"Reality leaves a lot to the imagination." - John LennonIn the beginning, Capitol Records created the Beatles.The music was without substance and business was on the peak (and trough) of the radio wave. And the spirit of creativity was hovering over the chorus of "Love Me Do."Then John said, "Let there be art," and there was art.And John saw the art, that it was good; and John united the art with the commerce....At least that's one way of looking at it.Like all myths, the saga of The Beatles is backed up by a massive chorus of interpretation. There's no way around it. From accessible bubble-gum pop to avant-garde experimentation, from rampant hedonism and unimaginable wealth to transcendental spirituality and self-righteous political critique, every facet of The Beatles' mystique is built on contradiction after dizzying contradiction. And the most striking contradiction of all is John Lennon.
Energized by a fabulous first season under the direction of Peter Boal, Pacific Northwest Ballet is reaching past its traditional audience at McCaw Hall to connect with new people.In August the company made its debut at Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival in Massachusetts, a respected East Coast institution. This trip earned PNB what one local dance critic called "a big wet sloppy kiss" from The New York Times. As most Northwest arts organizations angle for NYT coverage in the way that book publishers pray that Oprah will pick their latest title for her club, Times reviewer Roslyn Sucas' declaration that PNB's performances were evidence of a company "poised for even greater things" must have been read with great satisfaction at the PNB offices.On Sept. 4 PNB returns to Seattle's own Bumbershoot festival for the first time in many years as part of the larger dance program at the Bagley Wright Theater. The company will present two of the pieces danced at Jacob's Pillow, Val Caniparoli's "Lambarena" and Sonia Dawkins' "Ripple Mechanics," as well as the solo piece "Pigment" choreographed by Olivier Wevers.
The Seattle Planning Commission has announced its intent to oppose Mayor Greg Nickel's strip club district proposal for SODO.Last Thursday, Aug. 24, at 7:30 a.m. the panel gave its recommendation for the proposed adult cabaret legislation.While 15 committee members gathered at their table, citizens filtered into the public chamber. Half an hour was given to the subject, and by 8 a.m., when the commission adjourned for a scheduled educational forum, a crowd of some 30 spectators lined the chamber walls."We've never had so many people come to one of our meetings before," commission vice chairman Tony To said.Ten minutes were given to public comments.A trio of attorneys representing Frank Colacurcio Jr. - owner of several Seattle strip clubs - accused the commission of ignoring letters submitted on behalf of their client. They were assured by To and panel member Scott Dvorak that their evidence had been read, and was referenced in the draft letter the commission has prepared for the Seattle City Council.Rick Levy, legal counsel to Colacurcio, weighed in against the strip club zone and the city council's ordinance banning lap dancing and mandating better lighting and other conditions in Colacurcio establishments. "We favor no legislation, but we urge you to act quickly," he said.Beacon Hill resident Julie van Arcken - a former resident of Portland, Ore., where adult cabarets are not contained in one area - said, "When dispersed throughout the city, the neighbors can keep an eye on them and make sure they're good neighbors."Commission member Dvorak presented the findings of the five-member panel.
A small group of Seattle schools supporters rallied downtown Friday morning in support of public initiatives to raise the property tax levy.The Great Schools for a Great City (GSGC) campaign, which attracted some 25-plus supporters to the Aug. 25 demonstration in front of the King County Courthouse, is pushing for public support of I-87 and I-88, which are opposed by Mayor Greg Nickels and which will face a court hearing over their legality early this week.Kendall Guthrie, a Queen Anne resident and mother of two children-one at Coe Elementary School and the other at Lowell on Capitol Hill-said the petition-sponsored initiatives address a crisis in funding for area schools.
Before I became a great grandmother I had no awareness of sickle cell disease (SCD), but I have a great grandchild who has sickle cell disease and I got involved because of her. Sickle cell is an inherited disease that affects the hemoglobin, or oxygen-carrying part of red blood cells. Sickle cells become hard and crescent-shaped and don't pass smoothly through small blood vessels the way normal doughnut-shaped cells do. When they jam up and block vessels, they cause pain, anemia and even organ damage, infections and other complications. There is no cure.Just talking about SCD oftentimes is not enough to convey the reality of what parents, their children and young adult with the disease have to endure, many times over and, sometimes, alone and afraid. It is a story about everyday people, like you and me. Nonetheless, everything that is normal in ones life, such as school and employment stops. I know of a mother with children who have sickle cell disease who wrote her story as a way of healing. She said, "Most employers may not understand the position of their employee's home in regard to the children's physical disability in the case of sickle cell disease. Nonetheless, the parent may be labeled as a non-committed worker. There's little joy in that family.
If you were at least 10-years-old in 1955, you should read Taylor Branch's trilogy on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.: "Parting the Waters, 1955 - 1963"; "Pillar of Fire, 1963 -1965"; and "At Canaan's Edge, 1965 - 1968." You were alive as American history was taking place. You may have known what the newspaper and television said, but what you heard, read, and saw was actually the tip of the iceberg and these books provide extensive details. If you were less than 10 years old in 1955, you should read Branch's books because knowing this American history may assist you in understanding some of the conflicts of the present. More importantly, you may understand why and how you can help solve problems rather than be a problem, especially an unwitting one. Though the "King Years" numbered a mere 13, occurrences during that short period directly influenced Montgomery, Al., the South, the United States and much of the world. The painstaking odyssey of King and company and his opponents as examined and reported by white Southerner Taylor Branch moves on many levels.
Arts Gumbo 2006, a series produced by SouthEast Effective Development (SEED), will present the traditional arts of three diverse world cultures on September 9, October 13 and November 3. The series is held at the Rainier Valley Cultural Center (3515 S. Alaska St.), in Columbia City.On Saturday, September 9, Arts Gumbo opens with an Arab Arts program featuring a performance at 6 p.m. by The MB Orchestra, a Debke dancing workshop (Arabic line dancing) at 7 p.m., traditional Arab food provided by Bil-Hana at 8 p.m. and the film, "Turtles Can Fly" at 9 p.m. The program is presented in collaboration with the Arab Center of Washington. The MB Orchestra features internationally renowned oud player Maurice Sadak Rouman, who has been composing and performing ancient Egyptian "Pharoanic" music for more than 40 years. For the last 30 years Sadak, his two sons and son-in-law have integrated Western pop, R&B;, Latin, Persian, Greek and Turkish styles to reflect the changing trends of modern Arabic music. The group combines vocals, oud (a lute-like instrument), dumbeck (traditional hand drum), percussion and keyboards. The set will also include belly dancing by Hands of Fatima Belly Dance Troupe.
Controversial stands have been an intimate part of Aaron Dixon's life since he was a boy. At the age of 13, Dixon marched with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. during a Seattle visit the famous Civil Rights leader made to highlight the area's housing discrimination. He was also one of the first volunteers to participate in the busing program intended to integrate the Emerald City's schools. In 1968 at the age of 19, Dixon was appointed Captain of the Seattle Chapter of the Black Panther Party, the party's first organized affiliate outside of California. Locally, the Black Panthers made their intentions to end discrimination known by facing police brutality and racism with armed patrols to monitor the actions of Seattle officers as well as by organizing a free breakfast program for impoverished children and a free medical clinic targeting minorities, which exists today as the Carolyn Downs Clinic located off of East Yesler Way.Now, nearly 44 years after Dixon's initial involvement with the Pacific Northwest's civil rights struggle, the 57-year-old father of six who calls himself a "really private person" is again gearing up for a political fight. However, this time his weapon of choice is the voting ballot and his affiliation lies with the Green Party.
The September light starts its dramatic autumnal accents in between soft days filled with a warmth that echoes our summertime dreams.If you are new to gardening you must be quite confused by now for nothing has bloomed or produced according to all the schedules that you have checked. And, for those of us who live to garden, this year will go down as being one of the most obtuse in our recent memories.September is one of the best months for planting or transplanting trees, shrubs, and perennials and creating new plants from cuttings or divisions. Hopefully, during August's somnolence we stayed alert enough to make notes about where we want to do all this fall planting, for it does take a fair bit of planning to get it all done before we need to shut off the water for the winter. Also, that bulb order you placed before July 1 (in order to get the best prices) will soon be arriving; it is much easier to plant the bulbs around a tree or under a shrub that will not be moving.
This month Kirkland will be hosting the fourth-annual Kirkland Concours d' Elegance on Sept. 9 at Carillon Point. This is more than a car show - it is a benefit "for the children" of our community. I would be remiss if I did not take this opportunity to talk about our pride in being a part of this event.It is a community event that in its first three years has raised nearly $400,000 for the uncompensated care funds of two children's healthcare beneficiaries, Evergreen Healthcare Women's and Children's services and Children's Hospital & Regional Medical Center. One hundred percent of the proceeds benefit the hospitals and we are well on the way to meeting our goal of $250,000 for this year.We are delighted to have the city join the Kirkland Chamber of Commerce this year by sanctioning the event. Last month the city council decided to refund the admission tax collected at the event. The city has joined the ranks of supporters including our title sponsor, Phil Smart Mercedes Benz, our supporting sponsor, the LeMay Museum and over 75 other sponsors, supporters and contributors, including this newspaper. There is an educational element as well. In cooperation with the Lake Washington School District, a team of 10 junior judges, made up of local elementary and junior high as well as a patient each from Children's and Evergreen was created. After completing a training program, they will judge and present the junior judges award, sponsored by the Talaris Research Institute.
Kirkland has always been a city of change. Although Peter Kirk's dream of Kirkland becoming the Pittsburgh of the West never materialized, this community has consistently embraced his desire to make the changes necessary to be something special. After nearly 50 years of being around Kirkland, I have seen and been involved in some of those changes. Many changes, though controversial at the time, have now become some of the very things we value most about our great city. Most changes in Kirkland are due to a couple of types of population growth, the Growth Management Act and City Council action. One need only study the history of Kirkland to see how over our first century our population nearly doubled each decade to our present-day 48,000 residents. Initially, this was because of the construction of the first floating bridge across Lake Washington in 1940 that made it much easier for people to live on the Eastside and commute to Seattle. Today, with major work centers on the Eastside, Kirkland is centrally located. History of growth through annexationKirkland has also grown its population by annexation. Throughout Kirkland's history, surrounding residential neighborhoods desired to become a part of Kirkland. This included areas from Houghton to Totem Lake and North and South Rose Hill to Juanita. Today these areas are an integral part of Kirkland while retaining their own unique personalities and character. This desire to become a part of Kirkland continues today. The city has just embarked on an in-depth feasibility study for annexing the areas directly north of Totem Lake, Juanita and up to and including Finn Hill. If completed, this could add another 38,000 residents to our population.
Boswell: "Sir, what is the chief Virtue?"Johnson: "Courage, Sir. Without it, opportunity to exercise the others will be found wanting."Now more than ever this nation must find the courage to ask hard questions, and demand clear answers, about the Iraq War.Did the Bush administration deceive the American public in the run-up to war? Is deceiving our country into war an impeachable offense?We believe, on both counts, the answer is yes.There is considerable, credible information on record to support such a conclusion. We believe President Bush, in a well-orchestrated campaign, sold this country into an unnecessary, incompetently conducted war based not on sound policy but personal pathology. This administration was not the hapless victim of faulty intelligence - this is an administration of hyper-intentionality. As former Secretary of the Treasury Paul O'Neill stated: "From the very beginning there was a conviction that Saddam Hussein was a bad person and that he needed to go...It was all about finding a way to do it." The integrity of our democracy demands that we not ignore evidence of pre-war deception.
"Without a doubt," I can say that she is one of the 10 most important artists in China."So declares a letter from the art department chair at Stanford University. These guys weren't kidding.Ji Ruoxiao (Anglo-Saxonized as Jean Rochelle) - just call her Ji - has published several books on art in China and in 1995 was featured at an international women's conference. She also exhibits at the very prestigious Beijing Art Museum and has done more than 20 exhibitions througout China. (Take a breath.) Lastly, she has been the subject of more television specials and has been covered by international media.So what is this Chinese national treasure doing tucked away here in Juanita?Letters of recommendationJi emigrated to this area in December 2000 - through letters of recommendation - and got a green card, and has been a visiting professor and artist here since 1993. She has taught at the University of Puget Sound and Washington State University.Two years ago, the 48-year-old divorced artist met Kirkland accountant Richard Hager and married. "A Chinese friend introduced me. I thought he looked like a Buddha." After the laughs subsided, she explained that this is a good thing. "He is not fat - he has a very good heart and is very handsome. He really supports me so I can focus on my art."
The votes are in. And no hanging chads to mar this election.Oriel - French for bay window - is the new moniker for the restaurant/coffeehouse on the corner of Central Way and Lake Street. Known as Triple J for 16 years, the iconic establishment has been renamed and remodeled by its savvy new Australian owners, who are keenly aware of steering clear of the bull-in-the-shop image."It's a 16-year-old institiution," says Drew Sharp, who, along with his brother/chef Jonathan and parents have diligently graduated the coffeehouse from bus-your-own to a full-service dining destination. "We're aware of looking like a couple of Aussies taking over Kirkland," he says. Oriel is modeled after a successful restaurant they admired near Sydney, which Sharp says has the same demographic as Kirkland.
Kirkland firefighters volunteered their time and boots on Aug. 19 to help area adults and children with neuromuscular diseases in the annual Fill the Boot drive.According to program coordinator Kathleen Roe, the firefighters soundly surpassed last year's total of $3,700 and raised $10,700. (It rained on last year's event.)