Last year, I carried bags of wildflower seeds on my walks to and from work and sowed them on to the empty spaces along my route. The results were modest, but measurable.

I'm doing it again this year. Here are a few of the spaces I've "flower bombed." I'll report back later this summer and provide you with some mouseover before-and-after photos of the results.

(Conrad Melville--AP, Seattle) In an unusual step, described by some as a massive resource grab, the United States Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is notifying state and local authorities in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho that as of July 2008, it will assume rights over unregulated fresh water wells and aquifers falling within the 10 mile buffer established in the Pacific Railway Act of 1862. According to the BLM, the rights created by the Pacific Railway Act of 1862 have never been enforced, but dwindling aquifers and climate change have created a sense of urgency and renewed interest in the old law. “The same forward thinking that created the transcontinental railroads, also provided the tools necessary to protect some of our most valuable resources,” said Ronald Coase, Director of the BLM’s Strategic Resource Management Unit based out of Boise, Idaho. Cities with populations over 100,000 have negotiated exemptions.

Many thanks to the person or persons who made the origami cranes and hung them on trees along the boardwalk. They were a lovely addition to my first walk of spring.

Spinning in the wind under each crane is a slip of paper inscribed with a message. This one says, Only by making room for everyone in the world, even our enemies, can the world survive. What ever tomorrow means to you, I wish you all a glorious spring and revival of spirit.

Between June 2005 and July 2006, about 11,000 individuals living in Olympia used services provided by the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services. Of those, approximately 3,700 were children. This information is available to the public at this website.

The site provides detailed, state, county and city-level information on the number of individuals using services and the total costs of services paid for by the state. The types of services described include programs for the elderly, substance abusers, children and families, developmentally disabled, low income families, juvenile offenders, publicly funded health care, mental health services, and vocational rehabilitation. For example, in Olympia, the state paid approxiamtely $2.6 million to provide nursing home care for 129 adults between June 2005 and July 2006.

I dropped a good friend off at SeaTac Airport last weekend, as a favor and as an excuse to stop for breakfast at the Poodle Dog Restaurant on the way home. I hadn’t eaten there in four years and wanted to see if anything had changed. The answer is “no.” The Poodle Dog remains a prototypical diner of the American west. It sits on the southwest corner of 54th Avenue and SR (Highway) 99 in Fife,flanked by cheap, strip-mall office space and nail salons.

The crab and havarti omelette special on the white board aside, the cuisine is exactly what you’d expect…affordable, American, heart-clogging, road-side comfort food. And if you’re not in the mood for a full meal, ask if they have any of their fresh-baked, homemade apple cobbler. The service is efficient, unobtrusive, and may even be provided by someone who will call you “honey.”

There are better places to eat, but the Poodle Dog offers more than, as the sign says, “Good Food.” It is one island in a slowly sinking archipelago. Our own version of Route 66, the Highway 99 is dotted with relics like the Poodle Dog and the Java Jive. Around Olympia, we know the old highway as Capitol Boulevard, Capitol Way, 4th Avenue, Pacific Avenue, and Martin Way. While the Java Jive has seen better days, The Poodle Dog still thrives…for now…but only a stone’s throw from a Taco Bell, Taco Time, Wendy’s, McDonalds, Pizza Hut, Denny’s, and Mitzel's American Kitchen. The near-by exit off I-5 probably saved the Poodle Dog but may eventually be its ruin. So go there now, before economic efficiency or the brothers McMenamin destroy yet another oasis in our ever-expanding desert of inauthenticity. Or is it a flood? Well, you know what I mean.

Olympia jazz pianist Jack Perciful died last Thursday at the age of 82. He played (and was running mates) with the great and departed Red Kelly, bassist, one time OWL Party candidate for Governor of Washington State, and owner of Red Kelly's Bar in Tacoma (now closed). The two played together at Kelly’s Tumwater Conservatory of Music. Question for you old timers: Where was the Tumwater Conservatory of Music?

Baby horned owls spotted this weekend at the Nisqually Wildlife Refuge.

If you were to take five days off in late March, where would you fly? I'd probably take my neglected camera with me, so consider that during your deliberations. The winning recommendation gets a prize. I am indifferent to domestc or international destinations.

As someone with an interest in water quality issues, I was pleased to see this article in our daily news organ. By happenstance, I was speaking with someone about stormwater  last night (yes, I'm a lot of fun) and this question came up. Is there a map or listing that shows which street drains lead to LOTT and which lead to Moxlie "Creek"?   My conversation partner was imagining improvements to our downtown alleys that might help mitigate some of the problems described in today's artice.  Perhaps a Stream Teamer would know.

Hope you're all having a swale day.