The Eastside Scene, December 26, 2014

the E A S T S I D E

scene

Arts and Entertainment | January 2015

THE YEAR IN REGRET The morning-after guide to setting your New Year’s resolutions

141209 Crossroads Experience Scene Mag 9.5x11f.pdf

1

12/9/14

12:26 PM

1189872

s d a o r s s o Cr

2 the eastside scene

What’s

4 JANUARY’S DON’T-MISS LIST

Snap to jazz at Boxley’s, bust a gut with comedian Gabriel Rutledge or stay inside with Saint’s Row: Gat Out of Hell. It’s all on this month’s Don’t-MIss List

5 EATING WELL

Bellevue’s Purple shares a recipe for grilled New York steak with tomato vinaigrette and bacon fat fingerling potato confit.

Plus: Lot No. 3’s Ray Kinsella cocktail on Page 8.

9

THE MORNING-AFTER GUIDE TO YOUR NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS Did you wake up New Year’s Day pained, disoriented and full of shame? Great! Use the power of regret to determine what personal project you’ll work on in 2015.

COMEDY

A conversation with New York Times bestseller Sarah Colonna.

6

1202239

www.bellevuecollege.edu

ON THE COVER: Photo by Daniel Nash Model: David Gold

Since 1996, we’ve helped thousands of people receive the personal care and companionship they need to stay in their own homes. See if we’re the right choice for you.

1189226

College credits in all areas, including Computer Science and Technology.

E A S T S I D E

RUN!

The Oatmeal’s Matthew Inman on the marathon lifestyle

We help people age where they’re most comfortable. At home.

Learn things. Things people will pay you for.

the

10

Seattle: 206.545.1092 Bellevue/Eastside: 425.455.2004 Tacoma/Pierce County: 253.761.8019

scene A Washington State Licensed Home Care Agency

www.familyresourcehomecare.com

Publisher William Shaw Editor/Layout Daniel Nash Production Designer Diana Nelson Contributing Writers Yekta Aarabi Kelton Sears

2700 Richards Rd, Suite 201, Bellevue 98005 | theEastsideScene.com For Advertising, call Jim Gatens 425.440.0437

the eastside scene 3

The Don’t-Miss List

RY

UA JAN

DO | Arts & Social Change Showcase

How does art change the world?

This event will showcase a curated mix of emerging and ethnic visual and performing artists who focus their work on social justice through live performances, visual exhibits and displays for presenters and curators who book regional talent in Washington state.

The showcase is presented by the Washington State Arts Commission, 4Culture, Seattle Office of Arts & Culture and Seattle Center.

Where: Meydenbauer Conference Center When: Jan. 27

PLAY | Saints Row: Gat Out of Hell

LISTEN | Pony Boy Records presents jazz at Boxley’s

Jazz has long been alive and well on the Eastside. Lovers of the great American art form flock to venues like Bake’s Place and the Eastside Jazz Club in Bellevue to take in the sounds and sights of modern day scat men.

But you might want to consider trekking out to North Bend the next time you want to get smoke in your eyes.

At Boxley’s, a jazz venue off West North Bend Way, Pony Boy Records books jazz artists young and old from across the Northwest.

The independent label, headed by drummer/composer Greg Williamson, has been vetting musicians with proven performing presence for 20 years.

“Jazz is a varied and rewarding art form,” Williamson said. “It can be easy to listen to, or it can challenge the listener. It can be subtle, swinging-the-doors-off, or outside the planetary sonic space. It has the potential to always be fresh and exciting.”

Where: 101 West North Bend Way, North Bend When: Thursdays-Sundays; visit www.boxleysplace.com for schedule

WATCH | Around the World in 80 Days

Based on Jules Verne’s popular novel, Village Theatre presents the hilarious story of Phileas Fogg’s whistle-stop journey to satisfy a wager and circumnavigate the world in 80 days. But with bandits, a damsel in distress and transportation problems around every corner, will he be able to make the deadline? Danger, romance, and comic surprises abound as this adventure is cleverly brought to the stage with five extraordinary actors performing 39 different characters from around the world.

Where: Francis Gaudette Theatre, 303 Front Street North, Issaquah

When: Jan. 22-March 15

4 the eastside scene

Yes, January is the month Grand Theft Auto V will finally release for Windows. Yes, it will offer hi-rez graphics and a frenetic first-person play mode. Yes, we’ll probably buy it.

But this month our pick is Saint’s Row: Gat out of Hell. The first two entries in Volition’s Saints Row series were ambitious but otherwise straightforward GTA clones; then the next two entries spun off into the stratosphere of beautiful nonsense, featuring zombies, aliens and game-breaking superpowers. With last month’s release of a Little Mermaid-esque musical trailer featuring Satan and his rebellious daughter, it’s safe to say this latest installment will only up the ante.

When: Jan. 20 Platforms: Windows, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One

LAUGH | Gabriel Rutledge

A past winner of the prestigious Seattle International Comedy Competition, Rutledge has made television appearances on Comedy Central’s Live at Gotham, Nickelodeon’s Nickmom Night Out and the nationally syndicated Comedy.TV and Comics Unleashed.

The comic makes his home in Olympia.

Where: Laughs Comedy Spot, 12099 124th Ave. N.E. Kirkland When: Jan. 15-17

DRINK | Beat the Geek

This is trivia night, pure and simple.

But what sets Blue Martini’s quiz bowl apart is that it’s set in a polished, modern space with one of the best stocked bars in the city.

Strictly to up the difficulty level answering questions (Yeah, let’s go with that) Beat the Geek quiz nights feature $3 wells, wine and beer on top of the bar’s tapas menu.

Where: Shops at the Bravern, 700 110th Ave NE, Ste. 295, Bellevue When: Mondays, 8 p.m.

Eating

Grilled New York Steak For that evening when everyone is coming over to your house for dinner, we have the perfect Grilled New York Steak from Purple’s kitchen in Bellevue. (And for something to wash it down with, the recipe for a Ray Kinsella straight out of Lot No. 3’s bar can be found on PAGE 8).

by YEKTA AARABI; Photo by Heavy Restaurant Group

Grilled New York Steak with Tomato Vinaigrette and Potato Confit The Entree:

9 ounce New York steak 1 ounce of sautéed chantrelle mushrooms .5 ounces of grilled corn 4 ounces of fingerling potatoes .25 ounces of baby arugula 1.5 ounces of tomato vinaigrette .25 ounces of balsamic gastrique

Tomato vinaigrette:

1 pound of San Marzano tomatoes 1 ounce of shallots 4 ounces of champagne vinegar 24 ounces of canola oil Salt and pepper Balsamic Gastrique 3 cups of sugar 4 cups of balsamic vinegar

Bacon fat fingerling potato confit: 5 pounds of fingerling potatoes 2 quarts of bacon fat 1 quart of canola oil

Preparation:

Grill the steak to desired temperature, then sauté the vegetables mix in a frying pan on medium high heat, then add the potatoes, ¼ ounce of butter. Add salt and pepper for taste.

Slice the potatoes into coin sizes, then cook the bacon fat and canola oil together to a simmer. Add the potatoes and put them in the oven at 275 degrees for about 45 minutes.

For the vinaigrette, put the tomatoes, shallots and the champagne vinegar in a blender on medium high and slowly emulsify the oil and, salt and pepper to taste.

The Gastrique is the final step. Put the sugar in a saucepan and bring to a boil then add the balsamic and reduce to syrup.

Now to serve the meal at the dinner table make sure to find your best China because you’ll want to showcase this masterpiece. Put the vegetable mix and potatoes in the middle of the plate, with the steak on top, then pour 2 ounces of tomato vinaigrette around the vegetables, and of course finish the artwork with a little bit of Balsamic Gastrique.

the eastside scene 5

The Morning-After Guide to your New Year’s Resolution Story and photos by DANIEL NASH

You wake up with... ...crumbs everywhere.

...a charlie horse.

You’ve woken up to the feeling of loose grit and stale breaded pebbles stabbing into your bare flesh but, honestly, you can only assume it’s morning. You fear opening your eyes to confirm the time lest some scratchy “toaster leavins” tumble into your delicate eyeballs. And there’s no mistaking the gutburbling, skin-stretching feeling of a food baby gestating in your stomach.

You can’t even rightly remember what the hell it is you ate.

You detect the faint pungent whiffs of Lava Sauce. But then what’s this sweet aftertaste in your mouth?

Oh God. Did you make Cinnabon chalupas again? We talked about this.

Well, they say Americans get most of their exercise while drunk. Or was that an Onion article? Pffft, same difference.

You vaguely remember your friend daring you to chase the ducks in that park fountain, but you must have been at it for hours because your calves are screaming.

And here one of them goes, about to tense up like one of Bruce Lee’s nose muscles. OK, don’t panic, try to remember: Do you point your foot down or pull it back? Well, can’t hurt to try—OH GOD, WRONG ONE! REALLY WRONG ONE! HOW DO YOU ALWAYS PICK THE WRONG DIRECTION EVERY TIME?!?!

Your resolution

Maybe it’s time to work on your diet.

Look. Food is great — if you’re doing it right, it tastes awesome. And it keeps you alive! How often do you get that kind of a win-win?

But in the land of plenty, food long ago zoomed past the realm of survival necessity and into a pastime.

“The meal isn’t over when I’m full,” Louis C.K. opined in his 2008 special Chewed Up. “It’s over when I hate myself.”

One solution

Sometimes the way to go is simplification: Take your meal choices out of your own hands. Subscription food services like NatureBox mail curated healthy snacks and meals straight to your doorstep.

...a wicked hangover.

Ugh. Yes, that’s sunlight. Yes, you’re awake. Again: Ugh. You might have had fun last night but now it’s time to pay the piper. Here’s the good news: It’s not just a new day, it’s a new year. And how you wake up can give you a handy compass for your New Year’s resolution.

Ow. At least this time you know it’s morning — the sunlight won’t stop burning your eyeballs.

Why won’t your neighbor down the hall stop hammering his wall? Or is he just clipping his toenails?

If anyone asks where the city reservoir went, tell them it went toward irrigating the section of Sahara desert that relocated to your throat overnight.

Your resolution

Well aren’t you ordinary? Tipping back a few on New Year’s Eve isn’t out of step with tradition, so no one’s suggesting you become a friend of Bill W just yet (Unless, of course, today is a repeat of Dec. 30. And Dec. 29, 28, 27 and... well, you get it).

However, it may be time to learn how to drink smarter.

One solution

Rumor has it, Frank Sinatra would sustain his nights out on the town — and save his mornings — by downing a glass of water between every drink. Regular hydration will counteract the diuretic effects of alcohol that cause many of the symptoms of a hangover.

Your resolution

Regular aches and pains are a telltale sign that your fitness level is only barely getting you through your day-to-day routine. The moment you need your body to rise to a momentary challenge you’re sore the entire next day (or, eep, two days).

Consider upping your game and incorporating a light regular workout into your lifestyle.

A few solutions

The cult of Crossfit is still going strong but, if floor-slamming medicine balls to Metallica in a repurposed warehouse isn’t your speed, you might consider another free movement based exercise.

The MoveFree Academy — which has locations across Bellevue, Mercer Island, Kirkland, Redmond and Sammamish — is a dedicated parkour gym that helps its clients condition for fluid, limber movement through urban obstacles.

Of course, if you’re time-crunched, you can always make simple adjustments: park your car on the far side of the lot, take the stairs... The body adjusts to the things you throw at it.

Up the difficulty level.

...with nothing wrong.

The sun is shining gently through your window and you’re compelled to open it up for a whiff of refreshing fresh air. Are those birds you hear chirping? What a lovely way to wake up!

It’s a perfect morning to blast some Norah Jones and settle into your favorite chair with a cup of tea and Eat, Pray, Love.

You wonder what all your friends got up to last night. Sure, you missed the ball drop, but you’ve begun the year refreshed!

Your resolution Get out more.

One solution

Meetup.com can help you find local gatherings of people interested in just about anything, whether that’s board games, books, naked windsurfing... whatever. Life’s too short not to meet people with likeminded interests.

the eastside scene 7

The Morning-After Guide to your New Year’s Resolution Story and photos by DANIEL NASH

You wake up with... ...crumbs everywhere.

...a charlie horse.

You’ve woken up to the feeling of loose grit and stale breaded pebbles stabbing into your bare flesh but, honestly, you can only assume it’s morning. You fear opening your eyes to confirm the time lest some scratchy “toaster leavins” tumble into your delicate eyeballs. And there’s no mistaking the gutburbling, skin-stretching feeling of a food baby gestating in your stomach.

You can’t even rightly remember what the hell it is you ate.

You detect the faint pungent whiffs of Lava Sauce. But then what’s this sweet aftertaste in your mouth?

Oh God. Did you make Cinnabon chalupas again? We talked about this.

Well, they say Americans get most of their exercise while drunk. Or was that an Onion article? Pffft, same difference.

You vaguely remember your friend daring you to chase the ducks in that park fountain, but you must have been at it for hours because your calves are screaming.

And here one of them goes, about to tense up like one of Bruce Lee’s nose muscles. OK, don’t panic, try to remember: Do you point your foot down or pull it back? Well, can’t hurt to try—OH GOD, WRONG ONE! REALLY WRONG ONE! HOW DO YOU ALWAYS PICK THE WRONG DIRECTION EVERY TIME?!?!

Your resolution

Maybe it’s time to work on your diet.

Look. Food is great — if you’re doing it right, it tastes awesome. And it keeps you alive! How often do you get that kind of a win-win?

But in the land of plenty, food long ago zoomed past the realm of survival necessity and into a pastime.

“The meal isn’t over when I’m full,” Louis C.K. opined in his 2008 special Chewed Up. “It’s over when I hate myself.”

One solution

Sometimes the way to go is simplification: Take your meal choices out of your own hands. Subscription food services like NatureBox mail curated healthy snacks and meals straight to your doorstep.

...a wicked hangover.

Ugh. Yes, that’s sunlight. Yes, you’re awake. Again: Ugh. You might have had fun last night but now it’s time to pay the piper. Here’s the good news: It’s not just a new day, it’s a new year. And how you wake up can give you a handy compass for your New Year’s resolution.

Ow. At least this time you know it’s morning — the sunlight won’t stop burning your eyeballs.

Why won’t your neighbor down the hall stop hammering his wall? Or is he just clipping his toenails?

If anyone asks where the city reservoir went, tell them it went toward irrigating the section of Sahara desert that relocated to your throat overnight.

Your resolution

Well aren’t you ordinary? Tipping back a few on New Year’s Eve isn’t out of step with tradition, so no one’s suggesting you become a friend of Bill W just yet (Unless, of course, today is a repeat of Dec. 30. And Dec. 29, 28, 27 and... well, you get it).

However, it may be time to learn how to drink smarter.

One solution

Rumor has it, Frank Sinatra would sustain his nights out on the town — and save his mornings — by downing a glass of water between every drink. Regular hydration will counteract the diuretic effects of alcohol that cause many of the symptoms of a hangover.

Your resolution

Regular aches and pains are a telltale sign that your fitness level is only barely getting you through your day-to-day routine. The moment you need your body to rise to a momentary challenge you’re sore the entire next day (or, eep, two days).

Consider upping your game and incorporating a light regular workout into your lifestyle.

A few solutions

The cult of Crossfit is still going strong but, if floor-slamming medicine balls to Metallica in a repurposed warehouse isn’t your speed, you might consider another free movement based exercise.

The MoveFree Academy — which has locations across Bellevue, Mercer Island, Kirkland, Redmond and Sammamish — is a dedicated parkour gym that helps its clients condition for fluid, limber movement through urban obstacles.

Of course, if you’re time-crunched, you can always make simple adjustments: park your car on the far side of the lot, take the stairs... The body adjusts to the things you throw at it.

Up the difficulty level.

...with nothing wrong.

The sun is shining gently through your window and you’re compelled to open it up for a whiff of refreshing fresh air. Are those birds you hear chirping? What a lovely way to wake up!

It’s a perfect morning to blast some Norah Jones and settle into your favorite chair with a cup of tea and Eat, Pray, Love.

You wonder what all your friends got up to last night. Sure, you missed the ball drop, but you’ve begun the year refreshed!

Your resolution Get out more.

One solution

Meetup.com can help you find local gatherings of people interested in just about anything, whether that’s board games, books, naked windsurfing... whatever. Life’s too short not to meet people with likeminded interests.

the eastside scene 7

Bottoms

The Ray Kinsella Lot No. 3 Bar director Chris Faber says this drink recipe came about while trying some autumn flavors, with vegetables such as carrots, beets and roasted corn. The recipe for their Ray Kinsella has some of that thrown in for a cocktail that is sure to please your guests while they eat their steak. Faber says this particular drink recipe was named after Kevin Costner’s audacious corn farmer in Field of Dreams.

Corn and apricot are a pretty natural pairing. Just add a touch of lime for acidity and balance to the sweetness, as well as the ale reduction as a more interesting ‘simple syrup’ option.

by YEKTA AARABI; Photo by Heavy Restaurant Group

Ray Kinsella with Hazelnut Brown Nectar reduction The Cocktail:

1 ounce of bourbon 1 ounce of roasted corn and apricot puree .5 ounces of walnut liqueur .25 ounces of lime juice .5 ounces of Rogue Hazelnut Brown Nectar Ale reduction 2 dashes of Scrappy’s Aromatic Bitters

Preparation:

The Reduction:

1 bottle Rogue Hazelnut Brown Ale* 2 ounces of black strap rum ¼ cup of brown sugar Rogue Hazelnut Brown Nectar Ale is made with a natural hazelnut flavor that has a rich nutty flavor and a smooth malty finish. *

For the Hazelnut Brown Nectar reduction, put all ingredients in a stovepot and boil on medium high heat for about 10 to 15-minutes.

Grill the corn until it is brown, then remove from cob and add it to blender with a pinch of salt, ½ cup of water and 1 ounce of Blackstrap Rum. Apricots are dried, and then rehydrated with champagne and apple cider vinegar overnight. Add to blender with corn and puree until smooth.

Shake all of the ingredients together, strain over ice in a bucket glass and garnish with a sage leaf.

8 the eastside scene

Lot No. 3, located in downtown Bellevue, serves some of the tastiest classic cocktails: More than 100 of them, in fact, as well as six beers on tap and a wine selection to the tune of 50 labels.

One thing that will stand out when you walk inside the restaurant is the metal meets wood décor. The space is shared with their partner restaurant Purple where you can find local ingredients mixed with modern appeal.

Conversations with Funny People

Sarah Colonna Sarah Colonna made her name on televised comedy tours before becoming a regular roundtable guest on the entertainment talk show Chelsea Lately. Her first book, Life As I Blow It, debuted at No. 5 on the New York Times Bestseller List and sold for production on NBC. Her next book, Has Anyone Seen My Pants, releases in March.

by Daniel Nash

Thanks for speaking with me Sarah. So you’ll be performing at Parlor Live on New Year’s Eve?

SARAH COLONNA: I’ll be there New Year’s Eve with Lachlan Patterson and then I’ll be performing on the 2nd and 3rd by myself.

SC: No, I don’t know that anyone’s really heard anything.

I think they’re figuring out things as they go. I actually left the writing staff of Chelsea Lately about a year before it ended and stayed on as a roundtable guest in the final year. I left as a writer, for myself, in order to keep pursuing my thing, whatever that would be. It was sad when the show ended and I’ll miss it. But the next version won’t show up until 2016 so I have to say I actually hope I’m not available. Does that make sense? I hope that doesn’t sound bad, but the way the entertainment business can be I really do hope I’m employed and working on new projects by that time.

The roundtable discussion format is such an interesting form of comedy, because it seems so contrary to the meticulous planning and rehearsal comics have to do for stand-up. Is the roundtable as off-the-cuff as it seems, or is there a lot of behind-the-scenes preparation that goes into it?

SC: It’s a little bit of both and it would almost depend

on the day, to tell you the truth. We’d get into the topics beforehand so, when I was a writer and at the table, I had the advantage of knowing the topics really early. Even then, we were writing Chelsea’s material so we didn’t get to write for ourselves until later. But you’d have a little bit of time to come in beforehand and work on what you’d say. There’s a little bit of a science to it in that aspect, but at the same time you never knew what the other comics were going to say and it could take the conversation in an entirely new direction you didn’t expect. Everyone got to the point where you have a joke prepared just in case but you would have to hold your guns on that joke because there’s a chance the conversation will go off-topic or someone else will say something similar. You don’t want to be the person who tries to wedge in a comment when things have moved in a different direction; You have to let the joke go.

And you were on After Lately as well.

SC: It was really interesting because I was one of the writers for that show too. Not all the writers could write for both shows. In fact, we (the writers from Chelsea Lately) spearheaded the stories and then there was a separate group of writers who wrote the scripts. It was really interesting and funny to us what they would pick up on as the traits to play up — Chris became the old guy and I was the slutty one. It was such an exaggerated version of yourself it was impossible not to laugh about it. Since it was a parody, it was so separate from the talk show it became, to me, it’s own fun project. I really enjoyed it. I enjoyed the acting end of things more ... so I kind of embraced playing this crazy, satirically blown out version of myself.

So you never picked up a script and thought to yourself, “Wow, this is really hurtful.”

SC: I know a couple people who would get offended by it and I would always say, ‘This is a TV show.’ Sure, we were playing ourselves. But the audience is smarter than that. Even with the stories being based on the truth (After Lately was a sitcom based on the behind-the-scenes happenings of Chelsea Lately -Ed.), it went off in another direction that couldn’t possibly be taken as fact.

I understand you have a love connection to our beloved Seahawks...

SC: Yes, your beloved punter in fact, Jon Ryan. I haven’t

been to the Parlor Live to perform in so long — I love the club, I just hadn’t performed there lately. But I was thinking about New Years and I really wanted to work near Seattle so I could spend it with Jon. I looked on the Parlor website and saw they hadn’t scheduled anyone for New Year’s Eve, so I immediately called my agent and found out if I could book the night. We’ve been dating since about February and it’s been great.

1189222

I recently spoke with your fellow Chelsea Lately alum Chris Franjola about the end of the series and what’s next for Chelsea Handler’s franchise on the web. Will you be migrating over to the show’s next incarnation on Netflix? Do you know?

the eastside scene 9

Beating the Blerch How Seattle’s most successful web cartoonist helped me train for the Seattle Marathon.

M

Matthew Inman and I are halfway through our five-mile run in Carkeek Park when he suddenly stops. “Ooh! Salmon, look! Wait, are they dead?” There in a stream beside us, two tired fish are floating languidly against the current. “Oh, no, they aren’t dead, never mind,” he says, sweat dripping down his forehead as he excitedly leans over the wooden railing on the trail. “Anyhoo, the solid ones are the females and the striped ones are the males. They swim upstream and lay their eggs in the soil, and then, well . . . they die.

It’s pretty cool.”

This is one of Inman’s favorite things about running in Seattle—the poor-man’ssafari element. As he writes in The Terrible and Wonderful Reasons Why I Run Long Distances (Andrews McMeel, $16.99), his latest cartoon collection from theoatmeal. com, “You can see the wilderness, you can see the cityscape, maybe you’ll see a rainbow, maybe you’ll see a caribou taking a dump. Whatever you see, you are mitigating monotony.”

Inman and I aren’t that dissimilar from the salmon. Just as these fish are programmed by biology to endure pain and suffering over incredibly long distances, we long-distance runners have to run.

We’re compelled. It’s the only thing that makes us feel better—even though, paradoxically, it sometimes feels terrible.

“Running for me is pain on tap,” says Inman as we pick up the pace again, breaking away from the salmon to start a quick climb up a dirt hill. “It’s a little spigot you can turn on to hurt yourself.

And because of the way it works for me, it’s also bliss on tap. Any day that I want to, if there’s a million things weighing down on me—like, I need to do laundry!

I need to answer 10,000 e-mails! I need to finish this comic ASAP!—I can just put that crap on hold, go hurt myself on a run, and suddenly I’m flooded with joy, even though all I did was sweat and grumble for 30 minutes.”

In the midst of training for December’s Seattle Marathon, Inman’s book came to me like a shining beacon in the nippy early-morning fog. I can’t relate to most writing about running. I don’t really care about the training regimens, diets, or mile splits of the world’s elite runners. I run because it makes me feel as if I have some control over my messy life—a concept

10 the eastside scene

By Kelton Sears

Inman lays out brilliantly in one of the book’s more genius panels.

Standing in the middle of his disgusting, disheveled kitchen (vodka, a stained sock, and an eviction notice strewn on the counter), a haggard-looking Inman sips from his water bottle. The thought bubble above his head reads “I went for a run today. I’m such an overachiever.” (Behind him, a raccoon sneaks a tortilla chip from the bag atop his sink of dirty dishes.)

Running, Inman writes, “enables me to feel like my life is rocketing skyward, even if it’s going straight to hell.” He’s a runner/ philosophizer for those, myself included, who’ve run more than one race with a hangover.

Until somewhat recently, Inman’s legion of online fans might not have known he was a runner. The Oatmeal is relatively new. Launched in 2009, the site now receives 30 million page views a month.

But Inman, formerly a Web designer and developer by trade, is a veteran of the roads—he’s run some 40 half-marathons, five full marathons, and an ultramarathon.

As he says of his other cartoons, “My work isn’t usually very personal. It’s about proper semicolon usage, marine biology, or bears with giant nards or something.

The running comics were harder to write for that reason: It was a little more on the personal, spiritual side for me.”

In that spiritual realm resides The Blerch, a blobby, fat cherub Inman draws with insect wings— a symbol of all the forces that would keep him sedentary.

The Blerch is constantly hovering over Inman’s shoulder in the comic, sometimes sweetly, but often angrily—ordering him to sleep late, eat as much cake and chips as possible, and watch RoboCop and Gladiator on his iPad all day. The Blerch embodies a slothful past Inman wants to leave behind, he explains. “I run because it’s the only way I know how to quiet the monster,” Inman writes. “I run because deep down, I am the Blerch.”

Copyright Matthew Inman, All Rights Reserved

Having scored a New York Times bestseller with his prior How to Tell If Your Cat Is Plotting to Kill You, Inman wasn’t sure if The Oatmeal’s fans would embrace such a personal strip about running. The Blerch lived only in his head for years before he finally drew it.

He needn’t have worried. Instead of doing a conventional author tour to launch the book in September, he hosted fun-run book signings across the country and a “Beat the Blerch” 10k/half/ full marathon race in Carnation. The race sold out in minutes.

- Matthew Inman Inman had to add an extra day to accommodate the 4,000 runners who signed up. Now he’s planning more Blerch races around the U.S. next year.

“It was kind of surreal for me, because it’s like, here’s this fat little cherub I drew in my basement,” Inman laughs as we

“Maybe you’ll see a rainbow, maybe you’ll see a caribou taking a dump.

Whatever you see, you are mitigating monotony.”

crest a hill, “and suddenly people are cosplaying as him running in this real-life massive, sweaty marathon that came from my drawing.”

Oh, shit—the marathon! Due to a recent cycling accident that roughed up my quad, I tell Inman I had to stop training until the swelling went down. Our fivemiler is the first run I’ve done in a week.

“Jesus, that sounds terrible,” says Inman. “But I mean, you should be tapering now anyway, so that actually might work out for you.”

During his September marathon in Carnation, I ask, was it sort of shamanistic to run as the Blerch? There Inman got to embody his personal demon, in costume form, and overcome it.

“You know, the weirdest, most magic thing about the whole episode has been the stories other runners tell me,” he says.

“I’ve met more people than I can count in the year and a half since that first Blerch comic came out online who started running because of it. I met one guy who had lost 80 pounds after starting to run because of that comic.”

This article originally appeared in the Nov. 26 issue of Seattle Weekly.

Beth Billington

For all your Real Estate Needs

Featured Listings Sweeping Views East of Market : Kirkland 4 Bedrooms 3.5 Bathrooms 3,087 SF Home 6,349 SF Lot 2-Car + 4-Car Garages $1,375,000 MLS#716666

Pending in 5 days!

Traditional Two-Story Bridle Trails : Bellevue 4 Bedrooms 2.5 Bathrooms 2,826 SF Home 36,974 SF Lot Park-like setting $848,000 MLS#715861

Updated Craftsman Microsoft : Redmond 4 Bedrooms 3.5 Bathrooms 2,770 SF Home 3,330 SF Lot Better than new $738,000 MLS#720836

Recent Sales

With low interest rates and compelling finance options available, buyers are plentiful. Inventory levels remain extremely low making now the perfect time to be on the market. If you have been considering listing your home, call Beth today!

LD SO

LD SO

Bridle Trails : Kirkland : $2,600,000

Houghton : Kirkland : $1,660,000

LD SO

LD SO Downtown : Kirkland : $5,110,800

West of Market : Kirkland : $1,430,800

Coldwell Banker Bain Previews Properties Specialist Top 1%, CRS, GRI 425.450.5208 beth@bethbillington.com w w w. B e t h B i l l i n g t o n . c o m

1189557

Beth Billington

the eastside scene 11

The Platinum App: ™ The Platinum ™App: Several shades smarter The Platinum App: Several shades smarter ™

Several

™ The Platinum App: Rethink remote shades smarter Rethink remote control.

Several shades smarter control.

Create the perfect, personalized scene from morning light to movie night with the new

Create the perfect, personalized scene morning lightThis to movie with themakes new precise control of all Platinum™ App fromfrom Hunter Douglas. smartnight technology Platinum™ App fromyour Hunter Douglas.

Thiscoverings smart technology makes precise controlyou of have all energy-savings, home’s window astoundingly simple.

Whether

Tap into the

Rethink remote TapRethink into the remote Power of the control. control. ™ App. Power of the Platinum The Blind Alley ™ Tap into the security, or privacy in mind, the 14102 Platinum App fits21st your lifestyle in the palmPlatinum of your hand. Tap App. into the Street The security, or privacy in mind, the Platinum AppBlind fits yourAlley lifestyle NE in the palm of your hand.

Power of the Stop by, today, to see this and other Hunter Douglas innovations in action!

Bellevue, Washington 98007 14102 NE 21st Street ™ Power of the Stop by,drapery today, &towindow see thisblind andspecialists other Hunter Douglas innovations inAM action! custom Platinum App. M-F: 9:30 - 5:00 PM The Blind Alley Bellevue, Washington 98007 ™ 14102AM NE -21st Street 14102 NE 21st Street, Bellevue, WA 98007 SAT: 9:30 5:00 PM App. Platinum M-F:The 9:30 AM 5:00 PM Blind Alley your home’s window coverings astoundingly simple.

Whether you have energy-savings, security, or privacy in mind, Platinum App fits your lifestyle inApp thethe palm of your Create thethe perfect, personalized scene fromscene morning lightthe to movie night withto the new Platinum™ from Hunter Doug-hand.

Create perfect, personalized from morning light movie night with new perfect, personalized scene from morning light to simple. movie night with the las. This smart technology makes precise Create controlthe of all your home’s window coverings astoundingly Whether younew ™ privacy in security, or mind, the Platinum fits your lifestyle inDouglas themakes palm ofprecise yourofhand.

Stop by, today, see App this and other Hunter innovations in action!

Platinum App from Hunter Douglas.

This smart technology control of all ™ Platinum have energy-savings, security, or privacy into mind, the App fits your lifestyle in the palm your hand.

Platinum App from Hunter Douglas. This smart technology makes precise control of all Stop by, today, to see this and other Hunter Douglas innovations in action! in action!

Stop by, today, to see this and other Hunter innovations your home’sDouglas window coverings astoundingly you have energy-savings, your home’s window coverings astoundingly simple.

Whether yousimple. haveWhether energy-savings,

Bellevue, Closed SundayWashington 98007 425-644-7181 • 1-800-642-5176 SAT:14102 9:30 AM 5:00 Street PM M-F: 9:30 AM - 5:00 PM NE-425-644-7181 21st www.blindalley-bellevue.com Closed • gallery@theblindalley.com Sunday SAT: 9:30 AM - 5:00 PM

Bellevue, Washington 98007 M-F: 9:30 AM - 425-644-7181 5:00 PM In-Home Decorator appointments available daytimes www.blindalley-bellevue.com www.blindalley-bellevue.com Monday through Saturday and evenings Monday SAT:through 9:30Thursday.

AM - 5:00 PM Serving the Eastside and Seattle since 1984. Closed Sunday 425-644-7181 www.blindalley-bellevue.com Follow Us

1189252

Closed Sunday 425-644-7181 Showroom hours: 9:30 to 5:00 Monday – Saturday. www.blindalley-bellevue.com

Follow Us At Facebook or Twitter Follow Us or At Facebook At Facebook Twitter or Twitter

© 2013 Hunter Douglas. All rights reserved. All trademarks used herein are the property of their respective owners. © 2013 Hunter Douglas. All rights reserved. All trademarks used herein are the property of their respective owners.

© 2013 Hunter Douglas. All rights reserved. All trademarks used herein are the property of their respective owners.

12 the eastside scene

47661

47661

Follow Us At Facebook or Twitter

47661