TACOMA 2012 STATE OF THE CITY >>>

Last night at Go Local's second annual Shift Happens event Tacoma Mayor Marilyn Strickland delivered her 2012 State of the City Address. This year's address was less of a pep rally than last year's State of the City Address, and instead was calm, positive and confident.

Last year Mayor Strickland spoke like an entrepreneur trying to sell investors on her product. This year Strickland sounded more like a CEO updating her shareholders on a year of growth while providing positive projections for the future.

Strickland's address began by recapping the highlights of 2011.

"Last year, our theme for the State of the City address was ‘finishing what we started'," the Mayor recalled. "From family recreation to commerce and transportation, we saw the completion of many great projects."

Leading with Cheney Stadium, the opening of IGA's Tacoma City Grocer, and the Wright Park Sprayground, Strickland highlighted eight finished projects that she identified as improving the quality of life throughout Tacoma.

After lauding successful projects Strickland shifted attention to small business culture, highlighting expansions, success stories and reasons for optimism moving forward.

"We saw 2,744 new businesses get licensed in 2011 - 500 more new businesses than in 2010," Strickland pointed out.

Looking forward to the scheduled opening of the LeMay Museum, a McMenamins location, and the completion of Sound Transit's D-to-M Street project, Strickland beamed while describing the looming completions of several major projects in 2012.

Mayor Strickland also highlighted bright spots within Tacoma's public education system and praised local organizations like Tacoma 360, the Foundation for Tacoma Schools and the Mayor's Education Task Force. Strickland also touted the award-winning work being done at Lincoln High School.

"All kinds of positive news continues to pour out of Lincoln High School, where they recently won a Golden Apple Award from KCTS-9 for the Lincoln Center," Strickland reminded the crowd.

Strickland ended her speech by citing author Thomas Friedman. Friedman recently challenged Americans to realize that the era of average must be replaced by an era of above and beyond. Friedman refers to this beyond as a person's, organization's or business' "extra."

"The business world is overflowing with products and services and designs and marketing campaigns that are adequate," explained Strickland. "The real challenge - and the huge opportunity - is to turn something adequate into something amazing."

"It's just not good enough to be pretty good at everything," Strickland continued. "The most successful companies, products and brands have figured out how to become the most of something.

"That is, to find and embrace their ‘extra'."

Strickland concluded her State of the City address with a challenge to everyone in the room.

"From the private sector, to the non-profit world, to the public sector," Strickland said, "we must ask ourselves what is our extra?"

LINK: Tacoma Komo reviewed last night's State of the City Address by Mayor Strickland.

LINK: Exit 133 also reviewed last night's State of the City Address by Mayor Strickland.

LINK: FeedTacoma's fantastic Kevin Freitas posted audio of Mayor Strickland's State of the City address here.

LINK: Before any of this, The News Tribune previewed Mayor Strickland's State of the City address.

THURSDAY, JAN. 26, 2012 >>>

1. Tacoma Community College's Artist & Lecture series continues Thursday with Robert Manning, PhD - billed in pre-event hype as a research professor and founding director of the Center for Consumer Financial Services, and "a specialist in the deregulation of household debt, consumer finance, economic development, immigration and globalization." Manning will be in Tacoma at TCC to talk about all of this, and likely his book, Credit Card Nation: America's Dangerous Addiction to Credit. Best of all: it's free and open to the public. Considering how much you put on the Discover Card during the holidays, free events are a good thing.

2. Dukesbay Productions presents its first monthly staged reading as part of the 2012 Play Reading Series. The series is made up of the work of Puget Sound-area playwrights, with tonight's focusing on the work of Roger Iverson. The action goes down at Trinity Presbyterian Church Fellowship hall and it's free.

3. The Black Swans, in Olympia tonight for a show at the Guest House, is not the type of band that lifts you up with bouncy, hopeful energy. The Black Swans don't dabble in sunshine pop or carefree smiles without caveats. What the Black Swans do deal in - led by the singer Jerry Decicca - is lonesome and morose reality, achieving a package weighted with emotion and sparse comfort. It's hipster country with a healthy splash of despair, and that's something today's tastemakers have been able to get behind. Pitchfork gave the Black Swans' latest record, Don't Blame the Stars, a solid 7.5, while Paste weighed in on the LP with an 8.4. But beyond any of these contemporary accolades, what makes the Black Swans worth your attention is the band's diligence in crating songs that often border on the morose, while managing to avoid coming off like yet another act tugging at heartstrings simply for career gain.

4. Think you were bummed when Dave Chappelle decided he didn't want to do his hilarious-ass TV show anymore? Think you cried for days? Think you wondered what to do with your "I'm Rick James, bitch!" coffee mug? Think how comedian, writer and Chappelle's Show co-creator Neal Brennan felt. You can reminisce together tonight at the Tacoma Comedy Club when Brennan brings his stand-up act to town. Or you could just laugh at Brennan's jokes. Either way. Brennan will be at the Tacoma Comedy Club all weekend.

5. Get down with country dance lessons tonight at Big Whisky Saloon in downtown Tacoma. Basic lessons kick off at 7:30 p.m., with intermediate and advanced lessons at 8:15 p.m.

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound

LINK: Live music and DJs tonight