I've always been a big fan of locally owned businesses, but I have recently become infatuated with a corporate chain. It's a not so little red brick structure next to Earth Fare on Apalachee Parkway. Opening in the beginning of this year, Jason's Deli has become a hot spot for an on-the-go deli experience.

In my younger days, I did a paper route in downtown Tallahassee. It is amazing what you can see at four in the morning-foxes, opossums, raccoons. And then there was a coyote running across Blairstone Road. A coyote, here?

One of the many things I love about Tallahassee is that I can jump in the car and in no time at all experience a great weekend seafood festival. If you're a scallop lover like I am, this one will be perfect for you! Festival gates open at 5 pm on Friday with lots of local art to stroll through while you feast on scallops (prepared more ways than you ever dreamed possible). Friday's live music starts at 6 and can even be enjoyed from your boat if you pull it up close to the beach.

It happens a lot. You're hiking, boating, driving or kayaking with camera at the ready for that unique wildlife photo, and there it is-a bobcat, bear, or fox. You raise the camera to snap the photo, and the animal is gone. That fast. Only a glimpse. The thrill is there of seeing an elusive creature in the wild, but a photo would have been great, too, to share with friends and family.

But what if you had a second chance?

Here's a fun thing to do with a child on a Friday morning in July...and you couldn't ask for a prettier location to do it in. From 10:15 - 11:30 Pebble Hill Plantation on Hwy 319, just north of Tallahassee, is hosting this "Fabulous Friday" event. The activities are $10 (this is for one adult and one child - each additional child is just $3) and include wagon rides, crafts and tours galore!

In summer, the south pours its heat and humidity onto the land. To become attuned to it, you have to spend time in the weighty air, and sweat. Sympathy for other creatures is quickly gained, especially for long-haired dogs, who move sloth-like for several weeks.

Summer is when the south's thin veneer of earth is injected with growth hormone, sending plants into riotous growth. Abandoned yards transform into jungles, and piney woods that have been scorched by spring fires emerge as flowery wonderlands.

Having just moved across town and away from Tallahassee's college sector, I've had the pleasure of seeing a new side of Florida's Capital City. I rarely ventured too far east because everything I thought I needed was right by campus. Now that I've moved, I'm ready to start exploring again. First on the list was finding a good pizza place.

Looking for something fun (and secretly very educational) for you and the kids to do this summer? Well, just pack up your crew and head downtown to the Challenger Learning Center for the FREE monthly planetarium show. The next one will be held this Saturday, July 7th at 10 am: "July Skies Over Tallahassee," and is presented by The Tallahassee Astronomical Society. It's jam-packed with enough information about prominent constellations, stars and planets that can be seen directly above our fair city's summer sky to make anyone an instant expert! If this one hour presentation leaves your group craving more knowledge, you are invited to stay on for the regular 11 am planetarium show at half-off the regular admission price. For more information about this monthly show, as well as other offerings for kids, and adults, please visit challengertlh.com.

If you haven't ever experienced a First Friday Gallery Hop at Railroad Square in Tallahassee, you're really missing something. Did you know that Railroad Square Art Park hosts the greatest concentration of galleries and art studios in our entire state? It's vibrant, energized and constantly evolving.

Since 1985, the Celebrate America! Festival has been a Tallahassee tradition. Friends and families gather every July 4th at Tom Brown Park for an evening of fun, food, and of course...Fireworks! This year's event will feature two stages of live entertainment showcasing the Fabulous Thunderbirds as the headlining act, food vendors, craft exhibits, and for the kids, pony rides, water slides, bounce houses and MORE!