Thursday 12/20

BASKETBALL--Catch a glimpse of the NBA's future at the four-day high school basketball tournament: Gravity-defying Carmello Anthony and power-slamdunker Sani Ibrahim are both on the same Virginia high school team--and already considered ripe for the big time. Our own hotshot squad from the Jefferson High team squares off against them, as well as some of the best ballplayers in the country, in this pre-season national tournament. PB

Memorial Coliseum, 797-9600, www.rosequarter.com for schedule, Wed-Sat, $6.50-$11.50


Friday 12/21

STONER FLICK--Okay, it might sound like a dopehead thing to do, but... If you start playing Dark Side of the Moon on the third roar of the MGM lion before the Wizard of Oz, the album plays like a perfect soundtrack--with pot or without. Admire this wonder among friends over a Red Bull and Jäegermeister (for better or for worseanother of the world's wonders). KS

Berbati's Pan, 231 SW Ankeny, 248-4579, 9 pm, $3

MUSIC--There's such honest pleasure in a little indie folk/pop (especially the non-cheesy kind). Lead singer Colin Meloy of the Decemberists writes epic songs in the tradition of old school folk writing, and now he should have an extra lot to write about, as he just returned from an epic trip to Russia. After hearing them, you might just want to take a nice, pastoral stroll through an apple orchard. KD w/ Urban Legends, Little Wings

Blackbird, 3728 NE Sandy Blvd, 282-9949, 9 pm, $5


Saturday 12/ 22

DANCE--And you thought there was no place to dance in Portland... Check out the new weird venue run by the Portland Art Collective that changes its name nightly and has a HUGE dance floor. Tonight it's called Better Off Dead and is hosting '80s DJ Makeout King, who's playing Arcadia, Oingo Boingo, Dead Kennedys, the Cramps. And don't worry fellow drunks, they'll have booze and food to refresh you after your furious dancing.

Better Off Dead, 331 NE Hancock, 9 pm, $5

MUSIC--You know how sometimes you have to watch two sucky bands before you see the good one? That is absolutely not the case with this show. Bozart's tight instru-metal rules. Dilute's explosive fluttering rock sound is amazing (and their vocalist is compellingly freakish), and 31 Knots play rock that's forlorn and tough simultaneously--they're definitely not your average Joes! KS

Blackbird, 3728 NE Sandy, 282-9949, 9 pm, $5


Sunday 12/23

RHYTHM--Need some good rhythms to pull you out of the dreadful winter slump? Before you start popping the Prozac, try the conscious, jazzy hiphop beats of Blak Scienz Tribe (who are so engaging, they once had a tough crowd of indie rockers participating enthusiastically in a chorus of call-and-response. They will literally make you feel good.) and the laid-back soul grooves of Big Yeah. It's clinically proven that it's safer to reap happiness from dancing than from swallowing a bunch of meds. See Music pg 17. JS w/ Neon Brown; Blackbird, 3728 NE Sandy, 282-9949, 9 pm, $5


Monday 12/24

LIGHTS--The Grotto is this tall old building that looks like a monastery, and is one of the prettiest places in Portland--and now, it's covered in 250,000 lights. And not only that, they have a petting zoo--special for animal enthusiasts of all ages. C'mon, have some damn Christmas spirit, will you? KS

Grotto, 85th and Sandy Blvd, 5-9:30 pm (through the 30th), $6


Tuesday 12/25

FILM RELEASES--The Messiah got gold, frankincense, and myrrh on his birthday, and we get four new blockbusters today! Kevin Spacey stars in The Shipping News. Will Smith takes on the ego of Ali. This year's Sundance winner, In the Bedroom, and Imposter--a sci-fi thriller about a man accused of being an alien--all hit the screens. PB

See Film Times, page 47


Wednesday 12/26

ART--"Whimsey," the group exhibit at Elizabeth Leach Gallery, shouldn't be missed. The astute crew at the downtown venue have put together a fantastic group of national and regional artists and their colorful serene paintings. Includes Portland art stars M.K. Guth and Horatio Hubg-Yan Law. KE

Elizabeth Leech Gallery, 207 SW Pine, 224-0521, 10:30-5:30 pm

POETRY SLAM--Many people are inclined to drift off to sleep from reading the words "poetry" and "slam" in the same sentence. But tonight, you'll be wide awake, when the lyrics spit are backed up by the hiphop beats of DJ Opus X! I almost know for a fact (NOT from experience) that it is virtually impossible to read poetry in that stupid Burroughs voice while a rad DJ is backing you up. JS

Berbati's Pan, 231 SW Ankeny, 248-4579, 9pm, $3