May/June 2023
Summer of Swipe
A newly divorced mom recounts her first attempts at online dating
“Persians love white girls,” he said before kissing my clavicle. His assertion took me by surprise. The whole situation did. I couldn’t have imagined I’d be necking with a 28-year-old, part-time DJ as a 36-year-old all-the-time mom. How did I get here? A few months before, a wild Saturday night might have involved a babysitter…
No booze in Seattle? No problem
Seattle is a national leader in the booming nonalcoholic drink category
Kamp Social House in Madison Valley is alive on a Friday night. Customers pile up by the front door and politely squeeze past each other in the narrow path to the host stand, hoping to snag a table, but the place to be is on a bar stool, talking to bartenders Jeannie and Angela. Jeannie…
How to start the perfect fire
Make a deeper connection with nature by building a beautiful blaze
Blue and yellow flames burst haphazardly out of the dark, dancing like lightning bugs on a crystal-clear summer’s night. Sparks shoot over my head; the crackle and pop of the fire at my feet is a symphony orchestrated just for me. The power of fire is innate, part of our DNA since the beginning of…
Letter to Seattle: You must give to receive
St. Francis volunteer finds meaning in helping others
Letter to Seattle highlights good deeds and positive experiences in our region. This is a letter from volunteer Leigha Bone to St. Francis House, a Seattle nonprofit that helps clients who need clothing, toiletries, home goods, and more Dear St. Francis House, I am fortunate enough to have a loving family and close friends, but…
Silverdale’s Farmhouse Facelift
Farmhouse design has become a hot decorating trend. One in Silverdale posed a unique set of challenges.
Editor’s note: The homeowners asked that their last names not be used. Kirsten and Rick weren’t looking to make a statement in 2018 when they decided to move to Silverdale, a Kitsap peninsula community that catnaps around the northern yaw of Dyes Inlet. Their daughter had spotted a real estate ad with a blurry thumbnail…
Heartbeat: Showing Up
Be there for life’s biggest moments
It’s been an odd wedding season. Basically, a large number of weddings have been on hold because of Covid and now, anxious to finally make their commitment legal, weekend after weekend, couples are lined up with local and destination weddings. The destination weddings have me thinking. It started when I called dear friends from San…
Book: Jane Wong’s got the write stuff
Poet Jane Wong finds emotional release in her debut memoir, ‘Meet Me Tonight in Atlantic City’
Like all poets, Jane Wong likes to play with language. Collecting words, ordering them, weaving ideas and stories together, then depositing them on paper with the hurried, scrawling motion of a pen or ubiquitous, punctuating taps on a keyboard. The results are magnetic — both for their narrative and lyrical quality. For anyone who has…
Downtown Seattle makes moves to become a 24/7 city
Unprecedented investment in downtown Seattle seeks to create a 24-hour city
To Downtown Seattle Association President and CEO Jon Scholes, a vibrant, thriving city depends as much on its nightlife as its daytime business climate. “I think we were at least an 18-hour city before the pandemic knocked us off our game,” says Scholes, noting that DSA’s revitalization strategy has long focused on the city’s quality…
Artifacts: Reliving Almost Live!
On the air with John Keister
Once upon a time, during the halcyon days of network television, a Saturday night staple for many area residents was a Seattle sketch comedy show that aired on KING-5. Taped in front of a live audience, each episode began with the host delivering his opening monologue. As he walked out onstage, an “On Air” sign…
Essentials: Brinnon teacher chosen for Scholastic project
Kindergarten teacher chosen to participate in national project
A kindergarten teacher at Jefferson County’s Brinnon School will help shape the professional development of teachers across the United States. Lisa A. Johnston is among 12 teachers from around the country chosen to participate in the inaugural Teacher Fellows Cohort from children’s publishing, education, and media company Scholastic. The effort will help inform product development,…
Book: A tribute to Northwest Films
New book details a thriving, rich film culture
David Schmader lives in El Paso, Texas, now, but he’s no stranger to Pacific Northwest culture. Schmader is a former staff writer and editor at Seattle alt publication The Stranger, where he wrote the popular column, “Last Days: The Week in Review” for 18 years. He is also a performer, and his solo plays were…