Idaho is the fastest growing state in the nation?
Really?
Seems so according to various news agencies, 1.2% per year growth according to the Census Bureau, or at least that was the source quoted in one story.
Even a rural area like ours gets some growth. You can see it in more cars on the area roads but even here many people are willing to commute.
When we were in California, if we were working in the San Bernardino Valley, that was a commute of around eighty miles a day, four days a week. When we first moved to the high desert, in 1989, it was about thirty-five to forty-five minutes from point 'A' to 'B'.
Before we moved to Idaho in 2006, and with the almost constant growth in all those areas, that same trip took up to an hour and a half on many occasions.
Up here in North Idaho, I would NOT want to have to be at work by eight am in Spokane, Washington, often about two hours away, in good weather! But in "adverse weather" like now, like much of winter, three hours plus are possible. I'm glad we no longer have a long commute but I know people that make that Spokane run five days a week!
Again, back in the California days, the craziest commute from people we knew, was a guy and his wife that commuted, rain or shine, even in winter as much as possible, from the nearby but still farther east town of Adelanto, all the way to downtown Los Angles, over two hundred miles a day round trip, every day, on their Honda Goldwing. They both worked at the same law office and made that commute for quite a few years.
They'd put over two hundred thousand miles on their late model Goldwing until a piece of road debris, I remember being told it was a bolt that was kicked up by their own front tire on their motorcycle and the hit put a hole in the front case of their engine. Instant oil leak of a major magnitude. They ultimately sold everything and moved to Utah.
I also remember the area newspaper, the San Bernardino Sun would occasionally, every year or two, run stories on the people with the longest commutes. A guy that lived out in the 29 Palms area that drove to the Los Angeles area for work often won. What does one "win" by being first in such a long commute? I don't know!
Winter Is Here, It Will Be A White Christmas!
The Winter Solstice occurred as of 8:28 am local time, Pacific time, yesterday (12/21/17).
For us, the snowfall started Tuesday the 19th. The snow began to fall during the night from Monday to Tuesday and then continued all day long and until Wednesday morning the 20th. Almost two feet in that time period.
While we'd had the almost ten inches in early November, as I'd mentioned the last post, it had not done much of anything since. No snow and no rain. Then Tuesday when not much was predicted and even then it was predicted to turn to rain by the afternoon, but the weather didn't apparently get that part of the memo and it stayed cold and snowed all day. The high was 31.
When we got home Tuesday, we were greeted by no electricity for over two hours. Then it came on for an hour, then was off again. The power outage was due to a couple of big rig trucks sliding out on a very slushie slippery highway 95 and taking out some trees that in turn took out some power lines and then getting everything all connected again.
Consequently, it was a rough night for sleeping and the off then on power didn't stay on until after two am.
The photos below were able to be taken Wednesday afternoon as it actually had cleared up after starting the day by snowing. I flew the Mavic and got these showing the new snow.
Really?
Seems so according to various news agencies, 1.2% per year growth according to the Census Bureau, or at least that was the source quoted in one story.
Even a rural area like ours gets some growth. You can see it in more cars on the area roads but even here many people are willing to commute.
When we were in California, if we were working in the San Bernardino Valley, that was a commute of around eighty miles a day, four days a week. When we first moved to the high desert, in 1989, it was about thirty-five to forty-five minutes from point 'A' to 'B'.
Before we moved to Idaho in 2006, and with the almost constant growth in all those areas, that same trip took up to an hour and a half on many occasions.
Up here in North Idaho, I would NOT want to have to be at work by eight am in Spokane, Washington, often about two hours away, in good weather! But in "adverse weather" like now, like much of winter, three hours plus are possible. I'm glad we no longer have a long commute but I know people that make that Spokane run five days a week!
Again, back in the California days, the craziest commute from people we knew, was a guy and his wife that commuted, rain or shine, even in winter as much as possible, from the nearby but still farther east town of Adelanto, all the way to downtown Los Angles, over two hundred miles a day round trip, every day, on their Honda Goldwing. They both worked at the same law office and made that commute for quite a few years.
They'd put over two hundred thousand miles on their late model Goldwing until a piece of road debris, I remember being told it was a bolt that was kicked up by their own front tire on their motorcycle and the hit put a hole in the front case of their engine. Instant oil leak of a major magnitude. They ultimately sold everything and moved to Utah.
I also remember the area newspaper, the San Bernardino Sun would occasionally, every year or two, run stories on the people with the longest commutes. A guy that lived out in the 29 Palms area that drove to the Los Angeles area for work often won. What does one "win" by being first in such a long commute? I don't know!
Winter Is Here, It Will Be A White Christmas!
The Winter Solstice occurred as of 8:28 am local time, Pacific time, yesterday (12/21/17).
For us, the snowfall started Tuesday the 19th. The snow began to fall during the night from Monday to Tuesday and then continued all day long and until Wednesday morning the 20th. Almost two feet in that time period.
While we'd had the almost ten inches in early November, as I'd mentioned the last post, it had not done much of anything since. No snow and no rain. Then Tuesday when not much was predicted and even then it was predicted to turn to rain by the afternoon, but the weather didn't apparently get that part of the memo and it stayed cold and snowed all day. The high was 31.
When we got home Tuesday, we were greeted by no electricity for over two hours. Then it came on for an hour, then was off again. The power outage was due to a couple of big rig trucks sliding out on a very slushie slippery highway 95 and taking out some trees that in turn took out some power lines and then getting everything all connected again.
Consequently, it was a rough night for sleeping and the off then on power didn't stay on until after two am.
The photos below were able to be taken Wednesday afternoon as it actually had cleared up after starting the day by snowing. I flew the Mavic and got these showing the new snow.
Above: The Middle School (what happened to Jr. High like it was when I was that age?). The school day had been canceled, the second day in a row, due to the snow.
Above: This photo is just angled a bit more Westerly from the top photo. The wet road is Highway 95/2 or Main Street as it goes through the area.
And then this photo, looking towards the East a bit. Still Highways 95/2. The building in the center bottom of the photo is the old Conoco gas station that went out of business several years ago.
Above: This is a little after 5:00 pm, this time of year it is dark by around 3:30 pm. Stacy posed so I could get this photo as we were heading home on Tuesday.
Last photo, from Wednesday afternoon, part of the walkway in front of the building just before I shoveled it out to make it easy for resident's to walk through. Many people walk by the building to stay away from highway since there are no sidewalks on this side of the highway.
To all that read my thoughts, have a great Christmas!
Tad
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