Going out

        Dixie Chicks: The country superstars reach out and say “Goodbye Earl” and “Hello, Mr. Heartache” at Firstar Center with Ricky Skaggs kicking off the twangy festivities. 7:30 p.m. today, $29.50-$47.50. 562-4949.

        Puppet art: Puppets doing Milton's “Paradise Lost”?? Somewhere out there an English prof is unraveling his tweed jacket in horror. But that's the drill when Saw Puppet Theatre does Account Me Puppet, a dramatization of the above said “Paradise.” 8 p.m. today in Saw's Camp Washington studio, 2823 Massachusetts Ave. through Nov. 11. $15. 541-0872.

        “Into the Woods:” Stephen Sondheim rhapsodizes over a whole batch of children's tales in the inaugural production for Actors Repertory Theatre. Performed in the renovated 1883 Masonic Temple in downtown Middletown, 8 p.m. today through Oct. 29. $15-$18. (513) 727-9361.

        Conservation lecture: “Biodiversity Hotspots: Top Priorities for Conservationists” — sort of an environmental last stand — is the topic of the Cincinnati Zoo's Barrow's Conservation Lecture Series, 7:30 p.m. today at Rockdale Temple, 8501 Ridge Road, Amberley Village. Presenter is Dr. Norman Myers, a world-renowned expert. $5-$8. 559-7767.

        Staying In

        TV picks: George W. Bush's visit to David Letterman's Late Show (11:35 p.m. today, Channels 12, 7) is worth watching just to see if the audience will boo him again, as it did when the Texas governor did a satellite interview with Mr. Letterman on March 1.

        • TV Critic John Kiesewetter says Rory and her grandfather (Alexis Bledel, Edward Herrmann) go golfing in a delightful episode of WB's Gilmore Girls (8 p.m., Channel 64).

The Goods (What's in stores today)

        Kids Console: Tired of the kids getting all squirmy in the car? Keep them busy with the Kids Console, a contraption that hooks to a seat belt and holds books 'n toys 'n stuff in one place. It also has cup holders and a food tray to keep Popsicle drool off the leather seats. $20 at Wal-Mart and due momentarily at Target.

Planning Ahead

        24 hours out: Nothing stuffy about this Art Museum party, what with its salsa music and cash bar in the atrium after the kickoff of the African-American themed Sowell Film Festival. Movies, Music and Masterpieces, a movie about Afro-Cuban culture, opens the doings. 7 p.m. Friday. Festival continues through Sunday. 721-2787.

        48 hours out: Young, hip 'n flip children's singer-songwriter Zak Morgan brings his high-spirited act to Milford-Miami Township Branch Library, 2 p.m. Saturday, 1099 Ohio 131. Free. 248-0700.

        72 hours 'til Sunday: A horse is a horse of course of course at Firstar Center as the Lipizzaner Stallions rear back and show off their athleticism and acrobatic ability. 2 p.m. $17.50-$23.50. 562-4949.

        Get To It appears daily. Send items to Get To It, Tempo, Cincinnati Enquirer, 312 Elm St., Cincinnati 45202; fax: 768-8330.

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