AARP is taking appointments to help with income tax preparations starting February 10 at the Holland Street Senior Center at 167 Holland Street. Please call Josephine to schedule an appointment, at 617-625-6600 ext. 2300.

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Argenziano Restaurant Night is tonight, Wednesday, February 5, 5:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m., at El Potro Mexican Bar & Grill, 61 Union Sq. Bring the family for dinner. A portion of the proceeds from all food and drinks purchased that night will be donated to the Argenziano PTA. Your student will be excited to see their friends. You will be relieved to skip preparing a meal, and teachers and students will be grateful to receive generous financial support from our community.

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For those who follow us on Facebook – and everyone of course should – we have set up a new account and we invite one and all to go the there and “Friend” us. The change was necessary for technical reasons, and the updates and postings will accordingly be better than ever. The old account will soon be deleted, so hurry on over to https://www.facebook.com/somerville.times.1 to get connected. We anxiously await your arrival.

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Happy birthday this week to the following: Happy birthday to John Arvantis, who is celebrating this week. Also, happy birthday to a good guy, Jason Ribeiro. We hope he has a great day this week. Happy birthday to our good friend and a great guy, Bob McWatters. We hope he has a great day. Also celebrating this week, Steve DeCarlo, who serves the city so well as its Director of City Cable Operations. Happy birthday to a young lady who grew up here and works at Endicott College, Eleanor Pye. We hope she has a great day as well. To all those celebrating this week who we may have missed, we hope you have a great day as well.

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Visit Somerville High School during Open House 2020 on Thursday, February 6 and Friday, February 7. Drop in to the 8:15 a.m. or 12:15 p.m. sessions both days. Meet staff, visit classrooms and get an early peak at construction changes happening right now.

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Families of middle and high school age students with disabilities are invited to come and learn about agencies and services that may be helpful to your college or workforce bound child; educational, employment, and independent living options and opportunities; and networking and family support possibilities. The Road to the Future Transition Fair will take place on Thursday, February 6 in the main cafeteria of Cambridge Rindge and Latin School, 459 Broadway, Cambridge. This event is hosted by Cambridge Public Schools OSS Transition Services in collaboration with Somerville Public Schools. RSVP to Brittaney Courier, bcourier@k12.somerville.ma.us (617-625-6600 x6201) or Sandra Copman, scopman@k12.somerville.ma.us (617-625-6600 x6855).

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Can’t wait to vote in the Presidential Primary? You can vote early in Somerville City Hall. Learn more about where and how to vote at somervillema.gov/elections. And of course, you can still vote at your usual polling place on Election Day this March 3.

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The Luv Buzz Sip & Shop Market takes place February 9, 10:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. at ONCE Somerville, 156 Highland Ave., Somerville. High Energy Vintage and The Green Witch are back with the Buzz. This sip and shop event features more than 30 local vendors with vintage, records, handmade, and art. This time around they are adding in some exciting extras. Enjoy the taco bar, tarot readers, photo booth, caricatures, and more. So grab your Valentine, your buds, or just your hat and pop in to grab a tasty featured cocktail or mocktail, shop for something special, and see what you can get into at the Luv Buzz Market.

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Hopeful Hearts & Local Arts, hosted by Connexion, takes place Saturday, February 8, 12:00 – 6:00 p.m., at Connexion, 149 Broadway. A market featuring a curated collection of makers, artists, designers, and small business owners. All are welcome to attend. There will also be food, music and a raffle. Raffle tickets funds and any donations will be to help Connexion continue to be a staple in the Somerville community through its many works. Support our community and shop local. For more info, visit https://connexionumc.org/

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The Somerville Arts Council is looking for musicians to perform at their annual jazz and blues festival. Get involved so you don’t miss out. The application deadline March 9. Joe’s Jazz and Blues Festival is back this year with an all-day free concert at Powderhouse Park on June 20 (rain date June 21) and is looking for talent to perform. This is an exciting opportunity to showcase your unique jazz and blues sounds. Past performances have included everything from swampy Cajun to Ethiopian Jazz. Preference will be given to bands with a Somerville connection. Please note, they are only considering applicants who haven’t played at this event in the last two years. Bring a friend, blanket, and a picnic for a great afternoon under the trees in one of the nicest parks in Somerville. If you are interested in performing, please fill out our call to musicians here: https://forms.gle/oXwjsvfKp7YU4P7m7.

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The next Somerville Garden Club meeting takes place February 12. The topic will be, Shade Gardens Beyond Spring: Extending The Season. Woodland and other shade heavy gardens are at their peak in spring when ephemerals are covering the ground, shrubs and small trees are blooming, and wildflowers are showing off yellows, blues, pinks, and whites. What can we glean from these gardens throughout the rest of the growing season? Anna Fialkoff will provide insights into the successional staging of plants for colors, textures, nectar sources, and oomph into summer and fall. As senior horticulturist for Native Plant Trust, Anna works with a small horticulture staff to manage the 45-acre Garden in the Woods in Framingham. She earned her MA in Ecological Design from The Conway School, and applies her skills in landscape literacy and site specific design to her work designing, installing, and stewarding vibrant New England native plant gardens. All Somerville Garden Club meetings are free and open to the public. 7:00 – 9:00 p.m. Meetings are held the at the Tufts Administration Building, (TAB), 167 Holland Street, second floor, wheelchair accessible. Parking is available, and the building is a ten-minute walk from the Davis Square MBTA stop.

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Project Bread’s Walk for Hunger is seeking participants to help shine a spotlight on hunger and raise funds to help neighbors. Set for Sunday, May 3, the one-day community event offers three routes: the 20-mile route with eight shuttle bus checkpoints; the 5K run through Boston’s Back Bay neighborhood; and the 3-mile loop, all of which are kid and stroller friendly. All routes start and end on the Boston Common. In its 52nd year, thousands of caring community members will participate in the oldest pledge walk in the country, which is expected to raise $2 million to support anti-hunger solutions and advocacy work to increase food access for people of all ages statewide. Likeminded organizations that participate as teams in The Commonwealth program can walk and run to raise money to support their own work, while also furthering Project Bread’s mission. The suggested fundraising minimum is $250. To register for Project Bread’s Walk for Hunger or to make a donation, visit projectbread.org/walk-for-hunger or call (617) 723-5000.

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Join staff from the City of Somerville’s Mobility Division, City Councilors Jesse Clingan, Ben Ewen-Campen, and Matt McLaughlin, city staff and Gilman Square Neighborhood Association (GSNA) for a community meeting about the future of Gilman Square. Staff will present conceptual designs for intersection and road improvements that will support multi-modal transportation and future development in Gilman Square, and receive feedback from community members about the design. The meeting will be held at the Winter Hill Community School, 115 Sycamore St., on Wednesday, February 12 from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. Interpretation in Portuguese, Haitian Creole, and Spanish will be available upon request by contacting Nancy Bacci at NBacci@somervillema.gov or 617-625-6600 ext. 2250.