CamanoCommunity

From Grow Northwest:

STANWOOD – The annual Country Living Expo and Cattleman’s Winterschool returns on Saturday, Jan. 28, offering more classes than ever. A total of 160 classes and workshops in country living, self-reliance, sustainability, maintenance and more will be available to participants at the all-day event at Stanwood High School.

The event includes classes and workshops, as well as demonstrations, lunch and a chance to meet businesses providing agricultural services from across the Northwest.

The classes, taught by local instructors, range from food preservation and backyard chicken flock to cheesemaking and gardening. New this year, according to Program Coordinator Joan Devries, are subjects such as grinding your own grains, permaculture homesteading, making jerky, braising inexpensive meats, integrating small livestock into a city yard, and tackling poultry issues such as hatching. In addition, classes to help stretch food dollars, as well as dying yarns, processing fiber, and beekeeping are also sought after. Read More »

by Ginger Kauffman

I wasn’t in the mood for a romance novel, not at all. I had no intention of reading this book. But before I put it in the go-back-to-the-library pile I thought I’d just thumb through it. Next thing you know, I was hooked!

The Longing Season by Christine Schaub is set in the mid-1700s. It tells an intricately woven tale of 20-year-old John Newton and the woman he loved, Mary Catlett. Having just watched the film Amazing Grace, in which we meet and old and blind John Newton, I was curious to get a glimpse into his earlier life.

The story of John and Mary was beautifully told. They met when John was 17 and Mary 13, but they were separated by John’s life at sea. The Longing Season focuses on the years in which John was both a seaman and a slave, from 1746 to 1748. With well developed characters and comfortable familiarity with such varied topics as 18th century England, herbal medicines, British military and the perils of life on the sea, the author draws you into John and Mary’s love and the separation they must endure.

via Three Minutes to Nine: The Longing Season.

From Your Island County Sheriff:

• A caller on Jan. 8 reported that a dozen cats were living in a vacant house on Swanson Lane.

• Deputies responded to a burglary at a South Camano Drive vacation home on Jan. 7. The owners of the residents weren’t sure when it had happened.

• Jan. 7, a Bretland Road resident reported finding a backpack with a handgun in it while walking his property.

• Deputies received a report on Jan. 7 that a gray Ford F-150 had crossed the centerline and almost hit an oncoming vehicle near the intersection of N. East Camano Drive and McElroy Drive. The caller said the vehicle was headed toward Stanwood. Read More »

by Norman W Wilson, PhD

Toward the end of the last century, the Washington Post published an article  by Alfie Kohn: A Look At . . . Getting Back to Basics First Lesson: Unlearn How We Learned. (October 10, 1999.) Mr. Kohn’s opening sentence rang true then and unfortunately rings true today. He wrote, “We are facing an educational emergency in this country.” He went on to say, “Much of the current crisis is the result of policies enacted in the name of improving schools—specifically, in the name of standards and accountability. Over a decade later, government, both state and national, school districts, foundations, think-tank groups, teacher unions, and teachers are still groping for solutions.

The call for more standardized testing, more evaluations of teachers, getting back to basics  still dominates the educational culture as well as that of the public. Both need to step back from the old tired clichés and take an honest look at what education is supposed to be about. The obvious problem with raising standards then, and it’s still true today is that generally it means higher scores on poorly designed standardized tests. And I’ve written about that several times. Two billion dollars are spent each year on standardized testing, and four test design companies get that money. Imagine what could be done with that amount of money in improving teachers’ teaching-learning skills. Read More »

Fern is a beautiful blue-eyed Snowshoe Siamese. She is 6 years young and loves to snuggle with some of the cats she knows at the shelter.

Although Fern is a bit on the shy side here at the shelter, she loves to be petted by the people who quietly give her a chance. Everyone who gets her on their lap falls in love. Fern is looking for a safe indoor home which is quiet and maybe with another mellow cat for added company. If you don’t have another cat we are sure Fern would love to take one of her CASA feline friends home with her.

Please come see Fern at the shelter, you will likely find her in the pink room.

Our animal shelter cares for both dogs and cats on Camano Island. We are an independent organization but do hold a contract with Island County to provide temporary care for impounded dogs on the island. Apart from that, CASA accepts stray dogs from the public and owner surrendered dogs as space allows. Our organization also cares for the island’s cats. We know that cats make up a very large part of Camano Island’s pet population. We care for stray or abandoned cats and accept owner surrendered cats as space allows. Read More »