Exciting news! We’ve been selected to receive the Tacoma Arts Commission’s 2008 AMOCAT Arts Awards.  These awards recognize community members who make a special contribution to the local arts scene. The “Arts Patron” award went to us for our investment in glass art (about 45 artists are represented at our hotel) and for us making our special hotel a museum of sorts. The awards ceremony will take place at the Art at Work Opening Celebration on Oct. 29 at the Tacoma Art Museum. The evening will also feature live music, poetry readings and munchies. Now, if someone could please tell me what “AMOCAT” stands for! (I get that it’s “Tacoma” spelled backwards, but isn’t it an acronym, too?)

–James

So, my family is talking about taking a trip to Tacoma to experience the Hotel Murano. Great idea. And even better news is that the whole family gets to go – including canine family member Daffy. The neighbors generously offered to dog-sit, but it was decided to bring him along for the ride. Their message to me was, “Thank you Provenance Hotels for the pet deal – you shine in my eyes!” Rumor has it that in Grandpa Dale’s bell desk (lower drawer/left side, to be exact) doggy treats can be found.

Dale

It may not have much art or opera, but it is an institution around here. And it’s no secret that I love going to the Met – the Metropolitan Market in the Proctor District of North Tacoma.  This time of year, Tony my friend in the produce section, always has a sharp knife ready to slice some delicious apple samples for us and for the “small folks in the carts.” The grapes are very tasty too and I make sure to grab a handful when we head up there. Check out the bagel folks, too! We’re talking fresh and good!

Dale

Okay. It’s pumpkin season. Time for pumpkin pie, pumpkin bread, roasted pumpkin seeds, etc. and ad nauseum. I think I’ve found, hands down (and glasses up), the best use of pumpkin this season: the Pumpkin Martini. With props to About.com, here’s the drill:

Ingredients:
1/2 oz Sylk Cream Liqueur
2 oz vanilla vodka
1/2 oz pumpkin liqueur or pumpkin spice syrup
Cinnamon stick for garnish

Preparation:
Pour the Sylk Liqueur and vodka into a shaker filled with ice.
Shake well.
Add the pumpkin liqueur or syrup.
Shake again.
Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.
Garnish with a cinnamon stick.

Am I right or am I right? I think I’ll drop by our lobby bar and see if Deborah can whip this one up – for you, sadly not for employees like me.

Cheers,

–James

Just in time to add a bit of Grinch to the already shaky upcoming holiday season, Thomas Friedman’s new book, “Hot, Flat and Crowded” tells us just how bad things are, in his humble opinion. Written, perhaps, for an intended audience of Business Class travelers, Friedman talks about the environmental and economic impact of what he calls the “Energy-Climate Era,” pointing to a solution that could well be our only hope. I picked up my copy at global retail giant Costco (which is weathering the economic crisis quite nicely, thank you very much ) and loved every bit of the irony. Glad to see that we’re doing our part, here in T-Town! (See James’ post above.)

–Dale

Gallery Madera is putting on an exhibition that should cause visitors to rethink the notion of waste and recycling. Dubbed re-ART, the show features artwork made entirely of, well, trash. These “rethinking” waste is almost a given. Still, there’s a lot of work to do. And if you’re not up to it yourself, why not leave some of your castoffs with an artist friend and see whether he or she can spin gold from garbage. As an added benny, 30% of gross sales will be donated to the Tacoma Food Co-op and the Sierra Club Zero Waste Committee. Re-ART runs from October 18 – November 29.  Details at www.gallerymadera.com.

–James

Every city worth its sense of place has a commission to preserve historic buildings. And, over the years, definitions of architectural merit change and evolve as one style displaces a previous trend. Our own hotel was once derided as a Cold War-era eyesore, but very smart designers have re-imagined it into a true landmark. With that it mind, it was fascinating to read Exit 133 ask the question: “Which [Tacoma] building do you want brought down and what’s your justification for such a selection?” The answers they gave were very interesting – and it looks like they’ve left commenting open for you to weigh in with your choice for the swing of the wrecking ball.

–Dale

The Brazilians have a word for it. Saudade. It describes the feeling of longing or sadness for something lost, like one’s homeland in times of war or natural disaster. It’s no wonder that, as a culture that doesn’t naturally cozy up to such dark feelings, we don’t have an English-language equivalent. Saudade is found in Portuguese Fado music, Native American chants, the Brazilian samba along with its jazzed-up nephew bossa nova and, of course, African-American blues. Tacoma artist Lorraine Toler has tapped into that sense of longing. During the Japanese occupation of Korea in the 1940’s, her mother was forced, at age 12, to flee and soon found herself alone in Seoul. She never saw her family again. Some time later, she gave birth to Lorraine, who grew up never knowing the large family her mother had come from. All she had were a handful of memories that her mother retained from her childhood. Lorraine’s series of paintings on show at Tacoma Art Place aims to scrabble together a coherent story from those meager recollections. These works’ poignant drama stems from what is left out as much from what is actually portrayed.

–Dale

The fashionisti at Nordstrom know a lot about retail. Reports are rolling in that they also know a thing or two about how to party. Just a few days ago, Nordstrom reopened at the Tacoma Mall, adding 4,000 square feet to its already-huge retail space. And to celebrate, they threw a gala benefit for the Tacoma Art Museum and the Museum of Glass. Worthy causes, both. And now those two institutions have $85,000 that they didn’t have before. If you weren’t there, you can see how the festivities went by checking out the Weekly Volcano’s Flickr page.

–James

I feel so transgressive placing an exclamation point smack dab in the middle of a sentence. But here goes. If you’re looking to slake your wine thirst in public, Cork! is a very good place to do so. There. I did it. Still, I feel a little unsure about the punctuation. What is its point? Does Cork! warn about the possibility of errant, airborne champagne stoppers? Is it a command? A new expletive? Whatever the case, reports are coming in that Cork! is a lovely place to spend the evening, sipping wine by the bottle, glass or two-ounce taste and munching on small plates of food. And the friendly staff leaves all pretense at the door. In the sometimes snooty wine world, that is definitely something to shout about.

–James