It was one great weekend. Favorite OWE fest ever, regardless of the weather. Above is some of the video D. shot during festival.

Toledo’s Historic Old West End Association

My good friend F. came into town via the train from NYC on the same Friday morning that the Crystal Bowersox/American Idol parade was scheduled. His cab driver enthusiastically told him all the details.

Neither of F. nor myself actually watch American Idol but this being his third visit to Toledo, and my love of giving all of my visitors a truely Toledo-centric time, we walked to Summit Street after breakfast to enjoy the parade. Having a mayor on a motorcycle is as good a draw as any.

There were quite a few mascots, and aside from the baseball team and the hockey team I was unable to identify for F. the other, silly tube-shaped characters. Any clues?

The Toledo School for the Arts had a good deal of pride during the parade. And they should have! Crystal Bowersox is an alumni of that fantastic school located in uptown Toledo.

And at the end of the parade, there was Ms. Bowersox. As I post this we know that she is 2nd in place for American Idol. Congrats to you, Crystal! You have a great career before you and Toledo (and all of America) loves you!

Crystal is a positive ambassador for Toledo and the TSA.

Toledo School for the Arts | 333 14th Street | (419) 246-8732

Following the Quest for Fire opening at the TMA, we checked into the Ottawa Tavern for another of their amazing FREE shows. The Black Atlantic are from Holland and were fresh off a stint at South by Southwest (SXSW). Sangsara are a heavily-lauded group local to Toledo. But, Big Kitty (video above) were my favorite of the night.

Big Kitty hail from Chattanooga, Tennessee and were simply precious.

The Ottawa Tavern was PACKED. I love how successful the bar has become, yet I hope this level of attendance subsides for the sake of the regulars! And the staff, for that matter.

Ottawa Tavern | 1817 Adams Street (Uptown) | (419) 725-5483

The Ottawa Tavern, along with the rest of Adams Street, celebrated Mardi Gras this year with beads, silly hats, “hurricane” drinks, and lots of dancing lights… in the bottoms of the glasses.

Golab played live, as did Detroit’s Charlie Slick. And it was a pretty wild and fun night.

Ottawa Tavern (use < and > arrow keys)| 1817 Adams Street | (419) 725-5483

This weekend began with an opening party at The Bozarts Gallery for the “B” Collective. It’s the first group show at this new-ish Downtown spot.

The “B” Collective works include paintings, drawings, ceramics, and mixed media by Adam Russell, Har Simrit Singh, Yusuf Lateef & Kelly Lever.

The show runs through Saturday, October 17th–when there will be another party for the closing. Bozarts was started by local artist Jerry Gray and I think he’s done a really great job with the space.

After leaving the gallery we drove by the Art Tatum Memorial at the Arena to see it at night, finally. The changing lights inside the Arena are pretty nice.

Last night, we met up with friends at the Ottawa Tavern for drinks and a few bands. The closing band was The Falling Spikes, a Velvet Underground cover band complete with a girl drummer ala Mo Tucker and projections while they played. Well done.

Bozarts  Gallery | 151 S St Clair Street | (419) 464-5785

Ottawa Tavern | 1815 Adams Street | (419) 275-LIVE

Saturday was the Toledo Bicycle Extravaganza, a Toledo Green Drinks event helping promote bikes as an alternative to the gas-guzzling norm. Groups of people in neighborhoods all over the city met up in differing spots and rode their bicycles to the Toledo Farmer’s Market downtown. A bunch of Old West Enders met in The Commons.

Most of our route was straight down Monroe Street, as it’s probably the smoothest ride to get Downtown.

Upon arriving at the Market we shopped for local veggies, cheese and bread.

It’s still pretty early in the year, yet there were some great finds.

There was an eccentric collection of bicycles, as well…

Including this little yellow number…

And one powered by electricity for when the owner tires on long rides.

At the noon hour we hopped back on our bikes and headed to Manhattan’s, where a lunch buffet was hosted and accompanied by live music.

I really enjoyed the “Fairly Handsome Band” which played what I would somewhat expect to hear at a luau. There was a little bit of rain at that point so the ride home was damp. But our spirits were far from dampened. Great afternoon!

Toledo Farmer’s Market | 525 Market St | Downtown

Manhattan’s | 1516 Adams St | (419) 243-6675

It’s still a little chillly out, but not so much that a couple drinks and bar appetizers on the patio of Manhattan’s is out of the question. We shared chicken strips paired with some spicy mustard and a plate of chicken quesadillas that were fantastic with jalepenos.

Be sure to check their website for an event calendar full of local entertainment gems and what looks to be a delectable Scotch Whiskey Dinner on the 13th.

Manhattan’s | 1516 Adams St | Uptown District | (419) 243-6675

Friday night was the Second Annual ‘Tis the Secor Show at the Secor Building downtown. Highlights included an exhibit of works from 40+ local artists, open studios and live music.

One of my favorite pieces was front and center in the lobby — a portrait by Richard Reed of his friend Marty.

It’s beautifully done.

There was live music in the lobby including Toledo’s best experimental group, KDB.

After leaving the Secor show we met up with friends for drinks at Wesley’s in uptown. It’s a sure bet on Friday nights and features some of my favorite pro-Toledo decor, including the infamous “You Will Do Better in Toledo” sign, the original of which is sadly long gone.

We finished things up with a nightcap at The Attic on Adams the new hotspot above Manos. Hope to see you there soon!

The Secor Building | 425 Jefferson St @ Superior | Downtown

KBD | myspace.com/kbdtoledo

Wesley’s | 1201 Adams Street | 419-255-3333

The Attic on Adams | 1701 Adams St. | 419-243-5350

On Saturday morning we drove down to Bowling Green for the Black Swamp Arts Festival. BG has one of the cutest Main Streets ever.

There were quite a few booths… most being more craft than art, but regardless there was plenty to see. One surprisingly cute booth had little animals and creatures formed of everyday rope.

We also spent some time checking out the shows at the electronic stage. Above is HMNLCD.

The Wookalar (from Wicked Lung and the Wookalar of Columbus) played. See above. Wicked Lung did a set too.

We made sure to catch the Secret Swords show before leaving the festival.

Cheers! And thanks for putting up with the poor video quality!

Black Swamp Arts Festival | Bowling Green, OH

Dinner at Manos’ kicked off our weekend. One of my favorite dishes is the baked feta… typing this is making me hungry.

The opening of Ottawa Tavern has been pushed back a week (thanks to Manos for letting us know), so after a short moment at Space 237 for their opening we drove straight to Frankie’s to see Sinker (above).

We chatted with friends over Dr. Reed’s. What’s a Dr. Reed? you ask… PBR (Pabst Blue Ribbon) + Ice + Lime + Straw.

Not Miller High Life.

Not lemon.

PBR, Ice, Lime, Straw. Period. It’s the drink of the summer, courtesy of D’s co-worker Harper.

Friday ended with the first ever show by the Secret Swords [2 parts Stylex + 1 part Shuttlecock = Secret Swords]. Keep your ears peeled.

Manos | 1701 Adams Street | (419) 244-4479

Sinker | myspace.com/sinkersinker

Secret Swords | myspace.com/secretswordsmusic

We figured Friday would be as good a day as any to visit the Polish Festival on Lagrange Street.

If I understand this correctly, when we arrived there was a Polka band that played Pink Floyd covers entertaining the crowd. The scene was a little confusing. I am also pretty certain I saw a grown man riding a cooler… a beer cooler… that had wheels and an engine… grown man riding it…

There was also a gentleman on stilts making balloon sculptures for kids, who later juggled knives, and later on was tossing a large yo-yo about between two sticks, and later still was playing with sticks on fire. He had amassed a pretty large crowd by the end of the day.

The people watching was epic. So was the kielbasa on a rye roll (!!!) that D. picked up from The Stanley’s Market tent.

The Polish Festival of Toledo | LaGrange Street | Fri. 5-11pm; Sat. 12-11pm; Sun. 1-7pm

So it rained a little on Sunday… but we still had a great time. The highlight for me would have to be The Jean Batiste Quartet doing their version of What a Wonderful World. Yeah, call me sappy.

The 2008 Art Tatum Jazz Heritage Festival

There is a great installation at the Secor Gallery right now (through July 12th). The Secor Gallery artists paired up with artists from the Detroit Industrial Projects to create several works within the vast space.

The show invokes “the connectivity between development and re-urbanism occurring in both Detroit and Toledo”… and presents work by Kevin Beasley, Elizabeth Bernblum, Jada Bowden, Robert Garcia, Doug Kampfer, Nate Masternack, Jody Russ, Salvatore Schiciano, Jeanette Strezinski, and Andrew Thompson.

The opening was Saturday night with The Drawers playing in the lobby. David Lynch’s Eraserhead was playing on a backdrop behind them, which I hadn’t seen since I was in high school.

There happened to be a Mud Hens game going on so a few of us stepped around the corner to watch the fireworks at the end of the game. The night was capped off with an after-party at Mickey Finns. It was packed with people, many I hadn’t seen in quite a while, and bands playing both inside and on the back patio.

Secor Building and Artist Studios | 425 Jefferson Ave. | (419) 450 3683

Golab is Joel Roberts and sometimes Jeff Loose and is one of the greatest things to come out of Toledo. Like ever. Last night they played with Enon on the East Side and it was great, again. Go see them.

Covering Billy Joel’s “Pressure” on the steps of the Toledo Museum of Art.

“Stoplight” in the garage-a-tudio.