Renton, WA

The swimming beach is closed at least until Tuesday, since tests showed E.Coli and “fecal coliform bacteria” present. The park’s boat launch and other features remain open.

For those of you who’ve been dying to burn some of that rubbish in your yard - fun huh - this burn ban since the heat of July 13 has been long.You’d think that week of rain would have been more than enough to take away the fire danager left by the record heat, but still we had a burn ban until 8AM this morning.

Technically, we still have a “partial” burn ban. As far as I can tell from the DNR website, this means use common sense.

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Renton is opening a Small Business Development Center.

The stated goal is to “help strengthen Renton’s economic vitality by providing one-on-one confidential assistance to individuals, small businesses, and other entrepreneurs at no charge.” Programs will provide practical, real-life solutions and will be taught by experienced business people. The press release also notes that business advisor services will be provided through a contract with the well-established SBDC at Highline Community College.

There will be a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Monday the 30th at RTC. If you want to be advised, go to Renton Technical College or make an appointment at the other location downtown in “Old City Hall” — 200 Mill Avenue South, Suite 100

Renton River Days start tomorrow Wednesday July 25.

If you haven’t been before, it’s the typical small festival - booths, activities, fair food - in Liberty Park. Which is next to the library and Cedar River.

Wednesday is Kids’ Day, which includes free face painting and a circus ($1 admission). And the grand finale on Sunday is the traditional Rubber Ducky Derby.

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For the longest time, Blockbuster and Netflix just happened to have same prices on their similar packages. In the last few weeks, Netflix has slowly but surely dropped the prices on all their packages by $1 each. I hope this turns into a good old-fashioned price war.

Which service is best for you totally depends on if the blockbuster store in on your normal path, or if you would have to go out of your way. We use Blockbuster, since it’s convenient for us, and get so much more for our movie-watching dollar than when we tried Netflix. We almost always exchange our movies in store, so we get extra rentals from the store while we wait for the mail, and we get one free game rental coupon a month for our xbox-loving daughter.

If you use Sunrocket for your VoIP phone service, you probably got an email this morning. And there is a message up on the company home page.

Check to make sure your voicemail is working. Mine isn’t, even though the phone service is still there. I’m going to call my credit card company and see if I can get my money back for the year-subscription I just paid for last month.

They are recommending two other VoIP companies, neither of which I have heard of before. I guess you wouldn’t want to recommend your competition which drove you into bankruptcy in the first place, huh.?

If you have any suggestions for a VoIP, please leave a comment people. I’ve heard from one person who had Comcast triple play with VoIP and hated it.

sunrocket, voip

While I’m not sure that “rural” is quite the word for it, I guess it is relatively accurate, compared to Seattle downtown. A significant number of people in Southeast King County live in areas which are still unincorporated, although that should change in upcoming years. King County is strongly encouraging these areas to incorporate or annex to [some city] by 2009.

Those of us in unincorporated King County have two representatives in the larger picture. There is a Rural Ombudsman, David Spohr, and one King County Council member who lives in unincorporated King County - Regan Dunn. These two, along with other representatives, will be hosting a Town Hall Meeting at Maple Valley’s Lake Wilderness Lodge on Monday July 23.

The schedule is 9:30-10AM, “Public Reception”, followed by 10AM-Noon “Program”. Since I doubt the program is a live stage show or actual entertainment, it is probably education on why we should vote in the way they are about to explain, and information about what they have been doing for us.

Residents of the Benson Hill Community in urban unincorporated King County south and east of Renton are invited to a community discussion and open house on Thursday, July 19, 2007 to focus on the issue of local government services and annexation to the City of Renton. The area includes over 16,000 residents in the neighborhoods of Cascade, Benson Hill, Spring Glen and Spring Brook.

Thursday, July 19, 2007
6:30 – 8:30 pm
Renton Park Elementary, 16828 128 th Ave. SE, Renton, WA

They go on to say that the annexation choice is expected to be on the November 6, 2007 ballot, so the outcome of the meeting may be a foregone conclusion. But if you want to get involved, this may be your last chance to speak up.

Representatives of King County and the City of Renton will be there to answer questions about the annexation process and about how local government services are affected, including:

* Annexation-related governance options and service choices
* Annexation cost and benefit information
* How to participate in the process and to vote on whether to annex or not

Staring Wednesday July 18, the Fair is back in town. The King County Fair has been operating since 1863, so it would be practically unpatriotic to miss it.

Your Entertainment Book (you have one, right?) has two for one admission coupons. Other admission deals are:

Wednesday 7/18 - Seniors half-price
Thursday 7/19 - Kids 6-12 half-price
Saturday 7/21 Family day price of $20 for a family of four (max two adults)

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Let’s just save some time in having a series of recalls, and improve our economy, by not importing cheap products from China. I realize we all might need to pay a little more, but I think it beats the alternative.

Dent Fresh U.S.A., Inc, Miami, Florida, is initiating a nationwide recall in accordance with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of the toothpaste made in China involving all:DentFresh Fluoride Mint Toothpaste 9 Oz (255g). This recall has been initiated because the products may contain the poisonous chemical diethylene glycol (DEG). DEG is used in antifreeze and as a solvent, and is a Central Nervous System depressant and potent kidney and liver toxin.

Every Wednesday at noon, for the next few weeks, Auburn is going to be having a free “Family Fun” show at Les Gove Park in Auburn. You especially should check this out on the hot summer days, since it is next to a spray park. You can pack a picnic lunch, let the kids get wet (swimming suits recommended) and enjoy a stage show.

Les Gove Park is located at 910 Ninth Street SE, Auburn

July 18: Eric Haines’ Interactive Family Fun Show
July 25: Eric Herman’s Invisible Band
August 1: The Magic of Jeff Evans
August 8: TBA
August 15: Noiseguy’s Noisy Tales

West Nile Virus is rare, and only 1 out of 150 people who get the virus even show serious symptoms. Regardless of the risk of disease, I’m all for minimizing my exposure to mosquitoes. The City of Renton has put out a series of recommendations, which I have blatantly copied below:

Prevention Tips:

* Make sure doors and windows are covered in screen
* Wear long pants, long sleeved shirts and socks when outdoors
* Consider use of a mosquito repellent containing DEET
* Eliminate standing water on your property: clean out gutters, dispose of old tires, empty buckets and flowerpot dishes, fix leaky faucets
* Change water in watering troughs and bird baths weekly
* Screen rain barrels or other containers that can’t be drained
* Stay indoors at dusk and dawn
* Vaccinate horses - other pets (dogs and cats) are resistant to West Nile Virus

mosquito, mosquitoes, west nile virus

On July 17 at the Renton Community Center, kids can spend an hour on free “detective science”. From 11AM-noon, Mad science will lead kids through a scientific adventure with clues and a crime scene.  The next mad Science adventure will be August 14th.

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Free Summer Splash-tacular at Henry Moses Aquatic Center on July 14th from 9:30-11AM. All ages are welcome but the water games and contest are most appropriate for families with children age 7-12. They will have “an array of water games, contests, safety presentations, fun, information, and entertainment.”

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The city of Renton put out a press release advising people to take common sense precautions to deal with the heat, and to check in on elderly relatives to make sure they are doing ok.

If you are one of the majority without air conditioning, and are uncomfortable at home, visit a local public place such as a mall or library for the afternoon to kill some time in an air-conditioned space. If you aren’t limited to free ways to kill time, Wednesday afternoon would be an ideal time to take in a matinée movie.

The Renton Community Center at 1715 Maple Valley Highway in Renton is air conditioned, and is open to the public from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday. The Renton Senior Activity Center at 211 Burnett Avenue N. in Renton also has air conditioning available, and welcomes seniors
during its normal operating hours of 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. They will have extended hours on Wednesday because of the forecasted record high heat. The community center will be open to the public from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Wednesday, July 11. The Renton Senior Activity Center at 211 Burnett Avenue N. in Renton will also extend its operating hours. It will be open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Wednesday.

Also keep in mind that more than 50% of residential burglaries in Renton are non-forced entry, meaning the criminal entered via an unsecured door or window. While it is good sense to let cool evening air into your home, use a window that can be locked partially open, is small, or difficult to access.

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