Edmonds Beacon - Your Hometown News Source

I don't like to admit that I'm more of a worrier than I want to be. How about you? Do you spend more time worrying about what could happen tomorrow than trying to live your best... — Updated 9/14/2023

I really like music. Who doesn't? But, unfortunately, I can't sing or play a musical instrument. I sang in a school chorus as a kid, with others thankfully drowning me out. And I... — Updated 8/31/2023

Forgive me, lady readers, if I'm lucky enough to still have any of you. Several weeks ago I wrote a column titled "Can I quote you on that?" That piece referenced mostly humorous... — Updated 8/17/2023

I don't like it, not at all. Who would? I try to spin a positive story, and that usually works. But today I'm kind of lost. You know that expression about not seeing the forest for... — Updated 8/2/2023

Albert Einstein, Yogi Berra, Willie Nelson, and Mark Twain. What a group of exceptional gentlemen, who contributed so much to our country and world during their lives and ours,... — Updated 7/13/2023

I'm sorry, I really don't get it. Why does everything these days seem so contentious, controversial, and polarized? And not just our politics – the list is long. School... — Updated 6/22/2023

Maybe my father was right when he sent me a newspaper clipping many years ago about a college classmate of mine who had achieved a high political office. “If only you had his... — Updated 6/8/2023

Little did I know when I settled in Edmonds over 15 years ago that my new home city was destined to become a dining destination. As someone who lives to eat, rather than eats to liv... — Updated 5/11/2023

Writing this column is fun for me, and I hope occasionally fun for you to read. Which brings me to my topic for today: What is fun for you? Or what makes you happy? Even in our... — Updated 4/6/2023

My former colleagues at the University of Washington, where I worked for almost 25 years, had a nickname for me. They called me the Mad Hatter. Not because I was mad, I hope, but... — Updated 3/23/2023

A long, long time ago, watching television didn't cost anything. Although there wasn't a whole lot to watch then. Every night at 11 p.m. the stations played the national anthem to s... — Updated 3/9/2023

My mind works in very strange ways. To say it "works" might be an overstatement. When contemplating what to write about this week, for some odd reason I thought of Dick's... — Updated 3/2/2023

A lot of people find things they don't like about Amazon and Jeff Bezos, but I think the good about the company far outweighs the bad. As an Amazon Prime member, along with an... — Updated 2/9/2023

Is it possible to write your way out of the doldrums? Like most actions, it depends on your thinking and attitude. I know that actions really do speak louder than words. Still, I... — Updated 1/19/2023

Quiet time is such a blessing. Like a snow day for your mind. When it’s quiet, you can think. And the possibilities are infinite. I’ll bet most of the great inventors first came... — Updated 1/12/2023

What's wrong with fruitcake, I'd like to know? Why do people look at me the way they do, as if I'm, well, nutty as a fruitcake, whenever I say I like it? Fruitcake should be eaten,... — Updated 12/28/2022

I can't help myself. Each holiday season I just have to write at least one poem or essay expressing my feelings on a timely topic such as Christmas excesses, mall mania, or the... — Updated 12/8/2022

A lot of people play “Words with Friends.” To me, words are friends. Especially words that sound nice when you hear them, or have especially important meanings. The word... — Updated 12/1/2022

I’m getting kind of tired of being told whatever I like to eat is bad for me. I could be wrong of course, but I believe stress is much more likely than sugar to do me in. While I... — Updated 11/10/2022

Who doesn’t have opinions? Just ask anyone in your family or circle of friends. That’s why reviews and comments about places to eat, movies to see, and books to read are among t... — Updated 11/3/2022

Edmonds, about a dozen miles north of Seattle on Puget Sound, is about as good a place as it gets. At least travel guru Rick Steves of PBS fame thinks so. When Rick’s not travelin... — Updated 10/27/2022

I have this flaw. I tend to talk too much and, worse yet, sometimes interrupt others. How rude! In fact, I even interrupt myself. Not so rude. It doesn't make it OK, but I know why... — Updated 10/13/2022

Bad vision teaches you to have patience. Things I never thought twice about before my vision went south a few years ago now take at least twice as long to do. Like simple cooking... — Updated 9/14/2022

“The middle of the road is all of the usable surface. The extremes, right and left, are in the gutters.” – Dwight D. Eisenhower I don’t know who said we Americans are the... — Updated 9/8/2022

I happen to like a good challenge, and now I've got one. My left eye is pretty useless, and my so-called good right one seems to be dimming. My double whammy is myopic degeneration... — Updated 8/18/2022