TUESDAY, FEB. 15, 2011 >>>

Photojournalist and documentarian Melanie Burford was a member of The Dallas Morning News photo team that won a Pulitzer for its 2006 coverage of Hurricane Katrina. She returned last spring to document the human cost of the BP disaster, and next week she's taking a break from her teaching gig at Columbia University to bring these stories to the University of Puget Sound. Her 6:30 p.m. lecture in the Rasmussen Rotunda will consider the topic, "The Monster Under the Water: Delacroix Island Fishermen Defend Their Marsh Against the BP Oil Spill." Her second lecture, tomorrow evening at 6:30 p.m., will be in Kilworth Chapel and cover the "Eyes of the Storm: The Photographic Story of Hurricane Katrina From the Photographers at The Dallas Morning News." Both presentations are free, and the general public is encouraged to attend. Read the full story here.

2. The 8th annual Middle East Film Festival kicks off today screening 30 films through Feb. 23 at The Evergreen State College (Tacoma and Olympia) and Capitol Theater. The films range in length from short documentaries to feature-length productions. The festival will also feature 10 or 11 different speakers. Admission is free to see all films and speakers. Read the full story here.

3. The Banned Book Club will discuss Jay Asher's Th1rteen R3asons Why at 7 p.m. inside the Tempest Lounge. Half-price appetizers for all book club participants are the norm.

4. Poet, scholar and teacher J. P. Newell will discuss Celtic spirituality at 7 p.m. inside the Immanuel Presbyterian Church at North Ninth and J Street in Tacoma. Formerly warden of Iona Abbey in the Western Isles of Scotland, Newell is currently Companion Theologian for the American Spirituality Centre of Casa del Sol in the high desert of New Mexico.

5. You've seen the photos. Now experience the Harmon Tap Room's goldfish Races for yourself beginning at 8:30 p.m.

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound