Paper or Plastic? That'll be 20 cents, please

This blows my mind:

Seattle Times Story about bag fee and foam ban

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Seattle approves bag fee and foam ban

Beginning in January, shoppers must pay 20 cents for each plastic or paper bag they use at grocery, drug and convenience stores in Seattle. The Seattle City Council this afternoon also passed a ban on foam containers at food-service businesses that will take effect in January.

By Sharon Pian Chan

Seattle Times staff reporter

Beginning in January, shoppers must pay 20 cents for each plastic or paper bag they use at grocery, drug and convenience stores in Seattle.

The Seattle City Council this afternoon also passed a ban on foam containers at food-service businesses that also will take effect in January.

The city will distribute at least one free reusable bag per household, and it will consider providing more free bags to low-income shoppers.

"This is a voluntary fee," said Council President Richard Conlin, who worked with Mayor Greg Nickels on the proposal. "No one has to pay it. You only have to pay it if you choose not to use reusable bags."

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If plastic and paper bags are now officially deemed a threat by the glorious Seattle City council, and must be taxed out of existence, what is next? Banning smoking in restaurants and bars? Oh, yeah, they've done that already. Ban fires on the beaches (due to the emissions of CO2, dontcha know)? They'll take that up again next year. Installing cameras in your home to ensure proper thinking and speaking? OK, I made that one up...

Kayaking!

My friend Mike invited me to go kayaking with him today at Greenlake (him and his wife each have a kayak, so he had one to loan). We loaded up the gear and headed to Greenlake at 10:45 AM. We got there, unloaded, and went kayaking around the lake from about 11:30 AM to 1:00 PM. I crossed the lake a few times, cruised the shore and Mike went fishing. He caught a nice trout (which he fried up for lunch when we got back). I've been canoeing before, and enjoyed it, but I forgot how much fun it is, this trip was a blast today! It was sunny, warm and a bit breezy. Great therapy & exercise, being on the water. The views of the city from Greenlake are great. I'm looking forward to the next trip!

My Rock Star Step-Brother John

I was a bit surprised but very proud and pleased to read this in the local music tabloid here in Seattle:

Friday 7/4

The Model Rockets, the Tripwires, Doll Test

(Tractor) If the words "Seattle," "power pop" and "genius" are used in the same sentence, there's a good chance that John Ramberg is the topic of conversation. Lately, the genre's secret weapon/superhero has most frequently been spotted fronting the Tripwires and rocking out with the Minus 5. Tonight, however, he's reconvened his old band, the Model Rockets, and they're going to knock your socks off. Far from being a stroll down memory lane, this is a reunion that should get your blood pumpin' and your body movin' and a-shakin'. The Model Rockets always emphasized the "power" in "power pop," and their '60s-inspired pop gems had just the right amount of dirt under their fingernails. They still do. Barbara Mitchell

http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/Content?oid=612025&ms

Yay, John!! No one's ever called me a "genius" haha

I'm sorry I missed the show, but I always enjoy seeing John's bands live.

A friend asked me just last night why I'm not famous- my brother Scott is locally famous as a motorbike racing genius and John as a musical genius. I guess natural gifts aren't always distributed evenly... However, I do have the natural ability to Russian dance which makes me the "funny human tricks" guy at many a wedding and parties!

Passion For Murder

I have been keeping busy with my time off : ) I've been working on a website with my Uncle Butch to promote his book, "Passion For Murder: The Homicidal Deeds of Dr. Sigmund Freud". Butch wrote and published the book back in 1984. It is well documented and researched.

When I visited Butch in March, he showed me that copies of the original publication are selling for over $100 on the internet. That of course sparked my interest, and I offered to work with him to promote the book. He happily agreed.

A fruit of that labor is www.passionformurder.com, which we just launched today! Please take a look and give me any feedback you'd like to give (good, bad or ugly!).