MICHAEL SWAN: WEDNESDAY, MAY 20, 2009 >>>

1. The Foghorns' music is a lot like their story: messy, weird and utterly captivating. Their songs rattle and ramble like good tavern tales. They beget more questions than answers. And you always want another round. Check them out tonight at Bob's Java Jive with Vacant Stairs and The Upperhand.

2. The Zeit-Bike exhibit runs through May 22 at the Tacoma Art Museum. This year's theme is "Spoke Tales."

3. Every Wednesday Doyle's Public House in Tacoma hosts Knowledge Night where individuals or teams answer two pages of brain teasers, trivia and current events for shirts, tickets and gift certificates.

4. Randy Oxford Blues Theatre open jam starts at 8 p.m. at Jazzbones.

5. Vicci Martinez and Friends will be jamming at The Swiss tonight around 9 p.m.

LINK: Live music and DJs in the South Sound

LINK: Local movie starting times

LINK: South Sound Restaurant Guide

LINK: Arts and entertainment calendar

JAKE DE PAUL: WEDNESDAY FOOD LINKS >>>

Tons of half-price wine nights in the South Puget Sound

Will Dunkin’ get us off cupcakes and on doughnuts again?

Giving anchovies a second chance

Today’s South Sound Specials

Chef Charlie McManus of Primo Grill is going hog wild with pork raised by Pierce County farmer Cheryl Oulette. McManus is roasting the whole pig in his wood-burning oven, then pulling the meat for his creations. Primo Grill is at 601 S. Pine St. See if there’s room at 253.383.7000. Oh, almost forgot, McManus put paella in individual pans on his menu. Nice.

The Red Hot hosts a Stone Brewing Glassware Night tapping kegs of Stone 2008 Anniversary Ale and Stone Levitation beginning at 7 p.m. And remember is Wino Wednesday at The Red Hot, which means $3 glasses of wine. The red Hot is at 2914 Sixth Ave. in Tacoma.

LINK: South Sound Restaurant Guide

NEWS TEAM: GOOD MORNING SOUTH SOUND >>>

More Good News For Car Dealerships: Work begins today on South Tacoma Way.

Join The Crowd: Panel freezes pay for elected officials.

Army investigator: Fort Lewis soldier provided drug to girl, 16

Pension Pukefest: The deficit at the federal agency that guarantees pensions for 44 million Americans more than doubled in the last six months to an historic high, reaching $33.5 billion.

Don’t Do Drugs: Major Mexican drug cartel suspects arrested.

One More Reason: Former Simon Cowell squeeze Terri Seymour was attacked because of her association with the Idol judge.

STEPH DEROSA: GO LOCAL TAKES OVER THE TACOMA FARMERS MARKET TOMORROW >>>

If Tacoma were a big college dorm room, we’d have empty cans of PBR covering the floor and a consistently empty toilet paper roll. We’d eat cold Puget Sound Pizza for breakfast, develop a kick-ass Facebook group, and have an immense amount of pride in what we have to offer. So much so that we’d have matching tattoos that said, “Go Local or DIE.” We’d be best friends and never date each other’s ex’s, right?

To be a part of such a community calls for sustainability from all its inhabitants, and it calls for organizations like Go Local Tacoma, a group for local, independent businesses, which offers them a surplus of support. Much like the support found in a lifelong comrade, local business owners and their patrons alike can feel pride within our fair city, and with Go Local Tacoma â€" something not a lot of communities can pull off. In economic times like these, Tacoma can do it â€" and Tacoma will.

Like a big social gathering held in the commons of my little imaginary college campus I made up for you earlier, there will be an extra-curricular event known as “Go Local Tacoma Day” to be held at the opening day of the Tacoma Farmer’s Market Thursday, May 21 in downtown Tacoma on Broadway. In addition to members of “Go Local Tacoma” being on hand, visitors can enjoy the Iron Chef like "Cheffin' Off," to be judged by local celebrities and city officials. (Not to be mistaken with the shirt ironing competition your mom will be in.) Along with local music by Kevin Davis and members of China Davis (oh hell yeah), there will also be a gardening demonstration at the Foodie Fun Clinic and multiple family friendly activities. Shazam! This is going to be awesome.

[Tacoma Farmers Market, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., free, Broadway between Ninth and 11th streets, downtown Tacoma]

MATT DRISCOLL: TACOMA SCHOOL BOARD RACE HEATS UP >>>

Perhaps, lost in the hype of City Council elections and Tacoma’s Mayoral race â€" not to mention the latest season of American Idol â€" the campaigning now underway for two seats on the Tacoma Public School Board has missed your radar. Perhaps you’ve been too busy to pay attention, or too overwhelmed to take note, or too unemployed to care, or too drunk to know any better ...

All reasonable excuses, really, but in a world as topsy-turvy and seemingly doomed as our current one, there may not be a more important battle.

The children, after all, are our future. If we teach them well, someday they’ll lead the way â€" and hopefully clean up the gawdawful mess we’ve made for them. (I believe Whitney Houston left that last part out because she was high on crack.)

The Tacoma School Board has five positions. All five spots are elected at large in Tacoma, to six-year terms. The board is responsible for, among other things, reviewing and adopting school district policy, choosing superintendents and ensuring that the goals of the district are met â€" which include making sure that “underperforming subgroups” (which is PC speak for minorities, the poor and all those other children the district may have ignored in the past) make strides toward reaching to district average for performance.

This year, in November’s election, two Tacoma School Board seats will be up for grabs â€" kind of. Incumbent Connie Rickman currently holds seat 2, and if she announces intentions to run for reelection (which she hasn’t done yet) she’ll be fending off promising fresh faces including Chris Van Vechten â€" he of Pierce County Arts Commission and The Melon fame (among other things) â€" and Catherine Ushka-Hall, a more established (dare I say old school) candidate that recently announced her own candidacy and has already garnered endorsements from the Tacoma City Council’s Julie Anderson, Spiro Manthou and Connie Ladenburg â€" not to mention the Pierce County Council’s Tim Farrell. Deb Blakeslee is also in the mix for seat two.

Then there’s Kurt Miller’s seat, which will also be available for the taking come November, though currently no one has filed to run for it. However, Miller is expected to announce candidacy for school board reelection by the June 5 filing deadline, and it wouldn’t be at all surprising if he ends up running unchallenged. Miller is popular and well respected.

As November draws nearer, these are names you’ll want to know â€" that is, if you care about the children. At least now you’re up to date. Go back to American Idol at your own risk.

MICHAEL SWAN: THURSDAY, MAY 21 2009 >>> 

1. Make it your own tonight as you roam the streets of downtown Tacoma, darting into galleries, museums, businesses and art spaces as part of Third Thursday ArtWalk. We recommend the 100th Monkey Tile Artists show at Tacoma Art Place on Hilltop. John Carlton, Cara Jennings, Mary K Johnson, Dayton K Knipher, Ann Meersman, Claudia Riedener, Elayne Vogel and Houston Wimberly created tiles for past 100th Monkey events.

2. There’s an extra-curricular event known as “Go Local Tacoma Day” today at the Tacoma Farmers Market in downtown Tacoma on Broadway beginning at 9 a.m. In addition to members of “Go Local Tacoma” being on hand, visitors can enjoy the Iron Chef Cook-Off (11:30 a.m.), to be judged by local celebrities and city officials. Along with local music (oh hell yeah), there will also be a gardening demonstration at the Foodie Fun Clinic and multiple family friendly activities.

3 The Zeit-Bike exhibit runs through May 22 at the Tacoma Art Museum. This year’s theme is “Spoke Tales.”

4. Artistic director Erik Hanberg’s latest Horatio Theater production Cabaret Night will go down tonight at The Hub’s events and gallery space next door to its St. Helens restaurant beginning at 7:30 p.m.

5. Ephryme, a former Olympian now residing in Brooklyn, N.Y., returns to celebrate the release of his new 7-inch Shomer Salaam on local label K Records tonight at The Royal Lounge in Olympia.

LINK: Live music and DJs in the South Sound

LINK: Local movie starting times

LINK: South Sound Restaurant Guide

LINK: Arts and entertainment calendar

MARIE LANDAU: ARE THE STATE COLLEGE’S GUNS NOT BIG ENOUGH?

The Evergreen State College is notoriously immune to the standard operating procedures that drive most colleges. It has programs instead of classes, evaluations instead of grades, and instead of a valiant bear or wild cat, it has a sick, giant phallus for a mascot. For all these quirks, there is one standard op Evergreen can’t ignore: preparing itself for a campus shooting. Read my full report here.

RON SWARNER: OUR HIP-HOP IS RIGHTEOUS >>>

Jose S. Gutierrez Jr. writes a South Sound hip-hop column on the Weekly Volcano's Web site every Thursday titled "Live From I-5: Hip-Hop in the 25360." The shit is way over my head. Gutierrez knows what's down, especially in Olympia where he hosts and produces Live From I-5 with Luvva J Fridays from 3-5 p.m. on KAOS. He's had that gig since 1989.

This year KAOS awarded Gutierrez with its Programmer’s Award as Overall Best Radio Show.

We're lucky to have him.

Check out his column this week. He goes off on Joe Budden, among other things.

As DJ Luvva J, he performs regularly in Olympia. Check out his schedule here.

NEWS TEAM: GOOD MORNING SOUTH SOUND >>>

This Shit Works: Expense cuts have paid off for the Port of Tacoma.

Run For Your Lives!: OK, don't. Just a test.

There's Goes The Mini Bar Snickers: Pierce County hotel owners seek new fee to promote tourism.

Where’s Jack Bauer?: Men arrested for plotting to bomb a Bronx synagogue.

Seriously?: The Minnesota Senate race is still not over as Norm Coleman keeps the drive alive.

No Sugar Daddy For The Weekly Volcano: Google CEO says they’re not buying newspapers.