Dear Libbers,

We'll be at it again this Wed, 22May.
What follows are the top six (or seven; you count 'em) reasons you should be there.

It is election time again.

Last session COB Council candidate Roxanne (Roxie) Murphy stopped by. She was/is fun. This week should bring one of her opponents, Bob Burr, also fun. (To be clear, both Roxie and Bob are serious, of course, about their campaigns.)

We are also expecting Mike McCauley, one of the three B'ham Port Commissioners. Mike is running for re-election. Waterfront questions should be front and center, not to mention trains, planes and automobiles.

Tara Nelson should be back from AZ, probably sporting a tan.

And, we are on the eve of Ski to Sea this weekend: that always gets the "juice" flowing.

Because there are 5 Wednesdays in this month, we will not meet again for 3 whole weeks, on June 12th. That amount of time can go slowly.

All in all, it is sure to be another fine evening at the Horseshoe, so ... for however many reasons resonate with you, hope to see you Wednesday!
Salute

Hi Drinkers!

I'm really excited about what seems to be shaping up as a new chapter in the life of Bellingham Drinking Liberally. Last month, not only were we fortunate to have Bellingham City Council's Ward 4 candidate Pinky Vargas and incumbent Michael Lilliquist join us as featured guests, but we had Bellingham all-star guests such as political blogger Riley Sweeney, 40th District Dems chair Marc O., Whatcom Dems chair Mike Estes, WWU Young Dems chair Lauren Hatch, local rabblerousers Frances Badgett and Iris Maute-Gibson, world traveler and co-host Andy Jennings, Gib, the one and only, Tara's Uncle Bob!™ and our most favorite Ranch Room bartender, Billie Clark! Vargas talked about her vision for Bellingham's waterfront and answered questions from members. If you'd like to hear more from Pinky, she'll be a guest on The Joe Show, 930 AM KBAI Progressive Talk in Bellingham on May 20th from Noon to 1 p.m.

Next Meeting Wednesday, May 8: Co-host Scott Wild has finally returned from his vacation in Vietnam, where he has been drinking liberally with the titular socialists there so I'm sure he'll have lots to report on. Let's all give him a warm welcome back! By that time, however, Mr. Tara and I will likely be en route to Arizona to visit my mother and visit the energy vortices in Sedona.

Coming up on May 22, we have Port of Bellingham commissioner Michael McAuley as our featured guest! He'll be talking about the role of the port in various upcoming projects including the waterfront redevelopment, the GP hydro pipeline project and more!

Mike was first elected to the Port of Bellingham in 2009 and is owner of McAuley Builders, a local company with an emphasis on green building practices. During his first term as a commissioner for the Port of Bellingham, he has fostered an unprecedented openness and access to port activities. He's also one of the friendliest Whatcom County politicians you'll ever meet! Find out more about Mike at: www.mikeforport.com

On the Horizon: We are excited to have Whatcom County Council candidate Rud Browne as the featured guest at our June 12th meeting! We also hope to have Port of Bellingham candidate Renata Beata Kowalczyk and Whatcom County Council incumbent Carl Weimer and others join us in the near future as well.

Thank you, everyone, for being a part and keeping this group fun and dynamic! I'll see you later in May!

Cheers!
~Tara

I know that might seem a bit premature, but ...
I am fresh back from Vietnam and was looking forward to some cooler temps. (Can I get a pass for complaining about this weather?)

Things should be cool in the Ranch Room, 7:30 Wed.

They will be even cooler if we get an appearance from the Sudden Valley contingent (hint, hint).

Scott

Wow! What a GREAT Drinking Liberally meeting last night! We had political blogger Riley Sweeney 40th District Dems chair Marc O., Whatcom Dems chair Mike Estes, WWU Young Dems chair Lauren Hatch, local rabblerousers Frances Badgett and Iris Maute-Gibson, world traveler and co-host Andy Jennings, Gib, the one and only, Tara's Uncle Bob!™ and our most favorite Ranch Room bartender, Billie Clark! We also heard from special guest Pinky Vargas, a candidate for Bellingham City Council's 4th ward seat. Vargas talked about her vision for Bellingham's waterfront and answered questions from members. If you'd like to hear more from Pinky, she'll be a guest on The Joe Show, 930 AM KBAI Progressive Talk in Bellingham later in May. We'll keep you updated!

Next Meeting Wednesday, May 8: Co-host Scott Wild should be returning from his vacation in Vietnam, where he was undoubtably drinking liberally with the titular socialists there so I'm sure he'll have lots to report on. Let's all give him a warm welcome back! By that time, however, Jeff and I will likely be en route to Arizona to visit my mother and visit the energy vortices in Sedona so we can get our super cosmic charge on for the upcoming election season. :P

Speaking of Arizona, thanks to the backlash from Latinos over the state's Draconian and unconstitutional immigration laws, this state is supposedly experiencing a surge in new Democratic voters!! In fact, many demographers are predicting Arizona to be the next PURPLE state! This is all speculation, of course, but it is very hopeful news and let's hope it someday results in Gov. Jan Brewer being thrown out of office.

Finally, I'll be back for the May 22 meeting and we have scheduled Port of Bellingham commissioner Michael McAuley as our featured guest! He'll be talking about the role of the port in various upcoming projects including the waterfront redevelopment, the GP hydro pipeline project and more!

Thank you, everyone for coming last night and I'll see you later in May!

~Tara

Hi y'all!

I'm sorry I forgot to mention, we'll have a special guest tonight: Bellingham City Council candidate Pinky Vargas will be joining us for an informal and fun discussion about her campaign for the council's Ward 4 position. Pinky has a strong background in project management through her work for Puget Sound Energy as an efficiency outreach manager. If elected, she said she plans to focus on economic development, the health of Lake Whatcom (our primary drinking water source), and redeveloping Bellingham's historic and beautiful waterfront. We will meet her tonight at 7:30 p.m. at the Ranch Room, 113 E. Holly St. Everyone is welcome! For more info: www.votepinkyvargas.com