Float your boat at The Brick Box (Paramount Theatre) on Friday, March 12, at the opening of an exhibit of wooden canoes restored by Ralph Nimtz. The canoes stay on display trough April 6. For more information, call Beth Miller, 235-2734, or Wendy Fannin, 235-2412.

Escape to the comedic world of tormenting spirit when the Marble Valley Players present Noel Coward's Blithe Spirit, Friday through Sunday, March 12-14, and the following weekend too. Book your seat at the West Rutland Town Hall Theater performances through the Paramount box office, 775-0903.

Classical clarinetist Jose Franch-Ballester offers a musical program that spans three centuries in his performance on Saturday, March 13, at The Paramount. Planned selections include a Johannes Brahms sonata and three Astor Piazzolla/Zinger tangos.

The following Thursday, Cape Breton fiddler Natalie McMaster brings her seemingly reckless exuberance and vibrant rhythms to the Paramount stage on Thursday, March 18. For details on either of these concerts, call the box office, 775-0903.

Spartan Arena (behind Diamond Run Mall) hosts the March of Dimes March for Babies Fun Day/Kick Off Sunday afternoon, March 14. Skate for $5.00 a person (including skate rental), with a portion of proceeds to go to the March of Dimes. Other activities are free. Call 683-8247 for info.

Refresh your thoughts with a grocery bag of reading from the Rutland Free Library's Spring Fever book sale, Monday evening, March 15. Come back the following evening for the program Bats in the Balance in the Fox Room. Or5 take in the RFL Book Club, discussing "The Elegance of the Hedgehog" by Muriel Barbery. Call 773-1860 to find out more.

College of St. Joe students are inviting young people, age 3 to 10, for a free story hour at the school at 1:00 p.m., Friday, March 19. Call 776-5262 for more info.

Take the bus (courtesy of OMYA) to the state house in Montpelier and see your legislators at work on Wednesday, March 24. Begin the day at 7:00 a.m. with coffee and doughnuts at the Rutland Region Chamber of Commerce office, ride up with your friends, visit with Lieutenant Gov. Brian Dubie, House Speaker Shap Smith and other state luminaries. Call 773-2747 to reserve your spot.

Plan to spend the evening of April 1 (a Thursday) supporting the Rutland County Humane Society (RCHS) at its 4th annual "Spring for the Animals" Auction. More than 100 items are already donated, including art, jewelry, dining, items for the home, gift baskets and more. Online bidding begins March 15. All proceeds support the animals and programs at the Rutland County Humane Society. For more details, call RCHS at 483.9171.

Rutland Middle School hosts a statewide food summit on Saturday, April 10. Stakeholders will review and vet draft plan goals and provide feedback to guide the final draft for the Fart to Plate strategic plan.

Rutland area students from 7th through 12t grade are encouraged to audition Thursday, March 18, or Wednesday, March 24, for the 2010 Summer Encore production The Little Mermaid. Rehearsals run June 28 through July 16 from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. for acting, and 2:30 to 5:15 p.m. for technical. During the week of July 19 through July 23, the show is on the road, with two to four performances per day at various Vermont libraries. The season ends on July 24 with two performances in the Encore Theatre performance space at Rutland High School. Call 770-1134 for more info.

New members elected to the Rutland Area Art Association board of directors are Tracy Carris, Deb Dauphinais, Kit Hastings, Catherine Nelson and Bill Kimball, while Linda Reis, Bob Hooker, Tony Carbine and Blair Enman were re-elected to serve for additional 2 year terms. New officers are Blair Enman, president; Karen Seward, vice president; Steve Selbo, treasurer, and Bob Hooker, secretary.

Once a shoe store, later a gift shop, the southwest corner of Merchants Row and West Street is taking on a new look, as local Republicans have been painting and fixing up the 51 Merchants Row storefront for their countywide headquarters.

Recent local elections appear to indicate voters' support for senior citizen programming as they rejected six of the 10 social service agency budgets on the city ballot. They expressed support for Rutland County Women's Network and Shelter; Rutland Area Visiting Nurses Association and Hospice; One-2-One, RSVP, InterAge, and Southwestern Vermont Council on Aging; and Regional Ambulance Service, for a total cost of $159,143. Turned down were Rutland Mental Health Services, the Association for Retarded Citizens, Marble Valley Regional Transit District, Boys and Girls Club of Rutland County, Vermont Adult Learning/Rutland County Adult Basic Education, and BROC — Community Action in Southwestern Vermont.

Voters also approved repair of the Rutland Free Library building and three changes to the city charter that set 10-year term limits for the mayor and alder board, and or cool and municipal employees to pay at least 10 percent of health care premiums. These charter alterations still face approval by the state legislature.

Top vote getter in the alderman's race was Dave Allaire, board president, followed by newcomer Ed Larson, William Notte, Sharon Davis, and Christopher Robinson.

The College of St. Joseph cross country course hosts participants in the 100 Miles in 100 Days campaign on Saturday, April 10. Those taking part are asked to park and meet near the college soccer fields at 10:00 a.m. Call Jen Coleman, WalkRutland Coordinator, at 342-3479, for more info.