LOCALS LOVE 5 O'CLOCK: When five arrives in the late afternoon -- or early evening, if you prefer -- many things begin to change about the day. The sun, rather predictably but always wonderfully, begins to set, and the workday for many people starts to wrap up, and the world takes a dinner-cocktail-stroll-nice respite between the time of the sun and the time of the moon. But 5 p.m. also brings freebies for many locals in many quarters, from "residents free after 5" promotions at museums and educational institutions to supper and cocktail specials for neighbors of a tavern or restaurant. The Sawdust Art Festival is jumping into this exceedingly welcome free-at-5-o'clock wave, with a series of promotions welcoming its Orange County neighbors, for free, on particular nights of the week. Where those neighbors live will determine their particular no-cash-needed night at the Laguna Beach landmark, which is hosting its famous art fair every day, through the summer, through Sunday, Aug. 30. This means that an OC resident can pocket the usual $8.50 to get in and put it towards a painting or some glassware or some earrings or another terrific handmade artwork, the kind that the Sawdust is known for featuring and selling.
SO WHEN'S YOUR NIGHT? You just need to glance at this handy list provided by the fest to see when your city gets the shout-out. Sundays after 5 o'clock give the pay-nothing hello to people from Lake Forest, Dana Point, and Las Flores, while Monday evenings are all about residents of Santa Ana, Tustin, and Portola Hills. Tuesdays roll out the red carpet for Anaheim residents and Garden Grove locals, and as for the Laguna Beachers? Thursday is their night to visit one of their town's most beloved spots. For sure, study up to see where/when your municipality falls on the roster, then make a plan to unwind in the bucolic, art-filled setting on a summer weeknight, gratis.
