June 2013

If you're looking for a change of pace from the Ballard or Fremont Farmers Market (well, how could you get sick of them?), the Phinney Farmers Market is now back on as of last Friday.

The Phinney Market is open every Friday through October 4 from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. It is located at the lower parking lot at the Phinney Neighborhood Center, at 67th and Phinney Ave N. Free parking is available in the lot next to the farmers market.

According to their web page, it "features a beautiful mix of produce from both Puget Sound and Eastern Washington, all seasonally ripe: berries, tree fruits, heirloom tomatoes, all kinds of greens and lettuces, summer squashes, root vegetables, pole beans, purple cauliflower and dozens of other veggies, as well as a good selection of farmstead cheeses, locally produced meats and seafood, honey, preserves, and fresh cut flower bouquets. Ready-to-eat foods also featured."

Steve Shay strolled over to take some photos of the scene last Friday. You can see his photos either by clicking the main picture above or the thumbnails below. Good weather should be on its way tomorrow, so why not check it out?

By Katy Wilkens, MS, RD

One of the least-used fresh herbs is bay. Several years ago I planted a bay tree in my garden, and I have been rewarded with more fresh bay leaves than anyone could use.

Every December I prune the tree back. (Bay trees can get really big; I keep mine trimmed topiary-style at about 10 feet.) I make holiday wreaths from the cuttings for family and friends. I tie in some dried garlic, dried red chili peppers and several boughs of rosemary (another herb that can grow to dramatic proportions if left on its own). I pass wreaths out to everyone who stops by, along with a page of recipes on ways to use fresh bay leaves in cooking.

Bay is probably most well-known as an ingredient in soups and stews. Tie the leaves into a small cloth bag or use a metal tea ball to add them to dishes that will simmer a long time. Count how many leaves you put in, and be sure you remove them all. The wide, flat leaves can be swallowed accidentally and cause choking.

Nikki Turpen got Tucker the family dog, a yellow lab, from a breeder in Granite Falls a little over 8 years ago prior to marrying Mark.

Their sons Peyton, Riley and Logan, collectively under the age of 6 all get along very well with Tucker.

While he's normally quite a good guard dog, protects the boys and fearless in those situations, "He's afraid of stairs, especially if you can see through them," Nikki said,"He's got a stair phobia."

When they brought their son Riley home from the hospital, Tucker took one look at him and gave him a giant dog lick.

They feed him Costco dry dog food and he loves pig ears as treats. He doesn't like beer but does love ice cream from McDonalds.

Tucker enjoys his toys, and generally favors those that squeak. But he really loves tennis balls, going a little dog crazy at the sound of the pop when a new can of them is opened.

The Turpen family had a unusual opportunity though to get him featured in a commercial for Bissell specifically the BISSELL® SpotClean Complete™ Pet. The commercial was filmed at their home in West Seattle over the course of about four days, and Tucker is the star of the show.

For nine years, Jodi Baker would get up as early as 4am to get to work at Coffee to a Tea with Sugar/Sugar Rush Baking Company (CTS-SRBC), a business she owned in the West Seattle Junction at 4541 California Ave SW. On Sunday, June 9 she brought it to a close. But not because was forced by lack of business. It was all part of her plan from the beginning.

"I had a ten year plan to sell the business and it just happened a little faster than I thought it was going to. Ten years is a long time to be 24/7 in one space, one area. I had a great run." She simply believes it was time to let go. "As I let go I can feel the layers lifting getting lighter and lighter. It's a great feeling."

Chief Sealth International High School’s auditorium was filled with the acoustics of composing greats, from Schumann and Shubert of the 1800s to local composer Robert Duisberg, as the West Seattle Community Orchestras performed their final “Spring into Summer” concert of the season and said goodbye to the program’s co-founder and longtime conductor Dr. Toni Reineke.

After the Symphony Orchestra finished their concert to appreciative applause, the party moved down the hall for refreshments, appetizers and a “Thank You Toni” cake for Reineke, who announced her retirement from conducting during WCSO’s 10th Anniversary Concert Celebration in May. A surprise performance from a violin trio performed “Movie Favorites” as a tribute to Reineke.

Asked how she felt on her final night as a WSCO conductor, Reineke said, “Good, this orchestra, oh my gosh …”

By Jennifer D. Munro

I know not much about Scandihoovia, although my great-grandmother was a full-blooded Norwegian. It’s no coincidence that this makes me at least 12.5 percent Norweirdish, since I also consider 12.5 percent to be an acceptable alcohol percentage in many beverages.

I also know not much about boats, although Great-Grandma Neilson sailed from Norway to the Sandwich Islands in the early 1880s to work the cane fields with her parents and six siblings; I doubt she was given much choice in the matter. She married the carpenter on a Kauai sugar plantation but apparently never cottoned to the work or climate because she dumped her hubbie and four kids to sail away with the captain of the four-masted Falls of Clyde.

Dean McColgan has entered the race for Seattle School Board representing District IV. He'll be running against Suzanne Dale Estey, an economic development consultant and Sue Peters, a writer and education activist.

District IV includes schools located in the Queen Anne, Magnolia and Ballard neighborhoods. “I’m running because I believe we owe our children the best educational opportunities possible and I would bring experience, passion and commitment to the role of School Board Director”, McColgan said

Dean served as Federal Way’s Mayor and City Council Member for eight years and feels the experience as an elected representative would benefit the parents and students who attend schools in District IV. Dean is currently the Director of Development for the Museum of Flight. He lives with his wife Linda who has worked for Boeing for the last 33 years and has two sons David and Christopher. David is a high school teacher in Federal Way and Christopher is an account executive with Living Social. Dean is a strong advocate for volunteerism and has spent the last 25 years as a youth baseball and soccer coach.

The planned seven-story mixed use building with one and two bedroom apartments and an L.A. Fitness Center at street level got a serious boost on June 12 with the arrival and installation of a 135 foot crane. The crane, from Ness Cranes, is a "luffing jib tower crane."

Chinn Construction of Redmond, which previously handled the job of building the Capco Plaza and QFC expects the work to take two years to complete.

The crane will be installed today and if certified by the state will begin construction on Friday, James Casal, Superintendent of Construction said.

Until recently, the "Hole" site at 3922 S.W. Alaska St. had sat dormant since the original developer abandoned the project in 2008.

See our coverage from a year ago.

Ballard District Council takes place tonight (Wednesday, June 12) at the Ballard Branch Public Library, from 7 p.m. to 8:40 p.m. Depending on how our reporter feels (he's had a bit of a head cold) he might make an appearance.

Agenda

7:00 -- Introductions & Short Announcements - please hold announcements to not more than one min.

7:15 -- Briefing – Plan to develop approximately 1.5 acres of property by St Luke’s Episcopal Church located in downtown Ballard at 5700 22nd Ave NW, RC Laird (Vicar) & Darel Grouthaus – Project Manager

7:25 -- Update – Ballard to Downtown Transit Enhancement Project, Karen Waterman – Sound Transit & Michael James – Seattle DOT

7:45 -- 2013 NPSF (Neighborhood Park Street Fund)

Just as Apple products prove irresistible to many consumers, they have a similar draw for would-be robbers by easily fetching hundreds of dollars on the black market. As Seattle Police Lt. Daniel Whalen discussed with the West Seattle Crime Prevention Council in April of this year, robberies on West Seattle soil are predominantly targeting those exhibiting an Apple device, be it an iPhone, iPod or iPad.

Good news on that front emerged at Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference on Monday, June 10, when the company announced a “kill switch” option will be part of their next operating system update coming out this fall to all mobile devices.