Sure, there are spouses groups for Joint Base Lewis-McChord husbands and wives looking to integrate into the local community, make friends or learn more about how to navigate within the military world. There are resources galore, and yet sometimes spouses may want to connect and get together over a different topic than military resources. Spouses may simply want to get together and talk about shared interests - especially if those shared interests are something that maybe not everyone out there relates to.

For this exact reason, Monica Rice blazed a new trail and recently formed her own group - the JBLM Geeky/Nerdy Spouses, a Facebook group open to spouses of both genders so long as they identify as geeky and/or nerdy. After spending some time with the general spouse groups, she thought others out there might want to connect on all things geeky like she did.

"I'm still pretty new to the military lifestyle and haven't made many friends with spouses," says Rice. "Also, because of my passion in computers and programming, I don't have many lady friends with those same interests. I knew I couldn't have been the only woman with what I think are pretty niche hobbies, so I wanted to reach out while simultaneously forming a small network wherein all members could talk about their favorite passions without feeling like an oddity."

Read more...

The Tacoma Rainiers played host last week to hundreds of service men and women from throughout Washington during the team's Washington National Guard Night.

"The Tacoma Rainiers value and support what the Washington National Guard, along with all branches of the military, do for the residents of this great state," said Tacoma Rainiers Group Event Coordinator Chris Aubertin.  "The opportunity to provide the citizen-soldiers and airmen, along with their families, a fun, affordable experience at our ballpark is a small way of saying thanks." 

The 133rd Army National Guard Band had the special honor of performing the "National Anthem" and officially kicking off the event, which was held July 24 at Cheney Stadium.

"This isn't the first time the band has played on the field, but it was my first time," said Sgt. 1st Class Alton Huckaby, a member of the 133rd Army National Guard Band. "The experience is a little bit overwhelming at first.  Walking out onto home plate, you don't realize how the attention is literally all around you." 

"All the timing that goes into it for just two minutes is intense," said fellow band member Staff Sgt. Amy O'Shield. "This is one of our communities, so it's great to be out here representing, and it was very well received."

>>> A member of the Las Vegas 51s minor league baseball team gives a fist-bump to members of the 133^rd Army National Guard Band after they perform the "National Anthem" for Washington National Guard Night with the Tacoma Rainiers July 24. Photo credit: Gary Lott

The 133rd Army National Guard Band often plays the face of the Washington National Guard, with many opportunities to shake hands with people who don't get exposed to the military as much as other communities.

Read more...

Still incensed for Tatiana Maslany, this is Nerd Alert, the Weekly Volcano's recurring events calendar devoted to all things nerdy. I myself am a Star Wars fan, mathlete, and spelling bee champion of long standing, so trust me: I grok whereof I speak.

FRIDAY, AUG. 1

I admit it: I resisted the Guardians of the Galaxy bug as long as I could. Trisyllabic trees? Chris Pratt as a leading man named, of all things, "Star-Lord?" Space raccoons?! In spite of my lifelong devotion to space opera from Asimov's Foundation to Brian K. Vaughan's Saga, I found Guardians' teaser trailer silly and its action unpersuasive. Then the first screening was followed by a barrage of tweeted accolades. OK, well, fanboys get overexcited sometimes. (I myself was once temporarily duped by an advance crew screening into thinking Roland Emmerich's Godzilla was worth a flying frak. These things happen.) As I write this, though, major critics have begun weighing in, and RottenTomatoes.com has Guardians of the Galaxy at a staggering 100 percent positive. I can no longer maintain my skeptical stance. We appear to be looking at this summer's Avengers, a four-quadrant supernova that'll soon be part of our cultural mythos.

So here, then, is your Guardians backstory. Their first appearance (in January 1969) was in a clip-show comic, Marvel Super-Heroes, in which 31st-century "Vance Astro" and company fought an alien species alongside a chrono-ported Captain America. That team lasted through 1980, then was revived for a few months in the early '90s. They were followed by a new team, the one seen in the movie, which was compiled from existing minor characters in May of 2008. (The print Guardians add Adam Warlock and Phyla-Vell, aka Quasar.) Whether the movie hews closely to that modern comic storyline, which also features Cosmo the telepathic dog and Bug the Galactic Warrior, remains to be seen. We are sure that Thanos, a death-worshipping warlord first glimpsed in The Avengers, will turn up, as will a 1969 Guardian named Yondu Udonta. Both are fun to say while trying to keep a straight face.

If you knew none of those factoids five minutes ago, you're not alone. I had to look them up, and I read every issue of Entertainment Weekly cover to cover and keep half a toe in the comics scene as well. My overriding point is this: Marvel appears to have hit one out of the park yet again. Oh, but hey, DC! I'm sure your Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice will be, you know, a thing we can watch.

In two years. Way to go.

SATURDAY, AUG. 2

Following directly on the iPad-generated tail fins of Sharknado 2: The Second One, Syfy proudly (are we sure about that?) presents Sharktopus vs. Pteracuda Saturday at 9. This is not a stellar week for TV, folks. If, then, you're sitting around the crizznib looking for something to do, might I suggest rooting through your cable provider's movie rental offerings for a little feature called Snowpiercer? Yes, I'm referring to that South Korean sci-fi action flick, which you may not realize was shot almost entirely in English. Hell, its star is Chris Evans, better known as Vance Astro's super-patriotic pal. Uncertain how to market the film to Americans, mega-producer Harvey Weinstein settled on concurrent theatrical and pay-per-view distribution. Director Bong Joon-ho, best known here for his awesome (and eco-friendly!) monster movie The Host, has clearly been studying the collected works of Terry Gilliam. I describe Snowpiercer as Brazil meets Dredd with a side of bulgogi. A Facebook friend countered with "Jean-Pierre Jeunet meets The Matrix Reloaded with a special act-three rewrite by Damon Lindelof." That works, too, but paints an unflattering portrait the film doesn't deserve. It's fairer to say it's bananas in the best possible way. Like Innerspace or Tampopo, it's so inventively bonkers it may be wedged in my noggin for years to come. Watch for blissfully over-the-top performances from Tilda Swinton and Sex Bob-Omb percussionist Alison Pill. It's worth an eight-buck rental, I can promise you that.

I'm writing this on the eve of my wife Amanda Stevens' 30-mumbleth birthday. Oncoming 40s be damned, she's still the coolest geek grrl I ever met, so we'll be spending part of it in Seattle for The Book of Mormon. Hasa diga eebowai, honey! That means "happy birthday," right?

Until next week, may the Force be with you, may the odds be ever in your favor, and may your Groot costume go over huge at Comic-Con 2015.

GRAB A COFFEE POT AND READ THE MORNING REPORT FOR 7.29.14 >>>

Israel's military pounded targets in the Gaza Strip after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his country should prepare for a long conflict in the Palestinian enclave. 

Israel debuted a locally developed micro robot in its ongoing onslaught against the labyrinth of tunnels and concealed shafts supporting subterranean arms depots, command posts and cross-border attacks from Gaza.

Obama administration accused Russia of conducting tests in violation of a 1987 nuclear missile treaty, calling the breach "a very serious matter" and going public with allegations that have simmered for some time.

Interviews with American officials, diplomats in Kiev, and Russian military analysts paint a picture of a steady and ongoing flow of weapons from Russia into Ukraine.

Afghanistandstill: A specially trained and equipped Afghan Army quick reaction force is in danger of having its vehicles fall into disrepair, and its soldiers miss out on training due to an inability to supply much-need spare parts and training.

Caliphate in Iraq and Syria: It's richer, better armed, more durable - and dangerous - than ever before.

Dreaded national-security threat scenarios: A panel of experts discussed the specter of terrorists armed with nuclear, biological, chemical or other weapons of mass destruction during a panel discussion at the Aspen Security Forum.

House, Senate committee reaches compromise to reform the VA - a $17 billion deal sewn together from bills passed by both chambers.

Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) said a new Government Accountability Office report shows that thousands of Department of Defense employees and contractors owe the government more than $700 million in taxes.

In addition to running mobilization sites, First U.S. Army has been given the mission of focusing on pre-mobilization training of the National Guard and Army Reserve.

Gen. Daniel B. Allyn has been confirmed by the U.S. Senate as the next vice chief of staff of the Army.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) announced the Senate would vote on the confirmation of Robert McDonald to be Veterans Affairs Secretary at 2:45 p.m. today.

The surprise disclosure of a wiring flaw on the Air Force's new KC-46A refueling tanker made by Boeing Co. may not be the end of the program's development challenges.

Thank you for your service: How one company sues soldiers worldwide.

Servicemembers are increasingly reporting delays associated with the shipment of their cars between stateside and overseas.

Schools known for their flexible learning options are by far the most popular among both active-duty servicemembers using tuition assistance and veterans and their dependents using the Post-9/11 GI Bill, government data show.

Veteran Rock City: Kiss hired two military vets to work as roadies for their 2014 tour.

Two new mysterious giant holes found in Siberia, scientists puzzled.

A lot of work went into the incredible title sequence.

Insane boy leaps off a five-story building into a pool several feet away.

Karen O has released the first music video for a song off her solo album.

Watch the trailer for Horns, in which Daniel Radcliffe plays a man who wakes up and finds horns growing from his head.

Here's a great video about the music scene in Athens, Ga.

NPR has launched a new app

Here's a roundup of The Simpsons' best chalkboard gags.

Finally: Dunkin Donuts' Shark Week donut.

Hobbits!

LINK: Original photo by 1st Lt. Joseph Riedel, 2nd Battalion, 44th Air Defense Artillery Regiment

TUESDAY, JULY 29 2014 >>>

1. Local Southern rockers SweetKiss Momma has been asked by their European press agency and tour company Teenage Head Music to produce a video for the song "Dirty Uncle Deezer." The band grabbed Tacoma super videographer Kris Crews and will shoot the video at 8 p.m. in The New Frontier Lounge. Of course, concert videos are cooler with a crowd laughing, cheering and drinking. If laughing, cheering and drinking isn't enticing enough, SweetKiss Momma will be raffling off two spots on their guest list to Friday's Watershed Festival, a show at the Gorge that sold out in 20 minutes. Here is the Facebook event for tonight's video party.

2. A sensorial stunner that transcends space and time, Manakamana is a ride that showcases the awesome grandeur of nature and the contradictions of contemporary Nepalese life. Via cable car, the film takes us up and down one of the vast valleys of Trisuli in the Gorkha district of Nepal, where the famous Manakamana Temple attracts pilgrims and tourists from the world over. These rides unfold in real-time, revealing a subtle interplay among passengers and landscape ... at 1:35 and 6:40 p.m. in The Grand Cinema.

3. Sinatra-esque crooner Chris Anderson will take to the outdoors, hitting all the notes and making the ladies swoon in the process as part of Gig Harbor's Summer Sounds series from 7-8:30 p.m. at Skansie Brothers Park. Anderson has repeatedly proven to offer a throwback good time.

4. Stephen Steinbrink's music is pristinely recorded, gorgeously melancholy folk-pop. Immaculate harmonies and chiming guitars bridge the gaps between Beatles-esque pop, CSNY's tuneful folk and the Shins' serenely modern drift. There's a stately reserve to the music of Stephen Steinbrink that lends it a classic feeling, and the feeling of an instant classic. Catch him with Whales Wailing and Johanna Warren at 8 p.m. in Northern.

5. Comrades could just as easily be called adventurers as opposed to a band. Since forming in 2009, the trio - with married couple Joe and Laura McElroy at their core - have traversed North America countless times, exploring many off the beaten path locales and playing their unique brand of mostly instrumental music for anyone willing to listen, including an all-ages 8 p.m. show at Le Voyeur.

LINK: Tuesday, July 29 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area

GRAB A CUP AND READ THE MORNING REPORT FOR 7.30.14 >>>

Protective Edge vs. Cast Lead at Day 22: Fourfold hike in Israelis fatalities, slight drop in Palestinians killed, huge surge in Gaza-launched rockets, IDF artillery fire. ...

Congressional Republicans want to force Democrats into voting on a stand-alone measure to send $225 million in emergency funds to Israel for its Iron Dome missile defense system.

President Barack Obama escalated U.S. sanctions against Russia but dismissed suggestions the growing chill marked the start of a new Cold War. 

The Pentagon: Russia was supplying Ukraine air defense systems similar to the one that brought down Malaysian Airlines Flight 17. 

Veterans bill: A $17 billion bill to revamp the Veterans Affairs Department appears likely to clear both the House and Senate this week.

U.S. Pacific Command is hosting personnel from 31 nations as part of the proliferation security initiative Exercise Fortune Guard.

PACOM chief: U.S. not worried about Chinese intel ship off Hawaiian coast.

Aloha: Japan is practicing storming beaches with the U.S. at the world's largest maritime exercises.

A bitterly divided House panel voted to condemn Obama for the swap of five Taliban leaders for Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl.

Next Week: Investigators will look into if Bergdahl deserted his Army post in 2009.

Paying Ransom: Kidnapping Europeans for ransom has become a global business for Al Qaeda, bankrolling its operations across the globe.

In Iraq's Mosul, resistance rises from the rubble of destroyed shrines.

A longtime defense analyst and critic of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program says taxpayers next year will pay between $148 million and $337 million per jet, depending on the model.

Army Maritime Aviation: It's real.

Jesse Ventura vs. Chris Kyle: The former WWE wrestler got $1.8 million after he convinced a jury that Navy SEAL Kyle defamed him in American Sniper.

Sturm, Ruger & Co., Inc. just unveiled its new LC9s pistol, a striker-fired version of its compact, LC9 9mm pistol.

How Game of Thrones will predict the next bin Laden.

Don't watch this if you're going to freak out about your life choices.

How a desert cat uses its super ears to hunt birds in mid-flight.

Watch Beck's new music video.

Larry King interviewed "Weird Al" Yankovic.

London Batman is pretty entertaining.

Hmmmm, will this last?

LINK: Original photo by Tech. Sgt. Matt Hecht

WEDNESDAY, JULY 30 2014 >>>

1. There are times when our music picks write themselves, which is helpful as some of us drink. This is one of those welcome moments, because Jazzbones is having one stunner of a week. It began with crooners Color Me Badd Saturday - hell, yes, they still wanna sex you up! - followed Sunday by Georgia rapper Warren Anderson Mathis, better known as Bubba Sparxxx. Save room on your musical plate, though, for Igor & The Red Elvises, a mind-blowing rockabilly combo whose members hail from former Soviet states (or, in one case, the Minnesota gulag) but met in California, with Psycho 78 at 8 p.m.

2. The Swiss hosts Military Appreciation Day, a.k.a. Warrior Wednesday, a fundraiser for Pat Tillman Foundation (Official) with portions of every Jack Daniels sale going to charity. The downtown Tacoma restaurant will have $5 drink and food specials for those with military ID.

3. The Puget Sound Partnership's Science Panel will meet from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Commencement Bay conference room at the Center for Urban Waters. The panel includes some of the top scientists in the Northwest and advises the Partnership's efforts to develop a science-based comprehensive plan to restore Puget Sound. These meetings are open to the public and all are welcome to address questions or provide comment about the regional effort to restore and protect Puget Sound. We imagine the whole ordeal is like the montage scene in a Hollywood movie, in which a schlubby male is transformed into a veritable Renaissance man as the clock ticks from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. You arrive dehydrated from the night before and leave looking for a "green" Chardonnay and someone to discuss Xenobiotics in the Urban Water Cycle.

4. Thurston County Fair starts at 10 a.m. and provides five days of activities including musical entertainment, home arts demonstrations, 4-H and FFA events, rides for kids of all ages, and the always-fabulous fair food. A little history: The first Thurston County Fair was in 1871 and was located where the present day 4th Ave Tavern is. The event was a way to support agriculture and immigration in Thurston County. The fair has grown over the past 130 years and has jumped from location to location, including the now Tumwater Safeway and Lacey Post Office, before settling in to the present day fairgrounds in 1958. Bonus: The fabulous Artesian Rumble Arkestra headlines the grand opening ceremony at 5 p.m. tonight.

5. A couple of beer tastings are going down tonight. The Puyallup River Alehouse hosts Schooner Exact with beer, giveaways and prizes from 6-9 p.m. Jhon Gilroy with specialty beer importers Merchant du Vin will hang at 99 Bottles from 5-7 p.m. Pick his brain, drink his beers and enjoy a $2 happy hour.

LINK: Wednesday, July 30 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area

Tacoma has a poet laureate!

Smiraldo, Lucas, is our wordsmith's name.

His Laureate Listening Project-what of it?

It seeks to bring our local verse acclaim.

Smiraldo gathers verse from Northwest pens,

Each ode about a neighborhood locale.

We'll see Tacoma through poetic lens;

A "sense of place" is Lucas' rationale.

Each poem will be read in spoken word,

Then posted to a Google map online.

Thus searchable, the poem may be heard

Accompanied by music. How divine!

To learn the many other things we'll get,

Consult VanillaSoul@clear.net.

GRAB A COFFEE POT AND READ THE MORNING REPORT FOR 7.31.14 >>>

The House overwhelmingly approved a landmark bill to help veterans avoid long waits for health care that have plagued the Veterans Affairs Department for years.

The European Union formally adopted sanctions today curbing arms sales to Russia and cutting off financing for targeted banks over Moscow's support for rebels in Ukraine.

Report: Colin Powell, others kept in dark about CIA techniques after 9/11.

To balance readiness today and modernization tomorrow, the Air Force's fiscal 2015 budget request is shrinking like today's defense budget thanks to Congress's own priorities and the approaching threat of sequestration in 2016.

The Secretary of the Air Force stood by her department's proposal to retire the A-10 fleet, arguing the United States has plenty of replacements available should the nation land in an armed conflict.

NATO: Number of Russian troops on Ukraine border rising.

Democratic senators joined their Republican colleagues in calling for some U.S. military aid to Ukraine after receiving a closed-door briefing from senior Obama administration officials.

Ukraine said it had suspended offensive operations in its military campaign in east Ukraine to help international experts reach the downed Malaysian airliner's crash site but separatists were continuing to attack its positions.

Iron Dome: The White House said it "strongly opposes" a Republican-crafted emergency spending bill, in part because it contains no funds for an Israeli missile defense system.

The United Nations in Gaza is struggling to withstand a flood of almost a quarter of a million refugees into shelters that have repeatedly come under Israeli fire. 

Two advocacy groups are suing the Veterans Affairs Department for what they say are the department's discriminatory practices regarding compensation claims related to service-connected sexual assault.

Despite ongoing restrictions on the fleet of F-35 Joint Strike Fighters, the U.S. Air Force's top general warned against being "alarmist" when discussing the fifth-generation jet's engine.

Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, who was released in a prisoner swap with the Taliban two months ago, will meet next week with Army Maj. Gen. Kenneth Dahl who is investigating the circumstances of his capture in Afghanistan.

Air Force: Stowaway triggers security review.

LCS alternative: For those of you with July 31 marked on your calendars as a red-letter day in the U.S. Navy's Small Surface Combatant program - hold that thought.

Servicemembers can soon expect faster forwarding times on mail sent through the U.S. Postal Service to APO addresses after moving.

11 of the most beautiful drone videos shot by you.

Sometimes you want a room with a view. Sometimes you want a bunker that's walled-off to the world. Why not have both?

Here's a funny compilation of terrible special effects in big-budget movies.

GQ ranks the best albums of this century.

This list from i09 rounds up the greatest sci-fi comedies.

Don't expect a Led Zeppelin reunion anytime soon.

Must watch: Cocoa farmers trying chocolate for the first time.

Oh, great. Who's going to clean up this mess?

LINK: Original photo by Spc. Lisa Vines, 382nd Public Affairs Detachment

THURSDAY, JULY 31 2014 >>>

1. You know who looks great for her age? Washington. Yeah, I said it: Washington. For 125; are you kidding me? This state doesn't look a day over 80! At 6 p.m., three experts in what it means to be a Washingtonian musician will come together for a brisk, metaphorical slide show at the State Capital Museum Coach House. Lois Maffeo is an Olympia musician and writer who's been a theater manager for the Olympia Film Society and served on the Olympia Arts Council. She'll be joined by Calvin Johnson, who moved on from adolescent volunteer work at KAOS-FM to founding media outlet K Records in 1982, and by Sub Pop co-founder Bruce Pavitt. Read Christian Carvajal's full feature on the 25 Years of Music in Washington lecture in the Music and Culture section.

2. Three beer-tasting events in the South Sound tonight. The pFriem Family Brewers out of Hood River, Ore., celebrate their first anniversary with kegs of Rye Lager, Dunkel and their IPA at Pint Defiance from 5-7 p.m. Per Pint Defiance, expect a bitchin' raffle. The Topside Bar & Grill in Steilacoom hosts Alaskan Brewing Co. beginning at 6 p.m. Expect four Alaskan beers on tap including Icy Bay IPA, a food pairing, giveaways and prizes until 9 p.m. The Puyallup River Alehouse is going old school, pouring Rainier, Olympia and Pabst Blue Ribbon for $2.50 each. The downtown Puyallup's gathering spot will host its first Cornhole competition during the Throwback Thursday from 6-9 p.m. 

The Garden-Raided Bounty farm, or GRuB, hosts a carnival from 6-9 p.m. featuring games, vaudeville entertainers, raffles, min-auction, food vendors, local artisans dunk tank and more.

3. Lakewold Gardens, the 10-acre estate with its carefully maintained plantings, will host the some of the Northwest's finest classical musicians when the Second City Chamber Series presents "Berlin and Brazil in Tacoma" (Lakewood?), featuring pianist Jairo Geronymo performing works from his native Brazil and new home Germany with violinist Svend Ronning and cellist Richard Treat at 7:30 p.m.

8. Barleywine Revue is just awesome. The band writes and performs contemporary, relevant bluegrass and Americana music while paying homage to the traditions that have come in generations before ... think Bill Monroe meets Bill Withers. Oh man, that's fresh! Catch the band at 8 p.m. in The Swiss Restaurant & Pub.

LINK: Thursday, July 31 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area