
12.10-12.17.14
Thriving

Maybe you need a little help. Get the Thrive Box, leveraging the contagious nature of social interaction to create happiness at home, at work, anywhere. Inca Tea opens their first cafe store, which should make anyone happy. Near West Theatre is thriving and about to move into their new space in Gordon Square; we’ve got the sneak peek video.
One tangible way to help our region thrive is to ShopLOCAL, and CoolCleveland’s online guide points you to hundreds of local, independent shops, helping make your holiday gifting corporate-free. Supporting local music is another way, and this week some of our favorites are playing out: The Lighthouse & the Whaler, The Woodchoppers Ball, Apollo’s Fire & the re-formed Rhondas. Catch a collection of holiday classics at Cleveland Cinemas, shop Cleveland Heights at Cedar-Lee’s Holiday Stroll and The Coventry Village Holiday Festival. Mahall’s celebrates their 90th, Trinity sings the Messiah, Chris Isaak plays TKS, Pitch-black Brass Band plays the Music Box, and Rudolph plays the Akron Civic, still going strong.
Mansfield’s voice is currently one of the strongest in the region, and he’s been posting almost daily on CoolCleveland. His most recent posts, on Frank Jackson, LeBron James, John Kasich and Eric Holder, are linked below. We’re going to have to figure this out if everyone around here is going to thrive. –Thomas Mulready

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Photo by Elisa Vietri

“Come on Get Happy” may be the theme to ’70s sitcom The Partridge Family, but it’s also the mission statement behind Thrive Cleveland, which calls itself the world’s first happiness incubator.
The Cleveland-based, 20-person creative team embraces the contagious nature of social connections to help people connect to their own happiness and vitalize families and communities…
More from John Benson here
Ready to thrive in two-oh-one-five? Consider CoolCleveland Sponsored Links, Sponsored Features and Sponsored Videos. Info@CoolCleveland.com
SPONSORED: Hear the renowned Old Stone Choir and orchestra perform songs and carols that focus on the birth of the King, including Ave Rex (Hail the King!) by William Mathias. Sun 12/14 @ 10:00am at Old Stone Church on Public Square. Free validated and valet parking. www.OldStoneChurch.org.

Time was — and not very long ago at that — professional athletes were expected to remain mute in regards to any socially or politically controversial issues… and almost to a man (or woman) they complied…
More of Mansfield’s coverage on Cleveland Police & Tamir Rice:
More from Mansfield Frazier here
SPONSORED: Explorer Series The Cleveland Museum of Natural History welcomes Dr. H. Gregory McDonald of the National Park Service discussing The Snowmastodon Project, uncovering a treasure trove of Ice Age animal fossils that forever changed our understanding of mammoths and mastodons. Fri 12/12 at 7PM with music/appetizers at 5:30PM. CMNH.org.

Inca Tea officially opened its first cafe at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport on the busiest travel day in the nation on Wed 11/26, the day before Thanksgiving. The beautiful store was designed, fabricated and installed by new, local firm R/S Design.
“The first week was good. It hit all of our expectations as far as the amount of people we wanted to reach…”
More from Kendall Embrescia-Hridel here

Visit the festive Kamm’s Corners Farmers Market indoor Holiday Market on Sun 12/14 @ 10:00am – 1:00pm. In addition to their usual great line up of specialty foods including meats, eggs, cheese, bread, pasta, sweets, jellies, hot sauces and chips, there will be several artisan vendors with one of a kind gifts!
This is the final market of 2014! Shop local and be sure to drop by the Cretan Center at 3853 West 168th St, just off Lorain Avenue behind Chipotle.


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Will vinyl ever go out of style? We’d like to think not, but even if you aren’t in the market for 45s, we have a guide of places to buy tunes for that music lover in your life. And, as always, browse our ShopLOCAL Guide for the best places to shop, locally. Also, this weekend is prime shopping time, as evidenced by the many pop-up events happening below.

Sandwich: The Mighty Macaroni Melt. Creamy Homemade Macaroni & Cheese, Battered then Deep Fried to a decadently delicious golden brown, then stuffed inside Melt’s famous grilled cheese sandwich. Fresh Seasonal Vegetables: Green Bean and Mushroom Casserole & Honey Glazed Beets with walnuts. Beer: Fat Head’s Holly Jolly. A festive spiced holiday ale that warms the spirit and brings good cheer to all with cinnamon, ginger, honey, coriander, nutmeg and orange peel.
Columbus: The second Melt Bar and Grilled location in Columbus scheduled to open Mon 12/15. 4206 Worth Avenue / 614-934-6020. MeltBarGrilled.com


Read more picks by Anastasia Pantsios here

Just in time for the holidays! Students of Cleveland Metropolitan School District’s Washington Park Environmental Studies Academy will be hosting their annual Holiday Flower, Wreath and Centerpiece Sale on Thu 12/11 @ 8:30am – 6:30pm & Fri 12/12 8:30am – 3:30pm.
There will be over 2,000 student-raised poinsettias up for grabs at their Washington Park greenhouses. The high school, which focuses on plant and animal sciences, rallies around the nearly 40-year old tradition. Profit made goes to help pay for Future Farmers of America field trips and other FFA activities at the school and needed materials.


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Read more picks by Anastasia Pantsios here


WED 12/10
Conni’s Avant Garde Restaurant is back at Cleveland Public Theatre for a dazzling holiday experience w/ musical performances, cabaret style dancing & plenty of comedy. And food!
Click here for more events on Wed 12/10

THU 12/11
Let’s Address Anti-Semitism. Join the conversation at the Maltz Museum & hear how the US Holocaust Memorial Museum is working to correct anti-semitism in the world.
Click here for more events on Thu 12/11

FRI 12/12
Bill “The Sauce Boss” Wharton has been visiting Wilbert’s for years. And he still does what he did then: play solid heartfelt blues music buoyed by his dazzling slide guitar & percussion, while stirring up a pot of gumbo on stage during his set that he shares w/ the audience.
Click here for more events on Fri 12/12

SAT 12/13
It’s a holiday movie marathon of sorts at Cleveland Cinemas. See a collection of holiday classics on the big screen starting with A Christmas Story.
Click here for more events on Sat 12/13

SUN 12/14
Put on your Santa hat & get running with the Santa Shuffle, an informal race that is half bar crawl, half fundraiser.
Click here for more events on Sun 12/14

MON 12/15
Get down to the Rock Hall for the screening of Jingle Bell Rocks, an ultra-hipster/record collector sort of Christmas odyssey film, following a Christmas music junkie as he interviews various musicians & others to ferret out the stories behind these oddball holiday tracks.
Click here for more events on Mon 12/15

TUE 12/16
Chris Isaak brings his retro cool to the Kent Stage. His style of vaguely rootsy balladeering harks back to the ’50s (as does his carefully groomed image).
Click here for more events on Tue 12/16

WED 12/17
The ice skating rink at Wade Oval is open! Come out for one of the many free events, or just enjoy some open skating time for just $2 per skate, $3 per skate rental.
Click here for more events on Wed 12/17
Send your cool events to: Events@CoolCleveland.com

When something occurs as outrageous as the shooting of 12-year-old Tamir Rice at the Cudell Recreation Center by a police officer, many people try to wrap themselves in cocoon of denial, telling themselves “I wouldn’t have done that so I’m safe,” essentially blaming the victim for his own “behavior”…
More from Anastasia Pantsios here

Whatever happened to Black Nativity? If you’re looking for an African-American treatment of the birth of Christ, consider seeing Coming of the King this weekend.
Coming of the King is an all-dance, inter-racial production conceived, directed, and choreographed by Terence Greene…
More from Elsa Johnson & Victor Lucas here

The annual holiday ritual of disparate family members gathering and “discussing” the issues of the day can be as tense as it is revealing.
I’ve been through a goodly number of these clashes going back to the days of Vietnam and they always seem to play out in a very predictable manner, with battle lines clearly drawn and perspectives calcified…
More from Larry Durstin here

Quick previews & reviews of recent events
Submit your own preview, review or commentary to Events@CoolCleveland.com

PHOTOSTREAM: Auburn Records/Iron Ingo Heavy Metal Holiday Food Drive by Anastasia Pantsios
REVIEW: A Christmas Story at Cleveland Play House by Laura Kennelly
REVIEW: Celebrate with Irving Berlin’s White Christmas @ PlayhouseSquare by Laura Kennelly
REVIEW: New cast brings added cheer to A Christmas Story @ Cleveland Play House by Roy Berko
REVIEW: Mary Poppins continues the happy holiday tradition @ Beck by Roy Berko
Comment on our blog here: http://www.CoolCleveland.com/blog
MANSFIELD: Frank Jackson’s Seeming Intransigence
I can’t believe this is even an issue! Fire them! Yeesh. Standing by these guys is absurd….
Angie Schmitt
A sad commentary. Remember this, the current police leadership, most in command positions for a decade or more: approved the union contracts while worrying more about keeping police pay raises low than police performance high…
johnny
MANSFIELD: The Hammer Finally Drops
Do you have the still have the stats of the construction trade dollars regarding blacks and who the guest was on your show covered a while ago…
Kevin Brady
Read and comment here: http://www.coolcleveland.com/blog

Most clicked
Here are the Top 5 most clicked links from last week’s issue, with one more chance for you to click.

2) CareerTOOLBOX: 5 Ways to Get Unstuck
3) Art is Frozen In Time @GoodGoatGallery
4) ShopLOCAL This Holiday Season
5) MANSFIELD: Simone Syndrome: Why Cops Kill #TamirRice #Ferguson

Our writers help us thrive: John Benson, Roy Berko, Marty Bielat, Kyla Collins, Larry Durstin, Kendall Embrescia-Hridel, Samantha Fletcher, Hollie Gibbs, Erica Herbert, Elsa Johnson & Victor Lucas, Anastasia Pantsios, . And lastly, though certainly not least, thanks to our readers and everyone who partners with us. Want to volunteer and contribute your writing to Cool Cleveland? Send your reviews, articles, or story ideas to: Events@CoolCleveland.com.
Hope your season is thriving,
–Thomas Mulready

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