You know you're in North Idaho when....

True story: My teenaged son told me that during lunch at his high school, a few boys began using their "callers" (I'm sure there's some official name for these things, but I'm clueless about what it might be) to imitate turkeys, elk and possibly ducks, until finally the lunch duty got fed up with the noise and made them stop. Dylan said, bemused, "Only in North Idaho!"

And in my new favorite signs category:

"Life is like a platypus" (huh???)

and

"Spas, Hot Tubs, Yoga" (maybe yoga in a hot tub???)

The temperature sky-rocketed today to 24 degrees.... This is after three days of temps ranging from 9 to 14 degrees. Brrrrr.....

The water near the Long Bridge is mostly frozen, and we've been spotting large numbers of magnificent adult bald eagles hanging around on the ice - as many as 7 or 8. We have a feeling they've been snacking on frozen ducks who were casualties of deep stupidity (Oh, is the water freezing around my legs? I'll just keep sitting here!). Ah, nature!

Cheers!
Kathleen

21 Days 'Til...

Today one of my kindergarteners told me, "There are 21 days until Christmas, Mrs. M.; that's 3 weeks!" When I asked him how he knew that, he said his mother told him. I wanted to say, "Yikes, please stop counting down!" But of course, I didn't. Anyway, I got past the "not ready to decorate" blues and hauled out the Christmas boxes, and I've officially declared it Christmas at the Mulroy-Potter house. We'll cut a tree this weekend. Wonder what Lady the Crazy Dog will do with a tree and ornaments in her house? I shudder to think.... She's already managed to get the lid off a Christmas box in the garage and strew ornaments around the garage and lawn (or rather, the dead grass and mud that once was a lawn before winter invaded).

Favorite book series: "The Outlander" and the five books that follow it. Also, George Martin's "Clash of Kings" series.

Bummer of the day: Sarah Palin is coming to Sandpoint on her book tour and the local bookstore has sold out of her books. Sigh.

Cheers!

North Idaho Notes

Post-Thanksgiving in North Idaho = gray skies, snow on the mountains, and the not-quite-ready-to-put-up-the-Christmas-decorations blues. Coming back from a wonderful family visit to sunny, warm-ish California makes it even harder! Ah well, soon the trees will be dusted white, I'll want to put up the decorations and start baking, and all will be well. I did come home to a Review Copy (capital letters, notice) of my first book, "The Silver and the Cross", and that made me very, very happy. It's a real book! I'm still having a hard time believing it. Set in Wallace, North Idaho, during the silver-mining boom of 1890, it's the story of auburn-haired Leora Brown, the daughter of a minister, and a handsome Englishman, Edward Lycroft. I had a great time doing historical research; so much so that I wrote a sequel, set in 1902, which I hope will eventually be published. Right now I'm writing a book following two different couples, set in 1910 Wallace - the year of the "Big Burn".
Kathleen