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🐹 Metallic Masterpieces 🤘🤘

🐹 Metallic Masterpieces 🤘🤘

April 30, 2025

Good morning, Bellingham. This is your Wednesday update from The Hamster Wheel.

Yesterday’s turnout in support of the nursing staff at St. Joe’s was a powerful display of Hamsters coming together to express a common message.

Nurses chanted, danced, and cheered as hundreds of community members passed through the picket with car horns blaring. We’re very proud of our community today. 🙏

Have fun, and stay safe out there!

~ Val & Evan

Nature, Community, Sasquatch, UAP

Photos From the Hoods

Lake Padden - 📷 by Jessica Hamerski

WSNA Picket - 📷 by Val

Goslings at Whatcom Creek - 📷 by Sandy Branson

Tag @bellinghamsterwheel on Instagram or reply to this email to get your photos in The Hamster Wheel.

Mount Baker Foundation

Share Your Spare!

Sunday at the Squalicum Boathouse, 12-2 pm

Join the Mount Baker Foundation at its 3rd annual Share Your Spare Kidney Donation Forum this Sunday!

Curious about saving a life? Over 90,000 Americans await kidney transplants, and healthy adults over age 21 can safely donate one, thrive with the remaining kidney, and give someone (a loved one or a stranger) a second chance at life. At this inspiring event, hear local donor stories, learn how paired donation works to connect non-matches, and discover how to help end Whatcom County’s waitlist. Free lunch included!

Weather Forecast

Wednesday: 63°F 🌡️ 45°F | 🌤️ Mostly Sunny | 🌧️ 0% | 💨 SW 7 mph

Thursday: 71°F 🌡️ 49°F | ☀️ Sunny | 🌧️ 0% | 💨 WNW 1 to 5 mph

Moon Phases

Events, Updates & News Around Town

Get off the Hamster Wheel

Bid on Pacific Northwest-Inspired Welded Art

Looking for the perfect sculpture for your lawn or garden? Bellingham Technical College’s Fab Week Auction, running through May 2nd, showcases the talents of Welding and Fabricating Technology students with unique metal sculptures inspired by the Pacific Northwest theme. 👇️

From leaping salmon and soaring eagles to wading herons, these 16 one-of-a-kind creations, crafted during Fab Week (April 21–25), are on display at BTC’s Morse Center and available for online bidding. All proceeds support student scholarships and the welding program.

Oregon Spotted Frog

Last week, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) published a cool article about one of Whatcom County’s cold-blooded residents: the Oregon spotted frog (Rana pretiosa). The piece shines a light on the frog’s spring breeding season, offering a glimpse into its unique life cycle and the conservation efforts underway to protect this elusive native species. It’s a good read. 👍️

The Oregon spotted frog, a medium-sized amphibian with distinctive dark spots and a reddish hue, is one of Washington’s most imperiled species, listed as endangered due to habitat loss from development, agriculture, and invasive species like bullfrogs and non-native fish. According to the Washington Herp Atlas, Whatcom contains one of only three population clusters identified in Washington state since 2006.

Female Oregon spotted frogs lay up to 600 eggs in communal clusters during spring, often in shallow, sunny waters. These eggs, vulnerable to drying or predation, hatch into tadpoles within weeks, embarking on a precarious journey to adulthood.

WDFW is actively working to restore wetlands through revegetation, pond creation, and invasive species control. The article describes how the agency offers technical assistance and resources to landowners interested in enhancing frog-friendly wetlands. The video above discusses this effort. 👆️

In other news…

🌃 Starting tomorrow, May 1st, Boulevard, Cornwall, and Squalicum Creek Parks will be inaccessible behind locked gates from 10 pm to 6 am to curb rising vandalism, graffiti, and illegal activities like overnight camping and fires. The city indicates that these pilot hours will be “adjusted during the fall and winter months based on daylight hours and what we learn during this pilot phase.”

🏙️ Bellingham Planning Commission meets tomorrow, May 1st, at 6 pm. The agenda is available online. This public meeting is held in the City Council Chambers on the second floor of City Hall, or can be watched online.

🏙️ Bellingham Greenways Advisory Committee meets tomorrow, May 1st, at 7 pm. This public meeting is held in the Mayor’s Board Room in City Hall, or can be watched online.

Food & Drinks

Hamsters Gotta Eat

Performance Arts This Week

Dance of The Hamsters

THEATRE - DANCE - FILM

BAAY Theatre:
Out of the Woods | Fri, Sat 7 pm; Sat, Sun 2 pm

iDiOM Theater:
Heroes of the Fourth Turning | Thurs, Fri, Sat, Sun 7:30 pm

New Prospect Theatre:
THE ACTING-EST! | Fri 7 pm

New Prospect Theatre:
The Cocoanuts -Marx Brothers feature film | Sat 9 pm

New Prospect Theatre:
You Didn’t Hear This From Me | Sat 7 pm; Sun 5:30 pm

WWU: College of Fine and Performing Arts:
Dance in Concert | Thurs, Fri 7:30 pm; Sat 2 pm

COMEDY

PARTICIPATORY DANCE

Bachata : WWU Salsa and Bachata Club @ Viking Union MPR | Mon 7 pm
Tango : Urban Salon Tango @ The Majestic Ballroom | Mon 7 pm
Swing : B’ham Hop @ Hotel Leo Crystal Ballroom | Tues 7 pm
Cuban Salsa : Beginning Cuban Salsa @ Cof& | Tues 6 pm
Cuban Salsa : Intermediate Cuban Salsa @ Cof& | Tues 7:15 pm
Tango : Tango Practica @ The Majestic Ballroom | Wed 6:30 pm
Bachata : Bham Bachata @ ‘ONO Kitchen & Bar | Thurs 7:30 pm
Social Partner Dance : Flow Fusion @ Karate Church | Thurs 7 pm
Belly Dance : Baby-Wearing Belly Dance@ Boom Elite Martial Arts | Thurs 9:30 am
Silent Disco : Sunset Silent Disco @ Zuanich Point Park | Sat 7:30 pm
Belly Dance : Belly Dance Fusion @ Bellingham Senior Center | Sat 10:30 am
Salsa : The Salsa Collective @ The Majestic Ballroom | Sun 5:30 pm

Help Spread The Word

Refer three Bellingham friends to join our newsletter community, and we’ll include a birthday callout to one person you specify on their B’day 🎂. Get your referral link here. Your current referral count is: 0. You’re so close!.

Music & Nightlife

Spinning Into The Night

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Hakuna matata

To All Our Readers

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Have a great Wednesday!!