MacDill Happenings

For free school help, stop by your local library! Use your local library to help you writing a school paper or study for an upcoming test or research on any college. The library will provide you access to live assistance from Tutor.com and NetLibrary. Those online services provide professional tutors in math, science, English and social studies. Help is available 7 days a week from 2pm to midnight in English and Spanish. Studying can be challenging at times, so why not use every resource available to help you succeed! Reserach habits learned at a young age at the library will help a student be prepared for future academic success. Use the Hillsborough County Public Library website at www.hcplc.org to fing archived newspaper articles, current events, online encyclopedias or research tools with information on science, literature and art. The library’s periodical databases are designed to help elementary, middle and high school students. There is help to work on the FCAT, SAT and AP tests. Check out the website or stop by your local library and ask the librarian about the resources available to help your child.

Today the largest bicycle festival in Tampa Bay, Bicycle Bash by the Bay, will take place in Vinoy Park from 11 am to 4 pm on the downtown St. Petersburg waterfront. This free festival is for all type of bicyclists from bike commuters and roadies; mountain bikers and single-speeders; fat-tire cruisers and recumbent cyclists. Highlights include a bicycle donation station, the city’s bike rodeo where the City of St. Pete will pass out free bike helmets for children and teach them important bicycling skills and several demos on topics such as fixing a flat and bike commuting. Learn about bike commuting in the Tampa Bay area.   Check out the swap meet where you can buy inexpensive used bikes and gear. Drop off your old bike that you no longer want to pedal at a bike donation station and get a free prize. Meet bicycle manufacturers and other bike part makers. See the latest in cycling and equipment. Of course there will also be music, and food!

On Saturday 10 October from 6pm-8pm, stop by the Westfield Mall in Brandon to enjoy the Fall Music Series. There will be live music from N-Kahootz who will provide country music with a twist. There will also be more family events and activities available. The first 500 shoppers to register in the Restaurant Courtyard on Saturday will receive a $5 restaurant gift card to one of the following restaurants: California Pizza Kitchen, The Cheesecake Factory, the soon to open GrillSmith, Panera Bread, Ruby Tuesday or Siniqual. The Westfield Mall in Brandon is one of the largest malls in the Tampa area. Anchor stores at the Mall include Dillard’s, Macy’s, JC Penny’s, and Sears. With stores offering everything from shoes to sports to sunglasses and everything in between, the Westfield Mall is also a destination place for dining out from something quick to eat in the food court to a sit down restaurant in the restaurant courtyard. The Mall is open on Mondays to Friday from 10:30am to 8:30pm, Saturdays 10am to 9pm and Sundays from 11am to 6pm.

For an inexpensive night out this weekend, stop by the MacDill AFB movie theater. Admission for adults is only $4 and $2 for children. Refreshments are also provided at a discount price! The price is right for singles or families. On Friday night at 7pm, the action movie “District 9” is playing. This movie is rated R for bloody violence and pervasive language and has a run time of 112 minutes. A group of aliens became refugees to earth as they were the last survivors of their home world. They were set up in a makeshift home in South Africa’s District 9 as the world’s nations argued over what to do with them. Now, patience over the alien situation has run out. Control over the aliens has been contracted out to Multi-National United (MNU), who will receive tremendous profits of they can make the aliens awesome weaponry work. The tension between the aliens and the humans comes to a head when an MNU field operative, Wikus, contacts a mysterious virus that begins changing his DNA. Wikus quickly becomes the most hunted man in the world as well as the most valuable as he becomes the key to unlocking the secrets of alien technology. On Saturday at 7pm, the comedy “Shorts” is playing. This movie is rated PG for mild action and some rude humor and a run time of 89 minutes. In the little town of Black Falls, every house looks the same and almost everyone works for Black Box Unlimited Worldwide Industries, purveyors of a device that is sweeping the nation. Toe Johnson, 11, is unimpressed with the company and its wares; he just wants a few friends. Then, a wish-granting rock falls from the sky and changes everything. Soon the town swarms with wishes gone amok, but the trouble really begins when adults get their hands on the rock.

The Tampa Theatre’s Traveling Outdoor Picture Show is sponsoring a free viewing of “Kung Fu Panda”. The movie will be shown at Al Lopez Park, 4810 Himes Ave, in Tampa. The animnated comedy is a story about a lazy, irreverent slacker panda, named Po, who is the biggest fan of Kung Fu around…which doesn’t exactly come in handy while working every day in his family’s noodle shop. Unexpectedly chosen to fulfill an ancient prophecy, Po’s dreams become reality when he joins the world of Kung Fu and studies alongside his idols, the legendary Furious Five — Tigress, Crane, Mantis, Viper and Monkey — under the leadership of their guru, Master Shifu. But before they know it, the vengeful and treacherous snow leopard Tai Lung is headed their way, and it’s up to Po to defend everyone from the oncoming threat. Can he turn his dreams of becoming a Kung Fu master into reality? Po puts his heart – and his girth – into the task, and the unlikely hero ultimately finds that his greatest weaknesses turn out to be his greatest strengths. Gates open at 5:30pm and the film begins at 7:30pm. But don’t wait till the last moment to get a seat. People will probably be arriving early to enjoy dinner and sunset at the park. So bring a pinic dinner, some chairs or blankets, and enjoy a movie with your children. Al Lopez park is also well known for two ponds that fall within the boundaries of the park. The northern pond offers some exceptional fishing.

Stop by the Pumpkin Festival at FishHawk Ranch at Park Square on 10 October. The fun starts at 3pm and runs until 10pm. There is an earlier pumpkin carving event that starts at 9am for everyone for a $5 donation. The pumpkins will be lit at a 8pm pumpkin lighting ceremony. To start everything off at 3pm, there is a children’s costume parade with prizes awarded for cutest, scariest and most creative costume. For a small fee, children can enjoy face painting, tatoos, a soda walk and hayrides. The band Blast will be putting on a show from 7:30pm to 10pm. Food and drinks will be available for puchase. Located within a 40 minute drive to downtown Tampa and MacDill AFB, FishHawk Ranch is a unique community with walking and biking paths throughout the neighborhood. You’ll find shops and grocery stores all around the neighborhood for your shopping convience with a wide variety of restaurants for every taste. Top rated elementary, middle and high school are nearby with a new sports park close to Randall Middle School. Hillsborough Area Rapid Transit also offers express bus service to MacDill AFB from FishHawk Ranch. MacDill AFB also provides free monthly bus passes to military and civilian

On 9 October, the American Vctory ship in Channelside will host the Stars and Stripe USO show. Experience an authentic 1940′s USO show re-enactment. Dance under the stars to the sound of real swing music featuring the Ten O’Clock 18 piece Big Band. See the tribute performances of Frank Sinatra, the Andrew Sisters, and Nat King Cole. You can dress the period in military, vintage or dress attire. Gates open at 7pm and the show starts 8pm. There will be show hostesses, tours, prizes, drinks & snacks, vintage movies, nostalgia and a cigar lounge on the high deck. Tickets are $18 and advance tickets for groups of 10 or more can be purchased for $15 per person. The SS American Victory was delivered to the U.S. War Shipping Administration (WSA) by the California Shipbuilding (Calship) Yard at Los Angeles, California on May 24, 1945 at 1:30PM, the 442nd ship constructed, by the ship yard, with WSA-hull designation No. 792. She was named after American University in Washington, DC, to honor the school’s contributions to war training and weapons research during both World War I and World War II. Parking is available across the street at the Channelside parking structure or at the Florida Aquarium parking lot.

Veteran’s Memorial Park in Tampa will celebrate and host the re-enactment of the 1863 U.S. Navy raid on Confederate blockade runners on the Hillsborough River and the Battle at Ballast Point, the only land battle of the Civil War in Tampa. On June 30, 1862, a small battle took place in the Tampa Bay area over a two-day period early in the Civil War. A Union general sailed into Tampa Bay. Soldiers disembarked, went into town, and demanded Tampa’s surrender to the Union. A small Confederate militia group stationed in Tampa called the Osceola Rangers refused to surrender. The Union gunboat then began to open fire. The Union General warned the soldiers that they would fire again beginning at 6 pm in order to get civilians out of the way. The Osceola Rangers remained steadfast in their refusal to surrender. Gunfire began again and shots rang out most of the next day into Tampa. Eventually, in the late afternoon of July 1st, the Union soldiers stopped firing and the gunboat withdrew. There were no casualties in this battle. Skirmishes start at 1:30 pm. The Museum will be open and admission to the re-enactment and Museum is free. The Museum has displays and articles from all the services and memorabilia from local veterans. The Veterans Memorial Museum is a non-profit division of Friends of the Park and staffed by volunteers and is supported by donations.  The Park is located on the east side of 301 between Adamo Dr and MLK. Parking and admission is free to all events.

This Saturday from noon to 6pm come out to Ybor City for the Ybor ARTWalk. The ARTWalk actually takes place the first Saturday of each month. Ybor City may be known for the nightlife, but it has historically been home of Tampa’s arts communities. Ybor City is home to many artist studios, galleries, theater groups and filmmakers. More than 18 galleries and cultural venues are participating in the event and some will offer special discounts. Pick up a guide map with specific locations at any gallery in Ybor City. Start at the Ybor Art Colony  at 1521 E.  Seventh Ave. Most venues are within walking distance of Seventh Avenue. Don’t forget about the wonderful restaurants in Ybor City that will be open for lunch and dinner. Parking in Ybor City is free at metered spots, but there are parking garages available for a fee.

For an inexpensive night out this weekend, stop by the MacDill AFB Movie Theater to see the latest movies at a great price! Not only do you get inexpensive admission, but the refreshment are cheaper here also! Admission for adults is $4 and for children $2. This Friday at 7pm, “The Time Traveler’s Wife” is playing. This movie is rated PG-13 for thematic elements, brief disturbing images, nudity and sexuality and has a run time of 108 minutes. In the movie, Clare has been in love with Henry her entire life. She believes they are destined to be together, even though she never knows when they will be separated: Henry is a time traveler, cursed with a rare genetic anomaly that causes him to live his life on a shifting timeline, skipping back and forth through his lifespan with no control. Despite the fact that Henry’s travels force them apart with no warning, Clare desperately tries to build a life with her one true love. This Saturday there are two movies playing. At 3pm, the romantic comedy “Post Grad” is playing. This movie is rated PG-13 for sexual situations and brief strong language and has run time of 108 minutes. Recent college graduate Ryden Malby has just survived four years of higher education, but when she’s forced to move back into her childhood home, the stress of dealing with her eccentric family, landing a job, and finding the right guy leaves her with precious little time to ponder where her life is truly heading. At 7pm, the comedy “The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard” starring Jeremy Piven and Ving Rhames is playing. This movie is rated R for sexual content, nudity, language and some drug material and has a run time of 89 minutes. Don Ready is asked to help save an ailing local car dealership from bankruptcy, Ready and his ragtag crew descends on the town of Temecula like a pack of coyotes on a basket full of burgers. Selling, drinking, selling and going to strip clubs is their stock and trade. And they do it well. What Don doesn’t expect is to fall in love and find his soul.