We at The Beachcomber are going to take a moment to indulge in shameless self-promotion. Under the heading that we buy the ink and every now and then get to use it to call attention to ourselves, we want to highlight the three “special sections,” as we call them, that have been published almost back to back by our small, hard-working staff.
It’s a cold, dreary, rainy “June-uary” Friday, and I’m sitting here obsessing about summer water limits in Vashon’s Water District 19. I suppose I’m one of the few Islanders who appreciates June rainfall. I like rain even more in July, August and September. Because when it rains in the summertime, Islanders don’t water their grass, landscaping or crops as much. And that means your water district is more likely to be able to come up with enough water to meet your peak day demand.
We have found ourselves in an exciting position — adjacent to the future Vashon Allied Arts (VAA). With the promising development of the purchase of the McFeed’s property, VAA, it seems, is poised to grow into the physical manifestation of its ongoing role as the center of the Vashon arts community.
Most of us are aware of Cindy Sheehan’s activism against the war in Iraq and the very public stand that she took in Crawford, Texas, camping out next to President George Bush’s ranch and confronting the president’s support for the war.
I grew up in a suburb north of Chicago where one could find every kind of restaurant, from the noisy hustle and bustle of Andy’s Hamburgers to the elegant and music-filled atmosphere of San Pedro’s at Theatro de Lago.
I’m not going anywhere this summer! Every year at about this time, I pledge that I will not leave the Island for the next three months.
There are many compelling reasons to close the Vashon High School campus, putting an end to a senior ritual that administrators say is often abused. Thirty minutes is hardly time to get into town and back with a Subway sandwich. Why should kids be burning up fossil fuel for a jaunt like that anyway? And then, of course, some are doing more than grabbing a sandwich. In light of the Healthy Youth Survey that found teen marijuana use higher on Vashon than the rest of the state, administrators have legitimate reasons for concern.
I am writing in response to a letter in last week’s paper rebuking Vashon Isalnd Pet Protector’s (VIPP) request for Vashon residents to adopt dogs. To ask that responsible animal-loving citizens of Vashon Island not adopt homeless dogs simply because Thorne is afraid of them and doesn’t like their poop seems ignorant to me.
Everyone’s talking about eating local in-season produce as the healthiest food to nourish their bodies. More and more people are supporting local farms in their quest to achieve the most wholesome diet. An excellent adjunct is to add a daily dose of the whole assortment of wild edibles available for foraging in copious amounts this time of year. Foliage, flowers, roots and berries of a variety of wild plants are in season on Vashon. Supplementing your diet with these foods is a potent source of raw natural vitamins, minerals, amino acids, bioflavinoids, and a host of other beneficial nutrients. It is the ultimate in food empowerment.
Preserve Our Islands, as The Beachcomber pointed out in a news story last week, is concerned about what Glacier Northwest plans to do with its arsenic-laced soil, assuming it eventually begins excavating millions of tons of sand and gravel from its 235-acre site on Maury Island.
We’re also concerned about King County’s response to this pressing public health issue. Here’s why: The soil at the Glacier site contains arsenic, a carcinogen, at levels 20 times more than allowed under state law.
Shirley Ferris made a plea for her job at the school board meeting at Courthouse Square last week. Not for herself. But for a position she’s held for years.
The popular counselor is about to step down after four decades in education. Due to a budget crisis Superintendent Terry Lindquist is working hard to resolve, her position — as it stands right now — will disappear when she retires in June.
On the ferry ride home after helping my father to die, the first thing I did was buy a Beachcomber.
Imagine my surprise when I saw a piece on Booth Gardner’s Death with Dignity campaign; how apropos. I had, a few days before, witnessed firsthand how to die with dignity intact, and I had helped to make it possible.
It’s easy, it seems, for adults — especially those of a progressive stripe who are in despair about the state of the world — to rob youth of what they need most: A sense of hope and optimism about what lies ahead. It’s refreshing to see we haven’t completely succeeded.
