Praying for April showers: Temperatures stayed close to normal this March, but Seattle saw about half as much rain as it usually does for the month. Meteorologists are hoping to get back on track with some April showers. This first week of April is looking pretty warm and pretty dry. Maybe there will be some moisture come Friday? 

Oh, right. Happy April Fools' Day: April Fools' was funnier before it became a giant marketing campaign. Still, it's kinda fun to see what the companies will do to impress us today. Have you seen anything good so far? I saw 7-Eleven's hot dog-flavored sparkling water and that Tinder made a fake job posting looking for "a vice president of ghost hunting" (13 people have applied). The day is still young.

 

 

 

Down with the ship: A Lake Union houseboat sank on Saturday. In doing so, it leaked 30 to 50 gallons of marine diesel fuel. Contractors with the Washington Department of Ecology were able to contain the leak so it didn't spread to different parts of the lake. Still, another good reason to stick to swimming in Lake Washington and not Lake Union. 

Snowboarder dies in Mount St. Helens avalanche: The snowboarder likely triggered the avalanche that killed him when he reached the peak of Mount St. Helens and caused "an overhanging mass of hardened snow to fall," according to KING 5, "He fell into a crater, triggering a large slab avalanche on the slope below." 

Tough times for Kia: The car manufacturer recalled 427,000 Telluride SUVs because they roll away while parked. Kia, you may remember, made vehicles between 2011 and 2022 that were unusually easy to steal. This prompted a whole TikTok trend encouraging people to steal Kias, spawning the Kia Boys, a group a teenage carjackers loosely connected via the internet. 

Mass shooting at Indianapolis mall: Seven children and teenagers between the ages of 12 and 17 were shot outside a downtown Indianapolis mall Saturday night. They are all in stable condition. 

Two-week raid on Gaza hospital is over: For two weeks, Israeli troops fought in and around Al-Shifa Hospital. Israel said it killed "some 200 militants and detained hundreds more" and declared the campaign a success. It is unclear how many Palestinian civilians died during the raid, however "at least 21 patients... died since the raid began." Eyewitnesses described "complete destruction" at the site of the hospital. 

Meanwhile, protests in Israel: Over the weekend, tens of thousands of Israelis gathered in Jerusalem to protest in the largest anti-government demonstration in Israel since the war began. Protesters called on their government to reach a ceasefire deal in order to free the remaining Israeli hostages still held by Hamas. Many protesters also called for earlier elections to vote out Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who won't see reelection until 2026. Where was Netanyahu? Undergoing hernia surgery. 

Baltimore's big mess: The Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed. We know this. What happens next? If Baltimore ever wants to use its port again—a port that is nationally vital for shipments of cars and farm equipment—it'll need to clear a whole lot of debris. Engineers must figure out how to remove the gnarled, twisted beams of metal from the bridge, some of which weigh 4,000 tons. Then, there's the remains of the freight ship to contend with, plus all the destroyed shipping containers and their contents. It's a nightmare. To begin the cleanup process, Baltimore will enlist the help of "seven floating cranes, 10 tugboats, nine barges, eight salvage vessels, and five Coast Guard boats." In the meantime, the Coast Guard is prepping an alternate channel for "commercially essential vessels."

Consent for pelvic exams: After several investigations revealed hospitals often perform pelvic or prostate exams on patients under anesthesia without their consent, the Department of Health and Human Services sent a letter to teaching hospitals and medical schools in the US requiring them to get written consent before performing sensitive examinations. 

Big hole near Big Sur: Sorry to anyone looking to live their Big Little Lies opening credits fantasy—Highway 1 is closed after a big chunk of the road fell away. Look, California was simply not built to withstand the extreme erosion that comes with climate change. Stormy, wet weather over the weekend caused Saturday's road collapse. The ensuing road closure stranded many motorists in Big Sur. Crews were able to get people out using the northbound lanes. Now, the road remains closed.

The eclipse is coming: Canada's Niagara region, which sits smack dab in the path of totality for this weekend's impending eclipse, has declared a state of emergency in advance of the up to a million visitors coming to view those minutes of mid-day darkness. You know what other town is in the path of totality? Gander, Newfoundland, the tiny town that housed thousands of people when their flights were diverted there during 9/11. Maybe the eclipse will be like a reprise of the musical Come From Away except with less terrorism. 

A song about April for your Monday: Isn't it so satisfying when the first day of a month falls on a Monday? Delicious symmetry. Just makes sense. Anyway, here's a song I like about April with a title borrowed from T.S. Eliot's "The Waste Land."