Day 356 of 365…

Big Band music of the 40′s and 50′s… Such a fun time in the musical world. This coming Saturday, February 12th, 2011 you can relive a little of those eras.

Aaron Meyer and the Vancouver Big Band will bring music alive here in Vancouver just in time for a Valentine Day date. Just a couple days early. Aaron Meyer is a local concert rock violinist that has toured the world. He was also in Pink Martini for a couple years too. You can connect with Aaron Meyer on Facebook too.

The Vancouver Big Band is made up of local Vancouver Symphony members as well as other local Vancouver musicians. You might even find a favorite local school teacher on stage. Shirley Nanette will also be performing with everyone. She’ll bring her special voice to the event. This will be a great event to attend.

You can click through to buy tickets for the show here. Aaron Meyer and the Vancouver Big Band will be playing at Skyview Concert Hall in Salmon Creek. It’s located at 1300 NW 139th Street
Vancouver, WA. The show starts at 7pm and is $15 for adults. 12 and under are free. Seating is limited so you might want to order your tickets in advance.

Day 223 of 365…

Today one of my friends and I discovered a new sushi place out in Salmon Creek right along NE 134th Street. I think this was a great find. It is Sushi Chiyo.

They had the conveyor running at full pace and everything looked very fresh and nice. All of the plates I had were excellent. I really enjoyed the Squid Salad and one that had crab inside with shrimp on top served with a sweet sauce. Not sure of its name but I am sure it was tasty. We happened to get there around 2:30 which is during their daily Happy Hour of 2-4:30pm. All their plates are only $1.50 with no sitting fee (during Happy Hour) which is great. They offer a wide variety of sushi plus they offer Udon and Hibachi too. Sushi Chiyo serves wine, beer and sake plus your normal soda choices.

Sushi Chiyo is located in Salmon Creek at 13307 NE Hwy 99 Suite 101, Vancouver, WA and can be reached at 360-571-8282.

Day 214 of 365…

Looking for some wonderful tacos in the downtown Vancouver, WA area? I finally tried Woody’s Tacos and they were awesome! I was fortunate enough to get to spend some time with Zachary, the owner of Paper Tiger Coffee Roasters while enjoying the uber tasty tacos of Woody’s. I can’t believe I’d never been before. This will become a regular stopping place for me!

In addition to tacos they serve up salads, soups, tostadas, burritos plus have a full bar. Woody’s Tacos serves up a killer Happy Hour menu as well. If you’d like to bring in a larger amount of food for an event Woody’s Tacos offers catering.

It’s always nice to find such a great locally owned and operated establishment that prepares all their own food. The owner Scott actually was at the register giving advice about which salsa would go best with each combination. I must say, he was spot on! I even got a green sauce that I normally wouldn’t do and it was awesome!

Woody’s Tacos is located at 210 W Evergreen Blvd, Vancouver, WA 98660 and can be reached at 360-718-8193.

Day 89 of 365…

Today I found myself out along NE 192nd Avenue waiting for an appointment and thought, why not stop in and check out the new Humane Society For Southwest Washington facility. Let me say, this place is very nice. It is a huge upgrade from the old facility down by the rail yard just west of downtown Vancouver. Did you know the Humane Society For Southwest Washington has been in operation since 1897!

They have a huge wing for cats and another large section for all the dogs. I wandered through all of the areas witnessing big kids, little kids, couples, singles all hoping to find a new member of their family. I believe several new bonds for life were formed today while I was there. I know two friends stuck out in a big way to me. First was Mimosa the cat and second was Cooper the beagle. Cooper was very quiet and polite and quite happy to see me (non-stop tail wagging).

In addition to being able to adopt the newest member of the family here you can volunteer to do all sorts of things plus they offer a ton of classes, camps and programs for kids between 3 and 14. To get more information about these things you can call them at 360-213-2630 or email them at education (at) southwesthumane.org.

The new center is located at 1100 NE 192nd Avenue, Vancouver, WA 98684 and you can reach them at 360-693-4746. They can also be found on Facebook!

Click through this video to learn more and see my newest friends…

Day 87 of 365…

Ribs… Need I say more?

Locally one of our favorite places to get a plate of ribs is Rib City Grill on Mill Plain in Cascade Park. In addition to great ribs they have some great barbecue. Something for everyone in the family.

Rib City is located at 14415 SE Mill Plain Blvd., Vancouver, WA 98684 and can be reached at 360-882-8005.

Day 84 of 365…

It’s that time of year once again. The annual Hazel Dell Parade of Bands is here. This Saturday will be the 46th year of this local event. This years sponsors are the Hazel Dell/Salmon Creek Business Association and Bomber Brothers Fireworks. The theme of this years parade is “A Pirate’s Treasure“.

In addition to the normal parade they are introducing a pre-event run/walk that is sponsored by Max Muscle Sports Nutrition of Vancouver. It is a 4k run/walk (2.5 miles) that follows the path of the parade. This pre-event is a benefit for Bridge the Gap of Clark County, WA.

As a child growing up in Vancouver we always would go and watch this parade. As a teenager at Wy’East I was fortunate enough to be in the marching band so I got to be a part of this nearly half century Vancouver tradition. Some times it would be scorching hot and sometimes we’d be blessed with that beautiful liquid sunshine of the Pacific Northwest.

The parade route begins at Target on Hazel Dell Avenue. It proceeds south along Hazel Dell Avenue to 63rd Street. It heads east along 63rd and then turns north along Highway 99 to Fred Meyer. The first groups head out at 10:30AM.

This is not just a parade of bands, you’ll see all sorts of different local groups represented on floats and walking. I’d suggest you get out and enjoy the day this Saturday!

Special thanks to my friends at Clark County Live for the band parade pic. Have you checked them out? You should.

Day 83 of 365…

Tonight we were craving some wonderful Italian food so we loaded up and headed to the Cascade Park Little Italy’s Trattoria. This is a place my wife and I have been to many times but our kids hadn’t been. After our trip there tonight, they have insisted they go back (regularly).

My son ordered a pizza, my wife and daughter both had pasta with marinara and I ordered a calzone. All of our dishes were awesome. My pepperoni, ham, mushroom and pineapple calzone was ultra filling and so good. My son inhaled his pizza (oh the joys of being 14). The girls thoroughly enjoyed their pasta dishes.

Little Italy’s Trattoria has two locations to serve Vancouver. Their first restaurant that opened in 1995 is located Downtown Vancouver at 901 Washington Street, Vancouver, WA 98660. Their Cascade Park location is at 204 SE Park Plaza Drive, Vancouver, WA 98684 and they can be reached at 360-883-1325. They can also be found on Facebook here.

Happy Mother’s Day!

Day 82 of 365…

Since today is Mother’s Day I thought it would be good to share a place that you can pamper the moms in your life. My wife and daughter love to get pedicures. This is a fun bonding time for them. They don’t get to do it often, but when they do they always come home laughing and smiling. It makes them feel good.

Their favorite place to get pedicures is Serenity Day Spa in Fishers Landing. This spa not only does pedicures, they do nails, massages, waxing and facials. You can do individual treatments or they offer different spa packages.

Serenity Day Spa is located at 16600 SE McGillivray Blvd, Vancouver, WA 98683. To make an appointment or get info you can reach them at 360-944-8330.

Day 80 of 365…

Looking for some wonderful Greek cuisine? Want some plates in the air? Live Greek music? Enjoying a meal in a piece of Vancouver’s history?

I’d love to introduce you to the fabulous Touch of Athens at the Hidden House. This Greek restaurant has been operating in the Hidden House for 6 years and is great. I’ve eaten here many times and always been extremely pleased with everything.

One of my favorite dishes it the Dolmathes which is grape leaves stuffed with finely ground beef, rice and herbs all topped with Avgolemono sauce and a Greek salad. It is incredible! (On this most recent meet up I was able to sample my friends Lamb Shanks and they were so tender and flavorful.)

Get yourself over to Touch of Athens and enjoy this experience and food. They do live Greek music, plate breaking and Greek dancing on Friday and Saturday nights. Doesn’t that sound like fun? I think it does.

Touch of Athens is located at 100 W 13th Street, Vancouver, WA, 98660 and can be reached at 360-695-6198. You can also find them on Facebook here.

Day 78 of 365… Happy Cinco de Mayo

As far back as I can remember I’ve been eating at Mexican Villa Restaurant in Orchards. My memory goes back to the mid 1970′s. I am not sure exactly when they opened but I’m pretty sure they are probably as old as I am.

The funny thing is in all those years there menu and restaurant hasn’t changed (with the exception of adding chicken to the menu). You could get a Cono Taco as a kid and they are still there on the menu today. The decor on the walls hasn’t changed either. Another thing that hasn’t changed in my opinion is the tastiness of the food. This “hole in the wall” has been a staple restaurant in my family forever. My parents still frequent it many times per month.

Are they the best in town? Some will tell you yes, some will argue no. Are they consistently good? Absolutely. If you went there 30 years ago or 30 days ago, you’ll find the exact same thing. The reason they don’t change or modify is “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it“. They have found a formula that works and have a steady stream of customers who’ve been frequenting them for decades. Maybe it’s time to add you to that list…

It is noteworthy that you do pay for your tortilla chips (but they ARE good!) and they only have six round tables in the restaurant so be prepared to wait a few (during peak hours) or share with someone else. Who knows, you might just make a new friend?

Mexican Villa is located at 12315 NE Fourth Plain Road, Vancouver, WA 98682 and can be reached at (360) 256-9280. They are open Tuesday through Saturday from 10:30AM to 8:30PM and closed on Sunday & Monday.

(Today’s video is slightly different than my normal ones. My friend Alan had a fun idea he wanted to try so I played along. It was fun.)

Day 77 of 365…

We’ve been having some crummy weather again and you might be looking for some new indoor location to play and exercise. If this is you then you might want to check out the Marshall Community Center. This isn’t the old, tired Marshall Center that we all who are from around here grew up with. They did a total remodel of the original 20,000 square feet and a 10,000 square foot addition to this center five years ago and it’s really nice now.

A few highlighted upgrades and changes include:

* Fitness Center with 2800 square foot weight room
* Aerobics/dance room with wood sprung floor
* Arts/Crafts studio with outdoor work terrace
* New floors, carpet, and paint
* ADA-approved accessibility features, including an elevator
* Drop slide in the pool
* Gym upgrades, including new flooring, equipment, lighting and acoustical features
* New Teen Lounge adjacent to the Game Room

I grew up at Marshall Center and learned to swim here. My kids also learned to swim here. I’m sure with the newest upgrades and improvements many more generations of kids will also learn to swim here. While I was there tonight there was a renewed vitality at Marshall Center. It was nice to see…

I’d recommend you head over and check the new place out. I have many fond memories from Marshall Center (my senior class party was even held here) and am excited to see all the great improvements they’ve done.

Marshall Community Center is located at 1009 E. McLoughlin, Vancouver, WA 98663 and can be reached at 360-487-7100.