Like a lot of journalists, I was basically forced to join Twitter — in my case, by an editor at the Idaho Business Review in the fall of 2007. Considering that Twitter launched publicly in the summer of 2006, I guess that makes me a pretty early adopter of the “micro-blogging” social media platform. In those 17 years, I sent 19 tweets: 18 of them between September 2007 and August 2009 (when I worked at IBR) and one in 2013 in response to a friend who only communicated through Twitter. There are three tweets ostensibly from me, all on June 19, 2017, but they consist of (in order): “Ni,” “;” and “Pp.” I don’t know what that’s about. Based on my past activity on the site, which of course is now called “X,” it should be apparent that I’ve never considered it a valuable tool. But I do remember in the mid-2000s to 2010s when most of my colleagues would look down their noses at me for eschewing what I considered a self-aggrandizing echo chamber at best and an instrument for the downfall of civilization at worst. Now, the industry seems to be agreeing with me. Sort of. According to a Nov. 21 article in the Columbia Journalism Review, reporters and news outlets are fleeing X because of its noxious milieu under the leadership of Elon Musk — the Mansu Musa of trolldom — but they’re flocking to something called Bluesky. As of Nov. 22, national media reported that Bluesky has 20 million users and counting; yet, based on what I’ve seen, Bluesky is basically “old Twitter,” which gets a big “thanks but no thanks from me.” Rather, I invite my fellow journalists — and everyone else — just to quit “micro-blogging” cold turkey.
Big city blues
I recently returned from a few days in the Boise area (see Page 22 for why I was there), and I can report that if we think we’ve been hit with a growth bomb here, it’s nothing compared to what’s gone on in the capital city. I lived in Boise and surrounds off and on for about 12 years, and consider myself more than a little familiar with it. That said, on my past trip, I found myself disoriented and even lost in neighborhoods that not too long ago felt like home. The skyline is a thicket of cranes and partially constructed high-rises, and some streets are now glass-and-concrete caverns. It’s safe to say the City of Trees is growing up, and I’m glad I grew out of it when I did.
Berry good
My wife’s family was in town from Oregon the weekend before Thanksgiving for an early celebration, and I tried out a new cranberry sauce recipe that earned high praise — and there’s still time for you to replicate it: 2 1-lb. bags of cranberries (rinsed); 1 ½ cup brown sugar; 1 cup water; ½ cup fresh-squeezed orange juice; ½ cup Cointreau orange liqueur; 1 cinnamon stick; ¼ teaspoon nutmeg; zest of 1 orange. Boil the water, sugar and zest, stirring to blend; then add cranberries. Boil on medium heat until the cranberries start to pop, stirring occasionally. Reduce to simmer and put in the nutmeg, Cointreau and cinnamon stick. Keep stirring and blending for 7-10 minutes. Let cool and serve.
DEAR READERS,
This is a quick reminder for Sandpoint residents that Sandpoint streets will revert to winter parking restrictions effective Sunday, Dec. 1 through March 1, 2025. This means no parking on the odd side of the street, in culde-sacs or on emergency routes, unless otherwise posted. Also, snow must be cleared from vehicles parked on the street within 24 hours following two inches of accumulation. For more info: bit.ly/3B0QyYH.
I’m thankful for a lot this year. The Reader was honored with our very own beer can, thanks to Matchwood Brewing Co. We received a huge grant from Press Forward, a national organization tasked with helping to shore up rural news outlets across the country. I work with two of my favorite people in the world, Editor Zach Hagadone and Staff Writer Soncirey Mitchell. We have so a lot of advertisers and donors who support our paper. Things could certainly be worse. Happy Thanksgiving to all!
–Ben Olson, publisher
READER
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About the Cover
This week’s cover was created by Madi Elliott, 13. Great job, Madi!
BTAA continues to help lost and stray dogs Cities, county change animal control policies
By Soncirey Mitchell Reader Staff
Two months after Bonner County and the cities of Sandpoint and Ponderay allowed their contracts with Better Together Animal Alliance to expire — ending their 30-year partnerships with the nonprofit shelter — BTAA continues to care for the municipalities’ stray, lost and abused dogs without financial compensation.
The change occurred after BTAA presented its newest contracts in March, which included increased budgeting requests to accommodate rising expenses in maintenance, utilities and veterinary medicine, among other factors.
“On our old system, we weren’t taking into account that — similar to an emergency room — whether a patient comes in or not, you still have to have nurses and doctors there, and you still have to have a building that’s ready for all of that, so the jurisdictions weren’t covering any of that cost,” BTAA Executive Director Mandy Evans told the Reader.
The proposed billing model would have cost the county — which accounted for 65% of the 406 dogs that entered BTAA in 2023 — $169,913 annually, Sandpoint $65,773 and Ponderay $19,184. The shelter proposed several payment plans to give the municipalities time to adjust their budgets; but, for Ponderay alone, it would still have meant a 1,818.4% increase from the 2023-’24 budget year, according to Ponderay Police Chief Jimmy Cornelius.
“The BTAA is a Private 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that advertises ‘no tax support.’ While I strongly support the BTAA’s strong commitment to the animals in need in our community, I cannot, and will not, recommend that these endeavors be paid for by the taxpayers of
the community,” Cornelius wrote in an emailed statement.
BTAA worked with Sandpoint to whittle down various expenses, reducing costs to approximately $27,000 annually. Still, the Sandpoint City Council maintained that with the cost of repairing the city’s aging roads and sewer system, among other considerations, there simply wasn’t enough money in the budget.
Each municipality now has its own method of dealing with stray and lost dogs.
The Bonner County Sheriff’s Department will no longer respond to calls regarding found animals outside of city limits and will not pick up any dogs found while on patrol.
Conversely, the PPD will pick up strays found while on patrol and attempt to locate the owners “for a few hours” before taking the animals to Companions Animal Center in Hayden, according to a recent news release. The department will also post photos of the dogs on its Facebook page and website, ponderaypd.org. PPD will no longer accept dogs found by the public.
“While I appreciate BTAA’s desire to provide free or reduced-cost services, I personally feel that much of America has lost touch with the ideal of personal responsibility,” Cornelius wrote. “I believe that the costs of pet ownership should be the responsibility of the pet owner. It should not be subsidized by the taxpayers who may or may not have their own pets.”
PPD has also taken a proactive approach to reuniting pets and families by enacting a free dog tag program. Each tag has the department’s phone number and a tag number, allowing officers to look up the owner’s name, address and phone number. The public can pick up tags at the department (476770 U.S.95, Ponderay), Ponderay City Hall (288 Fourth St.) or from
Ponderay officers.
The Sandpoint Police Department has taken a similar approach by encouraging the public to license their dogs, creating a database for all law enforcement to refer to when a call comes in about a found dog.
“Most of the dogs in our city aren’t strays, they’re just lost,” said SPPD Chief Corey Coon.
The city of Sandpoint is working on updating its website (sandpointidaho.gov/ police), adding a page under the “Forms” tab where people can submit their name, address and a photo of their dog to apply for a free license. Until then, the public can call SPD at 208-2651482 or visit the office at 1123 W. Lake St. to register their
animals.
“You can call a community resource officer and they’ll come out to your house in town with the form. That’s how important it is for us to get this done,” said Coon.
If you find a stray or lost dog, check it for an ID tag or microchip at one of the scanning locations listed on bettertogetheranimalalliance.org. Next, post pictures of the dog on social media and Petco Love Lost and text “STRAY” to 8883-LOV-BTAA for information on lost and found pets.
If possible, care for the dog while locating its owners and visit BTAA (870 Kootenai Cutoff Road) for supplies, if needed. If you find a sick or injured dog, call BTAA at 208-265-7297.
To keep your pets safe, ensure all animals wear collars with ID tags when outside. Visit BTAA Fridays from noon to 2 p.m. for the free microchip clinic, or stop by anytime for a free QR code ID tag. Finally, create a pet profile on Petco Love Lost, which uses facial and body recognition software to find photos of missing pets online.
For more information, visit bettertogetheranimalalliance.org.
Patrolling officers will not pick up wandering dogs unless they appear to be in distress — whether they’re limping, malnourished or simply behaving oddly. The city will take these dogs into their possession and transfer them to a professional care facility, where they’ll receive medical treatment. The dogs will be transferred to a shelter if SPD cannot locate the owners within five days. Anyone who picks up a dog in Sandpoint assumes “partial ownership” of the animal and can hold it for five days — if
possible — before surrendering it to a shelter, according to Coon. Officers will not collect the dog but will come out to help find the owner by scanning for chips and comparing the dog to photos in their database.
Though BTAA no longer receives compensation from the municipalities, it continues to accept stray dogs; however, the shelter cannot support the financial burden indefinitely. The public has brought in eight dogs since the contracts expired in September.
“Right now our position is, if people bring us a stray dog, we ask them to foster it. If they can’t, then we’re going to bring it in because I just don’t know what else we can do,” said Evans.
“It’s hard. People expect so much of us as a nonprofit — to be able to meet all of the demands and take care of everybody — and we’re also supposed to have enough money to do it,” she added.
According to Evans, BTAA’s insurance premiums have nearly doubled, costing the organization approximately $30,000 annually. That’s still less than the price of managing more than 100 ani-
BTAA employees scan a dog for a microchip. Courtesy photo.
City Council receives update on wastewater treatment plant replacement project
By Zach Hagadone Reader Staff
The city of Sandpoint is progressing with its effort to replace and upgrade the ailing wastewater treatment plant, which has limped along for years with equipment and facilities that in some cases date back to the 1950s and even 1940s.
Members of the City Council gathered for a special meeting Nov. 20 to hear an update on efforts to assess the 2019 facilities plan for the plant, as well as potential funding strategies and estimated timelines.
“This is my No. 1 priority; hopefully many of yours’ as well,” Sandpoint Mayor Jeremy Grimm told the council, describing the wastewater plant as “failing in many ways.”
Setting the agenda for the special meeting, Grimm said the big questions at this point are “how do we really crack this egg in terms of do we look at incremental replacement of these bits and pieces; do we look at a turnkey system that can replace them all; what do we not know at this point as we start to build up to a cost estimate and then sort of outlining the timeline and funding sources.”
Sandpoint Construction Manager Holly Ellis was joined by representatives from
mals’ waste, which results in a garbage bill of $50,000.
“The cost of veterinary medicine has gone up 60% in the last decade — it far exceeded inflation — and we are completely and closely tied to veterinary medicine,” said Evans.
“I just need the community to understand that we’re doing our best,” she added.
This past year, the nonprofit has already had to cut back on its workforce and dip into restricted funds to remain operational. BTAA has saved a small amount of money since it’s no longer required to take
Keller Associates, which is consulting with the city on the project, including project manager Kyle Meschko, engineer Dallin Stephens and Vice President Jim Mullen.
“Currently the plant lacks capacity,” Ellis said, adding that the facility has the capacity to treat 5 million gallons, but with the addition of inflow and infiltration from rain and snow, flows can exceed 10 million gallons.
“Our crews, our staff are having a really hard time operating this equipment that’s deteriorating, it’s undersized and there are operational challenges,” Ellis said.
Meschko told the council that Keller Associates has spent the past several months reviewing the 2019 facilities plan, as well as performing topographical and geophysical surveys at the site of the plant, which is located on the Pend Oreille River adjacent to War Memorial Field and Lakeview Park.
Following that analysis and subsequent discussions, Meschko said Keller Associates and City Hall officials agreed that the best way forward would be to stick with the current “conventional activated sludge process” with phased replacements of failing infrastructure components such as clarifiers, the digester, primary filters and headworks.
In addition, the preferred option for odor reduction
in all found dogs; however, those funds have been reallocated to the organization’s other programs.
In addition to their work with stray and lost dogs, BTAA offers free vaccines and microchips, provides emergency medical care, cares for and rehomes surrendered animals, and allows families to keep their pets by helping to pay for food and medical care.
According to Evans, assisting with veterinary bills costs BTAA an average of $1,500 per week.
“People don’t think that we’re helping animals anymore. I have 106 animals
would be a process using ultraviolet light to create a blend of oxidizing agents, ionized atoms and molecules to break down the contaminants that result in the smell known so well by residents in the vicinity of the plant.
That route would cost as much as $100 million and come with an estimated completion date of fall 2029.
Funding would come from a combination of sources, including short-term loans and local bonding, backfilled with low-interest 40-year loans from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and 40-year funding from the Idaho Department of Quality.
Seeking the DEQ dol-
in my shelter right now. I haven’t seen the length of stay that we’re experiencing right now since I first started with the organization almost 14 years ago,” said Evans.
“We are in a place of really wanting to help,” she added. “The community has to contact their local officials if they don’t like the way that they’ve decided to handle strays. We really need them to be vocal. We’re absolutely willing to talk to the cities and the county and see how we can work together, but they have to want to have those conversations.”
lars would come first in the process, with a letter of interest expected to be sent to the department in January. Sandpoint’s request would be pooled with other applications from around the state, which DEQ would assess based on need and available funds.
“It seems strategically more appropriate to go with the traditional activated sludge plant, where we might be able to piecemeal the funding for this plant over three years, where one year we apply for funding for the headworks and the primary filters, the next year for the digester, the next year for the clarifiers,” Grimm said.
Going forward, Keller Associates V.P. Mullen said the city should have a response from DEQ on funding by June. Meanwhile, if a bond election in May results in success, “We’ll turn around right after that and submit an application to [USDA] Rural Development as well. They’re usually pretty quick with their response and we’ll probably know within a June or July timeframe what their funding package looks like.
“Probably by midsummer we’ll have a really good idea of funding packages, how much and scheduling and all those kinds of things to be able to move forward on next steps,” he added.
Whether or not a bond
might be proposed in May 2025 is still up in the air. Calling that timeline “aggressive,” Grimm said the possibility of getting that measure on the ballot will depend on what ratepayers can bear.
“Which, once we implement our next rate hike, are going to be pretty high rates nationally,” he said, later adding, “that’s only going to support a bonding amount of around $60 million.”
The Nov. 20 special meeting was informational only, but Grimm said there will be additional meetings in December or January, and multiple future opportunities for public involvement as the funding proposals are solidified.
Meanwhile, “You have a facility where many of the buildings and structures are beyond 60 years [old],” said Meschko, with Keller Associates. “There is some hope because some of the concrete of these structures is in generally decent shape, given the age. But I think the big thing is that your facilities are approaching that expected useful life, and there needs to be a plan in place to make sure that those are appropriately accounted for replacement.”
A holding tank at the Sandpoint wastewater treatment plant.
Photo by Soncirey Mitchell.
< BTAA, con’t from Page 4 >
All smiles at the Carousel Fun Fair
By Reader Staff
The Carousel of Smiles celebrated its bright future at its new home at 504 Church St. with a second unveiling of the nearly restored “Golden Age” 1920 Allan Herschell carousel at the Carousel Fun Fair, held Nov. 22-23 at the Bonner County Fairgrounds.
Attendees had the chance to get up close to the freshly painted ponies and learn more about the long-term vision for the proposed carousel pavilion and activity center on Church Street.
Visionaries Reno and Clay Hutchison assembled the carousel for the first time in 66 years back
Bits ’n’ Pieces
From east, west and beyond
The Federal Trade Commission has a new rule banning phony online reviews. Penalties can run to $50,000 per infraction. According to FTC Chair Lina Khan, false product evaluations can harm legitimate competitors. An estimated 30% to 40% of online reviews are dishonest.
Sen. Bernie Sanders’ bill to block $20 billion in U.S. weapons to Israel failed, The Guardian reported. At the same time, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israel’s prime minister and for the military commander of Hamas. Charges included crimes against humanity.
Trump’s sentencing for 34 felony convictions has been postponed. The judge said lawyers need to file dismissal arguments by Dec. 2 and prosecutors will have a week to respond. The Guardian reported that Trump’s lawyers want the case tossed “in order to facilitate the orderly transition of executive power.”
Russia’s new intermediate-range ballistic missile — recently fired at a Ukrainian military-industrial facility — can travel 10 times faster than the speed of sound, and can’t be intercepted by U.S. or European anti-defense missiles, according to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Oceanographic reported that 44 leading ocean and climate scientists signed a letter warning that the network of Atlantic ocean currents responsible for climate stability are on the edge of collapse sooner than anticipated, and with a greater impact than previous estimates. Consequences are expected to include extreme and abrupt weather shifts, with “large impacts on ecosystems and human activities.”
in December 2017 at the first unveiling, when the ponies were still rough from their years of disuse. Before that time, the carousel had been gathering dust, left forgotten in two trailers in a Kansas field.
The Hutchisons revived the treasure and officially began restorations in 2018. Volunteers and artisans have since repaired and repainted most of the 36 intricate horses and the ride’s body, all leading up to November’s “Unveiling 2.0.”
For more information, visit thecarouselofsmiles.org.
The COP29’s recent climate deal authorized $300 billion to help poorer countries fight climate change, according to the BBC. India and others characterized the amount as “a paltry sum” in contrast to the need, which experts say is more than $1 trillion every year.
Trump disavowed Project 2025 while campaigning, but he’s wasted no time appointing affiliates of the plan to his cabinet and White House staff, The Guardian reported. That began with choosing JD Vance for his vice president. Vance has close ties to Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts, who was the chief architect and promoter of Project 2025.
Trump also tapped Project 2025
By Lorraine H. Marie Reader Columnist
affiliates Ben Carr, who wrote the chapter on the Federal Communications Commission and is now the nominee to head that agency; plan contributor Tom Homan, who is on tap for “border czar”; and John Ratcliffe, who helped policy recommendations for the plan and is now the top pick for CIA director.
Meanwhile, Trump’s appointed press secretary Karoline Leavitt and deputy chief of staff for policy Stephen Miller both appeared in the promotional video for Project 2025.
In a recent Wall Street Journal oped, Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy described plans to reshape the federal government, including dismantling federal agencies, via Trump’s newly formed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). The New Republic pointed out that both have “a wide range of conflicts of interest and opportunities for corrupt self-enrichment.”
In a tongue-in-cheek application to serve on the DOGE team, journalist and The Lever founder David Sirota included a proposal to create a Department of Pentagon Efficiency (DOPE) to address the Pentagon’s seventh failure to pass an audit. In addition, he fronted the Fix the Tax Payment System, including expanding the free direct tax file system and enacting President Ronald Reagan’s proposal for a voluntary return-free tax system; and Combat Profiteering Off Government-Developed Medicines, which notes that while government funding contributed to the development of all new approved medicines between 2010 and 2019, a Clinton-era rule was dropped during that time requiring companies that benefit from government research help to offer those products at a fair and reasonable price.
Trump’s self-proclaimed “unprecedented and powerful [voter] mandate” is the fifth smallest victory margin since 1900, according to James M. Lindsay, writing for the Council on Foreign Relations. Trump had 4 million fewer votes in the 2024 election than Joe Biden had in 2020.
Blast from the past: “You can fool all the people some of the time and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time.” — Attributed to Abraham Lincoln, 16th U.S. president, though unconfirmed.
Top: The nearly restored Carousel of Smiles. Above: Reno Hutchison helps push the carousel at the “Unveiling 2.0” on Nov. 22 at the Bonner County Fairgrounds. Courtesy photo.
State Board of Ed considers resolution to limit DEI policies in public universities
By Mia Maldonado Idaho Capital Sun
The Idaho State Board of Education is considering adopting a resolution that would address concerns from lawmakers and Idahoans about existing diversity, equity and inclusion programs in Idaho’s public universities.
In a special meeting Nov. 21, the board met to discuss three draft resolutions, including one meant to consolidate and affirm existing Idaho policies related to diversity, equity and inclusion into one document.
The proposed resolution would direct public Idaho universities to maintain equality of opportunity for all students; ensure that no central offices, policies, procedures or initiatives are dedicated to diversity, equity and inclusion; ensure student success centers are dedicated to all students; and ensure that no employee or student is required to declare gender identity or preferred pronouns.
The Nov. 21 meeting was the board’s first read of the resolution, and it will take time and feedback from stakeholders before it is finalized and voted upon.
Board Executive Director Joshua Whitworth said at the meeting the draft resolutions are based on similar activity in states such as Utah and Texas, where there are laws that restrict diversity, equity and inclusion programs in state universities and public institutions.
“The purpose is to ensure that we are providing support for all of our students and that our institutions are defending core principles of freedom of expression by not taking sides on contentious issues, but rather facilitating constructive discussions and civil and rigorous debate on our public campuses,” Whitworth said.
Board President Linda Clark said in a press release that the board has heard concerns from lawmakers and Idahoans about the issues addressed in the draft resolutions.
“These concerns are being expressed not only in Idaho, but in many states across the nation,” Clark stated in the release. “We will work with our institutions to collect input, and the Board will make a decision during a future Board meeting.”
What does the draft resolution not do?
The draft resolution comes at a
time when topics of diversity, equity and inclusion have increasingly been on the radar of Idaho lawmakers.
During the 2024 legislative session, three legislators — Sens. Scott Herndon, R-Sagle; Brian Lenney, R-Nampa; and Rep. Elaine Price, R-Coeur d’Alene — sponsored Senate Bill 1357. The bill would have prohibited diversity, equity and inclusion programs in Idaho colleges and universities, and it specifically named diversity programs and positions to eliminate across Idaho universities.
The bill did not receive a hearing, and it did not make it to either floor.
The board’s draft resolution is not a replica of that bill, Idaho Superintendent of Public Instruction Debbie Critchfield told the Sun.
“It’s definitely not an apples-to-apples comparison,” Critchfield said. “I think that particular piece of legislation did call upon very specific actions to take place relative to certain populations. I’m taking this resolution as reaffirming the role of education at the state level that we have a student-centered system.”
Critchfield said “nothing about the resolution” forces an immediate action as far as closing any programs or diminishing support groups meant to help students.
“In no way are we saying that those programs should go away,” she said.
Critchfield said she wants any student coming onto an Idaho campus to feel welcome, and the resolution reaffirms the idea that Idaho universities won’t give special attention to certain groups while acknowledging that different groups of students have unique needs.
How are Idaho universities addressing DEI concerns?
So far, only one of Idaho’s public universities has publicly announced that it is restructuring its diversity equity and inclusion offices.
On Nov. 14, Idaho State University announced it would reorganize its Office of Equity and Inclusion, renaming it the Office of Equal Opportunity and Title IX. Programs from the university’s Diversity Resource Center and Gender Resource Center will be integrated into broader student support services, according to the university.
It is unclear if other Idaho universities are making similar moves.
Boise State University spokesperson
Stephany Galbreaith told the Sun on Nov. 21 that the university is committed to serving all students, but she did not address if the university has restructuring plans.
“We are aware of the resolutions that were presented at today’s Idaho State Board of Education meeting and will provide feedback,” she wrote in an email.
University of Idaho spokesperson Jodi Walker said the university is discussing how to meet the expectations of the board and the Idaho Legislature.
“Among those conversations is closure of our DEI-related units,” Walker told the Sun in an email Nov. 21. “In light of the information provided at today’s board meeting, we are evaluating our options and working with the board to provide input and feedback to their resolution. Ultimately, we will comply with any resolutions or policies they establish.”
Lewis and Clark State College spokespeople could not be immediately reached for comment.
Diversity, equity and inclusion is expected to remain a prominent topic in the 2025 legislative session. Idaho
DEI-restricting policies already in place
Idaho has laws already in place preventing state funds from supporting diversity, equity and inclusion policies.
In 2023, the Idaho Legislature passed Senate Bill 1176, an education budget bill for the state’s public universities. It also prohibited state funding for activities tied to diversity, equity or social justice, Idaho Education News previously reported.
In the 2024 legislative session, Idaho Gov. Brad Little signed S.B. 1274 into law. The law prevents higher education institutions in Idaho from requiring diversity statements as a condition of employment or student admission.
lawmakers are scheduled to meet at 8:30 a.m. on Monday, Dec. 2 at the Idaho State Capitol to discuss “DEI.”
This story was produced by Boise-based nonprofit news outlet the Idaho Capital Sun, which is part of the States Newsroom nationwide reporting project. For more information, visit idahocapitalsun.com.
ICL releases new report on statewide mining and need for best practices
By Reader Staff
The Idaho Conservation League is announcing the release of a comprehensive report that outlines the environmental impacts of mining, provides an inventory of notable mining projects across Idaho, and delves into mining law reform, best practices for projects and the role of mining in the clean energy transition.
The report — Unearthing Idaho: Mining and Environmental Impacts in the Gem State — also offers guidance for citizens concerned about proposed mines, for mining companies that aim to mine responsibly in Idaho, and for regulatory agencies in charge of permitting and overseeing mining operations.
“Mining is widely recognized as one of the most environmentally impactful forms of resource extraction on our planet,” ICL stated in a news release. “According to the Environmental Protection Agency, mining remains the nation’s leading source of toxic releases to the environment.”
Meanwhile, metals and other mined materials remain essential commodities, and battery metals in
particular — such as cobalt and lithium — are only increasing in importance amid a global transition from gas-powered to electric vehicles.
“There is a ton of mining activity occurring statewide from early-stage exploration all the way through operating and long-abandoned mines,” stated ICL Central Idaho Director Josh Johnson. “This extensive mining has already left permanent scars on Idaho’s landscape and has the potential to do significantly more damage if future projects are constructed in sensitive areas and/or without the proper environmental safeguards.”
Some of the best practices highlighted in the recent report include early and frequent dialogue with stakeholders; meaningful tribal consultation; and robust monitoring, reclamation and mitigation.
“While we do need mining to some degree, we do not need to say yes to it everywhere and every time,” Johnson stated. “What we always need, however, is clean air, clean water and a safe environment for ourselves and our families.”
Find the full report at bit. ly/4i2VhtD.
Bouquets:
• I’m always thankful for the amazing people I work with every week, but there’s one person who doesn’t often get recognized for his contributions both to the community and the Reader: Chris Bessler. When I announced I’d be restarting the Reader in 2014, Chris met me at Monarch Mountain Coffee to ask how he could help. We decided to go in on this endeavor together, and Keokee Media — which Chris helms, along with Sandpoint Magazine — helped us launch the website while providing immeasurable assistance getting us off the ground during the first few years. Chris has always been an ally, has never asked for or taken anything by way of a profit from this paper, and continues to offer whatever help he can to make sure the Reader has what it needs to fulfill its mission to “support an informed community.” That’s just what he does for the Reader. Zooming out, you’ll see he’s a constant advocate for numerous community causes, including but not limited to the Panida’s Century Fund, programming on KRFY 88.5 FM, educational causes and dozens of others. I often write laudatory words about those who get the work done behind the scenes in this town — the ones who serve on boards and attend important meetings, who dedicate time and energy to making this a better place. Chris is one of those people and I have always appreciated and respected his dedication to this community. If you appreciate the work we do at the Reader, Chris helped get us here. We’re grateful for his support.
Barbs:
• Not this week, friends.
Good Reminders...
Dear editor,
I enjoyed reading Emily Erickson’s column “Analog Era” [Nov. 21] and I, too, feel a tremendous need to unplug and disconnect from the chaos of national politics.
Whether it be social media or the “talking heads” of cable so-called news, I’m ready to crank up the music and crack open a good book. I’m ready to take the time to write a letter to the editor praising the thoughts of a local writer.
In the time before “devices,” we rarely worried about the political affiliations of friends, neighbors and co-workers. Trolling was a way of fishing and screen time wasn’t an issue.
Thank you, Emily, for reminding us of the simple pleasures of conversation and learning new skills like investing in yourself.
It’s my time to honor and have gratitude for local journalism and know that every Thursday morning I can look forward to using my screen time by enjoying an online edition of the Sandpoint Reader from the warmth of my desert patio.
Valerie Olson Yuma, Ariz. (formerly of Sandpoint)
Three-ring circus…
Dear editor, How’s everybody enjoying the warm up act? You know, the current skirmish between Bradshaw, Herndon and their dysfunctional Republican Party. Of course you ain’t seen anything yet. Just wait for Jan. 20 in D.C. Barnum and Bailey could never have come up with the acts we’re all about to see.
Better lay in a huge supply of popcorn and beer!
Lawrence Fury Sandpoint
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COMMUNITY
Paneah’s Bistro joins Cedar Street Bridge, offering breakfast, afternoon eats
By Reader Staff
The Cedar Street Bridge is welcoming a new eatery with Paneah’s Bistro, which will host a grand opening Saturday, Nov. 30.
Menu highlights include homemade sourdough cinnamon rolls with options like huckleberry, vanilla creme, orange cinnamon, maple-nut and maple bacon; paninis and flatbreads featuring Italian focaccia and European flatbreads; and espresso, teas, cacao and more.
“We’re thrilled to join the downtown Sandpoint community,” stated owner Brice Ingwaldson in a news release announcing the grand opening.
“Our goal is to create a welcoming space where people can gather and enjoy delicious food in a cozy space while visiting the Cedar Street Bridge,”
he added. “We look forward to the addition of ‘The Loft,’ which will complete construction in January of 2025, giving us the ability to house more seating.”
Located at the top of the stairs on the second floor of the Cedar Street Bridge, the doors will open from 8 a.m.-4 p.m., Monday-Saturday.
For more information, visit paneahs.com or follow Paneah’s on Instagram and Facebook at @ paneahsbistro.
Santa’s comin’ to town
By Reader Staff
Santa’s flying down from the North Pole for Sandpoint’s annual tree lighting ceremony Friday, Nov. 29 at the Jeff Jones Town Square on the corner of Oak and Third Ave.
The free event kicks off
at 5 p.m. with caroling and snacks, including free hot cocoa, cider and cookies. Emcee David Keyes and Sandpoint Mayor Jeremy Grimm will drop in just before 6 p.m. to count down the tree lighting and Santa’s arrival.
Stick around to enjoy the lights and meet Santa for an
hour afterward.
The free, annual event is made possible by the Greater Sandpoint Chamber of Commerce, the city of Sandpoint — including the Sandpoint Fire and Police departments — as well as local sponsors BNSF Railway, Idaho Forest Group and Ziply Fiber.
Shop small this holiday season
By Reader Staff
Rather than turning to Amazon or big box stores for gifts this holiday season, locals will have a special opportunity Saturday, Nov. 30 to shop small and support area businesses.
First, Sandpoint Church of God Youth Ministry will host the Small Business Christmas Market from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Sandpoint Community Hall (204 S. First Ave.). The bustling market will feature more than 40 area creators selling handmade decorations, gifts, delicious treats and much more.
Among them, Sweet Hon-
eys will sell gluten-free, dairyfree and dye-free baked goods; Humminbird Acres will have natural skin care products; and BP Doodles will be there sketching caricatures. Stop by to see what other treasures these vendors have on offer.
After browsing the booths,
head over to Shop Small Saturday at the Pend d’Oreille Winery (301 Cedar St.) anytime from noon to 8 p.m. for holiday discounts and specials.
For more information on these free events, visit bit.ly/ SBChristmasMarket and powine.com.
Paneah’s Bistro inside the Cedar St. Bridge. Courtesy photo.
Give thanks for the wild
By Phil Hough Reader Contributor
This has been a tough year. I am sure I am not alone. Faced with shoulder surgery and some personal challenges, I had trouble sleeping. Insomnia brought on mild depression and anxiety. An occasional panic attack set in. Lack of sleep does that. It’s hard to write these words. In our society, we don’t openly talk about either physical or mental health issues. We will all suffer until we remove that stigma and learn how to talk about and face these challenges.
Support from friends and a good counselor helped. Overthe-counter and prescription drugs, supplements and homeopathic remedies only do so much. Deep breathing, mindfulness and mediation do so much more. And these days, “there’s an app for that.”
I found the best path to calmness was walking in wild places. Immersion into nature. Both the act of exercise as
well as finding a quiet place to sit and contemplate. Breathe in fresh mountain air, breathe out relaxation. There is no “app” for that.
We visited the Mallard Larkins in August, because it’s remote, quiet and uncrowded. We went to Yellowstone in September. Where, faithfully, there were huge crowds around the geysers and jam-ups of cars whenever wildlife was in view of the road. We put on backpacks and headed off to a lake eight miles from the road, leaving the crowded Yellowstone front country behind.
We found places as remote and wild as can be. Elk rummaging through the brush and bugling all through the day and night. The cry of a loon on the lake. The howling of wolves. At times the profound sounds of silence. We saw no people at all the first two days. It was the getaway that the doctor had ordered, or at least the one that the counselor recommended.
Back home a week lat-
er, we set out on our annual October hike to the top of Scotchman Peak. My wife and I have led groups to the top every year since 2005. And the hike never fails to inspire and to relax mind and spirit, if not body. The air is usually cool and crisp, the birch, aspen and larch trees are turning yellow. Huckleberry bushes
are bright red. Often a few inches of early season snow have fallen — just enough to see some mountain goat tracks. “The beast the color of winter,” Doug Chadwick calls them. And in October, they have a full coat.
We find the joy and bliss that first-time hikers encounter to be contagious. They
stop in awe at the first mountain goats we find and usually raise their hands in triumph on top. Their spirit renews our spirit as well.
It’s hard to truly know the healing power of nature until you experience it. My recovery is not complete; but, since August, I feel like I’m on the pathway back to a healthier mind, body and soul. Wilderness will do that. I am so thankful we have wild places left, like Scotchman Peak, to both inspire and to heal us.
We all need wild places, whether we realize it or not. In the coming year, I know I will get out there early and often and hope to keep a calm center — an even keel. I am hoping you do that as well. Maybe come along on one of our winter hikes. Regal Creek and Ross Creek are already calling to me.
Phil Hough is the executive director of Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness, an avid hiker and loves getting into the wilderness whenever he can.
How much more do Idaho women have to suffer?
By Rep. Lauren Necochea Reader Contributor
How much do Idaho women have to suffer before Republicans allow abortion care in medical emergencies and when health and fertility are threatened? This month, Idaho Attorney General Raúl Labrador’s office gave its answer: endlessly.
We must commend the courageous women who shared their stories before an Ada County judge, reliving the trauma they endured under Idaho’s draconian abortion ban. These women, plaintiffs in a lawsuit to clarify exceptions to the state’s near-total abortion ban, were excited about their pregnancies — until devastating medical diagnoses turned joy into agony.
Jennifer Adkins shared
how her fetus had a severe condition incompatible with survival and how she faced the threat of “mirror syndrome,” a life-threatening complication. Despite the risks, Idaho’s abortion ban forced her to travel out of state for care. Kayla Smith learned her fetus had fatal heart anomalies. With her own life at
risk due to a history of preeclampsia, Smith had to take out a loan and travel hours to end her pregnancy humanely.
These are two of the many stories that underscore the cruelty of Idaho’s laws.
How did Labrador’s office treat these women, who already endured unimaginable pain? In his opening statement, the state’s lead attorney labeled their necessary medical procedures as “barbaric.” He dismissed their experiences as “hypotheticals” and trivialized their life-threatening predicaments. His contempt culminated in repeated interruptions of their tearful testimony, prompting the judge to reprimand him and assert that their “circumstances are very worthy of sympathy.”
Unfortunately, Idaho’s GOP legislators did not write
sympathy into the law. It prohibits abortion unless doctors and nurses can prove to a jury the woman would have died without abortion care. Clinicians — who are trained to keep us healthy — face the impossible situation of watching patients deteriorate or risk years in prison.
Forcing doctors to delay care until death is imminent makes death more likely. We know of at least four women who have died because of abortion bans similar to Idaho’s. There are surely more. How many more women have to die? I’m afraid it’s a heartbreaking number.
This reminds me of the swimming test used during the Salem witch trials. Suspected “witches” were thrown in the river. The logic was that a witch would stay afloat, but a
river would accept an innocent woman, and she would sink. See the problem? To be exonerated as you’re drowning provides little assurance, just as it’s risky to be allowed abortion care only when you’re at death’s door. In Salem, there were no witches, just women. In Idaho today, there are just women who deserve medical care that keeps them healthy and preserves their fertility so they can have another chance at building the family of their dreams.
Rep. Lauren Necochea is the House assistant Democratic leader, representing District 19 in Boise on the Environment, Energy and Technology; Resources and Conservation; Revenue and Taxation; and Ways and Means committees.
Phil Hough atop Scotchman Peak. Courtesy photo.
Rep. Lauren Necochea. File photo.
Science: Mad about
By Brenden Bobby Reader Columnist
Nothing beats a lazy morning laying on the bed, thumbing through your phone and enjoying the comfort of sinking into a foam mattress topper. Ever wondered how they make that soft, cushy foam cover? What is it made out of and how does it get its shape?
Manufactured foam comes in a lot of varieties. There may be as many as three different types of foam used in your mattress alone. Mattresses will often use one or multiple types of foam: latex, memory foam and polyurethane. Polyurethane is the most common and cheapest form of foam used in beds. It is derived from petroleum-based chemicals called diisocyanates that are mixed with sugar alcohols called polyols. This mixing creates polyurethane; and, when air is introduced into the mixture, it becomes trapped to create the aerated structure of the foam. Poly-foam is then cut into precise sizes and added to beds or simply rolled up and sold as foam mattress toppers.
Memory foam is polyurethane foam with additional chemicals added to give it the unique qualities we know and love, such as retaining an indentation for a prolonged period of time. Memory foam generally has greater longevity than regular polyurethane foam, but the “squishy” quality of memory foam can be uncomfortable to some that prefer a firmer mattress topper and more support.
Producing latex foam requires a different process from polyurethane — using organic rubber compounds
foam
from rubber trees and putting it through a process called vulcanization.
I know what you’re thinking and, no, the foam isn’t told to “live long and prosper.” The vulcanization process is essentially applying heat and pressure to the rubber, in addition to some other chemicals to rapidly cure and transform it into the foam structure we recognize.
The rubber is placed in a container with sulfur and a number of other activator chemicals and then heated to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. At these temperatures, the sulfur begins to react with the rubber molecules to create cross-links that increase its durability and longevity. This is a common process when making foam, so the term “vulcanization” may come up frequently on this page.
Outside of the bedroom, foam appears virtually everywhere in our lives. Ethylene vinyl acetate, or EVA foam, appears commonly in gyms, sporting complexes and in cosplay. Its most recognizable form is the black gym mats and floor covering with edges cut to look like puzzle pieces — these interlock and create a large, low-cost surface area. It is produced by mixing ethylene and vinyl acetate in a vat and then squishing the product down to produce a sheet. Following that, it’s vulcanized like latex foam and enters secondary processing.
Secondary processing for EVA foam can take many forms, depending on the desired final shape. If it’s being made into modular floor mats, it is pressed by a die and cutter that imprints a texture onto its surface and creates the interlocking edge pieces by exerting immense pressure.
EVA foam is commonly used for cosplay props due to its rubber-like elasticity and lightweight nature. It also holds a texture well and is easy to process at home with basic household tools, giving crafters the ability to create hyper-realistic armor that’s lightweight and easy to paint or repair.
Expanded polystyrene, or EPS foam, is perhaps the most common form of foam we see in our everyday lives. This is regularly used to insulate houses, but can also be found protecting electronics and other fragile items during shipping as a white flaky foam that gets everywhere. You’ve probably heard this referred to as styrofoam.
EPS foam is produced by creating polystyrene pellets that are mixed with an expanding gas. These pellets are fed into a machine that heats them with steam to both melt the plastic and expand the gas to create foam. Polystyrene is also used in many other applications — my favorite being tabletop miniatures — however, high-impact polystyrene used in miniature creation does not contain expanding gas compounds.
EPS foam is formed into a brick mold to create a uniform rectangular shape. In many cases, this is a continuous process where a long line of foam is pressed down a conveyor and cut by a rolling guillotine that matches the pace of the line in order to produce smooth and uniform cuts. The chemical composition of the foam is altered prior to its heating, depending on the final application. Insulation foam will often be denser and less flaky than packing foam.
Bonus fact: Larval meal-
worm beetles will actually consume polystyrene as a food source. While this process is extremely slow, it doesn’t appear to have any detrimental effects on the worms or the creatures that eat the worms. Mealworms are very easy to raise and make a great treat for backyard poultry like chickens, turkeys and guineafowl.
The process of producing cans of expanding foam is similar to the polyurethane foam used in mattresses by employing an isoalcohol and polyol, along with an aerating compound that shoots the
chemicals from the can and traps air inside to create a foamy texture. The chemicals in this stuff are particularly nasty when exposed to heat, so if you ever need to shape or mold it with a hot knife, it’s imperative that you have adequate respiratory protection.
None of this foam is the stuff you want on your peppermint mocha, but the principle is similar to whipped cream. Trap air inside of a semisolid structure and voila! Foam at your fingertips, on your nose and in your beard.
Stay curious, 7B.
Random Corner
•Generation X refers to people born between 1965-1980, and Millennials are those whose birthdays fall between 1981 and 1996; but, wedged between them is a “microgeneration” called “Xennials,” meaning those born between 1977 and 1985. This generation is known for having an analog childhood and a digital young adulthood — born before the age of the internet and smartphone, but old enough to embrace the new technologies as they emerged.
•The term was coined in 2014 by Sarah Stankorb in Good Magazine, with members of the Xennial demographic waxing nostalgic about computer games like Oregon Trail and flip phones.
•Xennials watched the music industry change dramatically in their lives. They grew up listening to records, cassette tapes and CDs, then Napster and downloadable songs appeared online, leading to the music industry evolving into streaming culture in the 2010s.
•Xennials attended much of secondary school in a pre-Columbine era (referring to the tragic 1999 school shooting in Columbine, Colo.) and the 9/11 terror attacks. Both events marked a distinct change between the innocence of adolescence and the new reality of adulthood for the age cohort.
•Xennials are the last generation to use social media while remembering life without it. They also remember life before the internet (it was glorious, by the way).
•Writer Anna Garvey characterized Xennials as having had an “AOL adolescence,” and as being from “the last gasp of a time before sexting, Facebook shaming and constant communication.”
•Xennial celebrities include Sarah Michelle Gellar, James Franco, Ryan Gosling, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Christina Ricci, Heath Ledger, Chris Pratt, McCauley Caulkin, Justin Timberlake, Natalie Portman and Britney Spears.
GFHC feeds families through community gardens
By Reader Staff
Although Mother Nature has put summer to bed, the Gardens For Health Collaborative continues to grow new ideas and plant seeds of opportunity.
GFHC sprouted in 2021 and is made up of a variety of organizations and individuals interested in serving local families through the area’s community gardens. These energetic and caring folks are committed to bringing food to those in need and encouraging our families to dig into the soil and enjoy the gardens’ bounties.
The One Garden family includes East Bonner County Library, Christ Our Redeemer Lutheran Church, U of I Extension office, First Presbyterian Church and Bonner Community Food Bank. Kaniksu Land Trust’s newly acquired Pine Street Sled Hill also has a garden and small orchard space that will come to life as a community garden next season.
The GFHC is always looking for more gardens to join the One Garden family.
One Garden signs, designed by Kaniksu Land Trust Communications Director Marcy Timblin, popped up throughout the summer, marking a garden that is open to the public for harvest or whose produce feeds the community through the Bonner Community Food Bank.
In addition to the signage, the GFHC also created and offered a three-class “Thriller, Spiller, Filler Garden Adventure” program this past summer at the Sandpoint library and Christ Our Redeemers gardens.
Families had the opportunity to plant and take home a group of vegetables and herbs and to learn about the importance of fertilizing, watering, beneficial insects and seed saving. Participants also learned how to harvest their crops properly and walked away with fun recipes to enjoy their produce.
I’m dreaming of a chocolate Christmas Sandpoint Chocolate Co. grand opening
By Soncirey Mitchell Reader Staff
After establishing her brand as a local favorite by selling chocolate bars at retail locations around Sandpoint, chocolatier and business owner Julie Breuer is ready for the Saturday, Nov. 30 grand opening of the Sandpoint Chocolate Company storefront.
This dream has been a long time coming, and Breuer is celebrating with the best phrase known to humankind: “free chocolate.”
Join the chocolatiers at 608 W. Lake St. anytime from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. to pick up some stocking stuffers — if you can resist eating them in the car. Sandpoint Chocolate’s entire product line will be available for purchase, including bars, truffles, chocolate-covered nuts and fruit, pretzels, marshmallows and more.
“It has been a long road and we are happy to finally realize our dream,” said Breuer.
As an added treat, enjoy complimentary hot chocolate and dip marshmallows and fruit into the store’s chocolate fountain. Arrive early to claim your free treats before they’re all eaten up.
Going into 2025, GRCH will continue to help get food into the hands of those in need. Email gardensforhealthcollaborative@gmail.com to offer ideas, join the email group, participate in seasonal brainstorming sessions or lend a hand at the various gardens during the growing season.
“We can’t wait to share all of our holiday chocolates with the community. I think everyone will be thrilled to see what we have been creating for the upcoming Christmas season,” said Breuer.
For more information, visit sandpointchocolateco.com.
A garden at the Bonner Community Food Bank in June. Courtesy photo.
Sandpoint Chocolate owner Julie Breuer and daughter Grace. Courtesy photo
COMMUNITY BGH Hospice shines a light on those we’ve lost
By Reader Staff
The community will come together Tuesday, Dec. 3, for the 30th annual Tree of Memorial Lights ceremony, hosted by Bonner General Community Hospice. Beginning at 5:30 p.m. at the BGH Services Building (423 N. Third Ave.), this holiday tradition gives everyone a space to remember and honor their lost loved ones.
Each light represents an individual whose name will be read aloud during the ceremony. To enter a name or to make a donation to hospice, visit bonnergeneral.org/ donate-to-hospice.
For those unable to attend in person, BGH will stream the event on the hospice Facebook page.
Top left: Ed Nordgaarden, center, celebrates his 90th birthday at First Lutheran Church. Photo by Karenmarie Moran.
Top right: Janet Vetter (center back in the pink sweater) turned 100 years old and some friends gathered at the Sandpoint Senior Center Nov. 21 to celebrate. From left to right: Ellen Weissman, Donna Olazabal, Betty Johnson, Janet Vetter, Leslie Taillon and Donna Peterson. Photo courtesy Sandpoint Area Seniors, Inc.
Middle right: Janet Vetter is all smiles at 100 years old. Photo by Ellen Weissman.
Bottom left and middle: Before there was an ice rink in Bonner County, skaters would skate wherever they could when the weather was right. Here are Robby Harrison, left, and Lydia Harrison, right, ice skating around 2008 atop Memorial Field after it had flooded and frozen during the winter. Photos by Rob Harrison, who thought they’d be a nice touch to add to this edition, in which we announce the opening of The Pond in Ponderay (see Page 16).
Bottom right: The
To submit a photo for a future edition, please send to ben@sandpointreader.com.
James E. Russell Sports Center nearing completion when this photo was taken Nov. 18.Photo by Jason Welker.
Ice skating rink to open in Ponderay
Community chips in to make The Pond presented by STCU a reality
By Ben Olson Reader Staff
Anybody growing up in North Idaho can attest that ice skating is a sport that usually happens only when conditions are just right. It can’t be too warm or cold; there can’t be too much snow on the ground; and, even when ice forms on ponds or lakes, the surface might be too uneven to allow for good skating.
All that’s in the past now, with the grand opening of The Pond presented by STCU, a public ice rink in Ponderay. The Pond will open at 4 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 29 with a ribbon cutting and tree-lighting ceremony. Visit skatethepond. com to purchase tickets to skate, which cost $10 for those aged 18 and under and $15 for general admission. Both admission prices include skate rentals. Families of up to 10 can skate for $50. With 200 pairs of rental skates, The Pond can provide for everyone.
The project is a collaboration between the city of Ponderay and North Idaho Ice, a nonprofit organization formed with the intention of facilitating the construction of a winter sports venue specific to ice sports. The majority of the work and services, though, were donated by local businesses or community members.
City of Ponderay Planning Director and Project Manager KayLeigh Miller said The Pond is the kind of project that highlights just how powerful a community of people can be when they work toward a common goal.
“We had a lot of people who helped make this happen,” Miller told the Reader.
Gardner Custom Homes donated a zamboni shed, Selkirk Energy Solutions chipped in with insulation, Northwest Garage Doors donated doors to the building and Avista dropped power for free. In addition, Mountain Metals,
Burnett Electric, North Idaho Orthopedics and Advanced Drywall Concepts all contributed to the effort. Finally, STCU donated $15,000 for naming rights to the rink.
Miller said The Pond wasn’t funded by the city’s 1% local option sales tax, which helped pay for the Field of Dreams project but was turned down for renewal by voters in the November 2024 election. However, she is hopeful that the LOT passes the next time it’s on the ballot to help fund future phases, which will see an arena set up with a cover over the ice. Locker rooms and concessions are also in the works for the next phase, in what Miller describes as a “stair-step approach.”
“What I love about this is, for a fraction of the cost, we’ll be able to see the interest in the community, track ticket numbers and the number of bodies who visit The Pond,” Miller said. “Starting small
helps us show this to the community. This is a $200,000 way to try it out instead of a $2 million dollar way.”
The Pond was constructed by grading the soil and covering it with compacted sand, said Tim Wilson, with North Idaho Ice.
“Then, on top of that, we laid 12 miles of half-inch tubing where we pump the glycol, which is the same stuff they use in a hydronic floor in a house,” he said.
The tubing acts as a chiller, which keeps the ice at the optimal temperature no matter what the weather is doing outside.
With the side boards locked into place, volunteers began the ice-building process, with a little help from the fire department spraying water on the surface to allow for freezing. After multiple thin layers have formed, the ice is set at around four inches.
“The chillers have enough
power so we should be able to run this even on a 70-degree sunny day,” Wilson said.
Along with public skating sessions, Miller said The Pond will serve a variety of uses.
“I look at this as a catalyst to start a future hockey program,” she said. “We’re going to be offering stick and puck sessions where anyone can show up to practice shooting around the ice with it.”
That’s the driving force for Wilson and fellow NIICE Board Member Travis Taylor, whose passion for sharing hockey with the community has culminated in the public rink.
“I have a young son and I got into this wanting him to grow up with the great hockey experience that I did when I was a kid,” Wilson said.
Wilson said he was pleasantly surprised to find that though he started the project with a focus on hockey, he now sees The Pond as a wider way to involve the community
in winter sports.
“Seeing how the community reacted to this rink, it’s a feel-good thing,” he said. “I never thought it would be so personally gratifying.”
Aside from public skating and hockey uses, The Pond will be available to rent for private parties, figure skating groups or other causes.
“There’s even a group of guys who drive down from Canada to use the rink in Coeur d’Alene for curling, so I suspect we’ll start to see a lot of fun stuff coming out of the woodwork,” Miller said.
To learn more about NIICE, visit niicearena.com. To book sessions to skate at The Pond, located at 995 Kootenai Cutoff Road, visit skatethepond.com.
The Pond ice rink at night under the lights. Photo by KayLiegh Miller.
In quest of ‘lost apples’
New book documents search for heritage fruit
By Reader Staff
When Stan Myers bought the family’s six-acre property above Denton Slough in Hope about 25 years ago, the former dairy farm came with about 18 old apple trees. Myers took it as a labor of love to nurse the aged and neglected trees to health — and they now repay the family with a few dozen gallons of pressed apple juice each year.
But Myers wasn’t sure what varieties of apples his trees were producing. Several years ago, he learned of the Lost Apple Project, based in Whitman County, Wash., whose mission is to identify and preserve the vanishing heritage apples of the Northwest. Myers connected with the project founder, David Benscoter, but COVID intervened and a visit to the Myers’ home orchard never coalesced.
Then Stan saw that Benscoter has authored a new book, Lost Apples: The search for rare and heritage apples in the Pacific Northwest, published by Keokee Books in Sandpoint. The two reconnected and Benscoter made a visit to the Myers’ orchard in October.
“With one bite of an apple from the first tree, he wrecked our longstanding belief we had Snow apples, which are a very old apple variety,” Myers said. “They are original stock Red Delicious apples, which are much different than today’s super red-colored and watery Red Delicious apples.”
But Benscoter couldn’t positively identify some of the other varieties. In a phone call, he said he suspects the trees may include three other apple va-
rieties: a Winter Banana, a Wolf River and possibly a Palouse. He’s taken samples from Myers’ trees for DNA fingerprinting. Of the Myers’ orchard, he said, “they’re very old trees; I’m sure they’re over a hundred years old. They’re just the kind of trees we’re looking for.”
From the time the first apples arrived in North America with colonists in the 1600s up through the 1900s, an estimated 17,000-plus named varieties of apples were cultivated on the continent. Thousands of those varieties, called “cultivars,” were brought to the Northwest by settler-colonists for their home orchards and commercial growing. Most of those apples are lost and likely extinct today.
Co-authored by Linda Hackbarth, Benscoter’s Lost Apples is the account of the apple historians and enthusiasts who are canvassing the region’s old orchards and forgotten homesteads in search of rare apples that still survive. The book relates the histories of many of the early nurserymen of the region and tells of the current quest to find and save rare apple cultivars. It in-
A forest of light
By Reader Staff
cludes an appendix of more than 1,600 cultivars documented by nurseries and the Washington State University agricultural college from the late 1800s to early 1900s. The book also includes dozens of apple illustrations from the historical USDA Pomological Watercolor Collection.
Benscoter hopes his book inspires others to learn more about heritage apples and join the effort to save them. As he writes, “So far, we’ve found more than 30 apples once believed to be extinct ... and the best news is, we are going to find more.”
Lost Apples is available at retailers around the region, including Vanderford’s Books, the Corner Bookstore, Bonners Books or KeokeeBooks.com.
The Festival of Trees returns bigger than ever
This year, the Community Resource EnVision Center will bring back the annual Festival of Trees, bigger and better than ever, to The Hive (207 N.First Ave.) on Saturday, Nov. 30. The free festivities will run from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. with treats, shopping, kids activities and plenty of gorgeous Christmas trees.
Bring the kids for a picture with Santa, arts and crafts, face painting
and more while you get some Christmas shopping done. Then, enjoy cookies and hot cocoa while exploring the extravagantly decorated trees made by local nonprofits, as well as a special tree donated by the Idaho Club, which will be auctioned off to support the EnVision Center.
Bid on your favorites in person or at the virtual auction for a chance to bring home a one-of-a-kind holiday treasure. Fifty percent of the proceeds from the trees will benefit the non-
profits that created them.
Finally, vote in the fourth-grade gingerbread house competition before heading over to the Music Conservatory of Sandpoint (110 Main St.) for more crafts at Heather’s Color Gallery. This pop-up event gives participants the opportunity to paint a piano, bid in a small silent auction and enter for a chance to win a gift certificate to Talus Rock Retreat.
For more information, visit crecidaho.com/festival-or-trees.
Author David Benscoter and his book, Lost Apples. Courtesy photos.
FEATURE
A new history
By Zach Hagadone Reader Staff
Big things were happening in the eighth and ninth millennia B.C.E. Archaeologists and anthropologists generally agree that the period saw the beginnings of agriculture, the first settled human communities and the origins of writing systems. The most recent ice age had come to an end, resulting in rising sea levels and the flourishing of flora and fauna.
People were on the move, too — including in North Idaho, where previous research indicated they wouldn’t have yet populated.
Based on earlier archeological findings, the oldest evidence of human occupation in the local area dated to between 6,000 and 7,000 years ago. However, new artifacts uncovered during a recent construction project on U.S. Highway 95 near McArthur Lake have pushed back that timeline to 10,546 years ago.
“Where we all live, the archeology hasn’t been as well documented as a lot of other places yet. There’s just been hints that there could be an earlier archaeological component,” said Jyl Wheaton, an archaeologist and member of the Kootenai Tribe of Idaho, who led the dig. “Traditional Kootenai knowledge talks about geologically a time before — an older time that lines up with geological events. That’s why I always thought there could be older things.”
The discoveries were made as a result of earth-moving for the U.S. 95 project, which the Idaho Transportation Department undertook to rebuild a two-lane section of the highway, add wider shoulders and build a 300-foot bridge to give wildlife a safe way to travel beneath the road in order to reduce animal strikes.
Because the work occurred on Kootenai tribal land, it was already known that workers would uncover cultural resources during excavation.
“ITD began a partnership working with the Kootenai Tribe to make sure that we had a good understanding of what was going to be in the ground before they started disturbing the earth,” said CarrieAnn Hewitt, who served as ITD project manager on the U.S. 95-McArthur Lake project.
Wheaton joined the discussions in 2019 — not only because of her archeological training but as part of the
consultation process required by the relationship between tribal, state and federal governments.
She worked with ITD and contractor Archeological and Historic Services to determine how deep to dig, and once dirt started getting turned, “they found thousands of artifacts,” Wheaton said, including stone flakes, projectile points and fire-cracked rocks.
“Stuff that indicated that humans had been there,” Wheaton said. “We knew that going in, so we thought that we had learned what we could from the site, and that’s when it was OK to go ahead with construction [on the highway project].”
That was in the summer of 2021. Meanwhile, 10 tribal members were brought on as cultural resource monitors to follow behind the machines, looking on the ground for artifacts, then collecting and recording them — “basic archeology recovery,” Wheaton said.
While Hewitt said it was expected that crews would uncover more arrowheads and other artifacts, “it wouldn’t be anything that we would stop construction for because we’d already had thousands of them.”
The monitors were there “in case we found something more significant. And we did,” she said.
One day on the site in the summer of 2023, a side cut into a sand dune revealed “some really strange, weird lumpy shapes — I couldn’t figure out what they were,” Wheaton said.
She and the monitors investigated further, finding multiple points that appeared to have been crafted in an older style than what they were expecting, mingled with other artifacts that coincided with the already established timeline.
Then, beneath 12 feet of sand, they discovered a hard line of calcium-rich sediment (called a concretion) with a distinctive orange coloration atop even more sand. Wheaton took photos and sent them to her Professor, Loren Davis, at Oregon State University — himself famous for discovering the oldest evidence of human occupation in Idaho at the 16,000-year-old Cooper’s Ferry site along the Salmon River.
He told Wheaton that it looked like she’d found a preserved ground surface — referred to as a “paleosol” — and if she found an artifact within that layer, it would function like a time capsule.
Excited, she returned to the site the
Inside the discovery of 10,000-year-old human artifacts at ‘Seven Eagles’ site near McArthur Lake
next day. It had rained in the meantime, making it a good opportunity to uncover whatever might be in the paleosol.
“Sure enough, I found an inch-byinch flake in the side cut near these weird concretions,” Wheaton said.
She returned with three monitors, who took sediment samples and screened them, finding even more flakes. Wheaton took those results and shared them with Davis, who traveled to the site the next day.
“Within like 20 minutes of digging, we found a projectile point, and we found what looked like fire-modified rocks that could have been a hearth and we also found some charcoal all in the same little space,” she said.
Radiocarbon dating of the charcoal returned the date of 10,546 years old.
“This is by far the oldest site in this area now,” Wheaton said.
“We knew 6,000-7,000 years ago it seemed like there were people around — it was definitive with these Cascade points. This point that we found had a stem point following the Western Stem tradition, which seems to be older,” she added. “I always thought that stuff could be there, and there it was.”
When the importance of the find became clear, Wheaton said Davis told her, “you just need to take a moment because you’ve done it. Every archeologist dreams of it, and now you’ve done it.”
The discovery of the older-than-expected point required a discussion with ITD about how to proceed.
“It was a challenge because we had
this special digging that we had to do for the paleosol, but we still had to keep construction going to keep with our schedule,” Hewitt said. “With Jyl’s help and with the tribe’s help we were able to. ... It was a really great partnership of working together and understanding the needs of everybody and trying to be accommodating to each other and understanding the importance of what each group was trying to do. It was really great working together and we both had great outcomes.”
For that collaboration, Wheaton and Hewitt shared the President’s Transportation Award from the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials — the organization’s most prestigious honor — which they received Oct. 31 in Philadelphia.
The discovery of the paleosol and artifacts within it required the establishment of another archeological site.
“This was significant for the tribe, this was significant for science and it also met the National Historic Preservation standards of ‘significant,’” Wheaton said.
Neither Wheaton nor Hewitt were aware of any other instance when an ITD project resulted in such a robust collaboration nor yielded such exciting archeological findings. Beyond that significance, Wheaton agreed the project made history on a number of levels — including for the Kootenai Tribe.
Cultural resource monitors with the Kootenai Tribe of Idaho at work on the Seven Eagles archeology dig near McArthur Lake. Courtesy photo
“To have native people using science to learn more about their culture and getting to be a part of the process from the beginning is a big deal,” she said. “A lot of times, it’s just the natives giving input, but then experts come in and do everything and the natives step aside.”
In this case, working on the second dig alongside Portland-based Willamette Cultural Resources and Wheaton, the tribal monitors became archeologists.
“They went in not knowing how to use a compass and not really understanding maps to going to archaeology field school and coming out with skills,” Wheaton said. “Not only did they get to be part of this, but it actually pushes history back. I’m proud of everybody for that.”
Wheaton and the crew of monitors even named the secondary site — a distinction only given to the most significant archaeological digs. They dubbed it “Seven Eagles.”
“On the very first day that we were all out there, seven eagles just circled and circled and circled while we worked. And so that’s our site and that’s what it’ll be known as when we get the word out and start to present all the data findings to the world,” Wheaton said.
“For the tribe and for tribal people, it shows that we can use science for our own purposes and for our own ideas and we can frame our own questions about our past and use science to prove them. That’s big,” she added. “Tribes a lot of times don’t have that opportunity; they can use science but they don’t get to create the science. Science is something pointed at native people in general. And then for our tribe to be associated with this place for so long — again, it validates who we are. ...
“Those are our people and that’s how long we’ve been around, and now we have radiocarbon dates to prove it.”
Further analysis of the artifacts and other materials is ongoing, including the investigation of soil samples looking for pollen, bone and shell fragments to discover what kinds of plants and animals may have been present on the landscape. A sample of obsidian found at the site is also being analyzed, and the work is anticipated to be finished in less than a year.
“There will be a lot more to learn,” Wheaton said. “Right now, we know it’s older than anything else. And we’ll see what we can find out from there. ...
“What this will do is shift projects now, whether its construction or any kind of earth-moving, it’s going to raise the awareness that the potential to
hit this deep paleosol layer is there, and that opens the potential for more things to be learned, more things to be found,” she added. “That’s kind of where it sits.”
Because artifacts belong to the owner of the land on which they were found — and Idaho owns the land — the materials will end up at the state repository at the University of Idaho, where they’ll be held in secure, humidity-controlled conditions for preservation, study and reference — and stand as a reminder of the area’s far more ancient indigenous history.
“As long as there have been
humans in North Idaho, there have been Ktunaxa people. We have always known this fact, just as we have always embraced new technologies and new people to these lands,” Wheaton said. “At McArthur Lake, we used science to support these facts and to deepen our connection to our ancestral past. It was a transformative experience for each of us involved, and I hope the improvements made extend far beyond the highway.”
The Seven Eagles archeology dig near McArthur Lake. Courtesy photo
Send event listings to calendar@sandpointreader.com
Live Piano w/ Bob Beadling
5-7pm @ Pend d’Oreille Winery
Live Trivia — $5 entry
7pm @ Connie’s Lounge
James E. Russell Sports Center Open House
November 27 - December 5, 2024
wednesDAY, november 27
Thanksgiving Eve Gratitude Party and Live Music w/ Comin’ Home the Band 6-8pm @ Matchwood Brewing Co.
THURSDAY, november 28
9am @ Sports Center, 2100 Pine St. Building open for public play in December
Firshi Friday live music w/ John Firshi
5:30-8pm @ Matchwood Brewing Co.
Every first and third Friday
Live Music w/ Justin Lantrip
6-8pm @ Idaho Pour Authority
Live Music w/ BTP
5-8pm @ Pend d’Oreille Winery
Live Music w/ John Daffron
5pm @ Connie’s Lounge
Live Music w/ Ken Mayginnes
6-9pm @ 1908 Saloon
Live Music w/ Jake Robin
6-8pm @ Idaho Pour Authority
Live Music w/ Oak Street Connection
5-8pm @ Pend d’Oreille Winery
Live Music w/ Comin’ Home The Band
5:30-8:30pm @ Barrel 33
Live Music w/ Kerry Leigh
6pm @ Connie’s Lounge
Shook Twins Giving Thanks concert
7:30pm @ Panida Theater
The annual Shook Twins reunion, playing with special guests Handmade Moments. Get tickets at panida.org
Sandpoint Chess Club
9am @ Evans Brothers Coffee Meets every Sunday at 9am
2:30pm @ Sandpoint Eagles Club $10 card packets. Prizes for each round
Christmas Card Making Class
5:30-7:30pm @ Barrel 33
Led by Nicole Black. Make your own personal holiday stamp. $65
Open Mic Night 6pm @ Tervan Tavern
17th Annual Turkey Trot • 9am @ Travers Park
5K, 10K or whatever distance you want to walk or run.
Free with donation to food bank. No bikes please
FriDAY, november 29
Live Art and Print Show: Doug Flückiger
5-8pm @ Misty Mountain Furniture
Meet the artist and enjoy the new works
Live Music w/ Headwaters
5:30-8pm @ Matchwood Brewing Co.
Music w/ DJ O.J. Trailblazer
9pm-midnight @ 219 Lounge
Beer Release: Lightning Creek Strong Ale @ Utara Brewing Co.
SATURDAY, november 30
Small Business Christmas Market
9am-4pm @ Sandpoint Community Hall
Celebrate small business this Saturday Cottage Market
11am-3pm @ First Lutheran Church
Local merchants, skilled trades, artists, bakers and more
Gingerbreak and Snowman Paint & Sip
4:30pm @ The Eagles, 1511 John Hudon Ln.
Live Music w/ Justyn Priest Band 9pm-midnight @ 219 Lounge
Live Music w/ Sheldon Packwood 6-9pm @ MickDuff’s Beer Hall
SunDAY, december 1
Magic with Star Alexander 5-8pm @ Jalapeño’s Up close magic show at the table
Seahawks-Jets Watch Party 10am @ Utara Brewing Co.
monDAY, december 2
Outdoor Experience Group Run 6pm @ Outdoor Experience
Intro to Salsa dancing: $15 5-8pm @ Barrel 33
tuesDAY, december 3
Buffet Style dinner 2-6pm @ Tervan
The Pond Ice Rink opening day
4pm @ The Pond, 995 Kootenai Cutoff Rd.
A ribbon cutting and tree lighting, followed by skating! Book your rink time at skatethepond.com
Tree Lighting and Santa’s Arrival
5pm @ Jeff Jones Town Square
A Sandpoint tradition
Live Music w/ Frytz Mor 6:30-9:30pm @ MickDuff’s Beer Hall
Sandpoint Chocolate grand opening 8am-5pm @ 608 W. Lake St.
S’more dip station and hot cocoa!
Paneah’s Bistro grand opening
8am @ Inside Cedar St. Bridge
Baked goods, paninis and more
Festival of Trees: Friends and Family Day 11am-5pm @ The Hive
All-day extravaganza. Santa, cookies, cocoa, gingerbread house contest
Happy Hour Open Studio Art Prints Vibes 3-7pm @ Woods Wheatcroft Studio Gallery
Live Music w/ Ian Newbill 6-9pm @ 1908 Saloon
Sandpoint Swing dance
6-9pm @ Sandpoint Community Hall
Dance lesson at 6pm, general dancing 7-19pm. $8/person
Trivia w/ Alaina
6-8pm @ Idaho Pour Authority
Intro to Salsa dancing: $15 5-8pm @ Barrel 33
Tree of Memorial Lights • 5:30pm @ Bonner General Health Services Building
A cherished community tradition to honor those who have passed on
Live Piano w/ Jennifer Stoehner
5-7pm @ Pend d’Oreille Winery
wednesDAY, december 4
Live Piano w/ Dwayne Parsons 5-7pm @ Pend d’Oreille Winery
ThursDAY, december 5
Live Trivia — $5 entry
7pm @ Connie’s Lounge
Live Music w/ Cafe Gas Boys
5:30pm @ Connie’s Lounge
Open Mic Night 6pm @ Tervan Tavern
Cribbage (double elimination tourney) 7pm @ Connie’s Lounge Game Night 6:30pm @ Tervan
Bingo
6-8pm @ Idaho Pour Authority
By Marcia Pilgeram Reader Columnist
I can’t stop with the shopping. My larder overflows with Thanksgiving dinner ingredients and Christmas baking supplies. I’m so grateful to have money to buy good food and a pair of healthy legs to hold me up for long days in the kitchen.
This past summer was a real challenge. On a beautiful summer’s day, surrounded by my friends and family, I was humbled when honored as one of Sandpoint’s Women of Wisdom for 2024. The next day, while taking the youngest grandchildren back home, we were involved in a car accident. We were at a stoplight and rear-ended by a car going about 25 miles per hour. Though my car was totaled and I had a concussion, I will always thank God that my littlest grandbabes remained safe, snug and unharmed in their car seats.
Once healed from that ordeal, I finally conceded to a long-delayed surgical procedure for rotator cuff repair. Eight years ago, I had my left shoulder repaired and, two months later, I was straddling an elephant in Chang Rai, Thailand. This time, the healing of my right shoulder has been slow, painful and frustrating. It’s been nearly four months, and though I am faithful with physical therapy and home exercises, sadly I still haven’t made the goal I set for myself and proclaimed as a priority to my PT: reaching Tito’s vodka on the top shelf of the liquor cabinet.
Since August, I’ve spent too much time sitting (and sleeping) in my oversized leather
The Sandpoint Eater The list
chair. I drew the curtains dark and grieved the three dear friends that I lost over the summer. In September, I canceled a trip to Costa Rica. Life was looking and feeling woeful until I gave myself a much-needed lecture. It was time to shake off the dolefulness. And I know it may sound corny or cliché, but I decided it was high time to make a “thank goodness” list. And, wow, was it ever long. Thank goodness for all who rallied to my side after my surgery, cooking, cleaning and even spending nights in the first week. I reminded myself of the myriad, generous tokens of love and comfort from friends (and even travel clients), including a 90-minute massage.
Imagine this: My banker even had someone in his office hand deliver a check to a Coeur d’Alene car dealership so nothing would delay my new car purchase.
The more I penciled onto the list, the more acts of friendship and kindness I remembered. I spent days re-reading the heartfelt letters that friends (including my esteemed Reader editor, Zach) and family took the time to write on my behalf for my Women of Wisdom nomination.
For more than 20 years, I’ve lived by the same three sets of neighbors who look out for one another (especially the one who plows and shovels my driveway and walks with the first skiff of snow). Though we may not see one
another daily, we know we can count on each other for anything. It’s a great feeling.
More than once over the long summer, when I could barely muster the energy to pound out my biweekly “Sandpoint Eater” column and (and questioned its worth), I received a couple of readers’ emails thanking me for a specific recipe and often telling me why they appreciated it (nothing like fan mail to improve one’s spirits!).
This past weekend, I attended the Carousel Fun Fair at the Fairgrounds (twice)! I was inspired by the sheer volume of nonprofit booths, manned by dedicated volunteers (young and old), showcasing their causes on behalf of our entire community.
Sweet and spicy pecans
Aren’t we lucky?
Though I experienced shoulder discomfort on several recent long-haul trips, I traveled. And now my family is traveling here for Thanksgiving week. Traveling! All of us, anywhere we want. Test-free, thank goodness! Whether you’re staying home or heading toward Grandmother’s house this week, roast up a batch of these sweet and spicy pecans to share along the way. Here on Roundhouse Drive, I just pulled my third batch from the oven — they are that good.
As my list continues to grow, I hope yours will, too. Thank you, readers, for your continued support. It means everything to me.
Throw a little snack bag of these in your backpack, add a handful to your charcuterie, or fill fancy containers and use as hostess gifts for the holidays. Make a couple extra batches as they are highly addictive. Depending on your own preferences, feel free to adjust the “heat and sweet.” Yield 3 cups.
INGREDIENTS: DIRECTIONS:
•1 egg white at room temperature, lightly beaten
•3 cups fresh pecan halves
•½ cup fine white sugar
•1 teaspoon smoked paprika
•½ teaspoon chili pepper flakes
•1 teaspoon sea salt
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a small bowl beat the egg white until frothy. Add the sugar, paprika and chili flakes. Stir in the pecans, mixing until well moistened.
Spread nuts on prepared pan, make sure they don’t touch. Sprinkle with sea salt. Don’t pour them onto the sheet, place by hand as there will be residual egg white in bottom of bowl. Leave it behind.
Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes, stirring twice. Be careful not to overcook and burn the nuts. Break up by hand if some are stuck together. Cool. Peel the paper away and store the nuts in a covered container. For longer than a week, store in airtight container. They’ll last for up to a month in the freezer.
MUSIC
Why are there no Thanksgiving bangers?
By Ben Olson Reader Staff
There are a lot of hills I’d die on: hot dogs aren’t a sandwich, litterbugs should spend the weekend in jail, those who don’t use turn signals are the actual devil and Christmas music shall not be played until after Thanksgiving. Period.
I’m not alone in feeling like Christmas music is pumped out earlier and earlier every year. I even heard one store playing it before Halloween. This is actual insanity.
Other than rampant consumerism, perhaps the reason Christmas music bleeds onto more and more pages of the calendar is because there just aren’t any Thanksgiving bangers.
Also lacking in films, there are very few Thanksgiving-themed songs; and, since we Americans can never be more than an arm’s length from an election or a commercial holiday, transitioning from “Monster Mash” right into “Little Drummer Boy” tracks somehow.
There are Thanksgiving songs, though. Who could forget Adam Sandler’s 1992 turd “Thanksgiving Song” with his falsetto lyrics: “Turkey for me, turkey for you / Let’s eat turkey in a big brown shoe”? Still, it’s better than “Gobble Gobble,” by Matthew West, a Thanksgiving song released on a Christmas album for some reason. Behold his astound-
ing lyrical prowess: “Gobble gobble one, gobble gobble two / Gobble gobble me, gobble gobble, you.” Go gobble yourself, Matthew. Or there’s “Stretchy Pants,” by Carrie Underwood, a twangy assault that sounds like the worst combination of ’80s rap and ’90s country one could imagine. To wit: “I got my stretchy pants on (stretchy pants) / Spandex and Lycra, you better work it for me / ’Cause I’m about to expand this band of elasticity.” Yikes.
“Be Thankful For What You’ve Got,” by William DeVaughn is a funk masterpiece that doesn’t really have anything to do with Thanksgiving, but it has the word, “Thankful” in the title, so... yeah.
Johnny Cash sang “Thanksgiving Prayer,” and Mary Chapin Carpenter released one called “Thanksgiving Song,” but they both seem like songs invented to fill a niche. Both are entirely forgettable. There is the metal banger called “Home Sweet Home,” by Mötley Crüe, which has a quarter of a billion listens on Spotify. It’s actually a sweet song, with hopeful lyrics that speak to what it feels like coming home after a long time gone: “You know I’m a dreamer / But my heart’s of gold / I had to run away high / So I wouldn’t come home low.”
Alanis Morissette’s “Thank U” is another one on this theme. While not a “Thanks-
giving song,” it’s got her classic angsty ’90s lyrics powering the way: “How ’bout me not blaming you for everything? / How ’bout me enjoying the moment for once? / How ’bout how good it feels to finally forgive you? / How ’bout grieving it all one at a time?”
For how central a memory Thanksgiving is in many Americans’ brains, there is a definite void in popular culture for movies and songs about the holiday. Maybe this is because Christmas is the big brother overshadowing all the other siblings. Perhaps being thankful doesn’t make for great art. Or maybe the all-powerful consumer-generating mechanisms of American holidays haven’t tapped into the money-making potential of Thanksgiving-themed songs, movies, shirts, tennis shoes and belt buckles.
Come to think of it, I’m glad there aren’t any Thanksgiving bangers. Maybe this holiday should remain what it is; a chance to listen to your slightly racist uncle spouting his viewpoints at the dinner table; football playing too loud from the other room as chaos erupts in the kitchen; dry turkey becoming dry turkey sandwiches for a solid week; and consuming enough butter, sugar and meat in one sitting to kill an entire pack of wolverines.
Personally, my favorite musical Thanksgiving tradition is how radio stations around the country play Arlo Guthrie’s 1967 “Alice’s Restaurant.” All 18 minutes of it.
This wide-sweeping tune about littering, Vietnam and, you guessed it, Alice, is the one tune in this list that can truly be called a “Thanksgiving Song.”
It involves a true story of Guthrie and a friend getting ticketed for littering after the dump was closed for the holiday, and ending up sharing a Thanksgiving dinner with Alice Brock, a restaurant owner, at the church where she lived. Some have called it a fun sing-a-long, others have dubbed it an anti-war song. I think it’s the true Thanksgiving Song, made even more poignant by the fact that Alice Brock passed away on Nov. 21 at 83 years old.
May the spirit of her song live on and remain the only Thanksgiving banger we have to endure.
A snapshot of notable live music coming up in Sandpoint
Shook Twins ‘Giving Thanks’, Panida, Nov. 30 Comin’ Home The Band, Matchwood Brewing, Nov. 27
When it comes to getting the most bang for your musical buck, it’s hard to beat Shook Twins. Featuring Sandpoint’s own Katelyn and Laurie Shook, the full band has a vibe that swings from contemplative harmonies to foot-stomping dance tunes that get the whole house on their feet.
At their annual “Giving Thanks” show, Shook Twins always invite a band of fellow
travelers to join in the fun, and this year it’s Handmade Moments, a duo from New Orleans that play a mix of folky, edgy tunes that compliment the main act well. Get your tickets before they sell out.
— Ben Olson
7:30 p.m., $30. Panida Theater, 300 N. First Ave., 208263-9191, panida.org. Listen at shooktwins.com and handmademomentsmusic.net.
The acoustic duo Comin’ Home The Band has traveled from coast to coast on their musical journey, growing and changing as a family along the way. From Idaho to Florida and back, Tone and Amberle Madden draw from their storied lives together to craft unique bluesy rock music that highlights their complex guitar parts and harmonies.
This week’s RLW by Zach Hagadone
If you’re as confused as I am about whatever Faustian covenant has bound Elon Musk to Donald Trump, I’ll direct you to the article “Why is Elon Musk Really Embracing Donald Trump?” by John Cassidy and published Nov. 18 by The New Yorker. It’s a lengthy but insightful piece that looks past the bluster to follow the money and suggest some answers to who’s gaming whom and for what. Find it at newyorker.com.
Come listen to these foot-tappin’ originals as they’re meant to be heard — with a locally brewed Matchwood beer in hand.
— Soncirey Mitchell
6-8 p.m., FREE. Matchwood Brewing, 513 Oak St., 208-7182739, matchwoodbrewing.com. Listen at cominhometheband.com.
Sing
er-songwriter Duff Thompson is driving me mad. I listened to his 2023 album Shadow People on the recommendation of a friend whose taste is beyond reproach, and was immediately smitten with Thompson’s self-described “swampy” folk rock, which features a beguiling lo-fi grittiness. What’s driving me mad is that while I’d never heard of him before last week, my ears told me otherwise. Maybe he’s just so good that it feels like I’ve always known his sound. Listen on all the streamers.
LISTEN WATCH
In the aftermath of the 2024 election, it’s become more apparent than it already was that we should all be consuming far more state and local news media and far less national “commentary” and social media “content.” As we’re in the runup to the 2025 Idaho Legislature, I’ll take this opportunity to remind readers of the most stellar source for state-level political and policy news and views: Idaho Reports. Best of all, it’s free and available through Idaho Public Television at iptv.org.
Artwork by Terry Owens.
From Pend Oreille Review, November 26, 1915
NEW N.P. DEPOT ALMOST CERTAIN
‘IN THE EARLY SPRING’ IS THE WORD
Work on the new Northern Pacific depot will probably commence early next spring. T.L. Greer received a letter to that effect today from J.M. Hannaford, president of the road. The letter from Mr. Hannaford is as follows:
“Dear Sir — I am in receipt of letter dated November 15, signed by yourself and other prominent citizens of Sandpoint (an appointed committee of the Bonner County Development League) to take up the matter of a new depot at Sandpoint with me direct I note the arguments used and the assurance of friendliness on the part of the Sandpoint people. This has been demonstrated by the share of their business that we have received, and by the patience exercised in connection with a new station.
“I am pleased to advise you that on a trip through Sandpoint a few days ago I was accompanied by our Chairman Colonel W.P. Clough, and other officials of the company; the matter was consdiered very favorably and while there are some preliminaries in the way of authorization that will necessarily have to be taken up, I hope to be abler to commence work on a new station at Sandpoint early in the spring.
“Very truly yours, (signed) J.M. Hannaford.”
BACK OF THE BOOK
Crunching the election numbers in Caldwell
By Zach Hagadone Reader Staff
It has been an unexpected honor and pleasure to have been invited twice in the past year to travel the 400-plus miles south to Caldwell and present to students at my alma mater, the College of Idaho, on issues related to Idaho politics — and North Idaho politics, in particular.
As I’m sure most of us know, there seems to be a sort of cultural forcefield somewhere north of McCall, keeping southern Idahoans from traveling into our neck of the woods. When I went to school at what was then called Albertson College of Idaho from 1999-2003, only about three of the classmates I knew had ever even been to Coeur d’Alene.
Last week I spent three days in Caldwell (which is about 30 miles west of Boise) participating in the Idaho Public Policy Forum alongside original Reader co-founder John Reuter, who was also a student at the college with me from 2002-’03. The theme was the 2024 election: what happened, why and what’s next?
I moderated a panel on the press’ reaction to the election, featuring Idaho Reports lead producer and host Melissa Davlin — who is also president of the Idaho Press Club — and Idaho Capital Sun Editor-in-Chief Christina Lords. Reuter moderated a panel on the past, present and future of the Idaho Republican Party, with outgoing Senate Pro Tem Chuck Winder, R-Boise; Rep. Britt Raybould, R-Rexburg; and our own returning Sen. Jim Woodward, R-Sagle.
Those were both interesting conversations, but the forum also
STR8TS Solution
included a kickoff presentation from Idaho Secretary of State Phil McGrane, which I found particularly enlightening.
McGrane showed us loads of data on the historic election turnout, but with some striking analysis. We’re all aware of Idaho’s deep-red political orientation, but one thing that jumped out at McGrane was how much one specific region of the state got even redder between the 2020 and 2024 elections: North Idaho.
Displaying a map using arrows of varying size and direction to visualize the comparative increase in support for the Republican vs. the Democratic presidential candidate in those two elections, almost every county in Idaho showed red-colored arrows pointed rightward. Not surprising. However, most of the biggest red arrows were located in the northernmost counties of Kootenai, Bonner and Boundary.
McGrane told the forum audience that this surprised him; he would have thought that because of the denser population and explosive growth in the southwestern part of the state, that’s where support for Donald Trump would have statistically grown the most in recent years.
Curious about why North Idaho grew so much more supportive of the once-and-future president, McGrane’s office looked closer at the demographic data.
According to records of new drivers’ license applications, a whopping 74% of recent in-migrants to Idaho have come from California, and an outsized proportion of them have settled in North Idaho.
(Though, in another fascinat-
Sudoku Solution
ing bit of data, McGrane said that analysis shows the single largest out-of-state destination for payouts from California’s public retirement system is the upscale Boise bedroom community of Eagle, where only one member of its city government is not from the Golden State.)
In addition to all that, McGrane also backed up what many of us have already perceived based on anecdotal evidence: those conservative Californians are coming with big money, often buying multiple properties, and are deeply engaged with voting in both primary and general elections.
If there had ever been fears of a “liberal takeover” from California — as the Idaho GOP cited when it closed its primaries for the 2012 election — or that there’s an imminent threat of turning the state “blue,” the most recent election should put that boogeyman to rest.
And if those southern Idahoans didn’t understand what’s going on in North Idaho before the forum, they got a better picture of us after.
Crossword Solution
If you ever reach total enlightenment while you’re drinking a beer, I bet it makes beer shoot out your nose.
Laughing Matter
By Bill Borders
prehensile /pri-HEN-sil/
Word Week of the
[adjective] 1. adapted for seizing, grasping, or taking hold of something
“The monkey used its prehensile tail to grip the branches and swing through the trees.”
Corrections: We were given an incorrect date on a press release in the Nov. 21 edition for Doug Flückiger’s art show, which is from 5-8 p.m. at Misty Mountain Furniture on Friday, Nov. 29. Sorry we didn’t catch the error.
CROSSWORD
ACROSS
1.Plausible glib talk
6.Large number
10.Kill
14.Ill-gotten gains
15.Rubber wheel
16.Smog
17.Sporting venue
18.Gumbo ingredient
19.Burden
20.Walker
22.Cut back
23.Sully
24.Where clouds are
25.Diva’s solo
29.Easy to make out
31.Played around
33.Ruthlessness
37.Come to light
38.Referee
39.Say again
41.Two-footed
42.Interiors
44.Cavort
45.Place into the soil
48.Chops into cubes
50.Reign
51.As stated in the news
56.Metal used in steel
57.“Smallest” particle
58.Farewell
59.Metal used in brass
60.Egyptian river
61.Stream
Solution on page 22
62.Border
63.Frosts, as a cake
64.Begin
DOWN
1.Smack
2.Unadulterated
3.Decorated, as a cake
4.Sea eagle
5.Minimal
6.Celebrated in history
7.Fondness
8.Unpredictable
9.Withdraw gradually
10.Storekeeper
11.Hawaiian veranda
12.Sky-blue
13.Affirmatives
21.Natural abilities
24.Economic down time
25.Jewish month
26.Scarce
27.Nile bird
28.Self-denial
30.Brawler
32.Inclined
34.Adriatic resort
35.Streetcar
36.Cry of pain
40.Like clear
mental images
41.Transforms into
43.Radio antenna type
45.Cherish
46.Sensational
47.Beside
49.Suns
51.Hindu princess
52.Rewrite
53.Opera star
54.Lascivious look
55.Mongol dwelling
GIVE THE GIFT OF COMFORT! OVER 50 DIFFERENT RECLINERS IN-STOCK
