The world has its share of tabbouleh recipes. The bulgur and parsley salad from the Lebanese hill country has made the rounds, finding homes in many cultures, with countless regional variations. And I can improve all of them, as if by magic wand, thanks to a trick I learned from a farmer friend. Thousands of years of culinary evolution is no match for a farmer with a blender, and the creativity to put it to use.

The tabbouleh innovation comes from the heart of tomato season, when the…

If there was ever a doubt that the Wild Buffalo House of Music was back in action, a recent announcement proclaiming the downtown Bellingham venue’s perennially popular Lip Sync Battle would resume on Mon., Aug. 9 and continue every Monday through October erased lingering questions.

Hosted by Wild Buffalo co-owner Craig Jewell and the Magnificent Mariah, the longtime lip-syncing event puts locals in the spotlight when they sign up to perform three songs—two they picked beforehand, and…

Last weekend, in advance of the 60th annual Anacortes Arts Festival taking place Aug. 6-8, a number of volunteers helped load in panels and paint the Port Transit Shed Event Center walls white for the “Arts at the Port” exhibit. The smiles on their faces indicated they were happy to be back on the scene after last year’s in-person event was cancelled due to the pandemic.

“Who would have thought something so basic, like decorating an empty transit shed, would feel so good?” volunteer…

On a recent Saturday afternoon, the parking lot at the Bellingham Theatre Guild was buzzing with action. Wannabee thespians had gathered to audition for the inaugural Westlot Readers Theater Series, and even though they were doing so on hot tarmac, they were thrilled to be there. To find out more about the series, we caught up with director Sean Walbeck, who will debut the parking lot plays Sat., July 31 with Qui Nguyen’s oft-produced dramatic comedy, She Kills Monsters.

Cascadia…