TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012 >>>

1. At noon inside the Lagerquist Concert Hall, the Ung Youth Sinfoni from Bergen, Norway returns to PLU to perform works from their tour repertoire, including the "100 Folk Tunes of Hardanger" by Geirr Tveitt, "Spring" by Edvard Grieg, and "Fanfare and Chorale" by Kjell Seim. The youth Symphony will be joined by violinist and Hardanger Fiddler, Eldbjorg Hemsing, regarded as one of Norway's most promising young artists. What you'll hear will be nothing short of beautiful. So much so, that you'll quickly forget about the diet of dried cod and salted reindeer testicles that the denizens of Norway are forced to subsist on. Plus, it's nice to see a Norwegian use a horn for something other than announcing a Viking raid.

2. Maria Callas was one of the 20th century's most legendary opera singers. Born to Greek parents in 1923 in New York City, Callas received operatic training in Athens before making her official debut at Italy's La Scala in 1951. Now, more than 33 years after her death, Callas remains one of opera's most popular recording artists. Norm Hollingshead, a Seattle Opera preview lecturer, will speak on Callas at 10:30 a.m. inside the Garfield Book Company.

3. Jobs are personal. If you don't have one, you're probably job-obsessed. If you don't like the one you have, then you are probably looking for a better one. Both scenarios will have an opportunity to connect with a wide range of employers from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Marcus Pavilion on the Saint Martin's University campus. The fair provides a valuable opportunity to gather information, polish your professional image, make connections for future employment, and learn to market yourself more effectively.

4. Vegucated is one of the newest documentaries on the block attempting to expose the realities of food systems and the threat to our health and the environment. The feature-length documentary follows three meat-and-cheese-loving New Yorkers who agree to adopt a vegan diet for six weeks. Vegucated plays at 2 and 6:45 p.m. at The Grand Cinema in Tacoma. We're eating a carrot as we write this.

5. Ricky J's Restaurant and Sports Lounge in Puyallup doesn't exactly sound like the name of a meat market haven. But in fact, Ricky J's has some of the most reasonably priced meat in town. Every Tuesday night Ricky J's offers a bar steak special for $4.95. That's a heaping pile of meat for under $5. Other specials include free pool and $1 off draft beer. But what's that you say? What about the chicks? Jeez, here we mention cheap meat and you're still concerned about chicks. ...

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound

LINK: Live music and DJs in the South Sound

LINK: South Sound happy hours

WHAT WE HAVE FOUND TODAY >>>

Tacoma Dome: It's being summitted. (News Tribune)

Lakewood City Council: It cares about its street. (Lakewood Patch)

School Improvement Grant Vs. Tacoma: Tacoma School District is doing better than most. (News Tribune)

White House Vs. F.D.A.: The Obama administration has often been more cautious on regulatory issues than the F.D.A. (The New York Times)

James Murdoch: Son of media magnate Rupert Murdoch is expected to step down as chairman of BSkyB. (CNN)

Romney Aims For Primary Hat-trick Win: Romney all but ignored his Republican rivals to attack Democratic President Obama, accusing him of "crushing dreams" with a "government-centered society." (BBC)

What Don Draper Could Have Seen: Photos of the Rolling Stones at Forest Hills Stadium in 1966. (Gothamist)

The Daily Show: It will report from the Democratic National Convention. (Deadline)

Jack White: He's released a new song ... via balloons. (Pitchfork)

Divorce Expo: New York was introduced to ii, married it and kicked it out of the house. (Time)

The World's Ugliest Buildings: Are you sure? (Telegraph)

Freaky

MOVE OVER CUPCAKES >>>

It seems everywhere I look, frozen yogurt shops are popping up. I began to think I was going crazy. Am I imagining it or is frozen yogurt the new cupcake?

Frozen yogurt has long drawn patrons looking for a low fat frozen treat. To investigate the trend, I recently visited The Freeze in University Place (3806 Bridgeport Way W.), which opened in mid-March. The flavors ranged from standards like chocolate and vanilla to red velvet and mango. Sure, the yogurt is low fat, but then I had my way with the toppings. Cookie crumbles, caramel syrup and gummy worms, oh my.

Gibson's Frozen Yogurt Shoppe in Tacoma's Stadium District (8 N. Tacoma Ave.) opened in February 2011 and has been a go-to dessert fix in the area ever since. In fact, Gibson's has been so well received that they're opening a second location at North 26th and Pearl in Tacoma's Westgate neighborhood they'll be in the old Little Caesar's building.

Ben Hall hangs at The Freeze in University Place.

Fueling my cupcake-turned-fro-yo conspiracy theory, the old Jubilee Cupcakes space in Tacoma's Proctor District will soon be home to Proctor Frozen Yogurt (2510 N. Proctor), with an anticipated opening date in early May.

Last July, Elements Frozen Yogurt (333 South Meridian, #111) opened in downtown Puyallup. South Hill now has a place to get their frozen yogurt fix at Menchie's in Sunrise Village (10306 156th St. E.). It opens April 5.

The range of flavors and toppings makes frozen yogurt irresistible to kids and adults alike. Add the fact that it's self-serve and pay-by-weight, and it's easy to see why frozen yogurt is the newest trend to hit the area.

A GUGGENHEIM SHOW 31 YEARS AFTER HER DEATH BY SUICIDE >>>

Where has this girl been all my life? Since 1981 she has been dead, but her art lives on - although I was never aware of it and probably few others were either until Ken Johnson's article about her appeared in the New York Times earlier this month.

Francesca Woodman was a young photographer barely out of college and beginning to make a name for herself. She took her own life at age 22.  It was at a time when another photographer, Cindy Sherman, was beginning to make a name for herself doing strange self-portraits. Woodman was doing similar work with haunting self-portraits and other images. She might have vanished from the art scene after her suicide but about five years later Ann Gabhart, director of the art museum at Wellesley College, discovered her work and arranged for a show, and now Woodman is having a major, posthumous retrospective at the Guggenheim Museum.

Worldwide recognition 31 years after her death.

I saw her photographs online and was entranced. I searched further and found the Francesca Woodman Gallery online. Folks, I tell you, if you have any sensitivity to beauty and mystery and eroticism you can spend hours marveling at her photographs. If you're wealthy enough or lucky enough you can even go to New York and see the real thing. 

The Times described her photographs as "dreamy, formally playful and disarmingly erotic." Many of the photographs in the Guggenheim exhibition were done when she was a student at Rhode Island School of Design, and many of them are of herself, naked or partially naked, and were shot in an abandoned house in Providence, R.I.

She worked exclusively in black and white, and all of her prints are small. The images are often ghostly and surrealistic. Some have the look of medieval religious paintings transported into modern settings (there are many versions of one in which she hangs from a doorway like a naked crucifix). In many of them she appears lonely or afraid or angry. There are hints of sado-masochistic ritual. In many of her photographs the figure seems to be dissolving or melting into the wall or floor.

Most of the photos were taken indoors. The abandoned house in which she pictured herself (and the occasional model) was almost empty, but there were some furnishings and some ornate moldings. In some of the shots there is no figure - one of these that is particularly intriguing is a photo of an old door propped against a wall in a way that defies gravity.  There is also one of a bathtub with the most subtle of hints that there is someone in the tub. All we see is a diaphanous something reaching out of the tub. You have to take a second look to see that it is hair and that there is a head and a body attached to it.

In one of the few outdoor scenes Woodman's naked body floats in a stream mostly underwater and entangled in the roots of a tree as if sacrificed to some god of field and stream.

Mirror images and shadows are prominent, and the reflections and shadows appear as separate and malevolent figures. I get the feeling when looking at her photographs that I'm seeing a preview of her death. And maybe she didn't commit suicide after all; maybe she was killed by some otherworldly creature.

Woodman's photographs are not easy to look at, but they are beautiful in a strange and deathly way.

TUESDAY, APRIL 3: WE HAVE A WINNER >>>

After three weeks of voting the Weekly Volcano readers have picked the most popular breakfast in the South Sound.

The Tournament of Breakfast Championship match pitted the Moon Rise Cafe in Lakewood against the new kid on the block, Dirty Oscar's Annex in Tacoma.

Yesterday's championship battle saw the most online voting before dinnertime (5 p.m.) of the tournament, topping out at just over 7,000 votes. The Moon Rise Cafe had a commanding lead by the time the voting switched to the live ballot voting at 6 p.m. during the Tournament of Breakfast Party inside Meconi's Tacoma Pub and Eatery in downtown Tacoma. At the party, folks filled out breakfast voting/raffle ballots when they weren't tossing back $5 martinis and screaming at the NCAA Men's Championship hoop game on the tube.

As promised, we tallied the on-location votes during halftime of the hoop game, which Dirty Oscar's owned. The Sixth Avenue bar that serves awesome food won the on-site voting by six votes.

A large representation from the Moon Rise Cafe and Dirty Oscar's Annex were in the house. The Moon Rise arrived early with their black and purple Moon Rise T-shirts. Supporting the Lakewood Cafe and wearing the same T-shirts were The Villa Caffe and Imbibery owners Robyn and Jason.

"Jason and I invented the Villa Caffe over breakfast at the Moon Rise. We have a soft place for it in our hearts," said Robyn.

The Dirty Oscar's Annex also arrived in black T-shirts, but that's just how they roll. 

Team Moon Rise Cafe / Photo credit: Winter Teems

Team Dirty Oscar's Annex / Photo credit: Winter Temms

Dirty Oscar's Annex owner Jake Barth and Moon Rise Cafe owner Christine Curren / Photo credit: Winter Teems

It was a breakfast love fest. The two competing restaurants hugged it out, complementing each other on their talents. Old Milwaukee Cafe owners Pat and Chad attended the party to give props to both resturants. The Moon Rise had nothing but kind words for number two seed Old Milwaukee. The Moon Rise beat the popular Sixth Avenue restaurants in second round action.

At halftime of the basketball game, Pappi Swarner jumped behind the mic, grabbed the house PA, and gave away six or so raffle prizes, most to the lucky employees of Dirty Oscar's Annex.

The Weekly Volcano staff quickly downed their drinks and tallied the ballots. After combining the ballots with its 77 percent vote lead accumulated online, the winner of the 2012 Tournament of Breakfast was announced:

Moon Rise Cafe.

Both South Sound breakfast joints will be receiving Tournament of Breakfast trophies after completion of the engraving. Also, look for an upcoming feature on the Moon Rise Cafe in the Weekly Volcano.

So it's official: The Moon Rise Cafe is the winner of Weekly Volcano's 2012 Tournament of Breakfast. Eat it up, South Sound.

EDITOR'S NOTE: More photos from last night's Tournament of Breakfast party will be posted soon.

Thank you!

We would like to extend special THANKS! to Shakabrah Java for sponsoring the Tournament of Breakfast. The popular Sixth Avenue breakfast joint made it to the Poached Eight before falling to Dirty Oscar's Annex. It's a damn tasty breakfast.

Also a big thanks to Meconi's Tacoma Pub and Eatery for hosting our Tournament of Breakfast Championship party last night. Good times.

But most of all, thanks to all the awesome folks who voted. You rock.

LINK: More Tournament of Breakfast 2012 Party photos

SHOOTING THE END OF THE WORLD ENDS IN GREENWATER >>>

The ant can't act.

I return to the set of Koinonia last Monday, and the shooting has moved indoors. Struggling through a post-apocalyptic world, John (played by Tony Doupe) finds temporary shelter inside an abandoned house. He awakes one morning to the sight of an ant crawling up the wall next to him. Well, he would if only the six-legged buddy we wrangled would cooperate just a bit.

It must have gotten too cozy inside the mini-trailer director Andrew Finnigan made, because the thing refused to stay on the wall long enough for cameraman Sam Graydon to get a decent close-up. Luckily after a few takes, gravity loses and the bug's camera shyness wears off.

The shooting that week continues smoothly, thanks to a well-oiled machine of a crew, particularly its leader Finnigan. Most setups require only one or two takes before he wants to moves on. Finnigan typically knows not only what he wants in terms of staging and performance, but how to get these things out of his talent - and efficiently.

John (Tony Doupe) in a still from the upcoming movie Koinonia. Photo credit: Director of Photography Sam Graydon

Like the chess scene. Up to this point I've only seen Doupe perform solo. Now his character John gets to talk with someone else. Of course, his chess partner is only his mirrored reflection, but the witty exchange between dueling personalities highlights both Finnigan's writing and Doupe's acting chops.

The scene ends, and (forgive the cliché) electricity fills the room, and not just from the "stingers" (crew slang for extension cord). Descending from the attic, where he watches the footage live on a monitor, Finnigan wears a big grin. "Genius!" he exclaims.

We shoot scenes more or less in the order as written, a rarity in filmmaking, but it gives us all a chance to see John's character progress naturally. Later on, two women literally come out of the woodwork to interact with him - the first (played by Alycia Delmore) John knows from his former life, whereas Gabby (Madeline Elizabeth) is a stranger. All three actors share a common bond - last year's feature The Off Hours. In that film Doupe and Elizabeth play father and daughter, and now display a similar dynamic in Koinonia.

The crew experiences its own bond strengthening a little more at the end of each day, when we leave set with a shared sense of accomplishment. Evening activities back at the cabin can't help but inch back into film, like Finnigan's wife Brooke confessing her love for Wesley Snipes, or watching towering classics like The Goonies or Total Recall.

1st assistant cameraman Seth Wessel-Estes, far left. plays back a take for Finnigan and actor Alycia Delmore on the RED EPIC. Photo credit: Christopher Wood

But eventually we need to get away, if only for a few hours. We celebrate the midpoint of our 10-day shoot with a few pitchers at the only bar in town, Naches Tavern. Some locals challenge our posse to a foot race on the deserted highway outside, and Best Boy/Grip Marco Scaringi volunteers. Long story short: Scaringi finishes the race winning only a scraped chin and sprained wrist.

The next day, Emmons, a true handyman, throws together a makeshift splint for his Grip, held together with hot pink tape for all to see. A scarred Scaringi admirably soldiers on, hauling sandbags and lights for the rest of the shoot without complaining once. He earns the nickname "Footrace" from his fellow crewmembers, but since he bought me a beer he'll always remain a Best Boy in my book.

Koinonia has reached the home stretch of its production schedule. Now Finnigan flies into editing while waiting to shoot a few flashback scenes scheduled for the summer. Maybe most of us will reunite at that point; even if we don't, we'll always have that time together, dreaming up our own little apocalypse in Greenwater.

LINK: Journey to Koinonia, Part One

LINK: Go see a movie today

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 4, 2012 >>>

1. Imagine our surprise when we found out that there's controversy at Meconi's Tacoma Pub & Eatery's Wednesday trivia night. Go ahead, imagine it. Our mouth was all "O," Home Alone-style. Yup, apparently host Rev. Colin wants to oust a team because the four dudes are too good. Dave Graham, John Kephart, Joe Taylor and another guy named Joe win Wednesday after Wednesday. Your team should show up at 8 p.m. and try to knock them off their barstools. Rumor is Cheryl Gorsuch's team of ladies is going to give it a shot.

2. Happy National Walking Day! It's the perfect day to kick off the Downtown On the Go Walk Tacoma series of guided walks. In celebration of the national holiday, three notable folks will lead today's walk. Held in Wright Park, the kick-off event includes a power walk led by fitness trainer Paige Van Der Vliet of Tacoma Living Fit, and a historical walk led by Melissa McGinnis AND Erik Hanberg of Metro Parks. The 1.5-mile walk will begin at noon on the south side of Wright Park by the lion sculptures. If you're into knowledge, check out the booths from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. No registration is necessary, so if you change your mind and hit the office candy box instead, you'll be the only one who feels bad.

3. Big brain Carlos Fuentes - an award-winning novelist, diplomat, activist and scholar - will chat up "magic realism" at 8 p.m. inside Schneebeck Concert Hall on the University of Puget Sound campus. Nope, magic realism has nothing to do with a bunny. According to hype, "Fuentes is known for deploying ‘magic realism' in his fiction to express the often indeterminate mixture of myth, fantasy, and reality in the political dynamics that shape salient historical issues such as the pursuit of Mexican national identity, Latin American revolutions, and the enduring mark left by Spanish imperialism on modern South America." Sometimes going with the hype quote is a must.

4. It's the first Wednesday of the month, which means Weekly Volcano hip-hop columnist Josh Rizeberg is hosting an open mic at Jazzbones at 8 p.m. Spoken word? Of course. Hip-hop? Serious. Acoustic? You bet. Comedy? Josh likes comedy and says it's cool too.

Last year, readers of this fine rag voted the Top of Tacoma Bar and Cafe the best bar in Tacoma. This was due in no small part to its well drink Wednesdays. $1.50 well drinks after 7 p.m. Are you kidding? That's, like, riding the train to funkytown for only eight bucks. Yes, please.

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound

LINK: Live music and DJs in the South Sound

LINK: South Sound happy hours

WHAT WE HAVE FOUND TODAY >>>

Pierce County Council: It voted in a countywide tax to pay for projects ranging from rebuilding levees to buying up flood-prone properties. (News Tribune)

It's Official: State health officials say whooping cough has reached epidemic levels in Washington. (News Tribune)

The Grand Cinema: The Tacoma independent film house starts its 15^th anniversary run with deals every day. (Weekly Volcano)

Dallas Area: It was hit by huge tornadoes. (CNN)

Presidential Election: Mitt Romney tightened his grip on the Republican nomination on Tuesday, and found himself in his first direct engagement with President Obama. (The New York Times)

Late Night On CBS: David Letterman and Craig Ferguson are still in. (Yahoo)

The Beatles - The Next Generation: James McCartney (Paul's son), Sean Lennon (John's son), Dhani Harrison (George's son) and Zak Starkey (Ringo Starr's son) are considering forming a band. (USA Today)

Mansome: Will Arnett and Jason Bateman offer amusing stories and observations about male bathroom secrets. (USA Today)

The Vanity Project Project: Listening to the Corey Feldman prog-rock album. (The AWL)

Cats Vs. Watermelon: It's a century old battle. (Buzzfeed)

You Knew It Was Coming: @FatBettyFrancis. (Twitter)

Only One More Month!

LEARN ABOUT TWO-WHEEL AWESOMENESS AND DRINK HARMON BREW >>>

Whether you have a bike gradually rusting in your garage or you cycle to work every day, the upcoming Green Drinks event is for you. It's an opportunity to learn about Tacoma's Bike Month and tip back some beer at The Hub while enjoying happy hour prices. Being green has never felt so good.

Green Drinks is an international event, but Tacoma's chapter is organized by volunteer Chrissy Cooley and meets on the first Thursday of every month.

Thursday, April 5, the focus will be on Bike Month happenings in Tacoma. Speakers Diane Wiatr, mobility coordinator for the City of Tacoma, and Kristina Walker, Downtown On the Go manager, will both talk about Bike Month events, cycling and active transportation in Tacoma.

"These ladies have put together a fantastic month (along with many others), and they will be talking for about 10 minutes, but then mostly there for good conversation afterward," says Cooley. 

While there are some greenies bound to show up each meeting, there is no regular, core group. Meetings are held at different locations and attendees can show up any time between 5:30 and 8 p.m.

"It is very casual, and the primary focus is to have a good time," says Cooley. "It ain't easy being green, and we can be a good group to lean on for support or ideas. These events are very simple and unstructured, but many people have found employment, made friends, developed new ideas, done deals and had moments of serendipity."

But you may wonder: Do I need to bike or walk to an event filled with people talking about ways to minimize my carbon footprint?

"The weather has a great deal to do with (who shows up on bikes)," says Cooley. "Most people are coming straight from work, so we get a lot of bus riders with the bikers. But never fear, we won't shun those who show up in an SUV."

To get onto the Green Drinks events emails: earthycooley@gmail.com

IT'S ABOUT ALL THREE THIS WEEK: >>>

Thing: Webcams

Place: Hound Hangout

Person: Kylie Markin

On their live: Webcams

The dogs are: Being dogs

They might be: Sniffing butts

Or: Drinking water

Or: Humping

Or: Scooting their butts on the ground

But most likely they're: Just playing

With: Kylie "Magnifico" Markin

A few months ago I found an iPhone webcam app called "Spy Cam."  I immediately became enthralled with the real-time action of various cities from all over the world.  (And no, pervs, they're not porn webcams.)

The Spy Cam app watches places such as a college computer labs and pet adoption agencies in America, ski lifts in Norway, ice skating rinks in Japan and busy intersections in Brazil. It really is quite addictive.

Tacoma's even made its small mark on the Spy Cams iPhone app.  Onlookers can stalk the main quad of the University of Washington in Tacoma, but that's about it. 

Well, that was about it ... until I found the live webcams at Hound Hangout.

The Hound Hangout cameras aren't on the aforementioned Spy Cams iPhone app, but instead located directly on their website at www.thehoundhangout.com

I had to know more about these dogs I had been watching and who in the heck these people were that were so happily playing with the dogs, so I contacted Kylie Markin at Hound Hangout.

Know as a "pack leader" or "dog wrangler" Hound Hangout employees like Markin out of sheer love for animals. A typical day consists of playing "chuck it" with a tennis ball, scratching furry bellies and making sure they don't "get too humpy," as Markin puts it.

As a loyal dog wrangler, Markin admits to never getting used to the smell of poop and to having two sets of clothes, which she says, "One set that I work in and one set that I have to change into right when I get home from work because of the smell."

Everybody loves watching dogs. You know you do. Markin even tells me that it's very common for people to stop along their St. Helen's location and peek through the garage to watch the dogs. 

"The dogs just go nuts when people stop and look through the garage," Markin tells me, but with the live webcams, "The owners can watch what their dogs are doing all day while they're gone."

Yes, the owners can watch all day long, but so can Steph DeRosa: A confessed webcam stalker. 

[Hound Hangout, 414 St. Helens Ave., Tacoma, 253.383.4264]