If you’re not busy tonight, head on over to Pravda Studios (1406 10th Ave, Suite 200) for a selection of 5 local Seattle Flickr photographers’ work.

Here are a few examples of the 50 photos displayed tonight:

Space Needle and Pacific Science Center by ttstam

Gasworks Silhouette by dooderose

Seattle Flickrites Gallery
6-9:30 p.m. Monday, May 4
Pravda Studios
1406 10th Avenue
Suite 200
Seattle

12:05 PM – Thrilling Tales: Adult Story Time
SPL Central Library
Take your lunch to the library! Get away from your desk– the tyranny of the normal, the horror of the mundane– for scary stories for grown-ups.
[LINK]

4:30 PM – Mike Gastineau, Art Thiel, & Steve Rudman: The Great Book of Seattle Sports Lists
FX McRory’s
Three local sports commentators have collected a series lists about Seattle sports with the help of some locals: Mike Holmgren, Ichiro Suzuki, Sir Mix-a-Lot, Kevin Calabro.
[LINK]

6:30 PM – Daniel James Brown: The Indifferent Stars Above: The Harrowing Saga of a Donner Party Bride
SPL Ballard Branch
The story of the Donner party is one of those American stories that people think they know, but often understand only a little about. Local author Daniel James Brown studied the history exhaustively, and produced this book, an account from the perspective of a young bride who survived the tragic journey of a group of settlers bound for California. [source: SPL]
[LINK]

7:00 PM – Hugo Works in Progress: Open Mic
Richard Hugo House Cabaret
A monthly open mic designed to give writers a chance to read in front of fellow writers and share what they have been working on.
[LINK]

7:30 PM – Achy Obejas, Robert Arellano, & Maggie Estep: The Spring 2009 Akashic Allstars
Elliott Bay Book Co.
This evening’s program features a Cuban lesbian novelist currently serving as the Sor Juana Writer in Residence at DePaul University; a son of Cuban exiles who has profiled Castro-era Cuba in essays, stories, and song; and a spoken word artist and ‘former groom’ who has been described as a “bastard child of Raymond Chandler and Anais Nin.” [source: Elliott Bay Books]
[LINK]

Size is a minor point of pride for SIFF. Once again, with 268 features (204 narrative and 54 documentary) and 124 shorts, the twenty-five day film marathon retains the title of the country’s biggest and, if all goes according to plan, the most attended. On Thursday morning, regional press types were invited to the Alki Room in Seattle Center to get sugared and mimosaed up in the future home of the SIFF Film Center before marching over to the SIFF Cinema to preview what the festival’s planners have in store for our first few weeks of summer. For film lovers, the timing is extremely fortuitous arriving at the end of a relative drought of post-Oscarbait withdrawal and just a little bit before the Seattle weather is so spectacular that hiding away in theaters feels criminal. From the looks of the lineup, there will be plenty of excuses to spend evenings indoors.

The festivities kick off at the Paramount on 21 May with a gala presentation of In the Loop, a political farce hinging around various governments misunderstandings and misrepresentations of the word “unforeseeable” in the lead-up to a certain middle east invasion. Introducing the film, made by the producers of the BBC’s “The Thick of It”, Artistic Director Carl Spence encouraged us to laugh internally, but I confess that on more than a few occasions my laughter became external. In the realm of opening night screenings (which have ranged from abysmal the Notebook to Me and You and Everyone We Know), this one falls on the “worthwhile” end of the scale. I’d wager the that it’s also the most profane. For many attendees, I expect that it will be the first, second, and third time that they’ve heard “lubricated horse cock” thrown casually into an invective tirade. There’s something kind of great about treating guests to nearly two hours of inventive British expletives before sending them out into the streets for a paella party on Ninth Avenue. Unlike last year’s tragic misunderstanding, everyone will get at least a couple of drink tickets and very important people will be able to drink until their livers bleed.

At the festival’s midpoint, Lynn Shelton’s Cannes-bound Humpday, about two straight guys contemplating going gay for possible pay (for the Stranger’s porn competition, which has cash prizes, right?), snags the Centerpiece Gala spot. It’s only one of the [record-setting] sixteen Northwest features being presented at the festival. Along the way big name guests like Spike Lee (this year’s Golden Space Needle winner) and Francis Ford Coppolla are expected to drop by to present new films and No Age will perform a live score for the Bear at the Triple Door (the Face the Music tradition manages to get more awesome every year). Finally, more than three weeks after it starts, film marathoners will cross the metaphorical finish line with a sequel to the 2006 audience’s favorite film: OSS 117: Lost in Rio, which plays at the Cinerama [thx Vulcan!] and is followed by a celebration of exhaustion nearby.

Throughout, SIFF ticket stubs will get attendees discount on food and drink specials at Boom[!] Noodle, which will serve as a post-film party lounge during the festival for spotting staffers, guests, and chatting with fellow fans. Those flung further from the city center and traditional theater configuration will be happy to know that the festival will be showing second- or third-runs of some films across the lake in Kirkland at the Performing Arts Center and in West Seattle at the Admiral. Last year’s online screenings have been cut, but some festival extras will be online at SIFFtv.

After watching a string of previews, my head was already swimming with choices — Moon, 500 Days of Summer, All Tomorrow’s Parties, We Live In Public among the more glittery — and there are still many more to consider. Somewhat amazingly, the SIFF staff running the press conference were persuaded to each name their one favorite festival entries. A cheat sheet to seed your agenda with dance card and a little insight into the personalities behind the festival:

• Carl Spence, Artistic Director: Don’t Let Me Drown
• Deborah Person, Managing Director: Gotta Dance
• Maryna Ajaja, Programmer: Tulpan
• Beth Barrett, Programming Manager: Morris: A Life with Bells On
• Dustin Kaspar Education: Tall Hot Blonde

Of course, you’ll be swimming in opinions and options in just a few days. Members get a chance to watch the preview reel next week and the official schedule appears on 7 May. Start strategizing (or just buy a pass or ticket pack and play it by ear): gala tickets are on sale now and the box office opens to the public on 8 May.

3:00 PM – Ben Greenman w/ Paul Constant: Please Step Back
Elliott Bay Book Co.
Greenman will read from his novel, then field silly questions from The Stranger’s Constant.
[LINK]

3:00 PM – Diana Butler Bass: A People’s History of Christianity: The Other Side of the Story
Seattle First Baptist Church
Diana Butler Bass makes her second Seattle Spiritual Synthesis visit today, with a newly published alternative history of Christianity, one emphasizing the role of corrective, even subversive beliefs in nourishing communities of faith.
[LINK]

5:00 PM – Holly Hughes: Beyond Forgetting
Frye Museum
A collection of poetry and short prose about Alzheimer’s disease written by 100 contemporary writers. Published by Kent State University Press as part of their Literature and Medicine series, with a foreword by poet Tess Gallagher. Readers are poet Tess Gallagher, editor/poet Holly Hughes and several of the contributors.
[LINK]

thao at the kexp yule party last year. [flickr] .

Even though summer has once again abandoned us in our time of need (afternoon edit: maybe not), make the best of it:

• Skillet is in Capitol Hill, by Bottleneck, to help support your Kentucky Derby dining needs. [capitolhillseattle]
• There are free comic books to be had all over the city. [freecomicbookday]
• Then stock up on plantlife and outdoor goods. [mb]
• Thao is headlining at Chop Suey. Want to have cute songs stuck in your head for weeks courtesy of cowboy booted indie rock? Go. [chopsuey]

Tomorrow is the first Saturday in May and that means free comic books! You can enter your zip code on the Free Comic Book Day website and get a list of comic stores in your area that will give you one of a varied number of comic books (check with your preferred store for full details).

9:00 AM – Real Change Booksale Party
University Congregational Church
Annual booksale
[LINK]

11:30 AM – Free Comic Book Day!: Love & Rockets: New Stories
Fantagraphics Books & Gallery
Fantagraphics Books is offering a free sampler of Love and Rockets: New Stories by eminent alternative cartoonists Gilbert and Jaime Hernandez. Included is a special preview of Gilbert’s “Sad Girl” saga, which introduces the character “Killer.” Also free is a limited supply of the coveted Unseen Peanuts comic from the 2007 Free Comic Book Day promotion, featuring rare strips by American master Charles M. Schulz. Not to mention the I.G.N.A.T.Z. sampler from last year’s Free Comic Book Day featuring comics by David B., Zak Sally, Kevin Huizenga, Richard Sala and more. If that’s not enough, we’ll be handing out Comic Strip Masterpieces, a cool collection of classics including Little Nemo, Popeye, Krazy Kat, Terry & the Pirates and more presented in their original tabloid newsprint format.’ [Source: Fantagraphics]
[LINK]

2:00 PM – Heather Stark: Why Doesn’t She Just Leave? A New Perspective on Domestic Violence
Elliott Bay Book Co.
Rhianna, Robin Givens, the woman down the street, and maybe even your own sister, friend or mother—these are some of those abused by husbands and partners. Health journalist and broadcaster Heather Stark talks today about domestic violence and shares some of the stories and research compiled in her book.
[LINK]

2:00 PM – Joan Hockaday: Greenscapes: Olmsted’s Pacific Northwest
SPL Central Library, Level 1, Microsoft Auditorium
In the early 1900′s, the meticulous, visionary protege brought the pastoral aesthetic of his famous stepfather, Frederick Law Olmsted, to premier park systems throughout the Pacific Northwest–designing verdant havens that still refresh urban souls in Portand, Seattle, and Spokane.
[LINK]

4:00 PM – Poets West: Open Mic
SPL Green Lake Branch
Poets West has programs with open mike sessions on the first three Saturdays of May.
[LINK]

vivian girls at neumo’s last night with abe vigoda. more pics in the photoset. [flickr]

When Vivian Girls and Abe Vigoda played last night at Neumo’s, the room was in its infrequent curtain configuration, with the big red velvet dividing the room in half and the mezzanine closed. For all of the buzz of the bands, the more intimate setting was just about right for the modestly sized but highly enthusiastic crowd. Abe Vigoda took requests, chatted with mustachioed guys in the front row, and broke a guitar twenty minutes into their set. They tried to take that as a sign to quit, but were offered a replacement from the headliners and soldiered on for a couple more (after some “Blue Velvet” stalling techniques). Vivian Girls, apparently fresh from filming a video involving pies, turned a couple new songs and less than a half hour of recorded material into a full show through the magic of extended noise jams. These instrumental interludes served as cover for them to take turns fleeing the stage to get drinks to remain in compliance with our antiquated liquor laws. At some point in the show, a guy sneezed and I momentarily felt irrational paranoia. Later, someone appeared out of nowhere with a fancy drink in a martini glass. The band spotted TacocaT and deemed them the greatest band. For their final songs, they did something of a chinese fire drill for last drinks and wound up switching instruments with each other mid-song. In the end, though, it wasn’t the screaming guitars or turned up vocals that induced ear-ringing, it was the high atonal howl of the audience demanding an encore.

Unfortunately it looks like today is the best day to actually be outside, but there are plenty of outdoor activities that you should check out this weekend even though you might need a sweater.

Tasty Farmers' Market Veggies (C) Cook Local

• Seattle Tilth Edible Plant Sale: This is the big one ladies and gentlemen. This is the sale to end all plant sales (well, ok, so there are a lot of good plant sales in this area, but the Seattle Tilth sale is all edible plants and all plants that have been selected as appropriate for our climate. Head to Meridian Park on Saturday or Sunday starting at 9am and ending at 3pm. I plan on getting a bunch of herbs as well as tomatoes, cucumbers, and anything else that looks interesting.
• Farmers’ Markets: The Ballard, University District, and West Seattle Farmers’ Markets are going strong. This week brings the return of the Redmond Town Center Farmers’ Market as well. I highly recommend picking up some pancetta from Sea Breeze Farms as well as some asparagus.
• Seattle Yacht Club Opening Day: I wouldn’t recommend kayaking through the Montlake Cut this weekend though, because it’s Opening Day! If you’ve been driving on 520 the past few days, you’ve likely seen the fantastic number of boats moored just ready and waiting to get moving tomorrow. Pack a picnic lunch and a blanket (and maybe an umbrella) and go hang out at the arboretum or on the UW campus and just watch the boats go by.

Violent fate brings two couples together in the Austrian countryside in Academy Award nominated and Berlin Film Festival winning thrillerRevanche. Directed by Gotz Spielmann, Revanche transforms what could be just another cops and robbers tale into a thoughtful treatise on love, violence, obsession, revenge and even redemption, asking, “Whose fault is it if life doesn’t go your way?” At SIFF Cinema

Also at SIFF this weekend: First, Films4Families series selection Chicken Run, Saturday morning at 10 – an endearing animated action flick about a group of clever chickens anxious to escape the cruel fate waiting for them on the farm and the rooster who isn’t quite the hero they want him to be.

Second, ITVS Community Cinema Seattle and SIFF present at noon a free screening of Crips and Bloods: Made in America, Stacy Peralta’s thoughtful documentary about the history and present tense of one of the world’s bloodiest hot spots – South Central LA.

Three friends from Washington, DC, ponder the meaning of family and identity as they move aimlessly through Mexico on a journey of self-discovery with the ashes of their dead friend in El Camino starting Friday at the Grand Illusion.

Late Night at the Grand Illusion: Dead Heat in which a pair of cops played by Treat Williams and Joe Piscopo follow a trail of unkillable killers to the nefarious labs of Vincent Price and must use his Resurrection Device to solve their own murder.

NWFF continues their ’69 series with two very different but equally amusing films. Woody Allen’s Take the Money and Run, his first as writer/director/actor is an early “mockumentary” about Virgil Starkweather, a would-be bank robber who isn’t exactly a criminal mastermind. As well as being Allen’s first film, it remains one of his funniest.

Can Hieronymous Merkin Ever Forget Mercy Humppe and Find True Happiness? is every bit as odd as the title might lead you to believe. An X-rated semi-autobiographical musical comedy written, directed by and starring Anthony Newley and featuring Joan Collins as “Polyester Poontang” and Milton Berle as “Goodtime Eddie Filth”.

Central Cinema screens Carrie, the 1970s horror movie that gave novelist Stephen King (from whose book the movie was adapted) a permanent place on the pop culture map.

Midnight at the Egyptian: The Terminator, the eerie sci-fi thriller that launched an ever-expanding franchise and gave star Arnold Schwarzenegger a permanent place on the pop culture.