Reader_March3_2016

compiled by Susan Drinkard

(wo)MAN on the street

What did you think of the

Oscars?

“Leonardo DiCaprio won his first Oscar. I was happy about that.”

Josh Grove 8th at SMS Sandpoint

“It was very politicized. The actors used the venue to air their grievances with the Academy, citing racism, exclusionary policies and age and gender bias. I felt the best expression of an issue came from Leonardo DiCaprio with global climate change because that will affect all of mankind regardless of race, gender or age.”

Lisa Engman Housewife Sagle

“It was very controversial. The whole show was couched in racial overtones. I think it has become a platform for many to voice political and racial points of view, and that seems to detract from the entertainment value.”

Paul Krames Life planner Sagle

“I thought Chris Rock did pretty well. They addressed the Oscarso-white issue throughout.”

John Nyland

Sandpoint West Athletic Club Sagle

“Leonardo DiCaprio has starred in some great movies for the past 20 years, and I was happy to see he finally won. I do think there were some excellent movies starring African-Americans that were overlooked like ‘Dope’ and ‘Straight Outta Compton.’”

Bailey Alvarez Rapper Sandpoint

“I missed the Oscars, but I derived satisfaction upon hearing that a film of a frontiersman on a fur-trading expedition in the 1820s was nominated.”

David Thompson Fur trader, explorer Downtown Sandpoint

111 Cedar Street, Suite 9 Sandpoint, ID 83864 (208)265-9724

www.sandpointreader.com

Publisher: Ben Olson ben@sandpointreader.com

Editor: Cameron Rasmusson cameron@sandpointreader.com

Zach Hagadone (emeritus) John Reuter (emeritus)

Contributing Artists: Ben Olson (cover), Daniel Cape

Contributing Writers: Cameron Rasmusson, Ben Olson, Louie de Palma, Jen Heller, Julia Angwin, Tim Henney, Suzen Fiskin, Marcia Pilgeram, Brenden Bobby.

Submit stories to: stories@sandpointreader.com

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Web Content: Keokee

The Sandpoint Reader is a weekly publication owned and operated by Ben Olson and Keokee. It is devoted to the arts, entertainment, politics and lifestyle in and around Sandpoint, Idaho.

We hope to provide a quality alternative by offering honest, in-depth reporting that reflects the intelligence and interests of our diverse and growing community

The Reader is printed on recycled paper using soy-based ink. Leftover copies are collected and recycled weekly, or burned in massive bonfires to appease the gods of journalism. Free to all, limit two copies per person.

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Requirements: –No more than 400 words –Letters may not contain excessive profanity or libelous material. Please elevate the discussion. Letters will be edited to comply with the above requirements. Opinions expressed in these pages are those of the writers, not necessarily the publishers.

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About

the Cover

This week’s cover designed by Ben Olson to accompany this week’s feature “What’s really at stake with the Apple encryption debate.”

Interested in drawing a cover for the Reader? Send an email to ben@ sandpointreader.com and we’ll tell you everything you need to know (except how to draw).

COMMENTARY

By Louie de Palma Reader Road Warrior

Husbandry: I couldn’t think of a better way to announce it than in this fine publication. That’s right, I’m getting married, y’all!

So who would want to marry this grease ball who spends more time spinning wheels than Vanna White? Nobody. I’m actually not getting married. Sorry to get you worked up.

Animal husbandry, on the other hand—now that is something I can get behind. Rats! That’s not how I meant that. Really rammed myself into a fox hole on that one. Whoops. Poor phrasing notwithstanding, animal husbandry has been a pivotal part of advancing human societies for pretty much ever. With each passing century, we humans have attached ourselves to different animals to overcome,

More research needed...

Dear Editor,

About your article on “Range war and Peace”; first of all, I have read a few of your papers, and have enjoyed most all of them.

I am a lifelong resident of Bonner County, born in Sandpoint.

I read your article on the “Range War and Peace,” Page 7 Feb. 25, 2016.

I take great offense to this article. You should have done more research. It did not tell both sides of the story. It was very one-sided. I know you just reprinted the article from the Boise Weekly I do not agree that they should have occupied the park building, but there was a bigger picture than that.

Mostly I thought that you should not have displayed the pictures of our state representatives (Sage Dixon, Heather Scott, and Judy Boyle) in the manner that you did. It made them look like criminals. It

Cats: the mascot of the modern age

advance, conquer and expand. The Chinese used otters in the 1400s to explore. The conquistadors trampled the opposition thanks to horses. Hannibal had his elephants. Rats plagued us in the Dark Ages (thanks for the population control, by the way. It’d be so crowded today otherwise). Dogs in World War I were fetchingly helpful. Canaries helped mining safety soar during its heyday. Oxen absolutely tore it up on the agricultural front. You get my drift—without animals, we couldn’t have gotten very far, and each period in time brings an animal mascot associated with success.

Unfortunately, our society has reached an embarrassing flat point in our route to upward progression. Sure, it feels like we’re all moving towards something, but it’s clear the human existence has become pointless, lacking any real purpose save to fuel our own delusions of grandeur. We fill our days with fluff, working so that we feel we deserve our dinner. For entertainment, we do a lot of different things with fake light. We’re social, but only

was deplorable to see you put their names under the heading “The faces of the Malheur Occupation”

These representatives are hardworking people who were there for the justice of those citizens, to save lives. They were going by the constitution, exercising their rights.

More research is in order.

Sincerely,

Donna Steinacher Sandpoint

Thanks for writing, Donna. It wasn’t Zach Hagadone that used the sidebar about the “Idaho faces of the Malheur Occupation.” It was an editorial decision made by us to highlight who all the players were from Idaho, both the occupiers and the supporters. I stand by our decision. It was not our intent to paint them as criminals, but to make it clear to their constituents that they openly supported crim-

on our own terms. Basically, we’re all like cats, a true animal mascot for our era.

History has shown we honor our animal counterpart with incessant worship. That’s still true. If the Internet was a house, it would be jam-packed with cats. Cats with human hats and grumpy faces. Cats doing human things and expressing human emotions. After a while, there would be no reason to visit this house except to see these zany cats.

It’s fun, but it gets confusing. I used to think that ancient man was primitive for using pictographs. Now I just wonder what complicated language they had before they realized drawing pictures was way easier. Maybe they didn’t know a word, so they just drew it. The first time they saw a horse, they’d be like, “New animal around. It’s a [horse emoji].”

In bygone eras, humans used birds to convey messages of real importance and urgency. Battles were won and lesson were taught thanks to these birds. Worlds were built and destroyed. Now we use lightning-fast boxes to share cats with one another. It’s almost strange to see anything expressed with words anymore. WTF?! (Insert emotional emoji).

inals. The occupiers, no matter if you agree with their position or not, are in fact criminals.

As far as Zach’s article goes, he spent considerable time researching it. I stand by his journalism 100 percent.

-Ben Olson

Response from Zach Hagadone:

Lacking any specific challenges to the factual nature of the article, one can only speculate as to what “side” you feel needs more “research” to support. The point of this piece was to de-politicize an important issue, give voice to a community and industry that has been sideswiped by political predators and provide readers with a perspective that often is ignored in favor of rhetoric and grandstanding. Your offense seems disingenuous at best, dishonest at worst and a waste of both of our time.

-Zach Hagadone

The response might be something like, “Crazy! What does it do?”

“I don’t know. It carries these: [white guy emoji].”

“For what?”

“[Hatchet, sword, death emoji]”

“Damn. Well, we better get some [horse and sword emojis] too, before they take our [eggplant, vegetable and farm emojis] or we’re in deep [poo emoji].”

No to Trump...

Dear Editor,

Trump fans have taken their fearless leader to the top of the GOP field and held him there in spite of the fact that he has minimal qualifying experience. Unless you want to count bankruptcy, divorce, fraudulent businesses here and abroad, using and abusing foreign laborers, milking college students out of money with a fraudulent college, shyster real estate transactions in Mexico and any number of other low life crimes, as qualifying experience to run the United States.

While running for the GOP nomination he clearly has demonstrated that he is a racist, and encourages his fans to attack people in the crowd—unprecedented behavior for a presidential candidate. His speech patterns are that of a child, a nasty, bulling child, and his reality star fan club fawns over

After a while, it just became easier to draw pictographs of animals and war scenes, because that’s all anyone talked or cared about. Just like cats today.

Well, what does this have to do with my taxi? You’ve heard of “Cash Cab,” no doubt. Well, I am now introducing “CAT CAB.” Next month, our taxi service will partner with the Young Kittens Dumpster Foundation in dolling out cold hard CAT prizes to lucky customers who can answer our Schrodinger-esque quiz question. Here’s a preview: If there is a box (a computer, for instance), and in that box exist billions of cats acting like humans, and over that box looms billions of humans identifying with the cats, what does that make you feel? If your answer is, “Simultaneously alive and dead,” you win a cat! You must then dress the cat in a way that conveys that feeling. After that, you are free to put the cat in your house box, where you live, on the Internet and in life, both dead and alive.

his complete lack of moral fiber. He has no tangible policies, other than fixin’ things, building a wall and mass deportation, all of which are unrealistic. He is the mouthpiece for every sexist, bigoted xenophobe, and he’d like to date his own daughter. He has zero integrity. He seems like the worst candidate that has ever run for president because he is. The fact that he is the GOP front-runner is a wake-up call that we really do need to better fund education. If God really did create man I hope She/He is paying attention. There are far too many people who are a danger to themselves and others. I do believe it’s time for a massive recall.

Cindy Aase Sandpoint

Medicare’s ‘Meaningful Use’ program

By Jen Heller Reader Contributor

On Monday, Jan. 11, a speech by Andy Slavitt made headlines in the medical world.

If you don’t recognize his name, he’s not running for a presidential nomination. Andy Slavitt is the acting administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the government body that sets and regulates federal healthcare policy and law (including the provision of Medicare benefits).

Slavitt made the mistake of saying this in the middle of his comments at the J.P. Morgan Annual Health Care Conference: “The Meaningful Use program as it has existed, will now be effectively over and replaced with something better.”

Immediately, physician forums and Facebook pages blew up with excitement, confusion and lots of excessive exclamation marks. Understanding why requires a short excursion into federal healthcare systems.

CMS is the shadowy organization that lurks in the closets of every physician’s nightmares. In part, its unfavorable hue is due to its status as the catalyst and enforcer of change. CMS also reimburses much lower for patient services than almost any other insurance company in the nation, which stresses physicians. Many doctors and facilities actually cap the number of Medicare patients they serve annually to limit the strain on their time and resources. As such, “public” health care is slowly being offered in fewer locations.

A large part of the problem is that, in order to care for Medicare patients, physicians have to sign a contract with CMS. Once physicians are contracted with Medicare (which is a three-month, book-length, multi-organization endeavor), in-network providers must comply with the demands that the federal government places on them for standardized care.

This is where things get complicated. Compliance to government standards typically looks like a ridiculous game, where physicians and their staff run around under a leaky tin roof, trying to place buckets under all the streams of demands, in between very brief episodes of patient care. Chew on this example: By the year 2017, payments to individual doctors and hospitals from Medicare will be reduced by 11 percent from the legal reimbursement schedule by:

•A 2-percent penalty unless a doctor submits annual “Physician Quality Reporting System” (PQRS) data;

•Up to a 4-percent penalty unless a doctor has been demonstrating superior care to patients (not by having better patient results, but by having better-documented PQRS data, which CMS will analyze to determine “Value-Based Modifier” payment adjustments);

•A 3-percent penalty, unless a doctor has been attesting for the last few years that he or she has used electronic patient charting in a meaningful manner (which is why this program has been called “Meaningful Use” or MU);

•A 2-percent “sequestration” reduction across all Medicare payments (which was part of the legislation passed to reduce federal spending in 2011-2012, and has been in effect without change since April 1, 2013).

All of these reductions are taken out of provider pay even if the patient is given exemplary care, healed of ailments or treated on a normal level. The key to maximum dollars will be to document services in a manner that is CMS-approved. Healthcare quirks and laws are buried in acronyms and legal terms that take days to decipher. Doctors, nurses and all manner of providers go to school to learn how to “provide” patient care and services. They usually come out of school poorly trained (if at all)

in legalese and business techniques. Accordingly, they hire more and more staff to try to juggle all the demands placed on them, and healthcare costs continue to climb upwards.

Standardization and conformity aren’t bad things in and of themselves. To succeed in modern society, most people agree, kids should learn to read and write well. This is an accepted standard. In medicine, practitioners are expected to make their patients healthier (or at least more comfortable) in most of the cases they see. Great idea. However, a lot of the energy of standardizing anything goes into establishing a system of measurement. Instead of streamlining, many systems of standardization develop slowly in added layers, growing increasingly complex, like Great-Aunt Martha’s teetering cream-cake desserts that wobble their way precariously through holiday carousers.

An additional problem with the whole shebang is that a standardized workforce isn’t creative. Workers become so busy trying to achieve the rules and standards that they wind up with less energy to devote to innovation, inspiration and emotion. This is why, on a

relevant side note, we’ve seen a rise in Waldorf and alternative schooling systems that try to prioritize these sorts of values. On the medical side of things, being a doctor that produces good outcomes is fantastic. However, if there’s too much red tape and results-measuring, “bedside manner” winds up in the bedpan, and new, personalized solutions to patient care don’t materialize.

With all that in mind, Meaningful Use in particular has been a lukewarm project. On the upside, if you’ve seen a doctor in the last few years, you’ll have noticed from the staff’s frantic typing on laptops that paper charts are a thing of the past. This is a big positive. Doctors are notorious for terrible handwriting, and it’s shocking how often a patient’s medical records aren’t useful to their new physician simply because the former doctor’s charts are illegible. Cloudbased electronic records are clearly legible, relatively safe from environmental hazards, and easily accessed and shared by staff in multiple locations.

However, to comply with Meaningful Use in 2014, doctors and facilities had to jump through 17-plus fiery hoops,

including some that made sense (such as generating and transmitting 50 percent of all medical prescriptions electronically), and some that didn’t (such as signing up 50 percent of all patients for “optional” access to their electronic charts through online patient portals, and then being required to receive messages from 5 percent of their patients through those “optional” online portals).

The effort to standardize use of electronic health records has cost the country millions in dollars and man-hours. Slavitt’s announcement that Meaningful Use would be phased out caused sighs of relief on physician forums and Facebook pages – until he clarified his comments later in the week. MU will not be gone long. It is being resurrected with all the other penalty systems in a new Frankenstein of a beast called MIPS (the Merit-based Incentive Payment System). And so, the saga continues. Will CMS apply the lessons they’ve learned to the next jiggly layers of regulations? Let’s hope so, for the good of patients and physicians alike.

Pre-orders open for fiber Internet

By Cameron Rasmusson Reader Staff

The greater Sandpoint area is another step closer to a new highspeed fiber Internet network, and residents can help determine how quickly it gets here.

Officials announced Wednesday that Ting, an Internet infrastructure and service provider company, is eyeing an expansion into Sandpoint, Ponderay, Dover and Kootenai. With the expansion comes Ting’s “crazy-fast fiber Internet,” which offers speeds of up to a gigabit per second. According to Ting officials, those speeds will give local businesses the speed they need to stay competitive, while families can stream all the video, music and games they want without slow-down or buffering.

“We’re always happy to team up with towns and cities that get it,” Ting director of net-

works Adam Eisner said in a press release. “Gigabit fiber is the next generation of Internet access, and it will power the next generation of ideas.”

Ting is utilizing a pre-order system to determine demand and prioritize location installations. To bump your neighborhood higher up the list, visit ting.com/ sandpoint and place a pre-order for your home or business. Network construction is planned for later this year, assuming sufficient demand exists.

Pre-orders require $9 down, which will be refunded if the project falls through. Installation costs are no more than $200 for a home or $400 for an individual business. Customers have the option to buy the Ting Internet Box for $199 or rent for $9 per month. Gigabit-speed service costs $89 a month for homes and $139 a month for businesses. Alternatively, customers can select a slower 5-megabit-per-second option for $19 per month.

Local man still missing

By Ben Olson Reader Staff

The Bonner County Sheriff’s Department is still searching for Jeffrey Paul Schutz, who went missing in the early morning hours in the Wrenco Loop area on Feb. 22, 2016.

Schutz was last seen wearing

a pair of hiking boots, a black hooded sweatshirt, a brown jacket with zipper and khaki pants.

If anyone has any information about Schutz, please call the Bonner County Sheriff’s Office at (208) 263-8417, or the family at (208) 640-3462.

County commissioners restrict planning commission

By Cameron Rasmusson Reader Staff

Bonner County commissioners placed limits on the county planning commission’s authority this week, restricting the time frame and scope of its decision-making.

The latest in a feud between county commissioners and planners, the decision imposes a 10-day time limit for the Bonner

County Planning Commission to offer a recommendation on planning decisions. In addition, the county code revisions restrict planning commission recommendation requirements to decisions involving either zoning or comprehensive plan ordinances. Commissioners placed the restrictions following delays on a planning recommendation over proposed land use appeals changes. The disagreement

New city website goes live

By Cameron Rasmusson Reader Staff

A years-long project is finally in the bag with the launch of the new city of Sandpoint website Tuesday night.

Designed to be more user-friendly and simpler to maintain, www.sandpointidaho. gov is live and ready to use. According to Sandpoint city planner Aaron Qualls, the new website should make accessing city resources and information easier for residents, prospective new business owners or developers.

“The new website offers more visual interest for potential visitors or job creators,” Qualls said. “More information is available for visitors and it’s easier for staff to update.”

Sandpointidaho.gov includes new capabilities to receive automated notifications for council meetings or other scheduled city functions. It offers a more intuitive design. And it streamlines public records by allowing persistent access to information packets for council or committee agenda items.

“This website is more designed with the end user in mind,” Qualls said.

The website was first cleared

in the city budget before Qualls started working for the city in 2013. He said it’s been a long road to find a contractor and initiate development. Ultimately, the city hired California company Vision Internet in a $23,975 contract to handle the design.

Some residents were slighted that the city looked outside the state rather than offer local companies the opportunity to bid. Qualls said that while the city hired locally to redo its branding, it selected Vision Internet because it specializes in municipal websites. Since the company already had website architecture for government functions already in place, Qualls said the contract was likely cheaper than a custom job.

“Something specifically made for local government was attractive for us,” he said. “We didn’t want to necessarily restrict ourselves to a local company.”

The city aims to make the website more intuitive and finetuned as they receive feedback. Staff members welcome any suggestions or problem reports and hope the public will assist in that task.

No one hurt in Super 1 gunfire incident

A heated confrontation and an accidental gun discharge at Super 1 this weekend could have been much worse, according to Sandpoint police.

between commissioners and planners grew so heated that Planning Commission Chairman Steve Temple resigned two weeks ago.

The restrictions didn’t come out of the blue. Bonner County Deputy Attorney William Wilson hinted they might be coming in a letter sent to the planning commission, which in part provoked Temple’s resignation. [CR]

Police chief Corey Coon said no one was hurt in the road rage incident, which ended with an altercation and a brandished firearm at Super 1. The incident touched off when Garrett Huckaby, 20, and Peter Goullette, 22, raced each other in their trucks down city streets around 1 p.m. Saturday. They soon became angry as they cut each other off and exchanged obscene gestures.

Eventually Huckaby and Goullette went their separate ways. But later, Goullette pulled into the Super 1 parking lot and noticed Huckaby’s truck parked nearby. He went to confront Huckaby, who stepped out of his

truck with a handgun. The two scuffled, and the gun accidentally fired into Huckaby’s truck, shattering a window.

According to Coon, Goullette is charged with a probation violation, racing and battery, while Huckaby is only charged with racing. However, prosecutors are still determining whether or not to pursue any weapons-related charges.

For Coon, the incident was a potential recipe for disaster that ended in a best-case scenario. Considering the number of people in the Super 1 parking lot at the time, it is fortunate that no one was hurt or killed by the accidental gunfire, he said.

“The parking lot was full of customers,” Coon said. “This could have been a much different story.” [CR]

FEATURE

What’s really at stake in the Apple encryption debate

By Julia Angwin For ProPublica

The FBI’s much-discussed request to Apple can seem innocuous: Help us extract six weeks of encrypted data from the locked iPhone of Syed Farook, an employee of San Bernardino’s health department who spearheaded an attack that killed 14 people. Most people believe Apple should comply.

But the FBI is demanding a lot more than the data on a single phone. It has obtained a court order requiring Apple to build custom surveillance software for the FBI—which computer security expert Dan Guido cleverly dubs an FBiOS.

Once that software exists, it is inevitable that other law enforcement agencies will approach Apple seeking to get it to use the FBiOS to unlock iPhones in other investigations. Already, Apple says it has received U.S. court orders, under the same legal authority, seeking to get it to unlock 12 other devices.

In effect, the FBI is asking for Apple to write software that will provide something the government has sought without success for more than a decade: A “backdoor” that cracks the increasingly sophisticated encryption on consumers’ phones.

The government has previously attempted to create its own “golden key” that could unlock every device. That effort collapsed in the face of fierce objections across the political spectrum. Now, the government is pushing a private company – Apple – to create a key.

What’s at stake in this clash of titans, therefore, is a much larger issue: How far should tech companies go to help the government conduct surveillance of their users.

The court has asked Apple to build special software that would disable the security on the device, and to install that

The government has never been allowed to create a “backdoor” to encrypted devices. Now, it’s trying to force Apple to build one.

software to the target iPhone as an update. Once the phone is updated with the new software, the FBI will be able to break into it.

Last year, a White House working group examined just this approach to creating a backdoor into encrypted devices – which it described in typically dense bureaucratic language as “provider-enabled remote access to encrypted devices through current update procedures.”

Translated into English, they were considering using the routine updates that every phone receives as a means for law enforcement to plant spyware that could track everything on the device, from whereabouts to text messages to all emails.

The panel saw a potentially fatal flaw in this approach, noting it “could call into question the trustworthiness of established software update channels.”

This is no small thing: software updates are key to cybersecurity. Updates are issued regularly to patch the inevitable flaws that are discovered in today’s complex software. Failing to install software updates leaves users’ vulnerable to hackers. The lack of timely software updates, in fact, has forced the U.S. military to turn off certain features of its non-battlefield smartphones.

If Apple gives its stamp of approval to the FBiOS and the

phone users may start to wonder whether the updates they receive contain spyware.

In addition, Apple says the FBiOS would “be relentlessly attacked by hackers and cybercriminals” hoping to obtain a copy of the golden key. The government counters that Apple can install the software on the device at Apple’s physical premises. Apple will “retain control over it entirely,” and is free to destroy it afterwards, the government states.

It’s also not at all clear that the government will prevail in

its court fight with Apple.

Albert Gidari, a leading surveillance lawyer who has represented Google and other companies and is now director of privacy at Stanford University’s Center for Internet and Society, argues that the government is over-reaching in its request. He points to a 1994 telecommunications law that says the government does not have the power to require companies to implement “any specific design of equipment, facilities, services, features, or system configurations” for surveillance purposes. The government argues that the 1994 law is irrelevant to its case, and instead is relying on a 1789 law, the All Writs Act, that gives courts “all writs necessary and appropriate” to conduct their business.

However, Orin Kerr, a former federal prosecutor and professor at George Washington University Law School, argues that the 1789 law may not support the government’s position. In 1977, the Supreme Court ruled that the law did require a telephone company to help law enforcement set up surveillance equipment on certain lines, but that “the power of federal courts to impose duties upon third parties is not

without limits; unreasonable burdens may not be imposed.”

In a court filing, Apple argues that the government’s request is “burdensome” and requires “involved engineering.”

It is not a coincidence that the FBI has taken its battle to the courts. For the past two years, the FBI has been campaigning to win a so-called “backdoor” into encrypted devices. In 2014, FBI director James Comey called for a “regulatory or legislative fix” that would allow the agency to access devices with a court order.

But late last year, the Obama Administration decided not to pursue legislation.

With Congress out of the picture, the debate between tech and law enforcement will play out in the U.S. District Court in the Central District of California.

The FBI says that the debate is narrower than it has been portrayed. “The relief we seek is limited and its value increasingly obsolete because the technology continues to evolve,” FBI director Comey wrote in a blog post.

Microsoft founder Bill Gates told the Financial Times that he supports the FBI: “They are not asking for some general thing, they are asking for a particular case.”

But, several companies such as Google and Twitter – which all could face similar surveillance requests – have weighed in to support Apple.

“We build secure products to keep your information safe and we give law enforcement access to data based on valid legal orders,” tweeted Google CEO Sundar Pichai, “But that’s wholly different than requiring companies to enable hacking of customer devices & data.”

This article was previously published by ProPublica.

Bouquets:

• As a mom of young children I am surprised at how often we don’t end up at Bonner General Immediate Care. Our family has stayed relatively healthy, well, except me of course. Last Saturday I ended up there.

As I sat down waiting to be seen, I noticed a man in his mid40s in line ahead of me, obviously with a painful foot injury. After sitting there for about 40 minutes a grandmother, her apparently healthy age-5 granddaughter and her very ill 3-yearold granddaughter arrived. This 3-year-old child could hardly breathe and was coughing. It was obvious she needed medical treatment as soon as possible. A nurse opened the door, invited the next person in line in, and the man in his mid-40s with the injured foot offered the grandmother and granddaughters to go in front of him. He looked at me and apologized. I smiled and let him know I would have done the same thing.

This is why our family has chosen to live in this community. We often observe and benefit from strangers putting others’ well-being in front of their own.

The staff at Bonner General Immediate Care was very professional and kind.

-Submitted by Morgan Tajan.

Barbs:

•Motorcycles are starting to appear from their winter slumber, thanks to the early spring weather. As a motorcycle rider, I can tell you that almost every ride (even just around downtown) results in a situation where I have to avoid being cut off or sideswiped by a motorist who isn’t looking out for them. Do us all a favor: Keep an eye out for motorcycles. When you get in a fender-bender with your car, it means a scratched bumper. For a motorcyclist, it could mean being maimed or killed. Thanks.

Science: Mad

By Brenden Bobby Reader Columnist

Get ready for some “Inception”-inspired action!

Today, I’m going to use a computer to tell you about computers, and once I’m done, this article will be edited, formatted and printed by at least one, perhaps multiple other computers.

So what is a computer? For some of us, it’s an essential tool in our everyday lives. For others, it’s a strange, confusing machine that is more of an inconvenience than it really should be, especially considering how reliant we are on its existence and function for dayto-day tasks.

Let’s start at the beginning: What is a computer?

Contrary to what it may seem, a computer is not a living organism or some evil monstrosity out to get you, even when the ocean of inevitable errors and crashes occurs at a key moment during a presentation or email to a loved one. Though we’ve made some incredible strides towards artificial intelligence, we’re nowhere near an army of rogue machines overthrowing humankind and creating a new society of sheer malice and contempt for the living.

A computer, at its most basic level, is just a machine.

A machine, at its most basic level, is just something that we have manipulated to complete a certain task predictably, with minimal human intervention.

The science of computers goes much deeper than that; there are entire fields of Computer Science and Computer Engineering that dive into the technical aspects of this subject, from the mechanical, to the coding, to everything in-between and beyond.

For now, let’s just take a look at some different types of computers in the world. Enter the calculator. If you’ve gone to school or worked in an office in the past

Computers

60 years, you’ve probably encoun tered one. When you think of a calculator, you probably think of the classic TI-83, the little solar-powered electronic calculator that just about everyone in the Western Hemisphere has played with at least once in their lives.

Did you know that the first true mechanical calculator dates back to somewhere between 2,700 and 2,300 BC? Some ancient Sumerian kid probably made his merchant father very angry by playing with what he must have thought was a toy in the middle of an important sheep barter

Let’s move on to another familiar computer: your desktop PC. You’re probably pretty familiar with this device. It retrieves your news, it sends your emails, it gives you the exhilarating opportunity to see if anyone ‘liked’ your post about tacos (they did! They did!).

It might be a little slower than you’d like, this could even be a point of contention between you and your PC. Don’t get mad at it, it doesn’t know any better! At least it’s faster than one of its first ancestors, the IBM 5100, released in September 1975.

Upon its release, this PC could be yours for the low, low price of $8,975! This beast packed some real power in its 55 pound frame, with 16KB of RAM and a 1.9MHz processor. To put that in perspective, it would take the full computer’s power to even attempt to load a single image on your Facebook feed, and even then, it would only have been able to generate a few lines of pixels.

Let’s jump straight to the present. Every single millen-

nial, teenager, and at this point, child over the age of eight has a smartphone and/or tablet. Are these technically computers?

They’re phones and tablets! Yes, they are indeed computers, incredibly powerful and portable computers. If you were to put your cellphone next to the guidance computer for the Apollo 11 spacecraft, the same computer that helped men travel from Earth to the moon, land, and then come back completely unharmed, your cellphone would be the equivalent of an alien lifeform 2,000 years more technologically advanced than us visiting a Neanderthal and trying to tell him about a vacation in the seventh dimension.

You must be thinking, if we hold that much power and knowledge in the palm of our hands, what are really, really big computers capable of nowadays?

Quite a lot, actually, but don’t count on using one to check your post on tacos for any more likes. They’re not designed for that at all.

Supercomputers are clusters of specialized computers set to complete ridiculous overthe-top tasks that traditional computers would lock up or melt down just trying to comprehend. Some examples of these things are simulations of the universe and huge events in astrophysics, colossal mathematical equations for research, global economic market simulation, things like that. The largest and most powerful Supercomputer in the world is Tianhe-2 in Guangzhou, China.

I’d like to end this article of terrifying awe on an uplifting and exciting note. One of the most powerful types of computers in the world is in one of the most unexpected places. Can you guess where?

Point a finger forward, turn it completely around and poke yourself in the forehead.

You look pretty silly doing that, but it’s right back there, behind a little bit of squishy flesh and bone. The human brain is by far one of the most powerful and versatile computers on the planet. While it’s true you probably can’t calculate milelong equations in a fraction of a second, you can do things that even the most powerful computers in the world cannot do.

One of the most simple things that humans are pre-programmed from birth that still confounds computers even in this day and age is pretty surprising. Look ahead of you, hopefully you’ve moved your finger by now, and you can tell me what is in front of you: What stands out the most? How far is it in relation to you? What color is it? Is there something very far away in the background that is of little relevance to you, from where you’re standing? More than likely, you were able to identify everything within a fraction of a second, whether you realized it or not. Most computers cannot discern this without quite a bit of pre-programming and human intervention, and even then they are seldom as accurate as a human, especially when attempting to manipulate objects based on sight alone, like a human can.

The next time you fear for your life over the impending robot apocalypse, just remember that if they’re basing their destructive vision on sight alone. Chances are (for the next few years), they won’t be able to tell the difference between your soft human flesh and the tapestry of ruin and rubble behind you!

Live in solace, poking yourself in the forehead and liking posts about tacos knowing that in some ways, you are still smarter than most computers in one way or another!

& noodle bar

3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Dollar Beers!

8pm @ Eichardt’s Pub

Good until the keg’s dry

The Follies!

8pm @ Panida Theater

The annual zany, raunchy, risqué variety show. Warning: The Follies show is definitely not for the easily offended! Must be 21 years or older to attend. May be sold out, so check with panida.org for tickets

The Follies!

8pm @ Panida Theater

The annual zany, raunchy, risqué variety show

Live Music w/ Side of Pork

8pm @ Eichardt’s Pub

Featuring Benny Baker

Live Music w/ Ben and Cadie

6:30-9pm @ La Rosa Club

Great venue for music and some awesome martinis

Live Music w/ Chris Lynch 6pm - 9pm @ Arlo’s Ristorante

Throwback Thursdays at the 219 7-11pm @ 219 Lounge

Featuring live music with Brian Jacobs and friends, $2 domestics and $3 crafts. Join in playing in this informal open mic night setting every Thursday night

Live Music w/ Devon Wade

6:30-9:30 @ MickDuff’s Beer Hall

An independent country music artist from Sandpoint with a strong love for what country music has always been; songs about real life

Live Music w/ Chris Lynch 6pm - 9pm @ Arlo’s Ristorante

Annual Book and Bake Sale

5-7pm

8am-2pm @ Hope Memorial Community Center

A fun social event with tons of books and delicious baked goods, with all proceeds benefitting the Panhandle Animal Shelter and the Hope Preschool. Free admission

Live Music w/ Justin Lantrip

5:30-7:30pm @ Idaho Pour Authority

Sandpoint native singer/songwriter

Free Aviation Seminar

10am @ Granite Aviation (1101 Airport Way)

Interested in becoming a pilot, but don’t know where to start? Learn what the flight training process is all about, see the airplanes, and meet Granite’s awesome instructors!

Sandpoint Chess Club 9am @ Evans Brothers Coffee Meets every Sunday at 9am. All are welcome

Monday Night Blues Jam w/ Truck Mills 7:30pm @ Eichardt’s Pub

GOP Presidential Primary

If you are a registered Republican, this is your day to vote on the presidential primary

Art on the Go with Jules 4-7pm @ Idaho Pour Authority

Join Julie Ellis in creating art from recycled materials

“When Marnie

3-5pm

Find

You are encouraged

Game Night at the Niner 9pm @ 219 Lounge

Come down and take part in game night with

Learn to dance the Swing – 7pm @ SWAC

Learn the Triple Time East Coast Swing from Diane Peters. 610-1770 for info

Open Mic Night

7-10pm @ MickDuff’s Beer Hall

Held on the second Tuesday of the month, Open Mic Night is hosted by Crooked Fingers, Rick Price and Mark Remmetter. All local artists over 21 years of age are welcome for a fun and open night of playing at the Beer Hall!

Clark Fork Teen 3D Printing Workshop

3pm @ Clark Fork Library

Just for teens. Learn about the future of 3D printing and design your own object. Preregister 266-1321

Live Music w/ Umphrey’s McGee

9pm @ The Hive

Crafternoon – Fun Quills & Folds 2pm @ Sandpoint Library Make intricate paper crafts for free to take home

Dollar Beers!

8pm @ Eichardt’s Pub

Umphrey’s McGee is one of the hottest bands on the planet, super-serving their fans with a dynamic blend of original music and rock favorites. Tickets are $30 in advance, and $35 on the day of the show. VIP tickets also available

Good until the keg’s dry

Sculpting the Human Torso in Clay 6-9pm @ Infini Gallery

Hosted by Steve Gevurtz

Throwback Thursdays

7-11pm @ 219 Lounge

Featuring live music and friends, $2 domestics

Join in playing in this night setting every

ful

Open Mic Night

6-9pm @ Monarch Mountain Coffee

Hosted by Scott Reid. Held the first Thursday of every month. Free and open to all!

Music w/ Ben and Cadie @ Idaho Pour Authority from Harold’s IGA performof fun originals and covers

Night @ Niner 9pm-12am @ 219 Lounge

Featuring DJ Josh Adams

March 3 - 10, 2016

A weekly entertainment guide to keep you on your toes. To list your event free, please send an email to calendar@sandpointreader.com.

Adult Grief Support Group

6-7:30pm @ BGH Classroom

Held first and third Thursday of each month in the classroom at Bonner General Health, 520 N. Third Ave. For more information on this free community service, call 208-265-1179

“When Marnie Was There” film

6:30pm @ Panida Theater

Nominated for an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature Film of the Year

Live Music w/ Ken Mayginnes 7pm @ La Rosa Club

International Service Club Hunger Banquet

6-8pm @ Sandpoint Community Hall

Help the International Service Club raise money for their trip in Tanzania, Africa. Tickets $12, available at Eve’s Leaves. 208-946-0549. Kids 5 and under free!

“When Marnie Was There” film

3:30pm @ Panida Theater

Nominated for an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature Film of the Year

Genealogy Workshop 3-5pm @ Sandpoint Library

Find what’s in your family tree. Hosted the Sandpoint Family History Center. are encouraged to bring your laptop

night with Racheal

@ SWAC

Swing from

Reader recommended

Learn to dance the Fox Trot

7pm @ SWAC

Learn the Fox Trot from Diane Peters, with classes every Thursday in Februrary. 6101770 for info

Opening Reception for March Artists

5-8pm @ Infini Gallery (214B Cedar St.)

Come down and check out the new artists’ work in Sandpoint’s newest gallery

Live Music w/ Nate Vernon

5-8pm 2 Pend d’Oreille Winery

Missoula-based post-western folk singer

Vertical Express for Can Do MS

9am-8pm @ Schweitzer Mountain Resort

The only national event series that combines skiing and fundraising to empower people with MS. Skiers of all ages are invited to join for only $25. Register at mscando.org/schweitzer or call 1-888-Do-It-4-MS.

Computer Class – Basic Internet

8:15am @ Sandpoint Library

Learn how to navigate the World Wide Web without becoming overwhelmed. Preregistration required 263-6930

MillTown Vodka Release Party

4-6pm @ Chimney Rock Grill

Sample the new vodka from our local distillery, and meet the staff!

Free First Saturday at the Museum 10am-2pm @ Bonner County History Museum

Lego-Mania! — 6pm @ Sandpoint Library

Our annual Lego competition. Build your creation at home, then bring it to The Library to enter. Lego free play, games and cake

“Solving 9/11” documentary film

7pm @ Panida Theater

Open Mic and Mark are welBeer Hall!

Investigative journalist Christopher Bollyn dives into the real issues that surround bringing peace to our nations and how 9/11 played an integral part in keeping it at bay. $10

Karaoke Night

10pm - Midnight @ 219 Lounge

The Conversation w/ Jesús Quintero

6-8pm @ Ivano’s Ristorante

American Laboratory Theater’s Jesús Quintero, Carolina Sa, Julie Berreth and Sandi Nicholson will share their work, mission and vision. Free to all interested

Throwback Thursdays at the 219 @ 219 Lounge live music with Brian Jacobs friends, $2 domestics and $3 crafts. playing in this informal open mic setting every Thursday night

Trivia Night 7pm - 9pm @ MickDuff’s

“45 Years” film

7:30pm @ Panida Theater

Nominated for an Oscar for Best Performance by an Actress, Charlotte Rampling

Jazz ‘n’ Java

6-8pm @ Monarch Mountain Coffee

Held the second Thursday of every month. All players welcome!

Live Music w/ Rusty Tracks

6pm @ Bernd Barrel

Blues, rock and folk go well with wine

March 11

Contra Dance @ Sandpoint Commu- nity Hall

March 14

POAC presents “The Secret Life of Bees” @ the Heartwood Center

March 16

Five Minutes of Fame @ Cafe Bodega

March 17

Monarch Open Mic Night w/ Scott Reid @ Monarch Mountain Coffee

March 18

Growing Dreams

Productions pres- ents “Alice in Wonderland” @ SHS Auditorium

MUSIC When we swung and swayed

By Tim Henney Reader Contributor

A recent New York Times carried the obituary of former big band vocalist Kitty Kallen. This, in part, is what it said: “Kitty Kallen, her voice sweet and clear, welcomed the troops home from World War II, singing ‘Kiss me once, then kiss me twice, then kiss me once again, it’s been a long, long time.’ She fit the classic image of that musical era: a gorgeous girl with a big smile, a perfect figure in a strapless gown, a string of pearls, a flower in her hair, swaying to the sound of a muted horn. Sweet but not too sweet, her voice conveyed romance without irony at a time when there was still mystery between the sexes and no embarrassment in being moved by a song about lovers’ dreams or the magic of a kiss.”

I was moved, unembarrassed, by many such songs back when the hormones kicked in during … during what? Junior High? Singers Kitty Kallen, Helen Forrest, Sarah Vaughn, Liltin’ Martha Tilton, Billie Holiday, Helen O’Connell, Peggy Lee, June Christy, Anita O’Day, Ella Fitzgerald, Rosy Clooney and Doris Day. They were angels. Angels who could activate a young lad’s testosterone merely by whispering, as Sarah did, “I get misty, just holding your hand…” Well, maybe angels is pushing it. But they caressed a song about lovers’ dreams and the magic of a kiss with so much conviction that many of those lucky enough to grow up to their music on 78, then 45, then 33 rpm records still worship their angelic voices today.

Same for their male counterparts. Frankie Laine. Dick Haymes. Buddy Clark. Sinatra. Nat King Cole. Billy Eckstine. The Ink Spots. Mel Torme. Johnny Mercer. And a promising youngster, Anthony Dominick Benedeppo. Our

rock stars. Crosby was a rock star too, but our mothers’ rock star. So far as I remember, none ever felt compelled to trash a hotel room, smash guitars, start bonfires or grab their crotches on stage. No crotch-grabbing?

You might be wondering, just how old is this writer, anyway? Well, on a recent morning I was enjoying a hot shower.

Something felt different. Naturally, I was necked as a jaybird. Or so I assumed. Then I looked down and discovered I was still wearing my heavy winter socks. In the shower!

The first pop tunes I remember hearing on the radio and on breakable 78 rpm records were “Sweet Leilani,” by Bing Crosby, and “Flat Foot Floogie (with a floy, floy)” by Slim Gaillard and Slam Stewart. Late 1930s. After 1939 and the debut of “The Wizard Of Oz,” everyone’s favorite song was “Over The Rainbow.” Right before we entered World War II America was singing “Three Little Fishies (in an itty bitty pool).” And “heigh ho, heigh ho, it’s off to work we go,” which is what the seven dwarves sang in the new Disney film, “Snow White.”

After December 7, 1941, super patriot pre-teens like me sang it this way: “it’s off to war we go. We’ll slap the Jap right off the map, heigh ho, heigh ho.” Crude today, but that was then.

Never has an era been so emotionally defined by its popular music as that of World War II. Also those uncertain, often personally precarious years

right after it ended. Love, loneliness, patriotism, sentimentality, longing, fidelity, infidelity, fear, hope, plans. Memorable music about more recent war and peace has been delivered by Pete Seeger, Peter Paul and Mary, Joan Baez, Carol King, James Taylor, Bob Dillon and fellow troubadours. But the following songs lyrically revealed our collective soul as no body of pop music has, before or since. Here’s a sample:

“I’ll Walk Alone.” “It’s Magic.” “As Time Goes By.” “I Love You (for sentimental reasons).” “I Don’t Want To walk Without You.” “White Christmas.” “No Love, No Nothing (until my baby comes home).”

“It’s Been A Long, Long Time.” And Miss Peggy Lee’s “Waiting For The Train To Come In,” which said it all: “I’m waiting at the depot by the railroad track, waiting for the Santa Fe to bring him back, waiting for my life to begin…waiting for the train to come in.”

Most of us, whatever our age, treasure a personal cache of meaningful, magical pop tunes. They seem to coincide with those years when the hormones began to kick in. When my first “steady” girlfriend, Mary Ann Hooper (15 going on 23) traded me in for a varsity quarterback and returned my massive ring which she had worn around her neck on a chain, it broke my heart. l sat around for weeks, brooding and playing two 78 rpm Decca records by The Mills Brothers. “After you, no one will

do… no, no, not after you…” And “I’ll be around, no matter how you treat me now, I’ll be around, when he’s gone.”

As it happened, I wasn’t. By then I was going steady with Mary Ashcraft—a pretty, peppy, pom pom-shaking high school cheerleader with an I.Q, roughly twice my own. Our songs? Tommy Dorsey band vocalist Dick Haymes’ “Little White Lies.” “My Happiness” by Jo Stafford and The Pied Pipers. “Nature Boy” by Nat King Cole. And anything by Frankie (“That’s My Desire”) Laine and jazz master Billy (“Fools Rush In”) Eckstine. I identify life’s decades by their music. Not just the 1940s, but every decade. When I reflect on the early ‘50s they sometimes seem like one unending songfest. At a California kids’ mountain summer camp where we were all on staff in 1950, crooning in a quartet with pals who became lifelong friends. “Paper Doll.” “Till Then.” “Daddy’s Little Girl.” We tried to sound like the famed Mills Brothers. Yes, and pigs fly. Later, belting out exuberant, around-the-piano anthems like “A Shanty In Old Shantytown,” and “Blue Skies,” with Air Force buddies in Georgia. And then with fellow collegians in California. That’s what the early 1950s were all about. No Senator Joe McCarthy witch hunts or cold war with the Russians for us. Cold beer and hot lyrics were our gig of choice. To wit:

“Mimi the college widow, taught all the boys anatomy.”

And “Dirty Lil, dirty Lil, lived on top of garbage hill.” And “I’ll hug your flabby belly and I’ll kiss your greasy neck, but get off of me you sonofabitch, if you’re from Georgia Tech.”

And “The verse is number three and my hand is on her knee, roll me over, lay me down and do it again.” And “It’s gin, gin, gin that makes us want to sin, on the Leland Stanford Junior farm.” And

“When the game is over we’ll buy a keg of booze, and we’ll drink to California ‘till we wobble in our shoes.” And “The big black bull came down from the mountain, Houston, Sam Houston … he spied a heifer in the pasture grazing.” Etc. You get the idea.

My favorite carefree college-era aria was “Let Her Sleep Under The Bar.” “She wept a sad tear in her bucket of beer as she thought of the cold night ahead… when a gentleman dapper stepped out of the crapper, and these are the words that he said: her mother never told her, the things a young girl should know, about the ways of college men and how they come and go. Age has taken her beauty and sin has left its sad scar, so remember your mother and sisters boys, and let her sleep under the bar.” Not very hip or politically correct today. But I never knew of anyone raping someone, or being raped, at the colleges I attended. In 1954/55 our coed companions were as lyrically raucous as we were. Many, like my 1957 Cal-Berkeley bride, became school teachers. That’s why kids revolted in the 1960s and 70s. It wasn’t Civil Rights or Vietnam. It was the influence of raunchy college songs on their homeroom teachers. It warped them.

Like the Greatest Generation that immediately preceded us, my generation was moved by a song about lovers’ dreams or the magic of a kiss. We warbled lusty tunes with collegial abandonment. But we listened and danced to romantic pop songs with ardent reverence. Falling in love, hooking up, whatever, seemed less complex and more in earnest then. Before texting, sexting and Twitter. At least it appears so from here.

“Kiss me once, then kiss me twice, then kiss me once again, it’s been a long, long time.”

Many thanks, Kitty Kallen.

By Suzen Fiskin Reader Columnist

Changing Your Mind Great Questions Are the Answer!

“Judge a person by his questions, rather than his answers.”

-Voltaire

Want to make more money? Hungry to be happier? Reaching for richer relationships? Wish you could feel better about yourself?

Great questions are the answer!

I’ve been a success coach for over 20 years, and have spent a lifetime searching for the difference that makes the difference as to why some people are so much happier and successful than others. I’ve discovered that, oh, 99 percent or so of who we are, how we feel, and who we’ll become is wrapped around the quality of our thinking.

After this “aha” moment, I figured out that if my thoughts control my life and who I am, then if I could learn how to control my thoughts, I could control my destiny. Hmmmmm. Makes you wonder what thinking is.

Simply, thinking is just the internal conversation we have in the privacy of our minds. It’s the series of questions and answers we bounce around in our brains. Doesn’t it make sense that one of the best ways to improve our lots in life is to ask ourselves better questions?

Queries like, “Why do bad things always happen to me?” or “Why can’t I ever learn new stuff?” or “What’s my problem?” are unlikely to get you feeling too good about yourself.

You see, our unconscious minds will dutifully search for an answer to all of our questions, so you can imagine what it comes up with for winners like these. This is why it’s so important to set ourselves up for potentially uplifting answers by upgrading our questions.

The most common shared belief that humans have in our culture is that there’s something wrong with us or our world, and our unconscious questions reflect this. Bummer, huh?

The good news is that we can decide to control our internal dialog. After all, the only thing we really have any control over is our thoughts, isn’t it?

Let’s say you messed up at work, and beating yourself up was your old way of doing things. You might have

asked an ego shattering, “How could I have blown it again?” or “What kind of loser am I?” or “How can I make this Harry’s fault?” Instead, you might want to consider a better feeling, “What can I learn from this?” or “What’s a way to turn this around to make it a win-win for everyone?”

In a kerfuffle with our spouses or partners, many of us will put the blame on the other person and leave ourselves out of the equation—not exactly the foundation of a good relationship!

“Why can’t he remember my birthday for once?” or “How could she leave me without any notice?” could be evolved to “What’s my part in this, and how can I make it better?” You’ll be amazed at what a shift this can make on the home front.

Quite a while back, I did a very expensive business coach training. Today, the only remnant of all that time and money is a single $5,000 question; “What’s important about ________?”

(Fill in the blank.)

Now, I can tell you that this is a very powerful and enlightening question in almost any situation. It elegantly brings a level of clarity of purpose that few other inquiries can offer.

What’s important about asking ourselves better questions? Everything!

Suzen Fiskin began her photography career as a personal photographer for Hugh Hefner at the Playboy Mansion. She currently focuses on clients doing boudoir, portraits, event and real estate photography. She had an ad agency for 10 years, and is a graphic artist, web designer, and professional speaker. Suzen is also the author of “Playboy Mansion Memoirs.” SuzenFiskin@ gmail.com, (208)572-0009

Iconic dog ‘Baxter’ killed

The Reader would like to express our condolences to the owners of Baxters on Cedar restaurant for the loss of their namesake, Baxter. Baxter passed away Tuesday, Feb. 23 after being hit by a vehicle while chasing a cat. We’re sorry for your loss.

Spring garden classes offered

By Ben Olson Reader Staff

Registration is now under way for the Bonner County Gardeners Association Spring 2016 Home Horticulture evening class series. The classes begin Wednesday, March 16 at the Ponderay Events Center.

“We try to schedule and offer six to eight classes each season, using local people to teach topics in their areas of expertise,” said Home Horticulture Committee Co-Chairwoman Janae Dale. “Something new this year is a class about working with your landscaping for fire and storm safety.”

The “Fire and Storm Safety” class will be taught by master arborist Michael Richardson, owner of Skywalker Tree Care in Sandpoint.

Another new offering this year will be a Saturday outdoor class and field trip to the local garden of Ann Warwick, where attendees will get their hands dirty learning about making and using compost.

Some other classes on the schedule include; “Raising Blueberries” with Fred and Patty Omodt of Shingle Mill Blueberry Farm, “Culinary and Medicinal Herbs” with clinical herbalist Laura Clemmons, and “Growing Flowers in North Idaho” with Robin Roberts, who has successfully operated a cutting flower garden since 1994.

The complete schedule of all eight classes and registration information is available on the group’s website, www. bcgardeners.org.

STAGE & SCREEN

Reader Reels brings alternative cinema to Sandpoint

By Cameron Rasmusson Reader Staff

There’s a weird, wild world of movies out there, and for the first time, Sandpoint will have access to it in the theater.

The Sandpoint Reader and the Panida Theater are joining forces on Reader Reels, an off-kilter, after-hours film series for adults. The late night showtimes, 21-and-older age restriction, beer and wine sales and one-of-a-kind film selections promise raucous cinematic experiences you won’t get anywhere else in Sandpoint.

With Reader Reels, the Panida and Reader hope to expand the selection of late-night events for local adults. Given the often-limited variety of after-hours entertainment, the film series offers an alternative—or perhaps a quick detour—to the average weekend pub crawl.

Of course, the centerpiece of Reader Reels are the movies—more specifically the off-beat offerings of alternative cinema. These are the types of movies that might not fit your typical Panida Theater showing but still deserve an audience. Perhaps they’re too edgy, too adult or just flat-out weird.

That’s absolutely the case for the first film in the series, scheduled to play at the Panida Theater 10 p.m. March 12. “Anomalisa” is an intricately animated, Oscar-nominated claymation film, but don’t come in expecting something along the lines of “Chicken Run” or “Wallace and Gromit.” Written and directed by the brilliant Charlie Kaufman, “Anomalisa” continues his streak of hilarious yet deeply human films established by “Being John Malkovich,” “Adaptation,” “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” and “Synecdoche, New York.”

The movie follows a self-help author suffering from severe malaise brought on by the mundanity of life. While on a book tour, he begins to perceive everyone as the same nondescript person, including his wife and son, until he meets a unique woman in a Cincinnati hotel. True to Kaufman form, “Anomalisa” is hilarious and affecting in equal measure. It’s an introspective film that uses its distinct visual style to profound effect. Released in December, it received critical acclaim and was nominated for Best Animated Picture at last weekend’s Academy Awards.

“Need proof that animation can not only equal live-action filmmaking but beat the flesh-and-blood version at its own game?” Peter Travers wrote for Rolling Stone. “Try Anomalisa, as haunting and hypnotic an R-rated love story for grownups as you’ll see anywhere.”

Take that R rating seriously, because like many of the films to be featured at Reader Reels, “Anomalisa” is not for kids. It includes strong sexual content, nudity and language, all used in service of an insightful and compelling story.

Don’t miss “Anomalisa,” the first movie in the Reader Reels film series. The show begins 10 p.m. Saturday, March 12 at the Panida Theater. The event is restricted to ages 21 and up and will feature beer and wine sales. Keep an eye on the Sandpoint Reader for more announcements of future Reader Reels shows.

By Marcia Pilgeram Reader Food Columnist

As I plan my spring trip to Ireland, everything Irish is popping into my head. St. Patrick’s Day is just around the corner, our chosen theme for the annual Angels Over Sandpoint High Tea is “Tea in an Irish Cottage,” and I’ve just returned from my annual wintery sojourn to Chicago, where I prepared an Irish feast for the Egyptian in-laws. This traditional visit normally includes a lavish Middle Eastern spread prepared by Casey’s mother-inlaw, Mirfat.

This year, Casey decided to invite them to her home for a cultural exchange. We began with Irish stew and Irish tunes and ended with all the ladies belly dancing to the rhythmic tarabuka drum, played by Mirfat’s husband Sammih. In between dances we polished off a large platter of Blarney Stones.

Blarney Stones, small cubes of moist cake, coated in buttercream and rolled in finely chopped peanuts have been part of my family’s dessert tradition since I can remember. With great anticipation, I recall watching my mother prepare the ingredients. First she would buy a huge bag of peanuts to shell and then chop, either with a small hand grinder or an oversized knife. I loved helping with the grinder, tossing a handful of the nuts in the hopper and cranking the little red handle. When Mother wasn’t looking, I’d pop a few of the salty little nuts into my mouth. We serve Blarney Stones at most every family gathering. Over the years I have streamlined the procedure and have been known to mass

The Sandpoint Eater

Éirinn go Brách

produce hundreds for weddings or packaged to give away on St. Patrick’s Day.

Crazy as it sounds, my favorite place for restocking my baking supplies is the Irish Yeast Company in Dublin. The cozy little shop has been at the same location since 1894 and is owned and operated by John Moreland, who was born above the shop and has been working there since the 1940s. Mr. Moreland is getting on in age, so the shop is only open about three hours a day. I hold my breath prior to each visit, nervous I will find the weathered shop shuttered, or worse yet, reincarnated into a trendy boutique. While he no longer supplies Dublin bakeries with fresh yeast, Moreland sells dry yeast and more baking paraphernalia than you could imagine. It’s easy to spend hours amongst the supply-laden shelves and crowded rows in his little gem of a shop.

After a pub stop or two and armed with my Reader’s

Ticket, I’ll lose myself deep in the National Archives until the Duty Archivist reminds me (again) that I must turn in my materials so they can close. I love the connection I feel to my ancestors when I can see their names in old logs and ledgers and touch their signatures with my fingertip. A lot of my family stories are anecdotal, so the time I spend tracing family history validates my ancestry and anchors me to this country I love so very much.

From Dublin, I’ll take the train to Cork for some overdue visits. The Irish are the most venerable hosts I know and wouldn’t dream of welcoming you to their home without putting out a spread to include egg-mayo, cold salmon salad and either brown bread or my favorite, soda farls. Traditionally soda farls were set out for unexpected guests because they’re quick and easy to make. Served warm with butter and jam, they’re a delicious staple in many Irish homes.

Other stops in Cork will be Bantry Bay for a platter of plump, savory mussels and the hamlet of Castletownbere for a pub-style lobster roll (many of the Irish immi grants of Butte, Mon tana, came from this sleepy fishing village located on the Beara Peninsula). You just can’t match the friendly people, the incredible landscapes and the diverse foods throughout Ireland! If I have you thinking of your own Irish meal for St. Patrick’s Day, and even the easy soda farls seems daunting, you still have time to sign up for an unique St Patrick’s dinner offered by chef-proprietor Heather Nucifora of Two Lakes Catering. Dinner is served a mix of plated and family style, in Two Lakes’

on Thursday, March 17 or Friday, March 18. BYOB to an evening filled with multiple Irish courses, including Irish seeded brown bread with Irish butter, minted pea soup, corned beef and dill, breaded fried Irish cheddar, porter braised lamb shanks and Bailey’s crème brûlée. For the complete menu and additional details or reservations, email or call: Info@twolakescatering. com 509-557-7293 Sláinte!

Irish Soda Farls

Traditionally this was the quickest way to make soda bread for unexpected guests who drop by. Serve these hot off the grill with Irish salted butter and jam. The dough should be thick (not runny) and handled lightly and quickly. Makes 4 farls.

INGREDIENTS:DIRECTIONS:

•2 cups all-purpose flour

•½ teaspoon salt

•1 teaspoon baking soda

•1 cup buttermilk

•Preheat heavy flat griddle or skillet on medium to low heat.

•Place flour and salt in a bowl and sift in baking soda. Make a well in the center, and pour in the buttermilk.

•Work quickly to mix into dough and knead very lightly on a well-floured surface. Form into a flattened circle, about ½ inch thick and cut into quar-

ters with a floured knife.

•Sprinkle a little flour over the base of the hot pan and cook the farls for 6 to 8 minutes on each side or until golden brown.

Random Corner Water

We require it to live, but how much do you really know about water?

Idaho Day celebrates our history

By Ben Olson Reader Staff

• Water is vital for all forms of life and makes up 71 percent of the planet.

• The world record for holding breath underwater is 22 minutes and 22 seconds, held by German freediver Tom Sietas (not officially recognized, though).

• A water reservoir has been found floating in space around a black hole 12 billion light years away that holds the equivalent of 140 trillion times all the water in Earth’s oceans.

• There is a billboard in Lima, Peru that creates drinkable water out of the surrounding air. The billboard captures air humidity and turns it into potable drinking water for the public.

• There is the same amount of water on Earth today as there was billions of years ago.

• By the time a person feels thirsty, they have already lost over 1 percent of the water in their body.

• 90 percent of the world’s freshwater is located in Antarctica.

• A rat is the animal that can last the longest without water.

• A seagull can drink saltwater, as it has special glands to filter out the salt.

• Contrary to popular misconception, camels do not store water in their humps. The humps are actually reservoirs for fatty tissue.

• One glass of water will shut down midnight hunger pangs.

• The main cause of kidney stones is dehydration.

• Water itself does not conduct electricity well, but the impurities in water do.

• Each foot contains about 250,000 sweat glands.

• 20 percent of the world’s unfrozen fresh water is in Lake Baikal, Russia.

• The most common cause of daytime fatigue is due to mild dehydration.

On March 4, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln officially created the Idaho Territory.

By 1863, the area west of the Rockies was once known collectively as the Oregon Territory. The area north of the new state of Oregon and east of the coastal Washington Territory was officially “unorganized” until an act of Congress recognized its admission over 150 years ago.

The original Idaho Territory covered most of present-day Idaho, Montana and Wyoming.

The first territorial capital was located at Lewiston from 1863 to 1866, when Boise was made the new capital by a one-vote margin of the Territorial Supreme Court.

By the late 1860s, Idaho Territory became a destination for displaced Southern Democrats who fought for the Confederacy during the Civil War.

The discovery of gold, silver and other valuable natural resources throughout Idaho Territory, coupled with the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad in 1869 brought in a new influx of people to the area.

After the capital relocation controversy, proposals to split the two regions between north and south Idaho became more prevalent.

In 1887, the Idaho Territory was nearly legislated out of existence with a bill that would have split the territory between Washington Territory in the north and Nevada in the south.

As a favor to Governor Edward A. Stevenson, President Grover Cleveland refused to sign the bill.

The University of Idaho was award-

ed to the northern town of Moscow in 1889, instead of its original planned location at Eagle Rock (now called Idaho Falls) in the south. This served to alleviate some of the hard feelings felt by North Idaho residents after losing the capital.

The territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Idaho on July 3, 1890.

During its 2014 Session, the Legislature established an official “Idaho Day” to be observed each year on March 4 to commemorate the creation of Idaho.

What does “Idaho” mean? It’s the only U.S. state that was likely named after a hoax. In the early 1860s, when the U.S. Congress was considering organizing a new territory in the Rocky Mountains, eccentric lobbyist George M. Willing suggested the name “Idaho,” which he claimed was derived from a Shoshone language term meaning “the sun comes from the mountains” or “gem of the mountains.” Willing later claimed that he had made up the name himself.

One parting Idaho factoid: our state hasn’t supported a Democrat for president since 1964, when Lyndon B. Johnson won the state nomination.

This week’s RLW by Cameron Rasmusson

READ

It’s no easy task to capture 1,000 years of history and the cultures, people and events that moved it. Cambridge professor Mary Beard somehow pulls that off in “SPQR: A History of Ancient Rome,” but then takes it one step further with its insight into common life. Sure, you get plenty of Gaius Marius, Julius Cae sar, Marcus Tullius Cicero and other ti tans of Roman his tory. But “SPQR” also leaves the bak ers, fishermen and foot soldiers in the picture.

LISTEN WATCH

Shearwater frontman Jonathan Meiburg describes his idea for the band’s latest album as “a protest record that wasn’t dumb or preachy.” He was successful in that effort, penning a collection of songs as articulate and incisive as anything in the Shearwater catalogue. The musical style is just as ambitious, layering on instruments guided by deft production oversight. With any luck, “Jet Plane and Oxbow” will be the work that brings Shearwater a bigger national profile.

Oscar night saw low-budget sci-fi thriller “Ex Machina” rightly take home a Best Visual Effects trophy despite tough competition (including a little-seen film called “Star Wars”). It’s a richly deserved victory for a twisting, disturbing thriller that questions the nature of humanity itself.

In “Ex Machina,” eccentric genius Na than believes he has created true artificial in telligence in Ava, a robot of amazing sophisti cation. The only thing Nathan fails to account for is the power of free will inherent to true in telligence.

Then & Now

compiled by Ben Olson

Each week, we feature a new photograph taken from the same vantage point as one taken long ago. See how we’ve changed, and how we’ve stayed the same.

Historical information provided and verified by Bonner County Museum staff and volunteers. The Museum is located at 611 S. Ella — (208) 263-2344.

Littlefield’s on the corner of Cedar St. and Third Ave. in Sandpoint. To the left of Littlefield’s is Lee’s Cafe, a chop suey joint.

The same view today. Xhale Pilates Studio currently occupies the corner building, while the old chop suey joint is currently vacant.

c. 1950 2016

1. A person who has learned a subject without the benefit of a teacher or formal education; self-taught.

“Carl the autodidact blundered through another trial and error.”

Corrections: In last week’s Mad About Science article, the temperature on the dark side of Mercury is actually -280ºF, not 280ºF. We also misspelled “scholarships” in the SASi article.

CROSSWORD

ACROSS

1. Sword

6. Spinning toys

10. Competent

14. Surpass

15. Away from the wind

16. Cause surfeit through excess

17. Banish

18. Former Italian currency

19. Grotto 20. Absurd 22. Historical periods

Attempt

Beginning

Cavort 30. Notes 32. French for “Love”

Drinks

37. Teller of untruths 38. Inn

39. Scottish hillside 40. To the side 42. Emergency signal 43. Passageway 44. Meadows

45. Thumps

47. Ancient unit of measure

48. Fashionable 49. Restriction

56. German for “Mister” 57. Anagram of “Dice” 58. Small lizard

59. District

60. Not a single one 61. Lascivious looks

62. Exam

63. Wildebeests 64. An analytic literary composition

Ale

71 in Roman numerals

Corrosive

Sandwich shop

Voter

Add up

Hodgepodge

South American country

Open only part of the year

Capable of being reached

11. Cacophony

12. A green fabric mixture

13. Visual organs

21. Website address

25. Mesh

26. Effrontery

27. Dogfish

28. Protective ditch

29. Administrative official

30. Name of a book

31. Comply with 33. Take it easy

34. By mouth

Solution on page 17

36. Views

38. Harassing 41. Disencumber 42. Wangle

44. Hale

45. Not here

46. Employs

47. Conceals

48. Gossip

35. An aromatic ointment

50. Computer symbol

51. List of options

52. T T T T

53. Frosts

54. Gumbo

55. Prying

Isn’t it funny how whenever a party seems to be winding down at somebody’s house, you can always keep it going just by talking a lot and eating and drinking whatever’s left.