Hey you! Yes, you. The legislature is meeting remotely. That means you, yes you, can testify without traveling to Olympia. So, you, yes you, should. We’ve had 2 years of learning how Zoom works, so go for it.

And please wash your hands right now. If you aren’t vaccinated, quit wasting time and make an appointment.

Another problem year in the books. Things got a lot better, especially after Trump left office. In King County, we have mostly returned to normal for healthy, vaccinated people. You have to wear a mask, but also otherwise it’s fine. Bars are open. Schools are mostly open. Restaurants are open. The library is open. I spent Christmas with vaccinated family. Public transportation is less used than pre covid, but it’s getting back.

But man, I know that’s not true everywhere. And it wasn’t true for most of the year. It has been slow, slow, slow.

Anyway, please wash your hands right now. And for goodness sake, get vaccinated if you haven’t yet.

Here’s a thread I made just for you.

I am probably going to halfass these even more than usual until January.

Man, I don’t know how to feel about Senator Ericksen dying. Obviously, any loss of human life is sad. And you should feel bad for his family. It stinks. While there are things you can do, dying of COVID, or anything else, isn’t a morality tale.

He also made COVID-19 worse in the state, and — because we’re not hermetically sealed — the rest of the country and world. His legacy of conservative advocacy is pretty gross. It’s the sort of thing that you hope to defeat in elections. Having a death short-circuit that leaves a void.

Anyway, on that bummer note, please wash your hands right now. And get vaccinated or boosted if you’re eligible.

Good morning. I hope you are all doing well. I am still feeling a bit yucky from the dentist. So not thrilled about that.

Anyway, please wash your hands right now, and get vaccinated or boosted (boosted?) if you haven’t yet.

Sorry I didn’t write something yesterday. I went to the dentist in the morning and felt not good for the rest of the day. I still don’t feel great, but here we are.

Over the weekend, King County passed 80% of residents 5 and older vaccinated. If you’re in King County, and you’re one of those people, I am so glad we’re in it together. We’re getting it done. With Omicron coming, we’re prepared pretty well. I am proud to live here.

And hey, wash your hands right now. And get vaccinated or boosted if you haven’t yet,

The omicron variant is being found in several Washington locations. 6 of the 9 cases are in King County. I don’t have any idea if it’s in King County more than the rest of the state, or if more testing is being done in King County.

Anyway, please wash your hands right now. And for goodness sake, if you aren’t vaccinated, get vaccinated, and if you aren’t boosted (boosterized?) get it.

The police should not roll their bicycle over protesters (point 2). And 10 day unpaid suspension, possibly broken up, seems like a slap on the wrist. Come on. And you have to think it would have been even less if it hadn’t been caught on tape.

Anyway, please wash your hands right now. And get vaccinated or boosted (boostered?) if you haven’t yet.

I have no idea how to estimate the post election swing on this recall. If Sawant was only down 53 to 46 in previous elections, you would have to say it was a gimme. But a higher percent of the votes have been counted (King County has the same facilities, but only one election). And recalls aren’t the same as general elections. So we’ll see. Probably more quickly than usual.

Annnnnyway, please wash your hands right now. And if aren’t vaccinated, please do. If you haven’t been boosted and you are available, please do. I have my booster appointment this weekend. There were plenty of slots available in South Lake Union when I signed up last night.

If you live in the 3rd District in Seattle, you have until tomorrow to drop off or have your ballot postmarked. Again, I hope you will oppose the recall. Sawant is good on the council, and the recall is a net negative waste of time and money even for a more typical member.

Also, I appreciate the residents of the tiny house village in the U District being neighborly, but there’s something off about this story. People transitioning out of homelessness can be good stewards of the place seems obvious enough that maybe it doesn’t need a story. But maybe it’s a good counter to the relentless negative messaging around the unhoused that it does need saying sometimes?

Anyway, please wash your hands right now. And hey, get vaccinated or get boosted if you’re eligible.

Good morning. If you live in the 3rd District in Seattle, I hope you will vote again the recall of Kshama Sawant. I am glad that she has been a left anchor on the council. From the $15 minimum wage to holding the line on many progressive issues, she has been a net positive on the council.

Furtjer, the things that she is accused of are pretty ticky tacky. If you want to fine her, I guess? But having wealthy people fund her recall is not reasonable or proportionate. It’s tough to imagine one of the more conservative members facing a recall for similar reasons.

I will also add that many of the arguments against her were true when she ran last time. DSA has too much power in her office? She can be tough to work with? These arguments were made and rejected. She’ll be up for reelection, or won’t run in less than 2 years if you want to recruit someone.

Anyway, please wash your hands right now. And get vaccinated if you haven’t yet.

I have no idea if a $3.5 million settlement is correct for the Charleena Lyles case. It seems like a poor substitute to having her around. And I can’t imagine how difficult it would be for her children who were there. My goodness.

But given that the police killed her, a large settlement is in order. I have trouble wrapping my mind around any large amounts of money.

Anyway, please wash your hands right now. And get vaccinated if you haven’t yet.

I don’t approve of the heavy rain. I like Western Washington autumn and winter to be constantly drizzly. What the hell is this deluge and dry nonsense? Anyway, flood watches are being canceled today, but will return with the rain later this week.

Anyway, please wash your hands right now. And if you have been vaccinated, awesome. I know that’s most people reading this. If you haven’t, get on it.

Crosscut is getting rid of its opinion section. I am more interested in their news than their opinion.

I also don’t exactly know what Crosscut is for: If it’s for Seattle, giving John Carlson a regular gig seems like more wingnut welfare (although googling this, it looks like it’s been a minute). If it’s for a wider regional audience, the opinions seem more narrow than the news coverage. Right now, the 3 latest opinion pieces have “Seattle” in the headline.

Anyway, please wash your hands right now. And get vaccinated if you haven’t yet, you jerkoff.