November 2011

The Sign Savant, Japhy Witte who the West Seattle Herald told you about last year, has begun his annual holiday window painting, starting with Cafe Ladro, south of the Morgan Street Junction at 7011 California Ave s.w., working with his collaborator Zach Rockstad.

The duo were adding the Ladro character (a tall thin figure in a hat and overcoat) to the window along with characters that might be from Peanuts, and other cartoon style figures.

Witte, who charges in the range of $100 per window (for windows in homes), and Rockstad will be adding their unique holiday window treatments to the Puerta Vallarta Restaurant windows and other West Seattle windows in the Junction and elsewhere in West Seattle.

You can reach Japhy at Japhywitte@gmail.com or by phone at 206 331-9612 .

Update for Dec. 3
After a mandatory machine recount, Des Moines Mayor Bob Sheckler is the unofficial winner of Des Moines City Council Position 6 over challenger Rebecca King.

The mandatory machine recount occured Friday, Dec. 2.
Final certification of the recount is set for Friday, Dec. 16.

Original post on Nov. 30
The mandatory machine recount in the race between Des Moines Mayor Bob Sheckler and his opponent, Rebecca King for council position 6 will begin at 9 a.m. on Friday, Dec. 2.

Unofficial results will be posted on the King County Elections website later that day. Final certification of the recounts is set for Friday, Dec. 16.

The Sheckler/King race is the only one of several squeeker election battles in the Highline area that will go to a mandatory recount.

According to King County’s final certified results released Tuesday. Nov. 29 Sheckler received 3,371 votes (50.01 percent.) King garnered 3,340 votes (49.55 percent.) The gap was only 31 votes or .46 percent.

Press release:

SHARKASAURUS, a team of fierce-but-friendly skaters from Northwest leagues (including Rat City, Jet City, Slaughter County, Bellingham, the Oly Rollers and more) has invited Trouble Brewing, a bold and full-bodied mix of regional Starbucks employee-rollergirls, to play a deliciously dangerous bout to fight hunger -- and to benefit the Ballard Food Bank. The event takes place at the "Rat's Nest", 5305 Shilshole Ave. NW, in Ballard. Skaters and fans from Ballard, West Seattle, White Center, and Burien are expected.

Saturday Dec 03, 2011 8:00 PM to 11:00 PM.

Admission is $15, or $1 off for every non-perishable food item you bring to donate. Join us at the Rat's Nest, home of the Rat City Rollergirls, on Saturday, December 3 at 8 p.m. to say RAAAAAAAWR to hunger.

Sorry! Tickets are sold out, but some will be available at the door on a first-come, first-served basis.

Check out this event's Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/events/180210432067502/

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

ON SALE NOW: RAT CITY ROLLERGIRLS SEASON 8 TICKETS

Roller derby skaters from the Rat City Rollergirls and from around the Northwest are coming together to host a charity bout on Saturday to support the Ballard Food Bank.

The Rat City Rollergirls are hosting the "Say RAAAWR to Hunger" fundraiser at their practice facility "The Rat's Nest" in Ballard.

"Rat City actually supports Ballard Food Bank all season long by collecting food at our KeyArena bouts, but given that we're in the off-season, we hated the thought of people going hungry during the
holidays and decided to organize a special game to try to help," said Jennifer Warnick, a.k.a Shovey Chase in a press release.

Warnick assembled a "freelance" roller derby team made up of "fierce yet friendly" skaters from Rat City and neighboring leagues.

The shark- and dinosaur-themed team, SHARKASAURUS, has invited another freelance team, Trouble Brewing, to throw down on the flat track for a good cause. Trouble Brewing is sponsored by Starbucks, and features many regional rollergirls who work for the coffee company.

Press release:
Joined by state Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) Secretary Susan Dreyfus, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and other partners, Mayor Mike McGinn today announced the availability of City of Seattle benefits on a statewide web portal. It’s the first partnership of its kind in the nation between a state and a large city.

Low-income residents in the greater Seattle area can now more easily learn about and apply for multiple city, local and state-sponsored programs that support people in need through the website called Washington Connection (www.washingtonconnection.org).

“We want to make sure that people have the opportunity to get the help they need,” said Mayor Mike McGinn. “I thank all of our partners for helping put together this new system that will better support the people of Seattle.”

Press release:

SHARKASAURUS, a team of fierce-but-friendly skaters from Northwest leagues (including Rat City, Jet City, Slaughter County, Bellingham, the Oly Rollers and more) has invited Trouble Brewing, a bold and full-bodied mix of regional Starbucks employee-rollergirls, to play a deliciously dangerous bout to fight hunger -- and to benefit the Ballard Food Bank. The event takes place at the "Rat's Nest", 5305 Shilshole Ave. NW, in Ballard. Skaters and fans from Ballard, West Seattle, White Center, and Burien are expected.

Saturday Dec 03, 2011 8:00 PM to 11:00 PM.

Admission is $15, or $1 off for every non-perishable food item you bring to donate. Join us at the Rat's Nest, home of the Rat City Rollergirls, on Saturday, December 3 at 8 p.m. to say RAAAAAAAWR to hunger.

Sorry! Tickets are sold out, but some will be available at the door on a first-come, first-served basis.

Check out this event's Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/events/180210432067502/

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

ON SALE NOW: RAT CITY ROLLERGIRLS SEASON 8 TICKETS

The world's largest-diameter tunnel boring machine won't start digging beneath Pioneer Square until 2013, but the public won’t have to wait until then to dig into the State Route 99 Tunnel Project or the historic neighborhood where the record-breaking machine will begin its journey.

Milepost 31, a new project information center in Seattle’s Pioneer Square Historic District, will Thursday, Dec. 1, with a celebration hosted by the Washington State Department of Transportation.

The facility, which pairs tunneling technology with local history, hopes to draw visitors to the neighborhood during construction to replace the Alaskan Way Viaduct. Milepost 31 was developed in partnership with neighborhood advocates and historic preservation officials as part of a federal requirement to mitigate project effects on historic properties.

The next two Thursdays (Dec. 1 and Dec. 8) hold opportunity for Delridge residents to learn more about, provide feedback and help guide the future of DESC’s Delridge Supportive Housing project.

DESC plans to build a 75-unit apartment complex at 5434-5444 Delridge Ave S.W. that provides “supportive services for homeless men and women living with serious mental/addictive illnesses or other disabling conditions,” with a projected finish date about two years away.

The project has been met with a wide range of voices. Those opposed have questioned the Delridge neighborhood’s suitability for a homeless housing facility and expressed fears of safety. Others have countered that the project should be welcomed, and said fears over safety are blown out of proportion.

With jobs at a premium, being prepared for the real world of employment is crucially important. On Tuesday, Dec. 6 young people will have an opportunity to connect with professionals in a variety of careers and ask them questions about what they do and how they prepared for their careers.

The event will be held at High Point Center Neighborhood House 6400 Sylvan Way s.w. Tuesday, Dec. 6th 4-6pm .

Neighborhood House is looking for more professionals from areas of work in Media, Natural Science, Social Science, Medicine, Business, Architectural Studies and Engineering to briefly talk about the work that they do and answer career-specific questions from teens. If you work in a field that was not mentioned or are self employed and would like to share your experience, please also contact Khatsini, YELS (Youth Empowered With Leadership Strengths) program coordinator, at khatsinis@nhwa.org or 206 588 4900 x.627 for further steps.

Press release:

Seattle Jewish Chorale is pleased to invite all... to an interactive, family-friendly celebration, Light the Candles: A Hanukkah Concert for Everyone. Concerts will be presented in West Seattle on Sunday, December 18th, 3pm at Westside Unitarian Universalist Congregation, 7141 California Ave. SW, – co-sponsored by Westside UU and Kol HaNeshamah: West Seattle’s progressive synagogue community.

For Jews and non-Jews alike, this is a wonderful opportunity to learn what Hanukkah is all about! Come hear and sing songs of the season in Hebrew, English, Yiddish and Ladino—some traditional and familiar (Al Hanissim, Mi Yimalel), and others that are less well-known (Drey Dreydeleh, Hazeremos Una Merenda). Contemporary favorites on the program will include Not in Our Town, a stirring ballad of the real-life Hanukkah triumph of light over darkness that transpired in Billings, MT, and Heal Us Now, which was sung at the U.S. congressional healing service for Rep. Gabrielle Giffords.

Following the concert, join us for a coffee and tea reception. Hanukkah treats and other baked goods will be available for sale as snacks and gifts.