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Around 75 Thanksgivings have passed me by and still I am excited about the day, the eats and getting with kith and kin to celebrate family, faith and friends. For years it was the food for me. Maybe it still is. If I could not have turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes and gravy for Thanksgiving dinner, it would not be much of a dinner. I know many people who take their whole families and go to a place and help out with cooking or serving or washing dishes afterward. And that is fine, although in my family, it has always been a little more...
Several years ago, my wife and I returned home from work to find that our house had been burglarized. We didn’t lose much, but were pretty angry about the incident. My pastor at the time told me a story about John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church. One day while Wesley was traveling, he was robbed by a highwayman. When he arrived home, he wrote in his journal that he prayed to thank God after the ordeal had ended. Specifically, he thanked God for three things. First, he thanked the Lord that the robber had not taken his life. S...
We live in an amazing world. You can almost buy anything you want from far away and it will be shipped to you ASAP and be of a great quality. I am talking about everything from clothing, to food, to shoes, and even cotton socks, if you find you need cotton socks. With me it is cooking. I used to be able to lay a complete turkey dinner out on the table just by doing it the morning of the dinner. I can’t do it anymore. Old age has set in and I find I do less and less of what I used to do. Matter of fact this fall, I did a practice turkey just t...
Vaccination Tips on Beef Cattle Information for this article was taken from the October issue of the Cow Sense Chronicle written by Rachel Endecott, MSU Extension Beef Cattle Specialist. Successful vaccination depends on three critical factors: an effective vaccine, a functioning immune system, and administration of the vaccine before exposure to the disease. Some tips for effective vaccination include: • Read and follow label directions. If you are unsure, consult your veterinarian or call the vaccine company directly before using the p...
I love Christmas music of all kinds. I am playing it in the car as I drive down the highway to Big Sandy. I am playing it in my living room on Friday and Saturday during happy hour and I am listening eagerly to hear it being played around town. I love the old hymns maybe the best and I love it when they are sung by old choirs from England and sung accompanied by the pipe organ and sound crisp, and cold and let so very beautiful. They remind me of when I had a cabin up Alkali Springs on Beaver Creek. I used to love to spend Christmas at that cab...
I read 5 books last week. Typically, I have been reading 1 or 2 books a week this year, but last week I set a personal record. I’m not a speed reader; in fact, I read embarrassingly slowly. I don’t have a lot of free time. With the church’s annual Halloween party happening last week, I was especially busy. I managed to increase my reading time by eliminating two things from my habits: I stopped reading, listening, or watching most news (the Mountaineer excluded, of course) and I deleted Facebook from my cell phone, limiting my Facebook time...
It is the beginning of the month and since it is November, a Thanksgiving recipe would be in order but you know most of my Thanksgiving recipes anyway so how about a new way to cook an old favorite, Shepherd’s Pie. The meat in the Shepherd’s pie can be ground up lamb but I have always used a hamburger mixture. It seems more like me. To make a Shepherd’s pie you need to do three separate things. First, you need to get some good root vegetables cooked. Then you need to get your meat mixture prepared and then you need to cook enough mashed potat...
Radon is the leading cause of lung cancer among non-smokers in the United States. Radon enters our bodies as we inhale. Children are more susceptible to the effects of radon because of the developmental stages their bodies are going through. Pound for pound, children are eating, drinking and breathing more than adults. Therefore, if radon is in the air they are breathing or water they are drinking, their body is receiving a higher concentration of radon than an adult. What is radon? It is naturally occurring radioactive gas that is odorless...
I recently read a book about the dozens of strange ways most people naturally think about the world around them, which result in mistakes or misunderstandings. A lot of the book dealt with logic, patterns of thinking about things, and ways that peopledeal with information. Some of them were obvious, like wanting simple explanations for situations, even very complex ones. Or the fact that people are generally more trusting toward and think more highly of physically attractive folks. Others were less obvious, like the tendency of people to...
If you believe in ghosts, you probably believe there are many different kinds of ghosts. When I was a boy and we were using the old log Johnson House as a fishing cabin, we knew that we had a ghost around the house that protected us when we needed protecting. The Johnson House was a wonderful, large four bedroom log building that was built on two cliffs of Clear Creek. I don’t know if it started out being built on two cliffs. I can’t imagine so but by the time we stayed there one fifty foot cliff had Clear Creek cutting into it every day. The...
Mayor Stiles had the following comment about the joint School Board and City pool meeting this month. “I hope no one is going to want this to happen quickly. It is pretty detailed but it is working well.” The Mayor went on to say that co-chairs were elected. They were Diana LaBuda and Shaud Schwarzbach. Contact them if you have questions or comments about the new pool. The next joint meeting will be November 10, 2016. The last regular Council Meeting was held October 12, 2016. There was one visitor. After the pledge was recited and the min...
Fall is a Great Time to Order Shelterbelt Trees The Montana Conservation Seedling Nursery (MCSN) is already receiving new orders for shelter belt plantings. Rocky Mountain Juniper is the most popular windbreak species, and is sold out quite quickly. If you are interested in ordering Rocky Mountain Juniper for your shelterbelt, please place your order as soon as possible. Shelterbelt plans should be approved by the MSU Extension Chouteau County agent, Chouteau County Conservation District personnel, or MCSN staff. The minimum order for new...
My mother was a good cook. She loved to bake. Her specialties in baking were cookies and pies. Her crusts were to die for and her huckleberry or juneberry pies around the holidays were wonderful to say the least. Every Sunday she would cook a roast or fry a chicken but mostly her fried chicken was cooked when we went picnicking to Glacier National Park or Beaver Creek Park. With the fried chicken she would always have deviled eggs, potato salad and her famous tuna or shrimp and pasta salad which all in her family cook to this day in honor of...
A Montana Medical Care Savings Account (MSA) allows Montanans to save money for medical expenses and long-term health care and reduce their state income taxes at the same time. Contributions of up to $3000 annually can be deposited into savings or checking accounts or certificate of deposit. Spouses must establish separate MSAs but can use the funds to pay eligible medical care expenses for the taxpayer’s eligible dependents. If the money deposited in an MSA is not used during the year it was deposited, it remains in the account for expenses i...
This week, I started a new regimen of healthy eating and exercise. Because of a minor health concern, it became clear that I needed to make changes. Exercise has been easy, largely because I enjoy it and tend to be a happier person when I am more active. My first day of eating healthy went great, at first. I ate the right foods, drank the appropriate amount of water, and followed the plan to the letter...until dinner. Then things sort of went off the rails. We went out to eat and I lacked options that fit the plan, so I indulged. Then, my kids...
Q: Maybe some women can go through an abortion and never feel guilty, but I’m not one of them. I feel terrible over what I did, and every time I drive by a school playground I’m almost consumed with grief. Will I ever get over this? A: One of abortion’s unseen (and unacknowledged) consequences is exactly what you have experienced: deep regret and guilt over what happened. Tragically, however, sometimes a far different consequence takes place: spiritual and emotional insensitivity to what happened. This, I fear, is the reaction of far too many...
I have a small turkey in the freezer and have decided to cook it this weekend. Having said that, now I have to figure out how to cook it. These days it is not nearly as easy to cook a turkey as it used to be. There are several answers to this dilemma. One answer is to invite someone over to help cook the turkey. The other answer is not to cook all that used to go with having a turkey dinner. If I have someone over to help cook, I am going to lean on them to cook the mashed potatoes, make a vegetable and make gravy. I am going to cook the turkey...
Lately, it seems like I cannot look at Facebook, read the news, watch tv, or have a conversation without the current presidential election coming up. I cannot recall a more contentious or weird election in my lifetime. People are worried, angry, scared, frustrated, and looking for solutions. Rhetoric surrounding the outcome of the election has predicted catastrophe. Candidates have been verbally tarred and feathered so many times that it’s hard to imagine a civil debate or election ever taking place again. I don’t want to add to that pile of...
Fall foliage is early this year. I went to Glacier National Park last weekend and saw wonderful fall foliage way before October 1 which is very early. It also looked as if Glacier National Park officials are keeping Going-To-The-Sun Road open longer and the foliage up there was spectacular to say the least although when we got to the top of Logan Pass the temperature was about 38 in the middle of the day and there was a very cold wind blowing in from the east. Made for not staying out of the car long at the top. I have not mentioned going in...
Q: A Sunday school teacher I had over 30 years ago died recently, and I feel bad because I never thanked her for what she did for me. We were a rowdy bunch and I’m sure she got discouraged, but she planted spiritual seeds in my soul that eventually grew. Maybe my letter will encourage other teachers. A: Thank you for your letter; I too hope it will encourage those who have been called to teach the Bible, especially to young people. We can trust God’s promise: “My word … will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve...
It seems like only yesterday that I was driving over Marias Pass on Highway 2 about this time last year and going up to the top of the pass, from the east, saw the most beautiful fall foliage I had ever seen. Coming back two days later, it was all gone due to a big wind that ripped through the pass. That is the way when you go seeking fall foliage in Glacier National Park. It is some of the best anywhere but it can be gone in the twinkling of an eye. This time of year the most beautiful fall foliage is on the east side of Glacier National...
One of the topics Jesus often argued about with the contemporary religious teachers of his day was the Sabbath. The Jewish Sabbath is on Saturdays and is a day when work is forbidden by the 10 Commandments. The idea was that you could work every other day, but the Sabbath was set apart for rest. In the ancient Jewish faith, the Sabbath had taken on a weird character of its own. The leaders of the Jewish faith had spent centuries talking about what was meant by “work” so they could make sure everyone followed the rule properly. There were sects...
Q: How good do you have to be before you can become a Christian? My parents were very anti-religion, but now that I’m an adult I feel a need for God. But maybe I’m not good enough to be a Christian. A: I have good news for you: God loves you just as you are, and He wants to welcome you and make you part of His family just as you are! The only thing He wants from you is your trust. Think of it this way. If you are sick, do you have to wait until you’re well before the doctor will agree to see you? No, of course not. Your doctor wants to see y...
Range Renovation Conference in Fort Benton and Stanford MSU Extension is sponsoring a range renovation conference in Fort Benton and Stanford on Thursday, October 20th. The morning seminar will take place in Fort Benton from 8:00-11:00 at Community Bible Recreation Center located at 911 16th Street. The afternoon seminar will take place in Stanford at City Hall, from 2:00-5:00. Many producers are considering renovating their rangeland to increase grass production. In addition, seeded pastures supply nutritious forage at times during the year...
Last week we gave you an overview of fall foliage areas that are close by where you live. Today, let’s get more specific about one area. That is the Bear Paw Mountains, a Mecca for fall foliage. First as to timing, it is everything. I have gone over Marias Pass to behold the most beautiful fall foliage ever, then come back through the next day only to find it all gone. A frost and a wind can take the foliage away in a few hours. As a rule but not hard and fast, around the first of October the foliage is thought to be prime in the Bear Paw Mount...