2:00 PM – Brenda Peterson & Friends: Memoirs in the Light of Day
Elliott Bay Book Co.
“Writing Your Life: Memoirists at Work”– Six memoirists come together to discuss the genre. I really like memoirs, in general, but I need a “hook”: cooking, chickens, cannibalism, politics… now I’m worried about how my brain strings together concepts, and whether I should be worried about being worried.
[LINK]

karen o of the yeah yeah yeahs performing at coachella, coming to a bumbershoot near you. (photo by josh).

Bumbershoot released the full, final, start-planning-ahead-online schedule today. The great news: the Yeah Yeah Yeahs have been added to the lineup. The bad news: they’re scheduled for the weird early-afternoon “up and coming” indie band spot (2:30 pm Sunday) instead of the sunset headline slot they probably deserve.

Other notable music additions include the Helio Sequence, Cold War Kids, the Old 97s, and the Portland Cello Project. Peruse the whole thing — comedy, arts, film, kids, books, and all of the other spectacle — and begin considering difficult choices for your perfect Labor Day entertainment lineup using the nifty online schedule tool at bumbershoot09.sched.org; advance multi-day tickets are available online now, single-day tickets hit the stores on 21 August. [bumbershoot]

10:00 AM – 24 Hour Zine Challenge Marathon
Richard Hugo House, ZAPP
“Comic artists, writers and zinesters hunker down in ZAPP for a 24 hour marathon of zine-making. Registration is required to participate.” (RHH)
[LINK]

10:30 AM – David B. Williams: Stories in Stone: Travels Through Urban Geology
Elliott Bay Book Co.
It’s a field trip! Don’t forget your sack lunch…
Science writer and geology enthusiast David Williams will talk about his work then take attendees out and about to observe some of Seattle’s urban geology. “When most of us pass through the Concourse A food court at Sea-Tac Airport, we’re likely to notice coffee cups, bagel crumbs, and frenzied fliers trying to retie their shoes outside the security checkpoint. Seattle freelance writer David B. Williams sees beyond all that: He sees Jurassic-era fossils in the concourse’s limestone walls. In fact, Williams says every stone structure has a geological story that goes back to Earth’s creation.” — Town Hall Seattle
[LINK]

12:00 PM – Clyde W. Ford: Whiskey Gulf
Seattle Mystery Bookshop
The author will sign Charlie Noble book #3.
[LINK]

2:30 PM – Make A Book! Workshop
SPL Douglass-Truth Branch
Instructors from the Seattle Center for Book Arts show you how handmade books can add a creative twist to traditional soft-cover and hard-cover books. All bookmaking materials and supplies provided. For ages 12 and up.
[LINK]

3:00 PM – Brenda Bryan: Barking Buddha: Simple Soul Stretches for Yogi and Dogi
SPL Montlake Branch
“Discover a new meaning to the term “downward dog!” Please do not bring any pets to this program.” (SPL)
[LINK]

4:00 PM – Poets West Open Mic
SPL Greenlake Branch
[LINK]

6:00 PM – Miz Floes & the Carmel Latte Duo: Smokin’ Spoken Wurd
Northwest African American Museum
Open mic night! Howl your heart out, you angelheaded hipsters burning for the ancient heavenly connection to the starry dynamo in the machinery of night… Accompaniment provided by bass and percussion for that jazz vibe.
[LINK]

7:30 PM – Judith Skillman & Michael Spence: Poetry Reading
Elliott Bay Book Co.
Two local poets share the stage.
[LINK]

8:00 PM – Bob Kilgore: Caesar’s Autopsy
Richard Hugo House Cabaret
Okay, this looks awesome: “Bob Kilgore performs scenes from Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar and explains the action from the point of view of a union organizer.”
[LINK]

this weekend’s forecast calls for ice cream. this photo of molly moon‘s (as far as I’m concerned, the current leader in the seattle’s summer frozen treat explosion) honey lavender was submitted to our our group pool [#] by brenda pederson [flickr].

• Some people are downright outrageous and hopping mad [dailyweekly] about Marie Claire’s carefully-considered editorial decision to name Seattle the best place to find single guys (based, allegedly, on an intricate consideration of available male-to-female ratios and a the city’s well-roundedness on the critical cafe, theater, fitness, music, and transit scales). [bigblog]
• Looking at polls (and a key labor endorsement [postglobe]) and predicting a Nickels–Drago deathmatch this fall. [slog]
• Yesterday, the County Executive candidates debated in Bellevue. [publicola]
• Amazon Orwelled some Kindles. [seattlest/gizmodo ]
• A semi-professional freeloader considers the block party layout and strategizes ways to see and hear the festivities without dropping any cash rather than taking the easier and more enjoyable route of just paying up. [capitolhillseattle]

don’t tell zooey, but ben gibbard wants to possess *your* heart this weekend. [flickr]

• Marymoor is doing its darndest to pull you across the water this weekend with northwesterners gone major in the spotlights. Tonight, the Decemberists are on deck with support from multi-instrumental whistling amazing socked genius Andrew Bird and Portland’s Blind Pilot [stg]. While I long for the days when all of the Decemberists songs weren’t old timey epics wrapped in prog clothing (a brief moment of silence for for the likes of “Grace Cathedral Hill”, “July, July!”, “Song for Myla Goldberg”, “The Sporting Life”, and even “The Soldiering Life”), a lot of people are thrilled that they’re upping the costuming, stage craft, and historiffic, making the lovely park setting ideal for a summer concert. Fans might as well pitch tents and make a festival of it since Seattle’s own Death Cab For Cutie are holding down the next two nights with help from much-beloved Canadian supergroup the New Pornographers and perennial superfavorites with strings and hugs Ra Ra Riot . [stg]
• Also tonight: the Sea Navy headline at the Comet in advance of next month’s record release with help from Spanish for 100 [myspace] or break out your Friday dancing finest because the Crocodile is holding a “Sweet Dreams Prom” featuring We Wrote the Book on Connectors, M. Bison, and Tennis Pro. $10, 9pm. [crocodile]
• Saturday finds the Weakerthans in town with Jason Collett [neumos] and Tiny Vipers in Fremont. [mb].
• Plans and cash burning holes in your pockets after the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale? Tickets for Arctic Monkeys (September 19, Showbox @ the Market) [tm] and Grizzly Bear at the Paramount on October 16th [tkts] are online now; Pearl Jam’s two shows at Key Arena on September 21st and 22nd [tm], go on sale Saturday morning.

help doug plan his chbp setlist.

Next weekend, the Capitol Hill Block Party takes over Pike Street from Broadway to Twelfth Avenue. The layout has been reconfigured [lineout], with the main entrance moving to 12th Avenue and the mainstage moving closer to Broadway to try to offset some of the crushing human traffic that resulted from people trying to pass through the ticket gate and traverse last year’s Mainstage/Neumo’s/King Cobra (RIP)/Beer Garden intersection of doom.

Built to Spill, playing on the mainstage on Friday night just after Deerhunter and before the Jesus Lizard, are leaving their set list in your trusty hands. You have until tomorrow to let them know which of the songs in their lengthy catalog you just can’t live without. Vote online at KEXP and they’ll crunch the numbers to come up with something really special for your sunset listening.

The lineup is pretty spectacular [chbp] — in addition to all the locals you’ll also find Sonic Youth! the Gossip! The Pains of Being Pure at Heart (at last!) and many many more. Tickets, which are still available, will run you a reasonable $23 per day; save a few bucks and buy a two-day pass for $42. You’ll find them online [ticketswest], at Rudy’s, Moe Bar, or with a mere $1 service charge at your neighborhood Urban Outfitters. They’re apparently selling fewer tickets this time around to limit the crowds; so get your tickets early. And if you have spare invites to your VIP rooftop patio, invitations are gladly accepted.

NWFF continues their spirit of ’69 series with Downhill Racer, Michael Ritchie’s directorial debut. Robert Redford plays US Ski Team member determined to be the best skier ever, but his success is tempered by the difficulties he has in getting along with his team members and the team’s head coach, played by Gene Hackman. Roger Ebert once described this film as “the best movie ever made about sports – without really being about sports at all”.

Another film from 69 hits their screens with Camille 2000, a then-X-rated art film about beautiful people making love in beautiful Rome, with visually arresting set, costume, and lighting design.

Also at NWFF: the Seattle premiere of Audience of One, a documentary about San Franciscan Pentecostal pastor and movie director who got into the business after a message from God told him to start a film company.

Central Cinema shows the cheerfully mad Mars Attacks.

Grand Illusion honors the Golden Age of Sci-Fi with the 1953 film version of War of the Worlds which one two Academy Awards for its ground breaking special effects which are quite striking even today. Of the many films inspired by HG Wells’ classic tale of Martians waging war against the Earth, this quite possibly the best.

Midnight at Egyptian: David Lynch’s eerie and dark mystery of twisted passions and the seamy side of what passes for normal until closely examined, Blue Velvet, stars Kyle MacLachlan, Isabella Rossellini, Laura Dern, and a truly disturbing Dennis Hopper.

The Guild 45th screens 500 Days of Summer, an excessively twee romantic comedy that may be made bearable by the presence of the thoroughly adorable Zooey Deschanel.

Seven Gables has the exclusive local engagement of The Stoning of Soraya M, a drama developed from the true story of an Iranian woman who dared to fight back when Soroya, an innocent but inconvenient wife, is condemned to a horrible death by the corrupt village leaders.

One of the few things I’m always complaining about related to living in Eastlake is the lack of affordable, delicious dinner options, so when the rumors started up about Tako Truk opening up operations out of the 14 Carrot Cafe space, I may have squealed with glee. (I am a fan of the taco revolution, and would move in to Tacos Gringos if there was enough space.)

Tako Truk runs on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights from around 6 to around 12, taking orders from a wooden crate set up in the doorway of the 14 Carrot. They have a chalkboard set up with the night’s offerings, and $5 in cash will get you three of most of the tacos and two of the octopus tacos. (Two tacos is plenty for me, but I am little, so your mileage may vary.) It takes some amount of time between two and ten minutes to get your tacos, which is plenty of time to meet your neighbors who are all standing around humming in taco-related excitement. Tacos bring everyone together.

Last night, the octopus was great, not rubbery, oniony and spicy and sitting on a smear of yogurt. Cormac Mahoney, formerly of Sitka and Spruce, is behind this operation, which means that everything is pretty much guaranteed to be interesting and delicious, so I’m already plotting how to make sure I’m home on at least one of their three nights next week too. Each day they Twitter what the menu is going to be, update when they run out of something, and then let everyone know when they’re closing down.

Tako Truk is really pretty brilliant, and an exciting addition to Seattle’s slowly awakening street food scene. I wish they were open every day.

1:00 PM – Zinery 101 Workshop
SPL Capitol Hill Branch
“A zine is a self-published magazine. Learn the basics and make your own zine with Lucy Morehouse of Ong Ong Press. For ages 12-adult. Limited to 20 people. Please pre-register with the branch.” (SPL)
[LINK]

7:30 PM – David Neiwert: The Eliminationists: Hate Talk and the Radical Right
Elliott Bay Book Co.
Neiwert owns the political blog Orcinus, on which he tracks and documents right-wing, eliminationist speech. If you, like I, live under a shiny rock, and don’t know what an eliminationist is, I’ve looked it up for you: eliminationists are people who advocate the murder/assassination of those who don’t agree with them, e.g. Hal Turner, a right-wing radio talk show host and blogger, who was recently arrested by the FBI for advocating the murder of three Circuit Court judges who upheld a ruling banning handguns in Chicago. Not only did Turner actively incite violence, he publicly posted photographs, phone numbers, and addresses of the justices, along with a map to the building they work in. (Note: Don’t look to Neiwert for concrete answers to address bigotry and hate speech; for that, go to Give Me Liberty, by Naomi Wolf, a wonderful guide to becoming a modern revolutionary.)
[LINK]

this 1977 photo of the original starbucks courtesy of by Seattle Municipal Archives [flickr] arrived via our group pool [#].

• One of the oldest Starbucks stores in the city, originally slated for closure during last summer’s massacre [mb]; didn’t actually close as originally reported (and commenter corrected) last month [chs]. Instead, it’s being “reborn” as “15th Avenue Coffee & Tea”, one of three debranded, alcohol-serving, live-event hosting cafes being tested in the city after months of observation of other less corporate neighborhood coffee houses. [seattletimes]
• Unsurprisingly, Seattleites are horrified, both by the mainstream’s late arrival to the scene and the arrival of a “stealth” Starbucks [chs], certain that the company’s moves to address complaints of impersonality will fall flat. [slog]
• The less enraged might say that imitation is a form of flattery [seattlest] or the more optimistic think that it’s “Not a bad idea. Coffee/bars are a hit” [twitter/moniguzman]
• You’ll be able to find this new highly controversial Fifteenth Avenue store by looking for the cafe painted the same color as the salvaged wood planter box in front of Smith [voracious], a decoration concept gone too far, allegedly inducing Linda Derschang’s “blood to boil”. [slog]