The Blackfoot Valley's News Source Since 1980
The Blackfoot Valley's News Source Since 1980
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That summer that I was ten - Can it be only one summer that I was ten? May Swenson – The Centaur [1958] We all say that as we age, time seems to pass more quickly. There exists in the human sciences a name for that phenomenon. It's called the just noticeable difference, and it extends to all of our senses. The jnd, as it's called in the jargon, can be quantified and calculated empirically. The crux of the principle is: the larger the original stimulus, the larger the i...
It looks like the ghost of winter past has decided to visit. We knew that we would have to plow, shovel and drive through a bit of snow before winter was out! If we wanted to complain about the heat we would have all migrated south for the winter, right? The beauty of the snow-capped mountains is wonderful. The sunshine on the ice crystals that form on the trees and shrubs is amazing. Hearing the laughter of my granddaughter playing in the snow is a joy. Yes there is a lot of...
Dear Readers, Chances are many of you who are reading this are taking some type of herbal supplement. Be it ginseng for better energy, saw palmetto for prostate health, or echinacea to boost the immune system, many are turning to natural remedies for their health. It is important to realize that just because something is natural, does not mean it is good for you. Many herbal supplements interact with other medications, so it is important to talk to your health care provider...
Some of the first towns in Montana were Virginia City, Helena and Ft. Benton. In the 1860's these small collections of huts, founded on natural resource extraction or river boat trade to support the gold fields, grew quickly. They evolved from settlements into camps and from camps into towns. The towns all had the same things in common in the early days: saloons, banks, doctors, newspapers, churches, law enforcement and schools. What makes a town? Real communities are not...
Anyone who’s grown up in a small town knows that entertainment is what you make of it. A quick perusal of the grass-roots histories of villages such as ours will reveal that most such communities boast an extensive history of shenanigans, pranks and practical jokes – many employing an astounding amount of creative genius and some ending in hilarity, others in fist-fight, triage or jail time - reaching back to the days of the pioneers and prospector. Before you or I were born, when the children rode to school on hor...
Tis not the meat, but 'tis the appetite Makes eating a delight. Of Thee, Kind Boy John Suckling 1609 - 1642 The haying crews were large during the years that the ranches put up loose hay. A normal team was eleven men on most places – some had more, others fewer. Many of the hired men came from Butte to escape the bad air of the mines for a couple months; some lived in towns nearby, and others had no homes that we knew of. I think a good number were hiding from abandoned famili...
Travel to a New City Air Fare – Free Food and drinks – Free Luxurious accommodations – Free Destination: New Jerusalem No shoveling snow, no staying in out of the weather, no pollution, no rust, no decay, no thieves, no crime, no fear, no tears. Perfect in every way Time at Destination: Eternal For TRAVEL Restrictions go to the church of your choice and ask for details. All expenses paid by one man who died on the cross. P.S. People everywhere are dying to get to the New City Mike Mullens, Lincoln...
Dear Dietitian, I am trying to lose weight, so I often skip breakfast. My husband insists that this is not good for me and actually works against my efforts to lose weight. What do you say? Shirley Dear Shirley, We have always heard, "Breakfast is the most important meal of the day." However, recent studies have challenged this age-old standard. Some studies have found that people who skip breakfast do not overcompensate for this and overeat later in the day. Other studies sho...
To the Editor, Every now and then you read a letter in the BVD about an outstanding person in Lincoln! This letter is about someone we all know. Her name is Teresa Sutton and she has touched each and everyone of our lives. Working at the Post Office, Teresa is often the first person that people will meet when they move to Lincoln. She is a welcoming ambassador for our town. She supplies them with a PO box and a wealth of information about our town! Teresa is warm hearted,...
Today many people are out returning gifts or shopping for bargains. The day after Christmas can be great for saving money, but the trade-off is that you must once again and go out and deal with the crowds and traffic. It is a choice that one must make. As 2018 winds down each of us should look back and honestly evaluate how well we did in making decisions this year. Some were simple, should I cut the grass or go for a hike? Others may have been do I take another three rounds o...
How can I express my opinion without starting a feud? Words matter, and they should be written and read carefully. I'm sorry Richard Debick did not understand my words in responding to Dave Carroll's Mountain Musings, so I will clarify here. Of course Mr. Carroll has a right to his opinions. I never said he did not, and I never said mine were more important than his. You missed the point, sir, and I have dozens of emails, notes, phone calls and folks grabbing me at the market...
It seems to take a while after sunrise now for birds to gather at the bird feeder by the kitchen window. On winter mornings like those recently, when the temperature struggled to rise much above zero, the chickadees, house finches, and English house sparrows didn't show up until half an hour after sunrise. I don't blame them; winter mornings are meant for sleeping in. All animals that spend at least part of their lives in Montana, inside those man-made boundaries we call...
Agricultural techniques, like all other facets of life, have progressed over time. With cattle and other agrarian businesses, the cultures themselves have changed. I'm old enough to remember when a large percentage of the labor on our ranch and others was dedicated to subsistence, rather than productivity and profit as it is now. Almost every ranch kept a bunch of chickens for eggs and meat, and most maintained a herd of sheep – selling the wool for profit and using the a...
I don’t know about you, but my favorite thing about the holidays is the food. It’s something of an understatement to say that I like to eat. In fact, I would say a good portion of my life revolves around food – deciding what to eat, purchasing food, preparing food, planning my next food-centric excursion…you get the picture. Picky eaters are one of my biggest pet peeves – especially adult picky eaters. Granted we all have the odd thing we just can’t stomach (mine is mushrooms), but if you’re a thirty-five-y...
Editor's Note: This is the second part of a column celebrating 'This is Montana,' a University of Montana program delivered to an estimated 80-plus high schools and newspapers. Enjoy! Although Montana's history may be young, it certainly is deep, and much of its evidence is written on the land. Knowing that an old trail – the Mullan Wagon Road – followed the Clark Fork River, explains scars along a bench or hillside and the disappearing pieces of a cribbage that supported a b...
Dear Readers, The holiday season is upon us, times of glad tidings, holiday parties, and family gatherings. When we gather to celebrate, there is often food available that we don’t normally eat. It’s great food, and why not partake, it’s the holidays; we’re supposed to eat more. If you are one of the lucky ones who can eat through the holidays, not gain a pound, and then get back into your healthy routine come January 2nd, my hat is off to you. For some of us, it’s just not...
As former House Speakers and Senate Presidents of the Montana Legislature, we question the wisdom of making significant changes to the rules of operation in the Montana House. Currently, there is a group of legislators trying to change the House rules. One of the proposed changes would allow a simple majority (51 members) to “blast” a bill out of committee and on to the House floor. Their logic is that the Montana Senate operates under simple majority rules so the House should follow suit. The House has twice as many members...
In the days of loose hay, when the cattle were fed by hand, Christmas meant two days of extra work. - the day before and the day after. In order to lessen the time spent with the cows on Christmas morning, most ranchers spread the next day's hay in an adjacent meadow, then closed the gate. That meant feeding twice, a process that took all day. If things went correctly, all the rancher had to do on Christmas morning was open the gates and let the cattle onto the hay that was... Full story
Editor's Note: In September 2013, University of Montana geography faculty member Rick Graetz and Kayde Kaiser, a geography graduate student, launched the "This Is Montana" program as an outreach effort that is delivered to an estimated 80-plus high schools and newspapers. Articles penned by UM faculty and others cover numerous Montana-oriented subjects, ranging from a series on the Missouri River to a discussion on the six-mill levy. Every few weeks, the stories and...
Our Senators voted recently on whether active duty service members and their spouses deserve to have laws enforced that defend them from illegally high cost loans. They voted on whether senior citizens deserve a protector who will clamp down on scams. They voted on whether students deserve protection from abuses by debt collectors. They voted on whether First Nations people deserve to be protected from discrimination that leaves them without credit or with higher interest...
I guess what Liz Cain was saying in an article several weeks ago was that her opinions are all important and Dave Carroll's are not. She even went so far as to criticize him and imply that a minister should not have any right to say the things he did. It seems to me that in the few previous elections that Liz Cain was involved in the people did not think much of her opinions as she was not elected., Has she not noticed that unemployment is down, social security recipients are...
Several weeks ago I saw a little geek standing on a street corner with a sign that said "NRA, NRA how many children have you killed today?" CNN evidently picked up on this and had him on TV. I go back to the year 1935 – I quote Adolph Hitler: "This year will go down in history. For the first time, a civilized nation has full gun registration. Our streets will be safer, our police more efficient, and the world will follow our lead into the future". Between the years of 1935 t...
Dear Dietitian, I have been eating healthier and drinking more water. I've heard that we need 8 glasses of water a day, but I don't enjoy plain water, and I have a hard time getting that much in. Do you have any suggestions? Signed, Laura Dear Laura, Good for you for your health change! The answer to how much water we need each day is not exact because it varies according to age, weight, and activity level. The good news is there is more than one way to meet your fluid needs....
Since we are now officially in the second week of December, I imagine that most of us are frantically and stressfully getting ready for a birthday party. I know that may sound like a strange way to say “getting ready for Christmas”, but that is what it is. Of course December 25th is not the real birthday of Jesus, but it is the day people chose to commemorate the entrance of the Eternal One in to this world we live in. The affluence of our society has turned a very Holy and special celebration in to a reckless debacle of deb...
A belated thank you to Michael Stansberry and his crew for cutting the big dead trees on Flesher Pass before someone was injured or killed - working on those step rocky slopes had to be challenging! Now my neighbors won’t be able to refer to driving over the pass as “running the gauntlet”! Mike Grimes Lincoln...