Ketchikan: Budding Artists Beautify a Corner of Our Island By NANCY COGGINS - A corner of our island came alive with color! On sunny Sunday, October 8, 2006, Ketchikan residents of all ages gathered to paint their dream images on Diamonds International of Alaska LTD's boarded-up windows. In a mere four hours, more than twenty budding artists transformed 16 dull-looking panels, which face the corner of Mill Street, into some beautiful works of art.

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The pre-planning and preparation by Bobbie McCreary and Jesse Harrington, who was assisted by Kali, Angie and Andy (three other talented artists), paid off because their efforts made this painting experience seamless for these painters. Each and every one had so much fun!

The painters went to work, painting their favorite subjects on the windows. Jesse had prepared each window with a very pale blue background and a light green island in the middle. The artists' challenge was to populate not only the islands but also the sky above them and the water below with birds, buildings, and boats, and whatever designs their minds conjured up.

In general, the effort was called a window art program. Historic Ketchikan and the Ketchikan Area Arts and Humanities Council sponsored the event.

Of course these painters didn't just go down there and start painting, as there's a four-year history behind this tradition of Ketchikan's beautiful windows. The idea of painting windows got started after people complained about the old Tongass Realty storefront on Dock Street, sitting there a whole year with dirty windows. After a Point Higgins School teacher's aide displayed second and third grade art projects in this storefront's windows, Diamonds International (DI) agreed to support a local effort to paint over its dull brown boarded-up windows. For the first three years of painting on DI's windows, MJ Turek and friends were responsible for the backgrounds on each window, and "Project Ketchikan" became a reality.

Since the name, "Project Ketchikan," had been given to an earlier project by four Revilla High School students (supported by teacher Clare Patton Bennett, Dave Kiffer from Historic Ketchikan, and Bobbie McCreary), the window-painting organizers had to ask for permission to use it. Permission granted, the name is still being used.

All kinds of imaginable materials had been prepared for the artists! On the four craft tables, which were spaced evenly along the outer edge of the sidewalk, there were buckets of at least 20 different colors of acrylic paint and brushes of all kinds, shapes and sizes. Then there were empty plastic containers and paint stirrers for mixing just the right color. Large buckets of clean water were ready for cleaning the brushes, and rags, for wiping the drips. Chalk and pencils were available for sketching designs, and stools to help the painters reach the tops of the boards.

The bottom of one window had been taped off and labeled "Small children (tots)" to make it easy for the youngest ones to reach the painting area. Jenna Miller opted to paint there, and painted her two cats, Jack and Edgar. She was very excited about having the chance to paint there; she is already counting the days until next year's painting event. - More...
Monday AM - October 16, 2006

Ketchikan: Investigation into KIA Bomb Threats Progressing - In response to the multiple bomb threats received Thursday morning which necessitated evacuation of the Ketchikan International Airport's terminal and closing of the airport, Chief Dave Guzman of the Ketchikan Airport Police said the investigation into the bomb threats is progressing and is being conducted by the Anchorage office of the F.B.I.

Guzman said the airport's Emergency Control Plan was activated Thursday and federal authorities were notified. A thorough search of the airport grounds was conducted Thursday by canine teams from the Anchorage International Airport Police along with the Seattle office of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms said Guzman.

"The search met with negative results in locating any suspicious items or explosive devices," said Chief Guzman. - More...
Monday AM - October 16, 2006

Fish Factor: Alaska's fishing season lasts into the winter By LAINE WELCH - It's amazing how many people think Alaska's fisheries end when salmon season is over. In fact, October launches a whole line of fishing seasons that last long into the winter.

On October 1, for example, lucrative dive fisheries open in Southeast Alaska where hundreds of hookah-rigged divers head down to harvest million pounds of pricey sea cucumbers, red urchins and giant geoduck clams. Smaller dive fisheries also occur at the same time around Kodiak, Chignik and the Alaska Peninsula. The fall Dungeness crab season and several shrimp fisheries also kick off in Southeast on October 1, followed by a red king crab opener in November.

Alaska's largest crab fisheries in the Bering Sea take center stage starting on October 15th - for red king crab in the eastern waters, better known as Bristol Bay, and for snow crab and its larger cousin, bairdi Tanner crab. Those fisheries are operating for the second time under a quota share system that can stretch out the seasons for several months. The red king crab fishery is likely to last into December, while the snow crab fishery won't really get underway until January and could run through April.

Halibut and sablefish (black cod) seasons remain in full swing for another month (see following article). Various boats throughout the Gulf of Alaska and Bering Sea may also be targeting herring, flatfish and other groundfish species this month and longer.

Getting back to Alaska salmon - just when you think it's all over, Southeast trollers were back out on the water October 11 for the start of the winter king season. That will run through April 30, or until 45,000 kings are caught. That means that except for about two weeks until the Copper River fishery begins in mid-May, wild Alaska salmon is available nearly year round. - More...
Monday AM - October 16, 2006

Viewpoints Opinions/Letters Basic Rules Zero Tolerance in Ketchikan By Vicki Harsha - Monday AM Long Island Herbicide spraying By Paula Peterson - Monday AM Open Letter to DOT: Make Safety a Priority By Kay Sims and Terry Wanzer - Monday AM And More... About White Cliff By Jackie Williams - Monday AM Ketchikan Detention Home By Aan Kadax Tseen - Monday AM So you want to use drugs? By Catlin Rettke - Monday AM Police, kids, underage drinking By Karen Hollywood - Thursday PM RE: Police and Law Enforcement in Ketchikan By Stacey Stone Where's Tony ... part two? By Jeff Kemp - Thursday PM That time of Year. . . By Virginia E. Atkinson WARS and CONFLICTS - A Republican Legacy? By James Hanson - Thursday PM Taxed Out By Robert McRoberts - Thursday PM Cruise Ship Taxes and Consolidation By Eric Muench - Wednesday Minors Drinking By Sunny Jim Sundahl - Wednesday Sarah Palin on Native people By Karen Rhoades - Wednesday Trust and Honesty By Ken Levy - Wednesday Response to "Police and law enforcement in Ketchikan" By Kristin Fahey - Wednesday Thanks to the Community By Karen Eakes - Wednesday RE: Police and law enforcement in Ketchikan By Kathy Fox - Wednesday Police in Ketchikan By Rob Glenn - Wednesday Mark Folley - a premeditated deliberate PREDATOR. By Lynne Miller - Wednesday RE: Law enforcement in Ketchikan By Jessica Mathews - Wednesday RE: NEVER okay By Frances C. Natkong Just the Facts & Questions By Dan McQueen - Wednesday Correction: Harbon Bonds By Dave Kiffer - Wednesday What will our leaders do? By Viola Burgess - Monday Bike Show By Dan Hart - Monday Police and law enforcement in Ketchikan By Vicky Newlun - Monday Gravina Island Clean-up By Jerry Cegelske - Monday Just the Facts By Dave Kiffer - Monday NEVER okay! By Diana Chaudhary - Monday Aan Kadax Tseen is my Name By Aan Kadax Tseen - Monday Time to pay attention to November elections By Janelle Hamilton - Monday BoonDoggle Bridge By Lonnie Guthrie - Monday Hypocrisy? By Mark Neckameyer - Monday Election 2006 Stars aligned? By Alan Bailey - Sunday Go East For Development By Walt Bolling - Sunday Klukwan your Cultural Identity is at Stake By Albert K. White - Sunday Excellence in Teaching By Aaron Burns - Sunday Boondoggle Bridge By Don Hoff Jr. - Sunday Seniors are Elders. By Ken Lewis - Sunday Open letter to Congressman Don Young By Mike Jones - Sunday The Hypocrisy By Robert D. Warner - Sunday Why tax increases failed - Global Warming By Marvin Seibert - Sunday Folley flap?? By Mark Neckameyer - Sunday Much Ado About Nothing By Alan Lidstone - Sunday More Viewpoints/ Letters Publish A Letter Political Cartoonists Political Cartoons Ketchikan City Police Report AK Troopers Daily Dispatch Arts This Week Today's Forecast Ketchikan Weather Data Current AK Weather Map Classifieds Auto-post your ad in the proper category, or email your ad & photos to ads@sitnews.us  Classifieds: Categories Announcements For Sale / Free Stuff Garage Sales Homes / Apts/ Property Pets Wanted Lost & Found Local Services SitNews Archives October 2006 Click on the date to read the stories published on that day. S M T W T F S 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31         More Front Page Archives

Dave Kiffer: Pass, Shoot, Score! - Liam's final micro-soccer game was last week. That means that I am no longer a "soccer mom." At least until next fall.

Micro-soccer is beginning soccer for 5-6 year olds. The kids just run up and down the field. No one keeps score. Everybody falls down a lot. It is great fun.

It also means that the parents stand around in the rain and watch the "game." Charlotte - who normally works on Saturdays, learned how important it is to watch the game when she attended the first match.

"Mommy," Liam protested after the game. "You didn't watch me. You just talked to your friends."

So - as substitute soccer mom the rest of the weeks - I did my best stand on the sideline and remain engaged in the game by shouting vague words of encouragement

"Nice kick, Sammy!"

"Good stop, Maurie!"

"Go after the ball, Liam!"

Of course, it was not a great help. As far as I could tell, all my yelling did nothing to alter the uncontrolled running up and down or stop the opponents balls from rolling into our teams goal more often than "Team Mustard" seemed to score. - More...
Monday AM - October 16, 2006

Preston MacDougall: Chemical Eye on Exchange Deals - Oscar Wilde quipped that "Life imitates Art far more than Art imitates Life". Along these lines, and assuming that Reality TV bears any resemblance to real life, then Life also imitates Chemistry.

The television show "Trading Spouses" must be a "fair and balanced" depiction of the lives of some American families - after all, it's on Fox. There is no question, however, that it perfectly imitates an atomic dance step that commonly occurs in chemistry - the double-exchange reaction.

In this kind of reaction, the positive and negative components of two compounds "swap" partners, and there are observable consequences of one, or both, of the new couplings. For instance, limestone is a mineral made of positive calcium ions and negative carbonate ions. It is rock stable. Acetic acid is a compound of hydrogen ions and acetate ions - positive and negative, respectively. Vinegar is a solution of acetic acid in water.

Put a small piece of limestone in a cup of white vinegar and watch what happens. Bubbles will start to form on the rock, and they're not coming from the vinegar, but from the rock!

What's happening is that the limestone and the acetic acid are switching partners at the rock's surface. Since opposites attract in chemistry as in life, calcium pairs with acetate and hydrogen pairs with carbonate. The latter produces carbonic acid, which quickly breaks apart into a water molecule and a molecule of carbon dioxide. Some of the CO2 will remain dissolved, but the once-staid rock will start to blow bubbles. - More....
Monday AM - October 16, 2006

Bob Ciminel: The Broken Circle - After two weeks in Colorado, it was refreshing to return to Atlanta and look at unspectacular scenery for a change. The Piedmont Plateau is decidedly less impressive than the Front Range, and the North Georgia Mountains are mere bumps on life's scenic highway when compared with the San Juan Mountains.

Our trip took us from Denver to Glenwood Springs via Amtrak; Ouray to Telluride via Jeep; Durango to Silverton via narrow gauge railroad; Chama, NM to Antonito, CO via another narrow gauge railroad; Cañon City to Royal Gorge via standard gauge railroad; Manitou to Pikes Peak via a cog railway; Leadville to Climax via another standard gauge railroad; and Silver Plume to Georgetown Loop via a third narrow gauge railroad. All of the narrow gauge trains were pulled by steam engines. Was I in railroad heaven? You bet I was!

I think what makes Colorado such a great place to visit is its mountains are so accessible - you can drive up and down them; sleep in them; have lunch in them; and ride trains in them. Other than Switzerland, I don't know of any other mountainous area that is so accessible. Why, we even had cell phone service atop Pikes Peak - I called my daughter in Iowa from 14,000 feet. - More...
Monday AM - October 16, 2006

Bill Steigerwald: Stuart Rothenberg sees big trouble for GOP - With Nov. 7 a few weeks away and the Republican Party looking less and less likely to hold on to its dual control of Congress, it's a good time to check in with political handicapper Stuart Rothenberg.

Rothenberg edits and publishes "The Rothenberg Political Report", a Washington newsletter known for its nonpartisanship that reports on and analyzes congressional and gubernatorial elections, presidential politics and other political developments. I talked to Rothenberg Wednesday, Oct. 4, by telephone when the Mark Foley scandal was still rocking the Beltway:

Q: Will the Foley scandal add significantly to the Republican Party's troubles this fall?

A: Well, we won't know until we see some poll numbers on that. But I think it certainly could. Obviously, a Democratic wave was already building. There is a desire for change. The president is not held in high regard. And Congress is not held in high regard.

It at least raises significant questions in my mind whether it will depress some conservative voters or lead to some conservatives staying home or whether it will be the straw that breaks the camel's back and convinces more independents and even some Republicans that there is a need for an across-the-board change. I think it has the potential to add to the Republicans' considerable pre-existing woes.

Q: Is 2006 looking like it will be a rousing success for Democrats the way 1994 was for Republicans? - More...
Monday AM - October 16, 2006