West Seattle, Washington
02 Thursday
Original post 10:04 PM: We’re getting preliminary word of an incident at the intersection of 35th & SW Barton that appears to involve a fatality. We have someone on the scene and will be updating with more information as it develops.
10:31 PM UPDATE: Seattle Police now tell us that around 9:30 tonight passersby reported a man on the ground near the bus stop at the northeast corner of 35th & Barton. Paramedics responded to the location and made attempts to revive him but they were unsuccessful. Police are still there waiting for investigators to process the scene. They said the man did not appear to be homeless and, though a quantity of alcohol was found with the body, it was too soon to make any determination as to what role drugs or alcohol may have played in the man’s death.
The weather was perfect tonight for Star Trek, the final movie of this year’s West Seattle Outdoor Movies. That’s Hotwire Online Coffeehouse (WSB sponsor) proprietor Lora Lewis who modeled a chicken-themed bag from which she drew tonight’s winning raffle tickets before the movie unspooled:
After the raffle prizes (which included baked goods, music lessons and other gift certificates) were distributed, Lora told the crowd that this year’s raffles raised more than $1,000 for local non-profits; including West Seattle Helpline, WestSide Baby, The Nature Consortium and Family Promise of Seattle.
(Photos and Story by Christopher Boffoli)
It seemed as though every street in South Park was having a garage or yard sale this afternoon. Hundreds of people were out selling their wares on a picture-perfect August day. And in true neighborhood fashion it was a festive, eclectic mix of not only household goods but also food, live music and curbside massage, as part of the community-wide South Park on Sale!
Organizer, Deborah Semer (above) explained that she conceived of the simultaneous garage/alley/yard sales to help South Park in the wake of the closure of its bridge, which many South Park residents regarded as a lifeline to the rest of the City. She said her goal today was about helping to encourage people to keep coming to South Park and exploring all it has to offer.
Out in front of Semer’s house we spoke with friends Tabitha Thomas-Gadzuk and Catherine Barrows who recently launched new food business TabbyCat Pickling Co. and who were selling their products, including a zucchini relish (below left), grown with vegetables from their farm in Kent:
We also found West Seattle resident Karina Macklin in South Park today offering massages for $1 a minute. The customer she was working on only managed to moan in approval:
And here’s Nathan Coleman presiding over his tables of merchandise:
In addition to the yard sales, Semer said visitors could also expect to see a Zumba flash mob, pirates, the Dead Babies Bicycle Club, mural artist Kenji Fullmer and musicians like Gnarlene, who was performing on his front lawn:
and Tukso Okey who we found playing several different instruments on the bank of the Duwamish river, with the South Park bridge as a backdrop:
This evening’s events include a free outdoor showing of the Pixar film “Up” at the South Park Outdoor Cinema (in the parking lot of Napoli Pizza at 8600 14th Avenue South). Some South Park restaurants are offering special movie night dinner specials too!
10:43 pm: Adding a bit of video from Tukso Okey’s performance in South Park this afternoon.
Story and photos by Jason Grotelueschen
Reporting for West Seattle Blog
Best-selling West Seattle author Terry Brooks, a big name in the fantasy-fiction literature world, drew a crowd of more than 60 fans for his annual appearance to read and sign books at Barnes and Noble in Westwood Village today.
Brooks is promoting his latest book, Legends of Shannara: Bearers of the Black Staff. From his website:
Terry has finished writing both books in the Legends of Shannara duology, which take place five hundred years after the events in The Gypsy Morph. Bearers of the Black Staff, Book One, will be published August 24, 2010!
The book follows on the success of his previous novel, A Princess of Landover (which was “a continuation of the Landover series after the events in Witches’ Brew,” according to his website).
Brooks’ appearance at B&N is an annual tradition that his fans clearly appreciate, and is one of the few local events that we’ve covered five consecutive years since WSB’s launch in 2005. (Read our coverage of his 2009 appearance here). According to B&N assistant manager Sonja, who has also organized Brooks’ readings in recent years, today’s crowd is “one of the biggest we’ve had” for the author, who is “one of the few authors we do these events for. He’s local, and shops here all the time!”
Brooks read excerpts of his work, shared stories, and treated his fans to a free bookmark with a list of his suggested reading order for his various books, which he joked have been “written out of order and confusing to everyone — but this should help.”
In addition to working on some continuations of his previous books, he promised fans “something new” in the next few years — “I’m getting burned out on Shannara and need to put some time into something different.”
When asked about the possibility of film adaptations of his work in the future, Brooks lamented the stop-and-go nature of past negotiations he’s been through. “Everyone talks a good game, but nothing happens,” he sighed. He joked that “my kids always say ‘look what happened to Tolkien!'” in reference to the famous Lord of the Rings author J.R.R. Tolkien, whose works made theatrical millions long after his passing in 1973.
Brooks thanked those in attendance for their dedication, and sat down afterward to sign books and meet with his fans.
Dirty automobile? You still have 90 minutes to take advantage of this, from WSB’er Trina:
Shorewood Christian School 10th and 11th graders are holding a carwash from 12:00-5:00 at Roxbury Lanes north parking lot. All proceeds will help the students fund an educational trip to Washington DC later this year. There is not a set price, we will be washing cars for donations.
(Photos by Christopher Boffoli)
Original report 11:42 am: Just checking on reports of a car fire in the westbound lanes of the West Seattle bridge. We’ll post more details as we have them.
Update 12:11 pm: SFD has the fire out. Westbound lanes of the bridge are now open, though moving slowly as the right lane is restricted at the West Seattle end of the bridge (just before the intersection of 35th) while police wait for removal of the burned vehicle. It appears the fire was in a commercial van which burned completely. There are no reports of injuries.
Update 2:46 pm: Thanks to those who e-mailed us earlier this afternoon to report that traffic was again moving smoothly. Also, thanks to WSB’er Chris for the cameraphone video of smoke billowing from the van:
If you delayed a trip to Costco this morning, after hearing that they had a power outage, we have just confirmed that the power is back on and it is business as usual.
We also checked in with the folks at the Marination Mobile as they were setting up at 35th & Graham (from which they’ll soon be moving across the street). They tell us that they are in the running to compete on the second season of the Food Network TV show The Great Food Truck Race. They’re asking their West Seattle fans to vote for them here, starting tomorrow.
Lots of West Seattle folks involved in presenting and sponsoring Eat Local Now! again this year – and it’s just a little more than one month away. Again this year, a Local Food Hero will be honored during the gala, which is set for Sept. 30th at SODO Park (a venue owned by West Seattle-based Herban Feast). Read on to see how to nominate someone for this honor:Read More
Some of the highlights for today/tonight:
ROLLING COMMUNITY MEETING: Think community meetings require plopping yourself in a chair and sitting there for a few hours? Not this one! It’s a “rolling” meeting – rendezvous at 10 am at Delridge Neighborhood Development Association HQ at Delridge and Brandon, and carpool along to various spots where wayfinding kiosks are planned. More info here.
YARD SALE SEASON ROLLS ON: First of all, check the WSB Forums‘ Freebies/Deals/Sales section for sales posted by your West Seattle neighbors and friends – looks like some good ones! And if you’d like to hop from sale to sale in relatively close confines, South Park is having a community yard sale day – organizers think there’ll be more than the few dozen they’ve mapped – get the list of locations here.
WALKING TOUR: Riverside Walking Tour presented by Southwest Seattle Historical Society starts at 10 am – for more details, read this!
SEATTLE PARKS’ BIG DAY OF PLAY: – This Seattle Parks and Recreation extravaganza is happening at Magnuson Park but free shuttles are offered from sites including Delridge Community Center and Southwest Community Center in West Seattle – info here.
WEST SEATTLE BEST-SELLING AUTHOR’S ANNUAL READING: Terry Brooks, a big name among fantasy-fiction fans, makes his annual appearance to read and sign books at Westwood Village Barnes and Noble, 2 pm (more at TerryBrooks.net).
FINAL 2010 SHOWTIME FOR WEST SEATTLE OUTDOOR MOVIES: Rescheduled night for what was supposed to be the Aug. 7 presentation of Summer Outdoor Movies in The Junction (Hotwire/Dr. Wolff courtyard) – “Star Trek” (2009 version) screens at dusk. Movie’s free; bring your own chair/blanket; bring a few $ for fundraiser raffle tickets/concessions, too!
And that’s just some of what’s up today/tonight – see the West Seattle Weekend Lineup for more!
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