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The 69th session of the Montana Legislature began its work on Jan. 6. It was a day given over to ceremony. Governor Greg Gianforte took his oath of office at 10:30 in the morning followed by the other statewide elected officials. The 150 members of the Legislature were sworn in at noon followed by the formal election of the Speaker of the House, Mr. Brandon Ler, of Savage, Montana and President of the Senate, Mr. Matt Regier from Kalispell. The Republican Party holds a majority in both chambers with the Senate standing at 32 Republicans and 18...
Being titled the Mother of God is unbelievable to some but credible because Jesus, who is God, said, "I and the Father are one" (John 10:22-42); additionally, Thomas said, "... My Lord, and my God!" (John 20:21-31) Mary is called "woman," a respectful, theological title revealing Mary's cooperation in Jesus' work of salvation while faithfully rectifying the disobedience of the first woman, Eve. God said, "I will put enmities between thee [serpent Devil] and the woman [Mary], and thy seed and...
This time of year it is not uncommon to be asked questions like, “What do you do now that the plants are dormant/frozen/covered with snow?” Understandably, it is assumed that once plants are no longer actively growing there aren’t many, if any, occupational demands or requirements. The truth is, much of the field season undertakings are reliant on efforts made during the “off” season. In Powell County, for example, we have loaner equipment to winterize as well as evaluate in terms of current and future maintenance requirements. The Weed Boar...
Missoula, Mont. — Welcome Melani Best! As spring arrives, Missoula Aging Services (MAS) is excited to introduce a new team member who will work onsite to connect older adults in the Seeley Lake community with valuable resources. Please welcome Melani Best, the new Rural Resource Specialist in Seeley Lake. Best says, “I look forward to assisting the older residents of Seeley Lake and supporting their independence.” The new Resource Specialist brings a heartfelt commitment to helping others to her position. A Seeley Lake native who returned to th...
Charlie Brooks was a great storyteller and angling writer. His “The Trout and the Stream” and “Larger Trout for the Western Fly Fisherman” were already classics when we were having dinner after a day of fishing in the early ‘80s. We shared stories about people we both knew. The stories Charlie rolled off in his distinctive Texas drawl had me laughing so hard that I could barely finish my steak. Charlie was a couple of decades my senior, a hulk of a man and slightly hunched over at his massive shoulders who must have stood about six feet, fou...
The 69th Legislative Assembly began its work on Jan. 6. There are a number of major, controversial measures which will be discussed, argued and voted on including: THE CONTINUATION OF MEDICAID EXPANSION The Affordable Care Act, popularly known as Obamacare, contained a provision which allowed states to expand Medicaid coverage to people who had limited or lacked health insurance coverage. Passage of the state law necessary to implement “expanded Medicaid coverage” contained a sunset clause which causes the program to expire in 2025. The 202...
It is that time of year, it being cold and dark and dreary, to amuse ourselves by making resolutions for the new year. My research shows that resolutions suffer a die-off of about 20% a month, so that at the end of the year approximately 1% of our good intentions will still be active. In the practice of medicine, in the presence of such awful results, we would do a “root cause analysis,” which is another way of saying “if we keep this up, we’ll all end up in jail.” Why do only 1% of resolutions make it to the finish line? To begin with, mos...
“The peace of Christ must control your hearts — a peace into which you were called in one body. And be thankful people.” (Colossians 3:15 CEB) For a while now I have been struck by the shallowness that often exists in some faith communities. It’s as if people do not trust one another enough to tell the truth about themselves, their struggles and vulnerabilities. It may be that rugged individualist mentality, that “pull yourself up by your own bootstraps” ideology, haunting so many of us that we are afraid of appearing weak or less than human...
With colder temperatures upon us, perhaps it’s time to swing by your local library and find a cozy book to enlighten the mind or warm the heart. Your local Seeley Lake Public Library has many new popular titles in both nonfiction and fiction for adults. Your local library also regularly swaps out DVDs, books on CD, large print, adult fiction and nonfiction titles, holiday reads and children’s books. We typically have a puzzle going in-house, which is another great winter activity, as well as free puzzles to take home, including plenty that are...
The rivers run low, flowing slow and cold in winter. It amazes me, every year, that so much life could abound, dormant beneath the seemingly still currents that I see in winter. Even the water that gurgles and trickles over the riffles seems to run slower — although in my mind I know that physically it doesn’t. There will be three, four, five times as much water running in the rivers in the spring when the trout are breaking the surface everywhere to feed on the myriad of bugs that like them now lie dormant, semi-comatose, and still except for...
If I go outdoors at night, I can hear the low-throated cooing of owls, what I now recognize as their mating calls. For years I didn’t recognize what I heard on these winter nights as the love songs of owls. The gently mysterious and lonesome call might be the only sound that pierces the quiet of a winter's night. My sense of it is deepened by knowing that it precedes their mating, nesting and preparing to hatch a brood of helpless little owlets whose survival is totally dependent on the parent bird's soft downy warmth and fierce hunting to prov...
This is a Christmas story, but definitely not the Hallmark kind. If you are a bit squeamish, skip this one. This is known as a trigger warning, seeing how I am an up-to-date, sensitive guy. It was Christmas Eve, and I was on call for cardiac surgery. Pam and I attended a couples get-together, conveniently located just a block from the hospital. I knew the cardiac surgery crew — scrub tech, circulating nurse — were in the cardiac catheterization laboratory standing by while the cardiologists did an angioplasty — opening coronary arteries that...
We were appalled when our property taxes took a 34% leap last year, especially because the governor and the Legislature could have prevented it, but did nothing other than to return a token portion of our prior payments in the form of a rebate. It was good political theater, but pretty pathetic. Property taxes are a significant burden, and their regressive nature is a serious concern. While we understand the vital role these taxes play in funding essential services like schools and local government, the continued upward pressure on them is...
Christmas doesn’t just begin and end for me. It creeps in, softly at first, barely noticeable, and then grows larger, more present. It’s a gentle presence — despite the noise and clang blaring from the TV set urging us to buy more, spend more, listen to jingle bells one more time every station break. Fortunately I don’t watch much TV. My wife has some favorite shows and I watch football. Not as much as I used to, and that’s a good thing, but maybe a game or two a week if the excitement of the game exceeds my irritation threshold with the inces...
As a boy growing up on the edge of a southwestern desert I took an early - and seemingly out-of-place - interest in hunting and fishing. A friend who was similarly afflicted and I would take our Red Ryder BB guns out into a weedy field and shoot grasshoppers. When the hoppers wouldn't hold still, we took up wing shooting. Ever tried to shoot a grasshopper on the wing with a BB gun? We'd waste an afternoon and a dime's worth of BB's for two or three grasshoppers apiece. That first BB gun was...
The Planning Committee of the Swan Valley Community Council and the Missoula County Planning Department are seeking ideas and input on the future of the Swan Valley. This input from community members will assist us in our effort to update the 1996 Neighborhood Plan and clearly communicate our vision and preferences to our county commissioners. Why are we doing this now? First, it is a requirement of Missoula County’s rural communities to update their neighborhood plan every five years, and secondly, we want to learn from the POWDR/Save H...
Montana has weighed in with the national, state and local elections. The most important election results reflect concerns vocalized, right here, by our Montana residents. In the upcoming session, I’m looking forward to supporting the Governor’s “Path to Security and Prosperity,” promoting economic development and more good-paying jobs. Overall, we are prioritizing strengthened family success and prosperity. One of my key priorities in Senate District 38 is to support promoting student outcomes through educational options and funding transpa...
Our incredible newspaper designer, Jenny Wherley, had her last day with the Pathfinder this week. Jenny has worked in community news in Montana for over 20 years, formerly for the Kavanagh family, who owned a variety of local newspapers across the state before they retired from the business. Some of the papers Jenny worked for until recently, including a few that Ponderosa Publishing/Mullen Newspapers — the Pathfinder’s publishers — own were once Kavanagh family papers as well, like the Cut Bank Pioneer Press. The care and atten...
In a world where darkness is ever increasing, light will always continue to shine. That light, which brings our hope and happiness, comes because of Jesus Christ, the Light of the World. Jesus Christ is the light of the world because he is the source of the light which “proceeded forth from the presence of God to fill the immensity of space.” His light is “the true light that lighteth every man that cometh into the world… His example and his teachings illuminate the path we should walk....
In response to an increase in the recreational use of national forests in the early 20th century, Congress passed the 1915 Term Occupancy Act, which allowed permits for private use and development of forest lands. The growing interest in outdoor recreation and conservation also triggered the popularity of dude ranching and guided pack trips in the western United States. By 1920, early-day settlers, Roria "Babe" and Eva Wilhelm, moved to Swan Valley after trading a house they owned in Butte for H...
I got my first fly tying vise when I was about nine or 10 years old. It wasn't gift-wrapped, and it wasn't Christmas. It was handed to me by my Godfather, who with my dad was one of my heroes. A few weeks before he showed me a box of flies he tied and I was fascinated. I remember the warm half-smile on Paul's face when he gave me that vise. It had been his, and had fine jaws for tying small trout flies. I was awestruck. He knew, then, what would likely unfold, but he didn't know all of it. When...
A headline and a movement may have tipped the election but what does it mean for individuals and families? The U.S. population is not thriving and the numbers are not in our favor. According to the now touted American College of Cardiology and Tufts University study, 93% of Americans are considered metabolically unhealthy. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one in six Americans have a chronic disease. Inflammatory, autoimmune and chronic diseases continue to rise and the number of younger people diagnosed with cancer...
Is there anything more delectable than a Cheeto, save a whole bag of Cheetos? It is a perfect combination of salt, crunch (I prefer the fried Cheetos), cheesiness and a triumph of food chemistry. There are at least 30 ingredients, and likely more, as one of the ingredients is listed as “natural and artificial flavors.” Being a Cheetophile is much like being an oenophile (wine lover, for you peasants). There are 21 varieties of Cheetos in North America alone, many more globally (apparently a cream cheese variant in China). Like wine, you begin y...
Oral histories provide us with wonderful experiences from the past with those who actually lived them. Arnold “Smoke” Elser’s memoir, Hush of the Land, covers six decades of his life as an outfitter and a passionate champion of the wilderness. It’s a well-crafted look back, built upon hundreds of hours of interviews. Elser, and his co-author, Eva-Marie Maggie, will present this memoir on Saturday, Dec. 7, at 2 p.m. at the Seeley Lake Foundation Building as part of Alpine Artisans’ Open Book Club. Free. Everyone is welcome. Early on, Smoke kne...
Editor's note: We're revisiting some fall colors and sentiments this first week of December for the Fly Fishing Journal. We hope you enjoy a little throwback. This October I shall go fishing. I haven't done so yet, but I will soon. This is a statement of purpose, not the expression of an idle wish. There aren't many fishing days left. The changes in the weather as we enter October reminds me of that. While it is still a bit sunny, pleasantly chilly, or softly overcast but not too cold, there is...
