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• Planning a month of fun days, times 12, for 2013

  Planning a month of fun days, times 12, for 2013

  With the New Year nearly upon us, let's make a resolution to get out and see more of our beautiful commonwealth. To help you get started, here's a monthly calendar of some of Kentucky's best attractions and events, all outside Lexington and worth traveling to, and an extra one thrown in for good measure.

  January: Eagle Watch Weekends, Western Kentucky state parks. There's more to do in January than watch University of Kentucky basketball. You can head to Western Kentucky's state parks to enjoy a tradition that's been going on for four decades. In the Bluegrass equivalent of the swallows returning every spring to California's San Juan Capistrano, majestic bald eagles flock every winter to Kentucky's western lakes in search of food.

  Nature lovers may observe this annual ritual by van or boat. Tours ($25 to $50) are two to three hours and led by park naturalists and state biologists.

• If trip to Louisville isn't in cards, Keeneland is a proven alternative

  If trip to Louisville isn't in cards, Keeneland is a proven alternative

  Getting a good seat at Churchill Downs can cost a mint (and we're not talking julep), but there are plenty of opportunities for Kentucky Derby fun elsewhere. Without breaking the bank, here are some ways to enjoy the day that makes Kentucky world-famous.

  Keeneland Race Course

  Keeneland's Derby Day celebration has grown to be one of the Lexington race course's biggest events when the track isn't running. Last year, more than 18,000 people came to watch and wager on Derby Day, Keeneland spokeswoman Amy Gregory said.

• A visit to Little Rock, Ark., seems like a capital idea

  A visit to Little Rock, Ark., seems like a capital idea

  LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — In September 1957, the most important news coming out of this city's Central High School was the exploits of its football team, the top-ranking squad in the United States. That was about to change.

  Because it had been considered relatively moderate for a Deep South city in the late 1950s, Little Rock was chosen by President Dwight Eisenhower to lead the way in desegregation of the South's public schools. On Sept. 23, nine black students arrived to enroll at Central High, and an angry mob, egged on by vitriolic speeches from Gov. Orval Faubus, converged on the school to stop them.

  Few remember how the Central football team fared; many remember the courage of the Little Rock Nine, children barely in their teens who took their place in history that September day.

• Criticizing UK's attitude toward arts, museum director resigns

  Criticizing UK's attitude toward arts, museum director resigns

  Kathy Walsh-Piper has announced her retirement as director of The Art Museum at the University of Kentucky, saying she has done all she can to raise the profile of the museum. Walsh-Piper expressed frustration that the art museum is "being ignored" by UK leadership.

• Thriving Afghan zoo’s plans to expand worry its champions

  Thriving Afghan zoo’s plans to expand worry its champions

  Despite being no larger than a U.S. high school campus, the Kabul Zoo has become one of the most popular leisure attractions in Afghanistan. Now Kabul’s mayor wants to make the zoo much larger, with more animals, more space and more crowd-pleasing species from places such as Africa. Those who helped revive the zoo say that might be a big mistake.