Your source for news in Hot Springs County
Your source for news in Hot Springs County
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What a show our volunteer firemen put on every year. Whenever I see fireworks it always takes me back to two times in my life – my grandfather and Disneyland. When I was growing up, grandpa used to order in fireworks from some company out of state. I was always so excited to see that huge box arrive. It was like opening a pirate’s treasure chest with all the things that sizzle and boom. Come 4th of July, since we lived on a corner, grandpa and my mom would set the fireworks off in the int...
This past weekend saw the annual PRCA Rodeo, and Thermopolis truly shined in terms of showing off our town. The nightly performances at the fairgrounds were well-attended, with supporters of breast cancer awareness Friday night and an amazing tribute to our Armed Forces Saturday. At the Chuck Mead Memorial Pack Horse Race the crowd cheered on everyone, whether local or not, and encouraged them through the challenges of capturing their horses, securing the packs and leading the animals in the...
Some time ago, I was surprised by a question from a young friend (actually a teenager): What’s the most important lesson you’ve learned in the loooong life you’ve lived? Before I considered the question, I informed my young friend that long had only four letters and none were to be stressed. Only then did I wonder at the nature of the question from one so young. I’ve spent the largest part of my life dealing with the young, and I couldn’t remember ever being queried in such a serious manner by one so young. Frankly, I was at a loss for a moment...
Recently, my oldest son started playing tee ball through the Hot Springs County Rec Department. It’s been a learning experience on many levels. I’ve had to remind myself that I am not a coach, and Mike’s been learning about the game – although he isn’t quite ready to let go of the bat when running to first base – and more importantly about being a good sport and teammate. With the whirlwind of the 2018 election just really starting to get a good spin on it, we can take some of those lessons abo...
“Inside every old person is a young person wondering what the heck happened.” I do think about this on occasion, like getting out of bed in the morning, knees popping, or when I try to do something I’ve done all my life and suddenly realize its not as easy as it used to be. I’m looking out the office window this morning and started thinking about what I would have been doing 40 years ago at this time. Wildcat Band. We were up and on the streets at 7 a.m., marching and twirling flags, blowing...
Thermopolis was recently designated as an “opportunity zone.” In essence, this means people – whether they live here or not – can invest money from the sale of companies into our community if they so choose. True, to be designated an opportunity zone it does mean our community is in something of an economic “low spot.” That is an unfortunate reality, but rather than making that a focus point let’s instead concentrate on the word “opportunity.” There are plenty in Thermopolis if you take the t...
Its time to pull out the shorts and tank tops! No, wait, jeans and a sweatshirt. Oh, let me grab my raincoat while I’m at it. Fickle Mother Nature in the spring, letting us wonder until the last minute what we need to bring with us when we leave the house in the morning. Having been born and raised here, I have realized keeping at least a sweatshirt and probably a rain jacket in my car year-round is a sound idea. And while we may be a tad frustrated at picking out a cute outfit the night b...
Sixty years ago (Oh my gosh, can it be that long ago?), Cody hosted Torrington in the state championship 3A football game in a November blizzard, 38” deep snow and 10 degree temperature. Most who braved the conditions have ever after described the conditions as the worst ever for a championship game. As a Blazer, I was doubly miserable because though we had the better team, the conditions took us out of our game. There were a total of two passes thrown that day...both incomplete. The canyon was closed and we spent a miserable night in Thermopol...
You can go on the internet and find a special day or special week for almost anything these days, from National Hamburger Day to National Coloring Book Day, but for all of us, one of the most important should be Teacher Appriciation Week. Let’s face it, without a teacher you wouldn’t be able to read this. Without a teacher, I wouldn’t be able to write this. I have had four special educators in my life that I appreciate on just about a daily basis, not just for what they taught me in the class...
May is officially here, and among the various celebrations coming in the next few weeks graduation and the end of the school year are certainly among the more prominent. Since I’m still 12 years off from celebrating my own kids’ graduation, I typically enjoy attending ceremonies for the children of friends and family. But, before all the festivities begin it’s good to hear what senior students are going to be up to next year. That’s what I got when I attended the signing day this week. Watching...
I’m going to give you a little tip. Go see the high school Drama Club’s spring production, “The Villian Wore a Dirty Shirt” tonight or Friday night. Director Mary McGillivray has once again taken our super talented kids and created an evening that will have you laughing, groaning (at the awful puns), hissing the bad guys and cheering on the hero. Poor sheriff Jack B. Nimble (Tyler Kay) just can’t talk to girls even though he’s in love with Sweet Sally (Shianne Yarrington) and instead mak...
This past week saw members of the Wyoming Tourism Board visiting for a familiarization tour and their regular board meeting. During a dinner with our visitors, a comment I heard over and over was that we have a real gem here in Thermopolis, a “hidden treasure.” This next week, our town will be home to the Wyoming State Chamber of Commerce. As they will also be receiving a tour of the businesses and other locales in the county, I expect many will have the same opinion of our town as a hidden tre...
Occasionally thoughts more profound than, “What’s for dinner?” and “Are you washing clothes tomorrow?” cross my mind. I visualize happenings such as running into an acquaintance who asks, “What do you think about eternity?” or “What are we going to do about the at-risk dams around the country?” It’s at times like these that I remove my glasses, making sure I point at least one bow at the person who would dare ask such a question on a nice spring day, and reply, “Now there’s a question for one to ponder.” I do that in hopes that by the time I...
I finally finished a project last weekend that has taken me literally two years to accomplish. I now have a “Heritage Wall” in my home filled with a panoramic photo of Gebo surrounded by photos of my Burnell and Stewart relatives. Its good, sometimes, to remember where you came from. While going through the old family album to pick out the photos I wanted to use I found a photo of my grandfather with his first car near the tunnels in the canyon. Although in his 20s, the photo brought back mem...
Over the spring break, my wife and two sons took one heck of a road trip, travelling from Thermopolis down to Arizona to visit their aunt Mandie. Everyone was excited about the trip, even me as it meant a little peace and quiet around the house and time to get some long put off projects done. Of course, four days into the experience I had run out of things to do and was wanting — just a little bit — for the return of my two young men and our regular WWE matches in the living room. Likewise, eve...
After asking around amongst friends and acquaintances, it appears that April 1st is not a common or even uncommon date upon which to celebrate Easter. The irony of having the greatest day of Christianity on April Fools Day is not lost on skeptics who take great pleasure in pointing out that irony to the discomfort to those of us who value to the utmost the person and position of Jesus Christ. Churches around the world will be crowded, though less so than I remember as a child, with "once a year" visitors who recognize the preeminence of the cen...
As we go through life there are often certain times or certain images that stick in our memories. As we approach Easter this Sunday, I look back on all the Easters I spent growing up here in Thermopolis and have to laugh at a few of those memories. As an only child, for some reason my family thought it would be cute for my mother and I to have matching outfits every Easter, and to be honest, sometimes it was OK. I vividly remember one Easter, I was probably four or five-years old, when mom and I...
Being a good Irish girl, my ancestral time for drinking and frivolity arrives this weekend. It is accompanied by corned beef and cabbage along with Irish soda bread. And yes, I may imbibe in a Bailey’s Irish float or two. One side of my family is Irish, the other side Scottish, so cabbage in all its possible forms was a staple in our house and I truly do love the sound of Scottish bagpipes. They will bring tears to my eyes every time. I think one of the funniest stories my grandmother ever told...
Can you feel it? Spring gets closer every day, and we’ve almost got another Wyoming winter in the books. But as spring acts as time of awakening for Mother Nature, take as a chance to open your own eyes to problems you might otherwise pass by. Our state is facing some drastic budgetary cuts, particularly with regard to our schools. That means budgets have to be cut at the local level as well, and our students are having to pay the penalties. Sure, there’s plenty of great things happening in the...
Just like everyone else, sometimes my mornings don’t start out the greatest. Maybe I forgot to set the timer on the coffee pot or I woke up later than usual, you know, the kinds of things that make you grumpy right off the bat. I have to say, though, regardless of how my morning starts, somewhere around 7:45 I always have a smile on my face. I don’t know who she is, I don’t know her name, but she is there on the corner by the church, Monday through Friday, rain, snow or sunshine, helping our s...
Thanks to this past weekend, I can now add “mount a microwave above a range” to my resumé, though it’s also painfully obvious — extremely so — that I won’t be signing up with any home renovation companies in the foreseeable future. Since the snow and cold were keeping my family and the visiting in-laws from doing much outside, we decided to take on some indoor projects to get them out of the way. For my wife and mother-in-law, it was getting their taxes filed. For me and my father-in-la...
So here we are, one of my favorite days of the year – the day after Valentine’s Day. Yes, if you know me, I’m very much a salty, spicy, chips eating kind of girl, but I must confess, I am sometimes a closet chocolate eater. Hence, today is one of the best as everything Valentine’s related has gone into the discount bin and just before closing you may find me at the store sifting through the leftover goodies that other girls in town did not get from their special someone. Milk chocolate is, of...
It’s time for the greeting card companies, chocolatiers and florists to really get busy, as Valentine’s Day is just a week away. Whatever your plans for Feb. 14, there’s no doubt that February brings with it the feeling of love in the air. Though you might feel pressured into buying something traditional for your special someone, whether it be jewelry, flowers, tasty treats or hand tools, keep in mind there’s alternatives as well. I’m not saying don’t buy the love of your life something,...
I have an arrangement with my landlord. I am going to die in this house...because I detest moving. He’s OK with that. We all go through life gathering this and that, not really thinking about all the items we have picked up along the way. That is until we decide to move. While its amazing the things I have found during this latest moving adventure, it is even more amazing to realize the places I’ve been, the connections with family and friends, old photos and assorted trinkets I’ve found. Every...
As any parent knows, one of the responsibilities that comes with having children is making sure visits from the Tooth Fairy happen. That little pixie had already visited my five-year-old twice, but I guess he wanted another chance to try and spot her so after a bit of amateur dental surgery he successfully removed his latest loose tooth. Now, in the past, the Tooth Fairy has left coins, but this time she decided to go with paper money. She didn’t know Mike is a big fan of shows and movies w...
