Here’s a thought…
“If you put fences around people, you get sheep. Give people the room they need.”
WILLIAM L. MCKNIGHT
Community Band presents island-favorite Holiday Concert
||| FROM KAREN KEY SPECK for ORCAS ISLAND COMMUNITY BAND ||| The Orcas Island Community Band favors the number 35. Averaging thirty-five musicians-strong each season, the Orcas Island Community Band is concluding its 35th year as a non-profit, (though the Band can actually trace its roots to 1978!) The Band's
Now, it’s just rain, rain, rain; and then flooding
||| FROM NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ||| Special Weather Statement National Weather Service Seattle WA 131 AM PST Mon Dec 8 2025 San Juan County-Cascades of Whatcom and Skagit Counties- Cascades of Snohomish and Northern King Counties- Cascades of Southern King County- Cascades of Pierce and Lewis Counties- Foothills and Valleys
Protect What Makes Orcas Island Home: Support the Salish Sea Dome Project
||| FROM AYN GAILEY for FRIENDS OF THE SAN JUANS ||| Friends of the San Juans has joined this year’s OICF GiveOrcas campaign with a project designed to spark wonder, deepen local knowledge, protect the Salish Sea, and empower the next generation of Salish Sea stewards. We’re honored to stand alongside several beloved island nonprofits
CRW logs two encounters with two eco-types
||| FROM CENTER FOR WHALE RESEARCH ||| Two Encounters with Two Eco-Types! Encounter #71 • Bigg's killer whales T36/T36Bs + T137s • November 9, 2025 ObservBegin: 09:16 AM ObservEnd: 09:20 AM Vessel: KCB III Staff: Dave Ellifrit, Michael Weiss Other Observers: Monika Wieland Shields, Jason Shields, Molly Henling, Amanda
No Place Like Loam | The last apple standing, Part 1
||| NO PLACE LIKE LOAM by ALEX TAMAYO-WOLF ||| I walk a lot on this island, and this is my favorite time of year to do it. Why? Because walking now is an act of defiance—against the rain that slants sideways, the winds that rake the trees raw, the early
Running on Empty | What copper teaches us about the limits of ‘clean energy’
||| FROM ELISABETH ROBSON ||| We live in a moment when the word renewable has taken on a near-mythic glow. The story goes like this: if we electrify everything—cars, heating, ferries, industry—and generate that electricity locally with solar arrays, tidal machines, batteries, and new grid infrastructure, we can continue our
The Co-op Way | Capital credit checks are in the mail
||| FROM KRISTA BOUCHEY for ORCAS POWER & LIGHT COOPERATIVE ||| Just in time for the holiday season, more than $1.2M in capital credit checks are going out to longtime OPALCO members this month, as they do each year. As a co-op, OPALCO does not earn profits. Revenues over and
News Brief | Are Oregon data centers helping to drive an increase in cancer, miscarriages?
||| Some experts believe, that combination is leading to an alarmingly high concentration of nitrates in the drinking water that is driving up cancer and miscarriage rates in the area.
Flood watch posted by National Weather Service through Friday afternoon
||| FROM NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ||| Flood Watch National Weather Service Seattle WA 506 AM PST Sun Dec 7 2025 A series of wet weather systems moving across the region will increase the threat of river flooding early this week. Clallam-Grays Harbor-Island-Jefferson-King-Kitsap-Lewis-Mason- Pierce-San Juan-Skagit-Snohomish-Thurston-Whatcom- Including Fords Prairie, Silverdale, Bremerton, Tumwater,
News Brief | Artificial intelligence technology is ‘changing every sector of society’
||| FROM THE COOL DOWN ||| At its current rate of growth, 26-48.5 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent will fill the atmosphere, and 731 million to 1.125 billion cubic meters of water will be used up every year. This would be like adding five to 10 million vehicles to
Ukulele Kanikipila and/or Chair Yoga at Senior Center
||| FROM LENA KASSA for ORCAS SENIOR CENTER ||| Join the Musical Fun Experience the joy of making music at Ukulele Kanikipila, Hawaiian for "play music," Mondays from 1 to 3 pm at Orcas Senior Center. This gathering is open to everyone with an interest in playing music for two
Guest Opinion | Should Washington lawmakers hide their records from the public?
||| FROM COLIN WILLIAMS ||| A case currently before the Washington Court of Appeals raises important questions about government transparency and our right to know how our legislators conduct the people's business. In West v. Washington State Legislature (Case No. 601044-II), open government advocate Arthur West challenges the Legislature's use
News Brief | WA man mauled by ICE dog
||| FROM THE SEATTLE TIMES ||| U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., is calling for the immediate release of a Clark County man whose attorneys say was mauled by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement dog despite not resisting arrest. An ICE agent pretended to be a construction worker, claiming he had
Larsen statement on Trump Administration changes to immigration processes
||| FROM THE OFFICE OF U .S. REP. RICK LARSEN ||| Representative Rick Larsen (WA-02) released the following statement after the Trump administration announced changes to immigration processes: “Refugees and humanitarian nonprofits that support refugees should not be punished because of the actions of one violent person. “I supported the
Coastal flood advisory
||| FROM NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ||| Coastal Hazard Message National Weather Service Seattle WA 1006 AM PST Sat Dec 6 2025 San Juan County-Lowlands of Western Whatcom County- Lowlands of Western Skagit and Northwestern Snohomish Counties- 1006 AM PST Sat Dec 6 2025 ...COASTAL FLOOD ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM
As the Paradigm Shifts | Dang it! There is love
What happens when I stop whining long enough to see what’s real? ||| AS THE PARADIGM SHIFTS by ROSIE KUHN ||| A while ago, in the middle of one of my self-pity parties — wailing on about not being loved, all alone — something unexpected happened. A quiet part of
