With a rendering of the Tooth Fairy, a lone molar and the elegantly simple message to "Fight Plaque Back," Catharine Blaine School fourth grader Sophia Parkhurst has designed an award-winning bookmark that will reach some 20,000 readers.Sophia, 9, is part of a Magnolia Camp Fire troop that entered its members' designs in the 21st annual bookmark contest held by the Alliance of the Washington State Dental Association, an organization for the spouses of dentist in Washington state. Along with supporting the activities of the Washington State Dental Association, the alliance is dedicated to promoting dental health education in the community and the state. Sophia Parkhurst (center) displays her certificate from the Alliance of the Washington State Dental Association. Also (L to R): Maddie Powell, 9; Bella Parkhurst, 6; Emma Shaul, 10; and Giovanna Dieffenbach, 10. Photo by Amy Parkhust
For most businesses, "location, location, location" is key to success. For Englishman David Hutchinson, however, it's topic, topic, topic.Hutchinson owns Flora & Fauna Books, which opened in Magnolia last November after being located in Pioneer Square for 20 years and, before that, five years in Belltown.That his business is so old is "a monument to stubbornness and stupidity," Hutchinson joked in a recent interview in the store at 3121 W. Government Way near Discovery Park.The business has also managed to survive at a time when small- to medium-sized bookstores are going out of business at a record pace, he noted. "That model no longer works," he said of such independent booksellers.These days, Hutchinson said, bookstores need to be huge, like Internet-based Amazon.com, or small, such as outlets like his that serve niche markets. In fact, he added, Flora & Fauna is the only bookstore of its kind in North America.
Sixteen residents of the Wimbledon Apartments have proposed that the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) study a Residential Parking Zone (RPZ) for the West Galer neighborhood.Greg Buck of the Wimbledon residents put the proposal before the Queen Anne Community Council Transportation Committee at its Jan. 30 meeting. The QACC Board will hear the proposal during Committee Reports on Feb. 7 after 7 p.m. in the McClure Middle School cafeteria.Buck requested a letter of support from QACC and introduced the extent and purpose of the proposed RPZ to affect parking in front of the Wimbledon on West Galer Street, on West Garfield Street and on cross streets. It was explained that the goal of the RPZ is to eliminate long-term parking by employees of neighboring businesses and by transit commuters who drive in from outside the neighborhood to park during the work-day. If SDOT studies the proposed RPZ, there will be public meetings held to allow all interested parties to give input in to the decision-making process.
For most businesses, "location, location, location" is key to success. For Englishman David Hutchinson, however, it's topic, topic, topic.Hutchinson owns Flora & Fauna Books, which opened in Magnolia last November after being located in Pioneer Square for 20 years and, before that, five years in Belltown.That his business is so old is "a monument to stubbornness and stupidity," Hutchinson joked in a recent interview in the store at 3121 W. Government Way near Discovery Park.The business has also managed to survive at a time when small-to-medium-sized bookstores are going out of business at a record pace, he noted. "That model no longer works," he said of such independent booksellers.These days, Hutchinson said, bookstores need to be huge, like Internet-based Amazon.com, or small, such as outlets like his that serve niche markets. In fact, he added, Flora & Fauna is the only bookstore of its kind in North America. "Most businesses like mine operate out of homes or warehouses."
Several people who live an apartment building at 419 Queen Anne Ave. N. are fed up with how much chlorine has been added to their water. There's so much of the disinfectant it makes his eyes sting, one resident said. However, Seattle Public Utilities tested water samples in the area on Monday this week and found chlorine levels within a normal range of concentration.To hear Rachel May and her boyfriend Christopher Zoellner tell it, that's a little hard to believe. They live in the apartment building and have numerous complaints about the water there."It smells like a public swimming pool, and my bathtub shouldn't smell like that," May lamented. There are also other problems associated with the chlorine in the water, she said. "It definitely dries everything out, it dries your skin out, it dries your hair out."And that's despite using bath salts and oils that treat dry skin, said May, who added, "My skin itches." It's gotten so bad lately that May will take baths only every other day, she said. "It really upsets me; I like to take baths, and I can't." May also can't take showers because the apartment doesn't have one.
Giggles have replaced guns and music has replaced mayhem at the former Mr. Lucky club across the street from KeyArena. Opening for business for the first time last Friday, Feb. 2, the Mainstage Comedy and Music Club owners are betting on success in a business that is also a dream come true for two of the three owners.Owner Becka Barry is a comic, while owner Julie Mains is a musician and singer, and for some time both women have wanted a place where they can both perform and call the shots, according to Mains."As a musician," she said, "I've wanted for a long time to have a space where my community can play regularly, when they wanted to [and] on their own terms."Most musicians would like to have that kind of gig, but the idea of combining music with comedy came about almost by accident. Mains and Barry met last year while they were in a commercial for Lynnwood Honda, Mains remembers."I was like, this woman is cool and smart and funny, and we really hit it off," she said. Plus, Mains added, Barry complained that there just wasn't a club venue in Seattle for "A-List comics."So the two women decided to combine efforts. They came up with a 19-page business plan for a new club, and they started the search for a place and for an investor, Mains said.
The Seattle Public Library's Magnolia Branch, 2801 34th Ave. W., is tentatively scheduled to close at 6 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 24, for renovation and expansion. The date is tentative because the library is currently advertising for general contractor bids, which will be opened Feb. 15. The closure date will be finalized once the bids are received and reviewed.During the closure, the library will add staff to nearby branches to help meet the need for library service. Librarians also will continue community outreach to children and young adults, and will make school visits in the branch's service area. The closest branches to the Magnolia Branch are: the Ballard Branch, 5614 22nd Ave. N.W., 684-4089; the Fremont Branch, 731 N. 35th St., 684-4084; and the Central Library, 1000 Fourth Ave., 386-4636.
Seattle's Southeast Neighborhood Services Center is moving. For the past decade the Center has been located at 4839 Rainier Avenue South in the heart of Columbia City. But on Feb. 1 its keepers picked up shop and moved it to the new Othello Building at 3415 S. Othello Street.Southeast Neighborhood District Coordinator, Glenn Harris is excited about the move even though he is sad to leave Columbia City with its old-world ambience, pedestrian friendly configuration, shops and restaurants. Harris said one of the city's reasons for locating in Columbia City had been to help that neighborhood's revitalization efforts. Now that that purpose has been achieved, Harris said the city wants to relocate in another neighborhood that is trying to improve.
Columbia City businesses have been targeted recently by what Book Exchange owner Jim Holmes thinks is a counterfeiting ring that has successfully passed several bogus $20s.He should know. "I actually got three of them," said Holmes, who added that he's heard of other local merchants getting stuck with the funny money. That includes Angie's Tavern, which ended up with one of the $20s, along with a nearby convenience store, which ended up with a fake $5 bill, he said in some surprise. "It doesn't seem it would be worth going to prison for a $5."He should know. "I actually got three of them," said Holmes, who added that he's heard of other local merchants getting stuck with the funny money. That includes Angie's Tavern, which ended up with one of the $20s, along with a nearby convenience store, which ended up with a fake $5 bill, he said in some surprise. "It doesn't seem it would be worth going to prison for a $5."
I love February because, next to Christmas, Valentine's is the best of all the holidays. Romance and kindness are in the air as we all look for that perfect card with just the right sentiment. Yet few people are aware that Valentine cards, as we know them in America today, are largely the creation of one remarkable woman: Esther Howland. A progressive creatorEsther Howland was born in 1828 in Worcester, Mass. A classmate of Emily Dickinson's, she attended the famed Mount Holyoke Female Seminary, which was in the forefront of progressive education for women in the 1800s. Despite that fact, the school discouraged the celebration of Valentine's Day as a frivolous and unworthy activity for a disciplined feminine mind. Secretly, however, the girls exchanged written notes of friendship and small watercolor paintings of flowered hearts and gentle doves.After her graduation at 19, Esther returned to her hometown, where her family owned and operated a large book and stationery store. Not long after coming home, she received a card from an English associate of her father's, wishing her a happy Valentine's Day. Looking at the slightly decorated card, Esther thought back to the beautiful watercolors and hand-penned notes she and her friends had exchanged at Mount Holyoke behind their teachers' backs.Her conclusion: She could make a more attractive card than that!
Surveys can be so helpful. If it weren't for separate surveys done by the German research institute Innofact AG and Yahoo! Personals, we wouldn't know that the time of year that most relationships break up has just ended. According to them, more people will find themselves dumping or dumped between New Year's and Valentine's Day than any other time of the year.Think about that cutie you met last year but couldn't approach due to the significant other scowling in the background. It's time to stop by their work, accidentally/on-purpose call their number or send them a particularly leading Internet joke by e-mail and casually find out if the relationship survived January.
Twelve years after the business burned in a Valentine's Day electrical fire, Gargoyles Statuary will celebrate its annual Cremation Sale starting Wednesday, Feb. 14, through Saturday, Feb. 17."It was a really horrific sight," owner Gayle Nowicki said. "We did have a lot of scorched stuff."From the ashesThe gothic business celebrates its resurrection from the ashes every year with a sale. One year, Nowicki put items in a fireplace for a nostalgic, burnt look; another year items were taken to a glassblower's studio and torched. Now, the sale is less about novelty and more of a way for customers to find a bargain."It was a big event, and I try to thank our customers every year by having this sale," Nowicki said. "It's our biggest sale of the year."T-shirts, statuaries and jewelry will be on sale, and assorted damaged pieces will be 10 to 75 percent off.
The Hamilton Marimba Players welcome a packed auditorium of students and staff past and present to Hamilton International Middle School's 80th-birthday party on Jan. 30. The event included several celebratory cheers and songs, rooms for alumni to gather by decades, oral-history recordings by Jack Straw Productions and, of course, birthday cake.
To what ends will we go to let love take root in our hearts? With the parade of Valentine's Day roses and chocolates upon us, such a question may seem sappy and trite. But strip from your mind the sensory overload of the holiday's marketing machine for a moment to contemplate the query's core. For me, the answer to this question comes in the form of a personal anecdote that transformed into a powerful touchstone.The second week of February in 1993 saw winter holding a mild grip on Missoula, and my two-mile walks to class at the University of Montana became pleasant. Even if the weather had turned icy, as was common at that time of year in the Northern Rockies, I wouldn't have been bothered much, for an energizing emotional high had engulfed me after meeting Jennifer.A group of mutual friends introduced us after a Suzanne Vega concert while we walked to a birthday party. Finishing their slices of chocolate-chip cheesecake, Jennifer and our birthday-girl friend took off with some others to a nearby bar, inviting me and a friend to come along. They left, and we hesitated, briefly.
More than 50 Wallingford residents crowded the Wallingford Community Council's meeting to standing-room-only Feb. 7, drawn by a discussion about Residential Parking Zones (RPZs) for their neighborhood. The discussion specifically focused on the area from North 35th and 42nd streets between Stone Way North and Ashworth Avenue North. That includes both sides of all the streets and avenues bordering or within the area except Stone Way. Major arterials are not included in RPZs, so Stone Way is not included, although it forms the west boundary for the zone.The zones restrict long-term parking by non-residents in residential areas through permit stickers that exempt resident-owned cars from posted parking time limits. That reduces the amount of time others can park in the neighborhood without risking a parking ticket.