Here’s a sampling of New Year’s Eve parties, concerts and special events taking place in the neighborhood. If you know of other events please drop them in the comments.

• New Year’s Eve with Philly Bloco • World Cafe Live • 3025 Walnut Street • 10:30 p.m. (doors 9:30 p.m.) • Tickets: $30

Philly Bloco’s 20+ members bring their raucous mash-up of Samba, Funk and Reggae for a very special New Year’s Eve dance party.

• New Year’s Eve Yoga and Mochi • Studio 34 • 4522 Baltimore Ave. • 8 – 10 p.m. • Suggested donation $5 – $15

Wring out your body before you ring in the New Year with this special 2-hour all-levels hatha yoga practice. Class includes brief meditation, pranayama (breathing), seated and standing poses, plus special sequences for reflecting on the past year while looking forward to the future. After practice, enjoy hot tea and mochi (sweet Japanese rice cakes) in the warmth of Studio 34′s community lounge.

• Beth Hart – New Year’s Eve concert • The Blockley • 38th & Chestnut • 7 p.m. (doors 5 p.m.) • Tickets: $135

The concert includes: Admission to Show; Dinner Buffet – 7 – 9 p.m.; Top Shelf Open Bar – 7 p.m. – 1 a.m.; Beth’s new CD with Joe Bonamassa, “Don’t Explain”; Beth Hart event shirt; Midnight Champagne Toast.

• Gojjo (www.gojjos.com) • 4540 Baltimore Ave • 11 p.m.-2 a.m. • No cover

Champagne is on the house.

• New Deck Tavern (www.newdecktavern.com) • 3408 Sansom Street • 10 p.m. • No cover

Specials: $2 Coors Light Pints, $3 Coors Light bottles and $5 Flavored Martini’s. DJ starts at 10 p.m.

• Slainte Pub (www.slaintephilly.com) • 3000 Market Street • 10 p.m. • No cover

DJ @ 10 p.m. Free Flare & Noisemakers. $2 Miller Lite Pints & Firework Shots 10 p.m.-close.

This week trash and recycling collections will be delayed one day, as the Philadelphia Streets Department reports on its Facebook page. Those whose trash pickup day is Monday should set out their trash and recycling containers tonight. By the way, did you know that you can now recycle carton containers? So don’t forget to put your milk, juice, eggnog, wine, soup and other carton containers together with other recyclables from now on.

Holidays are not over yet for many, but we would like to give you a heads up on Christmas tree recycling opportunities in the neighborhood. The Philadelphia Streets Department will open three locations (closest is on S. 63rd Street) in the city for Christmas tree recycling from January 3 – 14. We’ll post more information on that early next week. You can also check the Streets Dept.’s website for details.

If you want a closer location and don’t mind keeping your tree a little longer you can bring it to Clark Park (43rd & Chester) on January 7 between 10 a.m and 4 p.m. UC Green is organizing this event and we’ll provide more information on it next week.

Check out holiday schedules at assorted neighborhood stores, cafes and restaurants below. If you know of others please drop them in the comments.

CVS Pharmacy (43rd & Locust)
Saturday & Sunday – Store open 24 hours, pharmacy closes at 5 p.m.

Dock Street Brewery (50th & Baltimore)
Saturday – 12-9 p.m.
Sunday – closed

Four Worlds Bakery (4634 Woodland Ave.)
Saturday – closes at 2 p.m.
Sunday & Monday – closed

Fu-Wah (810 S. 47th St.)
Saturday & Sunday – closes at 9 p.m.

Green Line Cafe
Saturday – Baltimore Ave and Locust Street close at 2 p.m.; Powelton Village closed
Sunday – All shops are closed
Monday – Baltimore Ave and Locust Street close at 6 p.m.; Powelton Village closed
Tuesday – Powelton Village closed

Local 44 (44th & Spruce)
Saturday & Sunday – closed

Mariposa Food Co-op (4726 Baltimore Ave.)
Saturday – 12-7 p.m.
Sunday – closed
Monday-Friday (Dec. 26-30) – closes at 7 p.m.

Milk & Honey Market (4435 Baltimore Ave.)
Saturday – closes at 4 p.m.
Sunday – closed

Supreme (43rd & Walnut)
Saturday – 7 a.m.-7 p.m.
Sunday – 9 a.m.-8 p.m.

The Fresh Grocer (40th & Walnut)
Saturday & Sunday – open 24 hours

Think it’s impossible to shop and dance at the same time? Think again. Tomorrow (Dec. 23) you’ll get a chance to do last-minute holiday shopping at VIX Emporium and cut a rug at the Independent Rock school next door with The Last of the Red-Hot Lovers led by IR director and Stinking Lizaveta band member Yanni Papadopoulos (pictured).

The dance show is free and features a full band playing lively swing jazz. Refreshments will be available for a modest donation. The show will run from 6 – 9 p.m.

VIX will be open until 9 for your last-minute gift needs. Also Friday night, don’t miss a presentation of a new “West Philly” graphic, the fourth so far to celebrate this awesome neighborhood. To bring it to life, VIX enlisted the help of local artist Justin Turkus. Justin, who is a tattoo artist and the author and illustrator of picture book “Earth is a Wonderful Place to Be” (available at VIX), will be there to debut his new design. Handprinted notecards and stickers of the new image will be available starting from tomorrow, and totes, t-shirts and hoodies will arrive in the new year.

On December 24 VIX will be open from 11 a.m.-4 p.m. (closed December 25 and 26).

Kol Tzedek, West Philly’s progressive,  Reconstructionist synagogue, will host its annual Hanukkah party (Facebook event page) tonight from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Everyone is welcome to the synagogue, located in the Calvary Center for Culture and Community (48th and Baltimore).

The party will feature lots of latkes, a vegetarian potluck (you’re encouraged to bring a dish), music by the synagogue’s Simcha Band playing klezmer and all kinds of stuff for kids. If you can swing it, bring your own plates, napkins and silverware and a donation of winter clothing for a local charity. You are also invited to bring a menorah for the table and dreidel and pennies.

Your donation of $5 to $25 at the door goes toward Kol Tzedek’s mission to provide diverse and inclusive Jewish spiritual community in West Philly.

If you are out looking for a tree any time between now and Christmas Eve, we highly recommend stopping to see Curtis and his merry crew, who are back again this year at 50th and Baltimore. Like past years, Curtis has a fairly wide selection of trees (we picked up a nice Scotch pine today) at a lot of different prices. They have the string and are really good at tying trees to the tops of cars or wrapping it up to fit in a shopping cart. They also have tree stands.

One of the things we love about Curtis is that he leaves several trees out after he closes up shop each night for those who can’t afford to buy one. Curtis will be on the triangle in front of Dock Street Brewing Co. until Christmas Eve. You can complete the buy local experience by popping in for a beer at Dock Street or crossing the street for a gift at VIX Emporium near the northwest corner of 50th and Baltimore.