Wallingford omnibus, January 19, 2009

As we stand at the brink of one presidential administration changing to another, we thought this would be a good time to clear the decks of old news items so that we could start the new era with a clean(er) slate. Enjoy!

YOU WANT NEIGHBORHOOD BLOGS? YOU GOT 'EM

• Were you under the impression that the Wallingford Seattle blog was the only blog in this part of town? Heck, no—there are at least three more that we know of: Wallyhood, the latest addition to the Wallingford blog roster; Welcome to Wallingford which is run by flickr user Louie_B; and Wallingford Wanderings, a reader blog hosted by the P-I. Given the current state of the P-I, hard to say if Wallingford Wanderings will still be around in a couple months. On the other hand, reader blogs might be one of the only things left at the P-I once the dust settles.
  
  In any case, we recommend subscribing to all these blogs, because you never know when one will scoop the others with some important information. Like the fact that Molly Moon's was closed for business today due to a film shoot which meant no brunch service featuring the fabled but elusive maple bacon ice cream (thanks, Wallyhood)...

INAUGURATION-THEMED CANNED FOOD DRIVE ENDS TUESDAY, JANUARY 20

• FamilyWorks Food Bank is wrapping up their "Yes We CAN Food Drive" tomorrow. In celebration of the upcoming 44th presidency, they've spent the 44 days leading up to Inauguration Day looking for volunteers to donate 44 cans of food or $44 to help replenish their food supplies. It might be a little tough putting together 44 cans of food from your pantry at this point, so maybe you can just pony up the direct donation of $44. You can also read this MSNBC story about the food drive.

TWO THUMBS UP FOR CANTINETTA

• As we mentioned earlier, Cantinetta is a new restaurant at the corner of Wallingford Ave. and N. 37th. We were able to squeeze in on opening night and had a very enjoyable dinner, also noting with some amusement the parade of cars that pulled up to the corner, disgorged passengers, and then zoomed off in search of a parking spot. Maybe you're lucky enough to live within walking distance—if so, check them out some evening. You can also read this Yelp review we posted after the experience.

WINTER SUPPER SERIES AT JOULE

• Local restaurant Joule, which brought us the memorable Urban BBQ series last summer, is now hosting a special Winter Supper series on Sunday nights. From 3pm to 8pm every Sunday in January and February, stop by for a $20 prix fixe meal ($10 for kids) designed to combat blustery winter weekends. Remaining installments include Celebrate the Lunar New Year: Year of the Ox, Cure for the common cold, Winter getaway II: February in Korea, Post-Valentine's comfort food, and Winter in Seattle: Dungeness crab.

COMINGS AND GOINGS

• RIP, Jamba Juice and High Maintenance Bitch.
• Trophy Cupcakes is expanding into more space at Wallingford Center with what's being billed as the future home of a party space. Some lucky kids are going to be having some sweet birthday parties when that space is ready.
• Did you catch the ACE Hardware banner hanging from the northeast corner of Wallingford Center (in the old Chutney's location)? Tweedy & Popp is moving there in March, and both locations will be open during the move as merchandise is ferried across the street.
• David Wahl of Archie McPhee lets us know that the tchotchke store extraordinaire will be keeping folks up to date via their flickr page.
• [Thanks to readers Liz D. and John Scott T. for some of these tips!]

B.F. DAY SCHOOL AUCTION

• B.F. Day School, one of the elementary schools serving Wallingford residents, is holding a benefit auction on February 28 at the Fremont Studios. In addition to attendees, they're currently in search of businesses willing to donate goods and services towards the auction. Complete information can be found the B.F. Day PTSA website.

SUSTAINABLE WALLINGFORD

• Sustainable Wallingford, a neighborhood group that's "learning to live on one planet with grace and joy," has just set up a new online home hosted by Ning. Just visit greenwallingford.ning.com if you'd like to network with like-minded folks.

SEEKING WEBSITE DESIGNER/WEBMASTER

• The Wallingford Neighborhood Organization is looking for a volunteer website designer/webmaster to help revamp their site. If you'd be interested, please send us an email or post a comment and we'll pass word along to the folks at WNO.

That's all for now—let us know if you've got fun plans for Inauguration Day!