Ukrainians are much on our minds right now, with the Last World War apparently beginning in their country. North Dakota has a smattering of them. I’m going to tell you the best Ukrainian story ever, but first a little background. Where I grew up in Hettinger, in extreme southwest North Dakota, there were no Ukrainians. We were Germans and Norwegians, …
Another day, another blizzard and below-zero wind chills. That’s the way it’s been this winter. So, there’s no better place to be than in the warmth of the kitchen, where you can create something that will make you forget about the weather, albeit for the time being. And nothing says warm and fuzzy better than a pot of soup. This …
We lose a lot in our understanding of the Founding Fathers, says John Ragosta, a historian at the Robert H. Smith Center for Jefferson Studies at Monticello, when we see them only as marble statues. They were real people who made mistakes and who got mad at one another. Patrick Henry so angered fellow Virginian Thomas Jefferson in 1781, Ragosta maintains, that …
There are anniversaries, and there are milestones. In the past month or so, I’ve noted a couple of them. In December, I celebrated 50 years since my return from Vietnam. In January I celebrated 20 years since I met Lillian, my “current wife,” as Dean Meyer likes to say. Today is another of those red-letter days. Fifty years ago today, I stood on …
This is a North Dakota event near and dear to my heart. The Great American Bike Race. Photo is me biking with my daughter Rachel’s team at Bismarck Century High some years ago. Yes, I biked, too. I had some sore muscles when my turn was over. Great American Bike Race Returns
Everybody in my family joins the family of Dr. Joe Mattson on this Valentine’s Day in mourning the loss of a great North Dakotan, who left us last week, and who surely had a straight shot ticket to heaven after a life well-lived. Here’s an article I wrote about him and my mom about a dozen years ago. I’m thinking …
America’s consciousness is indelibly shaped by the competing legacies of three distinct personalities: a fast-talking New Yorker, a quintessential Yankee and a Virginia squire. In his book, “Hamilton, Adams, Jefferson: The Politics of Enlightenment and the American Founding,” historian Darren Staloff explores the social, intellectual and personal dynamics that shaped these men and helped define the nation. Staloff teaches courses …
(This article first appeared in the February-March issue of Dakota Country magazine, which should be on the newstands now.) I’d like you to take five minutes to read about two nonprofit organizations that are doing important work for the North Dakota Bad Lands. Hey, it’s February. It’s cold outside. Get a cup of coffee and sit down. The two organizations …
A goal by Brandon McManus in overtime lifted the University of Nebraska-Omaha to a 3-2 win over the University of North Dakota men’s hockey team in National Collegiate Hockey Conference play Saturday night in Ralph Engelstad Arena. The win gave UNO a split in the series. UND won Friday night’s contest 4-1. The Fighting Hawks (15-11-1 overall, 10-5-1 NCHC), ranked …
More than a year after the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol, there are still uncertainties and perplexities about just what happened and what might have happened. The House of Representatives Select Committee to Investigate the Jan. 6, 2021, Attack on the U.S. Capitol intends to issue its report to the nation sometime later in 2022. Thanks to the …
Hundreds of bison, wild horses, three coyotes, one Northern Shrike, and some spectacular sunsets and sunrises. Reconnecting with friends and making new ones. RoughRider Hotel Theodore Roosevelt National Park
As anyone who knows me is aware, I’m a huge fan of the Olympics. But I am struggling deeply with these Games because China is an abusive nation that is committing genocide against the Uyghur Muslims. And the IOC is a corrupt tool working with them to silence any athlete who wishes to speak out about their human rights abuses. …
The University of North Dakota men’s basketball team gave Summit League-leading South Dakota State University all it could handle Monday night in Betty Engelstad Sioux Center, but it wasn’t enough as the Fighting Hawks (4-19 overall, 0-10 Summit) dropped a 70-64 decision to the Jackrabbits (20-4 overall, 11-0 Summit). Bentiu Panoam and Paul Bruns each scored 13 points to lead …
As a 6-year-old, Jason Miyares helped his mother to learn the Pledge of Allegiance for her upcoming naturalization ceremony, an event that deeply affected both of their lives. More than a half-century later, on Jan. 15 of this year, he became the first Hispanic American to hold statewide office in the commonwealth of Virginia when he was sworn in as attorney general. …
North Dakota sits in stunned silence this morning, trying to make sense of the unthinkable loss of a 68-year-old lifetime public servant. Wayne Stenehjem was my friend for many years — I wonder how many people have said THAT this morning — although that friendship was a little rocky the last few years. The last time we visited in his …
Often we hear a bird, but do not ever see it, cleverly concealed in the tree leaves, or tall grass. My advice: Learn the songs of the birds in your area. Even better, learn the songs of the birds in your country. Like many birders, at one point, I reached a plateau and only added to my list by traveling to new …
If you’ve got any friends or relatives out in Stark or Billings Counties, around Belfield, N.D., tell them to start getting ready because Meridian Energy Group is going to build them a refinery as a neighbor. It’ll be there in just three years, 10 months and 15 days — on Friday, Dec. 12, 2025. That’s what Meridian CEO William Prentice …
Gentle readers, those who know us here at Red Oak House know that I write my blog when time permits, and I feel inspired or moved in some way. In our busy lives, Jim and I joke about “the lives of the English majors.” The past two years have been a blur, “smushed together” some might say.Thursday and Friday, Jim …
The Red Wing (Minn.) School District is losing a great teacher, someone I respect immensely — my brother. If you’re lucky, you get someone in your life who inspires you, teaches you to think for yourself, challenges you and helps steer you to a successful path. In Red Wing, Scott Bender is one of those guys, so respected, one graduating …
On Sunday my first friend, Tim Quimby, the boy across the street with whom I walked to school every day for years, often holding hands when were kindergartners, lost his beloved partner, Jerry, to cirrhosis, as he was holding his hand. Nine years ago tonight, I was holding Steve’s hand as he took his last breath, also a victim of cirrhosis. …
President Joe Biden’s nearly $2 trillion Build Back Better plan (originally pegged at $3 trillion) may be dead, but Democrats say key provisions of the bill are still likely to be approved — especially those addressing inflation, education, child care and workforce training. It is worth remembering that in November, Congress passed a $1.2 trillion precursor infrastructure bill. Between these …
If you are in search of a healthy and nutritious wholemeal pasta recipe, you can stop looking. Mediterranean Chicken, Mushroom and Rice meets meets both the aforementioned requirements — it’s loaded with vitamins and low-fat ingredients as well as being an entree that can stand alone as a main course. Combining this dish with a nice salad and vegetable such …
Today I am celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Best Day Of My Life. On Jan. 19, 2002 I met the most extraordinary, fascinating, person I have ever known. Two years, two months and two days later, I married her, in the same place I met her. Her name is Lillian Crook. I love her. In early January 2002, I was …
Growing up, my sisters and I were never asked if we wanted to serve or give of our time. It was expected. It was truly ingrained in us as part of our DNA. This morning, as we were reflecting on this Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service in our “sisters” chat, we recalled how our parents instilled this into …
I just learned of the passing of Wynona Wilkins. She died a few days before Christmas and a couple of weeks after her 105th birthday, beating out Betty White by several years. I knew her first as Madame Wilkins. For years, she taught French to many, many UND students. I was one of them. Along with her historian husband, Dr. …
Three years ago, Beth Hoffman left her career as a college professor and journalist in San Francisco for the life of farming. She and her husband, John Hogeland, headed to Iowa with $19,000 of savings and a vague and ambiguous plan to take over as the fifth generation on his family’s 530-acre farm. The simple life, however, turned out to be not …
I’ve written about the proposed bridge across the Little Missouri State Scenic River north of Medora, N.D., enough times that I don’t need to go into a lot of background to bring you up to date on the project. I decided this past week that I needed a little Bad Lands time, and the Billings County Commission was going to …
Paul Bruns scored 21 points and added eight rebounds but it wasn’t enough as the University of North Dakota men’s basketball team dropped a 75-68 Summit League decision to the University of South Dakota on Monday night in Betty Engelstad Sioux Center. The Fighting Hawks (4-13 overall, 0-4 Summit) also received double-figure scoring efforst from Tsotne Tsartsidze (13), Matt Norman …
The University of North Dakota men’s hockey team surrendered a two-goal lead in the third period and lost 4-3 to No. 14 Cornell University on Friday night in Ralph Engelstad Arena. Mark Senden, Ashton Calder and Jake Schmaltz scored for the No. 5 Fighting Hawks (13-7), while the Big Red (10-3-1) received goals from Sam Malinski, Jack O’Leary, Max Andreev …
My young adult daughter and I were driving from Bismarck to a village in far western Kansas on Dec. 30, a distance of 753 miles. It is a journey we have made together a dozen times over the years. We were in something of a hurry on this occasion. When we stopped for gas and sodas, I found in my …
Nothing beats down the cold weather better than a bowl of hot soup, which is the perfect remedy for the subzero temperatures and wind chill that have held this part of the Midwest captive for the past week or two. A good choice always is wild rice soup, which can be made a number of ways. My favorite is one …
When I was a kid, Whitey, Gare Bare, Hawkeye and I would play football in the snowbanks beside my house. Because we had brain damage. Tackle football in subarctic temperatures didn’t help. The end result is my career choices came down to either column-writing or politics, but I still had too many healthy brain cells for the latter. You don’t …
It was in May 1985 that young Roosevelt Montás emigrated from the Dominican Republic to Queens, N.Y. He arrived in America in time to celebrate his 12th birthday. The plane trip, the first of the boy’s life, took only 3½ hours, but the figurative distance he traveled was immeasurable. The boy landed in the United States poor and disoriented and …
“I’ve shot probably half-dozen, or maybe as many as 10, sage grouse in my life. I’m likely among a small group of North Dakotans alive today who can say that. And that group is not going to get any bigger. Ever. Because there’s an awfully good chance we’ll never have another sage grouse season in North Dakota. In fact, I’ve …
Journal entries 20 October 2021 3:15 p.m. Sunny calm autumn day. A very large and healthy coyote just ran up my street, ahead of my vehicle a full block, and then zipped behind the house next to Red Oak House, in broad daylight (no photo, I was driving). I grew up in Slope County and I know what I saw, …
The University of North Dakota women’s basketball team dropped its Summit League conference opener 67-61 to North Dakota State University on Wednesday night in Betty Engelstad Sioux Center, despite a game-high, 25-point performance by Kacie Borowicz, who also added seven rebounds and four assists. The Fighting Hawks (6-6 overall, 0-1 Summit) also received 13 points from Olivia Lane. The Bison …
At about 2 p.m. Saturday (Dec. 18, 2021), my friend, Rick Maixner, and I poured a couple ofshots from the bottle of cognac he keeps stashed at the Sunset Nursing Home in Mandan, N.D., and toasted the fact we are still here, 50 years after we walked off the gangplank of the USS Oriskany, CVA-34, at the Alameda (Calif.) Naval …
Going through some old paperwork just now, Ginny found a copy of an accident report of a little fender-bender I was involved in one evening in Grand Forks back in March 2018 not far from the Fire Hall Theatre. I remember how quickly a police officer arrived, how young he looked and how good he seemed to be at his …
It’s the tendency of Americans, suggests historian and best-selling author H. W. Brands, to simplify the past, when in truth our history is every bit as complicated and divisive as the present. Working to shine light on overlooked complexities, Brands probes the intersections of individual lives and narratives — what he calls “little history” — with the overarching accounts of …
When former Minnesota Twins Tony Oliva and Jim Kaat “got the call” from Major League Baseball’s Hall of Fame this month, it came from Jane Forbes Clark. Few ask, “Who is Jane Forbes Clark?” Well, she chairs the Hall of Fame’s board in Cooperstown, N.Y., where in 1839 Abner Doubleday was said to invent the game of baseball. He did …
Seriously, I didn’t think it would ever come to this, although in the past few months it seems like the writing has been on the proverbial wall. Over the past two years, I’ve gone back and forth, back and forth, looking at the irritations and aggravations that I have experienced in the dozens of times we have either had no …
I wrote here a few weeks ago that you can’t really understand COVID-19 until you’ve sat at the bedside of a good friend on a ventilator. I can say now that even then I did not understand it completely until I buried that good friend this past week. Until I watched that coffin being slowly lowered into the ground, as we all …
Party politics have always been controversial, but they have evolved into an unattractive piece of American democracy in recent decades. They have helped fuel fires of polarization and choked down legislative efforts at all levels of government. As a result, political parties themselves are under assault. Conservative journalist and historian Jay Cost, however, believes these efforts are misguided. He argues …
