A high-profile visitor at Chief Sealth International High School today, on the last day of school before the three-day Veterans Day weekend: State Supreme Court Justice Steven González. In our short video clip, he introduces himself to Sealth 9th graders, whose visit was scheduled as part of their studies of free speech, according to teacher Luke Azinger – he arranged the visit along with fellow Language Arts teacher Heather Griffin:
Justice González was appointed to the Supreme Court this past January, and was unopposed on last week’s ballot after winning more than 50 percent of the vote in the August primary.
Some have asked how to help those hit hard by Superstorm Sandy on the East Coast. This is the first West Seattle-organized relief project we’ve heard of. Jen Boyer explains:
I love to knit and have been going to Seattle Yarn for their free Wednesday night knitting sessions. Last Wednesday a group of us decided to do something in response to the devastation of Sandy and then the snowstorms hitting in the aftermath
From now until Nov. 19, Seattle Yarn is accepting any hats, gloves or scarves folks want to make or buy and donate. They don’t have to be knitted. The store will give a $1-off Seattle Yarn certificate for each item donated (a pair of gloves counts as one item) as an incentive to encourage folks to donate.
In addition, the store will host a Knit for the Cause Knit-In on Sunday, Nov. 18, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. During that time, folks are welcome to come in and knit, crochet, or sew items for the donation. We’re working with a few local eateries to see if they’d be willing to partner and donate some food and drink for those working that day. Seattle Yarn owners are also welcoming West Seattle Fabric Company to partner with us, so we’ll be able to have folks creating in both the new Stitch & Sew Studio and Seattle Yarn that day.
On Monday, Nov. 19, we’ll be sending the box(es) of donated items to a contact of one of the store customers who has been involved in relief efforts on the East Coast.
Seattle Yarn is at 5633 California SW; Stitch & Sew is at 5910 California SW.
(October 28 photo by Nick Adams for WSB)
Going to the downtown parade the day after Thanksgiving? More local participants to cheer for! From the brand-new edition ofWestside Weekly, the online newsletter for West Seattle High School:
On Friday, November 23rd, come cheer on the WSHS Band as they march in the Macy’s Holiday Parade in downtown Seattle. The parade begins at 8:45 am. What a great way to start the holiday season!
That’s the latest high-profile gig for the newly resurgent band, which also led the costume parade at the first-ever West Seattle Junction Harvest Festival (photo above). P.S. If you’re going to be in the Macy’s parade, please let us know – editor@westseattleblog.com – so we can be on the lookout for even more West Seattleites!
The Google Street View car’s been here before – our most recent report was in July of last year – but we’ve never before had a sighting report from a park pathway! Betsy shared that photo taken this afternoon at the south end of the Lincoln Park waterfront. The list of counties where Google Street View is collecting new imagery does indeed include King.
Metro is out with a reminder of the additional RapidRide trips it’s adding next week, plus details of other changes and a summary of what it’s tweaked in the six weeks since the RR launch and other route restructuring. Here’s the news release:
Another boost in the number of evening RapidRide bus trips starts next week as King County Metro Transit continues to improve reliability and address growing ridership between downtown Seattle and West Seattle.
Two additional RapidRide bus trips will carry evening commuters starting Tuesday, Nov. 13, totaling six added evening trips since RapidRide launched Sept. 29. Metro added two evening trips on Oct. 8 and Nov. 5. Together, the added trips target full buses and gaps in bus service when buses are delayed between 4:15 and 6:45 p.m.
Metro’s news release continues with more details on changes taking effect next week: Read More
Less than two weeks till Thanksgiving, and the holiday season is shaping up nicely – we have added a sleighful of events to the WSB West Seattle Events Calendar already, and the Holiday Events page will debut within days. Today, the schedule is out for the always-festive West Seattle Junction Association-presented Hometown Holidays – you can see it here. The Junction Tree Lighting is set for December 1st; Santa photos are back December 2/9/16; mule-carriage rides on December 2/16; and something new – free gift wrap for Junction-bought gifts on December 15th and 22nd, featuring the West Seattle High School music program (performances too).
(Matt, Delia, and Eric – photo by WSB co-publisher Patrick Sand) By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
You could call Caffé Delia (WSB sponsor) our area’s first co-housed coffee shop.
Or, pop-up coffee shop, as its proprietors dubbed it.
It opened one year ago in the downtown White Center space that, by night, is Proletariat Pizza.
As with Proletariat, Caffé Delia’s proprietors are a married couple – Delia and Matt. And they say Proletariat’s Stefanie and Mike had the coffee-cohousing idea in the first place – stemming from a mutual-admiration society when Delia worked at Bird on a Wire Espresso and referred people to “the fun pizza place in White Center.”
We sat down with Delia and Matt to talk about their shop and its milestone anniversary, which will be marked with a party during Caffé Delia’s regular hours tomorrow (8 am-2 pm Saturday).
West Seattle’s newest public school has chosen its mascot, colors, and hoped-for name. The K-5 STEM PTA shares the news that principal Dr. Shannon McKinney made the announcement this morning: Their mascot is the owl; their colors, blue and green; and they will ask the district to approve the name West Seattle STEM Elementary. In the photo from the PTA website report, that’s Dr. McKinney at right with Heidi Baughman, the parent who designed the new logo she and the principal are holding.
This fall, we’ve already had multiple times to see and talk about Puget Sound sealife – orca visits, salmon runs, seal pups, even the Seacrest octopus controversy. There’s new information today about something that affects them all, and more, and us: Puget Sound pollution. One visualization is in “Diver Laura” James‘s photo above, pointing out cigarette butts strewn on the seafloor; she took the photo near the Fairmount Creek stormwater outfall off Harbor Avenue, in about 20 feet of water. Discarded cigarette butts are washed off sidewalks and streets when it rains, go into storm drains, and wind up here, leaching toxic chemicals into the Sound. Just one source of pollution, of course – one among, unfortunately, many. To help understand what’s happening in and to the Sound, the state has just launched a new website – described in this news release:
The Washington Department of Ecology (Ecology) has boiled down a 300-page report into a new, user-friendly website that explains what we currently know about toxic chemical pollution in the Puget Sound region.
The website links what’s known about toxic contamination in Puget Sound to ongoing efforts to keep the contaminants out of the nation’s second-largest estuary. The site draws attention to actions that individuals, businesses, community groups and federal, state, tribal and local governments can take to help reduce toxic threats to the sound.
Need your windows and/or gutters cleaned? Any pressure-washing needs? We’re welcoming a new WSB sponsor today, and here’s their message for you:
West Seattle Window Cleaner is proud to make West Seattle our home! We are a full-service window-cleaning, pressure-washing, and gutter-cleaning service based just off the West Seattle Bridge. After starting our original business on Mercer Island, we moved to West Seattle 2 years ago and we love to serve our local customers here in West Seattle.
This time of year we are keeping busy mostly with gutter cleaning and getting homes clean and ready to host guests at the holidays. We also can do limited holiday-lighting installation (you provide the lights, we provide the ladders and labor!) It’s also a great time to get your slippery walkways and stairs pressure washed.
We feature fair, up-front pricing and fast quotes. Just fill out the Quick Contact Form on our homepage westseattlewindowcleaner.com or give us a call at 206-453-3936. West Seattle Window Cleaner: Enjoy the View!
(Lincoln Park & Colman Pool – photo by Long Bach Nguyen; click image for larger view)
Welcome to Friday! A few things of note for today/tonight:
CITY COUNCIL BUDGET VOTES: If there’s anything you’re watching closely, keep an eye on the meeting that’s under way now (watch at seattlechannel.org). We spotted some items of interest on the agenda – including design money for improving the lower-bridge bike trail and construction/design money for the Delridge Neighborhood Greenway (they are on this budget sheet).
LAST DAY FOR COMMUNITY ART SHOWCASE: Have you seen the community-art show at Southwest Library yet? Today’s your last chance! The library at 35th and Henderson is open 10 am-6 pm today.
SPEAKING OF LIBRARIES – they’re closed Sunday for Veterans Day.
SPEAKING OF VETERANS DAY – USO BENEFIT TONIGHT:Merrill Gardens-Admiral Heights (WSB sponsor; 2326 California SW) is hosting a benefit for the USO tonight, 7-10 pm, with “heavy appetizers,” beer/wine, games, and more. Admission is a $10 minimum donation. Full details in our calendar listing.
‘LEND ME A TENOR,’ LAST CHANCE TO SEE IT! West Seattle High School‘s fall production will be performed one last time, 7:30 pm tonight at the WSHS Theater – details on the Westside Drama website.
LIVE MUSIC TONIGHT – 5 venues! The listings are all on the WSB West Seattle Events Calendar list for today’s date – click the “plus” sign on the right side of any calendar line to expand that listing, and then “read more” for even more info, as well as a map to the venue.
The West Seattle Art Walk really isn’t a one-night event – for most venues and artists, it’s part of a month-long exhibit. “A Feast for the Eyes: Food in Art” at ArtsWest – which includes some of longtime WSB contributing photojournalist Christopher Boffoli’s internationally enjoyed “Big Appetites” work – opened the day before Halloween, but the reception highlighted last night’s Art Walk festivities. That’s Christopher above; also part of “A Feast for the Eyes,” Kristen Reitz-Green:
Jere Smith‘s work is featured as well. Along with ArtsWest, WSB’s Katie Meyer made two other Junction stops last night – photos ahead (and a reminder about the big holiday-season Art Walk!) … Read More
(Live view from the only WS Bridge camera currently in operation; see other cameras on the WSB Traffic page) 6:35 AM: Nothing to report as the day gets going – except that, as forecast, it’s in the 30s right now, 35 degrees at Boeing Field (usually comparable to West Seattle temps) at 6 am.
7:32 AM: Just went out to see if that meant ice on the windshield – and yes, there’s a light coat of ice on ours, so you might need the scraper today.
9:49 AM: There’s been a snag on the eastbound bridge for a while, with a semi blocking the right lane at the 99 overpass – but the city says it’s cleared.
12:09 PM: A note from Washington State Ferries:
There will be a temporary capacity reduction on the Fauntleroy/Vashon/Southworth route starting after this evening’s commute and prior to the beginning of service tomorrow, Saturday, Nov. 10. The 90-car Sealth will replace the 124-car Issaquah for approximately one week while larger vessels are out of service for routine maintenance. The galley on the Sealth will be closed Friday, Nov. 9 and will re-open on Sat., Nov.10, at 7:00 a.m.
Here’s a different way to raise money while running/jogging – not a 5K, but an ongoing event. West Seattle High SchoolPE teacher Sylvia Hahn explains “Monday Runday”:
Every other Monday, students participate in a twenty-minute jog that serves quite a few purposes. It contributes to the recommended 60 minutes of activity per day for a person. It helps to build upon cardio respiratory endurance, which in turn can create healthy habits for the future and help prevent cardiovascular disease. Yet, in our classes, we have another purpose related to this 20-minute jog.
For each lap that each student runs, they have chosen to fund a non-profit entity within our West Seattle community that helps animals. I have chosen the non-profit Kitty Harbor as our recipient of the funds raised throughout this semester. For each lap I will donate ten (10) cents out of my pocket to Kitty Harbor.
So far, students have raised over $183. I am rounding that number to $200 and will be making our first donation this weekend, November 10th. My hope is that parents/guardians and other community members will be willing to donate, along with these hard working students, to Kitty Harbor. You can do so by visiting their website at www.kittyharborseattle.org. Thank you so much!
Next Monday, as part of the Feedback Lounge (WSB sponsor) party for the new Soundgarden album release, a guitar autographed by Soundgarden will be raffled – with ticket sales benefiting the West Seattle Hi-Yu Festival. It was explained at this week’s general Hi-Yu meeting that the guitar was donated by the brother of Hi-Yu’s new treasurer, Susan Stanley-Jones. Raffle tickets are only $5, available from Hi-Yu (contact info’s on their website at westseattlehiyu.com) or during the party Monday night at the Feedback. Also keep an eye out for Hi-Yu Junior Court members selling tickets in The Junction this weekend – times TBA.
More big news from Hi-Yu – they have chosen next year’s theme: Alki Deep – An Undersea Adventure. That was one of more than half a dozen theme suggestions at the meeting:
Now that a theme is set, float ideas are next – you’re invited to the December 3rd holiday open house; bring yours, and/or be there to vote. Speaking of the holidays, it’s benefit ornament time:
They have 60 to sell, at $20 each, for starters. P.S. November 30th is the deadline for Senior Court candidates to apply – scholarship money up for grabs! The application is here.
Less than two weeks till Thanksgiving, and the holiday season is shaping up nicely – we have added a sleighful of events to the 
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