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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 17, 2017)
1B THE DAILY ASTORIAN • FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2017 CONTACT US ewilson@dailyastorian.com (503) 325-3211 ext. 257 COMMUNITY FOLLOW US facebook.com/ DailyAstorian IN ONE EAR • ELLEDA WILSON UNBEATEN PATH TO FUKUSHIMA ost people outside of Japan probably don’t know that the leaking Fukushima nuclear reactor, which was damaged in the 2011 Japanese earthquake and tsunami, is actually adjacent to several small cities, which were devastated by extreme radia- tion levels in the wake of the disaster. The residents fled in a hurry, leaving almost everything they owned behind. Even now, six years later, only one road is offi- cially open to drive nonstop through the area, and the calendars on the walls still say March 2011. A group of young men led by Bob Thissen, creator of the media company Exploring the Unbeaten Path, sneaked into the still-radioactive cities and made a series of videos of what they saw in the empty and overgrown streets, stores and homes. The episodes are being uploaded to YouTube each week, and you can watch at http://tinyurl.com/XplorePath. A screen shot of an aban- doned driving range in one of the episodes is shown. Renovation is ongoing, and believe it or not, people are slowly returning to the blighted cities around Fukushima. After seeing these videos, however, one can only wonder why. M ‘PENNOYER’S THANKSGIVING HOWL’ regon Gov. Sylvester Pennoyer was at best eccentric, but the word cantankerous fit him better more often than not. After all, he was the creator of the “Two Thanksgivings” debacle http:// tinyurl.com/turkeyduet. On Nov. 1, 1893, he proclaimed that “a day of Thanksgiving” would be celebrated the fourth Thursday in November, Nov. 23. The announcement was actually a thinly disguised opportunity to publicly rant about the switch from silver to gold as the money standard. Another reason for the announcement was pure spite. Pennoyer was jumping the gun while at the same time thumbing his nose at President Grover Cleveland who, on Nov. 3, announced that the national day of thanksgiving would be the fifth Thursday, Nov. 30. Which left Oregon with both a state and national official day of thanksgiving, to be celebrated a week apart. The Daily Morning Astorian waxed apoplectic on Nov. 3, calling the governor’s proclamation “Pennoyer’s Thanksgiving Howl” and an example of his “freehand insanity” as “Czar of all the Oregons.” Irritation with the defiant governor was shared in newspapers nationwide, but perhaps the New York Commercial Advertiser expressed it best: “Oregon’s annoying Pennoyer appointed Thanks- giving on a day separate from President Cleveland’s, and thereby recalled that colossal truth that it is more pitiful to be a fool than to be drunk. One may rally from the latter condition.” O GALENA RUNS AGROUND ust about a month after the Peter Iredale ran aground on Clatsop Spit, the steel four-masted 292-foot British bark Galena ran hard ashore about 7 miles south of the Iredale on Nov. 13, 1906. The Morning Astorian headline on Nov. 14 proclaimed “Dense Fog and Southwest Gale Responsible for the Great Misfortune.” The Galena had been standing off the Columbia River bar trying to get into Astoria for nine days at the time — unable to approach because of a succession of strong storms. Rockets were sent up as a distress signal when she ran aground, but the fog was so dense no one could see them. Once a “smashing gale” hit the foundering vessel, which was already being pounded by surf and swinging dangerously, Capt. John Howell gave the order to lower the starboard lifeboat. Just as with the Iredale, there was no loss of life, and all 30 aboard made it safely to shore. Capt. Howell, the second officer and the steward stayed near the ship. The first officer, S. B. Thomp- son, and 26 men marched directly inland, and quickly found the West farmhouse, “where all possible relief was extended to the tired, cold and hungry outfit.” The next day, the group took the evening train from Seaside to Astoria. Thompson immediately reported to Vice Consul P. S. Cherry, who put them up at the Cen- tral Hotel. Two guards were sent to watch over the ship and its “stores and moveables,” one from Fort Stevens and one from Point Adams. In December 1906, a Naval Court convened at the British Vice Consulate in Astoria found that the ship ran aground because the captain was “over confident” of his position in relation to the shore, and the lookout was flat out “defective” (http://tinyurl.com/shipcourt). The mate “was careless and neglectful,” his log so slovenly “it proved to be absolutely of no value in this investigation,” and several crew members were discharged and fined, for not “preserving the ship from immediate loss, destruc- tion, or serious damage” because they “misunderstood their duties.” Unlike the Iredale, the Galena’s remains are no longer visible, buried in the Gearhart dunes. J AIR FOR BARRY ONE FOR THE BOOKS storia has Astoria Rocks, a group of community members who paint rocks and adorn them with fanciful drawings, then hide them all over town in the hopes they will be discovered and then rehidden. Well, the Chasseurs de Livres (book hunters) group in Longview, Washington, have upped the game; they are hiding books instead of rocks. Their Facebook page (http://tinyurl.com/ hidebooks) gives the following instructions: “Place a book in a plastic baggie. Hide it somewhere in Longview, Washington. Take a photo and give a hint about its location and post it to this site. When you find a hidden book, read it and then release it back into the wild again for another book hunter to find.” One of the book hints is shown, courtesy of the Chasseurs de Livres Facebook page. According to The Daily News of Longview, while there are hundreds of similar groups worldwide, the local group, which has about 150 members, might be the first one in the U.S. (http:// tinyurl.com/tdnbooks). “When someone finds a book, I hope they feel the sudden joy of someone leaving them a present,” group founder Gail Con- way told TDN. “You can sit down, enjoy the book and then pass it on to someone else. … It’s anonymously sharing things that you think are beautiful.” A TALES OF THE TOWN rom The Daily Morning Astorian, 121 years ago today, Nov. 17, 1896: • There is a big slide on the south side of Commercial Street, oppo- site the Palace Restaurant, and it kept the entire force in Herman Wise’s store busy all day. … Everybody who helps to remove this slide receives a ticket to Herman Wise’s dance and also an Xmas present. • A living scow in the bay of 18th Street sprung a leak during the recent storm and is now almost completely submerged. As in the time of the deluge, it is presumed that the occupants have fled to the mountains. Note: This refers to what was once known as Scow Bay. Eventually filled in with river channel dredge spoils, Columbia Memorial Hospital sits there now (http://tinyurl.com/scowb). • Hustler’s Astoria: Situated on the south side of Astoria’s hills. Twenty degrees warmer and vegetation 30 days in advance of the North side. Magnificent sites for residences, overlooking river and bay, sunny and sheltered. Easy and natural grades; lit- tle or no grading needed. Astoria Investment Co., 482 Bond St. Note: Hustler is a very aptly named large plat in the middle of Astoria’s South Slope. F FLIGHTAWARE HIGH AND DRY storians Barry and Jane Kuiper have been mar- ried for 27 years, and love to travel on road trips,” Lauren Fischer at RedBasket.org told the Ear. “Barry also used to be an avid golfer and softball player, but unfortunately, his health has prevented him from enjoy- ing these activities.” Barry has Stage 3 chronic pulmonary obstructive dis- ease (COPD), and has to be on oxygen full time. Which, of course, means he can’t ever be too far from his oxygen tank. Consequently, Barry’s diagnosis has completely changed his life. “I have gone from being an energetic, eager and active participant in life to being an observer who must make a plan for each activity I do,” Barry explained. To gain more mobility, Barry needs a light-weight portable oxygen machine that can produce its own oxygen. Such machines are now available, but they are expensive ... which is where RedBasket.org comes in. It’s a fee-free (imagine that) fundraising site, so all the money that comes in goes to the project. The Kuipers need to raise $4,000 by Dec. 22 to get the oxygen machine Barry needs. You can help him by donating at http://tinyurl. com/air4barry “I would be able to leave the house whenever I wanted, for as long as I wanted,” Barry said. Regaining his free- dom and independence? Priceless. ‘A he North Coast keeps right on building in tsunami inunda- tion zones, and Newport does, too, but with one big differ- ence. The planned $50 million-plus Oregon State University new marine studies building will have one of the first tsunami vertical evacuation sites in the country when construction is completed in 2019, KTVZ.com reports (http://tinyurl.com/osutsu). The archi- tectural design of the building is shown, courtesy of OSU. Groundbreaking is set for next spring for the 72,000-square- foot three-story structure, which will house academic and research facilities, and is connected to a two-story wing com- prised of community space, an auditorium, a laboratory and other facilities. The most important feature, however, is a ramp leading from the ground to the roof — a tsunami evacuation site 47 feet off the ground, designed to hold more than 900 people. If you must build in a tsunami zone, this is the way to go. T he holidays are rapidly approaching, and many North Coasters will be flying somewhere or picking someone up at an airport. It’s anyone’s guess how many planes will be on time in the seasonal melee. Wouldn’t it be nice to know what’s really going on in advance? At last, there is hope, and a great way to track of global flights: http://flightaware.com. Touting itself as “the world’s largest flight tracking data company,” FlightAware “provides over 10,000 air- craft operators and service companies as well as over 12,000,000 passengers with global flight tracking solutions.” How? FlightAware gets data from air traffic control systems in over 55 countries. The website features live flight data and delays (the MiseryMap), Squawks & Headlines about the aviation busi- ness and thousands of aircraft photos, plus it has weather maps, flight planning, navigation charts and more. FlightAware must be doing something right, as they claim to have 10 million users a month. And yes, there is an app for that. T COMMUNITY NOTES TONIGHT Creations Studio and Gallery Open House — 5 to 9 p.m., 1396 Duane St. For information, call 503- 741-3456. SATURDAY Sit & Stitch — 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., Homespun Quilts & Yarn, 108 10th St. Bring knitting, crochet or other needlework projects to this community stitching time. All skill levels welcome. Columbia Northwestern Mod- el Railroading Club — 1 p.m., in Hammond. Group runs trains on HO-scale layout. For information, call Don Carter at 503-325-0757. Spinning Circle — 1 to 3 p.m., Astoria Fiber Arts Academy, 1296 Duane St. Bring a spinning wheel. For information, call 503-325-5598 or go to http://astoriafiberarts.com SUNDAY Cannon Beach American Le- gion Women’s Auxiliary Break- fast — 9 to 11:30 a.m., American Legion, 1216 S. Hemlock St., Can- non Beach. Group discusses issues facing re- ligious faith in the modern secular world. All are welcome. For informa- tion, call 503-861-2421. knitting, crocheting, embroidery and quilting. All are welcome. For information, call 503-325-1364 or 503-325-7960. Line Dancing — 5:30 to 8 p.m., Seaside American Legion, 1315 Broadway. For information, call 503-738-5111. No cost; suggested $5 tip to the instructor. MONDAY Chair Exercises for Seniors — 9 to 9:45 a.m., Astoria Senior Center, 1111 Exchange St. For in- formation, call 503-325-3231. Seekers Group — 6 to 7:30 p.m., Pioneer Presbyterian Church, 33324 Patriot Way, Warrenton. Scandinavian Workshop — 10 a.m., First Lutheran Church, 725 33rd St. Needlework, hardanger, Grace and Encouragement for Moms — 10 to 11:30 a.m., Crossroads Community Church, 40618 Old Highway 30, Svensen. GEMS group is a time for moms to relax and enjoy each others’ com- pany. Free childcare is provided. For information, call Rachael Bid- dlecome at 503-458-6103. Senior Lunch — 11:30 a.m., Bob Chisholm Senior Center, 1225 Avenue A, Seaside. Suggested do- nation $3 for those older than 60; $6.75 for those younger than 60. For information, call Michelle Lew- is at 503-861-4200. Columbia Senior Diners — 11:30 a.m., 1111 Exchange St. Cost is $6. For information, or to have a meal delivered, call 503-325-9693. See NOTES, Page 2B
