FEBRUARY is never usually anyone's favourite month of the year but it's the shortest, and it carries us closer to Spring, so let's get excited. 

In the meantime however, here's a lovingly created list of things to do around Carlisle to help stave off those February blues.

1. Immerse yourself this Saturday night at the Old Fire Station to the sounds of swirling guitars and earworm saxophone with the Snake Davis band. The 'most in-demand' rock soul and jazz players will be on stage from 7pm and if you're interested, act fast as tickets are selling quickly.

2. Join Tullie House to celebrate the new year in the Chinese Calender bringing in the Year of the Tiger. The venue will be putting on crafts events, storytelling, museum trails with performances that highlight Chinese culture. Events will be taking place from 10am on Saturday morning.

3. Treat yourself and nip into John Watt & Son for a freshly-roasted brew this week. If you're a fan of crime author W. M Craven, you can even nab a coffee specially-tailored to one of his characters: the Washington Poe blend also comes with the possibility of picking up a signed copy of the character's latest adventure.

News and Star: DEAL: On offer at John Watt & Son's coffee shopDEAL: On offer at John Watt & Son's coffee shop

4. In line with Hadrian's Wall 1900th anniversary, why not visit the Roman Army Exhibition at the Vindolanda. Slightly further away but well worth travelling to in order to take a step back in history. 

5. Perhaps the jazzy sounds of Snake Davis isn't your thing or you've been too late to get a ticket, well don't worry. The punky and toe-tapping sounds of She Drew The Gun will taking to The Brickyard stage on Saturday night, with tickets available online.

6. Fancy making the week about good-home cooking, take a trip to Bell's Fishmongers in Kingstown Industrial Estate for all your needs. Owner Tony has a fresh supply of lobster, razor clams and seabream in for the Chinese New Year celebrations... oh, and he's also taking orders for his luxurious Valentine's Day seafood platters.

7. Perhaps you'd rather not have to worry about cooking, well if so, The Old Bank has you covered. Open all weekend and serving brunch, lunch and dinner as well as offering a great Sunday roast dinner, a visit here will keep both your heart and belly warm.

8. Spring into the week with a visit to Fusion Trampoline Park, a great day out for the family. The activity hub doesn't just offering loads of trampolines but also ninja assault courses, climbing walls, and slam dunk competition.

9. The Vue Cinema in Carlisle is offering a range of movies for everyone over the weekend, from Belfast, Sing 2, along with the new releases of sci-fi flick Moonfall and Jackass Forever.

10. Why not go nature spotting around the Kingmoor Nature Reserve, but perhaps bring your wellies. And if you take some good snaps, share them on our Facebook Camera Club page.