So I'm back in my spot in Chimacum staring at brown sheds instead of $10 million motor yachts, ferry boats, kayaks, and seals, otters, eagles. I gotta figure out how to spend more time up there. My neighbor in dry camp (there are two cheaper spots with no hookups in the park) woke me last night with a problem. He was in a small camper, a van conversion, and had run down his engine battery so he couldn't start the van. He asked for some things...

You might recall the R2AK, where any boat you might have races from Port Townsend to Ketchikan, provided it doesn't have a motor. It's 750 miles, and presents some very difficult challenges, including completing the race. Past finishers have sailed, rowed, and paddled. It starts this coming Thursday. Usually, the "winners" are big ocean-racing catamarans, able to complete the race in just a few days; others require three weeks. I was surprised...

I'm at the Point Hudson Marina and RV park for about a week, my annual stay in downtown Port Townsend. I tried to time it so I'd be here for the run-up to the Race to Alaska, but I missed it. I'll talk more about R2AK later in the week. Weather will be some sun, some clouds, and some rain.

Oregon's strategy for implementing a legal and regulated retail market for marijuana was to leave it open for anyone, anywhere to start a business quickly and cheaply within reasonable rules. They have around 4000 licenses issued, with another couple thousand in the works. They've now announced they will stop processing any new applications. Once a state starts licensing they are obligated to monitor and enforce their rules, which turns out to...

My cardio doctor says I need another angio-whatever, a very routine simple procedure I've done before. That means the time I set aside for medical stuff this summer is now mine. No major surgeries or recovery time.

A couple of weeks ago, the Washington Liquor and Cannabis Board announced they had worked off the 7000 pending cannabis applications that were submitted six years ago. WA has a limit on the number of retail stores, around 550, but about 450 are actually generating revenue. There is a limit on the farmers as well, but that limit was not well thought out and the result is there isn't a limit. Stores that haven't opened for business are mostly in...

Justin Trudeau made a campaign promise to legalize marijuana, and demanded such by summer of 2018 when he got elected. He required two conditions: keep it away from kids, and away from organized crime. After that the provinces were charged with developing their own details. Ignoring the fact that the deed wasn't done at the federal level, the provinces dove in and invented yet another set of laws to regulate the industry. Those laws are now...

I'm laughing at a couple of my fellow potential jurors. #42 sat next to me (I was #41), a large bulky fellow of the type routinely seen around the marina, doing the "lift this, carry that" type of work. When confronted with questions about "beyond reasonable doubt" and "Would jury duty impede your income?", his only answer was "Uh?", except once when he answered "I guess" #28 explained early on she was manic-depressive, could control herself for...

I was looking forward to possibly serving on a jury in Jefferson County, but after spending an entire day on hard benches sitting through the jury selection process, I missed being selected by just 2 numbers. I was number 15, but there's only 13 seats in the jury box. The case was a meth head that violated a restraining order and robbed some stuff. He was apparently going to plead "the meth made me do it". I'm glad I didn't have to sit through...

At this point in time, the only argument in opposition to legal cannabis is the fear of the unknown. And there are still a lot of unknowns, but for the most part the real risks have been mitigated by the regulatory system. A big question has always been about public consumption, and it's been fear that no one has allowed such in any way, shape, or form. Rather than try to codify consumption etiquette, all localities have opted for complete...

The new legal marijuana system in California is coming online much slower than anticipated. The main factor is likely the "dual permit" system, whereby a state license won't be issued until the local jurisdiction issues a permit. Over half of the local jurisdictions currently do not issue permits, either with outright bans on legal pot businesses or because they are still developing the rules for issuing licenses. Costs for a state license are...

When I first heard of this street project, I knew that the city would be able to do it without closing down the sidewalk or the businesses. They're doing it. Water Street is PT's main drag through downtown. It's the only drag through town. PT is rebuilding Water Street, from sidewalk to road surface to utility locations. During the winter, tourist traffic is miniscule, but the shops stay open just in case. Therefore, there must be a walkway and...