Either you make steep cuts that will inevitably draw the ire of many constituents, even your supporters, or you don’t cut enough and allow your country to gradually slip into the fiscal abyss.
Cognizant of the political challenges, nonprofit deficit hawks have stepped in to try to rally public support for tough budget choices by giving voters the chance to play congressman for a day — and thus experience the challenges themselves. One such exercise is coming to Arlington next week.
The symphony, conducted by Jeff Dokken, will play at a free concert called “Honoring America” which will feature patriotic-themed classical music. It will take place tonight at 7:30 in the theater at Kenmore Middle School (200 S. Carlin Springs Road).
The Symphony Orchestra of Arlington is a professional caliber volunteer orchestra founded in January. Its goal is to foster education, outreach and entertainment while providing high quality classical music to residents in and around Arlington.
Tonight county representatives will present the results of a week-long public planning and design process intended to help plan the future of Columbia Pike.
The “Work in Progress Presentation” will be held from 7:00 to 9:00 tonight at the Sheraton National Hotel (900 S. Orme Street). Planners will reveal the work that has been completed through a neighborhood planning day — or “charrette” — last weekend and a series of “open design studios” during the week.
The new Renaissance Arlington Capital View Hotel in Crystal City (2800 S. Potomac Avenue) will be hosting “Angry Hours” — a weekly series of live Angry Bird tournaments — every Thursday from July 14 to Aug. 25.
The tournament will be held from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. at SOCCi, the hotel’s modern Italian restaurant and bar. Players will compete for prizes including hotel stays, free dinners and an iPad. The tournament will also feature its own menu of signature cocktails, with names like “Mighty Eagle,” the “Rio” and the “Golden Egg.”
Want to help plan and design the future of Columbia Pike? A series of charrettes — fast-paced, wide-ranging planning sessions — are being held on the Pike over the next week.
The primary public charrette will be held Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the Sheraton National Hotel (900 S. Orme Street), and everybody is invited to participate and help guide the Pike’s continuing development. A light lunch will be provided.
The grocery store will be offering wine tastings, tapas samplings and prizes to customers from 3:00 to 7:00 p.m. on Friday and from noon to 5:00 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. Prizes include free bags of Giant brand products and free groceries for a month.
The 60,000 square foot store, located at the corner of Columbia Pike and S. Adams Street, will open its doors at 6:00 a.m. on Friday, June 24.
The Shirlington Branch Library will be screening family-oriented movies all summer, starting this week. At 2:00 p.m., every Friday through the end of August, the library will show a different kid-friendly flick. The selections include Tangled, How to Train Your Dragon, Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, The Sword in the Stone, Cars, Shrek Forever After, Aladdin, Alice in Wonderland (1951 version) and The Tale of Despereaux.
For adults, the Westover Branch Library will be taking moviegoers on a cinematic tour of the world. The library will screen the “mid-week movies” every Wednesday at 6:30 p.m., starting on July 6 and ending on August 10. The schedule includes Chariots of Fire, Motorcycle Diaries, Out of Africa, the Joy Luck Club, Under the Tuscan Sun and Enchanted April.
The one-day event is expected take place Labor Day weekend along the W&OD Trail in Arlington. It will feature “a sports event with a historic twist, a large-scale environmental action activity (biggest in the park’s history) and a festival featuring a national recording artist which we expect will draw several thousand attendees,” said Chris Browne, Vice President of the Greater Washington Sports Alliance.
“It is going to be BIG and very relevant to our regional community,” Browne added.
If not, here’s an idea: The fourth annual Dash4Dad Four Mile Run and Walk is being held Sunday morning in Pentagon City, complete with entries for daddy-daughter and father-son teams.
The four mile race and one mile walk starts and finishes on S. Joyce Street, in front of the Pentagon Row shops. Proceeds will go to support prostate cancer awareness, outreach and research.
You might get the summertime blues on the Pike this weekend.
The 16th annual Columbia Pike Blues Festival kicks off at 1:00 p.m. Saturday on South Walter Reed Drive and Columbia Pike. The free event runs through 8:00 p.m. and features acclaimed acts like southern blues rocker Tinsley Ellis, along with Columbia Pike’s own blues and soul band, The Curbfeelers.
The seventh annual Montana State Society ‘Testicle Festival’ is being held from 6:00 to 10:00 Saturday night. A $20 ticket buys you “all the Crown Royal you can drink and all the balls you can eat,” as festival co-organizer Brittany Beauleiu told NBC Washington. There will also be all-you-can-drink beer and country music from the Wil Gravatt Band.
Also known as Rocky Mountain oysters or cowboy caviar, bull testicles are said to be chewy and taste like chicken.
The Air Force Cycling Classic will bring exciting races and extensive road closures to Arlington over the weekend.
The nationally-recognized pro cycling event will kick off early in Clarendon on Saturday, then head to Crystal City on Sunday. Here’s the official schedule:
