Dedicated to the citizens of Mason County, Washington since 1886
Dedicated to the citizens of Mason County, Washington since 1886
Sorted by date Results 101 - 125 of 309
Thank you, Shelton. Thank you for this opportunity to serve my hometown and the place I call home. There are many people who have had a role in why I am here today serving as the next city manager. Teachers and coaches like Dann Gagnon, Terry Gregg, Harlan Buitenveld, Brian Brickert, Dave Niehl, Mark Jensen (all basketball junkies like me) and many more, instilled work ethic and teamwork principles that carry over from the gym to the office. Community leaders like Mike Byrne, who hired me for...
WE’RE NO. 51! In 2022, the number of (police) officers decreased by 70 to around 10,600 officers in Washington. The 4.4% drop brought the staffing rate to 1.35 officers per 1,000 people, putting Washington at the 51st lowest rate among all U.S. states and Washington, D.C., for the 13th year in a row, according to Steven Strachan, with the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs. Nationally, the rate is around 2.31 officers per 1,000 people. — The Seattle Times, July 10, 2023 ATTEMPT...
Journal letters policy regarding election season The Journal does not publish letters to the editor from candidates for public office - including those running unopposed - or their immediate family members, including spouse/partner, parents or children during election season. Election season is defined as from the moment a candidate declares for public office through the conclusion of the fall general election. This includes letters endorsing or opposing candidates in other races and endorsing o...
Hecidora Temisqueño was washing dishes in the early afternoon of July 4 when she saw a boiling column of smoke out the window. It was rolling toward her home. “It seemed like just seconds later, firefighters were at the door telling us to leave,” she said through her son, who interpreted for her. “I was scared.” And it wasn’t much later on that Tuesday afternoon that residents around the county started seeing firefighting aircraft sucking water from area bodies of water, including Oakland Bay an...
Pride and pub Editor, the Journal, Cathy Gallagher wrote that she didn’t like City Councilman Jim Boad’s vote on the Pride proclamations so would boycott the Wilde Irish Pub. Her letter had three errors. The first said Jim Boad voted against the proclamation. There was no vote. Two other board members confirmed this. There was a discussion; Mr. Boad simply stated his opinion. The second error was calling the proclamation “simple.” The last few years Pride parades have become very close to pornographic with children present and aggressive with a...
I hate know-it-alls, but I really hate mass murderers. We need to get to the point in our nation where we can dislike people solely for the content of their character, not the color of their skin. My 95-year-old mother-in-law recently asked what I thought of her grandson’s girlfriend’s hairdo. “Actually,” she corrected herself, “her head is shaved, so it’s more like a head-do.” Do you ever say something to your child that you could never have imagined coming out of your mouth? It happened to m...
Defense of 300 words Editor, the Journal, Unlike Scott Peterson and others who are not happy with the 300-word limit, I am. My high school journalist teacher taught, in the mid-1970s, if you could not catch the attention and make your point in the first 50 words you have lost your reader. I appreciate the 300-word limit because it will limit the superfluous comments and name-calling. Writers will have to take a hard look at what they are writing and decide if the insult is worth the loss of...
Four Fingered Jacks: The best name I’ve seen for a fireworks stand. One Fourth when all four kids were under one roof, our father announced we would have a safe Fourth of July. He got some of us into the backyard, had us sit in lawn chairs on the concrete patio, and then perched a road flare about 50 feet away atop a wall separating one level of the backyard from the next. He popped the cap on the flare. I can’t recall whether I said or thought this when the flare burned out: “Is that it?...
Real experience Editor, the Journal, Superior Court Judge Cadine Ferguson-Brown is being challenged by David Stevens. You should consider each candidates’ work history by reviewing their resumes and applications submitted to the Governor’s Office. Judge Cadine Ferguson-Brown is the only candidate with judicial experience – first as Mason County Superior Court commissioner and currently as judge. Her strength in civil and family law, which represents 75% to 80% of Mason County court filings, is an asset to this busy court. She is also exper...
“Everybody says how easy it is to cook, but it isn’t any easier than not cooking.” — Maria Bamford “Did you ever hear about the Norwegian who loved his wife so much he almost told her?” — Author unknown “Bob Dylan always told me, don’t be a name-dropper.” — Chrissie Hynde “I would start a revolution, but I just bought a hammock.” — Zach Galifianakis “I wear this St. Christopher medal sometimes because I’m Jewish and my boyfriend’s Catholic. It was cute the way he gave it to me. He said if it d...
Doing good work Editor, the Journal, Thanks to the volunteers from the Shelton Rotary Club for the condition of the Huff’n’Puff Trail. It is clean, friendly and welcoming and feels safe. Once again, local people here do something very good for the community. If you haven’t been for a while, you will be impressed. We couldn’t understand how it had become so exceptional until we happened to hear about the Rotary members’ work. Also, thanks to the Mount Rose trail crew. For almost 40 years, they have been doing great work on many local trails, s...
File this one under “Beware of trucks bought from Canadian mines.” Mrs. Ericson and I were nearing her car in a parking lot a couple of weeks ago. She was several steps ahead of me when she depressed the button on her key fob several times to unlock the car door, to no effect. A fellow standing on the running board of a utility truck about 50 feet away started making noise, directed at us. The man’s truck was a working person’s rig, not one of those spotless Ford F-150s people buy to “protect th...
Remember the orcas Editor, the Journal, As summer is here again and we are enjoying amazing weather, I want to remind your subscribers about Matt Baide’s article dated Aug. 11, 2022, reporting on killer whales and their visit to Oakland Bay. It was so exciting for my neighbors and I to have witnessed these glorious creatures firsthand; I will never forget it. With that in mind, I need to ask my fellow Mason County neighbors to do all they can to reject Taylor Shellfish’s proposal for a 99-year lease to install a 50-acre commercial aqu...
Count on this: We'll soon have people who claim they developed PTSD from fighting in this nation's culture wars. One experience I miss about having babies around: Not being able to say "zero" when people would ask how old my not-yet-1-year-old kids were. Something true in America: Dystopia sells. Overheard rant on the street: "Incans made adobe out of bananas ... at least I think that's true." Invention idea: Shoes with a built-in odometer. That way, you might be able to say, "I got 700 miles...
Verbose condensation Editor, the Journal, I enthusiastically applaud the Journal's new policy regarding letters to the editor. Though some regular contributors' freedom of grievance speech may be restricted by a paragraph or two, I'm serendipitously wishful it may broaden or even enlighten their understanding of the world. It's said brevity is the soul of wit. And wisdom. Craig Anderson, Shelton Who you are Editor, the Journal, A few words about you. You are without an agenda. You are confident...
When I took over as editor of the Shelton-Mason County Journal in the second half of 2020, it wasn't a role I'd ever had before. Nearly all of my journalism career had been spent as a sports reporter and page designer, and I'm not sure I ever saw myself taking over the top job in a newsroom. When the position opened that year, I decided that if I was ever going to take a shot at it, it was the time and place to do it. I was fortunate to have a supportive owner in Tom Mullen and publisher in...
This is what I saw and what I heard. Two young men, who appeared to be in their mid-20s, were exceedingly drunk, judging from their muttering and their full use of the sidewalk's width to accommodate their lateral staggers. I was maybe 30 steps away, walking toward them. It was 10:30 on a Thursday night, May 18, and I was a quarter-mile from my son's apartment at the north end of Green Lake. I was at the end of a 5-mile walk from South Lake Union. Sanctuary was at hand and no one was around but...
Wonderful article Editor, the Journal, Wonderful article by Justin Johnson, featuring Erin Ranney, the young wildlife photographer from Mason County. She is certainly becoming an elite member of her profession. Her passion for helping other young women to reach their career goals is outstanding. Tim Sheldon, Potlatch Bathrooms, locker rooms Editor, the Journal, Ms. Holliday asked for definitions of diversity, equity, gender and inclusion. Webster’s New Third International Dictionary defines diversity: being different or having differences. B...
On a sunny afternoon in early May, I was at the Olympic Gateway Center up the hill from downtown Shelton. From the parking lot, you could see an immense, snow-covered, hulking presence to the north. I entered The Shopper and asked a woman inside if she'd mind coming outside to look at something. We walked out to the parking lot and I pointed to that mountain. "You know the name of that mountain?" I asked her. "I'm not sure," she said. "Mount Rainier?" "No," because I knew that for sure. I...
Editor's note: The Journal generally does not publish original letters by candidates for public office during election years, however in the interest of public debate, we're publishing this letter from Superior Court Judge Cadine-Ferguson-Brown to serve as her response to previous letters appearing in the Journal regarding her actions in a case involving a woman accused of shooting her boyfriend in Shelton in February. Judge responds Editor, the Journal, Dear Mason County residents, I am Cadine Ferguson-Brown, one of your Superior Court...
‘Suspect’ responds Editor, the Journal, Since I was one of the subjects of Mr. Graham’s letter of May 11 “The Usual Suspects,” I would like to respond. I’ll try to make my points quickly. As I said in my letter of May 4, I will always defend Mr. Thomas’ right to be heard, just as I said the same for Mr. Graham. Mr. Graham has said that I do not want to discuss or debate issues. Actually I have said before these letters are opinions and discussions of issues. Let’s learn how and why we think th...
You might not know this about thunder: “Thunder is created when lightning passes through the air,” according to the National Weather Service. “The lightning discharge heats the air rapidly and causes it to expand. The temperature of the air in the lightning channel may reach as high as 50,000 degrees Fahrenheit, five times hotter than the surface of the sun. Immediately after the flash, the air cools and contracts quickly. This rapid expansion and contraction create the sound wave that we hear...
I remember this. I was around 5 years old the first time I did the dishes. It happened at the kitchen sink in my family’s house, a home that was built on the then-expanding edge of the city limits of Spokane in the 1950s. I stood on a stool. Light from the sun streamed through the windows. That is my origin story. I learned early, and I learned well. I entered the professional dishwashing ranks when I was age 17, working in a steamy, fetid, after-thought of a space next to the kitchen at Clinker...
Electromagnetic evil Editor, the Journal, Thank you, Mr. Duenkel. The voters of Mason County can sleep easier now that you have insulated our vote counting machines in Faraday fabric [expensive, hope you got it on sale at Joann Fabric and Craft]. The chips are now safe from being flipped by those sinister electromagnetic forces. But how do we protect our vulnerable brain cells from being flipped by Elon Musk filling the skies with his satellites beaming down on us and filling the streets with his electric cars charging at us? Or our phones...
It has been the honor and privilege of my life to serve you and to be your voice in the House of Representatives. In my freshman year there was a certain level of uncertainty going into session. However, I was absolutely blessed to be surrounded by Rep. Dan Griffey and Sen. Drew MacEwen. They made me feel comfortable and supported throughout the entire session, and their experience was invaluable as I navigated those rocky waters. Although in many ways the session was a disappointment regarding...
