Spring forward

March 9: Thanks to energy legislation passed by Congress in 2005, daylight-saving time begins about a month early, or officially the second Sunday in March. Set those clocks ahead one hour-unless you live in Hawaii or parts of Arizona, which do not observe DST.

Rock remembers

March 10: Madonna will headline the five acts inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at a ceremony in New York. The Ventures, Leonard Cohen, John Mellencamp, and the Dave Clark Five will join Madonna at the event.

Serving time

March 11: Roger Clemens take heed. Former track star Marion Jones will check into a women's correctional facility in Texas to serve a six-month sentence for perjuring herself in front of federal investigators looking into the BALCO steroids scandal.

Iranian vote

March 14: Real democratic change may still be far off for Iran, even as voters head to polls in the Islamic nation. Election watchers report that close to 90 percent of reform candidates running for parliament-including nearly 20 current or past members-have been disqualified from running by election boards controlled by the ruling Islamist party.

March Madness

March 18: The 2008 NCAA men's basketball tournament begins. Last year, freshmen Greg Oden and Kevin Durant commanded attention before heading for the NBA draft. This year, all eyes should rest on Tyler Hansbrough, a UNC junior forward who turns college basketball fandom's attention back to the upper classman.

Invasion anniversary

March 20: In the dark of night just 90 minutes after the U.S.-imposed deadline in 2003, U.S., British, and Australian forces crossed borders into Iraq to begin the official invasion to depose Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein. Five years later, nearly 4,000 U.S. soldiers have given their lives in attempts to bring liberty and democracy to the Iraqi people.