Car Lights Work, But The Driver’s Stuck In Park

During a keynote speech at the weed summit last week, state Rep. Wayne Meyer remembered the 1996 ice storm. The Rathdrum Republican recalled listening to KVNI on a battery-operated radio as North Idahoans phoned in to relate their experiences. A Rose Lake resident caught his attention. The caller said the power and all the house lights were out. Then, the caller asked the $64,000 question: “Are the lights in my car going to work?”

Mixed smoke signals

The Indian Country Smokeshop in Worley has this large sign hanging from the outside wall: “Lon Horiuchi, ATF, IRS, Idaho - I will not run for the house, then, like Chief Geronimo, your bullets will never penetrate my body.” It’s signed by shop owner Paul Matheson. And the parking sign nearby? “Parking for Harleys Only - Violators Will Be Shot.” With bullets that penetrate? … The answering machine at the Wallace Chamber of Commerce thanks people for calling the scene of the new actionadventure movie, “Dante’s Peak.” How many years will “Dante’s Peak” be out on video before that stops being Wallace’s claim to fame?

He makes a difference

Tom Addis, a teddy bear beneath that gruff exterior, gives his Dodge dealership employees four days off at Thanksgiving and Christmas. Space limits me from mentioning all of his other generous deeds. But I’ll mention two more. Tom picks up the tab for the cable TV at The Women’s Center. And he constantly refills a $1,000 account so kids at Children’s Village can buy personal items. Saaaalute.

Fan mail

Loyal reader Lynnette Tuttle thinks the Huckleberry Hound and the cheapskate who put up St. Maries’ tacky detour signs deserve a Huck. Recently, I mentioned a bus driver for Bonners Ferry High who took a wrong turn after a football game in St. Maries and almost ended up in Montana. Writes Lynnette: “The markings are OK for local people but those unfamiliar with the area are in trouble. As you leave St. Maries via state Highway 3, the first detour sign is hung on a post of a sign pointing to Calder and Avery. About one fourth of a mile up the Joe (road) is another detour arrow pointing to a narrow road that runs next to the high school. Up until a few weeks ago, this was a gravel road but it still looks like someone’s driveway.”

Huckleberries

I couldn’t figure out why Coeur d’Alene Councilwoman Dixie Reid would vote, in essence, for Joe Chapman’s goofy plan to build on Sanders Beach. Until someone mentioned she once worked for Chapman. Hmmm. … Yes, that guy writing down stats on the sidelines during Dallas Cowboy home games looks familiar. Say hello again to Mark (Scooter) Montero, now of Dallas, a 1991 graduate of Coeur d’Alene High and son of Ron and Bonnie Kienbaum. … Also say hello to R.C. Fahlgren, the new mayor of Fightin’ Creek, where graft and vote-buying are encouraged and bar patrons laugh at the notion of campaign finance reform. R.C. used free beer to bribe more than 1,000 votes out of the bar-flies. … Ray Stone sightings continue to mount. In fact, the former mayor-for-life of Coeur d’Alene has renewed his golf-cart lease at the public course and may move back to town. It’d be good to have him back. Stay tuned. … Every official in Post Falls now wants to take credit for the town’s new recycling program, including outgoing Councilman Joe Doellefeld. Yeah, the same guy who responded to concerns about an endangered species on his property by asking what the bag limit was on them.

Parting shot

A couple of weeks ago, I chuckled when the news from North Idaho’s police blotters boiled down to this: In Post Falls, a terrier, curiously named Brutus, escaped from a vet hospital. And, an emu chased cows near Sagle. However, after last week in Coeur d’Alene, where we had a murder/suicide and a second murder allegedly involving five kids, I’ll take Brutus and a cow-chasing emu any day.

, DataTimes MEMO: Gotta Huckleberry? Call the Huckleberry Hound Hot line: (800) 344-6718 or (208) 765-7125; daveo@spokesman.com.

The following fields overflowed: CREDIT = D.F. Oliveria The Spokesman-Review