Speaking Tour: 10/4 - 10/10

Wednesday, October 4
>>>Central Library, 6:30-8:00pm. If you've been meaning to get a better handle on stem cell research, then... Wait, let's try that again. We'll just let this event speak for its sexy self: "Regeneration Gaps: Promises, Problems and Policies in Stem Cell Research" by Charles E. (Chuck) Murry, M.D., Ph.D. His research focuses on repair of the injured heart. See? You get out of the way, the poetry comes. Free, but you're damned to hell for even thinking about it.

Thursday, October 5
>>>Elliott Bay, 7:30pm. "America's cartoonist" Ted Rall speaks about his book Silk Road to Ruin: Is Central Asia the New Middle East? He's a journalist, too, we should add, so this may not be as funny as you'd think. We have a strict policy about titles posing leading rhetorical questions, but in this case, we'll let it slide. Free.

>>>Capitol Hill Library, 6:00-7:3pm. Here to read from his coming-of-age-30 tale, is Joe Meno (Hairstyles of the Damned), one of the "hottest indie authors in America." Skipping the piled-on qualifications for the second, how does that make the authors joining him (Todd Taylor, Todd Dills, and Micky Hess) feel? A little sensitivity, people! Free with date-stamped indie cred.

Friday, October 6
>>>Town Hall, 7:30pm. Radio host and author Thom Hartmann shills for his book, Screwed: The Undeclared War on the Middle Class. His wingnut theory is that dismantling Social Security, Medicare, the minimum wage, and labor laws is bad for the middle class. Ha ha! Please. As if the middle class cares what's good for it. Free with useless Social Security card.

Saturday, October 7
>>>Seattle Mystery Bookshop, noon. Apparently Seattle has a vampire king. Who knew? At least, it does in Greywalker, the debut novel by local author Kat Richardson, about a PI who was dead for two minutes and can now see all sorts of creepy-ass stuff. Publishers Weekly says it's great for fans of Buffy and Charmed -- we're hoping it borrows more from the former. Come see Richardson sign her book. Free.

>>>Seattle Asian Art Museum, 3:30-4:30pm. Do you love Tooba? Do even know what Tooba is? You don't, do you? Shows what you know. Artist Shirin Neshat's film installation Tooba is showing at SAAM right now, and it was inspired by Shahrnush Parsipur's fiction. Her books are Women without Men, and Touba and the Meaning of Night. As an added bonus, she'll be speaking in Farsi with translation by UW professor Firoozeh Papan-Matin. Free museum and event admission, as part of Free First Saturdays.

>>>St. Mark's Cathedral, 7:30pm. Palestinian poet Taha Muhammad Ali presents an Arabic/English reading of his poetry, collected in So What: New and Selected Poems, published by Copper Canyon Press. We are so not making fun of anything Arabic these days. Free.

Sunday, October 8
>>>Toys in Babeland, 7:30-9:30pm. Have a woman? Want to please her? Then you're exactly the right audience for Babeland's "How to Please Your Woman" workshop. Based on interviews with "thousands of women," Babeland sex educators will teach you about sexual communication, G-spots, cunnilingus, nipple play -- whoo, we're all hot and bothered just typing this. $30; pre-register online or call 206-328-2914. Must be 18+.

Monday, October 9
>>>Seattle Arts & Lectures/Benaroya Hall, 7:30pm. Seattle Arts and Lectures serves one right over the plate: Frank Rich, op-ed columnist for The New York Times and writer of the paper's weekly essay on culture and news. Rich will alternate between making a well-fed liberal audience chuckle appreciatively or knit their collective brow in ire. Tickets are $42.

>>>Third Place Books, 7:00pm. In a departure from her mystery writing, Skye Moody's Washed Up presents the author squeaking into a wet suit to explore the stories of flotsam and jetsam -- and beach communities and competitive beachcombing. Ah, we can practically smell the salt air. But not really -- there's no window in our office. Free.

Richard Hugo House, 7:30-10:00pm. Poet and critic Jack Foley, from the Bay Area, reads, along with his wife, Adelle Foley, Koon Woon, Jeannette Allee, Kevin Allen, Carol Maki, Martin Ingerson, and other Seattle writers. Looks like they've arranged their own audience, but you can probably find a seat, too. Free, as is usual with all-evening poetry readings.

Tuesday, October 10
>>>Town Hall, 7:30pm. P-I sports columnist Art Thiel joins author Michael Lewis (Money Ball, Coach, and Liar’s Poker) to talk about The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game, a look at the game within the game of football through the story of a young player's rise from high school sports to the pro-ball jackpot. Free but you gotta give 110%.

>>>Illsley Ball Nordstrom Recital Hall at Benaroya Hall, 7:00-8:30pm. You can always Tivo House, M.D. How could you miss The Threat of Pandemic Influenza: How Can We Stop the Spread? When over 500 million people travel across the globe each year, it's worth remembering that we are only as healthy as the people with whom we interact. Ann Marie Kimball and Ira Longini discuss worldwide pandemics and examine their health-related realities in order to creep the fuck out of you. Free, but RSVP is req'd.