Yellow Springs street fair

Photo Credit: Alli Shillito

This past week was wonderful…and very unique!  I witnessed an elephant in a living room (well, sort of), found out that Minster wasn’t lying about serving beer in half-gallon plastic jugs, and was able to enjoy some fish and chips at my alma mater’s fish fry.  But most importantly, the Browns captured their first win of the season!  (Sorry all you Bengals fans out there.)  Anyways, here are some of the wonderful things going on in Dayton this week!

On Wednesday, row your boat to Otis Redding’s favorite place, The Dock, for their 16^th Anniversary.  In order to celebrate, there will be 16 dinners offered at 1994 prices!  Or continue the German Oktoberfest tradition at Hawthorn Grill, as they will be featuring a German menu.  Afterwards, check out the Modern Masters Exhibit from the Smithsonian American Art Museum at the Dayton Art Institute for its final week in Dayton.  Or head to The Neon to experience what I experienced this weekend – The Elephant in the Living Room …which by the way, is a wonderful documentary that features many things Dayton.  Although you may be skeptical of my opinions since I’m by no means a film critic, the movie has earned two “Best Documentary” awards from actual film critics!

On Thursday, get out your Altoids after you experience Cooking with Garlic at the PNC 2^nd Street Market.  Just don’t try out your new found cooking skills on a date.  In the evening, speed over to the Dayton Art Institute to see Soul Express as part of the DAI 2010 Vectren Just Jazz Series.  And, if you are a writer, have always wanted to become one, or like me, you just have a passion for your topic but no formal writing experience, head to the Kettering-Moraine branch of the Dayton Metro Library for a presentation entitled The Courage to Write.

On Friday, there will be lots of opportunities for professional development!  All you business people will want to start the day off right with the Dayton Chamber Breakfast Briefingat the Dayton Racquet Club.  Afterwards, check out MAGNETIC Content! – Create, plan and position relevant content that will captivate your audience, which is sponsored by New Media Dayton.  Bring your autograph book as there will be “ROCKSTAR-like” panelists, including our very own Bill Pote, the wonderful founder of DaytonMostMetro.com!  If you are looking to enhance your creativity in the workplace, sign up for the Creativity – Steroids for Your Career workshop at Groundz4Living.  If you are a community advocate, you’ll want to register for the Regional Neighborhood Network Conference, which will be going on over the course of three days at the Dayton Convention Center and the Crowne Plaza Hotel.  In the evening, fly like Superman…Up, Up & Away with McCoo & Davis, as they perform with the Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra.  (You can also find more information about the event by clicking here.)

Saturday is festival day!  Make your way to Waynesville for the famous Sauerkraut Festival or to Yellow Springs for the Yellow Springs Street Fair (check out the DMM article on this event here).  Or, if you haven’t been to enough beer festivals in the past few months, check out the Miami Valley Beer Fest at the Montgomery County Fairgrounds, where all proceeds go directly to the Resident Home Association, a non-profit that works with adults who have developmental disabilities, providing them with supervised living assistance and other services.  So, if people ask you why you’ve been drinking every weekend, you can just tell them it is for a great cause!  If you are grieving the fact that Dayton Oktoberfest is over, you can still drink German beer, eat cabbage rolls, and experience live music at the Dayton Liederkranz Oktoberfest! If you want to help kids, be sure to purchase your ticket ASAP for the ‘Help Me, Help Kids’ Wine Tasting and Silent Auction for Big Brothers Big Sisters, which is also on Saturday.  It is more than just wine and a silent auction – there will be food, fun, and live music by Matt Scholp.  Plus, you will walk home (or perhaps take a cab home) with a wine glass and a t-shirt!  A few friends and I attended last year and had such a great time that we are planning to go again this year, so I hope to see you there!

On Sunday, after you go to church, head to the Dayton Art Institute for Musica! Fall Concert – Saints & Sinners.  Musica!, Dayton’s professional choir, will be performing music from a wide variety of musicals, such as Les Miserables, as well as a set of spirituals.  Or watch Cleveland’s second win of the season on FOX as they take on the Atlanta Falcons.  (Apparently this event is not listed on the DaytonMostMetro.com calendar.)  If you’re not wise enough to be a Browns fan, check out the Modern Masters from the Smithsonian American Art Museumat the Dayton Art Institute, as Sunday is the last day for it.  Or, drive down to Waynesville for the Sauerkraut Festival.  And finally, to wind down the busy week, participate in the Free Intro to Yoga classat Practice Yoga on Fifth.

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

What did the football say to the punter?
“I get a kick out of you.”

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!

Have a great week Dayton!