If you’ve been feeling snowed in — we get it, this is cabin fever season. Luckily, there are plenty of excuses to get out of the house this week (for five bucks or less). Bundle up and attend Ohio City’s first-ever Hingetown Hygge, a community campfire with music, stories and fun. Laugh, cry and feel connected as Clevelanders tell their stories at KEEP TALKING: A Storytelling Show. Check out local literary sensations at Brews + Prose and surprise the hunk in your life with a memorable V-day gift from Manly Mart.

Brews + Prose: Philip Metres & Anne Valente
Tuesday, Feb. 3rd 7 pm
Market Garden Brewery
Free

Brews + Prose embraces the fact that most things are better with beer — including literature. This Tuesday, see Anne Valente, author of the short story collection By Light We Knew Our Names, and Philip Metres, an Arab-American poet, writer, translator and professor and professor at John Carroll University, read selections from their books.

Metres, whose new collection Sand Opera is just out from Alice James Books, believes poetry gets closest to the unsaid or unspoken. He frequently writes about conflict and political violence and Sand Opera is an examination of post 9/11 society and what it feels like to be on the other side during U.S. missile strikes. Metres’ father is a veteran of Vietnam and he is keenly aware of PTSD and damage it does to soldiers.

“I hope that we could start a conversation about the legacy of 9/11 and in some sense the madness that we’ve descended into post 9/11. The great fear of the moment has caused an overreach that we are still living,” says Metres. “The book hopes to closely look at the impact of fear, aggression and what it leads to in hopes that we can find a way back to ourselves.”

KEEP TALKING: A Storytelling Show
Wednesday, February 4^th, 7:30-10:30 pm
Happy Dog, 5801 Detroit Ave.
$5

A great story lasts forever. It could be tragic, meaningful, hilarious or just plain crazy, but whatever it is, it gains a life beyond the storyteller.

On the first Wednesday of every month Adam Richard and Zachariah Durr hope to captivate the Happy Dog audience through true stories told by Clevelanders.

“Everyone loves hearing a good story. What's great about the show is everyone has a story to tell and there's something cool about seeing someone open up and connect with a group of strangers. I also love the variety. Stories range from being hilarious, to shocking, to inspirational, to intensely emotional,” says Richard.  

Richard and Durr have backgrounds in comedy, but the show is not limited to humorous stories. The only credential is that they truly happened to the storyteller and somehow connect to the month’s theme. February’s theme is “I forgot.”

“I think my favorite part about the show is watching people tell a story that they have never really told anyone. It takes guts to get so personal on stage, and the emotional reactions you can get from the audience can be off the charts,” Richard says.

Anybody can submit a story — as long as it is a true first person experience by the storyteller and somehow connects to the month’s theme. Story pitches can be sent to KeepTalkingCLE@gmail.com. The doors open at 7:30 with an 8:00 start time. Get there early because seats fill up quickly.

Manly Mart — Valentine’s Show
Friday, Feb. 6, 11 am – 4 pm
Saturday, Feb. 7, 10 am – 6 pm
5th Street Arcades
Free

Tell the hunk in your life that you think he’s truly one of a kind with a unique handmade gift from Manly Mart. Cleveland’s artisan and craft economy is on the rise, and it is certainly not limited to women. Most everything at the market is made and sold by male artisans. Charm your sweetie with wallets, belts, messenger bags, brewing supplies, vintage toys and more. There’s something sincere about useful handmade gifts and this event might save you from scrambling for a gift the night before Valentines Day.

Hingetown Hygge
Sunday, February 8^th, 5-8 pm
1499 W. 29th St., Ohio City (Hingetown)
Free

Celebrate winter camaraderie in Ohio City’s newest hub of art and activity. In a conscious effort to embrace the blustery weather, Hingetown is hosting a free community bonfire.

Graham Veysey and his business partner and fiancee Marika Shioiri-Clark acquired and redeveloped the Ohio City Firehouse, a set of apartments and small businesses along the street — spearheading the Hingetown Neighborhood at W 29th and Church Ave that aims to connect Ohio City’s Market District, Gordon Square and the Warehouse District.

During the summer the neighborhood was extremely lively with outdoor flea markets and weekly concerts as part of the Ohio City Stages series. Veysey hopes to lively up the winter season in a similar way with a series of community bonfires.

“It should be a good time to hangout with neighbors and meet new people,” says Veysey. “Hingetown will be alive and well and embracing the winter.”

David Jurca, Associate Director of the Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative (CUDC), also helped to inspire the event. During the summer’s SOUP, a meal-based micro-grant fundraising event, Jurca pitched on the idea of not just surviving Cleveland winters but celebrating them through various street art and development projects designed to make the cold weather more livable and lively.

Veysey encourages attendees to wear long johns and dress warmly and to bring chairs or blankets, although there will be seating options around the fire. Expect plenty of s’mores, beer and a food truck. The new exhibit at Transformer Station, “Process & Abstraction” by artists Jessica Eaton, Mariah Robertson & Alison Rossiter, will also be open to the public. If you can’t make it, there will be two more Hygges on February 15th and 22nd.