What's Tony Thinking

Autumn Hints

August 14, 2020 — Here in the Northwest, and in Eastern Oregon, we’re in for a warm stretch this weekend, but overall I’m beginning to feel the hints of seasonal change in the air. The nights are getting cool. Most of all it’s the slant of sun, the changes in the light. Here at the cabin the fat little... Read More

Leadership in Seattle is a Tough Gig: Just Ask Carmen Best

August 12, 2020 — Former cop and 2019 City Council candidate, Jim Pugel, had it right in his comment on the City Council’s treatment of Police Chief Carmen Best. Pugel said, “Those people [the City Council] act like good chiefs just grow on trees.” Council members caved into demands for a quick fix by slashing the police budget and... Read More

One More Time: The Trump/ Evangelical Conundrum

August 11, 2020 — When I ride my bike out on in the Wallowa Valley farmlands, I often go by a farm where we used to buy milk and eggs when I was a kid. One of my aunts had gone to school with Reena, the woman who lived with her family on that farm. When we stopped for... Read More

This, That and Another Thing

August 8, 2020 — We, Linda, Laura, and I, had a beautiful hike along the Imnaha River yesterday. We camped the night before in one of our favorite campgrounds, Indian Crossing. Then in the morning set out for Imnaha Falls, 5.7 miles from the campground. So the roundtrip was a good bit of exertion, but the temperatures were in... Read More

The Roots of Wokeness

August 5, 2020 — Several years ago I did the training to become a Seattle Urban Nature Guide with the Seattle Parks Department. Most of the training was run by the naturalists at Discovery Park. But there was a “diversity training” segment for which a different team of trainers was brought in. I think they worked for the City... Read More

Incredible Beauty

August 4, 2020 — Back from our three-day trip into the high country and Frances Lake in the Eagle Cap Wilderness. Some readers may recall my post of a week ago in which I cited widely varying opinions about the degree of difficulty of the trail. So which was it? The most “difficult and demanding hike in the Eagle... Read More

A Funny Thing Happened On the Way to the Lecture

July 30, 2020 — About a year ago I was contacted by a church in Arizona that was establishing a lecture series in honor of their recently deceased pastor. They invited me to give the inaugural lecture in the autumn of 2020. I accepted their invitation. Before long they asked me to provide a title for my lecture, so... Read More

Sorting Among Widely Varying Opinions

July 27, 2020 — This weekend I did a one night backpacking trip to Aneroid Lake in the Eagle Cap Wilderness. Aneroid is one of the closer of the 53 lakes in the Eagle Cap wilderness, so it gets a lot of traffic this time of year. Still, the trail takes you through some of most lovely meadows on... Read More

From the Wallowas

July 24, 2020 — It is the last weekend of July, which for 75 years has meant “Chief Joseph Days,” here in Joseph, Oregon and Wallowa County. That is until this year. CJD 2020 was cancelled earlier this summer because of the pandemic. For 75 years, however, the rodeo — running four nights — was the marquee attraction. And... Read More

Your Crown Has Been Bought and Paid For (archive edition)

July 23, 2020 — I wrote this piece during the 2018 election cycle. It has been a popular read ever since. Its message remains important, now more than ever. And is especially appropriate as we mourn John Lewis and C. T. Vivian. The best speech I heard on voting in the run up to these mid-terms came from Oprah... Read More

Older posts