Too early for visions of spring

By Tim Trainor - 12/27/2008

Christmas is over. The snow remains.

I don't mind a little winter weather during the holiday season. It's tradition, and the way Elvis and Nat King Cole tell us the holidays are supposed to look.

But after the first of the year, I begin to itch for crocuses, May Day and The Kentucky Derby.

The Farmer's Almanac says it might be a long itch. It predicts winter in the Intermountain region will be "much colder and drier than normal, on average, with snowfall above normal in the north." It predicted the coldest temperatures would hit in late December, continue throughout January and into early February. It also calls for big-time accumulation in mid-November, early December, mid- and late January and late February.

So it looks like a few more months of putting off thoughts of spring. I guess that's not all bad, as that means plenty of time for skiing, fly-tying and hot springs soaking.

But here's to hoping you got everything you wanted for Christmas, and everything you didn't want came with receipts.

Frogs no longer welcome in mailboxes I know I'm not the only Standard reader whose Christmas gift idea was thwarted by the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Park's order to a Florida company to stop sending amphibians here.

FWP said the "Grow-A-Frog" kits that include tadpoles that become African clawed frogs (and eventually, humans!) were no longer welcome here. The species is non-native, of course, and if released could harm the environment.

Three Rivers Mail Order Corp. President Paul Rudwick, who ships frogs through the mail for $19.99, told a Florida newspaper that he has applied for a waiver to stop the ban.

"It hurts me," he said. "No way that this frog is a hazard in Montana. There's no way it can survive at 7 degrees below zero." Rudwick said his company only sells the kits to school and school suppliers, allowing students to study the evolutionary process.

"They can keep it and love it as a little pet," Rudwick said.

FWP doesn't feel the love. They sent letters to 65 Grow-a-Frog customers, asking them to euthanize their little pets or send them back to the supplier.

Minimum wage set to jump The minimum wage for workers throughout Montana will increase from $6.55 to $6.90 per hour effective Jan. 1.

The wage hike comes after 70 percent of Treasure State voters approved a 2006 imitative.

Initiative 151 added an annual cost-of-living adjustment to the state wage and proposed that Montana's minimum would not be lower than the federal standard.

Under the previous law, Montana's minimum wage was $5.15 an hour, equal to the federal standard.

The cost of living increase is based on the U.S. City Average Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers for All Items from August of the preceding year to August of the current year. The amount is rounded to the nearest five cents.

The federal minimum wage is set to increase to $7.25 per hour July 24, 2009, so look for Montana to follow suit.

— Reporter Tim Trainor may be reached via e-mail at tim.trainor@lee.net or call 496-5519.