Straight from my home town; A story about a young girl named Micah; her dream to be a ballerina and how Make A Wish Foundation, Just for Kicks School of Dance and Pacific Northwest Ballet made it all come true.

Micah has spent most of her life in a wheel chair with the condition Spinal Muscular Atrophy. She has been interested in Ballet since she could speak and takes dance classes, in her wheel chair, at Just for Kicks School of Dance in Port Orchard, Washington.

Via the Kitsap Sun:

Make-A-Wish wanted to go even further in fulfilling Micah’s wish, and arranged for her to sit in on a Pacific Northwest Ballet dress rehearsal.

She was able to meet all of the members of the professional Seattle ballet company, and she even spent time alone with two of the performers. The company’s dress shop made her a cape and flower crown to take home.

A week later, Bleil-Geiselman, Micah and her family attended a performance, where Micah was invited on stage to receive a pair of toe shoes and to become an “honorary” ballerina.

How cool is that!?

You can catch Micah’s dance recital, to the song she chose called “In my own little corner,” at South Kitsap High School on June 28 & 29 at 12:30pm.

Read the full story… (and to view video and images)

I like Golf just a bit more than I like basketball. I have long believed and said that [Pro] Basketball is a waste of a good hardwood floor. So, with that said, you now know my feelings for Golf… I can appreciate a good lawn.

I found myself watching the U.S. Open a few days ago and became hypnotized by the ability of Tiger Woods. The man is unbelievable. I often like to cheer for the under dog, in this case Rocco Mediate, who was so far out of being expected to contend that he had to win a sudden death match just to qualify to play in the US Open. The man was beyond being a long shot to win it, he was pretty much just another name on the roster as filler. Rocco ended up surprising everyone with his performance and by the end of the day he finished as the leader and presumptive winner so long as Tiger Woods didn’t pull off a miracle before he finished.

As much as I wanted Rocco to win, the Under Dog to beat the legendary Tiger Woods… I find myself wanting to cheer for Tiger as well. The man is amazing, he plays with an intensity and focus second to none. Though, he manages to carry himself in a way that he doesn’t seem to fully realize just how good he really is. At times it seems he even surprises himself after sinking an unbelievable shot. He has the ability to become a better player when it counts the most - he thrives in the pressure of the moment.

The 2008 US Open is going down as the best US Open in history and some annalists are calling it Tigers best game he’s ever played; a game he played with a bad knee which aggravated him with every swing of the club. A come from behind tie, not only on the last shot of regulation, but doing it again in the next days play-off to force another round of sudden death with a few amazing shots through-out the match. It wasn’t just a testament to Tiger’s will to win, but also to Rocco’s will to win as well.

Congratulations to Tiger Woods on his exciting come from behind win and to Rocco Mediate for doing what nobody could have even scripted him to do. He held his own with class and almost pulled off an amazing win with an amazing performance. This is one of the rare times that second place will be remembered just as much as the one who won it all.

You know something is wrong when you headline The Onion and it sounds like real news rather than a satire.

GM Bill Bavasi fired team whiffing coach Jeff Pentland Monday. “Our guys have simply forgotten the basics—flailing, guessing, just standing there like a statue as a perfect pitch comes sailing right over the plate,”

Bill Bavasi really did fire the hitting coach last Monday… in a last ditch effort to save his own hide.

In similar news, Bill Bavasi was fired today for sucking [for the past five years] as the Mariners general manager. I never liked Bavasi and I’m glad to see him go. Oh, to have the 2001 season back again, I miss real Seattle Baseball.

In an interesting move, Senator Barack Obama has added a section to his website called: Fight the Smears. It is here that any and all attacks directed at the Senator in his bid for the White House are posted and refuted. Kind of a “Political Myth Busters” if you will. It appears that any smear or attack that is posted to the website does in fact have creditable evidence to neutralize the rumor highlighted. I can only hope that Senator Obama will continue to take the high road away from such tactics and set the example and the standard for campaigning.

One aspect of political campaigns that always makes me nauseous are the dirty, below the belt - smear tactics used by not only the direct opposition but at times adverts paid for by supporters of the opposition with out their actual endorsement. In a perfect world we would put the two side by side, list their beliefs, list what they would do for the country, how they would do it and why they thought that was the best course of action; all with out the aide of polls to aide them in their beliefs.

There should be no need to get all worked up to the point that we feel we must attack someone who thinks differently than we do. In fact, our differences are the best part about humanity and it is something we should all respect. It would be a pretty boring and bland existence if we all thought exactly a like; there’s no motivation or innovation with out being able to question our own and others beliefs.

Remember that the next time you get into a discussion over politics or any other subject you are both passionate about. The best part about a conversation is a differing point of view, otherwise we don’t have anything to talk about. It’s whether or not we can discuss it (within reason) in a civilized and respectful manor that we will actually be able to accomplish something for the good of us all.

Some may have caught the Seattle PI article on June 5th in regards to an absurd ban on bon fires at two popular Seattle beaches, Alki and Golden Gardens. It was reported that the Seattle City Parks Staff would make a second attempt at banning bon fires by bringing it to a vote at the Parks Board Meeting that Thursday, citing:

The overall policy question for the Board is whether it is good policy for Seattle Parks to continue public beach fires when the carbon … emissions produced by thousands of beach fires per year contributes to global warming.

Really? Let’s throw a few more buzz words to accelerate our agenda shall we? Global Warming, Green House Gases, Poisonous Gases, Going Green, Hybrid, Footprint, Carbon Off Sets, Organic and my favorite: Fear Mongering. Let’s ignore the bigger issues because, in the end, we all know the down fall to civilization as we know it are the bon fires at two Seattle beaches; so let’s go after that first.

It didn’t work in 2004 when the community rallied a petition to over turn the ban and it isn’t going to happen now either. For one, I doubt people would stand for it, especially given that summer is (hopefully) right around the corner. But as posted on the Seattle PI blog yesterday, bon fires are safe but concerns about illegal activity were at the forefront of discussions.

… Parks staff said there’s still a problem at Golden Gardens and at Alki - illegal behavior, People are parking illegally, drinking, leaving litter around, mainly at Golden Gardens.

Well of course, anyone who frequents these two locations has witnessed the shear disregard to any park rules, regulations or city laws. I’m all for people having a good time, but one of my biggest pet peeves (no pun intended) is when you let your animal roam the park crapping everywhere and harassing others when the leash rules are clearly posted. Other common occurrences are underage drinking, open containers, littering and the occasional drug use. All of which I don’t have that much of a beef with besides the littering, find some personal responsibility people - pick up your trash.

Board members, though, said the department ought to consider going after the illegal behavior. And one board member, Jackie Ramels, former president of the Alki Community Council, wasn’t sure restricting bonfires would do anything about illegal behavior.

“Kids are still going to come and drink, even without the fires,” she said.

What I find amazing is that at no time have I ever seen a police officer or park ranger walking the beat and making their presence known. They don’t need to start slapping cuffs on everyone and making every one’s life miserable. But if they were there showing a presence it would take care of the ten percent that screw it up for the rest of us when the Rangers aren’t looking.

Straight from America’s finest news source, The Onion: Fast Food Feedbags.

We are always looking for more efficient ways to get our food products into our customers gaping maws, and it’s fun! You can have breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert - all simultaneously in one feed sack strapped to your face.

Pure awesome.

Yesterday Ken Griffey Junior joined an elite group; the career 600 club. Only five other players have crossed this impressive landmark in the Major League of Baseball: Barry Bonds (762*), Hank Aaron (755), Babe Ruth (714), Willie Mays (660), Sammy Sosa (609) - and now - Ken Griffey Junior (600) and counting. He was destined to not only meet this mark but exceed it.

Junior was Seattle’s number one pick in 1987 and he spent two years in the minors before he made his own shot at the big leagues. He expressed such an amazing skill for the game at such a young age, it made many major league players look like they belonged in the minors instead.

Former teammate, Scott Bradley:

When he came to camp in 1989, he had no chance to make the team, but he got a lot of at-bats early that spring because a lot of veterans don’t like to play a lot early. After 20 games, he wasn’t just the best player on our team, he was the best player in the league that spring. The Mariners basically said, ‘We don’t want this to happen, we don’t want to rush him, we don’t want him to make the team.’ So they started running him out there against every elite pitcher, against all the nastiest left-handers they could find in hopes that he would stop hitting, and they could send him out. It never happened.

Former Mariners Manager, Lou Pinella:

The first time I saw him was in Arizona for spring training, he would hit these towering fly balls that would carry and carry, and go out of the ballpark. I just figured it was the thin air in Arizona. Then he kept hitting those towering fly balls wherever we went, and I realized it wasn’t the thin air, it was him. And it was so effortless.

He was the youngest player to reach the 300 and 400 home run mark. Projections had him not only breaking Hank Aarons mark of 755 but breaking the 800 mark as well. He was dubbed “The Natural” because his swing is perfect and he is so athletically gifted that it seems absolutely effortless for him.

It only makes one wonder what could have been. What could have happened if he didn’t suffer those four straight seasons of major injuries. He was never the same after he broke his wrist. But we must remember that it’s not always about home runs, it’s about the players, the game and what they have done for it. Junior built baseball in Seattle, he was the Mariners and he was all that baseball embodied in the 1990’s. He will, with out a doubt, go down as one of the greatest players in history because it does come so naturally to him and he has a great time doing it.

As a resident of Seattle, and as a (at times fairweather) fan of the Mariners, I can only share the collective Seattle dream of Junior returning to the Emerald City to finish out his career. His unexpected emotion that he expressed when Cincinnati came to Seattle last year only proved to me that the connection between himself and Seattle is one that is missed on both sides of the fence.

Either way, I look forward to watching Junior continue to enjoy the game he was born to play. Congratulations Junior, what an amazing ride it’s been so far.

Anyone that has ventured into Oregon while driving has discovered the absurd law stating, “We don’t believe people are completely capable of fueling their own car.”

Full service gas stations are the in thing in the State of Oregon, a state that refused to jump on the self service bandwagon by passing this law in 1951. Only one other state in the union has a similar law, New Jersey; who enacted theirs just a few years earlier in 1949. Obviously, I understand that a 59 year old law isn’t breaking news, but it’s something that (in the immortal words of Perter Griffin) really grinds my gears.

Oregon employs close to 8,000 people to pump your gas for you. Sure, this probably helps the economy, it helps people get jobs… but I still want to pump my own gas. I think I should be able to show my Washington drivers license, as a responsibility card, so I can fuel my own car.

Here are a few (hilarious) reasons the State of Oregon uses to rationalize their decision [ORS 480.315-320]:

• Exposure to toxic fumes represents a health hazard to customers dispensing Class 1 flammable liquids.
• The significantly higher prices typically charged for full-service fuel dispensing in states where self service is permitted at retail discriminates against customers with lower incomes, who are under greater economic pressure to subject themselves to the inconvenience and hazards of self-service.
• The increased use of self-service at retail in other states has contributed to diminishing the availability of automotive repair facilities at gasoline stations.
• Self service dispensing at retail contributes to unemployment, particularly among young people.

That’s official folks, no joke. Apparently the attendant has super evolved lungs because I’ve never seen any type of respirator protecting them from the hazardous fumes. I’m glad they have some young kid, who couldn’t get a better job, breathing it so I don’t have to - thanks Oregon.

I guess I don’t really care because I can pump my own Washington gas all I want. But when I drive through your state, Oregon, I do care. Stop being stupid.