised serial medical drama. 8pm/$12.

David Dyer & the Crooked Smile Band @ Papa Mojo's - This troupe of well-seasoned musicians deliver their own solid brand of high-energy Americana, fusing Byrd-like vocal harmonies with the honky-tonk twang-rock of Hank Sr., and Prine-like storytelling that is always honest. 9:30pm/$8.

Homeland @ The Tavern - Homeland, a Celtic Rock Band & St. Patty's Day Celebration.

*Saturday*

When a Man Makes Love… A Uncle Typhus Uncommon Burlesque @ Common Ground Theatre - featuring:
  • International Male Dual-Sensation, Menvious
  • The Exotic Dance Stylings of M.I.L.F.
  • Dana Marks as Nick Cave Does Leonard Cohen
  • Lucius Robinson’s Children’s Theatre of Cruelty in The Further Adventures of Timothy Dentist
  • Stand-Up-and-Spread-’Em Comedy by Annie Zipper
  • Another Death-Defying 80’s Video Reenactment by Rachel & the Klembots
  • Wil “Sexual Sunshine” Weldon, Screamin’ Geraud Hawkins and Dr. Tony Perucci, PHD. 8pm/$10 suggested donation.
Artemis Quartet @ Reynolds Industries Theater - Founded in 1989, the Berlin-based Artemis Quartet is now among the most accomplished ensembles in the world. 8pm/$30.

Live Music @ Broad Street Cafe - Brett McKey at 8pm, Bustello at 10pm, A Rooster For The Masses at 11pm, The Dry Heathens at midnight. $5 cover.

Cool John Ferguson @ Papa Mojo's - Honored by Living Blues magazine as “Most Outstanding Guitarist” for 2 consecutive years, Cool John Ferguson is an unparalleled talent. 9:30pm/$10.

Live Music @ The Pinhook - Jason Kutchma at midnight, Embarrassing Fruits at 11pm, Speed Governer at 10pm.

*Sunday*

Chamber Orchestra of the Triangle @ Carolina Theatre - Featuring guest artist Andrea Moore. Performance will include H. Johnson's Letter to the World, A. Copland's Appalachian Spring, and S. Barber's Knoxville Summer 1915.

Baron Von Rumblebuss @ Broad Street Cafe - Kids music that rocks. Songs about robots, superheroes, and falling into onion dip are a few of the kid-centric blasts of tunage that’ll take you straight to the playground. 4:30pm/FREE.

The JazzTones @ Broad Street Cafe - The JazzTones sextet plays mainstream jazz in the styles of the 50's and 60's. 7:30pm.

Live Music @ The Pinhook - These are Powers at 10:30pm, Lemonade at 9:30pm, MDNR at 8:30pm.

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

A Train To Two Cities

Having a sister that lives in Manhattan, I don't get to see her as often as I'd like. This past weekend, I headed up to the city that never sleeps for a long overdue visit, but this time was different. I decided to take the train.

When searching the Amtrak website, I pleasantly discovered that one train, the Carolinian, went from the beautifully renovated Durham Station, all the way to Penn Station in Manhattan. Booking a week and a half in advance, I was able to find round trip coach tickets for $166.

The passenger experience was quite pleasant. The train ride is very smooth -- with more leg room, hip room, and isle room than your standard airplane. You don't have to wear a seatbelt, you can get up and walk around whenever you like, and there are two restrooms on every car.

For a change of scenery and seating, you can mosey over to the Cafe Car, which has a selection of sandwiches, microwave entrees, snacks and soft drinks. They also have a variable selection beer and wine; on my trip they had Miller/Bud Lites, Sam Adams, Heineken, Chardonney and Cabernet.

There was plenty of space for carry-on baggage, but there is also the option to check. It was nice to be able to retain some of my personal rights and dignity -- there were no metal detectors or strip searches. A photo id and ticket check provided an appropriate amount of security screening.

The only potential down side is the time, as the ride is approximately 10 hours. This is a rough equivalent to the time it takes to drive, and the cost of gas, tolls, and parking makes the train fare become suddenly affordable. The air travel option makes more sense if you are either short on time, or are able to find a cheap flight.

It was a liberating experience to take public transportation all the way from my place to my sister's, with a walk to Durham Station, a train ride, and walk from Penn Station. In a way it makes the distance feel not quite as far. Of the 3 modes of trainsport I have taken to NYC, this was by far the least stressful. I was able to get a bunch of reading done, had some good chats with fellow passengers, and got to gaze upon the gorgeous countryside.
 
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