Just got this little story from Leslie at the Animal Shelter:

Princess, clicking her heels ("I want to go home, I want to go home, I want to go home...")

Do you know me? I was hiding under a porch of some very nice people near San Juan Valley. I got frightened and was under their porch for 3 days until the girls from the Animal Shelter crawled under the house and comforted me and coaxed me out.

Now I’m trying to remember where I live. I’m an older female Border Collie mix and my arthritis is keeping me from being too over active.

If you recognize me, please call the shelter at 378-2158 ASAP.  I would love to be at home for the holidays.

John Linde

Last night I heard that Superior Court Judge John Linde passed away while vacationing in Hawaii. Apparently he was snorkeling, and something went wrong. Here’s the story from the Hawaii tv station.

This is a great loss to the community. We’ve all watched John as an umpire at baseball (he had one of the best eyes for the strikeout zone around), as a tough but fair attorney who remembered that people are neighbors, and as judge over the past 20 years (resulting in his becoming the full-time Superior Court Judge when that position was created a couple of years ago, which he was first appointed to, then elected to last year.)

I know people who went to court with anger & vindictiveness, and came out of Judge Linde’s courtroom saying, “That was fair. He’s good.” And that’s what we’ll miss – the way his sense of justice and spirit of equanimity helped restore our community.

He was, in the truest & deepest sense, a good man. I know I’m hurting as I write this, and many in this community are, as well.

Carol, Brian, Kristen – we’re with you.

Getting ready for takeoff...

Ace photographer Kevin Holmes shot these pictures last May at Jakles Lagoon here on San Juan Island…wow. Great detail & good composition…you can feel the power of these great birds.

We have liftoff!

Parable for the day: Where do the walkways go?

We have a lot of tough decisions over the next few years ahead of us, made tougher by a continuing drying-up of public money. In the face of that (and after listening to the permanent Farmer’s Market discussions over the past month or so), I find myself drawn to this little essay by Derek Sivers, which I think sums up the way I’d like to see it approached:

Let pedestrians define the walkways, by Derek Sivers

A new green college campus was built, but one thing was still debated:

Where in the grass should we put the paved walkways?

Some felt the walkways should be around the edges, to leave the center green and untouched.

Some felt the walkways should cut diagonal, connecting all buildings to all buildings.

One professor had the winning idea: Don’t make any walkways this year.  At the end of the year, look at where the grass is worn away, showing us where the students are walking.  Then just pave those paths.
_____

Of course I think about this with business plans.

As time goes on, we get smarter. We learn more about our customers and what they really want. Therefore, we’re at our dumbest at the beginning, and at our smartest at the end.

So when should you make business decisions? When you have the most information, when you’re at your smartest: as late as possible.

Like the college campus, you can do without walkways for a year.

Resist the urge to figure it all out in advance. Realize this is when you know the least.

When people expect you to make these decisions in advance, get used to saying, “We don’t know yet,” then tell this simple story about walkways, to show them how wise you are.

© 2009 Derek Sivers

Come by tonight or tomorrow - Vanessa & Robin are ready to serve you!

Well, the Rocky Bay decided to do something daring last month – complement its already popular breakfast & lunch with staying open three nights for dinner. (Popular, by the way, is island-speak for “you gonna have to wait on the sidewalk outside for a table. That’s ’cause so many people dig the place.”)

So, they’ve been open for Thursdays-Saturdays…drop by! It’s the same menu, plus a few specials, so you already know you’re gonna like it. See you there!

I asked Vernadel what was the deal for the tree lighting’s tonight – there was more going on than I thought. Here’s the scoop:

Join the San Juan Island Chamber of Commerce for the annual Tree Lighting Ceremony at Memorial Park in Friday Harbor on Friday, December 4.  Plan to come down early in the afternoon for holiday shopping and dinner at your favorite eatery.

Special activities start at 4:30 pm with the traditional Hot Chocolate, Cookies, Prizes, Caroling, Coffee from Soroptimist and the Kiwanis Hot Dog Trailer. Plus see if you can find all the Christmas characters in the crowd!

Look for new activities that have been added Continue Reading

Last night the Town Council had the siting of a permanent Farmer’s Market on its agenda. One piece of news – which should be a pretty big chunk of the discussion – is that the Fair Board would rather see it at the Fairgrounds. Well, yeah.

Here’s more from Josephine Bangs, who sent this along on behalf of the Board:

Permanent Farmers Market at the Fairgrounds

There have been several requests to the Fair Board regarding the position of the Board on the Permanent Farmers Market.  The following is presented here as public information to clarify our position.

The Fair Board and Management (Fair) are very supportive of a Permanent Farmers Market (PFM) in our community.  The Fair Board considers the fairgrounds as an ideal location for the PFM as it fits with the traditional and current mission of the fairgrounds. Continue Reading

Last night the Town Council had the siting of a permanent Farmer’s Market on its agenda. One piece of news – which should be a pretty big chunk of the discussion – is that the Fair Board would rather see it at the Fairgrounds. Well, yeah.

Here’s more from Josephine Bangs, who sent this along on behalf of the Board:

Permanent Farmers Market at the Fairgrounds

There have been several requests to the Fair Board regarding the position of the Board on the Permanent Farmers Market.  The following is presented here as public information to clarify our position.

The Fair Board and Management (Fair) are very supportive of a Permanent Farmers Market (PFM) in our community.  The Fair Board considers the fairgrounds as an ideal location for the PFM as it fits with the traditional and current mission of the fairgrounds. Continue Reading

Ted Soares (king, center....but you knew that already) has an evening of entertainment planned....

Jan at the Community Theatre says there are still tickets left:

CATS Festival of Trees celebrates “20 Magical Years”

We still have some tickets left for THIS Saturday’s big event at the Theatre, kicking off the island’s holiday season in great style.  Make sure to make your reservation NOW by calling 378-3211, ext. 32.

As CATS and the Theatre honor two decades of fantastic arts and entertainment on this island, expect to have loads of fun with your friends and maybe even find some new friends as well.

Hopefully by now you’ve heard about all of the new attractions this year:  Wines from Milbrandt Vineyards, including a special tasting of their rare wines hosted by owner Butch Milbrandt; April Brown and her Charity Auction World crew; raffles, games, and a special video presentation. Don’t forget the old faves either: Ted Soares’ live entertainment featuring plenty of island talents, Roche Harbor Resort’s Bill Shaw and his delicious appetizers, Continue Reading

This morning...photo by Sandy Buckley.

Did you see the sunrise this morning? Sandy Buckley did – here’s more of her work.

And here’s a song to go with it…

That's Victoria with her girl Lily at the open house at the Marine Labs last May.

Just got this from the EDC, and thought you’d like to know:

San Juan County Economic Development Council Announces Staff Changes

The San Juan County Economic Development Council (EDC) is pleased to announce the hiring of two new employees.

The EDC welcomes Victoria Compton as their new Executive Director.  Victoria has been an island resident since 1989, working as the advertising director of the Journal of the San Juan Islands, and as the founder of At Home Magazine. She has also worked in New York City as the marketing director of a giftware manufacturing company, as a PR agency owner, and as the director of Westcott Bay Institute on San Juan Island.  In years past, she served as the vice president of the San Juan Islands Chamber of Commerce board of directors and on the board of the San Juan Islands Business Association (now the Visitors’ Bureau).  Victoria starts with the EDC/ARC on December 1st, 2009.

The EDC, in partnership with the San Juan County Agricultural Resources Committee, welcomes Peggy Bill as the EDC’s new ARC Coordinator.  Peggy brings twenty years of professional experience advancing land conservation, natural resource management and innovative market approaches to conservation in the Puget Sound region.  Some of her work experience includes the Cascade Land Conservancy, King County, and the Washington Department of Ecology. Locally, she has served on the Agricultural Resources Committee, the Lopez Community Land Trust, and the San Juan County Land Bank. Peggy’s family has been involved in agriculture on Lopez Island for decades.  She starts with the EDC/ARC on December 1st, 2009.

Please join us in welcoming both Victoria and Peggy and lending them your support as they begin their new roles.  We also wish to thank Bill Watson and Eliza Buck for their outstanding contributions to the EDC and ARC respectively.  We wish them well as they begin their future endeavors.

The EDC and ARC will host an open house on Wednesday, December 16, 2009 from 3-5 PM. All are welcome to drop into the EDC/ARC office at 540 Guard Street, Suite 110 and say hello/good-bye. Refreshments will be served.

The San Juan County Economic Development Council (EDC) advocates to diversify and strengthen the economy of San Juan County and to promote and preserve the overall quality of life of islanders.   The EDC is the county’s primary source for island business-related information. The EDC strives to enable business success by linking resources, rendering assistance, and improving conditions for local business.

Cynthia was feeding the masses on Friday & Saturday last week...of course.

There was good food at the Holiday Marketplace last week, and Cynthia was why….here’s a note from her, because she’s glad you were there! Here’s more:

An appreciative thank you to all who imbibed in my holiday food at the Artisan’s Faire this weekend.  This is such a great venue to kick off the holiday season.  Wonderfully made local crafts and art, wreaths and Christmas presents and plenty of hugs, smiles and connecting with the community and families of the community visiting for Thanksgiving.

It is one of my favorite local faires!! – Happy Holidays Everyone!
Cynthia Burke – Cynthia’s, Of Course

It's always good to have a special guest at your meetings....A statuesque Lady Liberty appeared at the League of Women Voters meeting last month. Members and guests tested themselves by taking the U.S. citizenship naturalization test and learned about the history of immigration.

Last month the League of Women Voters held their regular meeting with something special – first of all, the Statue of Liberty showed up, as you can see. (That’s Susan Dehlendorf, I think…)

The other interesting thing was they offered a test that’s like the one folks who are becoming new citizens get to take…so I asked if I could share the questions with you (so you could see how you do!)

So – here ya go:

1. What does the Constitution do?
2. The idea of self-government is in the first three words of the
Constitution.  What are these words?
3. What do we call the first 10 amendments to the Constitution?
4. What are two rights in the Declaration of Independence?
5. What keeps one branch of government from becoming ?
6. The House of Representatives has how many voting members?
7. Why do some states have more representatives thn others?
8. If the President can no longer serve, who becomes President?  If that
person cannot serve, who becomes President?
9. What does the President’s Cabinet do?
10. What does the judicial branch do?
11. Who is the Chief Justice?
12. What is one power reserved to the federal government?  What is one
power belonging to the states?
13. Name one right only for U.S. citizens.  Name two rights of everyone
living in the United States.
14. What is one promise you make when you become a U. S. citizen?
15. Why did the colonists fight the British?
16. Name three (or more) of the original 13 states.
17. The Federalist Papers supported the passage of the U.S. Constitution. Name one (or more) of the writers.
18. What is one thing Benjamin Franklin is famous for.
19. Who was President during World War I?
20. Name one (or more) American Indian tribe(s) in the United States.
21. Name one (or both) of the longest rivers in the United States.
22. Name one U.S. territory (or more).
23. Name two (or up to 10) national U.S. holidays.
24. Where is the Statue of Liberty?

Daniel in concert...

I hear that one of my favorite singers is playing this weekend – Daniel Finn takes the stage at The Naked Bean this Saturday at 7pm (donations accepted). He’ll be performing selections from the Daniel Finn Playbook….don’t miss this one!

Albert Strasser (FHHS '09) came home for Thanksgiving and to say hey to his mom, Debbie - Albert is a freshman at the University of Colorado in Boulder this fall.

Little bits here & there for you:

• Pat & Becky Nash have a slew of Christmas trees for sale out front of where Latitude 48 used to be (or maybe you remember it as the Fat Cat?) Fresh cut trees  – check ’em out!

Rhonda opened up her store yesterday!

• Rhonda Scott has opened a shop for the season called the Vital Elements Holiday Gift Shop – it’s located at 30 First Street, and offers stuff from San Juan County Artisans, Craftspeople, and Food vendors. You can shop locally with locally created goods – Sunday-Thursday from 11am-5pm, and Friday & Saturday from 11am-7pm.

• Paul Kollet wrote in & wondered about something he saw: “Did anybody else see these flares at night on Sunday 11/29/2009 between 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. in the sky near flat top island ? The flares floated for about 15 minutes and another would then be shot up in the air. I could not see if there was activity in the waters around Flat Top island. This went on for about 2 hours. The flares reminded me of aerial military flares used to illuminate an area at night.”

Not sure, but my guess is that all the activity was related to the rescue effort of that plane that went down in the Canadian Gulf Islands… let’s watch the news & see what we can learn to fill in the gaps….

• I love the line at the top of the D+A blog (which is called design•banter): It says, “Designers are meant to be loved, not to be understood.” – Fabien Barral. You can see it at http://design-banter.blogspot.com/

Isaac Taylor came back to the island from Louisiana....

• One of the folks who came from afar to see friends & family was Isaac Taylor, who graduated this year & is going to diving school in Louisiana. He’ll be done with the incredibly intensive program in the spring (as you might guess, it’s an immersion program…hee hee), and he made time to talk to the Lions Club & thank them for the scholarship that was part of what made his current adventure possible.

Great young man, with great things ahead…

• I know that people find it really useful at certain points in their lives to take on a life coach….well, Shelly Van Skyhawk is putting out her shingle as a life coach (I think she’ll be a great one!), AND also taking care of the Zerona program at San Juan Holistic Healthcare – I asked Shelly to tell me more about it, and here’s what she wrote:

Shelly

I love connecting people with their passion. I love helping people take charge of their lives in a powerful and purposeful way, sometimes in a way they never thought possible.  For some, it is like stepping into the driver’s seat of their life for the very first time. For others it is about remembering who they truly are.  We all have the ability to live a life rich with joy, love, adventure and fulfillment.  Sometimes we just need the guidance of an expert navigator.  That is who I am.

As for the Zerona… I am excited to be working in partnership with Dr Earnhart in presenting the Zerona body contouring program. This healthy alternative to cosmetic surgery is an empowering way for people to enhance the benefits of their fitness routine or give a big head start on creating the healthy lifestyle they desire.

• It’s kind of an unusual request, but if you can help Ken, it would be cool – here’s what he’s thinking (and you can get back to him at KenUnger (at) CenturyTel.net):

My name is Ken Unger, I live in Avon, Ohio (just west of Cleveland) and I’m looking for some friendly help from someone in your area with a digital camera.

Last year, my wife and I located street-signs named after every member of our family.  We drove to those locations on our Harley-Davidson and took photos of each.  We then had each one framed with the latitude and longitude and a small map of the location. We used these for Christmas gifts. In the case of my parents…we gave them frames for each member of the family – making kind of a “Family Tree” to hang on the wall.

We became grandparents last month (for the first time) to a beautiful little girl named “Kiya. ”Little “Kiya” was born 3 months premature and is 1 lb 13 oz and is as precious as they come.

My problem is this…the only street in the entire United States that I can find with her name … is on your island, and it is unlikely we’ll get there any time soon.

I was wondering if someone in your area, with a digital camera, would be willing to see if there is a street-sign of ‘any kind’ with “Kiya” on it and email it back to me so I can make a Family Frame for her for this Christmas?

I know this is a highly unusual request, but there are a lot of kind people out there…and given the tough road ahead for this little gem…I just had to ask…

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Sincerely,
Ken Unger

Albert Strasser (FHHS '09) came home for Thanksgiving and to say hey to his mom, Debbie - Albert is a freshman at the University of Colorado in Boulder this fall.

Little bits here & there for you:

• Pat & Becky Nash have a slew of Christmas trees for sale out front of where Latitude 48 used to be (or maybe you remember it as the Fat Cat?) Fresh cut trees  – check ’em out!

Rhonda opened up her store yesterday!

• Rhonda Scott has opened a shop for the season called the Vital Elements Holiday Gift Shop – it’s located at 30 First Street, and offers stuff from San Juan County Artisans, Craftspeople, and Food vendors. You can shop locally with locally created goods – Sunday-Thursday from 11am-5pm, and Friday & Saturday from 11am-7pm.

• Paul Kollet wrote in & wondered about something he saw: “Did anybody else see these flares at night on Sunday 11/29/2009 between 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. in the sky near flat top island ? The flares floated for about 15 minutes and another would then be shot up in the air. I could not see if there was activity in the waters around Flat Top island. This went on for about 2 hours. The flares reminded me of aerial military flares used to illuminate an area at night.”

Not sure, but my guess is that all the activity was related to the rescue effort of that plane that went down in the Canadian Gulf Islands… let’s watch the news & see what we can learn to fill in the gaps….

• I love the line at the top of the D+A blog (which is called design•banter): It says, “Designers are meant to be loved, not to be understood.” – Fabien Barral. You can see it at http://design-banter.blogspot.com/

Isaac Taylor came back to the island from Louisiana....

• One of the folks who came from afar to see friends & family was Isaac Taylor, who graduated this year & is going to diving school in Louisiana. He’ll be done with the incredibly intensive program in the spring (as you might guess, it’s an immersion program…hee hee), and he made time to talk to the Lions Club & thank them for the scholarship that was part of what made his current adventure possible.

Great young man, with great things ahead…

• I know that people find it really useful at certain points in their lives to take on a life coach….well, Shelly Van Skyhawk is putting out her shingle as a life coach (I think she’ll be a great one!), AND also taking care of the Zerona program at San Juan Holistic Healthcare – I asked Shelly to tell me more about it, and here’s what she wrote:

Shelly

I love connecting people with their passion. I love helping people take charge of their lives in a powerful and purposeful way, sometimes in a way they never thought possible.  For some, it is like stepping into the driver’s seat of their life for the very first time. For others it is about remembering who they truly are.  We all have the ability to live a life rich with joy, love, adventure and fulfillment.  Sometimes we just need the guidance of an expert navigator.  That is who I am.

As for the Zerona… I am excited to be working in partnership with Dr Earnhart in presenting the Zerona body contouring program. This healthy alternative to cosmetic surgery is an empowering way for people to enhance the benefits of their fitness routine or give a big head start on creating the healthy lifestyle they desire.

• It’s kind of an unusual request, but if you can help Ken, it would be cool – here’s what he’s thinking (and you can get back to him at KenUnger (at) CenturyTel.net):

My name is Ken Unger, I live in Avon, Ohio (just west of Cleveland) and I’m looking for some friendly help from someone in your area with a digital camera.

Last year, my wife and I located street-signs named after every member of our family.  We drove to those locations on our Harley-Davidson and took photos of each.  We then had each one framed with the latitude and longitude and a small map of the location. We used these for Christmas gifts. In the case of my parents…we gave them frames for each member of the family – making kind of a “Family Tree” to hang on the wall.

We became grandparents last month (for the first time) to a beautiful little girl named “Kiya. ”Little “Kiya” was born 3 months premature and is 1 lb 13 oz and is as precious as they come.

My problem is this…the only street in the entire United States that I can find with her name … is on your island, and it is unlikely we’ll get there any time soon.

I was wondering if someone in your area, with a digital camera, would be willing to see if there is a street-sign of ‘any kind’ with “Kiya” on it and email it back to me so I can make a Family Frame for her for this Christmas?

I know this is a highly unusual request, but there are a lot of kind people out there…and given the tough road ahead for this little gem…I just had to ask…

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Sincerely,
Ken Unger