This picture of Fred Jarrett talking the issues with me was in the Issaquah Reporter. It was taken at the North Bend King County Executive candidates forum.

KUJ--Walla Walla's Pioneer Radio Station

If you are entering the City Of Walla Walla from the west, the first thing you may notice is the twin radio towers of KUJ. KUJ is Walla Walla's oldest and most powerful radio station. At 1420khtz, it was between K-HIT and KTEL on the dial. If K-HIT was the station that your father would listen to, chances are, in the 60s and early 70s KUJ was the station that your mother would have on. It's soft adult contemporary music and low keyed radio hosts were probably perfect for a "stay at home" housewife. For many years, it carried the Arthur Godfrey show. The owners of the two other stations in town had both worked early in their careers at KUJ. It's owner, Verne Russell , was perhaps the valley's best broadcaster, known mostly for his recorded end of day sign off ("we will shake those watts and Kilocycles out of bed..."). While KTEL carried most of the high school sports play by play, KUJ carried the local minor league baseball team's broadcasts. Russell himself did play by play in his smooth broadcaster's voice. Eventually, he bought the team.
In the mid 70s , Russell sold the station as well as the baseball team to Jim Nelly.

Meet Joe Mallahan

Joe Mallahan wants to take on Greg Nickles to be Seattle's mayor, is he up to the task? I posted this so readers can get an idea of what he is about.

Good Bye Steve McNair

New Edition To Our Family

My wife has wanted a pet bird and today she bought one. This picture was taken from the internet because I did not want to spook the bird with a camera quite yet. This is about the closest image that I was able to find. More to come...

Mariners Win One In Fenway

The Seattle Mariners continued their red-hot road play tonight beating the Boston Red Sox 7-6. The Mariners were victorious over the Yankees last night although they lost the first 2 games of that series. The Mariners were also able to take 2 from the LA Dodgers last weekend, a remarkable feat since the Dodgers have the best record in baseball.

Entering Maple Valley

I call it the "Maple Valley Waterfall" it is the first thing that you see entering the City Of Maple Valley.

A Note on K-HIT Radio

K-HIT radio of Walla Walla was the radio station your father would listen to. If you lived in Walla Walla during the 60s or early 70s, you could tune it in at 1320. Most radios did not have an FM band or if you had it, chances are you did not use it. K-HIT played such artists as Dean Martin, Perry Como and Ray Coniff literally from sun up to sun down because it only had a daytime license. It also had a machine playing the music--it was automated. It had musical jingles as buffer between the musical selections and the commercials. At the hour and the half hour it had news read by the droning voice of the owner.

Why would I write about such a square radio station? The call letters KHIT were pronounced Kay-Hit, this was an era when top 40 radio was very much in vogue. With such distinguished call letters, you would think that a large market station would pay millions for them.

In the early 70s, KHIT was sold to a group of investors from Oregon, led by Carl Tyler, they modernized the station to a degree and even added a rock FM station, XT97. It too was automated but gave younger Walla Wallans more choices of what to listen to. Carl Tyler would later sell his interest in the station and enter politics, eventually becoming Walla Walla's mayor. The KHIT call letters were acquired by a Seattle radio station which soon folded.

North Bend Candidate's Forum

I went to North Bend last night to see all the candidates for King County Executive including former KIRO news anchor Susan Hutchison and Alan Lodbell. Even though the race is non-partisan (for the first time after a vote last November) it was clear that this would wind up with a Democrat going against a Republican.

It was evidently Susan Hutchison's first appearance in a forum and it was really clear that it was a less than comfortable situation for her. She was the last candidate to show up and may have even caused the session to start late which lead it to finish late. The candidates did not take any questions from the audience. She did not go into detail on any particular issue, preferring to speak in generalities about smaller government and dissatisfaction with Ron Sims (now gone to DC), softball opinions that play well in any part of the county except for Seattle. She referred to opponent Ross Hunter as "Hunter" obviously meaning to say "Ross" and a quip about putting viewers to sleep in their bedrooms came over as awkward.

Alan Lobdell on the other hand was a different type of Republican. He was unpolished, but sincere, with some smart observations. If the Rs are ever going to get some footing in the political stage, they would be wise to start listening to his type.

The four Democrats, Larry, Ross, Dow, And Fred stuck to the styles illustrated in other postings on this blog.

So Long Michael Jackson

Michael Jackson is gone at 50.

So Long Farrah Fawcett

Farrah Fawcett is dead at 62

King County Democrats Endorse Phillips, Constantine

The King County Democratic Central Committee, in response to Susan Hutchison's surging campaign, has made a duel endorsement for King County Executive. Council Members
Larry Phillips and Dow Constantine, were perceived to be the strongest of 4 candidates identified as Democrats. County Races this year are non-partisan for the first time. The duel endorsement angered supporters of Ross Hunter and Fred Jarrett, two Democratics who currently serve in the state legislature.
Former KIRO news anchor Susan Hutchison, perceived to be a Conservative, is running ahead in the race by an overwhelming margin.

Let's Whoopemup!

A lot of towns are spending money to be what Waitsburg, Washington has always been . 20 miles away from Walla Walla, timeless Waitsburg is getting a push from it's booming wine industry. The Whoopemup Hollow Cafe, on Main Street is getting rave reviews. It has menu of Cajun type food. Thank you to my brother Danny for this picture

Great Summer Beach Read

No, there isn't a list of 50 best Northwest Pro Sports titles, but

"The Great Book Of Seattle Sports Lists" is a fun read for any sports fan.

Written by Sportswriters Art Thiel and Steve Rudman, along with KJR Sportsradio Afternoon personality Mike "Gasman" Gastineau, the lists will make you laugh, educate and bring back memories. The book is availble at Amazon.

5th District Democrats Endorse Phillips For KC Executive

Veteran County Councilman Larry Phillips has been endorsed by the 5 Legislative Democrats for the position of County Executive in a meeting of the organization last night. Also endorsed were Lloyd Hara for County Assessor and Rob Holland and Max Vekich for Port Commission. Closer to home, Issaquah Mayor Ava Frisinger was endorsed for another term, as was Maple Valley Deputy Mayor Glenn Smith. Issaquah City Councilwoman Maureen McCarry was endorsed as well. Issaquah City Council Hopeful Tola Marts was also endorsed.

Politics Is In Our Blood

From Shelby Skates wonderful biography on Seattle's legendary Senator Warren G Magnuson, here is my cousin Stan with the senator reviewing papers.

Glenn Smith Seeking Second Term

Maple Valley Deputy Mayor Glenn Smith is seeking reelection for the City Council. In Maple Valley's council-manager system of government, the mayor and deputy mayor are members of the city council, picked by their peers on that body. The council also picks a manager, who performs much of the executive duties. This is a common form of government in small to mid size cities. Smith was picked as deputy mayor when the incumbent Jim Flynn was defeated 2 years ago. Flynn is now running to defeat Smith. In a statement to Barers Of Maple Valley, Smith says . "With proper leadership and direction, balance between profitable business and controlled home growth can be maintained. We must protect the wilderness atmosphere of Maple Valley, while decreasing the growth seen over the first 10 years of our incorporation."

Maple Valley Days

The Maple Valley Days festival is going on this weekend until tommorrow at Lake Wilderness Park 23601 224th Ave SE in Maple Valley, WA. There are plenty of rides, games and fun, and it is a chance to see one of King County's nicest cities.

Walla Walla Trip Highlights

The first sign that you see driving into Walla Walla is "Walla Walla next 7 exits". The joke used to be that when you visit the town, 7 exits isn't enough. But no longer, in the last decade or so, Walla Walla has exploded as a tourist destination town. Not only because of the explosion of the Wine industry, but also because has kept it's Main Street and downtown area vital. While we were over there last weekend, we stayed at the fabulous Walla Walla Suites Inn, where customer service was superb. We stopped did wine tasting stops at Ash Hollow Winery, Bergevin Lane, Dunham Cellars, L'Ecole No 41, and our favorite stop Basel Cellars, which we visited for the first time.

Located south of town, Basel Cellars is located on a hill that overlooks the Washington-Oregon border. It is a stunning setting so I included the three pictures above.

Steve And Dawn's Wedding

In no particular order, here are some of our pictures of the Steve Barer-Dawn Herrman wedding last Sunday.

300 Wins For Randy Johnson

Randy Johnson was able to get his 300th win today as his San Francisco Giants beat the Washington Nationals 5-1
The veteran left-hander will be remembered as one of the greatest players to put on a Seattle Mariner uniform. Seattle Times columnist Larry Stone pays tribute to Johnson.

Steve Barer Gets Married In Pioneer Park

This picture is from Steve's blog. We will put up our own in the not too distant future. Congratulations Steve!

30 Years Ago Today

1979 was a great year to be a Seattle Sports fan. The Seahawks were an exciting NFL team, the Mariners were in their second year in the Kingdome and on June First 1979, the Seattle Super Sonics beat the Washington Bullets for the NBA championship!

Congratulations Ethan

A big congrats to my nephew Ethan for hitting a Grand Salami in his Little League baseball game.

BOMV Turns 4

This Friday marks the 4th blogiversary of Barers Of Maple Valley. From humble beginnings, this blog endures. It has had over 28 thousand visits and I feel the best is yet to come. Thank you for visiting Barers Of Maple Valley.

The Sunday Night Barbecues

Born in the early 80s, the Sunday night barbeque's became an institution, at least in our own minds. It began when my friend from KYYX, Garry, proud of his Alki apartment, took some bricks and boards with which he had been decorating with, and combined it with an oven rack to make the most unique home made barbecue apparatus that I had ever seen. As the spring sprung, the initial barbecue was held, with a rogue collection of characters, Garry's friends from high school, people we had met on the beach, and KYYX employees. Sunday night was figured to be the best time to get together, as nothing else seemed to go on . The event was always BYOB, (bring your own beverage) and each participant would bring their own main dish. The house would supply homemade potato salad and garlic bread. This event went a little over a decade with various locales (the above picture was taken at my condo in 93) and degrees of participation.

Randy Johnson Returns To Pitch At Safeco

Randy Johnson was gone from the Mariners when Safeco Field first opened it's doors in 1999, but has returned many times as an opposing pitcher. Last Friday he made what could be his last appearance in Seattle.

Grandfather Barer Picked The Wrong Game

While the football season is a few months away, my Dad has the story that my Grandma Barer would always tell us about, the one time Grampa went to watch him play football. Click here

Rusty vs The Possum--A Night To Remember

It seemed like a normal evening, last night--I went down to say goodnight to my wife, the dog was on the deck and I was finally getting to bed early. I went upstairs and suddenly heard barking, it knew it was Rusty and it was time for him to come in Pretty soon, I heard every dog in the neighborhood barking and this was up around 11:00. I said to Deb that we had better let Rusty in. Deb told me that he would not come in.

Rusty was still loudly barking when Deb told me to grab something and come out. It was about 11:15 and cold rain was falling down. This is the Seattle area, where Mother Nature does not always get the message that it is the middle of May and winter should be over. I could not find my baseball bat but grabbed an oar from our inflatable boat and some shoes and ran to the back yard. Rusty continued to bark and I could see him. He was barking at a bush. There was some kind of animal in the bush. We had flashlights but neither mine nor Deb's could illuminate the back corner of the yard to a point that we could see what was going on. We knew there was some kind of animal in the back yard that was vicious and could not only seriously harm Rusty, but us as well. I was afraid to poke at the bush and after one half hour, Rusty was still barking loudly, undoubtedly waking up every single person in our cul-de-sac. We tried shaking a treat jar at Rusty, but it was no use. He would keep barking at the animal and there was no stopping him. We decided to call the police. Maple Valley is an incorporated city, but contract with the King County Sheriff for police protection. We dialed 911, but the County deputies would not come out. It seemed like a hopeless situation. The animal had gotten out of the bush and was in the corner of the back yard, I ran around to the back of the fence, but I was unable to see what what was going on, Rusty was still barking (he would not stop) and an animal was snarling.

Finally, our neighbors from the corner, Alan and Kim came out. They brought a stool and a more powerful flashlight. They looked down and saw what was happening, Rusty had killed a possum and there was blood and a nasty scene. I went into the bushes, where Rusty was still barking maniacally, the possum was laying on the ground. I shine my flashlight, I could tell it was not dead. Alan took the oar and trapped the possum. Debra grabbed Rusty, who had now barked for 45 minutes straight. I threw a rock at the possum but could not get a square hit. Debra got my baseball bat and Alan came into the backyard and we were able to kill the possum and put it out of it's misery. We put it in a plastic bag and dropped it into a trash can. We bid good night to our heroic neighbors and called the vet. We found out that possums do not carry rabies and there was no need to bring Rusty (who was now panting heavily) to the animal hospital. This morning, Rusty was subdued, but seemingly feeling fine as we all went to work. Thank you to our neighbors, Alan and Kim.

Horsin' Around

A long, long time ago in a galaxy far, far away! No not really, it's my brother, Steve and I posing with a pretty horse at the Walla Walla Fair in 1993.

Joan Rivers Named Celebrity Apprentice

It's really no surprise, since Trump can make the rules to fit the situation, it was not only how much money you could raise, but several other criteria. As tradition dictates, fired candidates came back to help with the final task which was to put on a silent auction with Kodak for their respective charity. As was expected, Poker player Annie Duke raised the most money, however she did a rotten job of incorporating the corporate brand into her theme.
Joan Rivers raised only a quarter of the money that Annie did, but had a very creative presentation with celebrity inpersonators and what not.
As Trump occasionally does, he fired Annie before naming Rivers the Celebrity Apprentice. Rivers, 70 something, is undoubtably, the oldest apprentice that Trump has named.

Renton Hosts County Executive Candidates Forum

Four Announced Democrats, vying to replace Ron Sims as our next King County Executive, met in Renton for a candidates forum sponsored by the King County Democrats. A full house was present as attendees enjoyed Mexican food and Margaritas, celebrating Cinco de Mayo. A look at the candidates

Larry Phillips is a longtime King County Councilman. He in my opinion has the best stump speech. He champions his conservation work as well as his work on light rail, which he says will begin service this summer.

Dow Constantine Dow is in his second term on King County Council, like Phillips, he is a Seattle attorney. While Phillips may do better in stump speech, Constantine was stronger in the forum, very articulate and well spoken, before he was elected to the council, Constantine was in the state legislature.

Fred Jarrett
Fred Jarrett is in the State Senate from the 41st district, he entered the House Representatives as a Republican, switching parties when he ran successfully for State Senate, calm demeanor, he has a banker look, harking back to his Republican days. He is a former Boeing manager and at one time was mayor of Mercer Island.

Ross Hunter
The newest entry into the race. Ross is in the State House representing the 48th district. A former Microsoft Executive his demeanor directly contrasts with Jarrett. Hunter is very intense and outgoing.

Since the position has been made non-partisan, it's possible that 2 of these candidates could face in other in the General Election. Susan Hutchinson (a former news anchor at KIRO7 TV) has announced her intention to run. She is thought to favor the Republican Party.

King County Executive Candidate's Forumn

Walla Walla Coaching Legend Included In Sports List Book

Whitman College Football Coach Raymond Vincent Borleske is included in The Great Book Of Seattle Sports Lists, a new book which features interesting tidbits on the Northwest sports history. The book is a collaboration between KJR Sportscaster Mike Gastineau and Print Columnist Art Thiel and Steve Rudman.

Borleske had a 32 year career coaching at Whitman, then became the mayor of Walla Walla. The largest sports field in Walla Walla (above) is named after him.

Celebrity Apprentice: Black Out

As this season begins to wrap up, the word is out that the show is being renewed. Yes 2010 will bring us another season of Celebrity Apprentice.
This week's show begins with the candidates being summoned to Trump's office where, all of a sudden Joan Rivers arrives in dark sunglasses. Joan wants to get back into the game and get revenge on the girls who she believes, railroaded her daughter.
The task this week is to come up with a radio spot for "Chicken Of The Sea" Tuna. Athena gets discouraged because neither of it's 2 members Brande and Annie are musically inclined. KOTU, on the other hand has Clint Black has been a control freak, alienating most of his team. He is a Grammy Awards winner though and this is his biggest strength. Both sides work hard and Annie is motivated, in the end, Athena pulls off an upset. This does not bode well for Clint and he is fired. There is no time for the candidates to relax. They have to interview with last year's winner Piers Morgan. He decides that Brande is not that bright (she is sweet though) and Jesse lacks the passion to be the next Celebrity Apprentice. Trump fires both of them, leaving Joan Rivers and Annie Duke to fight for the "crown".

Big Art Controversy In Little Waitsburg

10 years ago, it would have been a stretch to say that anything southeast of the Tri Cities was an afterthought. It was a "no thought". But with the blossoming wine industry in the Walla Walla area, there seems to be much more attention to the surrounding region. The latest controversy, according to the Seattle Times, involves little old Waitsburg. Wine Maker Charles Smith has painted a black and white American flag on his building in the heart of Waitsburg's downtown. The controversy is sure to bring the town some national exposure.