March 2010

Gardening & dividing plants? Have plants you never put in the ground? Know someone that has extra plants to give away?
Furry Faces Foundation will gladly accept them for their 10th Annual Plant Sale Season.

Plants can be dropped off at Hotwire Online Coffeehouse @ 4410 California or in the driveway of 3809 46th Ave SW. You can also email them to arrange to pick them up.

Plant Sales are in May & June, with proceeds supporting two community programs: “It’s Hip, To Be Snipped’ and ‘Oliver’s Fund’.

Contact Info: furryfaces@hotmail.com;
www.furryfaces.org; 932-1652

Muralist/Artist Glenn Case is working on a complete visual makeover of the front of Mountain 2 Sound Outfitters store at 3602 S.W. Alaska Street.
"I'm going to use a character of mine, kind of an Abominable Snowman (Snosquatch?) in various poses, across the front of the building using different kinds of sports gear," Case said.

The new signage and mural should be complete by April 7th.

Mountain 2 Sound Outfitters recently launched an effort to get West Seattle youth involved in winter sports by starting an organization called West Seattle Snow Sports Council. You can learn more about the organization through their Facebook page. They held a sidewalk sale raising over $500 to build a web site, hold meetings, arrange logistics and to facilitate summer team building (kayak touring) for the new organization.

On a sunny March 31, Gary from Spokane decided to treat himself to a new experience – a shoeshine from Willie Shine.

Gary said he was having a nice time in Ballard and saw Willie Shine set up on the corner of Market Street and 22nd Avenue Northwest. He said he had never had his shoes shined by someone else, and today was the day.

Willie Shine said he plans on setting up his shoe shining station as long as there are shoes to shine.

He said there are no jobs out there and he's trying to stay out of trouble. Shining shoes allows him to help society instead of being a burden on it, he said.

Ballard Big Picture is a new column of scenes from around the neighborhood. If you would like to submit a photo for use on this site and in the Ballard News-Tribune, please send it to Michael Harthorne at michaelh@robinsonnews.com. Be sure to include your name and information about your photo.

A sophomore at Highline's Health Sciences and Human Services High School (HS3) will read from her first novel and sign copies of her book at an event April 1 from 2:30 to 3:30 p.m. on the Evergreen campus in North Highline.

Manoush Casteñada-Vizcarra wrote "The Way of the Owls" when she was 14. She recently self-published the book and is currently working on a new novel.

Set in her parents' native Mexico, "The Way of the Owls" tells the story of a young woman determined to overcome oppression.

"The Ways of the Owls deals with profound issues of gender oppression and personal freedom that draws the reader into the lives of the young Mexican girl Maximiana and those around her," says John Griffith, University of Washington Associate Professor of English.

Manoush was inspired to write the book while living in Mexico for a year when she was ten years old.

Her parents had purchased a 17th century hacienda and were renovating it into a rural public library. Friends of her grandparents, who had grown up in the area, frequently visited and told Manoush stories of the people and past events of the region. Manoush began recording these in her diary.

Photographer Kurt Howard captured these images of the Decatur Gators' 5-0 victory over Bethel on March 29. CLICK ON THE PHOTO TO PLAY SLIDESHOW.

Thomas Jefferson's Raiders brought out the big guns in the second half and pummeled the Kent-Meridian Royals in a 6-0 victory Tuesday.

TJ scored only one of its goals in the first half before exploding for the other five after halftime.

"For the kids, this is good for them," said Raider head coach Dave Hanson as he left Federal Way Memorial Field with his rain-soaked and wind-swept players. "We've been struggling scoring."

Hanson's hope is that the success continues for this team that stands at 3-3 in South Puget Sound League North Division action.

"We've got a tremendous midfield, and maybe this puts us on a run now," he said.

The first goal against the Royals was long in coming, with Casey Kim doing the honors from point blank range with 9:57 left in the first half.

The second half started with two goals with 36 minutes remaining.

Jim Oganga struck for the first by drilling it into the net from up close and Isidro Prado-Huerta followed with his first of two individual goals.

Austin Egerton scored to make it 4-0 at 30:41 to play by slipping the ball past the goalie, then Prado-Huerta's second goal followed at 19:15 while sliding past the goalie himself.

When Jeanne “Magic” Black-Ferguson found a stash of pot in her son’s room 30 years ago, she did what most parents would do: She got angry. She yelled. She flushed it down the toilet.

But then, Black-Ferguson, a nurse, did some research.

“That’s what got me off the sofa,” said Black-Ferguson, 70. “I understand the problem, and I understand the fear.”

She is now the executive director of Grammas for Ganja, which hosted a public forum last night for Seattleites interested in the plant with a bad reputation.

Panelists State Sen. Jeanne Kohl-Welles, University of Washington researcher Sunil Aggarwal and naturopath Michelle Sexton shared their insight into the plant and took questions from a crowd curious about everything from treating diabetes with marijuana to cannabinoid receptors in the brain.

Black-Ferguson emphasized the point was to make people aware of all the uses of the cannabis plant, including recreation, medicine and hemp.

She and others at the forum expressed frustration that even talking about cannabis is taboo.

“I’m sick and tired of walking on eggshells because I’m even speaking out,” Black-Ferguson said.

On March 28, Diana Lind and her husband were motoring their sailboat toward the Ballard Locks when they saw a plume shoot out of the water.

Lind said they slowed down to watch as what she believes was a gray whale did a loop around the area for approximately 20 minutes. She said she thinks there were two whales swimming side by side.

Andrea Takash is the spokesperson for the Army Corps of Engineers, which operates the Locks. She said they don't have any mention of whales in their log books from over the weekend.

Gray whales do occasionally swim near the Locks, though it is rare, Takash said.

The Army Corps of Engineers only knows of one instance where a gray whale made it into the Locks, she said.

Video by Diana Lind.

Dear Council Members,

Your maneuver to stick the newest annexed area with a NIMBY project on the same day we officially become annexed to Burien was an amazing April Fool’s Day joke. Unfortunately, It isn’t a joke, is it? Instead, a questionable business will probably be sited in the midst of a residential neighborhood within a half-mile of three schools and a library patronized by young people. We don't need an adult entertainment business here.

I am really disappointed it was voted on and passed with no warning or input from the neighbors. A clever maneuver comes across as a sneaky move. I’m sorry I cannot take back my vote to join you.

Sincerely,
Barbara Vannier

On March 30th at approximately 11:30 p.m. officers responded to a forced-entry burglary of a bank in the 2700 block of 1st Avenue South. Preliminary investigation indicates that the suspect(s) entered the bank through a smashed out window.

Money was stolen and the suspect(s) remain at large. The bank was not open for business at the time of the burglary. There is no suspect(s) description available at this time.

During an area search officers located some money near the southbound ramp to I-5 from the West Seattle Bridge. The ramp was briefly shut down while officers recovered the money.

It is unknown at this time if the money is related to the bank burglary. Detectives responded to the burglary scene and continue to actively investigate.