By Alex Soriano The Observant Frog’s Log – Alex Soriano
Entertainment, Llaughing Llamas, May 2025
Llaughing Llamas Chronicles
By Daniel Hooker One of the worst critics of my joke column passed away; I went to his funeral and I stared into his coffin: “You’re dead wrong. Thinking outside of the box is better.” ~ Someone asked me where my grandmother and grandfather lived. I replied, “Alaska.” “Never mind,” he replied, “I’ll ask her…
April 2025, Editorial Page
Vashon Chosen as Cyber Ferry Host
The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) announced a long-term goal to convert its ferry system, the world’s largest,* from antiquated diesel propulsion to an all-electric carbon-negative fleet by 2034. The announcement comes in the wake of a U.S. carmaker’s pending acquisition of Danish manufacturer Traekke-Benet A/S, dubbed “the Tesla of ferries” by the British…
April 2025, Island Businesses
Luna @25
By Andy Valencia It’s been 25 years since sisters Tina and Leslie first opened Cafe Luna. Turtle Island Restaurant, which had shuttered for the final time a year before, provided the location. The ladies asked various Island old-timers about the possibility of an “internet cafe” and, having been assured it would never work, went ahead…
April 2025, Editorial Page
Oxygen Levels Continue to Plummet on Vashon
By the Vashon Loop Editorial Board Try as we may to deny it, there is a problem, and we know it. Vashon has an oxygen (O2) crisis, and our situation may actually signal an unrecognized issue for the entire region. The world first took notice of greenhouse-gas-induced climate change in the 1970s. We were asked to…
Announcements, April 2025
The Mile-Long Hot Wheels Record
By Travis Holman Did you know that Vashon Island is currently working toward setting a world record? This attempt is something that may bring out the inner child in you, because the mission is to collect and assemble the longest Hot Wheels track in history! If you need a refresh, Hot Wheels are those little,…
April 2025, Island Voices
My Grandson Wants Me to Write a Cookbook
By Pam (aka Gates) Johnson If you’ve read a few of my columns, you probably guessed that I like to cook. Nothing much pleases me more than to prepare a meal for friends and family. Back in my school-working days, I would make meals for the entire McMurray staff, 30 people or so. It was…
April 2025, Island Voices
The “Mighty Mac”
By Seán Malone and John Sweetman From John: We rarely write about contemporary things, but this story is now old enough to be a least on the edge of vintage recollections. Over 20 years ago, I had helped Seán return to the Island, and he had acquired a great place. An old cabin, situated above a…
April 2025, Island Voices
End of Life Decisions
By Michael Shook I’ve been immersed in David Slavitt’s wonderful translation of Boethius’s “Consolation of Philosophy” recently, and, while walking the dogs this morning, a remnant drifted across my mind: “… nothing in life lasts.” No kidding. It’s so obvious as to be banal, and yet we humans quite often live as if “everything in…