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Respringing

Through the gin clear waters of Memorial Day weekend came the first of a handful of early morning walleyes. The deep golden sides of one I brought up shimmered in the rising sun which had just crested the eastern shore’s greening treetops as it slid across the surface and into the black rubberized mesh of my brother’s landing net. While things weren’t fast and furious, the fish were fun to detect on their subtle bites and, with the cooler water, provided welcome and even spirited battles, considering they were walleyes. The prior week’s rain - and dips to freezing or even ...

Let’s not forget

At this time of the year, we are reminded to not forget. However, we must extend that to say we must not forget the entire year. There are many things that happen in our daily lives that we shouldn’t forget about, but allow me to focus on these few thoughts. Let us never forget to honor the more than 1.3 million Americans who made the ultimate sacrifice while serving in our nation’s military. These women and men answered the call to stand up for our country’s values, and were laid to rest in many cemeteries. Let us never forget to honor them with love, care and remembrance. ...

Fencing with bees

Farmers often have to defend their crops from pests. While these pests can range from microbes to insects to avians, imagine trying to prevent crop losses when the nuisance in question can tip the scales at 15,000 pounds, might be more than ten feet tall and is highly intelligent. This is a problem that’s routinely faced by the small-scale subsistence farmers who live on the borders of Ruaha National Park in Tanzina. Wild elephants have learned how to raid crop fields, erasing months’ worth of work in mere hours and imperiling the farmers’ livelihoods. A solution to this ...

Sextortion happening here

Sextortion: threatening to distribute someone’s sexual images, videos, or information in order to receive something of monetary value. This is a word that is slowly becoming unavoidable when we open our social media or news articles. It is common for us to say, “Oh, that doesn’t happen here,” or “That won’t happen to me or my kid.” The truth is that it is happening here, and it could happen to you or someone you know. Although sextortion seems like a new term or is unfamiliar, it has made a very big impact on people in our communities’ lives. WRAP staff have attended ...

Bicycle safety: helmet decisions should be left to individual riders

It’s bicycle season in southwestern Minnesota, a time when people can ride around town or enjoy trails and local roads. I have many good memories of bicycling from when I grew up in Marshall. My first solo trips were from my parents’ house on Marguerite Avenue to the Legion Field swimming pool and the Little Dairy Queen near the armory. I later biked all the way out to the airport and then back home on Lyon County Road 7 and the Country Club Drive bike trail. I never made it out to Camden State Park. I might have biked all the way if we would have had the off road trail that ...

Finding modern warriors mindset

There really are authentic warriors who live and work around us. We take them for granted, rarely give them much thought, and may not even notice them until something happens. We depend on them, can’t live without them, but may not even know their names. They protect us, and thanks to them, we can go about our lives in peace. Who are the warriors of our time? They are the men and women who serve in the military and those who work in the various branches of law enforcement. They deal with the worst situations, the worst people in society and the world, and occasionally with real ...