Category: Fl!p’s Pix For Music

CONTENTS 9/15/2020
Air Quality Report
Homeless, With Smoke & Covid
Halloween Input
Surfboard?
Family Rental Wanted
Fire Fighters Follow-Up
All Good On Curly Willow
Bellingham Irish Festival, Virtually
John Miller Online Concert
Radio Free Fl!p: John Miller Sampler

AIR QUALITY REPORT

https://aqicn.org/map/washington/

This is helpful because it’s real time. ~ Patti Rathbun

[The clearing we’re seeing today is in the upper air, not the ground level stuff we’re currently breathing, which is still unhealthy. We’ve got an Inversion – a layer of  warmer air on top of colder air at the surface. That warmer upper layer traps the bottom layer. So it looks less smoky, there is some sun breaking through, but we still have too much smoke to go out and play.  ~Fl!p]

HOMELESS, WITH SMOKE & COVID

Some folks are not able to handle being in a huge shelter space, but right now the only alternative is outdoors. We are all safer when everyone has shelter. Please support our city council to follow through on some excellent planning that has already been done. Without implementation, no amount of planning will save lives or create a livable community for us all.

HALLOWEEN INPUT

https://www.bellinghamherald.com/news/coronavirus/article245732330.html?ac_cid=DM281521&ac_bid=-2092087014

SURFBOARD?

I am in search of a foam surfboard. ~ Chloe Burns  425-890-6250

FAMILY RENTAL WANTED

My husband, 2 kids (3 year old  and 6 month old) and I are wanting to move back to Bellingham to be closer to the grandparents – does anyone have a 3 bedroom rental coming available in the next few months? We don’t have any indoor pets, but would love to bring our chickens along if possible (it’s not a dealbreaker if that’s not an option). Our budget is around $2000/mo. Feel free to email me at brandykshreve@gmail.com if you have or know of anything!  Thank you! ~ Brandy Shreve

FIRE FIGHTERS FOLLOW-UP

Sarah Granger sent me a photo of our donations. Readers really stepped up to the plate! Many people brought fresh produce, flowers, thank you cards and more for the 20 folks coming off an 18 day shift fighting forest fires, eating only MRE freeze dried food. The workers will have 48 hours off, and then start their next shift. Sarah wrote, “ I am overwhelmed with happiness and great fullness over the generosity of our home. There is more food in the fridge and freezer as well. And more people are dropping stuff off.”

ALL GOOD ON CURLY WILLOW

Thanks so much for the curly willow offers!  Our neighborhood continues to amaze me with its generosity and willingness to help out!  I will be in touch with those who reached out, and I had 3 offers, so I am all set now.  Many thanks! ~ Cat Enright, Utter Street

BELLINGHAM IRISH FESTIVAL, VIRTUALLY

October 9, 10, 11, 2020
Hooray!!!! This will be wonderful…

http://www.bellinghamirishfestival.com

JOHN MILLER ONLINE CONCERT

Saturday, September 19 at 4:00 PM, PDT: https://youtu.be/r5LHRQJakhI.

John is an extraordinary guitarist in many genres. He’ll be presenting a program of original Country Blues arrangements and songs, some songs from the Great American Songbook by composers like Hoagy Carmichael and Jerome Kern and some original tunes. The show is being hosted by the Trumansburg Conservatory of the Fine Arts. They have presented a series of on-line concerts during this pandemic period, when it has not been safe to give or attend in-person concerts.

RADIO FREE Fl!P: JOHN MILLER SAMPLER

Local (Birchwood) guitarist John Miller let me know today that he’s playing an online concert on Saturday. To me, that’s a big deal. So I poked around online to see what I could find to share with you. Choosing just one song is impossible. I first met John playing bass for the early jazzgrass band Country Cooking with Tony Trischka. John apparently hadn’t played bass before, but the band talked him into it. Then John did a series of Country Blues albums. And started teaching for Guitar Camp. I remember him doing a spontaneous workshop in which he took us on a tour of the south eastern US, county by county, playing tunes from one blues musician, and then explaining that that person’s uncle lived in the next county over, and played something from them, and so on, for several hours. When Peter McCracken wanted to start a Blues Workshop for Centrum in Port Townsend, the story I heard was that Peter asked John over dinner who John would hire if he wanted to run such a camp. John scribbled a long list for Peter, with a caution that the players might not all still be alive. A couple years later, the camp began, with almost all of the folks on that list. Many had never been North, but were lured by the other names on the list. I’m not a blues player, but I absolutely went. But John wasn’t done. After several stunning albums of blues, he put out an album of Gershwin and went on for several more albums from the Great American Songbook. And then there are the Bossa Novas… Whatever he’s playing, I always feel like he’s picking up my foot and tapping it for me.

Jalapenos (yes, this is just one guitar, no overdubs)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxoI365njmM

Muskrat Ramble (Starts slow, but look out when he shifts gears!)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aB7eGNvrvow

Biding My Time (Gershwin)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWLwpU8dnn8

Love/Fl!p 360-671-4511  2518 Cherry Street flip@columbianeighborhood.org

If you want to ask me to post something, just email me. If it’s urgent, phone. If it’s a real emergency, call 911.

CONTENTS 9/13/2020
Smoke Forecasts
Improving Indoor Air
Air Cleaner Cleaning
Looking For Pressure Cooker
Wanted – Curly Willow Limbs
Garage Space?
Another Fan Hack
Kitten Is Home!
Free Piano
Musical Instruments To Pass On
Radio Free Fl!p: It’s A Pleasure To Know You

I just sent today’s Update, which I thought I had sent hours ago. And here was yesterday’s as well! The Smoke forecasts are way out of date but the rest of it is still timely. And the song at the end is particularly marvelous. Love/Fl!p

SMOKE FORECASTS

Current model runs suggest a slower clearing of the air than we had hoped for. We may see some decline in concentrations by midnight and we won’t be fully clear by 8am tomorrow (but we should be in better shape).

Here’s a link to the midnight model result: https://rapidrefresh.noaa.gov/hrrr/HRRRsmoke/for_web/hrrr_smoke_jet/2020091321/t1/trc1_t1sfc_f10.png

And here’s 8am tomorrow: https://rapidrefresh.noaa.gov/hrrr/HRRRsmoke/for_web/hrrr_smoke_jet/2020091321/t1/trc1_t1sfc_f18.png

An animation of the modeled progression starting from 4pm today is here: https://rapidrefresh.noaa.gov/hrrr/HRRRsmoke/jsloopLocalDiskDateDomainZipTZA.cgi?dsKeys=hrrr_smoke_jet:&runTime=2020091321&plotName=trc1_t1sfc&fcstInc=60&numFcsts=49&model=hrrr&ptitle=HRRR-Smoke%20Model%20Fields%20-%20Experimental&maxFcstLen=48&fcstStrLen=-1&resizePlot=1&domain=t1

Also, please note that the model is showing concentrations of PM2.5 and not the AQI – please don’t confuse the two or assume that the color scale is the same as you might see on some other site. I just wish the models for this type of thing we’re more reliable. I’m looking forward to some clean air! Regards, ~Tim Sturtz

IMPROVING INDOOR AIR

Ht/t Frank James, former Whatcom County Public Health Officer

https://www.whatcomcounty.us/DocumentCenter/View/41932/Improving-Indoor-Air—Wildfire-Smoke-Events

AIR CLEANER CLEANING

Thanks for the blog entries on DIY air cleaners. Here’s something I just realized: You can tell if your box fan air cleaner is working, and when the filter needs replacing, by looking through the filter at a bright light source. If the filter is working, you’ll see a dark circle the circumference of the fan blades, where particles (like smoke particles) that were in the air have been trapped by being sucked in to the filter. If you see that dark circle, it’s also probably a good time to change the filter. ~ Clyde Ford

FREE PIANO

We have a stand up piano, Black, will need a tune up. It has a bench for music storage. Would love to find it a good home, we acquired years ago from the girls preschool teacher. ~ Sabina Gouran , Elizabeth Street, Call or text-360-383-6385

LOOKING FOR PRESSURE COOKER

I would like to borrow your large pressure cooker for canning.  I can offer a jar of delicious bounty for your generosity! ~ Ann Shannon, Utter Street, call/text 360/ 319.9114

WANTED – CURLY WILLOW LIMBS

I am rebuilding a curly willow bench and table because some nasty bugs have gotten to the wood.  Do you have a curly willow whose limbs I could trim to use for my project? Many thanks, in advance. ~ Cat Enright, Utter Street  catenright108@gmail.com

GARAGE SPACE?

Looking for garage space to rent for storing classic cars. Different size automobiles. Single space or multiple. ~ Eli Hinton 360 355 3612. E. Victor.

ANOTHER FAN HACK

I’ve thought about putting a furnace filter into a window and duct taping it if I have to. Then running a window fan on exhaust. Having compromised lungs, I built for my workshop an air cleaner with 2 box fans and 3 filters. Two of which are washable. I glued them to a wooden base with bungees so things don’t fall apart. It’s basically what high end air cleaners are.  Maybe something to think about for next year. My concern was also the strain on the fan motor. ~ Dave Lind, 2908 Lorraine Ellis Ct.

KITTEN IS HOME!

Kitty was found and reunited with the family!!! Snowy is home!

MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS TO PASS ON

These three instruments have followed us through life from our days in the ’60s in San Francisco, so they are variously not very high quality or in very good shape. Anyone who is interested can come and pick them up. Just call Clyde or Susan Curley at 360-738-6862 to make arrangements.

“Autoharp” brand–good tone, no broken strings, but missing buttons on three of the chord bars.

3/4 size fiddle–no bridge, tailpiece, or chin rest, but with a genuine fake Strad label! Good project for a luthier-in-training! Comes with a case.

Lap dulcimer–definitely low end, nothing fancy in the appointments, three strings with machine tuners, plays fine. No case.

RADIO FREE FL!P: IT’S A PLEASURE TO KNOW YOU

This is a spectacularly wonderful song, and gloriously sung with a wide open heart. It’s my gift to you in this tough time. Today would have been Faith Petric’s 105th birthday. Here’s a video of her singing back in 2012, at the age of almost 97. Faith was a great inspiration to me. She was at the heart of the San Francisco Folk Music Society. I always thought she knew more songs than anybody. And a surprising number of them were naughty! She taught one of the naughty ones to my then-five-year-old son one time. And he sang it to his own grandma when they were waiting on the steps on the Seattle Opera House when Mom took him see the Nutcracker for the first time. Mom was impressed, but not exactly delighted.

I remember talking with Faith one time about hitchhiking around Japan. She’d been all over. I said something about old times and she said, “No! I went just last year. Those folks really respect their elders.” Here is Faith with a message I needed in the middle of all the current disasters. Maybe you could use it too. It was always one of my favorites. (Thanks to Steve and Michael Scott for sending it on to me.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xbVeyG0DH_A

Love/Fl!p  360-671-4511  2518 Cherry Street flip@columbianeighborhood.org

If you want to ask me to post something, just email me. If it’s urgent, phone. If it’s a real emergency, call 911.

CONTENTS 9/14/2020
Homeless With Smoke & Covid
Love For Firefighters
Whatcom County Voter’s Info
Smoke Prediction Background
Tolkien Air Quality Scale
Mossy Mentors
Chimney Work?
Radio Free Fl!p: Rock Me To Sleep, The Shirt Song

GAH!! The last couple days posts didn’t go out. Operator error. My apologies. Sending NOW. Love/Fl!p

HOMELESS WITH SMOKE & COVID

I received this alert from my friend Heather Ktahdin, who has worked with citizens experiencing homelessness for a long time, specifically with folks who fall through the cracks in city programs.

Please consider speaking a comment at city council meeting tonight. Ask the City to unlock & staff more public buildings 24/7 to provide safe breathing air for those with asthma that don’t have access to filtered air. We are experiencing a weather emergency. Our unsheltered citizens are on day 4 of unhealthy smokey air. Our public library is closed due Covid. Other than late night restaurants, not much is open at night and weekends as a safe public shelter with filtered air.

The old Public Market on Cornwall is now called Base Camp. They do good work with their long term residents but not every citizen is able to integrate into their structure. Not all will be able to be quiet and calm enough to stay in a private faith shelter in a large shared room. These are the most fragile among us.

There was a Whatcom homeless strategy Workgroup meeting on Friday, and nobody at meeting, including health department staff, discussed any concerns in regards to the smoke that started that day. If citizens find anyone ill and whose life is in danger, please call 911 and request a medic, observe the medics or officers, and ask that a DCR, Designated Crisis Responder be requested to come evaluate if the person is gravely disabled, and thus be transported to a safe room even if they refuse.

Tonight’s meeting is Monday September 14, 2020  at 7:00 PM

www.cob.org/cc091420

This link will take you to a very short and simple form to fill out if you wish to speak tonight.

LOVE FOR FIREFIGHTERS

Sorry for the last minute request but the Baker River Hotshots, which is the wild land fire crew based out at Baker Lake, come home for 48 hours on the 16th and I want to take as much fresh food and letters of love as I can to them at the station. We all know how much better food straight out of our garden is and these guys could use all the fresh nutrition they can get. They fight on the front lines of these fires, often times sleep in the black (where the fire has already burned)  on the ground in a bivi sac and are supplied with MRE (freeze dried meals ready to eat) as their high calorie food. This year has been an incredibly difficult year for so many and these guys have been doing everything they can to make sure us at home can be safe and taken care of.

Please see the links below to know just how amazing these, and all front line workers are. One is from the Baker River page and the other is one of the crew members. If you have any excess of fresh food or would like to make a card or something fun and loving to send them please let me know via email or text what and where and I will make rounds tomorrow afternoon to pick stuff up.

https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=10157239121912132&id=124234067131

https://www.facebook.com/sjohnnybrady/posts/10223694470179155

This crew is usually gone for 18 days at a time and get to come home for 48 hours before being sent to another fire. My husband is one of these amazing people and I cant wait to have him home.

Please do not feel obligated to do anything for this but I do have one other request…….Vote. Please vote this year and vote knowing what this world needs is understanding, love, acceptance, respect for differences and equal opportunity for everyone and our environment.  Thanks so much and lots of to everyone.

Sarah Grainger, Victor Street  sbirdeen@yahoo.com  (425)681-9605

WHATCOM COUNTY VOTERS INFO

Whatcom County voters may soon receive a postcard from the U.S. Postal Service encouraging voters to “plan ahead” for the November 3 General Election. Among the recommendations is to request a mail-in or absentee ballot at least 15 days before Election Day.

“Voters in Whatcom County do not need to request a ballot, as ballots are automatically mailed to all registered voters 20 days prior to Election Day. There is no need to sign up or request to receive a mail-in ballot to vote in the upcoming election” stated County Auditor Diana Bradrick. Voters who are unsure if they are registered to vote or if their address on file is current can log in to VoteWA.gov to confirm their registration information. Voters are also welcome to contact the Auditor’s Office at elections@co.whatcom.wa.us or phone 360-778-5102.

County election officials, and the Office of the Secretary of State were not made aware this mailer would be sent to Washington residents, nor were we apprised of its content. By the time we learned of the mailer and reached out to the postal service, the mailers were already in the mail stream.

Voters are encouraged to check the status of their registration now at VoteWA.gov, and to contact the Auditor’s office if they have not received a ballot by October 21. Ballots must be postmarked election day or received in a ballot drop-box by 8:00 pm on election day, November 3. USPS recommends mailing at least a week before election day, and voters are encouraged to check the last mailbox collection time in order to ensure their ballot will be postmarked in time said Auditor Bradrick.

SMOKE PREDICTION BACKGROUND

I did not wake to the clean air I had hoped for. The recent model forecasts don’t agree well with the monitoring that I’m seeing, Here is info about why.  https://cliffmass.blogspot.com/2020/09/much-more-pessimistic-air-quality.html?m=1

Here’s a blog from an air modeler with the WA Department of Ecology:https://wasmoke.blogspot.com/2020/09/atmosphere-is-not-delivering-what-we.html?m=1

Regards, ~ Tim Sturtz

[So, here’s a bunch of science! I don’t understand it all, but I love getting more understanding of both what’s going on, and the challenges of trying to predict what’s next. And I love this picture of scientists scrambling to figure out what’s really going on and how to modify their models to reflect that. I love watching them think together about reality for the benefit of all of us. My brother Joe said something that struck me the other day about mirages. When you’re driving in the desert, and you see a huge shallow lake covering the highway ahead, it’s not a good idea to base your actions just on what you think you’re seeing. For now, stay inside; keep cleaning the air. If you’re feeling extra anxious today, your body is hardwired for smoke. It’s telling you, “Get out of here!” But unless you are under an evacuation order, right now it’s probably safer at home.~ Love/Fl!p]

TOLKIEN AIR QUALITY SCALE

From the Shire to Mordor, green to brown. This morning we were in Mirkwood (red), but now we have moved into Isengard, post Orc army (purple). A friend from Portland said they peaked at 770 – directly above the fires of Mt Doom. Sometimes I just need to laugh, even when it’s not appropriate…

MOSSY MENTORS

Children’s outdoor program. Location: Fairhaven Park, then we head into the Hundred Acre Woods, 9:30-2:30p.  9-12 years old meet Tuesday and Thursday, 5-8 years old meet Wednesday and Friday. Maximum 10 kids per group with COVID precautions.  Cost: $25-40 per day which comes to $200 – $320 Sliding scale per month with scholarship spots. We aim to create a safe space for children to integrate the rapid changes of the times we are all living in. Some of the ways we will do this are through connecting with the natural world, imaginative play, learning and practicing wilderness skills, circle time and discussion, trust building exercises, being outside together and being present with what arises. – contact mossymentors@gmail.com for more info  – Katie, Katelyn & Yin

Katie, who is spearheading this program, is an incredible mentor and ally to children and a strong earth-based educator.  ~ Jess Radovich 2310 Park St. 

CHIMNEY WORK?

We are looking for someone to inspect and possibly clean the chimney of our fireplace for the winter season.  Recommendations?  Email jessicaradovich@gmail.com  Thanks! ~ Jess Radovich 2310 Park St. 

RADIO FREE FL!P: ROCK ME TO SLEEP, THE SHIRT SONG

Today was Tom Hunter’s birthday. Tom & Gwen & their kids lived over on Victor Street for decades. Tom was a minstrel who traveled the world singing and writing songs with and for children and their teachers. He was a Congregationalist minister too. His compassion and humor illuminated the world for all the years I knew him. His humor was just plain joyous. You get two songs today. The Shirt Song was the first one I ever heard of Tom’s, way before I ever met him. He phoned me one day back in the mid-1970s from San Francisco hoping to play at the coffeehouse I ran at WWU. My reaction was, “You’re the guy who wrote the Shirt Song. A song that good couldn’t have been an accident. You’re hired!” That was the beginning of a lifetime friendship. Tom died way too young, but he left behind hundreds of songs and thousands of people still sing them. Including me.

Rock Me To Sleep

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XcJd_3zHw-E

The Shirt Song

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rHJq8nxPI18

Love/Fl!p 360-671-4511  2518 Cherry Street flip@columbianeighborhood.org

If you want to ask me to post something, just email me. If it’s urgent, phone. If it’s a real emergency, call 911.

CONTENTS 9/12/2020
Alert: Lost Kitty
Exhaust Fans & Cooking
Double Filter For Box Fan
Smoke Forecast Update
Found Key
Camera Returned
Radio Free Fl!p: Ashokan Farewell

ALERT: LOST KITTY

Our neighbor’s cat “Snowy” disappeared last night and hasn’t been seen since.  She is quite little and looks more like a kitten. If you have seen a beautiful little cat with a grey/white head and tan/white body, please email me at zanjer@q.com and I can show you a photo of her. The neighbors are anxious to see her again. ~ Lizanne Schader on Victor St.

EXHAUST FANS & COOKING

Thanks for the reminder regarding exhaust fans. I do think it’s worth considering that cooking can significantly increase the harmful particulate levels in a home.  Perhaps at higher levels than the current smoke ridden conditions outside.  So, even as you pointed out, turning on an exhaust fan will pull smoke particulates into the home, those may be at a lesser level than what is being produced from cooking.  

Admittedly it’s hard to say (without your own air monitor) when the air quality from cooking is more of a serious concern than outside conditions.  But there is lots of research that talks about cooking being a serious hazard to indoor air quality (depending on what’s being prepared on the stove top).

In real time, my wife just finished frying up some eggs for breakfast and forgot to turn on the exhaust fan.  The air quality, as I sit, feels pretty bad.  Is it worse than outside this morning?  I don’t know, but it seems worse to me. So I kind of wish she had turned on the fan.   

I agree we probably shouldn’t be using the bathroom exhaust fan, but I think it might be a different set of circumstances to weigh regarding whether to use a kitchen exhaust fan when cooking.  Kindly, ~ Brad Belvo, Walnut St. 

Thanks! I will post this. With the pandemic, all particulates are riskier than usual. Cooking is definitely an issue. I am planning to cook this morning since the weather has finally cooled off, and have a portable air cleaner with a sensor in the kitchen. Zeke fried an egg this morning, and the sensor did trigger. And then it settled down pretty quickly, having sensed that the particulates had been cleared. I brought the air cleaner into the living room when I came in to work on today’s emails, and it fired up again. That was probably from smoky air that had leaked in overnight to our sweet but leaking old house. The air cleaner dropped back down to low setting pretty quickly. As far as cooking, I think running an exhaust fan in all this smoke is a question of trading one kind of particulates for another.

I asked my big brother Joe, because he’s likely to have a real answer to most questions of technology. He says he takes combustion gasses from cooking very seriously. He’s currently using an induction top and an Instant Pot instead of range top and oven. He suggested I put my air cleaner up high in the kitchen because hot air rises, so that I can get a better picture of how much pollution is coming from my cooking. Mostly we’re eating salads, and microwaving stuff from the freezer. I’ve been stashing soups, stews and such every time I cook for months and now seems like a great time to use them.

DOUBLE FILTER FOR BOX FAN

If you use two furnace filters set in at right angles to each other, instead of one alone, it greatly reduces the strain on your box fan motor. You need to fill in the empty triangle on top and bottom with cardboard taped on though. Safer – to keep the motor from overheating. Here’s a how-to video. If you can find room in your budget to buy a real air cleaner, I would recommend doing so. Smoke Season is now a real annual event. https://tombuildsstuff.blogspot.com/2013/06/better-box-fan-air-purifier.html

SMOKE FORECAST UPDATE

I thought I’d pass along a quick update for you and anyone else who may be interested. The current NOAA HRRR model is suggesting that the smoke will start clearing the Bellingham area around 6pm tomorrow and we should be quite clear by the early hours of Monday. As always, the model may be off and the forecast could change by the end of today or tomorrow, but I thought it was worth providing an estimated timeline for folks. Let’s hope the forecast holds or the smoke clears out sooner. Regards, Tim Sturtz

Here’s a link to the first image: https://rapidrefresh.noaa.gov/hrrr/HRRRsmoke/for_web/hrrr_smoke_jet/2020091212/t1/trc1_t1sfc_f37.png

Here’s a link to the second: https://rapidrefresh.noaa.gov/hrrr/HRRRsmoke/for_web/hrrr_smoke_jet/2020091212/t1/trc1_t1sfc_f45.png

FOUND KEY

Not sure if this is the right address but my son found a VW key on the corner of Walnut and W North this morning. It’s on a Mt Baker lanyard. Claimer can call me at 303 319 5406. Thanks, ~ Kyle Harris

CAMERA RETURNED

I carried little cards to all three businesses near where I found yesterday’s camera, and when I went in to the ReStore they gave me a description of the camera and case and the phone number of the owner, who had called in and asked about his missing camera. I called the owner, and he came over late this afternoon and picked up his lost camera. He was very happy, and so was I. ~ Lee Seaman

RADIO FREE FL!P: ASHOKAN FAREWELL

Jay Ungar & Molly Mason Family Band. Molly used to live here in Bellingham, and she taught for Puget Sound Guitar Workshop in the early days. I remember coming back to my cabin around 2 AM and finding my bunk occupied by Molly, Larry Hanks (another old Columbia neighbor from Williams Street) & I think Eric Schoenberg. She was showing the guys the complex swing chords to Beginning To See The Light. She was out ahead of all of us on those fancy chords, having learned Texas Swing as a kid. I kinda skootched them over far enough to squeeze into my sleeping bag, and fell asleep to lovely music. When Molly moved back east, she and Jay started their own east coast version of Camp, called Ashokan. That’s where the name of the tune comes from. Jay wrote this tune one year in the quiet melancholy time after the last of the campers had gone. Ken Burns picked it up for his Civil War series. But some of that song’s tendrils stretch and twine to Bellingham. Molly is still an extraordinary guitarist.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2kZASM8OX7s

Love/Fl!p 360-671-4511  2518 Cherry Street flip@columbianeighborhood.org

If you want to ask me to post something, just email me. If it’s urgent, phone. If it’s a real emergency, call 911.

CONTENTS 9/11/2020

Alert: Dangerous Smoke
Need Bunny Hutch Or Big Dog Kennel
Found Camera
Bricklayer
Radio Free Fl!p: Sweet and Low

ALERT: DANGEROUS SMOKE CONCENTRATIONS

This is a weekend to stay indoors, with windows closed. Starting now. Rig up an air cleaner if you don’t already have one. The forecast is for very heavy smoke, which can have health impacts for everyone. Here are online resources from a local air professional:

Just a heads up that the plume of poor air quality is rolling in. The AQI that is often reported reflects the 24-hour average concentration which, from the point that the plume arrives, takes some time to reflect the degraded state of our air. One way to see around that longer averaging period is to look at the PurpleAir website which shows a shorter averaging period (the site defaults to showing how concentrations are changing at 10-minute intervals instead of 24-hour).

I’ll point out that the health implications associated with the AQI scale are focused on 24-hour AQI, not the 10-minute version, but in this case our 24-hour concentration will be increasing steadily over the next couple days and the 10-minute version serves as our canary in the coal mine.

For those interested in digging into visualizations of the forecasts, I’ll suggest looking at the NOAA HRRR Smoke model and the corresponding visualization site. Warning it can be a big more detail than some might want to deal with. Anyone interested in the site should only focus on the “near-surface smoke”, to focus on the smoke that we’ll be inhaling. Here’s a link to the most recent model run visualization, depicting how our air may change.

Regards, Tim Sturtz

P.S. For what it’s worth I’m a professional air quality engineer!

BUNNY HUTCH

My friend and her family were evacuated from the fires down south and arrived at our house late last night with their dwarf bunny in a small carrying case. Does anyone have a bunny hutch or anything that can be used as a bunny hutch for the next few days until it is safe for them to return home? This would be greatly appreciated so everyone (particularly bunny) can feel more comfortable.   Thank you ~ Sarah Garrett  2429 Spruce 415-676-1025

FOUND CAMERA

Found an SLR camera Sept 10 afternoon in the middle of on-street parking just off the Guide Meridian at the music store across from the ReStore. It looks almost new. There was nowhere safe to leave it, so I brought it home. I posted a photo of the case on Craigslist: bellingham.craigslist.org/laf/d/bellingham-slr-camera/7194125513.html  If it’s yours, please call me at 360-255-8452 to identify and arrange pick-up. ~ Lee Seaman, 360-255-8452 Washington St.

BRICKLAYER

I am looking for a skilled bricklayer. If you have any good references, please let me know. Thanks neighbors!

~ Diana Ambauen-Meade Lorraine Ellis Ct. drameade@gmail.com

RADIO FREE FL!P: SWEET AND LOW

In the midst of such craziness, a lullaby. Me and a then brand new friend, and my Mom, who sang me the song while I was still inside her womb. Aimee knew it from her own mother. I could use some comfort on this day, and you might too.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9e5YkQ3uTCQ

Love/Fl!p 360-671-4511  2518 Cherry Street flip@columbianeighborhood.org

If you want to ask me to post something, just email me. If it’s urgent, phone. If it’s a real emergency, call 911.

CONTENTS 9/10/2020
Free Food For Kids / Helping Farmers
Burn Ban
Bike Safety Rodeo
Estate Garage Sale
Wallet Was Returned!
Short Term Rental
Motherlode & More
Radio Free Fl!p: Woody Knows Nothing

FREE FOOD FOR KIDS WHILE HELPING LOCAL FARMERS: People with kids under 18 years old are needed to come pick up food to keep local farmers working. USDA grants are paying for this, and it is not need based. No pre-qualifications, reservations or additional requirements needed. Just drive through, tell them how many kids you have, and go home with food. They are asking to spread the word so people can keep working. I wouldn’t normally go otherwise for fear of taking something that someone else needs, but they have an abundance of fresh food to distribute. 

https://www.smore.com/ktz1m-food-services-and-wellness-update

BURN BAN

Effective immediately, all outdoor fires within the Bellingham city limits are prohibited until further notice. This includes recreational fires. The Bellingham Fire Department has deemed this a necessary safety precaution due to continued high temperatures and dry vegetation within the city.

This restriction prohibits all fires where solid wood is being used as fuel including open-air campfires and fires in fire pits or outdoor fireplaces. Under this recreational fire ban, propane and natural gas fire pits and barbecues and charcoal barbecues are still allowed to be used for cooking provided solid wood is not being burned. However, care should be exercised in the disposal of charcoal and ashes. Charcoal and ash should be discarded in a metal container and dowsed with water. The container must be kept 10 feet from any structures, trees, or other combustible materials.

Our community is a special place and we all need to do our part to keep it safe, especially during increased fire danger periods. Reckless violation of these restrictions should be reported by calling 9-1-1. Violation of these restrictions can result in criminal charges and minimum fines of $250.

BIKE SAFETY RODEO

Immanuel Bible Church is sponsoring a free Bike Safety Rodeo for kids age 4 to 7 on Saturday, Sept. 26th, from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm and 1:00 to 4:00 pm. The course will be set up in the main parking lot at Immanuel. Stations will be designed to provide opportunities for kids to improve their bike safety in areas such as: helmet fit check, starting and stopping, how to avoid rocks, points of interaction with traffic, and more. The course is expected to take about an hour. Helmets are required for riders and masks are mandatory.  A parent or guardian should plan to accompany their child.  Please call or text Sean Jeffrey at 360-961-2483 to sign up and schedule a start time. If we are rained out on Sept. 26th, the event will be moved to the following Saturday, Oct. 3rd. Also, be watching for a mini “4 Fun Course” which will appear in the small parking lot off Henry Street the week before the Bike Safety Rodeo! For more information, please call Sean Jeffrey at 360-961-2483. -Autumn Cole, Immanuel Bible Church (retired secretary)

ESTATE GARAGE SALE

Saturday and Sunday (9/12 and 9/13)

Lots of tools, boxes of books, jewelry, shoes, furniture, outdoor furniture, and more. Masks should be worn and social distancing will be in effect. Cheap prices and some free items. Located in the Columbia neighborhood at 2010 Washington Street. (Corner of Lynn Street and Washington Street.) Sale starts Saturday, 8am to around 4pm, and Sunday, 8am to around 2pm.  Thank you! ~ Gayleen Ronk

WALLET RETURNED!

Hooray, and thank you all.

SHORT TERM RENTAL

Our furnished 4 bedroom 2 bath home is available to rent Oct 17-Dec 17th. $2000/mo. includes utilities. The house is mostly on one level with a basement (one combined bedroom/bathroom/rec/office downstairs), although there are some steps to get up to the front door. Two of the bedrooms currently have bunk beds. ~ Suzanne and Adrian, Utter Street zanbang@gmail.com

MOTHERLODE & MORE

Marie Eaton lived on Henry Street for decades. She has since moved across town, but her music still echoes around this neighborhood. She’s had a band, Motherlode, all these years with three other great singers. One of them, Kathleen Fallon, has just recorded her first solo album, Journey, with lots of back-up from her dear bandmates. They all recently did an album release concert via Zoom, and Marie has edited it, into a YouTube video. You can watch it here. And order Kathleen’s record too if you want.

https://youtu.be/xFBeQ25-6kQ

RADIO FREE FL!P: WOODY KNOWS NOTHING

Cindy Kallet – with Grey Larsen joining her. Relax and bask… Cindy recorded an album called Leave The Cake In The Mailbox of songs for parent and children. The album is nothing like a standard “children’s album.” I keep coming back to this song through the years. Can’t remember who wrote it. Cindy has a son named Woody. That’s probably what floated this song into her life. My life has always had a soundtrack of songs in my mind. Always.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_43EPBN2no

Love/Fl!p 360-671-4511  2518 Cherry Street flip@columbianeighborhood.org

If you want to ask me to post something, just email me. If it’s urgent, phone. If it’s a real emergency, call 911.

CONTENTS 9/9/2020
Smoke And Covid
Active Scam
Too Much Produce?
Outdoor Kindergarten
In-Person Pod Instruction
Missing Kitty Photo
Eggshells
Radio Free Fl!p: Cold Missouri Waters

SMOKE AND COVID

Smoke in the air may make us more vulnerable to catching COVID, and more vulnerable to its effects. We still have smoke in the air from wildfires this morning. The air quality alert has been extended through tomorrow morning, with a caution that it may last through the weekend. This article from this morning’s Herald includes ways to build your own low-cost air cleaner, and a link to a list of approved portable units. If you have trouble accessing the article, let me know and I’ll help.

https://www.bellinghamherald.com/news/local/article245580855.html?ac_cid=DM277220&ac_bid=2048504988

Here is a website where you can check air quality:

https://www.airnow.gov/?city=Bellingham&state=WA&country=USA

ACTIVE SCAM

The Bellingham Police Department put out a warning via social media Tuesday afternoon that somebody using its phone number to scam people.

Remember not to send cash payments, send payment by gift card, wire money or give out personal or financial information over the phone. The Seattle police department has struggled with scammers spoofing their number for years without success. If a scammer scares you, hang up and call a different number at whatever department the scammer says they are calling from. No government agency will ask for money over the phone.

https://www.bellinghamherald.com/news/local/crime/article245575875.html?ac_cid=DM277220&ac_bid=2048504988

TOO MUCH PRODUCE?

The Share Shack on Walnut, just north of Connecticut is one place you can drop off produce and staples as well. Plus, Birchwood neighbors have set up a variation on Little Free Libraries. Here are the locations over there.

Little Free Food Boxes:
2833 Birchwood Ave
3111 Greenwood Ave
3138 Cherrywood Ave
2715 Cedarwood Ave
3248 Firwood Ave

OUTDOOR KINDERGARTEN

Children’s Co-Op preschool is excited to offer an outdoor kindergarten enrichment class this Fall. Classes will be Mondays and Wednesdays from 12:30-2:30 and co-taught by our amazing teachers, Teacher Heidi and Teacher Autumn. All classes are located in local Bellingham parks and tuition is $180/month (scholarships are available!). Please contact  bhamchildrenscooppreschool@gmail.com for more information! -Spencer Berger, CCP President 2020-2021  -Kelly Slater, W North St.

IN-PERSON POD INSTRUCTION

Need help balancing your child’s schoolwork with your own daily duties this year, or just a little break? I have a Masters Degree in Education and am certified to teach K-12 in Washington State. I have taught all subjects and can help your family meet its educational needs. Please click here for more information and to view my credentials: https://amym5000.wixsite.com/podeducation. Be Smart, Be Safe, Be Kind

-Amy Marchegiani, Washington St 360-714-8204

MISSING KITTY PHOTO

This link worked just now. Corner of West & Jefferson.

https://bellingham.craigslist.org/laf/d/bellingham-missing-kitty/7193064567.html

EGGSHELLS

I was thrilled to find a sack full of eggshells inside my front gate this morning. Thank you to whoever dropped it off. I will happily take all I can get. Please feel free to drop inside the gate or on our front porch at 2518 Cherry Street. I will get them to Ed Wood. He uses them as fertilizer to make the produce more nutritious in the big garden off NW Ave that feeds so many folks currently in need of food. ~ Fl!p Breskin

RADIO FREE FL!P: COLD MISSOURI WATERS

James Keelaghan & Hugh McMillan. Warning: This song is a heart breaker. Dodge was one of only three who survived this real event. I keep thinking about all the fire-fighters out there right now, in the heat and the danger. I know people personally who do or have done this work. The story itself changed history, saves the lives of hundred of fire fighters ever since. There is a closed caption function [cc] that will let you read along if you have trouble understanding all the words. James Keelaghan wrote the song as well as singing it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eN2DVFX8X0M

Love/Fl!p 360-671-4511  2518 Cherry Street flip@columbianeighborhood.org

If you want to ask me to post something, just email me. If it’s urgent, phone. If it’s a real emergency, call 911.