MarkZwick.com

Saturday edition....wanted to get this out before heading to the beerfest at the Blockley. They sold out their 500 tickets. There i another beerfest next week in Valley Forge (#22).

Spots open for Killington this weekend (sponsor). Also, we are approaching an air deadline for Utah in January.

Eagles....I was actually not unhappy that we lost. The season was not taking us on a parade route anyway so we might as well be bad - get a better pick and shake up management some, It was obvious going in to the season we had no linebackers and safetys and that is what has killed us. Andy Reid....he made the decision to appoint the offensive line coach as defensive coordinator which clearly has been a failure. That alone is reason for him to lose his job. And I still think we only have one linebacker sack all season....and how many from our secondary? And what happened that are starting middle linebacker never even sees the field anymore (Matthews)?

Some radom things......one of my nephews plays this new sport. I checked it out and thought it was interesting : http://www.kronum.com

I had margaritas at El Vez - recommendation to avoid their house margarita - it was awful.

As I am approaching 40, I noticed two obits this week of people my age: 39 year old local and 42 year old ex NFL player. You do your own analysis but appreciate the days you have....

After living in Philly for more than 10 years, it always makes me happy to find new cool spots. This past week, I found two: Starlight Ballroom at 9th and Callowhill where I saw a DJ and Ruba at 5th and Spring Garden behind Silk City which serves until 3AM.

Ever wonder how much the local casinos are bringing in? Did you know that Parx generates twice the revenue of Sugar House?

And lastly....I bought my first west Philly property this week - 46XX Locust. Will get you some phtoos. For people who never spend any time in University City, I think it will suprise you - I think it is some of the nicest neighborhoods in Philadelphia. - Mark

Killiington Trip for next weekend and you need a little incentive, Killington is making snow nightly and there IS SNOW IN THE FORECAST for late next week...RIGHT BEFORE WE GET THERE!

Your final chance to sign up is approaching. We cannot guarantee the availability of rooms after this Monday, Dec. 5th.

D) ALTERED STATES: MEDICAL POT IN NJ, PA

B) Comcast Holiday Spectacular
Experience high definition visions of sugarplums on the incredible 84-foot HD Video Wall at the Comcast Holiday Spectacular. Set to the music of a 64-piece orchestra, the dazzling 15-minute show occurs at the top of the hour, 10 a.m. - 8:00 p.m. Through January 1, 2012.

C) A Longwood Christmas
No holiday is complete without a visit to Longwood Gardens, where more than 400,000 twinkling lights and spectacular fountain shows create a brilliant wonderland your family is sure to love.

January 22-27 & January 29-February 3, 2012. The full list of restaurants is up at CenterCityPhila.org/RestaurantWeek and we're adding new menus as they come in! You can also get menus on your smartphone by going to m.CenterCityPhila.org. Remember- you can make Open Table reservations for most participants right from our site. As we get closer to the big weeks, be sure to keep up on Center City District Restaurant Week presented by TD Bank events by following us on Twitter- @PhilaRestWeek.

Kimpton’s Hotel Palomar Philadelphia presents the 3^rd annual “Santa Paws” this December 10^th and 11^th from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm. Locals and hotel guests are invited to stop by Hotel Palomar’s living room with their furry friends for photo-ops as Santa Paws pays his yearly visit

The Monster Milers, the Monster Minders' volunteer organization which pairs runners with shelter dogs, is excited to add a third location to impact even more homeless dogs.

In early 2012, The Milers will start orientations at Street Tails Animal Rescue (STAR), a brand new adoption center in Northern Liberties. A waiting list is now being formed for runners who want to join at the new location.

The Milers now have more than 250 runners through the orientation at their two locations - the PAWS Adoption Center in Old City and the PAWS Wellness Clinic in Grays Ferry. Learn more about how your can volunteer online.

Conshohocken (9th and Maple)
READY DECEMBER 15 JUST PAINTED, NEW RUGS, PROFESSIONALLY CLEANED
• 1 bedroom, 1 bath, nice size kitchen on 2nd floor
• Established, quiet residential neighborhood (9th & Maple Streets) with ON Street parking
• Shared use of front porch and large, level backyard (snow removal and grass cutting included)
• Basement storage with private washer and dryer
• Rent $800/month with 12 month lease and 1 month's security deposit
• Tenant pays own gas and electric (gas hot water heat, gas oven), tenant option to install own window a/c units
• Only STUFFED ANIMALS permitted, NO SMOKING INSIDE
email thepipemanad@aol.com for information or to make an appointment

Are you ready to become a cocktail and wine connoisseur? Tryst's cocktail expert Erik Lombardo and sommelier Cristine Bruno will continue teaching cocktail/wine classes every Wednesday from 5:30 to 7:00pm for $25 each and will include a flight trio and light bites. Next up:

13) Christmas Village
Due to the construction at Dilworth Plaza and permanent stench left behind by Occupiers, the city’s annual German-inspired Christmas market event will be relocated this year to Love Park, where it’ll no doubt be infiltrated by skateboarders and bums. Open from Thanksgiving Day till Christmas Eve, the village will feature a mix of more than 50 local and German vendors selling a wide variety of international holiday gifts, ornaments, jewelry, toys and other arts and crafts. Catch three live performances each day from local choirs, bands and solo artists while stuffing your face with traditional European food and sweets like lebkuchen (gingerbread), waffles, strudels and, of course, classic German Bratwurst. -Nicole Finkbiner

14) SANTA CLAUS IS COMING TO THE BLUE CROSS RIVERRINK

Santa is taking time out of his busy schedule to make his annual visit to the Blue Cross RiverRink on Sunday, December 11, 2011. Santa will make his annual arrival aboard the historical 1902 Tug Jupiter. At 1:00pm Santa and his many noted Philadelphia area mascot friends will make their way onto the regulation-size rink.

This will be a unique once in a lifetime experience for Santa and his mascot friends to greet the children and the young at heart as they disembark the historic 1902 Tug Jupiter and skate with visitors. All the children who love jolly old St. Nick will have the opportunity to tell Santa their Christmas wish list when he retires to his throne between the skating sessions.

Skate with Santa and Friends is a fun and FREE event with themed Santa activities for skaters and spectators during the 12:30pm-2:30pm and the 3:30pm-5:00pm sessions. Enjoy free holiday face painting, photos with a free photo keepsake make and take crafts such as decorating your very own Santa hat and of course, skating with Santa!

Santa’s mascot friends, such as the Blue Cross RiverRink’s mascot Rinky, B101’s Buzzbee, Finley and Blueper of the Camden Riversharks and Wally Wawa. More of Santa’s mascot friends from area attractions and local colleges and universities are coming from near and far. They can’t wait to ride with Santa aboard the historic Tug Jupiter and Skate with Santa at the Blue Cross RiverRink!

Skating admission during Skate with Santa and Friends sessions (12:30pm-2:30pm and 3:00pm-5:30pm) is exceptionally inexpensive at $8 and skate rental for only $3. Convenient on-site parking is offered for a flat rate of $12. The Blue Cross RiverRink is also easily accessible by public transportation.

15) NJ SKI CLUB

Philly Freeriders are really excited to announce a new partnership with the NJ Ski and Snowboard Club! We will still be Philly Freeriders but with this new affiliation, we will maximize our membership numbers for better discounts and deals for members of both clubs. The NJ Ski/Snowboard Club is similar to ours in demographics, and all of their events will be open to our members (and vice versa). More info is available here: http://njskiandsnowboard.com/
Because of the partnership, we will now be eligible for all discounts and trips offered through Eastern PA Ski Council. A list of discounts is available here (click on deals & discounts): http://njskiandsnowboard.com/
Some of the lift ticket discounts are pretty hefty - just one day will easily pay you back your membership dues.
Yes, that's right, I said "dues"! Everything comes at a price, right? Because of this partnership, we are going to have to start charging actual dues! Not only does membership to the ski council cost $, but just having a meet-up group actually has administrative costs too - we are really just looking to cover costs at $15 for your annual membership, which will be good through October 2012. Your membership will easily pay for itself! We will be moving towards a tiered membership: we will have "active" members and "inactive" members. Everyone will remain on the mailing list, but as an inactive member, you may be asked to pay an additional fee for some events, and the discounts/deals will only be available to active members.
Please download the member application at in the "membership/policies" section http://njskiandsnowboard.com/ You can cross out the regular member fee and write in "PF" instead. Please note you will also need to submit a photo for your membership card. Joe and I will be collecting membership forms and dues at the next two happy hours (tomorrow, 11/29 and next week, 12/7). If you can't make it to either, please send me an email about getting your info in.
Our first event of our partnership is the NJ Ski & Snowboard Annual Christmas Party/Ugly X-mas sweater contest/Bowling Craptacular on December 10th! Details will be on the meet-up that I'll be creating for the event.
If you have any questions, please email me. We think this is going to be a great opportunity and hope that lots of you will participate!

Emily at emilyrex@hotmail.com for more info

16) VOLUNTEER

Please Come and join Help Philadelphia this Monday Dec.5th from 5:45pm-8:00pm and Play games with the adorable children who's parents are learning life and job skills while residing in this transitional housing facility. To sign up, please contact

Connie Kreischer-Slingbaum 610-292-3777, ckreisch@paturnpike.com

(4-6 volunteers needed)

17) NYE PLANS??

Do not have your new years plans yet? Check out New Year's Eve Philly » http://www.NYEphilly.com

18) The Pennsylvania Environmental Council

will be hosting the next public meeting for the proposed Spring Garden Street Greenway Project next
Tuesday, December 6, at 6:30pm, at the
German Society of Pennsylvania, 611 Spring Garden Street.

This event will be a Community Design Workshop. If you live, work, drive, bike, skate, walk, shop, go to school or church on Spring Garden Street (or if you care about the livability of our city), come share your ideas. Project planners need OUR input to transform Spring Garden Street into a better place to live, learn, work and play!

Admission is FREE, but registration is required, at: http://sgsg.eventbrite.com. Please bring your admission ticket with you to the event.

19) City Hall Tree Lighting
5 pm
LOVE Park
16th Street & JFK Boulevard
Phila.gov

12/7/11

20) YOUNG INVOLVED PHILADELPHIA

WHERE: Blue Bear Tavern, 216 South 11th Street
WHEN: Wednesday, December 7, 6:30PM-9:30PM

WHAT: Come party during the holidays with YIP! We had one hell of a year and much reason to celebrate! Come hear more about our initial findings from State of Young Philly and what you can do to get engaged in what we plan to do next.

In keeping with the holiday spirit, we will also have a clothing drive that evening. YIP has teamed up with The Northern Home for Children, and will be accepting newish coats, hats, and gloves and scarves for adults and children. All folks who donate will receive FREE admission to the event.

RSVP on Facebook and get your tickets online at http://yip.ticketleap.com/shindig/. Your $5 will cover an all you can eat buffet and drink specials. We'll also be raffling off prizes.

Spend one of the greatest times of the year kicking back with YIP, Northern Home, and your friends at Blue Bear Tavern!

21) Reindeer Romp comes to MANAYUNK!

http://www.facebook.com/events/165252396906340/

22) http://www.valleyforgebeerfest.com/

12/10/11

23) RUNNING OF THE SANTAS

http://www.runningofthesantas.com/newsletter/

12/10/11