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Knute Berger’s “Six Things You Can’t Say in Seattle” has garnered plenty of kudos from locals tired of explaining to out of towners exactly what Seattle is all about. In case you missed his column in our May issue, here’s a recap of Knute’s six commandments:1. “Recycling is a hassle.”2. “Bellevue’s pretty cool.”3. “Would you…

Local and national politicos are having a laugh at the expense of a secretary on Rep. Jim McDermott’s staff. The hilarious discourse started when an aide at a D.C. lobbying firm accidentally referred to McDermott’s scheduling aide, Elizabeth Becton, as a “Liz.” Here’s a sample of the converation from Politico.com: From: XXX Sent: Wednesday, May 27,…

After all his hard work – taking out the trash, mowing the lawn and killing the spiders – all year long, every Dad deserves a day of self-indulgence. PLAYFUL DADSA Day at the Children’s MuseumFor Dads who are kids at heart, an afternoon of learning through exploration and adventure awaits you. Every father, accompanied by…

With the popularity of Project Runway, a lot more people are dreaming of careers as the next top clothing designer. After all, they have fabulous imaginations, can whip up a sketch and are always the ones friends consult with when it comes to fashion conundrums. But is that enough to actually get a foot in…

It seems that sometimes hitting below the belt can be a good thing. ACT Theatre’s Below the Belt by Richard Dresser is currently on stage until June 21 and it’s a timeless take on corporate culture. Anyone who has had to face down a cubicle on a daily basis will appreciate the satire and black humor found…

Outdoorsy types, mark your calendars. The National Park Service has announced a new Fee-Free weekend program giving visitors several chances (6/20-6/21; 7/18-7/19; 8-15/8-16) this summer to be one with nature for free. Here’s a list of the National Parks in Washington that are participating in the program: Fort Vancouver National Historic SiteLewis & Clark National…

If you suffer from coulrophobia (an exaggerated fear of clowns), that does not mean that you need to avoid Intiman Theatre’s current production of A Thousand Clowns by Herb Gardner. There aren’t actually 1,000 clowns (much to the relief of the costume department! How many shades of plaid and polka dots can you even find!?). There is one,…

Entrails and brains were flying last Thursday night at the Kirkland Performance Center for the Seattle International Film Festival showing of ZMD: Zombies of Mass Destruction. Dubbed a “political zomedy” by local director and co-writer Kevin Hamedani (who was raised in Edmonds and attended the University of Washington), ZMD is a political satire that also…

I love imaginary Seattle. No, I don’t mean the Seattle in my mind that has free parking and a winning sports team. I’m talking about Hollywood’s version of Seattle. The Fabulous Baker Boys is amusing because people seemingly teleport all over downtown (I wish I could walk the entire city in under a minute!) and I love Singles…

I was never one of those little girls who wanted to be a ballerina. (This is probably a good thing since my joints are as creaky as a former pro-football player.) Had I seen Louise Nadeau dance when I was younger, however, I think I would have been clamoring for a tutu.  Nadeau is a born…

Mayor Greg Nickels has teamed up with county health officials in an effort to revise the city’s strict street-food regulations. Since 2003, a city-wide ban on street food has made it difficult for vendors to open up shop in the University District and from Westlake to the stadiums in Sodo, reported The Stranger last week….

Sometimes an invention can revolutionize the world. For instance, there is the stick. Ice cream was imprisoned in bowls until the stick transformed it into a portable phenomenon (cake never recovered from the blow). The corn dog? It wouldn’t have any fans if not for the stick. The new-and-improved Capitol Hill Art Walk, renamed Blitz, blitzcapitolhill.com, hopes that the stick…

The Corner: 23rd and Union preview from The Corner on Vimeo. KUOW’s Jenny Asarnow is partnering up with local photojournlist Inye Wokoma in a new project that explores the changing face of the Central District, a community in transition. Check out the trailer for her new interactive radio documentary. From the a press release sent…

In your twenties, you are the master of being cool (if only in your mind!). Then you look in the mirror one day and there is a full-fledged adult staring back at you! You have a career, 2.5 kids, furniture and even a few gray hairs. You can’t help but wonder whether your coolness went the way of…

Phew! After watching 1163 minutes of short films over the course of 7 evenings last week, I am happy to report that my fellow jurors and I were able to choose three winners (and two runners up) for SIFF’s ShortsFest… without too much fist fighting. We began our deliberations last night at 9pm, after the final…

After the recent grueling set of experimental shorts, the batch of short films I watched last night was refreshingly okay! Nothing during the 3 hours of films either sucked outright or made me feel like I was going to have a stroke. Several were quite good, actually. In the “Response Abilities” showcase, I particularly enjoyed…

I like to think of myself as an open minded person. In fact I usually prefer outsider and edgy art to mainstream, traditionally “pretty” things. But “Short in the Dark,” the collection of short films I watched last night (as part of the 100+ I am watching as a SIFF short film juror) caused me to…

I felt like I made some solid progress in my shorts-film-aganza last night. (Click here to learn why I’m attempting to watch 20 hours of shorts in 7 evenings.) I got through the entire Nightmare Factory package (containing seven “disquieting” films), as well as the World of Possibilities series (eight p-p-p “portraits of people and places…

Yesterday afternoon, at the end of the gloriously sunny three-day weekend, I stepped out of SIFF’s Fly Filmmaking Challenge (at which local filmmaker Bao Tran was a standout) and bumped into SIFF artisic director Carl Spence. I mentioned that, as a SIFF jury member (for the short film selections) this year, I was hoping it…

The penguins are on the march!  No, the penguins aren’t staging a protest – they’re celebrating the opening of their new home at the Woodland Park Zoo. The Penguins on the March program will showcase over 60 penguin statues who will strut their stuff around Seattle this summer. About 20 of the little sartorial supermodels were designed…