If you are reading this column, then you somehow survived the heat wave that baked Federal Way (and basically the rest of the country) into a m/lange of temperature-stressed people overwhelming the hardware stores for air conditioners, and cooler heads who just hung out where there was already air conditioning.

I did both, and even though I always vow never to "go without an air conditioner next year," I cannot justify the cost when, on only a couple of days a year, the heat becomes uncomfortable.

I endured it for a couple of days, then I took Mrs. Anthony to cool places.

The mall wasn't bad, but you can't look at shoes and tools all night.

Trader Joe's freezer case was a popular place to hang out, but after 20 minutes there, people began asking me where things were, like I worked there.

Eventually, we got a double serving of coolness at Marlene's Deli when we stopped for our weekly salad bar dinner.

One of Marlene's best girls, it turns out, is a jazz singer and she and her band performed, doing some tasty jazz standards while we enjoyed our meal. Coolness!

When Sarah Kay isn't helping someone to some delectable food item from the deli, she sings jazz and sings it well. With her fellow Cornish College schoolmates (Josh Rawlings, Nate Omdal and Cody Rahn) she belted out Cole Porter and Gershwin tunes with a voice that, surprisingly, belies her youth.

At least 50 other smart people cooled their heels to Sarah's stuff on Friday, and this made Marlene happy.

"She's good for business...she could be in a nightclub," Marlene told me, and then added proudly, "You know, she works for me."

Indeed, Sarah does work for Marlene and in between songs, she smartly pitched the deli's coffee and dessert case.

Whether the band will play again soon is unknown, but you can ask Sarah when you stop by for a Nanaimo Bar or a piece of blackberry pie.

Tomorrow night I will take Mrs. Anthony to the White River Amphitheater to see Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young. For the uninitiated, these four musicians were responsible for creating tons of music since the early sixties, some of it with a strong social conscience.

Politically charged songs like Ohio, Find the Cost of Freedom, and Chicago, written 36 years ago, have lost none of their appeal and I think they are just as applicable now.

During an interview with CNN last week, Neil Young said, "There's a conscience in the country, and I don't think it's being spoken. Everyone deserves a chance to be heard...we don't have to believe what our president believes to be patriotic."

Rock on Neil....Look for my recounting of the show next week.