Open Books Poetry Emporium in Pioneer Square is a great place to get inspiration. | Photo via Open Books
Calling all readers: In honor of National Poetry Month, you’re officially invited to enter SEAtoday’s first poetry contest.
This contest is open to all, and the rules couldn’t be more simple: Turn today’s newsletter into a poem.
We’ll clarify. Using only the words that appear in this newsletter, craft an original poem of up to 75 words. Unlike an erasure poem, the words do not have to appear in the order they’re found — mix and match how you please. Any word appearing anywhere in today’s newsletter is fair game, including the ones you’re reading right now (we’ll throw some fun ones at you: Pink. Gusto. Enchilada.). If a word appears once, you can only use it once.
The rules:
Submit your poem here by 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, April 16.
Include a title + author’s name in your submission. Titles are an exception to the rule, and do not need to pull words from the newsletter.
Poems, excluding title and author’s name, must be 75 words or less.
The fun stuff:
While we’ve placed a pretty big limitation on your poem’s words, the form + direction is up to you — and we can’t wait to see what you all come up with.
The Editorial team behind SEAtoday will narrow submissions down to a group of finalists based on style, originality, artistic quality, and creativity. Finalists will be announced in our Friday, April 21 newsletter and we’ll ask our readers to vote for their favorite poem. The winner’s poem will be featured in our Wednesday, April 26 newsletter.
Pro tip: To make the process easier on yourself, we recommend printing out today’s issue, highlighting the words you find most interesting, and crossing them out as you include them in your poem.
Don’t forget to keep track of your articles (words like “the” or “and”).
A Natural History of Cheating | Wednesday, Apr. 5 | 7:30 p.m. | Town Hall, 1119 Eighth Ave., Seattle | $5-$20 | Lixing Sun — author of “The Liars of Nature and the Nature of Liars” — discusses how animal deception and mendacity like “playing possum” has led to fascinating evolutionary results.
Celebrating John Prine | Wednesday, Apr. 5 | 8 p.m. | Tractor Tavern, 5213 Ballard Ave. NW, Seattle | $15 | Artists will play dazzling, foot-stomping tunes from the late country-folk legend, with proceeds benefiting music education nonprofit the Rhapsody Project.
Thursday, April 6
Brooks Trailhead Group Run | Thursday, Apr. 6 | 6 p.m. | Brooks Trailhead, 3400 Stone Way N., Seattle | Free | Take an invigorating run with some other folks before heading over to Fremont Brewing for a refreshing pint.
Seattle Kraken vs. Arizona Coyotes | Thursday, Apr. 6 | 7:30 p.m. | Climate Pledge Arena, 334 First Ave. N., Seattle | $65-$340 | Every game is vital — one might even say epic — from here on out as the beastly Kraken look to lock up a playoff spot.
Friday, April 7
Deliciousness: Downtown Pastry and Coffee Crawl | Friday, Apr. 7 | 10 a.m.-12 p.m. | Pike Street Coffee, 1501 Western Ave. Ste. 300, Seattle | $55 | Get all buzzed up for the day with this tour of several top cafes in the downtown area.
Impractical Jokers: The DRIVE DRIVE DRIVE DRIVE DRIVE Tour | Friday, Apr. 7 | 7:30 p.m. | Climate Pledge Arena, 334 First Ave. N., Seattle | $35.50-$155.50 | Pranksters should get a kick out of never-before-seen footage from the hit show and new stand-up bits that are sure to be equal parts whimsical and mischievous.
Saturday, April 8
Free Photos with the Easter Bunny | Saturday, Apr. 8 | 10 a.m.-2 p.m. | Westlake Park, 401 Pine St., Seattle | Free | Snap a hare-raising pic for the fam and grab some tongue-tingling sweets while supplies last.
Arboretum Spring Plant Sale | Saturday, Apr. 8 | 10 a.m.-2 p.m. | Washington Park Arboretum, 2300 Arboretum Dr. E., Seattle | Free | You’ll find a selection of gorgeous flowers, trees, shrubs, perennials, and tools of the trade at the volunteer-run nursery.
The Seattle Art Museum (SAM) just received a gift of 48 major works created by legendary artist Alexander Calder, who is known for his abstract, mind-bending sculptures. The pieces — worth $200 million and donated by a former Microsoft exec and his wife — will be on display at SAM starting in November. (Seattle Times)
Open
Keep those creative juices flowing — new music and arts space Slop recently opened in Ballard. The venue — located above Magnum Storage on Shilshole Avenue — is meant to provide room for graffiti artists and those dabbling in multimedia to forge their dreams. It also plans to host public events like “reptile art shows.” (The Urbanist)
Stat
Is it something we said? About 127,000 people left King County every year from 2016-2020, though they didn’t wander far. Close to 37% of vagabonds packed their bags for neighboring Snohomish, Pierce, and Kitsap counties. Out of state, the biggest area receiving King County expats was Maricopa County in the arid state of Arizona. (Seattle Times)
Holiday
Passover (or Pesach) begins at sundown today, starting with Passover Seder.The feast usually includes matzah, brisket or chicken, and potato kugel. You can order heat-and-serve meals at restaurants like Zylberschtein’s or find events at the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle.
Coming Soon
Pour it on — self-serve bar Tapster is opening a new location in Bellevue. The outpost at 195 106th Ave. NE will have 57 taps of mostly beer, but will also offer wine, cider, hard seltzer, and kombucha. Indulge at your own whims — and get charged by the ounce. (Downtown Bellevue Network)
Sports
It’s early in the season, but experts agree the Sounders are looking sprightly. With four wins through six games, Seattle’s soccer club is No. 1 on ESPN’s Major league Soccer power rankings and No. 3 on the official MLS site. The squad’s next match is on Saturday, April 8 against St. Louis City SC.
Environment
Climate Pledge Arena, Boeing, and the Seattle Kraken are teaming up to build a rain garden in Georgetown. The facility will divert teardrops from the heavens (read: runoff water) into a community garden with the hopes of reducing pollution. Details on exact location and timing of the project haven’t been revealed.
Closing
Cozy and beloved Greenwood shop Couth Buzzard Books announced it will likely close soon after 30+ years of business. Though the owners didn’t give a closing date, the store is having a sale to commemorate the wistful farewell. Locals hoping to save the store launched a GoFundMe campaign. (PhinneyWood)
The Smith Tower Observatory Bar offers sweeping views of the city. | Photo via Green Rubino
Hark, Emerald City citizens — Smith Tower has concocted a calendar of diversions and delights taking the attraction to new heights. You’ll discover intoxicating elixirs, delectable provisions, and the introduction of moving picture shows at Seattle’s colossal, Brobdingnagian edifice.
*Shakes free of the thesaurus’s spell* Okay, so here are some recently announced events happening at Smith Tower in the coming months, including movie screenings — a new addition to the downtown tourist attraction.
Movie Night, First Wednesday of the month The Orcas Room will screen family-friendly classics like “Ever After” and “The Nightmare Before Christmas” for free through October. Bring your own chairs and blankets.
Brunch Above the Bay, Saturdays and Sundays Items on the menu include kimchi waffles, congee with duck confit, and pork belly breakfast sandwiches. Pair ‘em with mimosa flights.
4th on 35, Tuesday, July 4 Celebrate the tower’s 109th b-day with BBQ on the Lookout Deck, a ten-piece brass band, special cocktails, and activities for kids. Tickets start at $35.
As a former English major, I’ve written my share of poetry (and no you can’t see it — it’s all been burned). If you’re looking for a challenging verse in this newsletter’s activity, see if you can rhyme something with Chihuly.
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