You could spend all winter working on growing out your leg hair while watching reruns of 30 Rock, but why? Here are some alternatives to that scenario:

February 1st – March 2, 2012

Vejigante Masks are on display all month at the Park Branch of the Hartford Public Library.

February 2nd

The Hartford Public Library Downtown will be hosting a panel of “young union members” from 5:30-7 p.m. who will be discussing what it means to be in a union and the relevance of unions today. This free event will be held in the Seminar Room on the second floor. There is a parking lot adjacent to the library.

February 2nd through February 29th

The Charter Oak Cultural Center gallery space will be displaying photographs of tattoos created by local artists. The opening reception begins at 5:30 on February 2, 2012. Admission is free.

February 3rd and 4th

The Vagina Monologues will be performed at the Charter Oak Cultural Center — various admission fees.

February 3rd through February 8th

Urbanophiles take note: Real Art Ways will be showing a documentary — Urbanized — about the design of cities. Gary Hustwit is also the director of Helvetica, a film about typography.

February 3rd – March 18th

Improvised Reflections by Andres Chaparro will be on display in ArtWalk Gallery, an area of the Hartford Public Library. His work is vibrant and expressive, and draws inspiration from live jazz. The opening reception is on February 3rd from 6-8p.m.

February 5th

Alona Cooper Wilson, the Assistant Curator & Director of the Amistad Center for Art & Culture, will be talking about how we can learn history through artifacts. This free hour-long program begins at 2p.m. in the Hartford History Center, located in the Hartford Public Library.

February 8th

The Hartford Seminary will be hosting a free talk by Rev. Christopher Webber, author of American to the Backbone: The Life of James W.C. Pennington. Pennington, an escaped slave, was pastor at the Talcott Street Church in Hartford. This talk begins at 7p.m. The Hartford Seminary is located at 77 Sherman Street.

February 9th

Last May, Vanity Fair published a sprawling feature on sex trafficking that focused on crimes in Hartford. Officer Scates, interviewed for this piece, will be speaking on the topic of sex slavery in Connecticut at the Harriet Beecher Stowe Center. Polly Marston from DCF will also be speaking at this free salon. The discussion begins at 5:30.

February 12th – 15th

Alfred Hitchcock’s Notorious will be screened at Cinestudio at 7:30p.m.

February 13th

Two poets from Capital Community College will be participating in the WordForge Poetry and Reading Series. This event begins at 7 and is free. Antoinette Brim teaches African American Literature and Creative Writing; she is also the author of Psalm of the Sunflower, is a Cave Canem Foundation fellow, a recipient of the Walker Foundation Scholarship to the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown and a Pushcart Prize nominee. Kenneth DiMaggio is a Humanities professor and is author of Poems and Stories from the Blue Collar Book of the Dead; he has been published in numerous journals. This event is in the Studio at Billings Forge.

February 17th

Starting at noon, the Wadsworth Atheneum will host a gallery talk about the intersection of activism and art.

February 20th

This is the last day for ice skating in Bushnell Park. Don’t squander it!

February 23rd

A forum about pollution will explore why children living in cities have a higher risk of asthma and what can be done about it. This free forum at the Harriet Beecher Stowe Center begins at 5:30.

February 23rd – 26th

For the price of a couple margaritas, you can wander about a building filled with flowers, pretending to be in some warm and exotic place. You can also bring soil from your backyard (well, from anywhere, really) to be tested. The CT Flower and Garden Show will be at the Connecticut Convention Center.

February 26th

The Hartford History Center, located in the Hartford Public Library, will be hosting the artist talk: “Exploring the Underground Railroad, Stories in Quilt and Canvas.” Artist Robert Charles Hudson will be discussing his sources of inspiration and technique at this free event, from 1-3 in the afternoon.

Elsewhere that evening, there will be a red carpet event with a red carpet price tag. Proceeds go to a worthy cause. The VIP reception begins at 6; regular admission begins at 7.

For those seeking a more low-key adventure, the Hartford Organizing Group is screening How to Start a Revolution at the Charter Oak Cultural Center at 7. Free admission.

Sundays

Along with the Hartford Jazz Society and WWUH, the Hartford Public Library continues to sponsor free jazz concerts on Sunday afternoons. The shows begin at 3 in the afternoon and last one hour.

February 5th — Taino Pacheco

February 12th — Sinan Bakir

February 19th — Goza Brazilian Jazz

February 26th — Ricky Alfonso

These shows have gained popularity, so much so that it was standing room only in the Hartford Public Library fifteen minutes before the last show in January began. If you want a seat, plan to be there at least thirty minutes before showtime.

Thursdays

The Farmers’ Market at Billings Forge is not new. That it operates during the winter is not new either. They did, however, recently change their hours to 11-2. The market is located on Broad Street between Capitol and Russ.

Many Days

The Wadsworth Atheneum will be screening Glory and Cold Mountain, free of charge, on several days.

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What other events should people know about?