At a quarter to five this morning, while the sane amongst us were fast asleep and others were either in the process of getting to sleep, or just awake, over 2,000 bicycle enthusiasts gathered at the UW Husky Stadium parking lot, in order to participate in the 2011 Seattle-to-Portland Bicycle Classic. The event, which has been held annually since 1979, is now considered by some to be among the top 10 recreational bicycling events in the nation. more ›

On Tuesday, a King County Superior Court judge ruled that the Washington State Health Care Authority was in violation of the State's new Mental Health Parity Act. The Health Care Authority was challenged on a policy of excluding treatments for autism from coverage. more ›

In our old shot, the Blackhawk Inn sports an attractive cursive "R" in the window. Is your mouth watering? more ›

"Have you noted the neat, attractive Victorian house at 310 15th Ave. E.? Only a small plaque outside the door tells you that this house, believed to be the first in the area - an area 'way out' of town in the days it was built - is a small office building." more ›

Today the Re:Take column heads up the back alley for Crusty Capitol Hill Month. more ›

Crusty Capitol Hill Month continues here at the Re:Take column. We'll be dwelling on Group Health for a bit. more ›

We're continuing our crawl down 15th. Today we're staring at 15th and Thomas, and the future home of Group Health's North Building. more ›

Crusty Capitol Hill month moves a half block south and 50 years later. We're looking at a budding retail building at the north T in Thomas. more ›

After sitting around Centralia College as the heat soared towards ninety while David re-hydrated, we headed back to the car and hit I-5 for one of our last stops along the way to Portland. But just south of Centralia, we decided to make a quick stop to check out one of the sites that's always fascinated us—and nearly everyone else who takes I-5: the infamous "Uncle Sam" billboard. more ›

At the intersection of Sussex Avenue and Sheridan Street in Tenino, a small stone stands erect on the edge of a vacant lot, with the words "Old Oregon Trail 1845–53" etched in it. Many Oregon Trail markers exist, of course, many laid at the time the trail was blazed, others—like this one—laid later to commemorate the pioneers. But this one in Tenino happens to be special: This was the first one laid by Ezra Meeker. more ›

Twenty minutes south of Olympia we take exit 95 off I-5 towards Little Rock. The road changes name a couple times until we're on 28th Ave SW, which ends at Waddell Creek Rd. SW. This was the closest point we could map to where we were going: the Mima Mounds Natural Area Preserve. From here, we take a right and drive down Waddell for about a mile, just like the article in the told us, and then just barely noticed the turn in time. more ›

As 7:30 a.m. rolled around, we were ready for breakfast and tired of slowly following the STP riders through Kent, so we made our way back to I-5 and headed south to the first of two stops that took us away from the bicyclists' course. more ›

At 4:45 a.m. Saturday morning, July 12th, 2,427 bicyclists set out from the Husky Stadium parking lot to make the 204.5-mile Group Health Seattle to Portland Classic in one day. Fifteen minutes before that, we were drowsily slumped over the steering wheel of our car, stuck in the traffic jam on NE 45th St. headed towards University Village. Around us, cyclists with enough foresight to their bikes to the event were zooming downhill, past the poor suckers who drove. more ›

Riding the bus to work the other day, our heart skipped a beat when we noticed signs taped to the window heralding the arrival of new spring schedules (they're blue!). Once we'd calmed down, we realized how silly it is to get excited over the prospect of a slight change to our bus schedule. It was the kind of self-deprecating experience we figured would make a good lede for a post informing you, gentle reader, of the coming changes. more ›

The other day we walked into KeyBank with a KeyBank check, asked to cash it, and they said, "Are you a customer?" We said, no, but it's your check. They said, "That'll be $5 please." more ›

A largish Albertson's employee had an upset tummy on Saturday, but she's all better now that doctors extracted a baby from her. From the P-I: more ›

We wouldn't think that failing to get your daughter into Ballard High School would be so disappointing that you'd take it all the way to the Supreme Court. After all, who wants their daughter to be a Beaver for life? more ›

Earth Day may be bullshit, but Group Health's Bike Commute Challenge has got some brains behind it. They've realized that asking people to do something good for themselves and/or the environment for just one measly day doesn't do much for either party involved. Participants don't get a longer-term perspective on how their activity of choice might be enjoyable and make them feel better, and one day does not a better environment make, in truth. more ›

Seattlest recognizes that humans are strangely drawn to track sports: horses, chariots, cars, hell even skinny little dogs chasing fake bunnies. We recommend that you suspend your worrying about the NASCAR drama, and instead visit the only velodrome in the state of Washington to satiate your desire to watch the same thing over and over again. more ›

Ron Sims has named a commission to investigate the boo-boos of the 2004 election, how they can be repaired, how to instill confidence in the county’s election department, and, if there is time, the proper way to re-tile a bathroom wall . The panel will be composed of civic leaders, legal experts, election officials from across the Northwest, and will be chaired by retired Group Health Cooperative president and CEO Cheryl Scott. more ›