I’m telling myself I’m doing my bit for sustainability by re-purposing and recycling my newsletter as a blog post. At moments I can even believe that. For the most part though I just feel like I need to hire someone to be my Information Filter…oh wait…that’s what I do. Yikes.

At the moment my sister is 15 min away from picking up  my daughter and I for the Wendell Girls Road Trip (hmmm…I guess I’m the only Wendell…no wait…I’m pretty sure in my sister’s many name changes that she actually hung on to Wendell in some way and my daughter has now turned 18 and reached the age of reason where she could, if she so desired, drop her current last name (her father’s) and use Wendell which I conveniently gave her as a middle name proving of course I can see the future. ) We’re on our way down to Portland…and then McMinnville for a whirlwind college tour. My daughter is participating in Scholarship Day at Linfield College on Sunday and we’re going to tool around University of Portland and Reed today.

So…my sister and I are staying at the Hotel Oregon in McMinnville on Sunday night…which is….tada…the Oscars. Hotel Oregon is owned by McMeneman’s so I was figuring they’d have some kind of of hootnanny going on to celebrate…and of course they do…in Portland. I write to the Hotel (which doesn’t have TVs in the rooms to encourage serenity) and plead for some sort of frivolity whereby we can have a few champagne cocktails and hoot at the celebrities on the red carpet…or at least huddle around an old TV in the staff lounge. I get a call from the manager and…he’s working on turning on the sound on the TV in the billiard room. Don’t worry he says…worse case scenario you can watch the Oscars with subtitles. Anyway….here’s my announcements!

Tuesday, February 24, 2009, 6:30 – 7:30pm: Ann reads from ‘ Seattle’s Ravenna Neighborhood’ at the Northeast Branch of Seattle Public Library
Ann will be sharing pictures and talking about her first local history book, Seattle’s Ravenna Neighborhood. Come see why Ravenna Park was called Big Tree Park when it was a private attraction for visitors to the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition in 1909. You’ll also learn about the historic college in Ravenna that was not connected to the University of Washington. In addition Ann will be talking about local resources from which she acquired the pictures and a bit about researching and writing local history.

This program accompanies the neighborhood history exhibit hosted by Northeast Library during the whole month of February. Third Place Books will be on hand selling copies of both of her books – Seattle’s Ravenna Neighborhood and Frederick & Nelson.

Library events and programs are free and everyone is welcome. Registration is not required. The Northeast Branch is located at 6801 35th Ave. N.E. For more information call 206-684-7539 or visit the Seattle Public Library events calendar.
If you missed Ann’s interview on January 28th’s Sound Focus on KUOW 94.9FM you can still go to their website and listen to, or download, the interview. Ann joined host Dave Beck to talk about Frangos, the Tearoom, and the other elements that made Frederick & Nelson such a center of creativity and community.
Author Ann Wendell joined the residents of the Chateau at Bothell Landing for a holiday tea and book signing party focused around the memories and lasting impressions of one of Seattle’s oldest and most revered department stores.