(Minor) Food Neurosis Revealed Small Town Law Enforcement:
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
I don't know if you noticed this or not, but I love food. This may or may not be based in part on the fact that I love pictures of food.
I was a child of the 70s being raised by a child of the 50s - and my mother was very much tied to the many ideas of homemaking tradition that came out of that era.
She loved cookbooks and would open them for any number of reason, sometimes not even to make a meal. Then there were the copies of Better Homes & Gardens that she kept - a sumptuous ode to the food photo and all things domestic.
And there we were, my sister and I, poring over the same things that my mom did, becoming addicted to the idea of food and how it looks.
I mean, it really is all in the presentation, isn't it?
Photo of our Monday night meal, made with
love by me and shot with what is known in
our household as "the fancy camera".
Tales of a Kwik Way
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
As I mentioned yesterday, we are currently changing the sheriff’s administration in Teton County. The new sheriff will report for duty in January. I feel a like a lot will change from our current sheriff to the next. I am counting on it, actually. But here is the thing that I don’t want to change: the Sheriff’s Log.
The challenge that I have had to try and overcome since moving here has been this one thing – I have never lived in such a small community. And it’s not just the size of this particular community. It’s the vast expanses of land that both surround and define it. The Teton Valley is a small enclave of humanity existing right along with the majestic hand of Mother Nature. Its remoteness is something that deeply defines this valley. In its landscape and wildlife, this area can only be compared to places like Alaska.
My own background is full of human populace, not herds of elk. My memories include metropolitan areas and buildings. Large buildings. Lots of asphalt, too. Everywhere. Believe me, “Bus rear-ended station wagon, bus is still on road”, would not be considered “news” in Shakopee, Minnesota. But in Teton Valley, Idaho, this little ditty of info could only come from one place: the Sheriff’s Log.
The Sheriff’s Log is published in our weekly newspaper, the Teton Valley News. A full week of entries is posted each time. As a constant reminder that I moved to a kind of “Mountain Mayberry”, I like to peruse the Sheriff’s Log.
For you (all 3 of you), I have selected one day of a recent Sheriff’s Log. I think that this sample runs the gamut enough to show the variety of things that happen here. Whether or not the reported incident led to a full on investigation, we do not know. What we do know is that the below entries are reflected exactly as they were published in the Teton Valley News (my comments in italics, just to clarify).
Here we go.
1:38 a.m. Band practice reported, way to loud
Now see? No matter what is in the log today, it starts like this. At almost 2AM. I think that is great. Probably wouldn’t have enjoyed it so much had I been the complainant. And speaking of complainants…
8:09 a.m. Dog complaint
I wonder what that dog is complaining about now.
8:57 a.m. Vehicle hit in parking lot
9:00 a.m. Stop arm violation
I am guessing this means, “vehicle stop – arms violation”. Not everyone can get the concealed weapons permit that Idaho allows its citizens.
9:36 a.m. Bus rear-ended station wagon, bus is still on road
10:23 a.m. Alarm residence, emergency contact
10:54 a.m. Tractor-trailer headed over the pass
Hello, Stupid, do you have a death wish or do you just wish to put the lives of every driver on that mountain pass in danger? Oh, yeah – you will think it’s faster until your brakes burn out and you miss the runaway truck ramp.
12:02 p.m. A truck hit Kwik Way, no road blockage reported
Really? A truck hit the Kwik Way? I will have to check that out next time I drive into town.
2:22 p.m. Abandoned vehicle was reported
2:39 p.m. Alarm business
That crazy alarm business.
5:22 p.m. A belligerent customer was reported at O’Rourke’s
I am sure! Have you seen the price of their salad?!
5:46 p.m. A man went to climb table rock at 6 a.m., and did not return
I wonder how that worked out.
6:09 p.m. A trailer with no lights, but hazards on was headed toward Rexburg
7:59 p.m. A vehicle was reported on fire between Victor and Driggs
10:17 p.m. A man reported his second daughter took a bunch of pills
I wonder what happened to the first daughter.
11:49 p.m. Drunk man reported driving
Not again.
There is really is something for everyone, isn’t there? What this particular Sheriff’s Log is missing are reports of stock in the road – or – “1:21 a.m. Horse in road”. These happen to be some of my favorites.
Lately, there has been a spate of crime in Driggs. I cannot wait to see the Sheriff’s Log that reflects that activity. And just to follow along, I am very curious as to how the nature of the Sheriff’s Log will evolve under the new administration. More serious crime or less? More renegade horses or not? Whatever the development is, I assure you that it won’t be boring.
Well, not to me, at least.