cascadia REPORTING FROM THE HEART OF CASCADIA SKAGIT*WHATCOM*ISLAND*LOWER B.C. 2/20/08 :: 08.03 :: FREE AMY GOODMAN, P. 6 MOUNTAIN MADNESS, P. 14 BOAT FEST, P. 17 NU UDES ON PAR ADEPAGE 18 WOODEN WINGS: PUNK-SPIKED FOLK TUNES, P. 20 OSCAR OMENS: GOING FOR THE GOLD, P. 24 EXXON AFTERMATH: PAYING FOR A CRUDE CRIME, P.8 2 CASCADIA WEEKLY #8.03 2.20.08 DO IT 3 MAIL 4 VIEWS 6 CURRENTS 8 GET OUT 14 WORDS 16 STAGE 17 ART 18 MUSIC 20 FILM 24 CLASSIFIEDS 28 FOOD 34 Now every 15minutes SunsetSquare,BellisFairandWhatcomCommunityCollege betweendowntown,SunnylandSquare,BarkleyVillage, WTA’s expanded WTA’s GOLD LINE: Experience the power of the cascadia FEMALE FUNNY BONE WHEN 34 A FEW GOOD WOMEN FOOD dominate the stage at the Upfront 28 28 Theatre Feb. 22-23. Stay up late Saturday for a special A glance at what’s happening this week midnight show CLASSIFIEDS 24 02.20.08 FILM WEDNESDAY 20 ON STAGE Jim Allen: 8pm, Underground Coffeehouse, WWU MUSIC Gypsy: 7:30pm, Mount Baker Theatre WORDS 18 Sonny Boy: 7pm, Village Books ART Spoken Word Wednesday: 8-10pm, Bellingham Public Market 17 02. .08 21 STAGE THURSDAY ON STAGE 16 Fool For Love: 7:30pm, Black Box Theatre, WCC Stick to Glue: 7:30pm, Lincoln Theatre, Mount WORDS Vernon A Streetcar Named Desire: 7:30pm, Claire vg Thomas Theater, Lynden 14 PIANO MAN will Stepping Out: 7:30pm, Anacortes Community WAYNE HORVITZ Theatre be joined by a gaggle of other jazz musicians Good, Bad, Ugly: 8pm, Upfront Theatre for a “Sweeter Than the Day” concert Feb. 24 GET OUT MUSIC at the American Museum of Radio 8 Sonny Boy: 6pm, Community Food Co-op WORDS Carol V. Davis: 7pm, Village Books CURRENTS VISUAL ARTS 02.23.08 Rain Writers Exhibit: 11am-2pm, Village Books 02.25.08 FILM 6 Human Rights Film Festival: Today through March SATURDAY Whatcom Creek Scrolls Talk: 3pm, Mindport MONDAY 1, Bellingham Exhibits ON STAGE ON STAGE VIEWS Charity Drag Show: 7pm, Performing Arts Center, BOAT Festival: 7pm, Bellingham Theatre Guild WWU 02.24.08 4 02.22.08 Fool For Love: 7:30pm, Black Box Theatre, WCC WORDS A Streetcar Named Desire: 7:30pm, Claire vg SUNDAY Open Mic: 7pm, Village Books MAIL FRIDAY Thomas Theater, Lynden Poetry Night: 8:30pm, Fantasia Espresso Evita: 7:30pm, McIntyre Hall, Mount Vernon 3 ON STAGE ON STAGE A Few Good Women: 7:30pm, 9:30pm, Midnight, 3 Benefi t Show: 1:30pm, Upfront Theatre VISUAL ARTS Jon Reep: 7pm and 9:30pm, Skagit Valley Casino Upfront Theatre A Streetcar Named Desire: 2pm, Claire vg Thomas WAG Meeting: 7pm, Bellingham Public Library DO IT Fool For Love: 7:30pm, Black Box Theatre, WCC DO IT Too Beautiful: 8pm, Van Zandt Community Hall Theater, Lynden A Streetcar Named Desire: 7:30pm, Claire vg Stepping Out: 8pm, Anacortes Community Theatre Thomas Theater, Lynden Evita: 2pm, McIntyre Hall, Mount Vernon Evita: 7:30pm, McIntyre Hall, Mount Vernon 08 MUSIC DANCE 02.26.08 A Few Good Women: 7:30pm and 9:30pm, Upfront .20. Choir Festival: 1pm, Assumption Parish 2 Theatre Square Dance: 6pm, YWCA Ballroom Stepping Out: 8pm, Anacortes Community Theatre TUESDAY WORDS MUSIC .03 The Poet As Art: 7:30pm, Lucia Douglas Gallery ON STAGE 8 Whatcom Symphony Orchestra: 3pm, Mount Baker # MUSIC BOAT Festival: 7pm, Bellingham Theatre Guild Luther Schutz, Kendall Flint: 7:30pm, Firehouse Theatre Performing Arts Center COMMUNITY Sweeter Than the Day: 4pm, American Museum Open House: 10am-1pm, Matthei Place of Radio DANCE Tango Tuesday: 6pm, Leopold Crystal Ballroom COMMUNITY Psychic Fair: 1-5pm, Bellingham Public Library Karan Casey Band: 7:30pm, Lincoln Theatre, Mount Vernon Tech Expo: 10am-6pm, Viking Union, WWU GET OUT WORDS Fun Run: 8am, Clayton Beach Parking Lot GET OUT Molly Gloss: 7pm, Village Books Smelt Run: 10am, La Conner Middle School Mt. Baker Orchid Show: 9am-5pm, Skagit Valley CASCADIA WEEKLY TO GET YOUR EVENTS LISTED, SEND INFO Mt. Baker Orchid Show: 9am-5pm, Skagit Valley Gardens, Mount Vernon FOR MORE INFO SEE COMPLETE TO [email protected] Gardens, Mount Vernon LISTINGS STARTING ON PAGE 14 3 THIS ISSUE Contact 34 Cascadia Weekly: FOOD FOOD FIDEL CASTRO, 81, who de- fi ed 10 U.S. administrations E 360.647.8200 for nearly half a century, 28 28 Editorial resigned as president of Cuba Tuesday, two years Editor & Publisher: mail after falling ill and tem- Tim Johnson porarily ceding power. The E ext 260 CONTENTS CREDITS LETTERS CLASSIFIEDS Communist leader of the ô editor@ island nation of 11 million cascadiaweekly.com 24 survived repeated covert ops against his country, his Arts & Entertainment Editor: Amy Kepferle FILM beard and his life, and even managed to pitch a few in- Eext 203 ô calendar@ nings in the minor leagues. 20 20 “I’m not saying farewell,” cascadiaweekly.com Castro said. “I just want Music & Film Editor: to carry on fi ghting like a MUSIC Carey Ross soldier of ideas.” E ext 204 ô music@ 18 18 VIEWS & NEWS cascadiaweekly.com ART 4: Stupid question, smart answers Intern: Nancy Bruce 6: Texas is the new Florida Production 17 8: The spoils of oil Art Director: Jesse Kinsman 10: Guns and kilts ô graphics@ STAGE cascadiaweekly.com ART & LIFE Graphic Artist: 16 14: Climb every mountain Stefan Hansen 16: The pride of Mount Vernon ô stefan@ cascadiaweekly.com WORDS 17: Fringe on top Send All Advertising Materials To [email protected] 14 18: The naked truth 20: Musical boilermaker Advertising mind? The vagueness of your time in Bellingham?” Advertising GET OUT 24: Oscar madness Director: Marc McCoy STUPID CONTEST ignorance astounds, and only Or, “how many African- E360.201.9760 Wow. That was my initial serves to further prove that Americans do you know?” 8 REAR END ô marc@ response after reading a blurb this is indeed one the whitest Or even the cliché-busting, 28: Help Wanted, Services cascadiaweekly.com in your publication announc- places on Earth. “How many of your closest 29: Crossword, Free Will Astrology Marisa Papetti ing a “contest” for black his- To top things off, you print- friends are black?” CURRENTS E360.224.2387 tory month. After stating the ed this on the same page as a Or perhaps the question was 30: Wellness ô marisa@ obvious (the whiteness that letter from Robert Blake stat- meant in the sense of “what 6 32:This Modern World, Advice Goddess cascadiaweekly.com is Bellingham), you had the ing how he was offended by is the experience you’ve had, 33:Troubletown,Doug Ogg, Rentals, Frank Tabbita temerity to ask said crackers some ventriloquist entitled white person, that comes clos- VIEWS Bulletin Board E 360.739.2388 about their “blackest experi- “Bad Taste.” One can only est to what it must be like to ô frank@ ence.” Seriously? As a black hope this was just a glaring be African-American?”—as if 34: Cooking with Carter cascadiaweekly.com 4 man, I found myself wonder- oversight by the editor. Re- non-African-Americans could 4 Nicki Oldham ing aloud what qualifi es a gardless, check yourself. possibly know what it is like 360.929.6662 MAIL MAIL E MAIL ô nicki@ black experience. —Guinness D. Milligan, to be African-American. CASCADIA cascadiaweekly.com What is it you’re asking ex- Bellingham Of course racial differ- 3 Distribution actly? Are you asking me what What is your “blackest ex- ences exist, but to presume ©2007 CASCADIA WEEKLY (ISSN 1931-3292) is published each Wednesday by I experience everyday? Are you perience?” The question is that someone of another race DO IT Cascadia Newspaper Company LLC. Direct all correspondence to: Cascadia Weekly David Cloutier, Robert trying to ascertain whether absurd. Surely no white per- thinks of himself as being at PO Box 2833 Bellingham WA 98227-2833 | Phone/Fax: 360.647.8200 Bell, JW Land & As- [email protected] white folk favor licorice over son can answer it, if indeed variance with some supposed Though Cascadia Weekly is distributed free, please take just one copy. Cascadia sociates 08 Weekly may be distributed only by authorized distributors. Any person removing ô distro@ Twizzlers? Are you suggest- it even has any meaning. And experiential norm would be papers in bulk from our distribution points risks prosecution .20. SUBMISSIONS: Cascadia Weekly welcomes freelance submissions. Send cascadiaweekly.com ing blackness is a state of surely no African-American massively egocentric at best. 2 material to either the News Editor or A&E Editor. Manuscripts will be could answer the question, The question is as impon- returned of you include a stamped, self-addressed envelope. To be Letters considered for calendar listings, notice of events must be received in Send letters to letters@cas- for it presupposes degrees of derable as asking the syntac- .03 writing no later than noon Wednesday the week prior to publication. 8 cadiaweekly.com. Keep letters # Photographs should be clearly labeled and will be returned if accompa- separation between experi- tically grating: “What is your shorter than 300 words. nied by stamped, self-addressed envelope. LETTERS POLICY: Cascadia Weekly reserves the right to edit letters for length and ence per se (authentic, neu- most experience?” cascadia content. When apprised of them, we correct errors of fact promptly and courteously. REPORTING FROM THE HEART OF CASCADIA SKAGIT WHATCOM ISLAND LOWER B.C. tral, “white” experience?) and —Brad Howard, Bellingham * * * In the interests of fostering dialog and a community forum, Cascadia Weekly does 2/20/08 :: 08.03 :: FREE GONE not publish letters that personally disparage other letter writers. Please keep your AMY GOODMAN, P.