This note just came in from Jeffery Cohen who will be performing next week at the grange…

Click for poster with more info

Dear Friends,

Please join us very soon on Wednesday evening, January 22 when works from the reign of Louis XV (yes, the fifteenth this time) and our first of four 2014 Salish Sea Early Music Festival programs will be presented by John Lenti and myself at 7:00 PM at the fabulous San Juan Island Grange.

Jeffery Cohen – Baroque Flute
John Lenti – Theorbo & Baroque Guitar

We hope to see you there, and would much appreciate your help in spreading the word. Please forward!

Also at the San Juan Island Grange:

Sunday, February 23 at 7:00 PM: A harpsichord concerto and a flute concerto by Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (2014 marks the 300th anniversary of his birth) and both the Fifth Brandenburg Concerto and the Suite in B Minor by Johann Sebastian Bach with harpsichodist Hans-Juergen Schnoor from Germany, violinists Christine Wilkinson Beckman and Courtney Kuroda, violist Steve Creswell, cellist Joanna Blendulf and Jeffrey Cohan on baroque flute.

Sunday, March 30 at 7:00 PM: A Little Concert for Louis XIV with baroque bassoonist Anna Marsh, violinist Christine Wilkinson Beckman, violist Steve Creswell and Jeffrey Cohan on baroque flute.

Sunday, May 4 at 7:00 PM: Trio and solo sonatas and solo harpsichord music with harpsichordist Elisabeth Wright from Indiana University (Bloomington), viola da gambist Susie Napper from Montreal and Jeffrey Cohan on baroque flute.

Most of the waterfront home owners in the County went through the process of determining if flood insurance is a necessity for their property when they purchased or refinanced. As you may be aware, the majority of our waterfront properties are designated as being in the flood plain as determined by the current Federal Emergency Management Act (FEMA) maps. What you may not realize is that almost 90% of the homes and other structures, when further analysis is done, do not actually require flood insurance.

FEMA contracted with the Corps of Engineers to complete the mapping and determine the Base Flood Elevations (BFE) for our County. FEMA then adopted those maps for regulating the insurance. The Base Flood Elevation for most of the County is 12 to 15 feet. The maps are two dimensional and don’t take into consideration individual property elevations, slopes and shoreline. They error on the side of consumer protection and use the “blanket approach”. Bottom line, if you have waterfront property, it is designated as being in the flood zone by FEMA unless proven otherwise by a Professional Land Surveyor. Continue Reading

With the New Year rolled over and the seed catalogues arriving daily in the mailboxes, gardeners are making their to do list for the perfect dream garden. The Master Gardeners of San Juan County have a suggestion: The Annual Native Plant Sale. Nothing is better for the garden, for your environment and the community, or for your back than planting native plants. Once established native species thrive without a lot of work by you and, if you put them in the right place, with little or no water. Where to get them? Right next door on your own island.

The Master Gardener Annual Native Pant Sale is now taking orders for plants to be delivered on March 29, 2014 on San Juan Island, Orcas Island, and Lopez Island. Orders are filled on a first come, first serve basis, so don’t procrastinate! Order now for the best selection. Certain popular species sell out quickly! Some trees such as Alaska Yellow Cedar, Doug Fir, and Gary Oak sell out each year. Other shrubs, such as Evergreen Huckleberry, Oregon Grape, Red Flowering Currant and Serviceberry are gone before you know it! This year we have new stock including Quaking Aspen, Rocky Mountain Maple, and Silk Tassel as well as all time favorites Red Osier Dogwood, Pacific Crabapple.

Find the entire list of plants and print out an order form at http://sanjuan.wsu.edu/mastergardeners/index.html.

But hurry! Don’t miss the chance to get the perfect plant for that hard to plant space in your garden. If you cannot access the Internet, call the WSU Extension Office, 378-4414 and ask that an order form be sent to you. Deadline for ordering is Monday, March 24, 2014. Plants are available for pick up on SaturdayMarch 29, 2014 at: SJCounty Fairgrounds on San Juan Island, the Orcas Grange on Orcas Island, and Sunset Builders on Lopez Island. Questions? Call Kris Bayas, 378-4414 or email Jane Wentworth at:
janew [@] ckwentworth [.] com

Blake Guard and Melissa Markel Engaged

Melissa Markel and Blake Guard are elated to announce their engagement.

Melissa is the daughter of Marc and Mimi Markel of Houston, Texas and Blake is the son of Rex and Lisa Guard of Friday Harbor, Washington.

Both Melissa and Blake recently graduated with Masters degrees in Biomedical Sciences. Melissa is currently in her first year of veterinary school and Blake in pursuing his PhD at Texas A&M University.

A Summer 2015 wedding is planned.

Charlie is this week’s Pet of the Week

Meet Charlie! He’s only been at the shelter a couple of months, but he has completely won our hearts with his goofy, friendly ways. He’s about 7 years old, but still thinks he’s a kitten and loves to play! He’s extremely affectionate and clearly just wants to be near people. He’d love to meet you and show you what a great guy he is! Stop by the shelter between 11 and 3, every day except Monday to meet Charlie and his other friends.

Soroptimist International of Friday Harbor…the heart of the community

Come get to know us and learn how we create “best for women” in our community…perhaps you will wish to become a member.

There is no cost for the luncheon (Downrigger’s famous Chicken Gorgonzola Salad) Please indicate if you prefer a vegetarian salad

Saturday, January 18, 2014 at 12:30 at the Brickworks

RSVP required. Click here to RSVP
Check out our website – www.sifri.org

To answer your questions: Julie Hanks at
juliehanks [@] rock island [.] com or Nancy Buechner at
nbuechner [@] rock island [.] com
or call 317-5689 or 378-8434

Contradance Poster – Click for larger version

3rd Saturday Grange Dance, Contra – 7:00 – 9:00 pm at the SJI Grange Hall.

Tom and Amy Wimmer from Seattle calling with The Guys: Steve Blum-Anderson and Jay Finkelstein on fiddle and guitar.

No partners needed. All dances taught. No experience necessary.

$10/person donation (students half price).

For more information,
call 378-3836.

Boy I tell ya, if this doesn’t make you laugh or at least smile…
(note – you’ll need your sound turned on)

RLR 2013… and they’re off! – John Miller photo

Time to start training if you haven’t been already. Here’s an advance notice for RLR coming up in March…

Run Ladies Run Half Marathon and 10K
March 22, 2014 – 9:30 am
The race will start and end at Brickworks, 150 Nichols St.

Runners or walkers alike are welcome
Half marathon $40.
10K $20
Prices go up on Feb. 10th so register now… all registrations are online at Active.com

Kerry Andrews
BooBoo Keane
race directors
www.runladiesrun.com
360-298-0351 (Kerry)
360-640-4506 (BooBoo)

Mike Vouri gives a quick rundown on C-Span of what the Pig War was all about. Check it out on C-SpanVideo.org. It’s about a 12 minute clip.

Island Rec MLK Day of Service Weed Removal Party

Volunteers are needed to join Island Rec for a weed removal party at the Lafarge Property (the gravel pit) for a Day of Service on Monday, January 20 from 9am-noon. It’s Martin Luther King Jr. Day and through your service, we shall overcome the blackberries, fennel and scotch broom growing at the Lafarge Property.

Bring your own loppers, weed wrenches, rakes, shovels or a hungry goat; some tools will be available to borrow. Wear sturdy shoes, gloves and outdoor clothing to protect you from thorns! Meet up afterwards to celebrate our success at The Bean – free coffee provided! For more information or to sign up, call Island Rec at 378-4953. “Make it a day on, not a day off!”

The common cold and flu are both respiratory illnesses, but they are caused by different types of viruses with different symptoms. The flu onset is abrupt and quick, with a fever, generalized aches and fatigue, cold symptoms of stuffy nose, sore throat, and cough. If you think you have symptoms that sound more like the flu rather than a common cold, call your doctor to be seen for treatment.

Each year the flu season peaks in January and February and can last well beyond that. The flu is unpredictable, and it affects us in many ways when we least expect it. The results of the flu could be missed classes, missed work, or far worse—trips to the ER, hospitalization, and worsening of chronic health problems. Luckily, protecting yourself from the flu is easy. The first step: get a flu vaccine.

The flu vaccination is the best protection against the flu. IT’S NOT TOO LATE TO GET VACCINATED…GET YOUR FLU SHOT to protect yourself, your loved ones, and your community! Call your medical provider or the San Juan County Health Department at 378-4474 to schedule an appointment for your immunization.

Hints to stay flu-free:

• Wash your hands frequently and vigorously with soap and water or use a hand sanitizer.
• Cover your coughs and sneezes. Cough into your sleeve or into a tissue ( then throw the tissue away ).
• Stay home if you are sick and try to avoid others who are! Stay home for at least 24 hours after your fever is gone.
• If you do get sick with flu-like symptoms, see your physician as soon as possible. He may prescribe an anti-viral medication for you.
• Get your flu shot !!!

Thank you very much.

Joanne Runyan, RN
Immunization and Communicable Disease Coordinator
San Juan County Health and Community Services
POB 607, 145 Rhone Street
Friday Harbor, WA 98250
360-370-7511 Tel
360-378-7036 Fax

School District seeks public comment regarding online Odysseyware program

San Juan Island School District is interested in public comment regarding a proposed curriculum platform called Odysseyware. The program can be found online at www.odysseyware.com. For individuals who cannot access the program online, a district computer will be available at the district office, 285 Blair Avenue, Friday Harbor, WA between the hours of 8:30 am and 4:30 pm, Monday through Friday.

Odysseyware is an online curriculum platform, accessible for students in grades 3-12 in a variety of subject areas. The proposed audience would be students who need credit retrieval, academic remediation, content acceleration, ad individualized curriculum. The district would contract with the vendor for 1 to 3 years, negotiating the cost of individual site licenses. The program is aligned to Common Core Standards and includes diagnostic information and assessments. It is also accessible off campus.

Reference: District policy 2020

The comment period runs January 12-17, 2014.

Please send any written comments to:

Rick Thompson, Superintendent
San Juan Island School District
PO Box 458, Friday Harbor, WA 98250
[email protected]

County Parks announces advance camping reservations are available for county residents.

For 2014, County Parks is continuing its “residents only” opportunity to pre-reserve campsites at county parks. This year, the popular County Parks program offers residents a chance to make their prime-time summer camping reservations between January 13th & February 27th.

This offer is available for camping at San Juan, Odlin (Lopez), and Shaw County Parks and the County Fairgrounds R.V. campsites. Camping reservations for the general public will begin March 1.

All three of the county campgrounds are located in waterfront parks with spectacular views, beautiful beaches, and small-craft boat launches. The County fairgrounds offers R.V. camping with water and electrical hook-ups, close proximity to downtown Friday Harbor and public beach.

Proof of residency will be required (verifiable local address and phone number, driver’s license, or voter registration). Additional information is available on the County Parks website.

County residents can email ([email protected]) or call the County Parks Department at 378‑8420 for a reservation form.

Here we go again with another question for you. Last week’s question and results can be found here at this link. For this week, we look at football and how you prefer to watch televised games on TV:

Don’t forget, the new Winter Ferry schedule starts on Sunday, January 12. So if you’re heading out anywhere, or expecting friends or relatives coming here, make sure you’re looking at the new schedule. Here’s a link to it (PDF)