Here’s a thought…
“Old age is no joke, but it can feel like one.”
TAD TOMPKINS
San Juan County numbers reflect diminished case count
||| FROM BRENDAN COWAN for DEPARTMENT OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT ||| Since the last update on Friday March 18, there have been three new confirmed or probable cases in San Juan County. Current case count is now 1265. LOPEZ ISLAND: There are no new cases on Lopez Island since the last
Port’s regular monthly meeting is Monday
||| FROM JEANNE SHARP for PORT OF ORCAS ||| Please see 2022 03 28 Regular Agenda for the Port's Regular Monthly Meeting on Monday 3-28-22 at 5 p.m. This will be a Zoom meeting. The Commissioners will be talking about future in-person meetings at this meeting. Hope to see you
EPA grants $52 million to Washington for drinking water, wastewater infrastructure improvements
State estimates $253.5 million available for wastewater, $22 million for drinking water ||| FROM U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY ||| SEATTLE -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced it will help fund Washington’s $22 million plan for key drinking water projects and $253.5 million plan to improve wastewater infrastructure. In addition
‘Occam’s Razor’ | Our island, our world through the eyes, pen of S.C. Watson
Welcome to our weekly feature, Occam's Razor, from local artist S.C. Watson.
Fire Department responds to a downed aircraft at the Port
||| FROM KIM KIMPLE for ORCAS ISLAND FIRE & RESCUE ||| Orcas Island Fire and Rescue career and volunteer staff responded with the San Juan County Sheriff's Office yesterday afternoon to reports of a downed aircraft south of the airport. Fire and EMS crews arrived to find a Cessna Grand
How can we better prepare for natural hazards on our coasts? Inter-organizational collaboration to assist local efforts may be key
A newly completed project lays the foundation for a team to help Washington’s coastal communities be better prepared for floods, erosion and other coastal hazards ||| FROM WASHINGTON SEA GRANT ||| Floods. Erosion. Sea level rise. Tsunamis. All of these hazards threaten Washington State’s coasts — with potentially dire consequences.
Governor signs bill to allow candidates to use campaign funds for child care
||| FROM WASHINGTON STATE DEMOCRATS ||| OLYMPIA – Gov. Jay Inslee today signed legislation that explicitly allows candidates running for office in Washington state to use campaign funds for child and other dependent care. Senate Bill 5855, sponsored by Sen. Liz Lovelett (D-Anacortes), clarifies existing rules regarding the use of campaign funds. This
Hearing consults to be available at Senior Center
||| FROM LENA KASSA for ORCAS SENIOR CENTER ||| Stacie Nordrum, Au.D., CCC-A, of Island Hearing Healthcare will once again be offering hearing appointments at Orcas Senior Center on Thursday April 7, Thursday May 19, and Thursday June 9. Services available include hearing tests, consultations, hearing aid programming, and other
Get $$ for college! Go to a fun camp! 2022 OPALCO College Scholarship and Youth Rally
||| FROM KRISTA BOUCHEY for ORCAS POWER & LIGHT COOPERATIVE ||| Up to five local students will receive a $1,000 scholarship as well as the opportunity to represent our community at a co-op leadership camp (where they are could earn another $1,100 in scholarship funds). OPALCO’s Youth Rally and Scholarship
Guest Opinion | Lower Snake River dam removal has two sides
||| FROM TOM OWENS ||| Removing the Snake River dams is a tough decision. It has two sides. Like many other issues we face, there are merits to both arguments. Hopefully, before final decisions and actions are taken, the public can gain a full understanding of both the positive impacts
Poetry | Let America Be America Again
Let America Be America Again Langston Hughes 1901-1967 Langston Hughes, 1901-1967 Let America be America again. Let it be the dream it used to be. Let it be the pioneer on the plain Seeking a home where he himself is free. (America never was America to me.) Let
Poetry | Horses at Midnight Without a Moon
Jack Gilbert Horses at Midnight Without a Moon Jack Gilbert - 1925-2012 Our heart wanders lost in the dark woods. Our dream wrestles in the castle of doubt. But there's music in us. Hope is pushed down but the angel flies up again taking us with her. The
UPDATED | School Board meeting, in-person and Zoom, is coming up
Public Hearing 3/24/22 @ 5pm ||| FROM ORCAS ISLAND SCHOOL DISTRICT ||| The Orcas Island School District School Board will be hosting their meeting in person at The School Library and online VIA ZOOM. Here is the link to sign up for free ZOOM. Please click on this link to join the
Call for high school age artists: 2022 Congressional Art Competition
||| FROM THE OFFICE OF REP. RICK LARSEN ||| EVERETT, WA — Rep. Rick Larsen (WA-02) is inviting high school-aged students who live or attend school in Washington’s Second Congressional District to showcase their artistic talents in the 2022 Congressional Art Competition. Art submissions and forms are due to Larsen’s office by Monday, May
Inslee signs new firearms regulations into law, including limits on sale of gun magazines
||| FROM THE OFFICE OF GOV. JAY INSLEE ||| OLYMPIA — Washington Gov. Jay Inslee signed a trio of bills into law Wednesday morning that restrict firearms, including a new limit on the amount of ammunition in magazines and prohibition on open carry of weapons at city meetings. The two
Not much here (technical issue at state), but latest numbers from Health Dept.
||| FROM STATE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH ||| Newest numbers. The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) reported a total of 1,446,845 confirmed cases as of 11:59 p.m. on March 20. There have been 12,355 COVID-19 deaths in Washington. Data note (Monday, March 14): Due to a technical issue in our data systems, the
