Alida O’Loughlin is the featured artist this month for the Vineyard Haven Library’s Art of the Stacks program.

Ms. O’Loughlin is a photographer who went public with her calling late in life; she showed her work for the first time when she was over 70 years old. Since then she has made up for lost time and in 2003 won first prize for professional photography in both the landscape and seascape categories at the Martha’s Vineyard Agricultural Fair.

This month’s flower girl stops traffic

in the garden center parking lot

in tight Carhartts and Felco holster,

wiping a smear of soil from her cheek

with clay-encrusted fingers. Where’s she been

all winter? On some exotic playa

down under, collecting seaglass? Or here

all along, holed up in a rental off Oak Lane

with only a wood stove and cable, plotting

meticulous scenarios of perennial displays.

Spring Plant Sale

Heirloom tomatoes (over 35 varieties), peppers, eggplant, herbs, flowers galore, it’s all ready to be transplanted to your garden thanks to the hard early work done by The Community Solar Greenhouse (COMSOG). This weekend, on Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. the annual spring plant and seedling sale begins, just in time for Mother’s Day, at the greenhouse located at 114 New York avenue in Oak Bluffs.

The sale continues all month.

For more information, call 508-693-2019.

Bellydance Revue

Today, May 11, is all about the bare belly as the Vineyard Bellydance and Revue hits our shores at the Katharine Cornell Theatre in Vineyard Haven. The show begins at 7:30 p.m.

On hand will be local shimmyers as well as featured guest dancers from around New England bringing with them dance styles from around the world. In addition, there will be a performance by jazz vocalist, Jerri Wells, who has previously performed with Count Basie in New York city.

Night of the Heron

Last year, the Night Heron Gallery opened at 58 Main street in Vineyard Haven as a cooperative gallery. This Saturday, the gallery again opens its doors with a reception featuring two of its newest members, Sylvie Bags and L.A. Brown Photography.

In addition to newcomers, this is a chance to see all of the members work, including ceramics by Washington Ledesma, porcelain by Lisa Strachan, and prints by Nicholas Thayer. There are also numerous watercolors, jewelry, tiles, even sweaters.

The reception is from 5 to 8 p.m.

Say Grace

Traditionally, a 25th anniversary is termed the silver anniversary. This year on the Vineyard, silver gives way to the lobster roll. After all, its the 25th season for Grace Church lobster rolls. In all those years, they’ve never had trouble with returns. Tell that to Macy’s.

Last Friday the season began. Think about it, lobster rolls every Friday from now through September. The lines get long come summer, so now is the time to truly savor the moment