Five Reasons to Leave the House This Weekend

The Boston Independent Film Festival, the Run of the Charles, Free Grilled Cheese Day, and more.

free grilled cheese day

Photo by Chefdruck/Flickr

Film Festival
Boston Independent Film Festival at the Somerville and Coolidge Theatres

Now in it’s 12th year, the BIFF continues to bring a wide breadth of films to the filmmakers and film enthusiasts of Boston. Don’t really feel like watching Tom Cruise making his crinkly acting face while patrolling the skies of a post-apocalyptic Earth in Oblivion? What about seeing Lindsay Lohan flail around in (dear-god-how-are-they-still-making-theseScary Movie V? Not a problem. Grab tickets to a few BIFF screenings and please your culture-craving brain with independent gems that aren’t normally playing at a theater near you. Make sure to refer to our film festival preview to help you choose what to see!

$11, April 24-30, Somerville Theatre and Coolidge Corner Theatre, iffboston.org

Art
Art in Bloom at the MFA

From impressive photography collections to clay exhibits, the MFA has really been curating some spectacular art within its walls. Art in Bloom, now in its 37th year, is the MFA’s annual pop of (even more) color, when vibrant arrangements of flowers are placed across the museum galleries. Designed by the talented members of the New England Garden Club, the bouquets are interpretations of nearly 50 masterpieces currently on view at the museum, from Gauguin to Sargent. If you haven’t made your spring visit to the MFA yet, now would be the perfect time. We’ve got a hunch it’ll smell really, really good.

Free with museum admission, Saturday, April 27, Museum of Fine Arts, 465 Huntington Ave., 617-267-9300, mfa.org

Food
Free Grilled Cheese Day with Cheeseboy

April, as we know, is a lot of things. Did you also know that April is National Grilled Cheese Month? (We know. We wish someone had informed us of this earlier as well). Throughout the month of April, Cheeseboy, a Boston-based quick-service grilled cheese franchise, has been giving away free grilled cheese sandwiches to 10,000 individuals who had done an act of kindness and shared it with Cheeseboy on their Facebook or Twitter. This Sunday, from 1-6 p.m., anyone and everyone can visit any of Cheeseboy’s eight locations for a free sandwich. Is this real life?

Free, Sunday, April 28, 1-6 p.m., all Cheeseboy locations, cheeseboy.com

Outdoor Event
Run of the Charles

The Charles River Watershed Association is pleased to host the 31st annual Run of the Charles Canoe and Kayak Race this Sunday, after having postponed it from last weekend. A memorable Boston event that welcomes the spring season on the Charles River, the day will consist of a 26-mile professional marathon in addition to shorter races and paddle board divisions. It’s supposed to be 68 degrees and sunny this weekend, so why not spend a Sunday on (or near) the water?

Free, Sunday, April 28, all day, Artesani Park, 1255 Soldiers Field Road, Brighton, 617- 626-4973, crwa.org

Class
Spring Entertaining with Panache at the Massachusetts Horticultural Society

To welcome what should be an idyllic spring weekend in Boston, why not attend a class at the Horticultural Society this Thursday night? Sue Schocket will run the class, which focuses on how to make the most out of spring entertaining when it comes to food and drink. Selections of samples will be available for all those who attend, including white sangria and tomatoes filled with goat cheese.

$30 for members, $35 for non-members, Thursday, April 25, 7-8:30 p.m., Healthy Habits Kitchen, 36 Washington Street, Suite 2, Wellesley, 617-933-4900, masshort.org