One way I strive to be able to stop for pedestrians wanting to cross 35th is to go the speed limit on 35th. It’s 35 miles per hour, not 40 or 45 or 50. Of course, about two-thirds of the cars are passing me on the left. But those of us in the curb lane are at least in a position to slow down and stop, and since there’s usually at least two or three of us going the legal speed, that is a lot of cars to be stopping and drivers in the other lanes pay attention. I’ve stopped for any number of pedestrians in the area around Camp Long up to Morgan St. and had no problems and others eventually stopped to allow the pedestrians to cross. By not recognizing the need to stop sooner, others merely delayed the entire flow of traffic as the pedestrians weren’t going to cross until all 4 lanes were stopped – as it should be. We can subtly enforce the laws ourselves by actually abiding in them. Strange concept, I know. Oh, I also bike and walk on 35th – all the time, and ride the bus. So I do have a good feel for how traffic flows throughout the day and week. The alternative to not being nice, by the way, is to put 35th on a road diet – reduce it to one travel lane in each direction with a center turn lane. Which would be better?
If you’re lucky, on a Comcast main trunk, in a popular area for them then you’ll do fine. If there’s a lot of Comcast folks in a single neighborhood, they respond fast if one of them has a problem, they don’t want to generate a serious customer migration. We’ve got two digital set boxes – now about 5 years old, and two equally ancient remotes. The Comcast software is only slightly less sucky than the AAT MotoRazr software on my cell phone – which is to say they both suck a lot. But they work, and like an old microwave, they do what you tell them to do even if it takes some weird contortion of the buttons to do it. If you’re in some isolated Comcast, single customer, zone, I’d expect your service would get pretty bad even if you had their latest set boxes and fancy, back-lit, remotes. Ask around, if other neighbors in your area have Comcast and are happy with it, then you in the right area for Comcast. If you see a lot of dish antennas on people’s houses or balcony’s, see which one has the most logos and ask a couple of folks what they think.
I personally think it totally depends on where you are in West Seattle. I think Highland Park/White Center is a dish network area. Gatewood Hill seems to be a fairly happy Comcast area. The Junction seems to be in love with their DSL (and why not, the freakin’ switch is about 100 yards from everyone).
I personally boycott Starbucks. The coffee is terrible, and the environment is just fake and creepy. And, seriously, does West Seattle really need 11!? Flippin’ outrageous! Why do people support that place? Stick with the little guy shops. The coffee is usually great, and the people you buy from actually have personalities. It’s nice to see your joe hand-made instead of recreated via button pushing. Just my 2 cents.
Of course, a super-lightweight, super-strong and crash-absorbent vehicle which ran on solar or wind or rain would be cool, too. Maybe use your rain car in the winter and your solar car in the summer and your wind car in the spring and fall. What we need is about a thousand innovators and outside-of-the-box tinkerers and a community or region willing to experiment.
And anyone who’s seen “Who Killed the Electric Car, would have some thoughts for the 500-gallon coin and the thousand-gallon coin, too. Remember when “What was good for GM, was good for the Country.” Different era, different media, but – hey, we all got suckered in then. That was the heyday of the late 40’s and ’50’s when it was drive everywhere on gas so cheap it must have made your head spin. As a teenager in PA, I used to fill my mom’s car with Gulftane – I think it was 85 octane, but it was only 12 cents a gallon and her tank only held 13 gallons. All I needed to do after a date was make sure I had a dollar left in my pocket. We all fell for it then, too. And now we argue over how to replace the Viaduct. How ’bout electric cars? At least our electricity is “mostly” renewable and does a small amount of damage (fish) and its cost is pretty darned predictable.
after a year and half of being fed up with Comcasts User Interface and lack of HD, I’m going to Direct TV.
The B-Town Blog aims to tell “all you oughta know about Burien,” including News, Events, Videos, Webcams, Reviews and much more. Published/Edited by West Seattle native Scott Schaefer, a three-time National Emmy Award winning Writer for “Bill Nye the Science Guy,” the B-town Blog is seeking Contributors in the general Burien area. Find out more at http://www.b-townblog.com. Thanks!
I have to say that I find this discussion pretty amusing, but then I’ve spent most of my life in Minneapolis, where the whole idea that drivers should yield to pedestrians in crosswalks is a strange and foreign concept. I am continually amazed by how easy and safe it is to get across the street here, by contrast, and how very deferential most drivers are to the rights of pedestrians. (Perhaps if one is used to more civil behavior by drivers, the exceptions stand out more glaringly and cause more anger.)
I’ve had a membership at ASF since September, and have been pretty happy with it. The pluses, to me, are the quantity and variety of equipment available (aerobics machines, weight machines and free weights), and the fact that I’ve never seen it so crowded that I couldn’t get on the machine I wanted. I do wish they kept the women’s locker room cleaner, and had staff available on the 3rd floor to deal with problems that might arise. But on the whole, I’ve found it a really good deal for the money.
ok…it looks like no one really wants to start this…so..at the risk of offending some….here’s a video that I think might start people talking…
http://www.blip.tv/file/520347
OK, my bad JT for not searching more — Of course I am not the only one searching for the right answer.
As to Acemotel, community service is great, but I currently pay $58/month for basic cable, and despite “competition” — promised so long ago when Cable was deregulated — The monthly cost has never decreased. The problem with Cable/Satellite is that while it is certainly not a public good like electricity or gas, it is certainly more valuable than when I when I grew up.
The differential costs add up, month after month, and I am not willing to pay $25-$40/month year after year, even if they provide community service projects. Comcast has never shown me that my business is worth anything to them, or gone out of their way. While Verizon is a similar type of company, I never hang the phone up wondering if I’ve gotten the worst part of the bargain.
Acemotel, I will check out the thread reccomended and if Comcast offers the best deal or PQ at a reasonable, if not the lowest price, I will go with them.
Thanks – JayDee
I have had Comcast for many years, and have had great reception and service. I like the company because it’s locally managed, and they do a lot of community service projects in the city. I think Comcast gets a bad rap, because compared to dish companies, they provide many many local jobs and are involved with their communities. When was the last time you heard of any dish company contributing anything to the neighborhood?
Peewee worked very well for my boys. I was disappointed that they had to go through “tryouts” at some point, I think it was when they were about 10 or 11. They all made it through the tryouts, but I thought it was a bit brutal for the little ones. All the various coaches were there watching them catch and field and hit balls, and then the coaches would pick the kids they wanted for their teams. I don’t know how it works with little league, but I’ve always heard that they are far less competitive, maybe more easygoing. (but I’m not sure?)
Clinton bamboo in Burien is AWESOME. During the winter you need to call ahead to make sure they are open. They do sell direct (not just wholesale). Extremely knowlegable, friendly & helpful.
Please, please give them a call -it’s worth it!
Dear All:
I just bought a HD TV and it is being delivered tomorrow. I have normal Comcast Cable, but I dislike Comcast (Value, Customer Service are my beefs), and would like to explore other possible HD sources.
My main concern is how well these work in West Seattle in terms of HD picture quality (PQ) and the local vendors. Secondly comes price. My sister pays $100 plus for her Comcast HD and that seems steeper than the real (not intro) costs of Dish or Direct. If Dish is $59, Direct is $49 (for instance, for similar lineups) then PQ and equipment/service would be the deciding factor. From my exploration on the web, I’ve seen that PQ is a local thing, and connected to quality of installation, and cable equipment, dish set-up.
If Comcast is really superior in PQ (Because, with HD, PQ is key) then maybe it is work sucking it up. But my experience has been less than Comcastic and I am willing to change.
Thanks for your advice – JayDee
and throw in a little dijon mustard for variety :)
Todd:
You would be missing a great opportunity if you didn’t visit the West Seattle Farmer’s Market and talked with Wade of Rockridge Orchards, one of the vendors.
Rockridge sells Bamboo, and Wade is a great resource. Now, he may not have some with him right now, but he can bring them on the truck if this is the right time to plant. I’ve been sharing my bamboo stories with him for the last couple of years and with his advice about mulching, mine have reached their species height.
Secondly, look into “Clumping” rather than running bamboo. A great resource is a local distributor’s brochure “Discovering Bamboo” by Boo-Shoot Gardens. It is $16 ordered off their website, and it is a great, up-to-date reference if you are looking to buy (Well, in addition to Wade.).
Good luck – A Bamboo “Foamer” (rabid about them)- JayDee.
<i>Can anybody recommend a good bottled salad dressing that isn’t $14 a bottle or loaded with sugar, HFCS or MSG?</i>
Kayleigh, we use balsamic vinegar. Get a hig quality one and heat it in a saucepan for just a few minutes, until it just barely begins to thicken. It will still seem too “thin” but it will continue to thicken, so take it off the heat earlier than would be instinct.
As it cools it thickens more, and you will end up with a nicely textured dressing that’s got all the sweetness of balsamic and no “vinegary” taste. If you like the vinegary taste, add a few drops of uncooked balsamic back in.
You can cook up a couple of teaspoons at a time, and it’s so easy and delicious.
Lower-effort alternative: extra virgin olive oil and balsamic. Go half and half in an empty glass jar, put the lid on and shake. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Is there anyone in West Seattle (or nearby) doing safe and effective electrolysis? I am reluctant to go with a yellow pages ad for such a delicate service. Thanks in advance for your recommendations.
My son is about to turn 5. He really wants to play baseball. I understand there is both little league and a peewee baseball league in West Seattle. Does anyone have any advice/comments/suggestions to share (good and bad) regarding the two groups?
And does anyone know the 2008 registration information for the little league? I can’t seem to find it.
Thanks!!
Years ago bought my bamboo at Bamboo Gardens of Washington, but just too far. I found a great place in Burien. They are wholesale, but have hours open to the public:
CLINTON INC BAMBOO GROWERS
12260 1st Ave S
Seattle, WA 98168 (206) 242-8848
If you drive too fast you’ll miss it -converted house on 1st Ave before 128th. Great place!
Very helpful people, nice grounds. Call for public/winter hours.
There are a number of cereals that have wall cleaner in them, including Cheerios. If you have ever painted a wall and prepared it by washing with TSP, you have used it.
Truly, I think I’ll do more shopping at PCC.
I guess the HFCS is a thickener in the salad dressings. Maybe this is why all the low-cal bottled salad dressings and most of the regular salad dressings I’ve tried were awful. Why would you put corn syrup on vegetables?
Can anybody recommend a good bottled salad dressing that isn’t $14 a bottle or loaded with sugar, HFCS or MSG?
When I was looking for something unique I went to every nursery in the greater Seattle area. The choices were slim and not that healthy looking. A friend sent me to Bamboo Gardens of Washington. It’s between Redmond and Fall City, but if you have an afternoon, it is so worth the drive. They have a complete forest almost, of full grown (some are 30+ feet) bamboo. You really get a feel for what they will become. I thought I was looking for black, like everyone always is. But when I saw all the choices, many were much more attractive. Look at their website and you’ll see what I mean. Everything from shrub to timber varieties.
eigenwijs,
I recently joined ASF in my quest for triathlon glory. :) The price of $50/month is accurate and is even cheaper if you pre-pay for the full year as they give you an extra three months free… thus 15 months for $600.
I’ve had the chance to try 24HF a couple of times and much prefer ASF. I’m a big fan of the pool, the spin classes (Ed and Stacy are great instructors) and the weights/strength equipment although I think the cardio equipment is old and mostly crap… my tennis club has better cardio equipment.
Other than for spin classes I rarely use the club during peak hours so I can’t tell you how busy all the equipment is. However, parking is limited during these times so you can expect to park on the street.
Hope this helps. :)
