Cool new article on the Horatio

A nice piece in today's GO section about the Horatio. Just in time for the new year!

Keep an eye out for the announcement of our first shows by the end of January. You can be the first to know by signing up here.

The TerraPass

I've discovered a good way to feel better about driving.

I drive a 2004 Hyundai Elantra, manual transmission, and put about 8,000 miles per year on it. Most of that is in and around Tacoma, but it includes a few trips to Oregon, Seattle, and the east side of the Cascades. Although clearly it's not as many miles as many drivers, especially commuters.

Even so, I checked up on my car and mileage on TerraPass.com. According to them, with my driving habits and that make of car I am putting out 5,224 lbs of CO2 into the atmosphere. That's probably close to the weight of my car or slightly more.

Here's what makes the website so cool, though. I purchased a TerraPass for $29.95 that will offset 6,000 lbs of CO2 for the next year of driving by investing that money in wind energy or industrial efficiency.

As a model for a non-profit and environment change it's pretty great. I can pay to level out my car emissions so that my car has a zero sum effect. Sure I'm not exactly helping the environment, but I'm not exactly hurting it anymore either.

Soon I will get a decal in the mail that I can put on my car to advertise how I am assuaging my guilt over polluting. I hope I will see more around Tacoma. Relieve your guilty conscience and buy a TerraPass!

Favorite Films of 2006

I missed a lot of good movies this year, I know, but of the films I saw, these were my favorites of the year.

1. V for Vendetta - Smart, risky, provocative, good action, and an advocate for everything that needs advocacy ... My favorite movie this year, pretty much hands down.
   
2. A Prairie Home Companion - I would have said this even if Robert Altman hadn't died this year. But this movie was sweet, very funny, utterly charming, and a thoughtful meditation on death at the same time.
3. Brick - I think technically this movie was released last year. But it didn't get a release here until the spring. It was a really wonderful film noir.
4. Borat - Funniest. Movie. This. Year. Just all around great.
5. Thank You For Smoking - A good satire and a lot of fun.
6. The Queen - A surprisingly tight and engaging drama.
7. Stranger Than Fiction - I found this movie to be one of those films that is simply "a good movie." Front to back it was well worth it.

Unranked: I also enjoyed Casino Royale, Jackass, Match Point (again technically last year) and Snakes on a Plane. My favorite documentary for the year was Word Play and the best foreign film I saw this year was Tsotsi.

A festivus for the rest of us

That's awesome ... Tacoma's very own Festivus Pole down by the Christmas Tree and Menorah. See more at Exit133.

HP ... and the Order of the Phoenix

Again for the Harry fans, you can see the trailer for Order of the Phoenix here. It's due out in July and looks pretty clear like it's following the dark tone of the book.

Harry Potter and the _______ _______

Perhaps you have already heard the name of the new Harry Potter book.

But I'm not going to tell you here. Because the best way to find out is to visit www.jkrowling.com.

Then click on the eraser in the middle of the desk. Then click on the far doorknob reflected in the mirror. Then click on the center of the door. Then click on the top of the mirror. Then click on the cobwebs. Then click on the 2nd wind chime from the right until it turns gold. When it's gold, drag it over to the keyhole and insert it into the lock. When the door opens click on the package and then you'll have to play Hangman to find out the title.

Or you could read about it in the New York Times. But that's not nearly as fun.

Regarding the Radio

I've been writing a few times recently about local radio and I would like to add a few notes. First, I've discovered that I just can't listen to the Mountain this month, no matter how much I like their music, because I just can't take the jewelry commercials.

So this month I've found a new thing to listen to as I drive to and from work, 98.1, the classic station. I've actually found that it's incredibly relaxing, especially on the way home. Who knew how good classical music was? Not only that, but they don't play a single jewelry commercial.

Peter Traver's Top 10

I usually like Peter Traver's taste in film and it's one of the only reasons I subscribe to Rolling Stone. This is his Top 10 for the year:

The Departed
Dreamgirls
Letters From Iwo Jima / Flags of Our Fathers
Volver
Babel
United 93
The Queen
Borat
Little Miss Sunshine
A Prairie Home Companion

I've seen three on his list but hope to see more soon. It's not a bad list, though. Interestingly, there are no real stand-out films (although I haven't seen The Departed). I predict poor viewership at the Oscars.

Tacoma City Marathon

I'm on the back side of the news story here, but if you're a runner and a Tacoma supporter, let me suggest the Tacoma City Marathon. Here's the course map around Tacoma.



As for me, a cross-country runner for 2 years at Bellarmine, you will probably find me at the finish line with a Jack in the Box Ultimate Cheeseburger, a Chocolate Milkshake, and some sort of fried substance. Because there is no way I'm going to do this thing.

Thanks to Exit133 and ThriceAllAmerican for pioneering the story.

A new tourist stop at the Grand Canyon

Here's a perspective you wouldn't see every day ...

More here at National Geographic.

The Queen

After the Golden Globe nominations last week I was inspired to see The Queen at the Grand and see what all the fuss was about. It was a darn fine film. Helen Mirren was incredible and Michael Sheen as Tony Blair was very very good, too.

The movie really feels like you're peering behind the crown, even though, from what I understand, the writers would not have had any privileged information about what the Queen was actually going through.

The movie also showed me, once again, that I am an Anglophile to the core. I love the English. I know many Francophiles, but for the life of me I don't get them. Call me an Anglo Saxon.

Tribune's Review of "It's A Wonderful Life"

I was very excited to wake up to Rosemary Ponnekanti's review of "It's A Wonderful Life" in the Tribune this morning. Especially when the review starts " 'Wonderful Life' thrives ..."

It gets better from there, too. With a kicker of a summary:

By the time George and Mary have reached their sentimental ending, you realize you’ve been carried along through one of Hollywood’s most famous stories not by movie magic but by sheer conviction of acting.

Last show is today at 1:00! Hopefully you will read this before then and still have time to make it. :)

Come on by tomorrow!

The last show of "It's A Wonderful Life: A 1940's Radio Play" is tomorrow at 1:00 at the Blue Mouse! Tickets are on-line (follow the link on the right) until midnight tonight and then at the Blue Mouse tomorrow.

It really has been a lot of fun. If you don't know much about the play, here's a quote from the program:

It’s A Wonderful Life is a classic movie that many know by heart. Not generally known, however, is that in 1947—a year after the release of the film—Jimmy Stewart and Donna Reed performed a version of the story for the Lux Radio Theater. The Lux Theater adapted many Hollywood films to fit their one-hour format during the 1940’s and assembled the original screen stars to reprise their roles.

The script was re-discovered in 1997 when it was performed by Bill Pullman, Penelope Ann Miller, Nathan Lane, Martin Landau, Sally Field, Casey Kasem, and many others in Pasadena. The production was recorded and aired by PBS with the title “Merry Christmas, George Bailey.”

Since then, other adaptations of the film have been staged but this script sticks to the 1947 adaptation … right down to the many plugs for Lux soap.

Tickets are just $12.00. Hope to see you there!

Happy Thursday

Last week GritCity and Exit133 both linked to an adorable video of pandas playing in the snow. It had nothing to do with Friday, but it was a good YouTube selection for sheer randomness and fun.

For my turn to post a video that has nothing to do with anything, here is Director Michael Gondry (Eternal Sunshine ... ) assembling a Rubik's Cube in two minutes ... with his feet. Enjoy.

It's A Wonderful Dress Rehearsal

Last night's dress rehearsal of "It's A Wonderful Life" had a health dose of Christmas Spirit. The Blue Mouse is going to be a fun place for this show.

I hope you'll come check it out! Tickets for tonight are available at the Blue Mouse Box Office only, but can still be purchased for this weekend on-line.

Downtown Picture and Map

For an interesting perspective on downtown Tacoma I recommend the Map and Aerial Photo foldout published by the Business Examiner, with sponsorship from Prium, the City of Tacoma, Metropolitan RED, Colliers, and others.

First, some buildings that are not yet complete are filled in with computer imagery, which means that you can see Jay Heights and Hannah Heights as if they were already complete and blended in with the skyline.

Second, it's an unusual place to put a camera, looking west from over the Foss and a couple hundred feet up.

Third, it puts some locations on to some of the Metropolitan RED projects, including the Sharp Building, which Derek at Exit133.com already mentioned. In fact, as I was searching for information on the company and the building, I discovered that Exit133 had already covered the release of the map, the interesting highlights, and the Sharp Building two weeks ago.

So I'm a little behind the times in getting ahold of the publication. But it's still worth blogging about.

Let there be light

My block of St. Helens, between 4th and 6th, has been dark since I moved in here in October of 2003. No functioning street lights for three years on one of Tacoma's main access points.

Finally they are in place and this week they were lit. The lights are the same that dot I St. and seem to be the new norm for Tacoma. I can't say I'm super-excited about the fixtures; they're not exactly at a pedestrian scale. But at this point any light is good light.

"Holiday: The Romantic Comedy"

Watching "Holiday" is like waking up thinking it's Christmas morning only to find out it's actually Flag Day and you still have six months until Christmas and woke up on a lousy holiday instead.

Sure there are some nice aspects to Flag Day. I mean who don't like a flag? But by and large the holiday pretty sucks and you wish it was Christmas.

I'm a sucker for a romantic comedy when it's done right. And Nancy Meyers has done it right before (I find "What Women Want" a great romantic comedy and "Something's Gotta Give" is not bad).

So enter "The Holiday." Great charming cast, good director, I'm ready to go. And then it's bad. Like almost unwatchably bad until about an hour and 15 minutes in.

And then a curious thing happens.

The storyline with Cameron Diaz and Jude Law finally gets interesting and you think, "Dude, I wish that developed 45 minutes earlier." And you finally decide not to walk out and you're ready to see it through.

Then the movie switches back to Kate Winslet and you think, "I wonder what Cameron Diaz and Jude Law are up to." Then it finally switches back to them and you think, "Oh. Well what happened with Kate Winslet and Jack Black."

So then you think, "This is funny. I'm more interested in whatever they're not showing me than what they are." And then you think, "The old guy better not die, because that would be really annoying."

This movie was really annoying. Even though the old guy doesn't die. After seeing the movie I caught the Slate.com headline for their review of the movie which called it the Whitest Movie of the Year. That made me laugh and I read the review, which has this accurate gem:

The characters pace and putter around in the story like animals building their nests, and by the time they finally settle down with their mates, we have a grudging affection for them.

It's not like you don't care, it's like you don't want to care. This movie has serious problems.

The Bar Burger Times Three

If you're looking for a handy way to venture into some of Tacoma's best restaurants, let me recommend a very simple method: The Bar.

Recently, I have discovered that some of the best hamburgers in Tacoma are at the bar of upscale restaurants for very good prices. For awhile El Gaucho has offered the steak sandwich on their bar menu. Think El Gaucho quality steak for (pretty) cheap with awesome fries. The Sea Grill has a blue cheese burger in the bar that is great (and only $5 during happy hour). And this Saturday night I discovered that Gary's Steak Out has a 1/2 burger in their bar that is very good too (and huge).

I'm sure there are other places with great bar menus, but these are the best three I've found so far. Big props from Erik. High quality atmosphere and a lot of fun for normal restaurant prices ... what's not to love?

The Tree

Every Christmas I choose a theme for my Christmas tree. This is like a low-budget version of the Festival of Trees. I choose very cheap and easy to execute theme trees and make them look kinda cool.

In 2004 I chose a Film Tree, with film wrapped around as ribbon, goobers and milk duds and raisinets boxes, and popcorn garland (of course).

In 2005 I decorated an Olympics Tree, in preparation for my Olympics trip. I used chocolate coins and red, white, and blue ribbon to create gold, silver, and bronze medals and then created the Olympic rings for the top of the tree out of styrofoam.

This year, it's a Poker Tree. Not for any specific reason like the other two trees, although I could claim that it is an act of defiance against the City of Tacoma for banning mini-casinos in town. I had thought of trying to do a Horatio or Drama themed tree, but couldn't really figure how to make that work.

So Poker will have to do. I'm pretty happy with how it turned out, actually. The picture below is a little blurry, but you get the general idea. Giant-sized cards are spread throughout the tree in descending order of poker hands, with a Royal Flush on top, all the way down to the Ace High at the bottom. And pairs of regular sized cards that form good Texas Hold'em hole cards make for ornaments. Some bulbs round it out and I may try to figure out how to add some poker chips to the tree.

Way too much fun.

My hungry car

It looks like the Elantra ate my tree. The holidays have started!

Historic Tax Credit

I'd like to second Derek's post that it is unfortunate Julie Anderson is pulling her application for a tax credit. I can't really fathom how her job on the City Council would really change anything or come in to play. It seems that if the building is worth saving it's worth saving, regardless of who lives inside. Here's the Trib's article.

Masa Cancels

I don't know what happened, but I tried to get reservations to Masa last night and they were closed for re-tooling. So I got reservations for Saturday night. And I get a call tonight that says they will be closed again, except for very large parties or groups.

They're sending me a gift certificate and they're going to make it right, but it's kind of frustrating nonetheless. With the interest after their opening, you'd think they'd be open.

God rest ye merry gentlemen ...

... who got Pierce County its first HOV lanes.

Pierce County, the second most populous county in the state, will get 4 miles of HOV lanes next week says the Trib. Finally!

So when you're out driving next week on 16 and you see big diamonds in the road, just remember ... keep two diamonds between you and the car in front of you. :)

Just kidding. But celebrate that we have diamonds on the road instead of giant dots.

"We Like The Moon"

"But not as much as a spoon."

Will it be a future home? I think I've mentioned that I'm all about the colonization of space, so three cheers for a permanent base on the Moon by 2024.

The biggest concern is that it might delay the Martian missions. But still, a lunar base would be pretty rockin'. I'd go and buy lots of t-shirts. "Hard Rock Cafe - Moon" would probably be popular.

So would a shirt that said "My brother went to the Moon and all I got was this lousy t-shirt." If you don't want that, tell me now, Krista. Because I could totally load up on a couple of moon rocks for you. Let me know.

Man Wins Twice

The best chess players in the world took on the best chess playing computer in the world, Deep Fritz. The computer won 4 games to 2. The New York Times says something about it being a decisive victory for the man vs. machine chess games in the article.

But I'd like to point a key fact out: Vladimir Kramnik won twice. You'd think that a computer with the power to calculate hundreds and thousands of possibilities would be able to beat a human every time. So the computer won, 4 - 2.

I'd say those two victories are still pretty important. Go Vlad!

Google Quote of the Day

This was on my Google page this morning:

Books to the ceiling,
Books to the sky,
My pile of books is a mile high.
How I love them! How I need them!
I'll have a long beard by the time I read them.

--Arnold Lobel

Since I' ve been strung up with a bad flu bug this weekend (that is, as far as I can tell, already flying through the population) I've done a fair amount of reading on the couch. John Dunning, who I've lauded before on this blog, kept me through it.

But that quote was really on the mark this morning.

Masa

Cole at GritCity reports that Masa, the new restaurant is opening this evening across from Asado and the Primo Grill.

Cole seems to have gotten a special sneak preview of the space and he's taken some cool notes. Expect to find a bar made of sunflowers and cork (no foolin') and 24 hour service on Fridays and Saturdays.

Thanks for the tip, sir!

My Big Beef

This is an absolutely random complaint, but I feel it's time to speak up.

Now that I don't walk to work everyday I spend a good half hour in the car daily, guaranteed (this is a lot more than before, as I used to be able to go a few days without having to drive sometimes).

During these new times in the car I've come to discover that I loathe--loathe with every fiber of my being--jewelry commercials. E.E. Robbins is probably the worst offender with Weissfield Jewelers a close second. After that ... I don't know they're all pretty bad.

Unfortunately, I loathe them so much that I can't help but listen to them to confirm the reason for my loathing. I never thought I was that kind of person but jewelry commercials on the radio seem to do it to me. I turn it up when they're on and then make fun of them the whole way through.

I just can't stand them, and right now they are at their absolute worst. Listen to a couple of them and you might understand what I mean. And maybe you too will want to take an ax to your dashboard just to cleanse your radio of the pollution left by those damned commercials.

My suggestion for a new Tacoma Park

I'd like to propose a new park for Tacoma: a long walking park, stretching 24 blocks in the North End.

I don't have to explain to any Tacoman that north of 6th Ave, traffic on Union is split by a wide green space, populated with trees and grass. I've walked Union on that strip of green space and was surprised to find there was no path or any sign that anyone thinks it would actually be a good idea to walk there.

But it is a beautiful walk and could make for a great park, I think. Here's what to do:

• First, remove the bike lanes out of the traffic flow, allowing Tacoma to widen the green strip by roughly 6 feet without impeding traffic flow. The bike lanes and a walking path can be added in the middle of the new park.
• Second, add more trees on either side of the park, and add fixtures along the way to keep it well lit.
• Third, put public art sculptures along the path.
• And fourth, if you really want to get gutsy, instead of justing letting the park die out near 6th, why not figure out a way to bring it all the way to 6th and Union?

I think it could be a great walking area for the city and may be a beautiful green space that could eventually be extended. Perhaps from Union and 30th it could go toward Proctor and tie in with the trail that currently goes from the Proctor bridge down to the waterfront and the Ruston Way Promenade. Once we're at Ruston, we can connect to Point Defiance and from there we have an incredible green path through the city.

A long time ago someone told me of their dream of a bike path from Gig Harbor to Mt. Rainier. We may have just completed a long leg of the Tacoma section.