December 2011

Discovery Shop
4535 California Ave. S.W.
206 9377169
We'd like to thank the community for making 2011 another successful year for the Discovery Shop in raising money for the American Cancer Society.  With your help, we can continue our quest to find a cure for cancer.  We wish you and your family a very Happy New Year and look forward to seeing you next year.  Starting January 2nd, we offer double stamps on your Discovery Shop purchase card every Monday from 10 a.m. to noon.  All items with blue tags are 50% off January 2nd through Saturday, January 21st and all women's wear 50% off through Saturday, January 7th.  The shop closes at 1 p.m. December 31st and is closed New Year's Day.  The shop is open until 8:30 on Thursdays through December.  Regular hours for the American Cancer Society shop are Sundays 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and all other days 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

West Seattle Polar Bear Club
At Alki Beach
In front of Duke’s & Christo’s Restaurants

Approaching holiday columns – or really holiday themed anything – is always a challenge for me. Everything that can/has/should be said is already out there. No alien is going to beam some brand new, never-before-seen-on-earth thought into my head. Tack onto that my safety net of cynicism being just a tad inappropriate for this time of year and I'm left up the creek without a paddle. So I wondered, everything else aside, if there was one thing about the holidays that I could say to everyone, what would it be? And after several ineffectual drafts, I finally realized that I want to tell everyone to relax.

“You’re too young for that,” was something that I always hated to hear when I was growing up. Since I was six years younger than my next sibling I was the tagalong. One time my sister promised me she would take me to Deep Lake to swim if I would allow my long and somewhat scraggly hair to be trimmed. As I was sitting in the high chair with the old table cloth around my neck and wiggling about as my mother cut my hair my sister announced, “I was only kidding.” and she dashed out the door to her date’s car. I was so furious after my sister and her fellow drove off that I sneaked out of the house and headed for the lake all by myself. It was a good twenty miles to get there but I was so angry that I didn’t think about that as I ran as fast as I could, soon finding myself alongside the highway that led to the lake.

My big brother who had come home after his job ended during the depression took pity on me and got in his car to go look for me. He had evidently heard my sister tease me and leave the house without me. I was still walking a fast pace when he drove alongside me and called, “Get in. Let’s go swimming.” I will never forget my brother’s kindness.

A year after announcing the closure of Carnegie's French restaurant on the ground floor of Ballard's beloved landmark, the Old Carnegie Library, owner Karoline Morrison revealed that she has found a new tenant.

After meeting with numerous interested tenants, it's Bradley Howe of the popular Kangaroo & Kiwi Pub on Aurora Avenue who signed the lease for the 3000 sq ft groundfloor space, wine cellar, and outdoor patio.

"We have been looking for the right person for a year and I think this is going to really spruce up Market Street," she said "It's something completely different from what we've had in here before and we're all very excited."

Update
After making its world broadcast premiere on Monday, Jan. 2, "The Day My Parents Became Cool" is now available for viewing at PBS.org for free.

The short film was shot in Burien and Normandy Park in 2009.

Please click here for a link to the film.

Watch closely for a quick cameo appearance by the Highline Times.

Original post
“The Day My Parents Became Cool,” which features former Highline Public Schools Superintendent John Welch as a punked-out rocker, will make its world broadcast premiere on Monday, Jan. 2, at 10 p.m. on KCTS-Channel 9.

The short movie was made in 2009 around Burien and Normandy Park. Around 150 Highline and Federal Way studnets participated in the movie on screen and behind the scenes.

Welch appeared with a leather jacket and spiked hair. Welch left the Highline district in August to become superintendent of the Puget Sound Educational Service District..

Press release:

Burien residents can get some relief from the high cost of prescription medications through a new program offered through the city of Burien and National League of Cities (NLC).
The program provides free discount cards that offer savings off the retail price of prescription medications that aren’t covered by health insurance plans.
While discounts on each prescription may vary, cardholders can save as much as 20 percent off the pharmacy’s regular retail prices for prescription drugs.

The NLC Prescription Discount Card can be used by all residents of Burien and has no restrictions based on a resident’s age, income level, or existing health coverage. The card can be used at all major pharmacies in and around Burien. The discount program goes into effect Jan. 6.

“Given the current economic climate, where many people need to watch what they spend, we are happy to partner with the National League of Cities to make this prescription discount card available to our residents,” said Burien Mayor Joan McGilton.

Master Sargent Ladd Conrad

Born February 19, 1942 in Seattle, WA ~ passed away September 11, 2011 in Mt. Vernon, WA. after a long illness.
A Ballard resident until he joined the Marines at age 17. Served in Vietnam and retired from the Marines at age 40. Ladd worked 15 years at Liquid Carbonic on the east coast.
After retiring he enjoyed golf and target shooting with his pastor and family. Ladd’s pet macaw, Ruby, was donated to a bird sanctuary in Carnation.
Survived by children Tim (Elizabeth), Tammi (Alex), Teresa and Rebecca, 13 grandchildren, a great-granddaughter, 3 brothers and 8 sisters.
Ladd chose cremation by Neptune in Everett.

Pearl S. (Rautio) Nelson: 1913-2011

Born in Miami, Arizona, Pearl passed away December 6th in Ballard, WA.

It seems fitting that I spent the final days of the year poring over the archives of the Ballard News-Tribune, with particular attention to the years 1949 and 1967. It was last December when Mrs. Bertha Davis passed her thirty-five years of work with the Ballard Bell to me and the Ballard Historical Society. A year later the bell rings daily, Bertha’s bell ornament hangs on my tree but there are questions about the bell’s history that Bertha is no longer here to answer.

Meanwhile the bell remains a focal point on Ballard Avenue; the backdrop for more photographs daily than the inflatable Santa in front of Romanza. Besides, the Ballard Bell isn’t just for holidays – it’s for keeps. One year after starting the project to “Bring the Ring Back to Ballard” it still keeps me busy.

For example, there are discrepancies about when the bell was removed from Ballard’s City Hall. Did it ever really fall in the street after an earthquake? How did it land at the site of Firlands Sanitarium, which was closed by the State in 1967? Was the bell really silenced because someone rang it too long after the saloons closed? Is the shooting story true?

Seattle Police reports that on December 24th at approximately 2:44 p.m. a vehicle/pedestrian collision occurred near NW 90th Street and 8th Ave NW.

Preliminary investigation indicates that a 55-year-old male driver was traveling west on NW 90th Street approaching 8th Ave NW in a maroon Honda Accord. The driver turned southbound onto 8th Avenue NW and struck a 66-year-old female pedestrian who was crossing 8th Ave NW.

The pedestrian was treated at the scene by SFD medics and transported to Harborview Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries.

Officers evaluated the driver of the Honda for signs of being under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs. The driver (suspect) displayed signs of impairment and was processed for DUI.

The suspect was placed under arrest and during a search incident to his arrest officers found a quantity of suspected narcotics on him. He was subsequently booked into the King County Jail.

Traffic Collision Investigation Squad detectives responded to the scene and continue to actively investigate.

After washing a lot of cars earlier this years, the Ballard boys basketball team was able to travel to San Diego this week for the Surf N’ Slam basketball tournament.

In their first game, the Beavers faced University City and lost.

The Beavers started off in the lead but by halftime, the Cali team was ahead 25 to 19. The Beavers struggled a bit in the third quarter but tried to make a comeback in the last quarter, outscoring University City 19 to 16. But the last quarter rally wasn't enough and the Beavers lost 47 to 54.

Leading the Beavers in scoring was Johnny Verduin with 20 points and 7 rebounds, followed by Domisi Thrash with 12 points and 4 rebounds.

The team plays again today.