Spring is trying to break though in Flagstaff, though the mountains still have snow and today we experienced a bit of freezing rain. But the gardens are open at The Arboretum of Flagstaff, where you will find a full complement of exhibits and activities this time of year. Saturday afternoon, illustrator Diane Iverson of the children’s book Rascal: The Tassel-Eared Squirrel will be on hand from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. to explain her techniques and for book-signing. The Visitor Center will feature her illustrations throughout April and May. Our Town by Thornton Wilder opens Friday at Theatrikos in downtown Flagstaff. This prize-winning classic is set in a small New Hampshire town as the U.S. came out of the Great Depression. Show times are 8:00 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 2:00 p.m. on Sunday. This Flagstaff community theatre play runs weekends through April. Another theatre option this weekend in Flagstaff, if any tickets are still available, is You're A Good Man Charlie Brown, performed by the Northern Arizona University’s drama team at NAU’s Studio Theatre. Performances are scheduled through Sunday. Kickoff the weekend with a linguistics lecture by a professor from my old alma mater, The University of Chicago. This is the last lecture in the series Language Across the Univers(ity) and is entitled "Is 'Message' in Meltdown in the 2008 U.S. Presidential Campaign?" The lecturer, Michael Silverstein, is author of the book Talking Politics: The Substance of Style from Abe to "W". The lecture begins at 3:30 Friday afternoon at the Business Auditorium at Northern Arizona University.  Let’s hope it’s warm Friday night for First Friday Artwalk, sponsored by Flagstaff Cultural Partners. (Of course, the event has made it through the winter, so it has to be warmer for this one than it has been for the last four!) Thirty-three Flagstaff locations will be open Friday night from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. with local artwork on display. Download a map with locations by clicking here. Saturday morning, you can begin your day with a delicious Mexican breakfast at the American Legion Hall in downtown Flagstaff, where you’ll see youth dancers of Ballet Folklorico de Colores practice during their fund-raiser. From 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. For more information call 856-1538. Or, if you’d like to start Saturday earlier, and take a two-mile bird-watching tour with the Northern Arizona Audubon Society, show up at Willow Bend Environmental Education Center at 7:45 a.m. for a walk south on the Flagstaff Urban Trail System to the I-40 wetlands. Take the bus, ride a bike, or take a hike to Willow Bend at 703 E. Sawmill Road. Bring a binocular, water, snacks. Return time to Willow Bend is estimated at noon. Call Lauren for more details at 928-773-4866 or e-mail lbh32@nau.edu Saturday night or Sunday afternoon, take in Handel’s Serse, to be performed by Northern Arizona University’s Opera Company. Performances are at Audrey Auditorium at 7:30 p.m. Saturday and 2:00 p.m. Sunday. Wrap up the weekend with a three-mile hike with the Scalawag Mountain Climbers on Sunday afternoon beginning at 3 p.m., starting from the Cave’s Crater Trailhead off of Silver Saddle Road in Doney Park. | 
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