* Send AROUND TOWN items to the...

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

Mesa, CA 92627; by e-mail to mike.swanson@latimes.com; 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 https://www.dailypilot.com.

TODAY

The Costa Mesa Senior Center, in celebration of Costa Mesa’s 50th

anniversary, presents the Cost Amazing Senior Hoedown, featuring live

western music by the Travis Parker Band, dancing and barbecue, from 4

to 7 p.m. The Costa Mesa Senior Center is at 695 W. 19th St. The cost

is $5 for members, $11 for nonmembers, $5 for kids. Tickets go on

sale Aug. 15 at the center’s front desk and at Costa Mesa City Hall,

on the third floor in the Recreation department. Information: (949)

645-2356.

Inventors Forum, the Orange County-based nonprofit inventors’

support group, presents a seminar on “Putting it all Together” by Len

Stober, faculty member of Pasadena’s Art Center College of Design.

Registration and networking begin at 7 p.m. for the 7:30 p.m. seminar

at Orange Coast College’s science lecture hall. The cost is $5 for

members and $15 for nonmembers. Information: (714) 540-2491.

SATURDAY

The sixth annual Financial Strategies Conference for Women will

run from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Hilton in Costa Mesa, 3050

Bristol St. The conference will address personal finance, budget

planning, investing, retirement, preparing for college expenses,

taxes, insurance and more. The cost is $79 if you register by Aug. 28

and $99 by Sept. 5. Information: (949) 588-2429.

William F. Schulz, executive director of Amnesty International

USA, will be the featured speaker at Orange Coast Unitarian

Universalist Church, 1259 Victoria St. in Costa Mesa, at 5 p.m.

Reserved tickets to the lecture and reception are $20 for preferred

seating and $15 otherwise. A few tickets will be sold at the door.

Information: (949) 646-4652.

Ballet Pacifica will host auditions for beginning and intermediate

dancers for its annual holiday production of “The Nutcracker.” About

120 dancers will be selected for the production’s two casts,

comprised of Ballet Pacifica’s 15-member company and dance students

from throughout the Southland. A $15 audition fee will be required of

all participants. Auditions and rehearsals will be at 1824 Kaiser

Ave. in Irvine, and will begin at 3 p.m. Information: (949) 851-9930.

SUNDAY

Ballet Pacifica will hold auditions for advanced dancers for its

annual holiday production of “The Nutcracker.” About 120 dancers will be selected for the production’s two casts, comprised of Ballet

Pacifica’s 15-member company and dance students from throughout the

Southland. A $15 audition fee will be required of all participants.

Auditions and rehearsals will be at 1824 Kaiser Ave. in Irvine, and

will begin at 10 a.m. Information: (949) 851-9930.

“An Israeli Skin Care and Spa Day” will be offered by the National

Council of Jewish Women, Orange County Advocacy Branch and Hillel of

Orange County from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Orange County Jewish

Federation, 250 E. Baker St. in Costa Mesa. Admission is free.

Information: (949) 497-2562.

The 42nd annual Sandcastle Contest will run from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

at Corona del Mar State Beach. The contest is limited to the first 45

teams of eight people and is open to participants of all ages and

skill levels. Each team member will receive a T-shirt, and winning

teams will receive a commemorative award. The entrance fee per team

is $60 for architecture firms, $40 for all other businesses and $30

for other organizations and families. Information: (949) 729-4400.

MONDAY

The Corona del Mar Residents Assn. will hold its general meeting

at 6:30 p.m. at the Oasis Center, 800 Marguerite Ave. Announcements

about the festivities and events for Corona del Mar’s 100th year

celebration in 2004 and updates about crosswalk and median

improvements affecting residents will be made. Information: (949)

644-3244.

The Newport Jaycees will hold a public forum titled “California at

a Crossroad: A Forum on the Future of the Golden State” from 6:15 to

9 p.m. at On Board the Endeavor, 2901 Pacific Coast Highway. The

panel will include Newport Beach Mayor Steve Bromberg, and the talk

will be moderated by Robert Scheer. Tickets cost $20. Reservations:

(949) 645-9897.

The Newport Beach Central Library will host the co-authors of

“Roadtrip Nation: A Guide to Discovering Your Path in Life,” at 7

p.m. in the Friends Meeting Room. Tickets cost $5 for students, $8

for Library Foundation members and $10 general admission.

Information: (949) 717-3890.

TUESDAY

Gen Kelsang Tubpa of the Vajrarupini Buddhist Center in San Diego

will give a free talk, “Guide to the Bodhisattva,” at 7 p.m. at

Borders South Coast Plaza. The talk will be based on “The New

Meditation Handbook,” the latest book by Buddhist scholar, teacher

and author Geshe Kelsang Gyatso. Information: (714) 279-8933.

International law professor Victor Conde of Trinity University

will present “International Law and Civil Liberties: How Does the

United States Stack Up?” at an ACLU of Orange County meeting at 7

p.m. at the Unitarian Universalist Church in Costa Mesa. Information:

(714) 957-6107.

WEDNESDAY

Newport Beach recreation services will present a new series of

drawing and painting workshops featuring individual instruction for

students of all skill levels in mixed media. The sessions, led by

artist and lecturer Mimi Sharon Stein, will run eight consecutive

Wednesdays from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in the Vince Jorgensen Center,

2005 Dover Drive in Newport Beach. The fee for the series is $66.

Information: (949) 644-3151.