Reality check

By Molly Harrison | Monday, November 1, 2010
Whalehead Club's Moonlight Legend, Lore & Ghost Tour is Sat.

Hello November! * It looks like we're finally going to have to accept reality and get out those cool-weather clothes. We've been living out an extended summer fantasy, but we're going to get a taste of fall as the temps are going to dip into the low 60s and upper 50s all week. * I'm sad to see the '70s go, but I'm glad the warm weather hung around through Halloween night. * BTW, I read on weather.com that meteorologists are predicting a very mild winter! I'm fine with that...

BIG week ahead and it starts with voting. If you haven't already voted, remember to VOTE on Tuesday! * If you don't know who to vote for, go to http://www.lwvdarenc.org/voter.htm and read the candidates' forum and voters' guide...

Celebrate your right to freely vote in a democratic society and go out to eat. * This entire week is dubbed as Outer Banks Restaurant Week and there are some great deals to be found in local eateries. More than 15 restaurants are offering three-course, prix fixe lunch or dinner menus for either $20 or $35. At these prices you could go out every night this week. * Participating restaurants include Jolly Roger, Outer Banks Epicurean, The Blue Point, Coastal Provisions Market, Ocean Boulevard, Stripers Bar & Grille, Argyle's, The Wave Pizza Café, Aqua S Restaurant, The Lifesaving Station, Pamlico Jack's, Kelly's, Sugar Creek, Goombay's, Big Al's Soda Fountain and Grill, The Pearl, Mako Mike's and Outer Banks Brewing Station. * Look around our By Night and By Day sections to see what individual restaurants are offering or go to www.outerbanksrestaurantweek.com...

Ladies, the Women's Symposium sponsored by the Virginia Dare Business and Professional Women sounds like a good place for inspiration and networking. It's going on Thursday at Duck Woods Country Club in Southern Shores from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m. $35 includes lunch, the seminar with several women speakers, a raffle and door prizes, and a silent auction. Call (252) 202-8467 or email fkapinos@aol.com to reserve a spot, but do it early in the week...

Manteo's First Friday celebration comes up on, you guessed it, Friday. * Head downtown for live music and entertainment, restaurant and shopping deals, and good times with friends and neighbors. * Be sure to stop by the Dare County Arts Council to see the November show Elements in Glass and Wood. This show features the glassworks of Wanchese resident Rosanna Gusler as well as the works of favorite local woodworkers and bird carvers Vic and Ellen Berg. The show's opening reception is during First Friday, from 6 until 8 p.m., and the show will run through November 30...

Speaking of art in Manteo, you need to see the art show at Roanoke Island Festival Park this month. On exhibit are the Flora and Fauna Photography of Jeff Lewis and the Wildlife Illustrations of Duane Raver. This show is running through the end November in the Art Gallery at Festival Park...

After some First Friday fun you'll still have time to make it to the Theater of Dare's presentation of "Sylvia." It's a romantic comedy about a talking dog who comes between a man and his wife, and reports from last weekend, when the show opened, are that it's very funny. The show starts at 7:30 on Friday night at the COA Roanoke Island campus on U.S. Highway 64/264. It's also playing Saturday night at 7:30 and on Sunday at 2 p.m. Tickets are $15 and $8 for students...

Roanoke Island Festival Park is hosting Musical Moods and Melodies on Saturday at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. The program is presented by NC A&T State University's Jazz Ensemble under the direction of renowned trumpeter Mondre Moffett. The ensemble is going to play jazz favorites, and the Chamber Singers will share a variety of songs from spirituals to Western European Chamber Music to the classics. * These performances are free...

Want to see the Whalehead Club at night? The historic house museum is offering a special Moonlight Legend, Lore and Ghost Tour on Saturday. Come to experience life in the past and hear real ghost stories about the Whalehead Club and northern Outer Banks. Dress for the weather and bring a flashlight. Advance reservations are required; call (252) 453-9040...

Besides Outer Banks Restaurant Week, another big eating-related event this week is the March of Dimes Signature Chef Auction. This event features some of the leading Outer Banks chefs creating their signature dishes and finest offerings. Eat well, have a glass of wine and place a few bids in the silent and live auctions. It's at the Hilton Garden Inn in Kitty Hawk on Sunday from 5:30 to 10:30 p.m. Tickets cost $50 per person and can be purchased in advance at any Brew Thru location. For more info call (757) 361-0000. This event benefits the March of Dimes' efforts to save babies from premature birth...

Now that it's November, it's time to start shopping for Christmas. Yes, really, it is. If you shop now you can actually enjoy all the holiday events in December. I'm going to follow my own advice and go to the Christmas Sale Bazaar at Holy Redeemer by the Sea on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. A lot of local artists and crafters are going to be selling their wares at this show, and it's going to be a great place to find gifts. Holy Redeemer is at 301 West Kitty Hawk Road in Kitty Hawk...

I'm also going to Shopportunity Knocks at the Front Porch Café on Thursday from 2 to 7 p.m. A bunch of Duck shops - Luxury, Plum Crazy, Urban Cottage, Life's a Beach, Aura Beauty Bazaar and more - are flying south for the day to let the south beach girls get a look at their goods...

Remember to sign up for Wings Over Water events (it starts next Tuesday; see www.wingsoverwater.org) or for the Outer Banks Marathon events (Marathon, Half Marathon, 8K, 5K or Fun Run), which are next weekend. All events are still open. If you're not running, they still need volunteers...

And, finally, don't forget that Daylight Savings ends on Sunday. Set your clocks back an hour on Saturday night before you go to bed and get ready for your days to fly by faster than ever...

I'm out of here, but keep looking around the site. There is so much going on around here. And feel free to post your comments below. We'd love to hear from you...

About the Author Molly Harrison
Molly Harrison is managing editor at OneBoat, publisher of OuterBanksThisWeek.com. She moved to Nags Head in 1994 and since then has made her living writing articles and creating publications about the people, places and culture of the Outer Banks.