One Nation, Under God
One Nation, Under God
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I don’t know what I was thinking. Instead of hunting every day since the season opened like I’ve done for the last 20 years, I took on a building project. In September. It might have simply been an effort on my part to prove to my wife that I can do more than hunt in the fall. Now I’m paying the price. After pounding nails for three weeks I can’t hit the broadside of a barn, let alone a bird on the wing. My dog’s motor is stuck on high, and neither of us is in shape. Dot quit after hunting two h...
My goodness, Mother Nature has changed her nature! Yesterday on September 29 the temperature was so high it broke a record here in Billings. I know Malta had record highs also! But today the cold wind from the northwest is chilly! The sun is shining so I’m optimistic that it’ll be a bit warmer, but not above 70! With autumn on the way, or already here, my little farm will need to be cleaned up soon. I’m still harvesting my cherry tomatoes, peppers, and cantaloupe. I have two potato plants that...
After hunting the first two days of the season, I traded the shotgun for a tool belt and went to work. I told Barb I could get her sewing room enclosed in a couple of weeks. It didn’t quite happen, but the framing is done, the roof is on, and she’s off to Toronto for an authors’ conference. I’ll hunt while she’s gone, and finish up the work when she gets back. I designed the building so that I could pretty much do it by myself. Barb helped me stand up the walls. Other than that, it was just...
Happy fall, y’all! This past week's rain was a welcome surprise in most of Montana. Here in Billings, we got over an inch, and at Loring, it was more like two inches! So welcome! Now the seeding of winter wheat is more promising! I don’t drive much down here so getting groceries I rely on friends who don’t mind driving me or I order delivery. This last week I had an order from Walmart delivered and was pleasantly surprised when Clay Murdock brought my groceries to the door! He drives and deliv...
Sympathy to the victims of the floods down south. Happy Thanksgiving to all my Canadian friends and family. At North 40 Senior Meals last Wednesday, Lisa from Action for Eastern Montana spoke about Medicare changes and Medicaid along with other programs available for Seniors. It was very helpful. Saturday night there was a meet and greet reception for Lane Engels and his bride, they live in Billings. Congratulations to the bride and groom. Thanks to the ladies who brought me food and cake from...
It’s clear that Jon Tester is a desperate man doing desperate things, including spreading outright lies, fearmongering, and misleading Montanans—particularly on health care. Here’s the hard truth: our healthcare system is broken. On Jon Tester’s watch, costs are going up, and access is going down. Because of Obamacare, Montanans face higher premiums year after year. We’ve lost access to doctors and health care plans we were told we could keep. More government control has only made things worse. We must make health care more transpare...
I’m having a difficult time accepting the perks of aging. While I don’t hesitate to ask for senior discounts when available, I’m less apt to accept help in physical matters. At the lumber yard last week, a concerned clerk offered to carry four small boxes of nails and a roll of tape to the cash register for me. “Thanks,” I told him, “I’ve got it.” He then asked what I was working on and when I told him it was a roof he said: “Hey, you be careful.” I don’t know what prompted his concern. I was dr...
Happy fall! The temperature has been very nice, in the 80’s and high 70’s! In Billings, we had a couple of nice rains, about a tenth or two. We really needed it. And also, a shower up at Loring. Now they are very dry and I’m hoping they get another little shower to get some moisture into the ground before the snow flies. I heard a chickadee this week and I saw a purple finch taking a bath in the fountain out front! I don’t see that many birds here. But there is a park not too far from here at Af...
Congratulations to Aimee and Darrell Carney who were married on August 31, 2024, at the Whitewater Lutheran Church. Lu Besel went to Colorado to visit family and friends. To all radio preachers, we enjoy your programs and broadcasts over KMMR. It is a beautiful day here in Whitewater. The days are hot, but the nights are cool. This is Montana. Helen A....
I reserve a block of time to hunt every fall. It’s typically the whole season. My wife used to push back a bit, but in recent years has relented, finally realizing, I suppose, that four months of me gone most days is a pretty good deal. This fall I’m paying her back. Instead of hunting I’m building. We sold our house in Malta last summer forcing us to downsize. What didn’t fit in our cabin on the lake we divided between the office we still have in Malta, and the small house we bought a couple...
September came in on a furnace! Very hot and it’s going to last for at least another few days! Not really complaining since soon it’ll be 110 degrees lower! That’s Montana! My little 3’ x 3’ farm is really producing some yummy tomatoes! I also have one cantaloupe that is not ripe, but I hope it will be soon! The raised gardens here are just so luscious! Beautiful flowers of all kinds! The vine veggies are crawling out of their area! Just fabulous! I had a birthday party on Labor Day with the...
A very memorable and unique ceremony was held at Whitewater Lutheran Church on August 31st as Aimee Hammond and Darrel Carney pledged their vows. Family and close friends gave congratulations. They all enjoyed a great reception at the Tin Cup hosted by the Hammond and Carney families. Seven-year-old Gray Simanton won first place in Mutton Bustin’ last weekend in S. Dakota. Her mother Carli took home a nice jacket for being All Around Top Hand in the same rodeo. Rory Green celebrated his 15th birthday, son of Dallas and Ashley, at his home s...
Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family of Sarina Green Venable. She was the daughter of Jeannie Green and the granddaughter of Sally Austin. When Sarina was in school here in Whitewater, she was a great basketball player. We will miss you, Sarina. It is September! Happy Birthday and Happy Anniversary to all those celebrating, including Irene Wendlyn (my friend). Irene lived in Whitewater for years. Irene and I went to Saco Fun Days. We had a delicious supper, spent the night and watched...
I set the alarm for five, confident I wouldn’t need it. I didn’t. Waking ten minutes early I turned off the alarm and got dressed. Nearly every opening morning for the last 18 years the routine has been the same. So has the place. It’s hallowed ground. Scout died after she was bitten by a rattlesnake there in 2006. I buried Jem there four years ago. He too, suffered a snakebite along the same creek bottom, but survived and lived to the ripe old age of 14. Spot and Ruth and Ace — all of them go...
One might think how neat it would be to send a drone over the valley or fly over on an ultralight, and view the progress of the year as farmers and ranchers begin to prepare to close out on the summer work. Along Highway 2 running west and east through the northern part of this big and glorious state, and miles and miles of hay bales on acres and acres of land. This might be the situation or picture next year with the water shortage along the Milk River Valley. From Fresno Dam, located at...
It has been a busy week! Harvesting is just finishing up and the bales are waiting to be stacked. The bulls have been brought in, I suppose! And fall sports are in full swing! Loring community has been spiffed up again this fall getting ready for the snow to fly even tho it’s close to one hundred degrees today! I went over to watch my grandson make German noodles on Sunday! He is such a good cook for still being in high school! Zoey spent the afternoon with me on Friday. She and I watered my f...
Smokey the Bear says, “Beware of all Fires”!!! There has been lots of smoke from fires in Montana and Canada. “Hello,” and hope you are better to Jeff Murdock, who is visiting Mom Pat Murdock. Jeff is a missionary in the Peace Corps in South America. He was raised in Whitewater and will return home. Whitewater Baptist Church had Pastor Moore from Georgia, preaching last week. His wife and sons accompanied him. Congratulations to McKenna Leveque and Cade Murdock on their wedding. She is a vet a...
The start of hunting season almost caught me by surprise this year. Almost. After selling our house in Malta and all the moving that entailed, followed by a trip to Australia, I’d been occupied with other thoughts. Lately, they’ve been centered around jet lag recovery — like why am I wide awake in the middle of the night? I suspect it’s related to the Saturday we lost at the start of the trip. Flying out of Bozeman on a Friday morning we spent 18 hours in the air, somehow arriving in Sydney...
It is August 28… So before I forget. Happy birthday to my father Hernando Bibbs. Love you and it was good to see you last week. Last week, I had the opportunity to fly out to my hometown, Bolingbrook, Illinois, to visit my mother, father and my stepmother. It was a good trip overall. It was full of highlights. There was some sadness because the family I grew up with has gone their separate ways, but we made the best of it and spent some time with my mother and father. One highlight was going t...
My weeklong visit to Loring has come to an end! I certainly enjoyed every day! Rod had done so much work cleaning out the dead wood in the free ground that we walked through the rows a couple of times! It sounds small but it was very enjoyable! On Monday I attended the GPDM meeting in Malta. On Tuesday Cindy Clark and I drove to Malta for a couple of appointments. We met Krystina Neilsen at the GN for lunch. In the afternoon I visited with Nancy Murdock and Chloe. Wednesday was senior meals at...
How about that Democratic Convention? It was great. It is sad that President Biden is not running for another term. Thanks, President Joe! The crowd at the convention really gave him a great tribute. Sympathy to the family of Von Holzhey. We went to the Sleeping Buffalo on Sunday. There were people from other states in the pool. Then we drove to Lake Nelson Reservoir. It was lovely, peaceful and the water was so calm. We had lightning and a thunderstorm which rocked the whole valley and lit up...
To the Citizens of Phillips County, I reluctantly write this letter of advisement of the extreme situation your Sheriff’s Office faces. We do not offer competitive wages for deputies or office personnel. This makes it extremely difficult to recruit or retain employees. Now, we are dangerously short-handed. I have advised the Commissioners of the situation repeatedly and have asked for a competitive wage to make your agency a more desirable option for individuals wanting to get into law enforcement or leaving their current position as a law e...
Dear Editor, Do you own a home and wonder what it’s worth? You can easily look up your address on Zillow and see the estimated value is rapidly rising, translating to more property taxes. Too many Montana families cannot keep up with an annual $249-million property tax increase imposed by Republican Governor Gianforte and his party in the Legislature. Yet, after months of analysis by the Governor’s property tax task force, they recommended a complicated process that will raise our taxes again! Why didn’t they didn’t consider the new taxes t...
I am a sucker for zoos. Tell me you’ve got some sort of exotic critter in a cage out back and I’ll cough up a few bucks to see it. To that end, I’ve visited some marvelous zoos in this country and across the globe. The San Diego Zoo tops my list closely followed by the Royal Dutch Zoo in Amsterdam and the Emperor Valley Zoo in Port of Spain, Trinidad. Woodland Park Zoo is a must-see whenever I’m in Seattle, as is the Living Desert Zoo and Gardens when Barb and I visit Palm Springs. Atlanta...
Out of necessity, this seems like an opportunity waiting to merge forth like the ever-so-soon approaching season changes. Seasons, as in season of summer freedom coming to an end! Wow, we started early, compared to many schools across the state that are beginning this week by opening the doors to education with a breath of freshness and “somewhat” renewed energy. Add to this a new four-day school week format with longer days...and a full moon coming up...nah...I’ll stick with where I am! Perhaps more prominent for some of you readers was the n...