A B.C. couple abandons the idea of conceiving a child to save their stricken son

• Vancouver Sun

A prison chaplain quits over a state rule

• News Tribune (Tacoma)

Your chance to join the Mod Squad

A number of events are coming up for people interested in preserving Northwest modernism, from Googie to Brutalism to starship chic. Here's a quick rundown and reminder of doings connected to stories I've been covering on Crosscut.

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A Coinstar employee is accused of stealing $450,000 from machines

• Herald (Everett)

Memorial service for 'Jocko, the brave little monkey who died trying to save his mate'

• Province (Vancouver, BC)

New to the north, jumbo squid could become a lucrative West Coast fishery

• Toronto Globe and Mail

WSU will launch the first large-scale bone-marrow transplant program for dogs

• Seattle Post-Intelligencer

Fish-egg auctions in Seattle: Where deals worth hundreds of millions of dollars are done

• Associated Press

Grandmother, mother, and daughter — on the same soccer team

• Kitsap Sun (Bremerton)

Founder of Mother's Day grew to hate what happened to her idea

• Los Angeles Times

57 states — and the Soviet of Washington?

Sen. Barack Obama must be drinking some of the same Seattle water as secessionist Mayor Greg Nickels. In Beaverton, Ore., he told the crowd that he'd visited "57 states" with "one left to go." He goes on to say that the only states he hasn't been to during his presidential bid are Alaska and Hawaii, which means Obama thinks the U.S. has 58 states, though by his own count there should be 59.

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A Seattle software exec makes sure that the buffalo don't roam

In the 19th century, tourists used to slaughter bison herds from passing trains, blasting the big beasts into near extinction just for fun. That ugly tradition is echoed in the recent massacre of buffalo in Colorado, which has also touched off a classic confrontation over rights between two ranchers. The Northwest connection: The Seattle Post-Intelligencer's John Cook points out that the man behind the recent massacre is the chairman and CEO of one of Seattle's top software companies, Jeff Hawn of Attachmate. A warrant has been issued for his arrest.

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The Northwest's real fairy tales

When it comes to Northwest legends, we usually think big: There's Bigfoot, D.B. Cooper's Big Heist, Paul Bunyan and his Big Blue Ox — even the Big White Worm of the Palouse. This tradition goes back. When Jonathan Swift documented Gulliver's travels in the early 1700s, he placed the land of the giants, Brobdingnag, in the Pacific Northwest — somewhere between what we know today as British Columbia and Alaska. But we have our mini-myths, as well. Yes, Northwest giants are fun to think about (remember Olaf?), but take a minute to think about our munchkins.

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Jocko the spider monkey is slain defending his apparently kidnapped mate

• Province (Vancouver, BC)

Smells like ... Chanel No. 5?

In 1996, the album Grunge Lite featured Muzak-style versions of Nirvana, Pearl Jam and Mudhoney classics, turning them into elevator music before anyone else did. It seemed like an attempt to inoculate the music's legacy by injecting a shot of irony before anyone else did. It didn't work. Today you can get a "Smells Like Teen Spirit" ringtone for your cellphone (just Google "Nirvana ringtones" and take your pick).

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I Can Has Cheezburger? is a Webby Awards favorite

• John Cook's Venture Blog

Annals of Northwest secession

A primer of regional separatist movements, real and imagined.

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The Great White hope

It may be the season for finding big white enigmas. In March, scientists spotted a long-rumored white killer whale in Alaska. Closer to home, researchers who have been pawing the sod in search of the Great White earthworm of the Palouse have come up with some surprising new clues about the elusive and possibly endangered creature. Two recent discoveries, one near Moscow, Idaho, and one near Leavenworth, Wash., suggest that the worms are not only out there, they may live farther afield than previously thought.

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Nude bowling finally makes its way to Vancouver

• Toronto Globe and Mail

Quick thinking by police averts an Amtrak train wreck in Junction City, Ore.

• Register-Guard (Eugene)