Macy's star at sunset by James Callan from the Seattlest Flickr pool. more ›

Travelocity wastes an inordinate amount of my time every single time I attempt to use their site. Like an amnesia patient I return over and over just to be reemed once again. I have a feeling I'm not alone. more ›

What's that? You got a long weekend because it's a holiday? We wanted one, too. Don't worry--we left you with a little treat. more ›

From December 19 until January 3, get free admission for one child (12 and under) with each adult ticket purchase at the Woodland Park Zoo. Mention "Winter Fun" to take advantage of this deal. more ›

Marie Antoinette said it best, and damn it, 'tis the season, you practically owe it to yourself, right? And really, it's the only time of year where everyone can cheat on their diet in unison, complain about it, and will it all away come New Year's. Wow, that sounds oddly like going to confessional... more ›

FREE POP SODAS FOR SEATTLEITES: For quite some time, every Friday the folks over at Jones Soda handed out free sodas to their South Lake Union neighbors and passersby, dubbing the program "Free Soda Friday." Well, the soda makers are offering not just the parched and thirsty, but all of Seattle a free Jones Soda, if you stop by their SLU headquarters today from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. (And if you can't make it today FSF will take place at the Queen Anne Metropolitan Market the next two Fridays.) 8 a.m.-5 p.m., Friday // Jones Soda Co., 234 Ninth Avenue North // One free soda per person more ›

Seattlest started the New Year with a strong dose of reality. Hot Mama's, supposedly the best pizza on Cap Hill, doesn't cut it for this eater. Crust soggy, toppings bland. more ›

As told to Seattlest by Seth Kolloen, thus the first-person p.o.v. more ›

So you thought it was going to be a lot of work, all this holiday cooking? We know, just thinking about it can be exhausting. The spirit of fussy Martha Stewart dueling with the ghost of drop-the-turkey-on-the-floor Julia Child? Top Chef duking it out with Iron Chef? Paula Dean versus Rachael Ray? It's enough to make you send for Chinese takeout. more ›

• Just in time for the holidays, Delicious Baby blog--sorry, extreme foodies, it's not what you think--has 10 tips for surviving flight delays while traveling with kids.
• Gay Seattle Blogspot dares to say it: the Kathy Griffin show at the Paramount was not as funny as last year's, and also offers suggestions for a gay Thanksgiving.
• Following on that, Out & Equal Washington invite you to their happy hour on December 11 at Purr; they're accepting gifts for the Lambert House.

THIS, OUR TOWN OF HALLOWEEN: Finally, we have reached the one day of the year when it's actually suggested that you gorge on candy and dress up like someone else! Check out Halloween party options over at The Stranger, and nod to the past by reading up on the history of this haunted holiday over at the History Channel's beautiful H-Ween minisite. This is Halloween! This is Halloween! more ›

Like anybody else, we appreciate the sentiment of the Presidents' Day long weekend--well, for those of us who have that day off or are able to take it. It provided us the perfect opportunity to temporarily ex-patriate ourselves and pump money into Canada's economy. That's what it's all aboot, anyway. This so-named Presidents' Day has become just a reason for the commercial sector to entice us with Fabulous Savings. Nobody thinks about Washington or Lincoln anymore, much less Millard Fillmore, say, or Grover Cleveland if we are to buy into this doubletalk about the inclusivity of the day. But--ZOMG--holy crap! Fry's has HDTVs on sale! more ›

Before we moved our worldly possessions across Elliott Bay to West Seattle, we'd never visited that neighborhood's Beveridge Place Pub. And we'd never tasted 3-Grid IPA, an excellently hoppy product of that neighborhood's Schooner Exact Brewing Co. Now that we pose as West Seattle regulars, we recognize both pub and brewer as priceless neighborhood gems; there's no better place to kill a few (happy) hours, and no finer micro-local IPA. more ›

As ChrisB of Three Imaginary Girls points out, losing your job sucks. Losing a job that meant a lot to you sucks more. And losing all that during the holidays? Well that just blows a goat. more ›

This Seattlest took one look at the weather forecast and headed to sunny Florida yesterday. Now here we are in our hometown of DeLand, population 24,375 (per 2006 census). Our mother doesn't have wireless at the house, and is operating off a 1997 iMac. It's cute and compact, but slow as hell, so we headed out this morning for the one source of public wifi in town: Boston Gourmet Coffeehouse. more ›

Making up for weeks of hibernation and workaholism, Kim will hit the parties this weekend. Tonight, she’ll don her Groucho glasses for a lesbian function at Jabu’s celebrating the births of her two favorite Sagitarii. Saturday, it’s to the War Room for a company party with the missus and her workmates. Finally, she’ll ship off to the sub-tropics on Monday, where she’ll spend what remains of 2007. more ›

Things always die down right around the holidays, so not much is going on tonight, except local noise mavens X-Ray Press will be celebrating their CD release (and the addition of their new keyboardist) at Jules Maes in Georgetown. more ›

WSF is still dead to us, but Governor Gregoire could make our "holiday card" list if she keeps it up. First the viaduct course correction, now she's scrounged up $100 million to pay for three new ferries. Budget, schmudget! She's all action! Plus, the Port Townsenders, come January, will be reunited with their cars on ferry trips, says the P-I:

Pierce County has agreed to loan one of its boats to the Washington State Ferries, beginning in January, to resume car service between Keystone and Port Townsend.

While trolling through today's Floor Proceedings of the U.S. House of Representatives for our other job (it's an exciting one), we noticed something that will probably get no coverage anywhere else. However, we think it is important to note when Congress singles out one faith as important. We think it's doubly important to note when the vote is taken while Congress fights with the Bush Administration over funding the government for the next year, haggles... more ›

Okay, friends and neighbors. December is a huge month for local hip-hop, and not just because of Blue Scholars' The Program. This week, Chop Suey's got you covered for Monday and Tuesday with the Parker Brothaz tonight (GMK will be there! We love that guy!) and freestyle master Eyedea & DJ Abilities tomorrow night. Over in Fremont, Nectar's offering Waves of the Mind and Gabriel Teodros/Abyssinian Creole on the 13th (there are nine acts on the bill, as a heads up) and an apparently two-night-long extravaganza featuring One Be Lo and Grayskul (along with some big name producers and djs) on the 15th and 16th. more ›

Four Dickens Carolers are singing in lovely harmony. Children toddle by, then look back at the carolers, their eyes wide with wonder. Garland and lights are everywhere. more ›

Until the day after Thanksgiving, Seattlest hadn't seen The Nutcracker -- probably the world's most famous ballet -- in years. But we had a solid image in our head of what it looked like because when Seattlest was a little kid, our mom made an annual birthday tradition to see it every year on opening night. For much of our childhood, this meant getting all spiffed up and walking a few blocks to Lincoln... more ›

Thanksgiving doesn't allow for us Seattlesters to partake in our usual rock and roll lifestyles. Instead it's friends and family and mellow times about the house. Our drinking's liable to be more restrained and coordinated with a heavy meal of rich food. (Seattlest Geoff offered some choice beer recommendations earlier this week for those who've got a pit-stop planned on the way to grandmother's house tomorrow.) And according to the weather report, it's going to be cold but clear tomorrow, with morning to afternoon sunshine to make that drive a little more pleasant. more ›

Last we talked with Carrie Akre, she was gearing up for the release of her latest CD, Last the Evening. Now, a couple of months later, the CD is officially out, and Akre is buzzing from the aftermath. Indeed, most of us music critic types have had nice things to say about the disc, which showcases her exuberant, imagery-laden lyrics and alt.country sensibilities, and shows off the great musicianship of her backup players. We... more ›

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A friend just emailed Seattlest, gushing with glee that our season's passes to the Summit (Alpental, really) grant us 5 free days of skiing at Crystal Mountain. We'd already written about how the ownership of the Summit by Boyne Mountain (who also owns Crystal Mt.) might be a good thing for mountain bikers. So it sounded like it was already working out for those of us that go mostly to Alpental (due to sheer proximity, especially for occasional drinking night skiing forays) yet like to make the trek to Crystal or Baker occasionally. more ›

Is the office slightly quieter today? Were there fewer parents dropping the little ones off at school this morning? Were there a lot more parked cars in certain spots around Wedgwood, Seward Park or Mercer Island? more ›

All across the Ist-A-Verse (or at least the American parts thereof), writers and editors are in the midst of enjoying their three-day weekend. But after the week we've all had, we feel like the break is not only needed, but deserved. Just look at everything we've been doing! more ›

Our national football correspondent, Pauls Toutonghi, is scouting potential Seahawks playoff opponents for us, and may have found a way to make the Bears' Rex Grossman even worse more ›

--Some people were really happy with Qwest and Comcast after the as-yet-unnamed windstorms last month. more ›