When I was in junior high, I became friends with a group of girls that we referred to as “the gang,” in an era when that word had a different meaning in rural Minnesota. In our graduating class of over 300, we were among the “good” girls. Our idea of a “pot party” was washing the cookware after a camping …
We all have people who contribute to us one way or another. I’ve been fortunate to have many, many people in my life who I could tag the contribution label to for impacting my life, mostly in very positive ways. Heather Carri was one of those people. I met her in the autumn of 1974 shortly after I moved to …
This is a story about a REALLY GOOD FRIEND and a REALLY GOOD WIFE. It started about a year ago when my friend, Mike Jacobs, offered to place a bet on the 2020 June North Dakota primary election. It seems he had made a bet on a candidate in a contested primary race but was having second thoughts, so he …
Thales Latimer Secrest. “Tom” Secrest was my friend for 30 years, yet somehow I never knew his given name. Good thing, too, because I would’ve called him Latimer. He’d have hated it, but he would have grinned because he appreciated cruel humor — even at his expense. Such was the nature of our friendship, and the best friendships, I think, …
Thanksgiving is one of the most reflective of holidays. At least it is for me. Sometimes about now I like to make a little list of some of the things I’m thankful for. Not the big stuff necessarily. That’s sort of a given. Rather, some of the little things I’ve picked up on in my last trip around the sun. …
We all know how this works. The older we get the more often we’re reminded of it. Each entrance begets an exit. We contemplate these things as grandparents and parents get slow and gray, as we track the lines in our face in the mirror some mornings. But I never imagined a world without Gary Edwin Schlosser in it. Gare …
Jimmy Dean didn’t write that song about Big John Schlosser. But he should have. And they don’t erect many statues to folks in small towns. But they should. It would take a lot of bronze because John was big. That’s the thing about small towns, they grow bigger-than-life characters like John. Maybe it’s the air, the soil, the sky … …
I am blessed with several wonderful girlfriends, fellow travelers who love wild landscapes as much as I. Together, we have explored these places, on a regular occasion. We are of a similar age and share between us a deep love and commitment to the Bad Lands. These are very smart and strong and brave women friends. My life is deeply …