I'll be heading out for the winter next week, so I took a browse through downtown today, checking out the shops that likely won't be there next year. It's Wooden Boat Festival this weekend, the biggest of the many summer celebrations Port Townsend has. The weather looks a bit iffy, but I'll try to get down there in between drizzle spells. My first stop will be Yakima to see friends, hang out at my brother's golf tournament, and attend my 50th...

The number of states, counties, and cities considering some limits on marijuana prohibition this season is quite remarkable. And there has never been such a rush by candidates to jump on the bandwagon declaring their support, although some of the politicians might be trying to fool you. Sometimes things go wrong, like these examples. I've written about Calaveras County (CA) before. An economically-distressed county issued licenses, collected...

This is getting crazy. I've been in smokey areas before, but only for a few days at most. It's gone on now for 2 weeks. The morning weather reports describe the day as either "bad" or "worse", and promise relief in a few days, which so far hasn't happened. I'm having a bedliner put in my truck today; on Friday my hitch will be installed, after being cleaned up and painted this week. The bedliner decision was based purely on aesthetics: I looked...

An obvious first test drive would be the Olympic Mountains, the National Park, but the region's air is so full of smoke, there would be no views. But just general driving around here's what I've found so far. I buy the most basic stock truck that I can, adding only the trailer package options. I require an FM radio and cruise control, but after that I can do without. Features that I got include On-star, which means my truck has it's own...

I bought a new truck, delivered today. Its a 2018 GMC Sierra 2500HD, basically the same as my other truck. The new one has 4WD, and instead of the 8L engine I had, it's a 6L with the same hp rating. It has power windows and a few other gadgets that are now standard, but the biggest thing is the radio has a screen now, and I have no idea how to use it. There's more plastic things everywhere. My plan calls for a few after-market additions, like...

It's long-standing tradition that people from the cities come over for a day-trip to see the lavender farms for the Sequim Lavender Festival. The ferries and highways around here hit capacity for most of the weekend, so I stay close to home. The kids came over earlier in the week for camping, and I treated them all for a whale-watching trip. We had great views of orcas, the weather was splendid, the tour outfit did great, and the grandkids...

Here's something to recall: After Colorado legalized, Nebraska and Oklahoma sued their neighbor because it's citizens passed an amendment allowing cannabis. Scott Pruitt (former EPA) was the AG of Oklahoma, and brought the suit. The federal courts tossed the suit because it was ridiculous. Now Oklahoma has passed a medical marijuana initiative, and I've always liked their program as passed: generous possession amounts, liberal qualifications for...

It's cool and wet here, completely normal because summer weather doesn't appear around here until July 5th. Right now Port Townsend is celebrating the completion of it's main street rebuild in the drizzle. The project involved new street surface, new sidewalks, and undergrounding utilities, all without closing the street or sidewalks or stores. Today was the deadline for completion, and when I checked yesterday, they had about 50 feet to clean...

I presume if readers want to follow R2AK they have been, so I don't say much about it. But if you forgot the race is on, it's turning out to be very interesting. The lead boat, at about the 2/3 mark, is a monohull with 8 women crewing. In fact, the three leaders are monohulls, the other two are 4-man crews. It's been tight among them for three days. If you have a boat big enough to hold a large crew, it offers a lot of advantages. Like rest and...

It's legal to possess and consume cannabis in Canada now, from coast to coast. The federal government owns the means of production, but small garden grows are allowed. Sales will be regulated by the provinces, and regulations range from provincially-operated stores only, to a mixture of province and private stores, to entirely private. You won't get busted (unless you are stupid), but pay attention to local rules. Edibles won't be allowed for...

I heard a radio story today with a Vancouver, BC, commenter about Canada legalizing weed. One of his lines was "In Vancouver, we can't remember if weed is legal or not."

Next week is good for several pot-related events around the country. Those on the east coast will be watching the first fully-licensed stores open up in Massachusetts. Their program is very similar to the western states, but it took them a while to get there due to some foot-dragging by the state. I'm skeptical about how many people want to buy Massachusetts weed, but they should do well initially serving the surrounding illegal states....