Ex-WS tycoon now vacating Vashon
The tycoon who brought WS the Delridge megaflag (photo below, looking south from outside Uptown Espresso) has just put his Vashon ranch up for sale (Beachcomber story including detailed property description here; Times story here), less than a year after moving his company out of West Seattle. (The ex-SGA Delridge building, by the way, is no longer listed for sale anywhere that we can find. Oh real-estate insiders out there, does it have a new owner?)
Our Seafair “secrets”
Love it or hate it, it’s here … the frenzied finale to Seattle’s biggest summer festival, Seafair. 
We had been debating whether to take up space here with our Blue Angels and hydro obsessions interest, given that it’s not WS-specific, but bless the reader who wrote us to suggest we do exactly that … so here goes.
SECRET #1 — Watch the Blue Angels take off from and land at the Museum of Flight, which is at Boeing Field, just a few miles east of West Seattle. You don’t have to pay MOF admission to go stand along their fence and do this, although we highly recommend the very affordable MOF membership — it’s a unique Seattle institution worth supporting. This is always stirring, particularly on the Friday-Saturday-Sunday occasions, when you can see the full pageantry of the “walkdown,” the synchronized crew checks, the jet engine smoke, the feel-it-in-your-bones takeoffs … anyway, you can read our tales from last year: day 1 here, day 3 here, day 4 here. The Angels will have two takeoffs and landings during practices tomorrow (Thursday), then one each for the “rehearsal” show on Friday and the real deal on Saturday/Sunday.
SECRET #2 — “Free Friday.”
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Viaduct alert, Hi-Yu float fame, and other Seafair tidbits
Though tonight’s Seafair Torchlight Parade happens downtown, there are a few Seafair-related items of WS relevance:
-Because of the Torchlight Run preceding the parade, The Viaduct will be closed tonight, from 5:45 till 7:30 or so.
-The West Seattle Hi-Yu float got fixed, thanks to Alki Automotive, and is ready for the parade; it got a lot of ink (pixels) in this Seattle Times parade preview.
-Thanks to Northwest Asian Weekly, we found out a West Seattle teenager has a prominent role in one of the most popular parade entries: Jennifer Gee, featured by NAW as an “Outstanding Graduate” for her achievement as this year’s West Seattle High School valedictorian, is captain of the Seattle Chinese Community Girls’ Drill Team (photo taken by Jason Parker at Hi-Yu Parade last weekend).
-Last but not least, West Seattle writer/humorist John Moe (whose blog Monkey Disaster is one of the 70-plus sites linked from our Other Blogs in WS page) wrote an amusing piece about potential Seafair revisions for the Times.
If you’re going to the Torchlight Parade, we’ll see you there. If not, we highly recommend checking out the first night (since last week was rained out) of Movies on the Wall by Sidewalk Cinema, featuring “Best in Show,” next to Hotwire Coffeehouse. Free! Fun! (Here’s our post from the first time we went last year.)
Bakery that’s not opening in WS
Don’t faint. A West Seattle-based couple is opening their own bakery — but not on our side of the bay. We best remember Stephanie Crocker and her “Sugar” creations from the Farmers’ Market last year; also, last November we told you about the pie fundraiser to help Stephanie and her husband John with expenses from his fight against cancer. That’s going well and now they’re getting ready to open their own place, Sugar Bakery & Cafe on First Hill (and blogging about it too). Stephanie tells WSB they hope to open in October – just in time for the bakery-mania of the holiday season.
Early fireworks
If you can’t wait till tomorrow night to see fireworks — catch a ferry, cross the Sound, and go to Fireworks on the Fjord in Poulsbo tonight. The fireworks follow an all-day festival, with food and music and all the classic summer stuff. (If you’re worried about parking, try the shuttle buses.)
Viaduct on foot
Back from RFTC. Intermittent sun, good crowd. But walking on The Viaduct now feels the way it felt to attend baseball games in The Kingdome in 1999 … end-of-an-era’ish. Here for posterity is the cobblestone/aggregate viaduct surface underfoot:
A few more pix (with people in them!) after the click:Read More
If you see them, call 911
Several readers have written to suggest that the Amber Alert issued in Kitsap County be posted here. Since WS has a direct link to Kitsap via the ferry dock, it makes sense — apparently this mother and baby could be anywhere. Full details at the Washington Amber Alert site. Photos below are the baby, the mother (who isn’t supposed to have custody), and a truck similar to the one they are believed to be in. Call 911 if you even THINK you have seen them. SATURDAY NIGHT UPDATE: They’ve been found; the baby is safe.
Could be worse
As of this morning, the WS station we’ve been watching was holding steady at $3.39/regular, but after a bus ride downtown (just $1.25!) we saw lots worse, such as the Shell @ Denny & Aurora (left). So if you’ve gotta fill up, home is better! (Or South Seattle Costco, where we paid $3.13 yesterday.) Oh, and the governor proclaims herself “ticked off” by the pump jumps.
2 cool (events) for school
Getting a jump on our weekly “what’s happening this weekend,” which will be up tomorrow as usual — we wanted to give you 24 (or so) hours notice about two benefit events, both happening tomorrow (Friday) night. #1 — From 6 till 8 pm in the West Seattle High School commons, it’s the annual chowder cookoff, with chowders from local restaurants offered in what the school calls a “blind taste test.” More info a ways down the school’s home page. #2 — The West Seattle Big Band is playing @ Evergreen HS (between White Center and Burien) as part of an “Evening of Swing,” 6:30-9:30 pm, benefitting the school music program.
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