By STAN STAPP

ON NEW YEARıS DAY Dorothy and I walked around Green Lake ‹ an annual custom for hundreds of Seattleites ‹ an occasional custom for us. The walkers, joggers, runners, buggy pushers, kiddie trikers and what-have-you were there in the largest numbers we had ever seen. Adult bikers and in-line skaters were few. Roller skaters were none. But a new category, scooters, had attracted at least 100 kids and a couple of adults.

The youngsters with their new Christmas scooters must have thought they were scooting around on the latest thing on wheels. But I know differently.

I was scooting around some 75 years ago ‹ though not on as shiny frames as they have nowadays.

LAST SUMMER when I strolled around Green Lake on my own (Dorothy was busy elsewhere) I noted how green the grass was, the lack of litter, and the large number of women pushing baby carts. A couple of times when three-abreasters came towards me I got out of the way in a hurry! And one time I spotted two babies in a one-seat cart, one atop the other; plus several two-seat carts; and one little tot pedaling a kiddie car, ³lickety-split² we used to call it, trying to keep ahead of those behind.

On the water were several kayakers in one-or-two seaters, five swimmers in the water or on the raft, two lifeguards (one in a rowboat hovering around the swimming area and one ashore) and a number of fishermen along the shore. I counted only about 20 Canadian Geese, the rest apparently in hiding. At one point I took a gender census of the adults coming towards me and discovered the women outnumbered the men three to one.

On the west side of the lake the Twin Teepees, on Aurora Avenue (one of my favorite restaurants) was still closed, having been severely damaged by fire. The former Bathhouse Theatre was open for the summer, operating as the Seattle Public Theatre, offering varying drama programs for young people, grades three through 12. At the West beach five young people were cleaning up Canadian Geese poop from the grassy grounds, using brooms and dustpans. The kids wading pool, as usual was busy with some 70 mothers and kids (plus a few dads).

I crossed over the street to the Urban Bakery and Cafe for lunch. Theyıve displayed a few new messages since I last was there: ³Attention Customers ‹ You may bring in your own CD to listen to when you drop by the Urban Bakery, and ³Please Do Not Feed the Birds.² Apparently the birds read it to, for just as I started reading that sign a bird flew in the open door, spotted the sign, turned around, and hastily retreated. Also a personal computer had been installed, which one can use by inserting a $1 bill, or $2, $5, or $10.

* * *

JIM NEIDIGH, executive director of History House, made page 1 of the last issue of the Jet City Maven with a story and photo. At age 80, he was announcing his resignation and plans to marry his childhood sweetheart, Charlotte Stone, age 79.

A few days earlier I had been in History House (located under the Aurora Bridge on N 34th) checking out some Outlook files that were being stored there. I needed a ladder to reach the top shelf. Jim knew where it was kept, and took me with him to fetch it. We walked into an area that when the door is closed it locks itself automatically ‹ on our side only. Jimıs key would not open it. We were trapped it appeared, DOOMED! And neither of us have even had our lunch yet!

When would someone show up and hear our screams? This afternoon? Tomorrow? Never?

Luckily, Jim knew we could get out the back door, which enabled us to walk around the building on the outside and re-enter again, this time being careful not to again shut the naughty door that had trapped us.

* * *

Marilyn Ellis Keene was a friend of mine, a classmate all through school (Lincoln High class of 1936), a neighbor (she lived two blocks away at 4105 Ashworth), and in the same classroom as I at Interlake Grade School for six years. She was also an active Lincoln alum, and at a recent ı36 luncheon, we discovered that seven of us present had been in that same Interlake class: Marilyn Ellis Keene, Ken Duff, Fred Thompson, Marion Bryson, Sam Adams, Stan Stapp, Howard Fawcett.

Marilyn died Dec. 22 and a memorial was held Jan. 3 at the Hearthstone retirement home in the Green Lake neighborhood. She and her husband, Jack Keene, had been married for 60 years and had recently made their home at the Hearthstone. Jack was also a Lincoln student, class of 1932.

Marilyn was an advocate for education of deaf children, and had founded or was active in a number of deaf associations. She was also a talented artist, teaching classes for deaf children and also for school teachers of the deaf, in addition to exhibiting her artistry in major Northwest shows and galleries.

I had become acquainted with her husband over the years, and enjoyed his sense of humor. Jack used to send me musical advertising slogans to add to those Iıd printed in my column from time to time. He and his brother Bob, Lincoln class of 1927, had at one time formed an advertising agency, Keene & Keene, and were most noted for their theme song for the Three G.I.s, a local army surplus store. Bob had started and edited the Totem II, Lincoln alumni publication, for a number of years, eventually urging me to take over. However, I declined, my newspaper column keeping me busy enough. Bob died several months ago.

* * *

WOODLAND PARK is going to have a carousel again. What? You didnıt know about the one that used to be there right across from the park on Phinney Ave. N? Well, there was a carousel (or merry-go-round as we used to call them) along with a ferris wheel ‹ which could be seen from all over the North End and Queen Anne Hill, it was so big. In addition there was a skating rink there.

They were all destroyed in a fire in the late ı30s, which I witnessed. The most spectacular scene was when the ferris wheel toppled over. My friend, Harold Moffet, had skated in the rink the night before.

The ³new² carousel will make its debut within a year, being donated by Linda and Tom Allen. It will be housed in a new building at the parkıs north meadow. You may help by donating to the: Woodland Park Zoo Carousel, 5500 Phinney Ave. N, Seattle, WA 98103. For more information, call 206-684-4880.

* * *

The recent death of former New York Mayor John Lindsay, 79, recalled my meeting with him twice in the early ı70s. The first time was when I sat in on his weekly staff meeting, courtesy of a friend of mine, Leo Lippman. Leo was the Mayorıs Chairman of the Retarded Childrensı Program at the time, a title he held previously for Washington State, and California. Dorothy and I had just arrived in New York the evening before, when Leo phoned and invited me to the 8 a.m. meeting. Maybe it helped that Leo told him: ³Stan publishes a string of newspapers in Seattle.² Somewhat of an exaggerating you might say. But the Outlook did have TWO different editions! Do not two papers make a small string?

My brother, Art, who had been operating a Linotype machine for the New York Daily News, wondered: ³How in the heck did you get to meet the mayor your first day in New York, and I still havenıt ‹ even though Iıve been working here for 25 years?²

Later in Seattle I was to attend a newspaper meeting downtown at which Mayor Lindsay would speak. I was the first person to arrive, except for Lindsay, who was looking at some exhibits. No one else was there until about 10 minutes later. So I took it upon myself to welcome Lindsay to Seattle and to the meeting, and we had an enjoyable discussion before the program got underway.

* * *

Just about everybody has heard of the 350-pound steel monolith that mysteriously showed up at Sand Point on New Yearıs Eve. And how it was stolen and replanted at Duck Island on Green Lake. And then was moved back to Sand Point.

Shortly thereafter the Park Department repainted and replanted it on Kite Hill, anchoring it with 7,000 pounds of concrete and a lot of rebar. It is to remain there until March 31, when it will be removed so as not to interfere with the kite-flying season. Eventually another spot will be sought.

And, if you had read my last column, which came out shortly before New Yearıs, you would have learned some interesting facts about Sand Point. Like how at one time it was known as Carkeek Park. Until later, when it (Carkeek Park) mysteriously moved over to Puget Sound ‹ and is still there.

* * *

Floyd Turner, the young man who two decades ago claimed he had climbed Mount Rainier bare-footed, phoned me recently: ³Iım in Seattle again,² he said, ³moving back from Alaska.² You may recall that Floyd was in trouble with the law, and jailed for a time, accused of having burnt an American flag. I was there when the flag burning occurred, and so was Rich Beyer.

(Beyer, by the way, is the artist who created the ³Waiting for the Interurban² sculpture located at N 34th and Fremont Avenue N.)

Beyer and I both testified in court that Floyd DID NOT burn the flag ‹ it was someone else. Finally, Stan Iverson, ³an avowed anarchist² admitted he had done it.

Floyd said he would be staying at the old George Crowley House until he could find a more permanent place. He brought with him his 17-year-old son, George W. Turner. As for his 16-year-old daughter, Rachel, Floyd said: ³She was given away in a court decision.²