By Monica Schley I am so pleased to be included in Lakewold Gardens’ 2025 Poetry in the Gardens. Each year, Lakewold invites local poets to submit original poems to the Winter Garden Poetry competition. My poem, “An Edible Garden” was accepted and is now installed in the Garden’s self-guided tour. You can listen to the…
By Claudia Hollander-Lucas March 2025 This poem originated from a call from King County for the Poetry on the Bus project in 2023. The theme was “Landings”. My very short poem was designed to touch the everyday commuter with a message of hope to play the long game rather than being overtaken by politics and…
By Alex Soriano The Observant Frog’s Log – Alex Soriano
By Marc J. Elzenbeck On Monday, February 10th on Wax Orchard, the road was still dark at 6:47 AM. Something had knocked over a big Murrey’s blue bin near 249th, plastic and metal recycling was blocking southbound lane. I steered around and my kid said, “If you ran over that, it might’ve popped a tire.”…
By Andy Valencia For Kim Kambak, owner of Littlest Bird Farm, her farm is deeply intertwined with a catastrophic event in her life. There was her life before, and then there was how she continued afterward. The latter part happened here on Vashon, as she healed the land and brought it back to life as…
By Seán Malone and John Sweetman Seán and I have had many adventures on boats over the decades. Some involved fishing and crabbing, but most involved “outboard” motors which were always cranky and infused with “trouble.” Trouble starting, running, and just plain ordinary reluctance to do what they were supposed to do. Seán and I had different…
An Infomercialby Bernie O’MalleyMayor 2016 Oh my, nobody told you we got Island Bluebirds who drive cars? Over Town in the City? Well, it’s true. If you have a medical/dental appointment off-Island, a Neighborly Bluebird picks you up, whisks you there, waits for you until the visit is done, then brings you home, true door-to-door…
By Caitlin Rothermel Walking into Giraffe, located in the heart of town, always gives me that peaceful feeling of entering a special place. Every corner is so carefully arranged. The store’s warm tones are so inviting, making me feel both restful and attentive. When I visited most recently, soft yet peppy Malian music was playing in…
By Erin Durrett Everyone who lives on Vashon, no matter how young or old, has had an amazing experience with birds: a song so sweet it melts your heart, a majestic heron sweeping over the water in the early dawn light, or the screech of an owl hunting in the depths of a windy night….
By Dave B. My wife and I have been on Vashon for almost 20 years. We have seen a lot of good and some not so good. We are lucky to live in a place where you can be you, get your freak on, and dress not to impress. But I have noticed a shift…