Tao Lin

May 2, 2:40 PMSeattle Literary ExaminerDave Clapper

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I've never known what to make of Tao Lin. Much of his writing leaves me bemused. I'm never quite sure whether he's an intensely honest and introspective writer, or a totally pretentious stylist. Maybe a bit of both? A lot of people I respect really dig him, though. See his work at Hobart, Alice Blue, and Juked, for example. And The Stranger absolutely adores him. He's not local and I'm mostly ambivalent about his work. So why post about him?

In the latest Stranger, he has an article about Seattle that I, at times, adore. Particularly the section "Seattle Is Sarcastic About Sports," part of which reads:

The blue uniforms, in combination with being called the Mariners, made me feel strongly that they actually wanted to be playing Marco Polo in a swimming pool but were forced into professional baseball and so wore blue uniforms to "continue the dream" of "screwing around" in a swimming pool for five hours every day with no responsibilities.

Sounds a lot like my own opinnion of the Mariners before I moved here in 1990 (and at several times since). The whole article is full of stuff that'll make you nod and/or laugh. Give it a read: What I Can Tell You About Seattle Based on the People I've Met Who Are From There.