Panthers host Grizzles Friday with conference crown on the line

By DALE KUGATH

Sportswriter

HUTCHINSON – The New Richland-Hartland-Ellendale-Geneva faced some of its toughest competition of the season Saturday. 

In addition to three-time state champ Jackson, the field at Hutchinson included ranked teams Prior Lake, Atwater-Cosmos-Grove, Willmar and Hutchinson.

“We knew the competition was as tough as any we will face all year. We were hoping to be competitive in a difficult situation,” said NRHEG coach Shawn Larson. “We did not rise to the occasion. Our true test will be responding to this setback this week.”

The Panthers doubled their point total from a year ago, but their 110.5 points could do them no better than a sixth-place tie with Watertown-Mayer. 

After win over St. Clair, offense struggles with WEM, BP

HARD TO THE HOOP — NRHEG’s Ryan Patraw (5) goes hard to the basket while St. Clair’s Brandon Freitag (11) defends during nonconference boys’ basketball at New Richland last week. The Panthers beat St. Clair 75-64, but went on lose to WEM and Blooming Prairie to drop out of the top spot in the conference for the first time all season. (Star Eagle photo by Chris Schlaak)

By DALE KUGATH

Sportswriter

What a difference a week can make. 

One week ago the New Richland-Hartland-Ellendale-Geneva boys’ basketball team was on top of the Gopher Conference as the league’s only undefeated team. 

One week later the Panthers have dropped into third place after conference losses to Waterville-Elysian-Morristown and Blooming Prairie. 

NRHEG started the week with a non-conference win over St. Clair. 

The Panthers are 5-2 in conference play, trailing WEM and USC by one game. NRHEG is 11-4 overall. 

St. Clair

NEW RICHLAND – NRHEG got the week started right with a 75-64 victory over St. Clair in New Richland Jan. 13. 

Francis Misgen was a man of many talents. He said things as they were. He could hide the goodness and softness of his heart sometimes in being honest and blunt, but one always felt the importance of his presence.  Loyalty was his middle name. He often visited the care centers and was loyal to his quest that the New Richland Care Center would be where he wanted to be when the time came. I wonder how many times he made a point of really visiting with his friend Ed Menefee when he was there? 

Francis was proud of his country and an outstanding member of the armed forces that carried over into his participation to the service men’s organization. I will always have a mental picture of his pride as he drove fellow servicemen in his jeep during parades and other events. A project he took on to perpetuate the value of the armed forces and the sacrifices they made for our well-being.

He was a family man that extended beyond his own children to those of other family members. He didn't coddle as much as he brought strength to his family as he taught them that life doesn't come easy. It takes hard work and an intelligent mind to accomplish what needed to be done. He was honest, humble and kind.

He had a right to be proud. He never shirked in his willingness to be of service and help to others. He continued to work well past his age because it was something he did - he believed it was important to do what you can while you can.

Francis was Francis. He will leave an indelible place in my heart and a mental picture of a proud military man who served his country and mankind in many ways. God Bless the memory of this great man.

And speaking of great men — I ran across this 50-year-old speech by noted radio host Paul Harvey recently. It is often quoted, sometimes inaccurately. But I checked it for accuracy. This is the authentic version.

I couldn't help but think how his predictions have come true. I'm not going to comment further, but whether you believe in the devil or not, think about the foresight Harvey had 50 years ago. Almost all of the things he warned us of - whether the work of the devil or our own misguided policies - have come true.

Next year will mark the 50th year of Paul Harvey's famous "If I Were the Devil" commentary. So for you who have never heard or read it, I thought I would share it with you and then you can consider what has happened in America over the last fifty years.

"If I Were the Devil”

If I were the Prince of Darkness I would want to engulf the whole earth in darkness.

I'd have a third of its real estate and four-fifths of its population, but I would not be happy until I had seized the ripest apple on the tree. 

So I should set about however necessary, to take over the United States. 

I would begin with a campaign of whispers. 

With the wisdom of a serpent, I would whisper to you as I whispered to Eve, "Do as you please." 

To the young I would whisper, "The Bible is a myth." I would convince them that "man created God," instead of the other way around. I would confide that, "what is bad is good and what is good is square."

In the ears of the young married I would whisper that work is debasing, that cocktail parties are good for you.  I would caution them not to be "extreme" in religion, in patriotism, in moral conduct. 

And the old I would teach to pray - to say after me - "Our father which are in Washington." 

Then I'd get organized. 

I'd educate authors in how to make lurid literature exciting so that anything else would appear dull, uninteresting. 

I'd threaten TV with dirtier movies, and vise-versa. 

I'd infiltrate unions and urge more loafing, less work. Idle hands usually work for me. 

I'd peddle narcotics to whom I could, I'd sell alcohol to ladies and gentlemen of distinction, I'd tranquilize the rest with pills. 

If I were the devil, I would encourage schools to refine young intellects, but neglect to discipline emotions; let them run wild. 

I'd designate an atheist to front for me before the highest courts and I'd get preachers to say, "She's right." 

With flattery and promises of power I would get the courts to vote against God and in favor of pornography. 

Thus I would evict God from the courthouse, then from the schoolhouse, then from the Houses of Congress. 

Then in his own churches I'd substitute psychology for religion and deify science. 

If I were the Satan I'd make the symbol of Easter an egg, and the symbol of Christmas a bottle.

If I were the devil I'd take from those who have and give to those who wanted until I had killed the incentive of the ambitious. Then my police state would force everybody back to work. 

Then I would separate families, putting children in uniform, women in coalmines and objectors in slave-labor camps. 

If I were Satan I'd just keep doing what I'm doing and the whole world would go to hell as sure as the devil."

Some of our Star Eagle readers have commented they like to read about events such as family and school reunions, birthdays and anniversaries, and birth and wedding announcements. In order to read about these important things we need our faithful readers to pass along the information to us. 

If you have birthdays and anniversaries you would like include, or news to share please contact me via e-mail, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.; by postal mail, P. O. Box 192, Geneva, MN 56035 or telephone, 507-256-4405.

This week’s birthdays and anniversaries include:

• Thursday, January 23rd: Eugene Worke, "Emeritus" Bob Hanson, Eugene Cornelius, Rodney Sorenson, Dean Broitzman, Garnet Folie, Jeff Miller, Chris Paulson

• Friday, January 24th: Morgan Sophia Luhring, her 9th; Renee Polzin, Greg Menefee, Mary Cunningham, Trevor Tracy

• Saturday, January 25th: Calvin Thomas VanderStoep, his 5th; Sophia Mabel Olivia Mrotz, Max Thomas Powers Brekke, his 7th; Emma Meiners, her 6th; Paula Olson, Vernon Simonson, Lana Thompsen, Troy Phagan, Ladawn Hatch

• Sunday, January 26th: Andilynn Leigh Knudson, her 5th; Russell Nelson, Bonnie Peterson, Pat Reese Ceplecha, Linda Oldenburg, Angela Borchert, Donna Borchert Knudson, Amanda Abel

• Monday, January 27th: Anna Mae Lee, Jon Berg, Linda Davis, Nancy Ingvaldson, Paul Larkin, Keegan Brighton, Myrtle Peterson, Ken & Waynette Peterson, Bruce & Rose Ann Kubicek

• Tuesday, January 28th: Brian Brekke, Kevin Stieglbauer, Kalei Wilson, Caleb Brocker, Ruth Paulson, Denise McGowan, Rachel Schei, Lona Berg

• Wednesday, January 29th: Molly Jo Wayne, her 6th Jalen Aaseth, Rick Seath, Andrea (Hanson) Carter, George Dettman, his 84th, Kim (Harpel) Johnson, Zenobia Haberman, Stephanie Jensen

May your special day be a happy memory and tomorrow a bright new promise.

I have, at different times, written about deer camps, and how that special time brings family and friends together each year and the memories that are made on those trips. Many folks I know have a hunting cabin or “shack” tucked away somewhere in the north woods. The following story was sent to me by Kelly Schultz, a cousin of mine, and I thought it should be shared with the readers of this column. This story also ran – in part – in a special outdoors section of the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

The “International Hilton” Hunting Shack

By Carolyn “Kelly” (Dusek) Schultz in memory of my Dad, my hero

My “cabin/shack” story began in 1948. I was 9 years old and our family — Mom, Dad, brother age 4 and me — packed up our camping gear and headed to the north woods of Minnesota up past Orr several miles, then a left turn on a dirt road, then bear right at the fork in the road and continue several more miles. Finally, we came to the place where Dad went hunting each deer season. It was a very long drive from Albert Lea in our 1937 Plymouth and the dirt roads off Highway 53 were barely passable in certain places. The highlight was stopping for a tasty roadside picnic lunch packed by Mom. We also filled our water containers at the springs.

There in the clearing sat a rustic lonely building and a short distance away another sad run-down building. Dad said before being abandoned, it was where loggers cooked and ate. I recall he said another 4 miles down the road was the abandoned Johnson Lumber Camp. Upon entering the shack, I commented on the mess everywhere, even on the tables. Dad informed me they were porcupine droppings and no way was I going to sleep in that shack. Not to worry as Dad and Mom put up our Hoigaard umbrella tent and most of us slept soundly through the night...and survived to see the sunrise! I grew up tent camping and I must say I am grateful to my parents for my many camping memories. My husband and I used that same tent on our honeymoon out west in 1965. So that was cabin #1.

In 1949, six guys from the Albert Lea/Owatonna area purchased those 40 acres they had hunted/rented in previous years. I’m not sure when or how shack #1 mysteriously burned down, but it did. Shack #2 was across the meadow, but needed extensive repair to keep out the elements as it had previously served as a place the deer were hung until time to head home. Repairs were made, bunks built, and a table and a cooking area set up. It was still a “shack” with large pieces of heavy cardboard nailed to the inside walls and floor for insulation. It must have worked because the hunters returned season after season and in between for berry picking. They called it the “International Hilton.” In 1966, six of our family had been on a boundary waters canoe trip and spent our last night out at the Hilton. At least we were sleeping off the ground; however, the 14-year-old’s fall from the top bunk resulted in a broken arm. Before shack #2 met its demise in 1975, I cut away and saved many pieces of the cardboard walls on which years of visits were recorded. One reference related Dad’s first visit to the Johnson Lumber Camp in 1928 (at age 22) with three friends.  He talked about their 4-mile trek to the camp from a depot with temps 5-10 below zero, about the cook who set them up with food, bed and even arranged for them to take their deer out on the train. He noted how hard the lumberjacks worked with no chain saws, how the logs were hauled by sled to the rails. The Canadian National main line went to International Falls, Virginia, Rainy Lake and elsewhere.

Fast forward to September 28, 1969, when shack #3 came to be.  Dad, plus two hunting owners from Albert Lea, rented a big truck, took down a condemned building and hauled the wood to the forty. Mom cooked all their meals and the 16’ x 20’ cabin stood solid by October 4th. I presume the cabin still stands today, although I haven’t been to that neck of the woods in over 20 years. My Dad passed away in November of 1993 at age 87 and the property was sold sometime in the late 1980s. The “For Sale” description put the appraised value of the timber at $2,000.

That’s my story and writing it has been a bittersweet trip. Dad almost always came home with a deer, so our family ate quite a lot of venison. My favorite was the chops Mom made. I recall several trips to pick berries or just go with Mom and Dad to experience the peacefulness of the wild. Sometimes my brother, my husband and our two boys would also visit…and always the dogs. I remember the haunting sound of the whip-poor-wills at dusk… sound I’ve never heard anywhere else.

A good book by Minnesota author Walter O’Meara (1897-1989) called “The Trees Went Forth,” (1947) describes lumber camp life perfectly.

Don’t let the winter weather stop you from enjoying the outdoors because it is a great time to make an outdoors memory of your own.

Please remember to keep our troops in your thoughts and prayers not only during this holiday season but throughout the year because they are the reason we are able to enjoy all the freedoms that we have today.

Echoes From the Loafers’ Club Meeting

"I’m getting nowhere fast."

"Why do you say that?"

"Because the GPS is broken in my sports car."

Driving by the Bruces

I have two wonderful neighbors — both named Bruce — who live across the road from each other. Whenever I pass their driveways, thoughts occur to me, such as: it’s awkward whenever anyone asks me for a word that begins with an A and has two W’s in it.

I’ve learned

• Those who say there is no such thing as a stupid question have never worked in customer service.

• Not all opinions need to be shared.

• People hear you best when you are listening.

In Hartland news

• Bump Whistlebritches hires 70-year-old man because it was like getting two 35-year-olds for the price of one.

• Yoga class members learn that all is well that bends well.

• Loafer’s Shoe Store manager is given the pink slipper.

The visitation

I moved past the deceased. Someone said that he looked good. I suppose he did. I wished I’d had the opportunity to say goodbye. It’s difficult to say goodbye at a wake.

A fellow mourner said that his mother had lived to be 105. His parents had purchased a plot in the cemetery. They had tombstones put in. The tombstones had names, birth dates, and dates of death indicated as 19__. When his father died, they filled in the two numbers on the year of his passing. His mother lived into the 2000s. They had to change the entire year of death for her.

Life is a puzzle

Remember being a kid and having to invent things to do?

We reach a certain age and we have more to do than we could ever accomplish.

Then, if we are lucky, we attain the age where we need to invent things to do again. It happens after climbing hills so steep that by the time we realize that we are over the hill, we are climbing the next one.

She told me that she was either 93 or 39. She claimed she couldn’t remember which.

She was working a 1000-piece jigsaw puzzle. It looked difficult. There was too much of the same thing in the picture depicting the finished puzzle.

She said it was hard. She smiled as she said that.

She knew that it would take only one puzzle piece to finish it.

Customer comments

• Doris Mager is an 88-year-old from Florida who travels around the country doing bird programs with live raptors. She said that her father told her to use common sense and that epsom salt is good for everything.

• Ric McArthur of Morpeth, Ontario wrote, "Whoever said 'Do the job right the first time and you’ll never have to do it again,' never shoveled snow off a Canadian driveway, eh?"

• Dan Bagley, a retired locomotive engineer from Nevada, Iowa, told me that he ate sunflower seeds to keep from becoming drowsy while working.

Did you know?

• For the fifth straight year, Americans consider "whatever" to be the most annoying conversational word or phrase according to the Marist Institute for Public Opinion. "Whatever" is the most irritating to 38 percent of those polled while 22 percent report "like" gets on their nerves. "You know" irks 18 percent of Americans while 14 percent want "just saying" stricken from casual conversation. Six percent detest "obviously."

• In 1803, the Louisiana Purchase was completed for $15 million, roughly three cents an acre. The land spanned from Montana to the port of New Orleans and doubled the size of the United States.

• Dogs are sensitive to Earth's magnetism. The research paper, published in the journal "Frontiers in Zoology," said that dogs prefer to defecate with their bodies aligned along the North-south axis under calm magnetic field conditions. The next time you step in something on the lawn, take out your compass and see if the alignment is complete.

• After the Civil War, the U.S. government paid pensions to wounded or impoverished Union veterans and to the widows of the dead. Southern states paid pensions to disabled Confederate veterans. The Civil War pensions became a basis for Social Security.

• Janus, for whom January was named, was the Roman god of doorways and beginnings and was depicted as having two faces.

• The Great Molasses Flood occurred on January 15, 1919 in Boston. A large molasses storage tank burst and a wave of molasses rushed through the streets at an estimated 35 mph, killing 21 and injuring 150.

Nature notes

"Do butterfly houses work?" Not to house butterflies. They are decorative and more likely to be inhabited by spiders and wasps than butterflies.

Meeting adjourned

A kind act makes a fine pillow.

The scurs wasted no time jumping back into the fray, only to have their thermometer stuck again on Tuesday. Will we see another invasion of woolly mammoths or are we destined for warmer days ahead? Starting Wednesday, partly sunny with a slight chance of snow. Highs in the upper single digits above zero and lows in the low teens below zero. Partly cloudy on Thursday with steadily rising temperatures. Highs near zero with rising temps in the overnight early Friday morning hours. Friday, partly sunny with a slight chance of snow. Highs in the upper 20’s and lows in the middle teens. Saturday, mostly cloudy with a possible flurry. Highs near 20 and lows near 5. Mostly cloudy Sunday with highs near 10 falling to overnight lows of near – 10. Monday, mostly cloudy and cold. Highs struggling to get above zero and lows near 5 below. Temperatures rebound for Tuesday under partly cloudy skies with a chance of flurries once again. Highs in the upper teens and lows in the middle teens, all above zero of course. The normal high for January 25th is 23 and the normal low is 4. The scurs will be desperately trying to repair their broken thermostat by March.

We continue the rollercoaster ride caused by the Alberta Clippers (Calcutta Clippers for all you Denny Green fans) as they slide through, dumping small accumulations of snow then slipping the cold air in followed by plenty of wind. This pattern shows no sign of breaking anytime soon and if anything, it seems to be bringing slightly more precipitation along with it as of late. Coming into January at the ranch we had measured 10” of snow between November and December. Since January 1st we have had 9.8” of snow, well below normal but increasing in frequency and amount per event. In liquid equivalent that snow has melted out to roughly .55”, well below the 1.25” average as measured at the SROC for January. Something that also continues to happen is the thaws every week to 10 days, melting much of the accumulations across the landscape except for the fencelines, groves and of course in front of everyone’s garage.

After the Friday snow it was time to fire up the snow removal equipment at the ranch. The skid loader was used on Saturday and upon freezing my tootsies in the wind, decided it was time to finally bite the bullet and put the chains on the tractor. It’s icy underneath and without them, trying to use a bucket to move snow is nearly futile with the tractor and terrain we’re dealing with anyway. There are very few flat spots in the yard and it works best to try to move the snow downhill as much as possible. Of course that means you actually have to get to the top of the hill first. Putting chains on is a time-honored tradition, one that must be done properly or they wind up in a pile shortly afterwards. Once attached though, you can go almost anywhere you want and tear up large hunks of sod rapidly even though the ground is frozen solid. Helps create more flat spots however.

Was asked recently about the presence or absence of squirrels by a reader not too far as the crow flies from the ranch. Yes, we continue to have plenty of squirrels with Fudgie and Ruby doing their level best to see that they are well exercised. The reader was concerned that their squirrel population was flagging to the point where they weren’t seeing any. Typically on any given morning at the ranch there are at least two and have seen as many as five, all fox squirrels. Of course, they have the good fortune of access to all the ear corn they could desire in addition to cleaning up sunflower and safflower seeds under the feeders. They’re fine until they get bored and tangle with the “squirrel-proof” feeder which has proven to be a slight deterrence at best. Any plastic on the poor thing has long since been chewed off. They also seem to develop an affinity for chewing the coating on wiring. It’s at those times I’d be more than happy to share them, fried or grilled.

The ear corn was put out for the benefit of the few pheasants in the area when the snow buries their food deeper than they can access it. There has been one rooster on the road cut side of the thicket on the edge of the yard when I leave almost every morning. Bunnies, squirrels and blue jays all seem to be using the feeder as well. Something I did as an experiment has been interesting: I placed one of the ears from the July planted corn in the two-cob feeder on the tree by the house. The squirrels are not fussy. They seem to be eating that late planted corn just as readily as the ear from the more typical planting date. More highly relevant scientific observations to ponder.

Auntie Mar-Mar is apparently starting to show her age. After turning down an invitation for a barbecued lamb dinner last weekend, she informed us she was content to become a hermit, stay at home and watch Wheel of Fortune. We are concerned that she may even be taping the shows for future viewing. Now, Bonanza or Gunsmoke reruns would be understandable, but Wheel of Fortune? She even mistakenly referred to Mrs. Cheviot as Vanna on the phone. I guess if we can’t get Mar Mar to come out we’ll just have to sign her up for Meals on Wheels. Maybe bring her some TV dinners.

See you next week…real good then.

This week is traditionally the coldest week of the year. After the arctic blast we had to start January, that’s a frightening thought! Still, as we trudge through winter and outdoor activities are not as plentiful, it’s always a good time to find a new book to read and new worlds to discover.

I enjoy reading; that much should be obvious. Michelle and the kids also are voracious readers. One thing I’ve found over the years is the great pleasure in sharing a good book and being able to talk about it with others.

I do this in my classes. My 7th graders read Tom Sawyer and The Outsiders, two books that many of my readers have probably read as well. My 8th graders read The Diary of Anne Frank, The Revealers, and Tex. Part of the joy of teaching these outstanding pieces of literature is the discussion portion of class. Kids come up with fascinating ideas on their own, and it’s also fun to see the light go on in some students’ eyes as we discuss a part they previously hadn’t understood.

Students often ask me what my favorite book of all time is. That one’s easy: To Kill a Mockingbird. As with many of you, I first read Harper Lee’s masterpiece in high school. I’ve read it a number of times since then, and the great thing about this book is that every time I read it, I think things will turn out differently in the courtroom. Atticus Finch has such profound arguments that I think no jury can find Tom Robinson guilty.

What else tops my list? The Hobbit is another great work of literature. I’m afraid now that we’ll have a whole generation that will watch the movies first and never bother with the novel. This is another book I read back in middle school and even used to teach. The descriptive prose that J.R.R. Tolkien uses can take some getting used to, but it has a lyrical quality that makes it even better when read aloud. In fact, since studies show you should read to your unborn child, that’s the book I chose to read to Jayna while she was waiting to be born.

Frankenstein is a classic novel, but many people often just think of the monster movies from the past and brush it off. Try it though; the monster is a sympathetic creature, and Mary Shelley gives some real human qualities to it, while removing those same qualities from its creator. While it certainly has a tinge of science fiction, it’s a compelling read.

You might ask, “How about more recent books?” Michelle and I both read Stephen King’s 11/22/63 last year and found it an amazing read. The best part was reading it and discussing different aspects of it together afterward. “Are you at this part yet?” was a common refrain. I’m not normally a big King fan, but there’s not really his typical horror element here. There are parts that are disturbing, but the question of, “Would you try to save JFK if you had the chance to go back in time?” is scintillating in how King approaches it. Even though time travel is involved, it feels real.

Michelle has been reading the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon. These books also have a time travel element, but my wife has said it’s not a typical time travel story. These books are about a woman who is torn from her present in the 20th century and thrust back to the 18th century. It has romance, historical fiction, adventure, and science fiction all mixed together. Michelle is eagerly awaiting the eighth book that will come out in June, as well as a TV series on Starz.

There are certainly other books that are worth reading. I enjoy the Harry Potter series, as well as the Game of Thrones series. I read a lot of comics that are great prose, mixed with great art. Watchmen might be the best example of this. Sharing these great books with you gives me pleasure, and I’d love to discuss them with anyone who wants. I’m also always looking for new books that you might feel are really good. Let me know; maybe we can share some good stories!

Word of the Week: This week’s word is hebetate, which means to make dull, as in, “The teacher tried not to hebetate the great novel by discussing it in too much detail.” Impress your friends and confuse your enemies!