Big Sky Blog

Fellow Montanans: I received an e-mail today from a gentleman who needs some help…and who better to turn to than the Big Sky Bloggers!

I saw your blog as I was scouring cyberspace for a set of the “Big Sky Montana” mud flaps with the outline of the state of Montana on them. I have looked everywhere and cannot find them. Just saw a set on a pick-up here in ****** today – I should have chased him down to ask where he got them. Anyway, I thought that being *in* Montana that you or one of your blog readers could point me in the right direction.

So — any ideas, folks? Let me know in the comments and I’ll forward any leads to the gent. Much obliged!

It’s Girl Scout Cookie time–at least in Big Sky Council (from Lewistown to the Idaho border). I think Treasure Trails–Billings and the eastern part of the state–do cookies in the fall. Anyway, we just unloaded a truckload of cookies here in Missoula–over 5500 cases in all. Our girls will be delivering orders and setting up booths all over town. I hope you’ll support them!

Since my troop is made up of senior high school age girls, I’ll take this opportunity to let everyone know that teens can be Girl Scouts too. It is actually much harder for the older girls to sell cookies because often people seem to think they can’t be “real” Girl Scouts. There aren’t as many Girl Scouts over age 11–girls get busy with other things. But those who stay in gain much from the experience. You can give them your support by spending $3 for a box of delicious cookies!

Thanks.

What an intriguing idea: Craig pointed the way to Macohmet — a collaborative writing experiment with a fictional town as the main character. Kudos to AJ Tooley for presenting this opportunity!

As I was walking the dog through town this morning we passed an open, grassy area with 5 deer. I expect that folks outside of Montana would find that image quite consistent with their view of Montana–though perhaps they would be surprised to learn that we seldom have bear or mountain lions in the middle of town. (I didn’t say never). I wonder if these city folks would find it surprising that we have terrific public libraries here?

I write western historicals and like most writers these days I do most of my research online (you have to be careful–there is a lot of innaccurate information out there, but that’s a different story). For some things, though there is nothing like a book. My current work in progress is set right here in western Montana and I’m finding the library is a great resource. They have many original documents, type written histories and that sort of thing preserved in their Montana room.

Searching the online catalogue, which links to other libraries in Montana, is also getting easier thanks to computer technology. Still there is nothing like the organization that a trained librarian imposes on information in the library. Shelf browsing–something computers have yet to emulate well.

The library is comfortable, warm and inviting. It is full of terrific sources and helpful people, but not over crowded. Large windows give the main reading room an open feeling. If you haven’t visited your local library in a while, I recommend it.

Despite the fact that Great Falls is only the 2nd or 3rd largest city in Montana, it is home to the largest hospital in the state: Benefis Healthcare. I’ve been in there a few times: several friends’ have had babies, and I underwent the only surgery of my life at Benefis in October 2002 (out, cursed appendix!). My experience was actually quite pleasant — or at least the parts that I remember. The nurses, the techs, the surgeon, the anesthesiologist (Dr Wu – who plugged me into what he called “Wu’s Brew”) — they were all incredibly nice and considerate, and considering that I lived to tell the tale and had no complications, I’d have to give a Two Thumbs Up to Benefis Hospital. So it was quite nice to read that Benefis has been recognized for the outstanding care that it provides.

Overall, Benefis was placed in the top 5 percent of hospitals in the country for overall clinical outcomes. It also received a HealthGrades award for excellence in lung care, making it number one in Montana for pulmonary care and placing it among the top 5 percent of hospitals nationwide. Benefis also received a HealthGrades award for excellence in orthopedic care, placing it in the top 10 percent of hospitals nationwide, and rating it the top hospital in Montana for joint replacement surgery…Benefis also received a five-star rating for its stroke treatment, the highest rating in its rating system…and also received five-star ratings for treating bowel obstructions and for treating sepsis.

I love dogs. They’re so cute, loyal, playful, smart, and so on. Man’s best friend and such. BUT…I’ve never really cared for the “scary” dogs: pit bulls, dobermans, and others that usually get bad press. Don’t get me wrong — I’m not spoiling for a fight with pit-bull fans who maintain that they are sweet, gentle, loving dogs, and the only reason that some of them get crazy is because of lazy/bad/evil owners. And yes, I know that “pit bull” is not an exact breed, but everyone knows what kind of dog I am referring to. I know that most pit-bulls are your basic, standard-issue Nice Doggies. They’re just not quite “cute” enough for me, and I (like many people) have what may be exaggerated sense of wariness about them. I like collies and shelties (and still have a soft spot for dachschunds because we had two of them when I was growing up).

Now, having said all that…if you’re ever in the market for a pedigreed pit-bull, get on over to Montana Reds — he breeds and raises these pups right here in Central Montana. The owner is a friend of mine, and I’d trust any dog that was raised by him. Take a look at some of the new additions to the Montana Reds family! Even for a guy like me, these pups are pretty darn cute.

If you’ve ever entertained the notion of starting your own business in Montana, be sure to check out the MT office of the Secretary Of State (corrected per comment) website for information. Tips on choosing your organizational structure, what forms need to be filed, and links to other business resources. Also: the Montana Code Annotated 2003 – plenty of information about all kinds of businesses and services.

I’ve heard from a few folks that the Big Sky Blog looks fine in IE and IE-based browsers, but not so good in Firefox…and sure enough, I took a look myself in FF and was shocked. I tested a few different stylesheets, but nothing seemed to make it look better in FF. The theme you are currently viewing was the least-offensive that I could find. I’ll keep tweaking and see if I can come up with something better. Ah-ha! I think that the issue has been resolved: the Kubrick template seems to look great in both IE-based browsers and in Firefox!

Cyn pointed the way to a very whimsical site: Travels With Chicken! The premise is simple: a rubber chicken, cleverly named “Chicken,” travels around the world and has his photo taken in all sorts of places and situations. Although Chicken is not based in Montana, he has visited our wonderful state, most notably Glacier National Park. Go Chicken!

Big Sky Blogger Kalamity (aka Karbon Kounty Moos) has posted some very nifty pictures for all of to see — farmlife in Montana, and some great wildlife. Go see now!