... we've decided to pull the plug on ourselves rather than watch another month go by without new posts.

It was fun getting to know our readers online and in person. It was fun making t-shirts and having several of our t-shirts stolen. It was fun crafting inappropriate photo illustrations. But now it's time to stop having fun. Let us pay tribute to what was:

Kelly: "Poor GritCity. I'll be sad to see it go. All I can say is, I'll carry you all in the fannypack of my heart."

Laura: "Blogging about Tacoma almost made me want to move to Tacoma."

Cole: "I’ll miss all the virtual friends and virtual money we made."

Niki: "I don’t even work here anymore."

In other words, thanks and happy Thanksgiving (almost). Feel free to share your remembrances or just delete us from your RSS feeds.

Oh, also, you should follow thenewstribune.com on Twitter. I happen to know the user name and password and occasionally sneak some fake stories humor in when the bosses aren't looking.

Clean up your yard and put away the recycle bins. It appears that Google is filming the streets of Tacoma this week to add to its Street View interactive map feature.

Portland and Spokane have already been captured, so now it looks like it's our turn in front of Google's 360° panoramic car-mounted cameras.

Saturday morning about 8 a.m., driving on Union at South 19th Street, I spotted a car that looked a lot like the one at right. (Flickr user jimery took this picture in Seattle last week).

I e-mailed a few questions to Google, so I'll let you know if I hear back. Until then, don't do anything too creepy in your front yard.

It's that time of year when everyone and his mother is telling you to be safe for the Fourth of July.

So in the tradition of obvious and condescending advice on how to stay alive during routine summer activities, we present GritCity's Lucky 13 Summer Safety Tips:

1. Wear a life jacket, unless you want to die.

2. Don’t ignite fireworks in your hand or in your boat or in your pet.

3. Don’t run with scissors in your boat.

4. Wear sunscreen, unless you have a death wish, like that guy over there who isn't wearing his life jacket.

5. Strap your child to the mizzenmast for his/her safety. Don’t forget the water wings.

6. Use a hands-free headset when talking on your cell phone while boating. That way you can still hold your drink.

7. Don’t go boating within an hour after eating.

8. Don't open attachments from unknown senders on your boat.

9. Don’t carry your Social Security card while boating, in case you encounter a flotilla of identity thieves.

10. Look both ways before crossing another waterway in your boat.

11. Keep the cooler stocked with enough beer to last for two weeks in case of stranding. If you don’t get stranded, even better.

12. Don’t talk to strangers while boating, unless you’re on a hands-free headset.

13. If you go out boating and forget something that’s locked up in your hot car, make sure it’s not your dog or your kid or your drinks.

If you’re waiting until the last minute to mail your tax return, the post office at 4001 S. Pine St. in Tacoma will be open until midnight.

That is all.

Oh wait, one more nugget of wisdom: If you get a refund, spend it locally. What will you be buying?

On the way to the meet 'n' eat at Frost Park today, GritPup and I walked through an empty Fireman's Park. The giant totem pole whispered to me that it was lonely. How sad!

Maybe we should have progressive park lunches?

Anyway, it was fun to finally meet some people I previously knew only as a screen name.

Here are some other Tacoma parks that the dog and I have "taken back" by leaving our mark. Actually, the dog did most of the marking. Most.

In this last one, we're taking back Wright Park from dog molesters.

Daylight Savings Time is one of the pearls on the otherwise monotonous necklace of life. Set your clock back an hour and gain a full 60-minute overtime period to keep doing whatever pleasurable task you happen to be undertaking that night.

Even better, by a factor of 24, is Leap Year Day.

Feb. 29 doesn't even count. Consider it recess from reality. We'll pick up March 1 where we left off Feb. 28, and we'll all look at each other with veiled knowing glances.

We get a full 1,440 minutes of free time today. How will you be spending your bonus?

In the photo: Bremerton dentist Dr. Renus Bender double checks the calendar, making sure that it was set for his 10th birthday, February 29, 1936. Although he was 40 years old, he was born during a leap year, which comes once every four years. (Richards Studio Collection/Tacoma Public Library)

He might have been the original Gritizen: Tacoma-born Richard Brautigan would have been 73 today.

Here's a Brautigan excerpt that NPR's The Writer's Almanac highlighted in honor of the day:

"The sun was like a huge 50-cent piece that someone had poured kerosene on and then had lit with a match, and said, 'Here, hold this while I go get a newspaper,' and put the coin in my hand, but never came back."

So in honor of Brautigan, feel free to offer your own surreal ending to the phrase "The sun was like ... "

(Not that any of us around here would remember what the sun was like)

Here's an open letter to the bumbling crook who failed in his attempt to steal my car:

Dear Kind Sir (if you can read),

I'm sorry things didn't work out between you and my car. I hope you didn't get all upset inside. I'm not surprised that my car opened up like that for you, and you were able to gain entry on your first date, but it's really a letdown that you weren't capable of hanging in there long enough to seal the deal. Your significant other told me that's a problem for you.

Since we're talking, I also want to thank you for leaving behind a half-filled can of Tilt malt liquor energy drink. Anybody who can derive energy from malt liquor has my utmost respect.

Don't worry – I'm not going to give your fingerprints and your DNA to the police. Instead I'm going to keep it until it's scientifically and financially feasible to clone you. At that time, I'll lock you in my basement and force you to learn how to repair car windows, all while keeping you on a strict diet of Tilt malt liquor.

Until then, I'll keep my car unlocked so you can get some hot-wiring practice without shattering glass all over the street.

Hope to see you again soon,
Cole

You may have heard that one Ms. Celine Dion has announced her 2008-2009 concert schedule, which includes a stop at the Tacoma Dome. Tickets go on sale this Saturday (purchase them here), but because we GritCitizens are so well-connected and love our faithful readers so much, we've managed to score four tickets to give away to one of you this Friday (a whole day before they go on sale!).*

Here's the deal: We'll have a designated blog post this Friday at approximately 11 a.m. (Pacific time!). The person to post the 253rd comment (represent!) to that designated contest post will win four tickets to the Tacoma Dome show, which will be held on October 18, 2008.**

Each ticket is valued at approximately $100. We will be moderating our comments that day, meaning that they have to be approved before being published to prevent any foul play -- every comment will be approved unless someone tries to post anything particularly heinous.

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Important notes:

1) In order to post a comment on our blog, you need to be a registered member of TheNewsTribune.com. I'd suggest taking care of that sooner rather than later if you're interested in this contest, just in case you run into any technical difficulties with that process.

2) The winner will be contacted by email and/or phone, so make sure you're using legitimate information in your registration account!

3) Read the official fancy-schmancy rules here.

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* We struggled at first to find a link between GritCity and Celine, but then we remembered how SNL's Ana Gasteyer used to imitate Celine and proclaimed herself "The greatest singer in the world!" We frequently proclaim ourselves "The greatest bloggers in the world!" so that settled that.

** The show isn't until Fall of 2008, which makes it feel like the world could end before the event is held. But the world could end tomorrow too! Doesn't that make you feel better?

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I closed the comments to make sure no one confused this post for the actual contest post. Check back on Friday!

Dear Tacoma anarchists,

I know how it feels. It's like you got out your markers and made pretty party invitations, then waited for hours, switching out the ice ring in the punch bowl and watching traffic reports to see if there were any big traffic jams in the area.

But don't feel bad. Maybe tonight you'll shut downtown down. Or, hey, there's always tomorrow.

And if you find yourself spiraling into self-pity, think about this: Today was a day every riot cop in Tacoma probably looked forward to, and it's been a real letdown for them, too. Poor things -- they've probably been reviewing footage, cleaning the nozzles on their pepper spray sprayers and guzzling Red Bull. And for what?

You'll get 'em next time, tiger. If not for the immigrants, do it for the riot cops.

Sincerely,

Yours truly

What do you do when you're pulled over and have $276,000 in a suitcase, yet can't explain how you got it?

This man froze. Not recommended.

According to the AP, the British Columbia man was stopped Sept. 21 by a state trooper in Seattle. Because he couldn't explain how he got the cash, the state gets to keep it. Most of it will go toward drug enforcement, and the remaining 10 percent will go into the general fund. Thanks, guys.

I'm the worst liar on the planet, but I'm pretty sure I could come up with something if $276,000 was on the line.

Some ideas:
1. "I've just visited the bank and was on the way to pay the dog sitter."
2. "Gates is at it again! My good friend Bill is always playing practical jokes on me like this."
3. "Oh, that's where I left my wallet. I am such a dingaling."
4. "At least it's not drugs, eh?"

Meet Ronald and Christina:

Photo from Amazing Race

This father-daughter duo from Tacoma is participating in this season of Amazing Race.

Here's a bit about them:

...Since Ronald was constantly traveling for work throughout much of his daughter's formative years, Christina hopes the Race will allow her father--a self-proclaimed workaholic--to stop and smell the roses and provide them with some meaningful time together.

Christina, I empathize. Not with the whole not-being-close-to-your-dad thing, because Brian Sullivan and I are pretty tight. I'm talking about the "Who's your Daddy" pullover that Ronald's sporting.

Allow me to have a flashback. It was my junior year in college, and my Dad, in town for Dad's weekend, attempted to purchase a shirt that oh-so-cleverly played on the Got Milk? campaign. How? By replacing "milk" with OSU's mascot.

It said:
Got beaver?

I said:
No. Not near me. Not ever.

Christina: Only you can stop your dad from wearing inappropriate T-shirts. Then, we're all winners. Good luck.