Tasha the Tortishell is a beautiful 5 year old kitty looking to find a home to spend the rest of her days in. Change can be unsettling for cats, and they sometimes need a little extra time to realize…

I’m sitting at my kitchen table. It’s pouring outside. Isabelle taps the back door to go out. I let her out. The linoleum is freckled with muddy paw prints documenting her forays to and from the…

Pets and babies. Both are adorable. They compel us to whip out our phones – or an actual camera – and capture that cuteness for all eternity. But darn it! They move! And fast. I have countless…

Dear Shopper, There are actually several new tech products on the market today that are designed specifically for older boomers and seniors that are unfamiliar or uncomfortable with technology. These devices come equipped with simplified software,…

Our beautiful little redhead, Samantha (Sami) Schaeffer, went home to be with the Lord at 11:55am on December 2, 2014. Though she was never expected to take a single breath on this earth, she lived for 27 glorious years that were filled with love and…

“Dushka!” A puppy zips past me. It skitters into a turn, commences a full body wriggle and jigs back for a quick hello sniff. I give its chocolaty brown head a pat – or try to. It’s squirming so…

The Park Planning Committee met this week. They were presented with five potential plans for the park. They narrowed the selection to two. Both include the dog park, but it may be in a new location or configuration. These preliminary plans will be…

“What should I say?” That was the very first thing I asked myself when I was first asked to become a regular contributor to the Lake Stevens Journal. What in the world should a married, father of four, pastor from Alabama with a degree in dirt fr…

Massage… Just hearing the word makes my whole body relax, brings a smile to my lips and compels me to take deep cleansing breaths. Ahhhh. Although viewed as an indulgence, massage has myriad health…

Last week, a local dog owner told me about his first dog park experience: “It was awful! Two dogs started fighting. There was blood, the owners had to pull them apart, my dog freaked out… It was…

This past Friday my community was shaken by the news that one of our children had opened fire in a cafeteria filled with other children, wounding, killing and terrifying before taking his own life. It’s a tragedy that is heart-wrenching and gut…

The sultry dog days of summer – or in our case, September – are gone. October toyed with us masquerading as summer until its final days. November is making its entrance with howling winds,…

Born 7-23-78, passed away suddenly and way too soon on 10-18-2014 in Big Sky, Montana. Jason is survived by his parents, Caroline and Terry Titmus, his brothers Joshua, Jennifer and their sons William and Dakota of Kettle Falls and Braden, Jennifer…

At the beginning of October, as Isabelle and I returned to the car, I noticed a letter-sized piece of paper stapled to the bulletin board standing at the junction of the parking lot and the path to the off-leash area. It wasn’t particularly…

I have a crush.  His name is Whelan. He’s got a satiny, chocolate brown coat, soulful eyes that sparkle when he plays and irresistible droopy ears that hang practically to his knees. When he’s…

Isabelle has a little sister! Of sorts. My good friend Scott added Carla to his household last week. Carla and Isabelle have the same parents but are a year apart. The girls have yet to meet. Carla needs a few more shots before she can mingle safely…

Dear Cautious, Depending on your health, age and personal preference, there’s a buffet of flu shots available to seniors this flu season, along with two vaccinations for pneumonia that you should consider getting too. Flu Shots Options Just as…

Isabelle and I go to the dog park early on Wednesday’s. It’s always a crap shoot: will there be other dogs there or not? Happily, we’ve been running into Dizzy. Dizzy is a short-haired mix of a dog…

Karen L Alessi, nee Johnson, was born in Seattle on February 20, 1939 and died in Everett, WA from complications of Alzheimer’s disease on September 24, 2014. She is survived by Art, her husband of 50 years, Allison, their daughter, her brother,…

You are short, you are squat and inherently stunted. Your poor nose smashed in, your jowls fleshy bunting. Your torso a triangle: wide chest, narrow flanks. Your gait slightly buoyant, bowed legs act…

They burst into the park, two black and white ping pong balls of fur, tails curled, ice blue eyes sparkling, bounding effortlessly over the ground delighting in the act of running. Siberian huskies….

Pierce County Sheriff Department, We Help the Missing, and the family of Chris Virdell is seeking the public’s assistance in locating missing person, Chris Virdell. Chris was 18 years old at the time he went missing and was last seen on February 9,…

1941- 2014 Passed away July 16th 2014, 3:15 pm at home in Klickitat Washington. Earl was born in Concrete Washington, as a kid the family moved to Lake Stevens where he met his wife Carol Gates of 40…

Dear Savvy Senior, I run a community counseling program for needy families and am frustrated that so few eligible seniors take advantage of the food stamp program. Can you write a column on this to help educate seniors to this under utilized…

Poop scooping is a frequent topic of dog park conversation. We’re standing in an open field. Why are we scooping? It’s biodegradable, right? Why are we tip-toeing through the grass hunting for poop…