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Show -N E W S- Spanish Fork Covering what matters most WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2008 • A3 'Sit-in' with a candidate night Debbie Swenson holds a neatly-stacked pile of heavy-duty facial tissues on her lap, and she goodnaturedly warns everyone that she may be contagious. She has pneumonia, but she won't let it keep her from her passionate campaigning for District 66 State Representative. On this night, Tuesday, Oct. 21, Swenson sits in the living room of Dennis and Joyce Terry, of Woodland Hills, who have opened •their home for a Meet the Candidate Night. In attendance'are 10-15 members of the community who have come to hear Swenson's views about the issues that mean the most to them.Swenson begins the open discussion by thanking everyone for coming. She speaks about why she decided to run for office as a democrat. She says that she did it because she was frustrated with the amount of moral corruption that she witnessed on Capitol Hill while a member of the school board, and because, after being a republican for most of her life, she was surprised to find that her beliefs and ideals aligned with those of the Utah County Democrats. "I did not want to be beholding to the republican leadership out.there. I didn't feel like that was the kind of strain I wanted to put myself through. I didn't feel like I fit into the strict parameters of the republican party," Swenson said. "I'm not making excuses for being a democrat, because, truly, I am a Utah County Democrat, in my heart and in my own beliefs. I'm very comfortable here. If I lived in California, I'm not sure I'd be a democrat... What a lot of people don't know about the Utah County Democratic Platform is that it is ProLife. What a lot of people don't realize is that you can be a Mormon and a democrat," she said. Swenson then spoke about the issue that is most important to her: public education. Swenson has served on the school board for 6 years, so she is familiar with legislation surrounding the topic, and has become more and more frustrated with representatives who, she feels, do not take the concerns of those who they represent In loving memory Round and About Benjamin Kathleen Olsen Fred Young, Jr., former Benjamin resident, was killed Saturday night, Oct. 18, 2008, in a .car accident hear LeGrand< OregomifHe and three others,' including his fiancee and two friends, were returning home after ^tending a Young Single Adults dance. Their car wis stopped along the side of ihe road while changing drivers, when they were run into by an alleged drunk driver. Tragically, all four died. Fred, the son of Fred and Bonnie Young, grew up in Benjamin and lived here until his family moved to Oregon a number of years ago. He was the grandson of the lale Curtis Eugene and Helen Caras Young. Details of the funeral and burial were not available at press time. Our sympathy goes to relatives and friends of the Youngs in our area. ••• Benjamin 1st Ward Relief Society will be holding a special Home, Family, and Personal Enrichment night . on Thursday, Oct. 30. The meeting will be held in the chapel, with Sunday dress requested. The BYU Alumni Folk Group will provide an evening of uplifting and inspirational music as they present "Family History Through Music." All Relief Society sisters and Young Women are invited. ••• The annual community 'Trunk or Treat' will take place on Halloween at 6:30 P.M., at the Benjamin church grounds. The evening will begin with a costume parade around the church, after which the traditional goodies will be handed out from the trunks of the cars parked around the church parking areas. Refreshments will be served in front of the building (weather permitting). The event is under the direction of the two wards' Activity Committees. If you have any questions, please contact Allen and Pat Swenson or Blair and Kathleen Olsen. ••• As this is the last issue of this newspaper that will be published before the general election to be held on Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2008, we remind those eligible voters to be sure to cast their ballots on or before that day. Benjamin's voting location on Election Day will be at the Riverview School in southwestern Spanish Fork. ••• Happy Halloween! Shoo fly don't bother me you", says the Game Warden. 'That's true, but you have all the equipment. For Shirlene Ottesen all I know you could start at any moment." "Have a nice Your chuckle for the day ma'am," and he left. Well, I think I've cut my week: One morning, a husband returns the boat to their lawn for the last time. If I do lakeside cottage after several give it one more cut, it will hours offishingand decides be mostly to pick up dead to take a nap. Although not leaves, not grass. There are familiar with the lake, the a few things that it's nice wife decides to take the boat to have come to a close for out. She motors out a short a season. I'm really glad distance, anchors, puts her I don't live where there is feet up, and begins to read yard work year 'round. her book. The peace and solI hope the cold weather itude are magnificent. Along will kill all the wasps, horcomes a Fish and Game nets, spiders and earwigs. Warden in his boat. He pulls Oh, and theflies,too. I have up alongside the woman one very busy spider who and says, "Good morning, lives on my porch. I can Ma'am. What are you do- sweep down it's web one ing." "Reading a book" she day and it seems that it is . v replies, thinking, isn't that right back again the next : obvious? "You're in a Re- day. Maybe they stay up stricted Fishing Area," he all night spinning webs? I informs her. "I'm sorry offi- don't know. I do know that cer, but I'm notfishing.I'm I really don't like spiders. reading." "Yes, but I see you I have been told that some have all the equipment. For are good, but to me they are all I know you could start at any moment. I'll have to all bad. I was sweeping out take you in and write you my garage the other day, up." "If you do that, I'll have and there, hidden deep in a to charge you with sexual as- comer of a cupboard, was sault," says the women. "But a black widow! That red I have haven't even touched hour glass marking on their belly just sends shivers all There and Back Again through me when I see one. I have probably only seen a dozen in my whole life, but they are scary. Like many of you, we've had our share of problems with hornets again this year. Or maybe they were wasps or yellow jackets. They are busy little bugs building nests all over the place. It doesn't take very long, or a sting or two, before you become very cautious about what box, or board you pick up. A favorite place is in the eves of a house, and my grandchildren are good at spotting: them. They are in the corral gates, the satellite dish, birdhouses, etc. I was only stung twice this summer, but it was in the same day. I was pulling a few weeds and must have accidently made somebody mad, because they got me twice before I realized what it was. There were incidents this summer when a few people really stirred up a hornets nest and were stung multiple times and ended up going to the htfspital. Hopefully, it will soon be cold enough that they will all go to bed for the winter and give us, and them, a rest. an eyeopener to me because I got up there and I was the enemy. It's been a constant battle because there's a very negative atmosphere up there for public education. I feel like I've got a big bruise on my rorehead from beating my head against a wall trying to talk to our repreinto sentatives, and they are just consideration. "The first year I went up not hearing it. And that's to Capital Hill as a lobbyist, why I'm here, and here as a I was an elected representa- democrat," Swenson said. tive from Nebo school disSwenson also answered trict and a republican, and I questions about her views thought, okay, we'll go up on energy independence. there and we'll talk about She said that she thought the bills and work togeth- the windmills in Spanish Fork Canyon were a wonderful sign of progress, and also that she thinks that it will be difficult for the United States to become less dependant on oil and coal, but that it is something that needs to happen in the near future. "It's important to me that we have alternative sources of fuel. If we went to the moon in the 1960's, and it took us ten years, then I think we can find a way to become less dependent on oil and coal," Swenson said. As the question-andanswer comes to a close, because it's late and people have kids to put to bed, Debbie again thanks everyone for coming and the Terry's for having the Meet the Candidate Night in their home. She apologizes for not being able to shake hands, not wanting to make anyone else sick, but sticks around and answers even more questions after people start going home. It would seem that she really does care about what "the little people" have to say. Coal vs. Wood wood, and the fire lasts all night. In the morning our Ready or Not house is still warm, and we Dawn Van Nosdol generally have some nice coals left to start up our Every year, I ask wood fire again. It is important that Santa for coal, but evyou have a stove that is ery year he brings delicious cheese and beauti- made tough enough to burn ful gifts instead. I just coal and won't be ruined. don't get it - what am I The highest-grade coal is going to have to do to get called anthracite, and it is some coal? I guess I'll very low in sulfur. You can just have to buy it my- still effectively burn a lowself. As you can guess, er grade coal, but it will coal doesn't smell nearly be higher in sulfur. Either as nice as wood when way, there is sulfur init burns, but it is easier volved, and it will eventuto store, it is much less ally cause corrosion to the labor intensive to use smokestack and it can eat (unless you are the one its way through the grate, mining it), and it doesn't or the bottom of the stove, if the stove isn't made for have to cure like wood. burning coal. Fortunately, Actually, what I I have a stove that can burn like to do is to burn both wood and coal. During the either, but I do have to use day we burn wood, but at the heavier grate if I'm gonight we like to put a couple ing to use the coal excluof really nice big chunks of sively. As far as storing coal in the fire before gocoal, it ing to bed. The big pieces of coal burn a lot slower than XGet on the Be the first to get local news '^*W#^#WMM^^ is much easier than storing wood. For one thing, insects don't burrow into coal like they can with wood (and then come back to life when the wood warms up inside your house.) Also, coal can't rot or deterio• rate like wood...but wood smells so good when it burns! You can store coal in a pile out in the open, but I would suggest that you keep it covered, because it just makes it easier to pack it up and bring inside the house without making too much of a mess. You can also bury it if you want. Just think about it, where do you get coal? Out of the ground of course. I have a friend that doesn't use" coal on a regular basis for heating, but their family wanted to have a year's supply of alternative fuel. So they buried a large amount, a ton or two, in their yard. So that they would not forget where it was when they needed it, they planted a lovely flower garden over it to mark the spot. Brilliant! Prepared and yet beautiful too! Coal fires are a little trickier to start than wood fires, but I found a really good stepby-step set of instructions and I will share that with you in my extended article on www.apreparedhome. com. Get prepared to stay warm before it starts to get really cold - and get your water stored! track - N E W S - Spanish Fork |