I don't know if I'm typical, average, normal or something else. When I retired from my regular job as a public information specialist at the University of Washington several years ago, I hadn't made …

I first arrived in the Seattle area in 1979 driving a big ol' gas-guzzling Oldsmobile. An absolute clunker! But that car played a major role in my journey to acceptance of public transportation. …

I don't wanna be a bah humbug sorta guy or Grinch again this holiday season, but isn't Christmas supposed to be more than just a bunch of stuff we buy from Amazon, Walmart, and Macy's that everybody …

My mom passed a long time ago when she was only 54. My grandmother has been gone since I was a youngster, and my dad passed more than 20 years ago. The three of them taught me many important …

If only we could have a change of heart. Not all of us, of course. Just the too many who believe the world is an impossible mess and continue with a stream of negative doomsday philosophy that …

A lot of people around here seem to have an aversion to riding public transportation. Especially light rail. Even when they don't have a car. Sound Transit seems to be betting billions that …

One thing almost always leads to something entirely different when I sit down to write these columns. Let me tell you how the following narrative evolved. I was going to write about balance in …

Would you like to write a book, movie screenplay, TV script, poem, or even just a letter to the editor of the Edmonds Beacon? Well, what the heck is stopping you? Don't you know that practically …

The other day I went to Trader Joe's to pick up a few essentials, like fresh-squeezed orange juice, romaine lettuce, bananas, and watermelon chunks. After shopping, I felt a sense of pride and …

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 took turns trying …

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 things famous …

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, too. And I'm not …

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 curricula, books, best …

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 drive,” Dad …

What you think of me is none of my business. I heard this statement a long time ago, and it has stuck with me. Still, I have to admit I do care what people think of me. Which brings me to what …

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 live, I am …

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 just completed …

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 rather because I …

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 signal the end …

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 hamburgers. …