Inlander 05/14/2020

THE FRONT LINES

IT’S TAKING A TOLL ON MENTAL HEALTH PAGE 8

SECRETS OF SOURDOUGH EXPERT ADVICE FROM LOCAL BAKERS PAGE 26

THE FUTURE OF LIVE MUSIC

WHAT WILL IT LOOK LIKE POST-PANDEMIC? PAGE 31

MAY 14-20, 2020 | JOIN OUR MISSION AT INLANDER.COM/INSIDER

40 YEARS AFTER THE

BLAST The day Mount St. Helens turned the sky black

BY CHEY SCOTT PAGE 14

Now more than ever.

Because Washington Trust Bank is a privately-owned bank, we can move faster and smarter for you. Visit WaTrust.com/caresact for SBA information, updates and helpful tips on how to stay safe and keep your money moving forward.

2 INLANDER MAY 14, 2020

INSIDE

VOL. 27, NO. 31 | COVER PHOTO BY KEITH AND DOROTHY STOFFEL

COMMENT 5 8 NEWS COVER STORY 14

CULTURE 21 FOOD 26 FILM 29

MUSIC 31 GREEN ZONE 33 I SAW YOU 36

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EDITOR’S NOTE

S

hit happens, we get through it, and we discover just how strong we are. Resilience is something we learn over a lifetime. So while none of us have met a foe quite like this coronavirus pandemic, many of us have lived through things that bring to mind our strength. Like COVID-19, MOUNT ST. HELENS had for weeks given us some warning that trouble was coming and then, in an instant, exploded in frightening and disorienting ways.

“All of a sudden, everything turned black and dark, and dust started falling out of the air,” recalls Roger Crum, 81, Spokane’s deputy city manager at the time. Businesses were shuttered, people wore masks to go outside and the world we knew became unrecognizable for a while. Sound familiar?

Don’t miss staff writer Chey Scott’s cover story on the 40th anniversary of Mount St. Helens announcing herself to the world (page 14).

— JACOB H. FRIES, Editor

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WHILE THE CITY SLEEPS PAGE 6

MAN IN THE MIDDLE PAGE 12

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AN ODE TO VIDEO STORES PAGE 29

HAIL MARY (JANE) PAGE 33

INLANDER

SPOKANE • EASTERN WASHINGTON • NORTH IDAHO • INLANDER.COM

1227 WEST SUMMIT PARKWAY, SPOKANE, WA 99201 PHONE: 509-325-0634 | EMAIL: INFO@INLANDER.COM THE INLANDER is a locally owned, independent newspaper founded on Oct. 20, 1993. It’s printed on newsprint that is at least 50 percent recycled; please recycle THE INLANDER after you’re done with it. One copy free per person per week; extra copies are $1 each (call x226). For ADVERTISING information, email advertising@inlander.com. To have a SUBSCRIPTION mailed to you, call x213 ($50 per year). To find one of our more than 1,000 NEWSRACKS where you can pick up a paper free every Thursday, call x226 or email frankd@inlander.com. THE INLANDER is a member of the Association of Alternative Newsmedia. All contents of this newspaper are protected by United States copyright law. © 2020, Inland Publications, Inc.

MAY 14, 2020 INLANDER 3

INCLUDED IN THE SEASON TICKET PACKAGE

COME FROM AWAY Book, Music and Lyrics by Irene Sankoff and David Hein Directed by Christopher Ashley

FEBRUARY 16-21, 2021

APRIL 13 - MAY 9, 2021

BROADWAY SPECIAL ENGAGEMENTS

SPEAKER SERIES

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PHOTOGRAPHER & FILMMAKER

NOVEMBER 14-15, 2020

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4 INLANDER MAY 14, 2020

FORCE OF NATURE MARCH 11, 2021

CHRIS BURKARD

Add the special engagement of ROALD DAHL’S CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY to your season package! Watch for more favorite shows to be announced as special engagements in coming months.

MAY 18- 23, 2021

PARACLIMBER

MAY 13, 2021

HOW TO CLONE A MAMMOTH BETH SHAPIRO

EVOLUTIONARY BIOLOGIST

JUNE 9, 2021

FIRST INTERSTATE CENTER FOR THE ARTS

TYLER KUHN

JANUARY 12-17, 2021

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DECEMBER 22-27, 2020

COMMENT STAFF DIRECTORY PHONE: 509-325-0634 Ted S. McGregor Jr. (tedm@inlander.com) PUBLISHER

J. Jeremy McGregor (x224)

DESCRIBE A NATURAL DISASTER YOU EXPERIENCED AND WHAT YOU LEARNED FROM IT.

GENERAL MANAGER

RYAN BISHOP: [Hurricane] Harvey was wild. I learned about the randomness of the location and intensity at which a storm can hit even within a localized area and the power of community that comes out of nowhere to rally around people.

EDITORIAL Jacob H. Fries (x261) EDITOR

Dan Nailen (x239) MANAGING EDITOR/ARTS & CULTURE Chey Scott (x225) FOOD & LISTINGS EDITOR

Nathan Weinbender (x250) FILM & MUSIC EDITOR

Derek Harrison (x248) ART DIRECTOR

Quinn Welsch (x279) COPY EDITOR

Wilson Criscione (x282), Josh Kelety (x237), Daniel Walters (x263), Samantha Wohlfeil (x234) STAFF WRITERS

Young Kwak PHOTOGRAPHER

Caleb Walsh ILLUSTRATOR

Amy Alkon, Maura Lammers, Will Maupin CONTRIBUTORS

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OPERATIONS Dee Ann Cook (x211) BUSINESS MANAGER Kristin Wagner (x210) ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLE

EDITOR’S NOTE

Normally, we ask our question of the week of people we randomly encounter on the street. But with the Inland Northwest in lockdown, we instead asked our followers on social media to share their thoughts.

ELAINE FULTON: Firestorm 1991… we lost our home… our kids were 6, 7, 14, 17.

We had good insurance but had to fight for what we were owed. I learned not to stress over minor things… after this, most everything was minor. We could live in a barn. Credit cards were good to have. The kindness of strangers filled my heart. We were always the givers… it was hard and humbling to receive the kindness of neighbors and friends… but oh so welcomed. Still makes me cry to think of how great they were. My kids did not have nightmares… They were resilient and followed our lead… Don’t sweat the small stuff is what I learned… everything but health is small stuff.

We Are Gearing up to Reopen When it’s safe to do so. We will be over staffed and open extended hours to accommodate everyone.

We will be offering our LOWEST PRICES OF THE YEAR for all of your favorite services.

Like us on and follow us on for UPDATED SPECIALS and WEEKLY GIVEAWAYS. You don’t want to miss this!

WE MISS ALL OF OUR CLIENTS and are looking forward to seeing each and every one of you!

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LISA SWINSON: Katrina taught me be prepared. Have food, water, clothes, flashlight, etc., in the car, in the house and in a work locker.

WAYNE NICHOLLS: I lived in Everett when Mount St. Helens erupted. I learned that no matter who you are or what you do, if Mom Nature wants you dead, there’s nothing that you can do about it. I lived in the San Francisco Bay Area during the Loma Prieta quake in 1989. I learned that no matter who you are or what you do, if Mom Nature wants you dead, there’s nothing that you can do about it. I lived in Otis Orchards during the Ice Storm of 1996.

I learned that no matter who you are or what you do, if Mom Nature wants you dead, there’s nothing that you can do about it.

TERRI JO RICE: As a child, I experienced Mount St. Helens erupting. We were in the car heading in the direction of the ash. It looked like a storm. Once we realized what happened, we headed back to Spokane. I remember hearing “Dust in the Wind” on the car radio. I remember a week off of school while everybody tried to clean up the ash.

PETER KNIGHT REMINGTON: St. Helens in Pullman. The first time I learned to leave the house with a mask on. n

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The Middle of the Night

While the city sleeps, big questions loom.

YOUNG KWAK PHOTO

What Spokane’s homeless women can teach us about overcoming despair, isolation and finding community

BY MAURA LAMMERS

T

he first night I started working in the asleep within the first hour, temporary shelter at Catholic Charities, no doubt exhausted from a as one of my colleagues showed me the day spent outside. No one conference room that would soon house a dozen asked any questions about women for the night, she joked that we were getthe coronavirus, or menting ready for a sleepover. tioned it in conversation.

I laughed but repeated this dubiously in my This was, it turns head: sleepover? It was hard for me to picture, out, how most of our as I stress-sweated through my shirt over the patrons would experience uncertainty of the night ahead. Two days earlier, coronavirus. Roughly six in response to the coronavirus crisis, I’d been weeks later, we’ve been fortunate to still have no reassigned from my case manager position to positive cases in our shelters. After we brought in graveyard shifts for emergency shelter services. a triage medical team to take patrons’ temperaAll week, I’d panic-spiraled over the mounting tures and screen for symptoms every night, that spread of the virus and the newly issued stayquickly became a recognized step in their checkhome order from the governor. in process. From time to time, someone will Leading up to check-in, as I waited for the snap about not being sick or roll their eyes at the room to fill, I was afraid of everything. I was thermometer. But for the most part, the threat of afraid of everything I didn’t know how to do yet, the coronavirus has simply become another part which ranged from knowing the of our daily routine. correct ratio of water to bleach When our patrons appear in LETTERS we mixed in the spray bottles front of me to check in for the Send comments to for disinfecting, to knowing night, they are focused on meeting editor@inlander.com. how to tell a patron to leave for their basic human needs: food, disobeying rules. I was afraid sleep and shelter. And when they of being exposed to the virus, though that risk wake up in the morning, the first questions they always felt secondary, no matter what I was dousually ask are: “Did it rain last night?” or “How ing. More than anything, I was afraid of watching cold is it going to be today?” because for many of vulnerable people get sick, one after another, and them, the weather will determine the outcome of being powerless to help. their day.

But as the women filed in and arranged their belongings neatly beside their assigned mats, it ow, we’re all in survival mode, all fearing seemed to be just another night for them. They for our lives and welfare, all imagining settled down to eat the sack meal we’d provided. ourselves at risk every time we step Some requested showers and waited for me to outside our homes. But for those experiencing call their name from the list. Some colored or homelessness, who have no means of sheltering read or played games on their phones. Some fell in place, survival was always their most urgent

N

waking desire. Day by day, night by night, they face countless threats to their safety and health. The coronavirus may be catastrophic on a global scale, but it joins a long list of daily fears, such as a stranger jumping them for their cell phone, or their violent ex-boyfriend finding them, or freezing to death in the winter.

E QUARANRETLIN EASE SALE

In my sleep-deprived haze, cleaning the doorknob made me think: I am totally alone. We are all totally alone.

Survival is on my mind, too, when I’m at work, as I sip cold brew in the security office, my eyes flicking between the cameras monitoring the patrons’ room and countless news articles. The graveyard shifts last from 7 pm to 7 am, and the long restless hours can lead me down dark passages in my mind. It’s usually when 3 am hits that I start questioning not just how our sleeping patrons will survive this current health crisis, but also how they’ll survive whatever comes next. In another six months, today’s skyrocketing unemployment numbers could lead to more people living in poverty and more eviction notices, which means hundreds more people forced into homelessness and seeking shelter in Spokane. The fallout from the coronavirus, the oncoming tidal wave of human suffering and trauma, is what scares me most in these early hours.

One morning, I was so exhausted while disinfecting a doorknob, my eyes blurred with tears, because I’d be back in another 12 hours to do this again tonight, and again the next night, and even though logically I knew keeping doorknobs clean is an important step in reducing germ transference, the action felt endless and futile. In my sleep-deprived haze, cleaning the doorknob made me think: I am totally alone. We are all totally alone.

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e’ve all embodied loneliness in our own ways during this time, even those of us with the privilege of stable housing and connection to friends and family. Confined to our homes, we’re reaching out as best we can, and trying to find answers to seemingly unsolvable problems, and comfort for ourselves. The global onslaught of existential dread has led to this bone-deep fear that we’re alone.

The women who stay in our shelter are never physically alone unless they are in the bathroom or the shower. But even then I’m close by, keeping track of time, giving them privacy while still reminding them that someone is always next in line. Sometimes, I’m sure, these women would prefer to be totally alone, at least for a few minutes. Sometimes, I’m sure, these women do feel totally alone, even in a crowded room, even with me here to fetch them ibuprofen or a tampon or an extra pair of socks. Sometimes, I’m sure, these women are awake at 3 am, like me, and are scared.

What brings me comfort is seeing that these women have, despite everything, a sense of community. If someone is new to Spokane or new to experiencing homelessness, here they will be swept under a wing and protected. The women share information about other shelters in town, bus schedules, medical clinics, laundry services and food pantries. They share extra food and clothing and blankets and cigarettes. They share advice about who to avoid and how to talk to each other, and try to manage conflict in the group, just as the staff does. In the moments when I accidentally interrupt a personal conversation, I hear one woman sharing her troubles, and the other respond that she will pray for her. This sense of community, sharing and giving to one another, existed before the crisis and will exist afterward. It is our human responsibility to take care of each other.

We have each other, I keep telling myself to ward off the 3 am thoughts. We always have each other. n

WHILE SUPPLIES LAST

Shop Our Fully Stocked Nursery for Flowers and Vegetables

Maura Lammers is a case manager at Catholic Charities in Spokane. She earned an MFA in nonfiction writing from Eastern Washington University. Her work has previously appeared in the Masters Review, the Riveter, and the Modern Love column in the New York Times.

MAY 14, 2020 INLANDER 7

Tara Lee, a nurse at Providence Sacred Heart, recounts a time when “I didn’t feel safe going to work.” YOUNG KWAK PHOTO

MENTAL HEALTH

PROTECTING THE PROTECTORS How the pandemic impacts the mental health of local front-line workers

BY WILSON CRISCIONE

W

hen nurse Tara Lee went to work on March 14, she felt like there was an enemy coming that she wasn’t prepared to fight.

Lee, diagnosed with an anxiety disorder and depression, could feel her anxiety building up. It wasn’t just that Spokane confirmed its first cases of coronavirus that day.

It wasn’t just that the week had been a whirlwind of news about school closures, canceled events and deaths adding up in Seattle.

What overwhelmed her was logging into a patient’s chart and seeing a banner that said her patient might have symptoms of the coronavirus. There weren’t enough resources to test for it. And having recently recovered from pneumonia, Lee felt vulnerable.

“I didn’t feel safe going to work,” Lee says.

She hasn’t been back to work at Providence Sacred Heart hospital since. She had to call in sick for her next shift because, as she puts it, “I woke up with the worst depression I’ve ever had.” For weeks she took medication every night just to be able to sleep. She repeatedly called a suicide hotline. It took weeks for her to feel like herself again.

Since the pandemic hit Washington, most front-line workers in health care, mental health and public safety have been expected to keep working despite the risks to their own health. Yet, as the public looks to those workers to protect them during the pandemic, many don’t feel protected themselves. And local experts say it’s taking a

8 INLANDER MAY 14, 2020

toll on their mental health.

While Spokane hasn’t seen the mass deaths and overrun hospitals that have traumatized health care workers elsewhere, there could be “between 2 million to 3 million” Washingtonians whose behavioral health will be adversely affected by the pandemic in the coming months, projects Kira Mauseth, a clinical psychologist and instructor at Seattle University. And front-line workers, she says, remain “uniquely exposed” to situations causing anxiety, stress, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.

“There are higher risks any time we’re talking about a situation where personal safety might be threatened,” Mauseth tells the Inlander.

THE UNKNOWN

In 2011, two years after Lee became a nurse, she’d begun to lose weight and have trouble sleeping. When her friends pulled her aside and urged her to get help, she did. But she didn’t tell her co-workers.

“There was so much shame and guilt surrounding my depression because I had such a good life,” Lee says.

“I didn’t feel like I deserved to be depressed.”

Then she started developing anxiety. She was diagnosed with a panic disorder, a type of anxiety disorder that causes panic attacks. As a nurse, she’d watch patients die. She’d talk to parents who just lost their child. Yet, through the years she realized she could manage her anxiety with therapy and the right medication. Usually, however, her anxiety is the worst when it’s tied to her own physical safety — driving in cars, heights, wind storms.

And that’s what was different about COVID-19, she says. Weeks before that day on March 14, she had pneumonia. So when coronavirus came to Spokane, she didn’t know if she could protect herself.

“Now I’m back at work with compromised lungs, and I’m working with co-workers who were also compromised,” she says.

As she tried to recover from her depression, she would see the signs around town thanking health care workers and calling them heroes. And that made her feel guilty.

“A huge part of my depression was my guilt for not being on the frontlines,” she says. “Every time I saw things that they were doing for health care workers I would start crying. I was like, ‘I should be there for my team.’ I felt so guilty.”

Ryan Pursley, an emergency medicine physician in Spokane, says he relates to what Lee might have felt in mid-March. He’s used to compartmentalizing the disturbing things he sees in the emergency room and working under intense stress. But the coronavirus felt different.

“That fear of the unknown was a big factor for everybody,” Pursley says. “If you know what it is and what you’re dealing with, you go into normal work mode and deal with it. Not knowing how contagious it was, how much it was going to accelerate, all those unknowns were very stressful.”

After a while, Pursley says, he came to accept that this is the new normal at work. But he still worries about spreading it to his family. As a precaution every day, he changes his clothes in the garage multiple times and showers before seeing his family. Some health care workers and firefighters have isolated themselves completely from their family.

“As far as the fear of catching something, I’ve never felt that level as with the coronavirus,” Pursley says.

On top of that, front-line workers have lost coping mechanisms to manage their stress, just like the rest of the population. Similarly, the restriction on elective surgeries cost many local health care workers their jobs.

“Not only has their ability to manage stress been compromised,” says Dan Barth, director of business development for Inland Northwest Behavioral Health, “but they’ve been enduring financial duress just like everybody else is.”

THEY HAVE EACH OTHER

Patients may not come in seeking medical care for coronavirus at the Inland Northwest Behavioral Health (INBH) intake department. But the workers there are on the frontlines of the crisis nonetheless, says Julie Hall, director of intake for INBH. In isolation at home, people may be too paranoid to leave the house and get their medication. That can lead them to INBH, where employees wearing cloth masks screen patients at the door.

Lately, the psychiatric treatment center has seen a surge in acute psychosis, with a 12 percent increase in patients involuntarily committed there in the last six weeks, Hall says.

“We’re not designed like a medical hospital to treat patients,” she says. “But the exposure is still there.”

And experts expect behavioral health issues in Washington to increase over the next year. It’s similar to any natural disaster, says Mauseth, the clinical psychologist in Seattle. Except the pandemic keeps happening.

Mauseth projects it to follow a pattern over the course of the year. In March, it was common for people to feel anxiety or panic about the unknown. Now, it’s RESOURCES common for people to act out 24/7 Regional Crisis Line: — becoming aggressive, using 1-877-266-1818 drugs or breaking the law — or National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: act “in” with increased feelings 1-800-273-TALK (8255) of hopelessness. She expects Trevor Lifeline (LGBTQ): rates of depression to increase 1-866-488-7386 over the next three to six Crisis Text Line: 741741 months, and suicide rates and domestic violence to subsequently increase as well. By March 2021, we might see behavioral health impacts get back to normal, if the coronavirus cooperates, of course.

That makes behavioral health providers as important as ever. And while some moved to phone appointments only, that was never an option for Compassionate Addiction Treatment, a nonprofit in downtown Spokane.

“If we closed, our clients would not have access to us,” says co-founder and recovery program manager Hallie Burchinal.

Much of their clientele are people who are homeless, she says, and other services for the homeless have shut down. Yet working every day around people has brought up feelings of anxiety that Burchinal says she hasn’t experienced in years.

Co-founder Trudy Frantz says they have enough trouble finding time to treat all their clients, let alone think of their own mental health.

“We talk to each other,” she says. “We might step outside and have a rough time.”

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HELPING THE HELPERS

Maintaining mental health for front-line workers isn’t just important on an individual level, says Keri Waterland, division director of behavioral health and recovery for the Washington Health Care Authority. It’s also important to ensure medical and behavioral health systems respond properly to the coronavirus crisis overall. And there’s a simple reason for that, she says.

“Folks who are not able to feel supported are not going to be able to do a great job of supporting another individual,” Waterland says.

Mauseth says things like reasonable work shifts, adequate rest and access to mental health providers can all help front line workers. But what may help the most as they battle this virus might be accurate information. That means knowing what to expect, knowing what’s happening with personal protective equipment and having the proper training.

“It helps with providing a sense of power and empowerment when you know what you should be doing and what you need to be doing,” Mauseth says.

After that day on March 14, when everything hit her at once, it took Lee a few weeks to feel better. The first time she fell into depression years ago she tried to deny it and hide it from others.

This time, she says, she did the opposite.

“What helped me so fast this time was admitting it, acknowledging it, and being able to talk to people I trusted about it,” Lee says. n

MISSING KIDS SCHOOLS SCRAMBLE TO REACH STUDENTS PAGE 12

WORKER PROTECTIONS UNIONS RUSH TO THEIR MEMBERS’ DEFENSE PAGE 8

OPENING AMID A PANDEMIC THESE NEW FOOD BUSINESSES SOLDIER ON PAGE 23

APRIL 23-29, 2020 | THINK GLOBAL. LIVE INLAND.

Inlander.com/Insider MAY 14, 2020 INLANDER 9

NEWS | ENERGY

The Lind Solar array is the largest in the state.

SWINERTON RENEWABLE ENERGY PHOTO

Coal’s Tipping Point As our energy use has shifted during coronavirus shutdowns, renewable energy is outpacing coal

BY SAMANTHA WOHLFEIL

T

he coronavirus has brought much of America to a standstill. Car travel has dropped in many places, manufacturing is down, and plane travel has been down 90-96 percent during most days over the last two months, according to Transportation Security Administration passenger numbers from 2019 and 2020.

But those temporary emissions reductions aren’t nearly big enough to change the lasting concentration of greenhouse gases in our atmosphere, experts say. Data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows that May — typically the month with the highest carbon-dioxide concentration of the year — is still on track to have the most carbon pollution since humans have existed. Climate Central, an organization that shares climate findings from scientific research, compares it to a clogged bathtub.

“Slowing the tap (emissions) doesn’t mean the tub (concentration) will stop filling,” Climate Central noted in a news release last week. “Bending the climate curve won’t be easy. Even with global lockdowns, atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) is set to reach its highest level in 3 million years.”

That’s significant, as a recent study by researchers in Europe, China and at Washington State University showed that if we don’t make drastic changes, the planet will heat up enough in the next 50 years that 3.5 billion people will need to move. Even in a best-case scenario, with significant warming avoided, the researchers predict

10 INLANDER MAY 14, 2020

1 billion people will be displaced.

“If 1 billion people is the best-case scenario, that’s huge,” says WSU archaeology professor Tim Kohler.

“For a little bit of context, there’s something on the order of 250 million people right now living outside the countries they were born in.”

But while coronavirus shutdowns haven’t been a silver bullet for the world’s climate change woes, there’s good reason to believe that the current state of the world is helping accelerate a transition to clean energy. Among the signs: April marked the first month ever that renewable energy sources in the U.S. — including hydropower, wind and solar — generated more electricity than coal every single day.

“In some respects, you hate to see progress on the back of tragedy, which is to a degree what’s happening right now,” says Sean O’Leary, communications director for the Northwest Energy Coalition, whose members include some major utilities and public utility districts in Washington and Oregon. “But the fact is yes, what’s happening right now is accelerating the transition.”

DEATH OF COAL

Over the last few years, the death of coal has become nearly inevitable with declining markets, rising environmental cleanup costs, bankruptcies among coal companies, and shifting cultural priorities focused on reducing climate change for future generations.

Well before the COVID-19 health crisis, utilities around the country were already shifting from long-term plans that counted on coal plants remaining open for decades to timelines that will close many plants over the next few years.

Economically, coal is proving to be far pricier than natural gas, wind or solar right now, O’Leary says. It helps that with some electricity usage down, and more people working from home, the demand for energy has become a little more spread out over the course of the day this spring.

“Because more people are spending more time at home, overall the energy usage has flattened out, the peaks and the valleys are not nearly as great,” O’Leary says. “In an environment like that, utilities have a greater ability to choose the resources to use.”

Indeed, Steve Winberg, the assistant secretary for fossil energy at the federal Department of Energy, recently warned that if people continue to work from home in large numbers after this, the country could have excess electricity throughout the year, and put coal at an even bigger disadvantage.

“We’re seeing potential early retirements on coal-fired power plants because of the COVID,” Winberg told the Eastern Fuel Buyers Conference, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence reporting. “Once they shut down, they just may not restart.”

Winberg warned that the department still believes coal plants to be an important part of a reliable grid that can handle large demand during cold winters.

But many utilities that were once worried about the “intermittency” of wind and solar (which depend on the wind blowing and sun shining) have in recent years found that reliability hasn’t been a major problem as those sources have been integrated into the grid, says Seth Feaster, a data analyst with the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis.

Recent analysis by the institute showed renewable generation surpassed coal for the first time in April, partly because spring is a good time for wind and solar generation, and partly because demand tends to drop as temperatures are less extreme, Feaster says. The institute had originally predicted renewables would beat out coal overall in 2021, but it’s looking like that might even happen this year.

Utilities tend to plan for power sources that can serve them for 30, 40 or 50 years, and pay themselves off much sooner than that. Due to its cost, coal can’t do that anymore, making renewables more favorable.

“Utilities care what the public thinks about them.

They also care about profits,” Feaster says. “Their experience here is showing them renewables are probably the most profitable way going forward.”

At the same time, the renewable energy job market has been hit hard by job losses from delayed construction projects during the pandemic. More than 106,000 clean energy workers lost their jobs in March, according to one analysis.

Feaster notes that while natural gas plants are in the works around the country to help with demand, the vast majority of new electricity generation construction is in wind and solar, because they are cost-competitive. While there are subsidies for wind and solar, there are also tremendous subsidies and financial breaks given to fossil fuels, too.

“The idea that somehow renewables are unfairly competing with gas and coal I think is untrue,” Feaster says. “Utility companies are not slowing down their renewable projects at all. There may be some delays in some places about the way they are constructed. But in terms of long-term capital expenditures, there does not appear to be any kind of long-term change in their approach.” n

IN TIME OF CRISIS

As families face unprecedented unemployment rates, and the possibility of utility shutoffs, energy organizations have called on Northwest utilities to do everything they can to help people save on their power bills and prevent shutoffs, says Sean O’Leary with the Northwest Energy Coalition, whose members include some major utilities and public utility districts in Washington and Oregon.

Luckily, many utilities throughout the Northwest have responded positively, O’Leary says, not only suspending cutoffs, but also expanding bill assistance programs and helping contractors navigate sometimes complicated energy conservation rebate programs.

As families get DIY conservation tips such as changing out lightbulbs for more efficient models, one of the biggest positives for energy consumption has been that people are spreading their usage out, O’Leary says.

“It’s almost hard to exaggerate how big a deal it would be if people would spend significantly more time at home and less time commuting as we did before this event,” O’Leary says.

Some power plants only exist to deal with rare peak power usage during the mornings and evenings a few times a year, he says.

“When you think of the capital investment required to build a gas-fired power plant that only runs three or four days a year, the inherent inefficiency of that is horrific,” O’Leary says. “Anything we can do that not necessarily causes a reduction but mitigates those peaks and valleys makes a huge difference in how much we have to invest.”

— SAMANTHA WOHLFEIL

+

Now on Inlander.com: National and international stories from the New York Times to go with the fresh, local news we deliver every day MAY 14, 2020 INLANDER 11

NEWS | POLITICS

Ozzie Knezovich is not going to run for county sheriff again, but he says that hasn’t changed him. “I’m pretty much the way I’ve always been.”

The Man in the Middle

DANIEL WALTERS PHOTO

Why Sheriff Knezovich, a leader of Spokane County’s coronavirus response, catches flak from both the left and right

BY DANIEL WALTERS

S

pokane County Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich wades into the fray. A tightly packed, raucous crowd surrounds him in front of the Spokane County courthouse during a May 1 protest against Washington’s stay-home order.

The sheriff isn’t wearing a mask, later telling the Inlander that a mask would have just stoked their anger. But the anger of the crowd is plenty stoked anyway.

“I thought you were a Christian!?” one of the protesters yells amid a chorus of boos.

Knezovich wants to push back against misinformation, against those who claim that the coronavirus is a hoax or a conspiracy. He says he’s against this protest, concerned that any one of them could end up infected with COVID-19.

“Could be me,” he tells the crowd with a grim smile.

Shortly after, he aims his criticism in the other direction, blasting Gov. Jay Inslee for extending the state’s stay-home order.

“What the governor announced is draconian. I mean, beyond draconian. It’s not reasonable,” he tells KREM 2 news shortly after. “Gov. Inslee has made a huge mistake here.”

Knezovich isn’t just weighing in as a pundit or even

12 INLANDER MAY 14, 2020

the local sheriff: Along with the county commissioners and the county’s health officer, Knezovich is in charge of the county’s Emergency Coordination Center, the entity that has guided the region’s coronavirus response.

Knezovich has responded by offering a brand of bipartisanship that sometimes means bringing people of both parties together — and sometimes means lobbing incendiary criticisms at people of both parties.

“This pandemic cannot be a political football,” Knezovich says. “I find it so distasteful that I can’t put it into proper words.”

But Knezovich’s bomb-throwing approach has also drawn criticism for exacerbating the partisan divide precisely when unity has been needed the most.

ALL TOGETHER NOW

Two months ago, on Thursday, March 12, Spokane Mayor Nadine Woodward was preparing to declare a civil government emergency, handing Spokane more flexibility and funding to respond to the coronavirus. But she got pushback from county officials, including Knezovich.

“I would highly advise the mayor not to go and declare a state of emergency right now,” Knezovich could be heard commenting after the end of a press conference

the next day. “It’s not the right move.”

Knezovich says his opposition was because Bob Lutz, the county’s health officer, wasn’t yet ready to “push the emergency button.”

The city administration wasn’t happy, feeling like it had slowed down “precautions that will protect people” by days, City Council President Breean Beggs says.

Still, by the time that Woodward’s emergency declaration was issued on March 16, a wide array of local governments were beginning to work in sync. Knezovich had officially activated the Emergency Coordination Center.

At 8 am every morning, seven days a week, Knezovich began hosting a daily meeting of local officials — both in person and over video chat — to discuss the policy response to the virus.

“At the very first meeting, he called for unity and collective leadership,” says Jim Nania, EMS medical program director for Spokane County.

Knezovich invited former Spokane County Fire District Four Chief Ed Lewis — who had incident management experience — to come out of semi-retirement to help out.

“The sheriff is very open, very honest about how he feels,” Lewis says.

NEWS | DIGEST But others like Rep. Marcus Riccelli (D-Spokane) give Knezovich’s recent leadership mixed reviews. Riccelli praises the honesty of Knezovich’s blunt and straightforward communication style, but also says their back-and-forth hasn’t always been “agreeable.”

Knezovich hasn’t shied away from controversial topics, say, by linking a recent property crime spike to the COVID-related release of inmates, sparking criticism from justice reform advocates that the sheriff lacked data for his contention.

Nor did he hesitate to express his belief that the coronavirus policy group has spent too much time focusing on homelessness.

“It seems like almost every ounce of the response that we did was driven solely by the homeless issue,” Knezovich says. “Never the working poor. Only the homeless.”

Riccelli, however, says that it took weeks to get a task force up and running to address food security — a major issue for the working poor.

While he credited Knezovich for supporting the effort, Riccelli says “the buck still stops with him” for the delay.

But Knezovich says he himself grew up knowing what it was like to grow up with bare cupboards — and that’s why he’s so worried about the economic costs of the lockdown.

“You go hungry,” Knezovich says. “You wait until you can go to school where you know you have lunch, at least. Like it or not, our governor’s response to this is causing that for people.”

OZZIE VS. JAY

Knezovich didn’t show up to respond to the May Day protesters without backup. Before the event, Riccelli says Knezovich called him directly, asking for his help to make the response a “bipartisan effort.” Riccelli agreed, on one condition.

“I said, ‘I’m not going to be part of you standing up and bashing the governor,’” Riccelli says, “He didn’t do it in the [response to the protesters]. But then he did it in an interview 10 minutes later. That, to me, is not helpful. ” Granted, even Riccelli has been frustrated with the rigidity of Inslee’s stay-home order.

On Monday, Riccelli fervently endorsed Lutz’s vote to ask the state for permission for Spokane County to move to the next stage of reopening.

But Knezovich goes further. He says that Spokane is ready for any business to reopen today, so long as they follow proper safety protocols.

Knezovich acknowledges that Spokane has struggled to get enough testing resources available. But for that, he blames Inslee.

“Spokane is the second-largest city in the state of Washington. And we can’t seem to get any testing kits at the rate the west side did,” Knezovich says. “We seem to have been forgotten by Jay Inslee.”

At a Monday press conference, however, Lutz said the disparity in the amount of tests available throughout the state is not because of geographic favoritism.

“It’s more a function of that’s where the burden of disease has occurred,” he said. “The west side has been hit much harder, much quicker.”

Knezovich says he hasn’t been sleeping much lately. He spends his evenings responding to emails or making phone calls.

“I called a business guy. He has two businesses in town,” Knezovich says. “When I was talking to him, he broke down into tears, going,

‘Sheriff, I’m about ready to lose everything. …

I’m watching my dream die.’”

On Monday, only four COVID patients in Spokane were officially categorized as “hospitalized.”

“We’re hard-pressed at this point to say this is a medical emergency,” Knezovich says. “There’s moral and ethical grounds to go, ‘No, governor, you need to rescind this order in Spokane County.’”

In press releases and statements, the governor has touched upon the struggles of business owners and workers — but Inslee still stresses the lives that have been lost. This is the hardest part, Inslee argued at a press conference Friday, when a misstep could end more lives and more businesses.

“We want a full economic recovery,” Inslee says. “We don’t want to have to do this twice.”

‘CONSTITUTIONAL’ SHERIFFS

Plenty of other sheriffs across the country have lambasted their own governors with similar complaints. Snohomish County Sheriff Adam Fortney declared that he would “not be enforcing an order preventing religious freedoms or constitutional rights.”

“I do not believe that suspending the Constitution was wise, because COVID-19 is nothing like the plague,” Bonner County Sheriff Daryl Wheeler wrote in a letter to Idaho Gov. Brad Little.

But Knezovich doesn’t side with them.

“I thought what he did was fairly foolish,” Knezovich says of Wheeler.

Neither Knezovich nor the Spokane Police Department have enforced the governor’s stay-home orders with anything other than educational warnings. In fact, Knezovich boasts that he helped a church get clearance from Lutz for a drive-in Easter service — weeks before the governor allowed them.

But Knezovich finds himself defending Inslee against far-right activists like state Rep. Matt Shea (R-Spokane Valley), who the sheriff accuses of spreading hate and fear. Knezovich says it’s off base to call Inslee’s order flat-out unconstitutional.

“I can point to Supreme Court cases dating back to 1900 that say governors do have these rights and powers,” Knezovich says.

But some of Knezovich’s previous rhetoric has echoed the bombastic anti-Inslee rhetoric he criticizes today. Last year, he reacted to new voter-approved gun control laws by saying that it was hard for him “to enforce something that is unconstitutional.” He also suggested that Gov. Inslee should be “arrested for obstruction of justice” for signing a law constraining state official’s cooperation with immigration agents.

“I don’t appreciate that,” Riccelli says. “But I do respect that Ozzie has been very outspoken against Matt Shea and his rhetoric… and his extremism.”

And even as Knezovich accuses Inslee of not taking the economic costs seriously, he’s been horrified by those who seem to want to throw lives away.

“I’ve literally had somebody on the phone say, ‘I don’t care if 500,000 people die. I want to go back to work,’ Knezovich says. “Somewhere in between the extremes is where we need to be.” n danielw@inlander.com

ON INLANDER.COM

COUNTING ON HOSPITALIZATIONS The number of hospitalizations due to COVID-19 has trended downward, according to the Spokane Regional Health District. But the health district doesn’t count the Spokane Veterans Home residents now isolated at the Mann-Grandstaff VA Medical Center as “hospitalized.” Why? Regional health officer Dr. Bob Lutz says it’s because most aren’t experiencing severe symptoms requiring an “acute hospitalization” and weren’t transferred to the VA hospital for that reason. Some veterans who have been significantly symptomatic, meanwhile, are indeed transferred to other area hospitals.

(WILSON CRISCIONE)

TO-GO CUPS As of last Thursday, Washington state restaurants were given the green light to begin selling PRE-MADE COCKTAILS to-go when ordered with food.

Previously, restaurants with a spirits, beer and wine license were allowed to sell factory-sealed bottles of spirits, beer and wine to customers for the remainder of the statewide Stay Home, Stay Healthy order, but not pre-mixed cocktails. Several Spokane-area restaurants quickly posted their new to-go friendly spirits menus, with cocktails ready to pour over ice conveniently served in reusable glass canning jars. (CHEY SCOTT)

FILLING THE GAP A coalition of immigrant-focused organizations has created the SPOKANE RELIEF FUND FOR UNDOCUMENTED IMMIGRANTS, in order to help families who are unable to access federal aid during the coronavirus shutdowns.

So far, with more than $29,000 raised, the fund has been able to help 27 families with $500 to $1,100 grants. Donations can be made via the group’s GoFundMe page or checks can be made out to “UUCS” or “Unitarian Universalist Church of Spokane” by putting “legal defense fund” in the memo line.

Checks may be mailed to 4340 W. Fort George Wright Dr., Spokane, WA, 99224. (SAMANTHA WOHLFEIL)

MAY 14, 2020 INLANDER 13

THE DAY THE SKY

TURNED BLACK Remembering the May 18, 1980, eruption of Mount St. Helens

BY CHEY SCOTT

U

ntil May 18, 1980, Mount St. Helens in southwestern Washington was postcard perfect. A symmetrical cone-shaped peak, nicknamed “Mount Fuji of America,” the snow-capped Cascade volcano towered over lush old-growth forests and sparkling, clear lakes.

While she’d awakened from another long slumber earlier that spring, rumbling the ground and belching steam and ash into the air, no one truly expected the beautiful and cloudless spring morning, a Sunday, to be much different.

But it was.

Within seconds of Mount St. Helens’ violent eruption at 8:32 am, the entire landscape within 18 miles of its summit was unrec-

14 INLANDER MAY 14, 2020

ognizable — a smoking, barren wasteland.

Many residents of the Pacific Northwest remember exactly where they were and what they were doing when the fateful news finally arrived.

Roger Crum, then Spokane’s deputy city manager, was at home on the South Hill when a neighbor kid came by to tell the Crum family that “Mount St. Helens had blown its top.” Soon after, an ominous black ash cloud unlike anything anyone had ever seen crept over the western horizon, completely blotting out the mid-afternoon sun.

“All of a sudden, everything turned black and dark, and dust started falling out of the air,” Crum, 81, says. “That was our first introduction to the mountain going.” ...continued on page 16

Mount St. Helens continued to spew ash into the sky for nine hours after the initial 8:32 am eruption. This aerial view shows the mountain’s southwest side. ROBERT KRIMMEL PHOTO

MAY 14, 2020 INLANDER 15

MOUNT ST. HELENS

LEFT: Riverfront Park was dusted in fine gray ash following the eruption; in places across Spokane, the fallen ash was inches deep.

TOP: Roger Crum’s young daughter Wendy washes ash away with a hose. ABOVE: Looking east down Spokane Falls Boulevard from City Hall. ROGER CRUM PHOTOS

“THE DAY THE SKY TURNED BLACK,” CONTINUED...

DeeAnne McGhee had just reported to her shift at Deaconess Hospital in downtown Spokane when she learned the mountain had finally blown, roughly two months after first reawakening that spring. McGhee and other employees on shift that afternoon ended up stuck there for the next two days when the hospital locked down due to the resulting ashfall.

Merl D. Gorton, Jr., a colonel in the Washington National Guard, was on his way to the Guard’s Camp Murray headquarters in Western Washington that morning when he first noticed a massive gray cloud rapidly rising to the south.

“I saw this dark cloud and thought, ‘Wow, a storm coming,’” Gorton, now 90, recalls from his Spokane Valley home. “I got into my office and someone came in and said, ‘Merl, the mountain just blew.’”

As director of operations for the Washington State Military Department, which oversees the Guard and the state’s emergency management division, Gorton immediately got to work, ordering helicopter crews training in Yakima that weekend to fly out immediately for rescue operations.

“The last one left just when the dust closed the airport down,” he says.

Spokane business owner John Waite was 15 at the time, and remembers being at the Flour Mill for opening day of the local shop that eventually became Merlyn’s Comics, which he now owns.

“My mother called [the shop] frantically, which was super weird, and said ‘You need to come home right now,’” Waite recalls. “I go outside and as I’m heading home, I look to the west and it was like Mordor coming at me from Lord of the Rings. It was the scariest thing I had ever seen in my life.”

The volcano’s cataclysmic blast that sunny spring morning 40 years ago flattened 230 square miles of forest, killed 57 people, and destroyed or damaged 200 homes and 47 bridges when volcanic mudflows churned through the valleys below. Thousands of animals also died in what is now known as the most economically

16 INLANDER MAY 14, 2020

and physically destructive volcanic event in U.S. history.

The mountain itself lost 1,300 feet from its summit when its north face catastrophically collapsed, triggering the largest landslide ever recorded. The eruption sent a column of ash and volcanic debris 15 miles into the sky that then blew eastward and dumped millions of tons of ash across Central Washington, the Inland Northwest and beyond. By late afternoon, it was as dark as a moonless midnight in Spokane.

THE REGION RESPONDS

Hundreds of miles from the volcano, Glen Hand and his family were home in the foothills of Mount Spokane. Hand, 12 at the time, vividly remembers watching the ash cloud roll over the horizon early that afternoon. He and his friend Zane Smith were out riding their bikes along the idyllic country roads of Greenbluff.

“I remember looking at Zane and telling him, ‘Look at that big cloud, we’re going to get a great big storm coming in. Maybe we better go to my house and eat lunch and wait for it to pass,’” Hand recalls.

When they got to Hand’s house, a neighbor called with news that Mount St. Helens had erupted. Hand initially didn’t believe the neighbor, a kid his age, but he turned on the TV to check.

Local reports advised people and their animals to take shelter as the ash cloud approached.

“We had a yard light about 80 feet out in front of our house, and by three o’clock it was so dark and the ash was coming down so thick that you couldn’t see the light any longer,” he says. “It was just creepy and weird. None of the animals were making noise. The birds weren’t flying. It was just a weird, eerie feeling.”

By 3:30 pm, the entire region was blanketed by a roiling cloud of volcanic ash that rained down a hellish gray snow, covering everything in fine powder that piled up several inches deep in some areas. Many drivers caught in the ash storm were suddenly stranded when the grit clogged engine air filters. Disabled vehicles

MOUNTAIN MEMORIES Although the NORTHWEST MUSEUM OF ARTS & CULTURE remains closed to the public, its current exhibit Mount St. Helens: Critical Memory has been extended through Sept. 6. In the meantime, many pieces of the exhibit commemorating the eruption’s 40th anniversary are moving online, including videos, photographs, historical reports, oral histories and a guided, virtual tour of the exhibit.

The museum’s curator of history, Freya Liggett, says the MAC plans to continue collecting stories of those who experienced the 1980 eruption and its aftermath to add to its archives while the exhibit remains on display. The public can submit their Mount St. Helens memories at mshcriticalmemory.org.

The SPOKANE COUNTY LIBRARY DISTRICT also plans to take a previously scheduled multi-branch exhibit on the eruption’s anniversary online. On Monday, May 18, the library will post videos and photographs of artifacts on loan from the public on its Facebook and Twitter accounts, says librarian Corinne Wilson.

— CHEY SCOTT

At least 17 flows of superheated ash, rock and gas descended the flanks of Mount St. Helens in the days following the May 18 eruption. PETER LIPMAN PHOTO were abandoned along roads.

The following day, Monday, Deputy City Manager Crum and other leaders convened at City Hall to craft a response plan.

“We immediately tried to get in contact with the county health officer to find out if there were detrimental effects of breathing the dust,” Crum recalls. “Everyone was trying to figure out how to get rid of it, and there wasn’t much research to go off of.”

Activity across the region came to a halt.

Spokane International Airport grounded flights for several days. Spokane police paused regular patrols to only answer calls because the ash was wreaking havoc on its cruisers. In Coeur d’Alene, all boats on the lake were ordered to dock that first afternoon. Spokane Transit limited service to critical routes.

“It was just creepy and weird. None of the animals were making noise. The birds weren’t flying. It was just a weird, eerie feeling.”

Residents were advised to stay inside, and to wear face masks or bandanas when they ventured out in the coming days. There was a mask shortage at first, but eventually the city secured a shipment from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), distributing them to citizens at fire stations.

City officials told people to avoid driving on main streets so truck crews could spray the ash off. Driving was nearly impossible anyway; even slow-moving vehicles kicked up swirling clouds of the fine powder that obscured views. ...continued on next page

Spokane and North Idaho, we’ve got this. #ShineThrough

Federally insured by NCUA. MAY 14, 2020 INLANDER 17

MOUNT ST. HELENS ABOUT THE AUTHOR

“THE DAY THE SKY TURNED BLACK,” CONTINUED...

School in most districts around the region was canceled for the next week. A few college graduation ceremonies were postponed or canceled. An emergency order issued by Spokane County Sheriff Larry Erickson ordered all non-essential businesses closed for several days, a decision that upset some residents (a familiar reaction to the current pandemic disaster).

“The thrill was gone out of sitting at home and indications popped up all over Eastern Washington’s most populous county that businessmen and the public don’t consider Mount St. Helens’ ash an emergency at all,” reads a front-page story in the May 21 edition of the Spokesman-Review.

Days into the regional cleanup efforts, Spokane City Council passed an ordinance requiring residents to clean the ash from their property within 10 days, or risk being fined. Crum doesn’t recall anyone actually being fined for not meeting the deadline, but the potential encouraged swift citywide cleanup. An unexpected problem arose, however, when all the volcanic ash washed down storm drains resulted in a clogged mess. The city quickly reversed course on how to clean up, asking citizens instead to use their garbage bins.

“One of the odd things we discovered when cleaning up the dust — it was very fine and hard to pick up — is that someone had talked to someone else with a circus who said what they used to clean up dust was wet sawdust,” Crum says. “So people were able to use wet sawdust to sweep up the ash.”

Crum also remembers when President Jimmy Carter traveled west to meet with emergency responders at the mountain, stopping in Spokane on the way. Mayor Ron Bair wore what Crum describes as a “safari suit,” rather than a traditional coat and tie, for the occasion.

“We thought he really ought to look like he was having a hard time,” Crum recalls, laughing. “He went out to the airport to meet President Carter and convince him we needed some aid, but that we weren’t too desperate, and he had a safari suit on.”

At Deaconess hospital, where cardiac unit coordinator McGhee was unexpectedly stranded along with other hospital staff

MOUNT ST. HELENS QUICK FACTS Geologists began closely monitoring the mountain’s reawakening after a 4.2 magnitude quake was recorded on March 20, 1980.

The mountain’s eruption was so destructive because it exploded laterally from its north flank after the initial landslide was triggered by a 5.1 magnitude quake at 8:32 am on May 18, 1980.

A 110,000-acre protected area around the eruption’s blast zone was established in 1982 as the Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument.

The mountain was named in 1792 by British explorer George Vancouver to honor a British ambassador to Spain, Alleyne FitzHerbert, the Baron St. Helens.

Native tribes’ names for the mountain reference its frequent eruptive activity. It’s known as Lawetlat’la (One From Whom Smoke Comes) to the Cowlitz, and Loowit (Keeper of the Fire) to the Klickitat.

SOURCE: U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY

18 INLANDER MAY 14, 2020

that Sunday afternoon, an early decision was made to shut down the entire facility’s air circulation and cooling system.

“They ended up thinking the ash was going to come in through the air ducts, so they turned them off and it got very stuffy, very fast, and so hot,” says McGhee, 29 at the time.

After the day shift clocked out, she says leadership decided everyone on the late shift would be the “last crew in here for we don’t know how long,” considering roads were near impassable and that, initially, any harmful effects of the volcanic ash weren’t widely known.

“We slept on empty patient beds in shifts, and we had to work out showers and changing of clothes,” she recalls. “It was kind of a fun time, but a little nerve-wracking because we just didn’t know; it was the uncertainty of everything, and not knowing what was going to happen.”

THE MAW OF THE BEAST

Few people who witnessed firsthand the cataclysmic eruption of Mount St. Helens that Sunday morning lived to tell the tale.

Dorothy and Keith Stoffel, two Spokane geologists, famously did.

The couple were in Yakima for a lecture and, wanting to see the active volcano for themselves, decided to charter a small plane and fly over the peak early May 18. They made several passes around the mountain, which had famously developed what observers called “the bulge,” a large dome of fragmented rock and ice protruding 300 feet from the mountain’s north side.

Just before 8:30 am, the Stoffels and pilot Bruce Judson were ready to head back to Yakima, feeling somewhat disappointed they hadn’t seen any activity on the waking mountain. As they began to cross over St. Helens’ one last time from the northwest, however, Dorothy Stoffel, then 30, noticed something unusual.

“The whole north side of the mountain began to vibrate, and it was like it became fluid,” she recounts in an interview recorded by the Northwest Museum of Arts & Culture for its 40th anniversary exhibit Mount St. Helens: Critical Memory.

Chey Scott remembers hearing unbelievable stories as a kid from her parents about Mount St. Helens’ ash that fell across the region and completely darkened the sky that spring day. On a family road trip across the state one summer, she was also

stunned to learn that some of that ash is still visible along I-90 in Central Washington. Besides writing about local history and culture, including a recent piece about Hanford’s B Reactor, Chey is the Inlander’s food and listings editor, and has been with the paper since 2012. She can be reached at cheys@inlander.com.

Find more photos and local residents’ memories of Mount St. Helens’ eruption at Inlander.com.

An aerial view as the massive, earthquaketriggered landslide began. The north side of the mountain crumbled away, causing the initial eruptive blast to occur simultaneously out of the volcano’s flank and crater. KEITH AND DOROTHY STOFFEL PHOTO

“Keith described the north side of the mountain as churning,” Stoffel continues. “I can remember seeing waves in the mountain. …The next thing we observed was the north half of the mountain falling away right beneath our feet. As a geologist, you expect volcanoes to erupt; you don’t expect mountains to fall apart.”

Photos of the eruption’s first few seconds captured by the Stoffels from the air that morning remain a rare and invaluable resource to understand and document the event. The plane barely evaded the mushrooming, thousand-degree volcanic blast cloud illuminated by lightning. Pilot Judson immediately diverted south, landing in Portland.

“The whole experience, I call it a double pool of emotions,” Stoffel says. “One, being a professional geologist and the excitement of being a geologist and having a front-row seat to this phenomenal eruption. And having come within just seconds of dying.

Those two emotions were just all wrapped into one experience.”

Over the ensuing hours, retired National Guard Col. Gorton says the Guard began sending in helicopter crews to look for survivors.

“As a geologist, you expect volcanoes to erupt; you don’t expect mountains to fall apart.”

“This was a really heroic effort, let me tell you,” he says.

“Some places where they landed, the dust was so intense that if it weren’t for the experienced pilots, the helicopter would have crashed.”

On the third day after the eruption, Gorton drove down to the Guard’s emergency response base in Toledo, Washington, and met with the Lewis County sheriff to coordinate the recovery of bodies of those killed in the blast, 57 people total. Some were never found — including infamous evacuation holdout, 83-yearold Spirit Lake lodge owner Harry R. Truman, and 30-year-old U.S. Geological Survey volcanologist David Johnston — having been buried beneath tons of volcanic debris.

Gorton recalls flying up the mountain to witness the complete destruction.

“We landed up there on what was a former lake, and the ground was quivering and the dust was still coming out,” he says.

“Steam was still coming out of different places in the soil.”

From Camp Murray, Gorton also oversaw the Guard’s assistance with ash cleanup in Eastern Washington, including Spokane and the especially hard-hit cities of Ritzville and Moses Lake.

Years later, he and his wife Diane returned to Mount St. Helens, a National Volcanic Monument since 1982. He remembers being impressed by the significant natural renewal that’s taken place decades since that catastrophic day.

“We went to the observation point, which is where David Johnston was killed by the explosion. We looked out over the area where I had seen all those trees that had fallen, and everything was now all green, and some of the trees were almost fully grown,” Gorton recalls.

McGhee also visited Mount St. Helens years after it blew.

“The devastation was still there. You could see trees lying flat like toothpicks, but it’s amazing how much it’s grown back.

Nature has done a really good job of bringing things back.”

The former health-care worker sees parallels and contrasts in the human and natural responses to the regional geological disaster caused by the volcano, and the global biological disaster caused by the coronavirus. Forty years apart, one was arguably inevitable, the other perhaps preventable. Both caught humanity off guard, and time is the only conduit toward recovery.

“Obviously the toll and scale is different, but much of the fear and public reactions were the same,” McGhee says. “It’s a reminder that nature is a powerful force, but renewal is possible in time.” n

MAY 14, 2020 INLANDER 19

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HOBBIES

GARDENING INSIDE Just because COVID-19 has forced you inside doesn’t mean you can’t practice a plant-loving life

BY MACIE WHITE

A

s a plant lover and the spring intern at the Inlander, I decided to take a stab at the role of greenery guru. I’m a college senior and, because the last few years have consisted of temporary housing situations, I am unfortunately not yet at the point in my life where a greenhouse or outdoor garden is possible.

Luckily, there are plenty of indoor options to spruce up your living space.

Houseplants reduce indoor air pollution, deter illness, boost healing and increase focus, not to mention they look awesome. My indoor jungle currently consists of some succulents, an aloe vera plant, a quite large Boston tiger fern, two pothos, a snake plant, hanging English ivy and some baby clippings of a spider plant I’m attempting to propagate. It may seem intimidating at first, but trust me, if I can do it, anyone can.

The benefits of indoor gardening can make your socially distanced life better. YOUNG KWAK PHOTO

PAINLESS PLANTS

Not everyone has the time, patience or magic green thumb to keep houseplants happy and healthy. Luckily, there are a few indoor plants that require hardly any attention but still bring that splash of life to your home.

POTHOS OR “DEVIL’S IVY” is a beautiful vining plant that looks awesome in a hanging planter. Pothos come in a variety of shades of green, even marbled, and will tolerate low light and less than frequent waterings. In fact, this plant prefers the soil to be dry between waterings, making it nearly impossible to kill. ...continued on next page

MAY 14, 2020 INLANDER 21

CULTURE | HOBBIES

You don’t need a green thumb to make your apartment look like you do.

DEREK HARRISON PHOTO

“GARDENING INSIDE,” CONTINUED...

SNAKE PLANTS are an air-purifying form of foliage, helping to remove air pollutants from your home. The sword-like fronds of this plant can grow to a variety of heights depending on the type. Snake plants tolerate low light and you only need to water this guy once every two to six weeks.

SPIDER PLANT may sound like it belongs in Little Shop of Horrors, but this aesthetically pleasing plant is an essential addition to any hanging plant collection. Spider plants are extremely adaptive and also ridiculously easy to propagate, meaning you could get three, four or five plants for the price of one if you feel like taking the time. Spider plants only require water once every week or two and prefer medium to bright indirect light.

PROPAGATION STATION

If you feel like you have a fairly developed green thumb, skip purchasing your plants at the nursery and give propagation a shot. Propagation refers to the natural breeding process of plants; in other words, growing new plants from leaves, seeds and other parts of a parent plant.

To start the process, take a few clippings from your favorite houseplant. Experiment with water propagation and stick your clippings in a glass of water to watch the roots grow for three to four weeks before planting, or put your plant snippets straight into soil. Keep clippings near a window to ensure indirect bright light and change out the water every couple days. Water your planted clippings like normal, and watch your free new plant grow.

WHAT NOT TO DO

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Cultivating your own indoor jungle can be fairly straightforward, so long as you avoid these common mistakes when caring for your houseplants.

OVER/UNDERWATERING is the No. 1 mistake plant owners make. More often than not overwatering is the cause of a plant’s failing health. Most plants don’t need to be watered until the first inch or so of topsoil is dry. Of course, this isn’t true for all plants as some, like Boston ferns, need to be watered at least twice a week. The best thing to do is know what kind of plants you’re caring for and what their specific

needs are.

DIRECT LIGHT is far from necessary for most plants. Instead of accelerating photosynthesis, direct sunlight can actually burn plant leaves and cause them to fry. Only desert-adapted species can tolerate that much heat.

HYGIENE is just as important for our plants as it is for us, only they can’t clean themselves. Prevent clogged pores by cleaning dusty leaves with a damp towel every so often and keep an eye out for pests or fungus that might be invading your plant’s pot. While dust is normal, if you’re seeing creepy crawlies hanging around it might be a sign of bacteria. This can be due to overwatering, which means you should give your plant some time to dry out a bit. Infected leaves are also a bad sign, but the best thing to do is to simply remove the damaged foliage.

DIY SPICE CABINET

Since we’re all stuck inside and battling our urge to snack endlessly, why not give yourself a kitchen project other than eating. Start your own herb garden right on your windowsill and reap the benefits in all the meals to come. Basil, mint, chives, oregano, rosemary and thyme are all easy to grow and thrive indoors. For a long-term investment start with seeds, keep soil moist until germination, and with bright light and weekly watering you’ll have mature plants in six to eight weeks. At 10 weeks you can even replant your herb garden outside if the urge strikes you and weather permits.

EXPERT ADVICE

While I love my plants as much as the next novice horticulturist, if you’re looking to start growing at home, or just want to devote some more time towards your indoor vegetation, consult the experts. Whether that’s checking out YouTube’s expansive collection of plant-related videos or investing in books like How Not to Kill Your Houseplants and Wild at Home, don’t forget you also have local specialists here in Spokane.

Liberty Park Florist & Greenhouse and Ritters Garden & Gift are both still operating with adjusted hours and services, so give them a call or check out their websites to start your own indoor jungle and answer all your houseplant queries. n

CULTURE | DIGEST

JOE ROGAN EXPERIENCE

The Cult of Rogan

Y PROLIFIC PODCASTER Dan Carlin has been on a roll. The host of Hardcore History, beloved by sweaty history nerds of all shapes and sizes, has produced a whopping total of three (3!) podcasts in the last two months in his spinoff series, Hardcore History: Addendum and Common Sense with Dan Carlin. It’s worth noting that Carlin hasn’t updated Common Sense in almost two years. In “A Recipe for Caesar” (a Carlin episode title if I ever saw one) he dives into the politics of pandemics and whether our current situation can unify our country, or just heightens partisan tensions further. (QUINN WELSCH)

BY QUINN WELSCH

ou know Joe. He’s America’s stoner big brother. The type to put you in a headlock one minute and share a joint the next. He’s a comedian, former MMA fighter and host of the Joe Rogan Experience podcast.

He’s made a name for himself with interviews of bizarre and often unlikeable characters, and regularly racks up millions of hits on YouTube (or wherever you get podcasts). He describes himself as “basically a socialist,” but made recent news when he said he’d rather vote for President Donald Trump than Joe Biden.

Love him or hate him, Rogan is an enigma. Some essential episodes: EPISODE #1284: GRAHAM HANCOCK Rogan interviews legendary pseudo-historian Graham Hancock about the evidence of lost civilizations many thousands of years before we knew civilization existed.

Hancock points to relatively new evidence of humans in the American continents well before the history books show. The two dive into conspiracy theories and, of course, hallucinogens. Classic Rogan.

THE BUZZ BIN

THIS WEEK’S PLAYLIST Some noteworthy new music hits online and in stores May 15. To wit: JASON ISBELL & THE 400 UNIT, Reunions. If it wasn’t prohibited, I’d show up to your house and explain why Isbell is America’s best songwriter in 2020.

CHARLI XCX, How I’m Feeling Now. The pop killer conceived, recorded and now releases a new album, all done under quarantine.

MAGNETIC FIELDS, Quickies. Stephin Merritt packs 28 songs on the band’s latest, all under three minutes.

PERFUME GENIUS, Set My Heart on Fire Immediately. Bittersweet lyrics set to music that will get you moving. (DAN NAILEN)

EPISODE #1255: ALEX JONES This is objectively the best podcast episode of any show ever. Rogan interviews right-wing nutjob and InfoWars host Alex Jones in a marathon five-hour episode. At first, Jones sounds like he wants to apologize for his belief that the Sandy Hook school shooting was a hoax. He fails, miserably, and goes into some other crazy shit: “So we’re on this planet in the third dimension which is a launchpad to all the other dimensions below and above. These wizards are taking drugs in these temples and interfacing with these palantirs, these crystal balls — which aren’t really crystal balls, it’s their psychic focus of interdimensional connection while they’re on drugs looking in a glass.” You won’t find this stuff anywhere else.

EPISODE #1191: PETER BOGHOSSIAN This was my introduction to Rogan and… oof. Rogan interviews the professors who published a hoax research paper, “Human Reactions to Rape Culture and Queer Performativity at Urban Dog Parks in Portland, Oregon,” in a feminist academic journal. It was a biting satire of how identity studies walls themselves off from outside criticism. Listen at your own risk.

EPISODE #1169: ELON MUSK Rogan and Musk discuss potential dangers of artificial intelligence, among other topics. (Listen to a more recent Musk interview from May 7 where he explains the baffling name of his newborn son, X Æ A-12.)

EPISODE #1368: EDWARD SNOWDEN Maybe you already know why Snowden is hiding in Russia. In a worthy listen, Snowden dives into his background, his motivations for leaking classified government material, and what his daily life is like now. n

IMMACULATE COLLECTION Producer duo the Hood Internet has long been known for their unusual mashups, and one of their ongoing series takes a Time Life collection’s worth of songs from a specific year and weaves them into a single track. Their most recent is a swirling mashup of 50 hits from 1985, featuring artists like Madonna, Dire Straits, INXS, Prince, Whitney Houston, Tears for Fears, Kate Bush, Run-DMC and even Eddie Murphy. It’s a clever way of distilling an entire year into an easily digestible single, available on YouTube. (NATHAN WEINBENDER)

THREE MINUTES OF JOY Do yourself a favor and search YouTube for Thao & the Get Down Stay Down’s new video for “Phenom.” Having lost the ability to shoot a traditional video, Thao and eight dancers created an incredibly ornate bit of choreography completely on the Zoom meeting app, from planning to rehearsals to recording the vid in one take.

It gets better as it goes from a clunky start, so stick it out, it’s worth it. (DAN NAILEN)

HOLLYWOOD GLAM I expected the new Netflix miniseries Hollywood to be some dolled up post-WWII, feel-good garbage about the magic of Tinseltown. It’s much raunchier. Episode one follows the life of a young veteran named Jack as he attempts to provide for his new family while sleeping his way to the top of Hollywood’s elite. Jack will do anything to be a star. Well, almost anything. Sure, it’s a glossier, sexier version of a post-war America — and probably totally unrealistic. But hey! THAT’S HOLLYWOOD, BABY! (QUINN WELSCH)

MAY 14, 2020 INLANDER 23

CULTURE | BOOKS

Read Something!

Book recommends from your friends at Auntie’s Bookstore

BY DAN NAILEN

A

t this point in our locked-down lives, it’s entirely possible many of us have exhausted our Netflix queues, completed every puzzle in our houses and perfected our sourdough loaves.

OK, probably not.

Still, diversions to stoke our passions and intellects are particularly welcome right now, and rarely delivered in finer form than a good book. I hit up several area bookstores for recommendations and they were more than happy to share some with us.

First up, the fine staff at Spokane’s Auntie’s Bookstore, which is now doing mail order and curbside pickup, and you can also order a digital copy of a book that supports the local bookseller if you’re a Kindle or Nook reader.

Visit auntiesbooks.com for more information and ordering, or call 838-0206 for a curbside pickup.

Here are some recommendations from the Auntie’s crew, as relayed by Auntie’s events coordinator Claire Davey:

SEVERANCE, BY LING MA

“I read it last summer and loved it and then re-read it when coronavirus hit,” Davey says, recommending this one herself. “Get this: it’s a commentary on late capitalism through the lens of a global pandemic. It spoke to all my various millennial anxieties and was totally un-putdown-able.”

SPIRIT RUN, BY NOE ALVAREZ

Staffer Kerry Mayer “has been raving” about this book for months, Davey says. “The author is from Yakima and had his life changed by participating in the Peace and Dignity Journeys, which is a run from Alaska to South American celebrating indigenous peoples.”

THE CITY WE BECAME, BY N.K. JEMISIN

Davey’s co-worker Nessa Halls tipped her off to this new book, recommending it, Davey says, because Jemisin “has one of the strongest voices in modern sci-fi/fantasy, and is a stunningly beautiful prose writer.” n

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Stacie Kearney’s been introducing aspiring bakers to a sourdough starter named “Carl” throughout the pandemic.

BAKING

RISING

to the Occasion Homemade sourdough bread is seeing a quarantine-spurred resurgence; two local experts share their best bread-baking advice

BY CHEY SCOTT

26 INLANDER MAY 14, 2020

E

YOUNG KWAK PHOTO

verybody’s stress baking these days.

Making a crusty, pillow-shaped loaf of sourdough bread that looks as good as it tastes seems to be the ultimate, Instagram-worthy achievement for many aspiring home bakers.

While maintaining a live sourdough starter — a runny mixture of water and flour that hosts a colony of wild yeast — to make picture-perfect loaves may seem like a daunting task (it’s a living thing that requires care and nurturing, like a pet!), local experts assure us it’s less complicated than we might think.

“Bread is simple,” states Lucky Lady Bread owner Stacie Kearney, who launched her pop-up bakery in Spokane last year after six years perfecting her craft.

“Social media people try to make it look inaccessible, but bread is not something hard,” she continues. “It just takes a few ingredients: flour, salt and water. That’s all.”

Lately, the Spokane breadmaker has been sharing helpful resources for budding breadmakers on her social media pages (search Lucky Lady Bread on Instagram and Facebook), including recipes and tips on how to maintain a live starter. Her favorite bread recipe recommendation is the “Best Sourdough Bread Recipe” from acouplecooks.com. ...continued on page 28

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“The bread I bake and share with folks is “There has definitely been a big uptick in what I want them to start to make,” she says. “I people trying out baking bread, which is great,” like the throwback of traditional bread, the things Duffy says. “Lots of people have been coming in our great grandmothers ate.” asking for tips, so I’ll loan out a bread book and Kearney uses a sourdough starter named I always tell them to email me if they have ques“Carl” that dates back to an 1847 Oregon Trail tions or problems.” crossing. After its westward journey, the living Even though the bakery and connected Grain yeast was passed down for the next 150 years in Shed Brewing have both been closed to in-person the family of its namesake, Carl Griffith. Since service for almost two months now, bread sales the 1990s, the hardy starter has been shared have been 25-30 percent higher than pre-pandemwith more than 54,000 bakers around the world ic, Duffy says. through the Oregon Trail Sourdough PreservaHome bakers can purchase the same tion Society, online at carlsfriends.net. freshly milled, ancient grain flour used in Culture “I started working with their preservation Bread’s slow-fermented loaves, including its society to share the starter, and they’ve been turkey red wheat, spelt and rye. One-kilogram inundated with orders” since the pandemic hit, (about 2.2 pounds) bags of flour are $7 each and Kearney says. “I’m continuing that culture and can be preordered online. the history my starter has, to preserve and share After your starter has multiplied enough to with people around the world.” be able to make a loaf (the amount needed varies Before the coronavirus pandemic hit and by recipe and the hydration of your starter, but is the subsequent “stress-baking” trend took off, usually around 1 tablespoon), Duffy says it’s all Kearney says she and other preservation society about “time and temperature.” members were filling between 30 and 40 requests a week, which have since ballooned to as many as 300.

Anyone interested in getting their own piece of “Carl” to bake with can fill out an online request for a dehydrated sample sent by mail along with instructions to revive the yeast colony with water.

Locals can request a tablespoon of “Carl” directly from Kearney, who’s been doing porch pickups for both free starter samples and preorders of her loaves ($8 each) from her West Central home. She accepts direct Culture Breads’ Shaun Thompson Duffy is open with his bread tips. YOUNG KWAK PHOTO requests for starter through social media, and regularly posts announcements when there’s extra to be “Ambient temperature is the biggest overshared. looked factor,” he says. “Temp your water and She estimates she’s given away 700 tabledough with a thermometer. If a recipe says to spoon-sized samples of the sourdough starter to rise in two hours and it doesn’t do anything, it’s Spokane residents since mid-March. because it’s too cold.”

“I decided, why not give it to folks in town, “Water is the best way of keeping the dough because yeast was becoming unavailable and I at a proper temp, and proofing it in a nice little thought it was a good way to bring some joy,” tub with a lid to keep that heat in,” he adds.

Kearney says.

Both Duffy and Kearney say that bakers who “I am constantly getting tags on Instagram of want to dip their toes into making sourdough people sharing their first loaf of bread and their bread for the first time don’t need to rush out starters growing, and how much joy they have and buy special equipment, like proofing baskets, doing this with their children,” she continues. although a kitchen scale and thermometer are “My favorite part is seeing what everyone is helpful to have. making.”

“With a bowl and kitchen towel you’re good to go,” Duffy says. nce you have a living yeast colony in When it comes to books on the subject that hand, regular upkeep is required. Keoffer a deeper dive into the process, Kearney arney advises home bakers who aren’t recommends Bread Baking for Beginners by Bonnie producing a lot of baked goods on a weekly basis Ohara. Duffy likes Ken Forkish’s Flour Water to keep their starter in a large Mason jar in the Salt Yeast, as well as Jeffrey Hamelman’s Bread: A refrigerator. The cool environment slows down Baker’s Book of Techniques and Recipes. the yeast’s growth, and means it only needs to be “Bread is easier and simpler than we really fed fresh flour and water once a week. think it is, and you should never be afraid to try At Culture Breads inside the Grain Shed it,” Kearney says. “If you just experiment and co-op in South Spokane, baker Shaun Thompson keep practicing, you’ll end up making the perfect Duffy is also happy to give away the bakery’s loaf.” n starter to customers who ask. cheys@inlander.com

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WANDERING THE AISLES

An ode to the video store, an analog institution that’s still hanging in there

BY NATHAN WEINBENDER

W

hen I was a kid, the greatest place in the world was the neighborhood video store.

The first one I remember had thousands of VHS boxes lined up floor to ceiling, shelves and shelves of endless possibilities. The tapes were separated by genre, but they weren’t alphabetized, and I’m still not sure if this was a byproduct of mere laziness or a brilliant business decision that forced customers to browse.

I would spend what felt like hours there, mostly just looking, occasionally gathering up the courage to creep to the horror section on the back wall and marvel at the morbid box art. Picking a video was a big decision, one you couldn’t reverse, and it felt like a small victory dropping

loose change onto the counter and leaving with my own temporary copy of Beetlejuice or Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. It’s where my love of movies started in earnest.

Those days are long gone, and now even the homogenous chains like Blockbuster and Hollywood Video that pushed so many mom-and-pop video shops out of the market are dead themselves. It’s weird, but not being able to go anywhere during self-isolation has made me nostalgic for places I couldn’t visit even if I was able to. I miss the video store. ...continued on next page

Can you name this cultural artifact?

PHILLIP PESSAR PHOTO

MAY 14, 2020 INLANDER 29

PPlaicntuare-Perfect

SUMMER

FILM | VIDEO “WANDERING THE AISLES,” CONTINUED...

This is no doubt inspired by adolescent nostalgia as anything else, but it’s something that Ryan Tucker, the host of the Spokane Public Library’s Lilac City Live variety show, can relate to. He also grew up wandering the aisles of video stores and obsessing over weird VHS box art, avoiding corporate stores like Blockbuster in favor of the quirky independent shops that carried more off-the-wall titles.

“I think that’s where my love of B movies came from,” Tucker says.

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bankruptcy in 2016 — Idaho still has a few. The independently owned Video Theater has two operating locations, in Coeur d’Alene and Post Falls, and they’ve been open since the video store boom of the early 1980s. Both sites have remained in operation during the COVID-19 pandemic as well, renting BluRays, DVDs, video games and even a decent selection of VHS tapes.

And then there’s Seattle’s Scarecrow Video, which may be the ideal video store. Its two floors are packed with DVDs, BluRays and VHS tapes and an inventory that has everything, and I mean everything: Scarecrow’s collection exceeds 130,000 titles, including films that are difficult to find or been out of print for years. You can browse a director’s entire filmography in one place, or explore a genre that has been exhaustively broken down into specific subcategories.

RYAN TUCKER PHOTO

As a teenager, he landed his dream job managing the video section at the Wellesley Hastings, and he has held on to that obsession well into adulthood. Tucker has amassed a collection of more than 1,300 VHS and Betamax tapes, several hundred DVDs, 200 Laserdiscs and many other obscure, long-dead media formats, and they’re all on display in what he calls his Video Basement. He’s really leaned into the concept, even producing laminated rental account cards and loaning out tapes to his friends.

“It’s weird to think that there’s a whole generation that doesn’t even fathom that you’d have to go to a store to borrow a movie and return it,” he says. “It was such a massive global thing, and it was so short-lived — maybe two decades.”

L

ike just about every business whose bread and butter is physical media, the video store has struggled in this digital age.

Some of the most prominent (at least within film-nerd circles) of the country’s remaining video stores haven’t survived the COVID-19 pandemic: Chicago’s Odd Obsession Video and Austin’s Vulcan Video, both cultishly adored local institutions, closed in April, and Moscow’s Main Street Video Co-Op recently shut its doors and sold off its inventory. Blockbuster, once the granddaddy of rental chains, had 4,500 U.S. locations at its peak; now it’s down to just one — a single operating store in Bend, Oregon.

But that sole remaining Blockbuster has become something of a tourist destination, an analog throwback preserved in bright blue amber. The Illinois-based rental chain Family Video, meanwhile, is still going strong, operating more than 500 brick-and-mortar rental stores, primarily in rural communities dogged by spotty internet connections.

Although Spokane no longer has any active rental stores — Hastings, the regional rental and retail chain, hung in the longest, declaring

t’s that hyper-specificity that has made Scarecrow a pilgrimage point for movie dorks everywhere. In the age of search engine optimization and the instant gratification of streaming and VOD rentals, a business model predicated on the act of wandering around until you find the thing you want is kind of unfathomable. Part of the video store’s perceived drawback is the limited selection, an Achilles heel that streaming and VOD promised to heal. But digital platforms merely offer the illusion of completism: In fact, Netflix’s once-vast film library shrinks more and more each year, favoring its original content over the properties of other studios.

“Whenever people talk about streaming, they tend to say, ‘I can stream anything I want and whatever I want. But that’s definitely not true,” says Matt Lynch, Scarecrow’s marketing coordinator. “I stream shit on Netflix and Amazon all the time. It’s insanely convenient. I’m not trying to tell you that streaming is bad. I just don’t think it’s the answer. I think we have to find a way to coexist.”

Scarecrow is one of only two operating video stores in Seattle — the other is Reckless Video, which is less than three miles away on the same street — and it has been operating as a nonprofit since 2014. Scarecrow is as much a retail store as it is a film archive, preserving thousands of movies that still haven’t been released on DVD or BluRay. Having a vast and tangible film catalog is no different than a really good record store with an excellent selection and knowledgeable staff, or a library overflowing with all the books you’ve ever wanted to read.

Lynch, who has been a Scarecrow employee since 2003, says he’s hopeful the business will reopen its doors when the pandemic has slowed.

To make up for the lack of foot traffic, Scarecrow started a rent-by-mail program in March, and it has so far established 400 accounts and is shipping to 10 different states. I started one myself, and I’ve been renting stuff I’ve wanted to see for years but haven’t been able to find. It’s not the same as actually going to the store and stumbling upon a long-forgotten favorite or a tantalizing curio, but at least it’s something.

“It’s definitely been a struggle, but we’ve had a lot of help from the community,” Lynch says. “People recognize that even if they don’t necessarily have direct access to us, that we’re a valuable resource.” n

The First Interstate Center for the Arts is asking fans what it would take to feel safe at a show.

YOUNG KWAK PHOTO

VENUES

Plugging Back In While closed concert venues hope for federal assistance, owners ponder what live music will look like post-pandemic

BY NATHAN WEINBENDER

I

n the coming weeks, it’s looking like more businesses in the Inland Northwest will reopen as restrictions implemented since the COVID-19 outbreak are loosened. But one big question still remains, and there’s no real answer yet: What will live music look like in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic?

When you go to a show, will you be belting along to your favorite songs from behind a face mask? Will concert tickets become even hotter commodities due to reduced venue capacities? Could mosh pits become a thing of the past?

It has become clear in recent months that businesses reliant on large gatherings — concerts and sporting events, for instance — would be some of the last to reopen. Music venues and nightclubs have been sitting

empty since late March, with no way of bringing in revenue beyond GoFundMe accounts or fundraisers.

National concert tours that were planned for this summer have largely been pushed to the fall or postponed until 2021. For the Spokane Arena and the First Interstate Center for the Arts, which are typically jampacked with concerts, sporting events, live theater and graduation ceremonies throughout the summer, it could mean months without a single booking.

Matt Meyer, director of entertainment for both the arena and FICA, says both venues have been preparing for the possibility of reopening soon. In the week before Gov. Jay Inslee announced statewide business closures, the arena hosted the rock band Tool and State B basketball championships, while the FICA featured The Bachelor

Live. Both places had already implemented advanced sanitization protocols, and those will only ramp up when they can reopen.

“It’s going to come down to the safety of the general public, the safety of our staff, the safety of the touring shows,” Meyer says. “After that, it’s ‘can we open the buildings back up and what will the capacity be? And will people come?’”

To get a better sense of that latter hypothetical, Meyer put together a public survey regarding the safety precautions attendees would expect from venues were they to reopen: Should all staff and audience members be required to wear masks, for instance, and how far apart should folks be expected to sit? ...continued on next page

MAY 14, 2020 INLANDER 31

RELATIONSHIPS

Advice Goddess

MUSIC | VENUES

ALONG CAME PAWLY

I’ve been married for two years to a woman whose sister is extremely manipulative. She finds reasons to touch me inappropriately — for example, “Your hair is so pretty. I have to pet it.” She puts an arm around my shoulders or comes toward me and puts both hands around my neck.

This past weekend, I was seated on the couch, and she came up behind me, grabbed me, kissed me as far down my neck as she could, and swiftly left. All of this creeps me AMY ALKON out, but because she always does this when other relatives are around, and I’m new to the family, I don’t feel I can snap at her or push her away.

My wife alternates between being intimidated by her sister and feeling she has to protect her, and she refuses to say anything to her. She now seems to blame me for being offended! Do I keep trying to get through to my wife? Demand my sister-in-law explain her actions? Talk to her husband? Threaten to go to the police? —Repulsed Family gatherings should not be indistinguishable from foreplay.

It sounds like you’re being visited by the Dark Triad, which, sadly, is not an afterschool club for young Batman and his friends. It’s a set of three separate but overlapping malevolent personality traits: narcissism, Machiavellianism, and psychopathy, which make for social and personal relationships that would more accurately be called “manipulationships.”

Narcissism is reflected by egotism, a lack of empathy, and “grandiosity” (essentially a superiority complex — certainty of one’s greatness compared with the rest of us human worms slithering around).

Machiavellianism was named for the 16th-century Italian philosopher/political advisor Niccolo Machiavelli, who was basically “the tyrant whisperer” — if you take his book, “The Prince,” seriously (and not, as some have suggested, as a work of satire).

It pretty much advises, “Hey, Royals, do what you need to do, no matter how rotten, to stay in power!” The personality trait named for him is characterized by manipulativeness, callousness, self-interest, and what Dark Triad researcher Monica Koehn describes as “a ruthless lack of morality.”

Finally, there’s psychopathy, which shows itself in antisocial behavior, selfishness, impulsivity, and a lack of remorse. And not surprisingly, there’s a fourth trait some researchers have suggested adding to the Triad: “everyday sadism,” reflected in getting pleasure out of harming others.

Dark Triad traits lead to an aggressive, exploitative way of interacting with others, like that of your toxic, sexually abusive sister-in-law. Koehn observes, “All three traits are associated with the propensity to engage in repeated sexual advances also known as ‘sexual harassment’ and may have played a role in some of the noteworthy, alleged cases of sexual harassment discussed in the media.”

Your sister-in-law is a skilled psychological puppetmaster who weaponizes others’ emotions to get away with controlling and abusing them. In this case, your wife’s fears of displeasing her sister, and her companion desire to protect her, as well as your unsteadiness about your place in the family allow your sister-in-law to turn any family gathering into the Wild Touchyfeely West.

Unfortunately, personality doesn’t come in a cartridge we can pull out and replace with another like in a gaming console. Chances are the only way to change Peppermint SocioPatty’s behavior is to change your own — while being mindful of what sneaky, reality-distorting saboteurs Dark Triad types can be.

In short, you need to change your boundaries from silent to spoken — but without ever going the slightest bit angry or ugly. Also vitally important is talking only about your feelings and avoiding anything that sounds even the tiniest bit accusatory.

(Go angry, ugly, and/or accusatory and she will run with it — transforming herself into the poor, persecuted waif-in-law abused by the scary, unstable, brute brother-in-law.)

The next time she touches you, tell her this: “Just a little thing: I don’t feel comfortable being touched in caressing ways by anyone who is not my wife.” In saying it this way — talking about your feelings — you are not accusing her of anything; you’re simply voicing an observation about the inner you.

If she starts to squawk, if she tries to bait you into anger, or if she just tries to engage in a discussion, don’t bite. It’s not up for discussion (and you will lose to her every time, anyway). Calmly repeat your feelings line and walk away. You’ll show that you make a poor choice of victim, and family gatherings should stop doubling as a sexual grazing ground for the free-range sociopath-in-law. “Hospitality” is supposed to mean making your guests feel at home, not letting them feel you up at home.

(Welcome to “Brady Bunch: SVU”!) n ©2020, Amy Alkon, all rights reserved. • Got a problem? Write Amy Alkon, 171 Pier Ave, #280, Santa Monica, CA 90405 or email AdviceAmy@aol.com (www.advicegoddess.com)

32 INLANDER MAY 14, 2020

The Pin owner Chelsey Heidenreich.

YOUNG KWAK PHOTO

“PLUGGING BACK IN,” CONTINUED...

Meyer says he’s already received over 4,000 responses, which should give management a decent idea of what kind of policies need to be in place going forward.

Even so, it’s possible that, due to CDC guidelines, larger entertainment venues like the arena will reopen after small venues do. But over at the Pin, the downtown all-ages venue that has a regular capacity of just over 260, owner Chelsey Heidenreich is still waiting to get the go-ahead to reopen. She says she’s “basically still in the same spot” as she was a month and a half ago, when her business closed unexpectedly.

“We want to open again when it’s safe but need federal assistance for that to happen with no income available during this time,” she says.

Once the Pin is allowed to reopen, Heidenreich says, the Pin will follow the state’s guidelines: Capacities will be reduced, the staff will most likely be in masks and gloves, and they’ll diligently disinfect surfaces before, during and after shows.

But when will that happen? It’s hard to say.

In the meantime, a coalition called the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) has been lobbying for the federal government to provide financial support for concert venues.

Among the 1,200 members of NIVA are Spokane venues the Knitting Factory and Lucky You Lounge, the latter of which has started selling takeout food while shows are prohibited.

Lucky You owner Caleb Ingersoll says venues are in a particularly precarious place because they’re “first to close, last to reopen” businesses, and even though food sales are helping, most of their staff don’t have jobs without live shows happening.

“If you want the arts and you want live music to still exist when all this is over, then we need support,” Ingersoll says. “That’s not saying, ‘Give

us donations.’ It’s more like we need help to push this through to a federal level, where they can provide stimulus specifically for music venues.

“These venues won’t exist [anymore], and you won’t have a place to go see live music.”

This is an issue in major cities, too. Even storied venues like the Troubadour, a legendary L.A. club that introduced American audiences to the likes of Elton John and Joni Mitchell, are struggling, launching a GoFundMe that raised nearly $74,000. But even if that money goes toward the Troubadour reopening, the business probably won’t turn a profit with limited capacities. Fewer people through the doors also means that booze sales, typically a venue’s highest-margin products, are automatically less.

“We want to open again when it’s safe but need federal assistance for that to happen with no income available during this time.”

“You’re already under the eight ball,” Troubadour owner Christine Karayan told Rolling Stone last week, “and now the eight ball is just going to crush you if you haven’t already been crushed.”

The Troubadour has also aligned with NIVA, and a recent email blast from the coalition has already generated more than 280,000 signatures to the House of Representatives and the Senate, while big-name artists like Bon Iver are spreading awareness. There’s still a giant question mark floating over the industry, but it’s a solid start.

“I think it’s a good eye-opener for patrons of venues to understand the reality of what it takes and what goes into running a small venue, and it helps spark a bigger conversation about what cities are doing to support local arts,” Ingersoll says.

“Venues do give a lot to the culture of a place.

They inspire people wanting to live in that city. It has a huge impact on that.” n

SPORTS

Hail Mary (Jane) Professional sports leagues ease the rules on cannabis during lockdown

BY WILL MAUPIN

I

t’s been two months since sports came to a sudden halt due to the coronavirus. If you’re reading this story, there’s a good chance you’ve filled that void, in part, with cannabis.

The athletes you can no longer watch perform, should they so choose, could be doing the same.

In mid-March, the National Football League and its players agreed upon a new collective bargaining agreement or CBA. It is, simply put, a rulebook for how the NFL and its players have to act for the next 10 years. Most importantly the agreement ...continued on next page

MAY 14, 2020 INLANDER 33

GREEN ZONE

SPORTS “HAIL MARY (JANE),” CONTINUED... outlines what the players will be required to do and how they will be compensated. It also delves into more specific issues, like cannabis.

Under the new CBA, testing positive for marijuana will no longer result in a suspension. Fail more than one test under the old system and you start facing fines and, eventually, suspensions.

Under the previous CBA, punishment was the name of the game when it came to cannabis. Ten players per team were tested, at random, during every week of the season and every player was tested once during the offseason.

“Under the new CBA, testing positive for marijuana will no longer result in a suspension.”

Now, though, that annual offseason testing window has been cut back and players can only be tested during the first two weeks of training camp. Under the previous CBA, players could be tested at random at any time from April 20 — this is not a joke, that is the actual day the NFL settled on and yes, it is 4/20 — until August, when training camps got underway.

Last year on 4/20, if an NFL player smoked weed, they could have been randomly tested the next day. The new CBA lets the players enjoy the holiday, and the day after, and the ones after that. They only need to get clean in time for camp. And, they don’t need to be as clean as they did before. The new CBA raises the threshold for a positive test from 35 nanograms of THC to 150. For occasional users it could take close to a week after consuming cannabis to fall under the 35 nanogram threshold, but the 150 nanogram threshold shortens that window to a day or two.

It’s not just football players who can enjoy cannabis during quarantine, either. The NBA put a pause on drug testing for the duration of its coronavirus-induced shutdown. n

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MAY 14, 2020 INLANDER 35

employees. But they do for their own customers! Above and beyond in hard times, and taking care of everyone!

WOW! That has alot to say about how much they honor their Spokane Valley members!!! Cheers!!!

KOM SMASHER To the two mountain bikers in the grey 4 runner on upriver drive on 3/9/20. Thanks for the pull!

JEERS

I SAW YOU TURN THAT FROWN UPSIDE DOWN 05/07 Chad you are my knight in shining armor! You are the great and powerful vein whisperer. I was your last patient that night. Seemed like you were having a bad day even though you wouldn’t admit it. Is there anything I can do to put a smile on ur face?

Once the chaos subsides, maybe you would be interested in meeting for a drink? Mmc8765309@gmail.com PROBABLY A MISTAKE I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable (or myself either). You know I have a loyal companion and maybe you do too. It was simply an attempt o see if we might have anything in common. And maybe it doesn’t matter. You seem very perceptive. It was an attempt to reach out to a stranger. Nothing ulterior, it just wasn’t the path of non-action which I try to follow. Sincerely me.

CHEERS COSTCO HAS SPUNK!! To a company that takes care of their own, more then worrying about the money! Way to go Costco! Not only do they supply masks and safety equipment to their

PUBLIC EDUCATION IS DYING AND YOU ARE KILLING IT Jeers to all of you feckless mooks who do not support our public education system.

You are the equivalent of an abusive dog owner who complains when the dog becomes violent. The parents who would rather sue the school than offer help. The politicians who con us into voting for them, then turn around and buy yachts on the Puget Sound. The tax payer who is too shortsighted to see the direct benefits of an educated populace. The entitled adolescents who’d rather be illiterate slugs than improve themselves. The teachers who care more about being “cool” than educating. The administrators who think they know more about school operations than the people who actually work there. So, you want to know why our public education system sucks? Look in the mirror.

COVID UNSAFE I’m sorry but some hardware stores are not being safe enough. I had to go to go for a furnace filter. Aside from their ridiculous rearrangement, filters require a ladder to get. As I waited to find help, several people walked right by me within personal space. No one seemed to care.

Used to love this place. Not going back now. Come on people, be sensible so we can get this crap over with! Our new chant should be “Not Again!”

CADUCEUS Maybe you are too much of a juvenile to recognize that flirting

with a married man is destructive and unethical. Maybe you don’t care. You have ripped apart a family, destroyed the self esteem of a wife and mother, and broken a father and husband.

Granted, you are not the only one to blame in this whole twisted mess — but for educational purposes so that you don’t wreck any more lives — flirting with married men is not a good idea.

“

no hazard pay. And they have been working their asses off for the last 2 months. Next time you drive through and order NINETY DOLLARS worth of fast food, instead of complaining, consider leaving more than a 20 cent tip. You know who you are.

STOP MESSING WITH WILDLIFE Some of our local parks have ducks, geese and turtles. Just because they

“shady” people mooching free rides on the bus, I will NOT allow my kids to ride STA, until we get through this coronavirus dilemna. Unfortunately, I have to ride STA, as they are my only option to get to work... STA, PLEASE bring back the $2 fare, with facemasks REQUIRED... It seems like this whole “free-ride” policy was just a PR move, to appease the voters for the next bond in the future, and maybe ‘fudge’

Me running by myself down Riverside did not put you or anyone else at risk.

Calm down.

RE: BLOOMIES BLUNDER So you are mad at a news station for reporting on a news story in Spokane? That’s what they do. KHQ was hardly the only outlet to do so. Why single them out?

You are mad at runners for running? I run every single Sunday for more years than I even know. It’s what I do. I am sure I speak for countless runners. It’s what we do. Are you mad because we happened to run on the first Sunday in May? For over 40 years, that’s what thousands of people do. Me running by myself down Riverside did not put you or anyone else at risk. Calm down.

Better yet, lace up. Complain about how hard it is to run up Doomsday Hill, not people enjoying themselves.

THEY DESERVE A BREAK TODAY Hey all you rude and impatient people who have the audacity to complain that it is taking too long to get your fast food: You realize staff is limited due to COVID, right? Also extra tasks have to be performed repeatedly throughout the day to keep everyone safe.

These workers are mostly kids getting paid minimum wage, generally no tips,

SOUND OFF

1. Visit Inlander.com/isawyou by 3 pm Monday. 2. Pick a category (I Saw You, You Saw Me, Cheers or Jeers). 3.

Provide basic info: your name and email (so we know you’re real). 4. To connect via I Saw You, provide a non-identifying email to be included with your submission — like “petals327@yahoo.com,” not “j.smith@comcast.net.”

SUPPORT LOCAL RESTAURANTS

are there, doesn’t mean we have to chase, catch or net them. Giving your child a net to catch turtles is not cute.

Chasing after these birds and causing them stress isn’t something to laugh at. Just because we have the ability to do this, doesn’t mean we should. Be respectful.

(S)PREADING (T)RANSMITTABLE (A) ILMENTS While I appreciate STA trying to minimize a reduction of service, with decreased riders... The Bus readerboard claiming “Essential rides ONLY” is a joke... I ride the bus to/ from work during the week. I surmise 80-90% are mooching a FREE ride, for NON-essential purposes, including a large percentage of “transients”...

Also, 70-80% of riders are NOT wearing masks. I have seen STA workers sanitizing the buses at the Plaza downtown. However, this does NOT prevent NON-mask wearing passengers from breathing/coughing/sneezing on other riders hair/clothes/belongings...

Perhaps STA should change the bus readerboards to “MASKS REQUIRED TO RIDE”... With the NEW influx of

”

their ridership numbers for the ‘Feds’.

However, I think it has backfired...

STA’s regular “tax” paying/registered voter riders are either quarantined at home, or AFRAID to ride the bus, with all the NON-mask wearing transients and shady characters mooching a free ride across town... STA- (S)pokane (T) ransient (A)ssistance helping (S)pread (T)ransmittable (A)ilments among the community.... :( n

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28. Previously 30. Martini garnish 31. Paul in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 32. Speck 34. Lucy’s bandleader husband

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Down 1. Name on an annual literary award 2. Expert in tunneling 3. [Fingers crossed] 4. Go for ____ (swim) 5. Successful film franchise starting in 1979 6. Thus far 7. Highly nitpicky 8. Pilates workout focus 9. Judge 10. Try to scratch 11. Minuscule meower 12. Expresses boredom with 13. One: Prefix 21. 1940s-’50s jazz 22. There, to Tacitus 26. ____-mo

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37. See 20-Across 41. The Spartans of the NCAA 43. Aspen or Tahoe 44. Bronx-born congresswoman, familiarly 45. See 20-Across 49. Actresses Garr and Hatcher 53. Lose amateur status 54. Sly chuckle 56. “Killing ____” (acclaimed BBC America series) 57. See 20-Across 62. Part of a Twitter page 63. Beer purchase 64. Spanish pro soccer association 65. ____ Speedwagon 66. Mountains seen in “The Sound of Music” 67. “Nuh-uh!”

68. Mork’s home planet on “Mork & Mindy” 69. Southernmost team in the

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ACROSS 1. Shocked ... SHOCKED! 7. Band with the aptly titled album “Powerage” 11. The Wildcats of the NCAA 14. Treating kindly 15. Coward in drama 16. “Am ____ your way?”

17. Ancient Rome’s ____ Way 18. 0.17 square miles, for Vatican City 19. ____ Fridays 20. With 29-, 37-, 45- and 57-Across, a few words of caution for late-night TV hosts 23. Fathers and sons 24. Derek Jeter’s retired number 25. It’s no miniature gulf 27. Loud, as a crowd 29. See 20-Across 33. Goal for some H.S. dropouts 35. Sign before Virgo 36. From ____ Z

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46. “Able was I ____ I saw Elba” 47. Hot Wheels product 48. Pronoun for a yacht 50. One behind the lens 51. Lead-in to “the Power” and “a Name” in song titles 52. Tranquilize 55. Actress Kemper of “Unbreakable Kimmy

Schmidt” 58. Big bash 59. Spot 60. Thomas Hardy title heroine 61. Congeal, as blood 62. Sis’ sib

MAY 14, 2020 INLANDER 37

COEUR D ’ ALENE

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Begin Building Your North Idaho Bucket List A fun-filled summer is still in reach, and just a short drive away

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he last few months have been more challenging, yet some things have remained consistent: North Idaho is a world-class destination with outdoor recreation the whole family can enjoy… safely and easily. Have you spent a summer in Coeur d’Alene before?

And if you haven’t visited recently, make this summer the one to remember. While travel into Idaho is still not permitted without a twoweek quarantine, that doesn’t stop you from dreaming a little and then making your plans and reservations, right now.

You’ve been cooped up forever (OK, maybe not, but it can seem like that!) so picture yourself on the TRAIL OF THE COEUR D’ALENES (friendsofcdatrails.org), 72 miles of mostly flat trail along waterways, farmlands, and bits of forest with numerous trailheads, restroom facilities, and picnic benches along the way. The ROUTE OF THE HIAWATHAS (ridethehiawatha. com) is scheduled to reopen May 22, and has you exploring 15 miles of wooded trail, 10 tunnels and seven trestles offering breathtaking views.

The mostly downhill ride isn’t strenuous, which also makes it a great option for families. Bike rentals are available, as well as shuttle service from the end of the trail back to the parking area.

38 INLANDER MAY 14, 2020

Plan your unforgettable camping trip. WOLF LODGE CAMPGROUND, is your home base for excellent fishing, exploring nearby Chain Lakes and trails, bike riding, and more. Now is the time to put in your reservations for July and August campsites at popular Idaho campgrounds and state parks like BELL BAY CAMPGROUND in the Coeur d’Alene National Forest, CHATCOLET CAMPGROUND, which is right on Lake Chatcolet in Heyburn State Park and FARRAGUT STATE PARK on pristine Lake Pend Oreille. Bring the boat and spend the day exploring hidden bays or bring the horses and camp right alongside them!

They might be opening a bit later than usual, but SILVERWOOD THEME PARK (silverwoodthemepark. com) is opening, with some modifications to ensure the health and safety of its guests. It’s fun for all ages at five distinct adventure areas with some of the best roller coasters in the country, along with its beloved BOULDER BEACH waterpark full of water slides, wave pools and splash zones.

How about camping there this year? Spots go fast at the RV park and campground, so make reservations now (silverwoodthemepark.com/ lodging). There are 123 full RV hookups and more than three dozen tent sites.

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

Golfing is naturally socially distant, and when it comes to North Idaho, it’s absolutely world class.

Golf Digest put CIRCLING RAVEN GOLF COURSE (cdacasino.com/golf/) in their top 100 for its challenging play across 620 acres of rugged beauty and local wildlife. Or treat yourself to a round at the COEUR D’ALENE RESORT GOLF COURSE (golfcda.com), loved by locals and experts alike, including Golf Digest and Golf Magazine. You won’t find better-maintained greens in the region and playing the world’s only floating green is a memory you deserve to have.

Not everyone in your party is into golf, and that’s OK; the COEUR D’ALENE RESORT (cdaresort. com) has plenty for everyone, including the world’s longest floating boardwalk, perfect for sunset strolls. Plus, you’re just steps away from downtown Coeur d’Alene and the lake for paddleboarding, kayaking, boating, beaching and even parasailing.

And if you need a little pampering to look forward to, how about booking a decadent day at the RESORT SPA later this summer, to help you relax, refresh and dream big about your North Idaho Summer.

Idaho Rebounds I

daho has developed a comprehensive plan to bounce back from suspended business operations during the stay-at-home order. Called Idaho Rebounds, it outlines four phases of reopening with an extensive, cooperative effort to keep Idaho’s citizens — and its visitors — safe and healthy.

adventure O N T H E WAT E R

Assuming requirements for North Idaho’s lower-thanaverage positive test scores continue to be met, Idaho moves into phase two beginning May 16. That’s when gyms, hair salons, and recreation facilities can reopen. Restaurants, which have worked tirelessly to care for their employees and feed folks through takeout orders, may also reopen, adhering to strict safety protocols. It’s important to note that during this stage, out-of-state visitors are being asked to isolate for 14-days after entering Idaho.

Phase three is scheduled to begin May 30, easing Idaho’s nonessential travel guidelines. That means out-of-state visitors will no longer be asked to isolate for two weeks after entering the state. Although larger venues like bars and sporting venues will remain closed, small gatherings of 10-50 people will be permitted (so plan that modest family get-together in the park).

By June 13, if all goes as planned, many restrictions will have been lifted. Of course, the plan is just that; dates and protocols might shift as we all ease into this new normal. And the timeline is dependent upon all of us doing our part to allow plenty of room between ourselves and others, making good choices, and helping Idaho rebound.

What’s Open?

While the governor’s orders present a basic timeline of when businesses can reopen, some may be opening on a slower timeline. To see what businesses are open, you can find an up-to-date list, by category, at coeurdalene.org/we-are-open/.

This site will be constantly updated with the hotels, restaurants, shops, art galleries, and activities open in Coeur d’Alene.

D AY O N T H E L A K E PAC K AG E STARTING AT JUST $169*

Includes Lake Tower accommodations and a free one-hour boat rental on either a 2020 Cobalt sport boat or a Harris pontoon boat.

Based on availability. Valid for May 2020, excluding 5/22-5/24.

Excludes tax, surcharge, and fuel.

For more events, things to do & places to stay, go to cda4.fun

COEUR D’ALENE

844.255.127 3

cdaresort.com MAY 14, 2020 INLANDER 39

Play where the big winners play.

Win up to $500 Extra Play Cash!

FRIDAYS IN MAY 3 PM – 5 PM & 7 PM – 9 PM Win up to $500 Extra Play Cash and a feel-good movie on DVD. Voted the Best Idaho Course - Golf Advisor’s Golfer’s Choice, 2020

It’s My Party!

GOLF LESSONS NOW AVAILABLE

MAY 17 TH - MARCH BIRTHDAYS MAY 24TH - APRIL BIRTHDAYS MAY 31ST - MAY BIRTHDAYS

11 AM – 7 PM

Play Spring Rates in the month of May

Come join us on your designated day and get a FREE “It’s My Party!” birthday shirt. Plus, enjoy cake and enter our birthday drawing for a chance to win your age in Extra Play Cash.

Monday-Thursday | $89 Friday-Sunday & Holidays | $99 Replay (same day) & Junior Rate | $50 Management reserves all rights to alter or change promotion.

Visit cdacasino.com/golf to learn more or to book your tee time.

Caprese Burger ALL MAY | $14.95

See the Coeur Rewards booth, CDA Casino app or cdacasino.com for promotional rules.

Chicken Kiev

8 oz. Prime Rib Dinner

SUNDAY - THURSDAY 11 AM - CLOSE

FRIDAY - SUNDAY 4:30 PM - CLOSE $22.99

$13.95 | $16.95 without Coeur Reward Discount

Enjoy outdoor dining with a beautiful view at Twisted Earth Grill, now open for the season at Circling Raven Golf Club.

$27.99 without Coeur Reward Discount

W E LC O M E H O M E .

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SPA

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