The Review, October 2015, Vol. 13, Issue 10 by Gloria Loughry

OCTOBER 2015 • VOL 13, ISSUE 10 THANKS TO OUR ADVERTISERS, IT’S STILL…

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ecause we like learning foreign languages and travel, in July my wife and I visited Kazakhstan, Earth’s ninth-largest country, one that few Americans could quickly point out on a map. Today Kazakhstan has a population of only 17.3 million on an area equal to that of all of Western Europe. Its Central Asian location is bordered by the Caspian Sea (bordered also by Iran), the Aral Sea, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, and China’s Xinyang Uygur Autonomous Region. Kazakhstan’s

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A VISIT TO

Kazakhstan

diverse topography, similar to that of USA, includes alpine peaks (to elevation 21,999 ft.), world-class ski slopes, barren steppes, pine and birch forests, immense grasslands, glacier-fed rivers, lakes, its two salty seas and large deserts. We traveled 13 time zones away to Kazakhstan primarily to attend an annual meeting of the International Conference of Traditional Music in the capital city, Astana, located in the center of the country. Although we were only able to visit Astana and its countryside plus the larger city of Almaty and its region during our travels, contrasts between the two were dramatic. In 1991 Astana became Kazakhstan’s new national capital, built under the direction of visionary President Nursultan Azerbayev (incumbent executive from the USSR decades), who has steered Kazakhstan’s ship of state toward modernity and capitalism. Almaty, on the other hand, was the former capital and is

MAIN PHOTO:

Downtown Astana, capitol city of Kazakhstan, gleams in the crisp light of a summer day. Bayterek Tower acts as a focal point.

photo courtesy of wikipedia. ABOVE: Drs. Gary and Daniela Nyberg pause for a photo during their August trip to Kazakhstan. photo courtesy of

drs nyberg.

LEFT:

Kazakhstan’s location gives its climate a broad range of temperatures. image courtesy of

wikipedia.

located eastward, very near China and Mongolia. Many Kazakhs view President Azerbayev in the same ways that Americans revere George Washington: Father of the Country. I liken him more to modern Turkey’s visionary founder, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, because both men founded secular states in lands in which Islam was (and remains) the dominant religion. Both visionary leaders looked westward toward the democratic republics when establishing their own governments. A few comments to counterbalance the unfortunate “Borat” B-movie’s clichéd and negative portrayal of a fictional Kazakh man traveling abroad are in order. Today’s respectable Kazakh culture is both ancient and modern. Urban Kazakhs today are just as technology-dependent and savvy as folks in the West and Far East and are busily embracing globalism. The 9/11/2001 KAZAKHSTAN—cont’d on page 2

attack on the US alerted the West to the strategic importance of Eurasia in the subsequent War on Terror. Kazakhstan is the largest and richest regional player in Eurasia by far and is very near Afghanistan. Kazakhs are multilingual by necessity, with Russian being second only to Kazakh. English and other European languages are offered in many public schools. Because Kazakhstan was the wealthiest of the absorbed states in the former Soviet Union it celebrates its elite status. Today’s population is about 24 percent Russian ethnicity, reflecting two generations of Soviet Union membership. Its rich mineral deposits (99 of 116 elements on the periodic chart are present), petroleum, coal, wheat, cotton and its crossroad location on the northern route of the ancient “Silk Road” (between the Orient and Middle East) have earned Kazakhstan a deserved prestige. Its men and women are legendary in warfare and fought beside their Russians neighbors in WWII. Sizeable Chinese, Mongolian and many other minorities make up the remainder of Kazakhstan’s population and Kazakhstan’s constitution states explicitly that all world religions may be practiced freely. The very difficult economic transition from communism to capitalism has not been without challenges, and oligarchy is among them. While selling “concessions” to foreign firms for access to Kazakhstan’s immense natural resources (coal, petroleum, natural gas, minerals) has yielded enormous financial rewards to both parties, this practice has turned “adolescent” Astana into a sort of national showcase, something like our Orlando or Pasadena, but more tastefully done. Its central city streets are hosed nightly and litter pickers work around the clock to present the city’s best possible face to foreigners and the capital’s proud residents. Rural regions have fared far less well than Astana has in terms of employment and investment so the economic transition is viewed far less favorably in these locations. In fact, the most tragic environmental threat to rural Kazakhstan comes from radiation, especially in the Semey (Semipalatinsk) region of the northeast, where the Soviet Union tested almost 500 nuclear weapons, 116 of them above ground. Of course this is not dissimilar to US’s nuclear weapons testing in the South Pacific and our western deserts. Although Kazakhstan’s tests were halted in 1990 (with the collapse of the USSR), radiation poisoning, birth defects, severe anemia, and leukemia remain problematic in this region. We avoided both this area and the shrinking, polluted Aral Sea, where chemical weapons were developed and stored during the USSR decades. Astana’s International Conference of Traditional Music, hosted by Kazakh National University for Art, offered an array of traditional music performances (sung in Kazakh) and academic research presentations (presented in English) to its global membership. Wife Daniela’s own presentation was the solitary Bulgarian cultural contribution to this global conference. Her impressive command of the Russian language was of indispensible for both private and professional communications because of Kazakhstan’s many Russian speakers. Russian language study was obligatory in public education in Bulgaria as well as Kazakhstan. Astana Sites to Explore

• State Art Museum (legendary Kazakh visual artists on a grand scale) • National University of Music • National Theater • Kasteev (Кастеев) Museum of Traditional Instruments • Baiterek (Elegant Tower that cradles the Tree of Life) • Palace of Peace and Reconciliation (The Pyramid); structure’s four slopes express friendship, unity, peace and tolerance; hosts world religion meetings at the top • Hazret Sultan Mosque: largest mosque in Central Asia; 10,000 worshippers can pray on its floor at same time KAZAKHSTAN—cont’d on page 6

2 • THE REVIEW • OCTOBER 2015

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WHAT’S HAPPENING

IN THIS ISSUE The Review — October 2015, Vol. 13, Issue 10

Cover: A Visit to Kazakhstan

8 SW Washington History

3 What’s Happening

9 Religion:

By Guest Author, Dr. Gary Nyberg

Around Town Over the Garden Gate By Cheryl Spaulding

4 Stepping Stones By Pat Stepp

5 Insects: Webbing By Nora Garofoli

TOPS #1489 Meets in Kalama The Kalama Tops (Take Off Pounds Sensibly) group meets every Tuesday at 9 am for their weigh in and meeting at the Kalama Methodist Church at 111 N 2nd Street. It is a low cost, educational support Group. Any questions call Debbie at 360-673-5183.

By Karen Johnson

Like Vashti, PART ONE By Lori Anderson

11 Restaurant Review: The Pita House By Diva Gastronomique

12 New Business: Luckman Coffee Company

By Staff of The Review

WHAT’S HAPPENING Pomeroy Farm Pumpkin Lane to open! Pomeroy Living History Farm kicks off the 2015 Pumpkin Season with the opening of Pumpkin Lane on October 3rd. Open the first four weekends in October (closed Halloween Day) this year’s hours will be Saturdays 10am–4pm and Sundays 11am–4pm. Admission is $6 for adults, and $4 for children ages 3-11; kids 2 and under are free. The mile-long hayride around Pumpkin Lane features over 100 pumpkin people set in various scenes and vignettes. Also there’s a hay bale maze for children, pumpkin flume game, yard games, barn animals, several fun photo opportunities and more! Our historic log house will also be open for tours during Pumpkin Lane, Saturdays from 11am-4pm and Sundays 12-4pm. The trip around Pumpkin Lane will make a stop at our pumpkin patch where you and your family can pick out the perfect pumpkins! Pumpkins are an additional fee, with prices starting at just $1. The Farm Café will be open throughout the day, offering hot dogs and polish dogs, baked potatoes, snacks, hot and cold beverages, and of course, pumpkin pie. Proceeds benefit the educational programs hosted by the Pomeroy Living History Farm. The Farm is a non-profit living history museum interpreting pre-electric life in the Lucia Valley of Southwest Washington. The Farm is located at 20902 NE Lucia Falls Rd, Yacolt, Washington. Please call (360) 686-3537or visit www.pomeroyfarm.org for directions or further information. Harvest Fest Saturday, October 3rd, 2015, 4pm – 7pm at the Pleasant View Community Church, 14756 Lewis River Rd., Ariel, WA 98603. Featuring The Roosevelt Road Trio from 5:15 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. There will be free food – music – games, drawing for prizes, old fashion apple press, bake shop / sweet shop, face painting, vintage car show, and much more… Coming Up at the Kalama Library… TEENS: Friends of the Library Kalama are having a Teen afternoon program from 3–5 pm on 2nd and 4th Wednesdays of each month. It will be held at the city hall council chambers 320 N 1st Street in Kalama. Kickoff date is October 14th. Come and join friends, play games and have snacks! BOOK SALE: Come and check out our books to read on a scary night—Friends of the Library Kalama book sale is October 16 from 9 am to 4 pm at the Kalama city council chambers 320 N 1st Sreet, Kalama. Hardbacks are $1, paper backs 50 cents plus many children books and special interest books. STORY TIME: Come and join Storytime sponsored by Friends of the Library Kalama every Wednesday starting at 11a.m. We’ll have crafts, stories and fun at 320 N 1st Street in Kalama. AGLOW meeting coming up! Meeting location: Shiloh Fellowship Church, 10709 SE 10th St., Vancouver. Time: 7:00 p.m., with fellowship at 6:00 p.m. For more information: (360) 694-6914. TOPS #1129 Meets in Woodland The TOPS #1129 Group meets at 9:00 a.m. on Tuesdays for their weighin and meeting at the Woodland Community Center located at 782 Park Street. For more information contact Delores at 360-606-6434.

Please call if you have questions: Phone: (360) 225-1273; web: www.reviewmediagroup.com; e-mail: info@reviewmediagroup.com Mailing address: PO Box 244, Woodland, WA 98674 Deadlines: Please see our deadlines on our website at www.reviewmediagroup.com. Circulation approx. 10,000 throughout Woodland, Kalama, Ridgefield, La Center, Vancouver, and Kelso/Longview). Published monthly on the first of the month with Special Editions each year. Owner, Publisher, Editor: Gloria Loughry; Advertising Sales: Gloria Loughry, Cheryl Spaulding; Columnists/Guest Writers/Invaluable Helpers: Lori Anderson, Norma Brunson, Nora Garofoli, Tony & Cheryl Spaulding, Pat Stepp, Matt Coffey, Karen Johnson, and Guest Contributors; Printed by: The Gresham Outlook

TOPS #1056 Meets in Vancouver TOPS WA 1056 Vancouver, meets every Wednesday at the Shiloh Fellowship Church located at 10709 SE 10th Street Vancouver, WA 98684. Weigh in begins at 8:15. The meetings are 9:30 to 10:30. Any questions, please contact Barbara Smith at 360-9014634 or at Barbarassouthern breeze@gmail.com. SW Washington Gold Prospectors Meet! The SW Washington Gold Prospectors club meets every 2nd Sunday every month at 1:00 p.m. at the Minnehaha Grange Hall at 4905 NE St. Johns Road in Vancouver, WA. For more information contact Steve at 971-212-5996 or go to www.swwgoldprospectors.org or see their Facebook page at www.facebook.com/pages/Swwgp. Volunteers Needed Woodland Mobile Meals is in need of volunteer drivers. Meals are picked up at the America’s Family Diner on Lewis River Drive at 10:45 along with recipients names and addresses. Delivery usually takes a little over an hour. If you are interested in assisting with this outreach to seniors program please call Moze Meeker at 225-6501 or June Jones at Woodland Real Estate 225-8278. Deliveries are in the Woodland, WA, metro area. Mall Adoption Events for the Humane Society of Cowlitz County. We are at the Three Rivers Mall in the former Fibre Credit Union space on Friday and Saturday, the 3rd weekend of every month. We will have cats and dogs for adoption. All are micro-chipped and current on shots; all cats, and many of our dogs are already spayed/neutered. For a complete list of all adoptable animals at the Humane Society please direct individuals to www.cowlitzhumane.com or www.petfinder.com. Host an Exchange Student? ASSE International Student Exchange Programs (ASSE) is seeking local host families for international high school boys and girls. These students are 15 to 18 years of age, and are coming to this area for the upcoming high school year or semester. These personable and academically selected exchange students are conversant in English, bright, curious and anxious to learn about this country through living as part of a family, attending high school and sharing their own culture and language with their newly adopted host family. Those persons interested in obtaining more information about becoming a host family should call toll free: 1-800-733-2773 or go to host.asse.com. There are many students to choose from, so call or go online— and begin the process of selecting your new host son or daughter today!

NO MORE DRYER SHEETS Tired of paying for dryer sheets? Try wadding up some aluminum foil and tossing it in the dryer with your next load. There will be no chemicals used and you’ll find no static cling either! —Erin Send your time and money saving tips to: Dollar Stretcher Tips, 6695 Cortez Road W., Bradenton FL 34210. If we use your tip we'll send you 3 free issues of our monthly newsletter. Copyright © 2015 Dollar Stretcher, Inc.

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ALL REAL ESTATE advertised in this newspaper is subject to the Federal Fair Housing Act of 1978, which makes it illegal to advertise “any preference, limitation or discrimination based on race, sex, or national origin, or an intention to make any such preference, limitation or discrimination”. The Review will not knowingly accept any advertising for real estate which is in violation of the law. All dwellings advertised in this newspaper are available on an equal opportunity basis. To complain of discrimination, call HUD toll free at 1-800-424-8590.

PRAYER WARRIOR will pray for you. Give me a call if you have a need. 360-567-5146.

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FOR RENT

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e expect a garden to produce vegetables, flowers, trees, shrubs and herbs. All-purpose Garlic is one of the most important herb plants we can have in our garden. The last crop to go into the garden, garlic is planted in fall and harvested the following summer. Flavorful, nutritious, and helpful for warding off vampires, garlic also is easy to grow as long as you plant varieties By Cheryl Spaulding suited to your climate. Beyond its intense flavor and culinary uses garlic is also good in the garden as an insect repellent and has been used for centuries as a home remedy. Garlic is best planted in the fall in northwest gardens. Plant in October and you’ll find that your bulbs are bigger and more flavorful when you harvest next summer. There are three types of varieties of garlic: Soft neck, Stiff neck, and Great-headed (Elephant). Soft neck varieties, like their name suggests, have necks or stems that stay soft after harvest, and are the types that you see braided. Soft neck varieties are recommended for warmer climates. Soft necks have a strong, intense flavor. Stiff neck varieties grow one ring of cloves around a stem; there is not a layer of cloves as there are in soft neck varieties. They are extremely cold hardy, but do not store as well or last long as other varieties. The flavor is milder than soft neck varieties. Great-headed varieties are less hardy, and more closely related to leeks than other varieties. Their flavor is very mild and more like onion than traditional garlic. Bulbs and cloves are large, with about 4 cloves to a bulb. Begin by breaking apart cloves from bulb a few days before planting, but keep the papery husk on each individual clove. Garden Hint: Do not plant cloves from the grocery store. They may be unsuitable for growing in this area, and most are treated to prevent spouting anyway, making them harder to grow. Instead, get your garlic cloves from your local nursery or a mail order seed catalog. Garlic grows best in soil that is well-drained with plenty of organic matter. I use well-composted horse manure but steer or chicken manure will work just as well. Make sure it is aged or well composted. Select a sunny spot and plant cloves 4 inches apart and 2 inches deep, with the wide root side facing down and pointed end facing up. And then just wait. Let Mother Nature and the fall and winter rains take over from there. If you live in an area where you expect snow and heavy freezing add a layer of mulch. Just make sure you pull back the mulch in the spring to allow the new garlic shoots to emerge and weed as necessary. Once the sprouts appear above ground water every three or four days depending on

Growing the Garden Gate “Stinking Rose”

Stepping Stones BY PAT STEPP

“And like this insubstantial pageant faded Leave not a rack behind. We are such stuff As dreams are made on: and our little life Is roundedwith a sleep.” —Shakespeare, “The Tempest”

awoke drenched in perspiration, glad to open my eyes after the nightmare. The very thing I had dreaded most to happen, did happen! The wearing of head mics (microphones) was essential for our Young at Heart Senior Theatre Club’s production of “Still Cruising Along… A Tropical Holiday Tour”. At rehearsal, a head mic had been taped to my face, over the grease paint, shortly before I was due on stage for my solo. This new activity right before my entrance had made me forget some of the lyrics. When I told my friend of my experience, she said she had also forgotten lyrics for her solo. The next day was our dress rehearsal, it was the first time in four years for such a quick costume change. Getting into my sarong had made the head mic rush even more alarming, and my unfastened mic kept falling off my ear during my number. There had been a tutorial that afternoon about learning the care and keeping of the head mics. We were then told the procedure to be used when using the restroom with the electronic devices on while in costume. “Remove the transmitter attached to your back and attach it to your shirtfront. If one falls into the toilet, they are not waterproof. Each one costs over $500!” Back to my nightmare: the person in charge had found an abandoned head mic back stage. Next, another was lost, and offstage actors, including myself, were looking for it everywhere. When it was finally found, it was in pieces, making the singer who was in charge of the mics miss the cue line. The play went on, without the big number. At that point the singer gathered up all the head microphones, fled the Green Room, and ran outside. After the closing number, the troupe was one member short for bows. I tried shaking off the nightmare, hoping it would not be prophetic (like Caesar’s wife dreaming of his demise on the Ides of March.) “All the world’s stage. And all the men and women mere players; They have their exits and their entrances. And one man in his time plays many parts” Opening Night is now just hours away, and I must bravely keep on keeping on. After all, “The show must go on.” Still another line comes to mind, “The play’s the thing” as The Bard” recorded. Shakespeare also wrote: “ A dream itself is but a shadow”. Was I going to blow singing Bali Ha’i” because of a shadow? Am I superstitious? I asked myself. No, not like my grandfather. Born in 1865, he would not go out after dark because of “the things that go bump in the night”. Hopefully, I have evolved past that. I stand fearless to “Break a leg!” tonight onstage. the spring rains and fertilize if you see yellowing leaves. Garlic has very few problems with pests in the garden (in fact, it’s a natural Upcycled Furniture • Household • Everday Whimsy pest repellent!), and also very few probReady for a change? lems with the diseases that plague other Stop by and see what veggies. White Rot, a fungus, can attack garlic in cool weather. Not much can be we have for fall! done to control or prevent the problem 360 225-9966 except rotating your crops and cleaning 1227 N. Goerig, Suite A • Woodland, WA up the area after harvesting. The spores Hours: M–F, 10 to 6; Sat. 10 to 4 can survive in the soil for many years. New Inventory Weekly! • Ask us about Rada Cutlery! Others beasties include onion thrips which rasps pale grooves into garlic leaves. Keep Your ONLY Woodland-Area Feed Store! planting areas near garlic Why drive 1/2 hour or more? Shop local and save! and onions well weeded to reduce the weedy habitat thrips prefer. If onion root maggots AND/OR become a problem dust the area around plants with diatomaceous earth in late spring, which is when the TWO BAGS OR MORE • ASK ABOUT SPECIAL egg-laying females are PRICING most active. • EXPIRES 10/31/2015 • 50 LB. BAGS Prevent fusarium and other soil borne root rot Check out our diseases by growing garlic Organic Feeds! in well-drained, fertile soil. & 1501 Guild Road, Woodland Avoid injuring the roots Hours: M-Sat., 10–6; when weeding; diseases Closed Sundays

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Webbing

den Insect ar s G

ate summer and early fall are prime times to better see spider webs of different styles. The engineers of these constructions are at their prime in size so their webs are at their max as well. Many of the plants that will be employed as supports are also mature enough to be employed for the height or strength needed in web building. The dew is also more available and makes the webs show up nicely in the mornings. Orb weaver webs, funnel web spider webs and grass spider webs are the most common types of webs that will show up. o Some of the spider webbings you won’t see are of the jumping spiders, the wood ST K oOvLI OR n ow andGL YA louse spiders and wolf spiders among others. These gals and guys don’t build the OF R ND A PHOTO S BY NORA classic web we often think of. They use their spider silk mostly as safety lines, for containing prey and swaddling eggs sacs. Some types of spiders are able to make about eight types of silk. Spiders make their silk in special glands in their lower abdomen. They then spin the silk from spinnerets on their lower abdomen. The number of spinnerets a spider has varies species to speCOMPLETE AUTO REPAIR! cies. They can have as few as two and up to BRAKES • TIRES • ALIGNMENTS four spinnerets. The classic orb weaver spoked web con$ 00 ANY SERVICE… struction is made up of probably three or 1944 Belmont Loop • Woodland, WA • M–F, 7:30 – 5:30 four kinds of silk. The main supports of the web are made of the strongest www.reeds-automotive.com type of silk and aren’t sticky like the type of silk used to span the spokes of the web. The spokes of the web are not sticky either and are made of another kind of silk. One of the types of silk they use is very stretchy. It can take the hit of a large insect Auto–Truck and not break, ensuring a meal for the hard working web builder. She will need many Heavy Duty–Marine more meals to build and repair her web. The Farm–RV–Paint meals provide the protein she will need to make her webbing. Often spiders will eat OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK! their badly damaged webs to re-use the protein rich silk for a new web. 360 The funnel web spider’s web is built with

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UPPER BACKGROUND PHOTO: I was able to sneak up on my funnel web neighbor and catch her as she was monitoring her web in the morning. You can see her legs just outside her tunnel and her body silhouette as she sits just inside her tunnel. She is sitting just above center in the picture. ABOVE:

Funnel web sprinkled with mist. One of several in this large azalea.

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WEBBING—cont’d on page 9

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OCTOBER 2015 • THE REVIEW • 5

TOP, PANORAMIC PHOTO:

A view of Central Astana on a snowy day in February 2013.

KAZAKHSTAN—cont’d from page 2

• The President’s Palace (Akorda) • Khan Shatyr (Khan’s Tent) offers worldclass shopping and entertainment in climatecontrolled comfort, even when outdoor temperatures swing between –40° F and +110° degrees F. In sub-zero midwinter Kazakhs can enjoy a virtual vacation to Havana at the Tent’s tropical beach. • Bursbeie Park and Lakes: Forests of pine and birch below snow fields yield streams that flow into several lakes, a favorite destination for family camping and water sports.

ABOVE:

The Museum of Traditional Instruments in Astana

social contract. In our limited experience, hitch hiking was entirely safe. It was enjoyable to mingle informally with these kind, ordinary Kazakhs. Modern taxis, trains and buses offer convenient alternatives. Beneath a rural wind farm’s power turbines one may view unfenced herds of hundreds of horses, cattle and sheep, grazing under the watchful eyes of herders and their dogs. Regrettably, we could not travel to any of Kazakhstan’s four deserts to ride the iconic, double-humped Bactrian cam- The Khan Shat els used along many of the res the ancient Silk Road in caravans. Restaurants may offer menus printed only in Cyrillic alphabet so most Americans must hope

Excellent tollways offer easy access to rural life. Often traffic-free, these seemingly endless highways feature continuous guardrails, frequent snowdrift fences, reinforced concrete electric poles and well-lit intersections. Bus stop shelters (even in the middle of nowhere), family farms with traditional yurts, barns and corrals for livestock, and ancient but operational Russian-made tractors and trucks are part of everyday rural life. Exits may offer large concrete ramps for performing self-repairs beneath vehicles of any size or purpose. Fueling stations are far apart so wise drivers carry extra fuel and top off fuel tanks. Rural roads in several regions can become impassibly muddy or icy, so towing a fellow traveler out of a rut is part of a shared social contract. Hitch hiking is very widely used for transportation everywhere we traveled and freelance taxis like “Uber” ABOVE: The Palace of Arts in Astana, Kazakhstan. would never RIGHT: A traditional test of horsemanship and skill as riders wrestle gain traction for control of a ram carcass, riding full speed to a goal line while in Kazakhstan. defending their prize from contenders. One need only stand by a street or road for a young, English-speaking waiter. Urban neighborwith one arm extended hoods near hostels may operate ala carte, low-cost lower than horizontal and public cafeterias. Every neighborhood has family-owned “magazines” (магазини) a driver will soon stop to (local markets) with fresh items. Imagine the small Columbia Heights or Coal Creek discuss your destination stores in Longview. Freshly roasted cashews were both inexpensive and delicious. and modest payment. This is another respectable Almaty sites to visit: • Veteran’s Park with Eternal Flame (WW II) example of the Kazakh’s • Museum of Folk Music Instruments: Located beside Veteran’s Memorial Park and

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the eternal flame, this museum displays an impressive assortment of traditional, authentic Kazakh instruments and offers classes, hosts concerts, lectures, weddings and celebrations for families and child-musicians. • Big Almaty Lake: Perched 2500 meters above sea level, this is the drinking tyr Entertainment Center in Astana rovides an indoor escape for water source for Kazakhsidents. photo courtesy of wikipedia stan’s largest city. Access is difficult but possible—but only if one knows how to “encourage” its guards. • Medeo: Kazahstan’s answer to the Swiss Alps (or Idaho’s Sun Valley) is an alpine winter sports complex SE of Almaty. Nature photography, hang gliding, camping and climbing are popular in summer. The air is sweet and clean. Kazakhstan celebrates its ancient horse-related history and was allegedly the first to have selectively bred horses. Native Kazakh horses are like “cutting” horses used by American cowboys: agile, athletic, never too large, obedient, friendly and loyal. This breed was created to out-maneuver larger, slower livestock and to be fearless in battle. Even spirited stallions learn to submit to highly authoritative discipline. We enjoyed watching straight-line horse sprints, in-saddle men’s wrestling, bare-chested, and contests between mounted men trying to successfully pick up a beheaded ram carcass while riding full speed and carrying it to the goal line while other contenders charge with their stallions and butt the rider holding the carcass, trying to dislodge his grip from its exposed Achilles tendon. The best man wins respect. We also witnessed a re-enactment of a traditional theft of a prospective bride from her circle of village womenfolk by the prospective groom, who lifted the

LEFT:

KAZAKHSTAN—cont’d on page 9

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young ladies bride by her waist display a across the horse’s neck variety of and delivered her facetraditional down to his family costumes of the peoples of home. The fully armed Kazakhstan. and armored bride’s photo courtesy father then rode into the of wikipedia groom’s family home courtyard to negotiate honorable terms of marriage and was prepared to challenge the groom’s family. Marriage was traditionally more about family estate assets than affection. Contestant-volunteers wore their family’s traditional costumes: helmets, armor, wooden re-curved archery bows, swords, javelins, arrows, scabbards, belts, plumes, sashes. Very tall, conical headdresses and embroidered aprons decorated women while heavily bejeweled horse bridles, saddles, stirrups, bits also displayed family wealth and prestige. Traditional Kazakh music offers an exotic feast: men’s throat singing that mystically displays the array of natural harmonics above the guttural, low fundamental frequency,

OCTOBER 2015 • THE REVIEW • 7

SW riting an advance column about our Northwest weather is an iffy NG W proposition. Gloria Loughry, the multi-tasking owner/publisher/ WASHINGTON editor of this fine periodical, likes her columnists to submit their work a TO ORY HISTORY few weeks ahead of publication date. So I can’t be sure what our weath-

Wet Weather

from the Columbia River to Puget Sound. After reviewing the existing road situation (dismal), submitting his report to his superiors (with dismal results), and suffering through Northwest weather (also dismal), he finally vacated the premises for sunnier climes, to his vast relief. But before he left the Northwest, he put his pointed pen to paper, and wrote the following treatise titled “Phoenix on Wet Weather.”

er will be like when this column actually appears in print at the beginning of the month. Nevertheless, even after our horrendously dry summer, I feel confident that our rains will return, sooner or later. Hence, “It gives me unfeigned pleasure to inform you that I am about to this column on wet weather. quit the gloomy and never-to-be-dried-up sky of Oregon, and Allow me to introduce you to George Horatio Derby. Derby was an ‘repair without unnecessary delay’ to D——, on our borders. Yes, officer in the U.S. Army Corps of Topographical Engineers in the 1840s Sir, I’m off; ‘services’ no longer required on these inclement shores— and 1850s. (He graduated from West Point, and, in fact, his time there shores, which, when you read of in Irving’s ‘Astoria,’ you naturally overlapped with that of Ulysses S. Grant.) By 1853, Derby had been wish to behold, and admire old Astor’s pluck in making establishposted to San Diego, where he ments thereon, and which, when you reach, you wish you hadn’t, and BY KAREN L. JOHNSON oversaw flood control operations admire still more old Astor’s good sense in breaking his estabaround San Diego Bay. lishments up, and quitting while there was yet time. Now Derby was not “Rain is an exceedingly pleasant and gratifying institution in your average military its way, and in moderation; it causes the grass to grow, the blosman. He supplemented soms to flourish, and is a positive necessity to the umbrellahis military pay by maker; but when you get to a country where it rains incessantly writing not-so-tonguetwenty-six hours a day, for seventeen months in the year, you in-cheek articles under cannot resist having the conviction forced upon your mind that the pen names of “John the thing is slightly overdone. That’s the case in Oregon; it comPhoenix” and “John P. menced raining pretty heavily on the third of last November, and Squibob” for various continued up to the fifteenth of May, when it set in for a long California newspapers. storm, which isn’t fairly over yet. There’s moisture for you. Wielding a keen wit “The consequences of this awful climate are just what might and a pen dipped in be supposed. The immense quantity of the protoxide squirted acid, he was not afraid about here causes trees, buildings, streets, every thing, to present a diluted and to make fun of the military, and for wishy-washy appearance. The women lose their color, the men their hair, this he was occasionally chastised. (washed off, Sir,) and the animals, by constant exposure, acquire scales and One source claims one of his “jokes” fins, like the natives of the great deep. In fact, all the inhabitants of this terriresulted in his being assigned to the tory have a generally scaly appearance, and rejoice in a peculiar smell, a ABOVE: Shown here as a student at West California desert. combination, I should say, of a fish-ball and a fresh mud-sucker. The rains of Point in 1846, Derby graduated seventh in Derby hit our neck of the woods a class of ’59. Oregon beat every thing in that line I ever beheld or conceived of. Those that when he was posted to the PortlandCARTOON DRAWINGS: Derby purchased the fell on Noah’s ark were not more heavy; those of Nero, Caligula, and I. Neely San Diego Herald in 1856, and drew Vancouver area to take charge of the Johnson, not more terrible; nor those of Lady Suffolk and Moscow longer or this self-portrait as an overworked military roads department of the stronger, which is a slightly mixed metaphor of a very happy description. So, editor. His editorship was short-lived, Pacific in 1854–56. His assignment as the paper went out of business in upon the whole, I’m glad I’m off; yes, I am quite sure of it; and I long to get was to locate the best route for a road 1860. to D——, where the people enjoy the light of the blessed sun, and where I can enjoy it also, and dry my things, and read Irving’s ‘Astoria.’ “Howbeit, there are many interesting and curious things in Oregon; many odd and entertaining people also therein; and I have seen much that was funny, and laughed thereat, and should have laughed louder and longer if my mouth had not filled with rain before I had half finished; and I might perhaps regret leaving a country in which I have had so much positive enjoyment, were it not that I have chronicled all these amusing things and peculiarities, and shall be glad to get somewhere I can have a dry laugh over them. Such a thing as ‘dry humor’ in Oregon is, of course, a physical impossibility.” Dry humor, indeed. Derby has been mentioned in the same breath as Mark Twain and James Thurber—in fact, Twain himself called Derby the “first great modern humorist.” Despite his successful ventures and adventures with pen and ink, Derby remained with WEATHER—cont’d on page 9

8 • THE REVIEW • OCTOBER 2015

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KAZAKHSTAN—cont’d from page 7

GARDENING—cont’d from page 4

polyphonic part-singing or instrumental playing with a melody superimposed above a drone, unusual plucked instruments that use huge and scratchy-sounding picks and bowed string instruments, a variety of wooden flutes, booming hoop drums (some with jingles), hourglass drums, ram’s horns, and more familiar Middle Eastern instruments similar to the oud and tanbur. Accomplished performers of traditional music anywhere share a universal, spiritual approach: first, tune yourself; second, tune your instrument (or voice); lastly, tune the audience. It’s all about spiritual journey rather than presentation of music as a commodity that was created for entertainment, fame and fortune. We could only touch the surface of this large country in a few places in July and have already begun designing an itinerary for our next (and deeper) visit. What have we learned from traveling earlier in so many foreign countries (myself, about 60, Daniela, about 80)? We stopped counting.

often enter plants through broken tissue. To harvest, loosen soil with a fork, pull the bulbs from the ground and shake off the soil. Garlic bruises easily, so avoid banging the bulbs. The crop is also vulnerable to sunscald, so place the bulbs in a shady spot. Harvest time depends on when you plant, but the clue is to look for yellow tops. Harvest when the tops begin to yellow and fall over but before they are completely dry. I usually harvest in late July. Discontinue watering and check one bulb for clove size and husk quality. You don’t want the husk to disintegrate but if you dig too early the bulb will be immature. To harvest, carefully lift the bulbs with a spade or garden fork. Pull the plants, carefully brush off the soil, and let them cure in an airy, shady spot for two weeks. You hang them upside down on a string in bunches of 4 to 6. Just make sure all sides get good air circulation. Once the wrappers are dry and papery, the roots dry and the root crown hard, the bulbs are cured and ready to store. Remove any dirt and trim off any roots or leaves but keep the papers husks on. Bulbs should be stored in a cool (40 degrees F), dark, dry place, and will remain useable for several months. Don’t store in your basement if it’s moist! Set aside of your largest, best-formed bulbs to plant again in the fall.

1. The performing arts present the best kind of intercultural diplomacy because they are person to person and pretense and social status are stripped away. The arts are universal and are basic education curriculum. 2. Foreign language study must be basic education in today’s schools because our children were born into an era of globalization. 3. America has much to learn from nations that are both older and wiser. It’s called humility. I’ve needed to apologize for American colonialism

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many times because we Americans do not see ourselves as others see us. 4. All people have more in common than they have differences. About the Author: Gary Nyberg grew up in a N. Idaho logging camp as a son of a Swedish immigrant father. His mother was an ethnic English Daughter of the American Revolution. Three fourths of his family lives in Europe. He was awarded by the US Dept. of State a prestigious Fulbright Scholar Award to study in residence in Bulgaria, where he met his future and present wife, Daniela Ivanova, a published PhD ethnochoreologist, author, poet, philologist, and philosopher. Dr. Nyberg is no stranger to Southwest Washington. He has performed music between 200 and 300 times for Cowlitz County audiences and beyond, served 33 years as the instrumental and music theory instructor for Lower Columbia College and was the SW Washington Youth Symphony’s founding President. The Washington Music Educators Association honored him as an Outstanding Music Educator. He has performed instrumental music across the US and abroad and most recently appeared in Seattle as an instrumentalist with his Bulgarian wife Daniela as vocalist. He has also served as a faculty member at University of Calgary, Alberta. Retirement in 2011 has liberated him to travel more broadly and frequently as a musical diplomat on behalf of both the performing arts and the USA.

—Happy Gardening!

WEATHER—cont’d from page 8

the Army, and was eventually posted to Florida where he became the resident lighthouse engineer. While living there with his family, his health deteriorated due to sunstroke or, some surmise, a brain tumor. He died in 1861.

Derby’s humor outlived him. A compilation of several of his articles, published in 1855 under the title Phoenixiana, caught on across the country, and has gone through about 40 editions. I hope to bring you another dose of Derby’s writing in the near future.

INSECTS—cont’d from page 5

a sheet-like surface that isn’t sticky and has a lot of tension on it that the spider monitors with one or two legs. When the proper vibrations occur she runs out and quickly grabs her prey, injecting it with venom to subdue it. She then carries it back to her tunnel entrance for a meal or snack depending on the size of the prey she caught. Jumping spiders use their spider webbing only as a safety line. They wander about hunting prey or sometimes they hang out in a safe spot and wait for something to wander by. They will study it with their large eyes and very good eyesight. They will make their pounce calculations and jump to catch it. As they make the jump they spin and pay out a safety line of silk for that rare chance of a miss that may end in a nasty fall. They can either use that line to return to their first position or use it to gently land in new spot. Recently a high school student’s experiment was selected to go up to the International Space Station. His experiment involved a jumping spider. What he was testing for was the spider’s ability to adapt to the weightlessness in space and catching prey. Could the spider still accurately jump and catch its meals of fruit flies they had sent up with it. The spider did successfully adapt to weightlessness and caught plenty of meals while she was in orbit aboard the ISS. I just recently happened to catch a little video, hosted by Bill Nye, on line about this. There are several funnel web spiders residing in my vegetable garden. One of them is settled in at about three feet high with a nice big web using sunflower stalks, annual morning glory vines and other various vegetation for supports. I can see her as she rests at the entrance of her tunnel waiting for prey, but as soon as she sees me move

or come near she backs down her tunnel to where she feels safer. Her web is about ten inches or so in diameter and the little tunnel entrance is about the size of a dime. Her body length is only about one half to three fourths of an inch long. When she is out monitoring her web she will have one or two legs gently resting on the web outside the tunnel. Her web is a bit littered with small debris, but she will either pick that off or tear her web down and build a bigger better one. It takes quite a bit of work to build a web, but it must sometimes be rebuilt. Grass spiders have a similar type web as the funnel web spiders, but usually down low in the grasses of more undisturbed areas. I often see them in late summer in the messy grass edges of my yard where the line trimmer doesn’t reach. I rarely water my lawn in summer so the dry, dead, abandoned areas make great habitat for these sheet web spinners. The dewy or misty mornings show off these webs nicely and I can see better who I am sharing my lawn edges with. I never tire of seeing and learning about the many sizes and types of little life forms I share my piece of earth with. The variety is awe inspiring and also mind boggling. The behaviors that all these critters have developed to live in their habitats adds even more interest. I hope you go out for a little marveling in your neighborhood or wildlife refuge.

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“If it pleases the king, let a royal edict be issued by him and let it be written in the laws of Persia and Media so that it cannot be repealed, that Vashti may no longer come into the presence of King Ahasuerus, and let the king give her royal position to another who is more worthy than she.” —Esther 1:19 NASB

ashti must have been the mega-star of her day. Every generation has mega-stars that the impressionable masses want to be like, look like, or act like. Queen Vashti had to be the one of her day! Queen of the known world. Married to the King of the known world. Powerful, rich, and beautiful beyond compare. The center of attention. Worthy of adulation. Worthy of praise. Worthy of everything, in her own mind and in the mind of her adorers. Vashti was “worthy”. Ah, but there is a world of difference between thinking yourself worthy and actually being worthy, between thinking you are special and actually being special, and between being like a Vashti and being like an Esther. (For you fellows, there is a lot of difference between being like a Haman and being like a Mordecai.) Are these names unfamiliar? These are the principal players in one of the most important events of history, the players in the attempted annihilation and ultimate rescue of an entire race of people. This historic event unfolded around 486 to 473 BC in the days of King Ahasuerus, who reigned from India to Ethiopia—over 127 provinces—the entire known world at the time. (Most scholars agree this is the same person as King Xerxes I of Persia*.) This account is located in the Old Testament Book of Esther. In Esther’s day, King Ahasuerus was the most powerful man in the world and he knew it. He flaunted it and celebrated it. The Bible tells us that Ahasuerus, “... in the third year of his reign he gave a banquet for all his princes and attendants, the army officers of Persia and Media, the nobles and the princes of his provinces being in his presence. And he displayed the riches of his royal glory and the splendor of his great majesty for many days, 180 days. When these days were completed, the king gave a banquet lasting seven days for all the people who were present at the citadel in Susa, from the greatest to the least, in the court of the garden of the king’s palace (Esther 1:3–5).” During this time (483 BC), Vashti was queen. Now Vashti was the most powerful woman in the world and she knew it. She flaunted it and she celebrated it. We are told that she too gave a banquet in the King’s palace for all the women. So the fellows were living it up in

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Vasht i

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the Citadel and the ladies were living it up in the palace when along came the clash of the Titans. The all-powerful king requested the all-powerful queen’s presence! No, he required it and sent his servants to fetch her. He wanted to show off Queen Vashti’s beauty to all the people, for she was, according to the Bible, very beautiful. We aren’t really told much more than that in the Bible. There is a lot of speculation that surrounds this instance in history. Vashti supposedly paraded her slaves around in the nude so by equal measure, and divine payback, Vashti was supposedly requested to parade for the King’s guests in the nude, wearing only the royal crown. Some say Vashti was beheaded as a result of her refusal. My daughter’s college history teacher says Vashti was not executed and returned to power eventually. Cutting through all the different opinions and unverifiable information (I can’t find credible sources), and just using the text in the Bible, we are simply told Vashti refused! For whatever undisclosed reason, she wouldn’t leave her party, her guests, her revelry. Ouch! Queen or not, the rule of that day was the King was the rule! No one, not even the Queen, was above his law. Yet, here was this very beautiful woman, who sounded like she viewed herself rather highly, dishonoring her husband in front of massive amounts of people. Dishonoring your husband is never going to end well, especially in front of others! Not sure what she was thinking. Did she believe herself impervious to consequences because of her beauty and position? Did her time with the women involve complaining, comparing, and colluding against the men like so many gatherings of women these days do? Did Vashti desire to show superiority in front of her cohorts by disobeying her husband, the King? The answers, we are not told. However, we are told the King was furious! We are told he asked his legal advisors what to legally do with Vashti. We are also told what their recommendation was in Esther 1:16–22: “In the presence of the king and the princes, Memucan said, “Queen Vashti has wronged not only the king Northwood Park Funeral but also all the princes and all the peoples who are in Home & Cemetery all the provinces of King Funeral Home • Mausoleum • Cemetery Cremation & Memorial Services, Traditional Funerals ls Ahasuerus. For the queen’s The ONLY Glass Front Niches in Clark County! conduct will become known to all the women causing 16407 NE 15th • Ridgefield, WA 360 them to look with contempt on their husbands by sayWoodland Funeral Home ing, ‘King Ahasuerus comTraditional Services & Cremations 360225-8441 manded Queen Vashti to be 828 Goerig St. • Woodland, WA brought in to his presence, but she did not come.’ This day the ladies of Persia and Media who have heard of the queen’s conduct will speak in the same way to all the king’s princes, and there 233 Davidson Ave. Woodland, WA 98674 will be plenty of contempt • Carpet • Ceramic Tile • Installation supplies and anger. If it pleases the • Pad • Countertops • Hardwood king, let a royal edict be • Vinyl • Marble, Granite, Stone • Laminate Flooring issued by him and let it be Sales & Installations written in the laws of Persia Locally Serving and Media so that it cannot owned and (360) Woodland be repealed, that Vashti may operated since 1994 no longer come into the

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presence of King Ahasuerus, and let the king give her royal position to another who is more worthy than she. When the king’s edict which he will make is heard throughout all his kingdom, great as it is, then all women will give honor to their husbands, great and small. This word pleased the king and the princes, and the king did as Memucan proposed. So he sent letters to all the king’s provinces, to each province according to its script and to every people according to their language, that every man should be the master in his own house…” Every man the master in his own house? Them there’s fightin’ words in these days! But the truth is, fellows do want to feel honored. Even today, fellows want to be treated with respect and treated like they are kings of their realm! This is not a bad thing. Us ladies like to be treated like the queens of our realm, right? We want to be thought of as special and we want to be specially loved. That special type of love and treatment does not come from nagging and manipulating and coercing. That type of special love and treatment cannot be found from the world the world’s way, which was what Vashti was doing. She considered herself special. She considered herself entitled to special treatment. She demanded special treatment. She used her own criteria to measure her own worth by, beauty and social status being two that were mentioned. No, being like Vashti (or any of our modern day idols) is not the way at all, at least not the way for true love and true respect and the special treatment that comes with that. The only way to get away from anything superficial and temporary is to follow God’s ways. God’s ways are not our ways. The Bible says it is more important to be special to God than be special to the world. God sees things differently. He sees what is on the inside. God sees our hearts. He sees our sacrifices and what we give up for the benefit of others. At the end of our earthly lives, God will measure us by what we did for Him and LIKE VASHTI—cont’d on page 11

G�ea��es�…

1 John 4:1–3

e have five boys in our family. There are times when that unbalance of power with their sisters is a bit overwhelming. They aren’t “naturally” quiet and competition is often the name of the game. With their ages ranging from four to eighteen, the older ones more often have a more civilized type of competition like football without pads! The younger ones operate on more primitive levels. In the young boys’ game of competition, the best way to assure you can win is to have help. If an older brother can be on your side, you are a lot harder to beat. Greatness in the competitions of early youth is decided by who is on your side! John calls us to live a life that’s key word is “love”. In order to be great in living love, you don’t have to be strong or older, just dependent. Indeed, even though the Love that God has put in out hearts makes us somewhat vulnerable (see 1 John 4:1– 3), we are promised victory. In our innocence we would be easily overwhelmed if it were not for the FACT that “greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world” (v. 4). The one in the world is, of course, Satan. He is the “prince of the power of the air” (Ephesians 2:2). But Jesus lives in the believer. He will place all His enemies under His feet (Hebrews 10:13).

You’ve entered the home of the Circuit ‘Riter. Come on in and sit a spell, put your feet up—make yourself at home. We’ve been waiting for you. Walk through a delightful series of homespun devotional messages with author, Michael Ullrich. Visit his site at http:// www.in-his-steps.com/

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Dining P leasure 5

FOR YOUR

have searched for a long time for a restaurant lot of food. Be prepared to ask for a take-out in SW Washington that serves authentic box. Greek and Mediterranean food. I’d tried sevThe menu has other traditional favorites eral over the years and while they have been like gyros and shishkabobs, in addition to ‘ok’ and I’ll admit some have served some other dishes that might not be familiar to you very good food but I still always felt something but are well worth a try. Our waiter, very was missing—that is until a friend recomfriendly and polite, told us everything is made mended we try The Pita House (715 W Main, fresh to order in-house except the desserts and Suite 117) in Battleground, Washington. they are made by family members. Yippee!! Located in an old strip off West Main Street My search is over. in Battleground, there is really nothing about My companion decided on the Lamb and BY THE DIVA GASTRONOMIQUE Chicken this restaurant that indicates a Mediterranean Special ($13.99). Again, be prepared influence. Once inside customers see a casual for large servings. The Lamb and Chicken sit-down restaurant decorated in soft warm Special featured chopped chicken and lamb pieces with tones of brown. Very refreshing but still nothing shouts lots of chopped onions, green peppers, spices and olive oil Greek or Mediterranean. It’s only when we opened our with a large side serving of Tabbouleh, pickled cabbage delivers on scratch-made authentic fare menus was I sure we had had found what this Scottish lass and a large glass of Lemonade, ($2.99). He said it was B AT T L E G R O U N D, WA has been looking for. absolutely delicious. What we tried: Being a fan of Lentil soup I decided to We ended this Mediterranean repast with a cup each of begin with a cup of house-made Lentil soup ($4.49). The serving was large and quite deli- Turkish Coffee, (rich and sweet) ($1.99). I added a Nut Roll ($2.49) and my companion cious. I followed that with the Veggie Mazza Platter ($8.99). Again the serving is large decided on the Walnut Baklava ($2.49). If there is a dessert heaven these two pieces of (really enough for two people). I must tell you I sampled some of the best Baba Ghanouch, crispy and incredibly sweet pastries must have come directly from there. Falafel and Hummus I have ever tasted! The Baba Ghanouch was rich and smoky, the The Pita House, 715 W Main St, Suite 117, Battleground Washington, 98604, Open Falafel balls were crispy on the outside and creamy on the inside and the Hummus was Monday thru Saturday 11am to 9 pm. 360-666-9017. Find them on Facebook at https:// silky smooth. And the pita bread was the lightest and freshest I have ever tasted. To round www.facebook.com/StJohnsCafe (not a typo, folks, it actually is there under that name! out my meal, I also added a Kofta Kabob (ground lamb and beef) ($2.00). Wow, it was a —Editor)

The Pita House

LUCKMAN—cont’d from page 12

Other than a return to the Pacific Northwest, why this location? “What I looked at here, versus anywhere else in the area, was the potential of growth in the next 10 years.” said Luckman, “Woodland is going to be ‘the place to be’” Additionally, he felt there was no other place (in Woodland) that has a place sit down, other than Starbucks which is on the opposite side of the freeway relative to his location. and when the site (where he is now) came open, Steve got very excited. “I want this to be a blessing for me, my family, my employees, but I also sincerely want this to be a blessing for this area and for Woodland” said Steve. “We love it here, this is our home, we love the people, love being at the base

of the mountain, in the woods… the whole thing!” This newest coffee shop in Woodland is well worth a stop to try out his coffee crafting and nosh on a snack or two, meet with friends for lunch, or just spend some quiet time in a comfy chair while you cruise the internet on their in-house wifi. The love of the coffee shines through and the long years of experience are reflected in the selection of edibles and the comfy atmosphere Luckman’s Coffee offers to the community.

se Dog Ran i d a ch r a P

LIKE VASHTI—cont’d from page 10

what we did for others, not what we did for ourselves. Did we obey God? Did we love, respect, and honor our husbands (not because they were honorable, respectable, and lovable but because God is honorable, worthy of respect and love and He has asked us to do this)? Did we nurture and raise our children like God has asked us to do, teaching them and showing them how to love God and follow God’s ways? Did we teach and show others? These are some of the things that make us truly special. Giving up our own selfish desires and thinking of others more than ourselves is what God asks of us. So we have a choice. We can be like Vashti, seeking and demanding attention from this world OR we can be like Esther and seek the attention of God in all we do and say.

*The Layman’s Bible Dictionary, page 18. Edited by George W. Knight and Rayburn W. Ray; published by Barbour Books, 1998.

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overs of the bean can rejoice at the opening of yet another coffee resource for Woodland residents as well as those traversing the Lewis River Road pathways to the playgrounds we all enjoy in our area. Steve Luckman, owner of Luckman’s Coffee, now open on Lewis River Road (next door to Burgerville) is no stranger to the love of the bean. He’s been in love himself with coffee and all things related. A career move (for his wife) saw them move to a suburb of Cincinnati, Ohio, where Steve started up his first Luckman’s Coffee Company in 2006. From there he opened another Luckman’s a stone’s throw away. In 2009/2010 his roasts were voted “Best” in the Love Cincy Awards sponsored by the Cincy Magazine. After retirement, they franchised out the two Ohio shops and he and his wife returned to the Pacific Northwest and Woodland. Steve put plans together to open his third Luckman’s on Lewis River Road and a few bumps later, his roaster was up and STORY AND PHOTOS running, the kitchen was ready and the doors opened! BY STAFF OF THE REVIEW Steve’s experience in food sales (25 years, 15 of which was as beverage manager 1230 Lewis River Road for Food Services of America) and restaurant experience (he and his wife owned the I-Hop near Lloyd Woodland, WA 98674 Center Mall for two years and had a restaurant called “Omelettes and Such” before then) gives him 360-841-8699 ample experience for the restaurant side of the shop. All the goodies in the case are made there in the 5:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. shop and he offers a wide range of muffins and even offers quiche and breakfast sandwiches for the Monday thru Saturday 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. morning crowd and sandwiches and salads and a variety of seasonal items (such as his fall Pumpkin Sunday Spice Muffin—delicious!) are offered throughout the day for lunch or an early, lite supper. (Foods include gluten-free items as well!) What makes a good cup of coffee, per Steve? Well, first off, espresso? a latté? a brewed cup? According to Steve, it all comes down to the grind. And the grind can fluctuate with temperature, weather, humidity…a variety of factors. But once it’s settled (and you’ve used fresh coffee and good quality water), then it’s the “dwell” time—the pressure and time for which the steam of a quality espresso maker makes its way through ground coffee to create the “shot”. Per Steve, a good shot takes about 30 to 32 seconds. Much more than that and you can draw out bitter aspects of the grind which can deteriorate the smooth, rich flavor. Try one of his over 21 roasts, two varieties of which he can recommend to folks who “just want a cup of brewed coffee”. ‘Peg Leg’ is a best seller—very popular with his customers.

Bean

LUCKMAN COFFEE COMPANY

Steve Luckman is the smiling coffee pro behind the counter— literally! Fresh from judging coffee at the 1st annual Golden Bean nation-wide coffee competiton. The Luckman Coffee Company storefront is easily found just next door (“upriver”) to Burgerville.

LUCKMAN—cont’d on page 11

12 • THE REVIEW • OCTOBER 2015