✨ This Central Florida outdoor oasis is lit (with lightning bugs)

Plus, to-go drinks are one step closer to sticking around post-pandemic.

By Katie Johnston

It’s a good day to have a good day. That’s why down below you’ll find only feel-good news on this fine Friday. 

But first, let me just tell you about this awesome event I think you’re going to want to check out this weekend.

🎶 Cue: Owl City's "Fireflies". Lightning bugs are in season and lighting up the Oakland Nature Preserve right now. That’s why the outdoor oasis  is staying open late and doing self-guided tours tonight and Sunday (and next Thursday) so you can come see the amazing little creatures for yourself.  Just look at these things. How cool, right? 

What Orlando is Talking About 

🍸 Florida is one step closer to making to-go alcohol a permanent thing post-pandemic. By a landslide vote of 38-2, the Florida Senate approved a bill on Wednesday to make to-go alcohol  permanent. Gov. Ron DeSantis first allowed this early on in the pandemic to help our local eateries and watering holes that weren’t allowed to operate at the time. There’s a companion bill currently working its way through the House. It’ll need to pass there as well before it can be sent to the governor to hopefully be signed into law. Sláinte! (Orlando Weekly) 

Plus, 4 Things to Know Before the Weekend

🍿 "Sister Act" is playing on the big screen tonight at the pop-up “Carlotta’s Culture Park” in Mills 50. Tickets start at $15 or you can pay $35 to add-on a dinner from Jimmy Hula’s. And the drinks will be flowing courtesy of the staff of Will’s Pub.  (Bungalower) 

🛍 Speaking of Will’s Pub, its old pop-up outdoor market is back with a new name. Will’s Faire is now Faire of the Dog, and it’s going down outside the Will’s, Lil’ Indies, and Dirty Laundry compound tomorrow from 2-6 p.m. (Orlando Weekly) 

🎬 Cinephiles, rejoice! The Florida Film Festival is back for its 30th anniversary and kicks off tonight with a produced-in-Central Florida film, “Because of Charley.” Individual tickets start at $12, packages are $55 and up and weekend passes run around $125. It’s 14 days of 160 films, y’all. (Orlando Sentinel) 

• Related: You can get a feel of what’s to come by peeping Orlando Weekly’s reviews of some of the films on deck. (Orlando Weekly) 

🍽 If you haven’t made dinner plans just yet, maybe consider heading to Delaney’s Tavern. Tasty Chomps’ new “A Taste of…” series is currently happening there and it ends tomorrow. As mentioned before, the food series is similar to Magical Dining and changes locations every 10 days. The pre-fixe three-course menu starts at $39. (Tasty Chomps)

🎉 Winner, winner, chicken dinner

Things to do

Submit your events to our calendar.

Today

🎬 Pony up for a night of "Sister Act 1" outdoors on the big screen and some good eats from Jimmy Hulas (Mills 50)

💐 Calling all green thumbs, see how your orchids stack up at the International Spring Orchid Festival happening at Krull-Smith Landscapes through Sunday (Apopka)

🎶 Stay in and stream the jazzy ensemble, Russ Spiegel Organ Group, to your living room, courtesy of our friends at Timucua Arts Foundation (Online)

Tomorrow

🎟 Have a ball at the Ballet Ball set in 19th Century Paris (Loch Haven Park)

🎉 Embrace spring with a fling and an outdoor hang (Thornton Park)

🛍 Make your way to Will's Pub to shop local vendors and enjoy good vintage, good eats, good drinks and more (Mills 50)

🎉 Grab the kiddos and head to the science center for Superhero weekend, a celebration of local heroes and superheroes alike through Sunday (Loch Haven Park)

☮️ Downward dog with cute felines in this bi-weekly yoga class (Clermont)

🍿 Watch "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" in the dark in a park (Maitland)

🎶 Take a drive to Central Florida Fairgrounds for an outdoor festival of beers, BBQ, and live music (West Colonial)

🍿 Tune in to the Florida Film Festival's debut of "Street Gang: How We Got to Seasame Street" (Online/Maitland)

Sunday

🖼 Take the whole fam on a virtual tour of the Mennello Museum (Online)

🎵 Shop the annual Orlando Record and CD Show at Central Florida Fairgrounds (West Colonial)

🎶 Celebrate 15 years of Southern Fried Sundays with live performances by Beartoe, Jordan Foley, and more Orlando favorites (Mills 50)

⛳️ Putt-putt your way around the Celery City on this fine Sunday (Sanford)

🛍 Shop local BIPOC makers at this pop-up Sunday market (Winter Park)

Monday

🎶 Watch the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra present Schumann Symphony No. 2 at The Plaza Live (Milk District))

Saturday, April 17

🍃 Tune in to hear from scientist and author Hope Jahren as she discusses her book "Lab Girl" during the annual NEA Big Read (Online)

One more thing

Other things you could do this weekend include dropping some serious coin to staycation at this prehistoric home out by Champions Gate and speaking of a lot of money and my favorite pastime of looking at houses on the internet, Shaq's Isleworth mansion has officially dropped to a cool $16.5 million.

Okay folks, that'll do it for today. I'll see you in your earbuds on Monday and your inboxes on Tuesday. Don't forget to reach out if you've got ideas for the podcast, katie@pulp.town, subject line: For your podcast.

– ✌️ Katie at Pulptown

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