You probably think you have plenty of time. It's only 17 syllables, right? You can whip out a hundred of those suckers in half an hour and squeak them in on the day of the deadline, yes? Don't be ridiculous. For Pete's sake, take some pride in your literary product, will you?

"Jaguar" by Susan Contreras

Exhibit Fifty-One

You won't see any paper airplanes, but you should find just about every other paper creation you can think of on display. Surface opens this Friday, August 12, with a reception from 5 to 8 p.m. at Exhibit Fifty-One (5100 Juan Tabo NE). The show will include drawings, mixed media work, etchings, collographs, serigraphs and monotypes by a host of nationally and internationally known artists. If you can't make it to the opening, Surface runs through Sept. 3. For details, call 275-1551.

Being rich has never been insurance against being unhappy. This doesn't mean the rich are greedy, just that when the heart truly aches, it doesn't matter whether you drown your sorrows in single malt scotch or rot gut wine. It still hurts. Jay Gatsby had all the money in the world, but he didn't have Daisy.

Sword Across Time boasts an ambitious story line, particularly for a first novel. Tamara is an investigative reporter for a New York magazine vacationing at her mother's country house when she happens across an ancient journal in the attic. Her mother, a practicing witch—to the ongoing disapproval of thoroughly modern Tamara—is mortified that her daughter has unearthed the text, and explains that their family is descended from Nimue, aka, The Lady of the Lake, the author of the journal. There is an ancient curse stemming from the feud between one-time lovers Merlin and Nimue, which resurfaces periodically among the descendents of each in accordance with the positions of the stars.

We Art the People at Robinson Park

Signs displayed throughout the park will speak volumes about the event, not so much because of the messages they convey but because of the way the signs themselves are constructed. This Saturday during the second annual We Art the People folk art festival, Robinson Park might be the only place in the entire city where you won't find a single generic prefabricated plastic banner anywhere.