Dress to impress and prepare to eat well at Warren Sapp's Retirement Party at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino on Saturday. After 13 NFL seasons and 96 sacks, the former Tampa Bay Buccaneer will be saluted by South Beach's DJ Selfborn as a buffet of tapas, sushi and dessert fill up the partygoers. The $75 ticket price benefits the Children's Cancer Center in Tampa. It runs 8 p.m. to 2 a.m. at 5223 N Orient Road in Tampa.
GOTH'S NIGHT OUT
Vampire's Kiss is a theatrical play at the Cigar City Theater in Ybor City, but it's also a Goth fashion show that's more than black lipstick and plastic armbands. Actors will play out scenes written by Blake Emory and, in between, there will be art and fashion, complemented by Dark Wave music mixed by DJ Kaos and Shard. Doors open Friday at 9 p.m. at 1704 N 17th St., Ybor City, and the fashion show starts at 10:30. Admission is $10 and drinks are free. (813) 770-2163.
WEAVERS ON THE PROWL
Lovers of fiber art in town for the huge Convergence 2008 conference will gather Friday for a gallery crawl. The Kotler Art Gallery at John F. Germany Library, 900 N Ashley Drive in Tampa, will kick things off with a free reception starting at 6 p.m. See weavespindye.org for a list of participating galleries and art houses with extended hours and artist receptions.
THEY DRIP, WE WIN
You gotta love a rib joint that's proud of its staining power. Kojak's House of Ribs was named "Tampa's Favorite Stain" in a contest sponsored by Tide and Citysearch. To celebrate, it will be giving away free barbecue ribs starting at 2 p.m. Saturday at 2808 W Gandy Blvd. in Tampa.
HERE COME THE BRIDAL GOWNS
Brace yourselves brides. Friday and Saturday marks the second annual Goodwill Industries sale of discount wedding gowns. Taffeta will be flying as bridezillas go on the hunt among 250 new wedding gowns, with prices starting at just $60. The designer gowns (everything from Oleg Cassini to Christina Wu) were donated by Bridal Concepts in Seminole, Jon's Bridal and Olga's Bridal & Boutique in Tampa, and Dare to Dream Bridal in Holiday, and usually go for three and four figures. The dresses will be split between two stores, the Brandon Goodwill Superstore at 1106 E Brandon Blvd. on Friday and the Lakeland Goodwill Superstore at 5411 S Florida Ave. in Lakeland on Saturday. Doors open at 6 a.m. both days.
EXTREME BIRD WATCHING
Learn to put your peeping skills to good use at the Great Weedon Bird Quest on Sunday. The free guided tour of the Weedon Island Preserve in north St. Petersburg will teach you how to identify marks and behaviors of resident birds and seasonal visitors. It starts at 8 a.m. at the preserve's Cultural and Natural History Center, 1800 Weedon Drive NE St. Petersburg. Call (727) 453-6500 to register, and be prepared to take a two-hour hike.
PARTY IS A HAIR BALL
There will be no bad hair days allowed Friday at the Paul Mitchell Fashion Show at Floyd's in the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, 5223 N Orient Road in Tampa. Women receive free champagne from 10 p.m. until 1 a.m., when the fashion show begins. Admission is $10. See midnite-productions.com.
PREMATURE DETONATION
New Port Richey is getting its Independence Day party started early with Saturday's Main Street Blast! There will be live music, classic cars, a patriotic pooch parade and fireworks at dark along Main Street in downtown New Port Richey. It runs 4 to 11 p.m. Free.
WALK LIKE MADD
Lowry Park Zoo hosts Mothers Against Drunk Driving's signature 5K fundraiser walk, including such family-friendly activities as a teen fun zone, tours of police vehicles, face painting, duck prize pool for toddlers and child fingerprinting. Ceremonies begin at 7 a.m. Saturday and the walk is 7:30 to 9:15 a.m. inside the zoo. Family activities follow from 9:15 to 11 a.m. in the zoo school area (outside the zoo proper). 1101 W Sligh Ave., Tampa. Walkers collect donations; individual event-day donations are permitted. (813) 935-2676. walklikemadd.org.
WHAT, NO KUNG FU PANDAS?
Adrenaline junkies have a choice of well-muscled entertainment this weekend. The St. Pete Times Forum on Saturday will host Xtreme Fighting Championships Mixed Martial Arts. You can get a free ticket with five cans of food for Metropolitan Ministries, or you can pay $20-$50 at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Forum, 401 Channelside Drive, Tampa. (813) 301-2500. Over in Safety Harbor, the Master Mehrdad Muay Thai Classic XVIV will have male and female amateur martial artists and muay thai practitioners of all ages. It starts at 6 p.m. Saturday at the Safety Harbor Community Center, 650 Ninth Ave. S, Safety Harbor. $15-$25. (727) 573-8589. mastermehrdad.com/mmmtc.htm.
DRIVE-BY ART SHOW
The ultra-hipster Downtown Film Fest and Car Art Party on Saturday will showcase some of Tampa Bay's best and most underground independent cinema. There will also be ARTcars by Carl Knickerbocker and an installation of photographs by Mitzi Gordon. Admission is $10 and there will be drinks and hors d'oeuvres at Art Pool, 919 First Ave. N St. Petersburg, starting at 8 p.m.
NOT FOR THE DELICATE
All the rude boys who love a good fart joke are in for a treat this weekend. Not only is Andrew "Dice" Clay bringing his hard-core comedy to the elegant Tampa Theatre on Friday (tickets are $49.50 at tampatheatre.org), but Howard Stern's pet comics take the mike at the State Theatre on Saturday for the Killers of Comedy Tour. The lineup includes Reverend Bob Levy, Sal Governale, Yucko The Clown, The Iron Sheik from the WWE and more. Tickets are $30-$50 at State Theatre, 687 Central Ave. The show starts at 6:30 p.m.
DIVE FOR TREASURE
Hidden treasure is all over the Largo water park at the Splashes Treasure Hunt at the Highland Family Aquatic Center, 400 Highland Ave., Largo, for kids ages 10 and younger. Hunts divided by age group. It's 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and is $12-$23 per family, depending on whether you have a Largo resident rec card. (727) 518-3018.
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