Your boys don't brake for art? Bring 'em along for the rides. Chandler's "Saturday Music and Art in the Park" boasts a new attraction this go-around: the inaugural Classic Car and Hot Rod Show. Some 130 cars are set to roll in to Historic Downtown Chandler for the free monthly event, which welcomes the weekend with live music, displays of local artwork, and free trolley rides throughout downtown and Olde Towne Market Square. A local music lineup sets the beat while folks check out the area's shops, galleries and restaurants. Starting at 10 a.m. this Saturday, February 21, Dr. A.J. Chandler Park rocks and/or rolls with Come Back Buddy, and Kenny Love & The Rock-er-Fellas. From 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Sandy Hathaway sends soft pop down Boston Street, and Ginni Alvey jazzes up Buffalo Street; between 1 and 4 p.m., Kay Peper's Brazilian jazz fills Olde Towne Market Square.
Find the center of the action one block south of Chandler Boulevard at Arizona Avenue. Call 480-782-3405 for more information. - Jill Koch
Blues Ball
Blues Blast 2004 gets down in Mesa
Sun 2/22
Hear the fruit of their gloom: Otis Clay (pictured), Tab Benoit, and Johnny Rawls are lined up to get down at Blues Blast 2004, this Sunday, February 22, at Mesa Amphitheatre, Center and University. Also on tap: Arizona acts Sistah Blue, Lisa Otey and Kathleen Williamson, and Buzz and the Soul Senders. Tickets are $15 in advance, $18 at the gate, and free for kids 12 and younger. See www.ticketmaster.com. - Jill Koch
Pieces of July
Miranda July reveals her many creative facets
Thu 2/19
If Leonardo da Vinci lived today, he'd room with Miranda July to get in on the late-night brainstorms. July -- filmmaker, writer and performance artist -- not only creates on her own, she mentors others by sharing their works at performances and on her Web site. Encounter July's warmth at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, February 19, at ASU's Digital Arts Ranch, where she'll screen two short films, read a short story and showcase students' work created for the occasion. Admission is free. For more information, contact Sheilah at 480-965-0964; for reservations, call 480-965-9438. The Digital Ranch pulses at Myrtle and University in Tempe. To learn more about the artist, see www.mirandajuly.com or www.learningtoloveyoumore.com. - Kim Toms
Ranch Hand
Volunteers take the rural route
Sat 2/21
We'd get a mite agitated if ranchers drove cattle through our living room -- and we reckon they feel the same when we rumble across their land on our way to the big wide open. Whether we hunt, fish, four-wheel or just take in the scenery, chances are we've enjoyed a cattleman's hospitality. But heavy traffic exacts a heavy toll -- road ruts, escaped livestock and just plain litter. And in these days of drought, grazing limits and 99-cent burgers, ranchers could use a hand. Enter the Arizona Game and Fish Department's "Adopt a Ranch" program, which lets city dwellers give back to the gatekeepers of the great outdoors. At 8 a.m. this Saturday, February 21, pardner up with other good citizens to refurbish a corral fence at Rafter Cross Ranch near Roosevelt. Pick up a paintbrush and spread some goodwill. For more information, call 602-789-3492.- Kim Toms