Like me, most of you probably still think of the corner of 14th & Commercial in downtown  Astoria as home to Chris’ News.  Growing up, this was the hotspot for Archie Digests,  jigsaw puzzles for family holidays, and cigars for grandpa.  I had always assumed that Chris’ News had been there since the building’s inception, but come to find out this is not the case.  Prior to being Chris’ News the building was home to the Commodore Hotel, which first opened it’s doors in 1925.  Fast forward 83 years and The Commodore is preparing to re-open it’s doors once again.   As part of the ongoing Renaissance that’s embracing Astoria, the Commodore Hotel is being reinvented by local builder and craftsman Paul Caruana.  Known for his flare for combining traditional architecture with spaces designed to accomodate our modern lifestyles,  The Commodore will be no exception.  Geared towards the modern hip traveler,  the hotel will feature 19 unique rooms that blur the line between youth hostel and urban boutique hotel.  Many original details of the building will be stylishly recycled into the new design, insuring the approval of both Gen-Xer’s and adventurous Baby Boomers alike.  As of right now, the grand re-opening is slated for fall/winter 2008.  Look for more updates on the project at commodoreastoria.com. 

 The “All About Albacore” class  is this Saturday.   I want to go.   I’ve been waiting for this course.  I am severely challenged in the fish cooking department.  Besides, cooking courses are a great way to dirty up someone else’s kitchen and have a little fun with friends. 

 Astoria has two options for cooking classes.  I’ve had appetizers with Chris at the Baked Alaska in his kitchen inside Mise en Place and attended a party where Eric at the OSU Seafood Center put on a demo course of what was soon to be our main course!   If I could celebrate all my birthdays with a cooking class I would!  According to my family, this is just one more sign of getting older and…geeky.  This from the same folks who won’t let me get a ham radio.  What do they know? 

The OSU Seafood Center is really wonderful for lots of reasons.  The Seafood School is but one of it’s many contributions to the community.   The school is relatively new and very popular.    I first became acquainted with their facility when I attended a class on canning.  I’ve always been interested in canning my own tuna- it’s so tasty!  Once you’ve tasted home-canned tuna it’s very hard to buy store bought again.  Their website offers an online database of recipes searchable by type of seafood.  If any of you are lucky enough to attend the Albacore course this weekend I’d love to hear how the Cherry Cola Grill was!

Here’s the synopsis of the tuna class:

Try out summer barbecue dishes that we have put together to compliment the local bounty of troll-caught Pacific Albacore tuna.  Bursting with Omega-3’s, Albacore is both nutritious and delicious!

Cherry Cola Grilled Albacore

Baked Beans

Corn on the Cob

Potato Salad

Grilled Flatbread

To view the entire course schedule click here and download the PDF file.

 It’s a rare thing to find a house that has it’s woodwork, flooring and windows intact!  We don’t get to see that often.  Nor do we get the privilege of being in many restored vintage homes.   Unfortunately, the term  ’remuddled’ more often fits the bill than remodelled.  Not so with our listing at 731 9th Street.  Lovingly restored over the course of the past decade by a lively gent and his English wife.  The restoration process involved shopping trips to many places.  Most notable is the booty shipped over from England!  Plaster rosettes,  English Rose wallpaper and the never-before-seen Bullion glass (at least not seen by this Broker)!  Bullion glass, also known as “bull’s eye” glass, is characterized by ripples on the glass surface in the shape of concentric circles.  The design is similar to that of a bull’s eye target.   I don’t think this is seen much in our area as it’s a very old way of forming glass.  Our historic homes date back to the late 1800s and this process is much older.  I love it that this homeowner added a bit of English heritage to her own slice of American history.   These bullions were originally the rejects from the glass blowing process.   What started out as an old English tradition can now be found incorporated into modern day manufacturers of windows and glass in America.  A recent press release from Simpson Door announced their version of  doors with bullion glass. 

You can view this beautiful Queen Anne Victorian on our website or by calling one of our brokers at 503-338-5200.

Wednesday, as I sat sipping my coffee, fantisizing about watching Matt Lauer and enjoying the brief  peaceful moments I have in the day after getting my daughters on the school bus and before I leave for work I got a call on my home phone.  I screened it and ignored it  as I always do since anyone who really needs to get a hold of me calls my cell phone, but the message on the answering machine perked my interest.  “This is the Citibank Fraud department and we need to speak with you immediately involving some suspicious activity on your Mastercard account”  My first reaction was ” Why don’t they understand that I live in a tiny town on the Oregon Coast without a Target or  Nordstroms, of course I do a lot of online shopping, and sometimes it adds up….”, but I decided to call them back and check it out anyway.  Imagine my suprise when the friendly and english speaking customer service specialist on the other end asked me if I had been overseas?,” Um NO” , “So you didn’t purchase a $1200. Air France airline ticket”, “NO, I wish, but NO”, “How about a overseas shoe store purchase” “NO”, and again an overseas cosmetic store…well could have been me but “NO”.  

  So evidently according to Citibank I have been a victim of a credit card fraud ring operating overseas which (not to give out too many details to elicite more criminal activity) scrambles various card numbers and expiration dates until they hit the jackpot and get a working combo.  Thankfully  I am happy to say Citibanks top notch “flagging” system is working and I am not responsible for the charges,  it put damper on my day- but was a good wake up call and reminder to be careful with my online purchases.  I also feel obligated to report that the Citibank person on the other end of the line was quite informative, patient and overall  pretty pleasant to deal with, maybe next time Citibank calls me I’ll awnser.  Here are a few safety tips for online shopping courtesy of my friends at Citibank, 1) Only use one credit card with a low limit for online purchases and keep close taps on the purchases, balance etc 2)  Only order off sites that have the “verified” check-out symbols, there are a few main ones, you should recognize them when you see them 3)  Beware of sites that don’t ask you for that pesky little cvn number on the front or back of the card, thats what many sites don’t ask for oversesas which allows crooks to use other peoples numbers without having the card

It’s apparent to anyone with a TV or internet connection that the market has slowed, but I can’t help but think the media has exaggerated just a bit.

While going to the doctor could never be considered pleasant, I did find my visit to the Urgent Care clinic to be just that.  Despite being their first day open and a waiting area full, all of the staff was pleasant and professional. I found the attending doctor to be very thorough, very caring and truly willing to take time to listen.

They accept most insurance but they will not turn away someone with out insurance. As I understand it, they have payment options available and will work with all people in order to get them the care they need.

I have visited other Urgent Care Clinics around the the Northwest.   I have been disappointed by the seemingly disinterested physicians & staff (not to mention the often lengthy wait times) until visiting ‘ours’.  In my opinion this facility is truly an important addition to our area and the people staffing it should give themselves a pat on the back!