Each morning, around 6:45 a.m., I trudge my way from the bus to my office. I look up and smile…read more Typically, I see a Metropolitan Improvement District (MID) employee, sweeping garbage off the sidewalk. I make a mental note to write a review, then I promptly forget...until now. You'll know the MID employees from the yellow safety vests and raincoats. They may be trekking around the city with 32 gallon bins on wheels or on a bike. In many ways, they serve as ambassadors to our city, keeping it clean and helping to keep it safe. For years, I've found the MID rather mysterious. A quick check on the internet tells me that the organization was founded by the Downtown Seattle Association in 1999 and is financed through tax assessments on downtown properties. As of earlier this month, the MID covers a total area of 285 square block are in downtown Seattle's core. The MID staff puts a smile on my face. I think about that it takes to keep our city clean and really, it takes a lot. I'm grateful for the MID staff that sweeps the sidewalks and picks up tracks to help keep Seattle beautiful. The presence of the bike patrol is appreciated in some instances. Countless times I have seen tourists approach MID staff members for directions and such. They are truly ambassadors that locals like myself may take for granted.

This is a great newspaper with a focus on activism and change. Some examples of the articles found…read morein this weeks paper: Wanna Talk Values? - Rhonda Soto attacks a report by the Pew Charitable Trust Economic Mobilty Project where most African Americans polled say that Blacks are responsible for their own economic situations and have "bad values." City Up Penalty for Targeting Homeless - Angie Jones writes about City Council approving a proposal that gives homelessness protected class status under the Malicious Harassment ordinance. Authority Unchecked - An interview with Charlie Savage on the Bush-Cheney Administration's quest for more power. Vendor of the Week - A story about an ex-cab driver who has been attacked and cannot drive a cab anymore. There are so many great, eye opening articles every week in this newspaper. Highly recommend you pick one up. Zipzap Zubidy Bop!

I WISH THERE WERE MORE STARS TO GIVE!…read more To those of you that know what Real Change is, keep giving! To those that don't follow me here... For me, Real Change is the ONE way I can give to the homeless and really and truly feel like I'm doing the right thing. Real Change vendors are people on the cusp. People deciding to make the first difficult steps to getting back on track. Real Change is a good thing in a bad world, and I really want you to understand why. Real Change vendors actually have to buy the copies that they sell on the street and Real Change allows them to keep the profit! Vendors have to agree to a code of conduct at work, just like the rest of us that says, among other things, that they can't be intoxicated while working or they will loose their vendor rights. When I look at a Real Change worker, I don't see a homeless person, I see a employed person. ONLY BUY FROM AUTHORIZED SELLERS. You can tell this by looking for their Real Change Identification Badge. I only give to Real Change vendors anymore, and I give as much as I can afford! When they say "Thank You", I really mean it when I say "It's my pleasure". I wish there were more programs like this. I wish we had passed the legislation for a homeless center at South Lake Union. Just a place where people can take a shower, pick up some clothes, and use a computer... is that so much to ask? Vote.

I love this organization! Each month I take a art class facilitated by rotating local artists that…read moreteach us a new technique typically with different art media. Using this organization's art journal for kids and youth the class teaches social workers, therapists, artists, and YOU how to work with kids to explore feelings, thoughts, patterns, coping skills using art. I am finding I get more "me time / self care" then my original intention for sole use of adding new skills to my practice. I can't say enough about these classes... check it out!

The American Heart Association holds this fundraiser event the Puget Sound Heart Walk each year…read more Thousands walk each year and its a great way to connect with other health conscious people and spend time with your family.

This quiet little neighborhood houses the famous Arthritis Foundation which sponsors The Jingle…read moreRun! This Seattle historic run has as many as 13,000 runners! I called as with my knees which don't like running or walking on concrete and wanted an alternate route or idea.. no hesitation - I was told about 2 other fundraisers they have with less difficult terrain.. And now I am volunteering with one of my favorite activities- registration .. and possibly more.

These guys are amazing! They figured out a way to get to our challenging location, and cheerfully…read moretackled more than 25 years of waste with optimism and without judgement, when no other company would even try. They are friendly, respectful, courteous, knowledgeable, enthusiastic, and thorough, and they are solution-oriented problem-solvers. They are superheroes who saved us from a seemingly unsolvable nightmare, after so many others refused to help us at all. Whether your tank is a challenge or not, we highly recommend you reach out to Green Latrine. When we bought our home in 2000, we were assured that the septic tank had just been pumped because it was a required step before transferring ownership. The prior owners marked the location of the tank lids with metal stakes, and told us to make sure to remember where those were, for future servicing. We had never had a septic system before, but we learned that they should be pumped every few years. Over the last 25 years, we called MANY septic companies to arrange for service, but they all failed to ever come out -- some would cancel, some would not return calls, some agreed to get us on the schedule but instead would ghost us altogether. In December of 2025, after 25 years of being unable to get the tank pumped, our toilets and showers stopped draining, and we had to try again to persuade ANYONE to help us. No one would even come help us locate the tank lids. We called company after company, and this time we discovered that apparently our steep, rural easement road was too treacherous for any of them to attempt to drive up with a heavy waste-tank truck. We spent an entire month using a camping bucket toilet in our bathroom, and showering at friends' houses, because all our water use was backing up into the house, and we had lost all hope of ever getting our plumbing working again. Finally, one septic company, who said that their own truck was too big to navigate our easement road, recommended we call Green Latrine because, although they primarily handle portable construction and event toilets, they also do septic pumping and that their smaller-capacity trucks might be able to make the climb. The referring company warned us that with a completely overfull septic tank, a small truck might need to make two separate trips, and we should be prepared to pay full price for two separate service visits. When we called Green Latrine and explained the challenges to drive up our road, Paul Brown, the operations manager, said he thought his team might be right for the job. Doing something challenging and different could be a great change of pace, and he was pretty sure team member Matt White, their guru driver, would be thrilled to give our road a try. Matt can maneuver their trucks, even the larger ones, into the most complicated areas. Paul told us he would consult with his team to decide if they would tackle our road. When Paul called back, he said they could come on Saturday, only a couple of days later, and that Matt wanted to come along for the adventure even though it was his day off. They wanted to save us money, so instead of multiple visits, the plan was to bring both a large truck and a small one, and then empty the small tank into the larger truck that was left downhill, if a second round was needed. Despite Matt's best efforts, our road was, indeed, too difficult for the big truck, so Tim Brown skillfully navigated the small truck up the easement. Whenever we had plumbing issues in past homes, the plumbers would make comments about the waste, and express disgust, and we always felt embarrassed. Now we had 25+ years of waste, and a tank that was 20 years overdue for service, so we braced ourselves for negative judgement. But instead, these guys were cheerful and chipper, and interested in the opportunity to see how a long-standing accumulation is different from their more routine appointments. We asked a lot of questions about how the tank functions, and how their equipment worked, as well as general conversation. At the end of the day, our septic tank was empty, and our fears were remedied. We won't have waste backing up into the house anymore. And now we know who to call for the next periodic service. We are extremely grateful and impressed with Green Latrine, and their team's work ethic and willingness to tackle this challenge we had no way to solve.

I lost my phone at T mobile park and we were able to pin it in one of the multiple porta potties…read more The crew took the time to turn off the truck so we could ping my phone and they helped me look for my phone. These guys were so kind,patient, helpful, and understanding. I was having a pretty poopy day until we met these guys.

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I'm goin' doooown toooown to Seattle! YEEESSS! Absolutely love Seattle's downtown area. There's so…read moremuch to do and see here, and a lot of the attractions are walking distance from each other. While the weather ain't like my home in California, the sights are most certainly bedazzling. Downtown is filled with skyscraper buildings, coffee shops galore, shopping, entertainment, and lots of foodie spots. The Downtown area is also really close to a few other popular districts in the area including Lower Queen Anne, South Lake Union, Pioneer Square, The Seattle Waterfront, and the Seattle Center. Some popular attractions nearby that are worthy of your visit include The Space Needle, Chihuly Garden and Glass, The Seattle Waterfront, and of course: Pike Place Market! If for nothing else, you MUST visit Pike Place Market! That market is unbelievable. You could literally spend hours there and never get bored. And the best part of all; it's located right smack dab in the middle of downtown. Yep! Downtown Seattle has got it goin' on!

I had accidently splashed laundry bleach in my eye…read more Through a nurse call in service, I was routed to the WAPC. At first I thought why? I did not drink the bleach! As soon as Lorelei answered the call, she took control, finding out what happened; and then provided specific instructions as to what I must do to prevent permanent damage to my sight. Because of the certainty in her voice, I followed her instructions exactly. The extreme pain and redness subsided. She had also directed me to call her back, after doing the 15 minute (minimum) eyewash and laying down in a darkened room with the eye covered, for the possible next steps. I called her back; and, based upon gritty feeling remaining, she directed me to see an ophthalmologist immediately. She asked me to tell her the name of the doctor and the outcome. After a thorough examination, the opthamologist found no damage to my eye. A side note: On the bottle of bleach, there are directions to flush the eye for 15 minutes for bleach in the eye. I read this, but thought that probably 5 minutes was good enough. Because of Lorelei's professional confident and firm manner, I did the whole fifteen minute flush. Had I not done this, and then not gone to the opthamologist, my eyesight would have been severely damaged. PS: I am now have a new respect for the hazard posed by even the everyday laundry bleach. I now follow the instructions for eye protection and dilution.

Okay, I understand that it was 3 am and maybe there was not a lot of people on staff, but this is…read morewho I called when my cat decided he preferred vitamins to cat food. PS- Animals is one of the services they claim. There is a $30 fee for pet consultations, no problem. The Absolute first thing the girl did was to ask for my Visa, billing info.... then proceeded to put me on hold, for over twenty minutes. Occasionally she would come back on the line and say, 'you need to hold longer,' but that was it. Nearly a half hour in, and they had not checked on level of emergency, my reason for calling, nothing! I finally hung up. I know that they are a valuable service, but I just hope they are better with humans.