White Center Now: The blog about White Center

We dropped by Full Tilt Ice Cream shortly after this afternoon’s pre-Halloween party started (note the clock over the cones), and the place was already jammed. Appropriately enough for a place with pinball and game machines, Pac-Man made an appearance:

Musical entertainment was courtesy of the Not-Its:

Click pic to play video

We’re still looking for White Center Halloween activities to add to the events calendar – if you know of one coming up between now and The Big Day/Night, please e-mail us, whitecenternow@gmail.com – thanks!

Inside the “Log Cabin” at Steve Cox Memorial Park, you can take kids to enjoy a Halloween Carnival this afternoon – 2 to 5 pm, with a free magic show at 4! (Thanks to MargL for the tip.)

Just over the line from White Center, the Highland Park Improvement Club is planning a Dia de los Muertos bash November 1st, and everyone’s invited. See the flyer here.

Another reminder, 5 days till the White Center Food Bank‘s annual Harvest Dinner and Auction this Saturday @ SSCC – but don’t wait to make a reservation – call or e-mail now. 206/762-2848, rick@whitecenterfoodbank.org – see the full invitation here!

tonight is the Official openign for the Dluks Crew art show hanging at Full Tilt.
myspace. com/DLUKS3CREW

The party begins at 8pm with an acoustic performance by sickeversence. The Dluks Crew is an all female artists collective, and they are looking for memebers. Here is the email they are sending out.

We are looking for Members to join our new group,

Here is information on us and what we do:

We are the Dluks Crew (all female) based out of Seattle,WA

myspace. com/dluks3crew (add us on your myspace!)

(There are not many all girl “crews” in the world so here we are…
we are currently seeking members so if your a female writer,urban photographer
or painter and
would like to join our actual crew,
contact us and we’ll let you know the details!)

We are available for:
• Artwork/graphic design for Clothing
• Custom artwork
• Illustrated logos
• Editorial illustration for print media
• Advertising illustration
• Book jackets
• CD art
• Poster illustration
• Murals / Public art Guerilla Art Marketing

Check out our main founders photos and websites to see our work!

There may not have been a lot of vendors, but the ones that were there were great! And they’ll be back tomorrow. Check out my new work shoes, only $15!

Ok, so I promised sometime back to do a rundown of all the great places where you can get a Vietnamese Sandwich, which, next to Ramen, is the poor student’s sustenance.  There are as many Vietnamese Sandwich shops, as there are Pho shops and Asian markets, in White Center – which is to say alot.  So, rather than run down the list, I will share my personal favorite.  For my money, the tastiest Vietnamese Sandwich is, without hesitation, served at Banh 88.  The meat is always excellent, the dressings are fresh and the bread is always toasty fresh.  Load up some Vietnamese garlic hot sauce and you have a piece of heaven for a mere $2.75.  My personal favorite is the barbeque pork sandwich but all the sandwiches, including chicken, beef and vegetarian fare are excellent.  Nikki, the amiable proprietor, is an excellent cook and demands nothing less of her staff.  I have never been disappointed with any meal from Banh 88.  

I must add that besides the Vietnamese Sandwiches, Banh 88 does a full array of great Vietnamese salads, curries and noodle dishes.  This is the place to go with a crowd of people and try everything on the menu.  The curry dishes are likely the best in Seattle.  You can find Banh 88 at 9418 Delridge Way SW (98106), phone 206.768.9767, it is located just south of where Delridge and 17th Ave. SW diverge.  Hours are 11 am to 8:00 p.m.

That said, I invite cognerati to comment on their favorite White Center Sandwich Shop.  

Disclosure, I was a Blue Bird, which is what a young Camp Fire member used to be called, back when dinosaurs walked the earth. So I’ve got nostalgic warmth for the Camp Fire USA organization, which was Camp Fire Girls way back then, but welcomes boys as well as girls these days. Here’s the announcement that registration is under way in our area: Read the rest of this entry »

Dreaming of a future White Center Farmers’ Market is part of what the PARKing Day “park” is all about. Till 3 pm, you can see the “park” set up by White Center Community Development Association and Technology Access Foundation — with that banner, some greenery, fresh produce, and of course, technology — in the parking spaces by Full Tilt Ice Cream on 16th SW, west side of the street, a short ways south of Roxbury. Staffing the “park” when we stopped by a short time ago — WCCDA’s Sopha Danh and TAF’s Richard Brown:

TAF is also promoting its free TechStart classes – all listed on this handy white board at today’s “park”:

PARKing Day is happening nationwide – with people setting up temporary “parks” like this one to remind us that urban greenspace is vital to healthy, happy city living (among other things!).

REPTET brings their award-winning and energetic jazz to Rozella.

Friday September 12th at 7 p.m.

Reptet is a sextet consisting of six multi-instrumentalists all of whom are members of the internationally acclaimed Monktail Creative Music Concern based out of Seattle, WA. They have established themselves as a group of considerable excitement, flair and vision while simultaneously debunking preconceived notions of what a jazz group ought to be. Their music has been aired on radio stations across the United States and Europe, and their members have toured internationally. The arts organization Earshot Jazz has described them as, “A hot progressive combo of Seattle’s best young players. Their music is intense, taut, and fresh.” With the release of their second full length CD Do This!, Reptet has established themselves as an irrepressible force in modern jazz.

Press Quotes
“This Seattle sextet does it all: it grooves, it rocks, it squawks – occasionally, it even talks. Mostly, it sounds like a New Orleans jazz band on crystal meth.” ~Alex Gelfand’s Critics pick for the best release of 2006, Jazziz Magazine~

“Trumpeter Samantha Boshnack’s open voicings, jaunty tempos and buoyant timbral mixes for two winds and two brass have a friendly monster feel that conjures a bittersweet and elegiac mood of orchestral grandeur.” ~Downbeat~

“A juggernaut jazz band, arresting, compelling, and just plain cranked-up. Do This! is one of the most convincing albums of the last several years from Seattle jazz players.” ~Earshot Jazz~

Yeah, we don’t normally do midweek shows but this one is going to be amazing. Fatigo from Phoenix is a Latin/Americana freakout. Oh Man is the local support on this bill. They are a delightful dance explosion.

Ohman
http://www. myspace. com/ohmanthatisawesome

Fatigo
http://www.myspace. com/fatigo

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Clouds? Drizzle? Breeze? Not on the patio at Cafe Rozella tonight, where the Brazilian music of Eduardo Mendonca transported listeners to a more tropical place, or at least mood. In case you couldn’t be there, we’ve provided a minute and half of it in our video clip above; next Friday night Charanga Danzon performs at the cafe, and there’s live music tomorrow night at Full Tilt Ice Cream, with Talbot Tagora.

Michelle Smith-Lewis’ photos of vintage signs from Seattle will be showing for the month of Sept. Artists reception is at 8pm this Friday the 29th of August. 9629 16th Ave sw Rat City, wa 206-767-4811

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As promised in our earlier post about tonight’s live music at Cafe Rozella, here’s a quick sampler of the show that followed, a couple blocks south at Full Tilt Ice Cream. This was a CD-release party for Centaur Hearts, with Arbitron and One Million Teeth also on the bill – we showed up as the night began, so OMT is who you see in our video clip. Tomorrow (Saturday) night – more live tunes at Full Tilt – which proprietor Justin says got shoutouts from KEXP and the Stranger.

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More live music tonight in White Center – this video shows just a bit of the beautiful acoustic sounds provided by members of Children of the Revolution, tonight at Cafe Rozella. (Next Friday night at the cafe, it’s Eduardo Mendonca.) After this 7 pm performance, live music by Centaur Hearts was scheduled over at Full Tilt Ice Cream, and our video crew is over there right now – stand by for that clip, or better yet, get out and enjoy the show on this pleasant late-summer night.

Last Friday, we showed you scenes (like the one above) from the Back-to-School Block Party on 12th SW … today, we have an update from executive director Pat Thompson at the YES Foundation of White Center, who says ALMOST A THOUSAND KIDS – 950, to be precise – got backpacks filled with school supplies, as a result! She also wants to thank World Vision and its partner Washington Mutual for generously supporting White Center kids by providing the backpacks. (First day of school – 13 days away!)

Children of the Revolution

Cafe Rozella continues its summer music series with Children of the Revolution’s acoustic trio.  COTR are always a big draw so plan on getting there early for their performance which begins at 7 p.m. on Friday, August 22nd.  Show will be outdoors barring inclement weather.

Happened onto this while chasing something else: The Technology Access Foundation‘s annual Geocache Cup — described by TAF as a “high-tech treasure hunt” — will start at White Center’s Lakewood Park. The Geocache Cup is set for 1-6 pm Sept. 27; registration is open NOW for participants and sponsors – here’s the place to start. If you’re not familiar with TAF, its mission includes “prepar(ing) underserved children of color for higher education and professional success.”

Click picture to play the video

That’s Alma Villegas, live Friday night on the patio outside Cafe Rozella. More music is ahead for the White Center venues of two other WCN team members – the Rozella schedule is here, the Full Tilt schedule is here. (Any others for us to add to the WCN Events Calendar? Send the info to whitecenternow@gmail.com!)

Till 7 tonight, 12th SW is shut down between Mount View Elementary and Mount View Presbyterian for the Back-to-School Block Party we told you about earlier this week. We stopped by around 4 o’clock to see how it was going; more photos ahead: Read the rest of this entry »