Ladies and gentlemen, this is my final Getaways post.

Yes, that’s right. I’m taking a job in D.C. and leaving Baltimore. I decided to ignore that silly WaPo article about Baltimore being better than the District. But hopefully “Getaways” itself won’t be going away.

And so it seems that the Hurricane Irene found it fitting to demolish any real kind of Getaway plans this weekend.

Personally, I had to cancel a two-night hotel stay in Chincoteague Island for the weekend. Ocean City is being evacuated. Ports up and down the East Coast are expecting landfall within 72 hours. BGE’s gearing up for the worst. The Maryland Insurance Administration even sent out some advice Thursday on checking out your homeowners’ insurance policy.

So your best Getaway bet for this weekend: don’t get away. Maybe stay in your basement (so long as it doesn’t flood…).

And if you still have power, you can make the most of it and catch up on movies.

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If you’re up for a driving tour and scavenger hunt of sorts, the eighth annual Lighthouse Challenge can provide some good entertainment Sept. 17 and 18.

Challenge rules are easy, and can be found on the Chesapeake Chapter of the U.S. Lighthouse Society’s site.

Rules:

1. Get a challenge brochure, or print out the driving directions/brochure.
2. Visit nine lighthouses and one lightship noted above.
3. Get each lighthouse’s commemorative souvenir.
4. Visit the lighthouses within designated hours of 8 am to 6:00 pm both day.
5. You’ll get the “completion” souvenir once you’ve toured all the other locations.
6. Then just fill out the “Challenge Completion” form.

Chesapeake Chapter volunteers will be at each lighthouse to help visitors on their special quest.

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The Dew Tour is here! The Dew Tour is here!

The extreme sports event comes back to Maryland this summer starting today by kicking off in Ocean City. You can catch all sorts of skateboarding, BMX and other action now through Sunday. Tickets cost $24 to $29, and it’s all in the great locale of Ocean City. Double the reason to go this weekend, because it will definitely be hot enough.

But if you’re just too hot to get in the car and drive this weekend, you can catch some local entertainment at Druid Hill Park. Performance art group Fluid Movement will put on a production of “Mobtown Murder Mystery,” which sounds like some kind of synchronized swimming presentation you have to see to truly understand.

To get the kids out of the heat this weekend, take them to the Maryland Science Center’s “Bubble Days” on Saturday and Sunday. Taking part of the bubble games and experiments celebration is free with paid admission ($4 through $18.95). A bubble artist will also be on hand at the museum.

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The town of Ocean City announced Friday it won’t be going forward with a proposed gas promotion.

The town made an announcement on June 3 it was gearing up for a $100,000 free gas promotion, making it the first resort town in the country to do so. The announcement was listed on Ocean City’s website, although it has since been removed.

“After reflection, the council established that gas giveaway promotions in place throughout the local business community are effective and a town-sponsored giveaway would only be of benefit to a small number of visitors,” according to a statement from the town.

Ocean City Mayor Rick Meehan said in a statement that the proposed promotion was reconsidered by the city council and many of Ocean City’s free events should be focused in promotional efforts instead.

But that’s not to say visitors can’t get gas card offers through businesses in Ocean City. (Put away your pitchfork and spare Rodney the Lifeguard!) Many incentives are listed on the town’s website, and by checking the “Rodney’s Roadside Assistance” box.

As for those free events (because we all love free things), you can still find them listed here.

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I got a release Wednesday about the Kratt Brothers coming to the Maryland Zoo in Baltimore. The stars of the PBS series “Wild Kratts” will perform two live shows June 26.

Now, if you have no idea who these guys are, you need to check them out even on a blind whim if you have children. The brothers have been making animals entertaining on TV and during live shows since I was in elementary school. Yes, that might have been yesterday, but I was happy to see they’re still around and they’re back at the Maryland Zoo. They’ve visited the venue before (I went at the behest of my family at the age of 10) and they do get kids engaged in wildlife education.

The duo’s new animated show debuted on Maryland Public Television in January, after having a long stint on MPT with other shows. “Kratts’ Creatures,” the original show, first aired on PBS stations in 1994.

Tickets to the show for zoo members are $5 per person, and non-member pays $5 plus general zoo admission. General admission tickets are $16 for adults, $11 for children, and $13 for seniors. Children under 2 are free.

And just for fun, here’s a clip from the Kratt’s Creatures show:

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Embrace your inner 4-year-old and climb up into the padded seat of a big truck cab. Or a police car.

This Saturday, the Baltimore Museum of Industry has its big truck day event, which should draw in kids from all ages like the Pied Piper.

The event lasts from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., with lots more outdoor entertainment and half-price admission to the museum itself.

And while you’re around town, catch some lunch or an early dinner on Charles Street during its “Let’s Eat Charles Street” promotion Saturday.  The 300 block of  N. Charles Street will be closed to traffic for an event that features local restaurants, retailers, kids’ activities and live music. Food and drink prices will vary, but admission to the event itself is free. Participating vendors are listed on the event’s website.

And draw on your pencil mustache! John Waters will be visiting Atomic Books on Saturday at 7 p.m. The Baltimore-native film director will be there to sign copies of “Role Models,” available in softcover.

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Baltimore’s topsail schooner, Pride of Baltimore II, and its crew will honor William Donald Schaefer as his casket is driven by the Inner Harbor on its way to lie in state at City Hall.

The schooner will be docked at the west wall of the Inner Harbor in front of Schaefer’s statue to give a cannon salute as he is driven by the statue.

The ship will also be available for free deck tours until 9 p.m.  on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. At noon on Wednesday, the crew will again salute Schaefer with cannon fire.

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This weekend, Baltimore will commemorate 150 years since the Pratt Street Riot in 1861.

Friday will kick off with a symposium by the Maryland Historical Society titled, “Land of the Free? The Fate of Civil Liberties in Baltimore in 1861.” It’s free to the public.

Exhibitions at the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Museum and Sports Legends at Historic Camden Station open this weekend focused on President Abraham Lincoln’s arrival to Camden Station and the sites’ significance in the Civil War.

Saturday’s celebration will feature a rededication of President Street Station as a city landmark and events at Fort McHenry that reflect the events of 1861. (Yes, there will be cannon firings.) A grand procession will start at 11 a.m. commemorating the Pratt Street Riot and first bloodshed of the war, complete with fife and drum corps. Events will be going on through the entire weekend, so check out the itinerary online.

While you’re downtown, the Baltimore Convention Center is hopping with the third annual Baltimore Fine Furnishings and Fine Craft Show this weekend. About 50 exhibitors from the mid-Atlantic will show off their best designed and handcrafted furniture, accessories, fine art and crafts.

And! Don’t forget to support your local record store this Saturday, on Record Store Day. The holiday’s website features a list of participating stores in Maryland, of which there are about 20. So go find one near you and pick up a big ten inch record.

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Come one, come all (creatures, perhaps).  This weekend will be a good one to head over to Westport Waterfront for the new Cirque du Soleil show, “Totem.”

There will be a 4 p.m. show and an 8 p.m. this Saturday, and a 5 p.m. viewing on Sunday, for the show that will focus all sorts of aesthetically bewildering tricks and performances on the evolution of mankind. Tickets range from $49.50 to $225 for the event.

Another viscerally colorful event going on this weekend is the Baltimore Tattoo Arts Convention, going on Friday, April 8 through Sunday April 10 at the Sheraton Baltimore City Center Hotel. Tickets are $20-$40, and kids 12 and under are free for admission.

There will be plenty of entertainment going on as well, with music by Lazlo Lee and the Motherless Children and burlesque performances by Rigor Mortis Revue. What’s in a name?

And if you’re looking for something more palatable for everybody, there’s the Grilled Cheese Sandwich Cook-Off! (Grilled cheese is worth the exclamation point.) For $10, you get to hang around the Mt. Washington Tavern to watch top chefs and home cooks duke it out over one of the best comfort foods, and then you get to eat their handiwork.

The cheesy goodness starts at 2 p.m. on Sunday.

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Photo from Baltimore Office of Promotion & the Arts website

It isn’t really feeling like spring yet. That’s unfortunate. Nonetheless, Baltimore’s spring-like events are moving forward, rain or shine.

The Baltimore Farmers’ Market & Bazaar is opening a month earlier this year, on Sunday. The day starts bright and early at 7 a.m. under the Jones Fall Expressway, and goes until about noon (although some vendors will stay there until they sell most of their produce or goods).

You’ll find all sorts of fruits, vegetables, meats, herbs, flowers, etc.  It was there I once got hooked on wasabi peas, and haven’t since been able to find their equal.

And if you’re too lazy to wake up this Sunday, the market will be there every Sunday until Dec. 18 this year.

For a slightly crazier, hog honkin’ time, the Beer, Bourbon and BBQ Festival is this weekend too. Both Friday night and Saturday afternoon, the event at the Timonium Fairgrounds will have food, music, and unlimited beer and bourbon tastings, complete with food eating contests. Tickets are $25 to $55.

Atomic Books will hold its opening night for “Vinylmore” on Friday at 7:30 p.m. The annual art toy show is free and runs throughout April. Participating artists design, paint and add on sculptural pieces to customize vinyl art toys.

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