May 2016

Unless you are a recent arrival from Mars, you have no doubt heard the expression, “What the dickens?”
It is used in common sentences such as:

“What the dickens are you kids doing with that aardvark?”

Or, “Coach Carroll, what the dickens were you thinking trying to pass instead of run in the closing moments of Super Bowl XLVIII?”

And, “Former Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels! What the dickens are you doing at this Trump rally?”
Dickens means pretty much the same thing as “devil.” As in, “What the dickens (devil) are you thinking by eating so many deviled (dickensed) eggs?”

It’s reasonable to suppose that “what the dickens” refers to the great English writer,
Charles Dickens. But in fact, it has nothing to do with him. Nor does the popular male clothing accessory, the dickey.

The phrase actually comes from another English writer named Shakespeare in a play called The Merry Wives of Windsor. It is just one of many household words that come from his plays and sonnets. In fact, ‘household words’ comes from Shakespeare.

True, that.

Road rage on California Ave.

At 5:30 p.m. on Tues., April 19, police received a call from a man who said someone had thrown a pair of pliers in his face.

The victim said he was driving north on the 3000 block of California Ave S.W. and then ended up behind a car that was moving slowly, as if looking for a parking spot. The victim pulled around the car and continued north, but the suspect sped up, pulling alongside the victim at a traffic light and throwing a Leatherman tool through the open passenger side window into the driver’s window of the victim’s car.

The victim was struck in his left ear. When he stepped out of his vehicle, the suspect drove off through a red light, heading north on California Ave. The victim followed to get the license plate number of the suspect’s vehicle. Then, he pulled over and called police.

The suspect turned around and pulled behind the victim, trying to intimidate him, but finally gave up and drove away.

Officers searched for vehicle but could not find it.

Burglary during vacation

By Amanda Knox

In my columns I walk a fine line between the public and the personal. I seek to strike the right balance between exploring universal thoughts and grounding those thoughts in the real circumstances of my life that inspire them. That’s how my brain works. Context is the diving board from which I launch into analytical thought.

At least, that’s the goal. Sometimes I struggle to fully develop the thought. Writing is hard! Sometimes I struggle to convey the necessary circumstances of the context. For instance, it can be intimidating to address wrongful convictions issues because so much of the fundamental material of that experience, legal and personal, needs explicit explaining. Other times, like with an inside joke, the backstory leading up to a thought is convoluted with layers of history that my audience would have to be “in on” to appreciate. Usually, though, the problem of context is measuring the appropriate weight of personal exposure for public consumption.

information from King County

People across the region continue to shift how they commute to avoid peak congestion during the 99 closure, and King County Water Taxi is seeing much higher ridership as a result. Boats to and from West Seattle carried more than 7,700 riders during the past three days, more than tripling typical ridership – and there’s still some capacity and parking as travelers consider their Monday morning commute options.

Weekend demand also was higher, with Sounders and Mariners fans driving up ridership. King County operates two new, larger 278-passenger boats – the MV Doc Maynard operates seven days a week to and from West Seattle; the MV Sally Fox operates weekdays to and from Vashon Island with five added round trip sailings during the 99 Closure via the Spirit of Kingston.

The water taxi gives riders a congestion-free choice across the water, essential during the 99 closure as local streets and highways face peak commute gridlock.

By Kathryn Kingen

Some day, if I am lucky enough to get marooned on a desert island, all I am going to wish for is a coconut tree. Gilligan didn't actually have to be rescued. He had all he needed; the Skipper, a movie star, a professor, but most importantly, palm trees with coconuts! Actually the tree alone would do. Think of it, you would have lovely shade, you could build a house with the wood, thatch your roof with the tree fronds, brush your teeth with the roots, drink the milk, eat the coconut meat, sleep on the palms, make utensils with the shell, moisturize with the oil and live happily ever after with this tree of life. Ah, it sounds divine especially now as we emerge blinky-eyed from the dark winter season.

By Kathryn Kingen

Some day, if I am lucky enough to get marooned on a desert island, all I am going to wish for is a coconut tree. Gilligan didn't actually have to be rescued. He had all he needed; the Skipper, a movie star, a professor, but most importantly, palm trees with coconuts! Actually the tree alone would do. Think of it, you would have lovely shade, you could build a house with the wood, thatch your roof with the tree fronds, brush your teeth with the roots, drink the milk, eat the coconut meat, sleep on the palms, make utensils with the shell, moisturize with the oil and live happily ever after with this tree of life. Ah, it sounds divine especially now as we emerge blinky-eyed from the dark winter season.

By Chef Jeremy McLachlan

I have been going crazy for coconuts for a long time. Fresh coconut is the way to go in every way, but removing that furry, rough exterior is not the easiest of tasks. Well, I have a wonderful alternative for you. Trader Joe's is selling shelled whole coconuts that are out of this world. The amazing elixir in the middle has more electrolytes than an average football player's sweat! As my co-blogger and dear friend Kathy Kingen says, "All I Need is a Coconut" in her "Good for You" blog, it's really that amazing if hard to crack, but so delish, fruit, vegetable, nut? I am going coco-nuts trying to figure that out.

By Chef Jeremy McLachlan

I have been going crazy for coconuts for a long time. Fresh coconut is the way to go in every way, but removing that furry, rough exterior is not the easiest of tasks. Well, I have a wonderful alternative for you. Trader Joe's is selling shelled whole coconuts that are out of this world. The amazing elixir in the middle has more electrolytes than an average football player's sweat! As my co-blogger and dear friend Kathy Kingen says, "All I Need is a Coconut" in her "Good for You" blog, it's really that amazing if hard to crack, but so delish, fruit, vegetable, nut? I am going coco-nuts trying to figure that out.

When Vera Johnson purchased the Village Green Perennial Nursery on 26th SW near White Center in 2003 she saw the business, first established in the 70’s by Teresa Romedo and Bob Berridge, as something she could transform and grow. The 1 3/4 acre piece of land was already something of a nature sanctuary and with a King County culvert running through it, had water for all the native plants.

Vera was encouraged when the business did in fact grow, bringing in over $100,000 a year. But her marriage hit the rocks in 2010 and left her with two children and the mortgage held by Bank of America. She had a 2nd mortgage on another house on the land too.