International Society of Arborists Pacific Northwest...

...Regional Tree Climbing Competition

Whew! That's a mouthful of a name for tree-climbing fun. Anyway, this gentleman was nice enough to pose for me while he waited to be "rescued" in the climber rescue category of the tree climbing competition. This event is usually in Seattle, but this year they chose our lovely Elizabeth Park since it has so many huge climb-worthy trees.

Cooling Off

We 'Hamsters are loving the (finally here!) summer temperature. Luckily, our highs are in the low 80's, unlike the rest of the sweltering States. Sorry, triple-digit bearers! Our hearts are with you!

Elizabeth Park Fountain

I was lucky to get this shot of the fountain at Elizabeth Park on what was possibly the last sunny day before the water is turned off for the winter. Three perpetually youthful girls perch on top of the fountain bowl, sculpted by Knute Evertz around 1910. Apparently there had been five larger female figures, all of which were lost when the fountain and park were in disrepair during the Great Depression. Elizabeth Park is the oldest municipal park in Bellingham.

Also, a postscript to yesterday's entry: I found a newsclip of Glenn Beck receiving the key to Mount Vernon on Fox News. Shockingly, they downplayed the protest and only talked to supporters of Beck. (To those of you not familiar with the U.S. news channels, the "shockingly" is very sarcastic.)