THE LOWDOWN ON WHAT'S UP THIS WEEKEND >>>

WEATHER REPORT

Friday: Sunny, hi 83, lo 56

Saturday: Sunny, hi 76, lo 53

Sunday: Iphone says still sunny, hi 79, lo 55

>>> FRIDAY, AUG. 26: TACOMA FOOD CO-OP OPENS

Tacoma will get a little food-friendlier on Friday. Since 2006, a group of dedicated locals has worked to establish a place where fresh, local, non-chemically raped food can be found. Better yet, they've been working to establish a place for the community to come together, connect and grow. It's called a food co-op, and the years of active recruitment and planning will pay off when the Tacoma Food Co-op opens its doors this week. A grand opening celebration is also planned for Sept. 10.

• Tacoma Food Co-op, 3002 Sixth Ave., Tacoma, tacomafoodcoop.com

>>> SATURDAY, AUG. 27: ROCK AT THE DOCK III

Few places are better for the rock than a dock. Just trust us. Of course, this is just one of the many reasons why Saturday's Rock at the Dock III Hot Rod Car Show & All City Dance at Johnny's Dock Restaurant in Tacoma will kick major ass. There'll be more classic cars than you'll know what to do with, not to mention plenty of other free, live entertainment ... and a beer garden! The event's evening musical treat promises Dan Whyms and Rock Island Line.

• Johnny's Dock Restaurant, 10 a.m. - 11 p.m., 1900 East D St., Tacoma, rockatthedock.net

>>> SATURDAY, AUG. 27: 34th ANNUAL LeMAY CAR SHOW

Lasting over three decades is an accomplishment for anything and anyone. Ask Volcano editor Matt Driscoll, who made it to 30 by sheer luck. The annual LeMay Car Show hasn't just lasted three decades, it's working toward a fourth. Saturday, the 34th Annual LeMay Car Show will offer its usual "amazing assortment" of vintage vehicles, matched with additional collections of all sorts of other fun collectible memorabilia. Money raised goes to benefit the LeMay Family Collection Foundation.

• Marymount Event Center, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m., $5-$10, free for members, active military and kids under 5, 325 152nd St. E, Tacoma, 253.272.2336

>>> SATURDAY & SUNDAY, AUG. 27-28: MARITIME FESTIVAL

The Volcano gears up for the annual Maritime Festival like the Super Bowl. We just can't get enough of celebrating Commencement Bay, and the "Working Waterfront" as it's known. This year marks the 19th annual Maritime Fest - and it might be the best ever.  Expect harbor tours and train rides, paddle board racing, music, boat building, clowns and a beer garden. The action runs Saturday and Sunday. That's why they call it a "Working Waterfront" - weekends off are for pussies.

• Thea's Park/Foss Waterway Seaport, Aug. 27-28, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., free, Dock Street, Tacoma, maritimefest.org

>>> SUNDAY, AUG. 28: CELEBRATE L.I.F.E.

We've raved about the Fab-5 and the L.I.F.E. Program plenty. For those not in the know, Fab-5 created the L.I.F.E. Program (Living In Free Expression) in 2005 as a means of providing "relevant creative outlets" for our area's young people. The L.I.F.E. Program is described as, "an intensive series of urban arts workshops designed to allow youth to develop and explore their unique voices through a variety of different mediums," like DJ-ing, breakdancing, visual arts and creative writing. Fab-5, in conjunction with Spaceworks Tacoma, also recently birthed Fabitat, a physical location for Fab-5 headquarters where weekly classes, gallery exhibitions, live events and studio space flourish. On Sunday, join L.I.F.E. and Fab-5 at Fabitat (1316 Martin Luther King Way, Tacoma) to celebrate the culmination of this year's L.I.F.E. Program, an event featuring a preview of the breakdancing routine Fab-5 will deliver during next week's Art Appreciation Night at Cheney Stadium, plus much more.

• Fabitat, 4-8 p.m., free, 1316 Martin Luther King Way, Tacoma, fab5org.wordpress.com

>>> WHERE OUR STAFF IS GOING

NIKKI TALOTTA Features Writer
It's wedding season, and Saturday will be filled with hugs and champagne toasts. Sunday calls for a BBQ and apple picking, followed by an attempt to not butcher Grandma Talotta's pie crust recipe. Hopefully sweet apple pies ensue. Ah, I'm loving August!

REV. ADAM MCKINNEY Music and Film Writer
The tentative plan is to head up to Seattle with some friends to see the Night Beats at the Crocodile. That is all!

BRETT CHIHON Meat Market Correspondent/Features Writer
I'm going to a wedding reception. Free booze!

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CHRISTIAN CARVAJAL: Theater Critic
My wife and I raved so much about Seabrook that now her whole family wants to go. Ergo, about two dozen of our clan will converge on one poor beach house this weekend. Text me. I could use the distraction, as I'm almost out of Angry Bird levels.

JOE IZENMAN: Theater Critic
Grit City Music Fest. Parkway Tavern IPA Fest. Playing Dungeons & Dragons In A Basement Fest. (Hint: one of these three items is not a real Fest. But that sure won't stop me.) The real trick will be how to drink little enough at IPA Fest (starting at 2 p.m.) that my fingers still function to play keyboards at Grit City Fest by 8:15 p.m.

JENNIFER JOHNSON Food and Lifestyles Writer
Dancing, riding bikes, yoga, beach, hiking and church.

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JOANN VARNELL Theater Critic
Bah! It's my last weekend before school starts so I'll be spending as much time with my little son in the hopes that I won't have a complete melt down on the 30th.

STEVE DUNKELBERGER Photographer
All things Grit City Fest and Maritime Fest.

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound