Blog Entries

The Quinn Block - by Susan Monahan

juliaherres@gmail.com — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 00:00:00 +0100

The most fascinating part of writing about Walla Walla's historic buildings is learning how a space can change over time, its owners altering and molding it to their needs. If I walk into Tallman's Drug Store at 4 West Main today I am greeted by friendly folks who fill my prescription and ask about my day. If I had entered that door in 1880, I wo [...]

Faces and Places: Chuck Reininger of Reininger Winery

julia@wwwebweavers.com — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 00:00:00 +0100

Meet Chuck Reininger, passionate winemaker and passionate outdoorsman. Born and raised in Bellevue, Wash., Reininger calls the Walla Walla Valley home mainly due to his love of the outdoors, the region's spectacular geography and rich history. The former mountain climbing guide says all of this passion is reflected in his wine. Hence, [...]

Walla Walla's Sweet Tooth – by Susan Monahan

juliaherres@gmail.com — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 00:00:00 +0100

When I say Walla Walla Sweets, I am not referring to baseball or onions. I am talking candy. Residents and visitors certainly appreciate Bright's on Main Street and many remember fondly the many years Russell's Candy was in business. But there is a "ghost sign" on an elegant brick building at 108 South Third that marks Walla Walla Cand [...]

The Beehive: A Building with Two Lives – by Susan Monahan

juliaherres@gmail.com — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 00:00:00 +0100

There is a fond place in the hearts of many Walla Walla folks for the Bee Hive Building on the corner of First and Main. Built of dark red brick and featuring tall, gracefully curved upstairs windows, it now houses several businesses. It's really the Sayer building, named for the man who built it in 1890, but everybody calls it "The Bee Hive" because they re [...]

Scenes from Walla Walla by Jim Willis - Pioneer Park

julia.designs4u@yahoo.com — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 00:00:00 +0100

The image in this blog entry was captured in Walla Walla's Pioneer Park. The snow laden trees lie on the east shore of the park's south pond. Pioneer Park is one of my favorite sites because of the great variety of landscapes, structures and sculptures within the park. It is a great spot for artistic shots and people shots. A good number of sen [...]

Henrietta's House – by Susan Monahan

juliaherres@gmail.com — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 00:00:00 +0100

Photograph of Henrietta Baker
Courtesy of Ft. Walla Walla Museum

If you were to be invited into the parlor of Henrietta Baker's house, you might not be able to stand upright--that is if you were older than ten or eleven. When Henrietta's parents, Henry and Clara, built the playhouse for Henrietta in 1905, she was 11 years o [...]

Faces and Places: Nimal Amarasinghe of South Fork Grill

julia@wwwebweavers.com — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 00:00:00 +0100

To say that Nimal Amarasinghe, Executive Chef of the South Fork Grill, is far from home is a grand understatement. The likeable head of the kitchen is some 15,000 miles from his native country of Sri Lanka. Yes, the small former British colony in Southeast Asia is where Chef Nimal spent his childhood, swimming with his friends in the ocean and playing [...]

Scenes from Walla Walla by Jim Willis - Winter Barn

julia.designs4u@yahoo.com — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 00:00:00 +0100

Walla Walla Valley barns provide a rich source of picturesque scenes. It is difficult to travel down one of our country roads and not encounter enchanting barns. The challenge with taking pictures of barns is to avoid the "mug" shot. The solution is to employ classical composition. Think of your visits to museums and of the landscape painting you viewe [...]

Isabella's Ghost? – by Susan Monahan

juliaherres@gmail.com — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 00:00:00 +0100

No one who knew Isabella Kirkman would ever think of her as having potential to "haunt." Isabella and William Kirkman were, as most locals know, the hardworking wealthy citizens who built the Kirkman House on the corner of Colville and Cherry. Their elegant home was finished by 1880 and the Kirkmans lived there until the 1920s when Isabell [...]

Scenes from Walla Walla by Jim Willis - Sculptures

julia.designs4u@yahoo.com — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 00:00:00 +0100

If you appreciate sculptures, Walla Walla is an ideal destination. Between Downtown Walla Walla, Whitman College, Walla Walla University, Walla Walla Community College and Walla Walla public parks there are over 50 commissioned sculptures in public view. The area also boasts two fine art foundries: Walla Walla Foundry in Walla Walla and the [...]

The Baumeister Building, Made With Metal – by Susan Monahan

juliaherres@gmail.com — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0100

I can't walk by the elegant mauve and gray Baumeister Building without rapping one of its columns with my knuckles. Each rap is answered by a gratifying metallic clunk because this building is a "Mesker" and that means it's faced by a "galvanized storefront system." All its lovely ornamentation that looks carved and handmade is actually pressed sheet metal, a combination of galv [...]

Faces and Places: Ian Crawford and Doug Gisi of Vinoture

julia@wwwebweavers.com — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0100

How would you like to drink the wine from the barrel you are sitting on? Sound impossible? Not in the eyes of Ian Crawford and Doug Gisi, co-owners of Vinoture, a thriving furniture company whose artistic and tasteful products are solely comprised of used wine barrels. As Crawford puts it, when sitting on a bar stool made by Vinoture, you are experiencing the f [...]

Once Upon a Time in a Town Called Walla Walla

jujubee_1979@yahoo.com — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0100

This is the time of year when the vineyards in the Walla Walla Valley are beginning to take on veraison - the onset of ripening for the grapes. Crush will be starting at the wineries soon and the sweet smell of grapes will fill the air along with the smoky leaves of autumn. This is truly my favorite time of the year in our valley. This is the time o [...]

Scenes from Walla Walla by Jim Willis - Weaving Wheat Field Tapestry

julia.designs4u@yahoo.com — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 00:00:00 +0100

Around each bend of the road, over each crest of a hill potentially lies a scene that begs to be painted, drawn, photographed or just enjoyed. The country roads surrounding Walla Walla that extend into the Walla Walla Valley of Southeastern Washington and Northeastern Oregon hold so many visual treasures. Vistas plead to be enjoyed [...]

Faces and Places: Eric Dunham of Dunham Cellars

julia@wwwebweavers.com — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 00:00:00 +0100

What does accomplished winemaker, Eric Dunham, love most about producing wine? "It's as simple as guy loving to get dirty," he chuckles. It's the physical labor and feeling the fresh breeze against his skin and the sun upon his back that fulfills Dunham. He also enjoys the artistry of making wine and from Dunham Cellar's first release [...]

Matt Schofield Concert

aholt@wallawalla.org — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 00:00:00 +0100

Blues ruled the roost last Wednesday at the Walla Walla Community College Performing Arts Center as a near sellout crowd was treated to two top blues performers. Headliner, Matt Schofield, voted Blues Guitarist of the Year by the British Blues Society, more than lived up to his billing dazzling the crowd with his mastery of the guitar and hi [...]

A Life of Its Own

Becky.StClair@wallawalla.edu — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 00:00:00 +0100

The city of Walla Walla has a life of its own. I mean, aside from the tourists hunting for what they've heard are the "must-see" spots downtown, the drivers vying for a parking spot on Main Street, and college students cruising on their bikes between their favorite coffee shop and Earthlight Books, Walla Walla breathes and speaks of its own [...]

Porch Sippin’

jujubee_1979@yahoo.com — Thu, 23 Jun 2011 00:00:00 +0100

Solstice, June 21, officially marks that summer is here! Aside from our share of rain, which can only make those Walla Walla Sweet Onions sweeter, summer means slow moving days of outdoor entertaining and lots of what I call, "porch sippin'."

So what is this "porch sippin'?" Walla Walla is known for its hot days and I am such a [...]

Earthlight Books in Walla Walla

Becky.StClair@wallawalla.edu — Thu, 19 May 2011 00:00:00 +0100

I'm married to a librarian. From a young age, he found joy in organizing and reorganizing anything he could find, including his Matchbox cars and baseball cards. Especially his baseball cards. He had dozens of them, and now, at nearly 30, he has hundreds. He doesn't collect them for their monetary value; instead he collects them simply to be [...]

Overheard at Starbucks

Steve@detourfarm.com — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 00:00:00 +0100

The Scene: Standing in line behind a 30-something couple...

He (making conversation): What are you having?

She (wondering): I don't know. What are you having?

He (matter-of-fact): A grande caramel frappucino.

She (pondering): What should I get?

He (matter-of-fact): Whatever you want.

She (ind [...]