Arts & Entertainment

Walking Made Easy

All weekend

By Alison Sieloff  and  Erik Alan Carlson

Now that you've got that damn pedometer strapped to your waist, you have to worry about how much you've walked each day. As if holiday time isn't stressful enough! The St. Louis County Parks want to help -- so the sprites over there offer two outdoor holiday walks this weekend at two different parks.

Start the walking weekend off right at Faust Park (15185 Olive Boulevard, Chesterfield; 636-532-7298) on Friday, December 10 (or on Saturday, December 11, if you prefer). From 5 to 9 p.m., the Historic Village is lit up and decorated old-fashioned-holiday-style. As you explore December back in the day, don't worry about getting cold -- hot cider comes with the $10-per-car admission price. All this, and you're not even missing a night of shopping! (The folks who "live" in this village sell their wares to visitors.)

Next up on the holiday-walking docket is the Holiday Santa Walk at Suson Park (6073 Wells Road) on Saturday. Improve your pedometer score as you stroll along a one-mile luminaria-lit path. The farm animals and Santa won't join you on the walk (lazy), but you can visit with them at the park while enjoying your hot chocolate. Register for walk times between 5:30 and 7 p.m. at 314-894-3088 (required); admission costs $1 to $5. But if you don't have kids, no problem! Suson also has an adult walk at 7:30 p.m. the same night; call the number above to register ($2.50). -- Alison Sieloff

Shooting Allowed
But only on the court

THUR 12/9

In light of the recent NBA violence, calling anything a basketball "shootout" seems ill-advised. With any luck, however, there won't be any adrenaline-fed tirades at the 24th annual Shop 'n Save/KMOX Shootout at the Savvis Center (14th Street and Clark Avenue). There, eighteen teams from six states compete in games that pit some of the top high school basketball players in the country against one another. Tickets cost $15 to $23 and can be had at any Ticketmaster outlet or by calling 314-241-1888. Your admission price covers the more than twelve hours of basketball (beginning at 9 a.m.), but it doesn't cover health insurance, life insurance or body armor in case things go awry. To find out more, including the full schedule of games, visit www.stlshootout.com. -- Erik Alan Carlson