Christopher Boffoli‘s video from Day 1 of the Nature Consortium-presented Arts in Nature Festival – which continues today at Camp Long – begins and ends with the Cabiri, first with their aerial artistry during the day, then a fire-fueled performance at dusk. In case you are video-challenged, Christopher’s photo gives you a hint of the latter:

We have one other photo from Saturday night at the festival – Eileen shared the next photo while reporting that Hey Marseilles, Saturday’s final musical act at Camp Long Lodge, rocked the house:

Arts in Nature resumes today at 11 am, and two musical acts perform at 11 — Caspar Babypants in the lodge, Steven Arntson (concertina) in the Glacier area, east and upslope from the meadow, north of Schurman Rock. Full schedule details here.

Just out of the WSB inbox, from the West Seattle Junction Association:

Thank you West Seattle for a great time at Summer Fest 2010! What a weekend!

The West Seattle Junction Association organizes this event to be a neighborhood festival and celebration (and the historic sidewalk sale), but it could not have reached this level of success without the involvement of our community. I’d like to say a big Thank You to the following groups who helped make Summer Fest an event for all:

Our Sponsors truly make this event possible since, believe it not, this event is not free to produce! Thank you sponsors for their community spirit. The West Seattle Chamber of Commerce staffed the Information Booth all weekend, offering valuable information about the festival and West Seattle, while also providing the first stop for lost families and first aid. West Seattle Blog (sponsor) also helped in this endeavor while reporting live from the Info Booth. The Seattle Police Department was awesome on so many levels – helping lost families, monitoring the crossing of Oregon St, and overall having a strong presence at the festival. I believe this was the best kids’ area yet and Pathfinder School continued to host the FREE Art Activities – four years running. Thanks to Coffee to a Tea for donating more than 1500 cookies for kids to frost and decorate in this area. West Seattle Helpline coordinated the Community Tent where local organizations and non-profits received a free table at the festival. Twilight Artist Collective organized the Art Dive tent – thanks for all the great art! The West Seattle Nursery (sponsor) and Sustainable West Seattle coordinated the first ever GreenLife: A Garden and Sustainability Expo. And lastly, thank you to Cleanscapes and Starbucks, who sponsored the handling of recycling, composting and trash and were responsible for a super clean event!! West Seattle Summer Fest was a true collaboration of community.

We work to produce an event that is successful for all, and feedback from the community is a guiding force. I have read (and appreciate) all the comments on the WSB about the festival and they will certainly be a consideration for next year. If you would like to submit comments directly, please e-mail info@westseattlefestival.com.

Thank you,
Susan Melrose, Director
West Seattle Junction Association

(Scroll down for the newest West Seattle Summer Fest updates)

Welcome to the third and final day of West Seattle Summer Fest 2010! The iconic Easy Street Records sign is just a few yards from our spot back in the Information Booth, where we’ll be covering the festival live again today. Booths are open till 5. First music of the day should be getting under way right now – Capping Day at the California (north end) stage. (video added post-show)

Tip of the day: Some of the merchants offer extra discounts on Summer Fest’s final day – one of them, WSB sponsor Bin 41, “your Junction wine shop,” also just feet away from where you’ll find us – we’ve got cards for a 10 percent discount off your purchase, good till 5 pm. You’ll find other WSB sponsors with booths at Summer Fest – including Mural Apartments, which is on the north side of the Walk All Ways intersection, also promoting the businesses in Mural (Fresh Bistro, Wallflower Custom Framing, Season’s Hair Salon) and the under-construction-in-The-Triangle Link Apartments:

Next to Cupcake Royale, there’s Fitness Together (disclosure, it’s a photo from yesterday, but not previously used), where proprietor Bonnie Katz offers a chance for you to test your strength:

By the way, if you’re looking for the official Summer Fest T-shirts, they’re on sale at the Seattle Logo Pro booth, which is right in front of Cupcake Royale’s west side – next to the aforementioned Mural etc. booth.

12:21 PM UPDATE: Under way right now – Ropeworks is back at the Alaska stage, with jump-rope champ Rene Bibaud. We had iPhone video of their performance yesterday – we’re rolling our slightly bigger camera on this one! (video added – spectators joining in!)

You’ll find performances most of the day at both stages.

12:58 PM UPDATE: Youth performers from Youngstown Arts Center are getting ready to take the stage here now; Dusty 45s are playing up at the California stage. (video added after the show)

We also just checked in with Southwest Precinct Lt. Ron Smith, who’s been leading the Summer Fest force the past three days – he says things are still quiet, no major problems. (Couple of kids skateboarding by into near-collisions got a stern warning, though.) If you’re down here and need to check in on the World Cup game – it’s on the big screen outside Elliott Bay Brewery. And now (1:03 pm) the big news – the sun’s back!

1:54 PM: This may be the most perfect festival weather yet – some clouds, some sun, warming up but nothing like the day 1 heat. Variety show on the Alaska stage – Youngstown’s had hip-hop and rock (the latter, a band of teen boys currently onstage with a line of teen girls screaming in admiration every chance they get). Speaking of youth, West Seattle Hi-Yu royalty and candidates are on the move again today – buttons and pins, just a few bucks to help support the festival and its award-winning float:

The Junior Court Coronation is coming up Friday – you’ve got till Tuesday to apply – and the Senior Court Coronation is two weeks away. Here at Summer Fest, somebody’s got bubbles – they’re blowing right past the keyboard here – and the Minute to Win It $10,000 drawing is scheduled at 2:15 pm. Another special we should mention – ArtsWest has a big ticket deal under way right now. (You can also buy tickets there for the West Seattle Garden Tour, one week from today.) Here’s what ArtsWest’s Alan Harrison wrote about the deal in a WSB comment thread in earlier coverage:

Buy a set of season tickets for only $159/6 plays (which is already like getting one play free), and you’ll also get:

a $10 gift certificate good for anything at ArtsWest (concessions, another ticket, artwork, etc.)

a free ticket to the Apprentice Production of “SIDE SHOW,” which opens on July 21 for a 2-week run.

That’s a $25 value…free during SummerFest only! Just stop by ArtsWest and ask about it.

2:54 PM UPDATE: Minute to Win It (again – no, that’s not the TV host, but a lookalike) ended with the three finalists winning trips to Vegas – nobody made it all the way to the $10K. Meantime, an onstage announcement shortly afterward reminds us – Starbucks sponsored the recycling for the festival, which we’re told is a notable chunk of the costs. So that’s helped keep the festival zone clean.

3:53 PM UPDATE: Day 3 always zooms by. In the last hour – go drop by the Community Zone over by Junction Plaza Park (on SW Alaska east of Walk All Ways) – the Southwest Seattle Historical Society‘s among the groups there now:

That’s executive director Andrea Mercado at right. Nearby, Karen and Deanie are at the West Seattle Blockwatch Captains’ Network table. Earlier in the weekend, the North Delridge Neighborhood Council took their turn (Nancy Folsom’s in the photo) – their next meeting is tomorrow night, Delridge Library, 6:30 pm:

NDNC also will help celebrate the Delridge Playground’s first anniversary next Friday night. Even some impromptu fun in that end of the street … as we walked back toward the Information Booth a little while ago, an impromptu water battle broke out:

Same spot saw the Pathfinder K-8 unicyclists a little earlier in the afternoon:

Back along the row of booths on the south stretch of California, we said hi to the 34th District Democrats‘ crew:

Their next regular meeting is coming up this Wednesday night, 7 pm, The Hall at Fauntleroy. More Summer Fest till the breakdown begins … Kris Orlowski’s onstage by us (Alaska Stage) now – last scheduled act of the day, along with the Polyrhythmics playing right now up at the California Stage. (video of Kris O, added post-show)

And before it all wraps up, another look at the kid activities’ zone – where Clowns Unlimited brought the bouncers, and Pathfinder K-8 presented the free crafts activities:

5:08 PM: Officially over. We’re still here a few more minutes – still have flyers at the Information Booth for upcoming Junction events: West Seattle Outdoor Movies by Hotwire Coffee (WSB sponsor) start next Saturday night with “Mamma Mia!” (free and fun, bring your own blanket/chair, and some money for concessions), and then on September 19th the streets close again for the West Seattle Junction Car Show.

From Flickr, where ToFuGuns shared photos with the West Seattle Blog group, that’s Mark Pickerel and His Praying Hands onstage Saturday night at West Seattle Summer Fest. One of the first acts of the evening was Kristen Ward, who we got on video as our spot at the Information Booth by the Alaska stage folded up for the night:

We didn’t make it to the street dance, but we hear it was a smash – @shermanscorner tweeted about the Cherry Cherry (Neil Diamond tribute band) singalong! Music along the sidewalks last night, too – WSB’er “D” shared iPhone video of two members of the Junk Queens:

The music continues today – starting with Capping Day on the California stage on the north end of the festival zone at 11:30 am; here’s the schedule.

(scroll down for the latest updates, including photos/video; morning coverage is here)

(Dancers from Momentum Dance Academy in Burien)
Things are truly jumping at West Seattle Summer Fest this afternoon. The Alaska stage next to our spot on the west side of the Information Booth has seen dancers and jump ropers just in the past half-hour – here’s our iPhone clip of the team from West Seattle-based Ropeworks, including proprietor Rene Bibaud, a five-time world champ:

All that followed up this morning’s wildly popular appearance by Caspar Babypants (you can see video in our morning report). This is our running afternoon coverage – more to come, with frequent updates this afternoon on what’s going on and what’s ahead! Vendors are open till 6, but the festival continues with music into the night, including the always-popular Street Dance.

1:45 PM UPDATE: While you’re here, don’t miss what’s a tiny bit off the beaten path.

Besides the free kids’ activities, for example, as mentioned in our morning report, under the Wells Fargo drive-thru roof (shady!), there’s the Community Groups area on SW Alaska east of the main festival zone – right now, besides the West Seattle Emergency Communication Hubs…

…you’ll also find information on the West Seattle Blockwatch Captains Network. Then if you head south in California, just off to the west side of the south end of the festival zone, you’ll find the GreenLife gardening/sustainability zone. where you’ll find GardenCycles and many others (Sustainable West Seattle and West Seattle Nursery are co-sponsoring this new feature):

And to the north, just past the West Seattle Hi-Yu Festival float north of Oregon, you’ll find the Art Dive, with cool local arts/crafts creators.

Then, right here in the heart of the festival, the Info Booth has not only folks from the West Seattle Chamber of Commerce answering your questions (we’re helping too), but all sorts of brochures and flyers – the official Summer Fest program, Water Taxi info, the West Seattle Outdoors Movies lineups, West Seattle Farmers Market Bucks info (a promotion with Junction merchants), Junction Car Show (coming up Sept. 19) cards, and while they last, somebody just dropped off a few 10 percent discount cards for the new Beer Junction by the east end of the festival zone (on 42nd SW south of Alaska).

3:17 PM UPDATE: Minute to Win It just had another round on the stage – and a cake-eating contest is coming up. But first, we’ve got some candidate photos to add – four visits so far today. Marcee Stone (34th District State House Position 2, Democrat) was first to visit, this morning when temps were cool and the Info Booth was still in the shadows:

Mike Heavey (same race, also a Democrat):

From the 7th Congressional District race, Bill Hoffman:

And from the King County Council District 8 race (nonpartisan), Shawn McEvoy:

3:37 PM UPDATE: The Rat City Rollergirls dunk tank is up and running over by Junction Plaza Park – quick clip of one RCRG’er getting dunked:

4:21 PM: Most-inquired-about music act so far this afternoon, Massey Ferguson, should be playing right now up on the California stage. We’re heading that way. (video added later)

4:45 PM: Hi-Yu candidates are passing by – if you see the folks in the red polo shirts with white inscription, buy a button or pin, support Hi-Yu! Meantime, here’s a section of the crowd, photographed by Junior Member of the Team a little while ago:

5:04 PM: Music mode on both stages now – Marc Olsen has kicked off the evening slate on the Alaska stage next to us. Booths are open till 6 pm and that’s how long we’ll all be here in the Information Booth too, right at Walk All Ways, between Easy Street Records and Super Supplements. Some West Seattle merchants from districts outside The Junction are here – notably, Admiral District’s Click! Design That Fits, longtime WSB sponsor, where visitors are trying out the famous Solair Chair:

5:30 PM: Checked in again with Lt. Smith. Everything’s still been peaceful, no problems, he says. Looking forward to tonight’s street dancing and the rest of the slate. Speaking of music, just added the Massy Ferguson clip back up where we mentioned them. We’ll have some separate coverage later this evening, and we’ve got other stories to publish on the site – the first-ever “Night Market” on Delridge is under way now, for example.

(scroll down for frequent updates – we’ll start a new running-coverage story after noon)
Today, it all revs up early at West Seattle Summer Fest. It’s 10 am and booths have just opened; music starts early, with Caspar Babypants on the Alaska stage (in front of KeyBank, next to our spot in the Information Booth) at 11 am.
Here’s the music schedule (street dance tonight!); here’s the schedule of other entertainment/activities; here’s the vendor list with map; use the links in the sidebar at right to check out our coverage from yesterday and last night, as well as “what’s different” plus info on road/bus closures. Frequent updates as the day unfolds!

10:23 AM UPDATE: The number one question here at the Info Booth yesterday was “where do you buy tickets for the kids’ bouncers?” Here’s the answer: Over by the West Seattle Farmers’ Market parking lot (above photo), just west of the food booths. When you head that way, also head under the Wells Fargo drive-thru roof for the coolest FREE family events, right next to all the bouncy stuff (which requires tickets) – Pathfinder K-8 is sponsoring this area, including face-painting and arts/crafts:

Sighting of the day, already: King County Executive Dow Constantine is here, helping with the setup for Caspar Babypants, who he’ll be introducing at 11 am, at the Alaska stage right next to the Info Booth:

10:49 AM UPDATE: Before the concert – there’s a veggie-dog eating contest under way at this moment, with contestants including Spring Hill‘s renowned Mark Fuller, West 5 also-legendary proprietor Dave Montoure, and Georgetown beer mogul (fabled too!) Manny (whose wares are on hand for washing down the dogs).

The winner: Marcus from Double Mountain, formerly of West Seattle-founded Schooner Exact (that’s him above, high-fiving Dave). And the remaining veggie dogs have been given away to the gathering crowd.

11:11 AM: Caspar Babypants is under way. (The grownups are bouncing almost as much as their kids.) *video added @ noon*

He mentioned a contest to help the nonprofit Kids Helping Kids and potentially win your own custom CB song – check that out here. Meantime – we’ve just chatted with Southwest Precinct Lt. Ron Smith, who was here all day and most of the night last night – he says the crowd was well-behaved – three fights but all resolved without too much trouble. Also playing shortly: Rat City Brass, at the California stage on the north end of the festival zone. (We’ll have video of them a bit later)

12:05 PM: We’ll continue the morning report at least another half-hour, before launching the afternoon coverage – we’ve also got folks out covering the Seafair Pirates’ Landing and a few other things right now. TILA is continuing its “Minute to Win It” contest hourly – sometimes here at the main stage, sometimes over at their booth by Petco – winners are entered into the drawing that’ll be held right about this time tomorrow for $10,000. When you’re here roaming the festival, check out the merchants’ sidewalk sales as well as the visiting (and not-visiting) vendors’ booths – among those we heard from pre-festival is Cherry Consignment, celebrating their first anniversary soon on the north side of The Junction – as they have tweeted, “$5 & $10 dollar racks will be out ALL weekend!”

(“Big Purple Slide,” which you’ll find in front of Rocksport at Summer Fest)
It’s noon and West Seattle Summer Fest is now cranking into high gear for its first afternoon. We’re in the Information Booth again this year – what’s new is the community (Alaska) stage just feet from us, in front of KeyBank. It’s where TILA Real Estate is about to put on its first West Seattle “Minute to Win It” contest – if you don’t see them at the stage, they’ll be down by PETCO.
(video added – here are the first contestants, Oreo-balancing)

Very nice breeze coming through right now. 12:31 PM UPDATES: Outside the Senior Center of West Seattle, you’ll find Sound View Quilters, selling $1 raffle tickets for this gorgeous quilt:

Proceeds benefit the Senior Center, which is where the quilting group meets. Another update: Who’s scheduled to be in the Community Tent today – till 2, the Water Taxi, Emergency Preparedness, Streets for All, and West Seattle Helpline/Clothesline; 2-5 pm, Water Taxi, Streets for All, and West Seattle Helpline continue, with La Leche League joining them. (Update – just talked to Admiral Neighborhood Association president Katy Walum – they’re in the community area all day too, selling their cool new Admiral T-shirts and other gear.)

To get to the community-group area, just head toward Junction Plaza Park, east from Cupcake Royale (WSB sponsor). One West Seattle Summer Fest fixture is West Seattle Hi-Yu – their award-winning “Dreams Do Come True” float is parked up on California north of Oregon, by Fleurt – you can buy a Hi-Yu button there and/or from the Hi-Yu folks roaming the festival zone (look for the signs and/or red polo shirts):

And a note about where to find food – in addition to all the restaurants that are always here at The Junction, some of which have outdoor areas just for the occasion, there’s the vendor zone west and east of Walk-All-Ways – plus, for example, Jack Miller of Husky Deli is cooking and serving right outside his popular store:

Pagliacci Pizza has a setup outside its Junction store too:

And of course, there’s the sidewalk-sale aspect of Summer Fest – if you’re an Apple devotee (we are), your Apple guy in The Junction is Brian Presser from TouchTech Systems, out in front of the building where his office is on the breezeway, by the liquor store:

Much more to come – our earlier reports include “what’s new/what’s changed,” road closures/bus reroutes, the Art Dive participant list, the Parents’ Rest Stop (scroll down through this archive). Reminder that tonight’s music highlight is Satchel, 8:30 pm, followed by Hell’s Belles.

NOTE: We’ve started a 2nd report about day 1 – so updates are over on this one – coverage continues here.

(Updated 10:45 with photos, now that everything’s set up. Separate report upcoming with ongoing coverage)
We’ll be reporting “live” from West Seattle Summer Fest (co-sponsored by WSB) starting later this morning – vendor hours today, 10 am-6 pm; music, past 9! – but first, one more practical preview: A few notes about what’s different this year, if you’re heading out based on memories of last year. First, the stages – one is at the north end of the festival zone on California north of Oregon (near the Art Dive and beer garden) – right across from the West Seattle Eagles:

The other stage is on the west side of Alaska/California instead of the east end – that’s primarily for non-band performances. Here’s what IS on the east end of Alaska: Junction Plaza Park is open at the northwest corner of 42nd/Alaska (dedicated last week). Last year, the site held a beer garden to raise money for park completion. This year, it’s “just” a park – so check it out if you haven’t already, take a break on its benches, seating walls, grass … There are activities nearby – for example (from the list on this page of non-music activities/entertainment), that’s where the Rat City Rollergirls‘ dunk tank is scheduled to be. The Community Tent, too, where you’ll find neighborhood groups and other cool local nonprofits. There also are food vendors along SW Alaska both east and west of the “Walk-All-Ways” intersection – in recent years, they’ve been only on the west side. Also on the west end of SW Alaska, the Super Terrific Happy Fun Zone (presented by Clowns Unlimited, which sells tickets – otherwise Summer Fest is free), is by Wells Fargo. (Note it’s in two parts – some in SW Alaska street, some north of Wells Fargo’s drive-thru):

New this year: strong>GreenLife at Summer Fest, the sustainability/gardening expo presented by Sustainable West Seattle and West Seattle Nursery, is on the west side of California at Edmunds – between Technical Analysis and the hot-yoga studio:

Direct links: General festival map here; specific map with numbered vendor locations here (alphabetized list with numbers can be found here); live music schedule here, other activities/entertainment here, our overnight note about road and bus changes here. In addition to ongoing coverage here – plus the other news of the day/night – we’ll also tweet photos and quick updates at twitter.com/westseattleblog. See you at Summer Fest! We’re in the info booth again this year, south of the stage that’s in front of KeyBank.

(Scene from early Summer Fest setup on Thursday evening)
With West Seattle Summer Fest officially starting less than 12 hours from now – 10 am Friday – we wanted to remind you of a few practical points that might affect how you get around West Seattle in the next three days, even if you’re not going to the festival:

ROAD CLOSURES: These are in effect till at least mid-evening Sunday – the roads will reopen when everything from the festival is cleared: California SW is closed from SW Oregon to SW Edmunds, the two blocks in the heart of The Junction’s business district. Oregon is open to east-west through traffic, but then California is closed again for most of the block north from Oregon to SW Genesee (that’s where you’ll find the Art Dive, among other attractions). The only east-west closure is SW Alaska, from 44th SW to 42nd SW.

BUSES: Summer Fest-related “stops missed”/”reroute” advisories are listed for multiple Metro routes and one Sound Transit route. If you go to the Metro “events” page, you’ll find the link for yours (each affected route links to a PDF with the specific changes) – these are the ones that are listed.
*Route 22 has an advisory through midnight Sunday
*Route 37 has an advisory through 5 pm Saturday
*Route 51, through midnight Sunday
*Route 53, all day Friday
*Route 54, through midnight Sunday
*Route 55, through midnight Sunday
*Route 57, through 7 pm Friday
*Route 85 Night Owl, through Saturday
*Route 128, two advisories – one is through midnight Saturday, one covers 6 am-9 pm Sunday
*Route 560 (Sound Transit), through midnight Sunday
*Route 773 (Water Taxi shuttle), through midnight Sunday

The Summer Fest website isn’t working at the moment (likely updating before tomorrow) or else we would add a blurb here about changes to the festival layout – most notably, the Alaska stage for live music is on the west side of SW Alaska, instead of the east side as in years past – so we’ll reserve that till the morning.

Last night, the political-news website PubliCola reported that this year, abortion-rights-supporting organizations NARAL and Planned Parenthood were not being allowed to have booths at West Seattle Summer Fest – see the PubliCola report here, and a followup here. The PubliCola report has been a hot topic in the WSB Forums all day long. Minutes ago, West Seattle Junction Association director Susan Melrose sent WSB and PubliCola this statement – saying they’ve changed their minds.

After the 2009 West Seattle Summer Fest, the West Seattle Junction Association (WSJA) decided to not accept organizations into the event to discuss the issue of abortion. In past years, WSJA received strong negative feedback from the public against how the issue of abortion was being presented though we had asked these organizations to be contentious. Many families wrote, called and emailed that the graphic displays still offered by certain groups were not appropriate for their children. Summer Fest is a family and community oriented event, therefore WSJA listened to community input and chose not to accept any organizations to debate abortion. This seemed like a fair way to address the issue since not all applicants are accepted into the festival due to limited space. The first responsibility of the WSJA is to our community and we were responding to community feedback.

Now the West Seattle community has spoken out again. After it was publicized that pro-choice and pro-life organizations would not be registered with Summer Fest, we received calls and e-mails that many do want this issue to be presented at the event. Our organization has no position on this issue and our decision to not accept organizations from either side of this debate was based solely on the feedback of the community who we tried to accommodate.

Based on recent community input, WSJA has made the decision to allow one booth for each side of the issue into this year’s festival. In our effort to be neutral, we created a far greater stir than expected. We hope to respond to and remedy the initial complaints by having vendors sign a statement that all displays and handouts are subject to approval by WSJA.

The super-secret-surprise act that people have been wondering about, next Friday night at West Seattle Summer Fest, is finally public, according to Jason Fitzgerald of The Workshop – it’s Satchel:

Satchel is playing a surprise set at West Seattle Summer Fest on Friday July 9th on the Alaska Stage from 8:30pm – 9:30 PM. Of course, this show, like all West Seattle Summer Fest music, is ALL AGES and absolutely FREE.

The rest of the West Seattle Summer Fest music lineup is online, here.

Two weeks from tonight, you’ll be dancing in the streets – if you feel like it – at West Seattle Summer Fest in The Junction (co-sponsored by WSB). It’s coming up July 9-10-11, and the website’s being updated with more on what you’ll find and who you’ll see during three days of free entertainment and activities – including the music lineup first previewed here three weeks ago. From 5:45 pm Friday through 3:45 pm Sunday, most of the schedule’s now up, in order of appearance, here. And there’s more than music – from the Rat City Rollergirls to the Art Dive, Big Purple Slide, and Super Terrific Happy Fun Zone, that’s all listed here, with times and places. Then there’s the five-page list of vendors – listed in alphabetical order, starting here. It all kicks off at 10 am Friday, July 9, and runs till 5 pm Sunday, July 11 – and also mark your calendar for the West Seattle Art Walk on Summer Fest Eve, 6-9 pm Thursday, July 8 – there’ll be extra fun that night too.

Belly dancer Najma is just one of the performers who’ve already taken the stage – or, in this case, danced on the green – at Morgan Junction Park, where we’re midway through the Morgan Junction Community Festival. Lots of folks dropping by to say hi (and in the past hour-plus, picking up the free bumper stickers we mentioned in our first report – they’re going fast!), telling us they’re taking a break from yard work or other things they think they SHOULD be doing … c’mon, get away from the computer, it’s a mellow afternoon down here. Dog-friendly too if you want to bring your pooch. Still three more bands to go over the next few hours, plus the fabled Bubbleman at 5:15 pm.

3:32 PM: Inbetween the park and the area where us exhibitor types are hanging out behind Feedback Lounge (WSB sponsor)/Zeeks Pizza, you’ll find West Seattle Natural Energy and MissionMoto – they’re set up between Beveridge Place Pub and Feedback – and just past them, you’ll find booths like the one Sylvia Rolle and Cindi Barker are staffing right now:

They’ll be happy to tell you all about the West Seattle Emergency Communication Hubs (and other West Seattle Be Prepared readiness matters). More to come – this continues till 7.

4:37 PM: The Slags are just now starting to play – a little later than scheduled – and we’re awaiting word on whether the Bubbleman will make it – apparently he was having some trouble catching a ferry from Vashon. Meantime, some updates – we’re out of the I (Heart) West Seattle bumper stickers that the West Seattle Chamber of Commerce had given us to hand out – also “sold out” (though they too were free), the coupon books for the Bite of Morgan tastes – organizers printed almost 500 this year, a few hundred more than last year, but still ran out. Of course you can still stop in to eat and drink at the nearby restaurants/bars – all this is amid Kokoras Greek Grill, Feedback Lounge, Zeeks Pizza, Beveridge Place Pub, Starbucks, West Seattle Thriftway, Subway, New Teriyaki and Wok, Domino’s – and a bit to the south, Caffe Ladro.

5:25 PM: Bubbleman is indeed here and started a few minutes ago. We photographed him getting ready:

And from their performance about an hour ago – The Slags – introduced by their drummer’s son, with a bit of off-camera coaching from Morgan Community Association’s music guru (among other things) Chas Redmond:

Speaking of music … we spotted Willie Murderface – a West Seattleite who hosts karaoke – and asked if he’d stop for a photo:

Even if you’re not a karaoke denizen, you may remember Willie for the benefit he organized last January to raise money for Jason McKissack, the Seattle police officer who suffered a career-ending injury when attacked in the line of duty two years ago. (Here’s our story from the night of the fundraiser.) Thanks to everybody who stopped by today – the booth area behind the Feedback is starting to clear out, but there’s still one band left to play in the park (warming up now) before the festival wraps. We’ll have one more report later including a video-highlight roundup and any other post-festival tidbits – meantime, hope to see you tomorrow at the West Seattle Junction Health Fair, 10 am-2 pm in the Wells Fargo parking lot, right across from (and same hours as) the Farmers’ Market!

That’s the entertainment schedule at the Morgan Junction Community Festival, which has just begun at Morgan Junction Park (on California SW just north of Fauntleroy) – in and around the park, and don’t miss the dozens of booths behind Feedback Lounge (WSB sponsor) and Zeeks Pizza, including ours:

(That’s our old advertising banner from the Water Taxi, which isn’t running ads on the new boat yet.) Also of note, in the “festival zone” at Beveridge Place Pub, a crowd’s gathering for the USA-England World Cup soccer match:

You can also watch at Abbondanza Pizza a bit further south, same side of California SW. So come down and enjoy the festival – be sure to get your free Bite of Morgan food coupons (Abbondanza is among the participants) at the Morgan Community Association booth at the park – the one in the left of this shot:

The festival continues till 7 pm. More coverage to come! 11:49 AM: Almost forgot – in addition to the Bite tastes, you can get a barbecue lunch at West Seattle Thriftway, kitty corner from the festival zone, till 4 pm, benefiting the Morgan Community Association!

12:49 PM: Back to the festival focus after a brief bit of breaking news (diver rescue call that turned out OK – diver wasn’t missing or in trouble, after all). Good news – we have something new at the booth, courtesy of the West Seattle Chamber of Commerce – free I *HEART* West Seattle bumper stickers! While they last! Here they are on our table, next to the makeshift World Cup scoreboard:

Also Water Taxi brochures and city Neighborhood Center info. We’re right behind Feedback Lounge, between Animals First Foundation and Pacific Rim Emergency Planning.

2:05 PM: Shoutout to more of our neighbors here in the exhibit area – longtime WSB sponsor Ventana Construction is right across the way – here’s Ventana’s Anne with kids Delila and Logan:

We’ve also seen some candidates – Marcee Stone and Joe Fitzgibbon, both candidates for the 34th District State House Position 1 have been sighted. (P.S. Later in the afternoon, another candidate in that race, Mike Heavey, visited the festival too, as we noted at the time via Twitter.) We’ll be starting a new report shortly – have video of belly dancing and music too!

Three days till the next big festival – the Morgan Junction Community Festival on Saturday (11 am-6 pm in Morgan Junction Park and behind the Feedback Lounge [WSB sponsor]/Zeeks Pizza buliding) – More information to share about what you’ll see and hear while you’re there. The Morgan Community Association website has the full list of live-music acts and other entertainers – it’s an eclectic lineup, too, including jazz, country, rock, and punk music, plus belly-dancing and bubbles! Then there’s the Taste of Morgan (free coupons for food samples at area eateries) – and in the exhibitor area (behind Feedback/Zeeks), you’ll find us – we’re co-sponsoring the festival – and you’ll get to meet reps from more than two dozen other local businesses/groups … including Ventana Construction (WSB sponsor), West Seattle Natural Energy, MISSIONmoto, Madrid Frame, West Seattle Food Bank, Sustainable West Seattle, Furry Faces Foundation, Animals First Foundation, 34th District Democrats, Wahine Sport, Barefoot Books, The Kenney, Solstice Park P-Patch, West Seattle Garden Tour (co-sponsored by WSB), Penguina Designs, Emergency Preparedness Communications Hubs, Pacific Rim Emergency Planning, Bruce Savadow Photography, Alice Kuder from Prudential NW, Tatayna Graphics, Emerald Spiral, SDOT, and of course the Morgan Community Association itself. 11-6 Saturday, see you there (and at the West Seattle Junction Health Fair the next day!).