June 28th – July 4th

It’s the "6th Annual Sustainable Connections Independents Week". It’s a week to focus on independent businesses and to exercise our ability to make independent choices.

How can you participate?

• Patronize locally owned, independent businesses
• Cultivate creativity!
• Celebrate original thinking!
• Stamp out mediocrity!

Why should you participate?

Independent businesses give communities their uniqueness. Creative thinking is what fuels the discoveries that enrich our lives. And, it is an excellent time to remember and embrace the many freedoms we often take for granted.

What are we doing?

Web Rodeo is proud to be a local, independent business. We continually strive to contribute to our community in unique and positive ways and to support other independents. We do this every week of the year, but this week we celebrate!

Have a safe and happy 4th of July! Let freedom ring!

What, you might ask, do strawberries have to do with social media? We recently noticed that Boxx Berry Farm in Ferndale, Washington announced on their new Facebook page that the first strawberries of the season were ready, along with fresh baked biscuits. If you haven’t tasted a fresh Whatcom County strawberry you don’t know what you are missing. No other strawberry compares. So off we went to partake in the first berries of the season. Turns out the folks in line behind us had checked out Facebook, too. Here was proof that social media works! Lucky for us all, there were plenty of berries to go around.

Have you ever been on a waiting list for cucumbers? We have! Apparently, there are a lot of folks that like to make pickles in this area. Last year there was practically a stampede to get to the cucumber bins. You can be sure that this year we will be checking Facebook to see what’s ready at Boxx Berry Farm.

It was one of those serendipitous moments. Driving along, I spotted it, suspended in the window of an antique store. The Pursuit Plane, a toy pedal car designed by Viktor Schreckengost nearly sixty years ago.

The breadth and depth of his work is staggering. Chances are every American has used something designed by Viktor Schreckengost. A pioneer of modern American industrial design, prolific sculptor, painter, and ceramist, Viktor Schreckengost has been called by many an "American da Vinci". He created the first industrial design education program in America in the 1930s at the Cleveland Institute of Art and taught for nearly 70 years.

I had only seen pictures of the Pursuit Plane. It had been my screensaver for weeks, making me smile every morning when I opened my computer. And here it was for real, propeller slightly bent, a scrape or two, obviously enjoyed by a child long ago.

Viktor Schreckengost passed away in January of 2008 at the age of 101. He continues to inspire me and make me smile. Thank you Viktor. www.viktorschreckengost.org

Karen Hower
Partner/Art Director Web Rodeo
Cleveland Institute of Art
Class of 1979

We are FINALLY getting around to redesigning our own site. Some things just take awhile.

In the meantime, we hope you like our INTERIM site, where you can keep up with our blog, join our eNewsletter, and follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

We will let you know when we launch our new site.

Happy trails!

Our horses have taught us more than we have taught them. At least it seems that way. The lessons learned can be applied to human relationships as well. The more you become aware, listen, and observe, the more you will learn. Horses are honest, they let you know what they are thinking. It’s all in their body language.

Being consistent in your actions, teaching new concepts in a way they can understand, and rewarding the smallest try, will go a long way towards earning the trust, respect, and loyalty of your horse.

When the lines of communication are open an amazing bond is formed.

Web Rodeo hopes the values of trust, respect, and loyalty grace all of our client relationships.

The Energy Foundation www.ef.org launched the China Sustainable Energy Program (CSEP) in 1999 to assist in China’s transition to a sustainable energy future by promoting energy efficiency and renewable energy. www.efchina.org

The Energy Foundation contacted Web Rodeo to design the new CSEP guidelines, a 44 page booklet which highlights the challenges and accomplishments in the eight core program areas:

• Low-Carbon Development Paths
• Transportation
• Renewable Energy
• Electric Utilities
• Buildings
• Industry
• Environmental Management
• Sustainable Cities

Armed with English and Chinese Word docs, Web Rodeo researched photography libraries, illustrated graphs and charts, and designed the layout for both the English and Chinese sections, contained in one booklet.

For more on the green building revolution check out the conference “Scaling Up: From Green Buildings to Green Cities in the U.S. and China” Friday, May 1 in San Francisco.
www.asiasociety.org/greencities

On Friday, Web Rodeo attended “The Future of Business” conference organized by Sustainable Connections and held at Whatcom Community College.

The day started off with a panel of keynote speakers who inspired us with an enlightened vision of a new business standard where sustainability is paramount to success. It was exciting to hear each of them comment on how Bellingham is a leader, nationwide, for promoting innovative practices and programs that work toward this goal of sustainability.

Next, we opted for the “Co-op Second Store LEED Tour” where we received in depth information from the architect, contractor, and, others instrumental in Bellingham’s newest LEED Silver building. We were impressed with the amount of thought, and work, that went in to every aspect of the project.

Famished from our brief walk, we enjoyed the wonderful lunch catered by Ciao Thyme. Mmmmmm!

Before the afternoon broke into the “Sustainable Business” and “Green Building” tracks, the Zero Waste Parade showcased the success stories of several local businesses. Next, we were enthused and entertained by Paul Saginaw as he expounded on “The Art of Great Customer Service”, something he has developed over the years with Zingerman’s Community of Businesses. Following that we heard Brad Liljequist speak about “zHome”, a project exemplifying that it is possible to build zero net energy structures.

A handful of speakers in the closing session re-affirmed that Bellingham, and Whatcom County in general, are showing the way to the rest of the world with their forward thinking ideas. We were impressed that both Whatcom Community College and Bellingham Technical College are restructuring their curricula to include the concept of sustainability.

We rounded out the day networking with some old friends, lots of new friends, and some fantastic, thirst quenching Boundary Bay Brewery ales!

It just takes a trip out of town to be reminded of what a “green” community we live in. Bellingham embraced recycling and renewable energy concepts long before “green” became a buzzword.

On a global level…we recently designed a 50 page booklet on energy policies and guidelines for the China Sustainable Energy Program. CSEP is a division of the Energy Foundation, the largest environmental foundation in the U.S. See www.ef.org and www.efchina.org.

On a local note…Web Rodeo is a proud new member of Sustainable Connections. We look forward to meeting other members and being a part of the Sustainable Connections network. www.sustainableconnections.org.

We are looking forward to attending the first Evening With Old World Deli on Thursday, March 19 from 6-8 pm. There will be a variety of wines presented by Laurent Martel: Sherry, Cava, Albarino, Garanacha, Rioja, Dehessa Zamora and Priorat. Shared plates are to include a selection of meat and cheeses, quince paste, Manzanilla olives, Mediterranean spiced nuts, saffron-pickled cauliflower, an Iberian vegetable salad, dates with Cabrales and Chorizo, Piquillo peppers and Boquerones. For more information, and to join their mailing list, visit Old World Deli. Hope to see you there!

Liberty Tax Services will donate $20 to the Northwest Therapeutic Riding Center for every tax return done in their offices from March 1 – March 12, 2009! The NWTRC is a fantastic non-profit organization that provides therapeutic horseback riding to people of all ages with a wide range of disabilities. For more info go to www.nwtrc.org.

We have recently launched several new websites. It is always a great feeling when a new site goes live!

One of our benefits is working with such a diverse group of clients. Although each has a unique offering there is a common goal among them to provide quality at the highest level. This, in turn, continues to inspire us to do the same.

Old World Deli
Old World Deli is a fantastic deli owned and operated by Anna and Christos Adams. They have a wonderful selection of meats and cheeses; great soups, salads, and sandwiches; and they cater! Their location is: 1140 N. State St. in Bellingham.

Visit their new website: www.oldworlddeli1.com.

Schwiesow & Drilias
Schwiesow & Drilias has been a leading landscape design and installation firm in Bellingham since 1987. Their work has been featured in Sunset Magazine and they also have a shop in Fairhaven, The Garden Room, that offers a mix of unique items for the garden, home, and more.

Visit the new Schwiesow & Drilias or The Garden Room sites: www.schhwiesowdrilias.com or www.gardenroomfairhaven.com

Bodywalk
Danielle AhMaiua, LMP, offers a variety of massage services. The most interesting has to be the Ashiatsu Oriental Bar Therapy which is a barefoot massage. Along with appointments in her office, Danielle offers massage in your home or office (sorry, Ashiatsu is available only at Bodywalk). Do yourself a favor and schedule an appointment today.

Visit the new Bodywalk site: www.bodywalkmassage.com

Ferndale Heritage Society
The Ferndale Heritage Society is a non-profit organization focused on promoting and preserving the history of Whatcom County and Pioneer Park in Ferndale, Washington. They bring together those interested in maintaining the log cabins and collections at Pioneer Park and put on several fun events throughout the year.

Visit the new Ferndale Heritage Society site: www.ferndaleheritagesociety.com