This coming Thursday evening after the Thanksgiving feast, the football games, take a walk under the stars. It’s a great way to fight off the drowsing effects of tryptophan and to get away from relatives, even the ones you like! Seriously, it’s a magical activity on any night this time of ...
Every year as I prepare our family, home, yard and car for the expected challenges of the winter season, I think of the many people who do not look forward to winter time and the holiday season with the pleasurable and happy expectations of the joys usually characterized by family, friends and ...
Dan DeSmet lives on the front lines of the health care crisis. The Minneota native is a manager with North Memorial Services that provides ambulance and EMT services to Marshall. “I think the health care system is broken,” DeSmet told me as we sat inside the North Memorial conference ...
The American economy is under attack, and we don’t even know it. There is an evil force lurking among us that if allowed to grow unchecked, will destroy our retail base, employment levels, and infrastructure. It is so powerful and invasive that its consuming small, family-run businesses. ...
It was a little bit warmer last Saturday afternoon, and the sun was out as Ross and I ventured to the Upper Sioux Agency State Park. It’s been a few years since we’ve been there, so it was good to check out a different trail. The air was cool as we hiked down by the river. Along the way we ...
The holiday season begins this weekend at the Lyon County Museum! Christmas trees are up, lights are on, and holiday music is playing. The fifth annual Indoor Christmas Tree Walk is open. Trees decorated by area businesses, groups, and nonprofit organizations are on view at the museum now ...
Tracy’s City Council is stuck in turmoil. Monday night, its mayor expressed frustration over maintaining control over “negativity” that is poisoning the community. During the City Council meeting, Mayor Steve Ferrazzano announced the resignation of Councilman Bill Chukuske. The mayor ...
Powerful message on Islam in U.S. THUMBS UP: Dr. Ayaz Virji delivered a powerful message during an event held Monday at Southwest Minnesota State University. The doctor from Dawson talked about “Islam in Post-Trump America “We live in a toxic environment of divisiveness. There’s a ...
Thanksgiving is almost here. Ideally, this day should be about more than football and the imminent arrival of Black Friday mega-sales. After all, the spirit of the holiday invites us to be grateful for what we have and for the presence of our loved ones. But it’s important to look beyond ...
If a bipartisan assessment of the U.S. Senate’s tax reform bill is accurate, lawmakers need to go back to the drawing board. A measure being billed as tax relief should not force millions of Americans to pay more. Analysts for Congress’ Joint Committee on Taxation have concluded the ...
Here comes a bit of trivia and another item from my past. Having mentioned before in this column that, as children, my siblings and I were often told by our parents, “Children are meant to be seen, not heard.” That was part of the honoring of our elders which also meant that we did not ...
Thanksgiving is almost here, that day when we stuff ourselves until our tummies are as tight as drumheads and we lapse into couch comas. It’s as if Sunday came on Thursday. Imprinted on our collective consciousness is the Rockwellian image of the ideal Thanksgiving dinner: a roast turkey ...
Question: Can my child use a bicycle helmet when he is a passenger in my side by side or ATV? Answer: In Minnesota, any class 1 or 2 ATV operator or passengers under the age of 18 must wear an approved helmet when riding on public lands or waters, or a public road right of way. You are ...
We Americans often seem less suspicious of foreign competitors, both economically and militarily, than of each other. Just contrast the rhetoric often heard in U.S. political campaigns with that usually employed in reference to leaders in other countries. But last week in Vietnam, President ...
If you don’t live with it yourself, then it’s likely you have a family member or friend who does. What would that be? That would be diabetes. November is National Diabetes Month and in fact Nov. 14 was World Diabetes Day. Attention is focused on diabetes across the country and the globe in ...
We’re heading right for it. There’s no escaping it. Get ready! That referenced “it” is the national season of giving, getting and, hopefully, gratitude. How do you accept a gift? Do you do the Minnesota Nice thing and say something like: “Ah shucks, you shouldn’t have!”? Or ...
To the editor: This letter is primarily for the benefit of those in attendance at “The Effect of the Reformation” presentation given at the Lyon County Library. Two statements were made during the question and answer period by the presenter that need to be corrected. First, that ...
Mass shootings invariably produce calls for stricter limits on access to firearms. They fall into two basic categories: • Some people want to ban all ownership of certain types of guns, including many that are very popular. Such restrictions have little or no chance of being enacted, in ...
To the editor: This is farm country! Big farm country. Farming is an important business here! But all is not well in farming. Corn and soybean production is exceeding demand. Farm profits continue to be vulnerable. While the politics of the Farm Bill are focused on production and market ...
The darkening grayness of the overcast sunset hour crept down from the buttes along the small valley formed by the feeder creek and river where my bow stand rests, near their junction. The rising north winds carried flurries into my eyes, which I blinked away. I looked down at the frosted the ...