Photos: Joyce J. Scott, courtesy of Goya Contemporary Gallery, photo: Joseph Hyde. Bethany Collins, photo: Ross Collab. Thaddeus Mosley, photo: L.Fried.
6 CITY COUNCIL
THREATENS TO PUT YOU OUT IN THE COLD
Some New Progressive Energy Could Help Fight Back
15
SPENDING THE HOLIDAYS ALONE IS OKAY IF YOU’RE QUEER
...Or Straight and Your Family Sucks
19 AN INTROVERT’S GUIDE TO VOLUNTEERING
Four Ways to Help Without Talking to People Much
21 WHAT ARE YOU BRINGING TO THE HOLIDAY POTLUCK?
Four Local Chefs Share Their Best Quick and Easy Feed-a-Crowd Recipes
Editorial
EDITOR IN CHIEF
Hannah Murphy Winter
MANAGING EDITOR
Megan Seling
INTERIM NEWS EDITOR
Marcus Green
SENIOR STAFF WRITER
Charles Mudede
STAFF WRITERS
Hannah Krieg
Ashley Nerbovig
Vivian McCall
23 THE GOLDEN GLOW OF AN ICE-COLD MARTINI
Throwing a holiday party? Make this batch cocktail and get out from behind the bar.
25 A BROKE MANHATTAN MADE KEITH HARING A FAMOUS ARTIST
The Stranger Took a Trip Through the New MoPOP Exhibit, and 1980s New York City
34 NINETY HANDS ON DECK
We went behind the scenes with the Pacific Northwest Ballet’s costume department as they prepare for the biggest production in the company’s history.
PHOTO DIRECTOR
Billie Winter
EverOut
MANAGING EDITOR
Janey Wong
FOOD & DRINK EDITOR
Julianne Bell
MUSIC CALENDAR EDITOR
Audrey Vann
ARTS CALENDAR EDITOR
Lindsay Costello
DATA MANAGER
Shannon Lubetich
36 THE STRANGER’S GLADVENT CALENDAR!
Countdown to 2025 with One Really Great Thing to Do Every Day in December
44 HEAVEN SCENT
Jónsi and the Fischersund Art Collective’s New Exhibit Is Kind of Amazing, Kind of Magic
51 GIVE THE PEOPLE WHAT THEY WANT
An Actually Helpful, Not-at-All-Sponsored Holiday Gift Guide
59 DISSOCIATION VACATION
Four Ways to Escape Reality Without Leaving Seattle
Advertising
REGIONAL SALES DIRECTOR
James Deeley
SALES OPERATIONS MANAGER
Evanne Hall
SENIOR ACCOUNT
EXECUTIVES
Ben Demar
Katie Phoenix
Business
COMPTROLLER
Katie Lake
63 YOUR WINTER ITINERARY
Where to Find Shimmering Light Displays, Holiday Drag Shows, and Tacky Christmas Cocktails This Season
69 DO YOU WANT TO COLOR A SNOWMAN?
Grab Your Pens and Glitter and Get Crafty
70 WINTER FUN PAGE
With Hilarious Comics and Nate Cardin’s Famous Crossword
OFFICE MANAGER
Evanne Hall
ART DIRECTOR AT LARGE
Corianton Hale
ASST. ART DIRECTOR
Anthony Keo
PRODUCTION
David Caplan, Feedback Graphics
Marketing & Digital Media
MARKETING DIRECTOR
Caroline Dodge
SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER
Christian Parroco
VIDEO PRODUCTION DIRECTOR
Shane Wahlund
EMAIL MARKETING SPECIALIST
Tonya Ray
Technology & Development
VP OF PRODUCT
Anthony Hecht
CUSTOMER
Kevin Shurtlu
CLIENT SOLUTIONS MANAGER
A FLURRY OF WINTER FUN!
Well, it looks like we’re headed into unprecedented times—again.
We put this issue together the week after the election, while we were somewhere between the anger and bargaining phases of the seven stages of grief. But part of that bargaining was deciding that we want nice things this winter. We want batch cocktails and potluck dinners and art galleries that make us cry. We want to give our favorite people gifts and avoid our Trump-voting family at all costs. We want to make sure our neighbors are housed and volunteer without Linda from accounting talking our ear off.
We can’t have a president who’s not a racist, misogynistic, Christian Nationalist, but we can have other nice things. So consider this your guide to the end of 2024.
In these pages, you’ll find thoughtful, not-sponsored gift recommendations, dozens of events worth leaving your house for, and chef-recommended recipes for comforting meals you can make in just minutes.
You’ll also find our favorite places to escape reality without leaving Seattle, from bars to plant shops to some very detailed instructions on how to take a bath with the most transportive piece of cake you’ll find in Seattle.
If you need permission to stay away from toxic or draining family, Stranger sta writer Vivian McCall o ered a how-to guide for spending the holidays alone.
And to keep track of all of this, we made a 2024 Gladvent Calendar that you can pull out and hang up on your fridge to remind you that you actually want to do these things.
(If you just need to fully revert back to the safety of childhood, there’s a coloring page in the back.)
We’re proud of being Trump’s enemy, and we believe in the resistance. We hope you do, too. But remember that while we fight and organize and resist, we also deserve a little treat. Here’s yours.
Hannah Murphy Winter Editor-in-Chief
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City Council Threatens to Put You Out in the Cold
Some New Progressive Energy Could Help Fight Back
BY HANNAH KRIEG
City Hall has been on a crusade to undo the previous City Council’s marginal wins for working people—from the Mayor defunding the enforcement of labor and tenant rights to attempts to undermine the minimum wage for the City’s poorest workers. So it should be no surprise that the hard-fought winter eviction moratoriums made it onto their list.
The City Council passed the winter eviction moratorium in February 2020. The protections give new legal defenses for evictions that would boot tenants in the coldest months or children and education workers during the school year. The laws make some exceptions for owner-occupied units, condemned buildings, and tenants facing eviction for criminal or nuisance behavior. Tenants’ attorneys barely used these defenses in their first years—just five or six times out of 200 cases—instead favoring other pandemic-era moratoria and protections. After those laws sunset, defense attor-
neys still prefer to use other arguments to keep their tenants housed longer than the duration of the moratorium.
Despite its limited uses, some landlords have made it clear that they want the council to repeal the moratoriums.
In an email to Council Member Cathy Moore and to the members of her Housing and Human Services Committee, Low Income Housing Institute (LIHI) Executive Director Sharon Lee asked the council to “modify” the City’s eviction moratoriums to exclude “people with income who decide not to pay rent.” Lee told The Stranger that LIHI supports
strong tenant protections and called the exclusion of renters with income a “narrow exception” to the moratoriums, not a repeal.
Lee is not some random commenter the council could brush off. LIHI is a major affordable housing contractor with the City and by far the most prolific tiny shelter village developer in the region. I asked the Housing Development Consortium (HDC), an umbrella organization that represents more than 200 members including LIHI, about the popularity of Lee’s proposal among their members. HDC did not respond.
Mattie M. & Sunanta A. Members
LIHI’s Logic
In an email to The Stranger, Lee argued that when a “tenant with resources” refuses to pay rent, nonprofit affordable housing landlords suffer “enormous consequences” due to their dependency on private lenders.
“Lenders are now citing the Seattle eviction moratoriums as the reason why they will not provide financing to preserve existing affordable housing in our communities facing displacement and gentrification,” Lee wrote in an email. “If there are no reliable means to ensure timely rent payments to make good on a loan, then the production of affordable housing will take a big hit.”
Lee gave Moore an example in her initial email to the council committee. LIHI wants to acquire and preserve 65 affordable housing units at Squire Park Plaza in the Central District. The nonprofit secured funding commitments with the Office of Housing (OH), the state Housing Trust Fund, and the Washington State Housing Finance Commission (WSHFC), but private lenders keep declining to finance the project. Lee sent the council a cropped, undated screenshot from an email allegedly from an unnamed “bank official.” The bank official wrote that Vanguard, PIMCO, Prudential, Alliance Berstein, Franklin Templeton, Align Capital, Belle Haven, Investco, Nuveen, Banner Bank, Washington Trust Bank, and Heritage Bank “passed on the deal — mainly due to the ongoing issue of the rent moratorium.”
Lee worried that this alleged behavior from private investors may have “ripple effects” for the Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program. As the Tax Policy Center explains, the federal government gives tax credits to state governments, which deal out the credits to developers such as LIHI. Then, developers sell the credits to private investors to get funding for their housing projects. So, Lee said that LIHTC, without which none of LIHI’s projects would pencil, relies completely on private investors playing ball.
Moore did not respond to The Stranger’s request for comment, but should she and her committee pursue rollbacks to the moratoriums, they can expect a fight.
Not So Narrow
For one, “tenants with resources” is a pretty vague exemption to ask for. Lee told The Stranger that LIHI does not have a detailed proposal at this time, but excluding renters with income certainly creates more than a “narrow exemption.”
Of the 3,716 households in King County
who last year got counsel from the Housing Justice Project (HJP), an organization that defends low-income tenants in eviction court, 73% reported some income. The largest share of HJP’s 2023 clients–2,241, or about 40%—reported making more than zero dollars but less than 100% of that year’s federal poverty level of $14,580 in annual income. Another 23% of HJP clients last year reported income between $14,580 and $29,160, or 200% of the federal poverty level. The remaining clients made more
in the projects that they do underwrite, which is constricting the amount of available capital for affordable housing projects.”
But even if we take LIHI’s word for it and grant that all the other lenders think the moratoriums specifically ruin profitability for developers, then they should maybe take some deep breaths. The moratorium is not that common of a defense.
As The Stranger reported last year, HJP used the winter eviction moratorium five or six times in its first three years of
money, but they still fell below the Area Median Income, according to HJP.
Edmund Witter, managing attorney at HJP, said that exemptions for ability to pay don’t make a whole lot of sense: “I don’t know how you calculate that—people have unexpected obligations, and you are setting up uniform household budget expectations for lowincome persons who don’t have savings.”
Who’s Afraid of a Little Ol’ Legal Defense?
It is unclear if lenders are truly avoiding affordable housing projects because of the City’s moratoriums. The Stranger emailed all of these investors who allegedly declined LIHI’s deal. Only a few responded, but the two who did deny that LIHI approached them about Squire Park Plaza.
Belle Haven Investments Director of Research Dora Lee told The Stranger “it’s not the renter protections” that make lenders pass on affordable housing projects. As the economy comes out of a period of low interest rates into higher interest rates and high inflation, “We’ve seen the industry tighten up its underwriting standards and require more margin and more profitability
would apply” because of a backlog of eviction cases. Maritz said, “The top priority needs to be restoring the functioning of the courts so that whatever rules we agree on can actually be applied.”
Oh, the Humanity!
Aside from lenders and other housing developers offering compelling arguments against Lee’s claims, tenant advocates point out how shitty it is for someone with the phrase “Housing is a human right!” in their email signature to advocate for a policy that could leave more people without housing.
Be:Seattle Co-Executive Director Kate Rubin called LIHI’s request “disgraceful” and in direct contradiction with their mission.
“How dare they claim that they ‘advocate for just housing policies’ and then advocate for removing renter protections in order for them to grow their portfolio,” Rubin said in a message to The Stranger She asked if LIHI would have enough tiny shelters for all the low-income families they want to kick out.
Unsurprisingly, Council Member Tammy Morales’s office clapped back in an email to Lee.
existence. Now, HJP does cite these laws as a last-resort defense when a household has no other option, but “not often enough such that a landlord the size of LIHI should be going under,” Witter said.
Affordable housing developer Ben Maritz
The real estate industry bought the current council, putting big bucks behind Council Members Rob Saka, Maritza Rivera, Dan Strauss, Bob Kettle, and Tanya Woo in their 2023 elections.
told The Stranger that while he could see room for fixes and clarification with the moratoriums, he said that “essentially no evictions are proceeding to the point of a contested hearing where the moratorium
“Many renters in Seattle with income have had issues with paying their rent,” wrote Morales Chief of Staff Andra Kranzler. “The request to amend the statutes to exclude people with earnings is contrary to best practice.”
Progressives should brace themselves to defend these tenant protections and whatever else the landlord lobby wants to claw back.
The real estate industry bought the current council, putting big bucks behind Council Members Rob Saka, Maritza Rivera, Dan Strauss, Bob Kettle, and Tanya Woo in their 2023 elections. Real estate interests really liked Moore, putting at least $100,000 into an independent expenditure to support her campaign. And now she’s the chair of the Housing and Human Services Committee.
Morales seems to be the city’s only clear tenant defender. Luckily the council will increase its pro-renter caucus by one when Council Member-elect Alexis Mercedes Rinck, fresh off her defeat of landlord Woo, joins the body next year. Her victory, in a high turnout, even year election, proves that the majority of Seattle supports a progressive platform. And progressives should remind the council every day how deeply out-of-step they are with the City they claim to represent. n
ALEXA PITT
Gi Guide
Robot vs Sloth Plushies
$35
Give the gift of a snuggly robot or a sneaky sloth with exclusive Robot vs Sloth plushies. Made with super soft fabric and embroidered features, making them perfect for people of all ages. Find these cute plushies at Robot vs Sloth, located in the Pike Place Market at the corner of 1st and Pine. Open daily 10am - 6pm
ROBOT VS SLOTH | 1535 1ST AVE. SEATTLE, WA 98101 | 206-485-7392 WWW.ROBOTVSLOTH.COM
Bring a slice of nature indoors with this handcrafted lemon tree kokedama!
Wrapped in moss, this Japanese art piece brightens any room—a thoughtful, living gift that’s easy to enjoy. Kubode, located in Historic Pike Place
Market, turns houseplants into living art. They carry a full selection of gorgeous,easy-to-care for plants. Nationwide shipping & local delivery are available, too.
KUBODE PLANTS & DESIGN | 1529 WESTERN AVE, SEATTLE, WA 98101 206-915-1529 | WWW.THEKUBODE.COM
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Step into style with quirky Blue Q socks at Portage Bay Goods!
These eye-catching foot warmers feature playful designs & cheeky phrases, making them the perfect gift for anyone who loves a good laugh. Crafted from soft, luxurious combed cotton, each pair offers comfort with a dash of humor. While you’re there, explore the collection of clever cards & unique gifts that are sure to brighten anyone’s day. Plus, every purchase supports Doctors Without Borders!
PORTAGE BAY GOODS | 621 N 35TH ST, SEATTLE, WA 98103
206-547-5221 | WWW.PORTAGEBAYGOODS.COM
Organic Herbal Tea Sampler Set
$19.25
An ideal gift for the tea lover in your life, the Herbal Tea Sampler Set features three house-made and certified organic tea blends that are perfect for all of life’s moments. This set includes our Easy Day Tea, Evening Repose Tea, and Peace Tea. All three are caffeine-free and blended to perfection by our team of herbal experts. You can find hundreds of teas, teapots, and accessories at the Mountain Rose Herbs Mercantile in downtown Seattle.
MOUNTAIN ROSE HERBS MERCANTILE SEATTLE | 2111 1ST AVENUE, SEATTLE, WA 98121 | (206) 818-0119 | MOUNTAINROSEHERBS.COM
Gi Guide
Wheelbarrow Sloth T-Shirts $28- 34
How does Robot move a snuggle of sloths? With a wheelbarrow of course! Wear matching tees for your family holiday photos: available in youth (XS - XL) and adult sizes (XS - 3X). Adorably weird t-shirts with robots and sloths are available exclusively at Robot vs Sloth, located at How does Robot move a snuggle of sloths? With a wheelbarrow of course! Wear matching tees for your family holiday photos: available in youth (XS - XL) and adult sizes (XS - 3X). Adorably weird t-shirts with robots and sloths are available exclusively at Robot vs Sloth, located at 1st and Pine in the Pike Place Market. Open daily 10am - 6pm.
ROBOT VS SLOTH | 1535 1ST AVE. SEATTLE, WA 98101 | 206-485-7392 WWW.ROBOTVSLOTH.COM
Peace on Earth
Palestine by Joe Sacco
FANTAGRAPHICS
BOOKSTORE 1201 S. VALE ST. SEATTLE, WA 98108 206-557-4910
Kait Rhoads innovates with the traditional Italian glass patterning technique of murrini to create structure and imagery of growth systems in her beautifully crafted blown glass and woven fiber sculpture and limited-edition jewelry. This year, give a unique gift of beauty and support a local artist!
KAIT RHOADS DESIGN | WWW.KAITRHOADSDESIGN.COM
PRIVATE STUDIO IN WEST SEATTLE, OPEN BY APPOINTMENT ONLY.
Bigfoot Bundle packaged in a Taste of the Pacific Northwest gift box:
• Bigfoot Northwest Rainforest Crunch: caramelized nuts, pretzels, & chocolate popcorn. Made in Coos Bay.
• Chocolate & caramel Bigfoot paw. Made in Spokane.
• Northwest Monster rum raisin oatmeal cookie. Made in Shelton.
• Sasquatch sticker designed by Seattle artist Henry
• Mug with artwork by Native artist Francis Horne, Sr.
WWW.PACIFICNORTHWESTSHOP.COM
Gi Guide
Experience a bold reimagining of The Nutcrackerballet in The Nutcracker & The Battle for the Key! Join Clara on a winter adventure across enchanted realms, where secrets are locked, and courage is the key. With stunning choreography, live orchestration, and captivating visuals, this is a holiday journey like no other—only in Ellensburg! Book your tickets now and make it an unforgettable winter escape!
ELLENSBURG DANCE ENSEMBLE | MCCONNELL HALL
405 E UNIVERSITY WAY, ELLENSBURG, WA 98926
WWW.ELLENSBURGDANCE.ORG/NUTCRACKER
Give the gift of an experience!
Unlock unforgettable memories at The Works Seattle! Give the gift of an experience that lasts a lifetime. Fromhands-on workshopstoDIY Kits- we ship nationwide! - there is something for everyone on your list.
THE WORKS SEATTLE | 3516 FREMONT PL N SEATTLE, WA 98103
WWW.THEWORKSSEATTLE.COM
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Show your eco-friendly style and your commitment to equity! Made from upcycled coffee bean sacks, this bag is part of Refugee Artisan Initiative’s Burlap Collection. Whether you gift it to a friend or keep it for yourself, you’ll feel great about purchasing this tote. Sewn locally by skilled refugee and immigrant women and certified through Nest’s Ethical Handcraft Program, it’s a must have!
REFUGEE ARTISAN INITIATIVE | REFUGEESARTS.ORG
Finnriver Cider Club
Finnriver is a certified organic orchard, Salmon Safe Farm, and B Corp on Washington’s beautiful Olympic Peninsula. We grow and source organic, wild harvested, and seasonal ingredients for our ciders. Give the gift of farmcrafted cider and choose between our 3, 6, or 12 bottle quarterly club. It’s FREE to join and members enjoy year-round discounts and access to exclusive small batch releases.
FINNRIVER FARM & CIDERY | 124 CENTER ROAD, CHIMACUM, WA 360-339-8478 | FINNRIVER.COM/JOIN-CIDER-CLUB
Gi Guide
Give the gift of science-backed self-care this holiday with an alignment-based yoga or massage gift certificate from our Lower Queen Anne studio. Your loved ones will feel realigned, relaxed, and ready to crush 2024. No fluff, just expert hands & mindful movement. Shop gift certificates online athttps://tinyurl.com/zvwcz66r. Bundles of gift certificates are also available at a discount in the studio.
BODY REFLECTS YOGA AND BODYWORK 423 3RD AVENUE WEST SEATTLE, WA 98119 | 206-679-0111 BODYREFLECTS.COM
Gift the beauty of the Pacific Northwest with Stone Anvil’s 18-karat gold Cedar Branch earrings. These exquisite earrings capture the intricate details of western red cedar branches, handcrafted to perfection in solid gold. They’re a stunning blend of elegance and natural inspiration, making them a timeless addition to any nature lover’s collection. Available atwww.stoneanviljewelry.com
STONE ANVIL | WWW.STONEANVILJEWELRY.COM
One gift, a year of quality time
The Burke Museum showcases scientific artifacts and cultural items. With windows that enable visitors to watch researchers and scientists as they uncover fossils, restore cultural belongings, and prepare specimens, there is always something new to see at the Burke. Members get free admission, priority access to special events, exclusive behind the glass opportunities, and more.
BURKE MUSEUM | BURKEMUSEUM.ORG
The perfect gift for the cider fan in your life.
The largest selection of craft ciders in the U.S. is here in Seattle, via Press Then Press. Shop their collection of 500+ expertly curated cider options from around the world, or join their cider club and have a variety pack of world class cider delivered throughout the year.
Spending the Holidays Alone Is Okay If You’re Queer
…Or Straight and Your Family Sucks
BY VIVIAN Mc CALL
When I was a kid, Christmas was a complex, multiday affair that began with a nonstop drive to my grandparents’ house in suburban Chicago. This sucked, and how much it sucked depended on where we happened to live at the time. Philadelphia is a manageable 11 and a half hours from Chicago. Dallas is a less-manageable 14. If you’re lucky, the drive from Tampa to Chicago is 18 hours. It’s 22 if you’re not. I’m pretty sure that’s when I heard “fuck” for the first time; it remains an essential part of my vocabulary. My parents and I split the holiday between the German-Italian megachurch Baptists on my dad’s side and the Irish Catholics on my mom’s. If you know nothing of Christianity, FYI, these are very different vibes. I’ll summarize: Irish Catholics seethe privately,
Baptists and Italians fight openly.
On my dad’s side, I could tell “Santa” was my grandma because she had the receipts , but in true idolarous fashion, my Catholic family created an elaborate ruse to convince us Santa existed. They pulled o the following for years:
Step 1: After dinner, my aunt drove my cousins and me to North School Park in Arlington Heights, Illinois, which every year stages an elaborate, nondenominational holiday display. (I was always drawn to a scarlet letter A, illuminated from below by a ring of floodlights, that stood for “atheist.” For me, this was foreshadowing.) Meanwhile, back at the house, adults removed presents from the basement and set them underneath the tree.
Step 2: Illinois is freezing cold in December, and lights are only so interesting to children. In the
BEATRICE HAYWARD
PIZZA
warm car, my aunt pretended Santa’s elves had called to provide constant updates on his location. She drove aimlessly until she spotted her quarry, the blinking red light of an airplane landing at O’Hare. “Rudolph!” she’d exclaim. Then she’d gun it. While we were out, the adults took single bites of multiple sugar cookies. Someone sipped the milk, foreshadowing midnight mass. They flipped o the lights and rushed downstairs to the basement. Someone called my aunt.
Step 3: My aunt pretended to lose track of Rudolph. We were furious with her but forgot our anger upon seeing the telltale signs of Santa outside the house. We ran haphazardly up an icy driveway. Somebody invariably ate shit. We threw open the door, screaming, but were careful to toss o our shoes. Tracking slush onto my grandfather’s carpet would end the fun immediately.
Step 4: The adults ran upstairs with looks of astonishment.
After a very demoralizing 2019 holiday, I needed a break, and COVID forced my hand.
You know that weird thing where men raw-dog flights by not doing anything at all? I basically did that through the holiday season, and you know what? It’s self-harm. I swear to god, ahead of my next flight, I’m going to stu a tote bag with John Grisham novels so I can pelt one at every idiot I see staring at a fucking headrest. Reading is sexy, gentlemen
I would not recommend bed-rotting through a holiday if the holiday is important to you. Legitimately, it’s a risk to your health. There’s a better way, but only you know what that is.
You, gay or trans reader, might be spending the holiday alone, away from your family, this year. Maybe for the first time or the twentieth. It might be your choice; it might be theirs. Maybe choice isn’t a factor because the vibes are that rancid.
I believed in Santa, even when I kinda didn’t, because I didn’t want the fun to end. Since my parents and I moved a lot and were the only ones on either side who lived outside of Chicago, Christmas became synonymous with home and stability. I looked forward to it all year. That’s why it stung so badly when my transition disrupted my enjoyment of Christmas.
I get a stomachache when I think about the first couple of times I visited my family for Christmas after coming out. When your deepest darkest secret is your gender, wearing a cheap Target dress and bad makeup is a humiliation ritual. I endured that weirdness because I hoped at least one aspect of my life would return to normal if I talked normally to people who did not acknowledge my emotional coming-out email or give a great big hug to the aunt who did reply but told me I’d burn in Hell for this. The hardest part was swallowing the resentment I felt for the few who supported me but not enough to stand up for me. To my mom’s side: We’re cool, love you guys. To my dad’s: Still not sure about most of you, but you have my number.
I could give you the advice my therapist did when COVID started—people are capable of hugging themselves, and here’s how—or, instead of repeating the saddest advice ever given, I’ll let you in on the one good realization that came from my bed-rotting on Christmas: I could not control how my family acted, but I had the power to make my day worse or make it better. All I needed was permission. So here’s yours: Do whatever thefuck you want. The day belongs to you.
Play Zelda naked on your couch. Meet a Grindr hookup and find new and interesting uses for ketchup. Overspend on takeout. Hit up a friend raised in a di erent religion and lie to them about your traditions—they’ll never know! Ask your friends to dress as ghosts for an elaborate Victorian Christmas dinner. Take a long, cold, solitary walk. I’ve done a few of these. I’ll never say which.
If you’re anything like me, letting go of traditions is incredibly hard. At this point, I could definitely go home for Christmas—there are many other elaborate traditions I’ve left out. But flights to Chicago are expensive. And, for now, I’m enjoying myself too much. n
An Introvert’s Guide to Volunteering
Four Ways to Help Without Talking to People Much
BY ASHLEY NERBOVIG ILLUSTRATIONS BY KAITLIN BRITO
As the holidays approach and the smell of cinnamon and wet leaves fill everyone’s noses, it feels as if some Pavlovian response kicks in to Be Good. At the same time, volunteering can sometimes be a little overwhelming, especially when it requires a lot of socializing. But lucky for you all, we’ve got some ideas on how you can help your community without all the yap-yap-yapping that might drain you right before you have to yap-yap-yap with your friends and family.
Run Errands for a Local Animal Rescue
Animal shelters always need an extra pair of hands. We chatted with the people over at Motley Zoo Animal Rescue, who said they need assistance with all kinds of things people don’t always think about. A lot of pet foster parents work and could use the help taking pets to vet appointments, events, or the groomer. The rescue also needs people to pick up food supplies from donating pet stores. If someone wants to volunteer within their own neighborhood, they can go to local businesses and hand out business cards and flyers, and then replenish them when the business runs low. Call up your local rescue or shelter and see what they need. Or reach out to Motley.
Bolster the Seattle Community Fridge Project
Seattle’s local community fridge organization has a lot of duties that allow people to do some solo volunteering. Reid Branson, a community fridge coordinator, said he himself is an introvert and can happily accommodate anyone interested in helping out but uninterested in a lot of small talk. The main thing people can do for Seattle Community Fridge is drop off food, Branson said, whether that’s prepared individually packaged meals or perishable items such as string cheese, fruit, or even shelf-stable stuff for the pantries that accompany the fridges. People can also help clean out old food and sanitize the fridges. To become oriented with the group, they’ll ask you for at least one initial meet up, but that can be in person, by email, or by Instagram message. They’re really chill about how you connect, and the time commit-
ment is about 30–60 minutes each week, but that can be flex, depending on how involved you want to be. That’s a steal for helping to curb food insecurity in Seattle, in our opinion. Check out the Seattle Community Fridge network on Instagram for more information, or email them at seattlecommunityfridge@gmail.com.
washing dishes after they serve the Peoples Breakfast on Sundays. The project requires people to do at least one social thing—show up at 10 am on Sunday at University Heights and ask to join up—but after that, you can quietly scrub dishes for a little less than an hour and then take off, with minimal chitter-chatter in between.
Clear Leaves and Snow and Pick Up Litter
The group’s also hoping to build a website sometime in the future, so if anyone wants to code alone in their home, SFC is excited to hear from you.
Generally Check Out Mutual Aid Programs
There are local mutual aid programs all across the city—from the undocumented-focused Super Familia King County to the BIPOC Food Sovereignty Pantry—and many of them need people to deliver supplies, put together bags of survival supplies for the unhoused, deliver groceries, or just wash dishes. The Seattle Mutual Aid Coalition literally has a shift that’s just
Sometimes people feel like they must volunteer with an organization to make a difference. We think that’s silly. Sure, it feels a little more satisfying for people to see you helping out, but we’re here to tell you that we see you, and we’ll know you raked up those annoying mushy leaves that make it hard to walk to our bus stop or grabbed that empty cup skittering across the road. And we’ll DEFINITELY notice if someone, for the love of everything accessible, just shovels the sidewalk in front of their apartment building. Just be careful. People die every year from shoveling walks—seriously! Google it!—so take breaks and make sure your heart can handle it.
What Are You Bringing to the Holiday Potluck?
Four Local Chefs Share Their Best Quick and Easy Feed-a-Crowd Recipes
BY MEGAN SELING
Aislinn McManigal
Chef at Marjorie
Roasted Cabbage with Horseradish and Parmesan
Heat your oven to 450. Place a large cast iron pan or sheet tray in your oven to warm. Cut one small cabbage into quarters through the core and then cut the quarters into 1-inch thick wedges. I leave a small piece of the core in to keep the wedges intact.
Coat the bottom of your pan with a thin layer of olive oil and lay your cabbage pieces down. They can be touching but don’t overlap. You may have to work in batches if using a cast iron, but the sear is worth it! Drizzle the cabbage with an even coat of olive oil, trying to get some in between the leaves. Sprinkle with salt and return to the oven for 35 minutes or until the cabbage is tender and crispy on the edges.
While your cabbage is roasting, mix 1 cup sour cream, 1/4 cup mayonnaise, 4 tablespoons horseradish (play with this amount to suit your spice intake), 2 teaspoons black pepper, and juice of half a lemon in a small bowl. Salt to taste. Prepare your serving plate and spread a thick layer of your sauce over the bottom of the plate. I like to serve extra sauce on the side.
Flip your cabbage over so the caramelized bottom layer is facing up on top of your horseradish sauce. Squeeze lemon juice over the top and grate a generous amount of parmesan cheese.
This recipe is also great with the addition of roasted walnuts!
Becky Selengut
Chef and cookbook author Roasted Beet Hummus
This comes from my newest book, Misunderstood Vegetables. [Editor’s note: This book is lovely, and it makes a great gift for anyone who eats food.] Everyone loves hummus, it’s the quintessential potluck dish. I’ve been to more than one party where there were multiple bowls of it, all a little different.
We asked four of our favorite chefs to share their best quick-and-easy recipes that make enough to feed a crowd, but can also be enjoyed alone, in the dark, with Bob’s Burgers holiday episodes on loop.
So... make hummus, but make it different. Roast exactly 1 medium beet with a little olive oil, salt and pepper, wrap it in foil, and throw it in a 400 oven until tender. Peel it and add it to the blender or food processor as you make your hummus. You can even cheat and buy hummus and then add the roasted beet. The beet turns the dish into a festive magenta. Serve it with grilled or toasted pita, get fancy and sprinkle some dukkah on top. Or not. Call it beetmus. Or not.
Rachael Coyle
of Musang and Kilig
with Caramelized Onions, Garlic, and Tomatoes
This is one of my go-to dishes that I make at least once a week. If you’re like me, you have half-cut onions that need to be used, garlic that’s almost over, and any kind of tomato (like cherry) that are giving their last breath.
Doesn’t sound like much, but trust that it will hit that craving you don’t know you’re craving.
Slice up your onion into thin strips and mince up your garlic. Cut your tomatoes in half, if they’re cherry, or dice them up if they’re a different kind of tomato. If you have leftover bacon or pancetta, dice that up too! Find whatever leftover pasta you have laying around and get a large pot of water on the stove and bring it to a boil. Salt it like ocean water. In a saute pan, heat up some olive oil and toss your onions and garlic in the pan, and if you’ve got that bacon, add that too. Let it caramelize and get golden and then add your tomatoes. Add a ladle of that boiling water and let it simmer. Cook up your pasta like they say to, and when it’s ready, throw it into your saute pan. Save a ladle of liquid, just in case you feel like it needs it. Swish it around and if you’re feeling spicy, add some red pepper flakes and a knob of butter. Crack some black pepper on top and you’ve got yourself a warm hug to feed your soul.”
Owner of Coyle’s Bakeshop Cookie Dough Balls
My key to the holidays is having a goodsized stash of Cookie Dough Balls in my freezer.
Cookie dough balls (let’s just call them CDBs so I don’t have to keep typing balls over and over) don’t need to be thawed before baking, so you can produce freshly baked cookies with little effort or time.
Almost any cookie recipe can be given the frozen CDB treatment. If the recipe starts with creaming butter & sugar together (as 99.9% of cookie recipes do), it will freeze beautifully—and I guarantee that your favorite bakery is doing exactly this.
Getting yourself to this enviable state of CDB-preparedness means making your dough NOW. Grab your favorite recipe and mix up the dough. Chill it in the fridge (it’s much easier to shape dough that’s cold and not too sticky). Next, sit down in front of the TV and roll the dough into balls. If the cookies get rolled in sugar or some such thing before baking, also do that now. Lay the CDBs on a tray so that they are not touching and put them in the freezer; when completely frozen, bag them up, or put them in airtight containers.
Your frozen CDBs are ready to bake as needed. Throw them in a pretty box and pretend you didn’t forget someone’s gift. Bake some and bring them with fancy ice cream to a party. Eat them unbaked, alone in your kitchen, while you stare into the abyss.
Melissa Miranda Founder
Pasta
The Golden Glow of an Ice-Cold Martini
Throwing a holiday party? Make this batch cocktail and get out from behind the bar.
You might be the kind of person who loves to stay behind the bar and shake drinks all night for your guests. But if you’re not that guy, nothing’s better than a festive batch cocktail for your holiday parties. We asked Bar Miriam’s Megan Russell to share the recipe for one of her go-to holiday treats: Her Golden Spice Martini Recipe. She infuses her martini fixings with sa ron, star anise, and allspice for a cocktail that’s as pretty as it is complex—on the palate, that is. All of the work for this cocktail is just letting the spices infuse. Then you get to sit back and sip for the rest of the night.
Golden Spice Martini (makes 10)
•20 oz Bombay, Tanqueray, or Mahón Spanish Gin
•5 oz Lustau Manzanilla Sherry
•5 oz extra dry vermouth
•10-15 strands of saffron
•1 star anise
•3 allspice berries
•2 oz Italicus Bergamot Liqueur (optional)
Put the gin, sherry, and optional bergamot liqueur into a container along with the saffron, star anise, and allspice berries. Let the spirits infuse for 2 hours, and strain the spices out.
To prepare the drink, add 3 ounces of the batch to a shaker with ice, stir for 30 seconds, and strain into your favorite martini glass.
If you’d like to do this as a “freezer door martini,” split between two bottles and add 10 ounces of filtered water to dilute, and you can just pour 4 ounces of the batch into your favorite martini glass and go!
To garnish
•For a more citrusy option, express a lemon peel over the martini, garnish with the expressed lemon peel
•A single star anise (my mom’s personal favorite to add a little extra spice aroma)
•Quick pickled cranberries (for dirty martini fans, add a splash of brine before serving. Go to thestranger.com to find the pickling recipe.)
PHOTO BY MEGAN RUSSELL
A BROKE MANHATTAN MADE KEITH HARING A FAMOUS ARTIST
The Stranger took a trip through the new MoPOP exhibit, and 1980s New York City.
CHARLES
MUDEDE
NICK ELGAR / CORBIS / GETTY IMAGES
It’s early October, and I’m in what is still the center of my whole world, Manhattan. This is the edge of the East Village. Here is East 14th Street. And there, on Avenue A, I first see a food truck that promises it can “Feed Your Soul.” But something else, something larger, catches my eye. I look up and find a giant mural of the Beastie Boys. The three old school emcees are posing b-boy style with a boombox.
“Posse in Effect,” by muralist Shepard Fairey, rises eight stories above Avenue A, only three blocks from the studio (171-A) where the Beastie Boys made their first record in 1982. This is 229 East 11th Street. Here, where presently a psychic and laundry do business, the Fun Gallery opened its doors in 1981.
It was the first art gallery in the East Village and showed artists like Jean-Michel Basquiat and Keith Haring at their peak. But it also provided a point for hiphop, which featured Black and Brown artists, to intersect with a No Wave music, film, and art scene that was predominately white. The reason why the Beastie Boys switched from the punk music they recorded at 171-A to the hiphop recorded in 1983 for Rat Cage Records, “Cooky Puss,” is precisely this intersection.
The exhibit currently happening at the
Museum of Pop Culture, Keith Haring: A Radiant Legacy, can only be understood in terms of this intersection. Haring, along with Fab Five Freddy, a graffiti artist, and
Back then, you were condemned to move quickly, to make as much art as humanly possible. There was no room for rest. You had to be radiant.
Charlie Ahearn (the director of the greatest hiphop film on record, and a key figure in the formation of the Fun Gallery), participated in The Times Square Show, a 1980
exhibit that brought this intersection to a wider audience. In fact, that show marked the point when Haring left the art school world and entered the art of the streets and underground. Without this transition, his name would mean nothing to us today.
I visited Keith Haring: A Radiant Legacy the day before my trip to Manhattan. And what struck me immediately was its presentation. After passing the series of subway images, I felt I was inside Haring’s vermicular style, which has about it the experience of walking through Manhattan’s packed and winding streets: One section is devoted to his commercial works; you turn, walk, and find a set of Haring’s personal works; and another walk around leads you to a wall with a warning about the section’s explicit content.
I stopped for a moment before the Icons Suite. It has the famous flying angels, the
Haring mural in Manhattan, 1986
KEITH TORRIE / NY DAILY NEWS ARCHIVE VIA GETTY IMAGES
radiant baby on all fours, and, of course, the barking dog. The last of which recalled in my mind the opening of a cruelly neglected but groundbreaking hiphop track by Man Parrish, “Hip Hop Be Bop (Don’t Stop).”
Around the time Haring was drawing barking dogs on black boards that, due to a deep recession, lacked advertisements in New York’s subway system (1982), “Hip Hop Be Bop (Don’t Stop)” dropped, and we heard the sound of Haring’s dog: Barking at night. Barking at empty, dilapidated buildings. Barking at “broken glass everywhere.”
Haring left Pennsylvania in 1978, not long after briefly studying commercial art at the Ivy School of Professional Art in Pittsburgh, and settled in a city that was drawing white artists who decided to move in the opposite direction of their parents, from the urban to the suburban. This movement was not huge, but it was enough for interesting things to happen. New York
City at the time was actually bankrupt and had been famously told to “drop dead” when it pleaded for federal assistance from Gerald Ford. The city, of course, wasn’t
I felt I was inside Haring’s vermicular style, which has about it the experience of walking through Manhattan’s packed and winding streets.
broke, but its public servants had powerful unions, and those in power used the city’s deficits to attack these municipal unions. This is what finally plunged the city into
a depression that hit the poor like nothing else. Unemployment spiked, and property values collapsed. But that is only a part of the story.
At the very same time, Manhattan became the center of global capitalism. Its stock market began a supernova-like expansion that is still with us today. And so we have at once the poverty that’s captured in Ahearn’s Wild Style side by side with the boom in the markets we find in Oliver Stone’s Wall Street. It is in this contradiction we find the meaning of the show at MoPOP. It could be called Keith Haring: A Radiant Legacy because the period opened by the devastation of New York City’s working classes was brief: From the mid-’70s to around the time Haring opened his Pop Shop, 1986. The door, as it were, opened almost as quickly as it closed. You had to make it within this period, make it while rent and life in the city were
affordable. Gentrification, which closed the contradiction between Wall Street and the streets, was around the corner. A poor Basquiat or poor Haring could not afford to live in the East Village I visited in early October. Back then, you were condemned to move quickly, to make as much art as humanly possible. There was no room for rest. You had to be radiant.
The show captures this intensity. From wall to wall, you sense the hurry, this race to the finish line. And we must associate this urgency not with the fact that Haring’s life was cut short by AIDS (he died in 1990 at the age of 31). Haring was on the move before being diagnosed with HIV in 1988. Even while attending Manhattan’s School of Visual Arts, he was prolific. And the move from academia to the subway only accelerated his production.
Though A Radiant Legacy is impressive in its size and details concerning the
ServingSeattlefor over50years!
artist’s spectacular rise to stardom and includes a note on Haring’s early but almost completely forgotten collaborator, LA II (Angel Ortiz), it still amounts to a blip of his tremendous output in the subway, in galleries, in magazines, album covers, music videos, on himself, on Grace Jones, and on walls around NYC and the world. But the show does give you a good dose of his genius, which extended to the politics of his time: The struggle for LGBTQ rights, the
Though the exhibit is impressive in its size, it still amounts to a blip of his tremendous output in the subway, in galleries, on album covers, and on walls around NYC and the world.
anti-nuclear movement, AIDS activism, and the anti-Apartheid movement, all of which are represented in Legacy.
My penultimate favorite part of the show, in fact, is a collection of lithographs in the Social Justice section known as the Free South Africa Suite. Made in 1985, the twilight of the Apartheid that educated Elon Musk, they depict, in Haring’s unmistakable cartoon manner, a small white person struggling with a giant Black person they have on a leash. Eventually, the white person gets stomped by a giant Black foot. And as they bleed on the ground, the leash, which has transformed into a snake, begins eating them. Nelson Mandela was released from prison five days before Haring died.
The ultimate piece of the show for me, however, turned out to be a thick slice of drywall from Haring’s Pop Shop, which opened in 1986 with the philosophy that art should be for everyone. True, there has been much debate about the affordability of the objects sold in this business, which marked the end of the road for the period that gave us the hyper-creative Manhattan we see in No Wave movies and hear in early Def Jam records. All that’s left of this remarkable time are murals, such as the one I encountered on an upscale East Village building, and exhibits like Legacy. Money ruins everything. n
Haring at the Art Gallery of NSW, 1984
STUART WILLIAM MACGLADRIE / FAIRFAX MEDIA VIA GETTY IMAGES
See Keith Haring: A Radiant Legacy at MoPOP through March 23, 2025
COURTESY OF MOPOP
Let’s ensure no one goes without this winter. Scan QR code to give today bit.ly/2024LAHH •Live Music •Restaurant •Lounge •Project Room
Django Bells Jazzy Holiday Concert with Ranger and the "Re-arrangers" 11/22
Steve Messick's Holiday Jazz Showcase 12/8
Home for the Holidays with Danny Quintero and Critical Mass Big Band 12/12
22nd Annual Holiday Hootenanny and Sing-A-Long 12/13 and 12/14
South Hudson Music Project Presents: The Music of “A Charlie Brown Christmas" 12/15 and 12/17
Nancy Erickson Lamont: Home for the Holidays Concert 12/19
Home for the Holidays w. George Fulton Septet and the Kate Molloy Quintet 12/23
South Hudson Music Project Presents: Hanukkah at the Royal Room 12/29
South Hudson Music Project Presents: New Years Eve at the Royal Room! with Barton Horufi and His Orchestra - Classic Swing Music from 30s, 40s and 50s
All Ages until 10pm!
PHOTOGRAPHY BY BILLIE WINTER
CAPTIONS BY HANNAH MURPHY WINTER
NINETY HANDS ON DECK
We went behind the scenes with the Pacific Northwest Ballet’s costume department as they prepare for the biggest production in the company’s history.
Just a few steps from the Pacific Northwest Ballet’s stage, sits an ordinary o ce building filled with extraordinary people: One who specializes in custom stockings, another who is a dye expert, one who’s deeply knowledgeable about period gowns, and another about tiaras.
This is the Ballet’s costume department, and this fall, they’re taking on the company’s biggest show ever: A brand new production of Tchaikovsky’s The Sleeping Beauty. The set was designed by Native American glass artist Preston Singletary, the puppets come from famed puppeteer Basil Twist, and the costume design is directed by Paul Tazewell, who you may have heard of when he won a Tony for his work on Hamilton.
This group of highly specialized artisans—90 so far—is tasked with taking all three of those artists’ dreams and turning them into a reality. We got to step behind the curtai and see that magic while it was still brewing.
Continued on page 38
GLADVENT CALENDAR
Countdown to 2025 with One Really Great Thing to Do Every Day in December!
ow, things got weird this year, huh? Chances are you want to tuck under a stack of weighted blankets and sleep until 2028. Us, too! We have to push forward, but there will be plenty of time to fight in 2025. For now, we party! Seattle is one of the only cities in America that got shit right on November 5, so let’s rej oice and celebrate the fact that We! Are! Great! Chug festive cocktails! Get happy and weird with Scott Shoemaker’s War on Christmas ! Fall into a trance at a gaudy light display! (If you starelong enough you might be able to fool your brain into thinking the sun didn’t set at 4 pm.) Find many more good things to do a t everout.com/seattle. ILLUSTRATIONS BY MICHAEL MERGENTHALER
W5 VISUAL ART December First Thursday Art Walk in Pioneer Square Don’t be a grinch, support local artists!
9 AUTHOR TALK Robin Wall Kimmerer at Town Hall Kimmerer, a member of Citizen Potawatomi Nation, is an award-winning nature writer and botanist.
4 COMEDY A John Waters Christmas at Neptune Theatre The Prince of Puke is back with his annual holiday show December 3–4 at the Neptune.
3 AUTHOR TALK Hsiao-Ching Chou and Meilee Chou Riddle at Book Larder Local chef and author Hsiao-Ching Chou wrote a cookbook of family recipes with her daughter, Meilee! Dumplings for everyone!
8 FILM The MuppetChristmas Carol at SIFF Cinema Uptown “Light the lamp, not the rat! LIGHT THE LAMP, NOT THE RAT!”
7 MUSIC Medieval Woman’s Choir at St. James Cathedral These women will make your brain burst in the best way. Read more about them in our winter calendar on page 63.
2 FOOD & DRINK The Stranger’s Holiday Drink Week! Read more about the festive $12 drink specials available at participating bars all over the city at thestranger.com!
1 MUSIC Cyndi Lauper at Climate Pledge Arena “She bop, he bop, we bop / I bop, you bop, they bop / Be bop, be bop, a lu bop.” (That song is about masturbation!)
6 SHOPPING Urban Craft Uprising Winter Show at Seattle Center UCU’s preview night is kid-free and less crowded than the general event, so you can leisurely shop more than 150 vendors and food trucks.
DANCE The Nutcracker at Pacific Northwest Ballet Did you know they use everclear to clean those intricate costumes? We went behind the scenes at the PNB—see photos and learn more fun facts on page 34. 12 HOLIDAY LIGHTS Astra Lumina at the Seattle Chinese Garden This illuminated “celestial pathway” is approximately one mile long and features 10 light displays. 13 PERFORMANCE Betty Wetter’s Blue Xmas at Clock-Out Lounge It’s Betty Wetter’s Christmas party, and she can cry if she wants to! 14 MUSIC Smooch at the Showbox A benefit for Seattle Children’s Hospital with Sebadoh! (Please wear a Santa costume, Lou Barlow.) 15 VISUAL ART Fischersund: Faux Flora at National Nordic Museum Read our interview with Jónsi and his Fischersund art collective on page 44!
& DRINK Eat a Cookie We’re featuring a cookie on Slog every day in December! Check out thes- tranger.com/cookiecount- down and treat yourself!
19 COMEDY Matt Rogers at Neptune Theatre Celebrate the holidays with everyone’s favorite Las Culturistas host! (Sorry, Bowen.)
18 FOOD & DRINK Miracle on 2nd at Rob Roy This annual holiday pop-up runs through December 25.
17 HOLIDAY LIGHTS Fiesta Navideña Night at Enchant Christmas at T-Mobile Park Hard to be S.A.D. when surrounded by more than FOUR MILLION lights!
16 PERFORMANCE Scott Shoemaker’s War on Christmas! at Theater Off Jackson This might just be the weirdest and best holiday tradition in all of Seattle.
24 COMEDY The Jinkx & DeLa Holiday Show at Moore Theatre Jinkx Monsoon and BenDeLaCreme hold holiday court at the Moore December 21–24.
23 COMEDY The Dina Martina Christmas Show at ACT Contemporary Theatre It simply isn’t Christmas until the brilliant Dina Martina delivers her unhinged rendition of ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas.
22 SHOPPING United Indians Native Art Market at the Daybreak Star Indian Cultural Center Because no one wants something you purchased in a panic at Target. For more gift ideas, see page 51.
21 MUSIC Thunderpussy at the Crocodile Rock out with your Thunderpussy out!
31 MUSIC Artist Home’s New Year’s Eve at Tractor Tavern With members of Smokey Brights, Black Ends, Wild Powwers, and more! Find more NYE party suggestions at thestranger.com!
30 HOLIDAY LIGHTS WildLanterns at Woodland Park Zoo Don’t want to deal with other people’s screaming, pee-covered children? The zoo’s 21+ nights are December 5 and January 2.
29 COMMUNITY Do Some Good Before Things Get Bad Learn about volunteer opportunities for introverts on page 19!
28 MUSIC Dancer and Prancer at Winterfest They’re the holiday-themed surf band you didn’t know you needed!
27 VISUAL ART Keith Haring: A Radiant Legacy at MoPOP Read about how this almost made Charles Mudede cry on page 25!
26 BOXING DAY Go Hit Something It’s been a hell of a year.
THEATER A Very Die Hard Christmas at Seattle Public Theater “The quarterback is toast!”
25 CHRISTMAS & THE FIRST NIGHT OF HANUKKAH Get Naked, Play Zelda Learn how to find your own happiness for the holidays on page 15.
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: Tazewell delivered two giant three-ring binders, called Costume Bibles. Each page, like this one, has a sketch and a series of fabric swatches; Nova Dobrev is the production’s rhinestone specialist—
otherwise called a “stoner.” She approaches rhinestone placement as an extension of lighting design; Meleta Bucksta , the costume shop manager, in front of just some of the department’s spools of thread.
PRIOR PAGE: Harly Ellis with an organza silk costume. They made 18 identical pieces, and it took one person four months just to carefully hem them all.
stgpresents.org
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: Erik Andor created a swarm of scurrying rodents by working with a bicycle fabricator. The puppeteers wear one on their head, another on one hand, and the other hand operates a metal wheel with several more rats cycling through. Andor often adds a golden tooth to his puppets—keep an eye out onstage; Andor wanted the crowns to nod to Preston Singletary’s glasswork. To keep them from being too heavy, they’re made of resin and PVC; Dye expert Wyly Astley. Virtually every piece of fabric is custom dyed to match the Bible.
NOCHE FLAMENCA “LA ∏ONDE” (BETWEEN YOU & ME) COMING TO FIELD HALL SATU∏DAY MA∏CH 1ST
World class theater and performing arts center in seaside Port Angeles, WA at the gateway to Olympic National Park Film • Music • Theater • Dance • Sciences USE CODE ST∏ANGE∏15 FO∏ 15% OFF TICKETS TO JAN-MAY FIELD HALL P∏ESENTS PE∏FO∏MANCES CHECK OU∏ CALENDA∏ BEFO∏E
Artwork by Diane Crago
Juni One Set [Degenerate Art Ensemble, Senga Nengudi, and yuniya edi kwon]: Boy mother / faceless bloom
December 12-14, 2024 | West Coast Premiere
Paul Budraitis: I Love That For You
January 16-19, 2025 | West Coast Premiere
Shamel Pitts | TRIBE: BLACK HOLE – Trilogy And Triathlon
February 6-8, 2025 | West Coast Premiere
Heaven Scent
Jónsi and the Fischersund Art Collective’s New Exhibit Is Kind of Amazing, Kind of
Magic
Ifan ethereal falsetto singing in an invented language wafted into your ears sometime over the last three decades, chances are good that it was Jónsi’s. But the Icelandic singer and multi-instrumentalist behind the post-rock band Sigur Rós is also invested in another immersive, ephemeral medium: He creates perfume with his sisters Lilja, Inga, and Sigurrós Birgisdóttir as Fischersund, an art collective based in Reykjavík.
BY LINDSAY COSTELLO
Fischersund: Faux Flora, the collective’s first exhibition, arrives at Seattle’s National Nordic Museum on the heels of FLÓÐ, Jónsi’s scented exhibition hosted by the museum in 2023. This show feels entirely distinct, though. Faux Flora envelops the viewer—or experiencer, rather—in a multisensory display of the chapters of human life through the lens of imagined plants, which are paired with scent blends and soundscapes.
Ahead of the exhibit’s opening, I spoke with Jónsi, Lilja, Inga, and National Nordic Museum chief curator Leslie Anderson about scent blending, botanical treatises, the climate crisis, and their favorite Icelandic plants.
Faux Flora is the first exhibition by Fischersund as a collective. What sparked your family’s interest in perfumery? How did that practice evolve into multimedia art?
Jónsi: I started perfuming around 15 years ago.
Inga Birgisdóttir: He was always showing us his creations, and we were amazed, but he was never happy with anything. Finally, we kind of bullied him into releasing one scent!
“When you use your eyes, you’re so used to being critical. But there’s something about music and scent that goes past those walls.”
Lilja Birgisdóttir: We’re all artists—musicians, perfumers, visual artists, photographers—so it was always a dream for us to create something bigger together. [Jónsi] had this house in downtown Reykjavík where he’d had his private studio, making music and perfumes. Then he moved his studio to LA,
so it was empty. So we painted the walls black, put some art on the walls, had music playing, and that was about it. That’s how [our perfumery] started.
Did each of you have specific roles in the creation of Faux Flora, or was it more of a collaborative process?
Jónsi: This is all collaborative, but we have our own strengths.
I’m curious how the sculptural, scented, graphic, and photographic elements in Faux Flora are brought together. What can someone expect when they walk into the museum space?
Inga: The exhibition shares the life cycle of a flowering plant: germination, growth, flowering, seed formation, and seed dispersal. We are kind of…
Jónsi: Mirroring.
Inga: Yeah, mirroring that process in human life: birth, growth, adolescence, adulthood, and death. The flowers are categorized in
JIM BENNETT PHOTO BAKERY FOR NATIONAL NORDIC MUSEUM
ONGEST NIGHT
a communally-minded, season-inspired Solstice party
Music performances
8:00 p.m. - 12:00 a.m. King Street Station FREE seattle.gov/arts/longest-night solstice ceremony
Movement meditation
Wellness activities
Participatory rituals
Curated by Vee Hua 華婷婷
DEC. 21, 2024
these five different chapters throughout the exhibition.
Lilja: You can expect to see some video works, hand-colored photographs, sculptures, music, and deconstructed scents. Each flower has its own scent and soundscape. Leslie Anderson: To situate this idea within the context of art history and natural science, [we were] thinking about this exhibition in relation to botanical treatises. These had so many different functions, but they were really a way to describe the natural world. Faux Flora is a clever response to that type of text, which would bear beautiful illustrations by artists but also contain descriptions of plants and communicate the experience of being with that example of plant life to anyone in the world. In this case, Fischersund takes it so much further because you can smell the plants. You can hear them in their environment.
Faux Flora was inspired by the 500 native plant species in Iceland, but the show invents new plant species. How does that process of invention work?
Jónsi: Icelandic plant life was a starting point, but it evolved from our imagination, our emotions, our memories.
Do any of you have a favorite Icelandic native plant?
Jónsi: Fífa is very cool. [Eriophorum angustifolium, common cottongrass ]
Inga: I also like Arctic root [Rhodiola rosea], which is like a super-plant. It’s really good for you, good for your memory. It smells really sweet.
Lilja: Chervil [Anthriscus cerefolium]—an Icelandic plant with a licorice scent. We have it in our teas and in the perfume.
Jónsi: We use a lot of Icelandic pine in our perfumes, too.
Curating a show with scent elements sounds like a unique challenge. Leslie, I’m curious how you integrate scent into a public space.
Leslie: There are lengthy conversations that we have to have on staff—concerns about our HVAC system, ensuring that the scent is impactful and soliciting the response that artists want, but with nothing dispersed in the atmosphere that could compromise other objects in the museum. It takes a lot of creative problem-solving to determine how we can ensure that the viewer is understanding the work in its entirety through their nose, while still operating within museum professional practices.
Scent in exhibitions is a way to elicit an emotional response, to evoke memory. I think that museums need to encourage people to spend time thinking deeply about and responding to works of art. That is an important artistic strategy here. It’s not too dissimilar from Bernini’s 17th-century fusions of the visual—painting, sculpture, architecture—to convey important points, or, in the 19th century, Wagner’s idea of a “total work of art,” or Gesamtkunstwerk. This is a human translation of these ideas wedded with forward-thinking artistic practices to get a full, emotional, physical response from the viewer.
It seems like scent is having a moment in contemporary art. I know FLÓÐ was a huge success; there was a 12.5% increase in museum membership during that time. What’s drawing artists and visitors toward scent as a medium and an experience?
Leslie: Coming out of the pandemic, [viewers were] searching for experiences that transported them. We’re more cognizant of how we spend our time, and we want these moments to be very impactful. I also saw FLÓÐ as a
A visitor gets a big whi of the Fischersund: Faux Flora exhibit.
JIM BENNETT PHOTO BAKERY FOR NATIONAL NORDIC MUSEUM
Silent Reading Party at Hotel Sorrento
very social exhibition. People spent hours by themselves in the space, but they also appreciated it in groups and talked about it. It allows viewers to experience and share in a way that they weren’t able to in lockdown.
I know seaweed was harvested from the Pacific and North Atlantic Oceans for FLÓÐ, Jónsi. Are there any anchor or primary scents in Faux Flora?
Jónsi: We were mostly excited about the five different stages. It is different from FLÓÐ, which centered on one scent—this is varied.
Lilja: For our “birth” scent, we were thinking about what scents we connect with that period—breast milk, skin, clean clothes. It’s nuanced because we are mirroring the human lifespan—like in childhood, you have the scent of grass-stained pants and candy. In the exhibition, the flowers themselves are hinting at what you’re smelling.
On the Fischersund website, I noticed how poetically scent is written about— like No. 23 Fragrance, which is rooted in Jónsi’s memories of working by the harbor with his father. That connection between scent and storytelling seems powerful. It’s cool to hear that you’re blending scents that are both unexpected and familiar, like grass and skin.
Lilja: Scent is a universal language. Grass smells the same anywhere in the world, you know? That’s the beautiful thing about smell… Jónsi: It’s a connector.
Does this work feel connected to climate change? I’m thinking about plants growing and dying and disappearing. I’m thinking about the ephemerality of our memories. Scent, as you just said, is a universal language—and the state of the climate is a universal crisis. Does that feel resonant?
Inga: Yes—we’re dealing with that every day. That’s our reality right now. Some of these memories or shared experiences that we are working with are disappearing, too.
Lilja: For example, we took old books and distilled them into a scent. It was interesting talking to young people about it, [for whom] everything happens on their screens. They didn’t have these connections, and their homes weren’t filled with books. That’s also something that’s changing—physical versus digital.
Leslie: Scent is such an effective tool in conjuring memories. In FLÓÐ, some of the visitor responses that I felt were most
powerful were those that reflected on rising flood waters and the climate crisis. But other people talked about how the scents brought them back to their youth in Norway. The show was interpreted differently by every single person. To your question on climate change and the extinction of plant life, I think that this exhibition follows along with botanical treatises and taxonomies,
“The world we’re living in—it’s sometimes so bleak. I think it’s important to make some magic.”
but it’s for the Anthropocene era. It’s memorializing, even though these are “faux” flora. It memorializes plants that we will lose because of human impact.
The process of imagining new plant species makes me think of your practice of singing in your invented Hopelandic language, Jónsi. What feels important about imagining something new in your work?
Jónsi: I think doing something new and exploring is important to all of us.
Inga: And of course, the world we’re living in—it’s sometimes so bleak. I think it’s important to make some magic.
You have scented concerts planned with Sin Fang and Kjartan Holm as opening receptions for Faux Flora. Do you see any similarities or differences between the perfumery process and the music-making process?
Jónsi: They’re linked. Making music is very… musical. [laughs] But perfume is [more of] a silent process.
Inga: Both are very layered. These layers make it juicy.
Jónsi: Both are invisible and abstract but still resonate in some way with everybody. So it’s kind of amazing. It’s magic.
Lilja: Yeah, it is magic. When you use your eyes, you’re so used to being critical. But there’s something about music and scent that goes past those walls. You either like a smell or you hate a smell. It’s the same in music.
Fischersund: Faux Flora will be installed at the National Nordic Museum through January 26, 2025.
Give the People What They Want
An Actually Helpful, Not-at-All-Sponsored Holiday Gift Guide
BY AUDREY VANN, JULIANNE BELL, AND LINDSAY COSTELLO
ILLUSTRATIONS BY TERESA GRASSESCHI
If you, like us, are sick of reading uninspired, disturbingly gendered gift guides full of Amazon products, we’re proud to present you with a thoughtfully curated and locally focused list of whimsical gift ideas that range in price and e ort. After all, you deserve better ideas than beard oil and novelty chip clips. We’ll turn you into a champion gift-giver in no time.
FOR THE BOOKWORM IN YOUR LIFE
Customized Book Bundles
In Iceland, books are the most popular Christmas gift. The holiday season is preceded by an annual book flood of new releases, and they’re exchanged between friends and family on Christmas Eve, often followed by a nighttime reading session that’s complemented by hot cocoa—a tradition I think we’d do well to adopt! If you want to channel some of that magic, try seeking out customized book recs for your recipients. The good people at the Seattle Public Library will happily provide a list of bespoke recommendations via their online Your Next Five Books program, and, of course, your local booksellers at shops like Elliott Bay Book Company and Charlie’s Queer Books can always point you in the right direction. I’m also a fan of the LGBTQ+owned, Wisconsin-based bookstore A Room of One’s Own Books, which will curate a sweet “queer qare package” with books and other surprises based on a questionnaire about your giftee. Prices range from $45 to $1,000. JULIANNE BELL
A New York Review Books Subscription
Last year, I received an NYRB Classics Book Club subscription for Christmas, and it improved my entire year. If you’re unfamiliar with NYRB—the publishing division of the New York Review of Books—imagine the book version of the Criterion Collection, known for reprinting obscure, classic, and
international titles with vibrant impressionistic artwork. With this annual subscription, your beloved book lover will receive one book per month. My favorites have been the metaphysical fiction novel The Skin of Dreams by French writer Raymond Queneau and the creative nonfiction collection The Unforgivable and Other Writings by Italian essayist Cristina Campo. AUDREY VANN
Children’s Books That Are Delightful for Adults, Too
If you’ve purchased any children’s books in the 21st century, you’re likely familiar with Carson Ellis. Still, we’d be remiss not to recommend her books. The illustrator’s naturalistic, folk-inspired, and richly detailed aesthetic falls in harmony with the Pacific Northwest landscape.
In The Shortest Day, Ellis illustrates a poetic reflection on the winter solstice, which sounds like a lovely holiday gift to me. (BTW, while you’re shopping for kids’ books, pick up a copy of Ellis’s new illustrated memoir, One Week in January, for yourself it revisits her experiences living in a Portland warehouse in the early 2000s, during which time she met future
FOR THE GIFT-GIVER WHO HAS NO MONEY BUT PLENTY OF TIME AND PATIENCE
Hand-Harvested Sea Salt
Did you know that you can harvest sea salt in your kitchen with a few buckets of fresh seawater and coffee filters? Many tutorials exist online; the gist of the process involves filtering and boiling the water until salt crystals form. Then, dehydrate the salty sludge in your oven until it turns into beautiful, fresh sea salt. Blend the salt with herbs or citrus zest to make it extra special! However, if you don’t have the desire to wade in the ocean collecting salt water with a bucket, you can simply gift a jar of locally harvested salt from San Juan Island Sea Salt, available in interesting flavors like truffle and bull kelp. AV
husband/Decemberists frontman/Wildwood writer Colin Meloy.)
And if you haven’t explored the enchanted realm of Phoebe Wahl’s children’s books, allow me to serve as your tiny mouse tour guide. (In alignment with Wahl’s aesthetic, I wear a strawberry for a hat and live beneath a mushroom cap.)
I go hard for Wahl—the Bellingham-based illustrator’s book Little Witch Hazel offers body-posi folklore with a heroine who rides an owl and doesn’t shave her legs. If you are interested in haunted tree stumps, streamside fairies, and moments of exceptional vulnerability, you have found your new favorite person. Little Witch Hazel is
a flawless book—I’ve even gifted it to adult friends—but Wahl’s other picture books, like Sonya’s Chickens and The Blue House, are treasures too, gently grappling with themes of gentrification and pet death. Ask about availability at Secret Garden Books in Ballard. LINDSAY COSTELLO
FOR YOUR HAPPILY OVERCAFFEINATED LOVED ONE
Boon Boona Coffee
Boon Boona Coffee is a Black-owned coffee roaster that brings the unique flavors and community-minded traditions of East Africa to Seattle. In addition to
A Christmas Ornament from Old World Christmas
One of my favorite things about Washington is that we are home to the country’s premier brand of Christmas ornaments (I promise it’s cooler than it sounds). Spokane-based elves Old World Christmas have produced magical, hand-painted blown glass ornaments since 1979. The best part is: They make ornaments of everything. With over 2,100 different ornaments, they have a wide variety of pets, foods, and pop culture icons to choose from. Looking for a Morton salt canister ornament? No problem. Need a pregnant snowman? They have that, too. What about Grandpa’s favorite recliner? Old World Christmas has you covered. Last year, I gifted my grandmother with a hot air balloon ornament to commemorate our voyage on the whimsical aircraft. AV
FOR THE FIBER ARTS FREAK
making incredible coffee, they’re dedicated to supporting ethical sourcing, women growers, and underserved African coffeegrowing regions. This summer, I bought a bag of their seasonal roast that listed strawberries as a tasting note on the label. To my delight, the roast tasted sweet but was also jammy and fresh with the earthy notes of strawberry seeds. I highly recommend buying the coffee addict(s) in your life a bag of Boon Boona beans or, better yet, one of their sample boxes or monthly coffee subscriptions. They also offer bags of green unroasted beans for coffee snobs who want to try their hand at the roasting process. AV
Money for Yarn, aka the Power of Choice
Besides knowing the difference between knitting and crochet, the greatest gift you can give a fiber arts lover is enabling their hobby. Most of the knitters and crocheters I know (myself included) overspend on yarn, so they’d probably love a gift certificate to a well-stocked LYS (local yarn store) like the Tea Cozy Yarn Shop, Fiber Gallery, Acorn Street Shop, or Stitches. Cute notions like scissors or stitch markers are also always welcome, since they likely lose theirs all the time. For a fun day or weekend trip, treat them to a shopping spree at the
sheep-to-skein producer Spincycle Yarns in Bellingham, yarn shops the Lamb & Kid and La Mercerie on Bainbridge Island, witchy Ritual Dyes in Portland, or yarn store/ speakeasy Skein & Tipple on Whidbey Island. JB
FOR THE PERSON YOU LOVE SO MUCH, NO OBJECT WILL SUFFICE
The
Melograno
in Scented Terracotta
at
Liten Apothecary
For the last decade, I’ve lovingly referred to it as “The Pomegranate”—an item I promised myself I’d buy someday if I’m ever wealthy. So far, that plan hasn’t worked out for me. But that doesn’t mean you’re not wealthy, or at least willing to shell out $75 for a scented terracotta fruit made by an 800-year-old Italian apothecary company. (Santa Maria Novella products were first crafted by Dominican friars in 1221.) This is the chicest object ever created. Here’s why: The Pomegranate’s key features include a bergamot
top, pomegranate (obviously) middle, and oakmoss base, and these notes coalesce into a spicy olfactory family. It also comes with a little plate, so your pomegranate has something to rest on. Santa Maria Novella explains that this fruit is “a universe that unfolds into unique and distinctive sensory nuances.” I am confident that your gift recipient requires more sensory nuance in their life. You can find the Pomegranate, which is more officially titled the “Melograno in Scented Terracotta,” at Liten Apothecary in Fremont. Plus, I have another (budget-friendly!) scent suggestion for you: Papier d’Arménie, which I’ve been purchasing for $5–$7 a pop for years. These little booklets of flammable scented paper have been in production in France since 1885, and they slide perfectly into a stocking. LC
A Tintype from Red Room Tintype
Unlike a typical photograph, a tintype is printed on a metal plate, which means it can last for 100+ years. This is particularly
FOR THE GLASSWARE COLLECTOR
A Chic Bottle of Booze or NA Spirit
Does your loved one have cupboards full of dainty little cups? I’m talking about champagne flutes, tiny cordial goblets, and grappa glasses. Listen to me: Don’t buy them any more vintage glassware! Instead, give them some reasons to use what they already have. The PNW is lucky to have countless distilleries, cideries, and bottle shops that peddle liquid gold. Gift them a bottle of flavorful hard cider from Finnriver or Twin Island Cider, both of which brew using local ingredients. Or watch their jaw drop as they unwrap a bottle of luxurious amaro from the Seattle-based, women-owned and -operated distillery Fast Penny Spirits. If they aren’t into the hard stuff, stop by alcohol-free bottle shop Cheeky & Dry for a chic bottle of NA spirits. No matter what drink your loved one is cheers-ing with this holiday season, you won’t go wrong with a jar of Luxardo cherries, available at several local grocery shops, including DeLaurenti and Metropolitan Market. AV
FOR THE WINE DRINKER
A Wine Subscription from a Local Bottle Shop
Want to impress your friend who has a Vivino account and is always talking about how much they love “glou-glou?” Sign them up for a wine club subscription from a hip spot like Left Bank in South Park, or La Dive, Otherworld, or Wide Eyed Wines on Capitol Hill. If they’re a bibliophile to boot, get them a curated wine and book pairing from Drink Books, which closed its Phinney storefront but still sells its combos online. JB
FOR THE TEA LOVER
Geek-Themed Tea from Friday Afternoon Tea
Loose-leaf aficionados will adore anything from Friday Afternoon Tea, a geekthemed tea shop in Wallingford. Owner Friday Elliott has lexical-gustatory synesthesia, which means she experiences words and concepts as flavors and uses this gift to craft specific blends inspired by sources ranging from Studio Ghibli films to The Lord of the Rings and Stardew Valley. For true indulgence, you can even book a custom tea blending appointment to create the brew of your recipient’s dreams. The staff is super friendly and knowledgeable, if you have any questions. JB
romantic if you’re in search of a gift that symbolizes everlasting devotion to a loved one. Last year, I took my friend Sophia to Red Room Tintype on Queen Anne to have our friendship memorialized forever, and I was awestruck by the ghostly, elegant result. Tintypes run around $150–$200. If you’re on a tight budget, consider creating your own similarly charming gift, like a Victorian-style shadow silhouette. All you need is black paper, scissors, creative lighting, and maybe a gilded frame from the thrift store. Make one of your friend’s pet—they will cry. AV
FOR THE HYGGE-LOVING FASHION ENTHUSIAST
Socks. Really, Really Nice Socks.
Hear me out—I know socks are often decried as a boring, overly practical present, but I think that’s reductive, especially when you can get socks as cozy and luxurious as the ones offered by the indie brand Le Bonne Shoppe, which are available at boutiques like Butter Home on Capitol Hill, MILLIE on Queen Anne, and Pipe & Row in Fremont. Their thick, cushy “cloud socks”
are my favorite, but styles like the sporty “girlfriend” and “boyfriend” crew socks and the stretchy ribbed “her socks” are just as timeless and stylish. For a more affordable sock option, I love the playful pairs sold at H Mart and Daiso. Alternatively, the Sock Monster in Wallingford has just about every variation you can think of, from tame to statement-making and from ankle socks to thigh-highs (including wide-calf and plus-size options). JB
FOR THOSE WHO HATE OVERCONSUMPTION AND CAPITALISM
Donate!
are facing a costly move in 2025). You could also make a pledge to KEXP to get the music lover in your life a snazzy T-shirt or mug. Or, if your significant other has said, “We should go hiking more,” buy them a Discover Pass. If they’re a history buff, sign them up to support their local PBS station so they can obsessively binge Antiques Roadshow (okay, maybe I’m projecting). AV
ONE MORE THING TO CONSIDER
Homemade Wrapping
I’m gonna get on my soapbox here: I don’t want to see any more wasteful and, frankly, ugly gift wrap from Target. Head to your nearest creative reuse store to find charming vintage paper, fabric, ribbons, stickers, and stamps. You’ll be surprised by what you can find. Last year, for under $20, I sourced various velvet ribbons, tiny bells, and butcher paper from Seattle ReCreative to wrap my holiday gifts—most of which I can reuse this year. They have two locations, in Georgetown and Greenwood. This practice saves on waste and money, and your friends and family will be impressed by your Martha Stewart-esque skills. AV a
loved one’s name, or consider setting aside
There’s an abundance of worthy local, national, and international causes to give your money to. For your consideration, we’re recommending: the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund and Anera, which are providing urgent humanitarian relief in Palestine and Lebanon; Connecting Humanity, which supplies eSIMs (virtual SIM cards) to Gaza residents; the Women’s Reproductive Rights Assistance Project, which works to bridge the financial gap in access to abortion and emergency contraceptives; and the Lavender Rights Project, a Seattle-based organization that empowers the Black intersex and gender-diverse community through intersectional legal and social services. Give a donation in your loved one’s name, or consider setting aside 10%–25% of your gift-buying budget to donate this year.
GIFTS THAT KEEP ON GIVING
A Membership to a Local Art Organization
Does your giftee love art? Gift a membership to the Seattle Art Museum, which gets them unlimited free admission for an entire year, along with other perks. If they’re a cinema buff, look into memberships at their local theater—such as SIFF or Grand Illusion (who
Seattle Art or Illusion
IDissociation Vacation
Four Ways to Escape Reality Without Leaving Seattle
BY ASHLEY NERBOVIG, HANNAH MURPHY WINTER, AND MEGAN SELING
t’s around this time every year that people start coming up with ways to manage the Pacific Northwest’s notoriously dark, damp winters, and without fail, those survival guides include the tip to get out of town. Go to Palm Springs, they say. Catch a flight to Hawaii, they yell. Well, wouldn’t that be nice, Mr. Money Bags Bags of Money?! But what do you do when you can’t physically escape Seattle’s Big Dark? You get creative. You find ways to dissociate take a vacation in your mind. Here are a few of our favorite ways to get out of our heads when the cold, the drizzle, the slick sidewalks, the existential election dread, and the endless blanket of gray get to be too much. take a
City Sweats’ Indoor Beach
A visit to a local sauna is a pretty obvious way to pretend you’re somewhere else. I won’t insult you by assuming you haven’t already thought of that. But did you know that most City Sweats locations HAVE THEIR OWN BEACH??? After you’re done sweating in one of their infrared booths, head to their air-conditioned back room, where you can sip complimentary hibiscus iced tea and eat orange slices in your own little cabana chair while running your toes through massive amounts of white sand. Yes! Real sand! Not the sand-pebble-toe-slicing-rock hybrid found on most local beaches. At the West Seattle location, there’s even a sweet little coastline mural painted on the wall for maximum imag-
ination. Just cue up some ocean soundscapes in your earbuds, sit back, and relax. (Think the staff would get mad if you DoorDash a Piña Colada? There’s only one way to find out!)
MEGAN SELING
Little Water Cantina
Tucked away on the south side of the ship canal, Little Water Cantina offers a respite from the unrelenting gloom of Seattle. While on stormy days, the big windows may force you to stare into the abyss of Lake Union’s choppy waters, all you have to do is turn your back to the window, and instead, soak in their mural—an exact replica of the view out the window, but on sunnier days. Plus, the heated, covered patio remains open all year round, so
on clear winter nights, you can still go and enjoy the fresh air and pretend it’s just a late summer evening with a bit of a chill. I particularly love their after 9 pm happy hour on Friday and Saturday, and their liquid nitrogen margaritas. ASHLEY NERBOVIG
The Indoor Sun Shoppe
Long-time locals already know this trick, but here’s a tip for newbies: Fremont’s Indoor Sun Shoppe is a beacon of literal warmth and light and the perfect chance to recharge your sun-deprived spirit. Not only is the space filled with mood-lifting sunlamps, but every inch of the shop is lush with every kind of plant you can imagine— they hang from the ceiling, line the shelves, and sit on the floor, forming winding paths. It feels like a tropical treehouse. (I always hope a small monkey should jump down from the ceiling onto my shoulders, but that has yet to happen.) Even if you aren’t a plant person, you likely won’t want to leave empty-handed. Thankfully, the knowledgeable staff can set you up with the perfect partner, from no-maintenance and low-maintenance terrariums and cacti to carnivorous plants that look like something that was beamed down to Earth during a total eclipse of the sun. (Feed me,
Seymour!) They also occasionally host workshops so you can get out of the house and socialize while soaking in all that fake sun, all of which are very good things to do for anyone starting to sink a little too deeply into the big sadness. MEGAN SELING
Inside Passage
You know that feeling when you’ve just gotten off a plane and you sidle up to a beach-side bar for your first boozy, overthe-top Vacation Drink? You can hear the palm fronds in the light evening breeze; you can smell the saltwater wafting in the air, and the orgeat and pineapple juice hides the strength of the double-proof rum you’re sipping out of an ornate tiki glass. It’s the first breath of vacation, because every single sense is telling you that you’re Somewhere Else.
Generally, you can only capture that feeling at home by going to a tiki bar, but then you have to quiet the voice inside your head, reminding you that Tiki Culture is one giant appropriation of Polynesian, Melanesian, and Micronesian cultures.
Enter Capitol Hill’s Inside Passage—a tiki bar without the tiki. Pass through the sliding door, and you’re in Kiki’s world: a giant kraken “that embodies the power of myth
itself and grows with every tale that is told.”
She lives in the Inside Passage—the sailing route from Seattle to Alaska that chooses the path between the outer islands and the mainland to avoid stormy, choppy waters.
If you don’t look too closely, Inside Passage looks like a traditional, ornate tiki bar, snatched out of the 1950s. But it’s built around Kiki’s mythology. When you sit down at the bar, her tentacles cover the ceiling above you holding tiny trinkets and rum barrels from sailors that weren’t able to survive the passage. The MOHAI-Tai is served in a Rainier can with smoked hops on the side; the One-Eyed Willy, the PNW’s most famous pirate, comes to you in a smoking treasure chest.
The cocktail program alone is worth it— and the bartenders love to lean into the bit. But if you ask me, the real reason to come here is the genuine feeling of that first night on vacation, with your first devil-may-care drink, and the feeling that you’re Somewhere Else.
HANNAH MURPHY WINTER
Eat Cake in the Bathtub
If you truly want to trick your brain into believing you’re somewhere you’re not, you need to engage all five senses. For me, that means drawing a warm bath and eating a
fat square of cake from Cakes of Paradise. Here’s how to capture all the right vibes: Run a warm but not hot bath. Crank the heat and set up a fan to create a cooling breeze. (Take care not to get the electrical shit too close to the water, obviously. That is the wrong kind of escape.) For music, make a playlist of whatever reminds you of vacation. I recommend Oof! by Seattle’s own Blue Scholars, which is all about MC Geologic’s Hawaiian heritage. (“Got a drink in my cup / Selecta with the tunes / Cruzin’ with my, cruzin’ with my, cruzin’ with my crew.”) Drop in a bath bomb that smells like coconut and maybe some of those tablets that turn the water blue, and set up a slideshow on your laptop that cycles through beachy, tropical scenes. Finally, grab that cake and climb in.
But really, it’s all about the cake. There’s an undeniable transportive quality to Cakes of Paradise’s desserts. Their guava, mango, and rainbow sponge cakes—topped with tart, salivary-gland-tickling fruit gel, and a generous layer of light whipped cream— taste like rays of sunshine. Even without all the scene-setting hullabaloo, you will feel like you’re somewhere bright, warm, and sweet with every perfect bite. Fuck Calgon. Cake, take me away. MEGAN SELING
Cakes of Paradise
BILLIE WINTER
The guava cake from Cakes of Paradise in Georgetown tastes like a sunset.
The Jinkx & DeLa Holiday Show
Your Winter Itinerary
BY
JULIANNE BELL, LINDSAY COSTELLO, SHANNON LUBETICH, MEGAN SELING, AND AUDREY VANN
Where to Find Shimmering Light Displays, Holiday Drag Shows, and Tacky Christmas Cocktails This Season
Astra Lumina: An Enchanted Night Walk Amongst The Stars
EVERY THU–SUN, THROUGH DEC 15
Los Angeles-born light experience Astra Lumina will return to illuminate the Seattle Chinese Garden for two months this year, transforming the botanical space into a “wonder of visiting stars” with projections, dazzling lights, music, and “astral energy.” Ooooo. Bundle up to stroll down the celestial pathway; you’re promised to encounter “cosmic visions and astral song.” (You may
also want to microdose first—laser shows of yore have confirmed that nothing’s more psychedelic than a good light-and-sound projection.) (Seattle Chinese Garden, 6000 16th Ave SW, various times, price varies, all ages) LINDSAY COSTELLO
Miracle on 2nd
DAILY THROUGH DEC 25
In 2014, New York bar owner Greg Boehm temporarily transformed his space into a kitschy Christmas wonderland replete with gewgaws and tchotchkes galore. Now, the
pop-up has expanded to more than 100 locations all over the world and will be returning to Belltown’s Rob Roy starting November 9. Beverages are housed in tacky-tastic vessels, bedecked with fanciful garnishes like peppers and dried pineapple, and christened with irreverent, pop culture-referencing names like the “Bad Santa,” the “Yippie Ki Yay Mother F****r” (their asterisks, not ours), and the “You’ll Shoot Your Rye Out.” (Rob Roy, 2332 Second Ave, 4 pm–2 am, 21+) JULIANNE BELL
WildLanterns
MULTIPLE DATES BETWEEN NOV 15–JAN 19, 2025
Grab some hot cocoa and get cozy with your friends, family, or Hinge date at this wintertime immersive experience full of giant glowing lanterns, each shaped like flora and fauna from around the globe. Kids and those of us who are kids at heart will enjoy a magical world with a forest train, tree fairies, and illuminated unicorns (good luck explaining that those don’t exist after your kids see this display), alongside
brilliantly lit peacocks and other winged creatures in the Birds of Paradise zone and monkeys hiding in the Under the Jungle Canopy. WildLanterns’s 2024 season includes nightly traditional Chinese cultural performances such as lion dances, umbrella juggling, face changing, chair balancing, and more. This year, the zoo has added two adults-only nights on December 5 and January 2 with specialty cocktails and interactive games. (Woodland Park Zoo, 5500 Phinney Ave N, 4–9 pm, $29.95–$39.95, all ages) SHANNON LUBETICH
Julefest: A Nordic Holiday Celebration
NOV 22–NOV 24
The National Nordic Museum’s annual Julefest is a weekend filled with holiday celebrations, including music, dancing, and winter fare from northern Europe. Modeled after a traditional Christmas market, it includes photos with Santa, wares from dozens of local artisans, and tasty Scandinavian snacks like
A Very Die Hard Christmas
MULTIPLE DATES BETWEEN NOV 22–DEC 22
æbleskiver for when you need to warm up your insides. New this year, the market will open on Friday evening for the 21-and-up crowd with festive drinks in the Valhalla Beer Hall and giving adults first dibs on goodies from vendors like Hygge Chocolates and Sky River Mead. ( National Nordic Museum, 2655 NW Market St, various times, free for museum members–$20 ) SL
Enchant Christmas
MULTIPLE DATES BETWEEN NOV 22–DEC 29
After two successful years and then a four-year hiatus, Enchant Christmas is back to transform T-Mobile Park into a winter wonderland complete with a giant light maze, ice skating trail, and vendor marketplace. Nightly activities include caroling, photos with Santa, story time with Mrs. Claus, and a refreshment list full of seasonal treats. Check out the calendar for special themed nights: You can bring your doggo to Paws & Claus on December 1 and 8 and celebrate Latin traditions and flavors at Fiesta Navideña on December 17. I went to Enchant Christmas on a date back in 2018 and was a little underwhelmed by the “maze” aspect and sticker-shocked by the price of hot chocolate, but I generally enjoyed my time, and I think kids would especially love it. ( T-Mobile Park, 1250 First Ave S, price varies, all ages ) SL
My expectations were very high the first time I saw A Very Die HardChristmas at the Seattle Public Theater. Like, blow-theroof-off-the-top-of-Nakatomi-Plaza-witha-shitload-of-C-4 big. Watching the 1988 action movie is my dearest Christmas tradition—I have seen it hundreds of times, and I am delighted to report that this locally produced musical interpretation of Die Hard, written by Jeff Shell and the Habit and directed by Mark Siano, was beyond my wildest imagination. It has everything! Fist toes! A white tank top decaying at a hilariously unrealistic pace! A computer nerd cheering, “Oh my god, the quarterback is toast!” when a rocket launcher blows up an armored police vehicle! I felt like I was watching all the best parts of the movie— with all my favorite lines appropriately exaggerated in the same way I hear them in my head—with 160 of my closest, most Die Hard-obsessed best friends. Ellis’s huge, cocaine-fueled musical number is worth the price of admission alone. (Seattle Public Theater, 7312 W Green Lake Dr N, $10–$100, all ages but recommended for ages 13 and up) MEGAN SELING
United Indians Native Art Market
NOV 23–24 AND DEC 21–22
Put your money where your land acknowledgment is and support the Indigenous community at this curated market and exhibition featuring goods from local Native artists. The market runs for a weekend in November and December, so there’s ample opportunity to choose from a wide range of gifts, including clothing, jewelry, art prints, woodworks, and instruments. Already finished with your holiday shopping? That’s fine—these high-quality creations will be in style all year round, and you’ve earned a little something for yourself, don’t you think? (Daybreak Star Indian Cultural Center, 5011 Bernie Whitebear Way, 10 am–4 pm, free, all ages) SL
Renegade Craft Fair
NOV 23–24
Billing itself as a “leading showcase of independent craft and design,” this craft fair founded in 2003 was the first of its kind, and it provides a refreshing alternative to the relentless deluge of consumerism and capitalism during the holiday season to this day. It returns to Hangar 30 in Novem-
ber—the weekend before Black Friday, whew!—with more than 180 curated indie vendors, plus a selection of outdoor food trucks. Handmade goods like delicate jewelry, bold ceramics, paper goods, scented candles, bath and body products, and other charming trinkets are sure to make even the grinchiest heart grow three sizes. (Magnuson Park Hangar 30, 6310 NE 74th St, 11 am–5 pm, $5 suggested donation, all ages) JB
George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker
MULTIPLE DATES BETWEEN NOV 29–DEC 28
It’s The Nutcracker—you already know the premise, but it never really gets old, does it? Tchaikovsky’s enchanting score will spring to life again in the Pacific Northwest Ballet’s sugar plum-packed rendition of the longstanding holiday tradition, complete with mice, tin soldiers, and a timeless trip to the Land of Sweets. (Delicious tip: They sell matching sweets in the lobby during intermission, should you get a craving.) Let’s say you’re all Nutcrackered out, though. Here are some little-known facts that might entice you: The production’s eight Polichinelle costumes are decked out with 640 black pom-poms, and there are 154 costumes in the show, not counting duplicates. The scenery is made up of 3,000 square yards of fabric, and 98 yards of faux fur were used to create the mice. (Personally, there’s nothing like 98 yards of faux fur to get me into the holiday spirit.)
(McCaw Hall, 321 Mercer St, various times, $65–$207, all ages) LC
Winterfest
DAILY, NOV 29–DEC 31
Seattle Center’s annual winter festival kicks off the day after Thanksgiving with an ice-carving spectacle at the International Fountain featuring roving carolers, fire pits, s’mores, and other seasonal treats. To my extreme joy, the winter train and village display I remember from my childhood continues indoors at the Armory, which also hosts a world bazaar for all your gifting needs and on-stage entertainment throughout the month from the likes of the Dickens Carolers, Xmas Maximus, and Greater Seattle Tubachristmas. Next door at the Fisher Pavilion and adjoining lawn, you can get tickets to attend the second installment of the Seattle Christmas Market, which echoes European tradition with glühwein, bratwurst, and shopping.
A Very Die Hard Christmas
I didn’t go last year because of the price, but I peered over the high walls and was tickled to see a giant weihnachtspyramide or German Christmas pyramid, which is effectively a decorative carousel that spins from the heat of candles. (Although this one wasn’t powered by real-life flames, which is probably for the best.) (Seattle Center, 305 Harrison St, all ages) SL
Seattle’s Last Waltz Tribute
SAT, NOV 30
For 10 years now, Seattle’s Last Waltz Tribute has reserved the last Saturday of November to pay homage to the Band’s renowned, Martin Scorsese-directed final concert film. Local musicians run through their versions of the famous setlist, and it’s never not a great time. In fact, it’s the perfect night out for anyone needing to entertain multiple generations of family visiting for the Thanksgiving weekend. Your dad can’t scream about politics if he’s too busy dancin’ to “Mystery Train”! This year’s performers include King Youngblood’s lead guitar shredder Cameron Lavi-Jones and Annie Jantzer, whose voice gave me goose bumps when I saw her sing “It Makes No Difference” at 2022’s event. (Neptune Theatre, 1303 NE 45th St, 8 pm, $25, all ages) MS
29th Annual Magic in the Market
SAT, NOV 30
Pike Place Market loves to kick off the Christmas season right after Thanksgiving with its annual Magic at the Market event. You can take a free photo with Santa under the iconic clock and neon sign, craft an ornament, decorate seasonal cookies, and turn your ear to live holiday music from buskers and local choral groups. Make sure you’re around at 5 pm for the lighting ceremony,
You can even pick out a fresh-cut tree (if you’ve got the space) or a holiday wreath (if your home is more economy-sized). (Pike Place Market, 1501 Pike Pl, 11 am–6 pm, free, all ages) SL
The Stranger’s Holiday Drink Week 2024
DAILY, DEC 2–8
’Tis the season for warming wintry libations, from mulled wine to spiked cocoa. Ready to get your nog on? The Stranger has you covered with our Holiday Drink Week, a new annual tradition that debuted last year. And the best part? They’re only 12 BUCKS! For one week only, you’ll find a variety of exclusive holiday-themed drink specials at participating bars and restaurants around town. Why not round up some friends, bundle up in your coziest attire, and head out on a self-guided booze tour? One thing’s for certain: These won’t be your ordinary cups of cheer. (Various locations, visit thestranger.com for the full list of participants,) JB
Cyndi Lauper: Girls Just Wanna Have Fun Farewell Tour
SUN, DEC 1
It seems like every legacy artist is billing their tour as a “farewell” these days. It’s difficult to decipher which are marketing ploys and which are truly their last (Elton John’s Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour included
29th Annual Magic in the Market
330 shows across five years). Considering that Cyndi Lauper hasn’t performed in Seattle since 2018, I’m willing to bet that this Girls Just Wanna Have Fun Farewell tour is the real kind. Don’t miss your (potential) last chance to see the new wave icon perform her classic hits like “True Colors,” “Time After Time,” “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun,” and countless others. Personally, I am hoping to hear the uncredited theme song for Pee-wee’s Playhouse, in which Lauper sings about Puppetland in her best Betty Boop impersonation. (Climate Pledge Arena, 305 Harrison St, 8 pm, $34–$194, all ages) AUDREY VANN
Author Talk: Hsiao-Ching Chou and Meilee Chou Riddle, Feasts of Good Fortune
TUES, DEC 3
As the former food editor of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer and the former chair of the James Beard Foundation’s cookbook committee, award-winning writer and cooking instructor Hsiao-Ching Chou boasts some seriously impressive food-writing chops. In her debut cookbook, Chinese Soul Food, and its follow-up, Vegetarian Chinese Soul Food, Chou provided accessible guides to making soul-soothing, belly-warming comfort food like noodle soup, green onion pancakes, and potstickers. Now, she’s back with Feasts of Good Fortune, an ode to sumptuous holiday meals that’s co-written
with her 17-year-old daughter, Meilee Chou Riddle. The book explores tuan yuan (the act of coming together) with 75 recipes designed for occasions like Lunar New Year, Thanksgiving, and more. The two will join KUOW reporter Ruby de Luna for a conversation about the joys of cooking together. (Book Larder, 4252 Fremont Ave N, 6:30–8 pm, $31.70 includes coobook, all ages) JB
A John Waters Christmas
DEC 3–4
John Waters, who shall henceforth be known as the “anti-Santa,” will glide his perverse sleigh into Seattle for more Christmas twistedness and holiday jeers. Last year’s performance was appropriately filthy—he pulled “celebrity blow-up dolls,” “yuletide diseases with booster shots that actually get you high,” and “kindergarten detention drag shows in Florida” out of his big red sack. He might stomp on your perfectly wrapped presents again this year, but this
led by Mr. Claus himself.
evening with the cult filmmaker is perfect for those on the holiday-averse end of the spectrum. If you’ve been naughty, Waters encourages you to lean into it. (Neptune Theatre, 1303 NE 45th St, 8 pm, $40–$45, all ages) LC
The Dina Martina Christmas Show
MULTIPLE DATES BETWEEN DEC
6–DEC 24
Seattle’s own “Second Lady of Entertainment” will return to the stage in December with some Christmassy razzle-dazzle. Alongside Stranger Genius award-winning composer and musician Chris Jeffries, Dina Martina will deliver the surreal comedy and festive tunes for which she’s been known and loved for over 25 years. Buckle in for a holiday fever dream: Martina’s show was described by former Stranger editor Chase Burns as “cozy but disorienting,” and John Waters calls her act “some new kind of twisted art.” (ACT Contemporary Theatre, 700 Union St, various times, $46–$60, all ages) LC
Medieval Women’s Choir: Tenebris ad Lucem
SAT, DEC 7
Two winters ago, my best friend and I decided to brave the icy roads and trek to the scenic St. James Cathedral to witness the Medieval Women’s Choir’s annual winter concert. The entire experience was magical and, dare I say, divine. We cozied up on church pews in our winter coats, surrounded by tapered candles and religious art, and soaked up medieval chants that simultaneously warmed souls and chilled spines. Now, I tell everyone to attend this annual winter concert. Regardless of personal religion or your knowledge of medieval choral music, the MWC hosts concerts that are
welcoming to all, supplying lyric books with translated lyrics for you to follow along. (St. James Cathedral, 804 Ninth Ave, 8-9:30 pm, $30, all ages) AV
Robin Wall Kimmerer
MON, DEC 9
Potawatomi botanist and author Robin Wall Kimmerer’s brilliant nonfiction bestseller Braiding Sweetgrass, which won the 2014 Sigurd F. Olson Nature Writing Award, entwines deep Indigenous environmental wisdom with Western science to demonstrate how interconnected we are with nature. I’m excited for her newest release, The Serviceberry, described as “a bold and inspiring vision for how to orient our lives around gratitude, reciprocity, and community, based on the lessons of the natural world,” and a reminder that “hoarding won’t save us; all flourishing is mutual.”
Can you imagine a more vital message for our current fractured hellscape? (Town Hall Seattle, 1119 Eighth Ave, 7:30 pm, $7–$139, all ages) JB
Matt Rogers: The Prince of Christmas Tour
THURS, DEC 19
I am a regular listener of the Las Culturistas podcast—a “Reader” to be exact (IYKYK)—so the fact that America’s sweetheart, Matt Rogers, is returning to Seattle feels like
including Coachella’s Neon Carnival and Imagine Music Festival. He may just want to be the number one guy in the group. (The Showbox, 1426 First Ave, 8 pm, $48.50$55, 21+) MS
The Jinkx & DeLa Holiday Show
DAILY, DEC 21–24
Jinkx Monsoon, the “internationally tolerated Jewish narcoleptic drag queen,” and BenDeLaCreme, the sugary sweet RuPaul’s Drag Race icon, will bring their unique blend of bubbly effervescence and quirky realness to the stage for this holiday dragstravaganza. The pair plan to show off their sleigh and share why they’re the true queens of Christmas cheer, which already seems undebatable. The show will return to town after a wildly successful run last year; expect brand-new songs and a healthy dash of spectacle, plus “adult themes and language.” (Moore Theatre, 1932 Second Ave, various showtimes, $30–$295, all ages) LC
a true Christmas miracle. If you know anything about his podcast with Bowen Yang, then you know that Rogers loves many things, including indie pop sapphics MUNA and Christmastime—so it only makes sense that his debut album, Have You Heard of Christmas?, is dedicated to the holiday season (and features a song with MUNA). He will perform many mirthful songs from the album, like “Hottest Female Up in Whoville,” along with tender yuletide ballads like “I Don’t Need It to Be Christmas at All.” (Neptune Theatre, 1303 NE 45th St, 7:30 pm, $42.50, all ages) AV
James Kennedy
FRI, DEC 20
Do you know what your Vanderpump Rules-watching bestie really wants this holiday season but is too ashamed to ask for? Tickets to see DJ James Kennedy at the Showbox. The walking meme of a man has coined some of Vanderpump’s most memorable phrases: “It’s not about the pasta!” “You’re a worm with a mustache.” “You! Need! To! Get! More! Cos! Mo! Politans! PUMPTINI!” Is he kind of an asshole? Sure. But he has perfected the role of reality show villain while also managing to build himself a pretty impressive music career. He went from DJing in the utility closet at SUR in West Hollywood while sitting on rolls of toilet paper to spinning at festivals,
New Year’s Eve with Kenny G
TUES, DEC 31
Seattle’s curly-haired saxophone son (and Franklin High School graduate) Kenny G will return for a New Year’s Eve celebration, ringing in 2025 with his sexy—or shall I say “saxy”—smooth jazz that has managed to stay consistently popular since 1986. Brush up on your knowledge of the hometown hero by watching Penny Lane’s critically acclaimed HBO documentary, Listening to Kenny G, which takes a look at the backlash he’s faced from the jazz world. (Jazz Alley, 2033 Sixth Ave, various times, $152.50–$261.50, all ages) AV
Arooj Aftab: Night Reign Tour
TUES, JAN 21, 2025
New York-based Pakistani singer-songwriter Arooj Aftab blends traditional Urdu poetry with gentle folk guitar and ambient elements that perfectly cradle her ethereal voice. On her newest album, Night Reign, Aftab collaborated with a wide range of musicians like Kaki King, Moor Mother, Elvis Costello, and Chocolate Genius, Inc., for a haunting blend of Pakistani folk music and bebop jazz. With the album’s atmospheric electronics, nü-classical piano melodies, and heavenly vocals, it will surely sound just as magical live. (The Crocodile, 2505 First Ave, 8 pm, $35, all ages) AV
Robin Wall Kimmerer
Taking the Temperature Down
ACROSS
1.Dahlia Bakery and Serious Pie restaurateur Douglas
4.Woodstock singer Joplin
9.Airport screening agency: Abbr.
12.Per person: 2 wds.
14.Home to the Kraken and Storm, Climate Pledge ___
15.Travel by wind on the water
16.Buy’s opposite
17.American flagmaker Ross
18.Palindromic French fashion magazine
19.Rewards for a good dog
21.Neat bits of trivia: 2 wds.
23.GPA-boosting course: 2 wds.
24.No-holds-barred: 2 wds.
25.“That makes sense now!”: 3 wds.
27.Numerical sports data
31.Identical or fraternal sibling
34.Smoked bagel topper
35.Underground wine storage area
36.“You ___?” (butler’s question)
37.Break, as the Hulk would
39.Modify, as a manuscript
40.Set ablaze
42.“Soul Food” actress Long or “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” actress Vardalos
43.Sportswear brand founded in Italy
44.Basil-and-pine-nuts sauce
45.More provocative
47.Squeeze tightly together, like teeth
49.Enjoys Ijeoma Oluo’s work, say
53.Single-stone column
56.Exhausts the supply of: 2 wds.
57.Double Stuf cookie
58.“Good ___, Charlie Brown!”
60.Small-circulation underground mag often made by photocopier
61.Aquatic mammal found in Puget Sound
62.“Hi!”
63.Biblic al garden
64.Three of them make a tbsp: Abbr.
65.Doesn’t just show
66.Mariners attendance figure: Abbr.
DOWN
1.Tongue’s sense
2.McCaw Hall performance, often
3.Burrowing mammals
4.Vaccinations, slangily
5.“___ we there yet?”
6.Hook up under the pretense of watching a movie, slangily: 3 wds.
7.Rude remark that might be added to injury
8.Turn down: 2 wds.
9.Baby powder ingredient
10.River sediment
11.Machine House Brewery offerings
13.Behaving in a calm manner (especially when the situation warrants anything but): 3 wds.
15.Difficulty making friends in a certain PNW city: 2 wds.
20.“You’re it!” playground game
22.Firecracker cord
24.One of three in a molecule of water
26.“So what ___ is new?”
28.German-based discount grocery chain
29.Rear of a plane
30.Spanish “Miss”: Abbr.
31.Game show vacation prize
32.Word after living or minimum
33.Quaint bed and breakfast lodgings
35.Spiced Starbucks offering
38.World-weary sound
41.SR 520 Bridge fee
45.Main dinner course
46.Hospital triage sites: Abbr.
48.Jersey number for Dominic Canzone or Coby Bryant
50.Comment to the audience
51.Ridges of windblown sand
52.Utterly exhausted
53The M in MVP
54.Mineral deposits
55.Spring tide’s counterpart
56.Flying saucers: Abbr.
59.Architectural wing named for a right-angle letter shape
