Good morning and Happy Balloon Ascension Day.
On the Beacon this morning, a look at Flathead’s blue-collar homeless and the role the Samaritan House plays in housing those down on their luck. Warren Miller writes about skiing after passing the 80-year-old mark. A profile of local shoe repairman Joe Lynch, who fixes everything from cowboy boots to Teva sandals. And Whitefish High School mulls a $21.5 million renovation.
Topping state news, a Mars candy billionaire didn’t have enough clout to block Pinnacle Gas Resources from drilling on a mineral lease beneath his sprawling southeastern Montana ranch. The League of Women Voters of Montana, the Bozeman Chronicle reports, has charged that voting machines used in Gallatin County and elsewhere can be tampered with. And the Public Service Commission Republican primary has taken a bizarre twist, with one candidate accusing the other of sending him a deceptive e-mail.
Finally, as winter slogs on and energy bills continue to take a toll on our wallets, the Swedes are tapping into human body heat. Seriously. A company there plans to harness the warmth generated by commuters at the Stockholm railway station and use it to heat a nearby building.
Halfway to the weekend!