Chances are, if you live in the Antelope Valley you’re either broke, bored or both. The Valley, a dry, festering collection of towns located sixty miles north east of Los Angeles is not exactly the sort of place a person would want to wind up in any circumstance. Add a dwindling recession in an already economically challenged neck of the woods to your situation and you’ve got yourself one heck of a Friday night. Inane sarcasm aside, if you’re in the A.V. you may be broke, stuck, and have nothing fun to do. Don’t’ go foraging around “Facebook” for aimless conversation just yet. The high desert has plenty of opportunity for a modern Picasso like yourself to have a good time without the service charge.
Want to go for a swim? Little Rock dam is a wonderful place to go to have a good time. Gorgeous, exclusive, and sinfully close to town, Little Rock dam is sure to give you something entertaining to do. There are plenty of hiking trails in its vicinity if you prefer to let out your inner Thoreau, plus it’s a perfect place to go jogging if you’ve been thinking about getting back those high school abs. Maybe you just want a nice quiet place to read that new romance novel you picked up at your local Barnes & Noble. If you wish for a big open space to have a good time, the dam is sure to tickle your fancy. Best of all, there is no cover charge. Although there are signs posted up around the Little Rock Dam recreation area asking for all parked vehicles to display a forest adventure pass, I have yet to have a problem spending a few hours there without one on my car (and I’ve been passing time there for years). So why not pick up a few things to drink and journey down to the ole dam? To get more info about the dam, visit www.littlerockdam.org.
Another fun and cost efficient place to invest your time is Marie Kerr park off of 30th Street West and Avenue P. The park is not just a home for squirrels, stray animals and homeless people. With tennis courts, walking trails, soccer fields, a recreation center, a public pool and an amphitheater that’s sure to rival that random collection of pawn shop stereos in your living room, it is bound to whet that restless desire to rid yourself of excess time. The amphitheater holds a starlight concert series hosting musicians that you’d never expect to see outside that ten year old box sitting in your living room. Need I say more? Go down to Marie Kerr park and get in on the action!
If you are bored during the summer months, “Thursday Night on the Square” will prove to be a breath of fresh air to you and your contribution to the American national debt. “The square” has live entertainment, cheap food, plenty of fun events, and lots of people. “The Square” begins late in the afternoon and is typically about four hours long, so you wont have to miss “Grey’s Anatomy” to show up. Located next to the Palmdale library, getting to this event won’t require any help from NASA, so put the starship back in it’s hangar, Spock.
For the superhero types, blood donation is not only a free way to get out of the house and do something engaging but a great way to save lives without all the nasty tasks of being a martyr. Donating blood is also a great way to meet people and also a great way to eat free food- yes, FREE FOOD. You can set up an appointment with the red cross directly or show up to one of their innumerous blood drives, the latter of the two having raffles, free and discount tickets to fun events and other wallet friendly fun. For more info about blood donation, visit www.redcross.org/.
Another caring and cost-free way to have a good time in the Antelope Valley is the annual “Relay for Life” cancer walk held at Highland high school. Unlike any walk, this walk is devoid of potholes, garbage trucks, and wayward bird droppings. The event, like the Israelites, is free and usually attracts a large crowd with volunteers to set up entertainment and concessions. “Relay for Life” is held overnight, so it is a great opportunity for you to get your moneys worth out of that tent you purchased eight years ago and used once. It also makes for a very romantic evening for you and that special someone. Interested? Visit http://www.cancer.org/docroot/PAR/Content/PAR_1_Relay_For_Life.asp.
Now that you’ve been enlightened about the wondrous opportunities lurking in the exciting Valley of the Antelope, I say you go out there and immerse yourself in the cultural wasteland… I mean metropolis that is the Antelope Valley. For more info about some of these events and others, visit www.cityofpalmdale.org/. Happy wanderings!
