Go Cougs!!!

Cougars will try to get their first Apple Cup victory since 2012.

Maple Valley's Favorite Daughter Carlile Nominated For Grammy Awards Again

It's almost Grammy Awards time and once again, our  local superstar, Brandi Carlile was not left out. Carlile received 3 nominations for her behind the scenes work with country music icon Tanya Tucker. The Grammy Awards ceremony will be January 26th of 2020.

 Carlile was nominated for Song Of The Year for the second time in a row for writing "Bring My Flowers Now" on Tuckers "While I'm Living" album.  The song was also nominated for Country Song Of The Year.   Tucker's album was also nominated for Country Album Of The Year.  Brandi and Shooter Jennings were co-producers of the album and would receive Grammy Trophies if it wins.  

If this keeps up, perhaps Maple Valley will be known as "Grammy Town".

Pool Wraps It Up

Veteran KOMO 4 TV weatherman Steve Pool made a touching speech this week on his final     regular report. Click here.

Happy Thanksgiving

Apple Cup 2019

Apple Cup week has begun as the traditional rivalry between the Huskies and Cougars.  The game will be played Friday afternoon.  The Cougars will be looking for their first victory since 2012.

The Kennedy Heirs--A Review

Just 3 days after the anniversary of President Kennedy's assassination, my choice of this book reflects the sense of history that comes with arguably America's most famous family.
I got the idea of reading  The Kennedy Heirs from a People magazine article about Carolyn Bisset Kennedy's (that's John John's wife, not his sister) relationship with sister in law Caroline, based on an excerpt. Having been fascinated by the Kennedys my entire life including brief moments of remembering Kennedy as our president (I was 6 when he was assassinated), I dove into this long detailed book.
The book covers the offspring of John, Robert, and Edward Kennedy with short glimpses of some of the sister's offspring.  While it would be easy for potential readers to dismiss this book as tabloid trash, it brings forth many unknown accomplishments of the Kennedy family and well as seemingly sparring the reader no detail about the faults of the family.
Of course, the book goes through almost every tragedy, a Kennedy was  involved with.  Of course since the book was released, one of the Kennedy grandchildren has died before her time.
This is, I believe, the latest of several books that author J. Randy Taraborrelli has written about this fascinating family.  He has also written about Michael Jackson, Diana  Ross, and Frank Sinatra.
This book is available on Amazon.

Good Football Weekend

The Washington State Cougars came from behind and beat the Oregon State Beavers with a last minute touchdown.  It was a real battle as both teams wanted to get their 6th win to make them "bowl eligible".  Both teams close out the season with tougher battles against their traditional rivals this coming weekend.  Oregon State plays Oregon in the so called "Civil War" and WSU will face Washington in the Apple Cup.   Because of the win, the Cougars will be eligible for a bowl game even if they don't beat the Dawgs.
The Seattle Seahawks kept their post season hopes alive with a victory on the road against the Philadelphia Eagles.  This game did not have  the excitement of the Cougar victory, but a win on the road is always good.  So is a weekend where both my favorite teams get victories.

Eyman To Run For Governor?

One of the state's most polarizing political figures, Tim Eyman may be interested in running for governor, according to the Cascade Advocate, the blog for the Northwest Progressive Institute, better known as NPI.

Eyman has been floating tax cutting initiatives with mixed success for two decades, seemingly without regard on what effect they have on the community.  In 1999, he passed I-695, cutting license tab  yearly fees to $30.  All well and good, but seemingly at the expense of road improvements, mass transit and reduction of traffic. 

Eyman's Initiative 976, which again, is to lower car tab fees to 30 dollars, in spite of heavy spending, against it saying it would deprive road crews of necessary funds to fix decaying roads and bridges.  

Earlier in the year, Eyman was arrested after walking out of Home Depot with an office chair.

Much like President Trump, Eyman has often gained popularity by various missteps, claiming to be a rebel against the system.  

After Trump's victory in 2016, it is clear that Eyman's possible candidacy must be taken seriously.  For years, Eyman's foes have encouraged him to be a candidate, thinking that a term in the legislature could get him familiar with process.  

Governor Jay Inslee will be running for a third term in 2020.  Many Washingtonians are not crazy about an executive serving in that position for more than 8 years.  Likewise, many voters were put off by what seemed like a long shot presidential run by the governor, pointing to his being out of state for long periods of time.  

However, 2020 will also be the year of a presidential election and a high turnout of voters in this state angry with the Trump administration could make Inslee's prospects much better. 

 

Gardner In NFL Promo

Jacksonville Jaguar quarterback Gardner Minshew appears as the "hopeful unofficial mustache of the NFL".  

Minschew was probably one of most popular WSU Cougar football players of all time.

Iconic Weathercaster Pool Will Retire

KOMO 4 TV Seattle meteorologist Steve Pool, a veteran in the market and a regional icon is retiring.
His last weather forecast will Tuesday, November 26th. 
With a smooth delivery and an uncanny ability to connect with his audience, Pool, one of the nation's first African-American weathercasters, has won 8 Emmy Awards and has filled in more than 70 times on ABC's Good Morning America.

Richard Sherman saves the day at Maple Valley foodbank

He plays for the 49ers, the hated rival, but Richard Sherman has his heart in the right place as he made a donation to the Maple Valley Food Bank, at the time, critically low on supplies.

One Year For Mitch Levy Podcast

The Mitch Unfiltered podcast is one year old, former sports radio talk show host, Mitch Levy has proclaimed. The podcast which Levy returned to the public "ear" has been an outstanding wrap up of local, national and world sports in the unique Mitch spin.

Levy was KJR sports radio host for over 20 years when an arrest ended his long career with the station. The podcast, encouraged in part by Levy's Twitter followers, was started 15 months later.  

With a free episode on Monday and an episode for subscribers on Thursday, Mitch has several area sponsors for his show.  He is joined on the podcast by co-host Scott Soden, a former KJR producer. 

Ron And Don Add 2 More Podcast Episodes After Getting Major Sponsor

Ron and Don have announced that after attaining a major sponsor, they will now do 3 podcasts a week.  Les Schwab Tires was recently added, according to the pair.
Ron and Don began podcasting last summer.  They were dismissed by KIRO FM at the beginning of the year after over 10 years at the station.  They had been doing one podcast a week along with an occasional bonus episode.
Ron And Don also work as real estate brokers for Windemere.

Seattle Times Reports Bezos Interested In NFL Ownership

A front page  story in this morning's Seattle Times reports that Jeff Bezos would love to buy the Seattle Seahawks or perhaps another NFL team. 

According to the report, the Seahawks are not for sale.  My guess is the idea will not be embraced by the area.  The Seahawks as a team, seem to be very stable and have maintained a winning record.  An ownership change could upset that.  

The Allen ownership took a while to settle in.  The late Paul Allen, unlike Bezos, was more focused on community works.  

My hope is that the team will stay with it's current ownership structure. 

Sunset In Vegas

The sun going down, a picture taken from our  hotel room. We were in Las Vegas from Saturday night until Monday, but if you look at the blog postings, you may think we were there for a week.

More Las Vegas

We spent a beautiful warm afternoon exploring the Dolphin Habitat at the Mirage in Las Vegas.

Weekend In Las Vegas

Deb and I at Vanderpump Cocktail Garden in Caesar's Palace.  The place which is owned by TV personality and local restaurateur Lisa Vanderpump.  The line to get in was long, but went fast.  

We were on our way to the Dionne Warwick show.

Review Of Evening With Dionne Warwick

We made a nearly impromptu trip this last weekend to Las Vegas to watch Dionne Warwick perform in Cleopatra's Barge at Caesar's Palace. Warwick whose musical career was launched in the turbulent 1960's, can easily be called one of the greatest entertainers of our generation.  She has a voice as smooth as silk and an electric presence.  Her teaming partnership with musical writers Burt Bacharach and Hal David has given us a complete catalogue of timeless easy listening numbers like "Walk On By" and "Do You Know The Way To San Jose"
In the small venue, Warwick played with a 4 piece back up band.  Looking grandmotherly, her voice has also matured like wine.  She displayed a little bit of her famously prickly personality but in a loving way when she said "Good Evening", when the crowd just clapped she said, "When I say good evening, you say good  evening, back" and the crowd was happy to oblige.   She began her set with "Walk On By", a song that had been playing in my head all day.
I won't spoil the finale, or the surprises in the show, but I highly recommend this performance.
Although, I have always been a fan of rock and roll, I have  also enjoyed the middle of the road music of Warwick and the songs of Burt Bacharach.  While much social change has been forged with rock and folk music, it can be said that Warwick worked the middle ground with songs like "What The World Needs Now" and "That's What Friends Are For".

Huge Win On MNF For Seahawks

The Seahawks are in the hunt for a division title as they took down the previously undefeated San Francisco 49ers 27-24 in overtime in front of a national audience on Monday Night Football.
  Josh Myers hit a game winning field goal with seconds remaining to give the Hawks the win.  It was after the 49ers kicker Chase McLaughlin missed a game winning field goal in the overtime.
It was perhaps the biggest upset of the year, as most observers saw the 49ers as a more well rounded team. The Seahawks remain on half game behind the 49ers for the division lead.

Sounders Win

Congrats to the Sounders FC for beating Toronto 3-1 to win the MLS Cup.

Cougars Featured On HBO

WSU is one of four schools featured on the HBO series 24/7.  The show, I guess, is based on Hard Knocks, which is an in depth look at NFL teams.
The WSU episode features  Coach Mike Leach who is shown walking from his house to his office on the campus.   It shows the day by day practices, the coaches philosophy and sits in on the players goofing around.  Specifically, starting quarterback Anthony Gordon.  
Miked up (no pun intended)  football practices are not new to TV,  but this show does a sequential day by day look at each practice, making it indeed unique.
Leach is a natural for this type of program because of his successful but quirky nature.
Also featured is Glenn Johnson, who is the football stadium announcer as well as Pullman's mayor.  He is no doubt, the most visible Pullman resident.  He could be called the "face of the city", however, "voice of the city" would be more accurate.  Johnson says that he has been mayor since 2004 and has not had opposition, quite remarkable when you consider the myriad of different ideas and viewpoints which come together on a college campus.   It is safe to say that Johnson, my old communications professor, known to Glenn by his students can be called a WSU legend.
More info on the program can be found here.

New Medical Clinic Coming

A new clinic is in the process of being built in Maple Valley, not far from our house.

Senator Walsh Will Not Run

One of  Washington's most colorful politicians, Republican Senator Maureen Walsh, has announced that she will not seek a second term in the state senate for the 16th District.  

Walsh, from Walla Walla, started her elected career in the house in 2005.  She had previously been a legislative aide.  

Walla Walla had not received much national notice until her viral video on marriage equality.  It earned her affection from across the aisle and nationwide.  

A second speech on the floor as a senator last spring would also go viral, this time angering many groups by suggesting nurses spend too much time playing cards.  She was actually advocating against shift limits for staffing smaller emergency hospitals. 

Cowsills - The Rain, The Park, and Other Things - Happy Together Tour 20...

Flashback to a concert we watched a couple summers ago at the Snoqualmie Casino.  Cowsills were one of a number of bands from the 60s and 70s who performed along with the Turtles.

Paul and Mary Hopkin- Goodbye

Mary Hopkin, a 60's sensation, sings probably her most popular song with Paul McCartney, the song's composer.

Rudy Boesch, Navy Seal and Survivor Contestant

Rudy Boesch, a Navy Seal veteran who appeared on the first Survivor season had died.  He was 91. Known by his first name to viewers. Rudy was salty but lovable. He clashed with seemingly privileged young and beautiful people as the show featuring strangers living together on an island was launched.  

Rudy's colorful personality, kind of a living "Popeye", was instrumental in making the show a success. It still airs with a two seasons every year after almost two decades.  Each season has a new set of contestants.

Survivor was one of the first of the so-called reality shows featuring competition amongst it's contestants.  It inspired a glut of similar shows like The Apprentice, which was perhaps helped Donald Trump cast an image as a tough boss. 

Watching The Wildlife

While walking the dogs near our friend's house on the outskirts of North Bend, we were able to observe a huge heard of elk.

Go Hawks

Watching the game at No Boat Brewery in Snoqualmie.

Former Athletic Director At WSU Jankovich Dies

Sam Jankovich, who was AD at WSU when I attended  school there has died.  Jankovich  was a somewhat polarizing figure at the school as equal funding for women's athletics began taking the center stage.  Jankovich also arranged for an expansion of the WSU stadium in 1979, allowing all home games to be played on campus.   Major college games before the expansion were played in nearby Spokane, except for team visiting schools like California, Stanford, and Idaho. 

In 1983, Jankovich became AD at the University Of  Miami and helped build a football powerhouse. 

 He would move over to the New England Patriots in 1990, at the time, one of the worst franchises in professional sports.  He would leave that position after a couple of years.  

Jankovich was 85.

Nationals Win World Series

The Washington Nationals came from the brink of elimination to take the 2019 World Series in 7 games.  The series was remarkable in the fact that neither team won in their home ball park.  

This is the first title for the Nationals, who were once the Montreal Expos.