If you want your habit of drinking good beer to support a good cause, head down to Borderlands Brewing Company tonight to help out the Tucson Fire Foundation from 4-7 p.m. tonight.

In honor of tonight's event, Borderlands is unveiling "Smoke & Irons," their new Scottish ale, brewed with Mesquite-smoked grains.

Greyhound Soul will also be there tonight, playing tunes throughout the evening.

A percentage of proceeds from beer sales, as well as donations at the event, will benefit TFF.

Plastic bags are ubiquitous, wrapping our produce, carrying our groceries, lining our trash cans, and performing just about every function one can expect from thin films of linked up polymers. But is there a cost to these bags that we so often toss out, often without a second thought? That question drives Jeb Berner in "Bag It."

From The Loft Cinema:

"A powerful and deceptively simple movie that is sure to change the way you look at everyday objects. I didn't expect a movie about plastic bags to change my life in such a deep and profound way. Gripping, funny, intelligent and sure to change your life." - Louie Psihoyos, Director of 'The Cove'

Americans use 60,000 plastic bags every five minutes, disposable bags that they throw away without much thought. But where is “away?” Where do the bags and other plastics end up, and at what cost to the environment, marine life and human health?

Bag It follows “everyman” Jeb Berrier as he navigates our plastic world. Jeb is an average American who decides to take a closer look at our cultural love affair with plastics. Jeb’s journey in this documentary film starts with simple questions: Are plastic bags really necessary? What are plastic bags made from? What happens to plastic bags after they are discarded? What he learns quickly grows far beyond plastic bags.

Bag It makes it clear that it is time for a paradigm shift. Join Jeb as he meets with people who fought the American Chemistry Council lobby that spent more than a million dollars fighting the Seattle bag fee; as he interviews a man sailing the Pacific in a boat made of plastic to raise awareness about our ocean’s health; as he gets tested to determine the levels of chemicals in his own body; and as he welcomes his baby into the world, a world he hopes we can leave with a little less plastic and in a little better shape for the next generation.

“Think about it—why would you make something that you’re going to use for a few minutes out of a material that’s basically going to last forever, and you’re just going to throw it away? What’s up with that?” — Jeb Berrier

Watch the trailer below the jump.

MOCA Tucson's book-club series, Fear & Loathing on the Campaign Trail ’12: Arts, Politics, Media, will be meeting tonight to discuss Thomas Frank's What's the Matter with Kansas.

And I'll be there to moderate the discussion.

Hank Stephenson talked to Anne-Marie Russell about the book club for TW a few weeks ago:

And the next book?

(What's the Matter With Kansas?) is really about the aesthetic of demographics, and how life becomes lifestyle in the science of polling and demographics—how people get identified as soccer moms or XYZ, and how life turns into lifestyle and gets marketed as lifestyle. It's very much an aesthetic issue in terms of ... identifying and categorizing people's ideas about who they are. We all have the shorthand of the Volvo-driving, latte-drinking liberal elite, or whatever sort of visual image you get from the things that you consume or the activities that we pursue—that's sort of a visual composite of a type of person. The science of polling has become so sophisticated, and all of our consumer habits and Internet trolling habits are tracked, and we have so much more massive amounts of data that put people in different microgroups based on their habits that then get articulated in visual form.

How will the night play out?

You know how book clubs go. There's wine and beer; I always say they're wine clubs with a few discussions of books. But we had really, really wonderful conversations and discussions with the two that we've already had. It's been really inspiring and fun and has given us a sense that citizens are keen to get together in public spaces and discuss these sorts of things ... and (like) having a place to discuss how we've been responding to and interacting with (campaign materials and) really deconstructing how these symbols are being put together to tell various stories—and how we all feel about that. So it has been a really productive and rich and interesting set of conversations, and I'm really excited that (Jim) Nintzel is going to be moderating the next two meetings.

Sure, most left-leaning political junkies will want to watch Obama tonight, but the book club meets at 5:30 and we'll go for about an hour, which should give you plenty of time to get home to see the president's big speech. Come on by for some beer and wine. Details here.

• Courtesy of the Loft Cinema
• Max and His Big Gong.

Max Cannon, who has been the host for seven years, says, “People can submit films here, and since we don't pick and choose which ones we show, filmmakers can get a great honest critique on a film no matter what.”

The films are not pre-screened, and there is only time for the first 15 submissions to be shown.

Even if you aren’t a filmmaker, the show is very entertaining for the audience. The way it works: Each film will be played for three minutes, and then stopped. If the audience is unhappy with the film, the gong will be struck. When the gong is struck, the filmmaker has lost their chance at winning the month's contest, and the next film will start.

“We get films ranging from great to terrible, so comedy plays a big part...” says Cannon. It's obvious that many filmmakers do take it seriously, though, since making a film takes a lot of effort.

This is a great way for a filmmaker to experience how an audience reacts to their film. The best filmmaker at the First Friday Shorts monthly event collects a prize of $200—lus, a guaranteed spot in the annual Golden Gong Awards, which is a showing of all of the monthly winners from that year. That winner is awarded $1,000 and receives a trophy.

“First Friday Shorts is one of the most popular recurring events, always a big draw, guaranteed,” says Loft program director, Jeff Yanc.

So come check it out! The next showing is at 9 p.m., Friday, Sept. 7, at the Loft Cinema, 3233 E. Speedway Blvd. Tickets are $6, or $5 for Loft Cinema members. Visit the Loft's website for more information.

OK, so it's not directly Ronstadt-related, but it's Mariachi Aztlan de Pueblo High, who will be performing songs from Linda Ronstadt's Canciones de Mi Padre tonight at the TAMMIES!

Come to the Tucson Area Music Awards; doors open at 6 p.m. TONIGHT at the Rialto Theatre. This year, we're paying tribute to the Ronstadt family all night!

The performers are the aforementioned Mariachi Aztlán de Pueblo High School, BK Special (which features Bobby Kimmel, onetime bandmate of Linda Ronstadt in the Stone Poneys), Club Philharmonico (the original Club Philharmonico was founded by Federico), Ronstadt Generations (as you can see above, featuring Michael J. Ronstadt and his two sons, Michael G. and Petie) and a grand finale featuring Howe Gelb, David Slutes, Chuck Wagon and the Wheelchairs, Nancy McCallion, LeeAnne Savage, Sabra Faulk, Emilie Marchand, Kevin Pakulis and Amy Langley, and Katherine Byrnes.

Best of all? The show is free. See you there.

The Great Crush Festival this Saturday, Sept. 8, boasts quite a line up.

There will be beer by Dragoon Brewing Co. and Old Bisbee Brewing Company, and wine by Arizona Hops and Vines. Several food trucks are also planning to attend—including the mighty Jamie's Bitchen' Kitchen—and there will be a petting zoo and homemade sodas for the kids.

It all takes place at the wonderful and sometimes gloriously weird winery Arizona Hops and Vines down in Sonoita. If it sounds like your sort of thing, there's more information over here.

(Update! We've just been told Old Bisbee Brewing Company will not be attending the festival after all.)

Come to the Tucson Area Music Awards this Wednesday; doors open at 6 p.m. at the Rialto Theatre. This year, we're paying tribute to the Ronstadt family all night!

The performers are Mariachi Aztlán de Pueblo High School, BK Special (which features Bobby Kimmel, onetime bandmate of Linda Ronstadt in the Stone Poneys), Club Philharmonico (the original Club Philharmonico was founded by Federico), Ronstadt Generations (as you can see above, featuring Michael J. Ronstadt and his two sons, Michael G. and Petie) and a grand finale featuring Howe Gelb, David Slutes, Chuck Wagon and the Wheelchairs, Nancy McCallion, LeeAnne Savage, Sabra Faulk, Emilie Marchand, Kevin Pakulis and Amy Langley, and Katherine Byrnes.

Best of all? The show is free. See you there.

Remember the Stone Poneys?

Come to the Tucson Area Music Awards this Wednesday; doors open at 6 p.m. at the Rialto Theatre. This year, we're paying tribute to the Ronstadt family all night

The performers are Mariachi Aztlán de Pueblo High School, BK Special (which features Bobby Kimmel, onetime bandmate of Linda Ronstadt in the Stone Poneys), Club Philharmonico (the original Club Philharmonico was founded by Federico), Ronstadt Generations (featuring Michael J. Ronstadt and his two sons, Michael G. and Petie) and a grand finale featuring Howe Gelb, David Slutes, Chuck Wagon and the Wheelchairs, Nancy McCallion, LeeAnne Savage, Sabra Faulk, Emilie Marchand, Kevin Pakulis and Amy Langley, and Katherine Byrnes.

Best of all? The show is free. See you there.

If you have unused or expired prescription medicine taking up space in your bathroom cabinet, don't pour them down the drain or flush them.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, "Some medicines, vitamins and other supplements poured down the drain or flushed down the toilet may pass through wastewater treatment plants. They may enter lakes, rivers and streams which are often used as sources for community drinking water supplies. Water treatment plants are generally not equipped to routinely remove medicines and supplements."

This Saturday, Sept. 1, from 8 a.m. to noon, the Tucson/Pima County Household Hazardous Waste Program and the Pima County Sheriff's Department are sponsoring a medicine collection event at Eastside City Hall, 7575 E. Speedway Blvd. There's no charge to drop off materials. You can also drop off paint and other household chemicals. More info below:

In addition to old medications, you may also bring paint or other household chemicals for collection. Accepted materials include: automotive fluids, auto and rechargeable batteries from electronics equipment, toxic cleaning products, fluorescent lamps, paints, solvents, lawn and garden products, and computer equipment. The program only accepts materials generated in homes—no commercially generated materials are accepted. More information is available on-line here or by calling ES Customer Service at 791-3171.

School has started; it's hot as hell; and you don't think you can break away from the office. But if you're up for a pirate-themed way to help take care of local businesses (and if you've paid attention to the rate with which places are closing up shop, you should be) give this a shot:

As part of our commitment to local businesses and the community, Bookmans Entertainment Exchange is a member of Local First Arizona. Their ShiftAZ campaign encouraging shopping at local businesses has inspired us to use our noggins, crank up our creativity and find a fun way to support other companies while bringing you added value via our Bookmans Treasure Hunt: The Search for Local Business Booty in Tucson.

All aboard me mateys because we have set sail for adventure and prizes that even a scallywag wouldn't hawk. You won't be using the stars or a map to find your way to the hidden treasure; you'll use the clues from @BookmansTucson via Twitter. This month's treasure trove consists of a B.O.B coupon, a $40 gift certificate to Main Gate Square (can only be used at participating stores), a cinch pack and a special goodie from a local business. We have hidden this booty at an undisclosed location. There is a limit of one prize package per group and only five to be discovered. The three clues will be twittered on Tuesday, Aug. 28 and you will have until Friday, Aug. 31 to use your wits and locate the hidden treasure.

I don't think there are bonus points for being in pirate-themed garb, but if you're able to procure a prize pack while sporting privateer pantaloons, you'll earn a special place in my heart for the next day or so.