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As the days get shorter and the trees lose their leaves, we tend to bundle up with our scarves and take a few extra shots of whiskey to keep warm. If you are like most people where the money is tight but you still want to go out and explore, why not attend a book reading? It is inexpensive, intellectually stimulating and inspiring! I even know of one such book reading that will occur this Monday, October 26th @ 7pm within the Sunset Tavern walls!

Jonathan Lethem, a very hard-working “literary agent man” from Brooklyn will be reading from his most recent book, Chronic City. This book has interesting characters, a great sense of place (set in Manhattan), sociable tendencies and delivers questions about what the truth really means. Vague, I know. But you will just have to pick up the book and discover it for yourself! His other popular books include: You Don’t Love Me Yet, The Fortress of Solitude (a New York Times Bestseller) & Motherless Brooklyn.

A little recap:

Jonathan Lethm book reading

Monday, October 26 @ 7pm; $5-free w/ book purchase

Sunset Tavern

206-784-4880
5433 Ballard Ave NW
Seattle (Ballard)

Passport: not necessary to enjoy the crafts and cuisine of Scandinavia!

The Sons of Norway will host their 103rd bazaar this weekend, 10am-7pm Saturday (10/24) and 11am-5pm Sunday (10/25) at the Leif Erikson Lodge in Ballard.  The bazaar will include arts and crafts vendors, traditional Norwegian food and pastries (like lefse and krumkake!), a rummage sale, raffles, bingo, and a variety of kid-friendly games.

The Trolls’ Den and Nordic entertainment (Beer Garden) with dinner options will be open from 3pm-7pm on Saturday in the auditorium at the Lodge.

Come, eat, spend, support a local organization, in the Nordic tradition!

Leif Erikson Lodge 200-1
2245 57th Ave NW
Seattle, WA 98107

For those of you who don’t yet have Halloween plans, here are a couple of ideas that shall prove a grand ‘ol time while sporting your sex kitten ensemble, mysterious masked marauder getup or your sparkly, sequined mermaid costume.

As you perouse the plethora of events for October 31st, consider these two hotspots in Ballard.

1. HalloQueen (yes, a Queen tribute band!) w/ 70 Proof at the Tractor Tavern, doors @ 9:30pm

2. Dudley Manlove Quartet at the Sunset Tavern, doors @ 10pm

A few words about the above events: HalloQueen is wild, crazy and outrageous so be prepared to get your freak on. The Dudley Manlove Quartet will swoon you with songs such as Dancing Queen by Abba, Fly me to the Moon by Tony Bennet and Lets Dance by David Bowie. You can’t go wrong with either choice!

I don’t know about you, but my family already did the Holiday draw and I got my sister-in-law once again. I decided on getting her a hand crafted trinket from a shop nestled in downtown Ballard. Velouria: boutique & gallery, a shop filled with artistic Indie creations inspired by vintage prints, hunter’s cabins, mint juleps, bluebirds and much more. Nothing in the store is massed produced (aka one of a kind). If your goal is to keep your money local while buying gifts this Holiday season, keep shops like Velouria in mind.  Jewelry artists Violet Magpie also have their beautiful hand crafted work for sale here, as well as used  leather handbag artist Frocky Jack Morgan, to name a couple. Velouria features new artists for the Ballard artwalk event, which occurs every 2nd Saturday of every month. This month, Seattle designer Run Grady Run has cards, fake mustaches and other fun accessories for sale and fine artist Andie Wurster has his paper-cut illustration work on display.

For holiday shopping ideas, keep reading each month for updated posts about other cool shops!

Velouria boutique and gallery

(206) 788-0330
2205 N.W. Market St.
Seattle, WA 98107

http://shopvelouria.tripod.com/

Hello Ballardinians! Sometimes, finding that perfect cupcake recipe can take far too long & besides, we need an excuse to get out of the house. Take off your aprons and make a trip to Cupcake Royale in downtown Ballard!

Cupcake Royale is currently celebrating their 5th Annual Cupcake Harvest Festival, which is a tell-tale sign that Autumn is here and we must respect the squirrels. Nothing  jump-starts the holiday season better than a sugary confection made by locals, for the locals. From now until November 26th, you can enjoy any of the  follwing 3 special cupcakes, made with ingredients from our local farms: 

Caramel Apple-a delicious golden cake made with chunks of honey crisp apple from Tiny’s Organic Farm plus sweet apple butter from Woodring Farm, topped with homemade caramel frosting; Pumpkin Maple-lightly spiced pumpkin cake made with organic pumpkin from Stahlbush Island Farm, topped with delicious maple cream cheese frosting; Carrot Cake-their classic carrot walnut cake, now made with fresh local carrots from Ralph’s Organics and topped with rich cream cheese frosting.

Are you wondering about the slashes to the City Budget? What about the Bridging the Gap monies? For answers to those questions and more, attend the next Ballard District Council meeting.

AGENDA

7:00 Short Announcements by Member Organization Representatives
Please hold announcements to not more than one minute.

7:15 2010 City Budget Takes a Big Hit, Dwight Dively, City Budget Director
Dwight will provide a briefing on the Mayor’s proposed 2010 budget which considers a $72M deficit. He will also provide his forecast of how our recovering economy is likely to influence city tax revenue

7:40 Rezoning Industrial Land in the Ballard Hub Urban Village, Andrea Petzel, City Dept o Planning and Development
Andrea will review her department’s recommendation to rezone approximately 12 acres of industrial land located in Ballard’s central business district.

8:00 Bridging the Gap; Another Opportunity to Finance Costly Public Improvement Priorities in our Community, Therese Casper, Seattle Dept of Transportation

8:25 Election of District Council Officers for 2010, Mary Hurley
The Ballard DC Nominating Committee proposes the following candidates as a slate for the four positions as officers.
· President, Jennifer Macuiba, Friends of Burke Gilman Trail
· VP, Andrew MacDonald, 36th District Republicans
· At Large, Catherine Weatbrook, Crown Hill Business Association
· At Large, Dennis Galvin, Crown Hill Neighborhood Association

Nominations from the floor will be accepted. Eligible candidates include any designated rep from a member organization.

8:30 Adjourn

BALLARD DISTRICT COUNCIL
Wednesday, October 14, 2009 7:00 – 8:30 PM
Ballard Library – 5614 22nd NW
(Free parking below building – accessed from NW 56th)

On September 16th there was a groundbreaking ceremony for Swedish Ballard’s new 90,000 square-foot building which will be located on Tallman Ave NW near Market Street. The building will house a new, expanded emergency department; an expanded medical imaging center; a primary care clinic and offices; and office space for a variety of specialty physicians.  The five-story building is scheduled to be complete in the fall of 2010 and will be located next to the existing Medical Plaza Building.

Well, well, well… In case Ballard wasn’t cool enough, rest assured.  We now have Women’s Roller Derby.

These feisty females have made the old Seattle Times warehouse their new home- I mean, Rat’s Nest.  Meet the Rat City Rollergirls!!!!!

To meet the team and get highlights, updates, and even a Hall of Pain Injury Gallery, check out their website. Warning: Hall of Pain is quite graphic. Soooo rugged dude!!!

The old warehouse is their new practice space- right here in Ballard! At 5305 Shilshole Ave NW, to be precise.  This crew isn’t new however- this Northwest flat-track, all female derby league was founded in 2004 and they belong to 1 of about 4 teams.

So, what’s the scoop? Are they any good?

>The Rat City Rollergirls recently earned a spot on the 2009 WFTDA* Western Regional Tournament in Denver, Co!  Follow this tournament at http://www.derbyontherocks.com.

*WFTDA = Women’s Flat Track Derby Association.

A little terminology for us:

Jammer-  a person who scores

Blockers- defense

Pivot- the last line of defense (last resort)

Jam formation- players move counter clockwise

Jam- a 2 minute countdown period in which both teams attempt to score

Passing the star- when a lead jammer passes it’s position to it’s pivot (optional)

Amazing.

Don’t miss one of the last festivals of the season right here in Ballard!  The REVERB Music Festival celebrates local artists with a full night of local music at ten different venues in downtown Ballard on Saturday, October 3rd.  There are four all ages venues, with the rest 21+.  Wristbands are $8 in advance, and $10 on the day of the festival (tickets available here).

Venues include staples like the Sunset and the Tractor Tavern, as well as more unexpected spots like Volterra and the New York Fashion Academy.  Shows start as early as 3pm, depending on the venue, with some acts beginning as late as midnight.  There is enough variety for almost any musical taste, from hip hop to jazz to roots to rock and everything in between.  Each location will showcase one genre throughout the night, so you can stick around and listen to hours of your favorite music, or hop around to hear a mix of local artists.  The wristband allows entrance to all venues.  See a complete line-up here.

In addition to the music, there will be a debate between mayoral candidates Mike McGinn and Joe Mallahan at the Conor Byrne at 8:30pm.

Come to downtown Ballard, buy a pretty wristband, and support your local artists!

Take advantage of amazing prices on gently used, quality clothing, toys, books, strollers, bedding, safety equipment, car seats, general baby/kid gear and more! Organized by the Phinney Neighborhood Preschool Co-op, this huge sale is great for expecting families and those with children 0-10 years old. All clothes are hung by size and gender to make shopping easy, and there is even a maternity section for moms to be! There’s plenty of parking in the Phinney Neighborhood Center’s lower and upper parking lots, so grab a tote and line up early for the best selection. Starting at 12:00pm, shoppers will enjoy additional 50% discounts on many items. We hope to see you there!

Event details:

Phinney Neighborhood Preschool Co-op’s Kid’s Clothing and Gear Sale
Saturday, Sept. 26th / 9:00am-1:00pm
Phinney Neighborhood Center: 6532 Phinney Ave. N, Seattle 98103
Community Hall “Brick Building”