Well, it’s that time of year. The time when some of us get totally plastered and sing strange songs while others watch totally plaster New Yorkers singing silly songs on TV at 9 p.m.

But the rest of us will be whooping it up in downtown Tacoma at First Night. If you haven’t yet heard about the arts-based, family-friendly (ie alcohol-free) party for New Year’s Eve, let me clue you in: it’s part of an international chain of similar festivals, each totally local, and it used to happen a lot in T-Town. After a financially-induced hiatus, it came

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After a snow-delayed start, the holiday weekend turned into a Christmastime extravaganza at the Grand Cinema.

"We had our biggest weekend of the year," said Philip Cowan, executive director of Tacoma’s three-screen art house. From Friday through Sunday, the theater sold $16,729 worth of tickets, edging out 2008′s previous best, the weekend of Jan. 18-20, when patrons ponied up $16,510 to see "Atonement," "There Will Be Blood" and "Juno."

This year it was "Doubt," "Milk" and "Slumdog Millionaire" that kept the cash register humming. "Doubt," which stars Meryl Streep as a stern nun who suspects that the parish

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There are a few things that instantly bring out the 10-year-old boy in me: catching frogs, snowball fights and, of course, model trains.

I just can’t resist the little trestles, the miniature buildings, the wee people going about their Lilliputian lives.

That’s why I’m excited about the Washington State History Museum’s 13th Annual Model Train Festival opening Friday. There’ll be nine model train displays at the museum through Jan. 3. Check their website for details on related activities.

The museum also has the exhibition “The West the

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It was a year for superheroes. It was a year for some riveting documentaries. It was a year for pictures distinguished by truly memorable acting. It was a vintage year at the movies. For my money, the best of the best for 2008 were:

1. "The Dark Knight" The top-grossing movie of the year (at $530 million-plus) was also the best picture of the year. Dark, stirring and with Heath Ledger giving the performance of a too-short lifetime as The Joker, "Knight" proved once and for all that, done right, a movie based on a comic book can be

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I’ve just received another closure/cancellation notice – and again it’s from Seattle.

I’ve been trying to get updates from the Museum of Glass and Tacoma Art Museum tonight but their websites are quiet. Perhaps they plan on normal operations on Sunday.

If I decide to hit the roads tomorrow and head to an arts or entertainment venue I’m going to call first to make sure they’re open.

MEDIA ALERT

Frye Art Museum Closed Due to Weather

Sunday, December 21, 2008

WHAT: The Frye Art Museum is closed to the

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The Seattle Symphony has reconsidered. Here’s the latest:

Tonight’s Messiah Performance Cancelled



Seattle, WA – In the interest of safety, tonight’s 8:00pm performance of Handel’s Messiah has been cancelled due to worsening weather conditions.

Ticketholders for tonight’s performance should call the Seattle Symphony Ticket Office at (206) 215-4747 on Monday, December 22, between 10:00am and 6:00pm.

I’m in the newsroom this afternoon, covering Snowpocalypse. Even an arts editor is pressed in to duty on days like this.

I was expecting the whole Puget Sound A&E scene to shut down this weekend but found this in my in box:

WEATHER ADVISORY



Seattle Symphony’s Messiah Performances Will Continue As Planned



Seattle, WA – All performances of Handel’s Messiah will be performed this weekend at Benaroya Hall, regardless of inclement weather. Concertgoers are urged to plan accordingly for possible traffic delays.

Performances of the perennial favorite, conducted

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