West Seattle, Washington
19 Tuesday
On this 4th night of Disaster Preparedness Month, yet another big quake reminds us that we’re in Quake Country too: The 7.2 quake that rocked northern Mexico and Southern California (Twitpic at left). You’ve heard a lot about what you should do to prepare for quakes – and we’ll take a closer look at some of those specifics later in the month – but you don’t always hear a lot about “what to do WHEN one hits.” OK, maybe you’ve heard “go stand in a doorway” – what if there’s not one nearby? And what if you’re outside, or in a car? FEMA has a short four-part list of tips – take two minutes and read it right now. (You can even scroll down and take a pop quiz afterward.) Next step, the one we’re going to mention every one of this month’s 30 nights: Know your nearest Emergency Communication Hub. If a major quake (or other type of disaster) takes out communication/utility infrastructure, that’s where you’d go to find out what’s going on and how to get help. (The Hubs map is part of the West Seattle Be Prepared website, the subject of our DPM Night 1 advice; on Night 2, the important docs to store safely; on Night 3, picking an out-of-state relative/friend whose number is carried by everyone in your family, for check-in purposes.) Any particular preparedness topic you feel confused/under-informed about? Just mention it so we can be sure to hit it as the month goes on – local volunteers are plugged into an amazing wealth of information and resources. Oh, and join the West Seattle Be Prepared Facebook group too – you’ll find an interesting quake-info link there, just a few updates down the page!)
Story and photo by Keri DeTore
Reporting for West Seattle Blog
If you’ve noticed activity in the storefront where Dante’s closed a year ago, between the Admiral/California Wells Fargo and Zatz A Better Bagel, here’s what’s coming: The Cask.
The Cask is described by co-owner Shon MacDughlas as an “Old World ale and wine house” which will offer local, independent-label wines and 150 imported beers. MacDughlas notes that the venue, which he co-owns with his wife Dedria Pope, a West Seattle-based Windermere real-estate agent, has applied for a “multi-faceted license” allowing them to offer beverages for retail sale as well as serving them.
The Cask will provide a “cozy” atmosphere with wood features (including the bar top, made from a fallen old-growth fir), lamplight, and music, including a lounge with space to accommodate solo musicians.
Quick reminder – the King County Water Taxi‘s West Seattle-to-downtown run resumes service tomorrow morning. The official celebration isn’t till next Sunday, but the service is back in business starting with the 6:50 am departure from Seacrest tomorrow, and several things are different this year. We’ve reported on them all over the past few months; you can review the WSB King County Water Taxi archive (newest to oldest) here, plus, here are direct links to info on the county’s site:
—The boat schedule
—The new boat
—The “new” docks (upgrade on West Seattle side, location change on downtown side)
—The new fares
—Added shuttle service to Morgan Junction (midday weekdays only)
Thanks to Trileigh, wildlife photographer extraordinaire (remember Wollet the owlet?), for providing the first photo we’ve seen of one of the orcas that have been in the area today. She took the photo from the south side of Lincoln Park. (Here’s our earlier story, with updates and comments tracking the sightings.) ADDED 8:52 PM: Trileigh sent this one later, after going through hundreds more she took:
(BACK TO ORIGINAL 5:35 PM REPORT) And we’re happy to be able to share another great photo, an “Easter seal” courtesy of Seal Sitters‘ Robin Lindsey, photographed this morning before the sun went away:
There’s another photo on the Seal Sitters’ “Blubberblog“ – see who the seal shared the raft with for a while.
30 sales — from North Admiral to White Center – are on the list so far for the 6th annual West Seattle Community Garage Sale Day, coming up Saturday, May 8, 9 am-3 pm, all over the peninsula – not one big sale, but a multitude (close to 200 last year) of sales big and small, transforming West Seattle into a garage-saler’s parade for the day. Registration opened Thursday and continues till April 22, when we start building The Big Map. If you want to sell a few things but don’t have space at your own place for a sale, both Hotwire Online Coffeehouse (WSB sponsor) and C & P Coffee are stepping up to offer space again this year – check in with Hotwire or C&P if you’re interested in reserving space there. If you plan to do that, but still want your own “ad” – up to 10 words about your sale – on the map, please register as an individual, noting the group site as your sale address (otherwise, each of those locations will simply be on the map as “site with multiple sellers”). Ready to sign up? Here’s the form; any questions, e-mail garagesale@westseattleblog.com.
Richard e-mailed WSB to share these photos, explaining:
Every Easter Sunday morning for the past few years, we’ve awoken to find the fences, shrubbery and landscaping in the alley between 36th/37th/Findlay and Juneau [map] artistically festooned with hundreds of yellow marshmallow ‘Peeps’. We have have a couple neighbors who we think are the ‘Peepers’, but we’re not sure (and we don’t feel like getting up in the middle of the night to catch them in the act!). The kids and families along our block love this, and we think it’s a great and fun tradition. I’m attaching some pics of their ‘artwork’. Happy Easter! (p.s.–I took all the pics this morning at 8:30)
ADDED 2:26 PM: And from somewhere else in West Seattle – Karen sent a photo, saying her daughter discovered the chickens love Peeps too:
ADDED MONDAY MORNING: We got one more batch of photos from a mystery sender. This is our favorite:
ORIGINAL 9:56 AM REPORT: Just got note and text from Gary — orcas spotted west of the Alki Point lighthouse, heading “slowly south.” Off to look. 10:20 AM: Orca expert Jeff Hogan just called, says they’re off Lowman. 10:28: You need binoculars to see them – they are by Blake Island and heading south fairly fast. 10:46 AM: They went into the far passage off west Vashon, out of view, but keep an eye out later – Jeff says they’re transients. 11:46 AM: And now they’re heading back north, per commenter Jen – who also just called. Watch the comments; we’re heading back down the hill to look again! 1:35 PM: Just back from whale-watching – you definitely need binoculars – they’re out between WS and Blake Island again, and you can look for a very, very small boat, which is virtually next to them. We just watched them for quite some time from a vantage point near the West Beach Condos west and downhill from Marine View Drive’s north end (map); they did not seem to be going in any particular direction. We’re told that what some describe as “playing” – we saw tail-slapping while watching – could mean they’re feeding. Bottom line, they could be visible off our shore for quite a while. Keep an eye on comments here, and/or on our Facebook thread.
On this Easter Sunday/second-to-last night of Passover, here are some of the West Seattle highlights:
ANNUAL EASTER MORNING SUNRISE SERVICE: Forest Lawn, 6701 30th SW (map), 6:30 am. Sponsored by the West Seattle Ministerial Association, which says Holy Rosary‘s Father John Madigan will today become the first Roman Catholic priest to preach at the nondenominational tradition. Outdoors unless it’s raining, in which case it’s in the chapel; refreshments afterward.
OTHER CHURCH HIGHLIGHTS: Another outdoor tradition, West Seattle’s three UCC churches have a sunrise service at 7 am on Alki Beach (east of the Bathhouse) … Many churches have breakfasts and egg hunts, including WSB sponsor Tibbetts United Methodist Church, where breakfast is served 8-9:45, preceding 10 am service, which is followed by their egg hunt …
EASTER BRUNCH: Many more West Seattle restaurants serving brunch every weekend this year than last – it’s been a popular addition recently. One hotspot is WSB sponsor Skylark Café and Club, which serves brunch 9 am-3 pm; newly opened Heartland Café started taking reservations Friday so don’t show up without calling to see if any reservations are left; you can find Junction brunch ideas on the West Seattle Junction Association website; the fabled Salty’s on Alki buffet is being offered morning till night and has “prime … seating” reservable for parties of 4 or fewer, per Salty’s Facebook page.
SUNDAY SHOPPING: No holiday break for West Seattle Farmers’ Market, 10 am-2 pm, The Junction (44th/Alaska), as always (here’s today’s Ripe ‘n’ Ready list of what’s new) … It’s the third and final day of the spring sale at Alki Bike and Board (details here) … New wine shop Bin 41 wraps up its four-day grand-opening party with Pinot Noir tastings 11 am-2 pm … Avalon Glassworks is open and demonstrating glass-blowing 1-5 pm.
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