St. Patrick's Day: It's only 24 hours long, spoiler alert, so fitting in the vast variety of Eire-tastic revelries in around SoCal will take a bit of a think. Then, once you plan your itinerary, we mean your Eire-tinerary, best jump in, on Saturday, March 17, to parade-watching in Hermosa Beach, running a 5K in Redondo Beach, eating the famous corned beef at Magee's Kitchen at the Original Farmers Market, and that massive, four-blocks-closed-yep street party in front of Casey's Irish Pub in DTLA. Your local Guinness-serving hang is probably stirring something up, too, so check in, during your busy, around-town St. Patrick's Day.
LA Marathon: So very soon after the corned beef and green beer comes the opportunity to dash from Dodger Stadium to the ocean in one of the planet's best-known running events. If you're running on Sunday, March 18, may the wind be at your back, and if you're there to cheer, make that poster bright. There's lots of course entertainment along the way, and if you're near a course-close restaurant, check in and see what the race-day specials are. Finding the route, the music, the times, and where to start/finish begins right here, marathoners and supporters-of-marathoners.
Here Come the Butterflies: True, you've probably see a playful Monarch out in the shrubs of your street by this point (well, playful to our human eyes; the butterfly is quite busy), but fully going into butterfly mode begins over the coming days. Butterfly season opens at Kidspace Children's Museum on Saturday, March 17 with caterpillar adoptions (it is this whole major multi-week things that kids dig, and parents, too). And at the Natural History Museum of LA? Oh yeah, the ever-effervescent Butterfly Pavilion is back, fluttering into Exposition Park on Sunday, March 18.
LA Nature Fest: Also happening at the Natural History Museum of LA, but just on Saturday, March 17 and Sunday, March 18? We say "just on" because Butterfly Pavilion'll stick around through Sept. 3. It's the one-weekend-only festival devoted to the urban critters we share these citified digs with, critters like squirrels and crows and, you bet, the occasional majestic mountain lion. (Squirrels and crows, don't be miffed we didn't throw down "majestic" for you; you're beautiful, too). Talks, learning, animal presentations, bird walks, and crafts are all part of the nature love-in.
PaleyFest opens: Sometimes, around Los Angeles, you see TV stars doing a bit of grocery shopping, and that is definitely not the time to learn about the arc of their character this season. When is the time? During the huge Q&A-a-thon helmed by The Paley Center for Media. The springtime television spectacular is back, at The Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, on Friday, March 16, and shows like "Will & Grace," "Queen Sugar," and "Stranger Things" will get the love (and, yep, many members of the cast will be there, on stage, cool). Tickets for this festival are a must, or beyond-a-must, if that's an actual thing.
