Maple Valley Summer Concert

Maple Valley Summer concert series Music In The Park kicked off tonight with Chicago Tribute Authority, which, of course is a Chicago Tribute band.

Welcome Back Geno

 In the biggest trade deadline aquisition that I can remember in the last few years, the Seattle Mariner have brought Eugenio Suarez back to the team.  In exchange, the Mariners give up Suarez, in his best season so far has 36 homeruns this season.

To acquire Suarez, the Mariners gave up Tyler Locklear and a couple of pitching prospects. 

Suarez joined Arizona in 2023 as the Mariners were trying to dump salary.  

My memory of Geno is him hitting game winning homer in a game that we were attending.

Dick Allen is inducted into the Hall of Fame

When I started watching baseball games, Dick Allen (then known as Richie Allen) was one of the big stars.  

It was great to see that he finally got his call to join the Baseball Hall Of Fame.   

Hall of Fame second baseman Ryne Sandberg dies at age 65 | SportsCenter

Sorry to hear of the death of baseball great Ryne Sandberg, a product of Spokane.  He played in a period where I followed sports less (if you can believe that), but it was easy to know he was something special.

FULL SPEECH: Ichiro Suzuki Inducted into National Baseball Hall of Fame

Omedeto  (Congratulations) is Ichiro Suzuki, inducted yesterday (Sunday, July 27th, 2025) into the Baseball Hall of Fame. 

The first Japanese born player to get the honor.  

He accepted the honor with a very funny and moving speech, that he delivered in English. 

It was so cool to watch one of baseball's all-time greats play in person.

Las Vegas 11--The Fountain

 One last thing from our Las Vegas trip earlier this month.  The fountain at Caesar's Palace.

Chuck Mangione Dies

Sad to hear about the passing of Chuck Mangione.  He was 85.  The Jazz trumpeter and flugelhorn player is best known for the 1978 instrumental hit, Feels So Good,

 

Devo 2--Girl You Want

 More from Wednesday's concert. 

Devo Appears At The Zoo

 Last night, we attended ZooTunes, the annual summer concert series at the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle.  Last night, was techno-pop giant Devo.   

I captured their rendition of Secret Agent Man, a 1960 pop classic. 

Alivea Goncalves, sister of Kaylee Goncalves, full statement at Bryan Ko...

I debated with myself on whether to post this, but it was so inspiring, not only to me, but to, probably, the entire world.  

Alivea Goncalves, step by step, confronted the killer of her sister and three other University of Idaho students.  

Other family members confronted the killer, who was sentenced yesterday (July 23rd, 2025), but this one, in my opinion, was a stroke of genius.  

As we try to make sense of what makes no sense, we can perhaps feel better in that the families got their say. 

Chicago Tribute Band Rocks Issaquah

Chicago Transit Experience, a play on the original name of the band Chicago, entertained a huge crowd in Issaquah. 

Ozzie Osbourne Dead At 76

 Ozzie Osbourne, the former lead singer for Black Sabbath is dead at 76.  Osbourne, whose hard driving music was arguably on the fringes of Rock and Roll, gained mainstream fame on a reality show featuring his family. The show ran from 2002-2005.

Osbourne had been suffering from Parkinson's disease. 

eastgate cycle walla walla ad1 1972

Walla Walla had local programing for a while on Channel 13, Teleprompter cable.  One of its talent workers, posted this old commercial, from the early 1970s.

Las Vegas 10--The Strip At Night

The Eiffel Tower recreation highlights this shot 

Connie Francis Dies

 Connie Francis, at one time the world's top selling female singer, died Wednesday (July 16th, 2025) she was 87.

Francis was famous for songs like "Who's Sorry Now" and "Where The Boys Are".  

Her fame was at it's peak in the early 1960s, however, the song, "Pretty Little Baby" has recently gone viral on Tic Toc. 

Las Vegas 9--The Lion

Promoting the Pacquiao vs Barrios fight at that location, the MGM Grand had its symbolic lion in a boxing ring in the lobby.

Las Vegas 8--Smelly Cat Las Vegas. Hey Jude!

Smelly Cat is a karaoke bar on the Las Vegas Strip, where the tourists and maybe a handful of locals can be entertainers.  It is named after a song that was fictionally created and actually sung by Phoebe, a character on the hit 90s TV show, Friends. 

Speaking of friends, they, along with my wife encouraged me to take a stab at it, the results are in this video.  
Perhaps, I won't be the next Maple Valley resident auditioning for The Voice, but it was fun!

Las Vegas 7--Driverless Car Rolls Down The Strip

 What could make a guy like me more uneasy than a driverless car?  I did not ride it, but I saw it go by and captured this vid. 

Las Vegas 6--Hell's Kitchen

We had dinner at Hell's Kitchen, a Gordon Ramsey restaurant  

Across the street, the billboard indicated Wayne Newton, known as Mr. Las Vegas, was playing.

Media Maven Features Dave Sims Pod

 Former Mariner announcer, now, voice of the New York Yankees is the topic of this Media Maven post. 

He is featured on a podcast on the media site Awful Announcing.  Sims, an announcing veteran shares his extensive sports knowledge.  To hear from his point of view, click here fpr a link.

Barry Manilow 3--Can't Smile Without You

 Climate Pledge Arena, July 12th, 2025

Las Vegas 5--Vow Renewal

We renewed our vows at The Little Chapel of Hearts in Las Vegas.  

An Elvis impersonator conducted the ceremony.

Three other couples also renewed in the same ceremony.

Las Vegas 4--Gondola Ride

To help celebrate our anniversary, we took a gondola ride in the man made canal at the Venetian.  

 My cousin and cousin in-law rose along. 

Our gondolier was a lady who had a great singing voice.

Barry Manilow 2--Could It Be Magic

Barry Manilow harmonizes with an old clip of himself.  Climate Pledge Arena, July 12th, 2025.

Mariner Raleigh Becomes First Catcher To Win Home Run Derby

 Cal Raleigh of our Seattle Mariners, already sitting on the top of MLB with 38 Home Runs, has won the 2025 Home Run Derby.    The contest took place yesterday (Monday, July 14th, 2025) in Atlanta.  

Cal's father pitched to him, while his younger brother caught.

Certainly, a key to a so-far successful season for the M's, Raleigh became the first catcher to in the 41 year  history of the Derby to take the trophy.

Las Vegas 3--More Inside The Sphere

Las Vegas 2--Inside The Sphere

Part of the film feature that we watched at the Spheres. 

Barry Manilow Appears In Seattle

Last night (July 12th, 2025) after just returning from Las Vegas, we went to the Barry Manilow performance at Climate Pledge Arena.  

My wife had already seen him a couple of times earlier, but this was the first time for me. 

 

Las Vegas--The Sphere

Two iconic landmarks in Las Vegas, the Stratosphere on the left and the Sphere, the newest, which we visited last Tuesday (July 8th, 2025).  I'll post some pictures from that visit. 

The Sphere hosts shows, movies, and concerts, most notably, the recent residency of The Eagles. 

Nellie Lutcher And Her Rhythm - Wish I Was In Walla Walla

This was shared with me on Facebook a few years ago.  I don't know how I missed it. 

Lee Goldberg's Novels Slated To Become TV Series

 Lee Goldberg announced on his blog, that his character in his series of novels, Eve Ronin will be adapted into a TV series. 

Madison Lintz (pictured above), a 26 year old actor with TV experience, will star in the leading role and be executive producer of the series. 

Goldberg's Eve Ronin series depicts the youngest homicide detective on the LA County Sheriff's Department, who "tackles high-stakes cases while battling institutional resistance and her own personal demons."  

Lee's Eve Ronin series of novels have all been page turners that I've really enjoyed.  Any book in the series can be ordered by clicking here.

 Lee did not say in the article how much creative control he has in how the character will be presented. 

Flying Over The Mountain

On the way to Las Vegas to celebrate our 30th anniversary, I got the great shot of Mount Rainier.

Celebrating 30 Years

 My brother and best man, Steve toasts us at our wedding, July 8th, 1995 at what was then the Grand Atrium at the Wa Mu Tower in Seattle.

Barers Of Maple Valley June 2025

How I kicked off a fun summer. 

Outage Hits Maple Valley Area

 Maple Valley and surrounding areas were cut off from the world for all intents and purposes by an outage that seemed to have struck Sunday Morning. 

 

I may add to this post as I learn more details.

TV, Alexa, phone and internet were down.  We turned on our record player and played board games. 

This post has drawn a lot of traffic. To find out more of why the service was lost click here. 

Here is a little info on T-Mobile outage. Click here.

Mara And The Charm Rock Lake Boren Park

 We enjoyed a show by Mara And The Charm at the Fireworks On The Lake Celebration, on Thursday (July 3rd, 2025) at Lake Boren Park in Newcastle. 

Happy 4th Of July!

 

4th Of July With Seattle Radio Icon Pat O'Day

Independence Day 1980s style.  My annual post for the Fourth.

Material Girl--Concerts On The Green

The summer series in Issaquah, Concerts On The Green began on July 1st, 2025.  

We watched the first one last night with Radio 80. We generally sat toward the back with Oliver. This gives you a good look at the crowd. 

The band played music from the 1980s.

All concerts are free.

Zan Fiskum sings "The Story" by Brandi Carlile - The Voice Knockouts 2020

Like I've said, there is an amazing amount of musical talent in Maple Valley.  A few years before Lucia Flores-Wiseman made it all the way to the finals of The Voice, this lady also competed on the show. 

Zan Fiskum, whose mom teaches at the Voice In The Valley music school, competed on season 18.