Homegrown

By: Rachel Gearhart

Saturday mornings at 8am sharp downtown Lakeland comes alive.  Tents pop up, fruits and veggies and flowers and artisan goods of all colors and varieties are articulately laid out.  Coffee is brewed and popcorn is popped.

Downtown Lakeland

The Downtown Farmers Curb Market is in town.  This weekly event is a mix between a traditional farmers market and an arts and crafts fair.  Vendors sell everything from food items and natural soaps and lotions to handmade jewelry and lawn decorations.  It’s the perfect time and place for Lakelanders to take a lazy Saturday morning stroll, right through the heart of downtown.  On Saturday the 21^st of February Kendall Nizza, 19, spent her morning wandering around the market.

“It feels really homey, you can get homegrown fruits and vegetables and also handmade crafts. People are just really friendly,” says Nizza, a Southeastern freshman.

The market gives downtown an old-time feel, almost like Lakeland is in a time where the only place to buy fruits and vegetables is from neighbors and local farms.  Fruit and vegetable sellers are among the most popular vendors found at the market.  Several of these vendors include EcoFarm, Barefoot Creek/Scotty’s Produce, Bilbrey Family Farms CSA, and AquaOrganics.  These vendors pride themselves on producing organic and wholesome produce, without the use of harmful chemicals.

This organic and naturally grown produce is also extremely affordable.  Shoppers can get three baskets of Plant City strawberries for $7, a basket of three large sweet potatoes for $2, or a bowl of four to five yellow squash for $2.  Being organic and inexpensive, as well as tasty, makes this produce an attractive option Lakeland shoppers to purchase.

“[The fruits and vegetables] looked better and were cheaper than the ones at Publix.  They were all organic and looked delicious.  You know they’re homegrown because you can meet the people who grew them,” says Nizza of the produce at the market.

Along with fruits and veggies, patrons can purchase handmade jewelry, pottery, and art.  The artisans who sell these products produce handmade and quality goods that are also unique and one of a kind.  Several of these vendors include Sunspot Creations, Mud Hut Pottery, Images by Ar, and KRAP (Kimberly’s Recycled Art Projects) Art. Sunspot Creations sells unique rocks, jewelry, and flameworked glassbeads and fish, the jewelry and glass work being handmade.  Arlene Creevy of Images by Ar takes pictures she has taken and prints them on canvas that does not need a frame.  She also restores old photographs and special orders client’s photographs on mouse pads.  Sunspot Creations and Images by Ar are just two examples of the wide range of unique and creative artisan creations that can be found at the market.

Of the handmade jewelry items Nizza stated, “It sort of awakened my inner hippie. It also made me want to make stuff like it.”

Another type of product that can be found at the market is natural soaps, lotions, candles, and textiles.  These products, like most of the ones at the market, are also organic and homemade.

“They all smell nice and they look real cool, like they look like what they say they are so you know that that’s what they’re made of,” says Nizza.

Several of these vendors include Soap for the Soul, Boondock Studios, and The Soap Magician. Soap for the Soul and The Soap Magician both feature handcrafted vegan soaps, to include soap for dogs.  Boondock Studios sells accessories made of blended media and fine leather.

Overall, the Downtown Farmers Curb Market is a fun way to spend a Saturday morning.  Attendees can purchase quality produce and other unique and handmade products.  Or they can just enjoy the Florida sunshine and see what the creatives of Lakeland have to offer.

In order to gain a better perspective of the general atmosphere and feel of the market, check out the video below. Also, for information regarding the market visit
http://www.ldda.org/Home/FarmersCurbMarket.aspx

It all Starts with a Friday

By: Rachel Gearhart

The first Friday of every month brings an air of excitement in downtown Lakeland.

Lake Mirror

The streets fill up, businesses stay open later, live music can be heard, and everything just seems to be more alive.

This event is known as, aptly named, First Friday.  It occurs in the evening of the first Friday of every month in downtown Lakeland.

First Friday is a family-oriented, free event that features a different theme each month.
For example, February’s theme highlighted the different colleges in the Lakeland area.  Five major colleges around Lakeland represented themselves with different booths.  These colleges included Polk State College (PSC), Florida Southern College (FSC), Southeastern University (SEU), Florida Polytechnic University (POLY), and Keiser University (KU).

Each school had a booth where attendees could get information, talk to school representatives, or just hear a little about the school.  Some also served food or featured other booths that highlighted special qualities and activities of the school.

Local businesses, clubs, organizations, and high schools were also represented at the event.  Palace Pizza had a food truck, churches gave out information about their service times, the Lakelander handed out copies of its magazine, and high school improv groups acted in the streets.

Put simply, First Friday is an event that showcases the best of Lakeland.

As Abigahil Ramirez, 18, says, “It’s very nice, I liked it, you get to see what Lakeland has to offer, different types of shops, what goes on in daily life, you see art, you see organizations, how people help the community.”

A local artist and his booth

Ramirez is a freshman at Southeastern University.  On February 6^th she volunteered with an SEU booth at First Friday, her first time attending the downtown event.

She says that First Friday is an event college students would enjoy if, “you like to walk around and explore and just look at things, if you like active things.”

Genesis Cordova, 18, has been to First Friday twice.  Both times she saw several people from college.  She enjoys the live music, booths from the different business and organizations, and the classic car show, describing it as, “one of the coolest things [of the event.]”

Regarding First Friday she says, “[It was] fun, [there was] free stuff, everyone seemed to be having a good time.”

Cordova was a volunteer on February 6^th as well.

She characterized the event by saying, “It just felt like family, it felt like everyone knew each other, and [you get to] meet new people. I was stressed before I got there, but it was a relief to be there around people, music, and friends.”

This event is always from 6pm-9pm, with various ongoing activities and entertainments spread throughout the evening.

Munn Park

First Friday is a perfect event for college students to attend.  It is free, showcases different business and services of Lakeland, and offers entertainment, all in a fun and relaxed environment.  As such, it is an ideal venue for college students to use as a tool to have fun and learn about the city they live in.

For more information regarding First Friday please visit http://downtownlakelandfl.com/events/first-friday/

The Perks of Lakeland

By: Rachel Gearhart

How is that college students balance academics, extracurricular activities, and social lives?  For many students, that answer is simple: coffee.

Sarah Reed, 18, says that the caffeine in coffee sometimes helps her accomplish what she needs to get done in a busy day.  Reed also claims that, “It also gives me a social life [because] I can make coffee dates a social activity.”

There is a culture that surrounds coffee lovers.  Everyone takes it a different way.  Some want cream and sugar, others simply take it black.  He may like dark roast, she may prefer blonde.  While the age-old stereotype that college students need caffeine to function is still true to a point, it is not the only or main reason they partake.  Drinking coffee and going on coffee dates has become a hip and chic thing to do.

As Dylan Gearhart, 22, says, “Coffee is a way of life. Most people’s lives can’t function without it. Some people choose for coffee to be their way of life.”

Amberlynn Drewes, Rachel Rizzo, and Shemariah Sweet enjoying cups of coffee

Lakeland, Florida is home to Southeastern University (SEU), Florida Southern College (FSC), and Polk State College. Southeastern and Florida Southern both boast on-campus coffee locations.  FSC has TUTU’s Cyber Café, a place for students to come hang out, watch TV, study, or enjoy a cup of Starbucks coffee.  SEU offers Portico Coffeehouse as a place for students to hang out or do homework while enjoying specialty coffees.

Sometimes you just need to get off campus, though.  Given that a chunk of Lakeland’s population is made up of college student’s coffee is a hot commodity.  Downtown Lakeland is home to two independently owned coffee shops: Mitchell’s Coffee House and Black & Brew Coffee House and Bistro.

Downtown Lakeland

Mitchell’s Coffee House

Mitchell’s was opened by the Harvey family in 1998.  Now with two downtown locations, the coffee house serves coffee and pastries all week, with the original location also serving lunch on weekdays.  Mitchell’s is a place where local artists can showcase their original artwork as well.  With a subdued and calm ambience that offers many places to sit and bookshelves chalk full of books, Mitchell’s has a studious and serious feeling to it.  It’s a perfect place for students to come and get some homework and studying done.

“[College students] who come in spend the majority of their day here,” according to a Mitchell’s barista, Alec (last name unknown), 17.

Black & Brew Coffee House and Bistro

Brothers Chris and Mike opened Black & Brew Coffee House and Bistro in 2008.  The brothers were both college students with dreams of opening a restaurant that could become a gathering place in the heart of downtown Lakeland.  Despite all the possible risks, the brothers dropped out of college and quit their jobs to pursue this dream.  Black & Brew boasts a menu of specialty coffees, expressos, frappes, hot and iced teas, hot chocolate, fountain drinks, soups, salads, and sandwiches.  The atmosphere of Black & Brew is warm and inviting, it produces a lively aura that is very fitting for students to gather and socialize over a cup of coffee or some lunch.

Along with independent coffee houses, Lakeland also offers a classic staple: Starbucks.  With 11 locations peppered throughout town students have ample opportunities to grab a cup o’ joe during the school day or while out and about.  With a stock menu that features hot and iced coffees, blended Frappuccino’s, expresso, hot and iced tea,  smoothies, and hot chocolate students can count on Starbucks to have the drinks they already know they love.

A Starbucks giftcard ready to be used.     

With these many coffee choices available for Lakeland college students, it should be a breeze to balance all the demands of college as well as foster a culture of coffee.