Friday, April 23, 2010

The Arlandria News Round-up: "Things to Do" Edition

Do Some Good
We're still looking for folks to help lead an effort this weekend to convert a former neighborhood electrical substation into a city park. Apropos of Earth Day, we'll be using entirely donated materials mostly gleaned from garden cast-offs (healthy plants no longer wanted by their owners). At the same time, we will be cleaning up some vacant lots that are slated to be used to expand the 55-acre Four Mile Run park as part of a process to re-purpose the vacant paint store into an environmental education and arts center and a future home for an urban farmer's market. The site prep will include using municipal mulch recycled from leaves and Christmas trees and hauled to the site in a borrowed truck. The earthiest an Earth Day can get.

Join in this Saturday morning from 9am to 2pm. We'll be meeting up a 4109 Mount Vernon Avenue and moving on from there to other sites including the future park at the corner of Commonwealth & Reed Avenues. Bring tools and gloves.


Buy Some Plants and Plant Them
The Parkfairfax Native Plant Sale is THIS Saturday, April 24, from 9am to 2pm. It's the biggest the sale has ever been, with 14 vendors coming in from five states! The sale will take place rain or shine at 3601 Valley Drive. (By the way, native plants are especially great for community gardening projects at future neighborhood parks. Just saying, not begging.)

Buy Someone Else's Stuff
The Mount Vernon Community School's Big Flea will be held on Saturday, April 24th at the Mount Vernon Community Center at 2701 Commonwealth Avenue:
8:00am – Early Admission ($10 entry fee), 9:00am – General Admission (free)
12noon – Everything 50% off, 2:00pm – Everything FREE

Learn Some
For those who like their Earth Day to be more passive, the City of Alexandria's Earth Day celebration is once again being held in Ben Brenman Park also on Saturday April 24h from 10am to 2pm after having been moved from Four Mile Run Park a few years ago. Performances and fun stuff to learn about...a great place to take a break after the morning's work.

Read Some
Do you know about the day when elephants ran loose in Arlandria? It all goes back to when Four Mile Run park was the home of one of the world famous Luna Parks.  The Washington Post has the story.

Run Some
The Crystal City BID is asking folks to don a LITTLE RED DRESS for the April 23rd 5K Fridays race. Honoring the American Heart Association’s Go Red for Women campaign, they're hoping everyone will join in the fun while looking extra  fashionable for the nearby run. Prizes will go to the best dressed male and female and to the fastest male and female in a red dress.

Ride Some
Alexandria installed the region's first bike box at the corner of Mount Vernon and Commonwealth Avenues , in what the Washington Area Bicyclist Association believes is the region's first bike box. Coincidentally, Arlington County has been actively repaving the Four Mile Run trail.  If all that gets you in the mood to hop on a bike, this excerpt from CBS' Morning Show has a brief overview on what's good in the bike market nowadays.


Watch CBS News Videos Online

Eat Some
More than 20 area restaurants offer their finest tastings at Alexandria’s best family fun event: the 8th Annual Carpenter’s Cook-Off for food, fun and great live music as we raise money to support homeless children and families. This Sunday, April 25th from noon until 3pm at the Birchmere, 3701 Mount Vernon Avenue

Win a Prize
"Far and away the best prize that life has to offer is the chance to work hard at work worth doing." -Theodore Roosevelt

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

I spotted the bike box at MTV & Comm last weekend, and I have to admit I got pretty excited about it. Now that the Del Ray Apts sidewalk is open again, I can use the bike box on my way home at night! Hooray!

Unknown said...

Kevin - great roundup of activities, with so much going on around here it's challenging just to keep up much less do everything!

Allen Steve said...

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