Greta Thunberg has become the international avatar — in the dictionary sense, the “embodiment (as of a concept or philosophy)” — for young people fighting global climate change. It’s not just a concept or philosophy to 17-year-old Thunberg and her young cohorts. It’s a battle for survival in a world that indifferent adults have no interest in preserving for […]
No Bad Days
The only constant is change
Transition, if you stick around long enough, is something every organization deals with. As a small business owner, it can be especially challenging — you only have so many employees, and each one is valuable in their own way. They are the reason the business is going to be successful. We’re dealing with noteworthy transitions at the […]
What are you looking at?
For most of this country’s history, we looked upon public buildings as points of pride. They were grand, imposing, solid, symbolic. Courthouses, city halls, libraries, even schools — we expected them to make a statement about who we were as a community, tangible things that represent us as a society. They had ornate edifices, high ceilings, tall […]
Farewell to the sage of West Boesel
Three years ago, I wrote a valedictory piece about the Methow Valley News’ longtime Mazama columnist, Bob Spiwak, on the occasion of his retirement as regular contributor on the Valley Life page (although he continued to contribute in various ways, notably through his “Off the Wall” articles). Last weekend, while (appropriately, one might say) at […]
Tuesday on my mind
What can you do in the Methow Valley on a Tuesday in January? Tuesday is the dead zone, the doldrums, the non-eventful tweener day. It’s cold, it’s dark, the roads are snowy and the action-packed next weekend isn’t until, well, the end of the week. Even if you stay home, there aren’t any football games […]
For a few dollars more
It’s been more than six years since we raised the price of mail subscriptions to the Methow Valley News. In that time, most of our costs have gone up while our revenues have stayed basically flat. We have raised rates for retail and special publications advertising periodically, by small incremental amounts. The price for classifieds […]
On the receiving end
Maybe I look underfed (doubtful). Or just needy (more likely, especially when I’m fatigued and distracted). Anyway, I’ve had a couple of grocery store experiences in the past week that make me grateful for others’ generosity and, I suspect, their holiday spirit. At one store, as I was readying to pay for my small bag […]
News from the News
We’ve been trying to secure another vendor for our single-copy sales in Pateros since the previous vendor, under new ownership, decided not to continue selling the paper. It’s not easy to find a place that will deal with the logistics of displaying and selling newspapers, and the business paperwork that goes with that. We also […]
Locally sourced
I was in a local retail store last weekend, browsing a bit, when I overheard an obviously-not-from-here couple discussing an item the man liked (I wasn’t eavesdropping — it was close quarters). The woman suggested that he buy it. “I can get it online,” the man said as he examined the item. “But it’s right here, why […]
Make some news
It’s been another eventful year in the Methow Valley. You may think you have a pretty good handle on everything that’s happened since January, but we’re here to help refresh your memory — and to again ask you for assistane in determining the valley’s top 10 news stories of the year. For the past several years, we’ve […]
