Serving all of Eastern Laramie County since 1908
Serving all of Eastern Laramie County since 1908
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It's been awhile since I shared my thoughts with you, for the most part because I've been busy and because I have been watching, again, as people try to down play history, or try to obliterate it altogether from the history books. I was born in the south, and lived in Memphis for several years, and at that time certain residents of said town were, all of a sudden, up in arms because of the statute of Nathan Bedford Forrest. If you are unaware of who he is, he was a lieutenant general in the Conf...
There is so much more to see than just Devils Tower. I am writing about the “Wyoming Black Hills,” which although lesser known than their South Dakota big brothers, still offer some wonderful visiting opportunities. Yes, Devils Tower is the center of everything. This towering monolith was our nation’s first national monument back in 1906 and it is a totally impressive place. State Sen. Ogden Driskell has a historic ranch up there and also operates the KOA campground, which looks up at the tower...
The history of coal’s significance to Wyoming’s economy is being written today. It is beginning to look like a swan song. Wyoming’s long love affair with coal can be written in five brief epochal paragraphs: First, plentiful underground coal in places like Hanna, Rock Springs and Kemmerer were key determining factors in the Union Pacific Railroad choosing a route through the future state of Wyoming in the 1860s. Without the railroad, the state, as we know it, would have not come into being...
We are now more than halfway through summer, so there are not a lot of weekends left before the kids are back in school, and the cooler autumn weather sets in. That means there are still a few weeks left to take advantage of all of the fresh fruits and vegetables available now, because you won’t be able to find them in a month or two. One of the things that is really popular right now are waters flavored with fruits and herbs, and they are mighty tasty…kind of like those fresh toes we crabs like to latch onto at the beach. Making fruited ice...
Although local Wyomingites are not surprised by this fact, out-of-staters are always stunned by the velocity of our wind. It is scary powerful. And it is probable that our wind is cursed more often than it is viewed as a blessing. But when it comes to the future of renewable energy in America, Wyoming’s abundant, cool afternoon winds are viewed as a gold mine. And one of the biggest prospectors in this modern day gold rush is an incredibly patient Denver billionaire with some Wyoming history. P...
As we live our nightmare we find peace in knowing what great communities we are part of. Our families have done so much for us that we can't begin to thank you enough for all you have done. Thank you to our families for being with us at the hospital and supporting us. We can't begin to express our thankfulness for all the food that so many people have provided to our family. We are eating in a situation that we might not be if it wasn't for all the wonderful food being brought in. We are so thankful for all the visits from our family, friends,...
Charles Pelkey, a state legislator and attorney in Laramie, put a story on Facebook about the pitfalls of being a grown-up adult in today’s society: “A bit of an existential crisis: I stopped by my favorite liquor store for a bottle of wine. A couple of folks were sitting at the bar as I ordered the Pinot Noir I planned to enjoy with dinner. One of them turned to me and asked ‘are you a lawyer?’ “’Yes. Yes, I am,’ I replied, perhaps thinking I had another client in the hopper. “Cool,” said...
Many years ago I missed attending one of my high school proms. One of my best friends, Gary, and I were dating the same girl. Unfortunately for me, he asked her out first. Since I didn't have a back-up girlfriend, I didn't have a date. On the night of the prom, another friend, Butch, also didn't have a date. Both of us losers decided to go to a movie together. After the movie, Butch and I were driving around in my 1950 Ford. You can imagine how many years ago this must have been. I am still feeling sorry for myself. We drove by the school where...
I would like to thank everyone involved in making last week’s Panhandle No-till Partnership’s field days a success. I would like to especially thank Mark Betson, Mark and Pat Ernest, Bob Gifford, and Jack Revelle for hosting these field days on their farms. I would also like to thank the University of Nebraska Panhandle Research and Extension Center, and specifically Dr. Cody Creech and Dr. Karla Jenkins, for hosting our tour group at the UNL High Plains Ag Lab. I’m always amazed when I drive...
If you are from the East Coast and miss those summer clam bakes at the beach, or someone from the west who has never had the opportunity to attend a clam bake, and don’t know what you have been missing, you’re in for a treat. You no longer need the East Coast, or a beach for that matter, to enjoy a good old fashioned New England clam bake. There is now a way to bring the east to the west, minus hauling all of the food to the beach, digging a big pit and fighting the wind to keep a fire lit. Best of all, you won’t be cleaning sand out of every...
Surprisingly, we saw some “local” tourists from Wyoming, Montana and Idaho in Yellowstone this past week while making two trips through the world’s first national park. Most regional folks try to get there in early May, late September or early October. The crowds, well, they are just too much for most of us who live in such isolated states. Have you ever been in Disneyland? In a typical day, more people are there than are in the entire state of Wyoming. In many ways, Yellowstone is getti...
My 45 years in Wyoming has been mainly spent as a journalist. Most folks who know me see me as a newspaper owner, writer, columnist, author or reporter. But I have had a duplicate career as a tourism promoter. Our companies have published and distributed millions of high quality magazines, newspapers and brochures promoting everything from snowmobiling, watching wildlife, exploring backcountry trails to Yellowstone Park. I suppose it was in this tourism promoter role that caused the new PR...
I don't know about you, but during summer, and especially when it's hot outside, I can go for a tall glass of most anything that is cold and wet, especially if it's lemonade. I used to be a stickler, and would only drink the standard yellow or pink varieties, but the last few years I find myself becoming braver when it comes to trying new things, like fruited lemonades. My first trip into the unknown was with raspberry lemonade, and it was good, but I still preferred regular pink lemonade. Last year, however, I discovered strawberry lemonade...
Over the years, a person in my line of work has heard hundreds of stories from politicians. A great many of them are funny and memorable. Recently in Laramie, several such stories were told from the same podium and I would like to share them with you. At the salute to the state’s 125th anniversary of statehood event, some people with political backgrounds shared several good stories. Milward Simpson is director of the state’s Arts, Parks and Cultural Resources Department. He is also the nam...
If you are beginning to reap the rewards of a home garden, or some especially fresh and tasty produce you have picked up at the local grocery store, or a farmer’s market, there is nothing like making an equally fresh dressing for salads or side dishes. With these claws of mine it’s pretty difficult to twist of the caps on store bought bottled dressing, besides the fact you don’t really know how long it’s been sitting in a warehouse before it finally gets to the grocery store shelves. There is also the matter of all of those ingredients you can...
Mummies are common in the ancient world but were there ever mummies in Wyoming? In at least three cases the answer to that question is yes. West of Cody along the Wapiti Highway to Yellowstone is a site known as Mummy Cave. Reason for that name is “Mummy Joe,” a 1,200-year old body of an Indian male who was discovered in somewhat of a restored state in that cave in 1957 by Gene Smith of Cody. Archeologists say Mummy Cave was occupied for over 8,000 years from 7280 B. C. to 1580 A. D. The sit...
It is highly possible that there is a small spot in Wyoming which once was bordered by four different territories, parts of which together became the future home of our great state. This spot is somewhere in a corner of Sweetwater, Fremont, Natrona or Carbon County, according to a map created by Velma Linford in her amazing history of Wyoming in 1947 called Wyoming Frontier State. This one amazing spot touched what were once Texas in 1845, Mexico in 1848, the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, and...
When I was in high school, it was easy to impress me. It did not take much for a teacher, parent, sibling, friend or newsmaker to convince me about certain facts in the world. That was a long time ago but perhaps it is time to debunk a few facts that have changed or perhaps were never true in the first place. Let’s take a crack at three facts. This, by the way, is what I would say had some school asked me to give the commencement talk this year: 1) You were told your entire lives that America w...
Ok, rain, snow, sleet, hail or whatever Mother Nature decides to visit upon us, it's still almost officially summer, and time for picnics, barbecues, and other special get togethers, like birthdays and graduation celebrations. So, I've decided to share a couple of recipes that shout SUMMER because of their use of fresh ingredients, including one of my favorites – corn. Speaking of which, if you haven't tried the fresh, shucked bi-color corn at the local market you have no idea what you are missing. And if you buy it fresh, make sure to keep i...
It is hard to find any evidence of some mysterious serial killings that allegedly occurred in Wyoming 147 years ago. According to a couple of books, a notorious family named Bartlett killed 22 young men before being hunted down and killed back in historic South Pass City. Following is the straight story, according to the authors of the books. At the end of this, we have some dissenting comments. Most of the crimes centered on pretty Polly Bartlett who was adept with arsenic. From 1866 to 1868, S...
Well, the ceremonies are over and done for another year – graduation ceremonies this is – and it's time to break out the 'pic-a-nic' baskets (I always loved when Yogi Bear talked about 'pic-a-nic' baskets), the sun screen, lawn chairs and all the other accoutrements that go along with summer. But I digress. Superintendent Jack Cozort, who will shortly be entering his last month, officially, with our school district gave away his age when he announced this past weekend, in Pine Bluffs and Bur...
My favorite all-time tourism slogan for our state was the short-lived BIG WYOMING, which described our towering mountains, vast high plains, amazing deserts and long distances. Just about everything about Wyoming over the last 180 million years has also been BIG. Although it was vast, the Wyoming of 180 million years ago sure looked different from today. Instead of high plains with semi-arid desert lands and towering mountains, that earlier place was wet. Very wet. Wyoming is a land of giants...
Most everyone in Wyoming and across the nation knows about the two biggest “firsts” that occurred here – Yellowstone National Park being the first national park in the world in 1872 and the granting of women the right to vote in 1869 in Wyoming territory. But did you know that our state is also home to a myriad of other firsts? I had a lot of help from folks from around the state in compiling this list, such as: The first national forest was the Shoshone and the first national monument was D...
Every single day, lately, it seems I've been getting notices from the Wyoming High Patrol about another fatality accident. I just received one that said alcohol was being investigated as a contributing factor. This makes almost, if not already, 40 fatalities on Wyoming roads this year. The one thing that the majority of the accidents had in common – those involved were not wearing seat belts. Now, I am going to be honest with you – I dislike seat belts. I really don't know why I don't like the...
The other day a friend of mine gave me a recipe she had found, and thought I would find it cute because of the name of the recipe. She was mistaken. Although this recipe tastes like a little slice of heaven, I really think it could have been more appropriately named, something other than ‘Anti-Crabby’ Cake. It’s difficult for me to turn my back on something that tastes so good, especially when you don’t have to have a degree from some culinary baking school in order to frost – just leave it in the pan and frost it while it’s warm. Doesn’t get...
