BRAD ALLEN: GIVEAWAY >>>

UPDATE: Thanks everyone. The tickets are gone.

Win tickets to see Mike Ness TONIGHT! at the Showbox At The Market in Seattle.

We’re giving away three pairs of tickets to tonight’s Mike Ness show to the first three people to email us that can correctly name The Adolescents' song title that describes the one-bedroom apartment Ness once lived in.

Winners will be notified by 2 p.m. this afternoon!

STEPH DEROSA: BROKEN NEWS >>>

After a sunny mid-morning walk along Ruston Way today Bandito Betty and I decided to quench our hunger and thirst at The Spar. As we relaxed at our favorite back corner table and ordered our beers, a train was pacing a slow crawl through the intersection just outside the window. Soon the train stopped, completely. For about 20 minutes the train stood still, occasionally moving a few feet backwards, then a little forwards. Back and forth, then at a stop ... back and forth, then stop. This went on for a while. We figured the people waiting both in the cars and on the sidewalk were getting really antsy.

Soon our suspicions were confirmed as we witnessed people solving the problem in a most dangerous way. This girl did the (somewhat) smart thing and crawled through the train, unlike the other gutsy walkers who ducked under the train cars. Would you do that?

Soon a speeding Amtrack came blasting past as the other train stood still on the tracks. I don't even want to imagine what could've happened to the train-dodging pedestrians.

For the next five or 10 minutes after the Amtrack passed, the slow train went back and forth a few times, eventually moving on.

This right here folks is news-worthy train coverage. Exciting!

STEPH DEROSA: TACOMA NORDSTROM GRAND OPENING >>>

The original projected opening date of the new Tacoma Mall Nordstrom is expected to be Oct. 3, 2008 at 10 a.m.

As I'm typically a supporter of small locally owned businesses, there's no denying my intense love for Nordstrom as well. The service is unbeatable, and the attention to fitting detail in all departments is impressive. If you've ever bought a bra or a pair of children's shoes at Nordy's, then you know exactly what I'm talking about.

For the few of us who are anxiously waiting for this grand new store to be unveiled, there is a light at the end of the tunnel! The Tacoma Mall Nordstrom's Grand Opening Gala will be Tuesday, Sept. 30. Tickets are $75, but don't get your Juicy Coiture lace panties in a wad, ALL proceeds will benefit the Tacoma Art Museum and Museum of Glass.

And leave it to me to find out the skinny on what will happen with the coffee cafe that is now separate, but next to, the present day Nordstrom. The new and improved store will soon house the cafe inside its full doors, right about where the purses are located now. The small collection of housewares and decorative items that are now inside the tiny cafe will also have their very own area inside one of the three brand new floors of Tacoma Mall Nordstrom.

And luckily for me, the restaurant will still be around, and will still be serving up Kraft Macaroni & Cheese. I just hope they don't change the snickerdoodle recipe or I'm going on full protest. That is, unless I bust one of my bras.

Dammit, Nordstrom, you've spoiled me!

MATT DRISCOLL: BEER PONG PICS MAKE HIM HOT >>>

Here are those photos of Miss Washington everyone's been talking about.

Note: Miss Washington is the drunk one in the tiara.

ART
ICONcepts
The show is called ICONcepts, but it could just as well be called the beatification of Dale Chihuly and Lynn Di Nino.

The term “icon” is one of those words the meaning of which has been so expanded through common usage and misusage that it can mean almost anything, from Hannah Montana to Jimi Hendrix to the Coca-Cola logo. Dictionary.com defines icon as “a representation of some sacred personage, as Christ or a saint or angel, painted usually on a wood surface and venerated itself as sacred.”

The curators of this show apparently gave the artists a lot of leeway. Most chose to iconize the Tacoma arts scene. As I implied in the opening paragraph, a lot of these artists chose to make living saints of Di Nino and Chihuly, the former because she has done so much to enliven the Tacoma arts scene and the latter because he has focused the world’s attention on Tacoma and the Pacific Northwest. Read my full review here. â€" Alec Clayton
[Two Vaults Gallery, through Sept. 12, 602 South Fawcett, Tacoma, 253.759.6233]

CONTEST
Lakewood Idol auditions
At long last, months of training and hours of preparation will finally pay off â€" for eight Lakewoodians, at least. Lakewood Idol 2008 auditions will kick off at 4 p.m. at Lakewood City Hall (doesn’t get much more Hollywood than that), and by approximately 7 p.m. the panel of judges will have whittled the field of hopefuls down to the aforementioned eight lucky finalists. Those finalists will go on to compete at the official Lakewood Idol 2008 competition, to be held Friday, July 22 at American Lake. By rule, you must be at least 12 years old to compete in Lakewood Idol, and provide your own karaoke or backup music. â€" Matt Driscoll
[Lakewood City Hall, 4 p.m., $10 to audition, 6000 Main St. S.W., Lakewood, 253.589.2489]

ROCK
9 Pound Hammer
After extensive research, I was able to determine that 9 Pound Hammer is a dive bar in Seattle, Wash., an old folk song, a punkabilly band in Kentucky, a small sledge hammer, and a Southern rock band in Tacoma fronted by Dustin Lafferty.

Like the hardware it was named after, Lafferty’s band was forged in metal, dragged through the backwoods and surrounded by enough rubber to make for easy swinging. What I mean by that (get your mind out of the gutter) is this acoustic guitar- and harmonica-infused rock music is happy, full of local references and lighthearted enough to give us a giggle once in awhile. The band is a three-piece outfit with Lafferty (formerly of The Evergreens and The Alley Walkers) on vocals and acoustic guitar, Todd Arrighi (formerly of Lew Schmngy) on harmonica and vocals, and Jake Gurrido (formerly of the Earl White Revue) on drums. â€" Angela Jossy
[Wayne’s Inn, 9 p.m., 1902 E. Main, Puyallup, 253.848.3466]

LINK: Dirty Knockers and others in the clubs tonight.
LINK: Steph DeRosa is looking for volunteers
LINK: Give Fujiyama a shot today.

MICHAEL SWAN: WEEKLY VOLCANO'S MUDROOM >>>

Here are a few news stories in today's Weekly Volcano without a pirate in sight:

COMMUNITY BASED SERVICES: Community policing and cleanup efforts look great … on the surface.

NORTHWEST DETENTION CENTER: More immigrants are headed our way.

HOMOPHOBES?: Pierce County Council turns cheek to gay community.

NUMBERED SPACES: It was rockin’ good in Pierce County last week.

STEVE DUNKELBERGER: THEATER THURSDAY >>>

Shakespeare In the Parking Lot
Shakespeare In the Parking Lot is continuing its run of original versions of some of the bard's classics with The Tempest: Tall Ship Love and Caliban's Revenge. Watch the traditional take on William Shakespeare's The Tempest with Tall Ship Love â€" a classic tale of love, betrayal and forgiveness. Or catch the sequel to Tall Ship Love with Caliban's Revenge â€" a tragic comedy of survival. The troupe will show the work at Art on the Ave festival.
[Sixth Avenue between Cedar and Trafton, Sunday, July 13, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., free, Tacoma]

The Frog Prince of Spamalot
Gig Harbor's Encore! Youth Theater will stage the hilarious The Frog Prince of Spamalot, written by Edith Weiss and directed by Kathleen McGilliard for two performances on Saturday, following a one-week theater workshop. The show combines the classic frog prince story with the Camelot legend of Monty Python fame. And then there is a rap number.
[Encore! Theatre, Saturday, July 12, 2:30 and 5:30 p.m., $5, 6615 38th Ave. N.W., Gig Harbor, 253.858.2282]

Northwest Playwrights Alliance
Northwest Playwrights Alliance and the Broadway Center will present readings of The Letter, by Emily Freece; The Square, by Michael Wallace; The Best of All Possible Worlds, by Michael Gairuanos and Rest by Jeff Carter Monday night.
[Broadway Center Rehearsal Studio, Monday, July 14, 7 p.m., free, 915 Broadway, Tacoma, 253.591.5894]

BOBBLE TIKI: BREAKFAST WITH BOBBLE TIKI >>>

THE DAILY WORD

Emolument \ih-MOL-yuh-muhnt\, noun:
The wages or perquisites arising from office, employment, or labor; gain; compensation.

USAGE EXAMPLE: While Bobble Tiki definitely enjoys his paychecks, in the end, he prefers leisure to emolument.

MORNING NEWS

TACOMA: More ink for Miss Washington

OLYMPIA: Threats of vandalism

SEATTLE: Saving the viaduct?

UNITED STATES: Obama veers right

ENVIRONMENT: White House interference on climate change

JUST BIZARRE: Interesting find

MORE STRANGE NEWS: Is that a t-bone in your pants?

THINGS TO DO TODAY
FILM LISTINGS: Look here
MUSIC LISTINGS: Here’s what’s happening
SHOOT THE SHIT: Weekly Volcano forums