Columns
By Troy Christianson, Minnesota State PatrolAugust 08, 2016Question: I read a recent study by the AAA Foundation for traffic safety that nearly 80 percent of drivers expressed significant anger, aggression or road rage behind the wheel at least once in the previous year. How many “road rage” incidents are reported to the State Patrol on a yearly basis? Answer: Troopers respond to a number of calls on a daily basis based on driving conduct and many other…
By Mavis Fodness, reporterAugust 08, 2016In my completion of daily horse chores, I often hear the familiar honks of Canada geese as they pass overhead. This spring, however, there was one honk that sounded a little different from the others. I am fairly certain it was Gary greeting me. Two summers ago my family unknowingly fostered a Canada goose into adulthood. What was then a gray and yellow fuzzy ball grew up to be a beautiful black…
By Lori Sorenson, editorAugust 01, 2016Snag, the family cat, enjoys a relative life of leisure, existing both indoors and out, depending on her mood and the weather. Mostly, she’s been queen of the jungle, commanding respect of the local birds, bunnies and pocket gophers. But lately she’s been challenged by a stray Tom who travels from the neighbors but is anything but neighborly. We figure he’s a bully, given his embattled appearance…
By Rick PetersonAugust 01, 2016Wow! Hats off to the Rock County Fair Board for a very successful 2016 fair. The weather was perfect and the crowds certainly reflected that. The Star Herald staff is busy putting together a special section featuring all of the 4-H winners. Look for that in next week’s paper. Next on the community celebration calendar is the Rock River Beerfest Aug. 20 from 2 to 6 p.m. at the Blue Mound Ice Arena…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistAugust 01, 2016Last week I wrote about working on my bearded iris to address the iris borer issue. I lifted the entire clump of each variety and found borers in just one of the three, and that clump had just a few of the rhizomes affected. I found three of the critters, and they are ugly. Getting to that task as soon as I discovered the symptoms of spots on the leaves hopefully eliminated the other borers…
July 25, 2016Question: I own a 1994 BMW. Last time registration was due, I purchased a collector plate and joined the BMW club. I know you're not supposed to drive the car for everyday use, such as driving to the grocery store or running errands. I have a friend who told me I can only drive the car to club meetings or auto shows. True or not true? If not true, what are the restrictions to driving the car…
By Jason Berghorst, reporterJuly 25, 2016Remember the movie, “Paul Blart: Mall Cop?” In the 2009 comedy, the main character takes a job as a mall security guard and patrols on a Segway making sure the mall is safe and clean. Of course the humor in the movie is that, although he takes his job very seriously, the “mall cop” has little actual authority. I can’t help but feel a little like Kevin James’ character in the movie sometimes. In…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistJuly 25, 2016Today my flower gardens are absolutely glorious! This is the color I envision and plan for all through the cold, dark days of winter ... so enjoy every moment while it lasts. If you are feeding your planters, they should be at their peak of color now. If you have one or two plants that seem to be determined to take over the space, prune them to keep them in bounds. Sweet potato vine is one that…
By Rick Peterson, Star Herald General ManagerJuly 19, 2016I have one final thought on the tremendously successful Fourth of July celebration at The Lake in Luverne. That thought is, before we get too attached to calling the lake “The Lake,” let’s change the name. I know we had chances to throw a few name ideas around, but here is my thought: Seeing how Luverne’s Fourth of July celebration has found a home currently known as “The Lake,” why not pay…
By Brenda Winter, columnistJuly 19, 2016“I, Brenda, take you, Jim, to be my wedded husband. And, I do promise and covenant before God and these witnesses to be your loving and faithful wife, in plenty and in want, in joy and in sorrow, in sickness and in health, as long as we both shall live.” It was thirty years ago on Tuesday that I said those vows to my husband at the Presbyterian Church in Luverne and he said them back to me with…
By Betty Mann, President, Rock County Historical SocietyJuly 19, 2016The following appeared in the Rock County Herald on July 18, 1924: Continued from last week: ROCK COUNTY AS IT WAS FIFTY ODD YEARS AGO During the Autumn of 1866, Nathan C Estey and James Johnson, of Spirit Lake, Iowa, visited the county for the purpose of selecting claims on the un-surveyed lands for themselves and for Mr. Estey’s younger brothers, also having a few goods to barter with the…- By Troy Thone, Luverne volunteer weather recorderJuly 11, 2016After a brief respite of cooler-than-normal weather in May, June returned to this year's pattern of above-normal temperatures with average highs breaking the 80-degree barrier and average lows nearing the 60-degree mark. Overall, temperatures were nearly 3 degrees above normal with one particular stretch of four days where the mercury breached 90 degrees, rising as high as 95 on a couple of…
By Troy Christianson, Minnesota State PatrolJuly 11, 2016Question: There was a story in the news about a recent hit and run fatal crash where the State Patrol was looking for the public’s help in locating the vehicle that fled. How many hit and run incidents are there in Minnesota and what is the law that covers this? Answer: As a State Patrol public information officer, I will ask the media to assist us in identifying a driver or vehicle in a hit and…
By Mavis Fodness, reporterJuly 11, 2016“Back to the Future” is one of those movies I have watched again, again and again. Despite its futuristic title, it’s a movie that brings me back to the past. I was a college sophomore when the film debuted in theaters July 1985. I didn’t see the movie during its first release. I purchased the VHS years later for my first viewing. At the time of the movie’s release, my fellow college students…
By Betty Mann, Rock County Historical Society PresidentJuly 11, 2016The following appeared in the Rock County Herald on July 18, 1924: ROCK COUNTY AS IT WAS FIFTY ODD YEARS AGO Being a Paper on Pioneer Life as Read by Representative J.N. Jacobson at Hills Old Settler’s Re-Union Permanent settlement began in the southwest corner of the county in 1876. A few years before that time, trappers had operated in the county, visiting streams for the taking of pelts…
By Rick Peterson, Star Herald General ManagerJuly 05, 2016Just in time for the Fourth of July we installed a new flagpole in front of our house. As with any project around our house, there is a certain amount of debate (argument) about the project. This time the debate (argument) was about the location of said flagpole. Before the location debate surfaced, a number of other issues had to be worked out. How high should the pole be? What color should the…
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