there are some really great things that can give you a genuine feeling of community in Tacoma. I immediately think of the Thursday Farmers Market, First Night, and seeing a movie at The Grand Cinema, amongst others. I think it's safe to say that the film pickers at the Grand don't pick duds.

Aside from the critically acclaimed movies the Grand has to offer, there's the ambiance of it all. You know what I'm talking about: small theater, traditional seats, non-profit-essence, volunteer-run, homemade popcorn smell, quaint bathroom type of ambiance. Ah, the bathroom. I can only imagine the history of it all. I definitely know how it feels to make history. Or rather, how it feels to be historic. (Read: OLD)

There are the times I've been shopping, the song Material Girl by Madonna comes on, and the 18-year-old sales person asks me if I've heard this new tune. Or the time the Safeway cashier asked me what a dive bar was. (Yes, I was talking about dive bars while shopping at Safeway. What? You don't?) My 20th high school reunion is coming up, I cringe at teenage drivers, and yesterday my husband asked me to look into getting a breast lift. So you know what I do to make myself feel younger? Everything and anything. Call me crazy, call me immature, call me a bitch. I really don't give a shit. And my in-laws hate me for it, but oh well. They're not the ones I have to sleep next to at night, so there.

One huge thing my in-laws hate, more than my tattoos, is my obsession with live music. I'm not lying, and I'm not exaggerating, they HATE it. They've actually told me they will not baby sit the mini-me if it's so we can go see a concert or show. Yes, heaven forbid my husband and I have a common interest, and that we go see live entertainment together. It's the devil's music! We're going to HELLLLL!

Last summer I was at a show at the Gorge. One of the girls I was with gets a text from one of Robert Randolph's guys. (Robert Randolph and the Family Band opened the show.) It's for us to meet them in the VIP area immediately after the show. So as we are just hangin out with olRR, you know like all cool people do, I begin to get slightly irritated at how fans can act. Do people realize how stupid they look begging for an autograph or picture? It's a look of desperation, and quite frankly I wanted to kick someone in the knee. I am here with Robert Randolph, and you are bothering him, so F-off, people.

So then RR takes us back to the tour bus. My stomach sinks, my heart goes nuts, and as excited as I was to be experiencing this, I felt old. I felt like a groupie. I enjoyed it, but it felt weird. OK, it felt weird until they gave me a little mood-enhancement-smoke and asked us if we were ready to go to a party.  Ummmmm, yeah? Are you kidding? Sure, I followed RR through what seemed like a maze in a mile of white trailers, tour busses, around corners, and finally up a ramp and through some metal doors. Oh. My, Gawd. I was at an mutha-f***ing kegger on the mutha-f***ing stage of the Gorge Amphitheater. It was a view I will never forget, and a feeling I will never get rid of. In that single moment I forgot to feel old, and took the time to soak it all in.

I finish up in the Grand Cinema's bathroom and remember to take the time to soak up my current surroundings at the theater. Next time you are there, take the time for yourself to look around you. Notice the history, absorb the feeling of community, and learn something from it. Be a part of one of the things that makes old Tacoma stay young.¬" Steph DeRosa