Dropping by for lunch...

Lots of folks drop by the island for lunch…today we had these huge helicopters drop out of the sky (they leave a pretty good shadow, and when they fly over your head, you definitely notice them).

So I called Dave Ryan, who’s the airport manager…he said the ‘copters are Chinook C-47s. The crew called & asked for clearance to land because they wanted to eat lunch here. They’re running training exercises out of Fort Lewis & over Whidbey Island. Dave said they just came back from a year in Iraq & that they’re glad to be home.

The Chinooks left after two on Thursday afternoon...

Sarah Ruhl's "The Clean House" opens next week....photo by John Sinclair.

Next Thursday, Island Stage Left’s next production, “The Clean House” by Sarah Ruhl, opens at the Fairgrounds in the Marie Boe Building (the old 4H spot). The show runs from April 8 – May 9 (Thursdays – Saturdays @ 7:30 and Sundays @ 4:00).

The cast for the show: Ashley Flannegan, Krista Strutz, Joan Benney, Chetana Michaan and Daniel Mayes.

Here’s more about the play.

The show was a runner-up for the Pulitzer Prize...photo by John Sinclair

The services for Al Nash are this Sunday and Monday (see the end of this notice)…he’s much missed. Here’s more:

Albert M. Nash Jr.: January 10, 1924 – March 29, 2010

Al Nash

Albert Nash died peacefully at home on Monday morning, March 29^th 2010.  Albert lived most of his 86 years in Friday Harbor where he was born, the second child of Albert M. Nash Sr. and Margaret McSorley Nash.  His brothers, Charles and Kenneth preceded him in death; his sister, Catherine Herdt lives in Mount Vernon with her husband Gary.

Al attended school in Friday Harbor, graduating in 1942.  He attended the University of Washington, but his studies were interrupted by World War II.  He served as a naval officer during the war where his boat handling skills earned him an assignment as the commander of a landing craft.  He navigated across the Pacific and supported forces in the Philippines and throughout the South Pacific winding up in Japan. Al was a great story-teller and patriot who reminisced about his time in the Navy for the rest of his life.

After the service he continued his education at the U of W, where he earned a degree in pharmacy and met Priscilla Thompson of Bellingham. Continue Reading

Freshman midfielder Brett Paul protects the ball just outside the box in the second half.

Yesterday our young soccer team took on Cascade Christian from down below Seattle… the visitors took a 5-0 lead in the first half to cruise to a 6-0 victory.

Our Wolverines wrote the story for the second half, though, as they allowed an early goal before shutting down CC the rest of the way. It was great to see the guys still playing hard – maybe even harder – in the last 20 minutes, and still pushing to score.

Keeper Ben Goodman comes out to smother the ball....

Little bits of this & that:

• Paul at Pablito’s tells me it’s official: He’s opening this Friday from 11am-3pm (I know where I’m going for lunch!) Pablito’s is located in the space where Steps was located until this past October, and most of the island is already familiar with Paul’s wares because he regularly sells at the Saturday Farmer’s Market.

• Speaking of the Farmer’s Market – it’s happening on Saturday from 10am-1pm at the high school – see you there!

• Time to get out on the water – looks like Western Prince & San Juan Safaris are running whalewatching trips starting this weekend, while Pete & Erin at San Juan Excursions will get their season going on the 10th.

• Island Studios is open seven days a week now for the season.

• From Laurie & Tim at the Market Chef:

Hey Ian, do you think you could help us spread the word that The Market Chef will be closed for 2 weeks, starting next week during Spring Break, and reopening on Monday the 19th?  We are headed back east to visit our family during the kids’ school break!  We will be back, refreshed and ready to roll into summer in 2 weeks!
Thanks,
Laurie and Tim

• Eddie at the Hot Shop has an announcement:

Well, it is official. Due to the popularity of our store and of course the fantastic products within, we find the need to revamp the store schedule. As of 1 May we will be open 7 days a week from 9am – 7pm,except Sundays 10am to 5 pm. This is just a first step to a larger expansion that we endeavor to make happen.

Here’s some text in a post describing an event or something that requires a gallery. Maecenas id pharetra libero. Nullam elit leo, tempus vitae vestibulum ut, malesuada eu magna. Aenean auctor, quam non porttitor gravida, enim ipsum tempus ipsum, sit amet porttitor ante massa sit amet lectus. Nam iaculis suscipit odio sed suscipit. Vivamus eu eros quis dui egestas vestibulum. Sed rhoncus magna ultrices elit blandit congue. In hac habitasse platea dictumst. Donec orci dui, interdum nec tristique et, tincidunt at diam. Nam volutpat ultrices risus tempus dapibus. In ultrices auctor tellus, condimentum condimentum felis vehicula at. Mauris eu neque metus, non bibendum purus. Cras tincidunt sem in libero adipiscing adipiscing. Aliquam ac justo nec nisi fringilla semper. Donec mollis tincidunt quam, nec aliquam justo sollicitudin id. Mauris nibh ante, ullamcorper in blandit non, sodales vitae libero. Nulla adipiscing massa id nisi aliquet placerat. Aliquam gravida purus id urna auctor dictum. Praesent blandit faucibus leo ac fringilla. Class aptent taciti sociosqu ad litora torquent per conubia nostra, per inceptos himenaeos. Class aptent taciti sociosqu ad litora torquent per conubia nostra, per inceptos himenaeos.[simpleviewer gallery_id=”2″ bgcolor=”ffffff” gallery_width =”100%” gallery_height =”600″]

Rainbow over Sentinel Island, next to Speiden Island, on Sunday morning on the way to Sidney on the ferry...photo by Josie Byington.

The picture above is even cooler when it’s bigger – click here to see the full screen version.

Let’s see what’s happening:

• Here’s the word from island census supervisor Tim Thomsen: “2010 Census – If you have not received your Census form yet and you have a PO Box, Do NOT worry!!! Your form will be hand-delivered to their residence by islanders hired as Census Enumerators later in April.  These forms will be geocoded for each address and, so, for good reason, it is important that PO Box holders wait for these forms to arrive and not try to pick one up ahead of time.”

Saturday night it was nice to see Gail & Randy (from Cotton Cotton Cotton) having dinner to celebrate Randy's birthday at Haley's.

• The season’s first show at Concepia: John Sinclair says: “It’s our first show for 2010 at Concepia: ‘Your Center for Photography’ features the work of two local artists: Sandra Boyer and Joe Miller. The show runs thru May 6 at 232 A Street #7, 360-298-2374″

That's Deanna & Seanene after their successful open house at Village at the Harbour assisted living last weekend.

• This Friday at the Community Theatre – it’s Keyboard Masterworks: A special benefit concert for SJCT. Island musicians Grisha Krivchenia and Robin Lohrey share the great works of beloved composers. Tickets: $12 adults; $7 student reserved; $5 RUSH.

• Here’s the word from Peggy & Kurt at Naknek Charters: Naknek Charters and Diving has just been awarded the designation of REEF Field Station and we want you to celebrate with us. Join us for a fun filled weekend in the beautiful San Juan Islands and learn how to identify over 40 basic Pacific NW fish.  Kurt Long of Naknek Charters and Diving will be our instructor.

He will be teaching how to identify some of the more common San Juan Islands fish and invertebrates.  The weekend event will be held in beautiful Friday Harbor, on San Juan Island, and will also include two days of two tank boat dives with Naknek Charters and Diving. This three day event will be held May 14-16, 2010.  This event will help divers identify and correctly track sea life.

Bob Leytze and Mike Adams put on a good show at Pazzo Vivo Saturday, with great guitar work & tight harmonies. Watch for them next time they play (they're called The DuoTones!)

However, fish counts are not required to take part in this weekend, you can just come to have fun and learn. The price for the weekend is $290.00 based on double occupancy.  The REEF ID Class is also available for non-divers for a cost of $20.00. Call today to book your spot for this exciting weekend, please contact Kurt or Peggy Long at Naknek Charters, 360-378-9297.

• You knew Pelindaba had stores in Seattle & Bellevue, right? Here’s the word from Amelia Powell at Pelindaba Lavender with the latest about their plans for those shops, and the island:

In April and May of 2010, as their respective leases end, the closing of its Seattle City Centre and Bellevue Square product galleries will mark the successful conclusion of Pelindaba Lavender’s key demonstration project instituted three years ago to validate the viability of its long term off-island retail marketing strategy.

“The success of our off-island retail product galleries – one in a major city downtown retail core and the other in a high-end major urban mall – has fully confirmed our conviction that our elegantly designed lavender-based products would appeal to publics well beyond just those who happened upon them during their visit to our San Juan Island farm,” said Stephen Robins, Pelindaba’s founder owner.

“Together with our ongoing original on-farm gift store and the subsequent product gallery in the small retail center of Friday Harbor, we now have hands-on experience with four different bricks-and-mortar retail models that we can share with our growing list of wholesale partners and licensees,” Robins added.
Right on the heels of this milestone will be the launching of the substantial new Visitor Center when the farm opens for the season on May 1, 2010. Shortly thereafter, Pelindaba expects to see the completion of its new Production, Inventory and Administration Center that is currently rising from the ashes of the May 2009 fire at the farm. Details on these two developments will be announced shortly.

“Beyond just serving our on-island stores, the greatly expanded facilities are being built to meet the increasing demands of our burgeoning online website sales, as well as the expansion of our various wholesale business partnerships” said Robins. “We have come a long way from our modest agritourism roots, and with the continued expansion of our product line – now more than 250 products – we are entering a whole new chapter of our adventure venture.”

• Darren & Lisa put together a nice video for San Juan Islands TV about the 50th anniversary of the Anacortes/SAn Juan/Sidney ferry run – check it out:

Gathering clouds in the center of the island....by Sandy Buckley

To see this photo by Sandy Buckley a bit larger, click here. You can check out her other work at her website – thanks, Sandy!

Hey, remember the Jazz Festival we used to have for twenty years, till it ended in the late ’90s? Here’s a clip I found on YouTube of Jim Cullum’s Jazz Band from San Antonio, Texas when they played here in 1986. Bet you’ll like them…for shooting with a handheld Sony Video8, the guy who posted it did a pretty good job. Great clarinet work – check it out:

Matt Rothlisberger (FHHS '07) runs the bases for the Stags....

Matt Rothlisberger‘s junior year in college baseball is going pretty well. He’s playing first base this year for Claremont-Mudd-Scripps in California (here’s their website), batting .297 with a nice .486 slugging percentage, going into Wednesday’s game. The Stags have put together a 13-11 record so far, with another month left to play, and Matt’s been a key part of that. Way to go!

Carrie & Juan were staffing the Medical Center's table at the Health Fair this past weekend....

Lots going on as we head into spring:

Cynthia, of course...

• This Saturday in the Meeting Room at the Library, there’s going to be a gluten-free cooking & sugar alternatives class with Cynthia Burke from 3-5pm…you’ve always wanted to try it.

This is a great place to start!

• Hey, I’m collecting islanders’ list of the Top Five Books YOU think every islander should read about island life, if they’re gonna live here. You can send me your nominations (I’ll post them all as one thing, when I get enough.)

Here are my five:

– Living High, by June Burn
– Those books with the photos about Friday Harbor (Mike & Julia Vouri), Roche Harbor (Richard Walker), and the new one for San Juan Island (Mike & Julia, this spring) that they prepared with the Historical Museum. Love those.
– Snow Falling on Cedars, by David Guterson
– Whale Tales I & II by Peter Fromm
– Island Bush Pilot, by Roy Franklin

Let me know what you think!

• See the picture I took of Carrie & Juan above?

That reminded me of the cool photos Mark Gardner took of their wedding – check them out here.

That's Cynthia getting her blood pressure taken by Amanda from San Juan Healthcare at the Health Fair on Saturday....

• The Health Fair on Saturday was awesome! There was tons of healthy food given out, plus chances to get every inch of you measured one way or another (body fat, blood pressure, cholesterol, all kinds of stuff).

Spring break always feels like old home week, as our college kids drop by to take a break from their studies. Stanford freshman Pablo Lopez (FHHS '09) went to see the Wolverines soccer & tennis teams play last Friday.

The Mullis Center was packed most of the four hour show, and the lectures were a nice touch, too. It’s cool to see all the chances we have here to cultivate a health lifestyle – thanks to San Juan Healthcare for putting it on!

• This Saturday, it’s Island Rec’s Flashlight Easter Egg Hunt! It’s at FHHS from 8:30-10pm for teens 12+…here’s the scoop!

• Catch ’em when you can – the FHHS soccer team plays Wednesday at 4:30 at home while the track team hosts a rare home meet on Thursday.

• Speaking of rare – Ben Franklin himself is dropping by on Thursday at the Community Theatre. Jan from SCCT has more:

“A countryman between two lawyers is like a fish between two cats.” Benjamin Franklin  1706-1790

Come see Ben on Thursday!

No, it’s not an April Fools’ Day joke.  Benjamin Franklin appears at San Juan Community Theatre on Thursday, April 1 at 7:30 p.m., thanks to Northwest history scholar, actor and educator G. Robin Smith.

Smith’s lifelong admiration of Dr. Franklin, combined with a passion for “hands-on history,” inspired this illuminating “Chautauqua” (a first-person live presentation of the life of a famous person): Benjamin Franklin, Innovative American. Smith calls Dr. Franklin: “demanding and generous, frustrating and inspiring, traditional and revolutionary…some would say radical and rebellious…he is still our friend, the genius.”

Both entertaining and educational, Smith’s presentation builds on the audiences own conversations with Dr. Franklin to provide a unique and intimate “brush with history.”   Smith has brought his Chautauqua to several states across the country.  His presentation is appropriate for audiences eight years old to adult.

The evening’s Business Partner is Roche Harbor Resort. Tickets are $16 for adults, $8 for student reserved, with $5 student RUSH one hour before the show.  The Box Office is open Tuesdays through Fridays from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. or tickets may be purchased on-line at www.sjctheatre.org

Emma represents the Wolverines as the #2 singles player....

Just visited with FHHS tennis coach Dick Barnes to see how the season’s going…he’s liking what he sees.

At present, he has Rebecca Leff at #1 singles, with Emma Ytander at #2; in doubles he has Hannah Snow & Jenny Dunn (#1) and Shanti Neff-Baro & Alex MacDonald (#2) as he heads into spring break next week.

The girls play their next home match this Thursday against Granite Falls – come see them!

Last fall, Al Nash showed his letter sweater from 1942 as part of the celebration of Friday Harbor's 100th anniversary....

Just a week and a half after his brother Charlie passed away, Al Nash passed away yesterday.

The two were elders of the tribe here whose footprints have shaped the island with their civic contributions as well as their progeny… Charlie’s efforts as one of the original Port commissioners and Al getting the drug store going are just scratching the surface of what they have left the island.

Last September, Al spoke and presented at the Library when they did a presentation about things that had happened on the island in the past hundred years…he explained how the ferries loaded & off-loaded cars in the 40s & 50s, and spoke wearing his letter sweater from Friday Harbor High (Class of ’42), which still fit & showed he had lettered in the school’s only sport at the time – basketball.

They’re much missed….

My friend John Simon always sends me stuff to think about…so I figured if he made me get up & think, I’d share the effort. Here’s what he has on his mind this morning:

I used to eat a lot of natural foods until I learned that most people die of natural causes.

Gardening Rule: When weeding, the best way to make sure you are removing a weed and not a valuable plant is to pull on it. If it comes out of the ground easily, it is a valuable plant.

The easiest way to find something lost around the house is to buy a replacement.

Never take life seriously. Nobody gets out alive anyway.

There are two kinds of pedestrians: the quick and the dead.

Life is sexually transmitted.

Health is merely the slowest possible rate at which one can die.

The only difference between a groove and a grave is the depth.

Have you noticed that, since everyone has a camcorder these days, no one talks about seeing UFOs like they used to?

Whenever I feel blue, I start breathing again

All of us could take a lesson from the weather. It pays no attention to criticism.

In the 60’s, people took acid to make the world weird.  Now the world is weird and people take Prozac to make it normal.

How is it one careless match can start a  bushfire, but it takes a whole box to start a campfire?

Who was the first person to look at a cow and say, ‘I think I’ll squeeze these dangly things here, and drink whatever comes out?’

Who was the first person to say, ‘See that chicken there? I’m going to eat the next thing that comes out of it.’

Why is there a light in the fridge and not in the freezer?

If Jimmy cracks corn and no one cares, why is there a song about him?

If quizzes are quizzical, what are tests?

Do illiterate people get the full effect of Alphabet Soup?

Did you ever notice that when you blow in a dog’s face, he gets mad at you, but when you take him on a car ride; he sticks his head out the window?

Why doesn’t glue stick to the inside of the bottle?

Do you ever wonder why you gave me your email address?

Senior Parker Lawson's rap hit the dirt in front of the plate but made it to the outfield for a sixth inning hit...

Different paths, same result….

The Wolverines softball team carried a 1-1 tie into the eighth inning (they usually play seven, you know) at Lynden Christian, then unloaded for nine hits & eight runs to win 9-1 (the high scoring FHHS squad notched nine in Wednesday’s 9-8 win over South Whidbey as well). Here’s more.

Meanwhile, FHHS baseball spent the first half of its game in a 0-0 tie before opening things up in a 9-2 win over the Lyncs baseball team on Saturday. Hitting well, pitching well – the guys are off to a good start for the season.

Meanwhile, in other sports news, the Dragons Lacrosse team continues their winning ways Saturday afternoon with a win at home, while an out-of-commission ferry kept South Whidbey on the other side on Saturday, causing a re-sched for the soccer boys.

And…today’s girls’ tennis match has been rescheduled for Friday.