SW: Falling from Fraternity Houses

My first Seattle Weekly blog post... which may or may not make it into the print edition. Enjoy!

news: No more bonfires? Say it aint so…

According to a Seattle P-I report, Seattle Parks and Recreation officials are considering reducing or eliminating altogether the fire pits at Alki and Golden Gardens. Under the proposal, in July the department would reduce the number of pits at Alki from the current 6 to 3, and at Golden Gardens from 12 to 7. The next year, they would have the option to eliminate them entirely.

This is the second time in recent memory that the waterfront tradition has been threatened: in 2004 a violation notice was sent from the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency to the city after someone set a couch on fire at Alki Beach. However, 1,200 people signed a petition to save Alki's bonfires, and 100 others signed a petition to save the ones at Golden Garden.

Now, environmental concerns are threatening the fires once again. According to a memo to the park board from the staff, "The overall policy question for the Board is whether it is good policy for Seattle Parks to continue public beach fires when the carbon emissions produced by thousands of beach fires per year contributes to global warming."

However, there are some strong arguments in favor of leaving the fires alone. More staff have been assigned to the two beaches, and the number of fires using illegal materials has dropped by two-thirds. Restrictions could cause illegal fires and fights over the limited number of fire pits. Charging fees to use the pits could cause disproportionate availability for youths and low-income people.

[Editor's Note] Do these fires really present a threat in the battle against climate change? Though I don't have much evidence in front of me, I'd wager the effect of even a few thousand bonfires would be far less than the carbon emissions of a handful of cars. Despite the environmentally friendly mindset of Seattle and its residents (myself definitely included), I'd be surprised to see a tradition like this be disposed of for minimal benefit. The Parks & Rec board meeting is next Thursday night… I guess we'll have to wait and see what happens. If you want to make your voice heard, show up at 7 p.m at the park department's offices (100 Dexter Ave. N).

news and photos: Wing Luke Asian Museum

On Sunday morning, I trekked into Seattle's International District to report on the latter half of the Wing Luke Asian Museum's two-day grand opening extravaganza. Despite the fact that I was (literally) temporarily deafened by the traditional firecrackers that scared the living hell out of me, I really enjoyed the performances outside and the museum itself. This was definitely an experiment in my courage as a photographer; I didn't want to interfere with a culturally important ceremony, but I also couldn't get a shot from the middle of the crowd, so I hopped the rope and perched against the building literally right in front of the dance. The shots that resulted from that move were exactly what I wanted. Below are four of my favorites, in addition to the story I wrote from an amazing noodle restaurant about three blocks away.

The Wing Luke Asian Museum will be open Tuesday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. General admission is $8 for adults, $6 for students and seniors, and free for kids under 5. Admission is free on the first Thursday and third Saturday of each month. For more information, visit www.wingluke.org.

ABOVE: A young boy performs a routine with a traditional spear outside the Wing Luke Asian Museum. His routine, along with others, was part of the second day of festivities celebrating the museum's grand reopening.

ABOVE: Four performers dance during a ceremonial Lion and Dragon performance outside the Wing Luke Asian Museum on June 1. Each lion is made up of two people, with one in the head and one in the rear.

ABOVE: A woman dances outside the Wing Luke Asian Museum during its grand opening festivities as a part of the Lion and Dragon Dance performance.

ABOVE: A young girl pets a performer in traditional Chinese Lion costume. Many children were present and the ceremonial dance, and some continued on to the many children's areas inside the museum.

Wing Luke Asian Museum reopens to community's delight

Amid the deafening roar of fireworks, a cheer rang out from the crowd. The Wing Luke Asian Museum was perfectly situated into its new International District home.

On Saturday morning, the first day of the grand opening weekend celebration, supporters filled the block in front of the new 719 S. King St. to hear speeches from local politicians and to see a multicultural drumming performance. The next morning, a similar crowd turned out for a lion and dragon dance performance. As soon as the performances were finished, onlookers crowded to the entrance to catch a glimpse inside.

Joann Natalia Aquino, the museum’s public relations manager, was excited both about the museum’s expansion and the public’s support.

“The community has welcomed the museum with open arms,” she said. “We’re very glad to open and glad that the community has embraced us.”

The museum features peaceful lightwells, children’s areas, historic immersion exhibits, the Tateuchi Story Theater and the unique “George Tsutakawa: The Making of a Fountain” exhibition displaying fountains, paintings and sculptures of the Seattle artist.
The museum, a Smithsonian Institution affiliate, is the only Pan-Asian Pacific-American museum in the U.S. It focuses on three dimensions: contemporary space, historic space and a portal to Chinatown discovery.

Wing Luke was Seattle's first Asian city councilman. Elected in 1962, he served three years before dying in a plane crash after leaving an Okanogan County airport on May 16, 1965. A search, paid for by contributions from friends and supporters, found the plane over three years later in the Cascade Mountains.

Money left over from the search effort was used to start the original Wing Luke Museum, which quickly outgrew its 10,000 square foot original residence. The new location, in the old East Kong Yick Building, is about six times that size.

Originally a boarding house full of small rooms, the East Kong Yick building was often a first stop for those who had nowhere else to go when they arrived in Seattle. It has been mostly uninhabited for years, but after a five-year campaign by the Wing Luke Asian Museum that raised $23.2 million that’s no longer the case.

Architect Rick Sundberg made it a goal to save as much of the building as he could rather than gutting it, and in doing so saved the storytelling ability of the building. Century-old timber, refurbished and repurposed, lines the museum’s walls. Suddenly, the building became a source of pride for the community, combining past with future.

UW student Mitchell Fung, along with about ten of his fellow Zeta Kappa Epsilon fraternity members, helped with event staff to direct guests at the grand opening.

“We’re an Asian-interest fraternity, but for some of our members this is brand new,” Fung said. “This gives us a chance to learn about our culture and do what we can to help the community.

news: Ahhhh T.I. is coming to Bumbershoot!

When I heard that Ludacris dropped his appearance at Bumbershoot 2008, I was more or less crushed. After seeing Lupe Fiasco and Wu Tang last year, I know just how amazing a headlining hip-hop show at Bumbershoot can be (though tragically I missed Kanye the year before).

BUT guess what? It was just announced tonight that T.I. will be there in full force. How great will that be?

Check out the rest of the as-of-yet announced lineup here. We're talking Band of Horses, Stone Temple Pilots, Anti Flag, Neko Case, Minus the Bear, The Black Keys, Beck… and a whole lot more.

Can. Not. Wait.

news: Red Bull Gravity Challenge held at TDX

PHOTO: Marked eggs were used to promote the Red Bull Gravity Challenge, held on May 9 at Theta Delta Chi fraternity at the University of Washington. The competition, a science fair egg drop "done Red Bull style," was accompanied by a grand prize trip to Flugtag in Portland.

It's not often that the opportunity arises to drop eggs from a scissor lift over two stories high, but that's exactly what several teams got to do at the UW Red Bull Gravity Challenge held at Theta Delta Chi fraternity on May 9.

The event, emceed by UW Brand Manager Ryan Berry and DJed by local cut-master DJ Dyce, was scored by three celebrity judges: Steve Rock of 99.9 KISW, Greg Young of Northwest Riders and a member of the Red Bull "Wings Team." Points were given for style, accuracy, egg survival and whether the egg actually touched the ground.

"Team Feldman," made up of two Theta Delts, took first place with 84 points and won the grand prize trip to Flugtag in Portland.

The winning contraption was colorful and complex, consisting of helium-filled balloons attached to a shot glass — the egg container — cushioned by other air-filled balloons. It was "engineered" to let the egg roll out onto the target, scoring extra points.

Many other ingenious and creative designs made an appearance as well, including one made of a styrofoam container that used streamers as air resistance and another that used a shock-absorbing jar of peanut butter as their main element.

The Red Bull Gravity Challenge has been making appearances on college campuses from coast to coast.

nick c. feldman: the blog has arrived!

Hey everyone!

So, after far too long, "nick c. feldman: the blog" is a reality. I'll be writing about music, pop culture, politics and all sorts of other things as well as posting features and more in-depth work. This is also going to be my place to post photos and talk about them, for the time being at least.

I love you for being here to see what I've done. Enjoy.