Wednesday . Hillsborough Street . Lunch break . 65 degrees .

Sunday . Cameron Village . Sidewalk leading up to Harris Teeter .

Cherry trees  a’blooomin . Snow this evenin ?

:Update:

On Valentine’s Day I went to Piebird for lunch. The blue(bird) chairs out front were dreamy despite the winter chill, and inviting. I walked in like I owned the place apparently, completely missing the hostess stand and hustling towards the first waitstaff person I could find. Due to a very important date with a friend for hair-braiding and coffee, I did not wait to be late… and because the waiter thought he knew me, I ended up not coming across too weird.

Back at the hostess stand, I ordered two chicken pot pies and a chocolate peanut butter slice. They offered to rush the order for me as I eased into their sweet antique, white sofa. I thanked them and began plotting how I would convince them the sofa would look much better in my apartment. Then I took a stroll over to the “mom-n-pop” pharmacy across the street. At the counter, complete with an ice cream case and milkshake straws, I handed over payment for my purchase. Without hesitation, the cashier told me my driver’s license signature and my signing of the credit card slip were not matches… Hmmmm, I thought… “They never are!”, I said. From him, a chuckle and “Happy Valentine’s Day, dear”.

I had visited Conti’s Italian Market - a cramped collage of red, white and green labeled foods – a few times before it’s transformation into Piebird, and a transformation proved to be. Modern, white-washed bar. Easy, large open room. Fun tables, chairs and artwork.

2 hand pies + dessert pie = ~$14

Attraction, sweetness and the senses.

This card, along with two other designs, can be purchased on Etsy for $3. Earn extra cool points when you tell your Valentine that the stamps are handmade by Kim at Darling & Dear Stationary and pressed on recycled paper. And, pssst, the handwriting is courtesy of your very own Downtown Dame.

;) enjoy xoxo

With the weather behaving the way it has been, and tomorrow’s February First Friday only slightly shying away from these feelings of spring (50s), I’m in the mood to get excited. Because despite The Farmer’s and Sir Walter Wally’s prediction of a more wintry-weather-month ahead, soon we’ll be the ones to walk in the sun (and girls they wanna have fu-un!).

BEST installs their first project for Feb. First Friday at The Hue @ Hargett (Suite 50). This group bases their projects on the idea that every space is an opportunity for creativity and expression, especially those run-down, ignored spots, that helps us get to know each other better, bringing us closer together as a community. Neat.

The Triangle has a wiki page. It’s not open to the public yet, but soon you’ll be able to be a part of recording our culture (interesting places and events). The Raleigh Public Record reports that this is “the latest installment of a global trend of local information site that first started in Davis, California” and it became “the largest, most used media source in the city, with one in seven Davis residents contributing to the site.”

The issue of transit in the Triangle is kind of a big deal right now. We just approved a $40 million transportation bond in October that includes a lot of cool stuff, including a new train station. Meanwhile, organizations like GoTriangle.com aim to help you get around by bus, rideshare (carpooling), bike, walking and teleworking (remote).

Happy New Year! 2012 – woooooooooooooooo!

As my dear friend, “the landmark”, who is moving to Germany would say, “Let the games begin!”

First Friday in downtown Raleigh is loosely based on the idea of an art gallery walk. Most people that I’ve talked to, however, take it as an opportunity to do all sorts of things – hear a band, have dinner, drink margaritas, see and be seen, try out the new place around the corner from the usual place. It’s also dark so early these days (but the days are officially getting longer!) that unless you are able to head downtown between 4-5pm, it’s cold and takes more effort to get around.

So, for these winter First Fridays I like to implement a little extra planning to avoid the icey grip. First, figure out when you can head over and where you’ll be parking. Then, choose 3-4 spots from the list of art venues based on the general route you’d like to take (or base your route on the venues you’d like to go to, though in cold weather the former may be easier). From there, let it all go, shrug off the work week and see where the evening takes you. More than likely, I’ll see ~2 of these spots, have some dinner and find myself huddled by the nearest outdoor heater with a beer and the friends I’ve acquired along the way.

1/6/12: Tire Shop Gallery, Mahler Fine Art, Amplified Art

**leave a comment, suggest an art venue, check out pictures around downtown in 2011 on facebook