The Rocket Man wears tall shoes, I saw them
Two weeks ago when presidential candidates Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton made campaign stops in Missoula I lamely excused my absence, explaining that the two-hour trip was just too far.
Last weekend, however, I gladly drove myself and my girlfriend that same two hours to see the Rocket Man himself, Sir Elton John.
The irony — and, frankly, the level of pitifulness — is not lost on me.
That said, my short pilgrimage to see this aging pop star was much more than I'd bargained for when I bought the tickets almost six months ago to John's encore show in the Garden City.
After being frisked —yes, frisked — in the ticket line, I was tapped on the shoulder by a man in a very tight sweater who asked if he could talk to me for a minute.
Fearing that I'd already done something wrong, I agreed and met the man in blue at the end of the ticket line. He asked if we were fans, had we come to the first show, etc. etc.
Then the strangest thing happened. He told us he was with Elton and produced two front row, center tickets and asked if we wanted them.
Um, yeah.
Suffice it to say that it was a concert experience like none other. I could have blown out the candle in the wind. Sir Elton brought down the house with hit after hit and at the end he signed my ticket stub.
I doubt Obama could have topped that, anyway.
The kids are back
On page B1 of today's Eagle you'll find the second installment of Decoding BHS, a page produced entirely by the staff of the Norse Code, Bigfork High School's student newspaper.
It's another great issue, this time taking a look at the failure of the high school bond from the perspective of the ones who are really affected. Whether you voted yes or no, it's worth reading what the students thought about it.
The page also contains a story asking why today's teenagers have such a foul-mouthed vocabulary, and the conclusions are just a remote control click away.
Other pieces cover upcoming fundraisers and one classroom trip that is sure to inspire envy.
These kids are working hard to create this page and I, for one, have been impressed by the quality of the outcome. Please take the time to read it and if the notion strikes you, send in a letter to the Eagle and let us know what you think or how it could be better.
Summer season is A6P5upon us
Last, but not least, Bigfork's busy season is upon us, though you wouldn't know it from a winter chock-full of neighborhood plans, stormwater projects, school bond votes and plenty more.
With food, fun, and —please, oh please — some sun in the offing for the next five or six months, don't let these issues fall by the wayside. There will still be dedicated people plugging away to make Bigfork better for everyone and the more folks who can join in the conversation with them the better.
The Bigfork Steering Committee is a good place to start, and they can be found at Bethany Lutheran Church nearly every Thursday at noon.
(TM)Alex Strickland