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Consider choosing one of these locales, as they will be donating a percentage of sales on Thursday (4/24) to the Make-A-Wish Foundation, which grants wishes of local children who suffer from life-threatening illness.

In Savannah

45 Bistro • Atlanta Bread • aVida

A Whimsical Teacup • B. Matthews • Corleone’s Trattoria

Hirano’s (Habersham location only) •Houlihan’s •Il Pasticcio

J. Christopher’s • Kilwin’s Chocolates & Ice Cream

Larry’s Giant Subs (Whitaker & Park of Commerce locations only)

Longhorn Steakhouse •Nobel Fare

Popeyes Chicken & Biscuits (all 3 locations)

Subway (Eisenhower at Waters, Oglethorpe and Savannah Mall)

The Bull Street Chop House • The New South Café

Windows Restaurant •Wright Square Café

In Pooler

Larry’s Giant Subs (Highway 80) •Longhorn Steakhouse

Ozzy’s Grill •Sam Snead’s Oak Grill & Tavern •Subway (Highway 80)

In Statesboro

Barberito’s •Blue Moon Café •Chops

Hugo’s •JaMan Caribbean Café •Longhorn’s Steakhouse

McAlister’s Deli •Pizza Inn •Popeyes Chicken & Biscuits

R.J.’s Seafood and Steak •Shane’s Rib Shack •Snooky’s

Subway (Millen & Waynesboro) •Sugar Magnolia Bakery

Vandy’s Bar-B-Q

What’s better than being toppled over by a smokin’ chick in torn fishnets while seated in the suicide section? Nothing!

You, too, can share in this distinct pleasure on Saturday, April 19 at 7:00 p.m. at the Savannah National Guard Armory, 1248 Eisenhower Drive.

“The Big LeBOUTski” marks the first bout of the season played in Savannah. The Savannah Derby Devils will beat, I mean, play, the Charlotte Roller Girls.

The Devils already wiped the floor with the Jacksonville Roller Girls in the first bout of the season, so you’re in for a good time.

Tickets at the door are $12, but you can get a $2 discount if you buy them in advance online at www.brownpapertickets.com or by calling 800-838-3006.

Youngin’s ages 8 and younger get in free.

if you are under 20 years of age, that is. Here at BlogSavannah, we don’t flatter ourselves into thinking our posts attract such a youthful audience, but perhaps some of you readers have KIDS who are under 20?

Seriously, though, check out Larson’s challenge on his blog, The City Unfiltered. He wants to know where the party’s at.

Savannah folksinger Lauren Lapointe will perform this Saturday (March 29) at Cherchez la Femme - “Look for the Woman” - a Celebration of Women in Art.

The performance is free at the City of Savannah’s Black Box at S.P.A.C.E., 9 W. Henry Street in downtown Savannah.

For information, call 912-651-6783 or visit www.savannahga.gov/arts.

It’s easy to get sucked into your computer screen for hours on end, racing the clock to meet a deadline. STOP. Really, stop. You think you’re being productive, but, as the wise Lloyd Dobler once said, “YOU MUST CHILL!”.

Licensed massage therapist Charles Dane of Savannah Massage noticed my BlogSavannah T-shirt at the gym last week and asked me if we’d be interested in free advice for our readers on which five-minute exercises help unlock computer-knotted muscles at work and at home.

Of course I said, “HELL yes, Charles. Spill it.”

Here’s what he said:

Breathing with the diaphragm will unload the neck muscles. Place one hand on your chest and one on your abdomen. With inhalation, make the belly push the hand outwards, and don’t move the chest hand at all. Inhaling through the nostrils and exhaling through the mouth will help you when practicing this exercise. Soon enough, you will do this naturally. This process is repeated over the course of five minutes, gradually working into deeper abdominal breathing without breathing into the chest at all. This is a method of breathing that many singing coaches and people who teach meditation also offer their students. It can be practiced at home to start, and eventually you can do it in your workplace without attracting attention. Start and end each day with this exercise to afford more relaxation during the day and a more restful sleep. Once you get it down, you can use it to release tension at the office, in your car or even during a heated discussion. The hands will disappear, and this self-care skill you have learned will become a vital part of your day.

Another way to release tension from the neck is through slow neck rolls. In practicing this exercise, the rolling should be coordinated with the breathing so as not to carry your head back too far. The ear should never go behind the shoulder. To start, sit comfortably in a chair with feet flat on the floor. Take a deep breath, and let your head fall forward toward your chest as you exhale. Slowly roll your head to the right as you inhale again, and exhale as you bring your head back to center. Now inhale as you roll your head to the left. Exhale as you come back to center again. Remember that this is a slow exercise. Breathing should be timed so that the ear is above the shoulder as full inhalation is reached. Again, do this for five minutes. You will be amazed at how the stress and tension drift away.

Sitting for long periods of time at a poor workstation causes the head to fall forward and out of alignment. This causes the muscles at the base of your skull to get tighter and tighter. This is one way that tension headaches begin. To get relief, all you need do is to let your head fall slowly toward your chest until tension is felt at the base of the skull. At this point, pull on the back of your head gently with one hand. Then look up into your eyebrows and take a deep breath. Hold the breath and hold the gaze for as long as is comfortable. Then exhale and unfocus your eyes, letting the weight of your hand pull the head further downward as the muscles relax. As the tension increases at the back of your neck, repeat the motions again with looking up and inhaling. It is suggested that this exercise be repeated five to eight times whenever tension builds up at the base of your skull.

There is one more exercise that will help relax and strengthen your neck muscles. Let your head fall forward toward your chest until all the curve has been taken out of your neck. At this point, place one hand behind your head and push gently forward. Using your neck muscles, push the hand backward as the head is brought back and the chest brought up and forward. Pause for a second, and then slowly relax your neck and let the hand push the head forward again. Repeat this 10 to 12 times. Your neck muscles will get stronger over a period of time.

Don’t forget to breathe!

So, I hear the Biannual Savannah-style plant swap is coming up on Saturday, March 29 from 8 to 11 a.m. at 415 West Boundary Street.

The garden site is about a mile south of Louisville Road, next to Chatham Steel, across from Garrison Elementary School.

Plant swaps occur in the spring and fall. Everyone is invited, those with plants they wish to give away and those who need plants. It is free.

For more information, call Jane Fishman at (912) 484-3045 or email her at gofish5@earthlink.net.

The National Park Service announces the Summer 2008 Environmental Education Workshops at the Chattahoochee River Environmental Education Center.

Click here to see the flyer.

Registration is open to private and public school teachers, nature center instructors, resources agency educators, youth organization leaders, and all interested volunteers. College students receive a discounted rate.

Students may avoid lodging expenses by camping at the Chattahoochee River Environmental Education Center. The students may also “camp in” at the Center’s Lodge at no cost.

Environmental Education Techniques and Strategies I
Topic: Our Shared Forests (Multi-Certification Workshop)
Date: Monday, July 7 - Tuesday, July 8 (16 Contact Hours)
Time: 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Cost: $30, materials and supplies

Environmental Education Techniques and Strategies II
Topic: Wonders of Wetlans, “WOW” (Multi-Certification Workshop)
Date: Thursday, July 10 - Friday, July 11
OR
Date: Thursday, July 17 - Friday, July 18
Time: 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Cost: $60, materials and supplies

Environmental Education Techniques and Strategies III
Topic: Chattahoochee River Corridor Interdisciplinary Field Study
Date: Saturday, July 12
OR
Date: Saturday, July 19
Time: 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Cost: $25, materials and supplies

Environmental Education Techniques and Strategies IV
Topic: Project WILD and Project WET Workshop
Date: Monday, July 14th - Tuesday, July 15th
Time: 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Cost: $60, materials and supplies

Special Workshop
Environmental Education Techniques and Strategies V
Topic: Planning of Wetlands, “POW”
Date: Wednesday, July 9th
Time: 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Cost: $50, supplies and materials

Space is limited to insure a quality experience. Complete the registration form and mail today. Teachers may receive PLU staff development credit. Your must have your Out of System PLU Form signed before beginning the workshops. Upon receipt of your registration and check, we will mail you a confirmation letter and additional detailed information.

Information courtesy of The COE Blog at Armstrong.

I hope y’all are still reading BlogSavannah.Com. Maybe with your magical RSS subscription, you are visiting us now, yes?

Today, a good friend at Armstrong made me aware of a series of presentations and guided talks on health and women’s rights called “Embodied Inequalities.”

Of particular interest to the medical community is a presentation on Friday, March 28 at 3 p.m. in University Hall 158. There will be a partial screening of “Unnatural Causes: Is Inequality Making us Sick?” www.unnaturalcauses.org, a four-hour documentary about racial and socioeconomic disparities in health care that is expected to premiere on GPB on March 27.

A guided discussion will follow the screening. The event is free and open to the public.

Here’s the run-down on the full series:

AASU Presents Embodied Inequalities March 26-28

Armstrong Atlantic State University (AASU) will present a series of film screenings, theatrical presentations, and guided discussions to mark National Women’s History Month in March and National Public Health Week in April. The series, “Embodied Inequalities,” will run March 26-28 and include screenings of Iron Jawed Angels and Unnatural Causes: Is Inequality Making us Sick? and a performance of Ntozake Shange’s “For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf.” Light refreshments will be served at each event.

Wednesday, March 26
Iron Jawed Angels followed by guided discussion.
7 p.m. in the Armstrong Center Auditorium, 13040 Abercorn Street. Admission is free.
Katja von Garnier’s film is based on a true story about a small group of women who put their lives at risk to fight for women’s right to vote in 1912. The film has startling parallels to today, as the young activists struggle with social issues such as the challenges of protesting a president during wartime and the struggle to balance family and career. June Hopkins, chair of AASU’s Department of History, and Nancy White, professor of history, will lead a guided discussion after the viewing.

Thursday, March 27
For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf followed by guided discussion.
7:30 p.m. in the Masquers Chinese Theater, Armstrong Center. Admission is $10. Advance ticketing is highly recommended. Additional performances will be held March 28-30.
This 1975 off-Broadway, award-winning play explores women’s relationships with men in 20 acted out poems. The play has earned an Obie award, the Outer Critics Circle Award, the Audelco Award, and the Mademoiselle Award. It was nominated for the Tony, Grammy, and Emmy awards. Stephanie M. Howard, assistant professor of theatre at North Carolina Central University, Elizabeth Desnoyers-Colas, AASU assistant professor of speech/communication,
Kalenda Eaton, assistant professor of African American literature, Josephine Foster, assistant professor of English, and Pamela Sears, assistant professor of theatre, will lead a discussion following the performance. For ticketing information, call 927.5381 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. weekdays.

Friday, March 28
Unnatural Causes: Is Inequality Making Us Sick? followed by guided discussion.
3 p.m. in University Hall 158. Admission is free.
Unnatural Causes is a four-hour documentary exploring America’s racial and socioeconomic inequities in health. The series premieres on Georgia Public Broadcasting on March 27. The partial screening at AASU will include segments from “In Sickness and In Wealth” and “When the Bough Breaks,” exploring two topics – the relationship between health and wealth and African-American infant mortality rates. Mondi A. Mason, assistant professor of community health/health behavior at Georgia Southern University’s Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health, and Kenneth Shane Sajwan, professor of life sciences at Savannah State University, will lead a discussion following the performance.

History of African American Drama Workshop
1- 4 p.m. in the Masquers Chinese Theater in the Armstrong Center. Admission is free.
Stephanie Howard, assistant professor of theatre at North Carolina Central University, will lead this interactive workshop that explores the history and evolution of African American theatre and drama in the United States. The presentation will include several student monologues.

Collaborative partners for “Embodied Inequalities” include AASU’s Department of Health Sciences, Gender and Women’s Studies Program, Department of Art, Music and Theatre, and the AASU Masquers. Community partners include Healthy Savannah, Georgia Southern University’s Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health, Savannah State University’s Department of Biology and Life Sciences, and Georgia Public Broadcasting.

For further information on the “Embodied Inequalities” series, call 912.961.3173.

If you were married in Savannah, or attended a wedding in this city, consider yourself lucky. While Savannah’s weather has its ups and downs, it has often been spared hurricanes, snowstorms and other weather systems that have ruined many a couples’ Big Day.

In fact, five hundred couples from around the country recently entered the “Worst Wedding Weather Contest”, sponsored by Savannah, GA and Lewiston, Maine-based FarmersAlmanac.com. And, only one of the entries was for a Savannah-based wedding; five were for nuptials that took place in Georgia. (The state with the most entries in the contest was Texas).

Last Friday, FarmersAlmanac.com judges chose ten finalists, who had submitted essays describing their soggiest, windiest, most hurricane-hampered and hail-ridden wedding weather sob stories. They are:

* Two Louisiana couples and a North Carolina couple who had hurricanes crash their wedding parties.
* A Philadelphia area couple whose wedding day plans were postponed by record snowfall.
* A Massachusetts couple caught off guard by a freak snowstorm in May.
* Couples in Minnesota, Oklahoma and Texas whose weddings were dampened by heavy rain.
* A Michigan couple whose Hawaii wedding vacation in paradise felt like an episode of Survivor.
* An Indiana couple whose reception hall became an infirmary in the wake of a deadly tornado.

The public can now vote for the best of the worst wedding weather stories via secure, free online voting at
farmersalmanac.com/worstweddingweather. Voting closes on St. Patrick’s Day, March 17, 2008. Winners will be announced by March 31 on farmersalmanac.com.

The couple with the most votes will win a romantic, seven-night, second honeymoon cruise with Royal Caribbean International, complete with vow renewals, airfare and $1,000 on-board credit.

After voting, check out the free, two-month weather forecast on FarmersAlmanac.com or watch weather video that was featured on the public television show, Farmers’ Almanac TV, produced in Savannah.

How about taking a step toward a cure for AIDS?

The 2008 AIDS Walk for Life is on Saturday, March 8th from 8:30 to 11:00 a.m. at Forsyth Park.
Walkers take off at 9:00.

You or someone you love could be at risk for becoming one of the 1 million people in the United States who are living with HIV. How do I reckon? Well, the Coastal Health District, including Chatham (Savannah) and Effingham Counties reports the third highest cumulative number of reported HIV/AIDS cases in the state of Georgia. The majority of those cases represent African Americans who live below poverty level. And ladies, 30 percent of the 29,300 folks in Georgia with HIV/AIDS are female.

For registration information, contact the J.C. Lewis Health Promotion Center at 912.236.7423.

For the five of you still reading BlogSavannah - THANK YOU! And please accept (our) apologies for the blogstipation.