Friends know how to really support troops

Johnny came marching home this month to a night out on the town and his neighbors’ deep appreciation. Huckleberries won’t embarrass Johnny by identifying him here – other than to say he’s a CdA fella who returned briefly from Iraq in February to attend the birth of his son. This time, Johnny had 10 days of r-‘n’-r. So, his folks came up from Boise. And a few neighbors stopped by, including two military vets who obtained 100 signatures on a card thanking Johnny for his service. Oh yeah, they also collected money to give Mr. and Mrs. Johnny a night out. Another neighbor volunteered to baby-sit the two kids. Said onlooker Ryan Hill: “It was a very heartwarming and sincere gesture, and it really brought home to me what it truly means to ‘support our troops.’ ” Bingo.

Bad impression

My sister-in-law, Lisa, wants the Powers That Be to know how much she enjoys seeing her 5-year-old son standing in human feces inside that smelly porta-potty at North Idaho College Beach. Not. It happened Wednesday. Lisa wonders why the bathroom hasn’t been cleaned and why the nearby concrete restrooms aren’t in use. Read: She’ll be taking her sunbathing to Honeysuckle Beach/Hayden Lake. F’shame … Once upon a time, Huckleberries was annoyed whenever the national media aimed their spotlight at the few Aryans of North Idaho. Now, the same gag reflex kicks in when a national publication highlights the region or the state. That photo spread on Idaho in the latest Good Housekeeping should attract more out-of-staters who’ll overpay for houses and drive up property taxes. … My Significant Other and I had the same reaction when we saw that readerboard message at the downtown CdA fire station: “Good Greif! (sic) Kaydee. 9 lbs.” They misspelled a word, says I. Yeah, says she, “Katie” has a “T-I-E” on the end. Good grief!

Rumorama

Huckleberries hears that … Junior Hagadone has purchased a cannon from Sheriff Rocky Watson’s antique collection for celebrations at his multimillion-dollar digs, such as the Fourth of July … Jr. Hag has shed his playboyishness – and is becoming the chip that the old block wants him to be … Coeur d’Alene’s Silly Hall is hand-selecting an internal candidate to assist City Administrator Wendy Hague at many times Idaho’s $5.15 minimum wage … KMC disciplined some employees and perhaps even a doctor for looking at Shasta Groene’s medical records when she was a patient there. Allegedly they did not have a “need to know” reason, and there was quite a deal made of it. However, it was done wery wery qwei-what-wy, as Elmer Fudd might say. Ba-deet, onward.

Poet’s corner

Remember that kid who got busted in Sandpoint for selling lemonade without a $10 permit? Well, the incident has been immortalized in rhyme: “They took him down,/the bust was made:/unlawful sale/of lemonade” – The Bard of Sherman Avenue (“Crime-fighters of Sandpoint”) … And: “Lemonade stands need a permit?/That makes me as jumpy as Kermit!/Silly laws such as these/Make me feel ill at ease/No wonder I am such a hermit!” – blogger CDADave (“Busting Lemonade Stands”) … Overheard: “I wished I had a nickel for every white head and bald head here” – Seasoned Citizen in a wheelchair re: the matinee audience at the Coeur d’Alene Summer Theatre July 17 production of “Footloose” … Vanity plate at North Idaho College: “ILUVCDA.” A smitten local? Nah. The VW Touareg was from Colorado. Good news travels fast.

Quotable quote

“Ever wonder why women get a little emotional when they get pregnant? Well, basically, it’s because our bodies go through a few hormonal changes which is the biological equivalent of converting yourself from a cardboard shoebox to a NASA space shuttle, and back, all in the space of about 42 weeks – Dana Jones/Note-It Posts (“The Bionic Incubator”).

Huckleberries

Sightem: At The Coeur d’Alene Resort recently, Sandpoint’s Sue Haynes spotted a teen on a scooter wearing nothing but a thong and tattoos on each cheek. Asks Sue: Is this allowed in Coeur d’Alene? As that CPD Blue dispatcher said to a similar question last week here: Affirmative … What’s with the decal hula-hoops pasted around the waists of the silhouette people on those Kootenai County Courthouse crosswalk signs? Is the cross-walk for hula-hoopers only? … Huckleberries predicts trouble for the twentysomething that Spokane’s John Livingston saw driving that “No Means Yes” bumpersticker around on Francis.

Parting shot

So, what would you do if a casting director offered “generous financial compensation” to film your family on ABC-TV’s “Wife Swap,” an unreality show in which wives change families. Family Phil, a stay-at-home CdA hubby, said: No thanks. Quote: “It’s beyond me why anyone would willingly invite a TV camera into their home to film their young children for a national television audience. … When my kids are adults, they can be reality TV stars if they want.” Huckleberries’d hate to see what reality TV will be like when Phil’s kids are grown.