Get Out! - The Events Colulmn

Atlantic horseshoe crab - photo by domdomegg via Wikimedia Commons

We wanted to share some events and activities that list members might be interested in. Have a great weekend -- and week beyond, too. If you know of an event that the 15,600+ members of the Cleveland Park Listserv should know about, email us at events @ fastmail.net.

Peggy Robin and Bill Adler

Publishers, Cleveland Park Listserv

www.cleveland-park.com  

Thursday, December 3 from 10 -11 AM, Fish Tales Story Hour at the DC Department of Energy & Environment's Aquatic Resources Education Center. Have you ever heard a fish tale? Well, this one is true! Join biologists at the Aquatic Resources Education Center (AREC) in Anacostia Park, for a nature based story hour for 2-4 year old children and their parents/guardians. AREC staff biologists will read stories about aquatic animals and lead corresponding craft activities for DC’s youngest naturalists. Activities include close encounters with the education center’s resident fish, frogs, turtles and more! To register for Fish Tales Story Hour, email doee.arec @ dc.gov and indicate the number of participants you are bringing. Free. Location: 1900 Anacostia Dr. SE (map). This program will run every other week through March 2016. For more information go to: http://doee.dc.gov/node/8762

Thursday, December 3 at 7 PM, Poetry/Prose Readings by Terrence Mulligan and Richard Peabody. Richard Peabody is a fiction writer, poet, and the editor of Gargoyle Magazine; Terrence Mulligan is a short story writer and the founder of Minimus Magazine. There will be an open mike following the featured readers. Free. At the Georgetown Neighborhood Library, 3260 R Street, NW, https://dclibrary.org/node/47867

Thursday, December 3 from 4 - 7 PM, Tree Lighting and Photos with Santa Claus at Dupont Circle. Councilmember Jack Evans and ANC Commissioner Mike Feldstein will help light up Dupont Circle at the annual tree lighting ceremony, organized by Historic Dupont Circle Main Streets. More than 1800 lights were used to decorate this 20-foot tree at the corner of Connecticut Avenue and R Street, NW in front of La Tomate restaurant. Santa Claus will be on hand for photos with children and those young at heart – free of charge. All children will be given a candy cane – if they have been good throughout the year. Children from Oyster-Adams Elementary School will sing carols from 4 - 4:30 to welcome dignitaries and Kris Kringle. And dogs are welcome from 6 - 7 to jump on Santa’s lap and keep him warm. The public is invited to bring their own cameras, and photos taken by HDCMS will be uploaded on the Dupont Circle Main Streets FaceBook the next day. This event is free and open to the public; snow or shine!  More info: www.DupontCircleMainStreets.org

Friday, December 4 from 6 - 7:30 PM, Poetry Open Mike. Members of Poets on the Fringe (POTF), a free poetry workshop that meets Mondays at the Stoddert Recreation Center in Glover Park, will be reading from their 2015 book at Zed’s Café, 8225 Georgia Avenue in Silver Spring, two blocks down from the Silver Spring Metro.

Saturday, December 5 from 9:30 AM - 3 PM, Turkish Bazaar - Anatolian Artisans Holiday Sale. Turkish handicrafts of every kind - beautiful gifts and in service to a good nonprofit cause. Open to all - no admission fee. At the Palisades Community Church, 5200 Cathedral Ave NW.

Saturday, December 5 from 12 noon - 4 PM, Tenley WinterFest’s Winter Market. This is the 4th annual winter market, featuring over 90 vendors, plus live music, dance performances, lunch menu, and more. Free admission. Outdoors and indoors at Janney School, 4130 Albemarle St NW. For more about other WinterFest events (such as the free hot cocoa at Middle C Music and the showing of “Polar Express” at St. Ann’s Catholic Church), please visit: http://www.tenleywinterfest.org/

Saturday, December 5 at 7:30 PM, Senza Nome, a women’s vocal ensemble under the direction of Barbara Wilkinson, invite you to join in a musical celebration at CommUnity on the Hill,

St Luke’s Mission Center, 3655 Calvert Street NW. There will be an audience sing-along, tasty treats, and much merriment to celebrate the Christmas season. All are welcome. Admission is free, donations appreciated. Free parking in side lot and on the street. More info:  https://www.facebook.com/events/1668814793335275/ or http://www.unitychurchdc.org

Saturday, December 5 from 10 AM - 4 PM and Sunday, December 6 from 9 AM - 3 PM and on Sunday evening from 8 - 9 PM, The Annual Parish Bazaar at St. Thomas Apostle Church. There will be jewelry, holiday items, clothing, books, toys, and of course several white elephants! At 2665 Woodley Road NW - use the 27th street entrance to the Parish Hall.  

Saturday, December 5 from 10 AM - 4 PM and Sunday, December 6 from 1 - 4 PM, Cleveland Park Library’s 2-day Holiday Book Sale. Bag Sale on Sunday only - fill a whole bag with books for only 5 dollars! Choose from thousands of books at great prices - mysteries, thrillers, biographies, sports, fiction, romance, fine arts, history, business economics, science, nature, foreign language, science fiction fantasy, reference, travel, hobbies, psychology self-help, kids books, cookbooks, graphic novels, CDs, DVDs, and more! All items have been donated by your friends and neighbors - many are brand new and in perfect condition. Proceeds support branch and city-wide library programs. This is the last sale before the library closes for rebuild! The Cleveland Park Library is at the corner of Connecticut and Macomb St. NW.

Sunday, December 6 from 10 AM - 12 noon, Sunday With Santa at Volta Park. The Friends of Volta Park will host their 7th Annual Breakfast with Santa. Come sit and take photos with the DC area’s best looking Santa while enjoying crafts, coffee, food, Christmas carolers, and fun. Arrive early to see Santa's magical sleigh. Festivities will be held on the playground at Volta Place and 34th St NW. Free. More info: http://voltapark.org

Sunday, December 6 from 1 - 3 PM, Community Celebration of Hanukkah at Cathedral Commons. There will be stories and songs from The Jewish Tradition, www.jewishstorytelling.com/, crafts for the kids, and food and drink from The Kosher Pastry Oven. Plus, stop by and check out the new outdoor menorah that’ll be lit starting on the first evening of Hanukkah. For more information see: https://www.facebook.com/events/697903900345798/ Free. At the corner of Wisconsin Avenue and Newark St NW.

Sunday, December 6 at 1 PM, Town Meeting on Tenleytown Main Street Planning. Tenleytown Main Street has received a grant of $200,000 from the DC Department of Small and Local Business Development to use in creating a new and more vibrant business corridor (read the goals here: http://bit.ly/1QUPTbI) Your input is wanted at a community meeting in the atrium of Wilson High School, 3950 Chesapeake St NW. For more information go to http://tenleytownmainstreet.org/.

Sunday, December 6 at 4:30 PM, “Light Up Chevy Chase”- First Night of Chanukah Menorah Lighting on Chevy Chase Circle. Plus: Magic Show entertainment by the amazing Jack Julius; Raffle: enter for a chance to win "the Mensch in the Bench" as seen on “Shark Tank”; Refreshments: traditional Chanukah food; Chanukah crafts for children of all ages; Holiday music to get you in the mood; Dreidel man: take a picture with this cute, plush mascot. At Chevy Chase Circle. Free, but please RSVP for planning purposes: http://bit.ly/1QflKSM. More info: http://bit.ly/1Q1fY8N

Monday, December 7 at 12 noon, “Capital Houses: Historic Residences of Washington, DC and Environs, 1735-1965” - lecture and book signing with author and local architectural historian James M. Goode. Free - no reservations needed. At the George Washington University Museum and Textile Museum, 701 21st Street NW. More info: http://museum.gwu.edu/capital-houses

Wednesday, December 9, all day, Regretful Wednesday. Just one week after Thanksgiving we pause to observe Regretful Wednesday, a time to stop and feel the guilt for a) too much spending on Black Friday; b) not spending enough at your local shops on Small Business Saturday; c) ordering too many silly, unnecessary gizmos on Cyber Monday; and d) totally skipping out on charitable donations because you never heard of Giving Tuesday. Now you can make up for any or all of these faults by dedicating this Wednesday to returning stuff you should never have bought, shopping at your neighborhood businesses, and donating to charities as you were supposed to have done last Tuesday. Is there really a Regretful Wednesday or is it just the Weekly Fake Event? No matter, you can do all these things just the same!