January 2011

Eliza Palasz

Scholar of the Arts, Palasz has been recognized for her artistic achievement in theater and music. She received the Advancement in the Arts Award, won the state regional International Thespian Society in Musical Theater, has been recognized 4-times by the Seattle Young Artists Music Festival in flute, as well as a nomination for the 5th Avenue Award. Palasz is flute section co-leader in the Ballard Band, Vice President of the Thespian Society, dances tap and ballet, all while playing in the Seattle Youth Symphony and Pit Orchestra for the Village Theater. Not only an artist, Palasz excels in academics and serving her community. She is an AP scholar, member of the National Honor Society, a four-year camp counselor, a Link Crew leader, and a choir member for BHS. She also performs for Ballard Food Bank benefit concerts three times a year. Next year she plans on attending Northwestern University and hopes to double major in Theatre and Political Science.

Last night Eddie Vedder fans packed the Feedback Lounge in Morgan Junction for a release party of Pearl Jam's latest album, Live On Ten Legs, or LOTL, released 20 years after the grunge band's wildly successful debut studio album, Ten, and 12 years after its Live On Two Legs album. The release party was a joint effort between Feedback, Easy Street Records, and the Pearl Jam Fan Club, also called Ten Club, or 10C.

Rumors of an appearance by Vedder, who lives just a couple miles from Morgan Junction, were just that. He may be in Hawaii, some fans speculated. Many insiders at the event said they were bracing themselves for an upcoming surprise Pearl Jam concert at a venue in Midwest America. They said promoters are keeping it hush hush for now.

Some fans attending live within a block of the Feedback Lounge, while others came in from out of town, including Aaron and Shannon Acton, from Orange County, CA.

"We're visiting family and came up for this, too," said Aaron, a high school physical education teacher and football coach.

Pamela George got her dog Toby, on Craigslist. "There was a gentleman who wasn't able to care for him anymore (…) so I got him and he's been wonderful for me. Toby has been part of her household for the last six months and is now one year old. He's a mixed breed known as a "PomChi", a combination of Pomeranian and Chihuahua.

"I had never heard of that breed when I found him but since then I've heard of more Pomchi's in West Seattle," George said.

"He likes to chew," she said, " and he's made a fort or a camp underneath my bed, and he likes to collect things and take them under the bed. If we're missing anything we go look and there it is."

Toby has a lot of toys, mostly of the chewing variety, though on occasion he will chew whatever he gets his mouth on. George's granddaughter Amiyah Hogue had a baby doll and it came with a baby bottle. "He found it and chewed up all the nipples," George said laughing," so I had to promise to find her another baby bottle for her doll (…) I actually think he likes the people toys better than his own."

Toby will eat just about anything, but lives on dry food and loves bones for treats with a "little bit of people food now and then."

On Saturday, Jan 22nd, the JV and Varsity girls basketball teams will face Issaquah at home at 1:30 and 4:30 p.m. Afterwards, the BHS music department are hosting their 52nd annual Spaghetti Dinner fundraiser in the Commons. The event runs from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. and features performances by all the school's choral and instrumental groups.
There will also be an after-dinner bake sale and a silent auction.
Tickets are available at the door for $10 for adults and $5 for kids under 12.

A few months ago, I had an “aha” moment. I was riding the bus when I noticed the friends I was with who were dating had dark circles under their eyes, were maniacally checking their phone, and otherwise showing signs of anxiety, while the fourth friend, who was not dating, sat serenely as if she was on a cruise to Mexico. In that moment, I decided I too wanted to be on a pleasure cruise for one, so I took a break from dating.

Self-containment has proven to be more delightful than I ever could have imagined. I’ve become clear on my next memoir and sent it to agents, my writing classes are full, I sleep well, I am present and focused with my kids and friends, and I rarely, if ever, check my phone. I had a few friends who helped me with my physical needs, but never expected more from me, and life was quite pleasant.

But then one friend found a girlfriend who was not interested in sharing and the other friend moved across town and so I was left to my own devices. I am perfectly able and happy to scratch my own itch, but after doing so for several weeks, my wrist became so sore I had to start wearing a brace. And when that didn’t help, I had to see my massage therapist.

At the annual Seattle KingCounty REALTORS® (SKCR) event on Friday, Jan 14th, Ballardite Mary Schile was awarded the REALTORS® Community Service Award.

Schile, from RE/MAX Mutual Realty, Inc. in Ballard, received the award for her lengthy and generous commitment to several not-for-profit organizations and causes. She is in her 15th year with the Talking Book and Braille Library, in her sixth year with Junior League of Seattle, and she's an active fundraiser for The Marsha Rivkin Center for Ovarian Cancer Research, Salmon Bay Eagles and Pasado’s Safe Haven.

Additionally, she is the recently elected vice president of the Ballard Historical Society and an inductee into the 2010 RE/MAX Hall of Fame. Also in 2010, she earned her fourth “Five-Star Agent Customer Service Award” from Seattle Magazine. The previous year, this University of Washington alumna was honored as the RE/MAX “Agent of the Year.”

January 25
Seattle Art Museum Southwest Guild--Guests are welcome to the monthly meeting and program at the Normandy Park Cove Community Club, 1500 S.W. Shorebrook Dr. Coffee served at 10 a.m. with guest speaker, Barbara Brotherton discussing the real story of the wolf forbears of the Quileute Nation. For info 206-246-3484.

January 26
Highline Forum--Members of the Highline Forum will meet at the Airport Conference Center in the Amsterdam Conference Room from 2:30 to 4:30 PM. A Part 150 Noise Study Discussion is part of the agenda. The public is invited to observe with the opportunity to ask questions and make comments near the end of the meeting. The Highline Forum includes the southwest King County communities of Des Moines, Burien, Normandy Park, SeaTac, Tukwila and Federal Way and the Highline School District and Port of Seattle. If you are interested in receiving a copy of the January 26th agenda, contact Marco Milanese at the Port of Seattle milanese.m@portseattle.org

January 28

Ha! There's nothing quite as enjoyable as someone who is poking fun at themselves. After all, who doesn't love those moments on TV's Saturday Night Live when the various guest hosts spoof themselves or their on-screen image?

Although they are not (yet!) famous enough to host SNL, the cast and crew of Breeders Theater demonstrate in their latest show that they're pretty good at self-spoofing humor.

Don't let the term "Casting Call" fool you. It is not an announcement from BT about their latest round of auditions for their company. It is the title of the aforementioned self-spoofing show. It's about theatre. It's about actors. It's about....well, a theatre company like Breeders Theater.

Okay, it's NOT exactly like Breeders Theater. Or...maybe it is?

The "Northwest Theater Festival" is a professional troupe of actors headed by the up and coming director Hart (Andrew Smith). In his repertory company is a hard-working actor/stage manager Stephen (Stephen Scheide), the leading ladies Edith (Teresa Widner) and Gwen (Laura Smith), the ingénue Tamryn (Erika Zabelle) and the character actor Thomas (Eric Hartley).

Sound Transit has kicked off an enhanced parking enforcement program at its Tukwila Sounder commuter train and light-rail park-and-ride lots in an effort to ensure these popular commuter areas are properly used.

The move comes after concerns expressed by Sounder commuter rail and ST Express bus riders that parking is overcrowded as a result of vehicles being parked overnight in lots, as well as other infractions.

The Tukwila Sounder station is located at 2100 Longacres Dr. S.W. The light-rail station is near Tukwila International Boulevard and South 154th Street. The address is 15426 35th Ave. S.

Sound Transit is hoping to open ahead of schedule another light-rail station at South 200th Street in SeaTac, in part, to relieve parking pressure on the Tukwila station.

Parking guidelines will be emphasized for vehicles parked:

• Over 24 hours
• In emergency lanes, "no parking" and loading zones
• In ADA-designated spaces, where a vehicle is not marked by a state-issued disabled parking placard or license plate
• In more than one parking space
• In a manner blocking other vehicles and/or pedestrian pathways

By Reid Hale

(Editor's Note: Reid Hale served as editor of the Highline Times for 18 years during the 1950s-1970s.)

Those who now call Burien home, probably do not know that when Al Sneed arrived in 1951 to take charge of the Highline Times, Burien was a very different place.

That was 60 years ago and Burien was a quiet spot, vaguely located a few miles east of Three Tree Point. It had not yet begun to grow.

Al came from a newspaper job (ad salesman) in a real town...Renton. John Muller (a founder of Hiline Savings and Loan) owned Burien's local weekly and needed someone to step in. Burien was beginning to grow. Al arrived and moved into a house on Lake Burien. He stayed on here for the next 25 years.

In the next few years, he built the newspaper, as Burien shook off its stump farm roots and began its emergence as one of our post-war suburban miracles (See: Renton, Kent, Bellevue, Kirkland, Redmond, Federal Way, Edmonds, Lynnwood). He struck a deal with John Muller and Muller sold the Highline Times to the newly-minted publisher, Al Sneed.

The 1950s roared past and so did Burien.