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‘Beautiful game’ around the planet

I have followed the World Series since 1965; the year the Dodgers beat our Twins. I was 9. As I got older, I realized the “World” Series isn’t really the world. The World Cup is the world, the entire world. Right now, here in the middle of the continent, the World Cup surrounds us. There are matches north, south, east, and west of us. Soccer is “football” to the rest of the planet. Here in America, we give that name to that other, more violent game we watch on Friday nights, Saturday afternoons, and all day Sunday. Soccer is by a lot the most popular sport on Earth. For ...

Biodiversity has value for our region’s natural landscapes

This summer I’ve noticed for the first time some widespread effects of Emerald Ash Borer in the Marshall area. There are clusters of partially defoliated ash trees in locations such as Southwest Minnesota State University and the Eatros Place housing addition on the opposite side of town. There are at least several other locations where more than a couple of trees are affected. The ash were widely planted in the 1970s and 1980s after Dutch Elm Disease killed off many of the nation’s elm trees. In many communities, elms provided a stately canopy over residential streets. They ...

Kulla speaking up on Main Street

This week I decided to walk down to the Bike Shop on Main Street in downtown and talk with owner Chad Kulla. He was one of the more vocal merchants at the last week’s meeting of the Marshall Downtown Business Association that I reported on in my last column. In fact, Kulla has been vocal ...

On the Porch

The social news or gossip columns in the old newspapers are always fascinating to read. A special section in the newspaper was devoted to the social media of the day. The whereabouts of local people and events were often featured in these columns. Here are a few from The News Messenger of Lyon ...

A safari at the mall

Back in February, my brother and I went to Sustainable Safari, which is located in the Maplewood Mall. We needed a “pick-me-up” of sorts after the loss of our mother, so we checked out the indoor zoo at the mall. There’s also a location in Burnsville. I’ve seen mentions of this place ...