If anything is expected in Minnesota, it is the unexpected — and such has been our weather. 

It is that time of year when we bake cookies and candies for friends; after all, it is Christmas time. Baking is a Christmas tradition I started almost 40 years ago.

And then, there is the "Grinch that stole Christmas." How can we in good faith feed our friends food that Nature News says is a no no? 

Sugar, wheat, and shortening: all those things necessary for cookie baking that are all on the no list.

Yes, I know some people give fruit baskets at Christmas, and for some that is a good idea. So for those who still think that they need to bake goodies, they can replace shortening with applesauce, sugar and some stevia and wheat with flour ground from nuts and coconuts. Wear rose-colored glasses so you can pretend it isn't so - though you know different.

I guess one can make the portions smaller and/or suggest these items as a substitute for a dessert with more calories. Not for anything would I contribute to someone’s bad health, even in moderation. 

Sending along the recipe with the gift helps. That way the recipient can choose if they want to poison themselves, poison someone else or feed the dog who might not know any better, with sugar.

Maybe we need to change the slogan to "Betcha can eat just one."

On to bigger and better things: I always send Christmas cards. I am sure some people don't appreciate it and say, "Why does she do that? Postage is too expensive,” or something of the sort. I have sent some Christmas greetings via e-mail but it just isn't the same.

Yes, I know the post office needs the money. I know my sister, who works for the post office, tells me they don't need more work, but all and all I think it is still a pretty cheap gift if you make it that. Just a few words puts you in touch with family and friends. 

Some people really look forward to those Christmas greetings. I do. 

It is like a hug, a handshake, or a thinking of you greeting! Like frosting on a cake, it is a little sweetness on an ordinary day.

This year, my mother and I tried to find old friends and neighbors that we don't hear from too much. A little honey takes away the bitter taste of some of the tragic and sad things that seem to be happening all around us. We need all the natural happiness we can give and get, especially at Christmas.

As I bake my Christmas cookies and loaves and loaves of banana bread, address my Christmas cards and letters, and affix the stamps, the thoughts that come to mind are precious, worthwhile accounts made payable through the years. There are many thank yous and thoughts of tough times we got through that are just as important. 

"Double green stamps" again; awards received every day by just being able to have lived them. Hey, I am still here, aren't I?

I could never name everyone who has helped me along life’s way. I wish I could, but I know a lot more than I thought I did who have played an important part of my life. 

It takes many musical notes to make a masterpiece beautiful and everyone is important. Such is life.

May every joy be yours his holiday season. May the blessings and joy of God's greatest Gift be yours. Merry Christmas!

Birthdays and anniversaries:

• Thursday, December 20th: Corlyn Paulsen, Kyle Johnson, Laurie Swift, Debbie Whelan, Odean & Andrea Johnson.

• Friday, December 21st: Audriene Nelson, Nancy Rich, Liz Wangness, Darin Rhodes, Brandon Hagen, Dave & Tammy Peterson, Duane & Cheryl Lembke.

• Saturday, December 22nd: Destiny Rita Hill, David Arends, Pam Cook, Gary Dobberstein, Tracy Dulas, Julie Jensen Wichman, Ed Nelson, Nikki Toft Schumaker, Barbara Zamora, Bryce Hanson, Jamie Jensen.

• Sunday, December 23rd: Vicki Richards, Jonika Otto Wing, Jess Dunlap, Paitin DuBois, Julie Cornelius, Keith Severson, Carol Schultz, Sophia Swift, Burt & Carla Scripture.

• Monday, December 24th: Christmas Eve!  Barbara Mrotz, Brooke Reese, Craig Paulsen, Anna Louise Fuerniss, Susan Oolman.

• Tuesday, December 25th: Merry Christmas! Mitchel Gale Evans, Krista Lee Hardyman, Tom Reitveld, Makenzie Butler.

• Wednesday December 26th: Nadine Strenge, Gerald Edwards, Tom Hanson, Joshua Kasper, Jill Peterson Otterbein, Nicklas Hanson.

May your find joy and pleasure all around you on your special day!

Echoes from the Loafers’ Club Meeting

"My Uncle Phil McAvity pulled my tooth."

"Have a toothache?"

"No."

"Bad tooth?"

"No."

"Then why did he pull it?"

"It was my Christmas present."

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: I should be extremely kind and compassionate to those around me during the Christmas season, because I never know who will be my Secret Santa.

I’ve learned

1. When you stop believing in Santa, you get underwear.

2. Tangled Christmas lights teach us patience and perseverance.

3. A discount Christmas tree drops needles faster than a bad knitter.

4. If you eat so much that you turn green, someone will hang tinsel on you.

5. If you insist on sticking food up your nose, you belong at the kids’ table.

6. Oysters appear just when you think it’s safe to eat stew.

Christmas considerations

Things were quiet. That was no surprise. Most of the people were in China or India. I listened to Simon and Garfunkel sing about a winter’s day in a deep and dark December. Some folks complain that "nice" and "cold" do not belong in the same sentence, but it was nice and cold. Actually, it was nice, cold, windy, snowy, and icy. There must have been an earthquake. Anyone who has ever owned a snowglobe knows that earthquakes cause snowfalls. I wrapped presents. Finding the starting point on a roll of Scotch tape is nearly as great a struggle for me as was shopping for the presents.

A sound of the season

I ring bells for the Salvation Army. It’s a gift I give myself. It feels good to help. As I rang in the grocery store, a stream of shopping carts carrying clementines and cat litter went by. I encouraged folks to buy peanuts in the shell as the store had made a mountain out of a molehill of goober peas. I told shoppers that a shopping cart had been owned by a little old lady who used it only after church on Sunday. I made a Christmas wish on behalf of all clueless shoppers such as me. I wished that products offered in the store were in alphabetical order.

As I rang and spoke to dear hearts and gentle people, a man approached and asked, "Have you seen my wife?"

"No, but I don’t even know your wife," I answered.

"Then how do you know you haven’t seen her?"

Did you know?

Aluminum Christmas trees were first manufactured in 1958.

According to The White House Historical Association, the first White House Christmas tree, decorated with candles and toys, was placed in the second floor oval room in 1889 for President Benjamin Harrison and his family.

Santa Claus is a city in Indiana.

Retail detail

Karen Daniels of Williamsport, Pennsylvania volunteered at the American Bald Eagle Foundation’s gift shop in Haines, Alaska. Karen admits that her skills are better suited for being a greeter than a cashier. She was behind the cash register when a customer purchased a moose poop Christmas ornament produced by Turds R Us. The price on the ornament, which was guaranteed to bring a tear to the eye of a recipient, was $5. Karen rang it up as $5000. That made it the gift shop’s best day ever.

"I don’t think my credit card will cover it," protested the customer.

"Shall we try it and see?" said the ever-helpful Karen.

They didn’t try. Credit cards and moose poop have their limits.

Nature notes

"Where do squirrels sleep in winter?" Gray and fox squirrels sleep in dens and drays. A den, usually a tree cavity, is typically used in winter. The hole is lined with leaves, moss, fur, or feathers. A dray is a basketball-sized nest of leaves and twigs built in the upper branches of a tree. Summer drays may be just a platform. Winter drays are warm and waterproof. Red squirrels sleep in dens and drays, too, but they may den in a log. Gray squirrels mate twice a year, typically from December to February and June through August. Fox squirrels also mate twice a year, usually from December to February and June through July. Red squirrels ordinarily mate once a year in late winter.

"Do any birds eat the red milo that's in some seed mixes?" Yes. Gambel's quail, curve-billed thrashers, and Steller's jays love the stuff. None of those birds are found in Minnesota or Iowa.

Meeting adjourned

May peace and happiness be yours at Christmas and may kindness be your gift to others.

The scurs had a streak going until they forgot the ground was still pretty black to the south of us yet, causing temperatures to remain well above normal. Will they remember to take their memory pills this week? Starting Wednesday, partly cloudy becoming mostly cloudy with a good chance of afternoon and overnight snow. Highs around 30 and lows of 15 – 20. Mostly cloudy and colder on Thursday with a slight chance of snow in the forenoon. Highs near 20 and lows of 5 – 10. 3 cookie-cutter days are next, starting out mostly clear on Friday becoming partly cloudy for Saturday and Sunday. Highs around 20 and lows of 5 – 10. Partly sunny for Christmas Eve Day and Christmas Day with highs hovering around 20 with lows near 10. The normal high for December 21st is 24 and the normal low is 7. The winter solstice this year happens to occur on the 21st, bringing us 8 hours and 54 minutes of daylight. The scurs can appreciate the precious extra minutes of sleep before they begin worrying about Christmas shopping. Still plenty of days to think about getting started yet.

Drought continues to weigh on most farmers’ minds, although at this point there isn’t a lot that can be done about it other than to think positive. Along those lines, we officially surpassed the precipitation total for November last week, adding another .41” to the soil moisture coffers at the ranch. In the feedlot, there was actually mud on Saturday night and the pickup cut in close to the barn where the soil surface was bare. The soils are largely thawed yet so anything that has fallen has been absorbed into the soil. We still have to go some to catch last year’s December precip amount at 1.19” however. The forecast for the near term anyway doesn’t give us a great chance of catching that, although anything can happen. Winter is generally not the time of year a drought is broken as soils typically are frozen and as a result, snowmelt runs off. If the volunteer corn that germinated this fall is any indication, we have enough moisture to get a crop started in the top foot of soil. All is not lost yet. Should be lots of time after that to satisfy the most intense worrywart.

Ruby received a lot of attention with the flooring crew here several days in a row last week. She didn’t care much for the loud buzzing from the saw, but once that was over with she liked to assist and give kisses. One of the installers claimed his ears have never been cleaner. She appears ready for Christmas though. Her coat is very shiny and soft following the rain last weekend, even though it made her smell like a wet chicken in the process. A few hours in the kennel and she was good to play the growling game with her ball again. 

Not unexpectedly, the bird activity at the feeders last week slowed to a snail’s pace for this time of year. We usually have large numbers of goldfinches by now, but they continue to be few and far between. The usual crew of woodpeckers, nuthatches, blue jays and chickadees is still here of course, but even they are not going through much sunflower seed. Some snow and colder weather may change that. There are also some indications of irruptions farther to the north, birds not normally seen here making their way farther south than in a typical winter. There were a few siskins earlier so we’ll see if more show up. 

The sheep made short work of their corn shock last week and went so far as fishing the bundles out of the snow to finish it off. They still traipse off into the pasture and apparently are finding something in the native prairie area to their liking or they wouldn’t stay out there. The remaining two watermelons went over the fence the other night so that kept the brood ewe flock occupied until they nudged the last hunk under the fence. Fortunately the weather continues to help keep the feed bill down somewhat and it’s obvious they’re not hurting when they opt to sleep under the stars rather than in their barn.

In the skies overhead, Jupiter continues to be a party animal, rising about sunset and staying up all night. Unfortunately it has been cloudy so seeing it has been difficult. It has been bright enough though so it has shown through light clouds some nights when most stars do not. Venus will become tougher to see in the morning as the month wears on, rising later and obscured by the onset of the sunrise.

Festivus is drawing nigh and alas, I’m having a tough time getting in the spirit this year. Seems like we just finished with one season while trying to get ready for the next one. Even the Festivus pole remains snug in its crawl space awaiting the feats of strength. My gift-buying zeal of individual gifts for the staff at the newspaper has dwindled. A card with a donation in their name to the Human Fund is in the mail. There isn’t much for snow as of this writing, but at least Mrs. Cheviot strung some lights outside that come on at dusk to remind us ‘tis the season. The house awaits her decorative touch, put temporarily on hold by a long overdue flooring project. Doesn’t make much sense to do a lot of decorating until the dust and commotion from that settles. The floor looks nice and that’s the main thing. It’ll be even nicer once the aftermath from that and a wedding decorating project is cleaned up in the garage so it reverts to its rightful purpose: collecting junk. If I can move the two lawnmowers, Howard and Whitey around it and in front of the car so I can put my truck in, it will truly be another Festivus miracle!

See you next week…real good then!

This week, I’m writing my column in near silence, the only sound the pecking at the keyboard. This, unfortunately, represents the silence that will be part of too many lives in Connecticut after the terrible tragedy of yet another school shooting.

Many thoughts jumped around in my head when I first heard about this, and in today’s 24-hour news cycle, it didn’t take long for speculation to take hold and for Facebook to blow up about the story. As I scrolled around my news feed, I saw a lot of varying reactions. A former star of mine, Zach Hacker, had a very thoughtful post dealing with the two main issues that will rise from this tragedy: gun control and mental illness.

Let me talk about gun control first. I wouldn’t know how to shoot a gun if you put one in my hands, and I know that puts me in a minority around here. 

However, I’m not opposed to guns. I realize the pleasure hunting brings many people, and I don’t mind a little venison now and then. 

Would stronger gun laws help limit situations like the Connecticut shooting? It’s possible, and I don’t think I’d oppose some laws limiting the sale of some of these semi-automatic guns. Whether it’s for hunting or protection, I’m not sure we need the types of weaponry that appear in movies.

Of course, people who want these types of guns will find a way to get their hands on them. If you tell people they can’t have something, they will work their hardest to get that (See: Prohibition). So our government needs to tread carefully before making a quick gut reaction to this action and take everything into account before making decisions.

Mental illness, as Zach stated in his wonderful post, is the bigger issue. There are many people who suffer from this and are never treated. 

I won’t speculate on what was going on in the mind of the shooter, but all news reports seem to indicate there was something that was off about his mind. I had a hard time understanding this issue until I realized there were people I knew and cared about who deal with mental illness. Most likely, everyone who is reading this knows people who suffer from mental illness, and too often, the stigma attached keeps people from seeking some help to deal with depression, anxiety, etc.

Please be understanding and help people who need help. As Al Batt often writes, kindness can solve many problems.

I’ve seen many posts that are vitriolic in nature in regards to the shooter. I understand that, but think it’s wasteful hate. 

I too am sickened at the thought of all those children dead; I’ve teared up a number of times today, thinking about it and thinking about how much I love my own children.

I also start thinking about how much I care for my students. I can’t even imagine being able to react and respond in that situation; I pray it never happens here. 

Ever since Columbine in 1999, teachers everywhere have been more vigilant, but it’s never enough as long as these things keep happening. As I look at the school board’s proposal to install a safety entrance in New Richland, this is all the more reason to go forward with that. It’s not a cure-all, but it’s a tremendous step in the right direction.

As parents and teachers, we often have to be serious and don’t always get to make decisions that our children like. But I hope everything we do is with a sense of caring. 

I sometimes tell my students and my players I coach that if I’m in your face about something, it means I haven’t given up on you. That’s a hard lesson to learn sometimes, but hopefully one that is recognized years down the line.

Hug your children every day. Tell your parents you love them. Try to get along with your brothers and sisters. There are too many people in Connecticut who won’t get to do that anymore.

Word of the Week: This week’s word is vitriolic, which means caustic and biting, as in, “The Facebook post was so vitriolic and brimming with anger that nobody pushed the like button.” Impress your friends and confuse your enemies!

Funeral services for Vernon M. (Vern) Olson of Ellendale, MN, will be held at 11 a.m. Tuesday, December 18, 2012 at St. Peters Evangelical Lutheran Church in New Richland, MN. Pastor Scott Williams will officiate. Visitation will be held Monday from 4 until 6 p.m. at the Friedrich Funeral Home and one hour prior to the service at the church. Interment will be in St. Peters Cemetery, New Richland.

Vern died on Friday, December 14, 2012 at the Owatonna Hospital. He was 66 years of age.

Vernon M. (Vern) Olson was born on November 29, 1946 to Evelyn and Orrin Olson in Waseca, MN.

He attended school in Ellendale. He was in the US Army entering in 1967. Vern was united in marriage to Janice Besser on May 24, 1969. They have been married for 43 years.

Verdell May Ludwitzke, age 78 of Cannon Falls and formerly of Winona and New Richland, died on Thursday morning, December 13, 2012 at St. Mary’s Hospital in Rochester.

Verdell was born on December 24, 1933 in New Richland, MN the daughter of George and Florence (Baumann) Billing.  She graduated in 1951 from New Richland High School, and went on to Mankato State College. She graduated in 1960 with a Bachelors Degree in Education.  She married Dennis Ludwitzke on June 11, 1960 at St. Peter’s Lutheran Church in New Richland. 

The funeral service for John O. Beyer of New Richland, Minnesota will be at 11 a.m. Friday, December 14, 2012 at St. Peter Evangelical Lutheran Church. The Reverend Scott Williams will officiate. Interment will be in St. Peter Cemetery.  Visitation will be for 10 to 11 a.m. Friday at the church.

Bonnerup Funeral Service is in charge of arrangements.

John died Monday December 10, 2012 at his home. He was 70 years old.

New Richland City Council

By JESSICA LUTGENS

Editorial Assistant

The first city council meeting of December commenced at 6:30 on the 10th, with all members present. The meeting was also the last one for current members who have not been reelected to another term.

The police report was presented first. The New Richland Police Department reported 57 calls and 39 other contacts/activities for December. There were no serious or felonious crimes reported. It was a slower month, and the department believes it has to do with the cold weather settling people down and keeping them indoors.

The front brakes on one of the squad cars need to be replaced, and despite the best efforts of the officers, the dealership doesn’t look like it’s going to cover the cost. The topic is to be discussed at the next meeting.