Here’s a thought…
“Be always at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let each New Year find you a better man.”
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN
OPALCO answers the question: Why is my OPALCO bill so high this month?
Cold Temps, BPA Demand Charges and 4% Rate Increase ||| FROM KRISTA BOUCHEY for ORCAS POWER & LIGHT COOPERATIVE ||| There was a perfect storm of compounding factors that made our power bills very high this month. The power bills in January include power usage during a prolonged cold snap
Advocates for open government sue San Juan County to open public records
||| FROM SALISH CURRENT ||| The public’s right to access government documents and the government’s power to keep certain information private are at loggerheads in San Juan County. The Washington Coalition for Open Government (WashCOG), a nonpartisan, nonprofit advocacy group, sued San Juan County last week for violating the Public
Help our Lions Clubs aid Whatcom County in flood disaster recovery
||| FROM STEVE SCHAEFER for ORCAS LIONS CLUB ||| Last November, historic flooding occurred in nearby Whatcom County. Particularly hard hit were the communities of Sumas, Nooksack and Everson. Media coverage was relatively short-lived but the impact on those who lived and worked in this area will continue for many months.
The stories they tell | Abstract paintings currently showing at SJIMA
||| FROM DIANE MARTINDALE for SAN JUAN ISLANDS MUSEUM OF ART ||| When one thinks of Abstract Art, one tends to call to mind the unfettered and often chaotic paintings of iconic painters such as Jackson Pollack or Wassily Kandinsky. Since the arrival of abstract art in the early twentieth
Update from OICF indicates that while the cat’s away, the mice will play
||| FROM ED ANDREWS for ORCAS ISLAND COMMUNITY FOUNDATION ||| Hi all Ed here, standing in for Hilary while she spends a well-deserved two week vacation basking in a warm place much further south than here. Hilary, you better be out on a walk and not reading this. Eagle
Senior Center to offer a briefing on COVID mask effectiveness
"The Effectiveness of KN95/N95/KF94 Masks” by Rob Wilson by Zoom (Friday, February 4, 11 a.m.) ||| FROM LENA KASSA for ORCAS SENIOR CENTER ||| Are you wondering if you are wearing the appropriate mask? Join Rob Wilson, retired mechanical engineer and product designer, as he helps us better understand the
COVID numbers are still on the rise in the San Juans
||| FROM BRENDAN COWAN for DEPARTMENT OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT ||| Since the last update on Friday January 21, there have been 130 new confirmed or probable cases in San Juan County. Current case count is now 986. LOPEZ ISLAND: There are twenty-two new cases on Lopez Island since the last
Learn the skills to land a job fishing salmon in Alaska
The new Purse Seine Vessel Crew Member Training Program will hold its first session in April 2022 ||| FROM WASHINGTON SEA GRANT ||| Gig Harbor, WA – The Gig Harbor BoatShop and Washington Sea Grant are launching the Purse Seine Vessel Crew Member Training Program, or “Crew School,” designed to
Tahoe imposes new rules for Airbnbs and other short-term rentals amid housing crisis
||| FROM SFGATE.COM ||| Repint at request of Orcasonian reader Six months into a moratorium that halted short-term rentals permits in North Lake Tahoe, Placer County is considering a new set of rules to rein in the proliferation of vacation rentals and protect what little housing inventory remains for locals.
Sheriff’s Report | January 19 – 25, 2022
||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE ||| WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 19 22-000437 Animal at Large 08:36:30 01/19/22 A Deputy responded to a report of one dog and two puppies loose in the road in Friday Harbor. The dogs were picked up, an owner was unable to be located, and the
Inslee: “Politicians are not above anyone else”
||| FROM THE OFFICE OF GOVERNOR JAY INSLEE ||| Gov. Jay Inslee testified today in favor of Substitute Senate Bill 5843 at a public hearing in the Senate Committee on State Government & Elections. "The Big Lie, that we can’t trust our democracy to count the votes, has become a weapon. It’s being
Latest from Lekanoff | Salmon recovery, police legislation, and more
||| FROM THE OFFICE OF REP. DEBRA LEKANOFF ||| House Bill 1117 Passed the House A bill I introduced last session, House Bill 1117, passed the House again this week on a vote of 57-40! The bill integrates salmon recovery into the Growth Management Act (GMA), which guides land management and planning in our
Newest numbers from our State Health Department
||| FROM STATE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH ||| Newest numbers. The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) reported a total of 1,257,918 confirmed cases as of 11:59 p.m. on Jan. 25.* There have been 10,580 COVID-19 deaths in Washington. *Data note: Effective Jan. 24, DOH will update the COVID-19 data dashboard on Mondays,
World’s best performers coming to Center Stage in February
||| FROM BETHANY MARIE for ORCAS CENTER ||| Orcas Center brings the world’s best performers to Center Stage in their on-screen offerings from The Metropolitan Opera, Bolshoi Ballet, and National Theatre Live. Join us for these great events coming up in February. Saturday, February 5 at 1 p.m.: Postponed from
Silent Auction at Senior Center is just around the bend
||| FROM LENA KASSA for ORCAS SENIOR CENTER ||| Come one, come all! Break the winter doldrums by taking part in a silent auction from February 1 to 15 at the Orcas Senior Center. Beginning on Tuesday, February 1, you will find a selection of home décor, original art, and
Orcas Center, Historical Society among Humanities Washington award recipients
||| FROM ASIA LARA for HUMANITIES WASHINGTON ||| SEATTLE – Nonprofit Humanities Washington, Washington State’s affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities, has awarded over one million dollars in relief funding for Washington State cultural organizations affected by COVID. The grants, known as Sustaining the Humanities through the American
