West Seattle, Washington
07 Sunday
A WSB reader at the Seattle Symphony wants everyone to know that not only is the orchestra appearing for free at West Seattle HS Thursday night (as we’ve been mentioning on our WS Events page), you can also catch a free concert tonight in South Park (not that far east of WS). Here’s the scoop on both.
The ice-driving-crash-course forced by Winterfest ’07 delayed this roundup a bit, but we also wanted to mention, we’ve morphed the former Holiday Stuff page into a new WS Events page, and that’s where we’re stacking up calendars and links so you can bookmark the page and check what’s up any ol’ time. (Please e-mail us if you’ve got anything coming up!) Meantime, a few of this weekend’s highlights: Kenyon Hall starts a new “Rainy Day Film Series” (how about dubbing it “Icy Day Film Series” for starters) on Saturdays with one movie this afternoon and one tonight … the 8th annual MLK Hip Hop Show, tonight (Saturday) @ Youngstown Arts Center … The second Winter Farmers’ Market in The Junction, 10 am-1 pm Sunday (even if you’re watching the game, drop by at halftime!) …. just a few of many things happening as we all come out of the post-holiday haze.
The folks @ Divina say they’ve got to call off tonight’s Junction Art Walk, even though they were hoping weather wouldn’t get in its way again (last month, the Art Walk coincided with the 2-inch deluge that preceded The Windstorm To Be Named Later). Not only is the icy weather a problem, today’s power outage got in the way of hors d’oeuvre-making. But, with determined optimism, they’re working on a Youth Art Walk for next month. Dare we hope for calmer weather by then?
Once the wind stops and the (allegedly looming) snow melts … here are 2 things to look ahead to, maybe even look forward to, this coming Thursday: First and foremost, the folks at Divina confirm the monthly Junction Art Walk is indeed on for Thursday night; starts at Divina at 6 pm – maps of participating businesses and artists will be provided – wraps at West 5 with complimentary champagne. Also on Thursday night, if you’re not in the artsy mood, how about the Design Review Board meeting on the project proposed for the burned-out Schuck’s site at California/Charlestown? (6:30 pm, Southwest Precinct, just south of Home Depot)
Power outages and holiday events got in the way, for a while, of our regular Friday morning routine — posting what’s happening around West Seattle in the coming weekend. Today, the roundup’s back. Let’s start with tonight, when High Point Community Center resumes Fabulous Family Fridays with a “toy swap” … also tonight, Twelfth Night Productions’ three-day run of “Amahl and the Night Visitors” begins @ Youngstown Arts Center (tickets here) … tonight, Saturday night, and Sunday afternoon, Kenyon Hall’s the spot for the Fox Movietone Follies of ’07 … live music Fri & Sat nites at Skylark Club as usual … Saturday night, the monthly “Rocky Horror” screening takes over the Admiral at midnight … Sunday, the Farmers’ Market is due back for the first “winter market” (hours will be a bit shorter, 10 am-1 pm) … also on Sunday, the monthly meeting of the determined folks you see at and near the FM each week, West Seattle Neighbors for Peace and Justice … What did we leave out? Click the “comment” link on this post, or e-mail us.
Old news to some, since apparently this has been out there for a few weeks, but we just happened onto it while making a periodic check of the site for the Delridge Neighborhoods Development Association, the organization behind a variety of community improvements including most famously in the past year the Youngstown Arts Center transformation: DNDA’s longtime executive director Paul Fischburg is leaving, and they’re looking for somebody new. (We wrote to ask what he’s moving on to; he forwarded us a copy of his announcement memo, which mentioned that he’s leaving after 10 years with no particular plans, but will enjoy some down time while mulling the future.)
Now that we are finally able to get online (albeit in the dead o’ night), a few more things:
-Time’s running out for a cool way to make your mark on one of the biggest projects in WS right now: pledge $ by New Year’s Eve for a tile at the new West Seattle Food Bank.
-One week left to tell the National Weather Service what to name The Storm.
-If you missed it in comments below, The Cow/Bull/Steer is back (does it have an official name?) atop John’s Corner Deli, after its Dorothy-esque windblown journey during the As Yet Unnamed Storm. Here’s proof:
A dozen places in The Junction are participating in tonight’s Art Walk, 6-8 pm, starting at Divina, with beverages and hors d’oeuvres. We’ve got the complete list of participants and artists, thanks to Divina.Read More
Usually we just bring you pre-weekend “here’s what’s happening” blurbs. But so much is going on this week before the weekend, besides basic holiday stuff, so here goes:
–TUESDAY NIGHT: An e-mail tipster reports that West Seattle’s own Mac “Santa Mac” Macdonald is producing “Rock ‘n’ Roll Christmas,” a benefit show at 7:30 pm @ McCaw Hall, and promises it’s “the most fun to be had this holiday season.”
–WEDNESDAY NIGHT: Cafe Rozella hosts author Layne Maheu @ 7 pm, reading from his book “Song of the Crow.”
–THURSDAY NIGHT: The next Junction Art Walk, 6-8 pm, starting at Divina, with 12 participating locations (we’ll post artist specifics by Thursday). Then get involved in civics and meander over to the Southwest Precinct at 8 pm as the city Design Review Board makes its pronouncement on the huge Fauntleroy Place development.
-Just back from our first official drive in search of WS’s best Christmas lights. Will post our findings sometime tomorrow. To generalize wildly — so far, the north side of WS appears to have many more lavish displays than the south side.
-Sorry if this is old news to Morgan Junctionites; just noticed the big CLOSED FOR REMODELING, REOPENING FALL 2007 signs in the windows of Washington Federal Savings at Cali & Fauntleroy. Somehow you gotta wonder, will they really reopen as a bank? That corner is so incredibly prime … you’d think those “mixed-use” developers would be clamoring for it.
-Earlier this fall, when we posted a few times about best-selling author Terry Brooks (who lives in WS at least part of the time), someone wrote to say that other best-selling authors live in WS, including a couple, Skye Moody & G.M. Ford. If that’s so, apparently they won’t be here much longer, according to her MySpace page, which mentions they’re moving to the Oregon Coast next month.
From our Holiday Stuff page (which also includes this weekend’s Christmas Ship stops, among other things): 7 pm tonight, Chief Sealth HS Commons, the Westside Symphonette‘s holiday concert … free!
Running this site for almost a year now, we’ve learned a lot about just how much creativity is continuously percolating on our side of the bay. Some of it, people take the time to write us about, such as the Ginomai artists’ community that is taking shape in the space once occupied by WS Christian School, and hundreds (if not thousands) of individual projects, such as this webcomic, and this band. And then, there are the WS artistic endeavors we happen onto, such as the erotic-glass artist who will be showing his stuff tonight, during a Biznik business-networking event at his studio. Boggles us a bit, but we’ll readily admit to a somewhat sheltered life. Play safe!
Forgot to mention the Admiral‘s monthly showing of “Rocky Horror Picture Show” in our weekend-events post. It fell so far off our radar that we were truly startled to walk out of a 9 pm-ish Admiral movie tonight and find the lobby full of chattering, creatively dressed RHPS fans. More startling still, two late arrivals whom we passed as they giggled and staggered toward the theater from the Safeway vicinity, both in black corsets and fishnet stockings a la Dr. Frank N Furter, as coatless as if they were strolling to a showing in Key West at 34 degrees C, rather than West Seattle at 34 degrees F. Never a dull moment!
Headlining these next three days is The Junction’s “Wonderful Weekend,” starting tonight with the open house involving many Junction stores and restaurants, continuing tomorrow night with the Tree Lighting, and wrapping up Sunday with wagon rides and Santa Photos @ Coffee to a Tea with Sugar. Also this weekend in The Junction, “Voices of Christmas” continues @ ArtsWest. We’ve got a ton of other holiday notes, including nonprofit wreath sales, on our WS Holiday Stuff page. (And if your weekend includes putting up Christmas lights, remember that we plan to list the biggest WS displays on that same page, so send us your address if yours qualifies, or that of anything else big, bright ‘n’ beautiful that you see ’round here.) Also this weekend — it’s Bingo Night tonight as part of the Fabulous Family Fridays series at High Point Community Center, volunteers are welcome Saturday at a Camp Long work party.
1 — this snow/ice madness should finally be over and done with
2 — first night of “Voices of Christmas” @ ArtsWest (link on our WS Holiday Stuff page)
3 — Alki Art Studio reception @ The Bathhouse
4 — Greg Laswell live in-store @ Easy Street
5 — a wild-sounding poetry-book release party @ Talarico’s (really)
… and all through the town/nothing much was scheduled/’cause few were around.
Well, it’s not that slow, but close (the really good stuff is next weekend, including the 2nd annual West Seattle Tree Lighting). Keep in mind that the community centers are closed, the Senior Center’s closed, but stores are open, so it’s a great weekend to start shopping! (We’ll post some recommendations soon for only-in-WS gifts.) Aside from that, here’s a few weekend events: Santa’s arriving @ Westwood Village at noon Saturday … the Holy Rosary Tree Lot opens Saturday (we’ll be scoping out others this weekend too) … on Sunday, it’s one of the final four West Seattle Farmers’ Market days of the year … ongoing art exhibits include “Visual Ensembles” @ ArtsWest, Alexis St. John’s retrospective @ T(ea) Gallery, and “Art for the People” by Chad Stieg @ Revolution Coffee & Art.
So we’re sitting in the balcony at Cinerama downtown watching Casino Royale, the new James Bond movie (six thumbs up). The theme song is by Chris Cornell of Audioslave, ex-Soundgarden. “Doesn’t he live in West Seattle?” we ask ourselves. Sadly, post-movie research reveals, he used to, but not any more. He got divorced and remarried; his ex-wife got the house in Gatewood. Good song, tho; hear it here.
Here’s some of what’s up this weekend around West Seattle: For starters, things are jumping on Delridge tonight, with the “semi-annual open house” for Youngstown Arts Center & Cooper Artist Housing, plus an “open-campus celebration” for Delridge Community Center, the Delridge library branch, and nearby community-service agencies … Friday Night Family Skating again tonight @ Alki Community Center … EarthCorps work party Saturday @ Me-Kwa-Mooks … Holiday Craft & Plant Fair on Saturday @ Southwest Community Center (as posted earlier on our WSB Holiday Stuff page) … Community Rummage Sale on Saturday @ Hiawatha Community Center …“In Fere” Saturday & Sunday nights @ Youngstown Arts Center … Andy Crow plays piano & organ Sunday afternoon @ Kenyon Hall … West Seattle Neighbors for Peace & Justice presents “Sir! No Sir!” @ the WS Library on Sunday afternoon … the Visual Ensembles exhibit continues @ ArtsWest … live music tonight and tomorrow night (as is usual for Thurs/Fri/Sat nights) @ Skylark Cafe … Finally, two memorials that we mentioned below: Saturday afternoon @ Seattle Center Pavilion, the public memorial for 47th/Admiral accident victim Tatsuo Nakata; also on Saturday, the Dix memorial cruise. Anything we missed? Leave a comment or e-mail us.
-Last reminder that the city’s Southwest Design Review Board meets tonight @ the police dept.’s SW Precinct, with 2 projects on the agenda: the controversial apartment/condo/”park-pool” proposal for 4515 41st SW, and “mixed-use” @ 4116 Cali.
-Tipster wrote to tell us about Salon.com’s comic “K Chronicles” giving a shoutout to West Seattle. (Since Salon requires subscriptions or “day passes,” good news is, a different site has a free link to the strip here.) Further investigation reveals its author Keith Knight will be at the T(ea) Gallery (in the SOA zone) tonight for an afterparty following his appearance at Hugo House; per the comic, he’s related to the TG’s owner.
Wow, the weekend already? The calendar doesn’t lie. So here’s some of what’s up around WS this weekend, in no particular order: If you want to see the biggest movie of the year for cheap, Pirates of the Caribbean 2 has finally landed @ the Admiral … A much different sort of film screens tonight at Youngstown Arts Center, “I Know I’m Not Alone: A Musician’s Search for the Human Cost of War” … The Friends of Orchard Street Ravine have a work party tomorrow … The Four Sheep Acoustic Music Concert Series continues Sunday night at Youngstown AC with Susan Gibson … Looks like a slow weekend otherwise; calm before the holiday storm! Leave a comment if you know of something cool we missed …
The folks at Divina remind us that (as we mentioned earlier) tonight is the first of the revived West Seattle Art Walks. (2nd Thursday of each month) Participants include: At Divina, local sculptors Randy Bolander, Art Donnelly and Karin Richardson; painters Kelly Rae Cunningham, Brian McGuffey, Carla Davis and Deana Plymale; illustrator Jeanette Piper; creative concept designer Wyn Bielaska, Seattle Lutheran art teacher Jacob Dahlke, and Colombian artisan Clara Obregon … at Hotwire Online Coffeehouse, paintings by Mary Enslow, co-owner of Twilight Artist Collective, curator of Hotwire coffeehouses …
At Clementine, West Seattle metal sculptor and ring maker Rachel Alber … at Coffee to a Tea with Sugar, photographs by Michael Spence … 8 Limbs Yoga (enter from alley), West Seattle photographer and painter Lauren T. Kitsner … at Cupcake Royale, paintings by Alex Thomas … at Elliott Bay Brewery, oil paintings by Tim Pew and Will Hass … then stop at West 5 afterward, tell server or bartender that you took the Art Walk, and organizers promise a complimentary glass of champagne. All this tonight, 6-8 pm in The Junction!
On our list as a must-go: Megawatt’s Gathering of Neighbors, noon-3 tomorrow @ Chief Sealth HS … Tonight and tomorrow are the last performances of tick, tick … BOOM! at ArtsWest … Partman Parthorse is live in-store tonight @ Easy Street in The Junction … Twelfth Night stages “The Dining Room” this weekend @ Youngstown Arts Center … Free “Walk/Talk/Taste” tour @ PCC West Seattle this Sunday … All-You-Can-Eat Spaghetti Dinner tonight at High Point CC … 4 live music shows tonight, 3 tomorrow @ Skylark Cafe … It’s post-weekend, but the Ballard Sedentary Sousa Band will be at The Hall @ Fauntleroy on Monday … And don’t forget that the West Seattle Farmers’ Market continues 10 am–2 pm Sundays all the way into mid-December! … What’d we miss? Leave a comment on this item with the info, or e-mail us.
Speaking of boutiques (see below) … the proprietor(s) of Divina just let us know about the first edition of a new series of West Seattle Art Walks, coming up next week! It’s set for 6-8 pm one week from tonight (Thursday 11/9) starting at Divina, where walking maps will be available (along with vino and snax). Organizers plan to do this each month thereafter, on the 2nd Thursday. (Perhaps it could evolve into something like this.)
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