1. One Oregon governor famously said: “I urge them to come and come many, many times to enjoy the beauty of Oregon. But I also ask them, for heaven’s sake, don’t move here to live.” Irregular Times though ranks Oregon still pretty highly in the “Welcome to (this state)… Now Go Home!” race, but just outside…
Month: April 2014
What makes Cascadian sports fans different?
Back mid-winter, when Seahawk fandom was hitting a fever pitch, there was a general lament among more hardened sports followers that many of the new-found fans lacked gravity. They were bandwagon fans, only interested in following a team after success has been found. This is a common enough thing that happens when teams start to…
The rise of Zach and other spring things (Olyblogosphere for April 21, 2014)
1. Zach Mandeville is the reason why I read Olympia (or Tumwater) blogs: Tumwater is not kind to you when you’re feeling down. It’s at a low point these days with a lot of empty houses, empty buildings, and snobby, eye contact avoiding state workers walking their lunch break rounds. But it’s also bright May. …
Why can’t Olympia get some sort of semi-pro soccer going on? Or, we need the Tall Boys (someone help Brandon out)
In the next few weeks, between the Evergreen Premiere League, the National Premier Soccer League NW and the good old PDL, there will be three different non-pro/non-amateur leagues kicking off in this state. And, none of them have a club in Olympia or even Thurston County. The last time we sniffed at a local semi-pro…
How downtown Olympia was almost ruined by I-5
Shanna Stevenson’s chapter in “The River Remembers” (edited by Gayle Palmer) is a thorough history of transportation through Tumwater. Most of it is a lead in to Tumwater’s most notable historic wound, the construction of Interstate 5 through the historic center of the city. Stevenson’s history includes an interesting footnote on what could have happened…
The tragedy towards the end of the local ownership of Olympia Beer
Seattle Times, 1983 We all mourn the closure of the Olympia brewery. We all hope it comes back, at least the territory of the brewery, to become a new heart for our oldest non-native community. Decades before our latest mourning, we mourned the sale of the company and brand to non-local owners. I wrote a…
Signs of spring (Olyblogosphere for April 7, 2014)
1. Sue Gunn, despite sounding environmentalist, is still holding the conservative line in Thurston County. At least according to Ken of Lacey. 2. One little post about Moving to Olympia becomes the meta-fight of the city. Says one: Statistically we have a much higher population of youth homeless than is common. Says another: You’re still…