COLDER WEATHER COMING?--We've had some wind and rain but temperatures have been relatively mild for this time of year, with temps in the 50s, but the dampness and high humidity has still made me feel cold to the bone. However, forecasters are saying a huge cold front is supposed to descend upon us from the north and we could get chilly enough to see some snow. If you have travel plans over the mountains, you'll want to check out those pass conditions and keep aware of the changing weather patterns, as you don't want to be caught unprepared. Actually, even if you aren't traveling anywhere, it's always wise to have things stocked up so you won't need to rush to the store in possible snowy or icy conditions; better safe than sorry!

For now, we're just trying to keep our heads above the water, as we saw over four inches of rain come down in just one 12 hour period, so we're dealing with the usual flooded areas and being wary of slide areas along SR 4.

SPECIAL DAYS--Those celebrating birthdays from January 9-15 are Jason Rainey, Vanessa McClain, Phil Vik, Michael A. Quigley, Lisa Hoven, Ryan Burdick, Criss Luthi, Roy LaBerge, Russ Durrah, Joey Moore, Jan Silvestri, Kara McNally, Kathy Hanigan, Bill Mahitka, Tom Irving, Jerod Moore, Frank Strueby, Susan Schillios, Ty Finkas, Holly Pedersen Norton, Cindy Lloyd and 67'er Ed Bussone.

Those celebrating anniversaries this week are Mr. and Mrs. Gary Bergseng, Mr. and Mrs. Glen Holt and Bill and Krista Blix McGuire. Here's wishing all of you wonderful birthday and anniversary celebrations this coming week!

FRIDAY MOVIE--The first free movie of the year will be held Friday night, Jan. 10, at the usual time of 7 p.m., and the usual place, the Community Center in Cathlamet at 101 Main Street. This is going to be an R rated movie, which is listed as being an adult comedy. As always, there is free popcorn to go along with the free movie, or you can bring in your own goodies if you wish. You're also allowed to have pizza delivered there, so just call 360-795-3311 and set that up so you can eat dinner and enjoy a movie at the same time!

CONGRATS--Austin Smith of the Wahkiakum County Fire District #2, (Skamokawa Volunteer Fire Department) reported that Steve Lewis was sworn in as Fire Commissioner #3 at their monthly meeting last week, so a hearty congratulations to him. I am sure that all those currently volunteering at our fire stations would love to see more able bodied people show up and volunteer, so if you're interested, they meet on Thursday evenings at 7 p.m. Our local fire department is currently located in the blue building at 33 East Valley Road, near the Wahkiakum County Fairgrounds. If you'd like to make a donation to this group, send one to P.O. Box 145, Skamokawa, WA 98647. You can also contact Austin at 360-795-0707 for more information. You can follow them on Instagram or Facebook as well. A big thank you to all our volunteers as we truly appreciate you!

FLEA MARKET--It's time for the first Flea Market of the year, and it's happening this Saturday in the Youth Building at the Wah. Co. Fairgrounds. From nine in the morning, until three in the afternoon, you can check out all the sale items and vendors wares, and take in those bargains. Of course, this would be a perfect time to sell your own extras now that Christmas is over and you may have gotten a new item to replace the older, but still good item, so you might want to think about buying a table for $10 and setting up your own sale. Here's to a great first flea market of the year!

CHOCOLATE MAKERS NEEDED--Just in case you haven't heard, the 20th Annual Chocolate Exravaganza will be held at the Hotel Cathlamet on Feb. 13 from 3 to 7 p.m., just in time for Valentine's Day. This event is a program of the St. James Center and is hosted by the Charlotte House. Each box of candy contains at least 20 pieces of chocolate for $20 and of course, the money goes to a very good cause. Not only can you get these at the hotel that day, but you can pre-order them as well, so you'll be sure to get one.

They are looking for volunteer makers and bakers of a chocolate treat to help put these boxes together. They should be bite-size and you'll need to donate 120 of them. This includes any type of goodies that have chocolate in them. It would be super handy if you could present them in their own little baking cups already, as it would be one less thing they have to do and less handling, but if you don't have access to any, they would be provided. So, if you're new to the area, here's a chance to jump on the volunteer band-wagon, and let the gals in charge know that you'd love to submit your favorite goodie!

Please contact Susan at 360-795-6401 or Karisa at 360-795-8612 to get signed up and get all the information you need, and you'll need to have a plan as to what you'll make so they will be able to list the goodies on an insert inside the box.

BINGO--The members of the Sons of Norway will host their first bingo game of the new year at the Norse Hall on Puget Island this Saturday evening, Jan. 11, so if you enjoy playing bingo, then here's your chance to do so. Doors to the lower level of the building (left side) will be open at 5:30 p.m., with games beginning at 6 p.m. Cards are $5 each and winners of the bingo games receive cash prizes! If you have any questions or want to double check that they are indeed holding bingo that evening, call Jan at 360-431-1705.

CONGRATULATIONS--While Evelyn Clark may have ended her reign as Miss Washington in December, she also started a new role as the fiancee of Jason Lorenz, so we are certainly thrilled for her, and we're sending a hearty congratulations to the newly engaged couple! Naturally, that means Evelyn starts out this new year by attending bridal shows with her Mom, Leah, and searching for that "just right" dress and all those other things that will make their wedding day exactly how they want it. I know this can be quite the process, so we're wishing them the best of luck as their wedding plans progress. I know one thing for sure, no matter what dress she wears, she is going to be one gorgeous bride, and Jason is one lucky guy!

THINKING OF THEM--There are quite a few folks who aren't feeling their best right now, so we want to send Laurie Miller, Tracy Tomlinson, Rick Foster, Pam Below, Mike Rees, Stephanie Prestegard and all those others who aren't feeling up to par right now, a great big "Get Well/Feel Better Soon" wish!

HAPPY OUTCOME--One of the animals that had been in a bad way out in Middle Valley, a horse, was caught and rescued this past Sunday by the Cowlitz Co. Humane Society. It had been feared that he would have to be put down because of his wild nature, but thankfully, due to some hard work by several great people, he is now prancing and dancing around in a grassy field and is free from a muddy, miserable extistence and neighbors won't have to worry about it being taken care of or fed anymore. Kudos to all those involved!

OUT OF THE PAST--This week back in 1950, Jan. 9 was also a Thursday and it saw lots of snow coming down in Cathlamet but then turned to rain that night. The telephone company was scrambling as all the sub stations were out and three crews were sent out as they tried to make repairs. Sadly, a former Cathlamet man, Alfred McMath, who was just 33, was killed by falling power lines in Tacoma. Weather conditions worsened and his funeral services had to be delayed. On Jan. 10, it stormed all day and then snow fell again later that evening. By Jan. 11, it was snowing hard once again and by the following day, it was blizzard like conditions with freezing temperatures that night. Historians said it was the worst storm they'd had since the year 1900, with schools closed, power outages and telephone lines down and slides along Ocean Beach Highway closed it off and on. The longest outage occurred at Oak Point, where downed lines on Bradley Hill had not been repaired. This was due to four feet of snow, and more later, but the PUD hired someone with a bull dozer so they could finally get up there and make repairs. It was a time when most able-bodied folks were all doing the same thing: Shoveling snow. This according to my Grandma Elsie Everest's diary.

Here's what was happening just 20 years ago this week: At first, the rains and winds came and then on Jan. 10, we had snow, and then we had a bit more, and by Jan. 12, when our water quit, I was trudging through six inches of it to get my water fixed and running again! To top it off, the power went out for a couple hours so it made the cold, snowy day just a bit more unpleasant. It was this year, 2000, that 35 states were declaring a flu epidemic and even some hospitals in places like Texas, had to turn patients away as they were full of sick people with a nasty strain of the flu. It seems that in some instances, history is repeating itself!