I Watched Her Grow was filmed entirely in Seattle with a homegrown crew. Filmmaker Shea Formanes was kind enough to chat with me about the film and her process.

The story is about Ada (Michelle Colman Padron), a botanist struggling with grief over her mother Mirren's (Eloisa Cardona) death. Ada takes in the mysterious teenager Wren (Taylor Freeman), who seems to be struggling from the same affliction as Mirren did. 

Meghan Trainor’s work has always had spiritual connections. With a practice firmly rooted in her own ancestral Irish Catholic imagery and iconography in her early art-making days, Trainor found new inspiration via Mexican folk art when she was exposed to the work of Frida Kahlo and later from a nearby shop when she worked at Pike Place Market in the 1990s. Importantly, a 1980s show at Seattle Art Museum about African spiritual objects left a significant impression.

Brandon Vosika (BV): I used to live and work in a notoriously haunted building, and I guess it felt worth mentioning in my bio because I feel a deep nostalgic connection to old ghost stories and haunted houses from my youth. Now I have a new studio and only live in the haunted building! I used to put ghosts in my work a lot but I don’t so much anymore. They’ve become very popular which makes me want to stay away. In general, I’m not influenced by the PNW in my work aesthetically. Okay, I probably am subconsciously because I’ve lived here my whole life and love the rain and dark, but the typical PNW-themed art I find totally uninteresting.

Democrat Melissa Chaudhry has made it to the general election for Washington congressional district 9’s seat in the US House of Representatives. She’s challenging the nearly 28-year incumbent Democrat Adam Smith who has denied the genocide in Gaza. His largest donor by far is the pro-Israel AIPAC, the biggest source of Republican money influencing Democratic primaries. Chaudhry runs a grassroots campaign. Smith just voted to send $26 billion to Israel—$14.1 billion of which is for U.S-made weapons.

Before attending the interactive experience, Leave Only Footprints, I was unsure about what to expect: A haunted house? A murder mystery? But this spooky, fun, campy, mystery experience by The Emilys (Emily Pike and Emily Sershon), along with a dynamic cast of 40+ performers and multiple writers, did not disappoint.

The two-man band weaves together synth pads, crisp guiding melodies, improv solos, innovative drum beats, a tasteful touch of live flute, and a bass sound that gets one in touch with their body’s natural resonance frequency. Their music is made modular by the power of their linked Ableton setup and sequencers that they expertly manipulate to recontextualize different musical parts on the fly.

When it comes to fish around these parts, it’s hard to deny that salmon is king—literally in the case of the king salmon species. But what if I told you there was another fish that quietly reigns in abundance from our West Coast to Alaskan waters? What if this hypothetical fish had just as many, if not more, healthy OMEGA-3 fatty acids and loaded superfood proteins? This fish is already hot stuff in Japan and mostly found as a high-end restaurant item here in the states.

100% vegan, 100% house made. A lot of people don’t know that we make everything from scratch. It’s plainly written on our menu. That’s the biggest thing I'd like to get across, is that’s what separates us from everybody else. We make everything from scratch. You will not find anywhere else like us.

Campbell's work blends elements of fantasy, magical realism, poetry, and speculative fiction, which evokes the styles of a host of renowned authors, including Margaret Atwood, Isabel Allende, Walter de la Mere, Octavia Butler, Jonathan Swift, Douglas Adams, Ann Carson, and Brian O'Nolan, offering readers a robust, immersive literary experience.

Tara Campbell’s book tour continues at Hugo House in Seattle, with a reading and writing workshop on September 18, 2024, from 7pm-9pm at the Salon Stage.

Steampunk can be treated in a really serious fashion, as any genre can be. There is very serious steampunk fiction—I really recommend reading Everfair by Nisi Shawl if you want some very beautiful serious steampunk fiction—but also there’s a certain element to steampunk that is absurd. It’s ridiculous! And we are leaning into that. And sometimes people need to be reminded as adults, especially in this hard, hard world, that you can laugh! You can just come and as the English say, take the piss out of something.

Kirsten McCory is a Seattle-area actor, playwright, voice artist, and model. Several months ago I had the pleasure of acting in a stage reading of a play she wrote called In The Garden. A few months later, I was invited to do a table read of another play she is creating: 100% Solution. I realized later that being immersed in Kirsten’s writing gave my inner artist lessons about creativity and self-expression that anyone can benefit from. Always diligently moving through some part of the creative process, she dares to dream—and all the better for the dynamic worlds and multifaceted characters she manifests into theaters near you. Kirsten McCory is currently playing the character of Amanda Wingfield in a local production of the Tennessee Williams play The Glass Menagerie.

One of the things that I think makes us really unique in the steampunk space is that our events are in general designed to be us as hosts or facilitators and the guests are the stars. They get to be performers. We have what I call the Big 3 competitions that we run, which is Tea Duelling, Splendid Teapot Racing (RC cars shaped to look like teapots that you run through an obstacle course), and Madame Askew’s creation: Compliment Duelling.

Through the magic and glory that is Capitol Hill queer life, I happened to meet a wonderfully nerdy fellow named Glenn via a mutual acquaintance. During our chat, I discovered he was half of a performing duo versed in steampunk spaces. Ever the nerd myself involved in a myriad of geeky realms, I was instantly intrigued. How does one perform Steampunk? What’s so special about the genre, and how are they bringing something new to the niche? The answers may surprise and titillate you. I present to you: Madame Askew and The Grand Arbiter.

We interviewed multidisciplinary artist Heidi Grace Acuña, asking questions exploring their journey teaching across Seattle and the lessons they learned helping them succeed. They have appeared all over Seattle and will be having upcoming showcases at Seattle Center with Artists at the Center: Spin the Look and at AXIS gallery for Still in Our Feels, both this Thursday, March 14.

If Councilmember Guzmán keeps igniting progress and starts empowering a new generation of civic leaders, what’s next? With her momentum, she could easily take on more challenging roles like mayor or governor. The people benefit from having Councilmember Guzman, a compassionate advocate and social worker, representing them. “My priority is the people, and I aim to give them a voice in every decision-making process.” she says. Often, the outspoken face suppression and silence. Yet, Councilmember Guzmán’s voice resonates even through adversity.