cascadia · Nonprofits Schmooze-Fest: 5-7pm, Mount Baker Theatre VISUAL ARTS After Hours Art:...

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REPORTING FROM THE HEART OF CASCADIA

WHATCOM*SKAGIT*ISLAND*LOWER B.C.

{02.19.14}{#08}{V.09}{FREE}

The Gristle, P.6 * Fuzz Buzz, P.10 * Apocalyptic Warnings, P.12

HIKING HELPNo snow, no

problem, P. 14

THE 39 STEPSSilliness and spies at

the MBT, P.16

SACRED GROUNDBellingham

Human Rights Film Festival, p.24

Keb'

MO'A LEGEND IN THE

MAKING, P.20

c a s c a d i a

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A glance at what’s happening this week

WEDNESDAY [02.19.14]

ONSTAGE BOAT Festival: 7pm, Bellingham Theatre Guild The 39 Steps: 7:30pm, MBT’s Walton Theatre

MUSICBUG Song Circle: 7-9pm, Roeder Home

FILM Human Rights Film Festival: Through March 1, throughout Bellingham

THURSDAY [02.20.14]ONSTAGE BOAT Festival: 7pm, Bellingham Theatre GuildNorthwest Passages: 7pm, Burlington Public Library The 39 Steps: 7:30pm, MBT’s Walton Theatre The Good, the Bad and the Ugly: 8pm, Upfront TheatreThe Man Who Was Thursday: 8pm, iDiOM Theater The Project: 10pm, Upfront Theatre

MUSIC Third Thursday Music Series: 6-8pm, Community Food Co-op Jansen Jazz Band: 7:30pm, Jansen Art Center, Lynden

COMMUNITYNonprofits Schmooze-Fest: 5-7pm, Mount Baker Theatre

VISUAL ARTSAfter Hours Art: 6:30pm, Whatcom Museum’s Lightcatcher Building

FRIDAY [02.21.14]ONSTAGE Drag Show: 7pm, Performing Arts Center, WWU BOAT Festival: 7pm, Bellingham Theatre GuildWhite Christmas: 7pm, Judson Auditorium, Lynden The 39 Steps: 7:30pm, MBT’s Walton Theatre Always...Patsy Cline: 7:30pm, Conway Muse The Man Who Was Thursday: 8pm, iDiOM TheaterComedy Nite: 8pm, H20 Club, Anacortes Space Trek: 8pm and 10pm, Upfront Theatre

MUSIC Early Music Festival Concert: 7:30pm, St. Paul’s Episcopal Church

WORDSFamily Story Night: 7pm, Fairhaven Library

GET OUTWild Things: 9:30-11am, Interurban Trail

SATURDAY [02.22.14]ONSTAGE The 39 Steps: 3pm, MBT’s Walton Theatre BOAT Festival: 7pm, Bellingham Theatre GuildWhite Christmas: 7pm, Judson Auditorium, LyndenAlways...Patsy Cline: 7:30pm, Conway Muse The Man Who Was Thursday: 8pm, iDiOM Theater Comedy Nite: 9pm, Poppes 360 Space Trek: 8pm and 10pm, Upfront Theatre

DANCE Smelt Derby Dance: 7-10pm, Maple Hall, La Conner

Contra Dance: 7-10:30pm, Fairhaven Library

MUSIC Vonvettas CD Release Concert: 7pm, Bell Tower StudiosSwing Connection: 7pm, Leopold Crystal Ball-room Tocato Tango: 7pm, Vinostrology Wine LoungeConcordia Choir: 7:30pm, St. Paul’s Episcopal Church Keb’ Mo’: 8pm, Mount Baker Theatre

COMMUNITY Oil Spill Community Workshop: 9am-3pm, Squali-cum BoathouseWomencare Shelter Gala: 5-9:30pm, Silver Reef Casino Convention Center Lumber and Lace Ball: 7pm, the Majestic

GET OUTSmelt Derby: 8am-3pm, throughout La Conner Love Your Ride Winter Celebration: 6:30pm, YWCA Ballroom

FOOD Pancake Breakfast: 8-10:45am, Lynden Com-munity CenterCommunity Meal: 10am-12pm, United Church of Ferndale Washington Beer Open House: 12-5pm, Chucka-nut Brewery, Kulshan Brewery, Boundary Bay Brewery

VISUAL ARTSCraftsmen Panel Discussion: 1-4pm, Anchor Art Space, Anacortes

SUNDAY [02.23.14]ONSTAGE The 39 Steps: 3pm, MBT’s Walton Theatre White Christmas: 4pm, Judson Auditorium, Lynden

MUSIC Bayshore Symphony: 3pm, Central Lutheran Church

COMMUNITYSkagit Wedding Show: 11am-5pm, Swinomish Casino Lodge, Anacortes

MONDAY [02.24.14]ONSTAGE BOAT Festival: 7pm, Bellingham Theatre GuildGuffawingham: 9:30pm, Green Frog

WORDSWhatcom Reads with Cheryl Strayed: 7pm, Mount Baker Theatre Poetrynight: 8pm, Alternative Library

TUESDAY [02.25.14]ONSTAGE BOAT Festival: 7pm, Bellingham Theatre GuildThe 39 Steps: 7:30pm, MBT’s Walton Theatre

WORDSCheryl Strayed: 10am, Bellingham Cruise Terminal Chuckanut Radio Hour: 7pm, Heiner Theater, WCC Send your events to [email protected]

Get entertained and help raise funds for the Sean Humphrey House at the 22nd annual Drag Show happening Feb. 21 at WWU’s Performing Arts Center

Whatcom Reads events draw to a close when bestselling author Cheryl Strayed visits Bellingham for public—and free!—appearances Feb. 24 at the Mount Baker Theatre and Feb. 25 at the Cruise Terminal

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mail

VIEWS & NEWS 4: Mailbag

6: Gristle & Views

8: Scoping the GPT

10: Police blotter, Index

11: Last week’s news

ARTS & LIFE 12: An apocalyptic warning

14: Snow-free hiking

16: Hitchcockian hilarity

18: Feathers in their cap

20: Big talents at the Baker

22: Clubs

24: Screening human rights

26: Film Shorts

REAR END 27: Bulletin Board

28: Wellness

29: Crossword

30: Comix

31: Slowpoke, Sudoku

32: Free Will Astrology

33: Advice Goddess

34: Comfort food, Hawaii style

©2013 CASCADIA WEEKLY (ISSN 1931-3292) is published each Wednesday by Cascadia Newspaper Company LLC. Direct all correspondence to: Cascadia Weekly PO Box 2833 Bellingham WA 98227-2833 | Phone/Fax: 360.647.8200 [email protected] Cascadia Weekly is distributed free, please take just one copy. Cascadia

Weekly may be distributed only by authorized distributors. Any person removing papers in bulk from our distribution points risks prosecutionSUBMISSIONS: Cascadia Weekly welcomes freelance submissions. Send material

to either the News Editor or A&E Editor. Manuscripts will be returned if you include a stamped, self-addressed envelope. To be considered for calendar list-ings, notice of events must be received in writing no later than noon Wednesday the week prior to publication. Photographs should be clearly labeled and will be returned if accompanied by stamped, self-addressed envelope. LETTERS POLICY: Cascadia Weekly reserves the right to edit letters for length and

content. When apprised of them, we correct errors of fact promptly and courteously. In the interests of fostering dialog and a community forum, Cascadia Weekly does not publish letters that personally disparage other letter writers. Please keep your letters to fewer than 300 words.

ContactCascadia Weekly: � 360.647.8200

EditorialEditor & Publisher: Tim Johnson � ext 260

editor@ cascadiaweekly.com

Arts & Entertainment Editor: Amy Kepferle � ext 204

calendar@ cascadiaweekly.com

Music & Film Editor: Carey Ross � ext 203

music@ cascadiaweekly.com

ProductionArt Director: Jesse Kinsman

jesse@ kinsmancreative.com

Graphic Artists:Stefan Hansen

stefan@ cascadiaweekly.com Send all advertising materials to

[email protected]

AdvertisingAccount Executive: Scott Pelton � 360-647-8200 x 202

spelton@ cascadiaweekly.com

Stephanie Young � 360-647-8200 x 205

stephanie@ cascadiaweekly.com

DistributionDistribution Manager:Scott Pelton� 360-647-8200 x 202

spelton@ cascadiaweekly.com

Whatcom: Erik Burge, Stephanie Simms, Robin Corsberg

Skagit: Linda Brown, Barb Murdoch

Canada: Kristi Alvaran

LettersSend letters to [email protected].

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REPORTING FROM THE HEART OF CASCADIA

WHATCOM*SKAGIT*ISLAND*LOWER B.C.

{02.19.14}{#08}{V.09}{FREE}

The Gristle, P.6 * Fuzz Buzz, P.10 * Apocalyptic Warnings, P.12

HIKING HELPNo snow, no

problem, P. 14

THE 39 STEPSSilliness and spies at

the MBT, P.16

SACRED GROUNDBellingham

Human Rights Film Festival, p.24

Keb'

MO'A LEGEND IN THE

MAKING, P.20

c a s c a d i a

NEWSPAPER ADVISORY GROUP: Robert Hall, Seth Murphy, Michael Petryni, David Syre

TOC LETTERS STAFF

RED LIGHTS AND RED HERRINGSAs a longtime resident and employee for the

BNSF I doth protest the recent piece about the so-called “South Fork line.” Or, as we lovingly re-fer to it at BNSF, the Sumas Subdivision. Reading the author’s obvious hyperbole of a train rolling down the track had my eyes rolling so much that the pain became unbearable.

Jeff Margolis’ mystery train turns out to be no more than a local “work train” hauling and spreading railroad ballast for this year’s mainte-nance program.

As for other factual errors within the piece, let’s consider the Bellingham crossings. Mr. de Place is correct on one point. F Street does in-deed have lights and gates. But then so do Cen-tral and Laurel streets. And if one looks really hard it might be noticed that C Street is closed with Ecology blocks, too.

Secondly, “researchers” have claimed to note street delays of nearly two hours per day assum-ing a train speed of 20mph through congested ar-eas. How did they assume this speed? The freight train speed through Whatcom and Skagit is no less than 35mph. And what is a congested area? And who is this one person that is going to be delayed every day for two hours?

So, in the name of the same style of “scientific research,” I plan to spend a full 10 minutes at a random traffic intersection with stoplights and time how long the light is red. (From personal ex-perience, I’ve found the intersection at Meridian Street coming off the truck route is a good can-didate) I will then extrapolate how many minutes per day this light is red. Having to wait at this

intersection for what feels like two hours, I’ve got a pretty good idea what the conclusion of this research is going to be.

I will then write a scathing opinion piece in this fair journal about how all stoplights are causing traffic delays, congestion and, in general, incon-veniencing the good citizens of this county.

And I know there are a lot more traffic lights than trains out there.

—Carl Johnson, Alger

SUPPORT SUNSHINEThe League of Women Voters of Bellingham/

Whatcom County is encouraged to hear that the Port Commissioners will consider how to provide video recordings of their meetings. This is an important step forward to inform the public about their work and educate them about the important issues—in-cluding environmental cleanup and development of the waterfront, economic development and airport traffic. Democracy works best when the citizens are informed, and it is incumbent on our elected offi-cials to reach out to the public.

We believe that an expenditure for recording the meetings is definitely worthwhile and it would help serve the port’s core value: “A public orga-nization with a reputation for delivering on its commitments, working in an open, decisive atmo-sphere, taking pride in its work, and communicat-ing its contributions to the community.” Real-time recordings that are promptly posted on the port’s website and available to the community would have the secondary benefit of building public sup-port for port business.

The League also urges Commissioners to ap-

THISWEEK

Big mountain skiing had its grip on Angeli VanLaanen early at the Mount Baker Ski Area. VanLaanen’s dream was to be a mountaineer when she grew up, hoping to scale the world’s big peaks. The Bellingham native was diagnosed with Lyme disease in 2009. She recovered and will compete this week in the women’s ski halfpipe, which makes its Olympic debut at the Games in Sochi, Russia.

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prove the minutes of each previous meet-ing at the beginning of the next scheduled meeting so minutes can become a part of the public record, posted and available to the public. This small step would build the community’s trust that the Port is being transparent with their work.

—Jill Bernstein & Annette Holcomb,League of Women Voters of Belingham/

Whatcom County

LOSING THE MORAL HIGH GROUND

“The neediest Americans will be hurt by an $8.6 billion cut to food aid in the bill signed by the President on Feb. 7,” quoted the Financial Times, certainly no socialist organ. The paper then reverted to type to express concern over how this would affect the fortunes of grocery stores like Walmart and others upon which cost-conscious shop-pers rely. And to its credit, it noted that many Walmart employees themselves rely on government assistance to make ends meet.

Nationwide, before these cuts, about 20 percent of Walmart shoppers used food stamps from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), 17 percent of Target shoppers and 13 percent of Costco customers. This latest cut follows an $11 billion cut in food stamps in November. Now, as a result of the horse trading for the pork-laden Farm Bill, we will spend even less to help the unfortunate in our own na-tion and communities.

There are elements of the Farm Bill that are laudable, some good for the hardwork-ing farming community of our county and state, and some that may help lead us to a more sustainable agricultural infrastruc-ture. However, overall it is a patchwork of compromises and favors. While some cel-ebrate that this bill could reduce the defi-cit by $23 billion, others argue that as the real costs of special-interest provisions emerge, it will actually increase the defi-cit. I would welcome deficit reduction, but not on the backs of the poor.

How can we hold our heads high and lec-ture others on human rights when we deny our own and those across the world even basic subsistence support? As a nation we spend a small fraction of one percent of our federal budget on aid to others. As a mem-ber of Bread for the World and the ONE Cam-paign, I urge all fellow citizens to demand our nation use our resources in ways that match the values we claim to hold.

—Eugene G. Arthurs, Bellingham

DEPT. OF CORRECTIONSA photo of the Reid Boiler

Works fire that appeared the news section last week should have been credited to John Servais and Fairhaven.com. We regret the omission.

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THE GRISTLE

VIEWS EXPRESSED ARE NOT NECESSARILY THOSE OF CASCADIA WEEKLY

viewsOPIN IONS THE GRISTLE

BY DAVID HOPKINSON

Slumlord Business PlanLANDLORDS NEED A LICENSE LIKE EVERYONE ELSE

A fter the lease has been signed, it is up to you, the tenant, to identify safety

hazards and ask the landlord to fix them. If the landlord fails to do so in a timely fashion, you can file a com-plaint with the city, and an inspec-tion will be scheduled. Safety code violations that are verified will then be subject to enforcement.

It is ridiculous, said one tenant, to have to go to so much trouble just to get the landlord to do his job. The landlord-tenant law is ap-propriate for disputes such as a re-tained deposit, but less so for land-lord failure to comply with building safety codes. Instead of creating an incentive for the landlord to attend to the safety hazards of the build-ing, landlord-tenant dispute creates an incentive for the landlord to de-fend himself.

The City of Bellingham receives relatively few complaints. Some be-lieve this means there are few rental hazards. Actually, hazards are un-derreported. Tenants cannot accu-rately identify hazards, nor will they reliably report them. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2008) says tenants do not complain for fear of landlord retribution. That a hazard may be dangerous does not seem to make any difference. Many tenants will not report it to the landlord, and many more will not file a complaint. The CDC says that ten-ant complaint systems are “highly ineffective” and “foster the decline of rental housing.”

To find a safe rental home, pro-

spective tenants must depend upon gossip, rumor and hearsay to guide them. What tenants need is what we take for granted whenever we eat at a restaurant: consumer safety. Food vendors undergo inspection for compliance with health and safety codes. Imagine a restaurant for which inspection occurred only after you filed a complaint. That would be similar to the archaic tenant com-plaint system that now regulates rental homes.

An owner-occupied building is a long-term investment that is main-tained to protect its value. Slum-lords turn this upside-down with rental buildings. Deliberate neglect is the business plan. Costs are re-duced by putting off repairs. Main-tenance is ignored. Rent continues to be collected from tenants who have no other place to go. Buildings deteriorate and become increasingly dangerous. When no longer rentable, due to deterioration, the slumlord can sell the remaining husk of a building or demolish it.

The slumlord business plan is a form of resource extraction. Deliber-ate neglect is nonsustainable busi-ness practice that exploits tenants and places them at risk. The rental industry defends the existing situ-ation by insisting that most land-lords are doing a good job. Without inspection, there is no way to know whether any particular landlord is, or is not, doing a good job.

Doing a good job is faint praise for landlords who struggle to use sustainable practices, while being

undercut by slumlords, who do not.It is said that the costs of a rental

licensing program will be passed on to tenants. This presents with an implicit false choice. Given capable landlords and strong regulation, why can’t there be both reasonable rent and safe rental homes? More than half of this city’s housing units are rentals. A license would be an incentive for every landlord to do a good job.

In 2011, a rental licensing program was researched by city staff and modified by Bellingham City Council,

but the proposal did not go forward at that time. How about now? City-supported rental licensing would level the playing field for landlords by eliminating the utility of deliber-ate neglect, protecting tenants from an unsafe home environment, and slowing the loss of rental stock in the city.

A single email on rental licensing will reach all members of Bellingham City Council: [email protected]

David Hopkinson lives in Bellingham.

,A license would be an incentive for every landlord to do a good job.

FLUID MOTION: A well-attended forum over the week-end again laid out the central concepts of Western water law: “First in time equals first in right,” a con-struction that not only subordinates junior claims to older, and therefore senior claims, but also directs that a senior claim must be fully satisfied before subordinate claims to a water source are recognized. And: “Use it or lose it,” a concept that prohibits hoarding or squatting on an unused water claim.

Reading between the lines, the League of Women Voters forum on Whatcom Water Resources brought into focus that the City of Bellingham has a very senior and large claim to water; and that COB in-tends to put that claim to use to address some of the county’s water issues and, through that use, secure the city’s ancient claims to water sources beyond the Lake Whatcom reservoir—notably the Nooksack River.

The League forum brought something else into fo-cus: Whatcom County holds no water claims and pro-vides water service to no one; however, the county holds a very central role in water resource planning.

To that end, County Council Chair Carl Weimer introduced a proposal last week to craft a Water Action Plan to close on various coordinated water quality, quantity and habitat responses related to that role. The county in 2008 produced a ranked list of more than 300 water-related projects, a list that has languished without council policy direc-tion, Weimer explained.

Council’s natural resources committee also consid-ered a resolution that would strengthen the plan-ning and coordination of the county, City of Belling-ham, and the Lake Whatcom Water & Sewer District (LWWSD) under the Joint Lake Whatcom Policy Group, establishing goals and milestones to restore the lake. Bellingham City Council had considered a similar resolution the previous day, in anticipation of its discussion and adoption at a joint meeting of the three groups in March.

The timing of all this public planning and coor-dination is curiously off, as Bellingham City Coun-cil already took preemptive action last week, au-thorizing the mayor to ink a final agreement for a revised wholesale sewer services agreement with LWWSD, the largest of several water associations to whom the city provides water and wastewater handling services.

Under the revised 20-year agreement, the city would continue to provide wastewater handling and treatment services to the district for approximately 4,000 households in Geneva, Sudden Valley, and other urbanized areas near the lake. As presented to council, the revision will draw down the amount of wastewater the district may send into the city’s sys-tem from 3,200 gallons to 2,400 gallons per minute, to more accurately control inflow and infiltration (I&I), a term that defines the capacity of a munici-pal sanitary sewer systems. The agreement also pro-vides stability in rates for the city and the district over the long term, staff reported.

Before the agreement could be signed, however, City Council approved changes to the municipal code that governs these service agreements. Notably, City Council stripped out very clear, long-standing policy language that prohibits “the extension of new sewer mains outside urban growth areas and limited areas

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THE GRISTLEof more intensive rural development” (LAMIRDs). In place of that clear policy language, council inserted citations of the state Growth Management Act (GMA) that describe and limit extension of city services into those areas.

The purpose, staff advised, is to bring city code more into alignment with state law, and to move more strin-gent restrictions into specific service agreements, “retaining flexibility for the city to impose additional contrac-tual limitations on the provision of sewer services in rural areas tailored to the circumstances of each contract.”

Yet state law is clearly less restric-tive than the now-stricken city policy against providing urban services to rural areas, substituting instead soft, permissive language under the broad rubric of public health and safety. The code revision also strips out language that asserts these issues require re-view and approval by City Council.

We’ve written of the limitations of GMA that establish an onerous and adversarial process for citizen review of government decisions, and in which doctrine declares those decisions are presumed to be valid unless indisput-ably in error, setting a high bar for legal challenge. Equally discourag-ing, striking the very clear language of council policy and purview punts that challenge to remote and diffident state boards and courts.

A proliferation of interlocal agree-ments and similar executive instru-ments shift policy and decision-mak-ing away from legislative bodies and their open processes into the control of administrations, where contracts are negotiated piecemeal, outside of public view. Such contracts and agree-ments surface later, unrecognizable from what the public originally re-viewed and commented upon. A par-allel trend is the elimination of clear policy in preference for the language and oversight of the state, at the very moment when the state is curtailing its rulemaking authority and assert-ing that authority belongs to local ju-risdictions. The jaws of these trends squeeze a great deal of power into the offices of the administration—the mayor and executive—consolidat-ing and strengthening their authority even as councils abdicate their own.

Is it coincidence that the city seeks greater “flexibility” and negotiating freedom to extend water and sewer services at the very moment COB is also contemplating an expanded role in providing those services as a poten-tial solution to county water problems? City Council should probe deeper.

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NEWS POLITICS FUZZ BUZZ INDEX

currents“Our facility will expand capacity and

provide farmers and other exporters with an efficient new portal for exports to growing markets in Asia,” Watters said.

A grain terminal development permit, granted to SSA by Whatcom County in 1995, remains controversial. There are questions about the nature of that per-mit, and whether in fact it still exists.

Bellingham critics question the EIS team’s design of what’s called a “no-ac-tion alternative” in the final scoping document. That’s EIS language for what happens to the Cherry Point site if the coal port is not developed. The provision appears to leave SSA in possession of its permit to develop the smaller grain-ship-ping version of the terminal, should the giant coal terminal fail to win approval.

Opponents argue that permit should have expired long ago for lack of con-struction activity by the builder.

Importantly, a 1997 legal settlement requires SSA to carry out intensive stud-ies of Cherry Point’s saltwater habitat and the herring, salmon, crab and oth-er creatures that live there. Regulators need that kind of baseline knowledge before they can determine what damage the terminal would cause. SSA agreed to pay for the research in order to settle a legal challenge from a coalition of state agencies and nonprofit citizens’ groups. Seventeen years later, the studies have yet to be completed.

Tyler Schroeder, Whatcom County’s representative on the tripartite scoping team, defends the assumption that the original, smaller version of Gateway Pa-cific Terminal could serve as the no-ac-tion alternative. He says it could make certain the SSA does, at last, complete the research it agreed to.

“They wouldn’t be able to use their permit until the studies are done,” Schro-eder said.

One bright spot in the final scoping document has nothing to do with coal, sea creatures or permits at Cherry Point. Rather, it’s meant to advance public un-derstanding of what the impact study contains. You could call it a plain-speak-ing directive.

A trio of government agencies eyeballing the proposed Gateway Pacific Terminal at Cherry Point has published its work plan for studying the continent’s largest coal port and how it would impact the Northwest and

beyond. The plan divides up the work of drafting two Environmental Impact Stud-ies—one by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the other produced jointly by Whatcom County and the Washington Department of Ecology.

The final “Scope of Work,” sent to news media last week, confirms what the agencies announced last summer—the EIS is unprecedented in its reach. The en-gineering consulting firm CH2M Hill will examine such broadly spread impacts as rail/highway congestion from Wyoming to Bellingham, air pollution from diesel lo-comotives, climate change and pollution blowback from burning U.S. coal in Asia.

The documents, initially released to the applicants in late December, await final signatures. As would-be developers of the GPT and an adjacent rail spur, SSA Ma-rine and Burlington Northern Santa Fe will share the estimated $7.2 million cost of the full EIS.

The terminal, if it’s approved, could ship as much as 48 million tons per year of Wyoming and Montana coal across the Pacific, along with a possible six million tons of grain, much of it from Montana.

The scope of the environmental study came in for sharp criticism in Bellingham on Monday, from Yellowstone County Commissioner John Ostlund. He was part of a Montana delegation in town to voice support for the terminal. At a gathering facilitated by SSA Marine, Ostlund told reporters that Washington’s Department of Ecology has no business extending its reach beyond state boundaries.

“These are decisions that are supposed to be made by each state,” Ostlund said. “We don’t interfere with happens over here. They don’t deserve to make decisions regarding our ability to ship our goods.”

There was no evidence that SSA itself would oppose the broad review. A news release quoted SSA Vice President Bob Watters pledging to “support, to work with regulatory processes.”

Before it became a coal port propos-al, GPT was promoted as a grain export terminal, and Monday’s visitors boosted the terminal’s importance for moving Montana wheat to Asia. Grain currently gets to those markets by way of ports on the Columbia River, but Montana Chamber of Commerce President Webb Scott Brown said the grain export trade needs compe-tition between ports.

“It never hurts to have another port bidding for our business,” he said.

Brown said coal exports in 2011 expe-rienced a 60 percent increase over the previous year, and now play a critical part in Montana’s economy.

Ostlund added that any reduction in the cost of delivering grain and energy to the market is of benefit to that economy, admitting that overall rail capacity con-tinues to be a limiting factor.

BY BOB SIMMONS

Gateway Pacific TerminalPROJECT SCOPE IS ESTABLISHED, AND MONTANA REACTS

,The final “Scope of Work,” sent to news media last week, confirms what the agencies announced last summer—the EIS is unprecedented in its reach

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Whatcom READS! Keynote Events

An Evening with Cheryl Strayedand Wild Quilts Show

Quilt Show - Monday, February 24, 6:30-7:30 p.m.Author Talk - Monday, February 24, 7:30-9:00 p.m.

Mount Baker Theatre104 N. Commercial St., Bellingham

Quilt Show is co-sponsored by Fourth Corner Quilts and Whatcom READS!.

An Interview with Cheryl StrayedTuesday, February 25, 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.

Bellingham Cruise Terminal355 Harris Avenue, Bellingham

WWU professor and author Susanne Paola Antonetta will interview Cheryl Strayed about her experiences writing and publishing her story.

Author-signing after each event, books available for purchase.

Both Events are FreeNo Tickets Required!

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IF I HAD A HAMMEROn Feb. 15, Bellingham Police received a re-port of a woman brandishing a sledgehammer in the restroom of the transit station down-town. Police arrived and learned the item was an ordinary hammer, not a sledgehammer, and she had brandished it in a dispute with other people. “The other parties were not lo-cated,” police reported.

On Feb. 13, a woman locked herself in the bathroom at the Lighthouse Mission after she was asked to leave by employees. Bell-ingham Police arrived and issued her a cita-tion for trespassing.

FATHER OF THE YEAROn Feb. 12, Bellingham Police dragged a 44-year-old man to jail after he reportedly punched his 8-year-old son in the face at the meat department at Winco. Employees re-ported he also twisted the arm of another little boy. The man was charged with assault.

WOLF AT GRANNY’S HOUSEOn Feb. 9, a young woman had a boy over to her home while her grandmother was away, in violation of the house rules. Shortly after the boy had left the home, the girl noticed her grandmother’s laptop was missing.

On Feb. 8, a mother reported that when she had gone to the market to get medicine for her sick children, she returned to find her teenaged daughter had left the home with-out permission. The mother wanted her listed as a runaway. The teen returned home about an hour later.

THE GREAT TRAIN ROBBERYOn Feb. 16, shoppers were startled by a high-way robbery at the Wild West Train kiosk at Bellis Fair Mall. Bellingham Police reported a 40-year-old man used some type of cutting instrument to sever the cable that secured the cash register to the kiosk. The man ran with the register and its contents to the park-ing lot, where witnesses say he fled in a white truck. Police speculated that drug addiction may have been a motive in the robbery.

FLASH GORDONOn Feb. 10, Bellingham Police spoke to a man who was suspected of pointing a laser at the jail. The man admitted he had pointed the laser and said he would stop.

WISH GRANTEDOn Feb. 16, a man approached Bellingham Police to report he had stolen a pair of shoes and demanded to be taken to jail. Police were unable to confirm that the man’s shoes had been stolen, but after he had obstructed an

officer for a sufficient amount of time his wish to be jailed was granted.

ONE GOOD TERN DESERVES ANOTHEROn Feb. 12, a property manager got into a squabble with the owner of an adjacent prop-erty who was feeding seagulls. Bellingham Po-lice arrived to reestablish the pecking order.

SMART PHONES, DUMB LUCKOn Feb. 1, a man lost his cellphone in down-town Bellingham. Resourceful, he used a GPS app to locate his cellphone. He called police, concerned when the people in possession of his phone would not provide any reason for having his phone. He was eventually able to retrieve the cellphone and asked police to document the incident.

On Feb. 8, a woman answered an ad on Craigs-list and met a man in a parking lot to pur-chase a smart phone. She received the phone and gave the man a sum of money they’d agreed to. As soon as the man was handed the money, he snatched back the phone and ran off with both the phone and the money.

ALIEN SKIESOn Jan. 26, a Lynden skywatcher saw a bright streak of green and red light that came down from the cloud line, beautiful and vivid, the witness reported. “The light was vivid and may have lasted three beats. Sort of like a comet tail and kind of like a firework. Yet nothing of those sorts at all,” the witness re-ported. “The main body of it was a dark neon green with a slight border of red. The head of this strike was bright and more of a color of light.”

VOICES IN THE ATTICOn Feb. 18, a Bellingham man called 911 to report hearing voices in the attic and crawl space of the home he is staying in. “Other people in the home reported that the man suffers from mental health issues which have been heightened by recent drug use,” police commented. Officers offered to take him to the ER for some help. He declined.

On Feb. 14, a Bellingham man addled by al-cohol and Adderall called 911 for help as he thought his friends were trying to kill him, police reported.

On Feb. 17, a 33-year-old Bellingham man was cited for beating up an elderly woman. “He was brought to the hospital for an Adult Protective Custody hold. He was highly intox-icated and was incapable of caring for him-self,” Bellingham Police reported.

CASE WORKEROn Feb. 13, a man in a dirty white Chevy pan-el truck was reported prowling Happy Valley neighborhood, “possibly casing residences,” police speculated.

FUZZ BUZZ

1CHANCE in four an American does not know the Earth circles the Sun. One quarter

(26%) of those quizzed answered incorrectly.

6.5 48AVERAGE correct score on a nine-

question national science quiz, a barely passing grade.

PERCENT of Americans who don’t know (or believe) humans evolved

from earlier species.

45 92PERCENT of Americans who consider astrology either “very scientific” or

“sort of scientific.”

PERCENT of the population of China who do not believe astrology has any

validity

13 60IN 2010, 64 percent of younger

Americans considered astrology bunk; in 2012, by contrast, only 51 percent did,

a drop of 13percentage points.

PERCENT of Evangelicals who think scientists should be willing to consider miracles as possible

explanations for the phenomena they study.

450GALILEO Galilei was born 450 years ago on Feb. 15, 1564. Galileo demonstrated to

church officials in 1632 the certainty that the earth orbits the sun.

SOURCES: National Science Foundation; Rice University

index

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02.11.14TUESDAY

Whatcom County Council bans pot businesses. The emergency mora-torium, which applies to marijuana operations outside incorporated cit-ies, is intended to give the county more time to address safety concerns brought to the council’s attention by law enforcement officers. Sheriff Bill Elfo also says his deputies are unable to reliably patrol isolated ar-eas for possible violations of the law that legalized the production and sale of marijuana.

County Council also strengthens the controls on slaughterhouses in the county’s agricultural zone. In council’s original ordinance passed last fall, slaughterhouses were outright permitted. Council modifies them as a conditional use in the ag zone subject to public review.

02.12.14WEDNESDAY

The announced scope of environmental review for a coal terminal in Longview is similar to that required of the proposed Cherry Point terminal. Permitting agencies say the review must take a broad look at the impacts of the proposed terminal, including issues related to carbon and mercury pollution.

A collision in Ferndale sends a 94-year-old man to the hospital. Police report the man was crossing a street when he was struck by a car driven by an 84-year-old woman. She told police she didn’t see him because of the sun.

02.13.14THURSDAY

After investigation, Whatcom County prosecu-tors charge a Lynden man in the shooting death of a Ferndale woman last June. Investigators say the man admitted he used a technique to make his AK-47 act like a machine gun during target practice. A stray bullet struck and killed Alyssa Christine Smith, 23, at a barbecue some distance away. The 31-year-old shooter will be charged with manslaughter.

02.14.14FRIDAY

Bellingham Police detectives arrest a heroin dealer caught in the act. Police say the 56-year-old Bellingham man was observed in a drug trans-action and was in possession of almost four ounc-es of heroin at the time of his arrest.

A fire breaks out in a garage in Bellingham’s Roosevelt neighborhood. Homeowners awoke to find fire in the structure and called for aid. The fire was extinguished without incident, but smoke damaged the inside of their home. The fire is ruled accidental.

A measure to overhaul the state’s medical marijuana system clears the House, a change

supporters say is necessary to bring it into line with the still-developing legal recreational mar-ket. House Bill 2149 passes on a 67-29 vote be-fore heading to the Senate, which is considering similar measures to reconcile the two marijuana systems. The state has allowed medical use of marijuana since 1998. Lawmakers are concerned the largely unregulated medical system could un-dercut the taxed, recreational industry.

02.17.13MONDAY

State lawmakers consider a bill that would al-low farmers to grow industrial hemp. House Bill 1888 unanimously passes in the House and now heads to the Senate, which is considering its own industrial hemp measure. The House bill authoriz-es the Department of Agriculture to issue licens-es to grow industrial hemp, a product with only traces of the pyschoactive compound in cannabis.

04.18.12TUESDAY

The Port of Bellingham may begin negotiations on a waterfront redevelopment contract with firm based in Dublin, Ireland. If the port and Harcourt Developments Limited can come to terms, Harcourt would be the lead developer on the first 11-acre phase of waterfront development.

The

Week that WasBY TIM JOHNSON

LAST WEEK’S

NEWSFEB11-18

currents ›› last week’s news

FEB 17—MAR 1, 2014 Schedule and show details

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wordsCOMMUNITY LECTURES BOOKS

BY TIM JOHNSON

Sacred GroundUNITE THE TRIBES TO SAVE THE WORLD

“C limate change arrives in a world primed for crisis,” Christian Parenti writes. “The current and impending dislocations of climate change intersect with the already existing crises of

poverty and violence. I call this collision of political, economic and envi-ronmental disasters the catastrophic convergence. By catastrophic conver-gence, I do not merely mean that several disasters happen simultaneously, one problem atop one another. Rather, I argue that problems compound and amplify each other, one expressing itself through another.”

The great danger, Parenti argues, is that societies, like people, react to crisis in a manner conditioned by past traumas.

For the United States, trauma is shaped through a military response that extends back beyond wars hot and cold into the genocidal con-quest of the American West and the plunder of its resources. The mili-tary itself labels climate change a “threat multiplier,” a great pressure to respond to a changing tactical situation with imperfect information. Terrible things have been wrought in the urgency of the expedient.

In a sense, as resources dwindle and options narrow, we come full circle on that crisis of the West; and perhaps the tribes and their treaties pro-

vide a path for a different outcome.In May of last year, the Affiliated Tribes

of Northwest Indians, representing 57 Na-tive American groups in the region, put for-ward a resolution opposing export of fossil fuels in the region. In numbers, they are

strong. Only the Crow Na-tion refused to sign, and they had their reasons. For them, coal is life.

“The Absaalooka were not born coal miners,” Winona LaDuke says of that nation. “That’s what happens when things are stolen from you—your land, reserved un-der treaty, more than 30 million acres of the best land in the northern plains, the heart of their territory. This is what happens with historic trauma, and your people and ancestors disappear.

“In economic terms, essentially, the Crow are watching as their assets are taken to benefit oth-ers, and their ecology and economy decline,” she notes. Crow Nation needs a friend, and with that friendship comes a bond that can benefit all.

In a sense the final two speakers of the 2014 Fairhaven College World Issues Forum bookend not only the broad topics of climate change and so-cial justice the forum ex-plored, but they bookend each other. In a series of presentations, the forum has addressed the com-plex, evolving but unde-niable science of climate change and its impacts to the natural world and human experience. At the

end comes an apocalyptic warning, followed by the offer of a narrow path through the apocalypse.

Through a special film project she helped produce, LaDuke—an activist, environmen-talist and author of Anishinaabe descent—

and others studied several indigenous com-munities around the world to learn how they respond to threats to their health, their liveli-hood and cultural survival.

“In the United States and around the world, indigenous people defend human rights and re-store the environment in their sacred places, the original protected areas,” LaDuke notes. “In a growing worldwide movement, their resis-tance provides the path to our common future.”

The series of films premiered in October 2013. One is featured this week at the Bell-ingham Human Rights Film Festival.

In recent writings LaDuke has suggested the task of fully uniting the Crow Nation with Lummi and other northwest tribes suggests a model for how to ignite a global grassroots response to the mounting chaos Parenti de-

scribes, displacing the expedient with the du-rable and the sacred.

“So it is that the Crow Nation needs a friend among the Lummi and is having a hard time finding one,” she observes. “In the meantime, a 40-year-old coal-mining strategy is being challenged by Crow people, because culture is tied to land, and all of that may change if they starting mining for coal.

“On one level, you want to tell them that what they’re doing is so wrong,” LaDuke con-tinues, “in its spiritual terms, in terms of their own relationship to Mother Earth, and in terms of their denial of people’s humanity. Another facet that I always want to say is: Your plan is bad. You cannot continue to build a society that is based on conquest. We have run out of places to conquer, places to put our flags, new places to mine, new places to dam.

“At a certain point, you have to bring your world into some sort of economy that is du-rable and you need to do it sooner rather than later because the more you compromise ecosystems and spiritual recharge areas, the harder it will be for us all to recover.”

Christian Parenti and Winona LaDuke will speak at the Fairhaven College World Issues Forum on Climate Change and Social Justice. LaDuke’s film Standing on Sacred Ground screens this week at the 14th annual Bellingham Human Rights Film Festival. See more on pg. 24.

ATTENDWHO: Christian ParentiWHAT: Tropic of Chaos: Climate Change and the New Geography of ViolenceWHEN: 12-1:20pm Weds., Feb. 26WHERE:Fairhaven College Auditorium, WWUMORE: Mt. Baker Sierra Club hosts a reception at 7pm, Bellingham Public Library-----------------WHO: Winona LaDukeWHAT: The Next Energy Economy: Grassroots Strategies to Mitigate Global Climate ChangeWHEN: 12-1:20pm, Weds., March 5WHERE: Viking Union Multi-Purpose Room, WWUINFO: www.wwu.edu/fairhaven/news/worldissuesforum/

,“You cannot continue to build a society that is based on conquest. We have run out of places to conquer, places to put our flags, new places to mine, new places to dam”—WINONA LADUKE

WINONA LADUKE

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WORDS

FRI., FEB. 21ICY WISDOM STORIES: As part of Whatcom Museum’s “Vanishing Ice” exhibit, members of the Bellingham Storytelling Guild will share “Wisdom Stories from the Ice and Cold” at 7pm at the Fairhaven Library, 1117 12th St. Show up at 6pm for a free hour of coaching and an intro to the craft.

778-7188

SAT., FEB. 22WILD BOOK DISCUSSION: As part of the final week of Whatcom Reads, attend a discussion focusing on Cheryl Strayed’s Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail from 10:30am-12pm at the Blaine Public Library, 610 3rd St.

WWW.WHATCOMREADS.ORG

FROZEN PRINCESS PARTY: Children’s picture book author Barbara Jean Hicks will host a “Prin-cess Party” for fans of Disney’s latest animated feature, Frozen, at 11am at Village Books, 1200 11th St. Kids can wear their favorite gowns, join a Princess Parade through the store, take pics with the Story Queen, and win prizes for costumes. Entry is free.

WWW.VILLAGEBOOKS.COM

MINI WRITING WORKSHOP: Author and Uni-versity of Washington creative writing instructor Scott Driscoll will be signing copies of his new book, Better You Go Home, and give a mini-work-shop on “Inciting Incident and the Desire Quest that Follows” starting at 4pm at Village Books, 1200 11th St. Entry is free.


SUN., FEB. 23DISHEVELED POETRY: Award-winning poet An-drea Carter Brown reads selections from her new collection, The Disheveled Bed, at 4pm at Village Books, 1200 11th St.

671-2626

MON., FEB. 24CHERYL STRAYED SIGNING: As a culmination to the six-week countywide reading and discus-sion program known as Whatcom Reads!, Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail author Cheryl Strayed will talk about her work at 7pm at the Mount Baker Theatre, 104 N. Commercial St. Village Books will have Strayed’s books available for purchase at the event, and the author will be on hand after the event to sign copies. Entry is free and open to all.

WWW.WHATCOMREADS.ORG OR

WWW.MOUNTBAKERTHEATRE.COM

OPEN MIC: Share stories, poems and essays at the monthly Open Mic at 7pm at Village Books, 1200 11th St. Local writer and teacher Laurel Leigh will emcee.

671-2626

POETRYNIGHT: Those looking to share their verse as part of Poetrynight can sign up at 7:30pm at the Bellingham Alternative Library, 1417 Railroad Ave. Readings start at 8pm. Entry is by donation. Tonight’s featured poet is John Sands of Brooklyn, NY.

778-7230 OR WWW.POETRYNIGHT.ORG

TUES., FEB. 25CHERYL STRAYED: If you missed her Monday appearance at the Mount Baker Theatre, Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail author Cheryl Strayed will be on hand to be interviewed by Susanne Paola Antonetta at 10am at the Bellingham Cruise Terminal, 355 Harris Ave. The

free event is the culmination of Whatcom Reads. No tickets are required.

WWW.WHATCOMREADS.ORG

VANISHING ICE: As part of Whatcom Museum’s “Vanishing Ice” exhibit, join Bellingham Reads to discuss Henry Pollack’s A World Without Ice at 6:30pm at the Bellingham Public Library, 210 Central Ave. New members are welcome.

778-7323

CHUCKANUT RADIO HOUR: The Free: A Novel author Willy Vlautin will be the featured author at live taping of the monthly Chuckanut Radio Hour at 7pm at Whatcom Community College’s Heiner Theater. Vlautin will also be the musical guest at tonight’s show, which will include an essay by Weekly columnist Alan Rhodes and poetry by Kevin Murphy. Entry is $5.

671-2626

POETRY ANNIVERSARY: Co-writing couple Chas Hoppe and Joshua Young will mark the first anni-versary of their collection, The Diegesis, with a 7pm reading at Village Books, 1200 11th St. Daniel Scott Parker will also share his work.


WED., FEB. 26PARISHES’ POETRY: Former Bellingham resident Adrian Koesters shares selections from her new collection of poetry, Many Parishes, at 7pm at Village Books, 1200 11th St.

671-2626

TROPIC OF CHAOS: Christian Parenti draws on his 2011 book, Tropic of Chaos: Climate Change and the New Geography of Violence, at a 7pm discus-sion at the Bellingham Public Library, 210 Central Ave. Parenti will also discuss his recent travels in the Global South, and focus on the intersection between war and climate change—and what can be done about it. Entry is free.

WWW.RE-SOURCES.ORG

THURS., FEB. 27 ARMCHAIR AUTHOR: Armchair ePublish-ing owner and author Karla Locke shares her expertise at a “Blogging: Are You Doing It Right?” presentation hosted by the Skagit Valley Writers League from 6:30-8:30pm at the Burlington Public Library, 820 E. Washington Ave. Make reservations in advance for the free event.

WWW.SKAGITWRITERS.ORG

THURS., FEB. 27PULITZER POETRY: As part of WWU Reads, attend “An Evening with Pulitzer Prize-Winning Poet W.S. Merwin” at 7pm at Western Washington University’s Performing Arts Center. Tickets to hear the poet, translator and environmental activist read from and discuss his works are $5-$10.

650-6146 OR WWW.TICKETS.WWU.EDU

COMMUNITY

WED., FEB. 19WORLD ISSUES FORUM: Author and activist Kathleen Dean Moore focuses on “Red Sky at Morning: Ethics and the Climate Crisis” at today’s World Issues Forum at noon at Western Washing-ton University’s Fairhaven College Auditorium. Entry is free and open to all.

WWW.WWU.EDU

THURS., FEB. 20 BROWN BAG: Ray Kamada provides an overview of current trends in wind power at a “Whither the

Wind Blows” brown bag presentation at 12:30pm at Whatcom Museum’s Old City Hall, 121 Prospect St. Suggested donation is $3.

WWW.WHATCOMMUSEUM.ORG

HOUSING AND AGING: “What’s Next? Housing Options as We Age” will be the focus of a com-munity discussion and open house from 2-6pm at the Bellingham Senior Activity Center, 315 Halleck St. This year’s theme, “Aging in Place,” will be addressed by Katherine Danner of Ashland at Home. Entry is free.

WWW.WCCOA.ORG

NONPROFITS SCHMOOZE-FEST: Connect with local nonprofits at the Whatcom Council of Non-profits’ “Schmooze-Fest” from 5-7pm at the Encore Room at the Mount Baker Theatre, 104 N. Commer-cial St. Share ideas, nosh on food from Silver Reef, enter to win prizes and more. Bring business cards, brochures and other materials to share.

WWW.WHATCOMCOUNCILOFNONPROFITS.ORG

SAT., FEB. 22OIL SPILL PREPAREDNESS: A free “Community Engagement in Oil Spill Response and Readiness” workshop happens from 9am-3pm at Zuanich Park’s Squalicum Boathouse. Local, state and federal agency staff will describe their roles as part of “Incident Command,” and there will also be reps from the U.S. Coast Guard, DOE, the De-partment of Fish & Wildlife, and the oil industry. Please RSVP if you plan on attending.

733-1725 OR WWW.NWSTRAITS.ORG

WOMENCARE GALA: Silent and live auc-tions and a champagne dinner will be part of Womencare Shelter’s Annual Gala happening from 5-9:30pm at the Silver Reef Casino Conven-tion Center, 4876 Haxton Way. Tickets are $75. All proceeds support emergency, confidential shelter and crisis support services to victims of domestic violence and their children.

WWW.WOMENCARESHELTER.ORG

BENEFIT AUCTION: Support the Whatcom Day Academy by attending a benefit auction, “Past to Future: Celebrating 25 Years,” from 5:30-9:30pm at the Bellingham Cruise Terminal, 355 Harris Ave. Tickets are $65.

WWW.WHATCOMDAY.ORG

LUMBER AND LACE BALL: Attend an early 1900s logging era-themed “Lumber and Lace Ball” starting at 7pm at the Majestic, 1027 N. Forest St. Music by Hot Damn Scandal, DJ Kitchen Sink, and the Country Hamms will be on the menu, and dancing, beverages, appetizers and various activities will be part of the fun. Entry is $25 per person or $40 per couple. Proceeds benefit the Whatcom Hospice Foundation.

WWW.HOSPICEHELP.ORG

SUN., FEB. 23SKAGIT WEDDING SHOW: Connect with highly qualified bridal vendors in a variety of categories at the Skagit Wedding Show happening from 11am-4pm in Anacortes at the Swinomish Casino Lodge, 12885 Casino Dr. Guests can also enjoy viewing the latest trends in the wedding industry as well as enter drawings for prizes. Entry is $10.

WWW.SKAGITWEDDINGSHOW.COM

WED., FEB. 26HEALTHCARE TALK: Join United for National Healthcare for a “Communication for Activists” talk with Fuse Washington’s Sandra VanderVen at 7pm at St. Luke’s Community Health Education Center, 3333 Squalicum Pkwy.

WWW.UNITEDFORHEALTHCARE.ORG

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HIKING RUNNING CYCLINGoutside WED., FEB. 19

BICYCLE TRAVEL SERIES: “Ride Across Iowa” and “Tour of Tuscany” presentations can be seen at a Bicycle Travel Series event put on by Everybody Bike at 7pm at Belling-ham’s Old Federal Building, 104 W. Magnolia St. Entry is free; donations are accepted.

WWW.EVERYBODYBIKE.COM

THURS., FEB. 20AROUND THE AMERICAS: “An Ice-Free NW Passage? Around the Americas” will be the focus of a travelogue presentation with ocean racing and sailing legend Mark Schrader at 7pm at Whatcom Museum’s Old City Hall, 121 Prospect St. Suggested dona-tion is $3.


FITNESS FORUM: “Core Strength: What It Is and Why You Need It” will be the focus of a free Fitness Forum with Genissa Sygitowicz of Upper Left CrossFit at 7:15pm at Fairhaven Runners, 1209 11th St. Learn a simple core strength routine for home use during the long winter months so you can be ready to play when the warmer weather returns.

WWW.FAIRHAVENRUNNERS.COM

FRI., FEB. 21WILD THINGS: Kids, adults and adventur-ers can join Wild Whatcom Walks for “Wild Things” excursions from 9:30-11am every Friday in February on the Interurban Trail. Entry is by donation.

WWW.WILDWHATCOM.ORG

SAT., FEB. 22SMELT DERBY: The Rotary Club of La Conner hosts the 49th annual Smelt Derby from 8am-3pm at the town’s Dirty Biter Dock, the Swinomish Dock, and the South Basin Dock (by the Swinomish Yacht Club). A pancake breakfast, fish painting and more will also be part of the fun.

WWW.LACONNERROTARY.ORG

SMELT RUN: Skagit Symphony hosts a fundraising “Smelt Run” starting at 10am at La Conner Middle School, 305 N. Sixth St. Choose from a 2K walk or 5K and 10K runs. Entry is $30, and a free kids dash will also take place.

WWW.SKAGITSYMPHONY.COM

BONSAI 101: George Berkompas of the Whatcom/Skagit Bonsai Society leads a “Bonsai 101” class at 9am at the Garden Spot Nursery, 900 Alabama St. He will show you the basic techniques, as well as advanced tips to keep your bonsai happy and healthy. Register in advance for the free workshop.

676-5480

LOVE YOUR RIDE: Beer, baked goods, games, live music, tale-swapping and tips for staying warm and dry on your bike during inclement weather will be part of a “Love Your Ride: A Celebration of Winter Cycling” event starting at 6:30pm at the YWCA Ballroom, 1026 N. Forest St. Entry is $3. Funds raised benefit Sterling Bike Works, an organization that provides bicycle maintenance and education for youth in the Sterling Drive area.

WWW.STERLINGBIKEWORKS.COM

FEB. 22-23 WINTER FESTIVAL: “A Fascination for Hel-lebores” will be the focus of the eighth an-

doit

F ar too often, those of us who live in the northern woods tend to put away the backpacking gear for winter.

Of course, we enjoy our play days on the mountain, frolicking in the lustrous snow, but overnighters are often replaced by a stop at Chair 9 (or Milano’s, or Graham’s, or the North Fork, or Il Caffe Rifugio, etc.) and a night spent among the featherbeds of home. Nothing wrong with that, Lord knows. Been there.

But, in the hustle and bustle of our daily lives, with our ringing cell phones and cascading email, the opportunity to slip the yoke for a few days of quiet and beauty is compelling—and therapeutic.

If you are a summer backpacker, of course you know what I mean. But sum-mer, let’s face it, friends, is short. We are wise to expand our horizons and hoist that pack all year long. Especially now in the dead of winter, when we need it the most.

If the idea of snow camping leaves you cold, fear not: There are multi-

tudes of lovely low-elevation backpacking destinations that are usually snow-free. Of course, a little rain is not, technically speaking, impossible.

Sound cold and wet? Think again. There is certainly a plethora of gear and clothing available to ensure your comfort in almost any conditions likely to be encountered in this neck of the woods in winter. With a high-quality shell, lots of layers of light-weight polypro and fleece, a down jacket and insulated boots, you can enjoy a night in the woods in style and comfort.

Four-season tents weigh half of what they did a decade ago. Integrated sleeping bag and pad systems provide remarkable warmth for minimal weight. I always bring a small tarp, useful to cook and speculate under.

In the winter, the forest is a study in contrasts. In calm conditions, it is hushed and still: The sound of a twig snapping re-verberates like a gunshot. When the wind blows, it is a living entity, branches flailing and tent flaps slapping. For most pilgrims, the calm is preferable.

Where to go? Close at hand, the Baker River Trail is wonderful, as is the Baker Lake Trail (on the east shore of Baker Lake). Near Darrington, the Boulder River Trail provides access to a beguiling remnant of old-growth forest and a sweet waterfall. Obstruction Pass State Park on Orcas Island features campsites on the Salish Sea, reached by an easy half-mile trail. Bring water.

The Olympic Peninsula offers a cornu-copia of options; rainforest hikes in the Hoh Valley, Dungeness, Duckabush, and Quinault areas, and on the South Fork Skokomish River Trail. Numerous idyllic excursions on the wilderness beaches of Olympic National Park are perfect in win-ter. Shi-Shi beach, Rialto Beach to Hole-in-the-Wall, Cape Alava, and Third Beach are all spectacular. Spending a lonely evening beside the sea is great for recharging the psychic batteries.

Sure, you can stay at home. But maybe it’s better to embrace the north wind and quiet the chattering monkey-mind.

STORY AND PHOTO BY JOHN D’ONOFRIO

Don’t Let Winter Stop YouEASY, SNOW-FREE BACKPACKING TRIPS

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THEATER DANCE PROFILES

staGe

M y date and I had just taken our seats at the Mount Baker Theatre’s intimate Walton Theatre last Saturday night when a parade of older ladies proudly attired in various shades of

purple clothing—and who were also adorned with sparkly red hats—filled almost an entire row nearby.

After my swain pointed out that I was also wearing purple, and suggested that perhaps I’d like to join them, I told him I wasn’t quite ready to sign up to be a lifetime member of their club, but that I’d keep a close eye on the women during the performance of the Winter Repertory production of The 39 Steps to see how they reacted to the comic whodunit.

A few of the colorful crew might have been around to see Alfred Hitchcock’s 1935 film of the same name when it first debuted on the big screen, but chances are good they’d since been apprised that the

What follows involves murder, false accusa-tions, an undercover trip to Scotland, roman-tic entanglements, mistaken identities galore and, despite the serious subject matter at hand, heaping doses of humor.

Part of what makes this version of The 39 Steps less harrowing and more hilarious than Hitch-cock’s version is that the plethora of characters are played by only four actors. While Hanna—brilliantly portrayed by Bellingham newcomer Christopher Cariker, with a spot-on accent, to boot—gets to stay in his own skin, his able sparring partner, Jennifer Ewing, must trans-form into a trio of romantic interests (spoiler

alert: her first character is stabbed to death).

Chris Shea (Clown 1) and Gerald Browning (Clown 2) fill in for the rest of the more than 100 characters and inanimate objects that are depicted, and as far as I could tell, they didn’t drop the ball—or one of the many hats they wore—even once.

“I’ve never seen an ac-tor portray a bog before,” my beau whispered to me during a scene that saw Hannay and his current love/hate interest escap-ing from a duo of assassins

while slogging through a Scottish marsh. I’d simi-larly never seen actors portray airplanes, trees, pigeons and so many characters of varying ac-cents and genders before.

Judging by the list of costumers and “ward-robe maintenance” crew mentioned in the program for The 39 Steps, it’s clear keeping the clowns clothed and propped wasn’t easy. But, like all successful productions, everyone involved made the transitions look seamless, and helped me believe in the myriad transfor-mations—some of which only lasted a minute or two, but all of which elicited some sort of response from the audience.

I don’t think I went more than a minute or two without laughing during the entirety of the play, but I had nothing on the ladies in purple and red. They shrieked. They guffawed. They snorted and cackled and giggled uproariously through both acts, and then they laughed some more. Maybe it’s time to join their club, after all.

ATTEND WHAT: The 39 StepsWHEN: Continues Feb. 19-March 2WHERE: Mount Baker Theatre’s Walton Theatre, 104 N. Commercial St. COST: $12.50-$25INFO: 734-6080 or www.mountbaker theatre.com

BY AMY KEPFERLE

The 39 Steps OF SPIES AND SILLINESS

play they were about to see—which was adapt-ed by Patrick Barlow from the novel by John Buchan—was an entirely different animal.

The basic plot of the stage adaptation hews closely to Hitchcock’s version: A bored Eng-lishman in London, Richard Hannay, spends a night at the theater watching a man nick-named “Mr. Memory” react to audience que-ries by spewing out a long list of facts he’s kept locked tight in his brain. Shots are fired, and not long afterward Hannay’s dealing with a frightened (and attractive) brunette with a guttural accent who informs him she’s a spy who’s being chased by assassins.

,Part of what makes this version of The 39 Steps less harrowing and more hilarious than Hitchcock’s version is that the plethora of characters are played by only four actors.

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FEB. 19-MARCH 1BOAT FESTIVAL: View a variety of short works when the fifth annual Bellingham One-Act Theatre Festival continues with performances at 7pm nightly through Sat., March 1 (except Sun., Feb. 23) at the Bellingham Theatre Guild, 1600 H St. For a full listing of the 12 original, locally produced plays that will show in repertory throughout the run, peruse the guild’s website. Individual show tickets are $4, and festival passes are available for $10.

WWW.BELLINGHAMTHEATREGUILD.COM

THURS., FEB. 20NORTHWEST PASSAGES: Experience the life of a young Swedish immigrant named Julia Berg as she and her family struggle to build a new life in Washington State in the early 20th century at a Living Voices production, Northwest Passages, at 7pm at the Burlington Public Library, 820 E. Washington Ave. Admission to the educational living history program is free.

WWW.LIVINGVOICES.ORG

GOOD, BAD, UGLY: Watch “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly” at 8pm every Thursday at the Upfront Theatre, 1208 Bay St. At 10pm, stick around for the “Project.” Entry is $4-$7.

733-8855 OR WWW.THEUPFRONT.COM

FEB. 20-22THURSDAY MAN: Glenn Hergenhahn’s adapta-tion of mystery novelist G.K. Chesterton’s The Man Who Was Thursday opens this weekend with 8pm performances Thursday through Saturday at the iDiOM Theater, 1418 Cornwall Ave. The play follows the investigation of a detective who in-filtrates a secret group of anarchists. Tickets are $10 (opening night is $5). Additional showings happen through March 1.

WWW.IDIOMTHEATER.COM

FRI., FEB. 21DRAG SHOW: Help raise funds for the Sean Humphrey House and Evergreen Wellness Advocates by attending the 22nd annual Drag Show starting at 7pm at Western Washington Washington University’s Performing Arts Center. Outrageous costumes, performances of popular songs and comedic acts by a variety of drag queens and kings will be part of the fun. Tickets are $10 for students and $12 general.

650-6146 OR WWW.TICKETS.WWU.EDU

FEB. 21-22 ALWAYS PATSY: Mount Vernon’s Theater Arts Guild continues showings of Always...Patsy Cline with performances at 7:30pm Friday and Saturday at the Conway Muse, 18444 Main St. Performances continue weekends through March 22. Tickets are $20.

WWW.THEATERARTSGUILD.ORG

SPACE TREK: Watch the improvised sci-fi ad-venture show known as “Space Trek” at 8pm and 10pm every Friday and Saturday through February at the Upfront Theatre, 1208 Bay St. Tickets are $10 in advance or $12 at the door.

WWW.THEUPFRONT.COM

COMEDY NITE: Brian Moote will be the headlin-ing standup act at the monthly Comedy Nite per-formances at 8pm Friday in Anacortes at the H20 Club (314 Commercial Ave.) and 9pm Saturday in Bellingham at Poppes 360 (714 Lakeway Dr.). Tickets are $10 for each show.

WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/COMEDYNITE

FEB. 21-23WHITE CHRISTMAS: Lynden High School Performing Arts heads back to the 1950s with performances of Irving Berlin’s White Christmas at 7pm Friday and Saturday and 4pm Sunday at the school’s Judson Auditorium, 516 Main St. Tickets are $9-$10.50.

354-4401 OR WWW.LYNDEN.WEDNET.EDU

MON., FEB. 24GUFFAWINGHAM: A weekly open mic for come-dians, dubbed “Guffawingham!,” takes place at 9:30pm Mondays at the Green Frog, 1015 N. State St. Entry is free.

WWW.ACOUSTICTAVERN.COM

TUES., FEB. 25PLAYHOUSE AUDITIONS: The Neighborhood Playhouse will hold auditions for its spring production, Go, Dog. Go!, from 6-8pm at Belling-ham’s Broadway Hall, 1300 Broadway. Rehearsals will held Tuesday nights and Saturday mornings for a May 2-11 run.

WWW.THENEIGHBORHOODPLAYHOUSE.NET

FEB. 26-MARCH 1VAGINA MEMOIRS: Learn more about themes, topics and experiences related to people with marginalized gender identities at free showings of The Vagina Memoirs Wednesday through Satur-day at 7pm at Western Washington University’s Performing Arts Center. The performances are presented by those who’ve spent three months discussing and writing about the issues.

WWW.AS.WWU.EDU

THURS., FEB. 27INTERNATIONAL NIGHT: Performances, danc-ing, live music and food from around the world will be part of an International Night gathering happening from 6-9:30pm at Whatcom Com-munity College’s Syre Center, 238 W. Kellogg Rd. Entry is free.

383-3244

FEB. 27-MARCH 2BINGO THE MUSICAL: Friendship and number-calling will both be part of performances of Bingo, the Winning Musical starting this week at 7:30pm Thursday through Saturday, and 2pm Sunday, at Lynden’s Claire Vg Thomas Theatre, 655 Front St. Tickets are $8-$12.

WWW.CLAIREVGTHEATRE.COM

DANCE

SAT., FEB. 22PEACE DANCE: All are welcome at the monthly Dances of Universal Peace from 7-9pm at the Center for Spiritual Living, 2224 Yew Street Rd. Entry is by donation.

733-5745

DERBY DANCE: The Skagit Valley-based dance band known as the Esquires will provide live mu-sic at tonight’s Smelt Derby Dance from 7-10pm at La Conner’s Maple Hall, 104 Commercial St. Tickets are $15 and include one drink, snacks and dancing.

WWW.LACONNERROTARY.ORG

CONTRA DANCE: The Bellingham Country Dance Society hosts its bimonthly Contra Dance from 7-10:30pm at the Fairhaven Library, 1117 12th St. Norther Contraband will perform, and Seattle’s Amy Wimmer will do the calling. Suggested dona-tion is $8-$10.

WWW.BELLINGHAMCOUNTRYDANCE.ORG

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visualGALLERIES OPENINGS PROFILES

BY STEPHEN HUNTER

Taking Flight WELCOME TO THE BIRDHOUSE

N estled between the North Cascades and the Salish Sea, the Skagit Valley has long been a haven for birds. In the doughty village of Edison, where the

Samish River dwindles to the bay, local residents liven up February’s gloom with a cheerful bird festival.

The Cascadia Weekly previously wrote about the frolic of chicken races and educational programs that took place in early February, but, after viewing the Edison Bird Festival Invitational, I thought it was worth pointing out that the feathery fun continues through the month at the town’s Smith & Vallee Gallery.

Kathleen Faulkner’s iconic work beckons you into an ex-hibit of bird-inspired works by three dozen artists that explore the bird experience from egg to extinction. Her

oil pastel, “A Gulp of Cormorants” is a restful study of a social gathering; in laudable understatement, it’s a quiet piece in a show dominated by some pretty loud ones.

You will know how it feels to be a mouse, facing a gal-lery of oversize portraits of predatory roosters, owls and herons. My favorite in this “loud” category would be a playful rendering of a swan and two Jurassic dragonflies done in splashy green, blue and red by Amy Armitage.

Offering the feel of feathers and flight are two mono-types by Kris Ekstrand Molesworth, in careful shades of yellow and blue.

On the west wall, some 30 small works jostle for space, among which stand out a nice three-color serigraph, “Heron,” by Kristen Loffer Theiss; “Mother,” a semi-ab-

ATTEND WHAT: Edison Bird Festival InvitationalWHEN: 11am-5pm every Tues.-Sun. through Feb. 28WHERE: Smith & Vallee Gallery, 5742 Gilkey Ave. INFO: (360) 766-6230 or www.smithandvallee.com

stract, cartoonish but fetching linoprint of nestlings by Jessica Gigot; and a lovely wood-cut by Natalie Niblack, “Bittern.”

A stately linocut print by Nicolette Har-rington, “With Peace on their Wings,” anchors the center hall with monochrome, patterny out-lines of geese, reminiscent of an Escher print.

Don’t overlook the most evocative piece in the exhibition: a delicate chiaroscuro by Ann Reid. “Will we save the Western Snowy Plo-ver?” powerfully and darkly suggests the bird could be walking toward extinction.

Tucked away in a back room I found another treasure: David Hall’s digital print, “Hum-mingbird Nest in the Kiwi,” a sensitive, har-monious composition—and one of the first to have sold.

Todd Horton, an Edi-son favorite son, shows two paintings in his trademark style of a re-alistic figure in nega-tive space, smeared or dripped upon. His “Self-lessness” assembles a crow and two nicely drawn chickadees in a

pleasing rain of paint drops.For sheer fun, there are the works of two

preeminent pranksters: John Robbins’ large, whimsical abstract, “To Be, a Bird” and that of RR Clark (also known as FishBoy), “The Boys,” constructed of wood, canvas, paint and col-ored pencil—already sold at a bargain price.

And beyond category is Pieter Vanzanden’s hilarious and scary scupture, a tyrannosaurus-size egg on wooden articulated feet, entitled “GM—OH!” Impending doom. On its own it brings us back to evolutionary beginning and suggests a terrible apotheosis.

But hey! What about the five, hand-felted and painted, soft sculptured hats by Penny Berck? You could wear them at Halloween—or at the next Edison Bird Festival parade. Be a rooster, a woodpecker or a bluejay!

,“Don’t overlook the most evocative piece in the exhibition: a delicate chiaroscuro by Ann Reid. “Will we save the Western Snowy Plover?” powerfully and darkly suggests the bird could be walking toward extinction.”

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WED., FEB. 19CABINET OF CURIOSITIES: A closing reception for “Cabinet of Curiosity” happens from 6-8pm at Western Washington Universi-ties Viking Gallery in the Viking Union build-ing. The “encyclopedic collection of strange, interesting and unusual items, which were culled from Western’s storage, will be on display through Feb. 21.

WWW.WWU.EDU

THURS., FEB. 20ART AND ECOLOGY: Students from Western Washington University will share final products from their Art and Ecology Seminar at an After Hours Art gathering at 6:30pm at Whatcom Museum’s Lightcatcher Building, 250 Flora St. Thursday entry is $5.


SAT., FEB. 22CRAFTSMEN PANEL: Regional artists will be on hand to discuss their works during a “Northwest Designer Craftsmen Panel Discussion and Slideshow” from 1-4pm in Anacortes at Anchor Art Space, 216 Com-mercial Ave. Entry is free.

WWW.ANCHORARTSPACE.ORG

THURS., FEB. 27TOM WOOD RECEPTION: An opening reception for Bellingham painter and printer Thomas Wood’s “Under the Inspiration Tree” takes place from 5-7pm at Fairhaven’s Lucia Douglas Gallery, 1415 13th St. The exhibit is a collection of imaginary landscapes filled with fantastic creatures and curious plants emerging in an abundance of color and form. See it through March 22.

WWW.LUCIADOUGLAS.COM

ONGOING EXHIBITS ALLIED ARTS: The multi-artist exhibit, “A Closer Look at Climate,” shows through Feb. 28 at Allied Arts, 1418 Cornwall Ave. The show is presented by Allied Arts members in conjunction with Whatcom Museum’s “Vanishing Ice” exhibit.

WWW.ALLIEDARTS.ORG

ANCHOR ART SPACE: View mixed-media works by Lanny Bergner, Danielle Bodine, Lynn DiNino, Lin McJunkin, Don Myhre, and Denise Snyder at an exhibit featuring the members of Northwest Designer Craftsmen through March 9 in Anacortes at Anchor Art Space, 216 Commercial Ave.

WWW.ANCHORARTSPACE.ORG

ARTWOOD: View “Sweetheart Surprise” through February at Artwood Gallery, 1000 Harris Ave.

WWW.ARTWOODGALLERY.COM

CITY HALL: Andrew Johnson’s “Through the Darkness Comes the Light” paintings will be on display through March at Bellingham City Hall, 210 Lottie St.

WWW.MOJOSTHEORY.COM

FISHBOY GALLERY: Check out the contem-porary folk art of RR Clark from 1:30-5pm every Mon.-Fri. at the FishBoy Gallery, 617 Virginia St.

714-0815 OR WWW.FISHBOYGALLERY.COM

GOOD EARTH: Wood-fired works by Isaac Howard and friends can be viewed through

February at Good Earth Pottery, 1000 Harris Ave.

WWW.GOODEARTHPOTS.COM

HONEY: Erin Clancy’s “Until We Meet Again” shows through February at Honey Salon, 310 W. Holly St. The collection of works on paper and functional ceramics constitutes Clancy’s final art show in Bellingham before moving to New York City.

WWW.HONEYBELLINGHAM.COM

JANSEN ART CENTER: Sign up for classes and workshops on an ongoing basis at Lynden’s Jansen Art Center, 321 Front St. A “Spring Community Exhibit” and special showings by Katherine Payge, Vernon Leibrant, and Michael Davenport are also currently on display.

WWW.JANSENARTCENTER.ORG

MAKE.SHIFT: View Portland artist Chris Henry’s “White Trash Girls from the Small Town in the Middle of My Mind” through Feb-ruary at Make.Shift Art Space, 306 Flora St.

WWW.MAKESHIFTPROJECT.COM

MONA: “Shoreline from the Permanent Col-lection” and “North American” are on display through March 12 at La Conner’s Museum of Northwest Art, 121 S. First St.

WWW.MONAMUSEUM.ORG

QUILT MUSEUM: View Sue Spargo’s “Creat-ing Texture,” Surface Design Association’s “Out of the Blue,” and “Timeless Treasures: Crazy Quilts” through March 23 at the La Conner Quilt & Textile Museum, 703 S. Second St.

WWW.LACONNERQUILTS.COM

WHATCOM ART MARKET: From 10am-6pm every Thursday through Monday through Christmas, stop by the Whatcom Art Guild’s Art Market at Fairhaven’s Waldron Building, 1314 12th St.

WWW.WHATCOMARTGUILD.ORG

WHATCOM MUSEUM: “Vanishing Ice,” “Treasures from the Trunk: The Story of J.J. Donovan” and “Romantically Modern: Pacific Northwest Landscapes” can currently be viewed at the Whatcom Museum campus.


WILSON LIBRARY: View a retrospective of painter Michael Davenport’s work at “An Art-ist Never Stops Growing” exhibit on display through March 6 at WWU’s Wilson Library (just above the sky bridge). The works cover the years 1969-2013.

WWW.LIBRARY.WWU.EDU

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Pickford Film Center Presents

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An opening reception for Thomas Wood’s “Un-der the Inspiration Tree” takes place Thurs., Feb. 27 at the Lucia Douglas Gallery

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musicSHOW PREVIEWS › › RUMOR HAS IT

WHEN I FIRST BEGAN to write about music here, my aim was pretty simple: I wanted to use the skills I’d gleaned in journalism school to write about the music that I liked.

Along the way, I’ve learned that the music business, even just my tiny piece of it, is more complicated than I’d ever imagined—and I’m not even trying to make it big as a rock star.

Which is why, as a wee shaver, an event like ASP Pop Music’s Industry Conference, or Pop-MIC, probably would’ve come in pretty handy.

The goal of PopMIC is to bring a variety of music industry professionals together with the hope that they will relay real-world experi-ences, dispense practical advice and generally give some insight into the music business.

While the conference evolves from year to year, the centerpiece of it is panel discussions, which call upon those knowledgeable in various areas of the music industry to share what they’ve learned. This year’s conference, which happens Sat., Feb. 22 at WWU’s Viking Union (all perti-nent details can be found at golkac.wix.com/aspopmic2014), features six panels, ranging from subjects as broad as music’s overall influ-ence on artists and community, to specific top-ics like a real-life depiction of touring and how to cultivate an all-ages scene. Panelists include PopMIC keynote speaker and Harvey Danger alum Sean Nelson, hip-hop artist RA Scion, Stranger writer Trent Moorman, KEXP’s Sharlese Metcalf, and more. PopMIC also features a worthy group of local panelists, among them Make.Shift’s Cat Sieh, and Wild Buffalo talent buyers Craig Jew-ell and Austin Santiago. I’ll also be on a panel, but since I’ll be joined by Nelson, Metcalf, and Moorman, as well as the Seattle Weekly’s Kelton Sears, don’t expect great pearls of wisdom to fall from my lips. I’m mostly in it for the brunch. And the musical entertainment, courtesy of Nelson, Scion, Kris Orlowski, and Naomi Wachira. Tickets are still available.

Changing the subject, last weekend Make.Shift hosted the now-annual Valentine’s Day Cov-ers Show, a love-filled, two-day event that was marred slightly at the end by the discovery that someone had made off with Make.Shift’s 2013 Best of Bellingham award. This is the part where I tell you that if you have the award, or know who does, please see that it is returned. Make.Shift will not send the authorities after you, but they might make you go to bed without dinner.

Which brings me to a related point, and it is simply this: the space that is now Make.Shift is an invaluable asset, not just to the all-ag-es scene or the music community, but to the greater arts community as a whole. As such, it deserves to be both nurtured and protected. You know, in case anyone was wondering where I stand on this issue.

Rumor Has It

BY CAREY ROSS

Long ago, before anyone really knew who she was, Ani DiFranco made a bold pronouncement: to never sign a record deal. Al-though she could not possibly have known it then, it was a

resolution that would shape her entire musical life. It’s also a pretty self-possessed decision for an 18-year-old to make.Now 43 years old and in the midst of a rich and varied career as a

musician, DiFranco’s teenaged vow has served her well. It’s probably worth mentioning that by the time DiFranco decided

to eschew traditional label support, she may have been young, but she was no musical neophyte. She was playing Beatles covers at lo-cal bars and busking in her hometown of Buffalo, New York at the age of nine, was performing her own original material at 14, became an emancipated minor and moved into her first apartment at 15 and graduated from high school at 16.

At an age when most of us are registering to vote and registering for our freshman year of college, DiFranco was starting her own re-cord label, Righteous Records, for the purpose of releasing her first

album. The label evolved along with the artist, eventually becoming Righteous Babe Records, and the house DiFranco built was more than generous

enough to contain the musi-cian’s expansive vision.

Because being indepen-dent—in more than just la-bel affiliation—has suited DiFranco exceedingly well. With her distinctive vocal style (part singing, part spo-ken word), distinctive guitar style (frantic finger-picking, alternate tunings), distinctive lyrics (naked emotion, clever wordplay) and outspoken poli-tics (progressive, grassroots), it’s highly likely that had she taken the traditional route, DiFranco either would’ve had to bend all of the above to the whims of her record label in the name of perceived market-ability or she would’ve refused to do so and been chewed up

and spit out by a music industry not built to un-derstand her appeal.

That appeal is real, and it can be measured in the large number of exceedingly devoted fans the musician has earned, fans that have remained steadfast and loyal as she’s barnstormed her way through genres ranging from folk to alternative rock to jazz to funk to that which cannot be eas-ily defined. She’s shared stages with Pete Seeger, recorded songs with Prince and Cindy Lauper, jammed with Maceo Parker and enlisted rapper Corey to perform on one of her albums (and per-formed on one of his). She sang a duet with Greg Dulli, produced a track with Margaret Cho, and had one of her poems covered by Chuck D. And all that is just a taste of what she’s accomplished during her nearly quarter-century-long career.

ATTEND WHO: Keb’ Mo’WHEN: 8pm Sat., Feb. 22COST: $30-$52WHO: Ani DiFrancoWHEN: 7:30pm Wed., Feb. 26COST: $29.50-$35WHERE: Mount Baker Theatre, 104 N. Commercial St.INFO: www.mountbaker theatre.com

ANI DIFRANCO

BY CAREY ROSS

The Righteous Babe and ‘the Bluesman’ ANI DIFRANCO AND KEB’ MO’

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WED., FEB. 19BUG SONG CIRCLE: Join members of the Bellingham Ukulele Group (BUG) for a Song Circle from 7-9pm at the Roeder Home, 2600 Sunset Dr.

WWW.BELLINGHAMUKULELEGROUP.COM

THURS, FEB. 20JAZZ BAND CONCERT: The Jansen Jazz Band will be performing favorites such as “Mood Indigo” and “Satin Doll” at a concert at 7:30pm at Lynden’s Jansen Art Center, 321 Front St. Entry is $10.

WWW.JANSENARTCENTER.ORG

FRI., FEB. 21EARLY MUSIC FESTIVAL: Celebrate Bach’s 300th anniversary when the Salish Sea Early Music Festival series plays a variety of the master’s works at a concert featuring German harpsichordist Hans Juergen, baroque flutist Jeffrey Cohan, and others at 7:30pm at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, 2117 Walnut St. Suggested donation is $15-$20.

WWW.SALISHSEAFESTIVAL.ORG

SAT., FEB. 22THE VONVETTAS: Post-grunge-era rock and blues, soul, alternative music and more can be heard at a CD Release Concert with the Vonvet-tas from 7pm-12am at Bell Tower Studios, 1430 N. Garden St. A light show and opening music by Odd Ones Out and the Great Pacific will also be part of the festivities. Entry is free; CDs will be for sale.

WWW.THEVONVETTAS.COM

SWING CONNECTION: “Broadway, Our Way!” will be the focus of a performance featuring Bellingham’s Swing Connection big band and members of the Whatcom Sound Jazz Singers from 7-9:30pm at the Leopold Crystal Ballroom, 1224 Cornwall Ave. Feel free to bring your danc-ing shoes. Suggested donation is $10-$15.

714-0054

TOCATO TANGO: Listen to tunes by Tocato Tan-go starting at 7pm at Vinostrology Wine Lounge, 120 W. Holly St. Entry is free, wine is not.

WWW.VINOSTROLOGY.COM

CONCORDIA CHOIR: The Minnesota-based, nationally lauded 72-voice a cappella ensemble known as the Concordia Choir performs at 7:30pm at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, 2117 Walnut St. Tickets are $5-$20.

WWW.STPAULSBELLINGHAM.ORG

SUN., FEB. 23BAYSHORE SYMPHONY: A “Mostly Mozart” concert will be presented by the Bayshore Sym-phony at a 3pm concert at Bellingham’s Central Lutheran Church, 925 N. Forest St. Suggested donation is $10.

WWW.BAYSHOREMUSICPROJECT.COM

WED., FEB. 26JAMIE LAVAL: Traditional music from Scotland, Ireland, Brittany, and Quebec can be heard when virtuoso fiddler and storyteller Jamie Laval per-forms at 7:30pm at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, 2117 Walnut St. Entry is $12-$20.

384-5117 OR WWW.JAMIELAVAL.COM

SYMPHONIC BAND: Eighty-plus players from Western Washington University’s Symphonic band will perform selections from a wide range of musical eras from the 16th and 17th centuries at 8pm at the school’s Performing Arts Center Con-cert Hall. Entry is free and open to the public.

650-7640

DIFRANCO, FROM PREVIOUS PAGE musiceventsIs it possible she could’ve done all that

on a regular record label? Not hardly likely.Although her self-made musical pedi-

gree is certainly striking, DiFranco’s fans don’t necessarily flock to her because of her penchant for creative collaboration or her unwillingness to be confined by strict genre constraints. And while they may be impressed by her Grammy or the fact that she’s recorded and released 20 albums, that’s not what keeps them coming back for more. DiFranco’s allure is more elemental than that. Simply put: she speaks to people.

If you’ve ever been in deeply love, ever had your heart brutally broken, ever been righteously indignant, ever felt wholly em-powered or ever been made to feel small, DiFranco has written a song for you. Grant-ed, that song may be so raw, might lay things so bare that you will have a tough time hearing it, but unlike the pain of lost love, DiFranco’s music hurts so good. Long before Taylor Swift came along with her saccharine breakup songs, DiFranco had the market cornered when it comes to crafting the perfect soundtrack for surviving the pain of heartbreak.

Even after all that, if you still think DiFran-co is your standard-issue girl with a guitar, it’s probably worth a mention that the price of admission to her Wed., Feb. 26 show at the Mount Baker Theatre includes complimenta-ry earplugs, as things are expected to get a little loud. While it is not uncommon for earplugs to be dispensed at places like the Shakedown and Cabin Tavern, such a thing is quite a bit more rare at the Baker.

But before the Righteous Babe rolls through town, a musician of another, but no less distinguished kind, will appear at the Mount Baker Theatre.

Keb’ Mo’, who is well on his way to be-coming a legendary bluesman (if he is not one already), will play a show at the theater on Sat., Feb. 22. Mo’s sound is steeped in the Mississippi Delta, and his performances are infused with his trademark high-energy style. The bluesman may have gotten start playing in a calypso band, but he’s made a career—one that’s included three Grammy awards—out of channeling Robert John-son, who he calls his greatest influence. I guess if you’re going to pick a blues mu-sician to aspire to, you can hardly shoot higher than Johnson.

Not content to merely play the blues, Mo’ has become a sort of unofficial blues am-bassador. He helped Martin Scorsese pull together his Blues series of films, played Johnson in a documentary about the Delta blues legend, has helped to compose mu-sic for the television series Memphis Beat, and even appeared as himself on The West Wing as a performer at an inaugural ball. If he’s good enough for the (fictional TV) president, Mo should be more than good enough for even the most discerning of Bellingham audiences.

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Bobby Lee's Pub & Eatery

Karaoke w/Kristina Karaoke w/Kristina Karaoke w/Kristina

Boundary Bay Brewery

Aaron Guest (Taproom) Paul Klein (Taproom)

Brown Lantern Ale House

Open Mic Ebb Slack and Flood

Cabin TavernDouble B, #Raccune, Madshroom MC, more

1967, more Lucky Machete, Mother Crone Wonder Child

Commodore Ballroom A Tribe Called Red A Tribe Called RedChildren of Bodom, Death Angel, Tyr

Conway MuseThe Sky Colony, Allison Preis-

inger & Mudflat WalkersThe Blackberry Bushes

StringbandBen & Mia Starner

Edison Inn Piano Night The Atlantics Orville Johnson & Band

Glow Nightclub Girl Meets Boy DJ Boombox In Night Out

Bellewood Acres 6140 Guide Meridian, Lynden • (360) 318-7720 | Blue Horse Gallery 301 W. Holly St. • 671-2305 | Bobby Lee’s Pub & Eatery 108 W Main St, Everson • 966-8838 | Boundary Bay Brewing Co. 1107 Railroad Ave • 647-5593 | Brown Lantern Ale House 412 Commercial Ave., Anacortes • (360) 293-2544 | The Business 402 Commercial Ave., Anacortes • (360) 293-9788 | Cabin Tavern 307 W. Holly St. • 733-9685 | Chuckanut Brewery 601 W Holly St. • 752-3377 | Commodore Ballroom 868 Granville St., Vancouver • (604) 739-4550 | Conway Muse 18444 Spruce/Main St., Conway (360) 445-3000

musicvenues See below for venue addresses and phone numbers

02.19.14 02.20.14 02.21.14 02.22.14 02.23.14 02.24.14 02.25.14WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY

TONY FURTADO FEB. 20/Green Frog

JOIN US FOR OUR FIRST SPEAKER SESSION

May 22nd, 4-7pm, Broadway Hall

Thank you to our title sponsor:

500+ local businesses taking action for a healthy community

For more details and to register visit: sustainableconnections.org/eventsRegister for all 3 sessions for a discount!

THE FUTURE OF BUSINESS

SPEAKER SERIESTRIPLE BOTTOM LINE BUSINESS LEADERS REDEFINING SUCCESS.

PEOPLE PLANET PROFIT

REGISTERNOW

New thisyear!

Who attends? Successfulentrepreneurs,business innovators, community and economic development professionals, elected officials, aspiring entrepreneurs – all interested in changing what it means to succeed in business!

Keynote Speaker, Toby Barazzuol, Owner – Eclipse Awards Located in Vancouver, BC Eclipse Awards was selected as BC’s Best Employer in 2012 and and in 2013 a top 10 semifinalist for Best Green Business in BC. Eclipse Awards Facebook Page states that for years they've been "exploring what it means to be a green company - building green roofs and community gardens, creating beautiful things from salvaged materials, cultivating social capital. It's no longer simply about sustainability, now it's about regenerating the environment and celebrating the human spirit as we envision the new economy!"

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musicvenues See below for venue addresses and phone numbers

02.19.14 02.20.14 02.21.14 02.22.14 02.23.14 02.24.14 02.25.14WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY

Green Frog The Silver Dollars The Tony Furtado BandBull Charley, Walking Stick for the Giant, Mr. Feelgood and

the Firm Believers

KIDaoke (early), Bear Cove, Sammy Witness (late)

Slow Jam (early), Open Mic (late)

Medicine Brothers (early), Guffawingham!

(late)

DJ Yogoman's Terrible Tuesday Soul Explosion

H2O DJ Clint Westwood Ian McFeron

Honey Moon Open Mic w/Tad Kroening Broken Bow Stringband Paige Woods Sabrina y los Reyes Pretty Little Feet The Shadies

Kulshan Brewery Garrett Hendricks Heron & Crow Devilly Brothers

Main St. Bar and Grill Country Karaoke JP Falcon Grady Live Music Live Music Boogie Sundays

Nooksack River Casino Scott Haynes

Old World Deli Dayne King

Rockfish Grill Little Joe Argo Randy Norris, Jeff Nicely

Royal Karaoke Karaoke Karaoke, DJ Karaoke, DJ Partyrock

Rumors Leveled Throwback Thursdays DJ Postal, DJ Shortwave DJ Mike Tolleson Karaoke w/Zach

The Shakedown Heavy RotationShowdown at the

ShakedownHey Marseilles, The Comettes MTBTZ, Hydef, Sly Cooper

Defenestrator, Portals Align, more

Tom Waits Night Karaoke Competition

Skagit Valley CasinoDoc Severinsen (Showroom),

Paul Klein Duo (Lounge)Doc Severinsen (Showroom),

The Dogtones (Lounge)

Skylark's Jazz Open Mic Telefon Soul Deluxe

The Underground EDM Night All-Request Night

Underground Coffeehouse

Winnebago, Vacationeer Open Mic

Via Cafe and Bistro Karaoke Karaoke Karaoke Karaoke Dave Sterling J.P. Falcon, more

The Village Inn Karaoke Open Mic

Wild BuffaloWild Out Wednesday w/

Blessed CoastThe Trees, Love Buzz Free Friday Funk Jam

Open Mic w/Chuck Dingee

Blues Jam w/Andy Badd Dog Koch

The Green Frog 1015 N. State St. • www.acoustictavern.com | Edison Inn 5829 Cains Ct., Edison • (360) 766-6266 | Glow 202 E. Holly St. • 734-3305 | Graham’s Restaurant 9989 Mount Baker Hwy., Glacier • (360) 599-3663 | H20, 314 Commercial Ave., Anacortes • (360) 755-3956 | Honey Moon 1053 N State St. • 734-0728 | Kulshan Brewery 2238 James St. • 389-5348 | Make.Shift Art Space 306 Flora St. • 389-3569 | Lighthouse Bar & Grill One Bellwether Way • ( 360) 392-3200 | Main Street Bar & Grill 2004 Main St., Ferndale • ( 360) 384-2982 | McKay’s Taphouse 1118 E. Maple St. • (360) 647-3600 | Nooksack River Casino 5048 Mt. Baker Hwy., Deming • (360) 354-7428 | Poppe’s 714 Lakeway Dr. • 671-1011 | Paso Del Norte 758 Peace Portal Dr. Blaine • (360) 332-4045 | The Redlight 1017 N State St. • www.redlightwineandcoffee.com | Rockfish Grill 320 Commercial Ave., Anacortes • (360) 588-1720 | The Royal 208 E. Holly St. • 738-3701 | Rumors Cabaret 1119 Railroad Ave. • 671-1849 | The Shakedown 1212 N. State St. • www.shakedownbellingham.com | Silver Reef Casino 4876 Haxton Way, Ferndale • (360) 383-0777 | Skagit Valley Casino Resort 5984 N. Darrk Lane, Bow • (360) 724-7777 | Skylark’s Hidden Cafe 1300 11th St. • 715-3642 | Swinomish Casino 12885 Casino Dr., Anacortes • (888) 288-8883 |Temple Bar 306 W. Champion St. • 676-8660 | The Underground 211 E. Chestnut St. • 738-3701 | Underground Coffeehouse Viking Union 3rd Floor, WWU | Village Inn Pub 3020 Northwest Ave. • 734-2490 | Washington Sips 608 1st. St., La Conner • (360)399-1037 | Wild Buffalo 208 W. Holly St. • www.wildbuffalo.net | To get your live music listings included in this esteemed newsprint, send info to [email protected]. Deadlines are always at 5pm Friday.

DOC SEVERINSEN/ Feb. 21-22/Skagit

Valley Casino

HEY MARSEILLES/Feb. 21/

The Shakedown

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FilmMOVIE REVIEWS › › SHOWTIMES

The plundering of the last wondrous places for cor-porate profit has drawn an unexpected response, as some of the poorest and most vulnerable peo-

ple on Earth find strength and support in one another. Indigenous peoples across the globe are joining hands to save their ways of life. The slate of films at this year’s Human Rights Film Festival outline their struggle and chronicle their success.

Admission to films is free. Fairhaven College will show a film every night at 7pm, with a number of films screening in succession on the weekends that bookend the festival.

ROOTED LANDSThe predominantly Hispanic rural villages of Mora and

San Miguel Counties in New Mexico, among the poorest communities in the United States, stand up and speak out in solidarity against one of the world’s most powerful industries. Faced with the threat of natural gas develop-ment as mineral leases are bought by oil and gas specula-tors in their pristine landscape, the citizens rise up and defend the richness of their culture, their heritage, their

BY TIM JOHNSON

Sacred Ground14TH ANNUAL BELLINGHAM HUMAN RIGHTS FILM FESTIVAL

landscape and their place. This documentary explores the citizen grassroots movement and witnesses how industry has affected residents in the Four Corners Area who live in full field fossil fuel development of oil and gas.• 6:30 and 9pm Thurs., Feb. 20, Pickford Film Center.

Opening Night Auction and Reception between shows• 11:30am Fri., Feb 21, Whatcom Community College• 7pm Tues., Feb. 25, Bellingham Unitarian Fellowship• 3:30pm Wed., Feb. 26, Bellingham Technical College• 6pm Thurs., Feb. 27, Northwest Indian College

STANDING ON SACRED GROUNDFrom Papua New Guinea to the tar sands of Alberta,

Canada, native peoples around the world resist threats to their sacred places—the original protected lands—in a growing movement to defend human rights and restore the environment. A cautionary tale of the ethical conse-quences of our culture of consumption.• 7pm Sun., Feb 22, Bellingham Unitarian Fellowship• 11:30am Tues., Feb. 25, Whatcom Community College• 7:20pm Thurs., Feb. 27, Fairhaven College Auditorium WWU

WE CAN’T EAT GOLDPebble Mine, the largest open-pit mine proposed in

North America, would be ripped open at the headwa-ters of the world’s richest salmon-spawning streams in Alaska’s Bristol Bay region. Many Washington fish-ermen are part of the Bristol Bay commercial fishing fleet, which could be devastated by the impact. Now, Alaska Native elders and youth are in Seattle speak-ing out.• 12pm and 6pm Thurs., Feb. 20, Northwest Indian

College• 7pm Sat., Feb. 22, Fairhaven College Auditorium

WWU• 5pm Wed., Feb. 26, Lynden Public Library• 11am Thurs., Feb. 27, Bellingham Technical College

THE CARBON RUSHHydroelectric dams in Panama. Incinerators burn-

ing garbage in India. Biogas extracted from palm oil in Honduras. Eucalyptus forests harvested for char-coal in Brazil. What do these projects have in com-mon? They are all receiving carbon credits for off-setting pollution created somewhere else. But what impact are these offsets having? • 7pm Fri., Feb 21, Fairhaven College Auditorium, WWU• 3:30pm Tues., Feb. 25, Bellingham Technical College

HOT WATERA journey through the American West exposes ura-

nium mining and our atomic legacy for what it really is. Hot Water tells the story of those impacted by ura-nium mining, atomic testing, nuclear energy and the contamination that runs through our air, soil and our water. The environmental damage will take genera-tions and, in some cases, thousands of years to heal.• 12pm Sat., Feb 22, Pickford Fim Center• 7pm Thurs., Feb 27, Deming Public Library

SALMON CONFIDENTIALWild salmon of British Columbia are testing posi-

tive for dangerous European salmon viruses associ-ated with salmon farming worldwide. A biologist moves from courtrooms, into the province’s most remote rivers, Vancouver grocery stores and sushi restaurants. The film documents her journey as she attempts to overcome government and industry road-blocks thrown in her path as she hurries to save B.C.’s wild salmon.• 12pm Sun., Feb. 23, Fairhaven College Auditorium,

WWU• 7:30pm Thurs., Feb. 27, Northwest Indian College

SAVING FACEEvery year in Pakistan, women are the victims of

brutal acid attacks. With little or no access to re-constructive surgery, survivors are physically and emotionally scarred. While these woman fight for justice, a Pakistani surgeon helps restore their faces and lives.• 1:30pm Sun. Feb. 23, Fairhaven College Auditorium

WWU

RAPE OF THE SAMBURU WOMENFor more than 50 years, England has maintained

military training facilities in the Samburu region of its former colony, Kenya. Women in the area have faced an epidemic of brutal rape from these soldiers. This short film tells their story.• 2:30pm Sun., Feb 23, Fairhaven College Auditorium

WWU

STANDING ON SACRED GROUND

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TROUBLED WATERA profile of the troubled watersheds on Vancouver Is-

land. Privatization, vulnerable aquifers, ground water contamination and international trade agreements all threaten to further undermine the safety and security of public water systems, public ownership and the funda-mental human right to access clean drinking water.• 3pm Sun., Feb. 23, Fairhaven College Auditorium WWU• 7pm Wed., Feb. 26, Fairhaven College Auditorium WWU

EASY LIKE WATERIn rural Bangladesh, a visionary architect is building

floating schools to turn the front lines of climate change into a community of learning. But can the “Bangladesh Noah” overcome high waters and the high-pressure com-petition for resources to sustain his dream?• 4:15pm Sun., Feb 22, Fairhaven College Auditorium WWU

VALENTINO’S GHOSTExamines how America’s foreign policy agenda in the

Middle East drives U.S. media portrayals of Arabs and Muslims. The film lays bare the truths behind taboo sub-jects that are conspicuously avoided, or merely treated as sound bites, by the mainstream media.• 6pm Sun., Feb. 23, First Congregational Church of

Bellingham• 7pm Wed., Feb 26, Fairhaven College Auditorium WWU

AMAZON GOLDA clandestine journey into the Amazon rainforest to

discover the destruction in the pursuit of illegally mined gold and consequences on a global scale. Cataloguing ex-traordinary beauty turned into hellish wasteland, Ama-zon Gold reaffirms the right of the rainforest to exist as a repository of priceless biodiversity.• 7pm Sun., Feb. 22, Fairhaven College Auditorium WWU• 1:30pm Thurs., Feb. 27, Whatcom Community College• 5pm Thurs., Feb 27, Deming Public Library

NIÑOS DE LA MEMORIAThe search for children who disappeared during the

Salvadoran Civil War. Survivors of massacres were tak-en away by soldiers. Many grew up in orphanages, were raised by military families or were adopted abroad, losing their history and identity.• 10:30am and 2:45pm Mon., Feb 24, Whatcom Commu-

nity College• 2pm Thurs., Feb. 27, Bellingham Technical College• 12pm Sat., March 1, Fairhaven College Auditorium WWU

MOTHER: CARING FOR 7 BILLIONIn the last second of human history, which began with

agriculture, we began to change the way we looked at the earth, as something that we separated ourselves from in pursuit of civilization. We have engineered proper sanita-tion as we’ve vaccinated for diseases, as we’ve provided famine relief and basic levels of health care, but we also see unintended consequence of our best intentions and a ticking bomb for our civilization.• 11:30am Mon., Feb. 24, Whatcom Community College• 6pm Thurs., Feb. 27, Bellingham Technical College• 3:30pm Sat., March 1, Fairhaven College Auditorium WWU

IT’S A GIRLIn many parts of the world, girls are killed, aborted

and abandoned simply because they are female. The United Nations estimates as many as 200 million girls are missing in the world today because of this so-called “gendercide.” This film tells the stories of abandoned and trafficked girls, of women who suffer extreme dow-

ry-related violence, of brave mothers fighting to save their daughters’ lives, and of other mothers who would kill for a son.• 7pm Mon., Feb 24, Fairhaven College Auditorium WWU• 4pm Thurs., Feb. 27, Bellingham Technical College

VALENTINE ROADUnpacks the 2008 murder of a teen who began explor-

ing his gender identity in eighth grade only to be fatally shot by a classmate. The film reveals the circumstances surrounding the horrific crime and calls into question the safety and acceptance of LGBTQ youth in our coun-try’s educational and juvenile justice systems.• 6pm Tues., Feb. 25, Bellingham Technical College• 7pm Wed., Feb. 26, Bellingham High School Library• 7pm Fri., Feb. 28, Fairhaven College Auditorium WWU

NOT MY LIFEExamines the cruel practices of human trafficking and

modern slavery on a global scale. Filmed on five conti-nents, in a dozen countries, the film takes viewers into a world where millions of children are exploited, every day, through an astonishing array of practices including forced labor, domestic servitude, begging, sex tourism, sexual violence, and child soldiering.• 7pm Tues., Feb. 25, Fairhaven College Auditorium WWU• 6pm Wed., Feb. 26, Bellingham Technical College • 7pm Thurs., Feb. 27, Sehome High School Library

UNMANNED: DRONE WARSInvestigates the impact of U.S. drone strikes at home

and abroad through more than 70 separate interviews, including a former American drone operator who shares what he has witnessed in push-button warfare.• 12:30pm Wed., Feb. 26, Bellingham Technical College• 1:30pm Sat., March 1, Fairhaven College Auditorium WWU

LA SOURCEThe uplifting story of a Haitian Princeton janitor who

returns to his country after the devastating 2010 earth-quake to revive his lifelong dream to bring what is most fundamental to his village’s survival—clean water.• 6:45pm Wed., Feb 26, Lynden Public Library

• 7pm Sat., March 1, Fairhaven College Auditorium WWU

BATTLE FOR THE XINGUThe Xingu, a tributary of the Amazon, is home to

over 10,000 indigenous people who rely on the river for survival. The Brazilian government, however, is proposing what would be the world’s third-largest hy-droelectric dam, threatening to destroy the biodiver-sity of the basin and deprive these people of their rights to a sustainable future.• 7pm Thurs., Feb. 27, Fairhaven College Auditorium WWU

BLACKOUTThis evocative documentary tells how children recon-

cile their lives in one of the world’s poorest countries with their desire to learn, in the face of the country’s own struggle for change.• 4:45pm Sat., March 1, Fairhaven College Auditorium WWU

VENUES:• Bellingham High School Library, 2020 Cornwall Ave.,

Bellingham• Bellingham Technical College Settlemeyer Hall, 3028

Lindberg St., Bellingham• Bellingham Unitarian Fellowship, 1708 I St., Bellingham• Deming Public Library, 5044 Mt. Baker Hwy., Deming• Fairhaven College Auditorium, Western Washington

University• First Congregational Church, 2401 Cornwall Ave.,

Bellingham• Lynden Public Library, 216 4th St., Lynden• Northwest Indian College Log House, 2522 Kwina Rd.,

Bellingham• Pickford Film Center, 1318 Bay St., Bellingham• Sehome High School Library, 2700 Bill McDonald

Pkwy., Bellingham• Whatcom Community College Syre Student Center 105,

237 W. Kellogg Rd., Bellingham

The Bellingham Human Rights Film Festival takes place Thurs., Feb. 20-Sat., March 1. More details can be found at bhrff.webs.com.

STANDING ON SACRED GROUND

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3 Days to Kill: This tepid actioner can only be im-proved by the casting of the always-watchable Kevin Costner, who appears to be having a pretty good time playing a family man who also leads a secret life as an international spy on one last mission. (PG-13 • 1 hr. 40 min.)

About Last Night: And now comes a comedy in which a pair of men try to determine if their newfound relationships are worthy of the long haul. This film is based on a play by my foul-mouthed love David Mamet, which is probably what saves it from wading too deeply into treacly rom-com territory.

(R • 1 hr. 30 min.)

American Hustle: After a rocky start in Hollywood marked by public feuding with his actors, director David O. Russell has hit his stride with films like The Fighter and Silver Linings Playbook. This freewheeling, highly comic story of political scandal, which sees the director team up again with Jennifer Lawrence, nabbed a whopping10 Oscar nods. (R • 2 hrs. 9 min.)

Black Out: On the morning before his wedding, re-tired criminal Jos (Raymond Thiry) wakes up next to a murdered man with no memory of the previous night or how he and the body got there. And so begins a brutally entertaining cinematic romp from director Arne Toonen. (Unrated • 1 hr. 32 min.)

Dallas Buyers Club: As predicted, Matthew Mc-Conaughey scored a richly deserved Academy Award nomination for his (razor-sharp, amazing, insert other hyperbolic superlative here) performance in this film. And if critics’ predictions and awards-season trends can be believed, McConaughey will be making time with a little gold dude come Oscar night. (R • 1 hr. 57 min.)

Endless Love: She’s a woman from a privileged family. He’s from the wrong side of the tracks. And so begins an obsessive love story. (PG-13 • 1 hr. 55 min.)

Frozen: Disney unleashes a brand-new princess on the world. However, this is no passive princess, but a git-’er-done, girl-power heroine who is not to be messed with. Has the House of Mouse finally gotten the memo that women don’t want to be damsels in distress? One can only hope. (PG • 1 hr. 45 min.)

Gloria: Chile’s entry into the Best Foreign Language Film category at this year’s Oscars, this tells the story of a woman “of a certain age” who refuses to go gentle into that good night, and finds hilarious, poignant salvation in living—and loving—to the fullest. (R • 1 hr. 50 min.)

Gravity: The Academy and I don’t always see eye to eye, but we are in total agreement that this was one of the most visionary films of 2013 (due, no doubt, to the impeccable direction of Alfonso Cuaron), and is totally deserving of all 10 of its Oscar nominations. Trust me when I tell you that it must be seen on the biggest screen you can find. (PG-13 • 1 hr. 31 min.)

The Great Beauty: Set in breathtaking Rome, this tells the story of Jep, a man who has lived the life of a dedicated bon vivant since finding success and a certain measure of fame after publishing his one and only novel. But when his 65th birthday and a shock from his past cause him to take stock of his life, his perspective is radically, irrevocably altered. (Unrated • 2 hrs. 22 min.)

Her: I can take or leave Spike Jonze, but his love story between a man (Joaquin Phoenix) and his oper-ating system (voiced by Scarlett Johansson) is win-ning rave reviews from critics and audiences alike. Step aside, Siri. ScarJo has your number. (R • 1 hr. 59 min.)

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug: Not as boring as the first installment, still not as good as The Lord of the Rings franchise. (PG-13 • 2 hrs. 40 min.)

Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit: Tom Clancy’s typi-cally tepid spy franchise gets another harmlessly me-diocre installment, this time with Chris Pine playing a younger version of Jack Ryan, and Kenneth Branagh acting as both villain and director. (PG-13 • 1 hr. 45 min.)

The Lego Movie: I’m not averse to the notion of a movie made about everyone’s favorite interlocking toys. But I do wish the sets had been constructed from actual Legos instead of on a computer. And if there’s not a joke in there somewhere about someone stepping on a Lego and hopping around in great pain, I’m going to be sorely (pun intended) disappointed.

(PG • 1 hr. 40 min.)

Lone Survivor: Peter Berg is never stronger as a director than when he is telling gritty, true-to-life stories (see also: Friday Night Lights). This time he’s tapped the versatile Mark Wahlberg to play a Navy SEAL on a mission to neutralize a Taliban operative—a mission that goes terribly wrong, with dire conse-quences. (R • 2 hrs. 1 min.)

The Monuments Men: I have been waiting to see this George Clooney helmed movie about a WWII pla-toon tasked with retrieving stolen masterpieces from the Nazis for so long and through so many postponed release dates that I’m starting to believe it’s the cinematic equivalent of a unicorn. Either that, or it sucks. While I hope for the former, critics would have you believe the latter. (PG-13 • 1 hr. 53 min.)

Nebraska: Director Alexandar Payne (Sideways, About Schmidt) and a decidedly irascible Bruce Dern team up to make a road-trip movie unlike any you’ve ever seen. Their ultimate destination is Oscar nods for the both of them. (R • 1 hr. 55 min.)

The Nut Job: Despite the title, this is not one of those “adult” films. You know, in case you thought this would be about something other than the animated hijinks of a nut-crazed squirrel. (PG • 1 hr. 26 min.)

Philomena: This year’s Little Movie that Could, this poignant story of adoption, Irish-Catholic op-pression and the search for family earned four Oscar nominations, including a Best Actress nod for the ever-impeccable and eminently watchable Dame Judy Dench. (PG-13 • 1 hr. 38 min.)

Pompeii: Welcome to February, when all of the movies even Hollywood believes to be too pointless to exist are foisted on unsuspecting audiences. (PG-13 • 1 hr. 42 min.)

Ride Along: Until I saw the preview for this movie, and saw Ice Cube standing next to Kevin Hart, I had never realized what a truly tiny man Hart is. That’s probably not the only insight that can be gleaned from this film, but I don’t aim to find out either way.

(PG-13 • 1 hr. 40 min.)

RoboCop: I have a friend whose favorite movie is RoboCop. He’s taken a lot of static for it over the years, but his love remains steadfast. I respect that. Bruce, this one’s for you. (PG-13 • 2 hrs. 1 min.)

That Awkward Moment: That awkward moment when Zac Efron tries to graduate from Disney musi-cals to R-rated comedies. Long live Troy Bolton and his perfect hair. (R • 1 hr. 34 min.)

Vampire Academy: This movie was written by Heathers scribe Daniel Waters and helmed by his brother Mark, director of Mean Girls, and I’m going to focus on that rather than the fact that it’s about (ugh) vampires. (Unrated • 1 hr. 44 min.)

Winter ’s Tale: A burglar (Colin Farrell) falls for an heiress, who dies in his arms. That would be the end for most love stories, but our hero has the gift of reincarnation, which he somehow uses to try and save her. Too bad he can’t use it to go back and save this movie. (PG-13 • 2 hrs. 9 min.)

BY CAREY ROSS

FILM SHORTS

film ›› showing this week

3 DAYS TO KILL

Showtimes Regal and AMC theaters, please see

www.fandango.com.

Pickford Film Center and

PFC’s Limelight Cinema, please see

www.pickfordfilmcenter.com

ANI DIFRANCOPERSIST

PEPERS

COOKING OUTSIDE THE BOX SINCE 1988

Open Nightly Except Monday 1055 N State St B’ham 671-3414

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200MIND & BODY

200MIND & BODY

200MIND & BODY

200MIND & BODY

Glenn Girlando and Laurel

Watjen will co-host an “In-

troduction to Holotropic

Breathwork” clinic from

6:30-9pm Wednesday, Feb.

19 at the Community Food

Co-op, 1220 N. Forest St.

The session includes an in-

troductory talk, a one-hour

guided breathing experience

and plenty of time for ques-

tions. Entry is free. Register

in advance. More info: www.

communityfood.coop

“Take Control of Your

Health: Cancer” will be the

focus of a workshop with

Jim Ehmke, CN, from 6:30-

8:30pm Wednesday, Feb. 19

at the Cordata Community

Food Co-op, 315 Westerly

Rd. Ehmke will talk about a

wide range of cancer pre-

vention and therapeutic

strategies including diet,

herbs and nutrients, chemo,

radiation, and more. Entry

is $5; register in advance.

More info: 734-8158 or www.

communityfood.coop

“Balancing Work and Life for

Optimal Living” will be the

focus of a Women’s health

evening event with Dr. Karen

Wolfe from 5:30-7:30pm

Thurs., Feb. 20 at Mount

Vernon’s McIntyre Hall,

2501 E. College St. Wolfe’s

presentation on work/life

balance is designed to help

participants make conscious

choices to improve all di-

mensions of their health

and well-being. Entry is $19

and includes hors d’oeuvres.

More info: (360) 814-2424 or

(360) 629-6481

Homeopath Carolyn Hal-

lett focuses on “Reversing

Infertility Without Drugs or

Surgery” at a presentation

from 6:30-8pm Thursday,

Feb. 20 at the Community

Food Co-op, 1220 N. Forest

St. Attendees can learn how

infertility is readily reversed

using homeopathy and natu-

ral remedies for hormonal

health. Entry is free. Reg-

ister in advance. More info:

734-8158

Sign up for a “Mardi Gras

Soul Spa Retreat” from

8:30am-5pm Saturday, Feb.

22 at Bellingham’s Center

for Sacred Change, 713 E.

Sunset Dr. Spiritual and ar-

tistic expression, creative

fun, group sharing and soul-

searching will be part of the

day’s activities. Entry is $50.

More info: www.centerfor-

sacredchange.org

Attend the King Mountain

Neighborhood Health Fair

from 10am-3pm Saturday,

Feb. 22 at Bellingham Cov-

enant Church, 1530 E. Bak-

erview Rd. Health care pro-

fessionals will be on hand.

Attendees can visit tables

and displays, gather informa-

tion, ask questions and learn

how they can make improve-

ments to their own health

and well-being. Entry is free.

More info: (360) 627-2901

Free dental care for low-

income kids ages 0-18 will

be available at the annual

“Sealant Day” from 8am-

4pm Saturday, Feb. 22 at the

Interfaith Community Health

Center. Dental exams, seal-

ants, X-rays and Fluoride

varnish will be provided by

volunteer dentists, hygien-

ists and assistants. Call the

number listed here to sched-

ule an appointment. More

info: 714-9010

Collaborative attorney, me-

diator, co-parenting coach

and author Cat J. Zavis be-

gins her tele-class series,

“Keep Your Kids Out of the

Emotional Crossfire,” from

5-6:30pm Tuesday, Feb. 24.

The class continues Mondays

through March 20. Sign up in

advance. More info; www.

parentingwithyourex.com

A Grief Support Group meets

at 7pm every Tuesday at the

St. Luke’s Community Health

Education Center. The free,

drop-in support group is for

those experiencing the recent

death of a friend or loved one.

More info: 733-5877

Learn about Emotional Free-

dom Techniques (EFT) at a

variety of workshops. The

ongoing series meets on the

second Sunday of the month

at the Mount Vernon Center

for Spiritual Living and from

1-5pm on the fourth Sunday

at the Bellingham Center for

Spiritual Living, 2224 Yew

Street Rd. More info: www.

eftsettings.com

Co-Dependents Anonymous

meets from 7-8:30pm every

Monday at PeaceHealth St.

Joseph’s South Campus, 809

E. Chestnut St. Entry is by do-

nation. More info: 676-8588

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PICKFORD FILM CENTER: 1318 Bay St. | 360.738.0735 | www.pickfordfilmcenter.org

Box Office is Open 30 Minutes Prior to F irst Showtime

Join us for a drink! Mary’s Happy Hour: 4-6pm, M-F $2.50 Beer/$3.50 Wine

NOW SHOWING Feb 21 - 27at PFC’s Limelight Cinema1416 Cornwall AvenueParentheses ( ) Denote Bargain Pricing

GLORIA (R) 110m “By the end, we dance with her, living

in the moment as she does, not looking ahead to life’s

next turn.” - Seattle Times

Fri: (3:45), 6:30; Sat: 3:45, 6:00; Sun: (2:45), 5:30

Mon: (3:45), 9:00; Tue: (3:45), 8:30

Wed: (3:45), 6:30, 9:00; Thu: (3:45), 9:00

PHILOMENA (PG-13) 98m - OSCAR NOM

Fri: (4:00); Sat: 3:30; Sun: (3:00)

Mon: (4:00); Tue: (3:30); Wed & Thu: (4:00)

BLACK OUT (NR) 92m

“Packed with colorful characters and gnarly plot twist...

a stylish, bloody romp.” Oregonian

Fri & Sat: 9:20; Sun: 8:25

THE GREAT BEAUTY (NR) 142m

“A shimmering coup de cinema to make your heart

burst, your mind swim and your soul roar.” The Telegraph

Fri & Sat: 6:15; Sun: 5:15; Mon - Thu: 6:15

DALLAS BUYERS CLUB (R) 117m - OSCAR NOMINEE

Fri: 9:00; Sat: (1:10), 8:30; Sun: (12:00), 8:00

Mon - Thu: 9:20

HUMAN RIGHTS FILM FESTIVAL: HOT WATER 80m

Sat: Noon - Free admission!

ZATOICHI AND THE CHESS EXPERT 87m

Sat: (11:00AM) - A mysterious new character joins...

MY NEIGHBOR TOTORO (G) 86m

Sun: 12:45 - Encore Screening, in Japanese w/ subtitles

THE FORGOTTEN KINGDOM (NR) 96m

Mon: 6:30 - with Director via Skype!

ALIEN BOY: THE LIFE AND DEATH OF JAMES CHASSE 96m

Tue: 6:00 - Director in attendance!

THE MALTESE FALCON (1941) 100m

Thu: 6:30 - Acme Noir Series kick-off!

HER (R) 126m - OSCAR NOMINEE

“This is a handcrafted, passionate and sometimes

impossibly beautiful film that argues for both the past

and the future, with a poetic spirit that’s extremely rare

in American cinema.” Salon

Fri: 6:15, 9:00; Sat: (12:45), 6:15, 9:00

Sun: (11:45AM), 5:15, 8:00; Mon - Thu: 6:15, 9:00

NEBRASKA (R) 115m - OSCAR NOMINEE

“A pitch-perfect performance from Dern

graces Alexander Payne’s latest roadmovie –

another bittersweet meditation on the sad,

comic futility of life.” Total Film

Fri: (3:30); Sat: 3:30; Sun: (2:30)

Mon - Thu: (3:30)

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Special program for:Teachers, Police, Medical Personnel,

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To Register or for more info about the National program go to: www.HomesForHeroes.com.

Or to contact your Local Heroes agent, call Doug Nesbit, Windermere Realty 733-3684 / [email protected]

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rearEnd ›› “We’ve Got Clout”—yes, that’s right, out.

Across1 ___ fly (baseball

play)4 Junkies11 Took a chair14 Elec. text-read-

ing method (hid-den in SOCRATES)

15 Store that sells golf balls

16 One of the five W’s

17 Where to hold

your hands while guiding a horse?

20 Muppet friend of Rosie

21 ___ buco (Italian veal dish)

22 Actress Meg or Jennifer

23 Slumber25 Nintendo prin-

cess26 Acted like the

“Supermassive

Black Hole” band?32 Cray or pay ender33 Jai alai balls34 “All in favor”

word37 Treater’s pickup38 Make trivial

objections39 Actor Chaney40 AARP group41 Laugh-worthy43 Big klutz44 “I couldn’t be

there--I had to sell my steam press” and others?

46 “Funeral Blues” poet W.H. ___

50 Volks ender51 Play a mean

guitar52 Put your hands

together56 Word before mail

or monger57 Shaw or Lange,

no faking?60 Sweeping under

site61 Deal incentives62 Paddle’s cousin63 Startled sounds64 Fortitude65 Abbr. in an apt.

classifiedDown1 Sensitive areas2 Lacking the basic

structure of life3 “Law & Order”

settings4 Bee-related prefix5 007’s first film foe6 Four-footed furry

friends7 AOL and NetZero,

for two8 Jimmy of shoes

9 How-___10 Canines with

puffy tails11 Sty food12 “Get ___ of

yourself!”13 Harding who

made headlines in 1994

18 Gallagher who didn’t smash melons

19 0-0, say24 High school as-

sembly goal27 Designer’s con-

cern28 Davy Crockett

died defending it, with “the”

29 “___ On Up” (“The Jeffersons” theme)

30 New York State Thruway city

31 Course with let-tuce

34 Everglades critter35 Really ramped-

up response to “Ready?”

36 Electrical ___41 Grate remainder42 Murphy has one45 “If I Only Had

the Nerve” singer Bert

46 “The Jetsons” dog

47 “I’m listening”48 Barrel scrapings49 Mental picture?52 Largest island on

the Caribbean53 “The Grey” star

Neeson54 Prefix with mat-

ter55 Ball-___ hammer58 Drift boat at-

tachment59 “My Life ___

Dog” (1985 film)

©2014 Jonesin’ Crosswords (editor@jonesin crosswords.com)

Last Week’s Puzzle

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BY ROB BREZSNY

FREE WILL ASTROLOGYARIES (March 21-April 19): A woman from New Mexico wrote to tell me that after reading my horo-scopes for three years in the Santa Fe Reporter, she had decided to stop. “I changed my beliefs,” she said. “I no longer resonate with your philosophy.” On the one hand, I was sad that I had lost a reader. On the other hand, I admired her for being able to transform her beliefs, and also for taking practi-cal action to enforce her shift in perspective. That’s the kind of purposeful metamorphosis I recommend for you, Aries. What ideas are you ready to shed? What theories no longer explain the nature of life to your satisfaction? Be ruthless in cutting away the thoughts that no longer work for you.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): In Arthurian legend, Camelot was the castle where King Arthur held court and ruled his kingdom. It housed the Round Table, where Arthur’s knights congregated for important events. Until recently, I had always imagined that the table was rela-tively small and the number of knights few. But then I discovered that several old stories say there was enough room for 150 knights. It wasn’t an exclusive, elitist group. I suspect you will experience a similar evolution, Taurus. You may be wishing you could become part of a certain circle, but assume it’s too exclusive or selective to welcome you as a member. I suspect it’s more recep-tive and inclusive than you think.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): The renowned Lakota medicine man Sitting Bull (1831-1890) wasn’t born with that name. For the first years of his life he was known as Jumping Badger. His father renamed him when he was a teenager after he demonstrated excep-tional courage in battle. I’d like to see you consider a similar transition in the coming months, Gemini. You’re due to add some gravitas to your approach. The tides of destiny are calling you to move more deliber-ately and take greater care with the details. Are you willing to experiment with being solid and stable? The more willing you are to assume added responsibility, the more interesting that responsibility is likely to be.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): The English noun “offing” refers to the farthest reach of the ocean that is still visible as you stand on the beach. It’s a good symbol for something that is at a distance from you and yet still within view. I suggest that you take a long, thoughtful look at the metaphorical offing that’s visible from where you stand. You’ll be wise to identify what’s looming for you in the future so you can start working to ensure you will get the best possible ver-sion of it.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): A large plaster Buddha statue was housed at a modest temple in Bangkok, Thailand from 1935 to 1955. No one knew its age or origins. In May of 1955, workers were struggling to move the heavy 10-foot icon to a new building on the temple grounds when it accidentally broke free of the ropes that secured it. As it hit the ground, a chunk of plaster fell off, revealing a sheen of gold beneath. Religious leaders authorized the removal of the remaining plaster surface. Hidden inside was a solid gold Buddha that is today worth $250 mil-lion dollars. Research later revealed that the plaster had been applied by 18th-century monks to prevent the statue from being looted. I foresee a compara-ble sequence unfolding in the coming weeks for you, Leo. What will it take to free a valuable resource that’s concealed within a cheap veneer?

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Holistic health teacher Deepak Chopra suggests that we all periodically make this statement: “Every decision I make is a choice between a grievance and a miracle. I relinquish all regrets, grievances, and resentments, and choose the

miracle.” Is that too New Age for you, Virgo? I hope you can drop any prejudices you might have about it and simply make it your own. It’s the precise formula you need to spin this week’s events in the right direc-tion—working for you rather than against you.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): In the savannas of Africa, waterholes are crucial for life. During the rainy season, there are enough to go around for every animal species to drink and bathe in com-fortably. But the dry season shrinks the size and number of the waterholes. The impala may have to share with the hippopotamus, the giraffe with the warthog. Let’s use this as a metaphor to speculate about your future. I’m guessing that the dry season will soon be arriving in your part of the world. The waterholes may dwindle. But that could ultimately prove to be a lucky development, because it will bring you into contact with interesting life forms you might not have otherwise met. Unexpected new alliances could emerge.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): In his book The Storytelling Animal: How Stories Make Us Human, literary scholar Jonathan Gottschall muses on the crucial role that imagination plays in our lives. “[The] average daydream is about 14 seconds long and [we] have about two thousand of them per day,” he says. “In other words, we spend about half of our waking hours—one-third of our lives on earth—spinning fantasies.” I bring this to your at-tention, Scorpio, because you are entering a phase when your daydreams can serve you well. They’re more likely than usual to be creative, productive, and useful. Monitor them closely.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): The Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovich wrote his Eighth Sym-phony in a mere two months during the summer of 1943. He worked on it in an old henhouse on a former chicken farm. The location helped relax him, allowing him to work with extra intensity. I wish you could find a retreat like that for yourself sometime soon, Sagittarius. I think you would benefit from going off by yourself to a sanctuary and having some nice long talks with your ancestors, the spirits of nature, and your deepest self. If that’s not practical right now, what would be the next best thing you could do?

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Is there one sim-ple thing you could do to bring a bit more freedom into your life? An elegant rebellion against an oppressive circumstance? A flash of unpredictable behavior that would help you escape a puzzling compromise? I’m not talking about a huge, dramatic move that would com-pletely sever you from all of your burdens and limita-tions. I’m imagining a small step you could take to get a taste of spaciousness and a hint of greater fluidity. That’s your assignment in the coming week.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): There are 15,074 lakes in Wisconsin, but more than 9,000 of them have never been officially named. That’s strange to me. In my view, everything is worthy of the love that is bestowed by giving it a name. I have named every tree and bush in my yard, as well as each egret that frequents the creek flowing by my house. I understand that at the Findhorn community in northern Scotland, people even give names to their cars and toasters and washing machines. According to researchers in the UK, cows that have names are happier: They produce more milk. Your assignment, Aquarius, is to name at least some of the unnamed things in your world. It’s an excellent time to cultivate a closer, warmer per-sonal relationship with absolutely everything.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): From 2010-2012, Eric Garcetti worked as an actor on the TV cop shows The Closer and its spin-off series Major Crimes. He played the mayor of Los Angeles. Then in 2013, he ran for the office of L.A.’s mayor in real life, and won. It was a spectacular example of Kurt Vonne-gut’s suggestion that we tend to become what we pretend to be. Your assignment Pisces, is to make good use of this principle. I invite you to experi-ment with pretending to be the person you would like to turn into.

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BY AMY ALKON

THE ADVICE GODDESSPAMPER-RESISTANT After six years with a lazy and ambitionless boyfriend, I found a funny, loyal, caring boyfriend I love, with a solid career and a good work ethic. He pays his share of our bills and even does our laundry! The prob-lem is, at 28, he is SO incredibly spoiled by his parents. They are well-off and pay for his car insurance, randomly deposit $200 in his bank account (about once monthly), and even bought him new snow tires! He has made headway on small issues I’ve brought up, like cooking more than bachelor-type foods and playing video games less, but he says, “I’m not calling my parents and de-manding they stop paying for my insurance, if that’s something they want to do.” Well, I can’t feel we’re in a marriage-potential re-lationship while he isn’t fully self-sufficient. I worry that we’ll have kids and he’ll still be getting assistance from mommy and daddy. As an independent person who pays all her own bills, I want my man to do the same and to want to be independent from his parents, as well.

—Mama’s Boy’s Girlfriend

I get where you’re coming from. When I was in my late teens, I was hot to be completely independent from my parents. Now that I’m in my late 40s, I wish my parents would get high on LSD and start paying my bills.

Just because your boyfriend’s par-ents give him cash and snow tires (and don’t even make him do tricks like a seal for every penny) doesn’t mean he’s spoiled. Pediatrician Bruce J. McIntosh, who coined the term “spoiled child syndrome,” explains that what makes a kid “spoiled”—sets him on a path to becoming a nasty and irresponsible adult brat—is not parental indulgence but parental overindulgence, meaning parents’ failure to set clear limits and expectations. McIntosh writes in the journal Pediatrics that overindulgent parents attempt “to meet the child’s complex developmental needs with material gifts and uncritical accep-tance while failing to provide essential guidelines for acceptable behavior.” Their spoiled kids grow up into spoiled adults—self-absorbed manipulators who lack consideration for others, have difficulty delaying gratification, and throw tantrums to get their way—not the guy you describe: loyal, lov-ing, and laundry-doing, with a good work ethic, and now compliantly ex-panding his culinary horizons beyond frozen pizza, Hot Pockets, and pasta

that comes with a packet of crack-like powdered “cheese.”

The fact that his parents pay for his car insurance is unlikely to cause a good guy, apparently raised with ap-propriate boundaries, to snap—to start banging his boss over the head with his G.I. Joe to try to get a better parking space. What his parents are doing ac-tually seems smart: giving him his in-heritance while they’re still around to see him enjoying it. Your asking him to demand they stop is like asking him to walk past a $20 bill he spots on the sidewalk just because he didn’t earn it. Also, because kids and unforeseen ex-penses go together like peanut butter and anaphylactic shock, consider that having generous in-laws wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world. (Kids say the darndest things: “Mommy, I might need the doctor to find my Lego again” and “I wanna go to grad school!”)

You might also consider why you’re so determined to swat the money fairy with a rolled-up newspaper. Unfortu-nately, we humans have a self-image-protecting need to justify our thinking as right, so once we’ve decided The Way Things Are, we tend to lock up our minds and refuse to let in any oppos-ing viewpoints to argue their case. One possible way to remedy this is to start from the premise that you’re human and therefore fallible. It also helps to consider whether your reasoning on a particular issue would more accurately be described as “emotioning.” For ex-ample, could you be acting out of envy that your boyfriend has had advantag-es you haven’t? Is it possible you have a fear hangover from your relationship with the slacker who started every day by getting a head start on napping?

Ultimately, the fairest, most sensi-ble way to assess whether you have anything to worry about is to coolly examine the evidence. In the words of F. Scott Fitzgerald, “Action is charac-ter.” Look at the kind of guy your boy-friend has shown himself to be, and then project that guy into scenarios in your future together. If you can just crank down the dimmer switch on your emotions, I suspect you’ll find your way to a conclusion along these lines: that this loyal, loving, hardworking guy will continue to be all of those things and that you can rest assured that his plan for paying the kiddies’ private-school tuition won’t involve a truckload of lottery scratchers or a ski mask and a shotgun.

©2014, Amy Alkon, all rights reserved.Got a problem? Write Amy Alkon, 171 Pier Ave, #280, Santa Monica, CA 90405, or e-mail [email protected] (advice goddess.com).

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cheap. When we could, we’d also secure ahi tuna and eat it either raw (in the form of poke) or lightly seared.

A few of the most memorable menu items from the vacation include giant hamburgers we cooked over ironwood embers, the aforemen-tioned fish delicacies, hand-picked coconuts, fresh-from-the-lava-cave limpets served in lime juice, egg-based Dutch babies with a banana compote, savory buns and SPAM musubi sourced from a nearby 7-11, and, for breakfast on Su-perbowl Sunday (which also happened to be Groundhogs Day and the birthday of one of the vacationers), my annual serving of Loco Moco.

Since first sampling what is often called “Ha-waii’s original homemade fast food” a few years ago, I’ve made it a point to order Loco Moco for breakfast at least once during the trip. At first, I was merely curious about what a monstrous

BY AMY KEPFERLE

Loco MocoTHE FAST FOOD OF PARADISE

P aradise makes me hungry. I rediscovered this fact recently during what has become an

annual sojourn to the Big Island of Hawaii. During the past two weeks—when I wasn’t swimming with the fishes, gazing intently at the ocean hoping to see humpback whales spout and breach, voraciously reading or waiting for cocktail hour to kick in—my vacation-mates and I spent a whole lot of time discussing what we’d have for our next meal.

Because we stay in a house about an hour away from Hilo that’s off the grid and about 30 minutes from the nearest grocery store, it’s im-portant to plan at least some of the meals in advance. In addition to the rafters of vodka and passion, orange and guava juice that we kept well-stocked, we also made sure to have plenty of staples on hand, as well—such as rice, coffee, eggs, tortilla chips, various dairy products, salsa, and some sort of meat.

Nearby farmers markets also ensured our larder and small fridge were stuffed full of fresh fruit and greens. Sweet starfruit, spiky red ramadans, juicy papayas, avocados the size of grapefruits, limes and lemons, bananas, kale, green and sweet onions, tomatoes, cabbage, oranges and green beans were available in abundance—and on the

LOCO MOCO—From www.bigislandgrinds.com

INGREDIENTS1 pound hamburger (not lean)

¼ cup grated onions (optional)

salt/pepper to taste

1 can good beef broth

flour for thickening

1 tbsp butter

couple dashes of Worcestershire sauce

4 eggs

hot cooked white rice

DIRECTIONS: Gently mix the hamburger, grat-

ed onions and salt/pepper. Form either two big

patties or four smaller-size patties. Heat frying

pan until very hot. Place hamburger patties on

the pan/grill and let sear just until juices start

appearing on the top. Flip over and cook for a

couple more minutes. You will want the burger

slightly charred but still tender on the inside.

Place burgers on the side.

For the gravy, pour a little broth into the

same pan and incorporate the yum-yums, then

pour in the rest of the broth. Bring to a boil

and let reduce for about 3-5 minutes or so,

depending on taste, for a more potent gravy.

Turn down heat to a simmer. Add a couple

dashes of worcestershire sauce.

In a separate bowl, mix flour with some wa-

ter. Using a whisk, slowly whisk in the flour/

water mixture until gravy is nicely thick and

smooth. Turn off heat and mix in the butter

until well blended.

Traditionally, the eggs should be sunny-

side up. The secret to a good fried egg is

to fry the egg slowly on low heat until it’s

cooked—just don’t overcook it! It also helps

to have the eggs thawed to room temperature

before cooking them. Use regular medium

grain white rice, approximately three scoops

worth per plate, and top it with the burger,

the egg, and gravy all over.

recipe

mound of white rice topped with a hamburger patty, a sunny-side-up egg or two, and smoth-ered in gravy would look like. Then I tasted it, and I was hooked.

Local lore says the dish was created in the mid-1950s in Hilo—either at the Cafe 100, which still cranks out about 9,000 of them ev-ery month, or at the Lincoln Grill—for teen-agers who wanted something different than American sandwiches or Asian food. The story goes that the nickname of the first boy to eat the crazy concoction was “loco,” and that “moco” was added because, well, it rhymed.

Although the meal is served for breakfast, lunch and dinner in Hawaii, I prefer to eat it—and the inevitable leftovers—for my morning meal. In fact, for my next brunch gathering, I plan to recreate the dish to see if its comfort food capabilities transfer from paradise to the mainland. You can, too.

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WED., FEB. 19CITY CHICKENS: If you’re thinking about getting hens—and the delicious eggs they provide—urban farmer Lisa Zielinski will lead a “City Chickens” presentation at 6:30pm at Mount Vernon’s Skagit Valley Food Co-op, 202 S. First St. Register in advance for the free workshop.

WWW.SKAGITFOODCOOP.COM

THURS., FEB. 20 INDIAN, VEGETARIAN: Trinidad native Sarah Chan leads an “East Indian, West Indian Vegetarian” course from 6-9pm at the Cordata Community Food Co-op, 315 Westerly Rd. Entry is $35.

383-3200

RAISING MEAT RABBITS: Huxley College graduate Robert Fiut focuses on “Raising Meat Rabbits” at a workshop at 6:30pm in Mount Vernon at the Skagit Valley Food Co-op, 202 S. First St. The class will focus on the New Zealand white rabbit, which is close to being the ideal animal to raise to increase your personal and family food security. Entry is free. Register in advance.

WWW.SKAGITFOODCOOP.COM

SAT., FEB. 22PANCAKE BREAKFAST: Attend a monthly fundraising Community Pancake Breakfast from 8-10:30am at the Lynden Community Center, 401 Grover St. Pancakes, French toast, eggs, sausage, juice and coffee will be on the menu. Entry is $3 for kids and $5 for adults.

354-4501

BRUNCH CLUB: Cooking school coordinator Laura Hartner leads a “Brunch Club” course in Mount Vernon at 9:30am at Gretchen’s Kitchen, 501 S. First St. Fresh ricotta blintzes with berry sauce and candied bacon will be on the menu. Entry is $25, and includes coffee, tea and a mimosa.

WWW.GRETCHENSKITCHEN.COM

COMMUNITY MEAL: Pasta, mixed veggies, green salad, garlic bread and ice cream sundaes will be on the menu at the free bimonthly Community Mea from 10am-12pm at the United Church of Ferndale, 2034 Washington St. All are welcome.

714-9029

WA BEER OPEN HOUSE: The Kulshan Brewery, Chuckanut Brewery, and Boundary Bay Brewery will take part in the WA Beer Open House from 12-5pm at their respective hop-based headquarters. Expect samples, food pairings, and more.

WWW.WASHINGTONBEER.COM

MON., FEB. 24KNIFE SKILLS #1: Mataio Gillis leads a “Knife Skills” course at 5:30pm at Ciao Thyme, 207 Unity St. Beginners will learn fundamental skills, including safety, knife mechanics and maintenance, and classical cutting techniques. Entry is $48.

WWW.CIAOTHYME.COM

KNIFE SKILLS #2: Seattle-based sharpening master Albert Edmonds and Chef Andy Nguyen will focus on “Knife Skills” at a hands-on class starting at 6:30pm in Mount Vernon at Gretchen’s Kitchen, 501 S. First St. Among other things, students will learn the proper way to sharpen, care, and use these essential tools of the kitchen. Entry is $40 and in-

cludes a communal meal. WWW.GRETCHENSKITCHEN.COM

TUES., FEB. 25MEXICAN KITCHEN: Ana Jackson leads “The Mexican Kitchen: Slow-Cooking Fiesta” from 6-9pm at the Cordata Community Food Co-op, 315 Westerly Rd. Puerco verde, traditional Mexi-can barbacoa and more will be on the roster. Entry is $39.

383-3200

WED., FEB. 26MARDI GRAS FLAVORS: Chef Jesse Otero pays tribute to New Orleans at a “Flavors of Mardi Gras” class from 6-8:30pm at the Cordata Com-munity Food Co-op, 315 Westerly Rd. Entry is $39, plus an optional $7 for wine.

383-3200

CURRY PLATES: Chef Mary Ellen Carter focuses on “Flavorful Southeast Asian Curry Pastes” at a 6:30pm class in Mount Vernon at Gretchen’s Kitchen, 501 S. First St. Chef Carter will also teach students how to balance vibrant herbs and spices to to brighten the flavors of winter veggies, soups and stews. Cost is $40.

WWW.GRETCHENSKITCHEN.COM

THURS., FEB. 27INCOGNITO: Reserve a seat for the monthly dinner series known as Incognito, which begins at 6pm at Ciao Thyme, 207 Unity St. The six-course-or-more meal features seasonal surprises, and gives diners the opportunity to meet and converse with a variety of people. Entry is $65 per person, and beer and wine will be available for an additional price.

WWW.CIAOTHYME.COM

BACKYARD BEANS: “Growing Your Own Back-yard Beans and Grains” will be the focus at a class with Krista Rome from 6:30-8:30pm at the Cordata Community Co-op, 315 Westerly Rd. Va-riety selection, planting, maintenance, harvest, threshing, storage, and cooking methods will be discussed. Entry is $5.

734-8158 OR WWW.COMMUNITYFOOD.COOP

TASTES OF PERU: Chef Robert Fong leads a “Tastes of Peru” primer from 6:30-9pm at the Community Food Co-op, 1220 N. Forest St. Entry is $39; an $8 wine option is payable at class.

383-3200

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