It only happens once a year and, if you have any feeling at all for the automobile, it’s one of the best shows around.

The LeMay Museum will host its the 31st annual LeMay Museum Car Show & Auction on Saturday, Aug. 30, both at the museum grounds – 325 152nd St. E. – and at the LeMay family grounds nearby.

Sponsored by AAA Washington, the event offers visitors the chance to see over 1,000 vintage, classic and specialty automobiles, trucks and motorcycles from the LeMay Collection, plus hundreds of local collector cars and other unique vehicles.

In addition to the cars, according to a museum press release out today, there will be numerous automobile-related vendor displays, a “movie car” display with photo opportunities available and an auction hosted by Mathers Inc. Auctioneers.

Museum members get free admission and non-member entry donations are $10 for adults, $20 for a family of 4, $5 for children under 12 and active-duty military.

Parking will be available off-site with free shuttle bus transportation between the parking lots, the Marymount Academy and the LeMay grounds. This is the only time during the year that the LeMay grounds are open to the public.

For more information, and the locations of the parking sites, visit www.lemaymuseum.org or call 253-536-2885.

The Thea Foss Waterway Authority is hoping that the Puyallup Tribe of Indians will come through with a $500,000 donation to build a park near the waterway's south end.

The authority needs additional funds to convert the present 3-acre Berg Scaffolding site on the waterway's east side near its head to a park dedicated to human-powered watercraft.

The authority already owns the Waterway Park land, but is short of funds to convert that acreage to a park, said waterway executive director Don Meyer.

The land was once considered as a site for a new Tacoma Children's Museum, but that plan died this spring after opposition surfaced from groups that thought the land should have more open, undeveloped space.

Azerbaijan Airlines today announced an order for two Boeing 737-900ER single-aisle jets and two wide-bodied 767-300ER passenger planes.

The 767s were the first passenger versions of that aircraft ordered since January 2007 when LAN Airlines of Chile ordered three.

The 767 order came at the expense of the order book for Boeing's 787 Dreamliner. Azerbaijan canceled an order for one 787 and substituted an order for one of the 767s.

The 787 production line is running 15 months behind schedule. For an airline needing mid-sized capacity sooner than Boeing can deliver the 787, the 767 is an alternative.

While neither Boeing nor Azerbaijan discussed prices, I suspect the ailine got a deal on the 767.

Azerbaijan still has orders for two 787-8s on the books.

A new survey of the ever-changing world of airline fees by Time Magazine rates US Airways the stingiest because it charges customers for nearly everything from bottled water to all checked bags.

US Airways, based in Phoenix, charges $2 for soda, juice or bottled water and $15 for the first checked bag and $25 for the second. Changes to bargain tickets are $150.

At the opposite end of the nine-airline list in Time was Southwest Airlines which still doesn't charge for checked bags or refreshments or flight changes.

The magazine didn't rate SeaTac's Alaska Airlines. But based on the standings, the airline would have been in the upper half of the list.

It charges $25 for the second bag, which all of the carriers did but Southwest, but has free pillows and blankets unlike #4 JetBlue, which charges $7 for a bedding pack.

Refreshments are still free, though the airline charges for meals on long-haul flights unlike #5 Continental, the only airline still offering free meals on domestic flights.

But Continental charges $150 to changes to non-refundable tickets, while Alaska charges from $25 (for same day as flight via the Web or check-in kiosk) to $100 for changes made through its ticket counters or by phone. Web ticket changes before the day of flight are $75.

I chatted with some people from Nordstrom yesterday about the new store under construction at the Tacoma Mall.

Here's what I learned: We will get a new restaurant called Cafe Bistro along with the store. The eatery will have a new menu and an open kitchen with a brick oven and sit-down service. Check out a photo on the company's Web site. That means we will be able to watch the chef prepare our sandwiches and salads, which will still be available. I also heard much about the white chocolate bread pudding.

Brooke White, vice president for corporate communications, said that on the day of the opening, Oct. 3 for those of you who don't already have it on your calendar, the store will have a "cosmetic beauty bash." White described it as a tailgate party for makeup. Anyone can stop by the store to get their makeup done and check out the new offerings.

Other things I learned:

The store will be 138,000 square feet. (The existing store is 131,000 square feet.)

It will have a saltwater fish tank.

It will have live piano music and an espresso bar.