April 2021
Fave Five
It’s time to rediscover all Seattle has to offer.
1. Get dressed it’s springtime in Seattle, where sunshine is a state of mind. So put on a bold, pastel printed Marimekko bucket hat from Pirkko of Finland, purveyors of modern iconic design. It’s a boutique filled with color, hidden in plain sight on First Avenue since 2010, just up from the Pike Place Market….
Heartbeat: Let’s Talk. Or Not.
Is conversation a lost art? The younger generation prefers texting over talking.
Welcome to my world! This is my first column (to be followed by others and podcasts). I spend a lot of time thinking about intimate relationships. If you’ve read any of my previous work as a professor at the University of Washington, or watched me on television, you know that I care about what keeps…
Fiction: The Windless City
A work of flash fiction set in Seattle in 2042
Editor’s note: Brenda Cooper is a Kirkland-based short-story writer, poet and futurist who has written 10 novels. Her most recent books are “Edge of Dark” and its sequel, “Spear of Light.” The former won the 2016 Endeavor Award for science fiction or fantasy by a Northwest author. In this piece of fiction, Cooper imagines a…
Mayor Bruce Harrell: Can He Save Our City?
New Mayor Bruce Harrell has an almost singular focus on uniting deep divisions within Seattle
“If there’s one thing I believe in, it is that there’s ‘one’ Seattle. in ‘one’ Seattle, we put in the work and we lead with humility, urgency and compassion.” New Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell wasted little time in tackling one of the city’s thorniest issues. Just 40 days after his swearing-in, Harrell signed an executive…
Five Backcountry Adventures
The backcountry ski season in Washington can last well into April
The rhythmic kick glide of skis on fresh early morning snow provides a beat against my pounding heart. Dawn breaks as I climb up the slope, the sound of semitrucks and commuter traffic roaring below me. I quicken my stride to crest the mountain top, hurrying to get one more lap before I’m off to…
Seattle’s Mushroom Queen
First, it was a cupcake empire and cannabis edibles.
Now, Jody Hall is focused on liquid mushrooms.
If there’s a trendy new culinary craze in Seattle, chances are Jody Hall is behind it. Hall, of course, founded Seattle’s iconic Cupcake Royale back in 2003. At the time, it was one of the first cupcake cafés west of New York City. She then became what “Money” magazine called “The Weed Queen of Washington”…
Every Car Has a Story: Columnist, Matt Bell
Start your engines and discover the passion among auto enthusiasts
Hello Seattle, and welcome to the first in a series of articles about people, cars and passion. For many, cars prompt an emotional reaction and whether or not you consider yourself a car person, everyone has a story or a vivid memory of one. Every Car Has A Story, and we will tell them here…
Books: ‘Seattle’s Streetcar Era’
Riding a streetcar in the 1930s was nothing like today
Seattle has a mixed history with transportation solutions. A new book, “Seattle’s Streetcar Era, An Illustrated History, 1884-1941,” details almost six decades of Seattle’s streetcars, from the 13 private companies that once ran streetcar lines to one of the nation’s first publicly-owned transportation systems. The author, Mike Bergman, is well-versed in both transportation and history….
A Career created by Design
Rocky Rochon’s keen eye for space and color has transformed everything from penthouses to townhomes. At age 67, he’s not done yet.
Rocky Rochon has tackled some of the West Coast’s thorniest design challenges, ranging from executive offices for Steve Jobs to Apple’s prototype Company Store to penthouse apartments for Seattle’s top entrepreneurs. His stellar career almost never happened. Rochon was laser-focused on earning a fast-tracked architecture degree at the University of Washington, doubling up his class…
One Couple’s Kitchen Quest
Living in the backyard. Climbing through windows. Here’s how one family made it work.
The idea to remodel their 1929 kitchen floated on the fringes of the imaginations of Nick O’Connell and Lisa Sowder for years, thoughts that bobbed to the surface only to be tossed aside by the sheer impracticality of it all. How could they, two busy professionals with three children and a dog, undertake a full-scale…
AIA Home of Distinction: Harmony with History
A creative remodel of an historic capitol hill condo results in a peaceful and intimate setting where old-world luxury meets a book lover’s retreat
Imagine owning enough books to fill Portland’s famous Powell’s Books and having to boil down your collection to a single 12-foot shelf. That was just one of many personal and technical challenges facing Carol Grossmeyer in her long quest to find a forever home. Grossmeyer and her husband grew Milwaukee-based Harry W. Schwartz Bookshops, founded…