Voices

On any weekday morning, just before 9, a dozen or so men and a few women gather in the chill, waiting for the doors of Fresh Start to open. This faith-based, nondenominational warming center, dedicated to serving the city’s homeless, occupies a low, square building at 418 Coeur d’Alene Ave. Hours are 9 a.m. to noon, Monday through Friday. Beyond the door, warmth, hot coffee, snacks, an opportunity to shower, wash clothes and a chance to just talk offer a temporary escape from gray sidewalks and biting cold. The idea for Fresh Start began six years ago, when Gary Edwards visited a soup kitchen at Coeur d’Alene’s First Presbyterian Church and came face to face with the hungry and homeless. Edwards, who had spent his professional life as a musician, teacher and social worker was moved to take action.

Monday Fire District 2 (Fairfield) – 7 p.m. at 17815 E. Truax Road.

During the month of December help keep kids warm this winter by donating new and gently used winter hats, scarves, mittens, coats, boots, warm socks, and other winter necessities in the Cozy Kids Drive. Donations will be given to the Coeur d’Alene Homeless Shelter and Art on the Edge. Drop-off locations include Select Brokers, 311 E. Sherman Ave., and Java on Sherman at 324 E. Sherman Ave.

Nichole Thiel, a family and consumer science teacher and student council adviser at Lake City High School, and the Region 1 and Region 2 adviser to the Idaho Association of Student Councils was recently recognized as the IASA Outstanding Adviser of the Year. She was selected from 59 advisers who attended an IASA conference in November in Boise.

Spokane Valley firefighters were called Tuesday to help a man who wound up planted in the ground “just like a tree.” Deputy Fire Marshal Bill Clifford said the 43-year-old man was buried up to his thighs while standing in an excavation that caved in on him.

Spokane Valley officials are looking for three people to serve on the city’s Lodging Tax Advisory Committee.

“I’m a lumberjack and I’m OK/I sleep all night and I work all day,” sang the Merry Lumberjack to his Mounties in the classic Monty Python comedy sketch. “I cut down trees, I eat my lunch/I go to the lavatory/On Wednesdays I go shoppin’/And have buttered scones for tea.” The menu at the Milltown Grill in Post Falls features that song’s distant, long-lost cousin, titled “The Lumberjack’s Prayer.” In this version, instead of ending up in women’s clothing and hanging around in bars, our lumberjack eats everything in sight until he finally cries “With alum bread and pressed beef butts/Dear Lord! You damn near ruined my guts/Your whitewash milk and Oleorine/I wish to Christ I’d never seen.”

Today “ANNIE” (MUSICAL) – 7:30 p.m., Lake City Playhouse, 1320 E. Garden Ave., Coeur d’Alene, 667-1323.

The Spokane County Regional Animal Protection Service 36-hour rule leaves a lot to be desired pertaining to the protection and welfare of our pets. An example is my friend’s neighbor whose dogs were kept outside and without food, but more importantly no water. Unacceptable.

Temperatures have been a little bit chillier over the last couple of mornings, but other than that, there hasn’t been much in the way of weather “headlines” across the Inland Northwest. The snow that occurred back on Nov. 28 – all 1 to 2 inches of it – was the only measurable snow for the month of November. A total of 1.69 inches of precipitation fell at the Spokane airport in November, which is .55 inches less than normal. Coeur d’Alene was quite a bit wetter, with a total of more than 3 inches of precipitation for the month, which was actually slightly above average. But again, almost all of that fell as rain and not snow. Not surprisingly, overall temperatures last month ended up nearly 4 degrees above average.

Spokane County Regional Animal Protection Service is waiving all adoption fees for adult cats during the entire month of December, with the hopes that homeless cats in Spokane will have a home and a family this holiday season. SCRAPS. has received a number of sick and injured animal calls this holiday season, including an emaciated Manx cat, weighing only four pounds. A healthy weight for the cat is between eight to 10 pounds.

For 12-06-2008

For the week of Dec. 8-12 Monday – Herbed chicken strips with gravy, parslied potatoes, brussels sprouts, rye bread, fruit cocktail.

Traffic concerns regarding Empire Avenue and Fowler Road generated heated discussion Monday night at Millwood’s City Council meeting. “I’ve been harping on Empire, Empire, Empire, Empire,” Millwood resident Richard Gardner said. “Nobody wants to do anything about the traffic problem on Empire. Now we have Fowler. It’s time to put an end to it.”