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The Quirky Stories and Characters That Took Our Minds Off the Mayhem in 2017

This year’s "shiny things" were a welcomed respite from the news cycle.

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This article originally appeared in the December 2017 issue of Seattle magazine.

Check out the rest of our 2017 Year in Review package.

Poses like “downward-facing goat” were routine at the various goat yoga classes in the area, incorporating goats into a playful practice for yogis of all ages.

The world’s largest rubber duck, Mama Duck, made a splash into the Thea Foss Waterway for Tacoma’s Festival of Sail in June. Owned by Minnesota-based Draw Events, the oversize tub toy stands six stories tall and had no problem posing for pictures.

Sheridan Martin, a design technologist at Amazon, used her talent to create the Amazon Sphere dress, a frock made of fabric, cardstock and wood, inspired by the geodesic architecture of the new Amazon Spheres buildings.

Livestreams from Woodland Park Zoo broadcast views of tiger, bear and bat exhibits, along with the popular Giraffe Cam, offering viewers a glimpse of mama giraffe Tufani’s new baby, Lulu.

Funko, the Everett-based retailer of Pop! and other licensed action figures and collectibles, opened its first brick-and-mortar store, which is filled with life-size statues, theme rooms and 17,000 square feet of merchandise, including figures such as Agent Dale Cooper from Twin Peaks and Clerks’ Kevin Smith, who visited on opening day and said, “You’re nobody unless you’ve been popped.”

We can’t get enough Seattle pet-stagrams, such as that for French bulldog Sir Charles Barklay (@barklaysircharles; 481,000 followers and counting), who explores the city in Seahawks gear and loves to take it easy.

Oh, and maybe you heard? Russell Wilson and Ciara had a baby, a little girl they named Sienna Princess, a fitting name for a royal Seattle couple. 

 

SENSORIUM Takes on Our Screen Addiction

SENSORIUM Takes on Our Screen Addiction

Dance, drag, and immersive art collide in an eight-week exploration of our phone-obsessed lives, with a few surprises along the way. 

What do drag queens, smartphone addiction, art installations, and an old luggage shop have in common?  According to longtime Seattle choreographer Alana O’Farrell Rogers, a lot.  “There’s no dead time anymore,” says Rogers, explaining how the proliferation of smartphones fills the empty spaces that once served as time for rest or connection. Where we snuggled…

Salt-N-Pepa on Breaking Barriers and Staying Power

Salt-N-Pepa on Breaking Barriers and Staying Power

Ahead of their performance at Seattle’s Museum of Pop Culture gala, the hip-hop pioneers talk about creative ownership, connecting with new generations, and the songs that still resonate.

The Museum of Pop Culture (MOPOP) will host its annual ICONS of Pop Culture Gala in Seattle on October 22, honoring five artists and institutions whose work has helped shape entertainment and culture.  This year’s honorees are martial arts and film legend Bruce Lee, fashion designer Jeremy Scott, the video game franchise Halo, hip-hop pioneers…

Studio Sessions: Christopher Paul Jordan

Studio Sessions: Christopher Paul Jordan

Drawing on childhood memories, neighborhood history, and salvaged materials, Christopher Paul Jordan’s latest show at Cornish’s Behnke Family Gallery explores how the past stays with us.

Start in the middle. It’s good advice for telling a story, and a way into Christopher Paul Jordan’s paintings. By the time you encounter them, their materials have already been something else, and who knows what they might move on to become. The Tacoma interdisciplinary artist works with salvaged objects, including screens, picture frames, canvas,…

Rearview Mirror: Wedding Bells, A Furniture Launch, and the Symphony’s New Look 

Rearview Mirror: Wedding Bells, A Furniture Launch, and the Symphony’s New Look 

Things I did, saw, ate, learned, or read in the past week (or so).

WEDDING BELLS I’ve been a bit absent from this column lately, but I think I have a pretty good excuse: I got married! It’s already been three weeks since my September 19 wedding, but I’m still reflecting on the magic of the day. My fiancé, well husband now (I can’t get used to saying it!),…