May 2010

Thomas Jefferson needed two wins in a row to survive this past weekend's South Puget Sound League sub-district baseball tournament -- and got them.

The Raiders survived a 2-1 game against Graham-Kapowsin to open Friday, then downed Kentlake, 3-2, in the second game Saturday.

That advances TJ to the West Central District playoffs this coming Saturday, when the Raiders face Rogers in 2 p.m. action at Heritage Park in Puyallup. The park is right next to Rogers High School on Puyallup's South Hill.

Mitch McQueen won on the mound in both games, but it was Jeff Brigham who had 15 strikeouts and carried a no-hitter through the fourth inning against Graham-Kapowsin.

"I don't care, we got the win," said Brigham of not getting a win personally. "(He) McQueen pitched in extra innings, so he got the win."

"Just keep throwing strikes and get the W," said McQueen, who improved to 5-0 overall.

Both pitchers missed most of the year with tendonitis but are on line now. McQueen had trouble in his shoulder and Brigham had it in his elbow.

"We're just starting to peak," Brigham said. And I haven't seen Rogers play, so it (this coming Saturday's game) should be interesting."

Mountain to Sound Outfitters has been working on the development of a West Seattle Snowsports Council Meeting with the vision of providing West Seattle Youth with safe reliable access to our local ski areas. The idea is to create a non-profit organization with community members helping develop this organization. They are holding the first community meeting this Wednesday May 12th @ 6:00pm at the Mountain to Sound Outfitters Location at 3602 SW Alaska St to guage interest and define next steps.

Wednesday May 12th @ 6:00 PM

Mountain to Sound Outfitters
3602 SW Alaska St
Seattle, WA 98126
206-935-7669 (SNOW)

This is an organizational meeting to start a 501c3 for West Seattle Youth to access our local ski areas. We will need the support of community members interested in volunteering from every aspect from chaperone’s to secretary, treasurer, and a steering committee.

I recently had the misguided notion to read “no sex for me” stories to a room full of strangers at the Hugo House.

Fortunately for me, they were a receptive audience. Not only did they laugh and commiserate at the appropriate times, and not vice versa, but several of them, including the emcee, David Schmader, said, “Oh honey, it will so happen for you.”

And they’re right, it has happened for me. But, it was and continues to be a long and twisted road to my bed, and that still surprises me.

To recap briefly, there was the two-week fling that quickly refused to be my booty call followed by the Greek/Latino man who talked about sex for hours but refused to kiss me when I asked. For more details on these horrors, check out "Contemplating Roofies."

Then there was the witty, intelligent man who hugged me after each of our dates. When I finally asked, “Are we just friends?” he laughed and said no.
“Then why do you only hug me good bye and refuse to come over to my house?” I asked.

"Love Your Mother" was the theme for the 10th anniversary of Tukwila's Backyard Wildlife Festival, held this year on May 8.
Although it fell on Mother's Day weekend, this "mother" referred to Mother Earth. It also was scheduled to take place on International Migratory Bird Day.

The festival provided educational booths, exhibits and demonstrations regarding the care of the environment.
Tukwila, according to committee member Karla Slate, was the first in the state to become a "Wildlife Habitat Community" as determined by the National Wildlife Federation.

"Tukwila was also the fourth in the country to receive that honor," said Slate.
Slate said Tukwila is the perfect location for a festival such as this because of its many habitats.
"Many people know that the Green/Duwamish River runs through Tukwila, however, many people don't realize that part of the river in Tukwila is also home to dozens of species of wildlife."

Special to this year was the dedication of Codiga Park at 12535 50th Pl. S. along the Duwamish River.

Tickets are on sale now for the 2010 Highline Garden Tour, which has been expanded this year to include five private gardens as well as the Highline SeaTac Botanical Garden.
The popular event, which will take place on Saturday, June 12, is an annual fundraiser for the Highline Historical Society.
Garden Tour participants will enjoy outstanding gardens, artist displays, musical performances, two separate plant sales, Master Gardener advice and coupon specials throughout the day.
There also will be a screening of the Ken Slusher documentary about the piece-by-piece transfer of the lovely Seike Garden out of the path of Sea-Tac Airport expansion to its new home at the botanical gardens.
Advance tickets are $12 for parties of 4 or more, and $15 for individual tickets. Day of sale tickets will be $18. Tickets may be purchased at Burien Bark and Herr Backyard Garden Center or from the Society by telephone at 206-241-5786
The Society thanks business sponsors John L. Scott Real Estate agent Susan Plecko, Burien Bark, Herr Backyard Garden Center, The Bean, and Sal's Deli for their generous support of the Garden Tour.

Just another game, a bragging rights game, but not much more than that.

And Enumclaw won it after having watched the state's No. 1 ranked Mount Rainier Rams battle back from a 6-1 deficit after the second inning. The Hornets won it in the 10th inning, 8-7, taking the South Puget Sound League 3A/Seamount subdistrict crown at a neutral field -- Auburn-Mountainview. Saturday's game of first-place teams lasted three hours.

The Rams couldn't score when it counted, and the Hornets did.

"We stranded a lot of base runners," said head Rams coach Darren Rawie, whose team left 12 runners on at the end of innings, including two each the last four innings. Enumclaw stranded seven runners for the game and the Rams outhit the Hornets, 11-8.

But, hey, this was just one game, and the Rams have been isolated at the No. 1 spot in the state in 3A baseball almost all season long.

(Editor's Note: This is the fourth in a series of articles on 96-year-old Morey Skaret, who emigrated from the family homestead in Endiang, Canada to West Seattle in 1923. Having survived the hardships of the prairie-and the sorrow of leaving a brother behind-Morey would thrive and blossom as a vigorous transplant in his new land.)

"Three times the harvest failed and we went broke," recalls Morey Skaret, reflecting on his family's final years on their homestead farm. "We didn't have enough money to buy seed grain. So Dad just had to pick up and take his family somewhere else; they were foreclosing on us. We owed money for seed grain from the year before.

"We left in a lumber wagon, and we put our stove in there," Morey says. "We were going to a little town called Hanna. We knew the mounted policeman there. He kinda knew my dad, 'cause they were both Norwegians. He got a shack for us for seven dollars a month, and got my dad a job on the railroad greasing the wheels.

Evergreen swimming pool has reopened and that is great.

Now kids can stop sneaking into Lake Hicks, which is headquarters for swimmers itch in White Center where my kids grew up. That rash put little red blisters on the boys that came from waterfowl who love the place, and we had to rub them (the kids, not the ducks) with some pink stuff we got at the drug store.

There was no other swimming hole except Colman Pool at Lincoln Park and that was a real hike. The famed West Seattle icon Morey Skaret, who still lives only a few hundred feet from it, was it's first lifeguard.

So our five boys had to make do with a Saturday night rub in the tub. Sometimes they swam in Salmon Creek below our house, near Schick Shadel Hospital on Ambaum.

I grew up in Portland and we had a choice of Renne's Lake about a mile away or the Columbia slough, a sluggish side channel of the Columbia River, which had a lot of logs and a bunch of sewer outfalls serving the hog ranch and the slaughterhouse. Great fishing spot for carp and crappies.

Jantzen Beach, about three miles away, had a huge outside pool but only rich kids had the money to swim there. It cost ten cents.

Burien is getting busier since Southcenter's expansion. Who wants to go into that big over-crowded mess?

We need to keep Burien as the quaint hometown alternative to Southcenter.

Let the big retailers and theater complexes stay there. I believe that we are seeing business in Burien picking up BECAUSE of the growing Southcenter mess.

The economy is turning around and Burien has a unique opportunity for a very strong future -- to be the only "10-PLEX-FREE COMMUNITY" in south King County.

Kudos to Burien's great new one-of-a-kind restaurants and venues that are keeping the streets alive on weekends with people from Burien and neighboring communities. We want MORE. How about a new live theater stage, more music and art in the area?

If you want a 10-plex-movie screen, go to Federal Way, Southcenter, Kent, Renton or Seattle.

Keep Burien UNIQUE--don't blow it now, City Council!

Lori Wardian
Normandy Park

At the (Mathison Park) dedication April 13th someone confirmed that Burien has more affordable housing than any place else around.

My idea is two-fold:

1. Make Burien the "GO TO" place for thriftiness.

2. Partner with sister cities, any other town or city with some historical connection or any other town, which wants to be thrifty.

Also, the rich and middle class who want to help the poor could move here.

As Walter Cronkite pointed out when LBJ came out with "the War on Poverty," Jesus said, "The poor you have with you always."

Two ideas emerge here:

You will have a very steady supply of clientele.

You do well to help the poor.

Don Mathison
Lacey