On Wednesday, I commandeered the canner from Jim so that I could make the season’s first batch of marinara at Red Oak House. He grows a variety of tomatoes, including paste type, starting these from seed in the basement in the early spring. As I’ve previously written, he has harvested more than a thousand tomatoes and cans many jars of …
A big wind made landfall last Wednesday in North Dakota, and when I woke up the next morning, North Dakota was great again. A KX News morning show anchor giddily recounted her excitement about President Trump’s visit and how she and her family had gone out to “show our love for the president.” I was a little surprised her objective …
“Keep your eyes on the stars and your feet on the ground.” — Theodore Roosevelt Gentle reader, if you are looking for the perfect autumn getaway in North Dakota, I suggest the fifth annual Dakota Night Astronomy Festival, on Friday, Saturday and Sunday in beautiful Medora, N.D. From the Theodore Roosevelt National Park press release: “People have been marveling at the …
Anyone who believes this country is — and always has been — great had their confidence reinforced by the climate-changing events that have destroyed so many lives and so much property in the past two weeks. It is not the death and destruction that makes us great, of course. It is the way this country responded to provide help and aid wherever …
Something is puzzling me this year in the garden. In the front yard, the impatiens are insipid, but in the backyard perennial beds, these bright shade annuals are robust. What could possibly be the explanation? My first instinct was the hot, dry weather and the lack of rain water, but this would be true both in front and back. Naturally, …
Here’s a final photograph, and some thoughts about it, from the recent trip Dorette and I made to attend the jazz festival in Chicago’s Millennium Park. Marcel Proust, Ernest Hemingway and Thomas Wolfe all said you can’t go home again. Wolfe even used the expression as the title of one of his novels. But I keep trying. For example, at …
The University of North Dakota sports teams were busy this past week, the women’s volleyball team playing and winning four matches — North Dakota State University, George Washington, South Dakota State University and Appalachian State — and the men’s football team shutting out Missouri State in the Potato Bowl. Grand Forks photographer Russ Hons was on hand for all the action, …
Last week, William Prentice, the slickster CEO of Meridian Energy Group, which wants to build an oil refinery 2½ miles from Theodore Roosevelt National Park, blew a bunch of smoke up the ass of a young reporter for The Dickinson (N.D.) Press, and the kid, who’s actually a pretty good writer, wrote a real puff piece about how great the …
It was Pow Wow weekend in Bismarck and the time of the biggest rummage sale weekend of the year in these parts. I partook Friday and found some treasures, with the bonus of driving around river city and seeing how creative residents are in their decorating and landscaping. It is also the weekend of the Sr. Kateri Festival at our …
The North Dakota Republican Party put all of their gold coins on the Camarillo White Horse in the 5th race on the 7th fairway. “North Dakotans elected President Trump because he promised to enact policies that would improve our economy, make our country safer, and improve the lives of folks here at home,” said North Dakota GOP Chairman Kelly Armstrong. …
The University of North Dakota women’s volleyball team won its 10th match of the season in 11 tries, topping in-state rival North Dakota State University before a sold-out crowd of 3,140 fans Wednesday night in Betty Engelstad Sioux Center. The Fighting Hawks swept the Bison 25-18, 25-9, 25-13 behind the second-largest crowd in the Betty’s history. Faith Dooley led UND …
My favorite month in North Dakota is September. It is a difficult choice. June is filled with new growth in the perennial beds and the planting of the garden and with birdsong. But September. Ah, September. The heat of summer has passed. I dislike the hot weather. I wilt easily. My children and husband were born in September, so it …
Given all of the things I have seen and heard about DACA in the past few days, I thought it might be helpful to lay out a few facts in the midst of so much misinformation. We are entitled to our own opinions, but not our own facts. For the record … DACA recipients are ineligible for Medicaid. Food stamps. SSI. Welfare. …
It seems like it’s been a lifetime since Chief Keith Ternes of the Fargo Police Department was ambushed by FPD brass, resulting in his retirement. My own view was that he was treated unfairly and railroaded by those who could have assisted him in improving the operation of the department. But such is not what happened, and history cannot be …
First, the hurricane. Then comes the second disaster — the blizzard of well-meant rummage. I know you have only the best intentions. Me, too. We want to help the Texans who lost everything they own to Hurricane Harvey. But please, please put down those garbage bags of used clothes, stuffed animals and odds and ends from your pantry. They are …
The most auspicious day on our calendar arrived. My husband and our twin daughters share the same birthday. (Karma, eh?) And we celebrate big each year. This year was ramped up by a long shot because it was Jim’s 70th. Around this milestone, we planned a family reunion with his six siblings and their spouses, held in historic Medora, N.D. …
Sometime after I went to bed last night, I completed my 70th trip around the sun. Today I begin my 71st. They’ve been interesting trips. I’ve enjoyed most of all of them. They’ve all been different. If I could do them over, there are probably a few different roads I’d choose, a few different off-ramps I’d take, a few different corners …
The University of North Dakota women’s soccer team fell to 2-3-1 on the season with a 1-0 loss to the University of South Dakota on Sunday afternoon at Bronson Field in Grand Forks. An inadvertent UND redirect of a shot by South Dakota’s Katelyn Floysand snuck past Fighting Hawks goalie Olivia Swenson to give the Coyotes the win. Swenson had nine …
The University of North Dakota and the University of Nebraska-Omaha played to a scoreless tie in women’s college soccer Friday at Bronson Field in Grand Forks. UND’s Olivia Swenson, with six saves, recorded her second shutout of the season and third her career. UND returns to play today when it hosts the University of South Dakota.
The University of North Dakota football team hung with the University of Utah for one quarter Thursday night in Salt Lake City, but the 25th-ranked Utes proved to be too much for the Fighting Hawks the rest of the game. The result was a 37-16 win for the Football Bowl Subdivision’s Utes, who won their 10th-straight season opener. The Football Championship Subdivision’s …
I hate the phrase “act of God.” In legal usage throughout the English–speaking world, an act of God is a natural disaster outside human control, such as an earthquake, hurricane, flood or tsunami, for which no person can be held responsible. As a pastor, I have always found it interesting that the only time God ever makes it into the …
“The sun is round. I ring with life, and the mountains ring, and when I can hear it, there is a ringing that we share. I understand all this, not in my mind, but in my heart, knowing how meaningless it is to try to capture what cannot be expressed, knowing that mere words will remain when I read it …
Our current Liar in Chief, aka 45, has clearly demonstrated by word and deed what he thinks of the law. The law, in his opinion, does not apply to him or his friends. The time is coming when the Crown Prince of Clowns will pay the price for his racism, bigotry and his lawful but unwise use of the power …
It seems wrong to think about ourselves when Houston is drowning … but how can we avoid the flashbacks? While we agonize for Texans fighting for their lives, the news video is all too familiar in our own neck of the woods. Here in the Red River Valley, it brings back images we’d all rather forget — Fargo-Moorhead’s valiant fight …
“Steamboats in Dakota Territory: Transforming the Northern Plains,” Tracy Potter. The History Press, 2017, 140 pages. I can think of no one more qualified to enlighten readers on the history of steamboats in Dakota land than Tracy Potter, Bismarck, the author of the book “Sheheke: Mandan Indian Diplomat.” Potter is deeply read in history and his work leading the Fort …
Grand Forks photographer Michael Bogert took in Happy Harry’s Blues on the Red on Saturday in downtown Grand Forks. Check out his crowd photos as well as the those of the entertainers — Mud from the Twin Cities and Laura Rain and the Caesars from Detroit.
Several days after my birth, we were driving home, up the big Third Street hill in Minot, and I was listening to Eisenhower speechify on the radio. It was a bit staticy, but I remember it like it was just several minutes ago. Frankly, he was boring. President Ike was still in his first term and pledged to remain ever …
Grand Forks photographer Russ Hons took in Happy Harry’s Blues on the Red on Saturday in downtown Grand Forks. The opening act was Squishy Mud from the Twin Cities, followed by headliner Laura Rain and the Caesars from Detroit.
The DockDogs.com jumping competition was held Saturday and Sunday in the Scheels parking lot in Grand Forks as part of store’s Hunting Expo. Locals were encouraged to bring their dogs and try it out. A number of professionals were there competing for ribbons and trophies.
Over an inch of rain in the gauge when we returned from Colorado and some showers this week reminded us that it still “can” rain in this country, and for this we give thanks. I spent Saturday afternoon sitting on the patio, nursing my knee injury and reading a book that I’m reviewing but eventually retreated to the house to listen …
Grand Forks photographer Michael Bogert recently spent some time at Paul Bunyan Animal Land, which is located on U.S. Highway 2 between Bemidji and Cass Lake, Minn. Animal Land is home to nearly 100 animals representing every continent on earth. Some of the animals you can see at Animal Land include lions, tigers, camels, lemurs, kangaroos, raccoons, three species of …
Recently I sifted through some memorabilia and found the above picture taken in 1965, when I was a senior at the University of North Dakota. With me in the photo that appeared in the Dacotah Annual were classmates Mike Schlax, sports editor of the Dakota Student newspaper, and Harriet Thorpe, who wrote editorials. My title was “news editor.” I had …
If you’re a gardener who grows a variety of vegetables, the classic Nicoise dish, ratatouille, should be right up your alley. The stewed vegetable entree consisting of eggplant, tomato, pepper, zucchini, onion and herbs has been has been a favorite in France for many, many years, but it wasn’t until about 10 years ago that ratatouille rose to the prominence it …
Here is the first chicken-of-the woods mushroom (above) that I have found all year. Big thrill. Once sauteed, or grilled, chickens are meaty and delicious. I am hoping those little ones off to the side grow into big ones. Chickens need to be harvested while still damp and cool to the touch. Once they dry out, they are past their …
Home now — to return to garden harvest — after a week in which we neglected it for some folks festival fun. I noticed that this is my first of garden notes for August, a sign that my flowers peaked earlier this season. There are just a few daylily blossoms here and there, and I await the emergence of the chrysanthemums. Meanwhile, …
I had such a riveting dream last night. I was at the Theodore Roosevelt Symposium, with Jim. A baby bison wandered into the crowd, and I picked it up in my arms, trying to figure out how to rescue it. Knowing that it would not survive without a mother on which to nurse, I was perplexed. I tried to find …
My sister, Susan Vorland Hanson, has returned from a two-week trip to Norway and after spending the night with us departed this morning to her home near Turtle Lake, N.D. Also in Bloomington were Sue’s daughter, Ondrea Miller, and granddaughter, Allison, who moved in to an apartment near the University of Minnesota campus where she will begin her sophomore year. …
Gentle reader, you might recall that we just attended the Rocky Mountain Folks Festival in Lyons, Colo., with some of our best chums. It was a fabulous sojourn, filled with the anticipation of the total solar eclipse. By and large, these festivals, particularly the ones hosted by Planet Bluegrass, are filled with blissful vibes and fascinating diversity — oh, and …
Alexandria, Va., photographer Jeff Olson was one of those fortunate souls who was able to view Monday’s total solar eclipse. Jeff, who works for the National Park Service and has been stationed this summer in Grand Canyon National Park, traveled to Homestead National Monument of America near Beatrice, Neb., to view the once-in-a-lifetime event. The national monument commemorates passage of the Homestead …
“It got to be pitch dark, at last, and the multitude groaned with horror to feel the cold uncanny night breezes through the place and see the stars come out and twinkle in the sky. At last the eclipse was total, and I was very glad of it, but everybody else was in misery. … Then I lifted up my …
With all of the violence occurring in this country, one has to ask: What can be done to address it? Too often, people are prosecuted after a crime has been committed. What is missing is the deterrent effect of a law that would prohibit or reduce the number of folks who create the problem. I’m not going to refer to …
These old eyes — they’ve seen a lot. Back in my younger days — let’s call them my 20-20s — they took in more than enough, both good and bad, to make me the wise old woman I am today. Make that the wise old “squinty” woman. While I can still claim to have some insight, I can’t seem to …
If you didn’t like Billy Kretschmar, the fault was not his. Billy was a fixture in the North Dakota House of Representatives from 1974 to 2016, with one lost election in between, and during that time, most politicians would have developed fierce enemies. If Billy had them, I don’t know who they are. When I deconstructed his career in a …
I love Tina Fey, and I laughed out loud when she poured her sorrows over the events at the alma mater, the University of Virginia, into stress eating a sheet cake on “Weekend Update” this past week. It was a brilliant segment. However, my fear is that her satire of feigned helpless is all too easily embraced. We laugh with …