* Send AROUND TOWN items to...

* Send AROUND TOWN items to the Daily Pilot, 330 W. Bay St.,

Costa Mesa, CA 92627; by fax to (949) 646-4170; or by calling (949)

574-4298. Include the time, date and location of the event, as well

as a contact phone number. A complete listing is available at

www.dailypilot.com.

TODAY

The fifth annual Caring For

Creation conference will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the

St. Mark Presbyterian Church in Newport Beach. The conference, hosted

by the Orange County Interfaith Coalition for the Environment, will

include workshops on ecology and spirituality, simplicity and

empowering consumers. An interfaith panel of representatives from the

Hindu, Islamic, Native American and Sikh faith communities will be

present. The church is at 2100 Mar Vista Drive. $30, $15 for

students. For more information, call (714) 273-1476, e-mail

[email protected] or visit www.ocice.org.

Mesa Verde United Methodist

Church will host its bi-annual holiday boutique from 9 a.m. to 1

p.m. at the church. The boutique will include holiday decorations,

gifts and home-baked goods. The church is at 1701 W. Baker St., Costa

Mesa. (949) 631-1030.

The Center for Spiritual Discovery will host an outreach service

day to provide community assistance from 9 a.m. to noon at a local

shelter for abused children and at two convalescent homes. For more

information on volunteering, call (714) 754-7399.

Christ Lutheran Church and School will hold its ninth annual Fall

Festival from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Members of the Costa Mesa Police

Department will be on hand to show some of their equipment and answer

questions. The festival will consist of old-fashioned carnival games,

a boutique with unique and holiday gifts, home-baked candies, treats

and dishes and live entertainment throughout the day. The festival is

free and open to the public. The church is at 760 Victoria St., Costa

Mesa. (949) 548-6866.

A program on how predators capture their prey and how prey avoid

being captured will be held from 10 to 11:30 a.m. at The Peter and

Mary Muth Interpretive Center. The program is best suited for persons

ages 6 and older. Space is limited. The center is at 2301 University

Drive, Newport Beach. $3 per person. For reservations, call (714)

973-6829.

The 10th annual Top Dog Fashion Show will be held at 11 a.m. at

the Newport Dunes Resort. The categories will include best formal

wear, best casual wear, best lingerie/pajamas, best swimwear and best

master/pet look-alike. Proceeds raised from the event will benefit

the Orange County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals

and Companion Pet Retreat. Participants should check in at 9:30 a.m.

Registration is $12, and parking is $8 per car. The resort is at 1131

Back Bay Drive, Newport Beach. (949) 729-DUNE, or visit

www.newportdunes.com.

Andersen Elementary School will hold a Pumpkin Patch Carnival from

11 a.m. to 4 p.m. today and Sunday. The event will include a haunted

house and pumpkin patch, as well as games and food. The school is at

1900 Port Seabourne Place, Newport Beach. (949) 515-6935.

Borders Books, Music and Cafe

at South Coast Plaza will host a lecture and a separate book

signing at 2 p.m. The lecture will be given by Marshal Zaslove, a

board-certified psychiatrist, author and meditation practitioner, and

will focus on how to achieve inner and outer peace. The book signing

will be conducted by Pulitzer Prize nominee Gary Margolis, who will

also read from his new poetry collection, “Fire in the Orchard.”

Borders is at 3333 Bear St., Costa Mesa. Free. (714) 279-8933.

The second annual Newport Coast Cares Halloween Carnival will be

held from 4 to 8 p.m. in the Newport Coast Shopping Center parking

lot. The event will include costume contests, a haunted house, games,

a petting zoo, pony rides, a silent auction, food and entertainment.

All proceeds will be donated to Corazon de Vida, a charity that helps

needy children in the orphanages in Baja California. Pavilions is on

the corner of Newport Coast Drive and San Joaquin Hills Road. Tickets

are $15 per person and may be purchased at the Toy Boat Toy Store, In

A Flash One Hour Photo or at Pavilions on Newport Coast Drive. For

more information, call (949) 476-1144. ext. 358.

SUNDAY

The 11th annual Pumpkins & Pancakes Halloween Extravaganza will be

held from 8 to 11 a.m. in the South Coast Plaza Crate & Barrel Wing.

The net proceeds from the event will benefit abused, abandoned and

neglected children being served by the CASA programs of Orange

County. The wing is at 3333 Bear St., Costa Mesa. $15 per person in advance, $20 at the door. Children 2 and younger and CASA advocates

are free. For more information, call (714) 780-8733.

The fifth annual Trick or Treat Festival will be held from 9 a.m.

to 3 p.m. at the Orange County Market Place in Costa Mesa. For the

third year, world-renowned pumpkin sculptor Mike Valladao will return

to create his signature carvings from giant pumpkins weighing 300

pounds or more. The festival will also include the third annual

Halloween Hearse, a Bug and Monster Classic Car Show, free trick or

treating for children in costume and pumpkin-related games. Admission

is $2, children 12 and under are free. For more information, call

(949) 723-6663 or visit www.ocmarketplace.com.

MONDAY

Authors Linda Trichter Metcalf and Tobin Simon will present their

book “Writing the Mind Alive” and discuss the “proprioceptive” method

they used to write it at 7 p.m. in Borders Books, Music and Cafe at

South Coast Plaza. Borders is at 3333 Bear St., Costa Mesa. Free.

(714) 279-8933.

TUESDAY

UC Irvine will hold a presentation on the business ethics from

7:30 to 9:30 a.m. on the UCI campus. The presentation will be led by

a panel of experts to provide guidance on the very timely issue. $35

per person. For more information, call (949) 863-1910.

A community forum with the Newport-Mesa Unified School Board

candidates will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. in the Victoria room at the

Neighborhood Community Center in Costa Mesa. The forum is sponsored

by the Harbor Council Parent Teachers Assn. and the League of Women

Voters of Orange Coast. The center is at 1845 Park St. Free. (949)

645-2665.

Borders Books, Music and Cafe

at South Coast Plaza will host an introductory seminar on the

teachings and techniques of the world-renowned Buddhist meditation

master Geshe Kelsang Gyatso at 7 p.m. The seminar will be presented

by Gen Kelsan Tubpa, an English Buddhist nun and resident teacher at

the Vajrarupini Buddist Center in San Diego. Borders is at 3333 Bear

St., Costa Mesa. Free. (714) 279-8933.

WEDNESDAY

A Costa Mesa City Council

candidates forum will be held at 6:30 p.m. in Costa Mesa City

Council chambers. Members of the audience will be invited to ask

questions. Sponsoring the forum are the Daily Pilot, AT&T; Broadband,

the Costa Mesa Chamber of Commerce and the City of Costa Mesa. 77

Fair Drive. (714) 754-5223.

The Hoag Cancer Center will hold a lung cancer support group from

6:30 to 8 p.m. The speaker will be Robert. O. Dillman, the center’s

medical director, who will present valuable information on advances

in the treatment of lung cancer. Free. The meeting will be in the

center’s auditorium at One Hoag Drive in Newport Beach. (949)

760-5542.

Mother’s Market & Kitchen will host a seminar on the miracle of

coral calcium from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Patio Cafe in Costa Mesa.

The cafe is at 225 E. 17th St. Free. (949) 631-4741.

The Presbyterian Church of the

Covenant will host a Harvest Fest from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. The event

will include a costume contest, face painting, pumpkin carving,

clowns and games. The church is at 2850 Fairview Road, Costa Mesa.

Free admission. (714) 557-3340.

NOV. 2

The UC Irvine Arboretum will

hold its annual Fall Orchid Festival from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. today

and from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday. The arboretum is just south of the

corner of Campus Drive and Jamboree Road on the UCI North Campus. $2

per person, free for children younger than 12 and members of the

Friends of the UCI Arboretum. For more information, call (949)

824-5833.

NOV. 3

A program exploring the games Native American children of the Back

Bay might have played will be held from 10:30 a.m. to noon at The

Peter and Mary Muth Interpretive Center. The program is best suited

for children ages 5 and older. Space is limited. The center is at

2301 University Drive, Newport Beach. $3 per person. To register,

call (714) 973-6829.

NOV. 4

The Orange County Sierra

Singles Club will host a newcomer meeting at 7 p.m. at the Costa

Mesa Neighborhood Community Center. The meeting will include

displays, exhibits, demonstrations and refreshments. The center is at

1845 Park Ave. Free. For more information, call (714) 963-6345.

NOV. 6

“Look Good ... Feel Better”

classes will be held from 10 a.m. to noon at Hoag Hospital in

Newport Beach. The classes are sponsored by the American Cancer

Society, the National Cosmetology Assn. and the Cosmetic, Toiletry

and Fragrance Assn. They are geared toward teaching cancer patients

makeup, wig and turban tips, and trained cosmetologists will

personally work with each patient. The hospital is at 1 Hoag Drive.

Classes are free but registration is required. To register or for

more information, call (949) 261-9446 or (800) ACS-2345.

Mother’s Market & Kitchen will

host a workshop on aromatherapy from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at the Patio

Cafe. The cafe is at 225 E. 17th St., Costa Mesa. Free. (949)

631-4741.

NOV. 7

Mother’s Market & Kitchen will

host a cooking class and book signing with author Rebecca Wood

from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at the Patio Cafe in Costa Mesa. The cafe is at

225 E. 17th St. $10 per person. (949) 631-4741.

NOV. 8

A 90-minute lecture on the

unique art and architecture from around the world will be held at

the Orange Coast College Robert B. Moore Theatre. The lecture will be

presented by OCC professor Irini Rickerson. All proceeds raised from

the lecture will benefit AIDS Charities of Orange County. The theatre

is at 2701 Fairview Road, Costa Mesa. Tickets are $10 and will be

available at the door. For more information, call (714) 432-0202.

NOV. 9

The 32nd annual Needle Arts Festival and Fall Fair will be held

from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. today and Sunday at Orange Coast College in

Costa Mesa. The festival, hosted by OCC, will offer four 60-minute

workshops and a variety of activities scheduled throughout the day.

OCC is at 2701 Fairview Road. For more information, call (714)

432-5880.

The Catholic Daughters of the Americas will hold a holiday fair

from 1:30 to 7 p.m. today and 8 to 11:30 a.m. Sunday in the St.

Joachim Catholic Church Hall. The fair will include handcrafts, a

bake sale, “white elephants” and a food basket raffle. The church is

at 1964 Orange Ave., Costa Mesa. Free. For more information, call

(714) 968-2655 or (714) 546-2875.

NOV. 12

Mother’s Market & Kitchen will

host a seminar on the time it takes to be sick from 6:30 to 7:30

p.m. at the Patio Cafe in Costa Mesa. The cafe is at 225 E. 17th St.

Free. (949) 631-4741.

NOV. 13

A seminar on eating right while on the run will be held from 6:30

to 8 p.m. at the Patio Cafe in Costa Mesa. The seminar is sponsored

by Mother’s Market & Kitchen. The cafe is at 225 E. 17th St. Free.

(949) 631-4741.