QCBA 14U team takes year-end title

The QCBA 14U team, after an up-and-down season, pulled together and won the year-end South Central Youth Baseball league tournament in Lake Crystal the weekend of July 19-21. Front from left: Jerret Utpadel, Brennan Kelly, Coach Bruce Nielsen, Sam Prigge, Noah Nielsen, Bryce Okland. Back: Braden Thompson, Jason Jongbloedt, Oakley Baker, Jack Schultz, Chad Agrimson.

What do trees, flowers, grass, animals and people have in common? Give up? 

They all need water. All living things must have water to survive, whether they get it from a water fountain, a rain cloud, a water trough or from a bottle. Next to the air we breathe, water is probably the most important thing in our lives.

When my girls were babies they didn't have a nuk. They did however have a four-ounce baby bottle of fresh water that filled the gap between feeding time. They grew up into children and then adults who drink water. Many babies and children don't get enough water.

A few years ago, it became a style trend for young people to carry bottled water everywhere they went. Now the trend seems to have strayed to other bottled liquids that may or may not be as good as the advertising says. All fluids contain water, however water (and milks) are still the best. Nothing takes the place of water.

School and the fall sports season will be starting soon! Do you know how much water your kids are getting there?

Our athletes need to remember that water should be drunk before, during and after games and activities. You can't play your best when you need water. If a body does not have enough water, it becomes dehydrated. 

Your body can no longer do as much as it could. You can't run, move as fast, or be as sharp as one would like to be if the body is lacking water. In fact, a bad case of dehydration can make you sick.

You can't do your best when your system doesn't have enough water. Think about it. A car doesn't run without gas and your body would not continue to run without water. Kids run on water too!

Water makes up more than half of your body weight. A person can't survive for more than a few days without it. Why? Your body has lots of important jobs to do and it needs water to do many of them.

Children need to establish drinking patterns early in childhood, so it is vital to teach them about the importance of good hydration at an early age. Children should be educated about the importance of water and encouraged to drink water even if they don't feel thirsty.

Fifteen percent of preschool children consume just under half of their recommended daily energy intake in the form of sugary drinks. One theory linking mild dehydration to obesity suggests that low fluid intake may stimulate a preference for a high fat diet. 

Of all the nutrients, fat generates the most metabolic water when it is broken down by the body.  By providing maximum metabolic water, a high fat diet could be part of a compensatory mechanism to deal with perpetually low water intakes.

Water helps children to maintain a healthy weight, improve attention and concentration resolve, and toileting problems such as wetting and constipation. It increases exercise capacity and fitness levels and reduces the risk of chronic disease. That spells water.

Poor hydration adversely affects a child’s mental performance and learning ability. Symptoms of mild dehydration include light-headedness, dizziness, headaches and tiredness, as well as reduced alertness and ability to concentrate. Once thirst is felt, mental performance including memory, attention and concentration can decrease by about 10 percent. 

Mental performance deteriorates progressively as the degree of dehydration increases. When we are well hydrated, brain cells are supplied with fresh, oxygen-laden blood and the brain remains alert.

Water is one of the most important basic nutrients required by our bodies, together with carbohydrates, fat, protein, vitamins and minerals. Some drink significantly less during the school day than during the weekend while they are at home.

The promotion of good hydration is included within the government’s food in schools program, which supports the National Healthy Schools Standard. It advises that good quality water should be available to pupils throughout the day and not from taps or drinking fountains located in toilet areas.  Some schools with antique water lines provide bottled water.

Water is important for healthy heart function as it carries oxygen to all body cells. The correct regulation of water balance is essential to keep blood pressure within the healthy range.

One of water's important jobs is to move our blood, which contains water, oxygen and nutrients to all the cells. Those tiny cells would die without water and the body would stop working. 

Water is also in lymph, which is a fluid instrumental to our immune systems that helps to fight illness. We need water to digest our food and get rid of waste. Water is the main ingredient in perspiration or sweat.

Water is the major part of most of the body's cells (except for fat cells) and it also lubricates and cushions our brain and our joints and keeps muscles working properly. It transports nutrients, keeps the kidneys working well, and carries waste and excess nutrients away from our body cells.  Water also helps regulate our body temperature by redistributing heat from active tissues to the skin and cools the body through perspiration.

An adequate water intake is essential to keep the kidneys working well, helping them to remove waste products and excess nutrients, mainly via urine.

The skin constitutes a defense against pathogenic agents and contributes to preventing the development of infectious and allergic processes.

The body water has an important role as a thermo regulator. It helps regulate our overall body temperature by helping dissipate heat.

Few people realize that a dry mouth is a major cause of tooth disease because it impairs the production of saliva. Saliva is essential for good oral health because it neutralizes acid created by bacteria that causes tooth decay. 

Saliva lubricates oral membranes. It also contains minerals that enable tooth repair and contains antibacterial agents that inhibit the growth of oral bacteria and helps prevent gum disease.

When you think school supplies, also think water! Needless to say it is important for children and adults!

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.

Birthdays and anniversaries:

• Thursday, August 1st: Parker Brant Simon, Wendy Schultz, Dale Mrotz, Karen Vaith, Stanley Jensen, Lonny Thostenson, Tad Cornelius, Karen Brockman, Rick Christensen, Larry & Carol Spear.

• Friday, August 2nd: Kolten Aaron Michael Hanson, Tara Cromwell Lembke, Cole Lehmberg, Vivian Dulas, Cora Lynn Harpel, Ryan Nelson, Scott Sommers, George Wangsness Jr., Carol Lein, Melissa Marlin.

• Saturday, August 3rd: Arianna Elizabeth Pence/Ortiz, Jo Lerberg, Kristine Dummer, Cynthia Nelson, Kent Swearingen, Jean Molenaar, Matthew Wayne, Nicholas Wayne, Gerald Flugum.

• Sunday, August 4th: Madysen Grace Waage, Karen Edwardson Loge, Harold Jensen, Bryce Ingvaldson, Terry Vaith, Ryan Wangsness, Michael Hanson, Tom Lang, Bethany Cooper, Rachel Reichl, Gary & Kathy Reichl, Warren & Ilsbeth Wayne.

• Monday, August 5th: Wayne Schimek, Corey Wangsness, Gabriella Lynn Olson, Gladys Johnson, John Ramlo, Annette Thostenson, Jennifer Broskoff Dutton, Andrea & Kane Malo, Christopher & Kristen Hanson.

• Tuesday, August 6th: Lynn Nechanicky, Rick Cook, Matthew Miller, Andy & Mary Lerberg, Wendell & Connie Kuehni.

• Wednesday, August 7th: August 7th: Shelly Mangskau, Zachery Vangen, Lori Titus, Dylan Waltz, Jack Jensen, Dakota Wayne Heideman, Kaityn Quimby, Cheyenne Bergerson, David Arbogast, Darren Casper, Allen Wacek, Tom & Katie Marlin.

The end of July is upon us and I can’t help but think that there is still plenty of summer left. I know that with each passing day there is a little less daylight for us to enjoy but there is still time to get in many of the summer things that we had planned on doing but haven’t gotten around to.

Usually by the time August rolls around I have been to the cabin a couple of different times with the grandsons. This year however I have only spent time up north one time with my grandson Dylan and his sister Emma. As kids grow older their interests change and I am sure that in this day and age spending time at a rustic cabin in the woods with old grandpa is not as appealing as it once was. Over the years I have tried to share my knowledge of fishing and the outdoors with the grandkids. I feel good that I have been able to share the outdoors experience that I enjoy with them.

The first couple of years after the cabin was livable it had 4 walls, a roof and a floor with a kerosene heater. There were a few years when I took my two oldest grandsons, Trevor and Taylor up for a weekend in April. This was our traditional trip to check and see if the cabin made it through the winter and if there were any downed trees. On one of our April trips north the boys and I awoke to freshly fallen snow which they thought was pretty neat. There were a few times when were greeted by fallen trees which luckily did no damage to the cabin but did do some to the camper. The camper had been an essential part of our time up north for many years but this year we finally decided that it was time for it to go. Over the years it served us well and it held a lot of good memories of the times spent with the grandkids.

In the early days we didn’t know what our little lake had for fish because when we bought the land the realtor said that there weren’t any fish in the lake. The day I was to sign the papers I drove to the lake early, made a few casts with a jig & twister and had a couple of hits. This told me that there was indeed some type of fish in the lake. I then proceeded to town to meet with the realtor and sign the papers.

Once we had cleared some trees we brought our camper in and since then it has been a work in progress. The first year we were there I offered up a bounty or I guess you could call it a reward to any one of the kids that caught a fish in the lake. Naturally it didn’t take Trevor long to collect that bounty with an 8-inch perch. Once the kids knew that there were fish in the lake they had a blast.

The lake with no fish has had fish in it every year since. The perch disappeared a few years back but mysteriously crappies and sunfish soon replaced them and it has yielded some nice “slabs” over the past few years. Now that I think about it I may just have to try and get a few for the pan the next time I’m up there.

In the evening I love to sit on our deck and enjoy the view as the sun sets on our pretty little lake. The quiet of the evening is broken only by the calling of the loons or an occasional tail slapping on the water by the resident beaver. This is really what it is all about; taking the time to sit back and enjoy nature at its best.

I mentioned earlier that our granddaughter Emma had spent some time at the cabin with us in June. Unfortunately she got homesick every night and the mosquitoes were relentless so for an outdoors girl like her it wasn’t all that much fun. I have no doubt that in a few years she will be fishing like the boys. She is not afraid to pick up an earth worm or a leech and holding a minnow is just plain fun to her. The other evening she went to Edgewater fishing with me, her dad and brother Dylan. Her attention span isn’t that long and sitting still isn’t what she does best but she found that she could bring us bait. She would bring us a leech if we needed one and if we didn’t ask for one she wanted to know if she should bring us one of those “black things”. She told me that she thought it was neat that they could stick to her hand.

This is the same girl that stayed at grandpa and grandmas not too long ago and wanted to watch a movie. I suggested a Ninja Turtle movie that her brother had left at the house a few years back but that didn’t fly – “that’s a boy movie grandpa; I want to watch a girl movie”!

Until next time, enjoy the outdoors, go for a walk on one of our area trails or watch a bobber bouncing in the breeze on an area lake.

Please remember to keep our troops in your thoughts and prayers because they are the reason we are able to enjoy all the freedoms that we have today.

Echoes from the Loafers’ Club Meeting

"Where is everyone?"

"I don’t know."

"Weren't they told that I was going to be here?"

"No, but word must have leaked out."

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: Transverse (in-lane) rumble strips are grooves crossing road surfaces that provide a tactile and audible warning for drivers approaching stop signs. I wonder what percent of drivers straddle the strips in order to avoid the rumble?

I’ve learned

• When it says, "Some assembly required," it means, take a week off, buy every tool in the store, and make no other plans.

• Whenever someone says, "What do you think?" I think I should have been listening.

• Justice isn’t blind. It’s afraid to see.

The Loafers’ Club Redux

The Loafers' Club meets at least once a day. The meetings last about an hour. The members do nothing, talk about how they could do even less, and then go home to rest. Wisdom such as, "Order in the court. The judge is about to spit. All those who cannot swim, had better hurry up and get," is shared at these gatherings. It’s time for the Loafers’ Club annual report. There were 714 meetings held during the past year. There were no dues collected, no misuse of funds, no annual meeting, no team sponsorships, and no mission statement. A secret handshake may be developed.

Considering ballgames

I visited with an old teammate, Chuck Hinkley of Freeborn. We played ball together for many years. Chuck said he gets better as time passes. He added that he couldn’t remember ever making an out.

I couldn’t remember him making an out either.

I no longer play ball. Now I’m a spectator.

Watching ballgames, you learn that if you move your feet, you lose your seat. A granddaughter’s fastpitch softball team won the state. She pitched every game. I think underhand is the natural way to throw and leads to less arm problems than the overhand pitch. I base this belief on two things. Roll a ball to a toddler and he or she will likely throw it back underhanded. And, there is no overhand bowling.

The importance of doilies

We had a doily rule in my boyhood home. We weren’t supposed to move anything that had a doily above or below it without my mother’s permission.

A woman in Arnolds Park told me that her 83-year-old mother was crocheting doilies at a hectic pace. She wants to complete enough doilies so that everyone who comes to her funeral would receive one.

Cafe chronicles

A sign on the wall read, "Death before decaf." A fellow at the table ordered a steak — rare. I’ve seen things hurt worse than it get better. As I left, the waitress said, "Please come again. Call if you can’t make it."

I stopped at the Koffee Cup in Arnolds Park. A sign on the highway in front read, "Eat right. Turn left.”

Did you know?

• Velcro was invented by Georges de Mestral, an electrical engineer from Switzerland. Mestral put burdock seeds under a microscope and saw that each bristle was a tiny hook.

• The Beer Institute's annual per capita beer consumption rankings showed North Dakota number one. New Hampshire was 2nd, Wisconsin 5th, Iowa 13th, and Minnesota 29th. Utah was last.

• Heinz Ketchup exits the glass bottle at .028 miles per hour.

• About 10 percent of homes had air conditioning in 1965.

Customer comments

Dennis Galagan of Albert Lea wraps fish in newspaper, but he makes sure that my column isn’t involved in the process. I appreciate that. However, I know that my column is occasionally placed in the bottom of a birdcage, so that my photo might help cure a constipated canary.

I wasn’t bittern

I did a radio show via cellphone as I stood on a seldom-traveled gravel road running alongside a cattail marsh in North Dakota. An American bittern sang while I did that program. It didn’t bother me. I welcomed its call. An American bittern stands motionless with its bill pointed towards the sky. Its plumage provides camouflage while it stalks the fringes of shallow wetlands searching for prey. It eats creatures of suitable size — crayfish, dragonflies, fish, frogs, grasshoppers, snakes, water bugs, and small mammals such as voles. This bittern’s distinctive call has earned it a flock of nicknames, including, barrel-maker, belcher squelcher, bog-bull, bog-hen, bog-trotter, butter bump, dunk-a-doo, mire-drum, night-hen, plum puddin’, post-driver, slough pump, stake-driver, sun-gazer, thunder-pumper, and water-belcher.

Meeting adjourned

Smile as if you’ve never cried. Be kind.

There are many equations in physics that can be said in the language of a lay person. For example: “a body in motion tends to stay in motion and a body at rest tends to stay at rest.” From my view, this is most certain, as proven by the following.

In cleaning up the mess from rainwater in the basement at the end of June, I cut the knuckle on a finger on my left hand. No big deal, or so I thought. I cleaned out the cut and put a bandage on it, thinking now it will heal. Wrong. It swelled and became infected.

It was very apparent the Great Retired RN Genie must be brought in on the action. Genie used hydrogen peroxide plus ointment on the wound, covered by a bandage. I did this for a few days but the finger didn’t seem to be getting any better.

I got up early Thursday morning, July 11, and noticed boils under each armpit. That meant a  trip to Albert Lea Medical Center Fourth Floor Urgent Care. Dr. Kelley looked at the situation, lanced one of the boils for a biopsy, and prescribed a medication containing sulfur that should clear it up. In addition I was to rest, stay out of sunlight, and not get pregnant. I took the medication, followed the directions and it seemed to be working. 

The second day I developed a rash, hot and cold flashes, nausea, no appetite. Once again, off to Urgent Care. The diagnosis was an allergic reaction to sulfur. A new prescription was prescribed which I started talking Saturday, July 13 – with rest, stay out of the sunlight, and don’t get pregnant.

A telephone call from Urgent Care Saturday evening let me know I had a staph infection as per the biopsy results. The medication was changed and I should get and start taking it ASAP Sunday morning. Once again with rest, stay out of the sunlight, and don’t get pregnant while taking the medication.

I am finding the “get rest” to be a very easy order to follow. Thus, I agree a body at rest tends to stay at rest. One problem – Genie has other ideas once I’m through with the medication!

Many thanks for the prayers, well wishes and cards (The staph infection should be cleared up by August 1).

At Central Freeborn Lutheran Church we have Coffee Hour with goodies prior to the 10:30 a.m. Sunday service. One church member is assigned each month to carry this out. Eunice Bakken was in charge this July. She recruited (told) Phillip Morreim to help. Thus their theme for July was “Fill up with Phillip.” Coffee Hour goodies with conversation in church are most certainly a part of God’s world. Amen.

Did you know that Central Freeborn Lutheran Church has their own Angie’s List? It is maintained by the great church secretary, Angie.

Room remains on bus for trip to Twins game

There are still a few seats left on the Twins bus leaving at 4 p.m. from behind Slumberland in Albert Lea on Monday, August 12. Seats are in Section 315, behind home plate. One person per bus will be selected to go on the field to lead in singing the National Anthem. For reservations call Bob or Genie Hanson at 507-373-8655 or Wayne or Bev Indrelie at 507-826-3267. This could be the Twins season with the most losses!

———

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 Vermont. 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.

Remember when you got your first answering machine? What a thrill! Now you wouldn’t have to worry about missing calls anymore! The toughest part of the answering machine was who would get to talk and what cool message you would put on it.

Oh, how far we’ve come…or maybe not. Think about all the technological advancements we’ve made since those ancient answering machines: cell phones, voice mail, e-mail, text messaging, Skyping, Facetime – the list goes on and on.

There is certainly a convenience to all these gadgets and apps. Now, you no longer have to worry about missing a call at home, but people have access to you no matter where you are!

Wait. Is that a good thing? It can be; there are times I’m running around with the kids or on my way somewhere, but I’m waiting for an important call. When we took a family trip to South Dakota a couple years ago, our water softener had sprung a cat-induced leak the day before, and I had contacted someone to fix it, but needed to give them my credit card once it was done. My cell phone was convenient then since we were cruising down I-90.

But that’s not always the case, is it? Sure, we can ignore the call if we want, but then everyone is staring at you, wondering when that tacky ring tone will be done.

I’ve also found that calling some people isn’t even worth my time; they never answer their phones. However, if I text them, I get an immediate response. I realize that not everyone wants to talk to me (hard to imagine), but it seems some people are removing themselves from interpersonal contact.

Last year, I was trying to get ahold of a baseball coach about a tournament I was running. I left him three messages on his cell phone before he finally called me back. He told me he rarely returned calls; you just had to keep calling and harassing him. What? I thought the purpose of a cell phone was to make it easier to reach people!

The same thing goes for email. If you have e-mail, you should check it at least every other day. I recently sent an e-mail to the managing editor at the Owatonna People’s Press to ask why they weren’t including two days’ worth of comic strips any more. No response, not even a form e-mail. This isn’t the Star Tribune; I expect something!

Look at our teenagers. Do they ever just call each other and talk anymore? Anyone remember Mom or Dad yelling at you to get off the phone since they were expecting a call? Now we have call waiting, so that’s not a problem. But I don’t think kids talk much anymore. They text and message on Facebook and Twitter. I’ve actually witnessed kids sitting ten feet apart texting EACH OTHER!

Face to face communication is still so important in our society. Having sat in on interviews for new staff the past two years, I can tell you I base part of my judgment on the facial responses to questions and the non-verbal communication going on. Are younger people learning these vital skills?

I’ve seen more and more kids struggle with public speaking in my classroom, and I wonder if this lack of personal interaction has anything to do with it. Public speaking is always difficult, but the uptick in anxiety leads me to hypothesize that kids need to spend more time looking at faces than they do screens. Some adults might need to as well.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got a phone call to make.

Word of the Week: This week’s word is candor, which means truthfulness, as in, “He picked up the phone, intending to use candor to tell her why the relationship was over.” Impress your friends and confuse your enemies!