👻🤑 These fall freebies are *scary* good

🎶 We were today years old when we learned: The Red Sox have a public playlist of all the players’ walkup songs. We expected to see the likes of Jay-Z and Pop Smoke. But we gotta say, Fleetwood Mac and “Moana” were a surprise.

🎟️ P.S. We’re sending you to a drag show. Today is the day to enter our Sasha Colby: Stripped II giveaway for a pair of free tickets! Become a member here, then enter the giveaway via this form.  

👀 What’s on tap today:

Up first…

You might think summer is the season of freebies. But we’d argue that fall is making a *pretty* convincing case. 

Here are the best things to do this month without spending a dime:

🎺 End Oktoberfest season with a HONK. Harvard Square’s annual joint Oktoberfest, HONK! Parade, and Filipino American Day celebration will take over the streets on Oct. 12. Expect live music on multiple stages, tons of international food vendors, plus crafts, activities, and of course, beer gardens.

🖼️ Spend a day at the museum. In honor of Indigenous People’s Day on Oct. 13, the MFA, ICA, and Isabella Stewart Gardner museums are all offering free admission! Depending where you go, you’ll be able to catch themed exhibits, classes, and programming. Here’s how to nab your ticket for each spot:

🚣 Watch the pros row, row, row their boats. Every October, The Head of the Charles Regatta brings hordes of private school kids, college athletes, and literal Olympians to Boston for a premier rowing competition. This year, it’ll be in town from Oct. 17 to 19. Camp out between the Anderson and Weeks bridges for prime viewing, and don’t forget to wander the Weld Exhibition for shopping and freebies.

🍄 Spark a fascination with fungi. Somerville’s first-ever mushroom fest is coming to Bow Market on Oct. 18 courtesy of THE mushroom shop. There will be mushroom bites and sips (yes, we’re talking mushroom beer), plus contests, education, and plenty of merch!

🍺 Enjoy fall’s best flavors. One thing about Time Out Market: They LOVE a free booze tasting. On Oct. 18, they’ll be doling out free samples of some of New England’s best ciders at their Ciderfest event. Then, keep your taste buds firing at the city’s first-ever SpicetoberFest on City Hall Plaza, where 40+ food vendors and farmers will showcase their boldest fall flavors.

📚 Grab your bookish besties. The Boston Book Festival is coming to town Oct. 25, and this year’s freebies are off the charts. See: Panels and talks from all-star authors like Celeste Ng (author of “Little Fires Everywhere”), Elin Hilderbrand (“28 Summers”), Linda Holmes (“Evvie Drake Starts Over”), and WAY more, on topics including slow-burn romances, sex, writing, and horror. Here’s the full schedule.

🐶 Make this Halloween a “Howl”-o-ween. Finally, for the fluffiest freebie of the month: Dogs in Halloween costumes! Tons of pups (and their humans!) will be donning their Halloween best for Boston’s annual Doggone Halloween Pet Parade in Downtown Crossing on Oct. 25. And, of course, it’s totally free to watch.

Annual checkups and screenings may feel optional, but they’re money savers long term. Catching issues early usually means lower costs and quicker fixes. Many insurance plans even cover preventive care for free, ultimately helping you save time and money.

😬 So … the federal government just shut down. At 12:01 a.m., federal funding officially ran out when a gridlocked Congress failed to pass a new budget. What does that mean for Mass.? Our ~25,500 federal workers will feel it first. “Essential” services (like TSA or the USPS) will keep running while employees work without pay. Meanwhile, “non-essential” services (like federally-run parks) will likely shut down, leaving those workers on unpaid leave. And that’s not to mention the potential for mass layoffs, economic turmoil, and a LOT of political finger-pointing. Here’s a rundown.

🧑‍⚖️ A Boston federal judge handed President Trump a major L. On Tuesday, US District Judge William G. Young ruled that Trump officials violated the free speech rights of pro-Palestinian international students and academics. And let’s just say, he didn’t mince words in his blistering, 161-page decision. Young said he found clear evidence that the admin’s arrests and deportations of Pro-Palestinian activists (including Turkish Tufts student Rümeysa Öztürk) were meant to “strike fear” into non-citizen students and quell campus protests. What comes next is TBD, but this is bad news for Trump’s camp. 

🛵 Boston’s war on delivery scooters is revving up. City Councilor Ed Flynn proposed an outright ban on food delivery drivers using mopeds and e-bikes. Despite the city’s attempted crackdown on reckless driving earlier this year, Flynn said he still receives frequent complaints of dangerous habits like driving on sidewalks or running reds, and that the current enforcement strategy is “unrealistic” with Boston’s police staffing limitations. If that sounds extreme, it is (and Flynn knows as much), but he hopes it’ll start a larger dialogue about the issue. Now, it’ll head to committee review.

⚾ The real loser of the Red Sox-Yankees series: Local businesses. ICYMI: The Red Sox are currently playing their first post-season series since 2021 (1-0 Red Sox, BTW). But thanks to a 2022 MLB rule switchup, it’ll take place entirely at Yankee Stadium, and businesses around Fenway Park aren’t thrilled. Without fans coming into town, local hotels are missing out on a huge bump in biz, and even restaurants and bars near the park, which should get a solid boost, will miss the usual home game influx.

Below are some of the hottest local things to do. This month, B-Side members can save more than $150 across our events, in addition to over 60 other awesome perks. 

🍶 B-Side Supper Club at The Koji Club | Thursday, Oct. 2 | 6:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. | The Koji Club | $30 | $75 value | Our B-Side member-only Supper Club at The Koji Club is on Thursday and we have three tickets remaining! See here for the menu.  

🍻 Harpoon Octoberfest | Friday, Oct. 3 - Saturday, Oct. 4 | Harpoon Brewing | $38 | Want a free ticket to Octoberfest at Harpoon? We’re giving away four tickets to Harpoon’s Friday festivities TODAY! Become a member, then enter here.

🍂 B-Side Fall Festival | October 11–12 & October 18–19 | The Yard, Charlestown | $20 regular | FREE for members | Celebrate the best of fall with two weekends of autumn fun featuring delicious food, apple cider donuts, hay rides, live music and more. 

🍝 B-Side Supper Club at Tip Tap Room | Tuesday, Oct. 14 | 6:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. | Tip Tap Room | $30 | $75 Value | Chef Brian Poe is transforming the restaurant into an Italian pop-up called Poe-lenta. We’ll enjoy a menu of 7 dishes, including wild game dishes like bison meatballs and bolognese.

If you’re always two minutes late to Dunkin’s iconic merch drops … we have some great news. Urban Outfitters just dropped its own Dunkin’ collaboration. And yes, it’s cute.

The collection features 14 items, ranging from two-piece sweatsuits to an iced coffee-themed digital camera to our personal faves, simple graphic tees and sweatshirts featuring a frosted doughnut or hot coffee. Prices range from $29 for a T-shirt, $59 for a sweatshirt, and $75 for a camera.

The collection is available online, or IRL at 17 locations, including its Newbury Street outpost. When we called, they said they have “a few T-shirts and hoodies” still available, so go wild!

— Written by Gia Orsino and Claire Nicholas

🍩 Thanks for reading! We’re adding this “hot” hoodie to our cart as we speak.

😷 The results are in: 70% of B-Siders said that if they woke up with a “mystery rash,” they’d simply wait it out and see what happens. One reader said: “I call my mom and ask her what to do, duh!!”

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