Chalk Festival Coming Soon

Good afternoon, Pasadena. This is News N’ Roses. Did you know: The Arroyo Seco Parkway, better known as the 110, opened in 1940 as the first freeway in the western United States, connecting Pasadena with Los Angeles.

In today’s News N’ Roses:

• Chalk Festival Announcement

• Playhouse Village Movies in the Park

• Towne Singers Hosts Ice Cream Social Tonight

• Events this Monday & Tuesday

• Civic News

• Local Business Spotlight

  • Pasadena Hat Shop

• Weather

• Live Music Lowdown

Let’s get to it.

—Matthew Ramirez

A MESSAGE FROM FIVE ACRES

THANK YOU!

Five Acres is teeing off today for a good cause at its annual Golf Classic at San Gabriel Country Club. This year’s “Paradise on the Fairway” also marks the final celebration of the centennial of the nonprofit’s historic Altadena headquarters.

A heartfelt thank you to everyone who purchased tickets, made a donation or otherwise supported this special cause. Your generosity helps Five Acres continue its important work serving children and families across Southern California. If you’d still like to donate, click here.

THE DIGEST

Chalk Festival Announcement

The Pasadena Chalk Festival is changing things up this year. Instead of its usual setup, the 33rd annual festival is moving to Brookside Park next to Kidspace on Sept. 26 and 27. The reason makes sense: organizers wanted more shade for visitors and more room for the artists.

More than 500 artists spend the weekend turning pavement into huge, detailed chalk drawings, from portraits and pop culture pieces to full-on 3D street art. You can watch the pieces take shape throughout the day, walk around to see finished work, and vote for favorites. The festival draws more than 20,000 visitors and also raises money for local nonprofit arts programs that support underserved youth. See more details here.

Playhouse Village Movies in the Park

Playhouse Village is wrapping up its free summer movie series this Friday with The Sandlot at Playhouse Village Park. Last Friday’s movie was Clueless, and it was such a fun night. Great movie, good crowd, and a pretty easy way to spend a summer evening outside.

This week they’re going with another classic. The Sandlot is basically peak summer nostalgia: neighborhood baseball, the scary dog next door, and one very expensive Babe Ruth-signed baseball. The lawn opens at 7PM, with the movie starting around 8PM once it gets dark. There’ll also be free popcorn, photo ops, arts and crafts, and movie trivia with prizes. Click here for details.

Towne Singers Hosts Ice Cream Social Tonight

If you’ve thought about joining a choir but haven’t sung since school, this might be your opening. The Towne Singers are hosting an ice cream social and sing-along tonight from 6 to 9PM at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Pasadena.

The community chorus has been around since 1987, has about 80 members, and most importantly, there’s no audition. The night is basically a low-pressure way to sing a little, meet the group and see if you want to come back for rehearsals.

Learn more about the Towne Singers here.

WHAT’S HAPPENING

Monday (8/24)

📚 Family Storytime: Pajama Storytime: A 30-minute session of books, songs, puppets, and rhymes for ages 0–5 and their caregivers. Hastings Branch Library | Monday | August 24 | 6PM

🏃 Run With Us: Monday Fun Run: A weekly social run/walk open to all paces, with a chance to try shoes from top brands. Run With Us | Monday | August 24 | 6PM

🍦 Towne Singers Ice Cream Social & Sing-Along: Meet the nonauditioned community chorus for an ice cream social and sing-along ahead of its early September new-member period. Westminster Presbyterian Church | Monday | August 24 | 6PM–9PM

🍄 Exploring the Mycoverse: Mycologist Aaron Tupac leads this fungi-focused community group, which meets regularly for workshops, guest speakers, and book discussions. Arlington Garden Pasadena | Monday | August 24 | 7PM

Tuesday (8/25)

🌽 Pasadena Farmers’ Market at Villa Parke: Certified vendors sell only what they grow, including fruits, vegetables, fish, jams, and jellies. Villa Parke | Tuesday | August 25 | 8:30–12:30PM

📚 Little Owls with Kitty Caterpillar: Authors Annabeth Bondor-Stone and Connor White read their children’s book Kitty Caterpillar at Magnolia Court, for kids ages 2–7. Descanso Gardens | Tuesday | August 25 | 11AM

🔭 JPL and the Search for Life Beyond Earth: Caltech professor Jonathan Lunine and Planetary Radio host Sarah Al-Ahmed discuss the Perseverance rover’s Sapphire Canyon sample, which may hold the strongest signs of ancient Martian life ever found. Online | Tuesday | August 25 | 12PM

💼 SCORE Small Business Mentoring: Free, confidential one-on-one sessions with volunteer mentors from SCORE’s network of former business owners and executives. Lamanda Park Branch Library | Tuesday | August 25 | 1:30PM

📐 Math Momentum: A retired Caltech professor offers one-on-one math tutoring for students 12+, so bring a quiz, test, or assignment. La Pintoresca Branch Library | Tuesday | August 25 | 3:30PM

🎸 Pasadena Senior Center Summer Concert Series: The Silverados: The Silverados play classic and contemporary country alongside classic rock at this free outdoor concert where dancing is encouraged. Pasadena Senior Center | Tuesday | August 25 | 5PM

🎶 MUSE/IQUE: Looking West: An outdoor orchestral event at The Huntington exploring Western-themed music. The Huntington | Tuesday | August 25 | 7:30PM

📚 Diana Giovinazzo, in conversation with J. Ryan Stradal, discusses & signs Daughters of Naples: Giovinazzo discusses and signs her WWII novel following three sisters in Mussolini-era Naples, in conversation with author J. Ryan Stradal. Vroman’s Bookstore | Tuesday | August 25 | 7PM

💃 The Mixx: Salsa Mixx: Award-winning LA instructor Rogelio Moreno leads Salsa and Bachata lessons before open social dancing with DJ Salsa y Sabor. The Mixx Pasadena | Tuesday | August 25 | 8PM

Upcoming Events

Upcoming events posted regularly on our website. Check them out here.

Nothing in this section is sponsored. These are just the things you need to know. I’ll always let you know if something is sponsored!

CIVIC NEWS

Finance Committee Meeting

The Finance Committee will meet Monday at 4PM in the City Hall Council Chamber (Room S249) to discuss financial and budget matters affecting the City of Pasadena. Click here to view agenda.

City Council Meeting

The Pasadena City Council will meet Monday at 6PM in the City Hall Council Chamber (Room S249) to consider city business, hear public comment, and vote on matters affecting the community. Click here to view agenda.

Municipal Services Committee Meeting

The Municipal Services Committee will meet Tuesday at 5PM in the City Hall Council Chamber (Room S249) to discuss matters related to Pasadena’s municipal services and city operations. Click here to view agenda.

Accessibility and Disability Commission Meeting

The Accessibility and Disability Commission will meet Tuesday at 5:30PM at the Jackie Robinson Community Center to discuss accessibility and disability-related issues affecting Pasadena residents. Click here to view agenda.

LOCAL BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT

Pasadena Hat Shop

I had a 1920s-themed fundraiser coming up and needed a newsboy cap, which is not something I had sitting in my closet. After looking around online for a bit, I realized I didn’t have to go very far.

Pasadena Hat Shop has been on Colorado Boulevard since 1995 and carries a pretty wide range of hats, from newsboy caps and fedoras to Panama hats, Western styles and flat caps. And if you’re into hats, you’ll probably recognize some of the brands they carry, including Stetson, Kangol and Borsalino. There was a lot more in there than I expected when I first walked in. I stopped by specifically looking for something that would work with the 1920s theme, tried on a few options and ended up finding exactly what I needed. What I liked most was being able to actually try everything on and see how it looked instead of guessing from photos online. It also reminded me how many very specific independent shops we still have around Pasadena. I probably wouldn’t have thought much about a dedicated hat store a week earlier, but when you suddenly need a newsboy cap, having one right here in town is pretty convenient.

WEATHER

Monday

96🌡️71 |☀️| 💨 SW 8 mph

🌆 Air Quality Index: 56 (Moderate)

Tuesday

96🌡️72 |☀️| 💨 SW 8 mph

⚠️Extreme Heat Watch: Heat advisory remains in effect thru Friday evening.

Temperature readings taken from the Pasadena Doppler Radar.

LIVE MUSIC

🎷 The Riner Scivally Trio: Jazz standards, Brazilian tunes and original compositions from Riner Scivally on guitar, Mike Alvidrez on bass and Paul Kreibich on drums. Edwin Mills | Monday | August 24 | 6PM–10PM

🍦 Towne Singers Ice Cream Social & Sing-Along: Meet the nonauditioned community chorus for an ice cream social and sing-along ahead of its early September new-member period. Westminster Presbyterian Church | Monday | August 24 | 6PM–9PM

🎸 Jeff Parker ETA IVtet ‘Happy Today’ Album Release Shows In The Round: Guitarist and composer Jeff Parker performs with ETA IVtet for an in-the-round album release show. Lodge Room (Highland Park) | Monday | August 24 | 7PM

🎶 Robin MacMillan, Andrew Dorsett, John Snow, Patrick Sargent: Robin MacMillan, Andrew Dorsett, John Snow and Patrick Sargent perform at Club Tee Gee. Club Tee Gee (Atwater Village) | Monday | August 24 | 8PM–11:59PM

🎹 The Coffee Shop Jazz Trio: Matt Politano, Blake White and Mark Ferber perform modern jazz and Latin fusion, with guest musicians joining throughout the year. Jones Coffee Roasters | Tuesday | August 25 | 8:30AM–9:30AM

🎧 Turntable Tuesday: Open turntables run before karaoke, with 20-minute sets and on-site sign-ups starting at 6PM. The OffBeat (York Blvd) | Tuesday | August 25 | 6PM–9PM

🎙️ Jullanar Gamboa: Jazz vocalist Jullanar Gamboa performs standards with a warm, vintage sound inspired by singers including Julie London and Billie Holiday. Edwin Mills | Tuesday | August 25 | 6PM–10PM

THANKS!

Thanks for reading News N’ Roses today. If you found something useful, share it with someone who wears a hat so often, they’ve basically become a cartoon character. 👒

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