Serving the Big Horn Basin for over 100 years
Serving the Big Horn Basin for over 100 years
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“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... Full story
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... Full story
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... Full story
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... Full story
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... Full story
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... Full story
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... Full story
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... Full story
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... Full story
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... Full story
A group of state lawmakers filed a bill that bars transgender women and girls in Wyoming from participating in high school and collegiate sports that match their gender identity. The Senate voted 25-4-1 to introduce the bill and it was referred to the Education Committee on Feb. 18. The “Fairness in Women’s Sports Act,” or Senate File 51, is sponsored by Senator Wendy Schuler, R-Evanston, and six other lawmakers. In addition to implementing a ban, the measure seeks to protect students who may experience retaliation for reporting fellow stude...
A few weeks ago I wrote about our adoption of Roscoe, a mixed breed pup we adopted from New Hope Humane Society. Roscoe is the first dog we adopted from New Hope but the fifth animal. When I discussed Roscoe it was in the context of an issue of pet owners versus parents and I said then I would come back to telling you more about our youngest furchild. That time is now. Roscoe has one brown eye and one blue eye. He usually gives me a sideway glance with his brown eye as if to say "Really." I get... Full story
The Wyoming State Legislature begins the 2022 20-day budget session on Monday. There are many important decisions for the Legislature to make during this shortened session that occurs every two years. The first important decision is, of course, the budget. By all accounts, working the budget this year should be easier than the past two budgets where numerous cuts had to be made. Revenues for the state have improved, without taking into consideration the $1.2 billion worth of federal COVID funds from the American Rescue Plan Act. The ARPA funds... Full story
A Tennessee school board sparked controversy last week by banning Art Spiegelman’s ‘Maus’, a graphic novel that tells Spiegelman’s father’s story surviving the Holocaust and Auschwitz, citing the book’s inappropriate language and “nudity.” Before last week, I had never heard of the book. So, I decided to check it out. Spiegelman’s abstract story depicts Jews as mice, Nazis as cats and Poles as pigs. The “nudity” in question is naked mice. Yes, you read that right. The school board pulled this book from curriculum over naked mice. People ar... Full story
This week’s issue of the Northern Wyoming News completes our third year returning to our roots and returning to a weekly newspaper. We appreciate the community’s support and especially our readers who have continued along with us on our journey. For the most part the community has adjusted to the weekly but we still hear from our readers that they miss a daily newspaper and on occasion we will get an inquiry if we will ever go back to a daily. My answer to that is I don’t know, but what I do know for certain is that our staff works hard on th... Full story
Individuals who have substance use disorders, as well as mental health disorders, are diagnosed as having “co-occurring disorders.” The coexistence of both a mental illness and a substance use disorder is not uncommon. People with mental illness are more likely to experience a substance use disorder than those not affected by a mental illness. Symptoms of addiction can mask symptoms of mental illness, and symptoms of mental illness can be confused with symptoms of addiction. There are some patterns that do present themselves, though. Ind... Full story
My Fitbit tells me I got three and a half hours of sleep Monday night and about the same on Sunday night, far short of the eight hours everyone says we need. I prefer at least five hours of sleep but sometimes it just does not work out. However, when I get less than five hours a night it is hard sometimes for the brain to stay focused for a full day so this week you get a lot of random thoughts. The first is I am not sure how my Fitbit can tell when I’m sleeping and not just cat napping on the couch, but it seems to know. I got the Fitbit f... Full story
I know most people look forward to a new year. A new year can bring a fresh start and new beginnings. It’s usually a time of reflection on the past year and accomplishments made, and to review areas needing improvement and to set new goals. Many people start this process by making resolutions. Resolutions to go to the gym, to lose weight, to spend more time with family, to look for a new job, to eat healthier, to read more books, etc. I think an area that many forget to explore when setting new resolutions, is mental health. So how would one g... Full story
On Feb. 14, Wyoming Legislators will gather in Cheyenne to start the 2022 budget session. First and foremost, the Legislature has to pass Gov. Mark Gordon’s 2023-2024 biennium budget. As legislators prepare, there is good news and bad news. The good news is the state’s budget shortfalls were not as big as originally anticipated. Gordon’s proposed budget of $2.3 billion is larger than anticipated, but still smaller than the previous two-year budget cycle. That’s thanks to a boost from federal money from the American Rescue Plan Act and the Inf... Full story
I was introduced to American Sign Language (ASL) at a pretty young age. I had a deaf friend growing up, and am hard of hearing myself, not to mention my mom used to be a special-education teacher, so she learned it as well. Some of my earliest memories involve being in school every morning, going over what day it was and what we were having for lunch in ASL. I recall some of it to this day. There are many benefits to learning ASL, especially at a young age. These benefits help the child now, as... Full story
Our family at the Pomeroy household grew by one more on Dec. 23, 2021, as we adopted a 6-month Australian shepherd mix male puppy from New Hope Humane Society. This brings our total fur children at our home to six – three cats and three dogs. Adopting Roscoe did not come easily but it was, as some would say and what I believe to be, a “Godwink” moment. Roscoe was pet of the week on Dec. 16. I figured he would be adopted right away. It was Christmas time, he was totally adorable. Now I see the pets of the week every week and joke about adopt... Full story
Well the new year came on Saturday with really barely a whisper but there is a lot in store for us this year. The City of Worland will be appealing the 2020 census figures. This could have potential impact on future funding if they are successful. This is a story to watch. There are several construction projects in the works right now that are expected to be completed this year — Sunlight Federal Credit Union, Unique Precisions, Pit Stop Travel Center and Big Horn Cooperative Travel Center. All of these will be great additions to the c... Full story
Elon Musk got Time’s 2021 Person of the Year and I’m not having it I’m on Twitter the other night and I saw a tweet from Stephen King stating, “I admire Elon Musk, but the real People of the Year are the doctors, nurses, first responders, and scientists who have worked so gallantly — there is no other word — to fight this deadly, constantly transforming virus.” I had to go back and reread this. Elon Musk got Person of the Year? The space guy who named his kid a random jumble of letters and symbols? That guy? I looked it up, just to be sure King... Full story
If 2020 was the year of the pandemic then 2021 was the year of the comeback, at least here in Washakie County and the surrounding area. I know what you are thinking – what comeback. You are thinking we are still dealing with COVID-19, vaccines and vaccine mandates (with the Supreme Court to hear a case next week). But let us take a look at 2021 and you will see what I mean. Both Worland and Ten Sleep schools finished the 2020-21 school year in person. There were actual proms and regular graduation ceremonies. The start of this year came with n... Full story
Thank you Washakie County; your generosity never ceases to amaze. Every year we have sponsored the Silver Tree for Seniors I am amazed and blessed by the generosity of folks wanting to help spread the Christmas cheer with our elderly. Over the past four years I have heard tell many a story about the powerful, positive impact your generosity makes on those who receive the gifts. One year I was even blessed with the privilege of helping to deliver the gifts and got to see firsthand the joy those gifts bring. It truly is better to give than to... Full story