On Wednesday, May 25, The Washingtonian hosted a happy hour at Whitlow's on Wilson to get the excitement brewing for this year's LivingSocial Best Of Washington blowout event on Wednesday, July 13 at the National Building Museum. Guests enjoyed complimentary appetizers and drinks on the rooftop while they mingled, enjoyed the sunshine, and played bocce courtesy of DC Bocce. For one night only, guests could purchase discounted tickets to the July 13 event.

Join us for the next "Best of" happy hour at Ping Pong Dim Sum on June 22 starting at 6 PM.

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Maroon 5 hits the Merriweather Post Pavilion with Train and Gavin DeGraw. Photo courtesy Maroon 5.

Train plays at Merriweather Post Pavilion, where they’ll be joined by Maroon 5 and Gavin DeGraw on August 24. Tickets ($40 to $75) go on sale Friday at 10 AM through Ticketfly.

On Thursday, you’ll be able to get tickets for two upcoming shows at the 9:30 Club: RX Bandits on July 9 and Interpol on July 13. Tickets are available at 10 AM through Ticketfly.

Blake Shelton, currently a judge on NBC’s new vocal talent competition, The Voice, plays at Bayside Toyota Pavilion in St. Leonard, Maryland, on September 4. Chris Young, a fellow up-and-coming country star, is the opener. Tickets ($41) go on sale Saturday at 9 AM through Ticketmaster.

What could be described as a smaller, dry cousin of the Maryland Renaissance Festival, the family-friendly Maryland Faerie Festival in Upper Marlboro began in 2005.  For one weekend a year, humans from miles around descend onto a gigantic grassy field full of pixies, goblins, minstrels, and mermaids. The $3 parking fee and $10 ticket ($3 for ages 12 and under) is peanuts compared with the visual value of this place.

Within seconds I felt guilty for not dressing up (there’s a $1 discount for coming in costume), so I asked a 17-year-old named Luke, who’s in charge of garbage collection at the festival, where he got his red devil horns; after spending $12 to purchase my own, I was set. Off I went to photograph the 2 PM Faerie Fashion Show, followed by a brief encounter with a pagan and a rainbow-sprinkled-soft-serve cone, after which I embedded myself into a belly-dancing class.

Takoma Park resident Paul Sharratt first took his daughter Evelyn to the Faerie Festival in 2009. “She was interested in faeries at the time, and I thought it would be totally bizarre,” he says. “It was.”

Relive your grunge days when seminal 1990s rock group Soundgarden takes the stage at GMU’s Patriot Center on July 12. The Mars Volta opens. Tickets ($59.50) go on sale Friday at 10 AM through Ticketmaster.

As of 10 AM Thursday, you can pick up tickets for Taking Back Sunday’s July 16 show at Rams Head Live in Baltimore. Fellow emo rockers Thursday are also on the bill along with Colour Revolt and We Are the In Crowd. Get tickets from Ticketmaster.

We’ve still got a few weeks to go until the next winner is crowned, but starting Friday at 10 AM, you can snag seats to American Idol Live’s August 19 stop at the Verizon Center. Tickets ($45 to $60 ) are available through Ticketmaster.

On June 25, Dinosaur Jr. will play its 1988 album Bug in its entirety at the 9:30 Club. Tickets for the show went on sale today through Ticketfly.

Washington never misses an opportunity to dress up, drink, and be merry, and this Saturday’s 137th Kentucky Derby (5 to 7 PM) is no exception. Ladies, grab your finest Southern-belle hats; gentlemen, dust off your seersucker suits. Then hobnob at a Kentucky Derby celebration near you.

If watching the race on TV just isn't the same, the 86th Virginia Gold Cup takes place the same day as the Kentucky Derby from 10 to 7 (with races from 1:45 to 4:30). Spend a day at the racetrack and still catch the Derby, which will be screened on Jumbotrons after the VGC's races are over. Derby attire is still appropriate (though flats are recommended, because the entire area is soft turf). Concessions will be available, and picnics are welcome. Online ticket sales end today at 2 PM, but tickets can still be purchased at these Washington markets. $85 and up. 

The Young Leadership Council of the Perry Center hosts its third annual Kentucky Derby Party at Iron Horse from 4 to 7. The viewing party will also feature Southern-style libations, hors d’oeuvres, high-end raffle prizes, free games, and a Derby-attire contest judged by DC fashionista Andrea Rodgers. $20 per person, $35 per couple. 

Town Tavern will have a live donkey on hand for its celebration. Specials include $3 Coronas and tequila sunrises all day, plus tequila shots and baskets of tacos for $5. RSVP at Town’s Web site to enjoy a $10 open bar from 8 to 10 PM.

El Cento D.F (1819 14th St., NW), a new restaurant from chefs Richard Sandoval and Kaz Okochi that opens May 5, has more than 200 varieties of tequila. There’s an opening reception tonight from 5 PM to 2 AM with appetizers and dancing on the rooftop patio. A cash bar will have margaritas and agave cocktails. $20 cover.

Logan Circle’s Policy restaurant is having a party from 5 PM to 1 AM with $3 Coronas, $5 margaritas and Negra Moldelos, and free soft tacos. Plus—a piñata!

Through Thursday, the downtown DC Nuevo Latino restaurant Ceiba is offering Mexican street food such as tacos al pastor, Mexican-style fish and chips, and enchiladas for $5, plus $5 house margaritas. On May 5, the party starts early at 2:30 (it starts at 3 on Wednesday).

Yes, moms love a good three-mimosa brunch, but the recent arrival of springtime means it’s time to get outside. Besides the Mall and the C&O Canal, here are some of our favorite places to go for a jog.
Looking for more of a challenge? Sign up for one of these 5K races or walks:

The Mother’s Day 5K Dash is a run through Rock Creek Park. This timed event is the first in a series sponsored by Capital Sprints. Registration is $40. Register at active.com; 8 AM.

The Walk to Empower: Y-Me benefits the National Breast Cancer Organization. The noncompetitive three-mile walk on the Mall aims to honor victims and survivors of the disease as well as promote breast-health awareness. Check-in is at 7:30 AM, and the walk begins at 9.