Now That's What I call Dry January: The next 10 days could be—gasp—rainless. Thanks to a high-pressure system, Seattle may see a serious dry spell. Break out the SPF, it'll even be partly sunny this week. 

Failure to Launch: This morning, Jeff Bezos's space company, Blue Origin, called off the launch of its giant rocket, New Glenn, minutes before launch due to "an unspecified rocket issue."

Hell Is Other People's Relationships: Whew, okay, I just learned way more about King County Assessor John Wilson than I ever wanted to know. Wilson, who's served as assessor since 2015, is running for King County Executive. According to the Seattle Times, Wilson and his domestic partner, Lee Keller, have had a tumultuous relationship with a hefty paper trail. In 2024, Keller accused him of stalking and harassment and then had a temporary protection order filed against Wilson. According to the Seattle Times, Keller also accused Wilson of "making a false report to the police, of falsely accusing Keller’s former boyfriend of sexual assault and of creating fake social media accounts to monitor and contact." Across their three-year relationship, the two have called the cops on each other multiple times. Since they became official domestic partners in 2023, both Keller and Wilson have filed to dissolve the partnership four times. But, now they've reconciled and are engaged to be married. Keller says she regrets filing the protection order. 

Another Small Detail: I highly suggest you read the whole Seattle Times story on Wilson because the details are wild, but I wanted to include another tidbit. Court proceedings with Wilson's ex-wife suggest he owes her $15,000 in unpaid spousal support. Wilson's campaign called the issue "an oversight" and said it was "resolved." His ex-wife's lawyer said Wilson still owes her $1,500. 

Quakes: Off the coast of southwestern Japan, a 6.9-magnitude earthquake hit and triggered a small tsunami. That sounds like an oxymoron, but the wave only reached 3.2 feet. There were no reports of damage. Meanwhile, two aftershocks—4.9 and 5.0 magnitude earthquakes—rocked Tibet's Tingri county, the same county where a 6.8 earthquake struck last week, killing 128 people. 

Bus Vigil: In case you missed it, here's footage from Friday's touching memorial for King County Metro bus driver Shawn Yim.

The legislative session is back! Lawmakers are back in Olympia. One of the big focuses for environmental priorities will be how to spend the billions the state earns from the carbon market established by the Climate Commitment Act. On the housing side of things, lawmakers will once again try to cap rent hikes. Seattle parents are taking the school funding issue into their own hands, starting a "Billion Dollar Bake Sale" to help raise money and lobby lawmakers about raising a boatload of much-needed money for education.

A Touch of Optimism: Do you need some hope? Here:

A Touch of Pessimism: The next Trump administration begins in seven days. If you want to get any face time with the president-elect or his smarmy vice president at any of the events around the inauguration, it'll cost you $1 million

Fire Death Toll Rises: So far, the Los Angeles fires have killed 24 people—eight in the Palisades fire, 16 in the Eaton fire. According to authorities, 16 people are missing, though they expect the number to rise. The LA Times has information on the dead here. Several of the victims appeared to have died after refusing to evacuate their homes. One man's body was found, burnt, clutching a garden hose. 

Winds Rage Again: Firefighters made progress containing the still-burning fires over the weekend and fending off more destruction, yet it may all be for naught. The wind will pick up in the LA area starting Monday morning and gust through Wednesday. Meteorologists said the wind breeds potential for "extreme fire growth."

The Local Angle: Western Washington firefighters are helping. 

Border Patrol Raid in Bakersfield: In a sign of what's likely to come under a Trump administration focused on deportations, Border Patrol agents ambushed fieldworkers in Bakersfield, California, targeting them at a breakfast spot they frequent and stopping them on their way to and from work. “We are taking it to the bad people and bad things in Bakersfield,” Border Patrol said in a comment on its Facebook page, according to CalMatters. Those "bad people" are people, many with families, and they're workers who are critical for our food supply. “If this is the new normal, this is absolute economic devastation,” said Richard S. Gearhart, an associate professor of economics at Cal State-Bakersfield. 

A Horrible Read for Your Monday: Beloved fantasy author Neil Gaiman is a big creep

A Recommendation: This geography puzzle game will either make you feel smart or very, very dumb. Toss up!