The World at His Feet by NW Sunshine [flickr] via our group pool [#].

In the ongoing severed feet saga to our north, a seventh foot has washed up in British Columbia, according to the Vancouver Sun (#). Of the seven feet (over half a soccer team, as Wesa pointed out), only one has been postively identified, though a couple of the feet have been matched.

To date, none of the feet appear to show signs of foul play… most have just naturally separated from the bodies and floated to the beaches because of the buoyancy of the shoes’ material. Nothing like a decomposed foot to set the right tone for Halloween, huh?

Martin + Osa at Bellevue Square is hosting an event on July 30th, 6pm-8pm, with Paul Dillinger (denim designer). This brand is apparently targeted to 20-40 year olds, not the teen set, and they are offering “tips on how to get the perfect fit with style”…with demonstrations for “how you can customize your M+O denim using a unique customization kit developed over the years including a deck of cards, tea, needle and thread and other household items.” Interesting concept, especially to people who can’t quite get the best fit. Maybe worth checking out if you’re into fashion.

The first 30 guests to purchase denim will walk away with a Dillinger customizations kit. (URL)

photo by Danny Ngan [flickr] via our group pool [#].

Our summer membership drive continues as we look for Seattleites to join the ranks of Team Metblogs. In case you missed it, here’s a refresh on the pitch:

Do you like to do things in the city and tell people stories about your experiences? Do you have zany &/or insightful takes on the news of the day? Are you obsessed with the impending local election or all of the sportsballs bouncing around town? Are you fixated on making beautiful photographs of our fair city? Is there some facet of Seattle that so capitvates you that you’d like to share it with an audience of adoring readers?

If the answer to at least one of those questions is “yes”, then do I have just the “job” for your volunteer efforts! We’re looking for a few great bloggers to join the ranks at Seattle Metblogs to help fill these pages with wonderful content. If you’d like to be a part of the team and have time to contribute a few times a week, please fire up your e-mail machine, point it to seattle.metblogs @ gmail.com and tell us a bit about yourself.

photo by shawn mcclung [flickr] via our group pool [#].

Hello there, Seattleite. Do you like to do things in the city and tell people stories about your experiences? Do you have zany &/or insightful takes on the news of the day? Are you obsessed with the impending local election season or all of the sportsballs bouncing around town? Are you fixated on making beautiful photographs of our fair city? Is there some facet of Seattle that so capitvates you that you’d like to share it with an audience of adoring readers?

If the answer to at least one of those questions is “yes”, then do I have just the “job” for your volunteer efforts! We’re looking for a few great bloggers to join the ranks at Seattle Metblogs to help fill these pages with wonderful content. If you’d like to be a part of the team and have time and dedication to contribute a few times a week, please fire up your e-mail machine, point it to seattle.metblogs @ gmail.com and tell us a bit about yourself.

american beer at oddfellows

From the looks of all of the conference tournaments on better bar televisions over the last weekend, it appears to be almost March Madness time (for further evidence, a Capitol Hill tournament pool [chs]). Which also means that it is also almost time to fire up the good old “Tournament of Blogs” here to help you choose your most favoritest local weblog of all of Seattle. The selection committee is working overtime at Seattle Metblogs HQ to narrow the field, refine the rules (possibly relevating previous champions the the Hall of Fame), and seed the contenders, but we would of course love input from you. Nominate your favorite local bloggist (yourself included) by sending an endorsement to seattle.metblogs @ gmail.com.

We’ll be finalizing the lineup on Thursday night at our almost-monthly Third Thursday happy hour, once again at the lovely and lively Oddfellows Cafe. Drop by after 6:30 for the final bracketing, drinks, and the warm glow of the company of Team Metblogs in the wild.

Washington recently scored a C on its focus on math, science, and engineering, and also scored a C on its ability to prepare students for college, work, and life, according to the Citizens’ Report Card from the League of Education Voters Foundation. There are many key factors that contributed to this issue. It’s time to propose solutions. State teachers are joining together with teachers from all over the nation to discuss utilizing technology to close the gap, to increase the state’s grade, to help students in the future.

(press release after the jump)
(more…)

Christmas 2009 by Seattle Daily Photo via our group pool [#]

While Slog has been busily indexing a list of inauguration parties in Seattle, those of us over at Metblogs have been quietly coming up with our own list of celebrations surrounding Obama’s swearing-in tomorrow. Here’s the list of events that us Metbloggers are hoping to check out tomorrow:

- Paramount Theatre will be opening its doors at 7 a.m. for a free showing of the inauguration on the big screen. Concessions to be sold include “Malia Scones with Bright Cherries and Almond Crunch,” “Banana-bama Bread,” and “Sasha’s Carroty Goodness Muffins” from Dahlia Bakery. KOMO 4 and the Seattle Theatre Group are co-hosting.

- Aster Coffee Lounge is playing the inauguration on a big-screen TV, while serving red, white and blue waffles (strawberries, blueberries and whipped cream) and mimosas, according to MyBallard (#).

- 88 Keys in Pioneer Square will have a brunch buffet for $10.90 starting at 8 a.m. (doors open at 7 a.m.), as well as AM1090 and Lee Callahan on hand to ring in the new presidency.

- Every single Starbucks with a flat-screen TV will be showing the inauguration live. The locations are listed in an attachment at the bottom of this post.

- King Cobra is throwing an inauguration party tomorrow starting at 4 p.m.

- At The Corson Building in Georgetown, $25 will get you a party with wood fired pizzas and oysters. 6 p.m.

- The Obama Ball is being thrown at the Armory complete with big band, soul food, and “keynote speakers.” Casual or formal, the ball costs $22 for individuals, $44 for couples, free for children, and begins at 6 p.m.

- Happy hour at Moe goes until 8 p.m., and then there’s the FuturObama 3D Inauguration Bash at Sole Repair, with Johnny Fever, among others, DJing, starting at 9 p.m.

- Rebar is having a Return To Camelot inauguration ball with Ade and Nick Garrison and Sylvia O’Stayformore starting at 8 p.m., $10 or $5 if you’re in formal wear.

- High Dive in Fremont will be having an Inauguration Celebration featuring RA Scion from Common Market with Vunt Foom Vunt Foom, with Diztortion and I-Adjust 10th and Commerce starting at 8 p.m. $6 cover.

- Three Imaginary Girls is throwing an Inauguration Celebration with H is for Hellgate, Friday Mile, Benjamin Bear and Ed Wang at Chop Suey starting at 8 p.m. Cover is $7 and the event is 21+.

- Or, you could take a cue from one Metblogger, and break out that magnum-sized bottle of champagne that you’ve been saving. :)

Let us know which event you’re heading to, and we’ll add it to the list!

Last week we told you about our January Meetup [mb]. To recap: it’s at Oddfellows on Thursday 15 January at 6:30 pm. In the intervening days, the agenda has been expanded from us gossiping about danceoffs and cocktails to have some actual focus. Namely, some people are interested in talking about the implications of the changing news landscape of the city. Business so serious that it even comes with a Facebook event page and a co-host of Mónica Guzmán:

Save the News?

Seattle is on the verge of losing one of its two daily papers. What does that mean for the city? For news readers? For local media and bloggers? Dylan Wilbanks of Seattle Metblogs had an idea that there should be an event in a month or so that gives people a space to talk about this. The objective of this meetup, other than to discuss these things ourselves, is to begin planning that larger event. [facebook]

Of course, if you just want to hang out and help us welcome a fresh crop of new Metbloggers, there will be plenty of time and space for that too. Plus, you should be aware that Oddfellows’s pastry case is home to peanut butter & jelly cupcakes and fruit-loop-enhanced rice krispie treats. You can get your tater tots at the Wildrose [slog] before or after.

Oddfellows Cafe // 1525 10th Ave (between Pike & Pine) // 15 January

My plan for this weekend involved two friends flying into Seattle, and four more friends driving up from Portland for a weekend of revelry (well, as much revelry as one can have when two of the six guests are under six months old). Unfortunately, Mother Nature had other plans for my weekend, and now my four friends in Oregon are not likely to be able to join the Seattle contingent.

As disappointing as this was, I’ve been extremely impressed with the communications and use of technology from the Washington State Department of Transportation. Between their blog, their Twitter feed, their Flickr photos, and their constantly updated maps, I’m feeling incredibly informed, and very happy that they’re so communicative.

If more governmental units were as open and helpful as WSDOT (who even replied to one of my Twitter questions about alternate routes), I think we’d benefit tremendously. Keep up the good work, guys!

photo by danny ngan [flickr] via our group pool [#]

Was one your New Year’s resolutions to “‘blog more”? If so, you’re in luck. We’re looking for a few good Seattle-obsessed types to join the crew of Team Metblogs. The main requirement is that you have time and interest to volunteer to contribute to the site a few times per week about whatever Seattle-related things fascinate you. For more information, send a note to seattle.metblogs (at) gmail.com with a bit of information about yourself and the topics that you’d be interested in covering.