Education
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Visit California Wineries the Classy Way with San Diego Beer, Wine & Spirits Tour
Story, photos/videos by Cassie Hepler Did you know that San Diego, California wineries are the original real deal booze in the valley? Everybody talks about Napa Valley being the first but that’s just not true! It all began in sunny San Diego with those horrible jug wines, which now have a private label for some of their fancier brands. That was just one of the interesting facts we discovered on our San Diego Beer, Wine & Spirits Tour with total chill Californian tour guide Diana. Another tasty morsel of information is that California produces 90 percent of the wine for the United States which is mind boggling! To be immersed in…
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Mayor’s Masked Ball at Philadelphia’s Convention Center Raises Over $760,000 for UNCF
Philadelphia’s Convention Center boasts escalators of amusement park-ride proportions. Story, photos by Sharon Kozden “A mind is a terrible thing to waste.” Galas and balls may not be everyone’s (as the Brits say) cuppa char. I, however, would be hard pressed to decline an invite to either. That said, and while the prospect of a evening at home in my comfies, chowing Chinese takeaway and watching a flick in the cuddly company of my fur babies is a thoroughly enticing one, an occasional night on the town offers a desirable change of pace. I relish an opportunity to bust out the glam finery of cocktail dresses and gowns, wield a…
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Fulfill Your Flying Squirrel Fantasies with iFLY Indoor Skydiving
Story by Cassie Hepler, video by Suburban Men Who hasn’t had a dream of flying? If you haven’t, that’s weird and a bummer. Ever since I was like 5 years old, I would have a consistent dream of being chased through the jungle by a lion, falling off a cliff and stopping short of the bug-like smush on the ground for a good chunk of my youth. As an adult, it morphed into flying yogi cross-legged style through the air always to an old farmhouse. Where this farmhouse exists I have yet to learn however looking forward to finding it someday! Alas, I digress. But the need to fly through…
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Watch Out for Altitude Sickness in Sparkling South Lake Tahoe, Nevada
Story, photos/video by Cassie Hepler As a travel writer, there is a rock and a hard place between pleasing tourism boards and yet still remaining transparent and honest to your readers. I’ve never been one to sugar coat anything so I figured why start now? With a journalism background, it is in my blood to report the truth and also to use my experiences to help others. So here we go on an adventure that does indeed have a happy ending… Because I never drove through Nevada (without a U-Haul trailer attached), I thought it would be fun to go on a road trip through Vegas from Phoenix (not during…
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Catch a Buzz at PA’s Drexel University’s Academy of Natural Sciences Boozy Botanicals Art Deco-Era Event
Whatever lies behind Door 19 must be more mysterious than anything in the proverbial door numbers one, two or three. Story, photos by Sharon Kozden “Every great advance in science has issued from a new audacity of imagination.” — John Dewey I suspected that I was in for a wild night at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University‘s Door 19 event, cleverly named Boozy Botanicals. My vivid imagination envisioned scenes straight out of Little Shop of Horrors, all man-eating plants and specialty cocktails infused with the likes of stinging nettles or mugwort, ferns and fronds serving as swizzle sticks. Maybe my previous assignment at the Academy (Xtreme Bugs, featuring…
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F.A.B.R.I.C. in Tempe, Arizona Showcases Project Runway Fashion Designers
Photos, story by Cassie Hepler Bravo TV’s Project Runway designers hit Arizona’s “hautest” runway in an exclusive fashion show to help celebrate F.A.B.R.I.C.’s two-year anniversary in November 2018. F.A.B.R.I.C. Tempe is a collaboration to combine apparel manufacturing resources, creative professionals, co-op work space, events, industry training and more. Partially funded by Downtown Tempe, it is Arizona’s fashion headquarters. Services include design and manufacturing (tech packs, patterns, grading marking, cutting, no minimum sewing), event spaces (co-working offices, event space, photo studios, meeting space), education (classes, private lessons. fashion business consultations, camps) and resources (AZ Fashion Directory, calendar, jobs and news). F.A.B.R.I.C. is also home of the AZ Apparel Foundation, a non-profit providing the knowledge and resources to…
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Step Inside Philadelphia’s First Medical Marijuana Dispensary in Fishtown
Media members (and other invitees) check in for the May 2nd preview ahead of Restore’s official May 30th opening. Story, photos by Sharon Kozden Cannabis be true? While never imagining I’d find myself in the vicinity of a medical marijuana dispensary, that’s precisely where my Uber driver deposited me on the evening of May 2nd, when Restore Integrative Wellness Center hosted a VIP preview party to introduce members of the media, politicians and business owners to Philadelphia’s first such “house of well repute” located on Frankford Avenue in Philadelphia’s Fishtown. Finally and at long last (Governor Wolf signed Senate Bill 3, legalizing medical marijuana in Pennsylvania, on April 17, 2016),…
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A Unique, Online Gift Guide for Last Minute Holiday Shoppers
Story by Explore, submitted photos/video The year of 2018 has been our best yet for Explore! While our publisher Cassie Hepler moved across the country to Phoenix, Arizona, it has helped expand the blog and gaining more traction and faithful followers every day. We have made some new partnerships and awesome blogger/influencer friends in the Valley of the Sun to California and beyond. We thank you from the bottom of our hearts for all who have helped us succeed in this crazy, exciting blogging world. From the East Coast to the West Coast, we looking forward to exploring more and outside the USA for 2019. In the meantime, as we…
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Animatronic ‘Xtreme Bugs’ Invade Philly’s Academy of Natural Sciences at Drexel University
Sleep tight! Not on your life with this bed bug … imagine that bite. “All the winged creatures I have loved!” — Victor Hugo Story, photos by Sharon Kozden Back in the day, I recall hearing terrifying reports of killer bees on the loose and headed in our country’s direction. Alerts about their imminent arrival were as ubiquitous throughout my youth as were Judy Blume YA (young adult) books. My vivid imagination even decided these bees were specifically targeting me. I envisioned a swarm descending without warning and when least expected. Ironically, I have no idea to this day if those dang bees ever did come ’round. Just when I…
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Vincent van Gogh Pop-up Museum Road Trips the USA, Stops at King of Prussia Mall, PA
What do Vincent van Gogh and the King of Prussia Mall have in common? Pop into the Pop-up and have a look-see. “I can’t change the fact that my paintings don’t sell. But the time will come when people will recognize that they are worth more than the value of the paints used in the picture.” – Vincent van Gogh Story, photos by Sharon Kozden When I think of Vincent Willem van Gogh, who happens to be my favorite painter as well as writer, I imagine his painterly style of vibrant colors and confident brush strokes. Tulips in Amsterdam. Sunflowers. Starry nights. And yes, the Don MacLean tune, a lyric…
