Happy birthday Mulder, uh, we mean David! GEEKS AND TOYS AT NATIONAL MECHANICS The Hacktory (cohosts of May's Battlestar Gallatica Party) is presenting a range of projects tonight, from the visually stunning to the robotically inclined. Oh, and it's at a bar. We like geeks, we like tech, and we like bars. So, a bar full of tech geeks is really kind of a no-brainer. There will be live chiptune music by Animal Style. Also,......

Happy birthday Andy Warhol! SUMMER TWILIGHT TOURS AT EASTERN STATE PENITENTIARY Yes, an abandoned prison is scary any time of day or night. But the folks over at Eastern State Penitentiary are hoping a Twilight Tour will provide the perfect ambiance for an evening behind bars. The "Left Behind" tour features replicas of the minutiae that once littered the prison: photos, crafts and other paraphernalia that prisoners and guards would have used during the prison's......

Happy Birthday Funkmaster Flex! PHILLY GEEK DINNER AT NATIONAL MECHANICS Tonight you can celebrate geekdom with fellow geeks and scarf some quality eats at the same time. Head to National Mechanics and join local geeks for the inaugural Philly Geek Dinner meetup. Don't bring your "I-know-what- venture-capital-is-and-how-to-beg-for-it" slide show, though. Good food will satisfy your analog hungers and the drink selection will help the shy ones start geeking it up with the group. There will......

PHILLY CAR SHARE PRESENTS: BBC's PLANET EARTH / THE PRINCESS BRIDE So what if they lost the city contract to a competitor? Any company that brings in live music, local artisans and The Princess Bride is okay in our book. Sit on some of that green grass (actual condition of grass at location may vary). You'll all be very glad to know that the movie version of everyone's favorite tale of "true love and high......

Why did the Phillyist cross the road? To get to... ANI DIFRANCO AT THE MANN CENTER She is Woman. She is also Musician and spoken-word poet. She's at the Mann Center tonight and you can still get tickets. She is Ani DiFranco. WHO: Anyone! WHERE: The Mann Center for the Performing Arts, Broad and Sansom Streets (map) WHEN: 8pm HOW MUCH: Prices vary, but the sooner you get 'em, the better. SWANWELDER, LANDSCAPE PAPERWEIGHT, HAPPY......

Happy Swedish Flag Day! 2008 US AIR GUITAR CHAMPIONSHIPS Okay, awesome, we love air guitar! The TLA, on South Street, surrounded by bars, braiding and bubble-gum trees. We're also down. BUT, what really forces writers like us to CAPS-lock the hell out of an innocent word like "but" is the presence at tonight's event of Tragedy, an "all metal Bee Gees tribute band." This fact elevates South Street, Friday night, and air guitar to a......

We bring you Monday classics this evening. OPEN MIC NIGHT AT FERGIE'S PUB We haven't sent you out into the open mic world for a little while, so you should be chomping at the bit to present some of those new acoustic masterpieces to the world. We suggest downing a few to take the edge off, but not too many. Then, you'll be "improving," which might not turn out "so well." WHO: 21+ WHERE: Fergie's......

We are going to work all day, keeping quietly to ourselves. We can't wait for the Flyers game tonight. You might have read all the reasons why, but most of all, we're just excited that they have rock and rolled this far, and we're willing to stick with them until the end. PHILADELPHIA'S LARGEST SINGLES SPRING FLING AFTER WORK PARTY Okay, so we went a little overboard on the image today. But when we......

So, you got out there and voted. The results have come in and, although you may or may not be happy with the outcome, that's no reason to stay at home and pout. So here are a few things to consider doing after your workplace gab-fest regarding those results has concluded. SILK CITY PRESENTS: PAPAYERA GUAYAVERA CON JUAN(DERFUL) THE ONE We don't know what it means, either. But we know that it's supposed to......

We're all out of new ways to praise Friday. It's been a long week and we're just glad we survived. THE ORIGINAL 23RD STREET ARMORY ANTIQUES SHOW We sent the ladies over to the Armory last week, but this one is for everyone who likes a quality antique. This event will end at 6 but if you work in the vicinity of 23rd and Market, you should leave work early because you deserve it.......

Some people don't read Phillyist. We don't know why, either. Maybe it's because they don't know what's good for them. Or maybe they're busy mapping the human genome. All 3 billion base pairs of DNA. Yes, we know, billion is a crazy word. It means "hella lots." We've also included a charity event, so put on your best generous face and consider taking a chance on the price of admission, since it's for a......

Fun around town, for $10 or less: Friday: N It: Enjoy some improv with The N Crowd at The Actors Center (257 N. 3rd), 8PM. $10 Ashley Deekus: Ashley Deekus, Jesse Sparhawk, and Eichen Oaks at Brickbat Books (709 S. 4th), 8PM. Free. Why Do You Build Me Up: Drink Up Buttercup, Moneynotes, Jukebox the Ghost, Modern Skirts, and Madi Diaz at the Khyber (56 S. 2nd), 9PM. $8 Saturday: It’s International Women’s Day: Celebrate......

Sorry we left you craving more juicy commentary on yesterday's evening preview. We've added more juice to today's listings and we hope the added flavor is subtle but effective, leaving a lingering but not unpleasant aftertaste. PHILADELPHIA FUTURE SALON Most of us can agree that we want to be around for as much of the future as we can, but not everyone agrees on what it should like when we get there. Luckily, someone......

Fun around town, for $10 or less: The Music of Regret: Artist Laurie Simmons introduces her The Music of Regret, a mini-musical in three acts, as part of the ICA Puppet Show, at the International House (3701 Chestnut), 7PM. $6 Thinking Is Hard: "Critical Thinking," a panel discussion of Philly’s One Film The Emperor of the Sun, at World Café Live (3025 Walnut), 7PM. Free Drinking Is Not: Test your knowledge of The Emperor of......

Monday challenges the average human to perform incredible feats of bravery and strength every week. It is the Goliath to our David, the Microsoft to our Yahoo!, the [insert viable presidential candidate here] to our Ron Paul. We do not choose it – it chooses us. Then it abuses us. Degrades us. Makes us to feel as if our feelings, if they exist at all, don't actually matter. Yes, we will say it, because......

Yesterday's New York Times ran a rather long piece called "How Do You Prove You're a Jew?", and while it may seem an unconventional topic for a manners column, I'd like to expound a bit upon it. Have no fear: even if you don't have the time or the inclination to read the original Gershom Gorenberg essay, I'm only using it as a jumping-off point for this column, and I promise not to allude......

Okay, today marks the Day of 27th-itude. We have declared it a holiday because there are simply not enough holidays out there. On this day, it is righteous to give thanks to those upon whose backs we make our desperate capitalist reach toward the starry skies of independent wealth. Or something. We just love making up holidays. CHRIS ROCKS THE ACADEMY OF MUSIC That's right, folks, the man himself descends upon the city. We're......

When the United States finally gained its freedom from King George III, the Founding Fathers went down to the historic City Tavern and got wasted on Thomas Jefferson’s special ale and Ben Franklin’s “Poor Richard’s Shooters." OK, not really, but freedom from tyranny is a damn good reason to celebrate with a drink. That is why Cube Libre Restaurant & Rum Bar is offering complimentary "Cuba Libre" cocktails from Sunday, February 24 to Thursday, February......

Fun around town, for $10 or less: FRIDAY Famous Films II: The Secret Cinema presents a second installment of their Famous Films series, including A Trip to the Moon (you've seen clips, trust us), at the Moore College of Art and Design (20th and Race), 8PM. $7 Jeannie Gagne: Jeannie Gagne at the Unitarian Society of Germantown (6511 Lincoln Drive—West Mt. Airy), 8PM. $10 Cold: Absolute Zeros, Parsnip Revolt, and Dylan McGuire at Fergie’s Pub......

Fun around town, for $10 or less: Culture and Art: Discussion of graffiti photography and hip-hop culture by Henry Chalfant at Drexel University’s University Screening Room (3175 JFK Blvd), 8PM. Free Narco Lolo: Narco Lolo, Freaks Arise, Figo, and The Campbell Apartment at the Khyber (56 S. 2nd), 8PM. $6 Local Shots Live: Head, Nowhere, and The Mikey Potatoe Show at Doc Watson’s (216 S. 11th), 8PM. $5 The Killing: The Green Evening Requiem, Syrrah,......

Fun around town, for $10 or less: FRIDAY The N Crowd: Weekly improve comedy show at The Actors Center (257 N. 3rd), 8PM. $10 Andrew Gregory: Andrew Gregory (CD release party), John Francis, and Ian Thomas at Tin Angel (20 S. 2nd), 10:30PM. $10 Leslie and the Ly’s: Leslie and the Ly’s, MC Digga and Sgt. Sass at North Star Bar (2639 Poplar), 9PM. $10 Intertwine: Opening reception for Intertwine, with work by Brooke Hine,......

Fun around town, for $10 or less: Love Songs: Dolce Suono Chamber Music Concert Series presents Love Songs: A Valentine’s Serenade at the First Unitarian Church of Philadelphia (2125 Chestnut), 7:30PM. Free Lopez: The Lopez, The Dollyrots, and Percocettes at the North Star Bar (2639 Poplar), 8PM. $8 Jazzy: Ars Nova presents Ben Ratliff, author of the new book “Coltrane: the Story of a Sound,” speaking on jazz history at the Kelly Writers House (3805......

Every Tuesday and Thursday, we'll be posting events that are going on sale during the current week. This Tuesday post only collects the early announcements, so definitely check back on Thursday for the latest ticket news. COMEDY Eddie Griffin House of Blues Atlantic City Sat, 7/19/08, 9PM $42-$79 On sale: Today, 10AM, Live Nation Comedy Stop Tropicana Casino, Atlantic City Sat, 3/1/08 - Mon, 3/31/08, many dates and times $23 On sale: Today, 12PM, Ticketmaster......

Fun around town, for $10 or less: FRIDAY Some Art for the Wall: 5th Annual Emerging Artists and Emerging Leaders Art Auction, with entertainment by local guitarist Marisol Rampolla and an open bar, at Drexel University - Paul Peck Alumni Center (32nd and Market), 7PM. $10 There Are Some Who Aren’t?: Local author Lynn Hoffman reads from his novel bangBANG, the story of “a feisty Philly waitress,” at Molly’s Bookstore (1010 S. 9th), 7:30PM. Free......

We like to compare bands to other bands when we talk about them. We find it helps to give a good idea of what they sound like. Once in a while, a band comes along whose sound we can't define as analagous to anyone else's. And as much as we've listened to Alabama indie rockers Wild Sweet Orange's five-song EP, The Whale, lately, we just can't come up with a "sounds like" for these guys.......

Fun around town, for $10 or less: Certain Tragedy: Certain Tragedy, The Bourbon Armory, The Sweetheart Parade, and Johnny Forbin at the Khyber (56 S. 2nd), 8PM. $8 Five Bands Five Dollars: Drive Fast Take Chances, Mr. Radar, Skeleton Rock Shock, The Slot Cars, and Jessy Tomsko Band at the North Star Bar (2639 Poplar), 8PM. $5 Got a frugal tip? Don't be stingy! Send it here and share the wealth!......

It's nasty out, but don't let the weather keep you from exploring all that this city's artisans and art curators have to offer! Take, for instance, the special First Friday event the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts is throwing in honor of their new (aforementioned) Cecilia Beaux American Figure Painter exhibition, starting at 5PM. It's the first chance that Philadelphians will have to see the exhibit, plus, there will be live music and free food.......

Fun around town, for $10 or less: Jammin’: Vince Lardear and His Jam at Chris’ Jazz Café (1421 Sansom), 9PM. $2 Kill Pride: The Kill Pride, Don’t Ask, Joe Trainor Trio, Brackets & Arrows, and Sensory Whore at North Star Bar (27th and Poplar), 9PM. $5 There’s That Shack Again: Wissahickon Chicken Shack, King Cotton Rounders, Lach, and Marc Silver at the Fire (412 W. Girard), 9PM. $7 Mary Frank: Poetry reading with Mary Frank......

Fun around town, for $10 or less: FRIDAY Money Folders II: Second installment of series featuring the Philadelphyinz, DJ Gravity, and more at the Arts Garage (1535 Ridge Avenue), 10PM-3AM. $10 (women free before 10:30PM) Sing, Sing a Song: Choral Concert with Organ presented by the Delius Society at St. Mark’s Church (1625 Locust), 7:30. Free Art Is Primary: Opening reception for Red Yellow Blue, a solo show of artist Vincent McLoughlin, at AXD Gallery......

Fun around town, for $10 or less: Black Hole: Comic book artist Charles Burns reads from his graphic novel Black Hole at Borders (1 S. Broad), 7PM. Free Leave Your Mark: Participate in Collective Imprints, a community art project surrounding the Rotunda (4014 Walnut) and its mission statement at 6PM. Free (no art experience necessary) Lounging: The Friendship Lounge, Fire in the Eyes of the City, Hot Damn!, The Climb, and A Day of Defeat......