When I go on vacation, I like to scour Yelp and other websites to find local businesses and attractions that are unique to the places I visit. I’m sure I’m not the only one. Often, though, we overlook the gems in our own city. And in this town, as small as it may be, we have quite a few unique businesses.
The Jam
It’s like a well-stocked house party with dozens of earthy, artsy friends. At least that’s how it was on Wednesday when I finally crawled out from under my rock (otherwise known as parenthood mixed with student life) to check it out.
In the drum circle out back, a few dozen people surrounded a large bonfire, beating their hand drums in percussive harmony. One lady belly danced dangerously close to the fire. Another girl twirled a lighted toy hoop for what seemed like an eternity.
Inside, various people took the stage. They may have been a band, or they may have just decided to jam together for a few minutes.
Various instruments are available for patrons to play. There’s an upright piano, numerous guitars hanging on the wall next to the stage, various unmanned hand drums around the bonfire, and even a didgeridoo (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DC9w4KWEgJE) inside.
It’s the kind of place that draws people like Dennis Williams, the drummer in start-up band Arahan (http://www.facebook.com/ArahanMusic). [Full disclosure: I’ve known Williams since he was a toddler.]
“You can just tell them you want to play, and they usually let you,” said Williams, 24. “It gives people who are aspiring musicians an opportunity.”
He said he also likes the place because of the laid-back atmosphere and the variety of people.
“There are a lot of hipsters, if you like to call people that (…) like dudes who wear scarves when it’s really hot,” he said.
Williams considers himself a regular there. He said he’s heard nearly every kind of music there — except metal: his niche.
“A lot of people who play there say it’s like home,” he said.
The Repurpose Project
Imagine having your own personal crafting warehouse that contains everything you could ever imagine needing to create all of your favorite Pinterest findings.
You’ve just imagined The Repurpose Project (repurposeproject.org).
I wasn’t sure what to expect, so I took my 8-year-old cousin, Gabby. I told her she could make a craft.
“My friend makes these necklaces with painted keys,” she told me.
So that’s what she made.
“Every key you could ever need is in that jar,” Mike Myers, one of the cofounders, told her.
She picked out 5 keys, acrylic paints and paintbrushes.
For some of the necklaces, she used pieces of yarn. For another, she linked colorful paperclips together: Myers’ suggestion.
As I walked the aisles looking at wooden birdhouses, spools of yarn, cubbies full of scrapbooking paper, electronics, jars filled with colorful feathers and beads and various wires, I kept thinking, “I’m never throwing anything away again!”
Now, I finally have a place to take all the empty glass pasta jars and kombucha bottles that I’m too crunchy to throw away. And I have a place to go to when I’m feeling creative—a place that stores, cleans, categorizes and restocks all of the supplies and tools I can imagine ever needing. I’d gladly donate to that.
