What are YOU Doing on Saturday?

I have two great options for you fellow Raleigh kids!



1 - Raleigh Wide Open
Specifically, the 11:00am parade through Downtown... where you can see yours truly (and Nick will very likely get volunteered, too) volunteering with Shop Local Raleigh!

PS - Go see my buddy Mike for great prizes from Triangle.com, too!




2 - Second Chance Pet Adoptions' Auction for the Animals
This fun event taking place at 7:00pm features several ways to get in on the fundraising fun!

• Buy a ticket!
• Bid on over 150 silent auction items
• Bid on over 40 chance auction items
• Bid on over 10 live auction items
• Purchase raffle tickets for some cool items including:
• Disney World Park Hopper Passes
• Sightseeing Plane ride
• Tickets to Carowinds
• $100 Bailey's Fine Jewelry Gift Card
• Gift Certificate for a Pet Portraits
• 2 Air Tran Airline Tickets - anywhere in the US
• Doggie Daycare Gift Certificates
• Original Engraving from Clark Art
• NC Symphony and Ballet Tickets
• Private Dance Lessons
• Topsail Beach condo - 1 week
• And, much, much more...

Individual tickets are only $35.00 and open bar tickets are $125 for two!

Tickets include a wonderful selection of cold and hot hors d'oeuvres along with a fantastic dessert buffet. A selection of Pepsi products, along with water will be available. Wine and beer will be available on a cash basis.

Wines for Humanity will be doing wine tasting of select red and white wines during the evening. Wines for Humanity is an in-home wine tasting company dedicated to introducing the public to the joy of fine wines while raising funds for charity. Their wines are sourced from award-winning vineyards from all over the world.

Purchase your tickets online here!

See you there!

More Ways to Support Letters for Lyrics

In June I told you about Letters for Lyrics from Zac Brown Band and Dodge, which was a campaign I loved in its original format then. But my friend Amber sent me a tweet today letting me know about a new component they've added to this campaign and I love it even more now!

via http://www.zacbrownband.com/news.html?n_id=762:

Zac Brown Band and RAM Trucks Letters for Lyrics Continues to Salute the Troops

By saluting the troops you can receive a free CD Breaking Southern Ground. This exclusive compilation, not sold in stores, features Southern Ground Artists Zac Brown Band, Sonia Leigh, Nic Cowan, and Levi Lowrey.

Here's how it works:
• Write a letter to a soldier
• Take it to a RAM dealer
• Receive the free CD

Please help us reach our goal of sending one million letters! If you cannot make it to a RAM dealer or Zac Brown Band concert, you can write your letter online and donate your copy of the Southern Ground CD to a soldier. Every letter brings us closer to our goal of 1,000,000 letters.

While you are on the Letters for Lyrics page, watch Part IV of the exclusive film "For Those Who Serve." The documentary follows Zac Brown Band on their April USO Tour in the Persian Gulf and features the band performing for the troops, meeting individually with the men and women overseas, and sharing their thoughts on the experience.

Visit the RAM Letters for Lyrics page now!

If your prior excuse was that you had no time to get to a Dodge dealership (or that you didn't care to get the CD), it's now easier than ever to participate! So... get to it! :-)

Talk Southern to Me: Peach On, Dolly!

The title of this here blog is "Growing Up Southern...", so I assume I don't have to preface this post with a little ditty on Dolly, right?

@Dolly_Parton: "Love is something sent from HEAVEN to worry the HELL out of you!" :) - Dolly

And just in case you need a little Dolly education: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dolly_Parton.

{Image via: http://www.babble.com/CS/blogs/famecrawler/archive/2008/08/05/dolly-parton-tackles-britney-lindsay-and-miley.aspx}

Tweet for the Troops!

Let me just start out this post with a full disclosure-esque statement: I am so privileged to be associated with the team at Smithfield's Chicken 'N Bar-B-Q. (I provide marketing and PR services for the NC-based restaurant brand.) Even if they weren't a client, this post would so be happening!

Today is the last day that you can Tweet for the Troops and support Smithfield Chicken 'N Bar-B-Q's week-long fundraiser for the Wounded Warrior Project... appropriately deemed "Freedom Week"!

Smithfield’s Chicken ‘N Bar-B-Q® (website | facebook | twitter) sends bar-b-q all over the map through its online store, and this year’s Freedom Week campaign encompasses the internet in a whole new way for the company.

Smithfield’s Chicken ‘N Bar-B-Q® kicked off its annual seven day “Freedom Week” campaign for its restaurants on July 2nd, focusing efforts on one initiative—supporting the troops.

Via its huge social media following, the company is undertaking a pretty audacious goal in its Twitter campaign: Smithfield’s Chicken ‘N Bar-B-Q® will donate 10¢ to the Wounded Warriors Project for every mention or retweet of #FreedomWeek (that’s a Twitter “hashtag”, used to monitor topics on the microblogging service) during Freedom Week (July 2nd-July 9th).

The Wounded Warriors Project raises awareness and assistance for the needs of severely injured service men and women with the objective to provide tangible support to get them on the road to healing, both physically and mentally.

If you're not a twitter user, you can also support this campaign by purchasing a commemorative t-shirt available in their online store! (The shirt design is pictured above in this post.)

Click here to tweet about this to contribute! http://twitter.com/home?status=Check+out+@SCNBNC's+FreedomWeek+to+support+our+troops!

LOTS of First Friday Options - Even on a Holiday Weekend!

My twitter question today:

Ok Raleigh kids... what's on the agenda for #FirstFriday in #DowntownRaleigh? I'm making my list now!

Appropriate responses included:
@artspacenc - Artspace has it going on! We've got our Summer Artist in Residence here setting in Gallery 1- come on down!

@_huddy_ - Come on down to @Fragmentlabs and check out the jewelry on display from Jaclyn Anthony.

This girl right here! RT @FireflyVodka: Who is in the mood to celebrate family, friends, and summer?! #fireflyfriday #fourthoffirefly


Also on the list:

Music on the Porch at Seaboard Station
(This is where my gang is starting!)
Event opens at 6:00pm, band starts at 7:30pm – tonight featuring Peter Lamb and the Wolves.
Music on the Porch is a grassroots community event featuring free music every Friday night this spring, summer and fall.




First Friday Market… presented by IndieNC.com
The place to visit for LOTS of unique local finds tonight! Located at 131 S. Wilmington Street (in Downtown Raleigh), this once-a-month market features emerging designers, iced coffee, and live music from Mike Roy and Rob Watson this evening from 6:00pm until 10:00pm.


WKNC First Friday Dance Party at Jibarra
(You might be able to find me here for the tequila!)
10:30pm - 2:00am

WKNC is launching a series of Raleigh Afterhours dance parties at Jibarra starting on July 2.
These events are meant to showcase the Afterhours DJs and are free and open to the public for anyone 21+ and only $3 for those 18-20. All of the money collected at the door goes straight to WKNC.

You can find the Facebook event here.


Need to get around to all of these great events?
Park your car once and then hop on the R-Line -Raleigh’s free downtown circulator bus! Check out the mobile site and pick up the bus when it gets to a stop near you: www.yourhere.com/mobile.