IT'S A NEW YEAR--It's my first column of 2021, wow, we made it! We may be into a new year, but we still have the same ole weather, wet and wild! We even ended the first Saturday in January with a heck of a rain event, which also came along with some strong winds, of course that depended on where you live, as some areas got hit harder than others. I think the first tree casuality happened on the west end, as a tree came down across Altoona Road in the early evening hours, so that set the tone for the rest of the evening. By the time I headed to bed on Saturday night, we already had three inches of rain for the day, so it was no wonder all the fields around our area had turned into "lakes" by Sunday morning!

BE PREPARED--With more rain still coming down and slides happening along several highways, some of which are quite major, it's good to be extra cautious and keep an eye out for falling trees and rocks and mud, especially if you're having to drive in the dark. It's also that time of year when having a winter emergency kit in your car is a great idea, as you never know when or where you might get stranded. While you can check out the full supply list from a government website, most of it is just common sense, so just think of all the emergency supplies you might need, and pack them in a bag to take with you. Make sure it includes some food and water, blankets, flashlights, maybe boots and rain jacket and all those other "neccesary" things, and it's wise to keep the gas tank on the fuller side and have those cell phones charged up too. We are much more upset when unforseen events come up when we're totally unprepared for them, so by preparing now, you won't be stressed later!

NEW RECORD?--By the way, one of our East Valley gals, Theresa Videan said her rain gauge was reading over 121 inches of rain for the year 2020, so yep, it was a wet one! Our weather station didn't record quite that high, only 112 inches, but as we all know, rain amounts can differ greatly from valley to valley, and mile to mile, so we aren't totally surprised by these numbers.

NEW FARMERS/ANIMAL OWNERS--To all the new folks: you will soon find that the ratio of needed land per big animal is greatly increased here, which means if you have only an acre per animal, you'll probably need at least three and even more than that if you only own a lot of lower wetlands. If you have no way to change out fields in order to keep grass growing and not turn into mud, you could wind up with no feed at all come spring time, so I wish you a lot of luck as you deal with our very wet conditions here. Also, once these fields freeze and the grass loses its nutritional value, you need to supplement your animals with good quality feed. Whether they are "for fun" animals, or animals to eat later on, keeping them fed properly is really important and helps prevent some of those Vet bills later on. As you deal with flooded fields and an abounding amount of water and mud, all I can say is, "good luck!" This first couple of years here can be a real learning curve.

SPECIAL DAYS--Those celebrating birthdays from January 7-13 are Jason Rainey, Josh Moonen, Vanessa McClain, Don P. Wages, Renee Zacher, Stephanie Leitz, Lori Mogush, Jamie Smith, Shelby Elfers, Larry Rose, Marlena Silva, Kristin Robinson, Michael A. Quigley, Ryan Torppa, Ellie Leitz, Lisa Hoven, Ryan Burdick, Lourie Noonan, Holly Lindsey, Criss Luthi, Erla Crouse, Roy LaBerge, Kara McNally, Caroline Jennings, Kyler A. Sause, Cindy Lloyd, Bill Mahitka, James M. Blain, Susan Schillios, Mike Moore, Ty Finkas and 67'er Ed Bussone.

Belated birthday wishes go out to Trynity Mendez, who I left out last week; sorry about that and also Carol Hadley, whose birthday I just got on my list. Hope you both had wonderful birthday celebrations!

It looks like this week is not real popular for weddings, as I have no anniversaries listed for the entire week! If you were married between January 7 and 13 and would like to be mentioned, please give me a call and I'll add you to the list, as right now, that is a blank slate for wedding celebrations.

DID YOU CELEBRATE?--Whatever you did on New Year's Eve, I hope it was more exciting than mine, as I did an "ankle flop" and and that was not any fun at all! The only one who seemed glad I was sitting down was the cat, as then she had a cozy lap to sleep on, as I was certainly not going anywhere. So, whatever you did, I hope it was more fun than that. Even if you stayed home alone and watched televison, it beat being on the injured list. I can only hope this is not a sign for my coming year, as the last one was bad enough and I was hoping for it to get better, not worse! On the good side of things, I'm back up and walking. Very, very carefully.

NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTIONS?--One of mine has to do with writing myself notes to remind myself of something, but later on, find it very difficult to make out that "chicken scratch" I wrote down, and wind up trying to figure what in the world I was trying to remember! Like writing down phone numbers with no names attached; that's not a good idea anymore. Here's hoping whatever resolutions you made, that you made them attainable so you feel good about completing them and if you do nothing else this year, be kind to yourself which usually makes it easier to be kinder to others. Cheers to our resolutions!

THINKING OF THEM--There are more and more people I know that are dealing with Covid-19 first hand, and there is definitely a wide spectrum of symptoms, as well as how long it lasts for each person. I certainly feel for all those that are currently dealing with it and hopeful that they will soon be well again. Sadly, many are dealing with some long term problems, which is even more frustrating and scary, as well as really heart breaking as those once vibrant people have really been knocked for a loop. For those currently affected, I certainly wish for your good health to return soon and may you come through all this without any long lasting health issues. Take care, everybody. We're thinking of you!

GOOD IDEA?--There have been an awful lot of dogs lost and found around here lately, and one person suggested that maybe some good hearted people could get together and buy a chip reader for our area, so that those animals could be scanned and reunited with their families much quicker. As it is, if someone finds a dog without a collar they have to take it all the way into Longview or over KM, just to find out if it's got a chip or not, which certainly isn't handy for the people who find the animal. Plus, not everyone is able to transport a large dog in their vehicle or house them until somebody comes looking for them. So, what say you? Does anybody want to look into this, and then if it's feasable give it to WAAG, our current Wahkiakum Animal Advocate Group, which helps find "lost owners" and takes care of those animals that are found?

HELPFUL HINT--One of the hints to getting your dog back if you happen to lose it, is putting out clothing of yours that you've been wearing and often times the dog will find it's way back home (or place you were last together) by your scent. For cats, the hint to get them to come back home is to leave out their cat boxes and they will usually come back, as they say they can smell it for up to a mile away.

We have a lot of dog and cat dumping in our area, so for those of us who have had to deal with that, contact WAAG and see if they can help find a home for the dropped off animal. You can contact them via their page on Facebook, or by email: wahkiakumwaag@gmail.com or there are several phone numbers listed to reach them: 406-802-7178 or 775-219-4878 or 360-504-6336. If you'd like to donate to their cause, you can mail your donation to WAAG, P.O. Box 231, Cathlamet, WA 98612.

WINTER HOURS--Just in case you were going to call in a pizza to the "Pizza Mill" at the beginning of the week, this is a heads up to let you know that starting this week, (Jan. 6) they have changed their days and hours of operation to being open Wednesdays-Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.

GOOD THINGS AHEAD--Did you know that we finally have a year when many of our holidays are on a Friday or a weekend? Valentine's Day is on a Sunday and Easter always falls on a Sunday. May Day is landing on a Saturday. May also brings Mother's Day. June has Father's Day on a Sunday, the Fourth of July is on a Sunday this year. Halloween falls on a Sunday this year, and Christmas Day will be Saturday. And you know what that means right? New Year's Eve will be on Friday night; definitely a time to celebrate!

So here's to a year of celebrations to look forward to and may we all get to enjoy each and every one of those special days in 2021.