Tidbits

- Another blogger has put together a list of the Top 10 uses of "the 'N' word." It's a great read. [Thanks Audrey!]

- We picked up some praise from Seattlest this week. It wasn't entirely surprising since we'd answered some questions about the A Revolution Stunted series, but we continue to be amazed by the overall response. We get outed in the post, but it's not like we took our blog anonymity very seriously anyway.

- Mark your calendars (in pencil) for the next sample sale. From one of the vendors:

I think we'll be back in Seattle doing something similar, but on a bigger, less basement-of-a-now-defunct-chinese-restaurant sort of feel on April 22.

- Captain America died this week. Some people are taking it far too seriously, but being comic readers, we're pretty sure this won't be permanent. He'll be back. As for as those saying this is some sort of political allegory, sure, it could be that, but if you actually take a look at some of the storyline in question, the writing is sharp as a sledgehammer and half as subtle. If you're looking for a comic that really has something to say, read Uncle Sam, which features beautiful art by Alex Ross, a wonderfully nuanced storyline, and an open-endedness that can only exist in a form not meant for kids (the Captain America storyline has to work on two levels, which weakens it a bit).

- Things we forgot to mention in Weekending: new opening at OKOK, new opening at BLVD, and 300 opens today for you comic book movie junkies.

Rock Music, Rockin' Robots, and Rock Stars

We've picked up a few new readers over the last month, drawn in by the videos and commentary we were posting. It'll be interesting to see how many of them stick around now that we're going back to more activity-oriented posting, but we must stick to our original mission: filling your free time with random activities around Seattle.

We're just getting our heads back into that world (trust us, it's dark and sordid), and have to mention these things to you in case you're lacking things to do tonight (and you shouldn't be - it's First Thursday!). Also, for you new readers, be sure to either join the spanning_time group on Upcoming.org or subscribe to our calendar in your app of choice (click from the badge on the blog).


- Ellen Forney is doing another performance/reading of "I Love Led Zeppelin." We were so excited to see this we actually made the trek twice to catch it (we only caught the Q&A the first time due to traffic), and it was completely worth the effort. Ellen's work is very human, very funny, and very Seattle. At the Wild Rose, 8pm.

- This is a bit more academic, but there's a talk [.pdf link] on "The Art and Science of Social Robots" at UW. Cynthia Breazeal of the MIT Media Lab will talk about her research program, which focuses on the interaction between humans and robots. So in short, when the robots make their first moves to overthrow the world, it may be tips from this night that make all the difference for humanity. UW's Kane Hall 120, 7pm.

- McLeod Residence is having a preview of their newest exhibit, a series of photos and etc. of Seattle Notables as part of their weekly happy hour. That's cool and all, but by now you shouldn't need any prodding to go to the McLeod Residence. Just go!

Scattershot: 1/29/2007

- Trivia - spanning_time ended up at a music thing so we didn't make trivia night last Thursday. We're fine with that, and we're proud of our teammates, who were robbed on one question, and ended up being the best at not winning. Sounds like fun though, so we're hoping to check it out for ourselves.

- Sculpture Park - We have a bit of a misanthropic streak going at the moment, since we think the sculpture park would be great if you got rid of all the people. We bought some film for our Polaroid, but ultimately didn't even attempt any shots, since there were So. Many. People around. Also, the whole space just doesn't seem ready for prime-time. Seems like they opened it to make a date, not because it's really fit for consumption. In any case, we think there's plenty of potential here, and we plan to spend some time there getting shots before it's all tagged to hell by graf artists (at which point we'll head back for "after" shots).

- Obsession - You long-time readers have probably noted that around these parts we're a bit obsessed with obsession. Not the stalker-type of obsession, but the all-consuming depths to which some people take their hobbies. It interests us because the world is so full of pockets of enthusiasts. We'd like to find and just see those pockets operate, even if the area of interest means nothing to us. In that spirit, this NY Times article about the publishing of collections of old comics (culled largely from individual collections) is a great read. It also references one of our favorite comics as well, Joe Matt's "Peepshow," one of the best autobiographical comics out there.

- Yo-Yo Championship - It's this weekend. We'll be in Portland, but you should go because it's a great (free) way to spend an afternoon.

Daily Comics For You (Yes You)

Sometimes Seattle-based illustrator Jason Sho Green (he hit our radar after his wonderfully irreverent Valentine's Day cards brought him Internet fame) has started a new daily comic at one of his URLs, Youyesyou.net. His paintings often featured his twisted sense of humor, sometimes subtly; this endeavor makes that humor the focus. Take a look and add it to your RSS reader.