Here’s a thought…
“Deep breath. Deep breath. The air is free. You can take as many as you want.”
BUDDHIST MONK
Latest COVID response updates from the State
||| FROM STATE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH ||| Newest numbers. The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) reported a total of 468,350 confirmed cases as of 11:59 p.m. on Aug. 16. There have been 6,269 COVID-19 deaths in Washington. For the most recent tally of cases by county, demographics, and more, visit
Orcas Island Distillery tasting room will open on August 19
||| FROM CHARLES WEST for ORCAS ISLAND DISTILLERY ||| Orcas Island Distillery is readying its Eastsound tasting room for an August 19 opening. Located at 123 North Beach Rd on the pathway adjacent to the Historical Museum, the tasting room offers a sophisticated, low key environment to sample the distillery’s award winning
County to host COVID vaccine clinics next week
Pre-register online, although walk-ins welcome. ||| FROM BRENDAN COWAN for DEPARTMENT OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT ||| As COVID case numbers continue their dramatic increase in the islands and beyond, there is an upcoming easy no-cost opportunity for those not yet vaccinated to get their shots. San Juan County Health & Community
Rep. Larsen announces 2021 Congressional App Challenge is back
Annual Challenge open to all Middle and High School students who live or attend school in Second District EVERETT, WA – Today, Rep. Rick Larsen (WA-02) announced the launch of the 2021 Congressional App Challenge (CAC). The annual competition, which runs through Monday, November 1, is open to high school and middle school students who live in or attend school in Washington’s Second
Today is opening day for “Lettuce Entertain Ewe” virtual County Fair
||| FROM JENNIFER ALLEN for SAN JUAN COUNTY FAIR ||| San Juan County Virtual Fair “Lettuce Entertain Ewe” August 18-21 is uploaded and ready for you to view! What does this year provide? Exhibits, Demos, Vendors and lots of entertainment! A quick reminder that the Fair is what participants and volunteers
After one-year hiatus, Library Fair is a definite success
||| FROM DAVE KOSIUR for FRIENDS OF THE ORCAS ISLAND LIBRARY ||| Thank you, Orcas Island! Thanks to the community of Orcas Island, the annual Summer Library Fair (after one year’s hiatus) was a resounding success! Book sales on last Saturday’s Library Fair netted the Friends of the Orcas Island
Navy wraps up fourth sound monitoring period; results to become public later
||| FROM MIKE WELDING for NAS WHIDBEY ISLAND ||| NAVAL AIR STATION WHIDBEY ISLAND, Wash. - The Navy completed its fourth week of real-time sound monitoring at Naval Air Station (NAS) Whidbey Island as directed by the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2020 (FY20). Flight activity was
Letter to Editor | An open letter to editors of theOrcasonian and the Sounder
||| FROM LILI HEIN ||| If you have available staff, please send a reporter to attend the next Orcas Island School District Board at 5 p.m. on Thursday, August 26. The main topic for the last OISD board meeting was the budget, including looming budget and staff cuts, despite voters
Inslee to provide clemency relief to individuals still serving community supervision solely on invalid drug possession convictions
||| FROM THE OFFICE OF GOVERNOR JAY INSLEE ||| Washington state has instituted a new process to allow individuals on active community supervision for certain drug possession convictions to directly petition Gov. Jay Inslee to commute their sentences. Inslee is prepared to issue unconditional commutations for eligible petitioners to eliminate any
On Orcas, back-to-school time coming up: Monday, 9/1
||| FROM ERIC WEBB, ORCAS SCHOOLS SUPERINTENDENT ||| It is hard to believe that Orcas Island School District will begin welcoming students back to campus for the 2021-2022 academic year in a matter of weeks! With the new school year approaching, I wanted to reach out and let you know
Join Susan Slapin for poetry reading on Library’s south lawn
Saturday, August 21, 2 p.m., Library's south lawn ||| FROM CAROL DAPOGNY for ORCAS ISLAND LIBRARY ||| Join Orcas Island resident Susan Slapin, artist, painter, and poet, for a poetry reading from her new book. Susan's work has been exhibited from Orcas to Ojai and she has been recognized by The Oregonian
Guest Opinion | VR proposed caps are data-based? Maybe not
||| FROM JANET ALDERTON ||| As a scientist, when I hear the word “data,” my mind lights up. Scientists love data! So when I had the opportunity to see our San Juan County Department of Community Development’s most current data spreadsheet for short-term vacation rentals two days ago, I dove
Letter to Editor | A good first step
||| FROM FROM BILL APPEL ||| Some of us demand that our government tighten and enforce environmental laws. When not on Zoom, we drive to environmental organization meetings and fundraisers in our fossil-fueled cars to support …. Wait! What? Exactly. We have reasons why we don’t drive electric vehicles. One, of course,
Inslee updates wildfire state of emergency proclamation
||| FROM THE OFFICE OF GOVERNOR JAY INSLEE ||| Gov. Jay Inslee today updated the wildfire state of emergency proclamation. The changes were made to clarify language around the Washington State Department of Corrections (DOC) hosting small wildfires on DOC property for religious purposes (like sweat lodges) and authorizes organic orchardists to
Kruse Reviews | Until Proven Safe: The History and Future of Quarantine
||| BOOK REVIEW BY JENS KRUSE Geoff Manaugh and Nicola Twilley, writers for many national magazines, open their book Until Proven Safe: The History and Future of Quarantine with the following scene: On March 6, 2020, a King County, Washington, health department van pulled up in front of an Econo
Some tickets remain for last week of Chamber Music Festival
||| FROM BETHANY MARIE for ORCAS CENTER ||| Orcas Island Chamber Music Festival August 6 - August 21 Tickets available at www.oicmf.org/tickets and www.OrcasCenter.org There are still some tickets left for the remaining performances: August 17 and 18: Montrose Trio August 20 and 21: A Montrose Foray A few important details for these
