Weather forecasts and sunset times are slowly falling for the last week of August. The social scene? Not so much. It amps up this week in one of the best times of the year for meeting new people & making new friends.
Singles events rock every part of the neighborhood from Davis to Union, so no matter the age, where you live or what type of dating style you feel most comfortable in, there's a chance to meet someone new. Mingle Mayhem moves one of their biggest IRL dating outings to Davis while my friends at Skip The Small Talk go beyond just deep conversations and help you have multiple conversations without any awkward pauses at Aeronaut. Read more below for a surprise bonus too.
Monthly outings at the Harvard Art Museums, end-of-summer patio bashes at Kendall Square and even group drawing sessions make the after-work routine feel lighter this week.
The Museum of Science opens its new 10,000 square foot Bloomberg wing on October 10, a glass-walled venue overlooking the Charles built with a $155 million gift from Bloomberg Philanthropies, the largest in the museum’s history · Boston.com
Nostalgia Vintage Cafe is now open at 322 Somerville Ave near Union Square, mixing a vintage store, coffee bar and DVD rental counter under one roof · Cambridge Day
Cambridge police fatally shot a man in his 60s on Temple Street in Central Square Friday night after officials say he exited his vehicle and pointed a firearm at officers responding to a report of suspicious individuals, with the Middlesex DA now investigating and an inquest to follow · Cambridge Police
Fresh Boston is temporarily closing its South Boston shop after four years, saying the challenges facing the small business became too much, while its Cambridge location stays open · Patch
The body found in Fresh Pond on August 11 was identified as a 41-year-old man known to be in the area, and no foul play is suspected · Patch
First Crush, the natural wine pop-up, is opening its first brick and mortar at 259 Washington Street in Union Square in the former Juliet Social Club space, targeting this fall · NBC Boston
Mingle Mayhem Big Singles Bash (26-38) @ Crystal Ballroom, Somerville - Mingle Mayhem takes over the Crystal Ballroom for a singles night for one of Camberville’s biggest singles events. Curated games participation is optional and there’s even a calling card system to make it easier
Skip The Small Talk @ Aeronaut Brewing, Somerville - Making friends and meeting new people can sometimes be difficult as an adult, especially when you’re still new to a community. Skip The Small Talk solves this with research-backed prompts that make deep conversations seamless and meeting new people easier. Hit STOOP20 at checkout for a surprise | $24 • 6-8PM · Sponsored
Bachata and Zouk Fusion Series @ Moves & Vibes Dancing Academy, Cambridge - Bachata’s romantic footwork meets the smooth body movement and flowing turns of Brazilian Zouk. Learn the techniques and transitions through a five course weekly series in East Cambridge, or drop into a single class to test it out | $23 • 9-10PM
PaintWell with AIRI @ Canal District Kendall, Cambridge - Watercolor outdoors for wellness, creativity and connection. BioMed Realty and AIRI set it up so you can sit down, look around and paint alongside other people | FREE • 5:30PM
Poetry in the Garden Open Mic @ Somerville Community Growing Center, Somerville - Whether you’re a seasoned poet or just starting out, the mic is yours in the Growing Center’s garden. This month’s theme is sunrise and sunset | 6-7:30PM
Skip The Small Talk Speed Dating @ Aeronaut Brewing, Somerville - By popular demand, Skip the Small Talk is adding a new twist on social conversations and bringing speed dating to life. Meet new people through big talk prompts and enough structure that it never turns awkward. A free drink is included with a ticket plus yet another hidden deal if you want extra motivation to go - hit STOOP 20 at checkout to find out | $65 • 7-9PM · Sponsored
Portrait Club with Big Dave @ The Loov, Somerville - Life Drawing Boston closes out its August Wednesdays with Portrait Club, the monthly community-centric drawing night on Joy Street that fits if you enjoy social drawing. No signup needed | FREE • 6:30PM
Wednesday Run & Chug @ Lamplighter CX, Cambridge - Boston Run & Chug is back at Lamplighter Wednesday night. Don’t worry about matching speeds since everyone is split into groups; just run, enjoy some beer and have fun. And after years of resisting run clubs I’ll also be there to give this a shot. Link inside if you want to follow the route on Strava | FREE • 7-9PM
Biodiversity Series: A Conversation about Wolves @ Somerville Community Growing Center, Somerville - As part of the ongoing biodiversity series, the Somerville Community Growing Center hosts a conversation about one of nature’s most misunderstood animals: wolves. Come hear how wolves restore balance in forests and regenerate eroded riverbanks from a real expert | FREE • 7:30-8:30PM
Skip The Small Talk Speed Dating @ Aeronaut Brewing, Somerville - Skip The Small Talk takes their deep conversations to the next level with speed dating. Already experts in bringing people together, these mini-dates are crafted to help you find chemistry without the awkward first dates pauses
Backyard Bash @ Glass House, Cambridge - The last Backyard Bash of the year is here so go soak up the last days of summer on the Kendall Square patio. Live DJs, lawn games, an outdoor firepit and samples from Sun Cruiser
Backyard Bash @ Glasshouse, Cambridge - Trade adulthood for a night of summer camp nostalgia on Glasshouse’s patio for the last bash of the summer: themed cocktails, a hot dog menu, lawn games, a firepit, live DJ and a scavenger hunt with giveaways | 5-8:30PM
Harvard Art Museums at Night @ Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge - The Harvard Museum’s monthly night outing is here with a free night in the museum’s Italian-inspired courtyard, DJ C-Zone on the sounds and food and drinks from local vendors. Spotlight Tours run through the night and the Materials Lab is open for art-making | FREE • 5-9PM
Mingle Mayhem Big Singles Bash (26-38) @ Crystal Ballroom, Somerville - The Crystal Ballroom’s upstairs becomes a one-night singles party built by scientists and matchmakers. 82% of past attendees made a connection they wanted to follow up on so snag tix now | $34 • 7-9PM
Drink n’ Draw @ Aeronaut Brewing, Somerville - Drink n’ Draw turns two this month at Aeronaut. The group builds a list of silly prompts together and doodles until nobody can doodle anymore, and the host is threatening small gifts for the birthday | FREE • 7-9PM
Speed Dating 2.0 (35-49) @ Remnant Brewing, Somerville - CitySwoon runs about eight live-selected mini-dates at Remnant, with their platform picking your matches round by round. Check-in happens on your phone, so no nametags or matchcards, and most people stay to mingle after | $43 • 7:30-10PM
Pitch Your Friend @ The Foundry, Cambridge - Naru Matcha and Mob hand you a stage to pitch your single friend like the hottest startup on the market. Green flags, questionable lore, hidden talents, and why someone in the room should shoot their shot
Wanderville @ Across Cambridge & Somerville Breweries - Two cities, four breweries and an entire day of live music as the cities rebrand to Wanderville for the biggest music festival of the year. Everything starts at Winter Hill and ends at Lamplighter
Cambridge
86 INCIDENTS 10 ARRESTS Per day · Aug 3-6, the most recent logs CPD has posted
| Mon 8/3 | 24 | |
| Tue 8/4 | 20 | |
| Wed 8/5 | 24 | |
| Thu 8/6 | 18 |
CPD is posting daily logs again after a month-long gap. The newest four cover August 3-6, about three weeks back, and run 86 incidents and 10 arrests.
NOTABLE, THIS PAST FRIDAY: Cambridge officers fatally shot a man in his 60s on Temple Street in Central Square on the night of August 21, the city's first fatal officer-involved shooting since January 2023. Around 8PM, a call to the department's business line reported people in a loading dock behind area businesses. The Middlesex DA and Cambridge Police say the man was seated in a vehicle when officers arrived, got out and allegedly pointed a firearm, and that officers tried to disarm him before multiple shots were fired. A loaded firearm was recovered and he was pronounced dead at the scene. Several officers were taken to the hospital as a precaution that same night and released. The man has not been publicly identified. The DA's office is leading the investigation with State Police detectives, reviewing witness accounts and body camera footage, and has requested an inquest.
Back in the August 3-6 window, anything with wheels was a target: a $3,100 bicycle off a locked rack inside a Charles St. parking garage, a $1,500 moped from a Dodge St. driveway, and four more bikes and scooters between $380 and $1,300, though one $450 bike later turned up at a train station. Three packages were taken off front steps, including one on Child St. worth $3,177. Scams ran alongside, with forged checks twice at the same Mt. Auburn St. business and a Valentine St. resident who paid a fake $235 bill and then lost access to their computer. Shoplifting came in almost hourly and was mostly small, down to a $6 tip jar. The heavier items were a White St. robbery where the suspect threatened to shoot staff, an unarmed robbery by four people on Cambridge St., and separate knife and machete threats. One arrest came out of National Night Out at Donnelly Field, where someone unplugged the movie projector while arguing with patrons.
A follow-up on last week's item: police confirmed on August 21 that the person found in Fresh Pond on August 11 was a 41-year-old man known to the area. No foul play is currently suspected.
Somerville
1 ARREST Per day · Aug 10-16, the most recent log posted
| Mon 8/10 | 1 | |
| Tue 8/11 | 0 | |
| Wed 8/12 | 0 | |
| Thu 8/13 | 0 | |
| Fri 8/14 | 0 | |
| Sat 8/15 | 0 | |
| Sun 8/16 | 0 |
Somerville's newest log covers August 10-16 and shows a single arrest for the week, down from three the week before.
That arrest, on August 10, carried a stack of charges at once: a warrant out of Cambridge, drug possession, assault and battery, and two counts of shoplifting, one logged as a third offense.
Somerville's log excludes arrests involving juveniles, domestic violence, and sexual assault, as required by state law.
Sources: Cambridge Police, Cambridge Day and the Somerville Police weekly arrest log.
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