Friday

Baltimore Blast season opener - The defending Major Indoor Soccer League champs open the 2009-2010 season at 1st Mariner Arena at 7:35. Tickets start at $16 and can be purchased at the arena box office, by calling 410-732-5278, or by going to Ticketmaster.com.

Friday-Saturday-Sunday

Irish Festival - The 34th annual festival kicks off Friday at 6 p.m. at the Maryland State Fairgrounds in Timonium. The menu features Irish favorites like corned beef and cabbage, plenty o potatoes. Don't forget some Irish whiskey and beer to wash it all down. There's also traditional Irish music, book readings and signings, and Irish dance on the entertainment bill. Admission is: $10, seniors (62+): $8, young 'uns (12-17): $5, active military with ID: $5, children under 12: free.

Saturday

Dino Day at the Maryland Science Center - From noon to 4 p.m. visitors can enjoy a live reptile show, make a dino necklace, dig their own fossil, and more. All activities are free with paid admission.

Three Movie Visionaries: Barry Levinson, David Simon, and John Waters - Baltimore's Mt. Rushmore of filmmakers gather on one stage for the first time in an event to benefit the Maryland Film Festival. Thankfully, it's for a good cause, because at $125 a ticket, it ain't cheap. Maryland Institute College of Art, Brown Center, 5:30 p.m., 1301 W. Mount Royal Ave.

What could be better than relaxing with an after-work cocktail at the gleaming new bar at B&O Brasserie? How about knowing that a portion of the money you spent on that libation is going to fight HIV/AIDS.

Throughout November, the restaurant will donate $1 to the Whitman-Walker Clinic in Washington each time a guest orders one of four featured cocktails. The clinic focuses on HIV/AIDS education, prevention, diagnosis and treatment.

The featured cocktails are:

• Grapefruit Spritz - Ketel One Citroen vodka, Campari, and fresh grapefruit juice
• Bad Apple - Don Julio silver tequila, Lillet, Angostura bitters, apple juice, and ginger beer
• Orange Blossom Fizz - Belvedere Orange, St. Germain Elderflower liqueur, pineapple juice and sparkling
• Morning Daiquiri - Ten Cane rum, Grand Marnier shaken with fresh lime juice and orange marmalade

They all sound delicious, don't they? If forced to choose, I'd probably go with the Morning Daiquiri, but knowing $1 from each $9 cocktail goes to such a good cause, I just might have to try them all.

Over the weekend someone sent me a link to the Web site Groupon.

It's a pretty simple concept. Each day a Baltimore business (the site also operates in a host of other cities) offers a coupon on Groupon. If enough people sign up for the deal, it becomes official. If not enough people do, the offer is rescinded.

Here's an example. Today's deal is $15 for one hour of bowling and shoe rental at Mustag Alley's in Little Italy (normally, that package would cost $31.50). When I logged on around 8:30 this morning, 10 of the required 20 people had signed up for the package. Now, just before 10, more than 25 have, meaning it's official. If the minimum hadn't been met, people who signed up for the deal wouldn't have been charged.

This form of social media marketing seems smart to me. It's a win-win for businesses and customers. Check it out when you get a minute. Maybe I'll see you at Mustag Alley's.

As readers of this site know, I love food. Granted, I'm hungry as I write this (on Thursday evening), but I can't think of a single food item I won't eat. Cold borscht comes the closest.

That's why Charles Street: Let's Eat, an event happening tomorrow, caught my eye. From noon to 6 p.m. on Read Street between Charles and Cathedral streets, 10 Mount Vernon restaurants will be offering up samples of their cuisine. Drinks, live music, and even belly dancing are on the schedule.

Admission is free, and food and drink prices vary. Scanning the restaurants that will be there, I can tell you that there is certain to be some delicious food on the menu (Saschas 527 Restaurant and the Helmand are personal favorites).

It's a relatively quiet weekend around town, so it might be a good weekend to check out a museum, go to a farmers' market, or try a new restaurant (like this one in Canton).

Thursday

Leonardo Da Vinci's Science, Technology, and Art - Noted Da Vinci scholar and Discovery Channel personality Dr. Jonathan Pevsner offers insight into the genius of Da Vinci. The lecture is free with RSVP to 410-545- 5980. It begins at 7:30 p.m. at the Maryland Science Center, and after guests can tour the Da Vinci exhibit at the museum.

Friday-Saturday-Sunday

Greek Heritage Festival - The Greek Orthodox Cathedral of the Annunciation sponsors its 38th annual festival at 24 W. Preston St. downtown. Food, drink, and music from Greece take center stage during the three-day festival, which is free to attend. Hours are 11-11 Friday and Saturday, and noon to 6 p.m. on Sunday.

Tonight at 8 p.m., ESPN presents Without Bias, a documentary on the life and death of University of Maryland basketball star Len Bias.

The film, directed by Kirk Fraser, a Washington resident, is part of the sports network's 30 For 30 series. Last month, Barry Levinson's The Band That Wouldn't Die, the story of the Baltimore Colts marching band, proved to be wildly popular here in Charm City.

I was 10 years old when Bias died, yet I still remember that day vividly. I was, and still am, a huge Terps fan, and Bias was one of the best basketball players I have ever seen. When the local D.C. affiliate I was watching cut into its regularly programming to announce that Bias, who just two days earlier was chosen second overall by the Boston Celtics in the NBA draft, had died, I was absolutely shocked. I called my dad at work to tell him the news, which he didn't believe.

At the time, the speculation was Bias had an enlarged heart. As the true cause of death - cocaine overdose - came out over the next few days, the entire state remained riveted. Bias' death led to the departure of legendary Terps coach Lefty Driesell and the precipitous decline of Maryland's basketball program.

If Without Bias is half as good as The Band That Wouldn't Die, or the rest of ESPN's 30 For 30 series, for that matter (I caught Muhammad and Larry last night, the story of the 1980 Ali-Holmes boxing match - outstanding), it should be terrific TV.

Here's the schedule of when it will air after tonight:

Nov 5, 10 p.m. - ESPN Classic
Nov. 5, 11:30 p.m. - ESPN2
Nov. 8, 9 p.m. - ESPN Classic
Nov. 9, 7 p.m. - ESPN2
Dec. 6, 3:30 p.m., ESPN
Dec. 25, 8 p.m. - ESPN Classic

Photo: Len Bias was one of the greatest basketball players in Atlantic Coast Conference history. (Focus On Sport/Getty Images)

Johns Hopkins as Harvard? It's happening today and tomorrow as the Homewood campus stands in for the Cambridge (near Boston) institution during the filming of The Social Network, a movie about the Web site Facebook.

The film stars Jesse Eisenberg (of Zombieland) and Justin Timberlake, who won't be in Baltimore for the two days of shooting. It's a much-anticipated film, written by West Wing creator Aaron Sorkin.

"Maryland has the best film commission in the business, that's for sure," location manager Bill Doyle told The Sun.

Debbie Dorsey, director of the Baltimore Film Office, said that some shooting will take place on Charles Street at night, but no re-routing is expected.

So if you're interested in the inner workings of Hollywood - or Homewood, in this case - head up to Charles Village and sneak a peak.

Photo: Jesse Eisenberg will be in Baltimore today and tomorrow shooting scenes for The Social Network, his new movie about Facebook. He plays the social Web site's founder, Mark Zuckerberg. (Raymond Boyd/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)

Welcome to your Weekend Roundup: Halloween Edition.

Friday-Saturday

Rocky Horror Picture Show on stage at the Mobtown Theater - This is the premiere production of Factory Edge Theatre Works, and it's perfect for Halloween. Music, book, and lyrics by Richard O'Brian. Performances at 8 and 11:59 p.m. on Friday and 1:59 a.m. Saturday morning (Friday night). Saturday's performance is at 8 p.m. Tickets are $15 and available online.

Saturday

Halloween tour of Westminster Burying Grounds and Catacombs - This sounds like a great Halloween evening activity. Take a a tour of Westminster Hall and enjoy a tribute to Edgar Allan Poe (he's buried there). There will be live music, ghost hunting, and other performances.  Begins at 6 p.m. at the corner of Fayette and Greene streets. Tickets are $5 for adults, $3 for children.

Halloween for Adults: Fells Point and Federal Hill - Traditionally, the bars of Fells Point have been the place to be on Halloween. That it falls on a Saturday this year means the neighborhood will be even more hoppin' than usual. But this year Federal Hill is trying to get in on the act with Federal Hill-O-Ween. From 5 p.m. to midnight, bars will offer a host of drink specials. Tickets are $10, and registration is available online or in the parking lot of Mother's.

Sunday

Broncos vs Ravens - This is a huge match-up for the 3-3 Ravens, as the undefeated Denver Broncos come to M&T Bank Stadium. It's been an odd year for the Ravens, who won their first three and now have dropped three in a row. Finally they've seen young talent on offense blossom (hello Ray Rice), but unfortunately this has coincided with a decline on the defensive side of the ball. This game will be an excellent barometer of just how good this team really is. Kickoff is at 1 p.m.

The city council yesterday passed a bill that could change the face of nightlife in Baltimore.

The measure overturns a decades-old prohibition on live music in most bars and restaurants, according to The Sun. It would allow restaurants and taverns to apply to the Board of Municipal and Zoning Appeals and liquor board for approval.

It still must be signed by Mayor Dixon before it becomes law, and she has some concerns. Several residents of neighborhoods where homes and bars co-exist closely are worried about noise and parking. We'll see what happens.

I just got back from Nashville, where live music in bars is a way of life. The honky tonks on Broadway feature live music from 10 a.m. to 2 a.m., seven days a week, 365 days a year. But Broadway is downtown, it's doesn't have a residential feel like Federal Hill, Fells Point, or Canton.

That being said, I don't think there's a great risk of Baltimore turning into Nashville. I've always thought Baltimore needed more establishments with live music, and I think this is a good start in that direction. Hopefully it will mean bigger crowds for restaurant and bar owners, and be music to their customers' ears.

What do you think?

Happy Halloween Week Baltimore. A little rain delayed the Lantern Parade but didn't ruin it. I've heard from lots of people who were at Patterson Park Sunday and said it was a stellar event.

The folks working at the House of Screams haunted house in Essex on Sunday probably didn't have quite as good a time. This Associated Press report details how a Baltimore city police officer was charged with assault and reckless endangerment for pointing his service handgun at the worker, who was dressed as Leatherface, the killer from The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.

The officer, who has been suspended with pay, apparently didn't appreciate the work of employee Mike Morrison, who told police he followed the officer and several other people up a staircase to get "one last scream" out of them, police said.

When the group exited into a parking lot, the officer pulled his gun and pointed it at Morrison from less than 10 feet away, according to police and Morrison, who said he dropped the chain saw, put his hands up and backed away.

I loved this next line in the AP story: "The saw had no chain."

Maybe the officer, who according to charging documents "smelled of alcohol," wanted to give Morrison a dose of his own medicine.

"I started shaking pretty bad," he told The AP.

If after reading this you're still hankering for a scare in a haunted house, there are plenty of great ones all over the Baltimore area.

All I ask is that you please leave your firearm at home.