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🐹 Airships & Seadragons 🐲🐲
Good morning, Bellingham. This is your Friday update from The Hamster Wheel.
We’re getting lucky with the weather this fall. I’ll enjoy the rain if it falls on Sunday, because it’s all sunshine through the week after. ☀️
Have fun, and stay safe out there!
Nature, Community, Sasquatch, UAP
Photos From the Hoods
Salmon in Whatcom Creek - 📷 by Cliff Knitter
Praying Mantis - 📷 by Gregory Green
Bands on the Bay to benefit the Community Boat Center - 📷 by Marisa Papetti
Heron, on the dock at Lake Padden - 📷 by Jessica Hamerski
Tag @bellinghamsterwheel on Instagram or reply to this email to get your photos in The Hamster Wheel.
Weather Forecast
Friday: 71°F 🌡️ 55°F | 🌤️ Mostly Sunny | 🌧️ 8% | 💨 S 6 mph
Saturday: 74°F 🌡️ 57°F | 🌤️ Mostly Sunny | 🌧️ 74% | 💨 SSW 3 mph
Sunday: 69°F 🌡️ 55°F | 🌈 Light Rain Likely | 🌧️ 74% | 💨 S 9 mph
Moon Phases
Events, Updates & News Around Town
Get off the Hamster Wheel
“The Lights of the Goodyear Blimp”
Stepping out of Hardware Sales the other day, a nice gentleman asked if “I’d seen the Goodyear Blimp.” I scanned the horizon without seeing anything, then looked to the man to make sure he wasn’t pulling my leg. He rolled his eyes skyward and I followed his gaze to find the entire sky above me filled with the long, silent body of Goodyear’s iconic airship. It was like discovering a UFO hovering overhead waiting to beam me up. 🛸 🤣
Hamster Wheel readers Doris Wunsch, and Brian Martinet, sent these lovely photos after spotting the the airship during the hours it circled the county.
Goodyear Blimp in Bellingham over Beach Kat 📸 Doris Wunsch
📸 Doris Wunsch
Interestingly, while we, and they, colloquially refer to Goodyear’s airships as blimps, they are in fact zeppelins which differ from blimps by having a rigid internal frame. The one seen in our skies is named the Wingfoot Three, launched in 2018.
📸 Brian Martinet
Randy Small from the Whatcom County Weather facebook page posted more wonderful photos including shots from inside the passenger quarters.
Randy reports that the airship crew “tried to get to BC today [Wednesday], but the support people didn't have the correct documents to cross, so they were concerned that they wouldn't get back into the U.S.” and continued ”So they scrapped the whole thing and landed on a small airstrip outside of Everson and are staying the night. I think it will fly tomorrow, depending on cloud ceiling, and leave Friday, is my understanding.”
In other news…
🍓 North Cascades Institute and Whatcom Land Trust have teamed up with Village Books to bring Natalie Hammerquist, author of Edible Plants of the Pacific Northwest, and Medicinal Plants of the Pacific Northwest, to the Fairhaven bookstore for an hour-long presentation.
Natalie teaches readers “to recognize the most common plants, but [..] also shows them how to steer clear of threatened species, as well as toxic and poisonous plants, using highly detailed visuals to make identification more immediate and accurate.” Register to attend.
🐉 Oh, how I love a cryptozoological mystery! 😁 The Salish Current brought us a gem yesterday in an article titled San Juan sea serpent spotting reported — again by Sam Fletcher. The article details the historical and more recent sightings of a fabled (or real) serpent-like creature called a cadborosaurus.
If this water-dragon does exist, I hope one washes up on the beach at our Boulevard Park. With all that’s transpiring in the world, I think a little magic would be just the ticket.
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Garage & Estate Sales
Your Source For Vintage Can Openers
1272 Central Rd. (Fri, Sat, 9 am)
Here’s a multi-family barn sale about half way out to Everson. I was told there will be lots of vintage stuff, furniture, housewares, fishing and sporting equipment, kid stuff, as well as a bunch of farm items. map
Food & Drink
Hamsters Gotta Eat
Because it’s fun to be a lookie-loo
Crash an Open House
1078 Chuckanut Drive (Open Sat, Sun 12-2 pm)
I know it’s not entirely Edwardian in style, but this home just screams “Downton Abbey” to me. 😁 Bring your own Crawley family to fill this beauty with gossip and intrigue. At 4,400 square feet, there’s a lot of home to fill!! Listing
2321 Williams Street (Open Sat 11-2 pm)
This sweet 792 square foot bungalow sits right in the heart of the Columbia neighborhood. It looks well maintained, and many of the original 1920s surfaces remain. I love the soft robins egg blue exterior. Listing.
Performance Arts This Week
Dance of The Hamsters
LIVE ARTS & FILM
iDiOM Theater
No Man's Land | Thurs, Fri, Sat
Bellingham Theatre Guild
The Play That Goes Wrong | Fri, Sat, Sun
FireHouse Arts & Events Center
12 Minutes Max (Dance) | Fri, Sat
FireHouse Arts & Events Center
The Kid (Silent Film) | Sun
New Prospect Theatre
Tales of the Sea | Sun
Mount Baker Theatre
Twilight in Concert | Sun
The Upfront Theatre
Various performances.
PARTICIPATORY DANCE
Contra - Fairhaven Library - Sat 6 pm
Sunset Silent Disco - Zuanich - Sat 6:30 pm
Salsa Collective - The Majestic - Sun 5:30 pm
Open Floor Movement - Presence Studio - Sun 10:30 am
Help Spread The Word
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Events & Nightlife
Spinning Into The Night
Feature an Event. Reach out.
FEATURED
Catoberfest is Saturday, September 13th, from 12:00 to 7:00 pm at Blaine Marine Park, bringing an all-ages Oktoberfest celebration to support the Blaine Food Bank! Enjoy cornhole, live music from PaperHeart, Marla Hooch, Glyf, and Michael Dayvid, ice-cold beers, a silent auction, and more, all for a great cause. Tickets required, no pets allowed.
Northline Seafoods and Bellingham SeaFeast welcomes Northline Seafoods' vessel, the Hannah, and salmon processing back to Fairhaven's docks! This exciting community event celebrates Fairhaven's fishing and processing culture—honoring our rich fishing heritage while showcasing the future of wild seafood. Enjoy pink salmon tasting, live music, and tour the production facility inside Fairhaven’s Arrowac Building. Tickets.
The Bellingham Traditional Jazz Society invites you to a Saturday afternoon of New Orleans style jazz for listening and swing-dancing. Celebrating the roots of Early Jazz, the "Little Jazz Friends," an 8-piece band, will hit the stage of the Bellingham VFW Hall, on Saturday, September 13th, 2:00 to 5:00 pm.
Experience the legendary romance saga with this epic film-to-concert event — featuring the original movie accompanied by a sensational live band on stage with an enchanting candlelit atmosphere. Twilight in Concert offers a unique opportunity for fans to relive the story that put Forks, Washington on the map. An exceptional 12-piece ensemble of outstanding rock and orchestral musicians will take the stage to perform the beloved film score in perfect synchronization with the original movie. Tickets for werewolves, vampires, and humans alike.
FRIDAY
Free Friday in the Open Art Studio, Make.Shift - Stop by Make.Shift’s Open Art Studio from 1 to 3 pm, and craft whatever you’d like with the supplies and tools they have available (including vintage magazines and collage materials, paint of all kinds, pens, pencils, yarn, embroidery thread, and fabric)! Refreshments available. All-ages welcome.
12 Minutes Max, FireHouse Arts & Events Center - A performance showcase featuring short works by artists. The program showcases a variety of performance art disciplines that may include music, dance, theater, and film. There is only one rule: every act must be under 12 minutes! Tickets.
Oktoberfest, Trackside - Oktoberfest returns to Trackside from 5:00 to 9:00 pm, kicking off with live music, entertainment, and a stein-holding contest to test your strength! For $15, enjoy a keepsake ceramic stein with your first half-liter pour of Festbier, Helles, Hefeweizen, or Pilsner, plus pint-priced refills all night. Savor bratwurst, pretzels, and more from the Dog Days food truck.
SATURDAY
Whatcom County Farm Tour, Whatcom County - Get a behind-the-scenes look at farming in NW Washington. Visit just one farm or explore up to 15 different farms between 10am and 4pm. Research the farms and plan your route on the Sustainable Connections website.
Worm Composting, Garden Spot Nursery - Join Kelle, founder of Blaine CORE, to learn how worm bins use red wigglers to turn food scraps into nutrient-rich compost, build healthy soil, and set up a bin of your own. Worm bins are simple, fun, and a great way to recycle right at home. Class is free! Register your wormy interest here.
SUNDAY
Nellie McKay, New Prospect Theatre - Join Nellie McKay from 7:30 to 9:30 pm at the New Prospect Theatre, where her eclectic mix of jazz, pop, and soulful West Virginia sounds from her latest album, Hey Guys, Watch This, backed by The Carpenter Ants, will captivate. A Broadway Theatre World Award winner and creator of musical biographies, Nellie’s performances have earned “Best Concerts of the Year” acclaim from The New York Times. Tickets in advance or at the door.
The Everlovers, The Old Edison - Think classic harmonies reminiscent of the Everly Brothers. Then think Roadhouse Country Classics. Put those together with half of The Jukehouse Hounds—drummer Kelly Van Camp and guitarist Dan Taylor—and you can expect to love dancing to The Everlovers! Tubes begin at 5:30 pm.
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Hakuna matata
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Have a great weekend!!