Bloglander

The measles have arrived in Spokane. An adult employee of the Qdoba Mexican restaurant on South Grand Avenue has been diagnosed with the first Spokane County case of measles since 1994. No one knows how the measles got here but KREM 2 has the scoop on where they’ve been since arriving, if you’re worried.

You know who’s not worried about the measles? City Council Member Mike Fagan, who caught heat earlier this year for his anti-vax beliefs. 

“What’s the big deal? Across the nation we see several hundred cases a year,” says Fagan.

In modern America, most of us are vaccinated against the measles, though in Spokane County schools between 2006 and 2010, the vaccine opt-out rate was 9 percent.

Fagan is pretty sure he was vaccinated long ago. His children were vaccinated. His baby granddaughter? She’s vaccinated, too. If you aren’t as lucky as the Fagan clan, though, I have you covered with a quick measles experience FAQ:

How do I get the measles?
The easiest way is to be in the same room as someone who has them. The measles spread when the infected person coughs, breathes, sneezes or talks, and you breathe it in. Also, the measles can hang around and infect people for up to two hours after the infected person leaves.

When will I know?
If you are infected, you probably won’t find out right away. According to the Spokane Regional Health District, the measles don't show themselves for seven to 21 days. So if you were at Qdoba between 3 pm and 11 pm Sunday, April 12, my advice would be: Don’t trip. Maybe you’ll get the measles, maybe you won’t. Probably not the best time to plan an impromptu theme park vacation, though. Just kick back and know that you’ll be better able to assess by no later than May 2 whether you’ve been infected.

"Were going to be looking at lowering the gambling tax," says Pace, a retired Lutheran pastor says. "I believe in the reality of sin, but I don’t believe in sin taxes. That’s social engineering." 

So why'd he vote for a 1.3 percent increase in lodging taxes this month? For a couple reasons, he says.  

1) The tax has a specific purpose

The lodging tax on hotel rooms increasing from 2 percent to 3.3 percent gives Spokane Valley about $500,000 extra to work with, but only for specific projects. 

"The money will not go to the general fund. It will not go to making government bigger," Pace says.  "It will go into a savings account for now, for some [future] capitol expense that will be for promoting tourism for Spokane Valley."

The plan is to use it to build something, or some things, to help turn the Valley into more of a destination. 

"It will benefit the community," Pace says. "It will attract people to community. They’ll stay at hotels, they’ll shop at stores, they’ll eat at restaurants. It will bring money into the local economy. That’s real money, based on business not on government grants. That’s why it’s okay."

If you're closely watching the clock run down on the Spokane Hoopfest website — as a player, fan, or someone who wants to Airbnb your house during the craziness — you know that we're only (as of this writing) 63 days, 20 hours and 50 minutes from tip-off. 

Plenty of time to work on your jumper, sure. And the arrival of this year's poster featuring now-former Gonzaga hoops legends Kevin Pangos and Gary Bell, Jr., along with Gonzaga Prep grad and former EWU hoopster Parker Kelly, is reason to get excited. The photo is by Danscape Media, and features a back alley showdown between the three guys who just finished off amazing seasons at their respective schools, and three colorfully clad kids ready to hoop it up.

Here it is: 

If you want to play in the 2015 Spokane Hoopfest, deadline for guaranteed registration is May 11, and you can do it right here. You might be able to get in after that, but it'll cost more, and there are no guarantees. 

For its 11th year, Elkfest brings in an eclectic mix of regional and local artists, including headliner/Japanese-born rapper Lyrics Born. Since the early ’90s, the artist (aka Tsutomu “Tom” Shimura) has made socially conscious music that more than transcends his Bay Area home. He’s the type of dude who flows over hard beats but is also influenced by soul, jazz and jam-band music. His upcoming album Real People features Trombone Shorty and Galactic. Expect him to start his set off strong with the groovin' hit "Callin' Out." Seattle blues rockers the Grizzled Mighty, who play Spokane at least once a year, should offer up a wild set, as well. Here are the other bands to get excited about.

2015 LINEUP

Touring acts
Lyrics Born
The Grizzled Mighty
Ayron Jones & the Way
Robert Jon & the Wreck
Rust on the Rails
Megan Wilde

Local acts
Hey! is for Horses
Flying Spiders
Pine League
Crystalline
Folkinception
Bossame
DJ Ahem
Leftover Soul

The free Browne’s Addition block party, happening the weekend following Volume, runs June 5 through 7. As always, the event is all-ages, although the beer gardens are 21+.

Last year, headliners Minus the Bear weren’t announced until closer to the event, so we’ll see if any other big acts are added later. Either way, the lineup as-is will make up a fantastic soundtrack for a weekend in the sun. 

Happy Friday, and congrats on making it through another work week. At least for those of you gainfully employed. For all of us, working or not, Friday is a great day to delve into the Inlander's event listings and Staff Picks to find something fun to do. 

Here are some highlights I found for Friday, April 24: 

WORDS | Get Lit! continues its literary tear across the city and the week, and tonight I'm particularly into the reading/conversation with author Walter Kirn and local author/newspaper man Shawn Vestal. Check out our interview with Kirn, author of the excellent Blood Will Out, and consider a trip to check that out. 

THEATER | The touring Broadway production of Guys and Dolls drops in at the INB Performing Arts Center for a weekend's worth of shows. 

BENEFIT | The 13th Annual Cask and Keg Auction is going down at Arbor Crest Wine Cellars, raising money for Spokane Valley Firefighters Benevolent Association. Good cause, great drinks. Do it to it. 

HERE

Powdered alcohol will not be legal in Washington, probably ever. (Inlander)

There’s drama at the Spokane County Commission, with Commissioner Al French accusing his two counterparts of undermining open meetings law. (Spokesman)

Police in Couer d’Alene say they have a problem with drag racing. (KREM)

THERE

After much stalling, Loretta Lynch has been confirmed by the Senate as the next U.S. attorney general. (NPR)

Jeb Bush has gone Paleo. (New York Times)

Cable behemoths Comcast and Time Warner won’t be merging after all. (Guardian)

When it came to medical school plans, Washington State University looks to be getting exactly what it wanted from the Legislature. Both the House and the Senate budget proposals give the school the $2.5 million it needs to begin to create a new medical school in Spokane. 

Not the case for the University of Washington. The Senate budget gives UW $2.5 million for medical education in Spokane over the next biennium, but that's a big cut from the $9.4 million that the UW program had been receiving. While the House budget would continue to provide enough to expand the UW class from 40 to 60 students in Spokane, UW argues the Senate budget would put the future of the medical program in jeopardy.

In the past, Sen. Michael Baumgartner has suggested that UW could find the additional funds needed to continue in Spokane elsewhere in the school's $6.4 billion budget.

But UW suggests that there's no slack to make up the difference.

"We got $4.7 million [per year] appropriated by the legislature. That’s what we use to educate our students there. If that goes away, there’s no other source replace it," UW spokesman Norm Arkans says. "What are we going to do? Cut English majors? Cut computer science majors? ... We’re a very tightly budgeted institution. We either have the money or we don’t."
And if UW medical education disappears in the Spokane, what happens to the students who're already counting on it?

Ever wished you could carry powdered alcohol in your purse for impromptu shindigs? Just think of the possibilities. The product— Palcohol— exists, on the planet now and in stores some places this summer. But it probably won’t exist in stores in Washington. Ever.

Earlier in the current legislative session, the Senate had gotten the ball rolling with an effort to regulate the powder in ways similar to liquid alcohol. The House of Representatives did them one better on April 13, voting 91-6 to ban powdered alcohol for everyone but researchers.

Rep. Jeff Holy from Cheney worried that people would sneak Palcohol into places where alcohol has no place, like church, maybe, or the library. Schools. Anywhere, really. It would just be too tempting. Alcohol needs to be kept big and bulky and in need of a vessel to be safe in Washington. Senate Bill 5292 got kicked back to the Senate for approval on the changes.

Mark Phillips created Palcohol because he loves to hike and drink and he wanted to combine those hobbies without limiting his outings to hikes that could be completed comfortably while carrying beer and wine and whatever else he wanted to drink that day. He started trying to find powdered alcohol and it didn’t exist. He was, like, "Huh? How can this not even exist?"

From there things snowballed. He found scientists around the globe. They appreciated his vision and worked together to create Palcohol. Triumphant, he returned to the United States to share the good news: Portable alcohol for hiking and climbing and cycling. Plus, there are apparently science and military applications. Palcohol, yay!

Then Phillips' bubble burst a bit when several states started railing against his product. Alaska, Delaware, Louisiana, South Carolina and Vermont have already banned the stuff, according to the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence. But, more importantly for people in Spokane, what’s Idaho thinking?

Director of the Idaho Lottery & Idaho State Liquor Division Jeff Anderson says that though their state hasn’t outlawed powdered alcohol, he doesn’t envision it will ever be sold there.

“In the beverage alcohol business there is labeling on packaging that informs consumers about alcohol content, whether it be a 3.2 beer, a 13.5 wine or a 40 proof spirit,” says Anderson. “With powdered alcohol, consumers mix it and people could mix it improperly and end up with a beverage that is 170 proof instead of 80 proof.”

The Idaho State Liquor Division has the authority to regulate Palcohol and Anderson intends to use that power to keep the product out of the state.

“I presume if that were challenged the Idaho Legislature would step in and do the same thing they’ve done in Washington,” says Anderson.

The cider revolution has hit the Inland Northwest in full force, and Spokane's Liberty Ciderworks is undoubtedly leading the charge.

Nearly a full year after the two-man cidery opened its downtown tasting room, owners Rick Hastings and Austin Dickey have taken home their biggest accolade to date: Best in Class honors for Liberty's Stonewall cider at the 10th annual Great Lakes International Cider and Perry Competition (GLINTCAP). Held earlier this month, April 10-12, the international competition received 480 entries of cider and perry (pear cider) from around the world. Liberty's Stonewall, aged in the whiskey barrels of another Northwest booze purveyor, Dry Fly Distilling, was one of just three ciders to earn the Best in Class distinction at the event, as well as a gold medal in a category with nearly 200 other entries.

"We were floored when we saw the results for Stonewall," says Hastings, Liberty's head cidermaker. "We've had great feedback from customers and our peers, but this is about as big an honor as anyone gets in the cider business. It's a big-league win for us."

This isn't Liberty's first time at GLINTCAP, as the cidery has taken home multiple awards in recent years for several of its other cider varieties. In 2013, the New World cider took home a silver medal. Last year, its English Style cider nabbed a gold medal while the limited-release Jonathan single-varietal (SV) and New World both took home bronze awards.

Aside from Stonewall's big win this year, four other varieties of Liberty's cider won silver medals: the Kingston Black SV, Macintosh SV, the dry-hopped Turncoat and the port-style Manchurian Crabapple cider.  

It's also worth mentioning here that Inlander readers already know Liberty's ciders are tops, voting the cider maker as producing the best local cider in the region for this year's Best Of readers poll. 

Thursday might as well be called Weekend Eve, so take a scroll through our event listings and Staff Picks and think about getting out and about. 

Here are a few highlights for Thursday, April 23: 

LIVE BANDS | Get the jump on this year's Elkfest with the Elkfest 2015 Launch Party tonight at Geno's, complete with Folkinception providing the tunes. 

WORDS | Plenty of great Get Lit! Festival still going on. Thursday night features readings from Sharma Shields and Benjamin Pearcy, as well as the notorious Whiskey & Pie event. Read our Distilled column about it right here. 

WORDS | This sounds like a cool lecture at Gonzaga. "Rebelling for Righteousness: African American Youth Activism in the Ivy League, 1960-1970" will be discussed by Stefan Bradley, a Gonzaga alum and current head of African American Studies at St. Louis University.