Police were called after one couple got into an argument over the presidential inauguration last week.

Seattle author Erica Bauermeister's debut novel, The School of Essential Ingredients, is a gorgeously-written novel about life, love, and the magic of food. It follows the lives of eight students who gather in Lillian's Restaurant every Monday night for cooking class.

The state Department of Ecology says it has fined Anacortes-based Trident Seafoods $25,500 for two spills from the same vessel to the Lake Washington Ship Canal in Seattle last year.

Anacortes School Superintendent Chris Borgen says a projected $2.1 million shortfall in the school district budget will mean layoffs of teachers and support staff for the coming school year, starting in the fall.

State Senator Mary Margaret Haugen, chair of the Senate Transportation Committee, says she will fight moves to cut ferry routes, calling the ferry system's draft long-range plan is "not a done deal."

The Anacortes Historic Preservation Board has set a program for this Saturday to help homeowners here research the history of their old home. It’s part of an ambitious plan by the Board for 2009.