The Stranger

Our Favorite Bowls of Hot Soup in Seattle

Julianne Bell — Fri, 20 Feb 2026 16:20:00 -0800

Don’t worry, we’ll start yelling at politicians again soon. by Julianne Bell

It’s cold. Earlier this week we saw a few tiny flurries of snow, even! And while some weather reports suggest we might soon break out of this chilly, mid-40s prison we’ve been locked in, it’ll be by just a few degrees. And probably rainy. It’s the perfect weather for soup. So we took a break from screaming about Trump and City Hall, and switched gears for a minute to appreciate some of our favorite warm and comforting bowls of soup. Don’t worry, we’ll start yelling at politicians again soon.

Isarn’s Chiang Mai

Look, this whole soup is fucked up. The curry noodle soup from Northern Thailand comes out looking like a sculpture, with a nest of fried noodles perched on top of perfectly poached chicken and surrounded by a thick curry broth—creamy and spiced so it feels like it warms you from the inside out. When it’s served, you’ll get three things on the side: raw red onion, chopped pickled veg, and a deep red chili oil. After your first bite, you’ll be tempted to roll up your sleeves and forget about these little treats. Do not be that fool. These bits and bobs are what turn each bite into its own experience. Is your palate feeling a little tired of the richness of the broth? Add a little pickle on top of that spoonful of noodles. Repeat until you see the bottom of the bowl. HANNAH MURPHY WINTER

Situ Tacos’ Soup of the Day

Yes, the Ballard oasis Situ Tacos is primarily known for its fried Lebanese Mexican tacos, but soups are one of owner Lupe Flores’s favorite things to make, and it shows. As the shop’s resident animatronic parrot, Armando, occasionally squawks: “Don’t sleep on the soups…uh, don’t sleep in the soup. Uh, the soup is super!” They rotate weekly, and there’s a meat and veggie option each day, so you might encounter molokhia (Lebanese seven-spice chicken and rice stew), chorizo potato kale, Lebanese veggie stew, fideo con bistec, vegan pozole rojo, zuppa toscana, pumpkin curry, broccoli cheddar, chicken tortilla, or something else altogether. Whatever it is, it’s sure to be soul-soothing and seasoned to perfection—you really can’t go wrong. Get a combo with tangy, crunchy slaw and/or a couple of tacos for dunking. JULIANNE BELL

Halcyon Brewing's Vegan Butternut Bisque

I first happened upon Halcyon Brewing’s vegan butternut bisque by chance. Well, sort of. I was attending Ravenna Brewing Company’s annual “Soup Battle,” where local bars and breweries go head-to-head with their best soups, mostly because my good friend runs the event. Saddled with four delicious soups, I didn’t know where to begin. But Halcyon’s yellow-y orange soup with a swoop of coconut milk and a crack of black pepper on the top beckoned. I finished my bowl. It was sweet, it was savory, and it had a nice kick of spice—the brewery’s homemade chili crisp— that warmed my insides. Something vegan had no right to be so good and so creamy. Everyone at my table agreed that it should take the top prize.The rest of the Soup Battle patrons thought so, too—Halcyon’s vegan butternut bisque won the coveted Golden Ladle. NATHALIE GRAHAM

Pho Than Bros’ Veggie Pho with No Mushrooms and No Cilantro and Extra Broccoli

I’m not about to tell you how to order pho. And I’m not going to try to convince you that Pho Than Bros is the best pho in Seattle, even though every bowl comes with a sweet little custard-stuffed pastry puff. Pho is personal, pho is sacred. How I pho and how you pho can be—and should be!—very different experiences, each one custom-tailored after years of slurping and experimenting and learning the hard way that your sriracha threshold isn’t nearly as high as you thought it’d be. And, at Than Bros, I have perfected my order. I get a small veggie pho with no mushrooms, no cilantro, and extra broccoli, then I load it up with black pepper, a fat ring of hoisin sauce, a delicate squeeze of sriracha, and as many of the bean sprouts that I can manage before my husband says, “Stop taking all the bean sprouts.” I finish it off with a squeeze of lime and dig in.

This isn’t an invitation for you to try what I think is the best pho in Seattle; this is an invitation for you to find your own. But if you’re looking for a place to start, or a change up from your usual, to me, Than Bros is perfect. It’s my happy place. And it comes with a cream puff. MEGAN SELING

Metropolitan Market’s Cioppino

Metropolitan Market’s cioppino has been there for me since I was a child, when my parents would bring home a pint of the hot seafood stew on chilly winter nights when they didn’t feel like cooking. The rich, tomato broth, seasoned with white wine, and filled with a potpourri of shrimp, mussels, salmon, and white fish, will always feel like a luxurious treat, despite coming from a grocery store’s hot food buffet. Considering that cioppino was created as a way for fishermen to use up unsold seafood at the end of the day, I would advise not making it yourself. Not because it’s difficult, but because it will cost you approximately $5 million to buy four types of fresh seafood. Instead, buy a 16-ounce cup from your nearest Metropolitan Market store for a mere $7.39, and buy yourself a nice warm cookie while you're at it. AUDREY VANN

Biang Biang Noodles’ Curry Tofu Dry Mix

Massive Chinese hand-pulled noodles boiled to a perfect chewiness texture, doused in a delectable yellow curry sauce and flavorful broth with chunks of tofu and cabbage, in a bowl so massive you might need two people to finish it. It’s the hearty Asian noodle dish you dream of on a frigid evening. It’s Biang Biang Noodles’ Curry Tofu Dry Mix.

If you’ve been to Biang Biang, you might be thinking, Seriously? This isn’t soup, it’s a quart of hot oil. Well, to that I say: 1) oil is a liquid, and Managing Editor Megan Seling said we could write about “anything served in a bowl that is at least 50 percent liquid,” and (2) this oil is delicious.

Call it soup, call it hot oil, call it a bowl of molten comfort—the Curry Tofu Dry Mix does exactly what the best soups are supposed to. It satisfies your savory tooth and warms you up when the weather’s unforgiving. So if you’re asking me to grab a casual dinner with you on a dreary winter day, gimme those chopsticks and a Chinese soup spoon and find me at Biang Biang. MICAH YIP

Gorditos’ Vegan Pozole

The biggest mistake I’ve made in my life was going to Gorditos for years and only ordering one thing from the menu: A veggie burrito, wet, with a side of chips and salsa. It’s no Veggie Nolasco from Mama’s, but I love it, and I have probably eaten hundreds of them in my 45 years on the planet with zero regrets. Well, zero regrets until one fated day in December. On that day, I was finally turned on to other parts of Gordito’s menu. Did you know they have tacos! And enchiladas! They even serve breakfast! What have I been doing all my life!? And, most importantly on a cold winter’s day such as the ones we’ve been experiencing this week, they have soup. Their current soup is a vegan pozole that is an explosion of flavor in your mouth. A savory red base that tastes not unlike a brothier version of the red sauce they ladle over my beloved burrito is loaded with onions, zucchini, corn, mushrooms, and hominy, which gives each spoonful a toothsome, meaty bite. The broth is salty and rich, in a craveable way, and while eight-ounces with a side of chips is definitely enough to be its own meal, I recommend opting for the four-ounce cup, adding a taco to your order, and then proceeding to use every curved chip in the bag as your spoon. MEGAN SELING

Ooink’s Spicy Vegetarian Miso Ramen

If I am going to pay to eat soup outside of my home, it’s going to be ramen. And the best ramen I’ve found, for a vegetarian such as myself, is from Ooink. There’s a Fremont location, but I can only speak for the Capitol Hill spot—the one in the strip-mall above the lit QFC on Broadway and Pike.

My order is the Spicy Vegetarian Miso Ramen (it can be made vegan, and there’s a version without “spicy” in the title). Not to worry: it has a warm kick, but is not the kind of spice that will make you cough or harsh your tastebuds.

The sturdy buckwheat noodles have just the right amount of tooth, and the miso broth has depth without being too salty or greasy—common traps that many vegetarian broths fall into when trying to overcompensate for something they do not need to overcompensate for. The toppings are correct: a springy pile of kikurage, little heaps of corn and green onions, a few sheets of seaweed, and a handful of happy baby bok choy that are blessedly not soggy and therefore retain a hint of peppery mustard flavor. This ramen also features a pat of melting corn butter, and a subtle sesame dressing drizzled onto the greens. I get mine without the tofu skin, but that’s just a personal preference (or aversion, maybe, that has something to do with its resemblance to, um, the second word there).

The star of the bowl is the house-made chili crisp. I sometimes wait until I absolutely have to stir it in because it’s such a banger taste all on its own; it’s crunchy and a little smoky and a little sweet, and the sesame seeds and spicy peanuts keep it interesting as you make your way to the bottom. Vegetarian ramens can get weird, and feel half-assed, but Ooink’s well-balanced version is the way to do it. EMILY NOKES

Slog AM: Ten are Dead After Mass Shooting in Canada, the Trump Administration Can’t Make Up Its Mind About the El Paso Airport, and It’s Super Bowl Parade Day in Seattle

Megan Seling — Wed, 11 Feb 2026 10:01:00 -0800

The Stranger's morning news roundup. by Megan Seling

Today, Seattle Celebrates: It’s parade day for the Seattle Seahawks, who defeated the New England Patriots 29–13 in Sunday’s Bad Bunny Bowl. The morning begins with a trophy ceremony at Lumen Field at 10 a.m., and the parade will start at Fourth Avenue and Washington Street at 11 a.m. Officials say it should take approximately two hours for the parade to make its way down Fourth Avenue to Cedar Street. SPD is expecting about a million people, and they started closing roads at 6:30 a.m. It’s gonna be nuts. Either rush down there now and embrace madness, or avoid the area completely. There is no in between. Just stay off the pergola!

Mass Shooting in Canada: Ten people are dead, and more than 25 are wounded after a shooting at a small school in northern British Columbia. Police say the alleged shooter died by suicide. Two of the victims were found at a home believed to be connected to the incident. It’s the deadliest mass shooting in Canada since a shooter killed 13 people in Nova Scotia in 2020, and, as AP reports, “Canada’s government has responded to previous mass shootings with gun control measures, including a recently broadened ban on all guns it considers assault weapons.”

Meanwhile, in America: According to massshootingtracker.site, which is a real website, there have already been 45 mass shootings in the US this year (we’re on day 42), with a total of 62 people killed and 137 wounded. Your thoughts and prayers are bullshit.

Trump Administration Shuts Down El Paso Airport: Or not. Hard to say! On Tuesday night, Real World Boston star and the Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy claimed Mexican cartel drones breached US airspace, so he grounded all flights for 10 days. This morning, though, the Federal Aviation Administration rescinded that order and said the shutdown was “prompted by the Defense Department’s use of new counter-drone technology.” America: We’re doing a great job!

Tax the Rich! Hundreds of union members rallied at the Capitol in Olympia yesterday to demand that local lawmakers pass the millionaires tax, which “calls for a 9.9% tax on Washington residents making more than $1 million a year beginning in 2028.” Why wait until 2028? Tax those fuckers now, I say! Unfortunately, I am not in charge. Our own Nathalie Graham will have more about this Senate bill later at the stranger dot com. Stay tuned.

In Other Lawmaker News: Gov. Bob Ferguson is working with state lawmakers to add "mental health safeguards to AI chatbots.” The policy would “require companion chatbots to notify users they are interacting with AI and not a human at the beginning of the interaction and every three hours,” according to the Seattle Times. But why just every three hours? Make the robots say it every 30 minutes! Every three minutes, even! In fact, melt the robots! Burn OpenAI to the ground! Hack the planet! I have had too much coffee!

If You’re Wondering Why People Turn to Robots for Help: It’s because our city (our state, our country, our world) is terrible at offering people meaningful mental health support when they reach out for help, and a new report on King County’s lack of mental health referrals proves it. The King County sheriff’s 911 center has zero standard procedures to help people in crisis, and apparently don't refer them to the 988 suicide hotline either. Instead, they just send officers and hope it works out?

Strange Case Gets Stranger: Last night, police announced that they detained a person of interest in Rio Rico, Arizona, in connection with Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance. This morning, that person was released. Nancy, the 84-year-old mother of Today host Savannah Guthrie, has been missing for more than a week, and for several days, Savannah and her siblings have been releasing videos to Nancy’s believed captors, who allegedly asked for $6 million in Bitcoin.

And Stranger Still: Kash Patel and the Go Get ‘Em Kids released video footage yesterday of a masked person captured on a doorbell camera outside Nancy Guthrie’s home on the same night she went missing. According to one expert CNN interviewed, this person’s behavior is “impressive,” and they clearly did a “certain amount of planning.” What? Are we watching the same video? Dude looks like a bumbling idiot, rolling up to the house with a gun holstered directly above his crotch like someone said, “Put this on,” and he was like, “Okay, yeah, because I have definitely worn a gun before. I will just point it directly at my dick.” Then, guy was so ill-prepared for the presence of a very common doorbell camera that he paused to grab some weeds from the garden and attempted to fashion them into some kind of curtain, all the while staring directly into the camera lens at close range. And you want me to believe this is the same brilliant criminal mind capable of kidnapping the 84-year-old mother of a high-profile journalist and leading the FBI on a nationwide goose chase for more than a week? Sure, Jan.

Speaking of Kidnappings: ICE is still at it! Locals in Minneapolis shared this scene after the fact.

This is the aftermath of an ICE kidnapping a few blocks from my home in St. Paul—an hour ago. A quiet street full of broken glass and at least three wrecked cars. The target of the kidnapping was taken away by ambulance. He was on a stretcher and covered by a sheet, though a cop said he was alive.

[image or embed]
— Andrew Karre (@andrewkarre.bsky.social) February 11, 2026 at 8:46 AM

In Local Film News: Yesterday, The Stranger reported that the Boeing IMAX theater (the biggest IMAX theater in the state) is expected to be sold to the Space Needle Corporation. The theater is closed for now for a “brief renovation focused on improving the concessions and arrival experiences, scheduled to end in May.”

And now, I leave you with some of my favorite things to happen at the Olympics so far:

🥌 Commentators constantly referring to the US mixed doubles curling teammates as Girl Cory and Boy Korey. (Congrats on the silver, buddies!)

🏒 The US women’s hockey team allowing their opponents exactly one goal in four games, including a 5–0 victory over Team Canada. Even better, it’s the Torrent players who are leading the team in points! Hilary Knight has two goals and three assists, Alex Carpenter has three goals and two assists, and Hannah Bilka has three goals and one assist. (Britta Curl has zero goals, which is what she deserves, because she’s a transphobic asshole.)

😭 Ilia Malinin skating to the sound of his own voice in the ultimate masturbatory figure skating performance, which I actually hated very much but had a lot of fun laughing at. Just some of the lines the 21-year-old recites during his program: “The only true wisdom / Is in knowing you know nothing.” “You are something / But not nothing.” lol ok quad god

Did You Get a Stranger Valentine?

Megan Seling — Mon, 09 Feb 2026 12:30:00 -0800

All is full of love. by Megan Seling

Illustrations by April Finfrock

If you need proof that there is still love in the world, look no further than our February issue. It's packed with hundreds and hundreds of reader-submitted love notes, all gushing with sweet sentiments and declarations of admiration.

There's a Valentine for Pookie Mamacita, Kitty, and Goose. There are people celebrating love landmarks like anniversaries, moving in together, and having a baby. I think there's even a marriage proposal?

Read through hundreds of reader-submitted Valentines here. Or, grab an issue at one of our hundreds of distro locations to find it in print!

♥ COSMO’S MOON

Aimee, When I met you everything started to make sense. Let’s continue doing crosswords at the bar, kiss in photobooths, and have fun together. Rheese

♥ CUTEST GOOSE

Steve with the long hair. Cutest skateboarder out there. Sweet goose. I found you.

♥ YOU ARE MY SUNSHINE!

I love you, Daniel! I’ll wash your back and you wash mine... Let’s keep taking care of each other. Life is hard but loving you is easy.

♥ CW LOVES CW

This year will be 20yrs we’ve spent together. I cannot wait for a tree filled, moss in our toes, playing in our forest in Forks for 20 or 40 more. <3

♥ WEENER STUFF

Oh handsome ween, I love you to bikini bottom and back. Love Jean <3

♥ FOR MY SUNFLOWER

L, During this season you’re sole reason I don’t mind the gray so I wanted to say: Happy Valentines, Love the sun is waiting above. -B

♥ IT’S OFFICIALLY LOVE

We officially did it!!! We are each others till the cold hand of death decides to take us. I will always LOVE YOU. -To the most caring woman I know

♥ MY LOVING EVIL EX

Dear Grady, Roses are red, we swore we were done, then New Year’s Eve slid into my DMs. Maybe 2026 is the sequel we didn’t plan but kinda want?

♥ TWO FROGS IN LOVE

Here’s to another frog filled year of love and joy. I’m looking forward to our new froggy abode <3 please let me paint the walls yellow

The Stranger’s 2026 Sex Survey Results Are In!

Megan Seling — Thu, 05 Feb 2026 10:25:00 -0800

The results are in, and Seattle is still horny as ever. by Megan Seling

Illustrations by James Yates

I felt a ball of anxiety in the pit of my stomach when we launched The Stranger’s annual sex survey last month. Twenty-twenty-five was a bad year for a lot of people. Trump returned to the White House, and from then onward, our newsfeeds were filled with decidedly unsexy headlines that captured our not-so-slow descent into a real-life Idiocracy. “Unemployment Rate Hits Four-Year High,” “Trump Deploys National Guard to US Cities,” “Erika Kirk Takes Stage at Husband’s Memorial Service to Music and Pyrotechnics,” “ICE Detains 5-Year-Old,” “Man Throws Subway Sandwich at Federal Officer” … actually, the last one is kind of hot. Anyway! I don’t have to list it out for you. You were there. It was stupid. And I worried Seattle was going to scoff at our sex survey after a full year of being too anxious, too broke, and too sad to find time for or comfort in life’s carnal pleasures.

But I was wrong! Not only did thousands of you still participate in our survey—thank you!—but y’all are having as much sex as before and more than half of you (66 percent) are still at least somewhat satisfied with the amount of sex you’re having. We’re so happy to hear it!

Even more exciting: When you break down those satisfaction numbers politically (because of course I had to break it down politically), it’s the Republicans who appear to be suffering the most. About 35 percent of Democrats and Socialists are “dissatisfied” or “very dissatisfied” with how much they’re getting laid (about the same as last year), while 50 percent of Republicans are unhappy. Up from last year’s 44 percent! And of the three (yes, just three) self-proclaimed MAGA survey takers, two are “very dissatisfied” with the amount of sex they’re having, too. You love to see it!

When we asked you about the sexiest thing you did in 2025, you wrote back, “drank wine from the mouth of a beautiful man,” “[went] to some incredibly sexy all trans and nonbinary orgies,” and “gave head while my partner was watching Nathan Fielder learn about airplanes.” Great work!

Sexy means something different to everyone, of course. One of you published a book! Books are totally sexy! Another one of you left a shitty partner! Advocating for yourself and your safety is sexy as hell! And more than a few of you simply responded with some form of “survive” and “stay alive.” And you know what? Staying alive is the sexiest thing ever. You did that. We’re proud of you.

Sure, last year was awful. And this year keeps sucking. But we just want you to be happy, as much as you can, anyway. We want you to have as much hot sex as you want to have (or don’t want to have—we see you, our 2 percent of asexual survey takers!), despite our ever-quickening spiral into fascism and/or extinction. So now that we’ve established y’all are still horny and willing to spill the beans, let’s all dig even deeper into the sex lives of Seattleites.

Who Are You? (Who? Who? Who? Who?)

Before we start to crunch too many numbers, let’s go over the very basics of who took our sex survey.

Lots of you are straight, it turns out. Thirty-seven percent of respondents, in fact, say they’re straight, while 21 percent are bisexual, 14 percent are queer, 9 percent are gay, 8 percent are pansexual/omnisexual, 6 percent are lesbian, 2 percent are asexual, and 1 percent identify as “other.” That’s fairly in line with the people who took the survey last year, too. Also, 41 percent of you are cis men, 38 percent are cis women, 10 percent are nonbinary, 4 percent are genderqueer, 3 percent are trans women, 2 percent are trans men, and a few of you are also two-spirit or intersex.

Where things start to shift, though, is when broken down by age group. The older the group, the larger the percentage of straighties. Almost a third of those between 26 and 45 years old are straight, 55 percent of 46-to-65-year-olds, and 62 percent of 66-or-older folks. Whereas the younger the survey taker, the less likely they are to be straight. In fact, only 17 percent of those who are 25 or under claimed that label on their survey! Instead, they’re bi (27 percent), queer (19 percent), lesbian (16 percent), gay (7 percent), pansexual/omnisexual (7 percent), asexual (3 percent), questioning (2 percent), and other (1 percent).

The future is queer!

Dem Dearth

Age plays a big role in which political party y’all identify with, too. Forty-five percent of those who are 25 or under are Socialists, whereas 57 percent of folks 46 and older claim to be Democrats.

And because the majority of survey takers this year are 45 or under (hello, fellow kids!), Dems’ numbers overall took a dip. It’s still the top political party among all survey takers combined, but just barely, sitting at 40 percent compared to last year’s 48 percent. Socialists are on the rise, however, up from 29 percent to 36 percent overall. Surprised? Don’t be. After all, a socialist candidate did win the mayoral election.

Another fun fact: Remember when I told you the Dems are more satisfied in the sack than the Republicans who took our survey? Well, socialists are the happiest of them all! Sixty-four percent of all socialists are at least somewhat satisfied with the amount of sex they’re having.

Pussy by a Mile

This year, we introduced a new category: Best hole. Best hole to fuck? Best hole to be fucked? Dealer’s choice! And the results are in. By far, the best hole among our survey takers is the pussy, racking up 66 percent of the votes. Mouth came in (lol) second with 16 percent, followed by ass (14 percent), and, finally, “other, please specify.” That 4 percent of y’all were either indecisive and wrote in more than one hole for your answer (“don’t make me choose!”), or you offered up some alternatives, including but not limited to: pie, doughnut, Hole Hound from Super Lesbian Animal RPG, bagel, foot, a goalie’s five-hole, pee hole, and ears (“like a Ferengi”).

You’re Proud of Your Kinks

I am pleased to report that the majority of you are proud of and open with your kinks and desires with your sex partners. A whole 63 percent, which is about the same as last year. And what those kinks are hasn’t changed much either. The top three remain submissiveness, nipple play, and spanking. The bottom three (still getting votes! Just not very many) were ASFR (robots), scat (poo-poo), and acrotomophilia/apotemnophilia (amputees). And a special shoutout to the Instagram commenter who said after taking our survey: “you guys win for having the first kink survey i’ve taken where 1. i didn’t select the entire list and 2. where i had to look up what some of the terms meant. impressive.”

We didn’t see many shake-ups in the toy world this time around, either. The top three are, once again, vibrators (which are in 77 percent of y’all’s homes!), lube, and a dildo. Elsewhere, strap-ons saw a little bit of a jump (28 percent of you have one, last year it was 26), anal toys went down a smidge (from being in 51 percent of households to being in 48 percent). Interest in cock rings went down a tad, but just by 1 percent.

You Can Get No Satisfaction! Wait, That's Not Right...

The majority of you say you are at least mostly (if not very!) satisfied with the amount of sex you’re having, and we love to hear it. But I also wanted to have a little fun with the numbers to find out which Seattle neighborhood is feeling most fulfilled. And that honor goes to… drumroll… Capitol Hill! At least 17 percent of survey takers who said they are satisfied live on the Hill. No surprise there—there are no fewer than three sex clubs in the Pike/Pine corridor alone. The gayborhood fucks.

That means, if we break that down a little further by residential percentage, 73 percent of respondents who live on Capitol Hill say they are either somewhat satisfied or very satisfied. Way to go, Capitol Hill! The next happiest ’hoods are the Central District and West Seattle, where 63 and 62 percent of residents are pleased with their current rate of romps, respectively.

Dating Apps Are Taking a Dive

Just as in previous years, by and large, our survey takers tend to meet sex partners through friends (60 percent of you), parties (32 percent), or a bar or a club (28 percent). Interestingly, though, the use of dating apps appears to be down across the board. Last year, 23 percent of you reported finding sex partners through Tinder; this year, just 17 percent do. Last year, Grindr was working for 13 percent of you; this year, it’s down to 10 percent. Bumble, Hinge, OkCupid—they’re all down, too. Related: Fewer folks claim to subscribe to sex-work sites like OnlyFans or ManyVids.

Maybe there’s something to that anti-tech, screen-free trend all the lifestyle outlets keep talking about?

Bisexuals Love Nathan Fielder

On a scale of 1–10, how horny are you for Nathan Fielder? This question caused quite a stir in The Stranger’s offices. Our editorial team debated—at length—about whether or not Seattle would be horny for Nathan Fielder, the hilarious, quirky Canadian comedian who created the massively popular HBO series The Rehearsal. Surely people would be turned on by his talent, his odd sense of humor, and the fact that he’s handsome to boot, right? Alas, Seattle as a whole is not horny for Nathan—the average horniness level came in around 3.5. Oof.

Interestingly, a lot of the numbers were either very low or very high. People who are horny for Nathan Fielder are ALL-IN HORNY FOR NATHAN FIELDER. The largest population of those who rated their horniness at an 8 or higher were bisexuals, with cis women also coming in on top.

Want even more specifics? How’s this: Nathan Fielder is very popular with bisexual cis women between the ages of 26 and 35 who are employed Socialists who live on Capitol Hill and masturbate twice a week or more. (I’ll send you the invoice for that audience research, HBO.)

AI Will Steal Your Job, but Not Your Girlfriend (Yet)

More and more, we’ve read stories about people turning to AI and ChatGPT for companionship, including romantic relationships, so for people to use this (honestly terrifying) technology for sex and/or pleasure is inevitable. But, while Seattle is nothing if not tech-forward, it appears that the majority of you are very much not interested in ChatGPT… at least not like that. The large majority of survey takers—71 percent!—say they have not, nor will they ever use ChatGPT for sex/pleasure. Twenty-one percent haven’t used it (but haven’t ruled it out), while 3 percent have used it but “felt awful and never will again.” That leaves just 5 percent of respondents currently and happily benefiting from ChatGPT’s sexual awakening.

Breaking that number down further, for science: 60 percent of those who have used ChatGPT to get off are cis men, 12 percent are cis women, and 10 percent are nonbinary. And a few more random factoids about ChatGPT lovers that I looked up for funsies: Nearly half of them are millennials, 74 percent of them are childless, and 98 percent of them have also fucked in a car. I wonder if it was with ChatGPT???

Strange Sexting

It’s funny, when asked what kind of pictures you prefer to send when sexting, more than 33 percent of you—the largest swath—said, “I don’t send dirty pics, slut!” But when asked what pictures you prefer to receive, the inverse was true, with 35 percent of y’all wanting to see “everything all at once.” Just 22 percent of you still insisted that you! do! not! send! dirty! pics! Hmm. The next most popular bits to receive via sext are dicks (16 percent), chest (14 percent), and butt (7 percent). Vulva only got 4 percent, which is weird, seeing as how the vast majority of y’all looooooove pussy, as proven in the Best Hole question. Make up your minds!

Goin’ Places

When it comes to having sex in modes of transportation, a whopping 98 percent of you have fucked in a car. The second most popular option is in or on boats, but it’s not even close. That’s where 28 percent of you have gotten busy. This year, we added one more option to the list, with surprising results. Turns out 5 percent of survey takers have fucked on a Washington State Ferry!

And confidential to the five of you who claimed to have gotten laid on the Seattle Monorail: That’s a 90-second ride, my friends. That’s not the brag you think it is.

Bed Rock

This is always my favorite part of the survey, because I am both a music snob and a judgmental asshole. I love getting a peek at what kind of music people listen to under any circumstance, and it is especially revealing to learn about the music that gets people’s blood pumping. (Temple of the Dog? Seriously???)

As usual, this year’s responses to “If you listen to music during sex, what’s your go-to song?” were full of shout-outs for Rihanna, Portishead, Nine Inch Nails, Sade, the Weeknd, and Cigarettes After Sex, all of whom have been sex survey mainstays since we introduced this question in 2023. Here are some other standouts, should you want to make your own Stranger-reader-inspired playlist for the next time you’re setting the mood. For better or worse.

The first half of “Tigermilk” by Belle and Sebastian

Massive Attack’s Mezzanine start to finish

“Persuasive” by Doechii

“Pink + White” by Frank Ocean

“Ankles” by Lucy Dacus

I lost my virginity to Purity Ring, so I have a sacrilegious Pavlovian relationship with them.

“Wind of Change” by Scorpions

“Friends in Low Places” by Garth Brooks

Some slow doom/sludge surprisingly does it

“The Battle Hymn of the Republic” (Dr. Strangelove version)

“Camel Walk” by Southern Culture on the Skids

It’s a playlist called Boner Jams

“Someday Is Tonight” by Janet Jackson

Janelle Monáe, The Age of Pleasure

Anything by the Grateful Dead

“ALPHAPUSSY” by Pixel Grip

D’Angelo is a good move

Anything that might be found in a Gregg Araki film

I did have a crazy orgasm getting fingered in the car while listening to “Epizootics!” by Scott Walker

DJ Riz/KEXP

Sex on the Beach… and in the Park and at Archie McPhee

We always ask our survey-takers whether or not they’ve had sex in public, but this year, we asked for details. We are nosy! We wanted to know where exactly, and y’all did not disappoint. As expected, there were several shoutouts to porn theaters, sex clubs, parked cars, bar bathrooms, and pretty much every park in the city (Volunteer, Cal Anderson, Seward, Discovery, Green Lake, the list goes on). But there were a lot of surprising locales, too. Archie McPhee? And not just one, but “several” Taco Del Mar bathrooms? Was it someone’s personal goal to hit every location at least once? There are at least 16 in the Puget Sound region! I have questions! Anyway, the lesson I learned while reading through these responses is that there is a high likelihood that once we leave the comfort of our homes, there are strangers fucking, all around us, at all times, no matter where we are. Here is just a small sample of where folks have gotten busy in public:

Lakeview Cemetery, of course.

In the car in line for the Mukilteo Ferry.

Oral sex on the ferry.

Up against a car by the Old Spaghetti Factory.

At the cash machine in front of Wells Fargo on Broad Street across the street from 7-Eleven, near Seattle Center.

Had some hair-pulling in a Blockbuster Video once.

It’s not Seattle, but please give me credit for having sex in the library at WWU.

Several Taco Del Mar bathrooms.

Every woman’s restroom in every bar in town, 2011–2019.

Central Library restroom with a total stranger. One of those connections where you see him and know you need him inside you.

The Woodland Park Zoo during the Christmas lights show.

Banana Republic dressing room in U Village lol.

Once accidentally on a baby grave.

In Lake Washington (while swimming).

A beloved pool spot with great sandwiches downtown.

Kurt’s bench.

The top of the Space Needle.

Near trash bins behind 76 in cap hill.

In the bushes at the Seattle Center during Folklife.

The balcony of the Paramount Theatre during the Stranger Genius Awards.

[Editor's Note: Uh, they were at the Moore.]

Behind the dumpster at Dick’s on Broadway.

Concert hand jobs all the time—Neumos, Nectar Lounge, Neptune…

The Seattle Great Wheel.

Archie McPhee

Lost my virginity in the bathroom of the Barnes and Noble at Pacific Place (RIP).

A Sad, Stupid, but Also Sexy Year

What a fool I was for thinking Seattle wasn’t gonna be horny just because some fascist-loving wannabe dictator was crashing the party. I’m beaming with pride reading that so many of you were able to find plenty of time for a good time in spite of—or maybe especially because of???—the otherwise abysmal conditions.

As for the hottest things survey-takers did this year, fisting, double penetration, and spit-roasting got lots of mentions. As did reaching personal milestones with sex partners (“finally tried anal!”) and exploring kinks you’ve been curious about (“Started watching queer porn after I came out to myself”). It would appear there was a lot of public sex, too, in places like the bathroom at the zoo, the Showbox, Kremwerk, the library parking lot, and multiple parks and trails.

For some of you, though, the hottest thing you did this year wasn’t even sex itself; it was about finding yourself or feeling yourself. “I got a tattoo that says ‘DYKE’ in bold black gothic lettering across my chest,” wrote one respondent. “[I] broke up with my boyfriend, cut all my hair off, bought a dildo, and the sexiest lingerie I could manage, and fell in love with myself again,” wrote another. There were several mentions of participating in sexy or boudoir photoshoots, starting hormone replacement therapy, getting married or divorced, giving birth, going back to school, and one of you even “created sex comics.” (Send some to The Stranger! We’re curious!) Here’s a sample of other things y’all got into in 2025:

AI chatbot girlfriend, she plays dominant.

(Rope) Suspension sex while wearing a rubber suit.

Got in my full leather daddy outfit and all at once had one boy sucking my cock, another making out with me, and the last worshipping my nipples.

Ate an apple with no hands while being tied to a big cross and cropped at Kremwerk.

Psychedelic medicine retreat! Helped open me up to love.

Got fisted and blown simultaneously. Ker-sploosh!

Sucked prosthetic cock listening to Belle and Sebastian.

Ate a stranger’s asshole in a park 90 minutes into our first date

Sapphic strap-on tentacle spit roast, AND making out all day with the one who got away (now caught).

Set up a glory hole to give back to the local community.

Bought a new hoodie? idk.

And Here’s What Next

While 2026 isn’t shaping up to be much better than last year, at least not as far as, you know, human rights are concerned, people are still making room for fantasies. And why not? The world you build in your head can be a lot more fun than the dumpster fire outside your door. So when we asked people for their ultimate sexual fantasies, they did not hold back. Thank you for sharing your deepest and darkest with us—we’re honored. Here are just some of the things folks hope to do before the cold hand of death reaches for them:

Catacombs fuck. Perhaps Seattle Underground could do in a pinch.

Orgasm solely from earlobe stimulation.

It was initially sex on an airplane, but this questionnaire has made me aware of the Monorail….

Have one person pleasing each body part all at once (nine total: ears, feet, hands, mouth, ass, dick).

Get enough experience with flogging to teach a class on it.

Marriage.

N/A—here to represent those on the asexual spectrum.

An old-fashioned in space.

I want someone to fuck me so good my mental illness goes away.

Sex at the top of the Space Needle against those benches that lean back over the void.

I want to sound a guy.

I want to be collared, and I want someone to make me sleep at the foot of their bed, on the floor.

Jizz on JD Vance’s grave.

I wanna visit the Eiffel Tower... not in France.

I’d like to squirt-drown my babe so wildly while face-sitting that I have to administer CPR.

Idk, last year was a banger. I would like to have robot tentacle appendages to fuck around with, though.

Fist a bottom past the elbow. Only made it halfway up the forearm so far.

Now that you mention it, sex on the ferry.

Sex in a blimp, shooting for the stars here.

At my age, I’m more nostalgic for the athletic positions I’ve left behind. I don’t think my knees could support them.

What Are You Going to Do During This Weekend’s Protests?

Megan Seling — Fri, 30 Jan 2026 13:30:00 -0800

I don’t know what to do. It’s getting increasingly difficult to push through the noise and focus on anything that feels worthwhile in the fight against the Trump administration’s relentless attacks. Each day is a new nightmare; each nightmare requires a battle plan. It feels hopeless. I have a feeling I'm not alone. by Megan Seling

I don’t know what to do. Maybe you don’t either.

It’s getting increasingly difficult to push through the noise and focus on anything that feels worthwhile in the fight against the Trump administration’s relentless attacks. Each day is a new nightmare; each nightmare requires a battle plan. It feels hopeless.

Even when I manage to pull myself together—or, at least, feel like I have—a rush of panic makes me come undone. Am I helping in the right way? What is the right way? Will this make any difference at all? We have to do something. People are literally dying. But we can’t afford to fuck this up! And so I sit. I stare. I cross-stitch a little bit, but doomscroll and watch shitty TV more, and I continue thinking about what to do instead of doing anything at all.

I have a feeling that I’m not alone.

It feels worse this week, today, while being inundated with messages about a general strike, a nationwide shutdown, a day for no work, no school no shopping. Because it’s adding to the confusion, not directing it.

The only directive—largely from scattered social media posts—is “ICE out,” “no work, no school, no shopping” in solidarity with Minnesota as they continue to protest the killings of Renée Good and Alex Pretti. Sounds easy enough, but without a unified goal, the questions that result in inaction swirl back up. Am I helping in the right way? What is the right way? Will this make any difference at all? For the past 72 hours, my social media feeds, text threads, and Slack conversations boil down to one question: What are we doing? We’re all that gif of John Travolta in Pulp Fiction where he’s looking around and wondering what the fuck is going on.

My skepticism is, in part, because we can’t trust activism that appears to start and mostly spread on social media. Remember #BlackoutTuesday in 2020, after Derek Chauvin murdered George Floyd? The call to action evolved into people posting black squares on their Instagram and Facebook accounts. Something like 28 million people participated, which was more than 8 percent of the American population at the time. But without demands, and without sustained action, it’s just a flash in the pan that we all use as a punchline

And we shouldn’t trust faceless calls to action that encourage participants to hand over personal information, no questions asked. Even more so now that our administration basically brags about how it uses surveillance tech to monitor people’s social media activity and cross-reference it with personal information to target whoever it is they feel needs to be eradicated today.

Successful general strikes have union backing. They have demands. They have a reputable organization behind them that can build on its momentum. Small versions of that have bubbled up: Members of UAW Local 4121—which includes about 4,000 student employees at the UW—will gather at the University of Washington at noon. (Pretti, an ICU nurse, was a member of the AFGE Local 3669 union.) Seattle’s Troublemakers and MLK Labor Union are organizing a rally at the Downtown Target to “send a message to the company that they must stop enabling ICE’s terror campaign.” Target, which is headquartered in Minneapolis, has been quiet ever since Greg Bovino and other US Border Patrol agents arrested two Target employees at work in a Richfield, MN store earlier this month. (Target also rolled back its DEI programs in 2025, resulting in a boycott that appears to have impacted sales, for what it’s worth.)

Efforts have bled over into Saturday, too. Seattle educators are organizing an Ice Out of Seattle rally at Seattle Central Community College at East Pike and Broadway at 1 pm, which has been endorsed by the Washington Education Association and the American Federation of Teachers, among others. Both events are being backed by 50501.

Last year, after the nationwide protests in April, Kendall Turner published the Stranger article, “How Does a Protest Make Change?” She wrote, “almost no protest movement that has mobilized 3.5 percent of a population has failed to achieve its goals.” She added that “research suggests successful protests share four characteristics: worthiness, unity, numbers, and commitment.”

Actions can’t have any of those characteristics if the conversation around it is ultimately coming down to people asking, “So what do we do?” And it doesn’t help that what appears to be the main website behind the movement is giving psyop. But it’s also giving us an opportunity. It’s giving people permission to take time, in a moment when most days are full of nothing but internally screaming someone! has to do something! until they fall asleep. And that’s the first step.

Today’s “general strike” might be infuriatingly directionless. But it’s 2026. And today, the fight can be what you make it. So make today about doing something.

Dozens of restaurants across the city are remaining open and donating a portion (or all!) of their proceeds to Minneapolis businesses and immigration organizations. Go get a donut, go eat a taco, drink some really good coffee.
Read up on what the Washington Immigrant Solidarity Network, La Resistencia, and National Day Laborer Organizing Network are doing—they work every day to track and free people detained by ICE here in the Pacific Northwest. (In fact, NDLON is hosting a virtual workshop on Friday at 5 pm for people interested in their Adopt a Day Labor Corner program.)
Cancel Spotify. Cancel Amazon Prime. Support an indie art shop and make a really funny sign or batch of stickers and stick them all over town.
Make a plan to go to one of the union-supported events on Saturday, too. The rain is supposed to clear by the afternoon.

Whether you’re working or not, going to school or not, participating in the economy or not, today can be a day that you think about how you want to participate in this downfall of democracy. Because it’s not a matter of whether or not you participate, it’s a matter of how. You’re in it, babe. It’s happening. Your actions—and inactions—are on record.

Today, do the thing you’ve been too debilitated by overthinking to do. Just don’t do nothing.

Slog AM: A Tacoma Children's Hospital Is Closing Their Gender Clinic, Amazon Is Closing Their Grocery Stores, and the Department of Homeland Security Will Investigate Their Own Shooting

Megan Seling — Wed, 28 Jan 2026 09:48:00 -0800

The Stranger's morning news roundup. by Megan Seling

Good morning. It rained. That was nice. But the news is still terrible. So I’m going to try something a little different for today’s Slog AM. For every dose of bad news I deliver, I will also provide a bit of ✨good news✨. I simply cannot continue living in this waterfall of tragedy and chaos. It’s all about balance. Let’s begin.

DOJ to Investigate Themselves: Trump says there’s a “big investigation” underway for the shooting of Alex Pretti. But it’s not what you think. Unless you think Trump is a lying, immoral piece of shit. Then it’s exactly what you think. The Justice Department has decided they don’t need an independent civil rights investigation into the fatal shooting of Pretti. Instead, they’re gonna have the Department of Homeland Security investigate their own guys. Sounds totally fair and legit and not at all fucking corrupt as hell.

✨In the Land of Good News: In August, a cat named Filou escaped from a camper while his vacationing owners had stopped for fuel in Catalonia. Kitty, no! Patrick and Evelyne Sire searched for Filou for weeks and even involved the Spanish police, but they eventually had to return home to France, heartbroken. Then, weeks ago, five months after Filou went missing, a woman spotted an exhausted cat just 500 meters from the couple's home. It was Filou! Vox says, “She had traveled 250 kilometers on foot, crossing mountains, rivers and a state border between two countries to return home.” Look at her delightfully grumpy face. Quick! Sufjan Stevens, write an album about her journey!

Parce qu'on a besoin de belles histoires :

Perdu en Espagne, Filou le chat a parcouru 250km en 4 mois pour retrouver sa maison. Bravo Filou !

www.leparisien.fr/herault-34/q...

[image or embed]
— Chloé Woitier (@chloew.bsky.social) January 17, 2026 at 1:11 PM

Local Gender Clinic Shutting Down: Yesterday, the Seattle Times reported that Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital in Tacoma plans to shut down its gender clinic. In a memo to staff, hospital leaders explained that “recent developments at the federal level” threaten to halt Medicaid and Medicare payments if it continues to offer gender-affirming health services to minors. Stranger News Editor Vivian McCall reported in September that the clinic axed its waitlist and stopped providing medical care for new patients due to “changing federal expectations,” but said they would continue providing hormones and puberty blockers to trans kids already receiving them. The gender clinic's closure will leave 320 young people, more than half of whom are under 18, without care.

✨ Supporting Trans Youth Is Delicious: It’s Girl Scout cookie time! And if you’re looking for a cookie hook-up, independent journalist Erin Reed has a list of trans and non-binary Girl Scouts you can support here. They ship the snacks right to your door! I am eating a new “rocky road ice cream inspired” Exploremores as I type. It’s pretty good! The chocolate cookie is crispy and crumbly, almost like a shortbread, and the filling has a nice almond flavor. But the Samoas will always be my favorite. Fuck Trump, buy cookies!

This Is Normal, Right? The US is going to “conduct military exercises” in the Middle East in the coming days. Trump has told Iranian leaders that if they don’t stop killing protesters and come to the negotiating table, “the next attack will be far worse” than when the US blew up those Iranian nuclear facilities last year. According to CNN, 5,800 protestors have been killed so far and the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) said an additional 17,091 deaths are still under review.

✨Something to Look Forward To: No, it doesn’t change the impending war and horror of thousands of dead protestors, but Lucy Daucus is playing some shows in the Pacific Northwest in May. She’ll be at Mount Baker Theatre in Bellingham on May 10 and Vancouver, BC on May 12. Is there anything more romantic than fleeing the country to sing-scream along to “Night Shift”? I think not.

Amazon Cuts 16,000 Jobs: The Seattle Times is calling it a “historic wave of layoffs.” The company cut 14,000 jobs in October, blaming a parfait of corporate buzzwords: “reducing layers, increasing ownership, and removing bureaucracy” in their corporate structure. No word yet on how many of these cuts are employees in Seattle. In other news, Jeff Bezos has become the third-richest man in the world again, reclaiming the spot from Sergey Brin. Isn’t it so fun to watch those guys battle it out? Which one will violate labor laws and human rights in order to squeak out a billion more bucks? You never know with those wild 'n' crazy guys.

✨ Dicks for Dimes: To celebrate their 72nd anniversary, Dick’s Drive-In is hawking $0.19 burgers at select locations all week long. Today, you can grab a Dick for less than a quarter at the Queen Anne and Lake City locations. With his $250 billion, Bezos could buy 1.3 TRILLION BURGERS! Just kidding. One per customer, please.

Amazon’s Shutting Down Stores, Too: Amazon announced yesterday that it will close all Amazon Go and Amazon Fresh locations, including 11 stores in Seattle. Many stores will close as early as this Sunday, February 1. Some locations will eventually reopen as Whole Foods, but the company didn’t say how many. Charles Mudede called it in 2024. The closures will leave some serious grocery gaps in the city. The Amazon Fresh on 23rd Avenue, for example, built on the old Red Apple lot, is one of the only full-service grocery stores in the Central District. In semi-related news, it’s not just your imagination: Groceries are getting more expensive in Seattle at a concerning rate.

✨ Fresh Bucks Expands Programming: More than 4,500 households on the Fresh Bucks program waitlist have been enrolled in the program, and as of January 1, low-income households now get $60 a month (up from $40).

Government Shutdown Update: We’re days away from another partial government shutdown. Last week, the House passed the funding bill that would give more money to homeland security, including ICE and Customs and Border Protection. But that was before federal officers shot Alex Pretti, who was the second US citizen killed by federal officers in Minneapolis this month. Now, Dems are feeling even ickier about giving more money to ICE, and they’re demanding that the DHS funding be stripped from the bill. The Republicans are like, “No way, we don’t care that federal officers are gunning down Americans, it’s totally fine, we love it actually, more money plz.” If they don’t advance the measure by Friday, the shutdown will begin at 12:01 EST Saturday morning.

✨National Shutdown Update: Speaking of shutdowns, General Strike US is organizing a national shutdown on January 30. No work, no school, no shopping. If striking isn’t an option, consider calling the seven dum-dum Dems in the House who voted to push that Department of Homeland Security funding through. One of them is Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, from right here in Washington! WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK, MARIE?!

View this post on Instagram
A post shared by General Strike US (@thegeneralstrikeus)

When Rhetoric Becomes Reality: Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar, a Somali immigrant who is constantly being verbally attacked by Trump on social media because racism was physically attacked during a town hall in Minneapolis yesterday when a man in the front row charged at her and sprayed her with a liquid that smelled like vinegar. A security guard tackled the man, and he was arrested. Officials haven’t said what the liquid was, and Omar continued the event, posting on social media later that she was fine and “this small agitator isn’t going to intimidate me from doing my work. I don’t let bullies win.” On Monday, Trump posted on Truth Social about Omar, accusing her of “deflecting from your failures with lies and conspiracy theories about me” and said that the Justice Department is “looking into” her for “fraud,” but really because—say it with me—racism.

✨Put Your Morals Where Your Mouth Is: Graham Granger, a performing arts student, was arrested for criminal mischief after eating an art exhibit at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. The exhibit was a collection of 160 Polaroid pictures that artist Nick Dwyer created with the help of AI. Police say he destroyed about 57 images. Granger said he did it because “AI chews up and spits out art made by other people.” According to The Nation, a witness said “he was tearing them up and just shoving them in as fast as he could. Like when you see people in a hot-dog eating contest.” I don’t know if this truly counts as good news, but I find the whole debacle to be downright delightful.

Let the Record Show: On Monday, a judge ruled that the Seattle Police Department has “routinely” violated Washington’s Public Records Act by “grouping” public records requests and therefore unofficially limiting the number of requests a person or an outlet can submit at a time. According to Publicola, the SPD has been “refusing to work on more than one public disclosure request by the same requester at a time” for years, so last year the Seattle Times sued ‘em. Journalists suing cops is my love language.

Also My Love Language: Gwar covering “Pink Pony Club.” This video has brought me so much joy in recent days. What Gwar song will you cover, Chapell? May I suggest “Pussy Planet” from America Must Be Destroyed? Just an idea.

Stranger Suggests: Video Game-Inspired Dream Pop, a Hopeful Play For These Hopeless Times, and a Pistachio Sundae with Black-Currant Sauce

Audrey Vann — Fri, 16 Jan 2026 12:30:00 -0800

One really great thing to do every day of the week. by Audrey Vann MONDAY 1/19

Crushed with Swinging

See Crushed at Baba Yaga on Monday, January 19. BEN RAYNER

(MUSIC) Crushed leans into the video-game aesthetic—titling their debut EP extra life and their more recent full-length no scope—but that doesn't mean they make video game music (aside from a few glitch-pop moments). Singer Bre Morell provides bold, powerful vocals as Shaun Durkan layers beats, samples, and occasionally his own voice to create atmospheric, electronic-influenced dream pop. It's experimental and genre-bending, but still incredibly accessible. The duo met online while sharing their love for '90s alt-radio hits, and they now record out of different cities: Morell is based in Los Angeles and Durkan calls Portland home. Last fall, Paste Magazine named Crushed as "The Best of What’s Next," describing their songs as the perfect combination of "lyrics that come from a place of real despair and struggle and doubt; a trip-hoppy beat, beautiful atmosphere, and simple, lazy guitars; a metamorphic, surging finale." Portland-based artist Swinging opens the show with their experimental and ethereal alt-folk. (Baba Yaga, 8 pm, 21+) SHANNON LUBETICH

TUESDAY 1/20

Publish Your Valentine in The Stranger!

Declare your love in The Stranger's February Issue! MS

(LOVE) Love is in the air! Grocery store shelves are lined with boxes of chocolates, and people on social media are debating whether or not chalky heart-shaped candy actually tastes good. (YES, AND I WILL DIE ON THAT SUGAR MOUNTAIN.) Valentine’s Day is upon us, and we’re filling our February issue with hundreds of your love notes! Just head over to thestranger.com/valentines and spill your heart in 150 characters or less. And new this year: The first 20 people to purchase a one-year subscription to the print edition of The Stranger get a special super-sized valentine! Just buy your subscription here, and then forward your receipt to valentines@thestranger.com using the same email address you used when submitting your valentine message. We'll display your declaration of adoration in larger font with an extra cute design to make it unmissable to your honey bunny/baby poo/sweetie pie. Yay, love! Get them in by January 23 for print, and February 14 for online. MEGAN SELING

WEDNESDAY 1/21

The Heart Sellers

See 'The Heart Sellers' at Seattle Repertory Theater through February 1. SAYED ALAMY

(PERFORMANCE) So, you might not know this, but everything is terrible right now. The federal government and its goons are upending the spirit of America. They’ve tipped over the melting pot and hawked a loogie into the dregs that remain. The American dream is now a polymarket bet that you’ll never win. The new play at the Seattle Repertory Theater, The Heart Sellers, tells the story of the immigrant experience at a time when America was finally opening its doors to people outside northwestern Europe. There is hope in this play, and there is sadness. In it, two women—one from Korea, one from the Philippines—find friendship when they need it most—on Thanksgiving in 1973. The whole play takes place with two characters in one apartment. The Heart Sellers strikes a chord for American immigrants and lets those of us who aren’t strangers in a strange land step inside their shoes (or house slippers) for a spell. Plus, the acting is phenomenal. (Seattle Repertory Theater, 2 & 7:30 pm) NATHALIE GRAHAM

THURSDAY 1/22

Yarn/Wire, Yiğit Kolat, and Yonatan Ron

(MUSIC) The sound of avant-garde classical ensemble Yarn/Wire is in the name—fuzzy, fibrous threads interwoven with scratchy, metallic chords. Founded in NYC back in 2005, the adventurous piano/percussion quartet pushes the boundaries of contemporary music with their annual Currents project, which serves as an incubator for innovative experimental music. While their music can be unconventional, the pianos maintain a sound within the classical music realm that is accessible to the general public—meaning, yes, you can bring your parents or grandparents to this without fearing their judgment or discomfort. This is the relaxing kind of experimental music, not the chaotic kind. (Meany Hall, 7:30 pm, all ages) AUDREY VANN

FRIDAY 1/23

The 2026 Annual Disabled List Comedy Festival

(COMEDY) Now, more than ever, we need to laugh. And this week, the fourth annual Disabled List Comedy Festival is giving us several opportunities to do just that, with five days of stand-up performances and a variety show starring some of the country’s most hilarious comedians. The Disabled List was co-founded by Kayla Brown and Dan Hurwitz (one of The Stranger’s Champions of Comedy in 2024), and this year’s festival features notable headliners including Hayden Kristal (I hope she brings her dog Creatch!), Comrade Tripp, Derek Shen (another Champion of Comedy alum), and Tina Friml, who so perfectly balances comedy and her experiences as a person with cerebral palsy that when Stranger contributor Mindi Lind interviewed Friml in 2024, she wrote, “This magical unicorn has broken through the impenetrable wall between prime time and the disabled experience, delivering lines so smart, so cunning, so potently real that entire universities have spent decades trying to distill these ideas into hundred-page dissertations.” You cannot lose—pick any show from their stellar line-up and go laugh until your tummy hurts. (Jan 22–25, various venues) MEGAN SELING

SATURDAY 1/24

Judy Collins

(MUSIC) After deep-diving into the catalogs of legendary songstresses like Joan Baez, Joni Mitchell, and Carole King, I finally found my way to the discography of Judy Collins. I was already aware of her iconic voice, but given the number of her albums in record store dollar bins, I did not expect her exploration of different genres. Her music is not simply straightforward vocal pop, but swims around trad-folk, country, and jazz, incorporating the occasional experimental flourish (such as the ethereal ocean sounds in “Farewell to Tarwathie.”) Collins has released and collaborated on over 50 albums in her lifetime, with additional career successes as an author, filmmaker, social activist, guitar designer, and record label founder. She’s also been gigging for over 50 years, so show up and make this stop in Seattle a memorable one for her. (Jazz Alley, 7:30 pm, all ages) AUDREY VANN

SUNDAY 1/25

Devour a Deep Sea Sugar and Salt Ice Cream Sundae at Milk Drunk

Get it before it's gone! COURTESY OF MILK DRUNK

(FOOD & DRINK) Deep Sea Sugar and Salt serves up some of the fattest, most indulgent slices of cake in the PacNW. Milk Drunk sells some of the funnest soft serve sundaes and cones—dipped in and covered with toppings like butterscotch hard shell, Fruity Pebbles, and cinnamon streusel—in the city. Together? Fuck. I knew this collaboration was going to be good, but I did not expect it to be so delicious that I can say with certainty that it will remain on my personal top 10 list of best things I ate in 2026. And it’s only January! A mountain of pistachio and black-currant soft serve is smothered with a tart black currant sauce, rich pistachio butter, and a shortbread crumble that makes all the flavors pop. Because it’s a limited-edition collab—Milk Drunk hosts different sundae chefs every month—Sunday, January 25, is your last chance to try it. Don’t miss out. (Milk Drunk, noon–9 pm) MEGAN SELING

Prizefight!

Win tickets to rad upcoming events!*

Jacob Banks
January 24, the Neptune

ENTER NOW!

Contest ends January 22 at 10 am

*Entering PRIZE FIGHT contests by submitting your email address signs you up to receive the Stranger Suggests newsletter. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Slog AM: Varsity Theater Will Close This Week, Bob Ferguson Grows a Spine, Maybe, and Trump Keeps Making Moves on Greenland

Megan Seling — Wed, 14 Jan 2026 09:49:00 -0800

The Stranger's morning news roundup. by Megan Seling

Today Will be Gray: What you see outside right now is what you will get for the day—it won’t get brighter, it won’t get warmer, it won’t get colder, but it also won’t rain, probably. Those clouds in the sky will remain in the sky. It’s the big nothing. It’s like living under a weighted blanket. I love it so much.

Bobby Is Back! Yesterday, Gov. Bob Ferguson delivered his first State of the State speech, and in it he called out the “horrific and unjust” actions of the Trump Administration, and praised Dems’ efforts to tax the rich. A nice thing to see after he spent the first year of his term appeasing Republicans. Still, words are cheap. Now we need action. We’re watching, Bob.

King County Prosecutors Won't Charge Pedro Gomez: Cheryl Delostrinos, a local organizer, says Gomez raped her in 2024. In the story published on The Stranger yesterday, “KCPAO didn’t decline to charge Gomez because they doubted her account. In fact, in a written response to The Stranger’s questions, the prosecutor’s office emphasized on five separate occasions that they do believe her.” But “prosecutors concluded they could not prove the elements of rape in the second- or third-degree beyond a reasonable doubt when weighed against what they described as the ‘most plausible, reasonably foreseeable defense.’” Read the whole maddening story here. Then join me in screaming into the void for the rest of the day.

Another Theater Bites the Dust: The Varsity Theater in the U District is closing. Their last day of operations will be tomorrow, January 15. In a press release, Jeff Brien of Far Away Entertainment (which took the theater over in 2015 after Landmark Theaters closed it) said: “We have never fully recovered from the pandemic when we were forced to close for almost a year. Since then a series of Hollywood labor disputes, reduced film releases from major studios and increased operating expenses have prevented us from generating sufficient income.” Far Away also runs Historic Admiral Theater in West Seattle, as well as theaters in Anacortes, Bainbridge Island, Stanwood, and Lynnwood, among others, but they say that none of those theaters are in danger. “We are leaving all operating equipment behind in the hope that the theater remains available to show digital movies with digital sound,” Brien added. “We are anxious to identify any interested parties who may want to exhibit film, live entertainment or special events.”

President Pedophile Protector: Yesterday, while Trump toured a Ford plant in Michigan, a line worker allegedly yelled out to Trump, calling him a “pedophile protector.” TMZ has shared a couple of videos in which Trump appears to say “fuck you” to the employee while flipping him off. The employee told The Washington Post that he’s been suspended from work pending an investigation and, “As far as calling him out, definitely no regrets whatsoever.” Yes, there is a GoFundMe in case he loses his job.

“I don’t feel as though fate looks upon you often, and when it does, you better be ready to seize the opportunity,” said TJ Sabula, the UAW worker who heckled President Trump and who Trump flipped off and cursed at. “And today I think I did that.”

Gift link: wapo.st/4sG38CD

[image or embed]
— Mike Madden (@mikemadden.bsky.social) January 13, 2026 at 5:40 PM

A Spine? In This Autocracy? The opening paragraph of this New York Times story reads like Antifa fan fiction: “Six federal prosecutors in Minnesota resigned on Tuesday over the Justice Department’s push to investigate the widow of a woman killed by an ICE agent and the department’s reluctance to investigate the shooter, according to people with knowledge of their decision.” As of Monday, just four prosecutors had resigned. More of this, please! Don’t play their fascist games!

That Dirty Work: Officials continue to look for ways to make it appear as though Renee Good deserved to be shot in the face three times by an ICE agent. Their latest attempt is releasing “new documents [that] shed light on Renee Good’s ties to ICE monitoring efforts in Minneapolis.” First of all, that shitty CNN headline buries the lead. Those documents? They were shared with parents at her kid’s school and appear to recommend that people keep an eye on ICE activity in the area through “nonviolent civil disobedience tactics practiced at American protests for generations.” Makes sense! ICE activity has time and time again led to violence, so parents should be aware of it when en route to pick up children, right? And before you get all “Leave ICE alone! Let them do their jobs! Don’t interfere and don’t get hurt!” here’s the thing, and maybe I’m yelling at the choir here, but WE CAN DO THAT. We can film cops and federal agents carrying out their duties in public places, and they ARE NOT SUPPOSED TO SHOOT US IN THE FACE WHEN WE DO. All these alleged documents suggest is that she was killed by the very people she warned everyone about. Horrifying.

Trump Thinks He Can Just, Like, Take Greenland: Today, VP Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio are meeting with Greenland’s prime minister. Yesterday, Trump said that the US “needs” Greenland, which is the same terminology used by seventh-grade boys when telling their girlfriend they “can’t” dump them. “Anything less than” getting Greenland would be “unacceptable,” he said. PM Jens-Frederik Nielsen has told them that Greenland needs to remain part of Denmark. Whose needs will win? And am I naive for hoping that if Vance and Rubio fail to walk away with Greenland in today’s meeting, Trump will deem them both “losers” and the dramatic infighting will begin?

Death Toll Climbs in Iranian Protests: The U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency says more than 2,500 people have died in nationwide protests in Iran. Weirdly, Trump has been freaking out on Truth Social about it, telling protesters to “keep protesting” and claiming he has “canceled all meetings with Iranian Officials until the senseless killing of protesters STOPS. HELP IS ON ITS WAY.” Are you as confused as I am? JD Vance is saying Renee Good was “disorderly” and the officer who shot her has “actually done a very, very important job for the United States of America.” Is it opposite day? Did I wake up in the upside-down? WHAT IS HAPPENING?!?

Because Look at This: The Trump administration is escalating arrests and “aggressive tactics” in Minneapolis, including against people protesting last week’s shooting. The New York Times has compiled several videos showing agents breaking car windows and pulling people out of their cars, assaulting people who are standing near them, and intimidating people filming any incidents. Trump says they’re there to round up “murderers” and “convicted criminals,” but we know that’s not true. And a recent ProPublica investigation found “more than 40 cases of ICE agents using banned chokeholds.” That is illegal. They’re breaking the law. The hypocrisy is making me crazy.

But What About Freedom of the Press? The FBI has executed a search warrant at a WaPo reporter’s home, seizing her phone, two laptops, and a watch in an “investigation into a government contractor accused of illegally retaining classified government materials. “It's worth reiterating, though we shouldn't have to, that journalists have a constitutionally protected right to publish government secrets,” said Reporters Without Borders in a statement. The journalist, Hannah Natanson, was told she’s not the focus of the probe.

Have You Filled Out Our Sex Survey Yet? Do it! What’s the sexiest thing you did in 2025? Do you sext? Do you subscribe to OnlyFans? What music do you listen to when getting it on? Have you ever humped in a car? What about on a Washington State Ferry? And how horny are you for Nathan Fielder? It just takes seven minutes to fill out the anonymous survey, and then we'll crunch some numbers, pull some data, and share the results in our February Love & Sex issue (on stands February 4)! Do it now!

Create your own user feedback survey

Declare Your Love in the Pages of The Stranger!

Megan Seling — Thu, 08 Jan 2026 15:15:00 -0800

Spill your heart out... in 150 characters or less. by Megan Seling

Are you in love? In lust? In a complicated situationship that started with a drunken and convenient New Year's Eve kiss, but are now ready to take things to the next level by publicly declaring your adoration with the permanency of newsprint?

We're filling our February issue with hundreds of your love notes!

Just head over to thestranger.com/valentines and spill your heart in 150 characters or less. Then, when our next issue hits the stands on February 4, your crush can pore over a (real! made-of-paper!) copy of The Stranger at their favorite coffeeshop on a chilly afternoon, find your sweet message, cut it out, laminate it with a piece of Scotch tape, and carry it around in their wallet like it’s 1998!

But you gotta hurry. Only the first 500 entries are guaranteed to appear in the paper, and submissions must be received by 5 pm on Friday, January 23, for possible inclusion. All entries—so long as they aren't mean or nonsensical—will appear online.

And new this year: The first 20 people to purchase a one-year subscription to the print edition of The Stranger, can get a super-sized valentine! Just buy your subscription here, and then forward your receipt to valentines@thestranger.com using the same email address you used when submitting your valentine message, and we'll display your message in larger font with an extra cute design!

So what are you waiting for? Put some good out into the world and...

💘 Declare your love in The Stranger now! 💘

*Disclaimer: One per email, please. Duplicates, mean-spirited valentines, and nonsensical gibberish will be rejected. No last names. ☹️ Emojis will not be printed ☹️.

Stranger Suggests: Sundance-Worthy Shorts, Lucy Dacus’s Guitarist, and an Art Show About the End of the World

Shannon Lubetich — Mon, 05 Jan 2026 12:40:00 -0800

One really great thing to do every day of the week. by Shannon Lubetich MONDAY 1/5

Take The Stranger’s Sex Survey

(SHAMELESS PROMOTION) There ain’t shit going on in town today. It’s the first Monday of the new year, and it’s grey and drizzly. Everyone is partied out. People are still holding tight to their resolutions to drink less or save more. There is literally no better day to spend 10 minutes of your time taking The Stranger’s annual sex survey! Last year's sex survey results proved very interesting. Fisting/getting fisted fantasies skyrocketed, H.E.R. was by far the music people listened to most when getting busy, and people were only medium-horny for Luigi Mangione. What will we learn about the sex lives of Seattleites this year? There's only one way to find out! Grab a drink, get comfortable, and tell us everything. It’s free, it’s anonymous, and it’s fun! Click here to start. The results will appear in our Love & Sex issue, on stands February 4. MEGAN SELING

TUESDAY 1/6

Tommy Oeffling

(MUSIC) Tommy Oeffling makes meandering, unassuming indie rock out of his bedroom in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, that he refers to as a ripoff of his favorite artists, like MJ Lenderman, Mk.gee, and Pavement. His recent lo-fi album Picture of Health tells stories of life as a 20-year-old through echoing vocals and driving guitar. Oeffling's parents gave him a drum kit at the age of four and inspired his current studies to become a teacher—and while he admits that music isn't his main focus, the honesty and musical skill displayed in his slacker rock tunes have earned him a dedicated following. I'm looking forward to hearing him play "Love in the Time of Trump," which is more about daily life and relationships than politics. (Neumos, 7 pm, all ages) SHANNON LUBETICH

WEDNESDAY 1/7

2025 Sundance Film Festival Short Film Tour

(FILM) Always wanted to experience Sundance, but aren’t into flying out to Park City to do so? Then the fest’s 2025 Short Film Tour should be at the top of your January events list. Sundance distills its notoriously strong shorts program into a tight, 100-minute theatrical showcase of seven standout films, including two jury award winners, that’ll screen for an 11-day run during the Seattle stop. Presented by Vimeo, the event features fiction, documentary, animation, and more, offering up a holistic snapshot of the trajectory of independent filmmaking. I won't blame you for not wanting to spend time in Utah, but if you call yourself a Seattle cinephile, this one’s hard to skip. (Northwest Film Forum, all ages) LANGSTON THOMAS

THURSDAY 1/8

Dan Webb: Yespalier

New Shoot by Dan Webb, 2025. COURTESY OF GREG KUCERA GALLERY

(VISUAL ART) Dan Webb is a woodcarver—the old-fashioned kind who chips away slowly at a tree, through sap and heart and bark, to draw things out. His melting chairs and busts draped in luxurious fabric-y folds speak to a mastery of the medium, as well as a playful sensibility that coaxes unexpected meaning from a blank block. Despite the trompe l’oeil playfulness, the wood-ness of Webb’s sculptures is always felt; the tree is present. Like Michelangelo’s non finito Prisoners emerging from their stone, Webb’s subjects feel as though they’ve willed themselves into being, emerging from the raw pith of the earth. In Yespalier (a portmanteau of yes and espalier—the ancient horticultural technique in which fruit trees are trained along a frame to direct their growth) Webb has created a body of work that is less planned, more improvisational and sketchy. How does one “sketch” with wood? By starting with a simple square frame and carving inward. The resulting sculptures are delightfully meandering, surreal, and all over the place in the best way. (Greg Kucera Gallery) AMANDA MANITACH

FRIDAY 1/9

Panic Room: Jeju Island Artist Collective

View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Kyung-jin Kim (@kyung_jin_kim)

(VISUAL ART) “What to do when the end of the world arrives?” That’s the theme behind this pseudo-scientific performance project by the Jeju Island Artist Collective. This show runs the full month of January and plays out like a mockumentary, following a group of hyper-rational “nerds” as they navigate the end of the world from inside a hybrid lab/studio/survival pod. While the outside world collapses, the performers obsessively devise systems and inventions to guard against the unknown, revealing the absurdity and vulnerability baked into our reliance on data and control. Created by South Korean immigrant artists Kyung-Jin Kim, Eunsun Choi, and Yeon Jin Kim, Panic Room blends satire, speculative fiction, and performance art into a reflection on how we cope when certainty disappears. The opening reception is January 10, 3–5 p.m. (The Vestibule, Fri–Sat through Jan 31, free) LANGSTON THOMAS

SATURDAY 1/10

Madison Cunningham

(MUSIC) California-based singer-songwriter Madison Cunningham has sung with Mumford & Sons, played guitar for Lucy Dacus, and released a joint album with Andrew Bird called Cunningham Bird that covers the iconic 1973 Buckingham Nicks record. Similar to Bird, Cunningham makes expansive orchestral music with a folk-rock slant. She won the Grammy for Best Folk Album for her 2022 album Revealer, following it up with her fourth full-length this year. Ace plays with the duality of being the strongest and the weakest at the same time, exploring her identity as an eldest daughter and her experience recovering from the end of a relationship to find love again. Check out her impeccable guitar skills in a stripped-down version of the track "Wake"—the album version features Fleet Foxes—and get ready to be transported by her show at a storied cathedral with support from Native American folk artist Ken Pomeroy. (St. Mark's Cathedral, 7:30 pm, all ages) SHANNON LUBETICH

SUNDAY 1/11

Nueve Lio

(MUSIC) Filipino American rapper Nueve Lio was born in Southern California, spent large parts of his childhood in Japan and Guam as the son of a Navy contractor, and then moved back to Riverside to kick off his musical career. The hip-hop artist comes to Seattle in support of his fourth album HERTURN (released last September), which blends smooth R&B with electronic influences. The video for the lead single "RUN IT BACK" is simultaneously epic and extremely cheesy—it plays with reflections, shadows, slow motion, and includes a cinematic rain scene with a love interest who appears to be some sort of bird-controlling sorceress. (Neumos, 7 pm, all ages) SHANNON LUBETICH

Stranger Suggests: Headbanging to Sludge Metal, Jumping into Freezing Water, and Eating Too Much Hot and Melty Cheese

Todd Hamm — Mon, 29 Dec 2025 10:00:00 -0800

One really great thing to do every day of the week. by Todd Hamm MONDAY 12/29

Rosebay Chalet

(CHEESE) For the second year, Hotel 1000 is going full vintage Swiss-alpine fantasy with the Rosebay Chalet. Once entering through the gingerbread-trimmed facade (made of actual gingerbread) and settling into a faux fur-decked fireside lounge, you might just forget you’re in Downtown Seattle. Festive cocktails aren’t the only treat in store here, as the food menu leans into winter comfort with Beecher’s fondue, giant Bavarian pretzels, and French onion soup. Plus, this year offers build-your-own gingerbread chalets, a shotski, board games, and a chairlift photo op watched over by a (reportedly very handsome, albeit fake) St. Bernard. (Rosebay, through Dec 31) LANGSTON THOMAS

TUESDAY 12/30

Eat Clam Chowder at Taproot Cafe & Bar

View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Taproot Columbia City (@taproot_cafe_bar)

(SOUP) Many may not know this, but I'm a clam chowder fan. I'm also very picky about this hearty form of soup. Clam chowder is often done wrong: Too thick or too thin, potatoes too hard or too soft, not enough clams, or the flavor of clams. Once in a while, however, I discover a place that gets all of these elements right, and that place, right now, is Columbia City's Taproot Cafe & Bar. They serve New England Clam Chowder with hickory bacon, steamed potatoes, and a herb emulsion. The bowl comes with a buttermilk roll and a warm feeling that is just perfect for long and cold nights. Heat must not come from the sun but from a stove operated by a cook who knows the secrets of clam chowder. (Taproot Cafe & Bar, open Tues-Sun) CHARLES MUDEDE

WEDNESDAY 12/31

Mudhoney, Student Nurse

(NEW YEAR’S EVE) Perhaps this is an unpopular opinion, but Mudhoney could have retired after releasing their 1988 debut single “Touch Me I’m Sick” and still achieved god-tier status in Seattle’s—and Earth’s—underground-rock scene. The foursome’s signature song swerved into the Stooges’ Fun House and pinched Iggy’s nipples hard, while vomiting into Scott Asheton’s kickdrum. How do you follow up such a monumental first release? Well, Mudhoney have soldiered on for 37 years with the same creative nucleus of Mark Arm and Steve Turner, putting subtle variations on their thunderous garage- and psych- rock templates, augmented by abundant and astringent guitar FX. One key to their greatness is, they’re masculine, not macho. Another key is, they possess humor and self-awareness; so even though their sound hasn’t changed much, they still don’t obviously repeat themselves. The band’s riffs and melodies still sting with the vitality of musicians a third of their ages, and even their last four albums—delivered at five-year intervals—rip musically, while spanking all the right people lyrically. These gr*nge warhorses are still thoroughbreds. (Neptune Theatre, 8 pm, all ages) DAVE SEGAL

Get plenty more New Year's Eve recommendations on EverOut!

THURSDAY 1/1

Polar Bear Plunge

View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Seattle Parks and Recreation (@seattleparksandrec)

(BRRRRR) For generations, people around the world have been marking the start of each new year with a startlingly cold polar plunge. The tradition is celebrated in Canada, the Netherlands, England, Scotland—basically anywhere with ice-cold bodies of water and brave souls. Here in Seattle, amateurs and seasoned dunkers alike are invited to ring in 2026 with the annual Polar Bear Plunge on January 1 at Matthews Beach Park. Lifeguards will be on duty, and since there are hundreds of participants all rushing into the water at the same time, it’s a lot harder to wuss out. But if you want to up your chances of spotting seals or an orca or two, check out New Year’s polar plunge events with local groups, including Puget Sound Plungers and Coldwater Collective, who host plunges year-round at Alki, Golden Gardens, Redondo Beach, and more. As an experienced plunger, my advice to you is this: Wear a warm hat, and don’t be afraid to scream, laugh, swear, or cry through the first 30 seconds or so. It really does make a big difference. (Matthews Beach Park, noon, all ages, free) MEGAN SELING

FRIDAY 1/2

Welcome to Paradise: ¡Viva Puerto Rico Libre!

View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Seattle Office of Arts & Culture (@seaofficeofarts)

(VISUAL ART) Part art exhibition, part act of resistance, Welcome to Paradise: ¡Viva Puerto Rico Libre! transforms tourism into protest and collective memory into defiance. Curated by Seattle-based Boricua artist Jo Cosme, the show expands on her solo work by featuring over 30 native Boricua artists from across the archipelago to confront colonialism, disaster capitalism, and displacement. Running through January, the exhibition is accompanied by La residencia: no me dejan quedarme aquí, a series of screenings, walk-throughs, and discussions exploring Puerto Rico’s history and ongoing fight for self-determination. (Office of Arts & Culture, various dates through Jan 10, all ages, free) LANGSTON THOMAS

SATURDAY 1/3

High on Fire, King Woman

(MUSIC) Consistency, as a critique of art, may connote poorly, but in a medium like metal, which requires an artist to retain an ungodly amount of thunderous energy to remain true and relevant, long-term consistency is rare. To see a High on Fire show—guitarist/vocalist Matt Pike inevitably bare-chested and imposing, bassist Jeff Matz gray-beardly purveying low-end sludge, and smashing new drummer Coady Willis (who happens to be the same Coady Willis of legendary Northwest outfits the Murder City Devils, Big Business, and occasionally the Melvins)—is to affirm heavy music as the lifeblood of eternal youth. The power trio’s ninth album, 2024’s Cometh the Storm, the first with Willis on kit, carries the same level of fire Pike and co. originally got high on, sounding nothing like you might expect from a group that has earned every right to have gone hoarse and nappy by now. That angle aside, the band still stands in 2025 as a torch-bearer of crunchy sludge metal, continuing to frolic in trippy metal pastures when similar bands of the era like Mastodon sadly could not. (Showbox, 7 pm, all ages) TODD HAMM

SUNDAY 1/4

Catch up on Frieren

(ANIME) Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End starts where most adventure stories end. The demon lord is defeated, the hero’s party disbands, and time moves on. The story follows Frieren, an elf mage who is over one thousand years old, as she reckons with what that victory cost her. How does an immortal process grief when everyone she loves ages and dies? What does a 10-year journey mean when it is only a fraction of your life? Frieren is a quiet, devastating meditation on memory, regret, and learning too late how much people mattered. If anime usually turns you off, trust me: The superb world-building, animation, and storytelling put Frieren in the rare company of must-watch anime like Ghost in the Shell or Akira. The English dub is also shockingly excellent, and I say that as someone who hates dubs. Catch up before season two premieres January 16. Bring tissues. “Frieren, you should treasure the encounters you have. Death isn't the only goodbye in this life.” (Streaming on Netflix and available to rent at Scarecrow Video) CHRISTIAN PARROCO

Take Our Sex Survey, You Sexy People!

Megan Seling — Mon, 29 Dec 2025 09:00:00 -0800

Grab a drink, get comfortable, and tell us everything. by Megan Seling

It's tiiiiiiiiime!

Now that 2025 is (almost) over, it's time to look back on the past year and spill your guts in The Stranger's annual sex survey!

What's the sexiest thing you did in 2025? Do you sext? Do you subscribe to OnlyFans? What music do you listen to when getting it on? Have you ever humped in a car? What about on a Washington State Ferry? And how horny are you for Nathan Fielder?

You have until Friday, January 16, to give us all the juicy details (anonymously!), and then we'll crunch some numbers, pull some data, and share the results in our February Love & Sex issue (on stands February 4)!

Last year's sex survey proved very interesting. Fisting/getting fisted fantasies skyrocketed, H.E.R. was by far the music people listened to most when getting busy, and people were only medium-horny for Luigi Mangione. (Gay men were the horniest demographic for him, averaging just over 6 on a scale of 1-10.)

What will we learn about the sex lives of Seattleites this year? There's only one way to find out! Grab a drink, get comfortable, and tell us everything.

Create your own user feedback survey

If the survey isn't loading in the widget above, click here to open it in a new tab.

Stranger Suggests: Seattle's Favorite Holiday Light Display, One of Hip-Hop’s Old-Soul Success Stories, and a True Hockey Rivalry

Julianne Bell — Mon, 15 Dec 2025 13:25:00 -0800

One really great thing to do every day of the week. by Julianne Bell MONDAY 12/15

Vengeance Is Mine

(FILM) The late German-American filmmaker Michael Roemer is primarily known for his landmark films Nothing But a Man (1964) and The Plot Against Harry (1971), but his lesser-known family drama Vengeance Is Mine (1984) could give them a run for their money. On a trip to her family home in Rhode Island, where she hopes to get closure from her traumatic childhood, Jo (Brooke Adams) befriends neighbor Donna (Trish Van Devere) and finds herself ensnared in another domestic conflict altogether. Criterion Collection writes, “Bringing vérité naturalism to a seemingly melodramatic premise, Roemer crafts a miracle of novelistic psychological insight that, as it unspools, reveals ever-greater depths of human understanding.” (The Beacon, various times, through Dec 17) JULIANNE BELL

TUESDAY 12/16

Earl Sweatshirt, Liv.e, Zeloopers, Cletus Strap

(MUSIC) Earl Sweatshirt has been trying to turn the volume down for years. Once a teenage rap prodigy who found cult fame with, and brotherhood in, “the potty mouth posse” Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All, Earl Sweatshirt now stands at age 31 as one of hip-hop’s old-soul success stories. Having just welcomed his second child and given up booze (and ramped up weed), he confidently told The New York Times’ Popcast this summer that his life is “fuckin’ normal, finally.” The recorded discography of Sweatshirt, born Thebe Neruda Kgositsile, documents the life journey of someone who once helped define, then survived to outgrow, a generation of youthful nihilism. But more than a post-nihilist victory lap, his new album, Live Laugh Love, is a bombastic celebration of passion. Gone are the days where each line was an avalanche of syllables that tumbled across the page like a chorus of cracking double-jointed knuckles; today, Sweatshirt raps with a blunted calm that sounds well-earned, but what remains is the vivid imagery and referential depth you have to rewind (gladly) to fully appreciate, proving he’s still one of the best to ever do it. (Showbox SoDo, 8 pm, all ages) TODD HAMM

WEDNESDAY 12/17

Bait Shop Holiday Light Show

View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Bait Shop Bar (@baitshopseattle)

(HOLIDAY) Everyone’s favorite Capitol Hill dive bar is back with its annual holiday light show! Bait Shop always goes whole hog with holiday decorations, and its epic musical light show illuminates every hour on the hour(ish). The staff manually flips the light switches, so be sure to tap into the holiday spirit and tip them extra for their hard work. We love the bar’s seasonal bevvies and details like the decked-out bathrooms, dick-covered wrapping paper, and tiny Santa hats on every animal. (Bait Shop, 4 pm-2 am daily, 21+, free) SHANNON LUBETICH

THURSDAY 12/18

In Tandem: A Trio of Duets

(PERFORMANCE) This evening of performances treats audiences to three different duets, each springing from long-term creative collaborations and exhibiting different choreographic styles. First up is the US premiere of Fable, a work from Bebe Miller with Angie Hauser and Darrell Jones that promises to explore “findings from a 25-year perspective on the contexts of art making through the body over a lifetime, exposing the collision of their internal processes as dance artists, friends, and citizens.” Next, Maurya Kerr, artistic director of the Bay Area-based company tinypistol, will present comet, whom I love, a “duet full of rapture, orbit, intimacy, fury, and presence.” Rachael Lincoln and Leslie Seiters will cap off the night with Fast Craft: Still Unlike Diving, a “study in pause, friction, and the beautiful collapse of certainty” 25 years in the making. (On the Boards, 8 pm, through Dec 20, all ages) JULIANNE BELL

FRIDAY 12/19

Jay Som, Sea Lemon

(MUSIC) Melina Mae Cortez Duterte, better known by her stage name Jay Som, dubs her brand of dreamy, intimate DIY bedroom pop “headphone music,” citing influences as disparate as Carly Rae Jepsen, Phil Elverum, and Alanis Morissette. She’s opened for musicians like Mitski and Japanese Breakfast, and contributed a song to the 2024 film I Saw the TV Glow. After a six-year break from solo music, during which she meticulously trained her technical skills, she’s released her latest album, Belong, which showcases her growth and leans into pop-punk territory with guest vocals from Hayley Williams of Paramore and Jim Adkins of Jimmy Eat World. Don’t miss an opening set from local artist Natalie Lew of Sea Lemon, who takes inspiration from the eerie beauty of the ocean and describes her vibe as “Costco Cocteau Twins.” (Neumos, 8 pm, all ages) JULIANNE BELL

SATURDAY 12/20

The Game Show

View this post on Instagram
A post shared by The Vestibule (@the_vestibule_)

(VISUAL ART) What happens when art plays by its own rules? Or makes up new ones entirely? The Game Show is a two-weekend exhibition exploring this concept and the space between where games become art and art becomes play. Curated from an open call for work back in October, thirty artists now present whimsical, interactive, and delightfully odd projects, including dancers with bubble wrap, octopus roleplay, cardboard hotels built by mathematicians, projections that speak through walls, and, my personal favorite, a claw machine. Inspired by 20th-century philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein’s idea that rules shift as we play, the show invites visitors to experiment, question, and engage through chance, movement, strategy, and mischief. (Vestibule, through Dec 21, free) LANGSTON THOMAS

SUNDAY 12/21

Seattle Torrent vs. Boston Fleet

Seattle Torrent forward Julia Gosling (#88) and captain Hilary Knight (#21) make a play for the puck in the team's first game on Friday, November 21. BILLIE WINTER

(SPORTS) A lot of energy has been poured into developing a rivalry between the Seattle Torrent and the Vancouver Goldeneyes. I get it. Both clubs made their PWHL debut this year, and the cities are just a few hours apart, making it easy for fans to follow the teams on the road. I’m all for anything that drums up more excitement about women’s hockey. But I say the true Torrent rivals are the Boston Fleet, aka the team that put our Captain Hilary Knight up for grabs during the expansion draft (thanks, dummies!), and was formerly home to our GM, Meghan Turner. Other one-time Mass-holes on the Torrent roster include Alternate Captain Emily Brown, forward Lexie Adzija, and forward Hannah Bilka, who has a goal and two assists in three games. Hopefully, at Sunday’s matinee game, the Torrent can show the Fleet the error of their ways. (Climate Pledge Arena, 2 pm, all ages) MEGAN SELING

Slog AM: Australia Kicks Kids Off Social Media, More Rain Is Coming to Seattle, Trump Bails Out Farmers

Megan Seling — Tue, 09 Dec 2025 09:45:00 -0800

The Stranger's Morning News Roundup by Megan Seling

About That Weather: Monday’s heavy rain was just the beginning. Rivers are flooding all over Western Washington—the Snohomish River is expected to reach a record high—and the Seattle Times says a “stronger surge of subtropical moisture is on track to arrive Tuesday night.” Keep your phones charged, make some hot chocolate, and get comfortable, it’s gonna be a wet night.

Get ‘Em, Valdez: Seattle Senator Javier Valdez introduced a bill yesterday that would ban law enforcement officers and ICE agents from wearing face-concealing masks. “If a law officer is stopping or questioning you, you have the right to know who they are. Anonymous policing erodes trust, invites abuse, and threatens the safety of everyone involved,” said Valdez. Sounds good! But can we also just ban illegal ICE raids? That would be even better!

Jayapal Has New Legislation, Too: The Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act, co-sponsored by Adam Smith, would, among other things, repeal mandatory detention, create a presumption of release, impose a higher burden of proof to detain primary caregivers and vulnerable populations, and phase out the use of private detention facilities and jails. But can we also recognize the illegal aspect of ICE’s unlawful (and very racist) detainments and hold those criminals accountable for what is essentially kidnapping? I want to see more officials blocking ICE raids and suing those fuckers!

The American people have been clear: they are not okay with Trump’s cruel kidnappings and disappearances of immigrants across the country.

Congress must hear their pleas to push back against this lawlessness and pass my Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act.

[image or embed]
— Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal (@jayapal.house.gov) December 9, 2025 at 6:30 AM

Easier Said Than Done: Speaking of stopping ICE, yesterday, former Spokane City Council President Ben Stuckart pleaded guilty to “impeding the duties of immigration officers.” Stuckart allegedly blocked a transport bus carrying two men who came into the US legally through a government-regulated humanitarian program. It’s a felony, so he faces up to six years in prison and thousands of dollars in fines. SO! FUCKED!

Arts News You Can Use: Common AREA Maintenance saved the El Rey! As Stranger writer Audrey Vann reported yesterday, the local arts collective bought the historic Belltown building for “the symbolic price of $20, with the Office of Housing agreeing to forgive the $2.2 million loan if CAM can get the El Rey structurally sound and in compliance with fire codes.” CAM plans to use the building for affordable housing for artists, as well as a cultural space. Read all about it!

It Ain’t Over: Paramount launched what the finance world calls a “hostile takeover” bid (unnecessarily dramatic, imo) by offering to buy Warner Bros. Discovery for $108.4 billion after WB had already agreed to an $83 billion sale to Netflix. But wait, how does Paramount have that kind of money? Didn’t they just lay off thousands of people? Yes! According to Variety, Paramount’s deal is partly backed by “three Arab sovereign wealth funds and Jared Kushner’s Affinity Partners.” 👀👀👀

David Ellison knows what Trump wants on CNN—and he’s willing to give it.

If Paramount acquires Warner instead of Netflix and the Ellisons fulfill their promise to Trump, we could see Trump blatantly using them to shape the entire media landscape—from CNN to TikTok—in his own image. trib.al/Qmi31pW

[image or embed]
— The New Republic (@newrepublic.com) December 9, 2025 at 7:21 AM

Trump’s Giving Farmers $12 Billion: Remember when Trump started a trade war, and fucked over a bunch of farmers? Some of those who supported him were starting to question their loyalty. Others began referring to their Trump-induced financial woes as “farmageddon.” Well, Trump announced yesterday he’s rolling out $12B in financial aid for farmers across the country. He says the money is from all the extra dough the US is raking in from tariffs, but that is a lie—the money is coming from the Agriculture Department’s Farmer Bridge Assistance program, and, as the New York Times points out, “The total payout to farmers could be far less than their recent losses.” Way to go, dummy.

Ten Days: The Justice Department has until December 19 to release the Epstein files, and yesterday, a Manhattan federal judge granted a motion to unseal the grand jury investigation of Ghislaine Maxwell, too. But in the ruling, Judge Paul Engelmayer pointed out that the newly unlocked files "would not add to public knowledge."

The Battle of the Boat Footage: In September, the US military attacked an alleged drug boat in the Caribbean, killing 11 people on board. As lawmakers began to investigate the attack, it came out that two people allegedly survived the initial hit, so the US struck the boat again. Legal experts say that is a BIG FAT CRIME, despite Pete Hegseth citing “fog of war.” (Sounds like an Iced Earth album.) Seeing video of the second strike could, of course, help clear this up, and last week, Trump said there should be “no problem” in releasing that footage. Surprisingly transparent, right? Well, yesterday he backtracked on that statement and called a reporter “obnoxious” and “terrible” for saying otherwise. The AP says at least 87 people have been killed in 22 similar strikes in recent months.

Australia Launches Social Media Ban: Australia is the first country in the world to ban kids under 16 from using social media platforms, including Instagram, Facebook, Threads, X, TikTok, Reddit, and more. Parents and kids won’t be punished for breaking the rules, but corporations could be.

Let’s End with Something Delightful:

Because I’m bored: Professional Athletes as Public Transit Vehicles
— Brittney Bush Bollay (@brittneybush.bsky.social) December 8, 2025 at 11:34 AM

We Deserve Better City Parks

Megan Seling — Thu, 04 Dec 2025 09:56:00 -0800

Sometimes I just want to sit on a real bench, in the middle of a real park, in the city I love, and soak it all in. by Megan Seling

The Pacific Northwest is undoubtedly beautiful, and Seattle has no shortage of public parks that double as nature-loving reprieves from the city’s crowds and noise. Discovery Park, Lincoln Park, Carkeek Park, Seward Park, they’re all full of winding, wooded trails beneath hundreds, even thousands of trees, with wide-open, grassy playing fields and access to the shores of Lake Washington or Puget Sound, where it’s not rare to spot seals playing or a pod of orcas on the hunt. It’s fucking magical!

What Seattle doesn’t have, though, are city parks. Parks where there’s no hiking, no trail biking, no whale watching—just a place to rest, to read, to people watch on a comfortable bench amid the city’s vibrancy.

Have you seen the public parks in Mexico City and Oaxaca? Their parks are phenomenal. They’re not huge, but they’re entire worlds, tucked into city blocks, among all the commotion. They’re full of beautiful brickwork, stone fountains, and public art. Paved paths are lined with shrubs, flowers, and new and old trees that provide shade to joggers getting in their daily laps or people strolling with their dogs. There are play areas for kids, and a few pieces of utilitarian but well-maintained exercise equipment for adults. And sitting is welcome! Iron benches are plentiful and bolted down—they can’t be locked up at closing time because the parks do not close. Instead, there is lighting throughout, and everything is usable long after sunset.

These spaces are so accommodating and accessible that generations of people have built their daily routines around them—enthusiastic instructors host Zumba classes, teens take dance lessons, and small marching bands practice their routines on the regular. Food carts and other mobile retailers are allowed to set up shop at all hours, only adding to the energizing activity and convenience. They’re the ultimate example of if you build it, they will come… to move, to eat, to work, to unwind right there in the middle of the city.

Seattle’s parks do not compare. Of course, attempts have been made. I’ve spent hours people-watching at Cal Anderson Park on my way home from work. I’ve seen people face off over the oversized chessboards in Occidental Park, and watched players get entertainingly competitive at the ping-pong tables in Hing Hay Park after grabbing some coffee and a Crunchy Cream Malasada from Fuji Bakery. I’ve also noticed the city’s half-hearted effort to establish little pop-up parks by placing a smattering of tables and chairs in places like Westlake Park, Belltown, and South Lake Union, but those are all temporary. Flimsy and foldable. I’ve had tables and chairs pulled out from underneath me by a park’s employee mid-bite, in some cases, after daring to linger a little too close to sunset. (True story! At least let me finish my Pastry Project sundae next time, guy!)

Instead of building up public spaces and investing in making them usable, enjoyable, even, with permanent seating and garbage cans and public bathrooms, our leadership has been shutting them down, too focused on eliminating any and all public areas where a person might dare try to loiter or rest. Months ago, three inner-city parks—Seven Hills Park, Lake City Mini Park, and the pavilion at Dr. Blanche Lavizzo Park, which has been host to Seattle’s fun and colorful Mexican Guelaguetza celebration for several years—were temporarily closed for the remainder of the year. Oh, are people not using them as you intended, Seattle? Maybe that’s because the city has swept through every public space, eliminating seating, picnic tables, trash cans, and access to public restrooms (see related complaint here).

This isn’t a population problem. People are not the enemy. There are more than four million people living in Oaxaca, and more than nine million in Mexico City proper, and those major cities are still capable of building and maintaining these beautiful, bustling little parks, public (and free!) third places for people to come, alone or together.

Please. Katie Wilson, St. Rat’s bestie Alexis Mercedes Rinck, and anyone else who has the keys to the park palace, please, please invest in our inner-city public spaces. Don’t try to erase them. I want to be able to grab a coffee, wander a few blocks, and just sit and watch the city unfold in front of me. I want to quietly judge people for what they’re wearing and make eye contact with strangers’ dogs as they walk by. I want to sit and watch kids fall over while learning how to ride their bikes, because kids falling down is funny. I love that we have so many ways to escape the city’s madness. But I don’t always want to hike or keep track of when a park might close down. Sometimes I just want to sit on a real bench, in the middle of a real park, in the city I love, and soak it all in.

How to Make a Hockey Team in 205 Days

Megan Seling — Wed, 26 Nov 2025 15:15:00 -0800

People were brought to tears at the sight of professional women’s hockey players finally getting their due in a sold-out 15,000-capacity arena on the West Coast of North America. And it was about damn time. by Megan Seling

Photos by Billie Winter

“BOOOO!”

“GO HOME, SEATTLE!”

The attempts to establish a rivalry between the Vancouver Goldeneyes and the Seattle Torrent, the two newest additions to the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL), had clearly worked. The playful jeering started the moment the Torrent took the ice on Friday, November 21, for the teams’ inaugural game at Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver, BC.

After the showy staff and player introductions, the flashy hype videos, and the national anthems, a man yelled out one more “Fuck Seattle!” for good measure, and the puck dropped. Cheers filled the rafters of the sold-out, 57-year-old arena, where the Vancouver Canucks established their NHL career in 1970, and 14,958 hockey fans witnessed history.

Their game wasn’t perfect. Training camp started just 10 days prior, giving all these players (most of whom have never skated together before) barely a week to find their rhythm, but the crowd didn’t care. A Disney movie couldn’t have written it better.

Seattle scored first, with Julia Gosling collecting the first goal in Torrent history. Three minutes later, after the Goldeneyes had been edging fans by racking up nearly a dozen shots, alternate captain Sarah Nurse tied it up. With less than a minute to go, Gosling struck again. Hilary Knight laid a beautiful body check on Vancouver’s Ashton Bell to grab control of the puck before passing it off to her linemate, who ripped it past Emerance Maschmeyer. And that was just the first period.

Forward Julia Gosling scores the Torrent’s first goal at the Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver, BC.

The Torrent lost 4-3 in overtime, and though a fair number of Seattle fans had made the trip up north—by the busload, in some cases—no one left disappointed. Everyone was thrilled.

The history of professional women’s hockey in the US and Canada is a dense web, and sorting it all into manageable, bite-sized nuggets of information can make you feel a little bit like Charlie Kelly trying to find Pepe Silvia in It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. But here’s the gist: Before the PWHL was founded in 2023, there was the Premier Hockey Federation (PHF), which ran from 2015 to 2023. It was the first professional women’s hockey league to pay players a (meager, very meager) salary. The PHF was renamed from the National Women’s Hockey League (1999–2007), which absorbed some teams from the Western Women’s Hockey League (2004–2011) and was renamed from the Central Ontario Women’s Hockey League (1992–1998). There was also the Canadian Women’s Hockey League, founded by former players of the NWHL in 2007. That folded in 2019 after 12 seasons. Do you see what I mean? Carol! Carol! Carol!

The leagues were always small, and budgets were even smaller. Most didn’t have enough money to pay players, though some did offer stipends when possible. The women often had jobs on the side, and there were few to no resources for the players off-ice. In a story the Victory Press published in 2020, former NWHL players recalled abysmal working conditions, including having to pee in a trash can during practice because they didn’t have access to locker rooms. (A boys’ junior varsity team had dibs.)

The Seattle Torrent’s inaugural game in Vancouver, BC, on Friday, November 21.

It’s no wonder some people were brought to tears at the sight of professional women’s hockey players finally getting their due, breaking merchandise and season ticket records, being supported by thousands of fervent, passionate fans in a sold-out 15,000-capacity arena on the West Coast of North America, and having access to their own bathrooms. It was about damn time.

***

No one was surprised when Amy Scheer, Executive Vice President of Business Operations for the PWHL, held a press conference at Climate Pledge Arena on April 30 to confirm that Seattle and Vancouver, BC, would be home to the league’s next two expansion teams. Rumors had been swirling that women’s hockey was on the way for months. In January, the PWHL’s Takeover Tour had stops in both Seattle and Vancouver. More than 12,000 hockey fans filled Climate Pledge to see the Boston Fleet beat the Montréal Victoire 3-2 in a shootout, and a whopping 19,000 people filled Vancouver’s Rogers Arena to see the Montréal Victoire take on the Toronto Sceptres. The Pacific Northwest was clearly ready for PWHL action.

What was surprising, however, was the time that both cities had to pull it off. Puck drop was in November. They had 205 days to build an entire professional hockey team, from the ground up.

Seattle Torrent assistant coach Christine Bumstead goes over plays during a preseason practice.

The PWHL’s first big move in Seattle was hiring general manager Meghan Turner. She had helped launch one of the original PWHL teams, the Boston Fleet, in 2024. A May 21 start date meant her first shot at signing players for the 2025–26 season, during the exclusive signing window and expansion draft, was just two weeks away. She didn’t even have a permanent office space in Seattle. (And still doesn’t, by the way—the Torrent facilities in Northgate are still under construction.)

Still, Turner was able to make a move no one saw coming.

The PWHL 2025 expansion process worked like this: Seattle and Vancouver each got to kickstart their rosters by picking 12 seasoned PWHL players from the six existing teams—Boston Fleet, Minnesota Frost, Montréal Victoire, New York Sirens, Ottawa Charge, and Toronto Sceptres. Each team could protect just three players from being snatched up. The exclusive signing window was first. Starting on June 4, Seattle and Vancouver had four days to sign up to five players each from the pool of players who were left unprotected. Then came the expansion draft on June 8, with the remaining unprotected players. If any of the original six teams had already forfeited two players, they were allowed to protect one more player before Seattle and Vancouver could pick at least seven more players from the pool to bring their roster to 12.

It’s like a game of chess. Because all the teams have different goals and are considering a variety of factors—some known to the public, some not—it’s nearly impossible to predict whose names will end up on the final lists. Drama can ensue. And this year, that drama came on June 3, when the Boston Fleet announced they would not be protecting their team captain (and Team USA captain, Olympic gold medalist, IIHF gold medalist several times over, and literally one of the most decorated hockey players in the world, male or female), Hilary Knight.

The Athletic called it “shocking.” Days later, Fleet GM Danielle Marmer said it “was the hardest decision I’ve ever made in my professional career to date.” Turner, wisely, signed her immediately. On June 4, Knight became the first player in Seattle’s PWHL history.

Knight was as surprised as anyone that Boston left her dangling. At the team’s jersey launch in October, she told me, “When they announced Seattle being an expansion location, I immediately was envious. I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, how cool to have a team out there, I wish I could be out there.’ So, subtle foreshadowing. Then the unprotected thing happens, and the opportunity to get out here presented itself. It was like, ‘Yeah, why wouldn’t I do that? That’s kind of everything that I wanted.’

“But on a human level, we had a great room in Boston. We did such a tremendous job building that foundation there, and you know, [there’s] unfinished business, too. I think you get a little remorseful, in that way, leaving friends.”

Turner, for her part, says she didn’t know Knight would be left unprotected either.

“I respect the process, so [I] made sure to remove myself from those conversations as they got going, when I knew that I was in the pipeline for this role,” she said during a preseason media scrum. “I found out when everyone else found out, and we went from there.”

That week, Turner also signed defensive player (and 5-foot-2-inch firecracker) Cayla Barnes, forwards Danielle Serdachny and Alex Carpenter, and goalie Corinne Schroeder. And on June 20, with a few more players in her pocket, Turner hired the franchise’s first head coach, Steve O’Rourke (who’s from British Columbia, but started his hockey career here in Washington with the Tri-City Americans in Kennewick).

Turner has, over and over again (as much as one can do in a few months, anyway), praised O’Rourke for looking to coach a “direct, fast, physical” game. “That’s how we constructed this roster, and what we wanted going into it,” says Turner. “It’s gonna be a physical game, and I expect our opponents to feel it.” To make good on that, they signed Emily Brown, Aneta Tejralová, and Lexie Adzija, three players who all racked up enough hits last season to make it into the league’s top 20.

Now, before anyone can start to regurgitate some brand of “ThEy DoN’t GeT pHySiCaL iN wOmEn’S hOcKeY” nonsense you read on a message board in 2017, let me say this: Yes, they fucking do. PWHL players crunch one another into the boards at full speed to force a turnover, they get scrappy in the crease if someone gets too close to their goalie, and they can deliver a hip check that would make Dan Hamhuis blush.

The Torrent are no different. Less than seven minutes into the inaugural game in Vancouver, rookie Jenna Buglioni performed a picture-perfect shoulder check on Vancouver’s Michelle Karvinen. Karvinen fell to the ice, and Buglioni was visibly annoyed when she was called for an illegal body check.

Seattle’s Megan Carter left a mark, too. In the third period, when Vancouver’s alternate captain Sarah Nurse got the puck and tried to skate through Carter while charging the net, Carter stood her ground, and they both went flying through the air. During a replay of the move, commentator (and Olympic gold medalist hockey player) Becky Kellar remarked, “Woof, that’s a big, strong girl, taking Sarah Nurse out.”

Minutes later, Carter, who was clearly displeased that Vancouver’s Gabby Rosenthal fell into Seattle goalie Corinne Schroeder while attempting to score off a rebound, tugged at Rosenthal’s sweater hard enough that she started pulling it up and over her head. Rosenthal rose to her feet, and Carter shoved her a bit more to ensure she got the message: Stay away from the fucking goalie.

Carter delivered six hits that night, the most on either team.

“This is such a physical league, and a lot of girls on this team have been around the league enough to know that you’ve got to use the body, you’ve got to play physical,” said the Torrent’s alternate captain, Emily Brown, at Sunday morning practice after the season opener. “I think a lot of us embrace that, too, and really enjoy it.

“Even before the formal checking rules were put in place, we’ve always been teetering—‘Where’s the line? How hard can we push it?’ I mean, you look back five to 10 years to look at the US-Canada rivalry, that’s not a gentle game, ever. But I love it, I love a little physical spice.”

O’Rouke liked what he saw Friday night, too. Though the Torrent lost in overtime, he still praised the team for roughing their opponents up a bit. “That’s gonna be our trademark,” he said during the postgame press conference. “We want to have an identity that’s hard to play against, and I thought we established that tonight. Bugs [Buglioni] took a nice big penalty, showed what her physicality is, and her style of play. That’s where we’re gonna go, that’s how we’re gonna play the game.”

These players are just as physical as NHL players. They may only have 30 games a season (for now), but they put their bodies on the line night after night, all the same. On Friday, Torrent forward Aneta Tejralová had to be helped off the ice after taking a hard hit against the boards, and her leg appeared to twist in a direction a leg should not twist. She attempted to play another shift or two after assessing her injury, but the Torrent eventually announced she’d be out the rest of the game. At press time, she was still out with a lower-body injury.

There is one glaring difference between the PWHL and the NHL, but it’s off the ice. For the 2025–26 season, the PWHL’s salary cap is $1.3 million per team. In the NHL, it’s $95.5 million. The PWHL’s cap will increase by 3 percent every season as part of the PWHL’s collective bargaining agreement, and there are restrictions on how a team can distribute it. The minimum annual salary this season is $37,131.50 (up from $35,000 last year), and at least five players have to make at least $80,000. Players do get some money if they need to relocate, a $1,600 per month housing stipend, and meal per diems for road games. Teams also get bonuses when they make the playoffs. But no one is in women’s hockey to get rich. In November, KOMO reported that “a single adult needs to earn $135,265 annually to maintain a comfortable lifestyle in the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro area.”

That $1.3 million season salary cap means that the $29,400,000 contract Seattle Kraken defenseman Vince Dunn signed in 2023 could fund the entire PWHL’s eight-team roster for two years and still have several million left over to add a few expansion teams.

Still, the fan base—and therefore the amount of money coming in—is growing. PWHL merch sales doubled from season one to season two, according to league statistics, and “Seattle set the record for highest first-day jersey sales of any team at launch.” Seattle and Vancouver brought in more than 5,000 season ticket member deposits each, and, as of September, the league has sold more season tickets in every city than ever before. During a business conference in September, Dodgers CEO Stan Kasten, who’s also a member of the four-person governing board of the PWHL, said, “We are going to be adding more teams much sooner than other people thought because the demand is there, the players are there.”

***

Professional women’s hockey in Seattle may have felt like a long time coming, but this is just the start of what will hopefully be a very long, exhilarating journey. Management and marketing meetings only take a team so far; who the Seattle Torrent become now is largely up to us, the city, the fans. And the PWHL didn’t choose Seattle as their next expansion city by shooting a puck at a map and seeing where it hit. They knew exactly what they were doing, said Amy Scheer during a media scrum ahead of the team’s first game.

“Seattle’s interesting. Having worked in the WNBA for so many years and running the New York Liberty business, as a league, you always look to other teams and [ask yourself], who do you want to be, who do you not want to be, and everybody always wanted to be Seattle. Because you go to Seattle, and the Storm games were always full, and they had so much support from the get-go. Seattle just does such a wonderful job supporting their women’s teams. It was almost like, ‘Hey, Captain Obvious, you must come here.’”

Seattle Torrent forward Julia Gosling (#88) and captain Hilary Knight (#21) make a play for the puck in the team's first game on Friday, November 21.

Now, we get to see where Seattle takes it. What taunts will fans yell after the Torrent score on the opposing goalie? What rallying cry will echo through Climate Pledge’s rafters when the team is down by one with a minute left in the third period? What song will play after the Torrent score, and what kind of cheer will fans weave into it? Will the crowd emphasize a word from the National Anthem, like when Kraken fans bellow “RED GLARE!” as a nod to the team’s crimson-eyed logo? Will anyone make a tradition of throwing some kind of seafood—why is it always seafood—onto the ice?

The culture of this team will grow in the fan base, game by game. They’ll decide if that rivalry with Vancouver pans out, or if we’ll take a longer, harder look at Boston and decide that Bean Town, former home of the Torrent’s GM and two of the team’s three leadership players, is Enemy #1. They’ll decide which players will earn endearing nicknames that end up on merchandise, in commercials, or even in mayoral campaigns. Who will be Seattle’s next Sir P, Big Dumper, or DB?

Only after hockey fans from across the region crowd into Climate Pledge, after the puck drops and the songs play, can a fandom’s identity come to fruition organically, in a way even the best marketing teams could never predict.

And it’s clear the fans are ready. They’re hungry for it. Jen Barnes, owner of sports bar Rough & Tumble in Ballard, said sales of their Knight’s Cheese Curds, named after Hilary Knight when the pub opened in 2022, increased 26 percent when Knight signed with the Torrent. Now Barnes has to order about 60 pounds of curds a week to keep them in stock.

A fan shows off the jersey she made to celebrate team captain Hilary Knight at the Seattle Torrent’s inaugural game in Vancouver, BC, on Friday, November 21.

And all those cheers for the Goldeneyes after they won Friday’s game? They were for Seattle, too. They were for women’s hockey, period. That was clear by all the little girls waving their “Hockey is for everyone” and “Everybody watches women’s sports” signs in the air.

Which isn’t to say there isn’t die-hard team loyalty when the puck is in play. At one point, in Friday’s game, Seattle’s Hannah Bilka ricocheted the puck into the net off Vancouver goalie Emerance Maschmeyer, and the Torrent players on the ice cheered. There was commotion. From one angle, it looked like it hit the post but didn’t cross the line. Referee Kyle Bauman waved it off. Torrent players pleaded for a review, and the crowd joined in the debate. Pockets of Seattle fans screamed “Good goal!” as the moment replayed on the Jumobotron. Swaths of Goldeneyes supporters replicated the ref’s “no goal” hand signals.

After several minutes of review—and several minutes of 15,000 fans pleading their case—referee Bauman walked back his initial call. It was a good goal. Goldeneyes fans booed and jeered. The Torrent had taken the lead. I heard another “Fuck you, Seattle!” ring out and chuckled. God, I love hockey.

Slog AM: Fire Destroys Hong Kong Apartment Towers, AG Nick Brown Sues Trump Again, and King County Has a New Boss

Megan Seling — Wed, 26 Nov 2025 09:10:00 -0800

The Stranger's morning news roundup. by Megan Seling

Girmay Zahilay Sworn In: King County has a new boss for the first time in 16 years. As Staff Writer Nathalie Graham reported yesterday, not only is he the youngest ever King County Executive, he’s also the first immigrant to lead the county. During his speech, Zahilay said his priorities include “addressing homelessness, addiction, and incarceration; expanding housing, child care, transit, and infrastructure; making King County government more visible, connected, and community-driven; delivering a government that is more transparent, efficient, and accountable.”

I Hate Pete Hegseth: Last week, six Democratic lawmakers who once served in the military or intelligence community released a video telling troops that they don’t have to follow illegal orders. “Threats to our Constitution” are coming “from right here at home,” they said in the video, and “No one has to carry out orders that violate the law, or our Constitution.” Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth is pissed. He has referred to the participants as the “Seditious Six,” and CNN is reporting that he is considering punishments for participant Sen. Mark Kelly specifically, “that range from reducing the retired US Navy captain’s rank and pension to prosecuting him under military law.” That sounds like something a dictator-loving bootlicker would do, Pete!

Well, Looky Here: Our very own editor in chief, Hannah Murphy Winter, is in the Guardian this morning. The newspaper partnered with The Stranger for a piece about Mayor-elect Katie Wilson and how her years of organizing experience helped her win the mayoral election. (Despite Mayor Harrell’s multi-million dollar attempts to paint Wilson as an inexperienced, gasp, mother.) Read it in the Guardian! Or read it in The Stranger, too. Read it in both places, actually. Support indie journalism. Every click deposits $1 directly into all of our bank accounts. Cha-ching!

The El Rey Is Saved: Remember back in March when Common Area Maintenance was working to save the historic El Rey building in Belltown in hopes of turning into artist-focused affordable housing? Good news! CAM bought it! For a whopping $20.

View this post on Instagram
A post shared by CAM (@common_area)

Washington State Sues Trump: Our very own (very handsome) Attorney General Nick Brown is leading a multistate lawsuit in response to the Trump administration’s new homelessness funding restrictions, the Seattle Times reports. A policy shift could deny $120 million in annual homelessness funding for Washington State, and, Brown said, “tens of thousands of people would likely have nowhere to live.” This is the 45th lawsuit filed by Brown against the Trump administration—the AG office has a tracker here. Get ‘em, Brown. More on this from Staff Writer Micah Yip later today!

Speaking of Pacific Northwest States Suing the Trump Administration: Yesterday, our besties at Portland Mercury reported that Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield and district attorneys from Multnomah, Clackamas, and Washington Counties sent a joint letter to the US Department of Justice demanding that they “immediately halt unlawful and reckless actions by federal officers operating in Oregon.” The letter went on to say, “Any such investigations revealing criminal conduct by individual federal officers will be referred to the district attorney to evaluate for prosecution.” A US DOJ spokesperson confirmed they received the letter, but declined to comment. Get ‘em, Oregon.

Oregon's Attorney General and Portland area DAs just told the feds they'll prosecute excessive force by federal agents in the state—citing evidence from the trial that shut down Trump's National Guard plan for Portland.

[image or embed]
— Portland Mercury (@portlandmercury.com) November 25, 2025 at 7:00 PM

Deadly Fire Destroys Hong Kong High-Rises: At least 13 people are dead, including one firefighter, after a fire tore through several high-rise apartment buildings in Hong Kong. The New York Times says the towers, known as Wang Fuk Court, include about 2,000 apartments, and were sheathed in bamboo scaffolding. Firefighters have not been able to access many parts of the buildings due to the high temperatures and falling debris, and it’s not clear how many people may have gotten trapped inside.

A Grifter Grifts: Elon Musk’s Tesla tunnel in Nashville is a total disaster. The excavating company working on the Boring Company’s Music City Loop walked off the job Monday after “months of safety and financial issues with Musk’s company.” Willie Shane, leader of the crew hired to dig the nine-mile tunnel, told the Nashville Banner: “We were really skeptical from the beginning, and then since then, things pretty much just went downhill.”

Park Prices Soar: Starting January 1, foreign tourists visiting National Parks will be charged a $100 “America First” surcharge. The NYT says that’s “three to five times the typical entry fee for US residents.” Of course, US tourism is already down. This probably won’t help the fact that, according to the World Travel & Tourism Council, “the United States was the only one of 184 countries projected to have a decline in international visitor spending.” The Trump administration is full of geniuses.

Zahid Chaudhry Could Be Home by Thanksgiving: The Army veteran and husband of former Congressional candidate Melissa Chaudhry has been detained by ICE since August despite the fact that he’s a legal permanent resident. And because he suffers from thyroid eye disease and hasn’t had treatment while detained, his vision is deteriorating. He may be released as soon as this week, but it may be too late to save his eyesight. Stranger contributor Carolyn Bick has more here.

How ‘Bout Them Epstein Files? On Monday, the US Justice Department “renewed its request to unseal grand jury transcripts from Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell’s sex trafficking cases,” according to the AP. The Epstein Files Transparency Act, passed last week, requires that the Justice Department” release Epstein-related files in a searchable and downloadable format by December 19.”

BOOOOOOOO: Cowards.

JUST IN: The historic Georgia election interference case against President Trump and allies for their efforts to overturn the 2020 election is no more.

[image or embed]
— NPR (@npr.org) November 26, 2025 at 8:25 AM

In Other “President Attempts a Coup” News: Yesterday, former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro began his 27-year prison sentence “for attempting to overthrow Brazil’s democracy following his 2022 election defeat.” Can’t we have a liiiiiittle justice for Trump attempting to dismantle democracy? As a treat?

We’ve Got Crabs: An invasive species of European green crabs, specifically. They’re “one of the world’s most harmful marine species,” and researchers say they’re in the Salish Sea. According to the Seattle Times, Tulalip Tribes also reported “detection of a green crab in the southern Whidbey Basin at Mission Beach” earlier this year. They “damage bed sediments, leading to the loss of eelgrass, an essential habitat for Dungeness crab and Pacific salmon.” Get outta here, crabbies!

By Now We All Know Thanksgiving Is a Bullshit Holiday: But food is delicious. I hope you and yours get to have as much pie and potatoes as you can physically fit in your body.

Stranger Suggests: Dead Bugs, One Decent Reason to Leave the House on Black Friday, and the Perfect Pie Crust

Bri Brey — Mon, 24 Nov 2025 15:43:00 -0800

One really great thing to do every day of the week. by Bri Brey MONDAY 11/24

Christopher Marley: Exquisite Creatures

(BUGS) Dead bugs may seem like a strange medium for artistic expression, but Christopher Marley has made a career out of arranging the corpses of insects, lizards, birds and more while simultaneously fighting for the conservation of the creatures he makes artistic use of. He sustainably harvests and preserves every beetle body, butterfly wing, and crab shell he uses to precisely arrange his kaleidoscopic mosaics. Less creepy crawly and more visually fascinating, the exoticism of the creatures on display and the ability to see them up close is reason enough to visit this curious exhibit. (900 Alaska Way, all ages) BRI BREY

TUESDAY 11/25

Built to Spill, Papas, Larry Yes

(MUSIC) Built to Spill is the best thing to come out of Idaho since the potato crop. Doug Martsch has been rocking out Boise-style since ’92. In that sense, they’re a “legacy act.” But good songs never die, and There’s Nothing Wrong With Love and Keep It Like a Secret are timeless because they were never super on trend. Built to Spill always did its own thing. (But if you’re worried the new-ish songs from 2022’s When the Wind Forgets Your Name will ruin your precious nostalgia, even these “new” songs were written a long time ago.) The band is joined by Boise’s Papas and Portland’s Larry Yes, two artists so small that putting them on this bill with indie-rock legends is, like Built to Spill, rad, old-school scene love. (Neptune Theatre, Nov 25–26, 8 pm, all ages) VIVIAN McCALL

WEDNESDAY 11/26

Minus the Bear: Menos El Oso 20th Anniversary Tour

(MUSIC) Seattle loves Minus the Bear, and for good reason: they've been playing energetic rock shows here for over two decades, and even played the last show of their farewell tour at the Showbox in 2018. Lucky for us, the quintet reunited this year, putting out a 20th anniversary deluxe edition of their sophomore release, Menos el Oso, and promising to play the album in its entirety on tour. They return to the Showbox for three shows in November, and I know hardcore fans are going to go to every one, just in case this is indeed the last time they play their hometown—plus, they're mixing it up each night with a different local band on the lineup. Minus the Bear is known for their guitar-filled math rock, incorporating influences from pop and punk in a way that inevitably gets everyone in the audience headbanging. (Showbox, Nov 26 and Nov 28–29) SHANNON LUBETICH

THURSDAY 11/27

Bake a Pie

BILLIE WINTER

(FOOD) Pies are the most complicated "simple" dessert in the world. "Bake a pie!" they say. The crust is just a few ingredients!" they tell you. Liars. Yes, the best crust is one of just flour, butter, salt, and water, but you must have them all in exact proportions and handle them with care to achieve delectably flaky results. Over mix? Tough crust. Not enough butter? Dry. Too much water? The dreaded soggy bottom. For those who flex their pie-making muscles just once a year for Thanksgiving, stop it. Let Coyle's Bakeshop help. Not only do they have pie tutorials on Instagram, but their Greenwood shop is stocked with supplies, including pie dough and pie shells, and yes, they're open early on Thanksgiving morning. (Coyle’s Bakeshop, 7 am-11 am) MEGAN SELING

FRIDAY 11/28

Record Store Day Black Friday 2025

View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Easy Street Records (@easystreetrecords)

(SHOPPING/MUSIC) It's almost impossible to escape the consumerism of Black Friday, so why not support a local record store while you're at it? If you're looking for special Record Store Day releases, I recommend making these shops your first stop, but casually flipping through crates can be a nice break at any point in your hectic shopping day. Participation varies store-to-store, but expect sales, exclusive merch, and extended hours; West Seattle's Easy Street Records opens at 7 a.m. and serves up free coffee and bacon as a little added incentive to get there early. Highlights from this year's exclusive RSD releases include The Original Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan on vinyl for the first time (with never-before-seen liner notes), a paper airplane-shaped record from King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, and the soundtrack to Wicked For Good, which was released in theaters last week. Check out the RSD website for a full list of participating stores. SHANNON LUBETICH

SATURDAY 11/29

Come From Away

View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Seattle Rep (@seattlerep)

(THEATER) Ugh, I love Come From Away more than I can articulate. The hit musical tells the story about the small town of Gander, Newfoundland coming together to help the passengers on 38 planes stranded there after American airspace closed on 9/11. It is a musical that reminds us of the generosity of strangers and the goodness that persists in spite of large-scale evils. Come From Away got its start at the Seattle Repertory Theatre a decade ago when producers staged an early version of the show. It returns to that stage this fall, but the show won’t be the same version we all know. The Rep is putting a twist on Come from Away this year. All I know is there will be an emphasis on actors also playing musical instruments. Whatever version of Come From Away graces Seattle stages, I’m excited to see it and be welcomed back to The Rock. (Seattle Repertory Theatre, through Jan 4, various times) NATHALIE GRAHAM

SUNDAY 11/30

UMI – People Stories World Tour

(MUSIC) On people stories, the highly anticipated follow-up to Seattle-born singer UMI's 2022 debut Forest in the City, the soul artist turns personal reflections and fan confessions into deliciously groovy tracks. This isn't the first time UMI has used her music to promote collective healing: she last stopped in Seattle on her Meditation tour, which included an opening yoga flow, breathwork, journaling, and an intimate acoustic performance. The new album explores questions such as "How can I be happy if the world is unhappy?" and "What if I did a psychedelic trip on my lunch break at the grocery store?" (if you want to learn more about the stories behind the songs, check out her Instagram post). Blending influences from R&B, folk, reggae, and Japanese pop, UMI's music grabs your attention, then pulls at your heartstrings. (The Showbox, 8 pm, all ages) SHANNON LUBETICH

Stranger Suggests: Selfie Paradise, Taiyaki Stuffed With Tater Tots, and a Soft-Spoken Troubadour's Homecoming Show

Julianne Bell — Mon, 17 Nov 2025 14:50:00 -0800

One really great thing to do every day of the week. by Julianne Bell MONDAY 11/17

Lucius, Attention Bird Utopia

(MUSIC) The last time indie pop-rockers Lucius were in town, they opened for the National and the War on Drugs at Climate Pledge Arena. This time, they're headlining a show in support of their self-titled album, returning to a moodier guitar-forward sound after the bouncy, funky pop of 2022's Second Nature, which was co-produced by acclaimed singer-songwriter Brandi Carlile. I'm personally a huge fan of the new release—the song "Old Tape" has made its way onto several of my playlists since it came out in May, and Jess Wolfe and Holly Laessig's soaring harmonies still give me goosebumps. The two vocalists aren’t twins or even sisters, but they enjoy pulling fun live show antics like dressing in identical wigs and clothing on stage. Get there early to catch a set from folk duo Attention Bird Utopia, a new collaborative project from indie darlings Harrison Whitford (Phoebe Bridgers' guitarist) and Eli Hirsch (the producer of Suki Waterhouse's latest album). (Showbox, 8 pm, all ages) SHANNON LUBETICH

TUESDAY 11/18

Finally We Have Met: Neon Works by Yale Wolf

View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Yale Wolf (@yalewolf)

(VISUAL ART) Yale Wolf stands out among his contemporaries not only as a master of neon, but as a master of mise-en-scène, crafting environments where neon plays both centerpiece and supporting role in larger poetic tableaux. His work reveals a knack for pulling meaning from free-form simulacral doodles and fragmented flourishes designed to illuminate and transform the objects around them, as seen earlier this year in Reclaimed, where pops of neon (steering wheel, sunroof, headlights) detailed the ghostly carcass of a rusted-out scrapyard sedan blistered by fire and pummelled by bullets. Ethereal decadence wreathed in decay! In Finally We Have Met, Wolf is bringing mirrors into the equation, including a nearly six-foot reflecting pool ringed with searing pink barbed wire. Let’s just say it: This exhibition will be a selfie paradise. But that’s no doubt by design—a case where Wolf’s mise-en-scène becomes the site of mise-en-abyme. (Hometeam Gallery, free) AMANDA MANITACH

WEDNESDAY 11/19

BeanFish

View this post on Instagram
A post shared by BeanFish™️ (@beanfishtaiyaki)

(FOOD) I’ve passed BeanFish, a former food truck turned taiyaki stall in the Uwajimaya food court, countless times without a second thought, figuring the little fish-shaped cakes probably looked better than they tasted. I now humbly stand corrected—BeanFish’s made-to-order taiyaki is the real deal, unlike inferior pre-made versions I’ve had in the past. Last week, I stood gazing through the kitchen window, watching the workers scoop batter and fillings into the intricate iron molds and smashing them together (extremely satisfying). Curiosity got the best of me, and I ordered the Elvis taiyaki stuffed with chunky peanut butter and banana. It was served to me piping hot, with a crisp exterior and fluffy interior, and was the perfect rainy afternoon pick-me-up. Now I’m on a mission to try them all. So far, I’ve also tried the “Mrs. Smith” (apple pie filling), #19 (honey mustard tuna with melty cheddar and delightfully chewy Japanese rice crackers), and mini “Donkii Kongu” taiyaki (toasted coconut, banana, and vanilla custard). I can’t wait to try the fan favorites “Mmm Bacon” (thick-cut peppered bacon, egg, tater tots, Tillamook cheddar, and scallions) and “Harajuku Chic” (Fruity Pebbles and a jumbo marshmallow waffle, with sweetened condensed milk on the side). (BeanFish, 11 am-7 pm daily) JULIANNE BELL

THURSDAY 11/20

Conner O’Malley

(COMEDY) I’ll be honest, I used to refer to Conner O’Malley as “Aidy Bryant’s husband,” until I saw him in Joe Pera Talks With You as a depressed father who eats chicken in the shower, followed by his feature-length, the straight-to-YouTube film Rap World. He isn’t the typical comedian I’d ride for—in general, I have an aversion to male comics—but his loud, aggressive take on comedy ultimately makes a subversive statement about the absurdity of modern-day masculinity. The Chicago-born comedian, whom the New Yorker has called “the bard of the Manosphere,” plays pathetic, reply-guy characters that shed light on the idiocy of alpha males and/or incel men who have largely gotten us to our current hellscape. In a message on his Instagram, an AI-generated O’Malley states, “I have been in the General Motors psychological experiments labs generating humor sequences infused with alternative political ideas, and I’m finally ready to take it out on the road.” (Neptune Theatre, 7 pm & 9:45 pm, all ages) AUDREY VANN

FRIDAY 11/21

Dean Johnson, Theo Lawrence

(MUSIC) Seattle's folk scene has been rumbling about Dean Johnson for quite a while now, but it wasn't until his song "Faraway Skies" off his 2023 debut album went somewhat viral that most people started paying attention. With a second full-length release under his belt this summer and the backing of a label (he's on Saddle Creek Records with the likes of Big Thief and Indigo De Souza), the soft-spoken troubadour rounds out a 13-date tour of the Western United States with a homecoming show at his biggest Seattle venue yet—the historic Showbox. Johnson's music is filled with honest alt-folk charm, and his stage banter never fails to make me laugh. I'm looking forward to hearing the closing track off 2025's I Hope We Can Still Be Friends, "A Long Goodbye," which happens to be the first song he ever wrote back in 2004. Get there early for a set from French-Canadian country artist Theo Lawrence—a '90s baby who sounds and looks like he time-traveled here from the 1960s. (Showbox, 8 pm, 21+) SHANNON LUBETICH

SATURDAY 11/22

Tricia Romano w/Erica C. Barnett and Charles Mudede

(BOOKS) Did you happen to catch the front page of the New York Times’ business section over the weekend? Right there on page B1, Seattle’s only newspaper was praised for being a “progressive kingmaker” in local elections. *insert nail polish emoji here* But our hard work isn’t new. For decades, The Stranger and other alt-weekly brethren across the country have been a much-needed voice in our media landscape and local elections. If you want to learn more about just how important alt-weeklies are in our past and current media landscape, read The Freaks Came Out to Write, Tricia Romano’s oral history of America’s first alt-weekly newspaper, The Village Voice. To celebrate the paperback release of the Freaks, Romano will join fellow alt-weekly diehards—and past and current Stranger staffers, respectively—Erica C. Barnett and Charles Mudede to discuss the vital role alternative newspapers have historically played in the country’s media landscape. And, if we’re lucky, they'll dish a little on the snacks and gossip from Stranger Election Control Board meetings of decades past, too. (Elliott Bay Book Company, 7 pm, free) MEGAN SELING

SUNDAY 11/23

Heart, Cheap Trick

(MUSIC) Heart’s spell is enduring. I’ve been under it since I was 10, the tomboy middle sister of three who played the drums, practiced karate, and took music recommendations from my dad. I don’t recall the first time I heard hits like “Barracuda” or “Crazy on You,” but they were always there for me to angrily lip-sync in the mirror when I felt disenfranchised by adults. I worshipped them the way that I saw boys my age worship Led Zeppelin and AC/DC—two bands I never liked. I didn’t prefer Heart because I identified with their femaleness, I preferred Heart because their songs were better. In Heart’s music, you feel what they feel; they don’t have to say it explicitly. Ann’s lyrics are poetic, Nancy’s guitar solos are nuanced; both are masters of subtlety and power. The way the Wilson sisters communicated through their instruments was something I knew well with my own sisters—a magical connection that can only be described as sorcery. Ahead of their show at Climate Pledge Arena, read my interview with Nancy and Ann here. (Climate Pledge Arena, 7 pm, all ages) AUDREY VANN

Prizefight!

Win tickets to rad upcoming events!*

Heart
November 23, Climate Pledge Arena

ENTER NOW!

Contest ends November 20 at 10 am

Damiano David
November 21, Paramount Theatre

ENTER NOW!

Contest ends November 19 at 10 am

Pie, Pie, My Darling

Megan Seling — Fri, 14 Nov 2025 12:22:00 -0800

If you’re gonna pick up a cheap grocery store pie this season, you won’t be alone. by Megan Seling

Photos by Billie Winter

It wasn’t the ending we hoped for. The sadness was palpable in The Stranger’s Capitol Hill offices the day after the Toronto Blue Jays shattered the Seattle Mariners’ dreams of finally making it to the World Series for the first time in franchise history.

“HOW?” cried out Editor in Chief Hannah Murphy Winter. “That was my least favorite pie! WHO LIKED IT?”

A voice rang out from the crowd gathered around the table. “I did!”

“That was my favorite, too,” said another.

The debating quickly became unintelligible as accusations flew—phrases like “funky whipped cream” and “gelatinous” and “colonial gourd mash” peppered the heated conversation as everyone rushed to defend their palates. No one was talking about baseball—well, Nathalie was talking about baseball—but we were all fixated on the polarizing assortment of pies scattered across the conference table.

Inspired by the seasonal arrival of pumpkin everything, the return of The Great British Bake Off, and the Stranger staff’s (at times obnoxious) passion for debating pretty much anything and everything, we decided to dedicate one late-October afternoon to conducting a pumpkin pie taste test. But we weren’t looking for the best pie in the city. We didn’t visit a single local bakery for our specimens. Instead, we focused on the pies that are the best for what you might need this holiday season, sourcing our selection from eight different grocery store chains around the city: Whole Foods, Safeway, QFC, PCC, Fred Meyer, Costco, Metropolitan Market, and Town & Country.

These are the pies you might buy after accepting a last-minute invitation to a Friendsgiving and not wanting to show up empty-handed. These are the pies you would pick up when you love your family, you really do, but you live in a studio apartment with an unpredictable oven, and even throwing together a Pillsbury crust and a can of Libby’s could end in disaster. These are the pies you buy when drunk, high, sad, and/or just hungry at midnight and eat straight from the tin, spraying Reddi-wip directly into your mouth between bites. They’re not perfect, but they serve a purpose.

A voice of reason broke through. “None of them are good.”

“I thought #2 was,” yelled a defender. “It was squashy! I would buy that pie.”

And just as quickly as calm came, the chaos ensued once more as a dozen taste-testers debated whether a filling should be “wet” or “custard-y” and a crust should be flaky or crumbly. One brave soul motioned to consider the possibility that pumpkin pie is actually not good at all unless acting as a neutral vehicle for mountains of whipped cream. Someone gasped.

We were honestly surprised by the results. Not only was every pie vastly different from the next (save for Fred Meyer and QFC, which are both owned by Kroger), but our tasting panel of 12 Stranger staffers also varied. While some would (and very loudly did) argue there wasn’t a single decent pie in the group, a few folks happily handed out perfect scores to some of the options. Pie is personal. And, for many, pumpkin pie especially is linked to family, tradition, and the holidays—all emotional landmines.

That said, ultimately, the two winners, Safeway and Costco (it was essentially a tie with just a fraction of a point between them), only squeezed out about 16 points of a possible 25 after being rated on appearance, flavor, texture, crust, and overall enjoyability. In elections, that’s a victory! But in the high school grading scale, that’s a solid D. Still, people are gonna buy these pies. Last year Costco reportedly sold more than six million pies countrywide between September and December, and the American Pie Council (a real thing!) reports that “approximately $2 billion in pies are sold in grocery stores every year.”

So if you’re gonna pick up a cheap grocery store pie this season, you won’t be alone. And you may as well make it the best cheap pie money can buy. So read on to find your perfect match, whether you want it wet, extra spicy, or just decent enough to shove in your mouth so you can dodge awkward questions at the holiday dinner table.

Safeway, $10.99

Just a fraction of a point (0.05 if you want exact math) carried Safeway into first place over Costco. Before you get indignant over the Albertson’s-owned grocery chain potentially swaying the results by selling their seasonal pie with a pretty, dessert-table-ready ring of whipped cream, know that our official tasting panel was very torn on whether that was a pro or con. Some liked the addition—multiple voters noted it was “cute”—while others docked the pie points, finding the decoration “too sweet” and being put off by an unidentifiable stabilizer. What was in the whipped cream to keep the peaks stiff, even as the afternoon wore on? It was a hot topic at the office, with guesses ranging from white chocolate to pudding to something “funky.”

“On the sweeter side, which I enjoyed.”

“Cuuuute. This one cheated because it has whipped cream, but the best things in life usually come with whipped cream and cheating anyway.”

“Points for being very wet and very cinnamony.”

“Spices are wrong and late.”

“Flavor isn’t pumpkin, but looks great and good crust.”

Costco, $5.99

Safeway may have won by a fraction of a point, but Costco’s pumpkin pie is far and away the best value. It’s just $5.99 for more than three pounds of pumpkin pie. “Is that a lot of pie?” one pie amateur asked in Slack. Fuck yes, it’s a lot of pie! The thing is massive. To compare, Costco’s pie weighed 58 ounces while Fred Meyer’s last-place dessert came in around 21. It had one of the better crusts, too—somehow Costco has managed to mass-produce a foot-wide pie and not have a soggy bottom. That’s the Kirkland magic, baby.

“Good texture, but just sweet, no pumpkin flavor.”

“Best all around. Still very grocery store, but better than the rest.”

“Crust not super flavorful, but tender and flaky. Nostalgic in a shitty kind of way.”

“Kind of sweet and boring.”

“Crust = saving grace.”

PCC, $19.99

No soggy bottoms here, either! The crust on PCC’s pie got one of the higher scores in the batch, with one taster describing it as “toasty.” Another thought the crust was dry, but that’s nothing a little whipped cream couldn’t handle. That said, this was the priciest pie in the bunch, coming in at $19.99.

“Best crust.”

“Kind of a classic, childhood, mom made it from canned pumpkin and frozen crust recipe.”

“Metallic aftertaste in filling. Tastes like Libby’s pumpkin puree straight from the jar.”

“Nice cinnamon.”

Metropolitan Market, $11.99

Metropolitan Market has a hell of an in-house bakery. Their cakes are consistently superior to other grocery stores’, and their famous chocolate chip cookie (The Cookie) deserves its reputation. The pumpkin pie available for purchase on the day of our taste test, though, came from an outsider, Alki Bakery. Would Met Market have fared better if they made their own? It’s impossible to say. I will say this was the first pie to get claimed after the taste test. The people who liked this pie really liked this pie.

“Actually tastes like pumpkin. Thankful for that.”

“Appearance to enjoyability ratio is way too high. Deceiving.”

“A little gelatinous.”

“Is this a gingerbread cookie?”

“Fluffy custard texture with air holes in cross-section. Flaky crust. Pretty good!”

Whole Foods, $13.99

The crust on Whole Foods’ pie was divisive among voters. The several shouting matches mentioned above? At least two began with this crust. Some liked that it was more cookie-like and tender and crumbly, while others cried blasphemy.

“Decent pumpkin flavor! Classic texture.”

“Pale shortbread cookie-like crust. Pleasant custard. Non-traditional, but I like it.”

“Too sweet.”

“Strong pumpkin taste that fades into chalk.”

Town & Country, $16.99

Just as with Metropolitan Market, the only pumpkin pie available in Town & Country’s bakery came from a wholesaler, Willamette Pumpkin Pie Co. According to their website, you can also find their pies at Metropolitan Market, Albertson’s, Fred Meyer, and Safeway.

“Flavor is classy and strong, crust is bottom of the barrel.”

“Crust was not fully baked. Pie filling both flavorless and nasty.”

“Rustic appearance, which at first made me think it was homemade. Pale, dry crust and not super fresh flavor.”

“Flavorless crust. It had no life.”

QFC, $6.99

That the pies from QFC and Fred Meyer both came in at the bottom supports our tasting panel’s abilities, seeing as how they appeared to be identical. It makes sense—both Fred Meyer and QFC are owned by Kroger and both were bought in the same “Bakery Fresh” packaging with the exact same crust stamped into the tin. Tasters didn’t see the pies in their packaging, and they weren’t placed next to one another in the blind taste test, but the testers’ palates couldn’t be fooled. A bad pie is a bad pie is a bad pie.

“Texture was like gelatin. Crust was flimsy and rubbery. Filling had too much spice.”

“This pie is mean!”

“How is it sour? Is my tongue numb?”

“Kind of dusty/bitter (too much cardamom?). Left unpleasant aftertaste.”

“Seems okay?”

Fred Meyer, $6.49

In last place, we have the pie from Fred Meyer, which appeared to be identical to the pie from QFC. Same “Bakery Fresh” sticker and packaging, same crust stamped into the tin. It makes sense—both Fred Meyer and QFC are owned by Kroger. For some reason, Fred Meyer’s pie was 50 cents cheaper. It ended up at the bottom of the list because one tester found what appeared to be unfortunate, inarguable evidence that someone in the pie processing plant wasn’t wearing a hair net.

“Gross flavor, jiggly jelly firmness.”

“So much jiggle.”

“Strong spice-forward flavor. Unsure how I feel about it.”

“The crust was like chewing a piece of gum.”

“Unnaturally wiggly, tastes like ass.”

Pumpkin Pie Needs Whipped Cream

Don’t Be Afraid to Make It Yourself!

Look. Even the very best pumpkin pie usually benefits from a little assist. Pies like lemon meringue and pecan already have a lot going on, they’re self-contained and prefer to go it alone. They don’t need anyone, or anything. Pumpkin pie, the smooth uni-texture baddie that it is, is a collaborator. Whipped cream is the Simon to pumpkin pie’s Garfunkel; this pie needs whipped cream.

I’ll ask my mother not to read this part—Debbie, next paragraph please—but I secretly love a can of whipped cream. I can’t imagine what they put in it, and I don’t want to. But the difference between real whipped cream and “whipped cream” made in a factory (and then packaged in an aerosol can or plastic tub) is like the difference between the candy flavor “grape” and an actual grape. “Grape” and Reddi-wip may have their place (IN HELL) (complimentary), but nothing beats homemade whipped cream.

Making whipped cream is terribly easy. And you’ll feel like a barefoot contessa, lovingly whipping up a big bowl of it to enhance a pie you may have had to buy at a chain that you wish you could boycott, but life is hard, and you were asked to “bring a dessert,” so you’re doing your very best.

Here’s how to make whipped cream:

Ingredients

1 cup heavy whipping cream

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Sugar to taste*

* Some people swear it does not need to be sweetened at all, since cream has a natural sweetness, and the pie will be loaded with sugar as well. You use the amount that’s right for you. I use a couple tablespoons to start out and then go from there.

Directions

Grab a big bowl and throw it in the fridge or freezer for 15-30 minutes if you can. In fact, you’re going to want everything pretty cold, including the beaters—this helps the fat in the cream stay stable, which helps us achieve gorgeous, voluminous heights. Pour the whipping cream, vanilla, and sugar amount of your choice into the bowl and begin beating with a hand mixer* (start on low so it doesn’t splatter). The liquid will start off heavy and still, like rain that hasn’t yet become a cloud. Increase the speed, but not too much—we’re getting where we need to go on a steady medium. The ripples will thicken, and then soft peaks will form (meaning the tips curl gently when you lift the whisk). Continue to build the body up just a bit from here, but don’t go too far or it will clump and turn into a weeping butter ghost of its former self.

Once you have the perfect consistency, it’s showtime. Extra credit: add a dash of cinnamon on top, and/or a shave of nutmeg. Et voilà! We did it!

Don’t have an electric mixer? You can do it by hand with a whisk, Little House on the Prairie style. It will take several minutes. Like, 10-12. Maybe even longer. But it will be worth it and you will leave the experience both physically and mentally stronger. EMILY NOKES

Slog AM: Dems Release Epstein Messages, Wilson’s Lead Grows, and Vote on Bill to End Shutdown Expected Today

Megan Seling — Wed, 12 Nov 2025 09:45:00 -0800

The Stranger's morning news roundup. by Megan Seling

Katie Wilson Is Likely Our Next Mayor: ICYMI, Wilson’s lead grew in yesterday afternoon’s ballot drop—she’s up 1,346 votes with 1,355 ballots left uncounted. Remember, if a candidate wins by less than half a percent or less than 2,000 votes, there will be an automatic machine recount. She hasn’t declared victory, and Bruce Harrell hasn’t conceded, but our week-long rollercoaster could come to an end after this afternoon’s ballot drop. In the meantime, make sure your ballot counted!

Speaking of Emotional Rollercoasters: The House is expected to vote today on the funding bill that would end the government shutdown. Are we fucked re: healthcare costs? Probably! But Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said that Dems will “seek to amend the bill reopening the federal government to also address expiring Affordable Care Act subsidies.” K. The vote is expected to begin around 5 p.m. EST. Will any local bars be showing it? We should be together at a time like this.

Washington Dems Are Pissed… Mostly: Murray, Jayapal, Cantwell, DelBene, Smith—most local Democrats have made it clear that they’re going to vote against this bill. One hasn’t, though: US Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, who is up for re-election next year. Gluesenkamp Perez hasn’t said one way or the other as of last night, according to the Seattle Times. Here’s how to contact her office: (360) 695-6292, Instagram, Threads, online contact form.

Flights Are Still Fucked, Too: Already today, nearly 900 flights have been cancelled nationwide, including 34 at SeaTac, due to staffing shortages and interruptions caused by the shutdown. More than 700 flights have been delayed across the country. Even if the government votes to reopen this evening, issues may linger. "It's gonna take a bit to unwind," former FAA administrator Randy Babbitt told NPR.

“Trump Knew”: Dems may have caved in the shutdown, but they haven’t forgotten about the Epstein files. This morning House Dems released messages suggesting that Trump “knew about the girls” (Epstein’s words) and Trump spent hours at Epstein’s house with one of his victims. The New York Times points out that messages were released days after a whistleblower suggested Ghislaine Maxwell “was preparing to formally ask Mr. Trump to commute her federal prison sentence.”

I guess we know why Trump, Bondi, Patel and Mike Johnson have been covering up the Epstein files. I’m sure there is a whole lot more and a whole lot worse.

[image or embed]
— Ron Filipkowski (@ronfilipkowski.bsky.social) November 12, 2025 at 6:26 AM

The Cruelty Is the Point: The U.S. Supreme Court extended an order blocking full SNAP payments for at least a couple more days, citing the possibility of the shutdown ending soon. (During this back and forth, Washington Governor Bob Ferguson confirmed that our state did send out on-time payments to all of our SNAP recipients, but not all states were that lucky.) If the shutdown ends, SNAP will resume payments nationwide, but how long that will take varies by state. And what if the shutdown doesn’t end? Why not let people have access to food even a day sooner? WTF, dickholes?

What the Flock: A Washington judge ruled Flock’s AI license-plate scanning images are part of public record and can be requested as a records request, despite the fact that cops very much wanted to keep the records for themselves. In September Seattle City Council voted to expand the use of police surveillance cameras in Capitol Hill, SoDo, and Garfield High School despite concerns about privacy, bad policing, and federal incursion. No good can come from any of this. Redmond knows.

Into Haunted Puppets? Don’t miss Manual Cinema’s The 4th Witch tonight at the Moore Theater! Seattle’s Most Beloved Goth Bess Lovejoy says, “the show feels like magic, just as in the phantasmagorias of old.” Read her fascinating interview with Manual Cinema’s co-artistic director Drew Dir here.

An Upsetting Must Read: The Guardian has an interview with José Bertin Cruz-Estrada, one of the men who was detained by ICE while fighting the Bear Gulch fire in August. Cruz-Estrada was locked up in an ICE facility until the end of October, when he was deported to Mexico and separated from his family, including his 14-year-old son, in Oregon. Cruz-Estrada had lived in the US since he was 12 years old. His mother was a wildland firefighter, too. Now he doesn’t know if he’ll ever be allowed to reunite with his family the US.

You Thought Seattle’s Spider Season Was Bad: Do not read this story about the largest ever colonial spiderweb with more than 111,000 arachnids if you do not like spiders.

Rest in Pennies: The last penny will be minted today in Philadelphia. It costs nearly four times its worth to mint. “The penny outlived its sibling, the half-penny, by 168 years,” CNN writes. “It’s survived by the nickel, dime, quarter, and rarely seen half-dollar and dollar coins.” But don’t throw them away! They’re still legal tender. For now.

Slog AM: Arizona’s Suing Mike Johnson, Harrell’s Fighting Hunger Kind of, and Portland’s Senator Is Still Holding the Floor

Megan Seling — Wed, 22 Oct 2025 09:56:00 -0700

The Stranger's morning news roundup. by Megan Seling

Oh, Hey: The Government is still shut down. I know that’s hard to believe since the Trump Administration is still doing daily damage to American institutions (literally!) and ICE agents are still abducting people off the streets, but today is Day 22. It’s possible SNAP benefits won’t be issued to several states in November if the government doesn’t reopen.

Portland Represent: Senator Jeff Merkley from Portland took to the Senate floor at 6:21 last night to condemn Trump and his authoritarian puppets, and his still at it this morning. He said, "President Trump wants us to believe that Portland, Oregon, is full of chaos and riots because if he can say to the American people that there are riots, he can say there's a rebellion. And if there's a rebellion, he can use that to strengthen his authoritarian grip on our nation." He then praised Portlanders for not “taking the bait” and instead demonstrating with “joy and whimsy.” Stay inflated, frog friends. Watch Merkley live on C-SPAN.

Speaking of Portland: Do you follow our Portland Mercury pals on Bluesky and Instagram? They’re out there reporting on the front lines as federal agents are deployed to the city.

View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Portland Mercury (@portlandmercury)

I Did Nazi This Coming (JK We All Did): Trump wanted Paul Igrassia to lead the Office of Special Counsel, but Igrassia had to withdraw himself from consideration after Politico uncovered racist texts he allegedly sent in a group chat. In one message he allegedly wrote, “I do have a Nazi streak in me from time to time, I will admit it.”

Weather’s Gonna Get Wild: The National Weather Service’s Dustin Guy says the PNW is gonna get “a bit of a roller coaster of weather” this week. It’ll be rainy and windy here, and the mountains might get some “significant” snow. I personally LOVED this morning’s thick fog. I stared out the window and took a sip of coffee like I was in a General Foods International Coffee commercial circa 1985. “Jean-Luc!”

Thanks, I Hate It: VP JD Vance met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem early this morning to “keep the truce on track,” according to NPR. The Israeli media is calling the Trump administration “Bibisitters.” Over the weekend, Israel claimed Hamas killed two of their soldiers so they launched airstrikes that reportedly killed 26 Palestinians.

Arizona’s Suing Mike Johnson: Speaker of the House Mike Johnson still has not sworn in Adelita Grijalva, the Congresswoman who won the election in Arizona about a month ago. He keeps making excuses and sometimes even flat-out lies about why he’s not swearing her in. Arizona’s AG has had enough of Johnson’s dick behavior, so she’s suing him and the House. Why’s Johnson putting it off? Several outlets speculate that it could be because a petition to release the Epstein files needs just one more signature, and Grijalva has said she’ll sign it.

Speaking of Sex Criminals: In October, Sean “Diddy” Combs was sentenced to 4 years in prison after being found guilty of two counts of transportation for prostitution but he’s going to appeal. His attorneys filed a notice of appeal on Monday. On Monday, TMZ claimed a White House official told them Trump was considering pardoning Diddy, but the White House has denied it. TMZ stands by its story.

Coe’s Moving Again: If you went to last night’s live taping of My Favorite Murder at the Paramount, you heard Karen Kilgariff tell the story of Spokane’s South Hill rapist Kevin Coe. Despite being sentenced to life (multiple times, actually!) and being “retained indefinitely” as a sexually violent predator under Washington’s Community Protection Act, Coe was released earlier this month due to his “deteriorating health” including severe depression, stroke, heart disease, and loss of mobility that required a walker. He was initially released to a home in Federal Way, but (shocking) they didn’t want him, so the State relocated him to Auburn, but the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe kicked him out, too. He’s back in Federal Way for now.

Harrell’s Scrambling to Appear Nice: On Monday, Mayor Harrell signed an executive order to fight food deserts and “ensure our children, older adults, people with mobility issues, and families have equitable access to fresh, local, affordable, and culturally relevant food and medicine.” The plan includes $12 million of food-related investments in next year’s budget. Sounds decent, right? Of course it does. The election is less than two weeks away. Just keep in mind that in July, KIRO 7 reported that the city spends an estimated $6 million on graffiti clean-up. That money could help a lot of people! If only Harrell wasn’t afraid of a friendly hot dog.

Sweater Weather: Yesterday PWHL Seattle (our brand new Professional Women’s Hockey League team) unveiled their inaugural jerseys and they’re great! Seattle is emblazoned across the front the way the original PWHL teams did for the league’s inaugural season. But what’s their name? Still TBA, actually! The franchise says they will announce the name ahead of their season—which starts November 21 in Vancouver—and a logo will be incorporated into next year’s sweaters. Weird, but okay! I’m just excited for more hockey. PWHL Seattle’s home opener is November 28 at Climate Pledge.

Things to BoOoOoOoO! Halloween is coming, and we have a list of creepy crawly events if you want to get into the, ahem, spirit of things. Get it? Spirit? Like a ghost! Boo! Nico Swenson also has a roundup of local haunted attractions if you like getting yelled at by strangers and screaming in public.

Speaking of Screaming in Public: I am so stoked for Winona Fighter’s show in Seattle! December 8 at Showbox SoDo. I hope they play “I’m in the Market to Please No One,” which is really fun to scream at the top of your lungs.

Stranger Suggests: A New Home for Actualize AiR, a Festival for Doc Lovers, and the Band Behind One of the Best Songs of the Year

Julianne Bell — Mon, 13 Oct 2025 16:38:00 -0700

One really great thing to do every day of the week. by Julianne Bell MONDAY 10/13

Smerz

(MUSIC) If the idea of two sweetly harmonizing Norwegian women making nonchalantly brilliant electronic music doesn’t pique your interest, then you should probably reassess your aesthetics. Henriette Motzfeldt and Catharina Stoltenberg have been creating interesting and varied electronica since 2018, like a less flamboyant Björk—although the intimate, orchestral work of France’s Colleen may be a more accurate touchstone. But with this year’s Big city life, Smerz take a graceful leap forward with their songwriting and arranging skills. They exude that irresistible deadpan cool, like Wet Leg, but Smerz come off as more bedroom auteurs than arena-filling entertainers. The title track is rock-ribbed, bass-heavy electro-pop with an oh-so-haunting keyboard melody. The sassy, methodical electroclash of “Roll the dice” sounds like a more understated Peaches. “You got time and I got money” is the lowest-key seduction anthem you’ll hear all year and boasts the excellent line “Baby, can I see you naked? / Even though I love how you dress.” “But I do” is enchanting, slow-motion funk with entrancing vocal harmonies and a killer, subliminal bass line. It’s one of the songs of 2025. (Do you know how many songs have been released this year??) (Hidden Hall, 7:30 pm, 21+) DAVE SEGAL

TUESDAY 10/14

Good Things: An Evening with Samin Nosrat

View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Samin Nosrat (@ciaosamin)

(FOOD & DRINK) Samin Nosrat revolutionized the cookbook world in 2017 with her James Beard Award–winning manifesto Salt Fat Acid Heat, which educates readers on the four fundamentals of flavor, so that they can cook well intuitively. (The recipes for buttermilk chicken and autumn panzanella are fall staples in my household.) She reached a wider audience and charmed viewers with her warmth and gusto on her 2018 Netflix series of the same name, in which she traveled to various destinations to learn more about the four elements. Eight years after the publication of Salt Fat Acid Heat, her highly anticipated follow-up, Good Things, has arrived. It contains 125 of Nosrat’s most cherished recipes, from saffron roast chicken to nostalgic yellow cake with chocolate frosting, as well as advice, anecdotes about her adorable dog Fava, and meditations on how food can nourish community. Samin will join her friend, author and former Stranger staff food writer Angela Garbes, for a conversation about food, creativity, and connection. (Benaroya Hall, 7:30 pm) JULIANNE BELL

WEDNESDAY 10/15

‘The Little Foxes’ by Lillian Hellman

(THEATER) Set in a small Alabama town in 1900, Lillian Hellman’s The Little Foxes follows Regina Giddens as she manipulates her way into receiving a hefty family inheritance in an era when sons were considered the only legal heirs. The story is the perfect example of how a lack of women’s rights can lead to a multitude of women’s wrongs—it’s the ultimate “good for her!” story. Since its original stage production, starring Tallulah Bankhead in 1939, the leading role has been revived for stars like Bette Davis (in the 1941 film adaptation), Elizabeth Taylor, Stockard Channing, Laura Linney, Cynthia Nixon, and more. This group of actresses alone speaks volumes about the drama and camp of this theater masterpiece. (Intiman Theatre, various times through Nov 2, all ages) AUDREY VANN

THURSDAY 10/16

SIFF DocFest

See 'A Deeper Love: The Story of Miss Peppermint' at this year's SIFF Doc Fest, which runs October 16–23. COURTESY OF SIFF

(FILM) Sure, it’s no Sundance, Cannes, or Venice Film Festival, but SIFF’S DocFest is a pretty big deal. In the last five years alone, the festival has screened Academy Award nominees like 2022’s All the Beauty and the Bloodshed and 2021’s Flee, as well as premiered heavy hitters like The Sanctity of Space. This year’s programming is possibly the best yet, with highlights like Sun Ra: Do the Impossible (about the dearly departed Afro-futurist jazz icon), A Deeper Love: The Story of Miss Peppermint (following the life of the Broadway star and drag royal), and Steal This Story, Please! (about Democracy Now! journalist Amy Goodman). (SIFF Cinema Uptown, various times) AUDREY VANN

FRIDAY 10/17

Actualize AiR Fun-Raiser Carnival

(VISUAL ART) For the better part of two years, Actualize AiR has hosted a litany of fascinating art shows and experiences in the old downtown Seattle Coliseum building, from this summer’s Artists Doing: Nothing, a made-in-a-day performance experiment, to ICONS, a multidisciplinary exhibit from Alissa Dymally Williams and Noelle Whitaker that spread throughout several rooms in the partially unfinished basement. But there’s bad news for everyone who’s come to love stopping by during downtown’s Fourth Friday art walks: Actualize AiR lost their lease. But there’s good news, too! They’ve found a new space in Pioneer Square and will move in the coming months. To kick off their $40,000 moving cost fundraiser—and as one last goodbye to the Coliseum—Actualize AiR are throwing a “fun-raiser” with all your carnival favorites, including face painting, caricatures, airbrushed T-shirts, and cotton candy. It’s free, but you can buy bingo cards and raffle tickets to help ’em reach their one-night $15,000 goal. (The Coliseum, 6 pm, free, all ages) MEGAN SELING

SATURDAY 10/18

Pinback

(MUSIC) Pinback hasn't released a new album since 2012, but that doesn't stop them from playing sporadic shows for their adoring and supportive fanbase. With their unique rock-influenced take on indie pop, the duo of Armistead Burwell Smith IV and Rob Crow craft complex tracks that have kept listeners engaged for over two decades. (Their song "Good to Sea" started my obsession with indie music in high school.) Their live shows are always energetic affairs, with moshing teenagers and song requests taken via paper airplane. Hasco Enjoyments, an instrumental band that describes themselves as "a musical group featuring baritone guitar, flute, synthesizers and saxophones played by an ensemble of iridescent bubbles," opens the show. The LA-based ensemble has a song called "The Seattle Mariners Are My Favorite Baseball Team," and while I'm not entirely sure why, I obviously love it. (The Showbox, 8:30 pm, all ages) SHANNON LUBETICH

SUNDAY 10/19

'House'

(HALLOWEEN) You’ll never forget your first time watching the bananas 1977 Japanese horror-comedy technicolor phantasmagoria that is House. The story follows a teen schoolgirl named Gorgeous who goes on a summer trip to visit her aunt’s home in the countryside, along with her six friends: the brainy Prof, music-loving Melody, athletic Kung Fu, perpetually hungry Mac, gentle Sweet, and daydreamer Fantasy. One by one, the classmates fall victim to the house’s supernatural traps. This movie has everything: a disembodied head biting someone in the ass, a flesh-eating piano, mattresses falling from the sky, and an evil white Persian cat named Blanche. Really, it must be seen to be believed. Drag queen and self-described “bird-brained bombshell” Monday Mourning will give an introduction to the film, which is part of her “Mourning Sickness” series of camp and cult classics. (Northwest Film Forum, 7:30 pm) JULIANNE BELL

Slog AM: Trump Loses Nobel Peace Prize, Israel and Hamas Agree to Release Hostages, and School Board Rejects Cops at Garfield

Megan Seling — Fri, 10 Oct 2025 09:24:00 -0700

The Stranger's Morning News Roundup. by Megan Seling

Welcome to Day 10 of the 2025 Government Shutdown: Yesterday, despite the shutdown, the senate passed the $925 billion national defense bill, which allows everything from new submarines and fighter jets to an annual pay increase for troops. That said, because of the shutdown, members of the military may not get their paychecks—for the first time in the history of America—come October 15.

Trump Did Not Win the Nobel Peace Prize: Hahahahahahahahaha! He wanted it so badly, too. Loser.

María Corina Machado Wins Nobel Peace Prize: She is an opposition leader in Venezuela who lost the 2024 election to President Nicolás Maduro. The prize committee praised her for “tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela and for her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy.” Kind of the opposite vibes of ol’ Trumpty Dumpty’s vibes! Sorry, Don!

Ceasefire in Effect: Israel and Hamas have agreed to a ceasefire in Gaza. Now both sides have 72 hours to make good on their side of the deal—Hamas will release the 20 remaining Israeli hostages and Israel will release “around 250 Palestinian prisoners and 1,700 detainees from Gaza.” The BBC also reports that “about 600 humanitarian aid trucks are expected to enter Gaza daily.” Read Trump’s full 20-point Gaza peace plan here.

Seattle School Board Rejects Cops at Garfield: The plan, supported by Mayor Harrell, would’ve placed a uniformed SPD officer on Garflied’s campus, but Capitol Hill Seattle reports that the school board had “concerns over disproportionate policing and the district’s failure to implement community recommendations in its proposal.”

Trump Cannot Send the National Guard to Chicago: Yesterday, a US district judge ruled that the Trump administration cannot “federalize or deploy” the national guard to Illinois for two weeks because she had “seen no credible evidence that there is a danger of a rebellion in the state of Illinois.” The Trump administration will likely appeal.

And! The National Guard Can’t Fuck with Protestors in Chicago, Either: A federal judge in Chicago also granted a temporary restraining order yesterday, blocking federal agencies from interfering with protestors and any journalists covering those protests. They can’t arrest or use physical force against journalists and they can’t use “riot control” weapons including tear gas and other “less-lethal” weapons and ammunition against protestors.

Oregon Might Not Be So Lucky: Yesterday, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals began considering whether or not the Trump administration is allowed to deploy the national guard to “war ravaged” Portland. The 9th Circuit Court ruled on Saturday that they could not be deployed, but the Trump administration appealed the ruling and now the appeals court is being a butt about it. Judge Ryan Nelson, one of three judges on the panel (and a Trump-appointee) doesn’t really see a problem with it. “What I'm struggling with is, the president gets to direct his resources as he deems fit, and it just seems a little counterintuitive to me that the city of Portland can come in and say 'No. You need to do it differently,'" he said. EXCEPT FOR THAT TRUMP IS LYING??? There’s no war-torn city! There is no insurrection! Trump and his fascist bootlickers are trying to supress freedom of speech and the right to assemble because they want to shut up the people who are protesting his administration’s ILLEGAL ABDUCTIONS OF AMERICAN CITIZENS.

When You’re Being Mean to Portland, This Is Who You’re Being Mean to:

The following is REAL footage from Portland, 2025. Viewer discretion is advised.

[image or embed]
— The Daily Show (@thedailyshow.com) October 9, 2025 at 1:23 PM

My Brain Hurts: It was very hard to make sense of all the lawsuits and rulings and the national guard can be deployed here but not here at least for now but not later nonsense so early in the morning so please join me while I take a soothing brain break and watch a baby hippo named Mars refuse to get out of the pool.

View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Tanganyika Wildlife Park (@tanganyikawildlifepark)

Okay, let’s dive back into Hell!

Remember When Qatar Gave Trump a Luxury Jet? Today Pete Hegseth announced the US will build “a Qatari Emeri air force facility at the Mountain Home Airbase in Idaho."

Hegseth: "I'm also proud that today we're signing a letter of acceptance to build a Qatari Emeri air force facility at the Mountain Home Airbase in Idaho."

[image or embed]
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) October 10, 2025 at 7:22 AM

MAGA Babies Plan “All-American Halftime Show”: The racist crybabies at Turning Point USA are so mad about American musician Bad Bunny being booked to perform at the Super Bowl halftime show that they’re planning their own “All-American” halftime show, which will also feature American performers. They’re asking supporters to vote on which music genres they’d like to see represented, including “Anything in English,” and some Turning Point dudes whose names I refuse to commit to memory say they want Creed to headline.

Seattle Sports Update: At 5 pm the Mariners will play Game 5 in their post-season series against Detroit and the anxiety is palpable. We are not used to playoff baseball! We have, as a city, forgotten how nervewracking it can be! The winner will advance to the American League Championship Series to take on the Toronto Blue Jays, who are not an American team. Baseball! In other sports news, the Seattle Kraken kicked off their 2025-26 by beating the unnecessarily orange Anaheim Ducks 3-1.

Perfect October Reading: In our latest issue, notable Seattle goth Bess Lovejoy wrote about the Comet Lodge Cemetery on Beacon Hill and all the little children who have haunted the area for generations. It’s a must-read, especially on this perfectly drizzly October day.

How about one more Mars video, as a palate cleanser?

View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Tanganyika Wildlife Park (@tanganyikawildlifepark)

Stranger Suggests: Hypnotic Synth Music, an Exhibit with More Than 1,400 Artists, and a Cathartic Play Where the Bad Man Gets What's Comin'

Julianne Bell — Mon, 06 Oct 2025 15:45:00 -0700

One really great thing to do every day of the week. by Julianne Bell MONDAY 10/6

Autechre, Mark Broom

(MUSIC) Every Autechre show is a hyperkinetic séance of rhythmic complexity and intense volume. Performing in total darkness without acknowledging the crowd, British abstract-techno innovators Sean Booth and Rob Brown get down to the serious business of submerging their loyal fans (there are no other kind, in my experience) in a shape-shifting torrent of convulsive electronic sorcery. At a typical Autechre gig, hallucinogens are superfluous, as the strangely angled and textured music is more than enough to discombobulate you. Cautionary tale: At a packed 2001 AE set in a bunker at the Detroit’s Electronic Music Festival, I was tripping on ac*d and felt as if I were trapped forever in a fucked-up maze. A friend who was there accurately described the sound as “castanets clacking on a crack-house floor.” It’s amazing that a group this improvisational and abstruse still has substantial drawing power more than 30 years into their existence. An awesome AE live show is one of the few sure things in the music biz and, frankly, the world at large. (Crocodile, 6:30 pm & 10:00 pm, 21+) DAVE SEGAL

TUESDAY 10/7

Turnstile, Amyl and the Sniffers, Speed, Jane Remover

(MUSIC) Since their formation in 2010, the Baltimore-based hardcore punk band Turnstile has grown from hometown darling to mainstream breakout success, racking up multiple Grammy nominations in 2023, headlining festivals, and drawing praise from the likes of Hayley Williams and Dev Hynes. The group counts Bad Brains and Sade among their influences and mixes hardcore with melodic pop structures, resulting in eminently listenable songs with widespread appeal. If you’re still not convinced, the Seattle stop on their Never Enough tour will feature sets from rising digicore artist Jane Remover, Australian hardcore five-piece Speed, and fellow Aussie punks Amyl and the Sniffers. (WAMU Theater, 7 pm, all ages) JULIANNE BELL

WEDNESDAY 10/8

'Stage of Fools'

See 'Stage of Fools' at Seattle Public Theater through November 2. COLIN MADISON PHOTOGRAPHY

(Theater) Stage of Fools was supposed to be a farce. Joy McCullough wrote the play in the summer of 2024, when Project 2025 was a conservative pipe dream, and the idea of a small feminist theater collaborating with a toxic Hollywood has-been in a last-ditch effort to dig themselves out of financial ruin was an entertaining exercise in fiction. But now we’re living in a Trump 2.0 world. The bad men have the money and the power, and arts organizations unwilling to play Trump’s games are slashing budgets, laying off staff, and closing their doors for good. Still, Stage of Fools is hilariously cathartic, despite its depressingly on-the-nose echoes of our terrifying reality, and it’s a must-see for anyone who loves Bikini Kill, meta theater, and seeing the bad man get what he deserves. (There are some top-notch Shakespeare takedowns, too. Fuck that guy.) (Seattle Public Theater, multiple showtimes through Nov 2) MEGAN SELING

THURSDAY 10/9

Eiko Otake & Wen Hui: What Is War

(DANCE) Choreographers, performers, and filmmakers Wen Hui and Eiko Otake first met in 1995 at an experimental theater festival, sparking a collaborative relationship that would span decades. Eiko grew up in postwar Japan and now resides in New York, whereas Wen Hui was raised in China during the Cultural Revolution and currently lives in Germany. In January 2020, Eiko went to visit Wen Hui in China for a month-long artist fellowship, and the two began to excavate the war-related memories stored in their bodies. Throughout the pandemic, they worked together remotely on the documentary No Rule Is Our Rule, which explores their history, friendship, and trauma. This powerful dance performance, which the artists forged together in residencies, expands on that conversation—the women share their somatic stories through a “complex tapestry of language, movement, and video” and prompt the audience to question their own relationship to war. (On the Boards, 8 pm) JULIANNE BELL

FRIDAY 10/10

Telephone Opening Night

View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Base Camp Studios (@base.camp.studios)

(VISUAL ART) An exhibit that is an international game that starts with a single work of art that gets interpreted and translated hundreds of times, with more than 1,400 players and as many works of art? That’s TELEPHONE, an art experiment/exhibit in its third and largest iteration. Conceived by Seattle-based artist and software designer Nathan Langston, the premise is simple: Just like the children’s game, one work of art gets punted along (without context) to multiple recipients, who then interpret it as a new work of art, and so on until there’s a giant family tree of whispered artworks that have evolved in infinite ways. The results of the game will be revealed in a massive exhibit spanning two venues, with artworks ranging from musical compositions and poetry to painting, sculpture, and video. (Base Camp Studios 1 & 2, through December 13) AMANDA MANITACH

SATURDAY 10/11

NonSeq: Patricia Wolf, WNDFRM

(MUSIC) I was once shopping at a small Portland record store with the golden-hour sun shining through the windows, expensive incense smoke wisping through the air, and delightfully minimal ambient music blasting. Eager to recreate the bliss when I got back to Seattle (but too shy to ask the employee what the record was), I turned to good ol’ Shazam for answers. It turned out to be Patricia Wolf’s 2022 minimalist masterpiece, See-Through. Using field recordings, acoustic, and electronic instruments, Wolf unites the natural and synthetic worlds, creating a meditative and hypnotic experience. As a part of Wayward’s experimental music series, Nonsequitur, Wolf will debut new material on a variety of electronic instruments. She will be joined by sound artist WNDFRM (aka Tim Westcott) and trippy live visuals from video artist Leo Mayberry. (Chapel Performance Space, 8 pm, all ages) AUDREY VANN

SUNDAY 10/12

Go Apple Picking

These apples could be your apples! HMW

(FALL) Washington is apple country, so you can throw a fish and find an orchard that will let you fill a bushel full of fresh, delicious treats. But allow us to introduce you to Skipley Farms: seven acres in Snohomish, WA, with hundreds of varieties of apples you’ve never heard of, the tiniest, most delicious little pears, kiwi vines, and acres of wine and table grapes. The owner looks like he might have run a cult at one point (complimentary), and before he sets you free in the orchard, he shares the history of the farm, and explains what pests to look out for (some make the apples sweeter!) They’re also all organic (you don’t want to know what pesticides it takes to keep bugs off apples), and he runs an informal incubator program to teach up-and-coming farmers how to grow fruit of their own. (Skipley Farms, Snohomish) HANNAH MURPHY WINTER

Prizefight!

Win tickets to rad upcoming events!*

Dracula

October 29, Paramount Theatre

ENTER NOW!

Contest ends October 10 at 10 am

Dua Lipa

October 15, Climate Pledge Arena

ENTER NOW!

Contest ends October 13 at 10 am

Kaytranada x Justice

October 17, Climate Pledge Arena

ENTER NOW!

Contest ends October 13 at 10 am

*Entering PRIZE FIGHT contests by submitting your email address signs you up to receive the Stranger Suggests newsletter. You can unsubscribe at any time.

How to Photograph 300 Weirdos

Megan Seling — Mon, 29 Sep 2025 13:15:00 -0700

On Friday, October 3, musician and author Nabil Ayers will host an evening of storytelling at Town Hall with Riz Rollins, Marco Collins, Steven Severin, Paul Schurr, Sheila Locke, and Chenelle Marshall. by Megan Seling

Rachel Crick found the name for her new archival project when she was talking to a potential collaborator. “We were on the phone with Art Chantry, the art director for The Rocket,” she says, “and he said, ‘So what’s the deal here? Are you trying to take photos of as many weirdos as possible?’”

Yes, actually. And with that, As Many Weirdos as Possible was officially born.

Since 2021, Crick and her Weirdo colleagues—producer Pamela Houle, director Ricardo Frazer, and photographers Rosetta Greek, Lance Mercer, Chris Pugh, Charles Peterson, Alex Crick, and Niffer Calderwood—have been photographing folks that were part of the Pacific Northwest music scene from 1985 to 1995 in front of a local landmark of their choosing, and collecting their handwritten memories and stories.

While much has been written, filmed, photographed, and otherwise documented about what is arguably the most influential musical decade of our region’s history, As Many Weirdos goes beyond the hitmakers and headline names to shine a light on the radio DJs, concert promoters, music critics, and even a pizza delivery guy, resulting in a richer, fuller picture than we’ve seen before.

“I thought this would be 50 photos and stories in a coffee shop,” she says. Now, the collective has photographed more than 300 people, and they’re in the arduous process of compiling all those portraits and stories into what they hope will become a series of coffee table books.

This month, Team Weirdo is hosting two opportunities to get a peek at what they’ve been up to. First, on Friday, October 3, musician and author Nabil Ayers will host an evening of storytelling at Town Hall with Riz Rollins, Marco Collins, Steven Severin, Paul Schurr, Sheila Locke, and Chenelle Marshall. Then, on October 10, folks from the organization will participate in a fireside chat at Hotel Crocodile during Belltown Art Walk, and the hotel’s hallways, lobby, and even a couple rooms, will be filled with Weirdo artifacts.

While preparing for October’s events, Crick shared details about how the project came together and what’s next, now that they’ve captured, well, as many weirdos as possible.

What is it about the 1985 to 1995 time period in Seattle that was especially exciting or enticing for you?

The decade was important to me because that’s when I started watching, that’s when I started historically seeing things going in the direction that would become the time that changed the world. Everything from Bikini Kill to Nirvana. It also was the timeframe that almost every single person who is a member of our volunteer team, we were all working in music during that time, in some form or fashion. The majority of us are Seattle natives, or have lived here the majority of our lives, and we all lived and worked in Seattle during those 10 years in music.

And I want to be really clear that this is Pacific Northwest music history. We’re photographing and capturing stories from people from Olympia to Bellingham. And when I started looking at that, that passageway and the time frame, there was so much going on. There’s the riot grrrls in Olympia and the Beat Happening in Olympia, and they had their own thing going on up in Bellingham. And everything in between—there are bands coming out of Lynnwood, Everett, and Tacoma. This is larger than Seattle.

Chenelle Marshall PHOTO BY LANCE MERCER

I love that it’s not just rock-focused, too. That’s a huge part of it, but you also have, like, Shellie Hart, who I used to listen to on KUBE 93.3, and Sheila Locke and Sir Mix-a-Lot.

It’s really important to me that this project is diverse in lots of different ways. There was so much going on here, music-wise, you know, Vitamin D and Jake One got their start during that time. And Shellie Hart actually started at C89.5 before she went to KUBE. And then there’s people like Amy Denio, who’s doing jazz, and we even have Greer Grimsley.

It’s not just musicians, it’s engineers, journalists, photographers, bartenders, bouncers. We even just recently did a photo of and got a story from a guy who was a pizza delivery guy—the pizza company that he worked for had a contract with one of the theaters, so when a show would roll through town, he would take the pizzas over to the bands, and he would hang out with them and see the shows.

I just did a portrait of a guy, just randomly, when I was doing a shoot with Rob Stewart from Paisley Sin. He said he wanted to go to this place called Brad’s Custom Auto in Lake City. It turns out that this auto garage used to have a recording studio in it and a rehearsal space in the back. Brad was repairing cars in the front and renting out the back to musicians, and [the band] Zeke recorded there—all these people recorded in the back of this auto garage off Lake City Way!

I’d imagine that that’s not the only time that that has happened, that you’ve had that kind of organic growth just as people started to tell their stories.

[A lot of] it has been people saying, “Oh, did you talk to this person? Did you talk to this person?” Gretta Harley was a huge supporter when we very first started this. She’s got her project These Streets, which focuses on women, and she’s been a huge supporter and advocate for the work that we’re doing. [Former Rocket editor] Charles Cross was huge. He loved the project. He gave us contacts with so many people, and he really helped us a lot, too. So it’s all been word of mouth and support of people who believe in what we’re doing.

Since they were interviewed and shared their stories, some weirdos have died. How does that feel, to ensure that part of their legacy is going to stay around?

It’s been like a blessing, right? Susie Tennant passed away. Tom Hansen passed away. We were lucky to have been able to get a photograph of them and their story before that. And it’s the same with landmarks. When we talk to the person and say, “We want you to be in this,” we ask them to think about a location that still exists in the Pacific Northwest, to have their picture taken. And it’s been interesting watching what people pick. I’ve done a picture of a guy on a rock, literally his favorite rock. Greer Grimsley, the opera singer, he wanted his picture taken in front of Ozzie’s, the tavern up on Queen Anne, and now that classic Ozzie’s sign is gone. Lance Mercer had his picture taken at a building on the Ave, and now that building is gone, so we were also able to capture locations as a part of the work that we’re doing, too.

The plan is to put it all together in a book, right? When do you decide you’ve gotten enough material?

It’s so hard. We have photographed over 320 people. Our goal is to do three books and have there be about 100 [people] in each book and then put them in a box set. But then we need to find a publisher, or we need to figure out a way to raise the money to do it ourselves.

Riz Rollins PHOTO BY LANCE MERCER

I love that you’re hosting events, and that you have something going out into the world while you’re putting this book together.

That is something that’s been super important to us, community events. It’s more than just a way of getting the word out about what we’re doing; it’s also, coming off COVID, it’s been a way that we could get our community back together. Since I started this project, I have been dreaming of a live storytelling event. I love to listen to the Moth and This American Life. I’d been thinking a lot about how we could turn this into a live storytelling event. Now that we’re at a place where we’ve got a ton of stories to choose from, I went through—it was really hard—and I found six stories that I thought would translate well to being told live. I hope to do this one storytelling event and see how it goes—I would love for this to be an ongoing series.

Without spoiling any of the stories, can you give us a hint as to maybe one or two of the reasons you picked any of the specific stories, like some keywords or something?

[Laughs] Steven Severin, when he told me the story on the phone, I just laughed and laughed, because it has so many crazy elements about the rapper Kool Keith. Kool Keith comes to Seattle, and he has these wacky demands, and so Steven has to send an intern or something out to go and try to take care of Keith’s wacky demands. I’ll just say that it’s food and beverage items. And then, when Kool Keith finally gets back with the intern, a Kool Keith show is chaotic enough, but then just pandemonium erupts. And Paul Schurr, his story is straight up and down, just rock-and-roll lifestyle. It’s like jail and fire and so many things. I love those kinds of stories.

When this is “done,” are you going to go into other decades? Are there other plans
to expand?

One of the ideas that I have, and I haven’t solidified this yet, is I would like to take this model and take it to other cities. This decade is crazy all over the United States. If you think about Bay Area hip-hop, hip-hop in LA, if you think about Minneapolis in general, Austin, Athens, Georgia. It would be really awesome if I could take this model and go to Minneapolis and give a workshop, like: this is what we did, this is what we needed to do to get it set up, here’s what we learned. And then maybe we could also archive with ours, so when you went to our website, you could look at Seattle weirdos, Minneapolis weirdos, Austin weirdos. That would be my dream.

This article has been updated from the version that appeared in our October 1 print edition to include the names of more participating photographers.

Slog AM: Suspect Is Charged in Charlie Kirk’s Murder, Trans Woman Attacked at Renton Transit Center, Ann Davison Is Still Obsessed with Graffiti

Megan Seling — Wed, 17 Sep 2025 09:57:00 -0700

The Stranger's morning news roundup. by Megan Seling

Good Morning: Yesterday's weird heat wave is over, and today’s high is a balmy 74 degrees.

Alleged Charlie Kirk Shooter Charged: Yesterday, prosecutors charged 22-year-old Utah resident Tyler Robinson with aggravated murder for allegedly shooting far-right propagandist Charlie Kirk last week. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty. Kash Patel said the FBI has DNA evidence linking Robinson to the shooting, and they also acquired text messages in which Robinson allegedly confesses. The text messages read like weird ChatGPT fan fic, and not even Trump BFF Steve Bannon buys it, but go off, Patel.

The Right Is Desperate: MAGA morons are so desperate to blame the left for Kirk’s killing, and somehow link it to the factually incorrect notion that trans people are carrying out more mass shootings in the US, that some people falsely accused a local trans woman of killing Kirk despite the fact she WASN’T EVEN IN UTAH THAT DAY. “It is making us so much more unsafe,” she told the Seattle Times. “It seems like more and more people are starting to believe it every day, and I don’t know what to do to stop that.”

Unrelated to the Constant Onslaught of Transphobic Bullshit, I’m Sure: Four teens allegedly attacked a trans woman near the Renton Transit Center on Monday, “savagely beating her” while making homophobic comments. Two of the boys have been arrested, and police are looking for two others.

By the Way, How’s Kash Patel’s Oversight Hearing Going? Not well! He got into MULTIPLE shouting matches, including one standoff with Senator Cory Booker, who told him, “I believe you have made our country weaker and less safe.” The hearing continues today, and it’s already gotten ugly. Twenty bucks says Patel will be out by Halloween.

Read the Room, Davison: Seattle City Attorney Ann Davison filed about $40,000 in civil penalties against three local taggers. “My message is simple: if you vandalize the Emerald City, you will pay,” said Davison. Here’s the thing: I’m gonna go out on a limb and say these dudes don’t have an extra $40,000 lying around. The city won’t get any money. Davison knows that. It’s performative bullshit, and it’s pretty fucking embarrassing that this is Davison’s focus right now. This is why you’re gonna lose your job in November, Ann.

In Other Local News: The City Council’s Comp Plan committee will be voting on the massive stack of amendments to Seattle’s 20-year development plan. And even though CM Joy Hollingsworth, who is the comp plan committee chair, was expected to limit last-minute amendments, she just introduced a bunch. Sigh. JOY. We’ll be watching all day today—stay tuned for updates!

The whole thing with having Joy Hollingsworth as Comprehensive Plan committee chair was that she was going to put her foot down on last minute amendments... and then proposed a bunch herself.

[image or embed]
— Ryan Packer (@typewriteralley.bsky.social) September 16, 2025 at 9:45 PM

Must Read: Former Washington Post opinion columnist Karen Attiah was fired after she posted a thread on Bluesky about America’s gun obsession after Charlie Kirk was killed, and there was a school shooting in Colorado that very same day. She wrote about what happened on her Substack, the Golden Hour: “I was the last remaining Black full-time opinion columnist at the Post, in one of the nation’s most diverse regions. … What happened to me is part of a broader purge of Black voices from academia, business, government, and media — a historical pattern as dangerous as it is shameful — and tragic.” Read the whole thing here.

If You’re Keeping Track: Dozens of people have reportedly lost their jobs, been suspended, or lost work or partnerships for commenting about Charlie Kirk and, in some cases, Kirk-adjacent subjects (gun control, free speech hypocrisy, the fact that Donald Trump straight up shrugged off an actual political assassination just three months ago). Axios has a running list here.

This Isn’t Something to Brag About: Marco Rubio told media that the State Department “has ‘most certainly been denying visas’ to people ‘celebrating’ the murder of Charlie Kirk.”

But Trump Loves Free Speech! On January 20, 2025, aka Inauguration Day, Trump posted a Presidential Action titled “RESTORING FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND ENDING FEDERAL CENSORSHIP” to recommit America to the First Amendment. (Like when a Real Housewives couple renew their vows, I guess?) In it, he wrote that it is the United States’ duty to “secure the right of the American people to engage in constitutionally protected speech” and “ensure that no Federal Government officer, employee, or agent engages in or facilitates any conduct that would unconstitutionally abridge the free speech of any American citizen,” among other things. Can we print that out and send it to him or wheatpaste it on walls or write it on a paper airplane and throw it through a White House window or something? Maybe he forgot.

Totally Unrelated, Of Course: Five exiled members of Pussy Riot were sentenced in absentia to up to 13 years in prison for “spreading ‘false information’ about the Russian military” in a 2022 anti-war music video and committing “obscene acts” during a 2024 performance. (LOL, one of ‘em allegedly peed on a picture of Putin.) Pussy Riot’s Diana Burkot, who was sentenced to eight years in prison, said in a statement that the Russian government is “the worst kind of abuser: a tyrant, a narcissist, a gaslighter, a toxic manipulator who lives off the destruction of others’ will. … Activism now is needed like daily practice, because only together can we resist and overcome the crisis of democracy.”

I Know It Looks Suspicious: But don’t you dare draw any correlations in any of the above blurbs and start to think that what’s happening in America right now, especially in the wake of Charlie Kirk’s death, where Attorney General Pam Bondi is threatening to file charges against an Office Depot employee who declined to print fliers for a Charlie Kirk’s vigil, is anything like Russia’s dangerous and authoritarian dictatorship. It’s definitely not the same thing! We’re definitely not living in a fascist state!

Free Speech and All That, But Also: Shut the fuck up, Chris Pratt. (I can say that because I went to high school with him.)

Important Snack Updates: On Monday, a tractor-trailer full of boxes full of packets of Peanut M&Ms crashed on a New Jersey highway and scattered candy all over the road. I would've made snow angels—candy angels?—in the mess before gobbling them all up. Also in the snack headlines, Jerry of Ben & Jerry's has QUIT!

Some Good News: The Storm won last night! They’re tied 1-1 in their Round 1 series with the Las Vegas Aces.

Dreams Come True: Anyone else VERY EXCITED for the PUP/Jeff Rosenstock tour? At the Showbox SODO October 7! Let’s go!

Anatomy of a Sculpture

Megan Seling — Tue, 16 Sep 2025 13:15:00 -0700

See more of Rier’s work—and start your own collection of little monsters—at Punk Rock Flea Market at the Quality Flea Center on Capitol Hill, September 19–21. by Megan Seling

Each one of Erika Rier’s ceramic creatures has its own story, and most of them are at least a little unsettling. There’s the vampiric little girl with several sets of eyes, and the crowned and horned woman clenching what appears to be a not-very-alive bunny—something menacing is lurking within all of them. But what Rier didn’t anticipate when she first began sculpting these colorful friends years ago was the new lives they’d take on once they left her studio.

“People can accumulate these, and then they can make stories that I’ve never even thought of by just putting them together,” she says. “That appeals to the storyteller part of me. I feel like I’m always trying to put things in there, little archetypal bits that people can pull to make stories for themselves with.”

Rier’s characters are inspired by a love of mythology and storytelling—“I’m obsessed with Athena,” she says—and that fiction is balanced with the very real experience of being a woman and, often, a commentary on the toxic misogyny people face every day. The result has proven to be off-putting to some. (Jerks, mostly.) “[My sculptures] are people and animals and creatures who have full lives, full experiences, and full personalities,” she says. “There are parts of ourselves, as feminine people, where we are beautiful and joyous and pleasant, and there are parts of us that are ugly and mean and not great. And we’re all like that. Unfortunately, my work is still really sidelined because it is over-the-top feminine in a world that, at best, ignores the feminine, and at worst, is absolutely hostile towards it.”

Here, Rier gives us a closer look at her sculpture And Chain and shows us that there’s nothing to be afraid of. Unless you’re one of the misogynists. In which case, run.

Click on the image to enlarge.

1. Some of Rier’s ceramic friends start out as miniatures and take different shapes over the course of several years. “In And Chain, there’s the bird-beaked woman. I call her the Bird Witch,” says Rier. “She’s an evolving character. A lot of the time, I’ll just have a piece of scrap clay and I’ll be like, ‘I’ll just see where this clay takes me.’ In doing so, I start to get ideas for larger pieces. Usually I’ll make a little monster and I’ll be like ‘Oh, I love that,’ and I’ll sketch a bigger or more complicated version.”

2. Rier laughs when asked about the origin stories of her figurines. “Where do they come from? I always am stuck on certain stories. There are a bunch of Sumerian myths that I’m really obsessed with, but also just the basic story of Eve eating the apple preoccupies me constantly. I’m decidedly agnostic, but it’s such a weird story! And it’s so the basis of Western misogyny, I’m obsessed with it.”

3. Rier’s work table is covered with phrases that she wants to remember for future sculptures. The conversation in And Chain is based on something she overheard in real life. “The married couple that owned the studio that I rented had the most absurd banter—they actually said this to each other.”

4. The original ceramic chain Rier made for And Chain fused up in the kiln. “I actually broke it trying to fix it, and cut my hand horribly,” she says. “It was terrible!” But a friend with a 3D printer came to the rescue. “I was pretty excited to incorporate a different [technique], and it took a few times to get the chain just the right vibe—that was a cool process.”

5. Most of Rier’s characters have stereotypical “pretty” features—long eyelashes, shapely lips, bows or flowers in their hair—but there’s always a darker side: shifty eyes, sharp teeth, and horns and bones and snakes. “I love that tension, right? It’s a little sinister, but then it’s got a cutesy little outfit on,” says Rier. “Evil doesn’t always look evil.”

See more of Rier’s work—and start your own collection of little monsters—at Punk Rock Flea Market at the Quality Flea Center on Capitol Hill, September 19–21.

Slog AM: Trump Gets Booed at Dinner, City Council Votes Yes on More Surveillance, and the Storm Make the Playoffs

Megan Seling — Wed, 10 Sep 2025 09:58:00 -0700

The Stranger's morning news roundup. by Megan Seling

City Council Votes Yes on Surveillance State: I begin today’s news not with the weather, which is omnipresent, but with Seattle’s surveillance state, which also feels omnipresent, especially after our current city council voted 7-2 to expand SPD’s surveillance cameras. News Editor Vivian McCall will have more later today. Stay tuned.

Trump Wants to Watch Us, Too: The US Department of Justice sent a letter to Secretary of State Steve Hobbs “asking” Washington to hand over its voter database, including full names, addresses, birthdates, and driver’s license or partial Social Security numbers. Washington has 14 days to comply. The letter says the information must be sent via encrypted email to voting.section@usdoj.gov and also states, “Should further clarification be required, please contact Maureen Riordan at maureen.riordan2@usdoj.gov.” I have some questions, Maureen! For one, why do you hate democracy? Let’s all email Maureen with our questions!

May They Never Know Peace: Last night, protestors crashed Trump’s fancy steak dinner at a DC restaurant by yelling “Free DC! Free Palestine! Trump is the Hitler of our time!” I personally would’ve loved to hear them go a little harder on the Epstein material—after all, in his whackadoo rotted brain, comparisons to Hitler are complimentary—but maybe next time.

Trump confronted by protestors in a DC restaurant…

[image or embed]
— The Tennessee Holler (@thetnholler.bsky.social) September 9, 2025 at 5:43 PM

Now You’ve Pissed Off Poland: NATO shot down Russian drones that reportedly entered Poland’s airspace early this morning. The verdict’s still out on whether it was intentional or some kind of whoopsie on Russia’s part, but Poland’s prime minister Donald Tusk said Poland is at its "closest to open conflict since World War Two.” FUN!

Don’t Worry, Trump’s on It:

it took the president more than 12 hours to come up with this

[image or embed]
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) September 10, 2025 at 8:19 AM

Speaking of Trump: His emergency order in DC expires tonight after Congress failed to extend it, but don’t get too excited. The National Guard and all those feds who are gardening and picking up litter will stay put for now, and AP says, “it’s not clear when that might end.”

That’s a WayNO From Me, Dog: lol I’m hilarious. Anyway, Waymo, the driverless car service, has arrived in the Pacific Northwest. Right now, the cars are not driverless—there are humans inside “making sure Waymo cars can adapt to area roadways, including in wet weather and across hilly terrain.” Waymo has not announced when they will fully launch the service, and, as GeekWire points out, “it will depend on when Washington state establishes regulations permitting such operations.”

Did a Bottle of Booze Write This? Yesterday, the Seattle Times published an op-ed that criticized the Washington Traffic Safety Commission’s new proposals to crack down on impaired driving. One idea being floated: Lowering the BAC limit from 0.08 to 0.05. It’s not a bad idea! We did a very scientific test! More importantly, after lowering the BAC in Utah, Utah reported a 20% decline in fatal crashes. But the Times’ op-ed worries that the new limit would penalize “moderate social drinkers while delivering only modest safety gains.” Whatever you say, bottle of Skyy Vodka.

We’re Goin’ to the Playoffs! The Storm beat the Golden State Valkyries and secured a spot in the WNBA playoffs! LFG!!!!! The first round starts Sunday.

In Other Exciting Sports News: Rough & Tumble announced they’re opening a second location! The women’s sports bar, founded by Jen Barnes, is set to take over the former Columbia City Ale House space in October. MORE KNIGHT’S CHEESE CURDS FOR THE PEOPLE!

OMG OMG OMG: Secret Lives of Mormon Wives star Frankie Taylor Paul is the next Bachelorette??? This is the perfect distracting disaster, and I can’t fucking wait.

And With That: I will leave you with a neighborhood crow update. Those birds are still biting my dog’s butt!!!

View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Megan Seling (@meganseling)

Slog AM: Two Children Are Dead in Minneapolis School Shooting, Bob Ferguson’s Staff Continues to Flee, Judge Halted Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia’s Deportation for Now

Megan Seling — Wed, 27 Aug 2025 09:26:00 -0700

The Stranger's Morning News Roundup by Megan Seling

The Heat Advisory Is Over: Good news for anyone who is not a lizard! Today's high is a balmy 76 degrees. We might even get a little bit of rain tonight.

As I Sat Down to Write This: There were breaking reports of a shooting at a Catholic school in Minneapolis. According to the AP, the shooter was armed with a rifle, a shotgun, and a pistol, and shot through the church windows toward the children sitting in the pews during Mass. At least two children—an 8-year-old and a 10-year-old—are dead. Seventeen other people were injured. ABC News says the shooter appears to be dead from a self-inflicted gunshot. Melt all the guns.

More Protestors Arrested at Microsoft: Seven more protestors were arrested Tuesday after occupying Microsoft President Brad Smith’s office over the company’s ties to the Israel Defense Forces, reports NPR. Eighteen people were arrested there last week. Earlier this month The Guardian reported that the Israeli military uses Microsoft’s Azure cloud platform to “collect and store recordings of millions of mobile phone calls made each day by Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.” In response to the arrests, Smith barfed out this word salad, "There are many things we can't do to change the world, but we will do what we can and what we should. That starts with ensuring that our human rights principles and contractual terms of service are upheld everywhere, by all of our customers around the world.”

Remember Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia? The man who ICE deported to El Salvador despite his court order that protected him from being sent to El Salvador? The Trump Administration refused to admit their mistake and bring him back to America. They kept passing the buck, saying it was someone else’s decision. Ultimately, they only brought him back to the US after filing criminal charges against him in Nashville. Remember all that? Well, THEY DETAINED HIM AGAIN. They’re threatening to deport him to Uganda, but a judge has put a stop to that for now.

More Staff Shakeups in Ferguson's Office: Governor Bob Ferguson is (temporarily, maybe?) losing another staffer. Policy Director Sahar Fathi (who we once called one of “The Smartest People in Seattle Politics”) has been on leave since July 1 and is not expected to return before January 1. Will she be back in time for the 2026 legislative session? No one is saying! Ferguson says she’s just taking a break after a “particularly intense legislative session.” Several members of Ferguson’s staff quit earlier this year, including chief strategy officer Mike Webb, who resigned after accusations of contributing to a toxic workplace.

ICYMI: Washington’s largest private-sector labor union backs Katie Wilson. Hannah Murphy Winter has the full story here.

Unplug It: The family of a teenager in California who killed himself in April is alleging their son only took his own life after “months of encouragement from ChatGPT.” They’re suing OpenAI and Sam Altman. For decades, people have searched the internet to self-diagnose their problems. That can be especially true for kids and teens, who may not feel comfortable talking to their parents or family doctor. This is not going to stop, especially as healthcare becomes more expensive and harder to access. Shut it down.

I got the complaint in the horrific OpenAI self harm case the the NY Times reported today

This is way way worse even than the NYT article makes it out to be

OpenAI absolutely deserves to be run out of business

[image or embed]
— ❀°。Der Siebenschläfer *.ﾟ✿ ⋆ (@sababausa.bsky.social) August 26, 2025 at 9:33 AM

Love Your Neighborhood Post Offices: Post Options on Capitol Hill is closing. Their shop on Pike Street was severely damaged in an electrical fire in July, and they’ve been working out of a temporary location since. Owner Veti Cmoesongrsi, who owns the shop with Nongnuch Paungpornsri, told Capitol Hill Seattle Blog, “We could not start over.” The Postman is closing, too. KeAnna Rose Pickett kept the business going after her husband, D’Vonne Pickett, Jr., was shot and killed outside the Central District shop in 2022. Pickett told Converge, "I feel like I'm trying to keep it up for legacy, but I really want to do something else.” Hug your local indie postal service worker today.

I Don’t Think You Can Do That: Trump says he wants the death penalty for all murderers in Washington, DC, which I’m pretty sure he only said because he was excited to make what he perceived as a clever play on words. "Anybody murders something in the capitol, capital punishment," Trump said. It’s telling that he said “something” and not “someone.” He doesn’t see people as human beings. We’re all just cogs in his power-hungry machine brain that runs on ego and destruction.

Speaking of That Destructive Ego: Trump is imposing a 50 percent tariff on India because the country bought discounted oil from Russia, and he says that indirectly funds the war in Ukraine. Oh, are we punishing countries that support the unlawful occupation of other countries? LOOK IN THE MIRROR, ASSHOLE.

Wisconsin Man Not Dead After All: A man named Ryan Borgwardt has been sentenced to 89 days in jail for obstructing an officer after pretending to drown while on a kayaking excursion so he could ditch his wife and three children and run off to Georgia (the country) to be with another woman. He paid $30,000 in restitution, and his wife divorced him after he turned himself in. Men, you know you can just, like, talk about your feelings, right?

Here’s Some Better News: Ned the snail is looking for love! Most snail shells spiral to the right, but Ned’s shell spirals to the left, making it harder for him to find a mate. Put Ned on The Bachelor!

In Some Personal News: Today is my husband Robby’s birthday, and he is my very favorite person on the whole planet. Even with all the terrible things that happen in the world on a daily, hourly, and minutely basis, he makes me laugh and not want to hide under a rock until it’s over. I hope you’ll join me in celebrating him with this very great Atom and His Package song.

Stranger Suggests: A Horny ‘Jurassic Park’ Musical, a Juilliard-Trained Comedian, and a Janelle Monaé-Approved Sci-Fi Writer

Julianne Bell — Mon, 25 Aug 2025 13:05:00 -0700

One really great thing to do every day of the week. by Julianne Bell MONDAY 8/25

Charlie Jane Anders presents 'Lessons in Magic and Disaster'

(BOOKS) If you’ve read the news at all in the past few weeks, I guarantee that sitting in on a chat with Charlie Jane Anders will do your soul some good. Anders’s fantasy/sci-fi writing doesn’t feel like an exercise in escapism. It feels like potential. She talks about sci-fi as “dreaming”—an act of imagining our future so we have a chance to create it. She’s coming to Seattle to talk about her newest book, Lessons in Magic and Disaster, a novel about witchcraft, academia, queer joy, and the magic of the mundane. If you don’t want to take it from me, take it from Janelle Monaé, who said that “Anders writes the kind of stories that break your heart and expand your mind simultaneously… I am a proud fan.” (Third Place Books Lake Forest Park, 7 pm, all ages, free) HANNAH MURPHY WINTER

TUESDAY 8/26

Hunx and His Punx, Wimps

(MUSIC) I first fell in love with fuzzy punk band Hunx and His Punx when I stumbled upon a CD of their 2011 debut album as a college radio DJ. Founded by visual artist and musician Seth Bogart and Shannon & the Clams frontwoman Shannon Shaw, the group is back from a long hiatus, and just released their first album in twelve years, Walk Out On This World, last Friday. They’re kicking off a North American tour in Seattle; catch them live in Beacon Hill with support from local punk group wimps, and grab a slice of Stevie's Famous pizza while you're at it. (Clock-Out Lounge, 8:30 pm, 21+) SHANNON LUBETICH

WEDNESDAY 8/27

Anila Quayyum Agha: Geometry of Light

Anila Quayyum Agha: Geometry of Light is on display at Seattle Asian Art Museum starting August 27. STEVE WATSON

(VISUAL ART) Playing with shadows and light, Pakistani-American artist Anila Quayyum Agha uses South Asian art practices to convey the darkest and brightest parts of her life, including the gender discrimination she faced during her childhood in Pakistan. The installations are at once delicate and industrial, consisting of suspended, laser-cut steel cubes that project intricate patterns on everything around them, making the viewer a part of the art. For me, Agha’s work evokes deeply cozy childhood memories of paper lanterns, shadow puppets, and paper snowflakes. (Seattle Asian Art Museum, Wed–Sun 10 am–5 pm, through April 19, 2026) AUDREY VANN

THURSDAY 8/28

Jurassic Parking Lot

(THEATER) Jurassic Parking Lot, produced by the Habit, the same folks who put on A Very Die Hard Christmas every year, has everything you’d want from a '90s-obsessed Jurassic Park musical spoof—Seinfeld references, oversized cell phones, sexy singing and dancing raptors, and just the right amount of horny Jeff Goldblum. (Spoiler: Prepare yourself for a Chris Pratt jumpscare, too—ahhhh!) Several shows are sold out, for good reason, but Seattle Public Theater offers $25 rush tickets for every sold-out show. Just show up an hour before showtime to get your name on the rush list, hang out in the beer garden until showtime, and they’ll squeeze in as many folks as possible based on no-shows (and there are always no-shows). It’s worth the effort. Besides, if you don’t get in, Bongos is just a 10-minute stroll along the lake, and you can drown your sorrows in tostones and chocoflan. (Seattle Public Theater, through Sept 14, times vary, recommended for ages 14 and up) MEGAN SELING

FRIDAY 8/229

PAX West 2025

PAX West 2025 is August 29 through September 1 at the Seattle Convention Center. KIKO VILLASEÑOR

(GAMES) Unsurprisingly, PAX (originally the “Penny Arcade Expo”) was started right here in our neck of the woods back in 2004. Now with multiple annual meet-ups across the globe, Seattle is home to PAX West every Labor Day weekend. This massive video game convention and celebration of all things gaming and geek boasts panels with special guests (this year’s lineup includes Stardew Valley creator Eric Barone, comedian Ify Nwadiwe, and actor Anna Prosser), new game demonstrations, hands-on activities, and an exhibit hall with booths spanning every fandom. Tickets can be on the pricey side, but there are always lots of fun (and cheaper) affiliated parties going on around town. (Seattle Convention Center, Aug 29–Sept 1, all ages) SHANNON LUBETICH

SATURDAY 8/30

Bumbershoot 2025

(FESTIVAL) As a Seattle native, I grew up attending Bumbershoot before I knew what the word itself meant (it’s a synonym for umbrella, if you still aren’t in the know). That’s why I am so glad to see that the long-running music and arts fest is back for good after taking a hiatus from 2019-2023. Given the festival’s history, it’s only fitting that this year’s lineup is selling major nostalgia with a headlining set from Weezer—whom I saw at the festival back in 2010—performing their debut self-titled album (commonly known as the Blue Album). Other highlights include Janelle Monáe (who should be the headliner, in my opinion), Car Seat Headrest, Bright Eyes, Sylvan Esso, and Aurora. Personally, I am most excited to see the jazz-rap trio Digable Planets perform their seminal 1994 album, Blowout Comb. Check out our Bumbershoot guide for more highlights and tips, and see what else we recommend in our Bumbershoot Pick of the Day series. (Seattle Center, Aug 30–Aug 31, all ages) AUDREY VANN

SUNDAY 8/31

Isabel Hagen

(COMEDY) Not many people can say that they have worked with Björk and performed a stand-up routine about threesomes on The Tonight Show, but for Juilliard-trained comedian Isabel Hagen, it’s just another day in the life. I was lucky enough to see her at Laughs Comedy Club a few years ago and was immediately charmed by her sincerity and humorous yet honest reflections on relationships. And it might be Hagen’s visual and vocal similarities to Greta Gerwig, but I found her to be immediately engaging and likable. If you’re a stand-up comedy skeptic, I think you will find her set to be refreshingly self-aware. (Here-After, 6 pm & 8 pm, 21+) AUDREY VANN

Prizefight!

Win tickets to rad upcoming events!*

Goo Goo Dolls with Dashboard Confessional

September 1
Chateau Ste Michelle

ENTER NOW!

Contest ends August 29 at 10 am

*Entering PRIZE FIGHT contests by submitting your email address signs you up to receive the Stranger Suggests newsletter. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Slog AM: Pam Bondi Is Mad at Washington, Trump Is Mad at Vote-by-Mail, and Fred Meyer Is Mad at Shoplifters

Megan Seling — Tue, 19 Aug 2025 09:47:00 -0700

The Stranger's morning news roundup. by Megan Seling

Bob Pissed Off Pam: US Attorney General Pam Bondi is very mad that Washington isn’t supporting the Trump Administration’s racist and illegal immigration enforcement, so she sent a letter to Gov. Ferguson on August 13 saying that Washington’s “sanctuary policies and practices … end now.” She said Ferguson will have to comply by Tuesday, August 18 (Hey, that’s today!), or risk consequences, including losing federal funding for … well, she didn’t say. So far, Ferguson has stood his ground, saying, “The federal government’s relentless targeting of law-abiding immigrants is wrong.” He is holding a press conference today at 12:15 p.m. What will happen? Stay alive to find out!

Trump Attacks Vote-by-Mail: Yesterday, Trump told White House reporters about his disdain for mail-in voting and vowed to issue an executive order to end it. He had just met with Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other European leaders to discuss Ukraine’s future, and he met with Putin over the weekend to talk about his insatiable desire for Ukrainian land, but sure, let’s talk about mail-in voting? Anyway, he called it a fraud and said, “Mail-in ballots are corrupt” and vowed to “end it” to “help bring HONESTY to the 2026 Midterm Elections.” Ferguson, Sen. Cantwell, and Sen. Murray all defended Washington’s vote-by-mail system.

Just another totally unhinged official public statement from a President who is desperate to appeal to foreign dictators and silence Americans. But he doesn't dictate how we run our elections. WA state votes by mail in every election. We'll keep it that way—thanks.

[image or embed]
— Senator Patty Murray (@murray.senate.gov) August 18, 2025 at 12:33 PM

This Meeting Could’ve Been a Ceasefire: After his meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskyy yesterday, Trump said he is working to arrange a meeting between Zelenskyy and Putin. He wrote on Truth Social, "Everyone is very happy about the possibility of PEACE for Russia/Ukraine," which is a lie, of course, because Putin is a dictator who wants to steal about 20 percent of Zelenskyy’s country. A study from Center for Strategic and International Studies published in June says one million Russian troops and about 400,000 Ukrainian troops have been killed or injured since the start of the war on February 24, 2022. Still, Putin’s clearly uninterested in ending things until he gets his way.

In Other Local Election News: Did you see? There’s a new PAC to support Wilson and rub “more salt in the Mayor’s gaping electoral wounds.” Thanks for the gross visual, Nathalie! Read all about it here.

Animal Style or Whatever: The first In-N-Out in Washington will open Wednesday in Ridgefield, which is about 15 minutes north of Vancouver, Washington. Go get some burgers with bible verses if you’re into that sort of thing. (I’m a born-and-raised Pacific Northwesterner, so the only fast food my body tolerates is Taco Time.)

Weather: Sunny and 75. Perfect blackberry-picking weather. Get ‘em while you can.

Fred Meyer Closing Stores: Fred Meyer announced yesterday that they are closing two stores, one in Kent and one in Everett, due to “a steady rise in theft and a challenging regulatory environment.” Wow, must be rough out there! How much money are they losing? “Kroger didn’t offer any specific data for theft incidents at the Everett or Kent stores,” reports the Seattle Times. “It also didn’t elaborate on what it meant by “challenging regulatory environment.” Last year, Kroger CEO Rodney McMullen resigned due to “certain personal conduct” unrelated to the company's finances. Before leaving, though, he made more than $15 million in 2023 alone, and during his 10-year tenure, Kroger’s profits increased from $98 billion to $150 billion. But sure, lock up baby formula and blame it on people who steal deodorant and razors.

BTW, Why Did the Kroger Kreep Resign? They aren’t saying anything about that either! But wouldn’t you know it, earlier this month in an unrelated lawsuit, a judge ordered Rodney McMullen to reveal the reason for his sudden departure. Verdict’s still out if he actually will and, if he does, whether or not the judge will keep it under seal.

Texas Democrats End Walkout: Several Texas lawmakers who left the state earlier this month in an attempt to thwart Republican efforts to gerrymander congressional maps and score more Republican seats ahead of the midterms have returned to work. While it’s likely Texas Republicans will get their extra seats after all—and Trump is stoked—the walkout inspired California to look into doing some redistricting of their own to try and get more Dem seats. Everyone is terrible!

A Little Authoritarianism: Afterwards, the Dems were only allowed to leave the chamber “after signing permission slips, promising to return for the next meeting on Wednesday and agreeing to be paired with police officers.” Only one Democrat, Nicole Collier, refused to sign because only one Democrat, Nicole Collier, is not a coward. She spent the night in the chamber.

Did Israel Use Mass Surveillance on Palestinians? After The Guardian published the story “‘A million calls an hour’: Israel relying on Microsoft cloud for expansive surveillance of Palestinians” earlier this month, Microsoft has launched an investigation to see if Israel breached the company’s terms of service, saying, “Microsoft appreciates that the Guardian’s recent report raises additional and precise allegations that merit a full and urgent review.”

I Leave You Not With a Song, but a Creature: Specifically, the telescope fish. I love him.

Bumbershoot Pick: Pretty Girls Make Graves

Megan Seling — Mon, 18 Aug 2025 16:25:00 -0700

Bumbershoot is Saturday, August 30 & Sunday, August 31 at the Seattle Center. by Megan Seling

Bumbershoot is two weeks away, so we have just 14 days to prepare ourselves (read: buy new insoles) for Seattle’s recently resurrected end-of-summer tradition and two-day onslaught of comedy, art, wrestling, skateboarding, runway shows, and music, which, at least this year, includes some of the shiniest stars from my teenage CD collection—Weezer, Digable Planets, Bright Eyes, the Murder City Devils, and Quasi. Honestly, I’m stoked.

Since the festival’s return in 2023, Bumbershoot has rehabilitated its reputation for being an overly crowded Labor Day cash grab run by megaproducers. (Well, mostly.) Now, mercifully, it’s only two days—which is much appreciated as someone who is old enough to have seen Bright Eyes at the Paradox on the Ave when Conor Oberst was touring Fevers and Mirrors—and while the lineup does include some impressive national names (hello, Janelle Monáe!), there has also been a mindful shift to spotlight the artists and musicians who are doing their part to keep Seattle just a little bit strange.

There’s a whole temple dedicated to witchery, and another to cats. Beloved local historian Vanishing Seattle is curating an installation that will celebrate Seattle landmarks, both new and old. The pole dancing pavilion will return, as will the comedy stage (and this time around it’s in the SIFF theater, so it will be bigger, more accessible, and actually air-conditioned). And there will also be performances throughout the weekend from organizations like Cheer Seattle and Levity Arts, and a whole heap of food booths featuring local vendors and restaurants. (I will say, last year’s food options were impressive, but many were really expensive—$30 for a cheese plate? Yikes!!)

For the next two weeks, we’re going to feature a different Bumbershoot highlight every day, to hopefully help you pin down your must-see list ahead of the busy weekend. We’ve done a countdown of holiday cookies, and another of scary movies—why not count down to the summer’s biggest music and arts festival, too? Plus, with festival tickets costing as much as they do these days, you’ll want to make sure you get your money’s worth.

Up first is the one band you need to see, even if you go for only one band: Pretty Girls Make Graves. Pretty Girls Make Graves were only around for about five years at the turn of the century (this century), and the band was a mash-up of musicians from some of the Northwest’s most innovative and experimental hardcore and punk bands from the ’90s. Though short-lived, their music inspired Hayley Williams, the Blood Brothers, and Steve Aoki (who actually put out their first EP).

I already wrote the definitive oral history of PGMG in September ahead of their first batch of reunion shows (dreams do come true), so if I may quote myself:

Their critically acclaimed debut full-length, Good Health, was a conglomeration of those past lives. Opening track “Speakers Push the Air” is a high-octane, confident celebration of the power of music à la Operation Ivy’s “Sound System.” On tracks like “More Sweet Soul,” “Sad Girls Por Vida,” and “By the Throat,” the band leans into their heavier tendencies. Wiry, sharp guitars pierce through throbbing bass and incisive drumming while Andrea Zollo’s sing-scream vocals tear through the speakers to shout down any motherfucker who dared cross her.

They lit that same fire back in September when they reunited to play their first shows in 17 years at the Showbox. I might’ve cried a little; it’s a blur. And what a gift to have the chance to see them again, with music that’s still as furious and pertinent today as it was then.

I still feel every note of “Speakers Push the Air” in my bones.

Bumbershoot is Saturday, August 30 & Sunday, August 31 at the Seattle Center. Tickets are available at bumbershoot.com. We're counting down to Bumbershoot 2025 by featuring a different participating musician or artist every day for the two weeks leading up to the festival—see all our picks here.

Slog AM: Harrell’s Chief of Staff Resigns, Another Christian Supremacist Group May Hold Rally at Cal Anderson, and Throwing a Sandwich Is Now a Federal Crime

Megan Seling — Thu, 14 Aug 2025 09:32:00 -0700

The Stranger's morning news roundup. by Megan Seling

Here Come the Christian Nationalists (Again): According to sources who spoke to PubliCola, the city is expected to allow the anti-gay, anti-trans evangelical musician Sean Feucht to host an intentionally provocative Christian supremacist rally and concert at Cal Anderson Park later this month. Erica C. Barnett reports that “The city considered denying the permit on security grounds—police will be stretched thin across multiple big events over the busy Labor Day weekend—but ultimately did not want to risk a First Amendment lawsuit from Feucht’s group.” Did they learn nothing from May’s “Rattle in Seattle”?

Mayor Harrell’s Chief of Staff Resigns: I wanted to make a joke about how it’s probably because he’s the one who fucked up the Election Night cake, but Jeremy Racca actually went on unpaid leave in July to focus on his health after multiple cardiac events. Nothing really funny about that. “If I were 100% healthy, I’d still be in the job,” he told the Seattle Times.

Hilary Franz Accused of Ignoring Abuse: In a new lawsuit, a former staffer is claiming that the former Commissioner of Public Lands (and gubernatorial candidate) retaliated against her after she reported an abusive relationship with Franz’s general counsel Daniel Teimouri. The staffer, Bailey Boyd, alleges that after she told Franz about the abuse multiple times, Franz excluded her from work-related travel and meetings. According to KUOW, Teimouri was sentenced to 60 days of home monitoring and 5 years probation after he pleaded guilty to one misdemeanor count of domestic violence assault this April. Franz claims the allegations are false; a trial is scheduled for next July.

Hold Your Breath: The Bear Gulch fire is still burning on the Olympic Peninsula and wind gusts may carry some of that smoky air our way for the next few days. National Weather Service meteorologist Kayla Mazurkiewicz told the Seattle Times, “folks around King County will likely notice haze, smell some smoke and see vibrant sunrises and sunsets.”

Don’t Give Trump Any Ideas: Russia is restricting calls on WhatsApp and Telegram, claiming the apps are being used to “involve Russian citizens in sabotage and terrorist activities.” WhatsApp reportedly has 96 million monthly users, and Telegram serves more than 89 million monthly users.

People Love Guns: In May, Gov. Bob Ferguson signed into law a bill that requires Washington residents to get a permit (and pass live-fire training) in order to purchase a gun. It goes into effect in 2027. Concealed carry licenses have jumped in the wake of the news. Last year, residents applied for fewer than 6,000 new concealed pistol licenses (CPLs), according to the Washington State Standard. This year, Washington residents have already applied for 14,000 additional CPLs.

Release the Epstein Files: Trump’s attempts to distract the nation from the fact that Attorney General Pam Bondi told him his name appears in the Epstein files continue to fail. Now, “several” survivors of Epstein’s abuse, who have not yet gone public, are expected to join Democratic Representative Ro Khanna of California and Republican Representative Thomas Massie in a news conference on September 3, as lawmakers return to work.

LOL Fuck You, Abbott: Remember those Texas lawmakers who left the state to prevent Republicans from gerrymandering congressional maps to gain more Republican seats? They’re still holding down their respective forts in blue states, and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is still pissed. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton wanted the Democrats to be held in contempt, but an Illinois judge was like, “Nah.”

Not an Onion Headline: “Man Charged With Assaulting Federal Agent With Sandwich in D.C.” A 37-year-old man was taunting federal agents on Sunday, yelling things like, “Shame! Shame!” and (rightly) calling them fascists. He eventually threw what appears to be a footlong Subway sandwich at one of the officers, hitting him in the chest, and yes, there is video. After he was detained, he reportedly said, “I did it. I threw the sandwich.” Put it on my tombstone.

The Sandwich Didn’t Scare Them Away: The Federal troops in DC have made 66 arrests in the past two days, according to White House officials, who are always honest and never, ever corrupt. Officials also say their little police puppets will start doing encampment sweeps as part of their patrol, which DO NOT REDUCE CRIME. This is what you trained so hard to do, buddies? Be beat cops for a fascist dictator? Honestly, if I were them, I’d be throwing sandwiches at myself.

ProPublica spoke to about 150 people who had lived in homeless encampments when cities cleared them out in “sweeps.” We distributed notecards so people could tell us about the toll in their own words. ➡️ This is what they wrote: projects.propublica.org/impact-of-ho...

[image or embed]
— ProPublica (@propublica.org) July 25, 2025 at 8:15 PM

ChatGPT Is Not Your Doctor: Or boyfriend or girlfriend or therapist. Regardless, a man developed bromism, a 19th-century psychiatric disorder, after replacing sodium chloride (table salt) with sodium bromide (used in cleaning products) because ChatGPT told him to. But before you laugh, consider this: People are growing increasingly desperate to access any kind of healthcare as doctors become increasingly harder to find and costs for care are going up. Sigh.

New Weakend Friends! Happy Thursday.

Slog AM: The National Guard Is in DC, Seattle Eyes More Cop Cameras, and Laura Loomer Explains the Roast Beef Euphemism

Megan Seling — Wed, 13 Aug 2025 09:58:00 -0700

The Stranger's morning news roundup. by Megan Seling

The National Guard Has Landed: US troops arrived in Washington DC last night on Trump’s orders to put a stop to “crime, bloodshed, bedlam and squalor and worse” in a city where crime is at a 30-year low. According to known liar Karoline Leavitt, “...850 officers and agents were surged across the city. They made a total of 23 arrests, including multiple other contacts.” At least one of those arrests was for “fare evasion,” the most violent crime of all crimes. The subway literally cried. It was heartbreaking. Leavitt added that they will “relentlessly pursue and arrest every violent criminal in the district.” Remember that’s what they said about immigrants, too. But more than 70 percent of the tens of thousands of detainees arrested so far this year had NO CRIMINAL CONVICTIONS.

Here in the Other Washington: ICE arrests have dropped 25 percent between June and July 29 But according to the Seattle Times, “The 218 immigrants arrested in Washington in July still represent more than any other month but June since September 2023, which is as far back as the data goes.”

Speaking of Becoming a (Even More of a) Surveillance State at an Alarming Pace: On September 2 the Seattle City Council will consider a proposal to install more police cameras throughout the city. New cameras would be added to Capitol Hill around East Pike and Cal Anderson Park, the stadium district (in time for FIFA World Cup next year), and the area around Garfield High School. Mayor Harrell loves the idea; Mayor Harrell sucks.

The Numbers Prove He Sucks: The latest election results still show Katie Wilson triumphantly holding 50.71 percent of the vote in last week’s primaries. As for the rest of the Stranger’s endorsements: All but two candidates we endorsed are winning their races. (Why didn’t you listen to us about Kim-Khánh Văn, you ding-dongs?!?) Am I bragging? Yes.

Yet Another Horrifying Headline Related to Our Government’s Obsession with Other People’s Bodies: Gerika Mudra, an 18-year-old cis woman in Minnesota, is suing Buffalo Wild Wings for discrimination after a server allegedly harassed her in the women’s restroom. They would not let her leave until she “proved” her gender by unzipping her hoodie to show her breasts.

Trump Will Meet With Putin: The two are scheduled to meet at a US military base in Anchorage on Friday to discuss ending the war in Ukraine. Trump has reportedly said Russia will face “very severe” consequences if it doesn’t stop attacks. He said the same thing in January. And April. Today, Trump is also talking to Volodymyr Zelensky and other European leaders.

In Other Alaska News: A “glacial outburst” is “threatening significant flooding” in Juneau. This has happened every August for the past three years, with last year’s 15.99-foot flood surge damaging more than 100 homes. CNN confirms the consistent issue is “yet another consequence of climate change due to fossil fuel pollution.” Morons say, “No it isn’t.” Coincidentally, this Trump administration is deleting far more environmental data than the first one did.

One Last Trumpdate: President Idiot announced this year’s Kennedy Center Honorees and the list includes George Strait, Michael Crawford, Gloria Gaynor, Kiss and Sylvester Stallone. Honestly shocked that Big Balls didn’t make the cut.

ICYMI: On Friday night, a fire burned through the Get Nice Gallery and other studios and businesses in Ballard Commons on Market Street. Get Nice staff had just finished hanging a show that was supposed to open during Ballard Art Walk on Saturday. Most, if not all of the artwork in the building has been destroyed. Vivian McCall has the details here.

If You’re Looking for an Entertaining Read: Laura Loomer’s deposition in her suit against Bill Maher is full of gems and Anna Bower is sharing some highlights on Bluesky. (I will not use the word “skeet.”)

“What is your basis for saying she puts roast beef in her pockets and in her pants?” I don’t even know where to begin. You just have to read these two pages.

[image or embed]
— Anna Bower (@annabower.bsky.social) August 12, 2025 at 4:59 PM

Related: Here’s a free, brilliant idea for the taking.

The first drag performer in Seattle to star in a staged reading of this court transcript will become a legend.

[image or embed]
— Paul Constant (@paulconstant.com) August 12, 2025 at 9:06 PM

Wake Up, Babe, a New Ancient Whale Just Dropped: Scientists say they have uncovered a new species of whale by way of a 25-million-year-old fossil in Australia. The Janjucetus dullardi was “deceptively cute” (same) and “essentially a little whale with big eyes and a mouth full of sharp, slicing teeth.” Sounds neat!

So Did The Album News We Need: Hallelujah! This week, the big news we’ve all been waiting for was finally announced. We’re finally getting the new music we need, the new music we deserve, the new music we’ve been patiently waiting years for. That’s right, BLACK EYES ARE BACK! The Washington DC punk band will release Hostile Design on Dischord Records on October 11—it’s their first release since 2004’s Cough. I fucking love this band so much. I cannot wait. It was produced by Fugazi’s Ian Mackaye, engineered by Don Godwin, and this morning they gave us a taste with the song “Pestilence.”

Transit Hot Takes

Nathalie Graham — Fri, 08 Aug 2025 11:00:00 -0700

We have a love/hate relationship with Seattle's transit options. by Nathalie Graham

Illustrations by Teresa Grasseschi

Electric Scooters

Pro: I’ll admit it. I love e-scooters. They’re a convenient last-mile solution for those of us who don’t live near a light rail stop or for when the bus strands us downtown between 30-minute headways. Zip on a scooter to that BBQ a few blocks away when you’re running late, or back to your apartment when you forgot to bring heels to a wedding dress alteration appointment. Sure, sure, the scooters can be dangerous. This is because idiots ride them without helmets. This is also because we still live in a car’s world. And you know what is more dangerous than scooters? Cars. The popularity of scooters challenges car-centricity. Limes and Birds open up a car-less world to people used to opting for a Lyft or Uber. Additionally—don’t hate me, cyclists—scooter riders mean more people using bike infrastructure. That creates a new group of people asking the city for more bike lanes and investments in ways to get around without cars. We just need some of the numbskulls riding them to ride them as if imminent death lurks around every corner. Drivers should drive that way, too. We’ll all be safer if we are constantly considering our own mortality. In the meantime, enjoy a scooter ride. Live a little. NATHALIE GRAHAM

Con: There was a time in this country where the only people with scooters were 8-year-olds and your idiot cousin with a gas-powered weed wacker on wheels called a moped. But now these fucking things are a key part of urban transportation strategy. My main quibble with scooters is not that they’re annoying dumbass magnets that double as a sidewalk obstacle course for the young, old, and disabled; it’s that they’re inequitable idiot magnets. For some people, they work. They even go zoom zoom, making you laugh like a little baby (I see you and I judge you). Don’t have a smartphone? Can’t use ’em. Going to the grocery store? Hope you brought a wagon, and a rope. Disabled? Fuck you, again, actually. Old? Don’t break your hip. Have a brain? They don’t come with helmets, so don’t fall and forget what it was like to be 17! The most offensive part is the suggestion that these scooters are a magic last-mile transit solution to all those racially inequitable train lines in this country. Fuck. No. It’s illusory and gives cities an excuse to not invest in public infrastructure. VIVIAN McCALL

The #8 Bus

Pro: Stop blaming the 8. She’s doing the best she can with the abominable circumstances we’ve given her. Her route starts just blocks from Climate Pledge Arena, where nearly 20,000 fans flock to concerts and sporting events several times a week. No new infrastructure was built into the neighborhood to alleviate the traffic, the crowds—she was just forced to manage the mess like an undervalued employee at an understaffed company. Rude! From there, she heads up Denny Way, which is a tangle of commuters racing to get to I-5 via a four-lane, stoplight-riddled city street that condenses into one turn lane at the base of Denny’s I-5 overpass with no bus lanes to help her through the chaos. And yet we curse her name as if she has done anything but continue to haul our ungrateful asses up one of the biggest hills in the city without complaint. I will no longer stand by while the city slanders her good name. Don’t hate the 8, hate Denny Way! Hate impatient, selfish drivers! Hate that our city prioritizes cars over public transportation! I love you, Route 8. MEGAN SELING

Con: The 8 route begins at the Mount Baker Transit Center, which was built with absolutely no love for public transportation. It’s an eyesore. While waiting for a Metro bus, one feels like they are waiting for a prisoner transport vehicle. Soon after the 8 arrives, it’s immediately followed by the 48. Both buses cover much of the same area in the Central District, why not separate the buses by 10 minutes? Why make it so that if you miss one, you certainly miss the other? Has this anything to do with the CD’s past? Maybe they will fix the scheduling when they learn that Black people don’t live there anymore. As for the world-historical horribleness of the stretch from the bottom of Capitol Hill to the bottom of Queen Anne, the bus is always stuck in a traffic jam caused by tech workers fleeing South Lake Union all at once. But Metro has done nothing to fix this and other issues on this considerable part of the 8’s route. All they seem to say is: It is what it is. The 8 sucks. CHARLES MUDEDE

The Seattle Monorail

Pro: Sure, tourists love the Monorail. It’s whimsical. It reminds them of a 1960s vision of the future with less climate change and more space travel. And it’s arguably the most picturesque one mile of transit in the city. But like many things in Seattle (read: Pike Place Market) just because tourists like it, doesn’t mean it sucks. Since the Monorail started accepting ORCA cards in 2019, it’s also a light rail extension for the otherwise-stranded Lower Queen Anne, a connection to the D Line (if you don’t mind walking through Seattle Center and visiting the fountain), and an invaluable way to avoid hellish car congestion for arena events like Kraken games. Don’t blame her for the failed dream of the Monorail Project. It’s one of Seattle’s original people movers, and it’s still useful today. HANNAH MURPHY WINTER

Con: The Seattle Monorail is a thing for tourists, hockey fans (derogatory), and people going to the ELO concert. My gripes with it aren’t as convincing right now, since its summer operating hours make sense (as in, service runs past 9 p.m.). But, during the fall and winter, you better hope you wrap any business you have in Lower Queen Anne before 9 p.m. or you’ll miss the last train out of the Seattle Center. It’s dumb, impractical, and a reminder of a stupid dream. Seattle spent years and millions of dollars on the illusion of a full-fledged monorail spanning the city. It never came to be and cost us precious time to develop a functioning high-capacity transit system—something we’re only barely starting to taste 20 years after the Monorail Project folded. Created for the World’s Fair in 1962 as a symbol of Seattle’s advanced technology, the Monorail is now a reminder of how we are actually stuck in the past. NATHALIE GRAHAM

Slog AM: It’s Election Day, Seattle Is Dangerously Dry, and Gov. Abbott Has Lost His Mind

Megan Seling — Tue, 05 Aug 2025 09:37:00 -0700

The Stranger's morning news roundup. by Megan Seling

It’s Election Day! VOTE! Our endorsements are here! Don’t wanna read all that? Here’s our cheat sheet! Your ballot must be dropped into a ballot box by 8 p.m. tonight. Find one near you at King County’s website. Forgot to register to vote (or never received your ballot) but still wanna participate? You can vote in person at one of King County’s vote centers which, here in Seattle, is at Lumen Field Event Center. It’s open today from 8:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Vote! Vote! Vote! Then get yourself a little treat!

Voter Turnout Is Low (Again): As of 8 a.m., fewer than 19 percent of registered voters in King County have returned their ballot. That will pick up today, of course, but it still might be low. Just over 40 percent of registered voters in King County bothered to vote in last year’s August primaries. Go vote! I know primary local elections aren’t the sexiest elections, but can you imagine how mad Bruce Harrell will be if Katie Wilson’s numbers stand up to his? SO MAD! He’ll hit a table, probably, because he seems to like to do that!

Stay Tuned to The Stranger for the Results: Members of The Stranger’s Election Control Board will be popping into all the election result parties tonight and reporting back the vibes, the food, and the reactions to the first results, which will drop a little after 8 p.m. Follow along! It’s fun!

It’s Smoky Out There: Seattle’s air quality took a dive yesterday when smoke from the Bear Gulch fire in the Olympic National Park started to blow this way. The air has already started to clear this morning. Keep an eye on air quality levels at fire.airnow.gov.

Speaking of Weather and Fire: We might get a smattering of rain this week, but Seattle is “6.5 inches below its normal amount of rainfall since Jan. 1 and 9 inches below average for the water year, which started Oct. 1,” according to the Seattle Times. I’m not an expert, but that doesn’t sound great! June was Washington’s third-driest in the past 130 years.

Density Is Coming: Yesterday, Seattle councilmembers proposed more than 100 amendments to Mayor Bruce Harrell’s One Seattle plan, which would build denser housing like three- to six-story apartment buildings in dozens of neighborhoods across the city. Some councilmembers, including Alexis Mercedes Rinck and Dan Strauss, hope to expand the list of included neighborhoods, while others are moving to trim the list down. “Think about the trees!” they say. Weirdos. The next public hearing is September 12 if you wanna join the conversation.

Epstein File Update: This morning the House Oversight Committee subpoenaed the DOJ as well as former government officials like Bill and Hillary Clinton and James Comey, for all files related to the Jeffrey Epstein’s sex trafficking investigation. They have until August 19 to hand over all their shit.

Gov. Abbott Throws Tantrum, Threatens Dems With Arrest: Dozens of Democratic state reps in Texas have left the state to protest a special session in which the Republicans hope to remap congressional districts. The redistricting would convert five blue seats into likely GOP districts, making it easier for Trump to hold onto a majority in the House next year. The State House can’t proceed without at least two-thirds of the legislative body present, and more than 50 lawmakers have left, with many vowing to stay gone until the end of the session on August 19. Yesterday afternoon Gov. Abbott and the Republicans voted “to locate, arrest, and return to the House chamber any member who has abandoned their duty to Texans.” No one snitch; let ‘em cook.

This is what is happening right now.

[image or embed]
— Brian Tyler Cohen (@briantylercohen.bsky.social) August 3, 2025 at 7:27 PM

Is Now the Time, Greg? Three people are still missing after deadly flooding hit Texas in July, killing 135 people. Now Texans are pissed (and scared and heartbroken and traumatized) because the State isn’t doing enough (or much at all) to help victims begin to recover. The disaster caused an estimated $18 billion to $22 billion in damages and economic loss and Abbott’s shitting his pants about congressional redistricting? Yesterday, the Houston Chronicle published this damning op-ed, calling Abbott out on his bullshit.

Today’s Another Short(er) Day: Today, August 5, will be milliseconds shorter than any other day in history, according to science. “It won't be noticeable,” according to Space.com, but some experts are trying to understand why our planet has started to spin faster in recent years. (It’s called anxiety.)

Don’t Pick Below the Knee, Unless You Like Dog Pee: It’s blackberry pickin’ time! My very favorite part of summertime in the Pacific Northwest.

Future cobbler. MS

I took this picture this weekend at my secret spot in West Seattle. No, I won’t tell you where it is. Okay, yes, I will, it’s by the golf course on 35th Avenue Southwest—save some for me. I highly recommend Jerrelle Guy’s Blackberry Corn Cobbler. Make it for yourself after you vote!

Now, Listen to Sea Lemon: This Friday, Seattle’s own Sea Lemon (aka Natalie Lew) will headline the Tractor alongside Tomo Nakayama and Nathan Reed. Stranger Staff Writer Julianne Bell interviewed Lew for our August issue (on stands tomorrow!), and Lew talked about how giant squids and horror movies inspire her songwriting. Read more here, and dig the song “Crystals” which features Ben Gibbard on co-vocals—it’s swirly and haunting and kissed with just the right amount of ’90s vibes that make me think it should be on The Craft soundtrack.

Stranger Suggests: A Tape-Loving Record Label's Birthday Party, Refreshing Fruit Cups Slathered in Spices, and VOOOOOOTE!

Audrey Vann — Mon, 04 Aug 2025 14:17:00 -0700

One really great thing to do every day of the week. by Audrey Vann MONDAY 8/4

Mexican-Style Fruit Cups

(FOOD) In the summer, I tend to have insatiable cravings for all things sour, sweet, salty, and spicy, so I can’t get enough of Mexican-style fruit cups doused with Chamoy and Tajín right now. I first happened upon a vendor selling spears of mango, cucumber, pineapple, and watermelon downtown in Westlake Park, which ignited my obsession. The same day, I purchased a mango on a stick, carved into a flower, and covered with spices at Aquí Mercado by the waterfront. If you’re looking for a similar option, try El Lugar Capitol Hill, which now offers fruit cups as well as Chamoy-coated sour candy (I’m hooked on the watermelon licorice). Antojitos Jalisco on Broadway also offers fruit cups, spicy mangos, mangonadas, and chamoyadas (a frozen mango pop with a cup of Chamoy for dunking). JULIANNE BELL

TUESDAY 8/5

Vote!

See how easy? Just drop it in the box! MS

(CIVIC DUTY) It’s Election Day! Have you voted yet? I’m gonna guess no, given our abysmal primary election voting record. Just 40 percent of registered King County voters participated in last year's Washington State primary election. Sad! Some very vital decisions will be made today, with or without your vote. We’ll narrow down the crowded mayoral candidate field, decide who’ll take on Republican Seattle City Attorney incumbent Ann Davison, and find out who’s ready to make a run at NIMBY-loving Sara Nelson’s City Council seat, to name a few. Ballots must be submitted by 8 p.m. Tuesday night! Read through our endorsements, then find the ballot box near you, and VOTE! MEGAN SELING

WEDNESDAY 8/6

Lady Gaga: The MAYHEM Ball

(MUSIC) Like Gaga’s signature mixed drink, the kalimotxo (red wine topped with Diet Coke and maraschino cherries), her sixth album, MAYHEM, is a freaky blend of rich, jazzy vocals and fizzy pop perfection. When she announced the tour earlier this year, Gaga noted that she opted to keep this one in arenas rather than stadiums: “I wanted to create a different kind of experience—something more intimate—closer, more connected.” However, this show still promises an opulent theatrical experience with designer costumes, Broadway-quality sets, and songs that span her career. If you’re still a Gaga hater who believes she’s a cheap Madonna rip-off, learn your herstory! Madonna pointed out the absurdity of these criticisms, stating: “God forbid a woman takes inspiration.” (Climate Pledge Arena, 8 pm, all ages) AUDREY VANN

THURSDAY 8/7

Tala Madani: 'Be Flat'

Tala Madani, ***TBC Untitled, 2024. PHOTO: FREDRIK NILSEN STUDIO; COURTESY OF HENRY ART MUSEUM

(VISUAL ART) Iran-born artist Tala Madani's first solo exhibition in Washington State promises a spicy, funny-yet-critical blend of "mural-like" paintings, animations, and a glimpse of a forthcoming feature-length film. Through projected light and surreal characters (often "naked, bald, middle-aged men"), Madani's slapstick violence drags viewers into dreamlike spaces that disturb and intrigue. The artist is renowned for her provocative, often unsettling explorations of power and vulnerability, tackling everything from bodily fluids to suicide with razor-sharp wit. (Safe to say that Be Flat comes with a big ol' visitor advisory.) See the show before it closes later this month, on August 24. (Henry Art Gallery, free, all ages) LINDSAY COSTELLO

FRIDAY 8/8

CatVideoFest 2025

(FILM) My phone’s storage is constantly full because I have approximately 10,000 hours of footage taken of my giant long-haired tuxedo cat, Whisper. For me, everything that Whisper does is worth documenting, and I know I am not alone because CatVideoFest exists. Each year, crazy cat owners submit their favorite feline footage—spanning animation, music videos, viral classics, and home movies—to be screened in theaters as a part of a giant compilation reel. The best part is that funds are donated to cats in need through partnerships with local cat charities, animal welfare organizations, and shelters. (SIFF Cinema Uptown, times vary) AUDREY VANN

SATURDAY 8/9

Den Fest 2025

(MUSIC) Small, independent music labels are vital in keeping underground music alive and thriving in Seattle. Kay Redden, founder and sole employee of local tape label Den Tapes, is doing the lord’s work, one cassette release at a time. Den Tapes will celebrate its 10th anniversary with a supercharged edition of its annual festival featuring two nights of live music, including grunge trio Wild Powwers, indie-pop outfit Soft Boiled, garage-rock band Teenage Toad, singer-songwriter project Don Piano, and many more. Don’t forget to bring some extra money to buy tapes! (Sunset Tavern, Aug 8–9, 7 pm, 21+) AUDREY VANN

SUNDAY 8/10

Lucy Dacus

(MUSIC) It was the hard launch heard round the lesbian world: Lucy Dacus confirmed her long-rumored relationship with collaborator and boygenius bandmate Julien Baker in an interview with The New Yorker in March. Her newest album, Forever Is a Feeling, finds the introspective singer-songwriter solidly in her lovergirl era, with swoony, intimate queer ballads like “Best Guess” (a surefire new sapphic wedding standard) and “Ankles.” Guests on the album include tourmate Jay Som, as well as Hozier, Bartees Strange, Madison Cunningham, Blake Mills, Baker, and fellow boygenius member Phoebe Bridgers. Remlinger Farms will provide a bucolic background for Dacus’s romantic musings and vulnerable lyrics. (Remlinger Farms, 5 pm, all ages) JULIANNE BELL

Prizefight!

Win tickets to rad upcoming events!*

My Morning Jacket

August 9, Chateau Ste Michelle

ENTER NOW!

Contest ends August 8 at 10 am

Simple Plan

August 9, WAMU Theater

ENTER NOW!

Contest ends August 8 at 10 am

*Entering PRIZE FIGHT contests by submitting your email address signs you up to receive the Stranger Suggests newsletter. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Candidate Survivor Is Thursday

Megan Seling — Wed, 23 Jul 2025 13:00:00 -0700

Best of all? Just like voting, it's FREE! by Megan Seling

The time has come! It is officially Primary Election season. The ballots have been sent out, the candidates have been interviewed and researched, and the endorsements have been pored over and debated, and now it's time to vote! But before you cast that ballot, you have one more level of due diligence to conquer: You must see how well your candidate of choice can perform under the pressure of our annual Candidate Survivor competition!

Join The Stranger and the Washington Bus Education Fund at Neumos Thursday night to get one last look at your favorite (and least favorite) candidates as we subject them to a D&D-themed night of probing questions, charisma-based tasks, and, of course, lip syncing.

Just looked at this impressive lineup of confirmed candidates:

Seattle Mayoral Candidates: Katie Wilson! Ry Armstrong!
Seattle City Attorney: Rory O’Sullivan! Erika Evans!
Seattle D9: Dionne Foster!
Seattle D8: Alexis Mercedes Rinck! Ray Rogers!
Seattle D2: Adonis Duckworth! Eddie Lin! Jeanie Chunn!

Will Duckworth show off with some skateboard tricks? Will Rinck bring Saint Rat? Will Katie Wilson's housing plans hold up in front of a live audience? Will Bruce Harrell crash the party and pound his fist on the table and stomp his feet like a petulant child? There's only one way to find out!

Aleksa Manila is hosting the festivities, and members of The Stranger's Election Control Board and the Washington Bus will be on hand to ensure participants don't weasle out of any hard-hitting questions.

Plus: If you show up in your best D&D-inspired costume, you'll be entered in a raffle to win two passes to GeekGirlCon!

Best of all? Just like voting, it's FREE! Just RSVP here to claim your spot.

Slog AM: Palestinians Are Starving, Trump and His Cronies Continue to Avoid the Epstein Issue, Betelgeuse Has a Celestial BFF

Megan Seling — Tue, 22 Jul 2025 09:58:00 -0700

The Stranger's morning news roundup. by Megan Seling

Palestinians Are Starving to Death: This morning, Reuters is reporting that at least 101 Palestinians, including 80 children, have died of starvation. Doctors and humanitarian workers are also “fainting on duty in Gaza due to hunger and exhaustion.” Not only is food scarce, but Israeli soldiers have killed dozens of people as they attempted to access food stations over the weekend. Yesterday, 25 countries demanded Israel end the war, but Netanyahu says he won’t stop until Hamas is defeated. That 35-day-old infant who starved to death on Saturday has nothing to do with Hamas, you fucking monster.

Seattle Protester Charged with Felony: A 33-year-old man from Monroe has been charged with third-degree assault and is being held in King County Jail for allegedly punching Cameron Higby in the head after the No Kings Day protest on June 14. The Seattle Times says Higby is a “self-described ‘America First’ influencer,” (he previously hosted a show for PragerU for years) and he was wearing a helmet and riot gear at the time. Prosecutors noted that they haven’t seen all of Higby’s medical records yet, so they may amend the charge. Higby says Lawson also harassed him online; others have accused Higby of “rage baiting.” Lawson told investigators, “I really didn’t think that a couple of (expletive) bare knuckle shots to the head at a protest after being antagonized all night was gonna come down to all this.”

Trump Tries the Distraction Method: Forget all about Epstein’s list, because the National Archives just released hundreds of thousands of files related to the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. on Trump’s orders. King’s family is calling bullshit. They released a statement, writing, “During our father’s lifetime, he was relentlessly targeted by an invasive, predatory, and deeply disturbing disinformation and surveillance campaign orchestrated by J. Edgar Hoover through the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). … Those who promote the fruit of the FBI’s surveillance will unknowingly align themselves with an ongoing campaign to degrade our father and the Civil Rights Movement.”

The Plan Didn’t Work: Because most of us aren’t toddlers with the brain of a goldfish, Trump’s plan to get everyone to look over there! look over there! hasn’t worked. So Todd Blanche from the DOJ is meeting with Epstein’s BSTF (best sex trafficking friend), Ghislaine Maxwell, to see if she “has information about anyone who has committed crimes against victims.” They’re selling it as an attempt to out criminals and be transparent and yadda yadda yadda, but this is fucked! Todd Blanche is Trump’s guy! This meeting isn’t an opportunity to demand answers and appease the American people who don’t want a child rapist in the White House, this is some sketchy-ass shit!

Again, I suspect what Todd Blanche is trying to do for his client Donald Trump is to get Ghislaine Maxwell to implicate someone flashy (someone LIKE Bill Clinton, tho not necessarily Clinton), which Blanche will use to release her from prison. www.emptywheel.net/2025/07/22/t...

[image or embed]
— emptywheel (@emptywheel.bsky.social) July 22, 2025 at 6:32 AM

More Sketchy Business: Speaker Mike Johnson has shut down the House until September to avoid the Democrats' demands to vote on the release of more Epstein files. He probably just wants everyone to have a great summer, and isn’t at all attempting to keep certain Presidents from being outed as child rapists, right? JK, he said he’s doing it because, “We’re done being lectured on transparency,” which is exactly what someone attempting to hide a very big, bad secret would say. This is fascism.

Trump Bans WSJ From Press Pool: Not only is Trump suing the Wall Street Journal for their reporting on his relationship with Epstein—and the pervy birthday card he made for him—Trump has also banned the news outlet from the press pool. WHICH IS ALSO FASCISM.

Don’t Worry, It’ll Be Over Soon(er): The world is starting to spin faster, and some days this summer have been shorter than the usual 24 hours. CNN reports: “July 10 was the shortest day of the year so far, lasting 1.36 milliseconds less than 24 hours. … More exceptionally short days are coming on July 22 and August 5, currently predicted to be 1.34 and 1.25 milliseconds shorter than 24 hours, respectively.” This is quite normal, experts say, but also AHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!

Speaking of Space: Betelgeuse has a bestie! One of our most famous stars in the sky has a “companion star (that) orbits Betelgeuse in an incredibly tight orbit.” Cute! “The star is doomed, however, and the team behind this discovery predicts that Betelgeuse will cannibalize it in a few thousand years.” I demand a Pixar-style film immediately.

BREAKING NEWS: This is delicious.

YUM.

Don’t Forget to Vote! Your ballot! It has arrived, probably! VOOOOOOOTE! Our endorsements are here. My very passionate argument for why voting in the primaries is important is here.

Last Week, Charles Wrote About Crows: Y’all had some very good advice for Charles on how to deal with a family of loud, aggressive crows on his street in Columbia City. Any tips on how to deal with this cranky corvid that keeps BITING MY DOG?

View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Megan Seling (@meganseling)

Yes, I give it kibble! HELP!

Stranger Suggests: A Cosmic Flick with a Live Soundtrack, Art That Bridges the Gap Between Life and Death, and an Absurd Comedian

Megan Seling — Mon, 21 Jul 2025 13:41:00 -0700

One really great thing to do every day of the week. by Megan Seling MONDAY 7/21

'Eddington'

(FILM) Ari Aster has a habit of sending messages before we're ready for them. Hereditary didn't wait for you to adjust to the darkness before it struck a decidedly freaky match. Then, Midsommar spawned a thousand flower crown costumes, but also drove horror films back into the daylight. Eddington is similarly uncomfortable, as some of the first narrative cinema set during the COVID-19 era. Are you ready? The film follows Joaquin Phoenix and Pedro Pascal as a sheriff and mayor in small town New Mexico, where in May 2020, a new virus propels a darkly comedic standoff. Aster looked to traditional and revisionist Westerns like My Darling Clementine and Unforgiven to inspire Eddington's style. (Various showtimes at SIFF Cinema Uptown, Regal Meridian, and AMC Pacific Place 11) LINDSAY COSTELLO

TUESDAY 7/22

Koyaanisqatsi: Live with Philip Glass Ensemble

(FILM/MUSIC) If time is a flat circle, Godfrey Reggio’s Koyaanisqatsi is a set of interlinked rings in a magician's grab bag. The rollercoaster tone poem collages the cyclical nature of humanity with soul-stirring time-lapse photography. It was a quick (and surprising) sensation upon its 1983 release, so the cosmic flick, whose title is drawn from a Hopi word meaning “life out of balance," became the first entry in the Qatsi trilogy. Philip Glass's hypnotic score is basically crucial to the Koyaanisqatsi experience, so I'm stoked to witness the Phillip Glass Ensemble and Seattle Symphony perform it live for this concert-slash-screening. (Benaroya Hall, 8 pm, all ages) LINDSAY COSTELLO

WEDNESDAY 7/23

Author Talk: Cassandra Khaw with Katee Robert, ‘The Library at Hellebore’

View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Katee Robert (@katee_robert)

(BOOKS) Last year, based on recommendations from the Seattle Public Library and Elliott Bay Book Company, I picked up Bram Stoker Award–winning author Cassandra Khaw’s novella The Salt Grows Heavy, a gothic retelling of The Little Mermaid featuring a murderous, flesh-eating siren and an androgynous plague doctor who join forces to take down a sinister death cult. The book was both eerie and sensual, so I’m excited for their newest release, The Library at Hellebore, a dark academia fantasy tale in which a group of students enrolled at a prestigious boarding school must team up to defend themselves from the cannibalistic faculty. New York Times–bestselling erotic romance author Katee Robert will join Khaw in conversation. (Elliott Bay Book Company, 7 pm, free, all ages) JULIANNE BELL

THURSDAY 7/24

Devo

(MUSIC) In the case of Devo, you need not be worried about the questionable stamina of aging rockstars or their stage presence fading with time. The band’s performance of “Uncontrollable Urge” at the SNL50 celebration proved that these new wave legends are continuing their long tradition of goofy stage antics and sounding fucking awesome. Celebrating 50 years of being a band and “cosmically devolving,” as their tour moniker describes it, they’ll perform two nights at the zoo. What a beautiful world. (Woodland Park Zoo, July 23-24, 6 pm, all ages) BRI BREY

FRIDAY 7/25

Kate Berlant

View this post on Instagram
A post shared by I Think You Should Reel (@ithinkyoushouldreel)

(COMEDY) You might know comedian, actress, and LA cool girl Kate Berlant from her appearances in movies like Sorry to Bother You and Don’t Worry Darling, her role in Amazon Prime’s A League of Their Own reboot, her Bo Burnham–directed special Cinnamon in the Wind, her frequent collaborations with comedy partner John Early, or her existential wellness podcast Berlant & Novak (formerly Poog) with fellow comic Jacqueline Novak. (She’s booked and busy!) I was lucky enough to catch her critically acclaimed one-woman show KATE in New York and was delighted by her genius portrayal of an exaggeratedly egotistical character version of herself. Get a glimpse of her absurdist style at this stand-up performance at the Neptune. (Neptune Theatre, 6 pm, all ages) JULIANNE BELL

SATURDAY 7/26

‘Spirit House’

Lien Truong, The Crone, 2022. See it at the 'Spirit House' exhibit at Henry Art Gallery beginning July 26. COURTESY OF HENRY ART GALLERY

(VISUAL ART) Taking its name from the small devotional structures that shelter the supernatural around Thailand, this group exhibition asks 33 contemporary Asian American artists to explore how art can bridge the gap between life and death. Through paintings, photography, and sculpture, these works invite you to “commune with your ancestors, reflect on significant memories, and journey through time and space.” I am most excited to see work from California-based artist Kelly Akashi, who creates tender sculptures of hands from glass and stone. (Henry Art Gallery, free) AUDREY VANN

SUNDAY 7/27

Bite of Seattle

(FOOD) Seattle boasts plenty of food and drink festivals year-round, but Bite of Seattle—billed as “Seattle’s original and largest food and beverage showcase” and claiming to draw 355,000 guests each year—is the most well-known gluttonous gathering by far, having been in business since 1982. Look forward to upwards of 300 food vendors, as well as beer and wine gardens, retail vendors, cider tastings, kids’ activities, live cooking demos, and more than 65 musical performers. Artists include punk-infused instrumentalists mega cat, powerhouse vocalist Shaina Shepherd, rock-and-rollers the Moondoggies, rapper Oblé Reed, and “funk juggernaut” Eldridge Gravy & the Court Supreme. (Seattle Center, 10 am–9 pm Friday through Saturday & 10 am–8 pm on Sunday, free, all ages) JULIANNE BELL

How to Vote in August’s Primary Election

Megan Seling — Tue, 15 Jul 2025 10:30:00 -0700

I know what you’re thinking: Didn’t we just do this? Yes. Yes, we did. by Megan Seling

I know what you’re thinking: Didn’t we just do this? Yes. Yes, we did. King County has already held two special elections this year, in February and April. But democracy does not rest! It’s the 2025 primary election, bitches! It is time, once again, to put blue or black ink to oblong bubble and make some big choices about our future.

Sure, local primary elections have a reputation for being uneventful snoozefests, but some very vital decisions will be made come August 5. Not only will Seattle voters narrow down the crowded mayoral candidate field—in which there are currently nine contenders—but we also get to decide who’ll take on Republican Seattle City Attorney incumbent Ann Davison, who’s ready to make a run at NIMBY-loving Sara Nelson’s City Council seat, and which of the eight people running for King County Executive will appear on the ballot in November’s general election.

The primaries are where we can weed out the weirdos (Rachael Savage) and give the real ones (Katie Wilson) a boost. This is where we can send a message to City Hall that we’re paying attention—we won’t stand for four more years of a sweeps-loving bully, and we won’t vote for another council member who prioritizes billionaires over human rights. It’s very exciting! But in order to do all of that, you must be registered to vote.

How to Register to Vote

New voters can register online at votewa.gov or in person at the County Elections Office. You’ll need a Washington State driver’s license or ID card or, if you don’t have that, the last four digits of your Social Security number. To vote in the August primary, you must register online by July 28 or in person by August 5, Election Day. If you are registered, but you’ve moved or changed your name since last voting, you can confirm or update your voter registration at votewa.gov, too.

What to Know About Your Ballot

Washington State votes by mail, and ballots are mailed out 18 days before Election Day. For the August primaries, you should get your ballot on or around July 18. If you don’t receive your ballot, you can request a replacement on King County’s website at kingcounty.gov. You can also call 206-296-VOTE or email elections@kingcounty.gov, and they’ll get you set up. (They love democracy! They want to help you!)

There is one very important thing to consider when preparing to return your ballot: your signature. You must sign the ballot’s return envelope—or have a witness sign it if you’re unable. And your signature must match the one the elections office has on file, which is either the signature you used when registering to vote, or the one that appears on your driver’s license or state-issued ID card.

Don’t just scribble nonsense; don’t just put your initials. Don’t mindlessly doodle dogs and flowers all over it while you sit on hold with Xfinity for six hours. When it comes to voting by mail, your signature is a big deal. It’s how the elections office confirms your ballot came from you. Tens of thousands of ballots are returned in Washington State every election cycle because the signature either is missing or doesn’t match. In November’s 2024 General Election, more than 8,700 ballots with unmatching signatures were returned, and more than 2,800 ballots were unsigned in King County alone.

Are you scared? Did all this pressure about handwriting cause a tickle of anxiety in the pit of your stomach? Relax! If you’re a registered voter and worried about an out-of-date signature, you can update your signature online at kingcounty.gov. And if your signature is denied after all, the elections office will contact you—by phone, mail, and email—and let you know what to do next. But you must correct a contested ballot before the election results are certified two weeks after Election Day.

Where to Take Your Ballot

So you registered, received your ballot, filled out the appropriate bubbles, sealed it in the security envelope, and signed the return envelope. Good job! Now you can drop your ballot in an official ballot box by 8 p.m. on Election Day, August 5. Find one near you on the county’s website. You can also mail it, and no stamp is needed. Because ballots arriving via postal mail must be postmarked by Election Day, officials recommend you send it by the Friday before.

You can track your ballot’s progress at info.kingcounty.gov. Or, even better, when voting, you can sign up to receive text alerts, and you’ll be notified when your ballot has been received and again when it’s been counted. Neat!

Why Do All of This?

Now that we’ve covered how, I want to talk about why. The truth is, many folks who can vote know how, they just choose not to. Even if they’re already registered. And that is especially true in midterm primary elections.

Just 41 percent of registered voters participated in Washington State’s primary election last year, and that number drops a notch to 40 percent when you zoom in on King County. And who are some of those primary election voters voting for? It’s kind of wild, actually! Nearly 17,000 Washington voters voted for Goodspaceguy for US Senator in the 2024 primaries. That is his official name on the ballot! Goodspaceguy is a Republican who has run more than 25 times for various offices in the region, he refers to Earth as “Spaceship Earth,” and he believes, according to his voter guide statement, that a state-wide minimum wage “creates so many homeless, unemployed, problem, poor people and panhandlers and shop-lifters and muggers.” Yikes.

If that’s too niche for you, consider this: More than 541,533 Washington State voters cast their ballots for Dave Reichert during the primaries and got him on the ballot for the general election, and the guy brought a gun to his own campaign event! He lost in the general election to Gov. Bob Ferguson, but all those early votes sent a message: Reichert has their support. There are some very strange people in the world who make some very strange decisions, and they’re showing up to vote—even in the admittedly unsexy but no less important primary elections. Will you?

Stranger Suggests: A Ferry Ride to a Strawberry Festival, a Sand-Filled Patio, and an Art Fair at a Football Stadium

Megan Seling — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 13:00:00 -0700

One really great thing to do every day this week. by Megan Seling MONDAY 7/14

Find a Good Patio

(SUMMER) Monday's weather is shaping up to be a perfect summer day—low 70s, cool breeze, slight cloud cover so the sun doesn’t bake you alive. So today, forget all your responsibilities and treat yourself to an afternoon on a really great patio. A few favorites of mine include Marination Ma Kai in West Seattle, which is far enough from Alki Beach to avoid the maddening crowds and terrible traffic; Bongos in Green Lake, which actually has a sandpit so you can run your toes through soft beach sand while eating alllll the tostones (get the chocoflan, too!); and the Flora Bakehouse's rooftop patio, and not just because THEY PUT SOFT SERVE IN A CROISSANT. Don't forget sunscreen. MEGAN SELING

TUESDAY 7/15

Gyedu-Blay Ambolley

(MUSIC) Ghanaian highlife luminary Gyedu-Blay Ambolley is known for Afrobeat tunes that blend soul, folk, and jazz with traditional African rhythms. He will bring his eight-piece band out to the Tractor to play his seminal 1975 debut album, Simigwa, in its entirety. The album was heavily influenced by the horn-heavy funk of James Brown, complete with references to being a “sex machine” and plenty of screams, shouts, and lively ad-libs. This show is a must for fans of Fela Kuti, Cymande, or Studio One compilations. (Tractor Tavern, 8 pm, 21+) AUDREY VANN

WEDNESDAY 7/16

Author Talk: Susana M. Morris with Brooke Bosley, ‘Positive Obsession: The Life and Times of Octavia E. Butler’

Susana M. Morris will read from her new book 'Positive Obsession: The Life and Times of Octavia E. Butler' at Third Place Books Lake Forest Park on July 16. COURTESY OF SUSANA M. MORRIS

(BOOKS) In a 1989 essay for Essence titled “Birth of a Writer,” the visionary writer Octavia Butler created the term “positive obsession” to describe channeling a deep, unwavering passion into a specific objective against all obstacles. Butler herself possessed this relentless drive for success, despite the resistance she faced as a young Black woman with financial hardships—have you ever seen her famous handwritten journal manifestation page in which she enumerates her goals to be a bestselling author? In her new biography, Positive Obsession: The Life and Times of Octavia E. Butler, author and scholar Susana M. Morris takes us into the legendary dreamer’s lived experiences with interviews, letters, previously unpublished material, and more. (Third Place Books Lake Forest Park, 7 pm, free, all ages) JULIANNE BELL

THURSDAY 7/17

Seattle Art Fair

Seattle Art Fair is July 17–20 at Lumen Field. COURTESY OF AMP

(VISUAL ART) The Seattle Art Fair—founded by noted art collector Paul Allen—is returning to Lumen Field for its ninth year, filling the football stadium with weird, avant-garde contemporary art from all over the globe (take that, jocks!). This year’s list of contributors includes galleries from South Africa, Ukraine, China, France, Greece, Italy, South Korea, Argentina, India, Iran, and Japan, as well as plenty from Seattle, Portland, and other nearby cities. (Lumen Field, July 17–20) AUDREY VANN

FRIDAY 7/18

Vashion Island Strawberry Festival

Eat your weight in strawberries at the Vashon Island Strawberry Festival. PAPILLENCE PHOTO/GETTY IMAGES

(FOOD) There are few joys in this fucked-up world as unalloyed as biting into the first red, ripe, juicy strawberry of summer. Add the quaint, idyllic island community vibes of Vashon to that mix, and you’ve got yourself a winning formula. Since the early 1900s, Vashon Island has hosted an annual festival to commemorate the island’s history as a hub for strawberry production, and it’s since grown into a cherished tradition full of parades, live music, a classic car show, kids’ activities, and local vendor booths. It’s volunteer-run and family-friendly, as well as an ideal excuse to escape from the city for a bit via ferry ride and microdose being on vacation. (Vashon Island) JULIANNE BELL

SATURDAY 7/19

Opening Weekend: Actualize AiR Summer Showcase

See work from 27 artists, including Sanoes Stevenson-Egeland (painting featured above), at Actualize AiR's Summer Showcase. STEFEN GONZALES

(VISUAL ART) Actualize AiR, a community center and artist residency in downtown Seattle, was “founded to foster and accelerate the careers of artists by creating space and opportunities,” allowing its residents to chase their creative whims without being forced to fill a quota of completed projects or adhere to a single medium. During Seattle Art Fair weekend, stop by to see a year’s worth of works from the program’s first cohort of 27 residents, curated by resident artist Mary Anne Carter and featuring installations, sculptures, performances, video, textiles, painting, fashion, and more. You’ll get to enjoy refreshments and meet the artists themselves, as well as check out the Charles Mudede-approved exhibition icons: Alissa Dymally Williams and Noelle Whitaker in the basement. (Actualize AiR, July 19–20, 1–5 pm) JULIANNE BELL

SUNDAY 7/20

Matmos

(MUSIC) America’s foremost experimental music group who also happen to be a gay married couple, Matmos have been bringing Dadaistic playfulness and conceptual rigor to their albums and mind-boggling live shows for 30 years. Every record by Drew Daniel and M.C. Schmidt is created under clever, self-imposed limitations, to keep things fresh and surprising. For example, they generated the tracks on new album Metallic Life Review strictly from, you guessed it, metal objects, both mundane and arcane. With help from members of Horse Lords, Water Damage, Half Japanese, and the late pedal steel guitarist Susan Alcorn, Matmos have created a weird species of ritualistic music. Some may think of it as novelty music for intellectuals, but it’s still a rarefied treat. (Here-After, 8 pm, 21+) DAVE SEGAL

Prizefight!

Win tickets to rad upcoming events!*

Katy Perry

July 21, Climate Pledge Arena

ENTER NOW!

Contest ends July 18 at 10 am

*Entering PRIZE FIGHT contests by submitting your email address signs you up to receive the Stranger Suggests newsletter. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Slog AM: Mahmoud Khalil Is Suing, Wilson Ends His Campaign for County Exec, and Seattle Finally Gets a Hybrid-Electric Ferry

Megan Seling — Fri, 11 Jul 2025 10:00:00 -0700

The Stranger's morning news roundup. by Megan Seling

State Department Firings Today: Today the State Department is firing more than 1,300 employees, according to the AP. Layoff notices are going out to “1,107 civil servants and 246 foreign service officers with domestic assignments in the United States.” Back in May, the State Department said they’d be cutting 18 percent of jobs to, as the Trump administration wrote in a memo obtained by the AP, “reshape American diplomacy and scale back the size of the federal government.”

Still Talking Tariffs: Trump is still obsessed with tariffs, like a toddler who just learned a new word. This week, the administration threatened to raise several rates to absolutely bonkers levels if the countries didn’t fall in line and accept his initial tariff rates proposed in April. (Remember that big dumb sign he had made? What an idiot.) He says he’s going to impose a 25 percent tariff on Japan and South Korea, a 35 percent tariff on all Canadian goods, and a 50 percent tariff on products from Brazil. That last one is because he’s mad about the “witch-hunt” trial against former president Jair Bolsonaro, btw. (Remember when they said women were “too emotional” to be in office? Sigh.) The Guardian has a handy explainer if you want to feel like you’re punching yourself in the brain over and over and over again with a fistful of nails.

Suspended Secret Service: Six Secret Service agents have been suspended without pay for a range of 10 to 42 days after an “official disciplinary review process” of the shooting at Donald Trump’s campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. The Biden-ordered independent review of the shooting found that Secret Service personnel at the event demonstrated “a troubling lack of critical thinking.” It’s contagious.

Trump’s Going to Texas: I wonder if he’ll look at all the catastrophic flood damage, in which more than 100 people died and 150 people are still missing, and boast about his plans to “phase out” FEMA.

Potential Mass Overdose in Baltimore: At least 25 people were hospitalized in Baltimore, in serious or critical condition, after a suspected mass overdose. All the incidents happened near the same road intersection, and officials haven’t yet named any suspected substances. Please carry Naloxone or Narcan! The People’s Harm Reduction Alliance will send you some for free! The Washington State Health Department has info on where to find it locally, too.

Get ‘Em, Mahmoud: Now that Mahmoud Khalil has been released from 104 DAYS in ICE detention, he has filed a $20 million claim against the Trump administration, claiming he was “falsely imprisoned, maliciously prosecuted and smeared as an antisemite as the government sought to deport him over his prominent role in campus protests.” Gonna be hard to prove it didn’t happen since the whole world watched it play out!

John Wilson’s Out: John Wilson has suspended his campaign for King County Executive. “FUCKING FINALLY,” The Stranger’s newsroom cheered upon hearing the news. For months, Wilson has been accused of stalking and harassing his ex, and he was arrested last week outside his ex-fiancée’s home for allegedly violating a restraining order. Last month the King County Council voted unanimously to call for him to step down.

We Got an Electric(ish) Ferry! Washington’s first hybrid-electric ferry, the Wenatchee, set sail yesterday. It’s been out of commission for the past two years, having its two diesel engines replaced with “two new engine-driven generators, 864 batteries capable of 5.7 megawatt-hours of energy storage.” That sounds like a lot! I don’t know anything about batteries! But at this point, there are no charging facilities at our ferry docks, so the ferry is gonna run like a hybrid car, on diesel fuel until 2029. It should reenter service next week.

Save Little Red Hen! Green Lake bar Little Red Hen—which is 92 years old!!!—may have to close at the end of the month. Property owner Ruoxi Zhang sent a notice to the bar’s owner, Dominic Shim, demanding that the Hen “vacate and surrender the premises to landlord on or before July 31, 2025.” We love the Little Red Hen! In our city guide—101 Things to Do in Seattle—Nathalie Graham says it’s the best place to “line dance your pants off.” Shim is fighting to stay. Visit savethehen.com to see how you can help.

In Better Small Business News: Pitch the Baby, Seattle’s newest women’s sports bar, (soft) opens today!

View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Pitch The Baby (@pitchthebabybar)

Say Their Names, Say Their Names: Six Seattle cops who participated in the January 6 “Stop the Steal” rally are still fighting to keep their names hidden after a Seattle resident, Sam Sueoka, requested their names in a 2021 public disclosure request. Now Sueoka’s lawyer, Neil Fox, is asking the judge to “hold the four officers in contempt and levy daily financial sanctions against them” until they identify themselves in court documents. (In 2021, DivestSPD, a grassroots police watchdog group, found the officers’ names, and the Urbanist reported on it here. Two of the six, married couple Alexander Everett and Caitlin Rochelle Everett, were named after they were fired for their actions on January 6.) Only cowards don’t put their name on their shit.

Happy 7/11 Day! Don’t forget to get your free Slurpee.

July Things to Do: Literature

Megan Seling — Wed, 02 Jul 2025 16:27:00 -0700

The best talks and literature events in July. by Megan Seling

Want more? Here's everything we recommend this month: Music, Visual Art, Literature, Performance, Film, Food, This & That.

Author Talk: Susana M. Morris with Brooke Bosley, ‘Positive Obsession: The Life and Times of Octavia E. Butler’

July 16

In a 1989 essay for Essence titled “Birth of a Writer,” the visionary writer Octavia Butler created the term “positive obsession” to describe channeling a deep, unwavering passion into a specific objective against all obstacles. Butler herself possessed this relentless drive for success, despite the resistance she faced as a young Black woman with financial hardships—have you ever seen her famous handwritten journal manifestation page in which she enumerates her goals to be a bestselling author? In her new biography, Positive Obsession: The Life and Times of Octavia E. Butler, author and scholar Susana M. Morris takes us into the legendary dreamer’s lived experiences with interviews, letters, previously unpublished material, and more. She’ll be joined at this event by Afrofuturist and educator Brooke Bosley. (Third Place Books Lake Forest Park, 7 pm, free, all ages) JULIANNE BELL

Author Talk: Cassandra Khaw with Katee Robert, ‘The Library at Hellebore’

July 23

Last year, based on recommendations from the Seattle Public Library and Elliott Bay Book Company, I picked up Bram Stoker Award—winning author Cassandra Khaw’s novella The Salt Grows Heavy, a gothic retelling of The Little Mermaid featuring a murderous, flesh-eating siren and an androgynous plague doctor who join forces to take down a sinister death cult. The book was both eerie and sensual, so I’m excited for their newest release, The Library at Hellebore, a dark academia fantasy tale in which a group of students enrolled at a prestigious boarding school must team up to defend themselves from the cannibalistic faculty. New York Times bestselling erotic romance author Katee Robert will join Khaw in conversation. (Elliott Bay Book Company, 7 pm, free, all ages) JULIANNE BELL

Author Talk: Ken Jennings, ‘The Complete Kennections: 5,000 Questions in 1,000 Puzzles’

July 31

If you can’t get enough of brain-teasing games like the New York Times crossword, Wordle, and Connections, allow me to put you on to “Kennections.” Back in 2012, record-setting Jeopardy! GOAT and current host Ken Jennings created his own proprietary weekly trivia puzzle, which previously appeared in Parade and Mental Floss. It seems simple enough in theory, but is punishingly difficult in practice: answer five questions, the responses to which share a theme in common. (Example: feet, McDonald’s, fingerprints, and St. Louis are linked by all having arches.) Think you have what it takes? Jennings will celebrate the release of The Complete Kennections, which collects all of his past quizzes in one volume along with hundreds of new and updated ones, by dropping by Third Place Books for a talk, Q&A, and signing. (Third Place Books Lake Forest Park, 7 pm, all ages) JULIANNE BELL

More

Accidental Shepherd: How a California Girl Rescued an Ancient Mountain Farm in Norway by Liese Greensfelder July 2, Elliott Bay Book Company, 7 pm, free

The Connection Cure: The Prescriptive Power of Movement, Nature, Art, Service, and Belonging by Julia Hotz July 2, Third Place Books Lake Forest Park, 7 pm, free

A Pepper for Your Thoughts? by Howard Lev July 3, Elliott Bay Book Company, 8 pm, free

Situationship by E.M. Wilson July 3, Third Place Books Seward Park, 7 pm, free

Climate by Whitney Hanson July 9, Third Place Books Lake Forest Park, 7 pm, free

Crush: My Year as an Apprentice Winemaker by Nicholas O’Connell July 9, Elliott Bay Book
Company, 7 pm, free

The Buddhist Years: Collected Writings by Charles Shuttleworth July 10, Elliott Bay Book Company,
7 pm, free

Occupy Whiteness by Joaquín Zihuatanejo July 10, Third Place Books Ravenna, 7 pm, free

Overgrowth by Mira Grant July 10, Seattle Central Library, 7 pm, free

Spaces of Creative Resistance: Social Change Projects in Twenty-First-Century East Asia by Andrea Gevurtz Arai July 11, Elliott Bay Book Company, 7 pm, free

Hot Off the Press Book Fair July 12, Fantagraphics, 5 pm, free

Difficult Girls by Veronica Bane July 15, Third Place Books Lake Forest Park, 7 pm, free

Held Together: A Shared Memoir of Motherhood, Medicine, and Imperfect Love by Rebecca N. Thompson, MD July 15, Third Place Books Seward Park, 7 pm, free

The Way Around: A Field Guide to Going Nowhere by Nicholas Triolo with Ben Gibbard July 16, Elliott Bay Book Company, 7 pm, free

The Front Runner: The Life of Steve Prefontaine by Brendan O’Meara July 17, Elliott Bay Book Company, 7 pm, free

Coffeeshop in an Alternate Universe by CB Lee July 18, Third Place Books Ravenna, 7 pm, free

Girl in the Creek by Wendy N. Wagner July 21, Third Place Books Lake Forest Park, 7 pm, free

How Birds Fly by Peter Cavanagh July 22, Elliott Bay Book Company, 7 pm, free

The Lost and the Found: A True Story of Homelessness, Found Family, and Second Chances by Kevin Fagan July 24, Third Place Books Lake Forest Park, 7 pm, free

Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century by Kim Fu July 30, Seattle Central Library, 6:30 pm, free

Kuleana: A Story of Family, Land, and Legacy in Old Hawai’i by Sara Kehaulani Goo August 1, Elliott Bay Book Company, 7 pm, free

Tonight in Jungleland: The Making of Born to Run by Peter Ames Carlin with Cheryl Waters August 5, Third Place Books Seward Park, 7 pm, free

Early Warnings

Chuck Tingle Aug 20, Third Place Books Lake Forest Park, 7 pm, free

R.F. Kuang Sept 12, Town Hall Seattle, 7:30 pm

David Sedaris Nov 16, Benaroya Hall, 7 pm

Slog AM: Trump Visits “Alligator Alcatraz,” Microsoft Is Still Laying People Off, We (Officially) Have a New Police Chief

Megan Seling — Wed, 02 Jul 2025 09:35:00 -0700

The Stranger's morning news roundup. by Megan Seling

The Star-Crossed Bummers Are Still Feuding: On Monday, Elon said he would fund the future political campaigns of anyone running against any Republican who votes for Trump’s shitty bill. “They will lose their primary next year if it is the last thing I do on this Earth,” he said. Trump fired back, threatening on Truth Social to cut Elon’s government subsidies, adding, “Elon would probably have to close up shop and head back home to South Africa.” Then Elon said that was, “so wrong” and “disappointing,” which are kind of weak sauce retorts, tbh, and then the bell rang and they all had to run back to class because Mr. McConnell said if either of them are tardy one more time, they can’t buy a ticket to prom.

Speaking of the Bill I Refuse to Call Big and/or Beautiful: CNN has a pretty good breakdown of the Senate’s version. Some “highlights”: Millions will lose Medicaid coverage due to a new work requirement and less federal funding; millions will find it harder to get food stamps and SNAP benefits, including parents and veterans; immigrants will no longer qualify for benefits; hospitals will probably have to close due to lack of funding, but Trump’s wall will get a $45 BILLION WITH A B budget; and new babies get $1,000 because sure, why not, babies are famously good with money. According to the Seattle Times, Washington is likely to take the biggest hit of any state from the Medicaid cuts, because we did the right thing and leaned into Obamacare a decade ago. The House is currently debating the bill, and C-SPAN is streaming live if rage is your kink.

Now Tesla’s Stock Is Sinking: Tesla’s stock took tumble Tuesday after the Senate passed Trump’s bill. Why? Because one of the changes the Senate made includes eliminating electric vehicle tax credits sooner, cutting somewhere around $1.2 billion from Tesla’s annual profit. It recovered this morning, though, after delivering more electric vehicles than expected in the second quarter. Trump’s gonna be so mad.

Trump Visited Florida’s “Alligator Alcatraz”: It wasn’t a fever dream. Florida officials really did build a deportation holding facility in the fucking Everglades. According to Al Jazeera, when Trump arrived at the site, he said, “This is what you need. A lot of bodyguards and a lot of cops in the form of alligators.” Twenty bucks says that big dummy digs a moat around the White House and fills it with alligators by the end of the year.

Fourth of July Fun: All this bullshit got you feeling less than patriotic? Sure, you could grill hot dogs and blow shit up to mark America’s 249th birthday this Friday, or you could gather with your fellow disenfranchised Seattleites at Push/Pull in Ballard for F#ck the Fourth, a “voter registration, postcard writing, and rage release.” They’ll have postcards and postage if you want to tell elected officials how you really feel, or you can create your own info-packed zine, and they’ll print and distribute it!

Musicians Are Dumping Spotify (Again): Artists are pulling their music off Spotify after the company’s CEO Daniel Ek made a $700 million investment in “AI battle tech” company Prima Materia. Deerhoof started the new wave, announcing on Instagram, “We don’t want our music killing people.” Artists also left en masse in 2022 after Neil Young criticized the platform for hosting Joe Rogan’s podcast.

Former Stranger Genius Award Winner Erik Blood, Everybody:

You won’t find my music on Spotify anymore and I couldn’t be happier about it
— Erik Blood (@erikblood.bsky.social) July 2, 2025 at 8:51 AM

More Microsoft Layoffs: The company confirmed this morning that they’re cutting 9,000 more jobs. DOES ANYONE EVEN WORK THERE ANYMORE?

We Got a New Police Chief: Yesterday, the Seattle City Council unanimously confirmed Shon Barnes as Seattle’s new police chief. Barnes has been the interim police chief since January, after Adrian Diaz was fired. (Related: Diaz is suing the city for “unlawful termination.”)

The Diddy Verdicts Are In: He was found not guilty of sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy, and convicted of transporting people for prostitution. He faces up to 20 years in prison.

Is the Plural Winnies-the-Pooh or Winnie-the-Poohs? “2 bears escape wildlife park enclosure, devour a 7-day supply of honey, then fall asleep.” Delightful.

I Love This Goofy City: Next week, Metro lovers and haters are invited to Race Route 8. “It’s easy to outwalk the L8, but can we still beat it while doing the cha-cha slide, hopscotching, or in a conga line? Join one of our race activities or bring your own creative things you can do while still beating the bus!” Someone should see if they can read the July issue of The Stranger (out today!) in its entirety while racing the bus.

Join us next Thursday, July 10th at 5 PM at Denny / Dexter to race Route 8! It’s easy to outwalk the L8, but can we still beat it while doing the cha-cha slide, hopscotching, or in a conga line? Join one of our race activities or bring your own creative things you can do while still beating the bus!

[image or embed]
— Fix the L8 (@fixthel8.bsky.social) June 30, 2025 at 4:53 PM

And With That: I leave you with the appropriate song, “F.U. #8,” by Seattle’s own Tacocat. (Featuring Stranger Arts Editor Emily Nokes!)

Stranger Suggests: Tender and Strange Art, Soft Serve That’ll Make You Scream, and an Anti-Fourth of July Celebration

Audrey Vann — Mon, 30 Jun 2025 11:39:00 -0700

One really good thing to do every day of the week. by Audrey Vann MONDAY 6/30

‘Pride: The Ric Weiland Collection’

(VISUAL ART) If you didn’t know already, Ric Weiland was a software developer and programmer who was hired as the second employee for a little company called Microsoft. Given his early involvement at the tech giant, Weiland was able to retire at the young age of 35 to dedicate his life to philanthropy and LGBTQ advocacy. Sadly, Weiland died at just 53, but his legacy lives on through the $65 million he left to queer rights organizations (such as the Pride Foundation). The MOHAI will honor Pride Month with a small-scale exhibit of photographs, letters, ephemera, and artifacts from Weiland’s estate that reflect his enduring fight for equality. While you’re there, be sure to check out the Collections Spotlight: Denim, which showcases artifacts from the MOHAI collection that tell the history of your ol’ blue jeans. (Museum of History & Industry, through Oct 5, all ages) AUDREY VANN

TUESDAY 7/1

Nina Katchadourian: ‘Origin Stories’

Nina Katchadourian's show 'Origin Stories' is on display through October 26. PHOTO BY DAMIEN GIFFITHS, COURTESY OF NATIONAL NORDIC MUSEUM

(VISUAL ART) In Origin Stories, artist Nina Katchadourian unpacks the quirks, rituals, and memories that shaped her creative world, from family summers in Finland to shipwreck obsessions and childhood games gone existential. Installed across the National Nordic Museum, the show blends humor, nostalgia, and tender strangeness. (For instance, there's a bronze sculpture of a stick-cow in the mix, as well as a six-channel video about her parents’ accents.) Go forth for a reminder that personal history is messy, mythic, and often hiding in plain sight. (National Nordic Museum, through Oct 26, all ages) LINDSAY COSTELLO

WEDNESDAY 7/2

Ballard FC vs. Tacoma Stars

View this post on Instagram
A post shared by The Stranger 🗞 (@thestrangerseattle)

(SPORTS) USL League Two champions Ballard FC are back this season to defend their title as NW division champs. The team returns to Interbay Stadium this year, bringing them closer to their namesake and adoring fans. Fanfare at the games includes Dick's burgers thrown into the crowd after every goal, half-time shenanigans, and high school bands. Even without all that hullabaloo, I would recommend a game to anyone as cheap, entertaining, family-friendly fun. It doesn't get much more local than being sponsored by Reuben's Brews and having "Up the bridges!" as the team’s main chant. (Interbay Stadium, 7 pm, all ages) SHANNON LUBETICH

THURSDAY 7/3

Humaira Abid

"Shape of War: First Series - 1 (Story of Rasha and Ahmed, Gaza)," by Humaira Abid, 2025. COURTESY OF GREG KUCERA GALLERY

(VISUAL ART) Each time I walk into the Greg Kucera Gallery, I stumble upon a crowd around Humaira Abid’s wood-carved blouses, oohing and aahing at their delicacy and realism. Through her sculptures and paintings, the Lahore-born, Pakistani American artist depicts ordinary objects like clothing, shoes, purses, and letters in an extraordinary way—by meticulously carving them out of pinewood and often adorning them with exquisite miniature paintings. The pieces don’t just display jaw-dropping craftsmanship, but also share powerful stories related to violence against women, refugees, and displacement. (Opening reception. July 3, 6–8 pm; artist’s talk, July 5, noon, Greg Kucera Gallery, free) AUDREY VANN

FRIDAY 7/4

F#CK the Fourth!

Bring snacks to share!

(COMMUNITY) Predictably, I am not feeling very patriotic this Fourth of July. I think many of us are in the same boat, sneering at American flags and scoffing when we hear “God Bless America.” Well, fear not! There’s an event for you and other skeptics, and it’s one that encourages you to DO SOMETHING on a local level for your community and your country. Take the time to register to vote and help others do the same, write postcards to government officials, create zines, and have a little catharsis with your fellow firework-hating neighbors. Organizers are inviting folks to “hang out among us, your local artists that support trans rights, immigrants, rights to protest, bodily autonomy, and all the good stuff.” Hell yeah, pals. That’s what I call America. (Push/Pull, 1–4 pm, free, all ages) BRI BREY

SATURDAY 7/5

TARBOO

(MUSIC) Back for its second year, TARBOO returns to the Olympic Peninsula on Fourth of July weekend with three days of top quality music at Quilcene Lantern, which has become a hub for live music and community in recent years. The fun kicks off Thursday with an evening show featuring three local artists that's totally free and open to the public, followed by two ticketed days with a stellar lineup. Two of my top Pacific Northwest music-makers headline: Seattleite Chong the Nomad crafts the most danceable beats, and Portland-based Blind Pilot has been one of my favorite indie folk bands for over 15 years. Other standouts include Seattle grunge pop bands Great Grandpa and Mt. Fog, and California-based soulful folk songstress Uwade (she's toured with Fleet Foxes). I recommend grabbing a camping pass and staying onsite at their 53 acres of "rolling farm fields" for maximum granola vibes. (Quilcene Lantern, July 3–5, all ages) SHANNON LUBETICH

SUNDAY 7/6

View this post on Instagram
A post shared by The Stranger 🗞 (@thestrangerseattle)

Pastry Project’s Soft Serve Window

(FOOD) The Pastry Project’s soft-serve window is only open for the summer, and it offers three flavors—purple vanilla, chocolate, and twist. While the ice cream is decadent enough to enjoy on its own—no cheap, icy mix here—the true magic is in the toppings. The aforementioned hard shell dip is available in butterscotch, chocolate, and strawberry passionfruit, and you’re gonna definitely want to add their rainbow peanut crunch. That’s housemade honeycomb-esque peanut brittle that has been smashed to bits and mixed with chopped peanuts and rainbow sprinkles. Nut-Blasting Crispy Magic Rainbow Crunch Fuck Yeah is what they should call it. That on a twist cone with the strawberry passionfruit dip tastes like a PB&J turned up to 11. (The Pastry Project, Thurs–Fri, 3–8 pm; Sat–Sun, noon–8 pm) MEGAN SELING

Slog AM: Senate Votes on the Big Beautiful Bill, Gunman Ambushes Firefighters, Democrats Aren't Proud to Be American

Hannah Murphy Winter — Mon, 30 Jun 2025 10:04:00 -0700

The Stranger's morning news roundup by Hannah Murphy Winter

Good morning! It’s the hottest day of the week already. Highs in the mid-80s without a cloud in the sky. So consider this your monthly reminder that street end parks are open to the public. Go find one.

Until then, let’s do the news.

Here’s What’s Getting More Expensive Tomorrow: Heads up, drivers. Both the gas tax and the toll rate on the State Route 99 tunnel are going up tomorrow. Toll rates are increasing five and ten cents for off-peak morning and peak evening hours, respectively, and the gas tax is going up six cents per gallon.

Remember the Tree Protestors? Back in May, environmentalists moved into a big ol’ fir tree to block an old forest near Port Angeles from being logged. Well, ICYMI (like we did), the protestors were forced out of the tree on the 40th night of their protest when two people began to dismantle parts of the protestors’ platform. “One activist present said the driver of the Jeep screamed death threats at him, including vowing to gut him like an animal. He and another activist, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to avoid legal consequences, said they did not know who the people were in the Jeep.”

Seattle 1, NIMBYs 0: Starting today, a new state law allows developers to build up to four homes on city lots that are zoned for single family housing. The Seattle Times reported that generally, new construction is lagging, so we’re not likely to see a huge boom in new housing immediately, but we’ll take the W.

Shooting in Idaho: A gunman set a brush fire to lure first responders to Canfield Mountain in Northern Idaho, and then shot at them when they arrived at the scene. Two firefighters were killed and one was seriously injured. The standoff lasted several hours, until authorities were able to use cellphone signals to track the shooter. He was dead when they found him.

BBB Marathon: After fighting about it all weekend, the Senate is set to vote on Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill today. There are a huge slate of amendments to consider, so it’s expected to be a long one, and it’s definitely not guaranteed to make it through. Republicans only need a simple majority, but that still means they can only afford to lose three votes. Two GOP senators have already said they won’t vote for it (including Senator Thom Tillis, who said he wouldn’t run for reelection after he announced his opposition to the bill, because that’s the sign of a healthy democracy). In case you’ve forgotten amongst all the other chaos, this bill sucks. It extends $4 trillion in tax cuts, and to pay for them, includes almost $1 trillion in cuts to Medicaid, defunds federal nutrition programs, and restricts trans healthcare. It’s such trash even Republicans hate it.

When ordinary Republicans understand how Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill” would affect the after-tax incomes of American families, it turns out they don’t find it beautiful at all.

“I was really shocked."

[image or embed]
— Mother Jones (@motherjones.com) June 29, 2025 at 3:32 AM

Housing Not Handcuffs: In legislative news that doesn’t make you want to scratch your eyes out, Representative Pramila Jayapal introduced a bill that would make it illegal for federal agencies to remove homeless people from federal land if they don’t have another place to go. She introduced the bill just before the anniversary of Grants Pass v. Johnson, the Supreme Court decision that said it was constitutional to criminalize camping—which some South King County cities have really run with. Immediately after the decision, Auburn eliminated the need to offer people overnight shelter before charging them with a misdemeanor for sleeping on public land. And Burien enacted an outright ban on living outside.

Tariff Threats, Again: Trump’s back on his geopolitical nonsense. Apparently our negotiator-in-chief is sick and tired of negotiating trade deals, and he told Fox News yesterday that he’d prefer to just send every country a letter. "We made deals, but I'd rather just send them a letter, a very fair letter, saying 'congratulations, we're going to allow you to trade in the United States of America, you're going to pay a 25 percent tariff, or 20 percent, or 40 or 50,'" Trump said, like someone who totally understands how trade deals work. He’s made the same threat twice before and never followed through. Let’s see if he does this time!

Gallup Figures Out What We Already Knew: A new Gallup poll found that Democrats aren’t proud to be American. Unsurprisingly, 92 percent of Republicans are “very” or “extremely” proud to be from the US, but Democrats come in at a cool 36 percent. No one asked that 36 percent what they found to be proud of.

The Fuck? Police are investigating performances by Bob Vylan and Kneecap from this weekend’s Glastonbury festival. They must’ve done something super fucked up, right? Like, sacrificed a sheep or kicked a baby or something? Bob Vylan allegedly criticized the Israel Defense Forces by chanting "death, death to the IDF [Israel Defense Forces],” and Kneecap allegedly called Israel war criminals and led a “Free Palestine” chant. Glastonbury organizers have said they were "appalled.” Both groups have a history of political, and pro-Palestine commentary, so we’re not sure what they expected? Unclutch your pearls, Glastonbury.

It’s the Last Day of Pride Month: And we had 30 days of recommendations for Big Gay Shit to do all month. But today? Today is for a big, gay nap.

View this post on Instagram
A post shared by The Stranger 🗞 (@thestrangerseattle)

Stranger Suggests: Have the Gayest Pride Week of Your Life!

Megan Seling — Wed, 25 Jun 2025 14:25:00 -0700

One really gay thing to do every day of the week. by Megan Seling WEDNESDAY 6/25

Take a Bite of Pride

(FOOD) This is it. It’s the last few days of Pride Month, but this weekend is a doozy, with dance parties and concerts and parades and drag shows happening all over the city every day for the rest of June. You’re gonna have to carbo-load to get through it all! Thankfully, dozens of local bakeries, bars, and restaurants have packed their menus with LGBTQ-themed treats. A few standouts include: Italian rainbow cookie cannolis at Kelly’s Cannoli, malted milkshake cake at Little Jaye, agua de jamaica tres leches cake at Tres Lecheria, the Purple Reign cocktail with Botanist Gin and butterfly pea flower tea at Shuckers, rainbow cake at Flora Bakehouse, and, the one I’m personally most intrigued by as far as flavors go, the Louder cake at Paper Cake Shop, which consists of chocolate sponge cake, strawberry jam, cereal milk ganache and frosting, candied Trix, and cereal milk gelee. A dollar from every slice sold goes to TWOC Solidarity Network. (Various locations, see a list of LGBTQ-owned restaurants here) MEGAN SELING

THURSDAY 6/26

Perfume Genius

(MUSIC) Filled with fuzzy guitars and poignant piano, Perfume Genius' latest album, Glory, expands and contracts with a flow of emotions. Mike Hadreas, the queer icon and former Seattle resident behind the project, features the talents of his partner, Alan Wyffels, and producer Blake Mills on his seventh full-length. I'm looking forward to seeing this album performed live because, in my head, people dance to it like the girl in Sia's "Chandelier" video. Get there early, the show opens with Gothic-inspired rock artist Storefront Church, who's a friend of Phoebe Bridgers. (Showbox, 8 pm, all ages) SHANNON LUBETICH

FRIDAY 6/27

Indigiqueer Festival

The annual Indigiqueer Festival returns to Pier 62 Friday, June 27. PHOTO BY ADAM LU COURTESY OF FRIENDS OF WATERFRONT PARK

(PRIDE) Quileute drag artist Hailey Tayathy co-founded the Indigiqueer Festival in 2022 because they felt that "a gay-friendly city named for a Suquamish and Duwamish Chief deserved the big Indigenous Pride event it didn’t have." Taking place at Pier 62 against the backdrop of the Salish Sea, this fest marks the start of Pride weekend with a stacked lineup of performers, including rocking drag queen Holli B. Sinclair, food from traditional Indigenous chef Natoncks Metsu, and a host of art vendors and community workshops. (Pier 62, 1–8 pm, free, all ages) SHANNON LUBETICH

SATURDAY 6/28

Wildrose Pride 2025

Co-owner Shelley Brothers—not tending bar, just making sure the bar is clear for the go-go dancers. COURTESY OF WILDROSE

(PRIDE) Consider this your semi-regular reminder that there are only 37 surviving lesbian bars in the United States, so it's a rare and special thing to be able to join in amongst the pride revelry at the Wildrose, one of the West Coast's oldest establishments catering to dykes. Their three-day lineup of festivities this year, hosted by Shadae Simone, Briq House, and Amora Namor, includes appearances from DJs Velvet Whisper, Riz, and Yaddy. Plus, look forward to performances by Cherdonna Shinatra, Ruby Mimosa, and the Betsy Olson Band. Wildrose's 2025 Pride celebration honors the late Shelley Brothers, who co-owned the bar for 22 years and "was a driving force behind what this Pride party has become." (Wildrose, June 27–29, 21+) JULIANNE BELL

SUNDAY 6/29

SIFF ‘n’ Stitch: ‘D.E.B.S.’

(FILM) I have a soft spot for the goofy, tropey, splashy, colorful comedies of the early 2000s—think Austin Powers or Charlie’s Angels—but not many of them are explicitly queer. That’s why, after seeing the 2004 action comedy D.E.B.S. for the first time, I immediately wondered where the hell it had been my whole life. The premise is suitably ridiculous: The titular D.E.B.S. (Discipline, Energy, Beauty, Strength) are a group of college-aged women who have been secretly evaluated for their aptitude for espionage via the SAT and recruited into a prestigious training academy for spies. When the squad is assigned to surveil the deadly supervillain Lucy Diamond, promising spy-in-training Amy starts to fall for her. In case you’re not already sold, it also features a banger soundtrack, Devon Aoki with a fake French accent, and Holland Taylor as the school headmaster saying things like, “This isn’t Girl Scouts, it’s espionage!” Better yet, in collaboration with the Capitol Hill fiber arts coffee shop Stitch Cafe, SIFF will leave the lights on so that you can socialize and craft while watching. Bring along your current non-messy work-in-progress (knitting, crocheting, hand-sewing, weaving, and doodling all welcome), and stitch or sketch in bliss while swooning over the sapphic rivals-to-lovers romance. Consider it your cozy oasis if you’re feeling overwhelmed by the crowds, music, and flying candy from the Pride Parade marching down Fourth Avenue. (SIFF Cinema Uptown, noon, all ages) JULIANNE BELL

MONDAY 6/30

‘Pride: The Ric Weiland Collection’

TUESDAY 7/1

Nina Katchadourian: 'Origin Stories'

Nina Katchadourian's show 'Origin Stories' is on display through October 26. PHOTO BY DAMIEN GIFFITHS, COURTESY OF NATIONAL NORDIC MUSEUM

(VISUAL ART) In Origin Stories, artist Nina Katchadourian unpacks the quirks, rituals, and memories that shaped her creative world, from family summers in Finland to shipwreck obsessions and childhood games gone existential. Installed across the National Nordic Museum, the show blends humor, nostalgia, and tender strangeness. (For instance, there's a bronze sculpture of a stick-cow in the mix, as well as a six-channel video about her parents’ accents.) Go forth for a reminder that personal history is messy, mythic, and often hiding in plain sight. (National Nordic Museum, through Oct 26, all ages) LINDSAY COSTELLO

Prizefight!

Win tickets to rad upcoming events!*

Low Cut Connie
July 1, Neumos

ENTER NOW!

Contest Ends June 27 at 10 am

Tash Sultana
June 28, Chateau Ste Michelle

ENTER NOW!

Contest Ends June 27 at 10 am

Odalalee Queer Pier Pride
June 29, Pier 62

ENTER NOW!

Contest ends June 27 at 10 am

*Entering PRIZE FIGHT contests by submitting your email address signs you up to receive the Stranger Suggests newsletter. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Slog AM: One War Is Over, Big Balls Is Out, and Cuomo Is Sad

Megan Seling — Wed, 25 Jun 2025 10:00:00 -0700

The Stranger's morning news roundup. by Megan Seling

Israel-Iran Conflict Update: Apparently, it’s over, and both countries are claiming to have “won.” As for the US’ involvement, that’s also done, and it was a big success, huge. Maybe. Marco Rubio and Trump are saying the US strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities was mission accomplished and the country is “much further away” from producing a nuclear weapon, but Trump is also acknowledging that damage “could be limited” while also saying everything was “obliterated.” Meanwhile, a preliminary classified report says the strike only set Iran’s nuclear program back a few months. I’m so tired. Everyone’s a liar. Trust no one. Take a nap.

Related:

I absolutely hate it when people redundantly say or write “completely and totally”—especially when it's a demented, corrupt president boasting about the outcome of a bombing.
— editaurus (@davesegal.bsky.social) June 25, 2025 at 9:18 AM

ITMFA: Yesterday, the House voted to table the impeachment article against Trump for “abuse of power” for his unauthorized strikes against Iran. Rep. Al Green had introduced the article of impeachment, saying, “I do this because no one person should have the power to take over 300 million people to war without consulting with the Congress of the United States of America. I do this because I understand that the Constitution is going to be meaningful or it’s going to be meaningless.” The final vote was 344-79, with 344 voting to kill the article. The Washington Dems who voted with Republicans are Kim Schrier, Adam Smith, Marilyn Strickland, Marie Cluesenkamp Perez, Rick Larsen, and Suzan DelBene.

Andrew Cuomo Lost: Zohran Mamdani got 43.5 percent of first-place votes in New York City’s Democratic mayoral primary on Tuesday, while Cuomo only racked up 36.3 percent. The city used rank choice voting, so voters could choose up to five candidates in order of preference. While official results won’t be confirmed until July 1, there’s virtually no way Cuomo could mathematically defeat Mamdani, and Cuomo conceded Tuesday night.

People Say I’m Jealous but My Kink Is Watching Cuomo Cry:

"Andrew Cuomo is visibly upset and people are crying"
— Stella Sacco (@antlervel.vet) June 24, 2025 at 7:34 PM

No Vacation For Congress: Trump wrote on Truth Social yesterday that “NO ONE GOES ON VACATION” until they pass his stupid bill. He also wrote on Truth that Iran and Israel agreed to a ceasefire, but look how that turned out. The bill is currently in the upper chamber, and Senate Majority Leader John Thune wants a vote this week, even though everyone is still arguing over several key provisions. It’s kind of a mess, and maybe Elon wasn’t wrong when he called it a “disgusting abomination.” (Takes one to know one har har.)

Big Balls Is Out: Nineteen-year-old DOGE employee Edward Coristine—known as Big Balls to his grandmother—has left the White House. Neither side is saying why, but the White House confirmed Coristine’s departure, telling WIRED, “Edward Coristine resigned yesterday.” How long before Elon announces that Big Balls is his long-lost love child and the two do an about face money grab and co-author a book called Big Bawls: How Father-and-Son Incels Found the Strength to Feel and go on a multi-year global book tour and spill all of Trump’s secrets?

Seattle’s War on Graffiti Continues: City Attorney Ann Davison wants to make graffiti artists and taggers pay for their own clean-up. She introduced legislation to the city council’s public safety committee that would allow her to use civil litigation against the taggers in addition to criminal prosecution. "These individuals are responsible for extraordinary financial costs to the City and property owners,” she said. But it’s only an extraordinary fiscal cost because you make it an extraordinary fiscal cost, you ding dongs! Last year, Seattle spent more than $6 million to clean up graffiti, and for what? Because some NIMBYs in Shoreline think it makes the city look “trashy” or feel “unsafe”? We have real problems in this city. Grow up.

Speaking of Scams: (Because graffiti clean-up is a scam.) People are getting text messages from the supposed “Seattle Department of Motor Vehicles (BMV)” (their typo, not mine) threatening legal action if they don’t pay fictional traffic tickets “in accordance with Seattle Administrative Code 15C-16.003.” Don’t fall for it! Don’t click the links! Just delete it or report it and move on with your life! You’re better than this!

In Better Local News: Seattle will ban rent-setting software like RealPage! The city council voted unanimously last night to pass the Cathy Moore-sponsored bill. The Seattle Times writes, “The new law bans any service that compiles rent prices, occupancy rates and other data from private or public sources and then uses an algorithm to recommend rent prices to more than one landlord.” GOOD. If you’re unfamiliar, our story earlier this year shows how widespread and problematic such software is (it basically amounts to price-fixing, which is illegal! And artificially inflates our rent). One lawsuit claimed that RealPage-using landlords control almost two thirds of the apartments in Downtown Seattle, Capitol Hill, Central District, South Lake Union, and Queen Anne.

Is This What Cleaning Up Downtown Looks Like? Seattle’s City Council was busy yesterday! Along with everything else mentioned above, they also voted 6-2 to approve the installation of dozens of eight-foot-tall digital advertising and service kiosks throughout the city. They’re big and ugly and privately owned. CM Sara Nelson says the passive income and service features make it a “win-win for everyone.” She also lives in a fantasy world where glowing advertisements would function as a “gathering place.” CMs Cathy Moore and Alexis Mercedes Rinck voted against them. The first 30 kiosks, to be installed downtown, are expected to draw in “$1.1 million a year,” and that money is required to be used to revitalize downtown. “The bulk of the revenue will go back to IKE Smart City, which is responsible for upkeep of the machines,” writes the Seattle Times. Sounds like a shitty deal. That’ll clean up like one-sixth of the graffiti around here.

I Wonder How Much It Would Cost to Put This Picture of My Dog at the Corn Palace on the New Advertising Kiosk:

Johnny Waffles. MS

One More Time, Congratulations to New York’s Democratic Mayoral Nominee:

View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Vulture (@vulture)