Serving Southern Jefferson County in the Great State of Montana
Serving Southern Jefferson County in the Great State of Montana
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A few weeks ago, I wrote about how karma may have played a part in two wonderful spills I had while walking around town. After another horrifically embarrassing fall inside of a school on my way to a building, I'm beginning to think that it probably has far less to do with karma and more to do with the fact that I am a klutz and it is only getting worse as I get older. My two wonderful escapades on the snow and ice were one thing, but my predicament inside was a whole other level of not being...
I can't remember a time in my life where I was ever so excited for the transition to spring and eventually the high temperatures of summer. This was a brutal winter with a few weeks I thought would never end. Driving was of course a nightmare and even walking at times was a difficult task and I still have bruises from some of my more epic slips of 2019. We did our best to keep up with our driveway and sidewalks but during the week plus of non-stopping snowing we kind of gave up and instead just...
It's time to start thinking about the annual Black Tie Blue Jeans fundraiser scheduled for May 4 at the Whitehall Community Center. The event is the largest annual area fundraiser and is vital to so many non-profit organizations in the Whitehall area. With the event less than two months away, we encourage local businesses and residents to purchase tickets and start to make donations for an event that truly does make a difference in the area. The money raised is first given to local non-profit...
I'm by no means a spiritual guru who spends hours a day cross legged on the floor mediating, but I'm a firm believer in karma. What goes around often does come around. While I certainly have my moments, I try to do the best I can and treat people the way I would like to be treated. It's a simple mantra but it usually works out for the best. Despite my best intentions, I sometimes mess up and usually get a swift kick in the butt from my good friend karma. Last week was a perfect example of this....
I had written a column about bullying for this week but decided at the last moment to not run it. It was perhaps a bit too aggressive and I'm sure it would have ruffled some feathers, so I decided to go with something a little more lighthearted. Some of my favorite times writing are about stories from the past and this is a real gem. This is the story of a cat and a dog. While it certainly has some of those random chaotic moments that seem to happen to me far too often and may show some good in...
When a severe winter storm hit recently, I didn't think it would stick around for nearly a week. I'm over the freezing cold, horrible roads, snow everywhere, crappy drivers and everything else that has to do with winter. For the first time I really understand snow birding and how all the local residents must really be enjoying the warmer temperatures while the rest of us adjust the pillows in our igloos. While I own a 4-wheel drive vehicle, it has a problem with the battery, so we have had to...
When I first started in journalism, I always thought a dream job would be a major movie critic. Several times a week I'd be able to watch movies and then would get the opportunity to write about them. I don't watch nearly as many movies as I used to, I've kind of transitioned to binge watching television shows, but at a time I would spend multiple hours a week watching a wide variety of cinema. I think for a year or two I was going to try and work my way into a position where I could be a movie...
I'm a little bit ashamed of how much time I spend a day on social media. I cannot imagine how productive I would be without it, but it does connect me with friends and family from afar, and is also useful for work, so it does have value. It also drives me crazy when I see the same things over and over and have recently been thinking about the type of posts I see on a day-to-day basis and figured I'd share this information in a column. These are certainly not trying to bash on anyone, in fact I...
In the days after the Super Bowl social media was on fire and it wasn't about the actual game that just so happened to be probably the least exciting championship affair in recent memory. Instead of talk about how the Patriots defense played or how the Rams had trouble getting a first down, it was instead about the Super Bowl Halftime show and Maroon 5 lead singer Adam Levine. While the ladies at my house may have swooned a bit when he removed his shirt, 99 percent of what I read was negative...
The past few days of below zero temperatures reminded me of growing up in what is known as the "high desert" of Wyoming. It is full of wide-open spaces and plenty of outdoor opportunities and also has some cold temperatures during the winter months. Even more so than the temperatures, I grew up with biting winds that could make even a fair day feel awful. Over the past week I have seen multiple news reports of the crippling cold front that hit the Midwest with the force of a Mike Tyson punch...
A few years ago, my mother Janet retired after working many years at a coal fired power plant in Wyoming. While it was a great job with outstanding benefits, she was very eager to move on with her life. While many people have an elaborate list of things, they want to accomplish during retirement she kept it pretty simple. There would be a little bit of traveling, organizing her 40 year's worth of recipes, spending time with family and her dog Bella Mia and wine. After seeing her make the daily c...
'm a little late to the party for a "New Year's" column, but there are certainly some things I would like to see unfold a little bit different in 2019. Don't get me wrong, I'm completely happy with my life, I would just like to see few minor things changed in 2019. I would love to say that the year will see people start using their phones a little less, but I know that is never going to happen and I'm sure I'll probably once again miss a few huge touchdowns or three pointers because I was taking...
I'll be the first to admit that I sometimes find myself so busy that I will forget to truly enjoy the little things that can make life so enjoyable. Last weekend I learned a valuable lesson from my kitten Jerusha that was a great reminder to always take time to spend a few moments each day finding something small that can bring a smile to my face. It didn't take long after finding Jerusha as an abandoned small kitten in the summer of 2017 for her to become part of the family. At her age she...
A few days before Christmas I received some saddening news about the death of a longtime friend in Wyoming. In my time knowing Garry Gouger he was a co-worker who I would later work directly for. He was a mentor and someone who always made me laugh even if I was having the worst of days. He had no filter, a huge heart, and showed me that work should be fun not a horrible place you dread going to. I first met Garry when I was a hired as a full-time reporter at the daily newspaper in my hometown....
With Christmas falling on a Tuesday in 2018, I really needed to be on top of things so that I could have the newspaper sent to the printer by early on Christmas Eve. On a normal week, I will usually have the pages ready to go by early Tuesday afternoon, but in order to spend time with family I needed to make sure they were done last week by early Monday morning. I knew to accomplish this I would have to spend my weekend working which is nothing out of the ordinary, so I woke up early Saturday...
In last week's column I wrote about how much I missed my big green trunk full of collectibles from my youth. While thinking about the contents of the trunk I remembered one of the favorite books from my childhood. It was a book about the 50 states, and I can remember spending hours reading it and learning the state capitals quite possibly before I learned cursive. I'm not sure I ever learned cursive correctly, but there was a time I could rattle of a capital quicker than most adults. When I was in grade school, we had a project in geography tha...
Since it's inception in 2011, Whitehall Public Transportation has provided an amazing service for local residents. During a special groundbreaking ceremony last week, WPT came one step closer to the completion of their new bus barn. The Richard (Dick) Gustin Memorial Bus Barn will be a huge asset to a service that is a huge asset to the community. For those unfamiliar with Whitehall Public Transportation, they are the only provider of transit for the general public locally. While their primary f...
When I was around fix or six years old I received a present for Christmas that I really did not know what to think of. A few weeks before Christmas a large wrapped box had been placed under the tree with my name on it and I was ecstatic. I can remember thinking about all the wonderful possibilities and could not wait to tear off the wrapping paper to see what was surely something amazing. When it came time to open presents, I immediately opened this gift and was shocked to see what I would find... Full story
As a child there was always a magical feeling during the Christmas season. It was usually after Thanksgiving that I started to count down the days which seemed to get longer and longer as it inched closer to Christmas. I never minded the last few days of school before break because there was always a fun celebration and nothing productive was ever accomplished. I'm sure the teachers were also as eager to get a break from the kids who were getting crazier with each passing day. The wait between...
It always makes me laugh when I'm watching a "true crime" show and someone will describe their community as a small town. I recently watched a show where Fort Collins, Colorado was painted as a small college town and I could not believe what I was hearing. Having lived there I can 100 percent say it is far from a town and probably has a population close to 200,000. I guess since so many people live in major cities, they probably lose sight of what a small town really is. When someone references... Full story
In my line of work, I've established a routine that makes it a lot easier to get the job done. Any little change will throw me out of my comfort zone and last week was a perfect example of this. With the Thanksgiving holiday on Thursday, I had to change things up to get two weekly newspapers to the printer by Monday and it was a battle. I knew my best bet would be to write as much as humanly possible on the Wednesday and Thursday before, but things don't always go as planned. Instead I was...
The word "hero" has a different meaning for everyone. In my eyes, a "hero" can mean anything from a past or present member of the military to a teacher who does their best each and everyday to help ensure the future is bright for a younger generation. There is also no better definition in my eyes of a hero than the local residents who are members of law enforcement, firefighters, EMS personnel or involved with search and rescue. The past few weeks in California have been a harrowing example of...
I must have missed the memo, but somehow it feels as if society has immediately transitioned from Halloween to Christmas. I drove by a neighbor's house the other day and his yard was full of decorations. I wasn't quite sure if I wanted to throw up or pull the car over get in the back seat and sob because Thanksgiving seems to have gotten thrown out like yesterday's trash. I'm not sure if it is because "Black Friday" has turned into such a massive Pre-Christmas event, but I feel society is...
I think it's probably safe to say I'm one of many that are excited the 2018 General election is done. For the past several months it has been darn near impossible to sit and watch a football game or one of my favorite shows without at least three or four commercials during each break ruining what should be a relaxing time. The federal races were so bad that there would be a commercial by one candidate followed by a commercial from another. The next break would be chalk full of commercials from...
A few weeks ago, members of the Whitehall Chamber of Commerce discussed the idea of hosting a Halloween festival. This is not only a great idea, it is something that is very needed for the community. Halloween has changed quite a bit over the past several decades. It used to be that trick or treating was the culmination of events and streets would be lined for several hours with kids eager to fill their bag full of enough sugar to make their parents crazy until Thanksgiving. Things are...
