Reader_September12_2019

Arts, enterta.iment, bluster and some news

Sept. 1Z, Z019 I ,Ut/ I Vol. 16 Issue 37

OPEN 11:30 am

GAME ROOM UPSTAIRS

The Psounbality with Per FRESH FOOD LIVE MUSIC THE BEST NW BREWS

212 Cedar Street Downtown Sandpoint

208.263.4005 A SandPint Tradition Since 1994

2 / R / September 12, 2019

(wo)MAN compiled by

Susan Drinkard

on the street

“What’s your pet peeve?”

“My pet peeve is when people tell me what to do; it makes me feel like a little kid.”

Marcia Krebs Priest River

DEAR READERS,

Show of hands: Who else loves this time of year? There’s just something about the cool nights and brisk mornings followed by mild days of mixed sunshine and rain.

It’s the perfect time of year to hike or bike in the mountains.

Also, as much as I appreciate tourism dollars coming into Sandpoint every year, it’s nice to have some breathing room around here. I see a lot of folks — usually on dreaded social media — complaining about how this town is changing too fast, how we’re inundated by people from out of town (“Oh no! The dreaded Californians are here!”), how things aren’t the same anymore, etc. I agree in many ways, but I’m also aware that anyone who attempts to stop change is only tilting at windmills. You can try to freeze a place in amber, but time will always march on whether you like it or not. The wise ones are those who embrace change enough to help direct its flow into a direction that hopefully serves the most people at once. Let’s not wallow in complaints. Let’s be proactive and try to embrace the days ahead with optimism. OK, that’s the end of my self-help seminar. You all owe me $99.99.

-Ben Olson, Publisher

“My pet peeve is fingers scratching on a chalkboard.”

Marshal Burnett Age 12 Kootenai

READER 111 Cedar Street, Suite 9 Sandpoint, ID 83864 (208)265-9724

www.sandpointreader.com Publisher: Ben Olson ben@sandpointreader.com Editorial: Zach Hagadone zach@sandpointreader.com Lyndsie Kiebert lyndsie@sandpointreader.com Cameron Rasmusson (editor-at-large) John Reuter (emeritus) Advertising: Jodi Berge Jodi@sandpointreader.com Contributing Artists: Ben Olson, Keith Bansemer, Bill Borders, Susan Drinkard.

Contributing Writers: Zach Hagadone, Ben Olson, Lyndsie Kiebert, Lorraine H. Marie James Baldtree, Daniel Radford, Brenden Bobby, Daryl Baird, Marcia Pilgeram.

Submit stories to: stories@sandpointreader.com Printed weekly at: Griffin Publishing Spokane, Wash.

“My pet peeve is when people do not put their carts back at the grocery store. When they do not return them to the designated areas, carts block the parking places or the wind pushes them into vehicles.”

Dottie Myers Retired State Farm agent here for the summer, staying near Clark Fork Mesquite, Nevada

“Liars.”

Tiffany Little Mom Ponderay

“My pet peeve is about myself. I have a tendency to avoid communicating with others about my preferences because of either assuming they know already or because of fear of confrontation.”

Kahlin Hoffman Pocket pie seller at Farmers’ Market Laclede

Subscription Price: $115 per year Web Content: Keokee The Sandpoint Reader is a weekly publication owned and operated by Ben Olson and Keokee. It is devoted to the arts, entertainment, politics and lifestyle in and around Sandpoint, Idaho.

We hope to provide a quality alternative by offering honest, in-depth reporting that reflects the intelligence and interests of our diverse and growing community.

The Reader is printed on recycled paper using soy-based ink. Leftover copies are collected and recycled weekly, or burned in massive bonfires to appease the gods of journalism. Free to all, limit two copies per person.

Sandpoint Reader letter policy: The Sandpoint Reader welcomes letters to the editor on all topics.

Requirements: –No more than 400 words –Letters may not contain excessive profanity or libelous material. Please elevate the discussion.

Letters will be edited to comply with the above requirements. Opinions expressed in these pages are those of the writers, not necessarily the publishers.

Email letters to: letters@sandpointreader.com Check us out on the web at: www.sandpointreader.com Like us on Facebook.

About the Cover

This week’s cover is not actually Wentworth, the famous flipflop stealing cat. But c’mon, it’s pretty hilarious, right?

September 12, 2019 / R / 3

NEWS

Sound and fury

By Zach Hagadone Reader Staff

Despite the sound and fury surrounding the Festival at Sandpoint’s policy banning weapons at the publicly-owned War Memorial Field, city officials said they still haven’t received any paperwork indicating that legal action is pending — this, despite the fact that the Bonner County commissioners, Bonner County sheriff and Idaho Second Amendment Alliance have all rattled their sabres over the issue in recent weeks “We had received demand letters from both the county as well as the Second Amendment Alliance. The city has not been served with a suit or notice of a lawsuit action by any entity as of this point,” said Sandpoint City Administrator Jennifer Stapleton, who added that verbal sparring in print and on social media have muddied the reality of the situation.

“There have been a lot of headlines saying that we are being sued and people saying we have been sued, but we have not been served with a lawsuit,” she said.

“Nothing but a demand letter, which is not the same as a lawsuit.

I don’t know if they don’t know the difference.”

Nonetheless, Bonner County’s “declaratory action” against the city, which challenges its authority to allow the Festival to ban guns on publicly-owned property, isn’t the only potential legal action to come out of the controversy.

The Idaho Second Amendment Alliance, based in Boise, made it known in a handful of videos posted to the organization’s Facebook page between Sept.

3 and Sept. 9 that it was raising the $10,000 necessary to retain lawyer and gun rights advocate Alexandria Kincaid. What’s more, ISAA President Greg Pruett said in the videos that his group stands ready to sue Sandpoint if it doesn’t “back down” from its

4 / R / September 12, 2019

position that the Festival, as a lessee, has the power to establish its own rules about who can and can’t enter the venue.

“You don’t have the authority or the ability to regulate the possession of firearms in this public park. How can you possibly give this authority to someone else?

That’s not a thing. That doesn’t exist,” Pruett said in the Sept. 3 video.

Vocal Bonner County constitutional conservative activist Scott Herndon would be the plaintiff in ISAA’s suit. His attempt to enter the Festival while armed — he was turned away at the gate — was engineered to trigger the controversy during the first week of the 2019 concert series. As Pruett put it in a Sept. 7 video, “Me and Scott and our attorney, Alexandria Kincaid, had made an agreement that, ‘OK, if Scott goes and he gets denied, we’re going to pursue legal action.’”

According to Herndon, “My ideal outcome would be a declaration by a court that the Festival’s policy in a public park is unlawful and that the court would enjoin a prohibition on firearms at War Memorial Field or any other public property, regardless of whether that property is being leased by a private company,” Herndon told the Reader in an email. “In addition to a declaration and injunction, we would also seek our attorney’s fees and costs of the suit.”

Both Herndon and Pruett touched on the larger implications of a legal ruling in the case.

“The issue is one that has broad application in other venues around Idaho, and so both ISAA and myself consider it a critical issue to resolve through this one particular case as a potential precedent,” Herndon wrote.

In his various videos, also posted to YouTube, Pruett repeatedly emphasized the test-case nature of ISAA’s challenge to Sandpoint.

“The Sandpoint issue right now is the focal point, that is ground zero for what may potentially turn

Idaho Second Amendment Alliance raises $10K for possible suit vs. Sandpoint over Festival gun ban

into a long-term legal battle over establishing the fact and the reality that these private entities should not be able to restrict your rights on public property,” he said in the Sept. 3 video, going on to add that win, lose or draw in court, ISAA will push for legislation to make it illegal for municipalities to lease public property that then becomes a “gun-free” area.

“We’re going to try to change the law that will prohibit them from doing this. Not only prohibit it, but actually punish those who are knowingly and willfully doing this,” he said. “Our [Idaho state] preemption statute is great to an extent, but there’s no teeth in it.

There’s no punishment for these people; there’s almost nothing we can do to them individually, so now we’re forced to go after the city for attorneys fees and other stuff that we can.”

Pruett’s organization has pushed back on similar issues in the recent past, including at the Canyon County and Twin Falls County fairs, where organizers asked attendees to leave their guns at home. Pruett, however, challenged both fairs, citing Idaho state law that prohibits any government entity from limiting an otherwise legally-entitled person’s right to bear arms. That includes

on public property, and in the case of the fairs in southern Idaho, Pruett had a clear point because county governments were the ones barring guns on public property.

The Sandpoint case isn’t as straightforward as what ISAA faced in Canyon and Twin Falls counties. Crucially, the city isn’t the entity saying concert goers can’t come to the show packing heat — that policy comes from the Festival, which is a private nonprofit. And that’s what makes this legal argument so appealing to Pruett, who stresses that nowhere in the country has such a case like this come up with regards to the Second Amendment.

Citing a decision in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Pruett said at least one judge has already ruled that leasing public property does not convey the right to limit the First Amendment. He mused aloud in videos posted online Sept.

3 and Sept. 7 that such a precedent could be readily applied to the Second Amendment.

“This isn’t about Sandpoint.

There’s only like 8,000 people in Sandpoint, right? We’re not expecting the gun owners in Sandpoint to do all the work. This affects all of us, every single one of us here in the state of Idaho and potentially, if it goes up to the

Greg Pruett, president of the Idaho Second Amendment Alliance, speaking on his YouTube channel. Screen capture.

Ninth Circuit, it could potentially affect everybody in the Ninth Circuit,” he said in the Sept. 3 video after warning that pushing back against the Festival at Sandpoint is part of a larger strategy to challenge municipalities and other entities over their “radical progressive ideas.”

“We can’t let these radical progressive ideas and these radical progressive policies and these radical progressives thumbing their nose at our rights. We can’t allow that to go unimpeded. Because if you do, then more and more of them will start doing it,” he said.

“If we let the city of Sandpoint get away with it, guess what, then all the other cities with all the other liberal progressives on their city councils or commissioners or sheriffs or wherever, are all going to start doing it. … [W]e have to go after these folks and let them know we’re not going to back down and we’re going to fight this thing out until a decision is made, I guess, in court by a judge.”

Additional reporting by Ben Olson.

NEWS

Candidates and ballot measures announced for 2019 local elections

By Zach Hagadone Reader Staff It’ll be an eventful election season, as Tuesday, Nov. 5 marks the date when Idaho voters cast their ballots for city council members, mayors, school district trustees and, in the Sandpoint area, a pair of ballot measures.

Following the deadline for candidate filing on Sept. 6, Sandpoint residents will be voting in a mayoral race including four candidates: Billy Guinan, Ken Lawrence, incumbent Shelby Rognstad and Shannon Williamson, who currently serves as president of the Sandpoint City Council.

Five candidates are vying for three open seats on the council: Andy Groat; Jacque Guinan; Kate

McAlister, who also works as president and CEO of the Greater Sandpoint Chamber of Commerce; and incumbent Deb Ruehle.

In Ponderay, incumbent mayor Steve Geiger is running against Tara V. Tribbett while incumbent City Council members Gary Kunzeman and Brenda Thompson are

on the ballot alongside challenger Brad Mitton seeking two open seats.

In Dover, Mike Davis and Freda King are competing for the mayor’s job, and Dan Parkin and Tom Williams have thrown their hats in the ring for two open council seats. Nancy Lewis is running for mayor of Kootenai while Bryan Black, Fabiola Ferris and Margaret Mjelde are competing for Council Seat 2 and Daniel Schock is running for Seat 4.

In Hope, it’s William Breen for mayor and Bill Perry and Bruce Stutzke going head-to-head over one open council seat. East Hope sees Vernon Fleisher running for mayor and three candidates going after two open council seats: Ian Barrett, Deborah Field and Phillip

Lake level timeline announced

By Lyndsie Kiebert Reader Staff Lake Pend Oreille will remain at summer pool through Sept. 18, after which the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will start a gradual drawdown until reaching winter lake elevation in mid-November.

The Corps, which manages Albeni Falls Dam, hosted its fall public meeting Sept. 11 in Priest River. There, Hydraulic Engineer Alison Pieper shared upcoming dam operations and the local water levels that will follow.

Because the Corps manages the dam at Albeni Falls, it is responsible for raising and lowering the water level within the top 11.5 feet of Lake Pend Oreille. Given that, lake recreators can look forward to a fairly extended season, as the lake will stay at summer pool — between 2,062 and 2,062.5 feet deep at the Corps’ Hope gauge — for another week, and above 2,061 through Sept. 28 in order to accomodate the annual Pend Oreille Regatta on Priest River.

Through October and the first half of November, the lake will slowly drop to about winter elevation: 2,051 to 2,051.5 feet.

The Corps said that winter target

Kuranz.

In Clark Fork, Sharon Banning and Stanley Spanski are running for two open council seats, as are Greg Edwards, Sean Schnieder, Douglas Wagner and Kevin Wylie in Priest River.

Voters in Zones 1 and 4 of the Lake Pend Oreille School District will elect candidates to two seats on the board of trustees. In Zone 1, which includes Clark Fork, Hope and east Bonner County, the unopposed incumbent candidate is Purley Decker. In Zone 4, including Sagle and parts of Ponderay, it’s incumbent Geraldine Lewis versus Tara Tribbett.

All voters within the boundaries of LPOSD are being asked to weigh in on making the district’s $12.7 million supplemental levy

101 Women grant period opens

By Reader Staff The nonprofit Sandpoint group 101 Women announced changes to its annual grant program.

Based on member feedback, the grant has been separated into fall and spring cycles.

The fall cycle, currently accepting applications until Monday, Sept.

16 at 5 p.m., is open to all nonprofits and projects that fall into the category of education, arts, recreation and the environment.

The spring cycle, which has been given a spring 2020 deadline, will accept applications

Sand Creek at high water. Photo by Ben Olson. elevation provides greater flexibility for flood management in the winter and spring, and for power operations.

The lake level will hold at between 2,051 and 2,051.5 feet until kokanee are down spawning or Dec. 31 — whichever comes earlier. A slight lowering of the lake level may occur January through March to accommodate Idaho Fish and Game habitat restoration.

After Feb. 15, Flexible Winter Power Operations — the practice of storing water in order to better meet power needs at the request of the Bonneville Power Administration — are permitted.

Those with questions can reach the Corps water management team at uppercolumbiawm@usace. army.mil or call 206-764-6702.

permanent — a measure that trustees voted to include on the November ballot after seeking public input over the summer.

Finally, Ponderay voters will consider whether to institute a resort city local option tax amounting to 1% on retail sales under $1,000. Funds collected from the tax would be channeled toward projects to connect the city to Lake Pend Oreille and pursue development of the Field of Dreams park.

For more information, including ballot language, visit “Election Central” at sandpointonline.com.

Keep an eye on the Sandpoint Reader in print and online at sandpointreader.com for more coverage of the 2019 local elections.

from nonprofits and projects that fall into the category of social services and addressing basic needs in the community.

To apply, visit 101womensandpoint.com/grant-application.

Winners for the fall cycle will be notified by Oct. 4.

VA outreach planned

By Reader Staff

A representative from the Bonner County Veterans Service Office will be in Clark Fork on Tuesday, Sept. 17 from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. to meet with veterans.

Bryan Hult will answer questions about current veterans’ benefits, assist with ongoing

claims and take new claims for benefits for eligible veterans and their dependants. The outreach will take place at the Clark Fork Public Library, 601 Main St. Veterans will be seen by appointment only. Appointments must be scheduled no later than Friday prior to the meeting by calling Lyndsie Halcro 208255-5291.

September 12, 2019 / R / 5

NEWS

Bridging the years after 9/11

First responders from the Sam Owen Fire and Rescue unit walk the Long Bridge in Sandpoint on Wednesday, Sept. 11, remembering those who sacrificed their lives to rescue others during the terrorist attacks 18 years ago. From left: Auston Theander, Cecil Jensen and Grant Bansemer. They started out at 9:11 a.m. and ended at 10 a.m. with 123 vehicles honking to pay respects . Hundreds more waved in passing. Photo by Keith Bansemer.

Priest River USFS project faces lawsuit

By Lyndsie Kiebert Reader Staff An environmental group filed a lawsuit in federal district court Aug. 29, taking issue with a U.S. Forest Service project planned 25 miles north of Priest River.

The Alliance for the Wild Rockies, a Montana-based organization, is alleging that clearcutting practices, exclusion of an environmental analysis and possible threats to grizzly bear habitat make the Hanna Flats project unlawful based on federal standards.

The suit is filed specifically against Idaho Panhandle National Forest Supervisor Jeanne Higgins, as well as against the USFS as a whole.

“Clearcutting is not forest restoration,” said Mike Garrity, executive director of the Alliance for the Wild Rockies. “Clearcutting hurts 95% of the native forest species in the area and the upper Priest River area has the largest contiguous area of oldgrowth cedar, hemlock and grand fir in the interior western United States.”

The project, approved Oct. 12, 2018 by Higgins, will use thinning techniques and prescribed burns to minimize the risk of disease, insect infestation and fire over 2,352 acres. Hanna Flats is a Good Neighbor Authority project, meaning the Idaho Department of Lands is a partner in the plan.

6 / R / September 12, 2019

The Alliance for the Wild Rockies alleges that the USFS “illegally categorically excluded this project from the environmental analysis and public review required under the National Environmental Policy Act.” Garrity said that while “the Healthy Forest Restoration Act allows exceptions to the requirement for environmental analysis in the Wildland Urban Interface, it also defines the Wildlife Urban Interface — and this area does not meet the legal definition.”

The group is also concerned about potential impacts to grizzly bears, claiming that by building more roads to accomplish the Hanna Flats work, the USFS is violating its own forest plan. The USFS project memo states that “upon project completion, both the total and open linear miles of road will be reduced by a net 1.2 miles within the Priest Bears Outside of Recovery Zone.”

“Considering both the logging of dwindling old growth forest and the road impacts on grizzly mortality — as well as excluding the public from the process and ignoring the duty to perform an environmental analysis, we had little choice but to take the Forest Service to court and force it to comply with the law,” Garrity said.

Contacted on Sept. 10, IPNF personnel told the Reader that the agency has no comment regarding the lawsuit at this time.

Bits ’n’ Pieces From east, west and beyond

East, west or beyond, sooner or later events elsewhere may have a local impact.

A recent sampling: People in Ethiopia planted 350 million tree seedlings in 12 hours, a world record. A hundred years ago, 35% of the country was forested but that dwindled to 4% early this century. The tree-planting, promoted by Ethiopia’s prime minister, will fight drought-related desertification and store carbon.

Close to 20% of all contract killings are triggered by a romance gone sour.

Another 16% are financially motivated, The Atlantic reports. Those hired to kill appear to have moderate to severe psychopathology that provides both the aggression and the emotional detachment required to fulfill their mission. Similarly, those doing the hiring are also engaged in “psychological distancing.”

Since the 9-11 terrorist attacks, 32,000 first responders have had respiratory and digestive tract illnesses diagnosed, all linked to toxic dust. The Senate has voted 97-2 to approve funding for the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund. More than 1,000 responders have died from illnesses linked to their 9-11 work, The Week reports, while 9,000 now have cancer.

While 40% of the U.S. coal fleet has shut down, Earthjustice says coal consumption elsewhere is growing. That may reverse. In South Africa, solar and wind power is now 40% cheaper than coal.

Amazon Employees for Climate Justice plan to walk off work Sept. 20 as part of the global climate strike. In an open letter, they stated they want Amazon to stop donations to climate-denying lobbyists and politicians, and they want Amazon emissions-free in 2030. At this time about 1000 employees plan to be part of the strike.

The Economic Policy Institute says CEO pay has grown 940% since 1978; during the same time pay for the typical worker has grown 12%.

A peer-reviewed study in the journal Environmental Health says the U.S. allows the use of 85 pesticides that were phased out in China, Brazil and the European Union because they were “too risky.”

Is scrapping Dodd-Frank banking restrictions worthwhile? If banks were suffering, it would deserve consideration, reports slate. com. But in 2016, banks had $170 billion in profits, with just 3% reporting a loss in the last quarter. Use of Dodd-Frank has caused less of what Slate calls “reckless

By Lorraine H. Marie Reader Columnist

lending” that caused the Great Recession.

University of Texas research suggests the decline in nutrient content in today’s foods may not be due to declines in soil nutrients. Rather, the study, printed in the Journal of HortScience, says nutrient loss may be due to breeding higher-yield crops with naturally higher carbohydrate content. Since 1950, broccoli, for example, is down 37.4% for riboflavin, down 26.7% for iron and down 14.3% in vitamin C. The Great Green Hope for reversing climate change can be found in measures to increase the rate of photosynthesis occurring on the planet, which can undo dramatic photosynthesis decreases that began early in the Industrial Age. Photosynthesis occurs when plants, aided by sunlight, remove CO2 from the air, converting it into plant sugars for energy for the plant. Unused CO2 is stored in the soil, where it improves soil fertility and texture, and enhances water retention.

As reported in the book The Soil Will Save Us, soil scientists calculate that, with new agricultural practices, at least 3 billion tons annually of CO2 can be sequestered, bringing carbon concentrations down.

Why dogs eat grass: It may be to relieve digestive discomfort, to provide more nutrients or to address internal parasites.

Online veterinary columnist Dr. Karen S. Becker says if a dog routinely eats lots of grass, make a vet appointment and also consider upgrading the dog’s diet.

Some are labeling it “climate apartheid.” A U.N. report says that by 2030 climate change will push 120 million people around the world into poverty.

Blast from the past: Recessions every 10 years, more or less, are not inevitable, if Australia’s three decades of economic stability is an indicator. The Atlantic reports that Australia has taken three steps to dodge chronic recessions. First, when a recession threatens, the government quickly implements fiscal stimulus — especially to lower-income families, and invests heavily in infrastructure. This is more effective since policies have not encouraged households to overextend their spending, and the financial sector has not been allowed to play with risky ventures. Second, immigrants have been welcomed and now represent 1/4 of the population. They are consumers and help boost the economy. Third, Australia maintains openness to trade and investment, rather than lapsing into isolationism when economic indicators turn sour.

PERSPECTIVES

Idaho teachers need our support

By Reps. John McCrostie, (D-Boise) and Sally Toone (D-Gooding) and Sen. Janie Ward-Engelking (D-Boise) Special to the Reader Over the summer, numerous “hearings” have been held on the Idaho Core Standards.

Educators from across the state showed up to testify in defense of our Idaho Core Standards.

These Idaho Core Standards were written by highly skilled Idaho teachers and are used to ensure our students have the skills necessary for a competitive marketplace.

Educators showed up in force at the hearings to defend the Idaho Core Standards because they know what is best for our students. Guided by the state standards, a locally adopted curriculum is chosen by each district/charter school in the state and implemented by professional educators throughout the state. Rural and urban students learn the same skills and the same content, ensuring that no student does better just because they

Reps. McCrostie, left, Toone, center and Ward-Engelking, right. Courtesy photos. live in a different zip code.

The state started working with education stakeholders on the Idaho Core Standards in 2007. It took until late-2013 to implement these standards. The standards were reviewed, redrafted and combed over by the brightest minds in Idaho education before rolling them out for public input. Businesses, educators, parents and public officials

agreed that our Idaho Core Standards are best for Idaho students. These standards have been scrutinized more than any other rule drafted by the state.

Some confusion has been spread about the outcomes of these standards, yet no evidence indicates they hurt student performance. The Idaho Core Standards are different than anything the state has used

in the past, and they are extremely flexible.

Students use creative problem solving, positive communication, improvisation and a variety of other higher-level skills to prepare them for the global workplace.

Idaho educators showed up in force to defend the Idaho Core Standards because they see first-hand the positive impact these standards have. As lifelong teachers and part-time legislators, we stand alongside educators and our colleagues to preserve our standards. Idaho Core Standards were created by teachers, for teachers.

A small, wealthy political group is now trying to get rid of the Idaho Core Standards but has no prepared alternative. We should not be using unscientific thinking and political bias to set the curriculum for our students. Now is not the time to pull the rug out from under educators who tirelessly build engaging lessons for their classrooms.

We defend the Idaho Core Standards, because they are the best choice for Idaho students.

Raising Idaho’s minimum wage is only the beginning.

Next, bailout the workers

By Daniel Radford Reader Contributor Many people I’ve spoken with lately have been understandably peeved (pissed may be a more apt description) at the government’s “theft” of their wages. However, for all the anger with which I deeply empathize, I have yet to meet a conservative — or liberal — who can explain to me why the government takes our money beyond a “we need it” or “they say we need it” dogma.

I for one, want to know why we need welfare at all.

Why do we have people, many of whom are working, who cannot afford to survive on their own? The conservative argument tends to go something like, “We could afford charity if we weren’t taxed by the government,” which is maybe 1% true.

I think we would be able to afford charity and take care of our poor — working or not — if the working class had rights to the product of its labor.

As a worker in a capitalist economy, your labor is priceless to your employer.

Despite being paid a meager $12 per hour as a starting wage at Walmart, without you to do the work of selling, stocking and preparing the products for sale, the corporation would not make any profit. To the bosses, we are worth far more than we are paid.

As a worker, we can choose to be concerned with the 7% or so that the govern-

ment takes from our checks — which really seems to be more the worry of the ownership class — or we can recognize that, despite the government taking 7% of what we are paid, in many cases we are actually paid less than 10% of the product of our labor.

This is the logic behind the campaign by FairWageID.org to #RaisetheWageID to $12 per hour, which will lift many workers out of poverty. A higher minimum wage lets the bosses take less of the wealth we produce, thereby allowing for a more just distribution of profits.

This logic is also behind the Democratic Socialist call for “the right of first refusal,” which would allow the workers of a failed capitalist enterprise — or an unpatriotic company moving their jobs to Mexico or China — the first opportunity to buy the assets from the company that is shuttering their workplace.

Using this right, if workers voted with a simple majority to buy the assets of a defunct or company outsourcing its jobs to another country, they would receive a loan from the United States government to run the enterprise as a worker-owned cooperative in which laborers democratically elect, hire, and fire the bosses.

Labor would qualitatively change and automation would mean more vacations, not more layoffs.

Imagine if such a right had been recognized and policy had existed since 1980.

Had this been practiced since 1980, rather than terrible “trickle down”, the Rust Belt may have survived NAFTA and the fall of unionization — and still be called the Industrial Belt.

Such a policy is feasible for Idaho on a state level. We may wish to look to the Preston Model in the UK, which under the leadership of the Labour Party has imple-

mented similar policies locally.

If you want to learn more about these ideas, go to DemocracyatWork.info, and join North Idaho Democratic Socialists online @NorthIdahoDSA on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Daniel Radford is the founder of North Idaho Democratic Socialists of America.

Laughing Matter

By Bill Borders

September 12, 2019 / R / 7

------------------------------LETTERS TO THE EDITOR-----------------------------

Stand up, speak out!...

Bouquets: GUEST SUBMISSION: • A few weeks back on a Monday morning at the gas pump, a gentleman wearing a Panhandle Animal Shelter Volunteer shirt told me a quick, clean and funny joke out of the blue. He must have noticed my Monday morning scowl. I certainly drove away with a smile and much appreciation. I don’t remember the joke, but I still remember the kind gesture. Who does that? Not enough of us.

— Submitted by Stacy Jensen.

Barbs: • Our events calendar has been a free source of entertainment events for North Idaho since the Reader’s inception. It’s also one of the most difficult two pages to put together each week. There are 50+ events we list each week — a service that we receive nothing for in return. You can help us out by observing the following protocols: 1. Mistakes sometimes happen. Please don’t take it personally or feel that we left your event off the calendar on purpose. A simple email advising us on the dropped event should suffice. Passive aggressive rants and mean-spirited emails won’t get you anywhere.

2. Please don’t send us listings that are for events that occur weeks or months in advance. The ideal method is to either send a monthly list of the events at the beginning of the month (this is preferred, since I can print it out and refer to it throughout the month), or send the event listing the week before your event.

3. Please send events if you’d like them on the calendar. If we don’t know about them, we can’t list them.

4. Again, this is a free service we provide. It’s a total pain in the butt to compile, but that’s the breaks. If you absolutely need your event listed, the failsafe action is to purchase an advertisement.

Thanks for your understanding, folks.

8 / R / September 12, 2019

Dear editor, The number of paranoid, scaredy-cat gunslingers moving into North Idaho is of growing concern to local citizens unaccustomed to loaded weapons hanging on hips in supermarkets, farmers markets, banks, churches, restaurants, bars, streets and stores for “protection.”

Thanks to elected simple souls in Boise who revere the murderous National Rifle Association, it appears now that even 18-year-olds will be allowed to carry loaded weapons wherever ugly, evil life threatens: to parties, the beach, road trips, jobs, etc. Who reared these youngsters and their parents to be so fearful?

To most of us locals, anyone from 18 to 98 strutting around with a loaded gun, concealed or otherwise, is to be pitied — and discouraged. They represent a primitive subculture of loathing, fear, paranoia, bullying and violence. Yet, despite their absurdity they could, if civil citizens allow it, eventually turn life here upside down.

We conventional types don’t feel threatened by neighbors we know or by people we don’t but regularly pass on the street. We’re more disposed to smile and say hi than to show what a super-scary, down-andout armed dude we are.

It is heartening to read learned local citizens James Ramsey, Len Golding and others in the Reader and Daily Bee questioning the wisdom and warped values of moms, dads and kids who legally lug around loaded weapons — especially military guns designed not for hunting or target practice but for killing people.

Bonner County needs more authentic patriots to publicly question why misguided, gun-toting residents — despite the terrifying, ongoing gun carnage in our country — continue to support the slaughter-driven NRA. And those Idaho legislators who rely on it to keep their jobs.

Tim H. Henney Sandpoint

In the ghetto...

Dear editor, On a recent evening stroll around City Beach I observed the following: * Profane chalk “graffiti” messages perpetrated by hooligans decorating the train overpass at the park’s entry; * Boxes of refuse and beer

bottles stacked beside the new Big Boondoggle $4,000 “smart” trash cans; * One lonely decoy coyote that has been kicked and had its tail chopped off; * The pride and heritage of our Statue of Liberty defaced with fingernail polish and “prison” tear-drop tattoos running down her face; * The Liberty pier looking like it’s suffered through both an earthquake and a mortar attack; * Plus the newspaper headline about a vicious baseball bat attack occurring at the beach after dark.

In short, City Beach is becoming a ghetto and I’m shedding more tears than Ms. Liberty. If city officials can’t manage a simple task like taking care of a small park, then what can they do?

I implore our community to take a stand and demand answers and action from the mayor before it’s too late.

Look up the “broken windows” theory that plagues urban ghettos.

Loose trash and offensive graffiti will soon send out the message that Sandpoint is an easy target, and it won’t be long until we see homeless blankets and used drug needles scattered around like in Spokane.

George Mooney North Bonner County

Story time...

Dear editor: The Reader’s article in last week’s edition was very revealing, not to mention entertaining. To begin, just imagine, the “Davillier Law Group” with offices in New Orleans and little ol’ Sandpoint.

Dan McDonald’s assertion is that the chaos they allegedly caused in Utah and other places by local government entities “lawyering up” doesn’t tell the whole story. It does tell enough… of Dan’s story.

Tell us your story, Dan. How much has and will this legal action by the county against the city concerning people bringing guns to the Festival cost us taxpayers? And tell us, why has this only become an issue this year? Could it allegedly be a legal setup? Could it be Dan and his cohorts put a couple of his gun owner friends up to it… allegedly?

Or is it clam-mouth time?

Wouldn’t expect anything less from the “McDonald… ahh, Bonner County Commission.”

Lawrence Fury Sandpoint

No tax dollars for frivolous lawsuits...

Dear editor, I was appalled to learn that the county has retained a high-priced law firm to proceed with its legal action against the city of Sandpoint over the no-firearms policy at the Festival.

The county Board of Commissioners is an administrative body overseeing the day-to-day business of Bonner County; it is a government entity, not an entity to bring lawsuits on behalf of special interest groups. I seriously doubt that the Davillier Law Group hourly fee of $150 will cover serious and ongoing litigation such as this so called “declaratory” action, which will no doubt turn into a civil suit and appeals. Not to mention the fact that the city of Sandpoint and the Festival will also be drawn into the ensuing lawsuits. It would be interesting to know how much money is in the so-called Civil Litigation Fund and if the county is self-insured.

I, for one, am totally against the action brought against the city by the Board of Commissioners. As a taxpayer, I do not want my tax dollar spent on frivolous lawsuits.

Furthermore, with all the mass shootings going on in this country, I cannot think of a worse action than to allow guns at the Festival.

I wouldn’t think of attending a music festival where guns were allowed; I see no valid reason whatsoever to allow guns inside the Festival. I seriously doubt, too, that musicians will come if there is a guns-allowed policy in place.

Beth Allen Sandpoint

Who killed Sandpoint?...

Dear editor, Who is responsible for killing our beautiful little town? Very soon there will not be any more green places to look at and enjoy.

The geese are gone. Parking is a disaster. Traffic at times is gridlocked downtown. But the MONEY rolls in, and what was once a joy to live here is becoming like any other slick small town up and down the West Coast that was once quiet and peaceful. I find progress to be a dirty word. The human monkey is very slow to learn.

Evie Leucht Sandpoint

BY THE NUMBERS

By Ben Olson Reader Staff

$306 billion

Cost of damages from natural disasters that happened in 2017, which is a record high, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. — Tribune News Service

58 years old

The age at which acclaimed songwriter Daniel Johnston died on Sept. 11. Johnston’s utterly unique body of work helped build an eclectic following of fans, which included Tom Waits, Kurt Cobain and Beck. — CNN

25

The speed at which fish fly — in feet per second — through the so-called “salmon cannon,” an invention that helps transport fish safely up and over the Chief Joseph Dam in Douglas County, Wash. — Spokesman-Review

$1,200-$1,500

The amount of money per year an uncounted Idahoan in the 2020 U.S. Census could cost the state in federal dollars per year. Counting for the Census starts on April 1, 2020. — Idaho Statesman

4

The number of candidates running for Sandpoint mayor.

Candidates include Billy Guinan, Ken Lawrence, incumbent Shelby Rognstad and Sandpoint City Council President Shannon Williamson. Election day takes place Tuesday, Nov. 5. — sandpointonline.com

PERSPECTIVES

Some thoughts on guns at the Festival Being productive in debating gun laws

By James Baldree Reader Contributor Concerning the “controversy” over guns at the Festival, can we at least agree on a couple of points? Pro-gunners, given today’s realities, if the Festival loses the ability to prohibit weapons, then the Festival will have a harder time attracting performers. Anti-gunners, the Festival has yet to have a problem with an owner of a lawfully carried firearm.

Pro-gunners, we may not like it, but we leave our lawfully carried weapons when we attend events at other venues.

Anti-gunners, are you really that nervous about your friends, colleagues and neighbors being lawfully armed?

Can we all agree that no sane person wants to see another mass shooting, murder or even a simple assault of any kind, anywhere, ever again? Both pro-gun and anti-gun? And if we all have the same goal, then maybe both sides have valid points that should be equally considered, and not simply dismissed due to perceived extremities in position?

With the above in mind, let me posit the following to the more-gun-restrictions crowd. Stop blaming all gun owners for the acts of a few deranged individuals, and treating us as though we are the problem. Your rhetoric of “no one needs an assault rifle” is inflammatory at best, and insinuates that everyone who owns a modern sporting rifle is a crazed individual ready to commit mass murder at worst.

What you consider an “assault rifle,” I consider to be a game gun, used for competitive purposes. My game guns are fired well over 10,000 times every year in practice and competition, yet none of them have ever been used in a hostile act, ever. Ignoring the constitutionality of the question for the moment, why should my ownership of my lawful property be forfeited or restricted because of someone else’s insane actions?

These same types of firearms are used by our police every day. These men and women of law enforcement use them to serve and protect, not for nefarious purposes. Since we can all agree that our police are not hostile forces, how do you reconcile their defensive use of modern sporting rifles to protect the public? It would seem that the modern sporting

rifle is simply a tool, and that it is the user’s intent that matters more than anything else.

Driving accidents kill more people every year than firearms do, including all suicides and mass shootings. Yet there doesn’t seem to be a huge uproar for smaller “smart” cars with built-in breathalyzer ignition interlocks. Is this because you believe drivers to be sane, responsible individuals until they prove themselves otherwise? Or is it because it would affect a modern and useful, but potentially dangerous, technology that you care about and rely upon, and not one in which you have no interest in and are afraid of?

Anti-gunners, please realize that you have neither the technical background, nor the doctrine of usage knowledge to make a logical argument as to what is necessary for the design, maintenance, storage and operation of any firearm. For that matter, most gun owners probably don’t, either. But, since it is something that gun owners care about and that affects them directly, they tend to listen to the subject matter experts. For the record, every gun rights-restricting organization is only an expert on restricting rights, not on the actual firearms themselves.

Gun owners, the same as all Ameri-

cans, would love to find effective ways to eliminate violence of all kinds, including mass shootings. We are your allies in the fight to keep crazy at bay. Let’s work together to find ways to identify, treat and institutionalize, if necessary, the mentally and criminally insane people that commit these horrible and tragic crimes. And let’s find ways that don’t infringe upon the 99.9999% of normal Americans that are your friends and neighbors. And for the love of all things holy, can we identify what is causing these people to engage in this evil and insane behavior?

Reflecting back upon my first paragraph, private property owners and lessees of public property will make decisions as to their safety and the safety of their guests, based on what they think is best. If one disagrees with their philosophies and methods, then one is free to avoid those places. There will inevitably be compromises made to solve these issues. Just remember that a compromise involves both sides gaining something, and both sides giving up something. Demanding that gun owners further forfeit their rights and be treated as suspect criminal, insane, potential mass shooters is not a compromise. It is discrimination at its worst, and will do nothing to solve any problem or increase public safety.

September 12, 2019 / R / 9

Mad about Science:

By Brenden Bobby Reader Columnist When we think about bacteria, we think about soaping it off our bodies as quickly as we can. A clean body is a body without bacteria.

That’s a load of bacteria that comes out of a bull.

Humans have a bare minimum of one bacterium for every cell in their body. Our intestines alone are essentially big tubes stuffed full of bacteria. If we didn’t have all of those microbes swimming around our fecal expressways, we would get stuffed full of food that just rots inside of us and kills us, full stop.

Bacteria aren’t always bad.

In fact, bacteria are seldom bad unless you just had surgery, have an impaired immune system or managed to damage your skin doing a sweet kickflip at the park. Studies have shown that exposure to bacteria actually helps our immune system effectively resist that bacteria later, with some exceptions.

MRSA, or Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, is what happens when your run-of-the-mill Staphylococcus bacteria become immunized to antibiotics from overexposure.

This can happen for a number of reasons, but the primary reason for the existence of MRSA is people using antibiotics every time they get sick. Things like the flu and the common cold are caused by viruses, which are completely unaffected by antibiotics, and using antibiotics to treat the cold and flu will kill lots of beneficial bacteria in your body, while also helping the bad ones

10 / R / September 12, 2019

Brought to you by:

wild bacteria

evolve and adapt to resist those drugs in the future.

Most of us are aware of the bacteria that impact our lives the most: E. coli, Salmonella, Staphylococcus and other gross germs that keep us away from public restrooms, but these aren’t even a drop in the bucket compared to what’s out there.

Before penicillin was invented in 1928, did you know that doctors and battlefield medics used bacteria as a disinfectant?

There is documentation of battlefield medics during the Civil War using the bacteria Photorhabdus luminescens to treat wounds. Keep in mind: Hand washing was a relatively new phenomenon in the mid1800s, and bacterial research was pretty cutting edge stuff at the time. Doctors during the Civil War called it “Angel’s Glow,” because the bacteria is bioluminescent and if treated wounds were glowing, it meant they were healing properly.

The reason Photorhabdus luminescens was an effective antibiotic, despite being bacteria itself, is the mechanism by which it reproduces: It will take up residence somewhere, generally within an insect, and secrete an agent that kills most bacteria around it to minimize competition and reproduce.

The astounding lengths that most bacteria go to survive is what makes them stand out in the natural world. While most people would immediately think of MRSA, another bacteria is not only far more resilient, but able to regenerate on its own. Gloeocapsa magma is a type of bacteria that existed on the outside of the space station for more than a

year. Under these conditions, solar and cosmic radiation constantly barrages anything trapped in the environment, stripping electrons from matter and turning DNA strands into bits of organic confetti, but G. magma has an uncanny ability to repair its own DNA, even while sizzling on the sunny side of the ISS. Intense radioactive resistance isn’t a trait restricted to G. magma, as we’ve discovered a bacteria in our backyard that not only resists radiation, but thrives in it.

Deinococcus radiodurans is an intense little microbe currently living in the Hanford nuclear waste repository.

When tested in a lab, scientists discovered it could survive radiation levels up to 2,000 times more intense than what would kill a human. D. radiodurans has the specialized ability to isolate DNA damaged by radiation in a special cell compartment and then fuse it with healthy DNA in a remarkably short amount of time: 24 hours or less. This puts cockroaches as apocalyptic survivors to shame, but what’s most remarkable is that D. radiodurans isn’t the only bacteria capable of surviving and thriving amidst such intense radioactivity. Scientists have discovered several other forms of bacteria that are taking on these characteristics and thriving in waste dumps. I suppose it’s calming to know that even in the face of nuclear devastation, not all life on Earth would be lost.

Some bacteria make things beautiful by doing things that are terrible. Scientists have found a slimy bacteria that

A closeup view of MRSA. Courtesy photo. gather in colonies resembling oozing blobs of snot and live in abandoned mines filled with toxic heavy metals like mercury. Acidithiobacillus eats away minerals like sulfur and iron, then excretes sulfuric acid as waste. The acidic waste reacts with limestone to create shimmering crystals that make the walls of caves shine. It’s beautiful if you ignore the acid-pooping snot blobs hanging off the walls.

The world is filled with weird and wonderful bacteria.

Several precious gems found on Earth wouldn’t be possible without the help of bacteria.

The next time you cover an entire public bathroom in paper towels to avoid touching germs, just remember this important fact: Your phone is covered in more bacteria than a public toilet seat, 10 times over.

You’re welcome.

Random Corner Don’t know much about math?

• Ancient Babylonians did math in base 60 instead of base 10. That’s why we have 60 seconds in a minute and 360 degrees in a circle.

• Students who chew gum have better math test scores than those who do not, a study found.

• 2,520 is the smallest number that can be exactly divided by all the numbers one to 10.

• There are 177,147 ways to tie a tie, according to mathematicians.

• The birthday paradox says that in a group of just 23 people, there’s a 50% chance that at least two will have the same birthday.

• Isaac Newton’s “Principia Mathematica” contained a simple calculation error that went unnoticed for 300 years.

• 2,200 years ago, Eratosthenes estimated the Earth’s circumference using math — without ever leaving Egypt. He was remarkably accurate. Christopher Columbus later studied him.

• Given a person’s age, mathematician Paul Erdos could calculate — in his head — how many seconds

We can help!

they had lived... when he was just 4 years old.

• In middle school, 74% of girls express interest in science, technology, engineering and math, but when choosing a college major, only 0.4% of female high-schoolers select computer science.

• Arabic numerals, like the ones we use today in English, were actually invented in India.

• The Millennium Prize is a $1 million award given to whoever can solve any one of seven math problems, but to date only one of the problems has been solved.

• A physicist faced with a fine for running a stop sign in 2012 proved his innocence by publishing a mathematical paper. He even won a prize for his efforts.

• Philosopher René Descartes is most well known for the saying, “I think, therefore I am,” but he also developed the XY-coordinate system.

• Almost 50% of adults in England can’t do basic maths. (That’s how they spell it across the pond, so save your red-coloured pen.)

FEATURE

Wentworth, master thief

Sandal-stealing cat burglar runs amok in south Sandpoint

By Ben Olson Reader Staff

Somewhere on the dark, quiet streets of south Sandpoint, Wentworth the cat is on the prowl, searching for another pair of flip-flops to steal.

The sandal-stealing feline, owned by a Sandpoint woman who asked only to be identified as “Amber,” has made himself known throughout the neighborhood as the “cat who steals flip-flops.”

“I have two cats — they’re brothers — but only one of them does it,” Amber told the Reader. “He just kind of gave up hunting and thought it would be easier to steal shit off people’s porches and yards.

He’ll even walk into neighbors’ houses if they leave the door open.”

Amber’s neighbors, Duffy and Leah Mahoney, had their first encounter with Wentworth this summer, during the first week of the Festival at Sandpoint.

“We had some people staying at our house and we came back after the concert to hang out on our porch,” Leah said.

“The next morning, Duffy woke up and couldn’t find his flip-flops.”

“I tore my house apart looking for them,” Duffy said.

“Then, we go to the Festival the next night and I’m wearing sandal pair No. 2 and again we hang out on the porch, where I took my sandals off and wake up in the morning and this pair is gone, too.”

At this point, Duffy thought friends were playing a prank on him.

“They all said, ‘We don’t know anything about your stu-

Top: Wentworth posing with one of his latest ill-gotten acquisitions. Bottom right: an impressive daily haul for Wentworth, who leaves the stolen goods on the porch for his owner to deal with.

Courtesy photos. pid sandals,’” Duffy said.

After purchasing a new pair from 7B Boardshop, Duffy’s neighbor Amber showed up at his house the following week with a bag full of shoes and asked if anyone was “missing any flip-flops.”

“One of our friends burst into our bedroom yelling, ‘It was a cat! A cat stole your shoes!’” Leah said.

It turns out, Wentworth has been a busy little kitty this summer. In previous years, he presented mice and other small

offerings to his owner, but for some reason, 2019 turned out to be the Year of the Sandal for Wentworth. Now, he stalks after the errant sandals that neighbors leave on their porches and yards and spirits away into the night with the pilfered goods.

“He is a naughty kitty,” Amber said of Wentworth.

“One time, a neighbor said he went inside for just a moment and came back outside and, in a matter of minutes, Wentworth took his shoes.”

The problem has grown so chronic that Amber puts stolen flip-flops in her mailbox for neighbors to check when they are missing shoes. She also makes regular trips around the neighbor-

<see CAT, page 13 >

September 12, 2019 / R / 11

September 2019

NOTE: Location Change to VFW Hall at 1325 Pine (and Division)

NAMI—Far North Idaho General Meeting Meet Audrey Buck, Registered and Licensed Dietitian

Audrey graduated from Arizona State University BS Nutrition and Dietetics, did her Internship at Indiana University Medical Center. She worked 9 years at Kootenai Medical Center and Boundary Community Hospital, then worked at Bonner General for 30 years. She is a registered and licensed dietitian and certified diabetes educator and the past president of the Idaho Dietetic Association.

After the general meeting we will be breaking out into our support groups.

Everyone is welcome. If you are living with mental illness, are a family member or are a friend of someone with mental illness, this meeting is for you! Learn about NAMI Far North Idaho and what we do.

When: Wednesday, September 18, 2019 at 5:30 p.m.

Where: VFW Hall at 1325 Pine Street (and Division), Sandpoint

P. O. Box 2415, Sandpoint, Idaho 83864 — NAMI Far North is a 501 (c)(3 www.NAMIFarNorth.org NAMIFarNorth2003@gmail.com (208) 597-2047 — Help Line (208) 946-5595 — Crisis Line

12 / R / September 12, 2019

< CAT, con’t from page 13 > hood with a bag full of heisted shoes, attempting to track down the owners who may not know there is an active —literal— cat burglar in the vicinity.

After delivering Duffy’s missing shoes, Amber stayed for a couple of front-porch beers — in the midst of which Wentworth appeared from the shadows and pulled off a brazen theft right in front of the group.

“Here he comes down the sidewalk,” Amber said. “Everybody left their flip-flops on the porch, and he waited for all of them to not be paying attention when all of a sudden, he grabs one of our neighbor Jason’s daughter’s flip-flops in a beach bag and takes off through the grass. He was carrying it like a lion would carry a gazelle. Jason said to me, ‘I didn’t think you were lying, but I didn’t really believe you until now.’”

Amber said Wentworth prefers Hawaiian brands of flip-flops, like Locals, and generally steals shoes in pairs as opposed to singly.

“Unfortunately, none of them have ever been my size,” she said.

He has recently shown signs of

Left: The famous yellow chair placed outside Amber’s house with a rotating supply of sandals for neighbors to claim.

Courtesy photo.

graduating from stealing sandals to full-blown sneakers.

“He stole a couple pairs of sneakers this summer, even a couple pairs of knock-off Danskos,” Amber said. “One neighbor put out a shitty one-dollar flip-flop and tied some dental floss to it, [hanging] through his window and tied it to his finger to wake him up, but Wentworth is smarter than that. He just moved onto the sneakers and stole them instead, leaving the flip-flop alone.”

Now that the neighborhood has become aware of the problem, Amber said Wentworth’s conquests have begun to diminish.

“It’s gotta be a little disappointing for him,” she said. “People are not leaving their flip-flops lying around as often because of him.”

In all, Duffy Mahoney has had three pairs of shoes stolen by Wentworth, but he and the rest of the neighbors receive the news in good fun.

“What I want to know is, how the hell do you train a cat to do this?” he said.

If you or someone you know are missing sandals, seek out the yellow chair in south Sandpoint, where Wentworth’s latest haul is on offer for owners to claim.

September 12, 2019 / R / 13

event t h u r s d a y

12

f r i d a y

13

s a t u r d a y

14

s u n d a y

15

m o n d a y t u e s d a y

w e d n e s d a y t h u r s d a y

14 / R / September 12, 2019

16 17 18

19

Dollar Beers!

8pm @ Eichardt’s Pub Good until the keg’s dry

f

Good Co Electro Swing Band in concert (presented by Ma 7pm @ The Heartwood Center Good Co is a rare, live Electro Swing band based out of S unique sound combines the era of underground speakeasies w beats, illicit booze, jitterbugging flappers, and the electric sou dance music. $15 in advance, $10 youth, free under age 5

Rock Creek Allian Live Music w/ Ron Keiper Jazz Trio Live Music w/ Kevin Dorin 5-8:30pm @ Evans 5-7pm @ Idaho Pour Authority 8-10pm @ The Back Door Enjoy live music Live Music w/ Harold’s IGA Blues done right snacks, new T-shirt 9pm-12am @ 219 Lounge DJ Exodus legal update on the Indie rock originals and covers 9pm-cl @ A&P’s Bar & Grill Sandpoint Contra Live Music w/ Bright Moments Jazz 7-10:30pm @ Sand 5-8pm @ Pend d’Oreille Winery All dances called a With Arthur Goldblum and Peter Lucht Live Music w/ Tonedevil Bros. Songwriters Concert w/ Thom & Coley Sandpoint Cornh 5-8pm @ Pend d’Oreille Winery 8pm @ Panida Theater 9am @ First Ave. With art reception by L. Halcro A songwriting duo nominated for 14 Over 150 competit Live Music w/ Turn Spit Dogs songwriting awards this year. Specializ-Ave. to live music 7-10pm @ Eichardt’s Pub es in trad. country with a beach-y vibe on the street! Play Rockin’ blues!

Miah Kohal Band in concert Scenic Half Packe Live Music w/ The Risky Gents 8pm @ The Hive Cheese Competit 4-6pm @ Davis Grocery (Hope) Sandpoint’s outlaw rock band. $5 2-5pm @ The Fat Old time music with Fiddlin’ Red Live Music w/ Rhythmic Collective Pick up your Scen and Dave Gunter. beer deals, taste m Live Music w/ Jennifer Stoehner 9pm @ 219 Lounge Yoga on Tap Formerly Down South Band 8-10pm @ The Back Door 10:45am @ Laugh Sandpoint Chess Club Piano Sunday w/ Ben Scenic Half Marathon 3-5pm @ Pend d’Oreill 9am @ Evans Brothers Coffee Register at ScenicHalf.com Lounge-style originals Live Music w/ Ken Mayginnes or call 208-263-2161 The National and more 4-6:30pm @ Matchwood Brewing Monday Night Blues Jam w/ Truck Mills 7:30pm @ Eichardt’s Pub

Night-Out Karaoke 9pm @ 219 Lounge Join DJ Webrix for a night of singing, or just come to drink and listen

Trivia Night 7pm @ MickDuff’s Show off that big, beautiful brain of yours

Lifetree Cafe 2pm @ Jalepeño’s Mexican Restaurant An hour of conversation and stories. This week’s topic: “Dreams and Nightmares” Djembe class 5:45-7:30pm @ Music Conservatory of Sandpoint Join Ali Thomas for this djembe (drum) class

Outd 6pm @ A chi tional

Tuesday Trivia an 5-6:30pm @ Davi Every Third Tuesd have trivia night h cery. Play as a team ual. There are priz fun. 620 Wellingto

CAL Wildlife Trivia 2pm @ 4-6pm @ Squeeze Inn Support American Heritage Celeb Wildlife Foundation by an- munit swering fun wildlife trivia with pagne questions. Raffles also!

SoupTember: Battle for the Golden Ladle Dollar Beers!

5-8pm @ Farmin Park 8pm @ Eichardt’s Pub Sample soups from your favorite local restaurants Live Music w/ Paul and Ieva Cataldo and vote for your favorite. Raffle prizes, auction and 8-11pm @ 219 Lounge live music by Browne Salmon Truck. $10. Funds Wilderness-inspired Americana benefit Sandpoint Community Resource Center Wind Down Wednesday Sandpoint Farmers’ Market 5-8pm @ 219 Lounge 3-5:30pm @ Farmin Park With live music by blues Locally grown produce, man Truck Mills and guest starts, crafts and more! Live musician Carl Rey music by Jake Robin

ful

ed by Mattox Farms)

d out of Seattle. Their keasies with the funky ectric sound of today’s age 5

Sept. 12 - 19, 2019

A weekly entertainment guide to keep you on your toes. To list your event free, please send an email to calendar@sandpointreader.com.

Reader recommended

Cancer Support Group 4pm @ Community Cancer Services a new group for residents in Bonner and Boundary counties who have been affected by cancer. 1205 Highway 2 Ste. 101 B

Molly Starlite and the Sputniks’ Curse of the Tiki concert 7pm @ Panida’s Little Theater Come enjoy a scripted concert extravaganza set in 1962 on a tropical island honeymoon.

Learn more at MollyStarlite.com

eek Alliance Party and Meeting Sandpoint Cornhole Classic Crew m @ Evans Brothers Coffee Cup and Live Music ve music with BareGrass, wine, 5-9pm @ MickDuff’s Beer Hall ew T-shirts hot off the press, plus a This is a 4-person random pairing team ate on the fight to protect our lake competition; must sign up and pay ahead nt Contra Dance of time. Live music with The Groove m @ Sandpoint Community Hall Black from 6:30 p.m. until 9:30pm es called and taught to live music

Mugs & Music w/ Kerry Leigh 4-6pm @ Laughing Dog 4th Annual Clean Comedy Show 5:30pm @ Memorial Community Center in Hope Fundraiser for American Heritage Wildlife Foundation.

Come to laugh and support this nonprofit in style

nt Cornhole Classic Evans Bros. 10 Year Celebration First Ave. (between Church & Main) 4-10pm @ The Granary 0 competitors will toss the bags on First Free drip coffee and all bags of ive music, food, and drinking allowed beans $10. Bounce house for the reet! Players and spectators welcome kids and brothers dunk tank. Live Sandpoint Farmers’ Market and Half Packet Pickup Party and Mac ‘n’ music by Bright Moments Jazz ‘Taste of the Market’ (see p.23) Competition and RFB band.

9am-2pm @ Farmin Park @ The Fat Pig Restaurant your Scenic Half registration and get Live Music w/ Dustin Drennen Produce, starts, crafts and more!

5-7pm @ Idaho Pour Authority Live music by Folk Remedy ls, taste mac ‘n’ cheeses and more!

Karaoke Ponderay Neighbor Day Tap 1-6pm @ Harbison Field (behind the Hoot Owl) m @ Laughing Dog 8-close @ Tervan Tavern Free activities include kids’ crafts, pony rides, a y w/ Ben Olson d d’Oreille Winery petting zoo, inflatables, carnival games, tastings, originals and covers from bands like Tom Waits, demonstrations, and live music. 208-265-5468 and more by Ben Olson of the band Harold’s IGA More than a Woman Trivia Outdoor Experience Monday Night Run 6:30-9pm @ The Back Door nt 6pm @ Outdoor Experience A night of laughter and his A chill, three-mile(ish) group run with op- female-focused trivia ” tional beverages to follow

Trivia and Happy Hour m @ Davis Grocery (Hope) hird Tuesday of the month we ia night here at Davis Groy as a team or as an individe are prizes, knowledge and Wellington Place in Hope

Live Music w/ Chad Patrick 7-10pm @ Eichardt’s Pub

Sept. 20 Water Summit with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. @ Panida Theater

Kokanee Spawning Class 9:30am @ Trestle Creek Avista Day Use Area A class on spawning with The Pend Oreille Chapter of Idaho Master Naturalists CAL 40th Anniversary Bonner Partners In Care Clinic fundraiser 2pm @ Panida Theater 5-8pm @ Idaho Pour Authority Sept. 21 ge Celebrate 40 years of Com- With Bitter Root Brewing beer on tap from.

Grand Opening n- munity Assistance League Live music by Marty Perron and Doug Bond. of Pine Street via with skits, cake and cham- Silent auction items and raffle prizes. ComWo ods @ Pine pagne! Free and open to all plimentary appetizers will be served Str eet Woods le Women’s Trivia night Girls Pint Out 5-9pm @ The Back Door Bar 5-7pm @ Idaho Pour Authority staurants A special edition of the month- Cool Chicks! Great Beer! No Open Mic Night ction and ly Women’s Trivia, with guest Dudes! Join Vicki at the big w/ KC Carter 0. Funds speaker Katie Begalke of the table for an evening tasting and 9pm-midnight @ A&P’s enter nonprofit Return Retreats talking about Fall Beer.

September 12, 2019 / R / 15

OUTDOORS

Rails to Resort Hill Climb 2019

By Daryl Baird Reader Contributor Thirty-nine men and women made up the field of bicycle riders for this year’s running of the Rails to Resort Hill Climb, hosted the morning of Saturday, Sept. 7.

The course began at the railroad tracks at the base of Schweitzer Mountain Road and climbed steadily to the entrance of the resort parking lot. The entire course was resurfaced this summer so riders were treated to 8.5 miles of buttery smoothness.

Spencer Nietmann took top honors again this year with an amazing time of 36 minutes, seven seconds, keeping an average pace of just over 14 miles per hour. Joshua Bell and Clint Hastings battled for second place with Bell finishing just one second ahead of Hastings and a scant 21 seconds behind Nietmann.

Of special note, 73 year-old Bill

16 / R / September 12, 2019

McPherson finished with a very inspiring time of 46 minutes, six seconds to own eighth place this year.

Katherine Creswell led the field of seven female riders for the second year in a row, finishing in sixth place overall,with a time of 45 minutes, eight seconds. She bettered her 2018 R2R finish by well over a minute.

Beth Stoner was the second female to finish.

Her time was 51 minutes, seven seconds.

Linda Michalson claimed third place with a time of 54 minutes, 35 seconds. Jeannie Higgs, Lisa Barth, Suzanne Gallus, Ali Pierce, and Marcela Diamond followed in order.

Jason Wiley, of the Sandpoint Parks and Recreation Department, organized the event, which was sponsored by Mountain West Bank-Ponderay, Sandpoint Sports and Syringa Cyclery. Judy Baird of Mountain West Bank managed the timing table. Alec Thaete and his daughter, Jetta, helped with course marshaling and at the timing table.

September 12, 2019 / R / 17

FOOD

The Sandpoint Eater

Eat these words

By Marcia Pilgeram Reader Columnist I have always loved words.

And food. I especially love food words, and let me tell you, there is no shortage of lingo in the world of gastronomy. In fact, Sharon Tyler Herbst’s “Food Lover’s Companion,” (published by Barron’s and now in its fifth edition) has been my culinary go-to resource for more than 20 years.

There are more than 6,700 food-related words contained within the 829 pages of the 2007 fourth edition (my favorite) that I so covet.

For years, the book was a constant companion in the galley when I was a chef on private trains. It was an invaluable reference tool for the galley and wait staff, helping with proper pronunciation as well as correct menu spelling for tricky words like avocado, prosciutto and mascarpone.

Train galleys are notoriously hot and steamy. Even with overhead hoods and fans, there’s no fresh air supply to escape from the warm moisture, so about once a year I would replace the previous copy of “Food Lover’s Companion,” limp from steam and stained from numerous spills. Every now and then, I come across one of the tired, dog-eared copies that I still can’t bring myself to toss.

Often, on long “deadhead movements” (train-speak for repositioning movements sans passengers), we’d mend our sleep-deprived minds and bodies with sunset cocktails in the dome car, playing rousing games of culinary trivia. Every crew member had their own version: come up with a synonym of a given word; describe and spell the word; or, my favorite, guess the word from the given description.

Sometimes, I’d read the “Com-

18 / R / September 12, 2019

panion” like a novel, eager to learn about unfamiliar techniques, such as spatchcocking (butterflying) a chicken or quail. And I learned about corn smut. Though evil-asa-weevil to a farmer, I discovered that this mushroom-like fungus on an ear of corn is sold as a delicacy in many gourmet markets.

Thanks to long quiet stretches along the rail routes, I was pleased to recognize myself as a true turophile (cheese lover). Other great, useful knowledge I gained was distinguishing which fruits contained pips rather than seeds or pits.

The “Food Lover’s Companion” was a great leveler, too.

Occasionally, a pretentious pas-

senger, filled with equal portions of self-worth and alcohol would toss around ill-pronounced menu requests to a befuddled crew member. More than once we deciphered the epicurean error, and the crew entertained themselves for the duration of the trip by mimicking whichever highly regarded lady or gentleman had made the biggest fool of themselves on that particular journey.

Besides the descriptions of myriad foods and techniques, the “Companion” contains more than 50 valuable pages of appendices that include every kind of chart a good cook and a busy kitchen need for substituting ingredients: safe cooking temperatures, equivalent

charts, British and American food terms and high-altitude baking adjustments. My favorite appendix pages are the pasta glossary (five pages!) and the pan substitution chart.

I didn’t even have to read between the lines on Page 284 to discover that in my youth, my siblings and I were nourished (and flourished) on gallimaufry.

Gallimaufry is a jumble of unrelated things, a hodgepodge, a chaotic mixture of things. The word gallimaufry is derived from the French word galimafrée, which is a dish or a stew made up of odds and ends of leftovers and foods one wishes to use up before it goes bad. Being raised in

a Catholic household, gallimaufry was omni-present for Thursday dinner, when Mom cleaned out anything meat-related, and tossed in a few tatties (British for potatoes) to prepare for our Friday fasts.

I, too, have been preparing gallimaufry-like dishes for decades, though I’d like to think mine are fresher and more innovative than the ones my mother served up decades-ago on Thursday night.

I must admit, it was an overabundance of fresh basil (from generous neighbors) that motivated my most recent version. What’s in your fridge, urging you on to gallimaufry-greatness?

Fusilli Pesto Pasta and Chicken Recipe 8 servings Delicious combination of fusilli pasta, veggies and chicken breast. Serve with Italian bread and a big salad. Homemade pesto is worth the effort.

INGREDIENTS:

DIRECTIONS:

• 1 (16 ounce) package fusilli pasta • 2 tbs olive oil • 4 cloves garlic, crushed and minced • 1 cup diced red and green peppers • ½ cup diced onion • 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips • 1 tsp red pepper flakes • ¼ cup sun-dried tomatoes, drained and cut into strips • 1 cup pesto sauce

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to boil. Add pasta and cook for approximately 10 minutes, or until just al dente. Drain.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Saute garlic and peppers until tender, then stir in chicken. Season with red pepper flakes. Cook until chicken is golden and cooked through.

In a large bowl, combine pasta, chicken, sun-dried tomatoes and pesto.

Toss to coat evenly.

Fresh Pesto Sauce Makes 2 cups • 2 cups packed fresh basil leaves • 4 cloves garlic • 1⁄4 cup pine nuts, lightly toasted • 2⁄3 cup extra-virgin olive oil, divided • 1 tsp each, sea salt and freshly ground black pepper • 1⁄2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Combine the basil, garlic and pine nuts in a food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped. Very slowly, add 1/2 cup of the oil and process until fully blended and smooth looking. Season with salt and pepper.

Add the remaining oil and pulse until smooth.

Add the cheese and give another couple quick pulses. Pour into a container and, to retain pretty green color, cover the top with a thin layer of olive oil.

Refrigerate up to a week, freeze up to two months.

OUTDOORS

Cornhole tournament set to take over First Ave. this weekend

By Ben Olson Reader Staff

middle of First Avenue, with players tossing bags from one side of the street to another.

“It’s super cool that the city of Sandpoint is allowing this,” Mize said. “We go to other Back after a successful inaugural event, places and we’re playing in an old gymnasium the Sandpoint Cornhole Classic tournament or warehouse or furniture store. We get to enwill take over historic First Avenue in Sandjoy playing right here in our beautiful town.” point on Saturday, Sept. 14. The tournament Because First Avenue will be closed to is co-presented by MickDuff’s Brewing Co. traffic from Main Street to Church Street and A&P’s Bar and Grill — both hotspots due to construction, the city is also allowing for Sandpoint cornholers. consumption of alcoholic beverages during The tournament is an American Cornhole this year’s cornhole competition.

League Mountain North Conference Tourna“The whole First Avenue will essentially ment, meaning the event is open to 11 western be a beer garden,” said MickDuff’s Manager states. Last year, more than 100 players comMack Deibel. “You can drink on First Avepeted, but this year already 150 have signed nue, but you can’t bring your own alcohol.” up, including a dozen professionals.

Deibel said play will also be broadcast on Cornhole has experienced a rapid rise in the ACL Digital Network thanks to Northland popularity around the country, especially in Cable.

To stream, visit iplaycornhole.com.

Sandpoint. There are even two professionPlayers will compete for $10,000 in als in Sandpoint right now; James Mize of guaranteed cash prizes spread across differA&P’s and Ryan Huffey. ent divisions, with a $1,000 “It’s huge right now,” Sandpoint Cornhole guaranteed first-place prize Mize said. “Our [Facefor advanced singles and Classic book] group, Sandpoint advanced doubles. Each diviIdaho Cornhole, has almost Saturday, Sept. 14; first toss sion is separated into social, tripled in size. It used to (singles) 9 a.m., first toss (doucompetitive and advanced be just three or four of us bles) 1 p.m.; $20/player. First skill levels. That means evplaying on Tuesday afterAvenue between Church and noons, now 18 to 20 people Main streets, sandpointcornhole. eryone from the casual tosser to the professional can find a show up every week.” square.site to register. match.

Last year’s tournament Registration is only $20, which includes was unique in that it took place right in the

Scenic Half Marathon: A run with a view

By Ben Olson Reader Staff Take your mark, runners, it’s time for the annual Scenic Half Marathon. Presented by the Greater Sandpoint Chamber of Commerce, the route traverses Lake Pend Oreille over the iconic Long Bridge, attracting hundreds of runners from across the country to participate.

The race will take place on Sunday, Sept. 15 and will begin at Sandpoint City Beach. From there, runners can choose either a 13.1-mile half marathon or a 10k route, both of which provide fantastic views from the Long Bridge and Lakeshore Drive.

It’s an out-and-back course with safety monitors on foot and bicycles, as well as local law enforcement officers keeping the roadways safe.

This year, a new addition to the Scenic Half is the Kids 5k for those in grades kindergarten through sixth. There will be awards for each race division, and finishers for the half marathon will receive a finish-

er’s medal.

The Chamber is hosting a packet pickup and registration party the day before the race on Saturday, Sept. 14 from 2-5 p.m. on the patio at The Fat Pig, 301 Cedar St. in Sandpoint. Runners will receive discounted beer coupons upon packet pickup and/or registration. Then, runners can load up on carbs with a mac ’n’ cheese tasting competition. In this competition, five local restaurants — Eichartdt’s Pub, Farmhouse Kitchen, Sweet Lou’s, The Fat Pig and Trinity at City Beach — will compete to receive your vote as the best mac ’n’ cheese in the land. The winning restaurant will receive a special trophy and bragging rights for an entire year. Tickets are $10 for five samples.

The Fat Pig will also serve its regular menu and beverages for those in attendance. This event is open to all runners, friends and family.

For more information about the Scenic Half Marathon, visit scenichalf.com.

one drink. Registration will end Thursday, Sept. 12 at 10 p.m., so don’t wait until the day of the tournament to sign up.

Along with the 150 expected competitors, Mize said more than 1,000 spectators will likely show up, bringing an economic boost for downtown Sandpoint — all the more important since much of First Avenue is torn up for construction.

There will be food provided by A&P’s, as well as other restaurants along First Avenue.

“This sport is growing,” Deibel said. “It’s blowing up. The goal is to keep growing the sport, make it a year-round thing. We want to make Sandpoint a destination for cornhole.”

Competitors battle in last year’s Sandpoint Cornhole Classic on First Ave. in downtown Sandpoint. Courtesy photo.

There will be a Friday night social and kick-off at MickDuff’s Beer hall on Friday, Sept. 13 starting at 5 p.m. The format for players will be a Crew Cup competition, which players must register for before the Sept. 12 deadline. Check-in starts at 8:30 a.m. for singles on Saturday morning with first toss at 9 a.m. Check-in for doubles begins at 12 p.m. with bags flying at 1 p.m.

To register or for more information about the Sandpoint Cornhole Classic, visit sandpointcornhole.square.site.

CAL celebrates 40 years Needs Olympics, the Kaleidoscope Art Enrichment Program, Junior Miss, the Afternoon Academy and the Festival at Forty years ago, the Community As- Sandpoint, which CAL produced for the sistance League was formed by a small first two years. group of philanthropists eager to create To commemorate the milestone, CAL a nonprofit where local women could is throwing a party at 2 p.m., Wednesaffect real change in Sandpoint. Beginday, Sept. 18 at the Panida Theater. CAL ning in 1979, CAL now boasts more board members and volunteers will than 260 members who are responsible perform light-hearted skits to keep the for giving around close to $2 million to crowd entertained. programs in Bonner County.

“Romp through our history and enjoy Whether through its community our silly wit!” organizers wrote in a grant program or annual scholarships statement. to graduating seniors, CAL continually There will also be champagne and gives back to the community as part of cake served to all in attendance (and of a mission to address the needs of the age). Admission is free and open to the community “through research, discuspublic, but donations are always happily sion, planning, program accepted. development, fundraising CAL 40th To support CAL, and service.” anniversary party shop at upscale resale The organization, Bizarre Bazaar, 502 and celebration store which has no paid direcChurch St. in Sandpoint.

Wednesday, Sept. 18; 2 p.m.; tor or staff, has also asOne hundred percent of sisted in local events like FREE. Panida Theater, 300 N. the store’s proceeds go toFirst Avenue, 208-263-9191, the Panhandle Special ward CAL’s annual grant panida.org. For more info on and scholarship programs.

CAL, visit calsandpoint.org.

By Ben Olson Reader Staff

September 12, 2019 / R / 19

COMMUNITY

Supporting downtown businesses during construction

By Ben Olson Reader Staff In the Sept. 5 edition of the Reader, I challenged you diehard locals to go out and support the businesses on First Avenue during construction over the course of the next couple of months. I even wrote that I would “do something special” for those who went above and beyond, which is nothing short of bribery, in my opinion. Looks like it worked.

There are already several locals going out of their way to support these businesses — some who even sent in photographic evidence. Dover’s Bill and Gloria Stuble sent a snapshot of them with Salon DeMars owner Rachel DeMars, writing, “OK, Ben, you’re on. We braved the dust and noise and took our haircut business to Salon DeMars in the Cedar St. Bridge.”

As a thank you to the Stubles, the Reader will pay for the next six issues to be sent to them at their Wyoming address while they’re away from Sandpoint.

Nannette Heintzelman also sent a bunch of photos from her day downtown, where she enjoyed a blackened Caesar

20 / R / September 12, 2019

Above: Bill and Gloria Stuble flanking Rachel DeMars, center, of Salon DeMars. Right: Nannette Heintzelman stops for a quick beer at A&P’s Bar and Grill during her day of shopping downtown. Courtesy photos.

salad at MickDuff’s, a beer at A&P’s Bar and Grill, a burger at Burger Dock and took her patronage to other locations. She wrote, “One word: supporting.”

To thank Nannette for supporting our local businesses, the Reader is sending her a gift certificate to dine at MickDuff’s BrewPub, on us.

Are you getting the picture, dear readers? Send in a photo of you supporting a

business affected by the construction and we’ll do something for you in return. It’s important to support our neighbors during this time.

Please email any photos you take

while shopping downtown to ben@ sandpointreader.com. We’ll do our best to reward everyone with something special when we can.

Keep up the support, folks!

Chamber welcomes Terra Bache, State Farm agent

By Reader Staff

The Greater Sandpoint Chamber of Commerce recently welcomed Terra Bache, State Farm Agent as members.

Terra Bache has been in the insurance industry for 10 years. She started out in an agent office in Kalispell, Mont., in 2009 then took a corporate position with the company in 2012. For the past seven years, she has helped 35 State Farm agents in three states with their own agencies as a State Farm employee. In October 2018, she decided it was time to stop traveling and go back into an agency.

Bache looks forward to working locally and serving all the communities in Bonner County. She and her team are active members of the community. Each member of the office is given two hours per week to volunteer locally and choose to do so with our local school system. In

Courtesy photo. addition, they are members of the Chamber of Commerce and 7B women.

“A hands-on approach is what sets this office apart,” Bache said.

She meets with customers on a yearly basis so they can meet their households’ growing needs. In addition, they like the personal relationship that this kind of agency process fosters.

Bache and team have an open house coming up in October. Like and follow their Facebook page for the time and date.

It will be held at their office at 509 N. Fifth Ave., Suite C in Sandpoint. Customers and community members welcome.

STAGE & SCREEN

Island time

By Zach Hagadone Reader Staff Like any good obsession, Charity Luthy’s affinity for mid-century art and aesthetics started randomly and quickly grew out of all proportion.

“I got really into the 1950s vintage look while I was building my house,” she said. “As I was decorating, I went on Pinterest and kept coming back to the 1950s retro style: butterfly roof houses, Eames houses, the minimalist style. I’d always kind of liked that style, but all of a sudden I noticed that everything I was looking at was that style. It just snowballed.”

At the time, Luthy, who lives in Oldtown, was playing in the rock ’n’ roll cover band Make Me Shiver, which for 10 years toured from Priest River, Newport and Oldtown to Spokane and Seattle.

But, as her love affair with the ’50s blossomed, she found herself growing restless with the genre of music she was performing.

“I just got tired of playing other people’s songs,” she said.

“The whole reason I started the band in the first place was to play my own music … but that never happened.”

In the interest of self-reinvention, she chucked Bon Jovi in favor of the rock-a-billy sounds of an earlier age — albeit, inflected with the flavor of Fleetwood Mac. She hasn’t looked back.

“Now I collect old records. I think I have the entire Ray Conniff discography,” Luthy said. “It’s a lifestyle. I dress in vintage clothing all the time.”

She now goes by the pin-up/ stage name of Molly Starlite and fronts Molly Starlite and the Sputniks — a four-piece comprised of her brother, Will Brock, on bass; her cousin, Jonny Mason, on lead guitar; and Ali Thomas, no relation, on drums.

The band will put on a unique show Friday, Sept. 13 at the Panida Little Theater, combining sound and stage with “Curse of the Tiki” — a scripted concert in which Molly Starlite and the Sput-

niks will play the part of a troupe of hotel musicians in 1962, telling the tale of a pair of honeymooners who inadvertently aroused the dangerous spirit of an island deity.

According to Luthy, the concept of a rock-a-billy opera sprung from the date of the show.

“My brain immediately went to, ‘What if we did a curse of the tiki for Friday the 13th?’ Again, it snowballed,” she said.

The band came up with four new songs that chronicled the ill-fated (or not?) nuptial celebration: from the start of the couple’s honeymoon to the climax, so to speak, of the cursed Hawaiian getaway. Those tunes will be intermingled with Molly Starlite and the Sputniks’ repertoire, inviting the audience to participate as if they were fellow guests at the honeymoon hotel, hearing the story as they relax on their own vacations.

“It’s a thematic project,” said Luthy. “It’s got tropical stuff — Ali [the drummer] has brought in extra drums to give it sort of that tribal feel to it.”

To complete the motif, Luthy said the Little Theater will be decked out in Polynesian style, with a bamboo-and-tiki-head selfie station, backlit palm trees to complete the sunset-Pacific-island feel and tropical drinks and snacks. Her brother-in-law, with a background in radio, will provide narration. With lyrics projected onto a screen behind the band, Luthy said it’s going to be a tall order to pull off, but she’s confident.

“Our timing has got to be dead on,” she said. “It’s been a real big creative undertaking for me.”

A spirit of inventiveness and DIY-ism typifies the band, which Luthy describes as “a real family affair.” Not only does she play alongside her brother and cousin, but her mom built all the set pieces, her husband runs sound, her son will handle the video presentation, her sister and brother-in-law produced the band’s CDs and her dad — as dads do — generally helps out.

While it takes a village to put on a show as ambitious as “Curse

Molly Starlite and the Sputniks turn the Panida Little Theater tiki in a mid-century rock-a-billy stage show

of the Tiki,” the band’s sound is a product of Luthy’s direction. She describes Molly Starlite and the Sputniks as a rock-a-billy band “with more hooks than your uncle’s tackle box.” That bears some unpacking.

Luthy said her main complaint with the rock-a-billy genre is that those songs “all kind of sound alike.”

“I like to take that rock-a-billy foundation and add unusual beats and melodies and different instrumentation,” she said. “We like to add things that you wouldn’t expect in a rock-a-billy sound.”

To illustrate, Luthy pointed to songs like “Over the Moon,” which takes a sly, disapproving look at the notion of “friends with benefits” and “Swipe Right,” which treats online dating with a distinctly retro vibe.

“It’s a rock-a-billy song but you’re talking about something that’s modern,” she said.

Throw in that inventive instrumentation, including melotron, mandolin and banjo, plus poppy hooks, and you’ve got a one-of-akind musical experiment.

Asked if she’d ever attempted anything like “Curse of Tiki” before, Luthy answered quickly

and with a laugh: “No. … I hope we can pull it off.”

In the meantime, the band is furiously hunting up as many leis as possible. Wear ’em if you got ’em.

Molly Starlite and the Sputniks playing a show at MickDuff’s Beer Hall.

Photo by Eric Mann.

September 12, 2019 / R / 21

COMMUNITY

School Resource Ellen Weissman: Celebrating five years with the Sandpoint Senior Center Officer program expanded

By Ben Olson Reader Staff

By Reader Staff

The Sandpoint City Council approved a contract Sept. 4 extending the school resource officer program with Lake Pend Oreille School District for two more years while also adding to the services provided. LPOSD will provide 60% of the annual salary for two dedicated SROs through the Sandpoint Police Department.

Based at Sandpoint High School, Officer Spencer Smith has served as the sole SRO since 2014. He will continue in his role under the new contract. SPD hired Smith in 2012. He holds an intermediate certificate from POST. A second SRO will be added and will be based at Sandpoint Middle School. Officer Dave Giffin has been assigned.

Certified as an Idaho police officer in 1995, Giffin joined SPD in 2001. He holds in advanced certificate from POST

22 / R / September 12, 2019

and is a certified instructor for POST in high liabilities and general topics.

In addition to SHS and SMS, Smith and Giffin will also serve Farmin-Stidwell, Washington and Kootenai elementary schools.

SROs are tasked with building trust between students and police, spending much of their days on duty chatting with students as they pass in the school hallways. They also provide a regular presence at school athletic games and other extracurricular activities.

In addition to serving as security, SROs help develop and update safety plans for each of the schools; serve as internal mediators, often at the front lines of interaction in de-escalating aggression between students; and assisting in the classroom teaching on topics such as criminology and bullying.

Ellen Weissman passes an important milestone Sunday, Sept.

15: five years of working as the executive director for Sandpoint Area Seniors, Inc. The job, which Weissman throws herself into wholeheartedly, came as a result of “timing.”

“Timing is everything,” Weissman said. “I was working another job and one of the [SASi] board members that I knew from the Teen Center board I was on 10 years ago said, ‘We just hired somebody, but you would’ve been perfect for the job.’”

Weissman asked her friend to think of her if the job came open again and, eight weeks later, it had. She jumped in.

With a staff of 11 people and numerous volunteers, Weissman’s position as executive director means serving Sandpoint’s senior population in a number of different ways.

“It’s overseeing the whole operation,” Weissman said. “The Senior Center, the meals program, both home-delivered and in-house, the DayBreak Center.

It’s working with the board for fundraising and writing grants, working with community organizations and agencies that help seniors. Really, it’s everything from cleaning toilets to bigger projects, like getting the parking lot redone a couple years back.”

Weissman said she’s thank-

Ellen Weissman. Photo by Ben Olson. ful for many local agencies she works with regularly in her goal to serve Sandpoint’s elderly population.

“We work with Sandpoint Community Resource Center a lot,” she said. “We work with the Food Bank a lot too. They have a program for housing for veterans which, two summers ago, I was able to help a fellow get housing. … That is increasing. The housing issue, as most everybody knows in town, is getting super tight.”

SASi currently serves about 60 seniors across Bonner County for their home-delivered meal program and another couple hundred regularly attend their in-house meals. Lunch is served

Monday through Thursday at 11:30 a.m. and breakfast is served Fridays at 8:30 a.m. If you’re over 60 years old, SASi asks for a suggested donation of $4 for meals, “but we never turn anyone away,” Weissman said.

Aside from meals, SASi’s regular programs like AARP’s free tax advice, social gatherings, art classes and adult respite care at the DayBreak Center round out a complete package to give seniors in the area the tools they need to live happy, healthy lives in their declining years.

“Isolation is huge,” Weissman said. “It can lead to depression, which can lead to suicide. I call this an ‘isolation-buster,’ because as soon as you make a connection with another human being, you’re hooked. You’re not alone.”

Weissman said a special program coming up is a visit from the Idaho Commision on Aging, which plans and oversees services in Idaho designed to keep seniors living independently. ICOA will be at the Sandpoint Senior Center Tuesday, Sept. 24 from 10:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. with a lunch period from 11:30 a.m.12:30 p.m. Weissman asks those who plan to attend to RSVP by calling 208-263-6860.

EATS & DRINKS

One decade, two brothers, three cafes

Evans Brothers Coffee celebrates 10 years with a community party Sept. 14

By Lyndsie Kiebert Reader Staff

Those connections, along with coming home to share knowledge from abroad with local coffee enthusiasts, is what Rick believes has helped the business thrive.

One with an extensive background in “We’ve always been about quality coffee coffee and the other an experienced business- and connecting people to that beverage man, two brothers came together exactly a and where it comes from,” he said. “That decade ago to create a product and place now starts to resonate with people. They realize, ingrained in Sandpoint’s character.

‘These guys are really into their craft.’”

Rick and Randy Evans — owners of the Evans Brothers Coffee started as a eponymously named Evans Brothers Coffee wholesaler, but when the business incorpoRoasters — are celebrating 10 years of cofrated a small coffee bar beside the roasting fee and local camaraderie with a celebration warehouse — a place where customers Sept. 14. could sample their blends — it took off The Evans brothers moved to Sandlike a caffeinated rocket. Any reservations point in 2008, seeking the outdoors and the about the cafe portion of the business faded chance to raise their families in a smaller, when Evans Brothers placed third in the “genuine” community, as Rick described “America’s Best Coffeehouse” competition it. It didn’t take long before the idea of at Portland Coffee Fest 2015. co-owning a coffee roastery took shape.

“I don’t know if we saw ourselves the “I had a vision of building something same as the model companies we looked up that was the central place of the communito, but then all of a sudden we’re up there ty,” Rick said. “One of those places that’s with them,” Rick said of his reaction to the the go-to spot when you visit Sandpoint.” award. “We really enjoy [having a cafe] Not only did the Evans brothers accombecause it allows us … a chance to interact plish that local mission, but their vision has with people that are drinking our coffee. led to world travel. Rick, [We enjoy] the individual Evans Brothers 10th conversations we can have Randy and their roasting staff regularly travel to the with people.”

Anniversary Party places where their coffee They liked it so much Saturday, Sept. 14; 4-10 p.m.; beans are grown in order that they opened a second FREE. 524 Church St., 208-265- cafe in Coeur d’Alene in late to develop personal relationships with the farmers. 5553, evansbrotherscoffee.com. 2017, and just announced

Sept. 6 that Spokane will soon have an Evans Brothers cafe to call its own.

The Sept. 14 celebration will include free drip coffee all day, 12-ounce bags of coffee for $10, a bounce house and dunk tank. There will also be live music from Bright Moments Jazz starting at 4 p.m., followed by local rockers Right Front Burner.

“We really appreciate the love and support of our community and the customers we’ve had for years,” Rick said. “This party is us throwing something to thank the community.”

As Evans Brothers Coffee expands its reach into the greater Northwest and the rich scent of roasting beans continues to waft

According to Rick Evans, epic parties — like the annual ugly sweater party — make Evans Brothers Coffee special. Courtesy photo. from the rustic walls of 524 Church St., it’s safe to say year-10 is only the beginning for this family-owned, community-loved institution. As for that success, Rick credits the genuine connections he and his brother have been able to make in Sandpoint.

“I like to think that we’re authentically who we are — that we’re being real and not trying to put on a front,” he said. “Randy and I have both been blessed to make a lot of friends.”

A souper event: SoupTember raises funds for Sandpoint Community Resource Center

Sandpoint Farmers’ Market features a ‘Taste of the Market’

By Reader Staff

By Ben Olson Reader Staff

Since 2016, the Sandpoint Community Resource Center has set aside September to serve up steamy bowls of succulent soup. The aptly named SoupTember event is set to take place Thursday, Sept. 19 from 5-8 p.m. at Farmin Park, where community members are invited to sample soups from their favorite restaurants and vote for their favorites.

Contestants in the Battle for the Golden Ladle this year include Beet and Basil (last year’s champions), Chimney Rock, Dish, Eichardt’s, Jalapenos, Pack River Store, Pend d’Oreille Winery, Skeyes the Limit, Spuds, Tango Cafe, Trinity at City Beach

and Winter Ridge.

Also on offer will be a raffle, auction and live music featuring Browne Salmon Truck. Tickets cost $10 and are available online. All funds raised support Sandpoint Community Resource Center.

Ever strolled through a produce market and wondered how in the heck you prepare some of those more esoteric varieties? Ever wanted to pick a chef’s brain to ask some of their secrets? You’re not alone.

The Sandpoint Farmers’ Market will dedicate its September special event to the “Taste of the Market,” during which guest chef Greg Wyrobek from Baxter’s on Cedar will host two free hour-long cooking demonstration open to the general public.

There will also be tastings for some of Wyrobek’s creations. The event takes place Saturday, Sept. 14, with demonstrations at 11 a.m. and 12 p.m.

“The idea is to show people how to prepare food using simple methods,” said Farmers’ Market Manager Kelli Burt. “Chef Greg will go around the market and buy

vegetables from vendors and show people things they can do at home, but maybe a little different than the ordinary.”

Wyrobek said the first hour of demonstrations will focus on tomatoes.

“We’re right in the middle of the tomato season, so we’ll focus on tomatillos, heirlooms, sauces, vinaigrettes. We’ll cover anything from gazpacho to salsa.”

Wyrobek said the second hour will be dedicated to exotic vegetables.

“This includes how to incorporate different peppers into particular mixes,” Wyrobek said. “I’m going to focus on cold food options, with some desserts with vegetables and different styles of soups using unique vegetables and fruit.”

Since September is when the bulk of vendors’ harvests come in, Burt said it’s also a great time to stock up on fresh produce.

September 12, 2019 / R / 23

MUSIC

Brothers in harps: that a guitarist on a six-string would need to tune to are already at the musician’s fingertips.

“Put simply, the added bass The Tonedevil Brothnotes makes the guitar chords ers — David and Anthony sound so much richer,” David Powell — don’t just play said. “The color it adds to the their instruments. In a lot of guitar is addicting.” cases, they’ve been familiar The Tonedevil Brothers will with their guitar’s wood grain bring the sounds of bluegrass, since it could be seen in the blues, singer-songwriter and tree. They know where each Americana to the Pend d’Oreille and every piece came from Winery on Sept.

14, during the because they’re not only muwinery’s monthly art reception. sicians, they’re craftsmen.

David plays the harp guitar The Powells own and while Anthony accompanies on operate Sandpoint-based mandolin.

Tonedevil Guitars, “pro“We incorporate swing and ducing the most affordable, gypsy jazz also,” David said. hand-crafted, all-solid-wood, USA-made harp guitars” full- “The harp guitar seems to work with those styles very well.” time since 2011, David said.

The September artist reMore and more guitarists ception welcomes the work of are becoming acquainted photographer L. Halcro to the with the harp guitar, which winery walls. features two Tonedevil Brothers at the Pend Halcro’s pieces necks and d’Oreille Winery art reception center on upwards of Saturday, Sept. 14; 5-8 p.m.; FREE. capturing North 18 strings.

301 Cedar St. Ste. No. 101, 208Idaho’s scenery “It’s 265-8545, powine.com. Listen at from her unique been a tonedevilharpguitars.com. perspective, whirlwind,” with a particuDavid said. “So many new lar love for capturing the aurora players are cropping up.”

Harp guitar music is deep- borealis. Her vibrant work has ly layered, as the lower notes been featured in Pend Oreille

By Lyndsie Kiebert Reader Staff

I was a sophomore in high school when Taylor Swift dropped “Red.” The album marked her transition from country sweetheart to a full-on pop star.

As can be expected with any artist, there was pushback. But the rhetoric used against Swift rang with offense.

How dare she try something new? How dare she approach a new musical market? How dare she grow and change and push herself beyond expectations?

The gist of the dismissals: “What a vapid, selfish, money-hungry woman.”

And the punches haven’t seemed to stop coming. The saga since 2012 is far too long for such a short column, but I bring Swift up because she hasn’t backed down.

Those who write Swift off as a superficial diva do so only because they don’t truly know her music. She’s a songwriter above all and, while her lyrical subject matter may not be everyone’s cup of tea, that doesn’t change her craftsmanship.

After her August release “Lover,” one reviewer applauded Swift’s “ability to conjure lyrics that are at once both intensely specific and also universally relatable.” I read that and released an audible sigh of agreement.

I’m far from a Swift scholar, but am well studied in the area of being a young woman who constantly finds herself second-guessed by a world that would never do the same to a man in her position. When women are provocative, knowledgeable and maybe even a little cutthroat, they’re patronized. This isn’t limited to the music industry, but certainly well demonstrated in that realm.

So, while I have your attention and I’m fired up about women taking a stand through music, I have a few must-listen tracks that give women a voice where men threaten to dominate the narrative: • “The Man” by Taylor Swift: A little on the nose for my taste, but audacious nonetheless: “I’m so sick of running as fast as I can / wondering if I’d get there quicker if I was a man.”

• “Slide Away” by Miley Cyrus: When you grow up in the spotlight, it would be easy to shy away when potentially shameful things happen in your life, like a divorce. In true Cyrus fashion, she wrote a powerful song about it instead, and released it ASAP. • “Motion Sickness” by Phoebe Bridgers: Ryan Adams messed with the wrong gal. The line, “I faked it every time, but that’s alright / I hardly feel anything at all” really sums it up.

24 / R / September 12, 2019

Tonedevil Brothers to play Pend d’Oreille Winery art reception Sept. 14

Arts Council’s ArtWalk, as well as in magazines and calendars.

“Really my end goal is to end up with that one shot where someone asks, ‘Wow, what place was that photo taken?’ and the reply would be, ‘Here!’” she said.

Art receptions are held every second Saturday at the Pend d’Oreille Winery.

“The winery intends to continue to support local artists and we welcome varied media, including painting, stained glass, photography, sculpture and encaustic,”

From left to right: Anthony and David Powell play live. Courtesy photo.

said winery co-owner Kylie Presta. “The reception provides a casual and fun space to celebrate the artist, learn about the pieces and enjoy a glass of wine with our artistic community.”

BAND WAGON A snapshot of notable live music coming up in Sandpoint BareGrass, Sept. 13, Evans Brothers Coffee Coming up on 10 years ago, local guitarist Jared Johnston and bassist John Edwards joined forces in what would become BareGrass — the hybrid blues-bluegrass-reggae-jazzcountry band known for its high energy shows. Since then, BareGrass has added Luke Levesque on mandolin, perfecting the Americana sound.

BareGrass headlines the Rock Creek Alliance party and meeting Friday, Sept. 13, where the band will set toes to tapping with their blend of folk, country and bluegrass, laid down with stellar harmonies and meticulous mandolin and guitar work.

Enjoy live music, wine, snacks, Rock Creek Alliance schwag and learn about legal efforts to protect Lake Pend Oreille. Bonus: Hear a presentation on the Ice Age floods from expert Tony Lewis.

— Zach Hagadone 6 p.m., FREE. Evans Brothers Coffee, 534 Church St., 208-2655553, evansbrotherscoffee.com. More info at rockcreekalliance.org and baregrassband.com.

Songwriters Concert w/ Thom & Coley, Sept. 14, Panida Theater

Hit songwriting duo Thom Shephard and Coley McCabe have written a lot of hit songs over the years, including “Redneck Yacht Club,” which made a splash in the early-2000s country music charts. Recently, the duo hit the road to perform their own music, playing together as “Thom & Coley.”

They’ve traveled in a motorhome for three years, inspiring the title track for their latest release, “Shotgun.” Thom & Coley combine old-time country influences with traditional rock, which culminates with a beach-y, carefree vibe that will keep those boots stomping.

— Ben Olson 8 p.m., $15, all ages. Panida Theater, 300 N. First Ave., 208-2639191 or panida.org for tickets. Listen at thomandcoley.com.

MUSIC

The roaring now

Good Co Electro Swing Band brings together ‘sonic history’ at the Heartwood Center

By Lyndsie Kiebert Reader Staff

Most people would place classic swing tunes a good distance from electronic beats on the musical genre spectrum.

Not Carey Rayburn.

The classically trained trumpeter always had a love for vintage jazz music, but also discovered a soft spot for electronica in college. After a friend introduced him to electro swing music coming out of Europe, Rayburn went on to become the of the 1920s is specifically for frontman of the United States’ dancing, drinking and having first live electro swing band: a good time,” Rayburn said.

Good Co. The Seattle-based “That’s why it mixes really well band will play a Mattox Farm with the electronic dance music Productions show Sept. 12 at the of today — because there are Heartwood Center. those same ideals in mind.”

Rayburn Rayburn said argues that the that many see marriage of jazz as the “one old and new true Amerisounds in eleccan art form,” tro swing is acand when you tually a natural Thursday, Sept. 12; doors at 7 p.m., combine that merger thanks music 8-11 p.m.; $12 for adults and heritage with $8 for youth in advance at Evans to similarities the very Ameribetween swing Brothers or Eichardt’s, $15 at the can pop beats of door; 615 Oak St., 208-263-8699, and electrontoday, the result mattoxfarm.com. ica. is what he calls “The music a collision of

Good Co. Electro Swing Band @ The Heartwood

“sonic history.”

“There’s that nostalgia factor,” he said. “You’re hearing sounds you know and have heard, but now in a new way.”

After delving deep into the music coming from the European scene, Rayburn said he started making electro swing of his own.

The first Good Co album was a “passion project,” he said, and came out before he’d established an actual band. The positive response is what prompted Good Co’s eventual formation.

“People would ask, ‘When is the band playing?’” he said. “So I figured I better put together a band.”

The band is currently com-

Members of the Seattle-based Good Co. Electro Swing Band. Courtesy photo.

prised of several revolving members, who Rayburn met while playing in outfits across the Seattle music scene. Since Good Co first started making music in 2012, more bands have entered the market, bringing the roaring ’20s back to life just in time for this century’s ’20s to start.

“It’s pretty unique. People tend to enjoy it,” Rayburn said of the electro swing sound. “If they come out they’ll be happy they did.”

BAND WAGON A snapshot of notable live music coming up in Sandpoint Turn Spit Dogs, Sept. 14, Eichardt’s Pub

Rhythmic Collective, Sept. 14, 219 Lounge

As one of Sandpoint’s newest musical groups, the Turn Spit Dogs have been playing around town more and more often.

Offering what they call “rockin’ blues,” the quartet includes Gary Lawrence on bass and back-up vocals, Ken LaBarbera on lead guitar and vocals, Jeff Stankiewicz on drums and Pam Burns on violin — who, combined, have over a century of musical experience.

Burns said many of the band’s inspirations come from blues masters like Muddy Waters, Leadbelly, Memphis Slim, James Brown, Bo Diddley and more.

—Ben Olson

What’s in a name? With Spokane-based band Rhythmic Collective, plenty. For starters, the band used to be called Down South — the moniker frontman Gil Rivas adopted to play bar shows throughout the Inland Northwest. An alum of the well-known River City Rockers, he and drummer Dave Turner and bassist Jim Elvidge turned out southern rock and Texas blues as Down South until rebranding as Rhythmic Collective.

“The Rhythmic Collective, in its name, is a collection of really good musicians bringing you this fantastic product,” Rivas said, noting that the band can play darn near any genre with a changeable lineup of between three and six members.

— Zach Hagadone

7-10 p.m., FREE, 21+, Eichardt’s Pub, 212 Cedar St., 208-263-4005, EichardtsPub.com.

9 p.m., FREE, 21+. 219 Lounge, 219 N. First Ave., 208-263-5673, 219.bar.

This week’s RLW by Ben Olson

READ

There are not many writers who can carry a story for more than 1,000 pages. Stephen King is one of them. While thumbing through some of King’s work at the Sandpoint Library, I saw a tome called Under the Dome, which tells the tale of a town in Maine that inexplicably found itself, surprise surprise, under a glass dome one day. Sound dumb? It’s actually quite an interesting story about how, when faced with adversity, people are sometimes their own worst enemies.

LISTEN

Have you ever checked out any of the solo work by R a d i o h e a d ’s Thom Yorke?

If not, you’re in for a pleasant surprise. His debut solo album “The Eraser” was released in 2006 and continues to be my favorite of his solo albums. On his own, Yorke utilizes more electronic breakdowns, producing some very intriguing melodies and soundscapes. Also, check out his other project, Atoms for Peace, with Flea from the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

WATCH

Some watch television to numb the burning reality down to a manageable chunk. Others seek something better. The third season of “The Good Place,” in my opinion, appeals to those in the latter category.

Filled with existential and philosophical questions, “The Good Place” is as entertaining as it is inspiring. It isn’t perfect, by any means, but for those seeking TV to rise above the lowest common denominator, it’s worth the time. Watch it on Netflix.

September 12, 2019 / R / 25

LITERATURE

The write stuff

“The whole point is to crank up their writing skills for one thing, and all of them come with a desire to write,” said IWL Sandpoint Chapter President Bonnie McDade.

There’s a myth about writers, silently “Many of them are published authors, some toiling in solitude to turn out a perfect page of them want to become published authors. of prose. There’s truth to it — writing can The toolbox is hopefully showing them how be a lonely business — but no piece of to do the things they want better, and part of good work ever makes its way from incepit is just rubbing shoulders with people who tion to publication without passing under at are getting it done. Because that’s one of the least one other set of eyes. biggest bugaboos: Just getting it done.”

Getting writers together to hone their Keynote speakers include Port craft is a crucial component in their success, Townsend, Wash.-based writing teacher and and that’s the purpose of the annual Idaho author of urban fantasy and young adult adWriter’s League conference, this year taking venture Mary Buckham, along with regional place in Sandpoint from Thursday, Sept. award-winning author and 19-Saturday, Sept. 21.

Idaho Writer’s League naturalist Jack Nisbet.

Regardless of their Buckham will lead two experience, wordsmiths Conference two-hour workshops fofrom across the state will cused on pacing and develThursday, Sept. 19-Saturday, converge on the Best oping active settings. She Sept. 21; all day; $50-$180. Best Western Edgewater Inn Western Edgewater Inn and Resort, is also donating her time and Resort for workshops 56 Bridge St., 208-263-3194, and professional editing and sessions engineered bestwesternedgewater.com. For skills to provide authors to help sharpen their prose more registration and more info, with 20-minute feedback and their business savvy. visit sandpointwritersleague.com. and critique sessions on

By Zach Hagadone Reader Staff

From Northern Idaho News, Sept. 21, 1926

MISSING BOOZE CAR UNLOADS County officers received a call last night about 6 o’clock from Sheriff Harvey Washburn of Bonners Ferry who stated that a booze car had gotten away from them and was headed this way.

All the roads north of Sandpoint were watched closely during the evening, but the alleged booze car was not discovered. Officers are of the opinion that the driver decided not to risk coming through and his out until a more opportune time.

Sheriff Amblie, Deputy Sheriff M.A. MacKay and Deputy Sheriff W.A. Phalon responded to the call and took a position where they thought the booze car would pass, sounding Traffic Officer Gus Stone ahead to stop the car. However, the officers were unable to find the car. They did stop one car containing a prominent automobile man and a prominent merchant of the city and told them they were looking for a car of booze being driven through by Jack Jones.

Not having any success at apprehending the carload of booze the officers returned to Sandpoint and to their downy couches to enjoy a peaceful night of well-earned repose.

Shortly before midnight there came a call to the sheriff’s office that there was a fight in progress at the Del Rey hotel and one woman had been badly beaten up and another one not quite so badly. Sheriff Amblie answered the call.

26 / R / September 12, 2019

2019 Idaho Writer’s League conference comes to Sandpoint their 20-page — or less — manuscripts.

Nisbet, who speaks at the Friday luncheon, will delve into the nuts and bolts of memoir writing and personal essays in another twohour workshop.

More than a dozen published authors will also offer workshops on topics including character development, the use of humor, keeping energy in your plot, how to conduct research, editing tips and more. In addition, attendees can take advantage of a 24-hour writing room, where authors are invited to sit, talk and work.

“The spirit is going to grab you at some point during this conference,” McDade said, adding that the other big takeaway of the conference is simply the act of sharing work and receiving input from others.

“Critique is a gift,” she said. “Some people don’t look at it that way, they see it as criticism and it’s not that. You don’t internalize it; you don’t turn it around. I think it’s really valuable if you know how to listen.”

Crossword Solution

When you go ice skating, try not to swing your arms too much, because that annoys me.

Copyright www.mirroreyes.com

CROSSWORD ACROSS

Woorf tdhe Week

beadledom /BEED-l-duhm]/ [noun] 1. a gratuitous or officious display or exercise of authority, as by petty officials.

“These people are just using you as a cat’s paw, man!”

Corrections: Nothing to see here, folks. Move along, move along. -BO

1. Frequently 6. Whole 11. Short-billed Old World rail 12. Perform surgery on 15. Coastal diving bird 16. Copied 17. Before, poetically 18. Cassock 20. Regulation (abbrev.)

21. Purges 23. Location 24. Compassion 25. Be cognizant of 26. Italian for “Wine” 27. Sea eagle 28. Identical 29. Half of a pair 7. Express a thought 54. Blood vessel 30. Drive 8. French for “Head” 56. Reasonable 31. Moves to another country 57. Nipples 9. Genus of macaws 34. Speedy 58. Oxygen and helium, 10. Public toilet 36. “___ Maria” 13. Move unsteadily for example 37. Petty quarrel 14. Jittery 59. Feel 41. Matured 15. Tugs 42. Break 16. Like an itinerant 43. If not DOWN 19. Utilizing 44. Always 1. Egg-shaped instrument 22. Cleaning device 45. Does something 2. Liberty 24. Irons 46. Exhausts 3. Children’s game 26. Cancel 47. Be unwell 4. Anagram of “Seek” 27. French for 48. Extolled 5. Infamous Roman “Summer” 51. Mesh emperor 30. Stair 52. In a condescending 6. Chief ingredient 32. Central manner in ketchup 33. Nautical for stop

Solution on page 26 34. Gorge 35. Everlasting 38. Venus and the Earth 39. Bad-mouth 40. Cantankerous 42. Balances 44. Where the sun rises 45. Axial 48. Wanes 49. Dines 50. To endure (archaic) 53. Bleat 55. Buff

September 12, 2019 / R / 27

e�f!.'k?��

���--..,

CELEBRATINC

'"' ,�

-.,-dAISOl!OIIIIUJIQE«iur111r

PETTINCJ.00

lli'Ft�'\fLES

tllDSCttAfTS F�El\!f FLE Pf\tZES

SATURDAY_ SEPT. 11f. 2010 1 to 6 p.m. @ Harbison Field

Behind the Hoot Owl Restaurant on Hwy 200 (parking off Emerald Industrial Drive)

PlFCU

stctl

--

1 �oa-•s..s>1e ,,.

....�,..s.tvlc:,e ACE ti TAAFFICORP ,.,.,,-...,i..r•-·,-­

For more information, go to

www.CityofPonderay.org/ponderay·neighbor·day-2019 With additional suppon from local businesses.