At today’s Seattle City Council meeting, I will be voting against the proposed collective bargaining agreement with the Seattle Police Officers Guild. I want to be clear about this upfront because accountability comes first, and this agreement does not meet the standard our city deserves. 

Before we get to numbers and bargaining tables, I need to begin with what shapes every decision I make. I want to speak as Rob. As a father, a son, and as a Black man in America.

Cisgender bi-female late forties, living in the Bay Area. My boyfriend and I have been dating six months and are very much in love. His friends party quite a bit, lots of drinking and other party favors, and we all enjoy feeling good on the dance floor. The first time I met one of his friends — a guy in his thirties — it was a big, fun night, I wanted his friend to feel included (it was mostly couples), so I put my arm around him and bumped hips with him on the dance floor. We were all dancing together. I’m pretty sure he grabbed my ass when I was making out with my boyfriend on the dance floor. A month later, we are all out dancing again and he started saying things like, “You’re trouble,” and, “If your ‘boyfriend’ wasn’t in the picture, we would have something going on.” I laughed but I also told him to stop. I explained that I’m very much in love with my boyfriend, who happens to be his friend, and I would never do anything to jeopardize our relationship. So, I used my words and shut him down. But I feel like I’m keeping a secret by not telling my boyfriend about this. I don’t want to cause issues between my boyfriend and his friend. Then my boyfriend mentioned that this friend had a crush on one of the other women in the group — a woman who part of a poly couple — so maybe he does this a lot? What do I do here?

Groping Really Isn’t Nice, Dude

You used your words — you shut that guy down — and good for you. Now you need to keep using your words: “That one friend of yours seems to have a crush on me too.” Tell your boyfriend you grinded (ground?) on his friend a little while everyone was dancing, just to be polite during that chem-fueled dance party, and his friend either misread your intentions (charitable read) or seized the opportunity (less charitable read) to grab your ass. And now he’s saying things that sound like they were lifted from a Netflix murder doc — “Only later did I realize he was planning to get my boyfriend ‘out of the picture’ permanently” — and now you’re worried about things escalating further.

About That Weather: Monday’s heavy rain was just the beginning. Rivers are flooding all over Western Washington—the Snohomish River is expected to reach a record high—and the Seattle Times says a “stronger surge of subtropical moisture is on track to arrive Tuesday night.” Keep your phones charged, make some hot chocolate, and get comfortable, it’s gonna be a wet night.

Get ‘Em, Valdez: Seattle Senator Javier Valdez introduced a bill yesterday that would ban law enforcement officers and ICE agents from wearing face-concealing masks. “If a law officer is stopping or questioning you, you have the right to know who they are. Anonymous policing erodes trust, invites abuse, and threatens the safety of everyone involved,” said Valdez. Sounds good! But can we also just ban illegal ICE raids? That would be even better!

Sound Transit's Federal Way Downtown Station opened this weekend, with lots of music, dancing, speeches, curious people, and rain. My trip there began at Columbia City Station, and took 15 minutes to reach the airport and 30 the final stop. The activation of the new stations (which include Kent Des Moines and Star Lake) added eight miles of track to the existing line (33 miles); and Sound Transit expects around 20,000 new riders will flow into the 1 Line. During my return to Seattle, Kraken fans filled the car. Finally, the wait was over for this moment, this extension, this key part of the journey to the game. 

To celebrate Sound Transit’s big day, which, hopefully, will soon be followed by the completion of a key segment of Line 2 (between Seattle and Bellevue), I decided to share with you my secret obsession: Shoes I have spotted on light rail trains over the years. Now, it must be understood, I don't have fetishes relating to feet or anything like that. What happened instead is this: As a devoted pedestrian, one never notices shoes sharply because they are, obviously, on the move. But when the feet they protect and comfort are on the train, they are at rest, and so open to contemplation. You can, in a word, see the shoes: their design, their colors, and, above all, the person who decided to wear them. 

All of a sudden we’re in the final stretch of 2025, and amid the myriad of orange-colored bullshit. I’m glad we survived, and am excited to thrive with you in 2026. But as we look forward to a new year, let’s remember what to leave behind: What’s corny, what’s tired, what’s holding us back, and what can we do better? Written by an Asian guy, for Asian people, but to be enjoyed and considered by all. This is the Asian Verified Ins and Outs list for 2026. Ready? Let’s do it.

Out: Asian Baseball Players

Fucking YAWN, am I right?

MONDAY 12/8  

Collide-O-Scope Xmess: Final Show Hosted by Shane Wahlund and Michael Anderson

(FILM) We’ve reached the end of an era, and it's time to take the strangest sleigh ride you’ll ever embark on. Collide-O-Scope is back with an all-new Xmess spectacular: a deliriously demented collage of vintage holiday oddities, freaky film scraps, and found-footage delights, all stitched together by hosts Shane Wahlund and Michael Anderson. This year’s show is especially poignant, as it’s the final Collide-O at Here-After—the beloved Crocodile venue closing its doors along with Madame Lou’s. Be sure to show up and support the campy thrills, deep-cut ephemera, and big laughs that make Collide-O so special. Plus, enter for some special prize drawings to send you off with a sugar-plum sparkle. (Here-After, 8 pm, 21+) LANGSTON THOMAS

“How do you form a creative space that is sustainable? How do you institutionalize something while keeping it free and fun? These are the important questions we keep asking ourselves,” says Timothy Firth, the director of Belltown-based arts collective, studio, and gallery Common AREA Maintenance (or CAM). The self-described “scrappy” collective has campaigned over the last year to acquire the El Rey building in Belltown, the next-door neighbor of their Second Avenue gallery, studio, and performance space (Common AREA), not only to save it from demolition but to create affordable artist housing and community resources. Last week, CAM officially announced that their plan had worked, and that they’ve acquired the building for the symbolic price of $20, with the Office of Housing agreeing to forgive the $2.2 million loan if CAM can get the El Rey structurally sound and in compliance with fire codes.  

Built in 1910, the El Rey is a four-story brick apartment building on Second Avenue in Belltown, between Lenora and Blanchard Streets. Unlike many of its neighboring buildings, the architecture of the El Rey is relatively modest and not encrusted with ornate embellishments, but that doesn’t mean it’s not worth saving. Many early-20th-century buildings in Belltown were constructed as worker housing in a very critical period in Seattle’s history, after the Denny Regrade, when there was an urgent need for low-income housing for dock workers. CAM’s advocacy for the arts community is not dissimilar to these origins. “I was really inspired by the building’s history as worker housing,” Firth explains. “Often when an old building in Seattle is torn down, and a new one gets built, the new building is not available to the working-class community anymore: It's not for the arts, and it's not affordable housing.” He continues, “It’s extra ridiculous to tear down the El Rey, because it’s gone through substantial alterations over the years. It has a seismic upgrade, new energy systems, and a sprinkler system—with a very small investment, it is ready for housing and community use.” CAM’s ultimate goal is to fill the top two floors with eight to 12 one- and two-bedroom apartments for working artists who make around 50 percent of the area's median income.

Good morning! It might be two weeks until the Winter Solstice, but by my metrics, winter is already here. The weather is moody. The sun sets at 4:18 today. The storm drains are full of that sticky batter of dead leaves, mud, and dog poop. It’s hibernation time.

Speaking of Weather, She’s Comin’: We’ve got an atmospheric river on the way. The National Weather Service says the mountains could see up to 10 inches of rain. It tapers off as it gets closer to the water, but even in Seattle, we’re looking at two to three inches of rain from Monday to Wednesday. Rivers will flood. Highways will pond. Be safe out there. 

Heavy rain is expected to begin across the Pacific Northwest tomorrow and linger through the week. Rainfall amounts up to 10" are possible within the Olympics, Cascades, and coastal ranges. 🌧️

 

Check conditions before traveling and never drive across a flooded roadway.

 

weather.gov

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— National Weather Service (@nws.noaa.gov) December 7, 2025 at 7:20 AM

The ACA Blues: The ObamaCare healthcare subsidies are still set to expire at the end of the month, and so far, there’s no good plan to stop it. Republicans and Dems haven’t even tried to come up with a bipartisan option. Senate Democrats proposed a straight-ahead three-year extension that isn’t likely to get enough votes when it hits the floor on Thursday. Republicans haven’t offered a counter-plan yet, but GOP Senator Bill Cassidy is trying to push a high-deductible alternative that converts ACA money into health savings accounts for anyone on Marketplace plans. And so far, Trump is simply staying out of it. 

Washington Senator Patty Murray is calling for the immediate release of Wilmer Toledo-Martinez from the Northwest ICE Detention Center. He was arrested on November 14, outside of his home, and attacked by an ICE dog. Toledo-Martinez's attorney said his client has repeatedly reported that it has been "extremely difficult" to get adequate medical care in the Tacoma facility.

According to the release from Murray’s office, which spoke to Toledo-Martinez’s attorney, an ICE agent lured Toledo-Martinez out of his home by posing as a construction worker claiming that he’d hit Wilmer’s car with his truck and needed to exchange insurance information. Another agent was hiding nearby, and when Toledo-Martinez stepped outside, Toledo-Martinez’s attorney says, the agent released a dog, which attacked him.

“Did you see Washington Crossing the Delaware?” a security officer asked as I scrutinized the labyrinthine floor plan of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. “It’s the largest painting in the American Wing. Nearly 22 feet across!”

I had indeed seen it, in all its largeness. It dominated the gallery packed with a crowd that collectively craned its neck to take in the larger-than-life future president, his stony stoicism radiating bombastically amid turbulent waters. But that’s where my experience of the art diverged from the rest of the tourists in the room.

I held my phone up to the painting, and then, as though a hit of psilocybin had just kicked in, the details of the painting began to move. The floating ice atop the river currents jostled, oars churned, and the chests of men heaved. Words materialized: “Rights Of Nature” seared white against the overcast sky, only to dissipate just as quickly into a scattering flock of white birds. The image of Washington and his men soon melted, water giving way to effervescent vegetation that coalesced into shifting forest, which dissipated into a radiant night sky with the words “landback” stamped into the black. I’d never seen anything like this before—not in a museum, or anywhere.

Here is the thing about Come from Away: you really can’t mess it up. The 2015 musical about the 38 planes diverted from the US airspace during 9/11 and the 7,000 people stranded in the bumfuck nowhere town of Gander, Newfoundland, is wonderful. Delightful and oh-so-Canadian strangers opening their doors to these stranded newcomers is a microcosm of hope in the story of a nation made paranoid and afraid by tragedy. It is a musical that never fails to remind me I have a soul.

I cannot help the welling up that happens when I watch Come from Away. The Seattle Repertory Theatre’s new production of the beloved show is no different in that regard, but it has changed a few things. Not all of them are for the better. 

Written by Irene Sankoff and David Heinie, Come from Away first premiered at the Rep a decade ago. It’s a big source of pride for the theater—and Seattle. Which is understandable. After that run, the show went off to Broadway and award-studded acclaim. The Rep celebrated this in its different staging. 

Instead of happening on September 11, 2001, the show introduces its story—none of it actually altered—as a 10-year reunion. “Welcome Back Come from Aways,” yellow banners proclaim in the Rep’s lobby and then above the stage, which now looks like a Gander high school gym. As the audience filed into their seats, the actors walked on stage toting casserole dishes for a potluck banquet table. It’s a reunion for Seattle audiences, too. “We loved it during the first run so much we had to bring our kids,” one audience member said. 

Another replied, “Ten years ago I came to the opening and I brought a friend. She came back to see it three times.” 

Chances are, by now, you’ve heard of Sonic Guild. Founded in Austin but with a beefy Seattle presence, the Guild has made it its mission to offer Northwest musicians validation, stages, and (in the case of a few lucky, hard-working individuals) $10,000 in grant money. Previous winners include Dean Johnson, Deep Sea Diver, Shaina Shepherd, Thunderpussy, Sol, and so many more.

Here's how it works: Every year, the Guild puts out a call for grant nominees. (This year, more than 630 names made the list!) Then Sonic Guild's donors, advisors, and previous grant winners cull through that list of names and whittle it down to 40. After one more round of voting, a final 10 are chosen to receive $10,000 each. And along with the cash, which they can use however they’d like, the artists are also invited to participate in Sonic Guild’s annual showcase, scheduled for February 21 at the Triple Door. 

Sonic Guild has something to celebrate, too; it’s the Seattle chapter’s fifth anniversary, after having expanded to the Northwest by scene lifer Ben London in 2020. Since then, in his words, “The city’s creative energy has accelerated beyond anything we have seen in decades.” If these 10 artists are any indication, he’s right on the money.

Here are this year's chosen artists:

It's hard to believe we've reached the first weekend of the last month of the year, but here we are. Spend your invaluable time and energy and budget-friendly events from the 45th Annual PhinneyWood Winter Festival to Georgetown Records' Holiday Party and from Fremont Holiday Flurry: Fremont Freezes Over to a Wicked Sing Along & Skate. For more suggestions, check our our top picks guide.

FRIDAY

LIVE MUSIC

Calm Down Party (Album Release) with Dining Dead and Sun Spots
Seattle indie rock band Calm Down Party has released three rollicking EPs since they started putting out music in 2018, and we're finally getting a full-length album. Lemon Light comes out on Friday, and you can celebrate with the band at their album release party with support from fellow local rockers Dining Dead and Sun Spots. Despite the fact that "calm" is in their name, Calm Down Party makes high-energy music with electric guitar riffs, propulsive drumming, and earnest vocals. It's a little bit surf rock, a little bit punk, and a lot of fun. Mark your calendars; the band's teasing new merch and that this might be their last show for a while. SHANNON LUBETICH
(Clock-Out Lounge, Beacon Hill, $15-$20)

It's New Light Rail Station Eve: On Saturday, Sound Transit plans to open three new stations and eight miles of new track. The light rail will probe the very-ready-for-probing parts of south King County, extending down to Federal Way and becoming the second-longest light rail line behind Los Angeles's. The new stations are expected to add between 19,000 and 24,000 riders to the light rail system every day. The ribbon-cutting ceremony will happen at the new Federal Way station at 11 a.m. on Saturday. 

Train Delay: Finally building out our region-wide transit system is good, of course, but it would be a lot better if the train wasn't riddled with delays. According to the Seattle Times, in October, light rail trains made only 83 percent of trips on time. That's still a passing grade! And it's up from the 77 percent on-time numbers from May. Even light rail disruptions—though they seem frequent and annoying—aren't as bad as they used to be. In 2024, light rail averaged 38 hours of unplanned disruptions a month. This year, they've been averaging 15 hours. Still, riders worry adding new stations will strain a system they see as already struggling.