Bluegrass people wear Velcro sandals.  The weather today sucks. The Sonics suck.  A woman’s handbag is her own private territory.  What do these statements have in common?  Nothing.  So why are you still reading this? (Please say you still are. It gets better, really.)  Because you want to know what’s going on.  Well, it’s a literary event, one of those things where you’re never quite sure what the writer/speaker is going to do or say next. Just like the beginning of this blog entry, see?  You didn’t know what was going on, and you stuck with it so now you do.  Your reward?  You now will know, right now, that poet Judith Skillman will read her words tonight at The Seven Muses gallery. Pretty cool, eh? Cool enough to make you skip "The Office,” eh? Eh? â€" Suzy Stump

A crush of people couldn’t hide the beauty of the Matador at last night's private opening, with its marquetry tables and bars, exquisite metal work that took an industrial product and made it ethereal, and the literal hot spot signature fire pit, not to mention the super cool bathrooms, because according to Natasha, if you have cool bathrooms, the women will come to your bar.

All this boded well for the future of downtown Tacoma’s newest restaurant offering, which officially opens today.  Sure, we had to wait well over an hour and a half to get a table â€" the key was, we did get a table, and the food was well worth that hour and a half of mingling.

Of course, while mingling I saw some of my favorite friends: Kris Blondin of Vin Grotto and her husband Dustin, sporting some astoundingly cool new Tahitian tats (so was Kris!) and Jason Ganwich (also from V.G.), Lovely Larry and Monsoon Chris were present with Renee Seamount and Dave Meconi nearby (here I thought the tie-wearing guy was Renee’s new man, but turns out I was wrong) and Natasha. Various Tacoma glitterati were also present, joined by Seattle glitterati and an East Coast contingent. I met Zak Malang, and saw two Brian Okroys â€" the sleep deprived, unshaven worker, and the smooth-faced diner at the Table of Power.

I had my first taste of food from the glam diner Denise Tempest, who, with Michelle Douglas, was out from behind her own bar (and kitchen) for a change, enjoying the change of pace.  She offered me a bite of calamari, which I found divine, just enough flavor and heat to offset the seafood.  Pappi Swarner, Brad Allen and Wild Bill were my dining companions.  Wild Bill’s beef tenderloin was as divine as the calamari, while Brad Allen didn’t come up for air from his roasted tomatillo enchilidas and Emmalee was super gracious and shared her taco with me, oh so yummy. 

Tequila anyone? â€" Jessica Corey-Butler

Country singer Alan Jackson once sang that the "whole world’s gone country," and lately, I'm inclined to agree. Urban cowboys and -girls are rounding up the best parts of what’s country and translating them for us city slickers.

Going out for a night in Tacoma? Pump up with Gretchen Wilson’s "Redneck Woman," and don’t forget your cowboy boots (they look hot with a skirt) or cowboy hat (if you can pull it off, it looks hot with just about anything).

Going through a breakup? Wallow in Keith Urban’s "You’ll Think of Me." I'm not sure if it’s the ride-me symbolism or the down-and-dirty Western appeal, but regardless, I'm saddling up. 

Don't know what to do before and after the Dixie Chicks concert Saturday night at the Tacoma Dome?  Kick up your lonely heels at the Official Kick Butt Dixie Chicks Post Concert Party at The Varsity Grill.  Hosted by Q-Country KNBQ 102.9 FM, the large downtown club will be packed with cowboys, cowgirls, The Busman and the Q-Girls.  Local rockin' country band Latigo Lace will keep it lively. 

Saddle up at The Varsity between 5-7 p.m., ride the Tacoma Link to the show, hitchhike back to The Varsity because the damn Link shuts down at 10 p.m., party at The Varsity beginning at 11 p.m., then ride ...   â€" Suzy Stump

We love Tacoma. If you sometimes don't, or if you're one of those daisies who can't quite commit to even being a Tacoman despite having lived here for more than one year, or if you're new and need to understand the ethos and pathos of Tacoma in a manner that will help you appreciate this place, you need to get out Saturday. It's not all in the smoky gambling and condo development, although it's also not entirely without those precious gems â€" it's in the way you feel the city.

So here you go â€"get started on enhancing your love of Tacoma Saturday, Nov. 18:

• Grass-roots organization, Tacoma Works, hosts an open studio for the Hilltop Storefront Mural Project. Come out and meets the artists, learn more about the project, and get involved. The open studio will take place at 1912 Pacific Ave. Saturday from noon to 3 p.m.

• House of Kubla Kahn, a Tacoma Indie Fashion Showcase, works the runway at Indochine, 1934 Pacific Ave., Saturday at 4 p.m. They begin seating at 3 p.m.  A designer reception will be held next door at urbanXchange at 5 p.m.  Reserve your space now by calling Indochine at (253) 572-8200.

• The Dead Artists have secured the spot next to The Grand Cinema to turn their art party Kulture Lab into a regular gallery and event space to feature rotating displays of edgy art, mixed and multi-media showings, installations, film, fashion, dance, spoken word and music.  The grand opening is scheduled for Saturday, 7-11 p.m.  It is at 608 Fawcett St.

• Snowballed, the Tacoma Art’s Community’s one-year anniversary, throws a party featuring a one-act performance art piece "The Threshold," music by Jeremy Silas, Angela Jossy and others, refreshments, dancing, and more.  The event wll be held at 7 p.m. at The Soma United Church, 2320 Pacific Ave. The price of admission is one handmade snowflake that will be donated to Mary Bridge Hospital’s Festival of Trees.

• Funk master George Clinton arrives in Tacoma as a special guest of Clip Payne’s 420 Funk Mob Saturday at Jazzbones.

• Tempest Lounge celebrates its one-year anniversary Saturday night with tasty cocktails and music by DJs LA Kendall and Colby B. Stop by and help proprietors Denise and Michelle celebrate at 913 Martin Luther King Jr. Way.

The studio of Laurel Lawson appealed to me, with the buoyantly spring-toned Mary Cassatt meets Henri Matisse portrait of a mother and her child, simple ink drawings, and kids’ drawings that connected me instantly.  Seems Laurel’s heart and motivations lie not so far from my own, though she has an enviable North End Tacoma home complete with killer yard and amazing studio space, and artistic ability to boot. My first stop of the day, Lawson’s studio, prepared me to be impressed by the rest I would see during my Art at Work Studio Tours this past weekend, and I wasn’t disappointed. 

At Holly Senn’s, I was arrested first by the beauty of the neighborhood, then by the beauty and serenity of her conceptual art involving books. “I’m not a book artist, I’m a sculptor, books are my media,” she clarified, and I can see and appreciate the different ways she utilizes her media, from the papering of the walls, to the baskets woven of book-chunks, to the papier mache apple-like globes suspended in branches. She mentioned that in her work, she’s marrying the natural world to the intellectual world, and it’s a concept I could actually grasp. More of her conceptual work will be on display in her “Enchanted Forest of the Mind” Exhibition at the Tacoma Community College gallery from Dec. 1-31.

From the conceptual to artisanal, I went to Court C in downtown Tacoma, where I met artists Anne Elrod, whose multi-artist books inspired me, Lynne Farren, whose assemblages reminded me that my daughter’s things are beautiful, and Cheryl Laurenzo, whose hand-woven and hand-dyed textiles awed me.

Textiles also featured in the Loyalty Clothing space, though Daniel Blue and Danii Backwell were using already-woven and dyed items and creating fantastic items for a night at the House of Kubla Khan fashion show at Indochine.  These works will be seen at the event on Nov. 18, 4 p.m., after which point the hard workers can finally get some rest.

Rest is what I needed after a day of wandering around studios, though the glimpse into the creative spaces of the artists, varied as they were, inspired me to create my own space.  What will the mate say when I tell him his car has to go out of the garage? â€" Jessica Corey-Butler

The folks behind the Stadium Bistro said they will "hopefully" open tonight next door to Doyle's Public House at South Second and St. Helens just up from the Theater District in downtown Tacoma.

Our own Natasha will report tonight on what their "American" cuisine actually pans out to be, assuming that she doesn't acquire too much of a buzz while there. â€" Jake de Paul

First it was poetry slams, and then it was art slams, and now there’s this new thing called Slide Slam Friday, Nov. 17, at 7 p.m. inside the Rialto Theater in downtown Tacoma.

What the heck is a “slam” anyway?

The uninitiated ask this question, and those in the know just smirk knowingly. No one ever actually answers. Does anyone really know? Before uncovering the meaning, let’s play a little game I like to call the acronym game where we get to make up our own answer. Here are a few trial answers: S.L.A.M.: Sophomoric Lacy Anti-Matter; S.L.A.M.: Slow-moving Lunchbox with Atomic Munchies; S.L.A.M.: Sundial Latent According to Mars; S.L.A.M.: Sentient Lucky and Attitude Malleable; and my favorite and the most apropos if I daresay so myself â€" S.L.A.M.: Sequential Lineup of Arts and other Media. None of those are technically correct, of course, but playing the acronym game is almost as fun as the event I’m about to tell you about.

The truth is that the term “slam” is a derivative of “poetry slam,” a competitive evening of poet against poet (think "8-Mile" only without the hip-hop) whose name was derived from baseball and bridge terminology. This event is not that at all. This is Slide Slam â€" one and a half hours of local art slammed into your consciousness like a shot of adrenaline. This is not your Grandma’s slide show.

Sixty-three local artists will have their artwork projected on the big screen at the Rialto Theater as slides, digital images and video clips. Each picture will appear for just a few seconds along with information about the art and the artist. No one is going to “slam” anyone’s work â€" at least not out loud.

“This is an opportunity to meet new people and get a better idea of what is happening artistically," explains Naomi Strom-Avila of the Tacoma Arts Commission.  "This is definitely a positive thing.”

One other positive thing about this event is that the rules of submission directly reflect some feedback that the Arts Commission has been getting from the local artist community. Usually the Arts Commission has to comply with regulations that are mapped out in its bylaws, but this event gives it an opportunity to do things a little differently. For instance, instead of limiting the submissions to Tacoma residents, this event allows anyone from the Puget Sound area to submit work. Instead of a juried show where only proven artists can participate, this project includes everyone.

“We are getting full-time professionals and others who are just getting started. We got a really nice cross section,” says Strom-Avila. 

Slide Slam and Project-A-Thon is a part of a monthlong celebration of arts in Tacoma called Art at Work. This is the fifth year Tacoma Arts Commission has organized this event with the help of volunteers from the arts community. In previous years November was known as Tacoma Artists Month, but this year the name was changed to Art at Work in order to promote the fact that everyone can participate in the event, not just artists. â€" Angela Jossy

Bobble Tiki dutifully takes up his spot at the back of the line behind 15 other glazed-looking individuals, and as he watches the woman behind the counter toy with the temporary power
she holds over his morning, he accepts the truth: Bobble Tiki is addicted to coffee.

But four coffee joints in 300 yards is ridiculous.

Fusion Salon, Tanning and Espresso is opening shop soon in Lakewood on Custer Road between Coffee Escape and Cock N Bull Coffee.  Add Classic Coffee that sits between all these java joints and Bobble Tiki can play Java Pinball.

Boing!  Boing! Boing! Buzz! â€" Bobble Tiki

And there it is. The wireless icon will read a full black on my PowerBook G5. I will be able to sit on a bench at the Tacoma Commerce Street transit center and connect to the universe. 

Oh My Gawd, I can eat my Lunchables and read about TomKat and Oprah next to the D Street Overpass project!  I can read about the Britney sex tape while I wait for a parking space to open up by the Swiss!  Oh joy!

The BIA Blog announces that Clearwire is launching a wireless Internet service for downtown Tacoma tomorrow.  All I'll need is a delicious piece of hardware with a modem riding shotgun and a few bucks for a monthly fee.

If I can read this on my smoke break, then sign me up! â€" Brad Allen

This press release just crossed the Weekly Volcano World Headquarters desk:

• American Sail Training Association announces Port of Tacoma for the 2008 TALL SHIPS CHALLENGE Race Series on the Pacific Coast.  The dates have been set for July 2-7, 2008. 

For more details on previous ASTA events, sail here.  They don't have specific on the 2008 event yet. â€" Michael Swan