OPINION NEWS
Wallowa.com
The return of Misty
T
hey still haven’t invented a
good dog that lives as long as
the humans who get attached
to them. And that’s a shame. I’d
like to see more effort from the sci-
ence people on that front. Recently
learned from friends that two more
Wallowa County dogs I’ve known
for a great long while have gone
where the game of fetch never ends.
We were sad about that, then started
recalling all the other good dogs
we’ve scratched behind the ears over
the years. Just going down the list of
charming creatures we wish could
have stayed around longer.
Then I remembered the strange
case of Misty, our black lab when
I was a kid. She had the “classic”
black lab looks, I guess you’d call it.
You’d be fl ipping through a maga-
zine or see a calendar photo involv-
ing a black lab and say, hey, there’s
Misty.
My mom was driving home with
my little sister one day and just as
they were turning into our driveway,
they both saw Misty stretched out.
She wasn’t moving. And she wasn’t
in a natural position. She appeared to
be very much not alive.
Mom hit the brakes and stopped a
couple feet shy of the body. She was
surprised, of course, to pull in and
discover such a thing, but even more
surprised when my sister turned and
said, “You killed my dog.” Then Jes-
sica tore out of the car, ran around
Wednesday, May 29, 2019
A5
LETTERS to the EDITOR
didn’t carry. Mom started jogging
again, cut the distance in half and
tried yelling once more to let Jessica
know. No luck. Finally Mom had
to stand next to Jessica, touch her
on the shoulder and repeat the mes-
sage several times to get it through,
that this is not Misty. Misty is on the
porch. Jess got the message, looked
down at the strange dog she’d just
been burying her face in and petting,
fur wet with her tears, and decided
abruptly that the mourning period
had gone on long enough.
We called around to all the neigh-
bors. Didn’t locate the owner, but left
the unfortunate dog with the classic
black lab looks by the roadside over-
night and planned to bury it the next
morning. But it was gone. Somebody
had gone looking, found their good
dog and brought it home.
Grief is never much fun, I’ve
noticed. But if you have to go
through it, I prefer that angry grief,
like when my sister came up with a
fanciful reason for a result she didn’t
want to see. Didn’t make any sense,
but you’re not thinking rationally in
a case like that, so with that in mind
it makes perfect sense. I’m not sure I
buy that old line about time healing
all wounds, but it does seem to work
in some cases. Only took about fi ve
minutes for my sister to recover from
that shock of Misty’s untimely end.
Jon Rombach is a local col-
umnist for the Chieftain.
AND
FURTHERMORE
Jon Rombach
and gathered Misty in her arms.
Mom remembers that when she
stomped on the brakes the anti-lock
feature made the rig lurch before
coming to a stop. Mom fi gures that
little detail, combined with the shock
of Jessica seeing Misty like that, just
made her daughter a little less ratio-
nal in the moment. Because the front
bumper was a good two feet from the
dog. Enough room for Jessica to now
be out there, down on the ground cra-
dling Misty’s head in her lap, having
a spirited cry.
Mom left the car at the top of the
driveway and hustled down the long
driveway to go get our dad to help.
The house was surrounded by trees,
so you couldn’t see it from the road.
She got past the trees and there was
Misty, ol’ trusty Misty, laying on the
porch alive, well, and wagging her
tail now that she saw mom coming.
Surprise, surprise.
“Jessica!” she backtracked and
yelled up the driveway. “It’s not
Misty!”
I mentioned this was a long drive-
way. Guessing a hundred yards or
so. Long enough that Mom’s voice
What happened to manners?
When I was growing up in the 60’s and70’s, when
we recieved a gift we were expected to send a thank
you note or give a personal thank you; as in a hug to
grandma. Now it seems as though thank yous for wed-
ding gifts, graduation gifts and birthday presents are
purely optional.
The past ten years have seen a thank you card or
personal reply for maybe 25% of the events we have
responded to. It makes me wonder who is teach-
ing proper etiquette to children these days. It seems as
though the individual is all that matters and they want
what they feel that they are entitled to. Often cards will
state that cash is preferred to gifts for a down payment
on a house or to reduce unwanted items or so they can
buy what they wish.
This has really soured my willingness to support any-
one’s major lifetime achievement. A Facebook reply
thanking everyone just doesn’t cut it. Besides, I don’t
have Facebook.
Alan Klages,
sixty-year Wallowa County resident
LETTERS POLICY
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telephone number be made available to our staff should you need
to be reached. For questions, email the editor at editor@wallowa.
com, or call 541-426-4567. Thank you for your contributions.
Gas prices edge lower to kick off summer driving season
shows that West Coast gas-
oline stocks grew signifi -
cantly by 1.3 million bbl
from the previous week and
now sit at 27.7 million bbl.
The current level is 2.5 mil-
lion bbl less than last year’s
level at this time. The West
Coast may see continued
price volatility, as a result of
tight stocks in the region.
Oregon is one of only
eight states where drivers
are paying more than a year
ago to fi ll up. The national
average is 14 cents less and
the Oregon average is seven
cents more than a year ago,
which is the sixth-largest
yearly increase in the coun-
try. California (+26 cents),
Nevada (+15 cents), and
Arizona (+9 cents) have
the greatest year-over-
year increases. Florida (-31
cents) and Delaware (-28
cents) have the largest year-
over-year decreases.
East Oregonian
RANK REGION PRICE
ON MAY 28, 2019
PORTLAND — Pump
prices continue to inch down
despite strong demand. The
vast majority of Memo-
rial Day travelers found gas
prices a little lower than
they were in early May. For
the week, the national aver-
age loses two cents to $2.83
a gallon while the Oregon
average dips a penny to
$3.42 a gallon.
“Gas prices are edg-
ing lower and that’s a trend
drivers can expect to con-
tinue into early June. Stable
crude oil prices are helping
to put downward pressure
on pump prices, despite
tight domestic supplies and
robust demand. Another
bump in demand could
push prices higher but only
by a few cents,” said Marie
Dodds, public affairs direc-
tor for AAA Oregon/Idaho.
Oregon is one of 43 states
and the District of Columbia
where prices are lower this
week. Ohio (-7 cents) has
the largest weekly decrease,
while Wyoming (+3 cents)
has the largest week-over-
week increase. This week
there are nine states with an
average above $3 a gallon
down from 10 a week ago.
Oregon is one of 12 states
with higher prices now than
a month ago. The national
1. California $3.99
2. Hawaii $3.65
3. Washington $3.54
4. Alaska $3.49
5. Nevada $3.48
6. Oregon $3.42
7. Idaho $3.20
8. Utah $3.18
9. Arizona $3.13
10. Pennsylvania $2.98
Ellen Morris Bishop
Along with other stations across the northwest, the Chevron
station in Enterprise may sport lower gas prices this summer.
average is six cents less and
the Oregon average is two
cents more than a month
ago. This is the ninth-larg-
Funding Available for Wetland
Restoration Projects
PORTLAND — Up to
$40 million in technical and
fi nancial assistance is avail-
able to help eligible conser-
vation partners voluntarily
protect, restore, and enhance
critical wetlands on agricul-
tural lands.
Funding will be pro-
vided through the Wetland
Reserve Enhancement Part-
nership, part of the Agri-
cultural Conservation Ease-
ment Program.
Project proposals should
be emailed to the Natu-
ral Resources Conserva-
tion Service at SM.NRCS.
WRE@wdc.usda.gov
by
June 14, 2019.
Restored wetlands improve
water quality downstream and
improve wildlife habitat while
also providing fl ood preven-
tion and recreational benefi ts
to communities.
Those
interested can
contact Bari Williams,
NRCS Oregon easement
programs specialist at 503-
414-3226 or bari.williams@
usda.gov. Proposals must
follow ACEP guidelines for
wetland reserve easements.
Farmers, ranchers, and
forest landowners interested
in easements on their land
should contact their local
USDA service center or visit
the ACEP webpage.
Good Things Are Happening...
We have
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est monthly increase in the
country. Utah (+23 cents)
has the largest month-over-
month jump, Idaho (+18
cents) is second and Alaska
(+12 cents) is third. North
Carolina (-14 cents) has the
largest monthly decrease.
The West Coast contin-
ues to have the highest pump
prices in the nation with all
of the region’s states landing
on the top 10 most expen-
sive list. California tops the
list for the 10th consecutive
week with Hawaii, Wash-
ington, Alaska, Nevada, and
Oregon rounding out the top
six. Oregon is sixth for the
third week in a row. This
week California drops just
below $4 a gallon. Prices in
the region have seen mostly
modest decreases on the
week, with Alaska (+2 cents)
The Earth is But One
Country and Mankind
its Citizens
The body of the human world is sick.
Its remedy and healing will be the oneness of
the kingdom of humanity
So Powerful is the Light of Unity
that it can Illuminate the
Whole Earth
~from the Sacred Writings of the Baha’i Faith~
seeing the largest jump and
California (-4 cents) seeing
the largest decline.
The U.S. Energy Infor-
mation
Administration’s
recent weekly report for
the week ending on May 17
More reasons to feel
good about your Medicare
Supplement Choice and
Prescription Drug Plan
• Up-to-date Medicare information
• Highest Coverage/Lowest Premiums
• Local agent will answer questions and
help you navigate the Medicare maze.
• Plan Comparisons for:
- Turning 65 (Medicare eligible)
- SEP (Special Election changes)
- Oregon Birthday Rule
616 W. North Street,
Enterprise, OR 97828
541-426-4208
THE ONE
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MAINTENANCE
72
www.bahaisofwallowa.org
“We took
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Dr. Allen on several
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we received…”
Kathleen Bennett
INSTALLATION
Ed Staub & Sons
Energy Community Service.
201 East Hwy 82 Enterprise, OR 97828
541-426-0320
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WALLOWA COUNTY
Health Line
Dr. Allen is a family
practice physician and
doctor of osteopathic
medicine.
Call Dr. Allen to
schedule your appointment today!
541•426•4567
541-426-7900
Mountain View Medical Group
519 W. North Street, Enterprise
603 Medical Parkway
(next to Wallowa
Memorial Hospital)
Enterprise, Oregon 97828
We treat you like family
601 Medical Parkway, Enterprise, OR 97828 • 541-426-3111 • www.wchcd.org
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Mon-Thurs 9 to Noon/1-5pm; Fri. 9-1