August 2009

On Monday, July 13, the city council unanimously adopted an ordinance designed to curb the abuse of disabled parking placards in Seattle.

The ordinance makes the use or display of a disabled placard or license plate that is stolen, expired, issued to a person who is now deceased, or is otherwise invalid in or upon a vehicle parked in a public right-of-way or on other publicly owned or controlled property a parking infraction with a penalty of $250.

There have been numerous reported abuses of disabled parking placards, but existing law provided for a penalty of only $38, and the structure of the law made it difficult to enforce. The new law takes care of these problems.

This law will have three positive effects:

• It will reduce the frustration of drivers who are looking for parking places and find many of them occupied by cars with disabled placards, many of which are expired or invalid.

• It will increase revenues to the city by requiring drivers who have been evading the law by using invalid disabled stickers to pay for parking, and by providing appropriate fines for those who abuse disabled parking stickers.

A small entourage of environmental experts and media ascended the 860-foot long Matson tanker M/V Manoa at the Port of Seattle’s Terminal 18 on Harbor Island for a recent tour before it left for Oakland, then on to Honolulu.

During a recent Alki Beach volleyball game this ball was hit high just before it got spiked.

More than 500 people were in attendance at The Kenney Retirement Home annual barbecue today.

It is the twelfth year of the event. Donations were collected for the West Seattle Food Bank.

In honor of Deborah McMichael, a dedicated certified nursing assistant of 30 years at local retirement community Horizon House, a benefit fund will be hosted in her honor after she lost a leg due to critical medical problems and diabetes.

“Two years ago when I had my first amputation, they put a benefit on for me then to help with my prosthetic costs, and they’re kind of doing the same thing again,” McMichael said.

In late May 2007, doctors recommended McMichael’s right leg be amputated, shortly after she recovered and returned back to work full time with one prosthetic leg.

However, on March 10 of this year her remaining leg was amputated below the knee, co-worker Daniel Myo said.

“Because of her recent crisis, she needed all the emotional support which friends, co-workers, and others can give her,” he said.

Due to her recent surgeries, McMichael was in need of financial help because the costs of hospitalization, doctors and rehabilitation was beyond her available resources, Myo added.

By State Sen. Karen Keiser (D-Kent), Chair of Senate Health and Long-Term Care Committee, and State Rep. Eileen Cody (D-West Seattle), Chair of House Health Care and Wellness Committee

Now that Congress is in August recess, those who want to maintain the health care status quo have gone into overdrive to derail reform efforts before a single proposal can be voted on by the full House and Senate.

The tactics are old and tired ─ scare and confuse the public with distortions and half-truths so nothing gets done.

You’re bound to hear the line that the Obama administration is moving too fast on health reform. The truth is the issue has gone unresolved since the 1900s when Teddy Roosevelt’s Progressive Party included it as part of its platform.

It’s easy to say “just slow down” when you have health coverage and your body hasn’t betrayed you. But, if you’re one of the estimated 46 million uninsured Americans just one illness away from financial ruin, reform can’t come soon enough.

The American Academy of Hospitality Sciences has awarded Salty’s Seafood Grills with the International Star Diamond Award.

As evidence of their service quality, Salty's included a letter from a recent guest in a press release.

"On a recent trip to Seattle, my friend, my daughter and I stopped at Salty's for dinner," according to the letter. "I'd been there before and had been delighted with the food and friendly service. However, when we checked the menu, we saw that there was very little that my daughter (a vegetarian) would be able to eat. We talked to the hostess and she assured us that my daughter's needs would be accommodated. She then took us to the table and spoke to the server. The server assured us as well, that they would be able to make something special for her. A few moments later, the Operations Manager came to our table to discuss with my daughter the type of meal she had in mind and how best to accommodate her needs. Everyone was so kind and helpful and they treated us like visiting dignitaries."

This Saturday, four area wading pools will be offering toys and activities from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. as part of Seattle Parks and Recreation's Summer Splashtacular.

Wading pools at Delridge Community Center and Playfield at 4458 Delridge Way S.W., Hiawatha Community Center and Playfield at 2700 California Ave. S.W., Lincoln Park at 8011 Fauntleroy Way S.W. and South Park Community Center and Playground at 738 S. Sullivan St.
are participating in the event.

Ten other city wading pools are participating as well.

Summer Splashtacular is intended to highlight drowning prevention and safe swimming practices, according to a city press release.

As part of the day's events, free public swim will be offered from 1:30 p.m. to 3 p.m. at Rainier Beach Pool and Meadowbrook Pool, free diving instruction will be given at Madison Beach, and brightly colored, floating noodles will be available at Madrona Beach, Matthews Beach, Pritchard Beach and West Green Lake Beach.

Summer Splashtacular is co-sponsored by Seattle Children’s Hospital, Washington State Drowning Prevention Network, Associated Recreation Council and seattlepools.org.

The Admirial Theater will be hosting its last big show of the summer this Friday night.

Manooghi Hi, a band that specializes in "Bombay-Rock" will open for a screening of the award-winning drama-comedy "Rock On."

"If Ghandi met Madonna for tea and had afternoon schnapps with Led Zeppelin, that would be Manooghi Hi," according to an Admiral Theater press release.

"Rock On" is the story of four boyswho put together the greatest band their country had ever seen, but never quite made it. Ten years pass and fate conspires to bring them together again and set them on a journey back to where they left off: a soul-searching pilgrimage into their past. The film features a series of live concerts that take place in Pune, Mumbai, New Delhi, Bengaluru and Kolkata.

Manooghi Hi hit the stage at 8 p.m., and "Rock On" start at 9 p.m.

The film is rated PG, and the event is open to all ages.

In 2002, Megan Eymann and Juanita Holmes were hand-picked by Norwegian-born Ballardite Sissel Peterson for her band when she eyed their violin-playing talent during a Norwegian Ladies Chorus of Seattle get-together.

“She found out we both played the violin and invited us over to play with her," said Holmes. "And, we’ve been playing with her ever since."

This resulted in the creation of Tre Norske (Three Norwegians).

Peterson has been a member of the Norwegian Ladies Chorus, where she met Holmes and fellow Ballardite Eymann, for 25 years, said Holmes.

“Both of us have been rusty for not playing in awhile, and by playing with Sissel every week we’ve gotten more confident,” Holmes said. “We both are now playing in an orchestra together, and it’s really brought music back in our lives.”

The ladies meet every Monday evening from 7:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. for a "jam session" followed by tea, cookies and a chat. The three women have learned a lot from each other over the years.

“I enjoy being in a trio because we sort of share and discuss things,” Eymann said. “It’s a partnership and is a fun thing to be a part of.”