Kids are getting ready to go back to school and the Redskins just played a preseason football game. That can only mean one thing: summer is starting to wind down.
Labor Day may be only three weeks away, but don’t fret yet: the 10-day forecast is currently calling for six 90 degree days.
The three parks — Drew Playground (3514 22nd Street S.), Hayes Park (1516 N. Lincoln Street) and Lyon Village Park (1800 N. Highland Street) — opened over the weekend and will remain in service until Labor Day weekend. Hours of operation can be found online.
A fourth sprayground was originally supposed to have opened already at Virginia Highlands Park, but now isn’t expected to be ready until next year.
ARLnow.com readers have spoken, and the photo above — “Morning Coffee at Iwo Jima” by Kevin Wolf — has been chosen as the best of the best in our pre-Memorial Day Summer Photo Contest.
The winning photo received 226 votes. “Fourth of July Fireworks from the Netherlands Carillon” by Clint Farrell was a close second with 210 votes, while our third place winner, “Douglas Park Fire Station” by Mary Troyan, received 183 votes.
It was tough work but we’ve narrowed down the dozens of entries to our Summer Photo Contest to ten finalists who successfully captured a unique, visually-appealing summer scene in Arlington.
Fire Works Pizza in Courthouse (2350 Clarendon Blvd) is sponsoring the contest in celebration of their new outdoor canopy, which will help keep patio diners cooler when the sun’s beating down, warmer on cool evenings, and dry during summer downpours.
Examples of active kids’ classes are swimming and tennis, creative classes include music and theater, and crafty classes include woodworking and ceramics. A wide range of activities is also available to adults, including knitting, various sports and gardening.
The catalog of courses is available online, as is a request form to have a copy sent through the mail. Registration can be done online starting at 8:00 a.m.
Memorial Day is just around the corner. That means it’s time to break out the swimsuits, sandals, sunscreen — and the cameras.
In celebration of their new outdoor canopy — which will help keep patio diners cooler when the sun’s beating down, warmer (thanks to built-in heaters) on cool evenings, and dry during summer downpours — Fire Works Pizza in Courthouse (2350 Clarendon Blvd) is sponsoring a summer-themed photo conest.
Editor’s Note: This sponsored column is written by Nick Anderson, beermonger at Arrowine (4508 Lee Highway).
One of the areas where the explosion of craft beer’s popularity has had its greatest impact is seasonal beers. Not only in the number of said beers coming onto the market, but when they’re released. I’ve often joked with customers over the years about waiting by my phone on August 1st for the calls telling me fall beers, Pumpkin Ales, Oktoberfest beers and the like are in, but it’s not so much a joke anymore. Timing is everything in this competitive market, and being on shelves a week before someone else’s seasonal offering can give you just enough time to establish your beer as a consumer’s go-to beverage for a whole season. This has resulted in earlier releases for many seasonal beers, which has caused some controversy among enthusiasts (then again, what doesn’t?).
Catalog distribution will kick off at the Summer Activities Fair at the Thomas Jefferson Community Center (3501 S. 2nd St.) tomorrow night from 6:00-8:00 p.m. More than 100 exhibitors will highlight summer activities for children from ages 3-17. Anyone who participated in a camp last year or specifically requested a catalog will receive it in the mail soon.
Registration for camps starts on Wednesday, February 22 at 7:00 a.m. That’s the busiest registration day of the year, so online users are encouraged to have all camp and payment information on hand to make the process run more smoothly. Registration will also be accepted by fax and mail.
Although warmer weather is forecast for the rest of the week, we were wondering if yesterday’s fall-like temperatures are prompting locals to pack away that Arlington summer staple, the flip flop.
At what temperature do you consider it too cold to wear flip flops?
The second month to be named after a Roman emperor (the other is July), there’s a lot to like about August.
It’s sort of like summer’s grand finale — when folks begin packing in the remaining warm weather fun on their ‘To Do’ list before the arrival of shorter days and cooler nights.
As first reported by Coryn Julien in the blog The Arlington Connection, summer is a tough time to find homes for kittens and cats. Because of spring’s increase in births, there are too few adopters to take in all of the kittens and cats in shelters.
The SPCA of Northern Virginia has noticed the cat problem as well. The organization’s website lists an urgent need for foster homes for cats and kittens. It says while foster homes are always needed, it “is especially critical for cats during kitten season.”
School’s Out for Summer — Today is the last day of school for elementary students in Arlington. High school students had their last day on Wednesday and middle school students had their last day on Thursday. [YouTube]
Man Charged With Pentagon Shootings — Alexandria resident Yonathan Melaku, 22, has been charged with destruction of property and firearm violations in five separate shootings at Northern Virginia military installations last year. Melaku was arrested in Arlington National Cemetery last Friday, authorities say, with a backpack containing a ammonium nitrate, a key component in certain explosives, and a notebook containing referencing Al Qaeda and jihad. Sources tell Fox News that Melaku was “self-radicalized through the internet,” but there’s “no indication he was planning to harm individuals.” [FBI, Fox News]
