I think the budget and transportation packages passed at the end of the legislative session are pretty great. I would prefer no money for new highways, but overall, it feels like non-driving portions of the transit package are more than just an afterthought. And they didn’t fall into the trap of giving tax cuts when there’s a surplus.

Also, congrats to legislative staff on your right to organize!

And please wash your hands right now. And book an appointment today to get vaccinated or boosted if you’re eligible.

I think it was coming, but it’s nice to see Seattle extend outdoor seating (first item), with the intent to make it permanent. It is nice, especially as we’re lifting COVID-19 restrictions. I have family who won’t eat inside when there *are* vaccine requirements. So it’s nice that the option is there.

Anyway, please wash your hands right away. And get vaccinated or boosted.

Governor Inslee signed a bill into law on Friday to cap insulin at $35 a month in insurance plans. I was heartened to see that it was bipartisan. People want these sort of laws. They are obviously morally correct.

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

Good morning to everyone except Mike Kreidler. Come on, dude. Come on.

I am generally against people stepping down in the middle of their term. And I think that’s a good starting place as more information comes to light. But damn, treat your employees better.

Anyway, please wash your hands right now. And get vaccinated or boosted.

Good morning to the Washington State Senate. I am glad that they passed 2 important gun regulations. Untraceable ghost guns shouldn’t be out there, and there shouldn’t be guns at government meetings. So there is more work matching up the House and Senate versions of the local meetings bill. The ghost guns bill will be sent to Governor Inslee to be signed. Exciting.

Anyway, please wash your hands right now. If you’re not vaccinated, get vaccinated, and if you’re eligible, get boosted.

Today is the last day of the Seattle eviction moratorium. Nobody is getting kicked out of their house tomorrow, but the process of evicting people will start. I imagine a lot of landlords have already filled out paperwork. And rent may go up quickly. If you live in the city, you can apply for assistance.

Anyway, wash your hands right now. And get vaccinated or boosted.

Hello all you wonderful people. I have no news for you other than I am somewhat inexplicably tired. But talk amongst yourselves.

And it’s still a great time to wash your hands. And an even greater time to get vaccinated if you haven’t yet or boosted if you’re eligible.

Washington State has been partnering with pharmacies to give out N95 masks. But the policy hasn’t been very well publicized. I saw this Tweet back in January. But I never saw a good list of where they’re being handed out, and anyway I had several. But last weekend, I was running low, so I went to my local pharmacy and asked where they were and the lady working there went and grabbed me a handful. I hope that’s been happening throughout the state.

Anyway, please wash your hands right now. Now. And if you aren’t vaccinated, please get vaccinated. If you are eligible for the booster, please make an appointment.

I don’t have any data to support it, but walking around, it seems like there are more tents on the sidewalk Downtown, and in the rest of the urban core, than since near the start of the pandemic. I don’t know if it’s kicking people out of parks and neighborhoods.

In any event, I am glad to see the private sector is going to have navigators to help people out of homelessness. It’s been all hands on deck for a while, and any help is good. But the lack of housing is the biggest problem, and until the city addresses that, there’s only so much these teams can do.

Anyway, please wash your hands right now. And if you aren’t vaccinated, make an appointment today. If you’re eligible for the booster, get boosted.

Mayor Harrell gave his first State of the City address. Sweeps and hiring more police. Bidness! But also labor.

Anyway,please wash your hands. Right now! And for God’s sake, get vaccinated if you haven’t yet. Get boosted if you’re eligible.

Good morning. I am not sure that Inslee’s announcement of easing mask mandates at large outdoor spaces is the right call. Especially if he’s talking about further repealing the indoor mandates. I do want to see that at some point, but we’re still in the middle of it. I am glad he is being more cautious than many other governors, even Democratic governors.

Masks are a slight inconvenience, but people act like the sky is falling. It’s much worse to spread COVID-19. Let alone catch it.

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

So, Twitter has been dunking on this for a while. But it’s so weird. Councilmember Juarez is arguing that Pike Place Market is unsafe except “Saturday in broad daylight.” Like, I have talked to women who are concerned about being in high crime parts of the city. So I can understand if she said those blocks on 2nd Avenue near Westlake, or 12th and Jackson, or pick whatever park has a lot of tents right now. It might be a bit callous, but I would understand. But Pike Place? The biggest problem is crowding, not crime. I do most of my shopping at Pike Place, and I just don’t understand why she chose that as her example.

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

Here in Seattle, our levies passed fairly easily. So good for us. A quick perusal looks like they passed in a lot of other cities. But less so in some exurban and rural areas. Does anyone have a comprehensive list?

Anyway, please wash your hands right now. And if you aren’t vaccinated, please do it. If you aren’t boosted, do that.

Tomorrow is the last day to get your ballot postmarked or dropped off. So get on it. Please if you live in Seattle vote yes on both. And don’t forget about King Conservation District, our most ridiculous election.

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

Congratulations to the Snoqualmie Tribe on their purchase of the Snoqualmie Tribe Ancestral Forest. We shouldn’t throw away whatever skepticism wh have of logging interests when they talk about sustainability. But if any are going to, a tribe that considers the land sacred is a good bet.

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