SATURDAY 10/6

ARTIFACTS--The folks at Hugo House are producing their Annual Cultural Inquiry, Maps, this weekend, which is expected to go fabulously well, but they now have stiff competition: According to the Seattle Scottish Rite Masonic Center, certain manuscripts and maps have led researchers to believe that the Ark of the Covenant may have been housed in a cave in Southern Illinois! Spelunker Glen Kimball will show artifacts from this excavation, and discuss the relations of this site to Arthurian Legends and the life of Christ. Seattle Scottish Rite Masonic Center, 1155 Broadway E, Sat-Sun 9 am to 5 pm, $79. Call Burning Embers Productions at (425) 556-1856 for reservations.

SUNDAY 10/7

BLESS YOUR PETS--St. Paul's Episcopal Church will bless household pets and other animals in honor of St. Francis of Assisi (whose Saint Day is October 4). All pets who will not be a danger to others will be gathered in the yard of the parish's yellow house to be blessed. A service of Solemn Evensong will follow inside the church, but the pets are not welcome inside the house of the lord. They have to wait outside. St. Paul's Episcopal, First Ave N at Roy St, 282-0786, 4 pm.

PALESTINE FOR BEGINNERS--There is currently a rush for Americans to learn about the conflicts in the Middle East. I don't think this is because we're just stupid for not having known about them already, but because--and this goes especially for the Northwest--we simply don't have the concept of what it is to be furiously in conflict over land. People in Seattle are simply living in Seattle; except for the local history of Native Americans, there are few populations that bear witness to how conflict over land ownership has sacrificed lives. Anyway, it's time to learn. Tonight, two writers, a lawyer, and an activist discuss the history and politics of Palestine. University Friends Center, Ninth Ave at 40th St, 633-1086, 2:30 pm, free.

MONDAY 10/8

CAREER CORNER--Are you thinking of changing careers, but don't know where to begin? It's not too late; just ask these people. At some point, they changed theirs, learning how to capitalize on others' daily malaise by offering two ideas: One, you're unhappy in your job, and two, you don't know how to change it. Community Center at Mercer View, 8236 SE 24th, Mercer Island, WA, 236-3525, 7 to 9 pm, $10.50.

WEDNESDAY 10/10

FASHION, KUNG FU, MUSIC--A collision of media will occur tonight at the Re-Bar--the Seattle venue most conducive to cultural crossover--as fashion, dance, kung fu, and improvised music mount the stage as one. Choreographers include Rockhopper, Crispin Spaeth, and Ami Legendre; designers include Tussie Mussie, Lisa de France, and Cicada; music is provided by a band led by Wayne Horvitz. Monies raised will help Seven Star Women's Kung-Fu remodel their new training space. Re-bar, 1114 Howell St, 233-9873, 8 pm, $10.