Join the Sonoma County Book Festival 2-5 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 5, at Windrush Farm for a meaty conversation between sausage maker and writer Bruce Aidells and Press Democrat food writer Michele Anna Jordan. The event, a fund-raiser for the Book Festival, coming up Sept. 22 in Santa Rosa, will be held at 2264 Chileno Valley Road. Cost: $40-$60. Visit socobookfest.org.

Peggy Sebera, artist and a personal and professional coach, leads an interactive workshop called “Making Your Art Dreams a Reality” from 7:30-8:30 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 7, at the Petaluma Art Center, corner of Lakeville and East Washington streets. Attendees will learn techniques to focus on their art dreams and goals, tap into intuition and promote their art.  A meeting of the Petaluma Arts Association precedes the event, from 6-7:15 p.m. Call 953-9163 or go to petalumaarts.org.

Dance along to the music of the Pine Needles, then experience the “sacred steel sound” of the Lee Boys at 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 8, at the musical temple better known as McNear’s Mystic Theatre, 21 Petaluma Blvd. North. Find out more at mystictheatre.com or call 765-2121. Admission is $16.

Grab those low-backed chairs and some blankets and take the whole gang down to Theatre Square’s Faces of Petaluma Fountain on Thursday, Aug. 9, for Flicks by the Fountain, a free, outdoor movie. It starts at dusk (8:30 p.m. or thereabouts). Movie title will be announced on Facebook’s The Theatre District – Petaluma page.

Hark! Dost hear the dulcet tones of iambic pentameter amid Petaluma’s rolling hills? Director Lucas McClure’s Shakespearean adaptation, “Two Gentlemen of Sonoma,” moves the setting to 1840s Northern California, with appearances by early California luminaries General Mariano Vallejo and Captain John Sutter. Hie thee hither to Petaluma Adobe State Historic Park for the next three weekends: Aug. 11-12, 18-19 and 25-26. Gates open at 6 p.m. for picnicking; take your own or sample from food trucks. Guest wineries will be pouring as well. Then, from 7 to 9 p.m., the play’s the thing. Tickets are $22, with proceeds benefiting the park. Call 938-4626 or go to sonomacommunitycenter.org.

Take steps in the battle against breast cancer on Saturday, Aug 11, as Making Strides Against Breast Cancer marches into Petaluma. The fundraising walk is a day-long event that begins at 9 a.m. at the Sheraton Sonoma County-Petaluma Hotel, 745 Baywood Drive. For details, and to get involved, visit makingstrides.acsevents.org.

From 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 11, parts of downtown will be wrapped, draped and covered in colorful quilts large and small, old and new, simple and elaborate as the Petaluma Quilt Show comes to town. Quilts will hang in three churches, the Petaluma Historical Museum and Library, and the Petaluma Woman’s Club. The museum hosts the Hoffman Challenge traveling quilt collection, with guest speaker and author Roderick Kiracofe talking at the Woman’s Club. Vendor booths will be located in Walnut Park. Cost is $5. Check in at the museum, 20 Fourth St. Call 762-4148 or visit petalumaquiltguild.org.

Starve a mosquito: donate blood! Petaluma Elks Lodge hosts a blood drive from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 12, at the lodge, 2105 S. McDowell Blvd. Donors should take a photo ID, be well-hydrated and have eaten a good meal. For each donation, a free cholesterol test will be given. Go to elks901.org.

Enjoy joyous music and dance at 7 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 12, as the Asante Children’s Choir from Rwanda performs at Petaluma Valley Baptist Church, 580 Sonoma Mountain Parkway. The concert is free, but donations to support the choir are welcome. Call 763-2277 or visit asantechoir.org.

Looking ahead

Attention taste buds of Petaluma. The year’s ultimate palate-tickler, Taste of Petaluma, is set from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 25. Spend the afternoon sampling items from the city’s diverse culinary scene as more than 60 local chefs, food purveyors, wineries and breweries offer up a rainbow of samples, savory to sweet. Tickets are $35-$40. The event is a fund-raiser for Cinnabar Theater. Visit tasteofpetaluma.org or call 763-8920.

– Katie Watts

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