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Rock Around the Block

Get Out and Meet Your Neighbors!

By Tamar Weiss

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, an online party superstore, suggests sending fun invitations. For a summer party, this can be inexpensive beach balls with details written in permanent ink or an inexpensive pair of sunglasses with printed invitations attached.

Plan Activities
Linda's home owner's association plans scavenger hunts and brings clowns to some of its neighborhood events. ShindigZ.com suggests planning a few activities to beat the heat, such as wet sponge football, a water balloon toss or garden hose limbo. Goldberg recommends relay races: They're inexpensive to coordinate, and young and old alike can participate. "You can't plan everything," says Goldberg. "In order for people to enjoy themselves, there needs to be spontaneity and dynamics."

Decide on a Theme
One way to liven up the party is to pick a theme. The theme can be anything from baseball to a seasonally appropriate holiday, says Goldberg. But make sure it's something that speaks to everyone.

Eli, once a resident of Queens, N.Y., lived in a neighborhood that was a blend of different affiliations and religions. He attended a block party where the theme was the coming together of different types of people. Each family brought a food dish symbolic of their individual ethnic group. This way, everyone got a taste of the positive diversity that existed in the neighborhood while simultaneously bridging gaps.


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