Darrel K. Lundberg, 82, died peacefully in his home in New Richland, MN, on March 12, 2012.

Darrel was born on October 14, 1929 to Clarence and Lillian (Larson) Lundberg in rural Pepin, WI.

He attended country school and graduated from Pepin High School in May 1948.

From 1951 -1953 Darrel served in the U.S. Army and was stationed in Alaska. On June 10, 1955 he was united in marriage to Betty Lundberg of rural Pepin, WI.

Darrel and Betty farmed until 1971 when they and their family moved to New Richland, MN.

Darrel worked for the Eastvold Family Farm in rural Hartland, MN, and then worked as a mechanic for Budach Implement for 19 years.

Darrel was a member of the Vista Covenant Church where he actively served as deacon and Sunday School Teacher. He was also a much appreciated lay pastor during various occasions.

Darrel is survived by his daughter Donna (Keith) Hullopeter of Pepin, WI, daughter Julie Ryden of Waseca, MN, son Kenneth Lundberg of New Richland, MN, and son David (Karen) Lundberg of Ellendale, MN. He is also survived by 15 grandchildren, 15 great grandchildren, Brother Curtis (Marjorie) Lundberg of Pepin, WI, and sister Verneal (Bob) Hood of Farmersburg, IN.

Darrel was preceded in death by his parents Clarence and Lillian Lundberg, wife Betty Lundberg, sister and brother in law JoAnn and Harold Dion. Also numerous aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents.

Memorial services will be held on Monday, March 19, 2012 at the Lund Mission Covenant Church in Stockton, WI. Reverend Steven Thompson and Reverend Greg Satterberg will officiate. Friends may great the family one hour prior to the service at the church. Interment will be in the Lund Mission Covenant Church Cemetery.

Darrel will be greatly missed by his loving family and many friends.

NRHEG stuns Braham in state quarterfinals

TWO OF THE FINEST — Carlie Wagner of NRHEG (3) drives to the basket against Rebekah Dahlman of Braham (left) during the quarterfinals of the state girls' basketball tournament at Target Center in Minneapolis Wednesday night. Wagner scored a career-high 43 points as the Panthers won 75-45. (Star Eagle photos by Chris Schlaak)

ON TO THE SEMIFINALS — NRHEG girls' basketball players display their jubilation near the end of Wednesday night's state tournament victory over defending state champion Braham at Target Center in Minneapolis. The Panthers' next game is Friday at 6 p.m. at Target Center.

By JIM LUTGENS

Editor/Publisher

Eleven busloads of NRHEG girls’ basketball fans went home happy from Minneapolis Wednesday night.

The Panthers’ dream season continued with a stunning 75-45 victory over defending Class AA state champion Braham in the quarterfinals of the state tournament at Target Center.

The Panthers, now 31-0, advanced to the semifinals against Sauk Centre Friday at 6 p.m. at Target Center. If they win, they’ll play for the state championship Saturday at 2 p.m. at Target Center. A Friday night loss would put the Panthers in the third-place game Saturday at noon at Concordia College. Braham finished 29-2.

Most of the talk surrounding the Panthers’ first-round game centered on Braham junior Rebekah Dahlman, who during the game became the state’s all-time leading scorer in girls’ basketball.

By the end of the night, she was congratulating Panther sophomore Carlie Wagner, who lit it up for a career-high 43 points, four shy of the single-game state tournament record.

NRHEG fourth-grade student publishes book

ELEMENTARY AUTHOR — Jayna Domeier, a fourth-grade student at NRHEG Ellendale, is pictured in front of the display window housing her first book “The Teenage Tournament.” (Star Eagle photo by Jody Wynnemer)

By JODY WYNNEMER

Staff Writer

The present day educational system in the United States teaches our younger students the ability to read and write. After they learn the basics of reading, students are challenged to put their own thoughts down on paper. It may start out as a sentence, perhaps a paragraph or two, or in some cases, several pages. As students progress through the grades, their writing becomes more focused, with book reports and the dreaded term papers being written.

Imagine a fourth-grade student who likes reading so much she decided to write her own book.

NRHEG Elementary pupil Jayna Domeier is just that student.

Jayna, daughter of Mark and Michelle Domeier of Ellendale, recently published her first book titled, “The Teenage Tournament.”

“The idea just came to me,” said Jayna. “The book is about some eighth-grade students who are preparing to enter a tournament against some 12th-graders. The tournament isn’t sports related; it’s about school subjects, like the Knowledge Bowl. It took me about two weeks to complete working on it every day.”

New Richland City Council

By JODY WYNNEMER

Staff Writer

All members were present as Mayor Tom McShane convened the first New Richland City Council meeting of March Monday evening. The night’s agenda was approved as presented. The consent agenda items were also approved, notably:

• Permission to close South Broadway Ave. adjacent to the City Park on Sunday, April 15 for the annual Blessing of the Bikes.

• Approval of a purchase order for material for the softball infield at Legion Field.

• Repair and/or replacement of the backstop fence at the softball field.

Police Chief Scott Eads noted 79 calls for service and 42 additional contacts in February. The most serious offense was a domestic assault/disorderly which occurred on the front steps of city hall.

By SCOTT GROTH

Contributing Writer

The Ellendale City Council met Thursday March 8, 2012 with Mayor Engel and councilmen Helland, Reiter, Goebel and Groth present. Clerk Louks, Maintenance Supervisor Swearingen along with visitors Eric Haffner, Dan Petsinger, Jane Busho, Duane Atchison and Duane Nelson were also in attendance.

Engel asked the council to consider amending the agenda as printed. The council, after some juggling, approved the agenda as amended.

Nelson was first to address the council. He had a request for the city to consider hooking his property up to the sanitary sewer. Nelson told the council he was considering putting a different home on his property. He had drawings to show the council, which showed that he would like to connect to the manhole west of his property. The council directed some questions to Eric Haffner, who works for the city’s engineering firm Bolten & Menk. Haffner told the council that from the information he has been given, the connection would be O.K. Engel told Nelson most of the work would be on his property and therefore would be his responsibility. The council made a motion to move forward allowing Nelson to connect.

You may be from Minnesota if...

• You enjoy lakes as much in winter as in summer, maybe more because it’s mostly local traffic.

• You will pay cold cash to jump in an ice-covered lake for charity.

• You know which way your cap is worn. Everyone knows what name is on the bill and you know enough to remove that cap with respect when the occasion calls for it.

• You still have a telephone book directory and you can take your pick of a dozen people all with the same name. Most of those last names end in "son."

• You can go to a class reunion and remember not only who was in your class but the ones before and after as well.

• You know what FFA and 4-H mean.

• You dress up at night like somebody else between Christmas and New Year’s and scare the pajamas off your neighbor. It's call "yuleboking."

• You thought it was cool to shiveree a newly married couple.

• You had snowmobile parties in the middle of a snowbank at 35 degrees below zero.

• Jeans were work clothes that became famous for their style and brand.

• People smile when they see you if they know you or not.

• A night out is the weekly bingo game night.

• Kids have play equipment made from scraps and tire swings, stilts, roll the hoop, and use a tractor tire for a sandbox.

• You speak with a Norwegian accent.

• Friends call you by a nickname given to you when you were a kid.

• Most people realize you're from out of state when you wear your pants at "half mast."

• You buy magazines for their diet tips with back-to-back recipes that contain over 1,000 calories.

• You know Hannah’s boyfriend took her to the prom in his new John Deere.

• Farmers follow the stock market.

• It's all human nature: everybody has confirmation and graduation parties.

• Lutefisk is considered better than caviar because caviar is a little fishy.

• A good lefse maker is worth her weight in gold.

• You know what "klub" is.

• It is more important to grow horseradish than petunias.

• Shopping at the Mall of America is a class act.

• Enterprising businessmen challenged the weather by building the first mall.

• The county hasn't plowed the roads, so you use your farm equipment to open them up, then go to town.

• You know someone forever and maybe never knew his last name.

• An old car is worth more than a new one.

• You still call them your kids when they are over 60 years old.

• Bald is a status symbol and a labor saver.

• Health nuts park close to the "Y" so they will save energy for their workouts.

• Breakfast in bed consists of a sweet roll.

• People fertilize their lawns so they have more grass to mow.

• You take your shoes off at the door so you don't spread bacteria.

• You still think your kids believe in Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny.

• Driving a pickup is like wearing a badge of honor.

• A $60,000 car isn't nearly as impressive as a $350,000 combine.

• It's the place where semis are as plentiful in a corn or bean field as an Interstate highway. Farmers are apt to have several.

• People are friendly. They wave whether they know you or not. Animal lovers even wave at the dogs or cats or other creatures along the roads.

• People pick weeds instead of using live flowers to make artistic bouquets more expensive looking.

• Your favorite foods are meat and potatoes.

• Nobody asks what you mean by "opener" when it is spring or fall.

• You don't like the smell of things when you're in the minority. To the Minnesota farmer, it smells like money.

• When it snows it’s called a flurry not a blizzard, and people flock to town for a supply of food just in case.

• Many an old-timer never saw the inside of a college until his grandchildren graduated. But never underestimate his knowledge. It can put many an expert in the engineering or medical school to shame.

• You hear more fan participation and cheering at a local high school or community college than you will at a professional game because the fans are neighbors and have known the athletes their entire lives.

— — —

Birthdays and anniversaries:

• Thursday, March 15th: Angie Haberman Lyman, Marvel Beiser, Andy Ditlevson, Robin Jepson, Judy Lunning, Tim Phagan, Steve Clausen, Tony Motl, Julie Peterson, Don & Cindy Gould.

• Friday, March 16th:  Ava Pospesel, Blair Pospesel, Al Batt, Cortnee Langlie, Judy Waage, Tyler Lewis Hagenbrock, Jackson Taylor William Churchill, Harold & Pat Wayne, Hugh & Karen O'Byrne.

• Saturday, March 17th: St. Patricks' Day, Ashley Marie Hagen, Shannon Weckwerth Pacholl, Mike Cady, Dakota Ray Janning, Nicole Hanna, Patrick Wobschall, Harvey Zicafoose, Mandy Galbraith, Joel Hill, Jenifer Jensen Pietari, Carol Scott, Kevin & Marsha Jensen.

• Sunday, March 18th: Ashley Marie Hagen, Lynn Sommer Eaton, Chad Cornelius, Randy Brandt, Michelle Bartness, Dan Enzenauer, Matthew Larson, Wanda Stanley, Kent Toft, Matt & Jennifer Van Hal, Dean & Sue Westrum.

• Monday, March 19th: Samuel Bartness, his 1st; LaVern Klocek, Jill Rye, Jill Neitzell, Tyler Crabtree, Bethany Butler, Tori Lynn Sage, Wyatt Marcus Westergrin.

• Tuesday, March 20th: Jayda Moon, Tricia Renae Hanson, Nicole Christensen, Neva Lembke, Gary Reichl, Jim Butler, Tammy Harpel Nielsen, Winfred Bergdale, Shelly Hoeve, Billy Jo Johnson Schwierjohann, Dennis Olson.

• Wednesday, March 21st: Amy Foster, John Krell, Doris Krause, Trent Steven Pence, Kelly Marie Dobberstein, Phillip Ingvaldson, Pam Farr, Kent Paulson, Diane Marlin, Kelly Nelson, Glea Hyland, Doris Krause, Brody Grunwald, Darrell & Cindy Farr.

• Thursday, March 22nd: National Goof Off Day! Gordy Carroll, Brenna Lynn Hagen, Shannon Johnson, Karin Lieberg, Bob Sommers, Leah Elaine Bergerson, Jerry Peterson, Nancy & Jerry Walterman, Dennis & Glenda Blouin.a

Surprise somebody. Call someone. Send a card and make their day. Little things mean a lot.

ECHOES FROM THE LOAFERS’ CLUB MEETING

“We haven’t had a single customer today.”

“That’s the way I like it.”

“How do you expect to pay the bills?”

“Who said that I expect to pay the bills?”

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: if only Daylight Saving Time saved daylight that we could use whenever we needed it.

I’VE LEARNED

1. I have to buy a ticket before I can win the lottery.

2. Not every restaurant serves food. 

3. An alarm clock going off is better than one not going off.

SMILE, YOU’RE ON A TRAIL CAM

Neal Batt of Hartland showed me some wonderful photos taken by his trail camera. A deer captured in the instrument’s eye licked the lens of the camera. Trail cams have become so popular that one might wonder if there is a deer in Minnesota that hasn’t had its photo taken. I’d like to have a hood cam — a camera that would take the place of a hood ornament and provide a snapshot of whatever that was that scurried across the road in front of my car.

THE CAFE CHRONICLES

I could have inhaled a meal in this eatery. It was a restaurant where this discussion could have taken place:

“This isn’t what I ordered.”

“You wouldn’t want what you ordered.”

“Well, I don’t want this either.”

“Then what difference does it make?”

I was sitting in a cafe having no need for a furnace. The customers brought their own hot air. It wasn’t a restaurant requiring a clean gimme cap. I was talking to an old friend and classmate who resides in a house made from tires. I resisted the impulse to ask him if he needed to rotate his walls. Someone asked him what color his earth-sheltered home was. It was a hard question to answer. The house is covered with vegetation, so it is green in summer, brown in fall, and white during the winter.

I was as happy as a hand fed hog as we talked about his time spent working in Antarctica. We talked briefly about school days when it was my job to talk our teachers in from the ledge and we struggled with word problems such as, “If train A leaves Minneapolis at 8 a.m. going 60 miles per hour and train B leaves Chicago at 9 a.m. going 75 miles per hour, how long will it take you to fail this test?”

MOVING ON UP

I’d met the caller years ago when I’d told stories at a casino in Reno, Nevada. He lived in a small town in Nevada that had grown from 225 to 176 during the years he had lived there. He called to tell me that he was moving to Minneapolis. I asked him why he was moving to a city with such a large population. He answered that with so many people, it should be easy for him to find one who is nice. He was moving in March and wondered if he should bring a jacket. I advised him to bring a fire.

TIME MANAGEMENT

I had a lot of work to do. I knew I would kick myself if I didn’t finish it as soon as possible. A loved one was playing in a basketball game at the same time as I should have been working. I decided to work later when I should be sleeping. I drove to Redwood Falls to watch her play. I had to. I knew that I would kick myself even harder if I didn’t.

NATURE NOTES

Do birds have taste buds? Birds have taste buds, but not nearly as many as man does. Rabbits have about 17,000 taste buds, pigs 15,000, humans 9,000, mallards 375, starlings 200, pigeons 50, and chickens 24. The tastes perceptible to us are sweet, sour, bitter, salt, umami (characteristic of monosodium glutamate,) and lutefisk.

BBRP EXPO

 The Bluebird Recovery Program Expo will be on Saturday April 14 at Byron Middle School. It will feature Minnesota Raptor Center birds, Tom Comfort speaking on the key factors in bluebird nest box locations, Keith Radel on fledgling rate improvement and safety, Mike Jersek on buffalo gnat control on baby bluebirds, Kelly Applegate on purple martins, Roger Strand on wood ducks, and heaps of hot air from this hick from Hartland. There will be vendors, food, and friends. Find more information at http://bbrp.org, (507) 332-7003, or e-mail to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

MEETING ADJOURNED

Being kind is the least we can do.

There is a lot to be said for mild weather and it’s all good. We have really dodged a bullet this winter when it comes to snowfall. The nice weather this past week has really revved up my motor in anticipation of fishing open water once again. The thought of early season “slab” crappies almost gives me goosebumps, so the next step will be deciding what lake I should try first.

For many years, I would spend the spring anticipating the opening of the fishing season by planning which lake I wanted to fish first. A friend once said that vacation is as much about anticipation as it is participation. I can relate to that when thinking back to the years planning a family vacation to the north woods. The excitement would always escalate the closer you’d get to that magic day, but the time spent cleaning reels and inventorying tackle boxes was also quality time.

Whenever we vacationed at Spider Lake, it was a fun time. When the kids were younger the pickup camper seemed to have plenty of room, but as the kids grew older, it appeared to be shrinking. The Friday night before vacation was always a hectic time, and on one particular night while I was putting the camper on the pickup, the jack broke and I couldn’t crank it up. 

It was pretty humid that night so it didn’t take too much to irritate me, and my boys must have sensed this and did their part to fuel the fire. I finally got my hydraulic jack in a position to lift it up enough to take the tension off. They were good to help their mother in loading the camper, but whenever I’d get frustrated, bringing out the best in me was what they were really good at. 

Sometimes when we get together, the boys seem to take pleasure in bringing up some of those “special moments” that had old Dad in such a frenzy. We can laugh about it now, but at the time, I was pretty much humor impaired.

Looking back at those times spent camping at Spider is a great way to relive some very fond memories. The days spent on the lake were always capped off by nights sitting around the campfire roasting hot dogs and making s’mores. These are the memories I will always have and will definitely revisit from time to time. Teaching your kids an appreciation of the outdoors is a great way to leave your mark and make sure they will pass it on to future generations.

Each year, as I sit in the house on a wintery night planning our next vacation, I have visions of that “lunker” walleye or a “monster” musky taking the lure. I can almost hear the drag whining as it takes line. Ahhh….I can’t wait to be there, but it will be upon us before you know it. I just know that “big one” is out there waiting for me. 

Now that I think about it, this is really the thinking of the 10-year-old kid that still resides in this adult body. I guess that feeling is like the feeling I get when coaching a hockey game; if I didn’t get butterflies before a game it would be time to hang it up. I still get that same feeling of excitement whenever I anticipate an upcoming fishing adventure, so I guess you could say that I’m still good to go.

Although my priorities have changed a little, I really enjoy watching my kids and grandkids catch fish and do what I can to make that happen. When my boys were younger I would always wish they could catch fish, secretly hoping that one wouldn’t outdo the other. The thought process was that if they had a good day of fishing, it would in turn keep them excited about the sport. 

Over the years, they have caught their share and both of them still love the sport. When my grandsons starting coming along, I wanted to share the experience with them and teach them as much as I could. I wanted to make sure that they had the opportunity to enjoy the outdoors to the fullest. They have actually expanded on that experience to include hunting, which all four of them like to do. They hunt mostly waterfowl, but when we are at the cabin, Trevor and his dad also like to do some grouse hunting.

Fishing is what I am mostly all about. And in the summer when fishing with those boys, I always hope that they can catch that “lunker.” The funny part about all of this is that I still get that “little kid” feeling of excitement whenever I wet a line.

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.

At the beginning of baseball’s spring training, I was still recovering from last year’s dismal showing of the Minnesota Twins. I didn’t hold out much hope for our boys of summer, not after last year’s 99 losses, second worst in the Major Leagues. I hoped for a year with an equal number of wins and losses. That seemed to be the most a loyal fan could hope for.

Spring training has done it to me again. Perhaps a new phenom will come along like a second Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle or Bob Feller. In the heady days of Spring Training with its warm balmy breezes and blue sky, anything is possible. I remember when I was a teenager reading the Minneapolis Evening Star about the upcoming Major League season. There was a report about the New York Giants’ Spring Training. I was a fan of the Minneapolis Millers and the Giants were their parent ball club, so I did have some interest in the Giants, although my true favorite was the Philadelphia Phillies.

There was a new phenom in the Giants’ camp; A young man, name of Clint Hartung, 6-5 and 230 pounds. He could do it all, pitching or hitting. It didn’t make any difference. He was known as the Hondo Hurricane or Floppy. The floppy part may have been because of his ears. 

One sportswriter wrote that he might as well be put in the Hall of Fame and not bother about actually playing baseball. No one could live up to that hype. And Hartung didn’t, although he played a few years in the Majors. Hartung wound up in the minors and eventually semi-pro ball. He grew to be the symbol of over-hyped Spring Training hopefuls. Hartung died in 2010 at age 87, having lived a good and certainly interesting life.

The other day a player was hyped as the future answer to the Twins’ infield problems. Jamey Carroll, the new shortstop, was just a short-term fix until Brian Dozier was ready to take over the position. We all hope the writer is correct, but we can’t help but remember Clint Hartung.

Spring Training is a time for optimism and perhaps some of us are more optimistic than others. As mentioned in a previous column, I feel the Twins have a chance to contend. Conventional wisdom states that the Twins’ outcome depends on two players: Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau. 

I believe Joe Mauer will recover and play good baseball. Mauer is not much of a talker, but he has character and will try his utmost to come back from what can charitably be described as a mediocre year. If he stays healthy, I think Mauer will hit .330, drive in 90 runs and catch 120 games. 

I’m not so confident about Morneau. A person hopes he fully recovers from his concussion and other injuries. But, the jury is still out on that and there will always be concerns about recurring concussions. We are behind Morneau and wish him nothing but the best, however if Justin does have to leave the Twins, remember that Morneau came out of the lineup in 2010 after having a wonderful first half of the season. The Twins were able to make up for his absence and won the division.

I don’t believe the Twins chances hinge on the M and M boys, but rather on two other Twins. If Liriano and Baker reach their potential, the Twins will be tough, for the rest of the pitching staff is reliable if not dominating. Liriano and Baker have the capability of showing the way for the Twins.

Those wily scurs were certain we were in for a warm up but were playing it a little too close to the vest again. Based on that, wait until you get a load of what’s in store for us this week. Starting Wednesday, mostly clear with highs of 70 – 75 and lows near 45. Mostly clear both Thursday and Friday with highs near 70 and lows of 50 – 55. Partly cloudy Saturday through Monday with a slight chance of rain on Monday. Highs of 65 - 70 and lows around 55. Tuesday, partly cloudy with a chance of rain. Highs around 60 and lows near 40. We will see over 12 hours of daylight on St. Patty’s Day. The normal high for St. Patty’s Day is 40 and the normal low is 23. The forecast highs and lows are more like May 17th. The scurs are wondering how long before we pay the price for all this nice May weather. 

Yes, the vernal equinox will also occur on the Tuesday the 20th at about 12:14 a.m. so it’s that time of year once again when chicken eggs stand on end making the hens more vicious than ever. It’s also when we curse the government for its exceptional ineptitude. Time for road postings and to set the clocks ahead. The road postings I can understand but the time change? Leave the clocks alone already or at least for another month. Getting up in the dark for two or three weeks after just starting to enjoy sunlight in the morning is not only foolish, it’s dangerous. The number of traffic accidents suddenly spikes as do workplace accidents. Why? People are half asleep. Some would argue there is a corresponding decrease in accidents when the clock is turned back in the fall. Using that logic, we should periodically turn it back another hour so we could really reap the benefits!

The night sky this winter has been fascinating to watch. Jupiter and Venus have both been very bright and in close proximity of each other high in the western sky. Mars has become more distinctive as well and is a little higher in the eastern sky each night at 10 p.m. during lamb check. It has dimmed slightly however as it was closest to earth back on the 5th. With Daylight Saving Time, Mars now sets around sunrise. Several have asked about my apparent fascination with the moon and the night sky among other things. The night sky has been reminding me during chores since I was a boy that we are a part of something larger. Of course, sneaking up in the attic to get out our older brother’s Gilbert telescope probably helped stimulate our imaginations as much as anything. It was almost as much fun as playing cowboys and Indians.

There was lots of phenology worthy of note at the ranch this past week. A few geese were moving around Monday but it was tough to tell if they were locals or the scout team sent in to see if there was open water in which to land. Within about an hour of the deadline time for the column there were two robins bobbing along in the yard on the 6th. The next morning there were killdeers calling from the pasture. The 8th brought the first red-winged blackbird. The following day a striped gopher was observed on the shoulder of the road east of the substation on St. Olaf Lake. By Saturday the skies were full of wave after wave of red-winged blackbirds and wedge upon wedge of geese moving in a northwesterly direction. Interestingly enough they were not all Canada’s. Up high there was a familiar higher pitched honking, that of several hundred snows and blues. They were adult birds, all the snows with black wing tips and blues with white heads, a striking appearance against the blue sky. There was also one small group of white-fronted or speckle-bellied geese making their way noisily across the sky. Thought I was back in North Dakota again. As of Monday morning, St. Olaf Lake has a ring of water around it and the ice is dark. Won’t be long, folks. 

Small area wetlands continue to hold water, providing migrating waterfowl resting areas and potential nesting sites. Apparently the small amount of snow we had didn’t go anyplace and runoff from the February rain certainly didn’t hurt. Still haven’t heard the Western Chorus frogs yet but one of these warm days it will happen. One of the rooster pheasants has staked a claim to the plum thicket, likely a descendant of Little Jerry. This one is a little coyer than Little Jerry was so hopefully he will be around for a while. The frost is largely out of the ground in the fields especially after Monday’s rain. Poking around the yard and pasture Sunday with the divining rod (a specially designed electric fence post) it was out already on the south-facing slopes. On the flat and on north facing slopes it was only thawed down two to four inches depending on where one probed. With continued warm temps, some small grain seeding is anticipated along with dry fertilizer and anhydrous ammonia application. There is a slight hint of green starting to show in area lawns and pastures. Alfalfa breaking dormancy is also a distinct possibility. This is not without its perils however. A sudden cold snap has killed alfalfa before after breaking dormancy early and the potential exists for that to happen. As Kermit the frog pointed out, “It’s not easy being green”.

Ruby and the sheep entertained a group of very well behaved youngsters and their parents in Saturday’s breezy conditions. The little Border Collie thrives on attention and being out with the sheep, so she was in her element. There was time to ride in the Gator as well until one of the adults riding in the back complained of waffle-butt. The next day meant catching up after being robbed of the hour of daylight. There were tags to install and tails to dock so ewes and lambs could be moved to make room at the inn. Of course there was Ruby help involved there too but that will soon be coming to a halt. There are only six or seven more ewes to come in yet. The lambs on the ground have grown extremely rapidly. The warm, dry weather has agreed with them insomuch as they haven’t needed to burn much energy staying warm. It helps too that some of the older ewes in the flock that probably aren’t milking as they once did are able to care for their lambs without supplemental help from the shepherds. Bottle lambs are only cute if you aren’t the one feeding several of them several times a day.

See you next week…real good then.