Madison Park Times 12-7-2022

A valuable

Aegis Living Madison resident recalls time in military

By Jessica Keller Madison Park Times editor

Aegis Living Madison resident Bob Elliott might not have engaged in combat during his Air Force career, but his time in the military was not dull.

Elliott, 82, enlisted in the Air Force straight out of high school when many people were being drafted, which gave him the latitude to choose which branch and the length of his enlistment.

“Basically, I chose it because it was four years, not like if you got drafted, where it could go on and on, forever,” Elliott said.

He enlisted in the Air Force, he said, because it gave him the greatest opportunity to follow his lifelong interest and passion: travelling.

In basic training, Elliott learned he had an aptitude for communication work and from there he went to San Angelo, Texas, and studied communication intelligence and cryptography for 15 months before choosing an assignment on Crete.

“We had dots all over the world, but being on the southern tip of Europe would give you a lot of opportunity to get around and do things,” Elliott said.

Cutting-edge technology

While stationed in Crete, he spent most of his time working in and around Greece, Turkey and North Africa, with a little bit in western and eastern Europe.

Elliott said he and a small team of people operated cutting-edge technology that allowed them to listen in on communications from countries that were considered both adversaries and “of interest.”

Although he enlisted in the Air Force, Elliott said he really worked for the National Security Agency

As part of its annual Veteran’s Day festivities on Nov. 11, Aegis Living Madison honored more than 20 veterans — 16 residents, three team members and select family and friends. The community was alive with red, white and blue décor and filled with excitement during its dedicated afternoon program, attended by 60plus residents, families and staff. The community’s own choir group — the Madison Choir — led all to participate in a variety of patriotic songs while other attendees shared poems and reflections to honor those who served. The celebration culminated with the pinning of all veterans who also had the chance to share their stories. Hearing directly from the veterans and those who know them best was the heart of the ceremony.

“I enjoyed the ceremony very much, especially hearing the stories and the music,” resident Helen Anderson

said. “It went a little long, but that is because the team here does such a lovely job of including everyone.”

After the celebration, Culinary Director Roderick Morgan, also a veteran, had a meal prepared for all to enjoy. The team set a “missing man” table to pay tribute to those lost.

The diversity of Aegis Living Madison veterans was equally memorable. They served in nearly all major conflicts in living memory and represented nearly all branches of the miliary, from fighting on the frontlines to building aircraft and caring for wounded warriors.

Resident Ted Mondares served in the Coast Guard for more than 30 years and still loves to sing “Semper Paratus,” the official song of the U.S. Coast Guard. Aileen McGinnis built war planes at Boeing. And the list goes on.

“Our Country is built on the veterans’ participation,” said Aegis Living Madison Community Mayor Judy Wadsworth. “To honor each and every one is a pleasure and our duty.”

Editor: Jessica Keller, 206-461-1300 or MPTimes@pacificpublishingcompany.com

Retail Display & Real Estate Advertising Tammy Knaggs, 206-461-1300 or ppcadmanager@pacificpublishingcompany.com

Classifieds | General: 206-461-1300

2022 Aegis Living Madison Veterans Residents

• Dan Anderson – Air Force / Army Colonel

• Dr. Ed Barker – Medic

• Don Bialos – Navy

• George Eggler – Army

• Bob Elliott – National Security Agency –Intelligence

• Philip Howrigan – Air Force

• Steve Kelly – ROTC

• Steve Kiesow – Navy

• Aileen McGinnis

– Boeing Employee/ Draftsperson

• Ted Mondares – Coast Guard (30 Years)

• Norman Olson – Boeing Aircraft Photographer

• Leon Pope – Navy

• Roy Prosterman – Air Force Reserve

• Robert Quon – Airforce

(Airman 1st Class)

• Jannie Rood – Red Cross Auxiliary Europe

• Dr. David Swan –National Guard Medic

Staff

• Roderick Morgan – Army

• D’Andre Valentine –Navy

• Marco Garcia Carrillo –Infantry

Courtesy Aegis Living Madison

Photo courtesy Aegis Living Madison Aegis Living Madison resident Nancy Norton thanks the veterans being recognized at a Veterans Day celebration on Nov. 11.

Photo courtesy Aegis Living Madison Aegis

Madison resident Julia Lomacky reads a poem to honor

at Aegis Living Madison’s annual Veterans Day celebration on Nov. 11.

Give the gift of emergency preparedness

Winter storms arriving with blustery high winds through the Puget Sound region can be both nerve-wracking and a valuable opportunity to practice managing life without electrical power. How ready are you for this adventure? How ready are your out-of-household family members and friends?

Some folks want to go all-in with a generator, while others hope to get by with some candles and an extra propane tank for the grill. When you make a few purchases anticipating a power outage, you are on the road to preparing for an even more damaging emergency — the real possibility of a massive earthquake in our region, causing multiple disruptions with landslides and the collapse of buildings, roads, bridges and utility infrastructures.

Perhaps this reality will inspire some emergency-related gifts in this season when we aspire to be jolly, grateful and generous.

You don’t have to spend a lot, and you could take this emergency preparation into the realm

of fun and creativity. If you do a small gift exchange among coworkers or family members, you could jazz up a package of Mylar emergency thermal blankets or hand and foot warmers, either disposable or rechargeable. The same goes for all manner of flashlights, lanterns or headlamps with batteries or USB rechargeable LED lights. Consider beanies/knit hats with built-in LED rechargeable lights, perhaps adding a creative touch with monograms or family names. You can get emergency radios that are rechargeable, or the good ole hand-crank version.

Our Madison Park Emergency Preparation Volunteer Team suggests you keep the “three W’s” in mind when planning for a majorly disruptive emergency: water, warmth, waste. How might you purchase a gift related to one or more of these categories? Water is essential in an emergency and often challenging for households to figure out how to store enough safely. You need to plan for one gallon per person per day x 14 days and ⅓

Seattle Center features Winterfest holiday activities through December

Courtesy Seattle Center

Through Dec. 31, people can visit Seattle Center and enjoy a variety of activities and displays. Visitors can stop by and see turn-of-the-century Winterfest Train and Village, snap photos of the bright lights across campus, witness weekend entertainment on the Armory Stage or partake in a 6 p.m. nightly Illuminate Winterfest campus light show.

In the weeks leading up to New Year’s Eve, Seattle Center invites the community for a variety of seasonal offerings across the campus — from attending world-class arts performances like George Balanchine’s “The Nutcracker” by Pacific Northwest Ballet and snapping a digital photo with Santa at the Space Needle, to seasonal plays at the Seattle Rep and Seattle Children’s Theater.

Catch last year’s sold-out Seattle Opera performance of “A Very Drunken Christmas Carol,” Winter

Brilliance at Chihuly Garden and Glass or take children to Seattle Children’s Museum for the New Year’s noon countdown and dance party. And don’t forget to enjoy the New Year’s Eve fireworks show under the Space Needle.

The New Year’s Eve celebration also features live music by premier cover band Groove Nation and another Fountain of Light dance party.

Visit seattlecenter.com/winterfest or Facebook for a list of events, attractions and performances.

gallon per pet per day x 14 days. So, consider workable options. Another low-cost addition to your water supply is a small flexible hose to attach to your water heater; slightly more costly is a portable water filter system. Warmth includes some of the items mentioned above, along with clothing, food and, of course, the warmth of communicating with loved ones. If children or pets are part of the household, what gift of reassurance and comfort might be included in an emergency kit? Perhaps a favorite stuffy, snack or book?

You could consider a gift among the variety of fire starters to aid in getting the warmth of a fire. Keep in mind the need to avoid another kind of fire starter — candles. Emergency responders report that in the aftershocks, chaos and stress of earthquakes,

damaging house fires are often started by overturned or neglected candles.

What could be more fun than giving the gift of a way to manage human waste in an emergency? You can find examples of low-cost twin bucket emergency toilets designated for “pee and poo” at phlush.org. An alternate gift could be a portable camping toilet.

If your budget allows for spending a bit more, a shortwave radio can be used not only for communicating with others but can serve as an LED light, USB charger and radio. A solar battery charger set up can allow you to power all kinds of devices, along with lights, camp stoves and blankets.

Before you let your keyboard do your shopping, take your feet to our local Madison Park Hardware and see what ideas

and stock they have or could possibly order for you. Owner Adam Hagan has been a faithful community member and terrific partner in Madison Park Emergency HUB development efforts. He deserves our support and is keen to be helpful. Beyond buying things, remember your presence is always the best present you can give. You could even spend time helping your favorite folks to inventory or organize their emergency supplies. Sometimes side-by-side companionship makes all the difference for someone to take the next step in knowing how to prepare for and survive the next calamity around the bend. If you want to get involved in any of the wider neighborhood work of emergency preparedness, please contact madparkhub@ gmail.com.

Margie Carter MP Emergency Prep

Photo by Susan Fried/Seattle Center

Around age 7, and living in Riverton Heights, my friends and I still looked forward to Christmas even as the depression lingered.

The neighborhood families were all in the same lot, with very little money, or even jobs. We kids had little concept of rich or poor other than what we ascertained at the movies. It was agreed amongst the adults there should be a limit of six presents per child per year: three for Christmas and three for the summertime. My dad made swords and pistols on his table saw, which made for easy shopping.

Mom and I moved to Madison Park a few years later and noticed Christmas was more evident and enticing. The businesses and the neighborhood were lit to the nines. There were contests every year for best-decorated house.

The Didriksons placed a cardboard display of Santa, his sleigh and reindeer on their roof with a spotlight shining on it and usually won. At the tennis courts, a real Santa made an appearance, for whom long lines of little ones formed, and believe it or not, a few of his reindeer also showed up. Santa sat on his throne with the little

Christmases past

ones on his lap, and music played throughout the area. My friends and I were a bit beyond lap-sitting and were more interested in his helpers.

Fast forward to the life of a single man, four of us rented a houseboat where the Washington Tower now stands. Men are not usually inclined to go shopping, and now at Christmas the challenge was particularly daunting. One dark and cold, semi-snowy rainy evening, I plunked three dimes into the meter for three hours downtown. Music was playing and people were smiling as they traipsed through the slush. I was officially in a good mood — shopping would be a snap!

The picture windows at Frederick and Nelson with the colorful larger-than-life train running on a large track, the decorations, all the toys and the ambiance was mesmerizing. The famous doormen were assisting various people from limousines. Doing my part, I held a door open for a lady with her umbrella. She went through the first set of doors and shook the excess water from her bumbershoot, but unexpectedly I saw a bright flash! One of the metal rods struck me just above my left eye. Usually, the ends are covered with plastic caps

but not this one. Leaning against the wall, almost knocked down, I watched her walk away in oblivion. The doorman gave me a piece of linen with F&N on it; I kept it for years.

That little purple hole kind of set me back, but I laughed it off even though it was obvious I had suffered a shopping wound. People nearby were concerned but I smiled and said, “Happy holidays!”

I do not remember following through on this shopping experience as I needed some first aid at Rosallini’s 610 down the street. I knew the bar crew (Seattle was so small then) and asked for a Band-Aid, coffee and a cognac. So now I had a fat eye starting to bruise, but when anyone asked, I said, “You should have seen the other guy!”

There were a few memorable Christmas gatherings hosted by some Flying Tiger Airlines staff who lived in the park who must have gotten paid in champagne.

The Aussies held festive Christmas parties, too. They usually had keggers, and it was quite normal for everyone to sing songs. On one such occasion, late in the evening someone yelled, “Tapping the last keg. Come get the last brew!” It became quiet,

but then a bagpiper appeared from the attic, followed by the Aussies driving wheelbarrows of ice with a multitude of bottles of brew. Party on!

At Christmas 1958 at Ford Ord, everyone was gone for the holidays. I had very little funds, and I said to my friend who was reading the Saturday paper, “Hell with it, let’s go to Monterey!” He reminded me we had no passes, but I said, “I know a way! AWOL Gate!” It was just south of the firing range where there was a non-gated road to the main drag of Monterey.

Directing the 1955 Oldsmobile 98 hard top to town, we headed to the Cavalier, where we joined regulars whom we had met on other occasions. Dodie, the bartender and owner, greeted us with drinks on the house. We told him we had no place to go. Even the regulars bought us pity drinks, but I said I would repay them on payday.

My buddy was wincing in pain from an ulcer at this point. Dodie gave him Rolaids so for every drink he popped one. After a while, I had to point out the telltale white powdered lip he was sporting.

Continuing our festive occasion, we walked across the street to a crowded Italian restaurant and listened to music by a trio. We asked a

young lady and her friend if we could join them at their table, to which they said “Sure!” Fun conversation and lots of laughter was had by all.

I mentioned that I was an artist of sorts and was tap city broke (she could tell by my dog tags). She ordered and paid for drinks, handed me a $20 bill and insisted we go with them to a party in Carmel. She drove there, and with drinks in hand we entered a beautiful home where she introduced us to everyone.

The amazing thing about this place was the huge tree in the front room expanding through the ceiling and rooftop. It was as thrilling as the Frank Lloyd Wright Gullwing house south of Carmel. A small group played music, a server offered us champagne, caviar, then some hard liquor. I sipped some smooth scotch, and our hostess suggested we try what was presented. It was crunchy, oily, smoky and went rather well with the scotch. I had to ask what the treat was, and the response: locust! I could handle the caviar, but this was a bit much.

We managed to get back to base and our bunks without anyone the wiser and spent the rest of the night recalling this as one of the best Christmases ever.

Richard Carl Lehman

Revisiting the Park

Beautiful — but don’t touch

Steve Lorton Tree Talk

Like jellyfish and the Mona Lisa, there are beautiful things that are not to be touched. The same is true in the plant world.

Cacti and poison ivy come to mind. Then there is the fabled monkey puzzle tree (araucaria Araucana). Branch by spiky branch, it is hazardous to the touch.

Native to the coast of Chile, where it is the national tree, this unusual conifer was introduced into the horticulture of England in the 18th century. It caused a bit of a sensation.

Quite comfortable in the British climate, the tree became a favorite of great estate gardens and manor houses; ergo, mature trees dot the kingdom’s landscape today. Eventually, araucarias reach a height of 130 to 140 feet with a spread of 30 to 40 feet. An exquisite plant, it has the symmetry and stature to rival sequoias, albeit the tree grows into a noble dome at the top, not a soaring spire. Gardeners be warned: They need plenty of space.

The common name, monkey puzzle, comes from European horticulturists and is in reference to the conifer’s tough, sharp leaves. Wreaths of leaves tightly encircle each branch in dense rows that extend along the branch. The leaves are triangular, an inch-and-a-half long, an inch-and-a-quarter wide, the apex of which is a very sharp point. Grasp a branch and one might well be looking for antiseptic and Band-Aids.

Upon seeing this tree in an English garden, about 1850, it was reported that Benthamist Charles Austin commented, “It would puzzle a monkey to climb that,” and the common name was spawned.

Puzzling as the tree might be to any monkey, it was not so to lumbermen. The trees have great value as timber and, sadly, have been logged to near extinction in Patagonia. Fortunately, the Chilean and Argentine governments recognize this and have come to the rescue of the great forests that remain. A few trees,

exceeding 1,000 years of age, are still growing.

There is a humanitarian side to this story. The legal protection of the tree, which began in 1971, was, in part, due to cultural preservation. Although these conifers are not pines, the edible seeds, carried in the cones, are commonly referred to as “pine nuts.” These seeds (or nuts) are gathered by the indigenous Mapuche people and ground into flour as a dietary staple. The nuts commonly measure 2 inches in length.

The harvesting-gathering system is something of a spectacle. A climber goes to the top of the tree dome with a large pole and knocks off the spiny, 10- to 15-pound mature cones. They fall to the ground and the seeds drop out of them. Awaiting gatherers pick them up, pushing a percentage of the most robust seeds back into the earth, where they will sprout and grow around the parent tree. Thirty to 40 years hence, the offspring

will be producing seeds. Germination rates of this system have been tracked and boast a 90 percent success rate.

The Mapuche have helpers in their reforestation project. Long-haired grass mice collect and bury nuts for winter. Those going uneaten usually germinate and grow. Flocks of parakeets land atop the trees to pick the nuts. In their zeal to harvest these nutritious seeds, the birds often scatter them. These

too, are slowly regenerating decimated forests.

This conifer is dioecious, meaning plants are either male or female, producing two different kinds of cones. Point being, it takes two trees of opposite sex to reproduce. A few plants produce both male and female cones.

Monkey puzzle trees take to our Pacific Northwest climate and landscape like many of the other immigrants to our great horticultural melting pot.

To reiterate, they require ample space. So, they are not suitable for many gardens. Still, if you have room, this is a spectacular specimen to grow. Surprisingly, sources for seedling monkey puzzle trees abound, by both nursery and internet order. Plant trees between now and March. Water them thoroughly the first two or three summers. Be certain the site has good drainage. Nature pretty much does the rest. If you do need to prune a tree, dress for battle: heavy gloves, a heavy sweatshirt, long pants and sturdy shoes. The cultivation of this plant is akin to having a pet porcupine.

We have a beauty of a monkey puzzle tree in Madison Park. Stroll by the house on the southwest corner of McGilvra Boulevard and East Galer. Look up the slope at the south edge of the lot. ’Tis a sight to behold. This month you can even see a few cones toward the top of this tree.

Paleontologists tell us that the monkey puzzle tree has been around for about 140 million years. In that vast span of earthly history, araucaria Araucana has puzzled more than monkeys. Scientists think the thick, tough bark on the trunk of mature trees suggests that it evolved to survive forest fires. Then, there is a theory that the plants’ survival is due to its leaves. As delicious as they look, one bite would let any animal know this is not salad. Imagine a Jurassic era brontosaurus mother seeing her young’un stretch up its neck to nibble on the branches of a monkey puzzle tree.

“Not that one, honey,” Mom says. “It’s beautiful, but don’t touch it.”

The common name of araucaria Araucana, monkey puzzle, comes from European horticulturists and is in reference to the conifer’s tough, sharp leaves.

Photos by Mary Henry Native to the coast of Chile, where it is the national tree, the monkey puzzle tree was introduced into the horticulture of England in the 18th century.

Pacific Northwest Ballet presents ‘The Nutcracker’

Courtesy PNB

Pacific Northwest Ballet’s sparkling production of George Balanchine’s “The Nutcracker” returns to the stage for live performances this holiday season.

Featuring Tchaikovsky’s timeless score performed by the world famous PNB Orchestra; PNB Company dancers in show-stopping roles; bright young stars from the PNB School; unique-to-Seattle sets and costumes by Ian Falconer (creator of Olivia the Pig); and McCaw Hall’s lobbies decked out with the season’s best photo ops, PNB’s production is a holiday treasure for all audiences.

George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker runs through Dec. 27 at Seattle Center’s McCaw Hall (321 Mercer St.). Tickets start at just $27. The Nutcracker will also stream digitally from Dec. 19 through Dec. 27, for families and friends to watch from the comfort of home. Tickets for digital access are $49.

For tickets and additional information, contact the PNB Box Office at 206-441-2424, online at PNB. org, or in person at 301 Mercer St.

VET from Page 1Æ and was a communication crypto analyst.

Elliott said part of his team’s job was to keep the National Security Council advised on foreign communications, much of it Russian and Arabic, with the help of linguists.

Elliott said, while the communications they listened in on were fairly routine, the technology was so new and advanced and involved machine cyphers and “fabulous listening equipment” that it marked a key evolutionary point in communication intelligence work.

“It was right on that nexus when everything was going directly to that new technology,” Elliott said.

Because he was in communication intelligence, his work was top secret.

“Even the base commander could not come into our compounds; nobody could come in,” Elliott said.

He said when he learned what he was going to be doing as his job, working with state-of-the-art technology, he couldn’t believe it. He thought he was going to be a guard.

“I was just a young kid and wanted to see the world, and I was

amazed when I found out what I was actually going to be doing,”

Elliott said with a chuckle.

He did get to see the world, however. When he was working, they were granted three days on and three days off, and he spent his days off in Athens and other places sightseeing.

“It was charming,” he said. “The weather was great.”

When he was on leave, he traveled to other countries and met his wife on a fly-fishing trip in Patagonia, Chile.

Watching history get made

Toward the end of his enlistment, he was offered a job in Maryland working for the National Security Agency, but his wife convinced him to look closer to New York, where he grew up.

Before he got out of the military, however, he was sent to the Florida Keys in 1962 during the Cuban Missile Crisis, where he set up and operated equipment to allow the U.S. military to listen in on Russian and Cuban communications.

“You got to see some of world history turning on its ear,” Elliott said, adding if the work he did in Greece was routine, what they were doing in Florida “was scary important.”

He said the accommodations

weren’t fancy, either. He and his wife were living in a small trailer in a trailer park filled mostly with Jehovah’s Witnesses and farmers.

Elliott said his wife cried for three hours when they first arrived. He said, when she went outside to bathe in the outdoor shower for the first time he heard her let out a blood-curdling scream and ran outside to find out what was wrong. It turns out she was startled by four scorpions climbing up the walls of the shower.

“It was a wonder she didn’t get on a plane and go home the next day,” Elliott said, adding she stuck it out and they went on to settle in and find enjoyable things to do.

Elliott said his time in the military was fairly tame compared with others’.

“The only time I touched a gun was when I was in basic training,” he said.

It was valuable to him, nonetheless, and Elliott said he thinks the United States should implement a required national service for young adults like other countries.

He also believes it is important for people to recognize Veterans Day and appreciates the effort Aegis Living Madison does to honor veterans every year.

“I’m really impressed with what they have done here,” he said.

Queen Anne resident now serving community after 22 years in military Veterans Day important to Navy vet Robert Kettle

By Jessica Keller Madison Park Times editor

After 22 years spent proudly serving his country as a U.S. naval intelligence officer, Queen Anne resident Robert Kettle is looking to how he can best serve his community outside the military.

Kettle said he is proud to have served his family’s adopted country as a firstgeneration U.S. veteran who comes from a long line of military veterans, including his paternal greatgrandfather and grandfather, who served in the first and second world wars.

Kettle joined the Navy as an officer because he had graduated from Boston University with a degree in political scienceinternational relations focus, and a career as a naval intelligence officer seemed to be a good way to continue his interest, he said.

He did tours in Europe, Asia and the Middle East and grew an even greater appreciation for all the work that goes into keeping the country and the world safe.

“Being an intelligence officer allowed me to have that varied career,” he said.

Since Kettle was in intelligence command, he said his experience

was different from others’, although he was in dangerous situation. In one of his deployments to Iraq, four people in his unit died, something that affects him to this day.

Kettle said Nov. 11, which is Veterans Day in America and Remembrance Day in the British commonwealth, he thought about those soldiers who died, while remembering and honoring the ones who served.

Remembering those who lived, especially those who were injured in war, is something Kettle feels strongly about on Veterans Day. While Memorial Day is for remembering the dead, Veterans Day is about honoring those who served.

“Nobody who goes into the military comes back the same way,” Kettle said.

Generation X veterans like himself share an unusual experience. They are the bridge between newer vets and the veterans of previous foreign wars, like Korea and Viet Nam. And although Generation X veterans served in any number of wars and conflicts, unlike the veterans who came before, Kettle and others like him received a warm welcome home and respect from the public.

Since retiring from the

military in 2012, Kettle has dedicated himself to continuing his service, within his community, something he encourages veterans to do. He recently left the Queen Anne Community Council to free up his schedule but is active in the Ballard Eagleson VFW Post 3063.

While the post is active, Kettle said he would like more veterans to join, specifically later Generation X veterans and younger military members just getting out.

Kettle said becoming a member of the VFW or supporting local VFWs is a way to continue serving. His VFW frequently hosts events benefitting the community, such as blood drives and fundraisers. Joining the VFW is also good for veterans because they interact with people who share similar experiences, even if they don’t talk about it.

“It provides a space for people who have gone through the same things,” Kettle said. “It’s a great community asset.”

Kettle has also been active in lobbying the Seattle school district, city and Seattle Center to take better care of Memorial Stadium and the memorial wall,

where the names of all the over 750 young men from Seattle who died in World War are listed. While the area surrounding the wall is much cleaner than it was, Kettle said he hopes plans to renovate the stadium through a successful school district levy passage and partnership

the city

include a better design for the memorial wall, which now abuts a parking lot. He said he would like the area surrounding the wall to be more contemplative and solemn, a memorial that respectfully recognizes the young soldiers.

“It’s really important to treat that right,” Kettle said.

with

Photo by Jessica Keller Robert Kettle, a Queen Anne resident and retired Navy intelligence officer, sits in his living room holding a paper poppy, a symbol for remembrance, in front of photos of his great-grandfather and grandfather, who served in the British military in the two world wars. Being a first-generation American and career military vet is a point of pride for Kettle.

Get used to the newest ‘new normal’

As we end a year that saw the real estate landscape change dramatically, it’s time to recalibrate expectations about the newest “new normal.” We started the year with a strong seller’s market, with multiple competing offers escalating on the few homes for sale. The residential landscape has changed.

We have seen drastic interest rate hikes this year now hovering at the highest mark since the late 1990s. By the fall, concerns about inflation added to a drop in consumer confidence to put the brakes on the insane market we were experiencing. Homebuyers were frozen with concern and indecision.

The inventory data is the most important indicator. Real estate analysts peg a neutral market as having three to six months of inventory. In our neighborhoods, we were measuring that time on the market in days and weeks even into the summer.

As of this writing, we have 13 months of available inventory. That’s a huge change — and any change disrupts the way we think about real estate.

Where we are now

We’re in a genuine buyer’s market, yet so many aren’t taking advantage of it. The higher interest rates are a part of that — causing buyers to think they’ll pay too much for a home versus what they would have paid last spring.

Those interest rates were too low for too long. People got too used to mortgage rates of 2 to 3 percent. But, if you take a look at rates historically, a 30-year fixed mortgage was 14 to 19 percent in the 1980s. In the early 2000s, rates ranged between 7 and 8 percent. After the economic downturn in the latter 2000s, those rates were cut to stimulate home buying again. It worked, but it went on for far too long. When rates rose in June, that radical shift caused everyone to panic.

It’s time to calm down and get strategic. Whether you’re buying or selling, you can ride this market to your advantage.

What it means for buyers

Now is the time to set yourself up for long-term success. There are plenty of available homes, and if you can recalibrate quickly, you can make a long investment pay off.

We got accustomed to thinking of homes as short-term wealth generators, watching prices and valuations double within years rather than decades.

House prices are down, and there’s plenty of inventory to see. You can ask for, and get, all the standard contingencies and protections. There’s room to negotiate on price. I worked with clients who just bought a home listed for $1.5 million that would have sold for over $2 million just last spring. After negotiating, the final selling price was $1.2

million. Even with a rise in interest rates, that’s a great deal and a good investment.

Play a long game. All those folks who bought homes in the 1980s at double-digit interest rates refinanced when rates came down. I had clients who did just that and then sold to downsize in the past few years. They made millions on the sales. They played the market to their advantage, and you can, too.

Stop looking at the monthly costs, and think of the investment you’re making in yourself. When rates come down again — and they will — refinance.

Even though it’s a buyer’s market, choose your broker carefully. Find someone who’s succeeded in adjusting markets and can create and guide you through a strategy that will pay off in the long term.

What it means for sellers

There’s good news for sellers, too, if they’re open to hearing it. I had so many potential sellers tell me they wanted to move, to get a bigger house with more space for their growing families, but there was nowhere to go. They felt stuck because “there was no inventory.”

There is now. You may not get the selling price you saw estimated over the past few years, but you have to look at the market as a whole. The homes you’ll be looking at are also priced lower. That’s the advantage this market is giving you.

MADISON PARK - WASHINGTON PARK - MADISON VALLEY - DENNY-BLAINE - MADRONA - LESCHI

Chris Sudore Property Views

Get used to the newest ‘new normal’

More than 40 state parks offer First Day Hikes on Jan. 1

Courtesy Washington State Parks

Washington State Parks is inviting the public to ring in the new year during its annual First Day Hikes event on Jan. 1.

At least 40 state parks will host staff-led and self-guided hikes, snowshoe excursions, bike rides and more on New Year’s Day.

The First Day Hikes will range in difficulty from paved, flat ADA-accessible trails to moderate hill climbs. A few parks will host more than one hike, with options tailored to different interests and abilities. Additionally, some hikes will include educational talks where rangers will speak about the history and natural features of their parks.

Some First Day Hike adventures include:

In protest of the recent shooting death at Ingraham High School and gun violence throughout the country, students at Ingraham High School coordinated a large walkout on Nov. 14. Ingraham junior Saeran Dewar helped organize the protest. She is the president of her local Students Demand Action and helped found Ingraham for Gun Safety in response to the Uvalde school shooting. “Instead of feeling helpless, we helped students mobilize to do something tangible,” she said. The students were joined by elected officials, local media outlets and representatives from Alliance for Gun Responsibility and Brady United in the march. “It was really moving to see such a large show of support and to see students so empowered,” Dewar said.

• A 3-mile, ranger-led snowshoe hike at Easton Reload Sno-Park.

• A beginner and advanced guided bike ride at Fort Ebey State Park.

• A mile-long hike perfect for kids at Lake Sylvia State Park.

• A 1.5-mile interpretive history hike at Lincoln

Rock State Park.

• A 1.5-mile guided snowshoe hike at Lake Wenatchee State Park with limited snowshoe rentals available.

• ADA-accessible hikes at Columbia Plateau Trail State Park, Deception Pass State Park, Lime Kiln State Park, Rockport State Park, Sacajawea State Park and Seaquest State Park/Mount Saint Helens Visitor Center.

First Day Hikes is a national initiative led by America’s State Parks, encouraging people to get outdoors on New Year’s Day. Last year, nearly 55,000 people hiked more than 133,000 miles during free events throughout the nation.

Most First Day Hikes require advance registration, and group sizes might be limited. Additionally, select hikes will have snowshoes available for visitors to use. Visit parks.wa.gov/1229/ First-Day-Hikes to view activities and registration information.

New Year’s Day also marks the first statemanaged land free day of 2023. Visitors will not need a Discover Pass to park on state recreation lands.

What My Clients Are Saying...

Founding Member | Managing Broker Senior Global Real Estate Advisor 206.399.5842 | Laura.Halliday@rsir.com

“Laura Halliday is enthusiastic, wise, experienced, thoughtful, understanding, calm, organized, and always helpful. She completed the sale of my beautiful condo the first day on the market. She's a true professional who excels in all there is to know about getting the job done. I am so thankful I selected her. She made a normally emotional task ‘a breeze.’ Who could ask for anything more? Did I mention my property sold for full price? She grasped the market perfectly. Laura is a pro.” - Jean

Viereck

A CONTINUED LEGACY Realogics Sotheby's International Realty ranks amongst the largest, most productive, and fastest-growing real estate companies in Washington with access to 25,000 brokers in 79 countries and territories generating global sales of $204 billion annually. SOTHEBY’S

Sotheby’s Auction House Presents Fine Watches, a sale offering a broad range of vintage and modern pieces from renowned makers such as Patek Philippe,

3614 East John Street Presenting this architecturally significant, 1909 Victorian in sought-after Denny Blaine. Renovated from top to bottom with classic lines, mahogany ribboned hardwoods, a scalloped curve roofline, and storybook turret!

1140 Parkside Drive East Lionsgate: handsome and proud with a timeless backdrop. Once inside, the high ceilings, heavy mahogany doors, gracious living room, and extraordinary library tell the story of its heritage. A value in sought-after Broadmoor.

DENNY BLAINE | $2,775,000

PENDING | $3,200,000

Rolex, Audemars Piguet, and more.

Photo by Laura Marie Rivera

A thank you letter to my community…

It is hard to believe that the holidays are upon us once again. I know that sounds cliché, but life moves quickly with how busy we all tend to be. We have kicked back into full gear since lockdowns were lifted, but for me, that very negative and difficult time that we all went through brought the gift of greater appreciation for life and the joy of slowing down and being grateful. While I try to spend time being grateful throughout the year, I like to really slow down at the holidays and not only be appreciative, but also thoughtful about the not so great times and the hidden gifts and life lessons that these experiences can bring. As I reflect on 2022 I continue to feel blessed to have a career where I can serve others. And I feel grateful that so many of you in the community have supported me with your business, referrals and friendship. Not everyone gets the opportunity to do what they are passionate about throughout their life. I am very fortunate that I do get to do what I love and it is because of all of you that I can. Those of you who know me or have simply observed my business over the years know that real estate is in my blood. There is so very much that I love about my career; the beautiful homes and architecture, successfully negotiating on behalf of my clients and the joy of handing a buyer the keys to their new home. But above all else, I have to say that it is the people in our community, whom I may not have otherwise met, that make this career so worthwhile. Thank you to the wonderful people who have enriched my life and who make our neighborhood so special. I wish all of you a joyous holiday season and send heartfelt thoughts and prayers to those who are facing challenging circumstances at this time. Blessings to you this holiday season and always.

Warmly, Lisa

With over 34 years of real estate experience, we would love to be your real estate experts when it comes to marketing your home and purchasing a new home. We are excited to talk with you about your options!

A bee-friendly bulb lawn

Let’s face it. Lawns do nothing for the environment, and as grown typically with herbicides and inorganic fertilizers, both weaken and harm it. If your lawn still feels useful, you may not be ready to “lose your lawn” altogether or convert it to a wildflower meadow. If so, consider this beautiful interim step, inviting pollinators and reducing lawn impacts — a flowering bulb lawn.

What makes a bulb lawn a perfect transition project is that it’s a seasonal event, running from early to late spring.

Imagine a shifting tapestry of flowers alive with birds, bees and butterflies. There is one compromise, however. For your bulbs to multiply and prosper, you’ll need to leave the dying leaves intact until they yellow or wither. This signals another kind of transition, this time a mental one for the gardener — welcoming a little bit of wild into your lawn.

As your bulb lawn retreats for the year, it will look messier than it did. This shift can take a minute to accept. Garden writer Margaret Roach noted in a recent podcast episode the tension that gardeners skirt between aesthetics and environmental health. For centuries, the ruling aesthetic for lawns has been a velvet rug that exists to set off the trees and borders around. Douglas Tallamy, author of “Nature’s Best Hope,” suggests “cues of care” can help bridge this line. These cues might include mowing a swath through taller grass, or a path around it, and keeping the edges trimmed. Such signs highlight the hand of the gardener, reassuring viewers that this is a caredfor space.

This project is inspired by horticulture power couple Dan Benarcik of the Chanticleer Foundation and Peggy Anne Montgomery, of flowerbulbs.com, who created one in their home this fall.

They chose a selection of shorter-growing bulbs that are pollinator-friendly, tend to perennialize, expanding each year, and are mostly critter-resistant. They should also help prevent weeds as they become established. Because their bloom times are staggered, they can be planted closely, with the smallest in the same holes.

Crocus and dwarf Iris reticulata start the show in late winter, followed in early spring by Chionodoxa lucilliae (glory of the snow), long-blooming narcissus “Tete a Tete” and Ipheion uniflorum (starflower).

Benarcik and Montgomery also used Scilla siberica, but that can become invasive here, so I’d avoid that. An alternate might be white-flowered Tulipa turkestanica, whose yellow eye would set off the “Tete a Tete” daffodils.

In mid-spring, another species or botanical tulip, yellow Tulipa sylvestris and blue or white Muscari armenicum are the grand finale.

For this project, you’ll need as many bulbs as you can lavish upon the project, some bulb fertilizer and

PROPERTY

From page 1

If you have to sell right now, be realistic about your pricing. It’s more important than ever to find a broker to work with you on competitively pricing your home for sale and who has a real plan and strategy for marketing your home. One that’s worked through market adjustments before. Though it’s tempting, this isn’t a good time to ask brokers to reduce their commissions. That only cuts into the amount a broker will use to effectively market your home; it’s a simple margin play.

ABOVE: Crocuses are critter-resistant and naturalize easily. BELOW: Narcissus (daffodils) are avoided by squirrels and deer. The shortest-growing, earlier-blooming varieties will go dormant the fastest.

a bulb auger or some digging helpers. Mark out the area with a hose or white spray paint, making sure to leave access paths around or through. Plant thickly, digging holes about three times the height of the bulb, so for the largest, the 2-foot daffodils, you’d dig 6 inches deep. Montgomery suggests adding a teaspoon of bulb fertilizer to each hole and keeping the tiniest bulbs separate so they can be layered on top of the larger bulbs before filling the hole. Don’t worry about which end is up when planting — the bulb knows what to do.

Benarcik took the chance to top-dress the disturbed lawn with compost and lawn seed. One note for herbicide users — skip broad-spectrum preemergent herbicides — as they will damage your bulbs.

If you are concerned about digging animals attracted to the fresh earth or the tulips, watering down the planting area will make the area less appealing. For sterner measures, lay down chicken wire on the top of the area until the bulbs emerge.

We’ll see many homes come off the market for the holidays and into next year. So, if you’re selling, that increases your odds if your home stays active. While the pace is slower, people are still buying. We’ve done transactions on Christmas eve before, and we’ll do them again.

It’s time to recalibrate

The last six months have seen drastic changes in the real estate market. It can be unsettling, and you may have questions about how it affects you, your investment in your home, and your and your family’s future. My team and I have

the experience and data-driven knowledge to answer your questions about where we are now and what the future may bring.

For full details and a visual of the process, check out the video at youtube.com/ watch?v=TJyzYNNayVA.

Your design can follow your lawn’s shape, or you can make it more artistic, like creating your initials, or go all-out for a seasonal

labyrinth. It might help to mark the area until the bulbs come up. Just remember not to mow until the bulb foliage has died down, and you’ll have a magical flower carpet that is more beautiful and vibrant every year, while helping the birds and the bees.

My team is one of the top real estate teams in the state. We have been successful in this market because we’re willing to be flexible and do the work that others won’t to get those wins for our clients. If you have any questions

about whether you should sell, buy or just what’s happening, I’d love to hear from you. As a reminder, my home, my office and my team are focused here in Madison Park. If you’d like to set a time to talk through any matters involving real estate, my door is always open.

Chris Sudore is a

Madison

Park Resident; KingCountyEstates.com

“Now is the time to set yourself up for long-term success. There are plenty of available homes, and if you can recalibrate quickly, you can make a long investment pay off.”

Erica Browne Grivas Get Growing

Photos by Erica Browne Grivas

Love is all you need

“So-oo? You and your husband are a love marriage?” Amargit asked. Amargit is from India where families still arrange most marriages.

I didn’t know how to respond. She added, “Ye-es?” before I could. She seemed a little nervous about my “love marriage.” I didn’t want to tell her, or not yet, that I’d met my husband while hitchhiking Highway 101. He pulled over and, quite literally, picked me up.

I think back to that question, how I paused, and in my hesitation, I realized we were taking our first leap of faith, when we both recognized how, if we were to become friends, we’d need to jump from two very different starting points over a vast cultural divide.

So that’s what we did. We jumped. Being who I am, though, it didn’t feel like a jump, it just felt like being curious in a city where 40 percent of the foreign-born tech employees are from India. At first, we struggled to share the everyday in an everyday way. Our exchanges tread carefully, not even close to the kidding around we manage now.

And on that first meeting, before I could put romantic love into words for her, I was busy asking myself should I say something funny? No. Serious, then? No, again. Elaboration wouldn’t do. It was a simple question in need of a simple answer. “That’s right,” I said, finally. “A love marriage,” and because I couldn’t stop myself,

I started to sing, “All you need is love, love. Love is all you need.”

Tilting her head to the right, she responded, “Ye-es?” lengthening the sound into two syllables again, making more of a question out of the word and, though not intentionally, more of a clown out of me. Funny, funny me. My stomach flip-flopped. Humor can be the most difficult disconnect between cultures; it really can.

Luckily, with no reluctance — none — Amargit moved us onto safer ground. “Sanelli,” she said, “you have a beautiful voice, yes?” Honestly, if diplomacy could speak, it just had.

It was Super Bowl Sunday. We were at Macy’s downtown. (I miss that store. I miss willing myself, sometimes successfully, not to linger in front of the shoes. Or the handbags. Or the jewelry bling always on sale, before taking the escalator up to the second-floor loo.) I was shopping for nothing, really, but Amargit was working, rearranging clothes on a rack. “You don’t like football?” she said, grinning. And when she pronounced her name, I pretended to grasp the sound, straining to remember it.

From the start, we intrigued each other. She wanted to learn more about the freedoms of American women now that she is one (I like to remind her), and slowly, over the years, we’ve chipped away at the bulk of our differences, only to find that underneath we are just two women who want to talk, laugh, complain, share. Four

words that I believe are the definition of intimacy, the meaning itself. If lucky, we find it in a friendship. If really lucky, in marriage.

Now, I like to remember what was a big, big day for Amargit and me, when she and her husband, Tito, invited my love marriage, Larry and me, for dinner at their home on their one day off a week. If they take it. They and their two college-age sons (their education the reason the family immigrated) live in a basement apartment north of the city. As soon as I entered, I wondered if maybe this is why she’d hesitated inviting me here, needing time to make sure I’m not the kind of person who’d snub someone who lives in a tworoom apartment off Aurora.

That night I was shocked to learn something else Amargit hadn’t disclosed. In India she didn’t need to work. By Indian standards, she had plenty of money. She employed several “domestic servants” (I admit, I gasped when she used the words) who waited on her family’s every need. Which all sounds very un-Seattle-PC, I know, but what better example of how much she wanted to ensure an American education for her sons. And now they, Amargit and Tito, husband and wife, work six, seven days a week waiting on others.

The feast spread out for us remains one of the eating peaks of my life. Which led to a story about how Tito removed his turban and cut his hair the first day on American soil, a ponytail that, since boyhood, wound around his head several times underneath his headdress. How relieved he felt. “I was freed from a religious and cultural law,” he said, “and much cooler. Life is more fair in America.”

Ah, yes, it is. Here is where I could have said how unfair it is that he still wouldn’t

allow Amargit to go out alone, other than to work. Nowhere with me, certainly, not without him or my husband tagging along. And what fun is that? (Just kidding!)

But I decided not to wave my independent-woman flag so soon. Though I detect a bit of mellowing on his part. His younger son’s girlfriend joined us, an Afghan student who proudly told us that, yes, they date without chaperones. In a single generation, everything can change. She also told us how she, her parents and six sisters had left Afghanistan.

“Did you flee? I asked.

“Oh yes,” she said. “We took an airplane.”

“No, I mean from us, the Americans?”

“Oh, yes. There were many bombs.”

Another bomb, of course, was my question. But she was warm, not offended. Bless her for that. And later when I baptized Tito “old-fashioned,” he laughed. “Yes,” he said. “I am very ancient.”

Funny. Originally from a family of immigrants, I fought my whole life to get away from such old-world traditions. And then the years went by. Choices, choices, choices. And here I am facing all the same issues. But that’s Ok. It’s a new day. I am relearning my way around.

Mary Lou Sanelli, author, speaker, and master dance teacher, is the author of Every Little Thing, a collection of essays that has been nominated for a 2022 Washington State Book Award. Her first novel, The Star Struck Dance Studio of Yucca Springs, was released in 2020, and her first children’s book, Bella Likes To Try, was recently released. Ask for them at your favorite independent bookstore. For more information about her and her work, visit marylousanelli.com.

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Mary Lou Sanelli Falling Awake