From the Web Page of Sean Clancy, a member of the 1st Place winning team. By the time teams reached the finish line, the 2010 TRIOBA 24 would go down as a classic and one of the harder-but most rewarding-events in memory... CLICK HERE and LISTEN - Race Director Glenn Rogers talks with GoLakeChelan's Steve Byquist A good way to understand the event is to read the information that organizers mailed to any team or person who might have been interested in participating. Click Here For The Introduction Document

September 2, 2010

Last Saturday morning, GoLakeChelan was made aware a number of 'lights' spotted on what 'locals' call the 'Little Butte behind Lakeside. Many readers wrote to ask what was going on. Had the 'aliens' landed ... or was a crew trying to harvest the fall crop of 'weed' were among the questions we received.

As it turned out - those lights were part of the head-gear (mostly, anyway) of participants in a fascinating 'Adventure Race' (what we tend to think of as a high quality Iron-Man competition.) And put on by an organization out of Western Washington, that is devoted to the sport.

To the left, GoLakeChelan's Steve Byquist has a most interesting interview with Race Director Glenn Rogers. While listening to Steve's interview we suggest our readers will enjoy viewing the on-line photos which have since been posted by various participating team members. (We've created this story so that readers may start the audio interview, then click on the photo links and those pages will open in NEW windows while the audio will continue to play.
After viewing one of the links below - close that window and you will return to this page where you can then click on another photo liibrary link and enjoy even more.

Notice if you will - the smiles and the gear!

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Sean Clancy - Team Dart-nuun 1st place

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Trioba's Face Book Page

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Miles Olhrich - Team Mergeo 3rd place

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Volunteer Christina Chacharon

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Tamara Armstrong Team Manny's Pale Ale

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CLICK HERE FOR A SLIDE SHOW OF 140 PHOTOS FROM THE EVENT

Tomorrow night,Friday, September 3rd, the Historic Downtown Chelan Association (HDCA) and many community minded organizations and businesses team up to put on one of the favorite First Friday events - A DOGS NIGHT OUT.

GoLakeChelan will be there to photo the dogs and owners for later on-line photo competition.

Here's a complete rundown of what's planned:

Historic Downtown Chelan participating merchants and supporters invite you to August First Friday’s 4thAnnual “Dog’s Night Out”.

Whaley’s General Store will sponsor the 4th Annual Dog Photo Contest, dog treats in all participating First Friday stores as well as a Doggie Treat Café on site. Photos taken by GoLakeChelan.com will be available on their website.

After preliminary judging, you will be able to vote for your favorites on-line and help us pick the winner in one of the following categories:

Cutest

Most Elegant

Most Unique and

Owner/Pet LookaLike.

Winners will receive gift baskets from Whaley’s General Store.

CLICK HERE and LISTEN - We talk with HDCA Director Cindy Salazar

Test your dog’s abilities with Chelan Dog’s Agility Obstacle Course on the North side of Woodin on Emerson St as well as a Doggie Doo Relay Race and they will provide a “Doggie Serenade” from 6-8. Dogwise Publishing will provide dog books for sale with proceeds going to the Humane Society.

There will be Doggie Refreshment Stations and Yuppy Puppy will have grooming touchups before picture taking.

Look for Auntie Donna’s Dog Massage Station at Spirals and a Dog Picture Coloring Station at the registration area near Chelan Realty.

Coldwell Banker will have a Doggie Pool Party- let your pet coof off in one of 3 filled kiddie pools and see if your dog has got what it takes to retrieve an underwater chewy toy in the Doggie Diving Contest.

Look for local artists who may offer pet portraits and enjoy the artwork of Chelan Valley Independent School art students in participating merchant stores.

Lake Chelan Eagle’s will bring hamburgers out onto the street for the evening.

Black Dog Frame Shop plans to do “Pawprints” and look for Hank’s Franks nearby.

The “3” Amigos will play timeless music at the Historical Museum from 5-6 pm and see photos of the makings of the “Lassie” film which took place in the Chelan/Stehekin area years ago. Radio Shack will be playing the film in their window throughout the evening.

There will be a table for the Wenatchee Valley Humane Society— adoptable pets will be available near Whaley’s General Store and meet Dr. Barb Fehr from Village Veterinarian.

Get information from the Genealogical Society and PEO (Philanthropic Education Org.) will have their bake sale near Shirt Shop.

St Andrew’s Episcopal Church will take names of departed pets for a special blessing in remembrance of these pets at their church service at 10:00 a.m. on Sunday the 29th. They will do a blessing of animals in October, so current pets’ names can be left with volunteers at the church.

Meet members of the Lake Chelan Fire Fighter local union and help with their fundraiser for the Burn Foundation. Look for one of the local fire trucks as well.

Soroptomist International of Chelan will be located near Willow and The Vogue to promote the October 16th Chelan Chase. Registration and pledge forms will be available.

Chelan Valley Independent School will share ideas on Ways to Enhance Children’s Activity and Nutrition—W.E.C.A.N. based on the National Institute of Health’s Obesity Prevention in youth and the community.

Enjoy live music and great food in the Campbell's Bistro from 6-8 pm on all Fridays.

The Vogue...a Liquid Lounge, features live music every Friday and Saturday night from 8-10 pm. all ages welcome, no cover. Experience live music, enjoy a glass of wine and a "slice of community".

Main St Gallery will feature Artists in Action with Edmonds artist, Joan Archer. Come in and visit while she paints in watercolor. She plans a watercolor workshop in the park on Saturday, Sept. 4 from 10:30-4.

It's a great day for the Chelan Senior Center.

As promised ... Lunch will be served today at the new Chelan Senior Center.

GoLakeChelan has learned that as of 9 am today there are more than 70 Seniors who have said they will be in attendance at their new facility for this momentous occasion.

It was April of 2009 that the old 'Center' was torn down, the first step in building a new facility.
And finally ... the first meal prepared in the new kitchen will be served today.

One member of the group told GoLakeChelan that if 70 people signed up for lunch in the old building, the remainder would have to go on a waiting list in the event someone cancelled.

Another of the Seniors told us with great anticipation......"Today will be a great chance to many old and new faces to be sitting down together for a common meal! It has been a long time since last April 2009 when we took the old building down. It seemed to take for ever to get the new building up and going. We finally made it."

Here's More On Those Mysterious Lights Early Saturday Morning

A big thanks to the many who emailed or called to talk about our story Monday asking about the mysterious lights on the Little Butte early Saturday morning. It turns they were participants in an a Trioba Adventure Racing event called the 'Chelan Adventure Race'

It started at midnight Friday night at Riverwalk Park where close to 100 physically fit individuals were launched on a 4 part mission that took them through downtown Chelan on foot, up over Chelan Butte, down to Chelan Falls Park (all on foot), then a paddle course down the Columbia in the middle of the night to Entiat City Park where they switched to bikes and headed up the Entiat, over the top and ended up near Plain in the Chumstick Valley near Lake Wenatchee. Total time for those who were successful ... somewhere between 24 and 33 hours later.

We were able to reach one of the organizers of the event, Glenn Rogers. We will be talking with Glenn in the near future, and hopefully one of the event participants. In the meantime, those who want to get a head start on this fascinating story - The organizers have a Web-Site with a ton of information about what they do called www.Trioba.com.

THOSE SPECKS ARE GOATS ON THE FACE OF A DAM!

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This is one of three photos sent to GoLakeChelan with little comment or explanation other than to say ... "Now This Is Goat Country!"

But where is it?

Pretty amazing for sure.

Click on this photo and then step through the 3 enlargements.

We'd really like to be able to tell our readers where this photo was taken. If anyone knows drop us an email at

If you hear someone say “Downtown Chelan is going to the dogs!” they’re referring to Dogs’ Night Out, the First Friday event planned for September 3, 2010 by the Historic Downtown Chelan Association (HDCA).

Dogs’ Night Out will take place in Historic Downtown Chelan from 5:00pm to 8:00pm on Friday, September 3rd. Dogs are invited to bring their humans for a bone-ified good time. Activities include an Agility Obstacle Course and Doggie-do Relay presented by Jon Luke of Chelan Dog, as well as a chance to win some doggone great prizes from Whaley’s General Store as a winner in the Dogs’ Night Out Photo Contest hosted by co-sponsor GoLakeChelan.com, with online voting for

Cutest

Most Elegant,

Most Unique and the popular...

Dog/Owner Look-a-Like

Canines can snack at Whaley’s General Store’s Doggie Treat Café and at participating First Friday merchants, then relax at Coldwell Banker’s Doggie Pool Party or pamper themselves with grooming touchups from Yuppy Puppy or at Auntie Donna’s Dog Massage Station at Spirals.

First Friday Chairperson, Barb Koenig (owner of Main Street Gallery) said, “Dogs’ Night Out offers something for both dogs and humans - a lot of fun! This event is a great way to kick off the Labor Day weekend and create memories with your family, neighbors and your best friend.”

In addition to doggie activities, numerous non-profit organizations will be on-hand during Dogs’ Night Out to share fun and information with the community. Humans who do not have a 4-footed best friend can stop at the Wenatchee Valley Humane Society table to learn about dog adoptions and local veterinarians will also be on hand. The Eagle’s grilled hamburgers and nearby Hank’s Franks will help keep growling stomachs at bay while the “3” Amigos serenade at the Historical Museum from 5- 6:00 pm followed by a Doggie Symphony from 6-8:00 pm. Soroptimist International of Chelan will be located near Willow with registration and pledge forms for The Chase, slated for October 16th. Artist in Action, Joan Archer, will be at Main Street Gallery. Lake Chelan Valley EMS will bring their ambulance and volunteers from the SPHERE Program will offer blood pressure and glucose monitoring in front of Radio Shack.

Emerson Street, above the north corners of Woodin Avenue to the alley, will close to traffic at 4:00pm on Sept. 3rd for obstacle course construction. The street will reopen when activities end at 8:00pm.

About HDCA: The Historic Downtown Chelan Association is dedicated to developing and promoting Chelan’s historic downtown core by creating an inviting and economically vibrant community center while emphasizing enhancement and preservation of the town’s historic features. For more information about HDCA, please visit www.historicchelan.org or phone the HDCA office at 509.682.4322.

Click Here For Poster of Details

August 27, 2010

Like a seasoned professional, Chelan seemed to know she was on stage earlier this week.

Click on Images Below For Access to Enlargements

Click on Images Below For Access to Enlargements

August 27, 2010
By Wendy Isenhart
Photos by Ed Isenhart

The lake stayed warm and sparkley, the weather sunny and beautiful while film crew, creative director and food stylists moved from location to location on Tuesday and Wednesday, August 24th and 25th, setting up scenes featuring Lake Chelan’s wineries, eateries, beaches, water sports and golf courses for future Lake Chelan tourism TV campaigns.

As soon as it was over, weather turned windy and the lake pitched a fit. “We couldn’t have asked for better circumstances,” said Wendy Isenhart who, with husband Ed Isenhart, scouted locations and gathered local talent to participate in the various scenes over two days of dawn-to-dusk filming.

“Chelan is a spectacular backdrop and the quality of local acting talent is very good,” Ed added, “I think we kind of blew the Seattle ad agency people away. Heck, I was impressed and I had high expectations from the start.” The former broadcast and documentary producers now live in Chelan.

Snapshots and biographies of local families and couples who responded to a casting call posted on golakechelan.com and with the Chelan Valley Players and other local theater groups, yielded responses that were forwarded to the Lake Chelan Tourism and Promotion Groups’ ad agency, Green Rubino, of Seattle. The Isenharts have ties with Wideeye Productions, (Boise/Seattle), hired to turn the agency’s creative marketing ideas into compelling imagery.

Faces you may recognize include three members of the Eygebroad family from Manson: Mom Tony and Dad Jared in a couples scene; Jared making impossible wakeboard moves look easy; and 4-year-old Kayden Eygebroad in his own scene with Britt and Calin Shell, also from Chelan. The three jumped off a dock 15 times, allowing the crew to capture footage from every angle.

The burgeoning wine industry was featured in three scenes with Rhett and Kendra Crow of Chelan, Linda and Hal Jones, of 25 Mile Creek and Jacob Vargas and Kristin Riefflin from the Green Rubino agency. Vargas provided food styling for the dining scenes as well as appearing in front of the camera. Adam Krett, Creative Director and Jane Dauber, Agency Manager, monitored every shot to make sure scenes were iconic Lake Chelan images.

Wolfgang Isenhart was Director of Photography for Wideeye. Wolf is currently shooting and editing “Gardening with Ciscoe” and “Northwest Backroads” for KING-TV. Naoko Sato-Isenhart was sound engineer, and directing the shoot was Jennifer Isenhart, one of Wideeye’s principals and, coincidentally, Wolf’s sister. Yes, their parents are Ed and Wendy Isenhart. “Wolf and Jenny are 4th generation Chelan,” said proud mom, Wendy. “They have loved Lake Chelan since they were little kids. They’re top-notch professionals and know their stuff, but on top of that is a feeling for the subject that makes everything shine.” The commercials will air on KING-TV, perhaps as soon as this fall.

Click Here for Photo Library & Enlargements

Visit Wideeye Productions - Click Here | Isenhart Video Production - Click Here

Enjoy racing this weekend ....

From the Vintage Inboard Hydroplanes ... to 1 Litre Hydros, 2.5 Litre Hydros, 5 Litre Hydros, National Modified Hydros, Flat-bottom Runabouts,... and the big boys.... the Alcohol Blown Grand Prix Hydroplanes that bring the speed, noise and flash back to hydroplane racing!!

You will also enjoy food vendors, open pit during the lunch break- so you can have tours and see the hydros up close and talk to the racers.

Don't miss this weekend of exciting boat racing and sun in the City of Pateros!!

Special thanks to our sponsors Kodi's Noon Saloon, Yancey's Pateros Hardware Store, City of Pateros and Zippy Disposal!!

August 26, 2010 ~ From Press Release

PUD commissioners vote unanimously to accept fiber grant

"We're solvent. We'll remain solvent, and we'll enhance the quality of life in Chelan County."

With those words, Chelan County PUD Commission President Dennis Bolz added his endorsement this morning to a resolution to accept a $25 million grant from the federal Rural Utilities Service (RUS) to help extend the PUD's fiber-optics network to more remote areas of the county. All five commissioners voted in favor of the resolution, closely followed by a motion to begin the process of increasing PUD electric rates an estimated 2 to 4 percent to cover the financial gaps caused by extending the fiber build-out.

The financial concerns were raised because the grant also requires the PUD to cover 25 percent of the project costs for the build-out, estimated at about $8.3 million. But the PUD will also be responsible if there are cost overruns in completing the work within the three years allowed by the RUS terms and conditions. The build-out will extend service to an estimated 98 percent of the county.

In presenting his options to commissioners, PUD General Manager John Janney said he saw two alternatives if the PUD were to remain disciplined in its financial policies: 1) reject the grant and discontinue building the rest of the fiber system so expenses would be reduced; 2) accept the grant and set in motion the steps for an electric rate increase that would cover the financial shortfall.

Commissioners asked numerous questions about conditions in the grant before voicing their thoughts.

Commissioner Carnan Bergren moved to accept the grant. It was seconded by Commissioner Randy Smith, who began by thanking county residents for their active e-mails, phone calls, survey responses and full discussion of the pros and cons. The PUD did a scientific telephone poll last week to gauge community sentiment on the grant and potential rate increases of up to 3 percent. Results favored accepting the grant even with a rate increase.

The PUD also sent e-mails to more than 2,200 customers asking for their opinions, posted an online poll on its website, discussed the merits with community leaders, wrote a guest newspaper column and discussed the issue at regular board meetings and at a special meeting specifically for public comment on Tuesday night. Comments at that meeting were mostly against accepting the grant.

"We're more than just electricity," said Smith about comments from some that the PUD should focus more on its core business of providing electric service. He said there is a historic role for the PUD in serving the underserved. He doubted the wisdom of trying to sell the fiber system to another operator. "The people of Chelan County have been desperately asking for this for years," he concluded.

So says Nancy Davis, Manager of Stehekin Landing Resort.

Well... she actually said "Fishin's on Fire and it brought back memories of wading the Stehekin River when we DID hide behind a tree.
But that was for another reason!


Click Here & Listen
Nancy Gives Us Our Latest Update from Stehekin:

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While it's beginming to feel like fall in the Stehekin Valley, the summer flowers, and even a few patches of snow still can be enjoyed on the Day Hikes from Stehekin.

Last weekend's popular Country Concert at the Stehekin Valley Ranch, the Square Dance at the 'Orchard', and Deck Entertainment Sunday at the Landing, had the 'Valley' busy with Stehekin visitors getting a taste of the Valley Hospitality. This weekend, gather on the Stehekin Landing Resort for after dinner entertainment by the "End of the Road" band. This Stehekin group has had a busy summer not only entertaining the residnts and visiotrs, but did a firefeighter appreceation concert/dance for those who helped with the now 'a thing of the past', the Rainbow Bridge fire.

Stehekin Landing -Click Here | Stehekin Valley Ranch - Click Here

August 25th, 2010

Hats off to the City of Chelan!

A press release from the City wants to get the word out ... the City Wants Your Opinion!



It's part of the City's Strategic Planning 2011

Of which one of the goals will be to draw together the best of several key plans and documents that exist today that outline various goals, objectives and policies for the City of Chelan, (most notably the 2008 City of Chelan Strategic Plan, the 2006 Chelan Valley Vision document and the City of Chelan Comprehensive Plan).

The City indicates that .......Each of these documents has its strengths and weaknesses and the purpose of the Strategic Planning Process for 2011 is to synthesize these plans and garner additional feedback from our community in order for the Mayor, City Council and Staff to develop a refined Strategic Plan for 2011.

Take the time - Give Your Opinion
(Anyone - Anywhere - Is Welcome to Respond)
Click Here for the Strategic Planning Online Questionnaire

We actually snapped a total of 10 photos - setting the camera a little differently each time to see what we could capture.
As expected - some are better than others...
To step through all 10....
Click Here
Then Step Through the Enlargements

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Thanks to Rich Sink of Manson - We have more.
Rich took these 10 hours later

Click for Enlargements

August 20, 2010 - With correction !

The Pateros Community is Hosting its Inaugural
Pateros Watercross Race and Ride
This Weekend- Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 21st & 22nd.

OOPS Earlier we posted a photo with this story of a Snowmobile racing across the water, as an icon, so to speak, of what we thought the event was about. Our apologies for the error. Given the event was described as THE INAUGURAL - and given that when we did a GoogleScroogle.org Search on WATERCROSS RACING - we found the web-site www.iwausa.org - CLICK HERE ... we made a huge error and ASSUMED that these were the machines running at Pateros this weekend. Thanks to our readers who pointed out our error. Even other members of our staff, on investigation, thought we were right - but we contact Roger Harnack of the Omak Chronicle, who supplied the text to the story, but no photo, said we were wrong. But he did point us to his own Facebook Page - and said there would be shared, public photos under his Facebook account. We found the one above - but not the library. Just so our readers know - We didn't know what a Watercross Race is , and our Web Search produced www.iwausa.org ... and there we were. At the wrong conclusion. Apologies are in order..

And event 'organizers' announced Friday that enough area businesses and a Motor-sports parts manufacturer from Spokane have all stepped up to sponsor the event, thus covering insurance and other costs.

And organizers have the support of Pateros City for use of parks and one boat launch area, and all are hoping this becomes an annual event.

Race set-up begins Friday, Aug. 20, with Watercross action beginning at about 10 a.m. Saturday and Sunday on a buoyed near-shore, closed course with turns and wide-open-straight-a-ways.

Following the Saturday afternoon heat races, riders will get together for a tour run on the Columbia River.

Sweet River Bakery and Kodi’s Noon Saloon will be hosting racers and riders after the tour run. Racing is expected to wrap up about 4 p.m. Sunday.

The races and ride are open to all level of personal watercraft riders on both stand-up and runabout models.

There will be a beginner class for recreational riders who have never raced before. And if there are enough late-model Jet Skis, there may also be a vintage class.

There will also likely be novice, expert and professional classes featuring some of the region’s fastest Jet Ski racers.

The cost to participate is $25 per day per class. To participate in the ride, the cost is $10.

Registration is from 8-10 a.m. Saturday and Sunday.

Local Jet Ski enthusiasts are encouraged to come out for a weekend of fun and camaraderie. For more information, e-mail Roger Harnack at

Montana
Grizzly Bear
Warning

In light of the rising frequency of human/grizzly bear conflicts, the Montana Dept of Fish & Game has posted the following:

Advisory To Hikers, Hunters, & Fishermen Take Extra Precautions & Keep Alert Watch For Bear While In The Field.

We advise outdoorsmen to wear noisy little bells on their clothing so as not to startle bears that aren't expecting them.

We also advise outdoorsmen to carry pepper spray with them at all times, in case of an encounter with a bear.

It is also a good idea to watch out for fresh signs of bear activity.

Outdoorsmen should recognize the difference between black bear and grizzly bear poop.

Black bear poop is smaller and contains lots of berries and squirrel fur.

Grizzly bear poop is larger and has little bells in it and smells like pepper.

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A physics teacher in high school, once told the students that while one grasshopper on the railroad tracks wouldn't slow a train very much, a billion of them would.

With that thought in mind, read the following, obviously written by a good American .

Good idea One light bulb at a time.

The other day, a friend was in Lowes and was looking at the hose attachments. They were all made in China. The next day he was in an Ace Hardware and just for the heck of it, checked the hose attachments there. They were made in USA. Start looking.

In our current economic situation, every little thing we buy or do affects someone else - even their job.

Another friend likes Hershey's candy. We noticed, though, that it is marked made in Mexico now. So he doesn't buy it any more. His favorite toothpaste Colgate is made in Mexico now. So he switched to Crest.. You have to read the labels on everything.

This past weekend we were at a big box store and needed 60 W light bulbs and Bounce dryer sheets. In the light bulb aisle, we found the GE brand and an off brand labeled, "Everyday Value." We picked up both types of bulbs and compared the stats - they were the same except for the price. The GE bulbs were more money than the Everyday Value brand but the thing that surprised us the most was the fact that GE was made in MEXICO and the Everyday Value brand was made in - get ready for this - the USA at a company in Cleveland, Ohio .

So throw out the myth that you cannot find products you use every day that are made right here.

So on to another aisle - Bounce Dryer Sheets . . .yep, you guessed it, Bounce cost more money and is made in Canada.

The Everyday Value brand was less money and MADE IN THE USA! I did laundry yesterday and the dryer sheets performed just like the Bounce I have been using for years and at almost half the price! My challenge to you is to start reading the labels when you shop for everyday things and see what you can find that is made in the USA - the job you save may be your own or your neighbors!

If you accept the challenge, pass this on to others so we can all start buying American, one light bulb at a time!

Let's stop buying from overseas companies!

We should have awakened a decade ago !!!! let's get with the program . . . help our fellow Americans keep their jobs and create more jobs here in the USA.

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Attitude Is Everything By Charles Swindoll

"The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life.

Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what other people think or say or do.

It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company ...a church ...a home.

The remarkable thing is we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day.

We cannot change our past ...we cannot change the fact that people will act in certain way. We cannot change the inevitable.

The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have; and that is our attitude ...I am convinced that life is 10 percent what happens to me and 90 percent how I react to it. And so it is with you... we are in charge of our attitudes" - Charles Swindoll

Tech Geeks & Cowboys

A cowboy named Bud was overseeing his herd in a remote mountainous pasture in California when suddenly a brand-new BMW advanced out of a dust cloud towards him.

The driver, a young man in a Brioni suit, Gucci shoes, RayBan sunglasses and a YSL tie, leans out the window and asks the cowboy, 'If I tell you exactly how many cows and calves you have in your herd, will you give me a calf?'

Bud looks at the man, obviously a yuppie, then looks at his peacefully grazing herd and calmly answers, 'Sure, Why not?'

The yuppie parks his car, whips out his Dell notebook computer, connects it to his Cingular RAZR V3 cell phone, and surfs to a NASA page on the Internet, where he calls up a GPS satellite to get an exact fix on his location which he then feeds to another NASA satellite that scans the area in an ultra-high-resolution photo.

The young man then opens the digital photo in Adobe Photoshop and exports it to an image processing facility in Hamburg , Germany .

Within seconds, he receives an email on his Palm Pilot that the image has been processed and the data stored. He then accesses a MS-SQL database through an ODBC connected Excel spreadsheet with email on his Blackberry and, after a few minutes, receives a response.

Finally, he prints out a full-color, 150-page report on his hi-tech, miniaturized HP LaserJet printer and finally turns to the cowboy and says, 'You have exactly 1,586 cows and calves.' 'That's right. Well, I guess you can take one of my calves,' says Bud.

He watches the young man select one of the animals and looks on amused as the young man stuffs it into the trunk of his car.

Then Bud says to the young man,'Hey,if I can tell you exactly what your business is, will you give me back my calf?'

The young man thinks about it for a second and then says, 'Okay, why not?'

'You're a Congressman for the U.S.Government', says Bud.

'Wow! That's correct,' says the yuppie, 'but how did you guess that?'

'No guessing required.' answered the cowboy. 'You showed up here even though nobody called you; you want to get paid for an answer I already knew, to a question I never asked. You tried to show me how much smarter than me you are; and you don't know a thing about cows...this is a herd of sheep. . . Now give me back my dog!"

$50 is $50

Morris and his wife Esther went to the state fair every year, and every year Morris would say, "Esther, I'd like to ride in that biplane and Esther always replied, "I know Morris, but that biplane ride is 50 dollars and 50 dollars is 50 dollars".

One year Esther and Morris went to the fair, and Morris said, "Esther, I'm 85 years old. If I don't ride that old biplane , I might never get another chance." Esther replied, "Morris that biplane ride is 50 dollars and 50 dollars is 50 dollars".

The pilot overheard the couple and said, "Folks I'll make you a deal. I'll take the both of you for a ride. If you can stay quiet for the entire ride and not say a word I won't charge you! But if you say one word, it's 50 dollars." Morris and Esther agreed and up they went.

The pilot did all kinds of fancy maneuvers, but not a word was heard. He did his daredevil tricks over and over again, but still not a word.

When they landed, the pilot turned to Morris and said, "By golly, I did everything I could to get you to yell out, but you didn't. I'm impressed!"

Morris replied, "Well, to tell you the truth, I almost said something when Esther fell out, but you know -- 50 dollars is 50 dollars."

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Italian Inginuity at Work

An old Italian lived alone in New Jersey.

He wanted to plant his annual tomato garden, but it was very difficult work, as the ground was hard.

It seems his only son, Vincent, who used to help him, was now in prison... and the old man wrote a letter to his son and described his predicament:

Dear Vincent,
I am feeling pretty sad, because it looks like I won't be able to plant my tomato garden this year.
I'm just getting too old to be digging up a garden plot I know if you were here my troubles would be over... I know you would be happy to dig the plot for me, like in the old days.

Love, Papa

A few days later he received a letter from his son..

Dear Pop,
Don't dig up that garden.
That's where the bodies are buried.
Love,
Vinnie

At 4 a.m.. the next morning, FBI agents and local police arrived and dug up the entire area without finding any bodies.

They apologized to the old man and left..

That same day the old man received another letter from his son.

Dear Pop,
Go ahead and plant the tomatoes now..
That's the best I could do under the circumstances.

Love you,
Vinnie