My number one Christmas pet peeve used to be dead lights in the tree. I never trusted those little lamps and every two or three years I’d have to replace a whole string. The larger bulbs were too hot and were dangerous for little kids so we never got used to having them around. We had one string when our youngest was a toddler and we finally chucked it. This year, for the first time, the tree lights are all LEDs and I’m hoping they last longer than a few years.
Otherwise, all the other pet peeves are okay. I kinda like sneaking over to Southcenter and breezing in and out. I go to Guitar Center and REI there sometimes because it can be quicker than trying to get over to Westlake area – either by bus or in a car. There’s a way, if those are the only places you’re going, to get from Gatewood there and back in an hour or less. Also, if you park by the bus center and just walk in the long way, there’s no real parking hassle. I always park in what we used to refer to back east as West Bumf*** – fewer dints in the car and you usually remember where you parked.
I’ve been both a driver and a pedestrian and have felt the frustration from both sides of the issue. What I have to remind myself as a driver though is that I have the greater power over the pedestrians, therefore I also have the greater responsibility. A mistake I make as a driver has a much greater impact given that my vehicle weighs thousands of pounds and is typically traveling at speeds of 30mph or more. If I need to pay greater attention or slow down a little in order to spot and wait for pedestrians, then that’s a responsibility I have to accept. It’s the tradeoff I should be willing to make for the speed and convenience of personal motorized transportation.
That said, in practical terms everybody’s got a lot on their minds and sometimes people do forget to check every corner at all times for a pedestrian. One idea that could help is speed bumps. A well-placed speed bump can be just the thing to remind the distracted driver that they need to check their speed and watch for pedestrians. In areas such as 35th where people tend to drive faster (although the speed limit is 35mph), a series of the rumble bumps — not sure of the correct name for them — might be in order.
To me it seems like the least we could do when people are quite literally being killed in the streets.
Lest you forget..WS’s own Jade West Cafe (tucked quietly next to the West Seattle Wine Cellar) is a true JEM. Mr. Wah is simply the best.
The ID is packed with great Chinese restaurants. It all depends on what you like.
Here are a few of my favorites:
House of Hong, China Gate, O’Asian for dim sum–although most Chinese restaurants do a pretty good job with dim sum in the ID, avoid Ocean City.
For a great Chinese cheap lunch–Shanghai Garden, HoHo Seafood Restaurant, Hing Loon all come to mind.
As for WS–HoWin is about the quality of the Safeway steam table. Don’t worry about labels, just go to Lee’s and order the chinese dishes there on the menu. The chef used to be the lead chef at Wild Ginger for the first several years.
We really liked 1-800-JUNK. On time, on bid; they even moved some furniture when we still had room in the truck. Guys quietly (unofficially?) admitted that they did go through the load to find usable items before taking it to the dump. Not sure where those things ended up, so if that bothers you, maybe not a good fit. We had taken most of what we thought was usable to a charity, but if some of what we thought was “junk” stayed out of the landfill, more power to ’em.
Excellent thread. I too am new to west seattle and always on the lookout for a good hamburger.
I dig elliot bay’s bbq burger but will be sampling the other places soon, and no doubt with frequency.
I hate to be a party pooper, but given the reality of this situation this just sounds like a lot of whining. As someone who frequently is bus riding pedestrian (using crosswalks marked and not) as well as a bicycle commuter this whole discussion sounds *exactly* like when people complain about bicycles dart around and don’t obey traffic laws and adhere to all traffic laws. Except somehow its from the point of view of the pedestrian/bicycle. Stay with me for a second. 99% of the road using public are car drivers. Anything that is as restriction to people driving is a frustration and a source of aggravation, they don’t care why, all they know is your slowing them down the 15 seconds that might make a difference. Usually the people behind the wheel blame everyone but themselves, and insist on laws to keep peds and bicycles from slowing them down. Read the hate and vitriol that drivers have for bicyclists. http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/soundoff/comment.asp?articleID=344924
now remember for a second, that if a ped or a bicyclist makes a mistake they fall down. If a car blows a crosswalk, someone dies.
Sorry to get in you face about it, but if you want people to care that your in a crosswalk, start treating it like its your life. Make a bigger deal about it, cause a scene, call the cops. because right now your just that 1% of people using the road that are easily dismissed. did we all forget that a rabbi on his cellphone hit his SECOND pedestrian in a crosswalk last summer? The gentlemen that was killed was a assistant to the city council. What did the driver get? NOTHING. You think emailing the council is going to do something?
As a frequent pedestrian, I sometimes have a driver stop for me on Fauntleroy, and then get upset that I don’t go. The problem is, I appreciate that they stopped, but usually it’s the other side of the street, and the car on the side I will first cross is racing towards me and I am not sure they will stop, so I cannot safely cross. Meanwhile, the nice person who did stop is pissed off at me because I’m not crossing. I can’t assume that everyone will stop, so I need to be safe. I may have right of way, but that doesn’t mean I should just start walking in front of oncoming traffic!
Then one time they did all stop, I started crossing, and someone decided to drive *around* the stopped traffic (in the parking lane) to blow through the intersection and almost hit me in the crosswalk.
I, and a few neighbors, were in touch with people about putting in a crosswalk or traffic light or at the very least some pedestrian crossing signs, but they gave us the runaround for a very long time and then didn’t get back to us. Then I tried contacting the SW Precinct, telling them what’s been going on here with no one yielding to us, and they emailed back saying that pedestrian safety was very important, and they were going to come out and take a look and start ticketing people who don’t yield. That never happened. I’ve never seen a cop car yet during my morning commute, nor has the situation changed. I don’t know what else I can do to get the rules enforced, other than praying I don’t get hit someday.
Anyone have info on what they might be?
Like to keep up on things in the area.
The way I understand the law, drivers must stop for pedestrians if they step off the curb in a crosswalk (marked OR unmarked). If the pedestrian is standing up on the curb or sidewalk, drivers can legally drive in front of them.
So I wish more pedestrians understood that if they intend to wait for all the traffic to clear, they would stay up on the sidewalk, back from the curb. Sometimes I see a pedestrian up ahead standing off the curb in the crosswalk, so I come to a stop, only to have them just stand there. Finally, I have to gesture “oh well” with my hands and drive in front of them, risking a ticket.
When I am a pedestrian (and I walk frequently) I make sure I communicate my intentions clearly to motorists.
I don’t like the current forums at all, although I am glad you’re adding this feature. The layout and typography isn’t particularly nice compared to other forums, and the user interface is sort of clumsy. You should improve that tiny little >> you have to click on to reply, for example! That’s just making it unnecessarily hard for us. Also, remove the line at the bottom of every page “Put code in between backticks“. We aren’t posting formatted code here and “backtick” isn’t a word any real person uses anyway.
You don’t need to use the regular WSB sidebar on this part of the site, either, it’s just wasting space. Ditch the links to the monthly archives (no one’s clicking on those anyway, folks…) and category links. Those things point to content that’s separate from the forums, so it’s irrelevant here. Once that’s gone, use the full width of the content area for the forums.
Given the homespun feel of this thing, I suspect you don’t have the admin tools necessary to handle these forums if they see any real growth. I expect it will get out of hand quickly if there are lots of people posting often on lots of threads. I would encourage you not to try to build your own here, just go with a free hosted site like Proboards (http://www.proboards.com/index.html).
Here is the site for pedestrian laws:
http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/walk/Laws.htm
I know I’ve been guilty of not yielding to peds at unmarked intersections on 35th…quite honestly, I’m sure everyone has been guilty of this. Drive down 35th at almost anytime and there is always going to be someone waiting to cross at some intersection…most of the time cars don’t stop. Not exactly the safest street for a car to just stop on. However, it is not always obvious that the ped is there to cross – many times I’ve seen cars stop only to have the ped just stand there.
My big beef are peds that cross against their light or in the middle of the block…I see this issue much more frequently as a driver. As a ped, I’m not often bothered by crossing fauntleroy, California, or 35th…there are always breaks in the cars (even by the ferry dock – I’ve crossed there many times)…no use risking your life attempting to get traffic to stop both ways when you can just wait for a break in traffic.
Yeah, my several-year peeve is similarly themed: I can’t tolerate people who don’t feel like they need to park their cars in the grocery store lot like everyone else, so they just ‘park’ IN FRONT of the store and leave the car running. This happens at Admiral and Jefferson Square Safeways most often. Often the driver is still in the idling car,and if I’m walking by them, I sarcastically feign altruism and point to a nearby open spot.
The 35th/Avalon SBUX is the worst! I have complained numerous times to the staff and to corporate, and nothing improves, they just sending me free drink coupons. The new SBUX at Jefferson Square is great though- quick, friendly barristas and a fully stocked pastry case. And if you go in the morning you don’t have to deal with the bad parking since no one is there.
My favorite though is the coffee at Thriftway. Great prices, friendly baristas and grocery shopping all in one stop. I order Americano’s, and I’m always impressed there is a beautiful, thick crema on top. As Wes suggested above, if you want to tell the good from the bad or mediocre, just order a shot and drink it straight.
I have firsthand experience!
According to an entomologist I spoke with in Puyallup about five years ago, WS is the northernmost area that has subterranean termites (let’s call them ST’s). They apparently have no interest in any areas east of here. ST’s need food and moisture, so if you have areas of standing water around your house try to fix that. Also remove any wood that may sit close to your house.
In my case, I discovered ST’s when they ate through a bit of caulk at the doorway of my mudroom. Mudroom has a cinderblock foundation (bad!), and the ST’s came up through the holes in the cinderblock and ate most of the mudsill and partway up the vertical supports. A handy friend removed the drywall inside and a few rows of siding outside to effect repairs and we tried to fill in as many cinderblock holes with quikcrete that we could access.
Cascade Pest Control was the only company I found in Seattle that deals with ST’s. He had to dig a shallow trench around the affected area, mix up several gallons of Termidor, and fill the trench with it. Termidor doesn’t repel ST’s, they go through the treated soil, and take it back to the nest where it kills everyone. It continues to work for five years. Next summer will be five years for me so I plan to have Cascade back for another treatment, just to be safe. It’s not cheap – cost around $400 just to treat around the mudroom, would be $1200-$1500 to treat around my 800 square foot house. If I remember correctly, Cascade will guarantee for five years if you treat around the entire structure, in my case I only did the one room so no guarantee.
I could go on for an hour about ST’s. I find them both horrifying ($$$) and fascinating.
If the inspector you used at time of purchase didn’t notice any damage to the mudsill in the crawlspace perhaps this is an early discovery. I’ll keep my fingers crossed for you.
For those of us that fully understand that UV rays are bad but like to soak up some fake sun before going on vacation pay special attention when signing up for those “specials” at Fastan.
Here’s what happened to me:
Between 8/14/2006 and 12/7/2006 I purchased Tanning sessions from Fastan on Fauntleroy. I went into the store today (12/27/2007)for a session and was told that my credits had expired. Like rubbing salt in an open wound I was then told that if I wanted to sign up for an additional package, I would be credited the expired tans. I remember thinking, “so let me get this straight, I didn’t use all the tans I previously purchased, but if I buy more tans that I probably won’t use, then you’ll do me a favor and give me back what I already paid for.”
I expressed my disappointment in their policy with hope of some good explanation by the sales representative but only got what appeared to be a well rehearsed response of “we tell all of our customers that they expire
While I was in the store, I noticed that none of the advertised specials that were prominently displayed mentioned that the credits would expire after any set period of time. When I inquired as to why there was no written disclaimer, the sales representative told me they verbally tell customers at point of sale and that it is stated in the contract that is signed. I asked to see an example of this contract where it was stated in writing that my tans would expire and wanted to see where I signed acknowledging this, and they could not produce one for me. If I wanted a copy I was then told that I would have to get it from their corporate office. What is most confusing is that some of my tanning credits are set to expire in 1 year while others last two years. At no point in time do I recall this being explained to me, as I would have been reluctant to purchase as many credits as I did. I’m not really into tanning but go before vacation so I don’t burn on the first day when exposed to sun.
In the end I asked for the regional manager and was only given a first name and a phone number which I later learned was their Burien location. When I asked for the managers last name, i was told that she didn’t know it. Seriously, who doesn’t know their boss\managers last name. Anyways, I’m done with Fastan, they may have gotten my unused tanning credits but lost a customer.
Anyone have a good recomendation on where I should go for fake sun?
I had to have one of my water heaters replaced. I called Southwest Plumbing and after getting their quote I decided to check elsewhere. I saw that someone suggested Joe the Plumber so I called him. He was here the next day, replaced the water heater and did it for HALF the quote from SWP. That is even less that what he ball parked on the phone for a rough estimate.
MissK – before we moved RRRs to the Forums, we did have a thread on which some recommendations were requested and made, just a few weeks ago – check out the comments here:
https://westseattleblog.com/blog/?p=4665
I am so-far quite satisfied with the message boards. I have for some time been looking for a place to communally kvetch about the ridiculously long east/west traffic-light at California and Charleston. Now ‘the Blog’, as it is referred to be my close circle, has given me this opportunity.
Keep up the good work
This is an area for people to post requests for others’ recommendations about specific types of services and businesses in West Seattle. Please make the topic title as specific as possible — e.g. “Looking for a (whatever).” If you are replying to a request with information about a business that you own or are otherwise involved with, we ask that you disclose that. This is NOT an area for anyone to launch a topic about their own business or service without a question having been posted by another user (different IP address) first. Thanks!
Just did a full Junction walk along California (not to the approval of my dog :) to check restaurant signs and basically everything is either closed or an unknown (meaning they didn’t have anything posted). I haven’t called any of the unknowns, but I’m assuming if they don’t say, they’re closed. Here’s the full list in case anyone has info on the ones w/o posted signs.<br>
- Ama Ama: Unknown
- Tom Young Kum: Closed
- Yummy Teriyaki: Closed
- Elliott Bay Brew Pub: Closed
- Talarico’s: Unknown
- Rocksport: Unknown (Forgot to check)
- Cupcake Royale: Unknown
- Jak’s: Closed
- Matador: Unknown
- Maharaja: Unknown
- Garlic Jim’s: Unknown
- Kamei: Unknown
- Lee’s Asian: Unknown
- Shadowland: Unknown
- Shoefly: Closed
- Pagliacci: Unknown (I turned south after Shoefly and forgot to check)
- Bee’s: Unknown
- Caper’s: Unknown
- Azuma: Unknown
- West 5: Closed (although open on C-Mas Eve)
- Easy Street: Closed
- Great Harvest: Closed
- Poggie’s: OPEN at 5:00 PM, but I don’t think they serve food
- Taqueria Guaymas: Unknown
- Husky Deli: Unknown (although presumed closed b/c they are for other holidays such as Easter)
- Mashiko’s: Unknown
- Puerto Vallarta: Unknown
- Bakery Nouveau: Closed
Sure, it would have been easier to just say “They’re all closed except for Poggie’s,” but you don’t realize how many restaurants we have on one street in a 2-block area until you look at each of them and try to commit them to memory. Looks like we may start a new Christmas tradition this year: Dim Sum in the ID followed by drinks at Poggie’s. :)
I had Southwest come out and quote for some repipe….$1600 for ten sweat joints on copper pipes. That’s $160 a joint!. I hired a retired plumber for the day who taught me how to solder and I did it myself:)
Right there with you on this. Southcenter is pure, unmitigated Hell.
There is a lady who has been behind me in stores twice now, on two different days in two different Westwood Village stores, singing Christmas Carols. Just as I was sighing a breath of relief that they weren’t playing overhead for that 5 minutes, she started up. She had a nice voice; I’m just over the Christmas music. (bah humbug, Grinch I am)
Shout out to three folks I encountered tonight also at Westwood Village. The first one was a mother and daughter team at B&N. I walk with a cane. Daughter (4-ish?) was heading toward me and Mom reeled her in a bit so she didn’t smack into me. Daughter pointed and asked “Mommy, what’s that?” Mom replied “It’s a cane. People use it to help them walk better.” So many parents “shush” their kids when they’re asking perfectly normal, natural questions about the differences between folks. It’s nice to see one answer in a matter-of-fact way.
Both of the other two were at QFC. I was exhausted by the time I got there. It must have showed. A kind man using a scooter back near the butcher asked me if I wanted a lift, which made me giggle.
I asked an employee where-the-heck they were hiding the raisins, as I’d been around the store 3 times, and down the baking aisle each time and hadn’t seen them. The woman not only went and got them for me, but then offered to carry my basket for me to finish my shopping. I must have really looked as tired as I felt. I’ve been fighting a pretty major medical issue, and tonight was a night where the “above and beyond” as well as the touch of humor were just so appreciated. It really made my night.
I love C&P Coffee Company on California. I’m not that picky about coffee so I can’t offer a critique on that, but I love the funky-cozy atmosphere and the live music.
Yep, that’s the one. There are two Asian restaurants north of Quidnunc; Lee’s is the most northern on that block. The other (the name escapes me) is mostly a sushi place. I do agree that Lee’s isn’t full Chinese, although they have a few of the traditional Chinese options like Mongolian Beef (which is so, so good) and Sesame Chicken (also great).
I can recommend House of Hong for Dim Sum, as well as Honey Court, both in the ID (although the latter is mostly fried Dim Sum). Then there’s P.F. Chang’s in Pacific Place, which is pretty good for a chain.
I can advise you to steer clear of Louie’s in Ballard. Granted, we’ve only been there once 9 years ago, and it was right after we’d moved here, so maybe it was just bad timing. But the egg roles were breaded and fried like fish from a fish ‘n chips place, and they served them with ketchup. Not my idea of Chinese. I remember those horrific egg roles like it was yesterday. :)
