Chat Day: Freaks, phones and felines

Hello, out there in our winter wonderland.

It’s Chat Day, and I’m thrilled to announce that I’m safely back home and scraping snow with the rest of you.

I spent a delightful holiday in Kansas City, with doctors anxiously poking, prodding and cutting on my lower back.

You just can’t beat fun with a neurosurgeon.

Anyhow, it’s cool what you notice when you’ve been gone just a couple of weeks — things like how it’s neat to have a coffee hut of some sort on just about every street corner again.

What are they thinking in the Midwest?

Where do they get their instant java fix?

Also, I went shopping over the weekend and suddenly spotted things like Tillamook ice cream (especially the favor with huckleberries) that you just can’t find outside the Northwest.

And Seattle sourdough bread, which isn’t quite San Francisco quality, but at least it’s baked on the coast.

Of course I missed seeing Celine Dion, who’s back again to liven up the show.

Thanks, Celine.

Why don’t we get this party started?

ITEM: I received a note from reader Vivian Hackett, who noticed the recent news about some priests guilty of child abuse — no longer pursued, but living in comfortable retirement at a Gonzaga University facility.

Vivian wanted to know, with pretty fair logic, why these men are allowed to enjoy life in a university residence when they perhaps should be in jail.

To get an informed answer, we turned to local attorney Duane Rasmussen, who represented a few dozen victims in Spokane-area clerical abuse cases about a decade ago.

Duane suggested that the reason these priests were residing at Gonzaga mostly had to do with timing.

“So many of the abuse cases involved things that happened quite a while ago,” he said. “Generally, victims don’t come forward for years, if at all.

“That situation, with the statute of limitations, makes it impossible to prosecute them in a criminal case.

“The only recourse, and the one I was involved in, was a civil matter where we sued the Diocese of Spokane, or Gonzaga, to get compensation for the victims in many cases.

“The lack of criminal action was frustrating with some cases, but these abuses happened years earlier, so there was nothing that could be done.”

I realize that’s not a very satisfactory answer, Vivian, but that’s how the law works.

And by the way, Duane mentioned that some states are trying to get the statute of limitations extended for abuse cases.

Currently, the only nationwide exception to the statute is for murder.

ITEM: I can’t help myself.

I’m laughing out loud.

What happened was that I was searching for an informed opinion on a story about teen smartphone use.

You know I’m against kids having the things until they’re 18, right?

I have to repeat that in any story about phone use.

Anyhow, a Pew Research Center study suggested that kids using their phones almost non-stop still have the same amount of live interaction with friends as others who spent far less time online — and that seemed really bizarre.

So I ran down NIC communications professor Josh Misner to hear his comments on the study.

You can read Josh’s thoughts on teen phone use in a column later this week, but the reason I’m still chuckling is that Misner currently is working on a book.

It’s a guidebook, really, explaining how we, all of us, can take steps to reclaim our own attention — and decide for ourselves how to handle all the technology that’s overwhelming us.

So why can’t I stop laughing?

Josh’s book is titled: “Put the F**king Phone Down!”

Fill in those spaces for yourself.

I promise to let you know when the book is available to the public.

ITEM: If you read this column at all, you know that I love Sammie the World’s Greatest Cat — who’s actually reading this over my shoulder at the moment.

I’m also a sucker for all neat pet stories, and today we have a great one.

You’ve read, I’m sure, about the horrific wildfires in California — and how the town of Paradise essentially was a total loss.

The “Camp Fire” started on Nov. 8 and killed 85 people.

There were precious few happy moments for residents, but Andrea Gaylord was thrilled when her blond shepherd, Miguel, was found by rescuers.

Andrea was relieved, but the rescue was bittersweet because Miguel’s brother, Madison, wasn’t seen when firefighters were cleaning up the area.

At least she had Miguel, until ...

The town’s evacuation order was lifted in late November, and Andrea was allowed in to see if anything could be salvaged from the charred remains of her home.

And of course, there was Madison standing guard over the property.

Awwww ...

Needless to say, though, I’m pretty sure that Sammie TWGC not only would have been waiting for me, she might have put out the whole damn fire.

Cheers, all …

Take it away, Celine!

•••

Steve Cameron is a columnist for The Press.

A Brand New Day appears from Wednesday through Saturday each week.

Steve’s column on Gonzaga basketball runs on Tuesday.

Email: scameron@cdapress.com

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Twitter: @BrandNewDayCDA