Gregory is the dancer to the left of MC Rove.
...does anyone notice?

Brittany Denison's incredibly named poetry blog, Aw Hell Yeah, quietly shuttered over the weekend. Before Friday's post, there hadn't been a post since June. But I'd like to point to her great posts from this past February, which were funny, interesting, and insightful. One of her reasons for leaving the litblog world:
I've pretty much stopped reading the blogs that I used to follow regularly because it seems that everybody wants to sound like Tao Lin now.
Denison says she's going to instead devote her time to "focus on the more tangible community of artists and writers around me in Seattle and UW." She is the editor of Nudge, which is a poetry journal I have never read but now will read.
PI:
Seattle police are asking for the public's help in finding the man charged in the death of a South Seattle woman.Jose Angel Blanco, also known as Jose A. Blanco-Naranjo, is the ex-husband of Noemi Lopez, who was found stabbed to death about 4:30 p.m. Sunday in the 7600 block of 46th Avenue South. He was charged with Monday with first-degree murder.... Blanco had been at the house Sunday morning and argued with Lopez, her oldest daughter told police. He was alone with Lopez at her house when her children, ages 6, 13 and 15 left for church at 12:30, according to court documents.
At about 2:45 p.m., the oldest daughter received a voice mail from her father telling her not to go inside the house and that he was sorry for what he'd done.
Science, we do not want those ugly and monstrous hand transplants. You can take that shit back to the freezer.
What we want from the future is what we all saw on the movie screen three decades ago:
Just look at it: no sticky blood, no slimy veins, no squishy muscles, no mess. We get instead the elegance of plastic flesh, of a miniature machine, of metal features and electric wires. All humans deserve to have and behold the hand the hero of the rebels received on that starship.
A "Savage Love" letter arrived the old fashioned way today—post!—and for purely sentimental reasons it's the SLLOTD.

Here's the text...
I was wondering if you or any of your readers could exaplin why so many women are so defensive with compliments.I've on several occasions been at the store and have seen some very nice looking women of all size, shapes, color, age, I think you get what I'm so meaning, and I've said to them you have great hips, or other tastefully ways of complimenting them and it seems that a lot of them are offended by it. Now I'm a guy who really likes women, Period, I'm happily married 30 yrs. And my wife and I both flirt and expect it to go no further and if it is invited by the one flirted to we kindly decline as has happened only once to each of us and we flirt even when with each other. We mean no harm in this and we feel if someone is looking at the one your with they must be pretty good + you should be happy about it. We have often complimented the same sex as we are and see nothing wrong with it but it's all the same.
If anyone can answer this it would be appreciated. Enjoy your work.
Roy
Oh, Roy! You and your tastefully ways!
Silent Chaos: LA MOCA trustees can't get organized.
People's Choice: The Turner goes to Leckey. (Here he is at the moment of revelation.)
R.I.P.: The man (mostly) responsible for this:


The Sunset Bowl in Ballard has lost a bid for historic landmark status—after the developer gutted the interior. (Not that Sunset Bowl, a humble building, would have qualified.) But members of the city's Landmark Preservation Board were surprised that the potentially historic components were removed before they made a decision. Reports the Ballard News Tribune:
"The building is very unremarkable architecture," said Tom Veith of the [landmarks preservation] board. "There is nothing distinct about it at all."However a concern Veith also had of Sunset was that the nomination came forward after the interior had been demolished and the original owners auctioned off items. Veith said he found it a little disturbing that when everyone learned that the building would be sold for land value only, the interior was destroyed before the landmark nomination. By doing this it took away some of the value of the original building.
I wouldn't write this off as a procedural technicality that affected one dispensable building. In October, new owners of the MJA Building on Second Avenue and Stewart Street defaced the 1914 structure's terra cotta facade. Tenants and neighbors said it was an attempt to block a landmark preservation bid next year. (It lost a nomination for landmark status by two votes in 2004 when only seven of the board's 12 members attended the meeting.) It turns out, the new owners, Iowa-based Principal Global Investors Limited, commissioned a feasibility study to build a 20-story office building on the site. And if the building is nominated for landmark status next year, it won't qualify.
This suggests the landmark preservation process contains a loophole. Property owners can strip a building to avoid landmark preservation, thus allowing them to develop the site. The city—the Department of Planning and Development or the city council—should make sure that if a building may be nominated for landmark status that no significant changes would be allowed to the structural or historical elements without a preliminary review from the landmark board.
The Sunset Bowl will be replaced by the Avalon Ballard, a six-story, mixed use building:

So how come Canada has a conservative Prime Minister? Because Canada's two big liberal/left parties couldn't agree to work together to topple the conservatives—until now.
Canadian opposition party leaders agreed to try and oust Prime Minister Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s minority Conservative government, signing an accord to work as an alliance until June 30, 2011.
Harper is a little George Bush wannabe—socially conservative, fiscally reckless. It would be good to see him go too.
This got lost in the pre-Thanksgiving shuffle, but it's important to note, even belatedly:
Terry McMacken, who was seriously injured while biking across the Ballard Bridge in 2007, died earlier this month as a result of the crash. He was 51.
He and his family blamed his injuries on the poor design of the Ballard Bridge's bike lanes and sued the City of Seattle for negligence. His wife will continue to press the case in the hopes that it will force a solution to a problem that was well known (and reported on here) long before the events that led to McMacken's death.

Now no longer with us in the realm of the living:
-El Tajin on Broadway, where Bar Exam found a deeply weird scene with "X RATED DRINKS" last November:
Starting with the Adios Motha Fucka (vodka, pineapple juice, blue Curaçao, club soda, and gin) and ending with the comparatively decorous F-U (involving rum, tequila, two kinds of whiskey, blueberry schnapps, and Goldschläger), it's a Tourette's fantasia that relies heavily on crème-de-miscellaneous and novelty liqueurs. Sex on the Beach is here, way out on the PG end of the profanity, outdone by the likes of Cum in the Bath Tub, Fuck Me Rough, Dirty Virgin, Soft Dick, Ass Smacker, Big Baller, Screw You, Mexican Asshole, The Whore, 1-900-FUCKMEUP, A Piece of Ass. The list goes on and on, literally.
-Il Forno on Olive Way, to be replaced by a mysterious and intriguing seeker-of-liquor-license named Knee High
-Made in Kitchen in the I.D., the sole reader-review of which constitutes a nice little poem:
Try the pork chops!
Loved Grandma who came out
and helped us choose our dinner.
Hangover?
Try the young coconut!
I'll go back again.
And, a while back now:
-Beàto, which Chris McCann loved
-Veil, where I had a highly subpar and massively expensive brunch in April ("This is not a brunch that recommends dinner at Veil, nor eating in general")
-Blackbird Bistro: but Mission—next door, same owners—is taking over the space
-Cascadia: Chef Kerry Sear has moved on to ART at the new Four Seasons, and the Cascadia space has been bought by Grupo Lezama, a fancy Spanish restaurant chain founded by Catholic priests. (From a Google translation about Grupo Lezama: "Our company was born the youngest of the cast of the current restoration, but with years of renowned performances has developed the following projects that do honor to our motto: 'Things dream, Restaurants quality.'")
-[update!] Pike's Bar and Grill (happened so fast, I forgot)
And! Now open:
-Tilikum Place Cafe (guessing this place will be great)
-ART Restaurant and Lounge at the new Four Seasons on First (see above)
-Elemental Next Door (next door to Elemental@Gasworks; it's been open for a while, actually)
-El Gaucho II: Electric Boogaloo (The Eastside Edition) [yes, there's one in Portland and Tacoma, but El Gaucho IV: Please Don't Ignore doesn't sound as good]
-Pearl (also in Bellevue, also $$$)
[post updated: Roman numerals are hard!]
Brought to you by tennis legend-turned-internet-dating-mogul Bjorn Borg.
(Thanks to Slog tipper Laurence.)
JPMorgan Chase is laying off 3,400 Washington Mutual employees in Seattle, according to spokesman Tom Kelly. That's more than 80 percent of the 4,300 people it employs in the city.Most branch workers will keep their jobs, however.
WaMu's former headquarters city is taking the brunt of the 9,200 WaMu layoffs that JPMorgan is making nationwide. It employs about 43,200 people altogether.
This is very, very bad.
"I'm having déjà vu."
"Well, you know what déjà vu is, right?"
"Acid flashbacks?"
[More on déjà vu and its fascinating cousins, jamais vu and presque vu (plus special bonus info on l'esprit de l'escalier!), over here.]
...so now you must by punished.

I'll admit that it's a little harder to dismiss those Freedom Socialists' flyers nowadays, seeing as our economic system is just as corrupt and unsustainable as the FSP has long insisted. But a Freedom Socialist today is like a hypochondriac who was just diagnosed with a terminal illness: Since we're all going to die eventually, sooner or later one of the hypochondriac's worse-case scenarios was going to come to pass. It doesn't mean the hypochondriac was right all along about everything.
Anyway, anyone who feels that he or she isn't suffering enough right now can subject themselves to a three-week discussion hosted by the Freedom Socialists. The conversation starts tonight at 7 PM at Kaladi Brothers Coffee (511 E. Pike).
I know that there are those who'd complain about this, but I think it's a pretty nice idea:
Outgoing Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin is pushing for action in December on a plan to offer free, pornography-free wireless Internet service to all Americans, despite objections from the wireless industry and some consumer groups.
I know it would be slow, but it's better than nothing, yeah? It would be weird if this wound up being a legacy of the Bush administration.
Soon after Obama delivered his victory speech on Nov 4th, Army Career Counselors were told to offer a "24 Month Mobilization Deferment" to soldiers who transferred from "the IRR to the Army Reserve." The reason why? Because it was understood that the President Elect would "get us out of Iraq" right quick.
What are you waiting for? Stop taking your chance's [sic] in the IRR and be safe from deployment for 2 years. By that time our new President will have gotten us out of these other countries.You will NOT be mobilized during this period. If you have 1-24 months left on your Statutory Obligation, you are guaranteed not to be mobilized with your Reserve unit.
You also have the option to have your Statutory Obligation decreased by half. If you have 12-36 months left on your contract, you would only have to serve a minimum of 12 months.
If this story is indeed true (it was reported on Huffington Post), then it seems that the Army folks are equipped with noses that can smell the coffee in an instant:
CHICAGO (Reuters) - President-elect Barack Obama said on Monday he believed U.S. combat troops should leave Iraq within 16 months of his taking office but he would listen to advice from military commanders."I believe that 16 months is the right timeframe but, as I've said consistently, I will listen to the recommendations of my commanders," Obama said after unveiling his nominees for top national security posts.

What did you give YOUR best friend for Thanksgiving? A bottle of wine? A bong hit? A smile?
Well, Tom Cruise knew the perfect Thanksgiving present to bestow upon his best friend David Beckham—a surprise commitment ceremony!
From Macquarie National News, the Macquarie Nation's most trustworthy news source:
Tom Cruise is to merge his family with Victoria and David Beckham’s in a special ceremony. The ‘Valkyrie’ actor will hold the bizarre service—during which the families vow to be brothers and sisters and exchange heartfelt speeches—at his wife Katie Holmes’ New York town house. The gesture serves as a Thanksgiving present from Tom - who has two adopted teenage children, Isabella and Connor, with ex-wife Nicole Kidman and a two-year-old daughter, Suri, with Katie - to the showbiz couple. A source said: “Tom and David have been friends for years and they and their families spend a lot of time together. “This year Tom wanted to make a special gesture that would show how much he appreciates their friendship and he thought this would be the perfect way.” Tom, 46, is also building a replica of the LA Lakers’ Staples Centre basketball court in the Beckhams’ garden for the soccer ace and his sons.
For Christmas, Tom Cruise will be giving David Beckham a sponge bath.
Is Emily the Strange, who started as a character in a goth picture book and is now kind of the Mickey Mouse of the Hot Topic set, a knockoff of a character in the Nate the Great series of children's books from the 70's?
Here is a side-by-side comparison:

Here is a much more thorough commentary.

Seattle Police briefly shut down the monorail line earlier this morning after receiving a call about a man walking on the tracks.
Police negotiators contacted the 30-year-old man—who turned out to be deaf—on a platform on 5th Ave between Olive and Pine. The man apparently told police he was feeling depressed.
The man has been taken to Harborview for evaulation.
Police say the incident only lasted about 10 minutes.

...this Saturday, December 6th, the University Book Store will have a book advice booth. In that booth, various publisher's reps and superstar booksellers will offer advice to shoppers about what books to get for themselves and others. There will be a can for donations to an as-yet-undetermined charity—suggested donation: a quarter—and you will enjoy a premium bookselling experience with someone whose job entails a whole lot of reading.
At noon, the special bookseller will be Nancy Pearl. I know many people who would kill for ten minutes of undivided, personalized book recommendations from Nancy Pearl. At 3 pm, I will be in the booth, ready to be your personal shopper. I hope to see you then.
If only, if only...
SOFTWARE giant Microsoft is in talks to acquire Yahoo’s online search business for $20 billion (£13 billion).The proposal forms the centrepiece of a complex transaction that would see Microsoft support a new management team to take control of Yahoo. But there is no intention of Microsoft tabling another takeover bid for the web giant, after its aborted $47.5 billion offer this summer.
A couple weeks ago, we posted instructions on how to get a Book o’ Mormon delivered to your home. The more we order, the more it costs the church. To our delight, once you sign up on the Mormon’s website, they offer to do more than just mail a book—they vow to send two in-the-drawers Mormons to your door. The pair will foist on you a 400-page doorstop, and you get the chance to scold the fresh-faced missionaries for their part in a pyramid-tithing PAC that has foisted its bigotry on millions of Americans.
But, when we posted it, we weren’t certain that signing up would actually summon two young "elders" to the door. But alas, writes Slog reader Zach:
Some time back you posted a call for us all to go to the Mormon's website and request a book of Mormon just to tax their resources as a group. Well, I did and the Mormon missionaries assigned to Capitol Hill just came over and delivered the book of Mormon.
They were really nice, clean-cut, 19 year old caucasion boys, pretty cute, too. Both boys were dressed quite nicely in crisp suits. We made pleasant talk for about 5 minutes and then I very calmly told them that it was absolutely reprehensible for their church to fund the disenfranchisement of an entire group of people with the Prop 8 stuff in California.
They said, “we have to do what we believe is right and we believe marriage should be reserved for one man and one woman.”
I jokingly thanked them for "letting me yell" at them and they shook my hand and went on their way. The whole episode took about 15 minutes.
They said that only 4 people from Capitol Hill had requested books of Mormon as a result of your post. I thought there would be way more than that.
Maybe if people know that the 2 Mormons who will deliver the book are cute 19-year-old boys they will be more inclined to set up a time to get a free book of Mormon and (at least for me) it really is cathartic to tell them how upsetting and angry their bullshit prop-8 shenanigans are. I checked with the guys and they're the only 2 Mormons covering ALL of Capitol Hill.
Within minutes of you registering your info on the church’s central website for a free Book of Mormon, the Mormon Church will route a text message to these boy’s phones with your name, address and phone number. The website matches your zip-code with the missionary’s cell phones who are assigned to your zip code. They will call within a day.
If only the gays were this organized.
Thanks,
Zach
It works, it works… For the love of Joseph Smith… IT WORKS! Two 19-year-old Mormon boys will be dispatched by text message. Can the gays be this organized? Yes we can. Thou hast heard the word from Zach: Call unto your domicile two strapping young lads and then unleash their retribution. Anyone who signs up to be a Mormon missionary ought to know that it comes with a payback.
Send them your address. Put on the kettle for their arrival. Go here. Do it now.
Private to people who say luring Mormons to your house to berate their church is juvenile: They started it.
Recall this image?
Recall the intoxicated words of the Daily Mail reporter?
It seems hard to believe that this is the same actress whose portrayal of the Queen won her an Oscar.Yet this was no retouched studio shot, with the only work to transform her toned body having been carried out during gruelling hours in the gym.
Dame Helen is holidaying in Puglia, on the southern tip of Italy, with her film director husband Taylor Hackford, 63
That was then, this is now...
The sober words of a Daily Mail reporter:
When she was pictured looking sensational in a red bikini this summer, Helen Mirren insisted that the image was too good to be true.Yesterday, with her hair dripping wet, she looked a little more like a woman of 63.
The Oscar-winning British actress was pictured while snorkelling in Hawaii. The red swimsuit had been replaced with a less flattering halter-neck two-piece while her tan had faded and she was wearing no make-up.
But there is hope for Helen and the rest of humanity:
Researchers have uncovered what may be a universal cause of aging, one that applies to both single cell organisms such as yeast and multicellular organisms, including mammals. This is the first time that such an evolutionarily conserved aging mechanism has been identified between such diverse organisms.
The mechanism probably dates back more than one billion years. The study shows how DNA damage eventually leads to a breakdown in the cell's ability to properly regulate which genes are switched on and off in particular settings.Like our current financial crisis, the aging process might also be a product excessive deregulation.

I wasn't! I hadn't noticed (I only see inner beauty). But apparently Tina Fey has a great big facial scar that she doesn't like to talk about, and now her tattletale husband, Jeff Richmond, has spilled the beans to Vanity Fair:
NEW YORK Tina Fey's husband is talking about something the "30 Rock" actress would rather not discuss: the scar on her left cheek.
Fine, Jeff Richmond. I'll bite. So what exactly did happen to Tina Fey's left cheek? Oh? What's that?
She was only SLASHED ON THE FACE BY A MADMAN.
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
In an interview in Vanity Fair, Jeff Richmond says a stranger slashed Fey's face when she was 5 years old. He says the incident occurred in the front yard of her house.Says Richmond: "That scar was fascinating to me. This is somebody who, no matter what it was, has gone through something. And I think it really informs the way she thinks about her life."
Fey says talking about the attack would seem like exploiting it.
Says Fey: "It's really almost like I'm able to forget about it, until I was on-camera, and it became a thing of `Oh, I guess we should use this side' or whatever. Everybody's got a better side."
ON THE FACE.
BY A MADMAN.
Can a lady get some follow-up info on whether this child-slasher was brought to justice!? Or will someone at least tell me where Tina Fey grew up so that I can STAY THE FUCK AWAY FROM THAT HELL-TOWN? Jesus.
Did she really call them "moobs"?