6-Pack of Things To Do: Wednesday July 29 2020

With endless days and long, masked nights, a 2020 South Sound summer has a limited number of activities. Peaks & Pints chosen some of the ones we think you really ought to try in our 6-Pack of Things To Do. Cheers!

MUSIC: Rod Cook performs at the Old Town Summer Concert Series virtually tonight. He’s a well-respected guitarist known for his stylistic versatility and soulful, melodic playing. A mainstay with folk/funk, Americana artist Laura Love in the 1990s, Cook began the guitar at the age of 9. Cook has backed up blues legend Taj Mahal as well as opened as a solo act for Todd Rundgren, Sonny Landreth, and Charlie Musslewhite. 6:30-8:15 p.m., Job Carr Cabin, Old Town Park, 2350 N. 30th St., Tacoma, photo credit: facebook.com/Rod.Cook

BEER FLIGHT: While the New England-style, or hazy, IPA is the most sought after beer style, it’s cousin, the juicy IPA, is gaining momentum as a close second choice. Why? Well, it’s all about the fruit. The term “juicy” refers to the aroma and taste of the beer — meaning it’s reminiscent of fruit juice, typically citrus or stone fruit. These flavors and aromas are primarily driven from fruit-forward hops such as Citra, Mosaic, Galaxy, Amarillo, and El Dorado. There isn’t a classic juicy IPA used as a standard, but there are many IPAs wearing “Juicy” in their name, which is the focus our to-go beer flight today, Peaks and Pints Pilot Program: Juicy IPAs On The Fly. 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Peaks & Pints, 3816 N. 26th St., Tacoma

HISTORY: The Chinese Reconciliation Park is part public park and part apology for the tragic expulsion of Tacoma’s Chinese residents in the late 1800s. The spaces of the park are beautiful, but also educational if you pause to read one of the plaques explaining what happened and why the Chinese population was so important to the city, despite how they were treated. While the park has a small footprint, it has a variety of terrain, from graveled gardens to rocky beachfront. It’s hands down one of the most beautiful places to sit and simply enjoy the surrounding scenery in Tacoma. 1741 N. Schuster Parkway, Old Town Tacoma, photo credit: Ray Schauweker

ART: As soon as the pandemic hit the Tacoma Art Museum launched TAM at Home to keep their exhibitions available for enrichment and learning, as well as to creativity alive via home art projects. Martin Blank’s “Current” is on display in the museum’s lobby for you to continue to enjoy in the TAM at Home center. We clicked on the TAM at Home button and learned the glass, reclaimed wood, and metal artwork wasn’t created by the professional assassin who is more articulate while discussing his kills with a shrink than while explaining to his high school sweetheart why he stood her up at the prom. Check it out for yourself! TAM at Home

ART: Alma Mater’s Milk Gallery is exhibiting the second annual installment of “Modern Womxn: An Exploration 2020” through August. Curated by Allison Bishins and Handmade PNW, the exhibit features womxn (cis and self-identifying) artists from the greater Tacoma area with informal and formal training, who are brand new to art or have been creating for a long time, some who are young and some who are elders. For a 30-minute viewing appointment, click here. Pictured: Elisa Peterson, “Ask Your Grandma, “Did you wear a bikini?”, enlarged and mounted 8 page zine from the collection: Ask Your Grandma, Alma Mater, 1322 S. Fawcett Ave., Tacoma

FARMERS MARKET: It’s Wednesday, which means Steilacoom residents hitch up their horse and wagons and yonder down to town for the afternoon farmers market. The Steilacoom Farmer’s Market is open to everyone with typical market fares, plus goods from The Bath House Co. and Wild Heart Sipping Vinegar, Sgt. Harts BBQ Sauce (pictured), as well as dinner by Lumpia Love, Griddlers Gourmet Grilled Cheeses, and Gypsy Doggs. 3-7 p.m., corner of Lafayette and Wilkes, Steilacoom