Summer is almost here, and I couldn’t be more excited.
Despite how fun the warmer months are in Philadelphia, I’ll be headed out West on a cross-country bike ride from Bar Harbor, Maine, to Anacordas, Wash. (about 50 miles from Seattle) come mid-June. More than 4,500 miles in the saddle, baby.
For anyone staying in Philly this […]

First things first: yes, the Market-Frankford Line does go past Second Street. It stops at Spring Garden and Girard.

Whether you drive, walk or bike to campus, you may unknowingly share one thing with your fellow students and neighborhood residents – the vast history that encompasses North Philadelphia.
That history of struggle and poverty has become the focus of venues in the area – such as Joe Frazier’s Gym, the Freedom Theater and Progress […]

I usually think of Darth Vader as the worst father in the history of the universe. After all, he blew up his daughter’s planet and chopped off his son’s hand.
But all that seems forgiven and forgotten here. A mass of children clamor around the Dark Lord of the Sith with grins stretching from ear to […]

It’s Sunday afternoon, and the Philly Roller Girls All-Female Roller Derby League is having its weekly scrimmage practice.

The do-it-yourself music scene in Philadelphia is rapidly turning into the hope-someone-else-does-it scene. Aspiring young bands from all over the region that want to play Philly are finding it difficult to organize a show in an intimate all-ages setting. Sure, there is the monolithic R5 Productions, but if Pitchfork Magazine hasn’t reviewed your band, the […]

To pee, or not to pee: that is the question.
There are few things that are more uncomfortable than needing a restroom in public. Many businesses only offer their bathrooms to paying customers, while some public toilets are just plain disgusting. So what’s a person to do when she is stranded outside with no place to […]

Standing on certain corners in Brooklyn, N.Y., where boarded-up liquor stores and small, bare-bone ethnic restaurants smile across the street at each other, it’s easy to conjure up images of Philadelphia.
Brooklyn’s brownstone buildings are reminiscent of West Philly’s – its abandoned, junk-filled lots and acres of graffiti could be found anywhere north of City Hall. […]

The streets of West Philly will belong to scores of fearless cyclists March 15 when the first annual Wild Wild West Race (“West Philadelphia, born and raced!”) takes place. Will Smith, eat your heart out.
In the eyes of most sane people, participants in alleycat races are truly out of their minds. These races involve droves […]

Most Philadelphians are familiar with the city’s biannual Restaurant Week, but this year, fans of festivals can embrace something new – Philly Beer Week.
From March 7-16, Philadelphia – which was recently named the best beer-drinking city in America by beer journalist Don Russell, otherwise known as “Joe Sixpack” – invites residents and tourists to taste […]