Five Things You Need To Know July 8

Good morning Lilburn. Here's your digital checklist of what to know for Friday, July 8. 

1. Big Night in Lilburn: Old Town will be abuzz tonight at 7 p.m. with the first competition of the summer (the first one, scheduled June 24 was rained out). Local singers sing songs you’ve heard a time or two just to hear the clanging of coins from the audience, who vote their preferences with quarters (we’re sure paper money will be accepted, too). You will be surprised by the talent that is in our community. Before Idol, check out the , which is hitting its summer stride with its own Friday-night series of performances. The market (4 p.m.-8 p.m.) is a good chance to pick up some great local produce.
2. The Countdown Begins: A month from now — on Aug. 8 — summer vacation will end and the 2011-12 school year will begin. A word of warning for school kids (two of whom reside at Lilburn Patch HQ): There are better things to do with the rest of your summer vacation than to flip the on-switch. … Just sayin’.
3. Vote Deadline: Today is the final day to vote on the new car-tag design in Georgia. There are eight finalists and you can go online to click on your favorite. The question is: ?
4. Weather Borecast: Perhaps something like a Patch-O-Meter is needed to bring some excitement to our daily “Five Things” weather report. Instead of the usual “high temp of 90 and 30 percent chance of rain” report, maybe we can juice it up with our own weather index.  Here’s one: Today we have a P-Factor of “Sweaty.” Count on the hot temps and chance of evening storms for the next few days.
5. Join the Patch Crew: Signing up for the Lilburn Patch newsletter is a great way get each day’s news, events and deals delivered straight to your in-box. It’s easy to do, too. Just click on the “Get the Patch Newsletter” icon at the top of the page. Join the thousands who have already done it.