Friday, April 8, 2016
I was enjoying a quiet moment sitting in the shade of my favorite old tree at Catalina Park earlier this week, blissfully unaware of my surroundings until I felt a small impact ripple across the ground. Mystified, I looked behind me and a young male had appeared seemingly out of nowhere. I stared at him for a second, trying to process where in the world this person could have come from. He told me that he’d been up in the tree, enjoying the beautiful day and if I was “feeling adventurous” I should try it out myself. He caught me on a laundry day in a pair of pants that have gotten a little bit tighter over the years, but I promised him I’d come see what the tree is all about when I’m wearing something stretchier. With a warm smile, he told me to have a good rest of my day in that very genuine Tucson-way that reminds me of why I love living here, and off he went.
Today, I came back to that towering (for the desert) tree. Using the gnarly old lumps dotting the trunk as footholds, I hauled myself up into the canopy and appreciated the view from 20 feet up, letting go of the stresses of four classes, two jobs and an internship for a few minutes and watching the storm clouds roll by through the tree branches. Sometimes strangers have good advice.
If you want to climb the tree too, look for the tallest tree in the southwest corner of Catalina Park at 900 N 4th Ave.
Tags: tucson , catalina park , tree , climbing , quiet place , quiet moment , Slideshow
Wednesday, April 6, 2016
The Best of Tucson® 2016 ballot has been up for a few days now and, as you may have noticed, there have been some changes.
Perhaps most notably is the introduction of the ¡Cultura! section. For years, Best of Tucson had ¡Comida!, a section dedicated to the Old Pueblo's delicious Mexican food. But you know what? Tucson's Mexican influence goes beyond what we put in our bellies. We decided to open the section up to include categories like Best Mariachi Band and Best Carnicería.
We plan to bring in new ¡Cultura! categories next year, so let us know if you have any suggestions.
In the meantime, go fill out your Best of Tucson ballot! It can seem daunting to start—there are 191 questions—but you can do it. It's the tiniest bit shorter than last year, you can skip questions you don't have opinions on, and you only have to fill out a minimum of 30 questions. You can even save your ballot and get back to it anytime before we start looking at finalists on May 15.
Get voting.
Tags: Best of Tucson , changes , cultura , vote
Tuesday, April 5, 2016
Our Theme this year is “Real Women, Real Success: How To Build A Business Without Burning Out.” The idea is to bring a number of resources that are essential to the survival of women-owned businesses and their everyday lives. Smart women know real success is not about having it all, it's about having the things that matter! Thousands of women are now enjoying economic independence and empowerment after benefiting from financial and non-financial services.The event will take place at the Tucson Scottish Rite (160 S Scott Ave.)
We're giving away pairs of tickets to this event, but you have to earn them: Head over to the website so you can answer the trivia question on the entry form.
We'll pick a winner on Wednesday. Good luck, everyone!
Arizona Gives Day is a bit of a spring tradition. Since 2013, that state has come together to pour a little love into the community and "invest in Arizona" by donating to local non-profits.
In previous years, Arizona Gives Day has raised a total of $4.5 million dollars. This year, organizers are aiming to raise $3 million in 24 hours.
Grab your wallet and find a non-profit making Arizona a better place. If you need some inspiration, read up about some of Tucson's (many) wonderful organizations: I found TW stories about non-profits here, here and here but tell us about the people and places you love to support in the comments.
Tags: tucson non-profits , tucson , arizona gives day
Monday, April 4, 2016
On April 9 and 10, Park Place Mall will be transformed into a colorful display of sidewalk art by artists of all ages. Attendees and professional artists alike will have the chance to create chalk art inspired by nature, outer space, history, science, culture, abstract ideas, and more, according to a press release by the Southern Arizona Arts and Cultural Alliance.
"Our goal is to make public spaces a place for creativity and art, the Chalk Art Festival is a great opportunity to bring the arts into the community" said SAACA Executive Director Kate Marquez.The event is now partnered with the Tucson Pima Arts Council and, as a result, will be split into three areas: Professional Artist Murals, Community Participation
Tags: art , mural , chalk art , family event , park place , festival
Friday, April 1, 2016
The center will host a guitar recycling and restringing event on Thursday, April 7. All you have to do is bring in old guitar strings, and event sponsor D'Addario's people will restring your instrument—electric or acoustic—with NYXL or nickel bronze acoustic strings for free.
The event is part of Playback, D'Addario's national program that helps guitarists recycle their strings at no charge. The initiative, which D'Addario's press release writes is the first of its kind, is the result of partnership between the company and international recycling giant TerraCycle—D'Addario does the gathering, TerraCyle does the physical recycling.
D'Addario is also trying to give back to the music community through the restring/recycle event. Members of D'Addario's Player's Circle—the company's loyalty program—will receive a code at the International Music Center for loyalty points which they can donate to the D'Addario Foundation, a nonprofit that supports music education in lower socio-economic communities in the United States.
The event starts at 1 and runs until 7:30 p.m. Get more information here.
Tags: d'addario , terracyle , instrumental music center , guitar , earth day , international guitar month
"The Tin Commandments" runs until May 1. Preview Carlson's tin masterpieces on his website and get more information regarding Wee Gallery's hours of operation here.
Tags: wee gallery , art , tin art , rand carlson , art exhibition , tucson life , the tin commandments
Thursday, March 31, 2016
Yes, Tucson, it's finally time—Time to fill out your Best of Tucson® Ballot.
You'll notice some new categories, you'll miss some old ones. So it goes.
Everything is pretty much the same, with one major exception: We're only accepting nominations for local institutions. We've been back and forth on this issue, but it all comes down to celebrating Tucson.
We're celebrating our people who make our city great. We're celebrating Tucson's best. We're celebrating Tucson.
Go vote. This write-in, vote-for-who-ever-you-want round of balloting will close on May 15. Then, we'll compile a list of your top 5 (local) nominations, and create a finalists ballot to determine the winners.
As always: You're required to fill in something for 30 categories for your ballot to count. If you don't have an opinion, leave the space blank.
Any questions?
Wednesday, March 30, 2016
Alright, everybody, listen up. The Red Cross has put out a call asking for help filling their "significant need" for donations of O negative blood.
As you may remember from your 5th grade science class, O negative blood is the "universal donor" that can be transfused into patients with any blood type. The Red Cross needs to keep a lot on hand—and they need a lot of help to make that happen, as fewer than 7 percent of people in the U.S. have O negative blood.
The Red Cross must collect approximately 14,000 blood and platelet donations every day for the patients at about 2,600 hospitals and transfusion centers nationwide. Blood and platelets are needed to respond to patient emergencies, including accident and burn victims, heart surgery and organ transplant patients, and those receiving treatment for leukemia, cancer or sickle cell disease.
Tuesday, March 29, 2016
Today, Saguaro National Park put out a call for artists ages 18-25 to participate in their 1st Annual Centennial Youth Art Show.
The park hasn't released details about the actual event yet, but they did post some information to entice artists to get in touch:
Creative Tucson youth, ages 18-25Email [email protected] for submission instructions and details—the submission deadline is April 14.
Artists will be selected to exhibit & sell their work to the public June 3-4 at the Tucson Mountain District Visitor Center
1st & 2nd place prizes include:
- participation in the Friends of Saguaro professional art auction
- 1 year national park pass
Extended display time & recognition
