May 2011

Dad didn't have to wake us at 4:30. We hardly slept that night in April, 1950. It was Opening Day of lowland lakes trout fishing.

We struggled into flannel shirts, tennis shoes and jackets and waited near the oil furnace while Dad packed the car with fishing gear and his idea of the classic fisherman's lunch: peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and an orange in paper sack. We were going to Lake Fenwick.

Lake Fenwick had a mystical feeling to us. There was no I-5 freeway then, no Southcenter, no industrial sprawl in the valley. The lake was a lovely 18-acre gem two miles southwest of Kent, nestled in tall trees and hidden from the road.

We lived near the airport in McMicken Heights, just east of the airport. The drive to Fenwick was probably less than 15 minutes but it took on the character of a great adventure when Dad and his three sons set out to stalk the wily rainbow trout.

It was still dark when we parked in the dirt lot on the north end of the lake. A shack near the water's edge was buzzing with activity as fishermen rented rowboats while others with their own boats pushed off to their favorite spots on the lake.

(SLIDESHOW: Click on the photo to see many images tackled by Kurt Howard)

Omaha Beef quarterback James McNear veers to his right and cuts toward the end zone, looking for an opening to a two-point conversion that would tie his team with the Seattle Timberwolves at 52-52 with only 23 seconds to play.

The Timberwolves would have none of that, however, as they quickly filled the hole and brought McNear down, preserving a 52-50 victory.

Such high-scoring action is common throughout the Indoor Football League, which features a 50-yard field and with only eight players at a time for each team, among other changes from traditional football such as celebrations after scores allowed.

Among those enjoying the view from the winning side at Friday's game was Andre Piper-Jordan, a Federal Way High School graduate who got to the IFL by way of Everett Community College -- plus three years of baseball in the Oakland A's minor league system.

"I gave the baseball up," said Piper-Jordan. "I probably should have played football anyway. But you got to try it out. Everybody takes different paths."

5:30 pm UPDATE from the rally in the pouring rain:

Swaran Kumar lives in High Point, three blocks from 35th and Juneau.

"I'm here today because of my kids who use this road every day going to school, to the store," she said. "I'm here for my kids' safety. The cars are driving too fast. It is really hard for a pedestrian to cross here, especially at night. It is very dangerous."

Asha Sheikhismail held handmade signs that read 35MPH and works at the Neighborhood House in High Point.

"I'm here for the safety of the community," she said. "Cars are going too fast. I want police to do something so the cars can slow down. They can put a camera here. Send more police to patrol. Even thought it is 35 (mph) no one is following the rule."

Jim Curtin of Seattle Department of Transportation was present to answer questions.

Photographer Kurt Howard caught these boys baseball scenes when Auburn High School and Mt. Rainier met on April 26th, 2011. Auburn won, 4-1.

SLIDESHOW: CLICK ON THE PHOTO TO PLAY SLIDESHOW.

King County is hunting for the state’s top invasive and noxious weed targets, and wants to help County property owners find and control these rogue invaders this spring before it’s too late.
The County’s Noxious Weed Program is offering a free class on invasive and noxious weeds June 7, from 6:30-8:30 p.m., at the Kent Regional Library, and has scheduled a series of workshops devoted to controlling invasive knotweed – a tough invader that wreaks havoc wherever it establishes a beachhead along a stream or river. Details on all the classes are available at www.kingcounty.gov/weeds.

The County’s “least wanted” list includes plants such as garlic mustard, a Class A Noxious Weed, according to the Washington State Noxious Weed Board, and one of 48 state-listed noxious weeds that the King County Noxious Weed Program is working actively with landowners to control. Noxious weeds are non-native plants introduced to Washington that cause damage to the natural or economic resources of the state.

The Sneakery, with a location already in Ballard, has opened in the West Seattle Junction at 4736 California Ave. s.w., the former site of Liberty Bell printing.

Owner Andrea Berthold was still stocking shelves and applying the store's rubber stamp to bags on Monday after officially opening the doors on Saturday.

The original location in Ballard has been there "almost five years," Berthold said. Her background prior to opening the Sneakery includes a lot of retail experience (with a stint at Easy Street Records Queen Anne location), but she grew up in the midwest, where her mother was a bookkeeper for a shop.

Normandy Park City Manager Doug Shulze has announced that Sunday afternoon former mayor George Hadley passed away at his home in Normandy Park.
Plans are being made for a memorial service to be held at The Cove in Normandy Park. Details regarding the memorial service will be forwarded as soon as they are finalized, according to Shulze.
On March 8, Mr. Hadley announced his resignation from the council to undergo treatment for cancer.
Mr. Hadley was diagnosed in January with Glioblastoma Multiforme, the most common and aggressive form of brain cancer.
“We refer to him as 'Green George,'” Shulze said. He said the nickname came from a council retreat they had in 2007 where each member took a personality trait test. Personality traits were assigned different colors.
Shulze said Mr. Hadley was the only one on the council who was green, which describes his personality as analytical, detail oriented and needing all of the information before making a decision.
“He was the one on the council who really rolled up his sleeves and got down to the details,” Shulze said. “He added a perspective to the council that was different from all of the others.”

Video description:
A parody of "The Show Goes On," by Lupe Fiasco, performed by teachers and staff at Denny International Middle School, in Seattle, WA.

From Denny International Middle School Principal Jeff Clark:

We are pleased to announce that the new Denny International Middle School motivational video is now completed and posted on You Tube.

Denny International Middle School staff and volunteers made this video as a way to continue to inspire our students to achieve greatness academically. We have the best students in the city—it is fun to connect with them in this way. A special thank you to Gary Lai, Will Braden, Chanda E. Oatis, Artise Burton, Kristina Bellamy-McClain, Erin Jolley, Herman Garcia, Roxana Amaral, and Theila, Roberto, Trish, Andy, and Natalie from City year.

Go Dolphins!

Photographer Kurt Howard captured these images of a track meet on April 28th.

SLIDESHOW: CLICK ON THE PHOTO TO PLAY SLIDESHOW.

The Elliott Bay Brewery and Pub at 4720 California Ave. s.w. is getting a facelift in a restoration plan designed to bring the front of the building back to what it once was.

Todd Carden was out on a lift on Monday, helping to remove some of the building's wooden facade. They plan to take the top section of the building's "face" back to the windows that are still there, to bring more light into the interior. A new sign will follow.

"We're going to remodel the storefront eventually", said contractor, Mark Silver, "but before that we did that we thought we'd get back to the old splendor which is an old brick building with a bank of eight windows. So we plan to scrape the old paint off of them."