That storm was a heart-stopper

Jim Rosenlund has a different view of Ice Storm 1996 than most.

As the region hunkered down in candle-lit homes on Tuesday, Nov. 19, 1996, the former Washington Water Power (Avista) lineman was already working a 42-hour shift restoring power.

The town was dark. One-and-a-half inches of freezing rain coated trees, roads, buildings, vehicles and power lines. Fallen trees and limbs had knocked out electricity everywhere. It would take almost two weeks, until Dec. 1, to fully fix the system.

“We had never seen anything like it,” said the Coeur d’Alene man, now 68 and retired.

After almost two straight days of work, Jim rested for four hours before he was beckoned to restore power to the home of a Post Falls woman who was on oxygen. He worked 20 more hours before taking another break. From that point, he toiled 20 hours on and four hours off for about 10 days.

After finishing their work, Jim and other Avista linemen headed to a co-worker’s place to snack and share a beer or two. Later that night, Jim asked his wife to take him to the hospital. He didn’t feel well.

He had suffered a heart attack.

“I’m sure I was ripe for something like that to happen, but it was totally unexpected,” he said. “I was only 43 years old. The stress and extended hours were the straws that broke the camel’s back.”

Jim recovered. And, in 1998, he was promoted to general foreman in charge of Avista construction, a job he held until retiring in 2014, after 34 years with the company.

“I will never forget that storm,” he told Huckleberries.

Neither will we.

Idaho dreamin’

Peter and Lynne Baca, now of Leisure Park, Hayden, are basking in North Idaho’s friendliness after joining the tidal wave of “Idaho or Bust” refugees fleeing California.

They love that flags wave here. That generations of families hang out together. That children are polite. And that most of the grownups are, too. That strangers greet you on the street. That you can mention God without ducking and running. And, most of all, that generosity reigns.

Exhibit A. Peter and Lynne, formerly of Thousand Oaks — 80 and 76, respectively — were amazed when they tried to pay their bill recently after sharing a burger at the Rusty Moose restaurant, near the Spokane Airport. The previous customers had paid it for them. So, the Bacas picked up the tab for the older couple next in line who, in turn, paid for the meals of a young couple with six children who were still eating. A waitress told the Bacas that seven diners had paid it forward that day.

“It’s like going back to the 1950s,” Lynne told Huckleberries. “It’s a bit of heaven.”

And it’s up to all of us to make sure that paradise isn’t lost here as it was in California.

Huckleberries

• Poet’s Corner: Whether skies are/blue or murky/won’t much matter/to the turkey — The Bard of Sherman Avenue (“Thanksgiving Day Forecast”).

• At the Higgens Point parking lot Wednesday, two middle-aged women holding cameras with telephoto lenses emerged from a red Jeep, one wearing an orange knit cap and beaming. “I just got here from California!” she exclaimed to no one in particular. “Are you ready for winter?” a stranger responded. “Oh, I’m originally from the Midwest,” she said while heading up the trail to photograph migrating eagles. We’ll see if she’s still smiling in mid-January.

• Pastor Bub Lawson of Northern Lakes Bible appreciated the birthday wishes of family and friends when he logged onto his Facebook account on Veterans Day. But the 11th day of the 11th month isn’t his birthday. It was three months earlier, on the eighth day of the eighth month. At least we know the good padre from Rathdrum is busy winning souls for the kingdom rather than frittering away his time on social media.

• Katrina Wright Swaim of Coeur d’Alene loves words, especially ones with definitions that match their sound — you know, onomatopoeia. Words like “zesty,” “curmudgeon,” “flimsy,” and “popinjay” delight her. Do you suppose “Huckleberries” would receive an honorable mention in Katrina’s world of words? I’d like to think so.

Parting Shot

Ron Lahr enjoys everything about food, from growing and processing it to cooking and baking it. He also loves to eat. Last Sunday, he ordered a birthday dinner that would make a gourmet pause. As a tradition, his family allows the birthday girl or boy to order whatever s/he wants to eat. Ron’s meal? He requested a seven-layer salad, a Hostess Ding Dong-inspired cake, garlic bread, and, as an entrée, “Velsagna.” Yes, “Velsagna.” It’s Ron’s name for lasagna made with an entire one-pound block of the fake cheese, Velveeta. Says Ron, “I definitely believe it will stop some people from calling me a ‘foodie.’” Dunno about the connoisseurs out there. But, for my simple taste, “Velsagna” sounds Mmm Mmm Good.

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You can contact D.F. “Dave” Oliveria at dfo.cdapress.com.