Columns
- By Sgt. Troy Christianson, Minnesota Highway PatrolAugust 27, 2019Question: I'm writing to you to ask a question regarding whether or not you might know where the signal is that I can only assume is the method to tell current "smarter" cars what the speed limit is on the road or highway they are currently driving. I wonder how accurate they really are. Answer: Never rely solely on the displayed GPS speed reading. Your vehicle’s speedometer is the…
By Rick Peterson, general managerAugust 27, 2019Last week I reached one of those birthday milestones, something called Social Security age. Twenty years ago that was the age when darn near everyone walked off the job into retirement. Not so much nowadays. With $1,000-a-month health insurance premiums, not many of us can pull the plug on the nine to five. I have quickly learned the new target date for retirement is more likely to happen around…
By Brenda Winter, columnistAugust 27, 2019It was 1971. Or maybe it wasn’t. I don’t know. I was a kid and there were three of us in the back seat of a Ford Mustang with Mom and Dad in the front. I sat in the middle. I always sat in the middle. I was the middle child and that’s where I sat with my older brother on one side and my younger sister on the other. The middle back seat of a Ford Mustang is actually a hump. I sat on a hump with no…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistAugust 27, 2019Vegetable gardens are at their maximum production and that quantity of fresh produce can be almost overwhelming, but this is the vision for every gardener. Beans are being produced in quantity, and you may get tired of harvesting. But if you don’t keep picking, they stop producing, and beans produced late in the season are amazing. Onion tops have kinked over, indicating that they are finished…
By Betty Mann, president, Rock County Historical SocietyAugust 27, 2019The following appeared in the Rock County Star Herald on Aug. 5, 1965. OPEN HOUSE SATURDAY- Kanaranzi Bank Has Served Community Half A Century Open house will be held Saturday afternoon from 2 to 5 p.m. at the First Farmers State Bank in Kanaranzi, commemor-ating the 50th anniversary of the bank’s founding. Free coffee and doughnuts will be served during the afternoon to visitors, and a number…
By Sgt. Troy Christianson, Minnesota Highway PatrolAugust 20, 2019Question: Can you please explain the new law that requires drivers to move to the right lane if they are impeding traffic by traveling under the posted speed limit? Answer: Modernized language regarding left lane usage was added to Minnesota state statute for those drivers that drive in the left lane below the posted speed limit and are impeding traffic. The new law, starting Aug. 1, requires…
By Lori Sorenson, editorAugust 20, 2019I got a new keyboard for my Mac at the Star Herald last week, and in addition to being shiny and new (and clean), it has a new sound. A satisfying sound. … Almost like a typewriter, minus the ding of the return cartridge. Clickety clackety clickety clackety … “It sounds very productive,” a fellow news writer observed. My previous keyboard arrived quietly. With little ado. Its plastic casing with…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistAugust 20, 2019Driving in the county on Saturday, I was surprised to see so much wild cucumber vine. It was growing on fences, through trees — especially evergreens — and along creek banks. I even saw it climbing up on corn stalks. Now that it has started blooming, the airy white flowers make it very visible. Yes, it is attractive but realizing its potential to become extremely invasive quickly takes away that…
By Betty Mann, president, Rock County Historical SocietyAugust 20, 2019The following appeared in the Rock County Star Herald on July 8, 1965 First National Bank To Open In New Location On Monday Moving day for the First National Bank of Luverne is this weekend. First National will move to its new building at Main and McKenzie over the July 10 weekend and will be open for business as usual at the new location Monday morning. The Grand Opening is scheduled for July…
By Rick Peterson, general managerAugust 13, 2019So far after 15 days into the hands-free cellphone while driving era I have had only one near violation. I will admit that more than a few times after my phone rings or pings, I have made the motion to pick it up but resisted it. I suspect the hands-free law will take some time before compliance is the norm, much like the seatbelt law. Remember when the seatbelt law first went into effect? Many…
By Jason BerghorstAugust 13, 2019It may only be August, but I’ve decided to make a wish list. Instead of a Christmas list, however, I’m writing a wish list for Luverne. My guess is many local readers have found themselves saying, “I wish Luverne … ,” so I thought I’d turn my thoughts about that into a column. Luverne already has many things that other small towns might wish for. From the historic Palace and nice restaurants to…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistAugust 13, 2019My trees are dying!!!! I’ve had a few people question the leaf loss of their trees, and most often the trees they are alarmed about are flowering crab trees. This year is exceptional for infection of a fungal disease called scab. The infection starts mid spring, and the first symptom is a black spot on the leaf which most people don’t notice. Later the leaf turns yellow and drops, and that is…
By Betty Mann, president, Rock County Historical SocietyAugust 13, 2019The following appeared in the Rock County Star Herald on July 8, 1965. Weather Slows Work On County Highway Projects Maintenance Work Behind Schedule, Too The county highway department’s 1965 road building program is being delayed by wet weather, County Engineer Julius Brown said yesterday. In fact, he said, the wet weather is also slowing up the county’s normal maintenance…
By Mavis Fodness, reporterAugust 06, 2019Sometimes a little hope is found floating amid a sea of sadness. For Luverne native Abby Lange, that hope came June 26 when she helped a woman deliver a healthy baby boy. Abby works as a paramedic with Ringdahl Ambulance in Fergus Falls. The unexpected delivery was the result of a 5 a.m. emergency call of a female not feeling well. The ride to the hospital is something that Abby won’t soon forget…
By Betty Mann, president, Rock County Historical SocietyAugust 06, 2019The following appeared in the Rock County Star Herald on July 1, 1965. TALK ABOUT A WET SPRING- She Pumps Water Every Morning At 3 A. M. To Keep Well From Getting Too Full “It’s the absolute truth,” says Mrs. Elsie Herschberger, Kenneth. “It’s been so wet this spring that I have to get up every morning at 3 o’clock to pump out my well, or it gets too full.” It’s no…
By Sgt. Troy Christianson, Minnesota Highway PatrolJuly 30, 2019Question: With the upcoming new hands-free law that is effective August 1, can a teen that is under 18 years old and has a driver’s permit or provisional driver’s license use their phone in hands-free mode? Answer: The new hands-free law does not change anything for teens under 18 with a driver’s permit or provisional driver’s license: They cannot make or answer calls while driving (hand-held or…
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