Wednesday, May 23, 2012 @ 5:11pm

Nicki Bluhm & The Gramblers in Seattle: Van Sessions

By Rachel Belle

Listen to Feature: Nicki Bluhm & the Gramblers: Van Sessions

Nicki Bluhm and the Gramblers are a San Francisco-based band who, like lots of bands, travel from city to city, show to show, in a big old van. Bored on the road and without a radio, they started to pick out old songs from their childhoods that made them smile or laugh, and performed them in the van with the help of an iPhone. In March, their cover of Hall and Oats' "I Can't Go For That" hit YouTube, and weeks later it went viral, racking up over a million hits; becoming the inspiration for our SUV Sessions. video

"I'm pretty sure John Oates, or his people, put it on their Facebook page," Nicki says. "Twitter just picked it up and people from Cameron Crowe to Ryan Adams to Bette Midler to Wil Wheaton were all tweeting it. I think in today's world of Twitter and Facebook, it was a big snowball."

They also got the attention of a cop.

"We did get pulled over in Salt Lake City for not turning on a turn signal for long enough," says guitarist Deren Ney. "We had just been learning "Material Girl" by Madonna. The cop looked around and we just sort of had instruments in our hands. He asked what we were doing, we said that we're a band. He asked to hear a little bit of music. We played Material Girl for this cop and he sat, and dug it, and let us go."

Nicki travels the country with four guys: Two guitar players, a bassist and a drummer. I asked her what it's like being crammed into a van with all those dudes.

"It feels pretty natural, actually, I grew up with two brothers. I don't think I'm a tomboy but I feel pretty comfortable with boys. It's easy. They're funny and there's no drama, which I like."

Four guys on a long road trip: Is there any peeing into bottles?

"Not on this trip...yet. We've been using the restrooms."

Nicki Bluhm and the Gramblers are playing at the Triple Door, in Seattle, May 23rd and 24th, 2012.

Tuesday, May 22, 2012 @ 4:55pm

Kindergarten Goes To College

By Rachel Belle

Listen to Feature: Kindergarten Goes To College

When you're in kindergarten, your school career has just begun. Everything is new and fresh and fun. The paste tastes great and you might even get to take a nap. So what better time to introduce kids to the college experience? To keep them motivated all the way through high school and beyond? One hundred and fifty kindergartners from the Kent School District toured Seattle Pacific University on Tuesday, and learned a bit about college life.

"College is a big place that you learn in it," says kindergartner Asal. "When you grow up, the big kids can teach you how to do some stuff and you can learn a lot of stuff in college."

I asked Asal what she'd like to study in school.

"I want to learn how to make noise. That means, you can make noise everywhere."

The kids got to do a science experiment, read some books and take a tour.

"They were so excited to see the dorms," says Kent substitute teacher Michelle Dudgeon. "I don't think they understood that you get to live at the school when you go to the school. They're having a blast."

She thinks this experience will stick with the kids through their school career.

"There are so many students who aren't making it through high school. Just getting them excited about it, making sure they get to see what it actually is like. Two of them said, 'I don't think they have any recess at this school!' I thought, 'They sure don't!'"

Before they left, all the kids made a pledge that someday they would return to higher learning. They repeated after an SPU official:

"I promise to do well in school. To listen to my teachers. To help my parents. To graduate from high school. To go on to college!"

Even though SPU intended to send out a general message about the benefits of college, the tour did turn out to be some pretty good PR.

"I want to go to this exact same college because it's so much fun!" said 5-year-old Taylor.

"I want to go to this college too, because I love this college!" Asal agreed.

Tuesday, May 22, 2012 @ 2:54pm

Man who survives brutal attack wants to thank good Samaritans

Richard Lynn, 33, was stabbed multiple times by a woman who jumped into his car near the intersection of East Magnolia Avenue and Beverly Lane in Everett on Saturday.

Richard Lynn, 33, was stabbed multiple times by a woman who jumped into his car near the intersection of East Magnolia Avenue and Beverly Lane in Everett on Saturday.

According to the Everett Police Department, the woman had been trying to stop traffic in that neighborhood for some time.

"The original call actually was a traffic obstruction. The understanding was that she was just lying in the roadway," said Officer Aaron Snell, Everett police spokesperson.

As officers were en route to the scene, the call was updated to an assault when the woman stopped Lynn's car, dove through his passenger window, and attacked him.

"I didn't see the knife, but I felt the knife," Lynn said. He had been stabbed six times in the head, and suffered deep wounds to his chest and arm.

As Lynn tried to flee the vehicle, a passersby called 911. Several citizens held the woman down as another Good Samaritan applied pressure to his arm to stop the bleeding. A man named Jeff called Lynn's wife.

"Nobody shied away. Nobody left. Everybody stayed," said Lynn, a construction worker and part-time pizza delivery man. He is also the father of two young girls.

Lynn reached out to thank everyone who helped him that day, including the Everett Fire Department and the officers who followed the ambulance to the hospital.

Monday, May 21, 2012 @ 6:46pm

An Update on Jordyn & Her Wheelchair

By Rachel Belle

Listen to Feature: An Update on Jordyn & Her Wheelchair

Last October I introduced you to 15-year-old Jordyn, a Gig Harbor high school student with a very rare condition called FOP that is slowly turning her body into stone.

"There are about 700 known cases worldwide and about 250 in the United States," says Jordyn's mom, Arica Valona. "It affects any soft tissue, it turns it into bone when there is a trauma."

Four years ago, Jordyn was taking ballet classes and cheerleading, but when Jordyn discovered some bumps on her body that weren't healing. She was later diagnosed with FOP.

"She has now become frozen from her neck all the way down to her waist and all the way down the right side of her leg and into her ankle. Her shoulder blades are fused to her back, so she can no longer move her arms and so she's kind of in a straight jacket position. It's very difficult for her to walk, to use the restroom. Eating has become more difficult for her."

Jordyn needed a custom wheelchair that cost $6,400, but the family has an extremely limited insurance plan that wouldn't pay for the chair. So we put out a call to you, The Ron and Don Nation, and you came to the rescue.

"The listeners were so generous, they donated over $3,000. In fact, money has still kept coming in over the months. Since then, we have one listener who has remained anonymous who still send in a small donation every single month just to go towards Jordyn's continuing medical costs, which is amazing and so appreciated. It's just...wow. Wow, for me."

The family organized a walk-a-thon last November, and they raised another $11,000 for the chair and Jordyn's extremely expensive medical costs.

"The listeners came down, introduced themselves. It was just a really neat connection to be able to have. It just was an amazing outpour."

Since so many of you helped Jordyn, I thought you want to get an update on her condition.

"Jordyn, unfortunately, right before her sixteenth birthday, took a fall at home and suffered a concussion and a fracture in her right knee. Her right leg was already compromised by her condition, but this worsened the situation. Hence, having the wheelchair right there, ready to go, was amazing and just so timely. This is exactly what I was worried about, and in fear of, all these months that we did not have a functional wheelchair for her."

Luckily, Jordyn is doing okay, she hit the back of her head so she still has full movement in her face and jaw. But as you can imagine, the 16-year-old girl was not excited to get a wheelchair.

"After the accident, her Young Life group came together and they said 'You know, let's decorate this chair.' So they blinged it out. We had the zebra duct tape and rhinestones and pink pink pink. Completely glammed and deva'd it out for her. Having other people accept it, she was able to accept it. I think, at sixteen you don't want to be different, you want to be like everybody else."

Jordyn isn't completely wheelchair bound, and she tries to stay on her feet whenever she can.

"She's going to walk as long as she can. Whether that means she's hobbling or limping or whatever the case may be, she's going to do that. So we use the chair as a backup, especially when she gets fatigued."

Unfortunately, the family's insurance situation has gotten worse. Her husband is a contractor, so they have a very minimal plan that doesn't pay for much, but because they have some coverage, the state won't help them either.

"It's very frustrating that we fall into that middle category where the employer may or may not offer insurance anymore and then you can't get state benefits. It's just a very gray area for most of middle class America. We are not the only family struggling from this."

Arica and her family wanted to make sure that our listeners know just how appreciative and thankful they are for all the support you've given to Jordyn.

Monday, May 21, 2012 @ 4:47pm

Saddened, but not surprised by most recent Everest tragedy

There is no physical test that climbers have to go through, but that doesn't mean you can pay your way onto the back of a Sherpa. The goal of those assisting the climb is a safe return to base, said Breashears, to return to their families.(AP Photo/File)

Adventurers have been watching the death toll rise on Everest as four climbers have been reported dead over the weekend. David Breashears, a filmmaker, author and mountaineer just recently back from the Everest base camp, has been getting his information from friends near the scene, and online news.

Breashears has summited Everest five times, and most recently documented it for a film called "Storm Over Everest." The film is about the oft-documented 1996 Mount Everest Climb disaster.

"That storm killed our friends," Fisher told 97.3 KIRO FM's Ron & Don Show.

Climbing Everest requires four things: Time, goals, training, and money. Climbers will pay anywhere between $30,000 and $90,000. There is no physical test that climbers have to go through, but that doesn't mean they can pay their way onto the back of a Sherpa. The goal of those assisting the climb is a safe return to base, said Breashears, and a safe return to their families.

To Breashears, one of the main intuitive problems among climbers is the mentality that summiting the mountain is the goal. It shouldn't be - the goal should be to safely get down the mountain.

"[Climbers] apparently get themselves into a position where they're just too tired to get back down the mountain." Sometimes, it's because even those among the most physically fit have bodies that don't respond well to the elevation changes. Other times, guides and Sherpas can't read the exhaustion on the faces of the climbers until it's too late.

Conquering Everest is risky - something Breashears knows all too well. While people have lost their lives and many people are saddened, he's not surprised. When a storm can roll in unexpectedly - whole groups of climbers could find themselves encountering risks greater than exhaustion - the weather. "I'm surprised there hasn't been a bigger tragedy."

Friday, May 18, 2012 @ 4:17pm

Video: Who can eat the most cheeseburgers in 3 minutes?

Rachel Belle proposed the challenge. Luke Burbank, Sean DeTore and Libby Denkmann went head to head, to head to head, with Belle to see who could eat the most cheeseburgers from Dick's in three minutes.

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Thursday, May 17, 2012 @ 5:35pm

Tom Douglas: Seattle's New Lunch Lady?

By Rachel Belle

Listen to Tom Douglas...The New Seattle Lunch Lady?

The plastic trays, the lunch ladies, the little cartons of milk; I think everyone has memories of their school's cafeteria lunch. At my elementary school, the chimichangas were notoriously disgusting and uncool. Eating one could turn even the most popular girl into a social leper.

"Everything was gross," says my co-worker Jillian Raftery. "We would try not to eat the school lunches. It was just kind of...ugh! It was too gross to even talk about!"

"First thing I think of when I think of school lunches is sitting alone and everything tasted like tears," laments Ross & Burbank's producer Andrew Walsh (who, it should be noted, cried during our short interview.) "Secondly, I would say I remember square pizza. I loved square pizza! Are you kidding me?"

If you're eating a homemade PB&J or a Lean Cuisine for lunch today, prepare to be jealous of Seattle Public School students. The district has partnered with Tom Douglas restaurants, and executive chef Eric Tanaka to create some delicious, nutritious menu items that are being served to 18,000 kids a day in all the city's schools.

"Butternut squash and chicken curry that we served over Israeli couscous. So it's a curry spice, a little bit of cardamom, coconut milk, fresh veggies, red peppers."

Kids, like 13-year-old Miyah Rosenfeldt, are loving it. She agrees with me that the dish tastes like it was served at a Thai restaurant.

"It actually tastes like curry, unlike the old curry, that didn't really taste at all like curry."

On Thursday at Queen Anne's McClure Middle School, they served baked pollock with a sauce Provencal, which is tomatoes and olives.

"That was kind of a long shot, but actually the kids really loved that one," says Chef Tanaka. "The kids kind of dictated that that went on."

Eighth grader Charmaine Walker says she likes the food much better than before.

"They probably just thought we wanted food to eat, and didn't care what we eat. But we actually kind of do."

Fourteen-year-old Jason Lu says kids' palates have been underestimated.

"I'm more of a person who likes to live balanced. I always want at least some sort of veggie inside what I eat."

"I'll admit, for myself, I think I've been underestimating them," says Wendy Weyer, the district's director of Nutrition Services. "One of the things that the students actually brought forward, that they eat at home, that they don't see on the school lunch menu, was kind of a steamed, baked white fish. So we developed this menu concept around what kids were telling us they wanted to see."

Weyer says they have plans to incorporate other local chefs into their menu planning. The planning itself is a bit challenging: They only have $1.25 to spend, per meal, per student and some pretty strict nutritional guidelines. Not to mention the daunting task of creating recipes that will stand up to being cooked in mass quantities.

As for the privilege of eating Tom Douglas' food in their school cafeteria, not surprisingly, none of the kids I met have ever heard of the James Beard Award winner. But that's totally cool with Chef Tanaka, a dad of three, who's doing this as a sort of passion project because he cares about kids and nutrition. Chef Tanaka has his own fond memories of school lunches past.

"I actually love school lunch. It was probably worse then than it is now, but I'm an eater so bad food didn't stop me. My favorite day was burrito day. I got suspended from school for setting our clock ahead to the shop bell, which rang 10 minutes early, to get out to be first in line, and I got busted."

No one would have ever set the clock ahead on chimichanga day.

By Rachel Belle

Thursday, May 17, 2012 @ 5:08pm

When 12-Year-Olds Try and Cure Cancer

By Rachel Belle

Listen to Feature: When 12-Year-Olds Try and Cure Cancer

Dutch Hill elementary sixth grade teacher, Alex Snyder, says he was reading the Dune series when a paragraph about energy gave him an educational epiphany.

"It kind of stopped me, and I was thinking 'What if I look at my classroom as purely energy?' There's so much energy in this classroom. I have 32 kids in a portable. So I was thinking how I could use there energy in a good way and I thought maybe we can figure out ways to cure cancer."

So he contacted Seattle's Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and they connected Alex's students with doctors and scientists.

"We've been working on this since the beginning of the year and we've been emailing our doctor partners and asking them questions and coming up with ideas," says 6th grade student Isabelle Nyquist.

Isabelle and her classmates have since come up with some very unique ways to combat cancer.

"My idea was to use coffee because when kids drink it, it stops your growth," says student Chloe Hipp. "So I thought if you put it in the cancer, it might stop it from growing."

For some reason a lot of the kids thought bleach would be a good cancer stopping chemical. Megan Coonrod says half the class included bleach in their theories.

"Since bleach is poisonous, if you injected it into the cancer cells, it might kill the cancer cells."

Eleven-year-old Karl Berner came with my very favorite solution.

"What if you somehow made tiny, tiny little robots that could just go in and kill off the cells."

Fred Hutch grad student Amanda Frey is one of the scientists who has been corresponding with the kids. The idea was not only to get the students thinking, but to inspire researchers to think outside the box.

"I do think that coming at it from their perspective really helps scientists to sort of think outside the box. Although their ideas might not be exactly something that would be feasible, it's definitely a new way at looking at approaches that could one day definitely be used or incorporated into my research."

"I think that a lot of people underestimate these kids," Alex says. "You know, they're 11 and 12 years old and [people] think 'Oh, whatever, they're in school, they're learning basic stuff.' If you give these kids an opportunity to learn this stuff, it's amazing what comes out of them. It truly is amazing."

Eleven-year-old Melina Keogh feels the same way.

"I think that it's kind of good that kids are trying to cure [cancer] because sometimes when you're an adult you think 'Oh, that won't work,' because that's what you've been taught. When you're a kid you have a free mind, an open mind, to anything. I think that no matter how old you are people shouldn't judge you. You can do anything you want."

The kids got to take field trip from Snohomish to Fred Hutchinson last Friday to meet the researchers they've been corresponding with and tour the lab. Teacher Alex has already made a connection with Group Health for a future project and he hopes that other teachers take his idea and run with it.

"My ultimate goal would be to create this system that accelerates our society. We can take all this energy that these kids have, this creative, innovative energy, and use it to tackle all kinds of problems that we have."

Check out Alex's website, here.