The week's noteworthy events and people not involving Thanksgiving, as reported by Seattle's neighborhood blogs. more ›

In the emotionally touchy issue of adoption, how do we open a public conversation about the politics of adoption and race, especially for adult adoptees? Writer, activist, actress, and playwright Lisa Marie Rollins is returning to her Seattle/Tacoma area roots this weekend to do just that. more ›

A look at the week's newsworthy events and people as reported by Seattle's neighborhood blogs. more ›

Locally-rooted "freaky weird girl culture, fourth wave futures, and anything else" blog Girlfriend Junction* has this great piece, "Gentrifying While Brown," from recent Bellingham-to-Seattle transplant Anjali Kusler. Check it out for an interesting reflection on an increasingly more racially and economically complex neighborhood. more ›

News, tidbits and other items as written by the blogs of the neighborhoods they take place in. more ›

23rd and Union, also know as The Corner, is quietly staging a comeback. Saturday, it was the heart of the Central District Garden Tour. more ›

"This is like the center of the black community." -- Omari Tahir Garrett, The Corner. more ›

Walking through the door, we are transported to a different time and place. Perhaps circa-1960's, with a hot, humid climate somewhere like the Carolina's. We walk up to the counter and are greeted by Barbara, the most friendly, outgoing counter person we have seen in a long time. She points out the menu to us, an old Pepsi menu board with the white block lettering like you'd find at a drive-in diner or bowling alley. She informs us that they only take cash, luckily we came prepared. We placed our order, a chopped beef sandwich for my wife and a plate of ribs for myself, with a Peach Cobbler dessert to share. more ›

WAYZGOOSE!: We swear no geese are involved (or will be harmed) during Saturday's 8th Annual Letterpress Wayzgoose, a day to creatively honor the letterpress; expect demos, shop tours, and cool designs. Make sure not to miss the Steamroller Letterpress Smackdown! There is nothing cooler than blending the letterpress traditions of the 17th century with the 21st century techniques, design, and horsepower. You'll watch design teams create a poster and then try printing it with a two-ton steamroller, used in place of the traditional printing press. more ›

Police gang units are on the look out for the owner of a suspicious red bandanna, seen thrown from a white Chevrolet speeding away from the scene of today's shooting in the parking lot of King County Youth Service Center on 12th Avenue and Alder. The first reports came in around 10:30 a.m. this morning that five shots were fired in the Central District parking lot, injuring one. The victim was a young male in his late teens, who suffered a non-life-threatening gun shot wound to his hip. Police believe there may be up to three suspects involved in the shooting; the case is still on-going. more ›

• Firefighters were successful in putting out a house fire that engulfed a vacant Greenwood home early Wednesday morning at Sixth Avenue Northwest and Northwest 85th Street.
• Bellevue introduced their newest downtown police squad, a group to help prevent a rise in crime and likely to become neighborhood heroes, saving the day for downtown Bellevue residents and businesses.

• Do you want paper or plastic? Last night, the Edmonds City Council made history, becoming the first city in Washington to place a ban on plastic bags at grocery and retail stores.
• Expecting hot heat and hot beats, the non-profit music do-gooder group Hip Hop Congress kicks off their week-long National Conference today in the Central District.

• The P-I reports that Washington unemployment hit 9.3% last month, up from 9.1% in May.
• The Big Blog says that Allstate has found what we all already knew: Seattle drivers are amongst the worst in the nation.
• The Magnolia Voice has info on the "Admiral's House" up above Smith Cove that the Navy plans to sell off. If you have need of a two-story, eight-bedroom house on four acres of land with one of the best views in the city, apparently you should look into it.

On Friday, the trusty Central District police scanner caught word around 3:45 p.m. that there was a disturbance at 1500 East Union Street. Apparently the building's custodian wanted a man removed from the property, noting he was scared of the man because he has red hair. Really? Red hair? What's wrong with gingers? It's bad enough they face extinction, but have we all become so jaded that we're not shocked to find that gingerphobia really exists? more ›

• West Seattle's Alki beachgoers have suspected that an algae bloom is to blame for the "scungy yellow stuff" mucking-up the local waters. Until an official report is in, our toes are staying on land.
• The hiphop concert series Rock the Bells opted out of making a repeat Washington stop during the 2009 tour. After pissing and moaning about Seattle getting the shaft, Rock the Bells is back on for an intimate--not really affiliated, just didn't want to hear bitching anymore--show come August at the Showbox.

Neighborlogs news intern Lucas just posted this story about a couple raising chickens in the Central District--"City code permits up to three domestic fowl in addition to up to three other small animals on single-family lots"--which reminded us that we've also seen a chicken coop in Montlake, of all places! Quel agriculteur! UPDATE: Commenters confirm that chicken coops have been spotted in Wallingford and Ravenna, too. Look, they're cute! more ›

This past weekend we stopped by 20/20 Cycle after checking out the This Is A Powerful Corner art installation at 23rd & Union. We were pleasantly surprised by 20/20's selection of road bikes, since they had more to choose from than usual. more ›

• The Central District's Police scanner solidifies Seattle's recent ranking as 26th in the list of cities with the highest car theft rates. Watch out if you own a 1992 Honda Accord.
• Georgetown is hoping for cleaner air and quieter truck traffic, as the Port of Seattle considers giving $7 million in rent breaks to companies that hop on the green truck bandwagon.
• Publicola shares the final four names thrown into the nominee hat for Interim King County Executive.

• Finally, some good news on the horizon with regards to housing in Seattle! Seattle Bubble has the story.
• Real estate on Beacon Hill is looking promising, too, reports Beacon Hill Blog, thanks to light rail plans.
• Ballard has a lot to discuss about how the viaduct will affect their neighborhood, and My Ballard hosts the conversation. (My Ballard has an unusually active comments section, we're noticing today.)

Hell no! They won't go! To a different school! Central District News documents school-closure protesters marching downtown. CHS is not a high school, but it sounds like one, and the cool kids there are talking about the hill's newest resto, The Tin Table. Over in SoDo, where things change faster than you can say Rocky Mountain News, new blog Sodo Agogo is going bye-bye already. more ›

Former Seattlester Courtney alerted us to a weekend burglary in Jackson Place, at 20th and Charles in the Central District, with a twist: the burglars are suspected to be young kids who will knock first to see if anyone's home. According to the Jackson Place Community Council email group, a couple "carefully dressed" young teens were knocking on doors in that area in the early afternoon on the day of the burglary and, if someone answered the door, asking for "Jim." Note to "Jim": can you get in touch with these kids so they can stop stealing laptops from unoccupied houses in the Central? more ›

Rainier Valley Post has a few reasons why it's wrong to close the African American Academy. (Sable Verity wholeheartedly disagrees.) West Seattle Blog was on the ball this afternoon and has an updated post about the school board's proposed amendments to what were supposedly the final recommendations for school closures. The board votes on the recommended list tomorrow. Not everyone was thinking about school, though. MyBallard, for instance, was contemplating cottage-style housing developments. And Central District News learned from SDOT that 23rd Avenue is in such bad shape, it will take more than the usual time and effort to repair it. more ›

• Zombie hordes take to the street in West Seattle!
• So that's why we were woken up by a low-hovering helicopter early Sunday morning. In the CD, someone stole a limo filled with apparently unsuspecting passengers and a police helicopter was called in to pursue.
• Be on the look out for a stolen True Value truck--the Greenwood store's truck was stolen six days ago and still has not been found. That's strange, since the phone number and logo is plastered all over the truck.

• Central District News has a post on "the CD by the numbers," which uses recent census data to shed light on just who calls the Central District home. Some of the information didn't surprise us. The highest average income in the CD is in Madison Valley--you don't say!
• So glad to see the DEA still drives Hummers to rallies at Catholic elementary schools despite the fact that we are in the midst of a global economic crisis and with the ever-rising costs of gasoline. Since the drug war doesn't cost us all enough already, the DEA's grand finale was landing a DEA helicopter on the school's playground. Because you know, Catholic elementary schools are a breeding ground for pre-adolescent crackheads.
• The Belltowner and North Dakota State University wonders if people would utilize a public bike share program if offered one. Hey, it works in Europe--why not here?

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• WaMu really can't catch a break. The Belltowner and PhinneyWood report that their neighborhood WaMu branches were robbed over the weekend.
• Mid Beacon Hill explores "cheap South End fun," including a place that should be on the hipster street-of-dreams, and the Museum of Communications. Being a tourist in your own city is totally fun, so the idea of being a tourist in your own neighborhood strikes us as completely delightful.
• So that's why we didn't have power on Saturday night in the CD. Of course, since we had no power we couldn't log on to check Central District News for updates, but it's nice to know now.

• The always helpful Central District News offers Crave, who recently lost their Capitol Hill lease, some available locations in the CD. We second the idea, Crave in the neighborhood sounds great to this CD resident.
• Did you find a My Buddy Doll drunk in Belltown? Because someone lost one drunk in Belltown and have taken to Craigslist and Belltowner to find the doll.
• Sure they are gas guzzlers, but we're a total sucker for a gorgeous old car. West Seattle Blog has photos galore from this weekend's Junction car show.

Rudolph Valentino. Ray Charles. Jerry Lee Lewis dancing on pianos, for God's sake! Dance in Seattle had anything but a boring 20th century. We were prowling around the internet this morning and discovered that today is the anniversary of the date the city banned a really bizarre but popular 1920s and '30s fad called "dance marathons" within its city limits. That was enough to pique our interest, and we've spent the day researching what was happening in the world of dance during the 20th century. Here are some of the highlights, thanks in large part to our favorite local history website: HistoryLink.org. more ›

• My Ballard and Phinney Wood shared a post on the annual Dead Baby Bike Race. With the recent fear-mongering regarding bicyclists in the local media--the bike race could likely have not come at a worse time. We're sure already freaked out Subaru drivers, aren't thrilled to think of the idea of a crudely named (see: hilarious) bike race that celebrates "Mutant Bike Culture."
• Rejoice Francophiles and hipsters not allergic to the sun! Capitol Hill Seattle reports that Cafe Presse has opened a deck to accommodate outside seating. Few things are more French than enjoying a delicious and refined meal at a neighborhood sidewalk cafe, so we're thrilled to have a chance to mimic the experience at our neighborhood pseudo-Parisian cafe.
• The Central District News breathed a sigh of relief and celebrated that this year's Umoja parade was bigger and better than ever.

• The Big Blog gleefully reports there will FINALLY be a World Series in Seattle. The Gay Softball World Series will be hosted on several Seattle fields in August.
• Central District News brings their regular and always interesting reads, the CD Police Scanner, where it was a boring Monday--fights and narcotics activities--and a development update about where the next condo is going in the CD. We are always pleased not to see our block or home on this week's update.
• Capitol Hill Seattle seems to be down for the count--we haven't been able to log in successfully for a good week. Have they changed their address or gone AWOL? UPDATE: Apparently they've simply changed their URL to blog.capitolhillseattle.com. Thanks Jack!

Seattlest has lived in eight cities across the country, and we have to be honest. We've lived in Seattle longer than we have anywhere else because we love it here. It's clean, it's culturally vibrant, it's full of extraordinary natural beauty, it's safe. But, we've never been able to reckon with the fact that it's just so damned wealthy and white. Much as we like to think of ourselves as forward-thinking, inclusive citizens, we all know our lovely little city is about as diverse as a carton of eggs. more ›