The numbers are in! Rock County/Luverne library patrons checked out 83,866 items in 2004, almost 5,000 more than the previous year. That is excellent. Here are more surprising facts. The library meeting room was used 326 times. The Internet computers were used 2,990 times. Citizens made 8,890 photocopies and computer printouts. 144 microfilm copies were made. Library patrons paid $4,350 in late fees and lost book charges, money that goes right back into the library fund. There are 4,941 library cardholders in Rock County. We are in the business of information, education, and recreation. Your patronage has made the library successful in its mission. The librarians are happy. It is commonly known that a happy librarian buys more best-selling books than an unhappy librarian. So let’s check out the new bookshelf and see how happy I really am. "Honeymoon," by James Patterson. When FBI agent John O’Hara first sees Nora Sinclair, she seems perfect. She has the looks, the career, the clothes and the sophistication. She doesn’t just attract men, she enthralls them. So why is the FBI so interested in Nora Sinclair? Mysterious things are happening to people around her, especially the men. When a young investment banker dies of baffling causes, agent O'Hara immediately suspects the only witness, the banker's fiancé, Ms. Sinclair. There is something dangerous about her; something that lures him at the same time it fills him with fear. Agent O'Hara keeps closing in, but the stronger his case, the less he knows whether he's pursuing justice or his own fatal obsession. "The Ivy Chronicles," by Karen Quinn. When Park Avenue mom Ivy Ames finds she’s been downsized from her high-powered corporate job and her marriage, she swiftly realizes that she’s going to need a whole new way to support herself and her two private-school daughters. At first she does the obvious thing: she panics. Then she decides to put her years of marketing savvy to work and dreams up a brilliant new business — helping upscale New Yorkers get their little darlings into the most exclusive kindergartens in the city. Ivy enters a parent-eat-parent world where the egos are directly proportional to their owners’ enormous incomes. These are her best clients: — Lilith Radmore-Stein, a newspaper mogul willing to risk her entire empire in a demented effort to get her son admitted to Harvard Day School. — Omar Kutcher, a cold-blooded mob boss who seeks Ivy’s counsel on whether to bump off or pay off the powers-that-be to get his "little pistol" into the city’s best all-girls Catholic school. — Stu Needleman, Ivy’s most obnoxious client, who threatens to ruin her if she won’t help his four-year-old daughter cheat on her kindergarten entrance exam. Alert: The library will be closed on Monday, Feb. 21, in observance of President’s Day.

Storm in 1884 The following appeared in the Rock County Weekly on July 25, 1884:(Continued from last week)The Havoc in LuverneTHE DAMAGE ITEMIZEDThe appearance of the streets when at last people were able to get out was disheartening, but there was, nevertheless, general rejoicing over the fact that no one in the village was seriously injured. The damage done in the village may be roughly estimated at from $10,000 to $15,000, but the figures even approximately can not be given. Aside from the minor mishaps, such as chimneys blown over on nearly every house, lightning rods twisted out of shape, trees broken, fences blown down, etc., the PRINCIPLE INSTANCES of damage done in the village are, so far as we can learn, in substance as follows:A.A. Noble’s new residence totally destroyed.J.B. Shawer’s barn moved from its foundation and badly racked. Ezra Rice’s new residence, in course of erection, moved from its foundation and badly damaged.C.O. Hawes’ new barn twisted out of plumb and considerably damaged. L.H. Way’s barn completely demolished.J.O. Helgeson’s barn overturned and wholly destroyed.F.A. Hyke’s warehouse, near the depot, partially blown over and practically ruined. It contained over 4,000 bushels of grain, including 350 bushels of flax, much of which was scattered over the ground and will prove a total loss. His scales were also ruined and his coal houses partially demolished. Loss $1,500.Herren & Wadleigh’s new lumber building, 24x60 feet in dimensions completely demolished. Loss $1,000.The roof was torn from Bean’s photograph gallery and the contents of the building more or less injured.The main part of the Luverne house barn was totally wrecked, but the horses, thirty-five in number, were all rescued without injury. Small portions of the roof of the hotel were blown off, the chimneys blown down etc., but the damage to the building was slight.Frank Smith’s residence partially completed, badly twisted out of shape. De. Kilgore’s new house, nearly completed, was considerably racked, but the injury is probably not serious.Thomas Barck’s new house was moved from its foundation and somewhat damaged. Frank Peteler’s buggy shed was blown over and his barn inclined to an angle of 45 degrees. Edwin Gillham’s barn was demolished and his buggy badly broken.The spire of the Baptist church was blown down and piled up in front of the church, a mass of broken timbers.Barns belonging to James Woodruff, A.C. Croft and John Cameron were blown down, and like structures owned by Dr. Spaulding, J.A. Harroun, and cow sheds belonging to Robert Herren were more or less damaged. The granary north of Dr. Beaubien’s residence moved from its foundation. The Freeman Avenue hotel barn blown flat and totally wrecked. There were nine horses and a number of hogs in the barn at the time, but fortunately all were rescued without material injury.Geo. B. Huntington’s buggy shed entirely demolished and one of the buggies carried several rods by the wind. The skating rink suffered serious injury, the entire upper part, particularly the west end, being "chucked" over about four feet. All the railroad camp buildings and tents were blown over and their contents scattered about promiscuously. Mike Mead’s new slaughter house was blown to pieces.Goethel & Stephens’ smoke house was demolished and Schuyler’s barn blown from its foundation.Mrs. Richardson’s house which she built recently with the hard earnings of her own labor, was raised about three feet from its foundation and dashed to pieces. The furniture was scattered by the wind and much of it completely ruined. The family escaped from the house just as it went over and very fortunately sustained little injury. L.E. Mittlestadt sustained a loss of about $800 by reason of injury to his lumber. Rev. S. Cates’ barn was among the number destroyed.Barns belonging to Mrs. Brazzll, W.H. Stort, Rev. H. Wang, John I. Fassett, James Larkin, in the northeast part of town, were either blown down or moved from their foundations.(To be continued next week).Donations to the Rock County Historical Endowment Fund can be sent to the Rock County Historical Society, P.O. Box 741, Luverne, MN 56156.Mann welcomes correspondence sent to mannmade@iw.net.

If you live in constant fear of nuclear annihilation and you have enough money, a doomsday vehicle could soon be parked in your driveway. According to Reuters, two private U.S. companies, Parliament Coach Corporation and Homeland Defense Vehicles, have joined forces to build the first luxury recreation vehicle that will withstand nuclear radiation. The large motor homes will feature sleeping accommodations for four people, a satellite navigation system and plasma televisions. Now for the bad news. Only 12 vehicles will be built this year, each costing from 1.2 million to 1.9 million. An air filtration system option, which sounds quite critical, will cost $100,000. Hey, it’s only money. However, before selling everything we own and acquiring a debt equal to the gross national product of a third world country, we should be reminded of inherent problems that might be associated with owning a radiation-proof recreation vehicle. Specifically, those problems would include the prohibitive costs and what can best be described as the awkwardness factor. We should question whether it would be worth $2 million to be one of a dozen or so families in the country to survive a nuclear war. Wouldn’t we miss our friends and family, all unable to afford radiation-proof vehicles?What would be the monthly payments on a $2 million, custom built recreation vehicle? The answer undoubtedly is something like, "if you have to ask, you can’t afford it."The cost of fuel for the gas-guzzling motor home might be a problem. It might be difficult in the wake of a nuclear disaster to find an open gas station every 17 to 20 miles. The awkwardness factor should not be overlooked. First of all, there’s the danger of being perceived as a nuclear snob. By driving, simply driving, the motor home around town before a crisis happens, we will be sending out an unspoken taunt — "Ha. Ha. We can afford this motor home and you can’t. We’ll live and you … well … sorry about that."Consider this awkward scenario. Your family and another family you haven’t met have radiation-proof motor homes at some remote campground and everyone else there has standard camping equipment. The other camps without radiation protection might prove to be real nuisances as they try to get a foothold into your vacation home on wheels after the first mushroom cloud appears on the horizon. They will try almost anything to get in — from pummeling the outside of your vehicle with fishing equipment and metal hot dog roasting forks to knocking on your door and using some ploy to gain entrance. They might pretend to need to borrow a cup of sugar or to welcome you to the neighborhood. This could put a real damper on your vacation plans — at least for a while. Also, what if you have nothing in common with the other safe vehicles occupants? When the radiation levels subside and you can finally meet them, what if they want to show you hours of slides from their other vacations or they just want to talk about the weather? Owning the same kind of vehicle is hardly the basis for a long-lasting friendship. By the time you have met the other family, you will have missed the first massive dose of radiation. There can’t be any going back. As far as anyone knows, there aren’t nuclear do-overs or golf-like mulligans for cases of post-nuclear boredom.Perhaps it would be better to simply drive an ordinary car into the face of disaster. Like our friends and relatives we’d glow like greenish-colored night-lights, but it wouldn’t be awkward.

I read with interest a Jan. 20 letter to the Star Herald from a Mr. Gronholz of Phoenix, Ariz., and the copy of a letter from a Mr. Trader down in Tennessee. I respect their right to express their concerns in this great country of ours where freedom flourishes like nowhere else in the world. The implication in their letter is that Americans voted for the war in Iraq. I must remind those gentlemen that American voters did not vote to go to war. Our democratic system doesn’t work that way. Our elected representatives in Washington, D.C., do the voting for us, and I would like to point out that Democrat and Republican representatives voted overwhelmingly to go to war in Iraq. My two brothers and I are all military veterans from the Korean War era. I also have four nephews that either have been or still are in the military. Two of them served with honor in Iraq. I couldn’t be prouder of those young men. I get righteously indignant when someone tries to muddy our great country and the outstanding young men and women that volunteer to defend it.After reading many letters like the one at issue, I have concluded that it is time we do something to help people that think like their letters indicate. Most of the letters are from what appears to be ‘sore loser" Democrats, but it isn’t real import who they are. They need help, so here is my well thought out plan for them. Somewhere in our solar system is an unoccupied planet just waiting to be populated. Shouldn’t we offer these people the happiness that the rest of us enjoy every day? Our government should set up a plan to offer those poor unhappy souls a planet of their own, with a free one-way ticket. It could be called Wacko World. There would be no wars there, and no laws, and no government, no discrimination, just eternal bliss. And just think — they could even have someone that thinks just like they do for a leader. It would have to be none other than that great non-contributor of all time — Sen. Ted Kennedy — The Grand Poobah of all the non-contributing "sore losers." I’d sure vote for that. Don RustOrchard Park, N.Y.

Smoking is Minnesota’s No. 1 health issue, but there’s hope. A solution that includes education, smoke-free environments and higher cigarette prices can effectively combat tobacco’s costly toll. Studies show that the number of people that die from tobacco every year is equal to the number of deaths there would be if two jumbo jets crash into each other every day. Why isn’t Minnesota pursuing this proven approach?This legislative session, let’s encourage our elected officials to increase the cigarette tax and adopt a solution that will only reduce tobacco use. Members of the Rock County Partners In Prevention Team:Ashley Bosch, Kelly Mulder, Jessie Leenderts, Lois Leenderts (PIP adviser), Brad Herman, Lindsey Severtson, Katie Kraetsch, Whitney Oye

I am writing in regard to the city of Luverne and the county of Rock — including small towns in Rock County — owning and running an animal pound. A dangerous animal which has caused damage to property or to a person should be picked up by a poundmaster or Chief of Police or sheriff’s officer. I believe the city and county should operate through the sheriff’s office and both city and county support and pay for a pound and provide for disposal of unwanted and dangerous animals. Small cities cannot afford a poundmaster or law enforcement, except by working with the county and the city of Luverne to work together to support and pay for both law enforcement and animal control. A big thank you for those who worked so hard on bringing the city and county law enforcement together again with a new contract.Most cities in Rock County have animal licensing and regulation ordinances of public nuisance on their books, but they do not have the means to enforce them. For the good of all Rock County residents, I hope the county commissioners and Luverne and small county cities put an enforcement of animal control in place. Marvin KroontjeMagnolia

By Lori EhdeLocal lovers seeking the perfect Valentine’s Day gift should look no further than Luverne’s own chocolatiers, Dave and Cloyce Smith.They’re not officially "chocolatiers," but their homemade truffles are known to rival those sold in the most exclusive candy shops in the upper Midwest."Every place we go — and I don’t know how much money we’ve spent over the years — we buy truffles," Dave said."I’ll take a bite," Cloyce said, "and he’ll take a bite. And we’ll look at each other and say, ‘We like ours better.’"Perfect productIf they’re confident in the quality of their product, it’s because they’ve spent a lot of time researching and experimenting to come up with the perfect mix."We’ve thrown out a lot of batches," Cloyce said.Operating under the name, "Truffle Treasures," Dave and Cloyce have been turning out delectable morsels in their kitchen for two years.In that time, they figure they’ve made nearly 1,000 truffles, not counting the practice batches. They make them in batches of 30."We mostly make them to give away to friends and family," Dave said. Their business is known only by word of mouth, but Truffle Treasures is gaining popularity among local chocolate connoisseurs.Vandia hair salon owner Lyle Behrens orders hundreds each Christmas to give to clients, and a bridal party last summer ordered 200 for a wedding reception.Other local residents just keep buying small batches to give away as personal gifts or to bring to dinner parties.Perfect processThe Smiths have practiced the process to perfection, with Cloyce in charge of the truffle centers, and Dave in charge of the chocolate exteriors.They use only real chocolate, and pair truffle centers with dark chocolate or milk chocolate, depending on the flavors.Cloyce whips the centers in her KitchenAid mixer with a recipe of whipping cream, chocolate and flavoring.The six flavors they’ve mastered are crème de menthe, champagne, toffee, Malibu rum, Irish crème and Fiori de Sicilia.The truffle mixture sets up overnight, and the next day they form the centers, scooping them with a melon baller, rolling them into spheres and dropping them onto paper."They start to melt from the heat in your hands, so you have to work quickly," Dave said.Once the balls are formed, they’re set aside for a while to firm up. Dave and Cloyce have figured out just how big to make the balls in order for the finished product to fit into their gift boxes.Dave’s job is to dip the balls into melted chocolate, the mixture for which is somewhat of a science.Because they use only real chocolate, it needs to be tempered, so it doesn’t "bloom." That’s what they call it when the cocoa butter seeps out, giving the finish a whitish color."It doesn’t mean the chocolate’s gone bad," Cloyce said. "It’s just that it doesn’t look nice anymore."Because it’s difficult to keep the melted chocolate at the necessary 82 degrees during the process, the Smiths purchased a chocolate temperer.Dave’s job is to drop the balls into the melted chocolate, swirl them around, and pull them out with just the right thickness of chocolate and not too much mess."I put it down on the paper and swirl it with one finger to get a little tip on top," he said, pointing at the elegant swirled tip on a finished truffle.Perfect project to do togetherThe final step, which they do together, is to trim off any chocolate "feet" that pool at the bottom of the truffles and wrap the finished candy in decorative colored foil. They admit that sometimes an unfortunate truffle will get damaged in the process, and that one will get set aside for tasting."You gotta do quality control," Dave said with a wink. But he added, "When you do this all the time like we do, you don’t eat them too much."They said with ingredients this rich, their truffles are meant for special occasions and small bites at a time, maybe with a glass of fine wine."These aren’t something you drop in your mouth like a Hershey’s kiss," Dave said. "You savor every bite."Their interest in truffles started with Cloyce’s father, the late John Cooney, who enjoyed making candy."When he died, we decided we wanted to keep that tradition alive," Cloyce said.So they took a class at Maid of Scandinavia through its candy division, Sweet Celebrations, two years ago in St. Paul.Those early recipes were the base of their own personal recipes today."It takes time. It’s a two-day process," Dave said. "But it’s something we do together."Cloyce said they end up laughing at each other through the process."We have fun," she said. "There’s way too many couples that don’t do things together. We have a good time doing this."Truffle Treasures has a small supply on hand for Valentine’s Day, but interested buyers should call early, because the Smiths may whip up a batch or two over the weekend.They sell for $1 apiece and are sold in packages of six or a dozen. Call 283-2877 or e-mail impkida@iw.net.

By Lori EhdeOne way for Luverne to have a voice in the state Legislature is to invite legislators to Luverne for a visit.With schools facing another difficult round of budget cuts again this year, Superintendent Vince Schaefer invited southwest Minnesota legislators to Luverne for a chat.Sen. Jim Vickerman wasn’t able to attend, but Rep. Doug Magnus stopped in both Hills-Beaver Creek and Luverne school districts Friday afternoon."I’m glad that Vince pulled the meeting together," Magnus said. "There is quite a bit of discussion right now about K-12 funding. … Over 40 percent of the state’s general fund budget goes to K-12 education."Schaefer said the time was well-spent."I think there is value in staying connected with Rep. Magnus and all of the legislators," he said, "so we know at least we’ve had the option to provide input."Attending the meeting with Schaefer and Magnus Friday were School Board members Colleen Deutsch and Laura Herman, Lowell Binford, Bill Weber, District Finance Officer Marlene Mann and second-grade teacher Jane Cote, representing the Luverne Education Association.Discussion topics included:oStatewide health insurance;oThe governor’s alternative compensation plan for teachers;oBudget timelines — letting schools know funding allocations within the first 30 days of the session, so districts can negotiate contracts within regulatory timelines;oWeighting formula for per-pupil funding;oPossibility of a local option to start school on Sept. 1 rather than after Labor Day;oRestoring early childhood funding that was cut during the last session and increasing kindergarten funding;oStaff development funding — allowing more to be used for the general fund;oIncreasing state funding without strings attached;oChanging the tax structure for education (property tax versus state and income tax);oEquity between metro and out state schools."The bottom line question remains the same: What will the new money amount be, above and beyond the current level of funding?" Schafer said."We have been victimized by money being moved around and being called ‘additional’ funding. It amounts to a shell game that to some looks like additional funding when it’s not."After the meeting, Magnus said he would work for a solution that would involve a simple funding increase."Education finance is extremely complicated," Magnus said, "but I would advocate increasing per-pupil funding, not changing the formula or adding to it."Schaefer said he decided to invite Magnus to Luverne in an effort to be proactive with the legislative process."It’s important to provide information before a decision is made," Schaefer said, adding that he asked Magnus to stay in touch before education bills are voted on.He said too often legislators are swayed by voices in the metro districts, which have needs that are different than out state schools."Sometimes we feel ignored out here," Schaefer said."We extended to Rep. Magnus our willingness to assist him and other legislators by providing information, statistics and more at their request so as to pass the best legislation possible."Magnus also visited Hills-Beaver Creek School District Friday, and Worthington Sunday."It was great," he said about Luverne’s discussion. "I look forward to working with Vince and the others."

By Sara QuamThe final reports on Rock County’s feedlot inventories, which started in June 2002, are finally complete.The Level III inventories were court ordered to ensure no environmental harm was done during the tenure of former Rock County Land Management Director John Burgers. He was implicated in a bribery case involving a hog operation outside of Rock County.Even with the scandal, Rock County is seen as having a progressive Land Management Office, which many use as a model for their county programs. Burgers was an instrumental part of setting up those local practices.LMO director Eric Hartman said, "I do not know how many other counties in the state could have performed this project in the time frame we had to work with and also have accomplished the results we have at this time."Now the LMO will have to plan a way to help the 109 producers who have to fix some problems found with their feedlots.Hartman said, "It’s pretty commendable that 80 percent of the lots have no concerns."Now that the county knows where the problems are, the clock is ticking on having to correct them. Some producers have two years to fix problems, others have five, depending on the size of the operation.Hartman said the LMO is trying to sign up producers who need to make corrections in the Open Lot Agreements and Interim Permits. The county will also help people apply for federal and state cost share monies and provide technical assistance on correcting feedlot problems.Final resultsThe cost to the county came in at less than expected, $125,559.07. Final results from the inventory show:
618 feedlots were registered in the county
655 sites were visited through the inspection process
598 are active feedlots
489 have no environmental concerns
82 are active sites with only runoff concerns
12 are active sites with unpermitted basins (depressions that hold waste)
15 active sites have basin and runoff concerns
28 sites need engineering assistance to correct problems within two years
69 sites need engineering assistance to operate under an open lot agreement.
There are 21 sites with less than 10 animal units; 236 sites with 10 to 100 animal units; 183 sites with 100 to 299 animal units; 63 sites with 300 to 499 animal units; 86 sites with 500 to 999 animal units; and nine sites with more than 1,000 animal units.