Columns

Betty Mann, our beloved community historian, is a self-proclaimed crier. “I cry at the drop of a hat,” she says. “I cry when I’m sad, I cry when I’m glad and I cry when I’m mad.” She said if her husband encountered her in tears, he’d ask, “What is it this time?” She jokes about her tears, but as a self-proclaimed non-crier I’m a bit jealous, because I’ve learned the benefits of a good cry. I…

I went on one heck of a road trip last week. I decided to go see the world, or more precisely, a large part of the state of Minnesota. It was part adventure, part volunteer work, and part a small-paying side hustle. I am a very passionate supporter of public lands. These are often referred to as state or federal lands. I call them citizen-owned lands.  This means that every acre of a Wildlife…

Father’s Day meant a three-generation gathering at our Hardwick farm. There was food, an air-conditioned garage and a recently purchased jungle gym to keep the youngest generation busy. Laughs and a good meal were shared by all the families involved. Family, I’ve realized, has a myriad of definitions. A more traditional definition of family is those related by birth or marriage. Another…

This past Sunday was Father’s Day, and I think most dads would say every day is Father’s Day. Sure, some of those days being a dad can be a bit troublesome, but for the most part every day being a dad is a good day. Memorial Day, Veterans Day, Sept. 11 (not because of 9-11) and Father’s Day are the days I think about and remember my dad the most. Memorial Day and Veterans Day were the two days…

The origins of Flag Day can be traced to a resolution adopted by the Continental Congress on June 14, 1777, following a report by the special committee assigned to suggest the flag’s design. It recommended that the flag of the United States shall be of 13 stripes of alternate red and white, with a union of 13 stars of white in a blue field, representing the new constellation. Both President…

While most mothers of the bride spend months planning a daughter’s wedding, I’ve spent months wondering if there is something I’m supposed to be doing.  Our youngest, Kate, who is getting married Aug. 31, will never be called a Bridezilla.  “She said yes to the dress” on Facebook Marketplace. She asked her (one) bridesmaid to wear “whatever.”  I’m not even sure if I’m supposed to wear a dress…

I recently spent the day in the boat with a professional fishing guide by the name of Travis Frank. You might recognize this name as he is also the host of the Pheasants Forever television show called “The Flush.” Travis is a fully jammed up guy with a schedule this 63-year-old could never manage. He works for Ron Shara Productions and hosts several shows and is involved with the production of…

It’s graduation season.  For me that means the end of the school year, returning to part-time summer work at the Star Herald, and graduation parties.  In my role as a high school teacher, I’m usually invited to 25 to 35 graduation open houses each year.  While it’s not possible to get to all of the events over the five consecutive weekends, I get to as many as I can.  In my 22 years of…

When you have two people in the same household who could use a little aid in the hearing department, it can make for some trying times. If one of those two people needs a little more aid than the other, they should be the one to get the hearing aid first. So now you have a household of two people, one hearing much better, and the other one not so much. When the hearing deficiencies were on a…

I made my annual trip up to Upper Red Lake last week, and for the first time in a very long time we caught very few fish. The main reason for the dismal catch rates was the weather. We had high winds two of the three days that we tried to fish that kept us off the water. I have an old, sturdy Alumacraft boat that has been on some pretty rough water, but even for me this was just too much. We…

The Rock County Star Herald last week published its Class of 2024 graduation special edition. It features photographs of graduating seniors with information about their high school involvement and future plans. We enjoy putting together the annual edition because it’s a chance to be part of such an exciting and hopeful time in the lives of these students and their families. We wish them well…

I am so glad May 15 has come and gone. This date is the deadline for many of the projects I engage in for conservation purposes. When you light prescribed grassland fires for habitat regeneration, this needs to be done by May 15.  This allows the habitat interruption to take place before the onset of the primary nesting season. The same is true for mowing newly planted CRP acres. These are…

September marks my longest stint working at the same job, and I’d like to thank my predecessor for the opportunity. I began working at the Star Herald in September 2014 as Brenda Winter left the newsroom to focus her energies on her health. This year will mark an important milestone for her, too. Luckily for the Star Herald and our readers, Brenda continues to regularly write her column, “…

Last week I hung out the “gone fishing” sign and headed to the West Bend, South Dakota, Recreation Area on the Missouri River. As always, the fishing was great and the weather was hot. The wind ranged between calm and gusts of up to 45 mph … which is about the norm, so all things considered, the weather was pretty darn good. The time in the boat with my two fishing buddies was priceless. The…

Dear George, We did it! We had the annual Marlene and Darlene comedy sketch spring fundraiser for Generations last Thursday – without  you. There was no carrot cake. There were no bouquets of flowers. We didn’t set up tables and chairs. There were no centerpieces. We actually had the fundraiser at the Palace Theatre because we knew we didn’t have the “man power” for a full-blown event at…

When it comes to luck, mine is normally pretty sour. Even my closest friends call me the character on the “Snoopy” cartoon who has the rain cloud following him around. When my friends have bad luck, they refer to it as “the luck of the Scoot” (Scoot is my nickname). I needed to get my boat ready for the fishing opener and had about a dozen things to check on before heading out on the road. One…