The Tournees French Film Festival at the Grand Cinema inspired me to take a walk on the French side of Tacoma Thursday.

The plan started out, to watch “Les Choiristes” and grab some fromage, some vin, and some cuisine.

I started out the cuisine side of things with a trip to Stadium Bistro â€" tenderloin, salad avec chevre, and tomato bisque and grilled cheese with wine (not French).  Waiter Mike kept my glass filled with an amazingly sippable Malbec. 

I left happy and made my way up to the Grand Cinema, a sweetly beautiful piece that matched the Corina Bakery Magic Cookie bars that were offered after the show while the conversation, moderated by Pierce College’s Dan Skeldon, ensued.

Afterward, I felt the need for cheese and wine, but â€"merde! â€" Enoteca was already closed.  I went back to Stadium Bistro and enjoyed a trio of crèmes brulee.  They were delicately flavored (one was citric, one had hazelnut essence to it, and I believe the last was a vanilla/cherry) and tres yummy.

Of course, in my world, nothing exceeds like excess, so I did a French day, part deux, yesterday, with my favorite ever lobster bisque from Babblin’ Babs for lunch, followed by dinner with my mother-in-law and daughter at La Crème Brulee in Steilacoom.

Though service was a trifle slow, especially when it came to ordering dessert and getting the check (by which point the wee one was growing wary of the whole dining out thing,) the food was amazing, from the crudités shared before our meal, through to the salads with salmon both adults ordered (kidlette got gorgeously piped mashed potatoes and an assortment of vegetables), and on to the aforementioned desserts: my daughter said her peach and strawberry sorbet was divine, while the grown-ups were digging on the Crème Brulee and a slice of heaven that was a cross between mousse and cake.

Now, completely sated, all I want a nap, to be followed by a solid hour of sweaty fun at the gym to try to undo some of the damage all this fine cuisine has done. â€" Jessica Corey-Butler

T.S. Eliot called April the cruelest month. Bobble Tiki calls it the month for love: What couple fails to anticipate that tête-à-tête at the dining table, the soft light of a banker’s lamp flitting over their naked forearms, as they wrestle with the 1040EZ?

In 1981, Bobble Tiki was in love with three things: Spyro Gyra, Boones Farm strawberry wine and his next door neighbor Susie. Susie’s more liberal mom would buy us a bottle of the “wine” and set us loose for a few hours of drinking and making out. Within a year or two, Bartles & Jaymes strawberry wine coolers had hit the market and became the drink du jour for us trendy Bobble Tikis. After that, Boones Farm looked like, well, MD 20/20. 

Join Bobble Tiki tonight for some smooth jazz by Darren Motamedy, wine cooler-like drinks and the one Bobble Tiki’s with. 

[Cedarwood Dome, 7 p.m., $7.50, Milton]

Remember in high school, how your best friend had the coolest sister?  You know, the one who loaned you her smokes and bought you beer with her fake ID and laughed at dirty jokes?
She’s still cool as hell, and now she’s a Dame â€" a Dockyard Derby Dame.

And Saturday night, she was wrapped in a toga and wresting in Jell-O at the South Sound Garage in downtown Tacoma.

She showed up with some of her whip-smart wicked-cool friends, along with their boyfriends.  One, he would be Mr Tickles (Derby medic, to you), bared his chest hair win earth-toned batik along with his lovely wife Tess (Tickles â€" say it fast) while another impressed me mightily with nails-as-facial-piercings.

Yeah, nails.

Remember, in high school, how your other friend had the coolest brother?

Hang out with Dockyard Derby types, and you will.  Their next bout is Saturday, May 5, at the Tacoma Soccer Center.  Ticket information is here. â€" Jessica Corey-Butler

In her statement welcoming the crowd to the Head to Toe Hair and Fashion Extravaganza Saturday night at the Tacoma Elks Lodge, Judy Neal, owner if Valentino’s Hair and Wig Boutique mentioned Don Imus, and suggested, “I’m happy to be nappy.” It was an ironic moment, since the hair on show was all kinds of up-to-the-minute, ultra-chic artistry.

The vibe of the evening was decidedly upbeat and purpose-driven, with improvised live music setting a backdrop of excitement that blended one moment seamlessly into the next.  Pam Bowman and Quiana Davis, and the Royalty Dancers also lent to the very classy feel to the evening. The presence and appreciation of the pastors in presence was also a nice touch.

Some segments were skits, while others were dance numbers.  Sets were organized by salon, highlighting the talents of eight salons with several designers in each one.

Designers were promenaded and lauded with their styles, which included braids, updos, falls, extensions, innovative cuts, and amazingly creative combinations of these elements.

The Grand Finale featured a dance number. I was almost confused about the hair there â€" It was covered in intricate wraps, which I thought were the hair art.  I was, happily, wrong, and learned in the process that these kinds of wraps are recommended for helping care for some of these elaborate styles.

Stools were set up on stage, and stylist Heylina Wright emerged.  With energy and élan, she unwrapped the models’ heads and brushed out the styles she had previously created; two of my favorite styles actually belonged to a mother daughter pair, though the piece de resistance ponytail with fabulous flip front was also gorgeous.

It was a divine end to an inspired evening. â€" Jessica Corey-Butler

Premiere Salon and Spa in Olympia is hosting a dirty martini party on Sunday, April 22 from 7 to 9 p.m., which will be held at The Clipper, to help raise funds for the Columbia Riverkeepers, a non-profit conservation group working to restore clean water and a healthy Columbia River.

This event, a partnership with Aveda in celebration of Earth Month, will include dirty martinis, hors d’oerves, a free Aveda candle, and raffle prizes throughout the evening.

All for $15â€"sweet! â€" Jessica Corey-Butler

[The Clipper, 402 Fourth Ave E., Olympia, 360.753.3299]

Local visual artists have just a few more days to sign up for the first Tacoma-based Edge professional skills training workshop, running from May 11 to June 22 at the Tacoma Art Museum.

Produced in conjunction with Seattle-based non-profit Artist Trust, this once-a-week-for-eight-weeks program will teach emerging visual artists fundamental skills, including: how to build an effective, professional portfolio; business structure and planning; financial management; how to price your work; how to draft basic contracts; researching and applying for funding; marketing; networking; and a whole lot more.

Cost to participate is just $150 thanks to donations from the Tacoma Art Museum, the City of Tacoma and the Greater Tacoma Community Foundation. Participants will have a chance to learn valuable skills and network with professionals from the Greater Puget Sound arts community. This is a last-minute chance folks, with a few seats left for folks on the ball.

Deadline for applications has been extended until Wednesday, April 18. Program Coordinator Nirmala Singh-Brinkman has offered to extend the deadline until Friday, but you must call and make arrangements. Call (206) 467-8734, ext. 20 or e-mail nirmala@artisttrust.org.

For more information, go here. â€" Paul Schrag

Just when you need a dose of mix-it-up dance, “MOVE!” comes along to save the day.

MLKBallet will bring “MOVE! A Contemporary Dance Series #4” to the Tacoma School of the Arts Theatre April 20 at 8 p.m. and April 21 at 2 and 8 p.m. Once again a dynamic evening of physical creative expression will rivet audiences compliments of the Pacific Lutheran University Dance, Performance Place Ensemble; excerpts of Ten Tiny Dances; and danielandsomesuperfriends.

When MLKBallet Executive Director Alexa Folsom-Hill was asked to name a single highlight of the evening, she didn’t miss a beat before responding, “We’ve invited back danielandsomesuperfriends.”

This Seattle troupe, whose strong technical ballet base melds with cutting-edge choreography, will present a new piece, “Poor Man’s Boogie.”

“They’re pretty amazing,” Folsom-Hill says.

As with the previous “MOVE!” shows, this installment raises funds to maintain MLKBallet’s tuition-free dance training program on Hilltop Tacoma. â€" Jessica Corey-Butler

[Tacoma School of the Arts, Friday, April 20 8 p.m., Saturday, April 21 2 and 8 p.m., $14, 1118 Commerce, Tacoma, 253.906.2190 or go to www.mlkballet.org/move.htm]

Looking for a Moroccan food hookah up?

Moroccan Treasures and Seattle's Casbah Restaurant have joined hands for a Moroccan lunch today in honor of the World Affairs Summit in Tacoma.  The downtown Tacoma Moroccan interior design company will shell out the shanks today from noon to 2 p.m. for a nominal fee. Check it at 906 Broadway.  â€" Jake de Paul

Alfred's Cafe celebrates the awful street construction in front of their joint by offering 50 percent off their pizza to college students, 20 percent off the total bill for seniors 3-6 p.m. and 20 percent off the total bill for military. â€" Brad Allen

[Alfred's Cafe, 402 Puyallup Ave., Tacoma]

Seattle rock band The Divorce are divorcing.

"The rumor is true," explains band member Shane Jamison via phone. "After nearly seven years, we are indeed breaking up. We will play our final shows on June 30 at the Crocodile Cafe in Seattle."

The Stranger broke the story. â€" Angela Jossy