Is Philipsburg a nice place?

[mahatmakanejeeves]

7. Don't worry; it will get plenty cold there.

My Philipsburg story:

Twenty-two years ago, I drove across the country from Washington state to Virginia. I made a lot of stops along the way to look at the local sights. Headed east from Missoula, I decided to take the long way from Missoula to Butte, so I turned off the Interstate and took the scenic route.

At the time, the flex plate in my car was getting badly worn. The flex plate is the thing behind your engine with gear teeth cut in its circumference. When the teeth wear, your starter can no longer engage that portion of the flex plate with the worn teeth. One consequence is that I tried not to turn off my car's engine once it was going. Well, anyway....

In Philipsburg, I thought I'd look over the old courthouse. I parked my car on the street and left the engine running. I took my time looking at the courthouse, and when I was done, I went back to my car, which, of course, was right where I had left it parked, and drove on to Anaconda and Butte.

You might not be able to do that today, but back then you could.

That's my Philipsburg story.