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We know, the beginning of the work week sucks. But if you take a quick look at the calendar, you'll see we're off to a pretty good week of art events, sports games, dance parties, and more. Here are our must-see events from now to the weekend...
Monday, December 3: Chill @ W Scottsdale We miss out on a lot of customary winter activities in Phoenix. Most of these activities (like shoveling your car out of snow or dealing with Seasonal Affective Disorder) aren't worth missing. One of the few that we actually do feel deprived of is the outdoor skating rink, which -- if a childhood of watching Christmas specials have taught us anything -- is a critical element of social lives everywhere where they have actual season.
This is why we're watching the experiment going on at Scottsdale's W Hotel, 7227 East Camelback Road. The hotel has converted its rooftop pool into a 2100-square-foot ice skating rink and dubbed it with the decidedly unpretentious moniker Chill. Since no ice skating jaunt is complete without cocktails, the hotel will also be serving specialty winter sips. -- By Ed Kummerer
Wednesday, December 5: Phoestivus 2012 @ Downtown Phoenix Public Market Most of us know about Festivus from the Seinfeld episode where the celebration "for the rest of us" is the favored way to celebrate the holidays without the pressures of commercialism or specific religious beliefs. The folks of Get Your PHX and the Phoenix Public Market give the festivities a "shop local" spin with Phoestivus on Wednesday, December 5.
While Festivus was a great backdrop for Costanza hilarity, Seinfeld writer Daniel O'Keefe experienced it as family tradition before penning it into the pop culture vernacular. The world's largest Phoestivus pole, the Airing of Grievances, and the Feats of Strength will all take place amidst local vendors, food trucks, and holiday music. One thing the O'Keefe's didn't have: Phoestivus Ale, a special seasonal brew by the Phoenix Ale Brewery that'll be available. -- By Jose Gonzalez
Thursday December 6: Warren Miller's Flow State Screening @ Herberger Theater Center The flow state is known by many other names -- the runner's high, the groove, the center, the zone. In the flow state, it's said, time goes slower the faster you ride, and you emerge improved, happier, more confident, and more aware. Few skiers and snowboarders get to experience it, and even less of us normals can get near it. The closest we'll get is a Warren Miller film.
Through 62 different films, Warren Miller has offered the masses a most righteous magnitude of ski and snowboard action. The 63rd, Flow State, makes its Arizona première with a screening at Herberger Theater on Thursday, December 6. Hosted by Jonny Moseley, spanning the highest peaks of the globe, and showcasing celebrated athletes like Colby West, Chris Davenport, Jess McMillan and David Wise, Flow State throws down some of the most captivating snowsport footage ever shot. -- By Zachary Fowle
Friday, December 7: Crafeteria 2012 @ Medlock Plaza It's that time of year when the weather cools down, the creative-project lists get a little longer, and the team behind Frances, a boutique in uptown Phoenix, selects a group of its favorite artisans to share their goods with the community.
Crafeteria is an annual gathering of local artists who sell their handmade knits, jewelry, paper goods, paintings, buttons, accessories, and more. Frances employees say hundreds of applications were submitted and went through a juried process that selected 40 vendors.
Pro tips: Bring cash and keep an eye out for designs by Daniel Davis and Joshua Rhodes, prints by Brent Bond, paintings by Danielle Hacche, toys and housewares by Handmade Riot, greeting cards by Miro Chun, jewelry by Alex Ozers, and ceramic and wax goods by Samantha Irwin and Andrew King. -- By Claire Lawton
Friday, December 7: Phoenix Festival of the Arts @ Margaret T. Hance Park Grab some cash and get ready for a display of serious creative talent. Phoenix Center for the Arts will host the first Phoenix Festival of the Arts, a three-day celebration that aims to unite local artists and arts organizations with a public arty party.
"The Phoenix Festival of the Arts grew from the realization that Phoenix didn't have its own signature arts festival," Joseph Benesh writes. "It also presents an opportunity to represent what the Center does best, which is to represent all the different art mediums."
Benesh also notes that the festival will differ from Art Detour -- a weekend arts celebration with a similar mission scheduled for March 2 and 3 -- and will cater to all kinds of art forms, including dance, performance, and music. -- By Claire Lawton
Check out more things to do today (and everyday) in our Calendar section ...
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