Bert Carlstrom 
In a creative writing workshop, my wife wrote about growing up on a farm. Later, in the same essay, she talked about growing up on a ranch. This caused considerable consternation in the workshop. “You can’t use those words interchangeably,” people said. “It’s a farm or it’s a ranch. You need to figure out which … Read more
Winter marks a slow-down in Montana’s event calendar. My guess: people are far too busy skiing to bother with events. However, there are still some very exciting things happening in Montana this next month, I’m going to highlight a few, and be sure to check out the whole list at: virtualmontana.com/events/ With snowshoeing, … Read more
Not long before Christmas, I needed a new notebook. On a whim, I bought one without lines. I’ve started drafting my blog posts using unnecessary squiggly arrows and doodles. In reality, this is just an ingenious procrastination method, but it also makes me feel like an old fashioned natural philosopher. I like to think that … Read more
Tempest videographer Mike Dreesman spent the first week of January in Yellowstone National Park. He took some stunning footage of big horn sheep, bison, eagles, and scenery, but probably his most arresting footage was of two carcasses in the snow. Mike spent nearly four hours taking video of a bison carcass which lay half submerged … Read more
Before Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat, there was Coffee. And when Facebook, Twitter and the rest are rendered meaningless by [the end times/a thermonuclear explosion/global warming/global cooling/an alien invasion] there will still be Coffee. In those days, crotchety old men will be the new masters of information, because they have never abandoned the ancient practice, … Read more
In Christmastime in Montana, David Walter has compiled hundreds of stories and descriptions of Christmas celebrations from the archives of Montana history, and I was perusing it earlier this week. Wait, peruse means to “examine carefully and at length?” Never mind, I wasn’t perusing anything. I speed-skimmed Christmastime in Montana, on the search for blog-postable … Read more
A few weeks ago, I wrote about how to travel through Montana like my dad. Lest you think that I made anything up, I would like to submit this photo I just found of a tour my dad once organized and led: In case you aren’t sure, that is two school buses full of members … Read more
Someday, this will be an infographic, and you’ll all say “Oh wow, this Bert guy is pretty amazing” (Maybe. Are infographics even a thing anymore, or is that too last year?). In the meantime, here you are, a riveting just-the-facts post about sheep in Montana: When travelling around Montana, you will see cows. This is … Read more
The Old Farmer’s Almanac has pages on its websites explaining how to predict the weather using goose bones, pig spleens, and woolly caterpillars. It says these are just articles about old folklore, but also refuses to reveal the method it uses to make long-term weather predictions. So forgive me for being skeptical. Despite claiming an … Read more
You, dear reader, will never have an opportunity to travel through Montana with my dad [name withheld because he doesn’t trust the internet]. Which is a shame, because it is one of the best ways of seeing the state. References like Names on the Faces of Montana, virtualmontana.com, this blog, and a good Montana Map … Read more
