Sally Ann Shurmur
Latest from Sally Ann Shurmur
Sally Ann Shurmur: New Babies In The Family Highlight Real Meaning Of Christmas
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "Three new Shurmurs have joined the extended clan in the month of December. It’s never a bad time to have a baby.”
Sally Ann ShurmurDecember 19, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: It's An Obsession Rooted In Flour, Sugar And Butter
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "As we pass the halfway point of Advent, it’s time to confess my newest and completely out of control obsession. Cookies."
Sally Ann ShurmurDecember 12, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: The Wyoming Cowboys Season Is Over For Some, But Not For Me
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, “The Wyoming football season may be over, but there is still much to watch for and think about.”
Sally Ann ShurmurDecember 05, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Wyoming School Boards Association Salutes Its Own, Rings Those Bells And Does It Well
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, “In my former life, banquets and formal fundraisers were part of the deal. It had been awhile since Owen and I attended one.”
Sally Ann ShurmurNovember 29, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: UW vs Boise State -- Of All The Reasons To Go, Which Will You Choose?
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, “Should the unthinkable happen and Wyoming pull off the upset of all upsets, Boise will be done in the playoff talk and Jeanty’s Heisman hopes likely will be done as well. So all of this brings the question, does the football fan go to see the home team or the quality competition?"
Sally Ann ShurmurNovember 21, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Wyoming vs CSU -- It Won't Ever Be Just Another Game
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, “Conferences may realign, playoffs may expand, but there will never be another rivalry like Wyoming and the sheep. Here’s why.”
Sally Ann ShurmurNovember 14, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Between Naps, A Victory Week Summation -- And Babies
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, “You know who I am the happiest for this week — other than Kaden Anderson? My mom.”
Sally Ann ShurmurNovember 07, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Keyboard Trolls Said I Wasn't A Real Wyoming Cowboys Fan
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "Keyboard trolls said I wasn't a 'real fan.' Let me just grab the season ticket invoices and the Cowboy Joe Club membership fees and 62 years of game attendance and we can chat then."
Sally Ann ShurmurOctober 31, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Chasing The Elusive On The Field And At The Store
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, “The inquiries started coming in before the San Jose State debacle was even over. A Cowboy from a long time ago wanted to know the last time the Pokes finished the season with just one win."
Sally Ann ShurmurOctober 24, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: University Of Wyoming's Football Season Is Half Over, Now What?
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, “Remember in December when newly minted Wyoming head football coach Jay Sawvel said the one thing left for the Wyoming Cowboys to achieve was a conference championship? With half the season completed, there is one win."
Sally Ann ShurmurOctober 17, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Finally, A Sandwich In The Car
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, “Maybe (probably) it’s genetic, but tailgating is not as fun for me as the game. Or it could simply be that I have been going to college football games for so long that I remember when nobody tailgated."
Sally Ann ShurmurOctober 10, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: The Phone Call That Changed Everything
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, “Accused frequently of being overly dramatic, it’s not that when I say one phone call did change everything. Here’s the scoop.”
Sally Ann ShurmurOctober 03, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Charming Memories Regardless Of Conference
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, “This is Homecoming Week at the University of Wyoming, and the memories are flooding back. I am concentrating on them, rather than the absurdity that is the business of college football right now."
Sally Ann ShurmurSeptember 27, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Even At 0-3, There Is Still Good To Be Found In Laramie
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, “Nobody likes being 0-3. Few thought that would be the fate of this year’s Pokes, who went 7-0 at home and finished with nine wins last year.”
Sally Ann ShurmurSeptember 19, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Halls Of Fame, Sellouts And Good Bathrooms As Football Kicks Off
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, “There was plenty to be happy about in Laramie last weekend, even if the final score didn’t make the list.”
Sally Ann ShurmurSeptember 12, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Welcome To Laramie, It's Just Different
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "I would not want to be the Idaho Vandals this week. I think the Pokes are ready to deliver a beatdown. And I think the defense will remember what the hell they are supposed to do."
Sally Ann ShurmurSeptember 05, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: When It Comes To Moms, We Hit The Jackpot
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "I’d love to introduce those who don’t already know her to my mom, who turns 93 on Saturday. In the NFL, she earned the reputation as the real one, still cleaning her own house, still cooking every night for her beloved Fritz."
Sally Ann ShurmurAugust 29, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Fanning The Flames, And Not Just Fire
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "Turns out, you can get redder than red. And the moderates look left, and the right looks middle. But guess what? It’s what the people who voted want, pundits and the media be damned."
Sally Ann ShurmurAugust 22, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Oh Summer, We Hardly Knew Ya
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "There is no more optimistic place on the face of the earth than a Friday night in Laramie before game day. So long summer. My gold wardrobe is clean and ready."
Sally Ann ShurmurAugust 15, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: What Is Home?
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "Sixteen years ago this week, I put the last few things in my beloved girl truck, grabbed Frank the darling dog and closed the 30-year chapter of living in Casper."
Sally Ann ShurmurAugust 08, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: New Places Are The Best Part Of Road Trips
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "Immediately out of Dubois, the bear caution signs began and I was so excited. We never did see one, but I marveled at the beauty we did see. I kept saying over and over how I couldn’t believe this was so close to home."
Sally Ann ShurmurAugust 01, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: In My Opinion, The Republican Convention Was Great
Cowboy State Daily columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "The most emotional moment for me came on night one, when Donald Trump arrived in the arena, barely 48 hours after being shot in Pennsylvania. I marveled at his strength and thanked God that he survived the bullet meant to kill him."
Sally Ann ShurmurJuly 25, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: You Can Go Home Again
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "If I didn’t love high school so much, maybe reunions wouldn’t be so important to me. Accused by both my mom and dad of only going to school so I could do 'the other stuff,' I cannot deny it."
Sally Ann ShurmurJuly 18, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: These Are Sal’s Favorites, What Are Yours?
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "Even if I need help with almost everything, there are still so many things that bring me joy. Like ice cream. Ice cream brings me immense joy. Here's a listing my favorite things."
Sally Ann ShurmurJuly 11, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Troopers Pack A Punch At Packed House
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "Those who know me had to know I would write about the Troopers Drum & Bugle Corps at some point. I have been a fan since I was in junior high and they were world champions."
Sally Ann ShurmurJuly 04, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: When It Comes To Reunions, Is It Go Or No?
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "We aren’t a reunion family. So when they come later in life, is it a fun, new idea or something to be dreaded?
Sally Ann ShurmurJune 27, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Peter King, Broadway Joe And Me
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "I suppose most professionals have someone whom they look to as having achieved the pinnacle in their profession. For me, it is the sportswriter Peter King..."
Sally Ann ShurmurJune 20, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: If Loving Food Trucks Is Wrong, I Don’t Want To Be Right
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "I waited my turn to order from the car window. A gal standing in line came to my car, asked what I was ordering, and got my debit card. Did I know her? Nope. But this is Wyoming and you have to have faith in people."
Sally Ann ShurmurJune 13, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: As We All Grow Older, Change Is Hard
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "This was the first time since 1994 that I did not stay at Mom and Dad’s house in Wisconsin. I have never not stayed at their house in 50 years of visits to Detroit, Boston, L.A. and Phoenix prior to their move to Green Bay in 1994."
Sally Ann ShurmurJune 06, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Celebrating Two Of The Very Best Women
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "If you are lucky enough, call your Mom. Today. If you have a best friend, make time for them. Teach your kids to be good friends. The world needs more people with friends."
Sally Ann ShurmurMay 30, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: School's Out For Summer
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "Combining car rides and food are my favorite things, and I would love to get to the Bunkhouse, where we have never been, Miners & Stockmen’s, which we love, and Svilar’s, where I have not been since I was a kid."
Sally Ann ShurmurMay 23, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Chocolate Squares And Frosting Can Mean Only One Thing
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "Graduation season is here and this Sunday will be a popular day. We’ll be across the street in purple to wish the 56 Herders well and then then change shirt colors and head to southeast Wyoming for 20 graduates."
Sally Ann ShurmurMay 16, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Released From Captivity, Just In Time For Mother's Day
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "Happy Mother's Day to all of us who are or are filling the role of moms. I think of myself as a sandwich, still so lucky to have my mom and also be a mom to the two who God gave me."
Sally Ann ShurmurMay 10, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Healthcare Isn't What It Was On TV
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "Gunsmoke’s Doc Adams fixed up folks on TV from 1955 to 1975. Get shot? No problem. Drink a slug of whiskey, bite down on a stick, and voila! the bullet was gone."
Sally Ann ShurmurMay 02, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: His Spirit And His Laugh Will Never Die
Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "He has been my family, my friend, my rock in stormy seas, for 50 years. On Monday, he suffered a stroke, rolled his car, and died. He had survived cancer, heart trouble, joint replacements, and knee surgery while playing for the Pokes."
Sally Ann ShurmurApril 24, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: The Greatest Sports Movie And It's Not Even Close
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "If you watch football and you don’t watch this movie, I don’t know what to tell you. If you don’t watch football, first, what is wrong with you and second, you’d still learn something if you watched this movie."
Sally Ann ShurmurApril 18, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: On The Eclipse And That Girl — The Sun, The Moon, And One Of One
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "The same news guys who told us nightly in 2020 that we were all going to die if we had human contact and didn’t get continuous jabs were now brought to tears by the moon playing hide and seek with the sun."
Sally Ann ShurmurApril 11, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Sports Meets History As Final Eight Begins
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "When Caitlin Clark plays, it’s not just girls’ basketball, it’s history. It’s not just what she does by herself, but that she makes everyone around her better."
Sally Ann ShurmurApril 04, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Sunday Is Coming, Whether We Are Ready Or Not
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "It’s been the 'unLentiest' Lent of my life, using a newly coined addition to the Sal dictionary."
Sally Ann ShurmurMarch 28, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Walt Longmire, Joe Pickett & Jesus -- Reading Three Wyoming Men
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "In the past few weeks, I read Craig Johnson, C.J. Box and Father Bryce Lungren nearly in succession. These guys are all from Wyoming - Ucross, Saratoga and Worland. They are as far from Danielle Steel and Nora Roberts as you can get."
Sally Ann ShurmurMarch 21, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Four Years Later, Shock Of Early Pandemic Still Vivid
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "For me, [the reaction to COVID is] a cautionary tale of what happens when sensible people don’t have the courage to lead - to step up and say, this is not New York or LA and we are not doing it that way here."
Sally Ann ShurmurMarch 14, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Bidding Farewell To The Three Wyoming Swim And Dive Athletes
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "On Wednesday, the state and the University of Wyoming bid farewell to the three Wyoming swim and dive athletes who were killed in a car crash on the horrific Highway 287 that runs from Laramie to Fort Collins."
Sally Ann ShurmurMarch 07, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Did You Leap Or Shuffle?
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "As I understand it, Leap Day is a math and science way to use up an accrual of extra hours and minutes from the previous three years, 11 months. If I had kids at home, I would let them eat ice cream for breakfast and breakfast for dinner."
Sally Ann ShurmurMarch 01, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Fear Of Missing Out (FOMO) And The ADA
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "Mom was really, really slow on the walker, and yet we went. If only I knew then what I know now, I would have tried to be more patient, more understanding, more loving."
Sally Ann ShurmurFebruary 23, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Pray For Sgt. Krinkee’s Wife And His Family
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "Every day that a law enforcement officer puts on his or her uniform is a day that their family prays they come home. Every day. Every traffic stop, every warrant served, every altercation, presents a chance for the unthinkable to happen. Pray for Sgt. Krinkee’s wife of 2-1/2 years and his family."
Sally Ann ShurmurFebruary 15, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Loss, Lent, And Love
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "On Wednesday and throughout Lent, I shall continue to pray for the families of Bobbi Brown Barrasso and Toby Keith."
Sally Ann ShurmurFebruary 08, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Gulp! The First Weekend With No Football...
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "The first weekend with no football is always startling. It’s as if since August 27, the road map has been laid on the table, with how to get from point A to point B. Now the roadmap is put away and the table is empty."
Sally Ann ShurmurFebruary 01, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Remembering Anniversaries
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "Next Tuesday would have been my parents’ 70th wedding anniversary. Even though Fritz the Dad has been gone almost 25 years, they are still very much married in the eyes of all who knew them, especially Peggy Jane the Mom."
Sally Ann ShurmurJanuary 25, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Getting Ready For NFL Playoffs This Weekend. Go Josh!!
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "When Josh Allen says 'Go Pokes!' in his introduction, there’s a reason to be giddy. And when the cameras pan the end zones at Highmark Stadium and you can always see a gold buckin’ horse flag, that’s worth more than any tourism ad."
Sally Ann ShurmurJanuary 18, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Sad College Football Is Over But Thankfully NFL Continues
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "Part of loving football is loving the history. In my case, that goes back 70 years to Michigan, where Fritz the Dad played and started his coaching career. From there, to Laramie in 1962 and then to the NFL in 1975, where he spent the next 24 seasons."
Sally Ann ShurmurJanuary 11, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: I Forgot The Apples
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "Longtime readers might remember that Christmas in my dreams is a mashup of Days of Our Lives (formal clothes, gorgeous packages, everyone sitting in one room as champagne is sipped and presents are opened one at a time) and Miracle on 34th Street (Santa comes at night, even for the broken 67-year-old organizer).
Sally Ann ShurmurJanuary 04, 2024
Sally Ann Shurmur: Actions And Words -- Never Take Them For Granted
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "If you choose a word as your theme for the new year, you might consider kindness or gratitude or both. The kindness of others right now is allowing me to function in a semi normal way."
Sally Ann ShurmurDecember 29, 2023
Sally Ann Shurmur: No One Does Christmas Like Peggy Jane, The Mom
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "The gift I treasured the most was the new addition to my Department 56 Snow Village, a very particular and pricy brand of ceramic, intricately painted and lit Christmas adorableness."
Sally Ann ShurmurDecember 21, 2023
Sally Ann Shurmur: Hello It's Me!
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur writes, "So after I opined last week about what Craig Bohl means to Wyoming, someone thought perhaps I should write again. Perhaps I should."
Sally Ann ShurmurDecember 15, 2023