If he called it Trog, we would have sued.
If he had called it Trog, we would have sued. CHIP SOMODEVILLA/GETTY

Today on Slog:

  • Matt Baume on new video games you should play this month and a possible surge in people getting horny for giantesses—something I can totally get behind, or under.
  • Nathalie Graham covered the announcement of deputy mayor Casey Sixkiller's run for his boss's seat. (He's a Swiftie, if that sways your opinion at all.)
  • Washington state will put a two-week pause on our COVID reopening plan. Rich Smith has the deets from Gov. Inslee's press conference here.
  • Mudede argues that Vancouver B.C. gave the world Generation X and Cyberpunk.

    • As Rich reported: Gov. Inslee put a pause on the Healthy Washington coronavirus reopening plan for the next two weeks, meaning all counties will stay in their current phases. He points to data suggesting a "potential" plateau and shorter hospital stays as his reasoning not to shut the whole mother down, despite an increase in cases and hospitalizations.

    The announcement comes as President Biden set a new goal of administering at least one vaccine dose to 70 percent of American adults by July 4. He said he aims to have 160 million Americans fully vaccinated by the same date. According to The Hill, this target "acknowledges a slowdown in the pace of vaccination" and is a "different threshold" than herd immunity, as less Americans are keen on getting the vaccine.

    Meanwhile on the East Coast: The governors of New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut have all announced that they will lift COVID capacity restrictions on all businesses starting May 19.

    Trump's a-bloggin'! I really hate having to talk about this guy, but it looks like our disgraced former president has launched a new platform to connect with his audience after he got the boot from both Twitter and Facebook. Maybe Substack turned him down? Titled "From the Desk of Donald J. Trump," Donald can share his most unhinged thoughts, pictures, and videos, but unlike other microblogging sites, no one can comment (though they can share the posts). The interface looks like doodoo:

    This nonsense comes one day before Facebook is set to decide whether or not they'll let the piece of shit back on their platform: If you'll remember, they banned Trump on both Facebook and Instagram post-Capitol building siege. At the time, Zuckerberg said that "the risks of allowing the President to continue to use our service during this period is simply too great." Now, an independent Oversight Board at the company formed to sort out what users can and cannot post will make the final call about whether or not Donny can post on their cursed site. Ahhh, America :)

    As for Twitter: Trump is still permanently banned.

    Donna Rasmussen and Laurae McIntyre are winners, baby: The two frontline grocery workers at PCC were successfully elected to the co-op's board of trustees. Read their guest rant we ran last week on why they want to make sure workers are included in the top ranks of the co-op.

    The Food and Drug Administration is expected to greenlight the use of Pfizer vaccines for kids aged 12 to 15 as early as next week: President Biden said his administration is "ready to move immediately to make about 20,000 pharmacy sites across the country ready to vaccinate those adolescents as soon as the FDA grants its OK."

    Click here: For a picture of a giant squid statue the Japanese town of Noto purchased using emergency COVID relief funds. Is it irresponsible? Maybe. But is it fucking cool? Absolutely. City officials said it's "part of a long term plan to lure tourists back after the pandemic." It's definitely on my bucket list now!

    Surprise! The planet is a lot hotter than it used to be: Today, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released a new and updated set of climate averages for the contiguous United States. The 30-year average temperature hit an all-time high of 53.28 degrees, up 1.7 degrees from when the first averages were taken from 1901-1930, reports WaPo. Scientists say it's on par with the rate of global warming. Funnily enough, this information is chilling.

    Killer cop Derek Chauvin's lawyer filed a motion for a new trial: Chauvin was convicted of murdering George Floyd just a few weeks ago. According to CNN, his lawyer Eric Nelson is calling for a new trial on the basis of "the interests of justice; abuse of discretion that deprived the Defendant of a fair trial; prosecutorial and jury misconduct; errors of law at trial; and a verdict that is contrary to law."

    Go get your jab at Safeway or Albertsons: Today, the chains announced that unvaccinated Washingtonians 16 and over do not need an appointment to get a COVID-19 vaccine, reports Seattle PI. They will offer all three vaccines, so if you haven't gotten pricked, go DO IT!

    Fucking finally: Those blasted, dangerous hunks of concrete around the East Precinct are finally being removed. CHS Blog has previously reported that the Seattle Police Department intended to take down the cement wall, and today looks like it was The Day some of the blocks went to heaven. However, now a big security fence has replaced the wall which the cops told CHS Blog is "temporary" pending "whether the building again becomes a target for arson and property damage."

    Also coming down: The security fencing around the state Capitol building in Olympia.

    The final season of Shrill is here: Former Stranger writer Lindy West's groundbreaking TV series based on her memoir of the same name is coming to a close later this week with the launch of its third season. But never fear! West and her husband/writer-comedian Ahamefule J. Oluo are cooking up a script for Shonda Rhimes's anthology series for Netflix, Notes on Love. Rob Owens at the Seattle Times has more here.

    Doesnt getting lost in a Monet painting sound really nice?
    Doesn't getting lost in a Monet painting sound really nice? Courtesy of SAM
    Claude Monet comes to the Seattle Art Museum this July: Today, the downtown museum announced Monet at Étretat, an exhibition "exploring the artist’s engagement with Étretat, a seaside village in Normandy, France" and curated by former SAM curator Chiyo Ishikawa. The show will present the only work by the French impressionist in the SAM's collection—"Fishing Boats at Étretat"—alongside "ten other paintings by Monet from his visits to the village as well as five paintings by his contemporaries." It'll start on July 1 and go through October 17. The perfect balm for a city that is (hopefully) emerging from a grueling, isolating pandemic.

    "Q Fresh" comes to Harvard Market QFC: After controversially closing down their 15th Ave store, QFC parent company Kroger will revamp the parts of its deli and the entire produce section at the Broadway and E Pike location, reports CHS Blog. The company has reconfigured some of its stores on the Eastside to "hydroponically grow cilantro, kale and crystal lettuce," and it looks like the nearby People's QFC, as we call it, in Pike/Pine will get a similar treatment.

    Paris has something to say: You know that meme of her wearing a tank emblazoned with the words: STOP BEING POOR? It's fake!

    @parishilton Debunking the #STOPBEINGPOOR myth. 🙅🏼‍♀️😹 Don’t believe everything you read. 😏 #greenscreen #Iconic 👑
    ♬ original sound - ParisHilton