By Marc J. Elzenbeck Sadly, no one has ever offered me a free LED TV. If they did, probably the first thing I would ask is, “How big is it?” If they said, “32 by 18 inches,” I might accept it to be polite, then maybe set it up on the barn to play calming…
By An Island Doctor When COVID-19 started, I was stunned like everyone else. As the dust settled, I had more questions than answers from our major government institutions. I had colleagues with the same questions and uncertainty as myself, while others took the guidance from the CDC without question as a trustworthy source that needs…
Annual Roots Light Celebration Winter root soup … delicious organic bread with butter … hot cider … a warm fire … Gifts of the abundant earth from Islanders gardens, beautifully displayed on the porch, featuring herbs, seeds, mushrooms, dried flowers, gourds, and carved pumpkins. We are always amazed by the generosity of this community, and…
By Hilary Emmer ACA Health Insurance Open EnrollmentSign-Up Re-NewKing County Public Health is Here to Help!! Dates: Wednesday: November 16th 1pm – 3pm Saturday: December 3rd Noon – 3pm Wednesday: December 21st 1pm – 3pm Saturday: January 7th Noon – 3pm Wednesday: January 18th 1pm – 3pm All Dates are at the Vashon Library (inside…
By Seán Malone and John Sweetman As kids, we seemed to start out on a rather low rung of the evolutionary ladder. Pretty much all our activity – not strictly devoted to mere troublemaking – was of the “hunter/gatherer” nature. We were always on the lookout for useful items: driftwood, food plants, clams, stinky dead…
Money. Hold-in-your-hand coins. Pull-out-of-your-wallet cash. Circles of metal that last decades, centuries and millennia … matter. Not only are coins “literally” matter, but they offer an experience, a record of human society, an imprint on our lives and tactile memories that no electricity-dependent, Virtual Reality method of accounting or digital currency can offer. A child,…
By Andy Valencia I built a nice device for a huge company (well, I did most of the system design and all of the software). It made lots of money, and – yay! – I was a rock star at my company. Sic transit gloria mundi. I measured its performance, and determined that it could,…
Please enjoy a poem by Margaret Roncone and two poems by Claudia Hollander-Lucas. Autumn Light lengthening shadowsdiscard bright lightstore it in acupboard for next June what I notice andpause to studyare narrators ofa fresh storyunfolding in pebbled graveldried grassand moon’s play on stone. By Margaret Roncone Margaret Roncone: I write poetry daily because of a…
By Andy Valencia In the years we’ve lived on Vashon, I’ve read many an article on Vashon Island Fire and Rescue. All too often, I have finished the article befuddled and no more informed than when I started. As I join the club of people who have written about VIFR, I’m finding a newfound sympathy…
By Marj Watkins Many people, like me, are allergic to hard wheat. It’s the gluten in it that makes us sick. For a high price, you can buy gluten-free bread and pastries at the stores. But why buy, when for a much lower cost you can make your own? Try this recipe. Barley Cranberry Scones…