• We are still breathing wildfire smoke, Florida is flooding and Oregon is too complacent about the right to choose when it comes to abortions. These are some of the things stressing us out. Do they stress you out? Then vote, and tell your friends and family to vote. The upcoming November election has some important seats locally, statewide and nationally. Here in Lane County, the Lane County Commission race has a progresstive woman, Dawn Lesley, facing off against an anti-choice man. Now that Rep. Peter DeFazio is stepping down, Labor Commissioner Val Hoyle is up against a woman-hating former Dancing with the Stars right-winger for the 4th District Congressional seat. Finally, the Oregon governor’s race pits the smart and reasonable Tina Kotek against gun-toting Betsy Johnson and anti-trans Christina Drazan. Vote, damnit. 

• Our Alabama correspondent tells us that a popular T-shirt seen on the Auburn University campus before the Auburn-Alabama game says “BuckFama” (hint for you non-sportsball nerds, sports fans call Alabama, “Bama”). That’s probably more innocent than going after a religious school as University of Oregon students did with Brigham Young University and the Mormons. Our favorite observation on all this comes from Prof. Bill Harbaugh’s “UO Matters” blog: “The university uses big-time football to recruit students, then complains when they act like drunken football fans.”

• “InItiative 114. Does Oregon Need More Gun Control Laws?” is the topic for the City Club of Eugene noon to 1:15 pm Friday, Sept. 30. Speaker will be the Rev. Mark Knutson of Augustana Lutheran Church in Portland, chief petitioner for the gun control initiative. Light refreshments will be served at the meeting at the First United Methodist Church, 1376 Olive Street.

• What we are watching: K-drama Extraordinary Attorney Woo on Netflix, the engaging Korean legal drama centering on Woo Young-woo (the same backwards and forwards), a woman on the autism spectrum and a gifted rookie attorney. Her character is supposedly based on the brilliant and autistic animal behaviorist Temple Grandin. It has fascinating legal cases, endearing characters and lots of information on whales.