Bid early, often to snag Zags hoops tickets

If you are at all interested in watching a home Gonzaga men's basketball game this season, Dr. John Snedden is giving two people the opportunity.

Run, don't walk, to the Newspapers in Education silent auction to bid on this item. Minimum bid is $250. As all roundballers know, you can't get single-game tickets to watch Gonzaga at the Kennel at any price.

The winning bidder and Dr. Snedden will decide which game is yours.

There are 62 items in the summer auction. All proceeds go to fund newspapers in our classrooms.

It's a good cause.

Sandpoint is in the news again.

Please include your emotional response here. _____________________________________________________________ !!!!!!!!

BusinessWeek online featured us last week in a story titled: "Beyond Florida and Arizona: Wisconsin, Idaho and Georgia Offer Great Places to Retire"

Here's a portion of the story:

"First-time visitors to Sandpoint realize they have entered another world when they cross the bridge that spans the glacier-blue expanse of Lake Pend Oreille. It's there they catch a glimpse of the charming town nestled beneath the mountains of northern Idaho.

"It's like turning back the clock 40 years," says mortgage broker Steve Kirby, who moved from San Diego to Sandpoint last year and plans to retire there soon.

"Irritated by rampant growth in California, Kirby chose Sandpoint for its natural beauty and recreational opportunities. He now has a waterfront home, which he could never have afforded in San Diego. "The town itself is a real town," Kirby says. "It's not like a Tahoe that was created as a resort."

"Sandpoint outgrew its roots in timber and mining and fully embraced tourism several decades ago. With the Schweitzer Mountain ski resort just 12 miles away and a lake that offers boatloads of recreational opportunities, Sandpoint has long attracted outdoor enthusiasts.

"It has been northern Idaho's one relatively liberal, funky outpost, in contrast to the right-wing militias and neo-Nazis who once hunkered down in nearby Hayden Lake.

"Affluent retirees and second-home owners from the West and as far away as Louisiana have begun flocking to the town and surrounding Bonner County. "Most of the influx is from California, and what brings us up here is the price of housing," says semiretired Stephen Hoag, 56, who left Paso Robles, Calif., for Sandpoint in 2004, when the last of his kids turned 21.

"His three-bedroom, 3,000-square-foot house sits at the bottom of the mountain and overlooks the town and lake. It cost him $340,000 three years ago; he says he could sell it now for $420,000.

"This appreciation is part of a trend all around Sandpoint. The median house price is $220,000, up from $121,500 in 2002, according to the Selkirk Association of Realtors. Since 1990, the county population has increased by more than 50 percent, to about 41,000. Two golf courses are being planned, and golfer Jack Nicklaus is buying a resort just east of town and turning it into a private club.

"Another group is trying to improve the airport so it can better handle landings in bad weather, while a new Chamber of Commerce committee is working with local merchants to make their services more elder-friendly by improving access to shops.

"While retirees don't often seek cold climes, the locals jokingly refer to upper Idaho as the "banana belt" on account of its low altitude and relatively mild climate (average January high: 32, annual snowfall: 70 inches). "We're in late middle age, and living at 2,000 feet is a lot easier than living at 9,000 feet," says Doris Sanger, 55, a former Denver resident who, with her husband Ken, had considered the Colorado Rockies before opting for Sandpoint.

"More than just a town for nature lovers, Sandpoint also offers classic car shows, art galleries, restaurants, wine tastings, and plays and movies at the historic Panida Theater, which will host the first Idaho Panhandle International Film Festival next month. "There's almost always something happening that's culturally interesting," Sanger says. "When you get here, it's like going to a giant house party. And everyone is invited."

Looking to rent a houseboat for a day or more? Mike and Susie Bowman of North Idaho Houseboat Rentals could be a good choice. Watch this space for dispatches from an historical tour some of us will take aboard one of Bowman's houseboats later this summer.

Do you remember the story I shared last week about local architect, Tim Boden, who generously lent his pickup truck to a complete stranger?

Most of the local reaction was positive — along the lines of that is why we live in a small town, etc. A few of the comments were incredulous — as in, what was Boden thinking?

One comment especially caught my attention. A man wrote on the Bee's blog: "I'll bet the guy didn't even top off the gas tank."

Truth is … he didn't.

Doug Miller, the Hayden Lake visitor who borrowed Boden's pickup, didn't do what most of us would hope he would do.

But before half of you run off and say, "I told you so," Miller bought Boden a generous coffee gift certificate instead.

The only possible downside to Bowen's generosity and subsequent publicity was enclosed in an e-mail I received from him on Monday.

"I have gotten many nice comments from folks and it is a little embarrassing. P.S. I wish there was some way to let my smart-alecky friends know that they cannot borrow my truck unless they really need it."

Bonner County Dispatch: Four deputies responded to the Garfield Bay Campground about 6 p.m. on the Fourth of July after a "report of an intoxicated male devoid of clothing being disorderly at a local campground."

What is America coming to? … Since when can't a patriotic citizen display patriotic colors? He showed a little bit of red, a whole lot of white and was carrying booze.

Column closer: The early bird may get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.

Thanks to Bob Paulus for this one!