Aerial alert: Blue Angels arrive in Seattle on Monday
For our fellow Blue Angels fans as well as those who appreciate advance notice of possible loud flybys (with Boeing Field relatively close to West Seattle, etc.) — we have word from Seafair that the Angels are flying in around 11:30 am tomorrow, after a weekend airshow in Twin Falls, Idaho. Their official practicing doesn’t start till Thursday but you may see one or two flying in the interim, for special media flights and so on; once again this year, there’s a local pilot on the team — Lt. Cmdr. Craig Olson, a native of Kirkland. (Also remember, I-90 will have closures Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday for the practices and airshows; dates and times are listed here.)
Bag fee vote tomorrow – looking for bag-buying suggestions tonight
Tomorrow afternoon at its 2 pm meeting, the City Council is expected to vote on the bag-fee and foam-ban proposal — you can read the full details here. If it’s approved as currently written, it’ll kick in the first of next year, and you’ll pay 20 cents for every nonreusable shopping bag you get at the store. So you may be in the market for reusable bags if you don’t have them already. No shortage of places to buy them – got one to recommend? (In addition to every supermarket imaginable, we know of at least two other places: WSB sponsor Click! Design That Fits sells Envirosax for $9.50; PB&J Textiles told us a few months back about bags they were selling for $4 at the time – haven’t checked lately if the price/availability has changed.)
“Stuff the Bus” final hour: 20,000 diapers and room for more!
We’re back in The Junction, where we revisited the WestSide Baby “Stuff the Bus” diaper drive for an update as it goes into its final hour – they were just about to pass 20,000 diapers (way to go, West Seattle!!!!), and there’s still room for more – even if you’ve been by once, maybe you have time to make another run? Look for this big yellow bus on 44th south of Alaska, alongside the West Seattle Farmers’ Market, where lots of friendly WestSide Baby volunteers are there to greet you and take your diaper donation till 2 pm:
Stil time to get a free car-seat check in the nearby Wells Fargo parking lot, too, courtesy of SafeKids-South King County. WestSide Baby is expecting to help local families in need with THREE-HUNDRED THOUSAND DIAPERS in all, before the year’s out – so even if you don’t see this till Monday (or later), check the WestSide Baby website to find out how you can help them help local families (with lots of other essentials too) any time of year.
2nd “Stuff the Bus” update
We’re heading back to get a look at how things are going in the second half of today’s “Stuff the Bus” diaper drive … but in the meantime, WestSide Baby‘s executive director Nancy Woodland called with an update: More than 16,000 diapers as of noon! STILL room for lots more. Get down to 44th just south of Alaska (next to the West Seattle Farmers’ Market) before 2 pm.
Happening now: Alki Art Fair, day 2 (with sunbreaks!)
It may look gray outside, but at the second day of the Alki Art Fair (stretching along the promenade from both sides of the Bathhouse), sunbreaks are happening and so is everything from live music (above, the Forget-Me-Nots, one of the acts playing this morning) to a silent auction (note the banner fluttering in the photo background at right) to kids’ activities like an art tent and a bouncy house. If you can’t quite shake the autumn-ish mood brought on by the clouds, we found at least one booth with handmade sweaters on sale:
Suzanne de la Torre (headquartered on lower Queen Anne) is selling her handmade creations – one of many artists whose wares you can admire, and if you are so moved, purchase. Other apparel for sale at the event includes Alki Art Fair T-shirts, past and present:
T-shirts and tank tops will run you $15 (look for the tent on the water side of the Bathhouse). The Alki Art Fair continues till 5 pm today.
1st “Stuff the Bus” progress report: Almost 10,000 diapers!
We’re in The Junction, where we just dropped by WestSide Baby‘s “Stuff the Bus” diaper drive to see how things were going after the first hour – they had just passed 9,500 diapers! But that’s just enough to cover the back of the bus (photo above) — LOTS of room for more – lots of “westside babies” (and toddlers) are counting on you! Any kind of disposable diapers will do – go buy a package or two (or more) and get ’em to the big yellow bus (with lots of happy volunteers swarming around it) at the West Seattle Farmers’ Market by 2 pm. And remember, just to the north, the Wells Fargo parking lot (enter from 44th northbound, sign shown below) is where you can get a free car-seat check during the diaper drive:
New in West Seattle? Need a map to 44th/Alaska? Here you go. And if you can’t quite get to the Farmers’ Market, there are five other dropoff spots, including Red Cup Espresso (hand ’em over at the drive-thru window!) on the west side of California just north of Oregon, and Eats Market Cafe in Westwood Village (full list here).
West Seattle wildlife watch: Almost baby-seal season
Thanks to Susan Grossman of Singing Pixel Photography for sharing that view of a watchful harbor seal. Reminds us that we need to check with the Seal Sitters to see how their roster’s shaping up for this season, since birthing season starts in August. If you see a baby seal on the beach, remember — leave it alone and keep your distance; its mom is probably just off looking for food, and human interference with the baby lessens the chance of a family reunion. We published a lot of great pix and video last year, but all from a safe distance, thanks to zoom.
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