Everybody has the top ten stories of the year, this time of year – I was just watching the CBC and they had all the disasters; NBC had all the scandals; and E! had all the fashion disasters. I guess that’s good…someone has to do it. For me, though, I’d rather see if we do  Continue Reading

It’s been a great year, in a lot of ways, and there are little bits left: • It was sure nice to hear Avery Adams‘ set Tuesday night at the Rumor Mill – I’ve had the pleasure of listening to him sing & grow as a musician just about all his life, and he’s doing  Continue Reading

I dropped by the Chamber of Commerce office to meet new Chamber director Tom Kirschner – I sure enjoyed visiting with him, and I know you will, too – drop by and get to know him. I feel the Chamber has picked someone who really cares about the island, and has a strong sense of  Continue Reading

John Sinclair has just launched a new site for his wedding photography – it’s called Wed in Washington. He’s got lots of great packages for 2011 and some awesome specials. Check it out!

Proud grandson Blake Guard sent this nice picture with the story (thanks, Blake!): Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! I was hoping you might put up a little blurb that my Grandma (we family call her Nammie) Lynette King Guard, turned 88 years old today! She was born December 28, 1922 in Seattle at  Continue Reading

You’ll remember I mentioned to you three weeks ago that Audrey welcomed Violet – and she’s awesome! Here’s the backstory: Audrey Espinoza and Gary Malone are happy to announce the birth of their daughter, Violet Eloise. She was born December 2nd, 2010 at 1:31 a.m. She weighed 7.8 lbs and was 19 inches long. Violet  Continue Reading

What a fun day on the island….heavy snow this morning into the early afternoon, then sunny in the afternoon & dripping everywhere. It was great to see the sunlight glistening in the drops from the trees…and, oh yeah – a power outage to remind us to stack the wood. Here’s a little video of the  Continue Reading

What’s happening…. • Remember last week that Bill & Colleen have baby bunnies on the way? They want the bunnies to go to happy homes – they haven’t been born yet, but Colleen reports: Ian, thanks for letting the island know about the soon-to-be bunnies. Bill was complaining how FAT the girl was. So I  Continue Reading

Well, as it happens, I’ve been on the ferries a bunch this month, what with getting the kids at the airport & all that, and I have a few observations: 1) It was really cool that WSF re-directed an extra ferry on Sunday to handle the overflow parking lot at the Anacortes terminal for folks  Continue Reading

It was sad to hear that Dave Ross passed away on Christmas Eve…his full lung transplant at the University of Washington’s Hospital gave hope, but he had to return to the hospital when things suddenly turned. Condolences to Judie…I’ll post more later.

Hope you had a great weekend…and now the countdown to New Year’s begins! Let’s see what’s up: • I checked in with Randy & Gail at Cotton Cotton Cotton (next to the Rumor Mill) & they have a sale this week before they go on vacation – here’s the scoop: Now we are buckling down  Continue Reading

I dropped in on Moon & Jules at the Banana Belt last week, and they surprised me by telling me they will be closing this week, and have a sale to help note the occasion. I’ll be sad to see these positive, always-smiling folks move on – here’s the story from them: Goodbye, Friday Harbor  Continue Reading

Well, maybe I’m pushing it a bit here, since you’ve been hearing Christmas songs ever since Halloween, but hey, you don’t HAVE to push the play button! As the season unfolds this next couple of days, I hope you find this a good time to reflect on the work we have before us, and find  Continue Reading

Looking around, partly to see who’s been nice… • What do you do when you suddenly have 24 bottles of egg nog? Here’s how Stephanie over at Harrison House Suites handled it… • The Friday Harbor Wolverines basketball girls & boys play next Tuesday here, against Mount Baker…good chance to see this year’s squads, including  Continue Reading

Got a plan for your Christmas tree, so it doesn’t end up in the landfill? Here’s an idea from Helen Venada at the County: The County Public Works Department is sponsoring a Christmas tree collection program this year. Trees will be chipped for mulch for use at a public project and not sent to a  Continue Reading

You probably already saw this – it’s been viral for a week or two, but it’s fun, for this time of year:

Drop by for a moment – they’re open! Here’s more from Kris: To celebrate our annual Christmas Closure, Printonyx will be hosting an open house tomorrow, December 24th, from 1p.m. until 4p.m. Enjoy some tasty but healthy snacks, enter a drawing for a $50 gift certificate, save 40% off holiday border paper and 25% off  Continue Reading

It was fun to have the sun out most of yesterday – a bright reminder of how the island looks in the light…here’s more: • Have you seen Island Rec’s new website, put together by Mary Kate at MKate Design? It’s awesome – check it out! • Just checked with Jack at the Island Guardian…if  Continue Reading

Remember last month when Ary told us you could see a heart on the ground from the sky, when you look at San Juan Island? (Here’s the story & picture.) Well, he’s not the only one – that prompted Piet Visser to suggest we check out his next door neighbor on the island’s peace of  Continue Reading

There were a lot of things to do at Christmas Island, the annual holiday get-together at the Grange last Saturday, but probably the most popular was to sit on Santa’s knee & tell him what you wanted for Christmas. Luckily, Santa’s ace photographer Mark Gardner was there to capture the moment of folks dressed up  Continue Reading

Checking in around the island…. • If you haven’t gotten downtown to check the sales around Friday Harbor, now’s your chance. Please it’s always good to check in with your friends. Take a walk in town…you’ll be glad you did! • My friend Courtney has two threads (horses & babysitting) that are knitting together nicely  Continue Reading

What better way to wake up, than to Chelsea Morning, by Joni? This clip is from 1969…