(refresh and/or scroll to the bottom for frequent updates as we report Night Out ’08 in West Seattle from the road!)
More than 30 stops in three-plus hours, can we do it? We’re going to try! Just before 6 pm, we left WSB headquarters in Upper Fauntleroy, headed north. First stop, a North Admiral bash that sounded like it would start on the early side of the time frame – many folks warned us they wouldn’t get going before 6:30 because everyone needed to get home from work and get settled. Updates in this post as we get them …

6:16 PM UPDATE: That party on Prescott is just getting going – with a giveaway for emergency preparedness supplies – but we’re going to have to change our route; there’s a big callout to 2615 SW Barton, near Westwood Village, “fire in building,” we’ve even seen engines heading out from this side. So we’re heading back to south West Seattle to check it out.

6:21 PM UPDATE: Probably not too huge – scanner says Ladder 11 has just been dismissed from the scene. We’ve had to sit through three lights from Avalon to turn left on 35th – should have taken Delridge.

6:32 PM UPDATE: Looks like a fire truck at Daystar across from Westwood Village, way back on the south side. Getting out to investigate, no smoke visible or other signs of a major emergency. We have Highland Park Night Out parties on the list so we’ll just go there next if nothing’s seriously wrong here.

6:35 PM UPDATE: “Food on the stove,” the verdict from firefighters. Nothing to see here, moving along.

6:40 PM UPDATE: Adding a photo of organizer Meredith from the North Admiral block party:

6:46 PM UPDATE: We’re in Highland Park, where Dina and Blair Johnson of the Highland Park Action Committee let us know about their block party. Photo to come, before we head to another HP stop. 7:02 PM UPDATE: First photo is from the party on the Johnsons’ block; next two, from the 8600 block of 12th a few blocks away, where Michelle tells us it’s the third year they’ve had a Night Out party, and this year several new families have just moved in and are participating.

Saw yet another party in the middle of the street in Highland Park as we headed back westward; snapped a quick pic, will use that later.

7:08 PM UPDATE: Now we’re in Fauntleroy, to check out a block party a few blocks east of the ferry dock. An SPD car is parked here — we know some of the folks from the precinct are out making the rounds tonight. (Added a few minutes later …) Here’s who we found at this party — Officer John Nark, standing with neighbor Will Castillo; the party was outside the home of John Bartell:

7:18 PM UPDATE: We’re in Arbor Heights now – southwestern most stop on the tour, party at 102nd and 44th. After that, Westwood. We’ve driven by two locations that unfortunately aren’t quite up and running yet – we’ll get back this way later if we can, but in the meantime, heading north toward Morgan and Fairmount. Here’s the Arbor Heights party we visited:

7:34 PM UPDATE: Still in Westwood, checking out the party Kelly told us about, off Thistle, just a few blocks west of Denny Middle School and Southwest Community Center. They’re having fun at this one – check out the pig pinata, and the cards for “Know Your Neighbor Bingo”:

7:42 PM UPDATE: Now we’re near 31st/Myrtle, just east of Our Lady of Guadalupe, south of High Point playfield, where Ingrid invited us to stop by for pix. We passed by Mars Hill Church-West Seattle and they seem to have quite the gathering going to – we’ll catch a photo later if it’s still happening when we head back this way. Here’s a photo from Ingrid’s party – tiki torches and barbecued ribs; lucky the weather is matching the tropical motif:

7:55 PM UPDATE: Now we’re in Morgan Junction to check in on a neighborhood-radio test that’s happening as part of Night Out. More on that shortly.

8:21 PM UPDATE: We’re stopping now at one of the biggest block parties yet – Fairmount Springs, just off Fauntleroy, in the 5600 block of 40th SW. Live band and all. Photos in a moment – but first, Ron Zuber, heading up the neighborhood radio test a short time ago from his deck in upper Morgan Junction – beautiful sunset:

More later on how the test went – there were about half a dozen neighborhood reps stationed all over West Seattle testing to see if they could communicate neighborhood-to-neighborhood with simple handheld walkie-talkie-type “family radios,” in case of catastrophe. After that, on the way from Ron’s house to Fairmount Springs, we caught this flyby on cam – coincidence, or Night Out special feature?

8:33 PM UPDATE: Stopping now in the 42nd/Brandon vicinity – here’s a photo from Fairmount Springs, featuring the 40th Street Band (got them on video too, will post that later):

8:42 PM UPDATE: From 42nd/Brandon – first a group shot, then Susie and husband holding rare commodities – West Seattle Hard Core bumper stickers (It’s a Bridge, Not a Freeway and West Seattle Hardcore) – they gave us some to take home – thanks!

Next stop, 5400 block of 45th, invited by Kristina – and then we’re going to see if the Junction Neighborhood Organization block party’s still in full swing before it gets too dark …

9 PM UPDATE: Our camera doesn’t handle dusk too well so the photo you see at left is the best one we have of the 5400 block of 45th; we’re in the Admiral District now, hoping flash will work for one of the parties still going at this semi-late hour, in the neighborhood where Admiral Neighborhood Association president Mark Wainwright lives. Meantime, speaking of neighborhood-association leaders, JuNO president Erica Karlovits was at her group’s gathering in The Junction; they’re collecting signatures on some of those petitions we told you about last week (which also got a writeup on Slog today). And that party is where we met Zukor the puppy (not sure if we’re spelling the name right – nobody there really knew for sure – Zukor belongs to a partygoer’s roommate, we were informed!):

9:17 PM UPDATE: Turns out that wasn’t Mark’s party – we were a block or two off (eyes failing in the dimming light), and we found Al Vincent and his neighbors – also in a tropical mood (as are parts of Al’s house, see photo below right):

Bonnie in the WSB Forums is asking how to sign up for next year – as we replied there, just keep an eye on the Southwest Precinct Crime Prevention webpage (and of course, on WSB too, as we will give you lots of advance notice – and you can find the crime prevention link any time from the resources at the bottom of our Crime Watch page) – you can sign up online to close off your (non-arterial) street for a block party on Night Out, which is usually the first night in August. We didn’t make our unrealistic goal of hitting all 30-plus parties at which we would have been welcome – but we got to as many as we could – and we welcome you to send us your pix of your party, wherever it was, as we will post more pix as we get them! Meantime, we’ll wrap up this part of the coverage with another beautiful sunset photo, taken by Brian Hawksford from Fauntleroy: