Columns

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…

I recently found myself behind the wheel of Carson’s pickup. It’s been almost 32 months since he died, and it’s been about that long since he’s driven it, but if I close my eyes, I can still see him behind the wheel. … Tinted window rolled down, long hair flowing in the breeze, stereo blasting and engine rumbling as he idled slowly down the gravel driveway to avoid dust. It’s a maroon 1997…

You may have noticed me walking around town recently with the aid of a cane. The need for the assistance from a cane is because of a recent hip procedure. Truth be told, my wife Mary wasn’t real keen on the idea of me going out in public with the cane. I will admit the tennis ball I added to the bottom of the cane may have taken away a little bit of the aesthetic appeal of my cane. Back in the…

Minnesota fishing opener is just right around the corner. This special day will have more Minnesotans out and about than any other outdoor opening day. The season opens at 12:01 on May 11. The season for pan fish stays open year-round but for walleyes and other game fish there is a regulated season in order to allow these fish to spawn unmolested. I used to be one of those folks out at midnight…

Mother’s Day is just over a week away, and my thoughts have turned to what to do to honor that female parent in my life. Along the way, I’ve thought about what the definition of Mom means to me, and I’ve realized I have more than one Mom. … Because Mom is more like a list of characteristics beginning with the letter “L.” To me Mom is someone who learns, listens, leads, laughs and lives in the…

So, I was reminded that it was time for the tick spot and heartworm treatment for my dogs the other day when my phone chimed in and told me so. The ticks are out in full force, and in the past two very short outings, I ended up removing five ticks. I was not in the grass for more than 10 minutes combined. Maybe the mild winter will make tick season all that much more entertaining this season. I…