"Giving Tuesday" in Greensboro

 
Everyone is familiar with "Black Friday", the big Christmas shopping day right after Thanksgiving, and with "Cyber Monday", the day people go back to work after the Thanksgiving holiday and use their office computers to hit up online emporia like Amazon and eBay for deals, but there's a new "holiday" catching on quickly called "Giving Tuesday". This is the reminder to all of us that the reason for the season is giving, not buying. Not giving the latest iPhone or video game console, but giving your time, your heart, your help to someone in need.

So take a bag of food to Urban Ministry, a pile of hardbacks to the Greensboro Public Library, or a box of donated goods to Goodwill. Volunteer to help a group like Animal Rescue and Foster Program of Greensboro or Habitat for Humanity. Look for opportunities in your own neighborhood to help an elderly person with yardwork or small home repairs, or help a single mom by offering to have her kids over to play with your kids while she gets a chance to run errands or just have time for a bath and a nap.

There are so many ways we can give in Greensboro to make it even nicer. Please do your part today!

You can also find What's Good in Greensbroro? on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Whats-Good-in-Greensboro-848569635208317/ . See you there!

Image from Pixabay https://pixabay.com/en/hand-child-children-hands-838975/

Greensboro's Next "First Friday" is October 2

First Friday has been a tradition in downtown Greensboro for quite a few years, now, but for visitors and new residents who haven't gotten the memo yet, this is the memo: Join downtown businesses as they put on an "open house", featuring even more special specials, more active activities, and more chill chillin', as you walk around, enjoying the party atmosphere. Typical for First Fridays: sidewalk sales, street musicians, gallery shows, special readings and performances.

There will be many participants, as always, but check out the following special events:

• The International Civil Rights Center & Museum at 134 South Elm Street will feature College Night from 6p - 8p, with free admission and performances by students from local colleges

 

• Urban Grinders at 116 N Elm Street will feature "Sprayday", an art exhibit by Tony Waldron, a Durham-based artist and UNCG grad who creates his works with "street" materials such as spray paint and markers

• Greenhill at 200 N Davie Street, is featuring music by local band Raving Knaves, playing rock and roll with a 50s-style, Chuck Berry influence. Band will play from 630p - 730p; free admission (cash bar)

• co//ab at 229 N Greene Street will be giving tours and answering questions about the space from 530p - 8p. Find out what coworking is all about!

• Chakras Spa at 229 S Elm Street will have an art show and competition featuring original art created on skateboard decks. With music by Winston Salem's DJ SK and food and drink by Castle Catering, this sounds like quite the party! Free admission, 730p - 10p

• Just Be at 352 S Elm will host Russian textile artist Aida Brodt for a meet-and-greet from 6p-9p, showcasing Brodt's work for sale in the store

Also happening on First Friday this coming Friday, October 2, will be jazz at The Worx, art and exploration at Elsewhere, reggae at VybzNation, and much more. Come party downtown Greensboro and join in the fun! 

You can also find What's Good in Greensbroro? on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Whats-Good-in-Greensboro-848569635208317/ . See you there!

Image is my own photo of Chakras Spa. Read my article about Chakras here  http://whatsgoodingreensboro.blogspot.com/2014/12/chakras-spa-is-delight-for-senses-and.html

Food Assistance, Inc. Delivers Food and Fellowship to the Elderly in Greensboro

I recently had a wonderful experience volunteering for Food Assistance, Inc., here in Greensboro. The charitable organization serves low-income and disabled senior citizens through their "Groceries on Wheels" program, which supplies bags of food to seniors  in Greensboro and throughout Guilford County. So, on a Saturday morning a few weeks ago, some members of the Greensboro Social meetup group that I belong to got together to work in the warehouse at Food Assistance, Inc., preparing bags of groceries for other volunteers to deliver.

The warehouse was impressive and well-organized, with pallets of such foods as bread, canned goods, and even fresh produce, all donated from grocery stores and other organizations or private individuals. There was also a bank of freezers that held donations of frozen vegetables, microwave entrees, and even some treats like ice cream. It all looked great, and I liked the thought of someone being able to enjoy some ice cream, even when they are living in otherwise challenging circumstances. I know that people who can really appreciate the small pleasures in life are truly the happiest.

As you might expect, the warehouse wasn't air-conditioned,  but Food Assistance had very kindly set up some large fans that gave some relief, and they supplied us with cool drinks that kept us going nicely. I was fortunate enough to be working in the freezer section, making bags of frozen foods to supplement the fresh food, but it was busy enough that I still worked up quite a sweat, running around from freezer to freezer!

We packed bags as quickly as could, to fill the orders of volunteer drivers who were going to deliver the food to the individuals and families on their routes. Every volunteer needed several bags, so we were hopping! At morning's end, we were done--a bit tired and sweaty, but feeling great that we were able to help out. Volunteering is a truly rewarding activity--you always get more out of it than you put in. The seniors not only get food to help them throughout the month but also the extremely important and much-appreciated care and support of the volunteer drivers, who visit with them and are able to check on them to ensure all is well. Some of the volunteers are kids, who really put a smile on the older folks' faces!

To learn more about Food Assistance, Inc., the Groceries on Wheels program, to volunteer or to donate, please visit their website http://www.foodassistancenc.com/ and check out their Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/FoodAssistanceIncGroceriesOnWheels?fref=ts 

You can also find What's Good in Greensbroro? on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Whats-Good-in-Greensboro-848569635208317/ . See you there!

Food Assistance logo used with permission. 

27 Views of Greensboro Writes the Heart, Soul and History of the Gate City

Eno Publishers, located in Hillsborough, North Carolina, has been publishing a series of books called 27 Views of ...different cities in North Carolina, such as Raleigh, Charlotte, Asheville, and of course, Hillsborough. Their latest offering, 27 Views of Greensboro, has landed on my desk.

Although it sounds as though it might be a book of photographs, the views herein are viewpoints, specifically, as clarified by the subtitle: The Gate City in Prose and Poetry. This book features reminiscences, reviews, and even fiction, all about Greensboro, North Carolina, from Revolutionary war history through the Civil Rights Era to the cultural boom and factory bust. Even for a long-time resident like me (I feel like 25 years is a long time, anyway, for a transplant from Philadelphia), I unearthed a heretofore-unknown-to-me wealth of information and secrets of the city.

Writers like Marianne Gingher (who wrote the book's introduction) and Michael Parker divulge historical facts with a conspiratorial, insider spin, but just as enlightening are the viewpoints of people who come from a different place or situation, such as Allen Johnson, who writes of the experience of being black in the South and facing discrimination, and Dr. Diya Abdo, a Jordanian national who now calls Greensboro her second home.

There is so much to learn and enjoy in this book, from the whimsical cover illustration by Daniel Wallace through the book's last entry, a "prose poem" by Veronica Grossi that, although taking a dim view of many aspects of the city (you have never heard such a beautiful lyrical complaint about Duke Power's penchant for wanton deforestation), eventually ends up heartened by the healing, abundant plant life that puts the green in Greensboro. It's something my Ethiopian friend has always loved about this city, but there's so much more to this town than just greenery. Read and discover for yourself!

27 Views of Greensboro: The Gate City in Prose and Poetry is available from Eno Publishers:
 http://www.enopublishers.org/Site/Buy_now.html


You can also find What's Good in Greensbroro? on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Whats-Good-in-Greensboro-848569635208317/ . See you there!

For other book reviews, recommended reading lists, movie reviews, general info and handy tips, check out my other blog, A Big Ol' Bucket of Useful, at https://bucketofuseful.blogspot.com/

Image is book cover, used with permission

Great Blue Heron at Country Park

I visited Country Park (Battleground Park's less-famous adjunct park, with entrances off Pisgah Church Road, Lawndale Drive, and Battleground Park, behind the Greensboro Science Center) a couple of weeks ago on a rather cool and cloudy day to have a picnic lunch with a friend and to visit the resident waterfowl of Country Park's large, gorgeous lake.

Armed with sub sandwiches, chips, and a bag of slightly-stale Cheerios, we ventured forth and had our lunch at one of the shelters, and then started our ramble. We didn't ramble very far before I spotted this magnificent fellow, hanging out on a huge deadfall.

I have seen a great blue heron at the Bog Garden many times, but this was my first sighting of one (the same one?) at Country Park, so I excitedly snapped a few pictures. I was even more excited when he took off from the deadfall and flew over to the bank where I was standing, ready for his closeup! I obliged, of course.

I also took a photo of one of the stately trees at the edge of the lake that was covered with a giant wisteria vine, in full bloom. I am not sure the blossoms can be seen very well in my photo (I really am just a point-and-shoot photog, not a professional by any means), but you can click on any of the pictures to get a larger version.

It began to sprinkle a bit after that, so we decamped and moved on to the Bicentennial Garden and Bog Garden, which were enjoying nicer weather (I have posted some pictures from this trip on the What's Good in Greensboro? Facebook page).

Here's some information from Wikipedia about the great blue heron: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_blue_heron

You can also find What's Good in Greensbroro? on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Whats-Good-in-Greensboro-848569635208317/ . See you there!

All images are mine and protected by copyright.

It's Graduation Time! Upcoming Commencements at The Greensboro Coliseum

Spring is here, and along with the much-anticipated longer days, warmer temperatures and all things blossoming and blooming (sorry, allergy sufferers!), it's again the season for that time-honored tradition known as Gettin'-the-Heck-Out, or, more simply, graduation.

The Greensboro Coliseum Complex will be hopping this week, with no fewer than three different college commencements scheduled:

Thursday, May 7th at 7:00 pm
commencement exercises for Guilford Technical Community College (GTCC) will be held. The GTCC website is not very sparing with details, but if you need additional information, their phone number is 336.334.4822.

Friday, May 8th at 10:00 am (doors open at 8:30am)
the University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG) will hold its annual commencement exercises. For a detailed schedule of events, view here.

Saturday, May 9th at 8:30 am - NCA&T
North Carolina A&T University's featured commencement speaker will be Representative John Lewis, one of the original Freedom Riders, a contemporary of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and a significant figure in the Civil Rights Movement. For more details, visit A&T's website here.

You can also find What's Good in Greensbroro? on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Whats-Good-in-Greensboro-848569635208317/ . See you there!

Image from Pixabay http://pixabay.com/en/graduates-graduation-cap-and-gown-351603/

Sneak Peek Party for Greensboro's Summer Night Lights Program Scheduled for May 8

On Friday, May 8, the City will throw a "sneak peek" event for teens aged 13-18 to get a preview of this year's Summer Night Lights (SNL) program. The event will be held at the Greensboro Sportsplex at 2400 16th Street in Greensboro from 7pm - 11pm. Besides being an opportunity for teens to learn about summer programs and activities as well as volunteering opportunities, it will also be a fun party, with basketball, soccer, and a DJ.

The Summer Night Lights (SNL) program offers free activities and events at various locations in Greensboro for teens 13-18 years of age. It's a fun way to stay busy during the summer with lots of fun, social activities. Here is the City of Greensboro web page with all the information you will need: http://www.greensboro-nc.gov/index.aspx?page=4004

You can also find What's Good in Greensbroro? on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Whats-Good-in-Greensboro-848569635208317/ . See you there!

Image from Pixabay http://pixabay.com/en/girl-teenager-female-young-390568/

Fun Events for Saturday, April 11 in Greensboro

Spring has really started the social ball rolling here in Greensboro, with tons of fun events. Coming up tomorrow are three that I would like to recommend, in chronological order ( I know you can make all three of these!):

Potters of the Piedmont hosts the Pottery Festival at its new indoor location, the Leonard Recreation Center at 6324 Ballinger Road, Greensboro, NC 27410. This is in the Guilford College area, going toward the airport area. Admission and parking are absolutely free! The show will be held on Saturday, April 11th, for one day, so make sure to come out! It's from 10am to 4pm and will showcase the work of over 50 potters from North and South Carolina and Virginia. Visit www.pottersofthepiedmont.com for more information.

 
Next, you'll want to head to Lawndale Drive to visit Geeksboro Coffeehouse Cinema at 2134 Lawndale Drive, Greensboro, NC 27408 for their celebration of International Tabletop Gaming Day! This 12-hour gaming extravaganza runs from noon to midnight and will feature a hot dog lunch, A Magic: The Gathering card draft tournament, a Cards Against Humanity charity event, and loads of the best board games, including tournaments for two of the most popular games, Settlers of Catan and Ticket to Ride! Visit https://www.facebook.com/events/357098401153426/ for more specifics on events and times.

Wind up you super fun day with the Greensboro Downtown Residents' Association's 2015 Sip-n-Stroll, a tour of downtown Greensboro finest drinking and dining establishments (as well as a bookstore that serves wine!)--the walking tour, which I have covered in depth here http://whatsgoodingreensboro.blogspot.com/2015/03/greensboro-downtown-residents.html , goes from 1pm to 5pm, with tastings of craft beer and wine, commemorative tasting glasses, and a live concert afterward, from 5-7pm (after which you can head back to Geeksboro for more gaming!) . You can still purchase tickets online for Sip-n-Stroll 2015--click the link above for all the details!

You can also find What's Good in Greensbroro? on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Whats-Good-in-Greensboro-848569635208317/ . See you there!


Pottery image from Pixabay http://pixabay.com/en/lanterns-ceramic-pottery-fragile-64976/
Geeksboro hot dog image from Geeksboro Coffeehouse Cinema Facebook page
Sip-n-Stroll logo used with permission of GDRA

Greensboro Downtown Residents' Association Will Hold the 2015 Sip-n-Stroll on April 11th

The 2015 Sip-n-Stroll is a tour of Greensboro's finest downtown establishments serving wine and craft beers. Strollers will enjoy tastings of beer and wine, and many participating venues will be featuring drink and appetizer specials, as well. The Sip-n-Stroll will take place from 1-5pm on Saturday, April 11th, after which Strollers will enjoy a concert from 5-7pm at The Railyard featuring a performance by Empty Pocket. 

Tickets are $30 until March 28th, $35 from March 29th to April 10th and $40 on April 11th. Ticket price includes a souvenir event tasting glass, two tastings of wine/beer from each participating location and admission to the after concert at The Railyard. Tickets for the 2015 Sip-n-Stroll can be purchased at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2015-sip-n-stroll-a-downtown-greensboro-craft-beer-wine-experience-tickets-15867034728 .

Among the participants in the 2015 Sip-n-Stroll are Scuppernong Books (click here for more info), The Pour House, The Worx, Spice Cantina, Crafted! The Art of the Taco (click here for more info), Gibb's Hundred, Mellow Mushroom, Liberty Oak, Beer Co., Zeto Wines, Cafe Europa, Stumble Stilskins, and more.

So come to downtown Greensboro for a fun stroll, some fine food and drink, and some entertainment on a spring afternoon / evening. It's a great way to celebrate! 

You can also find What's Good in Greensbroro? on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Whats-Good-in-Greensboro-848569635208317/ . See you there!

Sip-n-Stroll logo used with permission. 

Fleetwood Mac Performs Tonight at the Greensboro Coliseum

Rock legends Fleetwood Mac, who have been making music for almost fifty years and who have provided the soundtrack for the lives of multiple generations of fans, are in Greensboro tonight for a concert at the Greensboro Coliseum, starting at 8pm.The tour is called "Fleetwood Mac: On with the Show"and will feature plenty of classics and favorites from their decades of incredible music.

Diehard Fleetwood Mac fans will appreciate that this tour features the "classic lineup" of Christine and John McVie, Mick Fleetwood, Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham, the team behind such brilliant and enduring albums as Rumours and Tusk. One of the reasons that I personally always admired the band was their ensemble approach to performing: Fleetwood Mac has three equally talented singer-songwriters: Christine McVie, Nicks, and Buckingham, and each one of them sang their own compositions, giving the band three lead singers, all of whom could write both critically and commercially successful music. And what wonderful, distinctive voices they have, as well!  

Tickets are still available for tonight's concert, presented by Live Nation. Click here for details and tickets, as well as more photos of the band!

 You can also find What's Good in Greensbroro? on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Whats-Good-in-Greensboro-848569635208317/ . See you there!

Image of Fleetwood Mac in 1977 from Wikimedia Commons http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fleetwood_Mac_%281977%29.jpg

Spring Blooms Will Show Up Soon

Ah, spring. Last night we set the clocks forward an hour, meaning a longer period of daylight in the evening (I know, I know; don't tell me the story about cutting a foot off the top of the blanket and sewing it onto the bottom--if it shakes out to the sun going down an hour later, the day is longer, mmkay?), and to me, personally, that makes even more of a difference than the warmer temperatures.

But the thing about Greensboro is that it gets really good in the spring. One of the things that always strikes me about this city is all the flowering trees, from the wonderful huge Bradford pear trees lining Holden Road between Hobbs Road and  Friendly Avenue to the wonderful landscaping of houses on Westridge Road. And all the spring flowers, as well, in the Greensboro Arboretum, the Bicentennial Garden, and even my front yard, where irises and azalea show off their finery every spring (pictured).

On a day like today, it's hard to imagine we had snow and ice just a few days ago and that I had to set the tap to drip overnight to ensure my water pipes wouldn't freeze. On a day like today, all I can think about is spring!

 You can also find What's Good in Greensbroro? on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Whats-Good-in-Greensboro-848569635208317/ . See you there!

My own photo - all rights reserved.

The North Carolina Zoo Has Vampire Bats

A visit to the North Carolina Zoo in Asheboro, North Carolina, is a great experience. The zoo houses over 1,000 animals, and inside a cool little house for nocturnal animals in the Sonoran Desert pavilion that is also home to the cacomistle and coati, there is a display of vampire bats, Since these critters are more active at night, their display is kept fairly dark, but you can see them flying back and forth within the enclosure once your eyes have adjusted. They are normally flying to their feeders and back, so once you locate the feeders within the enclosure, you can usually find some activity.

Of course, this activity swells to a crescendo at feeding time, which the zoo does during visiting hours so that visitors can see it. As you could guess from the name, vampire bats drink blood. They usually take their meal from a living animal, such as a cow or pig, using a special anticoagulant in their saliva to keep the blood from clotting once it starts to flow from a bite of their tiny fangs, but of course at the North Carolina Zoo, the bats aren't given live prey. The zoo staff feeds the bats by pouring cows' blood (with an added coagulant) into, of all things, hummingbird feeders for the bats to dine upon. The North Carolina Zoo goes through 18 pounds of cows' blood a week to feed the bats! It doesn't sound like the most fun job in the world to pour smelly cows' blood into several feeders in a dark box with bats flying around your head, but I guess they are used to it!

Here's another post about the North Carolina Zoo, for your enjoyment: http://whatsgoodingreensboro.blogspot.com/2015/02/a-funny-thing-happened-at-zoo-and-i.html

You can also find What's Good in Greensbroro? on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Whats-Good-in-Greensboro-848569635208317/ . See you there!

Vampire bat picture from Wikimedia Commons en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Desmodus.jpg

A Funny Thing Happened at the Zoo, and I Ain't Lyin'

The North Carolina Zoo in Asheboro is a popular, nearby destination for Greensboro residents and others in the area. I have a membership to the Zoo and have made frequent trips, myself. I thought I would share a story from a trip I made a few years back...

I was at the zoo once when a squirrel got into the lion enclosure. Unless it's feeding time, the lions are usually just lyin' (get it?) around and aren't the most exciting exhibit, but the presence of that squirrel made the lioness snap to attention! She jumped to her feet and started stalking the squirrel just like a housecat, and everyone in the crowd was transfixed with excitement and anticipation. You could see the tension in her hindquarters as she prepared to spring, and I thought we were all gonna see a "National Geographic moment", if you know what I mean.

Fortunately for the squirrel, there was a protective covering around the tree in the enclosure (probably to keep the big cats from scratching off all the bark), and the little guy got down inside that. As for the lioness, her prey, being out of sight, was soon out of mind, and she went back and flopped down beside her mate. Show's over folks! Move along...nothing to see here...

You can also find What's Good in Greensbroro? on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Whats-Good-in-Greensboro-848569635208317/ . See you there!


Image from Pixabay http://pixabay.com/en/lions-animal-male-female-lions-175934/

The Glenn McNairy Branch, Greensboro Public Library's Newest Addition

A brand new branch of the Greensboro Public Library opened up on Friday, August 1, 2014, on Lake Jeanette Road in Greensboro, North Carolina. I was particularly excited about this, because it is only about a mile from where I live, so I can walk there when the weather is nice. It took a really, really long time for them to start building--I'm pretty sure the bond for it was passed back in 2006--but they broke ground last year, and I have been watching as the library building takes shape.

I was very excited to finally visit the branch once it opened, and I took plenty of pictures to share. This branch has so many unique features,it's hard to know where to start, so I'll just take you on a visual tour. When one enters, it's clear that this is not your standard dark and hushed "book crypt" (I'm looking at you, UNCG library)--the soaring, light-filled room is appointed with brilliantly-hued artwork and comfy couches. Stacks jut out into the room like those in a bookstore, rather than marching in uniform rows.

The children's section is wonderfully designed. It is dominated by a large pirate ship for exploration and play, and the stacks are actually bins, at a kid-friendly height. There is a computer hub with small chairs, and even a snack bar.

 One thing in I was disappointed to find was a very small number of desktop computers available for adults. There are only seven stations around a table for library patrons to use, and if those are full, the alternative is apparently not to use the kids' computers, no matter how empty that area may be. If you are not with a child, you will be asked to move.

Why so few PC stations? The answer is in the kiosk. This library branch is unique in that there is a large kiosk from which library patrons can check out laptops and tablet computers for use, and as you have seen, there are plenty of places to sit. Clearly the plan was for those to be in wide use, making the demand for desktop PCs rather low. However, the mouse rules over the touchpad, and the keyboard trumps the touchscreen; the kiosk gathers dust while the desktop stations are full. Hopefully the disparity will be rectified by adding more computers of the old-school style.

Except for the issue with the computers, this is a lovely and welcoming branch. It took eight years to come to fruition, but it is here in a big, bold way. And if the pirate ship, rental iPads and snack bar aren't enough of a draw, the Glenn McNairy Branch has a real live 3-D printer! Whether browsing the stacks, checking out the snack bar or just sitting on a comfy couch playing Fruit Ninja, you will enjoy your visit to the Glenn McNairy Branch on Lake Jeanette Road.

You can also find What's Good in Greensbroro? on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Whats-Good-in-Greensboro-848569635208317/ . See you there!