Week Three: Nov. 27-Dec. 7
Auction Week Three begins at 9 a.m. on Thurs., Nov. 27, and ends at 9 a.m. on Sun., Dec. 7. (Note that items marked “THIS JUST IN!” were not included in the catalogue published in print and online Nov. 13. Look for more additions in the final week of the auction, which runs Dec. 4-14.) If you haven’t bid in Auction Week Two, you may still have time; those items don’t close till Sun., Nov. 30, at 9 a.m. See all of Week Two and Week Three on one page on eBay. And remember, your winning bids benefit The Children’s Home!
Photo session with your pet and KESS gift basket
Be the winning bidder on this item and CL photojournalist Chip Weiner will take a high-quality shot of your precious pooch or favorite feline, either solo or with you and your family. And just to make sure Buster or Snowball arrives in style, you also get a basketful of nifty pet accessories from KESS Artist Decor for Pets. Value: $275 (Photo: $150; Basket: $125).
THIS JUST IN!
A royal weekend at the Pink Palace: Two nights at the Don CeSar and dinner at Maritana Grille
The Loews Don CeSar Hotel is a St. Pete Beach landmark: pink, palatial and unmistakeable. It’s also a glorious place to stay, and with this two-night package you also get dinner for two at the Best of the Bay-winning Maritana Grille, where you’ll get to select from the new Savory Spice Wine Dinner Menu. Value: $1,165 (Don CeSar two-night stay, $870; Maritana Grille, $295). Good Sunday-Thursday only, based on availability, until Dec. 30, 2015.
Tarpon fishing charter for four
A fishing expedition is better with an expert aboard. For this fishing trip, you’ll be skippered by seven-time Professional Tarpon Tournament Series Captain of the Year Artie Price — in beautiful Boca Grande, no less — on June 27, 2015. Value: $750.
Brewer for a day and pizza party for 12 from Tampa Bay Brewing
Experience the glamour of being a brewer’s assistant at Ybor’s Tampa Bay Brewing Company. You and the brewer will discuss styles and determine which to brew. When it's time for drinking, you will return with 11 friends for a pizza party with pitchers of your beer and two gallons you can take home. Value: $350.
Dinner for two at The Refinery
When the chef is a James Beard nominee like The Refinery’s Greg Baker, you know you’re in good hands when he serves you his Chef’s Prix Fixe Dinner. This seven-course meal, all food and drinks included, is bound to be an unforgettable feast for two at one of the area’s most celebrated restaurants. Value: $250. (Certificate must be used by Nov. 2015. Reservation required. Call 813-943-3208 to reserve. Guests must be 21 years or older.)
THIS JUST IN!
A sonnet written just for you by Erica Dawson
You know her from her popular column, “Dark & Sinful,” which runs biweekly in CL, but Erica Dawson is also a University of Tampa professor and a nationally known, multi-award-winning poet — and for this year’s auction she’s going to write a sonnet expressly for you. “Back in the day,” she explains, “poets like Shakespeare and Petrarch wrote sonnets about love. For you, I’ll take the dead white guy out of the poem and write about anything you want. Anything. Want it clean and simple? Done. Dirty and twisted? Yeah you do. High class? Hood? I got this.” Value: Priceless.
Stay and play at Tampa’s upscale Epicurean Hotel
A sophisticated marriage of comfort and cuisine, the Epicurean in Hyde Park is an ideal destination for the gourmet in your life. With this item, you get $150 to spend on a culinary lesson hosted at the Epicurean Theatre, the hotel’s in-house classroom. Afterward, take a load off in the elegant serenity of a Classic King guest room. Past events in the Theatre classroom have included cocktail-crafting classes by Director of Spirits Dean Hurst and cooking demos from local food-scene stalwarts like Taco Bus’ Rene Valenzuela. Value: $400.
American Stage tickets and Casita Taqueria gift card
This very tasty dinner/theater combo gives you four tickets to any mainstage show in the American Stage 2014-15 season, which ranges from Neil Simon to Lewis Black to a new musical starring Matthew McGee. And while you’re in St. Pete, take advantage of your gift card from Central Avenue’s beloved mom-and-pop taco joint, Casita Taqueria, and feed your Mexican cravings little by little or splurge all at once. Value: $316 (Tickets: $196; Casita Taqueria card: $120).
A go-mad weekend in Madeira Beach
All the pleasures of a great beach town in one amazing package: a two-night stay at the Courtyard by Marriott Madeira Beach; $50 gift certificates for Daiquiri Shak and Mad Beach Fish House; a private tour and tasting at Mad Beach Brewing/The Florida Winery; a 1-hour jet ski rental at Woody’s Watersports in Johns Pass; a year’s membership to Old Salts Fishing Foundation; a fishing rod & reel combo, dry case backpack and MirrOlure baits; PLUS two half-day fishing trips from Hubbard's Marina John's Pass. Value: $1,300. (Blackout dates apply for the hotel stay as follows, all in 2015: March 29-Apr. 5; Apr. 23-26; Apr. 30-May 3; May 21-24; June 17-21; July 2-5; Sept 3-6; Dec 22-31.)
Take the family to the Holiday Classics series at Tampa Theatre
Four tickets to each of the four Tampa Theatre Holiday Classics movies in December, including Holiday Inn (Dec. 7), White Christmas (Dec. 14), It’s a Wonderful Life (Dec. 19-21), and National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (Dec. 28) — plus a treasure trove of Tampa Theatre goodies. Value: $195.50
THIS JUST IN!
Fatboy black denim beanbag chair from DOMA
Whether you’re full-figured or pint-sized, Fatboy’s rendition of the classic beanbag chair will comfort your every contour. This coveted chair from St. Petersburg’s Doma Home Furnishings is the work of Finnish designer Jukka Setala; once you sit down you may never want to get up. Value: $449.
Lunch with the mayor
Ever wanted to get up close and personal with the leader of your fair city? Here’s your chance: St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman has agreed to be CL’s lunch date at a time and restaurant to be determined — and you will be our guest, chowing down and talking shop with Mayor Kriseman, CL Editor-in-Chief David Warner, and new News & Politics Editor, Kate Bradshaw. Value: Priceless.
Waterfront fun: A river tour of Tampa with Linda Saul-Sena, lunch at the Columbia Cafe, and Florida Aquarium tickets
Enjoy a tour of Tampa’s waterfront with CL’s “Transforming Tampa Bay” columnist (and former City Councilmember) Linda Saul-Sena on Captain Larry’s famed water taxi. Four guests will glide by the Riverwalk and under the downtown bridges as Linda shares her insights about Tampa’s architecture, natural beauty and politics. Then continue your day on the water with lunch at the Tampa Bay History Center’s Columbia Cafe, with its view of Garrison Channel and Harbour Island, and pay a visit to the Florida Aquarium. Available before April 2015. Value: $230 (Tour: $80; Columbia gift certificate: $50; Aquarium passes: $100).
Tampa Bay Lightning tickets and a Zamboni ride
The Lightning are currently Tampa Bay’s hottest team, so they may be just that much closer to the playoffs when you attend the Lightning home game against the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday, January 17. With this item you get four lower-level tickets to the Avalanche game at the Amalie Arena, plus a pre-game ride for four on everyone’s favorite ice-resurfacing machine, the Zamboni. Value: $375-$500 (Zamboni ride: Priceless).
THIS JUST IN!
Send your kids to Fantasy Fishing Camp
A terrific opportunity to introduce young would-be anglers to the joys of Florida’s favorite sport. During their day at camp (9 a.m.-3 p.m.), three youngsters will get 2+ hours of training in fishing-related skills (for example: casting & knot-tying) and 4+ hours of guided fishing with a professional captain on a boat. Aspiring fishermen and women will get the chance to catch snook, redfish, trout, jacks, maybe even a shark! Value: $175. Good for a single day of camp; can also be put toward cost of a three- or five-day camp. No expiration date. See fantasyfishingcamp.com for camp schedule and other info.
You too can ukulele!
Ukulele is fun and easy to play — you can learn the rudiments of the guitar’s four-stringed cousin in no time flat. This package includes three one-hour lessons from uke whiz and UNRB frontman Noel Rochford, as well as a new Kala Pacific walnut tenor ukulele, padded gig bag, and Eddy Finn digital clip-on tuner, all from Compass Music on Madeira Beach. Value: $400.
VIP tickets for two to every 2015 CL event
You and a guest can enjoy a pair of VIP tickets to every Creative Loafing event in 2015 — Beerfest, Gasp!, Margarita Wars, Lust List, Crafts & Drafts, Best of the Bay — and probably some we haven’t invented yet. Value: $840
THIS JUST IN!
Color Mine Magnum: A seriously great date night from Color Me Mine and Cooper’s Hawk Winery
The Color Me Mine offer includes studio fees for two painters (up to a $10 value each), two pieces of pottery (up to a $15 value each), unlimited paint and supplies, and the glazing and firing. Food and drinks are welcome in the studio, but since they’re not provided by Color Me Mine, we’re sweetening the deal with a must-have package from Cooper’s Hawk Winery: a Magnum (1.5-liter) bottle of Meritage wine; a 3-month complimentary Wine Club membership; and a wine tasting for two. Value: $180 (Color Me Mine, up to $50, expiration date 6/30/15, valid at the Hyde Park Village location; Cooper’s Hawk Magnum package, $130).
A passport to the gypsy junQue bus
The gypsy junQue bus has been called "a little treasure chest" and now's your chance to check it out! A mobile boutique showcasing jewelry, clothing and accessories, the junQue bus doesn't deal in ordinary junk; this junQue is either recycled or ripped apart and repurposed to make something uniquely beautiful. Some finds will be new, because they're fun, too, but they definitely won’t be run of the mill. This package includes a $150 “junQue” passport to shop in the bus, plus a junQue flower ($150 value) good for five deals: a $25 “junQue” credit, a $10 discount on anything, a free piece of “junQue,” and two more "junQuey" deals. Value: $300. The winner will contact gypsyjunque@hotmail.com to set up a private shopping appointment. Find out more about the junQue bus at facebook.com/gypsyjunque.
Digital marketing & website analysis from Big Sea Design
Looking to create the perfect personal or business website, or upgrade your existing online presence? Spend some time with the minds behind one of the Bay area’s coolest and most progressive digital creative agencies, St. Pete’s Big Sea Design. Get up to date on the latest internet do’s and don’ts from the folks who know. Value: $500.
Interview your favorite musical artist
Conduct a phone interview with a band or musical artist of your choice playing the Tampa Bay area between Jan. 8 and June 30, 2015. The package includes coaching from CL Music Editor Leilani Polk and an audio copy of the interview afterward for posterity’s sake, as well as the chance to have a portion published in the paper. Past years have seen Q&As with Gainesville ska-punk faves Less Than Jake, Jimmy Eat World, and Tampa Bay’s own actor/musician Patrick Wilson (of Insidious fame and The Wilson Van). Value: Priceless.
This article appears in Nov 13-19, 2014.