Armed with good timing and the grace of an easy traffic day, bliss awaits you in the form of San Juan Islands tranquility. Getting there is half the fun (right?)—the other half, once you’re there, is all about taking it easy. Good thing there’s something about the islands that forces you to slow down and…

Arts in Nature FestivalOrganized by the Nature Consortium, this fest takes place at Camp Long in West Seattle and emphasizes “interaction rather than transaction” (translation: no vendor booths!). Wandering around the woods, participants will encounter live music (including headlining “eco-rockers” Cloud Cult), dance performances, art installations and a fun “museum of sound” staged in the…

COFFEE* DATE: Rick Araluce, lead scenic artist for Seattle Opera (see his set work in The Ring this month) and maker of tiny, haunting dioramas. His solo show, The Minutes, the Hours, the Days, opens at Bellevue Arts Museum on August 16 (bellevuearts.org).SCENE: Café Paloma in Pioneer Square, a sunny evening in JuneRICK’S ORDER: Beer….

The first thing you notice about Seattle cabaret band The Love Markets are the slips—black, lacy and worn by singer/keyboardist Angie Louise as well as the four esteemed male musicians behind her. “It was the perfect way to express our Weimar-inspired vibe and appear decadent, severe and totally absurd all at the same time,” Louise…

While talking with West Seattle writer Nicole Hardy about her new memoir, Confessions of a Latter-Day Virgin, I mention British installation artist Tracey Emin and her famously controversial piece consisting of a camping tent, on which she embroidered the names of 102 people she had “slept with” (32 in the sexual sense). Hardy, 41, whose…

!–paging_filter–pstrongMust Get Crabby/stronga href=”http://\/\/seattlemag.com/events/ballard-seafoodfest” target=”_blank”strongbrBallard SeafoodFest/strong/abr(7/13 to 7/14, times vary) — Celebrate crustaceans, mollusks and more at the 39th Annual Ballard SeafoodFest, a kid-friendly throwdown that features boatloads of tasty fishes, two stages of live music—including awesome bands Kithkin, Star Anna and Bobby Bare Jr.—a Ballard-based brew bonanza and, yes, a lutefisk eating contest./ppstrongMust Head…

We received a fax (really) the other day alerting us to this slightly weird, but pretty hilarious video of Macklemore touting the Lady Washington tall ship, which was where he filmed parts of his Can’t Hold Us music video. My fave part? Around 0:45 when he says “I was a baby pirate. A little urban…

!–paging_filter–pstrongMust Paddle/stronga href=” http://bit.ly/14NyPcd” target=”_blank”strongbrKayak Rentals at Golden Gardens/strong/abrBallard Kayak, a new rental and tour company, has hoisted its big blue tent on the south end of Golden Gardens Park to help you quench your thirst for recreation and Vitamin D. Outdoorsy types can stop by the beach outpost, rent a kayak ($25 per hour;…

Bertha the underground tunnel-boring machine began her slow march under Seattle this summer. She’s been a long time coming. The Nisqually earthquake hit in 2001 and did enough damage to the Alaskan Way Viaduct that it needed to be replaced, but it’s taken more than a decade to just get this far. The urgency of…

!–paging_filter–pa href=”http://www.ballardkayak.com/” target=”_blank”Ballard Kayaks/a, the company that offers kayak rentals and tours, has hoisted its big blue tent on the south end of the beach at Golden Gardens just in time to help you quench your recreation and Vitamin D needs. Outdoorsy types: Stop by BK’s beach outpost to rent a kayak ($25 per hour)…

!–paging_filter–p dir=”ltr”strongMust Whoop/stronga href=”http://bit.ly/15Gjlpy” target=”_blank”strongbr/strong/aa href=”http://www.seattlepride.org/” target=”_blank”strongPride Parade/strong/abrSunday (6/30, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.) — We’re swelling with pride over the historic U.S. Supreme Court vote striking down the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). Perfect timing, Ginsburg et al: LGBT (and straight!) revelers will flock to the sidewalks along 4th Avenue for the 39th annual…

Must RockThe Dandy WarholsFriday (6/21, 9 p.m.) — Portland’s 1990s alt-rock sensation The Dandy Warhols return to celebrate the recently remastered re-release of best-beloved album Thirteen Tales of Urban Bohemia (which this year, rather alarmingly, is 13 years old). Must ShootLong Shot 2013(6/21 to 6/22) — Anyone with a camera is encouraged to shoot his…

Must VisitBainbridge Island Museum of Art (BIMA) Grand OpeningBainbridge Island welcomes BIMA, its very own art and culture haven, focusing on contemporary work by artists from the Kitsap and Olympic peninsulas. Go for the museum’s striking architecture—a curve of tall windows sweeps visitors toward the entrance—and for its many opening exhibits, including work by Bainbridge…