Ghastly persuasion: October gives away cookies, rice pudding and candy corn for costumed stamp collectors, Lego block builders and ballerinas

October is when ghosts flit, spiders skitter, and even zombies run -- all for this Halloween month's trick-or-treat bag of pizza, cheese dip, cupcakes, beans and cornbread, and -- YEEK! -- spinach.

1

National Homemade Cookies Day, National Roller Skating Month, American Cheese Month. Kitchen enrichened, foot travel quickened, hot cheese dip thickened.

DEM BONES, DEM BONES, DEM -- WHY BONES?

Magnificent Me exhibit of how the human body works, through Oct. 20 at Arkansas State Museum, Arkansas State University, Jonesboro. Details at astate.edu. Call (870) 972-2074.

NUMBER ONE ON THE BUCKET LIST

2

National Custodial Workers Day celebrates the man who lowers the broom.

SAID A MOUTHFUL

3

National Kale Day -- for people who think lettuce is too easy to chew.

LT. DATA TO BRIDGE CITY

4

Little Rock Tech Fest of web design, data and software through Oct. 5 at the Statehouse Convention Center, Little Rock. Details at lrtechfest.com.

LEAVES FALL, VOICES RISE

5

Arkansas Chamber Singers Fall Concert, "The Singing Heart," 7:30 p.m. at Cathedral of St. Andrew, Little Rock; and 3 p.m. Oct. 7 at Calvary Baptist Church, Little Rock. Details at ar-chambersingers.org. Call (501) 377-1121.

WHAT'S THE BUZZ

6

Arkansas Honey Festival, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. at Bemis Honey Bee Farms, Little Rock. Details-zzz at bemishoneybeefarm.com. Call (501) 897-2337.

ECTOPLASM ENTHUSIASM

Arkansas Paranormal Expo, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. at said-to-be-haunted MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History, Little Rock. Details at arkansasparanormalexpo.com. Call (501) 376-4602.

DINNER AND DESSERT

• Shrimp Boil, 5 p.m. at Saint Mark's Episcopal Church Little Rock, benefits St. Francis House. Call (501) 225-4203.

• Cupcakes for Goodness Sake street festival, 4-7 p.m., downtown North Little Rock, benefits CareLink services including Meals on Wheels. Details at carelink.org. Call (501) 372-5300.

PEBBLE BEACH

Greater Little Rock Area Mineral, Fossil, Gem and Jewelry Show through Oct. 7 at Jacksonville Community Center, Jacksonville. Details at centralarrockhound.org.Call (501) 679-4531.

A LITTLE PICK-YOU-UP

7

Last day of Get Organized Week, but it's never too late to get organized. The elves of organization go to work at midnight right after the other big party that happens in October: Sarcastic Month.

LAND HO, NO SHOW

8

Columbus Day. But when the explorer tries to write home: "Hey, Ma, discovered America," he discovers the post office is closed.

HIRE AND HIGHER

9

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette and CAHRA Fall Job Fair, 10 a.m.-3 p.m. at Statehouse Convention Center, Little Rock. Details at Central Arkansas Human Resources Association, cahra.net. Call (501) 378-3807.

SPIRITS ARE ABOUT TO SPEAK

Tales of the Crypt living history tours of Mount Holly Cemetery, Little Rock, 6-8:30 p.m., supports cemetery maintenance. Details at parkviewtheatre.com. Call (501) 804-6239.

CHESTER THE TESTER

10

Chester "Who?" A. Arthur's birthday, 1830. He was: (A) Third governor of Arkansas, (B) 21st president of the United States, or (3) Marshal Matt Dillon's first deputy in Dodge City.

Answer at Oct. 15.

HAIRY ISSUES

11

Pet Peeve Week polling shows that 36 percent of American homes have dogs as pets, 30 percent have cats, and 100 percent have peeves.

RIBBONS AND LASSOS

Arkansas State Fair through Oct.21 at the State Fairgrounds, Little Rock, with Charlie Daniels Band, carnival, rodeo, Details at arkansasstatefair.com. Call (501) 372-8341.

OH, WHAT A NIGHT!

12

The Jersey Boys: The Story of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons, through Oct. 14 at Robinson Center Performance Hall, Little Rock. Details at celebrityattractions.com. Call (501) 244-8800.

TAKEI'S TAKE ON HISTORY

George Takei's Allegiance: The Broadway Musical on the Big Screen, 7 and 9 p.m. at Ron Robinson Theater, Little Rock. The show is based on the Star Trek actor's remembrance of growing up in a Japanese-American internment camp in Arkansas. Details at cals.org. Call (501) 320-5715.

ALE, ALE, THE GANG'S ALL HERE

Oktoberfest through Oct. 13 at Hill Wheatley Plaza, Hot Springs. Details at hotsprings.org. Call (501) 262-5272.

SHELL GAME

World Egg Day -- when the Egg Fairy visits. Good eggs get nest eggs, bad eggs get goose eggs, and the remains of the day stick to the pan.

PIECES O' EIGHT

13

National Pizza Month, and no fair picking all the good parts off the leftovers.

INS AND OUTS OF CALORIE COUNTS

14

National Dessert Day -- time to wonder why it is that clowns throw whipped cream and egg custard pies, but never pepperoni pies.

• Joe Weber Arky 100 bicycle ride, 8:30 a.m. from Sheridan Community Center near Little Rock. Details at arkansasbicycleclub.org. Call (501) 912-1449.

NEVER PESTER CHESTER

15

Not-that-old-chestnut quiz answer: (B) 21st president. Chester Arthur lasted fewer than four years in office, compared to stiff-legged Chester Goode, who swept the marshal's office in Dodge City for nine years.

IT'S IN THE BOOK

16

Dictionary Day, National Fossil Day.

• FOSSIL (noun): (1) Prehistoric remains, or (2) Anyone older than you.

POPEYE NEEDS A SCRATCH -- HIS BACK'S SPINACHIN'

17

Spinach Lovers Month, Squirrel Awareness and Appreciation Month, and be glad that squirrels don't power up like Popeye.

Beware of the squirrel that eats spinach,

Run quick from the rat that eats beans;

Look out for raccoons;

That are all full of prunes;

It's time to call out the Marines.

THAT'S THE GRIST OF IT

18

War Eagle Fall Craft Fair through Oct. 21 at War Eagle Mill near Rogers. Details at wareaglemill.com. Call (479) 789-5343.

THE PIROUETTING UNDEAD

19

Ballet Arkansas performance, Dracula, through Oct. 21 at University of Arkansas at Pulaski Tech Center for Humanities and Arts, North Little Rock. Details at balletarkansas.org. Call (501) 812-2387.

USE THE FORCE, LUTE

20

Arkansas Symphony Orchestra concert, "The Music of Star Wars," 7 p.m. Oct. 20, and 3 p.m. Oct. 21 at Robinson Center Performance Hall, Little Rock. Details at arkansassymphony.org. Call (501) 666-1761.

RO-TEL HOTEL

World Cheese Dip Championship, noon to 4 p.m. at the Clinton Presidential Center, Little Rock. Details at cheesedip.net.

APPLE FOR THE TEACHER

21

Beware Computer Learning Week. The teacher bytes.

TAKIN' IT BIG EASY

22

Take Me to the River New Orleans Live with the Dirty Dozen Brass Band and Ivan and Ian Neville, 7:30 p.m. at the University of Arkansas at Pulaski Tech, North Little Rock. Details at charts.uaptc.edu. Call (501) 812-2710.

HALO, EVERYBODY

23

Comedy The Hallelujah Girls through Nov. 11 at Murry's Dinner Playhouse, Little Rock. Details at murrysdp.com. Call (501) 562-3131.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, EVERYBODY STING ALONG

24

SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21): Is today your birthday? If so, happy wishes and a pinch to grow on. Do the scorpion dance with Monty Python silly-walker John Cleese, 78 on Oct. 27; and Ivanka Trump, 37 on Oct. 30.

GUESSO WHO

25

Pablo Picasso's birthday, 1881: out with the round cake, in with the cubist.

CLEAN UP THESE CRUMBS

26

Hansel and Gretel's Gingerbread Games through Nov. 11 at Arkansas Arts Center Children's Theatre, Little Rock. Details at arkansasartscenter.org. Call (501) 372-4000.

BEAN THERE, RUN THAT

Bean Festival and Great Arkansas Championship Outhouse Races, through Oct. 27, Mountain View Courthouse Square. Details at yourplaceinthemountains.com. Call (870) 269-8068.

LOOK! -- UP IN THE SKY

27

Thunder Over the Rock: Little Rock Air Force Base Air and Space Show, through Oct. 28 at the air base, Jacksonville, with the United States Air Force Thunderbirds and Army Golden Knights Parachute Team. Details thunderovertherock.com.

FLASHES IN THE PAN

Arkansas Cornbread Festival, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. around 15th Street and South Main, Little Rock. Details at arkansascornbreadfestival.com. Call (501) 396-9587.

• Grand Prairie Rice Festival, antique engine and tractor show, Hazen. Call (870) 830-2404.

BRICKERS AND STICKERS

BrickUniverse Lego Fan Experience with professional Lego builder Jonathan Lopes and his 8-foot-tall model of New York City's Woolworth Building, through Oct. 28 at Statehouse Convention Center, Little Rock. Details at brickuniverse.com.

• Pinnacle Stamp Club of Arkansas PINPEX stamp show through Oct. 28 at Jacksonville Community Center, Jacksonville. Call (501) 868-4553.

LEFT IN A LURCH

• Creep 'N' Crawl costumed fun run, 5 p.m. at Two Rivers Park, Little Rock. Details at creepncrawl.com.

• Eureka Springs Zombie Crawl parade, 5 p.m. through downtown Eureka Springs. Details at eurekaspringschamber.com. Call (479) 253-8737.

MERCY THEM

28

MercyMe, 6 p.m. at Verizon Arena, North Little Rock. Details at verizonarena.com. Call (800) 745-3000.

POSTAGE DUE

29

National Stamp Collection Month remembers when "save a stamp" meant more than go online.

BETTER CORNY THAN COOL

30

National Candy Corn Day celebrates the treat that comes from heavily subsidized Iowa candy corn fields.

EITHER WAY, THE SCARIEST THING IS THE SUGAR

31

Halloween.

• Day of the Dead, Mexican holiday through Nov. 2.

Coming next month: November! Write to Ron Wolfe at

[email protected]

by Oct. 15 to suggest November calendar entries or how to celebrate November as National Novel Writing Month, such as: the stuff that reams are made of. All entries require a web address and/ or phone number that is answered during business hours.

Style on 09/25/2018

Upcoming Events