January 2012

The contractor working for the Seattle Department of Transportation to paint the Ballard Bridge now expects to end the northbound lane closure by the end of the week. The full use of both lanes will greatly help the flow of traffic along this corridor. Frequent bridge openings, which allow marine traffic to pass through, coupled with the lane closure have caused some traffic back-ups near the structure.

“When there are two or three bridge openings in one hour, the flow of traffic does not fully recover between openings, causing much longer backups,” explained SDOT Project Manager Ron Scharf. “The completion of this important maintenance work on the northbound side should resolve the current traffic issues.”

The lane closure is required for the contractor’s access to bring in materials and equipment. “While at times it may look like no one is working on the bridge,” Scharf explains, “the crews are in fact working, but they are out of sight, painting under the bridge.”

Stop ‘N Shop
4504 California Ave. SW
Jan. 13th to Jan. 19th 25% off last marked price on Bookshelves & Etageres.

Grief Support Group Begins
Our Lady of Guadalupe Pastoral Center
7000 35th Ave. S.W. (just north of the Parish Center under construction)
Begins Monday, Jan. 16, 6:30-8:30 p.m. and will meet weekly for 6-8 weeks. Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish is offering this Grief Support Group to serve anyone in the community who has suffered the loss of a loved one. Led by John Baumann, a pastoral counselor and staff member. Questions or to RSVP in advance call John at 935-0358 ext. 110.

Discovery Shop
4535 California Ave. S.W.
206 937 7169

Update 3 for 2:40 p.m.
Kyle Moore with the Seattle Fire Department has released the official SFD account of today's fire.

According to Moore, the fire was first reported around 10:30 a.m. and fire crews arrived to find dark smoke billowing from a kitchen window. They were able to put it out within a few minutes.

The fire was ruled accidental, caused by a hot plate that was left on and ignited consumables on the kitchen counter, Moore said. Total estimated damages are $70,000.

Crews entered the home and found it clear of humans, but found a cat having seizures from smoke inhalation. That cat, identified by homeowner Teri Ensley as Jared, was taken from the home and treated with oxygen using a mask specially designed for animals, Moore said.

Moore said 14 cats in total were inside the home and only one (Pouncer, who you can read about in Update 2) did not survive.

Update 2 for 1 p.m.
The house fire on the 3800 block of 46th Ave S.W. was subdued quickly by a massive Seattle Fire response and no humans were home when it started, but at least one cat lost its life due to smoke inhalation.

Seattle Police Department reports that on the morning of January 8, the Arson Bomb Squad (ABS) responded to a suspicious object on the 8200 Block of 8th Avenue NW.

ABS detectives used a ABS robot to conduct a prelimary examination of the object and then remove it.

The block was temporarily shut down while the invesigation was on going.

Further examination of the object revealed that the object was non-explosive.

By Kurt Howard
Bishop Blanchet Braves boys entered the Chief Sealth Seahawks gym for a basketball game Saturday night. Coming into the game Chief Sealth’s Metro Sound conference record was a respectable 5-1, 9-2 overall, while Bishop Blanchet’s Mountain Conference record was 0-8 conference and 1-11 overall.

From the beginning tip-off Chief Sealth used a full court press to put defensive pressure on Bishop Blanchet. Bishop Blanchet did not handle it very well as multiple turnovers were made, some resulting in Chief Sealth fast break baskets. Chief Sealth Coach Colin Slingsby said, “We scout each team and try to see them twice. We base what we’re going to run defensively primarily on what we see as well as just looking at their personnel with their strengths and weaknesses.”

CLICK THE PHOTO ABOVE TO SEE MORE

Born May 31, 1946 in Seattle, WA, John passed away January 1, 2012 at the age of 65.

He attended public schools in the Ballard/Greenwood area. 

In December 1963 he was a passenger in an auto that struck a telephone pole just off 15th Northwest in Ballard, with resulting eye and brain damage that was thought would be fatal that evening.

However, his youth and stubbornness prevailed and after a three month period he began to regain consciousness and faculties. Even though his body and appearance were damaged, his mind was as sharp as ever, right to the end.

A member of the Ballard Eagles, John enjoyed socializing with the many friends he made over the years. He enjoyed classic cars, the Mariners and meeting with his friends at the Ballard Smoke Shop, his home away from home, walking there practically every day to interact and discuss current items of interest. He will be missed by all that had the pleasure of knowing him.

At John’s request, no services will be held. Please see his memorial site at www.Washelli.com.

On these cold, dark days of winter, when you finally make it home through the rain and traffic, you want some good comfort food.
 
Meatloaf can be one of those great comfort meals. You can make it ahead, pop it in the crock pot before you leave in the morning, or throw it together and slip it in the oven when you get home. Best of all, you can make enough for meatloaf sandwiches the next day, and probably get at least one more meal out of it.
 
Most meatloaf recipes call for lots of salty ingredients, which aren’t good for your kidneys. But using tomato paste instead of ketchup is a great way to get rid of lots of sodium. The oatmeal adds some great fiber too.
 
Cut a few potatoes in half, wrap them in foil, and throw then in the oven with your meatloaf. They will both be done at the same time. Just add a quick microwaved veggie, such as frozen carrots or mixed vegetables, and you have a comforting meal to get you through the dark days of winter!

Your Grandma’s Meatloaf
1 1/2 Pounds Ground Beef
1 Egg, beaten
1 Chopped Onion or 2 Tbsp dried minced onion
1 cup oatmeal
2 Tablespoons Brown Sugar
1/3 cup tomato paste

Marjorie Young has possessed psychic abilities since she was only child. She would sense things about the people she interacted with and foresee events, often negative ones like death or illness.

"It came to a surprise to me that not everyone had these insights," Young said.

Young initially stifled her abilities but eventually accepted and learned to control them. She learned to only receive messages when tuning into a person instead of hearing messages for everyone surrounding her.

"I can't explain it. I get the information. It just comes through me," Young said explaining that she often sees certain words, images, or people. "Even if it doesn't make sense to me, it always means something for the client."

Young acknowledges that many people are skeptical of her abilities. Even her own brother thinks she's "bananas," Young said.

"There are a lot of horrible frauds out there," she said.

But her own intuition has never been wrong, she said.

"I know I have saved some people's lives via healings and readings," said Young.

By Kurt Howard

The Chief Sealth Seahawks girls’ basketball team played host to the Bishop Blanchet Braves in a rare Saturday afternoon game. Going into the game Chief Sealth’s Metro Sound conference record was 3-2, 6-3 overall while Bishop Blanchet’s Mountain Conference record was 3-4 conference, 5-6 overall.

Only one day earlier Chief Sealth was blown out by Cleveland in a lopsided score of 14-57. It is hard to forget a game like that and move on, especially when it happened less than 24 hours earlier. Coach Katie Jo Maris added, “Last year we had the same problem bouncing back with the new Friday, Saturday games”.

CLICK THE PHOTO ABOVE TO SEE MORE

From the start of the game Bishop Blanchet initiated a full court press, causing Chief Sealth havoc which led to many turnovers. Chief Sealth Coach Katie Jo Maris said, “We don’t have a set press break for man because I have a lot of confidence in my guards, but tonight my guards just didn’t seem to have confidence in themselves”. At half time just 11 points separated the two teams, 15-26.

SLIDESHOW: CLICK ON PHOTO FOR MORE.

The Annual Pink Pub Crawl took place Saturday night. Dave Blank hosted over 20 revelers outfitted in various stages of pink. The event, which is just for kicks and not affiliated with a charity, began at A Terrible Beauty Irish Pub & Restaurant in the Alaska Junction at 8:00 p.m. and concluded at both the Yen Wor Village Restaurant and Admiral Pub, on California Ave. north of the Admiral Junction.

Blank is best known in the hood for his late night karaoke crooning at Yen Wor, and promised to favor the rest of the pink posse, and others held captive in the audience until closing time, with some songs including 'Raise Your Glass' by Pink.

There seems to be some confusion as to how long the crawl has been going, depending on who you ask, and when. According to Blank, this is the 25th Annual Pink Pub Crawl. However, a few of his colleagues claimed this was the third, while still others claimed it to be the sixth. Last year we reported it as the fifth annual crawl based on our interviews then.

The line-up:

Alaska Junction
8:00 A Terrible Beauty
8:30 Rocksport
9:00 Talaricos

Admiral Junction