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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 16, 2016)
THE DAILY ASTORIAN • FRIDAY, DECEMBER 16, 2016 COMMUNITY 1B GO YACHTING ON FACEBOOK #SIGNEDBYTRUMP latsop Community Col- lege student and feminist Aria Watson, 18, of Warrenton, was outraged by President-elect Trump’s sexist comments during the election campaign. “Women are not objects,” she told the Ear. “The fact that he has said (these) things … but still won, scares me. I’m afraid that words, and even actions, like this will become a social norm.” Aria decided to do some- thing to express how she felt, and the result is a photography project, #SignedByTrump — photos of semi-nude women’s bodies, each one with a single stra- tegically placed comment painted on her skin. You can see the images on Tumblr at http://tinyurl.com/AWatPix (warning: they’re a bit graphic). Aria’s photos went viral, and have been noticed by both national and international media. She has even partnered with The Outrage to sell #SignedByTrump merchandise, with 15 percent of the profits going to the ACLU in Trump’s name (http://tinyurl.com/ AWatMerch). “While I have obviously received some negative feedback,” she noted, “I have received so much support through messages, com- ments and shares … I never would have thought that my project would have such a strong impact on so many people. “Over the past few days I have gotten messages that have brought me to tears. Some people have told me I made their day, that my artwork spoke to them, that I’ve inspired them, and some have even gone as far as saying I am their hero.” “My photography professor, David Homer, has given me so much support,” Aria added, “and I couldn’t have done any of this without him.” “Don’t let anyone silence you,” she advises. “Don’t be afraid to speak up about what you are passionate about.” C THE MYSTERY OF THE ANDRADA ave you checked out your Facebook “2016 Year in Review,” a 1-minute video collage of the last 12 months’ posts? Did you happen to notice the snappy tune playing in the background? It’s an instrumental version of the song “Shangri-La” by YACHT, which has a decidedly local connection — Jona Bechtolt. “Jona grew up in Astoria, and is the grandson of Warrenton resident Alice Codd,” his father, Warren Bechtolt Jr., wrote. “He started his professional music career as the drummer for Astor Street Opry Company’s ‘Shanghaied in Astoria’ while still in Middle School. Jona founded his latest band YACHT (Young Americans Challenging High Technology) 14 years ago, and tours with singer and collaborator Claire Evans and bass player Bobby Birdman.” Jona and Claire are pictured in a photo from the YACHT Facebook page. You can listen to the full version of “Shangri-La” at http:// tinyurl.com/YachtLa, and see the video at http://tinyurl.com/ YachtLaVid. No, Facebook doesn’t appear to give them any credit, but now you know where the tune came from. By the way, if you haven’t seen your review yet, or want to edit the one Facebook created for you, go to https://facebook. com/yearinreview2016. H PLUCKY FELLOWS rom The Daily Morning Astorian, Sunday, Dec. 16, 1883: A man from Tillamook informs the News that the schoo- ner Alpha, on her recent disastrous trip, had two boys aboard who, when in the breakers, were washed overboard. When they went over they had hold of a rope and clung to it for dear life, but were unable for a time to get aboard again, owing to their being heavily clothed and their large gum boots. Willie Star finally succeeded in getting some of his things off, and helped Johnny Gableson on board. He then soon stood beside his almost naked comrade on deck. They again set sail, and for 11 days were alone on the deep, with scant rations … their food finally gave out, and for three days they were compelled to fast. The plucky little fellows did not give up, and were at last rewarded by again reaching the bar, and crossing this time in safety. When they were taken ashore, it was discovered that they had sustained some terrible bruises. F HOT CHOCOLATE HELPER his year I received a text from a Coast Guard mom say- ing that her 10-year-old daughter, Lily Duncan, wanted to host a hot chocolate and cookie stand instead of having a birthday party,” Debbie Morrow of the Warrenton-Hammond Healthy Kids Inc. foundation wrote. “One hundred percent the donations would go to WHHKIDS for our Christmas project.” Lily’s generous offer to help was certainly appreciated, as the foundation is sponsoring 191 low income students from Warren- ton Grade School to make sure they have a nice Christmas. So, on Saturday, Dec. 10, Lily (who attends the school, herself) put up signs and hosted her hot chocolate and cookie stand here in Astoria, and was quite a hit. “Lily did amazing yesterday!” her parents, Travis and Amber Duncan, reported the next day. “She decided to adopt five fam- ilies, with the amount of kids totaling 21. We are so excited, and grateful for everyone who donated.” “Inspiring young lady!” Debbie wrote. “Thank you, Lily!” ‘T he Columbia River Bar is well known for its treachery, and one of its victims was the 2,593-ton British four- masted bark, Andrada (pictured courtesy of WreckSite). On Dec. 11, 1900, the Andrada hove to outside the bar in rough weather, and Pilot Peter Cordiner boarded the next day, according to WreckSite.eu (http://tinyurl.com/wreck- Andrada). The storm turned into a gale, so the ship stayed at sea, waiting until it was safe to enter the river. Unfortu- nately, the Andrada was never heard from again, and van- ished with all hands. The probable answer to the mystery of the ship’s disap- pearance was revealed in a story in the March 29, 1907 edi- tion of the San Francisco Call (http://tinyurl.com/whyan- drada), when Capt. Keneally, who was master of the British bark Ardermurch at the time the Adrada vanished, related the story of what he experienced on Dec. 15, 1900. The Ardermurch was 50 miles southwest of the Colum- bia River entrance when a hurricane-force gale came up. The winds were so forceful his ballast shifted, and his ship was thrown steeply onto her side. While in that perilous state, the captain saw another vessel in the same straits which sig- naled, “Andrada, we are in distress.” He was in no position to assist, and signaled back, “We are in the came condition.” He lost sight of the Andrada, and the gale became so much worse that night (the ship was almost lifted out of the water) that Keneally’s crew tried to cut away the mast, and he had to stop them at gunpoint. Instead, they jettisoned 5,000 cases of salmon — which were later found on beaches from Vancouver to California — and managed to survive the storm. “Capt. Keneally says that the Andrada must have turned turtle that night,” the story concludes, “as she was too light to protect herself in such a terrible gale.” T WILD TO MILD anaia Pettit, who lives in Naselle, Washington, has a passion for horses. “I started riding when I was 6 and never stopped!” she exclaimed. “I am currently work- ing toward my goal of competing in the 2028 Olympics with my horse, Cas.” In the meantime Manaia aspired to train wild mustangs, and make them adoptable, through the Teens and Oregon Mustangs program. Teens who participate have 98 days to train and gentle the horse, then compete in an event to show- case their horsemanship skills and win prizes. An auction, to place the horses in adoptive homes, follows the awards ceremony. “I have been hoping to do the Teens program for about five years now,” she explained, “and this year … I was selected as a riding trainer! … Pax (who is pictured with Manaia) is a 20-month old buttermilk buckskin pinto filly from South Steens. I will be competing with her in the in-hand division, and will be keeping her after.” She’s also receiving a second mustang to train. You can help by donating at www.teensandoregonmustangs.org Pax went from wild to mild quickly, which isn’t all that surprising, since Manaia has a “horse whisperer” reputa- tion. “I have had my Paxie girl for exactly one week today,” Manaia posted Dec. 10 on her Teens and Oregon Mustangs Horse Pax Facebook page. “Here is a complete list of every- thing she can do: Lead, yield forequarters (pivot), yield hind- quarters/disengage, pick up all feet, bow, lay down, blanket, give kisses, ‘fetch’ her favorite stick, eat grain on her own, and is completely desensitized to whip/lead.” “Totally in love with this baby,” she confessed. The feel- ing is obviously mutual. WHAT’S IN A NAME? here’s always one person who stumps you at holiday gift-giv- ing time, so here’s an offbeat suggestion: Buy ’em a title from the Principality of Sealand. In case you’re wondering, Sealand is actually a fortress island, Roughs Tower, built by the British in the North Sea, in interna- tional waters, during World War II, then later abandoned. The for- tress, pictured courtesy of the principality, was taken over by Roy Bates (pictured inset) and his family in 1966. In 1967, Bates raised a flag and declared the island would hence- forth be known as the Principality of Sealand; at the same time, he made himself prince, and gave his wife the title “Princess Joan.” And now, at www.sealandgov.org, anyone can become Sealand royalty — for a price. The title of lord or lady will set you back about $38. Want to upgrade to being a baron or baroness? Tack on an additional $19 or so. This really might be the perfect gift solution for the person who already has everything. T M STOP WORRYING s a result of damage incurred during the 2011 Japanese earthquake and tsunami, the Fukushima nuclear power plant spewed radiation into the Pacific ocean. But when would it make its way to the West Coast? Now, apparently. USA Today (http://tinyurl.com/radTilla) recently reported that radiation has been detected in Tillamook Bay and Gold Beach (pictured, cour- tesy of Expedia.com). Before you get into an uproar, you should know that the radi- ation levels of cesium 134 (Fukushima’s “fingerprint”) are prac- tically infinitessimal, as measured in water samples taken by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. “To put it in context,” Ken Buesseler, a WHOI scientist, noted, “if you were to swim everyday for six hours a day in those waters for a year, that additional radiation from the addressed cesium from Japan … is 1,000 times smaller than one dental x-ray.” Feel better yet? A
