Big Night on Broadway

The shops along East Broadway are featuring an open house from 5 to 8 pm with a grand prize gift basket giveaway. From home furnishing at Red Door Living to belly dancing at Merry's, there's something for everyone in a few short blocks.

One Hundred Years and Going Strong

Alamitos Branch Library will celebrate 100 years as part of the Long Beach Public Library system this Saturday September 25 from 10 to 5. Mayor Bob Foster will be there and the librarians have planned craft workshops and book giveaways as well as refreshments.

Ready for your close-up, LBPL?

On October 7, Long Beach Public Library will participate in Snapshot: One Day in the Life of California Libraries. Photos, statistics, and other documentation will be sent to California Library Association for display on its website. Everyone is invited to visit their favorite branch for photos, games and other festivities.

A Tasty Bite of Signal Hill History

Signal Hill Historical Society is serving up a Pancake Breakfast at the Foothill Club this Saturday from 9 am to 1 pm in Discovery Well Park. For $6, you get a full breakfast with historic displays, games, raffles and a re-enactment of the first gusher.

Bike spotting with perks

This year volunteers at the third annual Bicycle Count will receive a $10 gift certificate for their effort. The count takes place Thursday, October 14 and Sunday, October 17. The counts, which will take place all over the city, help determine areas with large numbers of bicyclists and pedestrians, so the sidewalks and streets can be better adapted for them. Volunteers must attend a 30-minute training session on October 12 or 13.

Green is Greater as we speak

Not that we're speaking, but six bands are performing from noon to 6 pm at the Gaslamp for the Green Is Greater Festival, a fundraiser for Egrets not Regrets. Many environmental groups will also be on hand. The Gaslamp is located at 6251 E. PCH.

"Fascination" at Les Jolis Tresors

A multi-artist show at Les Jolis Tresors gallery called "Fascination" highlights tangible interpretations of spiritual, mental and emotional states. Two-dimensional and three-dimensional works evoke moods and dreams often linked to the natural world. The show runs through November 12 at 3226 Broadway.

Carnaval Tomorrow

September 19, the Carnaval Street Parade returns to downtown Long Beach. It costs $20 to watch and $35 to participate as streams of dancers and partiers strut their stuff in feathers, sequins and not much else. The mood and the music are non-stop up-tempo.

Los Cerritos Wetlands Clean-Up

Saturday, September 25, volunteers are invited to help spruce up Los Cerritos wetlands. Supplies and equipment will be provided. Everyone is asked to bring reusable water bottles. RSVP Eric@tidalinfluence.com for a spot.

Sorry I missed this one

There's a new ongoing swap and shop exchange held on the third Friday of each month at the Catalyst Community Space. The 710 Swap Party accepts clothes, books, DVDs, CDs, sports equipment and other items that are clean and in good condition. You can drop off items at the Space (430 E. First Street) at 6 pm. Or come by to shop at 7:10 pm. Everything wraps up by 9 pm.

A Little Patch of Green

There's a new class at Long Beach Parks, Recreation and Marine called Square Foot Gardening. Instructor Van Der Fluit teaches you how to grow organic produce in small, manageable space, saving time and money in the process. , The class costs $25 and will be held on Saturday October 9 from 9 am to noon at the PR & M Headquarters in El Dorado Park.

Long Live the King of Lake Wobegon

Garrison Keillor will speak at the Carpenter Center on campus at CSULB on September 22 at 8 pm. The host of the Prairie Home Companion radio show will share anecdotes of the quirks and hilarity of small-town life. Tickets are $65.

Exploration of Restoration

For all you local history buffs and old house renovators, Rose Park Neighborhood Association is offering the Restoration Trade Fair from 8:30 am to 4 pm on Saturday September 9 at Burbank Elementary School. Experts on requirements for home improvement in historic districts, local historians and contractors will be on hand to offer advice on things like working with an architect and writing a history of your house. Admission is $5.

Disasters Happen

Do you know how to cope when they do? Today, at the Neighborhood Resource Center at 423 Atlantic, experts from the Long Beach Fire Department and the American Red Cross will be on hand to discuss how to prepare an emergency plan for your family and how to prepare an emergency supply kit along with other related topics. The free program runs from 6 to 7:30 pm.

Arianna, Dahling

Arianna Huffington, blog maven of the Huffington Post, will be speaking at the CSULB Distinguished Speaker Series in the Carpenter Performing Arts Center on Thursday, October 21. Her topic will be "politics and the new media." The program begins at 7:30 pm and tickets cost $45.

Plug-In Fever

Does the thought of pulling in to your own garage and powering up your car by just plugging it into an outlet, well, turn you on? I'm definitely charged up by the idea of never weaving my way through the chaos of a crowded gas station again. Southern Californa Edison now has a plug-in car rate assistant to estimate the impact on your utility bill to power a plug-in vehicle

Mystery Author Signs New Book at Apostrophe

Mystery writer and Long Beach resident Wendy Hornsby will be signing her latest novel, The Paramour's Daughter, at Apostrophe Books on September 11 from 1 to 3:30 pm.

Take to the Streets for Park(ing) Day LA

Business districts and urban neighborhorhoods around Southern California will be converting sidewalks, parking lots, and even parking spaces in public parks on September 17 for Park(ing) Day LA. The businesses on Fourth Street will turn the Edsel Park into a vegetable stand, performance space, and mini park. Downtown merchants will also add greenery to Pine Street.

Long Beach Fire and Police Honor September 11 Heroes

Members of the Long Beach Fire Department and Police Department will hold a ceremony to honor those who died on the September 11, 2001 attacks. The event will be held tomorrow at 9 am at the Police/Fire Memorial in the Civic Center Plaza between City Hall and the Public Safety Building.

History and Culture of Long Beach Studied at Conference

After much planning and preparation, Long Beach City College and the Historical Society of Long Beach will host the Long Beach Community Studies Conference this Saturday, September 11 from 8:30 am to 5:30 pm at the Historical Society at 4260 Atlantic. Students from LBCC and other local experts with present their research on aspects of Long Beach history that still impact the city today on topics as diverse as the Ku Klux Klan and the Port of Long Beach. Many of these reports will eventually be posted on LBCC's website. Tickets are $30 and lunch is available for $10.

Zoom, zoom, Second Street

Belmont Shore Auto Show is this Sunday from 9 am to 3 pm. Thousands of people will flood Second Street to ogle the souped-up, slicked down, and generally tricked out classic cars on display from Bay Shore to Livingston. There'll be lots of street closures and limited parking, so taking a bike or bus would be a good choice.

Cal Rep gets on board with activist drama

California Repertory Company will open Waiting for Lefty at the Royal Theatre aboard the Queen Mary on September 24 at 8 pm. Based on a workers' strike in 1934, the play resonates with the frustration and uncertainty of the country's current financial upheaval. The play runs through October 18, and general admission costs $20.

Chalk one up at the Marketplace

The annual Chalk Art Festival is coming early to the Marketplace this year. On September 18 from 9 am to 5 pm 20 artists will decorate the plaza with fleeting glimpses of beauty and whimsy as they create colorful designs with chalk that will be washed or worn away in a day or two. Visitors can vote on their favorites.

Less than a month to Green Port Fest

On October 2 the Port of Long Beach will host Green Port Fest 2010 from 10 am to 3 pm. There'll be narrated boat tours and Metrolink excursions on land through cargo shipping terminals. New this year is the Wyland Living Green Fair, which includes the opportunity to paint a mural with the artist. Parking will be free at the Long Beach Convention Center with shuttles to the port.

Now dat's Italian

Gondola Getaway offers a catered pizza dinner (from Belmont Shore's own Demenico's) for six to 10 people for $35 per person. The super-size gondola has a table set with tableware, glassware and a checkered tablecloth, and the gondola tour of Alamitos Bay lasts about an hour.

Long Weekend and All that Jazz

Kjazz is sponsoring a Blues Bash in September 4. From noon to 6 pm, there's a free street fest in front of the Carpenter Center where there'll be live performances plus food, vendors, and a beer garden. A concert headlined by the Keb Mo Band begins as 7 pm in the auditorium. Tickets cost $55.

Coffee, tea and Me-ditation

Bogart's Coffee House is getting together a morning meditation group for 3 Saturdays in the month of September, beginning September 4 at 7 am. It begins with a yoga stretch that leads into a guided meditation led by Victor Byrd of Long Beach Meditation right on the beach. Jackets, towels and chairs or pads are recommended to guard against chilly breezes and wet sand. The sessions will end at 8:30 am at Bogarts

How's Trikkes?

Long Beach Trikkers are excited about the first annual Labor Day Trikke Ride to be held on September 4, beginning at 11 am at Shoreline Village and cruising the entire length of the beach bike path, down the Peninsula and all the way back to Shoreline Village. What's a Trikke? Also called a body propelled vehicle, it's a three-wheeled scooter that's propelled by the movement of your legs and shifting weight.

New Yoga Kid in Town

Kava Yoga, located at 4005 East Fourth Street in Belmont Heights, is celebrating its grand opening on September 4 from 4 pm to 9 pm. Owner Cindy Anderson will welcome visitors with food and music by kirtan chanting group Bhakti Ma as well as Indian clothing and jewelry for sale. I'll be there to get a schedule of classes and to find out if the grand opening special -- 10 days of unlimited classes for $10 -- is for real.

Photos Focus on Day in Long Beach

Hundreds of photos submitted to the Say Cheese, Long Beach contest will be on display at the Expo building at 4321 Atlantic this Friday, September 3 from 6:30 to 9:30 pm. Prizes for the best photos, which were taken in Long Beach from noon August 28 to noon August 29, will be awarded beginning at 8 pm. The free event is part of First Fridays in Bixby Knolls, a monthly showcase of the shops and restaurants in that part of town.

Got Scrabble?

Rising TIDE, an afterschool program housed at the Marguerite Keifer Educational Center in Covenant Presbyterian Church (607 E. Third Street), will host its annual Scrabble Scramble on Friday, September 17. Admission is $25 for three rounds of the game, and prizes will be awarded to the winning scores for an individual and a team. Doors open at 6 for pre-game refreshments (hot off the grill!) and viewing silent auction items.

Archive of Archives

LA as Subject is an interesting conglomeration of libraries, archives, and other collections of materials which contain documents and artifacts related to the history of the Southern California area. The group is in the process of creating a database of facilities which house this valuable and often one-0f-a-kind material. On October 23, they're planning an archives bazaar from 10 am to 5 pm with exhibits of local historical collections as well as speakers. The event will take place at the Doheny Memorial Library on the USC campus

Khmer 101

Only Long Beachers would consider learning the Cambodian language a community safety issue. The Long Beach Neighborhood Services Bureau and the Anaheim Street Community Police Center have joined together to offer free Cambodian Literacy lessons on Saturdays from 10 am to 11:30 am at the Mark Twain Neighborhood Library. On a visit recently, I observed it's mostly attended by school age children. They learn consonants, vowels, numbers, combining consonants and vowels, Special consonants and vowels, and phrases and sentence structure. Call Brant Ben at (562) 570-1691 to reserve a space in the class.