Here’s a thought…
“Old age is no joke, but it can feel like one.”
TAD TOMPKINS
Killer whales make their own tools
||| FROM INTERESTING FACTS ||| When they aren’t busy attacking yachts or starring in beloved children’s movies, killer whales have an even more impressive hobby: making their own tools. Scientists were initially unfazed by footage of the imposing creatures rubbing against one another for up to 15 minutes at a
Vacation Rental Permits now required in Eastsound & Lopez Village commercial designations
||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS ||| Property owners within Eastsound Village Commercial and Lopez Village Commercial land use designations must now obtain a provisional use permit through the Department of Community Development (DCD) to operate a vacation rental. Property owners with a vacation rental existing prior to June 25,
County to host ribbon cutting at new county offices on Fern Street
||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS ||| San Juan County is pleased to open the new Fern Street building on September 16 in Eastsound that will expand the County’s ability to serve residents of Orcas Island. The community is invited to attend the opening of the new office building that
Let’s work together to protect and improve air quality
||| FROM SETH PRESTON for NORTHWEST CLEAN AIR AGENCY ||| Hi! We’re the Northwest Clean Air Agency, and we can’t wait to meet you and get to know you. You’re going to start seeing some of us in the coming weeks and months. And as much as we want to
Jurors for Sept. 15 – 19 are excused
||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS ||| JURY DUTY: SEPTEMBER 15-19, 2025 All jurors summonsed for jury duty beginning September 15th through Friday September 19th, are excused. Thank you.
Protecting our homes, roads, and habitat | Sea level rise workshops this fall
The County is planning a series of community workshops to share information about sea level rise and solicit thoughts, concerns, and feedback from community members about how to address these challenges together. ||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS ||| San Juan County is taking steps to better understand and plan
News Brief | Three things that could save your home from the next wildfire
||| FROM WASHINGTON POST ||| Originally reported by Washington Post "Why do some homes burn in wildfires while others do not? Researchers, insurers and government officials have been scrambling to answer this question, made urgent by a decade of deadly conflagrations: the Western fires in 2015, Paradise in 2018, Lahaina
Live cello concert coming to Orcas Library
||| FROM SAM GAILEY for ORCAS ISLAND LIBRARY ||| For nearly 40 years, Gretchen Nicole Yanover has dedicated herself to the art of the cello, composing ambient music for her solo work and playing in more classical modes with an orchestra. Her devotion to her craft has led her to
Rain didn’t stop 2025 San Juan County Fair from shining
Thanks in large part to the inter-island pick-up and drop-off option, the number of exhibitor entries increased from last year and the Fairgrounds welcomed approximately 8,012 people over four days (for a total of 16,468 visits!) to join in the fun. ||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS ||| Even with
Guest Opinion | Vote-at-Home is the law—and it works
||| FROM WA STATE COUNTY AUDITORS ||| This oped was inspired by a thoughtful inquiry from a Stevens County voter, curious about the origins, security, and integrity of Washington’s voteathome system. Pend Oreille County Auditor Marianne Nichols promptly volunteered to join Stevens County Auditor Lori Larsen in coauthoring the response.
Thursday Sept. 11th – One Million Rising Event
Thursday, September 11th • 5:30 to 7:30 pm • SJI Grange ||| FROM INDIVISIBLE SJI TEAM ||| Join your fellow Indivisible members and others to learn how we can resist the Trump Administration’s authoritarian takeover of our country. As part of Indivisible National’s No Kings call to action, One Million
News Brief | More Whales at Niagara Falls Marineland will die
||| FROM CHCH ||| "More whales at Niagara Falls’ Marineland will die without urgent action, expert says" Originally reported by CHCH "After the whale death toll rose again recently, experts say whatever is done must be done urgently before more of the whales die." Read the full article
Have a garden question? Ask an Orcas Master Gardener
Now at the Market Garden Nursery ||| FROM JULIA TURNEY for ORCAS MASTER GARDENERS ||| Do you have a question about your soil, have a problem with your fruit tree, or are thinking about starting a garden? Is something bugging your plants, or you are curious about identifying a plant or insect? Master
News Brief | ‘We have a duty’ to protect our national forests
||| FROM CASCADIA DAILEY ||| "Saturday rally raises awareness about Roadless Rule change" Originally reported by Cascadia Daily "If the Trump administration is successful, the Roadless Rule repeal would allow for road building and logging activity across 58 million acres of national forest across the country. Around 400,000 acres in
In Memoriam | James A. Seeley, 1935 – 2025
||| FROM ALEX MACLEOD ||| Dr. James A. Seeley On July 4th, we lost our beloved husband, father, and grandfather, Dr. James A. Seeley. Jim passed away peacefully at his home in Medina, three months shy of his 90th birthday after recently being diagnosed with lung cancer. Jim
Guest Opinion | Human intelligence research lab, amid LLMs?
||| ||| FROM DAVID STEPHEN ||| There is a recent [September, 1, 2025] report on SciTechDaily, “AI Is Not Intelligent at All” – Expert Warns of Worldwide Threat to Human Dignity, stating that, “AI is not intelligent in any human sense at all. It is a triumph in engineering, not in cognitive
