It’s official: Greek Rural Postmen and their Cancellation Numbers is the strangest book title conceived in the past 30 years. Nominees for the Diagram Prize, presented annually by The Bookseller magazine, are selected from titles sent in by librarians, publishers, and book vendors, before the winner is decided in a public vote. Past winners include Bombproof Your House, How to Avoid Huge Ships, and Highlights in the History of Concrete.
Our 26th and final .TXT Video Challenge involves yet again a regional YouTube video. See it below.
Answering this week's challenge will require some knowledge of the Lake Chelan area. See the actual contest in the Sunday Business section of the SR.
The question: In the video, what does the big red D that appears from time to time stand for? First reply sent to Toms@spokesman.com wins a $5 coffee card.
Football coaches in the Great Northern League surely walked away from the season's first Friday night with reinforced beliefs the league is going to test their respective teams every week.
All of the major national polls are showing a McCain-Palin ticket trending upward while Barack and Joe are trending downward.
These polls are reflecting the views of American voters following the conventions. However, we won't have poll results which reflect McCain's speech until tomorrow.
It is heartwarming to see that the American people can differentiate between real experience and "pretty pictures" of experience; between those who have actually done things for the people and those who merely "postulate" and offer theories of helping real people.
Americans can always spot the "real thing" from the "Hollywood manufactured" persona. Americans respond to promises of real change, based on what the candidates have done in the past, versus those who only know how to say the word "change" (over and over and over).
As I have been saying, based on all the negative views of Americans about Republicans entering this election, Obama should be up by at lease - the very minimum of of 10 to 15 points . . . but he isn't. they are virtually tied, with McCain's speech yet to be factored in.
Isn't America a great place, filled with honest, hard-working, intelligent people of all stripes?
It looks like another long college football season on the Palouse. It's difficult to get too excited about the UIdaho's 42-27 win over a Division I-AA football team. And Washington State simply stunk. Bet the Cougars still wished they had the Vandals on their schedule this year. On the other hand, I heard during the halftime show Saturday, that the Vandal volleyball team was 4-1, which included a win over Washington State. Mebbe we should start paying attention to UI sports other than football and basketball. Sounds like the other teams can compete in the WAC. As far as WSU goes, men's basketball can't arrive too soon. Now, for your Wild Card ...
In a recent essay titled, “Split Family, Shared Responsibility,” Oregonian columnist S. Renee Mitchell discusses her experience sending her boys off to another city to live with their dad.
“When I decided to divorce my children's father and move to Portland when our twins were 2, I thought I was the only parent Alex and Zavier would ever need,” she wrote. “I was mistaken.
“No matter how much love I poured into my children's hearts, my sons were starving with ‘father hunger’ for the man named Lee, who named them and held them when they were just a few seconds old.”
Divorce and separation can often be difficult for children. How can we help these kids cope? For those of you who have experienced the end of a marriage or relationship, how did you and your ex figure out how to share parenting responsibilities while living in separate households?
Let's all take a moment to honor Dave Lish, founder of D.Lish's Hamburgers, who passed away on Aug. 31 due to complications stemming from an ATV accident.
I'd like to leave this thread open to discussion of Lish, the delicious D.Lish's burgers and of hamburgers in general.
In firing back at Dino Rossi, the Gregoire campaign notes in a new ad that he, like President Bush, skipped the Republican National Convention...and have more things in common.
It's the Gregoire campaigns answer to Rossi's ad during the Democratic convention that if folks supporting Barack Obama want change, change in Washington should equal Dino. Click to see the Rossi ad.
A reader wanted to know how the St. Paul and Minneapolis newspapers played the McCain speech on Friday, so here they are.
By the way, hundreds of front pages from around the U.S. and the world are available at the Newseum site, which is where I usually find the pages that I post here.
Mahoney's mannequins, with the condo building in the background.
The front yard of Jim Mahoney’s South Hill home resembles a cross between Madame Tussauds and a circus sideshow.
Offended the new four-story Cathedral Point condo building blocked his view of the landmark St. John’s Cathedral, Mahoney weeks ago began installing an evolving menagerie of weird mannequins in his yard.
But to one of the developers of the upscale project and a real estate agent representing it, his action are perplexing and threatening; they are seeking a restraining order against him.
A masked, gun-toting midget stands next to a one-eyed pregnant woman holding a placard calling the developers “Vista Terroristas.” A woman with bat wings and an aboriginal figure sit in chairs near the house. Fluorescent signs label the structure a “Greene Latrine” and “Catheter Pointe,” a play on its given name, Cathedral Point.
“I was looking for blight for blight,” said Mahoney, 56.
The drum roll review of worthwhile and useful consumer sites
Dear CartShark Readers: I’d like to think the Inland Northwest is home to some of the savviest online consumers anywhere. Which makes this, my final CartShark column, that much easier to write.
Although I’ve enjoyed sharing shopping tips about coupon codes and misguided attempts at Internet product promotion, the newspaper is perhaps not the most efficient delivery vehicle for such fodder.
CartShark was a short-lived endeavor, but over the past few months I amassed a body of online tips, shopping sites and other material held in reserve for future columns.
Q. Why did your headline about Sarah Palin’s speech read “Palin lashes out at critics, Obama?” She didn’t lash out at the Democrats. Lashing out is something a family member does during a victim impact statement in a court proceeding.
A. A reader called Friday morning to make his point about our Thursday morning headline. I’ve paraphrased his comments in order to share his concern with readers and to offer some explanation.
For starters, I checked out the Webster’s New World College Dictionary to read the various definitions of lash. Here’s what I found in part: “to attack violently in words; censure or rebuke; to incite by appealing to the emotions (to lash a crowd into a frenzy of anger); to strike out violently; to speak angrily or in bitter criticism.”
Like our caller, I watched the Palin speech. I thought it was effective, telling and certainly wildly popular in the convention hall. Palin was articulate, confident and various parts aggressive, humorous, thoughtful, and sarcastic.
Historically, the vice presidential candidates are assigned the task of taking criticism of the opponents to the next level. They are expected to be partisan, aggressive and unsparing in their attacks. Palin herself compared herself to a pit bull.
Headline writing is an art . Headlines are supposed to capture the essence of the story, focusing on key words or pieces of news. And by their nature, headlines have to fit in a defined space. Did Palin whip the crowd into a frenzy of anger? No, but she sure fired them up and won them over with her direct attacks on Obama. Was it a violent attack? Of course not. But it certainly wasn’t patty-cake, either.
Our caller thinks we miscast what Palin said. I respectfully disagree. It was a rousing political speech, full of criticism and artfully crafted derision. I don’t think our headline misses the mark. What do you think?
It was an almost line-by-line equal amount of text for John McCain's acceptance speech as with Barack Obama's, and same headline size. Great smart design, editors said.
The state Supreme Court has ruled that I-1029 should appear on the ballot in November, despite a drafting error that said it was an initiative to the Legislature, rather than to the people.
The ruling, issued in a brief order in the interest of speed -- a full ruling elaborating the court's reasoning will come later -- is a win for the SEIU union, a local of which has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to get the measure on the ballot.
The measure would mandate more training for residential health care workers and better background checks. Opponents, including many adult family homes, say the additional paid training would cost taxpayers millions and is a one-size-fits-all training approach that doesn't match the needs of many clients.
There has been a lot of talk of euphemisms lately. It all started when I referred to the woman who my brother is "seeing" or "talking to" or "romantically interested in" as his euphemism, and the person I was talking to didn't understand what I meant.
In doing a bit of research on the history of Auntie’s Bookstore, which will celebrate its 30th anniversary in a couple of weeks, I stumbled upon the photograph below. It shows the late author Douglas Adams, the British guy who wrote the “Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” series, at the book reading he gave in the store on Dec. 27, 1993.
The photo, which was taken by my colleague Chris Anderson, was taken at the store’s forthcoming location at the former Liberty Furniture Store. There was nothing on the building’s ground floor save some 200 folding chairs (the store wouldn’t make the final move for another couple of months), but that didn’t stop the crowds.
It was a historic occasion, one that proved how willing Spokane-area book fans would be to attend a reading if an author showed up whom they wanted to see. Other authors in that vein have included Sherman Alexie, Ivan Doig and Portland’s “Fight Club” guy Chuck Palahniuk.
Of course, readers have shown up to hear Get Lit! authors such as David Sedaris, Salman Rushdie and the great Kurt Vonnegut. But Get Lit! has a built-in audience. Individual readings are a hit/miss type event.
That night of Adams was monumental. The fact that he would die just eight years later at the relatively young age of 49 made his appearance all that more poignant.
I’ll close with one of my favorite “Hitchhiker” quotes: “There is a theory which states that if ever anybody discovers exactly what the Universe is for and why it is here, it will instantly disappear and be replaced by something even more bizarre and inexplicable. There is another theory which states that this has already happened.”
Below: Douglas Adams thrills his fans on a cool December evening in 1993.
Paintball has thousands of devotees across our region, so it's not news that more than a hundred showed up at Nitehawk Paintball near Ford, Wash., Saturday, Aug. 23, 2008 for "Mortar Wars". But the players have such a good time, it's hard not to feel their enthusiasm.
After spending a pleasant night’s rest in this lovely camp, Sally Bennett felt quite well again and was ready to travel. John’s leg also had fared better by laying over here, and he announced he was “rearin’ to hit the trail again.” In the early morning light before the rest of us had risen, Lewis had hiked ahead a few miles to scout the trail. He returned to tell us that the Jayhawkers or some other party had tramped through here some time ago. In doing so, they had done us the favor of breaking a trail through the vines and brambles that had so perplexed John and him the first time they’d come through.
Hey there readers and fellow bloggers. As we are making tough decisions about where to spend our money that doesn't stretch as far these days, so too are businesses. I got word last night that freelance budgets are tightening at The S-R and this blog is one of the features that has to go.
It's been a good run, over a year's worth of interaction with all those who hang out in the blogosphere. Our conversations can certainly continue in other Spokesman-Review blogs, or perhaps I will spend some time exploring options and start a blog of my own.
Happily, the Out on the Town column is not in jeopardy. Features editor Ken Paulman reiterated his commitment to it last night. Feel free to use my email address, outonthetown7@yahoo.com, to log opinions, ask questions or give feedback on my weekly installments in 7.
I'll look forward to seeing you all around, whether in email or while out enjoying our beautiful community.
It’s time for me to take a week off; I’ll return to work on Sept. 8th. I plan to do some windsurfing and mountain biking, spend time with family, clean my house and get some rest. I still hope to speak with jurors, perhaps after they’ve had some time to recover, to fill in the final puzzle piece of the very usual court case that’s just concluded. I’ll continue to follow developments in the case after I return, but I’ll also be shifting gears and turning back to what now seem much more tame subjects: Idaho politics and the fall election campaigns.
There are many aspects of this case that continue to nag. Did Duncan commit other crimes that have not yet come to light? Are there clues in the evidence that was presented in court that would lead to those? What about all the evidence that was sealed, including the extensive evaluations that ruled Duncan mentally competent? James Cohen, Fordham University law professor, told me this morning, “I think we have missed an opportunity to get a glimpse into who this guy is or was, and that may have some lessons for the criminal justice system.”
As I drove my son and his friend to the fair last weekend, the Doors song “Riders on the Storm” came on the radio, and the line about the killer on the road seemed chillingly apropos. Perhaps the most haunting aspect of this case is that Duncan’s crimes lashed out against innocent children he didn’t even know, strangers just living their lives in peace until his murderous rampage, without warning, randomly struck them and their families. It could have been any of us.
Kootenai County Sheriff's Detective Brad Maskell was celebrating his birthday with his wife when he was summonsed to the Wolf Lodge Bay home May 16, 2005, the day Slade Groene, Brenda Groene and Mark McKenzie were found bludgeoned to death.
Today, more than three years later, Maskell witnessed a jury of nine men and three women sentence Joseph Edward Duncan III to death for his kidnapping, sexual abuse and murder of 9-year-old Dylan Groene in the Lolo National Forest, where he held the boy and his sister for weeks.
"I just had to be here," he said after the verdict. "I was the guy standing out in the rain that very first night."
Duncan's crime spree deeply affected some authorities charged with investigating it, as heard in court testimony.
In the first day of testimony, former Kootenai County Sheriff's Deputy Dale Moyer, who patrolled the Wolf Lodge Bay are and knew the family well, told the jury the case "pushed me to the end."
"I went into the civilian world for four months to kind of get my head back in the game," said Moyer, now a Spokane County Sheriff's deputy.
In July 2005, Coeur d'Alene Police Chief Wayne Longo, then a sergeant with the Idaho State Police, told The Spokesman-Review: "A lot of us have shed a lot of tears over the eight weeks we've been working this. It's been a roller coaster of emotions. You feel so vulnerable."
If you ask my husband, he just might say that I love potatoes more than I love him. It’s not true.
But I’m not alone. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture we put away some 140 pounds of potatoes each year, per capita.
There are hundreds of varieties of spuds – from the smaller waxy tubers (sometimes called creamers or baby potatoes) to fingerlings (heirlooms varieties that are elongated and sometimes shaped like fingers). There are potatoes with skin (and sometimes flesh) that is tan, red, gold, purple and blue. Don’t forget the favored Russets and Yukon Golds.
Here are a few recipes for one of my favorite foods:
Red, White and Blue Potato Salad From “Melissa’s Great Book of Produce,” by Cathy Thomas.
Substitute fingerling varieties, adjusting cooking time, if preferred. For a flakier version, use russet or Yukon Gold potatoes, peeling them when cool enough to handle; cut into bite sized chunks before tossing with dressing.
4 sprigs fresh thyme 1 sprig fresh rosemary 1 cup dry white wine 2 medium cloves garlic 1/2 pound red creamer (baby) potatoes 1/2 pound purple creamer (baby) potatoes 1/2 pound white creamer (baby) potatoes 1 tablespoon salt, kosher, plus more for dressing 1/4 cup white vinegar 1 tablespoon whole grain mustard 2 teaspoons salt, kosher Freshly ground black pepper, to taste 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil 2 stalks celery 2 tablespoons minced Italian parsley 2 green onions, thinly sliced, include dark green stalks
Place thyme, rosemary, white wine and garlic in a large saucepan or Dutch oven. Cut potatoes into 1-inch cubes leaving skin intact. Add to pan. Add cold water to cover by 1 inch. Add salt. Bring to a boil on high heat. Reduce heat to medium and boil gently until potatoes are tender, about 10 to 12 minutes.
Meanwhile, prepare dressing: in a large bowl, combine vinegar, mustard, salt and pepper. Whisk in olive oil in thin stream.
Drain potatoes and discard herbs. Gently toss warm potatoes with enough dressing to coat. Add celery and toss. Cool. Add parsley and green onions; gently toss. Taste and correct seasonings if needed. Serve at room temperature.
1 pound mixed root vegetables (yams, parsnips, salsify, carrots, Jerusalem artichokes, rutabaga), peeled 1 pound fingerling potatoes, scrubbed 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary Salt and freshly ground black pepper 2 tablespoons Italian parsley leaves 1 large garlic clove Zest of 1 lemon 2 tablespoons butter, room temperature
Place a heavy rimmed baking sheet in the oven and preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Cut the root vegetables and potatoes into equal-size sticks 1/4-inch thick and 3 inches long. In a large bowl, toss them with the oil, rosemary and generous sprinkles of salt and pepper.
Pull out the oven rack that holds the preheated baking sheet and tip the mixture onto the hot pan, which sears the mixture and reduces the likelihood of sticking. Roast the vegetables, stirring once halfway through cooking, until the pieces are tender, 25 to 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, place the parsley, garlic and lemon zest on a cutting board with a generous pinch of salt and finely mince. Stir the mixture with the butter. Toss the vegetables with the butter mixture and serve.
Yield: 4 servings
Nutrition per serving: Unable to calculate due to recipe variables.
Yukon Gold Baked Potato Pancake
From “The Farm Market Cookbook,” by Judith Onley
6 medium Yukon Gold (or Yellow Finn) potatoes 2 eggs 2 tablespoons flour 1 large garlic clove, pressed 1 tablespoon grated onion 2 teaspoons salt Lots of freshly ground pepper 1 1/4 cups milk 3 tablespoons butter, melted Sour cream and minced fresh parsley for garnish Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter an 11-inch quiche pan or other baking dish.
Peel and grate the potatoes with a medium-holed grater. Add the remaining ingredients except the melted butter, sour cream and parsley and mix well – your hands are most effective here. Put potatoes into the prepared baking dish and press the surface down flat.
Drizzle the melted butter over the top and bake for 1 hour.
Serve immediately with a bowl of sour cream and another of minced parsley on the side.
Like many of you following the Joseph Duncan trial, I feel appalled by what we've heard in testimony and from Duncan himself.
Three years ago when Shasta and Dylan first went missing, I interviewed the children's grandmother. She was a very soft spoken woman, who was in shock over what happened. And quite honestly, during the interview, I didn't know what to ask her...or how to ask it. What do you say in a situation like that?
We spent most of our time talking about the differences between the two children, who liked school, and who didn't. What they wanted to do when they were older...and if the family was holding up under all this pressure.
Of course, I was caught up in the whole media storm over the story...covering it for radio in Spokane, appearing on CNN, "Nancy Grace," and filing radio reports. I didn't really have time to think about how or what I felt. I was too busy trying to cover the story...and everyone from all over the country seemed to be fascinated and disgusted by what had happened in this tiny area of North Idaho.
Fast forward to August of 2008, and after reading SR reporter Betsy Russell's account of what those two children went through...I feel like I've been kicked in the stomach. Everything I didn't feel three years ago...I'm feeling now. And I know I'm not alone.
Now that the first phase of the trial is over, I'm starting to really get the chance to look at how we covered this story in recent weeks...on radio, in print and on line.
I honestly don't think we sensationalized the coverage (and believe me, if I thought we had, I would tell you right here)...after listening to what's come out of the courtroom, that just isn't possible. Many people think when a story like this breaks it's a way for newspapers to gain readers. Editor Steve Smith says it's just the opposite... we'll probably lose subscribers.
Since my background isn't print, I've been able to compare and contrast the two reporting styles. It's been horrific reading about what jurors heard or saw on any given day in the courtroom. But to me, it's been more difficult having to turn the written word into the spoken word...and report what's happened on the radio. I'm actually hearing it, in my own voice. And that, to me, makes it even more real.
When reporter Betsy Russell talks with us on the radio, I hear the story in a different way than I do when I read her articles. In fact, on several occasions, I've told her not to worry about coming on...covering something like this day after day gets to you...I don't care who you are, or how long you've been in the business.
There's been a lot of talk about how the media...and the Spokesman Review, has covered this story. Some feel we might have gone too far. Others say the insight from our reporters was needed. To tell you the truth....I don't know. I'm an employee of this paper, so I know my (our) job is to report the story, and I think Betsy Russell and Meghann Cuniff have done a damn fine job.
But I'm also a subscriber (yes, I buy the paper just like you),and I'm looking forward to the day when Duncan doesn't have to be front page news anymore. And judging from the jury's decision last week, that day may be in the not too distant future.
Penmanship, letter writing – talk about old school. Does anybody still practice these ancient art forms?
Besides those folks in the county jail or the convalescent center, I have only been able to come up with one small sliver of society that persists in this archaic form of communication: kids at summer camp.
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Mahoney's mannequins, with the condo building in the background.
It was an almost line-by-line equal amount of text for John McCain's acceptance speech as with Barack Obama's, and same headline size. Great smart design, editors said. 
