Tunes at the Lagoon

     Among the many free concert series around town this summer (See Ben and Jerry's Series), one of the most pleasant venues is the Summer Concert at CSU's Lagoon. What made it so memorable was that, although this is an outdoor location, it is shaded with big oaks, not unlike the atmosphere in the Oval. There is no mad rush to the only shady spot so as long as you show up by 6:30pm, when the opening band begins preforming, you will find a spot in the shade with a wonderful view of the stage.  While the trees provided plenty of shade for the large crowd, they do not create a shield against the mosquito's that swarm around the lagoon at night so bug spray is a must. Another must is dinner and the kids. There are no food trucks at this venue which there needs to be, so many of the concert goers bring picnic dinners which range from KFC (my #1 choice) to cheese and wine. There were also plenty of younger members in the audience as well as a CSU Alumni Association booth that caters to kids with a bean bag toss, stickers, coloring pages with crayons, and even Cam the Ram! There are also many dogs in attendance so feel free to

bring Fido along IF he plays well with others (unfortunately, not an option for me since my little man is a little too vocal). Along side the CSU booth was several more including 99.9 The Point and The Loveland Sculpture Invitational (with a chance to win tickets).  There is plenty of parking as the pay to park for the Lory Student Center is only from 7:30am-4:00pm, although, there is a lot of construction on the student center so that may cause a headache when it comes to getting in and out of the parking lot. There is parking by the CSU library as well but it is slightly further from the lagoon. This event happens every Wednesday through August 14th from 6:60pm-8:30pm and is completely free. Next weeks group is The Wendy Woo Band and the schedule for the rest of the summer can be found on their website: http://www.lagoonseries.com/.

     Last nights performer was Mark Sloniker, musical directer and popular pianist at Jay's Bistro. If you missed him, you can check him out at Jay's every Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. -P

Sloniker Info: Website Facebook
Concert Series Info: Website Facebook

   

Fresh Farmer's Market in Fort Collins

    Fort Collins thrives on a healthy, outdoors oriented lifestyle, so one of the more popular weekly summer events is the Larimer County Farmer's Market on Saturdays. There are several similar markets around town but by far the biggest with the best variety and most stalls is the market in the heart of Old Town. Since it is so early in the season, most of the stalls are not selling fruits and vegetables yet, but instead are marketing starter plants for the at home gardener. Later, there will be a variety of summer and fall fruits and vegetables (including the best peaches I have ever tasted). There are also several stalls with local honey, organic meat, toffee, and other home made goods. One of my favorite stalls is the Brazilian Sweet Rolls which has an outstanding coconut roll but they sell out quickly so make sure to arrive early. Another great stall is the Colorado Cherry Company whose cherry

cider makes them a popular store and stall. Come hungry because there is plenty of free, delicious samples to choose from. Among the stalls is Green Dog Farm and Bones Du Jours, which is an entire stall dedicated to dog treats so this is a dog friendly market but be warned that there are a lot of dogs and people there. The market also caters to families with younger kids with a face painter every week. If you come on the third Saturday of every summer month, the French Nest Market is located on the same street through October so going to both is a nice outing for the whole family. -Paige
   

May 18th - October 26th
Saturdays
8 am - Noon
200 Oak Street

Farmers Market Website

Food Truck Phenomena: Veebo's Pizza

"This is what pizza should taste like!"
     After watching Bob's Burgers S. 2 Ep. 5, "Food Truckin'", I began to notice the trucks popping up around Old Town. Whether they have occupied Fort Collins for a while now or I'm just now noticing, there is no doubt that food trucks are becoming a popular part of the town's culture. While walking around the French Nest Market on Saturday around lunch time, I noticed some seriously delicious looking pizzas that people were getting at a canopy covered stand. Not only were Veebo's Wood Fired Pizza good looking, but they tasted phenomenal too and the staff working the stall were beyond talkative and friendly. I ordered a herb infused olive oil pizza with mushrooms. It was a tad pricey but it was ready very quickly and was the best pizza I have ever had.  Their ingredients were fresh, healthy, and simple and each pizza is made to order.  I am shocked that more people haven't heard of this great "food truck" style business. This company deserves more then their 318 likes on

Facebook! Veebo's is truly one of the best kept and tastiest secrets of Fort Collins and I look forward to bumping into one of their stalls again.

-Paige

Veboo's Facebook

15 and Famous: Lexi Shanley

              It seems like everyone you meet in Fort Collins is a starving artist, whether they're a photographer or a musician. One of Fort Collins truly talented is 15 year old high school freshman, Lexi Shanley. By happy coincidence, I stumbled upon Shanley's performance in Old Town Square, part of the Ben and Jerry's Concert Series last night. For still being as young as she is, I was astounded at her unique vocal style and range. Shanley composes most of her own music and lyrics and her voice reminds me of Sara Bareilles. After doing some research, I was also surprised at her amount of public performances around Fort Collins from FoCOMX to intimate coffee house settings like Every Day Joe's. Lexi's next performance is on the corner of Mountain and College, outside of ingredient on June 21st, 5-8pm.
          The Ben and Jerry's Concert Series goes on every Friday from 7-9pm at the Old Town Square Stage. As if the square wasn't busy enough on Friday nights, add  a FREE concert and that makes Old Town a mess! Although the concert was extremely packed especially around the stage, this did not take away from the nights festivities. Get there early with chairs (and an umbrella which would have been useful

last night) if you want to score some good seats. Since all concerts end by 9, these are kid friendly events and if you have a friendly dog at home, bring him along too ( I say friendly because my little man can barely contain himself in public and there will be several other dogs, children, and people). The next concert is June 21st and the musician is Daddy Rabb. I will not be attending this event as I will be out of town but if you do go, let me know how it goes in the comments below. -Paige

Lexi's Youtube & Lexi's Facebook Musician Page
Full Concert Series Schedule

Spotlight on Shane: Covenant Tattoo and Piercing

      While walking around Fort Collins, you are bound to come across some interesting people (maybe not as interesting as the people you see in Boulder, but still interesting). One of my favorite Fort Collins personalities is piercer, Shane Thomas. Of all my piercing and tattoo experiences, by far, the most pleasant was by Shane at Covenant Tattoo and Piercing. Usually,  I would go to Runic Body Art, because of their awesome $20 deal, but a few weeks ago I took my friend in to get her nose pierced and their piercer was out of the shop so we went to the next closest shop, Covenant. I'm not saying that my experience with Runic has ever been bad, but it has never been exactly memorable. With Shane on the other hand,  the piercing itself was gentle and with almost 20 years of experience and claims that his use of clamps is "the softest ever" and he was also extremely friendly, talkative, and knowledgeable about his profession. As mentioned, Shane has had plenty of experience. His first job as a piercer was at a day spa where he frequently preformed "intimate" piercings for his female and male

clients. This work experience provided him with an advanced skill set and also allowed him to develop a professional front making his clients feel comfortable with any piercing they may come in for. Shane wasn't the only friendly face on staff as many of the employees greeted us with smiling faces and offered their opinions and advice on the piercing we came in for. Shane is a great guy as well as a talented piercer and my piercing experience with him has made Covenant Tattoo and Piercing my go to shop for future work. -Paige

Links to Shane's facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/piercingsbyshaneatcovenant
https://www.facebook.com/piercingsbyshane?fref=ts

Dynamic Deals

      Like every girl, I like to be pampered and as I am on a tight budget, I don't like paying salon prices. Because of this, my choice for beauty services is Hair Dynamics. Yes, this is a beauty school but in all my experiences there, I have always felt comfortable and confident in the students ability. The reason for my ease is that before a student begins any service, a Hair Dynamics professional must first sign off on anything the student may do. The students are also constantly asking the professionals for their opinions and advice which makes me feel comfortable. Although the schools services come at a fantastic price, there are a few that you should pass on. The first is manicures and pedicures and my reasoning for this is that in my experiences, the pedicures were not of professional quality and I felt like I could have applied the polish better myself. I also received a full set of acrylics which chipped three times within the  same day as my appointment and although they repaired them for free, I would rather pay salon prices for quality the first time. My go to nail place is "Unique Nail Salon and Spa".

The second beauty school no no is waxing. While personally I have never had a waxing service at Hair Dynamics, I wouldn't feel comfortable with a student preforming an eyebrow wax let alone any other waxing service in fear that I would be missing an eyebrow or suffering from some serious ingrown hairs that no amount of sugar scrub could fix. My mother got her eyebrows done at the school and found that she still had more then a few strays left following her service. My preferred waxing salon is

"The Wax Factory". Another issue I have had with the salon is that on several occasions I have made an appointment and then they call at the last minute, less then an hour before my appointment when I am already on my way, asking if I can come in later because none of their nail techs  seem to be able to show up for work on time. Although these issues may make you stray away from Hair Dynamics, DO NOT FEAR! While I have had some bad experiences in the past, the school more then makes up for it with its friendly students. My favorite would have to be Stephanie who I can talk to like I have known forever even though I have only had a couple appointments with her but the entire staff has always been entirely welcoming. -Paige

P.s. Has anyone been to BJ's Brewhouse on Harmony since it opened on June 4th? I heard that it had a very eclectic menu which disappoints me because I assumed it would be like Potts or Cooper Smiths and

specialize in burgers but the parking lot is always packed so it must be good. Let me know your thoughts in the comments. Thanks!

Tastiest, Healthiest Chains in Town

                        Chain restaurants are commonly blamed for causing conditions like obesity and diabetes like America’s poster child, McDonalds, but fast food doesn’t always have to be dripping in grease and calories. The following are two of my personal favorite chain food joints in Fort Collins that provide a healthier option to their customers. My first choice for a quick lunch between classes is stopping at one of Fort Collins two

Mad Greens locations. While it’s considered “fast food”, Mad Greens specializes in salads but also serves sandwiches and soups as well. My usual is the Mark Twain which is a pasta salad with cucumbers, feta, red onions, roasted red peppers, and a red wine vinaigrette. Even though this dish contains pasta, it is still only 641 calories and very filling. Mad Greens does a scratch ticket promo that you could win free salad for a year and every player is a winner (bogo, free drink, free salad, etc.). The restaurant also has child friendly options. Mostly, I dine at the Harmony location whose manager is one of the most friendly food service employees I have ever met and is always looking to please her customers. My second choice runs a bit cheaper and is conveniently located on CSU’s campus, Old Town, and Harmony. Spoons Soups and

Salads menu is constantly changing with eightish different soup options every day, two salads of the day, and one sandwich of the day. Because of this, diners will never get tired of going to Spoons and getting the same thing each time. They do have a set menu of salads and sandwiches as well but the soups are never the same. The menu also includes kid’s size soups and grilled cheese so this is also a child friendly option. I like Spoons because it’s a great option for when I’m strapped for cash and looking for something good to eat. Although I do enjoy some of the smaller family owned businesses which I will review later, sometimes I need food and I need it fast so I like having a healthy fast food option.

-Paige