We link to Capitol Hill Seattle content frequently in the Neighborhood News round-ups, but the latest installment of CHS-V, a short video about the election and "hope art" on the Hill, is too excellent not to embed directly. The short features nicely edited interviews with Stranger art critic Jen Graves and Obama garage door muralist Shelley Farnham, among other articulate voices. Enjoy. We're faxing 2,009 kudos to videographer David "Cheesecake" Albright and one of our favorite neighborhood blogs for this post. more ›

Barack Obama has just been sworn in at the 44th President of the United States, if you're wondering why you're the only one in the office. For the snow boots-on-the-ground perspective, our sister site DCist has been live blogging the inauguration in the 27 degree weather. "It's not just about what they're wearing," the commentators on PBS observed a few moments ago, and it's true. Obama actually became president about 5 minutes before he took the oath. You know how the government is about getting things done on time. CHS spent the morning canvassing inauguration parties on our Capitol Hill and snapping photos. If you've got photos to share, drop 'em in our Seattlest Flickr pool. more ›

Just got the email in which sitting City Council President Richard Conlin leaves his hat in the city council ring and avoids that whole mayoralty thing. "I pledge to work hard to bring Seattle back to economic health, put people first, support local business and our regional economy, and protect Seattle's environment over the next four years," says Conlin, who's been on the council doing stuff since 1997. The council appoints its presidents for two-year terms. We have a soft spot for Conlin since we often see him at arts events around town and because he bears an uncanny resemblance to the Weekly's Uptight Seattleite. So we feel represented. more ›

BLACK CURRANTS AND BELL PEPPER: Cabernet Sauvignon, anyone? Wine tasting alert! For your fiver, you can taste a selection of Cabernet wines--and if you buy a bottle or two to take home, they'll return your tasting fee. We recommend you put on your nice jeans (the clean ones with no holes) and head to Belltown for a swanky but satisfying evening of light, educational indulgence. more ›

Are you so, so antsy at this point? Are you clicking F5 F5 F5 on CNN.com while simultaneously instant messaging about the ludicrous statements from McCain supporters you're hearing on NPR? Some polling locations have closed (parts of Indiana, Kentucky, New Hampshire), and you might as well just close the analysis websites and skip straight forward to what's most important: Is Obama President Yet? more ›

Here's a creative idea for how to support the presidential candidate of your choice in this last, crucial week: mail an exhausted campaign worker a pack of vacuum-sealed Vivace coffee beans to help them fight the good fight in battleground states like Ohio, North Carolina, and Florida. The Hoosier State works, too, as Obama supporter/Seattlest's housemate Sarah Moon found out when she received this email back in thanks from an expat Seattlite working for the Campaign for Change in Evansville, Indiana: more ›

Over the past year and a half or so of Hillary Clinton's hugely historic run for the presidency, we've been thoroughly impressed with the legacy she's left as the first of her kind. She's undoubtedly owned every single debate—except for that one where Edwards came alive for a minute and sounded like a real person who had more going for him than being the son of a mill worker. She made sure health care mattered to whomever takes over the country. She got the country talking about feminism again, got men and women alike uncomfortable about whether or not it's okay to treat women a certain way. She presented an impressive economic plan, overcame pretty much every controversy surrounding her, and ignored the ones that were ridiculous or irrelevant (i.e. claims that Clinton's a racist, talk about her cleavage). more ›

This arrived in our in-box while we were in transit today. The author is a friend of Seattlest who's recently completed his Ph.D. at the University of Washington and is moving to Washington, D.C. in a month and some to take up a prominent position at a major U.S. government agency. He is, apparently, bored. more ›

Hillary Clinton's conviction that our next president must be a "fighter" now has literal representation: Fighter of Foo Dave Grohl has announced his candidacy as an Independent. more ›