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Fast forward to fun

Nearly 7 inches of snow this weekend couldn’t dampen my spirits as the colors came together on my vise. Looking back through old journals and previous columns with the turn of the calendar to March brought the slightest sense of urgency as I sat at my lure making desk watching the drift form outside my office window. While real spring fishing is likely two months away, images of slab crappies with my favorite krystal flash jigs for light tackle and bucktail streamers on the fly in the corners of their paper mouths had me thinking of spring — and the early start that a local ...

I just don’t know

Excuse me for being so short, but my mind seems empty. For those of you who know me, that opening statement might cause you to roll your eyes, and say: “Duh!”. For those of you who don't know me, consider yourself fortunate! There are just some days when I don't know what's happening or why. Allow me to explain... There are times I thoroughly enjoy being with other folks, and thee are times when I need to sit in silence. Maybe that's nothing new to you either. Maybe that's life. Wine is like that. There are lots of red wines that call for a gathering. It wants to be shared at a ...

School budget cuts should be equitable

Reading the Feb.19 Marshall Independent article about the final Marshall gymnastics meet was heartbreaking. Not just as a parent, but as someone who has watched these girls work tirelessly to build something meaningful. Gymnastics was not a failing program. It was not declining. It was not stagnant. It was growing. This was a young team — mostly seventh and eighth graders. A program that was clearly rebuilding from the ground up. And what did they do? They improved every single meet. Their top four scores came in the final four competitions of the season. They posted a season-best ...

Marshall’s Little Dairy Queen treasured by several generations

It won’t be quite the same this summer on Country Club Drive next to the National Guard Armory. I learned this month that the Little Dairy Queen won’t be opening up. It was always a tradition. People looked forward to stopping there when summer arrived. Its history goes back to before my childhood. I remember many days when I’d go to Legion Field for an afternoon at the pool or for a baseball game and then stop for a treat at the Little Dairy Queen. I liked the cones, the Dilly Bars, the Buster Bars and the hot fudge sundaes. Sometimes I’d splurge for a shake. When I got ...

On the Porch

Garvin lies in the southeast quarter of section 27, Custer Township in Lyon County. The railroad track was laid west from Tracy in 1879. In 1882, a side track was laid and was called Siding No. 7. The August 11, 1882 issue of the Marshall newspaper reported: “Lyon County has a new ...

Country school kids – Charlie Hettling – growing up on the family farm

We have begun learning about Charlie Hettling, the firstborn of five children born to Agnes (Jacobson) and Floyd Hettling, and his life on their farm between Minneota and Taunton. Charlie described the farm’s buildings. “(It had) two big barns. They used loose hay, then, and you needed a ...