September 2007

Ideas With Attitude - Song, dance on Alaska getaway

By Georgie Bright Kunkel

Here I was in my doctor's office, the first time with the aid of a walker. I was feeling sorry for myself as I had planned a week's vacation on a cruise ship to Alaska and wondered if I would have to use my cancellation insurance and then I heard my doctor say, "Georgie, you might as well pack your pain medication and go. You and your friend can request wheelchair boarding with no waiting in long lines."

Two weeks later my friend and I were taking part in the lifeboat drill.

My mother-in-law is fond of saying that if she can teach her kids one thing, it is how to think for themselves. Her philosophy always spoke to me. But as I continue along this crazy parenting road, I am finally figuring out what the one thing is for me.

If I can teach my kids one thing, it is how to bounce back.

Really, what skill is going to matter more in life? How many of us reach high and grab the first thing we really want? After all, didn't Thomas Edison say, when asked about inventing the light bulb, "I have not failed 1,000 times.

Thank you for your article exposing former Washingtonian Tom Stewart's efforts to sell his $125 million Vashon Island ranch.

Ostensibly, Stewart's decision to move to Arizona the company he owns and of which he is CEO - Services Group of America - was based on his distaste for Washington State's estate tax.

Stewart's legal counsel is likely skilled in circumventing tax law; as such, basing his company's move on the estate tax was a ruse - his decision was made for rational reasons.

Stewart's 1998 violation of campaign laws - of which he was convicted - undersco

As fire chief of North Highline Fire District, I want to thank all the citizens of the fire district for your vote of confidence with your overwhelming "yes" vote on our Proposition 1, which was on the Aug. 21 ballot.

I was grateful for Dow Constantine's explanation of why night, midday and weekend runs on Alki Avenue were eliminated. I was also interested to learn of his successes. Good job - he cares.

Understandable the big funding is being spent on the water taxi, the Vashon ferry, ramps, overpasses and the (light rail) corridor. I envy these passengers who are being services. They can drive themselves or take a bus or ride the water taxi. Commuters have a choice. Those on the Alki run may not be to drive, have no direct bus and find it hazardous to balance on a slippery water-tossed pier.

Boy, that was the best editorial page in a long time (August 22).

Loved the cartoon (parents need to sit on those kids). Our parents would have really put the stick to our end. If they would make the parents go to school for a week with the kids, the parents would see how they act.

The schools should have a dress code like we had.

The Op-Ed on the viaduct (was) wonderful. Not that's a real eye opener. I loved it.

And the rent is so high and the houses our kids can't afford. I could not afford to rent a house.

Under the United States Constitution, everyone who is accused of a crime is entitled to legal representation.

Government bears the costs of defending the accused who are too poor to pay for a lawyer. This practice is a vital part of ensuring equal justice under the law for Americans regardless of their income. Seattle appears to be failing in this effort and unfortunately the Mayor is not recognizing that in his administration of public defense services in Seattle Municipal Court. One third of public defenders in Muni Court have too many clients-more than 380 per year.

For one skateboarding advocate here, creating a system of skate parks in West Seattle isn't just about building places to do aerials and flip tricks.

So far it's just a blueprint with no funding, but the citywide skate park plan is gaining momentum in West Seattle, fueled by passionate skaters like West Seattle resident Matt Johnston.

Johnston, who served on the skate park advisory task force that helped develop the plan last year with Seattle Parks and Recreation, is also determined to change some minds along the way.

The Cambodian Cultural Museum in White Center may be opening in a new and improved locale in downtown Seattle.

The museum is temporarily closed due to damage from flooding that occurred last January. The museum will reopen in a new location by next year.

Museum founder Dara Duong said the Cambodian Cultural Museum is in the early stages of working with the Wing Luke Asian Museum in downtown Seattle.

It was a big payday for the ArtsWest Playhouse and Gallery recently when executive director, Alan Harrison, accepted a $6,500 check from the West Seattle Garden Tour at a reception.

Incoming Garden Tour president, Clay Swidler, presented the gift, 50 percent of the net proceeds raised by the 13th annual "Art of Gardening" event held July 22.

The tour featured a variety of spectacular gardens adorning eight West Seattle residences. The garden tour guidebook reads like a 5-star restaurant menu.