7:30 a.m.: There’s an inch of snow on the ground at the Maple Leaf Reservoir Park this morning.

Schools are delayed by two hours. Metro buses are operating on snow routes.

It is not possible to know when a bus will arrive at a specific location, or to provide service updates at the individual trip or stop level.

The forecast: “Snow before 1 p.m., then rain. High near 44. South southwest wind 14 to 17 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. Total daytime snow accumulation of 1 to 3 inches possible.”

Seattle Parks tweets: “All golf courses closed to sledding. But stop in for range balls & last minute shopping at Interbay & pro-shops!”

Trash pickup is on today, although it might be delayed.

If you’re still looking for a few gift ideas for Christmas, nearby Ten Thousand Villages invites you to stop by its store at 6417 Roosevelt Way N.E. tonight to shop around for a cause.

From 6-8 p.m. tonight, December, 19, the store that features handmade fair trade products from around the globe will donate 15 percent of all proceeds to New Dawn Guatemala. In addition, local business Glittersweet will be there selling purses, totes and tablet sleeves, along with Nicaraguan-born artist Victor Fuentes, who will be displaying and selling his works. Glittersweet and Fuentes also will donate a portion of their sales to New Dawn Guatemala.

According to an email from Ten Thousand Villages:

New Dawn Guatemala is working to improve the lives of hundreds of Guatemalans in Nuevo Amanacer and the surrounding area through economically and environmentally sustainable programs. The community of Nuevo Amanacer is made up of ex- refugee families who had to flee from the violence of the 36 year Civil War. NDG will provide scholarships for school and job training, as well as assist in other areas of need for the community.

It notes that if you prefer to purchase online at Glittersweet, they will donate to New Dawn Guatemala if you mention New Dawn in the notes section.

Ring in the New Year in your swimwear at the 12th Annual Polar Bear Plunge at nearby Matthews Beach, 9300 51st Ave. N.E.

Seattle Parks and Recreation and the Meadowbrook Community Center Advisory Council are co-sponsoring the Jan. 1 event that starts at noon sharp; registration begins at 11 a.m.

From the Parkways post:

A 2014 Official Patch of Courage will be given to all heroic polar bear participants who immerse themselves neck-deep in the lake. The patch will show the world that participants braved the frigid waters. Warming refreshments will be served.

As in previous years, younger polar bears and anyone else who needs a little more room can take part in the Polar Cub Club part of the event immediately preceding the main plunge. For the truly hearty, double-dipping is allowed.

Seattle Parks and Recreation offers a few tips for enjoying a fun, safe swim:

· Make the plunge even more special by dressing up in a costume!
· Come early, and carpool or take the bus (you can plan your trip).
· If you have heart problems or other serious medical concerns, we recommend that you consult your healthcare professional before taking the Polar Bear Plunge. If you can’t go in the water, come and watch!
· Don’t drink alcohol–it doesn’t warm you up, and it accelerates hypothermia.
· Stay in the water for no longer than 15 minutes-you lose body heat 25 times faster in water than in air.
· Keep your outer clothing on until you’re ready to get in the water. After the plunge, remove wet clothing before getting into dry clothes.

Will you brave the frigid waters of Lake Washington for this year’s Polar Bear Plunge?

A neighbor sends us an email with this in the subject line: “prowler/potential burglar thwarted in Maple Leaf.”

I wanted to let you know of an incident that occurred on 12/16/13 in our home in the 10800 block of 12th Avenue Northeast near Northeast Northgate Way.

At about 2:30 p.m. my partner was at home working, when she looked up from her desk and noticed a woman peering through the windows of our house. Since my partner was on an important work phone call, she didn’t go outside to confront the woman right away, but a few minutes later she heard the front door open, at which point she did confront the intruder, who was by this point standing in our living room.

When confronted, the woman stated she just came in to use the bathroom. The woman was in her 40s, about 5-foot-6 and 250-300 pounds, with long light brown hair, wearing a dress.

Speaking of Northgate, take a look at the snippet of a police crime map at right.

It’s the first time since the map changed format slightly that we’ve seen 38 different reports in the same small place - in this case in and around the 400 block of Northeast Northgate Way.

The time range is from the beginning of December to the present. The crimes are mixed - largely stolen vehicles, prowled cars and shopliftings. (We counted seven stolen cars and 11 car prowls before the map glitched out on us.)

The red-and-black mask? That’s the “cyborg bandit” we wrote about earlier who robbed the Northgate Sterling Bank branch.

That stretch of Northgate, home to both the mall and the transit center, is known as a crime “hot spot.” In our earlier post we noted that more juveniles are arrested there - by far - than in any other place in Seattle.

Candi emails this morning: “Do you know why 15th Avenue Northeast was closed at 5:30 a.m. today (around Northeast 98th Street)?”

Yes. An accident was called in near that intersection shortly before 5:17 a.m. Two cars were involved, one was overturned. Fears that someone might be trapped inside drew a “heavy rescue” response - 14 vehicles - from Seattle firefighters and paramedics.

It turned out no one was trapped, however, and the incident was downgraded.

4 p.m. Metro is re-routing buses that run along Fifth Avenue Northeast, which is blocked from Northeast Northgate Way to Northeast 103rd Street:

Rts 41 & 68 - Use stops north of NE Northgate Way or Northgate Transit Center.

Rt 16 - Use stops west of 1 Av NE or Northgate Transit Center.

Rt 75 - Use stops east of 5 Av NE or Northgate Transit Center.

Rts 347 & 348 - Use stops east of NE Northgate Way or Northgate Transit Center.

Expect delays and we appreciate your patience.

Recent news from our readers:

Holland emails:

This past Sunday, December 8, my beloved black cat Pawnee was struck by a car on 15th Avenue Northeast between Northeast 96th and 97th streets.

My neighbor drove by and saw people taking care of him by pulling him off the road and covering him with a blue towel. I wanted to send a thank you. We weren’t home at the time and I really appreciate that you lovingly covered him so we didn’t have to find him ourselves. Pawnee was a beloved member of our family who loved children, our neighbors, and hunting rodents. He was also a great adventurer who would stay out all night and explore the neighborhood. He lived his nine lives happy and to the fullest. Thank you again.

Katy emails:

A kid’s balance bike was left in front of our house on Northeast 84th Street, a week or two ago. Is anyone missing theirs? It doesn’t belong to our immediate neighbors.

And Micah emails overnight:

Hello. Our chocolate Lab, Bob wandered away from our house on 5th Avenue Northeast and Northeast 85th Street around 5 p.m. tonight. He’s a big Lab wearing a bright orange collar. We are wondering if you could put the word out.

We’ve heard about Bob before, I think.

But by this morning, he was found and back home.

Finally, Sound Transit emails:

Construction crews working to build the Northgate Link Extension for Sound Transit will be making an early morning equipment delivery to the Maple Leaf Portal site. The delivery may cause some noise.

Two large sections of a tunnel boring machine will be unloaded at the former North Seattle’s Park-and-Ride south lot early in the morning on Saturday, Dec. 14 and again on Sunday, Dec. 15. Crews expect the delivery to arrive at approximately 5 a.m. each morning.

Nearby residents may hear continuously running engines while crews use a crane to unload the TBM segments from over-sized trucks.

The work is expected to take about 3 hours each morning.

(We’re guessing TBM means Tunnel Boring Machine.)

An email this afternoon from the Seattle FBI offers a reward for the “cyborg bandit” who robbed the Sterling Northgate branch bank last week and is believed to have hit at least five other banks in six cities in the past six months.

At Northgate, 10 0fficers rushed to a bank in the 800 block of Northeast Northgate Way at about 4:30 p.m. last Wednesday, Dec. 4, responding to a dispatch of a “bank robbery in progress.”

The robber was gone, according to a police report, but bank employees said a man entered the bank wearing a hood and a tight-fitting “homemade” mask and appeared to be holding a gun in his pocket.

“Give me all your money,” he demanded, and then: “Give me all your big bills. I know you have more.”

The employee said “I’m sorry, that’s all I have,” and the robber immediately left, going out the door and turning west on Northgate toward Fifth Avenue Northeast.

The photo above is from the robbery of a Key Bank in Bellevue. The Seattle Safe Streets Task Force, which includes members from the FBI, the Bellevue Police Department, the Auburn Police Department, the King County Sheriff’s Office, and the Seattle Police Department, says the Northgate robbery is the latest in a string:

• September 24, 2013 (Tue) – Key Bank, Bellevue, WA

• October 2, 2013 (Wed) – Banner Bank, Woodinville, WA

• October 18, 2013 (Fri) – US, Shoreline, WA

• October 23, 2013 (Wed) – Whidbey Island Bank, Bothell, WA

• November 30, 2013 (Sat) – Wells Fargo Totem Lake, Kirkland, WA

• December 4, 2013 (Wed) – Sterling Bank Northgate, Seattle, WA

The subject may be a white male, between 5-foot-9 and 6 feet tall, of thin build. During the robberies, he’s covered his face with a distinctive cloth and worn the hood of his sweatshirt over his head. He has also worn clear, latex gloves. Please see the attached flier and photos for images that may help your audience identify this robber.

Wells Fargo is offering a reward of up to $5,000 for information leading to the identification and arrest of the bank robber.

Anyone with information that can help identify this individual is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477). Callers to Crime Stoppers may remain anonymous and are eligible to receive a cash reward of up to $1000.00 if the information given leads to an arrest and charge of the person(s) involved. Callers may also reach task force officers Detective Mike Mellis at 206-263-2086 and Detective Steve Hoover at 425-452-7868.

“The Book of Changes,” a new work by veteran Maple Leaf author Jack Remick, is having a “virtual book launch” tonight at 6 p.m. Seattle time.

The Book of Changes, the third book of The California Quartet, will be the subject of a Virtual Book Launch on December 10th. Using Michigan Avenue Media, I’ll be on The World of Ink hosted by Marsha Cook and Virginia Grenier.

This is a first-time event for me as a writer. First came the blog tours and how the virtual launch. The world is changing for us as writers, so hop on over and tune in. I’ll entertain you with a short reading from the book and share notes about the process of publishing in the new e-world.

From the web description:

“Beast”, the lead character in The Book of Changes, comes to Berkeley, the Cathedral of Learning, in 1971, a time of political chaos, hallucinogenic drugs, group sex, and electric, acid, psychedelic, mind-bending rock and roll. On his quest for meaning he hangs out with a Harley-riding dwarf, a raven-haired Gothic artists’ model, a sorority girl turned nymphomaniac, and the heir to a family of French aristocrats with a bloody history dating back to before Joan of Arc.

The website is here.

Use this number to call in to speak with Remick: (714) 242-5259.

Or find him on Twitter chat: #WOIjack

We’ve arranged for callers and listeners who care to sign in and/or leave a comment to get a free copy (now called a give-away) of The Book of Changes in any of three formats: MOBI, ePUB, or PDF.

For our post on Book Two of the California Quartet, go here.

From Remick: “An added note: My novel Gabriela and The Widow won ‘Best Women’s Fiction’ in the Orangeberry Hall of Fame Virtual Book Expo. We’ll be talking about that event.

The Seattle City Council this week discussed a plan to pick up our garbage only every other week - similar to the way recycling is picked up.

That means possibly smelly trash cans sitting outside your house for a fortnight, instead of disappearing every (at Maple Leaf Life South) Thursday. Seattle Public Utilities ran a pilot program last year in several neighborhoods, including Wedgwood.

There’s a good piece at Crosscut.com from earlier this week:

Over 60 percent of the pilot’s participants were satisfied with their service, but lower-income and minority customers and households with diapers were more inclined to say that the less frequent pick ups stink. Increases in bad odors and rodent sightings were among the reasons customers said they were dissatisfied.

The service cuts would save SPU about $5 to $6 million annually and, according to SPU officials, reduce garbage truck traffic and incentivize recycling and composting. Garbage collection bills should go down for most customers if the council approves the new collection regimen, but households that need to upsize their trashcans to hold two weeks of waste would pay more.

Reaction has been mixed. The Crosscut piece picked up perhaps a dozen-and-a-half comments.

But when the West Seattle Blog ran a piece at the end of November, they got 72 comments, some with praise but others along this line: “RATS our city will be filthy and infested with RATS if this goes through!”

A full City Council vote will likely take place in February, with any change in service set for 2015.

What do you think? Should the city change to every other week garbage pickup, and possibly save us money?

Seattle Police say they busted a 41-year-old man Monday night near Northgate Mall in a narcotics operation that involved a police sting.

Officers, posing as potential drug customers, contacted the suspect via telephone and “ordered” an ounce of methamphetamine for $1,100 dollars. A location and time near the Northgate Mall was suggested as a meeting place. The suspect stated that he would be driving a 2003 Mercedes.

As soon as the suspect pulled into the parking lot, arrest team officers pulled in attempting to make a stop and arrest the suspect. The suspect saw the patrol cars come in and attempted to get away by ramming one of the patrol cars. The suspect rammed his Mercedes into the patrol car twice, but was pinned by other cars. The suspect was taken into custody without further incident. One officer sustained minor injury when the suspect rammed the car. The patrol car had only front end damage.

The suspect was later booked into the King County Jail for drugs, eluding, and vehicular assault. A search warrant was obtained for the suspect’s Mercedes. Methamphetamine and over $500 cash was recovered from the car and seized as part of the investigation.

At 5:40 p.m. the National Weather Service in Seattle issued this short-term forecast:

A BROAD AREA OF SNOW AND RAIN SHOWERS WITH EMBEDDED SNOW PELLETS WAS LOCATED FROM NEAR POULSBO AND KINGSTON ACROSS TO LYNNWOOD…NORTH SEATTLE…AND BELLEVUE. THE BROADER AREA OF SHOWERS IS SPREADING SOUTH AROUND 10 MILES AN HOUR AND WILL AFFECT BREMERTON…PORT ORCHARD…DOWNTOWN SEATTLE AND RENTON BY 630 PM.

ANOTHER LINE OF SNOW SHOWERS WILL SPREAD SOUTH OUT OF SKAGIT COUNTY…REACHING ARLINGTON AND SMOKEY POINT AROUND 630 PM. ANY OF THESE SHOWERS WILL LEAVE A QUICK SNOW ACCUMULATION OF ONE-HALF INCH OR SO…ENOUGH TO TURN THE GROUND WHITE. HOWEVER…AIR TEMPERATURES OF 36 TO 40 DEGREES WILL CAUSE ANY SNOW TO MELT IN LESS THAN ONE OR TWO HOURS.

Update Dec. 3: Metro is holding a public hearing on bus service on Thursday, Dec. 5, at North Seattle Community College:

You can learn more about why service must be cut and how you may be affected at a public meeting at North Seattle Community College this week. We’re also inviting you to help us understand the affects these cuts will have on you.

Public meeting in North Seattle

Thursday, Dec. 5, 6-8 p.m.

North Seattle Community College

9600 College Way N., Seattle - C1161 and North Star rooms

Update: The Seattle Times today posted a poll on how to fund transit. Click here.

———————————-

As 2013 enters its final month, there is still no agreement on how to avoid serious cuts to Metro transit service next year, including the elimination of several routes that serve Maple Leaf.

As our news partner The Seattle Times explains: “In all, 74 of the 214 routes would be deleted, while other buses become more crowded or run less often.” Click here for the full list of proposed changes.

Lawmakers in Olympia, who left town after a special session earlier this month without acting on a transportation package, are still discussing a hike in the state gas tax - and part of that deal could give Metro, a part of King County government, additional taxing authority.

Meanwhile, King County is considering asking voters to approve higher sales taxes and car-tab fees if the Legislature doesn’t act.

And if legislators AND voters say “no?” Here’s our analysis:

Route 41: Quick bus downtown from the Northgate Transit Center. No change in frequency but service would stop an hour earlier (Now 1 a.m. Proposed midnight.)

Route 77: Commute hour bus downtown that runs along 15th Avenue Northeast. No changes.

Route 66 Express: From Northgate Transit Center along 5th Avenue Northeast, Roosevelt Way Northeast and downtown via Eastlake. Deleted entirely. Recommendation – take the 70 or 73

Route 67: From Northgate Transit Center along 5th Ave N.E. Deleted entirely. Recommendation – take the 73

Route 68: From Northgate Transit Center, along Roosevelt, along 25th Avenue Northeast to University Village, to UW. Deleted entirely. Recommendations – in Maple Leaf and Roosevelt, take the 73. In Ravenna along 25th Avenue Northeast, use 372 express.

Route 73: Along 15th Ave. N.E. From North Seattle through Maple Leaf, along the Ave into the University District and downtown either on the freeway or via Eastlake (depending on time of day). Revised. New route essentially replaces 66X, 67, 68, 71 and 72) and goes from Northgate Transit Center through Maple Leaf on ROOSEVELT (not 15th). Recommendations to get to North Seattle, north of Northgate Transit Center: Take the 77 during commute hours, or the 347 and 348.

We’re not transit experts, so if you have recommendations or remarks, please use the comment section to let us know.

Update Nov. 29:

From the National Weather Service special weather statement this morning:

AT THIS TIME…IT LOOKS LIKE MANY LOWLAND LOCATIONS WILL ESCAPE WITH LITTLE OR NO

ACCUMULATING SNOW. REGARDING THE POSSIBILITY OF LOWLAND SNOW ON MONDAY…IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT THERE IS A GREAT DEAL OF UNCERTAINTY WITH A 4-DAY WEATHER FORECAST…SO CHECK BACK THROUGH THIS WEEKEND FOR THE LATEST FORECASTS…ALONG WITH ANY POSSIBLE WATCHES OR WARNINGS.

IF YOU ARE TRYING TO CHOOSE BETWEEN TRAVELING ACROSS THE CASCADES ON SATURDAY OR ON SUNDAY…SATURDAY WILL BE THE MORE FAVORABLE WEATHER DAY FOR TRAVELERS. IF YOU MUST TRAVEL ON SUNDAY…YOU MAY BEAT THE WINTRY CONDITIONS BY TRAVELING IN THE MORNING…BUT HEAVY RAIN WILL GREET YOU INSTEAD ON THE TRIP THROUGH THE MOUNTAINS.

—————————-

The radio weather forecast this morning warns travelers to get home before Sunday night, when the second major winter storm of the season is expected to hit the Cascades.

It may well snow here, too, as the weekend ends. The official forecast for Maple Leaf on Monday is: “Snow likely. Cloudy, with a high near 37.”

A special weather statement from the National Weather Service reads:

HEAVY SNOWFALL IS POSSIBLE IN THE MOUNTAINS BEGINNING LATE SATURDAY NIGHT OR SUNDAY. CHANGE TO MUCH COLDER WEATHER IS EXPECTED THROUGHOUT WESTERN WASHINGTON SUNDAY NIGHT THROUGH EARLY NEXT WEEK.

SNOW LEVELS AROUND 5000 FEET LATE SATURDAY NIGHT OR EARLY SUNDAY WILL RAPIDLY FALL TO BELOW 2000 FEET BY SUNDAY EVENING AND TO BELOW 500 FEET LATE SUNDAY NIGHT.

SNOWFALL AMOUNTS IN THE PASSES WILL LIKELY BE QUITE HEAVY. SATURDAY WILL BE A MUCH BETTER TRAVEL DAY THROUGH THE PASSES THAN SUNDAY.

The top of Maple Leaf is 466 feet above sea level.

Cliff Mass, at the University of Washington, posted the chart at right, saying it’s hard to know how much confidence to place in current forecasts. “Here is the total snowfall for the 24h ending 4 AM on Monday. Lots of snow over the mountains (foot plus over the Cascades), with several inches over Seattle to Everett.

“The big action will be on Sunday and early Monday…unless the models change, again. You coming home from east of the Cascade crest? Perhaps better to return on Saturday.”

Traffic in town will also be affected Sunday by the Seattle Marathon.

The state transportation department notes:

The I-90 express lanes will be closed to all traffic from 5 to 11:30 a.m. when they will open in the eastbound direction.

The I-5 express lanes will be closed until 9:30 a.m., when they will reopen to southbound traffic.

The northbound I-5 off-ramp to Lakeview Boulevard will be closed from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The westbound State Route 520 exit to East Roanoke Street will be closed from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Update Nov. 25:

Overnight we received an email from a neighbor who lives near Northeast 91st Street and 15th Avenue Northeast, saying her home was broken into on Nov. 4.

They used a rock to shatter the back door and made a mess of our house. The police arrived in 20 minutes, and we filed a police report. We also informed several neighbors. I am sorry to hear about the other nearby robberies. Maybe we should exchange security tips. Is it possible that the same thieves are behind all this?

————————————————

We get too many emails that go like this one:

“Wanted to report a burglary. It happened shortly before noon today (Friday). The perps broke our basement door and climbed through. We’re at 8th Avenue Northeast Northeast and Northeast 97th Street.”

The previous burglary email came in earlier this month, from Northeast 102nd Street. At the time we noted we hadn’t rounded up burglaries since September.

The map at right shows burglaries since Sept. 9th. There are right at two dozen in the Maple Leaf area.