BOBBLE TIKI: BREAKFAST WITH BOBBLE TIKI >>>

THE DAILY WORD

Exalt \ig-ZOLT\, verb:
1. To praise, glorify, or honor.
2. To heighten or intensify.
3. To raise in rank, character, or status; as, "exalted the humble shoemaker to the rank of King's adviser."

USAGE EXAMPLE: Lindsay Wagner has helped exalt the Sleep Number mattress to more than an infomercial punch line.

MORNING NEWS

TACOMA: Budget woes affect proposed Tacoma signage

OLYMPIA:  Hempfest advertises on Oly buses 

SEATTLE: State's water quality

UNITED STATES: Good news from Baghdad?

ENVIRONMENT: Green conventions

JUST BIZARRE: One mature eleven year old

MORE STRANGE NEWS: Lost beer goggles

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

BILL TIMNICK: EXPLORE GIG HARBOR >>>

Visitors to Gig Harbor can learn about the maritime community’s past at the Harbor History Museum, where exhibits document the experiences of local Native Americans, pioneers and businesses, and the history of the Narrows’ multiple bridges â€" including the original that collapsed into Puget Sound.  The museum, at 4218 Harborview Dr., is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. However, the current museum is set to close soon in preparation for a grand opening in its new home in 2009.  Call 253.858.6722 for more information.

Information on B&Bs as well as other overnight options in the Gig Harbor vicinity, including houseboat accommodations, is available on the community’s Web site.  Gig Harbor also has a visitor information center at 3125 Judson St.  For more information, call 253.857.4842.  The center is open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., on Saturday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and on Sunday from noon to 3 p.m.

JENNIFER JOHNSON: THEY WANT TO MAKE LUNCH FOR YOU >>>

Towers Caffee owner Debbie Portzer is absolutely delightful. She greets guests with warm smiles and tasty recommendations for lunch, and on a recent visit, she offered freshly made Asian Noodle Chicken Salad samples.

The common theme for the handwritten chalkboard menu items is Fresh, Fresh, Fresh.

A lightly flakey, buttery croissant envelopes moist chicken that’s sliced paper-thin and topped with provolone, crisp bib lettuce, juicy tomato slices and sweet red onion. I love the sweet to tart balanced mango lemonade.

Towers Caffee carries lush sweet breakfast pastries, too, and delicious soups. Magazines, newspapers and even this fine rag rest in baskets next to overstuffed chairs. The entire vibe all but begs one to sink into an armchair and grab some reading time with soothingly cool or comforting hot beverages. Sunshine sprinkles through the windows between endearing signs that read: “We Want To Make Lunch For You.”

How many places feel like that?

The lovely, smoke-free coffee shop/deli café is located across from Bates Technical College and diagonal from Pierce County Courts’ Building. Lunchtime can be a little hectic, but the jovial two-person staff handled the rush well, never losing their friendliness. Seating is scarce though â€" three areas inside and three outside.

[Towers Caffee, 1102 Yakima Ave., Tacoma, 253.272.0112]

LINK: South Sound Restaurant Guide

SUZY STUMP: GO GREEN AT THE GALLERY >>>

The Gallery at Tacoma Community College will host an Environmental Art Exhibition opening Jan. 2.

The Gallery invites artists to contribute to the show as long as they follow the college’s sustainability mission: to “ensure that all TCC employees and students are aware of, and dedicated to, sustainability principles which will be reflected in campus operations, curricula, and in our interactions with one another and with the community.”

For more information on the show, contact The Gallery coordinator Jennifer Olson-Rudenko by email here.

LINK: South Sound exhibits

BILL TIMNICK: CAPITAL SUGGESTIONS >>>

For the South Sound traveler, Olympia’s Capitol Campus, anchored by Washington’s Capitol Building, is as good a place to start as any.  Although the campus is most visually appealing in the spring when the cherry trees are in bloom, there are year-round reasons to visit and explore the buildings and grounds. Staff members provide hourly tours of the Capitol Building throughout the week.  Even the Governor’s Mansion opens for tours â€" weekly on Wednesday, by reservation only.  Call 360.902.8880 for more information.

Other Capitol Campus attractions include a selection of memorials and monuments, devoted to Washington veterans from several wars, a large fountain, a “sunken” outdoor garden, a visitor center (for planning yet more adventures), and the nearby State Capitol Museum (seven blocks south of the campus at 211 S.W. 21st Ave.).  The museum, inside Olympia’s Lord Mansion, is open Wednesday through Saturday.  Among its permanent displays are exhibits highlighting South Sound Native American history and culture.  The museum also features a native plant garden.  Local history is also celebrated at the Bigelow House Museum, 918 Glass Ave. N.E., which preserves artifacts associated with one of the city’s founding families.  The museum is open weekends through Labor Day and by appointment.  Call 360.753.1215 for more information.

To discover still more reasons to visit Olympia, go to www.visitolympia.com, or call the Visitor and Convention Bureau at 360.704.7544 or toll free at 877.704.7500.

SUZY STUMP: SPACE IS THE PLACE >>>

Within the constellations of Lyra and Cygnus, a trained eye can spot supernovae, nebulae, red giants, super blue-white giants, binary stars, views of our spiral galaxy and a potential black hole. Tonight is prime time for astronomical entertainment.  With luck, telescopes and a clear, dark sky, stargazers may catch a glimpse of the Perseid Meteor Shower, aka the heavens’ annual summer light show. It’s caused by the Earth passing through a trail of debris left behind by the now-defunct comet 109P Swift-Tuttle.  No relation to Tom of Tacoma.

BRAD ALLEN: THANKS FOR THE CALL >>>

The Weekly Volcano asked Opa! Greek Cuisine on Sixth Avenue to call us when they nabbed their beer and wine license.

One ringy-dingy â€" they have their license thingy.

LINK: Opa! Greek Cuisine review
LINK: South Sound Restaurant Guide

SUZY STUMP: SUNDAY NIGHT CRUNK >>>

Here is the poster The Loft nightclub has posted on their MySpace page advertising their weekly Sunday night dance party in downtown Tacoma.

Here is the line in front of The Loft at 10:30 p.m. last night.

How was it last night?

LINK: Live music and DJs tonight