Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Sorted by date Results 1468 - 1492 of 3152
The death of Hank Aaron this week, although sad, stirred up some fun family memories for me. Baseball was a big deal in our family. My father was born and raised in the Bronx, so there was no doubt he was a rabid Yankees fan. With their Murderer's row, Pee Wee Reese, Mickey Mantle, and Roger Maris, who wouldn't be. My mother for one! Her family lived in Brooklyn, so naturally, they loved "dem bums," the Brooklyn Dodgers' well-earned nickname. My Uncle and Aunt were such devoted Dodger fans that...
WASHINGTON-Generally, when one is told to 'take a hike,' the tone is less than friendly. Still, Washington State Parks uses the phrase literally and has effectively changed its connotation from insult to invitation. If getting to a state park isn't possible due to restrictions to mitigate the spread of the novel coronavirus and its newest mutations, fear not. Rangers from all over Washington State are furthering their digital reach by taking viewers on hikes via their YouTube channel. As a...
Ten Years Ago January 27, 2011 Starbuck Mayor Darcy Linklater has been charged with driving under the influence and will appear in Columbia County District Court to enter his plea on Wednesday, Feb. 2. [Headline] Sheriff takes “Honker” into custody for his own safety, then releases him on his own recognizance [Photo caption] Pastor Bret Moser (left) and Pastor Mike Ferrians (right) with America West Bank’s Andie Holmberg in front of the food bank’s future home on Preston Avenue in the bank’s...
DAYTON-The Wenaha Gallery will feature Walla Walla stone carver Sandra Matthews-Sarve February Art Event. Sandra Matthews-Sarve works with both what is considered "normal carving stones," Including marble, alabaster, and soapstone, as well as ordinary rocks she and her husband find on their drives through the Southeast Washington area. She started carving in stone as an extension of her desire to work with ordinary, discarded, or overlooked items in life, and rocks fit that qualification. "Most...
Flemish weekend delight After a busy week of making quick afterwork meals, there is nothing I love more than spending some quality time in the kitchen over the weekend. Taking my time creating a meal is both meditative and an outlet for my creative energy. For me, nothing in the world of slow food is as satisfying as the art of braising. A gentle simmering pot filling the house with enticing aromas is my idea of a wild weekend. For many years, one of my holiday traditions has been preparing...
WAITSBURG-A small herd of whitetail deer swam across the Touchet River on a sunny January afternoon, before running along the levee at the north end of town. What was once a grassy, hard-to-enjoy path has been transformed into a wide walkway, as excavators made necessary levee repairs. Enjoy Waitsburg's walkability, check out the local wildlife, and get some fresh air. Remember to leash your pups, and be sure to remain physically distanced if you cross paths with other walker...
Before (left) and after (right) photos of levee repair along a section of the Touchet River. This area, which runs parallel to Willard Street, sustained significant damage in February, 2020. Enough bank was washed away during the flooding that old train trestles were exposed, leaving the bank and property above extremely vulnerable....
Now in the heart of winter in the Blue Mountains, the days are short and wet in the wheat country and snowy in the higher timber. Aside from the usual chores neglected over autumn and the holiday season, staying active is important to ward off the suffocating clutches of cabin fever and depression in our short and sometimes foggy days of the early calendar year. Of the myriad ways to entertain oneself, the most popular outdoor activities are rather obvious. Ski Bluewood is a prime option. But...
I've known Roz Edwards for almost thirty years. I've also known how fun storytelling can be for kids and what she began to do when the world shut down with COVID-19 is a story I needed to hear. Edwards, like many grandparents, has always enjoyed reading to her grandchildren. In March, she read a book about Marco Polo to her youngest granddaughter, Margot, through Zoom. That month, schools went to distance learning, and she knew many kids weren't going to have that experience. It was also time fo...
My “office” is a built-in desk located in an alcove upstairs in what is now our master bedroom. Next to our library, gym, and my staging area for Zoom business meetings, it’s a cozy little space. Zoom cocktail parties work on the couch or at the dining room table; but, when I have a Zoom business meeting, I strategically place the computer on a table in the library with our over-flowing bookshelves as a backdrop. Just like TV news reporters and politicians, it provides a perception of intel...
Ouch, Netflix opted to start 2021 a little harshly by removing The Office, all nine seasons of which have gone on to stream exclusively via Peacock, NBC’s new streaming platform. In its stead, Netflix has added new episodes of original series such as Disenchantment and pick-ups like Magicians. History of Swear Words (2021) is a solid comedic docuseries starring Nicolas Cage. The show delves deeply into the etymology of all the dirtiest expletives and digs into what makes them so satisfying to s...
Ten Years Ago January 20, 2011 Reid Helford, the popular and award-winning manager of the Liberty Theater, has announced his resignation and will leave his position by the end of April. When a building grows to be as old as the First Christian Church in Dayton, it collects stories. The 125-year-old structure has stood on the corner of Third and Park Streets in Dayton, overlooking the schoolyard across the street for so long, it has seen generations of Columbia County residents come forth into the world, mature to adulthood, and sometimes move...
All sorts of stories aim to explain how this dessert got its name, but we have not come to any consensus (according to Wikipedia, anyway). I’ve heard the pastries were invented by a shoemaker’s wife who stared down the cobblestone lane waiting for her sweet to return. She put together a smattering of sweet and tart fruits for her husband, the cobbler, to gobble. Similar desserts have been and are still called by various names such as tart, pie, etc., with only subtle differences between the...
A shout out to the friendly and fast response I received from City of Waitsburg’s public works specialists, Devin Griffen and Kyle Gradwohl. This morning, as the two city workers were attending to a repair on a Main Street sidewalk, I told them about a concern I had about water coming into the basement of my commercial building on Main St. More a soaking than a leaking, but disconcerting and new to the building. After they finished their work, they went back to the office and relayed my issue with Jim Lynch who immediately sent them back to c...
January 11 Assault witnessed at Lourdes Hospital. Burbank Vehicle stolen out of Walla Walla was recovered. Waitsburg January 13 Deputies answered questions on reporting a runaway. Walla Walla County Male was in a single vehicle collision and cited for DUI. Walla Walla County January 14 A stolen generator was recovered. Burbank An assault was reported. Waitsburg January 15 A subject was transported to SMMC for evaluation. Prescott January 16 A subject was arrested for violation of a protection order. Burbank...
On the right, a photograph from the House Collection capturing a snowball fight outside the Capitol in 1923, a tradition for House and Senate Pages. On the left is a photograph of a young John Hockersmith standing tall in front of the Capitol as he, like many area students, visited Washington D.C. to learn about our democracy....
I am confident that Daniel and I, like most people (and dogs), have daily routines. Ours usually start with Daniel making his tea while I let Mugsy out the back door to bark at the squirrels he perceives to be in our neighbor’s tree. Then I feed Mugsy and make my coffee. With those rituals out of the way, Daniel usually starts our morning conversation with, “what are we eating tonight?” My response is typically an eye-roll, followed by “can I have my coffee first?” He then heads off to his mu...
Patti Jo Amerein lives a relatively quiet life in rural Columbia County. She rides dressage, keeps chickens, and teaches Pilates. But in the 1980s and 90s she lived another life as a Las Vegas show dancer. The stories she tells about those years didn't stay in Vegas. For someone who met and worked with Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Sammie Davis, Jr. (the "Rat Pack"), that's saying something. It started at age three when Amerein's mother sent her and her sister to tap dancing classes. From ther...
Happy New Year, Techies! Auld lang syne and all that jazz. Welcome to 2021. If getting the most out of what you already pay for is on your resolutions list, then let's have a look at our internet service providers (ISPs). Internet speed is measured in megabits per second (Mbps). One megabit is equal to 1,024 kilobits. This conversion means 1.0 Mbps is more than 1,000 times faster than 1.0 kilobits per second (Kbps). Internet speed is calculated with the formula: File Size in Megabytes /...
WALLA WALLA-Once a month, my husband and I try to make a point to go into Walla Walla without our kiddo. Our 'evening out' typically consists of a strategically-planned grocery trip followed up by a quick bite to eat, so we lean toward casual dining. With dining restrictions in place, 'date night' also means we either stop and eat outdoors or eat in the car. This 2020 twist has given us the perfect excuse to check out local food trucks, and we were intrigued by the 'WTF, Eat It' name. Where...
On Tuesday, Students in Nicole Abel's Animal Science class learned how to check vital signs on their dogs. Abel's two dogs also volunteered for the class activity. Wildlife Management students worked on making custom fishing rods....
DAYTON—In celebration of January, a month known for inclement weather, the Wenaha Gallery is featuring fine art jigsaw puzzles as their 3D Art Event. The gallery has puzzles big and small- ranging from 35 pieces to 1,000 pieces, which feature wild turkeys, a train landscape from the Colorado mountains, to a field of green clover. The gallery’s framer, Savonnah Henderson, says she recommends the 300-piece dog breed puzzle, as it is harder than it looks, but ‘immensely satisfying’ to complet...
Ten Years Ago January 13, 2011 [Photo caption] Jeff Jenkins, a Columbia County Sheriff’s deputy, displays drug paraphernalia at Dayton schools last week. After Claudia Nysoe and her husband, Dain, moved back to Dayton two years ago, she told him the position of Chamber of Commerce director seemed like the most interesting job in town. So when Lisa Ronnberg announced in December that she would leave the chamber to join the Columbia County’s Public Works department, Nysoe applied for it, and lat...
While the country I love feels painfully divided, I have been focusing on what unites us, and to my mind, food has always been the great unifier. Our nation's rich diversity makes it hard to define a truly American cuisine, but perhaps nothing has come to represent us quite like the humble Apple Pie. I am sure many of you already have a tried-and-true recipe, possibly passed down over generations, for this quintessential American dessert. So, I thought I would bring you something a little...
