Seattle, WA
Washington State Is Getting Free Covid Test Vending Machines
Are we in a post-Covid era? An extended Covid era? Nearly four years after the country’s first case of Covid-19 was confirmed in Washington, our state is introducing vending machines that will dispense free test kits, among other health supplies. Close your eyes and think back to February of 2020. This is not the future you would have imagined.
The machines, unveiled by the Department of Health, will be located in public places such as “food banks, transit stations, churches, schools, and libraries,” and managed by local health jurisdictions and Tribal Nations.
Their development isa sign of how much society has changed. Even with Covid numbers relatively flat—and relatively low compared to last year—the presence of infectious respiratory diseases like influenza and RSV, and our need to respond to them quickly, has become a public health priority.
“Rapid testing is part of our new normal,” said Kristina Allen, Community Testing Supervisor for the Department of Health in their press release.
But our new normal can still be expensive. A two-pack of rapid Covid tests at a typical pharmacy still retails for $19.99 over the counter.
The kiosks, as they are officially called, can also be stocked with other public health supplies at the direction of local jurisdictions and tribes, such as fentanyl test strips, Narcan, and pregnancy tests.
A tired Portland Winterhawks team plays a solid 3rd game in 3 nights, bouncing back from some poor performances to beat the Seattle Thunderbirds 4-3 and end a 4-game losing streak.
Portland’s top players, Alex Weiermair and Ryan Miller, each had 3 points, while Seattle’s more impressive top stars were shut out. Some of Seattle’s other players had big nights, and kept the game close, but it wasn’t enough to stop the Thunderbirds’ second straight loss after winning five in a row.
After 3 points out of 6 possible for the weekend, the Winterhawks remain in 7th, now 4 points above the playoff line.
| 1st 12:41 POR (PP) Alex Weiermair (Jordan Duguay) 1-0 |
| 2nd 1:51 POR (PP) Nathan Free (Will McLaughlin, Ryan Miller) 2-0 |
| 2nd 3:54 SEA (PP) Brock England (Joe Gramer, Noah Kosick) 2-1 |
| 2nd 13:44 POR Griffin Darby (Alex Weiermair, Ryan Miller) 3-1 |
| 2nd 15:51 POR (SH) Alex Weiermair (Ryan Miller) 4-1 |
| 2nd 18:42 SEA Ethan Bibeau (Brock England, Grayson Tash) 4-2 |
| 3rd 13:16 SEA (PP) Noah Kosick (Simon Lovsin, Brock England) 4-3 |
| Portland leads by 2+ | 21:35 |
| Portland leads by 1 | 25:44 |
| Tied | 12:41 |
| Portland trails by 1 | 0:00 |
| Portland trails by 2+ | 0:00 |
Pregame: Portland looking to break their losing streak after a bleak 3rd period on overtime Friday against the Thunderbirds and a shoddy most-of-the-game against the Vancouver Giants on Saturday. Seattle also had a 3-in-3, but had a lot easier travel than Portland’s Seattle-to-Vancouver-to-Portland weekend.
Seattle had a shakeup in goal. Grayson Malinoski, who played well against Portland on Friday, likely would have started, but Marek Sklenicka got hurt in the 1st period of their Saturday game with the Everett Silvertips, and Malinoski had to play an extra 40-plus minutes (and got torched). Sklenicka apparently got a clean bill of health, so they went with the more rested goalie.
1st period: Tone set with a Thunderbirds penalty in the 1st minute. Then Brayden Holberton reacted to a hit by Kyle McDonough by getting him in a one-man fight. He got McDonough pretty good and ended his night, but he also got a game misconduct and 5-minute major, which Portland scored on.
2nd period: The Winterhawks, who have had some stretches of cratering lately, almost had another after going up 2-0. They were outhshot 8-1 and gave up a goal. But they turned it around and extended the lead to 4-1 before Seattle got one back near the end.
3rd period: A solid period for Portland, made tighter on a late Thunderbirds goal. But a penalty by Coster Dunn near the end proved costly. Portland was able to run a lot of time off during the delayed penalty (and passed up the chance to run off more) and then were able to keep the puck and keep the Thunderbirds from pulling the goalie until well into the last minute. The Thunderbirds got a couple of good looks but couldn’t tie it.
| Top 10 | Stat line | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Alex Weiermair | POR | 2 goals, 1 assist | Continues to hang around 10th in league scoring, which is where is currently is. |
| Ryan Miller | POR | 3 assists | He may have extended his point streak to 9, depending on if he gets a late scoring change from Saturday’s game. |
| Brock England | SEA | 1 goal, 2 assists | Broke out of a 4-game slump with a really productive game, keeping the TBirds in it. |
| Noah Kosick | SEA | 1 goal, 1 assist | Planted a rebound to get Seattle within 4-3 in the 3rd. |
| Griffin Darby | POR | 1 goal | First WHL goal was off his skate, so this was the first off his stick. With 6 points and a +4, this is the best month of his career. |
| Ondrej Štěbeták | POR | 26 saves-29 shots | Played a reasonably good game. |
| Nathan Free | POR | 1 goal | The 2-0 goal when the Thunderbirds were looking like threatening. |
| Max Pšenička | POR | A decent game after some really rough ones. No points, so he has a 3-game scoreless streak, but he was fine. | |
| Jordan Duguay | POR | 1 assist | |
| Ethan Bibeau | SEA | 1 goal | Ended a 7-game scoreless streak with a deflection off an England shot. |
| Other notables | Stat line | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Cameron Schmidt | SEA | The placeholder for Schmidt, Matthew Gard, Antonio Martorana, Coster Dunn, and Matej Pekar, all top players for Seattle who went scoreless in a big key to the game. | |
| Brayden Holberton | SEA | Kicked out early in the 1st for a 1-man fight, giving Portland a power play they scored on, and likely earning a suspension. It’s surprising he hasn’t been suspended before but this will be his first if everything is normal. | |
| Nathan Brown | POR | 3-game scoreless streak. | |
| Reed Brown | POR | 4-game scoreless streak. There are a few of these, as Portland’s main offense has been from the top line. | |
| Kyle McDonough | POR | He got hurt by Holberton and didn’t return. So he might be out afor a while. | |
| Radim Mrtka | SEA | 4-game scoreless streak. The NHL 1st-round is really struggling. | |
| Marek Sklenicka | SEA | 27 saves-31 shots | Seattle’s strange goalie shuffle seemingly benefitted Portland, some bad luck to the Thunderbirds. |
| POR | SEA | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Record | 26-25-5-1 (.509) | 23-25-4-3 (.482) | 7th-place Portland extends their lead over 10th-place Seattle to 5 points. |
| Score | 4 | 3 | |
| Shots | 31 | 29 | The Winterhawks outshoot the opposition for the first time in 8 games. Surprising and encouraging that they did, given how long they were defending a lead. |
| Shoot % | .129 | .103 | Portland simultaneously has the 7th-worst shooting percentage in the league, and the best shooting percentage in the US Division. Do the math on that. |
| Power play | 2 / 5 | 2 / 3 | Seattle took a penalty at almost every key time in the game. Gave the Winterhawks two power play goals plus momentum, and hurt Seattle late by interfering with their goalie pull. |
| Even strength | 1 | 1 | Low scoring at even strength. |
| Shorthanded | 1 | 0 | Weiermair’s shorthanded goal ends up the winner. |
Portland Winterhawks
3 out of 6 for the weekend, and if they’d played just a little better it could have been 6 out of 6. It’s a hard team to figure out sometimes.
Seattle Thunderbirds
An emotional win on Friday was followed by a blowout loss and then a struggle in the rematch. A 5-game winning streak put them into playoff contention. Now with 2 games in Central BC they’re in danger of falling right back out of it.
Friday 2/27 at Victoria, 7pm PST
Saturday 2/28 at Victoria, 4pm PST
Next home game: Saturday 3/7 vs. Everett, 6pm PST
Looking ahead: Sunday 3/8 vs. Tri-City, 4pm PDT
Next game versus Seattle: Saturday 3/14 at Seattle, 6pm PDT
Well, it’s become pretty obvious by now that one of the Seattle Mariners’ best recent moves was acquiring first baseman Josh Naylor from the Cleveland Guardians late last season. After re-signing with the club following a short stint in 2025, the 28-year-old has clearly fallen head over heels for the Emerald City. And he’s not afraid to let anyone who’s listening know about it.
“[Seattle is] just full of energy,” Naylor has said about the city and its people. “An awesome fan base, who loves baseball, loves to watch their hometown team win, and I think we really feed off that as a group. I mean, I sure do, and I can say 100% sure that everyone else does.”
“We have such loud fans. And [the Mariners] do a great job of keeping the fans excited — in between innings, in between pitches. I love playing here.”
Josh Naylor backed up those remarks when he agreed to a five-year, $92.5 million contract in November 2025, keeping him with Seattle through the 2030 season. He was considered such a force on the field and a leader in the locker room that retaining him was labeled as the club’s ‘top priority’ over the winter.
At the same time, he’s continued to state that it was his comfort level with the Mariners, nurtured by those same fans, are what makes it the perfect fit for him. He’s already adored, he’s an asset to the team, and he’s a member of a legitimate World Series contender. At this point in his career, he’s sitting pretty.
“I’ve gotten so many compliments from friends who watch me play, or ex-teammates I’ve played, or even opponents that I’m against, about how awesome it s in Seattle. “Naylor has stated. “And, like how cool the fan base is; they’re just like ride-or-die in Seattle. It’s super awesome to be a part of.”
Naylor, Raleigh, and J-Rod are a terrific trio
Lost in the shuffle of offseason acquisitions and all the prospects popping up, one of the major storylines (and keys to Seattle’s success) will be that the Mariners now have the elite slugging triumvirate of Naylor, Cal Raleigh, and Julio Rodriguez in 2026.
With Naylor being a late-season acquisition, the group never really got a chance to get settled in the midst of a hard-fought pennant race. Now, the trio of heavy hitters will have a 162-game schedule together, with expectations that all three of them will thrive from each other’s output.
CLICK FOR MORE: Josh Naylor honored in his native country for his 2025 season
Fans in the Pacific Northwest better be ready to see some towering shots from this triad in 2026. Watching Josh Naylor team with two of the game’s top players, we could be in store for the best triple-shot of terror in all of baseball this season.
Cheeky fun for an important cause! Cupid’s Undie Run hit the streets of Seattle on Saturday. The ‘pantsless party with a purpose’ raises awareness and funds for neurofibromatosis, a group of genetic conditions that cause tumors to grow on nerves. Seattle’s quirky Fremont neighborhood was the perfect backdrop for the event. The fun run wound through Gas Works Park during the 1-mile(ish) route, followed by drinks and dancing at the popular Fremont Dock sports bar. (Image: Elizabeth Crook / Seattle Refined) Feb. 21, 2026 ~{a href=”https://cupids.org/” target=”_blank” title=”https://cupids.org/”}Learn more here{/a}.~
Suspected gunman identified after being shot dead at Mar-a-Lago – US politics live
Avalanches in Utah kill 11-year-old girl, father snowmobiling with son in state’s first 2 fatalities of season
Ex-American Idol contestant charged in wife’s murder previously described as ‘very talented’ church leader
Pima County sheriff warns in NBC interview DNA tech issues in Nancy Guthrie case may take ‘months’ to resolve
Florida teacher charged for alleged sexual relationship with student who lived with her
Florida High School Football Rankings: Top 25 teams – Oct. 21
Cleary's 21 help Le Moyne down Central Connecticut State 69-64 in OT
How old is Bo Nix? What to know about Oregon quarterback ahead of 2024 NFL Draft
99th annual Pony Swim held in Virginia
Indiana Members Credit Union announced as new anchor tenant at Bottleworks District
Suspected gunman identified after being shot dead at Mar-a-Lago – US politics live
Video: Armed Man Is Shot and Killed at Mar-a-Lago, Authorities Say
Suspect identified after fatal shooting at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate: officials
Most Europeans don't know what the ECHR does, but do they want to leave it?
Northeast readies for a major winter storm, with blizzard warnings in effect
-
Montana3 days ago2026 MHSA Montana Wrestling State Championship Brackets And Results – FloWrestling
-
Oklahoma5 days agoWildfires rage in Oklahoma as thousands urged to evacuate a small city
-
Culture1 week agoVideo: How Much Do You Know About Romance Books?
-
Science1 week agoWhat a Speech Reveals About Trump’s Plans for Nuclear Weapons
-
Politics1 week agoSchumer’s ‘E. coli’ burger photo resurfaces after another Dem’s grilling skills get torched: ‘What is that?’
-
Technology2 days agoYouTube TV billing scam emails are hitting inboxes
-
Movie Reviews1 week ago‘Pennum Porattum’ movie review: An absurdist satire that just escapes getting lost in its chaos
-
Technology1 week agoThe DJI Romo robovac had security so poor, this man remotely accessed thousands of them