News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Sorted by date Results 60 - 84 of 191
Our first U.S. flag, also called the Betsy Ross flag, had six white stripes, seven red stripes, and 13 stars in a circle in the (Union) blue upper left corner of the flag - all to represent the original 13 Colonies. Requested by then Commander of the Continental Army, Gen. George Washington, it was completed in June 1776. Red Stripes stood for Valor, Courage, and Bravery. White Stripes stood for Purity and Innocence. Blue stood for Vigilance. The last edition of our U.S. Flag... Full story
Happy spring! We hope folks enjoyed the recent Sisters Rodeo, an event the Forest Service is proud to partner with by way of a special use permit and employee participation in the wonderful Rodeo Parade. As daytime temperatures continue to increase, we will likely pause our prescribed fire program until the fall. This was a very successful spring for under-burning on the Sisters Ranger District, burning over two square miles (1,430 acres), including many long standing... Full story
The Tree Swallow [Tachycineta bicolor] is about five inches long and has a forked tail, sparkling metallic green to blue head, and white feathers on its underside. Females are duller in color than males. In North America, Tree Swallows breed from Alaska east to Newfoundland, Canada and south to California, Colorado, Nebraska, and Maryland. It winters north to southern California, the Gulf Coast, and the Carolinas. They nest in aged trees occasionally using old woodpecker... Full story
Over the years, I have often said if I were to lose one of my abilities as I age, I hope it isn’t my mind. I have always really enjoyed using my mental capacity to create, write, imagine, problem solve, make connections, learn, teach, observe, and remember. My long-time school friends can’t believe I remember the first and last names of everyone in our first grade class as well as all eight of my grade school teachers. In 2019, when I slammed my head into the asphalt dur... Full story
Once again, I smell smoke. The shadows landing on the sidewalk carry an amber tint. My friend points out feathery smoke high above us, floating in from what she describes as a 30,000 acre prescribed burn up on the Metolius. We're walking in ClearPine. A plume of smoke arises; it smells like smoldering pine needles. Then it turns dark black, letting off a nasty stink. That was this week. When we left off in the story, here in the column, it was 2017. Click here to see previous... Full story
A sign tacked to the rafters in Cary Schwarz’s saddle shop in Salmon, Idaho reads: “No Dancing,” but when four of the world’s finest saddlemakers squeezed into Cary’s small shop to build a saddle for the Traditional Cowboy Arts Association’s 25th Anniversary—accompanied by curious students, occasional visitors, and the shop dog — nimble footwork was at a premium. From tree to finished saddle the project was nothing if not an elaborate physical and philosophical f... Full story
Normally these articles are written to highlight interesting facts associated with a constellation of the season that can be viewed from our latitude. This month's edition, however, should generate a heightened level of excitement among the readership because it describes the possibility of seeing a nova. (Nova is Latin for "new star.") Many astronomers expect a nova will appear in the constellation of Corona Borealis sometime in the next few months. Designated T Coronae... Full story
There was enough good news emanating from the May 15 Community Builders meeting that two articles were required, one last week (May 22) and another this week. • As president of Sisters Rotary, Bill Kelly announced the plans for the Fourth of July celebration, Sisters 4th Fest, scheduled for Village Green Park, 7:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. The event is being sponsored by Sisters Rotary Club, Citizens4Community, St. Charles Health System, and Next Phase Realty, with support from Run Sist... Full story
When I was a kid, there was this fundraiser called the Walkathon. You'd take your piece of physical paper-thick stock, printed with lines to fill in and boxes to tick-and proceed to pester neighbors, relatives, and grownups at church and school. What you wanted from them: a pledge. They'd pledge, say 25¢ for each mile you would walk, filling their name and address on the line provided. You'd plan to walk the whooooole Walkathon. Twenty miles! The money benefited March of Dimes... Full story
In a previous column, I adopted a view of literature as a time machine that enables us to view people and places from the past. That distant culture might look a little different from ours but, at a heart level, those people aren't all that different from us. This time we are going to crank the controls on the time machine back about 3,500 years ago. Through the pages of the Bible, we will take a look at a woman named Miriam. Miriam's people, the Hebrews, have been living in... Full story
Since the article came out where I introduced game theory in terms of rock-paper-scissors at Sisters Athletic Club, Wade has become more smug when he throws rock to my scissors. Between games, mutual acquaintances question him about my article, and he talks smack about me. And during a match, we goad each other with the specter of public humiliation. The article changed our metagame, and the metagame is really 99 percent of what rock-paper-scissors has going for it. At Wizards of the Coast in the early 1990s, Richard Garfield... Full story
It was a fine week for music and Shakespeare. Or maybe I should say music and wildly silly theater that riffs on Shakespeare? Music first. My teenaged son joined me for a spirited show at The Belfry, headlined by Anna Moss, also known for her duo Handmade Moments (find my interview with her on the fabulous Interwebs at nuggetnews.com). I asked for his opinion. "I liked the opener, Ian George, with his sentimental folk-rock songwriting style," he said. "I thought that he had a... Full story
I am sitting at my office peering at the Three Sisters peeking through the trees surrounded by soft blankets of blushed pink and wisps of orange cream sunsetting on their peaks. I have a lot of charting to do, but tonight feels ripe for a little procrastination. I would rather stare at the mountains. I find myself pondering at how our natural world, with its beauty, renewal, and resilience continually provides an endurable response to the ugliness and suffering our world... Full story
Dear Property Guy: We recently moved out of an apartment and the management company charged us over $500 for holes in the walls. Which not only seems unfair, but totally unreasonable for the work that was done. We had a few pictures and a TV up on the wall. All of which I consider normal. How should this all work. — Nailed in Sisters Dear Nailed: Here’s a dirty little secret about some, but not all, property management companies. Repairs are a profit center. There, I said it. Separate conversation. You are asking the million-... Full story
• The first time I fell into the cyberworld abyss was when I was planning a horse camping trip with a couple of horsewomen, long years ago. While we were going over our to-do lists, Carol offered to check “Craig’s list,” to which I asked indignantly, “WHO IS CRAIG?” • Talking falling, while packing hay out to Riddle the other morning, I went arse over teakettle and landed in a huge puddle of water the color of three-day-old coffee. It was really quite comical and luckily I’ve gone off enough horses in my lifetime to automat... Full story
An aging American workforce, along with a declining U.S. birthrate, makes the U.S. economy increasingly dependent on foreign-born workers to bridge the employment-labor gap and to finance programs such as Social Security. In 2006, foreign-born workers made up 15.3 percent of the labor market, but by 2023, the share of foreign-born workers in the labor market had increased to 18.6 percent. One of the attractions of employing foreign-born workers is that they are willing to occupy jobs often not desired by native-born... Full story
As we're finally starting to see temperatures rise and clearing skies become more frequent, there are a few celestial sights you should look for during your nightly stargazing this spring. Let's begin by locating Corvus, our featured constellation for May. Corvus, Latin for "crow," or "raven," is a small constellation that is best seen during the first half of May. From our latitude, it will stand 25 degrees above the southern horizon at about 9 p.m. local time. Look for a... Full story
Smoke curls around the knees of the ponderosa trees. It's just a prescribed burn, nothing to worry about, but it sets my nervous system a-twangling. I'm reminded of the Milli Fire in 2017, and the bouts of smoke or fire we've experienced since. Seven years ago, my family was "full-timing"-living in a small travel trailer, traveling and camping. Here is what I wrote then: I saw the sun, a shiny reddish-orange thing, sulking behind a veil of forest fire smoke. I saw two gray... Full story
The first time I heard a mountain lion scream I was standing in the horse barn at Soldier Meadows Ranch, Nevada. The barn was made of stone stacked by members of the U.S. Cavalry who had lost the deployment lottery and been assigned to this bewildering outpost in the wilderness known as Camp McGarry. It could only have been tough duty — they were out there to protect immigrants along the notoriously unpleasant Emigrant Trail, where many died of thirst, exhaustion, or l... Full story
As the smallest bird in North America, and the smallest long distance migrating bird in the world, the Calliope Hummingbird's [Selasphorus calliope] migration of 5,000 miles from southern Mexico to western mountainous regions is prodigious and inspiring. When heading north the Calliope flies along the Pacific coast and returns south along the Rocky Mountains for a round trip total of 10,000 miles. This tiny hummer weighs in at 0.1 ounce which is similar to a ping-pong ball.... Full story
Not long ago, I sat on a beach. I was warm - too warm, actually, quite hot - so I took a dip in the wide, thunderous ocean. With my family, I navigated the cobbled streets of a beautiful Spanish colonial city center. The trip was a wedding gift to me and my husband, offered long ago. Finally here we were, in a place we love: Oaxaca, México. Incredible architecture divided rooms and corridors with brightly painted walls and black wrought iron. Shaded, cool hallways created... Full story
A couple weeks ago, I called up Rick Kroytz, counselor and mentorship facilitator at Sisters High School, and asked if he knew of any students I could interview about the local hobby-gaming scene. He met me at the school during the lunch period, and introduced me to senior Dylan Rundle and sophomore Brennan Frutos of the Table Top Games Club. During our chat, we were joined by the club's faculty advisor, T. R. McCrystal. At any given time, Table Top Games has about a dozen... Full story
I woke up Sunday morning on fire to fish the March Brown mayfly hatch on the lower McKenzie River - just a few miles from Springfield. Yes, this spot is about 100 miles from Sisters. Yes, it was a holiday of sorts - St. Patrick's Day. Yes, I am nutso. Yet, being a nutso fly angler is often a good thing, I don't eat or drink stuff that is dyed green and I have a fly fishing truck that is set up for local, medium, and long fishing trips. A day trip to the McKenzie is a long day... Full story
We brought them home in a snowstorm. They were half wild. At 15 weeks, they were the last dogs for a Scottie breeding kennel to sell, of his 30 puppies bred in 2023. It was obvious that these two brindle boys were not popular with the breeder’s clients. You almost never see brindle Scotties. Yet it is a valid color for the breed. I won’t ask what happens to most of the ones that don’t sell. Fortunately for us, these two came to our home. It may have continued snowing outside, but the sun has been shining in our home ever... Full story
Living in a place like Sisters, we can all appreciate how visitors are drawn to its natural beauty, recreational activities, and small town charm. And there’s no arguing that tourists provide a healthy livelihood for many local businesses. But some are using that very rationale to defend an increase of STRs (short-term-residences, aka vacation rentals) in Sisters. But do we fully comprehend the price our town could pay if that happens? I visited Jackson Hole a couple decades ago. Another beautiful “small” town that got disco... Full story
