Tonight, a must see in my book is the Jon Scales Fourchestra at Purple Onion at 8 p.m. This Asheville based steel drum progressive jazz foursome will be warming up for the heat wave of music in Asheville this weekend at Bele Chere. Think of the shimmering sound of Caribbean steel drum mixed with the rhythmic layers of Latin jazz and sweet melodic guitar riffs. You can bet I&squo;d be there if I wasn&squo;t at the Melrose Inn from 6:30-9 p.m. The last Porch Pickin&squo; session featured a variety of music including a fire spinning inspired jam with Firecracker Jazz Band tuba player Henry Westmoreland and the talented local guitar player Noah Stockdale. This week, in addition to music, the Tryon, Painters & Sculptors will join us for their drop-in figure drawing with Rich Nelson. Friday at 9 p.m. Elmo&squo;s II in Columbus welcomes the blues and classic rock of Groove Collector from Asheville. They&squo;ll be playing a mix of their favorite hits from groups like Led Zepplin, Pink Floyd, and Jimi Hendrix. Saturday wander down between 3-5 p.m. to Landrum for the smooth sounds of your favorite jazz standards from the Fred Whiskin Trio. Later that evening catch the sometimes whimsical and sometimes heartbreaking sweetness from talented singer songwriter Marjorie Thompson at the Purple Onion. Lanier Library will host the nationally acclaimed juggler The Great Fettucini for their annual summer children&squo;s program on Sunday, July 27 at 2 p.m. Monday the summer sizzling fun continues at Tryon Arts & Crafts with Introduction to Lapidary led by Wiley Gainus. Art meets science as kids have a chance to use the various lapidary tools to cut and polish stones while learning about rock formation. Call 828-859-8323 for more information. Polk County Library reopens this week and continues their summer reading program with the entertaining Greg Zelnik on Tuesday, July 29, 10:30 a.m. In this interactive adventure &dquo;Carolina Zelnik&dquo; sets out to find the elusive Reading Bug. Consider dining out mid-week and catch some jazz with Fred Whiskin at Twigs or the Dixie Rhythm Aces at Persimmons Bistro on Wednesday. Order tickets now for Andrew Lloyd Webber&squo;s CATS opening Thurs., July 31 at the Tryon Fine Arts Center. Chris Tinkler and a crew of talented artists have wrangled the local teens into a highly entertaining assortment of frisky felines. The show runs through Sun., August 3. Call TFAC 828-859-8322 for tickets, or visit www.tltinfo.org for more information.