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

THE LOWDOWN ON WHAT'S UP THIS WEEKEND >>>

WEATHER REPORT

Friday: Sunny and clear, hi 88, lo 58

Saturday: Sunny and clear, hi 79, lo 56

Sunday: Party cloudy, hi 76, lo 58

>>> FRIDAY, JULY 9-SUNDAY, JULY 11: PUGET SOUND BEAD FESTIVAL

As a small tiki, Bobble Tiki was fascinated by rocks and beads and all things small and shiny. As a large tiki, Bobble Tiki has outgrown his old habit of filling his pockets with found stones (and tadpoles!) every time he goes for a walk, but Bobble Tiki still finds handmade artisan beads enchanting. If you, too, delight in glass beadwork's minute details, you'll be dazzled by the Puget Sound Bead Festival this weekend inside the Hotel Murano Bicentennial Pavilion, where beads, jewelry and sculpted beadwork will take center stage. Daily demonstrations and more than 70 lectures and workshops are on the docket. 

• Hotel Murano Bicentennial Pavilion, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, $7 good for all three days, 1500 Broadway, Tacoma, 253.572.5529

>>> SATURDAY, JULY 10: BON ODORI JAPANESE FOLK DANCE FESTIVAL

If you like your dance with a trace of the exotic, head for the Tacoma Buddhist Temple, where traditional Bon Odori dancing and taiko drum performances take over Fawcett Street as part of the Bon Odori Japanese Folk Dance Festival Saturday. The highlight is always when paper lanterns are strung across Fawcett for the bon odori, a traditional summer street dance honoring the dead. Hundreds are expected to attend, decked out in elaborate kimonos and hapi coats to dance to traditional Japanese folk songs. Think Japanese line dancing where the older people teach the younger generation the moves. Japanese food will be served inside the Temple.

• Tacoma Buddhist Temple, 5-9 p.m., free admission, 1717 Fawcett, Tacoma, 253.627.1417

>>> SATURDAY, JULY 10: OUT IN THE PARK 2010

Has it already been a year since the last Out in the Park? It seems like only yesterday I nestled down in the grass of sunny Wright Park to watch the performances of several stunning drag queens and kings at Tacoma's annual gay pride event.

This year promises to maintain that fabulousness, followed by after-parties at places like The Mix, Club Silverstone and the Tempest.

I spoke with Marcus Gronzo, interim manager of Rainbow Center and board member of Out in Tacoma, about what we could expect from the festivities this year. Read the full story here.

• Wright Park, noon to 7 p.m., Division and I Street, Tacoma, rainbowcntr.org

>>> SUNDAY, JULY 11: ART ON THE AVE

The Sixth Avenue bonanza known as the Art on the Ave festival returns to Tacoma Sunday, 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 is the Jazzbones outdoor stage, which will host Ben Union and the always-entertaining Vicci Martinez, among other notables. Also, look out for the Save our Sonics guy.

• Sixth Avenue between Cedar and Trafton streets, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., free, Tacoma, artontheave.org]

>>> WHERE OUR STAFF IS GOING

MATT DRISCOLL Editor and member of the Official John Elway Fan Club
We're packing up the family and heading to Portland tomorrow to see firsthand the Food Cart Mecca of the Known World. It's supposed to be even hotter in Portland than Tacoma this weekend, meaning the fair-skinned Driscolls will be a pink, sweaty mess, alternating between eating delicious foods served out of trucks and crowding around air-conditioning units and cursing global warming.

JOE IZENMAN Music/Theater Critic
If I can find a ride who wants this free ticket? Catching the reunion show of Seattle indie birthing ground Carissa's Wierd. Otherwise it's just 40 miles of bike riding, 10 hours of StarCraft and maybe even my first rehearsal with a certain well-loved Tacoma rock band.

NIKKI TALOTTA Feature Writer
Friday I will be mixing refreshing elixirs. Saturday I will be drinking them. We will be celebrating July birthdays, including my own. Both days I hope everyone will be wearing as little as possible.

STEPH DEROSA Columnist
Hell, I'm still reveling in my most awesome Fourth of July weekend and I'm not sure if anything can top that doozy. Although, there's a huge chance Out in the Park and Art on the Ave can provide solid outdoor social entertainment this weekend. In the rare case that those events prove to be uninspiring, I will probably be at home sewing the Lycra part into the crotch of my superhero outfit.

THE REV. ADAM MCKINNEY Feature Writer
I still haven't made it out to the beach, this year. Thinking about putting on some treacherously short shorts, working my way across the sandy dunes with a carafe of whiskey sours, and spending some good quality time with Owen.

KRIS BLONDIN Food/Wine Writer
After heading down to Tumwater on Saturday for an in-law family picnic, I will come to the realization that my home has suffered greatly from neglect. The past few weekends have been filled with too much fun! Walking over to Art of the Ave Sunday, then clean the house, weed the yard and maybe, just maybe, you'll catch me lounging on my back patio with a book in one hand and a Duvel in the other.

ALEC CLAYTON Visual Arts Critic
I'll be searching for art in Olympia (free tours of public art every Saturday morning; call 360.709.2678).

CHRISTIAN CARVAJAL Theater Critic
As "a little nonsense now and then is relished by the wisest men" – and by me – I'm seeing Capital Playhouse's "Kids Play" production of Willy Wonka.

LOOKING FOR MORE IDEAS? CHECK OUT THE WEEKLY VOLCANO'S LISTINGS FOR:

Events

Concerts

Restaurants

Movies

SUNDAY, JULY 4, 2010 >>>

1. If you heard Parenthetical Girls' most recent LP, Entanglements, you might be tempted to call them orchestral pop. Listen to the band's previous album, and you'll not be so quick with your designation. Despite how loaded the word "experimental" is, this is the basic definition of experimentation: Lead singer and brainchild Zac Pennington desired to make orchestral pop, and Entanglements was his experiment. "We generally just consider the music that we make to be pop music, because it's a pretty wide umbrella, and it allows us not to have to feel like we have to do any one sort of thing," says Pennington. "As a rule, we are generally pop music fans, so it's easier to classify it that way and not put ourselves into a corner." Check out Parenthetical Girls with Deerhoof and AU at 7:30 p.m. inside the Capitol Theater.

2. If drunken debauchery and in-your-face patriotism seem a little too much for you, check out Grand Old Fourth of July in Steilacoom from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. Here you'll take in free historical walking tours, ice cream socials, an old-fashioned parade at 1 p.m., street dance at 7 p.m. and fireworks around 10:30 p.m. 

3. A community band will present a late afternoon concert of patriotic and old-fashioned music on the lawn of Meeker Mansion in Puyallup from 3-5 p.m.  The Meeker Society, the private nonprofit organization that maintains the 1890-era Victoria Home erected by Puyallup founder Ezra Meeker, will sell hot dogs, soft drinks, ice cream sundaes, and more.

4. Country band Broken Trail will perform from 3:30-6:30 p.m. at Red Wind Casino's outdoor Fourth of July party, which also features a booze garden, inflatable jumphouse and fireworks after dark.

5. The South Sound Blues Association hosts a Blues Stage during the Tacoma Freedom Fair and Air Show on Tacoma's Ruston Way Waterfront.  The Blues Stage is at Duke's Chowder House with Blues Redemption opening the stage at noon. The Back to Beale Street Blues finals begin at 3:30 p.m.

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound

BRING ON THE WEEKEND >>>

Quick: What's better than the weekend?

Answer: A three-day, booze and explosives-fueled extravaganza!

The Fourth of July is upon us, yo! Most of us have three days of barbecues, beer, Black Cats, tormented dogs and fun ahead.

Let's not waste any time. Here's this week's Prefunk: a primer for the coming weekend specially designed for you and your liver - with a picture of an alcoholic household pet thrown in for good measure.

On that note, check out this week's pic! It's a new one, artistically titled "Blacked Out Wiener Dog," courtesy of a faithful Prefunk reader who took last week's plea to heart, and emailed it to me at mattd@weeklyvolcano.com. You rule, faithful reader! And you - faithful readers who have yet to act - can do the same! Email alcoholic pet photos to me and see your furry friend immortalized forever in The Prefunk. It'll be awesome. I swear.

TACOMACENTRIC @ FREEDOM FAIR

Sunday, July 4

While I think plenty of Tacomans kind of take it for granted, or just don't realize it, the annual Fourth of July Freedom Fair on the Ruston Way waterfront is kind of a big deal. Or at least it's big. Freedom Fair is said to be the largest single-day event in Pierce County, and one of the largest Fourth of July celebrations in the country.

This year's Freedom Fair (known for the obvious: fireworks, hot dogs, fat white people in tank tops) will mark the 31^st year of the festival - which is an impressive accomplishment, especially considering recent economic hardships have taken a heavy toll on free, public events like Freedom Fair. One of the ways the minds behind Freedom Fair are balancing the books (or at least attempting to) is by asking Freedom Fair-goers for a voluntary donation for the second year in a row.

Most people won't donate, of course, but every little bit helps.

New this year is the "TacomaCentric" zone, which will be in Marine Park near The Lobster Shop - an attempt by Tacoma movers and shakers, and the Tacoma Events Commission, to actually give the Freedom Fair's host city, Tacoma, a little love amidst the madness and mass of humanity. Tacoma artists, musicians and locally owned businesses will all get a place to show off their proud, "253" skills and stuff, to the betterment of all involved.

Starting at 11 a.m. and running until the time the fireworks start, just after ten - the TacomaCentric at Marine Park Stage will feature local crowd favorites like Voxxy Vallejo, Missionary Position, Deborah Page, Umber Sleeping and VIII Days Clean. Set times and more information can be found here.

PREFUNK SUGGESTION: If you're going to celebrate our nation's birthday, you might as well do it right. Before heading down to the Freedom Fair, or perhaps while you're at the Freedom Fair - but prior to the orgasmic fireworks finale, indulge in all the thing's or country is known for: baseball, apple pie, Budweiser, backwards hats, gross consumption of fossil fuels, cargo shorts and TapouT T-shirts with the sleeves cutoff.

Once you have all your U.S.A. bases covered, you'll be primed and ready to celebrate the Fourth of July in proud, Freedom Fest fashion.

See you next week, and enjoy the holiday!

THE LOWDOWN ON WHAT'S UP THIS WEEKEND >>>

WEATHER REPORT

Saturday: Partly cloudy, hi 67, lo 52
Sunday: Party cloudy, hi 68, lo 52

TRAFFIC ALERT: According to the Washington State Dept. of Transportation, no major roadwork will happen on the major South Sound area highways this weekend.

>>> SATURDAY, JULY 3: TACOMA ROSE SHOW

The perfection of a rose. As any good (or bad) plastic surgeon will tell you, there is always a way to improve on nature. Luckily for the flowers, their improvement doesn't involve extensive surgery or months of painful recovery. It does, however, involve death. Oh well, The Tacoma Rose Society presents its annual rose show with this year's theme is "A Dress Rehearsal." Dress rehearsal for what? A death?

• Jackson Hall, July 3, 9:50 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., free, 314 Martin Luther King Jr. Way, Tacoma

>>> SATURDAY, JULY 3-SUNDAY, JULY 4: PUYALLUP FARMERS MARKET

Like cherries, handmade knickknacks, ice sculptures and free parking for your SUV? Then you'll love the Puyallup Farmers Market, a valley institution for nearly as long as cows have been tipped. Engulfing historic downtown P-town every weekend, May through October, and drawing impressive crowds on a regular basis, there's no doubt Ezra Meeker would be proud of what the Puyallup Farmers Market has blossomed into.

• Pioneer Park, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday-Sunday, free, 330 S. Meridian, Puyallup, puyallupmainstreat.com

>>> SUNDAY, JULY 4: STEILACOOM'S GRAND OLD FOURTH OF JULY

Some people like to celebrate the Fourth drinking a case of Pabst Blue Ribbon, munching a bag of pork rinds and getting a tattoo of the American Flag on their nether regions. But if drunken debauchery and in-your-face patriotism seem a little too much for you, check out Grand Old Fourth of July in Steilacoom. Here you'll take in free historical walking tours, ice cream socials, an old-fashioned parade at 1 p.m., street dance at 7 p.m. and fireworks around 10:30 p.m.  I doubt the town leaders have any strange tattoos but don't take my word for it; go see for yourself at this wholesome, family-oriented Fourth of July celebration.

• Town of Steilacoom, July 4, 9 a.m. to 11 p.m., free, steilacoom.org

>>> SUNDAY, JULY 4: OLD FASHIONED FOURTH OF JULY

Once again it's time to don the red, white and blue and wax patriotic until it hurts. A painless way to revere our nation is with the Meeker Mansion Band Concert and Social – a Puyallup community group hug. A community band will present a late afternoon concert of patriotic and old-fashioned music on the lawn.  The Meeker Society, the private nonprofit organization that maintains the 1890-era Victoria Home erected by Puyallup founder Ezra Meeker, will sell hot dogs, soft drinks, ice cream sundaes, and more. Bring a lawn chair or blanket.  And let's face it, patriotism is fun. Why? Because we get to sing songs such as "Yankee Doodle Dandy," and if doodle is dandy, we're in a great country. 

• Meeker Mansion, 3-5 p.m., free admission, 312 Spring St., Puyallup, 253.848.1770

>>> WHERE OUR STAFF IS GOING

MATT DRISCOLL Editor and member of the Official John Elway Fan Club
The Driscolls will be making their monthly Costco run this Saturday. What! What! Nothing says Saturday like pallets of toilet paper, samples of bean dip and Kirkland brand athletic socks. It's gonna be dope. Later that night I'll pretend like I'm not the type of person that shops at Costco when Chain and the Gang plays The New Frontier with Basemint and DJ Dub Narcotic (Calvin Johnson) - which should be an utterly amazing show.

PAUL SCHRAG Senior Contributor
I'm wrapping up final edits on a book that will publish in spring, working on a couple of music projects, and re-designing the Web site for Environmental Aesthetics. It's more exciting than it sounds. 

NIKKI TALOTTA Feature Writer
I will be working at the bar and dreaming of King Solomon's Reef food, per usual. But then! Furloughs (mandatory day lay-offs) have kicked in and my guy has Monday off, which means an actual Fourth of July par-tay at the neighbors. Finally, state-workers and weekend service industry workers unite! Drink up, we're gonna need empty bottles to shoot rockets from!

STEPH DEROSA Columnist
I will be in Westport indulging in pyromania with my plethora of DeRosa cousins. This weekend will include (but not be limited to) terrorizing my next-door neighbor with childish antics with the hopes of his grouchy ass finally having a heart attack.

THE REV. ADAM MCKINNEY Feature Writer
Another Saturday night, and I ain't got nobody. I got some money, 'cause I just got paid. And I will use that money to get trashed and watch Chain and the Gang and Basemint tear apart the New Frontier. Rock.

KRIS BLONDIN Food/Wine Writer
If the weather holds, we are going boating with Jack and Vicky Winters. Heading to the southern part of Anderson Island to lounge and catch some crab! Then a party or two on Sunday! Happy Fourth!

JENNIFER JOHNSON: Lifestyle/Leisure Writer
Friday at Hell's Kitchen for Tool tribute band 46 & 2 to try and win tickets to the sold-out Tool concert. Saturday at Tempest for IndepenDANCE with DJ dAb, Bilori and Chris Savenetti. Ride bikes down to Freedom Fair for the Fourth on Sunday.

CHRISTIAN CARVAJAL: Theater Critic
That Othello: He's a complicated man, and no one understands him but his woman. I'm stoked for TAO's funkified production, set in New York City, 1968.

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound

IT REVS UP THE FIRST WEEKEND IN AUGUST >>>

Tacoma artist James Bender sent us the new poster for this year's Hotrod-A-Rama, which will, once again, consume South Jefferson Street and The Swiss.

Check out the poster below for the bands performing live during the two-day festival.

It's going to fucking rock.

CLICK AND DRAG >>>

Friday night at the Blue Mouse Theatre was a blast.

The AIDS Hosing Association of Tacoma hosted a fund-raising drag show Friday night titled Until The Fat Lady Sings 2.

The production featured some of the Puget Sound's most recognizable female impersonators.  Volcano photographer JM Simpson dropped in, enjoyed the show and came back with these images.

Vivian LeCher sings during the Until the Fat Lady Sings 2 fundraiser at the Blue Mouse Theater.

Destiny Pride cleans of a CD containing the music she will sing to before the Until The Fat Lady Sings 2 production last Friday evening at the Blue Mouse Theater.

Female impersonators stand outside The Blue Mouse Theater before performing in "Until The Fat Lady Sings 2" in order to raise funds for the AIDS Housing Association of Tacoma.

LINK: More Until The Fat Lady Sings 2 photos

SATURDAY, JUNE 26, 2010 >>>

1. The Mob Ride presents "Freedom Ride 2010" - another bicycle booze cruz - pushing off from The Red Hot at 7 p.m. If the past rides have been any indication you can expect 30-plus riders on a wide variety of bike models visiting four pubs/bars with a traveling distance of 1.5 miles between drinks.

2. Tacoma Hempfest begins at 10 a.m. in Wright Park with hemp products, information and people pushing Initiative 1068 to legalize marijuana for adults.

3. Lakewood Summerfest continues from noon to dusk with entertainment, vendors and food at Fort Steilacoom Park.

4. Author Norman Northrup will sign his Christian fiction novel, The Ashes of Castlemont - the story of one man who struggles with the ease of the life he used to know and the fear of daring to do what is right - from 1-3 p.m. at Last Word Books in Olympia.

5. Characters such as Lt. Stryk-her, Lush-Ace Harms, Knuckleberry Finn, Anita Hit Sum Won, Lola Pistola and Paula Bunion will be throwing elbows beginning at 6 p.m. when the Dockyard Derby Dames Championship Bout begins inside the Foss Waterway seaport. expect a beer garden, Three Chicks Catering barbecue, Last Stand hot dogs and an afterparty at Rock The Dock Pub & Grill.

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound

LINK: Concerts go on sale today

BRING ON THE WEEKEND >>>

Well, we still haven't been sued by PETA, and my bosses insist this column is still a good idea, so it's time for another installment of The Prefunk - a primer to the weekend for you and your liver (brought to you by the Weekly Volcano, Michelob Ultra, Smirnoff Ice, Ovaltine and Depends).

Oh, and we always throw in a picture of an alcoholic household pet for good measure. If you'd like to see YOUR four-legged friend with a drinking problem immortalized forever in The Prefunk, send drunk-pet photos to me at mattd@weeklyvolcano.com.

I swear; it'll be awesome.

MULTIPLE TACOMA HEMPFEST AFTER-PARTIES

Saturday, June 26

The rumors and smoke signals you've heard and seen are true; Tacoma's first annual Hempfest goes down Saturday at Wright Park. You can learn all you need to know about Tacoma Hempfest right here.

However, while there's only one Tacoma Hempfest, there are at least 37 Tacoma Hempfest after-parties. It's tough to know which one to choose. The good news is: If you've got a favorite local music venue or bar, there's a 73.9 percent chance it's holding a Tacoma Hempfest after-party.

Here are three of the better ones:

Hell's Kitchen: The punk-and-metal-edged Tacoma institution has supported weed since before it was cool. There's no way Pacific Avenue's newest and loudest resident was going to let a chance to revel in Tacoma's first annual Hempfest pass it by. Starting at 9 p.m., the "Official Afterparty for the 1^st Annual Tacoma Hempfest" at Hell's Kitchen will include the stoner-approved sounds of Domination, De-Krep-It, In These Hands and Koz of Konfusion. All these bands are Hell's Kitchen favorites, so expect the after-party celebration to be mighty.

The New Frontier Lounge: While it's not the "official" after-party, The New Frontier Lounge in the Dome District is also jumping into the Tacoma Hempfest after-party action with one of its own, starting at 8 p.m. and featuring Valis, Legend of Bigfoot and Flight of the Phanuel. Again, this is stoner-friendly music in what should be a stoner friendly environment. The only trouble is acting cool when you're high is a lot harder. Skinny jeans look like shit with Cheeto smudges.

Doyle's Public House: Hell's Kitchen has the "official" after-party, and The New Frontier simply has an after-party; but Doyle's Public House in Tacoma - currently flexing its World Cup muscles - has the only "T-Town Hempfest Follow-up" I can find.

What's a "follow-up," you might ask? Well, it's a lot like an after-party.

The T-Town Hempfest Follow-Up at Doyle's has jam-happy bands High Ceiling and Mighty High set to take the stage - which should be a masterful fit for the more stereotypical, dreadlocked, shoeless inhabitants of Saturday's Hempfest.

Jam on, my brothers.

PREFUNK: Shit. Go to Tacoma Hempfest. This one is self-explanatory.

GULF RELIEF @ THE SWISS

Sunday, June 27

"Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck!"

That pretty much sums up the feeling the runs through my head every time I think about the BP created mega-disaster currently ravaging the Gulf Coast. It's pretty much all there is to think.

But, how do we help? With previous massive disasters like the earthquake in Haiti or even Katrina, it was kind of obvious what needed to happen. But with the current BP-eco-clusterfuck, it's hard to even know where to start. I mean, THE OIL IS STILL GUSHING OUT. It's not even over yet.

That said, like almost anything in our capitalist created universe, as good a place to start as any is through financial donations. Sunday at The Swiss in Tacoma you'll have that chance, as well as a chance to see a bunch of top-notch local bands.

A benefit for the Gulf Restoration Network  - www.healthygulf.org - Sunday's show at The Swiss carries a $10 suggested donation, and a lineup including China Davis, The Jerry Miller Band with Lee Oskar, High Rollers, Mojo Overload, Malcolm Clark, Rich Wetzel's Groovin' Higher Orchestra and Kim Archer and Nick Sandy. The action starts at 1 p.m., and expect a pretty major raffle and giveaway to accompany the festivities.

PREFUNK: Coat you and your loved ones in 10W-40. Make sure to get your pets too. Then, cover your lunch in 10W-40, your bed in 10W-40, your toilet in 10W-40, etc. See how you enjoy it.

Then, head to The Swiss to help out the Gulf, which has been dealing with a similar - albeit far more devastating - situation for two months now. I'd recommend cleaning yourself up first, though, which you'll find is pretty fucking difficult.

See you next week.

THIS KIND OF FREAKS ME OUT >>>

Here are some facts about slugs:

1. Number of eggs one gray garden slug can lie in a year: 400
2. As hermaphrodites, slugs have both male and female sex organs which allow any two to mate.
3. Speed: 2 feet in 43 seconds. Man can run a 100 yard dash in less than 10 seconds; it would take a slug almost 2 hours.
4. Slugs are territorial and will attack caterpillars and other slug "intruders"  ... at very slow speeds.
5. Many predators-birds, squirrels, and mice stay away from slugs and snails because of their horrible taste.
6. When slugs' teeth wear out new rows move forward and replace them, conveyor-belt style.
7. Favorite foods include: strawberries, leafy plants, and some root vegetables.
8. Only 5 percent of the slug population appears above ground at any time.
9. In heavily infested fields there are approximately nine slugs per square foot. This means 392,040 slugs per acre. Slug cycle their feeding habits so that only 20 percent are feeding at any given time.
10. Slugs don't think it's funny when humans pretend to be slugs, especially when humans wiggle into leatherette sleeves with no armholes and race on a slimed tarp as spectators sing the slug anthem during SlugFest at Northwest Trek.

SlugFest

Saturday, June 26-Sunday, June 27, 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., activities free with admission
Northwest Trek, 11610 Trek Dr. E., Eatonville
360.832.6117