La Conner Weekly News - Your independent hometown award-winning newspaper

It has been absolutely heartbreaking to follow the news of the devastating effects of the recent earthquake in Turkey and Syria. The number of deaths is nearing 44,000 as I write this column and will...

Am I proud to be an American? Yes. This is the country that gave my parents a wonderful place to live after they barely escaped from Nazi Germany. Am I happy with the direction this country is headed...

Three years ago Meyer Sign & Advertising Company launched a blog series dedicated to “telling the stories of the people, places and things that make the Skagit Valley a magical place to live.” The... Full story

As I drive around the Skagit Valley, I am blown away by the beautiful cloud formations I am seeing. If I am able to pull over in a safe place along the road, I stop and take a cloud photo. I am...

Okay, are you sitting down? You are about to be very surprised by what this progressive liberal is about to say. I am very much in favor of the death penalty for murderers who are absolutely guilty of...

Talk about mixed emotions: My close friend, Father William Treacy, died last week at the amazing age of 103, and I will miss him so much, but I will also join in the joyous celebrations of his...

Remember the Birdman of Alcatraz? I am introducing you to the Birdman of Shelter Bay. I'm buying a house in Shelter Bay with different feeding areas, including a bird watering hole. I'm converting...

Being a caffeine addict, I was excited to welcome La Conner's new Beaver Tales Coffee & Tea and indigenous gift shop and what I found was so much more than another excellent local outlet to...

Driving around on garbage pickup day in my neighborhood, I noticed a tremendous amout of cardboard stacked up alongside the recycling bins. Hmmmm. What’s going on? Then I realized how much cardboard...

Live and 24/7, you can tune into the Russian invasion in Ukraine at any time day or night and get up-to-date horrifying footage and totally depressing expert analysis of what’s going on right this...

I was blown away this winter by the number of birds that I passed by as I drove all around Skagit Valley, including fields filled with snow geese and eagles in trees being photographed by many birdwat...

Okay, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but sometimes as a journalist, you gotta tell it like it is, especially when people’s lives are at stake. The coronavirus ain’t going away. The...

I was really surprised to read that the WHO were deciding what to name each new strain of the coronavirus. I loved the WHO, they were one of my very favorite bands, although I had trouble both times...

I’m addicted to my hot tub, especially on wintry days. I’m thrilled that I live on the left edge of the continent with a great view of the islands and even a glimpse of the Olympic Peninsula. Bein...

I finally had the courage to go to my synagogue in Bellingham last week and there were only nine of us actually there in person plus Rabbi Josh Samuels and Cantor Andrea Shupak. Others were attending...

Let’s start this column on a positive note. As a species, we continue to evolve. A perfect example is my buddy William Shatner, who spent many hours in space in a television series many years ago...

These are very challenging times for so many reasons. Many of us have lost loved ones, some of us have lost our jobs or had them shut down, hopefully for the time being. This are especially trying...

I lost my wallet. I had no idea where, it just wasn’t in my pocket or on the top of the dresser where I leave it at night. Big hassle. Canceling and replacing credit cards and ID cards and my...

I recently said goodbye to my Uncle Harry Rosenfeld. Three weeks ago, when our part of the world was experiencing record high temperatures, I flew across the country to Albany, New York to visit my...

In the summer of 1969, I was in the south of France, visiting my cousins, when Neil Armstrong took a stroll on the moon. The event blew my mind. I am not very technically savvy, so it was beyond my...

Gun violence in the United States is exploding. Over 7500 people have been killed so far this year and it is only May. And that does not include unjustified police shootings which continue to rise....

As Bob Seger eloquently expressed in song, it’s time for Americans to “Turn the Page.” Just when you thought gun ownership in this country could not get worse, it becomes totally out of...

COVID-19 has been demanding social isolation, which is a real challenge for someone like me. But isolation does not mean stagnation and I have been blessed with a wonderful companion, my dog Rosie,...

While so much of our economy is suffering from COVID-19 these days, there is the beginning of what I believe to be a sea change that is actually stimulating the real estate market in places like La...

I passed a sign on someone’s front lawn in Mount Vernon last week that read: “Dementia Joe? Heels Up Harris? Lord Help Us All.” Obviously, these people must be devastated and I am dedicating...