Off the Press
January 31, 2012
Joys of eating lutefisk — there’s none for me
Bob Taylor Press sports editor
My last name might fool you. Actually, I am half Finnish and darn proud of that heritage.
The half comes from my mother’s side of the family, or as she always said “my best half.” Her father, Peter Kopra, came over from Finland in the late 1890s in hopes of striking it rich in the gold fields. Grandpa Peter never found gold, but he did discover the United States was a land of opportunity.
After securing a job down in California, he saved enough money to bring over Grandma and the rest of the family, which at the time included two boys. He also purchased a farm in Southwest Washington.
It was on this farm where my mother was born. It was later on a section of the farm, which my parents purchased from one of my uncles, where I was raised.
In this community, the last name Taylor was unique because most families were Finns, Swedes and Norwegians. However, I grew up proud of most Scandinavian traditions.
But there was one tradition I could never partake in — eating lutefisk.
Off the Press
January 24, 2012
Another winter storm, and not so prepared
Debbie Berto Press publisher
Storm coming, so get prepared. Yeah, yeah, yeah. The weatherman never gets it right.
My husband Tom and I are certified members of a CERT — Citizen Emergency Response Team — here in Issaquah.
Sadly, we found ourselves not so prepared last week.
On Tuesday, Tom suggested he should charge the generator. He didn’t follow through, but it did start when the power/phone/Internet/cable went out Thursday morning.
But we only had two gallons of gas on hand to keep the generator going. Uh oh.
Tom siphoned some gas from the 4-wheeler but learned that our cars have anti-siphon devices. A call to the police department confirmed that The Grange did have gas and a generator to pump it, and about 40 cars in line for it. We decided to wait for city power to return.
Off the Press
January 17, 2012
Lessons learned in fire and ice
Warren Kagarise Press reporter
Journalism often requires reporters to meet people under undesirable circumstances — behind police tape or against a flickering backdrop of emergency lights.
Under such circumstances, we strive for compassion, but sometimes, we forget about the people on the other side of the notebook amid the clamor to chase down a story or ferret out some key detail.
I experienced a story on the other side of the notebook early Jan. 16 and, hopefully, came away a little more enlightened and understanding.
Just before 4 a.m., a neighbor pounded on the door to my apartment in Seattle’s Queen Anne neighborhood.
“Get out! There’s a fire!” he yelled, and then headed down the corridor to warn sleeping occupants in other apartments.
Off the Press
January 10, 2012
Eatin’ away heartache — Issaquah style
Christina Lords Press reporter
This isn’t something I’d wish on a worst enemy — even you, Celine Dion.
It creeps up on me when I wake up in the morning. That instant thought of … something really bad happened, didn’t it? And then I remember. And it hits me with shock and awe, like a pie to the face.
I’ve cried, sure. I’ve also rotated through the five stages of grief. Why is it that the whole denial phase always seems so much more attractive than, say, that … wait, what is that last one? Acceptance?
Yeah. Acceptance. I’ve been dumped.
Off the Press
December 20, 2011
It’s the little things that really matter
Kathleen Merrill Press managing editor
They say it’s better to give than receive. I think both feel pretty good.
In my mind, though, giving lasts longer.
Purse strings have gotten tighter for many people in the past couple of years, and it’s hard to give to others when you’re receiving less.
Then again, I think many people overthink giving on a regular basis. We see pleas for $50 or $100, or sometimes even more (such as in the case of tickets to fundraising events). I don’t know about you, but I often can’t afford $50, let alone more than that.
However, even as paychecks and benefits have gotten smaller, many people have found ways to give. I was thinking about this the other day when the reporting staff was discussing the subject of compassion fatigue. People do get tired of being asked to give when their expenses are going up and their salaries are not going up to match.
But here’s something I’ve learned: Even the smallest things count to someone with little or nothing.
Off the Press
December 13, 2011
Santa, please help tell true story of Christmas
David Hayes Press reporter
A funny thing happened when I was asked to play the role of Santa for Northwest Pugs — a meetup group my wife co-organizes for local pug owners.
Cute photos of their dogs with Jolly St. Nick would have to be without me, for you see, I didn’t fit into the silly suit.
Who in China designs a costume of a fat man that an actual horizontally challenged person cannot fit into? Luckily, my wife found a more svelte volunteer to fill the position.
However, once my services were no longer needed, I decided to turn the tables and think about what I would ask of Santa, if I were to discover one with a lap ample enough to hold my weight without risk of injury.
My wish of the bearded one would be an emphasis on the return of the true meaning of Christmas to include more of the original bearded one. That would involve getting the ACLU’s grubby little paws off the holiday.
Off the Press
December 6, 2011
The latest invention: the iColumnist
Greg Farrar Press photographer
Never fear! Although the passing of Steve Jobs has left many of us Applemaniacs saddened and adrift, there still are people with many good ideas for products which, in the tradition of this great inventor, Americans don’t know they have to have until they get in long lines to buy them.
One of those idea people is me. Although these products are not available this Christmas, by next year they’ll be at Issaquah’s Best Buy, Fred Meyer and Target stores in time for the Black Friday mobs.
Of course, since there is no improving on the perfection of either Jobs’ inventions or his marketing skills, my first idea is to make sure to slap a lower-case “I” in front of everything I want to sell.
One product idea came to mind just this morning, it will be called the “iScraper” and it will instantly remove all of the snow and ice from your car each morning in the Issaquah Highlands. The GPS in your car will send its coordinates to a satellite in orbit, which in turn will send a microwave burst down to heat your car. Think of it as your own personal microwave oven in space! Just to be clear, I will not be responsible for anyone going all Dixie Chicks and putting Earl in the trunk first.
Off the Press
November 29, 2011
Getting carried away is a sign of season
Tom Corrigan Press reporter
Is it too early for a holiday column? I don’t think so and I hope not because, well, here goes…
… And let’s start at the beginning. In search of inspiration with which to fill this space, I started looking through old columns written years ago for another paper in another state, basically in a previous life. I came across a Christmas column that, embarrassingly, got slapped with a special disclaimer:
“Perhaps Ebenezer Scrooge himself paid Corrigan a visit as he penned this piece, which certainly is a departure from the typical warm and fuzzy seasonal column.”
Of course, I was specifically aiming for a departure from the typical warm and fuzzy seasonal column. I love the idea of Christmas; I fully admit some of the realities bug me. Commercials advertising this or that escape from the joys of the season prove that I’m hardly alone.
Call it a hunch if you want, but I believe the flourish with which I ended that long-ago piece was the problem, an ending I am not about to put in print again. I admit I got carried away. Allow me to submit, however, that getting carried away in one form or another is a symptom of the season.
Off the Press
November 22, 2011
Not all turkey legs are enjoyed equally
Bob Taylor Press sports editor
Ever since Issaquah Salmon Days, I have often been asked by people in the community how I enjoyed that turkey leg.
They were referring to a Salmon Days story written by Issaquah Press reporter Dave Hayes, our staff gourmet. Dave interviewed people who were dining on some of that scrumptious cuisine that is always at Salmon Days. One person he interviewed was Bob Taylor, who apparently enjoyed gnawing on a turkey leg.
That Bob Taylor was not I.
There is no way, and I reiterate, there is no way a turkey leg gets to my chops on Thanksgiving or any day.
I do not enjoy turkey legs, or even chicken legs, for that matter.
It has everything to do with my childhood. When I was just a little lad, every Thanksgiving my mother would put a turkey leg on my plate.
“You will enjoy this,” she would say.
Guest Column
November 22, 2011
Continuing the fight against childhood obesity
We have much to celebrate and be thankful for this Thanksgiving. In King County, we are fortunate to live in a community committed to helping people access healthy food.
Yet much work remains to be done, especially in supporting our children’s health.
By the time our children in King County reach middle and high school, they will have a better than one in five chance of being obese or overweight. By the time they are adults, more than half will be obese or overweight — causing debilitating health conditions, such as heart disease and diabetes, and adding hundreds of millions of dollars in health care costs locally.
