I'm excited! 👏

For the past year, I've been working on the systems that I use to build this newsletter.

I won't bore you with the details, but I will share this win: I now have the Not Bored app in the App Store and Play Store!

Right now, you can find even more events this week as well as curated lists. Premium members can see the full event list, map view, calendar view, and can search & filter.

The next phase though...that's what I'm most excited about. The events are just the baseline. I've spent 8 hours over the past week or so talking to people about how they like to spend their free time and how they plan it, and I have some ideas that I think you'll get excited about too. And that's when I'll be doing a more public launch.

So stay tuned, and if you have any feedback, I'd love to hear it!

And, if you are a tastemaker or creator who would like to get your recommendations out to the world, let me know!

Things I'm Talking About

• The cat crawl sold out in less than a day--but please add yourself to the waitlist if you didn't get tickets.
  • You can still sign up to have your cat on the route​
  • You can get t-shirts and tote bags to help defray some costs and donate to HRA
  • I will be contacting volunteers this weekend. If you'd like to volunteer, that will help open the event up to more people.
  • The cat crawl map will be in the app, so that's another reason I'm excited that it's in the stores now.
• There are a bunch of doggy swim days coming up at local area pools before they drain them for the year. DC, Prince George's County, Alexandria, and Fairfax have upcoming events.
• ​Washington Manassas Airport can now offer commercial flights. I don't see a reason for me to fly out of here personally, but it's good for Northern Virginia.
  • I've been to this airport before, to pick up a dog to foster, who would end up being my dog, Lil Mikey.
  • It does have train service through the VRE, but VRE has very limited service for commuters.
• Humane Rescue Alliance is looking for short term fosters over the long weekend. I did a short term foster over Christmas a couple years ago and I enjoyed it!

Valerie

Give your opinion, and check back next week for the results.

Last week, we asked: Did you get to any cookouts this summer? You responded:

• No (62.2%)
• Yes (32.4%)
• No but I have one coming up (5.4%)

Tried & True features your favorite go-to restaurants that have been around for a while and serve you consistently good food.

This Week's Feature: Osteria Al Volo

"Al Volo! Green kale fusilli is my favorite" Tray

Location: 1790 Columbia Rd NW
​Website​

😋 What is your favorite tried and true restaurant?

Where do you find yourself going back time and time again? Reply and let me know who should be featured and why, and share the love for a local DC restaurant.

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See all events on a map or calendar, and filter events by category, date, and my top recommendations. Choose between a monthly or weekly view.

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Looking for something specific? Check out these options:

• ​Ways to disconnect in DC​
• ​Museum parties & happy hours​
• ​Mosaics classes
• ​Pottery & ceramics classes​
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• ​Photography classes​
• ​Run clubs​

• 🎭 Pride & Prejudice (2005) screens outdoors at Dumbarton House in Georgetown, with space to bring a picnic and settle into the garden before the film starts. Wednesday 9/2. $12.
• 🎭 Catch a free double feature at The Wharf’s Sunset Cinema with When Harry Met Sally and The First Wives Club back-to-back on Transit Pier. Grab a spot on the waterfront, bring your friends, and settle in for two feel-good classics that’ll have everyone laughing. Wednesday 9/2. Free.
• 🧠 TOOOL DC Lock Picking is a monthly meetup at Board Room where you can learn to pick locks, no tools or experience required. Wednesday 9/2. Free.
• 🖌️ Bonsai Bar at Atlas Brew Works is a two-hour workshop where you pick a dwarf jade tree, pot it in a ceramic bonsai pot, and leave knowing how to keep it alive. Wednesday 9/2. $100.
• 🎭 NATION-STATE: A Live Experiment is an immersive theater piece at Dupont Underground where you’re handed a passport and put through ideological tests to earn entry into a self-declared micronation. Promenade-style, so you’re moving through the space as the story unfolds around you. Wednesday 9/2. $25+.
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Off Worque Walk Club is a bi-weekly after-work walking group out of Georgetown, built around a casual 2-3k step route with optional food and drinks after. Wednesday 9/2. Free.

• 🕺 John Bullard plays banjo as a classical chamber instrument in the Library of Congress's Great Hall, which is as interesting as it sounds. Thursday 9/3. Free.
• 🕺 Nogu Svelo! is a Russian punk and Eastern European cabaret-influenced rock band that was banned in Russia for its anti-war stance and rebuilt in New York City. They’re playing the Kennedy Center’s River Pavilion, no tickets needed. Thursday 9/3. Free.
• 🕺 Phillips after 5: Phillips Flash is an evening at The Phillips Collection with flash tattoos inspired by works from the collection, live folk-rock from Justin Trawick and the Common Good, a DJ set, and a live art criticism session. Thursday 9/3. $20.
• 🧠 Analog Dinner Nights is a low-stakes Spanish conversation night at Flor Coffee + Books, built around games, empanadas, and Argentine wine rather than grammar drills. Thursday 9/3. $29.
• 📖 The Omnibus Project is recording a live episode at the Library of Congress, with Jeopardy! host Ken Jennings and podcaster John Roderick riffing on the Library’s collections, plus a display of artifacts tied to past episodes. Thursday 9/3. Free.
• 🤓 Mahjong Open Play at Cleveland Park Library is a drop-in session for both American and Hong Kong styles, with sets provided and players of all levels showing up to play and swap strategy. Thursday 9/3. Free.

• 🤓 Beyoncé's Birthday Trivia Night at Shaw's Tavern tests your Hive knowledge across four rounds covering her full catalog, plus a costume contest with prizes for the best Renaissance and Cowboy Carter looks. Friday 9/4. $20.
• 🖌️ Spend three days learning traditional African dance and drum from master artists across West Africa at KanKouran’s 43rd Annual Conference, then catch the Saturday night concert at Howard University’s Cramton Auditorium featuring the powerful Sabar traditions of Senegal. All levels welcome, plus there’s a vendor market and plenty of chances to connect with dancers and drummers from around the country. Friday 9/4-9/6. $18+.
• 🕺 Contra Dance with Penelope Weinberger & Some Assembly is a beginner-friendly partner dance with live woodwinds, fiddle, and keyboard, held this month at the Silver Spring Civic Building instead of the usual Glen Echo ballroom. No experience or partner needed. Friday 9/4. $5+.
• 🕺 Laura Anglade is a French-born, New York-based jazz vocalist performing Great American Songbook standards at La Maison Française as part of DC JazzFest. Her 2025 album just won Vocal Jazz Album of the Year at the JUNO Awards. Friday 9/4. $38.
• 🖌️ Crown & Thread is a fabric art workshop at the Anacostia Community Museum where artist Autumn Spears guides you through turning a personal memory into a textile piece, no art experience needed. Friday 9/4. Free.
• 🛍️ Catch local makers selling their handmade goods at the Mini Markt in Dupont Circle’s Biergarten, happening during the monthly Art Walk. It’s a great way to support small businesses and find unique stuff you won’t see anywhere else. Friday 9/4. Free.
• 🎭 The Drive-In at Union Market is back with Mean Girls on the big screen, plus you can grab everything from street food to fancy eats before the show. Watch from your car or bring blankets for a picnic setup right in front of the market. Friday 9/4. $25 for cars, free walk-in.
• 🎈 Chocolate City Fest kicks off Labor Day Weekend at The Bullpen with DJs, food, and cocktails celebrating the culture behind DC’s legendary nickname. Friday 9/4-9/6. Free.
• 🖼️ The Dupont Circle Art Walk is a self-guided monthly gallery crawl through eight Dupont Circle galleries, museums, and cultural centers, each showing different work. This month including live painting, photography, and abstract canvases. Friday 9/4. Free.
• 🕺 Music in the Meadow is an outdoor evening concert at the National Arboretum featuring Daisy Road Band playing rock, soul, and funk. Bring a blanket, grab something from the food trucks, and catch live music as summer winds down. Friday 9/4. $15+.

• 🎈 The Battle of the Beast Rodeo at J Bar W Ranch in Union Bridge, MD is a full evening of professional bull riding, barrel racing, and mutton bustin' (kids riding sheep, which is exactly what it sounds like). Saturday 9/5. $25.
• 🕺 DC JazzFest brings a full weekend of jazz to The Wharf, with performances spread across multiple venues along the waterfront. Saturday 9/5-9/6. $30+.
• 📜 A World War II Walking Tour of Alexandria covers two miles of Old Town, stopping at sites connected to a Tuskegee Airman, a member of the 101st Airborne, and a top-secret intelligence facility called P.O. Box 1142. Saturday 9/5. $18.
• 🛍️ Allie Cat Antiques is popping up at Red Derby, bringing a curated mix of antique gowns and affordable vintage accessories while you sip an $8 espresso martini. Saturday 9/5. Free.
• 🕺 DMV Talent Live is a professionally produced showcase of emerging performers from across the DC, Maryland, and Virginia area, spanning music, dance, and performance. A good way to find someone new before they blow up. Saturday 9/5. $25.
• 🧑‍🍳 At this Intro to Amaro workshop at Edgewood Community Farm, you’ll learn how the bittersweet Italian liqueur ties to foraging and herbalism, then mix your own blend to take home for cocktails and after-dinner sipping. Saturday 9/5. $20.
• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Long Dark House is a new independent bookstore on King Street in Alexandria dedicated to horror, sci-fi, and strange fiction, and this is their opening day party with author signings, pop-up vendors, raffles, and surprises throughout the day. Saturday 9/5. Free.
• 🖌️ Studio Saturday with Aliana Grace Bailey is a hands-on fiber workshop led by the DC-based interdisciplinary artist, drawing on Sam Gilliam’s use of fabric and canvas. All levels welcome and materials provided, so you can show up without a plan. Saturday 9/5. Free.
• 🍾 Black Hause DC is a late-night party spinning house, hip-hop, R&B, neo-soul, and Jersey/Baltimore club. Saturday 9/5. $22.
• 🐾 CatVideoFest is a curated compilation of the best cat videos from the past year, screened in a theater where the collective audience reaction is genuinely half the experience. A portion of ticket sales goes to local animal shelters. Saturday 9/5. $14+.

• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 ADIPOSE pairs a standup lineup that won't punch down at fat folks (headlined by Griefcat) with a size 16+ clothing swap afterward at Pikio Taco. Bring 3-10 gently-worn summer or fall pieces to trade. Sunday 9/6. $29.
• 🤓 DC Cardfest brings over 100 vendor tables to Dock 5 for a day of trading, buying, and selling Pokémon, One Piece, Yu-Gi-Oh, slabs, sealed product, and vintage collectibles. Sunday 9/6. $5+.
• 🤝 The Holiday Decor Swap at MLK Library lets you trade gently used decorations from any holiday (Halloween through Pride) for ones you’ll use. Bring up to 15 items and leave with something different. Sunday 9/6. Free.
• 🍾 Béy Day at metrobar is an all-Beyoncé outdoor dance party with DJ Nah FR spinning the catalog for the Queen’s birthday. Break out the Freakum Dress. Sunday 9/6. Free.
• 🤓 Beach Party Bingo at Calico is a Sunday afternoon bingo game in Blagden Alley with drink specials and prizes. Sunday 9/6. Free.
• 🕺 The DC Square Dance Collective is popping up at the DC State Fair for a short square dance set, no partner or experience needed. Sunday 9/6. Free.
• 📜 The Socialites and Spies of Georgetown Walking Tour traces the lives of four women who worked the Cold War power circuit from Georgetown, including an ambassador’s wife, a baroness, and a journalist who outmaneuvered most of the men in her field. Sunday 9/6. $36.

🤫 Psst! I couldn't fit everything in this issue. See all the events happening over the next week!

• crafternoon in Georgetown
• sundown boat social
• Renaissance festival
• Sunday day party, offline edition
• farmers market + collage-making
• outdoor vinyasa

⚡ More events. More access. Zero FOMO.

Our premium subscribers get the full event list (350+!), weekly updates, and VIP access to exclusive Not Bored in DC events.

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Know of something cool happening? Submit an event for consideration!

* Items marked with an asterisks contain affiliate links (for which I earn a small commission at no additional cost to you) or sponsored. Events are featured based on if I find them interesting and think others will too, regardless if they are affiliate or sponsored.