BY KATY SHANER
Whidbey Life Magazine Contributor
March 11, 2015
Welcome to the weekend on Whidbey. Many weekend events start on Thursday night so this “What’s Happening” covers Thursday through Sunday. “What’s Happening” is a collaborative information guide project between the The Visitor Information Kiosk and Whidbey Life Magazine.
THURSDAY, MARCH 12

TRIO NOUVEAU AT PRIMA BISTRO featuring the lyrical guitar interplay of Keith Bowers and Greg Beck accompanied by bassist Kristi O’Donnell, creating a romantic ambiance to begin the weekend from 6 to 8:30 p.m. Prima Bistro pairs French-inspired PNW cuisine, fine wine and desserts divine with the tastefully presented lyrical swing jazz of Trio Nouveau.
Reservations suggested. Prima Bistro, 201-1/2 1st Street, Langley. (360) 221-4060 www.primabistro.com. Trio Nouveau would love to bring a bit of swing to your festive occasion. Visit: www.kristio.com/trio-nouveau.html.
FOREST NICHES FOR SMALL BIRDS with Rob Sandelin—naturalist, writer and teacher. Socialize at 7 p.m., short meeting at 7:15 p.m. and program at 7:30 p.m. at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation, 20103 SR 525, north of Freeland.
Find out how bacteria use Pileated Woodpeckers to make a home for termites, how a forest grows gardens in its canopy and how the tiny Pacific Wren shapes the world it lives in. All are welcome to this free program! Questions? Contact Robin Llewellyn, program chair, at (360) 678-5403 or look online at www.whidbeyaudubon.org.
FRIDAY, MARCH 13
THE HOT CLUB OF TROY at Useless Bay Coffee, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., [lays acoustic gypsy jazz from the repertoire of Django Reinhardt. Troy offers a bit of Django’s history via his works, and you’ll learn about Blues for Ike. www.troychapman.com Useless Bay Coffee, 121 Second St., Langley (360) 221-4515 shop.uselessbaycoffee.com/
OUTCAST PRODUCTIONS — “NICKEL AND DIMED” Performances are at 7:30 p.m. on Fridays & Saturdays thru March 21; at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, March 19; and at 2 p.m. Sunday, March 15.
Can a middle-aged, middle-class woman survive when she suddenly has to make beds all day in a hotel and live on $7 an hour? Maybe. Acclaimed author Barbara Ehrenreich set out to research low-wage life firsthand. Barbara’s best-seller about her odyssey is vivid and witty, yet always deeply sobering. Joan Holden’s stage adaptation is a focused comic epic shadowed with tragedy.
Tickets are $18 for adults and $14 for students/seniors. 819 Camano Ave. at the Whidbey Fairgrounds Black Box Theater. www.outcastproductions.net www.brownpapertickets.com or reserve tickets by emailing ocp@whidbey.com.
SORRY, SOLD OUT WOW! STORIES 2015 Two different shows at WICA on Friday, March 13, 7 – 10 p.m. and Saturday, March 14 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. Tickets for each show $25. Tickets include reception fare on Friday, lunch on Saturday; proceeds benefit WICA. Doors open 30 minutes prior to show.
Back for its fourth year, the annual WOW! Stories has become one of Whidbey Island’s most popular and well-loved shows, featuring riveting talks and moving performances from Whidbey’s most interesting and inspiring women.
Tickets are available through the WICA box office at: (360) 221-8268 or online at www.wicaonline.com. More information is available at the WOW! Stories website at: www.wowstories.net. Brought to you by Seriously Fun Productions.
WHIDBEY CHILDREN’S THEATER Open Mic Night Calling all musicians, singers, poets, comics and their fans! Open Mic Night at Whidbey Children’s Theater (old Langley Middle School Auditorium, around the corner from WICA). Share your talents with other artists and the Whidbey community, using excellent sound and technical equipment in this wonderful venue. $10 per act and a suggested donation of $10 for audience members. All proceeds go to WCT.
Learn to be creative and confident through stage presentation and have fun at the same time. Hosts: Jim & Betty Lightner. Signup for “order of acts” at 6:30 p.m. The first group will begin at 7 p.m. Please feel free to drop in later as your schedule allows and we’ll get you in the line-up. Refreshments will also be available.
Questions to: betlightner@whidbey.com. Please park in the big lot behind the building. Whidbey Children’s Theater, 763 Camano Ave., Langley.
ISLAND COUNTY HISTORIC SOCIETY Archives Open House from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Janet Enzmann Archives & Research Library at 908 NW Alexander St., Coupeville.
We’ll be showcasing ICHS’s improved space, as well as the archival storage, photo collection, historic newspapers and maps. Learn about the preservation of Island County history and why caring for and keeping our community’s memories is so important. Volunteers will be mending newspapers dating from the late 1800s and early 1900s and leading personal tours.
Try your hand at searching our digital files. Join us in the challenge of identifying unnamed individuals in our photo collection. Celebrate where we have been, what we have accomplished, and our visions for the future! For more information or questions, contact Sarah Aldrich at 360-678-3310, arc-ichs@whidbey.net or email wp.islandhistory.org/.
FAMILY FRIENDLY BINGO NIGHT 6 to 8 p.m., at the South Whidbey Center, 14594 State Route 525 (across from The Goose Grocer), to benefit Senior Services of Island County, Time Together Adult Day Program Scholarship Fund. All Are Welcome! Cost is $7.50 per person.
Great prizes for children and adults. There will be a bonus game at the conclusion for the biggest prize of the evening. Game cards for the bonus game will be $1. Space is limited, so get there early to ensure your seats. Beverages, snack, hotdogs and pizza will be available for purchase.
The Time Together Adult Day Program serves vulnerable and isolated adults and provides respite to their caregivers. The next Family Friendly Bingo night will be May 29. Email www.islandseniorservices.org/ for further information.
BLOOMS WINERY TASTE FOR WINE AND ART Open Mic Night from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Blooms Winery offers the stage to musicians, poets, comedians and improv on Open Mic Night on the second Friday of each month. This is an Island of incredibly talented people, so come by and sit and listen for a spell.
These Open Mics provide an opportunity in a casual and intimate setting for musicians to perform live and play a song or two or for a poet to recite some of their verse. Anyone interested in being included in the evening’s talent showcase can call the Tasting Room at (360) 321-0515 for more details. Drop-ins are accepted.
Blooms Winery Taste for Wine & Art is located in the historic Bayview Cash Store at Bayview Corner. Open Thursday to Monday. Visit the website www.bloomswinery.com or call 360-321-0515 for more details.
SATURDAY, MARCH 14
MEERKERK GARDENS GOING NATIVE “Identifying & Using Native Plants in the Landscape” from 10 a.m. to 12 noon. Class fee is $10. Reservations please.
Learn how to identify and use native plants in the landscape. Plant samples and photos of landscapes using native and domestic plants will be shown. Don Lee (ICMG), president of Meerkerk Rhododendron Gardens, co-chairs the Island County Water Resources Advisory Committee, and was the 2009 WSU Master Gardener of the Year. Don is recognized as a local expert in native plants. 3531 Meerkerk Lane, Greenbank (360) 678-1912 or (360) 222-0121. meerkerk@whidbey.net www.meerkerkgardens.org.
WINTER SKY STAR PARTY from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. at the Ebey’s Reserve lookout. Join WCLT as it celebrates open spaces and big skies! In partnership with the Island County Historical Society. Basic instruction and telescopes will be provided, although you’re welcome to bring your own telescope. www.wclt.org/ ICHS wp.islandhistory.org/.
CHICKEN BARN CONCERT HALL presents “Richard, Marie & Geof” at 7 p.m. Enjoy listening to folk and popular music from the U.S., Europe and South America. A great concert. You won’t want to miss these long time Bellingham musicians! This intimate house concert in Clinton has limited seating. Reservations are highly recommended. Suggested donation $15-20. To reserve a space, contact Ed at: (425) 791-1719 fickbohm@whidbey.net.
ANCESTRAL BLUEPRINTS presents FAMILY SYSTEMS CONSTELLATION CIRCLE with Lisa Iversen. from 2 to 4:30 p.m. Doors open at 1:45 p.m. at Sears House, Chiropractic Zone, 2812 Meinhold Rd., Bayview Corner.
What is The Constellation Experience? A sacred space is created where deeper, often unspoken truths about our families are acknowledged and honored. The workshop leader facilitates an unfolding process where painful losses, family secrets, and harmful connections are revealed and honored. Participants leave with a more nourishing family picture that inspires freedom, clarity, and love. Cost: $25 for witnessing/representing and $45 if you would like to set up a constellation. Pre-registration is recommended due to limited seating. Contact Julie Pigott at (360) 632-9390, juliemae@whidbey.com www.ancestralblueprints.com/about/systemic-family-constellations.
PADDY’S DAY PANCAKE BREAKFAST A benefit for Meals on Wheels from 9 to 11 a.m. at the Bayview Senior Center, Langley (across from The Goose Grocer on Hwy. 525). Suggested donation is $7 for a delicious breakfast of pancakes, scrambled eggs, sausages, fruit, juice and coffee or tea! A Movie and Popcorn Basket, Pancake Breakfast Basket and an Irish Basket will be raffled off; tickets are $2 each. Contact Debbie Metz at (360) 321-1600. 14594 SR 525, Langley.
OUTCAST PRODUCTIONS “NICKEL AND DIMED” Performances are at 7:30 p.m. on Fridays & Saturdays thru March 21; at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, March 19; and at 2 p.m. Sunday, March 15. (See listing above under Friday, March 13 for details,)
WOW! STORIES 2015 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at WICA in Langley. (See listing above under Friday, March 13 for details,)
SUNDAY, MARCH 15
CHOOSING THE BEST SEEDS FOR OUR CLIMATE Noon to 2 p.m. at the South Whidbey Tilth Sustainability Campus on Hwy. 525, Langley. $8 for South Whidbey Tilth members/$15 for nonmembers, (plus an optional $5-$10 for trays of seedlings.
Make your gardening more fun and more productive by choosing the best seeds for our climate. Tilth will host this class about getting those seeds to grow both indoors and outside. Local farmer and Island County Master Gardener coordinator, Anza Muenchow, will provide seed selection information, germination requirements and have hands-on materials, as well as trays and seeds for you to plant during the class. If you choose, you can take them home to germinate them yourselves. Bring an extra lab fee of $5 to $10 for the take-home tray of seedlings.
To register or get more information, email Michael Seraphinoff, mjseraph@whidbey.net or call 360-544-2278. Complimentary hot beverages will be available.
BLOOMS WINERY TASTING ROOM Enjoy Sunday afternoons with live music at Bayview Corner. No cover, no minimums. Just fabulous wines and great music! The annual Mother Earth Art Show has opened with paintings by Sharon Tryon and Anna Davis, photography by Elizabeth Atly and pottery and shell art by Carol Rhodes.
Blooms Winery’s tasting room is at the Bayview Corner Cash Store, 5603 Bayview Rd. Langley. 360-321-0515, www.bloomswinery.com.
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The Visitor Information Kiosk advertisers help us welcome you to Whidbey Island. Please visit them while you visit our fair isle.
WHIDBEY TELECOM WiFIRE COFFEE BAR
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The Vistor Information Kiosk is funded by the Greater Freeland Area and Langley Chambers of Commerce and What’s Happening is prepared by Katy Shaner, Manager and Volunteer Coordinator, contact Katy at ktshaner@whidbey.com.
Got an event you’d like to see on What’s Happening? Make sure to put it on the Whidbey Life Magazine Calendar https://www.whidbeylifemagazine.org/submit-your-event/.
Since 2008, the Visitor Kiosk has welcomed over 22,000 visitors to Whidbey. The island offers a wealth of activities, places to stay, eateries, shopping and an abundance of the natural environment to enjoy and appreciate. Welcome and enjoy your visit. Do come back.
Event contributions from Katy Shaner, Whidbey Life Magazine www.whidbeylifemagazine.org, and Drewslist drewslist@whidbey.com.
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