Discover Winter's Hidden Gems with Twig Classes - Sunday, January 24

Add a new dimension to your winter outings when you join local plant experts to discover the subtle beauty and learn the secrets to identifying 25 local shrubs and trees without their leaves. “Winter Twig Identification” is a 2.5-hour field class held at a West Olympia-area nature trail on Sunday, January 24. Choose from one of two sessions: 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. or 1 to 3:30 p.m.

The class costs $5, and participants will receive a handout and have the opportunity to purchase the Winter in the Woods book. Advanced registration is required by contacting the Native Plant Salvage Foundation at 360-867-2167 or by email at nativeplantsalvage@gmail.com. Workshop details and directions will be sent to all participants in advance.

Two local non-profit organizations, affiliated with WSU Extension, are coordinating an ecological restoration project at the popular McLane Creek Nature Trail for the Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service.  AmeriCorps members serving with Native Plant Salvage Foundation and Thurston Co. 4-H Youth Development invite local volunteers of all ages to help remove invasive species such as reed canary grass and Himalayan blackberry in preparation for future native plantings. Tasks will be available for people of all abilities. The work party will run from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.  Volunteers are invited to join all or part of the event. Light snacks and hot beverages will be provided. Register via Native Plant Salvage Foundation at 360-867-2167 or by email at nativeplantsalvage@gmail.com. Workshop details and directions will be sent to all participants in advance.

From today's inbox:

The public is invited to take part in the process of hiring a new Director/Agriculture Specialist for WSU Thurston County Extension. Local growers, legislators, residents, and anyone else who has a stake in agriculture in Thurston County are invited to a public presentation to be given by the current candidates for this vacancy.  There will be time for question and answer sessions with each candidate following their presentation.

Here is the schedule:

Date: Friday, January 8, 2016
Time: 9:00 am - 10:00 am
Title: My View of the Future of Agriculture in Thurston County, WA
Candidate: Justin O'Dea
Location: WSU Thurston County Extension Office, 5033 Harrison Ave NW, Olympia, WA  98502

Date: Friday, January 8, 2016
Time: 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm
Title: My View of the Future of Agriculture in Thurston County, WA
Candidate: Stephen Bramwell
Location: WSU Thurston County Extension Office, 5033 Harrison Ave NW, Olympia, WA  98502

The person chosen serves as the lead administrator for WSU county operations in Thurston County and is responsible for overall management of the local extension office.

As County Director, the person is responsible for fostering a strong and collaborative relationship with Thurston County government; common goals are to ensure continued partnership in providing outstanding WSU Extension programming.

From The Olympian this morning (January 3, 2016):

How the world became colored
and the implications for curing color blindness

Jay Neitz, Ph.D.
7:00 PM, Tuesday, 12 January 2016
Orca Books, 509 East 4th Ave

In collaboration with his wife, Maureen, Jay Neitz has discovered how genetic mutations play a part in many of the most common vision problems that affect modern humans.  They have also used colorblindness in primates as a model for exploring the potential of curing vision problems in humans with gene therapy.   They have successfully added a third type of cone pigment to dichromatic retinas using viral vector mediated gene transfer. The cure of colorblindness in adult monkeys may recapitulate the evolution of color vision in primates.  The demonstration that new visual capacities can arise from a single addition of a therapeutic gene in adults provides a positive outlook for the potential of genes to be used as medicines to cure adult vision disorders.

About the Speaker:

Jay Neitz received his PhD in Biopsychology from the University of California in Santa Barbara in 1986. His graduate work was conducted in the laboratory of Gerald Jacobs, Ph.D., and focused on understanding how the human visual system works using color vision as a model.  After graduating in 1986, he continued post-doctoral training in the Jacobs lab and began collaborating with his wife, Maureen Neitz, Ph.D. who was also in the Jacobs lab. In 1991, Jay Neitz took his first faculty position at the Medical College of Wisconsin. After nearly 18 years in Wisconsin, Maureen and Jay Neitz moved their labs to the University of Washington in January of 2009. He is currently the Bishop Professor in Ophthalmology.

Help us keep the Sun BRIGHT!

Join us for our first annual Midnight Sun-Raisier

Once the festivities and chaos of the Holidays and New Year have settled down, we here at The Midnight Sun feel that after all the giving and good cheer towards your fellow humans it’s only fair that you do something for yourself. That’s why in January we’ll be presenting Movie Junkies: Cult Classics, flicks that may not have been popular by mainstream audience standards, but we like them and we’re not ashamed to admit it. If you have tastes that most people would call strange or unusual then join us January 5th and 19th to revel in the weird and the bizarre. We accept you.

What: Movie Junkies: Cult Classics. We vote on what movie we want to watch night of!

Where: The Midnight Sun Performance Space. 113 N Columbia st. Downtown Olympia

When: Tues January 5 and Tues January 19, doors open at 7pm, movie at 7:30pm

Tickets: Suggested donation at the door (no one turned away)

Once the festivities and chaos of the Holidays and New Year have settled down, we here at The Midnight Sun feel that after all the giving and good cheer towards your fellow humans it’s only fair that you do something for yourself. That’s why in January we’ll be presenting Movie Junkies: Cult Classics, flicks that may not have been popular by mainstream audience standards, but we like them and we’re not ashamed to admit it. If you have tastes that most people would call strange or unusual then join us January 5th and 19th to revel in the weird and the bizarre. We accept you.

What: Movie Junkies: Cult Classics. We vote on what movie we want to watch night of!

Where: The Midnight Sun Performance Space. 113 N Columbia st. Downtown Olympia

When: Tues January 5 and Tues January 19, doors open at 7pm, movie at 7:30pm

Tickets: Suggested donation at the door (no one turned away)

7 tips from http://Kids.gov  to help reach your new year's goal.