Update 3/14/2024 5:00PM… turns out this is the creation of local artist Matt Beursken, whose previous fame was that troll costume you saw last Halloween. He doesn’t really want to sell the saucer and alien, but he has some expenses coming up. The UFO started out as a satellite dish, and had been partially converted…
By Marc J. Elzenbeck Call me stupid. My auto and home insurance stayed nearly unchanged for the most part of a decade, with only minor upticks reflecting an occasional policy adjustment. Towing coverage was added on a couple vehicles, plus a separate umbrella covering teenager mishap, malfeasance, or vandalism. Starting in January 2022, both basics…
By Stephen Buller “Gold is money. Everything else is credit.” – John Pierpont Morgan Regarding money, it would be wise to listen to the words of the founder of the largest bank on the planet, but I doubt he could imagine the world we live in today. Did Mr. Morgan simply lack the perspective to…
Feckless: Lacking initiative or strength of character; weak or ineffective. In a whirlwind of public policy, which you may have missed, Redmond was the sudden recipient of a new homeless center; by the time most citizens knew of the project, it was already an accomplished fact. The center was originally intended for Kenmore, but the…
As recounted to Tripper Harrison If there aren’t any wild boars running the trails on Vashon right now, there used to be. Hogs have gone feral a lot more recently than you would guess, and they are much the same thing. One of them was named Piglet B, and he was mine. Piglet B got…
By Marjorie Watkins and Suzanna Leigh Suzanna: Marjorie, you are almost 100 years old! Marjorie: This is true. A few months away from 100. Suzanna: And you are healthy, too. You say you never have a headache or the flu. How is that? Marjorie: Magic potion. It is a very tasty solution. It is cloves…
By Emily Kiefer “Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief” by Rick Riordan is considered by many to be a modern classic. It is the premiere novel in a five-book series that weaves together a spectacular adventure involving modern-day Greek mythology and a coming-of-age hero’s journey. With a new television adaption of the series…
By Caitlin Rothermel In May 2021, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention drafted, but did not publicly share, a national alert describing a link between COVID-19 vaccines and a heart disease called myocarditis. We know about this now because of documents obtained from a Freedom of Information Act request. Described by the American Heart…
By Michael Shook “… the hounds of Spring are on Winter’s traces …” They are indeed, lashed to a dead run by this year’s strong El Niño weather system. Buds are plump to bursting, daffodils, hyacinth, and crocus have been out and blooming for weeks, and the scents are shifting. In the late winter breezes,…
By Seán Malone and John Sweetman We were poking around the old Ford F-250 four-wheel drive three-quarter-ton pickup that Seán acquired from me about 30 years ago. It seemed to have a problem with steering. This truck still is a formidable beast, with an 8,000-pound winch and oversized custom bumpers and guards, but it was…