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😋 Our pie queen's on 'Martha Stewart'
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😋 Our pie queen's on 'Martha Stewart'

TINY HOUSE, BIG DIFFERENCE. Free Saturday morning? Give your neighbors a place to call home.
(Courtesy of Low-Income Housing Institute)

LET'S BUILD HOMES FOR OUR NEIGHBORS SATURDAY

Last month, dozens of you raved about your favorite volunteer opportunities around the city. We did some digging, made some calls, and are ready to turn one of your recommendations into our very first volunteer field trip — to Lake Union Village in South Lake Union. ☝️

That’s our city’s tenth and newest tiny house site for people living homeless, and you can help put the finishing touches on it with your fellow Evergrey readers this Saturday.

WHAT’LL IT BE LIKE? “Every time I do it I want to do it again,” reader Caroline Millet told us about building the 8-foot-by-12-foot homes with the Low Income Housing Institute. She’s helped out three or four times at the sites, and she’s even brought her 11-year-old daughter to pitch in. Our group will be painting doors and interiors and installing some flooring on Saturday to get the village ready for its planned grand opening next month.

WHAT’S THE STORY WITH TINY HOUSES? The Low Income Housing Institute’s been building affordable housing for 26 years, and partnered with the city, local nonprofits, and lots of volunteers to make these newer tiny house villages happen. They’re set up in city-sanctioned areas, have power, heat, and access to a kitchen and a shower/toilet/laundry center, and are meant to help people transition into more permanent housing — making up about a fifth of the new shelter spaces Mayor Jenny Durkan wants to open this year.

To be clear, these little buildings are not without controversy: They’re too small to be considered shelter by federal standards. They can feel like permanent housing without actually putting folks into stable, long-term homes. And as The Seattle Times reported this summer, the case management for residents at some sites, like with a lot of other housing programs, has been a struggle.

But people get to build community at these villages and have a home to share with pets, partners, and families while they look for something more sturdy. To Caroline, that seems like a pretty good step. “I’ve seen people go and proudly show off a house when we’re just got done laying the tile and say, ‘This is gonna be my house! I’m going to live here!’” she said.

SO, ARE YOU IN? Want to do something about our housing crisis while hanging out with your fellow Evergrey readers and learning about a project trying to tackle a big need in your city?

We’ve got just 17 spots for folks to join us at Lake Union Village at 800 Aloha St. in South Lake Union from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. this Saturday, September 22 — and we’d love for you to come. You can join teams on flooring or painting, and there’ll be lunch and refreshments to keep you charged up.

New to the city? Never volunteered before? Great. We want these field trips to help you take that first step in. So don’t be shy: Reserve your spot here before they’re all gone. Got questions? Hit reply to let us know. We’ll see you Saturday.

NOW HERE’S WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON IN YOUR CITY

Look who’s on Martha Stewart. Lauren Ko, better known to her 212,000 Instagram fans as @lokokitchen, makes — and we’re sure about this — the most beautiful pies you’ve ever seen. Know who’s noticed? Martha Stewart. Now our local pie queen will be the special guest on the recent “Embellished Pies” episode of “Martha Bakes.” (Martha Stewart)

‘It’s nauseating actually.’ Back in June, our local politicians were doing damage control. They’d passed a controversial new tax on big local businesses, saw a campaign against it pick up steam, and moved fast — like, a month after it passed fast — to repeal it. But did they break the law by deliberating on all this in private, something the city’s being sued for? That’s what Seattle Times reporters Daniel Beekman and Lewis Kamb are trying to find out. Their latest set of clues: A set of pretty darn candid text messages between our mayor, a union boss, and a big-time entrepreneur. Think our leaders are all proper and polished in private? Read this, and think again. (The Seattle Times)

There’s only one? People have dug up lots of dinosaur bones all over the west… except here. Just one dinosaur bone has ever been found in what is now Washington state and the reason has everything to do with geological activity. But don’t take our word for it. Hear it explained by historian Knute Berger, geologist Nick Zentner of “Nick on the Rocks,” and a random plastic T-Rex figure in this fascinating clip. (Crosscut)

Light rail day trip. Grab that Orca card, ‘cause this daylong foodie tour going northbound on the light rail sounds delish. Some highlights: A cuppa Empire Espresso in Columbia City, tea at the historic Panama Hotel in the International District, and oysters at Bar Melusine in Capitol Hill. 🍦 (Eater Seattle)

Women in VC. The startup world has a reputation for being less than supportive of women, but dozens of female angel investors and women-led venture capitalist groups are working to make tech more equitable in *Seattle* and beyond. It’s a win-win: Studies show that VCs with female partners are more likely to invest in women-led startups, and that women-led startups tend to generate more revenue. 🎉 (GeekWire)

PARTNER EVENTS

🤔  TODAY: Going through a new transition? Join this mini-playshop and turn uncertainty into empowerment at this Impact Hub Lunch + Learn. (Pioneer Square) — Updated topic 🆕

😋  TODAY: Make your own delicious batch of kombucha at this Foundation event. (Belltown)

🗣️  Thursday: Sit in on this MEX AM Northwest conversation about Mexico’s past, present, and future (Capitol Hill)

💃  Friday: Eat, drink, and dance at this party with fellow do-gooders. Evergrey readers get 50% off a ticket with code YPSeattle (SoDo)

🍿  Friday, Sept. 21 – Sept. 29: Be a local film boss at the Local Sightings Film Festival, which features films and filmmakers making moves around the Northwest (Capitol Hill)

✊  Wednesday, Sept. 26: Brush up on the history of civil rights and how it’s playing out in your world today at this Impact Hub Lunch + Learn (Pioneer Square)

☕  Thursday, Sept. 27: Venture into the mystical world of tea at this Foundation tea party. (Ballard)

AROUND TOWN

TODAY

💡  Hear politics and pop culture mix with KUOW, Melanie McFarland, and Evergrey friend Mellina White Cusack (Queen Anne)
💪  Learn to sail through that big transition at this Evergrey partner event (Pioneer Square) — topic updated
👋  Make friends and kombucha at this Evergrey partner event. (Belltown)


TOMORROW

🎟  Clap along the catwalk at Bellevue Fashion Week — through Sept. 22 (Bellevue)
👋  Get help or volunteer at the big Seattle/King County health clinic — through Sept. 23 (Queen Anne)
🍻  Sip a pint and wander around a garden of glass pumpkins (Everett)
💡  Hear an author’s take on how rich do-gooders might be doing us harm (Columbia City)
🎨  Learn about Mexico’s cultural history at this Evergrey partner event (Capitol Hill)


FRIDAY

👋  Watch parking spaces turn into pop-up parks (All over)
🎟  Laugh out loud at Seattle Sketchfest comedy shows — through Sept. 29 (Downtown)
🗣  Honor the dead baby whale whose mom, Tahlequah, shared the plight of our orcas with the world (Pioneer Square)
😱  Scream in Halloween at the Georgetown Morgue haunted house’s opening night (Georgetown)
🍿  Watch movies made my Northwestern filmmakers at this Evergrey partner event — through Sept. 29 (Capitol Hill)
🎟  Hit the dance floor with folks working to make Seattle better at this Evergrey partner event — and don’t forget to use code VPSeattle to get 50% off your ticket! (SoDo)


SATURDAY ~ THE FIRST DAY OF FALL 🍂

🏞  Lace up your hiking boots to check out state parks and national parks for free (All over)
🎈  Take the fam to art and dance workshops at the Seattle Children’s Festival (Queen Anne)
🎟  Peer into virtual reality and see stunning art installations at Kremfest — through Sept. 23 (Belltown)
🍿  Watch adorable kitties at the Cat Film Festival — through Sept. 23 (Queen Anne)
🎈  Let the kids welcome fall with glowy lanterns at Luminata (Green Lake)
🍴  Celebrate harvest season with moon cakes and beers (Ballard)


SUNDAY

🎶  Hear cello and “explore folk tunes and ancient Chinese music from a millennia ago” (Bellevue)
🍻  Say “Prost!” at Seattle’s biggest fall beer fest (Fremont)
🍿  Learn about the “hero’s journey” in film through Star Wars (Belltown)


Going to one of these? Take us with you! Email a pic to [email protected] or tag #theevergrey on Instagram. See more upcoming events on our events page, and add your own events with an Evergrey membership. Is an event sold out? Hit reply to let us know and we’ll update the listing in tomorrow’s newsletter.

NOT-SO-TRIVIAL

Yesterday, we rounded up six of Seattle’s raddest trivia competitions. One of them: A Netflix-bingeing nerd’s dream of TV-themed trivia. 📺 But we got one thing wrong: That awesome-sounding trivia night happens every Tuesday at The Runaway in Capitol Hill, not at The Rendezvous in Belltown.

Although you wouldn’t find trivia at The Rendezvous this week, you would find a delectable operetta in honor of chef Julia Child, which is happening tonight.

Bon Appétit, Seattle. — The Evergrey

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