FREE EVENTS FOR THE WEEK NOV. 21-27 >>>
Well, the spirit of Christmas is lurking around Freeloadersland, giving Bobble Tiki a wedgie. Bobble Tiki has already seen It's a Wonderful Life three times and the Christmas tunes are making him cross-eyed. And Bobble Tiki loves it! The trees are decorated, the stockings are hung and the egg is nogged. And in that spirit, Bobble Tiki has a lot of love and news to give, gentle reader, so sit back, pull that Santa hat up from your eyes and enjoy these free events this week in the South Sound.
MONDAY, NOV. 21: Ahh, Thanksgiving. Picture Bobble Tiki's festive holiday scene in your mind. Mom and dad are fighting over the giblets, again. Grandma's working on her 12th vodka gimlet and grandpa has followed Aunt Ho into the bathroom with the video camera. Downstairs, the kids are fighting over who gets to break the wishbone. Sure, it's 87-year-old Uncle Milikona's fragile collarbone, but now that television has supplanted actual parenting, no one cares. Well Uncle Milikona does, but he's already signed the will giving everything to some (gasp!) charity so no one will come to his aid anyhow. Meanwhile, there's a catfight a-brewing in the kitchen as the women in the family pick sides (well, except Aunt Ho, she's still in the bathroom) to fight to the death over who has the damn Tupperware. Every year someone brings Tupperware to collect leftovers and every freakin' year it disappears. Well this year someone's gonna die unless Bobble Tiki's entire family attends the 10:30 a.m. Avoid Those Holiday Blues Class at the Mill Ridge Village Retirement Community in Milton.
TUESDAY, NOV. 22: When Bobble Tiki thinks of stained glass, he thinks of Bruce and Peggy of Walden Designs. The Olympia couple has a showroom inside Sanford and Son Antiques displaying their centuries old traditional techniques of stained and kiln fired art glass - holiday style. Head for Tacoma's Antique Row and check out their handcrafted holiday show.
WEDNESDAY, NOV. 23: Doyle's Public House hosts its annual Bad Sweater Party Wednesday night giving away prizes for the ugliest holiday sweaters. Santa has the details here.
THURSDAY, NOV. 24: Bobble Tiki can picture it. First the turkey, then the stuffing, and of course the cranberry sauce . . . and you won't be able to resist the sweet potatoes with the little marshmallows. Afterward, you'll be collapsed on the couch with your pants unbuttoned, swatting helplessly at the bottle of Tums on the table. Bobble Tiki has a suggestion for you. Wake up Grandpa Joe, grab yourself an Everlasting Gobstopper, and burp your way over to The Acme Grub Cage for DJ Aaron Mack's "Thanksgiving Escape Plan," beginning at 8 p.m. He invites everyone over for a night of music and drinking - cover free. Mack is even willing to spin your music.
FRIDAY, NOV. 25: Every single one-day-at-a-time day is a struggle, particularly around the holidays - specifically during Black Friday. Bobble Tiki knows there are seven habits to becoming a highly effective person, 50 ways to leave your lover and 12 steps to sobriety. But after years and years as a recovering believer in Santa Claus, Bobble Tiki has to ask, "When will it end?" He can't let it go. And there's no better place to get into the holiday spirit than the brand spanking new Franciscan Polar Plaza in downtown Tacoma. Opening Nov. 25, and running through Jan. 2 at Tollefson Plaza, Polar Plaza gives the community an opportunity to come together and make memories to last a lifetime. The center of the holiday festivities is an outdoor ice rink, which costs money and doesn't have a home here in Freeloadersland. At the heart of Polar Plaza will be music, special holiday events, decorations, Christmas trees, coffee, tea, and hot chocolate. Just go, hang and get in the spirit.
SATURDAY, NOV. 26: America seems to have no real idea who the hell we are anymore, or what it means to have a humane and thoughtful national identity, and therefore we happily scratch and claw and fight our way into giant fluorescent-lit hellpits for a chance at a $31 DVD player and some crappy plasma TVs and a pallet of heavily discounted spatulas. Enter the Jada-Moon Gridley-created Gritty City Gift Fair, where local artists and crafters will offer their one-of-a-kind fairs - plus music and refreshments - from 3-9 p.m. at the 906 Broadway space in downtown Tacoma. Santa has more details here.
SUNDAY, NOV. 27: Olympia's Downtown for the Holidays is a day filled with fun and entertainment, from noon to 4:30 p.m. Most activities are centered in and about Sylvester Park, which will include free horse-drawn wagon rides with Mrs. Claus, a holiday parade (3 p.m.), and a tree-lighting ceremony.
LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound
LINK: Santa Says Blog