The merry month

Brothers and sisters juggle wildflowers and burgers (with onions) while riding bikes to a festival

May is merry month of tra-la — as in tra-la toads, tra-la dandelions, tra-la Mother’s Day, and do-re-mi The Sound of Music, ta-da! 1 May Day, Mother Goose Day, Gifts From the Garden Month. Mary, Mary, quite contrary, How do your cucumbers grow? “By the bag and the basket, Gadzooks, what a task it Becomes: all these cukes on the go; Please haul off a million or so.”

ART AND ABOUT

May Festival of the Arts, Eureka Springs. Exhibits, performances and events through May include the Northwest Arkansas Juggling Festival, May 10-12. Details at eurekaspringsfestivalofthearts.org. Call (479) 253-7333.

PICASSO: THE EARLY YEARS

Young Arkansas Artists Exhibition through June 30 at Arkansas Arts Center, Little Rock. Details at arkansasartscenter.org. Call (501) 372-4000.

PICK-ME-UPS

Great American Cleanup volunteer projects through May, sponsored by Keep Arkansas Beautiful. Details at keeparkansasbeautiful.com.

■ Events include flowerbed beautification and improvement, 10 a.m.-12:30 p.m. May 4 at Plantation Agriculture Museum State Park in Scott near North Little Rock. Call (501) 9611409.

SIBLING REVELRY

2 Brothers and How to celebrate Sisters Day: where else? — in the car.

PILE OF READING

Buried in Books sale for Friends of the Garland County Library. Members pre-sale 9 a.m.-3 p.m. May 2, book sale continuing 9 a.m.-3 p.m. May 3 and 4 at Garland County Library, Hot Springs. Details at gclibrary.com. Call (501) 6234161.

WALL-TO-WALL

3 Delta Exhibition through June 30 at Arkansas Arts Center, Little Rock. Details at arkansasartscenter.org. Call (501) 372-4000.

LONG TIME COMING

The Millennium Tour with Mario, Pretty Ricky and more, 8 p.m. at Verizon Arena, North Little Rock. Details at verizonarena.com. Call (501) 975-9000.

THIS MEANS WAR

World War II drama The Survivor through May 4, May 10-12 and May 16-18 at The Weekend Theater, Little Rock. Details at weekendtheater.org. Call (501) 374-3761.

ZOOM TOWN

Steel Horse Motorcycle Rally through May 4, Fort Smith. Details at thesteelhorserally.com.

■ Related events May 3-4 include “Motorcycle Memories” exhibit and a “Bier Garten” (beer garden) at the Fort Smith Museum of History. Details at fortsmithmuseum.org. Call (479) 7837841.

HOP, SKIP AND A JUMP

Toad Suck Daze, carnival, clowns and toad races through May 5, Conway. Details at toadsuck.org. Call (501) 3277788.

MR. TOAD’S WILD RIDE

4 Tour de Toad bike ride, 11 a.m. from Conway Municipal Airport, Conway, benefits Literacy Action of Central Arkansas. Details at literacyactionar.org. Call (501) 372-7323.

CARRIE’D AWAY

Carrie Underwood, 7 p.m. at Verizon Arena, North Little Rock. Details at verizonarena.com. Call (501) 9759000.

FLOWERY FINERY

Central Arkansas Iris Society’s Iris of Distinction show, 1-4 p.m. at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. Details at centralarkansasiris.org. Call (501) 626-7258.

EYE, EAR, NOSE AND THROAT — MOSTLY EAR

Little Rock Winds outdoor concert, Music Is Good Medicine, 4:30 p.m. at McGehee Hospital, McGehee, during 4-6 p.m. open house to showcase the radiology department’s new X-ray system. Details at lrwinds.org. Call (501) 666-0777.

TAKE A WOOKIE TO WUNCH

Star Wars Day. “Your mind powers will not work on me, boy.” — Jabba the Hutt.

MARGARITAVILLE

5 Mexican holiday and all-around great excuse for a beer, Cinco de Mayo.

EGO-A-GO-GO

6 Sigmund Freud’s birthday, 1856 — and time to remember that, sometimes, a cigar is just a cigar. A

birthday cake is just a cake with candles, and a birthday is just another day gone up in smoke.

“A man who has been the indisputable favorite of his mother, keeps for life the feeling of a conqueror.” — Freud.

NEATNESS COUNTS

7 How to celebrate National Teacher Day: with class.

MULTI-CULTURAL MULTIPLEX

Bentonville Film Festival through May 11, Bentonville, spotlights diversity in motion pictures. Details at bentonvillefilmfestival.com.

BEWARE OF SNAPDRAGONS

8 Wildflower Week, when the dandelion is the king of the jungle.

THE GRILL OF IT ALL

9 National Barbecue Month, National Hamburger Month, National Sweet Vadalia Onion Month — and pass the mustard.

OLDIES SOLDIES

10 Vintage Market Days through May 12 at Arkansas State Fairgrounds, Little Rock. Details at vintagemarketdays.com. Call (918) 671-9712.

BADA-BEAN, BADABOOM

11 Little Rock Farmers Market opening, continuing 7 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturdays through September in the River Market District, downtown Little Rock. Details at rivermarket.info. Call (501) 320-3500.

AMAZON ZOOM

DC Wonder Woman Run, 8 a.m. to noon from the Clinton Presidential Center, Little Rock. Details at dcwonderwomanrun.com.

E.T. PHONE HOME, E.T. CALL WINDOW

E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial in Concert, composer John Williams’ film score played by the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra in sync with the film, 7:30 p.m. May 11 and 3 p.m. May 12 at Robinson Center Performance Hall, Little Rock. Details at arkansassymphony.com. Call (501) 666-1761.

MOM’S THE BOMB

12 Mother’s Day.

DING-DONG MAMAS DO THEIR STUFF

Mother’s Day Bell Choir concert, 3 p.m. at Garvan Woodland Gardens, Hot Springs. Details at garvangardens.com.

Call (501) 262-9300.

CHAIN REACTIONS

13 National Bike Month warning: Don’t slip on the banana seat.

GO AHEAD, TART SOMETHING

14 National Vinegar Month reminder: You can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar. But who wants more flies? Pass the vinegar.

DOUGH-YAY-WHEE

15 National Chocolate Chip Day — better than oatmeal raisin, because you never know but what a raisin might be a fly.

THE FAMILY THAT HUGS TOGETHER, GLUGS TOGETHER

16 National Sea Monkey Day celebrates the family that lives in a castle in a fish bowl, just like the British Royals.

SIZZLE ME THIS

17 Magnolia Blossom Festival through May 18, World Championship Steak Cook-Off May 18, Magnolia. Details at blossomfestival.org. Call (870) 234-4352.

PITA, PITA, FETA EATER

International Greek Food Fest through May 19 at Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church, Little Rock. Details at greekfoodfest.com. Call (501) 2215300.

ALL GREEK TO ME QUIZ

Souvlaki is a shish kebob, and spanakopita is a spinach pastry. But what does Tsoutzoukakia mean on the Greek menu: (A) pancakes, (B) meatballs or (C) gesundheit. Answer at May 30.

HOG HEAVEN

18 Arkansas Made, Arkansas Proud Market, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. at War Memorial Stadium, Little Rock. Details at wmstadium.com. Call (501) 6636385.

DA DOO RUN-RUN-RUN

Lupus Springers 5K Race and Walk to End Lupus, 8 a.m., Hot Springs. Details at lupus-arkansas.com. Call (501) 525-9380.

WHERE REAMS COME TRUE

19 Books in Bloom literary festival with author Chris Bohjalian (The Flight Attendant) and Pete the Cat creator James Dean, noon-5 p.m. at the Crescent Hotel, Eureka Springs. Details at booksinbloom.org. Call (870) 423-5300.

SENIORS’ MOMENT

20 Older Americans Month refers to any geezer a day older than you are.

TWIN EXHAUST

21 GEMINI (May 21-June 21): Is today your birthday? If so, it’s time to double down on twins and other great team-ups, like The Bobbsey Twins, Romulus and Remus, Raggedy Ann and Andy, and cake and ice cream. Twolayer cakes all around, including for this month’s birthday boys: Bob Dylan, 78 on May 24; and Clint Eastwood, 89 on May 31.

MORIARTY SPOILS THE PARTY

22 Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s birthday, 1859, finds the author working twice as hard on the mystery he never published: Sherlock Holmes and the Evil Twin He Never Knew He Had.

NORTH AND SOUTH

23 South Carolina Admission Day, U.S. state No. 8 in 1788. Nothing could be finah than to be in Carolina. But even South Carolina has to admit: Nothing’s top banana like the east of Texarkana.

THE HILLS ARE ALIVE

24 The Sound of Music through May 26 at Robinson Center Performance Hall, Little Rock. Details at celebrityattractions.com. Call (501) 244-8800.

FOUNDERING FATHERS

25 The Constitutional Convention convenes in Philadelphia with seven delegates, 1787: the last time any seven people agreed on anything.

WRITERS IN THE SKY

26 Memorial Day fireworks show at Lake Hamilton, Hot Springs, starts at dusk from the Arkansas 7 bridge. Details at hotsprings.org. Call (501) 321-2027.

WHEE-DAY WEEKEND

27 Memorial Day — the Monday worth remembering

FUR BALL

28 Broadway musical Cats through June 2 at Walton Arts Center, Fayetteville. Details at waltonartscenter. org. Call (479) 443-5600.

SAY CHEESE

29 Wisconsin admission day, 1848. Cheddar is better. But even Wisconsin admits there are worse things to find than a can of Cheez Whiz in the refrigerator at midnight.

GOTTA GETTA KALAMATA

30 Make the sign of Zorba. Quiz answer: (B) Greek meatballs, spiced with cinnamon.

RALLY THE DROOPS

31 Water a Flower Day, Day after and awww! — Mary, Mary forgot to water the silver bells and cockleshells. But she’s still got dandelions.

Coming next month: June! Write to Ron Wolfe at rwolfe@arkansasonline.com

by May 15 to suggest June calendar entries or how to celebrate June as National Adopt a Cat Month, such as: Give ’em what fur. All entries require a web address and/or phone number that is answered during business hours.