Pottery Auction

Blooming Bids for Kids, featuring unique planters and pottery for auction at Field Gallery and Sculpture Garden in West Tisbury, is a fund-raising event to benefit Big Brothers Big Sisters of Martha’s Vineyard. The event, Friday, June 19, is from 6 to 8 p.m. and will include fine wine, beer, heavy hors d’oeuvre and music, in addition to the action of plants and art pieces. The gallery is located at 1050 State Road in West Tisbury. Reserve a place by June 2 by calling 508-771-5150, extension 105.

Learn Anatomy

A special anatomy workshop will be held on Saturday and Sunday, May 30 and 31 at the Yoga Barn in West Tisbury, taught by Anne Gilroy, associate professor at UMass Medical School, Hours are 1 to 5 p.m. on Saturday and 1 to 4 p.m. on Sunday. Preregister before May 23 for $45 per day or $80 for both days. Walk-ins pay $55 per day, $100 for two days. Send checks (payable to Anne Gilroy) to Gary Fudem, P.O. Box 535, Chilmark MA 02535. Especially useful for yoga and fitness instructors,, the course is open to all.

Concert for Tom Osmers

A benefit concert will be held on Sunday, May 17 for Tom Osmers, the West Tisbury shellfish constable and well-known Island figure who recently became ill. The event will be at the Agricultural Hall from 5 to 10 p.m. A potluck dinner will be followed by live music, including Willie Mason, Jemima James, Nina Violet, Ballyhoo, Squash Meadow and JohnnyHoy. All are welcome; pleas e bring a dish to share.

Gas

Gas prices are on the move, and a recent article in the Boston Globe attributes the rise to the approach of Memorial Day and optimism about the economy. Wouldn’t we be more optimistic if gas prices stayed low? The local AAA chapter reports a 22-cent increase in a month’s time as the state average. On the Vineyard we’ve seen an average increase of 18 cents from April to May. This may be the first time the growth in our average cost of anything was lower than the rest of the state.

Calling Volunteers

The American Red Cross, Cape Cod and Islands chapter, is looking for additional volunteers in disaster services and for general support in the next few months. Training will be provided free of charge.

The results are ready from a national centers for disease control (CDC) study of tick-borne diseases in the Island Wampanoag population, but the outbreak of swine flu may delay their release, the tribe’s environmental health coordinator Cynthia Robinson said this week.

The study is a key feature of a wide-ranging environmental health exposition this Saturday, put on by the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah). The event runs from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Harbor View hotel in Edgartown.