Entertainment

A Spokane resident originally from Brazil, Silvia Lazo is well-known for bringing traditional Brazilian music to town.

With our country at war, a slew of boiling-point issues being debated and an over-the-top push for voter registration, the presidential election is fueling a boom of first-time voters. While the war in Iraq is sure to be on everyone's minds when they step into the voting booth on Nov. 2, there are plenty of other things to consider before marking the ballot.

Anyone who watched Los Angeles television in the 1970s remembers George Putnam. Putnam became a media mini-giant when he migrated to L.A. in 1951. Yet, as happens to most legends before their time, he eventually became a parody of himself.

KIRKLAND, Wash. – After seeing the first "Matrix" movie, did you want to be Neo, just a little bit? Did you want to be the one that broke the bonds of the earth and leapt from building to building, or stopped bullets with a touch, or whacked the bad guys with some mighty kung fu? Even after the movies lost some of their luster during the sequels, the little-kid, comic-book-super-

The personal computer can help out in the kitchen, even if you don't keep your PC on the countertop. Cooking enthusiasts employ personal computers for any number of kitchen-related tasks, from sharing recipes to planning weekly menus. As specialized cooking and recipe software proliferates, cooks have newfangled ways to organize the gastronomic advice and information they accumulate.

As our tweed pumps walk us deeper into this fall's fashion season, a handful of new magazines are angling to be more than trendy what-to-wear guides. Shop Etc., from Hearst Magazines, launched in August to help career women in their 30s keep up with the latest in clothing, beauty and home decor in a Lucky-meets-Harper's Bazaar way.

Depending on whom you talk to, Che Guevara is either the worst scourge that has visited mankind, a hero of the people or – and this is far more likely – merely an icon gracing tourist T-shirts. The Argentina-born revolu-

Q: I'm a 25-year-old single parent. I have my own job, car and house. I've been dating a guy for five months. The problem is my feelings are getting very strong for him. He says he's not ready for a relationship, but he does like me. I don't know what "I like you" means. I'm not sure if I should wait it out to see if he will ever be ready to make a commitment – or should I move on before my feelings get stronger? I can accept the fact that he is not ready for a serious relationship right now, but how will I know if he ever will be with me? Steve: First, a translation. When a man says, "I like you," he means "I want to sleep with you without making a commitment." As for whether he'll ever be able to commit to you, that's hard to say. Five months isn't a very long time. On the other hand, how long does it take to fall in love? I'd tell him that you're considering seeing other men and see how he reacts.

American films are unique. That isn't necessarily a compliment.

Worried that health problems would weaken their candidates politically, campaign advisers used to opt for cover-ups over candor. Think FDR's polio, JFK's bad back and Reagan's Alzheimer's disease. But today's voters don't seem troubled when folks with admittedly serious medical issues run for high office. Last fall, Spokane voters elected Jim West mayor months after he was diagnosed with colon cancer and had his gall bladder, several lymph nodes and nearly two feet of his colon removed. Since then, West has endured two surgeries to combat liver cancer. But in the meantime, he revamped the city's budgeting process, and I haven't heard anyone say he's been too sick to lead.

Let's see, how do I put this delicately … Oh, yeah, "Team America: World Police," the new film by "South Park" creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone, may just be the most outrageous mainstream movie ever released in America.

There I was sitting on my couch, considering changing the channel to the QVC network, to purchase a nifty new hairstyling product or perhaps a device that could cook my Thanksgiving "Turduckin," when all of the sudden my worlds collided and QVC showed up on "The Apprentice" (Thursdays, NBC). What a nice little change from the usual evening of men-versus-women challenges. The ladies were selling a cleansing product that, in all probability, couldn't clean the slime out of my bathroom, and Maria, the team's public speaker, did a less than stellar job selling the product on-screen. My guess is she's never actually cleaned a bathroom and therefore had no experience to turn to during her demonstration.

October is National Pizza Month. How much do you know about the fifth basic food? 1. Though Gennaro Lombardi opened the first U.S. pizzeria in 1895 in New York City, pizza did not start to gain mass popularity until what time period?

What it is: Veronica Mars is a new prime-time drama on UPN. Yes, UPN. It airs every Tuesday. What it's all about: Life has turned upside down for former in-crowd it-girl Veronica Mars. She's lost her best friend (murdered), her boyfriend (dumped her) and her mother (skipped town). Then her father loses his sheriff's job amid a swirl of scandal, and Veronica finds herself shunned by her so-called friends and the subject of vicious gossip. She's gone from prom queen to outcast in a matter of months.

Local guitarist and singer/ songwriter Aaron Richner recorded his latest project with several musicians he's come to know over the years as he's played around town. By the time he was finished with his new seven-song EP earlier this year, he had formed a new band.

"Bush is a liar." "Kerry is a flip-flopper."