POETRY: Eavan Boland is from Dublin, Ireland, and we take it that "Eavan" is a girl's name there. It's not immediately obvious, it it? She carries more of a charge in her than that boggy, peaty, old Seamus Heaney. One of her poems, The Pomegranate, begins: The only legend I have ever loved is the story of a daughter lost in hell. And found and rescued there. Love and blackmail are the gist of......

Seattlest thinks our city is lucky to count Grist as a native child. It's a helluva publication that always gets at the, um, grist of the matter. They use humor wisely and since, as we noted yesterday, we're a tree-hugging hippy, we love what they stand for. But when MvB pointed out to us yesterday that they are still looking for an Executive Editor we decided it was time to go public with a nagging......

Inspired by a random iPod event at Seattlest's Thanksgiving, a friend lamented the early death of John Denver and then launched into a diatribe about how he didn't pull a Kennedy; that is, Denver wasn't a dilettante pilot. He went on to explain that Denver was an experienced pilot who owned many planes and flew often. He died, our friend claimed, when one of the fuel tanks in the experimental plane he was flying......

Look up the definition of “hot-to-trot” and you’ll find two sets of meanings: (1) willing and eager and (2) sexually exciting. To us, hot pot is both. All the recent hot pot talk on food message boards and in the local and national newspapers tempted us to do a turkey trot to Seven Stars Pepper (at 12th and Jackson, our favorite food corner in Seattle) on Thanksgiving Day – thankful to the Chinese for having......

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......

Wednesday we decided to do a little recon of the new Wine & Beer shop on Pike Street. Encouraged by Geoff's post, we picked up Franziskaner Hefe-Weisse Dunkel ($3) and Hefe-Weisse Hell ($3) to accompany our Thanksgiving meal, along with some Saison Dupont ($10), which is perhaps why one of the owners mentioned to us that today, from 5-7pm, they were having a beer tasting that would include Belgian beers and we should stop by.......

"Heron, Seagull, and Cranes" -- a wondrous juxtaposition captured by Cap'n Surly from the Seattlest Flickr Pool. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!......

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......

Retailers have been slopping their Christmas come-ons into the weeks before Thanksgiving since at least 1986--that's the earliest citation Word Spy has for "Christmas creep," the retailers' own term for the phenomenon. The exception: local customer-service nirvana Nordstrom. As reported on Consumerist and elsewhere, Nordstrom hasn't put up their Christmas decorations yet. But they have posted signs explaining why: "We just like the idea of celebrating one holiday at a time." Reaction is mostly positive.......

On our walk back up from the Pike Street Victrola the other day, we noticed a new store has arrived in the space that used to be a...what?...ethnic foods, was it? We always meant to go in and see. But we didn't. Not even during the "Going Out of Business" sale. God, it was awful. Some days the owner would come out and stand there, looking downhearted. Eventually we started looking for reasons to cut......

At most traditional Thanksgiving gatherings this week, the average person will be holding a wine glass when it comes time to wash down the turkey and trimmings. As we said last week, there is nothing wrong with that. But, before making the choice for wine, you should consider the argument for beer. Beer styles that would go well with turkey and the trimmings include Biere de garde, dunkel, dubbel, marzen and any good old......

Six Organs of Admittance is one man--Ben Chasny--and whoever he gets to come along for the ride. Shelter From the Ash, Chasny's ninth album under the Six Organs name (out today), features contributions from his Comets on Fire bandmate Noel Harmonson, Elisa Ambrogio of Magik Markers, and Superwolf/Zwan's Matt Sweeney. The album is a freak-folk magnum opus, full of well-restrained improvisations and fluid ruminations, considered and varied instrumentation (electric, electro, and acoustic), hypnotic vocals,......

It’s almost Thanksgiving and we’ve yet to deliver any holiday recipes. We feel deep shame. If there was a Seattlest penalty box, we would sit in it. The truth is that this year we’ll be sitting back, relaxing and watching the dog show that’s after the Macy’s parade while our sister-in-law (also a chef) does the bulk of the heavy cooking. We will, however, be bringing our pumpkin pie. Pumpkin pie is something we’ve always......

As if The Terrorists haven't already been winning by employing their agents, the American Indian, to poo-poo on our Thanksgiving parade of turkey, football, and/or explaining your deviant behaviors to your meddlesome aunts and uncles whom you only see once a year. This time, worst of all, our very own government is getting in on the act. Are you flying this holiday and wondering if you can bring aboard your grandmother's delicious jelly or......

Saturday, Tera will give herself a VIP tour at the opening of Aritzia. She will follow this potentially hectic event by introducing a friend to her newest wine obsession - Twisted Cork. Sunday she will trek to Qwest and root for Chicago, uh, eh, oops...Seattle. Yes, root for the Seahawks. Jack's heading to the Showbox proper tonight to see Canadian indie pop band Stars. Sunday, he's hoping to see Rex Grossman slip into old......

Jack has already mentioned Stars at the Showbox, and Katelyn's put the word out about Grayskul and Hangar 18 at Chop Suey. That leaves us to mention M.I.A. and the Cool Kids at Showbox SoDo, or, if you like things a little more old-school, Mudhoney is at El Corazon. Here they are playing "Hate the Police" in Prague: Saturday, it's a Brit-pop double-header with Travis and openers Maximo Park at the Moore. There's also The......

What better time to talk about beer and food than with the holidays coming up? We enjoy wine with a good meal just as much as everyone else, but we hate the perception that beer should not be paired with anything except pizza. Unless you are still drinking that macro crap, you can enjoy beer with a wide variety of food. This Seattlest is currently reading "The Brewmaster's Table", written by Garrett Oliver, the......

Is a new front opening up in the Culture Wars? Seattle school officials say no, but King 5's producers not-so-subtly imply yes. "A letter from the Seattle School District is raising some eyebrows about Thanksgiving and how it should be handled in the classroom," writes King 5 News' Eric Wilkinson. "The letter tells school district staff that the holiday is seen by many Native Americans as a 'time of mourning.'" Specifically, the letter cites this......

(This fall we are combining our love of the football and our dream of learning to cook. On Sunday morning, following a trip to a local farmer’s market/major supermarket chain, we will be preparing a meal from the city of the Seahawks opponent. Then at halftime we will throw our badly burned hands in the air and make hot dogs.) Seahawks @ Pierogies preview. Our technical advisor on this meal was Evans School Saira, who......

--Sally Clark has pulled her nightlife plan citing the fact that everyone from the mayor to the other city council members to the lowliest 1st ave drunk hates it. --A woman may have successfully attempted suicide by train in Auburn this morning. --4th of July ain't nothin but Thanksgiving in the summer. --Starbucks starts to look at its carbon emissions. --So, you’ve decided to join a Startup and live the life of high risk,......

This is Tom Landry, the greatest coach the Dallas Cowboys ever had. This is Chuck Knox, the best coach the Seattle Seahawks ever had. The met only once, on Thanksgiving Day 1986 in Dallas. The Hawks won 34-14, thereby proving that Chuck Knox was a better coach than Tom Landry. Even though Homer Simpson bought Landry’s hat in order to earn his worker's respect, and even though Sarah Vowell took a break from snooping around......

--Dan Savage sits across the table from Steven Colbert tonight on the Report (11:30pm, Comedy Central). Give em hell, Dan. --How can a timber company make money without cutting down trees? Hopefully they come up with something. --If you just paid a premium for granite counter tops in Seattle you'll be happy to know that granite is so last week. --Where are your favorite Griswoldian houses? --Defective Yeti experiences two fantasies he never knew......

We occasionally post about things Portland-related, and this time we do so with a heavy heart. CNET editor James Kim and his wife and two daughers are apparently missing after a family Thanksgiving roadtrip to Portland. They're from San Francisco, and Seattlest has been to one of the wonderful stores the couple owns, Doe. SFist is reporting that helicopters are searching the Oregon coastline. Stories like this make us think we should get back into......

Our own Madame Hooky divines whether it's worth calling in sick Friday and heading for the slopes. She'll conjure your excuse and tell you where to go. This week turned out to be an extended Thanksgiving weekend for many thanks to Seattle Snowstormmageddon 2006. You didn't really need an excuse to play hooky this week, except you probably couldn't actually get your rear-wheel drive GTI anywhere near a ski resort for any of the snow......

If you're hiking, consider charging up your iPod, as Seattlest finds out that a man lost during a hike was found by the glow of his iPod. That cleverness seems to be devoid in cops who were using police cruiser instant messaging clients - although we imagine IMs "so are you nakie" to be included in cop shows, just for realism. If only the cops were busting the Hummer-driving jerk who made a poor......

Thanksgiving came a couple days early at the Croc last night, when +/- halted their set to don band insignia-clad aprons and invite the audience onstage for rotisserie chicken, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, and pumpkin pie. Seattlest didn't partake, as we had just eaten a great meal, but we did appreciate the gesture. At the same time, though, we couldn't help but feel that perhaps we would have been better served with less food......

Our own Madame Hooky divines whether it's worth calling in sick Friday and heading for the slopes. She'll conjure your excuse and tell you where to go. In uncertain times such as these, what is needed is some straight talk; no more excuses, no more blaming the booze or midterm elections or other people's wives. You're up to the task, not a single dishonest bone in your body. Trust me, I can tell. Look them......

You don't have to worry about turkeys, luckily, because if you're leaving the city like Seattlest is your hosts probably have better access to enlightened turkeys that lived a fuller and more organic life while ranging free than the ones you're likely to find on the shelves of Whole Foods. Ditto all the other fixin's, although you might want to stop for bread. City bread beats country bread hands down. Alternately, make your own. Your......

It's a holiday week, and people are too busy stuffing themselves with turkey and cranberry jam to talk much. Just hang on until Tuesday, when things really pick up. Thursday, November 23 >>>Our parents' house, all afternoon. Dad talks on "The 7 Worst Habits of Today's Generation." Mom covers "Communication Breakdown: You Never Visit." Join the annual panel for a starchy Thanksgiving meal, that mysterious "fruit" salad with mini-marshmallows, and an in-depth critique of......

At 10am, the Roosevelt Safeway was medium-busy. Mostly elderly people (a nursing home short bus was outside) but a few families, a couple of housewives, and some college students. And because it's Safeway, we got what's below--Thanksgiving dinner for 12--for only for $138.45 A 15-lb turkey 3.5 lbs of green beans Four zucchini Two heads of cauliflower...(click below for the rest of our haul)......