Some thoughts on how to allocate your valuable goofing-off resources during this long weekend:
- If you're not into traditional Black Friday stampedes, you can go a few shades lighter at Grove Furnishing's Purple Friday sale, or mix up your colors at the Rock and Roll Craft Show's Red Carpet Black Friday at Third Degree Glass Factory (and note that RRCS runs through Sunday). Also running Friday though Sunday: Fall Market Indian Days at the Cahokia Mounds Visitors' Center. Jump forward one weekend to December 4 for the Cherokee Print League's annual holiday sale, as well as HoliDIY, a new indie crafts show organized by the St. Louis Craft Mafia, Autumn Wiggins of the Strange Folk Festival, and Beqi of Beqi Clothing. Find that at 3215 Cherokee from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. This show has an emphasis on green/upcycled crafts, and is free.
- The Missouri History Museum's Treasures of Napoléon runs through next spring; in fact, it just opened November 13 (and if you want to feel a little better about our recent, crummy crime-stats ranking, dial up the podcast of KWMU's Steve Potter interviewing the curator, Pierre-Jean Chalençon, who compares St. Louis to Paris). However: going to a show early in its run means there's plenty of time to go back and and see it again (or three times).
- Another important museum show that will be closing very soon (January 2), is Joe Jones: Painter of the American Scene at the Saint Louis Art Museum. St. Louis' French Catholic roots make Napoléon Bonaparte culturally relevant in faint and echoing kind of way, but Jones was truly one of our own; he's also a nationally significant character within 20th Century painting. Our senior editor, Robert Meyerowitz, wrote about the show here. If you need added incentive, banjo player Dave Landreth will be in the Griggs Gallery playing "Joe Jones-inspired music," for the for the museum's free Art After 5 series Friday night at 7 p.m.
- The Missouri Department of Conservation is organizing a Night Hike on November 26 at the Busch Conservation Area from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. The hike takes place along the Busch Hiking/Biking Trail (logically enough) and is rated as moderate at 3.5 miles with easy terrain. Of course, night hikes are not about being macho, but the opportunity to hear and see nocturnal creatures like owls and coyotes. This is a free event, but you must make a reservation by calling 636-441-4554. And if fussing with reservations and hiking with groups of people you don't know sounds unfun, there are plenty of outdoor places to amble on your own; here are maps for the county and the city parks, if you need a cheat sheet.
- Thanksgiving is a food holiday ... and yes, despite the headline, there's nothing about food here! For that, I refer you to the talented George Mahe, our food editor, who blogs over at Relish.
