Good life february 2014

SCARED SPITLESS ON STAGE Y EVENTS CALENDAR

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Contents

Features

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LACROSSE LOVE

An old sport comes back to Steve Tidd

12 staging a concern in the living room

Why go to a smelly, impersonal concert venue when you can invite a band to play to 50 people in your own living room?

14 happy to be singing the blues

Larry Cramer may have been a slow learner, but he finally figured out that life may not wait on his plans

16 finding friends in misawa

Japanese city has aerial connection with Wenatchee, and a deeply personal bond, too

19 2 travelers, 2 countries, 2 objectives Doing good while exploring wonder-filled Nepal and Bhutan

22 SISTERS ON THE FLY

These women go the distance to have more fun

24 mountain lodge

Trees were logged and milled on site, the owner pitched in and the contractor was happy to do the heavy lifting

ART SKETCHES

n Potter Ruth Allan, page 34 n Church music director Wilson Alvarez, page 38

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can a landscape photographer shoot fast-moving wildlife?

Columns & Departments 28 Pet Tales: Taking sheep for a walk 29 Bonnie Orr: Anne’s dumplings are delightful 30 June Darling: Have compassion for yourself 32 The traveling doctor: The human genome 34-39 Arts & Entertainment & a Dan McConnell cartoon 37 The night sky: 7 lovely daughters shine brightly 40 History: The strange and weird puzzled settlers 42 Alex Saliby: Exciting new spring releases coming

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OPENING SHOT

®

Year 8, Number 2 February 2014 The Good Life is published by NCW Good Life, LLC, dba The Good Life 10 First Street, Suite 108 Wenatchee, WA 98801 PHONE: (509) 888-6527 EMAIL: editor@ncwgoodlife.com

sales@ncwgoodlife.com ONLINE: www.ncwgoodlife.com FACEBOOK: facebook.com/pages/ The-Good-Life Editor/Publisher, Mike Cassidy Contributors, Robert DeTorres, Steve Tidd, Peter Bauer, Jamie Howell, Larry Cramer, Zach Davies, David L. Weber, Sr, Susan Weber, Yvette Davis, Donna Cassidy, Bonnie Orr, Alex Saliby, Jim Brown, June Darling, Dan McConnell, Susan Lagsdin, Peter Lind and Rod Molzahn Advertising manager, Terry Smith Advertising sales, Lianne Taylor and Donna Cassidy Bookkeeping and circulation, Donna Cassidy Ad design, Rick Conant TO SUBSCRIBE: For $25, ($30 out of state address) you can have 12 issues of The Good Life mailed to you or a friend. Send payment to: The Good Life 10 First Street, Suite 108 Wenatchee, WA 98801 Phone 888-6527 Online: www.ncwgoodlife.com To subscribe/renew by email, send credit card info to: donna@ncwgoodlife.com BUY A COPY of The Good Life at Hastings, Caffé Mela, Walgreens (Wenatchee and East Wenatchee), the Wenatchee Food Pavilion, Mike’s Meats at Pybus, Martin’s Market Place (Cashmere) and A Book for All Seasons (Leavenworth)

little house on the plateau Robert DeTorres is a mem-

ber of the Photography Association of Wenatchee, where this photo was recently posted.

Here is what he said about it: I moved from the desert southwest — Yuma, Arizona specifically — about seven years ago. I was just amazed at the variety of Washington’s scenery, from high desert to forest in less than an hour.

My interest in photography started back in fifth grade because my geography teacher would use National Geographic magazines to teach us about the world. I was amazed at the photography!

He actually loaned me one of his cameras, taught me how to use it and was able to get the school’s permission to turn a janitor’s storage room into a darkroom.

I would spend hours and hours in darkrooms throughout my life working mostly in black and white.

Fast forward quite a few years

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and a move to this highly photogenic state. I enjoy exploring the area and its history, especially the old buildings in and around Waterville.

I have taken quite a few photos of this house but until recently had been unable to capture what I was seeing.

I had treated myself to an early Christmas present, a Fujifilm X-S1 that pretty much stays with me all the time.

Doing home health physical therapy gave me the opportunity to be in Waterville a couple times a week and I was finally able to capture the image in early December that I was looking for.

It has been processed in Adobe Lightroom to match the image I had in my mind.

On the cover

The Good Life editor Mike Cassidy took this photo of Steve Tidd a few moments before Steve took to the indoor field at the Wenatchee Sportsplex for a Lacrosse game.

WRITE FOR THE GOOD LIFE: We welcome articles about people from Chelan and Douglas counties.

Send your idea to Mike Cassidy at editor@ncwgoodlife.com

Copyright 2014

by NCW Good Life, LLC.

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editor’s notes

MIKE CASSIDY

Don’t despire and put that gun down I came in through the back

door last night, and holding high a bag of groceries, announced: “The mighty hunter has returned!”

I was hoping for a laugh — or even a mild smile — but what I got instead from my wife engrossed in TV news was a “Shhhhh!”

Deflated, and honestly, a bit concerned because we usually watch TV news only on times of high drama, I circled into the living room to catch sight of what was on. A Seattle news anchor was reporting a Puget Sound man so savagely beat and bit his girlfriend’s eight-week old baby that the child was not expected to survive.

And there lies the challenge facing The Good Life.

Humans are hard-wired to focus on bad news.

This tendency probably started with our ancestors — and for good reason. Imagine this conversation: “Oh sweetie, you ought to see what Og and Ogette did to their cave.”

“LOOK OUT FOR THAT SABER-TOOTHED TIGER BEHIND YOU!” The cave people who paid the most attention to the second sentence were more likely to live and pass down their genes and wisdom to future generations.

But maybe, also there lies hope for The Good Life’s success.

Earlier in the day, I was visiting with a business friend in a local coffeehouse about plans we have for expanding our social media presence, but wondered if we could draw online visitors.

“We are not hard news,” I

said, “we don’t have a police blotter, government reports, a world round-up.”

“That’s your advantage,” said the friend. “Anyone who watches TV news or reads a newspaper website for an hour feels like putting a gun to his face.”

I laughed.

There’s news we all need to know to be good stewards of our lives… but breathless reports on across-the-mountains manbites-baby stories do nothing to improve my ability to function in this society. In fact, they make me want to hunker down at the end of a dirt road up a canyon on the other side of a “Trespassers will be shot!” sign.

Here, at The Good Life, we seek stories that might actually enlarge your life.

I like stories when readers finish, they will say, “We could do something like that!”

The “that” might be to return to a fun sport, as Steve Tidd describes in this issue, or host a concert in your home that Jamie Howell tells of, or challenge yourself to complete a bucket list item as Larry Cramer did, or travel half way around the world to help and meet a delightful people as David and Susan Weber did, or embark on any of the other half dozen adventures shared in this issue.

Our stories are not designed to scare the bejesus out of you, but they might brighten your world.

To us, that’s a worthy destination to strive for.

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Don’t despair, be safe — enjoy The Good Life.

— Mike February 2014 | The Good Life

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fun stuff to do suggestions from the wenatchee valley chamber of commerce This event is produced by Leavenworth Winter Sports Club.

skiing, wine, mad dribbling — February has variety

Red Wine and Chocolate weekends happening throughout Washington and Wenatchee is definitely IN, happening here the weekend of Feb. 14-17, which encompasses President’s Weekend.

For $30 per person each participant will receive a souvenir glass, passport and waived tasting fees in Wenatchee Wine Country.

An interesting note in considering this activity over the holiday weekend might be all of the recent accolades local wines are receiving for competitions throughout the Pacific Northwest most recently the San Francisco Chronicle wine competition.

Proceeds from this event will go to the Apple Valley Chapter of the American Red Cross. This is so over-the-top good for your heart. Red wine? Chocolate? The Red Cross?

F

ebruary… finally.

Also known as American Heart Month, National Cherry Month, National Children’s Dental Health Month and Creative Romance Month. Or, February might be more known to you as Canned Food Month, Black History Month or National Grapefruit Month.

Locally we will be keeping a close eye on Ground Hog Day given this rather light snow year.

But, snow events are still in the picture along with wine, music, comedy and sports.

Hog Loppet which is a noncompetitive 30k Nordic ski adventure from the top of Mission Ridge Ski Area to Blewett Pass, is scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 22.

The adventure begins in the Lodge at Mission Ridge during registration starting at 7 a.m. as the capacity crowd gathers and the anticipation of what lies ahead starts to set in.

Skiers then load the chair lifts headed toward the summit at 6,734-foot elevation. Then with some groomed and some ungroomed areas covering a total of 19.9 miles — including three aid stations complete with warm fires, soup and snacks — memories are made.

Skiing the Hop Loppet — almost 20 miles of some groomed and some ungroomed trails — Feb. 22.

The Harlem Globetrotters bounce into the Town Toyota Center on Feb. 19.

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Need a good laugh about now? Put your trust in the pros.

The Harlem Globetrotters are back at the Town Toyota Center on Wednesday the 19th at 7 p.m. as part of their 2014 “Fans Rule” World Tour.

With players’ names like “TNT,” “Too Tall,” “Special K” and “Firefly” how can you go wrong?

Mad dribbling skills combined with backboard shattering dunks these pros bring laughs and great family entertainment to our little town. Tickets are available at Town Toyota Center.

— Compiled by Jerri Barkley Wenatchee Valley Chamber of Commerce

Lacrosse: An old love comes calling THE camaraderie generated by being able to fist-bump and high-five teammates IS exhilarating

By Steve Tidd

I feel fortunate that the sport

of lacrosse has seemingly always sought me out and gotten me involved with it.

I helped to start the first lacrosse team at Whitman College in 1980 by selling raffle tickets for a beer keg in order to buy equipment. I watched my son Connor, playing for the Wenatchee Valley Lacrosse Club in 2010, compete in a state semifinal playoff game here in Wenatchee in front of over 300 fans.

And I got to watch my daughter Tawnee make club history in 2013 for the women, by winning their first playoff game ever. My son Logan is now a high school junior and I am looking forward to watching him play lacrosse in the spring.

Lacrosse is a genuine North American sport that has its origins in a tribal game played

by Native Indians in what is now Canada.

It requires a lot of running and the hand-eye coordination to

Lacrosse players at the Wenatchee Sportsplex try to toss a hard rubber ball into the goal using a stick with a net at the end — all the while protecting their heads with full helmets.

catch and throw a hard rubber ball with a net on the end of a stick. It is a fast and exciting game to watch, where the ball is constantly moving, and all of the players on the field are immersed in the quick style of the game.

So when I heard that Canadian native Bruce Hale was starting an indoor league at the Sportsplex in Wenatchee to play box lacrosse, I was once again drawn in.

We are now in our winter sesson of league play and the result has far exceeded my expectations.

I have had the opportunity to play lacrosse with my buddy Steve Dorsey for the first time,

February 2014 | The Good Life

although we have been friends for over 42 years. And I was thrilled to play with Connor when he was home from college over the Thanksgiving holiday.

Box lacrosse is a Canadian derivation of lacrosse, played indoors on a hockey rink, with artificial turf stretched over the playing surface. It involves more stick skill than field lacrosse because the field is smaller, which requires a quicker reaction time, and because the ball is kept in play by the sideboards of the hockey rink.

Goals are also smaller, similar to hockey goals instead of the large six-foot by six-foot goals used in field lacrosse. And since our version is noncontact, the

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equipment required is simpler.

Players need only a helmet, gloves and a stick.

In our league, teams are chosen for each game by throwing lacrosse sticks into a pile, and then dividing them into two groups. There are five players on a side, some who have played before, in high school or in college, and some who are brand new to the sport.

We play three 15-minute periods, like in hockey, which is plenty for all the running that is required up and down the turf.

Fortunately, there are also running substitutions similar to hockey, where players can simply climb over the sideboards

}}} Continued on next page

Lacrosse: An old love comes calling }}} Continued from previous page and onto the playing field to spell another tired player.

One of the greatest benefits though, is getting to pull a lacrosse helmet on again.

Imagine losing your favorite slippers or sweater, and upon finding them, feeling the relief

of putting them back on. It is a similar feeling to put on a lacrosse helmet, and being given the opportunity to play lacrosse once again.

The cost of lacrosse registration fees: $120.

The thrill of making a good catch… the excitement of dodging a defensive player while carrying the ball... the adrenaline rush of shooting the ball as hard as you can… the satisfaction of seeing the net ripple when the ball hits the back of the net... priceless!

By seeking me out once more,

box lacrosse has provided me the opportunity to delve back into my past, and revive skills I never thought I would use again.

I have had the chance to test those skills side-by-side with my son, while the rest of my family, watching from the sidelines, got to catch at least a glimpse of what I might have been like as a younger player.

And the camaraderie generated by being able to fist-bump and high-five teammates has been exhilarating, to say the least.

I am glad that the sport of

Join us for a feast of fiction,

fantasy, frivolity and fact on Saturday, Feb. 8, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Fifteen fabulous local authors, including Kay Kenyon, Derek Sheffield, Patricia Clark, Bill Layman and Robert Wells, share their stories. Sample sci fi, fantasy, poetry, history, geography, young adult adventure, young adult science, picture books, and more.

Cost: free.

Saturday, Feb. 1, 11 a.m. - 1 p.m.

Chili cook-off. You be the judge.

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lacrosse has been so persistent about keeping me involved.

The result of having it shadow me has been very rewarding, by revitalizing the emotions of what it feels like to compete in a team sport as an older athlete.

But it has proven to me that this chapter of my life isn’t over.

It has been a lot of fun and taught me the lesson that getting older may just be a state of mind after all.

Steve Tidd is a local CPA who owns and operates Tidd Tax & Accounting, LLC with his wife Tina. He is a former Ridge to River Relay ironman.

A roadrunner dashed into the underbrush and came out with a long-tailed vole in its mouth. Rapid-fire bursts, luck and being prepared accounted for the shot.

SHOOTING FAST-MOVING CRITTERS A landscape photographer aims to become a wildlife photographer story and photos

By Peter Bauer “Aaargh!” I yell at my computer monitor in disbelief.

“What’s wrong?” my wife calls from the other room.

“The pictures are all blurry!” I grumble about a wasted afternoon, and wonder how it is possible to take so many bad photographs in spite of my best efforts. I was trying something new, taking pictures of birdlife, and it wasn’t working.

But let me back up a bit.

You see, I had been taking photographs for years, and even fancied myself as somewhat accomplished. However,

Peter shot these soaring sandhill cranes with the setting sun hitting the birds full on while they flew by a scenic backdrop selected in advance.

I avoided taking pictures of moving objects: kids, adults, pets, wild animals, etc., all just lead to frustration when taking pictures, because they don’t put themselves in the right composiFebruary 2014 | The Good Life

tion, and move out of the picture entirely while I’m fussing with camera settings.

In contrast, a mountain sunset, now there’s something you can plan for. However, a www.ncwgoodlife.com

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few lucky shots while walking through a bird refuge last year began to change my mind. But who had the time to pursue a new difficult subject like photographing birds?

Then, this past June, I stopped working (it’s only called retirement if you know you’re not coming back to work) so I could concentrate on my photography, and specifically to learn to be a wildlife/bird photographer.

How hard could it be? You buy a big lens, set it on a tripod, fiddle with the settings, and presto, you’re a wildlife photographer!

The answer, especially at first: very, very hard.

First of all, it turns out bears and wolves can be hard to find, and many birds are small. You put a powerful lens on a small bird 30 yards away and you get…

}}} Continued on next page

This great blue heron was huddling in the lee of a bank on a windy day, reluctant to leave until forced to do so by an intrusive photographer.

Shooting fast critters }}} Continued from previous page a bigger smudge in the middle of the shot whereas before you got a small smudge.

Improvement, but not exactly destined to displace Ansel Adams at the top of the photography pantheon with a shot like that. Bigger birds, like ducks, are pretty wary. Once they get 80 yards away, you’ve got the small-smudge-in-the-middle-ofthe-photo problem.

The solution, of course, is to get much closer. Or shoot bigger animals.

My first wildlife successes photographically came from shooting mountain goats on Amphitheater Peak this past July. The mountain goats investigated our presence as we rested near the peak, seeking salty material on rocks that humans sometimes deposit. I got some nice close-up shots. But I was still after bird photographs.

So I bought a tele-extender for my 400mm telephoto lens. A tele-extender is a kind of magnifying glass that mates with the back of the lens to boost the telephoto power.

Being cheap, I mean frugal, I bought an off-brand version to go with my fancy telephoto lens.

And a gimbal head, which is a

doodad on top of the tripod that makes using big lenses easier and more stable.

The result: lots of blurry pictures. Rarely, though, one would come out decently.

Like a gambling addict at a casino, I kept pulling the slot machine lever, not really noticing I was only getting back nickels when I was putting in quarters. Each time I would tell myself that if I only tried harder, used better settings, and controlled my incipient tremor, the cover shots would start falling into my lap.

Which brings me to the scene in the first paragraph: two hours shooting trumpeter swans on a lake, and only one shot I could maybe print at 5x7. Otherwise, squat.

I wondered if gremlins had entered my camera; maybe the lens was a lemon. Or maybe, I just wasn’t up to the task.

However, I had already signed up for a “photo safari” in December, a kind of workshop where the instructors take you to various places to shoot in the best light, and try to teach you how to get pictures more like theirs.

I was excited to be working with Paul Bannick, an internationally recognized photogra-

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Peter stood three mornings in a row in the dark to catch this “blast-off” of several thousand snow geese leaving all at the same time.

Moving very slowly, Peter got as close as he could to this robin celebrating spring in the Horan Nature Area by Wenatchee’s Confluence Park.

pher of owls and other bird life.

His pictures are so good they make me drool. The destination: Bosque del Apache bird refuge in New Mexico.

Bosque del Apache is a mecca for photographers because of

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the sandhill cranes and snow geese that gather there by the tens of thousands. I figured that many birds in one place would improve my chances to get a picture.

When the instructors (Paul

Sandhill cranes taxi to takeoff, shot from a blind using a sturdy tripod.

along with Len Rue Jr.) picked me up, I explained my concern about my equipment not working. The first thing they said was, “That off-brand teleextender? Get rid of it. Use a Canon tele-extender with that Canon lens.”

Whether that’s true for anyone else, I don’t know, but that change helped my pictures right away.

Secondly, they had me always put my left hand on the barrel of the lens to steady it while shooting. Careful observation shows

that the large lens moves quite a bit on the tripod because it sticks out so far that unapparent breezes affect it.

Thirdly, I had been trying to improve my sharpness by stopping down my lens (closing the aperture to get better depth of field) but that requires a slower shutter speed. Paul pointed out that unless the bird was bigger than half the picture, I should shoot “wide open” (the biggest aperture) so I had more light to work with, faster shutter speed, etc.

Next, they told me to stop packing up my lens every time I got into the van. Keep the equipment ready, lens cap off, to catch the opportunities that come up.

February 2014 | The Good Life

Being ready resulted in a shot of a roadrunner holding a longtailed vole in its beak, a real gift from Mother Nature.

Lastly, Paul suggested shooting the cranes (which was our main subject) frontlit during “golden hour” light. In English, that means getting up very early, and getting into position with the rising sun at your back and the birds in front of you. Or, staying late into the evening with the setting sun at your back.

And staying still, so the birds forget about you. My fingers and toes also frequently forgot about me, since the temperatures fell into the teens during the workshop, but, hey, it’s all in the pur-

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suit of better pictures, right?

I came home with perhaps the best photos of my life, certainly my best bird shots.

Now that I’m home without a packed bird refuge in my back yard, I still have to solve the “getting close enough” problem for the local waterfowl on the pond near where I live.

If you see a camouflagecolored tent on the edge of a pond with a large barrel of a lens sticking out, you’ll know it’s me.

Peter Bauer moved from Wenatchee to Winthrop this past September to be closer to the subjects he likes to photograph, and to the trails he likes to ski. Questions or comments can be directed to pbauwa@gmail.com.

Bringing

HOME the

MUSIC this couple’s idea is: why go out when you can invite a band in?

By Jamie Howell

J

enny Erickson slowly stirs cheese sauce on the stove while her husband Scott fills up a bowl of earplugs.

Thankfully, the two won’t go together.

The cheese sauce is for the homemade macaroni and cheese she’s making for the band.

The earplugs are complimentary hearing protection for the 50 or so music lovers who will file into the Ericksons’ living room for a show by The Moondoggies later this evening.

Once every month or two the couple convert their downstairs living room into one of the Valley’s most inviting new music venues.

Scott, a designer for Graybeal Signs, and Jenny, who works at Link Transit, are music lovers of the highest order. If there’s a music festival within driving distance, they’re first in the car.

And when something they really want to see is involved, “driving distance” can extend as far as Austin, Texas or Albuquerque, N.M. But over the past few years, the Ericksons have managed to change the direction of traffic.

The bands have started coming to them — quite literally, to their house — and, by exten-

Scott Erickson introduces The Moondoggies, who are about to perform in a living-room concert.

sion, to their fellow lovers of live music in the Wenatchee Valley.

National touring acts accustomed to appearing on the stages of top tier festivals like South

by Southwest or on network broadcasts like The Tonight Show and Letterman — artists that might not otherwise have ever found their way into the Wenatchee Valley — have been adding detours to their tour schedules to play the Ericksons’ living room.

Appeal of the house show It’s called a house show and it’s not a new phenomenon, but it’s one that holds renewed appeal in an era of $150 arena shows where digital scalper-bots have already snapped up all the choice seats even if you could afford them.

Granted, if Lady Gaga or The Rolling Stones are your thing, the Ericksons can’t help you.

But if the visceral experience of music, intimate and real and so close that you can track fingers across the neck of a guitar and separate the harmonies behind your goosebumps, if that is what you’re after, a show at the Ericksons is hard to beat.

Tickets are typically $20 apiece, BYOB and an appetizer

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Scott and Jenny: Their home is an occasional performance venue.

if you’re feeling magnanimous.

There is no box office. You talk to Scott or you talk to Jenny and, if the 50 spots aren’t gone, they’ll invite you into their home and be happy to have you.

The Ericksons tend toward the indie strains of rock and folk.

Sometimes a full band piles out of a van, fully amped and complete with a sound man and a tour coordinator. Other times it’s just a couple of musicians and their acoustic instruments.

The appeal of a house show is as strong for many of the artists as it is for the music-goers.

“They’re usually pretty excited about it because it allows them to play to a fresh, new audi-

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ence,” explained Scott Erickson.

“Artists that tour the country, playing the large venues and fest halls, they sometimes lose contact with the audience. A house show allows them to play to a small, intimate, enthusiastic audience that is there for them.”

And it is a high level of contact. While the bands do have a green room (aka the Ericksons’ garage outfitted with a couple of sofas and a beer cooler) available to them, you’ll often find the artists milling about in the kitchen with the audience preand post-show. As for the show itself, the distance between the lead singer and the people in the front row is something shy of

You can See the show

To see video of the Moondoggies show at the Erickson home go to http://kcts9.org/ pie/home#/clip/5.

The house show was filmed for the KCTS9 arts and culture program, PIE. Want to go to a show?

To find out about upcoming house shows, send an email to twobarproductions@gmail. com.

The Moondoggies tune-up in the tight, but intimate living room in front of a 50-person audience.

two yards.

But the bands don’t mind any of this. In fact, they seem to prefer it.

“It’s like you’re playing at your mom’s,” said Caleb Quick, keyboard player for the Moondoggies.

The Ericksons feed and house the musicians who play in their home. Homemade mac and cheese, fresh sheets and a quiet room upstairs sound a little like heaven to a band that’s been living out of a van and subsisting on convenience store burritos for the last 30 days.

Nor is the small size of the venue a discouragement.

“Fifty people in a small room is a lot better than 100 people

in a giant one,” pointed out Moondoggies lead singer Kevin Murphy.

The clubs and theaters that populate the rest of their tour schedules can feel brusque and impersonal. There’s always another band coming tomorrow night and the sooner the band’s out, the sooner they can lock up the place. And there’s no assurance of attentiveness in those venues, either.

House shows are guaranteed “listening crowds,” and for musicians, that’s often a prime opportunity to try out new material or to rediscover the magic in a worn-out set list.

“When you see a show like this,” Scott said, “you realize

how wonderful a show can be.”

Two Bar Productions A house show, though small and intimate, doesn’t run itself.

“It’s a bit of work, but it’s worth it,” said Jenny Erickson, assembling a margarita between sets in a kitchen packed with friends and acquaintances. “This is awesome!”

The Ericksons handle all the arrangements, coordinating with the bands and their managers, getting the word out, monitoring ticket sales. They’ve done it frequently enough over the past few years to need a name for the operation — Two Bar Productions. But it’s not a business with growth or even

profit as a central goal. “What we do is to try and enhance the quality of events in the valley for live music in particular,” said Scott. “If we were doing this for the money, we would have stopped long ago.”

Out of each $20 ticket, the Ericksons take only enough to cover sound equipment and a sound engineer. The rest goes to the band.

The Ericksons profit in other areas. Find either one of them after the bands have taken their final bows and you’ll find satisfied, well-rewarded homeowners, pinching themselves over their good fortunes.

“It’s crazy that they played in our living room,” said Scott as the Moondoggies unplugged their amps and stowed their instruments, “but it’s wonderful.”

Jamie Howell is a writer, filmmaker and musician. For more information or to contact him, visit www.howellatthemoon.com.

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>>

the bUCKET LIST

On stage and scared spitless

Now, that’s being alive

By Larry Cramer

H

ave you ever seen the movie The Bucket List starring Morgan Freeman and Jack Nicholson?

It’s an endearing movie about two strangers, from vastly different backgrounds, who meet in a hospital. Both have been diagnosed with terminal cancer.

They end up going on a quest to check off all the things on their respective “Bucket Lists” — a list of things to do before they kick the bucket.

It raises the question, what haven’t I done that I really want to do before I’m gone. This movie held particular significance to me.

A little over nine years ago I went in for a routine physical. Turns out there was a very minute amount of blood in my urine test, I couldn’t see it and I’d never had any symptoms of anything wrong, but thank goodness my doctor strongly suggested I get some tests and I listened.

After a series of increasingly unpleasant tests, no need for detail here, I was diagnosed with a pretty advanced case of bladder cancer. Fortunately it had not moved beyond the bladder yet, which is good.

If I had waited any longer to get the tests it would have and I probably wouldn’t be telling this story, but it was quite advanced and I had a fight on my hands.

For the next eight years I and my amazingly-supportive wife,

Sarah, had a non-stop battle with this persistent enemy. I had multiple series of BCG treatments — not a fun process. The tumors just kept coming back, which meant numerous trips to the operating table. After so many rounds of BCG my body had had enough and the reaction to the treatments became too severe to continue so we moved to chemo.

Lo and behold, it worked — I was in remission. Even though I have to go in every six months for checkups and do some follow up treatments, I’ve been in remission now for over two years.

Through all this, one of my little private joys was playing my guitar. Although I had been in a band in my teens and early 20s, for the last 30-plus years the spare bedroom or basement had been my “concert hall.”

I love playing my guitar and it was a comfort to pluck away while I was going through all this. Finally I began to think I’d like to do more with music and make it a bigger part of my life.

Then... round two: John Lennon, in his wonderful song Beautiful Boy sang one of the most insightful lines I’ve ever heard: “Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans.”

How true those words are, and it’s a thought I carry with me every day.

I had just finished up with chemo and was not sure if that was going to work or if I was going to have to face living without

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Larry Cramer: Alive and sounding pretty good.

The Bucket List Blues Band: Joe Guimond on bass and vocals, Randy Thatcher on drums, Ken Shores on harmonica and Larry Cramer on guitar and vocals.

a bladder when a new twist was added.

When I played my guitar or when I would bump my left hand middle finger on something, it would hurt like crazy and the side of the fingernail would bleed. As much as I did not want to go to the doctor for this, it was getting in the way of my playing so I did.

Long story short, of all the things it could have been, it turned out to be... you got it...

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cancer.

It was Squamous Cell Carcinoma, which can be a bad one, so the treatment was to amputate a third of my middle left hand finger.

After surgery, I quit playing the guitar, but then I was so determined to figure out a way to keep playing. I tried flipping the guitar and playing as a lefty, Hendrix style.

But this was a no go. It was like watching someone else play

...why did I wait until life took a big dump on me and I was staring mortality in the face to do this?

and trying to tell them where to put their fingers, what a mind bender.

So my trusty guitar sat in the corner for a while. After my hand had healed I decided to try it again, only this time to play normally and just re-learn how to play and find alternate cord patterns that I could play with the digits I had left.

It took a while, but it’s amazing how a person can adapt.

Before long, with my renewed

determination, I was playing better than I had before with all fingers intact.

About this time I discovered the local Blues Jam and worked up the courage to join in.

I was scared spitless! My knees were shaking, my timing was way, way off, after all I had been a one-man spare-bedroom-band for 30-plus years and had just relearned how to play sans-finger.

To put it mildly, I sucked.

But the wonderful people at the Blues Jam were so helpful and welcoming that it quickly went from a terrifying experience to one of the biggest thrills of my life. I just want to say to those people... and they know who they are... you saved my life.

Your friendship, and the music we have made were and are the best medicine my soul could ever have.

So fast-forward a couple of years.

There was just one thing, something I always wanted to do but never thought I would, that was to be in a band again. I love the blues and so enjoy playing it for not only myself but now for others as well, I really wanted to start a band.

I only had to mention the idea to a few of the guys at the Blues Jam and it was a done deal.

With me on guitar and vocals, Joe Guimond on bass and vocals, Ken Shores on harmonica, some percussion and backing vocals, and Randy Thatcher on drums, we formed the Bucket List Blues Band.

We started practicing once a week and before long we had our first gig set up. Darren Reynolds of Caffé Mela was kind February 2014 | The Good Life

and brave enough to give us our first shot. We opened for Shoot Jake, an amazing blues trio out of Yakima.

I got to experience the scared spitless feeling all over again, but the guys I play with are really good musicians, so they saw me through.

It was an amazing and fulfilling experience, and we sounded pretty darn good.

After the gig, Wayne Evans, one of my good friends from the band JunkBelly, and one of my biggest mentors through this journey, came up to me, gave me a big ole’ man hug and said “I feel like a proud poppa,” I can’t tell you what that meant to me.

Now that this line on the Bucket List has been check off, what’s next?

We already have another gig booked, this time a full night, on March 22 at the Clearwater in East Wenatchee.

Besides this we have a number of other gigs in the hopper. It will be so much fun to continue to be a part of the local music community, and continue enjoying all good times and friendships that it brings.

What I often ask myself — and this is a question we should all ask ourselves — why did I wait until life took a big dump on me and I was staring mortality in the face to do this?

Add to the cancer I mentioned earlier the fact that I also had advanced melanoma a little over 20 years ago. It took me facing cancer three times to get the message. I guess I’m a bit of a slow study.

So my message here is to remember: “Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans.”

Stop just making plans and live life… The Good Life.

Oh, and come out and see the Bucket List Blues Band some time.

To listen to Larry and the Bucket List Blues Band perform a little Johnny Cash, blues style, and other songs, visit Facebook.com/BucketListBlues or BucketListBlues.com.

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MISAWA City of flights and friendliness

By Zach Davies

The two places shared the common thread of being ur bullet train was both ends of the first noncruising at 200 mph and stop trans-Pacific flight by heading north from Tokyo Clyde Pangborn and Hugh on a cool, windy November Herndon in their plane, Miss afternoon.

Veedol, in 1931.

I sipped my iced coffee, Prior to their flight, the purchased from incredibly Japanese government susefficient worker pushing the pected Pangborn and Hernfood cart and watched the don of being spies and the Japanese countryside whiz by, men were arrested. They its forests of deciduous trees were held for 58 days in Jawhich were turning lovely pan before reluctantly given shades of orange and yellow the green light to takeoff for streaking to a blur outside their trans-Pacific attempt. the window.

They originally planned In this moment of pure to leave from Tokyo, but Zen, I thought about how this leaving from Misawa gave trip to the north of Japan had their heavy airplane a better come about. Sometimes when chance of making it to the thinking about the events other side of the Pacific. that led us in a certain direcShortly after taking off, tion, it is amazing to ponder Pangborn dropped their how lucky it is that everything Zach Davies has fun posing in front of the Miss Veedol replica at the Misawa Aviation landing gear to make the and Science Museum. lined up so perfectly. plane lighter.

When Tomoko, my wife, and midnight on a weekday. servicemen and women, secondPart of the landing gear didn’t I moved to Wenatchee 10 years In Wenatchee, we felt like generation Japanese and a large drop as he had expected, so ago from Osaka, Japan, we genuine night owls if we ate out number of people that menClyde had to climb out of the thought we had come to a place for dinner at 8 p.m. on weekend. tioned a trip to Misawa, Japan. plane while it was 14,000 feet in that had very little connection It made it somewhat difficult to We wondered why so many the air to jar the stubborn part to what we had known in Osaka. adjust to our new lives. people in this valley had a loose.

For example, Osaka is known Surprisingly to us, though, we connection to a city in Japan They had planned on landing for its lively atmosphere and ended up meeting many people we hadn’t really heard of. We in Boise or Spokane, but both nightlife, due to its dynamic in the Wenatchee area that had slowly learned about the history were fogged in. Pangborn, befood culture. It was not uncomsome connection to Japan. We behind the Wenatchee Valley ing originally from Bridgeport, mon for us to come home after met business people, former relationship with Misawa. knew that Fancher Field (cur-

O

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I have travelled to many countries in my life, but I have not found people that take hospitality as seriously as the Japanese. rently Fancher Heights) rarely got fog. The plane, sans landing gear, belly-flopped in the Wenatchee Valley.

Misawa and the Wenatchee Valley now had a connection that would lay dormant for 50 years.

In 1981, the two places decided to begin a sister city relationship. Through the dedication of many people on both sides of the Pacific, the relationship has flourished and friendships have grown numerous.

A Misawa delegation alternates visits once a year between the Wings and Wheels Festival in East Wenatchee in October and the Apple Blossom Festival in May. This year, they will be coming for the week of Wings and Wheels. A delegation from the Wenatchee Valley visits Misawa in August for the Misawa Summer Festival.

My wife and I have never been able to make the Wenatchee Valley delegation trip to Misawa, but, for the last several years, we have become active in the local Wenatchee Valley Misawa Sister City Association.

We have hosted adults from the Misawa delegation and have had a wonderful time.

Last year, I had the nervewracking task of helping with translation for the Misawa Junior High School students’ visits to Wenatchee Valley elementary schools.

Considering that my Japanese skills are the equivalent to that of a three-year-old added extra pressure. However, the day

want to see Misawa?

I encourage you to take the first step in creating your own link to Japan and see just how real and special the connection can be.

The Wenatchee Valley Misawa Sister City Association is now accepting applications for the upcoming trip to Misawa from Aug. 15 – 24. They are encouraging interested adults as well as children between the ages of 12 to 17 to apply.

Simply go to www.wenatcheevalleymisawa.org to begin exploring this wonderful opportunity.

We have been blessed to be a part of this association, with unforgettable experiences and friendships that will last a lifetime. If you are expecting the experience to be an adventure, you will not be disappointed.

Won’t you join us?

— Zach Davies

turned out just fine and now more children in our valley have a better understanding of Japanese culture.

They now can also do some pretty nifty origami animals and shapes, too, thanks to their Japanese teachers!

Thanks to Clyde and Hugh, the Japanese government, fog in Boise and Spokane, hardworking people in Misawa and the Wenatchee Valley, the Wenatchee Valley Misawa Sister City Association and truly wonderful experiences with the numerous delegations from Misawa, we found ourselves on the bullet train from Tokyo.

The final leg of our trip was on an extremely cute, small train to Misawa Station, where we were greeted by our good friend Shindo-san (“san,” pronounced sahn, is the equivalent of Mr. or Mrs. in Japanese).

Before I go any further, there is a Japanese word that everyone should learn. The word is “Omo-

add a dash of romance Spice things up a bit this Valentine’s Day, and take your loved one to the Kingfisher Restaurant & Wine Bar. Savor a gourmet meal crafted with superb local ingredients, amid a truly inspiring setting. Reserve your table today at SleepingLady.com or call 509.548.6344.

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MISAWA }}} Continued from previous page tenashi” (Oh-moe-tey-nah-she), which means hospitality.

I have travelled to many countries in my life, but I have not found people that take hospitality as seriously as the Japanese.

No matter where you go — a restaurant, someone’s home, a taxi, or the consumer heaven that is the Japanese convenience store — you will find an absolute wealth of hospitality.

After the short lesson interlude, let’s get back to our tale.

Shindo-san helped us check into our hotel and then drove us to a restaurant for our “Welcome Party.”

They had rounded up all of our friends from the Misawa delegations that we had made over the years. It was incredibly moving to see everyone again at the same time and feel the warm welcome of the whole group.

We took loads of pictures, laughed and caught up. It felt like we were actually a part of this group, not just visitors from faraway.

Afterwards, we went to a nearby six-story building, full of small rooms to have a private karaoke (pronounced Kah-rahoh-kay) party. I managed to butcher a Japanese song and offend the Beatles with my off-key version of “I Saw Her Standing There.” Needless to say, many lifelong memories were made that first day.

The next day we woke up to the first snow of the year in Misawa.

However, the sun was out and, determined to not let the white stuff ruin our adventure, we went on a full day tour to see the sights. We visited the amazing Misawa Aviation and Science Museum, toured the port that is still damaged from the massive tsunami in 2011 and took in Sabishiro Beach, the sight of the departure of the Miss Veedol in

Women’s * Health

is changing locations.

*Obstetrics & Gynecology Ser vices

The department will now be located at Central Washington Hospital & Clinics in the upper level of the Professional Building.

For directions please visit wvmedical.com Physicians moving to the new location: • • • •

Byron Gatlin, MD Rita Hsu, MD Bridget Kamen, MD Kevin Pitts, MD

• • • •

Nothing feels better on a cold November night than a Japanese hot spring.

1931.

As has probably become rather apparent, Misawa and airplanes fits together like an all-you-caneat buffet and a sumo wrestler.

Misawa takes pride in their nickname, “Sky City.”

The Aviation and Science Museum contains an exact replica of the Miss Veedol and while at the museum you can enjoy scores of fun science related activities and try your flying skills with helicopter and airplane simulators.

Misawa is also home to the Misawa Air Base, which houses a combined effort of U.S. military and Japan Self Defense forces.

Starting the first week of February all appointments will be held at:

Central Washington Hospital & Clinics Professional Building - Upper Level 933 Red Apple Rd. Wenatchee, WA 509.663.8711

Matthew Sublette, MD Dennis Utley, MD Rodney Wells, MD Judy Black-Schmidt, FNP

Zach Davies, originally from the village of Orondo, now lives in Wenatchee with his wife, Tomoko.

When he is not studying to improve his mediocre Japanese or following the latest in the world of sumo wrestling or soccer, he works as a Certified Financial Planner in Wenatchee.

An affiliation between Central Washington Hospital & Wenatchee Valley Medical Center

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Misawa Airport is also connected to the air base, which means that your passenger plane might pull up alongside an F-16.

Few things can make your flying the friendly skies more exciting than feeling like you’re in a scene from Top Gun. The bottom line is that airplanes have been a big part of Misawa’s history and, with their gigantic Aviation and Science Museum, they don’t try to hide it.

We then had dinner with Hori-san, the first person we hosted at our home seven years ago, and his family and concluded the evening with a soak at one of the many hot springs in the area.

Nothing feels better on a cold November night than a Japanese hot spring. The Japanese have developed hot spring enjoyment down to a science. One can choose between different pools with jets that massage your back, soles of your feet, or neck.

If you want to sweat out your stress, head for the sauna. Still more pools are located outside so that your eyes can soak in the night sky just as your body soaks in the clean, naturally-hot water.

The next morning, our departure day, we were greeted outside the hotel by several of our friends. Three of them accompanied us to the train station, which has an entire staircase mural celebrating the Wenatchee Valley’s flying version of the Miss Veedol coming to Misawa three years ago.

They walked us out to the train platform, where hugs were given and goodbyes were said.

As our train pulled away, it reminded me that it is indeed the people that make the places we love special.

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Double pleasure Doing good while exploring friendly and wonder-filled nepal and bhutan

Story by David L. Weber, Sr, M.D. Photos by Susan Weber My wife, Susan, and I, as retired physicians, have enjoyed the opportunity to combine mission trips with very interesting travel.

This past fall a trip took us to Nepal and Bhutan. If you ever have an opportunity to travel to that part of the world don’t pass it up.

And if you go, choose Qatar Airlines. Flying on Qatar was like a blast from the past.

For those of us who remember the service, food and amenities from the ’60s you will think you have gone back in time. You could say the 16-hour flight from Washington, D.C. to Doha, Qatar just flew by!

The flight route from Qatar to Kathmandu skirted the Himalayas on the south side of the range so we got our first spectacular looks at these incredible mountains.

David and Susan Weber hiked to Bhutan’s The Tiger’s Nest, which hangs on the side of a cliff 2,000 feet above the valley floor.

Snow covered peaks rose majestically against clear blue skies in an array of 20,000-foot- plus peaks that is not to be found anywhere else. Nepal has eight of the 14 tallest mountains in the world.

We hadn’t even landed and we already knew we would find Nepal exciting and challenging.

In Kathmandu we stayed in the old city area of Thamel. We were overwhelmed by the winding narrow streets filled with motorbikes beeping their horns, bicycles weaving in and out of pedestrians who often had to jump out of the way of the frequent taxi and occasional truck.

February 2014 | The Good Life

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One evening after we thought we knew our way around we became hopelessly lost in the labyrinthine streets lined with shops selling beautiful Cashmere and Pashmina scarves, trekking gear, and an array of Buddhist and Hindu items.

To our great relief a gracious shopkeeper personally walked us back to our hotel and our affection for the Nepalese people was solidified. As a tourist friendly country we found nearly all the people to warm, friendly and anxious to help.

Following a day in Kathmandu, we traveled by air and a three-hour bus ride to the

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Double pleasure }}} Continued from previous page small village of Tikapur in western Nepal where we were to do our medical mission work.

On the road we saw a few heavy trucks, many motor bikes and bicycles, as well as pedestrians, but cars were rarely seen.

We felt like we had gone back in time to a prior century.

Nearly all of the farming was done by hand with short handled, large bladed hoes. We saw an occasional tractor but most transport of produce was by ox drawn carts.

The main crops were rice and millet with some popping corn also grown. Homes and farm buildings were mainly thatched roof structures with walls of a mixture of mud and animal dung. The more affluent homes were made of stone.

Riding two hours each way every day in a bouncy, shaking bus was not a lot of fun but we were constantly entertained by the goings-on of the villages and farms.

At first the people just stared at us with no smiles but by the end of our time there we were greeted by enthusiastic waves and grinning faces.

It made the physical discomforts worth it to know that some hearts had been changed and that these villagers knew that we brought not only medical help but had shown them that we cared about them.

Our medical camp was set up in a school compound and we provided medical care with a pharmacy to dispense medications and an optometry team to fit people with glasses. I had a portable ultrasound and was able to provide basic imaging services.

The school had no electricity so I had to operate on battery power and try to make it last for the whole day.

Crossing one of the many suspension foot bridges.

Bharat Tamang — part time guide, part time farmer.

A peak from the Dhaulagiri range rises high in a country full of 20,000-foot plus mountains.

The most enjoyable moments were showing a pregnant mother her unborn child and seeing the heartbeat and kicking legs and moving arms.

It was especially meaningful to have midwives in attendance who had delivered hundreds of babies but never had seen an ul-

trasound. They were fascinated.

Overall it was a tremendous Christian mission opportunity. The team of 18 saw a total of 2,600 people. The care was pretty basic by American standards but a step above the usual level in such rural areas.

Our time in Nepal was made

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more interesting by the national elections that took place on Nov. 19.

Part of the efforts of the CPN-Maoist party to influence the voters was to orchestrate a “bandh” or strike. Roadblocks were placed and intimidation was used to keep truckers, taxis

We spent a very long night with things going from bad to worse and wondering how we were going to get back to the comforts of a hotel. and other auto traffic off the roads.

Fortunately all of this only inconvenienced us slightly though we did hear a very large explosion while in our hotel in Pokhara that rattled the windows. Later we learned that a bus had been blown up. That’s about as close to political upheaval as we ever want to be.

After our mission trip Susan and I started on a five-day trek in the Annapurna range.

It was challenging for a pair of 71-year-olds (our guide, Bharat, told us we were the oldest people he had guided) but with the right pace we were able to do it.

Over three days we gained about 8,000 feet of elevation over stone steps (3,600 at one stretch) and rough, irregular rock and dirt trails.

The weather was perfect and at times we felt like we could reach out and touch the incredible mountains that stood out in snow-covered splendor against deep blue skies.

Unfortunately Susan became ill on our fourth day. We believe that she contracted Salmonellosis from eating under-cooked eggs at the teahouse in Ghoripani.

We spent a very long night with things going from bad to worse and wondering how we were going to get back to the comforts of a hotel. I lay there dreading the sound of her sleeping bag unzipping, as I knew it meant another trip for her to the toilet.

The one positive was that, for the first time, there was an indoor sit-down commode instead of the usual outdoor squat-type privy.

Fortunately we had the right medications along and she was able to hike out the next day though it was a very tough day for her. We were then able to get a taxi for the last part of the trip to get us most of the way back to Kathmandu.

Since the taxi driver was defying the bandh we paid a hefty price but would have happily paid more just to have the ride.

Following our time in Nepal and a visit to the ancient city of Bhudapar we flew to Bhutan.

The highlight of our stay there was a hike to a spectacular Buddhist monastery called The Tiger’s Nest. This amazing structure hangs on the side of a cliff 2,000 feet above the valley floor.

If you have a desire to experience an exotic Shangri-La like country, book a trip to Bhutan before it becomes westernized.

We continue to be in contact with our guide Bharat Tamang who was at one time a Mount Everest porter.

His fascinating stories about Mount Everest gave us a glimpse into the danger-filled world of high altitude mountaineering.

He is a wonderful man who lives with his wife and two kids in a small village with no electricity where he farms and does some trek guiding to supplement his income.

We were honored when he told us that we are now his “Mom and Dad” as his parents recently died.

He was very emotional as he told us that.

We remain in contact with him and will never forget him or the country and people of Nepal.

We hope that we will be blessed with the opportunity to go back.

Dr. David Weber, Sr, is former radiologist and CEO and chairman of the board at the Wenatchee Valley Medical Center now enjoying retirement.

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Sisters on the fly They say they have more fun than anyone — and go the distance to prove it rodeo themes and many more.

It doesn’t matter f you’re a sister what the decoration with a hankering to is, the point is fixing go ramblin’, join the them up and then Sisters on the Fly, the getting out on the group whose motto road. Sometimes, in is: “We have more fun caravan style. The than anyone.” camaraderie helps.

With more than For many women, it’s 4,000 members their first time on the nationwide, there’s a road by themselves. whole lot of rambling “It’s scary for a lot of going on. I recently women to even drive roped two local sisters a trailer on their own. and tied them down For some women, it’s long enough to learn stepping out of the more about this box. It helps to have women-only travela certain amount of trailer culture that self-confidence, but if “turns women into you don’t, we bring it girls again.” out,” Nancy said. “It The group started in doesn’t take women 1999 when two sisters long to learn they can — Maurrie Sussman have fun doing this.” and Becky Clarke — “It feels like a group decided to carry on of strong women,” the outdoor advenlocal member Linda ture lifestyle their Riesterer added. She mother Mazie had said she enjoys having taught them as young ready-made access to girls. They started travel companions. organizing fishing “I would want to go and camping trips for somewhere, and not their friends and soon go because I didn’t they’d formed a club. have anybody to go A few years and sevwith.” eral trips later, they Nancy said she found other women would feel confident wanted to join, too. So traveling coast-tothey created Sisters coast, staying at on the Fly. There are sister’s houses along Nancy Baum, on the right, shows off her fancy cowboy boots. In the middle is Linda Riesterer. On the only three rules: 1. No left is Sherry Gibbons from Texas and “she is an absolute hoot,” said Nancy. The photo was taken at the way. men, 2. No kids, 3. No Cowgirl College at the Willow Creek Ranch, home of the Hole in the Wall Gang, Wyoming.

“If I was on my own pets, and be nice. and wanted to go to “And have fun,” added Nancy everything from where to go, to trailers, motorhomes and even New Mexico or Missouri and all Baum, local Sisters on the Fly what to take, and how to find a tents in the group, some women I have to do is go to the website member and a wrangler for new trailer. buy small vintage tow-behind and I will get invites to everymembers in Washington, Alaska “You don’t have to have a trailers and glam them up — one else’s house from people and Canada. Wranglers keep trailer to belong, it’s just more they are the “glampers” of the I’ve never met. I would feel very the women organized and help fun if you do,” Nancy said. group. There are trailers with confident traveling all over the them navigate their first trip — While there’s a wide range of cowgirl themes, western themes, country and going to a sister’s

By Yvette Davis

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“We do our share for the economy,” Linda agreed.

They raise money for charity, too. The Sisters on the Fly raised over $36,000 this year in Long Beach on the Washington coast for prevention of child abuse.

A favorite charity is Casting for Recovery — since it involves fishing — and at the 2009 Monitor house. We are all very meet-up they raised friendly and sup$10,000. The organiportive and there for zation pays for cancer each other no matter survivors to go to a what.” three-day clinic that There are no age teaches them how limits or requireto fly fish and offers ments for women that them needed support. want to join. Some Sisters in Oregon Nancy Baum has a name for her 1962 Mobile Scout trailer and it’s Pony Express. She likes cowboy are as young as 22 and paraphernalia, partner. raised money for others are 70 or more.

Healing Reins, who Most are in their 50’s and 60’s. kayaking, fly fishing and boning badge. Outside shower. Bad brings people with disabilities Some are widows and some are fires to name a few. Shopping is weather camping. Catch and and horses together. Although divorced. always on the agenda, especially release. they are not a service group as “Probably our biggest age is thrift-store shopping, to find Most events are four days or their first priority, the sisters are 50’s and that’s because these that one special item for your so but some are two weeks with always willing to help. women can afford to go out and trailer or another gal’s. These travel time included. There’s “I can’t imagine not being the kids are gone,” Nancy said. ladies get outdoors, camp and even an Alaska cruise on the part of this group,” Nancy said.

For the married women, there explore, and even earn badges schedule and a whole group of “I have met so many wonderare Mister Sister events where for doing different things. sisters went to Caesars Palace ful women in other states that rule #1 is broken and men can “They aren’t ones your mother in Las Vegas for the national I stay in contact with and have come. would be proud of,” Linda said. rodeos this year. become lifelong friends.”

Other than that, it’s all womBadges include: Cigar affec“If we got into a town we Membership is $60 per year en, all the time, and they really tionato. Martini badge. Swimkind of take it over. The towns and the group’s website is www. like to have fun. They dress up ming naked — naked nymph and the RV parks love us. They sistersonthefly.com.

their trailers, put on their pettibadge. Potty outside. Tight spot always want us to come back,” Author Yvette Davis prefers day hikcoats, and dance the night away. badge. Wine badge. Outdoor Nancy said. “The towns love us ing to overnight camping, but you There’s always an activity to cooking badge. Helping Mazie. because we spend the money never know — she might turn into a glamper yet! participate in. Horseback riding Sisters shooting badge. Brandand buy things.”

“Probably our biggest age is 50’s and that’s because these women can afford to go out and the kids are gone.”

At Highgate, we encourage a variety of social activities as part of our holistic approach to both Assisted Living and Memory Care. Come see for yourself the many ways our residents are supported in staying actively engaged in life. email: wenatchee@highgateseniorliving.com phone: 509-665-6695 web: HighgateSeniorLiving.com February 2014 | The Good Life

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The house shows its two main structural ingredients — insulated panels and trees. Above the garage at the left is a storage room with a climbing wall that keeps Stewart and Than Van fit in the off season.

Mountain lodge Built with trees from the site, with an owner and contractor willing to share the heavy lifting

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Story by Susan Lagsdin Photos by Donna Cassidy

F

or one long summer and into the fall of 2011, the herd of deer that grazes up at the top of Number 1 Canyon had daily entertainment, which they watched close-up and fearlessly.

Massive excavation and graveling of an eight-switchback driveway, with 500 foot elevation gain along the face of a

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| February 2014

steep hill, preceded the drilling of a well (700 feet deep) and the installation of electric line that painstakingly followed the driveway.

They were then treated to the relatively milder exertions of builders constructing a 2,400-square-foot house at the top of the severely vertical slope.

Owner Stewart Hoover and his wife, physician Than Van Tran, had purchased the 20 acres for their permanent

Wildlife roams freely on the distant gulches and ridges seen from the living room deck. Sunlight is always visible, and the house site itself is sunny enough in summer for a good garden.

slipping on ice wrestling this house into place,” Flint said.

“But it was really great working with Stewart; he was here every day — an essential part of the crew.”

Few homeowners become such capable full time teammates Cherry tree trunks and deadwood gathered from the hill distinguish the loft. The house is supported by vertical timbers and hand-hewn beams like those shown here.

Wenatchee home. Aided by a friend with an autoCAD program, he came up with the basic design of their two-level house, which was then refined by an architect.

But even with dimensions and details in place, the project was an ongoing exercise in creative problem-solving and (literally) heavy lifting.

For nine months Flint Hartwig, local excavator and builder, worked with Stewart and a few occasional crew members on the kind of “Let Flint Try It” project that’s become his trademark after 10 years in the building business, a big-machine challenge that he says made going to the job site a whole lot of fun.

“We were working in snow, February 2014 | The Good Life

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with their builders. Not only did they cut trees from the wooded slopes above the home site and skid them down with a Cat, but Stewart had assembled in a nearby draw a portable sawmill that let them shape the timber

}}} Continued on next page

Cherry tree trunks, suspended steps and deadwood gathered from the hill distinguish the loft. The house is supported by vertical timbers and handhewn beams.

Mountain lodge }}} Continued from previous page into support logs and beams.

They labored over the logistics of the 38-foot center timber (like a circus tent pole but with the circumference of a full arm hug).

After being lowered on to foundation re-bar, the threestory log was first propped up with guy wires and braces. Then it was held in place by walls and flooring, and bolstered by many other beams and poles, some with the “Y” of a tree trunk left in them.

As the finished interior corners and doorways came into being, Flint explained, “We used chain saws on the beams at first (11 of them at 16 feet) but we had to finish up with an awful lot of chisel work to fit the pieces together.”

The steep roof was finessed into place with a crane, each 800 pound panel precisely angled to slide like tongue-in-groove into the previous one. Twenty-two hand-hewn supporting posts on the perimeter held the roof overhang.

Besides the living room flooring and the cathedral ceiling, only one other important component was not heavy, unwieldy, or problematic. The exterior walls were hauled up the hill precut.

Flint said, “We used SIP (Styrofoam insulated panels) from Canada; eight inches thick on the walls, 12 on the ceilings.”

The plywood-faced units provide an R factor close to 60 and make the tiny woodstove in the living room necessary only on the coldest days.

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The open living space includes a comfortable curve of couches and a dining area near the tall bank of windows. Pale wall colors and unadorned windows keep the room bright year round.

Much of the interior is warmed with varieties of wood like birch, redwood and poplar harvested from the property or donated by Flint from other excavation jobs. Stewart, over the past three years, has created

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| February 2014

much of that interior woodwork.

Cherry tree trunks spiral up to the loft as newel posts; on that and the two other staircases, every tread is a squared timber.

Decorative loft railing comes from surrounding shrubbery

Stewart took up fine woodworking when this house needed him — his handiwork shows in cabinets and a natural edged countertop in the master bath.

Carefully chosen beams embedded in sheetrock frame the open pantry.

need to get away they’ll lock up, leave the house and spend time at their favorite rock climbing sites.

This hard-to-build home is easy to live in, a comfortable and roomy haven for the couple.

It’s only a five minutes drive into Wenatchee, with a wedge of city lights and river visible down

the canyon. Despite the quick access to town, there’s a definite wilderness feel of total silence and separation from the outside world.

Eagles nest near the cliffs high above the house, and the Number 1 Canyon deer are still there, easy to spot grazing on the open hillsides to the north.

to play with, even in this third winter Stewart has plenty of small projects lined up, aware that a new house is almost never completely finished.

When warmer weather comes, he and Than Van may work in the corral-fenced garden with its several raised beds (boxes of half-round poles). Or, if they Flint and Stewart relax in the kitchen amid Stewart’s concrete and wood work. The two have shared enough trials and victories in the construction that they’ll always have plenty of stories to tell.

(“Sticks from the hill,” Stewart called them.)

Doors, cabinets, picture frames, shelving and tables — Stewart is humble about his new woodworking skills. “Anybody can do it, really, if they put their mind to it. Well,” he admitted, “There was a pretty steep learning curve, but after I finished the last cabinet I was pretty good!”

He also learned to pour cement, which provided thick, durable countertops for the bathrooms and kitchen. A big table was re-constituted into a granite slab for the kitchen island, its wrought iron base used for a deck table.

With his tools and new skills intact and plenty of wood left

NCW Home Professionals

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Or visit: www.ncwgoodlife.com

PET tales

Tells us a story about your pet. Submit pet & owner pictures to: editor@ncwgoodlife.com

This is a photo of my wife, Susan Kidd, taking our sheep for a

walk. They love to get out of their pasture (which also includes our vineyard for part of the year), and gambol about on our property down by the Entiat River, where they forage among the leaves and brush.

The larger sheep in the picture are Cheviots, a Scottish breed known to be quite independent, while the others are Babydoll Southdowns, a miniature British variety that grow to be only about two feet tall. They’re perfect for mowing around our grapevines.

There’s snow in this picture, since it was taken in January a couple of years ago, but the sheep don’t mind, being quite well insulated.

We shovel paths for them when the snow gets too deep to make trails of their own.

— Alan Moen

T

he Wenatchee Valley Humane Society rescued Dexter and several others dogs after seeing pictures of their living conditions and moved the dogs to the WVHS shelter.

The volunteers quickly fell in love with Dexter and so did Evan and Jessica Thune and their family (especially Anthony, age 6, here with Dexter).

They adopted Dexter in mid December and Jessica reports, “Dexter is doing great. He is truly a wonderful dog and my family and I are blessed to have him. He is such a lover and thinks he is a lap dog and loves to cuddle. Thank you so much to the Wenatchee Valley Humane Society.”

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column GARDEN OF DELIGHTS

bonnie orr

Dumplings are delightful for February W

e know February can be cold and gray; soup hits the spot.

Last month The Good Life columnist Alex Saliby told you how to select a wine for various types of soup — but he didn’t tell you how to make the soup!

Homemade stock from turkey, chicken or beef is the base for good homemade soup. Any vegetables in any amount will add flavor.

Don’t forget a turnip and a parsnip — your family will not even recognize them when the soup is fully cooked, and the soup will taste rich and full.

Carrots, tomato and celery round out the soup’s flavor.

If your soup lacks zing, add a couple of tablespoons of apple cider vinegar or a tablespoon of Angostura Bitters or a small can of V-8 juice.

Soup is satisfying, and I often make rustic bread to serve with it — but even better, let’s bring back dumplings.

My father said that his mother, who started cooking in 1903, made the best dumplings ever.

His mouth watered just re-telling the wonders of the chicken soup and the fluffy biscuits steamed on the top of the broth.

My Grandmother Nina was so adept at dumplings that she never included a recipe for them in her cookbook that I inherited.

Daddy always said, she added a handful of this, a dab of that — and created perfection.

When I was growing up, my mother made the ersatz dumplings from Bisquick, which is why, I think, my father waxed nostalgic over my grandmother’s dumplings. Believe it or not, Bisquick was first marketed in 1931— and I believed has led to the downfall of dumplings’

family because her granddaughter, Sharon, has a favorite meal: her grandmother’s chicken and dumplings.

Anne’s Dumplings

Makes 20 dumplings; 25 minutes

Anne Rowe’s fluffy dumplings make chicken soup a comforting, heritage meal for her sons and granddaughters. They are delicious and easy to make.

popularity.

Dumplings are steamed biscuits. Several hints to make sure they are as mouth watering as my father remembered: The soup has to be deep enough and watery enough for dough to float on the top of the soup.

The pot has to be both deep and wide, so there is surface room for the biscuits to expand as they cook.

The soup never boils, merely simmers, while the dumplings are steaming.

The dough has to be cooked within a few minutes of mixing all the ingredients so the leavening is still potent.

The dough is stirred just enough to mix the flour, eggs and milk to avoid toughening the dough.

Don’t lift the lid while the dumplings steam. If you just can’t stand not to watch the February 2014 | The Good Life

magic, use a glass lid on the soup pot!

Sometimes people complain that dumpling soups are too watery.

Cook potatoes, or even better yams in the soup. Then remove them, puree them in the food processor, and re-stir them into the soup after the dumplings have cooked. This will thicken the soup.

Remember that the dumplings will soak up some of the broth as they cook.

Dumplings made with whole wheat are dense. Farina (the breakfast cereal) or semolina (the grain for pasta) must be cooked first into a mush. Then add the eggs and milk to form dough. Gnocchi, the Italian potato dumpling, is a fat-free variety.

My good friend, Anne Rowe, uses her mother’s recipe. So she is creating a tradition for her www.ncwgoodlife.com

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3 Tablespoons frozen butter 1-1/2 cup flour Dash of salt 1 teaspoon baking soda 2 teaspoons baking powder 3/4 cup milk

Optional additions: chopped herbs such as parsley, chives Seasonings: a pinch of tastes such as paprika, hot pepper, dry mustard Grate the frozen butter into the flour.

Stir in the rest of the dry ingredients.

Stir in the milk. The batter should be slightly firm.

Bring your favorite recipe for vegetable or chicken soup/broth to a boil.

Drop the dough by teaspoon-fuls into the broth. Use a flatware teaspoon for ease of handling the dough.

Don’t be greedy and try to make the dumplings too big.

Immediately turn down the heat so the liquid is simmering.

Cover and don’t peek.

Cook for 15-20 minutes. You can use a toothpick to pierce one of the dumplings to test for doneness.

Serve hot with the soup.

Bonnie Orr — the dirt diva — cooks and gardens in East Wenatchee.

>>

column moving up to the good life

june darling

Have a little compassion for yourself Warning – the following

story is true and may remind you of other real people.

I was really looking forward to celebrating our ruby anniversary. We were married in Germany, so dinner and a night in Leavenworth seemed like a proper and fitting idea.

All started well with a hike around Ski Hill Loop, a beer at Icicle Brewing Company, a decent meal (Rolladen and Schwartzwalderkirschtorte).

We left dinner early because we wanted to get back to the hotel so we could enjoy the lovely suite with a fancy bed that my husband, John, had splurged on.

John would watch football and I would take a Jacuzzi.

Then the bad thing started

to… well, then I did a bad thing.

Not a mean thing, just a bad thing.

I accidentally pushed the Jacuzzi jets before the tub was full of water. Then I couldn’t seem to get them to stop. The rest is a little blurry, but let me just say that the beautiful bed was soaked, really soaked, totally and thoroughly soaked.

And my husband was frosted, really frosted, totally and thoroughly frosted.

We didn’t say much after that.

We picked up our bags, went to the front desk, confessed my sins, and left.

Twenty-four hours later, we were beginning to make eye contact with each other once again. It appeared that we might be able to remain married, per-

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haps even beyond our ruby year.

Why do I bring you into our little trauma?

Because it might be good for you. (Not to mention that confession is good for my soul.)

It might be good for you to know that even many strong marriages are not perfect, that even though life is full of beautiful and wonderful times, some do not feel so good.

In particular it might be good for you to know that you can mess up (my husband has a stronger word), feel remorse, apologize, forgive yourself, and grow from all your experiences.

Self-compassion is important for resilience and for being able to give compassion to others.

Those skills come in very handy for long, happy marriages.

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Researchers believe that those who are able to give themselves and others compassion probably had what professionals refer to as “secure attachment.”

These compassion-able people most likely had a mother, father, or other important person in their life who was responsive and loving and provided a “secure base.”

Sadly, not all of us may feel that we had a secure base, a place where we felt totally safe and loved.

What are we to do?

There is hope. We can build our own secure base. Some may do this through religion, connecting with people who are

“I accept myself with all my faults and mistakes. I’ve also done much good in my life.

Each mistake is a chance for me to grow.” affirming, and believing in a loving God or patron saint.

Some researchers suggest repeating or reading statements along this line: “I accept myself with all my faults and mistakes.

I’ve also done much good in my life. Each mistake is a chance for me to grow.”

Other ways include remembering those people who love you or who have mentored you throughout your life. It is just as useful to think of those people whom you have loved, mentored and helped.

When I first started thinking of people who have loved me, mentored me, or been supportive, nothing much came immediately to mind; but as I settled down, I was amazed at how many people I thought of who had been kind to me.

I even began to think of people beyond my everyday circle like the farmers who grow my food, firefighters and police who protect me.

After thinking of people who have loved you or been kind to you, amazingly, you begin to think of all the people you have helped, mentored, and deeply loved.

This process seems to build what some call the “deep attachment system circuitry” in our brains.

It primes us for compassion toward the self (please notice that I am not proposing self-indulgence, self-pity, ego-centrism, or any sort of narcissism here) and others.

The month of February is a

February 2014 | The Good Life

reminder and a nudge to love.

Here is my Special Valentine sentiment, I doubt you will find it at the Hallmark store: May you grow more loving to yourself. May your marriage last far beyond your ruby anniversary. May you learn to wait until the tub is full of water before you turn on the Jacuzzi jets.

How might you move up to The Good Life by becoming more compassionate toward yourself?

June Darling, Ph.D. can be contacted at drjunedarling1@gmail.com; website: www.summitgroupresources. com. Her book - 7 Giant Steps To The Good Life can be bought or read for free at: http://www.bookemon.com/ book-profile/giant-steps-to-the-goodlife/285095

>> RANDOM QUOTE

Dream big and dare to fail.

Norman Vaughan

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>>

column THE TRAVELing DOCTOR

jim brown, m.d.

The Human Genome

Not exploring space, but mapping inner humans considered greatest scientific feat of all time

Many of us have heard

about or have a limited knowledge of the human genome.

Most people know that it has something to do with our genes and DNA, but that might be the extent of their knowledge or interest in the subject.

Did you know that the Human Genome Project (HGP) is considered by many to be one of the greatest scientific feats of all time?

Did you know that genetically all mammals and some reptiles share a very high percentage of the human genome?

The chimpanzee’s genome for example is estimated to be 99 percent identical to that of humans. The Neanderthal genome

is estimated to be 99.96 percent identical.

The human genome project was a discovery “inward” rather than outward like our space projects have been. This collaborative international effort established the mapping of all the genes of our species, the Homo sapiens.

Together these genes are known as “the human genome.”

In April 2013 we celebrated the 10-year anniversary of this monumental project. When completed back in 2003, we were able to “read” the complete genetic blueprint of the human being.

The year 2003 was also the 50year anniversary of Nobel Prize winners Watson and Crick’s

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description of the DNA double helix.

You may wonder why these discoveries were considered so momentous and important.

The funding for this project was included in the 1987 Reagan budget and was planned to take 15 years. The project actually started in 1990 and finished 2.5 years ahead of schedule. That is pretty impressive.

The original goals were to identify the 3 billion chemical units of the genetic makeup and to attempt to find the genetic root causes of disease. It was thought it might lead to the development of medical treatments, especially for the common diseases including cancer and diabetes.

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In 2000 President Clinton announced that the genome sequence could not be patented and should be available freely to all researchers.

Within two days, biotechnology stocks lost $50 billion in market capitalization.

In my opinion, for society’s sake, this was the right decision.

In 2004 researchers announced that there were between 20,000 to 25,000 genes in the human genome.

Obviously, this entire international project was a huge and complicated undertaking that has resulted in significant societal benefits, now and far into the future. The interpretation

... recent reports have come out about the use of gene therapy for certain types of leukemia in gravely ill patents... of the data is ongoing and will continue indefinitely.

What are the benefits?

Genetic tests are now available that can show a predisposition to a variety of diseases including breast cancer, certain blood diseases, cystic fibrosis, certain liver diseases and Alzheimer’s disease.

As a result of the HGP, at least in the future, humanity will benefit from advances by treatment for these diseases.

Researchers may find that for a specific disease a particular gene is at fault. Then they can research the genomic database and find all that is known about that gene, it’s structure and it’s relationship to other genes. The hope is that this kind of information and research might lead to new therapeutic procedures and treatments.

In actuality, recent reports have come out about the use of gene therapy for certain types of leukemia in gravely ill patents in which chemotherapy had failed.

In one study all five adults and 19 of 22 children were in complete remission with no evidence of cancer cells after their gene treatment.

The treatment involved filtering the patient’s own blood, removing millions of white blood cells called T-cells, altering them in the lab to contain a gene that targets their cancer, and returning them to the patient by infusions. This was made possible as a result of the HGP. Another benefit has been in the analysis of similarities between DNA sequences of

different organisms, which will advance the study of evolution.

Recently, 400,000-year-old DNA was found in a thighbone discovered in a Spanish cave.

This was 100,000 years older than the previous record for human DNA. This discovery has raised questions concerning human evolution, since this human DNA actually predates that of the Neanderthal that lived 200,000 to 30,000 years ago.

I find these ramifications of the HGP fascinating and exciting.

Yet, it comes with concerns.

One is the information could be used to discriminate against people. It had been feared that, based on genetic make-up or potential health risks, employers and insurance companies could refuse to hire or might deny insurance coverage for certain people.

Fortunately in 1996 the United States passed the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, known as HIPAA, which protects against the unauthorized and non-consensual release of information to any who are not actively engaged in providing health care services to a patient.

I remember when this bill was passed, and suddenly physicians were warned not to discuss their patients’ cases with other physicians in the hospital hallways or public places where a passerby might hear them.

We also were no longer able to discuss our patient’s case with a non-relative unless specific approval had given previously by the patient. In my view, this was for the patient’s benefit and certainly their privacy.

You might wonder what the economic impact was of the genetics and genomics project. It has been huge.

Our Congress of late has been more focused on reducing all government spending regardless of its potential benefits, economic or otherwise.

A recent Battelle Study showed that the genomics project and February 2014 | The Good Life

related research has had a trillion dollar economic impact. It has resulted in 53,000 direct genomic related jobs, adding $293 billion in personal income.

This resulted from a total federal research and development of $14.5 billion dollars from 1988-2012.

That is a tremendous return on investment in anyone’s book.

PhD Carrie Wolinetz said, “As the largest single undertaking in the history of the life sciences, the human genome project has paid back extraordinary dividends on the U.S. government’s investment.

“This illustrates the vital role that key government research funding plays in growing the U.S. economy, creating new industries, innovative technologies and producing diagnostics and treatments that can save lives.”

Jim Brown, M.D., is a retired gastroenterologist who has practiced for 38 years in the Wenatchee area. He is a former CEO of the Wenatchee Valley Medical Center.

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Feats of clay Ruth Allan is proud of her work, not just with pots but with people

By Susan Lagsdin

F

ifty years ago, Ruth Allan took in trade the custody of a small electric potter’s wheel. “It was pretty crummy, actually. It just had two speeds,” she said, “On. And off.”

With five kids in the house (now grown and her good friends) this busy mother was already an arts organizer and a painter, and with her “kitchentable studio” full, she set up the new device in the basement.

Working with clay between the furnace and the washing machine, the painter proceeded to become a potter.

“My kids never bothered any of my stuff,” she remarked of her upstairs-downstairs work space, and recalled her own mother’s early tolerance. “As a little girl, I always had my art supplies, paints and things out on our table, and my mother would let me keep them there so I could work when I wanted to.”

Encouraged at home by her parents and challenged by her mentor/teachers from her first real pottery class at Wenatchee Valley College in 1966, and long past her B.A. in art from Central Washington University and MFA from the University of Illinois, Ruth has been a learning artist.

“Clay is very humbling — it can always surprise you by its

Among her geraniums wintering over and drying pots awaiting their final adornment, Ruth Allan enjoys her snug and sunny work space, a former carport that friends remodeled into her home studio.

ability to escape control!” Ruth declared.

She experiments with original compounds and glazes, applying science (plus good sense and available materials), testing and recalculating until she’s satisfied with the results.

When she puts her hand to her wheels and shaping tools, unique art takes shape. The three kilns in her speciallyconstructed studio annex on Stevens Street continue to fire up new designs and new colors.

“I know I couldn’t make a living with production pottery,” she said. “I’d make 20 dishes and then I’d pick out the only two I like!”

Many of her current one-ofa kind pieces are “salt-sagger fired” (a technique she’s developed and shared with other professionals over the years).

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These “salt-sagger fired” pots show the distinctive chemical reaction that comes of wrapping pieces before a final firing in the kiln. It’s a technique Ruth teaches and has written about in professional journals.

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| February 2014

“Do not strive for perfection because perfection is in conflict with beauty.”

She spirals masking tape and newsprint strips over thread-like filaments of copper or iron wire that she’s wrapped around a vessel, producing a striated pattern and dramatic, austere tones.

And, what pieces Ruth makes she markets, though that’s her least favorite aspect of being an artist. Regional art shows and competitions, exhibits in local galleries and museums, commissioned pieces, publications and artist-in-residence gigs (one in Beijing, China) keep her work in the public eye. She’s glad to be independently supporting herself as a working artist.

Ruth’s art career has had strong ripple effects in the Wenatchee community.

Since moving here in 1953, she has created countless pieces of handcrafted pottery for sale and for donation to causes she admires, and early on gained the admiration of her peers in the ceramics world.

However, she’s equally proud of her work not just with pots, but with people.

In the late 1960s, Ruth was instrumental in starting Allied Arts and more recently chaired the city’s Arts Commission. She was active on the Riverfront committee (work that resulted in Wenatchee’s current park instead of a truck by-pass) and also in 1973 established the Museum of the Columbia at Rocky Reach Dam. For her years of arts advocacy, in 2011 the Wenatchee Valley Museum and Cultural Center awarded her its Living Treasure award at a ceremony at the PAC. Another legacy is the love of the craft she’s passed on to thousands of Wenatchee Valley

College students over the decades.

Starting in 1979, substituting for a few years, she taught painting, jewelry making and pottery.

But since then, with only a few pauses, Ruth has taught classes and eventually managed both the curriculum and the materials of the college’s ceramics program.

Through shifts in art focus (from studio art to computer graphics) and changes of venue (from a truck repair bay to the functional pottery space at Wells Hall) she’s sustained the program, growing it and growing with it. Though she’s employed part time, she’s flexible to her students’ needs and often finds herself at their WVC studio after hours and on weekends.

Today, Ruth is as busy as she’s ever been, still teaching her students the skills of throwing, hand-building, glazing and firing clay. Her related chemistry, physics, geology and history lessons are a valuable part of their classroom experience.

And her views on art are imbedded in every semester’s curriculum. They range from the inspirational: “Find the courage to be imperfect. Do not strive for perfection because perfection is in conflict with beauty” to the pragmatic: “There is no bad art. There are just different venues for different kinds of art — every kind takes some skill and talent to develop.”

Ruth, 83, credits enduring activity in a career she loves to good genes and to a diet learned early at home: a heart-healthy menu right out of the garden, served year-round.

And though a childhood illness sidelined her from vigorous sports, she still enjoys being outdoors in nature, and started downhill skiing at age 53.

She explained what her real age is. “On any given day I feel like I’m either 67 or 16… 67 on a bad day, but it’s been a long, long time since I’ve had a bad day!”

February 2014 | The Good Life

>>

WHAT TO DO

We want to know of fun and interesting local events. Send info to: donna@ncwgoodlife.com

Pybus Public Market in front of the Cashmere Valley Community Kitchen. Cost: free. Info: pybuspublicmarket.org.

February: Write On The River’s sixth annual writers competition, sponsored by ALCOA. $1,200 in cash awards for previously unpublished fiction or non-fiction, 1,000 word limit.

Submission date is Feb. 21. For more information and entry forms see www.writeontheriver.org or call 293-9215.

St. Joseph Schools’ Have a heart Auction, 2/1, 5 – 10 p.m.

Silent auction begins at 5, dinner

by Garlini’s Napoletana at 6:30, live auction at 7. Beer, wine and liquor available for purchase. Theme is The Roaring 20’s. St. Joseph Church Kuykendall Hall. Cost: $35. Info: saintjosephcatholicschool.org.

Pybus Public Market, every Thursday night is locals night, 5 – 8 p.m. Live music, cooking demonstrations and local vendors.

Bubbles & Heels, every first Friday of the month. What could be better than sipping bubbly, chatting with new and old friends and wearing your favorite shoes? One Wines, Inc. 526 E Woodin Ave, Chelan.

Cost: $10 per glass. Info: onewinesinc.com.

Cashmere Art and Activity Center, needle art every second Tuesday, 1 p.m. Pinochle every fourth Tuesday, 1 p.m. Hat Group every Thursday, 1:30 – 3 p.m., knitters, crocheters and loom artists welcome. Info: 782-2415.

NCW Blues Jam, every second and fourth Monday, 7:30 – 11 p.m. Clearwater Steakhouse, East Wenatchee.

Info: facebook.com/NCWBluesJam. Improv/Acting Workshop, 7 p.m.

Every Tuesday night with theater games for novice and experienced players. Fun, casual and free. Riverside Playhouse. Cost: free. Info: mtow.org.

Winter Sports Chili Cook Off, 2/1, 11 a.m. - 1 p.m. The public is the judge by tasting and casting ballots. Three winners. Pybus Public Market. Info: wendowntown.org.

Sugar Blues, 2/1, 1 – 2 p.m. Do you constantly crave sweets? Do you want to gain control without deprivation? Denise Den Herder is a certified health consultant and an herbalist from Bastyr University.

She will be giving a “Sugar Blues” presentation delving into the facts about sugar. She will cover why you crave sweets and how you can uncover triggers that might set you off on a sugar frenzy. She will lecture about the good and the bad sugars — is there such a thing?

Come find out and learn what your relationship with sugar is so you can control of the sugar in your life and not let sugar control you.

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Lake Chelan Winery, Wine Club Party. 2/8, 9, 14, 15, & 16, 6 p.m.

Belgian Chocolate fountain. 2/8, 9, 15 & 15, noon -5 p.m. Bonfire for red wine and chocolate. $1 hot dogs, hot cider and hot chocolate. 2/22, 5 p.m. Cork, cabernet and crafts.

Lake Chelan Winery. Info: lakechelanwinery.com.

Opera Sampler, 2/1, 7:30 p.m.

Public opera singers come together to perform vignettes from The Metropolitan Opera’s 2014 line-up including samples from Rusalka, Prince Igor, La Boheme, Cosi Fan Tutte and more. Snowy Owl Theater. Info: icicle.org.

God of Carnage, 2/1, 7:30 p.m.

The Mission Creek Players will perform a play set in an up-scaled section of Brooklyn, where two married couples meet to sort out a playground fight between their sons. At first, niceties are observed but as the evening progresses and the rum flows, the gloves come off and the night becomes a sidesplitting free-for-all. Riverside Playhouse. Cost: $15 or $20 at the door.

Info: mtow.org.

Chicks on Sticks Nordic Tour, 2/2, 9:30 a.m. 8k women-only event with proceeds benefiting breast cancer awareness. Participants can skate, snowshoe or ski, timing is optional. Begins at Icicle Creek Trail at U.S. Fish Hatchery in Leavenworth. Info: skileavenworth. com.

10 Simple Thing you can do to create excellent health, 2/4, 7 p.m. Pybus Public Market. Info: pybuspublicmarket.org.

Valentine’s for Veterans, 2/5, 5 – 8 p.m. Join Camp Fire NCW in making Valentine cards for veterans. Crafting supplies supplied.

Camp Fire candy will be sold.

Proceeds go to after school club programs servicing underprivileged youth in the valley. Cornerstone Church, 12 N Chelan Ave. Cost: free.

Info: 663-1609.

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WHAT TO DO

We want to know of fun and interesting local events. Send info to: donna@ncwgoodlife.com

}}} Continued from previous page Book signing, 2/6, 1 – 3 p.m. Roland Coleman will be on hand with his new book Re-Define Happiness.

A Book For All Seasons. Cost: free.

Also will be at Wenatchee Library 2/6, 7 p.m.

Leavenworth Winter Sports Club fundraiser, 2/4, 6 p.m. Full dinner, dessert auction, live and silent auction and live music. Leavenworth Festhalle. Info: skileavenworth.com.

Jazznights Pros Night, 2/6, 7:30 p.m. The LA6tet will perform. Performing Arts Center. Cost: $10. Info: pacwen.org.

Jazz Students night, 2/7, 7:30 p.m. Over 150 jazz students from Wenatchee and Eastmont schools along with the visiting pros will perform, showing what they had accomplished after a week of workshop sessions. Performing Arts Center. Cost: $10. Info: pacwen.org.

BNCW Home Show, 2/7, 8, 9. Town Toyota Center. Info: BuildingNCW. org.

Wenatchee First Fridays ArtsWalk, 2/7, 5 - 8 p.m. Check out Wenatchee’s arts scene. Venues and exhibits change monthly.

Self-guided. WVC Campus and Historic District. Cost: art-walk free, after-events may have admission fees. Monthly info: wenatcheefirstfridaysartswalk.tumblr.com.

Two Rivers Art Gallery, 2/7, 5 – 8 p.m. The gallery will be exhibiting a whole new show of over 40 local and regional artists. Featured artist Dean Rainey will present his latest oil paintings. Live music by keyboardist Patric Thompson.

Wines by White Heron Cellars and complimentary refreshments. 102 N Columbia, Wenatchee. Cost: free.

Info: 2riversgallery.com.

Tumbleweed Bead Co., 2/7, 5-8 p.m. More Yeti Chocolate at Tumbleweed for First Friday... With our favorite chocolatier, Willow Merritt. Just in time for Valentine’s Day, with a lineup of Salty Caramelicious in milk and dark chocolate, Huckleberry Creme, Yeti Balls, Cinnamon Chipotle, Ginger Dogg, and her famous Bacon Bark. Come taste the art of Yeti Chocolate and make your Valentine’s Day extra sweet.

Refreshments served. 105 Palouse St. Cost: free. Info: tumbleweedbeadco.com.

Small Artworks Gallery, 2/7, 5 p.m. 13 local artists works will be on display at the Wenatchee Valley Museum and Cultural Center. Info: wvmcc.org.

Think locals first, 2/8, 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. A feast of fiction, fantasy, frivolity and fact. Fifteen fabulous local authors, including Kay Kenyon, Derek Sheffield, Patricia Clark, Bill Layman, and Robert Wells, share their stories. Sample sci fi, fantasy, poetry, history, geography, young adult adventure, young adult science, picture books, and more.

Pybus Public Market. Cost: free.

Native Planting 101 Workshop, 2/8, noon – 4:30 p.m. Cascadia Conservation District will be on hand to teach about native plants.

Topics include restoration, yardscaping, pollinators and weeds.

Chelan County PUD auditorium.

Reserve your seat at: cascadiacd. org or 664-9370.

Rusalka, 2/8, 9:55 a.m. One of, if not the most famous of the Czech operas, Dvorak’s Rusalka seamlessly blends dark swirling musical undercurrents with entrancing folk melodies. The title character, the mermaid/water nymph Rusalka, yearns to love the prince but tragedy ensues and they are damned in this darkly sensual fairytale. Info: icicle.org.

Sweetheart Soiree, 2/8, 7 p.m.

Celebrate with your sweetheart at the Wenatchee Valley Symphony Orchestra’s Valentine-themed musical soiree featuring symphony soloists and ensembles, wine tasting, hors d’oeuvres and desserts.

Wenatchee Valley Museum and Cultural Center. Cost: $35. Info: pacwen.org.

Red wine and chocolate, 2/8-10, 2/14-16. Lake Chelan Wine Valley.

Info: lakechelan.com.

Art Lovers Sunday, 2/9, 9 a.m.

– 5 p.m. Visit Pybus Public Market see displays of some of the region’s best art work and a wide range of artists in action. Info: pybuspublicmarket.org.

Alzheimer’s Café, 2/11, 2:30 p.m.

– 4 p.m. Mountain Meadows Senior Living Campus hosts a cafe the second Tuesday of every month.

This is a casual setting for folks with Alzheimer’s, dementia, their loved ones and caregivers. Desserts and beverages will be served free of charge. Entertainment and activities for those wishing to participate. Join us to meet new friends and share experiences. Located at 320 Park Avenue, Leavenworth.

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Info: 548-4076.

Eastmont Chamber Choir’s Bella Notte Fundraiser and Auction, 2/11, 5:30 - 9 p.m. Pybus Public Market. Info: pybuspublicmarket.org.

Intro to Blogging, 2/11, 7 p.m.

Pybus Public Market. Info: pybuspublicmarket.org.

Garry Krinsky: Toying with Science, 2/13, 6:30 p.m. Garry Krinsky resembles a living cartoon with his animated movement and non-stop energy. Combining circus skills, mime, original music, and audience involvement, Garry and his audience investigate basic scientific information and delve into the imaginations of scientists who explore our world. During the program, Garry brings his science toys to life with motion, music, humor and insight. He turns audience members into stars as he playfully shares the stage, juggling, balancing and welcoming them into his colorful world. He performs original up-beat songs that explore fulcrums, levers and basic mechanics. Performing Arts Center. Cost: $12-$25. Info: pacwen.org.

Wenatchee High School Wa Wa and Apple Leaf fundraiser, 2/13, 7 – 9 p.m. Free desserts will be served but attendees will be asked to make a voluntary contribution to support both high school programs. Pybus Public Market.

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| February 2014

Info: pybuspublicmarket.org.

Red wine and chocolates, 2/14 – 17. Wenatchee Wine Country wineries will be offering a weekend full of tasting red wines with decadent chocolate treats. Cost: $30 includes glass, passport and waived tasting fees. Some proceeds to go to Apple Valley Chapter of the American Red Cross.

Info:cascadefarmlands.com.

Wine and Chocolates, 2/14 - 17.

Stroll through the heart of the Bavarian Village to sample offerings from participating wine tasting shops. Sip a variety of wines, paired with nibbles of chocolate. Downtown Leavenworth.

The Third Annual Great Washington Porter Festival, 2/1415. A showcase of beers made in the porter style, George Washington’s favorite beer. More than a dozen porters from Washington and the Northwest will be poured at the festival, including brown porters, robust porters, imperial porters, smoked porters, barrel-aged porters. The two-day event will also feature a homebrew contest, the winner of which will have his or her porter brewed by Saddle Rock at a future date. Friday 5 p.m. to 10 p.m., Saturday noon to 10 p.m.

Saddle Rock Pub & Brewery, 25 N. Wenatchee Ave. Info: Alan Moen, 784- 5101, the pub at 888- 4790, or saddlerockbrewery.com.

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column the night sky this month

Peter Lind

Planets adorn night sky from dusk to dawn A

s February starts, innermost Mercury is at its best evening appearance for northern observers during 2014.

On the first, the planet lies a large fist’s width high in the west-southwest 30 minutes after sunset — about half way between the crescent moon and the horizon.

Grab your binoculars, head to the east side of the river, preferably up on the rim of Badger Mountain. You shouldn’t have any trouble spotting the planet, which shines brightly.

On Feb. 15, it passes between the sun and earth and slides over to the morning sky, where we will visit later this year.

Jupiter gleams bright all night and is two-thirds of the way to the zenith in the eastern sky as the night darkens. Jupiter reached opposition and peak visibility in early January and continues its show this month.

It lies in the central part of Gemini the Twins, which lies just above and east of the familiar Orion constellation. This region passes nearly overhead for Northern observers in midevening.

Mars rises shortly after 11 p.m. local time in early February and comes up 90 minutes earlier by month’s end.

On the first, the Red Planet resides just north-northeast of blue-white Spica, the bright star.

Mars appears twice as bright as Icicle Creek Chamber Players Concert, 2/14, 7:30 p.m. P.I. Tchaikovsky, piano trio in A minor, Op. 50, Volta Piano Trio. Listen to music, break with wine and conversations between artists and audience. Canyon Wren Recital Hall.

Info: icicle.org.

Great Backyard Bird Count with Phil Archibald, 2/15, 9 a.m. – noon. The Great Backyard

first-magnitude Spica.

The planet’s fast brightening means it will soon be making a close approach to Earth. In early April, Mars will appear brighter than at any time since 2007 as it reaches opposition and peak visibility.

By the time twilight is here, Venus dominates the sky.

The bright world rises about two hours before sunrise in early February. The morning “star” grows brighter all through the month as it climbs higher before dawn.

Venus reaches greatest brightness Feb. 15 before fading back by month’s end, when it comes up two-and-a-half hours before the sun.

Advanced observers will be watching several asteroids this month.

Winter months provide a myriad of things to see in the night sky. All you need is to be able to stay up late and have warm clothes.

There’s a star cluster out in the winter that’s somewhat small but easy to see.

If you find Orion and look just above and to the right is Taurus the bull. Just to the right, or west of Taurus, you will see a small group of bright stars.

These stars make up the star cluster Pleiades.

The Pleiades are six stars we can see with the unaided eye.

The seventh is there but it is

Bird Count is an annual four-day event that engages bird watchers of all ages in counting birds to create a real-time snapshot of the birds’ locations. Participants tally the number of individual birds of each species they see during their count period. Participants should be prepared for inclement weather by wearing good boots or snowshoes and warm, layered clothing.

February 2014 | The Good Life

not cared for by the people and became stars.

The Sun Man became so enraged over the mistreatment of the boys he punSeven lovely daughters of titan Atlas, in The Pleiades by ished the people Elihu Vedder, 1885. with a drought, which caused the buffalo to disappear. small and close to one if the Because the buffalo are not bright stars and very is hard to available while the Lost Boys are distinguish without binoculars. in the skies during the winter There is a reason they are months, when the Pleiades so bright and that is because they’re traveling through a cloud disappear in the spring with the of what is called interstellar gas, tilting of the earth, it became a which is lit up by the light of the sign for the Blackfoot hunters to travel to the hunting grounds. star cluster.

Many stories from Native AmerThere are many myths about ica are similar. the Pleiades, almost every The Japanese word for Pleiades culture through the ages had a story to explain what the cluster is Subaru and if you look at the badge on a Subaru, you will see meant. six stars.

In Greek mythology the PleSubaru means “coming togethiades were the seven daughters er” or cluster in Japanese, and of the titan Atlas and the seahave given their name to the car nymph Pleione born on Mount manufacturer whose logo incorCyllene. Orion fell in love with porates six stars to represent five all of them so to protect them, companies that merged into one.

Zeus first turned them into Subaru Telescope, located doves and as Orion continued to in Mauna Kea Observatory on pursue, he threw them into the Hawaii, is also named after the sky and turned them into stars.

One prominent story in North Pleiades.

America is from the BlackPeter Lind is a local amateur astronomer. He can be reached at ppjl@ foot people about seven young juno.com. orphans (lost boys), who were Binoculars are highly recommended. Participants should also bring snacks, water, and a lunch. Entiat Stormy Preserve. Info: cdlandtrust. org.

Leisure Games, 2/15, 1 – 11 p.m.

Games, beer, food. The games are designed after the kind of games you would play at a BBQ or a tailgate (Cornhole, Washers, Lad-

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derball, Ring Toss, Disc Toss, Lawn Darts, even Horseshoes). Teams of 4 will get 2 chances at a total of 10 games to collect their highest score. All games are played drink in hand and at a leisurely pace to ensure the integrity of the #1 rule: No Running. Food can be consumed with one hand, thus freeing the other for tossing, drinking, and high

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The Art Life

WHAT TO DO

We want to know of fun and interesting local events. Send info to: donna@ncwgoodlife.com

}}} Continued from previous page fiving. All proceeds from food sales benefit the Cascade Education Foundation. Music by MarchFourth marching band and Kithkin. Beer by Icicle Brewing Company. Festhalle, Leavenworth. Cost: $15 general admission, $70 for official Leisure Game team of 4. Info: iciclebrewing.com.

Fiddle Festival Barn Dance, 2/15, 7 p.m. This fun, family friendly barn dance blends old time country dancing and jamming. Bring your dancing boots. Snowy Owl Theater.

Info: icicle.org.

Cahalen Morrison & Eli West, 2/15, 7:30 p.m. Live performance.

Cashmere Riverside Center. Cost: $3 at the door and pass the hat.

Info: cashmerecoffeehouse.com.

Compassionate Friends, 2/17, 7 - 8:30 p.m. A grief support group that assists families toward the positive resolution of grief following the death of a child of any age and provides information to help others be supportive. Rebecca Springer, bereavement and volunteer services coordinator of home care and hospice services, will be the guest speaker. Grace Lutheran Church, 1408 Washington St. Info: 665-9987.

Extra Virgin Olive Oil 101, 2/18, 7 p.m. Pybus Public Market. Info: pybuspublicmarket.org.

Environmental Film Series – Watershed, 2/18, 7 p.m. Executive produced and narrated by Robert Redford and directed by award-winning filmmaker, Mark Decena, Watershed tells the story of threats to the once-mighty Colorado River and offers solutions for the future of the American West.

Wenatchee Valley Museum and Cultural Center. Info: cdlandtrust. org.

Harlem Globetrotters, 2/19, 7 p.m. Town Toyota Center. Info: towntoyotacenter.com Sportsman show, 2/20-23, 10 a.m. The great bear show, horn and antler competition, hunting and fishing seminars, fly casting demos, trout races, dog pull, trailer backing contest, hunting and fishing gear, equipment, guides and lodges. Boats, campers, camping trailers, tackle and more. Town Toyota Center. Info: towntoyotacen-

ter.com.

Auction for the animals, 2/21, 5:30 p.m. A benefit for the Wenatchee Humane Society. Bigger venue, lots of auction items with auctioneer John Curley. Wenatchee Convention Center. Cost $45. Info: wenatcheehumane.org.

Hog Loppet, 2/22, all day. This is a 30k Nordic ski trek from the top of Mission Ridge to Blewett Pass. Info: skileavenworth.com/events.

People of our past, 2/22, 10 a.m., 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. Meet people of our past: Nellie Cox, a mail order bride, played by Sue Lawson; James J. Hill, a Great Northern railway man, played by Bill Murray; Mrs. Dora Tibbits, a Dryden pioneer, played by Kathy Smithson; John A. Gellatly, a community leader, played by Marvin Gellatly; and E. T. Pybus, a Wenatchee industry and pioneer, played by Don Collins.

Wenatchee Valley Museum and Cultural Center. Info: wvmcc.org.

Ladies of Hollywood, 2/22, 8 – 11 p.m. Come walk the red carpet with Chelan-Douglas CASA’s ATEEM (Adolescents in Transition to Education and Employment through Mentoring) Program. Dress as your favorite movie character or star and dance the night away at this women’s only, 21+ event. The night will include a silent auction, balloon pop, photo op area (watch out for those paparazzi!), bar, snacks and more. All proceeds will go towards ATEEM, CASA’s mentoring program. Wenatchee Eagles, 1208 N Wenatchee Ave. Cost: $25. Info: cdcasa.org Ailey II, 2/24, 7:30 p.m. A dance company universally renowned for merging the spirit and energy of the country’s best young dance talent. Performing Arts Center. Info: pacwen.org.

Tune in, trust, empower - an integrative approach to boost your total health and wellness. 2/25, 7 p.m. Pybus Public Market. Info: pybuspublicmarket.org.

Mason Jennings, 2/26, 6:30 p.m.

Live performance. Mason is an American pop-folk singer-songwriter, known for his simple yet catchy melodies, intimate lyrics, literary and historical themes and distinctive voice. Rebecca Pidgeon will open. Performing Arts Center. Info: pacwen.org.

Presentation, 2/27, 7 p.m. Awardwinning author, historian, and journalist Greg Nokes will be on hand with his new book Break-

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ing Chains: Slavery on Trial in the Oregon Territory, selected as a Top Ten book in the Pacific Northwest for 2013. Slide show and stories of the many illegally enslaved people in the free Oregon territory will be told. Wenatchee Public Library.

Cost: free. Info: abookforallseasons. com. Also will be at D’Vinery in Leavenworth, 2/28, 7 p.m.

Book SIGNING, 2/28, 7 p.m. Karen Spears Zacharias’ novel Mother of Rain takes you to 1940s Appalachia and a hardscrabble life in the mountains of East Tennessee — a world filled with mystery of the old ways where loss and tragedy are as common as the rain. Leavenworth Library. Cost: free. Info: abookforallseasons.com.

Vishten (Rustic Roots Concert Series), 2/28, 7 p.m. Hailing from Prince Edward Island, this trio explores the rich tradition of French Acadia — which of course, is the origin of American Cajun music and culture. A sister duo with an amazingly talented fiddler, Vishten explores innovative instrumentation and unique percussion methods to round out a unique sound. Snowy Owl Theater? Info: icicle.org.

Ingalls Creek Winter Hike, 3/1, 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. Join photographer and fire ecology enthusiast John Marshall and entomologist Connie Mehmel for a winter hike on the Ingalls Creek trail to enjoy the winter wildlife and discuss forest health. John will talk about the importance of fire as an inevitable and integral part of forest ecology, but also a force with the potential for destruction. Connie will discuss insects and their effect on forest health. Info: cdlandtrust.org.

Wenatchee Valley Symphony Orchestra Concert: Opera, 3/1, 7 p.m. Act II from Mozart’s opera Marriage of Figaro will be presented. Mozart’s Symphony 38 Prague is also on the program.

Patrons may join Music Director and Conductor Nikolas Caoile in the theatre at 6 p.m. for a Concert Prelude with background information about Mozart and these contemporaneous works. Performing Arts Center. Info: pacwen.org.

Adventures in Kenya, 3/4, 7 p.m.

Pybus Public Market. Info: pybuspublicmarket.org.

KPQ Home and Garden Show, 3/14-16. Town Toyota Center.

Chicago, 3/18. Live performance.

Town Toyota Center. Tickets: Towntoyotacenter.com.

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| February 2014

// SKETCHES

SPIRIT MOVED music to the ears, COMFORT for the soul

I

nside St. Joseph’s Catholic Church, late winter daylight eased past the soaring wooden beams and glowed behind the circular stained glass art piece.

Gesturing toward the piano and choir risers tucked away to the side of the altar, Wilson Alvarez smiled. “My job is to make beauty come from there — every week.”

As the church’s musical director, he works full time researching, choosing and arranging a wide selection of songs from the liturgical canon and beyond, conducting four different choirs for multiple weekend masses, and often playing piano and conducting singers at funerals, weddings and quinceaneras.

He’s also pianist for the Apollo Club, and finds time to share music informally with friends.

Even so, Wilson’s life is peaceful. When Wenatchee people fret about traffic jams and development, he pictures his last years in Quito, the capital of his home country of Ecuador. Over two million people are squeezed into a narrow, mountain-ringed river valley with few main arterials, creating a hazardous, pollution-packed density.

Urban sprawl compacted leads to extreme and volatile behaviors. Wilson said, “In Quito, a lot of time is spent in your vehicle, and people in traffic are quick to anger, so just getting around is very stressful.”

Wilson became accustomed to

S OF LOCAL ARTISTS

Wilson Alvarez: From hectic Quito, Ecuador to peaceful Wenatchee — enthusiastic to make beautiful music.

big city bustle. For the 14 years before moving to the United States he conducted major symphony orchestras in Ecuador and was also principal pianist for the National Symphony Orchestra of Quito.

But disillusionment with urban life accelerated. He weighed his options carefully. Even with his and wife Laura Carreno’s jobs intact, and with three skeptical teenage children, Wilson made an important decision to change countries and careers.

On a Friday night, July 3, 2009, he conducted one final concert in Quito, and then in the morning the family flew to the United States, arriving in Seattle on the 4th of July.

Not an easy transition. But Wilson’s life has been full of positive big moves. He said,

“God is telling me what to do all the time, so every big decision I’ve made just felt like the right one. Each move came very naturally.”

For example, he had trained in piano and music theory since early childhood. One day in high school he accompanied his father to meet a visiting priest.

Four years later, that same priest invited him to study music at a conservatory in Italy with full sponsorship.

The Italian sojourn stretched and honed his music. But then, feeling strongly that his country needed him, he returned to Ecuador and to a prestigious 30-year career filled with travel, scholarship, guest conductorships and eventually his position in Quito.

The opportunity to live in February 2014 | The Good Life

America came via a long-awaited (but presumed dormant) permanent residency application, and was the next giant step in his life and work. The Alvarez family chose to make the brave flight north.

The move to Central Washington, working first in Richland, put him and his family close to his wife Laura’s brothers and mother and far enough away from urban stresses to maintain a safe household for their three children.

Wanting to work full time in his music ministry, Wilson accepted the position at St. Joseph’s in 2010. The Wenatchee community, and the choirs and congregation, have welcomed him warmly, and his musical life is flourishing.

Despite his years of classical www.ncwgoodlife.com

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training and exposure to great composers and symphonies, Wilson can clearly articulate even to a novice the magic of making music. He demonstrated quickly at the piano why music is a creative art, not strictly an interpretive one.

He pointed to a score by Francesco Durante, who died in 1755. “Can you hear this music?” (“No,” said the interviewer.) “I can do this; just play the notes written on the page.” He played an accurate but deliberately staccato, mechanical rendition.

“Or I can do this — I can re-create the sound for him, bringing beauty to his work.”

Wilson’s tribute was a nuanced, emotional, melodic rendition of the same notes.

“Some composers,” he said, “think music is simply the information they write on the sheet, but some believe their music is found between the signs.”

He referred to the complexity of the composer he’s admired his whole life. “Brahms surprises me all the time. There is so much there! I love it that even reading notes on the page you can see how he was trying to solve musical problems.”

Wilson, 53, vibrantly and lovingly brings his respect for all music to each piece he conducts.

His choirs borrow songs from every cultural tradition: spirituals, folk tunes; Irish, Italian and Polish composers; bi-lingual hymns — and each one is significant.

“For every one, I need to show my own enthusiasm — in my eyes, in my physical actions, so the choir will feel the emotion in the music.” Only then can the listening congregation connect intimately with the message.

Wilson said the music forms a connection between him and the listeners — and it gives him great spiritual satisfaction to bring musical beauty to the church.

— by Susan Lagsdin

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column those were the days

rod molzahn

Curiosities of north central Washington From the odd to the unbelievable, strange sights and tales confronted the settlers

T

he history of North Central Washington is alive with stories and events, many exciting and inspirational, others curious and sometimes unbelievable. Some are nothing short of wonders.

Early settlers in the Wenatchee Valley often referred to the “boulder field” that covered much of what is now the city of Wenatchee. Massive rocks with no geological connection to the valley — enormous rocks from places hundreds of miles away — erratics they’re called now.

They were carried to the valley on turbulent floods or rafted in atop ice flows as the last glaciers melted and broke apart 15,000 years ago. These behemoths were gently placed across the valley as flood waters slowed and ice rafts melted. Most of the boulders were broken up or blown up as Wenatchee grew but a few still remain, often nearly as large as the buildings they sit next to.

Many more rest as they have for thousands of years outside of developed areas. Two remarkable specimens stand, like sentinels, in a field up Dry Gulch to the south of Saddlerock.

All along the middle and upper Columbia ancient people left images on basalt boulders; pictographs (painted pictures) and petroglyphs (pictures scraped or incised into the stone.)

Rocks in mid river at Priest Rapids and Rock Island Rapids were especially impressive for

both the number of images and the variety of subject matter.

Along with geometrical patterns of lines and shapes there were animals of many kinds, some recognizable and others fantastical.

Human figures are common, many with rays emanating from their heads. Sometimes humans are pictured together, holding hands. Often human figures holding weapons appear to be hunting animal figures, usually deer and buffalo but in, at least, one petroglyph the animal resembles a mammoth. The last mammoth here disappeared at least 13,000 years ago and the last mastodon, perhaps, as recently as 9,000 – 10,000 years ago.

Other images of horses could only have been made after the early 1700s when the animals were first introduced to the area.

Native people living along the Columbia when the fur traders arrived in 1811 gave no explanation for the rock art but clearly treated it as sacred.

Water behind the dams has submerged most of the picture rocks, something the artists could never have imagined.

Alexander Ross, a fur trader, wrote extensively about life along the Columbia in the early 1800s. He often commented on the “innumerable rattlesnakes.”

Describing the country north of Priest Rapids, Ross wrote, “The ground here is… covered with flat stones and wherever these stones lie, and indeed elsewhere, the rattlesnakes are very numerous. At times they may be heard hissing all around…

The natives appeared to have no dread of them. As soon as one appears, the Indians fix its head to the ground with a small forked stick… then extracting the fangs, they take the reptile

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... the Elequas Tein or “Stick Indians,” a wild race of dwarfs who inhabited the high peak country from the head of the Cle Elum River north, along both sides of the Cascade crest, to the headwaters of the Stehekin and Skagit Rivers. into their hands, put it into their bosoms, play with it, and let it go again. When anyone is bitten, the Indians tie a ligature above the wound, scarify it, and then apply a certain herb to the wound, which they say effectually cures it.”

Ross Cox, another fur trader, wrote that in some places along the river there was “a small black snake, the bite of which causes death much quicker than that of the rattlesnake.”

A.J. Splawn, friend and confidant of North Central Washington Indians, recounted a story from Yakima oral tradition about the Elequas Tein or “Stick Indians,” a wild race of dwarfs who inhabited the high peak country from the head of the Cle Elum River north, along both sides of the Cascade crest, to the headwaters of the Stehekin and Skagit Rivers.

“They were held in superstitious awe by many who believed they were the spirits of departed warriors,” and their voices could often be heard at night around

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| February 2014

high hunting camps.

They were seldom seen though it was known that their Spirit Chief was called Tal-le-las-ket.

One story holds that a very fine looking Stick Indian once lured away a young We-nat-sha woman he found picking huckleberries. Her tribe searched for her until the winter snows came then gave her up for dead.

A few years later, at the spot where she had disappeared, she appeared again to her people with two children. She explained that the Stick Indians were not spirits but Indians of small stature who chose to live among the craggy peaks.

After telling her story she said goodbye to her people, and with her children, returned to the Stick Indians. She was never seen again.

Splawn didn’t claim to have seen Stick Indians himself. He did, however, claim that one day as he was hunting for his stray cattle in a southern British Columbia forest he “came to a camp of golden-haired Indians, with fine features and the most musical language humans ever spoke. Their throat sounds were like the notes of the forest birds around them. There were several lodges, about 40 in all. I never saw them again, nor learned anything further about them.”

The middle-of-the-night earthquake on Dec. 14 of 1872 that propelled part of Ribbon Cliff, north of Entiat, into the Columbia River was felt strongly as far away as Yakima.

The huge rock fall blocked the flow of the Columbia until the next day. Indians reported that the quake also opened up vents around Lake Chelan that

It ... cracked the bottom of the lake allowing water to escape underground and reappear as a geyser below Chelan Falls that also erupted for several months. erupted with steam and sulfur smelling water for months.

It also cracked the bottom of the lake allowing water to escape underground and reappear as a geyser below Chelan Falls that also erupted for several months.

The backwater behind the

rock dam across the Columbia was 50 feet deep and stretched for miles up river flooding Wapato John’s farm and fur trading post. He declared it bad “Taman-a-was” (medicine) and moved with his people to Lake Chelan.

Twenty-seven years later, in September of 1899, Lake Chelan

was the place of another geological event.

Just below Twenty-Five Mile Creek eye-witnesses reported “a singular upheaval of the glassy surface of the lake to a height… of from six to 10 feet.”

A wave six feet high reached shore and lifted the steamship, Kitten, moored along the south shore, up on to the rocks. When the wave receded the Kitten capsized off the rocks and sank.

“There was, at the time, not a capful of wind from any direction,” reported one witness.

A noticeable wave reached Stehekin about 20 minutes after

the initial upheaval and miners working up Twenty-Five Mile Creek reported the creek “went dry for the space of three hours before resuming its natural flow.”

When it was all over, the depth of the lake at its deepest, measured point had been reduced by 94 feet.

Historian, actor and teacher Rod Molzahn can be reached at shake.speak@frontier.com. His third history CD, Legends & Legacies Vol. III - Stories of Wenatchee and North Central Washington, is now available at the Wenatchee Valley Museum and Cultural Center and at other locations throughout the area.

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column ALEX ON WINE

ALEX SALIBY

New releases worth getting excited about I’m not a giant fan of Febru-

ary and the accompanying cold and snow here in NCW. On the bright side, though, February is six weeks or so closer to spring, which is a great time in the wine world, because in spring many wineries release new wines to market.

On the topic of new releases, I have some news to share about the coming of new and exciting wines from three of our local wineries: Benson Vineyards Estate Winery in Manson, Crayelle Cellars in Cashmere and Wedge Mountain Winery in Peshastin.

Benson Vineyards Estate Winery in Manson will release Cabriovese, a new, Super Tuscan blend this spring. This is exciting news because, as a major fan of the Super Tuscan blends from Italy, I’m delighted to see one being produced here at Benson Estate Vineyards.

Having been a fan of winemaker Scott Benson’s Sangiovese for years. I’m expecting this Super Tuscan to be among the best the state has to offer.

“Super Tuscan,” a relatively new term in the wine industry, has become a very important one.

Tuscany is a region in west

central Italy; its principal wine districts within the region are Chianti, Brunello de Montalcino and Vino Nobile Montepulciano.

The primary red wine grape of the region is the Sangiovese grape.

In 1968, a vintner in the small commune of Bolgheri, near Livorno in Tuscany, believing his terrain similar to that of the Graves district in Bordeaux, planted Bordeaux grapes — principally Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc — along with the traditional regional Sangiovese grape.

From the plantings, he blended Sassicaia, and the Super Tuscan concept became reality.

These Super Tuscan wines are blends of the traditional Sangiovese wines with some of the traditional Bordeaux grape wines.

Sangiovese, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot were in the first such Sassicaia wine.

Sassicaia is now a recognized growing district within the region of Tuscany, and several vintners have planted Bordeaux grapes among their Sangiovese vines.

We don’t have region or district restrictions here in the United States; growers are free to plant as they choose, and winemakers may blend to their

heart’s content.

Winemaker Craig Mitrakul has done wonderful things for other wineries where he has served as winemaker.

He and wife Danielle are now both owners of Crayelle Cellars, and this spring he will release his second edition of an Albariño.

I say “second edition” because Craig and Danielle had an Albariño last year. It was so popular it sold out within four months of release. Craig quickly secured the grapes for the harvest of 2013, so for the second time there will be a Crayelle Cellars Albariño, come spring.

Albariño is a white grape native to Portugal, and a principal grape in the Portuguese Vinho Verdi wines. The grape reportedly has aromas similar to Viognier and Gewürztraminer, and typically the wines produced from it are light and aromatic with notes of apricot and peach.

It does have a danger sign: its thick skins and large numbers of pips can cause residual bitterness on the palate. Winemakers must take extra precautions to guard against that potential flaw.

I’m doubly excited about this one, because we have in our

small cellar the last bottle of the 2012 Crayelle Cellars Albariño, and there’s no bitterness on the palate in this one. I’m planning a side-by-side comparison tasting soon after I get my hands on the new arrival.

Some wines always manage to stand out in the crowd in any collection, and for me, Wedge Mountain winery’s 2009 Heart of the Hill Vineyard Red Mountain cabernet is just such a wine.

I have no idea how it will fare in competition, but I do know it pleased me instantly when I sampled it four months ago and then again last week.

In the baseball vernacular, there are home runs and there are grand slams — a bases-loaded home run.

Owner and winemaker Charlie McKee has indeed belted this one out of the park, and the bases were loaded: great fruit, terrific vintage, solid oak-barrel aging and meticulous care from the winemaker so as not to screw-up what nature gave him.

This wine is sure to be a crowd pleaser.

Wine events featuring new releases take place each spring in our general NCW area, so check the websites for Cascade Valley Wine Country, Lake Chelan Wine Valley, Wenatchee Wine Country and our numerous independent wineries and see what pleasures await this coming spring.

Alex Saliby is a wine lover who spends far too much time reading about the grapes, the process of making wine and the wines themselves.

He can be contacted at alex39@msn. com.

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GARRY KRINSKY: TOYING WITH SCIENCE

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