The 21st annual Penn Cove Coupeville Mussel Festival is being held over the weekend of March 5-7 2010 on the waterfront. Come enjoy briny mussels fresh from the sea in chowder and off the grill. This is a fitting place to hold an event like this, as the famous Penn Cove mussels are farmed here. Cruise aboard the Mystic Sea and visit the Penn Cove Shellfish farm just a short distance from the historic Coupeville Wharf. The vessel is equipped with an underwater camera and two large screens for viewing. Tours will be led by Penn Cove Shellfish staff and will leave the wharf every hour on the hour 11 AM to 4PM Saturday and Sunday. This is a fun way for adults and children to enjoy the day.
Surviving off the gifts of the sea was essential to the everyday lives of the natives and early settlers of the northwest islands. Enjoying this natural bounty is a practice of many islanders today. From algae to salmon, a balanced diet can be achieved from the sea. Mussels can be pulled from rocks, or harvested from a chain on a dock. Their formal name is black bivalve mollusk and there are over 70 types.
[click to continue…]
You may want to consider investing in some improvements to your current home as spring approaches. Before beginning, it is wise to see if the home improvements you are contemplating are eligible for a home improvement tax deduction.
Generally, you cannot deduct home repairs or home improvements on your tax return in the current tax year. However, if you are selling your home, home improvements may potentially reduce your capital gain. The IRS has a nice publication, that does a good job of explaining what improvements might qualify.
The first thing you need to understand is the difference between a home improvement and a home repair. A home repair is fixing a problem. For example, repairing a hole in the roof, fixing a leaky faucet or repainting a room would be considered repairs. Remodeling a kitchen, adding a room, building a garage or installing a swimming pool would be classed as improvements. These improvements add to the living appeal of the home’s owners and usually add value to the home.
The Internal Revenue Service has strict guidelines on how a homeowner can claim a tax deduction for home improvements. It is strongly recommended that before you hire a contractor or start any home improvement works that you obtain advice from you tax consultant or from the local office of the IRS.
Tax deductions can fall into any of several different categories. A medical condition that required providing disabled access to home would normally be classed as a home improvement.
If you are planning improvements to an area of your home that is in need of repair you may be able to include the repair as an improvement. The Tax Act states that where a repair is carried out in the same area of the home that is being remodeled then the repair can be included as part of the remodeling project. So, if you are planning on remodeling your kitchen don’t forget to take care of the leaking pipes at the same time and claim the entire project as a deduction.
Tax credits provide significant savings to the homeowner. A tax deduction for home improvements can reduce the amount of income on which tax is payable, a tax credit directly reduces the tax itself. Tax credits are available for many types of home improvements, notably for improving the energy efficiency of your home. For example, installing insulation, adding energy-efficient windows, and some types of highly efficient equipment for cooling and heating, and solar water heating may qualify for tax credits.
And when you begin your home improvements remember to maintain accurate records of spending and save all receipts. This is an enormous help when the time comes to claim your home improvement tax deduction.
Try to sneak a quick trip to an island grocery store without meeting someone you know. No way.
You are stranded, and out of gas on the road. Not for long. Someone will stop and help you in a matter of minutes. Guaranteed.
There is a certain familiarity that comes with island life that is comforting, but also may take some getting accustomed to, especially if you move here from a large city. There are times when there are lots of visitors or tourists on the island and you don’t see friends and neighbors quite as often nor perhaps recognize them in the store quite as quickly, but in the islands you always know that your friends will be there for you should you need them.
A great example of this sense of sharing and community is Good Cheer, the local food bank on Whidbey Island. With the poor economy, more and more families are in need of help with basics like food, clothing and shelter. This year they added a garden to insure that people were receiving fresh, wholesome vegetables. More than 4,000 pounds of fresh, healthy produce were harvested and delivered steps away to the food bank, all in the very first year of their on-site garden! This takes many, many volunteers, and thankfully island communities have many committed and energetic volunteers.
On San Juan Island there is the Community Home Trust. The mission of The San Juan Community Home Trust is to make home ownership possible for working people on San Juan Island. In recent years the gap between earned wages and housing prices has increased so much that it is now almost impossible for wage-earning residents to purchase a home on San Juan Island. They have been able to help many families purchase affordable homes over the past few years, and recently influenced the annexation of 46 acres to the town of Friday Harbor by insuring that a significant part of the land would be set aside for permanently affordable homes.
So now you have the essence of Island life. Move here, make friends, do good for others and get more in return.
See you at the grocery store.
Rain doesn’t bother me one drop. I love the sound on the roof and watching the way the earth, sky and the “ in-between” interact. But my personality doesn’t let me spend too much time in contemplation. I start looking for ways to enjoy the rain experience on the islands when I have a day off.
With the restless energy that needs to be released, I head out to Ebey’s Landing. Some of the Reserve’s best walking is along the strip of rocky beach between Fort Casey and Fort Ebey state parks. The beach rises to dramatic 200-foot high bluffs, most of which are accessible by a trail. When you reach the top of the ridge you enjoy one of the best views out the Straits of Juan De Fuca.
After a nice long walk, I am a little hungry and decide to enjoy a light lunch at the Greenbank Farm’ s little pie shop. You absolutely, positively cannot leave here without sharing a piece of warm berry pie with ice cream. It’s a favorite local’s spot, warm and cozy with the hum of good conversation on a wet day.
What next, well thoughts of a nap…….but no, I have a book I have been wanting to read and so I visit some of the wonderful bookstores in Langley and Freeland. There is the Moonraker in Langley, and the Book Bay in Freeland to start, and of course the Sno-Isle libraries are located in each town.There are also many interesting shops, especially in Langley, that a wonderful way to spend a quiet afternoon.
Of course, by now, food is on my mind again and there is absolutely no better place to go for warmth, good service and outstanding food than Prima Bistro in Langley. It also has a great view for watching the rain sweep across Saratoga Passage.
Did I tell you I love the rain?
