• Monica Guzman over at the P-I's Big Blog published an un-cut transcript of the story Denise Gloster told her about why she chose to get involved with her community in the Rainier Valley. The story is powerful and heart-wrenching, well worth your ten minutes to read it closely.
• Whoa, since when do elementary schools in Seattle auction off fancy Palm Springs condos and offer pine-nut crusted salmon as part of their fund-raising dinner menu? West Seattle Blog says Schmitz Park Elementary is doing just that to net money for the school's core programs.
• Shauna, the Seattle-based new mother and food writer over at Gluten Free Girl, has crafted a sensible list of must-have pantry items in response to Mark Bittman's controversial compilation on the same topic. Beans, onions, vinegar--sounds just like our pantry!

There may very well have been fuckery afoot in the decision to close/re-purpose Cooper Elementary's building rather than close the more affluent Arbor Heights Elementary. (Why are we not surprised?) In a controversial series of posts over the weekend, blogger Sable Verity alleged that Seattle School Board District 6 Director Steve Sundquist was discriminatory and unethical in the way he interacted with parents and students at the two school. This morning, KUOW reports on their investigation into the role that poverty may have played in the school closures conversation. more ›