SATURDAY, DEC. 7 2013 >>>

1. It's freakin' cold outside, and it's better to admit that fact and find a way to enjoy the season than to stay home cowering behind the heater. Ice skating, with its low requirements in start-up costs and athletic prowess, may be the perfect way to beat the winter doldrums. It's charming and, in Tacoma, it comes with live music. Every Saturday night the Weekly Volcano turns on the amps to the Electric Salchow Stage at the Franciscan Polar Plaza ice rink. Up next is Singer-songwriter Rebekah Ann Curtis, who sings and writes her heart and soul through songs that reflect folk, blues and rock. Curtis showcases her voice next door at 7 p.m. and performs for skaters until 9 p.m.

2. Downtown Puyallup turns cranks the holiday factor to an 11 today. Festivities begin at 9:30 a.m. with the Holiday Market in Pioneer Park Pavilion, where you'll find a variety of artisan crafts and unique gifts, as well as holiday home decor and specialty food items. The Lighted Santa Parade begins at 5 - so-called because Santa got lit and wasn't able to drive his sleigh. OK, not really. He just wanted to a break from the elves and reindeer, and decided to hitch a ride on a fire truck instead. The parade culminates in the lighting of the community tree. 

3. Hello, holiday tradition! The Nutcracker ballet performance is a holiday forever classic. The Tacoma City Ballet does it up right and with a delightful twist. Did you know that there's a "prequel" to The Nutcracker called The Prequel or Tale of the Hard Nut? Celebrating its 30th performance season, the ballet company takes on The Nutcracker performance in its entirety, which includes the prequel. In short: prepare to be dazzled, delighted and enchanted at 3 p.m. in the Pantages Theater.

4. Whoooooooa man, we're tripping on some heavy stuff! What's that, dude? What are we on? Just a little Geist and the Sacred Ensemble, that's what. It's a band, man. And they're laying down their sound - think Gregorian chant meets mind-expanding electronic freakiness - tonight at the Aquarius Space Out. That's at the Java Jive, brother. 8 p.m. Oh yeah, and the band got some other cats with them in the van: The Low Hums outta Seattle, whose brand of catchy space-rock will fit right in (hey, they have a song called "Gongs and Bongs"!) and, rounding out this consciousness-altering show, Retrospecter. Maybe you knew them as Tacoma's The Sugar Beats, but they, like, reincarnated (whooooooa, again!). Anyhow, Retrospecter's kaleidoscope musings provide the third leg of what is bound to be a pretty trippy evening. 

5. So much has been said about the classic Tacoma punk band Girl Trouble that very little more needs to be said. For anyone not in the know, this is the most badass band still working in Tacoma. KP Kendall still performs shirtless. The band still fights the good fight against those pay-to-play scams that rob young, naïve bands. Girl Trouble edges closer to their anniversary, and so they are releasing a number of tributes to their boozy, rocking legacy. The band performs its annual Christmas show at 9 p.m. in The New Frontier Lounge with the Dignitaries and Trees & Timber. Read Rev. Adam McKinney's interview with Girl Trouble drummer Bon Von Wheelie in the Music & Culture section.

PLUS: Holiday Events Calendar

PLUS: South Sound Holiday Command Center

LINK: Saturday, Dec. 7 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area