Letters to the Editor

Thanks...
The Editor:
I just wanted to send a rousing thank you to the Blaine police department and the county sheriff’s department for the way they allowed everyone to enjoy the 4th of July! Two years ago they quickly shut the fireworks off at 10 p.m., which I thought was totally ridiculous seeing as we were celebrating our independence as a nation.
But this year was quite different, in that they allowed the festivities to go on until after 11:30 p.m., which was so refreshing. I just wanted to let them know that there were quite a few folks who had the time of their life, due in part to their tolerance and accepting spirit.
Thanks again to our police department!
Keith Morris
Blaine

Putting the bite into police work...
The Editor:
We believe a police canine program will benefit our town and the police department. We know city financial resources are tight, and thus are trying to fund this program entirely outside of the city budget. Limited appeals to the community for assistance have resulted in the receipt of about $6,000 in cash donations. To start and maintain the program, we need a total of about $20,000.
The community has stepped forward and offered its help in other ways. Ruth Green of the Red Caboose donated a beautiful stained glass window ( 3 x 4 feet) depicting a bald eagle and a lighthouse. This item is valued at $3,500 and may be viewed at the Bayside Beauty Salon on Peace Portal Drive. We will be raffling this item with the final drawing held on October 6. Tickets are $2 each. This is where we need your help! If you could pick up a packet of tickets from Lisa at the police department and sell them, your help would be very much appreciated. If you don’t want to sell tickets, your help in buying a packet would also be appreciated (of course any soliciting/sales would have to occur during your non-working hours).
Other events being planned include: A community day in Marine park on August 18. This will include free child car seat checks, free fingerprinting for kids and free K-9 demonstrations by other law enforcement agencies. Volunteers from the Bayside Beauty Salon will be offering buzz haircuts for $5. This new hair style called the “K9 Crop” will probably start a new national trend and put you in style for the fall. We are also trying to plan a movie in the park that night. Concessions will be operated. All proceeds will go to the canine fund.
A wine and cheese party/silent auction will be held on the top floor of Ken Kellar’s building on October 6. This will involve the silent auction of extraordinarily fine kitchen and cooking ware and possibly some items of art. It will culminate with the drawing for the stained glass. Thus far, we have a commitment to donate about $11,000 in merchandise for this event.
This is a community project, thus any help you can provide will again be very much appreciated.
Bill Elfo, Blaine chief of police
Blaine

Timberrrrrrr......
The Editor:
Is there anyone or a faction that can prevent my city park from being cut down for “view” purposes!
A new resident adjacent to my city park is cutting down my shade trees and underbrush for a better view of the harbor and Canada. This is a waterfront park and they are leaving the trees to lay on the hillside and the beach which are collecting more seaweed for one and the bald eagles are no longer roosting in the park like they used to. I have tried to get the Blaine city parks department to do something to stop this horrifying butchery, but six months later the cutting persists ... Little by little the old growth will no longer be standing. Help if you can! Please! From a concerned citizen.
Kevin Tomasch
Blaine

If they build it, they will come...
The Editor:
I am writing in support of the construction of a new fire station for Blaine. As a comparatively new (and somewhat older) member of the community, I have been very impressed with the quality of the service provided by our firefighters and the support and respect that the Blaine fire department has throughout the area.
I recently had occasion to use the services of our firefighters for a medical emergency and the professionalism and courtesy displayed by the responders was truly impressive. I have heard similar positive stories from others within the community.
To be able to continue to deliver such outstanding service to the citizens of Blaine, our firefighters need and deserve the finest facilities possible. An investment in them is an investment in our own personal safety and well-being. I urge the voters of Blaine to give their full endorsement to the proposed new fire station.
Alex Mackenzie
Blaine

Bubbles, WA...
The Editor:
Much of my better thinking, it seems, occurs while I’m trimming my lovely lawn as I push my motor-free German-built mower over the green grass. But as the summer wears on, I find myself facing a natural challenge, thanks to my spreading apple trees.
Last week, while I was contemplating Blaine’s future, the terrain was suddenly bumpy as I began to mow beneath those trees. Looking down, I saw dozens of applets, victims of competition in nature’s law known as survival of the fittest. Good heavens, I said to myself. Abortions! I wonder if our president would consider them real apples. There they lay, like bubbles floating atop a green stew. In order to clear the way for smooth mowing, I picked them up one by one and reverently placed them under by shrubs to eventually become fertilizer. Ah, I said to myself (everybody in Blaine knows I talk to myself), those neonatal bubbles are gone, and now it’s smooth sailing for my wonderful human-powered lawnmower.
Bubbles! I nearly shouted. That’s it! We should rename our town. We ought to call it Bubbles. Bubbles, Washington! Bubbles are beautiful. Bubbles are bold. Bubbles maintain their identity to the bitter end, and then they go out with a quiet bang – never an audible whimper. Songs have been written about Bubbles. I’m forever blowing bubbles ... And though bubbles are generated 20 fathoms beneath the sea, they happily rise to the top momentarily to celebrate their rendezvous with the waves while the sun, with its glorious illumination, also rises.
Blaine has celebrated many bubbles. Fishing bubbles. Cannery bubbles. Lumber bubbles. Sawmill bubbles. Peace Arch bubbles. Black and White bubbles. Porno bubbles. Gasoline bubbles. Cheese, milk and beer bubbles. Pull-tab bubbles. And there are bubbles yet to come. Turn-of-the-century-before-last bubbles. Marina bubbles. Boardwalk bubbles. Kiosk bubbles. Artistic bubbles. Recreational bubbles. Tourist bubbles. I can hardly wait! Most of all, bubbles are magic. Everybody ought to believe in bubbles. As Hemingway penned the last words of The Sun Also Rises, what a disillusioned fool Jake was to express his doubts about bubbly Brett.
Oh, Jake, Brett said, we could have had such a damned good time together.
Ahead was a mounted policeman in khaki directing traffic. He raised his baton. The car slowed suddenly pressing Brett against me.
Yes, I said. Isn’t it pretty to think so?
Richard Clark
Blaine

Looking for Mr. Bland...
The Editor:
I am trying to locate Robert J. Bland, age 66, last known living in Blaine. A year ago he sent an e-mail to Charles Bland inquiring about genealogy data concerning his family in Michigan. If you know of his whereabouts would you please have him contact me at this e-mail address: joanne@usol.com. I would appreciate it very much. Thanks.
Joanne Bland
joanne@usol.com.

 

Letters Policy
The Northern Light welcomes letters to the editor; however, the opinions expressed are not those of the editor. Letters must include name, address and daytime telephone number for verification. Letters must not exceed 350 words and may be edited or rejected for reasons of legality, length and good taste. Thank-you letters should be limited to 10 names. A fresh viewpoint on matters of general interest to local readers will increase the likelihood of publication. Writers should avoid personal invective. Unsigned letters will not be accepted for publication. Requests for withholding names will be considered on an individual basis. Only one letter per month from an individual correspondent will be published.

Please send your letter to:
225 Marine Drive, Blaine, WA 98230 or fax 360/332-2777.
E-mail:editor@thenorthernlight.com

Letters Policy

The Northern Light welcomes letters to the editor; however, the opinions expressed are not those of the editor. Letters must include name, address and daytime telephone number for verification. Letters must not exceed 350 words and may be edited or rejected for reasons of legality, length and good taste. Thank you letters are limited to five individuals or groups. A fresh viewpoint on matters of general interest to local readers will increase the likelihood of publication. Writers should avoid personal invective. Unsigned letters will not be accepted for publication. Requests for withholding names will be considered on an individual basis. Only one letter per month from an individual correspondent will be published.

Please email letters to letters@thenorthernlight.com