Young Feminist Potluck

Once a month young feminists get together at Women and Children First to discuss feminist books that they've picked out. Twice a year they meet to bring in a selection of food and choose 6 books. Show up tonight at 6 pm with a dish (or a bottle of wine) to share and a book that you'd love to discuss with feminists.

Celtic Fest Chicago

It doesn't have the draw of the Milwaukee Irish Fest, and the music has a decidedly more traditional bent, but the Chicago Celtic Festival is always a grand way to cap off the city's festival season. Headliners include Mary Black, The Saw Doctors, and a 21-piece (!) French (!) pipe band (!). And, hey — sheepherding! September 18-19, 11:00am-9:30pm. Free admission, as always.

Rhino Theater Fest: Under Milk Wood

Part of the Rhino Theater Fest: "Thomas's play is back and at the Rhino! The Welsh poet's dreamy, funny world of owls, magic, and whiskey at nightfall on Larregub Hill where blind Captain Cat pulls the bell rope is brought back to life by three generations of voices. Milk Wood is part of the Rhino ’04 look-back to the masters who influenced Curious." 7pm, Curious Theatre Branch, 7001 N Glenwood. $12 or pay what you can. Call 773-274-6660 for reservations.

The Finger Open Mic @ Early to Bed

The Finger Open Mic Monthly queer open mic at Early to Bed. Poetry, spoken word and more! Anyone 18 & over is welcome. Every third Sunday of the month. Free. Early to Bed is located at 5232 N Sheridan Rd. Gets going at 7 p.m.

Renegade Craft Fair

This year's Renegade Craft Fair takes place over two days, Saturday and Sunday, in Wicker Park (rain or shine) from 10:30 am to 5:30 pm. Featuring over 100 crafty types from all over the country this year, the fair will provide handmade wares for anyone and everyone from the hip to the chic. Check out a full list of vendors, including links to their sites, a vendor map, and directions at the Renegade Craft Fair website. Wicker Park is located at 1435 N. Damen, near the Damen blue line El stop.

Alice @ Neo-Futurarium

The Neo-Futurists present Alice, an adaptation of the Lewis Carroll books featuring a walking tour of 6 different Andersonville locations, original artwork & performances by various Neo-Futurists and local theater companies, and 5 rabbits. This weekend is the premiere weekend; admission is $15 or pay what you can. The show runs Saturday and Sunday afternoons at 1:00 PM, and continues through October 24. Neo-Futurarium: 5153 N. Ashland. (773) 275-5255. See the Neo-Futurist Website for further details and to purchase tickets.

World Music Festival

Chicago's 6th annual World Music festival runs September 17–23. The 2004 World Music festival line-up features 70 events at 28 venues around the city, including more than 40 free events. Venues include the Chicago Cultural Center, the MCA, the Vic, the Old Town School of Folk Music, and the Borders on Michigan Avenue. Most events are free, but some do require tickets. For more information, see the festival website or call 312-742-1938. Highlights from the 2004 schedule include performances at the new Jay Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park by the acclaimed Chicago Immigrant Orchestra, an ensemble of culturally diverse musicians; Tortoise, the Chicago avant-rock group that combines a number of musical genres to create a unique sound; and dZihan & Kamien, the Viennese duo experimenting with their own musical and ethnic backgrounds to produce a global dance groove. Boban Markovic & the Serbian Orkestar and Esma, both highly praised gypsy bands, will perform the first of two double bills at the Park West. The second double bill at the Park West will feature Peruvian singer Eva Ayllon and tango marvel Katie Viqueira and Deep Tango. Other headlining performances include a concert at the Vic Theatre presented in conjunction with the Chicago Turkish Festival featuring Balik Ayhan, the most sought-after darbuka player in Turkish music, and Algerian multi-instrumentalist, Abdelli.

Indiana Dunes Harvest Festival

This weekend is the Indiana Dunes Harvest Festival from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day. The admission is $6.00 per car and all proceeds go toward preserving the historic site and the Indiana Dunes. The festival site is an old farmstead and fur-trading post, (circa 1800s) which has been restored. There are: sheep and geese herding demos, hayrides, music, old people doing almost forgotten crafts and lots more. All out in nature (!!). For more information, check out the offical Dunes site or call 219-926-7561 x.225 ; ask about the Harvest Fest.

Chicago Half Marathon

Today's the day for the Chicago Half Marathon, a 13.1 mile course that runs on Lake Shore Drive, with the start and end points at the Museum of Science and Industry. Online registration is $30; check the link for complete registration information. The race starts at 7:30, and is expected to take about 3 hours to run completely. If you won't be participating, keep an eye out for runners if you're driving on Lake Shore this morning.