Stories by Staff Pioneer Times

8 years ago

Cooking with Susie Q- Slow cooker ‘baked’ chicken & slow cooker taco soup

I love the crock pot when the weather gets cooler and we get busy. Here are a couple of ones new to me. I had a young cook tell me she wanted to try a slow cooker chicken. I found a recipe that claims to taste like baked chicken and a friend also told me she uses halved potatos in place of the aluminum foil and occasional will add onions and carrots as well and ends up with a complete meal. I also had a reader send a recipe for her favorite Taco soup. Soup season is here!

 

Slow Cooker “Baked” Chicken

1 (2 to 3 pound) whole chicken

8 years ago

Dates set for annual Christmas Bird Count

The Christmas Bird Count (CBC) season is upon us and Aroostook Birders club has already begun preparations to host counts here in northern Maine. The CBC is an annual survey of wintering birds conducted by groups of citizen volunteers which comb the countryside within a “count circle”, looking for any birds that can be found. […]

8 years ago

Ricker Rumblings

By Lois Downing

We are having a snowstorm as this is written on Nov. 30. The snow was bound to come. Some like it and some do not.

The girls and other tenants had a potluck on Friday after Thanksgiving. The ones who went had a good time and enjoyed the socializing.

St. Mary’s Church enjoyed their dinner on Thanksgiving Day in St. Anthony’s Hall.

8 years ago

Academy nominee

U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King announced their nominees Dec. 5 to the United States military academies.

Connor Grant of Houlton has been named a candidate for the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs.

To be considered for an appointment to a service academy, applicants must be nominated by an authorized nominating source, which includes Members of Congress.

8 years ago

Public university makes extreme statement

To the editor:

As a Maine taxpayer, avid sports fan, and alumni of the university system I was extremely insulted that our men’s basketball team would feel the need to make an extremely radical political statement at the away game at Duke University last week.

Unless I missed it, UMaine’s teams still represent the people of Maine who pay a good portion of the salaries of the athletic staff and coaches.

As you know, the citizens of North Carolina, through their representatives, recently decided to protect the privacy of their citizens, especially their youngest citizens, by pushing back against the radical LGBT agenda which had threatened to expose young children to adults of the opposite sex in the public bathrooms of the Tar Heel State.

8 years ago

Time to act now on health care options

To the editor:

As an outreach and enrollment specialist for the Health Insurance Marketplace, I’ve seen firsthand what the Affordable Care Act means for Aroostook County’s uninsured. Every day, I hear from those who now have peace of mind because they know they can afford to get the care they need.

The plans truly are affordable for millions of uninsured Americans. Nationwide, 85 percent of Marketplace enrollees qualified for financial assistance to lower their premiums. Most Americans are enrolled in plans for $75 or less, and are seeing their out-of-pocket costs drop, and you may as well. Additionally, the plans cover the care you need, from doctor and hospital visits to prescriptions and free preventive care.

8 years ago

From Our Files

Headlines from 100 years of local news.

100 Years Ago – Dec. 6, 1916

 Changes — Mr. Fred W. Fleming (Wild Bill) on Tuesday last assumed the entire management of the Bowlodrome, having purchased the interest of Mr. Niles, who retires. Mr. Fleming is contemplating several changes, the most important will be the installation of three new up-to-date alleys.

8 years ago

A boost for telehealth that can make a real difference

By U.S. Sen. Angus King
(I-Maine)

Rural communities in Maine and across America face several challenges when it comes to health care — including higher rates of some chronic diseases, isolation, and lack of transportation options. But the emergence of new and innovative telemedicine technology, like videoconferencing with a doctor from home, is helping to revolutionize the way rural health care is delivered. And that can make a big difference in the lives of Maine people.

Telehealth technologies are already having a positive impact here in Maine, particularly for our seniors.

8 years ago

Can you handle the truth?

 

If you’ve been tempted to have your DNA tested there are always special offers during the holidays and at other times throughout the year. This is a great opportunity to join the genealogists who have already opted to have some or all of the DNA tests available in order to trace their ancestral origins.

I’m not going to go into a great deal of specifics about DNA because it gets technical very quickly and can’t be covered in the space I have here. There are numerous online sources and books which will allow you to do that. I will say that you inherit half your genes (23) from your father and half (23) from your mother.

8 years ago

Trust betrayed: financial abuse of older Americans by guardians and others in power

By U.S. Sen. Susan Collins
(R-Maine)

Earlier this year, an attorney in Belfast was sentenced to 30 months in prison for bilking two elderly female clients out of nearly a half a million dollars over the course of several years.

The lawyer’s brazen theft was uncovered when a teller at a local bank noticed that he was writing large checks to himself on his clients’ accounts.

When confronted by authorities, he offered excuses that the prosecutor later described as “breathtaking.” For example, according to press reports, he put one of his clients into a nursing home to recover from a temporary medical condition, and then kept her there for four years until the theft of her funds came to light.