May is another busy month. Following are the days Genie and I observe: May 1, Give and or get a May basket, May 6-12, Nurses Week, May 8-9, Minnesota Mom’s Fish Free, May 9, other’s Day, May 15, opening of walleye and northern fishing in Minnesota, May 23, Red Nose Day, May 21-28, My Yearly Week of fishing Walleyes at Leech Lake, Walker, MN., May 26, Full Moon, May 31, Memorial Day.
F. R. O. G. of central Freeborn Lutheran Church bus trip to Lutheran Night at the Twins on Monday July 26, 2021 is on hold with a definite decision to be made by June 1st as to a go or no go. Please hold on until at least June 1st. Thanks.
We hear many words in expressing “hope” in this time of Easter and the virus pandemic. One town in Minnesota is thinking outside the box. This little town wants a billboard on I-35 from the south and north with an arrow and the words, “Here is Hope.”
Allison and Scott Rian along with 8 year old daughter are into another kind of hope. They have 10,500 tree seeds growing in the sunroom of their old farmhouse by Aitkin, MN. They are part of the first batch of climate-smart seedlings in a bold new effort to help Minnesota’s northern forests handle the warming temperatures threatening to turn vast swaths of the state’s forests into grass. If this works, it will be an annual harvest with the current price ranging from 40 cents to a dollar per seedling.
There is a phobia causing people not to get the virus vaccination. According to the medical profession this phobia is experienced by about 16% of the population. The term for this is “Needle Phobia.”
Seen in NRHEG land the 12th of April: A black Ford F-150 with a blade on front for moving snow pulling a flatbed behind. A John Deere Tractor with a blower for snow in front and a John Deere Tractor with mower on the back of the flatbed.
A male driver parked the vehicle, got out, put on a winter-type jacket, a stocking cap, backed the lawn mower off the flatbed and mowed a lawn. As he drove away, I had a good chuckle as I read the truck license, “Up-Nort.” (It froze and snowed the next night.)
Happy birthday to Erna Zahn on her birthday Wednesday, April 13. Erna is the oldest living Minnesota resident. Every morning, she enjoys a bowl of oatmeal and several cups of coffee. For her 113th birthday she enjoyed a piece of apple pie. “You go girl go” was theme of the day.
Over the year I worked many Albert Lea noon Lions events. (Pancakes at the armory, bingo stand at the fair, food stand at Rendezvous when it was at Helmer-Myre State Park and later Bancroft Bay Park.)
Bob Bryson and Brother Bill Bryson were two of the Lions I was lucky to work with. Bill passed away and Bob on 03-18-21. Genie and I sent a sympathy card to the surviving daughters Heidi and Nora. They sent a great handwritten letter back recalling Lion events they helped at as youngsters. Twas then I knew Bob and wife Delores. You were not only talented Lion members but also excellent parents.
Short shorts”
A. Spring in Minnesota is defined as a weather period not as bad as winter.
B. The newest food vendor in Albert Lea is an aqua-colored movable vehicle on wheels.
C. Remember when in the spring of the year we picked rocks out of the fields? Now we pick plastic.
D. Sign on a church outside read-a-board: “If you want a rainbow you must put up with the rain.”
E. Congrats to Hayfield and Waseca basketball teams as State Champs in their division of boys high schools in Minnesota 2021.
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Bob is a retired AAL (Aid Association for Lutherans) agent, currently working on his master’s degree in Volunteering. His wife, Genie, is a retired RN, currently working on her doctor’s degree in Volunteering. They have two children, Deb in North Carolina, and Dan in New York. Bob says if you enjoy his column, let him know. If you don’t enjoy it, keep on reading, it can get worse. Words of wisdom: There is always room for God.