You know that "IN Wilmington" ad campaign? The city is holding a contest for a new design for the official pin.

The winner gets an internship with a graphic design company, as well as other prizes.  Know any aspiring designers?  From the IN Wilmington site:

"Think you've got what it takes to design the next IN pin? Well, then prove it! The winning design will be produced and distributed during IN Wilmington Week, a 9 day celebration of arts and entertainment involving over 50 organizations IN Wilmington, September 22 - September 30. The winning designer also receives an internship with the IN Campaign and Mobius New Media in addition to their pick of available prizes including concert tickets, merchandise prize packs, gift certificates and more! Submit your pin design HERE by August 24th for consideration. "

For runners: coming up next weekend is the only local 5k I've found for the whole month of February.

It's the 5th annual Red & White Fahrenheit Fright, and it will start in New Castle at 10am next Saturday, Feb. 25th.  I'm posting this now because you have to register by Wednesday 2/22.  See here for more details.

If you  miss this one, though, it looks like March is chock-full of 5ks.  Visit http://www.races2run.com/ if you want to see them all. 

I think I'll probably stop posting 5k notices, anyway.  By the time I put out my weekend listings, the registration deadlines have already passed, so the info is useless to those who didn't already know about the races.  Maybe once a month I'll put out a list of upcoming races.

The Grand Opera House's local comedy contest has announced its list of participants.

Congrats to Brandon Gains, Freddie Heinemann, Ian Fidance, Kevin Ryan, Kyle Martin, Latice Mitchell, Mary Radzinski, Michael Gleason, Rob DeSantis, Sidney Gantt, and Todd Chappelle.

You can hear these aspiring stand-ups perform their best comedy bits at the "LOL @ The Grand" contest, which will take place at the Grand on Friday, March 2nd, at 8pm.  Tickets will be $10.

Via the Wilmington Jaycees:

Nominees Sought for Outstanding Young Wilmingtonian
"Wilmington Jaycees are seeking nominees for the Outstanding Young Wilmingtonian award. The award, in its 70th year, is awarded annually to a Wilmington resident between the ages of 21 and 40 who has bettered themselves and their community.

The award recognizes exceptional achievements or contributions in a nominee’s chosen field, organization,... community, state, or nation. The Jaycees are looking for nominees whose outstanding humanitarian efforts exemplify the line of the Jaycee’s Creed that states, “Service to humanity is the best work of life.”

If you know someone who deserves this honor, nominate him/her by downloading and submitting the nomination form found at www.wilmingtonjaycees.com under the “Projects” section, or by contacting Kelly Henley at henley.kelly@gmail.com.

The Wilmington Jaycees is a leadership development, community service, and social organization for people between the ages of 21 and 40 in and around the Wilmington, Delaware area.

In an environment that fosters true friendship, our mission is to provide our members the best opportunities for business development, management, leadership and individual training, community service, and international connections."

Synopsis of the three end-of-year music polls I wrote about earlier in the week.

Scroll down a few posts if you want to see my complete, rambling takes on each survey.  For everyone else, here is a brief rundown:

Poll #1 - TriState Indie Music Awards survey
http://www.tristateindie.com/tsi-music-awards-vote/
You don't have to create a log-in or give personal info to take this survey, and you can vote repeatedly: every 12 hours per household IP address (or work place).  This survey has Delaware bands Spinto Band, The Sky Drops, and New Sweden, and regional (but locally popular) bands Hoots & Hellmouth, Revolution, I Love You, and Dr. Dog, among others, up for "best of" awards.  World Cafe Live at the Queen is also up for "best new venue".  This survey lasts until mid-February, and will culminate with a red-carpet awards ceremony at WCL Philly in late February. My recommendation, if you see bands in there you want to support, is to save this one to your "favorites" or book marks and visit it when bored.  http://www.tristateindie.com/tsi-music-awards-vote/

Poll #2 - Y-Not Radio end-of-year music survey
http://ynotradio.net/yearendpoll.php
No log-in required, but fair warning: you are asked for personal info at the end of this 8 section survey.  But this enters you in to win an iPad or a $200 iTunes gift certificate (and frankly, you can fudge the info a little while still giving enough to win), so it's not all bad.  You only vote once in this survey, and voting ends in mid December.  Local/regional bands that you can vote for (amongst mostly national bands) include: Spinto Band, Cliff Hillis, Ike, Hoots & Hellmouth, Dr. Dog, as well as a smattering of Philly and Baltimore bands. Also, you can write-in votes for your favorite bands/albums/songs that don't happen to be included.  http://ynotradio.net/yearendpoll.php

Poll #3 - NPR Music Top 50 Albums of 2011 survey
NPR survey link
This survey asks for no log-in or personal info, and you only vote one time.  No Delaware bands are included, however there is a space provided for you to give a write-in vote for your favorite albums. Among the regional bands included are Wye Oak (Baltimore), The Roots (Philly), The War On Drugs (Philly), Jill Scott (Philly), and River City Extension (Jersey). 
NPR survey link

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Best of luck to all bands involved!

Y-Not Radio posts year-end survey.

The link: http://ynotradio.net/yearendpoll.php

The poll starts with a very lengthy list of Y-not approved songs released in 2011.  Voters can check off their top 20.  If you don't see a song you loved, you can write-in your vote. 

Page 2 asks voters to select their top 10 albums of 2011.  Page 3 deals with "best artists", "best new artists", and "best artists featured live on Y-Not".  Page 4 deals with "best video", "most anticipated of 2012", and "best show". Pages 5-7 deal with non-music pop culture questions.  Unfortunately page 8 does ask for personal information.  But it enters you to win a $100 i-Tunes gift card, and there are ways you can get around the personal info requirement.

Mostly national bands are included in these polls, but there are some Philly-region bands included, like Spinto Band, Cliff Hillis, Hoots & Hellmouth, Dr. Dog, The War On Drugs, Ike, Kuf Knotz, Man Man, Kurt Vile, Sun Airway, East Hundred, Turning Violet Violet, Illinois, Black Landlord, and Cheers Elephant.
The above list is not an endorsement of any of these bands.  I just like to comb through these year-end lists and pick out the regional bands I recognize, and pass it along, especially when there are a couple of Delaware bands in the mix.

Voting ends December 21st.

Local bands nominated for Tri State Indie music awards.

Tri State Indie is a Lancaster-based music site that, having outgrown its own name, covers music in DE, NJ, PA, NY, and MD.  They're a little aggressive in their promotional tactics (for instance: if they offer your band the opportunity to post your tour diary on their site, be prepared for them to request that you announce their name, and display their promo banner, from stage during your shows).

But I've met the people behind Tri State Indie, and they seem like nice folks who are genuinely excited about promoting regional music.  This year, they're trying a new course to bring attention both to their site and to Mid-Atlantic bands: an awards contest with accompanying "red carpet" ceremony at World Cafe Live Philly.

Here is a link to all of the award categories, and bands nominated: http://www.tristateindie.com/tsi-music-awards-vote/  You can vote from this page, and voting is only limited to once every 12 hours, per IP address.  If you see a favorite band on the list, bookmark the page and visit it often.  Note that you do not have to sign up for any account or log-in to vote - just visit the page and start clicking.

Notable Delaware bands on the list (all deserving): 

Spinto Band, up for Best Delaware Band
The Sky Drops, up for Best Delaware Band
New Sweden, up for Best Delaware Band

Besides the Delaware bands:

• World Cafe Live at the Queen is up for best new venue, and it's the only non-Pennsylvania venue up for that award.  They're up against some heavy hitters like Union Transfer, so they'll need some help.
• West Chester's Hoots & Hellmouth is up for Best Indie Folk/Americana Band, against Hezekiah Jones and Good Old War. This could be anyone's game; they're all pretty equally regarded.
• Revolution, I Love You, who are often seen on Delaware stages, are up for Indie Electro / Experimental Band of the Year, against the popular Sun Airway and Work Drugs.  They also have a steep road to climb in this contest. 
• Dr. Dog is up for National Live Performer of the year against Grace Potter and My Morning Jacket (who gave Dr. Dog their first break). 
• Philly-based Kurt Vile is up for National Overall Band of the year, which I guess is the 'Best In Show' award here.  He's up against Deer Tick and Dawes in this. 
• There are other bands up for awards that have Wilmington ties, and I'd love to tell you about them, but I have to recuse myself because of my personal connections there. 

I find it a little odd that the categories are so far-reaching (why bother to have national award categories? It's a no brainer that the Philly-based bands will win those).  Also, since voting is done by users and they can vote up to twice a day (or more if they vote from both work and home), the winners will basically boil down to who has the most dedicated group of super fans or family members.  But that's not to say that it's a total fluff contest and that the local bands who were nominated don't have something to be proud about. 
Because the main accomplishment here is not how many votes are ultimately gained, but who nominated these bands in the first place. 

Among the industry people on the nominating committee, which included Salesianum-grad Andrew Miller, are music honchos from WHYY, the operator of Origivation Magazine, Josh Landow from Y-Not Radio (the former Y-Rock's current incarnation), a writer for A.V. Club, Prefix, and Magnet magazines, the station manager from WXPN, and representatives of reputable local blogs and clubs.  So for some of the lesser-known nominated bands to have attracted the attention of these people is no small feat.

Voting is open from now until February 19th, and will be capped off with an awards ceremony and live show at the World Cafe Live Philly on Sunday, February 26th.  The line-up for this show is yet to be announced, but organizers hope to provide a mix of local and national talent, including nominated bands.  For more info about the awards show in February: http://www.tristateindie.com/tsi-music-awards/tri-state-indie-music-awards/

May the best bands (or at least the ones with fans willing to vote multiple times per day, for weeks) win!

The Grand Opera House is still searching for amateur comedians for their comedy competition.

Link for full details: http://www.thegrandwilmington.org/Community/LOL@TheGrand

The final competition won't take place until March 2nd, 2012, but the deadline to apply is November 1st.  Finalists will be notified by December 1st.  The grand prize winner of the finals in March will have a chance to open for a national touring comedian at the Grand during the 2012-2013 season (such as, possibly: Lewis Black, Wanda Sykes, Ron White, etc.). 

Note if you're thinking of auditioning but think the competition might be too stiff:  I've now seen advertisements from the Grand on Craigslist, seeking auditioners.  Obviously not nearly enough people have applied.  So give it a shot - you never know!  They won't even give you a chance to appear onstage if they think you're not up to snuff, so there's really little chance of seriously embarrassing yourself. 

Opportunity for artists - I don't understand it, but am going to help promote it anyway.

This opportunity is open to digital artists.  Just don't ask me what 'digital art' is.   Is that where you make pictures out of ones and zeros?  What?  I must be too old to wrap my brain around this concept.  Maybe you know what this all means.

From Delaware Division of the Arts:

"DE digital artists – check out this cool project! Art in the Air is a digital art initiative developed through a Breadboard & PECO partnership. The PECO Crown Lights (atop the PECO building at 23rd & Market streets) will serve as an exhibition venue. Select artists works will be on view every Friday evening for one month from 7pm to midnight."

Link: http://breadboardphilly.org/programs/art-in-the-air-2

(Side note, because I'll never be too old for bathroom humor:  when you click on the above link from the Facebook page I found it on, Facebook inserts random F's into the address before converting it to the real address.  Because of this, the link at the top of my screen briefly said "Fart-in-the-air").

Apparently there's a Wilmington chef in season 2 of Gordon Ramsey's FOX tv show, "Master Chef".

Her name is Jennifer Behm, and she's a former Miss Delaware who works both as a realtor and a caterer in the area.  She's made it into the finals, and there will be a live viewing party tonight at the Columbus Inn, starting at 6pm. 

UPDATE:  She won the competition.  Congratulations to Jennifer!

The 48-hour film-making competition for Fringe Festival Wilmington is now open for registration

Only the first 50 registrants will be accepted, and the deadline is September 2nd. 

As part of this competition, contestants will have 48 hours in which to script, film, and edit a 5 minute film (maximum), which will then be shown during the Fringe Festival, in late September.

Visit the link for the full rules and details: http://fringewilmingtonde.com/artistApplication_48hrFilmIntro.php

88.5 WXPN is asking listeners to vote on favorite artists who've appeared on the radio show World Cafe.

This was brought to my attention by long-time Delaware / Philly outfit Spinto Band, who have appeared on the show (and thus are eligible to get votes). 

Here's the link.  There's also a handy list of all of the artists who've appeared on World Cafe (and just to be clear - this means the radio show, not the stage), in case you need your memory jogged:

http://www.xpn.org/music-artist/885-countdown/vote

The only caveat is that you're expected to provide personal info at the end.  If you're already an XPN member, this probably won't matter, and XPN promises to treat your info with great respect to privacy, even if you're not.  (But might they use it to contact you during pledge drives?  Possibly). 

For city dwellers with gardens: deadline to enter the City Garden Contest is Friday, 6/17

Judging will take place on July 9th, but if you want to enter your Wilmington city garden, enter by Friday, June 17th.  Participation is free. The contest is put on every year by the Delaware Center for Horticulture, with various prizes (best vegetable garden, best flower garden, etc.) .  I know people who've entered and won, so I will say: don't be intimidated if you're not exactly growing The Victory Garden out there on 4th street - it's not that hard to impress the judges. 

If you don't have a garden, or don't live in the city limits, and would still like to participate, you can apply to be a volunteer judge for the contest.  The deadline for that is July 24th. 

DCH's blurb:

"The Wilmington City Gardens Contest recognizes Wilmington gardeners for their contributions to a greener city. Volunteers can participate by either entering their gardens, or by judging. No previous experience is necessary. This event truly brings together the best of what Wilmington gardeners and judges have to offer. Refreshments are served during judging."

To enter the contest or to volunteer to be a judge, contact Marcia Stephenson at mstephenson@thedch.org .
You can also download forms to be an entrant or a judge at  http://www.thedch.org/activities-events/city-gardens-contest .

Budding designers: come to a meeting at DCAD to learn about the American Batik Design Competition

It's being held Thursday at 2pm, at the Delaware College of Art & Design on lower Market St.  I would assume admission is free, and it's open to the public.  DCAD's blurb:

"You are invited to learn about the American Batik Design Competition. Meet representatives from the Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia and learn more about the competition and prizes. The competition is open to all designers and artists ages 16 and older!"

For more info about the competition:
http://americanbatik.embassyofindonesia.org/

For more info about DCAD: http://www.dcad.edu/

FILMMAKERS: "Draft" for the Newark Film Festival's Short Short Film Competition to be held Saturday.

I'm not sure what they mean by "draft", but I'm guessing it has something to do with choosing who gets to participate in the Short Short Film Competition.  It will take place this Saturday at the June meeting of the Delaware Independent Filmmakers group. 

What: June meeting of DIF, including the draft for Newark Film Festival competition
Where: Hearts & Minds Screening Room at the Shipyard Shops (Wilm. riverfront).
When: Saturday June 11th, 11am-1pm.
Cost: Free for members, $15 for non-members. 
Contact: ric@whatsthedif.net
Online info: http://www.whatsthedif.net/hub/

Monday is the deadline to nominate a local band for the Musikarmaggedon

The 12 bands with the most votes will be in the finals, and judging will take place in September.  Just to be safe, make sure you spell your favorite band's name right!  Vote here:



http://outandaboutnow.com/musikarmageddon

Ravioli contest to benefit West End Neighborhood House, Friday May 13th

I'm posting this a little early so the cooks out there have time to plan.  I don't know about your families, but my husband has phone conversations with his ma in which the only thing discussed is "who has the 'rigot' on sale this week".  From West End Neighborhood House:

"West End is hosting the Best of Little Italy Ravioli Contest on Friday, May 13th, at 11:00 a.m. Community members are welcomed to enter their best renditions of ravioli! Participating Taste of Little Italy restaurants will compete against each other, and community members will compete in a separate contest. The contest is a fun way to kick-off a Taste of Little Italy."

To enter the contest and get more details, contact Monica Alvarez of West End Neighborhood House at 302.888.5305 or at malvarez@westendnh.org.

Grand Opera House announces comedy contest

In October, the Grand Opera House, teamed up with Out & About, will choose 10 regional comedians to compete in a night of comedy to take place in March 2012.  The winner of that comedy night will open for a comedian on the Grand's 2012 or 2013 schedule (such as previous Grand acts Wanda Sykes or Lewis Black).  It's well in advance and I'll mention it again closer to the October deadline, but if you want to get a heads up about the application process, follow this link:

http://www.thegrandwilmington.org/Community/LOL@TheGrand