Columns/Opinion

Lisa Brainard: Check out Fort Union Trading Post during June rendezvous

Published by tlittle@bluffco... on Mon, 06/03/2019 - 10:39am

The Fort Union Trading Post National Historic Site – located on the North Dakota-Montana state line in the Williston, N.D., vicinity – is a place I’d like to visit for sure. I got as close to this remote location as the North Unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park in 2017. But, alas, the weeks were adding up during the great total solar eclipse road trip that August. It was time to head home, not farther west. Sigh.

Bill Bentson: Spring sports teams deep into tournament action

Published by tlittle@bluffco... on Mon, 06/03/2019 - 10:26am

I’ve probably told this story before, but when we wintered in Texas (three years), the natives down there would ask us, “What do you do in the summertime in Minnesota?” My answer was always the same, “If it falls on a Sunday, we go on a picnic.”

Believe it or not, summer is here. Not officially, but temperature-wise. Today we were in the low 80s. Hallelujah!

In the past week I’ve had two road trips, one was 756 miles and the other is 422 miles.

Al Batt: Bird watching can result in finding uncommon wonders

Published by tlittle@bluffco... on Tue, 05/28/2019 - 11:22am

I watched warblers. There are collective nouns for warblers: bouquet, confusion, fall and wrench. The most abundant warbler I saw was the yellow-rumped warbler, nicknamed the butterbutt for obvious reasons. It winters farther north than most warblers because it can digest the wax in berry coatings. It gleans insects from vegetation and from the ground, catches flying insects and will eat suet and peanut butter. This warbler will even snatch insects from spiderwebs.

Dr. Jan Meyer: Who is the keeper of proverbs?

Published by tlittle@bluffco... on Tue, 05/28/2019 - 11:20am

Sitting in a room at the doctor’s office, the staff of two nurses, and I, were waiting for the results of a blood draw I’d had less than an hour before this appointment. The procedure I was there to have couldn’t be started without those results. They were both hovering over the computer screen, and I commented, “You know, a watched pot never boils!”

They both turned to me with puzzled looks on their faces. I realized I needed to explain about that wise old saying, then we laughed together and I added that we were experiencing about a four-generation gap.

Iris Clark Neumann: Try a new soup with flavorful dill pickles

Published by tlittle@bluffco... on Tue, 05/28/2019 - 11:17am

Dill pickles have long been a family favorite, but it wasn't until recent years that I resumed canning my own.

When we lived on the farm, my husband, Ross, made sure there was an ample pickling cucumber patch to create a supply for the pickling jars. When he needed to bring treats to work, he'd bring a jar of pickles instead of sweets.

The year our youngest son was born, I didn't think I'd be able to manage a baby on my hip while getting cucumbers ready for jars.

So we agreed that he'd pick and scrub the cucumbers and I'd can them.

Lisa Brainard: Get ATVs ready to ride for ‘No Registration Weekend’

Published by tlittle@bluffco... on Tue, 05/28/2019 - 11:13am

We can thank the Minnesota DNR (Department of Natural Resources) for sharing outdoor recreation opportunities coming up, specifically a basically free weekend of all-terrain vehicle (ATV) trail riding on the agency’s lands. The press release follows.

Minnesotans with an ATV registered for private or agricultural use won’t need to pay the additional registration fee ($53.50 for three years) to ride the state’s public ATV trails from Friday through Sunday, June 7-9.

Bill Bentson: Latest road trip includes stops for sports, family and hall of fame

Published by tlittle@bluffco... on Tue, 05/28/2019 - 10:50am

My latest road trip was 22 miles short of 1,200 miles (1,178). I spent Thursday night with Cori and Keith (daughter and son-in-law) in Fountain. Got all caught up on the latest gossip in the “sink hole capitol of the world,” or is it state? I needed a haircut, so that meant getting over to Chatfield on Friday morning and a visit with Goob (Thanks, bud). After getting a coffee and losing about $4 at the Silver Grille (thanks for the nice welcome back) I headed off to Rochester to pick up my pills.

Al Batt: Wings and Wetlands Festival may cause ‘freak out’ in Kansas

Published by tlittle@bluffco... on Mon, 05/20/2019 - 11:18am

It was my pleasure to speak at the Wings and Wetlands Festival in Great Bend, Kansas. The festival featured Cheyenne Bottoms and Quivira National Wildlife Refuge — two of America's best birding spots for both birds and birders. The great wisdom of the world was evident as there were always more birds than birders. Cheyenne Bottoms is the largest inland marsh (41,000 acres) in the U.S. I visited the wonderful Kansas Wetlands Education Center. It gave me a delightful walking and learning experiences.

Dr. Jan Meyer: There’s no end to advantages of being old

Published by tlittle@bluffco... on Mon, 05/20/2019 - 11:13am

A few years ago, a lifelong friend and I were talking about things we’d noticed about the aging process. She said she’d become invisible to men. In the past, she’d had no trouble meeting new men because they usually approached her. That was no longer happening, and she seemed very sad about it. She added that if she tries to strike up a conversation, they act like she’s way out of line, and why in the world was she trying to talk to him/them?

Lisa Brainard: Program honors legacy of Effigy Mounds Monument whistle blower

Published by tlittle@bluffco... on Mon, 05/20/2019 - 11:10am

If your Saturday of Memorial Day weekend – May 25 - is open, here are worthwhile events you could take in at an area unit of the National Park Service (NPS).