Downtown Tacoma's El Gaucho now has an early and a late happy hour: 4-7 p.m. and 10 p.m. to 1 a.m.  Now I can be happier even if the state has kindly helped me decide not to have that cigar in the El Gaucho Cigar Lounge.  Lucky me, huh? - Jason de Paul

PERMANENT LIPSTICK by Ginger Knoxx
What are the differentiating factors between same-old, repetitive activities and ones that you just enjoy doing repetitively? Perception? Age? Level of involvement? I think all of the above. When I say I hate "returning to the scene of the crime" I'm talking about going to the same place I was the night before. Typically I like to put a few days of grace before a return visit, you know, to let the staff forget how loudly I laughed as I was loving on my vodka or perhaps to let some of the things I said fade from memory. And then there's the strong desire to apologize to the bartender (all of my bartenders are familiar with this peculiar habit of mine) - even if nothing out of line occurred.

Wednesday, April 12
Lunch with Handsome at this little sushi joint over in University Place was an up-close and personal look at what fast food must be like in Japan. Ours arrived so quickly we were sure it was premade, but no, the sushi chef was whirling knives and wrapping seaweed so fast we paused, mouths agape. Handsome has recently moved back to T-town. Thank gawd. Summer's coming - let the champagne flow.

Friday, April 14
Girls' night, how I love thee! Chesty Meoww picked me up in her red vintage car that just got healthy enough to hit the road. We met up with Nasty Natasha at Commencement Bay Coffee Company down on 25th and Jefferson for the University of Puget Sound rowers' fund-raiser. Hat Trick played some cool blues. I adore the Hammond B3 organ so much. Natasha was a delight. Chesty's cousin joined us as we giggled ridiculously sharing stories from college party days. Chesty Meoww and naughty girl discovered their mutual love of all things Fluevog, making them official heel sisters for life. As the sun dipped, we took Natasha to Tempest for her first time. Immediate love occurred. How could you not dig that place? Boyfriends started dropping by, and we had to insist it was girls' night, dammit. Classic beauty Ebony and surfer good looks girl Jay popped in. We tried to make it to Hell's Kitchen for the Fawking Eagles but were informed by Smooth and Lovely Lady L that we had indeed procrastinated too long and missed out. On to Magoo's it was! Packed and packed was the shape of the neighborhood bar. Shots anyone? Yes, thank you very much. Europa Fredo demanded to meet Naja, so I did the honors. Heard the sad news that Scott Turner will no longer be singing for The Forgery. Bummer that. At least the split was amicable. We can look forward to new incarnations on both ends. Smooth and his lady gave me a lift home after declaring that I had been at my funniest that night. Really? I thought I was just doing my usual line of sarcastic talking.

Saturday, April 15
And ta-da! Scene of the crime: Tempest.  Deja  vu doesn't even describe it. Arriving a bit early, I heard my name being called by a female voice from the round table, my favorite place to sit - close to the bar, sort of tucked back, ample space for crowding friends in but still with a view of the door. Hot mama Kate B looked stunning in her jet-black tank and jeans. Hard to believe she has a wee one with that fit form. Artist James Hume, who was the whole reason for the night, scolded me for trying to walk by without hugging him. The Frenchman was in attendance with his lovely lady, and even Film Club Jon stopped in. Lynn Di Nino came by to view Hume's newest offerings, a series of the female form titled "Strip Show." It was a bit campy and fun, with a hot woman striping clothes off the paintings to classic stripper music. Priceless. At 10 p.m., we rallied the troops and zipped down the block to Supernova Hair Salon for a free show with Southern/Black Sabbath/stoner rock band Mos Generator. That ruled. Big J and Rob hung tight, promising to show "Limbo" at his place the next afternoon IF the movie could be nailed down. Naja played fabulous hostess at the show and promised to meet us at the Side Door after it was cleaned up. Smooth and his lady begged off and headed out. An unnecessary cocktail with the devil, I mean Mr. G, was the curtain call for me. I took my barhoppin' booty home to The Italian. Sweet.

As Thursday is the big Stoner Holy Day of the year, I feel the need to leave you with some beloved words of Ben Harper: "If you don't like my fire, then don't come around. 'Cause I'm gonna burn one down."

Give me a wink and a kiss right here. Knoxx knows.

SCENE OF THE CRIME by Natasha
I hopped out of my business suit and into my comfy jeans and a sweater just in time to catch 21 Commerce's comedy night.
The show starts every Tuesday at 8 p.m. It's been going on for six weeks now and has amassed a following of 50 peeps. Not bad for an early weeknight.
A word that describes this program is one that you don't hear often: It's free. However, you won't find me complaining about paying for things at 21 when Tyane's Bambi eyes greet me at the door and Sherril the manager is mixing the vodka in the cosmos and the firewater in the pink Cadillacs. Sara the bartender always has a butterfly or a flower in her hair. Gentlemen: Have you noticed that only hot little pixies work here now? If not, pay attention, you idiots!
The best part: You know there's some truth left in the world when you run into your student body president from college drunk after a day of skiing turned boozing at the lodge.
But back to the comedy.
A flurry of local comedians step up before the headliner (a few too many if you ask me) in open mic fashion. Here are some of my favorite jokes from them:
"Tacoma has really come a long way. It was once known as the ass crack of the Puget Sound; now we've been upped to armpit status."
"I've been permanently 86d from the Puyallup Fair. No one told me that you couldn't sit on those foot massagers."
"I once dated a guy that had so many gaps in his teeth it looked like his tongue was in jail."
The headliner for the evening (which changes every Tuesday) was James Heneghen, a self-deprecating soul who focuses on obvious things like his inability to get laid and that his ears stick out. Of course, as a finalist in Seattle's International Comedy Competition, he had some interesting musings:
"Seattle is exactly two bowls north from Tacoma, depending on traffic."
"Guys don't get excited about getting married unless they're gay or Tom Cruise."
"We went to Iraq because George W could spell it. Afghanistan gave him trouble."
"Apparently, people with herpes like alotta sports because they never show the dirty strippers in those Valtrex commercials."
"21 Commerce is a great place. Now I just have to get back to my car to make sure I still have a CD player."
All kidding aside, 21's comedy night is great for those of us who live in the corporate warrior world or who just have to get up early during the week. You can get good food, some laughs, a healthy buzz on, and be tucked in to bed by 11 p.m.  Ahhhhh.
Sweet dreams.
Comedy Night, Tuesdays, 8 p.m., no cover, 21 Commerce, 21st and Commerce, downtown Tacoma, (253) 272-6278.

Tell me where you like to party right here.

The new Irish public house at 208 St. Helens in Tacoma is open and plans to add lunch starting May 1. Doyle's, a classic dar paneled pub with plenty of Guinness on draft and Irish whiskeys on the wall, is open daily at 4 p.m. until May when they start opening late morning for the lunch crowds.

The Sasquatch! Music Festival added more bands to its three-day event at the Gorge on May 26, 27 and 28 (Memorial Day Weekend). For complete show, venue and ticketing information visit this hairy beast.

• Friday: Nine Inch Nails, Bauhaus, Him, (surprise band TBA), Any You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead, Wolfmother, Deadboy & The Elephantmen
• Saturday: Ben Harper & The Innocent Criminals, The Flaming Lips, The Shins, The Tragically Hip, Neko Case, Iron & Wine, Sufjan Stevens, Gomez, Rogue Wave, Architecture In Helsinki, Sam Roberts Band, Constantines, Band Of Horses, Matt Costa, Bedouin Soundclash, Tim Seely, Common Market, Korby Lenker, David Ford, Elvis Perkins, Brett Dennen
• Sunday: Beck, Death Cab For Cutie, Queens Of The Stone Age, Matisyahu, The Decemberists, Nada Surf, Pretty Girls Make Graves, Blue Scholars, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Arctic Monkeys, We Are Scientists, Ben Lee, Chad Vangallen, The Heavenly States, Jamie Lidell, Headphones, Rocky Votolato, Laura Veirs, The Village Green, Mercir, Big Japan, Big City Rock

Ryan Loiselle: madman or genius? What elements differentiate the two? Do we care? Describing his painting style as demented and revealing, Loiselle tries to convince the viewer that he possesses the rare gift of bringing out the worst in his subjects. Tacoma resident Loiselle works mostly from photographs, manipulating acrylic and oil paint into portals of his subjects' psyches. Along with familiar, recognizable Tacoma buildings and streets as background, his images on canvas are more than mere staid frozen portraits, but convey a story - always with emotion and sometimes severity. His prior portrait work was of people the artist did not know or of those imagined, but Loiselle reveals that this body of work is not about memory or exploring the realms of the unconscious.
"I enjoy painting character and the human form in all its imperfections. What sets this current work apart from my past is that all the subjects are my friends with parts of Tacoma incorporated in each of the newer works," Loiselle explains.
The eight-piece series is about his love of painting portraits, showing the progress Loiselle has made from the time the first piece was done to the newest, which he adds, "may still be wet when we hang it."
"Portraits: Past And Present" shows through May 12 at the University of Washington-Tacoma Gallery, 1742 Pacific Ave., downtown Tacoma.  Check it out tonight at Third Thursday Art Walk, 5-8 p.m., or meet Loiselle at a special reception at the gallery Friday, April 21, 6-8 p.m.  The gallery can be reached at (253) 692-4000. - Jennifer Johnson

Want to be the voice behind the product?  Tacoma Community College offers a Voice-Over acting course May 2.  The non-credit, two hour class teaches the fundamentals to beginners.  School starts at 7 p.m. on the main campus at 6501 S. 19th St., Tacoma. The course fee is $49; pre-registration is required. Call (253) 566-5020 or visit their Web site.

Want to see David Benoit at Jazz Alley?  Want two tickets?  Want to two tickets to see David Benoit for FREE?  Call (253) 596-8553.  First three callers to leave a message get two tickets each.  We'll call the winners.  Check here regularly for free ticket offers. - Ken Swarner

Though we've often said that the most vehement environmentalists would best serve the Earth by killing themselves, we nonetheless encourage a visit to local Earth Day celebrations first.
Begun in 1970 during the March Equinox (March 20, 21), Earth Day is a worldwide yearly celebration and call to action in order to sustain the natural beauty and viability of our world.
This year, several events are scheduled to commemorate Earth Day. Saturday, April 22, there's an all-day free family-style celebration at the Tacoma Nature Center at 10 a.m. (199 S. Taylor St., (253) 591-6439); demonstrations, entertainment and projects April 22-23 at Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium (5400 N. Pearl, (253) 591-5337); and Operation Downtown Clean-up runs 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. in downtown Olympia.
Do your part by ceasing all bathing activity beginning today, and follow the crunchies to Earth Day beginning Saturday. We'll see you there, right after a quick spray to the lawn with pesticide and a quick spray to our hair with Aquanet. - Suzy Stump

EBONY FASHION FAIR

• WHEN: Saturday, April 22, 7 p.m.
• WHERE: Mount Tahoma High School, 4634 S. 74th St., Tacoma
• PRICE: $30  INFO: (253) 383-2007

After a winter of hiding out, the time has come once again to evaluate your fashion-preparedness for spring 2006. Its a scary thought, since the South Sound is not even on the edge of the fashion radar.  To help remedy this situation, the Tacoma Urban League Guild hosts the national touring Ebony Fashion Fair. With its theme "Fit to be Fabulous," the Ebony Fashion Fair will swing into Tacoma to help us become hip.  With a kicking sound track and fashion from New York, Milan, Paris and London, the show is broken into two acts with four themes per act, including "Stylishly Square," "Cold As Ice," "Colorful Drama," "Stripe It Up," "In The Bag" and "Cocktails For Two."  Just remember: If you don't look good, your town doesn't look good, and in turn, you don't look good again.  And please, skip a meal or eight - navigating 18-inch platforms while wearing that Mood Top and short skirt will be difficult enough: don't make it harder on yourself. - Suzy Stump