In just one week, Seattle’s finest bloggers and the blog-lovers who love them will be getting together to celebrate the most beloved of all holidays: Blogsgiving. Set right in the middle of November, Blogsgiving is a completely made-up occasion (just like “nablopomo” and “thanksgiving”) for drinking seasonal beverages, coloring hand turkeys, and hanging out in art gallery bars.

If you’re among the millions afflicted with a weblog (or related pathologies: livejournal, tumblr, twitter, et c.) or just a curious onlooker, we hope that you’ll join us at Grey Gallery on 17 November starting at 5 pm.

We’ve teamed up with our pals at Capitol Hill Seattle, Neighborlogs, and Seattlest to organize this evening of certain revelry in the spirit of bringing lots of people together and raising some money for Northwest Harvest along the way. Happy hour lasts throughout and if you have $5 or a non-perishable food item to spare we encourage you to bring it to throw into the donation hat.

Grey Gallery is at 1512 11th Avenue (between Pike & Pine); RSVP at blogsgiving.org.

The LG Action Sports Championships is an exciting three-day blend of action sports like skateboarding, BMX, inline skating and FMX and live bands, DJs, graffitti artists, a sponsors’ expo and more and it’s happening at the Key Arena on Halloween weekend from October 31 - November 2.

Get your thrills and chills watching some of the world’s top “extreme” athletes compete in this exclusively invitational event featuring both vert and street competitions. Some of the athletes expected to scheduled to compete include Jamie Bestwick, Sean Sexton, Bob Burnquist, Ryan Sheckler and a host of other hot names from the wheeled world. Each day features a music headliner, except Saturday which has two: Bremerton’s own MXPX in the afternoon and Pennywise at night; Friday’s headliner is The Game and Sunday’s is Hoobastank, a band much better than their name.

Single-day tickets and all-weekend passes are on sale already [lgactionsports], but two lucky Metblogs readers and their friends get to go for free. Two winners will receive a prize package containing two tickets to the three-day event, an event program, a t-shirt and a pair of Maxell DHP-II headphones.

All you have to do to enter to win is send your contact information in an e-mail to seattle.metblogs@gmail.com no later than noon on Monday, October 20th. Two lucky winners will be drawn from all entries and notified in plenty of time to make plans for the weekend. It should be tons of fun.

~Oscar Wilde

* It’s a busy weekend for Seattle bibliophiles, starting at 7:00 PM tonight, with NY Times writer Lily Koppel at the U-District UW Bookstore. Koppel found someone’s diary in a dumpster, read it, tracked the poor woman down, and wrote Red Leather Diary: Reclaiming a Life Through the Pages of a Lost Journal. Every time I hear this story, I wonder, “what was Koppel doing in a dumpster?” A NYC dumpster, no less. Koppel will read at Elliott Bay Books on Saturday, September 13th at 2:00 PM, if you miss your chance tonight.

* Testify! Brian Phillip Welch (a.k.a. “Head”) former lead guitarist (1993-2005) of Korn, kicked several addictions, found Jesus, got a few more tattoos, quit masturbating, and wrote a book, Save Me from Myself: How I Found God, Kicked Drugs, Quit Korn, and Lived to Tell My Story. Tonight at 7:30 PM he’ll be at Elliott Bay Books to tell all about it, and to promote his recently released solo album, also called Save Me from Myself. I sense a theme.

* Also at 7:30 PM, Open Books in Wallingford is hosting poet John Witte. Witte will read from his collection Second Nature, part of the UW Press’s Pacific Northwest Poetry Series. On Saturday, he’ll head south, to reprise his performance for Elliot Bay Books (September 13th, 7:30 PM).

* California Representative Barbara Lee makes an appearance at Elliott Bay Books on Saturday at 4:30 PM to read and sign Renegade for Peace & Justice: Congresswoman Barbara Lee Speaks for Me. Representative Lee was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2005, as part of 1000 Women for Peace. Co-presented with the Institute For Community Leadership.

* For something completely different, head down to Fantagraphics Books & Gallery for NY cartoonist and illustrator Danny Hellman. He’ll be signing Typhon: Volume I, an anthology of work by 42 cartoonists, 6:00 – 9:00 PM. Seattle contributors D.J. Bryant, Dalton Webb, Pat Moriarity, Max Clotfelter, and Mark Campos will also attend.

* On Sunday, September 14th at 2:00 PM, Elliot Bay Books will be graced by the presence of NY Times writer Katie Hafner. Her Romance on Three Legs: Glenn Gould’s Obsessive Quest for the Perfect Piano is a beautiful story, beautifully told.

* Travel buffs might be interested in the Adventures in Travel Expo going on this weekend at the Washington State Convention and Trade Center. Tickets are pretty cheap—just $14—for two days of seminars, exhibits, and presentations by travel writers, adventurers, and activists. Highlights include Philippe Cousteau, founder and ECO of EarthEcho International; Jon Bowermaster, the writer and filmmaker who kayaked Antarctica; and Rick Steves, Seattle’s own travel guru, author, and marijuana activist. Check the website for hours and schedules.

-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!)]

_{Last Day for Espresso Vivace, courtesy of HonuPhoto}

With Ryan’s report on Asteroid Cafe closing, I realized that somehow, in the short time I’ve been here I’ve managed to make it to nearly every notable spot that’s been closed down or demolished a grand total of once.

On that list:

1. Crocodile- Shortly after moving here in February of last year, my friend’s band came through town and played at the Crocodile. It didn’t close until December, but I only managed to get there once. And I really meant to go to the I Heart Rummage show. I know it’s moved on to Chop Suey, but it seems to me like the Crocodile was the perfect location for it.

2. Bimbo’s Bitchin’ Burrito Kitchen- First Iteration- A pair of friends took us to Bimbo’s in spring of 2007. I loved it- the kitschy decorations, the fun stuff under the tables, and so much pink! It was fabulous. But its entire block was demolished, and while it managed to move in elsewhere on Capitol Hill, it just hasn’t been the same. I miss the old one that wasn’t decorated entirely in Mexican wrestling decor…

3. The Sunset Bowl- It’s all in the post, but I only got there once for a friend’s mid-winter party before it closed down in the spring.

4. The aforementioned Asteroid Cafe. Again, it’s in the post, but I never did make it back for that romantic date (well, guess I’ve got two weeks).

5. The Vivace at Cal Anderson Park. A good friend took me there for a cup of coffee this spring, not more than a month before they closed. I found out the hard way, by trying to take my parents to the loveliest coffee shop in the city while they were visiting in mid-July and walking up to boarded doors and windows. It was incredibly sad to lose that location, particularly to lose it so soon after discovering it.

So, I’m kind of feeling like the Typhoid Mary of Seattle businesses these days. The time between visit and closing seems to get shorter and shorter, in addition. But one of my fellow Metbloggers suggested that instead of being sad about my anti-Midas touch, I use my powers for good and not evil. With great power comes great responsibility and all.

So, Metblog readers, what businesses do you really want to see move on and be replaced by condos and light rail? I’ll be happy to go visit them, and keep you updated on their impending demise immediately following.

Pagliacci Pizza really wants us to vote. Click the picture for a larger view.

With my pizza last week came a lesson on how democracy is supposed to work. Thanks Pagliacci! Your seasonal Tomato Basil pizza was amazing and now I know why we vote in November as opposed to June. Next time, though, please cite your sources. The whole underside of the box was left unused.

(Seriously, vote. And seriously, their seasonal Tomato Basil pizza is amazing.)

Sculptor Kevin Pettelle drapes his arm around his creation called Late for the Interurban.

Read more

This just in from Metblogger Ryan: 3 pedestrians were trapped under a van in Belltown on Western (location changed from original post). Not sure of the cross street. Ryan says “this is a terrifying scene. I’m sick to my stomach.” I hope the pedestrians are OK. We’ll update later. For now, steer clear of the scene.

Update: Black minivan…3 people hit…one person on the way to hospital unconscious. Two trapped.

Update: Northwest Cable News and Seattle LJ (originally but has since edited) that the incident was a car hitting 3 cyclists. Ryan on the scene: “can neither confirm nor deny. I didn’t see any bikes but that doesn’t mean there weren’t any. Although, they pulled big boots off of the guy I took a picture of…he definitely wasn’t dressed for cycling.”

Update: Seattle PI Blog states:

A 60-year-old man died early Wednesday evening after an accident involving a Ford van and a pedicab near Western Avenue and Cedar Street.
Details were few after the crash, which happened about 7 p.m. A woman in her 60s – the wife of the dead man, according to a Seattle Fire Department spokeswoman – was rushed to Harborview Medical Center with non-life threatening injuries.
The 23-year-old pedicab driver was also taken to Harborview with non-life-threatening injuries.

Ryan: “Heard cop rush past me on cell phone say, ‘Yeah, I’m here and this is a *terrible* motherf**king accident.‘” and “Also heard fireman yell over to a medic ‘You better hurry up! This isn’t good!‘”

Last update via Komo4:

Witnesses said the pedicab, with the name Cascadia Cabs, was heading west on Cedar towards Western with its two passengers when it ran a red light. The driver was screaming, as if he had lost control of the vehicle.

Seattle police later confirmed that there was an equipment failure on the pedicab that contributed to the accident

.

Photo behind cut
Read more

At last, the moment we have all been waiting for. Now all of the stuff that you used to buy at H & M when you were in other cities can be obtained (semi-) locally. Whether this instantly diminishes some of the appeal of cheapish good design is a matter of personal preference. For now, though, the crowds at Southcenter Mall are strong and deep for the grand opening of Seattle’s first (of three this year) H & M stores.

Ryan sends this pic, live at the scene:

photo by ryan; live from the mall.