Things to Do in Pinole

Today's Groupon gets you two tickets to Hard Rock Cafe's benefit to fight breast cancer on October 16. Four-piece cover band HoneyCircuit will play '70s rock, '80s new wave, '90s pop, and '00s dance hits while you dine on the delectable nacho appetizer included with this Groupon. Hard Rock wants to pack the place for a hard-rocking party that rocks harder than the hard rockers that HoneyCircuit covers such as Gwen Stefani/No Doubt, The Killers, Guns 'N Roses, Queen, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Duran-Duran would rock hard if those hard-rockers could be there to rock hard for this hard-rocking event. Real Tom: Born in Manitoba, Tom moved to Los Angeles to write music for films, but was forced to move back to Canada when his career didn’t take off. Movie Tom: Born on the mean streets, Tom is arrested for a crime he didn’t commit. To prevent a nuclear bomb only he knows of from detonating, he’ll have to escape…from Alcatraz!

Peruse and sample the flavors of five chocolatiers, five breweries, and two bands. Chocolatiers include Bittersweet: the Chocolate Café, Galaxy Desserts, , TCHO, Vice Chocolates, and Teeny Cake. Brewers include Trumer Pils, Drake's Brewing, Triple Rock Brewery, Napa Smith, and Linden Street. Bands such as The Beehive Spirit and Tornado Rider will entertain during the festivities. Also featured at the event will be a booth accepting charitable donations for Saffron Strand Inc., a non-profit dedicated to finding employment solutions for the local homeless.

Unless the ceramic-robot coup d'état comes to pass, fine pottery isn't going to paint itself. In order to become a decorated hero of ceramic lore, all artists pay a modest studio fee ($7.50 for kids under 18, $9.50 for adults) and then pick from a dimensionally diverse range of pottery shapes, priced from $3 for small ornaments to $60 for platters fit for a king who loves to host royal potlucks. Creatively stymied artists can either browse the samples for inspiration or mimic the enthusiasm of the nearest euphoric child lost in a paint-speckled universe.