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“Sad day” at Holy Rosary: Longtime principal Kris Brown leaving
April 7, 2009 1:11 am
|      5 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle schools

“A very sad day for all of us involved with this school” is how this news is described by the WSB’er who e-mailed to let us know: Holy Rosary School‘s longtime principal Kris Brown just announced she is leaving after this school year to lead St. Catherine School in Maple Leaf. In a letter on the Holy Rosary website, Brown writes, “It has been exciting to be a part of Holy Rosary School during its time of tremendous growth. However, at this time in my life, I believe I can sustain the energy required in the role of principal for many more years at a smaller school.” (St. Catherine has 200+ students; HR has 400+.) Also on the HR website is a letter from School Commission president Terry Scanlan, saying in part, “It is difficult to imagine Holy Rosary School without Kris at the helm. … Change is never easy or smooth. But change also brings with it the opportunity for genuine growth.” Scanlan writes that the principal search will start immediately.

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Love and laughter now link Lowman Beach with Wallingford
April 6, 2009 11:57 pm
|      11 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle parks

From Wallingford’s neighborhood-news site Wallyhood comes the story behind yellow ribbons and peals of laughter at Lowman Beach over the weekend: The replacement swingset installed last fall was dedicated in memory of Emma Kowalczyk, a Wallingford baby who died one year ago today. (More photos here.)

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West Seattle “Shop Cats”: Meet Presta and Schrader
April 6, 2009 11:32 pm
|      6 COMMENTS
 |   Pets | West Seattle businesses | West Seattle news

Last Monday night, in our first West Seattle “Shop Cat” story, you met Seth from West Seattle Nursery. Tonight, we head about a mile south on California SW:

By Keri DeTore
Reporting for West Seattle Blog

Meet Presta and Schrader at Aaron’s Bicycle Repair – the award-winning cats:

Look in the picture windows filled with bicycles at Aaron’s shop in Morgan Junction and you may find a pair of bright green eyes looking back at you. Presta and Schrader, the feline brothers who live at the shop, regularly perch themselves on a bike saddle in the front window to take the measure of the world outside.

Read More

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West Seattle Weather Watch: Supposed to be sunny tomorrow too
April 6, 2009 7:44 pm
|    Comments Off on West Seattle Weather Watch: Supposed to be sunny tomorrow too
 |   King County Water Taxi | West Seattle news | West Seattle weather

One more photo from our 8:50 am King County Water Taxi (WSB sponsor) run downtown this morning … looks like tomorrow will be conducive to commuting via water, too.

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Fauntleroy Place updates: Lawsuit response; land-use decision
April 6, 2009 6:59 pm
|      18 COMMENTS
 |   Development | Triangle | West Seattle news

3 weeks after we brought you first word of lawsuits filed over the stalled Fauntleroy Place project (Fauntleroy/Alaska/39th, future Whole Foods), the site’s owners have filed their response to one of the suits, the one filed by Christopher NeVan‘s BAJ Capital against Fauntleroy Place LLC and stakeholder Seattle Capital (read the suit here). Without much elaboration, the response denies most of the allegations/statements in the lawsuit; the most words of denial come in this passage toward the end of the six-page response:

… Defendants hereby allege the following affirmative defenses:

1. Plaintiff has failed to state a claim upon which relief can be granted
2. Plaintiff has unclean hands
3. Defendants have fully performed all contractual obligations
4. Plaintiff’s alleged damages are the result of actions by third parties
5. Complete relief cannot be granted without joining at least one additional party
6. Plaintiff’s claims are barred by the doctrines of waiver and estoppel
7. Plaintiff’s claims are barred by the doctrine of laches
8. Plaintiff has failed to mitigate its damages
9. Defendant had business justifications for the alleged actions

And with that, the defendants ask for dismissal. (Wondering about some of those legal terms? We were. Here’s an explanation for “unclean hands”; here’s one for estoppel; here’s one for laches.) Meantime, you can read the entire six-page document here. We checked, but there’s no similar document available online yet in connection with the other lawsuit, which BlueStar filed against Fauntleroy Place and Seattle Capital. Meantime, one other development: Today’s Land Use Information Bulletin includes the decision officially finalizing design-review approval for the project, following design changes last summer (here’s our coverage of the final Design Review meeting last August). You can read the decision linked from this page, which also explains any appeals must be filed by April 19th. (Still no official word on the site sale reportedly in the works as of two months ago.)

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2nd off-leash area in West Seattle? Unleash your support!
April 6, 2009 4:27 pm
|      7 COMMENTS
 |   High Point | Pets | West Seattle news | West Seattle parks

That’s Sophia the Italian greyhound, aka the current CityDog Magazine cover dog, companion to Wendy and Stephen Hughes-Jelen. Wendy’s High Point K9 Club has a new mission = a second off-leash area for West Seattle (the only one right now is at Westcrest Park). She explains: “The High Point K9 Club is refocusing its mission to concentrate exclusively on the creation of an off-leash exercise area for dogs in the community. The meetup group that was founded in August of 2007 will be purging inactive members so that all current active participants in the off-leash area project are plugged in and receiving communications as we go through the steps of this large project. You do not have to live within the borders of the redeveloped High Point to participate or use the off-leash area. People and their social dogs living in the surrounding communities are welcome to join and participate in the creation process and use of the park after it is done. If you have always wanted to design and build a dog park, we need you!” Just sign up for the group by going here.

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Unofficial 3-day weekend: Sunny Monday at the beach
April 6, 2009 3:39 pm
|    Comments Off on Unofficial 3-day weekend: Sunny Monday at the beach
 |   West Seattle beaches | West Seattle weather

Thanks to Keith for sending us the view from Alki – we drove by about an hour ago after taking the King County Water Taxi (WSB sponsor) back from downtown, and can confirm this has all the earmarks of a summer day, except for the date on the calendar.

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Choosing an interim King County Executive: “Blue ribbon” group
April 6, 2009 3:19 pm
|    Comments Off on Choosing an interim King County Executive: “Blue ribbon” group
 |   West Seattle politics

King County Executive Ron Sims‘ federal appointment isn’t final yet, so technically his job here isn’t open, but the County Council’s been working on what to do if/when that happens — a new development today, a “blue-ribbon committee” has been created – read on for the official announcement:Read More

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Another West Seattle storefront, empty no more: Arcane Comics
April 6, 2009 2:17 pm
|      14 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle businesses | West Seattle news

Over the weekend we told you about Pilates Westside coming to Morgan Junction, thanks to Mike’s tip; now we have a second tip from Michelle south of Admiral — she spotted the Cometa Playschool sign in former Prudential space on the east side of California (here’s our Friday report on that), and now tells us some of the ex-Prudential west-side space — near where small clothes is moving — has just been claimed by Arcane Comics, which is based in Ballard. Here’s a map. Since her note, we’ve been by to chat with them, and also just caught that shot of their facade wrap going up; they’re technically open but they’re still working to assemble the store, with a lot of work to be done when we dropped by. Their intent is to be “West Seattle’s comics authority,” and they’ll have some gaming supplies too. They expect to be fully up and running within a few days.

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West Seattle Walking Trails kiosks: First one now complete
April 6, 2009 1:33 pm
|      6 COMMENTS
 |   Delridge | Environment | West Seattle news

Chas Redmond sends word that the prototype for the West Seattle Walking Trails kiosks – many more to be seen soon around West Seattle, as we’ve been reporting for more than a year – is now complete, in its showcase spot right outside the Delridge Library. See the Flickr gallery here. (Great day for a walk!) It was just last June that the first phase of the project was recommended for almost $100,000 in Neighborhood Matching Fund money, as reported here; the next few will be placed in the Fauntleroy area, following a round of public meetings including this one.

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Library supporters present petition to City Council committee
April 6, 2009 12:05 pm
|      3 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle politics

A West Seattle note from the Budget Committee meeting: In the public-comment period that’s under way now, following the revenue-forecast presentation (docs now online here) we covered earlier, a petition has just been presented to council members, with signatures gathered at this weekend’s Gathering of Neighbors, urging continued support for library $ – saying these services are needed more than ever.

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Update: King County Water Taxi day 1 sets a ridership record
April 6, 2009 10:08 am
|      12 COMMENTS
 |   King County Water Taxi | West Seattle news

(WSB photo from 8:50 am run this morning, looking back toward West Seattle)
3,429 riders yesterday, is the word we just got — “a new record,” per the Water Taxi’s announcement on Twitter. (Our coverage from Sunday, with photos and video, can be found here.)

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Newest city revenue-forecast #s: Lots of budget balancing to do
April 6, 2009 9:47 am
|      4 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle politics

We’re in the 7th floor briefing room at City Hall, where media reps are about to get details on the city’s revenue forecast for the year. General Fund revenue looking $29.5 million short, according to the official news release. What that will mean for the city’s budget won’t be announced today, but this is a prelude. In addition, the Real Estate Excise Tax is projected to be down $11 million (different funds pay for different programs). They’re NOT expecting this recession ultimately to be as bad locally as 2001-2003, though. A few other factors they’re noting: A bit of deflation is more likely than inflation; the forecast personal savings rate is up, which may sound good but it means less sales-tax revenue in the short run.

10:15 AM UPDATE: Whole lot of numbers here but the bottom line is that they have more than $40 million in budget balancing to do, according to city finance director Dwight Dively (photo above), who will brief the City Council on all this within the hour. Some of it may be covered with the city’s rainy-day fund (explained in this city ordinance), but there’s no question that more cuts are to come (as had been warned for quite some time). He says the city is still in better shape than the county and state, regarding how badly it’s been affected and how much it will have to adjust. All this will be presented to the council Budget Committee at 10:30, if you’re interested in watching online or via cable (seattlechannel.org) – we’ll be heading down to see how it’s framed (and inquired about) there.

10:54 AM UPDATE: City Council Budget Committee is now getting briefed on this. Starts with “how did we get to this place” (national recession). Don’t worry, we’ll boil this all down later, but in case you are a numbers fan, we’ll do some play-by-play. The committee’s chair, Councilmember Jean Godden, has reminded those on hand that the budget-cut proposals will come from the mayor, but the council will not be rubber-stamping anything.

11:38 AM UPDATE: The handouts we got at the earlier briefing aren’t online so far but there is one list we thought you’d be interested in – some reasons for optimism, as the city sees it:

*Stock market up more than 20% from early March low

Home sales rose in February: new 4.7%, existing 5.1%

Single-family permits rose 11% in February

US retail sales rose in January and February (measured on month-to-month basis)

Orders for manufactured goods rose 1.8% in February

*Shipping volumes are showing signs of stabilizing (rail, truck, container, air freight)

11:42 AM UPDATE: The city has JUST posted the forecast docs online, same ones being presented to the council now, and seen in the media briefing we attended earlier. See them here. Wondering what this all may mean to you? We won’t have specifics till the mayor recommends budget cuts (likely to be made public within a few weeks), but for example: Capital projects, such as construction — roads, parks — paid for by the Real Estate Excise Tax, which is hurting big time, may have to be scaled back. Not the ones for which contracts already have been awarded, Dively clarified, but if there are proposals that haven’t gone out to bid yet – they could face the ax. Council President Richard Conlin is noting during the meeting right now, the drop in REET could mean a FIFTY PERCENT cut in those “capital projects.” (Not all road projects come from this, though – Dively said the ones paid for by Bridging the Gap, approved by voters a few years back, will not be affected.)

NOON: The first proposed cuts may be made public as soon as next week, according to the final words before the end of the official briefing (which has now segued into general public comment) – those would involve the Real Estate Excise Tax (1 1/2 percent)-funded projects.

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This Wednesday night: Help the local Kiwanis Club fight hunger
April 6, 2009 7:02 am
|    Comments Off on This Wednesday night: Help the local Kiwanis Club fight hunger
 |   How to help | West Seattle people | White Center

We’ve mentioned it before, it’s on the WSB Events calendar, and now it’s just two days away, so it’s reminder time – this Wednesday night, local Kiwanians will be at the White Center Food Bank to receive your donations. Not only does the WCFB help fight hunger in WC, it’s also accountable for assisting everyone in West Seattle south of SW Myrtle who needs food-bank help:

Members of the Division 26 Kiwanis in Seattle would like to invite you to bring non-perishable foods to the White Center Food Bank on Wednesday evening, April 8, 2009 from 5:30 to 8:00 pm. Members of the Kiwanis will be stationed outside the food bank at 10829 8th Avenue SW [map] under a canopy to collect your donations.

Kiwanis International is a global organization of volunteers dedicated to changing the world one child and one community at a time.

The White Center Food Bank says the most needed foods are Hamburger Helper and Rice-a-Roni type products as well as canned meat (not tuna), canned fruit, cereal, and jelly. The White Center Food Bank serves a diverse ethnic population so ethnic foods are always welcome. The food bank also accepts $5 and $10 gift cards from Safeway, QFC or Albertsons. Cash donations can be sent to the White Center Food Bank at 10829 8th Avenue SW, Seattle, WA 98146. To donate online, go to www.whitecenterfoodbank.org.

Kiwanis Club of West Seattle president Michael LaFranchi stopped by our table at the Gathering of Neighbors on Saturday and mentioned that club members also were at two local grocery stores that day, collecting food. Donations to the WCFB and West Seattle Food Bank count extra through the end of this month because of the Feinstein Challenge, so everything you give includes a built-in bonus.

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Delridge dilapidation tour, the followup: So what happens now?
April 6, 2009 5:04 am
|      2 COMMENTS
 |   Delridge | West Seattle housing | West Seattle news

(Video no longer available due to blip.tv shutdown)

That clip from Friday’s tour of Delridge-area problem properties (previous coverage here) starts with resident Lisa Keith explaining how she’d hit a brick wall with the city rules that prohibit police from going into even a known vacant home without the owner’s permission; she is followed by Skylark Cafe and Club (WSB sponsor) owner Jessie Summa-Kusiak, whose popular venue is across Delridge from a squatter-ravaged vacant home; and finally, a few words from Tim Burgess, who along with fellow councilmember Sally Clark also joined the tour.

The question for Lisa, Jessie, and North Delridge Neighborhood Council co-chair Mike Dady, who organized the tour after years of trying to get something done about the problem, is – what happens now? Getting the attention and presence of two councilmembers, two city department heads (Diane Sugimura from Planning and Development and Stella Chao from Neighborhoods), the mayor’s public-safety liaison Julien Loh, and city council candidate David Bloom is a big first step, but it would be all too easy for status quo to reign in its wake. Read on for more details, including a post-tour exchange:Read More

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More West Seattle weekend scenes: Pinniped & paint
April 5, 2009 9:43 pm
|      6 COMMENTS
 |   Seen at sea | West Seattle news | Wildlife

Thanks to Lina Senzer-Rose for sharing the sea lion photo taken by husband Scott Rose – many others who rode the King County Water Taxi (our major coverage of today’s kickoff is here) probably got a good look too! – One more weekend note, Scott C tipped us that lane lines on The Bridge have been re-striped – this photo doesn’t quite do it justice, but we verified ourselves they’re strikingly brighter. Knock wood that we aren’t in for further rounds of road-eroding weather badness.

We had one other bit of road news – we’ve published so much news this weekend that you might have missed it or not gotten to it yet – the Fauntleroy Way repaving contract was awarded, and the bid came in low enough that they will be able to stretch the repaving southwestward to SW Holly. We’ll be checking this week for updates on when that work’s likely to start.

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HOW hot was it? West Seattle Weather Watch gone wild!
April 5, 2009 4:30 pm
|      9 COMMENTS
 |   Seen around town | West Seattle weather

Thanks to MargL (via e-mail) and Mark (via Facebook, where we are WS Blog) for those photos of the double-take-inducing Jefferson Square time/temp sign this afternoon. It may feel dramatically warmer, but so far we haven’t seen official temperatures beyond the low 70s. (And more 70s tomorrow!)

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West Seattle Crime Watch: Clerk hit during Bartell Drugs robbery
April 5, 2009 3:11 pm
|    Comments Off on West Seattle Crime Watch: Clerk hit during Bartell Drugs robbery
 |   Crime | West Seattle news

We got a note about this last night but couldn’t confirm it with Seattle Police till today: A clerk at Bartell Drugs in Jefferson Square was hurt during a strong-arm robbery Saturday afternoon. According to Officer Mark Jamieson from the SPD media unit, it happened just before 4 pm yesterday – the robber hit the clerk in the face, reached into the till and grabbed money, and ran away, last seen running onto 41st SW on the east side of Jefferson Square. Jamieson didn’t have information on whether the clerk had to be taken to the hospital (Fire Department medics did treat him at the scene), but he does say no one has been arrested; there are conflicting descriptions of the robber/attacker — white or Hispanic male, 5-6 or 5-7, wearing a blue plaid shirt and jeans. This was a “strong-arm robbery” instead of an “armed robbery,” Jamieson explains, because no weapon was seen or implied, but force was used. (Thanks to Elise and Mary for sending notes asking about this – both had family members who were at the store right after it happened.)

MONDAY UPDATE: A little more info from SPD – the clerk’s injuries were NOT severe enough to require hospitalization, though according to Sgt. Sean Whitcomb, the report says she was punched in the face and “pushed.”

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Update: Plasma TV blaned for fire in condo unit on 47th SW
April 5, 2009 12:55 pm
|      2 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle fires | West Seattle news

ORIGINAL 12:55 PM REPORT: Thanks for the calls; we’re on the way to check out the “fire in building” call at the condos in the 10200 block of 47th SW (map). 1:34 PM UPDATE: As you can see from the map link, this is pretty much the southwestern end of West Seattle, so it took a while to get there. Fire personnel at the scene say the fire was contained to one unit at the large condo complex that’s at that address; nobody was home at the time; they don’t know yet what started it and are still determining the extent of the damage.

MONDAY MORNING UPDATE: Dana Vander Houwen from SFD sends word of what investigators found: The cause, she says, was “accidental – caused by an overheated plasma television (it ignited the wooden wall surface it was mounted on). Nobody was home at the time of the fire. The damage estimate was $150,000.”

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King County Water Taxi season-kickoff party updates
April 5, 2009 12:20 pm
|      10 COMMENTS
 |   King County Water Taxi | Transportation | West Seattle news

ORIGINAL 12:20 PM REPORT: Huge crowd here at Seacrest for the season-kickoff party celebrating the return of the King County Water Taxi (which actually started its 2009 runs a few hours ago, as shown in our earlier coverage). King County Council Chair Dow Constantine – who’s got a touch of laryngitis – is speaking right now, joking that when they decided to start the season a month earlier, they figured the weather would be bad. Guess what!

That’s the big crowd on board as the KCWT left a few minutes ago. Free rides all day – lines are long – parking’s tough (“a nightmare,” one man complained into his cell phone as he walked by) – so take the free shuttle bus. (As Constantine is mentioning right now, the shuttles now have distinct numbers so you can tell which shuttle is going where – a point of confusion in years gone by, whether the bus was going to Alki or The Junction.) Free treats and live music down here, too, in addition to the free sunshine.

ADDED 1:12 PM: More from the party – here’s the fireboat putting on a show a few minutes ago:

Also just had a Coast Guard chopper flyby, though maybe just a coincidence:

And some video – County Council Chair Constantine with the weather remark we mentioned above:

Plus a photo from Constantine’s Twitter stream, as he walked down to get on board:

2:52 PM UPDATE: Party’s over, more photos to add – first, at the other side of Constantine’s round trip, he chatted with other riders as they disembarked:

Yet another megaline awaited the next sailing, with a reminder in the foreground that Seacrest is also home to Alki Kayak Tours:

At the head of the line, bottom of the steel ramp that meets the wooden floating dock, a feathered greeter:

Besides the rebranded Water Taxi and shuttle buses, you’ll see the new sign at Seacrest too:

The free rides continue till the last run of the night, which is at 7 pm; here’s the schedule. Then the weekday schedule kicks in tomorrow (and the weather is expected to be spectacular – we’re glad to hear it, since we have a couple stories to cover downtown in the morning – no need to take the car!).

4:18 PM: Last addition, a clip of the fireboat’s spray show:

And dozens more photos of today’s event are up on the Ferry District’s Flickr pages, here.

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King County Water Taxi’s first West Seattle arrival of 2009
April 5, 2009 9:14 am
|      1 COMMENT
 |   King County Water Taxi | Transportation | West Seattle news

A shimmering morning at Seacrest Pier, as the King County Water Taxi arrived less than half an hour ago for the first time under that name and the first official time this year. Today’s big party is noon-2 pm, with giveaways and entertainment; free rides are all day (here’s the schedule); parking is already tight at and around the pier, so take the shuttle or be prepared for a walk.

This may be the second-to-last time we get our traditional “first arrival” video – next year, if all goes according to plan (including dock improvements after this season ends 10/31), the Water Taxi is supposed to start running year-round. P.S. You can find the Water Taxi schedule linked atop the WSB Traffic page.

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Sunday morning notes, West Seattle Farmers’ Market & beyond
April 5, 2009 7:02 am
|    Comments Off on Sunday morning notes, West Seattle Farmers’ Market & beyond
 |   Community Garage Sale Day | Holidays | West Seattle Farmers' Market | WS culture/arts

WEST SEATTLE FARMERS’ MARKET: Here’s the most recent fresh sheet. 10 am-2 pm today at 44th/Alaska.

PENGUINA DESIGNS’ OPEN STUDIO: One of our newest WSB sponsors, Penguina Designs, invites you to an Open Studio event today — 11 am-5 pm, 4726 50th SW (map).

EASTER IS ONE WEEK AWAY: We’ve added a few more updates to our page listing Easter and Holy Week church services in West Seattle – see it here.

WEST SEATTLE COMMUNITY GARAGE SALE DAY, SECOND DAY OF SIGNUPS: Between the Gathering of Neighbors in-person sign-ups and online registrations, the 5th annual WSCGSD is off to a roaring start. We’ll have news later today on where you can pick up mail-in forms if you need ’em, but in the meantime, you can register online at westseattlegaragesale.com (or print out a mail-in form from there). The big day is Saturday, May 9, with sales all over West Seattle (and if you don’t have room for your own but have stuff you want to sell, talk to Lora at Hotwire Coffee [WSB sponsor], who is opening her courtyard – she’s already signed up for a group sale but will be doing sub-signups (so if you’re going there, sign up with her, not us) for a donation that’ll go to WestSide Baby.

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Seen on the shore: Cricket at Alki; otter on the rocks
April 5, 2009 1:58 am
|    Comments Off on Seen on the shore: Cricket at Alki; otter on the rocks
 |   West Seattle news | Wildlife | WS & Sports

First: West Seattle photojournalist Matt Durham from mattdurhamphotography.com shares that photo, along with this explanation:

Saturday evening, a team of die-hard cricket players took the beach at Alki. The “batsman” stands in front of a “wicket” and tries to hit runs from the “bowler” (pitcher). The game, cricket, has some similarities to baseball. There are eleven players on a team and batsman tries to score runs the bowler throws from an opposite wicket. The game can last an afternoon or several days.

Second, West Seattle resident Bill Bacon sent this photo, taken at Myrtle Edwards on the downtown waterfront, as a semi-rare closeup look at one of the river otters that live in Elliott Bay (and are often seen, in and out of the water, over here):

Thanks to Matt and Bill for sharing the photos; as you know if you’ve been here more than once, we are thrilled to share your photos and video as well as pix and clips we get ourselves while covering the news, so keep editor@westseattleblog.com in mind … thanks!

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