Blogroll
A glance at what Spokesman-Review bloggers have to say
Spotlight
By Jim Kershner
April 8 – Just got in from a happy and celebratory Elton John concert at the Spokane Arena.
Best costume: A couple of guys in the front row wearing pink feather boas. Runner-up, Elton’s outfit, which consisted of a black formal tailcoat with embroidered musical notes and a “Music Magic” insignia on the back. Call it Nashville meets Hyde Park.
Most ambitious numbers: The opening song, “Funeral For a Friend /Love Lies Bleeding,” and “Rocket Man,” both of which were turned into mini-symphonies.
Biggest ovation when the audience recognized the opening chords: Tie between “Tiny Dancer” and “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down On Me.”
Huckleberries
By D.F. Oliveria
April 8 – A not-so-funny thing happened to former Idaho Reporter staffer Jay Patrick, son of Coeur d’Alene Press editor Mike Patrick, on his way to adjudicate his case on fishing without a license in Cache County, Utah. He was mistaken for a notorious meth trafficker – one of Nevada’s most wanted – and booked in the county jail for two days.
Patrick, who now works in Boise for the Oregon-based Capital Press, told the Salt Lake City Tribune: “I was pretty scared. You hear of people put on death row who didn’t do it, so I’m thinking it’s feasible I could go to prison for this.” The Tribune story continues: “An attorney was able to find articles he wrote and time cards showing he wasn’t in Mesquite, Nev., on the dates he was accused of selling meth.”
Sirens & Gavels
By David Wasson
April 7 – There’s an odd family dynamic in U.S. Attorney Mike Ormsby’s shut-down-or-face- federal-prosecution warning to Spokane-area medical marijuana dispensaries.
His younger brother, state Rep. Timm Ormsby (D-Spokane), is among the Washington legislators trying to legalize and regulate the production and sale of medical marijuana in this state.
So as one brother readies teams of police and federal agents for potential raids on medical marijuana dispensaries, the other is trying to legitimize and control the growth of voter-approved pot use.
Outdoors blog
By Rich Landers
April 4 – Don’t get in a hurry to cross the North Cascades on State Route 20.
The Washington State Department of Transportation says avalanche danger on the North Cascades Highway has delayed the road’s annual spring opening.
A transportation spokesman says it may be the latest spring opening in 20 years.