News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
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Anyone that follows any sport at all knows how special it is when your team finally makes it to the championship game. It does not matter if it is in Little League sports, high school, college or professional, it is a cherished moment when your team colors take the field in the biggest moment of their career. That happened to me this past weekend. I had waited 46 years for this moment, and it was surreal. I cannot pinpoint the time I first became a Kansas City Chiefs fan, but I do know I have...
This week I am profiling another outstanding senior at Lake Roosevelt High School. I have watched her grow up right before our eyes. She has had many ups and downs in her educational career here within the walls of the Coulee, but she is putting the pieces together and is ready to take on whatever is next. Here is a little bit of my talk with Rosa Carter. “It’s going alright,” is how Rosa answered my first question about her senior year, and then the normally quiet young lady opened up the f...
When this paper comes out there will be 35 shopping days until Christmas, and eight days till Thanksgiving. (Pause to let that sink in) OK, breathe. In the past at our house, we would be making lists consisting of ammo, kitchen tools and automotive tools. We could even dig a little deeper on the depth chart of possible gifts and say stuff like, Kanye West album, a recliner or a new pair of boots. But things have changed this year. We recently bought a luxury kitchen. No, not for our home. Well,...
Sometimes things are very fun around this place. Since Karrie has a new job title of Grandma, the fun level has picked up dramatically. There are tears sometimes, but so it goes with a 9-month-old and a 1-plus-year-old toddler. There are fun times and stressful times but all valuable times. Have you ever watched a baby fall asleep in her highchair? It is hilarious for all except the babe in question. Opening her eyes when you try and give her a bite, very slowly and looking at you annoyed...
As I was growing up in the 1980s and 90s, if you read a newspaper you could take it as fact. The same could be said about the local and national news on television. No matter what paper you read or what channel you preferred your news, it was literally the same news, just different reporters reporting it. Fast forward to today’s sources. It is different on every channel and in every paper. Everyone has a different view of what happened, or it does not appear at all. What happened? We used to s...
Recently, we have heard a lot about different people taking a stand. These people from different backgrounds, different educations, different financial statuses and different beliefs have drawn a line in the sand and are fighting for freedom, political views, multiple causes and basic human rights. How they do this has been different and socially inspiring to some but also irritating and offensive to others. When you take a stand for whatever you choose to fight for, it is important to be...
It is that time of year again, and I recently sat down with one of the stars at Lake Roosevelt to give you a sneak peek into a wonderful young lady’s life and future. I met LorRinda Richardson a long time ago at a PTA event, where she volunteered and kept me laughing the whole time. She has become a confident woman now, but her sense of humor is still there. We started our conversation with me asking about her senior year so far. “Um, not too bad, considering I have already been accepted to two...
Since hunting season is getting started and the sportsmen of the rifle are heading out soon to their favorite grounds, I thought I would tell you all my favorite hunting story. Of course, I must change the names to protect the innocent and not so innocent. So, let’s call one of the hunters Bob, (not me) and the other LeRoy (really not me). They were getting ready for the big late hunt in Ferry County. It was an “any buck” in the section they were hunting but there were only a few public hunti...
If your Labor Day weekend was anything like mine, it was packed full of awesomeness, and we stayed busy. I saw lots of you doing lawn work, finishing honey-do lists and traveling over the unofficial last weekend of summer. There were some special moments for our family, as well. Let me give you a sneak peek of our weekend. If you haven’t heard by now, Karrie and I are in what we call a transition stage. We are morphing into grandparents, and as a part of that Karrie has decided to stay home t...
On Friday, a very special lady will celebrate her ??th birthday. I am smart enough to not put the actual digits in the paper for everyone to see. That would lead to me never having another birthday myself. As we come to the big day, I dream of what I would do for her if money were no object. So here is what I would do for my lovely bride if the keys to the treasure room were ours. Easy enough to start with the basics: new car, dream home and trips, but those would be boring. So let’s assume s...
Last weekend the wind blew. It did not seem like an extraordinary wind. It was powerful, for sure, but it did not seem anything like storms we have seen here in the past. The wind howled, the trees shook, the roof rattled, and dust filled every open crevice. Sometimes it all depends on location and wind direction. Sometimes it happens when we least expect it. No one expected the phone to ring Saturday morning saying the words that were said. Let’s rewind a bit first. Karrie and I got up early Sa...
When I was growing up, I called it Easter, but as time has gone by and I have matured and educated myself I have come to realize that it is Resurrection Sunday. We celebrate the day that Christ left the tomb and claimed his seat next to his Father three days after being crucified. This week is the pivotal week in the earliest beginnings of the church, and I would like to walk you through that week briefly. The triumphant entry. Palm Sunday, Jesus rode a donkey into Jerusalem, fulfilling the...
I love cats! There, I said it and I am not ashamed. If I am being honest, I did not always feel that way. I used to have a negative spot in my heart for cats. Why, I am not sure. It could be the cat box smells. I still dislike that part, but our cats have won me over. My heart has changed; I love our cats. I also used to dislike brussels sprouts, asparagus and broccoli. I would avoid these at all costs. But then something happened. I tried some that had been cooked differently. My heart...
Spring break will be half over by the time you read this. The kids are running loose in neighborhoods everywhere, and staff from every school is resting up for the final leg of this school year. Usually during the break, Karrie and I are chaperoning kids somewhere in the state. But this year we stayed home and were blessed by our hometown and others. I had a plan for Monday: Be at Les Schwab when it opens to get the tires changed. That was my plan and my timing. It did not turn out the way I...
Every second of every day we make choices. Do I get up at 5 a.m. or hit snooze? Do I eat Lucky Charms for breakfast or oatmeal? Do I wear a blue shirt or a red shirt today? Every choice we make determines a direction. Some are less serious than others, but there are decisions that have much bigger consequences. Bigger still, some have life consequences that can set you down rough roads in life. The choices we make not only determine things in our lives, but others are affected as well....
Today I stood with my face pointed to the sun. Warmth of the rays covered my face and a smile crept upon my lips. A vague memory flickered in my skull. A memory that seems to have happened a long, long time ago. Yes, this is the sun and this is what spring feels like. It is finally here. I almost say those words with my tongue in my cheek, just in case a snow flurry comes down and blankets us again just to spite me. The roads are clear, I see grass in my yard again, and robins are everywhere. I...
I recently sat down with Senior Terry Yazzie and we talked about a variety of topics. The outcome of our talk was this: This is a young man I wish I could have gotten to know better. He has a great sense of humor, but is so grounded and sees the value in what others around him are trying to do and say to him. So here is a small snapshot of our conversation. “Hard, but fine.” That is how Terry described his senior year to this point. He added, “The work is hard; it’s not a lot of work, it’s just...
Sometimes life throws us situations that make us feel like we are being burned alive from the inside out. A situation happens and it seems that our life has just been set ablaze, never to return to the way it was. But maybe that is just my point. If we truly are walking through the fire, then maybe we should be changed on the other side. When a wildfire rages through the area, as we have all seen and experienced, it can be scary in the beginning. A fire raging out of control, uncontained, threat...
I was going to tell you all about Alianna Rose this week and how she came into the world. As I thought about it, I realized that it was not my story to tell. It is the parents’ story; it is for Levi and Davida Seylor to share with all of you. As much as I want to tell you all about being a brand-new grandparent of a little angel, I am going to refrain. But what I am going to share with you is about a wonderful facility and the people that work in this place called Coulee Medical Center. This p...
This past weekend was a powerful weekend for Karrie and me. I thought I had my column all worked out with exactly what I wanted to share with you all. I was going to give you a glimpse into divine appointments, miracles, listening for the voice and where it can lead you. But things changed before I sat down to write, and my heart took me somewhere else. Or did it? I want to write a column of hope to you this morning. I don’t know exactly who this is for or why exactly I was prompted to change m...
Pretty much any decision made by our state, on anything, our legislation spends a lot of time in Olympia bouncing things from the House of Representatives to meetings in the Senate, back to meetings and round and round it goes until there is a vote and then they vote again on the other side of the building. But no matter what, it either lives of dies on the Hill. I spent the weekend with Public Schools Employees, around 400, as we met with representatives and senators from every district and...
On April 4, 1968, a shot rang out in Memphis, Tennessee. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. had been assassinated. Riots started in many cities in the aftermath and the United States went into mourning. The leader of the Civil Rights movement have been taken out and our nation was in civil unrest. As we celebrate the day named after the man who is looked at as the pivotal stepping piece in bringing equality to all people, I want to look at his immortalized “I have a dream” speech and pick out a few pie...
Every year I like to look back at the celebrities we lost the year before. As we focus on the blessings of the future, it is good to remember the ones we lost and the foundation on which we are building the next generation. These stars went out last year, but their memory is engrained our thoughts. These are the people that had some sort of impact on me, even though we never met. Penny Marshall, or Laverne as I first knew her, was an icon in comedy. I can remember as a kid watching Shirley, her,...
It seems hard to believe that the actual year is 2019. Just under a year and we will be looking at 2020. When I was a kid I thought for sure we would have floating cars by now and kitchens that made us whatever we could think up, but we still need to cook for ourselves and we still need to dodge potholes as we drive to work. But this year as we move ahead and look to the new year, I am looking forward to the blessings that will be bestowed upon the entire area. I am praying for healing for you....
A young child cannot sleep the night before Christmas. Visions of the toys that will be there, the stockings overflowing with goodies, and the mouthwatering feast all keep a young mind from drifting off. Also, the thought of the little fat man in the red coat delivering something special and eating the cookies left for him, and the child’s desire of catching a glimpse of the mythical being add to the sleeping dilemma. These hopes and ideas are as pure as the freshly fallen snow when we are y...