The Other “C”-Word

Hi! For The Stranger earlier this month, Chase Hutchinson interviewed the new owner of the Pacific Science Center’s Boeing IMAX—the only true IMAX screen in the state of Washington. The interview contains two absolutely baffling quotes in one brutal paragraph: “We weren’t looking to operate a theater,” said Sevart in an extensive interview with The Stranger. Instead of being a […]

A Fifty Year Sentence

By the time my next newsletter arrives in your inbox, I will be 50 years old. I know some people who hate aging and getting old, and that’s always felt so hopeless to me. You might as well try to win a fistfight with the ocean. In fact, I’ve always felt good about aging. When […]

Walking in a Big Circle

In which I walk around Lake Washington and urge you to buy a bookstore or three. Hi! Last Saturday, I did my annual walk around Lake Washington. It was a little early in the year, and I almost undertook it impulsively. I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to complete the full loop without a […]

The Movies Are So Back

This will be a shorter post because the last couple of weeks have been a little busy with vacations and presidents threatening nuclear holocausts and other fun distractions. I’ve Been Writing Did you know that you can get from downtown Seattle to Poulsbo on just two seats of public transit, in less than an hour […]

Cursive and Re-Cursive

Let’s open with a PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT: Tomorrow is April Fools’ Day, so expect some people to lie on the internet tomorrow in the name of “pranks.” Before you share anything you see or read online for the next couple of days, please double-check to make sure it’s from a reputable source. That’s always good policy […]

It’s Especially Ides-y Out There

Welp, we’re bombing Iran. This is a unique problem for Donald Trump because his signature move when he gets in over his head is to declare victory and move on to the next big attention-grabby thing as quickly as possible. But you can’t just wave away a war with some sleight of hand. One nation […]

Good Literature Should Fit in Your Pocket

For a few months, arts media has been reporting that the mass-market paperback has finally gone extinct. It’s been a long time coming. Even at the end of my bookselling career in 2008, publishers were phasing out the form factor and shoppers simply didn’t seem to care one way or the other. On the one hand, […]

A Conspiracy of Dunces

2026 has been a great year for conspiracy nuts. The latest Epstein Files dump proved every paranoid stoner to be correct. Yes, Epstein was involved in a plot to turn global politics sharply to the right. Yes, he helped create cryptocurrency, which made political corruption much more prevalent. He tried to get involved with the Gawker lawsuit, which eventually undid […]

Make Cops Look Dorky Again

Hi! Everything I said in the last issue is still true: The emotionally scarred people in the White House are deeply frightened, and they’re acting out of fear. They don’t know what to do, but they understand that what they’re doing isn’t working. Now that ICE is executing people in the streets, the only sensible political response […]

Where the Fear Has Gone There Will Be Nothing

Hi! The news is all bad. This year started off badly and it quickly got much worse. I expect there’s more awfulness to come. I don’t have much to say about any of this except one thing: It’s important to remember that the Trump administration isn’t doing all of this—the kidnapping of other nations’ leaders, […]