Items of local interest to the four-state area (Western Md, Southern PA, Northern VA, and Eastern WV).
I’m a big fan of live music events, but I generally either find the ticket prices appalling (for “big name” acts), the travel time excessive (it’s a bit of a jaunt to get down to Baltimore or Washington – or for that matter, even Hershey, PA), or the choice of acts and styles limited (you ever try to find a good jazz quartet in Hagerstown?) I’m happy to report that all of that is changing, thanks to Live at Hub…
We humans are a fickle lot, jumping on the latest taste and flavor bandwagon when it comes to food and beverage choices. So, what’s on the horizon for 2024? Where does the industry think our taste buds and habits are heading? I’ve scoured the internet for multiple clues (so you don’t have to) and come up with a few trends that the pundits say are in store for us in the coming year. Plant Based Choices – More and More…
Happy New Year! 2024 has arrived. Remember, only two more years until the country’s Semiquincentennial (250th birthday), so start your planning now, but I digress. Did you make some resolutions for the new year? Are you planning on losing some weight or getting in shape? Maybe you’ve resolved to get more sleep at night or cut back on all those ‘Starbucks’ cold brews (I still don’t understand the whole Starbucks thing). Maybe you’ll go “meatless” one day a week for…
Yes, the colossus of the holiday season, Christmas Day, is just around the corner. My packages are wrapped, the batteries have been freshened for all of my indoor and outdoor lights (I’m up to 96 “AA” ones and 24 “AAA” – maybe going the battery route wasn’t the wisest of moves after all), and I’m ready for all of the merriment that the next few weeks will bring. Until this past Tuesday, when after avoiding it for the last three…
Nothing makes me feel more like a little kid again than seeing all of the lights and decorations that light up the homes and businesses during the holiday season. Admit it, there are some places you’ll purposely drive past beginning in December just to see their annual display of festive décor. No doubt your family has their own annual favorites. For instance, in my family, everyone wants to go past the “electrician’s house” on St. Paul Road, drive through Byron…
Now that the holiday season is upon us, Mother Nature is also stepping back in to make another annual seasonal change. For those of you not in the know, the winter season “officially” starts on Thursday, December 21st. The National Weather Service says we should expect a snowier winter than normal, but with temps a little warmer than average. This is all due to the El Nino weather pattern, which influences both temperature and precipitation in the Northern Hemisphere. Both…
Thanksgiving has come and gone and now all over the country, people are rushing to get their shopping lists done, their homes decorated, packages wrapped, and yuletide travel plans finalized. Everyone wants to have that Hallmark, Norman Rockwell-esque Christmas season, but more often than not, there are times that more closely resemble ‘Cousin Eddie’ trying to drain the RV’s sewer line out front than a Martha Stewart Christmas dinner. The holidays can be one of the most stressful times of…
I know I’ve ranted on this topic before, but every year, I shake my head at the annual pilgrimage of consumerism that is affectionately known as “Black Friday”. I just don’t get it. The Thanksgiving weekend is supposed to be about getting together with friends and family to celebrate, acknowledge, and appreciate all that has happened over the past year. The afternoon following that expansive feast should be spent playing cards, conversing and laughing over another glass of wine, watching…
Well, Halloween has come and gone, and although the Christmas decorations have been up at your local box store since the beginning of October and Mariah Carey was just thawed out to ceaselessly scream her way through “All I Want for Christmas Is You” until New Year’s, let’s not forget that there is still another pretty big holiday to celebrate between now and “Ho-Ho-Ho” time. I’m of course talking about Thanksgiving. I don’t know when this holiday became the “Jan…
AUTHOR’S NOTE: For those of you just catching up, I’m documenting my recent trip to the Florida Keys from three weeks ago, so if you’ve missed the first two installments, make sure to read “Part 1 – Islamorada” and “Part 2 – Key West” from the last two weeks! Not being the young, party bucks we used to be, it was slow going as we arose in the morning to leave Key West. I made one more run for Cuban…