White Center Now: The blog about White Center

That’s video provided by Shorewood Christian School from its bell choir’s performance at Southcenter last week – and Hope Kerkof says they’ll be there again this Wednesday, 1 pm at the dining terrace!

Per Advisory from NWS:

Statement as of 3:15 PM PST on December 08, 2008

… Much colder weather is expected this weekend… A major change will occur in the large scale pattern near the end of this week… bringing much colder weather to western Washington over the weekend. The transition will get underway Friday or Friday night… as a cold front and its upper trough swing southeast from the Gulf of Alaska across the Pacific northwest. In the wake of the cold front… colder air will move from southwest Canada into western Washington over the weekend. We can expect temperatures to fall below freezing… at least during the night and morning hours… across most of western Washington this weekend and early next week. People should be ready for weather that is cold enough to cause icy roads… burst outdoor pipes… and endanger pets. The trough will bring some much needed snow to the Cascades and Olympic Mountains Friday and Friday night… followed by scattered snow showers over the weekend. There is also a possibility of snowfall across the western Washington lowlands… perhaps as early as Friday night… but it is too early to say with any confidence whether or not this will occur. Western Washington residents should keep informed of the latest National Weather Service forecasts and statements as this situation unfolds by listening to NOAA Weather Radio or visiting our web Page at weather.Gov/Seattle (all lowercase).

As I write this post, the venerable Chicago Tribune and the Lost Angeles Times teeter on bankruptcy.  The New York Times Company (NYT) plans to borrow up to $225M against its mid-Manhattan headquarters building to ease a potential cash flow squeeze. The NYT company has over $1B in debt. Both Seattle papers, The Seattle Times and the Post-Intelligencer, are announcing that the “dead tree edition” will be smaller in size, and presumably in content.  All of the foregoing papers, and many others, have already made painful cuts to their staffs and likely will continue to make further cuts.  Despite these losses, the online versions of all of these newspapers are enjoying more views than ever.  There is no shortage of people wanting to read the news, it just so happens that online traditional media have not found a business model that monetizes these online eyeballs.

I for one, read far more newspapers now than I ever did when you had to buy your newspaper in print form.  Paradoxical.  I leave it to others to put forth the reasons and why-fors of this financial crisis in traditional media.  But one thing I would add, traditional media have been very slow to adapt to changing technologies.  As early as the mid-90s anyone with any sense knew that the future lay online.  Yet it took well over a decade for most newspapers to recognize the need for an online presence.  Even then, they still failed to fully comprehend the trends in social media and the net.  The irony is that you can read the NY Times technology section to catch up on web trends and wonder if the editor is also reading the same section.  I suspect that there is a means vs. substance disconnect in journalists, especially the old school types.   Whatever it is, they better catch one quick cause they are dying a slow and painful death.

As the city’s Neighborhood Service Center coordinator for Delridge, Ron Angeles, put it in his e-mail – “here’s a great community activity to start the New Year.”

Ok.  We could just put this up and let everyone note the irony.  But in the interests of informed discussion, I am here posting the definition of reason:

rea⋅son

–noun

1.	a basis or cause, as for some belief, action, fact, event, etc.: the reason for declaring war.

2.	a statement presented in justification or explanation of a belief or action.

3.	the mental powers concerned with forming conclusions, judgments, or inferences.

4.	sound judgment; good sense.

5.	normal or sound powers of mind; sanity.

6.	Logic. a premise of an argument.

7.

Philosophy. a. the faculty or power of acquiring intellectual knowledge, either by direct understanding of first principles or by argument. b. the power of intelligent and dispassionate thought, or of conduct influenced by such thought. c. Kantianism. the faculty by which the ideas of pure reason are created.

–verb (used without object)

8.	to think or argue in a logical manner.

9.	to form conclusions, judgments, or inferences from facts or premises.

10.	to urge reasons which should determine belief or action.

–verb (used with object)

11.	to think through logically, as a problem (often fol. by out).

12.	to conclude or infer.

13.	to convince, persuade, etc., by reasoning.

14.	to support with reasons.

—Idioms

15.	bring (someone) to reason, to induce a change of opinion in (someone) through presentation of arguments; convince: The mother tried to bring her rebellious daughter to reason.

16.	by reason of, on account of; because of: He was consulted about the problem by reason of his long experience.

17.	in or within reason, in accord with reason; justifiable; proper: She tried to keep her demands in reason.

18.	stand to reason, to be clear, obvious, or logical: With such an upbringing it stands to reason that the child will be spoiled.

19.	with reason, with justification; properly: The government is concerned about the latest crisis, and with reason.

---

Origin:
1175–1225; ME resoun, reisun (n.) < OF reisun, reson < L ratiōn- (s. of ratiō) ratio

I leave it to you dear reader to plumb the depths of irony inherent in that sign.

Next weekend, Mount View Presbyterian Church in White Center (map) is raising money for the White Center Food Bank by hosting a “holiday worship concert” — “The Covering” with Michelle Lang and Still Water (poster shown above). It’s happening at 6 pm Saturday and Sunday nights, and a $10 donation is requested at the door, with all proceeds to WCFB, according to Pat Thompson from the YES Foundation, who adds, “We are inviting people to bring canned foods and/or other non-perishables to be given to the Food Bank as well.”

… one of the closest places is Westwood Village, where Santa is holding court this year in an empty space next to Chico’s, a few doors down from Barnes and Noble – we stopped by to say hi less than an hour ago:

Santa’s at Westwood Village Saturdays and Sundays, noon-4 pm till Christmas. Bring a nonperishable food donation.

One more reminder – last White Center/South Delridge Community Safety Coalition meeting of the year is coming up this Thursday night, different location – 6 pm, Boys and Girls Club, 9800 8th SW (map). (Find previous White Center Now coverage of this group’s meetings is archived here.)

A deputy goes on trial next week, and a flyer urging support for him is sparking controversy – read about it in the Times.

Leaving Pho 54 after late-afternoon soup, my son and I couldn’t help but stop to admire the juxtaposition of the sign across 16th SW and the spectacular sunset. “Available,” it was, and we’re the luckier for it.

Save the date!  The Cafe Rozella Holiday Party and Open House will be held next Saturday, December 13th starting at 4 p.m.  The Rozella Party will feature Ricardo’s famous Mole.  Bring donations for the White Center Food Bank.  Cafe Rozella is located at 9434 Delridge Way, SW south of the intersection of Delridge and 17th Ave SW.  Online directions at www.caferozella.com or call (206) 763-5805.  Hosted by the Rozella Writers and Poets Group and Cafe Rozella.

They’ve adjusted again — 10 am to 4 pm, Saturday and Sunday, ex-skating rink (more here). Spend your holiday dollars in White Center/West Seattle!

Update on the post below this one – just got a quick message from WestSide Baby – 20 people showed up tonight to help at the sorting party. Thank you!!!!

They certainly can use donations of money and clothing/diapers/toys/furniture any time – BUT tomorrow night, what WestSide Baby needs most is your time – two hours for a festive sorting party. We were just over at WestSide Baby (talking to executive director Nancy Woodland, who explains the party – and more – in the video clip above, produced for WCN and partner site West Seattle Blog) and they have requests this week alone for items for almost 200 local kids — and that means lots of help is needed to go through all the items they stock, to sort them into the specific bundles to go out to those families. 7-9 pm tomorrow (December 4th), 10032 15th SW (here’s a map), behind White Center Chiropractic. If you get a sec, e-mail Sarah (sara@westsidebaby.org) to let her know you’ll be there. More in a bit.

Back in the day when the only news was the old media (traditional newspapers, TV, news wire services), everything was filtered by arbiters of acceptable opinion.  Many was the time when I pulled my hair reading nonsense in some newspaper, wanting to call the reporter and ask, “what the f*ck were you thinking?”  I wrote letters to the editor and some of them got published.  I remember the New York Times calling me to confirm stuff about my background that only the FBI would know.  Even then they polished my comments and turned them into digestible sound bites.

The internet and the blogosphere has completely changed the rules of the game.  The “trad” media has yet to catch up, never mind comprehend the changes which have taken place.  Our sister site, the West Seattle Blog, is an example of people who not only comprehend the new medium but are doing an end run on the trad media.  Today, there are literally millions of blogs, accessible to anyone with an internet connection.  And the highest rated internet sites are themselves blogs:  yes blogs draw more readers than the New York Times or the Washington Post.  It is hardly an understatement to state that we are in an information revolution, perhaps as profound as the invention of the Gutenberg Press.

So what does this have to do with White Center?  Plenty.  News, events, anything that happens in our community is immediately communicated and it is communicated without the establishment media deciding what is or is not “newsworthy.”   Personally, I think this is a great development.  Democracy actually returning to its roots.

Which brings me to my critics.  I have been posting on various topics of concern to the White Center community.  In the process of doing so, I state, frankly and openly, what I believe.  I am not asking anybody to like what I have to say.  People have certainly expressed their chagrin over various political positions that I have taken.  To them, I say, in the spirit of democracy, raise your voice and dissent.  But don’t tell me to shut up!  Wrong man.  Really wrong.  If you really feel that strongly, then start your own blog.  I certainly hope that people will see this as the commons in which all can express (reasoned) views.

So now that I’ve said my piece, have at it.  Just try and be civil and smart when posting, which is more than I can say for my own views.  Peace.

Big Brother Big Sister is having their “Big Night Out” Today.  Full Tilt is donating 30% of the days till to them. So are a number of other businesses in the area. Follow the link below to find some place that interests you.

http://www.bbbs.org/site/lookup.asp?c=guLUJbMRKtH&b=4696831

Many of the businesses will have represententive from Big Brother on hand to answer any questions that you may have.

The P-I analyzed driver-attack reports on Metro routes and came up with a “top 10” list that includes Route 120, which runs through White Center (here’s the map). Even one attack is too many, of course, but do take note that the number of attacks that landed Route 120 on this list is … 6 per year.

Interesting data on the North Highline Fire District website – a running total of how many calls NHFD has handled so far this year (updated less than two weeks ago): 828 fire calls, 3,716 aid calls, through 11/17/08. (That compares to 1,051 and 4,021 for all of 2007, so fire calls are running at a slower pace, aid calls at a faster pace.) Those numbers and a few more are on this webpage.

Beyond One Language – Más allá de una lengua

A literary event celebrating the Spanish language and Latino/a culture

The second in a series of popular literary readings will happen Friday, December 5, from 6 to 9 PM, at Taqueria del Rio, 10230 16th Avenue SW in Seattle’s White Center neighborhood.

The goal of these events is to promote the Spanish language – as well as native Latin American languages – via literary readings by Spanish language authors. For the December 5th event, local writers Javier Amaya and Paola Casla Taylor will be reading their work. Zita Paulino will also be there, and will read the poetry of Irma Pinedo Santiago in their native Zapotec language. English translations of the readings will be provided by House of Writers / Casa de Escritores, Inc., so that non-Spanish speakers can join the celebration.

The event is free to the public, and an outdoor setting resembling a Mexican town has been secured in order to enhance the experience. In addition to the readings, there will be a demonstration of traditional Jarabe dance, a book exchange, music, and food.

This event is sponsored by:

• The Mayor’s Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs

• House of Writers / Casa de Escritores, Inc.

• The Seattle Department of Neighborhoods

• Instituto de los Mexicanos en el Exterior

• Hedgebrook

• Viva la Música

• 4Culture

• La Sala

• Mujeres of the Northwest

# # #

For more information about this event, or to schedule an interview with one of the featured readers, please call Laura González at 206-320-8780 or e-mail her at lago1212@msn.com.

Thanks to Shorewood Christian School for e-mailing to call our attention to that clip they posted on YouTube after 5th graders went to work at the Burien-Highline Food Bank; we told you earlier about the school’s food drive to help the White Center Food Bank (which you can help anytime by donating online; here’s the link). Here’s the full news release about their latest project: Read the rest of this entry »