It's official

After proving I am who I am by showing lots of paperwork and even giving them a vial of blood, I now have a Montana drivers license. 

Ok, so I didn't have to give a vial of blood, but I did have to hand over several pieces of paper to prove that I am who I say I am and that I do, indeed, live in the state of Montana. They even wanted to see my marriage license along with my birth certificate. 

We also have Montana plates for the car (just arrived today in the mail). I'm actually glad to get the plates. I'm tired of people looking at me funny when I go to the store or get gas -- She's from Illinois? Where's Illinois? She's not from these parts, that I can tell.

Joe and I are now officially Montana residents. 

We don't own a gun. I guess that's next. 

Scrabble by Candlelight

Along with millions of other people around the globe, we celebrated Earth Hour and turned off the TV (!), the computers (!!), and all the lights for one hour. The kids were super excited by this and were very eager to participate. 

What do you do while the lights are out? Well, you play Scrabble, of course. Joe and Caitlynn vs. Me (Marcy). Since it was Caitlynn's first game of Scrabble, we didn't keep score, but I'm sure I won. I'm sure of it. 

It was a good chance to explain to Caitlynn about conserving energy, including electricity. I don't think she's picked up on the fact that we don't turn on any lights throughout the day because the house has enough natural light. She's just used to opening the blinds in the morning to let the light in and for the cat to peer out the window.

As I write this post, March is going out like a lion with a blizzard. Joe's school even canceled for the day because roads are closed. He's bummed. 

Yeah right.

Spring time in Montana

I guess spring time here in Montana means really beautiful weather one day and a massive snowstorm the next. The roads are so bad here, that they actually closed school.

Awesome.

And we've been told that the seasons here are: snow, mud, and fire. Snow is obvious. Mud is the thaw and fire happens in August when it's hot and dry. 

Can't wait. 

Earth Hour

Unfortunately this falls of deaf ears here in our little community. 

Joe and I will be celebrating (is it celebrating?) Earth Hour on March 28, 2009 at 8:30 PM. We will be turning off all our lights, TV, and computer. 

To learn more, go to Earth Hour's website.

More websites concerning conservation:

The We Campaign

Greener Choices

Natural Resources Defense Council

I've been meaning to...

I need to take some pictures of the little town we live in. It won't take much. We have a Post Office, a bank, a little convenience store, and a hardware store. Oh and a Ranger Station for the Custer National Forest. It's a pretty basic town. Everyone has a Ranger Station in their town, right?

I was going to take photos last week but then Friday came with a bit of a snow storm. It wasn't much snow, really -- just a couple of inches. However, with the ice mixed with snow, it turned the roads into ice rinks. A total of five people from the community died while driving on Friday. Joe was behind one accident. He didn't see it happen, but he witnessed the aftermath. 

In light of the sadness around here, I didn't deem it appropriate to take some photos this week. 

This also serves as a caution to those who may come and visit us in the future. Snow won't be an issue if you come in the summer. However, just be careful on the roads for a couple of reasons. Route 212 has a lot of semi-truck traffic. Driving from South Dakota to Ashland, the road is pretty flat (and really boring). It's when you drive from Ashland to Billings that the road turns hilly and curvy. That's where most of the accidents occur and if you drive this way you will see the sides of the road littered with crosses where people perished in an accident. 

Why so many accidents? Why so many deaths? The speed limit is 70 during the day (65 at night and slower for trucks). People around here drive really fast and recklessly. Combined with a very limited hospital/emergency response team, this place is a bit dangerous for driving. 

Joe and I are very careful. We don't drive too much, since we do our grocery shopping every two weeks and we make sure to drive only during the day. 

So -- y'all be careful, too.

News

At what point do I stop reading the Chicago Tribune and officially move on from Chicago? 

It's just so hard, I tell you. We are here. No newspaper. No TV (yet) and I'm tired of reading CNN.com and MSN. For two news junkies like Joe and I, it's difficult not to go the Tribune's site to see what's happening in the world of corrupt politicians. Funny stuff...crazy, impeached governor; corrupt-so-badly-he-doesn't-know-who-he-last-paid-off mayor; oh-so innocent newly appointed Senator who claims he did lie. There's just too much not to keep up with. I even read the weather report. Why? Last I knew, Tom's Skilling forecast didn't cover eastern Montana. Maybe I was worried Chicago would be buried under 10 feet of snow and then the schools would actually close for a day. It would be just my luck. We move away and the city finally takes a snow day. 

I realize that we may not move back to Illinois (not any time soon at least). I guess I'll have to start reading the Billings Gazette and Ranch & Farm Weekly (real publication, folks), so I'm aware of any good news circulating around here. 

Recycling? Huh?

Ha. Like there's a recycling center near there. Pipe dream! 

People around here don't recycle, unfortunately. There's no place to take it. Well, not an immediate place to take it.  After a bit of research, because I cannot throw out glass bottles, tin cans, newspaper, plastic bags, and plastic cartons, I found recycling centers and drop off places in bigger towns in the state (like Billings has a lot of places to put your recycling). I just can't throw this stuff away when I know it's more beneficial if it's recycled. I just wish others here felt the same way and I've been told not to bring it up. No one will listen. 

There's always an adjustment moving to someplace completely new. We are officially adjusting to our surroundings and getting used to a slower pace of life.