Outdoors
If your plan is to stay as far away from the U.S. Open in University Place as you can, but staying home isn't what you want to do either, allow us to suggest a few alternatives: Cars There are a few car-related diversions to grab your fancy between June 15 and June
Outdoors
If you are renting a home during the U.S. Open, and you need to keep the refrigerator stocked, you have come to the right place. Grocery shopping near Chamber's Bay is amazing. Sure, there are Safeway and Fred Meyer, but the specialty stores will keep your pre- and post-functions deliciously
Outdoors
Beer is good. Beer is great. And during the U.S. Open, there are a couple key places to stock up your rental fridge or pack the cooler for watching the tournament on TV (pretty sure you can't take it into the venue). For brewpubs, Narrows Brewing on the upper end of
Outdoors
No one really knows what's going to happen. Sure, planners have spent years anticipating traffic problems surely to rise when you hold one of the country's biggest sporting events on a cliff with one road in and one out, but that will not matter when you just wanted to grab
Outdoors
A nation of golfers' eyes will be on University Place next week, however, a lot of people will be told they're looking at Seattle. That's okay. The once sleepy town of UP knows how to fight for what it wants, and over the past 10 years, that is apparently to
Outdoors
The U.S. Open will operate two parking lots with free shuttle service back and forth to Chambers Bay, which is better than sitting for three hours on Bridgeport Way inching your way towards the big tournament. Surviving the free lots, however, takes a little inside knowledge. Here's a brief explanation for
Reviews
Mexican food is easy to find in the South Sound, and cheap Mexican food seems to be even easier. However, finding affordable authentic Mexican cuisine takes a bit more effort. Fortunately for South Sounders, Taqueria El Antojo has a ton of affordable offerings served up quickly that taste great. And
Arts
It makes my heart happy to see that Laura Hanan has re-opened Brick & Mortar Gallery. The once funky little gallery on Pacific at 9th street is now elegant and welcoming and in business again after a hiatus of six years with a selection of Hanan's paintings plus porcelain wall
Features
Everyone has one of those days when they just can't find the energy to make dinner at home. And an easy go-to always comes around to pizza ... it's fast, it's convenient, and it always hits the spot. However, there is no excuse for South Sounders to settle for cardboard
Stage
Watching Agamemnon at Dukesbay Theater opening night was a totally immersive theatrical experience. This is the way theater was in the beginning when many theatrical traditions still in common use were first invented, and it plays as well in 21st century Tacoma as it must have in Greece 2,400 years
Music
Years ago, when I was making my first little excursions into the world of the deeply nerdy and wonderfully heartfelt world of artists like They Might Be Giants, Daniel Johnston, and Jonathan Richman, my dad would poke fun at me by pointing out the frivolity and randomness of their song
Reviews
Cruising down Sixth Avenue in Tacoma, you will pass restaurant after restaurant, but tucked in on the corner of 6th Ave. and one of the many side alleys in Tacoma, you might miss Dirty Oscar's Annex if you're not paying attention. There's not a lot to look at when you
Arts
Are you running out of wall space for your child's artistic creations? Have papers covered with colorful crayon images covering every horizontal surface throughout your home? Can't bring yourself to toss any of junior's masterpieces? Here's a cool alternative to the recycling bin: Opening in June, the Young At Art Gallery,
Arts
Every kid loves Legos - those fantastically versatile, brightly colored interlocking little blocks that hurt like nobody's business when you step on them in the dark. Even so, parents love them, too, for the hours of creative play they provide. And how many architects and engineers launched their start building
Music
Even though it shouldn't be, it's a surprise when a musician takes a new direction. We've been conditioned to think of artists in one way or another, so any stray movement is met with derision and disbelief. Straying from what we perceive as an artist's sweet spot is a controversial
Stage
Theater-goers accustomed to the intense drama of David Mamet plays such as Oleanna and Glengarry Glen Ross might be surprised at his A Life in the Theatre, a small play in which the less is said, the more is implied, a bittersweet comic drama that runs about an hour and
Arts
"Ahoy, A Maritime Exhibition" at B2 Gallery features paintings of ships and boats and people at work on the water by Mary Pacios, Susanna Rodriguez, James Cole and Austin Dwyer. In many ways, Dwyer dominates the show, due to his technical skill and the high drama of his work. But his
South Sound Cinema
It used to be that documentaries were the medicine you took to feel better about seeing untold quantities of garbage at the movie theater. Documentaries were like Flintstone vitamins to make us feel better about seeing whatever Nicolas Cage action abomination came roaring through the cinema. Slowly, though, people like
Arts
Ah, spring! It's when our thoughts turn to things like baseball, gardening, cookouts and long sunny days. If your thoughts also turn to things like fairies, dragons, magic and make believe, you're going to want to mark your calendar for May 30. Beginning at 10 a.m. and running until 7 p.m.,
Bars & Clubs
It can be fun, but drinking beer isn't usually considered a way to help others. It can be, though, if the brew you choose is Homefront IPA. All proceeds from the India pale ale, brewed by Fremont Brewing Co. and nine other breweries around the country, go to nonprofit organizations that