REMINDER: NWSFS March MFR @ AFK Tavern in Everett

Posted on behalf of Jeanine Swanson NWSFS Vice-Chair:

March 2nd at 7:30 P.M.

Join us at one of Jeanine Swanson’s favorite restaurants, AFK Tavern

1510 41^st Street – Everett, WA 98201

425 259 0525

From their web site: “AFK Tavern was made by gamers and geeks for gamers and geeks to game and geek out.  We are a center for the amazing gamer community in Northern Washington, and beyond! Come out and show your colors at our events like Pirate Night, costume contests, release day parties and tournaments of every variety.”

http://www.afktavern.com/index.php

Note correction: All ages welcome. Tavern is part of the name and not description of the type of establishment.  (See trope example here: http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/YouAllMeetInAnInn)

Please RSVP to info@nwsfs.org or the hotline at 425-68-NWSFS.  

Reservations will be confirmed with the restaurant so we will not be able to accept responses later than the evening of Monday, February 28^th.

Wayward - overdue status report

Posted on behalf of Wayward Coffeehouse:

Greetings to all the friends of Wayward Coffeehouse! We apologize for the lack of recent updates but have been hoping to be able to report more progress. We aim to keep flyin!

We have been focusing our efforts on finding a new location because of the refusal of the property owners to repair the building. But finding a location that will allow us to continue to provide all the unique offerings of Wayward Coffeehouse is not easy! The process is not going as quickly as we would like. As nothing is yet settled we can not reveal where we hope to be, but know that we are working hard to find a place to reopen.

As many of you have learned since the fire, there are significant legal matters which have been hampering our ability to reopen. Issues with the building which pre-date the fire were already the subject of litigation. We are aware that contrary to what we were told work has occurred at the property, however, we must pursue that issue through legal avenues. Although we have prevailed on important aspects, the legal system moves slowly and is a significant drain on our limited resources. It may be several more months before we can hope to see resolution or even additional progress with our struggle for justice on matters both pre- and post-fire.

But we believe in what we created with Wayward Coffeehouse and want fervently for it to continue. We have received your messages of support and encouragement and know that there is a need for Wayward Coffeehouse for the communities we embrace.

We have been humbled by the many donations to the “Wayward Phoenix Fund” and are immensely grateful for the support. The funds have helped us all to survive and has helped with the mounting legal fees we face as we seek justice. Wayward Phoenix Fund Donationshttp://www.sbcharities.org/?page_id=16) and look for the Wayward logo to donate online or for information on donating by check. (
All of us from Wayward Coffeehouse miss you greatly and we continue to work toward our reopening. It will take longer than any of us would like, but we are committed to rising from the ashes and once again being the coffee haven for all of you.

We aim to keep flyin’ ...


Wayward Coffeehouse, it's better than a plan
Closed Until Further Notice
www.waywardcoffee.com
Twitter: WaywardCoffee
Facebook: Wayward Coffee House

NWSFS - Trip to Crater Lake

Posted on behalf on Jeanine Swanson - NWSFS Vice Chair:

NWSFS goes to Crater Lake

Tentative dates:  July 8, 9, & 10

Tentative hotel:  Best Western Plus Mill Creek Inn, Salem, OR

RSVP to adonno@aol.com

Please RSVP as tentative or definite so that Becky can make hotel and transportation plans. 

It’s an eight hour drive from Seattle to Crater Lake, Oregon so Becky will arrange for a layover in Salem, Oregon which is about mid point.  Becky will work with Best Western Plus Mill Creek Inn in Salem, Oregon for accommodations for our group.  She will also make arrangements for bus or van transport from the hotel to Crater Lake & back to the hotel.   Becky estimates hotel room costs at $100 per night (including a hot breakfast) and transportation costs at $50 & $100 per person.  each.  Room night and transportation costs will be updated on the NWSFS web site. 

• Friday, July 8^th  -  Meet in Salem, Oregon.
• Saturday AM, July 9^th – Board transportation for the 4 hour drive to Crater Lake, Oregon
• Saturday, July 9^th – Explore Crater Lake, visit Mazama Village
• Saturday PM, July 9^th – Board transportation for the 4 hour drive to Salem, Oregon.
• Sunday AM, July 10^th – Leave Salem and meet at Powell’s Books in Portland, Oregon.
• Sunday PM, July 10^th – Dinner and then return home.

National Park Service, Crater Lake: http://www.nps.gov/crla/index.htm

Guided Tours: http://www.nps.gov/crla/planyourvisit/guidedtours.htm

Crater Lake Boat Tours - $28 for adult. Tours are given daily from July to mid-September, weather permitting. Reservations can be made for half the tickets for each boat. (Reserved tickets must be picked up  at the Cleetwood Ticket booth before hiking down.) First-come, first-serve tickets are sold at the Cleetwood Cove Trailhead parking area. (PLEASE NOTE: Boat tour access requires hiking 2.2 miles round trip on a strenuous trail!)  

Please check with Xanterra Parks & Resorts for the most current boat tour schedule and reservations. 

Trolley Tours - $25 for adults.  Join a park ranger on a 2-hour tour aboard a historic-styled trolley. Offered daily from July to mid October (weather permitting). Starting at Rim Village a driver will navigate the 33 miles of Rim Drive around Crater Lake including 4 stops. Tickets can be purchased the day of the tour or ahead of time from the Crater Lake Trolley or by calling 1-541-882-1896. 

Did You Know?
Crater Lake was formed when a massive eruption of Mount Mazama 7700 years ago caused the mountain to collapse, leaving a steaming caldera. Centuries of rain and snow filled the caldera creating Crater Lake.

At 1,943 feet deep, Crater Lake is the deepest lake in the United States and one of the ten deepest lakes in the world

Sundy Funny Video: Kevin Pollak does killer Star Trek comedy

Here's a Sunday Funny for you from slagathor2112's YouTube channel.  It may not be safe for work due to language:

Happy Trekkin!

NWSFS Socials: September, November & December

Posted on behalf of Jeanine Swanson - NWSFS Vice Chair:

The Northwest Science Fiction Society (NWSFS) is looking for hosts for the September, November and December socials.  Contact info@nwsfs.org or the hotline at 425-68-NWSFS if you are interested in hosting. 

The Seattle-based Northwest Science Fiction Society is one of the largest science fiction groups of its kind in the world. Our members can be found in numerous states plus Canada. Though oriented towards literary forms of science fiction, the interests of our members cover all aspects of the field and we reflect their diversity. Whether you are a reader, dreamer, media fan, professional or just like science fiction in all its forms, there is something for you

NWSFS and Norwescon are part of Science Fiction Northwest (SFN), a non-profit umbrella corporation. The early beginnings of the Northwest Science Fiction Society trace back to the mists of time. Well, to 1976. Greg Bennett with a handful of friends formed NWSFS (pronounced Nizz-Fizz) so that people with an interest in science fiction could meet, have parties, do things together and at the same time provide a pool for the 1981 World Science Fiction Convention Committee. For more information, please visit Don Glover's  <http://www.kolvir.com/~corwyn/fandom/nwchist.htm> Norwescon Unofficial History web site for more information. 

NWSFS: Your Favorite Restaurant?

Posted on behalf of Jeanine Swanson - NWSFS Vice Chair:

NWSFS members and friends typically get together once a month to dine together and gab at restaurant that someone likes so much that they want to share it with others.    We have locations lined up for February and March.  We’re looking for locations for the remaining months in the year. 

Do you have a favorite restaurant that you would like to share with your SF&F peeps and geeks?    Your responsibilities as host are to make initial reservations with the location and then adjust the reservation a few days prior to the event, provide information to the group about why you like the restaurant, and provide directions / web site link. 

Contact info@nwsfs.org or the hotline at (425) 68-NWSFS and let us know that you want to host a My Favorite Restaurant event. 

Thanks!

Jeanine

www.nwsfs.org

REMINDER: NWSFS March MFR @ AFK Tavern in Everett

Posted on behalf of Jeanine Swanson - NWSFS Vice Chair:

Join us at one of Jeanine Swanson’s favorite restaurants, the AFK Tavern

1510 41st Street – Everett, WA 98201
425 259 0525

From their web site: “AFK Tavern was made by gamers and geeks for gamers and geeks to game and geek out.  We are a center for the amazing gamer community in Northern Washington, and beyond!

Come out and show your colors at our events like Pirate Night, costume contests, release day parties and tournaments of every variety.”
http://www.afktavern.com/index.php

Note correction: All ages welcome. Tavern is part of the name and not description of the type of establishment.  (See trope example here: http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/YouAllMeetInAnInn)

Please RSVP to info@nwsfs.org or the hotline at 425-68-NWSFS.  

Reservations will be confirmed with the restaurant so we will not be able to accept responses later than the evening of Monday, February 28th.

The Steamcon III website is up!

Posted on behalf of Steamcon III:

Our website is up and you can now go and register!
This will be the lowest price of the year for memberships!
So don't delay!

www.steamcon.org

2011 PBS KIDS GO! Writers Contest is Here

Posted on behalf of KBTC:

The 2011 PBS KIDS GO! Writers Contest has official begun. Kids in K - 3 grades are invited to enter. This year's local winners will have their stories featured on KBTC television and on kbtckids.org.

Looking for story ideas? Come to our KBTC studio for a FREE writers workshop, presented by Live Paint 4 Kids. Kids will learn how to tell stories with art.

Saturday February 26, 2011
2 - 3 pm
KBTC Studio
2320 S. 19th St.
Tacoma, WA
253-680-7700

For contest entry forms, rules or to register for the workshop visit http://www.kbtckids.org/parents/2011writerscontest

Evil Dead the Musical coming to Lynden Washington April 29-30, May 6-7, 13-14,

Like the headline says "Evil Dead the Musical coming to Lynden Washington April 29-30, May 6-7, 13-14,"



Here's the URL for ticket information: http://www.evildeadtour.com/washington/buytickets/

REMINDER: NWSFS February Social: 2/19/2011 - Pseudo Summer Solstice Spaghetti Sauce Off

Posted on behalf of Jeanine Swanson - NWSFS Vice Chair:

Feeling saucy?  Then gather ingredients for your sauce and get ready to celebrate the Pseudo Summer Solstice. 

Saturday - 2/19/2011, NWSFS Social at the Brathouse in Kirkland

February is nearing and that must mean it’s time for the Pseudo Summer Solstice Spaghetti Sauce Off.

Please join your fellow NWSFS members at our February Social on Saturday, February 19, 2011, at the Brathouse at 9431 126th Ave NE in Kirkland.  The social will begin at 6 PM and end at 10 PM. 

The Pseudo Summer Solstice Spaghetti Sauce Off is an annual traditional NWSFS event.  NWSFS provides spaghetti, salad, and soft drinks. Contestants bring various spaghetti sauces for you to sample and then you vote for your favorite.  The contributors of the most popular sauces get small prizes. If you plan to bring a sauce, please bring at least two quarts of sauce, and make some note of ingredients for those of us with food allergies or other restrictions.

If you can, please bring a crock pot to keep your sauce warm, and a ladle. If you cannot bring a crock pot, please call ahead to make arrangements for use of a burner or other equipment in the kitchen. This is still something of a potluck. Please bring a contribution of munchies, side dish, or desert. To support the contest, there is a small fee for the Sauce - Off. The fee is $3 for NWSFS members and $5 for non members. As always, NWSFS members are encouraged to attend, and non-members in the community are welcome. We hope to see you there.

Logistical information:

Smoking areas are outside. The house has cats, which are locked away for the social. The main entrance is up two small steps (ramp available). Parking is on-street, and generally available. The closest bus stop is 1/3 mile away (2 blocks west, 1 block north), at the corner of 124th Ave. NE and NE 97th, and serves the #230 bus (transfer from Seattle at the Bellevue Transit Center). The last bus is at approximately 10:30 P.M.

Directions:

Take the 85th St. Exit off of I-405 (Kirkland) and travel east on 85th.

Go up the hill. Get into the left lane and after a couple of blocks, turn left onto 126th. It's not marked too well, but the landmark is the Safeway on the right and a Shell station on the left.

Once on 126th, travel down the hill about two blocks. The road ends at a "T" intersection and the house is the last house on your left. It's light green.

February Steamcon Organizational Meeting

Posted on behalf of Steamcon:

As we begin to look ahead to Steamcon III, we have a lot of fantastic ideas.  Our theme, "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" has inspired quite a few fun and innovative concepts already.  This year will be bigger and better than ever.  As always, you are the cogs in our machine and we
couldn't do it without you.  We hope to see you all at the firstmeeting:

Feb 13th, 2:00 PM - 5:00 PM
at the Youngstown Cultural Arts Center
4408 Delridge Way SW

Everyone is welcome to attend.

If you have any questions, please email us at info AT steamcon DOT org.

Full steam ahead!

~Diana
Vice chair

Seattle's SciFi and Fantasy Film Fest SOLD OUT - Encore Screening Added

Posted on behalf of EMP|SFM:


EMP|SFM’s Science Fiction + Fantasy Short Film Festival NOW SOLD OUT
ENCORE SCREENING JUST ADDED for January 30, 2011

SEATTLE— Due to popular demand, Experience Music Project|Science Fiction Museum (EMP|SFM), in partnership with Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF), has added an encore screening to the sixth-annual Science Fiction + Fantasy Short Film Festival (SFFSFF).   SFFSFF brings together industry professionals from both the filmmaking and science fiction and fantasy genres to encourage and support new, creative additions to science fiction and fantasy cinema.
The encore presentation will feature the Jury Award winners, Audience Award winners, and Curator's choices from the 2011 Science Fiction and Fantasy Short Film Festival. 
Event Details:
WHAT:  SFFSFF Encore Screening
WHEN:  Sunday, January 30 at Noon
WHERE:  SIFF Cinema at the Nesholm Family Lecture Hall at McCaw Hall
                  321 Mercer Street, Seattle Center
TICKETS:  $9 
MORE INFO:  Tickets are available on siff.net.  For additional info, please call 206.464.5830.
From a field of more than 100 films from all over the world, 20 entries were selected for inclusion in the festival. The January 30th encore screening will include 10 out of the 20 original films selected for the festival.
All films were required to be no longer than 15 minutes in length, and produced after January 2006. Entries included animated or live-action films in science fiction (examples: futuristic stories, space adventure, technological speculation, social experiments, utopia and dystopia) and fantasy (examples: sword and sorcery, folklore, urban fantasy, magic, mythic adventure).

This year’s judges include science fiction notables and award-winning film professionals -   filmmakers Barbara Brown,  Ben Kasulke, Howard McCain and Bragi Schut, Jr., and writers Annalee Newitz, Lindy West and Daniel  Wilson. The judges will award Grand Prize, Second Place, Third Place and the Douglas Trumbull Award for Best Special Effects. The audience will determine the Audience Favorite Award during the festival.

The mission and objective of the Science Fiction + Fantasy Short Film Festival is to promote and encourage an awareness, appreciation and understanding of the art of science fiction and fantasy cinema. Its mandate is to create a forum for creative artistry in science fiction and fantasy film and recognize the most outstanding short films produced.

The Science Fiction + Fantasy Short Film Festival is generously sponsored by Cinerama Theatre, Vulcan Inc. and NORWESCON.

Science Fiction + Fantasy Short Film Festival 2011 FILMS:
For more information, including film stills and director bios, please visit www.empsfm.org/filmfestival
Please note:  The January 30th encore screening will include 10 of the 20 films below.

ALL THE TIME IN THE WORLD – World Premiere
Director: Gavin Fox & Jason Fox
Country: UK
Year: 2010
Running Time: 7 minutes

Bill likes it in his shed.  It’s his little sanctuary; the place where he goes to escape his wife, the world and hard work.  But one lazy Sunday, when he finally bothers to fix an old video player, he chances upon a discovery that could change not just his day, but the entire course of history.

COCKPIT:  THE RULE OF ENGAGEMENT
Director: Jesse Griffith
Country: USA
Year: 2010
Running Time: 12 minutes

In the year 2103, mankind is at war with the Tarceds, an alien race that can control minds. Our brave men and women of the U.E.S. Navy hold the enemy at the outer edge of the galaxy.  But when a pilot returns mysteriously from a bombing run without his wingman, suspicious of his affliction arise.  The Captain of a Star Carrier must decide whether to let him land and risk exposing his carrier to alien control, or succumb to the will of the cold Government Agent and let him die in space.

DENMARK – Seattle Premiere!
Director: Daniel Fickle
Country: USA
Year: 2010
Running Time: 6 minutes

Pily is a lovable crustacean of mixed origin who struggles to escape his underwater home when it becomes threatened by pollution.

EMMA – Seattle Premiere!
Director: David Beglin
Country: USA
Year: 2010
Running Time: 7 minutes

In 2172, only 50,423 humans have survived a cataclysmic impact from an asteroid.  Those left have split up to explore space in hopes of finding the next Earth.  Now a Captain, Christian Steel, struggles between his duties as the leader and his own desire to join his lost family.  As his sense of reality slips away, the crew looks to him for leadership through these near impossible times.

HECTOR CORP.
Director: Gary Lee
Country: USA
Year: 2010
Running Time: 10 minutes


A thriller about a company, Hector Corporation, that must take extreme measures to manage their employees with unexpected executioners.  Our righteous hero, Victor, takes us through his experience and shows how justice prevails in the end.

JUAN CON MIEDO – Seattle Premiere!
Director: Daniel Romero
Country: Spain
Year: 2010
Running Time: 11 minutes

During the holidays at his grandparent’s village, John meets Mary, a mysterious girl who tells the terrifying legend surrounding the peasant’s old house.  John, unlike the character in the tale, is fearful.  Mary is not.

KEEP WATCHING THE SKIES! – Seattle Premiere!
Director: Robert Dastoli, James Dastoli
Country: USA
Year: 2010
Running Time: 5 minutes

People of Earth attention!  Will you be prepared when the invasion comes?  Out of the saucer ship will come an evil force that seeks to replace our freedoms with a barbaric way of life.  Through artistic projections and live action dramatizations, this 1950’s style civil defense film encapsulates the mid-20th century Communist paranoia.  Is it fantastic imagination or terrifying truth of the future?  This film will have you watching the skies!

KING ETERNAL
Director: Ori Guendelman
Country: USA
Year: 2010
Running Time: 15 minutes

On their rite of passage journey, life-long friends Chu’a and Kele set off into the forest unaware of an ancient being that awaits them in the dark.

SPARK – Seattle Premiere!
Director: Bridget Palardy
Country: USA
Year: 2010
Running Time: 5 minutes

Spark is set in a future where fire is banned, clean air is precious, and an over-protective society fears the natural disasters of the past.  Young ‘Very,’ is the quiet, new girl in an unfriendly classroom teeming with technology, hormones and cruelty.  When a false fire alarm is triggered, she is unexpectedly swept up in a rebellious crime and thrust into an outsider culture.  Only with her new accomplices does she discover friendship and a more organic connection to the planet, fire and her past.

THE ASTRONOMER’S SUN
Director: Simon Cartwright, Jessica Cope
Country: UK
Year: 2010
Running Time: 6 minutes

A young man, accompanied by his mysterious mechanical bear, visits an abandoned observatory to confront memories of his past and follow his Father on a journey into the unknown.  A magical journey about relationships and what it is to be human.

LIFELINE
Director: Andres Salaff
Country: USA
Year: 2009
Running Time: 6 minutes

Lifeline is the tale of a brilliant scientist who travels through various dimensions and worlds in search of his lost love.

LOCAL UNIT
Director: Tad Ermitano
Country: Philippines
Year: 2006
Running Time: 9 minutes

In 2072, Silicon computers have been superseded by neuroprocessors—cloned brains sustained in nutrient fluids.  As is usual in the Philippines, black markets have cropped up, trafficking in bootleg alternatives to the branded units. The street has evolved terminologies to distinguish the various grades of merchandise, but the words hide uncomfortable truths behind the product origins.

PROJECT PANACEA – Seattle Premiere!
Director: Daniel Jourdan
Country: Canada
Year: 2010
Running Time: 8 minutes

A young scientist has discovered a revolutionary disease treatment.  Nobody believes him.  He will see it through…Filmed alone in a basement.

SCHIZOFREDRIC – Seattle Premiere!
Director: Andy Poyiadgi
Country: UK
Year: 2009
Running Time: 15 minutes

Fredric has lost the fire in his belly and wants it back.  After signing up for an unorthodox self-improvement program, Fredric is trapped outside of his own life, while a new, improved version takes over.

SUPER SCIENCE – Seattle Premiere!
Director: Joel MacKenzie
Country: Canada
Year: 2009
Running Time: 8 minutes

Super Science is a wild comedy about Eugene who is trying to attend a party and finish his science fair experiment on time.  Since this task is not humanly possible, Eugene enlists the help of a non-human friend.

THE NECRONOMICON
Director: Joseph Nanni
Country: Canada
Year: 2009
Running Time: 2 minutes


Do you want to be a nicer person?  Are you looking for inspiration to do good things?  Well keep looking.  But if you’re into opening up terrifying vistas of reality then the Esoteric Order of the Old Ones and Cthulhu Cultists want to help.  The Necronomicon is a short and biting spoof of faith-based commercial advertising and accepted religious dogma.

TELEVISNU
Director: Prithi Gowda
Country: India
Year: 2010
Running Time: 12 minutes

A surreal tale of a young Indian woman who works at a call center.  Her computer breaks down and in an attempt to fix it, she falls into a magical, mythical web of electronic wires where memories, secrets, and hidden desires reveal themselves.

THE WONDER HOSPITAL
Director: Beomsik Shimbe Shim
Country: USA
Year: 2010
Running Time: 12 minutes

The Wonder Hospital, a 3D and puppet-animated film, is a surreal journey of oddity and empty illusion.  In a mysterious hospital, modification of physical beauty is not what you would expect.  A girl’s desire for superficial beauty leads her to chase after the luring ‘After’ images on a path of advertisements throughout the hospital.  But in the end, she finds something unimaginable and irreversible.

TUB
Director: Bobby Miller
Country: USA
Year: 2009
Running Time: 12 minutes

It’s just your typical short film about a guy who can’t commit to his girlfriend…And accidentally impregnates his bath tub.

ZERO
Director: Christopher Kezelos
Country: Australia
Year: 2009
Running Time: 13 minutes

In a world that judges people by their number, Zero faces constant prejudice and persecution.  He walks a lonely path until a chance encounter changes his life forever:  he meets a female zero.  Together they prove that through determination, courage, and love, nothing can be truly something.

ABOUT EMP|SFM
Experience Music Project|Science Fiction Museum is a non-profit organization dedicated to the exploration of creativity and innovation in music, science fiction and popular culture. EMP|SFM combines interpretative, interactive exhibitions with state-of-the-art technologies, and educational programming to offer visitors of all ages a first-hand, multi-dimensional experience of the creative and artistic process.  For more info, visit empsfm.org.

SOCIAL MEDIA
facebook.com/EMPSFM
twitter.com/EMPSFM
youtube.com/empsfm
flickr.com/photos/empsfm/

Pacific Science Center: Free Open House For Educators This Saturday - 02/05/2011

This message is posted on behalf of Pacific Science Center:

Celebrating Teachers! - Educator Open House Feb. 2011 Pacific Science Center would like to thank Washington state educators and celebrate their efforts in the classroom by inviting them to the Educator Open House this Saturday, February 5. This free engagement includes admission to current exhibits, Laser shows, IMAX films, the Willard Smith Planetarium, Tropical Butterfly House and more. Educators and their guests will receive special pricing to see Harry Potter: The Exhibition between 8 -10 a.m. Registration 8-11:30 a.m. Light refreshments served until 10 a.m. - Exhibits open all day.

http://www.pacsci.org/openhouse/