The Penguin staff is ducking out a little early to take care of some business. We’re going mouse hunting!
One brazen little bastard galloped its way across the newsroom carpet last night as staffers watched “Ghost Hunters International”. It wasn’t fat like those New York mice I’ve dealt with, nor did it flick me the bird or grab its crotch as I’ve experienced previously.
Still, the newsroom prides itself in being a pest-free workplace (no offense to our intern), and an infestation of any kind will not be tolerated. Nobody steals my freakin’ cheese!
While we’re chasing rodents, please partake of Silver Spring’s weekend offerings:
Thursday
7:00 p.m. The big band US Army Blues kicks it for free on Ellsworth Drive near Georgia Avenue. The gig is part of the Silver Spring Swings weekly concert series and is open to the public.
9:00 p.m. The locally produced comedy “Boxing Day” holds its intergalactic premiere at the AFI Silver Theatre (8633 Colesville Rd). Ten bucks gets you through the door.
| SPONSORED CONTENT Nicaro restaurant (8229 Georgia Ave) hits you with $6 cocktails between 5:30 and 9:30 p.m. Smile at your bartender when you flash that ID. |
Friday
3:00 p.m. Scrape together whatever spare change you have, gas up the car and schlep to Gaithersburg for the annual Montgomery County Agricultural Fair. Eight bucks gets you through the gate until midnight.
Spare yourself the parking headache and hitch a ride on the free shuttle bus from the Lakeforest Mall.
3:00 p.m. The Pyramid Atlantic community arts store (924 Ellsworth Dr) hosts a free wine tasting for parents of babies and toddlers. The kiddies work on art. Mommy and Daddy work on wine until 4:00 p.m. Everybody’s happy.
4:00 p.m. Learn to pimp out cocktail weenies and other appetizers for your next dinner party. Git yerself cultured at the Pyramid Atlantic community arts store (924 Ellsworth Dr). The lesson is free and open to the public.
5:30 p.m. Bossa-nova beat brothers Clube do Samba shake that Brazilian sound at South Silver Spring’s Arts Alley (8030 Georgia Ave). The groove is part of the weekly Arts Alley Fridays series of free performances.
10:00 p.m. The rump shaking continues at Loda, South Silver Spring’s weekly music-and-multimedia gig. Hit it at Gallery lounge (1115 East-West Hwy) with $10 and convincing ID for the guy at the door.
Saturday
9:00 a.m. Freshfarm holds its weekly farmers market on Ellsworth Drive, between Fenton Street and Georgia Avenue. There is no admission fee.
10:00 a.m. Schlep to Gaithersburg for the annual Montgomery County Agricultural Fair. Eight bucks gets you through the gate until midnight. Spare yourself the parking headache and hitch a ride on the free shuttle bus from the Lakeforest Mall.
6:00 p.m. Maryland Fashion Week wraps (who knew it started?) with a fashion show on Ellsworth Drive near Georgia Avenue. Thirty bucks gets you under the tent.
6:30 p.m. Zydeco band Dixie Power Trio (actually, a quartet) performs in Gateway Plaza (actually, the parking lot outside Panera on Colesville at Georgia). This free event is part of a weekly concert series sponsored by the Downtown Silver Spring shopping center and is open to the public.
Sunday
10:00 a.m. Schlep to Gaithersburg for the annual Montgomery County Agricultural Fair. Eight bucks gets you through the gate until midnight. Spare yourself the parking headache and hitch a ride on the free shuttle bus from the Lakeforest Mall.
11:30 a.m. The Ivory Coast (Cote d’Ivoire) celebrates its independence day with a festival on Silver Plaza. Hit the food, fun and exhibits until 6:00 p.m. There’s no admission fee.
| SPONSORED CONTENT Nicaro restaurant (8229 Georgia Ave) hits you with its brunch menu, with prices ranging from $6 to $15. The nosh rolls from 11:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. |
Lead image courtesy of Flickr user Sean Dreilinger. Embedded image courtesy of Flickr user Liminae.
Update: The Montgomery County Agricultural Fair has been added to this weekend’s listings. Yeehaw! Pig races! — JD (Aug 7, 2008, at 1:35 p.m.)
Update: Saturday’s fashion show goes down by the fountain on Ellsworth Drive. That means the weekly free concert has to step — to the parking lot outside Panera. — JD (Aug 7, 2008, at 4:10 p.m.)
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Boxed wines and rosés are back in vogue. Just ask The Penguin's sommeliers.
Interesting news from the Washington Business Journal:
“Dunkin’ Donuts signs deals to open 10 new stores in D.C. area”
No news yet as to whether that Silver Spring location will be in the downtown area. Mmmm … Munchkins!
Advice for getting rid of mice:
Don’t do the poison. They eat it and walk off and die somewhere. Bad death for the mouse, and you don’t know where it is.
Avoid the sticky trays. Do you really want the mouse dying of dehydration there on your floor?
Two things have worked best for me, depending on your circumstances. If you have no kids around the house, those old fashioned snap traps are great. In most cases, the mouse dies in an instance and you know right where he’ll be. Bait it with peanut butter. If you DO have kids around, try the electric traps. They look like a black box with a hole in the side. Put the peanut butter where instructed, load the batteries, and place it. When the mouse goes in, he gets quickly electrocuted. A light on the box tells you that something has been zapped.
We’ve only had mice twice in our house, and we get rid of them without hurting them by using a Have-A-Heart live trap baitied with peanut butter. There’s no need to kill this little animal.
There’s a Dunkin Donuts Coming Soon sign on Georgia in Aspen Hill – where Caribou Coffee used to reside.
??
Jennifer, I was busting my brain trying to figure out where the heck Gateway Plaza was! Whew, thanks for clearing that up! Now, what is that nearly-all-hardscape “pocket park” in front of the Silver Spring office & the Copy Connection shop called? It looks like a good spot for a concert! A band could drown out the traffic.
Or, do spies meet in that park? No one could overhear them! But they would have to shout at each other, never mind…
True, you don’t HAVE to kill them, but once you catch them in the humane trap, just don’t release them in your backyard, or they’ll be back in the house faster than you are.
Anyone know if Smoothie King is open or opening this weekend?
I don’t know why but roaches freak me out more than mice. Just a week ago, a mouse scampered underneath my desk and went into a hole under my AC/Heat convector. Meh…big deal. The mouse was just passing through my apartment.
You don’t have to go to Defcon 5 if a mouse is loose in your apartment. There’s a good chance that the rodent will move onto other units in your building.
Yeah, mice don’t freak me out like bugs do. But I don’t want critters of any sort crawling over my keyboard or — even worse — nibbling on the newsroom’s supply of potato chips. That’s where I draw the freakin’ line.