I’m sick. Just about everyone I know in Tampa is sick. And, it seems to be due to the weather change. For the first time in months, it isn’t unbearably hot outside. So, enjoy the weather, if you can, and for everyone else, have a nice weekend in your safe, comfy, warm beds.

The beginning of Scare Season is starting. Howl O Scream’s revving up at Busch Gardens, and Halloween Horror Nights is gearing up just the same in Orlando. Even Disney’s getting in on the act. For the horror enthusiast, the fall is a magical time of year. For everyone else, there are all sorts of concerts, art events, and varied performances to keep you busy.

In the words of Dr. Paul Bearer, “I’ll be lurking for you.”

This week is kind of slow for indie shows, cutting edge displays of art and fashion, or even a good old T Dance. Fortunately, Skipper’s Smokehouse is picking up the slack this weekend with three days of emerging bands, experimental performance art, and pleasing harmonies. If you’re not a Skipper’s fan, you can still find entertainment to keep you busy out at the clubs in Ybor or down at Sacred Grounds, where there’s always something out of the ordinary going on.

There’s good news out there in TNG-world.  You can now subscribe to TNG events listings via RSS readers and Twitter.  All the links you need are below.

I don’t know what to think about Labor Day this year. Unemployment’s still going up. People who still have jobs are taking unpaid vacation time to keep their employers from going under. Businesses are cutting their benefits and slashing retirement. And, in the middle of this whole big mess, people are taking a day off to part.

I say this year, for Labor Day, we kick back and enjoy life to a degree we normally wouldn’t. Even for those of us who don’t have jobs, have jobs but are feeling the pinch, and have jobs but don’t get Labor Day off, we should at least set apart part of the day to unwind and enjoy. There is a light at the end of the tunnel, and it’s up to us to find it.

With Tampa filled to the brim with college students, you’d think there would be more to do. But, it’s possible local clubs and businesses are giving the kids a break from nonstop partying for the first week or two. Fortunately (for me), the events we do have this weekend are full of purty ladies.

[caption id="attachment_13065" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Photo by Ed Jackson"][/caption]A strange thing happened on the way to writing these events listings. I realized that most of the events occur on more than one day. So, even though they’re all listed under Friday, they stretch throughout the weekend. So, there’s still a full three days worth of possible events. You could go to S’Real Fridays, catch Suzanne Westenhoefer Saturday night, and catch the Sunday matinee of Pericles. Or, you could spend the entire weekend camping out and enjoying the Summer Music Bash. Or, an entirely different combination.

[caption id="attachment_12813" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Artist Frank Strunk and model. Photograph provided by the Dunedin Fine Arts Center."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_12334" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Photo by Hans Bruesch"][/caption]Pop culture is going to hold a bit of an edge this weekend. It was coming; I mean, do we want culture sanitized for the masses, or do we want our art and music to have a deeper meaning?

Our politicians keep telling us to spend, spend, spend, presumably at the big box stores that are all part of the problem. Instead, why not block off some time to slip a fiver to a local band for one of theirCDs or $50 for a one-of-a-kind masterpiece to hang on the wall? That will really make a difference.