Big Sky Blog

I remember hearing several months ago that “Prairie Home Companion” would be coming to Missoula in September, and as I was driving around town this evening, I stumbled across the live broadcast on KGPR. I only caught a few minutes of it, but that little bit was indeed entertaining. There was a discussion about how Missoula is “different” from the rest of Montana, since it has feng-shui and aromatherapists; and a bit piece that featured two cowboys who come across Martha Stewart and impress her with their attempt to follow some of her recipes. Did any of you attend the show – or hear it?

Via MeFi comes an interesting site that shows how many staffers our elected officials have on their payroll, and how much money they were paid. For instance, here’s Representative Dennis Rehberg’s staff directory. And on the Senate side: Max Baucus and Conrad Burns.

Well, I really don’t know if this is a good idea or not, but I installed a Forums Section here on Big Sky Blog. I think that if you’re already a registered user of Big Sky Blog, then you are already registered on the Forums. I created a few broad forum areas: Politics, Events, Places, and Ask. The “Ask” forum is designed to be kinda like AskMetaFilter, but focused (duh) on Montana. You can also subscribe to the forums via RSS so that you can stay updated via Bloglines (or similar service).
So give it a spin – post an entry, create a topic, let me know (a) if it works, and (b) if it’s a good idea.

Just a quick roundup of a few noteworthy things in the Big Sky Blogosphere: first up, Justin over at Missoula.net is has some interesting political entries, including the results of an online poll regarding the Senate race. Courtney is still looking for some help with her nifty Montana History blog – any volunteers? And check out this new-to-me blog: Fish Creek House – “The adventures of building my dream log home in Montana and the journey of being a bed and breakfast innkeeper. Hang your hat and come on Inn!” And our very own Patia had an encounter with a semi-dressed gentleman. And the ever-mischievous Monkey has a politically-incorrect assessment of two recent celebrity deaths (hint: Croc Hunter meets Dem politico). And don’t forget: you can catch up on ALL of the Big Sky Blogs over at the Big Sky Blogroll!

Event: Kalispell Blogger Bash

When: October 14th (though I told Zen, it was the 15th *slaps self*)
Where: MacKenzie River Pizza

Time to be decided later…

If you have more questions or anything, contact me at jen.parabellum@gmail.com and put Blogger Bash in the subject line. If you plan on coming on a little vacation, Motel 6 is only 35.99-40.00 an night for an adult (discounts for those who at least look old, lol … and children stay free). That’s the cheapest in town, plus it probably shouldn’t be too much of a worry unless you live there for 7 days.

Goodies: There will be gift bags that will be handed out on site. I’m thinking since Halloween is so near, inside will be Halloween candy and Montana goodies from NW Montana.

Don’t hesitate to e-mail me and if need be, I’ll be willing to give out my phone number in the days ahead, just to get last minute go-aheads etc.
So far David and Zen (con hubby) will be attending. It’d be great to get some of the other cities in Montana to have reps.

If you enjoy games, then you might want to head to Helena on October 7 to attend the Montana Game Fair, held at Carroll College. Here’s a list of events. One of the role-playing games is called “The King’s Men,” which is introduced thusly: “An invading orc army is coming in 10 days they will overrun the Shire, destroying all that you love.” There’s also “miniature” games, such as Warhammer 40K. And would you believe that there’s one called “The Game Of Redneck Life?” Hm. And there’s also going to be Triquest, which is a made-in-Montana game that features horses. Hope everyone has fun!

MSU and Bozeman police are investigating reports of a sexual assault and an attempted sexual assault that occurred early on Saturday, Sept. 9, both on and near the MSU campus.

MSU police chief Robert Putzke said the first incident occurred at about 5 a.m. in the 400 block of West Garfield Street when a man entered a sorority near campus and attempted to sexually assault a female resident. The woman fought and the man fled.

The second incident occurred at about 6 a.m. near the 1600 block of West Garfield Street when a man entered a residence in MSU Family and Graduate Housing and sexually assaulted a woman who had been sleeping on the couch. The assailant then left.

In both cases, the women described the assailant as being in his late-20s, stocky build, very short blond hair and wearing a dark, short-sleeved shirt. Police believe the assailant in both incidences may be the same person. Campus officials are posting crime alerts today in all residence halls, graduate and family housing, sororities and neighborhoods near campus. University police are also increasing their patrols.

Both women have been referred to the MSU VOICE Center, which provides confidential services for survivors of sexual violence. Putzke advised residents to remember such safety practices as locking doors; staying alert and being aware of your surroundings; staying in well-lighted places; and immediately reporting any suspicious or unusual behavior to police.

Anyone who saw someone who matches the above description (or picture below) or who experienced someone attempting to enter their residence Friday night (Sept. 8) or Saturday morning (Sept. 9) should call Crimestoppers at 586-1131, Bozeman police detectives at 582-2000 or MSU police at 994-2121. Anyone who wishes to remain anonymous may call Crimestoppers at 586-1131.They can also send an e-mail to switness@montana.edu.

This is the sketch released by the police – the person is wanted for questioning. He is described as: White male -mid to late 20s in age; 5′8″ to 5′10″ in height; stocky build; short blondish/ light brown hair.

In the last 6 weeks, the wholesale price of gasoline has declined 79c/gallon, that’s 34% off, from its early August peak:

At the end of today’s (Tuesday, September 12) trading, wholesale prices (gasoline and heating oil are in $/gallon, combined product value, crack spread and crude oil are in $/42-gallon barrel and natural gas is in $/mmBtu) were:

………………….Wednesday….Tuesday………net…………%…..
……………………August.2..September.12…change…..change..

Gasoline………..$2.3377…….$1.5521…..-$0.7856…..-33.6%
Heating-oil……..$2.1294…….$1.7597……-$0.3696…..-17.4%
Combined Product
Value…………….$94.68………$68.67……..-$26.01…..-27.5%
Crack-Spread…+$18.87………+$4.91……..-$13.96……-74.0%
Crude-oil…………$75.81……..$63.76………-$12.05…..-15.9%

Natural-Gas…….$7.799……..$5.574………-$2.225……-28.5%

The above calculation of the crack spread (gross refinery operating margin) assumes that each 42-gallon barrel of crude oil yields 25.2 gallons of gasoline and 16.8 gallons of heating oil and other distillates, such as jet fuel.

Also, please note that retail gasoline prices tend to be at a $0.75 to $1.25/gallon premium to the wholesale gasoline price as traded on the New York Mercantile Exchange, which would mean that a wholesale price of $1.55/gallon would indicate a retail price of $2.30 to $2.80, depending on where in the U.S. the retail pump might be located.

Anyone can easily monitor the gasoline, heating oil and crude oil regular session futures prices on the New York Mercantile Exchange (because these prices are available at no charge, they come with a 30-minute delay) by going to:

Gasoline futures prices
http://www.futuresource.com/quotes/custom.jsp?us=rhu

Heating Oil futures prices
http://www.futuresource.com/quotes/custom.jsp?us=rho

Crude Oil futures prices
http://www.futuresource.com/quotes/custom.jsp?us=rcl

And, in case you would like to see Natural Gas futures prices:
http://www.futuresource.com/quotes/custom.jsp?us=rng

You can monitor the electronic over-night session by removing the “r” from each symbol (example: remove the “r” from “rhu” to get “hu” to get the symbol for the electronic over-night price quotes for gasoline).

In Ferndale, a lone firefighter, will conduct a lone vigil on MT 209, by once again, holding an American flag. While in Bigfork, MT – firefighters will be conducting one hour shifts.