Happy Rainy Day Tuesday! It's me, Taryn, in again for DFO. I'll be here with you all week. Two upsides to this blah weather: I won't have to water the garden or turn on the AC. We had a good day yesterday. I deleted a couple of comments due to language. For me, the general rule of thumb is if you wouldn't say a word at church or school ...
A second federal lawsuit has been filed against the city of Spokane related to the dismissal of former police Chief Frank Straub. Nancy Goodspeed, a former spokeswoman for the Parks Department, filed the $1 million lawsuit Monday against the city, Mayor David Condon, members of his staff and a contractor providing medical employment screening.
Rich Landers/SR Outdoors Blog could have published the Mt. Spokane wolf pic and chose not to. Here's why: "I was offered a chance to publish the image from Mount Spokane last month but the photographer and local wolf advocate Hank Seipp told me I had to agree to write a "positive" story about wolves.
For a week each summer on South Ross Point Road in Post Falls is a place called Camp Journey. To longtime camper and soon-to-be-counselor Michael Corcoran, it's "a slice of heaven on Earth." "It's amazing," said Michael, 17. "Words can't even explain it."
Herb Huseland/Bayviews has been monitoring the lake levels for Pend Oreille. Quoth Herb: "Has anyone but me noticed that Bonneville Power has stolen a full three inches of Lake Pend Oreille water all Summer?" (Question: Anyone else paying attention to the lake levels?)
A game camera on Mt. Spokane caught an image of a wolf recently, the first confirmed sighting there in 70 years. Hank Seipp has been studying wolves in the Inland Northwest for years now. He says the people of Spokane should be happy to see a wolf back on Mt. Spokane as they play an important role in our ecosystem. (Question: Agree?)
A British mountaineer who climbed Switzerland’s Matterhorn says he is the first quadruple amputee to reach the iconic peak. The claim couldn’t be verified with certainty, but was backed by the warden of the Hoernli Hut base camp, who said he knew of nobody else who’d achieved the feat. (Question: What have you overcome to meet a goal?)
Delta’s travails, and those of its customers, move into day two with the airline canceling of another 300 flights. The disruptions Tuesday follow about 1,000 cancelled flights Monday and, according to FlightStats, about 2,800 delayed flights. (Question: Have Delta's problems messed with your travel plans?)
The Coeur d’Alene School District is looking at three options for the focus of the Hayden Lake Magnet School. The district is looking to use a currently vacant elementary school building at the corner of Government Way and Hayden Avenue as the campus for a new magnet school. (Question: A good fix for the district's overcrowding?)
Brian Walker/CDA Press reports: Fire crews responded to three small fires in the Post Falls area believed to have been started by lightning strikes on Sunday afternoon. The fires were in the 15200 block of Riverview Drive, on Nelson Loop in the Hauser area and at 869 S. Breezy Way on the north side of the Spokane River near McGuire Road.
The Spokane County Sheriff's Office said search efforts will continue Tuesday morning for a man missing after a fishing boat overturned on Newman Lake on Monday Night. Marine Units told KREM 2 News the boat overturned on the north end of the lake near Peninsula Drive. They said they got a call about it just prior to 10:00 p.m.
Today was a slow news day on the local front. Slow like honey. Of course I didn't venture far from my basement office so if anything exciting was going on in my 'hood, I am none the wiser. I'm leaving you with a shot of a beautiful Oregon silverspot butterfly.
KTVB.com reports: The Pioneer Fire burning in the Boise National Forest is the top priority fire in the country. It has grown to nearly 61,000 acres, and is 25 percent contained as of Sunday evening. Boise County has issued level 2 evacuation notices for Lowman residents and for recreation sites west of town along Highway 17, the Lowman-Banks road.
State health officials are investigating Palm Beach County’s first case of non-travel related Zika, Gov. Rick Scott’s office announced Monday. (Question: Has Zika affected your travel plans?)
While Hayden’s Bryce Kananowicz won Saturday’s Long Bridge Swim, he really had hoped to be in Rio swimming for Canada’s Olympic team instead. Kananowicz just missed out on making the team and decided to once again set his targets on winning the Long Bridge Swim. (Question: Are you a strong swimmer?)
Now that I know how you all feel about using the term "lady" to describe the fairer sex, how about tackling today's Slice question? Paul Turner/The Slice asks: "Does anyone these days ever refer to a neighbor as, say, 'Old Man Jones' or 'Old Lady Smith'?"
Turns out, daily oral care for your pearly whites past age 50 can pay dividends beyond a strong bite and bright smile. People approaching retirement don’t always think about dental care costs adding to the bottom line of living expenses, and it’s a common misconception that basic Medicare covers regular trips to the dentist.
A 25,000-acre wildfire near Palouse Falls is threatening homes, crops, a fish hatchery and a state highway, officials said Monday. The blaze started with a lightning strike Sunday in Palouse Falls State Park, a popular hiking destination in Franklin County about five miles southeast of Washtucna, according to the Washington State Patrol.
In CDA Press Letters to the Editor, Dana Halvorsen says boaters need a safety refresher: "I grew up in Coeur d’Alene and now live in Portland. This is my second visit this summer and in the wake of last week’s lake tragedy it would seem a perfect time to publish in the paper, rules for boaters. (Question: Boaters, how safe do you feel on Lake CDA?)
Coyotes are reportedly menacing dogs along the South Hill bluff trails below High Drive. It's late in the season for the coyotes to be associated with a den as was the case in 2012 when several dogs were attacked by coyotes apparently defending a known den on the bluff above Hangman Creek. (Question: Seen any coyotes lately?)
Inside the cafeteria of Whitworth University is a black indoor-growing tent full of tomatoes, basil, kale, peas, leeks and edible viola flowers. Lights and fans are trained on the plants, and a bag that absorbs carbon dioxide hangs from above. It’s a scene that would make botanist Mark Watney from “The Martian” proud.
New Jersey might ban drivers from having a cup of coffee behind the wheel. A bill under consideration in the state Legislature calls to prohibit "any activity unrelated to the actual operation of a motor vehicle in a manner that interferes with the safe operation of the vehicle on a public road or highway." (What can you safely do while driving?)
When Todd Stam purchased about 100 acres in a rural area south of Post Falls, he never imagined he would be ordered to limit how much he and his children could ride their dirt bikes on the site./Brian Walker, CDA Press reports on a neighbor dispute re: a family's private dirt bike track.
Sunday's CDA Press editorial hammers local government for hiking taxes when taxpayers should be seeing relief: "In many cases, governments are going beyond putting their arms around all the new growth chips on the table. They’re reaching into your pockets because they’ve determined those new growth dollars simply aren’t enough." (Agree?)
The CDA Press reports: Unofficially, this weekend’s downtown festivities broke records. The Street Fair, Taste of Coeur d’Alene and Art on the Green all reported there were more people strolling around and buying goods this year than ever before. (Question: Did you go?)
D.F. Oliveria started Huckleberries Online on Feb. 16, 2004. Oliveria's Sunday print Huckleberries is a past winner of the national Herb Caen Memorial Column contest.
