There is a reason we are drawn to looking at the ocean. It is said that the ocean provides a closer reflection of who we are than any other mirror – Rick Ruben, The Creative Act: A Way of Being By Suzanna Leigh Behind us, our little 9.9 hp Suzuki outboard left a trail of…
Reforming Property Taxes and Composting Toilet Regulations
By David Earle Last month, I wrote about Vashon and Washington State’s serious housing problem, offering solutions the King County permitting department could put in place to make it easier for lower-income individuals to buy land and construct housing. This month, I return to my point: “Land hoarding is a thing.” For instance, the Reed…
Report From Aman Omid Village, Part 3
By Nellie Bly Prologue: This was written over the course of several deployment periods of one to three weeks. Aman Omid Village on Holloman Air Force Base closed at the end of January 2022, having in-processed and placed 16,000 Afghani evacuees. All but eight survived. For the five months it existed, and adjusting for average…
What’s a Boiled Frog to Do?
By March Twisdale When we’re dealing with human nature, concepts tend to last. Consider the phrase, “Out of the frying pan into the fire.” This has roots as far back as ancient Greece between 620 and 564 BCE, and its wisdom is summed up by two other well-oiled phrases: Sometimes, we get “caught between a…
Place
By Michael Shook July marked 11 years at our property, and I feel I know the landscape now. The first trees I planted look like proper trees, rather than sticks. And the surrounding extant trees are familiar to me in ways they were not when first we moved here. To get to know a place…
Getting New Perks at the Vashon Sportsmen’s Club
By Hugh Lord How do you start a fire without a lighter or matches? Well, at the Vashon Sportsmen’s Club Kids Camp, that is one of the things they teach you. Even once you know how, it’s still not easy, but if you keep practicing it starts to seem easier. Until it rains, then like in Fallout (a…
From Minglement – Black Buffalo Barley
By Eva Deloach We love the foods of the fall time and want to highlight from time to time some of the not so-widely used ingredients to add to your own fall food home-cooked creations. This time around, it’s Black Buffalo barley. We brought this very ancient, naturally hull-less barley in to Minglement a long…
Island Epicure – Steve’s Granola
By Marj Watkins, as told to Suzanna Leigh “Oh Mom, venison again?!” When I was growing up during the depression, eating all of my meals at home, breakfast was usually oatmeal mush with sugar and milk. We didn’t look forward to it, but when you are hungry, you eat whatever is presented. If we didn’t…
Masks
Masks are back in the news. A few Islanders have written to us with their thoughts. We always welcome your input. Send to editor@vashonloop.com. Masks and Children By a Vashon Mother There are countless studies proving that mask-wearing provides little if any of the protection the media and U.S. Centers for Disease Control have led…