* 2:00 PM: Elliott Bay Book Company hosts Christina Pratt, author of An Encyclopedia of Shamanism. [LINK]

* 2:00 PM: “If you don’t like the weather, wait five minutes,” is something Seattle-ites say a lot. Why? Why is our weather so messed up? Cliff Mass, UW atmospheric scientist and radio personality explains it all in his book The Weather of the Pacific Northwest. Finally! He’ll be at SPL Central Library, Level 1, Microsoft Auditorium, to answer our burning, freezing, and rain-drenched questions. Mass says, “The weekend looks generally dry (a few light showers perhaps in the north half of the state) and cloudy. Highs in the mid 50s.” Shocking. [LINK]

* 2:00 PM: The Ballard Branch Library hosts local author Michael Schein. He’ll be reading and signing Just Deceits: a Historical Courtroom Mystery. Strangely, I can’t find any holdings at SPL, so don’t expect to be able to check out the book from the Library. Schein is director of LitFuse Poets’ Workshop. Sponsored by Secret Garden Bookshop. [LINK]

* 3:00 PM: Local science fiction/fantasy author David Page will be at the Northgate B&N to talk about his latest novel, Mithras Court: A Novel of the Mists. [LINK]

* 4:00 PM: Travel writer Rolf Potts has travelled back in time from the future to talk about his book Marco Polo Didn’t Go There: Stories and Revelations from One Decade as a Postmodern Travel Writer, at Elliot Bay Book Company. Ask him how! [LINK]

* 5:30 PM: Michael Eric Dyson, author of a ton of books on race and class, is hosted at Mount Zion Baptist Church (1634 19th Ave, Seattle) by the Bush School and Seattle King County NAACP for a lecture entitled “Power, Justice, Freedom: Vote!” The election may be over, but the topic lives on. And can I just take a moment to say, “Yes, we can!” WOOT! I’m finally recovered from the almost debilitating relief. [LINK]

* 7:30 PM: Leslie Walker Williams, author of The Prudent Mariner, yet another novel of the American South, will read and sign at Elliott Bay Books. How many gripping, wise, lucid, inventive, evocative novels of the American South have been written and published to date? Way, way too many. [LINK]

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Seattle Metblogs visits with Gary Zinter, owner of the Bus Stop.

Bus Stop was one of the few real bars left on Capitol Hill. It wasn’t trying to be a club or a restaurant. It was just a bar: a dark, simple, small space where you could have a conversation with a total stranger and not get the heeb vibe from typical scene anxiety or desperation. The joyful combination of the uber-smart, friendly clientele comprised of an unpredictable variety of misfits and a ridiculously strong pour made the Bus Stop a home away from home for a host of regulars.

Gary Zinter was forced to close his bar at the Pine Street location in November 2007 after a hostile takeover by the Empiric Overlords of Seattle real estate.

Bus Stop is back. This fall you’ll find the bar 3 blocks north of its original location at the intersection of East Olive and East Denny Way.

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What became of you and your staff after shutting down the original location of Bus Stop?

I went back to work in tech so I could afford to reopen the bar. Most of the staff went to work elsewhere but will be back! My boyfriend, Rodney Shrader, the manager of the bar, has been out of work and is now managing the build-in. Needless to say, he was a little bored till we got the go-ahead to start building in.

So when can we expect to cozy up to your bar again?

We are starting the build-in this week, actually! It should be about two months. Cross your fingers! We’ll probably do an official opening but not with a lot of hoopla. Gratefully, people are always asking when we’re re-opening, so we’ll be excited to see everyone in the place again.

Tell us about the new space? Is it near a bus stop?

We’re at 1552 E. Olive Way at Denny next door to where the Coffee Messiah used to be. Olive is turning into this new neighboorhood-y strip. Lots going on over there and not a lot of new building. The space is a great old store front, which I love. The actual bus stop is around the corner. I wanted to call it “Parking Lot” in honor of the situation with the old space. Hahaha. It was a nail salon. Some people want us to call it “Nails”.

Why was Bus Stop so successful so quickly?

We got folks coming in who weren’t part of the scenes in the other bars in the neighborhood. I think people were comfortable there!

What’s gonna be different with the new location?

Not a lot. Space is almost the same. A few design changes, but we weren’t too heavily designed last time. I hope it feels very much like the old place.

How long have you been in Seattle?

9 and a half years. Jeez!

What have you been doing all these years? Who IS Gary Zinter?

I keep reinventing myself. Like Madonna. Except with better taste later in my career. I do theater. Was an actor, then a producer, and now I’m directing more than anything else. Wish I had more time and money so I could spend more time doing it. The Bus Stop is sort of my retirement plan. Go to work at the bar and get out of the regular 9 to 5, you know?

What’s the best thing about making this bar your own business?

It really turned into a community for the regulars and the folks who helped build it. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to reopen, but the closing was heartwarming, actually, and I really missed it when it was gone. I want it to be there for many, many years.
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Photos by: Doug McLaughlin

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~ Jean Cocteau

* Monster, genius, maniac? On Monday, September 08th, film buffs might want to wander down to the U-District at around 7:00 PM. Author Christopher Sandford will be at the UW Bookstore to discuss Polanski: A Biography with Seattle’s own Warren Etheredge [www.thewarrenreport.com]. Since Polanski is still in France (”a fugitive from justice”), this is probably as close as most fans will ever come to the man himself.

* Not free, but if you can can beg, borrow, or steal $5 (and refrain from spending it on PBR), get thee to Town Hall Seattle (1119 8th Ave.) for Slovenian author, film-maker, critic, philosopher, and all-around brilliant guy, Slavoj Zizek. Zizek is in town to read from and discuss Violence: Six Sideways Reflections, one of the first volumes in Picador’s “BIG IDEAS / small books” series. Event begins at 7:30 PM. Tickets are available at the door, starting at 6:30 PM.

* Sandra Tsing Loh returns to Elliott Bay Book Co. to share her latest, Mother on Fire: A True Motherf%#$@ Story About Parenting!, with those of us who are sick unto death of heartwarming anecdotes and uplifting life lessons. Monday, September 08th at 7:30 PM.

* Seattle art critic Matthew Kangas has written over a dozen books about art. On Tuesday, September 9th, Kangas will present his latest, Relocations: Selected Art Essays and Interviews, spanning 40 years of Northwest artists. U-District, UW Bookstore, 7:00 PM.

* Stuart Cohen’s novel The Army of the Republic is being touted as a dystopian vision of the near-future, brilliant, prescient, etc. Based partly in Seattle, the novel is about ecotopian guerillas working to save a US government that has become little more than the puppet of corporate oligarchies. I’m paranoid enough as it is, thank you very much, but if you haven’t already made your tin hat (I’ve got extras, if you need one) and covered all your windows with aluminum foil, you might want to visit Elliott Bay Books at 7:30 PM on Tuesday.

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Working in the wine world for many years I have been exposed to insufferable bores (and boors) whose lack of humor and love of exclusivity even make me content to put aside the Chateaneuf-du-Pape and crack open a tallboy of High Life. After meeting Josh and Doug, the near-decade long drinking buddies behind WINO magazine (which is free), I am convinced that wine and its consumption can be approachable, fun, and sometimes a little dumb. Just like beer.

So how did Josh and Doug come up with the name? Well they were having a smoke, half-drunk, and decided, “Let’s call it WINO.” They thought the name irreverent, tongue-in-cheek, and it certainly breaks the ice among the wine-phobic.

Probably my favorite feature of the magazine is a column called “Cheapskate” where a round table spares no feelings as they sample the Washington wines that have a stronghold on the bottom shelf at your local grocery store. The results range from the predictably awful to the shockingly gulpable.

Since these guys have visited so many wineries and tasted so many wines, here is their advice and recommendations:

On the intimidation factor when visiting tasting rooms:
Ask questions! People love to answer questions.

Up-and-coming wine regions:
Chelan. It will be one of the premier destinations for wine in the next five years, and the wines are produced with all estate (that is, on-site) fruit.

Cheapskate Wine Picks:
Columbia Crest H3 Cabernet
Hollywood Hill Rosé
Airfield Estate Rosé
Foot Stomp Rosé
(These guys like their dry rosé!)

Nonprofit They Would Like You to Know About
Make the Dash Count Foundation

Where You Can Get Wino
Click here for locations

Have you seen WINO? What do you think?

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~ Gore Vidal

* Local author, chaplain, and cancer survivor Debra Jarvis will be at Elliott Bay Book Company this evening, September 3rd, at 7:30 PM to read from her mermoir It’s Not About the Hair: And Other Certainties of Life and Cancer. This isn’t the sort of reading I would normally put on my calendar, because I’m paranoid and superstitious about cancer, which is why I should definitely read this book. The event is in conjunction with Gilda’s Club Seattle [www.gildasclubseattle.org]. Jarvis’s publisher is Sasquatch Books, one of the few, proud, Seattle-based publishing companies [www.sasquatchbooks.com].

* JUST CONFIRMED: Kathy Reichs, producer of the FOX show “Bones,” will NOT be signing at Seattle Mystery Bookshop tomorrow, September 4th, so if you want a signed copy of her novel Devil Bones (#11 in the Termperance Brennan series), you must call or email [206-587-5737 or staff@seattlemystery.com] to reserve one. I suspect Reichs’ publisher double-booked her, because Third Place Books, up in Lake Forest Park, has her on their calendar at 7:00 PM.

* The most unusual signing Thursday, September 4th, will be on the 4:40 PM Seattle/Bainbridge ferry. Local author Susan Wiggs will sign Just Breathe aboard the M/V Wenatchee in the Main Cabin. She’s also having a drawing to win a gift basket, so if you are commuting anyway, why not swing by?

* If you missed Sherman Alexie at Bumbershoot, he’s going to be at the Ballard Branch of Seattle Public Library on Thursday, 6:30 PM – 7:45 PM. He’ll be reading from his latest, the YA novel The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, and he’ll also probably answer questions, and be his usual brilliant self. This event is co-sponsored by Ballard’s Secret Garden Bookshop, as part of their First (hopefully) Annual SET HERE Series, to celebrate great books set in our region. Go show some love.

* The U Village Barnes & Noble is hosting Jeff Howe, author of Crowdsourcing: Why The Power Of The Crowd Is Driving The Future Of Business, Thursday at 7:30 PM. Wow, crowdsourcing, what an amazing concept! Many hands do make light work and now there is a business book to prove it. Good gravy, Davey! Before Howe coined himself a word, people called it volunteerism, community spirit, consumer focus groups, black-box testing, or the SETI project. I wonder: has Howe ever been to a barn-raising, worked on an AIDS quilt, or spent a day at a U-Pick farm? Go to B&N to ask. Or to heckle. Whichever.

* Also, on Thursday, September 4th, Tacoma News-Tribune sportswriter Dave Boling reads from his debut novel, Guernica, at Elliott Bay Books (7:30 PM). Reviews have generally been good: Powell’s compares Guernica to Corelli’s Mandolin and The English Patient; Publishers Weekly says “Boling is skillful with characters and dialogue, possessing a great sense of timing and humor, though some historical cameos feel forced (especially Picasso, who pops up throughout), and some plot twists can be seen from quite a long way off.” (Sept. Reed Business Information)

* Seattle is not a huge poetry town—we’re not bereft of poets, but we don’t have the poetic saturation of certain other cities-that-shall-not-be-named. (Sniff.) We simply have higher standards; for example, Cal Kinnear, who is not only a poet, but administrative director for Washington Lawyers for the Arts. He will read from his new book, A Walk in Bardo, on Friday at 7:30 PM at Elliott Bay Books. Kinnear is published by Blue Begonia Press, a Yakima-based publishing company [www.bluebegoniapress.com].

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-John Mason Brown

 The most exciting literary event of the weekend[*] is at Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery on Friday, August 29th. Fantagraphics is hosting an artist’s reception and book signing for Daniel Clowes, the author-artist of Ghost World. Mr. Clowes will be signing Ghost World: The Special Edition 6:00 PM – 9:00 PM. The special edition not only includes the original Ghost World, one of the most critically acclaimed comics (or “graphic novel” if you are afraid your friends will make fun of you for reading comics, but what kind of friends are those, anyway? Get new friends.) ever, but also includes the Oscar-nominated screenplay adapted by Clowes and Terry Zwigoff, et cetera, et cetera, all the usual bells and whistles guaranteed to persuade fans old and new to fork over their lunch money.

 Saturday, August 30th, Seattle Mystery Bookshop hosts a book signing for author Cricket McRae, at the usual time, i.e. noon. Ms. McRae currently lives in Colorado, but the heroine of her novels, Sophie Mae Reynolds, is a crafty amateur sleuth based in Seattle (okay, Seattle-ish). Heaven Preserve Us is the second novel of this cozy series (after Lye In Wait), with a third (Spin a Wicked Web) forthcoming.

 Not free, but if you are already going to Bumbershoot, why not support a (more or less) new literary series? ACT Theatre’s Kurt Beattie directs Short Stories Live, pro actors reading stories by Seattle writers. Mary Ewald will read “Junk Mail” by Rebecca Brown and Tim Hyland reads Ryan Boudinot’s “Newholly.” This is the first year that Bumbershoot has hosted the semi-monthly Town Hall series. Sunday, August 31st, 7:30 PM – 8:30 PM at the Leo K. Theatre.

[* Except Bumbershoot. Bumbershoot bumbershoot bumbershoot. Josh will be compiling and posting our Bumbershoot recs, so I'll refrain from further geekery here. (Bumbershoot!)]

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Last year’s Capitol Hill Block Party made for one of the best weekends of music I’ve ever had (Daft Punk’s Sunday night finale at WaMu Theater definitely helped). This year’s Block Party had a lot to live up to – probably too much. But you know what? I enjoyed it nearly as much as I did last year. The Block Party moniker is apt – it really feels like a big neighborhood party. I bumped into old friends at almost every stage and by the end of Saturday night had made up my mind that I’d take a Capitol Hill Block Party over a Bumbershoot or Sasquatch any day.

After the jump, some thoughts on a couple of the weekend’s sets and my favorite photos from Josh’s Flickr collection.

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The other night, three of your MetBloggers attended a preview event at a soon-to-open chocolate boutique on Upper Queen Anne. Chocolopolis is exactly what you’d think from looking at the name. A haven for those of us who enjoy (and depend on) high quality chocolate for the occasional treat. Zee and I each had our own take on the event, so I present to you, a tandem review. Zee’s comments are in italics and mine are not. More after the break.
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Maybe you already know. Maybe you used to know. Maybe you’ll know again soon. Whatever your perspective, this column looks to answer one question: what’s it like being single in Seattle?

It started, as any good Web 2.0 romance should, with a comment on the rival Seattle blog he wrote for. I had thought he was cute for some time; he posted about peeing on a tree. I commented that his post encouraged me to get over my silly little crush on him. No response.

…Until a few weeks later when I checked my spam filter. “Congrats–most women have to meet me at least twice before a crush wears off,” he’d replied. Cute. I replied, and we ended up having a bizarre but hilarious (to us) discussion about HTTP error codes. (Reproduced after the jump for the curious.) Fellow Metblogger Josh once told me upon reading that conversation, “I can’t imagine how things between the two of you didn’t work out.” And sometimes I wonder the same thing.

He friended me on Google Chat and I immediately began ignoring lectures and chatting with him instead. Often I had to stifle laughs in the middle of Intro to Comparative Literature, some times more successfully than others.

Inevitably he asked me for a drink. I demurred, not wanting to let on I was merely 20 to his 30. I suggested tea instead. In a day or two he upped the ante: a picnic in Volunteer Park.

I suddenly became wracked with guilt. I had a confession to make. I had a boyfriend, a boyfriend on the way out but a boyfriend none the less. We decided to go on the picnic anyway. I told my boyfriend, who loved his blog and was excited I was going to meet him. (There was a reason he was on the way out.)

I sat outside Volunteer Park Cafe for a good half hour before our planned meeting time, wanting time to look fresh in the shade rather than like I just dragged myself up the hill from 23rd (which I had, in fact, done). I keep looking up nervously from my book (Dana Vachon’s Mergers and Acquisitions) but nothing but moms and Bugaboos.

Then a guy in yellow rubber flipflops walks up.

Not cute at all.

(come back tomorrow for part 2…)

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Got a note from Derek down at Exit133.com, Tacoma’s local community blog that leaves most of us Seattle bloggers to shame. (They write well and don’t spend their time in pissy political catfights with each other, which puts them light years ahead of some blog that dropped us from their Enemies List this week.)

They’re bringing in James Howard Kunstler to speak tonight down there. Kunstler is one of those doom-and-gloom sorts who writes about the world post-oil in The Long Emergency. He’d easily pack out Town Hall with our cadres of earnest Prius-driving liberals. Instead, though, they got him to come to Tacoma. If you’re in the south end, it’s worth your time to go hear this guy.

James Howard Kunstler
Tonight, 7:00pm, at the Broadway Center for the Performing Arts’ Theatre on the Square (9th and Broadway). Tickets available from the Broadway Center website or box office.

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