THE PERFECT 9/11 >>>

When I woke up last Saturday, Facebook was ablaze with remembrances of Sept. 11 and debates about the advisability of constructing an interfaith community center, including a Muslim prayer room, two blocks from Ground Zero.  I don't mind telling you I cried many times over what happened that awful morning, the last time in late December 2001. My mom and I went from Ground Zero to Rockefeller Center.  Flags waved, Arab immigrants sold falafel to rich white businessmen, and defiant children ice skated in the middle of an historic blizzard.  Loudspeakers promised, "War is over, if you want it."  So that's what was on my mind this particular morning, 9/11/2010, as I prepared a simple Thai noodle dish to share at the Table for Olympia community potluck.  Gray skies threatened Olympia's Fifth Avenue, and I wasn't in the mood for conviviality.

We arrived at 4 sharp, disappointed to find only a long, empty table.  A handful of information booths were set up curbside by volunteer organizations like Stand Up for Kids (standupforkids.org), a group that helps the hundreds of homeless and street kids in Olympia get on with their lives.  (This year's Table for Olympia was sponsored by the Volunteer Center and Olympia Action Network.)  A few such kids and homeless adults hovered nearby, waiting for a much-needed meal; but the street looked mostly desolate. Clearly, this event would be delayed until 4 p.m. Olympia Standard Time.

Suddenly, less than an hour later, as the skies cleared beautifully and the temperature touched 70 degrees, there were hundreds of us. Dishes were uncovered, paper plates distributed, and the mingling began. My friend Ben's vegetarian beans were an instant hit, followed quickly by my girlfriend's cucumber salad. Vegans lunged in like Space Invaders. Carnivores formed their own school of 3-D piranha, descending ravenously on a baking dish laden with roast pork, scouring it clean within minutes. I ate till I felt as if I'd swallowed a naked singularity. Waves of people showed up, far too many to count, each with a new buffet of homemade favorites. I gave up. Adam Richman couldn't manage four hours of this bounty. Kobayashi would throw in the towel. But what satisfied most wasn't glutting my friends and myself, it was watching those bedraggled teens and street people approach hesitantly, polite but famished, and eat till they were smiling and full. We were one big happy community, just as event organizers assured us we would be. Mathias Eichler, who instituted Table for Olympia last year and served as this year's media consultant, smiled proudly near the head of the table. It didn't feel like 9/11. It felt like Thanksgiving.

Obviously there should be an annual Day of Remembrance for what happened nine years ago, but it'd be a mistake to devote each and every 9/11 to ruminating over lives lost, the grief we shared, and where we were at 8:46 Eastern Time that morning. Table for Olympia represents the perfect commemoration, as the true strength of our nation isn't our ability to build somber memorial gardens or a matching pair of office skyscrapers - it's our unity, which we construct one community at a time.

WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 1, 2010 >>>

1. What does Zines on Toast actually mean? No clue. That's one of the ways they get you. By "they" we mean, Northern; and by "get you," we mean lure you to their space at 7 p.m. for one of the best events of the week - the Zines on Toast Tour. Portland's Alex Wrekk (of Brainscan and Stolen Sharpie Revolution) has rounded up "zinesters" (you can't be cool without the lingo) from the UK and put them all on the road. Pure brilliance.

2. Ron Desmett has been working with glass for over three decades. His use of hollowed out walnut trees as glass molds allows him to "infuse nature that has lost its life with life anew." Desmett is in the Musuem of Glass' Hot Shop from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. as part of the Visiting Artists series.

3. The Grand Cinema, Old Milwaukee Cafe, and Pierce County AIDS Foundation invite you to a free screening of the HBO Film Life Support, based on the true story of AIDS activist Andrea Williams at 6:30 p.m. inside The Grand Cinema. A dessert reception provided by Old Milwaukee Cafe will follow the screening.

4. With popular culture more youth-obsessed than ever, promising talents like The Makeup Monsters' Shayne Weeks and Isaac Solverson seem poised for great things - provided they aren't squashed by the weight of peoples' Great Expectations. Check them out at 8 p.m. with Takhoma, Motorbikes and Trevor Dickson inside the Den Fulcrum Gallery. 

5. Sweatshop Union, Pigeon Hole, General Wojack, Josh Rizeberg, Whhikid Matticuless tell it like it is at 9 p.m. inside Hell's Kitchen.

LINK: More arts and entertainment ideas in the South Sound

TUESDAY, AUG. 31, 2010 >>>

1. Chuck Sandru and 41 Miles perform at 3:30 and 5 p.m., respectively, at the 6th Avenue Farmers Market at Sixth Avenue and North Pine Street.

2. Spend some quality time walking through the Harbor History Museum's permanent exhibit that showcases the rich, unique heritage of the Gig Harbor Peninsula through artifacts, photos, personal stories and hands-on interactives from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

3. Join the Pierce County AIDS Foundation for an AIDS Walk happy hour event from 5 to 7 p.m. at Doyle's Public House. A portion of the proceeds from drink specials will be donated to the Pierce County AIDS Walk. You will have the chance to win Sounders tickets and an autographed Sounders FC ball. Dining Out for Life discount cards will be welcome all night.

4. Chalet Bowl in the Proctor District hosts $2 Tuesday where you can bowl for $2 per person per game with a $2 shoe rental and $2.25 Rolling Rocks.

5. They Rise We Die, Levator and Brotherhood Of The Black Squirrel play a 9 p.m. show at Bob's Java Jive.

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound

YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE BLINDFOLDED FOR THIS ONE >>>

Unlicensed radio broadcasts, popularly referred to as pirate radio, come and go by necessity. Stations surface only to disappear without notice, generally because operators get information that the authorities are closing in or the Federal Communications Commission has physically pulled the plug and seized their equipment. Somehow, though, Free Radio Olympia, an Olympia signal, has managed to remain a part of the landscape on and off since 2002, thanks to loyal listeners, frequency changes, benefit shows and weekly rag cover stories written by blindfolded writers.

Another benefit concert for Free Radio Olympia will be held tonight behind the Olympia Co-Op at 1426 Bowman Ave. Titled Fro-Fro-A-Go-Go, the hip-hop/rap show will feature Jahla, Dan Fajans, Junkyard Gang, Free Whiskey, Hollywood Kill Krew, Double B and La Swagga. $3-$5 donation is requested. The event begins at 8 p.m. with food, beverages and a merchandise table. A The first of the live music will hit the stage at 8:30 p.m., and according to a text, it will be "f'ing sick."

FRIDAY, JULY 30, 2010 >>>

1. Tacoma is often described as a city full of underdog freaks. If this is the case (and there does seem to be some truth to it), Tacoma will eat up the Hellzapoppin Sideshow Review, set to infest Hell's Kitchen with more bearded women, human pincushions and oddities than normal beginning at 8 p.m. Having awed and weirded-out audiences around the world, including on the Van's Warped Tour and Ozzfest, the traveling misfit hellions behind the Hellzapoppin Sideshow Review know a thing or two about capturing your attention. Bizarreness sells, and it's wildly entertaining.

2. The Here and Now show at Fulcrum Gallery from noon to 6 p.m. explores the parallels between young artists and professionally showing established artists. Read Alec Clayton's review of the show here.

3. The Olalla Community Club will host a fundraiser for this year's Olalla Bluegrass (& beyond) Festival at 7:30 p.m. featuring music by The Blackberry Bushes String Band and Asthmatic Kitty recording artist Shannon Stephens.

4. Chances are you've got a couple dumb friends. It's the law of averages. Well, Hamlet was no different; Rosencrantz and Guildenstern may not have been the sharpest, but they were his buddies - even obliviously escorting him to banishment. The Outfit Theatre Project stages Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead at 8 p.m. inside the Lakewood Playhouse. Read Joe Izenman's review of the show here.

5. A fundraiser for the Underground Derby League, an all female roller derby league, featuring R&B funk band Bump Kitchen as well as raffles, drawings, merchandise and information about the Underground Derby League will be held at 9 p.m. inside the 4^th Ave Tavern in Olympia.

LINK: New movies open today

LINK: Concert go on sale today

CRESCENT MOON PUTS THE "FUN" INTO FUNDRAISER >>>

Think pagans sacrifice other humans? That they only practice wild orgies and dark magic? Misconceptions like these are reason enough to attend today's fundraiser for the Central Puget Sound Pagan Pride Day at Crescent Moon Gifts on Sixth Avenue. Their mission is not to "steal your soul" but to inform the public about Neo-pagan beliefs and point out similarities between their religion and others. Drop by and ask questions. No question - even, "So, do you wear a pointy hat?" - is inappropriate. Also, participants who purchase a $5 "yummy" dessert will receive a free divination reading, which is nice.

Dessert & Divination Fundraiser

Sunday, July 18, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., $5
Crescent Moon Gifts, 2712 Sixth Ave., Tacoma
253.572.8339

GOOD TIMES >>>

Held every year in mid July, The Tacoma Old Town Music Festival - formerly the Old Town Blues Festival - crams around 20 blues-ish bands into a full day of wall-to-wall music. It kicked off yesterday morning with BluesBerry pancake breakfast featuring music by Mark DuFresne with Annieville Blues, featured surprise sets from Al Earick, Billy Stoops, Mark Riley, and Billy Farmer in the afternoon, and ended with interesting dance moves in front of the New Blues Brothers Band inside the Slavonian Hall.

If you didn't get a chance to drop dollars into the pink boots - money earmarked for the benefiting Breast Cancer Resource Center - please do so right here. Yes, organizers Ted Brown and Mike Mitchell strive hard to present a kickass blues show, but they'd give it all up if it meant they could generate more money in a different fashion for the Breast Cancer Resource Center, an organization they truly believe in.

LINK: More photos in our Photo Hot Spot

SUNDAY, JULY 11, 2010 >>>

1. The Sixth Avenue bonanza known as the Art on the Ave festival returns to Tacoma from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., bringing all the corn on a stick, face painting and Solar Richard sightings that come with it. Yes, Sixth Avenue traffic will have to find an alternate route Sunday afternoon as the good times will be rolling all day. Of special note are the outdoor music stages at Jazzbones, O'Malley's Irish Pub and SAX, which will host Ben Union, Ten Miles of Bad Road, Mighty High, Ryan Purcell and The Last Round and the always-entertaining Vicci Martinez, among other notables. Also, look out for the Save our Sonics guy.

2. Properly speaking, Harlequin Productions' Sixties Kicks isn't musical theater, it's a concert. Five talented young people backed by a killer five-piece rock band sing 37 hits of the 1960s hitting the stag eat 2 p.m. Read the full review here.

3. Uncle Sam's American Bar & Grill in Spanaway hosts the Blues Fest 2010 Cancer Benefit beginning at 2 p.m. with Menace, Careless Hunters, Cory Wilds, Jerry Miller, Shelly Ely, Sour Owl, SweetKiss Momma, and an All-Star Jam with proceeds benefiting The American Cancer Society.

4. Meet Museum of Glass Visiting Artists Marvin Oliver and Richard Royal to learn more about their art and careers during a conversation and slide presentation from 2-3 p.m.

5. The Tacoma Cult Film Club gathers at 7 p.m. inside the Acme Grub Cage to watch films centered on the theme, "Just Say No."

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound

SATURDAY, JULY 10, 2010 >>>

1. The Evergreen State College's Tacoma campus the annual Tacoma Treasures event goes down from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., offering an impressive collection of gently used toys, household items, clothing and more for cheap purchase and allowing you the opportunity to support Evergreen Tacoma and its student scholarship fund. It's a win-win, especially if you score something cool like a partially deflated Pogo ball.

2. From annoying ailments, such as headaches and sinusitis, to the major killers, heart disease and cancer - nature's oldest medicine not only cures, but often prevents such sufferings. And what is that medicine? Food. Kathryn Parslow's book Surviving the American High-Tech Diet offers scientifically proven answers to America's health crisis. She'll sign her book from 1-3 p.m. at the Commencement Bay Coffee Co. in Tacoma.

3. An art house for the young, the lowbrow, even the highbrow, and the in between - artists and patrons. Hasn't Tacoma tried this before? Indeed, it has, and although most previous efforts are now gone, they still hold an important place in Tacoma's collective artistic history. That's exactly why the Peabody Waldorf Gallery on Broadway deserves your company and support today from 2 p.m. to 2 a.m. Billed as the Peabody Preservation Party, nonstop music, art, break dancing, baking, raffle, and auction action will all help raise money to keep the Peabody moving forward.

4. Most glass artists the Weekly Volcano runs with make pipes. So is not the case with Benjamin Cobb, who opens what should be a captivating show today at the Traver Gallery in Tacoma. Letting the study of the human body inspire his work and creating sleek and sexy gaze-stealers, Cobb is a very modern glass artist with enough skill that it makes us kind of regret opening this off with a pipe joke - which is saying something. Drop by for an artist reception from 4-7 p.m. The show runs through Aug. 8.

5. The Excellent Gentlemen will fill Doyle's Public House with R&B, synthesizers, talk-boxes, keyed bass, booty-funk, and harmonies beginning at 9:30 p.m.

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound

CAN YOU DONATE A FEW DOLLARS? >>>

Nestled in the middle of a packed weekend of events in Tacoma, the Speakeasy Art Cooperative in downtown Tacoma held a fundraising event Saturday night called "LUNAR Party." It was poorly attended. Now, according to the Trib's GO Arts blog, the Speakeasy has a utility bill it can't pay.  Read the blog post here, and click on the donation button if you can help save the art space.