Halloween candy to die for
Oh, yeah, it's Wednesday and that means Chat Day.
Celine's back, she's in good form, so we'll try to get off stage in time. Celine doesn't like to be kept waiting in the wings.
But before we hit the chat, though, I need to make a correction concerning last week's column about the May primary election — you know, the one that became a five-month traveling road show.
I stick by just about everything I typed for that thing, but technically, there was an error involving the 55-page by-laws of the Kootenai County Republican Central Committee.
I had been told by several members that the committee's function was almost entirely to help Republicans win in a general election — and that the committee couldn't endorse candidates or otherwise interfere in Republican primaries.
It turns out that's not right.
Yes, it's the committee's primary function to get Republicans into office — but if it's the will of the membership, the KCRCC actually can endorse in a primary for county offices.
No state or federal primaries, but for county-level elections ...
Yes.
Thanks to Alex Barron, Don Bradway and Brent Regan for sending along the official wording.
And now, with apologies for that monologue, on with our show ...
ITEM: We promised you more on Halloween fun from the limitless knowledge bank of CandyStore.com.
Last week I had to break the news that in the 11-year period ending in 2017, Idahoans bought more Candy Corn than any other Halloween sweets.
Sheesh.
Surely we're better than that.
Maybe it was all sold in Boise. Please tell me so.
Who knows what they'd consume down there?
Anyhow, you'll see in a separate little box within this column that we want you to let us know what candy YOU would swipe from your kid's treat bag.
The editor and I both went for Butterfingers, but the only state in the entire nation where that delight ranked No. 1 happened to be Illinois.
Don't let us bias you, though.
What's your favorite?
If it's Candy Corn, I believe I'll sink into horrible despair.
We'll let you know what North Idaho thinks, OK?
ITEM: I'm not a ghoul, nor would I wish harm on anyone.
However ...
It fascinates me that more than 250 people worldwide have died while taking selfies in the last six years.
And, well ...
Never mind.
The findings, which analyzed news reports of the 259 selfie-related deaths from October 2011 to November 2017, were published recently in the Journal of Family Medicine and Primary Care.
Now I feel better about taking exactly ONE selfie in my life, a shot of Sammie the World's Greatest Cat trying to crawl up my chest as I was hoping for a nap.
As you can tell, I survived.
But apparently a crowd of selfie-shooters has not.
Surely you're asking: Why?
Of the 259 deaths, researchers found the leading cause to be drowning, followed by incidents involving transportation — for example, taking a selfie in front of an oncoming train — and falling from heights.
Other causes of selfie-related deaths included animals, firearms and electrocution.
Yikes.
Look, I sincerely hope you've never looked at a train barreling toward you and said: “Hey, this could make a fantastic shot!”
ITEM: Perhaps you've heard that Amazon is about to raise its minimum wage quite significantly for all 350,000 employees — even seasonal workers.
The very bottom wage will soon be $15 per hour.
The thing is, though, as handsome as that sounds (especially when Idaho's state-mandated minimum wage is $7.25), how far 15 bucks will go depends quite a bit on where you live.
The Pew Research Center conducted a study of metropolitan areas across the U.S. and, using the cost of living, came up with how many orders of fries you can grab at the drive-through on $15.
OK, Pew didn't mention the fries — but might as well have for residents of places like San Jose and the Silicon Valley.
Throughout the Bay Area, $15 has the purchasing power of $11.80 to $12.03, based on what are called “Regional Price Parities.”
The Coeur d'Alene/Spokane area can't be nailed down that precisely, but the purchasing power of $15 here at home never dips below face value — and can move as high as $17.
Hooray for us.
Oops, we've carried on past the allotted time limit.
Right, I'm gone ...
So now give a rousing welcome to our close personal friend, Celine Dion!
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Steve Cameron is a columnist for The Press.
A Brand New Day appears from Wednesday through Saturday each week.
Steve's sports column runs on Tuesday.
Email: scameron@cdapress.com
Facebook: Steve Cameron
Twitter: @BrandNewDayCDA
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INFO BOX:
What's your favorite Halloween candy to give away — after you've consumed all you can stomach? Let Steve know: scameron@cdapress.com