This blizzard is uncalled for.

Update: OK, that's better.

You might have read about the opening of Infinite Soups today.

Here's a peek at the twisted world we work in: I couldn't write about Infinite Soups until right now because the owners used to work in our building. We wouldn't want to give any impression of impropriety, now would we?!

Anyway, they opened and a group of us just ventured down. The West African Peanut was tempting enough to make me want to eat meat, but I'm glad I didn't, because My coconut curry was dee-lectable.

Have you been? What did you eat?

We've been gone for a couple o' days. Sorry about that.

My excuse: After a sort-of late night Saturday at the Jive, we ran 22 miles on Sunday for marathon training. During the latter part of that, I cried, got sniffed by a large, scary dog, fought the urge to kick a large, scary dog in the chops and/or crotch, then went to sleep just long enough to want to sleep more. Since then, it's been deadlines up the rear.

All that leaves little time for blogging.

Now it's time to make up reasons why other GritCity bloggers were out of commission. I heard Gentry put her bootlegged American Idol DVD on repeat and spent the weekend salivating.

Sparkrobot spied a mention of Tacoma in a story on The Onion about an XM-Sirius merger:

Josh Bernstein, Piano Tuner
“Until there’s a satellite channel dedicated to a lonely statistician in Tacoma talking about his figurine collection, I’m sticking with ham radio.”

Who needs satellite radio when you've got a blog?

The Nose relates this item today about a Seattle Times columnist pontificating on Tacoma.

Forget Grit City and City of Destiny. Tacoma has a new nickname, compliments of Seattle Times columnist Nicky Brodeur.

Welcome to Itchysweaterton.

Here’s what she wrote after an extensive daylong tour earlier this month:

“Tacoma feels like a sweater that you just can’t wear. It looks nice, with the water views and mountains. You got it far cheaper than you would pay in Seattle. But every time you put it on, you itch so much you can’t wait to take if off.”

I for one am always ready to don the hairshirt of a derogatory term and turn it into cashmere. Plus, who can deny that "sweater weather" ushers forth such cozy feelings as hot chocolate and crunchy-leaf walks in the park?

If you're with me, send in your pics of you and yours in your best sweaters. Vive la Révolution!

(If you think this is dumb, I'll take pictures of hoodies too.)

There's a busy weekend on the horizon, folks.

First off, you better go to MOVE! (which Kel posted on below) today or early tomorrow. Why? Because tomorrow night you're going to have to choose.

Will it be Links & Drink or the Java Jive benefit show?

Link & Drink is, "a guerrilla economic movement by dedicated resident hipsters that consists of packing ourselves onto Tacoma's Link Light Rail and visiting four of downtown Tacoma's spiciest establishments."

That party starts at Alfred’s Bubble Room, 402 Puyallup Ave. East, at 6 p.m. will end there by 10:15 p.m. Bring an I.D., money and a phone to call your designated driver.

The Jive benefit starts at 8 p.m. A $5 donation will let you see three local acts: Sons of Ivan, Waves & Radiation and L. A. Lungs. And bring $1 bills for raffle tickets.

As for me, I'll be at the Jive, as Mister is the newest member of Waves & Radiation. I wish I could swing both, but I'm really not in college drinking shape (thank God). Plus, I'm going to get to the Jive early, as they're going to strictly enforce maximum capacity.

Oh, and for those of you training for the Tacoma marathon, see you out there Saturday morning. You know you won't want to run after Saturday's festivities.

Update: Now Sunday is booked, too. The Grand is hosting an Oscars party. Tickets are $12 for members, $15 for nonmembers, which, in addition to supporting your awesome local/independent/nonprofit theater, will cover the appetizers from The Swiss, The Rock, The Harmon, Garlic Jim's Pizza, Puget Sound Pizza, Galanga Thai and dessert from Corina Bakery. Also, a cash bar provided by Doyles.

Check here for more information.

Amy Krebs

Ah, Amy Krebs, we hardly knew ye. Sadly, Krebs was voted off of American Idol last night after her performance of Bonnie Raitt's "I Can't Make You Love Me." It seems the first few live stage shows are not ballad friendly and song choice got the best of Krebs.

There were a few girls that deserved to get the boot this week. I would submit that Amy was not one of them.

Sanjaya Malakar

The good news, Sanjaya Malakar and Blake Lewis both made it through. In fact, despite really harsh criticism of Malakar's performance from the judges, he was voted one of the top four male performances of this week. Go on, boy!

Two more weeks before we make it to the top 12. This is a marathon, not a sprint, people.

Yahoo! Ed's diner reports that an Indian restaurant will open as soon as April at Sixth and Stevens, where the Happy Mart deli currently resides.

In other news, I'm pretty sure I'm psychic: Every time I've driven by the ol' Happy Mart in the past couple of weeks, I've gotten a funny feeling. Just sayin'.

Queue up for another splendiferous performance of MOVE! put on by Tacoma's own nonprofit dance gurus, MLK Ballet. The last show, in November, featured blacklighted glowy moth costumes and a pack of sinewy New York dancers with enough verve to make sweaty triceps a fashion statement.

I hear this show will include the dancers from Seattle club the Can Can, and you know how I feel about the French, yes yes?

So buy your tickets already. (available online or before the show, if it's not sold out)

Showtimes:
• 8 p.m. Friday
• 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Saturday

All shows at the Tacoma School of The Arts Theater. (map)

Tickets are 12 bucks, and go to support the dance school, which is also renovating a magnificent old church on the Hilltop as its headquarters in what promises to be another strong anchor as the neighborhood reinvents itself.

Exit 133 reports that this neat old piece of property in Ruston is on the market.

Previous name? Cole's Oasis.

Cole, Tacoma can't have enough Irish pubs, am I wrong?

Go gcuire Dia an t-ádh ort! (Um, I think.)

Here's a math problem for you. If the new non-stop flights from Sea-Tac to Charles de Gaulle leave here at 4:45 p.m. and arrive in Paris at 11:40 a.m. the next day, how many hours is that flight?

I'm not any good at math, but here's my best estimate.

Paris is nine hours ahead of us, which would would put the flight at a 8:40 p.m. arrival PST.

4:45 p.m. departure + 8:40 p.m. arrival the next day = 27 hours and 55 minutes??? Is that even possible? Can't you circumnavigate the earth in that amount of time? Somebody please tell me my math is off.

It is confirmed. My math is way off, as usual. It's a ten hour flight. I still don't understand how, but I accept it as fact.

Wintergrass 2007 will be held this Thursday through Sunday and online ticket sales "cease" at midnight tonight, so git along lil' dawgies. It will be held at the Sheraton Tacoma Hotel & Conference Center.

The official Web site lineup page provides links to all the musician's sites, so that's a good way to familiarize yourself if you're not already.

Update - All is not lost for Wintergrass tickets now that online ordering is no longer available. From the organizers:

You may call today and we will take your order over the phone. Tomorrow, festival registration opens at noon and you may purchase tickets then for any of the days. As of today, there are still tickets of all types available. We will post updates on our website and you may call and speak to a live person to check on ticket availability.

If you stumble out of bed Sunday morning and find a cobalt glass ball in the middle of the sidewalk, you are not hallucinating. You're lucky: Monkeyshines, the anonymous, unfunded guerilla art group that, like all great holiday icons, gifts but once a year, is set to strike this weekend.

They'll drop 300 3" to 4" clear and cobalt glass balls (stamped with a boar this year, because it's Chinese New Year and it's the pig's turn) in public spaces around the city for you to find. And if you're lucky enough to find one, keep it.

Monkeyshines crank out the gifts with no budget, but project doyenne Ms. Monkey says the donated materials total about $3,000, not including labor. If you were to buy a ball in a store? "Probably 40 bucks."

But you can't, so don't ask: The only way to get a ball is to find one (unless you're one of the artists, who can take one if they want.).

"My mother doesn't have one," said Ms. Monkey.

What's the point? The idea came about in late 2002, when Scott Peterson was one of many sad, wretched stories in the news.

"I was in the hot shop with some kids I worked with and we were talking about all the bad news and we thought maybe we can create some good news ... What if we made some glass balls and we hid them and then we could watch people find them and we could be like 'what did you find, what's that?' ... and just kind of groove on their happiness," Ms. Monkey said.

Why anonymous? "I just think it makes it more fun. It's a treasure, just like a note in a bottle. It doesn't really matter where it comes from."

Love it.

(Even better, Ms. Monkey said they've considered taking this national, saying San Francisco seems like the kind of place that would enjoy a few gifts from the City of Destiny Glass.)

Also, Beautiful Angle has made a poster (like they've done for each of the other three years), which Tom Llewellyn graciously sent me this picture of:

I think it was taken in some mysterious dark warehouse or underground lair, just to add to the mystique. Or maybe he sent a low-res image so you can't rip it off ... whatever. Happy hunting!

Like your eggs from free-range chickens and your bread chewy? Me too!

I also like co-ops, which is why I was excited to hear about a meeting next week to plan a co-op in Tacoma. Read more about it on the In Your Neighborhood blog.

What's the big deal with a co-op? Since they're owned by the members, there's no thrust to turn a profit. Sure, you want to make enough to sustain yourself, but it's different than a for-profit business. Also, since it's local, the money stays local (instead of a portion being sent to corporate headquarters).

I should pledge my love of Marlene's, which is a locally owned for-profit business, now. But I think Tacoma can afford more health food – especially if there's any prospect it could lead to healthy food being more affordable and available.

Oh, the meeting:

The Tacoma Food Cooperative Steering Committee is hosting a public meeting Wednesday, February 21, 2007. The meeting is at the Allen-Russell Community Center, 1321 Martin Luther King Jr. Way, from 5:30 to 7:00 p.m. All are welcome to attend.

It's already on my Google calendar.

While none of them are from Tacoma, two Federal Way-ans and a Bothell-ite have made it to American Idol's top 24 contestants. Considering six or seven cities filled arenas with Idol hopefuls, that's a pretty amazing accomplishment. Kudos to them.

AmericanIdol.com

Amy Krebs, 22, Federal Way

She seems sweet - an all-American girl-next-door type. Unfortunately, I can't remember her from the mass audition episodes I've seen thus far. I haven't seen last night's episode yet, so I'm assuming she made a big impression to make it to this point.

Best Q&A answer:

Q: What album would your friends be surprised you own?
A: Spice Girls, LOL

Slam your body down and wind it all around! Slam your body down and zigga zig ahhhhhh...

Amy is the only one of the three who didn't say she was from Seattle in her video intro. Embracing Federal Way - I like it.

. . . . . . . . .

AmericanIdol.com

Sanjaya Malakar, 17, Federal Way

He's got nice highlights and a very nice perma-smile. His sister also made it to Hollywood, but was cut the first round. Sanjaya's response to getting selected during the first Hollywood round was devastation that his sister didn't make it. America likes humble and sincere. Keep up the good work.

Best Q&A answer:

Q: When did you first start to sing?
A: Once I stopped crying.

If you don't immediately understand this to be a reference to his toddler singing habits, it reads as an incredibly cryptic and sad answer.

Check out his video intro to see what he can do with his upper lip. Check out this YouTube video to hear him sing.

. . . . . . . . .

AmericanIdol.com

Blake Lewis, 25, Bothell

If you've watched the show at all this season, you'll remember Blake as the Justin Timberlake-ish beat boxer. He also has a mean set of highlights. I have a feeling Blake is going to have a hard time not being typecast as the Justin Timberlake-ish beat boxer.

Best Q&A answer:

Q: Do you have any lucky charms?
A: 2 of them, and they’re in my pants right now.

Blake is surprisingly not goofy in his video intro, which made me breath a small sigh of relief. He also has several videos on YouTube that are worth a watch, including his American Idol audition.

. . . . . . . . .

Update: From today's Nose column:

Our homeboy rah-rah spirit died down after digging deeper.

Turns out Amy Krebs, 22, shook the strip mall dust from her boots long ago. An “Idol” Web profile lists her proudest moment as “moving to New York right out of high school.”

And 17-year-old Sanjaya Malakar? He lived in California, Hawaii and Seattle before transferring to Todd Beamer High School long enough for a cup of coffee. Web reports say he got his GED so he can focus on music.

Can anybody come to their defense? Are their F'Way ties legit? Do they, indeed, have F'Way cred?

Let's look at two scenarios:

1. You're bummed post-Valentine's Day. Or you're just bummed.
2. You're so captivated by the will-they-or-won't-they** nature of the 2008 presidential race, seemingly in full swing now in 2007 (whee!), that you need something to spoon into your agape mouth while watching C-SPAN.

This'll do:

** (they will, don't worry)

My favorite slogan from the Gig Harbor dirty dancing story: “Face to face, leave some space.”

But that’s not really how most people grind.

So I came up with these mnemonic devices to help restrain myself if I ever get carried away in a pubic display of affection:

“Front to back, leave some slack.”
“Back to face, this ain’t the place.”
“Front to rear, don’t do that here.”
“Crotch to crotch, don't make us watch.”

Add your own if you feel inspired.

I first saw this link at Erik Hanberg's site, and thought it was cool enough to share.

It shows some of the deck work on the new Narrows bridge. It's also fun to watch the tides rise and fall.

Watch it here.

It's safe to go outside now!

I just didn't want to leave up that previous post as the first thing people see, and possibly give them the wrong impression that the chopper has been hovering all night.

Back to normal here, sans copters.

What's going on in your neighborhood?

It's always unsettling when I hear a helicopter hovering over my Central Tacoma neighborhood.

Turns out, a Tacoma police motorcycle officer was injured in a collision with a car at South 12th and Pine streets.

In a noon broadcast, KIRO 7's Julie Francavilla said the crash was "in the north part of Tacoma."

We'll be sure to include that in the real estate listing when we someday sell our house – and get an extra $60,000.

EcoFest 2007 begins at noon today at the University of Puget Sound Rotunda with a presentation by the Yelm Earthworm and Castings Farm.

The best part: They encourage visitors to bring a lunch. I'm hungry already!

Check out the weeklong schedule of events to see if anything else looks as interesting to you.

I actually said this tonight: Man, my yoga teacher just called to say they're installing new carpet and there's no class all weekend. That totally sucks.

Somebody, please trump me.

I was asked for a report on how the match-making with Mister for the You & Me page went.

You'll have to wait until Sunday to find out, but let's say some of you will be pleasantly surprised! (I think we made 11 matches out of 30-some entries.)

Some of you, however, might be disappointed. I know two available, employed 20-something men are without a date. And there are several women (catches, absolute catches!) for whom we failed to find a suitable match.

I feel bad for this.

We'll find you a date yet. In the meantime, here's some words of consollation from my dad. This was several years ago, after a breakup: "Nik, you're a catch ... (insert 45 minutes of heart-warming conversation here) ... Sooner or later, you'll find someone who appreciates you as much as you deserve. And, you know, hopefully it's a guy."*

*He was not, as some have wondered, doing anything other than being socially awkward. So now you see where I get it.

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind – my favorite love story

Dating and romance advice overflows today's pages of Go, which is worth picking up simply for the cover image of a fierce-looking Cupid in a dangerously short diaper.

We'll share the Cliff's Notes version here, since you don't have time to be reading when you really should be getting ready already.

How can you go wrong with so many so-called experts in your pocket?

Choose the ones that apply to you:

• A thing or two we've learned here at GritCity.
• Two chefs share dining tips.
• A few shows to set the musical mood.
• Artsy events on the 14th.
• Classic romantic movies worth renting.
• Dating for gamers and self-described geeks.
• A date that involves ropes.

Confidence goes a long way, so before you go out, brush up on last week's reviews of Tacoma's Top Spots for Breakfast. At worst, you'll have something to look forward to if things aren't going well.

My only instruction:

1. Wear something classy that still makes you feel comfortable.

Any other collective wisdom to pass along?

We're all in this together ... to a point.

Photo by UrbanXchange

"Urban community guru" Paul Sparks will talk about how develeopment affects the downtown community at the second edition of Coffee and Rhetoric, at 7 tonight at Cutters Point coffee, 1936 Pacific Ave.

What was the turnout like for the last one? I didn't make it, and I have to work again tonight.

Maybe this would be a good place for some of you single lurkers to meet someone who likes coffee or rhetoric as much as you.

Boil noodles shaped like dinosaurs.

Add fluorescent powdered cheese.

Eat straight from pot.

When I moved to Tacoma two-plus years ago from the Midwest, I lived on St. Helens Avenue. And in the fog of some late-winter mornings, I could hear foghorns and seagulls, and I imagined my little apartment as a ship afloat on the bay, my bed a cozy bunk.

The next foggy Monday that rolls around – which, you know, will be in approx. six days – I suggest the following.

Get thee to a fancy grocery store (I like Metropolitan Market), buy a good hunk of real Swiss-style cheese (Emmentaler is a good one) and a little wedge of a blue cheese, a carton of organic whole milk, and maybe some fresh Italian parsley. Oh, some Parmiggiano-Reggiano would be nice, too.

Now pay close attention, as this is the most important part: Panko breadcrumbs. They're extracrunchy, which is really all you need to know. (Or knock yourself out on the Wiki.)

You do have red wine already, right?

Now I say the best way forward on a mac-n-cheese mission is by feeling your way. The wine helps, too. But here's the gist: Sauté garlic and onions, add a knob of butter, add a spoonful of flour, whisk whisk, warm milk, a cup or two. Voila, the white sauce. Toss in two handfuls of that shredded and crumbled cheese. Dash of cayenne, plop of mustard, salt, pepper. (More cheese, then pasta.) **

And the hallowed Panko on top. Bake, eat, sip, sigh.

Happy Monday. The fog's lifting now, no?

**E-mail me if you'd like me to write you a proper recipe!

Russ Carmack/The News Tribune

A guy who somewhat resembles an older, mustachioed version of Jeff Spicoli is hanging around the DuPont gate outside Fort Lewis today.

Is he:

1. Trying to enlist.

2. Learning about Cuba, and having some food.

3. Saving a spot in line for Cindy Sheehan.

What are your guesses?

If you want Mister and I to set you up on a date, this is your last chance. We'll be sitting down in less than an hour to play matchmakers! The problem: The link has been taken down because there have been so many responses. So ... maybe, if you're nice, you could e-mail me the vitals: name, age, interests, prior convictions, etc.

Now, I know some of you have "friends" who are too shy to enter their name and info. Let's just say, for example, that you, as a good "friend" submitted their info. It would be really good of you to do that, you know, as a friend. Please tell me you're getting what I'm saying. You can't be both a wallflower/procrastinator and unable to read between the lines.

No promises, but I'll do my best if you do yours. Countdown starts now: At 11:30, we commence.

I couldn't pass up an opportunity to share this piece of brilliant handiwork from an anonymous reader who included this message:

A fLaG hAs been PlaNteD tO CLaIm tHe GlAciEr iN tHe nAme oF gRIt ciTy.
uNForTunAtELy AL gORe mET A TrAGic and mOsT IRoniC EnD.

That's Little Jackie Paper Al Gore in the polar bear's mouth. You can click the photo to see the intricate details of the scene at Stadium Thriftway, near the trash compactor. When the snow goes away, at least we'll have claimed a parking space.

And faithful reader Brian sent me this shot of an extra gritty slab in the Costco parking lot, which appears to have an almost Valdez-esque sludge factor. Any volunteers willing to scrub oily birds?

"It's sort of sad because it just disappears into the airwaves," student DJ Amy Polansky said. "As far as I know, nobody is recording this."

At 11:35 p.m., Feb. 1, 2007, in a song by the Drips, KUPS played its first F-word.

You're all growns up!

Just got back from the Java Jive, and all is well.

All the regular Daves are squatting over their usual loose stools.

(Hope that unfortunate phrasing doesn't bring back the health department.)

The place seems a bit brighter and bigger inside, but the inspectors couldn't take away the coffee pot's uncombed charm. I'd like to think they allowed long-buried treasures to be re-revealed. My favorite found object: A 3-D cheetah head that sticks out of a jungle painting, on the wall opposite the bar. Meow.

What do you think of the makeover?

I just heard from a credible source (do they make any other kind in a newsroom? Yes, but that's another subject) that the Java Jive has indeed passed inspection and will open tonight at 8 p.m. I'll try to be there -- and encourage you to go and show solidarity. Or just have a beer.

And, in a strange twist of events, this announcement arrived in our inbox just as we were learning about the Jive: Next weekend's Kulture Lab (608 S. Fawcett, 7-10 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 10. 18 and over, 5 bucks.) will feature burlesque, a lingerie fashion show, erotic edible art, and over 25 artists displaying ... more erotic art. Plus, lounge music and "much much more."

Two things jumped out at us:

1. "Show up early, space is limited."
and
2. "Lingerie fashion show" next to "erotic edible art."

Hmmm... limited space, food, alcohol, nudity, erotic edible art and live lingerie models ... It's faintly reminiscent of this other recipe for disaster that I know: Liquor, coffee pot, driftwood, improper exits, unsafe wiring and a fryer on the fritz.

(And that's why I love it.)

My favorite part: "WARNING: If nudity offends you, please do not attend."

I can't remember if that was from the Java Jive or Kulture Lab.

Dandy Rough, of the Dockyard Derby Dames, reports that Java Jive has just cleared inspection and will be open very soon ... possibly tonight.

I'll let you know. If so, I'll see ya there.