What are you doing this weekend?

What are your plans for Labor Day weekend?  Whether you’re planning on hitting the town, or just laying around here at Waterford Place and soaking in some sun at the pool, the goal is to have fun this weekend.  Right?

Well, if you need some help in that direction, here are a few of the fun events going on this weekend in Louisville…

First Friday Trolley Hop (September 3, Downtown Louisville) A tour of downtown Louisville’s art district, taking participants to several different art galleries located on the Main, Market, and Fourth Street strips.

ZooTember Movie Night (September 3, Louisville Zoo) Enjoy a fun family movie under the stars at the Zoo! Special $5 admission after 5:00 p.m. includes pre-movie activities, games, access to Zoo exhibits, and a viewing of the movie Up at sundown.

Worldfest (September 3-4, The Belvedere) WorldFest is Louisville’s annual celebration of the unique cultures that highlight our community. The two-day festival includes Saturday’s Parade Of Cultures, a naturalization ceremony that will welcome approximately 400 immigrants as full U.S. citizens, and the largest collection of local ethnic restaurants, vendors, and exhibitors at any one event in the state of Kentucky.

Kentucky Bluegrass Music Festival (September 4-6, The Water Tower) Live music, great food, bourbon and brew.  Need we say more?  The Water Tower is located at River Rd and Zorn Ave, Louisville, KY, 40201.

Sometimes you want to go where everybody knows your name.  Alright, you got me.  I stole that line from the opening tune to the sitcom Cheers.  But it’s true.  Most people love having a a nice, local bar that they can go to and get a great drink when they feel like it.  But did you know that there are several unwritten rules and secrets that many bars have?  Here are a couple…

• Yell, whistle, or wave money and I’m going to make you wait.  Make eye contact and smile, and I’ll come over as soon as I can. Know what you want and have your money ready. Don’t create a traffic jam.
• A lot of bars have comp tabs, which allows me to give away drinks.  It’s smart business and helps build a base of regulars.

If you’re looking for a good local bar to call you’re own, check out these two establishments that right around the St. Matthews district here in Louisville and near Waterford Place Apartments.  Both were given good reviews on Yelp.com.

Brendan’s Restaurant & Pub
3921 Shelbyville Rd
Louisville, KY 40207
(502) 895-1212
www.brendanslouisville.com

Bluegrass Brewing Company
3929 Shelbyville Rd
Louisville, KY 40207
(502) 899-7070
www.bbcbrew.com

(Photo Credit: m500)

There’s only one weekend left for the Kentucky State Fair, folks.  The last day is Sunday, August 29.  If you haven’t had a chance to get there yet, it would make a great outing for the weekend.  Afterall, what is a summer without cheese fries, funnel cakes and ice cream?  And if you’re the healthy-eating type, they now actually have veggie bowls and grilled chicken wraps in the South Wing B food court next to Kidz Biz (oh, how times have changed).

The gates open at 7:00 a.m. and exhibits open at 9:00 a.m.  The midway and tents close around midnight and exhibit halls close at 10 p.m.  Visit the Kentucky State Fair website at www.kystatefair.org for more info!

The summer’s most anticipate horror movie, The Last Exorcism, hits Louisville area theaters this weekend.  If being scared out of your pants is your kind of thing, you might want to make plans to go see it.  The movie is shot like a documentary that follows an evangelical minister, Marcus Cotton, as he attempts to perform his last exorcism…a practice that he doesn’t even believe it.  As for what happens next…let’s just say that the minister hadn’t planned on it.

If you don’t have the chills yet from just thinking about it, watch the trailer below.  And then when you’re ready to check it out on the big screen, here are showtimes for Louisville area movie theaters not far from Waterford Place Apartments: Village 8 Theatres, Rave Motion Pictures Stonybrook 20& IMAX and Baxter Avenue Theatres.  Try not to cover your eyes during the scary parts!

Well, folks, I must say that Waterford Place just may have the cutest selection of pets out of any pet-friendly apartment community here in Louisville.  Alas, only one can be the cutest!

It’s time for you to decide.  Who is Waterford Place’s “Cutest Pet?”  The poll is open right here until August 25 at 11:59 p.m.!  May the cutest pet win.  I’m sure we all have our favorites.  If you’d like to learn more about a certain pet, look for their picture on the Waterford Place Facebook wall.  Good luck to all!

Do you currently carry renter’s insurance?  Waterford Place Apartments strongly advises their residents to get a policy.  It’s really not as expensive as you may think.  In fact, you can save money on your policy in quite a few ways.  Here is an article I found about saving money on renter’s insurance that you can read.  Check out this video too.

Death at a Funeral

Death at a Funeral is a hilarious day in the life of an American family come together to put a beloved husband and father to rest. As mourners gather at the family home, shocking revelations, festering resentments, ugly threats, blackmail and a misdirected corpse unleash lethal and riotous mayhem.  Starring Chris Rock, Danny Glover and Luke Wilson.  Rated R.

I haven’t laughed this much at a movie in a long time.  The movie also starred Martin Lawrence and he was as funny as ever but Tracy Morgan and Danny Glover really steal the show.  Check it out if you’re in the mood for some good laughs.

The closest Redbox kiosks to Waterford Place are at McDonald’s (998 Breckenridge Ln and 5027 Shelbyville Rd), Thornton’s (4500 Shelbyville Road) and Walgreens (4240 Shelbyville Rd).

Is it me, or has this been one of the hottest summers in memory?  I can’t recall the last time I’ve seen the heat index in Louisville reach in the 100’s on so many days.  If you’re anything like me, the oven, stove and dishwasher in the kitchen of your apartment are probably as clean as a whistle.  You couldn’t pay me to turn the oven in this heat!  Even with blasting cold air conditioning and ceiling fans, I refuse to add anymore heat to my space.

I guess that makes perfect timing for 4th Street Live’s 2010 Restaurant Week (through August 15) in downtown Louisville.  Forget cooking -  participating restaurants are offering $10 lunch specials and three-course dinners for around $25-$30.  On top of those deals, with each Restaurant Week visit you will get a $5 gift card for each lunch purchased and a $10 gift card for each dinner to be used on your next visit!

So what are you waiting for?  Get out and try a new restaurant out…and let us know if you came up on a really good dish or deal on your food.  Here is a list of the participating restaurants:

Maker’s Mark Bourbon House and Lounge
www.makerslounge.com
(502) 568-9009

Ri Ra Irish Pub
www.rira.com
(502) 587-1825

Sully’s Saloon
www.sullyssaloon.com
(502) 585-4100

TGI Fridays
www.fridays.com
(502) 585-3577

The Pub
www.luvthepub.com/pub_louisville.html
(502) 569-7782

The Sports and Social Club
www.thesportsandsocialclub.com
(502) 568-4100

(Photo Credit: lifeoftheliles)

If you’re looking for a laugh, make plans to go see “The Other Guys” this weekend, starring Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg and Samuel Jackson.  I just watched the trailer and it looks absolutely hilarious.  If you like Ferrell’s other movies “Anchorman” and “Step Brothers”, you’ll be glad to know that they all have the same director, Adam McKay.  I guess he has a special talent for dealing with Ferrell.

Here is the trailer if you haven’t seen it yet.  Also, if you need showtimes for this weekend, follow these links to Village 8 Theatres, Rave Motion Pictures Stonybrook 20& IMAX and Baxter Avenue Theatres.  Enjoy!

It’s hard to deny the importance of education nowadays.  Especially in an evolving global marketplace.  A strong educational system is a key advantge that American’s have over many other countries.  However even with education widely available to the public, many of our young students just aren’t prepared to achieve there potential in class each day because they don’t have the proper supplies. 

As the 2010 -2011 school season gets underway, the Louisville Campus of the University of Phoenix is working with The Boys and Girls Club of Louisville to collect school supplies for local children as a way to counter that dilemma.  The types of supplies they are in most need of include:

Pens • Pencils • Pencil Sharpeners • Rulers • Glue Sticks • Highlighters • Colored Pencils • Crayons • Calculators • 3 Ring Binders • Markers • Pocket Folders • Pencil Boxes • Scissors • Filler Paper — Wide and College Ruled • Notebooks — Wide Ruled and College Ruled

They ask that if you’re able, drop off any supplies that you can donate at the University of Phoenix campus office (10400 Linn Station Road, Ste. 120.)  They will be accepting supplies until August 13.  You really have to give both organizations props for doing there part to help out in tough times.