Mary Lake Trail is one of eight hiking trails located within Itasca State Park, south of Bagley, Minn. Grand Forks photographer Michael Bogert recently navigated the trail, all the way to Mary Lake, one of several small lakes that dot the park’s landscape. Located in Lake Alice Township, the 1.2-mile trail is primarily used for hiking, walking, running and nature …
From Chapter 16 of the Tim’s book, “I’m Proud of You: My Friendship with Fred Rogers“: When Fred was a boy in Latrobe, Pa., his mother taught him how to look for hope during the darkest times. “In times of tragedy, look for the helpers,” Nancy McFeely Rogers would often tell her son. “They’re always there. Perhaps on the sidelines, …
The North Dakota Supreme Court might get one more chance to knock a candidate off the November General Election ballot. But don’t bet on the justices doing it because the candidate in question is a Republican this time, and the North Dakota Supreme Court likes Republicans. Let me introduce you to the strange case of North Dakota State Rep. Terry …
Marti was a rescue dog. We found her through “Petfinder.com.” My youngest son, Ian, was a huge Peanuts fan, and he really wanted a Beagle, and I found a Beagle/Terrier cross at the Hawk Creek Animal Shelter in my hometown of Willmar, Minn. It felt like serendipity. I had grown up in WIllmar with a Beagle/(we are pretty sure) Terrier cross, …
BBC: “Thank you for taking the time to answer some questions, sir. Your responses will be anonymous — at your request — which does not mean this conversation did not take place. Can we agree that this interview is happening and afterward, that this exchange did in-fact happen? Words were spoken?” Mr. Q: “Oh, sure, that’s typical for a Marxist organization like …
Three times in less than a month, the North Dakota Republican Party has flexed its muscles and gone to the North Dakota Supreme Court and asked the state’s top five judges to keep something off the November 2020 General Election ballot. Three times they have succeeded. The result is that: A. A measure to bring some election reform ideas before …
Fall is in the air, with the possibility of Jack Frost making his first appearance any day. And that means some gardeners are scurrying about, deciding which plants to cover and which vegetables to pick — tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, cucumbers, squash. The list can go on and on and on. A proliferation of fresh veggies means only one thing to …
Ever since the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis on May 24, and the subsequent national eruption of protest against police brutality, police shootings and systemic racism in the United States, we have all wondered what ultimately would come of this moment in our long, troubled history of race relations. Would this be another round of temporary protest followed …
I’m trying to take the time in my life to rediscover ancient wisdom, such as that found in “Aesop’s Fables” and in conversations with my elders, most importantly my mother. Perhaps during the upcoming fallow season, I will reread one fable each day. Time will tell. At the same time, I’m trying to learn new lessons, from family and friends of all …
It’s oddly wonderful to celebrate the words of college football commentator Kirk Herbstreit and Catholic writer and theologian Richard Rohr in the same blog post. But these are not normal times. On Sunday night, I came across Herbstreit’s stirring soliloquy about race on “College GameDay.” “If you’re a white player in these locker rooms, I think it’s really incumbent upon …
The sky, no matter if it’s at sunrise, sunset or at night, is a favorite of Grand Forks photographer Dave Bruner.
Labor Day. Ah, September. The “Dog Days of August” are behind us. Except that this year the dogs never showed up. August used to be the month the politicians took time off to take the kids (and the dog) to the lake, while preparing for a campaign to begin after Labor Day. Not this year. In August 2020, the North …
Three Island Lake County Park was the destination recently for Grand Forks photographer Michael Bogert. The quaint park is located in Beltrami County, 12 miles north of Bemidji, Minn. The scenic Turtle River flows from the mouth of Three Island Lake providing spectacular views, rolling terrain and a diverse plant ecology. The park was deeded to the county in 1967 …
In late 2019 BC (Before COVID), my wife and I were vacationing in Mexico. Our hotel in Playa del Carmen was just a couple of blocks away from what we’d read was a “tourist trap.” It was known as the “Quinta Avenida,” which translates to: Fifth Avenue. The tree-lined and bustling street stretches for more than two miles and includes …
I hate playing God. Lately, I’ve been struggling with that as I deal with my dog Marti’s health. Marti began losing weight sometime during my surgery and recovery and when we took her in, they diagnosed her with Lyme disease, with a principal attack on her kidney functions. Since we found this out, we have been working with the vet …
I repudiate violence. I believe vigilante groups brandishing weapons and coming into cities as “militia” to “defend” territory that is not theirs is repugnant. I believe destruction of property and looting is wrong and is not the work of peaceful protesters or at all the agenda of Black Lives Matter. It is being stoked by those who wish to tarnish …
After the most recent LGBTQ embarrassment, when North Dakota Republicans unknowingly wrote the quiet part out loud, the big R’s condemned their political party’s own thoughts and directed the smart guy to remove Resolution 31 and the other 12,000 words of their platform from the NDGOP website. PSA: Resolutions are now exclusively available by request from corby@ndgop.org. Who took responsibility …
Is it possible to heal this great nation? At the moment, we are all fixated on Donald Trump — his leadership style, his desire to disrupt, his tweets — but whether he wins or loses in November, the fundamental brokenness of our political system does not cease. In fact, it is likely to worsen. However painful it is to admit, …
North Dakota Women’s Network celebrates 100 years of women’s suffrage
So we won’t be voting on Measure 3 in November. Because there is no Measure 3. The North Dakota Supreme Court says so. And it, not Al Jaeger, gets the final say. I’m actually a little disappointed. I told a few friends this past week I was going to hold my nose and vote for it because there some things …
At Red Oak House we are birders. And foodies. And frugal. On Monday at dawn I heard a bird strike a window just as I was stepping out to the patio to sip coffee and quietly read the morning newspaper. The signs of autumn migration are all around and we have a small birdbath that is critical water for the …
“There’s a bright golden haze on the meadow!” — “Oklahoma,” Rodgers and Hammerstein Jim burst into song this morning — pro tip: Ask him to sing “Moon River” — when we agreed that not only are there hints of autumn at Red Oak House but also haze in the air caused by the combination of smoke from Western fires and dust …
Since the pandemic shut down much of American life back in March, I have worked mostly at my kitchen table in a suburban house in Bismarck, N.D. I chose the kitchen table because it has seven big bay windows around it. I like to work in the natural light. But I also like to watch for the moment when the …
It’s getting a little chippy out there. An old guy can’t even drop dead at the bowling alley without some jamoke claiming that the man’s last cough was deliberating misleading to skew coronavirus numbers in order to make Donald Trump look bad. It’s tough, I tell you. Last week, I saw two facially naked Norwegian-Americans mug an elderly masked man …
We need rain at Red Oak House. But the new ice maker in the fridge seems to work. My mother would say, maybe when we kids were asking for something that might not be reasonable, “People in hell want ice-water.” But a small celebration was held here when I scored a brand-new Margaritaville blender (our vintage blender on its last …
My friend Bill Bowman died. I’m sad about that. Bill and I both grew up in southwest North Dakota, he on a ranch north of Rhame, and I down the road on state Highway 12 in Hettinger. Our paths first crossed in the 1960s, at Dickinson State College, and they crossed many times more in the 50-plus years since, more …
The fast is over. On Sunday, for the first time since March 8, the community of I serve, Emanuel Lutheran in Hartford, Conn., shared in the Sacrament of the Table. Or more precisely, tables. I presided at the card table (above photo) so that I could be close to my Wi-Fi router as I shared our Wired Worship over Zoom …
If you are looking for a day brightener, these images of sunflowers from Grand Forks photographer Dave Bruner may just what the doctor ordered. On Tuesday night, Dave went out to view and photograph the Perseid meteor showers along with the Milky Way and came up with a stunning image of the celestial bodies brightening the sky over a sunflower …
Heim Granite, Goetz Electric, Rivers Edge Plumbing and Flecks Appliances get top marks!
This whole situation with the U.S. Postal Service baffles me. We have a U.S. Postal Service for the same reason we have a National Defense, an Interstate Highway System or the TSA. It is part of the mechanics of running a country. There is a charge for the services we receive when we mail packages or post a letter, but …
“Take away your guns, take away your Second Amendment. No religion, no anything. Hurt the Bible. Hurt God. He’s against God.” When President Trump uttered these words this past week, he sparked the usual outrage in the world beyond his base. His accusations against Joe Biden, who is a serious Catholic Christian and who has not indicated distaste for the …
My Dad would have been 96 today, in this the year of the COVID-19 pandemic. I’ve been sorting. Sorting memories, sorting mementos, sorting pictures, sorting emotions and sorting plans for moving forward without him in my life. My first clear memory of my dad would have been when we arrived in Okinawa. (My older sister asked me this question just …
It’s the peak of tomato season, and that means farmer’s markets and backyard gardens are brimming with those luscious red (and sometimes yellow, orange, pink, green, burgundy, purple, streaked and striped) orbs. Gardeners can sometimes be hard-pressed to stay on top of their crops, despite canning whole tomatoes and making tomato juice and salsa. I usually don’t have too much trouble …
I walked in my own shoes today for the first time in 10 weeks. I have to admit, I was surprised it took so long. My foot surgery was the first time I have had an operation on a bone or joint, other than a rather minor medial meniscus repair on my knee. So I either wasn’t listening carefully enough …
True story: I decorated the first house I rented on my own with chicken decor. My landlord indulged me (although I didn’t wallpaper, so there was no lasting damage to the place). I’ve watched the wallpaper fad come and go and that stuff is tedious to apply and even more tedious to remove. Fads come and go. And yes, I’ve …
On June 1, 1921, a white mob numbering in the thousands destroyed Tulsa’s uniquely prosperous African American community, known as Greenwood. About 300 people were killed and 10,000 left homeless. Photographs of the aftermath of that day in Oklahoma recalled Hiroshima after the atom bomb. Also part of Tulsa’s grim tableau in those terrible hours was the sight of flatbed …
“It is said that if one chooses to pray to a rock with enough devotion, even that rock will come alive. In the same way, once we choose to commit ourselves to spiritual practice, even the mountains and valleys will reverberate to the sound of our purpose.” — “365 Tao: Daily Meditations” by Deng Ming-Dao (published 1992) The paperback book a gift …
A short story in the life of Arthur Drive in the Highland Acres neighborhood of Bismarck today, Aug. 5, 2020. “Short” being a relative term in the eyes of the beholder. Our next-door neighbors have a lovely big tree. Some sort of boxelder, I think. Everyone in the neighborhood values their trees. (That is, of course, until a storm comes …
Deadlines, deadlines, deadlines. Here’s an offering of my own creative nonfiction this morning from my office. The story goes: Threw together my own version of Full English Breakfast in a rush this morning @RedOakHouse. Google Full English Breakfast if you are curious. Gobbled it down before I took a snapshot. Thanks, Mr. Jim @Jimfuglie for being a good gardener. I …
“Opposition to Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Anti-Discrimination Bills,” reads the heading of a zealously written category of the North Dakota GOP’s 2020 resolutions, recently discovered to be their 1920 resolutions. So the Republican assistant manager removed the document from the official webpage, but the 1920 project lives on in some cloud. All went Trumpy when the NDGOP got superconcerned …
“Though I may not be here with you, I urge you to answer the highest calling of your heart and stand up for what you truly believe. In my life I have done all I can to demonstrate that the way of peace, the way of love and nonviolence is the more excellent way. Now it is your turn to …
My daughter is a graduate student at a British university forced home to North Dakota by the global pandemic. For the past four months, she has been living in my basement trying to keep up with her doctoral work using such digital resources as are available at the British Library and the Bodleian at Oxford. She will be returning to …
Assorted Perennials now in bloom at Red Oak House.
If you’ve followed my blogs for the past couple of months, you’ll remember I’ve been writing about the murder of George Floyd, how it’s impacted my listening, social justice events and what Toni Morrison calls “race talk.” I’ve shared my commitment for the world: That by 2021, people around the world are listening to each other and in action about …