While You’re In: Play with words, check out CHOP’s band and gallery-hop from the couch
Go mad
Note that The Olympian didn’t suggest getting mad, as in angry. Chances are excellent that you’re already mad and could use an occasional break. How about a quick trip to the zany side of madness with Mad Libs? The perennially popular game, invented in 1953, invites players to create a nonsensical story by filling in blanks labeled, for example, “noun,” “verb” or “animal” and then reading the results. In addition to the books beloved by generations of cooped-up kids, the Mad Libs folks offer apps and a few free print-at-home activities. And the business podcast and newsletter Morning Brew has a couple of takeoffs on the concept, including an up-to-the-minute story about a virtual meeting. (Sample sentence: “___ insisted on screen sharing pictures of their ___ collection, and ___ decided to make their background the ___ scene.”) If you don’t mind thinking about the global pandemic while you play, throw in a term like “PPE” or “covidiot.” For more words created for this moment, consult The New Yorker’s Lexicon for a Pandemic.
Sounds of the times
Seattle’s Marshall Law Band, in the spotlight recently for providing a soundtrack for demonstrations in Seattle’s Capitol Hill Organized Protest (CHOP) area, is playing an online concert Friday, July 24. The band played five-hour sets for six straight nights during the peak of the protests, leading the Seattle Times to describe it as “CHOP’s de facto house band.” Fronted by Marshall Hugh, the band fuses hip-hop, funk and more with a jam-band ethos. Check out the show, part of Work From Home Seattle’s series of livestreams to benefit out-of-work musicians, from 7 to 9 p.m. Friday on Facebook.
Art appreciation
Pandemic or no, art goes on, and South Sound’s big annual summer art shows are going on, too. South Puget Sound Community College’s Southwest Regional Juried Exhibition showcases a broad array of work, presented with bios, artists’ statements and in some cases even videos, so there’s more to explore. Check out prizewinning pieces, and as you click through the exhibition, pay attention to which piece you like best, because the gallery is planning to offer online voting for a Viewers’ Choice award. Ready to see more creativity? Hop on over to the Washington State History Museum’s In the Spirit Contemporary Native Arts exhibition, which showcases two dozen works in materials including acrylic paint, blown glass and dried corn husks. One standout is Lily Hope’s “Chilkat Protector,” a face mask made of wool and cedar bark and trimmed with ermine tails.
Freelance writer Molly Gilmore appreciates the surreal humor of Mad Libs, but in recent years, she has found that there’s more than enough of the surreal in the news of the day. She discusses local arts, entertainment and more with 95.3 KGY-FM’s Michael Stein from 3 to 4 p.m. Fridays.