Category: Recurring Events

Sip & Clip: Satsumas, Kombucha, and More!

Debbie Roney Smith on

Starting tomorrow, JoNina Farm in Georgia will be holding a series of special events called the Sip & Clip! Although a bit of a drive, the experience of harvesting (also called clipping) your own satsumas and sipping fresh-pressed juice and/or kombucha is one-of-a-kind. The farm is also offering a photo opportunity with their old farm tractors. Head up to the beautiful Ochlocknee area on the following dates with your family for a fun, affordable day-trip!

  • Dates (from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m.) 
    • November 14th and 15th
    • November 21st and 22nd
    • December 5th and 6th
    • 12th and 13th 

Eagle Eye’s Mini Food Fair

Debbie Roney Smith on

The cancellation of the National Peanut Festival in Dothan, GA was a sad announcement for many reasons, not least because of the missed opportunity for fair food. Luckily, some community businesses came together behind store Eagle Eye Outfitters to create a weekend Mini Food Fair! They’ve been holding the event with the support of Dothan City every Saturday since October 17th. The last scheduled mini-fair is this weekend, November 14th. It will run from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and is a family-friendly event; be sure to bring cash as some vendors do not accept cards. 

To keep up-to-date with vendor changes, weather alerts, and more, please visit the Facebook event page by clicking HERE. 

43rd Annual Seafood Festival Is BACK

Debbie Roney Smith on
2020 POSTER ARTWORK BY: JAIME SHEVAT
@JaimeShevatArt

Although it was delayed more than a month due to COVID-19 precautions, the 43rd Annual Pensacola Seafood Festival is back and better than ever this weekend!

Produced by Fiesta Pensacola, this is a free three-day festival that will be held in Downtown Pensacola’s Seville Square and Fountain Park. From November 6th to 8th, this family-friendly festival will include a variety of foods, arts and crafts, and live entertainment. For the specifics of the day-to-day schedule, visit their official festival website HERE! 

National Stress Awareness Day

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National Stress Awareness Day is run by the International Stress Management Association (ISMA), and is held annually on November 4th. 

So what exactly is stress? Stress is your body’s reaction to pressure from a certain situation or event. It can be a physical, mental, or emotional reaction. It can be incredibly debilitating to deal with any kind of stress on a regular basis. The goal of this annual day of awareness is to raise awareness of stress, its impact, reduce stigma, and promote the importance of well-being and stress reduction for individuals and organizations.

Looking for more information? Try this site to begin your search: CLICK HERE!

Reminder: Daylight Saving Time Ends

Debbie Roney Smith on

Daylight saving time ends this Sunday, November 1 at 2 AM! Clocks will fall back one hour to 1 AM, which means you get an extra hour of sleep on Sunday morning – a great way to start the month. 

The only state not affected by the end of Daylight Saving Time in Hawaii which has never observed daylight saving. This is because the island state is farther south and therefore close enough to the equator that there is no significant difference in sunrise and sunset times across the year. Additionally, some areas of Arizona might now follow the fallback. 

Daylight Saving Time essentially shifts an hour of daylight from the morning to the evening so the end of DST adds an hour to the beginning of the day instead of the end. Implemented as a measure to conserve energy but research clearly states that any conservation is negated by increased energy usage in the morning. 

Fun fact: the addition of an hour to either morning or evening, aka the switch, is always done on the weekend to limit the amount of potential disruption. Additional fun fact: this year, the reversal of DST falls on the night of Halloween, something that will not happen again until 2026! 

Blue Springs Recreation Area open weekends only now

Debbie Roney Smith on

Blue Springs Recreation Area came to its seasonal end last Sunday, August. 9th.  Saturday, August 15th will be the next time it is open now that the brief weekends-only schedule starts. The Saturday and Sunday schedule continues until Labor Day, Monday, September 7th, with the park open that Monday to finish up the summer season of this year.

The park is expected to open on schedule next Memorial Day, with a lot of improvements to be completed during the traditional closed period of the year. While it’s closed this time around, crews will be temporarily drawing down the water six feet so that workers can complete the park’s new headwall. That work is expected to begin in October or November. Until it starts, the boat ramp at Hunter’s Fish Camp Road will stay open to the public although the swimming area will be closed. Once the headwall construction period begins, it will be closed as well until all the work is completed. The headwall will be made of landscape block and replaces the sandbag array that currently serves the purpose of establishing an end to the water in order to keep it from washing up and eroding the maintained area of the popular recreational area on Merritt’s Mill Pond. The headwall structure will also provide a safer entry-and-exit experience for swimmers. Additionally, the county is installing better steps for both side of the diving board platform, giving users more surface area on the approach, adding a wading area for the youngest children, and a redesign of some terraced area so that there will more flat space along the edge of the waterway.

The changes taking place this year will expand the recreational area’s fulfillment of American Disability Act standards, as well, with extra sidewalk rails installed nearer the water’s edge.

Pinspiration in PCB

Debbie Roney Smith on

Pinspiration is located in Panama City Beach on 2423 Thomas Drive, You can call 850-249-6040 for more information or click this link to be taken to the website https://www.pinspiration.com/locations/panama-city-beach/

Pinspiration is a franchise that is in 6 states. Florida has several locations and thankfully one is located her in the Panhandle. They believe that everyone is an artist, regardless of age, background, and skill level. This is for kids, adults, men, women, individuals, groups, skilled artists, and beginners. They have a bar onsite as well as a menu of snacks and nonalcoholic beverages. They give you all the supplies and materials you need to make an individual project on-the-spot. Makers work from tutorials so you don’t have to take a class.  Make what you want, when you want it! They have walk in or you can reserve your spot. Take a group and each of you can pick a different craft to do!

They are even offering camps for the summer. A maximum of 10 kids are allowed in camp each day. Temperature checks and hand washing are also in place. The themes being offered throughout the summer include pets, glow party, space, and Disney.  Campers complete three projects per day, getting to personalize each one. Camps are Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. and kids who are five through 12 years old can participate.

So get those creative juices flowing and plan to visit this great place soon!

 

Music and Munchies at the Market~June 13th

Debbie Roney Smith on

St. Andrews will host Music and Munchies at the Market this Saturday, June 13th. The farmers market will be from 8:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. Music will start at 10:00 a.m. and will be provided by Temple Johnson Woodrum, courtesy of Floriopolis. The food court will feature five food trucks. The food trucks at the market will be All Wrapped Up, Gelato Love, Philippine Cuisine, The Grub Slinger and Crepes and Cream.

COVID-19 testing in Jackson County starting June 11th

Debbie Roney Smith on

COVID-19 testing locations, times, and directions for Jackson County.

The Florida Department of Health in Jackson County will be offering COVID-19 testing in the following locations on the following dates and times:
Thursday, June 11th at the Graceville Civic Center located at 5224 Brown St., Graceville from 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM.
Tuesday, June 16th at Alford Community Center located at 2562 Park Ave, Alford from 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM.
Thursday, June 18th at the Jackson County Health Department located at 4979 Healthy Way, Marianna from 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM.
Tuesday, June 23rd at the Jackson County Health Department located at 4979 Healthy Way, Marianna from 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM.
Thursday, June 25th at the Jackson County Health Department located at 4979 Healthy Way, Marianna from 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM.

You do not have to have symptoms of COVID-19 to be tested. The testing will be in a drive through format, will be performed with a nasopharyngeal swab and will be provided at no cost to the individual. They ask that people bring a valid form of identification and be prepared to answer a few questions related to their health and place of employment. They anticipate results to be available within 48 hours from the date of collection. Cloth face masks will be available at no cost to individuals who would like them. No appointment is necessary and testing is available to anyone who is age 18 and older.

If you have any questions, please contact the Jackson County Health Department’s COVID-19 call center at 850-526-2412 and press #1 to be connected a staff member.

Curbside Pickup Service at Library in Marianna

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Jackson County Public Library in Marianna Announces Curbside Pickup Service. Effective immediately, library patrons can select items for checkout at the library and pick them up through contactless curbside pickup. Pickup hours are from 9:00 a.m. until 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.

This is how it works:
1. If necessary, look at the Library Online Catalog to get titles, authors, etc. of items you would like to borrow. Library staff are unable to select items for you.
2. Go to www.jcplfl.org and fill out the Curbside Pickup request form.
3. Fill in the form with the appropriate information (card number, name, and phone number) and then list the items you wish to borrow. Be sure to click on “submit” when the form has been completed.
4. The available items will be pulled, checked out, put into a bag, and labeled with the name of the cardholder. We can have your items ready for pickup within 24 hours. There is a limit of 5 items per card and 5 DVDs per household.
5. Library staff will call to inform you that your pickup is ready.
6. When you arrive for pickup, call (850) 482-9631 to let us know you have arrived, and open your trunk.
7. A staff person will take the bag and deposit it into the open trunk. Depositing items into the trunk will allow us to maintain the requisite social distance of at least six feet.
If you do not have internet access, you may call the library at (850) 482-9631 to request items. When you are ready to return items, deposit them into one of the library’s outdoor book drops. This includes DVDs and audiobooks for the time being. You may then repeat the process. Returned items will be quarantined for a period of 72 hours. If cardholder owes more than $10 in fines and fees, they will be informed of the amount and allowed to check out, but will not be allowed additional checkouts until payment arrangements are made with library staff.