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BY ANNE McGREGOR
Email Health & Home Editor Anne McGregor at annem@inlander.com.
The conversation continues on the Inlander Facebook page, and stay in touch with us at Inlander.com/Health&Home.
ith summer’s exuberance starting to fade, the arrival of fall — a season that strikes me as a bit introverted and perhaps even mysterious — is worth savoring. But that doesn’t mean it’s time to stay indoors. Far from it! In this issue, writer Bob Johnson explores the nearby Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge, where migrating birds and other wildlife are on display for visitors willing to pause and be still.
Cooler weather brings a shift to cozy food as well. In our Food section, Dora Scott convinced Chowderhead Chef Travis Tveit to share a recipe for his very hearty version of an all-time classic: tomato basil soup. Writer Will Maupin pays a visit to The Grain Shed in Spokane’s Perry District, where, believe it or not, live music happens in the mornings. It’s fitting for a brewery/bakery, and a lovely way to support night shift workers who can pop in on their way home from work.
Cozy gaming is a thing, too. E.J. Iannelli talks with local experts about how these games, which prioritize collaboration and exploration in a serene alternate worldscape, are reshaping the video gaming world. And Candace Rowe explores the history of a Spokane home that’s provided shelter for more than 100 years, with a new owner happily engaged in preserving it long into the future.
Cheers —
DORA SCOTT joined the Inlander as a staff writer focusing on food coverage in the fall of 2024. In this issue, she profiles Travis Tveit, the chef-owner of Chowderhead. “Since I moved to Spokane, Chowderhead has been a personal favorite for when I’m craving soup. Tveit shares the recipe for tomato basil, my go-to soup order, which goes really well with a piece of freshly baked bread. Dig out your pots and gear up for the cold weather with me!”
E.J. IANNELLI is a Spokane-based freelance writer and host of the arts-centric A Line Around Your Thoughts podcast. He contributes two stories to this issue, both of which suit the season — one on the rise of cozy video gaming, the other on our enduring fascination with the paranormal. “Even as we learn more and more about this universe we inhabit,” he says, “it turns out that our species likes to leave a little room for the possibility of the supernatural.”
SPOKANE • EASTERN WASHINGTON • NORTH IDAHO also at inlander.com/health&home 1227 W. Summit Parkway, Spokane, Wash. 99201
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Ted S. McGregor Jr.
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Health & Home is published every other month and is available free at more than 500 locations across the Inland Northwest. One copy free per reader. Subscriptions are available at $3 per issue: call x213. Reaching Us: Editorial: x262; Circulation: x226; Advertising: x233 COPYRIGHT All contents copyrighted © Inland Publications, Inc. 2025. Health & Home is locally owned and has been published since 2004.
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BY MADISON PEARSON
Whether you’re a muggle, squib or a talented sorcerer — this one is for all of the wizards-at-heart. This annual performance of well-loved songs from the Harry Potter movie series has become a staple of the Spokane Symphony schedule. Take a magical journey as they perform iconic pieces such as “Harry’s Wondrous World” and “Buckbeck’s Flight.” Come dressed in your robes or other wizarding garb and enjoy themed treats and fun photo opportunities for wizards of all ages. Sat, Oct. 25 at 3 pm; sensory-friendly performance Sun, Oct. 26 at 3 pm, $38-$78, Fox Theater, spokanesymphony.org
Join local artists in downtown Coeur d’Alene for Emerge’s ninth annual INK! Print Rally. The rally involves large-scale block printing using 4-foot-by-5-foot wood panels and an asphalt roller in the street in front of Emerge. Participating artists spend weeks intricately carving the blocks and, with the help of local printmaking experts, will see their designs printed onto large sheets of fabric while attendees watch. This year’s rally theme is “portals,” and the event also features live music, a beer garden, food trucks and a swath of local vendors due to a new partnership with 33 Artists Market. Funds raised at the rally will help Emerge continue offering its arts education programs to the community, covering the cost of supplies and other resources. Sat, Sept. 13 from 1-7 pm, free admission, Emerge, emergecda.com
No need to catch a flight to Munich for some German fun — you can join the centuries-old celebration of Oktoberfest right here in Spokane. No-Li Brewery is hosting two Oktoberfests for twice the fun this year. Buy a six-pack of No-Li’s small-batch German lager or drink from your limited edition Oktoberfest mug, dance to an oompah band, and don’t forget to don your free Bavarian hat and special event pin all day long. Take part in the stein hold contest and enter to win prizes in the form of gift cards. So pick a Saturday, practice your polka, and ring in October the right way! Sat, Sept. 20 and 27 from noon3:30 pm, $15, No-Li Brewhouse, nolibrewhouse.com
Dust off your fiddles and pan flutes, and grab your dancing shoes because there’s no event quite like the Fall Folk Festival. Held annually at Spokane Community College, the festival takes over nearly every corner of the school’s Lair Student Center with music emanating from every room, hallway and cranny. Over the course of two days, attendees can expect spur-of-the-moment jam sessions, contra dance classes, vendors selling handmade wares, and performances by area folk and bluegrass groups. There’s no better way to get into the autumnal spirit. Sat, Nov. 8, and Sun, Nov. 9, Free, Spokane Community College, spokanefolkfestival.org
BY ELLIS BENSON
Susie Weller’s friends like to call her a female Rick Steves, and for good reason. Having visited 34 countries, Weller is well-acquainted with everything that relates to traveling.
To share that knowledge, as well as how traveling has informed and strengthened her faith, Weller recently wrote and published 52 GLOBAL REFLECTIONS: A PILGRIM’S TRAVEL MEMOIR. In this increasingly turbulent political ecosystem, Weller hopes her book inspires readers to expand their horizons.
“I want people to consider being global citizens, especially in our current political climate.” says Weller, who works as a life coach in Spokane and specializes in helping people manage family or work conflicts.
Over and over in her travels, Weller has found local connections that showcase just how generous
humans can be. She usually stays in youth hostels and packs light, though she suggests that people bring portable inflatable mattresses and pack a few small plates and bowls. And then she recommends getting away from tourist hot spots to learn firsthand about the local culture.
“If people are really nervous, I think going with a tour group — whether it be Rick Steves or Road Scholar tour group or something — that encourages people to connect in with local people,” Weller says.
Each chapter of the book focuses on a different theme and location and is a readable standalone,
and Weller also includes personal reflection questions at the end of each chapter. Organizing the book this way makes it possible for individual readers or book groups to pick a section to focus on for a dive deep on a specific topic. Next up on Weller’s itinerary is fulfilling a promise she made to herself: a trip revisiting a route she took 50 years ago. “I promised myself that ‘I’m gonna come back [to the Rhine River] with my husband,’” Weller says. “So almost 50 years later we’re planning to go back to the Rhine River, with my husband.”
Join Spokane Velocity and Zephyr fans for a rousing MARCH TO THE MATCH anytime the men’s and women’s soccer teams are in town. Starting from the Rotary Fountain in Riverfront Park and proceeding to ONE Spokane Stadium, the marches are organized by the 509 Syndicate, a group describing itself as, “the heart and soul of Spokane’s soccer supporters — chanting, drumming and bringing the energy of a 12th player on the field.”
Learn the chants and find more info about the 509 Syndicate’s mission of inclusivity that unites fans and strengthens their hometown at the509syndicate.com.
— ANNE MCGREGOR
Each March to the Match starts at the Rotary Fountain in Riverfront Park, 507 N. Howard Street, 45 minutes to an hour before kickoff for Spokane Velocity and Zephyr matches. Find the match schedule at uslspokane.com
In a long-awaited home renovation, designer Jasmine Galle helps a couple find compatible solutions
BY ANNE MCGREGOR
“T
his space was beyond me, you know, and that’s part of the reason we hadn’t done any renovations,” says Tanya Low.
Low’s spacious home built in 1991 in the Northwest style definitely had its share of impressive features: a massive rock fireplace extended all the way to the ceiling in the vaulted living room, a wall of windows offered sweeping views through the trees to the Green Bluff farmland below.
The Low family — Tanya, her husband, Dallas, and their four kids and dog — had enjoyed living on the private hillside for 10 years. However, the home’s dark wood interiors and well-used flooring were starting to show their age. The busy family now needed dedicated space for pursuing music and art. But when it became clear that replacing the refrigerator would entail removing the kitchen island, “That was kind of the beginning of our need to do something with this house,” says Tanya. “It spiraled pretty quickly.”
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Expanding the kitchen’s footprint created plenty of space for an island at the Low home. The pendant lights are from Visual Comfort & Co., in a collection created by designer Kelly Wearstler. “They’re kind of midcentury, but they go a little bit industrial, so they really mixed well with other vintage elements that we have going on in the space,” says designer Jasmine Galle. PATRICK MARTINEZ PHOTO
DESIGN
Sage & Soul Interiors
CONTRACTOR
Romane Construction
CABINETS
Old Hat Workshop
WALLPAPER INSTALLER
Northwest Wall Designs
WALLPAPER SOURCES
Thibaut (Laundry Room),
Spoonflower (Hall Bath), York Wallcoverings
(Primary Bedroom)
COUNTERTOPS
Floform Spokane/Post Falls
PLASTER HOOD
Apollyon Wall Design
PAINTING
Everhart Painting
LIGHT FIXTURES
Visual Comfort & Co.
UPHOLSTERED FURNITURE
Rowe Furniture
Norwalk Furniture
— Custom curated by Sage & Soul Interiors
LIVING ROOM RUG
Jaipur Living
The Lows enlisted Jasmine Galle at Spokane’s Sage & Soul Interiors for a renovation that soon grew beyond the kitchen to include the entire main floor.
While Tanya might have had a hard time figuring out what she wanted, Galle helped her sort out what she didn’t like. “Tanya really does know what she likes. She just needs to see it,” Galle says.
But while Tanya, a professional musician, found plenty of color suited her just fine, that didn’t work for her husband, Dallas. “It’s affronting to his senses,” Tanya says.
So Galle carefully worked to add just enough color to please Tanya without creating an overly energized space for Dallas.
In the living room, that meant whitewashing the horizontal wood paneling and adding textured carpet in a pale neutral tone. But for the room to work, it needed a large area rug.
Sitting in the space in late summer with Galle, Dallas laughs, “Can I confess to you that you were absolutely right about that rug? This was a hard pill for me to swallow — like,
why do I need a rug when I’m putting carpet down? You’re putting a rug over the top of the carpet! That doesn’t make sense to me, especially when it’s huge and very expensive. But OK, fine, you were right.”
And indeed it’s the rug, with hues pulled straight from the trees and golden fields outside the windows that made the room work, Galle says. “It’s a pretty bold rug,” and she designed the rest of the room around it.
“They did a good job of bringing in enough color that I feel very at home here,” says Tanya.
“The furniture was really fun for this project,” Galle notes. “We got to pick our own fabrics…They really needed a space that was durable and could withstand large gatherings, but also seat a large number of people.”
Galle chose an oversized ottoman instead of a coffee table, in part to accommodate all the seating. At first, Tanya was skeptical, “I was like, that is just huge! How's that gonna function? And then, you know, immediately the kids just decided, ‘that's our place to play games.’ So it created a lot
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more community with my kids, doing stuff together immediately.”
For the kitchen, Galle went with a mostly muted palette, marrying creams and whites. A backsplash of Bedrosians square tiles with subtle variations in the hue and texture adds just enough interest without upstaging the porcelain counter product, chosen only partly for its beauty. “It really
I come in here and I think, ‘Oh, happy paradise!’
felt like the best option. They’re a busy family, they host all the time, and this is one of the most durable surfaces on the market,” says Galle. There’s one bold choice in the space, however. A green range adds just the splash of color Tanya needs.
When Galle told Tanya they were putting beams in the kitchen, Tanya was perplexed. “I lived here for 10 years. In my head, we had beams!” she laughs. The new beams, obviously meant-to-be, create continuity between the kitchen and living room (which already had beams), adding a cozy vibe despite the high ceilings.
Across the hall from the kitchen, Galle reenvisioned the laundry room as a multifunctional space, creating a dedicated location for the Lows’ daughter’s art, while keeping other family needs in mind as well.
“It’s almost the workhorse of the home,” says Galle. “You have the mudroom, the pantry, the laundry, the art nook.” A “locker” area secreted behind charmingly detailed millwork gives family members their own storage areas. Stacking the washer and dryer created space for a large pantry. And in front of the window, the counter offers plenty of room for an artist’s creative endeavors, with ample storage for materials right at hand. The hardworking, cost-effective rustic porcelain tile on the floor is easily cleaned, even if paint spills on it.
“This room actually was my very favorite room for a long time, up until we got the rest of the house done,” says Tanya. “I still love this. I come in here and I think, ‘Oh, happy paradise!’”
Galle adds that a room that’s often written off deserves a second look. “It’s such a fun greeting when you’re coming in from the garage. Your mudroom or your laundry room can have so much fun personality.”
Planning for the project actually took longer than completing the work, according to Galle. Along the way, both Galle and Tanya say tears were shed, especially at the “reveal” when Tanya saw the finished project after being sequestered in the basement for a day of last-minute fixes and staging.
It was all the more meaningful in part because it represented a long journey. “We spent the first portion of our marriage not having much money at all,” says Tanya. As a musician, she supported the family — then with three kids — as they traveled the U.S. in a bus. “We lived in there for four years,” and she says she loved every minute.
But now, settled in among the trees, with a home music studio, an artist’s nook, a bright and welcoming living space, and a serene primary bed and bath, the couple are enjoying watching their children mature and slowly leave the nest. One daughter has already married and moved to Northern Ireland.
Understanding where her clients came from and where they’re headed is all part of Galle’s philosophy. “We learn so much about our clients just by asking questions and just talking to them — about their experiences, where they’ve traveled to, and what they love.”
A classic Craftsman on Spokane’s South Hill is lovingly reclaimed
of Spokane
507 w. 14th Ave Built 1913
ADDED TO SPOKANE REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES: September 30, 2024
The house wasn’t what Donna Punihaole imagined she’d fall in love with. She had pictured a two-story Craftsman with a wide front porch. The 1.5-story bungalow on West 14th Avenue checked neither box. And yet, the moment she stepped inside, she knew.
As she prepared to retire after 27 years in the U.S. Army, Punihaole had decided exactly where she wanted to land. “I was stationed here in the ’90s, and I rented an old bungalow way up at the top of South Hill by the golf course. And I just fell in love with Spokane. I loved the community here.” After retiring in 2011, she returned to Spokane and began her house hunt in earnest.
She loved the South Hill location. “I loved the parks, the walkability. So it was like, ‘OK, I’m going to do this.’”
Though she may not have been wowed by the exterior, the interior was love at first sight. The bones, as they say, were good, and much of the house’s original character remained intact. She immediately noticed the unpainted gumwood trim, the original windows and storm windows, and the distinctive box-bay windows. What truly stopped her, though, were the fireplace tiles: a horizontal Claycraft “Woodland Scene” tile and two vertical Muresque tiles depicting Multnomah Falls and Oneonta Gorge along the Columbia River near Portland. The rest of the house would grow on her as she began lovingly restoring it, one project at a time.
After moving into the house on West 14th Avenue, Punihaole grew curious about the home’s past. She turned to the Spokane Public Library and the Spokane Historic Preservation website, both invaluable resources. In 2022, she decided to dig deeper — with the goal of eventually nominating the home to the Spokane Register of Historic Places — and hired historic preservation consultant Linda Yeomans to conduct in-depth research.
In 1909, Fred R. Wright, who worked as a registered patent attorney, bought a lot on the lower South Hill. It wasn’t until late 1912 that he commissioned Spokane building contractor F.E. Martin to construct the house there at a cost of $3,000. The home was completed in 1913, while the garage was built in 1915.
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Though not original to the house, the fireplace tiles were so unusual that Donna Punihaole enlisted the help of Tile Heritage Foundation to research them. They identified the 4 inch x 16 inch horizontal tile as Claycraft (1921 – 1926) No. 1023, “Woodland Scene” The two, flanking 4 inch x 12 inch tiles are Muresque Tiles from Oakland (1925 – 1935). Both of these tiles reflect scenes along the Oregon side of the Columbia River east of Portland, including Multnomah Falls and its iconic bridge. The surrounding field tiles could be Batchelder, Claycraft, or Muresque, as all three companies made tiles that looked like this. The installation itself would have most likely been in the late ’20s or early ’30s as this was when Muresque tiles reached distributors in the Northwest.
The sconces over the fireplace were the only period light fixtures in the home. Punihaole had acquired two antique light fixtures in South Carolina that she placed in the kitchen and hallway. The majority of the other period fixtures were purchased from Spokane’s Revival Lighting.
Eaves and Bathroom Reno
Authentic Restoration Services completed these projects. “Brian Westmoreland and his team were a pleasure to work with. The quality and craftsmanship of their work on my two projects were unsurpassed,” says Punihaole.
— CANDACE ROWE
Uncovering the home’s history reinforced for Punihaole the importance of preserving its original architectural details and respecting its layout. Whenever possible, she reused salvaged materials from the house itself; when that wasn’t an option, she sought out period-appropriate pieces to match its character. Along the way, she made a few discoveries, including old papers tucked between the walls, hinting at lives once lived. But her favorite find was the stash of surplus original kitchen linoleum, carefully rolled and stored in the attic. She framed a piece, and it now hangs proudly on her kitchen wall. “I couldn’t identify it,” Punihaole said, “but I love the pattern. If this was still on the floor I would have left it.” Instead, she worked with Caruso’s Floors to update the kitchen floor with Marmoleum for a vintage look.
“I had a strong vision for what I wanted.”
Punihaole discovered that a 1948 remodel had altered key architectural details, most notably, reducing the size of the front porch and enclosing the once-overhanging eaves. In 2023-24, she partnered with Authentic Restoration Services to bring back the home’s original Craftsman character, reinstating the low-pitched roofline with its signature exposed rafters and its broad, unenclosed eaves. She also completed a thoughtful restoration of the main floor bathroom, a project she envisioned early on. In 2012, she began collecting materials while gradually saving for the labor. “I had a strong vision for what I wanted,” she says. The 1959 American Standard bathtub came from Brown Building Materials and cost just $250, while the window above the tub was another bargain from Brown, at just $25.
...continued on page 20
“Oh, how I miss Brown Building Materials! My bathroom tub and windows, the nickel-plated hooks, and numerous other items were such great finds!” Her sister gifted her an old inset medicine cabinet they had discovered at an antique store in Portland. She added character with a
nickel-plated Victorian radiator grate repurposed as a ceiling fan cover, and hung an antique mirror over the sink. The finished room, she admits with a smile, is uniquely hers — a mix of Craftsman, Art Deco and Victorian styles. One day, she hopes to add a second full bath upstairs.
A chance encounter gave Punihaole a glimpse into the home’s more recent history when a past owner of the house and her son stopped by and shared stories about the home and the neighborhood. She asked them if they would like to tour the house. “As we went through the rooms it was such joy to hear their memories while living there. The son had his family with him, and it was touching to hear him share his memories with his family… which room he shared with his brother as a kid, (his excitement) that the laundry chute and cat door were still in place as well as seeing that his dad’s workbench was still in the basement,” says Punihaole.
While the home’s layout remains much as it was in 1913, Punihaole has turned the upstairs bedroom into a cozy TV room and transformed the old coal-room into a wine cellar. As a first-time homeowner who’s also the City at Large representative for the Spokane Historic Landmarks Commission, she’s come to understand the deep responsibility of caring not just for a house, but for its history.
“It was such joy to hear their memories while living there.”
Ongoing maintenance is part of that commitment, and she sees herself as one link in a long chain of stewards for her home, which was added to Spokane’s Historic Register in September 2024. With gratitude for those who came before and care for those who will come after, Punihaole tends to her home with intention — preserving its past while quietly shaping its future.
Candace Rowe is on the board of the Spokane Preservation Advocates. If you love old homes or historic architecture, please go to spokanepreservation.org or find them on social media to join like-minded people in celebrating Spokane’s rich architectural history.
In a world filled with science-based explanations, the paranormal continues to fascinate us
BY E.J. IANNELLI
As the nights grow longer and the corners start to fill with ominous shadows, you might find your thoughts drifting toward all the things that might be lurking there.
Hold on. What was that strange sound? And what’s triggering those sudden goosebumps?
Sure, there could be a rational explanation. Or maybe, just maybe, was it a ghost?
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Indulging our imaginations and looking for explanations beyond the conventional isn’t uncommon, even among those of us who might self-describe as a materialist, that is, someone who puts all their stock in physical matter and rejects the notion of the spiritual world.
In many cultures these days, materialism tends to be the prevailing mode of thought. But that doesn’t mean its grip is absolute. According to a Gallup poll conducted this past May, one-third of Americans remain open to the idea of paranormal phenomena, and nearly 70% of all respondents (yes, skeptics included) either believed in or didn’t rule out the existence of psychic or spiritual healing.
Researchers working in the field of the cognitive science of religion, or CSR, have suggested that this might simply be the path that our mental processes follow. Not unlike the ancients who interpreted drought as divine punishment, we’re naturally inclined to attribute agency to events that have no immediate or obvious explanation.
It’s why, on hearing a creaking floorboard in an empty house, your initial instinct might be to stop and listen for an intruder — one that’s physically present or visiting from the astral plane.
“We like to have control in our environment, and so beliefs play a role that way,” says Brian Laythe, director of the Institute for the Study of Religious and
Anomalous Experience and co-author of the book Ghosted! Exploring the Haunting Reality of Paranormal Encounters
“What they do is they provide you with a map of how you think the world is going to behave on a day-to-day basis. Placing people in environments where they don’t know what’s coming next almost immediately causes mental breakdowns. It’s a form of torture,” he says.
Furthermore, materialism is a relatively new philosophy that’s working against millennia of accepted social behaviors. For most of the time that humankind has been attempting to make sense of the world, paranormal explanations were considered just as valid as any other.
“These things were part of the human experience and the human condition long before science [as an institution] came along, you know, three or four hundred years ago,” says Eddy White, a University of Arizona professor who teaches a course titled “Weird Stuff: How to Think About the Supernatural, the Paranormal, and the Mysterious.”
“belief engine” — a phrase White uses in summarizing the book The Science of Weird Shit: Why Our Minds Conjure the Paranormal by the anomalistic psychologist Chris French — is perhaps more apparent than ever in our current political climate.
“One of the things I keep highlighting for my students is this whole idea of confirmation bias because we keep running into it. We have these ideas and the things that we believe in. Anything that confirms that is what we’re embracing, and anything that challenges it is something people reject,” White says.
But the abiding appeal of the supernatural could come down to something that unites rather than divides us: the love of a good story, especially one that transports us away from the mundane.
Here in the 21st century, thanks in part to the adoption of the scientific method, we have far more documented knowledge and instruments of observation and measurement at our disposal than at any point in human history.
Yet the brain’s default function as a
Laythe calls this enchantment, which he describes as “that sense of awe and mysticism that occurs when we see things that are out of the ordinary.” In this case, not knowing what will happen next is a perk rather than a drawback.
“It’s why people watch really engrossing fantasy movies,” he says. “But we also have
48% of U.S. adults believe in "Psychic or spiritual healing or the power of the human mind to heal the body."
19% "aren‘t sure about it"
32% "don‘t believe"
39% of U.S. adults believe in "Ghosts, or that spirits of dead people can come back in certain places and situations."
19% say they "aren‘t sure"
42% "don‘t believe" — Gallup Poll, May 2025
to note that enchantment can be positive or negative, right? The out-there horror movie is a weird negative feeling of awe because it’s mysterious and it’s new and it’s unknown.”
Is all that to say, then, that humans’ enduring interest in the supernatural comes down to our desire for a little more mystery in the world? That it’s a byproduct of some remaining ancient mental wiring pushing us toward those conclusions? That it’s explained by our stubborn insistence on simple explanations?
Or is there something more there? In Ghosted!, Laythe and his co-authors raise the concept of Haunted Person Syndrome and propose that there could be a number of factors at work — some psychological, some less clear-cut.
That lack of definitiveness probably won’t be enough to win over many skeptics, but it might offer some hope to the sizable portion of belief-leaning respondents in the Gallup survey. Of those who gave some credence to the paranormal, nearly nine out of 10 believed in ghosts.
Witches, however, have their work cut out. They were the most rejected group among skeptics and believers alike.
For those muscle aches that just won’t go away, dry needling may offer the pain relief you’ve been looking for
BY CARRIE SHRIVER
Pain is an unfortunate part of life. As much as we’d like to avoid it, sometimes we just can’t. Injuries occur unexpectedly, putting a bump (and sometimes a major detour) into our daily routines.
Former Gonzaga basketball player Emma Wolfram is no stranger to pain. She incurred injuries during her time on the court and chose a career in physical therapy where she can ease her patients’ pain.
One way Wolfram, who works at U-District Physical Therapy, aids patients is through a technique known as dry needling. As counterintuitive as it seems, stick-
ing needles into someone who is already in pain can actually help.
Here’s how: “Around your layers of muscle there’s fascia. It’s a fibrous material that can bundle up, fold over, and those (areas) create irritated spots within the muscles. The needle can get right into those spots,” Wolfram says. “It will bring blood flow to the area as well as relieve that tension the muscle has.”
Parker Daniels, a physical therapist who works at Hayden Lake Physical Therapy & Aquatics, also uses dry needling (“dry” means the needle doesn’t have any medication on it and it’s not combined with an injection) to help his patients.
“When you look at these tight spots, these really painful spots, one thing that they found is that there’s a buildup of biochemicals,” Daniels says. “They are linked to pain. When we look at those areas of muscle under an EMG [electromyography], it looks like the muscles [are] contracting even though you’re not telling that muscle ‘contract.’
“Just like anything else, after being worked for a while it gets tired and will start to be painful,” Daniels says.
There are several ways the needle is inserted and handled. It can go in straight into the trigger point and stay in anywhere from 20 to 30 seconds. Or it can be moved within the muscle without coming back through the skin first. The needle can also
be combined with electrical stimulation for a treatment that lasts up to 10 minutes.
“As we apply electric stimulation, the muscle starts to relearn how to contract and act as it’s supposed to,” Daniels says.
The procedure is used on a wide variety of conditions.
“Any musculoskeletal disorder, we can treat,” Wolfram says. That includes common problems like sciatic nerve pain, plantar fasciitis and even certain headaches.
This therapy is a good option for patients with chronic pain and those who’ve tried traditional physical therapy techniques without significant relief. It can also begin the process of improving a patient’s range of motion and strength.
“A lot of times [dry needling] will offer some pretty instant relief. The muscles calm down. You can move a little more. Let’s take advantage of this new movement and strength. Let’s give it the stimulus and exercise it needs to help maintain that load,” Daniels says. “It’s more effective and best practice to combine it with exercise.”
Patients may want to know if dry needling hurts before settling in for a session.
“What some people have told me, as well as what I felt myself, is there’s certain areas I don’t even know that the needle is in. You can’t feel the prick of it, you can’t
tell what it’s doing,” Wolfram says. “Other times when we get right into the trigger point it can cause a local twitch response that activated the muscle fully, followed by relaxation. It’s a weird sensation because you’re not actively engaging that muscle on your own.”
The discomfort patients tend to experience occurs in areas where there is a lot of fascia, like in the foot.
“Comfort improves when you’re in the muscle, but actually getting the needle through the fascia tends to be a little bit uncomfortable before they get the relief,” Wolfram says.
Not to worry though, if you can’t stand the sensation the physical therapist will take the needle out immediately.
The number of needles used in an area depends on the patient’s condition and on the muscles involved in the area where the problem is located.
“The more muscles involved, the more needles I’m going to need to use because I’m getting at specific angles. So if there’s five muscles that we’re trying to target, I would use five different needles,” Wolfram says.
After the procedure people can feel achy or even an initial tightness in the muscles that were treated. These side effects, and some minor bleeding or bruising at the needle sites, generally subside over the
Acupuncture is based on traditional Chinese medicine and is used to treat a variety of different conditions including pain, digestion, anxiety and seasonal allergies. Acupuncture focuses on the alignment of energy points in your body and helps clear up any blockages in the system. In acupuncture the needle is placed at various depths depending on the condition being treated, sometimes only going skin deep.
Dry needling is used solely to treat musculoskeletal issues and the needle goes into the muscle itself.
— CARRIE SHRIVER
following day, and patients experience a lessening or even an absence of their pain.
Unfortunately, some patients can’t have this therapy. This includes people on blood thinners, those who have decreased sensation in an area, and anyone with metal allergies. Pregnant women can’t have certain areas treated, and anyone with a total joint replacement needs to wait 12 weeks before they can try dry needling.
If you’re tempted to try this therapy but reluctant, Cyndi Cook’s experience with dry needling may encourage you to give it a whirl. A knee replacement led to sciatic nerve pain that three months of physical therapy wasn’t helping.
“I was getting no relief,” Cook says. “I was to the point where I could barely walk, it was so painful.”
After two – yes, only two – sessions of dry needling the pain disappeared.
“I highly recommend it. It’s worth at least just trying,” Cook says. “I would say ‘do it at least twice.’ The first time, on a scale of one to 10, I was probably a five in pain afterwards. The second time I went, there was no pain after that. It’s really amazing.”
BY MARY STOVER
Agroup of three college friends sat for lunch at their favorite campus haunt. The waiter approached quickly, dropping menus while curtly asking, “Waters all around, yes?” One friend nodded, eyes widened. Off the waiter went in a flourish, darting through the walkway, dabbing his sweaty forehead with a napkin while dodging busboys. Before they could peruse the one-page menu, he’d returned with waters — three glasses in one hand, the other holding his pad and pen. Maneuvering the pad and pen between his armpit and teeth, he sloshed the water onto the table and asked, “OK, so what are we having?”
One friend said, “Oh goodness, I haven’t had a chance to read all of it yet, we haven’t seen each other in…”
GOOD READ
The waiter cut in, “So you need more time, yes?”
“What’s his deal? We just sat down!” said one friend. “Think we should ask for another server? What if he does something to our food?”
His deal? Moments before the friends were seated, he received a text from his doctor that his lab results weren’t what they’d hoped. The manager said he could make a personal call once all of the tables had received their food.
Their perceptions were off — but how could they know? They observed behavior and interpreted it similarly: He was rushed, impersonal and didn’t care about their experience. A quick clarification — “Is everything OK? We only do this once a year and want it to be chill… Should we move so we don’t slow you down?” — could’ve given the waiter a chance to be mindful of how he’s being interpreted by his guests.
Want to know more? Check out Daring Greatly by Brene
Quizzical looks passed before one nodded and mumbled, “I guess?”
Away he went, dashing back to the kitchen, quickly scrolling through his phone, stabbing the screen like it had wronged him. The friends were confused, put off and unsure if they wanted to spend their long-awaited reunion lunch like this.
Brown, PhD.
Perception checking is essential to healthy relationships. Without it, we hold fast to misunderstandings and wrong impressions. Taking an awkward moment to ask for clarification can reveal the truth, reduce conflict, build empathy and enhance our relationships.
Your perception is affected by who you are and what you’ve experienced. How you interpret this lunch in your 20s
might differ by your 50s. If you’ve ever been a server, that adds another layer. These diners’ nostalgia for the restaurant affected their expectations. Someone in a rush might appreciate the waiter’s speed. Others, noticing his sweaty brow or frantic screen-swiping, might worry he’s not OK.
We all need to practice perception checking — chances are good we aren’t doing it often enough.
Ages ago, I heard Oprah say her mantra was, “They’re doing the best they can.” On days when I know my perception is off, when my negativity is annoying me, I try to remember that. Even if I’m wrong (and they are just being a jerk), it’s better than focusing on the ick.
Our society sucks at approaching the awkward. Slowing down, practicing a little more self-awareness, being mindful of our own beliefs and attitudes can help all of us work on our perception. And really, we can’t know if we’re understanding unless we go ahead and seek clarification. Asking “do I have this right?” can save a lot of hurt feelings, damaged relationships and bad experiences. Sure it can be a little awkward, but vulnerability in relationships can do wonders for our trust, connection and overall life satisfaction.
Mary Stover is a communication studies lecturer and researcher focused on preadolescent suicide, advocating for community care and empathy in mental health. She holds a doctorate in interdisciplinary leadership from Creighton University. An uber fan of Mister Rogers, she lives in Spokane, and finds purpose in teaching, traveling and helping others grow as authentic communicators.
April Hansen, Chief Executive Officer
BY SUMMER SANDSTROM
While getting fitted for a bra and purchasing it may not seem that important at first glance, it’s something not everyone has access to, and Breast Intentions is working to provide women in need with the ability to get a bra that fits and to have fun doing it.
Breast Intentions was founded in 2014 by Christine Weaver after she served on the gala planning committee for Catholic Charities.
“We were having a woman who had been through their services as the keynote speaker,” Weaver says. “She had lost her children, ended up in jail, and then had turned her life around, got her children back, was married. Her husband had had the same kind of problems, and they were making a real go of it.”
Weaver offered to take the speaker dress
shopping before the gala, and Weaver ended up asking her when she had last bought a new bra.
“She’d been wearing the same bra for three years,” Weaver says. “When she was able to be in a bra that actually fit her, she stood up straight, her shoulders were back — she had this huge smile on her face, and it was just like this entire change in her being. That stuck with me.”
The experience was the spark for Weaver to start the nonprofit Breast Intentions, which now provides underserved women with professional bra fittings, new bras and information on how to care for them properly.
have a bra that fits. You can throw a bunch of bras in a pile and have women pick them out, but if the bra doesn’t fit, it’s not going to work.”
Breast Intentions is fully volunteer run, relying completely on donations of both time and money. Unused bras can be donated at Audrey’s Boutique, while cash donations can be made on the nonprofit’s website (breastintentionsofwashington.org).
BREAST INTENTIONS
breastintentionsofwashington.org
“If your breasts are not well supported, it can create all kinds of issues for your back, your neck, headaches and just your posture,” Weaver says. “It’s very important to
Weaver says that they always need volunteers to help with monthly bra fitting events, which are already scheduled through October 2026, as well as the Ninth Annual Bra-lloween fundraiser on Oct. 30 at the Montvale Event Center.
“It’s our only fundraiser that we have throughout the year, and we are all volunteers,” Weaver says. “All the money that we get from this is what lasts us for the year.”
3114 E. Fifth Ave.
The Carl Maxey Center serves as a cultural center for Spokane’s Black community and also offers a variety of programs and services. The nonprofit is named after civil rights attorney and activist Carl Maxey. It provides a home to the Sandy Williams Justice Center, which offers limited legal aid to unrepresented individuals; the Black Spokane Business Center; a rental assistance program and a student tech fund. To donate or get involved, and for more information on upcoming events, visit carlmaxeycenter.org.
udistrictpt.com
In order to support at-risk youth, the U-District Foundation Mentoring program partners with Title 1 schools and pairs children with mentors to guide them. “We really get to know our new volunteers — we learn their preferences, life experiences, personalities, and we kind of take all of that and work with the school counselor to nominate a student that would be the best fit based on those things,” says program director Lexi Asher.
The mentoring program began in 2011 and operates in two ways: the community-based program, in which mentors take kids out in the community; and a site-based program, in which mentors visit during school lunch. A mentorship generally lasts about 18 months. Asher says they’re always looking for volunteers and donations. More information can be found at udistrictpt.com/foundation.
104 S. Freya St. Ste. 207
Serving kids with critical illnesses, Make-A-Wish works to make these children’s wishes come true. The organization started in 1980 when a group of people came together to grant the wish of Chris Greicius, who had leukemia and dreamed of becoming a police officer. On Nov. 13, the Alaska and Washington Make-A-Wish chapter is holding a fundraiser called Happiness Hour, where attendees can enjoy dinner and drinks while participating in silent and live auctions. To get your ticket, donate or get involved with Make-A-Wish, visit wish.org/akwa.
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“It’s a very direct, simple thing you see when you’re driving, ‘Go to Chowderhead,’ and it’s almost subliminal,” Tveit says.
The billboard has since taken on a life of its own, moving to different locations throughout the city to onlookers’ delight. However, it started out as a plug on the Food Finders page on Facebook.
“I would just write ‘Go to Chowderhead,’ because they’d be like, ‘Where can I find good clam chowder? Where can I find a grilled cheese sandwich?’ I was like, ‘Go to Chowderhead. Go to Chowderhead.’ I’d type it a million times,” Tveit says.
keep an open mind about stuff like that,” Tveit says.
After working at a handful of fast food chains in Spokane, Tveit moved to Portland and enrolled in the now-closed Oregon Culinary Institute. Moving back to Spokane, he worked for Wild Sage American Bistro as the pastry chef and Iron Goat Brewing as the head chef before working for Tony Brown at Ruins, when it occupied the space where Chowderhead is now.
When Brown decided to move his restaurant downtown (it’s now situated in west Kendall Yards), he asked Tveit if he wanted to take over the location.
“It’s crazy how it happened, it literally fell into
“They’d be like, ‘Where can I find good clam chowder? Where can I find a grilled cheese sandwich?’ Go
Successful marketing isn’t the only thing raking in crowds. Regardless of whether it’s snowing, raining or sunny, the restaurant is a go-to spot for a good bowl of soup — be it classic New England-style clam chowder or specials like watermelon gazpacho — or hearty handhelds like the bestselling cheesesteak sandwich.
Long before Tveit opened Chowderhead in March of 2022, he’d worked in Spokane’s food industry, starting with his first job making pretzels and popcorn at Target.
“I always had some sort of food-centric job, whether it was working in a kitchen or just ringing up people on the register, whatever,” he says.
Tveit was first entranced by cooking when watching his father whip up big breakfasts for family gatherings
my lap,” Tveit says. “If I wasn’t gonna open my own restaurant, I didn’t know what else I was gonna go do because I didn’t really want to go work for somebody else, I didn’t want to move and I just didn’t want to start over somewhere.”
When formulating the new restaurant’s concept, Tveit used his familiarity with the space and customer base to his advantage. Centered near lunch break foot traffic, he geared the casual menu to a daytime crowd.
“We’ve gotten popular enough to where now when it’s 98 degrees out we’re still selling soup,” Tveit says.
...continued on page 35
Ingredients:
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 1 small yellow potato, diced
• 1 carrot, peeled and chopped
• 2 tablespoons garlic, minced
• ¼ cup of red wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons of kosher salt
• ½ tablespoon of black pepper
• ½ tablespoon of oregano
• ½ tablespoons of dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon of chili flakes
• 1 40-ounce can of San Marzano tomatoes in juice
• 1 quart of heavy cream
• ½ cup of chopped fresh basil
• ½ cup of olive oil
Directions:
1. In a 6-quart stock pot, start some cooking oil (about ½ cup) over medium heat.
2. Once hot, add the onion, carrot, potato and garlic and cook until softened and some browning forms on the bottom of the pan. Be careful not to burn the garlic.
3. Add vinegar and stir.
4. Add the salt, pepper, oregano, dried thyme and chilli flakes and stir. Cook until fragrant.
5. Add tomatoes, stir and lower heat to medium.
6. Bring soup to a simmer and cook until potatoes are tender.
7. Puree soup, return to heat.
8. Add cream, stir, simmer over medium heat for 30 minutes.
9. Remove from heat and finish with fresh basil and olive oil.
10. Stir, taste and add more salt and pepper if needed.
— RECIPE COURTESY OF TRAVIS TVEIT
‘Go to Chowderhead’...
Tveit has always been a sucker for soup, choosing it as a preferred side when going out to dinner as a kid. Now, he loves it for its versatility.
“You can make a cream-based soup into a lot of things,” he says. “It could be a clam, it could be a seafood soup, it could be a potato soup, it could be a chicken soup, it could be any of them.”
Even if you order the same soup again, Tveit notes that it’s never exactly the same with different chefs making it.
“Even with the same ingredients everybody cooks a little bit different,” he says. “A recipe is more like an outline for how you need to make something, for cooking anyway.”
“It’s got that charm about it because it’s old,” says chef-owner Travis
Tveit didn’t want to be boxed in as only a soup restaurant, however, and offers a diverse lineup of sandwiches and burgers that take inspiration from other cultures like the kimchi fried chicken or the hot Italian beef sandwiches.
When coming up with specials, Tveit lets his stomach guide him. Or, the changing of the seasons.
“It’s October and all of a sudden I really want some pumpkin pie,” he says. “Or it’s November and I just can’t wait to have a turkey sandwich. Or it’s July or it’s August and I want a BLT with like the best tomato that you can get like right out of someone’s garden.”
Alot of people have come through to dine at the space on the corner of Monroe and Mallon, and while the historic building wears its age, Tveit wouldn’t have it any other way.
“It’s kind of like an old car,” he says. “It’s just like, yeah, that window doesn’t roll down or it’s like the AC doesn’t work … but you still love it. It’s got that charm about it because it’s old and lots of people have eaten here.”
Like clockwork, when lunchtime rolls around the 30-plus seats in Chowderhead fill up fast.
Tveit recalls how in the early 2000s chain restaurants were the go-to dining spots for locals, including his family. Now, he’s noticed Spokane’s food scene prefers specialty, locally owned establishments like Chowderhead.
“As long as people keep going out and spending their money on people who are trying to do good things, I think it’s going to keep doing that,” he says of the shift.
Now, next time you see the billboard, don’t think twice.
Stay connected with new classes, seasonal events, and what’s happening at the Market!
WEDNESDAYS
Game night at the quarry 3-7pm SEPTEMBER 11
Flowers & Focaccia
Harvest Activities
Halloween Trunk or Treat + more!
For a full list of classes & events visit our website
In collaboration with all of our farmers and food entrepreneurs, we are committing to zero waste! Every week we will have a rotation of grab and go meals, snacks and preserved foods coming to the Mercantile!
For the full class schedule download the NotifyMe app SCAN BELOW
Visit their website and the first words you see are, “brewer, baker, social-bond maker,” and that does a pretty good job summing up what The Grain Shed is all about.
A Perry District staple since 2018, The Grain Shed is passionate about community. Founders Shaun Thompson Duffy and Teddy Benson provide their neighborhood with a little bit of everything.
During my conversation with Duffy, at 10 am on a summer Wednesday, their space on Newark Avenue was almost entirely full. Customers were enjoying sandwiches, pastries and coffee while a bluegrass band provided live entertainment.
“We start pouring beer here at 7 o’clock in the morning so people can come drink beer at 7 o’clock. We have a bunch of overnight nurses and graveyard people that it’s the only place in town to get a beer at 7,” Duffy says.
“We do morning music because we’re morning people,” he adds.
While the bakery side of the operation caters more to the morning hours, the evenings are set to get more active as well.
The Grain Shed closed its downtown taproom at the end of July, and in early Au-
gust Duffy and Benson brought everything under one roof at the original location in the Perry District.
“Before the taproom, literally we took everything that was here and brought it to the taproom. Now we’re going to bring everything back. So we did all the events, the open mics, music, all that stuff, trivia night, bingo, all that other stuff,” Duffy says.
Those events will fill a void in the otherwise vibrant Perry District, but as has been the case since 2018, the beer and the bread are the main attractions.
“I started baking bread out of my backyard and I had a bread subscription and that got quite large, and then Teddy was a home brewer. He was brewing some beer and he got really good at it, so we kind of came together,” Duffy says.
Beer is sometimes called liquid bread, and as it turns out breweries and bakeries go pretty well together.
Duffy handles the bakery side of the operation, but only after the grain is malted to be used for Benson’s beers.
When the two co-founders came together back in 2018, everything was done out of their location in the Perry District. All of
the bread is still made on-site, but the brewery has outgrown the space. The beers are still produced locally, but now they use a larger facility on Green Bluff at Wildland Cooperative.
The eight-tap bar area features a rotating selection of The Grain Shed’s small-batch craft beers, and a more stable offering of cans is available as well including staples like their Purple Egyptian and at least one variety of lager.
You can find some of The Grain Shed’s beers at local markets, but the rotating taps feature brews you can only find in-house.
Sipping on one of their beers on-site is made even more enjoyable by ambiance. The taproom and bakery share the space, roughly 50-50. The smell of fresh-baked bread permeates the entire building, even wafting out onto the back patio where patrons can enjoy food and drink when seasonally appropriate.
Or pull up a seat at the bar and you might see some bread come out of the oven behind the taps.
The combination of food and drink is key to what The Grain Shed brings to its community.
“We never did wholesale. We never took our bread to markets or anything like that because the only reason to go to markets was because people would get off work and bakeries would be closed,” Duffy says.
With the closure of their downtown taproom, extended hours at the original location mean The Grain Shed will now be open even later. Bread will be for sale throughout the day, and the beer will be flowing from the morning into the night.
For the overnight workers who frequent The Grain Shed in the early morning hours, the bread is often used on their popular breakfast sandwich. Lunch and dinner hours bring sandwiches like the Grinder or the beet-forward Beetmaker. And on Mondays, wood-fired pizzas steal the show.
Whether it’s morning or evening, there is sure to be something good going on at The Grain Shed. With their broad array of offerings, staying up to date with everything may seem daunting, but Duffy and Benson make it easy to follow along on social media.
“Hopefully people stay hip to the socials,” Duffy says. “Is that what the kids say?”
“If they say no, then we take the time to explain the process of how everything goes and what they’re anticipating so that they don’t feel uncomfortable,” says Patty Seng, who co-owns the restaurant with her husband, Joe.
“HBY DORA SCOTT
ave you ever had Korean or Asian barbecue before?”
It’s the first question a hostess at Seng’s Asian Barbecue asks as she seats guests in booths outfitted with built-in tabletop grills and retractable exhaust hoods. Opening in summer 2025 just blocks north of the Monroe Street Bridge, Seng’s offers many diners their first experience with all-youcan-eat, self-grill dining.
Once seated, a 90-minute time limit for the meal starts, and seven banchan (side dishes) are laid out across the table with plenty more to choose and order throughout the meal. The barbecue requires a party of at least two. Guests can choose from 19 standard meats and 22 housemade side dishes to tailor the meal.
Seng’s ala carte appetizer options include dumplings in chili sauce, egg rolls and crispy fried chicken wings. The drink menu also has an Asian flair with signature cocktails that feature mushroom-infused soju, as well as hot or cold sake and imported Asian beers.
The Sengs intentionally classify their restaurant as serving Asian barbecue instead of Korean.
801 N. Monroe St., Open Sun-Thu 11 am-9 pm; Fri-Sat 11 am-10 pm
“We knew that we wanted to do a Korean barbecue, but we didn’t want the Korean community to be upset because obviously we’re not Korean,” Patty says. “And I told my husband, ‘You’re Laotian, it would be cool if we just came up with an Asian barbecue so you can incorporate all different kinds of Asian food into the mix and create something that’s very unique.”
A short stack, chicken-fried steak and eggs with a mimosa flight at Maddie’s
1825 N. Washington St., Open Tue-Sun 7 am-2 pm
For decades, Jennifer “Jenn” Hesseltine was a regular at Dolly’s Cafe at the corner of West Indiana Avenue and North Washington Street, bringing her daughter along to indulge in the longtime diner’s chicken fried steak.
Today, Hesseltine doesn’t often find herself seated in one of the restaurant’s old-fashioned booths. Instead, she’s back in the kitchen cooking up breakfast and lunch classics that nod to the location’s history, but with a fresh spin for its next chapter as Maddie’s Corner Cafe, which opened on June 25.
Don’t miss other breakfast classics like eggs benedict, breakfast burritos, sandwiches, and the sweet trifecta of pancakes, waffles, and French toast.
411 W. First Ave., Open Tue 5-9 pm; Wed-Thu 11:30 am-3 pm, 5-9 pm; Fri-Sat 11:30 am-3 pm, 5-10 pm
When Les Kim and his wife, Sunhwa Han, dreamed of bringing authentic Korean food to Spokane, they didn’t just imagine plates of crispy chicken and fiery tteokbokki. They envisioned a space where strangers turn into drinking buddies over soju bombs and family recipes passed down through generations. At Gangnam Style, a new Korean restaurant that opened on July 1 in downtown Spokane, the couple’s dream is now sizzling to life.
Induction cooktops are built into the center of most of the tables, used for shareable main dishes like the spicy or black bean sauce rice cakes, called tteokbokki, or the Chuncheon dak galbi, spicy stir-fried chicken served with vegetables like lettuce to wrap the meat in.
1924 W. Pacific Ave., Open Tue-Sun 11 am-10 pm
A historic former mansion on the corner of Pacific Avenue and Cannon Street in Browne’s Addition has seen many restaurant concepts inside its storied walls come and go. But with their new gastropub, Jewel of the North, co-owners Brooks Thomas and Allen “AJ” Hansen hope to break this pattern and become a permanent neighborhood staple. Thomas brings a taste of his Southern roots to Spokane, through a pub fare menu with soul food influences. Highlights include the chicken sandwich with Spiceology’s maple bourbon brine and Elixir Sauce’s habanero mayo. Also on the menu, find catfish sliders, macaroni and cheese, and banana pudding, the latter made from his mom’s recipe.
Spokane’s one-of-a-kind patio for beautiful views, tasty food, and of course, award-winning wines!
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KENDALL YARDS
Cozy games, which prioritize relaxation over combat, are having their moment — and even reinventing violent franchises
BY E.J. IANNELLI
When Diamond E. B. Porter was growing up, she’d often join her brothers in video game sessions.
They’d play games like Super Mario 64, a platform game that sees the titular hero racing (yet again) to rescue Princess Peach from the clutches of the nefarious Bowser, or Mortal Kombat, a hand-to-hand fighting game that encourages players to battle to the death.
But when it came time for Porter to create a sequel to Affirmations, her gamified metaphor for the negative thoughts that can plague those in the BIPOC community, she found herself looking back fondly to the 1998 platformer Spyro the Dragon. Though its gameplay has more than a few similarities to Super Mario 64, Spyro placed more emphasis on open-ended exploration and collecting items.
“What drew me to that,” she says, “is a lot of the aesthetics and the feel of moving a little purple dragon around in that environment that wasn’t so much hinging on these violent interactions.”
Which isn’t to say that Porter — now an assistant professor in Washington State University’s Digital Technology and Culture Department — had never enjoyed being immersed in the vicarious, often brutal anarchism of games in the Grand Theft Auto franchise or the much lighter, run-and-gun retro classic Contra
For Affirmations 2.0, however, what was more important was having the gameplay mirror the healing and self-care strategies that she wanted players to practice in real life.
“A lot of times, obviously, games reflect our cultural and social values. In making Affirmations 2.0 and really interrogating the game design process, I started to realize I don’t want my players to ‘win’ the game by this violent interaction,” she says.
“Instead, by leaning on community, by having conversations, by just going against all these different values that games have ingrained in us, that’s how you win the game.”
Though it wasn’t her express intent, Porter’s Affirmations 2.0 would nevertheless fit neatly into the rapidly growing genre of cozy video games.
Less focused on the competitive, combative, beatthe-clock gameplay we traditionally associate with video games dating back to Pac-Man and Space Invaders, cozy games take things at a much more relaxed pace. They commonly involve aspects like openworld exploration, self-expression through customizing the game environment and nurturing-related activities like gardening or raising pets.
Cozy games as a concept aren’t new, but their flourishing and labeling as such is. Most analyses point to the release of Animal Crossing: New Horizons in 2020 — a time that also coincided with the sedentary stresses of the COVID-19 pandemic — as the starting point of the current boom. In that game, the player is a character who purchases and develops an island getaway.
Other games, released both before and after New Horizons, have become emblematic of the cozy genre: Stardew Valley, Unpacking, A Short Hike, The Sims, and Good Pizza, Great Pizza, to name a handful. More than a few are basic life simulation games with a puzzle-like twist or a nonlinear progression toward goals, such as collecting enough of an item to unlock a new area of the game.
Beyond their similarities in gameplay,
cozy games also tend toward a certain aesthetic.
“In terms of how they look and feel, cozy games are more like a Pixar movie and less like your standard over-aggressive male action movie,” says Colin Manikoth, an assistant profes-
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For those who want to enjoy gaming but are confronted by various challenges, here are some ways to join the fun.
Accessibility Having granular control over things like color contrast, subtitles and lock-on aiming allows gamers with vision, hearing or motor challenges to play releases like The Last of Us Part II from developer Naughty Dog. An entirely blind gamer was able to complete the game due to these features in 2020, saying it was the first game he was able to fully complete with no sighted assistance.
Adaptive Controllers A hub that allows more inputs and accessories to help control the action lets individuals with limited mobility get in the game. After Xbox announced its accessible controller, Sony followed Xbox’s lead with one of its own.
Phobias A growing trend among games is to offer settings to filter out common phobias, like removing insects in favor of a cute mascot in the recent game Peak from Landfall Games.
Game Awards To highlight the importance of accessible design in games, the Game Awards (think Oscars for video games) has introduced an award for innovation in accessibility, most recently won by Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown from Ubisoft.
— ALEX MCGREGOR
sor in Eastern Washington University’s Department of Design and co-creator of the college’s User Experience (UX) Design Certificate.
“My gut says that it’s because cozy games don’t have millions of dollars behind them. Stardew Valley was made by a solo developer. Even Minecraft was made by a single developer before it was bought out by Microsoft. As an indie developer, you have to develop to low-powered hardware.”
Those economic considerations, coupled with the noncompetitive nature of the games themselves, are evident in how the developers of cozy games choose to market their work.
“Cozy games don’t talk about frame rates. They don’t talk about performance,” Manikoth says. “They talk about how many platforms this thing can be played on. Unlike AAA games, which try to become platform exclusive.”
That egalitarian cross-platform strategy has been advantageous for some of the genre’s breakout hits. With sales of 350 million copies, Minecraft is the bestselling video game of all time by a wide margin. The Sims, with 70 million in sales, still ranks among the top 10. Stardew Valley is tied with Call of Duty: Modern War at 41 million copies sold.
Sales figures like those still haven’t shielded cozy games from stereotyping, especially when compared to the unequivocally male-dominated first-person-shooter field that includes franchises
“But players are even leaning into these cozy mechanics recently with the Grand Theft Auto game franchise. There’s been a whole bunch of mods where they’ve taken the base game and completely restructured it. And they’re upping this role-play aspect rather than the violence.”
Creative adaptations like that could end up clouding the definition of what exactly qualifies a game as cozy. But maybe that’s needless fussing over labels. After all, as the age-old adage reminds us, it’s not whether you win or lose, it’s how you play the game.
A quick drive from downtown Spokane, Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge makes it easy to reconnect with the wild
Birders flock to Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge during the spring to view a wide range of migrating birds. But autumn brings its own panoply of nature-focused reasons to visit, whether for an hour or two after work or for a full day.
“I love the fall at Turnbull,” says Supervisory Park Ranger Josh Contois, who oversees the Kootenai and Little Pend Oreille refuges in addition to Turnbull, which is located just outside of Cheney about 40 minutes from Spokane. “The dog days of summer are done, and the cool weather starts to move in. It’s a physical feeling; you can sense that things are shifting.”
With that shift comes a lower sun, shorter days and changing colors.
“We have a fair number of aspens out here, and seeing the golden color is a sign to me that fall is approaching,” Contois says. “A lot of people come out simply to appreciate the fall colors.”
Another draw: the opportunity to see moose — in particular, bull moose with their large racks. Contois says there are more than a dozen moose populating the refuge’s 23,000 acres, 3,300 of which are designated for public use.
“We get a lot of photographers who come out and try to get those moose photos juxtaposed to the bright yellow leaves
of the aspens,” Contois says. “As the foliage changes color and then begins to drop, the moose become a little easier to see.”
But he adds a word of caution: “Moose are wild animals and can be dangerous. You should never approach any wildlife and always maintain a safe distance. The rule of thumb: extend your arm out, stick up your thumb and close one eye. If you can block what you’re looking at with your thumb, you’re a safe distance away. If you can see part of what’s behind your thumb, you’re too close.”
Contois says that the moose at Turnbull don’t seem to mind the human presence, so they’re more likely to spend time in the public area of the refuge. Other species, such as elk, are “much more skittish and apprehensive of people.”
Contois says he has been an animal lover his entire life. When he was 5, he was gifted a pet turtle, which he named Michelangelo (a.k.a. Mikey). He’s now 39 and says that Mikey is “still alive and kickin’.”
Much of the wildlife viewing at Turnbull can be accessed by an extensive network of trails, ranging from the fully accessible .11-mile Blackhorse Lake Boardwalk to the 4.95-mile Stubblefield Trail, which meanders through grasslands, wetlands and forests, and provides expansive views of the Palouse Prairie.
“We have about 10 miles of trails,”
Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge is open daily from 6 am to 8 pm through Sept. 30, and from 6 am to 6 pm beginning Oct. 1. Go to fws.gov/refuge/turnbull for more information.
On Oct. 4, the refuge’s annual tree-planting event will take place in the Jolly Jack unit, an area undergoing wetland restoration on the eastern side of the refuge. The public is invited to participate.
Says refuge lead Ranger Josh Contois: “There is something deeply meaningful and impactful about putting a tree in the ground and getting dirt under your fingernails, knowing it’s something that’s going to outlast you.” (BOB JOHNSON)
Contois says. “Stubblefield is the most difficult, but only because of its length. The walking is easy, and you really get a sense of all the habitats on the refuge on that one hike.”
Adds Contois: “To be able to see that transition between the wetlands, the riparian zone, the ponderosa pines forest and the Palouse Prairie puts Turnbull in a unique and varied environmental location.”
And birders need not wait until spring to return to Turnbull, which Inlander readers voted “Best Bird Watching Spot” this year.
“We do get a fall migration,” Contois says. “Visitors will see waterfowl species — ducks and geese, primarily — and it’s not unusual to see tundra swan. The northern shrike will spend its winter here, and occasionally we’ll see the ruby-crowned kinglet.”
Whether birding, wildlife viewing, hiking or simply sitting on a bench with a book and letting nature providing the soundtrack, Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge offers a respite from the “big city” and an opportunity to shift into low gear for a while.
BY SUMMER SANDSTROM
It’s a milestone worth celebrating: The Tin Roof has remained family-owned through three generations — that’s 80 years! — says CEO Heather Hanley, noting her grandfather opened the business in 1945. “We started originally as a radio repair shop when my grandfather was decommissioned out of the military, and we have evolved into a home furnishings and design center.”
Hanley says the Tin Roof carries pieces that are both in style and timeless, and strives to predominantly showcase products made in the United States.
across the street from the Tin Roof, is being relocated into the main building.
“We’ll have a really broad price point because I think one of the things that people have is a misconception that we only do custom,” she says. “That’s something that we’re working on trying to dispel, and then also balance out our price points so that you can walk out with a sofa under or around $1,000.”
1727 E. Sprague Ave. tinrooffurniture.com
Hanely says staff at The Tin Roof are trained experts in the furniture industry, ready to help each client with the design of any space in their homes.
“We have a very large Bassett showroom, and Bassett is made in Bassett, North Carolina,” she says. “We also have some Amish brands that we carry. We have one brand that is out of Oregon, so that’s as close as you can get to local.”
Hanley says that the store’s sister shop, Bide and Burgeon, a collection of trendy yet affordable pieces that was housed
The Tin Roof specializes in a Pacific Northwest modern aesthetic, says Hanley, including not just furniture but also a massive rug collection and a large selection of artwork and decor throughout the store.
“I think accessories are a really important part about putting together a house, and we try to show things not
like: ‘Here’s our dining section,’ ‘Here’s our bedroom section.’ It’s more lifestyle-vignette throughout the store so you can really get a sense of how it feels,” she says.
And in October, there will be a celebration. “It’s a big deal to be 80 years old as an organization,” Hanley says. “Most companies do not make it into their third generation.”
823 W. Garland Ave.
Located in the heart of the Garland District, Pleasantries carries an array of home decor items, gifts and lifestyle items like lotions, soaps and candles. Danielle Amstrup opened the store last October. Her inspiration? All the positive visitor comments on the interior design of the AirBnB on Camano Island she and her husband own. “My goal is to find things that you wouldn’t normally see at Target or Home Goods. I just really want to bring unique and thoughtfully curated items to Spokane,” she says. Amstrup worked in the nonprofit world prior to opening Pleasantries, so as a way to incorporate that passion into her business, she holds monthly fundraisers with various local nonprofits. Information on those events can be found at shoppleasantries.com.
1419 E. Holyoke Ave.
Sweet, decadent, rich — chocolate is a delicacy beloved by many, making it a staple gift or a sweet treat worth splurging on. Halletts Chocolates, a locally owned chocolate factory, creates a variety of unique chocolates, toffees and treats — think PB&J chocolates, hand-dipped ice cream bars, caramels and so much more. Halletts Chocolates also sells soft peanut butter crunch, a softer version of peanut brittle. The Hallett family started the shop in the 1970s as a way to sell fruit gift boxes and later expanded into today’s chocolate and candy factory, and Halletts Market & Cafe at 14109 E. Sprague Ave. For more information on pricing and what’s in store, visit halletts.com or @halletts_chocolates on Instagram.
1107 W. First Ave.
Local artist Dylan Lispker loves creating colorful, bright pieces of art that stand out, as a visitor his Big City Art Gallery will quickly discover. “The majority of my work is built on glass and then is sealed in a two part acrylic resin,” he says. “A lot of it plays and has the ability to change under lighting and or have effects when direct or indirect lighting is applied.” Lipsker says that he got into painting and art as a way to heal from an accident. He fell in love with being an artist, started doing various shows and eventually decided to open up his own gallery. Lipsker is planning to open a community art gallery as well to help artists have a more accessible place to display their works and take home a larger percentage of sales. For more information on events and to keep up with Lipsker’s own art, check out @bigcityartstudio on Instagram.
After walking more than 3,500 miles, a Spokane couple isn’t done yet
BY BOB JOHNSON
Frankie White says she will never forget the first time she and her husband, Rick, arrived at the cathedral in Santiago de Compostela, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the Galicia region of northwestern Spain.
“There was this sense of awe that we had made it — that we had walked so far and here we are,” she recalls. “It’s a magnificent cathedral. The area in front of it is large and full of people. There’s a definite celebratory mood, but there’s also reverence. You can tell that people are turned inward with their thoughts. Gratitude. So much emotion.”
Rick White had been a juvenile proba-
tion officer, lawyer and, for 22 years, a judge in Spokane. Frankie had been an educator for 34 years and an accomplished photographer and artist. They had met while attending Gonzaga University (classes of 1973 and 1974, respectively). Fast forward four decades.
“We were looking for something to kick off retirement in a big way,” Frankie says. “Something where we could let go of our careers and kind of see what the rest of our lives were going to be like.”
They found that something in the long hikes, or pilgrimages, that lead to Santiago de Compostela. It’s an adventure known as
“The Camino de Santiago.”
Celebrated in the Catholic faith as the “Way of St. James” because the remains of the Apostle St. James the Great are believed to rest within the cathedral, it’s a trek that attracts people of all faiths from around the world. It’s a “We Are the World” video and “It’s a Small World” ride rolled into one, with each walker providing their own unique perspective to the journey.
There are numerous routes of varying lengths beginning in France, Spain or Portugal, primarily, with some in Italy and England. When one completes the journey of at least 100 kilometers (62 miles) and
checks in at the cathedral, they receive the “Compostela” — a certificate of accreditation issued by the Catholic Church. Each pilgrim is asked why they made the journey, and 70 percent say for spirituality, religious or otherwise.
Centuries ago, some criminals were given the opportunity to walk the Camino in lieu of serving prison time — a sentence that Rick would have embraced when filling in as a Spokane Superior Court judge.
“Every time I had to sentence someone to prison time, it broke my heart a little bit,” he says. “Lots of people in the system have lived disadvantaged lives. Sentencing was not a joyful experience — unlike walking the Caminos.”
The Whites made their first pilgrimage with another couple along the most popular route, Camino Frances (the “French Way”). Rick’s friend, Vince, had squeezed his size-16 feet into size-14 shoes and at the end of each day’s walk, his socks were bloody.
“His wife was a nurse,” Rick notes, “so every night she and I would release the blood from underneath his toenails and dress his toes. When we finally arrived at the cathedral, he started to weep.”
Tears well up in Rick’s eyes as he recalls the moment, and he pauses to gather himself. Then he adds: “That’s what I remember. Seeing my friend weep touched my heart. He walked every damn step.”
Adds Frankie: “I called him the iron pilgrim.”
Their feet exhibiting nary a blister, the Whites decided to walk another 80 miles to Cape Finisterre, which in Roman times was thought to be the end of the world. After that, they just kept walking and walking on subsequent trips to traverse other routes leading to Santiago de Compostela. Thus far, they have taken eight walks spanning 3,500 miles in six countries. On one wall of their home in Spokane, a map, drawn by
Frankie, illustrates where they’ve been and when.
Members of Spokane’s St. Aloysius Church, the Whites say they buy into the Catholic tradition that by completing the Camino and receiving a Compostela, all their sins will be forgiven.
“So, we sinned all the way across Spain,” says Frankie with a smile.
Adds Rick, his years as a judge completely in the rearview mirror: “We’d joke that we should run out on the dinner bill because we were going to be forgiven when we got there.”
The Whites say their typical day on a pilgrimage would span six to eight hours but involve very little talking.
“If I had to put a stopwatch to it, I’d be shocked if we communicated with each other for an hour during that span,” Rick says. “There’s a lot of silence.”
Often, there also was some physical distance between the two, but they’d always be within eyesight of each other.
“I’m challenged when it comes to getting around,” Rick admits.
“It would be easy to ditch him,” interjects Frankie.
“So, I always remind her that I’m carrying the cash and debit cards.”
Rick notes that some days can be more challenging than others when there are no restrooms along the way. The nightly accommodations often are 0-star.
But the pilgrimage isn’t about the nights of rest; it’s about the days of walking.
“Some days are harder than others,” says Rick. “It’s uphill and downhill, in woods and vineyards and sunflower fields. At any given time, you might not know what country you’re in. On a day like that, I wouldn’t remember specific things I’d seen. I was in my head, thinking about stuff or trying not to think about anything at all.”
Frankie says it’s a totally different experience for her.
Rick and Frankie White say their next pilgrimage will involve Camino Ingles (the “English Way”) in September. Next spring they’re off to Geneva, Switzerland, “to connect some of the dots on our map,” as Rick puts it.
The Whites say they are happy to speak with anyone interested in walking the Caminos and even led a “Camino de Bakery” walk in Spokane for like-minded people to connect and chat with coffee and sweet treats.
American Pilgrims on the Camino (americanpilgrims.org) is a nonprofit organization that helps potential pilgrims plan trips, and it has a local chapter (spokane@ americanpilgrims.org).
“For me, I’m not in my head at all,” she says. “I’m out there discovering everything. I shoot a lot of photographs. I’m exhausted by the end of the day because it has been such a visual delight for me.”
Rick says he has a plan when he and Frankie are walking the trails.
“I have categories,” he says. “I always spend the first two days trying to communicate with my parents. Then I do friends. And then I do people that maybe I didn’t know very well but made a difference to me. I believe it’s possible their spirits hear me, so I talk to them. For my parents, it’s mostly saying I’m sorry for not telling them how much I loved them. It’s not uncommon for me to weep when I’m walking.”
“The experience has different meaning for everyone,” Frankie says. “For me, just being with Richard, being with our friends, being out in nature — you can’t deny that touches you in some way on another level.”
