The River Journal, June 2012

Because there’s more to life than bad news

A News MAGAZINE Worth Wading Through

Festival at Sandpoint 30 Years & Counting

The

Local News • Environment • Wildlife • Opinion • People • Entertainment • Humor • Politics

June 2012 | FREE | www.RiverJournal.com

THE RIVER JOURNAL

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DAVID! The world is a better place with you in it.

A News Magazine Worth Wading Through ~just going with the flow~ P.O. Box 151•Clark Fork, ID 83811 www.RiverJournal. com•208.255.6957

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Regular Contributors

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509.534.3625 Contents of the River Journal are copyright 2012. Reproduction of any material, including original artwork and advertising, is prohibited. The River Journal is published the first week of each month and is distributed in over 16 communities in Sanders County, Montana, and Bonner, Boundary and Kootenai counties in Idaho. The River Journal is printed on 40 percent recycled paper with soy-based ink. We appreciate your efforts to recycle.

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Thank you for your continued support of our team in the May primary.

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3. KALISPEL ENCAMPMENT Local history by Jack Nisbet 4. HADEN’S RUN Event to raise funds for scholarships 6. BOB BOYLE On music, birds, and 30 years of the Festival at Sandpoint 8. HEAR THE WHISTLE BLOWING Shannon Wiliamson writes about a whole lot of coal trains looking to come through town.

10. NEWS BRIEFS Summer hikes, wild gardens, pioneers, firewood & Facebook.

12. THE RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRD Mike Turnlund shares the similarities of a bird and the Battle of Britain.

13. MONTANA Sandy introduces a girl and a place, along the Scenic Route.

14. THE MEDAL OF HONOR Matt talks about one of their own, plus free fishing for kids on The Game Trail.

15. LET’S TALK TOMATOES Nancy gives some tips and tricks for

13 growing the best tomatoes. Now Get Growing!

16. FORGET US NOT Gil offers thanks to those who chose to remember our Disabled American Veterans 17. ALICE’S ROCKING BOAT Ernie crafts a future heirloom, built of love. The Hawk’s Nest.

18. ABOUT THAT RENEWABLE ENERGY Rep. George Eskridge explains why renewables make sense for Idaho in A Seat in the House.

19. THE NEVER-ENDING WAR Paul Rechnizer says we’re waging it in Congress in Say What?

20. CALENDAR Find out what’s happening in Downtown Sandpoint 21. IN GRANDMA’S GARDEN For Trish, tall grass makes memories.

22. OBITUARIES

12 3 23. I SERVED YOU WELL An empty nest causes Kathy to reflect on service on her Faith Walk.

24. AFTERLIFE CHRONICLES Jody takes a look at near-death experiences, from the Files of the Surrealist Resarch Bureau.

25. DEPRESSION HOUSE Lawrence tells the tale of a house haunted by the anguish of one left behind.

26. THE PROBLEM WITH GARDENING When you’re Jinxed, of course, there’s more than one problem.

27. IT’S YOUR PARTY Scott’s rhythmical reflection on the closed Republican primary.

28. WHAT PRICE A HOME-GROWN TOMATO? For Boots, the proper response to that question is, “Who cares?”

COVER PHOTO: Bob Boyle Photo by Trish Gannon PHOTO ABOVE: Kalispel Tribal members, courtesy Library of Congress

THE BEST PART OF REACHING THE TOP IS THE VIEW. WE CAN HELP YOU GET THERE.

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June 2012| The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol. 21 No. 6| Page

Kalispel Encampment Offers Highlights of the Fur Trade and the Area’s Salish Peoples In the spring of 1812, fur agent and surveyor David Thompson left the Inland Northwest for good, paddling upstream from Kettle Falls in late April with a canoe brigade that carried almost five tons of beaver pelts. On May 8th he struggled up Athabasca Pass on maddeningly loose snow, “not hard enough to bear us without Paws [snowshoes], yet very slippery with them.” Four days later, he and voyageurs Pierre Pareil and Joseph Coté—the same two men who with Thompson had crossed Athabasca Pass the previous January, built a series of cedar plank bateaux, traveled the entire length of the Columbia, and wintered at Saleesh House near modern Thompson Falls, Montana—gummed a birch bark canoe and paddled down the Saskatchewan River, bound for Lake Superior and ultimately Montreal. It was there that Thompson set to work on the first accurate maps of the area north of the 46th parallel and west of the Rocky Mountains. He was still refining trails around the area of Saleesh House when the U.S.-Canadian boundary settlement finally came under serious political discussion in 1843.

Meanwhile, back in the Salish country of the Flathead, Clark Fork, and Pend Oreille Rivers, life carried on just fine without Thompson, even though the fur trade business that he and his men had introduced brought irrevocable change.

Many of his crew remained behind to marry Salish women and raise families, bringing familiar French and Scottish names into tribal world. Local people continued to follow their ever-changing annual round, digging camas and running horses in the same meadows Thompson marked on his large maps. Bands and families flowed up and down the drainage that Thompson called the Saleesh River, gathering at encampments to carry on with a culture that now combined European trade goods with untold generations worth of hunting and fishing, plant gathering and food preservation, traditional dances and craft work, stories and laughter.

This June 28 through 30, the Kalispel Tribe and the David Thompson Bicentennials Partnership will sponsor a Kalispel encampment along the Clark Fork River, not far upstream from the vanished

Jack Nisbet

buildings of Saleesh House. The event, a continuation of previous encampments and educator workshops graciously sponsored by tribes Thompson met during his journeys west of the Continental Divide, will take place at Rocky Point Ranch, which is located 10 miles east of Thompson Falls, Montana. Find out more about the ranch at www.rockypointranch. com As with past encampments, the focus will be on partnership and education, with credit, renewal units, or clock-hours available for teachers from Montana, Idaho, and Washington. The general public is also warmly invited, but due to limited space at the ranch site, preregistration will be required. Go to www. montanahistoricalsociety.org to find a complete schedule and both print and online registration forms.

The encampment kicks off on Thursday afternoon with fur trade-era demonstrations by the Thompson Falls Brigade, a welcome by Kalispel elder Francis Cullooyah, and supper catered by Shantel Revais. After a tipi-raising contest, preparation of camas bulbs, and the creation of an earth oven to bake them in, tribal elders from several different parts of the river will offer words around the campfire. This Thursday evening event is open to 150 participants Friday will be devoted to a variety of classes for a total of up 100 participants.

The schedule begins with coffee and tea at the fur traders’ camp, breakfast for participants, then the preparation and ceremonial lighting of the camas

oven fire at 8 am. Attendees will have an opportunity to choose from a wide variety of morning classes, then cycle through three more choices on Friday afternoon and Saturday.

Instructors include some of the most respected Salish language speakers and tribal historians from the northern Plateau, including Johnny Arlee, JR Bluff, Francis Cullooyah, and Pat Pierre.

Traditional craft and skill instructors include Victoria Bowman Leach, Davonica Browneagle, Wilma Cullooyah, Glenn Leach, Wendy Ostlie, Raymond Finley, and Tim Ryan. They will share their knowledge of tipi construction, fish traps and hooks, beadwork, basketry, weaving hemp cordage, and plant uses.

Traditional meat drying will be overseen by Bill Tanner and Bob and Kelly Woodcock. A camas oven bake, which will form the center of the encampment, is under the charge of Arlene Adams.

In additional to tribal language and culture, Friends of Spokane House instructors Dean Bakke, Tom Cornwall, Bill and Bob Delyea, Dan Day, Bob and Peg Twyman, and Mark Weadick will offer classes in traditional fur trade skills that cover aspects of fuel, cordage, food, sign talk, firearms, history, and women of the fur trade. The Northwoods Canoe Company will have replica fur trade canoes on hand for those who want to engage in a voyageur paddle on the scenic Clark Fork River.

After a catered supper on Friday evening, the world-renowned Frog Island Singers will lead drumming and dancing.

On Saturday afternoon, the cooks will open their camas bulb oven and share the same foods that Salish people offered to David Thompson and his crew two hundred years ago. This traditional feast will connect the evening meal with final words that will cap off the encampment.

For further information and the online registration form, go to www. montanahistoricalsociety.org and click on “2012 teacher workshops.”

Photo, above: Victoria Bowman Leach and Jesse Fountain demonstrate how to prepare a camas oven. Photo courtesy Bonner County Historical Society.

June 2012| The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol. 21 No. 6| Page

Haden’s Run Clark Fork will be hosting a 5k fun run/walk in conjunction with its annual 4th of July festivities. The run will begin at 7 am and will commence at the Clark Fork High School football field on Stephen’ Street.

The inspiration for the race is driven by the loss of 13-year-old Haden Kistler on May 21, 2011. Haden was diagnosed at the age of 11 with glioblastoma, a rare form of brain cancer. Despite immense adversity, Haden was endowed with abundant positive qualities; above all, grace and humility. He had hopes and dreams, just as any other child.

The race will be a timed event, but is less about running and more about a community rallying behind a grieving family. All proceeds are utilized to fund the Haden Kistler Scholarship to benefit Clark Fork graduating seniors. The education in turn is recycled innumerably and a legacy is cultivated.

There will be a pasta feed at the Squeeze Inn on July 3 from 4-6 pm. Runners can pick up packets at that time, as well as from 6 to 6:45 am the morning of the race. In addition, the Clark Fork Fire Department will be providing a donation pancake breakfast at 7:30.

The mail-in entry forms are downloadable online at www. hadensheartfunrun.com. There is a $20 entry fee that is due by June 20. Entries will still be accepted until the morning of the race for $25; however, t-shirt sizes are limited.

The summation of one’s life is not the culmination of years, but rather the impact in the allotted time. Each day comes without guarantee; the only option is to continue forward in hopes of leaving some small dent. =Megan Olson

It’s an Old-Fashioned, Community Celebration!

Independence Day in Clark Fork, Idaho Parade • Games • Family Races • Watermelon Eating Contest • Turtle Races • Log Cutting Contests • Beer Garden • Fireworks • More!

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Bob Boyle Talks Music, Birds and Thirty Years of the Festival at Sandpoint During the traditional first two weekends of August, the Festival at Sandpoint will celebrate 30 years of bringing world-class music to this small town stage with a stellar line-up that has tickets flying out the door.

Those 30 years were not inevitable, and at times, the Festival at Sandpoint has stood at the brink of extinction. But each time, the community has rallied around, its volunteer board of directors has gone to work raising money, and the Festival has provided music under the stars each and every year.

Local CPA Bob Boyle is the current president of the board for the Festival at Sandpoint, and he took some time to answer a few questions about what can rightly be called one of Sandpoint’s premiere institutions.

Q. Can you tell us a little bit about your background? Who is Bob Boyle, anyway?

A. Like so many here, I’m a California transplant originally. I have lived and worked in Sandpoint for 17 years with my wife Francesca and our multiple pets. My business is accounting; I have been a CPA for many years and enjoy what I do from 9 to 5. Many of my clients view me much the same as they do their dentist—with fear and anxiety. To partially offset that hard part of my day job I spend much of my free time pursuing activities that allow me to bring some joy to others.

Q. When and why did you get involved with the Festival at Sandpoint?

A. I wished to give something back to the community that has given us so much. The Festival represents the kind of community support that brings prosperity, both financial and emotional, to folks of all ages; it just fits my model for meaningful participation. My good friend and fellow board member, Curt Hagen, coaxed me onto the Board of Directors in 2008 and I have never looked back. What a super bunch of people.

Q. There’s a lot of excitement about this year’s lineup. Why don’t you always book a season like this? A. When engaging entertainment, the fact is it is sometimes the luck of the draw. The most challenging factors in securing great acts include availability, price, fan appeal, and good judgment about fan preferences; everybody wants something a little different.

One thing most people don’t know is how expensive it is to book artists. Many of the names that float around in people’s wish lists would

cost us more money than we spend on the entire eight-night season. So that’s the first limitation on who we book—what we can afford to pay. As a singular venue (just one performance by the performer) we can’t negotiate the multiple-appearance deals that year-round music venues like The Knitting Factory or area casinos can hammer out.

Q. Why do the tickets cost so much? I’d love to see Alison Krauss, but $60?

A. Good entertainment is costly and our venue is relatively small; we can accommodate only 3,500 people on the field including volunteers. So we can’t cover all of our costs through ticket sales.

In fact, the money raised by ticket sales only covers about half of our operating budget. The balance of the money we need to raise comes from grants, sponsors, patrons, and fundraising activities like the annual Wine Tasting Auction. Obviously, if we had to pay for the Festival just with ticket sales, the tickets would cost twice as much. Luckily, our community recognizes and appreciates what the Festival brings to this area. Without their continued financial support, however, there would be no Festival at Sandpoint.

Q. I remember when the Festival was pretty much bankrupt. Is it on a firm financial footing now?

We have had our financial ups and downs. We are presently solvent and are anticipating another operating surplus for the current year based on the early sales we’re seeing for tickets, and the amazingly generous support of our sponsors even in the face of a less-than-booming economy.

Since we are a non-profit organization, any surplus is reinvested back into the exempt purposes.

Our board is fairly conservative, and we have a strong commitment to maintaining a rainy day fund that is literally a hedge against rainy days. Because we do rely on ticket sales for a substantial portion of

Page | The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol. 21 No. 6| June 2012

our revenue, bad weather can have a huge impact on the budget. Poor weather just a couple of years ago required us to use all of our ‘rainy day fund’ to stay solvent.

We are now in the process of building that fund up again.

Q. Blaine Stevens served for many decades on the school board, an unpaid position involving a lot of work much like your own on the Festival’s board. He used to say that handing out diplomas was how he got paid.

How do you get paid for all your work?

A. My payback experience is looking out over a Saturday night performance and taking in all those mesmerized faces that reflect the hard work that goes into creating this exciting occasion.

Q. You mentioned those “wish lists” of people to perform at the Festival. Who is on your wish list of people you’d like to see at Memorial Field?

A. My wish list has gotten much shorter with this year’s lineup. My list includes just what our Festival family says they want to see; we’ll do all we can to make that happen. I only need those happy faces on Saturday night.

Q. What do you see in the Festival’s future?

A. Our design is to be responsive to the community we are here to serve by providing a concert series that supports cultural tourism. We are also committed to the educational component of our mission statement, and will continue to support

and expand education programs for our youth. This is particularly important as funding for arts programs for children continues to get tighter. Most importantly, we want to continue growing the Festival family at all levels of the community. And, of course, there will be a lot more great music!

The Festival is quite appreciative of our location, and we will continue to work with the City of Sandpoint and other partners to help improve the quality of Memorial Field. We are excited that the field’s resident osprey have taken to the new light poles, and that they can be viewed live through the “osprey cam” set up by the city and Sandpoint Online (you can see it online at www.sandpointonline. com/ospreys or, better yet, buy a ticket to a show and watch the nest live at our information booth!).

The plans for future improvements at the field are exciting, and we will support those efforts however we can. Currently, a dollar from every ticket sale is going into the fund for improvements at the field.

You can learn more about what’s being planned, and how you can help support it, online at FriendsofMemorialField.com.

Q. Any final thoughts you want to share?

A. We are excited to announce the engagement of the University of Idaho School of Business to conduct an economic impact study for the Festival. Members of

Photo above: The field’s resident osprey (shown in 2010) have a new home atop new light poles this year. Photo below: The annual Festival season is like a communitywide picnic party. Photo facing page: Board President Bob Boyle can often be found at the main gate during the season, handing out programs. the team from the college will be on site at the field this season asking questions - we hope people will take the time to answer and help us gather information about the Festival at Sandpoint. It will be fun to see just how much impact we really have.

Finally, tickets for this year’s line-up are going fast; now is the time to buy. You can purchase tickets online at our website, www.FestivalatSandpoint.com.

June 2012| The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol. 21 No. 6| Page

Hear the Whistle Blowin

Will Asia’s desire for Powder River Basin Coal Impact North Idaho?

A report from Lake Pend Oreille Waterkeeper Bonner County, Idaho is blessed with the kind of stunning natural beauty that other counties can only dream about. It is home to a magnificent array of natural resources including sparkling lakes, rivers and streams, towering mountains and wild open spaces. It is also home to the not-so-occasional train chugging along the various rail lines that traverse the county, diligently moving cargo to its final destination. Some might argue that the trains are charming to watch, their whistles soothing, hypnotic if you will. Some might argue the opposite. Whichever side of the “track” you fall on, it’s pretty safe to say that the current level of train traffic (about 50 trains a day, a handful of which carry coal) doesn’t constitute a major problem

for Bonner County... yet.

That could all change in the not-toodistant future if proposals put forth by major coal companies, including Peabody Energy and Arch Coal Inc., are approved.

Let’s back up for a moment: There is an awful lot of coal in Montana and Wyoming, specifically in a region called the Powder River Basin. Asia (primarily China and India) uses an awful lot of coal to keep their coal-powered industries alive. It’s simple supply and demand with a whole lot of profit to be made in the middle—for the coal companies, that is. The coal mined from the Powder River Basin is loaded into open (yes open) coal cars, about 120 of them per train, and transported by rail on its westward journey towards the coast

Shannon Williamson

for export across the Pacific Ocean. These behemoth, 1.5 mile long trains, powered by five diesel engines, eventually make their way through Bonner County as they head into “the funnel,” where all of the rail lines converge in scenic Sandpoint, Idaho.

Would you notice if an additional 50 to 66 trains, carrying up to 160 tons of dirty coal per year, started coming through Bonner County every day, bringing the total number of trains to 100 or more? How could you not? The problems associated with this scenario are as numerous as they are diverse. Let’s start with the environment, since really, it’s all that fresh air and clean water that’s a big draw for residents of North Idaho. Coal dust and diesel particulates, not unexpectedly, tend

June 2012| The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol. 21 No. 6| Page

to degrade air and water quality.

Coal is a surprisingly complex substance. It’s not just an innocuous rock made of harmless carbon. It contains more than 40 heavy metals (including mercury, lead and arsenic), radioactive materials and carcinogenic hydrocarbons. As the open coal trains move from Point A to Point B, coal dust blows off the top of the cars and into the surrounding environment. It’s difficult to precisely quantify how much coal dust will make its way onto the land and into our local waterways. This is a function of multiple variables such as train and wind speed, conditions that cause wind vortices (e.g. trains passing each other, geological formations) and weather conditions (i.e. rain). “Friability” (how prone the coal is to size degradation) also plays an important role in the formation of coal dust; and Powder River Basin coal is considered highly friable. According to the report “PRB Coal Degradation—Causes and Cures” by R. Hossfeld and R. Hatt, “PRB represents the extremes of handling problems: dust is an issue when the coal is fine and dry… once the PRB coal is exposed by mining, the degradation process begins—the majority of damage can occur in a very short time, even as short as a few days.”

In an effort to control the escape of coal dust, Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad requires that shippers comply with coal loading rules that include the use of a “topper agent” that has been shown to reduce the release of coal dust by 85 percent. While this is a great idea in theory, BNSF currently has no measures in place to ensure compliance, and according to WUSA9 (a CBS news affiliate station in Washington, DC), only an estimated 30 percent of shippers are doing so. A 100 percent compliance rate would go a long way towards alleviating concerns over the release of coal dust from open rail cars, but until this is accomplished, the threats to water quality persist. Despite all of the variability around coal dust, it’s safe to say that coal and water do not and should not go together.

Coal dust and diesel particulates also work collectively to degrade the quality of the air we breathe. While inhalation of coal dust has been linked to chronic bronchitis, emphysema and pulmonary fibrosis, inhalation of diesel particulates can lead to even more serious conditions

Photo at left by Callum Black [CCBY-SA-2.0 (www.creativecommons. org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

including an increased incidence and severity of asthma in children, an increased rate of heart attacks in adults, increased cardiopulmonary mortality and an increase in cancer (to name a few).

The list of potential hazards continues to unwind with delayed emergency response, a sharp increase in the probability of fatal accidents and immense traffic congestion from choked rail lines.

More than 100 trains a day translates into one train every 12 minutes, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, winter, spring, summer and fall. The local economy will suffer as tourism declines, business suffers, jobs are lost and property values plummet (due to coal dust, the ever-present wall of trains and noise pollution). There is no economic benefit for this region. No jobs created, no investments made. It’s a nowin situation. The coal will roll through Bonner County, on to Spokane, ending at yet to be determined export facilities on the west coast of Washington or along the Columbia River.

You might be thinking, how bad could it possibly be (if you choose to not acknowledge said hazards above)? After all, who are we to stop commerce, even if it has no benefit for us? Derailment. That’s what stops commerce, literally.

According to a report produced by the U.S. Department of Energy, twenty major derailments occurred along the Powder River Basin Main Lines between 2005 and 2007, causing approximately $4.8 million in damage. Coal dust weakens and destabilizes tracks by collecting in the ballast; and even the U.S. Department of Transportation classifies it as “a pernicious ballast foulant.” Not to mention that Bonner County recently experienced its very own train derailment at the end of March. Luckily, the spilled cargo was simply soybeans. However, an incident such as this brought on by soggy weather that we have no control over, demonstrates the high potential for this to happen again.

A coal train derailment, particularly over Lake Pend Oreille, would be in the simplest terms, devastating. Based on prior evidence, it’s really not a question of if this will happen, but when.

Not to mention that the end result of burning the proposed 100 million plus tons of coal in Asia is the production of approximately 200 million tons of climate changing pollution, much of which we will have the pleasure of breathing again as it makes its journey back across the Pacific Ocean on prevailing winds, impacting the western United States. The question before us is right now is what can be done about this?

Sandpoint City Council recently stepped up to the plate and made their voices heard by adopting a resolution in April titled “Concerns Regarding Increased Coal Train Traffic in the City of Sandpoint.” The resolution details many of the concerns related above, particularly with respect to the economic, public health and environmental impacts to the Lake Pend Oreille region. The primary recipient of the resolution was the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which processes permit applications for all of the proposed coal export terminals in Washington and Oregon and conducts environmental reviews. Perhaps most importantly, the city put forth two requests through the resolution: 1) that the Corps prepare a Programmatic Impact Statement, in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act, that considers the cumulative impacts of the proposed operations from mine to port; and 2) that the Corps host a scoping hearing in Sandpoint to “determine the scope of an environmental review, explore alternatives and allow for public comment.”

Additionally, as part of the permitting process, the Corps accepts comments from the public during a specified period of time after an application is filed, which is generally 30 days. These open comment periods are the perfect opportunity for you to speak up and make your voice heard! This might sound like a daunting process, so Lake Pend Oreille Waterkeeper has worked to make providing your comments as easy as possible. You can find more information on the topic by visiting www.lakependoreillewaterkeeper.org/ get-involved/coal-trains-2. Here you will find a useful fact sheet, a sample comment letter and a clickable link that allows you to directly submit your comments to the Corps and Members of Congress for the current open comment period. Please take a few minutes out of your day to help ensure that Bonner County, and all that makes it so special, is protected from Big Coal!

Lake Pend Oreille Waterkeeper is a nonprofit organization that works to protect the water quality of Lake Pend Oreille and its associated waterways. Lake Pend Oreille Waterkeeper works in the public interest through education, partnership and advocacy to ensure that our waterways remain swimmable, fishable and drinkable for future generations.

Please visit www.lakependoreillewaterkeeper. org or call 208-597-7188 to learn more. Shannon Williamson is the executive director of Lake Pend Oreille Waterkeeper.

June 2012| The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol. 21 No. 6| Page

Idaho Firewood Permits

Idaho Department of Lands is now issuing permits for cutting firewood on state endowment lands managed by the IDL Pend Oreille Lake Supervisory Area Office in Sandpoint.

Permits can be purchased at the office located at 2550 Highway 2 West in Sandpoint. The cost is $5 per cord with a minimum required purchase of four cords ($20). Purchasers may buy up to ten cords for personal use. Permits will be valid for three months from date of issue or October 31, whichever occurs first.

During Closed Fire Season, May 10 through October 20 inclusive (fire conditions may require an extension of this date and/or additional restrictions), the following fire tool requirements shall apply according to Idaho Forestry Act Title 38: Any person using a portable power saw on forest land in the state shall have the following immediately available for the prevention and suppression of fire: All saws must be equipped with a spark arrester; A fully charged, operable fire extinguisher of at least eight ounce minimum capacity; A serviceable roundpointed size zero or larger shovel; and One water container, capacity one gallon or more.

For more information, please call Stan Galloway, IDL Resource Supervisor at 208263-5104.

Tending the Wild Garden

On June 23, Lauren Gonsalves, naturalist and owner of Living Legacy Seeds, will present “Tending the Wild Garden: the Secret is in the Seeds.” This event, sponsored by the Kinnikinnick Native Plant Society and the City of Sandpoint Park and Recreation Department, begins at 9:45 am in the Sandpoint Community Hall and is open to the public, free of charge.

Stewardship, Education and Hike Program with the Friends

In June, Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness offers four educational outings, two of which are National Trails Day events.

Saturday, June 9, Brian Baxter teaches an old growth ecology class, beginning at 9 Pacific time with a classroom session at the Heron Community Center before transitioning to Ross Creek Cedars. On June 30, Baxter teaches a riparian ecology class following the same format. Baxter, principal of Silver Cloud Associates of Libby, is a wildlife biologist with extensive knowledge of tracking, animal behavior and ecology who has spent several years in remote areas studying mustelids, and

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teaches for the Glacier Institute. Baxter’s events are also sponsored by the Pend Oreille chapter of the Idaho Master Naturalists.

Another outdoor education specialist, Dennison Webb of Selkirk Outdoor Leadership and Education, will teach a Leave-No-Trace class on Saturday, June 16, in the Lightning Creek area. This is a class geared toward youth and parents and will include rehabilitation work on a campsite along Lightning Creek.

Kootenai National Forest archeologist Rachel Reckin fills out the FSPW Educational Hike Series. On June 30, Reckin leads a hike focused on Native American presence in and use of the Spar Creek drainage on the east side of the proposed wilderness.

In July, August and September, hiking and stewardship opportunities in the Scotchmans abound, including volunteerled hikes to Little Spar Lake, Star Peak, Sawtooth Mountain and Scotchman Peak — the hard way. Trail restoration, reclamation and maintenance projects are scheduled for all of the three ranger districts the Scotchmans lie in, including work on the Little Spar Lake Trail in the Three Rivers District, Morris Creek Trail on the Sandpoint District and Blacktail Creek and Eddy Creek Trails on the Cabinet

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District. The Eddy Creek Trail project is a major reconstruction of a historic tread that once led to Star Peak lookout.

“This is a really exciting project,” said Sandy Compton, FSPW program coordinator, “for which we have four days set aside. Sunday, July 8 is our kickoff, and then we have workdays on July 20, August 3 and August 17. This trail, when finished, will be one of the most spectacular on the Kootenai National Forest.”

The hikes, education opportunities and stewardship projects, along with contact information and more full descriptions are listed on the Scotchman Peaks website at www.scotchmanpeaks.org/hiking/ current-hiking-schedule. To learn more, write to summer project coordinator Bonnie Jakobs at bonnie@scotchmanpeaks. org.

ICL Summer Hike Program

Locals and visitors alike will gain new appreciation for Idaho’s spectacular peaks, lakes, streams and wildlife with the Idaho Conservation League’s 6th annual summer hike series.

With 17 excursions planned for this summer and fall, ICL’s hike series offers something for every ability and interest.

Featured outings include a day of geocaching for treasure seekers of all ages, an overnight backpack into the old growth forests of the Salmo-Priest Wilderness Area, an alpine lake hike lead by Arts Alliance instructor for a plein-air session and a Leave No Trace hike with Selkirk Outdoor Leadership and Education.

Other hikes include family friendly hikes

to and along stunning lakes, strenuous day outings to our highest peaks, and even a hike with dogs from the Panhandle Animal Shelter along the Pend d’Oreille Bay Trail.

The hiking series starts this Saturday, June 9 with a geocaching hike near the Pack River Delta. Bill Love will lead participants through the basics of geocaching, how to use a GPS or global positioning system and how to seek out the hidden treasures of our region. This hike includes an indoor session at the library at 10:30 a.m. followed by a picnic lunch and hike.

The geocaching hike and all Idaho Conservation League hikes, are free, but space is limited and registration is required. To sign up for a hike or for more information, visit www.idahoconservation. org or contact the Idaho Conservation League’s Sandpoint office at (208) 2659565.

A Chinese American Pioneer

On June 16, Hope’s Memorial Community Center will host Polly Bemis: A Chinese American Pioneer. This Idaho Humanities Council presentation begins at 7 pm with speaker Priscilla Wegars.

Polly Bemis, Idaho’s most famous Chinese woman, lived here for over 60 years. Although owned at first by a Warren, Idaho, Chinese businessman, she later married Charles Bemis. Charlie died in 1922 and Polly died in 1933. Since her death, fictionalized versions of Polly’s life often state that she was a prostitute or that Charlie Bemis won her in a poker game; sources provide evidence showing that both statements are myths.

This event is free and open to the

public; a complimentary dessert follows presentation. For more information, visit IdahoHumanitiesCouncil.org or call 208264-5481

Facebook and Your Privacy

Facebook status updates have been littered lately with a cut-and-paste ‘legal’ disclaimer that the information you post is personal and you don’t give your permission for others to use it. Seems sensible, right? Posters believe that, since Facebook is now a publicly traded company, their information is now up for grabs.

Actually, anything you post on Facebook is ‘up for grabs’ anyway, depending on how you’ve set your privacy settings. Posting this ‘legal disclaimer’ doesn’t change that.

As for third parties—your original work is already protected under U.S. copyright laws (as much as it can be) even without any written notice.

Nonetheless, Facebook is a public forum. If you choose to post something there (particularly if you choose to post something damaging to yourself), you should be aware that it “can and will be” used against you... maybe even in a court of law. It can also be used against you by prospective employers, landlords, etc.

If you wouldn’t like to see it on the front page of the daily newspaper, don’t post it on Facebook. It’s that simple.

You can find the choices for privacy settings here: https://www.facebook.com/ settings/?tab=privacy.

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A Bird in Hand Do you have your hummingbird feeder out? If not, it is unlikely that you’re going to fully enjoy one of the most assertive personalities in all of bird-dom. Bird guides often describe this species as “feisty.” That’s too kind. I think obnoxious is a better word, but in a fun way. There are few things more entertaining than watching the aerial combat between these little rust-colored birds around the nectar feeder in the late afternoon. It’s like a cheesy reproduction of the Battle of Britain, complete with sound effects.

The Rufous hummingbird is neither our largest nor our smallest hummingbird, but it is probably the most distinctively colored. Consequently, it is probably the easiest hummingbird to identify. As its name indicates, it is rufous in color: that is, rust-colored. In the sunlight these birds can appear to be almost orange.

This is true for the male anyway, although the female will sport some rustiness on its flanks, belly, and tail. Otherwise, similar to other female hummingbird species, a covert green will be the dominant hue accompanied by a white throat.

Another interesting feature of the Rufous that is easy to observe is the male’s courtship dance. These boys have no shame and are always ready to strut their stuff! If a male spots a female a nearby shrub or tree, he will fly high into the sky— maybe thirty feet—and then swoop down in a graceful dip complete with humming and twittering sound effects. There are typically three or four consecutive dives,

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one immediately after the other. The male might also display directly in front of the female, buzzing slowly forward and backward, displaying the bright colors of his tail and gorget.

And this point leads to another important field mark of the Rufous and any other species of hummingbird: the male’s gorget. The gorget is a showy patch of special feathers on the mature male’s throat. Normally the male holds these feathers close to his body and they will appear to be simply a large dark patch under his chin. But when he displays his gorget, especially if it is caught in the sunlight, this dark patch is transformed into an iridescent flash of metallic color.

Truly one of the most spectacular color displays in all of the animal kingdom and right in your backyard! Remarkable and unmistakable. Mr. Peacock has nothing on these little thumb-sized birds. In the case of the Rufous, the displayed gorget is a bright, flashy red. Males normally display their gorget for two reasons: to court the ladies or to threaten other males. And if you’re paying attention, note that when the gorget is displayed the male also fans his tail to add color and size to his form.

He will also make loud distinctive sounds.

But all of these actions combined might only last a few seconds.

Like all hummingbirds, the Rufous does not live on nectar alone. These little birds need protein and they find it in the form of gnats and spiders. Gnats they pick out of the air, spiders they pluck from the unlucky critters’ webs. They might also grab any bite-size bug that happens to be visiting the same blossom as them.

Rufous are also famous travelers. For their size, no bird on earth will travel as far as a Rufous hummingbird. Not even tern species that travel from pole to pole.

From their wintering grounds in Mexico, the Rufous might travel along the coast all the way up to Alaska. On their way back, they might return via the Rocky Mountains. When I lived in Southeast Alaska I was amazed how these little birds would literally swarm nectar feeders by the dozens. I have also seen them high in the mountains while backpacking, well before any wild blossoms had opened.

They must have been surviving on insects and body fat. Alaskan Indian legend taught that these little birds flew to Alaska on the backs of migrating geese. Many people today in Alaska still hold this to be true. It’s logical, but what is even more remarkable is that these little birds make the flight unassisted. I get exhausted just thinking about it!

You want action? You want drama? You want exotic animal displays? You want to see the Battle of Britain reenacted, ad nauseum? Then get those nectar feeders up right away. Quick, before these little birds decide that your backyard is not worth visiting. And that would be a shame. Imagine how boring our summers would be without the feisty little Rufous hummingbird. Happy birding!

Michael Turnlund is an educator, published author and avid birder. His books are available at Amazon. com. You can reach him at theturnlunds@gmail.com.

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Page 12 | The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol. 21 No. 6| June 2012

The Scenic Route

A few miles east of Trout Creek, Montana, White Pine Cemetery lies draped across a little, green hillock on the south side of the road. Lilacs bloom at the crest of the rise and rows of granite and marble markers lay on the land as if they grew there, which maybe they did, in a sense. It is a green and quiet place, open all around to the mountains on both sides of the river, the Cabinets on the north, Bitterroots on the south, stretching out of sight east and west. Montana’s sky is as big there as it is anywhere west of the Continental Divide.

The first time I stopped at White Pine Cemetery was at least ten years ago, and on that visit, I came upon the resting place of a girl named Montana. Montana is laid beside her papa, I would guess. They share the same last name. He outlived her by five years, and I wonder if he might have died of a broken heart, having lost his daughter.

Montana was 12 when they put her in the ground, and I catch myself mourning her, though I don’t know much about her; just that she grew up at Trout Creek and died a few years before I was born. Her dad was just 55 when he left his wife to live 17 years by herself. She is buried on the other side of him, the sunset side, downstream.

The headstones are matching gray marble, and each has the name of the dead, the years of their birth and dying and a saying carved into it. Montana’s says, “The rose still grows beyond the wall;” her father’s, “Till we meet again;” and her mother’s, “Together again … music in heaven.”

Down the road a ways, a driveway turns up the hill to the second bench above the river, to an old farm set between those same mountain ranges I can see sitting beside Montana’s resting place at White Pine.

Narcissus are in bloom along the top of the hill at the picnic ground and at the edge of the yard north of the old folks’

Montana house. They are gone now, too, two and three decades each, and what they have done is not so evident any more. Some of their buildings are missing and the fences that used to divide the known world into imaginary kingdoms for their grandkids are gone.

The front yard (Or was it the back?

We could never agree.) is growing up to hemlock and grand fir in the shade of the house he built for them out of larch and cedar fire-killed and left standing in 1910.

A sweetbrier stands thorny guard beside a near-dead old elm they brought as a whip from Kansas in 1917, but in the northwest corner of the yard, two other trees the old folks planted still flourish: a huge old spruce and a black walnut. A yellow cherry blooms at the southwest corner of the house and the ancient orchard still manages to blossom and bear a little every year.

When my father was new here, and not liking it much, he took a walk one cold winter night with the old man who built the house up the hill, his father-inlaw. The two of them hauled a half-ton of grain up that road to the second bench above the river, 200 pounds at a time, on a sled, after the pickup wouldn’t make it up the hill on the icy road. At one point, the two of them stopped to “blow,” out in the lane that ran from the top of the hill to the barn. It was a blue-black, cold-ass February night and every star God made for our quadrant of the sky was sparkling in the void. Standing there, that night, Dad came to his Montana conversion. As he told it, he looked up and thought to himself, “Hell, this ain’t so bad.”

And, it’s still not. Never am I so content as when I look through the windshield of my pickup and see the home range rise into view, those same mountains I looked at through the narcissus in the front yard of the house up the hill when I was more comfortable on all fours than on my hind legs.

Sandy Compton

I visited Montana at White Pine today, and tonight, I took a walk around that old house up the hill, then wandered home to the spot my folks lived, where I live still. Venus burns in the sky, and the moon is just beginning to turn his face to us. If Venus sights through the horns of the moon tonight, she’ll find Mars, and I always wondered what would happen when Venus found Mars.

Maybe I’ll stay up and watch, as I have watched the sky of this place for all of my life. It was sighting along the edge of the roof of that house up the hill at the direction of the man that built it that I first found the North Star, and in the living room of that house, we watched the first man step onto the moon, thirty short years ago.

When you live somewhere fortyplus years, it becomes part of you and you become part of it, like the markers following the curve of the land at White Pine, where the girl Montana lies.

I mourn Montana for her promise unfulfilled, and because I never knew her, and I wonder. Would she be moved off somewhere else, or here, with family all around her, grown into this place? I guess that’s how she is now, when I stop and think about it.

I wonder who she would be by now, if she wasn’t asleep at White Pine. If she was anything like the place she was named for, she would be beautiful and a little wild, and she would love the sky.

Sandy Compton is the author of Jason’s Passage and Archer MacClehan & The Hungry Now, both available online at www.sandpointonline.com/ generalstore. “Montana” was first published in August of 1999. You can reach Sandy at mrcomptonjr@hotmail.com

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www.MontanaBaroqueFestival.org June 2012| The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol. 21 No. 6| Page 13

The Game Trail

Matt Haag

Somebody out there knows what happened to two grizzly bears that were poached in the Hall Mountain area of Boundary County, and there is a $10,000 reward if that person comes forward with some information. On May 18 a hiker found a dead sow grizzly bear and unfortunately she was lactating. A subsequent search revealed that a cub was shot as well.

Forensics showed that both bears had been dead for a few days and the carcasses have been shipped to US Fish & Wildlife Service Wildlife Forensic Lab in Ashland, Ore. Sportsmen and wildlife enthusiasts should be totally outraged with the maliciousness of this poaching event. Anyone with information about the shootings should contact the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service at 509-928—6050, Idaho Fish and Game at 208-769-1414, or the Idaho Citizens Against Poaching Program at 1-800-632-5999.

Callers may remain anonymous.

On a lighter note, one of our own officers received the Medal of Honor this year for his heroic actions. While many of us here in North Idaho wouldn’t know this officer, I always like to do a little bragging about our guys and girls. Idaho Fish and Game’s Paul Alexander on Friday, May 18, was awarded the Idaho Medal of Honor for saving the life of a man whose car went into Black Canyon Reservoir.

While on patrol along the reservoir a little after 5 pm on April 15, 2011, Alexander, a senior conservation officer, saw a vehicle in the water. When he turned

An Honor for One of Ours around to investigate, the vehicle was completely submerged and the driver was struggling to swim to shore. After the man had gone under a third time, Alexander dove into the 40-degree water and swam 30 yards to pull him back to the surface and to safety.

Alexander was one of 10 peace officers and two firefighters who received the Idaho Medal of Honor in the May 18 ceremony.

Other recipients included officers with the Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office, Idaho Falls Police Department, Idaho State Police, Jerome Police Department, Lewiston Police Department and Coeur d’Alene Fire Department.

“The Idaho Medal of Honor is the state’s highest honor to recognize the extraordinary bravery of law enforcement officers, firefighters and EMS providers,” said Lawrence Wasden, Idaho attorney general and Medal of Honor Commission chairman. “These 12 professionals have gone above and beyond the call of duty in their commitment to the service of others.” You can check out the video at www.medalofhonor.idaho.gov.

Here’s a couple of reminders as we head into late spring/ early summer. Please DON’T PICK UP BABY WILDLIFE, for any reason. I get tired of writing about it, Trish gets tired of me writing about it, but it really needs to be said every year.

I can’t believe how many times each year we have to go rescue a fawn or calf from a “do- gooder” who tried to raise

the little bugger. If you really think that something is wrong with an animal please call us before handling that critter. It’s unfortunately gotten so out of control in this area that we are going to start issuing citations to anybody who takes in wildlife without authorization.

Do forget about Free Fishing Day coming up June 9 at various locations in Bonner County. I’ll be at the Clark Fork Lodge pond and have a pile of fishing loot generously donated to us from Big R. Sweet Lou’s restaurant has also generously offered to provide some hot coffee for all our fishing participants. Stop by Big R and thank them for generously donating back to the community, and while you’re there be sure to stock up on your fishing supplies, they have a little of everything.

Same goes for Sweet Lou’s restaurant, stop by and thank them for being such a great part of the community and grab a tasty burger or a slab of ribs! They have two locations, Hope at Holiday Shores and in Ponderay at the old Slates. If my career as a game warden flops, maybe I’ll go into advertising... okay, I’ll keep the day job.

Leave No Child Inside... take them to Free Fishing Day. Matt Haag is a Conservation Officer with the Idaho Dept. of Fish and Game. You can reach him at matt.haag@idfg.gov. or call at 208-946-0671.

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220 Cedar St. Sandpoint 208.263.0846 Page 14 | The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol. 21 No. 6| June 2012

Get Growing!

Talking Tomatoes!

On a steamy summer night growing up in Minnesota, we would open the windows to search for a light breeze. My Mother used to say “You can just hear those tomatoes growin’!” What she meant is those hot August nights are what really helps ripen tomatoes so easily in other parts of the nation. But there are a few tricks you can use in the North Country to help coax those lovely green orbs to red before the first frost.

1. Site and Plant Selection—You don’t need a big garden for a couple of tomatoes, a five gallon pickle bucket drilled for drain holes will hold one plant nicely. Sometimes, these “movable gardens” are a plus, as you can find a really hot spot that gets 6 to 8 hours of sun and even move them under cover in fall when the frost returns at night. Choose plants that list fruit that will ripen in 60 to 80 days, especially if you are a beginner! There are so many more flavorful and earlier tomatoes than the old genetically modified Early Girl. Explore old Heirlooms like Siberia, Stupice, German Johnson, Amish Paste and more. Be adventuresome, take notes, ask questions and be rewarded!

2. Soil, Water, Fertilizer—A good foundation: Make sure you have good drainage, really good soil and proper fertilizer for tomatoes. Tomatoes require water on a consistent basis, especially if you are going to have them in a bucket.

Drought and stress is one of the factors that bring blossom end rot to tomatoes, peppers, eggplants and squash. Tomatoes are heavy feeders and are prone to blossom end rot when the plants lack calcium, water and other nutrients to support the fruit. There is nothing more discouraging than finally getting to August, seeing the rubies grow to a decent size and then suddenly... ugh, a large black

sunken spot begins to form on the bottom of the tomato fruit. The bad news is that

by August, there is little to be done to turn this disease around and you have lost another crop. The good news is that when you plant now and you start with the right fertilizers in the soil and continue with a regular water and feeding schedule, you should eliminate the ugly black spots from ruining all your work!

Just as we are reading more labels at the grocery store, look at your labels of fertilizers for your garden. According to law, all fertilizers must list their “Guaranteed Analysis” of Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potassium and any other minerals and nutrients they claim to include on the label. These fertilizers are tested by the state of Idaho regularly to ensure the public is getting what they pay for. I have had reputable companies have a bad “batch” not live up to their claims by just a small percentage point and have to be pulled off the sale shelves.

For tomatoes, look to a fertilizer with higher middle number (Phosphorus) such as 5-7-3 and Calcium listed at 4 percent or more to prevent the blossom end rot.

A granular organic should be used not only in the soil as you plant but again, top dressed in once a month.

3. Planting & Staking—Most Tomatoes need a strong cage, trellis or even a cattle panel to be coaxed through as they grow tall. This will allow you to tie up branches so the sun can reach the fruits when they get big! Velcro ties are the strongest yet softest on the plant tissues I have found… and when you are careful, you can reuse them. Plant tomato starts deep. Remove the bottom leaves and dig a 1 foot hole, fertilize and stake. The plant roots out from that buried stem and develops into a stronger plant on its own. Determinate

Nancy Hastings

(bushier) tomatoes are the only tomatoes that will not require staking.

4. Weeding—Do not cultivate deeply or disturb the top roots when weeding or feeding. Tomatoes have very tiny root hairs that have to do a lot of work in a short amount of time.

5. Heating—Red Plastic Mulch is used to both trap the heat in the soil each night around fruiting vegetables and also ripen them 20 percent faster because the light it reflects has a lower red to far-red ratio than sunlight. Common black plastic only aids in the plant’s warmth and growth.

It is easiest if you put this down first and then slit holes into it when planting.

Floating Row Cover/Frost Cloth is a lightweight white blanket that can save your crop from early frosts, giving a 3to 5-degree buffer from frost settling on your plant.

Greenhouse plastic can be wrapped around single plants or you can create a small tunnel over your row of tomatoes to protect and continue the ripening process well into October!

Cheers to Good Growing!

Nancy Hastings grew up on a 300+ acre farm and now is co-owner of All Seasons Garden & Floral in Sandpoint, She and her husband John have been cultivating environmental awareness and sustainable communities through horticulture for 15 years in North Idaho. You can reach them with garden questions or sign up for classes at allseasonsgardenandfloral@gmail.com.

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June 2012| The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol. 21 No. 6| Page 15

Veterans’ News

This will be my post-Memorial Day column and the first item on the agenda is to give a great big ‘thank you’ to all of you who donated to the DAV’s fundraising drive held on Memorial Day, Monday the 28th. I have no way of predicting what we’ll end up getting but I feel the people of North Idaho will be as generous as they have been in the past. An even bigger ‘thanks’ goes out to all those volunteers who stood out there and ‘Shook Their Cans’ to keep our DAV van on the road for another year. All they asked in return for the “Forget-Me-Nots” they handed out was a smile and—hopefully—a small donation that helps area veterans get the medical treatment they need.

Moving on—In last month’s article I said that the draft was ended in 1975 by President Gerald Ford. That statement was and is true. Registration for the draft was re-instated retroactively back to 1975 by President Carter in July of 1980 requiring all males 18 years of age to register with the Selective Service.

That law continues in effect to this day.

But—and it is a large ‘but’—I can find no record of anyone actually being drafted after they registered with their local Selective Service board. In fact, I can find no information of any Selective Service board actually being convened to select draftees for military service. So, what we have is an All-Volunteer Armed Forces that constitutes a very small segment of the total population.

Continuing with my theory, we have a large division within our country—those who serve, or have served, in the military as opposed to the huge majority of citizenry

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Forget-Us-Not that have never served—and most likely, never will. The vast majority of citizens (over 96 percent) have no real contact with the military, the families of military people or even have friends who are in the military. The military community is a vastly different universe than that lived in by most Americans. There are no shared experiences to base a dialogue on. This is a very real problem.

Most Americans simply can neither understand nor comprehend the stresses placed on the spouses and children of our service people with prolonged and multiple deployments. These spouses left at home are forced to fulfill both parental roles for months at a time. They must be both the disciplinarians and the comforters within the home. It is their ‘stay-at-home-role’ that is, in many ways, the hardest. We have the best trained, best equipped, most professional military we’ve ever had in the entire history of this country. While they are deployed in the field their spouses at home must deal with school work, bill collectors, sick pets, broken appliances, stopped up toilets, filling tax returns, balky furnaces and—to top it off—having to worry if their spouse will come home alive. The only situation I can come up with that is similar is a single-parent household having to deal with all of the above scenarios but it falls a little short when it comes down to the soul-deadening, 24/7 additional worry of the potential death or wounding of that absent spouse.

We need to re-think this situation. This separation is not healthy for the nation as a whole. We cannot continue having all the sacrifices made by one group of Americans while the vast majority of Americans are enjoying the fruits of those sacrifices. We cannot continue to give short shrift to our returning veterans just so the majority can enjoy the benefits of that which the veterans have given us. Everything worth having requires concessions and sacrifices.

All the sacrifices cannot be carried on the shoulders of a small minority. There must be a ‘Fair & Balanced’ (to borrow a phrase) system. It is incumbent that every American participates and contributes to the common good commensurate with their ability to pay. If we are to have a healthy and viable society this must be the way things happen. The sacrifices must be shared.

As our veterans return from

Gil Beyer

Afghanistan and try to re-integrate back into civilian society, what are they faced with? High unemployment, underfunded assistance and aid services at every level and a Congress that is gridlocked into almost complete immobility. It appears that Congress is totally committed to making the federal government unable to function for the good of the people. And, the obstructionists on the Far Right have done an excellent job at that task.

Over the past 18 months the House and Senate have done a marvelous job of creating a new standard for mediocrity in public service. Of the 435 members of the House of Representatives, I personally feel that a minimum of fifty-nine of them have done absolutely nothing to warrant returning them to office for the 113th Congress in January 2013. They have blocked just about every bill that would give benefit to those that most deserving our thanks and gratitude—our returning veterans. These Congressmen have repeatedly thwarted doing anything positive for the American people or for our returning servicemen and women.

We need to provide jobs, training and medical services for our veterans. The ‘Ryan Budget’ as passed by the House has no mention of the word ‘veteran’ and provides no funding for any program that would do the needed things for our returning heroes.

I like to close on a positive note—There is a program in the works that may have a real benefit for our local newer veterans.

The US Chamber of Commerce is starting up a program nationwide to encourage local employers to hire returning veterans.

The information I have on hand indicates that the local Chamber is looking for sixteen employers to participate in the “Hire Our Heroes” program to be held on July 16 at the VFW Post at the corner of Pine & Division in Sandpoint. I hope to have further information in time for next month’s issue.

Again, a heartfelt and sincere ‘Thank You’ to all who donated on Memorial Day and to all of you that were out there ‘Shaking Your Cans’ for the DAV—I’m proud to have worked with every one of you on this worthwhile project. Until next month, take care and be safe.

Gil Beyer, ETC USN Ret., can be reached at vintage40@frontier. com

June 2012| The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol. 21 No. 6| Page 16

The Hawk’s Nest Alice’s Rocking Boat

I have lived most of my nearly sixtyfive years in the Northwest and it has been a wonderful place to spend a life, but tonight night I saw my first fireflies.

While sitting on Ana and Noah’s deck in Virginia Beach, Virginia the little sparkles appeared in the brush by the pond.

This epic in my life began in August of 2010. Ana was pregnant and for some reason I still don’t fully understand, I wanted to build the baby a rocking boat.

After a search on the Internet, a plan that looked good and was reasonable for my skill level was found.

I ordered the plans, knowing it would be a stretch for my woodworking skills; still it needed to be done. Besides, Linda keeps reminding me to stretch.

It took a while to get started due to some logistics. The kids and soon-toarrive Alice were in Hawaii at the time so shipping would be prohibitive. Then orders came for them to move to Virginia Beach. A new question arose: how to get the boat there if it did get built? Finally, last winter, I decided if I didn’t build it and get it to Alice soon she would be too old for it. That forced the decision to build and drive it there myself.

My usual fears surfaced whenever I know I’m going to stretch myself, but I told Ana and Noah that I was driving back with a surprise for the family, thus forcing me to dive in and build my first boat.

My friend Doug has told me many times to visualize what I want so I kept an image of Alice crawling around in the boat in the back of my mind.

As work progressed friends stopped by the shop and talked about the heirloom I was building. In order for a rocking boat to work it must be used. It needs to be one that will get scratched and dinged

marred and marked, all in the name of fun and imagination. I could see her looks of determination and her happy grins.

I could hear her sweet petite strongminded grunts as she crawled around the pint-sized ship and her excited shrieks of joy as she reached each goal. I thought of it as a little vessel of joy for Alice and her friends and future siblings. It is important to me to remember it is a toy. It may be an heirloom too, but first it is a toy.

I varied from the plans slightly to make it look more like an old sailing ship. As I worked, her grandma found a flag saying “Pirate Princess;” it seemed to fit so it became a rocking pirate ship.

With each construction frustration, I kept that vision of Alice in the boat in my mind—the project got finished.

When it was done I started the next phase of the epic. I loaded the little vessel of joy into the back of our truck and drove from North Idaho to the Atlantic Ocean.

The trip was basically as uneventful as a cross-country drive can be. I had some arguments with the GPS, some of which it won, some I won. I discovered the beauty of Kentucky and West Virginia. Still ,somehow between Friday morning and Monday morning I made it to their town.

Finally the GPS said, “turn left” and when I did it, said “Arrive Ana on right.”

Linda arrived that evening and on Tuesday morning Ana and Noah were sent to the store while we kept Alice. While they were gone the ship came into the house and a cute pirate dress donated to the project by Amy, Trish’s daughter, (via Amy’s boyfriend Sean) was put on this special granddaughter.

We sat the captain in her ship when we knew Mom and Dad were in the drive. I felt like the director of a grand production on

Why drive to town when there’s better things to do?

Ernie Hawks

opening night, waiting to see the reaction of the audience. By the time they came in it had been Alice-tested and Aliceapproved.

They were thrilled at the sight, grabbed cameras and camera phones to record the moment. In minutes, Alice and her ship were seen across the nation and around the world by friends and relatives. Later, Noah said he had never received so many comments on one of his Facebook posts.

It isn’t woodworking perfection but it is better than I had expected it to be. Alice doesn’t seem to mind imperfection as she rocks and crawls all over it. She is teaching me imperfection is perfectly fine.

Building the boat for this family was never about artistic creation but about sharing a dream of mine and giving of myself as an expression of the love I feel for them and from them. It is an honor to be a part of this family.

Tonight the kids went to a movie, not a spontaneous event anymore for them.

Linda and I put Alice down and with baby monitor in hand went out on the deck for a glass of wine. That is when I saw my first fireflies.

Just before Alice went to bed she walked over to me, and raised her arms wanting to be picked up. I did and started singing to her. She relaxed into me, an arm around my neck, her head resting on my shoulder and became quiet.

That will be my fondest memory of the trip, even more then Alice and her rocking boat.

Ernie Hawks is a writer, photographer and motivational speaker. Reach him at michalhawks@gmail. com, and check out his photos at www.PhotosbyHawks.net

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June 2012| The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol. 21 No. 6| Page 17

A Seat in the House During this last primary election, support of renewable electric energy resources, specifically wind power, was a major issue in our legislative district.

Given this, I believe it is important to provide more substantive background into the pros and cons of encouraging the use of renewable electric energy resources to help meet Idaho’s future demand for electric energy.

I have discussed in past articles the adoption of the 2007 Idaho Energy Plan by the Idaho Legislature. In adopting the 2007 energy plan the legislature committed to updating the Idaho Energy Plan at a minimum of every five years and in this last session adopted a 2012 Energy Plan that met this requirement.

The major work in updating the plan was accomplished by the Legislative Interim Committee on Environment, Energy and Technology during the summer of 2011.

In updating the 2007 plan the Interim Committee worked in partnership with the Idaho Strategic Energy Alliance. The ISEA is comprised of nearly 200 volunteers from state, local and federal interests as well as profit and non-profit sectors, including representatives from the private electric utility companies.

In addition, the Interim Committee engaged in a thorough public process that provided substantial opportunity for input from stakeholders and members of the public to comment and submit revisions for the 2012 plan.

The 2012 Idaho Energy Plan was adopted by a 56 to 9 vote in the House and a 34 to 0 vote in the Senate and is recognized as a resource to be used by the legislature in adopting energy policy to meet the energy needs of Idaho businesses and citizens.

The recommendations of the Energy Plan were based on a frank assessment of Idaho’s energy strengths and weaknesses.

Idaho’s existing energy resource base has resulted in some of the lowest electricity prices in the country, providing enormous benefit to all Idaho consumers.

However, new energy resources are becoming increasingly costly, and Idaho’s position as an importer of more than 80 percent of our energy needs leaves Idaho consumers vulnerable to issues that are outside of our control.

Given this reality one of the more significant policy statements in the plan states that: “When acquiring resources Idaho and Idaho utilities should give

About That Renewable Energy priority to cost effective and prudent conservation, energy efficiency and demand response resources, and secondly, to renewable resources.

Note the words: “cost-effective”, meaning that when determining the use of a particular resource, the cost of that resource has to be competitive with other resources that are available.

The Idaho Energy Plan is a document intended to be a guide and is not a requirement for utilities to follow in acquiring resources, unlike some of our neighboring states that have adopted a mandatory “Renewable Portfolio Standard.”

An RPS requires that electric utilities supply a minimum amount of customer load with electricity from renewable energy resources. States that have implemented an RPS include Washington, Oregon, Nevada, and Montana.

Idaho utilities do have to abide by the federal Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act. PURPA, passed in 1978, requires that “regulated, natural monopoly electric utilities buy power from more efficient producers, if that cost was less than the utility’s own ‘avoided cost rate’ to the consumer.” The law was meant to encourage non-utility Independent Power Producers to develop environmentfriendly, renewable energy projects and technologies.

The governing factor under PURPA is the use of the “avoided cost” terminology that lets a regulated electric utility avoid buying a renewable resource when the cost of that resource is greater than the cost of a more conventional electric generating resource such as a natural gas fueled electric generator.

Given these parameters, renewable resources can be instrumental in providing the most cost-effective electric supply mix to aid in providing the lowest costs for Idaho consumers.

Specifically, in the case of wind, wind generation, when priced right in recognition of the intermittent availability (non-firm) of wind and the costs of integrating the resource into the transmission system, can be a costeffective and viable resource.

Two specific examples of this involve purchases of wind energy by the Avista Company that serves northern Idaho and eastern Washington.

Avista has a current contract to

Rep. George Eskridge

purchase a 35 MegaWatt share of the 660 MW Stateline Wind Project located near Wall Walla, Washington at a rate paid

by Avista, including a wind integration charge and other considerations, of 5.5 cents per KiloWatt hour.

The company also has a contract to purchase the entire output of the Palouse Wind project currently under construction near Oaksdale, Washington. The rate to Avista is about 5.5 cents per KWh in the first year. These rates are comparable to or less than what Avista is paying for its own gas fired generation. Additionally, because wind does not have a fuel cost, the cost of wind is not subject to increasing fuel costs, as is the case with natural gas fired generation which in most cases includes a fuel adjustment clause that allows the utility to increase its rate to its consumers if the cost of natural gas increases.

There are also other benefits of wind and other renewable resources including tax revenues, lease payments to land owners and use of endowment lands that provide public school monetary support that are also significant when considering development of renewable electric energy resources to serve Idaho consumers. These benefits need to be considered in our overall energy planning and development of electricity resources by Idaho electric utilities.

I believe that for several reasons our private utilities in Idaho are generally relying on natural gas as their electric resource of choice and this may not be in the best interest of Idaho ratepayers in terms of future electricity costs. Rather, as supported by our state energy plan, a diverse mix of electric generating resources based on cost-effectiveness on both a short-term and long-term basis, will serve the interests of Idaho ratepayers more effectively and at least-cost.

Thanks for reading and as always please contact me issues important to you. I can be reached by phone at 265-0123 and by mail at P.O. Box 112, Dover, Idaho 83825.

George George Eskridge, is the Idaho Representative for House District 1B. Reach him at 208-265-0123 or P.O. Box 112, Dover, ID 83825

June 2012| The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol. 21 No. 6| Page 18

Say What?

To those of us in southern England on June 6, 1944 the conflict that became known as WWII took a sudden turn.

The skies were full of airplanes. Mostly bombers headed for the Continent, they were later referred to as the “aluminum overcast.” Each plane was in a sense like the words swamping the coming great election.

This time the sky overhead is full of words designed to overwhelm an enemy.

As usual, a political enemy. The war this June is just as lethal as that one long ago. Destruction of any societal system isn’t much different than converting a neighborhood into a pile of rubble.

The hurt is just as deep, the confusion is essentially the same as are the consequences.

Politics can be spelled in many ways.

Perhaps likening it to war is a bit extreme but the aims and results are pretty much the same. Politics in America has long been a sort of gentle guidance.

Demonstrations, defiant mobs, vindictive bombing, marches and the like have never been the rule; they have been the exception, to promote a different opinion.

As the war drones on it might be helpful to consider the words recorded by one scholar in his history of Iran.

The author of such a simple thought was Christopher de Bellaigue in writing about the progress of life in Iran about 60 years ago. The Iranians were confused because their leader at the time failed to “strike that balance between the interests and ideals, of which a true politician is made” That is essentially what is going on today.

We are living in an era of extremes.

One force is trying through extraordinary

The Never-Ending War

Paul Rechnitzer

means to reshape the thoughts of a to get things done That is where logic and majority of our voters while his opposition common sense should prevail. is fed by equally extreme visions on the Can the future of our country be other side. The air is filled with the drone controlled by endless interpretations of words, on top of words, designed to that satisfy only a narrow segment of our generate support. The voices are many. population? Come on! Instead of being The voices are often shrill. The voices are of one mind about our country we are generally raw emotion. being divided by the arguments for and The voices often spell confusion. against what constitutes marriage, when Deception can be a fact. does life begin, should we be involved in We are at a crossroads of political contraception, is there a limit to who gets thought. The air is filled with confusing food stamps and just what does illegal logic. The air is filled with meaningless mean, and on and on... the drone of opinions. The air is filled with ideas whose words. lofting satisfies only the one doing it.

Frankly, we are so far off course it is Being right is a terrible burden. hard to see what will set us straight. But In the Wall Street Journal the other day then again, what is straight? the columnist Jason Zweig noted that the Straight is the governing principle philosopher Bertram Russell was one who that recognizes there are many diverse was concerned about the consequences opinions at large and that it is impossible of being right. “... the less evidence to satisfy each and every one. In the someone has that his ideas are ‘right’ the absence of a solution that fixes every flaw more vehemently he asserts that there is we allow natural forces to dominate. To no doubt whatsoever that he is exactly put it another way, common sense comes right’” into play.

These days the woods are filled Do we empower the talk or the with ‘right fighters’ who stand on the performer?

Constitution just as the Islamists stand on Dismissing the politician in favor of an the Koran and the evangelicals stand on ideologue is like giving a driver’s license the Bible. There is nothing wrong about to someone who has just learned to drive. their principles (as long as they adhere to Any good government requires not only them). What is wrong is they are misusing dedicated members with integrity but the platform. The certainty of being people who know how to make their voices right does not necessarily mean you are heard. Conviction is good but only when correct. It only means your convictions grounded on reality. are overriding your ability to reason.

Which persuades you most—the talk or In my business years there were always the record? Those D-Day airplanes were a few men who “ talked the talk.” They “walking the walk.” After all, it is only knew the right words and to whom they performance that counts. should be addressed. They did that in my opinion because they really couldn’t Paul Rechnitzer is a well-known perform. What should count is the ability local conservative and author, and a practiced curmudgeon. You can reach him at pushhard@nctv. increase nutrients, such as nitrogen and com Council website at tristatecouncil.org.

Espresso at Annie’s Orchard

This septic pilot project is being introduced in order to comply with water quality standards as determined by the Federal Clean Water Act. Designated to protect water quality, the plan, known as with your hosts Terry & Carole Chowning a “Total Maximum Daily Load” for Lake Coffee and other Pend Oreille, addresses nutrient issues specialty drinks, morelakeshore In pastries addition, &many homeowners participated in a survey Hwy 200 1 mile west of Clark Forkconcerning • 208-266-1245 in 2007 a variety of water quality issues.

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June Journal 2012| The - A Worth News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com 21 No. 6| Page| 19 The River - A River NewsJournal Magazine Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol 17 No. 18||Vol. November 2008 Page 5

DOWNTOWN SANDPOINT EVENTS SANDPOINT EVENTS

June

Independence Day!

Parades, fireworks and more in Sandpoint and beyond!

Events to take place on

July 4

Experience

12 An Evening with Kim Barnes. 7 pm Sandpoint Library, free. 208-255-4410 15-16 Spring for the Garden. The Healing Garden at Bonner General Hospital 8am to 3 pm. Plant sale.

15-17 Winery Birthday Party. Pend d’Oreille Winery, specials all weekend.

POWine.com. 208-265-8545 15 Dan Hicks and The Hot Licks. The Panida Theater, Tickets are $22; available online at TicketFly.com.

16 Danceworks Annual Spring Show. The Panida Theater, Panida.org. 208-2639191 16 Terry Holder at Di Luna’s Café, 207 Cedar St., DiLunas.com. 208-263-0846 16 Demolition Derby. Bonner County Fairgrounds 208-263-8414 22-23 Relay for Life. American Cancer Society benefit at the Bonner County Fairgrounds. 208-660-1445 23 FRESH the Movie at the Panida. 7 p.m.

Admission is $5; pick up a $1 off coupon during the Solstice Celebration at Winter Ridge the same day. WinterRidgeFoods. com. 208-265-8135 28 Summer Sampler. 5-7:30 pm.

Farmin Park in downtown Sandpoint.

SandpointChamber.org. 263-2161 29-30 The Music Man. The Sandpoint Onstage 8 pm. SandpointOnstage.com, Panida.org. 208-263-9191 30 Schweitzer Summer Celebration.

Summer season opens at Schweitzer Mountain Resort with free chairlift rides, live music, family activities and much more. Schweitzer.com. 255-3081

Don’t Miss the Independence Day Celebrations.

Our thanks to the Lion’s Club for all their work and dedication!

PLUS:

Trivia every Tuesday night at MickDuff’s.

Tuesdays with Ray, Trinity at City Beach, 6 to 8 pm.

Sandpoint Swing Tuesdays at 6:30 pm, $3. Bongo Brew/Earth Rhythms Cafe Visit www.DowntownSandpoint.com for a complete calendar of events 208-610-8587 Bingo Night: hosted by The Loading Dock, every Thursday, 5-8 pm.

Winery Music - Live music every Friday night at Pend d’Oreille Winery Sandpoint Farmer’s Market, Wednesdays 3-5:30 pm, Saturdays 9-1, Farmin Park downtown.

Lounge Music with Neighbor John, Thursdays 6-9 at 41 South.

Live music, Coldwater Creek Wine Bar, 7-10 on Fridays.

Old Time Music Jam, Cafe Bodega @ Foster’s Crossing, 6-8 pm first and third Thursdays.

Summer Sounds. Free concert series every Saturday 4-6 pm Park Place Stage Wacky Wine Wednesdays. Di Luna’s Café June 2012| The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com Vol. 21 No. 6| Page 20 4-6 | pm.

208-263-0846

Downtown Sandpoint!

Politically Incorrect In Grandma’s Garden Trish Gannon Keira searched for flowers in a tall patch of unmown grass in my backyard.

Most of the grasses were just over her twoand-a-half-year-old head, and some of the dandelions lurking within were nearly as tall. There were other flower surprises hidden in the grass for a patient eye to find, and when it comes to picking flowers, Keira has a patient eye.

As I sat in the sun on the back step and watched her exploration, I found myself suddenly transported almost 50 years back in time, to a hot little garden in Jackson, Tennessee, in the back yard of my paternal grandparents. I was probably about the age that Keira is now—I know this only because on that visit, I also recall sitting on the lap of Grandpa Yates (my grandmother’s second husband; my blood grandfather died 20 years before I was born), and he passed away the year I turned three.

My grandmother Ella Joy’s garden was probably typical of the kitchen gardens at the time, but to my little self, it was a jungle: green and mysterious, towering over my head. For a moment there on my back step, I could feel the heat of the sun on my head, smell that green, growing smell, and remember how absorbing the search for treasure (and everything found was a treasure) could be.

It was a good memory and I watched Keira and wondered whether, fifty years into the unknowable future, she might have a sudden memory of this very day and her hunt for flowers. That would be a

good thing.

Ella Joy, who lived to the age of 68 (she seemed a LOT older to me when I was a child) outlived both of her husbands. My grandfather, Tom Presley, died in ‘41; she quickly remarried to Ernest Yates but outlived him as well.

She spent almost her entire life in

Jackson, not far from where her own grandfather had lived, and that is where she is buried, next to Mr. Yates.

Jackson and the surrounding area nurtured a lot of my bloodline for two hundred years. I only lived there a couple years myself, but it nonetheless is the setting for many of my memories of childhood as we would often travel there to visit my father’s relatives. And I was always envious of those who lived there for their sense of belonging.

When my own children were born, I wanted that them to have that same sense of belonging to a place that I never had, and I found myself planting roots in Clark Fork, a small town that I suspect has much

SANDPOINT FARMER’S MARKET

In Sandpoint’s Farmin Park (Third & Oak) Wednesdays 3:30-5:30 • Saturdays 9-1

in common with the town where Grandma Ella Joy spent so much of her life.

It was a hardy breed that settled here— as I try to break ground in my back yard/ former field for my garden, I marvel at just how hardy they were. It’s a good thing for my own children that I wasn’t born two hundred years earlier, as they likely would have starved to death!

The grandparents and greatgrandparents of many who live here put so much effort into creating this community that their descendents, today, are not very quick to throw away anything that was built.

That is a good thing, too.

So here is the place to which my children belong and, even though they have all moved on to other places, this is where they return; for alumni, for the fourth of July, to cut down a Christmas tree after Thanksgiving dinner and to celebrate on Christmas morning.

I await those days with anticipation, as my greatest enjoyment comes when there’s family all around.

With Independence Day just around the corner, I look forward to bonfires and baseball and maybe even ninjas in the community parade. I’m even gathering supplies for my grandkids (Tyler, Jade, Tristan, Keira, Landon and Gavin—they’re not all “mine” in terms of blood, but I claim them nonetheless) to decorate the dull, grey block of my raised garden beds, and to make a few memories.

The smell of these mountains when the rain falls, the color of the dirt and the sight of cottonwoods “snowing” in the spring all exist in my children’s hearts to be recalled at some future time and place. They are here for my grandchildren, and hopefully will be here for my newest grandchild, set to arrive just in time for my birthday.

That is also good.

Here’s to making memories.

Trish Gannon is the owner/ publisher of the River Journal.

You can reach her at trish@ riverjournal.com.

June 2012| The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol. 21 No. 6| Page 21

PASSAGES

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Evelyn Joyce Melendy HOADLEY July 30, 1910 - April 29, 2012

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Helen Virginia Stier RIDDLE April 17, 1913 - May 5, 2012

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The official explanation simply doesn’t hold water. This is one of those “who knew what, when” questions that must be answered—and people/institutions must

How’s Your View?

Speaking of accountability, you might be surprised to learn that I would not support an effort to impeach President Bush after the November elections. First, because that’s too late, and second, because more than Bush have been involved in crimes against the American people. What I would like to see are charges (at the least, charges of treason) brought againstPlaza Bush,Dr.Cheney, et al.8Bring 600 Schweitzer behind Super Motel the charges and let’s let the evidence of

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Page 22 | The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol. 21 No. 6| June 2012

Kathy’s Faith Walk

August 2-12, 2012

FeSTivAl ATSAndpoinT!

I Served You Well

The

Kathy Osborne

Back in the early 90s Rod Stewart recorded a song entitled “Forever Young.” It is a blessing and I am reminded of it as my youngest daughter, and youngest child, embarks on a new phase in her life. Not only is she moving out, she is leaving home. This event has been a long time coming. My daughter was ready to fly the coop the day she turned 13. This was problematic and we have been dealing with it for 10 years. All that changed this spring.

Her paralyzing cocoon of indecision, insecurity, and inability to trust developed a weak spot. For the first time she was able to look without the constraints of her self imposed prison and see what could be. She never looked within again.

I have heard it said that when you have kids they don’t come with an instruction manual. This is not true. God has provided a wonderful body of work which provides not only instructions but the ability to see deep within the soul of any child. However, it cannot be accessed without one thing: the heart of a servant.

Children come to us not as an empty slate but with the trappings of the human condition. The Bible says we start out broken and in fact we do. I chose to approach my children from this perspective which has lead to becoming their servant. It has been an amazing ride and I would trade none of it. Over the years my husband and I have sought the guidance of God through His living Word, the Bible, in all areas of our life. Why? Simple. We don’t like to fail. When it came to raising the kids we constantly referred to the Bible.

God has said many things about children - that they are a gift; they need correction from time to time; they bring us joy when they are obedient and sadness when they are rebellious. He also says it is the parent’s job, not the community’s, to raise up a child and that if we will raise them up in the way they are to go they will not depart from it when they are old. God says to love them, be patient, not provoke them to anger, not to break their heart or their will and to care for them the way He cares for us – unconditionally. There comes a time to let them fly alone and they have to be ready. My last time watching my offspring leave the nest will be tomorrow. I am beginning to feel it.

We spent many hours over the years talking and problem solving. We told our kids to call if they needed a ride and we would come get them. They did and we did. We promised them that if they got themselves put in jail we would leave them there and receive them with love when they got out. It happened and we followed through. We promised to help them understand how to build relations ships and more importantly how to let relationships end. We taught them to work hard, love God, honor authority, respect others, laugh at themselves, cry with their friends, never judge based on different, and finish what they start. We taught them to live their lives fully and embrace God’s plans for them because there is no better path. This spring my daughter was finally able to believe this for the first time – to believe that God loves her even more than we do.

It has been our privilege to serve these three kids and to see them move into their callings in the Lord as He uses their gifts and talents to lay out their path. Tomorrow I will stand back and watch as the last one sets out to become everything she was meant to be and as the song says “When you finally fly away I’ll be hoping that I served you well.”

Kathy Osborne is the editor of the Co-Op Country Round-Up. Reach her at coopcountrystore@yahoo. com

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The

Afterlife Chronicles Part 1

FROM THE FILES OF THE RIVER JOURNAL’S

Surrealist Research Bureau

I’ve just finished reading the Clark Fork Library’s latest acquisition, “Heaven is for Real,” by Todd Burpo (Thomas Nelson Books, 2010), a reportedly non-fiction account of a glimpse of the afterlife

send him out on solo search-and-destroy missions where, armed with nothing but a rifle and a bowie knife, he’d stroll back to base a week or two later and nonchalantly claim three or four kills and get ready for

as recalled by a four-year-old child undergoing an emergency appendectomy.

His “visions,” not surprisingly, seem to mirror the beliefs and expectations of his evangelical Christian father. While children are thought to be more truthful witnesses, the sad truth is that just as many of them report seeing Power Rangers or superheroes in the afterlife as those seeing Christ or the angels. Further, just as many kids in the Middle East or Asia recall seeing Buddha or Muhammad.

The most blatant (to me) misuse of these afterlife chronicles is that of D. Bannon’s “Saved by the Light.” He claims he was struck by lightning and died for several minutes before being resuscitated, experiencing several visions and prophesies, which I’ll get to in a moment.

In the chapters of his book detailing his life previous to his “visions” he brings up his experiences in Vietnam operating as a one-man army. According to him, the military brass somehow recognized his unique capabilities and would often

his next stealth mission.

Now, as a two-and-a-half-year combat veteran and ex-paratrooper, I knew this was total bullshit. We long-range patrol grunts couldn’t get by without carrying a couple gallons of water; sometimes we’d walk hunched over by the weight of our supplies, trip flares, claymores, dynamite... the list is endless. Times were, in jungle so thick we’d be lucky to machete and hack our way a scant hundred yards a day, to even suppose that some yahoo is given a rifle and bowie knife and told to go out into the jungle alone is simply madness.

So, with his Vietnam claims so blatantly false (to me) I took a skeptical, dimmer view of his other claims. (More so when I discovered later some of his service-mates came forward with statements that he’d spent his entire service career in Georgia as a truck driver.) Bannon, of course, now claims that his army records were falsified to hide his work for the CIA. I suspect, though cannot prove simply out of a lack of desire to re-read his nonsense, that in

Jody Forest

more recent editions of his books he’ll downplay, if not omit, his army “career.”

Likewise his “prophecies” of such things as the gulf war or the Chernobyl disaster, as these “visions” seem only to appear in the later editions of his books, after the incidents they describe. As an example, I’d like to go out on a limb and publicly proclaim the election of our first black president and ohhh.., an attack on the WTC on 9/11!

Betty Eadie’s book, “Embraced by the Light” (1992), is similarly plagued by differing accounts depending on which part of the country it’s sold in. After receiving $150,000 for the paperback rights, she deleted references to God’s approval of abortion outside of her native Utah, as well as the fact of the angel’s denial of Christ as God (another of her Mormon faith’s tenets).

To my mind, the best of the after-death chronicles is still one of the earliest, George Ritchie’s 1978 “Return From Tomorrow.”

I lean towards agreeing with Ken Ring, Whitley Strieber and others that what we tend to think of as ghosts, UFOs, ESP, and Near-Death Experiences are all part of a single, as yet unexplained, phenomenon.

I’m reminded somewhat of our SETI program (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence); we beat on drums sending messages through a small part of the jungle, unaware that a vast array of unseen or unheard radio and television transmissions are going on around and even through us, yet still we beat on our hollow skin-drums, listening in the dark night in vain for an answer. ‘til next time, keep spreading the word; Soylent Green is People! All Homage to Xena!

Jody has been involved in many neardeath experiences, the most memorable involving a winding, mountain road, an MG convertible, the spirit of Jimi Hendrix and that little green guy with the big head from the opening credits of “My Favorite Martian.” He can be reached at joe@riverjournal.com.

You can’t get a cup of tea big enough or a book long enough to suit me.

C.S. Lewis

Page 24 | The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol. 21 No. 6| June 2012

From Beyond

ThE

Valley of Shadows

The Depression House “The game of life is hard to play, I’m going to lose it anyway. The losing card I’ll someday lay so this is all I have to say: Suicide is painless, it brings on many changes, and you can take or leave it as you please.” Johnny Mandel: “Theme from M*A*S*H.” The last of three stories from my cousin’s unexpected experiences while house flipping concerns an older farm house south of Spokane somewhere off Hwy. 395 on the way to Pullman.

Built during the 20s, just before the Depression hit, it hadn’t been occupied since the early 1950s.

Robert got it for a song, likely due to the fact—or so he thought at such a bargain— that he had snatched it up sight unseen.

All he knew about it before actually inspecting the 90+-year-old structure was that it was minimalist Victorian and sat at a quarter mile off the highway.

Originally a property of several thousand acres, planted in wheat, most likely, most of it had been sold off over the decades and was still under cultivation or had been built on. The house now stood on less than an acre of land.

It was in better condition than he had thought. Two stories, a superior attic and partial cellar under the house. Not a stick of furniture or appliance remained. Built solid, it was sound, but the wiring and plumbing were a joke. The most recent upgrade must have been shortly after the Second World War. The project was going to take a lot of work and a lot longer than the usual jobs. Fortunately, it was early May, so he wouldn’t be struggling with winter weather. If things went fairly well, he could have it on the market by late August. The cheap price, odd for this time of high valuations (this was prior to the mortgage crisis), made the cost of the extensive upgrades do-able.

The last owners had been a WWII veteran and his wife. They bought in with a mortgage, and that was the final restoration. According to the property records, they had apparently abandoned it by 1951 for no apparent reason, leaving the bank holding the bag.

They recouped by selling off most of the land to the expanding few farms and housing developments, but not the old house itself, which sat there empty and nearly forgotten for 60 years until my cousin came along.

The first week, Robert went through the usual drill, taking stock of what was

Lawrence Fury

needed. And the list was extensive. One late afternoon, about a week after first surveying the place, he and a woman from Avista were standing by their respective rigs in front of the house discussing the electrical service restoration when the air was pierced by the scream of a woman.

Totally unexpected, it took the two a minute to react, after which there came several more screams. Sounding like they came from within the old house, Robert ran up onto the porch and inside, the Avista agent on his heels. They stopped in the barren living room, breathing heavily, and heard... nothing.

Robert said his reaction was, “What the hell?” after which he remembered the other two houses he had renovated that seemed to be haunted. His next thought was: “Not again !”

Robert stood there with the Avista woman for a few moments but, when nothing more was heard, both returned to their vehicles and drove off.

This is where my cousin and his dad, my first cousin Greg, began dozing off in my Aunt Joyce’s living room after a hefty Thanksgiving dinner in 2009. I fell asleep on that big, white, comfy couch, totally safe, surrounded by Chinese figurines, a

player organ and Furys, for the first time in many years.

The next morning, after breakfast and before heading back to Sandpoint, Robert said that according to what he had heard through the grapevine all that summer of 2008, was that a young couple had purchased the house and land just before the stock market crash that led to the Great Depression of the 1930s. Afterward, the young man had hanged himself from an upstairs beam as they were going to lose the house and the land. His young bride has found him there and screamed a number of times (seven?) upon discovering his body.

Robert decided to abandon this particular project. Not because of the history of the house—he decided the necessary renovations were simply too extensive and costly to be profitable. At best, he would break even. So far it was the only project he’s abandoned. Later that fall, on a trip to Pullman to take in a WSU football game, he decided to take a quick look at his former project. The bank had bought it back at a 20 percent loss to him.

The house had been dozed to the ground.

Evidence of the partial basement was all that remained. And maybe... a scream.

See you next time back here in the Valley.

Lawrence Fury has lived in the Valley of Shadows all his life. You can reach him with your own otherworldly stories at fury_larry@yahoo.com.

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June 2012| The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol. 21 No. 6| Page 25

Jinxed

About two weeks ago, Stacey and I decided that the flower bed in front of my house needed some mega attention.

I know that doesn’t sound like a huge undertaking, but keep in mind I am only three weeks out of left knee replacement surgery. I was determined to get my strength back in it. My right knee surgery would be done in about 8 weeks. I am still using the blasted walker, so mostly all I do is sit and tell Stacey what should be done.

Most of the time she pays attention, but sometimes I know she’s biting her tongue, thinking to herself, “She’s my mom, she’s my mom….”. I admit, I take full advantage of her respect!

It has been such a beautiful week in Clark Fork, it has been fun, sitting outside by my flower bed being nothing but bossy.

There are, however, a few downfalls to working outside in the sunshine. Bugs.

UGH! Insects. GROSS! Sweat. SICK! Stacey and I are both level-headed gals, most of the time. However, if you throw a busy, buzzing bug in the mix, chances are we will make a quick retreat to safety. Well, at least Stacey can make a quick retreat.

I have to stand up and balance myself on my walker before I can take off at a speed barely exceeded by snails. My grip on my walker is still a bit tenuous. I can’t decide which leg to put my best food forward on yet. I still try to get my gimp out of the way of the danger, though.

I have never understood why insects are so important to ecology. I am just not a big fan of bugs. They are always so angry! I know that wasps probably eat other small bugs and spiders probably eat wasps, and so on, but my foot squashing all bugs balances the ecosystem perfectly as far as I am concerned. A perfect world would be a bug free world. Except for maybe

The Problem with Gardening ladybugs... they might be okay, as long as they don’t land on me or anything.

Stacey sits on her knees in the garden, and she can actually move pretty fast when we hear the oncoming buzz of an attack insect nearing. Since I have such trouble moving fast, we have invented our own little protection device. It is called a towel.

Yes, a towel can be a lethal weapon, when wielded over your head like a helicopter totally out of control. A towel is a pretty amazing tool, actually. It is effective on several different levels, too. On one hand, as soon as I hear the approach of the buzz, I begin to swing. I think this discourages the nasty critters from getting any closer.

If a person got too close to me during this freak out mode, my weapon could very well put an eye out, because when I say SWING the towel around my head, I mean I am seriously using the towel like a mighty Viking battle axe!

Evidently, my flower bed is a virtual ant farm, the likes no elementary student has ever beheld. After watching movies like “Ant Bully,” “It’s a Bug’s Life,” or even “The Bee Movie,” one would think Stacey and I would understand the disgusting brutes, but we don’t. Those people who tell you that it doesn’t hurt when they sting you are big, fat liars! I have been stung. It hurts like heck ! It is like getting unexpectedly electrified!

Stacey, being more tenderhearted, has tried to re-home the ants, and the ants are taking to it none too kindly. It is a little sad to watch them retrieve their little eggs and crawl off to the neighboring rocks. They have probably been living there for years; at least their little ant condos look to be well maintained. They are bugs though, therefore, they must go.

Our entire street must be the Wasp Headquarters for Clark Fork wasps. I know for fact that little wasp meetings are held

A Homemade Wasp Trap 1. Cut the neck off a plastic bottle.

2. Place the neck upside down into the bottle and tape or staple in place

3. Add some bait.

(Meat, beer, sugary drinks, mashed fruit.)

Make sure to leave room for the wasps you plan to catch.

on my front porch every day as soon as the sun starts to shine. That is when an all day long battle starts.

When the sun quits shining, you would think it would be perfect gardening weather, but then the mosquito resistance begin their attack. Again, the towel becomes a mighty sword. During this strike is when most of the blood is shed.

Though the bees and wasps may not hurt me, they startle me into hurting myself.

The mosquitoes however... those little bastards are like winged sharks.

One fine afternoon of the war on weeds and bugs, a particularly persistent wasp refused to quit dive bombing us. He was a mean little bugger, (I say HE because I feel like a female wasp would be way too ladylike to bother herself with an attack like that!), Stacey jumped up screaming, “Run, Mom! It’s coming after you! Wow… RUN? I haven’t even conquered walking fast yet. Of course, maybe in the heat of the moment she thought my cool walker had been refurbished by Inspector Gadget or at the very least Banjo had gone all American Chopper on it. Nope, I must resort to the new towel invention.

Stacey and I haven’t given in yet though. After all, it has only been about two days of work so far. It’s just that the little varmints are quite intimidating for be so small.

If you are out and about, stop by and see our handiwork in the yard. If you see one of us sprinting across the lawn, or launching our towel around our heads like an absurd looking marionette, just ignore us. It’s called gardening!

Jinx Beshears (and her little dog, Aspen) live in Clark Fork in a garden full of wasps and other critters. You can reach her at jinxbychoice08@ yahoo.com.

4. Tie some string for a hanger and place the trap where wasps gather.

5. Empty your trap regularly. MAKE SURE THE WASPS ARE DEAD WHEN YOU DO SO as otherwise, they might not be in a good mood.

Please remember... wasps have their place as well, and they can be beneficial as they eat many garden pests that might otherwise eat your plants. Disclaimer: I am not crafty. Your wasp trap might well look better than mine.

Page 26 | The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol. 21 No. 6| June 2012

I’ve been listening to the rhetoric of those who have vied to be the one picked for the Republican ride and I find it uncanny how they bite each other’s fanny then endorse so completely the one not denied.

It’s amazing to me how one can change so much from an “ignorant bastard” to “a guy so in touch.”

I keep smellin’ poop, from most of the group which pleases my ears like a burned out clutch.

From a “dirt-bag” one minute to a “hero” the next who no longer pulls lies out of some other’s context but “stands true to his cause, well deserving applause and he sounds even better when he genuflects!”

I was raised up Republican, a Montana kid encouraged to hate the other side for something they did but with exposure to the truth by more than one sleuth my convictions came suddenly in a shuddering skid.

The last time I voted for a Republican leader I ended up casting that vote for a cheater.

“Well I’m not a crook!” he said with a look and when he resigned it was that much sweeter.

So, why’d I back Nixon in ’72?

I was goaded to think so, “It’s the right thing to do.

“Ol’ McGovern’s too weak to continue our streak and he’ll only make everything go totally askew.”

All too often we get horribly shanked by buttheads of distinction who’re offshorely banked.

They’re in it for greed and make us all bleed because it’s so easy to keep us outflanked.

“We, the people” have been dumbed-down enough to the point, it seems, we don’t have the right stuff to counter the too many lawyers in Washington’s foyers who know how to cajole, bribe and bluff.

From all the crap pulled by the Federal Reserve on behalf of their handlers with unabashed nerve, there’s just no denyin’ the gains got by lyin’ to vastly increase the wealth they preserve.

There’s always a catastrophe that needs to be averted by an idea from a think tank with a mission perverted.

I’ve felt for some time, things get screwed up by design then we watch as our taxes get squandered and diverted.

There’s high expectations by the general masses of a system so perfect, they can sit on their asses, not get involved in the way things are solved and put up with whatever passes.

A friend of mine said, scratchin’ the top of his head, “I think they’re missin’ the #?<k’n point.”

“Oh no,” said I, letting out a big sigh, “They are the #?<k’n point!”

When it comes to ‘public service’ and access to the vault, it seems not in our power to get ‘em to halt but we put ‘em all there according to their fair and square and the messes they make are only our fault!

Scott Clawson

acresnpains@dishmail.net

June 2012| The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol. 21 No. 6| Page 27

What Price a Home-Grown Tomato?

Spring must be here, I see my wife working out in her garden with her winter coat, cap and gloves on. Nose, cheeks and ears red and a frozen smile on her face. She read all the seed catalogs that have arrived since before Christmas and marked every page of interest. Seeds have been arriving in their special packets and were filed in her catalog of where and when they are to be planted.

I love to see my wife take such an interest in gardening and becoming one of the noted Garden Queens of Bonner County. In order to reach such status, one has to attend all those meetings, seminars, luncheons and garden tours, not to mention checking out all the garden supply houses in two counties. My truck has arrived home looking like a float in the Rose Parade on more than one occasion. “I couldn’t help myself,” she said, “they’re so beautiful and I know these colors are your favorite.”

“Colors? I don’t see any colors, there’s just forty-seven flower pots with leafy green things growing out of them.”

“Yes, but just you wait until they all bloom. See the little tags stuck in the dirt? They tell you what kind of flower they will become.” I have been so tempted to switch the name tags just to see the look on her face, but I haven’t... because I am a good person. Plus, I have seen that look and trust me, you don’t want to go there.

My wife is an Iowa girl, born and bread. Farming is in her blood.

She raises the most beautiful, vine-ripe tomatoes you ever locked your lips around, and they should be, at forty-seven dollars and ninety-nine cents a piece, not counting labor. One must handle them with extreme caution, so as not to bruise them. We checked on a farm in South America and we could get them flown in for just under forty-seven dollars each, but that just wouldn’t be home grown.

So what do you do with a vine-ripened tomato? First, you take two slices of bread, your choice, lather them both up with Mayo then slice that tomato in half-inch slices, placing it evenly on one slice of the bread, cut to fit. Salt to taste and after you place the other slice of bread evenly over the top you put the whole sandwich in the center of a sheet of paper towel on an angle so you have it laid out like a dipper. Now, this is very important, fold the bottom of the towel up half-way over the sandwich then bring the sides in to make a dipper. Pick the sandwich up with both hands and lean over the kitchen sink, because when you start eating you’re going to make a mess. The paper towel is just to keep it out of your ears. If you’re a female with long hair, be sure to put it up in a pony tail before you start.

From the Mouth of the River

I know that at first you might think that forty-seven dollars and ninety-nine cents might be a little steep for just one vine ripe tomato.

However, if you’re from the South and it’s been a long time since you’ve lived there, the price you have to pay for a vine ripe tomato here in the great Northwest is insignificant.

It would be like trying to sell a plastic cigarette to a chain smoker if you tried to make a tomato sandwich out of those hard, red pasteboard offerings they have in our local grocery stores.

There are many delicacies that can only be found in a home grown garden: for instance, new potatoes and sweet peas in a white sauce, a Southern delight to die for, a meal in itself. A Rhubarb crisp is a spring cleansing, not necessarily in itself but because you eat too much.

“Where are you going with all this?,” you may ask. It’s the cost. For instance, in the South there are things you don’t have to count for, like a potting and storage shed with electricity. A stainless steel fence eight foot high to keep out the deer, elk and moose, and if you have fruit trees you better electrify it to keep out the bears and the neighbor kids. The bears will go “wolf,” break wind and sparks will shoot out their butt. Neighbor kids, on the other hand, will foul themselves and cause the breaker to go off.

Raised beds are a must and cinder blocks are ideal for this, the amount of beds one has will determine the cost.

Wheel barrows, rototillers, shovels, hoes, rakes and four miles of garden hose all add to the cost of gardening here in the great Northwest. An underground water supply is a necessity, as are many sacks of steer manure.

Now, what this adds up to is exactly what a man spends on golf, skiing, or fishing, whatever outdoor sport is his specialty. Go ahead, put a pencil to it, it will come out so close to being even you won’t believe it.

BOOTS REYNOLDS

I wish to thank all who voted for me.

to all of the voters in District One who exercised their right to vote for the candidate of their choice in the May 15 primary. And a “SPECIAL THANKS AND APPRECIATION” to all of you who supported my campaign for re-election as your state representative for District 1-B. It is a very special privilege and honor to continue serving everyone in District One and I ask for your continued support in the November general election.

PAID FOR BY “KEEP KEOUGH SENATOR” ESTHER GILCHRIST, TREASURER

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Page 28 | The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol. 21 No. 6| June 2012

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