Bloglander

HERE

It doesn’t work out well if you think you’re filling up with unleaded and it turns out to be diesel, as a bunch of drivers in Airway Heights found out yesterday. (KXLY)

Traffic was backed up on I-90 during morning rush hour yesterday. Only in Spokane does rush-hour traffic require an explanation: Lanes were closed for a lighting project. (KREM)

The Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office is no longer taking applications and renewals for concealed weapons permits on Mondays, because there’s just too much paperwork coming in. (Cda Press)

NEAR

The search has been suspended for a 19-year-old Vancouver woman who headed into a state forest on Sunday for a “spiritual quest” and failed to return.  A new search is going for a 79-year-old Seattle woman who went hunting for mushrooms in Chelan County on Saturday. (AP via KHQ/KOMO)

A new report says heroin use is up among young people in Washington state. (Seattle Times)

Liquor prices may go up in Oregon, too. (Oregonian)

ELSEWHERE

A new study says talking to Siri distracts drivers just as much as texting. (WaPo)

Opening statements begin today in the trial of notorious criminal Whitey Bulger, 83. He’s charged with murder, racketeering, extortion, money laundering and other crimes. (NYT)

A Missouri woman is accused of scaring neighbor children by yelling at them while wearing a ski mask and brandishing a chainsaw. (Fox2Now)