Riverjournal november 2013

Because there’s more to life than bad news

November 2013| FREE | www.RiverJournal.com

A News MAGAZINE Worth Wading Through

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

WARREN ISLAND PARADISE $985,000If you want the ultimate in privacy consider an island home on this property. Enjoy the existing improvements which include a summer cabin, well house and storage building, drilled water well, community sewer system, electricity, and a private boat basin all on 4 acres with 348 feet of water frontage. Or plan and build your own dream home or vacation getaway.

https://sites.google.com/site/wahsumkaisland/home

208-946-3042

Need reliable, high-speed Internet service? Call for a free

site survey today! Intermax serves many areas of Bonner County from Dover to Hope as well as locations throughout

Kootenai County.

208.762.8065 in Coeur d’Alene •

208.265.3533 in Sandpoint

www.IntermaxNetworks.com

Internet.... Everywhere

Winter’s ComingThere’s no time left to rest on your laurels

208-263-0582 • www.MountainStove.com

1225 Michigan St., Sandpoint, IdahoTues-Fri 9 to 5, Sat. 9 to 3 or 4

Stoves • Fireplaces • Spas and Saunas Specialty BBQs • Closeout Specials

WARREN ISLAND PARADISE $985,000If you want the ultimate in privacy consider an island home on this property. Enjoy the existing improvements which include a summer cabin, well house and storage building, drilled water well, community sewer system, electricity, and a private boat basin all on 4 acres with 348 feet of water frontage. Or plan and build your own dream home or vacation getaway.

https://sites.google.com/site/wahsumkaisland/home

208-946-3042

BILL JONES DISTRIBUTORS, INC.

Proudly serving North Idaho Since 1951

208.263.5912

The Travel Connection, Ltd.Land, Sea or Air, We Get You There

New Location across from Farmin ParkSuzanne Wakefield, Travel Consultant/Owner • Proudly

serving the Sandpoint area since 1990231 N. Third Ste. 103 • [email protected]

301 N. First, Sandpoint • 263.3622 210 Sherman, CDA • 765.4349www.FinanMcDonald.com

Quality and Affordable Auto Repair and

Maintenance265-8881

D & Z Auto

Chris Gottwald323 McGhee Road Ste 105

Sandpoint

All SeasonsGarden and Floral

31831 Hwy 200 SandpointOpen Daily Monday-Saturday 9 to 5

Closed Sundays • 208.265.2944

USE THIS COUPON FOR $5 OFF YOUR PURCHASE

OF $50 OR MORE

Local & International FairTrade Artists Stunning New Birdbaths! Naturallly Elegant HandMade Wreaths,

garland & centerpieces Garden Decor, Plants, & Hand

Tools

WE CAN DELIVER NATIONWIDE!Just call 208-265-2944

In this season of thankfulness, we give thanks for you!

COME HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS!

$150

Prizes will be awarded to the Best Decorated Table and Booth in each of the following categories. * Most Festive * Most Informational * Best Overall

In 2013, display your creative talent and/or products at the 8th Annual Christmas Fair. In 2009, we extended the vendor space into the South Wing with over 100 vendors.

SCHEDULE:

5:00 p.m. -8:00 p.m. Set-up for vendors, 12/6/2013 7:00 a.m. -8:30 a.m. Set-up for vendors, 12/7/2013 9:00 a.m. -4:00 p.m. Christmas Fair Open for Shoppers 4:00 p.m. -6:00 p.m. Break down, settle commission, and receipts presented

2013 Christmas Fair Date: December 7, 2013

Where: Bonner County Fairgrounds Time: 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

SIGN UP FORM

Name: __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Company Name: _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Product (s): ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Address: ______________________________________________ City: _____________________________________ Zip: ________________________ Phone: ______________________________ Email: ___________________________________________________________________________________ Please Reserve Quantity Total Method of Payment

30 X 60 Table Space $9.00 ______ ______ Cash __________ 8 X 8 Booth Space $18.00 ______ ______ Check # __________ Rental Table -$4.00 each (limited) ______ ______

Electricity - $1.00 fee ______ ______

To reserve space, payment is required, no later than November 26th, 2013. If you have need of more than one space (table or booth) you must reserve and pay for additional space (s). Commis-sion is 10% of all your sales and must be paid at end of event in fair office. Tax forms are available at fair office. Please note we do not supply tables, you must bring your own or rent one (limited number of Tables are available to rent). The Fairboard reserves the right to; products or vendors removed due to inappropriate or unsafe products, items, and/or inappropriate behavior. No food vendors, Some food items may be approved if follows Panhandle Health Regulations and approval of Fairboard.

NO REFUNDS ON CANCELLATIONS! For questions call Michelle Marks (208) 304-2305

Mail Application Forms and payments to: Bonner County Fair, PO Box 47, Ponderay, ID 83852

Office use only: Date received _______ Amount __________

December 7 • 9 am to 4 pm Bonner County Fairgrounds

Experienced Crafters or Inspired by Pinterest - Sign up Today!Display your creative talent and/or

products with a vendor table ($9)

or an 8x8 booth

($18) plus 10%

commission. To

reserve your space,

registration and

payment must

be received no

later than Nov. 26.

Registration forms

are online (http://

bit.ly/1cF8FBb) or

stop by our office

at the Fairgrounds.

• Fair open 9 am to 4 pm• FREE Admission• FREE Parking• Food• Live entertainment

This annual event provides a great opportunity to do your holiday shopping

under one roof, featuring unique gift items from local

craftspeople and artisans.

• Visit with Santa from noon -2 pm

Vendors: Prizes will be awarded to the Best Decorated Table and Booth in these categories: Most Festive, Most Informational, and Best Overall

4. OBAMACARE: BEYOND THE HYPE Don’t believe everything you’re hearing; there may be surprises in store. ANGELA OAKES

7. TREASURED LANDSCAPE The Cabinet Mountain’s Lightning Creek drainage keeps getting better and better

8. TRESPASS AND ROAD HUNTING Matt suggests that good hunting involves not being a scrote (to steal a phrase from JJ Scott) THE GAME TRAIL

9. CASSIN’S FINCH A nondescript, yet compelling bird visiting your feeder soon. A BIRD IN HAND

10. CALENDAR Check out what’s going on in downtown Sandpoint

11. GROWING KNOWLEDGE: WHAT YOU DON’T KNOW CAN HURT YOU As our neighbors in Washington consider labeling for GMOs, the question arises: should you be able to know what’s in your food? GET GROWING.

12. BUDGET REQUESTS INCREASE Income is looking good for Idaho’s legislature, but agencies say they need more dollars in years to come.. A SEAT IN THE HOUSE

13. THINGS THAT GO BUMP Ernie got new neighbors and now the nights are interesting. THE HAWK’S NEST

14. ACCIDENTAL VEGAN? Raising backyard chickens is full of surprises not included in any How-To book. POLITICALLY INCORRECT

15. MEA CULPA: BIGFOOT ET. AL. Jody goes all Latin on us after the latest news on the crypto front. SURREALIST RESEARCH BUREAU

16. VETS GET SEQUESTERED The government shutdown had negative effects for veterans. VETERANS NEWS

17. GOD OR SCIENCE IS NO CHOICE Sandy confesses he may never know - and tha’ts perfectly all right with him. THE SCENIC ROUTE

18. VOLUNTEERING Gary’s Faith Walk is taking him down some interesting - and giving - pathways. GARY’S FAITH WALK.

18. OBITUARIES

20. GOT TAT TOO? Scott looks to the future of skin art. SCOTT CLAWSON

A News Magazine Worth Wading Through

~just going with the flow~P.O. Box 151•Clark Fork, ID

83811www.RiverJournal.com•208.255.6957

STAFFCalm Center of Tranquility

Trish [email protected]

Ministry of Truth and Propaganda

Jody [email protected]

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not

an act, but a habit.” AristotleProudly printed at Griffin

Publishing in Spokane, Wash. 509.534.3625

Contents of the River Journal are copyright 2013. Reproduction of any material, including original artwork and advertising, is prohibited. The River Journal is published the first week of each month and is distributed in over 16 communities in Sanders County, Montana, and Bonner, Boundary and Kootenai counties in Idaho.

The River Journal is printed on 40 percent recycled paper with soy-based ink. We appreciate your efforts to recycle.

THE RIVER JOURNAL

Cover photo: A poultry photobomb. Nefertiti looks less than approving of David’s water repairs. by Trish Gannon

2013917

November 2013| The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol. 22 No. 11| Page �

by Angela OakesAffordable Care Act. Let’s agree that

the national media makes news with sound bites. But sound bites are often out of context and therefore incomplete. Let’s also agree the national media takes sides, and therefore their presentation of the facts may lean in a particular direction. My hope, as an Affordable Care Act and CMS certified and accredited broker, is to present an unbiased view of the facts, as they relate to Idaho.

As Mitt Romney expressed in USA Today, it is desirable for states to design their own health care plans, rather than default to a federal plan. Idaho is among the 19 states that established a State Exchange. Idaho’s supporting state representative and senators took a lot of heat for their decision to pass legislation to create a State Exchange.

Yet in the State Exchange, we have

the same key insurers (BridgeSpan is a sister company of Regence) who have always been in the state, who know our demographic characteristics and medical services, and who are offering an abundance of plan designs: 61 individual plans and another 55 small group plans, to be exact, statewide. Here are the website links for information about plans available in North Idaho:

Blue Cross of Idaho: http://shoppers.bcidaho.comBridgeSpan Health Company: www.bridgespanhealth.com/web/bridgespan_individual_id/plans/PacificSource Health Plans: http://pacificsource.com/find-an-individual-plan/Delta Dental of Idaho: http://go.deltadentalid.com/healthexchange/plans.aspx

Thirty-one states chose to default to a federal partnership to run their exchanges. The average number of plans is 53. Of such partnerships, Alabama will have the fewest plans at 7; West Virginia and New Hampshire are next with only 12 plan choices. When you hear negative reports on the news, it is usually referencing a federal plan state.

Another hot potato is the incessant rumor that the Affordable Care Act directly funds abortion. Abortion coverage was a sticking point during the fight to pass the Affordable Care Act, and continues to stoke controversy three years later. By law, each state has the option of providing insurance plans that offer abortion coverage in their marketplaces, and must also offer at least one plan that doesn’t cover abortion services. No one is forced to choose a plan that includes abortion coverage.

Because Idaho has its own Exchange, elective abortion coverage is not included in any of the individual or small group products, inside or outside the Exchange, for Pacific Source, Bridgespan or Regence. Blue Cross states coverage is provided, “if it is a recommendation of one consulting physician that an abortion is necessary to save the life of the mother, or if the pregnancy is a result of rape as defined by Idaho law, or incest as determined by the court.” The Morning After Pill, RU486, is not a covered drug under the Women’s

•

•

•

•

Preventive Health Care expansion which took effect in August 2012, nor will it be in January 2014.

The federal government will not fund abortion under the health law. Obamacare stipulates that the insurers offering abortion coverage on the marketplaces must separate out federal money so it doesn’t go toward that type of reproductive care.

Adding fuel to the fire of controversy are grant dollars awarded to Planned Parenthood affiliates in Iowa, Montana, New Hampshire, and Washington, DC. Rumors abound that the funds might go toward abortion services. The grant dollars are accountable and intended to fund In-Person Assisters or Navigators. These assisters and navigators are to help people enroll in new, more affordable insurance plans. The intent of the grant award is to target and enroll a segment of the population that especially needs to secure coverage for preventive care, maternity care, and emergency care.

Another persistent rumor is that young people will pay more and that it is unfair, especially since they are healthy. Premiums between $89 to $223 per month for young adults up to age 30 seem fair to me. Mind you, this is before the premium tax credit, for which they often qualify. Such tax credits can reduce the annual cost to $300 or less!

True, young adults may be statistically healthier, but insurance is about injuries and accidents as well. My observation is that young adults tend to engage in fairly risky behaviors, whether texting and driving, riding bikes without helmets, speeding, or extreme sports. Wait a minute, that sounds like a lot of adults, too! Can we agree just because someone is healthy it doesn’t mean they are immune to accidents and serious injuries? I venture to say a younger person would be inclined to choose more medical care if faced with serious injury because they have so much life left to live. They want to do everything possible to restore their wellbeing and lifestyle.

Those who say they can’t afford insurance should definitely look into the tax credits before they believe it. I believe there is a possibility insurance appears unaffordable, but for many it is only

ObamaCare: Beyond the HypeYou Might be Surprised by the Realities of the ACA

Eugene Ballet’s

The Nutcracker

December 16 • 7 pmSandpoint’s Panida Theater

www.Panida.org • 208-263-9191


unaffordable based on other financial choices like a season ski pass. (I know this season is totally supposed to be worth it, just saying.)

Community Cancer Services just held their biggest fundraising event of the year. Sadly, they are providing support to over 150 children dealing with the consequences of cancer just in our small community. So let’s not lull ourselves into thinking young people don’t need insurance.

For a week straight we heard about the big lie, that “you can keep your existing plan if you want to.” The media failed to share sound economic business practices and only focused on the out-of-context quote. If you purchased a plan or changed your health plan after the law was passed in March 2010, you clearly cannot keep what was purchased after the law was passed and not expect to comply with law in 2014. That is how the bill was written and passed—there was a phase-in period.

If you have received notice from your insurance company that your current policy is being discontinued, be aware the law does not force insurance companies to continue to offer products that threaten their financial viability. Insurance is the assurance the company protecting me will be there when I need them. It does not make economic sense to keep a product, even for people who would be otherwise ‘grandfathered’ (which means exempt from the new provisions of the law because they bought coverage before the law was passed) if the risk pool is too small and the rate adequacy, to pay expected claims, deficient.

It has been common practice in North Idaho for insurance companies to design a new product, grab market share with broad coverage and competitive rates, then over a period of 3 to 5 years have the claims exceed the premium pool. Close to when the pool becomes ‘polluted’ with excessive claims, new products and pricing take their place. Those enrollees who could transfer to the new plan to save premium costs did so. Those who had health issues and needed the broader coverage kept the discontinued plans (renewals were allowed, but new business in those plans were discontinued) but at much higher rates because there was a smaller pool of insureds to accumulate premium to pay the expected claims. Insurance is built on the principal of many paying for the losses of a few. It stands to reason insurance companies cannot retain all their current plans and manage all their new Exchange plans. It’s not lying. And there should be no

blaming. No one is the bad guy here. Insurance companies are choosing sound business practices. I’m happy they aren’t being forced to retain all their old plans. Hopefully you are as well.

CNN reported coverage secured through the Exchange may offer limited doctor and hospital networks. This is true and there is a significant out-of-network consequence by way of increased deductible, co-insurance and out-of-pocket maximums with some insurers. Limiting the network is a pricing tool that helps some insurers keep premiums and other costs down.

The deductible for one Idaho insurer raises from $500 to $12,000 if out-of-network providers are used for non-emergency care. And the out-of-pocket maximum increases from $6,350 to $24,000! In an area where regional care across state lines is common, the insurer network is a critical factor in choosing health coverage.

I’ve noticed many Medicare beneficiaries trying to enroll or wanting to enroll in health plans through the Exchange. If you have a Medicare card you are not eligible to enroll for coverage or obtain tax credits or the cost-sharing subsidies available through the Exchange. The 2014 Medicare handbook, sent to beneficiaries last month, tried to drive home the point, saying, “Medicare isn’t part of the marketplace (aka Exchange).”

Before the Exchange was scheduled to open, USA Today suggested, “Don’t wait. But don’t hurry either.” That may have been good advice then, but it’s not now! I’m not sure how much faith I want to place in online enrollment being a smooth process by November 30, 2013. Insurance companies and consumers are already singing, “All I want for Christmas is a working enrollment website!” Coverage needs to be secured by December 15, 2013 to obtain coverage effective January 1, 2014, so I say, “Don’t Wait! Hurry Up!”

There is more information and hand-holding available through a certified Affordable Care Act and CMS accredited insurance broker than on any website. They will also help you complete and submit a paper application that can be processed long before the website will be functioning properly. Here are the steps you can take now regardless of the condition of the Federal website:

1. Check out the options on YourHealthIdaho.org; click the links to plan designs.

2. Go to HealthCare.gov (Idaho needs to use the Federal website for enrollment), but only go so far as to

create an account for yourself. This process actually works pretty well. Remember to respond to the verification email in a timely manner. This is essential to verifying your identity, which is critical to establishing the amount of your tax credit and cost-sharing subsidy.

3. Meet with a certified agent/broker. Determine if you are eligible for financial help, which can come in the form of subsidies to offset the cost of premiums, co-payments or deductibles. A certified insurance agent can help you with this. (We’re free!) For DIY folks, go to http://kff.org/interactive/subsidy-calculator/ . This site offers fairly accurate estimates.

If using this calculator, be sure to enter household size (regardless of the number of enrollees) and your household income estimate for 2014. You may want to review your 2012 tax return and add line 37, 8a and 20a to establish your Modified Adjusted Gross Income. Then add or deduct variables to the 2012 data to reflect income changes expected in 2014.

Anyone under age 65 participating in the new state exchanges can get tax credits if their incomes fall between the poverty level ($11,500 for a single person household/$15,510 for a couple) and 400 percent of the poverty level. Plus, added cost-sharing subsidies apply when the household modified adjusted gross income is under 250 percent of the Federal Poverty Level.

4. Meet with a certified agent/broker. (We’re free!) Complete a paper application for the Exchange. For some, we will already know you aren’t going to qualify for a premium tax credit and we can submit your application direct to your insurer of choice. Your price and coverage are guaranteed because there are no surcharges and no one can be declined or offered limited coverage.

5. Calculate what you’ve been spending for your uninsured health care, including prescription drugs, doctor visits and any emergency room or other hospital visits. Are there health concerns you’ve avoided addressing that are likely to get worse, like that sore knee or breathing condition? Medicines you should be taking but aren’t? Are you the daredevil athlete or is it your child or children? Are you planning to have a baby?

6. Even policies that appear affordable may not be if you have high deductibles, co-payments or cost-sharing for procedures. Meet with a certified agent/broker to review the plan that’s right for

Continued on next page


you. (We’re free!) Choose a plan based on how much you can afford to pay in premiums, co-payments and cost-sharing for procedures, as well as what your medical needs are likely to be next year.

Don’t make the mistake of forfeiting a coverage upgrade, by virtue of the Cost-sharing Subsidy, by choosing anything other than a Silver plan. If you don’t have that added subsidy, recognize you are sharing in 40 percent of the cost of care if you purchase a Bronze plan. Could you afford to pay 40 percent of last year’s medical bills, and almost everything out-of-pocket until a high deductible is met? What about 40 percent of the average $9,940 ‘normal’ pregnancy cost?

7. The exchange plans are set up so you will never have to pay more than 9.5 percent of your salary for insurance. But the new law certainly doesn’t mean coverage will be cheap. The good news is that 9 out of 10 people I meet with reap tremendous savings in cost, plus their quality of coverage is improved.

8. Sadly, some people will find it doesn’t make sense financially to buy insurance. The Affordable Care Act will create an unintended gap in health insurance for residents of Idaho and other states that did not expand Medicaid. People who fall into this gap make too much money to qualify for Medicaid but too little to qualify for subsidies on insurance bought through the Exchange.

9. For some people, paying the 2014 penalty, which is $95 per person or 1 percent of household income, whichever is higher, may be the cheaper move. (Unless, of course, your health takes a turn for the worse.) By 2016, the annual penalty will be $695 or 2.5 percent of income, whichever is greater. But if the cost of insurance exceeds 8 percent of your household income, or other recent financial events have occurred, insurance can be considered unaffordable and the penalty is then waived.

Some Americans will choose to “opt out” of the Affordable Care Act. For

some, their opposition stems from the religious beliefs. Some may not qualify for exemptions under the law because the rules are so narrow; the religious exemption is pretty much limited to the Amish, Mennonites, and other sects that disavow all forms of insurance, including Social Security.

Think twice about whether it will be a sound decision for you to go without insurance when there will be excessive demand on the limited number of doctors in our area, who will have patients waiting to be seen, with insurance that provides them with a contractual guarantee of payment in 30 days.

Agents/brokers are expected to play a major role in enrolling individuals, small employers, and employees into coverage through Your Health Idaho. (We’re free!) In Person Assisters and call center staff are strongly encouraged to refer consumers to agents/brokers to select a plan and complete the enrollment process. Agents/brokers must complete the federal training course in order to participate on the Your Health Idaho Marketplace.

Idaho’s In-Person Assisters provide education and enrollment assistance to consumers for the Exchange. IPAs will focus on providing education and eligibility assistance. IPAs will complete a 20 hour training course and must pass a test and a background check in order to become certified. IPAs and agents/brokers together are known as Consumer Connectors.

Beware! Website woes are creating an opportunity for scams. Reports abound of people who would seek to line their pockets by misleading consumers. Across the country insurance regulators have confronted would-be fraudsters who have designed websites to mimic ObamaCare’s enrollment portal: HealthCare.gov. These attempts to imitate the site have met with cease-and-desist letters because the sites could easily confuse consumers intending to enroll in the Exchange. The Hill notes that regulators

from Washington, Pennsylvania and Connecticut are warning opportunists against creating sites that might mislead the public. Remember, you are providing a tremendous amount of personal financial data in the application process. You should not be doing this from home or at your favorite coffee shop where you don’t have a firewall to protect this information from being grabbed out of cyberspace. See a certified agent/broker who you can trust to walk you through the enrollment process. Right now, the old fashioned paper and mail process will work the best.

Angela Oakes, is a certified PPACA and CMS accredited insurance agent/broker. She has been in insurance since 1980 and owns Affordable Insurance Solutions and Summit Insurance Resource Group and works with a talented team of professionals. She is keen on providing a reliable source of critical and timely insurance information and solutions to our community. This information represents her understanding of current federal and state requirements, which are subject to change at any time and may be subject to differing interpretations.

Continued from previous page

Turkey Bingo at the Bonner Mall

The Kick-off fundraiser for toys for tots

Nov. 2310:30 to 4:30

300 Bonner Mall Way Ponderay

208-263-3510

Proud to Provide Environmentally

Conscientious Construction and

Consultation

P.O. Box 118 • Hope, Idaho • 208.264.5621


In the spring of 2012, the National Forest Foundation recognized the Lightning Creek drainage complex in the Idaho Panhandle National Forest as one of their fourteen Treasured Landscapes nationwide. The peaks and valleys surrounding the Lightning Creek drainage are known for their aesthetic beauty, all-season recreational opportunities, and importance to endangered species such as the grizzly bear and Clark’s nuthatch. The area is also subject to severe flooding on a 100-year cycle, and recent data may indicate this trend is quickening.

The NFF’s Treasured Landscapes campaign is working with diverse partners across the country to accomplish integrated restoration on National Forests through targeted grants, innovative partnerships, and community engagement.

As part of this effort, The Friends of Scotchman Peak Wilderness and local partner organizations Kinnikinnik Native Plant Society, Idaho Master Naturalists and Backcountry Horsemen, as well as concerned community members, worked together this past field season on preliminary studies necessary to begin restoration of recreational trails and headwater ecosystems. Volunteers and staff from FSPW and partners conducted three projects in the Idaho Panhandle National Forest cooperatively with the NFF and the United States Forest Service.

In June, 15 volunteers participated in a Noxious Weed Mapping project. Dividing into seven teams and surveying nine trails, volunteers mapped over 35 miles of trail edge for noxious weed encroachment. Data collected were passed on to regional forest managers who will begin to develop a restoration plan. Weed mitigation contracts will be awarded in the coming fiscal year for the more severely infested recreational trails mapped by FSPW volunteers.

In the months of July, August, and September, 12 individuals rotated in teams surveying high elevation forests to assess whitebark pine populations. FSPW volunteer crews completed five full-day and three multiple-day research excursions. Forests were surveyed for

whitebark pine stand distribution and age, blister rust infestation, and viable seed sourcing. FSPW volunteers also surveyed high elevation lakes, meadows, and forests for rare plants. Data collected will help identify areas with

the best potential to benefit from restoration activities such as

selective burning and seed collection. Both of these projects were supported by grants from the NFF.

October 5, 12 FSPW volunteers and representatives from the

USFS and NFF, convened for a day of trail construction and

reclamation. Crews divided up and worked on Mud Creek and

Morris Creek, and achieved over a mile of treadwork building, erosion control and general trail maintenance. These trail projects and others on the west side of Lightning Creek are scheduled to continue next summer.

Since its designation of Lightning Creek as a Treasured Landscapes site, the NFF, USFS, FSPW and their partner organizations have been working cooperatively to achieve the objectives in Phase 1 of this restoration project. Outlook for this project’s continuation includes the following activities for the 2014 season: stream bank erosion control, weed spraying, trail reconstruction, and follow-up monitoring.

Photo: Sandy Compton flagging to reroute the Scotchman Peak Trail. Photo by Brad Smith

The Season Ends for a

Treasured Landscape

American Heritage Wildlife Foundation Christmas PartyMonday December 9 • Pend Oreille Winery • 4 PM to 7 PM

Live music performed by Diana Clemons – a Julliard school of music graduate.This event is free, with spirits and appetizers available from POW. Space is limited – please reserve your seats

with AHWF early. 208.266.1488

AHWF.ORG is the only 501c3 nonprofit organization in the region working to preserve all species of local

wildlife through rehabilitation of the injured and orphaned as well as community education. We are creating the first Nature Center of the Inland Pacific Northwest.

On Saturday November 23rd, the Kinnikinnick Native Plant Society presentation, co-sponsored by the City of Sandpoint Parks and Recreation, will feature Phil Hough, Executive Director of Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness. Phil will speak about Lightning Creek—Treasured Landscape’s Whitebark Pine/Alpine Botanical and Weeds Projects. This event begins at 9:45 am at Sandpoint Community Hall, 204 First Avenue and is open to the public, free of charge.

The Lightning Creek drainage is one of 14 nationwide locations selected as “Treasured Landscapes” by the National Forest Foundation. Two botanical programs rank high in priority for restoration work being undertaken as part of this project: Whitebark PIne habitat restoration and control of noxious weeds along trails. Working with the Idaho Panhandle National Forest, the Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness, with support from the National Forest Foundation, coordinated volunteers this summer from community groups including the Kinnickinnick Native Plant Society and Ponderay Chapter of the Idaho Master Naturalists to assist in trail and backcountry survey work needed to lay the groundwork for these two projects. Join us as we take a look at the progress made so far and next steps in this exciting program.

Phil has a BA in English Literature from Colby College and 20 years of experience in hospitality management. In addition to his current responsibility for overall direction and coordination of FSPW, Phil is a past president of Kinnikinnick Native Plant Society and a renowned through-hiker who has completed the triple crown of long-distance hiking.

Kinnikinnick Program

Page � | The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol. 22 No. 11|November 2013

November already, how did that happen so fast? I’ve been whining about the heat and looking

forward to fall so much during summer that I failed to realize fall is here and we are quickly headed toward winter. The whitetail deer rut is here as well, and what a great time to be in the woods. A skiff of snow underfoot and the chance to glimpse a thick necked buck strut by your favorite hunting spot make it an exciting time of the year. November brings more deer hunters than any other time during the hunting season.

During the heat of the whitetail deer season your local Conservation Officers receive hundreds of calls related to trespassing. This year I received a number of calls about trespassing in the general weapon season elk than I have in years past. I hope this is not a growing trend because it looks bad on hunters and it’s the reason we see more land posted for “No Trespassing.” Some hunters were flagrantly ignoring trespass signs so they could get a chance to hunt a critter they’ve seen on that property. We have millions of acres of public land; go find that on the map and hunt there and you won’t have a problem.

Here are a few reminders of Idaho’s trespass laws. If your land is not cultivated, you must post your land with signs or fluorescent orange paint.

The paint or signs must be 100 square inches (10x10 square). The signs must be posted every 660 feet along the property boundary, and at any reasonable access points (trail, driveway, gate, etc.) If someone disregards the signs and enters your property they are in violation. Please call the Bonner County Sheriff’s office dispatch to report this immediately. They will dispatch your local Conservation Officer, or a sheriff’s deputy.

Unfortunately, I see one too many folks this time of year who think hunting is done from a vehicle. It never fails to amaze me when I check a guy who’s wearing a t-shirt, jeans, and sneakers, with a loaded rifle across his lap in the pickup. This is hunting? Not only is it unethical, illegal, and unsafe, but where is the fun in that? They always say, “Where are the deer and elk, I haven’t seen a critter in 40 miles?” And my typical response is, “In the woods, not on this road.”

I was working a check station the other day and a hunter told me that he was limiting his usual “hunt” due to gas prices. Huh?? “What is your usual hunt?” I asked while I grimaced, knowing the response that was to come. “Oh, well, I drive up Dry Creek and then down the divide road to Johnson Creek,” replied the “hunter.” Good luck with that! What a waste of time and gas I thought. Get your

butt out in those woods and hike a little. Now with that being said, the majority

of hunters are doing the right thing and ground pounding the hills in search of their quarry. The above little rant was not aimed at those hunters. You’ll have to forgive me as I use this column to blow off steam from dealing with the frustrations from the minority of rotten hunters.

One of the ways Conservation Officers combat both trespass problems and hunting from a vehicle in areas is to deploy a decoy deer or elk, or what we call Artificial Simulated Animal (A.SA.). Wildlife decoys were first used by game wardens in Wisconsin in the 1940s, and they have been used by other wildlife agencies across North America ever since. They have been readily accepted by the courts as a legitimate tool for wildlife law enforcement officers.

The use of decoys has many benefits, but most important is they reduce the number of live animals lost to poachers. Additionally, the decoys bring the wildlife thieves to us rather than conservation officers using valuable resources to find violators across thousands of miles of landscape. The aim of decoys is to discourage shooting game animals before a season opens or after it is closed, after legal shooting hours, or on private property or other land closed to hunting, hunting with an artificial light, or shooting from or across a public road. If you’re not engaging in such activity you don’t have to worry about running into us or our decoys.

Happy Veterans Day to all our Vets out there, thank you for your service to our nation and the sacrifices you and your families have made. For those brave souls who never made it home to their loved ones, you are not forgotten. The Sandpoint District Conservation officers wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving as well. Remember to take the time to be thankful for the natural resources we have here. It’s all our jobs to take care of it responsibly. Please call your local Conservation Officer, Sheriff Dispatch or Citizens Against Poaching (CAP) hotline at 800-632-5999 with any information to stop natural resource thieves.

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Are you the quiet sibling? Are you the one who never got the attention like your smarter, faster, taller, cuter, older, younger, funnier, more athletic, more academic, or over-all better sibling, even cousin? Me too! As you grow up, you learn that some people just seem to garner more attention than others. Sometimes it is deserved, other times it is not. And I think it is most often the latter, as some people just know how to get more notice from others.

This is also true with birds. Everyone tends to focus on birds that stand out, either because they are brightly colored or are large in size. Everyone, even non-birders, can remember seeing their first eagle, but how many even notice, let alone remember, seeing a cowbird, or a pine siskin, or other such small, less-spectacularly equipped bird? Exactly my point.

And such is our bird of the month: the Cassin’s Finch. It might look nondescript to the uninformed, those who can’t tell a coot from a widgeon, but to us fans of the feathered the Cassin’s Finch is an interesting, if not compelling, species. Even if it is not as pretty as its cousins. It is the other rosefinch.

The Cassin’s Finch, named for the famed American ornithologist John Cassin, is a member of the American Rosefinches—a trifecta of related and similar looking birds which includes the House Finch, the Purple Finch, and our bird of the month. These birds share similar size, habits, and colorations. The Purple Finch is a pretty bird and the most colorful of them all, but it is a vagrant in our region. Meaning, it shouldn’t be here, but it occasionally wanders in. The House Finch is common resident and can be seen at almost any time of the year and is a beauty in its own right. But to most eyes the Cassin’s is a bit less flashy and is often overlooked. But it can probably beat its cousins in a sing-off. Put your money on the less-distinctive one.

The Cassin’s Finch is a mountain bird that resides in the high-altitude coniferous forests of western North America, from Mexico in the south to just barely into British Columbia in the north. There are also two disjunct populations in South Dakota and northern California. While it is normally a year-round resident, meaning it doesn’t generally leave the county during the course of the year, it might move up or down a bit in elevation—heading up the mountains in the spring and back down again in the late fall. And that is when you and I might get our best opportunity to see this special bird: in the off-season. It abandons the snowy slopes of the mountains to the skiers and comes down to join the valley folks for the winter. And I’m glad it does.

Like its cousins the House finch and the Purple finch, the dominant color for the male Cassin’s finch is a hue of red, in this case a reddish pink. Field marks are important in differentiating between it and the other rosefinches, especially the House finch as they might share the same haunts with the Cassin’s in the winter.

The male Cassin’s is most noted for its bright red crown, which sports a small though distinctive peak. In contrast, the House finch will be more orange-red and its head will be more rounded, lacking the pointed crown of the Cassin’s. While both species sport color on their faces and chests, again the Cassin’s will trend toward rosy pink while the House finch leans toward a orange-red. Both males will have brown backs, with varying degrees of red-wash overtones, but the bellies are different. Whereas the House finch has obvious brown streaking on its belly and flanks, the Cassin’s finch has little or only faint streaking. This is apparent in the field.

Another field mark is the beak. The Cassin’s finch has a sharp, definitively triangular-shaped beak, where as the

House finch’s is more rounded, as the triangle-shape is less defined.

In both species of birds the females are heavily streaked, reminding me of a pine siskin. Your best bet on differentiating between a female Cassin’s and a female House is a combination of their beak shape and their association with the male—as birds of feather do tend to flock together. The female Cassin’s also has the same peaked silhouette of the male. There are no rosy hues in either female bird.

These birds will come to your feeder. They are seed-eaters. I have never seen them visit my suet feeder, but they do come to my regular feeder.

For some unknown reason the Cassin’s finch is a bird species in decline. Though it is still very common and numerous, it is less so today than it was in the past. The reasons are not known. As it prefers open areas in the mountain forests it inhabits, it does not seem to be negatively impacted by logging. But in some areas there have been measurable declines in numbers, so this is an area of concern.

Remember, winter is a great time for birding. Your backyard feeder might never be more popular. Indeed, it could be a lifesaver for some individual birds if the winter is severe, making natural foods less available. And winter gives you an opportunity to see birds that you might otherwise not be able to identify, as this is one of the few times that these bird species come to you, rather than you having to go to them. Happy birding!

Michael TurnlundA Bird in Hand Cassin’s Finch:

The other rosefinch

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November1� Jason Farnham Piano Concert, Panida Theater, POAC presentation, �:30 pm1� Fierce Green Fire: The Battle For a Living Planet, Sandpoint Events Center, 20�-2��-��1�-1� Library Tasting Weekend, Pend Oreille Winery, 2��-��1� Chilly Nights, Warm Hearts Family Fun Night, Ponderay Events Center, �-� pm (fundraiser for CASA)1� KRFY Panhandle Community Radio Benefit Concert, 7:30 pm at DiLunas, 2�3-2��21� Patrick Ball Celtic Harp Concert, Panida Theater, �:30 pm 2�3-�1�11� Fall Serenade and Scholarship Fundraiser. The Music Conservatory of Sandpoint School of Performing Arts, 2��-��21 Toast the (Pend d’Oreille Bay) Nov. 21-Dec. 2� Santa at the Bonner Mall, every weekend.22 Backcountry Film Festival, Panida Theater, doors at � pm23 Holly Eve, Panida Theater, � pm. 2�3-��Nov 23-2�, 2�-Dec. 1 K&K Thanksgiving Fishing Derby, LPOIC.org30 Home for the Holidays with the Shook Twins, �:30, Panida TheaterNov 2�-Jan. 1 Holidays in Sandpoint. Traditional tree-lighting ceremony, caroling and Santa with cookies and cider Nov. 2� at Jeff Jones Town Square kicks off Sandpoint’s special events during the Christmas season. 2�3-21�1

PLUS:• Trivia every Tuesday night at MickDuff’s, � to 10 pm.• Tuesdays with Ray, Trinity at City Beach, � to � pm.• Club Music, Wednesday �-� pm at La Rosa Club.• Monarch Movie Night, third Thursdays, � pm at Monarch Mountain Coffee.• Contra Dance, every 2nd Friday of the month at Community Hall, � pm• Winery Music - Live music every Friday night at Pend d’Oreille Winery• Saturday Jam at the La Rosa Club. Live music! 2��-2100�-� Festival of Trees, Sandpoint Event Center, 610-2208, benefits Kinderhaven.

Downtown Sandpoint!Visit www.SandpointOnline.com for a complete calendar of events

Experience

November 2013| The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol. 22 No. 11| Page 11

As the River Journal goes to press, voters in Washington State have the opportunity to decide on a ground-breaking food labeling initiative, I522, which would require genetically engineered food items to prominently display this valuable information on the front of food packages. Opponents of this measure, including Monsanto—the creator of the genetically engineered Roundup Ready “miracle seed”—have doled out over $22 million to try to stop consumers from having this health information available to them. These food giants, including General Mills, Kellogg, Con-Agra, Coca-Cola, Pepsi and Nestle, change and re-design food packages quite frequently with “New & Improved” colors and slogans to market them in different ways… even pictures of the latest Olympic athlete. So the $22 million dollar question is: “What is it they Do NOT want you to know about the food you are consuming?”

This very same week, new research was published in the journal of BMC Medicine documenting pesticides, fungicides and dioxins are contributing to higher rates of obesity, kidney disease and ovarian disease three generations later in research

animals. Only the first generation of pregnant lab rats were injected with DDT by Washington State University researcher and professor, Michael Skinner. And even though the third generation of lab rats had no exposure to the chemical DDT, the contaminants changed the molecular processes of their “grandmother’s” DNA, which was passed on to make them more vulnerable. DDT was first used in 1940s, also thought to be safe by the EPA and was one of the most widely used pesticides in the US. Children danced behind the foggers applying it through the streets of America. In 1972 DDT was banned after nearly wiping out the Bald Eagle and research pointed to long term distress and health effects in other birds, fish, mammals and humans. It took the U.S. almost 30 years to realize our error and yet still today the World Health Organization is kicking around continued use of DDT to keep down the mosquito population in countries with high rates of malaria.

Likewise, Glyphosate, the active ingredient in the herbicide Roundup, is widely used in agriculture and touted as safe right now because short term toxicity levels in rats appears low at first. However, other studies indicate life-long exposure to the herbicide glyphosate greatly increases liver and kidney problems and higher incidence of cancer. Roundup Ready soybean seed was only first introduced in 1996, a newcomer to food production that took the world by storm, when you consider some of the best Heirloom food crop seeds have been studied, documented, saved and replanted since the times of Ancient Egypt. The

Roundup Ready plant that grows still naturally get weeds, but can only be sprayed with Roundup’s Glyphosate to keep the weeds down without destroying the crops. Corn, canola, sugar beets, cotton, and sorghum seed are all sold Roundup Ready.

Genetically modified seed is sterile. You cannot collect the seed and use it for a second year. Farmers must purchase new seed every year, an additional expense in the food chain. Most research indicates that genetically modified seed does not produce higher yields for the growers than Heirloom seeds that have been saved and prized for their higher yields and disease resistance.

In your own garden you get the deciding vote. No matter what happens on election day in Washington, everyone wins when we learn more about how our food is grown and how to grow your own. Winter is approaching; mulching with leaves, straw, bark or cardboard are all natural weed inhibitors that will keep your plants toasty and beds free of weeds until you peel them back to grow again when spring returns.

Nancy Hastings grew up on a 300+-acre farm and now is co-owner of All Seasons Garden and Floral in Sandpoint. She and her husband John have been cultivating community gardens and growing for 16 years in North Idaho. You can reach them with garden questions or sign up for classes at allseasonsgardenandfloral (at)gmail.com.

Growing Knowlege: What we don’t know CAN hurt us

Get Growing!Nancy Hastings

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Page 12 | The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol. 22 No. 11|November 2013

The Idaho Division of Financial Management has recently released its October Idaho General Fund Revenue Report for the current fiscal year (FY 14). DFM reports that our September General Fund revenues exceeded our current projection by about 6.4 percent. September receipts totaled 263.6 million dollars, which exceeded the projection of 247.7 million dollars by 15.9 million dollars.

All but one revenue category exceeded its projections for September; miscellaneous revenue was the one exception, with receipts totaling only 9.2 million dollars, which was 600,000 dollars under the forecast.

This was welcome news given that September revenues “more than offset the lower-than-anticipated revenue of the previous two months.” As a result FY 14 revenues at the end of September are 700.1 million dollars, 11.3 million dollars (1.6 percent) higher than the current forecast.

This is good financial news as we prepare to enter the upcoming legislative session. One of the priorities of the legislature each session is to determine the state budget for the upcoming fiscal year; FY 15 for this session, that begins July 1 of next year.

In preparation for developing next year’s fiscal year budget state agencies are required to submit their budget requests to the Governor for the upcoming year. The Governor then considers the agency requests as he prepares his FY 15 budget recommendation that he will present to the legislature in his State of the State address on the first day of the legislative session. The legislature then considers the Governor’s overall spending (appropriation) recommendation as the FY 15 state budget is developed during the session.

The legislature’s Joint Finance and Appropriations Committee begins the legislative process by reviewing the agency requests and then developing final individual agency appropriation recommendations (proposed legislation) to present to the full

legislature for approval. Because JFAC consideration of the agency requests is

instrumental in the legislative process for determining the budget, JFAC is also provided a summary of the agencies’ requests prior to the start of the legislative session.

I serve as a member of JFAC and participated in a JFAC meeting held October 2-5 that included a presentation of the agencies’ preliminary appropriation requests for the FY 15 budget.

The budget information we received indicated a substantial increase in spending based on the agencies’ requests. The total increase in General Funds appropriations requested by the agencies, excluding public schools, is an 11.3 percent increase over our projected current FY 14 spending. The Superintendent of Public Schools is requesting an overall 5.9 percent increase in General Funds appropriations.

As indicated above, these requested increases in spending exceed our current year FY 14 General Fund revenues by a significant amount. Assuming a 3 percent growth in revenue for FY 15, General Fund spending would exceed revenue by 57.8 million dollars; at a 4 percent increase, spending would exceed revenues by 29.8 million dollars and a 5 percent increase in spending would exceed revenues by 1.7 million dollars.

I expect the Governor’s budget recommendations in his State of the State address will call for a lower amount than that requested by the agencies. I would also expect the legislature to modify the spending levels as well based on its own interpretation of agency spending need, as well as current information on revenue receipts that will be available over the next few months.

In addition to the agency spending requests, there will be other budget considerations, not the least of which will be an emphasis on replenishing the state savings accounts that have been depleted in order to accommodate reductions in agency appropriations to accommodate the downturn in the economy over the past few years.

As indicated by DFM’s September report, budgeting for these preliminary spending requests and other fiscal needs will present challenges both for the Governor and legislature as we enter the next legislative session and begin addressing the spending requests of the agencies.

No matter the budget challenges, the legislature is required to develop a balanced budget before the session ends and we will accomplish this task before returning home from the 2015 legislative session.

Thanks for reading and as we near the Thanksgiving holiday, let me wish all of the readers of the Journal an enjoyable Thanksgiving and a good time with family and friends as we enter the holiday season. George

Budget Requests for the Next Fiscal Year IncreaseA Seat in the House

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November 2013| The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol. 22 No. 11| Page 13

If someone is on the other side of the continent and something goes bump in the night at home, does it make a sound?

We were only a few blocks from the Atlantic Ocean when we received a call telling us that bear(s) had made a major visit back home in Idaho.

How did my caller know? Well, we all know what bears do in the woods, and if your house is in the woods also, they do it all over the yard. Big ones and little ones; there must have been a dozen of them.

Next question: how many bears does it take to leave a dozen piles in the yard during one stopover?

Carol called telling us of the natural fertilizer all over the place. But she found even more. I would not be surprised if she had made sure all the bird feeders were full on her previous visit.

Please don’t tell Game Warden Matt Haag, but we do have bird feeders out in the summer. We like to have the birds around and the varieties we get are fantastic. For years we have kept a steel garbage can near the house with black oil sunflower seeds in it. The squirrels have figured out how to get the lid off, so it now has a steel cable holding the lid on. On a typical day any feed left in the back yard feeder by evening is finished up by the White Tails who come by. For that reason there is never more than a cup of seed in it. The feeder on the front porch has never been bothered by anything other than the squirrels, which I appear

to have outsmarted—so far. So it is kept full. There is a small reserve of seed on the porch which has never been bothered.

The back yard feeder had attracted the bears but it has been repairable. The garbage can on the deck and the storage on the front porch is too close to the house so they never get it. About once a year the suet feeder gets destroyed. I think there is a suet feeder bone yard somewhere nearby.

In August our dog died. There were times she would bark in the night even though she was always in the house. We had surmised animals were getting too close to the house for her and went back to sleep. Now she is gone, plus the house was pretty much empty for over two weeks at the end of September. I’m thinking the place was very quiet and anything that may have been scared off before felt quite safe.

Matt, just quit reading now, okay?The only activity around the place

was some neighbors driving in and out or Carol coming out, sometime with friends, to look around and get some quiet woods time.

So I bet Carol filled the feeders and suet on one of her trips here. The bears came right after she left. They emptied the feeders and ripped the one hanging from the roof of the front porch down. There is one more trashed suet cage somewhere in the ethers around our place and the garbage can was tipped over, the lid bent around the steel cable and about thirty pounds of seeds taken. The container on the front porch was emptied and left in the yard several feet away. All this tells me they had found the smorgasbord. Both the porch and our deck had to be trespassed in order to wreak their havoc.

When we got the call, Carol asked if she should get some more seed and suet and put it out. We said no let it stay fallow for a few weeks.

A week after I arrived home, I woke up in the middle of the night needing to use the bathroom. I have been known at those times to take the opportunity to get a breath of fresh air but not that night. I looked out the upstairs bathroom window to see a very black form standing next to the empty feeder. There were two smaller, very black forms wandering around her feet. When the moon moved around a tree I could see mom and two cubs. I woke Linda and we watched them, from the safety of the house, for over a half hour. Momma bear checked out the feeder then went to the suet tree where she found nothing. She then climbed the steps onto our deck and found no garbage can but saw it nearby and made a bee line for it. It was empty.

There was still no seed or suet anywhere so they looked around quite a bit. At one point the mama stood beside the barbecue, but didn’t even seem to smell it. I thought it should smell like a beef, pork, turkey, chicken, salmon stew, but she paid no attention. Maybe it’s my cooking. She did stand in front of the locked door to the pump house for a while. Maybe she knows there is a freezer in there filled with all kinds of meats.

We still have not got any seed or suet as we wait for winter to arrive. That is for you Matt, thanks for the advice.

Another something that seemed to be busy while we were gone was the underground tunnelers in our yard. In the early summer we had a few heaps of dirt; by August they looked like tailings piles from a moderate sized mine. When I got home we seemed to have grown the Tetons in our meadow. I half expect to see glaciers forming soon and could even see some technical climbers. Okay, maybe I’m making a mountain out of a mole hill but believe me, they were active. We call it Moleville.

Apparently, there were sounds. Sounds like a mother feeding and teaching, children playing and learning, and little miners creating tunnels and mountains.

But now there are no sounds of birds. So I need to go to town and get some seed but I won’t put any out until after the snow flies, just in case Game Warden Haag stops by for an official visit.

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The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol 17 No. 18 | November 2008 | Page 5

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November 2013| The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol. 22 No. 11| Page 1�

I spent about three years planning to get chickens, but somehow I could never quite get myself set up to do it. So this year, I gave up on getting myself ready (where getting ready means building a chicken coop), and I brought ten little chicks home from the Co-Op Country Store.

Having ten little chickens living in your bathroom is a really good incentive for getting ready to be a chicken keeper. I got that chicken coop built in no time. Okay, not in no time—in fact, I got it built in a lot more time then I originally thought it would take and my bathroom looked like a hazardous waste dump before I finally got the chickens out of my home, and into their own.

And that’s the first thing I never quite came across in all the reading I did to prepare myself for having chickens (and I did a lot of reading). Chickens poop a whole lot more than what you think they do. In fact, chickens are regular poop machines and while all that manure is great for the garden, it’s not so great on your bathroom floor. Oh, and if you put plastic down to protect your floor, the chickens will manage to push it all aside.

The second thing I learned is something that kinda sorta gets mentioned in those books for new chicken owners, but I personally feel it’s not emphasized enough. And that is: everything on this God’s green earth is going to try to kill your chickens, and some of them are going to be successful. I’m talking granddaughters, stray dogs, hawks, wet weather, improperly installed fencing... chickens, especially young ones, are rather fragile and their world is full of risk. And when they die, you cry.

A LOT. In fact, you cry so much that you feel a little bit ridiculous because, you know, they’re chickens, but the tears still fall. And then your kids will buy you a whole bunch of replacement chicks and then some of them will die, too, and then you’re crying again, even though you swore to yourself that, “this time, I won’t get attached.” And then you yourself will order even more chickens, because some of the second batch lived and it seems kind of silly to only have a flock of three, especially when you fix eggs for breakfast practically every single day.

Speaking of eggs (which is the primary reason most of us get into the backyard chicken thing, after all)—chickens mature fast, but they don’t mature that fast and by the time you get your flock refurbished a few times, so to speak, your chicks will become laying hens right about the time the days get really short, which is also the time when hens’ laying slows way down. So far I get white and green eggs from my two chickens who are actually laying (out of seven), but they might as well be gold, given the return on investment so far. Of course, they taste pretty darn good, so there is that.

The books also tell you that you need to provide an outdoor run for your chickens, well fenced and covered for their protection, with about four square feet of space per chicken.

What I didn’t see mentioned was that chickens, unlike me, are not particularly fond of hot, sunny weather so if you build your run on the south side of the coop (figuring that we have about 8 months of winter, it seems, and solar gain is important), then you’re going to have to build them another run for summer.

Or just let them free. Because according to my chickens, four square feet each is not nearly enough room and what they really need is most of my almost acre of land.

The cats didn’t like it when I started locking them in the house in order to let the chickens roam the yard, especially when the chickens quite enjoy sitting on my porch and looking in the windows to make fun of the trapped cats. Nonetheless, the cats stayed inside until the chickens were big enough to fend for themselves—about the time they grew to the same size as the cats.

And by the way, you’ve never seen anything until you’ve seen a chicken chase a cat around the yard. I can hear all the chickadees in the neighborhood cheering when that happens.

You might be under the impression that chickens are a fearful animal—after all, we call people “chicken” when they express fear—but they’re actually quite curious, inquisitive birds. They might startle a bit, like a horse when it gets spooked, but for the most part, my chickens will venture into anything, even the house if the door is left open, which I discovered just today. Chickens don’t particularly care for a downpour, and mine decided that the house was warm, dry, and the place where the treats live, so when I turned away from the sink, there they all were in the kitchen.

While my chickens don’t seem to be overly fond of being held and petted, they’re quite the social creature and will come at a run when anyone comes out the door of the house. They then demand treats—demand them quite loudly—and they really prefer any kind of nut at $9 a pound. Even without treats, however, the chickens will follow me as I make my way around the yard, and quite happily “help” with any chore I might be attempting to undertake. (And poop on it. Don’t forget that part.)

Before you know it, you might find these goofy birds have crept so deeply into your heart that you love your chickens, much in the way you love your dog, your cat, or even your kids.

I have only eaten chicken once since those first baby birds arrived in my life, and my plan to expand my flock to include meat birds didn’t last past the first month. I’m enjoying the eggs though.

But I can tell you, I won’t be bringing a cow home anytime soon.

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Politically IncorrectTrish Gannon Accidental Vegan? Living with Chickens


In a March 2013 column (Matilda’s DNA) I spoke of a number of developments in the hunt for evidence of Bigfoot, primarily Dr. Melba Ketchum’s DNA findings showing an as-yet-unknown-to-science hominid, as well as Internet rumors about the secretive Erickson Project and its relation to an upcoming Nat Geo special said to have “dramatic” new HD footage of the creatures.

Mea Culpa. In my defence I’d like to point out that I did state I was relying mostly on Internet rumors, including Matt Moneymaker (of BFRO) who claimed to have seen high quality portions of the beast in the upcoming Nat Geo HD film. Matt still stands by his comments, though Nat Geo’s just announced a two-hour special on the subject, set to air on Sunday, November 17 at 8 pm EST. Advance teasers promise the show will focus on the Oxford DNA study already shown on BBC that apparently links through DNA the Tibetan Yeti to an extinct form of Polar Bear.

Regarding Dr. Ketchum’s own DNA results and its withering reception by

critics, I find it telling that a recent finding of a new kind of monkey was accepted into the lexicon with only one tenth of the genome DNA data as Dr. Ketchum provided. (You can keep running track of the controversy by checking out her FaceBook Page; Dr. Melba Ketchum).

While we’re on the subject of Internet rumors (and no, I’ve apparently not learned a lesson), a recent post on Cryptomundo.com from blogger R. Lindsay says, in part, concerning Sumatra’s Orang Pendek (the Hobbit-Bigfoot), “Apparently, at least one dead specimen now exists. The scientist (unnamed) told me he had seen three photos of a dead creature. Unfortunately, they have no plans to publish their data until 2016.” (No doubt with a wary eye on the hysterical reception greeting the Ketchum DNA findings). I’ve long suspected the orang-pendek will be the first major cryptid officially found and recognized.

Also, “rumors” suggest the Animal Planet’s new 24/7 live Bigfoot Trail

Cam at an “undisclosed location” is actually the site

of the purported DNA samples provided by the secretive Erickson Project, somewhere in BC.

Finally, an astute reader pointed out that in my column on Butch Cassidy’s possible survival after the Bolivian shootout, that the Pinkerton Detective Agency in fact received numerous tips and possible sightings by relatives and acquaintances of the outlaw well into the 1930s, long after his supposed death. It’s my contention, however, that it’s not uncommon for them to place such reports, however raw and unfounded, into their files. The inescapable fact is that the Pinkertons intercepted every single letter from Butch home to his family and friends for years and all mail home ceased totally after the Bolivian shootout! He disappeared completely, not unlike my own memory of Debts I owe.

‘til next time, keep spreading the word: Soylent Green is People! All Homage to Xena.

FROM THE FILES OF THE RIVER JOURNAL’SSurrealist Research BureauMea Culpa: Bigfoot et.al.

Jody Forest

Put Yourself in the Picture!If you missed any of August’s hot shows under the stars, then don’t hesitate now! Season passes for the Festival at Sandpoint’s 32nd annual summer concert series, taking place August 7-17, 2014 at Memorial Field, are on sale now! These discounted passes are only $199.00 (plus sales tax & city parks fee) for all eight nights of music at Memorial Field for the 2014 season. Passes are available at this significantly reduced price (an approximate 40% discount!) until the line-up is announced in May, 2014, or until they sell out. Don’t miss a single show!

Call today at 208-255-4554 or visit online at www.FestivalatSandpoint.com

Page 1� | The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol. 22 No. 11|November 2013

Our long road trip is over. Six weeks and approximately 7,200 miles later we are back in Bonner County and enjoying some of the best late October weather I’ve seen in my 33 years here. During our trip we stayed at various military bases across the country from Utah to Florida. We spent no less than one night at each facility and two or three nights at a couple. We got to see firsthand what the Sequester did to our military.

Last month I wrote about the possible root cause of how security cutsbacks enabled the shootings at the Washington DC Navy Yard. The draconian cuts created by the Sequester’s implementation back last spring caused reductions in security forces and other services throughout the military establishment. Now that we’ve returned from our road trip I can amplify on the impacts that both the Sequester and the recent government shut down had.

First off, let me make this perfectly clear. The President did NOT shut down the government. A handful of Far Right ideologues—approximately 45 of them—are directly and completely responsible for the $24 BILLION lost to our economy. I don’t care how much those ideologues shout their lies, it was their fault that the American people had $24 BILLION sucked out of an already weak economic recovery. How does this apply to veterans? Let me count the ways.

Number one: With the government shut down an already overloaded VA claims resolution process was slowed to a halt. As ‘non-essential’ VA personnel were furloughed, the claims process ground to a shuddering halt. How long do you think it will take to restart the process and catch up on resolving the backlog?

Number two: With the government shut down hundreds of private sector projects were delayed or closed. Many of these jobs had been contracted to companies owned and/or operated by veterans. During our cross country trek we had the privilege of staying at military lodging facilities in nine states—in one state twice. On base after base I saw construction projects empty of workers due to either the Sequester or the government shut down. One base—Hill AFB outside Ogden, Utah—made the decision back in March to cut the base’s cable TV service to save money for other readiness or security funding. This may have had some effect on base morale but it was a lot less impact than closing the

Commissary or Exchange for another day or two per week. I applaud this base Commander for spreading the pain so that it was easier to bear by all.

Number three: Hundreds of WWII and Korean War veterans had made travel arrangements to visit memorials in Washington DC. These plans had been made months before and at great expense by many groups before the government shut down occurred. What did they find when they arrived in Washington DC on or after October 1st? All the memorials and monuments were closed. What did the Congressional ideologues do with these understandably upset veterans? They lied to them. These baboons had the gall to try and blame the government shut down on the President.

I was in Washington DC during the first few days of the shut down and was sickened by the perfidy, duplicity and hypocrisy of people like Sarah Palin trying to say that these closures were the fault of the President. I saw one Congressman—Representative Neugebauer of Texas—try to berate a National Park Ranger for simply doing her job. Congressman Neugebauer was drawn up short by the Ranger and another passerby. The passerby told the Congressman that the real problem was that Congress wasn’t doing its job. To their credit many of those listening had the grace to look a little embarrassed by these tirades against Park Service employees who were just doing their jobs. Apparently those listeners know lies when they hear them.

The list goes on. I know that most, if not all, of the furloughed federal government employees will get back pay (though I don’t know if anyone they owed money too is foregoing the late fees). But what about all the small business owners and concessionaires that depend on our National Parks and Monuments nationwide who can never recoup the money they lost? There are thousands of businesses nationwide that depend on tourism and travelers that lost tens of thousands of dollars because a small recalcitrant group of Far Right Republicans threw a temper tantrum

to try and get their way. Those small businessmen and businesswomen will never recoup that lost revenue. They will never be given those two weeks of earnings back.

What was the result of this horror show? Nothing! The Congressional temper tantrum did not gain them a thing. The Affordable Care Act is still alive and will continue in spite of the current bugs and glitches. The Congress has been given another 90 days to get its act together before we start this entire farce all over again. I hope that a few of the participants in this travesty learned something. My fear is that they did not and we’ll be treated to act two of this Kabuki drama come January.

The biggest losers in this whole thing are the American people. The entire world looks to America for strength and steadiness. What has America given the world over the past month? Nothing! Congress has become a dysfunctional body that is controlled by a very small group of ideological bullies. They should be ashamed of themselves but they aren’t. They brag about how they fought the good fight and will do it again if the opportunity presents itself. They do not deserve to maintain the positions that they currently hold.

The timid and gutless majority of the GOP quake in their boots at the very idea that they may be ‘primaried’ out of a job if they stand up to these bullies. I say shame on them too. They need to have the courage of their convictions and let the voters decide who they want to represent them. Every candidate should make their case to the best of their ability and let the voters decide.

Veterans Day is fast upon us. As has been their habit the folks at ‘The Sub Shoppe’ at 32211 Hwy 200 in Kootenai, next to Squeeky’s, gave out a free lunch and coffee to all veterans and active duty military on Monday, November 11 and Tuesday, November 12, as this magazine was being delivered. Show your support not just of our military, but of those businesses who continue to do what they can to make the lives of military veterans a little bit brighter.

Veterans’ NewsHow Veterans were ‘Sequestered’Gil Beyer

KINDERHAVEN’S FESTIVAL OF TREESDec. 5 Family Night 4-6:30 pm • Dec. 6 Holiday Luncheon & Silent Auction • Dec. 7 Gala Dinner

at the Sandpoint Event Center, 102 S. EuclidKinderhavenSandpoint.com • 208-610-2208


Darwin never said that God was dead. He did suppose that we didn’t know as much about how God does things as we thought, which ticked a number of pious folk off, threatening their tidy little vision of the planet and all the creatures and plants thereon.

I just finally got around to reading The Origin of Species, Darwin’s abstract of his theory of natural selection. So, I’m late bloomer. I found Philip Appleman’s abridged edition last summer at a library book sale. It was free. How much better can the price be for a classic?

Appleman, in his introduction, reveals himself as brilliant and somewhat disgusted with twelve years of pre-college education that never mentioned the name Darwin or the word “evolution.” He was born in 1925, a contemporary of my mother. It wasn’t until he was age 22, back from World War II and in college, that the concept of natural selection was presented to him in the same way that I acquired his presentation of Darwin’s work: by happy accident. After reading Origin in its original form nearly 90 years after its 1859 publication, Appleman dedicated his life to spreading what he considered the good news of Darwinism.

“I remember that experience vividly,” he writes, “the exhilaration I felt reading Darwin’s clear and persuasive observations; the relief at finally being released from a constrained childhood allegiance to the primitive creationist myths of Genesis; the profound satisfaction of understanding the facts of biological evolution and knowing that I was truly and altogether a part of nature.”

Appleman points out that the reason for his own late blooming was the absolute resistance of Christian religious institutions, both reformed and Catholic, to the thought that the Bible and all the doctrine, dogma and tradition built upon it might be in error.

Perhaps the reason it took me so long to find and read my copy of Origin is personal disinterest, and I don’t mean to say that I’m not interested in evolution, because I am. What I’m not interested in is the argument. It’s moot, as far as I’m concerned, even though my own faith walk (here I am co-opting Gary’s and Kathy’s editorial space) has been along the lines of Christian thought. I’ve never been a fundamentalist Christian, but one who tries to understand what Christ had to say to us, acknowledging that centuries of picking and choosing which versions of which gospels belong or don’t, the vagaries of translation and human perspective, and the tendency of human institutions to become self-serving and bogged down in rules and regulations designed to protect the institution even over the needs of its humans have filtered and often obscured what Jesus came to tell us. (Darwin could have written that sentence himself.)

To me, it’s not a matter of choosing Darwin over God or God over Darwin. They are not mutually exclusive. Darwin himself talks of the Creator in The Origin of Species, and not disrespectfully or dismissively. He writes about the eye, “... and may we not believe that a living optical instrument might thus be formed as superior to one of glass, as those of the

Creator are to those of man?”This is not a man who doesn’t believe

in God, but a man more awed by creation than the garden-variety creationist.

My agreement with Darwin—and Appleman—doesn’t stop my belief in God. It convinces me, though, that the next level of theological thought must stand on Darwin’s evidence, that his idea of natural selection points not away from God, but toward God.

I’ve had too many encounters with Spirit to think there is not some Force that cares about me—about us—outside my ken. My evidence is of a nature that science might call coincidental, but my own logic sees that experiences I’ve had are not logical at all, on any level I can understand. Still, they exist. Where many advocates of pure science fail us, in my belief, is insisting that nothing is real that can’t be verified by empirical proof. In that, they take the same hard line that creationism does, which is a line of alienation.

Darwin didn’t feel that way, nor did Einstein or Hawking or many of our most brilliant minds. It is never about one or the other, about choosing between God and science, but more about humbly accepting that we don’t know exactly what God is up to, or exactly how and why we got here. Maybe, as I sometimes theorize, it’s really none of our business; that our business should be about taking care of this marvelous place where we live and those that live in it, animate and not. As Appleman said, I am happy to know that I am truly and altogether a part of nature. Praise be to God.

The Scenic RouteSandy Compton God or Science is not a Choice

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Page 1� | The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol. 22 No. 11|November 2013

Can you imagine life in our North Country

without volunteers? Their impact is beyond calculation. Food bank volunteers weigh, sort, and stock critical donations. Trail volunteers swing Pulaskis, clear old trails and cut new ones for all of us to enjoy. Volunteers pull invasive plant species from our waterways, reducing the need for herbicides. Search and Rescue volunteers save lives from back country and swift water accidents. And youth activities… we can’t calculate the thousands of volunteer hours offered in classrooms, or scouting, or on sports fields to help shape the next generation.

Psychologists identify a variety of motivations for volunteering. We can achieve “personal development” by challenging ourselves, making new friends, even enhancing a career. We can gain “understanding” of other people, cultures, or places. We might respond to a “community concern” and focus on a project or an activity which improves those with whom we share our lives. And, frankly, there is “esteem enhancement.” We feel better about ourselves and our place in society. (Yes, there can be a little bit of ego in volunteering!)

For me, the driving motivation,

however, is “values.” Across decades in time, in hundreds of sermons and countless Sunday school lessons, I’ve absorbed a portion of Christian values. In the Apostle Paul’s letter to the church in Philippi, he charges his readers, “Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others.” Call it love, call it sympathy, call it compassion, this value undergirds so much of our volunteering.

In my faith walk, I’ve been called to the Gulf Coast of Mississippi in the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Katrina to establish base camps for hundreds of other volunteers who responded to the crisis. Later, answering the invitation from Friends of Scotchman Peaks, I found great joy in the “citizen science” of the Wolverine Project. Winter snowshoeing, bait stations, and critter cams gave me satisfaction as we collectively learned more about wolverines and their mustelid cousins in our nearby mountains. Yet nothing has engaged my volunteer spirit like being a part of the ongoing climate movement. Challenging the fossil fuel industry for its ongoing contribution to climate change is the battle of a lifetime.

The values I hold dear are about caring for Creation: the two legged, the four

legged, the feathered, finned and furred and the very planet on which we all live. So, today, these values are lived out in my campaigning against new coal export terminals in Washington and Oregon and crafting ways for denominations and individuals to divest from their fossil fuel stock.

As I consider this phase of my life, the wisdom of Sister Joan Chittister, Benedictine nun and author, continues to inform me. In her “Gift of Years: Growing Older Gracefully,” she asserts the meaning of life is about, “being caring, being interested, begin honest, being truthful, being available, being spiritual, being involved with the important things of life, of living…”

Volunteering contains so much of this “being.” Volunteering seems so vital to self and to the health of the communities of which we are a part.

Now, winter’s days and nights lay ahead. The change in the rhythm of the seasons provides us an opportunity to assess our connection to God, to each other, and the balance in our lives. In quiet moments, we have the chance to reflect on how we worship, how we live as part of family, how we work, how we play, and yes, even how we volunteer.

VolunteeringGary Payton

Gary’s Faith Walk

Seth Alan LAYMAN May 7, 1973 - October 23, 2013 www.CoffeltFuneral.comMargaret Lena Hatcher BRADETICH February 19, 1926 - October 24, 2013 www.CoffeltFuneral.comClayton Owen SCHELL October 6, 1963 - October 25, 2013 www.CoffeltFuneral.comKatelyn Lenae BLEDSOE March 9, 2013 - October 25, 2013 www.CoffeltFuneral.comMILDRED JOAN SMITH March 7, 1922 - October 26, 2013 www.CoffeltFuneral.comGary Dennis RALPH November 2, 1941 - October 27, 2013 www.CoffeltFuneral.comRuth Elizabeth FARRACE August 2, 1921 - October 29, 2013 www.CoffeltFuneral.comJanie Hawkins BRADETICH June 20, 1930 - November 3, 2013 www.CoffeltFuneral.com

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Jimmy Donald SHAW October 3, 1955 - October 10, 2013 www.LakeviewFuneral.comYolanda L. Soto RAMOS September 15, 1924 - October 11, 2013 www.LakeviewFuneral.comEleanor Louise Koenig CHANEY January 8, 1928 - October 15, 2013 www.LakeviewFuneral.comJoseph Harvey DEHNER November 10, 1915 - October 19, 2013 Veteran – U.S. Air Force www.LakeviewFuneral.comDouglas Calvin NYE December 18, 1935 - October 26, 2013 www.LakeviewFuneral.comSydne D. LaLande VANHORNE June 26, 1938 - October 29, 2013 www.LakeviewFuneral.comRobert C. WHEELER October 31, 1919 - November 1, 2013 Veteran – U.S. Army www.LakeviewFuneral.com

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Douglas Michael BALLARD February 26, 1946 - November 4, 2013 www.LakeviewFuneral.comWilma Irene ERICKSON September 6, 1913 - November 5, 2013 www.LakeviewFuneral.comRichard “Rich” Joseph GERSTENBERGER July 2, 1925 - October 4, 2013 Veteran – U.S. Navy www.CoffeltFuneral.comGeorge “Lee” CONGLETON, Jr. November 13, 1917 - October 7, 2013 www.CoffeltFuneral.comGail Christine Kaestner SUHFRAS December 9, 1953 – October 10, 2013 www.CoffeltFuneral.comDenise Hamann PRIVETT January 25, 1961 - October 20, 2013 www.CoffeltFuneral.comDorothy L. Deroshia AMES March 19, 1920 - October 21, 2013 www.CoffeltFuneral.com Deborha LaDUE July 13, 1955 - October 22, 2013 www.CoffeltFuneral.com

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PASSAGES

Questions about ObamaCare and how it affects you?

We hold a Q&A session every TUESDAY MORNING at 8:30am

through the end of November.

If you want some answers, please join us: 414 Church Street – Suite 205C

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(When you get off the elevator just look for the sign.)

Coffee and tea provided!

Page 20 | The River Journal - A News Magazine Worth Wading Through | www.RiverJournal.com | Vol. 22 No. 11|November 2013

Before I go on, let me say this: tattoos can be pretty cool, but for a few minor details.

Roughly a thousand years ago, as I climbed upon a bar stool one very early afternoon to pester our barkeep out of a quarter for the pool table, “Man, that’s a mean lookin’ bruise! Do you have older brothers too?” blurted out of my pie hole at the crusty patron next to me with his cigarettes rolled up in his t-shirt sleeve, exposing a rather ugly, black fuzzy splotch on his left shoulder. My being a pre-teen, with two older brothers of my own who each had a flair for arm slugging, gave me a sense of shared sympathy for anyone else in the same predicament.

Even though I’d said it with compassion and an extra pinch of empathy for such a nasty welt so visible in short sleeve weather, I got in return, along with a refreshing spritz of beer spray, “Hell NO, boy! That’s my Navy tattoo. Got it in the Philippines back in ’43.”

I quickly did my math, then put my shoes back on and responded, “Whadit look like when you weren’t so old?”

At that point, I was relieved of my perch by a look that could have easily cured jerky. For a while, it even removed the moisture behind my ears.

After that exchange of words, I became a part-time student of aged ‘tats’, the reasons for them and the ravages of life that make them less desirable than when they were applied.

I once had a friend who wanted a Harley so bad he took a shotgun to his

truck’s exhaust in a vain attempt to make it sound as “bad-assed” as the hog that had previously gone rumbling by with his ex-squeeze firmly attached to its behind, knees riding high on the operator’s ribcage, hair flowing in the wind and both sporting rebellious looking new tattoos on their arms. My friend was so jealous of the effect this had on his self-esteem that he inadvertently removed eighty-five percent of his muffler and twenty percent of his spare tire with a single round from a twelve gauge pump.

Shaking his head and flinging little lead BB’s from his ample locks, he dug into his wallet for a picture of his ex, jumped in his truck and headed for the nearest tattoo parlor, his dragging muffler adding an off-key accompaniment to the raw machismo of his newly unobstructed exhaust. I could have stopped him but his shotgun was empty and he knew it.

A few days later, I dropped by for an update and a beer, eventually getting around to, “So where’s yer tat?”

“I can’t show ya, it’s where the sun don’t shine unless I’m skinny dipping! Had to pay triple on account of the location.”

“Why on earth would you have your ex’s face tattooed on yer butt?” I inquired for research purposes.

“So that every time I sit on the toi…”“Jeeze, never mind!!!” I screamed,

trying to rid my mind of the visuals coming up. “Have you thought this through, or at least part way? Like as far as your next relationship maybe?”

“Only as far as the toilet part. I was

upset, so my ego took over for a few hours,” he said with his eyebrows crumpled, obviously now thinking about the possibility of his next love affair. He finished with, “Maybe I can have it turned into an ‘eight ball’ or the dark side of the moon. You know how I like Pink Floyd,” rubbing his butt in serious concentration and, by his expression, gauging his own I.Q.

I couldn’t argue with that much logic, having been taught that “one pain in the butt is usually followed by another of equal or greater value,” so I gave him a hand with his new muffler and helped him drink his beer.

Not escaping my attention over the years of paying it, are the similarities between new tattooees and new boat owners, giddy over joining a club (of sorts), then realizing later, in moments of clarity, that their discretionary spending suddenly has an anchor attached to it. One thing leads to another and decorating your body is not an exception but a poster child for this adage.

I’d better be careful here, as many people I know and care about have tats and are quite proud of them, at least outwardly. But, a few don’t yet belong to this group of the population and these are whom I talk to now; the rest of you may go, it’s too late for this to make much sense.

The one most startling statistic my eyes stumbled over during the research phase of this dissertation is that 50 percent of those who get tatted say they would like to get them removed!

Scott [email protected]

Now, that’s a peculiarly high figure for something so wildly popular, especially when you consider the fact that a full 98 percent of the human race would sooner eat hot charcoal before admitting to a wrong choice.

If you buy a boat and, of course, all the crap needed for a safe and groovy voyage, then decide you’d possibly bought just a smidge (measured in feet of boat) outside of your income bracket, causing ‘love spats’ and budgetary argumentation usually resulting in “For Sale” signs and ads in the papers to dump your dream on the open market, where you might see as much as 40 percent of your expenditure return home, you will become a member of yet another group of consumers: the ‘buyer’s remorse group.’ A very large group indeed.

Knowing that the U.S. economy is based largely on stupid expenditures and, one day soon if not already, will be protected from slanderous truths and their consequences, I’ll mention Christmas only once, as this label will soon be replaced with “Save the Economy Month.”

Anyone out there thinking of getting or giving a tattoo for the holidays put your hands up.

Thank you, that’s plenty! Those with your hands up can read on.

In the interest of saving ink, I’m not going into all the gory details of the possible health effects likely to not cross your mind before it’s too late. But I will mention the important ones. Googled individually in relation to tattoos, they make for interesting reading.

Hepatitis C & B (from less than sterile •

conditions and not just the needles used).Allergic reactions (sometimes years later).Inflammation from sun exposure.Keloids and granulomas.NTM or nontuberculosis mycobacteria.Exposure to toxic chemicals in inks like lead, cadmium, chromium, titanium, dibutyl phthalates and, not least of all, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PHA’s) of which, benzopyrene is considered the most dangerous, one of its favored tasks being growing tumors in test animals. After that, mull this over.Migration of toxins through aging, fading (sun) and attempted removal.

Also of interest, or should be, are these items.

Ink compositions are proprietary secrets of their manufacturers and are not currently regulated by the FDA. Alcohols (ethyl, denatured, isopropyl, methyl) used to disinfect and as a conditioner (carrier) of inks, is actually a ‘promoter,’ working synergistically with mutagens, teratogens and carcinogens, making them more likely to cause harm.Other ink carriers include ethylene glycol (antifreeze, which is toxic), witch hazel, glycerine, propylene glycol and Listerine.Removal (for the 50 percent) will set you back WAY beyond what you paid for the privilege of club membership. It varies wildly, as do tattoos themselves, from 100 to 300 dollars per square inch

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and apparently is highest where colors are involved.

So, before you go get yourself branded with something that has a 50/50 chance of being a big mistake, pay a little visit to www.realself.com/tattoo-removal/reviews for a bit (or a lot) of reflection by those going through the process of getting rid of theirs. This is important, as it’s the last I have to say on the matter.

HOLLY EVE

A Sandpoint Traditionpresented by Eve’s Leaves

Saturday, November 23 at the Panida TheaterDoors open at 6 pm

Tickets $25 at Eve’s Leaves, Panhandle State Bank and the Festival at Sandpoint

Benefits: Bonner Community Food Bank, Bonner Community Hospice,

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