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submitted by Carter County Public Health COVID-19 Bivalent Booster Available | Call for an appointment. Protects against the original strain and the Omicron variants BA.4 and BA.5. *RESCHEDULED* Alzada Flu Clinic | The Alzada Flu Clinic event is rescheduled for Wednesday November 2. We anticipate having the COVID-19 Booster available as well for anyone interested. No cost Flu shot. Please bring an insurance card. Open to those 6 months and older. Anyone under 18 must be accompanied by a parent. Watch for details on location...
Although it has been a beautiful autumn, the "Old Farmer's Almanac" is predicting that winter is going to be rather old fashioned. Our High Plains region is going to be colder than normal, with the coldest periods in late November, early December, early and late January, and early and late February. Precipitation and snowfall will be above normal in the north and below normal in the south. The snowiest periods will be in mid- to late November, mid- to late January, and early February. Over on the western side of Montana in...
Hello God, it’s me, Mara: You know, Lord, it’s great to come across something so neat about rain – how it often begins with a sharp pattern, but when snow comes, it usually comes very softly. Can’t we all just see the picture: the wind brushing up the clouds, the brook held down by ice, and then the sudden coming of the “white bees of the moon”? Just sharing a poem about all that, which was written by Joseph Auslander: “The clouds were all brushed up and back The wrong way by the wind; The trees were attired in black; The br...
While going through some old files recently, I came upon the following information. As you read it, remember the date and the amount. How many years ago? It doesn’t seem possible that the high school is that old; and what a bargain! I believe Jim Anderson was superintendent at the time and I was chairman of the board. The debt was to be paid in twenty years and each payment was for sixty-five thousand dollars. The following minutes are from the January 11, 1979 Carter County High School board meeting. “(THIRD MEETING) MINUTES...
This week I would like to share more on the Ed and Mabel McCord family which I wrote about in the September 30th Eagle. Their daughter, Ruth, shared a full life history of her parents and children. I would like to follow with some memories of personal time spent with two or three of them. The year was 1942, World War II was in progress. I was in the seventh grade and Dale McCord was an eighth grader. At his graduation in the old high school, a couple from Alzada came for the occasion. Things had been worked out and we loaded...
Hello God, it’s me, Mara: You know, Lord, watching birds is entertaining as well as educational. One morning recently we saw a plump robin fly in and carefully land on the edge of the birdbath. He, of the red breast, after looking all around, drank slow and long. He must have been ‘working’ hard somewhere to be so thirsty; then with one more upward gaze, he jumped right into the birdbath for a quick splash. That brought a chuckle for right then some cowboy wisdom (author unknown) came to mind. “Always drink upstream from th...
When Covid hit, we decided to stop offering working cattle ranch vacations, which means my summers have become much less hectic but also less entertaining on a daily basis. One of the best parts about entertaining guests is recounting the funny things that happen. Sometimes it is quite difficult to keep a straight face when guests say something in all sincerity that strikes my funny bone. For example, I was in Yellowstone with four guests from New York. One of the teenage girls did not bother to get out of the car to view a...
submitted by Carter County Public Health COVID-19 Bivalent Booster Available | Call for an appointment. The updated Moderna booster is for everyone 18 and older. The updated Pfizer booster is for everyone 12 and older. It protects against the original strain and the Omicron variants BA.4 and BA.5. Preventative Dental Care for all school aged kids | Public Health’s partner, Smiles Across Montana, will be returning to Carter County in the middle of October. This is a preventative dental care opportunity for all school aged k...
Since early season rifle has been going on for several weeks, there are some hard working mule packers pounding down the trail every day packing duffel, trophy horns, dead elk and deer, and most importantly food for hunters and hay for livestock. It might seem like a romantic occupation, but really it is pure hard heavy work that means long hours in the saddle and thus a lot of time to contemplate. My friend, Jerry Yoder, was the packer for most of the back country hunts and trips I cooked on for the K Lazy 3. He spent a lot...
Hello God, it’s me, Mara: You know, Lord, for every Action, there WILL be a reaction. Various stories from several states told about beavers toppling trees onto power lines, knocking out power to a large swath of customers. Power repairmen said “Those marks are consistent with a beaver having brought the tree down and there are wood chips around the tree.” Beavers felling trees are an action; the reaction is a huge power outage, possible fires and roads being closed. The problem must be fixed, which the power company did/d...
Hello God, it’s me, Mara: You know, Lord, chatting with friends can be rather interesting. ‘J. E’. shared about her dad’s horses, mentioning that they, among other animals, are herd animals. One horse they had was a jumper and another horse was a fence crawler; no fence could stop either of those rascals – so her dad chained them together, hoping that would help. Then there was a bit of commotion, a quick glance out the window suggested trouble! Checking it out, the’ crawler’ had succeeded in getting under the fence but the...
This is the time of year when cattle producers are busy marketing their cattle. Although technology has opened up many more options for marketing cattle such as internet live auctions, internet static auctions, drone film, etc., it is kind of tragic that the days of showing the cattle buyer around the ranch are pretty much bygone. I wrote this poem years back when the day the buyer came to see the calves was a big event on the ranch, but it was inspired by Roundup, Montana veterinarian, Dr. Loren Appell who always prescribed...
For some unknown reason while thinking about a memory article, the McCord family kept coming to mind. Their family lived close to our family on the south side of Ekalaka during my grade and high school years. I would like to go back many years and share some memories of some of that family. To do this, I am going to take the article written by their daughter, Ruth, in “Shifting Scenes Vol. III,” pages 136-137. I have some memories of my connection with two or three family members and will share later as the “Shifting Scene...
Since I am about to retire from my County Superintendent of Schools position at the end of December, I am constantly receiving job offers from people who are concerned that I am going to be bored at home eating bon bons and watching daytime television. I think I will indulge in those activities for the first two days, and then I will start on a lot of projects that have been waiting for me for forty plus years. My colleagues in education feel strongly that I will miss my job and should sign up to substitute teach. I am...
Hello God, it’s me, Mara: You know, Lord, scenery is beautiful almost any time of the day or season. Just the other day, the clouds were stunningly beautiful. Chatting with several friends that day, we wait for You to call us home, Lord, so we can SEE the ‘other side’ of the clouds, stars, moon and planets. One gal asked, “How do we get up there to be with Jesus?” Several gave replies, but they looked at each other like, “I don’t THINK that is how THAT happens.” One gal giggled, suggesting that everyone probably needs...
Hello God, it’s me, Mara: You know, Lord, one really never understands some things in life until they experience it themselves. Like that old saying, “One has to walk a mile in another’s shoes” to know the feeling – to get it! Take for instance the job of being a care-taker [care-giver]; folks usually are more concerned for the one being cared for, rather than the care-taker; that is, until they’ve walked that path themselves. The situation ain’t easy, be it a parent, spouse or child. One can love them with all their whole he...
When the bull elk starts to bugle and there is a chill in the morning air, I get really homesick for the smell of wood smoke coming from the cook tent. I spent most of two decades cooking in a hunting camp in the Scapegoat Wilderness for the Todd's K Lazy 3, and I have hundreds of great memories of those years. I retired from 25 years of teaching junior high English in the spring of 2006, and I did not start my County Superintendent of Schools position until January of 2007. I worked as a long term substitute teacher for the...
Loyd and Phyllis Townsend reached their 74th wedding anniversary on August 30th! They were married in Miles City on August 30th, 1948. Loyd, age 92, was born in Camp Crook, South Dakota and “Phyl,” 91, was born in Ekalaka. Both graduated from Carter COunty High School, Loyd in 1948 and Phyl in 1949. They have two children. Jerome Townsend is an electrical engineer and lives in Penrose, Colorado. Arlene Sabala is a registered nurse, still working part-time and living in Twin Falls, Idaho. Loyd’s parents were George and Jessi...
Hello God, it’s me, Mara: You know, Lord, sometimes our thinking gets mixed up, we think the quality of our life is based on what happens to us, but - we’re forgetting that the quality of our life is how we respond. We probably know someone - including ourselves, who’ve become bitter instead of becoming better, when tragedy befalls us. No matter what, we need to remember that You, Lord, have secured our victory. We’re to take hold of that truth, internalizing Your gospel gift and live it out amid our broken world. In other w...
Everyone can remember where they were and what they were doing on September 11, 2001. I was ironing my shirt to wear to school that morning and feeding the kids their breakfast when on the radio it said that a plane had crashed into one of the towers of the World Trade Center. In my mind, I envisioned a little airplane slamming into a big building killing the pilot and others onboard. As we hustled out the door to school, I did not have time to think much about it until I arrived at school and all of the staff members were...
For many years, my husband has been saying that he was not going to own a cow when he was 65 years old. His sixty-fifth birthday is looming up, and yet I have heard nothing about dispersing our cow herd. Of course, there are a couple auctions this week, but I don't think we could get them in and get trucks lined up that quickly, so I guess we are going to remain in the cow business after all. Still it is interesting to think about what our lives would be like without cows. As I thought about it, I came up with several life...
Hello God, it’s me, Mara: You know, Lord, occasionally humorous ‘things’ have a bit of logic; since some months have a few wacky holidays about food, this one seemed appropriate for August. Author unknown, titled: To a friend: “How come you order rich desserts, while I feel I must be sensible? He laughed and said ‘I’m tasting all that is Possible. I try to eat the food I need, and do the things I should. But life’s so short, my friend, I hate missing out on something good. This year I realized how old I was. (He grinned)...
With the downturn in the economy, it is suddenly fashionable to be frugal. I grew up frugal, because my parents were 40 years old when they got around to having me, so they were children during the Great Depression. I think the definition of frugality has changed a lot as I watch college students head off to college this week. When I went off to college in the fall of 1977, I felt I was pretty well versed in frugality. However, my roommate was the undisputed Queen of Frugality. I can honestly say I could not have drawn a...
Hello God, it’s me, Mara: You know, Lord, encouragement is like oxygen – we can’t live without it. It was lovely watching two little kids the other day. They were probably both about 3 years old. Little Ricky was trying hard to get the wrapper off of a stick of gun. His friend, Emmy, was watching him, and suggested he watch how she did it. He watched his little neighbor girl slowly unwarp her stick of gum. Then he tried again as she encouraged him, step by step, to unwarp it from the side, not from the top. She chuckled as sh...
I have written a number of things in the past about my history in or near Ekalaka and the editor was gracious enough to publish them. I have kind of run out of things that will make a good story. So today I will attempt to write a story consisting of several things that happened. The first thing that happened, I call the most memorable day of my life. It was August, 1945. I was playing in the yard and all of a sudden my Mother burst out of the house saying, “The war is over, the war is over". She had two brothers in harm's w...
