Send listings two weeks in advance to braincity@seattleweekly.com.Mature Workers Job Fair Underemployed people 50 and up are encouraged to attend this multiworkshop event. Seattle Center House, 305 Harrison St., 206-427-9250. Free. 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Wed. Sept. 15.Boats Afloat Show Seafarers of all stripes will likely wash up at this yearly expo; there’ll be yachts, trawlers, fishing boats, and small craft, plus plenty of seminars for beginning and intermediate sailors. Chandler’s Cove, 901 Fairview Ave. N., 206-748-0012. $10 ($5 for teens). 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Wed., Sept. 15-Fri., Sept. 17. 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Sat., Sept. 18-Sun., Sept. 19.Ann Winblad Bill Gates’ erstwhile sweetheart, a formidable financial force in her own right, discusses her quarter-century in the cutthroat software industry and her role in the founding of the influential company Open Systems, at a talk sponsored by the MIT Enterprise Forum. Hyatt Regency Hotel, 900 Bellevue Way N.E. (Bellevue), 206-283-9595. $40. 5 p.m. Wed., Sept. 15.Cinema Circle The new biweekly film discussion group at Seattle Public Library’s Capitol Hill branch tackles Michael J. Moore’s The Legacy, a documentary that weighs the pros and cons of California’s mandatory sentencing law (commonly known as “Three Strikes and You’re Out”). 425 Harvard Ave. E., 206-684-4715. Free. 6:30 p.m. Wed., Sept. 15.Stream and Wetland Ecology Basic Training Learn all you need to know about the Endangered Species Act and its regional implications—and take a crash course on the wetland as self-sustaining habitat—at this Northwest Stream Center seminar. 600 128th St. S.E., 425-316-8592. $75. 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Thurs., Sept. 16.Hear Our Voices Marsha—not Martha—Reeves is a headliner at this fund-raising concert to benefit local homeless women’s organizations. Broadway Performance Hall, 1625 Broadway Ave. E., 206-621-8474. $25 ($20 children/seniors). 7:30 p.m. Thurs., Sept. 16.Off the Page Seattle Radical Women hosts an event honoring landmark feminist poets. New Freeway Hall, 5018 Rainier Ave. S., 206-722-6057. Free. 7:30 p.m. Thurs., Sept. 16.Arts Gumbo Mexican and Chicano food, music, and dance are the subjects of this fest at Columbia City’s Rainier Valley Cultural Center. 3515 S. Alaska St., 207-760-4285. $5 ($3 students/seniors). 7-10 p.m. Fri., Sept. 17.Boatbuilding Lecture Marc Daniels has assisted several Indian tribes in constructing skin boats; he’ll share the secrets of his craft, and talk about his experiences, at this slideshow lecture. Center for Wooden Boats, 1010 Valley St., 206-382-2628. Free. 7-9 p.m. Fri., Sept. 17.Torture and Detention This forum on international anti-torture laws, led by Steven Watt of the Center for Constitutional Rights, will presumably touch on America’s position on human rights in the wake of the Abu Ghraib prison scandal. Trinity United Methodist Church, 6512 23rd Ave. N.W., 206-784-2227. Free. 7 p.m. Fri., Sept. 17.Women’s Outdoor Workshop Anyone who says women can’t hunt, fish, and camp on their own is living in the past. This weekend retreat teaches shooting, fly fishing, filleting and cooking your catch, and other survival basics. Camp Waskowitz, 45509 S.E. 150th St. (North Bend), 425-455-1986. $185 (includes lodging). Fri., Sept. 17-Sun., Sept. 19.Neighborhood Matching Fund Ideas Fair Seattle’s Department of Neighborhoods maintains a matching fund reserved for projects like public art, playgrounds, and community events. Learn how to take advantage of it at an open house, then get into specifics at three workshops. Armory Building, 860 Terry Ave N., 206-684-0464. Free. 9-11:30 a.m. Sat., Sept. 18.Magnolia Auto Show A V12 Packard convertible from 1935 is the star this year. Magnolia Village, 32nd Ave. W. and W. McGraw St., www.villageautoshow.com. Free (car owners must pay $10 to enter their vehicles). 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Sat., Sept. 18.First Fighter Group Panel Discussions Veterans who served in the premier flying unit of the Army Air Corps make up this panel, which will reflect on the unit’s 86-year history, highlighted by a crucial mission in North Africa during World War II. Museum of Flight, 9404 E. Marginal Way S., 206-768-7204. $12 ($7.50 youth). 10:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Sat., Sept. 18.Historic Green Lake The manmade jogger’s paradise was previously an ice rink and a hydro course; its chameleonic evolution is the subject of this week’s Museum of History and Industry walking tour. Tour begins at Green Lake Aqua Center, 7201 E. Green Lake Dr. N., 206-324-1126. $25 ($20 in advance). 11 a.m. Sat., Sept. 18.Fiestas Patrias Seattle’s Latino community emerges in colorful splendor at the Spanish-speaking answer to Bumbershoot, a giddy melange of art, food, and music. Seattle Center House and Fisher Pavilion, 206-684-7200. Free. Noon-6 p.m. Sat., Sept. 18-Sun., Sept. 19.Farm Aid The yearly superconcert makes its first West Coast appearance. A fund-raiser for family farms and small-scale food production groups, this year’s show features country singer Willie Nelson, Seattle-based pop star Dave Matthews, and evergreen folk-rocker Neil Young. White River Amphitheatre, 40601 Auburn-Enumclaw Rd. (Auburn), 360-825-6200. $30-$95. 2 p.m. Sat., Sept. 18.Global Import Car Show Those who salivate over foreign autos should have a fine time at this annual Tacoma Dome expo. 2727 East D Street (Tacoma), 253-627-8497. $25 (free for kids 10 and under). 4 p.m.-midnight. Sat., Sept. 18.Solo Travelers Voyage intelligently sans company, with help from this instructional get-together. Wide World Books & Maps, 4411 Wallingford Ave. N., 206-634-3453. Free. 7 p.m. Sat., Sept. 18.What’s Funny About Politics? SEE SW THIS WEEK.Birdwatching Tour Spot reclusive avian life forms at Carkeek Park, where an Audubon volunteer will help you separate the yellow-billed paddysnappers from the blue-legged gopher birds. Bring binoculars! 950 N.W. Carkeek Park Rd., 206-684-0877. Free. 9-10 a.m. Sun., Sept. 19.Bug Blast You’ll eat bugs and like it at the Burke Museum’s all-day exploration of our tiny, buzzing friends. The mini-exhibits—including kaleidoscopic “bug-eyeglasses” and scale models of ant and bee colonies—are merely a prelude to the cooking demonstration, where cricket cocktails, sauteed scorpions, and deep-fried tarantulas await you. Seriously. N.E. 45th St. and 17th Ave. N.E., 206-543-5590. $8 ($5 students). 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Sun., Sept. 19.Kayak Demonstration Learn to row, row, row your boat at a free demo. Green Lake Small Craft Center, 5900 Green Lake Way N., 206-999-8588. Free. 1-5 p.m. Sun., Sept. 19.Chess Challenge Designed for young players, this two-tiered tourney starts with an elimination round at Bellevue Square; the top five competitors advance to dinner, and a celebrity round, at Seastar. The event is a fund-raiser for First Move for Education, a program promoting chess as a classroom learning tool. Bellevue Square, N.E. 8th St. and Bellevue Way N.E. 2-5 p.m. Seastar, 225 108th Ave. N.E. 6-8 p.m. Donations requested. Call 206-464-0826 for more information. Sun., Sept. 19.Taming “the Beast” The “beast” in question is the Curtiss SB2C Helldiver, a U.S. bomber plane piloted by Lt. Cmdr. William H. Anderson (Ret.), to his considerable chagrin, during raids in the Pacific Theater of World War II. The Helldiver was unreliable and essentially unsafe; the retired officer will discuss his “taming” of it at the Museum of Flight tonight. 9404 E. Marginal Way S., 206-768-7204. $12 ($7.50 youth). 2-3:30 p.m. Sun., Sept. 19.African American Liberation: A Marxist Analysis A new weekly discussion group organized by Radical Women and the Freedom Socialist Party attempts to link race and class issues, using the book Revolutionary Integration as text. Garfield Community Center, 2323 E. Cherry St., 206-722-2453. Free. 7-8:30 p.m. Mon., Sept. 20.Philip Gold The local author of Take Back the Right discusses American conservatism’s downfall at the hands of the religious right and other factions; he’ll be joined onstage by Seattle Post-Intelligencer political columnist Joel Connelly. Town Hall, 1119 Eighth Ave., 206-652-4255. $5. 7:30 p.m. Mon., Sept. 20.Million Worker March Meeting A dual-purpose confab, this organizing meeting will address the upcoming MWM in Washington, D.C., as well as tentative plans to stage a mini-march in Olympia. ILWU Local 19, 3440 E. Marginal Way S., 253-350-1393. Free. 6 p.m. Tues., Sept. 21.Graham Allison The founder of Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government, Allison also serves as a foreign-policy consultant to John Kerry; his new book, Nuclear Terrorism: The Ultimate Preventable Catastrophe, revisits the apocalyptic threat that’s loomed since the first JFK was in office. Downstairs at Town Hall, 1119 Eighth Ave., 206-441-5910. $10. 7 p.m. Tues., Sept. 21.Lewis Lapham In his recently published On the Stifling of Dissent and the Suppression of Democracy, the editor in chief of Harper’s argues that the War on Terror is keeping us in a state of oligarchy. Town Hall, 1119 Eighth Ave., 206-325-3554. $15-$45. 7:30 p.m. Tues., Sept. 21.Asia Panel Three University of Washington profs will discuss the ways the U.S. presidential election could affect Asia in areas like trade and human rights. Husky Union Building (Room 309), UW campus, 206-543-6938. Free. 5:30-8:30 p.m. Wed., Sept. 22.Dadi Janki The director of Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University is pushing 90, but he’s still eager to share the lessons of yoga meditation with newcomers to the practice. Town Hall, 1119 Eighth Ave., 425-861-6926. Free. 7:30 p.m. Wed., Sept. 22.