Columns

A teal-colored envelope arrived in our mailbox last week, days after our farm dog, Lucy, was struck by a car. The card inside read, “There will forever be a place in your heart for such a good and faithful friend.” Its message brought tears, and they spilled over to sobs when four squares of paper slipped out of the card. Inked on each square was a single paw print – for each of Lucy’s four…

This is the final installment of a public land acquisition process. We have covered a lot in the last three columns, and this will get us to the end zone. Last week we left off at the appraisal review process.  I have never had an appraisal review that ended up changing the value of a parcel, although the purchase agreement signed earlier does openly state that the PA is subject to an appraisal…

In the first two columns about public land acquisition, we covered how a parcel is selected and how these sales originate. Appraisals are then completed and surveys finished and then reviewed by a second party. After these are finalized, you can actually get close to having the seller and buyer sign a purchase agreement. But there are still a few more steps until that takes place. Once the…

The 2023-24 school year is in full swing, and fall sports are almost halfway through the regular season schedule. The school sports cycle continues, and at the end of the fall season it will mark my one-year anniversary as the Rock County Star Herald sports editor. Luverne and Hills-Beaver Creek school districts have strong athletic programs, and it is a pleasure covering all the events for…

A recent column of mine was about how I enjoy looking for things other people have lost. A couple of Saturdays ago, while Mary and I, along with Gilbert, the dog, were on a Ranger ride, I got a phone call. The call was from a frazzled mother from Redwood Falls. She explained that her son had been in Luverne most of that day for a cross country meet and had left his iPhone somewhere on the…

With just a short distance to go, Blondie, pushing her bike up the last hill, looked accusingly at me and said, “I can’t even believe you are making us do this.” Stirring together a bowl of flower petals and dill seed she collected from the garden, my 6-year-old niece beamed at me and announced, “You’re the best auntie ever!” Every family has one, and this one is the one in our family. With…

There are dozens of mournful songs about September, and until this year it hadn’t occurred to me that the month has such a melancholy reputation. Reduced sunlight can prompt Seasonal Affective Disorder, aptly known as SAD.  Transitioning from laid-back summer days to hectic fall schedules can be stressful. For some (like me) the end of summer can signal regret for not accomplishing goals set…

Question: I know it’s discouraged, but is it actually illegal for students to be standing on a school bus while it is moving? Answer: Minnesota state law says no person shall stand in a school bus when the bus is in motion. In addition, the aisle and emergency exit of a school bus shall be kept unobstructed at all times when children are being transported. Stop for school buses: It's the law…

The weather this past Labor Day weekend met (and even exceeded) the predicted hot and humid forecast. To beat the heat, I spent a portion of Sunday at a water park with my oldest grandchildren. We happily joined other adults and children who chose to don swimsuits and jump into the cooling water. As I looked at the faces of the other adults, I noticed not many were old enough to be…

I don’t know if you believe in coincidences, but here is proof they do happen from time to time. Last week Mary and I happened to be at the horse races in Des Moines, Iowa. So the Monday morning office conversation centered around horse racing. During the conversation I asked if anyone knew the distance of a furlong. Not sure why, but at the time nobody googled it, so the furlong question went…

“How about zip lining?!” I said with the confidence of a person who did not know what she was talking about. My three besties and I all turned 60 this year. To celebrate, we took our second “significant decade birthday trip.” This time we went to Montana – land of big skies, grizzly bears and zip lines. I didn’t actually want to go zip lining. I just wanted to be the kind of person that other…

Question: We are well into summer, but can you please talk about some basic vehicle checks? I stopped to help someone who had broken down alongside the road the other day, and they had no clue to what I thought was common sense stuff: coolant, fluids, battery maintenance and lights. Thanks for keeping people informed. Answer: As a state trooper, we see a lot out on the highways, and I am always…

Did you know there are 108 double-sided stitches on an official major league baseball? The first and last stitch are hidden. My daughter, Tayler, and I were recently going over ideas for my next column when she asked if I knew any weird facts about sports that may interest my readers. I wasn’t sure what to say but quickly started rummaging through the web for content.  Here are 10 facts I…

A young couple showed up on our porch in June with a gift. “We have something we’d like to give you,” they said in a phone call earlier that day. Their business is Twisted Farmers Fab, which specializes in custom metal art — commercial signs, personalized wall hangings, fire pits and, their latest, hanging wind spinners. On this warm summer evening they handed us a heavy metal circular wind…

I chalked up another birthday earlier this week. The years go by fast with age, as most of you know. Funny thing about getting old … my thoughts aren’t so much on the future but more on remembering the past. Mary and I took our two granddaughters to Arnold’s Park a couple weeks ago, and boy, did that bring back some memories. The Arnold’s Park memory that came to mind was while growing up in…

As I stood at the starting line of the Celebrity Donkey Races at the county fair, a feeling of doubt came over me. Doubt that I could even get on this animal’s back. Doubt that Ex-Lax (the donkey’s stage name) would even want me riding him around the course. I was wrong to doubt. When organizers announced that the women riding in Heat 3 were to go counter-clockwise around the course, I gained a…