Features
It goes by the Latin name Homarus americanus. It can stretch to over two feet long and weigh 40 pounds. An Atlantic-dwelling, herring-munching monster, it's the heaviest arthropod on the planet. Forget Jurassic Park, this spiny devil originated during the Cambrian explosion a half-billion years ago. Pretty intimidating, right? Now
Stage
I'm absolutely certain that there's a way to make a musical version of The Addams Family that lives up to the source material's macabre inscrutability and iconic style, but I've unfortunately yet to see one. The Addams Family musical - with a book by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elise, and
Stage
Visitors to legendary comic Emo Philips' Wikipedia page learn in its first sentence that Philips is a master of the paraprosdokian. That was a new one on us, too. A paraprosdokian, from the Greek for "counter to expectations," is a witty remark in which the last phrase is a surprise
South Sound Cinema
At the best of times, being a lover of film provides an unending journey of discovery, sifting through the hundreds of films released each year in search of gems. This feedback loop of sorting and viewing and discarding and embracing new sights and voices has been reinforced in recent years
News Front
Tactical Tailor was the brainchild of Army veteran Logan Coffey. After his first week of training while stationed in Hawaii, Coffey realized that his Army-issued gear needed a lot of modifications and changes. He made it his personal mission to update and modify his issued gear so it would be
News Front
Chad Mackay has always had a profound admiration for serving those who serve us. So much so, that even with the 20th anniversary of his family's famed Seattle restaurant, El Gaucho, on the horizon, Mackay wanted to somehow give back to the community. El Gaucho has partnered once again with
News Front
Team. That's the one word Lt. Gen. Stephen Lanza used when asked to describe the just ended Association of the United States Army's annual meeting. "Team," said the commander of I Corps, Joint Base Lewis-McChord. The AUSA 2006 Annual Meeting and Exposition took place from the 3rd through the 5th this week at
News
On Aug. 29, 1969, things weren't looking good for Gary Birka and Rick Adler. The two men were fighting for their lives in Vietnam, surrounded by North Vietnamese Army troops. Mortars and small arms fire tore into their platoon's position as they fought for survival. Of their 25-man element, all
Archives
I ran into a friend from an art class at the University of Washington, Tacoma. I took the class because I needed an art credit for my minor in education. Burk Ketcham took the class to workshop some socially conscious art that he was creating for United for Peace, Pierce
Archives
I rarely toss the word discrimination around, but this week I have to. Here in the United States of America we the people are often discriminated against due to race, class, gender, religion, sexual orientation and so on. But I have one more category to add to that list that’s been getting
People Rule
When asked, individuals who are thinking of joining the military will provide a number of reasons — economics, they need a job; to build a better future by having the military pay for college, so they can get a job; tradition…their family members may have served. When you
Military Life
A little over a year ago, an unwanted diagnosis set local military spouse, Alyssa Luczak, on a whole new career path. Luczak, who is a Registered Behavioral Technician at L.E.A.P.S. and Beyond, Inc., is the mother of three boys: Nathaniel (age 9), Colin (age 7) and Peyton (age 5). When
Military Life
"Coffee's for closers only." So said malevolent real estate agent Blake (Alec Baldwin) in 1992's Glengarry Glen Ross. That's the entirety of my real estate knowledge. And forget about VA loans; I'm not a veteran. I'm completely clueless, or at least I was ... Last Wednesday, I attended Veterans National Lending
Arts
The annual juried art exhibition at Tacoma Community College is usually a sampling of much of the best art created by South Sound artists. There is always admirable art to be seen, and this year is no exception; there are works worthy of admiration by such artists as Lois Beck,
Music
Fame can have a drastic effect on anyone that approaches its proximity. Some people slam up against brick walls trying to capture fame, and some retreat into the shadows in an effort to avoid it. There are artists that languish in fame's thick sludge for decades, their limbs atrophying, growing
Stage
The Hound of the Baskervilles at Lakewood Playhouse is not the spooky version of the story by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle but a spoof on it by Stephen Canny and the British comedy troupe Peepleykus (pronounced people like us). It is a Monty Python-style skit expanded to about two-and-a-half hours
Travel
The month of September is flying by, and that can only mean one thing: It is almost time for Oktoberfest celebrations in the South Sound to begin! So dust off your favorite Bavarian clothing and help kick off the fall season with food, drinks and entertainment. On Saturday, Oct. 1,
Stage
Tacomans already know Creative Colloquy as a monthly literary event, two-going-on-three annual print publications, and a thriving website (CreativeColloquy.com) full of locally-written poetry and prose. Last fall, founder Jackie Fender added a pick-and-choose "lit crawl" to Colloquy's already-impressive roster. It returns this year to spread stories and other live entertainment
