Archive for the ‘Blogs’ Category

Flies Really Bite. Are they Bugging the Cows?

By PAUL WHEATON-Biting flies can sure make life miserable for cattle, horses and even people! Big or small, those insects can inflict painful sores. Here are a few solutions for getting rid of biting flies:... more

Earning Return Business

By MARK RIFFEY - When you make client service decisions, do you weigh the cost of losing the client?The incremental cost of service is usually tiny compared to losing the client.... more

Monte Dolack: Nature of Art

By MONTE DOLACK-My personal creative and restorative touchstone to nature is not far from our Missoula home. It is The Crown of the Continent ecosystem and the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex. ... more

This Week’s Missoula Arts & Culture Scene

A recap of all things Arts & Culture--for the week of 7/21/14-- brought to you by the Missoula Cultural Council.... more

Make it Missoula Monday | Week of July 21

Check out the various bands and live music all over town sprinkled with an occasional farmers market and fundraisers. ... more

UM Sports Trivia | Week of July 21

By CHRIS WALTERSKIRCHEN-This fall the Montana Grizzly football team will face a lot of first-year head coaches. Four of the Grizzly’s first 6 games will be against teams with new head coaches.... more

Budget Friendly Fruit Fly Killer

By ERIN TURNER-Love having the fruit sitting out for a quick walk-by snack for the kids but hate the the fruit flies? Here's a sure-fire and frugal way of killing them:... more

Rock the Hood: ZACC puts the ART in Block pARTy

By MATT ANGLEN-I love block parties. There’s something about sipping a beer and eating food from a truck in the middle of a normally busy street that just screams freedom.... more

UM Sports Trivia | Week of July 14

By CHRIS WALTERSKIRCHEN- Griz fans will be conflicted on which game to attend on Feb 29th--when Larry Krystiowiak’s Utah UTES take on Wayne Tinkle's OSU Beavers. ... more

Make it Missoula Monday | Week of July 14

Check out the various bands and live music all over town sprinkled with an occasional farmers market and fundraisers. ... more

I Love Me Some Grass

By BOB WIRE- Ahhh the final glory days of a nice, green lawn. The current heat wave will surely have our yards as crispy as hash browns from the back of the griddle by the end of July.... more

20 Tips for Staying Cool and Saving Money in the Summer

By PAUL WHEATON-It’s hot! So it is perfect timing to talk about how to stay cool on the cheap – both long term and short term. Here are 20 tips on staying cool this summer and saving money too.... more

Vote With Your Fork

By KRISTEN LEE-CHARLSON - One of our very core rights as human beings is challenged in this country on a daily basis. That is the freedom to choose the food(s) that we wish to raise, buy and consume.... more

Summer Dry Fly Season in Missoula

By TONY REINHARDT - It seems that we have gone from spring to summer overnight in Missoula and the fly fishing transition has happened just as quickly--now is the time to get into the river.... more

Healthy, Frugal Spinach Smoothies

By ERIN TURNER-I’ve had lots of people asking me for my recipe for Green Smoothies. Since spinach season is at its peak right now, I thought I'd share my recipe.... more

Make it Missoula Monday | Week of July 7

Check out the various bands and live music all over town sprinkled with an occasional farmers market and fundraisers. ... more

Things To Do In Las Vegas When You’re Dead

By BOB WIRE-Broke, that is. Dead broke. I think we are all familiar enough with Sin City's over-the-top entertainment torrent to know that there is no end to the list of stuff to do in Las Vegas.... more

Make it Missoula Monday | Week of June 30

Check out the various bands and live music all over town sprinkled with an occasional farmers market and fundraisers. ... more

Let’s Talk About Toilet Paper

By BOB WIRE-We're talking about toilet paper. I won't even get into that whole "over vs. under" issue. That's a passionate holy war akin to the Mac vs PC debate. A little toilet paper cultural history here:... more

How to Eat Local & Stay Healthy

By KRISTEN LEE-CHARLSON -Eating local means contributing to the local economy. A dollar spent locally generates twice as much income for the local economy. When businesses are not owned locally, money leaves th... more

Make it Missoula Monday | Week of June 23

Check out the various bands and live music all over town sprinkled with an occasional farmers market and fundraisers. ... more

Staying Motivated And Avoiding Coupon Burnout

By ERIN TURNER- Have you hit burn out in your couponing? Does the thought of clipping another coupon cause you to have a melt down? ... more

Bob Wire’s On the Course. FORE!

By BOB WIRE - Like a lot of men, I enjoy doing things that I’m not very good at. Like golf. I’ve played since high school, but never enough to get to the point where I’m consistently breaking 80.... more

Frugal Foodie: Intentional Leftovers

By KRISTEN LEE-CHARLSON - In times of economic struggles, often people cut their food budget, sacrificing the pleasure and fulfillment of true nourishment. But you don't have to.... more

What to do About Workplace Washout?

By CHERY SABOL - Most everyone has encountered an underachiever. These are the bounced checks of the work force. The Missoula Job service offers three ways to avoid them.... more

Partners in Business and Life

By LIZ MARCHI -In partnerships in business and life, don’t let yourself be emotionally sabotaged by someone you can’t count on. Move on, find your people and be productive.... more

Make it Missoula Monday | Week of June 16

Check out the various bands and live music all over town sprinkled with an occasional farmers market and fundraisers. ... more

UM Sports Trivia | Week of June 16

By CHRIS WALTERSKIRCHEN- Sometimes a coaching change leads to immediate improvement, but for the Grizzlies it’s been a mixed blessing with the last 3 Griz football coaches having fewer wins in their first sea... more

Ladder Golf, the Latest in One-Handed Sports

By BOB WIRE - It’s called ladder golf, and it is to white trash what polo is to the filthy rich. And I am hooked.... more

Keen on Mason Bees

By PAUL WHEATON-And now boys and girls, it is time for Uncle Paul to tell you about the birds and the bees. Or, more accurately, the flowers and the bees. And, even more accurately: Flower sex.... more

Edible Weeds–If You Can’t Beat ‘Em, Eat ‘Em!

By KRISTEN LEE-CHARLSON - Fields of the pretty yellow flowers in the lawn; are they really so bad? Dandelion leaves, flowers, stems and roots are all edible if you have an organic yard!... more

Make it Missoula Monday | Week of June 9

Check out the various bands and live music all over town sprinkled with an occasional farmers market and fundraisers. ... more

Easy Batch Eggs

By ERIN TURNER- Here's my new favorite way to cook a large batch of eggs. It's quick and easy!... more

TV or Not TV, That is the Question

By BOB WIRE - Our 32” tube TV, which seemed like a JumboTron when we bought it in 2002, had gone to that big Radio Shack in the sky. Buying a new set was going to require some major education.... more

The Next Generation–Take a Kid Fishing!

By TONY REINHARDT - Do you remember the first time you went fishing, or the first fish you caught? Odds are it was a father, grandpa, or mentor who took you out on that first trip. ... more

How Different Would the World Be if Everyone Ran?

By EVA DUNN-FROEBIG - Distance Masters Runner of Year, Anne Audain reflects on the impact of running in our world: “Running gave me the courage to fight the great fight".... more

Montana Women: Key Players in the Startup World

By LIZ MARCHI - I struggle every day with intensity. All in, push to the goal line has always been my style. That’s not a good style for ageing so I am trying hard to be more focused.... more

Quick and Easy Shower Cleaning

By ERIN TURNER- I have a secret weapon that helps me maintain a sparkling clean shower--it involves one small tool and two ingredients you'll find around the house.... more

Make it Missoula Monday | Week of June 2

Check out the various bands and live music all over town sprinkled with an occasional farmers market and fundraisers. ... more

UM Sports Trivia | Week of June 2

By CHRIS WALTERSKIRCHEN- Travis Decuire got off to a fast start at Montana as a player. In his first start as the Griz point guard in November of 1991 Decuire helped lead the Griz to a 77-38 rout of PAC-12 powe... more

Reversing Desertification

By PAUL WHEATON - Man-made desertification impacts climate change more than the burning of all fossil fuels. This includes contributions to greenhouse gasses, and overall warming.... more

Meet My Dentist, Dr. Mandible

By BOB WIRE - I just got home from a trip to the dentist. I hate the dentist. HATE the dentist. Oh, I don’t mind having my teeth worked on, I just can’t stand the guy who does it.... more

UM Sports Trivia | Week of May 26

By CHRIS WALTERSKIRCHEN- Wayne Tinkle becomes the eighth University of Montana coach in the last 40 years to leave UM to take another Division 1 or NBA job. ... more

Make it Missoula Monday | Week of May 26

Check out the various bands and live music all over town sprinkled with an occasional farmers market and fundraisers. ... more

If It’s Off the Wall, It Can’t Go On the Wall

By BOB WIRE -The struggle for supremacy in the wall hangings department is an ongoing concern in the Wire compound. Our solution is to relegate the more questionable stuff to the basement or the spare bathroom.... more

UM Sports Trivia | Week of May 19

By CHRIS WALTERSKIRCHEN- Montana lost a legal Pioneer and a great sports mom last week with the passing of Judge Diane Barz at the age of 70.... more

Make it Missoula Monday | Week of May 19

Check out the various bands and live music all over town sprinkled with an occasional farmers market and fundraisers. ... more

Inexpensive Heat Mat for Seedlings

By ERIN TURNER- Soil temperature is critical for the sprouting of any seeds. If it is too cold, seeds will sit dormant and eventually rot. Here's a frugal alternative to a seedling heat mats: ... more

Award Winning Bluegrass Talent Junior Sisk Plays TONIGHT in Missoula

By MARK VOSBURGH - International Bluegrass Musis Award award winner, Junior Sisk and his band, Rambler's Choice plays the Ruby Jewel Jamboree in Missoula on May 12th.... more

Passive Annual Heat Storage

By PAUL WHEATON -When heating or cooling a home can a comfortable temperature be obtained year round with far less energy use? Can we get it down to a tenth of the national average?... more