December 2015

By Amanda Knox

I remember the first time I voted. It was 1996, I was nine-years-old, and it was over the phone, to participate in the Nickelodeon Kids Pick the President telethon. At the time, I was about as political as I was religious, which is to say, vaguely aware and uninvested. All the same, I was excited to vote, because it was the first time in my life that I had the chance to implement my (albeit immature and uninformed) opinion about the greater world around me. No matter that my vote didn’t yet count. For the first time I thought, one day it would.

By Pat Cashman

It was a delight to see it on the morning TV news: Video of eager holiday shoppers pushing, shoving, gouging, scratching, clawing and garroting each other to be the first into the stores. After all, when it comes to catching an elbow in the mouth, it’s better to give than receive.

And the malls, offices, coffee shops, drug stores and dentist offices are all playing holiday songs these days---just in case we forgot what time of year it is. In fact, there’s at least one radio station around here that starts running Christmas music just prior to Thanksgiving Day---and plans to play nothing else through New Years. That ka-ching sound you hear? It’s another royalty check going to Jose Feliciano. The holiday music tact works such ratings wonders for that radio station, you can expect next year they’ll start playing the stuff just after the 4th of July.

When I was a kid, I was such a crumby singer that when time came for the school’s annual Christmas recital, the music teacher placed me in the very back row of the choir.
Even then, she could still hear me.

This morning's "Claus, Chowder and Cartoons" event, sponsored by the Southwest Seattle Historical Society and Duke's Chowder House, drew 120 people to the landmark Admiral Theater. Families were treated to two Christmas cartoon shorts, a show by Santa Claus, free samples of Duke's chowder and photo opportunities.

By Tim Clinton
SPORTS EDITOR

One game wasn't over until it was over, and the other was basically over from the start.
The end result of the two was a girls/boys basketball double-header sweep of nearby rival Chief Sealth by the West Seattle Wildcats.

Friday evening opened with the West Seattle girls team jumping out to a 17-0 lead and rolling to a 70-28 victory over the Seahawks.

The second contest had the Wildcats winning the boys game, 50-48, with the game not decided until a buzzer-beating lob by Chief Sealth's Evan Moe from all the way across the court bounced just high and to the right of the net off the glass.

The twin bill in front of a packed Chief Sealth gymnasium was the only meeting of the regular season between the two area schools.

West Seattle used a balanced assault to take the girls game.

Grace Sarver led the Wildcats with 16 points as Lexi Ione hit 12, Lydia Giomi 11, Gabby Sarver nine and Izzy Turk and Jenna McPhee seven each. Jasmine Gayles threw in five and Kelsey Lenzie three.

The 500,000th rider of the King County Water Taxi of the year is West Seattle resident Mary Ballanger. She is a regular water taxi rider

3.1 million riders since inception in 2009. In addition to this milestone, we have set an all-time record for annual ridership for both the West Seattle and Vashon routes.

The previous annual record for the Water Taxi was 467,119 passengers in 2014. In addition to the Water Taxi system milestone, each route is achieving a record year for ridership.

The West Seattle route currently stands at 307,500 passengers for 2015. In addition to surpassing the 300,000 passenger mark for the first time, the total also surpasses the 282,662 passenger record set last year. The Vashon route is currently at 192,500 passengers for 2015 and will exceed 200,000 passengers later this month. The previous record on this route was 187,824 passengers set in 2013.

Tonight the Ballard High School boys basketball team opens their home schedule vs. a talented Franklin HS Quakers team at 7pm.

In addition to the game, Ezell’s Famous Chicken will have their food truck at the BHS gym from 4:30-8pm, with $1 from every purchase going back to support our program. More on our twitter feed at www.twitter.com/BallardBball.

2015-16 Ballard Boys Basketball
Beaver Basketball enters a new era this year under 1st year head coach Mike Broom, yet the program maintains continuity as Broom and Assistant Coach Jon Adams were the Beavers' top assistants over the past several years. From a first look at a practice, game, weight session, or study hall this season, you'll see a Beaver program from senior to freshman committed to the team's core values including Enthusiasm, Gratitude, Attitude, .

The renovation of the Admiral Theater is on track and set to take place most likely in March according to Entertainment Director Dinah Brein. The seats (gently used) have arrived, a cushy red velvet style and the process of installing them will take place along with the conversion to four theaters this spring.

The four-plex sections will not be equal. The front theaters will have closer to 200 seats with the screen about midway into the present depth of the building. They will be conventional seats looking down at or roughly level to the screen. The back theaters will be smaller and be stadium style seating but looking up to the screen.

New carpet, new paint and new wall coverings of course will come in but the digital projectors (state of the art Digital Laser products) have been in place for a few months now since The Admiral shows first run films.

The Argosy Cruises Christmas ships came to Salty's on Alki on Wednesday Dec. 9 to the delight of the crowd that enjoyed the reasonable temperature and a welcome break from the heavy rains that have been soaking the region in recent days.

The Choir of the Sound entertained the hundreds who gathered on the decks and patio at Salty's to hear Christmas carols and enjoy the lights.

information from the City of Burien

The City of Burien has worked throughout the day with geotechnical specialists to assess conditions at the site of the mudslide that damaged two houses north of Seahurst Park last night. Preliminary reports indicate that the slope has not stabilized and evacuation orders remain in effect. Residents of all five evacuated homes are to remain away from their houses overnight but, except in the case of the most-impacted house, residents will be allowed back to retrieve belongings under supervision for short periods of time.

Details of Geotechnical Review:

The slide began at approximately 150 feet elevation – about half way up the slope – where soil composition changes. Above that point, ground water is absorbed. It then seeps out below that elevation. Given wet soil conditions over the past several days, seepage behind the slope’s surface layer likely caused the soil to blow outward, resulting in the slide.
The source of the slide and much of the debris field lies within the property lines of the southernmost house.

Friends, family and teachers gathered to honor and remember 14 year old Christy Phu with a candlelight vigil at Chief Sealth High School on Wednesday evening, Dec. 9. Phu was shot to death, allegedly by her uncle Si Phu following an argument over a pair of shoes. He has been arrested and is being held in King County Jail.

Banners, many with messages to Christy were on the walls outside the school as a group of seven friends organized the event and remembered their friend.

She was recalled as a funny, loud, and faithful friend. "Most of us here were pretty close. She was always super positive. She never wanted to waste time and always wanted to take the time to do something good.. She always had a really nice smile on her face. Even when she wasn't happy she would try to stay up," several of her friends said. They've all done grief counseling over the matter.

Six of her friends spoke. Kayla, Janeth, Jolia, Kimberly, Solida, and Kamal, before Janeth sang "Lay me down" and two of her teachers spoke highly of her spirit and intelligence.

The victim’s family, who live in Seattle’s Columbia City neighborhood, is heartbroken now that Christy is gone.