News you can use
News you can use
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It is time to end Montana’s “don’t ask-don’t tell” groundwater development policy. Broadwater County’s controversial Horse Creek Hills — HCH — major subdivision proposal is a prime example of a developer asserting their “right” to subdivide and develop with no regard to impacts on senior water rights or local water resources. The method employed at HCH (and many other projects) is well known: break the subdivision into phases and limit the size per lot to squeeze each “phase” underneath the 10 acre-foot exception. It...
A new year brings with it new hope for a new beginning. As the ancient saying goes, the old has died that the new may be tried. And so we celebrate the happy holiday time in the spirit that the year to come will bring more peace, good will, and good faith. The outbreak of modern war in Europe will only end with the resolve or the existence of Putin, the war’s perpetrator. Our devout expectation is that more rational world leaders will contain the spread of this conflict. Here in the traditionally peaceful and protected p...
I don’t mean to sound overly dramatic, but I think I may have proven the existence of God while I was at a church Monday. I know, no one can be more shocked than I am that this happened on a Monday. Just kidding, there’s nothing wrong with a Monday. I often have to live through as many as three Mondays in one week. No, the real shocker was me in a church. Not that there’s anything wrong with a church, it’s just not my natural habitat. Also of note, people find God in churche...
The 90-day marathon of issues and opportunities that will be the 2023 legislative session begins in two weeks. On the unique opportunity front, the excess federal stimulus dollars from D.C. fueled a large one- time surplus of state funds. I advocate treating these funds as a Montana business or homeowner would: 1) First, pay off expensive debt, 2) put some money away for a rainy day, 3) invest in key infrastructure for the future (roads, water, sewer, mental health facilities, nursing homes, schools …) and, 4) return some t...
Your recently elected state representatives and senators are busy writing a new set of laws for you, our voters. December is a critical time to draft new bills and workshop policy, as we have less than two months between Election Day and Jan. 2, the start of the 2023 Legislative Session. This is the time to turn the concerns and ideas we heard on voters’ porches into bills that meet the needs of our communities. What bills has your legislator requested and what work are they preparing to do on your behalf? Are they f...
Christmas is a-coming soon and although there are only five couples and me in residence at the Rancho at present, plans are afoot and afloat for communal gatherings. Me, I’m trying to respectfully decline invitations while ignoring judgmental comments without cringing. I cringe. We all would prefer our friends to understand us, right, to support us unconditionally, right? Back-story first. When the COVID pandemic hit, most of us here masked, bought disinfectants and hand sanit...
I put my feet on the floor, first thing in the morning, and take a look at them. They are not the most attractive feet, that’s just a fact. I have big feet and skinny ankles and it doesn’t take a lot of imagination to see how much they resemble duck feet, but I try not to dwell on it. The point is, they are good, stable feet. They don’t hurt and they carry me on my daily walk, and I am grateful to have them — even if they are a little bigger and less attractive than they mi...
This whole idea started out lighthearted, but then it got all data-driven and serious. Leave it to the science nerds to research the life out of the fun. I had a thought about pronouns that made me laugh, y’know, on the inside. But the more I thought about it, the more I laughed until I actually laughed out loud. You’ve been there right? If not, you really need to reassess your approach to life. No doubt, a bunch of you are yawning and eye rolling, checking your wrist lik...
The campaign is over, the yard signs are down, the votes have been counted and it’s now time to get to work. I want to thank the residents of House District 28 for the confidence you have placed in me to serve your interests in the Montana Legislature. While we may not always agree on specific policy considerations, I know we do agree that Havre and northern Montana deserve a fair shot in Helena when it comes to promoting an economy that works for everyone, assuring public access to public lands, rehabilitating our aging i...
As elected officials, we are responsible for delivering for all our constituents, whether from blue or red districts. Today, Montanans in every county face real challenges, including increased cost of living and being priced out of the communities they’ve called home. In the past year, Democrats knocked on 270,000 doors. We heard about skyrocketing rent costs causing the loss of once-stable housing, moving in with relatives, or even living out of a car. People told us of having to use a food bank for the first time to feed t...
I own a revered and older washing machine. A washing machine is possibly the most wonderful tool ever created by man for the use of women. I never did like lugging laundry down to the river to pound it on rocks and dry it slung over prickly berry bushes. I highly recommend men learn to use a washing machine also. My washing machine is ancient. It was old when I bought it. I live in Mexico. When something breaks down, somebody will be able to fix it. That’s what we do here. T...
Nearly everyone who runs for federal office campaigns on the notion that Washington is broken. Year after year that message continues to resonate with the American people. Americans work hard to provide for their families, but the cost of living continues to climb along with tax rates. They’re watching millions of people invade our borders, and they feel unsafe in their communities. They’re frustrated that politicians in Washington are getting nothing done to address these issues. We need a drastic change in Washington — t...
The fruit lady has my number. One of the things I like in Mexico — and other countries we have visited in the past — is buying fruits and vegetables from a stand, run by a family. I love wandering through the market, looking at all the unfamiliar things and asking questions. “Is this for today or for tomorrow?” I ask in Spanish, wondering if it is ripe enough to eat immediately. The fruit vendors know when something is ripe. I load up my bags with papaya and little sweet b...
The rollout of a proposal by one of North America’s biggest ski developers to triple the size of Holland Lake Lodge and bring industrial tourism and commercial recreation to the rural, wildlife-rich Swan Valley in western Montana was a complete and utter disaster. After two months of vehement public opposition, the expansion proposal by POWDR, the Utah-based ski developer that promotes “soulful” experiences through high-impact recreation, fell to earth in flames — like the 1937 Hindenburg dirigible disaster in New Jersey....
Now that I have a backsplash behind my stove and I’m not spending my time obsessively wiping grease splatters from my freshly painted wall as if I like to clean, I can think about things other than my own chaos, like bees. Yes, bees. Honeybees, in fact. I know. It’s exactly zero degrees out as I write this and who thinks of bees at this time of year in the northern tier of the U.S.? Beekeepers, that’s who, and a few cops in Massachusetts, but I’ve gotten ahead of myself...
The other day I said, “I was worried that Jane (nearly 95 and frail) might not hold up during your special dinner at the restaurant.” Immediately I was scolded, “No, no, no. Don’t say that. That is a negative thought. We don’t need negative thoughts. That is bad.” Whoa on me. I was taken aback. And I felt uncomfortable. I hadn’t meant that I was immersed in worry, sending sure death pulsing into the Universe. I’d had a fleeting thought, perhaps improperly expressed, that my fr...
It’s an odd experience watching someone fold your underwear. I was thinking this yesterday as I was waiting for my laundry. When my husband, Peter, and I packed to go to Mexico, we knew there would be a wide range of temperatures. San Miguel de Allende is in the mountains, so the days can be quite hot, and the nights can be cold, and the weather changes a lot in November everywhere, so we had to be prepared for anything. We do not have a washing machine in the little place we...
I didn’t even know that cat pheromone diffusers existed. Really, who thinks of making an electricity driven device that dispenses feline happy-pheromones, so how was I supposed to know that I should have one for my cat, Tony-O. I mean, it sounds like something Hollywood made up to solve a problem in a movie or TV series. Like, they really like the stressed-cat backstory, but in the scene before the pivotal scene for the main character they need the cat bit to fade from focus s...
I remember the Thanksgiving when Ben first brought his girlfriend, Shea, to dinner. We had the traditional meal, turkey nicely browned, all the side dishes. I asked everyone to share some one thing they felt especially thankful for that day. Years later my daughter-in-law, Shea, told me how my request had terrified her. None of her family talked about gratitude. Poor Shea. On top of being scared to share something personal, she had been scared to meet me. My children! Both of...
My husband, Peter, and I feel like social butterflies. We certainly are not. But it feels as if we are because we are staying in a new city and finding it is easier to make new friends than any time since we were children. When Peter and I moved back to Minnesota to be closer to our family, we missed our old routines and the friends we used to spend time with. Moving to a new city did not bring with it a lot of new friends. Everyone already had friends. Peter and I saw a lot...
As our district and our community pay tribute to Craig Mueller Saturday, I would like to take this opportunity to say thank you, something I wish I could have said more often. Craig was an incredible ambassador for Havre Public Schools, and as someone who has coached in the district for 20-plus years now, I couldn’t be more appreciative for the way he worked diligently to help make HPS and everything within our system what it is today. I got to know Craig first as a principal...
Turns out, change can be like fertilizer for the brain. I was in a rut. Then I moved into a home that’s very much under construction, and now life is a struggle to achieve an average, everyday level of existence. The drama from last week continues, but we’re better fed. The biggest update on our move into the home construction zone is that we now have a stove. I know it’s rude to brag, but I just have to gush about the fact that the stove has an oven, too. We’re trying to stay grounded, cook simple foods that the common...
Michelle, knowing me to be, shall we say, frugal, loaned me a copy of a reprinted book entitled “The American Frugal Housewife.” The book, written by Lydia Child, was first published in 1833. Dedicated to Those Who Are Not Ashamed of Economy. In caps. Mrs. Child wrote the lyrics, but was not well known, but wrote a song for children, “Over the river and through the woods, to Grandmother’s house we go.” Anyone my generation knows that song. I’m sure you youngsters can find it o...
Dear editor, Last month, at a constituent town hall, Sen. Jon Tester stood up for patients not just in Montana, but across the country. He said pharmacy benefit managers — PBMs — have been preying on our pharmacies and Medicare patients for years, and he cannot identify any real value that they bring to the health care space. I appreciate that our senator is being so vocal about this issue because I couldn’t agree more. For the last serval years, PBMs and their sneaky practices have gone under the radar. For far too long...
Firstly, I want to take a moment to recognize our veterans. Many Montanans, including myself, have served in a branch of our military. I am proud to be a veteran and thankful to every single one of you who have kept our country safe through your sacrifice, combat duty, and dedication to protecting our country and our freedom. Well, the 2022 election is over. I want to thank everyone for the great support in this past general election, with a special thanks to folks who allowed a campaign sign on their property. The wind did...
