THURSDAY, JUNE 26 2014 >>>

1. Like the residents of Yelm, Washington, United States of America, we're super-psyched for the big and annual "Yelm Prairie Days Parade" which strolls down Yelm Avenue at 7 p.m. and has all the great parade stuff, marching bands, drill teams, fire trucks, old cars, various community organizations, girls wearing white gloves, Joint Base Lewis-McChord represent, farm animals, open-topped cars with like "Miss Yelm" and "Jr. Miss Yelm" and stuff like that, marching-band people carrying bigass drums and horns and whatever, and, of course, nutty guys with the tiny cars The parade kicks off Yelm Prairie Days, which runs through the weekend at Yelm City Park.

2. When the weather starts to turn warm, there's nothing we love more than to spend a night with a great book and spicy stir-fried fiddleheads with chile paste, sesame oil and walnuts. OK, maybe we also enjoy a little company, but where to find someone with the same weaknesses? Consider heading to The Commons at Fertile Ground at 6 p.m. for the Olympia Food Co-op's new Read and Eat book and potluck club. This week, the book they will discuss is Farm City: The Education of an Urban Farmer, Novella Carpenter's story of her move to an Oakland, Calif., neighborhood plagued by gang violence and her decision, despite the circumstances, to dive headfirst into urban farming.

3. The Copper Door in Tacoma's Stadium District hosts Double Mountain Brewer's Night featuring the release of the Hood River brewery's Cluster Single-Hop IPA with pineapple and orange flavors, dewy herbal character and a lovely floral note at the top. Also expect the Homestead, Rusty Zipper and free swag beginning at 6 p.m.

4. Tacoma poet Luke Smiraldo presents another Live at the Auricle performance, this time experimenting with word and sound and a loop machine at 7 p.m. in the B Sharp Coffee House. Smiraldo will create an instant collaboration of accapella voice, song and rhythm. Drunken Telegraph winner and Moth second place finisher Jim Kopriva will anchor the second set with a story linked to the loop theme.

5. Hailing from The Rose City, Landon Wordswell combines enthusiasm with sharp craft and delivery on the microphone. Billed as Wordswell's "Return To Olympia," and joined by his homie Mo Stafa, they picked Jezebels Bar and Grill for their return, with a flock of local openers including Dr. Roks, Syncopated Knock, Mistervits, MC Swamptiger, Soulless Kings and Krucial Bars at 8:30 p.m.

LINK: Thursday, June 26 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area