Without a single stoplight from Saddlerock to Sunrise Circle to slow me down, I could cross town fast enough to sneak in my girlfriend’s window on Springwater for a little high school hanky panky and still make it to hockey practice on time.
Then came the stoplights — Fifth Street, Springwater, Ninth, Maple — chopping up our speedway into safe, and significantly slower, little segments.
But what seemed a travesty to us lead-footed, self-interested teenagers made perfect sense to a civic planner.
At the intersection of Springwater and Western, the evening sun has a way of hitting you in the eyes just so. You might never see that Bronco doing 50 in the 35 until it comes through the driver’s side door. There had been fatalities over the years.
So Western Avenue became slower and safer … and, as the population of the Wenatchee valley grew and the orchards became housing developments, slower and slower still.
Then, about five years ago, our city leaders began delivering the next evolution in traffic technology in the form of the much-despised but eminently logical roundabout.
The idea of a roundabout itself is a laudable one. The goal is to impose a calming effect on traffic...
Roundabouts aren’t exactly new tech. The French put in their giant traffic circle around the Arc de Triomphe in 1907.
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Solitude & skiing
Even in the ‘empty nester’ years, it’s fun to strap on skis or snowshoes for a trek in the snowy wonderland
Upgrading by downsizing
Builder believes tiny homes have large variety of uses
Chocolatier follows her heart
A long and winding road to doing what she loves:
Taking an off-grid break during the pandemic
As the owners of Ravenous Catering located in Monitor, Valarie Gilmour and Dave Toal are usually very busy people, but in 2020 the lack of weddings and large gatherings gave them time to indulge their wanderlust.
Our stories continue: Filling a heart with joy
MY BEST DAY 2020
Joy for both dogs and humans in walking
PET TALES
It's the BEST Day because I live here & I live now
What makes the best day for me? Any day at all that I wake up in the USA.
Hair-raising resolutions for the New Year
New Year’s Eve traditions
Catching up with 4 artists and their creations
It’s always a pleasure talking with artists about their projects, but it’s especially nice to check in after a few years and hear about continuing growth and new directions.
ZOOMING IN ON EAGLES
‘Armed with a Nikon 5600 camera, plus two lenses — a wide-angle and a zoom — I was down at the eagle’s nest for hours at a time. Waiting for the eggs to hatch, watching the parents bring in food.’
THE MILLION-DOLLAR MAN
HERE’S AN INSIDE LOOK AT HOW WAYNE GRETZKY SMASHED THROUGH THE HOCKEY HOBBY’S GLASS CEILING.
Return to Toronto
International visitors will once again converge in Canada’s convention city.
THE 12TH DIMENSION
Position game
Why can't Apple make a good mouse?
The company that makes the best trackpads in the world hasn’t made a passable mouse in over 20 years.
Indian Immigrants Are Saving Canadian Hockey
How the Punjabi diaspora rescued Canada’s national sport
Of course, a compass
For centuries, mariners have depended on a compass to provide direction.
TAKE FIVE
Billy Flynn (Chad, DAYS)
TRUST. YOUR. EDGE.
DAD AND DAUGHTER LACE UP AND LEARN A BIT MORE ABOUT EACH OTHER, AND THEMSELVES.
Olympic Hockey Hero On Ice In Loony Bin
Scrappy hockey star Mark Pavelich bolstered the hopes and dreams of a nation as part of America’s Miracle on Ice team in 1980. But in the four decades since the young jocks defeated the Soviet Union’s powerhouse pros at the Lake Placid Olympics, Pavelich’s fairy-tale life has tumbled into tragedy marred by mental illness.
We're With Her Erin Andrews
The sideline reporter for Fox NFL and the Super Bowl talks favorite players, going out with athletes, and why you probably shouldn’t wear a jersey on date night.