Be warned. Some of us, particularly small electricity users, might be in for an electrifying shock treatment. Electricity prices are going up to the point where some may no longer be able to afford it.
It is with a heavy heart that we write about Fire Chief Kevin O’Brien’s leaving Orcas Fire and Rescue for a chief position in Lake Stevens.
My grandmother is vicious to my father, her son. He has heart problems, so I’m afraid for his health. She’s 85 and can’t live alone anymore. He tried taking care of her at home, but she complained constantly.
I was intrigued to read the Islands’ Sounder recent story about the sheriff’s survey. My immediate reaction was that surely those on Orcas Island who gave poor marks to the police were NOT just referencing the incident on San Juan last Christmas.
We’ve seen the positive side of the internet: connecting friends and family, sharing knowledge of the world around us, doing business from afar, spreading social awareness – the list goes on.
On Jan. 1 at 3 a.m. the Shaw Island Fire Department requested assistance with a structure fire on Shaw Island. Four OIFR firefighters responded with a WASP fire engine and a water tender truck.
Dr. Gottman, with input from the members of the OMF board, Orcas Island Fire and Rescue, and others, has developed a rigorous survey that she hopes will be completed by everyone on the island.
Eastsound is the hub of activity for retail, dining, foot traffic, community events, parades and more on the island.
The news last week that Orcas Power and Light Co-op and Rock Island have joined forces to deliver Internet services to islanders in San Juan County is the latest in a long chain of thoughtful decisions and deliberate action on the part of the OPALCO leadership.
I once consulted with a company to evaluate the health of people over 80 who had applied for long-term care insurance. The goal: to ensure they were healthy enough not to use their insurance benefits right away.
Be afraid, but don’t be too afraid, and above all – be prepared.
That is essentially the message that Brendan Cowan of the San Juan County’s Department of Emergency Management wants to get out to island residents.
Yes we live on an island. Many of us moved here for the temperate climates. The founding American pioneers came here to escape the grueling snowstorms and freezing temperatures in the east and the extra inches of rainfall on the mainland.
Working in the newspaper business, you grow accustomed to churning out tales on the daily.
Reporter Samantha Pak, from one of our sister papers, the Redmond Reporter, wrote the following piece. We thought it was too good not to share.
After four decades working in the aging field, I’ve discovered something interesting: we each get “old” at our own unique pace. This is different from any other time in our lives.
That the local orca whale population, known as southern resident killer whales, is in dire trouble is not in dispute, even as recent widespread press reports have focused on the positive news of the birth of J-50, a new calf in J-pod (J, K and L pods together make up the endangered southern resident orca).
On Dec. 1, 8 p.m., Orcas Island firefighters responded to reports of a large fire with dark smoke in the area of Mt. Woolard.
We are disappointed with the direction that San Juan County is taking in regard to cannabis farming.
We’re all ready for the new Exchange. It’s a vital part of our community, moving toward a zero waste goal.
Even in a place as radiant as the San Juans, the monotony of routine can get to the best of us.
Happy New Year! I hope you had a wonderful holiday filled with family and friends. The 2015 Legislative Session began Jan. 12. Here are my top priorities for this year.
It’s a new year and with it comes possibilities and the always returning resolutions to better ourselves. We make promises to lose weight, exercise more, be kinder and find balance. Are these fresh starts attainable? Some say no.
Every year, we ask our readers to tell us what they hope for in the new year. For some, it’s about fitness and health. For others, it’s about finding balance in our daily lives.
At the Sounder, we are well aware of the powers of the pen. So it came as no surprise to learn that Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” was one of the major influences that has instilled the idea of Christmas as a celebration of family and friends in addition to it being a religious day.
As the season of gift-giving descends upon us – Hanukkah, Solstice, Kwanzaa and Christmas – you might be having trouble thinking of the right present for a frail older person.
Thank you for the care and kindness you brought to Orcas Island!
My wife and I have lived in the San Juans for seven years and we are now asking our community for help.
A preemptive apology to readers. This article is chock full of sentimentality. I tried to edit out any hint of schmaltziness but the task feels insurmountable.
When it happens to something very familiar, something very important, like travel on the state ferry system, change may seem even that much more of a headache.
We’ve all heard the phrase “the spirit of Christmas,” but its meaning is sometimes lost amid the barrage of consumerism that has come to define this national holiday.
Quite simply, you never get a second chance to make a first impression. This is especially true in real estate and even more so in the islands where so many of the potential buyers may only be here for a limited amount of time.
Every year we gather together with friends and family to express gratitude. Thanksgiving is about socializing and eating, but it’s also a great time to truly think about what matters in your life.
We can learn many lessons from watching how other people age — what they do and don’t do right, their attitudes, their coping skills. Mainly, aging successfully — or as I say, “deliberately” — takes planning.
I made a terrible mistake.
I knew my child’s friends and where she was every minute of the day. But I made a bad assumption. I thought she was safe at school. I was wrong.
It’s a universal feeling. The hours have whisked by and suddenly it is lunch. You are starving and the thought of eating that thick tomato soup or fresh salad makes your mouth water.
I met Sgt. Gil Frazier during the war in Afghanistan. I was an embedded journalist and he was a Marine. One of the reasons I am alive today is probably, in part, thanks to him.
We’ve written before about the need for streetlights in Eastsound. It is dark by early evening when the streets here are still busy.
Starting Jan. 5, 2015, reservations will take effect for vehicle travel between Anacortes and the San Juan Islands. Reservations may be made starting Dec. 2.
Recent TV ads promoting I-594 tell us that it will close a “loophole” which lets felons and other violent persons acquire guns at will, without going through any kind of background check or other control.
Sometimes in small-town elections, things get a little fierce. And it would seem the sheriff’s race is one of those times.
