The Spovangelist

Gabriel Brown: Innovator, father, friend.

He’s one of those rare individuals who is universally liked by everyone.  While the Spovangelist avoids community calendar style posts, the subject matter at this exhibit is just too relevant not to mention. Make a point to go visit the MAC this Friday, while you can still get in for free.

“There is much behind the meaning of my artwork: reuse of waste, critique of consumerism, satirical humor, disgust of the ever-expanding suburbs, shopping malls, landfills, etc… But there is an underlying meaning common to all my work. It is simply a desire to make good contemporary art, and to prove to others (and myself) that this can be done in Spokane. There are abundant resources, opportunities, and inspiration here (if you haven’t found these yet, dig deeper!). I can’t guarantee that you won’t get burnt out, but that has nothing to do with Spokane. Art burnout happens everywhere.”

Tags:   Breaking Boundaries · Creative Culture · Local Art · Photography · Social ObservationsNo Comments.

Spokane seems to have something of a crush on President Lincoln. Be it our beloved Lincoln Statue, the Symphony performing Letters from Lincoln, the Chase gallery exhibiting “A House Divided: The Legacy of Lincoln,” or even just the swank new Lincoln Center on Lincoln Ave., there are an awful lot of Lincolns in the local log. Sure, maybe most of these are linked to Lincoln’s 200th birthday celebrations, but there is more to this theory than the bicentennial.

Scott Kolbo - Lincoln Contemplates the Intractable

Did you know that a good chunk of the Inland Northwest was once proposed to become Lincoln State? I’ve heard of Cascadia plenty of times, but the State of Lincoln was news to me.

“The Doug” - Flag of Cascadia

As Northerners we tend to scoff in annoyance at the secessionist tendencies of the more southern states, particularly Texas, full of spit and swagger. Yet in it’s tortured past, Texas also was in the running to cede into Lincoln State. Is this not unlike the pot calling the kettle black?

The State of Lincoln was first proposed by Idaho in 1864, when the Capital was moved from Lewiston to its present-day location of Boise, which made governing the out-of-reach panhandle more difficult. The 1864 proposal was to make the panhandle its own state. This proposal failed, but in 1901 another proposal was made, this time to combine the Idaho Panhandle with Eastern Washington to create the state of Lincoln, in honor of President Abraham Lincoln.

From the Washington end, proposals have been made as recently as 1996, 1999, and 2005. Other than Lincoln, the names “Columbia” and “Eastern (or East) Washington” were proposed to be used for the state. While the disconnection between Western Washington and Eastern Washington is well known and documented, Northern Idaho has a similar dynamic in which its residents often feel disconnected from the state’s political center in Boise.

However, Northern Idaho residents do not typically profess any feeling of connection with Eastern Washington, and in fact in terms of its politics and sociology and the fact that it is largely mountains and forests and lakes, it is much more similar to Western Montana. Therefore, parallel suggestions of a “State of Kootenai” have been made, referring to a proposed union of the six northern-most counties of Idaho, and the six western-most counties of Montana, creating a geographically, politically, and ecologically connected state of 524,888 residents, putting it ahead of other states such as Wyoming.

Other conceptions of a potential “State of Lincoln” have been rendered, specifically a possible combination of Eastern Washington and Eastern Oregon. This union is actually the more commonly suggested one, rather than the Washington-Idaho entity. This results from the fact that the two eastern regions of the states are both made up of largely farmland and plains, and therefore economically and sociologically similar.

The people of Eastern Oregon also often express the same frustration with being coupled with Portland and the region west of the Cascades that Eastern Washingtonians do with respect to Seattle. This proposed coupling would create one of the largest states in the country, stretching all the way from the eastern foothills of the Cascade Mountain Range to the border with Idaho in the east. The Washington State Legislature is the only government among these three states that has seen bills proposing secession or splintering. If combined with the proposed State of Jefferson, which overlaps a proposed Oregon-Washington “State of Lincoln” in southeastern Oregon and is proposed for many of the same reasons, it would create a state that is even larger.

Tags:   Breaking Boundaries · Identity Crisis · Political Surprise · Social Observations · Spokane Pride6 Comments

Spokane has issues with police public relations that go back for decades.  Unusual names like Otto Zhem and Shonto Pete enjoy household recognition around here, with the litany of incidents touching peoples’ lives in profoundly personal ways.

There is the neighbor who witnessed the fatal taser-induced standoff between Spokane police and suicidal Josh Levy on the Monroe St.  Bridge while walking home from the bar, the friend who won’t file a complaint about threatening sexual remarks made to her by an officer because she is embarrassed about the circumstances of her arrest, and the brother who gets inappropriately questioned about July 4th protesters a few days after the catastrophe in Riverfront Park. Not to mention the mind-numbing response of public officials in forums meant to address the concern:

“I am not at liberty to discuss that issue at this time.”

Make of it what you will, but there is even a local blog dedicated to the topic.

With recent federal indictments contradicting local conclusions on Zhem’s case, and City announcements saying powers of independent review for the new ombudsman are “not a priority”, what is a concerned citizenry to do? Nine times out of ten we feel like demonstrations amount to little more than a futile exercise in venting frustration, but in the case for this Thursday’s police accountability rally outside City Hall at 5pm, the message is clear and the tactics seem warranted. The rally meets all the criteria for an effective protest:

How to Stage An Effective Protest

1. Align your allies. Without the support of others who share the concern a protest is doomed. Locally the SHAWL Society, VOICES, the Spokane affiliate of the National Alliance on Mental Illness, Progressive Democrats of America and many others are all involved in addition to the Peace and Justice Action League heading up rally operations.
2. Ask for what you want. Many protest organizers forget to message for something concrete. “Better working conditions” simply isn’t specific enough. In our case, independent review power for our local police ombudsman is a tangible and achievable ask.
3. Have faults on the other side. Embarrassment can help when it comes to a protest.  Whether or not each case is overstated, grievances against local police conduct abound and are growing. Without satisfying resolutions, the public voice will only get louder.
4. Give people a way to support you. Rallies, no matter how well organized, will be forgotten without something actionable to do.This could be signing a petition, or joining a group online. In a recent PJALS newsletter there were six different suggestions for action:
   
   • Come to the rally with your friends and family! Scroll down & click “Forward Email” to help spread the word. Or, if you’re on Facebook, invite your friends to the rally and join the PJALS group.
   • Donate to PJALS to support our police accountability work: http://www.pjals.net/membership.html
   • Write a letter to the editor about the need to push for investigative authority for Ombudsman’s office. Spokesman: editor@spokesman.com. Inlander: use their form at http://www.inlander.com/contact/editorial
   • Volunteer to help with rally outreach or to be a peacekeeper at the rally. Reply to this email if you’re interested.
   • Ask a City Council candidate if they’ll commit to pushing for independent investigative authority–and let us know what they say!
   • Let us know your ideas for future tactics. We’re meeting every Monday at 5:00 pm to advance our campaign. Please join us!

5. Prove your dedication. Part of the power of a protest is when decision makers know that the effort is not going away tomorrow. An extreme example might be that tying yourself to a tree to avoid it getting cut down doesn’t work if you only stay for an hour. After the longstanding tenure of PJALS advocates Rusty and Nancy Nelson, a new face to PJALS has successfully made a leadership transition. We are very excited for what is to come.

Tags:   Breaking Boundaries · Community · Political Surprise8 Comments

We’d be curious to find out how many people on the street are aware that a dedicated Spokane advocate is credited for Father’s Day gaining national recognition in 1972. Maybe 20+%?

The oft repeated storyline explains that Sonora Smart Dodd first thought of creating the holiday one Sunday in 1909 while listening to a Mother’s Day sermon at the Central Methodist Episcopal Church in Spokane. While Sonora has a tombstone over in Greenwood Memorial Terrace, there is another rather unassuming marker to her father’s day efforts near her home. This modest pillar of concrete topped with an iron plaque was once pointed out to me by my mother on a busy road somewhere between downtown and East Central Spokane. Can anyone confirm the location of this monument?

The Battle of the Fatherly Flowers

In early times, wearing flowers was a traditional way of celebrating Father’s Day. Mrs. Dodd favored the red rose to honor a father still living, while a white flower honored a deceased dad. J.H. Berringer, who also held Father’s Day celebrations in Washington State as early as 1912, chose a white lilac as the Father’s Day Flower.

VS

Funny how these are the same flowers of Portland vs Spokane, no? Sonora is often mentioned as a poet, but attempts to find any samples online were unsuccessful. I wonder if a trip to the Northwest room would turn up some of her work?

Before we go, let’s pay picture tribute to the Father of the Father’s Day city:

Thanks for the rad old mansion old man!

Related Links:

• 1st Annual Engaging Fatherhood Conference here in Spokane.
• “Two men stand tall in effort to boost dads’ rights,” by Rebecca Nappi, Spokesman-Review. June 20, 2009.

Tags:   Nostalgia · Spokane Pride3 Comments

Let’s admit it, yuppie bashing has been around for a long time. Some claim that “too many yuppies” is one thing they can’t stand about Seattle. Yet Spokane has a healthy handful of it’s own brand of yuppiedom, and we’re glad they’re here to stay.

The Spokane Society of Young Professionals (SSYP) is a homegrown network of mostly office going folk “that aim to stimulate business relationships, careers, the community and the economy.” Started back in 2004, the organization began much like Wonderground and the Shrinking Violets: a group of friends decided to roll up their sleeves, put on a party, and bring people together.

“Never underestimate the power of a small group of committed people to change the world. In fact, it is the only thing that ever has.”

-Margaret Mead

Anyone who instinctively dismisses Spokane’s yups should think twice before they snub. Walk into an SSYP event and you’ll be instantly welcomed (no matter how dirty or sweaty you are from riding your bike through the mud). Unless you’re a the shy type that suffers from social anxiety, you’ll immediately feel at ease with a hodgepodge of people of all ages and walks of life. While many SSYPers are in law, finance, insurance, real estate, marketing, business development and the like, a good chunk are also from a fairly random cross-section of the Spokane economy.

Membership costs are a low barrier to entry. For just $25 a year you get discounts on SSYP events and occasional member only specials, like a one time 1/2 off Spokane Club enrollment offer. Just think, what is your average tab for a night out on the town? As a scrounger I can attest to the value added catering at member events alone. Anyone looking for employment should seriously consider getting involved, these people just LOVE to network. They’re on Facebook, LaunchPad, and they even have a small group on MySpace as well.

SSYP gatherings are typically short, sweet and to the point. You show up, they get right down to business, and then they send you home. Unlike some other public or social gatherings, people are direct, audible and confident. The diverse scope of events is impressive as well. Their “Beer with…” series is like a miniature Leadership Spokane, providing Q&A access to top industry leaders from around the region.

The Young Professionals of Portland (also founded in ‘04) has a similar event series, only it’s called “Bites with the Boss.” There is also “Breakfast of Champions” which is presumably an early morning version of the same kind of thing. While the YPOP event roster includes venues like the Doug Fir Lounge for which Spokane has no equivalent, (yet… that’s right, we’re looking at YOU Select Inn and Rooster Grill on Walnut & 2nd) SSYP has at least beat them to the punch on offering a membership directory. As with many social networking projects in larger cities, YPOP has managed to spin itself off into an intercity association called Young Professionals of America (see related sites below).

This brings us to a critical observation about Spokane. Our community is just big enough that we manage to create our own viable independent organizations, yet not so big that we reach the point of becoming the hub of a larger network. What does this mean for Spokane? Our people have to spend a greater amount of time and energy to “reinvent the wheel,” then run out of steam before reaching the point where we reap the benefits of packaging our product. Just imagine all the business that Portland siphons off their YPA member chapters when they migrate back to the mothership for annual meetings. (So maybe this is somewhat negligible, but still. What made Portland go the extra mile to replicate it’s network?)

Maybe we could snap up some of the Inland Northwest market share and spawn a PSYP (Pullman Society of Young Professionals). YPTC (Young Professionals of the Tri-Cities) already went ahead and did their own thing. We’ve established friendly relations with nearby KCYP (Kootenai County Young Professionals), but the population density gets thinner and thinner the further inland you go. This situation is just another one of the factors that keeps Spokane chronically “simmering below the radar”.

Then there is Seattle over there somewhere, a whole ‘nother beast unto itself. As a yuppie capital across the country, there is almost little purpose in examining their offerings for clues about the potential in Spokane. They have an entire ecosystem of young professional societies that are sometimes place-based, sometimes industry-specific, and sometimes just generally redundant.

Moral of the story? Same as it always has been: Spokane has all the needed ingredients to take off and realize its unique regional potential to the fullest. What does it take to catalyze that transformation? An intimate knowledge of the area, willingness to develop bold new partnerships and benchmarks, and undying dedication to the cause of celebrating our city.

Related Links:

• Young Professionals of Vancouver
• Young Professionals of Corvallis
• Young Professionals of Twin Cities
• Young Professionals of Bloomington
• Young Professionals of Seattle
• Young Professionals of Walla Walla

Tags:   Community · Competition · Non-Profits · Social Observations · Spokane Pride · Sustainable Development1 Comment

Last night a cheerful lady knocked on our door to introduce herself as the “Browne’s Addition Welcome Wagon.” She had seen us working in our vegetable patch and wanted to celebrate our new status as neighbors. My roommate and I scored some strawberries, tea, pastries, seeds and a bouquet of fresh flowers, a card and contact information in case we ever found ourselves in an emergency.

Apparently once she moved to a new city and her neighbors threw a party to welcome her to the ‘hood. She was so impressed that she wanted to pay the sentiment forward in some way. Just imagine the kind of world we’d live in if more people had the courage and will to build such relationships. Maybe our neighborhoods wouldn’t feel so eerily empty in the middle of the day.

Maybe you think this display of altruism is a ploy or some kind of fluke. I suppose it depends on who you surround yourself with, but in my experience Spokanites are surprisingly generous. When we lived in Cliff Cannon we had a supply chain of three different neighbors within two blocks eager to share fresh produce from their “yardens” (a creative and permaculture-friendly combo of flowers and food plants on residential property that serves as an exciting alternative to sod).

Then there are the little things, the friend who brought us ice cream and a cookie in the middle of the day, the mixed CDs and handmade art throughout the holidays. We even received a custom box of handmade soaps from the Geriks. Incredible!

These are the kind of gestures that make a person bond with their social sphere. It creates a sense of belonging and attachment that no ad campaign could ever hope to replicate. This is because it’s a sincere and selfless expression between real people looking to connect.

So here is the pitch: What if Spokane’s Young Adult Marketing Coordinator helped organize local young adult artists to produce unique custom Spocare Packages to send to people in our peer group who we know are contemplating a move to Spokane?  They could include things like a local music compilation CD, screen printed Spokane patches, zines, booklets, stickers, creative bookmarks, embroidered coffee cozies, a copy of the Inlander or Metro, you name it, we could send it!

The effort would require a innovative partnership between grassroots creative class activists in Spokane, and an entity with a regional marketing budget like GSI. A referral network would have to be established to identify recipients who are strategic and who meet criteria for receiving such a gift. Not just anyone would be mailed a Spocare Package. Priorities could be set that reflect the kinds of skill sets that we need to bolster in Spokane’s workforce. They could also meet a certain threshold of “likelihood factors” that would make delivering a Spocare Package a smart investment.

It would be a win-win-win. Local artists would receive stipends to scale up and sell the kind of work they are already producing instead of GSI (or whomever is responsible for attracting new talent to Spokane) buying cheap branded crap from a catalog out of China. The marketing agency gets high quality, high impact goods at an affordable rate. In fact, some local businesses and artists might consider discounted or complimentary prices in exchange for the targeted marketing that the Spocare Packages offer. Spokane skeptics get blown out of the water with evidence of Spokane’s development and cultural products. They put the stuff in their apartment and their friends inevitably ask where it all came from…

If marketing is all about standing out, Spocare Packages would definitely do the trick. We could, perhaps, be the only city in the country utilizing this innovative approach. It is the kind of thing that could attract media attention, the story is just too cute. It is grassroots authentic marketing at its best. Lastly, some kind of peer review committee should be involved as volunteers to help make targeting decisions, assemble packages, and write personal notes to the people receiving Spocare Packages. It could go something like:

Hey there [or insert name],

You haven’t met us yet, but we are a bunch of [fill in the blank] in Spokane that want to spoil the secret about what kind of city we live in. Your friend [fill in the blank] mentioned that you got laid off last month and are looking for some new directions in life. Did you know that Spokane has [fill in the blank about industry specific employment opportunities in their field]? We also have a lot of new [arts, culture, nightlife, music, entertainment, recreation] opportunities that you may not have heard of before.

Next time you’re in town [most likely visiting family] if you feel like getting out and meeting some new people, give us a call. We’d be happy to show you some new places around town that have opened since the last time you were here.

Always,

[insert name]

The Spocare Package Group

I mean WOW. There are plenty of talented young people getting priced out of their apartments in urban areas that are tiring of the artificial veneer of fast-paced city life. Spokane to them could represent a haven, a reflective space in which they would be supported in pursuing their creative and professional goals. If someone would have sent me this kind of package when I graduated from college, I would have rushed home with enthusiasm and energy instead of a sense of dread and defeat.

As with any marketing strategy, one would have to conduct a pilot to determine the return on investment for the technique. Even a 20% relocation rate could be a huge improvement on where we stand today. Someone needs to determine the baseline. After receiving packages, people could be surveyed to determine if their perception of Spokane changed. My hunch is that perceptions would change significantly, and that is the key to our city’s success.

Tags:   Breaking Boundaries · Creative Culture · Local Art · Local Media · Local Music · Spokane Pride · Sustainable Economic Development · Young People4 Comments

The Washington Bus is an “innovative vehicle for hands on democracy.” Literally. And these kids love cheesy puns just about as much as we do, so consider yourselves warned…

Based out of Seattle, the bus has been around for only two short years and their driving record is impeccable. Whether it is voter registration, leadership training or helping out on a campaign, this network of volunteers and activists knows how to set their sights, target their message and HAVE FUN. Unlike some nonprofits, the Washington Bus clearly understands the social dimension of why young people choose to donate their time. Just look at the roster of events for June. And while your at it, check out Hella Bus, the official blog of the Washington Bus crew.

There are two gears for bus operations, one nonprofit (c-3) and the other political (c-4). Through the political side of the organization, Bus volunteers are able to get involved in strategic campaigns that reflect the values laid out in their platform. One recent example of successful youth organizing was a school bond levy that defied the odds and got passed in Yakima last month.

The other thing we admire about this organization are the creative ways they ask for your money. Take the “Friends With Benefits” program for example, and the way they characterize “monthly memberships”. Asks are sprinkled all throughout the website - as they should be - which demonstrates organizational confidence and a commitment to act on their mission.

Driving the Bus to Spokane

So what would it take to ramp up the Bus’s presence in Spokane? Bus organizers have already interviewed several student groups in local high schools, and spoken to local political leaders in an attempt to gauge the readiness for action in our area. There are several youth organizations that are well suited to becoming involved in this work. Spokane Youth For Equality, the Youth Sustainability Council, Odyssey Youth Center, Greener Drinks and maybe even the Shrinking Violets are all examples that immediately come to mind. At this point it is just a matter of gauging interest and identifying some shared priorities and potential actions. It will be interesting to see who ultimately gets on board!

Related Links:

• The Washinton Bus on Facebook
• The Oregon Bus Project
• New Mexico Youth Organized
• Forward Montana
• New Era Colorado

Tags:   Creative Culture · Non-Profits · Political Surprise · Young People4 Comments

You already missed out on opening night, now don’t miss out on the exhibit!

We generally avoid reposting announcements for community events, but the subject matter of “Overripe Apple Pie” is so entwined with the Spovangelist’s preoccupations, we’d be remiss in not pointing it out.

Enter the back door of Saranac Art Projects Friday night. Greeted with a series of large format charcoal sketches by Spokane artist Scott Kolbo, we were struck by the stark beauty of his figure drawings and landscapes, swirling with mysterious and dark, pestilential clouds.

Then we noticed the perks of turning out on opening night: free popcorn and a root beer keg, artistically offered on a museum pedestal in the middle of the room.

The show dug deep into the kind of gritty, expansive, post-industrial beauty that Spokane calls all its own. White picket fences turned inside out and scrambled in space represent the daggers and arrows of harsh reality that assault us every day. Figures look like sullen scarecrows in their windswept, architecturally unstable environments.

Spoken by Scott:

I believe that despite our best efforts to look important, rational, and dignified, we all make fools of ourselves in the end. Human nature is corrupted by folly, and even our best intentions are subverted by our mixed motivations. My work is an investigation into the ways that this phenomenon manifests itself in individual lives and in society as a whole.

I create a world where reality mixes with exaggeration, absurdity, and the grotesque in an attempt to expose and deflate the distortions that pass for truths in our media-soaked and self-absorbed culture. My ultimate goal is to lead the viewer to recognize the fundamental foolishness of human nature and to make visible the discrepancies that exist between what we pretend to be and what we really are.

The other half of the gallery was occupied by an odd arrangement of quaint little box-style houses, dangling precariously in mid-air. Little pock marks scuff the otherwise shiny surfaces of these structures, like they’ve been visited by a hungry, giant rat. Take home message from Meagan Stirling’s installation? All is NOT well in Pleasantville.

Perfect suburban house before shotgun.

Spoken by Meagan:

My artwork examines some of the complexities and illusions through the antithetical patterns and configurations of American suburbia, exploring to what extent safety is part of the national psyche. Can safety be controlled? And, do the spaces and rules of safety cover over the fear of being unsafe?

This is an excellent question for City Hall as the public is forced to endure the ruse of constantly checking in and out of the front entryway to the building.

Tags:   Local Art2 Comments

We’ve got politics on the brain these days. Local politics that is, the kind you can actually have a tangible hand in shaping. This fall’s off-year election is getting a head start with City Council primaries and signature gathering for a variety of thought provoking initiatives.

Take a look at Exhibit A: The Spokane City Council. Hardworking, well-intentioned people all around. If memory serves correct, Council President Joe Shogan even took a voluntary 10% pay cut last year to donate to services for the hungry and homeless. He might be a little crotchety and gruff at times, but you certainly can’t argue with that generous spirit of self-sacrifice.

Exhibit A: The Spokane City Council

Personal qualities aside, I’ve always wondered how our City Council might look and function  differently if it directly reflected the demographics of Spokane voters. It would be like the Miniature Earth project, but for Spokane instead of the entire globe, and calculated for seven people instead of one hundred.

The most obvious changes would include at least two more women on the council, and maybe even a person of color. Less obvious would be things like the number of Councilmembers living in apartments, not having children, not being married, or even people single with children, for example. It would be interesting to crunch all the numbers and see how things turn out, and even more interesting to see if it had an effect on policymaking.

Then there is the issue of youth. Young people have clearly been left out (and/or left themselves out) of the political process. The average age of a Washingtonian is 36-years-old, but out of 147 state legislators, only 16 are under 40. In our family friendly city, youth typically means kids… of the non-voting variety. When you bring up “young adults” everyone gets uncomfortable and starts cracking nervous jokes, a practice which itself ironically “gets old fast”. In our youth-obsessed culture, no one wants to admit that they are increasingly over-the-hill.

Fresh-faced former Councilmember Brad Stark

But isn’t youth just a state of mind? Just because you are “young on paper” doesn’t mean you are “young at heart”. Since there is an established negative voting trend for young candidates, might there be pressure for young politicians to “age up” in their behavior to avoid criticisms of being “inexperienced” or full of “youthful (read: dismissible) idealism”?

On the other hand, putting young people in office could represent more than idle identity politics. Studies show that young people are more tolerant, less homophobic, and tend to lean left overall.

Related Links:

• “Searching For Democracy: Young America - Reaching out to young adults.” A 2004 election blogging project from the Spokesman-Review.
• Example of running (almost solely) on the youth issue: Vote Mike Mercer
• “Parsing the Generational Divide for Democrats” A 2008 election report from NPR.

Tags:   Identity Crisis · Political Surprise · Social Observations · Videos · Young People9 Comments

Awhile back we explored some emerging directions in Spokane’s club scene. Last night, at Vintage Hill in Spokane’s SoDo District, we met an interesting character dubbed the “Commander-In-Flirt” of SpokaneFlirts.com.

As he described the services available through his agency, I was watched closely for any hint of reaction or understanding. After all, in such an all-American god-fearing city you can never be too careful about the leanings of your audience.

So here’s what we do: We go to clubs, bars, parties, events, and have fun! We network with limos, photographers, other models, promoters, bands, and more and bring the fun where ever we go. Think of us as “Coyote Ugly Gone Mobile”. We dance on bars, do sing along songs, host limbo competitions, trivia and interact.

It appears that the Flirts have a large presence on Model Mayhem, and are of a variety of backgrounds and professions. Looking on the bright side (no pun intended) this kind of party troupe might lend some flair to an otherwise stiff social atmosphere. If delivered poorly, however, such a service risks ending up beyond embarrassing. The Flirt’s next big gig will be at SpoCon, which is not to be confused with the Spokane Comicon. (A whole different universe of local sub-cultural glory.)

While checking out the Flirts, we stumbled across another surprising outgrowth of Spokane’s bar/club scene: the Buzzin Clubbin ning site.

BuzzinClubbin.com is a social network designed specifically for 21-39 year olds who enjoy the nightlife and go out one or more times per week. We constantly update our event list giving you all of Spokane’s latest nightlife events, drink specials, happy hours, music and more.

We combine an online community with real world bars, clubs, dj’s, musicians and party goers all to help you make the most of your night out on the town. Our site provides extensive coverage of Spokane’s nightlife and is accessible from most cell phones. We allow members to share pictures, music, videos, slide shows and links to other websites as well as exchange email, write blogs and post messages.

The Spovangelist is all about informed consumerism, so we applaud efforts to provide suggestions about where to go and what to do when roving around town after hours. Maybe we’re a little out of the loop, but we were surprised to find profiles for local bars we’ve never heard of. (Reader beware: you may be asked to register as a Buzzin Clubbin member to access site links.)

Also interesting is the Buzzin Clubbin FAQ page, that advertises 1500 visitors each month (even though there are only 178 members in the network) and profile management services. Yes, that’s right, for a mere $30/month you can hire out “Buzz” to manage your Buzzin Clubbin profile page, and for $50/month they will run your MySpace profile too! This includes responding to questions and comments, updating events and pictures, and forwarding important emails.

In conclusion there is no accounting for taste, only opportunism, hedonism, and trying to make an honest buck at the end of the day.

Tags:   Breaking Boundaries · Experimentation · Shock Value · Social Observations9 Comments