PhinneyWood

A group of brave souls clad only in “white poetry bikinis” and flowing words will take the plunge for poetry at noon, Saturday, Dec. 13 at the Green Lake Bath House.

Poet organizer A. K. “Mimi” Allin is looking for 25 hardy individuals to join her, along with a host of happy, warm, non-bikini volunteers to bear witness, hand out towels and take pictures. She also needs Polar Bear poetry written just for the occasion. If you’ve got something suitable - or a swim suit - contact Allin at mimiallin at gmail.com.

“This will be a frequent-shopper, heart-stopper, one-of-a-kind event– right here in sunny Seattle! I do believe we can help the public get over their fears. Together we can. Oh yes we can,” Allin says.

Allin offered up the chilly performance art exhibition as part of her platform in the race to be Seattle’s Poet Populist. A winner should be announced shortly.

The Phinney Neighborhood Community Chorus will once again compete in the Great Figgy Pudding caroling competition in downtown Seattle on Dec. 5.

Figgy Pudding brings together diverse groups of co-workers and friends to raise money for the Pike Market Senior Center and Downtown Food Bank. Teams make up wacky lyrics to well-known carols. The Phinney singers adapted “Sleigh Ride Together to become ”Doughbells.” Here’s a sample of their lyrics, written by Mike Veitenhans (who seems to be showing up on PhinneyWood a lot these days, since he’s involved in a number of different neighborhood events), and arranged by Maggie McClellan:

We’re here at Pudding Figgy
Getting down and jiggy - Woo hoo!
We’ve ventured out in this weather
To fundraise together with you
Though rain and stocks are falling
And brokers are crying Boo hoo!
We’ve ventured out in this weather
To fundraise together with you

Here’s a picture of the chorus from the 2005 competition:

More than 40 teams will compete for spare change and hopefully large bills from passersby (the suggested donation is $5). Figgy Pudding starts at 6 p.m. Friday, Dec 5 in and around Westlake Center.

The chorus is also singing at the PNA Winter Festival at 2:30 pm Sunday, Dec. 7 in the Brick Building and the Green Lake Pathway of Lights Saturday, Dec. 13. The chorus also sings at a fundraiser each spring to raise money for a school in Haiti. You can find out more about the chorus here.

Terry Heiman, owner of Metropolis, 7321 Greenwood Ave. N, is rolling out a number of special sales - as well as a Dec. 13 visit from Santa - to combat the effects of the economic downturn (or whatever you want to call it).

Heiman recently told us the situation is the worst he’s seen in 27 years. His plea: “All small businesses need your support and we appreciate yours.”

Here’s the lineup:

• Dec. 1-5: 10% off all bath and personal care products by The Thymes and European Soaps.
• Dec. 13-14: Kid’s Weekend. 15% discount for kid’s holiday shopping, and meet Santa on Saturday, Dec. 13 from 1-3p.m. (bring your camera). This is not to give Santa your wish list but to meet and take pictures.
• Dec. 15-19: 20% off all “soft goods,” including towels, napkins, rugs and throws.
• Dec. 27-31: 15% off paper plates, napkins, party goods and helium balloons for New Year’s celebrations.

If you know of any local businesses getting creative to bring in customers, post a mention in comments.

As we wrote about a few days ago, the Greenwood Phinney Wacktastic Light Show begins Monday, Dec. 1. Organizers are hoping to start a holiday light tradition in the area with a contest and prizes for the most “wacktastic” home or business.

Contest categories include scariest, sexiest, most artsy-fartsy, most political, best kid made, and a whole lot more. Contestants should keep their lights up for the entire month of December. Judging will take place Dec. 17, and on Dec. 21, you can join the judging ceremony party at the Greenwood Collective.

Click here for more information and a map of the boundaries for the contest.

This is an excerpt from the real estate listing for the 16-unit Pullington apartment building at 509 N. 85th St.:

The rule of thumb is to find the worst building in the best area! Well here it is and the best part is the building is in great shape and is surrounded by new construction from commercial shops to highrise apartments. 16-unit building steps to Green Lake and Greenwood…

It’s listed at $1,649,500 and while it doesn’t mention the possibility, the $1,295,000 listing for the neighboring building pitches both properties as “prime development property that is ideal for a mixed use building or a townhome development.”

Use the embedded image below to explore the location.

If it’s not working, try this link.

For anyone who’s been following the Supernova saga, it came as good news this week that the Seattle Parks Department put a new ring on the popular piece of playground equipment at Greenwood Park.

So Bruce and his son checked it out on Thanksgiving morning and this is what they found:

While there is less of a tendency to “stick” at certain spots, it is no where near as free running as it was originally.  There is just too much friction.  My son was able to walk completely around on it (over the top) without it starting to turn at all.

Closer examination showed that 2 small wheel like parts with the Kompani logo on them had fallen out and were lying on the wood chips below.  (See attached picture).

The SuperNovas at other parks work fine.  Hopefully this one can be returned to its original smooth running operation…

The annual Winter Festival at the Phinney Neighborhood Association is one of the biggest neighborhood events of the year - and it’s a major fundraiser for the PNA, which supports a number of local non-profit endeavors.

You can get all your Christmas shopping done during this two-day event, with vendors selling everything from photos and paintings to furniture and housewares, children’s clothing, jewelry and skin care products.

The festival runs from 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 6-7, with 115 juried crafts booths, live entertainment on two stages, food, baked goods and a quilt raffle. Baked goods will be available in both buildings; lunch and Starbucks coffee drinks will be available in Community Hall.

Photos courtesy of the Phinney Neighborhood Association.

The Ballard Sedentary Sousa Band, Anzanga Marimba, the Eclectic Cloggers and the Phinney Community Chorus will entertain festival-goers. Admission is $2 for PNA members and $4 for the general public; children 12 and under are free. Please brig a can of food for the food bank.

Tickets for this year’s quilt, donated by the Stashbusters Quilt Group, are $1 each or six for $5. The raffle drawing will be held at 4 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 7. Winners need not be present to win.

The Phinney Neighborhood Center’s annual Giving Tree project kicked off this week. Stop by the lobby at Phinney Avenue and 67th St. to select a gift request for either a child or adult. The tree will have about 400 requests from families through FamilyWorks Food Bank, Greenwood House, Whitman Middle School, Broadview Emergency Shelter, and Childhaven Therapeutic Child Care.

Some tags ask for Fred Meyer gift cards,  and you can even buy $25 gift cards at the Phinney Center office so you don’t have to go to the store. A portion of the proceeds from gift cards sold at the PNA will support their preschool co-ops.

Drop off your wrapped gifts at the Phinney Center by Dec. 13.

Work off that Thanksgiving dinner with a walk and scavenger hunt around Piper’s Creek in Carkeek Park from 11 a.m. - 1 p.m. Friday for the Piper’s Creek Annual Salmon Celebration.

Trained volunteers will walk along Piper’s Creek teaching about the amazing lifecycle of the salmon and how our urban landscape affects them. There may even be some spawning salmon. Families also can participate in a scavenger hunt to receive beads for a salmon bracelet.

Local students have decorated reusable shopping bags, which will be on display at the park’s Environmental Learning Center. Hot drinks and treats will be served.

Lots of news coming out of the under-construction Piper Village these days, which we wrote about just two days ago when we got a sneak peek inside the building.

The new mixed-use development behind Blockbuster and Bartell Drugs on 85th Street will have a European style walking and driving lane through it, and the developers want the neighborhood to name that lane. The lane is designed in the Woonerf style, which primarily emphasizes walking and bicycles, but allows cars. The one-way lane will have water features and run next to a plaza to promote gathering and community.

The lane with adjacent water features under construction as seen from apartment above.

The name should reflect the past and future of the neighborhood. The winner of the contest will receive a $300 gift certificate to Top Ten Toys, which is part of the larger Piper Village.

Judges for the contest include: Kate Martin, president of the Greenwood Community Council; Michael McGinn, past president of the Greenwood Community Council and executive director of the Seattle Great City Initiative; Ed Medeiros, executive director of the Phinney Neighborhood Association; Allen Rickert of Top Ten Toys; and Agnes Jacobson, principal of St. John School.

Entries are due Jan. 5, 2009 and can be emailed. Complete rules and background information are available here.

Taproot Theatre on 85th and Palatine is having a pay-what-you-can performance of “The Christmas Foundling” at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday.

Pay-what-you-can tickets go on sale at 5 p.m. the day of show at the box office. Plus, a limited supply of $10 tickets will be offered from 12-5 p.m. for that evening’s performance, with a limit of six tickets per person.

Grant Goodeve and Jake Lund. Photo by Erik Stuhaug.

“The Christmas Foundling” tells the story of rough-and-tumble miners during the California Gold Rush, who suddenly find an infant on their doorstep on Christmas Eve. The play is filled with traditional folk music and carols, and stars Northwest actor Grant Goodeve, of “Eight is Enough” fame. “The Christmas Foundling” runs Nov. 21-Dec. 27.

Taproot has one pay-what-you-can performance for every mainstage show they produce, to allow everyone to enjoy live theatre.

Last week we wrote about the pervious asphalt being used at the new Piper Village mixed-use development behind Blockbuster on 85th between 1st and Palatine. A few days later, we were invited on a tour of the first phase of the development, The Sedges at Piper Village.

This 46-unit apartment building with 12,000-square-feet of retail space on the ground floor is on track to open next spring. The apartments range from 325-square-foot studios to 1,200-square-foot units with two bedrooms, two bathrooms and a small den. Rent will range from $800-$2,100. Click on Read More below for more photos and details.

Read more...

Matt just sent us these photos of street performers/artists dressed like horses and cats this afternoon on Greenwood Avenue by Ken’s Market.

According to Matt, they weren’t talking or acknowledging anybody and he didn’t see where they’d come from or where they were going. Anybody have any info?

We don’t know, but the oddness of this reminds me of some ESP Society (Egg Society Players) signs that appeared recently in the same area. Could they be related?

Update: bpd says in comments it’s the work of performance artist Lucia Neare:

She stages what she calls “theatrical wonders” all around the city, hoping to bring a little magic into people’s daily routines…The recent Greenwood piece was called Lullaby Moon.

Gainsbourg, which took over the Northside Grill storefront at 8550 Greenwood Ave. N., has opened.

More photos from inside the bar can be found here. The city approved their liquor license on Nov. 18. Thanks, Paul, for the heads up about the opening.

 [Photo credit: Invisible Hour]