JACKSON HOLE’S ALTERNATIVE VOICE | PLANETJH.COM | SEPTEMBER 7-13, 2016
By Natosha Hoduski
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2 | SEPTEMBER 7, 2016
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JACKSON HOLE'S ALTERNATIVE VOICE
VOLUME 14 | ISSUE 35 | SEPTEMBER 7-13, 2016
11 COVER STORY #JHDREAMING How many jobs does it take to keep a Jackson Hole address?
Cover illustration by Blake Dimick
4 EDITOR’S NOTE
20 WELL, THAT...
6 THE BUZZ
24 IMBIBE
16 CULTURE KLASH
28 COSMIC CAFE
18 MUSIC BOX
30 SATIRE
THE PLANET TEAM PUBLISHER
Copperfield Publishing, John Saltas EDITOR
Robyn Vincent / editor@planetjh.com
ART DIRECTOR
STAFF REPORTERS
Cait Lee / art@planetjh.com
Meg Daly, Jake Nichols
SALES DIRECTOR
COPY EDITOR
Jen Tillotson / jen@planetjh.com SALES EXTRAORDINAIRE
Caroline LaRosa / caroline@planetjh.com
Natosha Hoduski, Carol Mann, Andrew Munz, Ted Scheffler, Chuck Shepherd, Tom Tomorrow, Jim Woodmencey
Jake Nichols CONTRIBUTORS
Mike Bressler, Rob Brezsny, Aaron Davis,
MEMBER: National Newspaper Association, Alternative Weekly Network, Association of Alternative Newsmedia
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September 7, 2016 By Meteorologist Jim Woodmencey September begins a cool-down phase as we transition from late summer to early fall. Jackson averages 1.27 inches of precipitation in the month of September, just a little more than the August average. The record rainfall in September is 3.93 inches, which dripped on us in 1961. Sometimes, but not that often, it snows in town in September, averaging less than half an inch over the last 60 years. The record September snowfall is 2 inches, which fell in 1971.
SPONSORED BY GRAND TETON FLOOR & WINDOW COVERINGS
Average low temperatures this week are creeping downward, into the low to mid 30s. The frequency of mornings with frost will start to increase from here on out. The record low temperature for this week is 15 degrees, which occurred on September 9, 1962. Another year with cold temperatures during this same week in September was 1988. That was the year of the Yellowstone fires, and on September 11 it snowed in Yellowstone, which helped slow the fire growth.
The average high temperatures this week are in the mid-70s. The warmest we have ever been this week is 93 degrees, that was way, way back in 1934, during the Dust Bowl years. That year, 1934, still holds some of the hottest temperature records ever set here in Jackson. Unbreakable? So far, yes. Ninetythree is also the hottest temperature ever recorded in town during the entire month of September. That was repeated, but not broken, in 1956 on September 18th.
NORMAL HIGH NORMAL LOW RECORD HIGH IN 1934 RECORD LOW IN 1962
74 34 93 15
THIS MONTH AVERAGE PRECIPITATION: 1.27 inches RECORD PRECIPITATION: 3.9 inches (1961) AVERAGE SNOWFALL: 0.2 inches RECORD SNOWFALL: 2 inches
Carpet - Tile - Hardwood - Laminate Blinds - Shades - Drapery Mon - Fri 10am - 6pm Open Tuesdays until 8pm 1705 High School Rd Suite 120 Jackson, WY 307-200-4195 www.tetonfloors.com | www.tetonblinds.com
SEPTEMBER 7, 2016 | 3
Jim has been forecasting the weather here for more than 20 years. You can find more Jackson Hole Weather information at www.mountainweather.com
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THIS WEEK
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4 | SEPTEMBER 7, 2016
EDITOR’S NOTE The Price of Silence BY ROBYN VINCENT @TheNomadicHeart
A
fter a particularly grueling day at the office I often detox with the steadfast wisdom of late journalist Ben Bagdikian. The former dean emeritus of UC Berkley’s School of Journalism penned The Media Monopoly—the book that sparked my allegiance to independent media. In his first and second editions, Bagdikian unearths the insidious forces of corporate owned news. He exposes the five corporations that control more than 90 percent of newspapers, magazines, radio and TV stations, and how limited ownership unhinges a democratic society; how these outlets, obligated to their corporate sires, stifle the voice of the people. Today, it is one of Bagdikian’s most basic mantras (seemingly overlooked by a broad swath of media professionals), which I recite in my head and repeat to my reporters. “Never forget that your obligation is to the people,” Bagdikian said. “It is not, at heart, to those who pay you, or to your editor, or to your sources, or to your friends, or to the advancement of your career. It is to the public.” Last week the News&Guide decided it was in the public’s interest to publish a story detailing a pending investigation of Jackson mayoral candidate Pete Muldoon. What’s in question is whether Muldoon has a 20-year-old felony on his record—which would disqualify him from running—for writing bad checks as a college student in Louisiana. It is unclear how the newspaper got word of this pending investigation. It is also unclear why instead of waiting for the results of the investigation, the paper saw it fit to print a story that speculated on Muldoon’s eligibility. While a storm of online commenters have questioned the paper’s protocol reporting on Muldoon, it is also the information that the newspaper apparently deemed not in the public’s interest that should be examined. Recently local media outlets were provided with an
unsigned lobbying contract between developer SR Mills and incumbent Jackson mayor Sara Flitner. The contract was dated before Flitner took office. When PJH reporter Jake Nichols contacted Flitner, she acknowledged fielding calls from the News&Guide about the contract. Later she told Nichols she does not believe the revelation is newsworthy and that the N&G reporter she spoke with agreed. The document in our possession had a seven-month timeline that expired just before Flitner took office. It remains unclear whether the two parties actually entered into a contract; Flitner maintains they did not. What we do know, however, is Flitner worked with Mills before taking office. Then recently, she voted in favor of a regulation before the town council that ultimately benefits Mills’ 185 North Glenwood project. At a June 20 Jackson Town Council meeting, Mills estimated a profit of up to $3 million dollars on that project alone. The area is a source of contention among Jackson’s working class and housing advocates who say the downtown core is bloated with commercial development. While the News&Guide has yet to report or discuss any details about that lobbying contract, in the race for mayor, Flitner’s opponent has not enjoyed the same luxury. Instead, Muldoon asserts a N&G reporter contacted him as her deadline neared with questions that are 20 years old and half a continent away from Jackson Hole. He had little time to defend himself as that paper went to press. This situation compels discussion on what should be the single greatest tenet guiding elected officials and media outlets, the key tool in fighting corruption: transparency. So in the spirit of transparency, PJH has given Flitner the opportunity this week to respond to allegations about her professional ties to Mills in The Buzz (page 6). Also in the spirit of transparency, I will readily admit that Pete Muldoon happens to be a friend of mine. We are friends because,—aside from everyone knowing everyone here—we share certain values. We share values concerning the middle class—that they have a right to plant lasting roots in Jackson Hole. That people who work fulltime or work multiple jobs—like the folks featured in this week’s cover story—shouldn’t struggle to put food on the table or to pay rents or mortgages. We also share the belief that our greatest strength, not only as a nation but also as a global community, is our diversity. These values are expounded on in The Planet’s August
“Never forget that your obligation is to the people.” - Ben Bagdikian
31 cover story, “The Lasting Bern,” which happened to feature Muldoon, along with the slew of other candidates inspired by Bernie Sanders to run for local office. Indeed, no matter which side of the aisle you stand, there is no denying the story’s newsworthy element—Sanders has emboldened people to take political action in their communities. He has compelled folks to register to vote and to carve inspired new paths into politics. If any other person or party had a candidate that compelled people to action in the way Sanders did, we would find that newsworthy too. In being transparent about my belief system—which I encourage all media outlets to do—it’s worth noting that the values I share with folks like Muldoon do not assure my vote nor do they mean candidates with differing ideals will be silenced or ignored here. Instead The Planet aims to provide readers the unadulterated tools to make their own informed decicions. After all, no American citizen, Bagdikian once wrote, can vote intelligently without knowledge of the ideas, political background, and commitments of each individual candidate. He also noted, however, that this hinges on local media, that national papers and broadcast stations cannot adequately report the issues and candidates in every one of the 65,000 local voting districts. “Only locally based journalism can do it,” he wrote. But if local journalism fails at this, Bagdikian warned, then voters become captives of the only information available, of paid political propaganda, or they become captives to no information at all. I hope you find the information on the following pages useful when making your decision. PJH
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THE BUZZ Battle Royale Jackson mayoral candidates both find themselves under the microscope as the November election nears. BY JAKE NICHOLS
T
he Town of Jackson is getting a taste of big city politics. Mirroring, perhaps, campaigns playing out on the national stage, the race for mayor of a 102-year-old mountain town has taken on negative undertones. The mayoral campaign mudslinging may not be intentional but the race is hardly short on accusations. The incumbent has had to answer to allegations she is too cozy with former and current clients of her PR consulting firm, Flitner Strategies. Her opponent, meanwhile, finds himself under investigation for a potential felony circa 20 some years ago for writing bad checks. With two months to go in the mayoral campaign, things have escalated, or devolved, into a political street fight.
For Pete’s sake Pete Muldoon, 43, was riding high after a strong performance in last month’s primary. The political activist/musician pulled down 780 votes, besting sitting mayor Sara Flitner by 28 tallies. Displeasure with the status quo was augmented by Muldoon’s social media militia—working class followers marching to the beat of his “people first” message. As the valley’s housing crisis intensified, Muldoon co-organized the housing advocacy group Shelter JH and has made housing a key component of his campaign. Then the hammer dropped. Dirt on the challenger surfaced last week. His personal history includes a possible felony conviction from 1996, which per Wyoming law prohibits him from holding office in the state. Muldoon insists a felony for writing bad checks in Louisiana is not on his record. According to Louisiana State statute, first-time felony offenders are entitled to an automatic pardon for certain non-violent crimes with the completion of their sentence. Muldoon, however, believes the case was dismissed. “It was more than 20 years ago, my recollection is that I had deferred adjudication, which means you do not get the sentence, so there is no pardon,” Muldoon said. “The way it
works, if you get a deferred adjudication, they suspend the judgment of the court. If you agree to the terms then they dismiss the case.” That the investigation made front-page news blindsided Muldoon, and he says he is none too thrilled with the reporting. “This story is not about an investigation into my eligibility to run for office. If it was, it would not have included a list of misdemeanors which [the News&Guide] knows have absolutely no bearing on my qualification to run for office,” Muldoon posted on the Jackson Hole Daily’s website. “There is zero public interest served by publishing this story prior to getting the facts right, but as the editor told me yesterday, while it may not be in the public interest, the public is interested—which means it sells ads.” Muldoon is mostly miffed that a story about a 20-year-old bad check case in Louisiana, if newsy enough to warrant headlines questioning his eligibility to run for mayor, should not have included a “piling on” of irrelevant misdemeanor arrests in Teton County. Muldoon also suggested the paper look into his opponent’s personal life as well.
The mayoral corner Flitner acknowledged in 2014, while running for mayor, that she would have to artfully balance her day job with the high office. As a consultant and lobbyist for her own company, the 47-year-old says she has turned away numerous clients to avoid the appearance of impropriety. Bear Development is a Kenosha, Wisconsin, real estate development company headed by SR Mills—a former client of Flitner’s. In 2007 Mills attempted to redo the Painted Buffalo Inn into a 156,000-square-foot luxury hotel. That plan was scrapped after a lawsuit. Mills recently petitioned the town council during its finalization of land development regulations for Jackson’s downtown core. He provided spreadsheet formulas that showed how restrictions were handcuffing developers. The council eventually permitted short-term rentals in certain zones of District 2 including a property dubbed “Jackson’s Hole” (McCabe Corner, 185 N. Glenwood) owned by Mills. That move was met with some criticism. A referendum, resulting in the upcoming special election September 20, was launched by the nonprofit Save Historic Jackson Hole. [Reporter Jake Nichols is the executive director of Save Historic Jackson Hole — Ed.] Rich Bloom also cried foul. The certified financial planner and member of the Town/County Blue Ribbon Panel for Workforce Housing says he has spent more time on the 2012 Comp Plan than any other citizen in the valley. He considers the short-term rental addition a considerable
concession in favor of Mills. Bloom believes the council handed Mills a $3 million gift. Indeed, in Mills’ report to town leaders he stated that tweaking the LDRs would change the project’s profit margin from $29,692 to approximately $3 million during a June 20 Jackson Town Council meeting. The Planet obtained a document from the office of Flitner Strategies that may indicate the mayor’s work with Mills was still ongoing for a seven-month period beginning in April 2014—right up until the day she took office. The News&Guide was apparently in possession of the same document and pressed the mayor for details. “The [News&Guide] has been calling and asking around. I’ve heard the rumors. This is getting out of hand,” Flitner said. “I want to be very clear and upfront. I have nothing to hide. I have given up work for the ethics of my role as mayor.” As for the contract with Mills, Flitner said the 2014 document was neither signed nor executed. She added that the copy of the contract was stolen and leaked by a former disgruntled employee. “There is no contract. There has never been an executed contract. And never a conflict,” Flitner said. “I could have worked through December of [2014] with ease. I just felt like it wouldn’t look right and I didn’t want to come into office, if I were fortunate enough to win, and have to explain things. I wanted it to be clean.” Other relationships of the mayor’s have also been called into question. During a recent approval of a cell tower affiliated with AT&T to be constructed in a church steeple, Flitner’s findings and eventual vote caused additional consternation. Jackson town councilman Jim Stanford was frustrated by the rhetoric from AT&T representatives, which were echoed by the mayor, that public safety was the main concern in providing the town with adequate wireless coverage. “I always get irritated when private business interests are cloaked as public safety concerns. Somehow we all managed to survive before the advent of the cellphone,” Stanford said. “This has nothing to do with bandwidth for emergency personnel. It’s about watching more cat videos.” Stanford eventually flat out asked Flitner, “I presume you are no longer working for AT&T?” Flitner said she wasn’t. “As soon as I was elected mayor, as soon as I was sworn in, my work with AT&T was terminated,” Flitner told The Planet. Flitner says she has done extensive work through her agency with many nonprofits in the valley. She has worked with the Teton County School District and helped facilitate the park’s attempt to purchase state school inholdings in Grand Teton.
Anonymous tip leads to probe
So who tipped off town and county officials as to Muldoon’s potential felony? Flitner says it wasn’t her. “Absolutely not. I had nothing to do with it,” Flitner said. “I was as shocked to read to the news as anyone else.” The Planet, however, managed to track down the origin of the current investigation into Muldoon’s alleged felony record. It came from the Chief of Police. “During a regular weekly supervisor meeting, a supervisor in the department asked me if I was familiar with Mr. Muldoon, about his moving forward in the primary,” Chief Todd Smith told PJH. “Mr. Muldoon had been arrested by our department on a federal offense for commercial burglary. There was a question about a person holding office with a felony conviction.” Smith recalled he was actually the arresting officer on the 2001 case but could not remember the disposition of the case, which was deferred after two years of supervised probation. Smith said the files also indicated an out-of-state conviction on a felony. He felt it his sworn duty to report the information to the town clerk. Acting town clerk Roxanne Robinson said Smith informed her of a prior arrest and criminal matter regarding Muldoon. She personally delivered a handwritten letter to county clerk Sherry Daigle. “Because Pete files his election paperwork with me I thought it was my duty to contact the county clerk and ask her to research it and see whether he was qualified,” Robinson said. “I asked that it be kept confidential because it could have a damaging impact on him as a candidate. I don’t know who spoke to the newspaper. I think it should have stayed confidential because if it turns out he is qualified to run, what good does that serve?” Daigle said her office contacted no one in the press. Smith, too, said it wasn’t his department. In fact, he informed his officers they would be fired if he found out they leaked any information regarding the Muldoon investigation. Deputy prosecutor Becket Hinckley said it wasn’t him, either. “[News&Guide reporter Emily Mieure] came in and asked if I could confirm or deny whether Pete Muldoon was a felon. I said I couldn’t talk to her about it. That was it,” Hinckley said. “I don’t know how they uncovered the Louisiana stuff because I don’t think it was on his original booking sheet and I’ve got the original reports in my office.” As far as how the investigation made it to the newsroom of the News&Guide, no one is saying. PJH
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THE BUZZ 2
Sticks and Stones Wyoming statesmen weigh in on the fate of civility in politics. BY MEG DALY @MegDaly1
A
lan Simpson once complained on Fox News that kids today lack politeness. “Grandchildren now don’t write a thank-you for the Christmas presents, they’re walking on their pants with the cap on backwards listening to the Enema Man and Snoopy Snoopy Poop Dogg,” the former Senator from Wyoming said. On Tuesday, Simpson joins former Wyoming governor Mike Sullivan for a discussion of civility in politics. Though his unadulterated words sometimes get him into trouble, Simpson is known for his bipartisan efforts on Capitol Hill. Sullivan earned his civility creds as U.S. Ambassador to Ireland, where he helped broker the 1998 peace accords. With political civility in sharp decline on the national stage, and hints of scandal haunting local mayoral candidates, Tuesday’s forum on civility comes at an apt time. Moderated by former Wyoming Supreme Court Chief Justice Marilyn Kite, the state luminaries will discuss whether or not civil dialogue can be resuscitated in American politics. “We chose them because one is a Republican and one is a Democrat,” Wyoming Humanities Jackson Outreach Officer Emy diGrappa said. “They have been around a long time to see the ebb and flow of politics, locally and nationally, and even internationally.” The Humanities Council is co-sponsoring the event along with Interconnections
Former Wyoming governor Mike Sullivan and former Wyoming senator Alan Simpson will deliver dialogue on a dying political practice: civility. 21 and Wyoming Public Broadcasting, which will be live-streaming the discussion. DiGrappa says civility is about people having open conversations around critical issues. “That’s what makes a great democracy,” she said. “To be able to look at ourselves and ask ourselves why we believe what we believe and why we do what we do.” According to a recent survey by the Associated Press, 74 percent of Americans think manners and behavior have deteriorated in the United States over the past several decades. A majority of Americans believe politicians should be held to a higher standard of civil behavior, but are not living up to that expectation. “We have seen such a change in our political climate,” diGrappa said. “The nastiness has flown off the scale.” Acerbic behavior has butted its way into the American workplace too. According to a 2013 Harvard Business Review, the United States has seen a dip in workplace civility. The result? The report said creativity and performance suffer in companies where incivility reigns. “Nearly everybody who experiences workplace incivility responds in a negative way, in some cases overtly retaliating,” the report’s authors wrote. “Employees are less creative when they feel disrespected, and many get fed up and leave. About half deliberately decrease their effort or lower the quality of their work.” Town councilor Hailey Morton Levinson says when your work is political, civility is integral to finding solutions and getting things done. “When you are civil toward one another, you can disagree and argue,” Levinson said. “But at the end of the day we were both heard and we can go forward with the best outcome. Maybe I’m not happy with it, but I’m not hurt on a personal level.” Levinson says civility is important in politics because politics run deeper than
face value. “Politics is more than reality TV,” she said. “It guides the laws we live our lives by.” During her four years on the town council, Levinson says the tone has been cordial and her peers wish to work together. She looks forward to Tuesday’s forum as an opportunity to learn how to hone her skills. “I’ll be looking at these two great leaders in this state, and asking how can I better my leadership skills? How can I influence conversation around me?” Tuesday’s speakers are widely esteemed for their ability to rise above name-calling. Former Wyoming Gov. Dave Freudenthal praised Sullivan in The Denver Post: “His relentless efforts to summon the better angels of the human spirit are the trademark of his personal and professional life.” Simpson is regarded as a trusted bipartisan leader, according to the National Institute for Civil Discourse. Most recently, he co-chaired the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform with Democrat Erskine Bowles. Simpson’s civil discourse, however, is a matter of some debate. In 2012, while working with Bowles on fiscal reform, Simpson sent a letter to the California Alliance for Retired Americans, saying, “What a wretched group of seniors you must be to use the faces of the very people that we are trying to save, while the ‘greedy geezers’ like you use them as a tool and a front for your nefarious bunch of crap.” In response, the Alliance sent an open letter to Bowles requesting that he “publicly repudiate Simpson’s mean-spirited and bigoted remarks.” DiGrappa says Simpson’s sense of humor is ultimately disarming. “He can laugh at himself,” she said. “He takes the edge off of things.” Reviving Civility in Politics, 6 p.m. Tuesday at Center for the Arts. $25. PJH
Outstanding in Their Fields
NEWS OF THE
WEIRD
The recently concluded Olympics included a few of the more obscure athletic endeavors (such as dressage for horses and steeplechase for humans), but U.S. colleges compete in even less-heralded “sports,” such as wood chopping, rock climbing, fishing and broomball. University of Alabama, 2015 national football champions, dominates also in the 280-school bass-fishing competition, and New York’s Paul Smith College’s 5,000-student campus raucously cheers its championship log-splitting team (against seven other schools). And Ohio State whipped another football powerhouse, Nebraska, in ice-based broomball.
Why? Because We Can, That’s Why
We now have computer or cellphone apps to, for example, analyze the quality of one’s tongue-kissing; alert you when your zipper is inadvertently down; make a refrigerator also be a stereo and photo album; notify you when you need to drink more water; check the male-female ratio at local bars so, if you’re on the prowl, you can plan your evening efficiently; and reveal whether your partner has had someone else in bed while you were away (via differential contours of the mattress). And then, in August, the creators of the new “South Park” virtual reality game announced that they had figured out how to release a “fart” smell that is crucial to game-players when they put on the VR mask. n Inexplicable: Pizza Hut announced in August that it had finally mastered the technology to turn its cardboard delivery boxes into customers’ workable disk-jockey turntables and will make them available shortly in five stores in the United Kingdom. (Each box has two record decks, a cross-fader, pitch and cue controls, and the ability to rewind.) Music stars P Money and DJ Vectra are featured, and the boxes will sync via Bluetooth to phones and computers.
Compelling Explanations
Steven Scholz was sued for $255,000 in Oregon City, Oregon, in July after he allegedly fired on a family’s house (15 gunshots) and traumatized their young son inside. Scholz explained that he thought the Biblical Rapture had just occurred and that he was the only survivor.
n In July, Ryan Bundy (a leader of the Malheur federal land occupation protest in Oregon in January), exercising his philosophy as a “sovereign,” wrote his judge that he rejects the federal court’s jurisdiction over him in his upcoming trial, but that he would agree to co-operate—provided the government pays him $1 million cash. Bundy (who signs court documents “i; ryan c., man”) said for that sum, he would act as “defendant”—or, as a bonus, if the judge prefers, as “bailiff,” or even as “judge.” (Bundy’s lawyer, not surprisingly, is Bundy.)
Ironies
n Greenland’s first “world-class tourist attraction,” opening in 2020, offers visitors a “stunning view” of the rapidly melting ice sheets from the area’s famous, 250,000-year-old Jakobshavn Glacier. The United Nations-protected site is promoting a “tourist” vista that some call “ground zero for climate change”— and which others hope won’t be completely melted by 2020.
Unclear on the Concept
Third-grade teacher Tracy Rosner filed a lawsuit against the county school board in Miami in July (claiming to be the victim of race and national origin discrimination) after being turned down for a job that required teaching Spanish—because she doesn’t speak Spanish. (Rosner said “non-Hispanics” like her are a minority among Miami schoolteachers and therefore that affirmative-action-style accommodations should have been made for her.) n An Idaho man took his pregnant daughter, 14, and the man who raped her, age 24, to Missouri last year to get married (because of that state’s lenient marriage-age law)—asserting that it is the rapist’s “duty” to marry a girl he gets pregnant. The father now says he was wrong, but an Idaho judge nonetheless sentenced him to 120 days behind bars for endangering his daughter. (The rapist received a 15-year sentence, and the pregnancy ended in miscarriage.)
The Entrepreneurial Spirit
The Tykables “baby store for adults” opened in Mt. Prospect, Illinois, recently and so far has outlasted attempts to shut it down (as being, allegedly, inappropriate for the community). Part of the business model is selling adult diapers for medical needs, but a major clientele is adults with a fetish to be treated like helpless babies—with diapers, clothing, accessories and furniture (oversized high chairs, playpens and cribs). (Though the owner controls store access and has blocked out window views, critics are still uncomfortable explaining the store to their children.)
Recurring Themes
Overenthusiastic Insurance Fraud: A 30-year-old woman, “LTN,” has so far escaped prosecution in Hanoi, Vietnam—because her insurance fraud caper already cost her a third, each, of her left hand and left foot. Those are the parts police said she paid a friend the equivalent of $2,000 to chop off to claim a $157,000 disability- policy payout, according to an August dispatch by Agence France-Presse. n Husband Who Needs to Believe: Police in Hartselle, Alabama, arrested Sarah Shepard for soliciting a hit man to kill her husband, Richard (after police set up an undercover sting, even working with Richard to stage his fake death to convince her that the job was completed). Now, Richard is trying to help Sarah. In August, he asked her judge to reduce her bail, certain that she had been “entrapped” because, for one thing, she could hardly manage a grocery list, much less a murder.
The Passing Parade
A traffic officer in Guelph, Ontario, pulled over a 35-yearold motorist on July 11 traveling 67 mph (108 km/h) in a 45 mph zone—at night on a stretch with no highway lights and no headlights on his vehicle. The stopped driver was given citations even though he pointed out that he was watching the road with a flashlight on his head, held in place by straps. Thanks This Week to John Lafalce, Paul Peterson, and Christina Swanson, and to the News of the Weird Board of Editorial Advisors.
SEPTEMBER 7, 2016 | 9
Recurring Theme: People with too much money have been reported over the years to have paid enormous sums for “prestigious” license plates, usually the lowest-numbered. In China, the number 8 is regarded as lucky, and a man identified only as “Liu” obtained Shanghai province’s plate “88888”—for which he paid the equivalent of $149,000. Shanghaiist.com reported in June that “Lucky” Liu was forced into annoying traffic stops by police eight times the first day because officers
were certain that the plate was bogus.
| PLANET JACKSON HOLE |
n Aman Bhatia, 27, was charged with battery and lewd molestation in July after allegedly groping six women at Disney World’s Typhoon Lagoon water park. Despite witnesses telling police that Bhatia was positioning himself for furtive groping, Bhatia claimed that his glasses were broken and thus he was not aware that women were in his path.
By CHUCK SHEPHERD
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10 | SEPTEMBER 7, 2016
THEM ON US By JAKE NICHOLS
Smile, you’re on web cam OK, why is the cyberspace community so enthralled with the downtown Jackson webcam? The cam, owned by Bob Strobel of See Jackson Hole, went live on July 20 and has since picked up a steady 2,000 or more viewers watching and commenting at any given time. The camera takes an angle looking at town square from the northeast. In view is a rival business webcam provided by Jackson Trading Company with their name blurred out. The SeeJH webcam is all the interweb sensation right now with its own cast of stars including Wormguy, Bike Witch Lady, Green Shirt, Cowboy, Old Couple, and Waldo. None are more popular, however than Red Truck. In fact, a change.org petition has been launched calling for “The First Annual Jackson Hole Red Truck Parade!!” No one is quite sure why the webcam has taken off like it has but some of the organic traffic has now been computed into formulas used by YouTube when it suggests what you might be interested in watching. And guess what it is suggesting? Visit it now. Hurry, you might miss something. YouTube: Jackson Hole Town Square.
NASDAQ, NYSE, DOW, JH It’s not unusual for valley residents to read headlines like the one in NASDAQ.com: “What Jackson Hole means for investors.” After all, we are used to vast wealth that rolls through and sometimes lives here. But how must it read for the rest of the nation, and world, really, to see “Jackson Hole” in reference to money markets and the like? The Federal Reserve symposium wrapped up last month with Fed chair Janet Yellen’s Friday morning keynote address hinting at policy-making interest hikes (possibly by December) in light of the economy’s slow, steady recovery. At this point, the whole annual banking retreat is referred to by most media outlets as “Jackson Hole.”
Palace vs. pup tent Allen Best’s Mountain Town News contained two pieces relevant to Jackson Hole. A write-up of the widening economic gap between the “ultra-wealthy and everybody else,” as Best put it, is to blame largely on Wyoming’s tax-friendly status. “Wyoming has no income tax. Wyoming residents can also create dynasty trusts to shield property from federal estate taxes for up to 1,000 years. The state also has no real estate transfer tax, no estate tax, no tax on out-of-state retirement income,” Best wrote. Real estate agents are hip to the scene as well. A Sotheby’s ad in July read, “Wild, wonderful Wyoming—the tax friendly state,” in large, bold print. The second piece Best penned concerned something very familiar to many Holers. Homeless camping in the forest is on the rise in places throughout the Rocky Mountain West. A wildfire sparked earlier this summer in Colorado revealed scores of homeless people camping on public lands. The numbers are hard to pin down, says Lee Cerveny, a researcher looking into the situation, but her latest count shows a definite upsurge around Crested Butte and Breckenridge. “What is happening, and why are we seeing more people living in the forests?” Cerveny said. “We don’t know yet.” Umm, see the first story.
Art slinging cowboys Wyoming may not be at the top of everyone’s list for states exuding with culture and the arts, but hold on to your ten gallons—the Cowboy State is pretty dang artsy. The National Endowment for the Arts released statistics recently on American participation in the arts and, behold, Wyoming ranked near the top in every category. We go to concerts, theatre performances, and dance recitals (43 percent of us in 2015) at a rate third highest in the country. We also perform or create art (59 percent of us)—good enough for seventh best in the U.S. Certainly Jackson Hole is doing its part to boost the numbers though we were not mentioned in the Casper Star Tribune article last weekend.
Alt-revenue Wyoming is nearly a half-million dollars richer thanks to a suspected drug dealer nabbed for speeding three years ago. Robert Miller, of Des Plaines, Illinois, was pulled over by state troopers for speeding on I-80 in 2013. A search of his car turned up $470,000 in cash, which was seized by the state under its Controlled Substances Act. Miller is fighting the forfeiture but received some bad news last week when State Supreme Court Chief Justice E. James Burke dismissed an appeal from Miller who contends the seizure was unconstitutional. Gov. Matt Mead in 2015 vetoed a bill passed by the state legislature that would have required the state to secure a criminal conviction first before seizing cash and property from suspects. Earlier this year, Mead signed a compromise bill that requires the attorney general to review all seizures. That bill went into effect July 1. PJH
By Natosha Hoduski @natoshahoduski If the Jackson dream is to work from dawn to dusk, locals are achieving it. Holding down four or five jobs, working 90-plus hours a week plays dangerously close to the norm. But what sort of quality of life is that? If the average American works 37 hours a week, how are Jacksonites surviving their 16-hour shifts? How do these wild work hours affect a community? And just how long can these little engines that could keep it up?
The world’s most educated bartenders According to data collected by the U.S. Census, the median income in Jackson is only 18 percent higher than the rest of Wyoming, while the median price of a home is 200 percent higher. On top of the high cost of living, Jackson affords little opportunity for careers in professional fields. But Jackson citizens are by no means ill-equipped to hold jobs in professional fields; U.S. Census data also indicates that nearly 44 percent
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[work a 48-hour shift] so that I have Thursdays off to spend with my girls,” Brown told The Planet, referring to his wife and daughter. “But the problem with that is, I’m so tired I use [Thursdays] to sleep.” Smiths offers him overtime whenever he wants it because there’s always more work to do, but Brown has to draw the line somewhere, and on occasion he has to sleep. Brown’s story might be extreme, but it is not uncommon. Jackson has the lowest unemployment rate in the state, but as unemployment rates have gone down over the past several years, the need for community services has spiked. The Wyoming Department of workforce services lists Teton County as only one of two counties in the state that seen a decrease in unemployment since this time last year, dropping marginally from 2.2 to 2.1 percent this summer. Meanwhile, Jackson’s homeless shelter, the Good Samaritan Mission, has been nearly full every night of the summer, turning people away on many occasions.
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I
t’s 2:30 a.m. as Jacob Brown winds his way down Teton Pass. His knuckles whiten around his second energy drink, fighting off the reins of exhaustion after 48 hours of work. He can’t remember the drive up the pass, can’t remember the flashing, winding curves of the road, can’t remember what speed he’s been going. It’s all one long blur until his attention snaps back: a deer in the road, and he’s there, fully awake again, heart pounding, breath a quick beat as he refocuses on the pavement ahead. Another narrow miss. “What’s that word that’s beyond exhaustion?” Brown joked. “Because that’s where I am all the time. That’s where the whole town is.” Brown just worked four 10-hour shifts in two days. On Sundays and Mondays he works 5 a.m. to 3 p.m. as a bell captain at one of Jackson’s high-end resorts. Then he works at Smiths until 2 a.m. unloading semi-trucks and stocking shelves. Brown works anywhere from 80 to 100 hours a week, depending on the time of year, and that takes a hefty toll on his life and his family. “I
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Jacob Brown and his daughter Orion
of Jackson residents age 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or higher. The rest of Wyoming in the same age group barely reaches the 25 percent mark for collegeeducated adults. However, more than 44 percent of men in Jackson have jobs in construction or the service industry (read: seasonal jobs) and only 3 percent have jobs in what is considered a “professional field.” Holding 9 percent of professional careers, the women of Jackson don’t fare much better. “From dawn until dusk” sounds like an adage for an old farmer making hay while the sun shines, but for some Jackson locals, that’s life, at least eight months of the year anyway. With approximately half of the population seasonally employed, a large portion of the Jackson workforce only has eight or nine months a year to earn a living. The off-season is approaching and Jackson locals, disproportionately a part of the service industry, will be laid off en-masse. Brown, a Vancouver Film School graduate, will maintain his job at Smiths for the off-season, but the hotel he works for completely shuts down for the month of November. Tyler Babcock will find himself in a similar boat when his job as a kayak instructor ends for the season. Babcock has been clocking somewhere in the vicinity of 80 hours a week between his two jobs, but when the summer season concludes his hours will decrease to 12 hours per week at the airport where he is employed part-time. Babcock’s days in the summer are so full he rarely has time off during daylight hours. But even with the lowest unemployment rate in the state, Jacksnoites are still scrambling to pay rent, make
car payments, afford food, and have access to healthcare. “When you have eight W-2s to turn in during tax season, it’s insane that you’re still struggling,” Babcock said.
Live to work Brown has made many sacrifices to keep his family sheltered and fed, but none shake him quite as much as the one he faced on May 24, 2016. After dropping his daughter off at school he got a phone call. “I knew immediately something horrible had happened as I looked at the name on my phone: Gayle Tanner, my father’s girlfriend.” Tanner’s daughter Candace was on the line, and Brown’s heart sank. “Candace is around my age, and we don’t like each other. That’s how I knew something was wrong. Brown’s father had passed away. A very exhausted Brown called his wife to ask her to come home from work. He needed her. He needed her because he had to call his sister to break the news. He needed her because it was too much. He needed her because he was too exhausted to handle it. He needed her because he had just lost the only parent he had left. “I never got to mourn him. I couldn’t afford it,” he said. Brown took a week off from work to pack up 55 years of his father’s life into neat boxes under the Arizona sun. One of his jobs gave him three days of paid leave; on top of that he used all of his vacation days just to have a full paycheck while he buried his father. But now, with the off-season looming, when he is laid off he won’t have any vacation days to pay his wages. When you don’t have time to do anything but work
and sleep you certainly don’t have time to mourn, so Brown says he boxed up the loss of his father beside his father’s belongings. “What makes me saddest is that I brushed [my father’s] death under the rug and then walked on it as I picked people up from airports with a smile and told them how wonderful Jackson is, and how happy our little community is.” Brown’s work schedule is one that Marielle Robinson can relate with. She turned down health insurance at the Spur because she simply did not have any more time to offer. To have health insurance with most companies, an employee needs full-time hours, but because Robinson has four other jobs, she does not have the time or flexibility to receive the benefits. Five jobs seem unreasonable, unnecessary even. But Robinson insists it’s not because she is a wild spender or because she parties. She works long hours to save for a new a car. The old worn out car she was driving became dangerous last winter. The basic need for transportation forced her to take on more work. “I thought to myself, ‘How do I afford this? How am I going to make these car payments? I have to work extra.’” Robinson said that she and her boyfriend hold hands while they sleep because she rarely gets to see him during waking hours. But sometimes, to cut down on the commute between shifts Robinson has been known to sleep in her car. It’s a miracle Robinson gets much sleep with her schedule. She works four nights at the airport, one night at Piste, and two nights at the Spur; she chases balloons for hot air ballooning on the mornings she’s not serving breakfast or working at the airport, and serves lunches at the Wort. When your days are filled with work it leaves little time for simple errands. Babcock’s mornings usually start before the sun rises and don’t end until long after the sun has disappeared. His time is not his own, so when something as relatively simple as a car headlight goes out, it can be inconvenient as well as dangerous. Babcock was pulled over twice for a missing headlight, and both times officers let him off with a warning after they heard his exhausting work schedule. “I just wanted to ask the officer, ‘When will I have time to fix this? When do you think I can get this done?’” Babcock said. As a kayak instructor, Babcock’s days start at 7 a.m., and he works until about 6:30 p.m. before he has a half hour break that gives him just enough time to drive to his second job at the airport from 7 to 11 p.m. Though his night shift often runs much later. When Jackson Chief of Police Todd Smith heard of Babcock’s situation he said, “I am glad that we were empathetic, that means we sized it up properly, but I also worry about the safety of the situation. Eventually the other light goes out too and then you have a major problem.”
Commuting to serve and protect As Smith attests, police officers can empathize just about as well as anyone when it comes to the current worker climate in Jackson. Smith elucidated on issues facing the force from job shortages to Jackson’s increasing cost of living. “We do experience shortages in staffing fairly often,” he said. “We strive to keep positions filled, but what most people don’t realize is when we do lose an employee, it can be nine months to a year before we have their replacement selected due to an extensive background, medical exam, physical exam, psychological exam, polygraph, etc.,” he said.
The vast majority of police officers that serve Jackson cannot afford to live here. Smith said the number one reason officers leave the force is due to long commutes from other communities. “[M]ost often what we hear is the fact that they are burned out on having to commute from either Star Valley or Teton Valley, Idaho,” he said. “Our folks work 12-hour shifts, so add a commute and it becomes a 14-hour day (everyday). A person can only sustain that for so long before they are exhausted. It takes a toll on even the youngest of people in this profession and unfortunately we do not have the staffing levels to support shorter shifts and still maintain adequate staffing.” Smith added that one of his officers has been driving 75 miles one-way to work every day. “One hundred and fifty miles a day to work is tiresome on people,” he said. Come January, the officer will leave the force to find something closer to his home. Another reason the force has a hard time retaining officers? Jackson’s increasingly high cost of living. Smith says many officers live paycheck-to-paycheck trying to make ends meet. “Most of the officers have young families and the daycare costs are more than their spouses make working,” he said. “So they learn to live on one income for those years while their children are young enough to need daycare. The typical officer makes around $1,500 every two weeks, so their rent takes up one entire check, leaving the second check to put gas in the car, insurance, food, car payments, etc.” The police force mirrors much of the middle class in Jackson. Smith reported that between 60 to 70 percent of his officers have second jobs. “They are working security, tow truck drivers, short haul truck drivers, retail, personal trainers, etc.,” he said. “Most of them would have no disposable income to speak of if they did not work a second job to help them out.”
No time to help
“Most of them would have no disposable income to speak of if they did not work a second job.”
manpower of the few in the community with the time or the means to provide it: retirees. And nonprofit staffers throughout the county say they are grateful for their efforts. But sometimes Taylor still has to run food distribution out of her own time, or she has high school students make deliveries that don’t quite meet their age qualifications.
‘We have to do something’
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Babcock said he would love to be more involved in the community. “It would be nice to go to a town council meeting where they’re discussing housing, but when you’re working 80 hours a week, how do you find the time to be a local participant? How can you have your voice heard?” When it comes to volunteering, Babcock tries his best to fit it in wherever he can. “My friend runs the Hole Food Rescue, and I would love to volunteer my time to help them, but when do I do that? I canvassed for one of the county commissioner candidates during my one night a week off. Not to pat myself on the back, but that’s a big sacrifice to make if it’s your only night off.” Robinson echoed the same sentiment: “There was that housing protest, and I wanted to go in March with everyone when they were protesting, but obviously I was working. I would like to get involved more with Hole Food Rescue or Habitat for Humanity, but I just don’t know when I’d do it.” For Jackson mayor Sara Flitner, heavy work loads in the community are a worrisome trend. She has noticed the sacrifices people are required to make just to be a part of her campaign or have their voices heard in the
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students. The JH Food Cupboard and Habitat for It’s not just laborers and civil servants that are Humanity reported similar numbers. Elizabeth Ferguson is the volunteer coordinator for suffering. Community organizations reliant on volunteers Habitat for Humanity. “As far as people just coming in are feeling the strain too. Most of them report having limited volunteer availability from anyone that is a part offering to help, that doesn’t happen very often,” she of the workforce. Instead they have come to rely heavily said. “We only get volunteers that way from retired on retirees and high school students to supplement that people, but not necessarily from the young work force. I guess what I’m trying to say is we don’t get a lot of people shortage. Jenna Marton is the volunteer coordinator for seeking stewardship just for the heck of it—they’re not the Jackson Hole Therapeutic Riding Center. JHTRC volunteering just to volunteer. We do get volunteers through work, or court-mandated provides horseback riding lessons to service, so we don’t usually end up people with emotional, physical, and with a shortage, but we certainly mental disabilities as well as United don’t get as many volunteers in the States veterans. They serve about summer because people are so busy.” 150 riders. But this year it has been The Senior Center’s volunteer more difficult for them than in years pool is comprised almost entirely of past to find volunteers. They rely retirees. Being involved in a nonprofit heavily on the retired community of like the Senior Center gives volunteer Jackson Hole because, as Marton coordinator Bettie Taylor the ability explained, working-class people just to be plugged into the community do not have the time to volunteer. —TODD SMITH, in a way many of her friends cannot “Most of our volunteers are retired be. But she says she still has to make JACKSON CHIEF OF POLICE or people with second homes here,” sacrifices. “Now that I have that Marton said. “A lot of the rest of our second job, I don’t volunteer as much. volunteers will live in Jackson for a few years before they have to move to Idaho or away for I used to volunteer at the Jackson Hole Cupboard, and that would be the way I stayed involved, but now I can’t good [because of housing].” The Therapeutic Riding Center is not an exception as much.” Taylor helps organize food deliveries to homebound when it comes to retirees carrying the weight of the volunteer community. The Teton Literacy Center seniors, puts on events for the elderly community, and reported that more than 25 percent of their volunteers directs community outreach events for the Senior Center. are retirees, and another 25 percent are high school All of these activities are driven predominantly by the
Marielle Robinson
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Tyler Babcock
and mortar housing. Winter camping in the fourth coldest city in the United States isn’t really an option. According to Erickson, this causes an influx of people with no place to go. Erickson reported that the need for services at places like the Community and Latino Resource Centers has increased every year she has worked there, and meeting those needs has become more and more difficult. But even with wild work schedules, Erickson thinks that rather than suppressing voices, sheer desperation is driving people toward community involvement. “I think the voice of the community is a really complex issue, and what I’m seeing is a little bit unexpected. Because people are so desperate they don’t have much to lose. They’re thinking, “We have to do something,” so they’re finding the time. We have people going to various council meetings and candidate forums in greater number even though they’re working long, long hours,” Erickson said. “At our forums we provide childcare and food and try to fit it into people’s lives the best we can. We try to make it as easy as possible for people to show up. So I think overall it’s a little bit of the opposite; people are overextended and forcing themselves to find the time to be heard.”
Homeless in the Hole
community. “The working parents and single moms humble me the most, and have the hardest struggles,” Flitner told The Planet. “They barely have time to get food on the table and sleep. We have to keep working to speak their truth, and that is why safe, affordable rental housing is so important.” Sometimes, no matter how much citizens want to, Flitner recognizes that some folks simply cannot find the time to participate. “I also remember all the people who are not in the room, who aren’t the squeaky wheel because they are working or raising a family, or both,” she said. “They are holding down jobs and helping kids grow up, and I try to think about what they need with every vote I take. We are lucky to live in a town small enough to see each other up close. If you don’t see how hard it is for our service workers, especially single moms, you’re blind.” When it comes to remembering the voiceless Flitner and mayoral candidate Pete Muldoon are on the same page. Muldoon acknowledges that running for mayor wouldn’t be possible if he was not in a very specific position in life. “I own my own business, so my hours are at least flexible. I’m not married. I don’t have a mortgage or a car payment, or young children to take care of. As difficult as this is, it would be much harder for many people.” Muldoon understands wholeheartedly that even campaigning for him is a huge sacrifice for most people. Most of his campaigners hold down two or three jobs, and are sacrificing what little free time they have just to be a part of the political process. As the housing crisis deepens, Muldoon hopes to bridge the gap for those
who cannot speak out for themselves, due to time restrictions, heavy workloads, and exhaustion. “If you can’t make it to a council meeting you really won’t be heard. Developers consider council meetings to be part of their job. If they can’t make it, they’ll have a lobbyist there [to make sure their positions are acknowledged]. We saw this clearly with Shelter JH’s rally of 100plus citizens to protest the increased lodging proposal. They won, but didn’t have time to keep coming back. The developers did [have time], however, and as soon as the protesters went back to doing the real work in town, the council reversed the decision.” Muldoon and Flitner both work jobs outside of their campaigns that help support their candidacy. “This campaign came during the height of my busy season,” Flitner said. “It left me no time for a personal life or, really, anything other than work and [my] campaign. Because I had very little money I couldn’t hire people to do organizational work for me. And it’s a lot of work.” Flitner is proud of just how hard the community works to make sure the voiceless are heard. She pointed to the volunteers and advocates at the Food Cupboard, Hole Food Rescue, One22, Community Safety Network, and Teton Youth and Family Services. “These people set an example for us all in working together to serve and get results. Our community really cares.” Going into the shoulder season, Mary Erickson of One22, formerly the Community and Latino Resource Centers, says it’s about to be the most stressful time of year for many residents. Winters aren’t like the summers when living out of cars is a feasible alternative to brick
For some, holding down multiple jobs doesn’t ward of homelessness. Brad Christensen of the Good Samaritan Mission says that Jackson’s homeless population is not what you would consider typical. “The homeless in Jackson are different,” he said. “They all have jobs. But we’re still busy all of the time. We also do free community meals, because you realize even if they do have housing, the rent is so steep it’s the difference between making rent and eating sometimes.” Homelessness has become so commonplace it is a rite of passage for many workers in the valley. The Teton County Needs Assessment reported that in 2010, 128 clients at the Community Resource Center were homeless at the time of intake. In 2014 the entire state of Wyoming reported a total homeless population of 1,024. For a town that makes up less than three percent of the entire population of Wyoming, that’s a high rate of homelessness. And it’s affecting people across the spectrum. Thirty-five percent of the homeless are over the age of 50, the report found; 27 percent had lived in the valley for more than 10 years and 10 percent had lived in the valley more than 20 years. Teton County does not have any new data to report, but the housing crisis continues to worsen. According to Christensen, this trend has skyrocketed in recent years. In 2010 nightly stays at the mission clocked in at 7,210. Last year they hit 11,715. For 2016, they are well on track to reach more than 12,000. The mission is also seeing a higher demand for its free meals. Last year they provided 15,509 meals and gave away about 28,900 food boxes to locals who came in for free food. For 2016 Christensen says they are expected to provide closer to 19,000 meals. That’s a 22 percent increase in one year. Christensen worries there is no way of knowing exactly how many people the housing crisis has left homeless in Jackson Hole. “I know a lot of people car camp in Jackson, but a lot of local authorities look the other way because they understand the situation. But as far as numbers, I don’t think there is any way to gauge it,” he said.
Help (always) wanted Mad River Boat Trips has been allowing their employees to use their parking lot as a shelter this summer, and front office manager Tamera Erekson says it’s the only reason they still have any employees at all. “I think that we definitely would [face a worker shortage] if we hadn’t opened the parking area,” she told The Planet. It’s now low season for whitewater rafting, and Erekson reports that nearly everyone that is still working for the company actually lives on site. According to the Jackson Chamber of Commerce, Jackson’s hotel occupancy rates increased 5 percent this summer compared to 2015 (already a record-breaking year for tourism). Busy summer hours and a hectic, unpredictable work schedule have kept Erekson from being able to find a second job; even as the front office manager of Mad River, she still struggles in Jackson’s expensive clime. To make up for the income gap, Erekson joins her fellow coworkers as a car-camper in the parking lot. Mad River provides an outdoor shower for its employees as well as a communal area in its garage and laundry facilities. “We have laundry facilities even though I know a lot of people use the laundromat, because they don’t want to have to wait in line for our machines,” she quipped. Erekson is positive this will continue to be a problem long into the future as the housing crisis intensifies and the job market expands. “I’ve already heard from a few of them that they won’t come back unless they have an actual place to live. I think this year we got lucky with the employees we got, and that we got to keep them, but eventually employees aren’t going to be willing to live in their cars just to work here.”
A saturated job market has affected just about every aspect of the tourism industry. There are more than 140 job listings in newspaper help wanted pages, some of them containing multiple job openings. The Airport board has openings listed in the paper for more than a year for airport security staff. High-end hotels like Amangani and the Four Seasons have perpetual listings for a plethora of positions, not to mention local businesses at businesses such as Bootbarn and Teton Gravity Research. The school district needs everything from coaches and teachers to bus drivers and office assistants. The barrage of job openings is endless, but few organizations can offer citizens housing, or even the ability to work just one job. For Brown, the Jackson dream aside, his great hope is that he can take care of his daughter, his wife, and their new baby on the way, and he is willing to make whatever sacrifices necessary to do that. With the loss of his father still weighing heavy on him, Brown says his father has done the same for him. In death, Brown’s father’s life insurance policy will be distributed this upcoming week, and Brown will be able to pay off his home. He is hopeful that this will ease the workload he has taken on. “In the end [my father’s] death gave my family and I an opportunity to take a deep breath and be together a few more days a week.” PJH
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CULTURE KLASH Monsters in Your Head Two new exhibits provide visionary respite from the hustle of Fall Arts Fest during Palates & Palettes. BY MEG DALY @MegDaly1
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wiggly gaggle of fearsome creatures snuck out of the woods and are now lurking around the Center for the Arts Glenwood lobby. Printmaker Walt Gerald spent the past few months working with kids at JH Discovery Preschool creating “Creatures of the Caldera,” an art exhibition of imaginary beasts. You can meet the monsters and their creators Friday during the Palates & Palettes gallery walk. The myth of the Enchanted Forest has captivated child and adult minds across the globe for centuries. Inspired by his two young daughters, Gerald invited young artists to help him catalog some of the lesser-known creatures living in Wyoming’s enchanted forests. “I took a backseat creatively and let the kids come up with imaginary creatures living around us that we might not be able
The Light Above
K
athryn Mapes Turner remembers a quote she heard years ago: “In Wyoming, one doesn’t have to look up to see the sky.” The nationally recognized local artist shares her vision of looking out at the sky, across the high desert of Wyoming horizons, in a new show at the Center for the Arts. “What the Sky Holds” hangs through September 19 in the Center Theater Gallery. The show features six 53- by 53-inch oil on rag paper paintings, or what the artist calls “windows,” that she hopes will inspire viewers to experience the gallery space in an imaginative way. Several smaller pieces accompany the large pieces. “I love the idea of being surrounded by these paintings, just like we are surrounded by skies,” Turner said. “The sky is around us, it’s not above us. It holds us.” The featured paintings range in color and style—some include trees on the horizon, some not. A few offer an expressionistic rendering of a rainstorm. Colors vary,
to see,” Gerald said. He then made simplified drawings of each creature and printed his interpretation of the children’s art on maps of Yellowstone and other nearby areas. The final show is comprised of eight companion pieces, the children’s original drawings, plus Gerald’s minimalist renditions. “The kids’ drawings are colorful and detailed, so I didn’t want to overpower their images,” Gerald said. The creatures included a two-headed monster who’s separate heads sleep on different levels of a bunk bed. Goosey Lady Bug Creature is on display, as well as Scribble Guy with Lots of Short Legs. Mr. Triangle Guy has four arms and hands— according to his creator he has a beard that needs shaving and his favorite food is eggs. “In this show, Walt is fostering and working with preschoolers to unleash their imaginations and artistic sides,” said Carrie Richer, the Center’s Creative Initiatives Coordinator. “But he would tell you that it is the kids that are unleashing new things within his artistic process.” Gerald says that because children’s minds are not crowded with adult responsibilities and stressors, they have more direct access to their imaginations. “Their train of thought is so much more creative than ours.” Gerald’s observations echo the wisdom of one of the world’s greatest minds, Albert Einstein, who said, “To stimulate creativity, one must develop the childlike inclination for play.” from a tea-stained monochrome of a winter sky to pastel apricot clouds against pastel blue sky. Light bursts, hovers, dissipates. The overall effect of the paintings together is at once meditative and exhilarating. Turner grew up captivated by Wyoming skies and remembers many family trips back and forth from Cheyenne when her father was a state senator. “The sky has shaped me,” she said. “This work is unlike Turner’s recent artwork,” Richer said. “It is lighter, more contemporary and is very playful.” According to Richer, Turner created the paintings with the Center in mind. “She was excited about the work being here, where arts, imagination and creativity happen every day,” Richer said. Turner has had this show in mind for a while. Inspired by abstract expressionist painters Mark Rothko, Richard Diebenkorn, and Helen Frankenthaler, she wanted a chance to play with her style and her materials. She returned to watercolor technique, where she got her start, but now with 20 years of experience as an oil painter. “I have so much struggle settling into a style,” she said. “When I look at the paintings in this show I see a great amount of variety. That’s who I am.”
Pieces by Walt Gerald and the work of some imaginative young pupils coalesce for ‘Creatures of the Caldera,’ opening Friday at Center for the Arts. As arts funding in schools is continuously slashed, artists like Gerald are jumping in to ensure that kids get to draw and play creatively as much as possible. A nationwide group of artists started The Monster Project to do something very similar to Gerald. They take children’s drawings of monsters and reinterpret them in their adult artist styles. According to the Monster Project website, the artists “hope to help [kids] recognize the value of their ideas and make them feel excited about the potential of their own minds.” But as Gerald can attest, it is not just kids who benefit from this kind of collaborative
creative process. Adults stand to gain a much-needed new perspective on what’s possible. “For my day job, I’m always getting direction from clients,” Gerald said. “‘Creatures of the Caldera’ is the most off the wall project I’ve gotten to work on.” The “Creatures of the Caldera” exhibition is on display in the Center for the Arts Glenwood Lobby and Conference Room until October 14. Opening reception 5 to 6:30 p.m. Friday, September 9 during Palates & Palettes with catering by Bad Doughnut. PJH
Also premiering Friday—the vast Wyoming sky is the focus of Kathryn Mapes Turner’s new show, ‘What the Sky Holds.’ The artist feels that the variety in her work mirrors the landscapes that surround her. “The sky is always changing; the seasons are always changing. Dynamic natural forces are all around us.” “What the Sky Holds” by Kathryn Mapes Turner is on display in the Center for the
Arts Theater Gallery until September 19. Opening reception 5 to 6:30 p.m. Friday, September 9 during Palates & Palettes with catering by Bad Doughnuts. Turner gives an artist’s talk noon on Thursday, September 8, at the Center Theater Gallery. PJH
THIS WEEK: September 7-13, 2016
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 7
n KHOL Presents: Vinyl Night 8:00pm, The Rose, Free, 307733-1500 n Isaac Hayden 8:00pm, Mangy Moose, Free, 307-733-4913 n Songwriter’s Alley Open Mic 8:00pm, Silver Dollar Showroom, Free, 307-732-3939 n Walker Williams 9:00pm, Million Dollar Cowboy Bar, $5.00, 307-733-2207 n Cycles 10:00pm, Town Square Tavern, Free, 307-733-3886
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 8
n Jackson Hole Fall Arts Festival Various Locations, 307-7333316 n American Indian Guest Artist 8:00am, Colter Bay Visitor Center, Free, 307-739-3594 n Dance & Fitness Classes All Day 8:00am, Dancers’ Workshop, $10.00 - $16.00, 307-733-6398 n Yoga 9:00am, Teton Recreation Center, $8.00, 307-739-9025 n Drawing and Painting the Animal 9:00am, Art Association of Jackson Hole, $350.00, 307733-6379 n Historic Miller Ranch Tour 10:00am, National Elk Refuge, Free, 307-733-9212 n Toddler Time 10:05am, Teton County Library Youth Auditorium, Free, 307733-2164 n Walking Tour of Jackson 10:30am, Center of Town Square, Free, 307-733-2141 n Storytime 10:30am, Teton County Library Youth Auditorium, Free, 307733-2164 n Spin 12:10pm, Teton Recreation Center, $8.00, 307-739-9025 n Murie Center Ranch Tour 2:30pm, Murie Center, Free, 307-739-2246 n Covered Wagon Cookout 4:15pm, Bar T 5, $37.00 $45.00, 307-733-5386 n Adobe Photoshop 5:00pm, CWC-Jackson, $200.00, 307-733-7425
SEPTEMBER 7, 2016 | 17
SEE CALENDAR PAGE 19
n Covered Wagon Cookout 4:15pm, Bar T 5, $37.00 $45.00, 307-733-5386 n Back to School Open House 5:00pm, Teton County Library Youth Auditorium, Free, 307733-2164 n Helen Durant: New Works, Opening Reception 5:00pm, The Tram Club, Free, 307-733-0905 n Bar J Chuckwagon Supper 5:30pm, Bar J, $25.00 - $35.00, 307-733-3370 n Survivors of Suicide Loss Support Group 6:00pm, St. John’s Medical Center Eagle Classroom, Free, 307-690-5419 n Barbara Trentham Life Drawing 6:00pm, Art Association of Jackson Hole, $10.00, 307733-6379 n Wednesday Community Dinner 6:00pm, Presbyterian Church of Jackson Hole, Free, 307734-0388 n Byron’s Guitar at Jenny Lake Lodge 6:00pm, Jenny Lake Lodge, Free, 307-733-4647 n Cribbage 6:00pm, Valley of the Tetons Library, Free, 208-787-2201 n Adult Writer’s Workshop 6:00pm, Valley of the Tetons Library Victor, Free, 208-7872201 n Disc Golf Doubles 6:00pm, Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, 307-733-2292 n Snow King Hill Climb to Honor Emergency Responders Lost on 9/11 6:00pm, Snow King Mountain, Free, 307-733-4732 n Introductory, Conversational Spanish 6:00pm, CWC-Jackson, $110.00, 307-733-7425 n Embracing Change 6:00pm, Spirit Books, Gift, life., $15.00, 307-733-3382 n The Ballad of Cat Ballou 6:30pm, JH Playhouse, $35.00 - $65.00, 307-733-6994 n The HOF BAND plays POLKA! 6:30pm, The Alpenhof Bistro, Free, 307-413-1348
Compiled by Caroline LaRosa
| PLANET JACKSON HOLE |
n Jackson Hole Fall Arts Festival Various Locations, 307-7333316 n Yoga 7:00am, Teton Recreation Center, $8.00, 307-739-9025 n American Indian Guest Artist 8:00am, Colter Bay Visitor Center, Free, 307-739-3594 n Dance & Fitness Classes All Day 8:00am, Dancers’ Workshop, $10.00 - $16.00, 307-733-6398 n Toddler Gym 8:30am, Teton Recreation Center, $4.00, 307-739-9025 n Drawing and Painting the Animal 9:00am, Art Association of Jackosn Hole, $350.00, 307733-6379 n Historic Miller Ranch Tour 10:00am, National Elk Refuge, Free, 307-733-9212 n Storytime 10:00am, Valley of the Tetons Library Victor, Free, 208-7872201 n Walking Tour of Jackson 10:30am, Center of Town Square, Free, 307-733-2141 n Lap Sit 11:00am, Valley of the Tetons Library, Free, 208-787-2201 n Western Visions Jewelry & Artisan Luncheon 11:00am, The Lodge Conference Center, $135.00, 307-7325412 n Total Fitness 12:10pm, Teton Recreation Center, $8.00, 307-739-9025 n Open Build 1:00pm, Valley of the Tetons Library, Free, 208-354-5522 n Ceramics Class for Seniors 1:00pm, Art Association of Jackson Hole, Free, 307-7336379 n Murie Center Ranch Tour 2:30pm, Murie Center, Free, 307-739-2246 n JH People’s Market 4:00pm, The Base of Snow King, Free n Free Solar Astronomy Program 4:00pm, JH People’s Market at the Base of Snow King, Free, 307-413-4779
| PLANET JACKSON HOLE |
18 | SEPTEMBER 7, 2016
MUSIC BOX
Acoustic Monsters and Soul Queens Keller Williams & Leo Kottke co-bill & collaboration; Sharon Jones funks-up the Pink Garter BY AARON DAVIS @ScreenDoorPorch
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n awe of performing with his hero Leo Kottke, Keller Williams said, “I have many heroes but very few who are in the solo acoustic guitar world. Leo is definitely on the top of that short list. This is one of those shows that I’m excited to get into for free.” No doubt, Mr. Williams. And He is opening for You.
Keller Williams hits the road with Leo Kotke this week. First stop: Jackson Hole. Nuances aside, this is a co-bill that will feature solo sets from each artist along with collaboration, and the latter certainly coerces a high level of curiosity. After a short run of dates last spring, the duo of ridiculous finger-style guitarists have announced about seven dates through spring of 2017, the first of which will be downtown at the Center for the Arts. Two-time Grammy nominee Leo Kottke is a living legend of instrumental-based acoustic guitar virtuosity. Kottke performed at the Center Theater in 2008 and again in 2011, among at least one earlier performance at the Pink Garter Theatre. His witty storytelling is but a bookend to what has been a prosperous recording and touring career since 1968, when he put out the seminal album 12-String Blues. That was not long after the Minneapolis college dropout (the same starting point as Bob Dylan) started playing at the Minneapolis Scholar Coffee House. What makes Kottke’s singular playing so awe-inspiring is the unpredictable nature of his ensemble style solo escapades, which incorporates staccato, syncopated, rippling alternate bass and treble lines with remarkable harmonic and percussive effects. He’s also charmingly
informal a la Mr. Doc Watson, one of his many influences that also includes John Fahey. “I’m nuts about the guitar. It’s been my whole life since I was eleven,” Kottke has said in previous interviews. “Before I play, I’m playing. After I play, I’m playing.” In comparison, Keller Williams has created his ensemble, one-man-band performances via precision looping, or “live phrase sampling,” in which he multi-tracks multiple guitar lines and/or incorporates bass guitar, drums, percussion and more. I first encountered Williams courtesy of a 1997 cassette tape bootleg of him playing a coffee shop in Florida. Then, in 2002, he played the Mangy Moose, just a few years after he made the transition from simplified acoustic guitarist and singer-songwriter to one-man jam band. His ever-shifting style modulates within funk, jazz, bluegrass, reggae, techno-grass, and electronica, and he has showcased this through myriad performances in and around the Tetons. Williams may have the most side projects of any solo artist working today—Keller & The Keels, KW Trio featuring Rob Wasserman and Rodney Holmes, six-piece More Than a Little, Grateful Grass, and KWahtro featuring
WEDNESDAY Cycles (Town Square Tavern), Songwriter’s Alley Open Mic ft. Joe Rudd (Silver Dollar) THURSDAY Sista Otis (Town Square Tavern) FRIDAY Mosquitos in Heat (Town Square Tavern) SATURDAY Kurt Van Meter (Silver Dollar), WYOBASS (Town Square Tavern) SUNDAY Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings with Acoustic Weapons (Pink Garter Theatre)
Grammy nominated Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings funk it up at the Pink Garter Sunday. Gibb Droll, Danton Boller, Holmes, and Zach Deputy. Most recently, the independent recording artist released Bluhm, a five-track EP benefitting fellow musician Tim Bluhm of The Mother Hips. Williams is a longtime fan of Bluhm. Inspired by his plight, he decided to record all Bluhm songs and donate 100 percent of the net proceeds to his medical fund. For this show, Williams will return to his roots with just an acoustic guitar, no loops. Kottke takes the stage first. An evening with Keller Williams and Leo Kottke, 8 p.m. Thursday, September 8 at Center Theater. $59-$69. JHCenterForTheArts.org, 733-4900.
Visceral rhythm and soul Sharon Jones is a survivor. After recovering from a 2013 cancer diagnosis, the 60-year-old vocalist was well enough to record the next Dap-Kings album, Give the People What They Want, which earned a Grammy nomination in 2014 for Best R&B Album. Jones was also the focal point of the film Miss Sharon Jones! which debuted at the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival. Unfortunately, Jones revealed
at the screening that her cancer had returned but defiantly added, “I’m gonna keep fighting, we got a long way to go.” She’s been coined a female version of James Brown, and coincidentally (or not), they’re both from Augusta, Georgia. Launching a late career that has added richness and texture to her sound, Jones didn’t cut her first record until she was 40 years old. She spent much of her adult life playing weddings and serving as a corrections officer. Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings have since traveled the world for more than a decade, blowing minds as an 11-piece funk-threaded soul band that has risen to the top of the latest generation of retro acts. Prepare for lift off. Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings with Acoustic Weapons, 8:30 p.m. Sunday at the Pink Garter Theatre. $53. PinkGarterTheatre.com, 733-1500. PJH
MONDAY JH Hootenanny (Center Theater) TUESDAY One Ton Pig (Silver Dollar)
Aaron Davis is a decade-long writer of Music Box, a singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, member of Screen Door Porch and Boondocks, founder/host of Songwriter’s Alley, and co-founder of The WYOmericana Caravan.
n Splash and Go Thursdays 6:00pm, Wilson Bridge, Free, 307-733-3270 n The Ballad of Cat Ballou 6:30pm, JH Playhouse, $35.00 $65.00, 307-733-6994 n JH Community Band Rehearsal 7:00pm, Center for the Arts Performing Arts Wing, Free, 307200-9463 n Major Zephyr 7:30pm, Silver Dollar Showroom, Free, 307-732-3939 n Ian McIver 8:00pm, Mangy Moose, Free, 307-733-4913
n The Center Presents An Evening with Keller Williams and Leo Kottke 8:00pm, The Center Theater, $57.00 - $67.00, 307-733-4900 n Salsa Night 9:00pm, The Rose, Free, 307733-1500 n Walker Williams 9:00pm, Million Dollar Cowboy Bar, $5.00, 307-733-2207 n Sista Otis 10:00pm, Town Square Tavern, Free, 307-733-3886
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 9
n Jackson Hole Fall Arts Festival Various Locations, 307-733-3316
n American Indian Guest Artist 8:00am, Colter Bay Visitor Center, Free, 307-739-3594 n Dance & Fitness Classes All Day 8:00am, Dancers’ Workshop, $10.00 - $16.00, 307-733-6398 n Toddler Gym 8:30am, Teton Recreation Center, $4.00, 307-739-9025 n Portrait Drawing Club 9:00am, Art Association of Jackson Hole, $10.00, 307-7336379 n Yoga 9:00am, Teton Recreation Center, $8.00, 307-739-9025 n Drawing and Painting the Animal 9:00am, Center for the Arts, $350.00,
n Western Visions Paintings, Sculptures, and Sketch Show & Sale 9:00am, National Museum of Wildlife Art, 307-732-5412 n Historic Miller Ranch Tour 10:00am, National Elk Refuge, Free, 307-733-9212 n Honoring the Past, Celebrating the Future 10:30am, St. John’s Medical Center, Free, 307-739-7493 n Zumba 12:00pm, Teton Recreation Center, $8.00, 307-739-9025 n Total Fitness 12:10pm, Teton Recreation Center, $8.00, 307-739-9025 n Murie Center Ranch Tour 2:30pm, Murie Center, Free, 307-739-2246
n Palates and Palettes 3:00pm, National Museum of Wildlife Art, Free, 307-732-5412 n Electronics/Tech 3:30pm, Valley of the Tetons Library, Free, 208-787-2201 n Free Friday Tasting 4:00pm, Jackson Whole Grocer, Free, 307-733-0450 n Friday Tastings 4:00pm, The Liquor Store of Jackson Hole, Free, 307-7334466 n Covered Wagon Cookout 4:15pm, Bar T 5, $37.00 $45.00, 307-733-5386 n Claire Brewster: A Conference of Birds, Opening Reception 5:00pm, Diehl Gallery, Free, 307-733-0905
SEPTEMBER 7, 2016 | 19
n REFIT® 5:15pm, First Baptist Church, Free, 307-690-6539 n Bar J Chuckwagon Supper 5:30pm, Bar J, $25.00 - $35.00, 307-733-3370 n Zumba 5:30pm, Teton Recreation Center, $8.00, 307-739-9025 n Bilingual Back-to-School Open House 5:30pm, Teton County Library Youth Auditorium, Free, 307733-2164 n Whiskey Experience 6:00pm, VOM FASS Jackson Hole, Free, 307-734-1535 n Byron’s Guitar at Jenny Lake Lodge 6:00pm, Jenny Lake Lodge, Free, 307-733-4647
| PLANET JACKSON HOLE |
SEE CALENDAR PAGE 21
| PLANET JACKSON HOLE |
20 | SEPTEMBER 7, 2016
WELL, THAT HAPPENED SATURDAY & SUNDAY BRUNCH 10:30am - 3:00pm Bottomless Mimosas & Bloody Marys $15
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ONE TON PIG In the Wort Hotel • 307-732-3939 Music Schedule at worthotel.com
Settle Down, Cozy Up The perfect reads for brisk fall weather. BY ANDREW MUNZ @AndrewMunz
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ummer is a busy time for everyone, and I too will admit I did not accomplish as much as I wanted. From the live music to the river sessions, our schedules get so jam-packed that it’s hard to find for solo pondering. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard someone say the phrase, with a sigh, “There’s just so much going on.” But even though our off-season has been more or less snatched from us and the town still has plenty of folks stumbling through the crosswalks with slackjawed expressions, we’re slowly entering a period of quiet. This long awaited respite will free us up for all those projects and novels we’ve been putting off since Josie’s Ridge opened. I’ve been working part-time at Valley Bookstore for roughly 10 years, on and off, and I absolutely love writing up “Staff Picks” leaflets. These picks are meant to alert meandering book hunters of awesome reads that might have evaded the bestseller lists. Since I’m currently imbibing my first Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Latte of the season, (#psl4life #whitegirlsquad) I thought it only fitting that I assemble a small list of excellent reads now that it’s a bit cooler and indoor smelly candles are back in style. First off, the one book I tend to thrust in everyone’s hands regardless of the season is We, The Drowned by Carsten Jensen. This thick, literary epic chronicling the coastal town of Marstel, Denmark, is nothing short of brilliant. Packed with characters, juggling different genres and time periods, this high-seas adventure is one that is unrivaled in its ability to captivate readers. I recently just finished To the Bright Edge of the World by Eowyn Ivey, and I cannot recommend it enough. Told through journal entries, newspaper clippings and photos, it’s the ultimate historical love story, chronicling the adventures of a stalwart explorer heading up Alaska’s Wolverine River Valley in 1885 and the ambitious wife he leaves behind. Fans of Ivey’s first book, The Snow Child, will not be disappointed with this high-concept endeavor. As I slowly catch up on all the TV I missed while I was enjoying the sunshine this summer, Outlander is a show in particular that has me completely hooked. I’ve now begun reading the eight-book
A hysterical page-turner, The Gentleman by Forrest Leo pairs well with pumpkin lattes and autumn days of leisure. Outlander Series by Diana Gabaldon. Initially, I figured a historical Scottish romance about a WWII nurse who travels back in time to 1700s Scotland wouldn’t really be up my alley. But sure enough, I’m consumed by it. Yes, it’s flowery, yes there’s more nipple play than I expected, but the epic scale and multi-layered characters will no doubt ensnare anyone looking for something to occupy their fall, winter and probably even spring. In terms of books for younger readers, The Wild Robot by Peter Brown is so insanely good that I would actually recommend it for readers of any age. When a robot named ROZZUM Unit 7134 crash lands on an island, she befriends the animals who have made their homes there. Roz learns that her technological abilities are useless in the real world and she relies on her new friends to help her survive the wilderness and find a way back home. A new favorite of mine is Forrest
Leo’s debut The Gentleman, a Victorianera adventure if Lizzie Bennet were held hostage by David Lynch and Mel Brooks. Hilarious, devious, and totally entertaining, it’s not one to miss. There are a handful of books that have yet to be released that I’m keeping my eye on as well. T.C. Boyle’s newest The Terranauts (10/25) is the literary author’s first venture into sci-fi, and deals with a group of scientists that are sent to an offworld colony on a research mission. Swing Time by Zadie Smith (11/15) is no doubt going to be another powerhouse tome from the English writer, as it touches upon the friendship and rivalry between two female dancers of color as they navigate the 21st century. My new book appetite is insatiable and as summer slips out of our hands, I can’t wait to light up those candles, cozy up on a couch and start ignoring the outside world. Well, at least more than I already do. PJH
SEE CALENDAR PAGE 22 n Palates & Palettes Gallery Walk 5:00pm, Art Association Gallery, Free, 307-733-6379 n Creatures of the Caldera Exhibition 5:00pm, The Center Glenwood Lobby, Free, 307-733-4900 n Kathryn Mapes Turner Exhibition 5:00pm, The Center Theater Gallery, Free, 307-733-4900 n Bar J Chuckwagon Supper 5:30pm, Bar J, $25.00 - $35.00, 307-733-3370 n Friday Night Meditation 6:00pm, Zendler Chiropractic, Free, 307-699-8300
n Whiskey Experience 6:00pm, VOM FASS Jackson Hole, Free, 307-734-1535 n Byron’s Guitar at Jenny Lake Lodge 6:00pm, Jenny Lake Lodge, Free, 307-733-4647 n Papa Chan and Johnny C Note 6:00pm, Teton Pines Country Club, Free, 307-413-1348 n JHW Kidlit/YA Critique Group 6:00pm, Center for the Arts, Free, n The Ballad of Cat Ballou 6:30pm, JH Playhouse, $35.00 $65.00, 307-733-6994
n Pam Drews Phillips Plays Jazz 7:00pm, The Granary at Spring Creek Ranch, Free, 307-7338833 n Kurt Van Meter 7:30pm, Silver Dollar Bar, Free, 307-733-2190 n Walker Williams 9:00pm, Million Dollar Cowboy Bar, $5.00, 307-733-2207 n Free Public Stargazing 9:30pm, Rendezvous Park, Free, 307-413-4779 n Friday Night DJ 10:00pm, The Rose, Free, 307733-1500
n Mosquitos in Heat @ Heat 10:00pm, Town Square Tavern, Free, 307-733-3886 n Teton Ragnar Grand Targhee Resort, 307353-2300
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 10
n Jackson Hole Fall Arts Festival Various Locations, 307-733-3316 n JH Farmers Market 8:00am, Town Square, Free, 307-413-6323 n American Indian Guest Artist 8:00am, Colter Bay Visitor Center, Free, 307-739-3594
n Dance & Fitness Classes All Day 8:00am, Dancers’ Workshop, $10.00 - $16.00, 307-733-6398 n Jackson Hole One Fly 8:30am, Snake River n Wyoming Concealed Carry Class with Shepard Humphries 9:00am, JHGC, $145.00, 307690-7921 n REFIT® 9:00am, Dancers’ Workshop, $10.00 - $20.00, 307-733-6398 n Artists in the Environment 9:00am, Menor’s Ferry Historical District, GTNP, Free,
n Historic Miller Ranch Tour 10:00am, National Elk Refuge, Free, 307-733-9212 n Old Bill’s Fun Run 10:00am, Town Square, Free, 307-739-1026 n Wild West Skateboard Contest Series Finals 1:30pm, Jackson Hole Skatepark, 307-733-6433 n LoToJa Bike Race 2:30pm, Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, 801-546-0090 n Covered Wagon Cookout 4:15pm, Bar T 5, $37.00 $45.00, 307-733-5386 n Bar J Chuckwagon Supper 5:30pm, Bar J, $25.00 - $35.00, 307-733-3370
| PLANET JACKSON HOLE |
SEPTEMBER 7, 2016 | 21
| PLANET JACKSON HOLE |
22 | SEPTEMBER 7, 2016
n Whiskey Experience 6:00pm, VOM FASS Jackson Hole, Free, 307-734-1535 n Yellowstone to Yukon: The Fiber of Life 6:00pm, The Murie Center of the Teton Science Schools, Free n The Ballad of Cat Ballou 6:30pm, JH Playhouse, $35.00 - $65.00, 307-733-6994 n Kurt Van Meter 7:30pm, Silver Dollar Bar, Free, 307-733-2190 n Walker Williams 9:00pm, Million Dollar Cowboy Bar, $5.00, 307-733-2207 n WYOBASS 10:00pm, Town Square Tavern, Free, 307-733-3886 n Jameson Black Barrel Music Series 10:30pm, The Rose, Free, 307733-1500 n Teton Ragnar Grand Targhee Resort, 307353-2300
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 11
n American Indian Guest Artist 8:00am, Colter Bay Visitor Center, Free, 307-739-3594 n September 11th Memorial on the Town Square 8:00am, Town Square, Free n Jackson Hole One Fly 8:30am, Snake River n Historic Miller Ranch Tour 10:00am, National Elk Refuge, Free, 307-733-9212 n Yellowstone to Yukon: The Fiber of Life 10:00am, The Murie Center of the Teton Science Schools, Free, n Yoga Gives Back JH 10:00am, Miller Park, Free, 307-690-3054 n Takin’ It to the Streets 10:00am, Town Square, Free, 307-733-6379 n Rotary Supper Club Wine Tasting & Silent Auction 11:00am, Under the “Big White Tent” on Town Square during Taste of the Tetons, Free, n Taste of the Tetons 11:00am, Town Square, $1.00, 307-733-3316 n Quilting 12:00pm, CWC-Jackson, $100.00, 307-733-7425 n Sunday Silver 1:00pm, Art Association of Jackson Hole, $40.00, 307733-6379
SEE CALENDAR PAGE 23
n Opera ala Carte 4:30pm, Center for the Arts Jackson, $40.00, 702-279-9159 n Stagecoach Band 6:00pm, Stagecoach, Free, 307-733-4407 n Sharon Jones & the DapKings 8:30pm, Pink Garter Theatre, $53.00, 307-733-1500 n Open Mic 9:00pm, Pinky G’s Pizzeria, Free, 307-734-7465
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 12
n Jackson Hole Fall Arts Festival Various Locations, 307-7333316 n Tetons Fall Expedition 6:00am, AAC Climbers Ranch n Yoga 7:00am, Teton Recreation Center, $8.00, 307-739-9025 n American Indian Guest Artist 8:00am, Colter Bay Visitor Center, Free, 307-739-3594 n Dance & Fitness Classes All Day 8:00am, Dancers’ Workshop, $10.00 - $16.00, 307-733-6398 n Toddler Gym 8:30am, Teton Recreation Center, $4.00, 307-739-9025 n Create with Me: Ages 2 & 3 with caregiver 9:15am, Art Association of Jackson Hole, $65.00, 307733-6379 n Yellowstone to Yukon: The Fiber of Life 10:00am, The Murie Center of the Teton Science Schools, Free, n Kindercreations 10:30am, Art Association of Jackson Hole, $70.00, 307733-6379 n Total Fitness 12:10pm, Teton Recreation Center, $8.00, 307-739-9025 n Murie Center Ranch Tour 2:30pm, Murie Center, Free, 307-739-2246 n Maker Monday’s 3:00pm, Valley of the Tetons Library Victor, Free, 208-7872201 n After School Kidzart Club: Grade K-2 3:30pm, Art Association of Jackson Hole, $150.00, 307733-6379
n Mosaic Madness 4:00pm, Art Association of Jackson Hole, $60.00, 307733-6379 n Covered Wagon Cookout 4:15pm, Bar T 5, $37.00 $45.00, 307-733-5386 n Chance Meeting 5:00pm, The Rose, Free n Bar J Chuckwagon Supper 5:30pm, Bar J, $25.00 $35.00, 307-733-3370 n Hootenanny 6:00pm, Dornan’s, Free, 307733-2415 n Stained Glass - Design with Light 6:00pm, Art Association of Jackson Hole, $160.00, 307733-6379 n Teton Writers: Susan Marsh 6:00pm, Teton County Library, Free, 307-733-2164 n The Ballad of Cat Ballou 6:30pm, JH Playhouse, $35.00 - $65.00, 307-733-6994 n David Cattani Duo 7:00pm, Mangy Moose, Free, 307-733-4913 n The Center Presents The Hootenanny 7:30pm, The Center Theater, $10.00, 307-733-4900 n Chris Jones 9:00pm, Million Dollar Cowboy Bar, $5.00, 307-733-2207
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 13
n Jackson Hole Fall Arts Festival Various Locations, 307-7333316 n American Indian Guest Artist 8:00am, Colter Bay Visitor Center, Free, 307-739-3594 n Dance & Fitness Classes All Day 8:00am, Dancers’ Workshop, $10.00 - $16.00, 307-733-6398 n REFIT® 8:30am, Dancers’ Workshop, $10.00 - $20.00, 307-733-6398 n Yoga 8:30am, Teton Recreation Center, $8.00, 307-739-9025 n Toddler Time 10:05am, Teton County Library Youth Auditorium, Free, 307733-2164 n Walking Tour of Jackson 10:30am, Center of Town Square, Free, 307-733-2141
SEPTEMBER 7, 2016 | 23
FOR COMPLETE EVENT DETAILS VISIT PJHCALENDAR.COM
| PLANET JACKSON HOLE |
n Senior Book Club: “The Nest” by Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney 10:30am, Teton County Library, Free, 307-7332164 n Spin 12:10pm, Teton Recreation Center, $8.00, 307-739-9025 n Murie Center Ranch Tour 2:30pm, Murie Center, Free, 307-739-2246 n Twilight Hike 3:00pm, Teton Recreation Center, 307-73999025 n Writer 3:30pm, Valley of the Tetons Library, Free, 208-787-2201 n Covered Wagon Cookout 4:15pm, Bar T 5, $37.00 - $45.00, 307-7335386 n Zumba 4:30pm, Teton Recreation Center, $8.00, 307739-9025 n Adobe Photoshop 5:00pm, CWC-Jackson, $200.00, 307-7337425 n REFIT® 5:15pm, First Baptist Church, Free, 307-6906539 n Bar J Chuckwagon Supper 5:30pm, Bar J, $25.00 - $35.00, 307-733-3370 n Total Fitness 5:30pm, Teton Recreation Center, $8.00, 307739-9025 n Teton Trail Runners 6:00pm, Location Varies - Check Schedule, Free n Byron’s Guitar at Jenny Lake Lodge 6:00pm, Jenny Lake Lodge, Free, 307-7334647 n Cribbage 6:00pm, Valley of the Tetons Library, Free, 208-787-2201 n Jackson Hole Bird & Nature Club 6:00pm, Teton County Library Ordway Auditorium B, Free, 307-733-2164 n Taller: Hacer un currículo - Centro cómputo 6:00pm, Teton County Library, Free, 307-7332164 n Reviving Civility In Politics Is It Possible? 6:00pm, The Center Theater, $25.00, 307-7334900 n Food Labels: What’s on the label? What’s in the food? Is it good for me? 6:00pm, CWC-Jackson, $20.00, 307-733-7425 n The Ballad of Cat Ballou 6:30pm, JH Playhouse, $35.00 - $65.00, 307733-6994 n Pet Safety Trap Release Workshop 6:30pm, Old Wilson Schoolhouse, Free, 307201-2422 n Bluegrass Tuesdays featuring One Ton Pig 7:30pm, Silver Dollar Showroom, Free, 307732-3939 n Stackhouse 8:00pm, Mangy Moose, Free, 307-733-4913 n Chris Jones 9:00pm, Million Dollar Cowboy Bar, $5.00, 307-733-2207
| PLANET JACKSON HOLE |
24 | SEPTEMBER 7, 2016
BEER, WINE & SPIRITS
Ravenswood Soars at 40 Celebrating four decades of American Zin. BY TED SCHEFFLER @critic1
I
f you happen to be in the vicinity of Sonoma on Sunday, Sept. 11, you might want to swing by Ravenswood Winery on Gehricke Road. That’s the venue for Ravenswood Winery’s 40th anniversary party, where you can blend your own Ravenswood Icon wine, taste the newly released 2014 Zinfandels, enjoy a barbecue and groove to the sounds of Ten Foot Tone and The Cork Pullers. The price: $40, of course. Thankfully, you don’t have to travel to Sonoma to taste Ravenswood’s iconic California Zins. At least some of the winery’s selections are readily available at many wine stores. It is said that ravens circled overhead on the day in 1976 when Ravenswood founding winemaker Joel Peterson completed his
first harvest—hence the winery’s name. In the four decades since, Ravenswood has become California’s leading producer of Zinfandel. It’s interesting, and a little ironic, that Joel Peterson—who’s been dubbed “The Godfather of Zin”—has a background in microbiology and worked as a medical researcher. I say that this is ironic because he doesn’t make “modern science” wines. Rather, they’re old school, insofar as Peterson practices the art of traditional winemaking as found in Burgundy and Bordeaux. And, his best wines come from old, gnarly, pre-Prohibition, dry-farmed, low-production vineyards. He utilizes wild yeast fermentation in open-top fermenters, and the wines undergo long aging in small French oak barrels. They’re neither overoaked, nor sugar-coated. As Joel Peterson once told me, “Our goal is to exalt the grape, not overwhelm it.” In conjunction with their 40th anniversary, the winery is also having a sort of homecoming, as Gary Sitton, who began his wine industry career at Ravenswood in 1999, has returned to take over the position of director of winemaking. The two winemakers—Peterson and Sitton—have collaborated on a special commemorative, 40th anniversary bottling of Zinfandel blending grapes from Ravenwood’s
IMBIBE
world-class Old Hill, Teldeschi and Barricia vineyards. Unfortunately, the 40th Anniversary Ravenswood Zin is only available in gift boxes at the winery. However, you can, and should, treat yourself to the Ravenswood Single Vineyard Designate wines produced with grapes from the aforementioned vineyards. Ravenswood’s Single Vineyard Designates is a wine series that’s all about terroir. These are vineyard locations that are ideally suited to the grapes grown there: old, low-yield vines which are site-specific. Two thousand and thirteen Ravenswood Dickerson Vineyard Zinfandel Napa Valley ($33) is the most refined and elegant of the Single Vineyard Designate Zins, offering up notes of mint and eucalyptus, along with sweet mid-palate raspberry and currant fruit flavors that are well-balanced by the wine’s acidity. I recently had the good
fortune of tasting 2013 Ravenswood Old Hill Vineyard Zinfandel Sonoma Valley ($58), made in part from Old Hill Vineyard Zinfandel grapes that are thought to date back as far as 1855. This is a wine that will be terrific 10 years from now, but if you’re in a hurry and can’t wait a decade, be sure to decant it. It’s a muscular, assertive wine with well-balanced acidity and mineral undertones leading to a long, lovely finish. For a weighty wine with lots of black fruit flavors, think in terms of 2013 Ravenswood Barricia Vineyard Zinfandel Sonoma Valley ($35). It’s a dense, rich wine which, according to Peterson, has a high percentage of petite sirah in it. Save it for a dark and stormy night. For less cash, Ravenswood also produces very good everyday Zins like their 2013 Vintners Blend Old Vine Zinfandel ($13), 2013 Sonoma County Old Vine Zinfandel ($15), and 2014 Lodi Old Vine Zinfandel ($15). Personally, I’m raising a glass to the next 40 years of ravishing Ravenswood wines. PJH
SCOOP UP THESE SAVINGS
1/16TH COLOR AD Trio is located just off the town square in downtown Jackson, and is owned & operated by local chefs with a passion for good food. Our menu features contemporary American dishes inspired by classic bistro cuisine. Daily specials feature wild game, fish and meats. Enjoy a glass of wine at the bar in front of the wood-burning oven and watch the chefs perform in the open kitchen.
Dinner Nightly at 5:30pm
Local is a modern American steakhouse and bar located on Jackson’s historic town square. Serving locally raised beef and, regional game, fresh seafood and seasonally inspired food, Local offers the perfect setting for lunch, drinks or dinner.
Lunch 11:30am Monday-Saturday Dinner 5:30pm Nightly
45 S. Glenwood
HAPPY HOUR Daily 4-6:00pm
Available for private events & catering
307.201.1717 | LOCALJH.COM ON THE TOWN SQUARE
For reservations please call 734-8038
• FREE PRINT LISTING (50-75 WORDS) • FREE ONLINE LISTING ON PLANETJH.COM • 6 MONTH MINIMUM COMMITMENT • $25 A WEEK CASH OR $40 A WEEK TRADE ON HALF OFF JH
CONTACT YOUR ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE TODAY TO LEARN MORE
SALES@PLANETJH.COM OR 307.732.0299
Featuring dining destinations from buffets and rooms with a view to mom and pop joints, chic cuisine and some of our dining critic’s faves!
ASIAN & CHINESE TETON THAI Serving the world’s most exciting cuisine. Teton Thai offers a splendid array of flavors: sweet, hot, sour, salt and bitter. All balanced and blended perfectly, satisfying the most discriminating palate. Open daily. 7432 Granite Loop Road in Teton Village, (307) 7330022 and in Driggs, (208) 787-8424, tetonthai. com.
Napolitana-style Pizza, panini, pasta, salad, beer wine. Order online at PizzeriaCaldera.com
THAI ME UP Home of Melvin Brewing Co. Freshly remodeled offering modern Thai cuisine in a relaxed setting. New tap system with 20 craft beers. New $8 wine list and extensive bottled beer menu. Open daily for dinner at 5pm. Downtown at 75 East Pearl Street. View our tap list at thaijh.com/brews. 307-733-0005.
CONTINENTAL ALPENHOF 11am - 9:30pm daily 20 W. Broadway 307.201.1472
Serving authentic Swiss cuisine, the Alpenhof features European style breakfast entrées and alpine lunch fare. Dine in the Bistro for a casual meal or join us in the Alpenrose dining room for a relaxed dinner experience. Breakfast 7:30am-10am. Coffee & pastry 10am-11:30am. Lunch 11:30am-3pm. Aprés 3pm-5:30pm. Dinner 6pm-9pm. For reservations at the Bistro or Alpenrose, call 307-733-3242.
cool ways
to PERK
UP
THE BLUE LION FAMILY FRIENDLY ENVIRONMENT PIZZAS, PASTAS & MORE HOUSEMADE BREAD & DESSERTS FRESH, LOCALLY SOURCED OFFERINGS TAKE OUT AVAILABLE
A Jackson Hole favorite since 1965 THE LOCALS
FAVORITE PIZZA 2012, 2013 & 2014 •••••••••
$7
Slice, salad & soda
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••
TV Sports Packages and 7 Screens
Under the Pink Garter Theatre (307) 734-PINK • www.pinkygs.com
Serving inspired home cooked classics in a historic log cabin. Enjoy brunch daily at 8 a.m., dinner nightly at 5 p.m., and happy hour daily 3-5:30 p.m. featuring $5 glasses of wine, $5 specialty drinks, $3 bottled beer. 135 E. Broadway, (307) 732-1910, genevievejh.com.
ELEANOR’S Enjoy all the perks of fine dining, minus the dress code at Eleanor’s, serving rich, saucy dishes in a warm and friendly setting. Eleanor’s is a primo brunch spot on Sunday afternoons. Its bar alone is an attraction, thanks to reasonably priced drinks and a loyal crowd. Come get a belly-full of our two-time gold medal wings. Open at 11 a.m. daily. 832 W. Broadway, (307) 733-7901.
FULL STEAM SUBS The deli that’ll rock your belly. Jackson’s newest sub shop serves steamed subs,
1110 W. Broadway • Jackson, WY Open daily 5:00am to midnight • Free Wi-Fi
SEPTEMBER 7, 2016 | 25
$4 Well Drink Specials
LUNCH
SPECIAL
CAFE GENEVIEVE
| PLANET JACKSON HOLE |
Dining room and bar open nightly at 5:00pm (307) 733-2460 • 2560 Moose Wilson Road • Wilson, WY
A Jackson Hole favorite for 38 years. Join us in the charming atmosphere of a historic home. Ask a local about our rack of lamb. Serving fresh fish, elk, poultry, steaks, and vegetarian entrées. Live acoustic guitar music most nights. Early Bird Special: 20% off entire bill between 5:30-6:0pm, Open nightly at 5:30 p.m. Reservations recommended, walk-ins welcome. 160 N. Millward, (307) 733-3912, bluelionrestaurant.com.
| PLANET JACKSON HOLE |
26 | SEPTEMBER 7, 2016
reubens, gyros, delicious all beef hot dogs, soups and salads. We offer Chicago style hot dogs done just the way they do in the windy city. Open daily11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Located just a short block north of the Town Square at 180 N. Center Street, (307) 733-3448.
EARLY BIRD SPECIAL
20%OFF ENTIRE BILL
Good between 5:30-6pm • Open nightly at 5:30pm
733-3912 160 N. Millward
Make your reservation online at bluelionrestaurant.com
European Dining
in Teton Village
Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner ••••••••• Open daily at 8am serving breakfast, lunch & dinner.
BYOB
BREAKFAST, LUNCH & DINNER 7:30-9PM
145 N. Glenwood • (307) 734-0882 WWW.TETONLOTUSCAFE.COM
307.733.3242 TETON VILLAGE
®
Large Specialty Pizza ADD: Wings (8 pc)
Medium Pizza (1 topping) Stuffed Cheesy Bread
$ 13 99
for an extra $5.99/each
(307) 733-0330 520 S. Hwy. 89 • Jackson, WY
the latest happenings in jackson hole
LOCAL Local, a modern American steakhouse and bar, is located on Jackson’s historic town square. Our menu features both classic and specialty cuts of locally-ranched meats and wild game alongside fresh seafood, shellfish, house-ground burgers, and seasonally-inspired food. We offer an extensive wine list and an abundance of locally-sourced products. Offering a casual and vibrant bar atmosphere with 12 beers on tap as well as a relaxed dining room, Local is the perfect spot to grab a burger for lunch or to have drinks and dinner with friends. Lunch Mon-Sat 11:30am. Dinner Nightly 5:30pm. 55 North Cache, (307) 201-1717, localjh.com.
LOTUS CAFE Serving organic, freshly-made world cuisine while catering to all eating styles. Endless organic and natural meat, vegetarian, vegan and glutenfree choices. Offering super smoothies, fresh extracted juices, espresso and tea. Full bar and house-infused botanical spirits. Open daily 8am for breakfast lunch and dinner. 145 N. Glenwood St., (307) 734-0882, tetonlotuscafe.com.
MANGY MOOSE Mangy Moose Restaurant, with locally sourced, seasonally fresh food at reasonable prices, is a always a fun place to go with family or friends for a unique dining experience. The personable staff will make you feel right at home and the funky western decor will keep you entertained throughout your entire visit. Teton Village, (307) 733-4913, mangymoose.com.
SNAKE RIVER BREWERY & RESTAURANT America’s most award-winning microbrewery is serving lunch and dinner. Take in the atmosphere while enjoying wood-fired pizzas, pastas, burgers, sandwiches, soups, salads and desserts. $9 lunch menu. Happy hour 4 to 6 p.m., including tasty hot wings. The freshest beer in the valley, right from the source! Free WiFi. Open 11:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. 265 S. Millward. (307) 739-2337, snakeriverbrewing.com.
SWEETWATER Satisfying locals for lunch and dinner for over 36
years with deliciously affordable comfort food. Extensive local and regional beer list. Lunch 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. features blackened trout salad, elk melt, wild west chili and vegetarian specialties. Dinner 5:30 to 9 p.m. including potato-crusted trout, 16 ounce ribeye, vegan and wild game. Reservations welcome. (307) 7333553. sweetwaterjackson.com.
TRIO
pjhcalendar.com
Owned and operated by Chefs with a passion for good food, Trio is located right off the Town square in downtown Jackson. Featuring a variety of cuisines in a relaxed atmosphere, Trio is famous for its wood-oven pizzas, specialty cocktails and waffle fries with bleu cheese fondue. Dinner nightly at 5:30 p.m. Reservations. (307) 734-8038 or bistrotrio.com.
ITALIAN CALICO A Jackson Hole favorite since 1965, the Calico continues to be one of the most popular restaurants in the Valley. The Calico offers the right combination of really good food, (much of which is grown in our own gardens in the summer), friendly staff; a reasonably priced menu and a large selection of wine. Our bar scene is eclectic with a welcoming vibe. Open nightly at 5 p.m. 2560 Moose Wilson Rd., (307) 733-2460.
MEXICAN EL ABUELITO Serving authentic Mexican cuisine and appetizers in a unique Mexican atmosphere. Home of the original Jumbo Margarita. Featuring a full bar with a large selection of authentic Mexican beers. Lunch served weekdays 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Nightly dinner specials. Open seven days, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. 385 W. Broadway, (307) 733-1207.
PIZZA DOMINO’S PIZZA Hot and delicious delivered to your door. Handtossed, deep dish, crunchy thin, Brooklyn style and artisan pizzas; bread bowl pastas, and oven baked sandwiches; chicken wings, cheesy breads and desserts. Delivery. 520 S. Hwy. 89 in Kmart Plaza, (307) 733-0330.
PINKY G’S The locals favorite! Voted Best Pizza in Jackson Hole 2012, 2013 and 2014. Seek out this hidden gem under the Pink Garter Theatre for NY pizza by the slice, salads, stromboli’s, calzones and many appetizers to choose from. Try the $7 ‘Triple S’ lunch special.Happy hours 10 p.m. - 12 a.m. Sun.Thu. Text PINK to 71441 for discounts. Delivery and take-out. Open daily 11a.m. to 2 a.m. 50 W. Broadway, (307) 734-PINK.
PIZZERIA CALDERA Jackson Hole’s only dedicated stone-hearth oven pizzeria, serving Napolitana-style pies using the freshest ingredients in traditional and creative combinations. Five local micro-brews on tap, a great selection of red and white wines by the glass and bottle, and one of the best views of the Town Square from our upstairs deck. Daily lunch special includes slice, salad or soup, any two for $8. Happy hour: half off drinks by the glass from 4 - 6 daily. Dine in or carry out. Or order online at PizzeriaCaldera.com, or download our app for iOS or Android. Open from 11am - 9:30pm daily at 20 West Broadway. 307-201-1472.
SWEETS MEETEETSE CHOCOLATIER Meeteetse Chocolatier brings their unique blend of European style chocolates paired with “Wyomingesque” flavors. Prickly Pear Cactus Fruit, Sage, Huckleberry and Sarsaparilla lead off a decadent collection of truffles, Belgian chocolates and hand made caramel. Sample Single Origin and Organic chocolates at our Tasting Station. Open Weekends, 265 W. Broadway. 307413-8296. meeteetsechocolatier.com
SUDOKU
WINDSHIELDS
Complete the grid so that each row, column, diagonal and 3x3 square contain all of the numbers 1 to 9. No math is involved. The grid has numbers, but nothing has to add up to anything else. Solve the puzzle with reasoning and logic. Solving time is typically 10 to 30 minutes, depending on your skill and experience.
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L.A.TIMES “RISK FACTOR” By Warren Stabler
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2016
ACROSS
76 Time when all farms used plow-pulling oxen? 79 Thrusting blade 81 Used as security, in a way 82 Words behind Lincoln? 86 Bias 87 Temple with an upcurved roof 88 Calendar col. 89 Golf course meas. 90 Promise qualifier 92 Angler’s slang? 96 “Yikes!” 98 HDTV part, for short 100 Texter’s “Yikes!” 101 Barely eats 102 Billboard __ 100 103 Pastel shade 104 Celebrate an anniversary, with “out” 106 Host before and after O’Brien 107 “Nightfall” story writer 109 Soda jerk’s course of study? 114 Decide not to 115 Square quartet 116 North African capital 117 Boston College athletes 118 Exxon__ 119 Gets incensed
DOWN
78 Versatile type in medicine, briefly 80 Dope 81 Zoo observation gadget 83 Brown, often 84 Site of the U.S. continent’s geographical midpoint 85 Disapproving sounds 87 Beach building aid 88 Cellphone feature 91 Baked potato topping 93 Baseball Hall of Famer Wagner 94 Coinage 95 Man cave art 96 Popular connection point 97 Biblical prophet 99 __ Lodge 103 Theater section 104 Department with a scale 105 Eur. republic since 1944 106 Old Pisa dough 108 B or C of the Spice Girls 110 Cold War spy gp. 111 Civil things: Abbr. 112 Small ending 113 Central beginning
SEPTEMBER 7, 2016 | 27
10 Mini-albums, for short 20 Shoe-wiping spot 30 Portuguese-speaking capital 40 Its pH is more than 7 50 Muddied 60 Goop 70 Cousin of com 80 A thousand’s hundred 90 High-tech workers 10 Steam 11 It helps some singers see the choir leader 12 Sortable information source 13 Fla. coastal city 14 Barak who succeeded
Netanyahu 15 Before, in verse 16 Satirize the screwball? 17 Autumn bloom 18 Stagecoach roller 20 Hound 23 After-dinner request 28 Loaded 30 “Now just a darn minute!” 31 Labor bill unit 32 City near the Tappan Zee Bridge 33 “No prob” 34 Control 36 Group with the albums “Aqua” and “Aria” 37 Still-life subjects 38 Devour 40 Shell game, say 44 H.S. VIPs 46 Sampling of songs 47 Soccer superstar 49 Cath. church VIP 50 Presently 51 Dietary stds. 52 Newton trio 54 Like a soufflé 55 Much 57 Passé reception aid 58 Portrait of a libertine? 60 Ill-gotten gains 63 Building beam 64 __ de plume 65 Proceed tediously 66 Travel with a pack 67 “__ plaisir!” 68 Financing nos. 70 Prune 71 Singer Lauper 72 “__ directed” 75 Mountain myth 76 Former U.N. leader Hammarskjöld 77 Inexperienced
| PLANET JACKSON HOLE |
10 No-trade policy 80 1954 Ford debut 13 Vacillate 19 Brit’s beauty shop 20 Geographical symbol of Middle America 21 Beat the wheat 22 Battle of vampire slayers? 24 Bandleader Tito 25 Eponymous virologist 26 Eric Cartwright’s nickname 27 Like some seals 29 Poor mark 30 Indefinite period 32 Japanese chip maker 33 Once around 34 Hair ringlet 35 “‘Dash away’ yourself, Santa! We’re tired!”? 39 Hickok’s last hand, so it’s said 41 Yves’ yes 42 Hefty Cinch__ bags 43 River to the Ohio 45 Marathoner’s concern 48 Language spoken by Jesus 51 Enter again 52 Science major’s cost 53 Band of vipers’ rhythm section? 55 Mom, dad, sibs, etc. 56 Cholesterol letters 57 Jason’s ship 59 Quebec’s __ Peninsula 60 Pound foot 61 Order from a stool 62 With 65-Across, malt shop accountant’s calculation? 65 See 62-Across 68 Ararat lander 69 Youngster 70 Boat, or the tool that moves it 73 Tony winner Judith 74 Dessert option 75 Starchy tuber
| PLANET JACKSON HOLE |
28 | SEPTEMBER 7, 2016
Cross Cultural Emotion Ten oddly familiar feelings pinpointed by folks across the globe.
T
hough science can now locate precisely where in the brain we register many emotions, it cannot capture the incredibly rich range of subtle and complex feelings we are capable of experiencing. I’ve researched a selection of words from other languages, which have no equivalent in English, and yet describe emotions with which we are familiar. See if you recognize some of these in your own experiences.
For all MEETING AGENDAS AND MINUTES WEEKLY CALENDAR JOB OPENINGS SOLICITATIONS FOR BIDS PUBLIC NOTICES AND OTHER VALUABLE INFORMATION
Visit our website
TetonWyo.org The public meeting agendas and minutes for the Board of County Commissioners and Planning Commission can also be found in the Public Notices section of the JH News and Guide.
Awumbuk (Papua New Guinea): It’s the ironic thing about having houseguests. As the days of their visit add up and you’ve prepared lots of meals, acted as both tour guide and program director, you start thinking to yourself how nice it will be when they go home and you have your space back. But after they finally leave, your place often feels too empty. The people of Papua New Guinea have a word for this: awumbuk, the feeling of “emptiness after visitors depart.” Kaukokaipuu (Finland): Let’s say you are of Irish or Italian or Egyptian (or other) descent, and you’ve never actually been to the country of your ancestry. However, you experience an ache for it, as if you miss it or long for it. This is a contradictory sort of feeling, since you can’t really miss someplace you’ve never been. The Finnish recognize that this emotion exists. They gave it the name kaukokaipuu, a feeling of homesickness for a place you’ve never visited. (Cosmic Café would add that you’ve likely been there in a past life if you feel an emotional longing, rather than a simple curiosity, for a place you’ve never been.) T’thadshi (Israel): If you are a woman (or man) who loves to shop, then you know that feeling of excitement when you discover and purchase the perfect thing. Israeli salespeople will say this to you as they hand you the bag with the item of clothing, shoes or jewelry that you just purchased. The word T’thadshi translates as,“ May you savor the special joy of newness.” Tsundoku (Japan): The Japanese language often captures subtle emotions. This word describes the feeling when you
buy a book at a bookstore (or for your Kindle), and then never read it. (I’ve done it.) Iktsuarpok (Inuit, Northern Alaska, Canada and Greenland): Have you ever looked outside over and over because you are expecting someone to arrive? The Inuit language expresses this feeling in one word. Iktsuarpok is “the feeling of anticipation that leads you to keep looking outside to see if anyone is coming.” (Maybe you did this as a child at Christmas time, eagerly anticipating relatives or being on the lookout for Santa Claus.) Altschmerz (German): This word describes the feeling of being weary with the same old issues that you’ve always had—the same boring flaws and anxieties that you’ve been gnawing on for years. Ever felt this one? (Time to let it go.) Malu (Indonesia): You’d like to think you have pretty good conversational and social skills, and yet they disappear and your mind goes blank if you find yourself sharing an elevator with the CEO of your company, or your professor or a celebrity. The indigenous people of Indonesia know how you feel. Malu is their word for “the sudden experience of feeling constricted, inferior and awkward around people of higher status.” Dapjeongneo (Korean): Whew. We know this feeling and do not have an English word for it. This word describes when somebody has already decided the answer they want to hear after asking you a question, and they are waiting for you to say that exact answer. Ya’aburnee (Arabic): This is a deep expression of love. The word translates literally as “you bury me.” It’s actually a declaration of one’s hope that you’ll die before a person you love, because of how unbearable it would be to live without them. Verklempt (Yiddish): Maybe you are feeling this right now, after reading about all these emotions you couldn’t quite put your finger on. This Yiddish word means “overcome with emotion.” Pronounced “fur-klempt,” people use it when they cannot think straight, they’re on the verge of tears, or at a loss for words because they are so overwhelmed by emotion.
A tip for dealing with your emotions The most constructive way to tackle emotions is to feel them fully, and then allow them to pass through you like weather passes through the moutains. This approach allows you to be happier and healthier as you experience an ever-changing flow of feelings. PJH
Carol Mann is a longtime Jackson resident, radio personality, former Grand Targhee Resort owner, author, and clairvoyant. Got a Cosmic Question? Email carol@yourcosmiccafe.com
WELLNESS COMMUNITY
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Professional and Individualized Treatments • Sports/Ortho Rehab • Neck and Back Rehab • Rehabilitative Pilates • Incontinence Training • Pelvic Pain Rehab • Lymphedema Treatments Norene Christensen PT, DSc, OCS, CLT Rebekah Donley PT, DPT, CPI Mark Schultheis PT, CSCS Kim Armington PTA, CPI
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REDNECK PERSPECTIVE SATIRE
Westbank Wife Aspirations How a Hog Island sweetie infiltrated the barista bagel shop scene. BY CLYDE THORNHILL
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he stood in the dim light of my office doorway looking classy—Pearl Street bagel mug in hand, polar fleece jacket around her waist, running shorts and sandals. She walked to my desk, her hips swinging a friendly hello. No, I was mistaken. She should have stayed in the doorway. The smell from her cup was not the organic Italian roast sipped by the hip; it was Yuban regular blend. Her jacket was not Patagonia, not even The North Face, or Mountain Hardware, but a cheap Walmart knockoff; her sandals were Kmart. It was sad, even pathetic, the way she tried to hide her roots. She might as well have worn a sign around her neck that read “Hog Island.” “What do you want doll?” I asked, my eyes casually following the tattoo that twisted and turned seductively, then dove into the cleavage of her breasts like an invitation to a magic show. “I want a job at the bagel shop,” she said. “Not a baker, a barista. But they won’t hire me.” “Sounds to me like you’re in need of a life coach, maybe an expert in causal activewear, along with a $1,000 dollar gift card to Skinny Skis apparel department,” I said.
“Everybody knows the bagel shop owes you a favor,” she said. “You handled Bad Bagel Bonanno when he tried to take a cut from their profit of Mountain Berry cream cheese.” Like so many innocent girls, she dreamed of the romantic life of a bagel shop barista: the fame, the free coffee, the power to bestow caffeine to those with insatiable addictions, the sweaty nights with snowboarders. And best of all, the chance to meet a suitable man from the Pines or even John Dodge and, after an adventurous courtship that includes visits to his condo in the Caribbean and his family’s estate in France, a life of leisure complete with nannies, maid service and a landscaper. “You’ve got to help me,” she pleaded. “I’ve been practicing. Just listen.” She cleared her throat and said, “I’ll have another glass of Bordeaux please.” She finished it off with a sophisticated laugh that hinted she’d be willing to stray if the proper opportunity presented itself. Maybe she would make Westbank wife. “Ok doll,” I said. “I’ll see what I can do.” I called the bagel shop and made her case. “Come on Thornhill,” they complained, “she’s from Hog Island. She doesn’t know a café au lait from a caffè macchiato; she thinks a bagel is a doughnut without frosting!” “I could turn Bad Bagel loose,” I told them. “He has connections with the American Federation of Toaster Makers. He could turn up political pressure and you’d be toasting bagels faster than you can say sun dried tomato olive with smoked salmon.” She got the job and the bagel shop got a barista. And me? I took a double shot of whiskey from the last of my bottle, the cheap liquid burning fire down my throat like number five curry from Teton Thai plate. PJH
FREE WILL ASTROLOGY
BY ROB BREZSNY
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) Is “Big Bang” the best term we can come up with to reference the beginning of the universe? It sounds violent and messy—like a random, accidental splatter. I would much prefer a term that suggests sublime elegance and playful power—language that would capture the awe and reverence I feel as I contemplate the sacred mystery we are privileged to inhabit. What if we used a different name for the birth of creation, like the “Primal Billow” or the “Blooming Ha Ha” or the “Majestic Bouquet”? By the way, I recommend that you consider those last three terms as being suitable titles for your own personal life story in the coming weeks. A great awakening and activation are imminent. LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22) The last few weeks have been fraught with rich plot twists, naked dates with destiny, and fertile turning points. I expect there will be further intrigue in the near future. A fierce and tender decision at a crossroads? The unexpected arrival of a hot link to the future? A karmic debt that’s canceled or forgiven? In light of the likelihood that the sweet-and-sour, confusing-and-revelatory drama will continue, I encourage you to keep your levels of relaxed intensity turned up high. More than I’ve seen in a long time, you have the magic and the opportunity to transform what needs to be transformed. SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21) In the coming days, you will have more than your usual access to help and guidance. Divine interventions are possible. Special dispensations and charmed coincidences, too. If you don’t believe in fairy dust, magic beans, and lucky potions, maybe you should set that prejudice aside for a while. Subtle miracles are more likely to bestow their gifts if your reasonable theories don’t get in the way. Here’s an additional tip: Don’t get greedy. Use the openings you’re offered with humility and gratitude. SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21) When my daughter Zoe was growing up, I wanted her to be familiar with the origins of ordinary stuff that she benefited from. That’s why I took her to small farms where she could observe the growth and harvest of organic food crops. We visited manufacturing facilities where cars, furniture, toys, and kitchen sinks were built. She saw bootmakers creating boots and professional musicians producing songs in recording studios. And much more. I would love it if you would give yourself comparable experiences in the coming weeks, Sagittarius. It’s an excellent time to commune with the sources of things that nurture you and make your life better.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20) I’m giving you an ultimatum, Pisces: Within the next 144 hours, I demand that you become at least 33 percent happier. Fifty percent would be even better. Somehow you’ve got to figure out what you can do to enhance your
TAURUS (April 20-May 20) In accordance with the astrological omens, I suggest you spend less energy dwelling in profane time so you expand your relationship with sacred time. If that’s of interest to you, consider the following definitions. PROFANE TIME happens when you’re engulfed in the daily grind. Swarmed by a relentless flurry of immediate concerns, you are held hostage by the chatter of your monkey mind. Being in SACRED TIME attunes you to the relaxing hum of eternity. It enables you to be in intimate contact with your soul’s deeper agenda, and affords you extra power to transform yourself in harmony with your noble desires and beautiful intentions. GEMINI (May 21-June 20) About 1.7 million years ago, our human ancestors began using primitive hand axes made from rocks. This technology remained in use for over 60,000 generations before anyone invented more sophisticated tools and implements. Science writer Marcus Chown refers to this period as “the million years of boredom.” Its slow pace contrasts sharply with technology’s brisk evolution in the last 140 years. In 1880, there were no cars, planes, electric lights, telephones, TVs, or Internet. I surmise that you’re leaving your own phase of relatively slow progress, Gemini. In the coming months, I expect your transformations will progress with increasing speed—starting soon. CANCER (June 21-July 22) Prediction #1: You will attract truckloads of good luck by working to upgrade and refine the way you communicate. Prediction #2: You will tickle the attention of interesting people who could ultimately provide you with clues you will need to thrive in 2017. #3: You will discover secrets of how to articulate complicated feelings and subtle ideas that have been locked inside you. Prediction #4: You’ll begin a vibrant conversation that will continue to evolve for a long time. LEO (July 23-Aug. 22) You know you have a second brain in your gut, right? (If not, read this: http://bit.ly/secondbrain.) During the past three weeks, I have been beaming telepathic instructions toward this smart part of you. Here’s an edited version of the message I’ve been sending: “Cultivate your tenacity, darling. Build up your stamina, sweetheart. Feed your ability to follow through on what you’ve started, beautiful. Be persistent and spunky and gritty, my dear.” Alas, I’m not sure my psychic broadcasts have been as effective as I’d hoped. I think you need further encouragement. So please summon more fortitude and staying power, you gutsy stalwart. Be staunch and dogged and resolute, you stouthearted powerhouse.
Go to RealAstrology.com for Rob Brezsny’s expanded weekly audio horoscopes and daily text-message horoscopes. Audio horoscopes also available by phone at 877-873-4888 or 900-950-7700.
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AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18) These days, my dear, your eccentric beauty is even more unkempt than usual. I like it. It entertains and charms me. And as for your idiosyncratic intelligence: That, too, is messier and cuter and even more interesting than ever before. I’m inclined to encourage you to milk this unruly streak for all its potential. Maybe it will provoke you to experiment in situations where you’ve been too accepting of the stagnant status quo. And perhaps it will embolden you to look for love and money in more of the right places.
ARIES (March 21-April 19) Two seven-year-old girls showed me three tricks I could use to avoid taking myself too seriously and getting too attached to my dignity. I’m offering these tricks to you just in time for the letting-go phase of your astrological cycle. Trick No. 1: Speak in a made-up language for at least ten minutes. Example: “Groftyp hulbnu wivgeeri proot xud amasterulius. Quoshibojor frovid zemplissit.” Trick No. 2: Put a different kind of shoe and sock on each foot and pretend you’re two people stuck in a single body. Give each side of you a unique nickname. Trick No. 3: Place an unopened bag of barbecue-flavored potato chips on a table, then bash your fist down on it, detonating a loud popping sound and unleashing a spray of crumbs out the ends of the bag. Don’t clean up the mess for at least an hour.
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CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Unless you were brought up by a herd of feral donkeys, the coming weeks will be an excellent time to embark on your second childhood. Unless you’re allergic to new ideas, the foreseeable future will bring you strokes of curious luck that inspire you to change and change and change your mind. And unless you are addicted to your same old stale comforts, life will offer you chances to explore frontiers that could expose you to thrilling new comforts.
sense of well-being and increase your enjoyment of life. I’m sort of joking, but on the other hand I’m completely serious. From my perspective, it’s essential that you feel really good in the coming days. Abundant pleasure is not merely a luxury, but rather a necessity. Do you have any ideas about how to make this happen? Start here: 1. Identify your four most delightful memories, and re-enact them in your imagination. 2. Go see the people whose influences most thoroughly animate your self-love.
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