Serving the Big Horn Basin for over 100 years
Serving the Big Horn Basin for over 100 years
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The loss of Commissioner Fred Frandson this week brought back thoughts of the late Dale Wagner, whom Frandson was appointed to replace after Wagner’s passing in 2016. Both had a strong love of Washakie County, were active in their community and their presence has been and will be missed. Frandson was seeking a second full term as county commissioner. Win or lose he would have still been active in the community and working to make Washakie County better. He may not have been born here but this was his home, his family’s home. He was pas...
This weekend my best friend from college came up to enjoy fair and attend the Confederate Railroad concert. She is the first person I texted when I learned that the fair board had locked in the country group. When we were in college we attended a number of concerts including the Judds, Garth Brooks and Willie Nelson. After college we saw Alan Jackson and Holly Dunn. The latter we reminisced about because it was at War Memorial Stadium and the opening act played through the rain but Dunn and her band played one song and canceled the show. It was...
Welcome to the 2022 Washakie County Fair. There are several changes to this year’s fair as the fair board worked to listen to residents and provide some nostalgic favorites to the fair, revamp some past events and add some new events. The horse show kicked things off Saturday and you could not have asked for better weather, especially in the morning with a cool breeze and some cloud cover. The kids seemed to be having a good time. I witnessed some light banter between friends on who would help with the barrels or run and pick up cowboy hats, bu...
Depression is a treatable condition and it is not part of the normal aging process. However, older adults are at an increased risk for depression. Approximately 80% of aging adults have a chronic health condition according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and 50% have two or more conditions. Depression is common in older adults who suffer from physical illnesses such as cancer, chronic pain, heart disease, etc., or whose functioning becomes limited. Often times physicians treating the elderly see these issues as a...
We received an anonymous email the other day and normally I just delete but I was curious what this person felt was so important and earth shattering that they had to write without putting their name to it. The issue – the “speed trap at Manderson.” That got me thinking about all these supposed speed traps throughout Wyoming. For years Shoshoni was considered a speed trap. At one time Byron was considered a speed trap. So what is the trap? Well if you are speeding/exceeding posted speed limit/breaking the law, then you can be ticketed by an on...
Voters in Washakie County have been treated to three strong debates in the past few weeks. Up first was the local debate between the three candidates for sheriff, hosted by and at the Worland Senior Center. Executive Director Wendy Fredricks knows seniors in the community prefer to vote absentee and prefer to vote earlier rather than wait until the primary election Aug. 16. She realizes the importance of the local race and opted to host the debate for the seniors to have a chance to meet the candidates and make an informed decision. There were...
Welcome to another installment of life in the country. I know you were thinking there is plenty to write about especially about elections and debates but with one big debate scheduled for Wednesday (county commissioner candidates) look for me to write about that next week. The past several weeks it has been the battle of the miller moth at our house. Thankfully we have a pup named Roscoe who has become a great moth killer, but even he can’t keep up. According to the Colorado State University Extension Education, miller moths are the m...
This Monday, July 4, 2022, we celebrate the 246th birthday of his nation we call the United States of America. I have to thank the founding fathers who wrote the Declaration of Independence and to all those brave men and brave families who fought for this initial freedom from England and thank all those who have been fighting to protect the many, many freedoms we have in this country that are outlined in our U.S. Constitution. These are freedoms we should hold dear and never take for granted. These are freedoms that we should celebrate Monday...
What is the difference between stress and anxiety? Are they one in the same or different? There is a fine line between stress and anxiety. Stress is typically caused by an external trigger. The trigger can be short-term, such as an argument with a loved one, or it can be long-term, such as being unemployed for an extended period of time or having a chronic illness. The stress usually subsides once the stressor is gone or dealt with. People under stress can experience mental and physical symptoms, such as irritability, anger, fatigue, muscle pai...
Mike Lindell is NOT the purveyor of election integrity truth. On May 29, 2022, Mike Lindell, peddler of pillows and promises, traveled to Wyoming to speak in conjunction with a political rally. While here, he took it upon himself to allege publicly that widespread election fraud occurred in our fair state. He went on to declare that anyone who does not agree with him is a traitor to our country. As the Chief Election Officer for the State of Wyoming, it is important for me to ensure that each of you know that Mr. Lindell’s statement is f...
Fire and law enforcement are by law essential services, meaning counties and municipalities must provide those services. What is not an essential service is emergency medical services. No one really seems to know why but more and more people are asking as emergency medical services are struggling across the state and the country. During a listening session hosted by the Wyoming Department of Health last week in Thermopolis, DOH officials reported that requests for service for EMS have increased 27.1 percent in the past six years statewide. In...
A once-in-a-generation political crisis that’s systematically tightened its grip on the foundations of America’s democracy is coming to a crescendo with this month’s hearings on the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Thursday’s prime-time hearing held by the House Select Committee on the Jan. 6 Attack was the first of many. The committee has promised detailed accounts of how former President Donald Trump and a militant group of his supporters plotted and acted to overthrow the 2020 presidential election and thwart the peaceful transfe...
Two major news stories broke this week in Washakie County and while there was some negative tone expressed, first at the public hearing for the ambulance service station location on North Road 11, and then later when results and comments of the sales tax survey were released, I am taking the opportunity to combat the negative with the positive. First, let’s look at the ambulance station proposal on North Road 11. Whether you are in favor or not (the special exemption was approved) there are positives. The first was the Board of Adjustment and P...
One of the most important things a person in addiction recovery can do is to maintain employment. It is very important that they do not isolate and become unproductive. Employment is one way to provide daily stimulation, structure, and interactions in the world and with others. It helps to keep the mind sharp and allows the individual to engage emotionally with others in a new and healthy way. However, there can be certain obstacles when seeking work. One of the most difficult obstacles is reputation issues. This is especially true in small...
On Monday, the Worland Board of Adjustment and Planning Commission will be conducting a public hearing on the special exemption request by Washakie County for a new ambulance station. In anticipation of a large crowd, the meeting has been moved from its regular location at city hall in the council chambers to the Worland Community Center. By city code a public hearing is not required for this type of special exemption but Board Chairman Scott Fritzler, seeing the number of people interested in the board’s decisions and listening to some of t...
“When did we stop being the land of the brave and home of the free? When did freedom stop?” Those questions were asked of me on Monday during an interview with Democratic candidate for governor Terry Livingston of Worland. The questions are fitting as we head into this Memorial Day weekend, when on Monday, we honor and remember our brave men and women in the military who served, fought and died in sacrifice for their country. They sacrificed fighting for our freedoms here in the United States of America and for freedoms for others in their cou...
When James P. Owen wrote “Cowboy Ethics: What Business Leaders Can Learn from the Code of the West,” there was a rush for businesses and organizations to accept the Code of the West as a code of conduct, despite the fact that the code has been around for decades. Burlington schools adopted it as a motto and the Wyoming State Legislature adopted the Code of the West as the official state code. With high school and college graduations going on this month and next it is a time where I try to impart some wisdom learned throughout my life. This year...
More than two years ago everything changed with the COVID-19 pandemic. Two years ago we saw some businesses closed by the order of the governors, including here in Wyoming. We saw events cancelled or the number of spectators and participants limited. Then came the masks and even for the first part of last year everywhere you went a mask was either required (school events) or recommended. Wyoming got rid of the mask mandate earlier than most states. We didn’t have the huge lockdowns that other states put their citizens through. Businesses w...
So I woke up this morning to snow and thought to myself, in December we thought we would not get a white Christmas. We did. And now it looks like we may get a white Easter as well. Perhaps the snow will melt but rain and snow are in the forecast later in the week so one never knows. Speaking of Easter did you catch the feature in the Northern Wyoming News on the Maslowskis that included some Easter traditions from the Ukraine. I enjoyed learning about some of those traditions. I briefly, if only for a millisecond, thought about downloading a...
So the new state legislative map with 62 House districts and 31 Senate districts is now law, becoming law, without Governor Mark Gordon’s signature. I know you are thinking did I not just talk about redistricting last week. You are right but with Gordon not signing the legislation last week my first thought, of course, was why? The governor himself and local legislator Mike Greear helped me understand why not signing this piece of legislation was perhaps the only course of action for Gordon Gordon is not the first governor to allow l...
It was about dusk the other night. I was taking a walk around the property with the dogs, and the cats, before it got too dark to see anything. Across our lane is some private property and then BLM. We see people driving all the time over there so seeing lights at this time of night was not unusual. I figured it was someone who had been enjoying a day in the badlands. But my eyes stayed in that direction as I’m always curious which direction people turn and I like to watch the dogs’ reaction to make sure they don’t always run to the fence...
Officials from the Wyoming Democratic Party, during a press conference last week asked for an independent commission to handle redistricting efforts in the future. With politics and personal agendas coming to light during the process this year an independent commission may not be a terrible idea. County clerks across the state worked hard on redistricting during the interim to come up with district lines that worked with special districts in their county, worked to make sure voters were not isolated, and they worked with local legislators as...
It’s about an hour before tipoff for the Wyoming Cowboys and Indiana Hoosiers in the NCAA Tournament First-Four games. This is the first time the Cowboys have made the NCAA Tournament since 2015, a season my husband and I were lucky enough to choose to attend the Mountain West Tournament. The Cowboys finished fourth in the Mountain West during the regular season. I know you are thinking why go to the Mountain West Tournament that year. We had the opportunity, it was Larry Nance Jr.’s final season with Wyoming, the Cowboys were fun to watch with...
Kudos to the Washakie County Commissioners, who as they have in the past, took the reins to begin the discussion of continuing the general purpose one-cent sales tax. Voters have approved the tax twice in the past eight years. The current tax has helped fund projects with the City of Worland, Town of Ten Sleep, Worland and Ten Sleep senior centers, Crisis Prevention and Response Center, Worland Community Center Complex and the Worland Fire Protection District No. 1. Four years ago the commissioners spearheaded the effort to get the tax back on...
The primary election is six months away but work to impact who can vote in that election is underway in the Wyoming State Legislature with Senate File 97 – Change in Party Affiliation. The bill, similar to ones that have been filed in previous years since the 2018 governor election, would limit the timeframe when a person could change party affiliation. Currently you can change party affiliation at any time including on the day of the election. The bill, if approved would only allow an “elector” or qualified voter to change party affil...