Echoes from the Loafers’ Club Meeting

“How did you get stung on the nose?”

“I smelled a flowber.”

“There is no ‘b” in ‘flower.’”

“There was in that one.”

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 everything is coming your way, you are in the wrong lane.

I’ve learned

1. It’s easy to line up two fence posts. Three posts are not so easy.

2. The more one knows, the greater he or she is aware of his or her level of ignorance.

3. High school reunions are proof that not everyone from your past just seemed bigger.

My neighbor

My neighbor Jon But We All Call Him John has three children. He said that he and his wife had three children so that one could keep the other two separated.

Notes from the metropolis

Hartland’s population had been 288. When the city came to its census, its numbers had boomed to 302. That’s a growth of 14 people in just 10 years. No one is sure who those 14 people are. 

Table topics

The woman told me she was a vegetarian. She made sure that I understood that she was not a vegan. I understood. I commented that it must be difficult maintaining a vegetarian diet. She answered, “Not really. I eat only cheese pizza.” I understood. Some mornings I have toast with peanut butter and raisin bran cereal for breakfast. Other mornings I have raisin bran cereal and toast with peanut butter for breakfast. It depends upon my mood.

There's no sense worrying, nothing's going to turn out all right

I was in an airport far from home. I saw a woman coming towards me. She greeted me and I said “hello” in return. She smiled and said, “You don’t remember me, do you?”

I didn’t and when she asked that question, she destroyed any chance of me remembering her. It presented a combination of a faded memory and the power of suggestion that is nearly impossible to overcome. I became a clueless clown. In a perfect world, I would remember everything except the things I could afford to forget.

She told me who she was and as soon as she did, I remembered everything that I knew about her.

“How is your husband Ron?” I asked, proud to remember his name without any prompting and hoping to perform a little damage control.

She replied, “We’re divorced.” 

Rough roads

There is a road near me. There are a number of roads not far from me. Some are good and some are bad. The good ones are not always good and the bad ones are not always bad. Weather, traffic, the economy, and cell phones are hard on roads. I made up the part about cell phones being hard on roads, but I wouldn’t think texting makes the roads any better. I’m writing about a particular road. It was a paved road. Now the hard surface has been removed and the road has become a gravel road with an uneven surface. It went from being a road with numerous potholes and cracks filled with tar strips that made tires cry out in pain to a road that is consistently rough and rocky. I know that there is no money to fix it and the washboard does slow speeds. There are always rough roads. Katharine Hepburn said, “Life is hard. After all, it kills you.” Sometimes, we think that we are entitled to smooth roads. We are not. They are nice, but life is going to throw rough roads at us. There are times when all we can do is to live with the jolts, shudders, and bounces of a bad road. A car’s shock absorbers help absorb the bumps. A sense of humor does the same.

Nature notes

In early fall, wild animals move about searching for places to spend the winter. Take a count of the roadkill you see on the roads. The number will amaze you. Deer, raccoon, opossum, foxes, squirrels, and skunks cap our roads. I think skunks might have a sense of invulnerability because of their powerful spray and don’t pay much attention to cars. Automobiles are to skunks what Kryptonite is to Superman and they will be until a car manufacturer produces a model named the Smeller that has a nose for a hood ornament and will be able to detect skunks.   

Folklore says that the first trackable snowfall will occur six weeks after the appearance of the snowbird (junco).

Meeting adjourned

There is no gratitude for a kind act not done.

Think about this: 90 percent of the people are controllable, the other 10 percent are just like you, “uncontrollable.”

The low fuel light came on and made its warning sound on our HHR Chevrolet. I pulled into the gas station to get gas at the only open pump. The one where you have to pre-pay on both sides of the pump. I pre-payed forty dollars in cash. Nothing came out of the hose. I tried again, no gas. I went back inside and the young lady attendant told me I didn’t have to come inside as I paid forty dollars and got forty dollars of gas. Just at that time, a man at the cashier next to me asked the cashier why they ration gas, as he could only get forty dollars worth. (He had a loud voice so I heard the conversation.) Confusion really set in as I couldn’t get forty dollars in gas and the other guy could only get forty dollars in gas. I knew I had identified the make and color of our car to the cashier so I started to challenge her. Twas then that the other guy and I noticed our vehicles were identical. The cashier took his forty dollars, applied it to the pump I was at and all four of us were once again having a good day.

For those of you who know where mama snapping turtle laid her eggs, now is the time to watch for the eggs to hatch. 

This is the time of the year when the lake water settles down and becomes very clear. Please, cabin owners, don’t dump or blow acorns, leaves, dead flowers etc. into the lake and thus ruin the clarity. Treat Beaver Lake right — after all, it treats you right. Don’t be a litterbug.

I call it wild cucumber. It is a funny shade of green vine that grows like mad on trees, plants, bushes, grass etc. and smothers whatever it is attached to. As a youngster, I don’t recall seeing it but it is everywhere now. The only good thing about it is that it is very easy to pull.

Most of the docks have been removed from the lake. There are a few dock owners who think winter is not coming this year. They learn otherwise when there is ice on the water!

September 22 is the first day of fall. “Orange” you glad to see all those fall colors? Now is the time to walk the trail on the east end of Beaver Lake Park. As per Native Americans, there are three rest stations on the trail. One for wind, one for fire, one for water. (In some traditions there are four — the fourth being earth.)

September is the best month of the year per Norwegians. It is the first month after summer with an “R” in the spelling. Lutefisk can only be served in a month with “R” in the spelling beginning with September. The other great thing about September is that Wal-Mart has their first supply of long johns for sale on September 22. Now you know why September is referred to as the “uffda” month in Norwegian circles.

For those of you willing to suffer a little coolness, the next 30 days just might be the best walleye fishing of this year. Try the sunken rock pile by the DNR dock on Beaver Lake. If that doesn’t produce walleyes, head for Stony Point on Leech Lake. If neither place produces, it is just like that old saying, “You should have been here yesterday.” (End of May.) 

— — —

Bob is a retired AAL (Aid Association for Lutherans) agent. 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. This is the Hanson’s 36th summer at Beaver Lake. They leave the lake in mid-October to go south — to Albert Lea — and return in April. Bob says if you enjoy his article, 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. 

While the scurs were a little off on their predicted frost temperature, the event occurred anyway. Any chance of an encore performance any time soon? Starting Wednesday, mostly cloudy with a slight chance of a shower. Highs near 55 and lows 40 – 45. Thursday, partly cloudy with highs of 55 – 60 and lows of 35 – 40. Mostly clear both Friday and Saturday with highs near 70 and lows of 45 – 50. Sunday and Monday, clear to partly cloudy with highs of 75 with lows near 50. Tuesday, cooler under mostly sunny skies. Highs 65 – 70 and lows once again near 50. The normal high for this year’s autumnal equinox on September 23rd  is 70 and the normal low is 45. On the 21st, the sun will rise at approximately 7 a.m. and on the 26th, we will officially be under 12 hours of daylight, something which last occurred on March 17th. The scurs will be enjoying a closely supervised recreational fire to make S’mores.

Dry is about all one can say about the last two months. A killing frost managed to bring an end to the growing season rather abruptly last Wednesday night and Thursday morning. The damage was evident around the yards and gardens and by 8 a.m. one could smell the aroma of silage from area corn and soybean fields. Not to say there weren’t areas that were hit harder than others, and no question low lying areas took the hardest hit. With soils as dry as they’ve been, crops and gardens became easy targets. How much injury the crops sustained remains to be seen and it depends on who one talks to. Some are convinced their green as grass soybeans are still going to produce better than everyone thinks. While that could be, one thing is certain: past experience with such events has caused a delay in maturity on the soybean crop. Those who had anticipated being all done with soybean harvest by October 1 may want to adjust their harvest schedule.

Rainfall continues to be an issue as well. Despite the welcome rainfall on Sunday and Tuesday morning, we still are running behind normal for the month. At the ranch and in the gauge at the Mall for Men, we have garnered a measly .8” for the month. There are positives in that lawn mowing is largely unnecessary and wiping mud off your boots hasn’t been an issue. The negatives are overwhelming, including corn fields that are a tinder dry potential fire hazard and the pasture that has turned to brown. With the exception of the native prairie area, grass is becoming scarce and it may mean visiting with the Dubyas about some of those year-old round bales they’ve been trying to sell me for oh, say about a year. 

At the ranch, we set pots and planters in the garage as well as cover the tender vegetation we want to save, such as the tomatoes. They were just too nice and starting to bear. Luckily we had several long hospital curtains someone gave us way back when that turned out to be just the ticket. Much heavier than bed sheets, they protected the ‘maters and peppers extremely well. And we wondered what on earth we’d ever do with those old things! Mrs. Cheviot even covered the hummingbirds’ beloved 4 o’clocks and while they were covered with bed sheets, the soil there had been watered so it retained the heat better than other areas on the grounds where we hadn’t.

At first we thought the frost had pushed all the hummers south. There was no sign of them through Monday morning, convincing me they had flown the coop. Then suddenly Monday evening, I noticed the nectar feeders were down from the ¼ full mark where they’d been in the morning. Sure enough, before chores there were a couple feeding on the salvia and pulling on the nectar feeders once again. They won’t stay too much longer although every day they’re here now is one day more than we thought we had. The sphinx moths on the other hand have not returned although with some warmer nights, it wouldn’t surprise me to see them working over the flowers in the bed again. 

A heads up to all those who may have some squash or pumpkins remaining in the garden. You may want to check them for cucumber beetle and rootworm feeding. Seeing the petals on the sunflowers that had been so pretty in the morning all chewed to pieces before nightfall, I decided to go check the squash and pumpkins as they are frequently victims of neglect. Sure enough, there were plenty of striped cucumber beetles, spotted cucumber beetles (also known as Southern corn rootworm beetles), Western corn rootworm beetles and Northern corn rootworm beetles chewing the outer skin on them. Luckily they were primarily focused on the immature squash and pumpkins so a quick treatment with an insecticide quickly subdued them in a very localized manner. Harvesting some that were ripe also helped the cause.   

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the recent raisin bars that Auntie Mar Mar sent my way. Like my mom’s pie and bars, I hoard them because I don’t want anyone to know I have them until after they’re all gone. With a tall glass of milk, they’re absolutely wonderful as a snack after a long writing session.  Along with the garden vegetables, raisin bars make me a regular columnist. There, that ought to get me back in her good graces or at least get me more raisin bars.

See you next week…real good then.

New Richland City Council

By JODY WYNNEMER

Staff Writer

The New Richland City Council, with all members present Monday evening, adopted Resolution 11-27, which set the preliminary budget and tax levy for 2012. The levy amount is $316,837, an increase of $27,511 over the 2011 levy. Council member Wynnemer voted no. Per state law, the preliminary levy cannot be increased, but can be lowered prior to setting the final amount which will take place during the final council meeting of 2011, December 12th. The council decided to schedule a budget work session for Monday, October 17 at 6 p.m. For a complete proposed budget breakdown, go to the city of New Richland’s Web site: www.cityofnewrichlandmn.com.

Police Chief Scott Eads was on hand and reported 99 calls for service and 45 other contacts during the month of August. A felony theft and possible burglary (same incident) were reported at the end of the month, which is still in the investigation stage.

“Seventeen tickets were issued to children wearing bike helmets during August,” said Eads. “It’s part of the “I Got Caught” program. We started with 30 tickets and only have five left. We as a department are pleased parents in New Richland have been diligent with their children’s safety over the summer.” 

By KATHY PAULSEN

Staff Writer

The Steele County 4-H Club organization is made up of 13 clubs, including Deerfield Get There, Future Citizens, Ellendale Hustlers, Happy Hustlers, Lemond Snappy Boosters, Medford Go Getters, Meriden Meadowlarks, Merry Lane, Merton Speeders, Owatonna Victory Boosters, Pratt Commandoes, Record Busters, Straight River Stars. A total of 550 youth are part of the Traditional Steele County 4-H Club organization, and 450 are enrolled in the Non-Traditional After School Program and 4-H on Wheels Program. A total of 125 volunteers lending a helping hand to these programs.

Below you will find the project, entrant’s name and the club that the local members of the Ellendale, Geneva and New Richland areas who received champion, reserve champion and purple awards for their projects that were entered at the 2011 Steele County Free Fair.

2011 Steele County Home Economics and General Exhibit Awards

Project: Child Development

Senior Champion - Shauntel Thiele, Straight River Stars

Project: Citizenship

Reserve Champion - Kayley Camerer, Straight River Stars

Project: Crafts

ALL IN A DAY’S WORK — Sister Darrington (left) and Sister Sorensen never leave their apartment without their Bible and Book of Mormon. (Star Eagle photo by Rachel Rietsema)

By RACHEL RIETSEMA

Staff Writer

Sister Darrington and Sorensen have one critical day-to-day mission, to tell others about Jesus Christ and His love for people. From 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., they approach strangers on the street, and knock on people’s doors, all for the glory of God.

But before hitting the Waseca County streets, these full-time Mormon missionaries immerse in their daily morning Bible study.

“We study for an hour on our own,” Sorensen said. “Then we come together and study for an hour. We learn from each other that way, so when we go out we can work together as a team.”

Once 9 p.m. rolls around, these roomies are just about beat. Their eyes may be droopy, but their hearts are in full-out rejoice knowing they made a difference in the lives of others.

“We get to go out every day, and just talk to as many people as we see about something that’s changed our lives,” Sorensen said. “We meet people from all cultures and backgrounds. It’s so fun.”

CATCH IN TRAFFIC — Lucas Meyer of NRHEG (6) goes across the middle for a pass reception while MVL’s Kris Goetzke (25) defends Saturday. (Star Eagle photo by Chris Schlaak)

TOUGH DEFENSE — Nic Mangskau (3) and Cody Ripka (16) team up to tackle MVL’s Richard Jensen. (Star Eagle photo by Chris Schlaak)

By JIM LUTGENS

Editor/Publisher

In week one of the 2011 regular season, the NRHEG Panthers fell behind early and lost late.

There was none of that in week two.

The Panthers put 20 points on the board in the first half and went on to a 26-0 Gopher Conference AA football victory at Minnesota Valley Lutheran Saturday afternoon.

“Our guys played very mistake free football today,” said Panthers coach Dan Stork. “We had a great week of practice and it showed. We were able to more than double our rushing yardage from week one.”

They also continued to throw the ball well, with senior quarterback Sam Lundberg going 12-for-22 for 145 yards and two touchdowns. He also ran for a score.

The Panthers’ first touchdown did not, however, involve Lundberg. It came on a 29-yard scoring pass from wide receiver David Lassahn to Lucas Meyer. It capped a 60-yard, 16-play drive and gave NRHEG a 6-0 first-quarter lead.