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Our shared passion for story presentation: Remembering the late, great Blaine Newnham
Any baseball player will tell you they remember the day they were called up to the big leagues. I certainly remember a similar life-changing moment on a journalism scale, when in November 1984 I learned I was going from a small-town newspaper in Roseburg, Oregon to The Seattle Times. I probably skipped at least one stop – like a medium-sized paper – in this move. To put this in sports perspective, this is akin to making the jump from the Class A, minor-league Everett AquaSox to the Seattle Mariners. I was lucky. My pleasant surprise was only surpassed by the…
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Apple Cup apathy: Non-conference vibe takes a bite out of the rivalry
The 2024 Apple Cup by all accounts appeared to be one of the more anticipated matchups of the season. The rivalry game between Washington and Washington State that at one point was in danger of being another realignment casualty, was salvaged among the scraps from the wrecking ball that destroyed the Pac-12, sending UW to the Big Ten and its in-state foe with only Oregon State as a conference partner. But as UW football season ticket holders this past week were invited to an “exclusive pre-sale” of tickets for the Sept. 14 game at neutral-site, Luman Field, the response has…
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Hoosier Hysteria
Never daunted, we cannot falter In the battle, we’re tried and true Indiana, our Indiana Indiana we’re all for you! I-U! BLOOMINGTON, Indiana – Most of the 16,000-plus fans were clearly all for Indiana on a crisp, sunny Sunday afternoon here in the heart of the Hoosier State. That would include myself, admittedly a college sports nut, and wife Vicki, who has become a fan of college athletics largely through osmosis , i.e. married to me for nearly 47 years. I’ve had a long fascination with college football stadiums and college basketball arenas. Iconic Assembly Hall, if not the Holy…
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A cold, devastating blow on the eve of Christmas Eve
On a dark, frigid afternoon in the Pacific Northwest just two days before Christmas, the email from The Seattle Times that popped up on my phone took my breath away. “Passing along sad news from Beth,” wrote Angela Lo, my former colleague, referencing the Metro editor working the news desk that day. ”Bill Kossen died of a heart attach today. He collapsed after a running event.” I stopped in my tracks on our walk with a couple of our friends. I couldn’t believe what I was reading. Not Bill, I thought. Not one of the good guys. Bill was only…
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A spectacular day at USC
What a day in LA LA land. The University of Southern California has a rich football tradition. All that history, SC’s game-day traditions and the pageantry of the great game of college football were on full display on a beautiful, sunny day in Los Angeles. We flew into Santa Ana on Friday, and made the hour or so drive to the USC campus Saturday morning, long before the 4:30 p.m. kickoff. The LA Memorial Coliseum, the home of the Trojans since 1923, is adjacent to USC. So most people park in designated parking lots around campus and walk to the…
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I brainwashed her, and I’m truly sorry … sort of
Vicki teaches a Bible study on Friday mornings. Last week, she told her group she couldn’t be there tomorrow because she’ d be in California. “Oh, you’re going to see your sister?” one of the women asks Vicki, who grew up in California and two of her sisters still live there. “No, we’re going to LA to see the Washington-USC football game,” Vicki replied. Looks of disbelief ensued. Some people are surprised Vicki goes to more sporting events in a year than many women attend in a lifetime. It’s really not her fault. That’s what she signed up for when…
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Hiking (not so) Easy Pass, step by step
EASY PASS – Before we get started, let’s just make one thing clear: There’s nothing “easy” about the hike to Easy Pass. Sure, the clearly-marked sign off Highway 20 is easy to spot. The trailhead, unlike many starting points for hikes, is easily accessible, just a short, paved road from the highway. After that? Easy doesn’t do it. It’s a 3,000-foot climb to the pass. That’s a tough slog for even the hardiest of day hikers. Our group of four – which included my son-in-law Peter, his 11-year-old son Isaac and longtime friend and hiking fanatic Bob “Next…
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The tall and short of it
I entered the Land of the Giants recently – literally and figuratively. It was the 68th gathering of the Northwest Basketball Legends in Seattle. Seven-foot-1 Spencer Hawes was there. His uncle, Steve Hawes, a mere 6-foot-10, received a Merit of Excellence award at the banquet. Steve was an All-American at the UW and also played 10 seasons in the NBA, including two for the hometown Seattle SuperSonics. He was introduced by his brother, Jeff, a relative shrimp at 6-foot-7 inches who played alongside Steve at UW. Also in attendance were other former college basketball giants in our state: Jim McKean…
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It’s time for me to get Kraken
They said playoff hockey will hook you. Consider me hooked. I tried to be disinterested. But how can you not be caught up in this team and this game of skill played at lightning speed? I credit my Chicago-raised, son-in-law, Karl, for sparking our interest in hockey. Karl is a big Chicago Blackhawks fan and a hockey player himself. Vicki and I usually visit Karl and Greta in May, and our visits between 2010-2015 invariably overlapped with playoff hockey in Chicago. The Blackhawks made deep runs in the NHL playoffs during that five-year span, including two Stanley Cup titles. We…
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I have a shallow interest in the Kraken’s deep dive into the postseason
The Seattle Kraken are in the Stanley Cup playoffs. Whoop-dee-freakin-doo. Please excuse my sarcasm. I’m trying – I really am – to embrace hockey. I should be over the moon that the Kraken, in just their second season in the NHL, are in the postseason. I may watch tonight’s Game 1 against the Colorado Avalanche. On the other hand, I may not. Yes, I’ve been to Climate Pledge Arena to watch a game. Vicki and I were there in early February to see the Kraken maul the Philadelphia Flyers, 6-2. We went more out of curiosity to see the new…
