Thursday, March 1, 2018

It’s March! The first day of Meteorological Spring! Take that in, and imagine all the warm evenings, sunny hikes, and barbecues to come. Today is Thursday, March 1, 2018. There’s a full moon hanging up there to greet the new month; it’s the Snow Moon, and sure enough, we have a bit of snow in the forecast…but not today. Today we’ll have chilly showers, afternoon thunder, and a high of 45. But tonight, tomorrow, and Saturday we could see a smidge of white fluff, and after that, the word snow does not appear at all in the AccuWeather month-long outlook. And how could we not believe in something called AccuWeather? This morning’s sunrise is at 6:48 AM, and sunset 5:57 PM.

Today’s news story that might affect our region the most directly is this afternoon’s launch of the next-generation Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite. That’s NOAA’s hugely upgraded weather spy, nicknamed GOES-West, that will park in the heavens 22,300 miles above the Pacific, and keep a high-definition vigil on the atmospheric triggers for all the meteorological things that affect our lives. The result will be more accurate weather forecasts than we’ve ever seen.

Thousands of Portlanders may be given new street addresses. The neighborhood along the Willamette that includes the Old Spaghetti Factory has always been confusing to newcomers and longtimers alike, with addresses beginning in zero…so beginning in a few years, they may be known as “South Portland,” with addresses like “715 S. Bancroft” for the Spaghetti Factory, instead of “0715.”

The clamor went on long into the night as the Portland City Council heard testimony on whether to make permanent the “mandatory relocation assistance [at landlord expense] for involuntary displacement of tenants.” They’ll vote next week.

City Hall today considers adding muscle to Portland’s sanctuary city status–and putting a thumb in the eye of those who oppose it–by establishing a legal defense fund to provide representation for immigrants documented or otherwise.

A bill that would put Oregon on board with the national movement for electing the president by popular vote rather than electoral college is gasping for air in Salem.

President Trump roamed far off-script at an open-mic meeting on gun violence with members of Congress. The comments include this about disarming people with mental problems: “I like taking the guns early … Take the guns first, go through due process second.” And this, spoken to fellow Republicans: “[The NRA] has great power over you people. They have less power over me. I don’t need it.” And “You’re afraid of the NRA.”

Trumpwatchers are trying to discern precisely why Hope Hicks is resigning; she’s the 29-year old former teen model who became one of the most powerful and yet least-visible people in Washington as the president’s trusted communications director. The news may or may not be related to her 8 hours on the stand at the House Intelligence Committee, where she admitted that her job required her to tell the occasional “white lie” on Trump’s behalf, but never, she said, pertaining to Russia.

Vladimir Putin says Russia has developed new nuclear weapons, including a nuclear-powered cruise missile and a nuclear-powered underwater drone, that would be immune to enemy (that’s us) defenses.

A Lake Oswego property owner is wondering who chopped down 33 trees on his land.

Tweet from the Multnomah County Bridge Department: “Hallelujah! All four lanes of the Broadway Bridge are again open to traffic, as replacement of the steel wheels and tracks that help open the bridge is nearly complete.”

Blind Pilot plays at the Schnitz tonight, assuming their plane can find the airport.

And wrapping up with the popular H(4a)HH segment, where I paste in a real news headline, and you just imagine the details (or google for the full story):

–“A Mysterious Group Just Installed 50 Swings Around San Francisco”

–“The hit motion picture Black Panther increasing adoption of black cats (often the least likely to be adopted)”

–“White Wedding in the UK: Around 30 local people gather to clear the road so a wedding could still take place despite snow”

–“Six days a week, a suburban mom drives a pickup truck to inner-city Detroit, dropping off whatever’s needed”

–“Extremely Rare Yellow Cardinal–a One in a Million Mutation–Has Been Spotted In Alabama”

I’ll be making myself scarce, too, for the next few days, for a family gathering. First, wish me luck in tonight’s Schoolhouse Supplies Celebrity Spelling Bee, where I’m teamed up with KATU/Jammin 107.5 personality Tra’ Renee Chambers. So no Friday DD, and same on Monday, unless, you know. Stuff happens!