Photo Credit: Alli Shillito

Hello February…and hello icky weather! If you’re reading this, that means you still have power, which is a great thing! I hope you also have the power to get up off the couch and enjoy some of these events!

On Groundhog Day (a.k.a. Wednesday), eat lunch at Smokey Bones for their $5 Lunch Special. Over at the Schuster Center, check out the Visual Voices Art Exhibit: Dayton Skyscrapers 2011, which celebrates “women and men who stand tall as role models in the Dayton African-American community.” There will be a sea of food at Dorothy Lane Market as part of their Oyster Bar Happy Hour, as well as at Bonefish Grill for their Bang Bang Shrimp Wednesday. If you are a fan of environmental causes and would like to know more about the lives affected by the water industry as well as public water rights, then you will want to attend the Environmental Film Series: Tapped at Cox Arboretum. Enjoy an adult beverage at The Wine Loft for their Happy Hour, The Wine Gallery for their Weekly Wine Tasting, or Bruning’s Wine Cellar for their Taste the Wines of Frog’s Leap event. If you’re downtown, head to the Schuster Center to see 9 to 5: The Musical (I’m looking forward to it after my 9 to 5 job!) or to The Loft Theatre to see Twelfth Night. Over at Clark State Performing Arts Center, watch Fiddler On The Roof…I’m hoping he doesn’t fall down with it being icy! And finally, support the UD Flyers as they play St. Bonaventure at UD Arena…and hopefully get a victory!

On Thursday, celebrate the Chinese New Year with dinner specials at both The Nanking Inn and Kabuki. Have you always wanted to dance, but keep putting it off? If so, boogie your way to Michael Solomon Pavillion for International Folk Dance Lessons. Over at the Dayton Racquet Club, attend the Go Red for Women/American Heart Month Kickoff. At The Neon, check out Pecha Kucha Night Dayton, Volume 6, in which there will be several short presentations by noteworthy people around the city about their creative endeavors. The presentations will be followed by a screening of the documentary DIVE, which is based on the topic of food waste at L.A. supermarkets. For more information about Pecha Kucha, click here. If you like meeting new people, head to Cedarville University to meet Dolly… be sure to tell her Hello, Dolly! Also, at the Schuster Center, you will be able to see 9 TO 5: The Musical, and at The Loft Theatre, you can catch Twelfth Night.

On Friday, after you get out of the shower, be sure to put on your red for the National Wear Red Day, in honor of the American Heart Association’s “Go Red for Women” Movement. If you wish, you can continue to celebrate the Chinese New Year at China Dynasty, The Nanking Inn, or Kabuki. Get out your dancing shoes and head to the Michael Solomon Pavilion for the Contra Dance Party – Cityfolk. If you love a good fish fry, head to either the Ascension or the St. Mary Fish Fry. All you art lovers will want to participate in First Friday, the fabulous art hop which happens the first Friday of each month downtown. There will also be many wonderful shows going on in our great region, including 9 to 5: The Musical (Schuster Center), The Octette Bridge Club (Beavercreek Community Theatre), The 25th Annual Putnam Spelling Bee (Dayton Playhouse), Twelfth Night (Loft Theatre), The Berenstain Bears Onstage; A Bear Country Musical! (Town Hall Theatre), and True West (University of Dayton-Kennedy Union Boll Theatre). And finally, listen to The Rocket Man, The Eagles, Diana Ross, and The Beatles as you skate at RiverScape for their event, Peace, Love, and Skate: 60s and 70s.

On Saturday, bring your Valentine and go to the wonderful El Meson for their Cooking Class for Lovers. For all you techies, head to the Dayton Diode Open House which has been called a “YMCA for nerds”…perhaps I should go then! When tragedy strikes, it is important for a community to join together. Over at St. John’s Lutheran Church, bring your friends and participate in the Dodgeball Tournamnet to benefit the Suzanne Waughtel Hopper fund. In the evening, there are opportunities to support other great causes. You can attend the 21st Annual Artemis Center Gala ‘Be a Star, a Purple Carpet Event’ at Sinclair or Sing your Heart Out For A Good Cause (the American Heart Association) at The Wine Loft. All you “pasghetti” lovers (as many kids call it!) will want to go to the American Legion Post 598 for Franco’s FAMOUS Spaghetti. Over at RiverScape, participate in the Star-Late Skate. Also on Saturday, there will be a plethora of theatre options, including 9 to 5: The Musical, The Berenstain Bears Onstage; A Bear Country Musical, The Octette Bridge Club, The 25th Annual Putnam Spelling Bee, Twelfth Night, and True West.

On Sunday, consider going to Alex’s for their Jazz Brunch. Or you can Savor Your Sunday & Support Stivers at Coco’s Bistro. If it’s not too cold, perhaps you’ll want to learn the Fundamentals of Skating at RiverScape. Sundays are a great day for the arts, so consider checking out the Wright State University 2011 Faculty Exhibition, Visual Voices Art Exhibit; Dayton Skyscrapers 2011 at the Schuster Center, Folk Art from the Collection of Porter Wright Morris & Arthur LLP at The Dayton Art Institute, or A Student of People Exhibit at Troy-Hayner Cultural Center. Or check out one of the many theatre productions going on around town. If you still haven’t done so, be sure to check out DMM’s onStageDayton, where Shane, Katherine, and Russell keep you up to date on the Dayton theatre scene!

And now it’s time for the Dumb Joke of the Week. Drum roll please…

How many pessimists does it take to change a lightbulb?

Nevermind. Nobody would get the joke anyway.

These are just a few best bets from the DMM Calendar. There are plenty more events listed there, so if you haven’t, I encourage you to check it out today! Also, if you have an event to share or promote, please submit it– it’s great marketing and better yet, it’s FREE! And finally, if you have a dumb joke to share, I’m all ears!