Dedicated to the citizens of Mason County, Washington since 1886
Dedicated to the citizens of Mason County, Washington since 1886
Sorted by date Results 76 - 100 of 342
Is 1985’s “Back to the Future” one of the greatest movies ever made? Opinions vary, but science says “yes,” and the city of Shelton agrees, because it’s running the sci-fi classic as the final installment of this summer’s free-admission “Movies in the Park” series, starting between 8:30-8:45 p.m. on Friday, in Kneeland Park. The 1970s and the 1980s produced scores of excellent films, but what the recent passing of William Friedkin, who directed 1971’s “The French Connection” and 1973...
The Port of Grapeview’s Aug. 15 meeting saw commissioners consider renovations and spending, and as the port’s 100th anniversary approaches, celebrations. Port commissioners Jean Farmer and Mike Blaisdell agreed the anniversary in November isn’t the best time to mark the centennial because they prefer an outdoor open house that could take advantage of pleasant weather and draw “big names” to the festivities. Farmer and commissioner Art Whitson agreed such an occasion should also use the marin...
The Port of Dewatto canceled its scheduled Aug. 9 commissioners meeting because a personal emergency arose that would have left the board without a quorum, according to Port Manager Jeana Crosby. The port did have a special meeting Aug. 11, both remotely and in-person at the port office building in Tahuya, to sign vouchers that would allow the port to pay its bills and salaries. However, according to Crosby, the rest of the business that had been scheduled for the port’s August meeting will l...
If you're the sort of binge-viewer who can't stand to start a new season of a show until it's all online, I have good news and bad news. The good news is that all 10 episodes of "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds" Season 2 are now on Paramount+. The bad news is that, at the risk of revealing spoilers, the "Strange New Worlds" Season 2 finale ends on the biggest cliffhanger since "The Best of Both Worlds, Part I," on "Star Trek: The Next Generation." "Strange New Worlds" continues to be the best...
Port of Hoodsport Commissioner Cody Morris provided an update on the port's renewal of its lease of a state Department of Natural Resources dock. Hoodsport-based Integrated Northwest Construction conducted a preliminary inspection of the dock and expressed optimism, not only about the state of the pilings, but also about its ability to perform relatively inexpensive "surface-level fixes" to improve the dock's safety and appearance until long-term improvements are possible, Morris said at the...
The Port of Allyn’s Aug. 7 meeting saw its executive director and commissioners address replacing its pier, updating the port’s comprehensive plan and what to do with the sea lions. Port of Allyn Executive Director Lary Coppola said the port had $515,000 in its capital budget for a pier replacement project. “Our options are to replace the entire pier with a completely new structure, to sleeve the existing pilings — which effectively gets the creosote out of the water, as well as stops the det...
The Hoodstock Music and Arts Festival, at the Hood Canal Marina in Union on Aug. 19-20, aims to be bigger and better this year, thanks to event organizers Kelli Kohout, Meghan Maes and Shannon Crabb-Stanton. Each has a role in staging the festival, with Kohout handling promotions, Maes coordinating vendors and managing the Union City Market, and Crabb-Stanton booking concert acts while shouldering her share of marketing. When asked what this year's more significant upgrades are, Crabb-Stanton...
When Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird co-created the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles in 1984, the most popular superhero comics on the market during the early '80s included Marv Wolfman and George Perez's "The New Teen Titans," Chris Claremont's "Uncanny X-Men" and Frank Miller's "Daredevil," so angsty teen heroes, outcast mutants and ninja crime-fighters were all the rage. Ever since, the popularity of teenagers, mutants and ninjas in superhero stories has remained relatively strong, but what's been...
The art wall at Belfair Self-Storage is doing something different for August — art wall founder and self-storage business manager Barbara Treick said its art exhibition is doubling as a silent auction through Aug. 31. “Area artists are displaying pieces ranging from ink drawings and acrylic paintings to collages,” Treick said. “The only information listed with each piece will be a number, with a corresponding bid sheet. Bids start at $1, with a minimum of $1 bid increments.” Treick has lined...
A city beautification project that began before the pandemic is picking up its pace this year as several local artists and art groups contribute submissions and finances to the cause. The City of Shelton began decorating power boxes in town in 2019 with artwork chosen by the Shelton Arts Commission, out of a selection of submissions solicited from Mason County artists. Jordanne Krumpols, Parks and Recreation supervisor for Shelton, reported that six power boxes have been adorned, while another...
Shelton's free-admission "Movies in the Park" are heading into back-to-back sports films, with 1992's "The Mighty Ducks" on Friday, and 1996's "Space Jam" on Aug. 11, both of which start between 8:30 to 8:45 p.m. in Kneeland Park. It seems every generation needs its own "Bad News Bears," and for a lot of 1990s kids, Disney's pee-wee hockey-playing Ducks were that hard-luck team of underdog misfits, coached by an obligatory disillusioned adult authority figure who didn't want to be there. If you'...
The Port of Grapeview reviewed updates for the port’s maintenance plan and comprehensive scheme of harbor improvement at its July 18 meeting. Port Commissioner Art Whitson said he contacted the maintenance department at Mason County Public Works for catch-basin maintenance in June, but hadn’t heard back on when they’d be able to do it. He said he’d follow up. Whitson said he needs to develop a tailored maintenance plan for each item of equipment or infrastructure under the port’s purview,...
Hoodsport Port commissioners Cody Morris and Terry Brazil approved an agreement July 19 with Integrated NW Construction to satisfy the conditions for renewing the lease on the port’s dock. During the commissioners’ most recent meeting, Port Executive Director Kathleen Wyatt said the port has $3,500 available for a professional services agreement, which she said is the first step required for any progress in inspecting and renovating the docks. Wyatt said the next steps would be a “desktop revie...
I devoted the latter half of last Friday to what has been christened the "Barbenheimer" double-feature, screening Christopher Nolan's three-hour "Oppenheimer" that afternoon, before going to dinner for an hour, then taking in Greta Gerwig's two-hour "Barbie" that evening. Nolan and several "Oppenheimer" actors have praised "Barbenheimer" in the press, touting it as proof of a healthy cinematic marketplace, and indeed, watching those two films back-to-back made me feel like I'd gazed into the...
Superintendent Dana Rosenbach talked about North Mason’s summer school program, the upcoming renaming ceremony for the east addition of the community gym, and the wrap-up of the Theler property transition, at the school board’s most recent meeting. “We’re very excited for the students who are registered,” Rosenbach said of the summer school at the July 20 meeting. “Our rising fourth-through-seventh-graders will be engaging in their developing video work. On the last day, we’ll get to see what t...
As of Wednesday, the Port of Dewatto has not filled the vacancy on its three-member board of commissioners, left open by the April 8 death of Ray Mow. The port is still running ads in the Shelton-Mason County Journal to solicit applicants for the port’s District 2 Commissioner position. Acting Port Commission Chair Dave Haugen has asked Kris Tompkins, the port’s volunteer who lives in the Haven Lake area, to provide any updates she on anyone who might be interested in filling the position. Tom...
When Tim Weber arrived in Shelton in 1977, he recalls that a small group of amateur or "ham" radio hobbyists gathered monthly in the upper room of Blondie's (then Timbers) restaurant. "It was informal then, and the main interests included DXing, 2-meters and computer use in packet radio," said Weber, who is Mason County Amateur Radio Club vice president. "I can't recall when the club became more formal, with bylaws and officers, but I know it held field days in the 1980s. I participated in just...
For this week’s “In the Dark” column, I’m reviewing two weeks of the Shelton’s free-admission movies in the city’s Movies in the Park series — for July 21, “Holes” from 2003, and for July 28, “Shrek” from 2001. Both start around 8:30 to 8:45 p.m. on Fridays in Kneeland Park. For next week’s column, I’ll be doing a double-decker review of Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” and Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer,” both of which are scheduled to premiere that same weekend. Since Michael Bay’s first “Transforme...
Port of Allyn officials have reached a consensus on dealing with sea lions. During a special meeting of the port commissioners July 10, Port Executive Director Lary Coppola reviewed how the port had been invaded by sea lions on its dock. Coppola met with representatives from port insurer Enduris, which sent a team out to inspect the damage. "We are getting bids on the repair work now, and hopefully work will get underway shortly," Coppola said July 10. "We've been told there may be a supply...
Shelton is running its Movies in the Park series this summer, showing free-admission films every Friday from July 14 through Aug. 18 in Kneeland Park, so I'm running six weeks of reviews of each week's featured films, starting with the 1995 safari fantasy "Jumanji," starring Robin Williams. "Jumanji" kicks off the city's movie series this Friday. Among my fellow film nerds, director Joe Johnston gets a bad rap for being a solid yet unambitious meat-and-potatoes filmmaker, who's responsible for...
Fans of music, fine dining and supporting early childhood education can partake of all three at 6:30 p.m. on July 22, at the Union City Marina when the Pearl Django ensemble demonstrates its three decades of hot club jazz artistry to help generate support for the Great Bend Center for Music's collaboration with Sound Scholars. Great Bend General Director Matthew Melendez noted that this year marks Pearl Django's third year of performing at the Hood Canal to help raise money for his music...
After some of the dire (albeit nonspoilery) reviews I'd read going into "Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny," I was expecting a much worse movie than James Mangold - the first non-Steven Spielberg director of this film franchise -delivered. As it stands, "The Dial of Destiny" is a solidly OK entry in the series, certainly much better than 2008's "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," that nonetheless suffers for failing to measure up to the first three installments. "The Dial...
When the Allyn Community Association was started in 1986, it was inaugurated with the first Allyn Days celebration, which grew to include the Salmon Bake and Geoduck Festival as it evolved into a summer tradition. “It was a community party, and the salmon was grilled over alderwood, then smoked and served,” said current community member Jason Ilarraza. “From there, it evolved into all of this.” When Ilarraza became involved with Allyn Days, he was a vendor coordinator for the event, before...
After a planning workshop and a regular meeting, Port of Grapeview commissioners want to ensure they get their update of the port’s comprehensive scheme of harbor improvements correct. The planning workshop was June 13, and while no final decisions were made, several changes, updates and amendments were proposed to the draft version of the comp plans. The commissioners’ regular meeting June 20 saw Commissioner Mike Blaisdell open the review of the previous week’s planning workshop by noting Comm...
The art wall exhibition space at Belfair Self-Storage has everything it needs to provide broader exposure to the work of local artists — except for the artists. Over the past couple of years, Belfair Self-Storage manager Barbara Treick has recruited area artists into a stable of sorts for the art wall, which she founded and continues to maintain. Between stretches of new or returning artists being showcased each month, Treick has occasionally displayed her own art. With no artists scheduled f...
