All this Charlie Sheen phenomenon is lost on me.

I don’t think he’s funny, and I think his recent TV show is crass and crude. I’ve watched some of the recent news coverage of his rantings, and it’s an awful lot like watching a train wreck. He’s a mess, and I feel sorry for him, really. Then my next thought, as a journalist, is why this is worth so much valuable media coverage.

A friend even asked  if I wanted to buy a ticket to watch his live “performance.” No, I said, and wished her a good time at the show, but secretly I was scratching my head as to why anyone would pay to see more of Charlie Sheen’s bad behaviour. Then this weekend he opens his tour in Detroit, and the show is so bad people walk out. They were surprised?

On the other hand, I have experienced plenty of things recently I would recommend people spend time and money seeing. Here’s a brief  list for those needing entertainment suggestions:

• The very fun and creative Apron Chronicles exhibit at the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame.
• Sipping wine in a Grapevine, TX winery.
• Browsing the lovely china displays at downtown Dallas’ Neiman Marcus.
• Checking out the antique shops in McKinney.
• Reading “The Help” by the Katheryn Stockett.
• Seeing Tommy Tune explain the difference in a single, double and triple time step at the Music Hall at Fair Park.

So if you’re needing entertainment, there are other options besides witnessing the outbursts of a disturbed Hollywood bad boy. Let’s promote more positive things, shall we?

Denton volunteers helped plant trees at one of 12 community tree plantings, a part of the NFL environmental program.

GRAPEVINE _ Volunteers will play on the same team with a common goal – a community tree-planting event, starting at 10 a.m. Saturday at Vineyards Campground, 1501 N. Dooley St.

 The project is a result of teamwork between the Texas Trees Foundation, Moore Tree Care, the Texas Forest Service and the NFL Environmental Program for Super Bowl XLV. The free event is open to the public and will involve community volunteers doing the planting.

 Speaking at the event will be Janette Monear, executive director of the Texas Trees Foundation, and city officials. She will speak on how the planting project will improve the health and livability of Fort Worth, as a part of the Super Grow XLV program.

Texas Trees Foundation (www.texastreesfoundation.org) is partnering with the National Football League Environmental Program, the Texas Forest Service, the Home Depot Foundation, the North Texas Super Bowl Host Committee and other sponsors to create Super Grow XLV, an environmentally-friendly project to offset the impact of an event as large as a Super Bowl.

As a part of Super Grow XLV, the Grapevine planting is one of 12  in Super Bowl XLV host communities. Super Grow XLV will end with Touchdown for Trees, a celebration Jan. 24 in Arlington featuring Drew Pearson, Dallas Cowboy great and Super Bowl champion, and Bill Lively, president/CEO of the North Texas Super Bowl XLV Host Committee. Joining the two at the event will be the 12 cities’ mayors and NFL representatives.

 Super Bowl XLV (www.northtexassuperbowl.com) is set for Feb. 6, 2011 at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, TX.

Super Grow XLV’s Touchdown for Trees will be open to the public. Ticket information will be available at www.texastreesfoundation.org.

 One additional community planting remains. It will be at 10 a.m. Jan. 21 in Arlington.

Jaimie Alexander of Grapevine appeared in the December issue of Vanity Fair.

That cute brunette in December’s Vanity Fair look familiar? How about the one in InStyle magazine.

Jaimie Alexander, Colleyville Heritage High School Class of 2002, has made the glossy pages of those two slick magazines. If you’re a fan, you might want to check out the January Glamour magazine; she’ll be in that, too.

The former Grapevine resident has been seen on several  TV shows including Kyle XY, where she starred as Jessi XX, and also CSI: Miami, Bones and Nurse Jackie. But look for trailers later this month in movie theaters touting the feature film Thor. She’ll star in that super hero movie along with Natalie Portman and Anthony Hopkins.

DALLAS – Shovels will be moving in Super Bowl style Saturday, and the athletic efforts won’t stop until Super Bowl XLV is almost here.

Volunteers will play on the same team with a common goal – a massive tree-planting event with 219 trees added to two neighborhoods starting at 8 a.m. Saturday at Mattie Nash-Myrtle Davis Recreation Center, 3710 N. Hampton Road.

 The project is a result of teamwork between the Texas Trees Foundation, the City of Dallas Housing/Community Services, Dallas Park & Recreation Department, Alliance for Community Trees, the Texas Forest Service and other Super Grow XLV partners.

 The planting project will improve the health and livability of Lake West and La Bajada neighborhoods bordered by Hampton Road, Singleton Boulevard and Canada Drive.  The planting is made possible by a $10,000 National NeighborWoods grant from the Alliance for Community Trees, as well as the Super Grow XLV program.

Texas Trees Foundation (www.texastreesfoundation.org) is partnering with the National Football League Environmental Program, the Texas Forest Service, the North Texas Super Bowl Host Committee and other sponsors to create Super Grow XLV, an environmentally-friendly project to offset the impact of an event as large as a Super Bowl.  This program is an important opportunity to improve our community, air quality and environment through tree planting and education. The trees will help reduce high summer energy use by providing shade, improving Dallas’ air quality, providing erosion control and more. All tree plantings will be open to the public and will involve community volunteers planting the trees.

The planting is the beginning of Super Grow XLV, which involves the 12 Super Bowl XLV host communities trees before Super Bowl  XLV, set for Feb. 6, 2011 at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington.  Super Grow XLV will end with a celebration Jan. 24 in Arlington with Super Bowl CEO Bill Lively joining the cities’ mayors and NFL representatives at Touchdown for Trees.

Touchdown for Trees, Super Grow XLV’s Touchdown for Trees, will be open to the public. Ticket information will be available at www.texastreesfoundation.org.

Additional Planting Dates:

• October 23, 2010
  • City of Dallas
• October 30, 2010
  • City of Richardson
  • City of Lewisville
  • November 5, 2010
  • City of Farmers Branch
• November 6, 2010
  • City of Addison
  • City of Denton
• November 13, 2010
  • City of Plano
  • City of Frisco
• November 19, 2010
  • City of Fort Worth
• November 20, 2010
  • City of Grapevine
  • City of Irving
• January 21, 2011
  • City of Arlington
• January 24, 2011
  • Touchdown for Trees – Grand Finale Event

Kraig Parker will bring is Las Vegas-style Elvis act to Grapevine.

One icon–Elvis–will cross paths with another–Santa–Nov. 14 in Grapevine.

Elvis, as performed by Kraig Parker(www.thekinglives.com), will bring his Las Vegas show to Grapevine’s Palace Arts Center for a fundraiser for Summer Santa. The “If I Can Dream” concert is set for 7 p.m. Nov. 14 .  A reception will begin at 6 p.m., with some of Elvis’s favorite foods provided by Cotton Patch Café . Rebecca Miller, Channel 33 meteorologist, will emcee the concert.

Summer Santa (www.summersanta.org) also will host a  V.I.P. party Nov. 4, 10 days before the “If I Can Dream” concert, at the Westlake home of Kelly and Scott Bradley to honor event sponsors, donors and long-time supporters. The party will be catered by Chef Point Café of  Watauga, and The LongShot Band will provide entertainment that evening. 

Summer Santa, a non-profit organization established in 1997, provides area children with back-to-school clothes, school supplies, toys, books, summer camps, sports team activities and physicals. More than 33,000 children from Keller ISD, Birdville ISD. Northwest ISD, HEB ISD, Grapevine/Colleyville ISD and Southlake Carroll ISD have been served by this all-volunteer charity since its creation.

Tickets and sponsorships are available for both the Elvis “I Can Dream” concert and the VIP party. Tickets to the “If I Can Dream” concert are $75 for premium seating and $50 for general seating and includes the reception. Seating will be assigned in order of payment received.

The VIP party tickets can be purchased for $50 each. Group ticket packages include concert and VIP tickets.

Please call 817-33-SANTA or email to summersanta@summersanta.org for event and sponsorship information and ticket sales.

Wine, love it. Especially with friends.

Tried a new spot the other day with some friends, and we all got to taste as many kinds of wine as we wanted. The place? Tastings, A Wine Experience at 909 S. Main St., in Grapevine.

Here’s how it works…you put whatever amount of money on a little plastic card they give you. Then, card in hand, you peruse the bottles of wine lining the wall. Descriptions displayed with the bottles help you narrow your selection, and so do the prices. Insert the card, and then choose a quarter glass, a half glass or a full glass of any wine. The amount you sample is deducted from the pre-paid amount loaded on the plastic.

Clever idea and part of a franchise with five stores in the U.S. and a sixth one in the works. We had a great time tasting wine, and the noshes were good, too.

Oh, and there’s happy hour, too. 4 to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday. Check www.awineexperience.com for more info.

Every Friday Night through Sept. 4, the city of Grapevine will light up the north Texas skies after dark with a firework show.

An 11-minute firework show will take place over the beautiful Lake Grapevine. The firework festivities are part of the city’s “SummerBlast” campaign encouraging local and regional residents to see other family activities in Grapevine.

Recommended viewing locations are on Lake Grapevine at Rockledge Park, Oak Grove Park, Silver Lake Park, Lakeview Park and Murrell Park, as well as the Gaylord Texan Resort, Great Wolf Lodge, Hilton DFW Lakes or Embassy Suites Outdoor World.

For more information, call 817-410-3185 or visit www.GrapevineTexasUSA.com.

“Grapevine Glitz” describes the requested attire for the Fifth Annual Grapevine Heritage Jubilee, to be held at 6:30 p.m. Feb. 6 at the Palace Arts Center, 300 S. Main, Grapevine.

Organizers say that translates to “snappy casual,” which probably rules out beer-slogan t-shirts and holey jeans. What doesn’t need translation is the Newlywed Game, the etched-in-the-’70s TV game show. Out of the time machine will step Bob Eubanks, the legendary host of the game show that made “makin’ whoopee” daytime TV’s favorite phrase for a while.

Playing the Newlywed Game with Eubanks in his customary role is just a part of the evening’s excitement. Promises of red-carpet treatment and rubbing shoulders with John Wayne and Elizabeth Taylor lookalikes are being made, too.

The evening will serve as a fundraiser for restoration of Grapevine’s historic areas. The $75 ticket price includes a red-carpet welcome, a photo taken in front of Hollywood backdrops, two complimentary cocktails, musical entertainment, a cigar lounge and hors d’oeuvres catered by Main Street Bakery.

The Grapevine Heritage Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting and preserving Grapevine’s cultural heritage, is sponsoring the event. For reservations or more information, contact 817-410-3185.

Wow, i can’t believe this is finally up and running.  Now as you are reading and visiting this wonderful new site, please always keep in mind that we are constantly learning and updating for your benefit.  Also, and most important, please always keep in mind that that both Joy and I are not exactly techno brains….face it, we tend to get lost just after the login process on our side of the site!  (Love you Joy!)  So if you find a few errors or areas that need attention…PLEASE LET US KNOW!   This site is all about YOU and you wonderful organizations.  Please send us your press releases and photos.  And, best of all, send us LOTS of your photos.  We don’t want to just run one of two…we want to put them ALL up!!  If there are too many to send us by e-mail…then contact us and we can make arrangements to get them some other way…but we WANT to get them!  Remember, this site is for you and all about you. 

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