By Bill Anderson

Thunder, Lightning and rain visited Rutland at about 2:30 on the morning of Sunday, September 2. Roger Pearson reported that his rain gauge showed .4 of an inch after the rain had stopped and the sun had risen.  Roger’s neighbor, Norbert Kulzer, states that he is pretty sure that his rain gauge indicated .5 of an inch. Jason Arth reported .5 of an inch at Northern Plains Ag in Cayuga, and John Buskohl stated that .75 of an inch was received in Milnor.  John had just finished cutting 6 acres of alfalfa hay on Saturday, a sure rain-maker, and he takes full responsibility, or credit, for the event.

Paul Anderson of this community and Carol Fridgen of Spider Lake MN were joined by several friends: Jim and Denise Hawes, Lake Belle Taine MN; Mike and Tudee, Dandalet, Spider Lake MN; and, Terry and Angela Carlson, 8th Crow Wing Lake MN; in Rutland on Thursday, August 30. The eight friends enjoyed lunch at The Lariat Bar in Rutland, toured the community, and topped off the day with the “Farm To Table” Dinner at The Coteau des Prairies Lodge that evening.  All enjoyed the fine dining, good company and excellent lodgings furnished by The Lodge. They returned to Minnesota on Friday, August 31.

One of the owners and promoters of The Lodge, Phillip Breker, furnished the following report on Thursday evening’s dinner: “We served 90 guests at our Farm to Table Dinner. The price was $70 per person. Here are the details from the printed menu at the event including information about where the ingredients were sourced. I have included a bio for the chef and our special guest speakers. Our special guest speakers played a big role in making the event a success. Guests were very attentive and interested in learning from agriculture experts from various ends of the industry. We consider this to be our signature annual event and we plan to continue putting it on each year. Joe says he would like to put an emphasis on featuring animal producers next year.  “Coteau des Prairies Lodge Presents Farm to Table Dinner, Thursday, August 30th, 2018.” A five-course dinner by Chef Steve Schulz showcasing the products of area agriculture with local beer and bourbon pairings and special guests from the agriculture community. MENU – Starter, Edamame, made from soybeans. 1st Course – Fargo Brewing Co. – RedHawks Red with local rhubarb and honey beef tartar, sunflower, pickled watermelon. 2nd Course – Proof Artisan Distillers – Crooked Furrow Bourbon “Hunters Cocktail” corn bisque, apple, leek oil, sweet chili dusted soy beans. 3rd Course – Junkyard Brewing Co. – Experimental IPA chicken confit croquettes, peas and carrots, cheese fondue. 4th Course – Drekker Brewing Co. – Hell Bent with toasted local wild rice ND English Breakfast: savory pancake, pulled pork, egg, mushroom syrup. 5th Course – Laughing Sun Brewing Co. – 19th Amendment Stout with cocoa and local chokecherry chocolate panna cotta, 4 grain granola, allspice and clove. FARMS & PRODUCERS were the following. Starter, Edamame grown by Joe Breker, Havana ND.  1st Course – Beer brewed in Fargo ND. Rhubarb in beer was from the brewer’s grandma’s garden. Honey in beer is from Three Bears Honey Co., Moorhead MN. 28 Day-Aged Breker Beef is pasture grazed at Coteau des Prairies Lodge and finished on grain at the Jacob Breker Farm east of Havana ND, then processed at The Butcher Block in Oakes ND.  Toasted sunflower seeds are processed at SunGold Foods, Horace ND. Watermelon was grown by Uncle Jesse’s Produce of Lidgerwood ND. 2nd Course- Bourbon distilled and aged in Fargo ND. The corn for Crooked Furrow Bourbon was produced and milled by Austin Stenvold & Joe Breker, Havana ND. Sweet corn, apples and leeks were grown by Uncle Jesse’s Produce of Lidgerwood ND. Roasted soy beans were processed at SunGold Foods of Horace ND. 3rd Course – Beer brewed in Moorhead MN. Chicken produced by Doubting Thomas Farms of Moorhead MN. The French Tarragon was grown by Uncle Jesse’s Produce of Lidgerwood ND. The Colby cheese was produced by Valley Queen Cheese Factory of Milbank SD. Valley Queen sources milk from a dairy near Veblen SD.  4th Course – Beer brewed in Fargo ND. The wild rice in the beer is a product of Minnesota. Pancake flour blend and eggs were produced by Doubting Thomas Farms of Moorhead MN. The pork was sourced from the NDSU Meat Lab in Fargo ND. The wild mushrooms were foraged in Minnesota by a guy named Travis, a purveyor to fine restaurants. The Maple syrup was from Chef Steve’s uncle Jerry from Aitkin MN. 5th Course – Beer brewed in Bismarck ND. The Chokecherry in the beer is a product of North Dakota. The milk and cream in the panna cotta were produced by Cass-Clay Creamery of Fargo ND.  Granola grains potentially including, but not limited to oats, millet, camelina, corn, flax, sunflower and soybean were produced by Joe Breker, Havana ND, Doubting Thomas Farms of Moorhead MN and SunGold Foods of Horace ND.  ABOUT THE CHEF As a chef, Steve Schulz developed his skill in some of the most cutting-edge kitchens in the Midwest, including the renowned Travail Kitchen and Amusements in Minneapolis.  A native of west central Minnesota, Steve returned to his roots and is now leading the culinary team as Executive Chef at The Toasted Frog in downtown Fargo, where his culinary creativity serve a ready audience. Steve is a familiar face in the kitchen at Coteau des Prairies Lodge, where he has been a frequent guest chef at our popular beer dinners.  SPECIAL GUESTS included Dr. Abbey Wick, North Dakota State University Extension Soil Health Specialist, who has experience working with farmers on soil health building practices like incorporating cover crops into crop rotation and transitioning to no-till systems. She has been featured in Successful Farming Magazine and other publications for her work in the agriculture community. She was Senator John Hoeven’s selection to represent North Dakota for the Senate Ag “Women in Agriculture” campaign in 2018. She is also a familiar face at Coteau des Prairies Lodge, where she has organized numerous educational events for farmers. Steve Rosenzweig, PhD is a soil scientist at General Mills, where he leads research and outreach projects across North America to support farmers in improving soil health. Steve grew up in upstate New York where he took an interest in ecology and the environment. As an undergraduate biology major at SUNY Geneseo (that’s Geneseo NY, not Geneseo ND), he wanted to study an exotic ecosystem like tropical rain forests or coral reefs, but instead spent a summer in Kansas researching how soils change as they are restored from a wheat farm back to the native tall grass prairie. This experience gave him an appreciation for soil as a complex ecosystem and showed him that farmers can tap into this powerful resource beneath their feet by managing for healthier soil. Currently living in South Dakota, but spending most of his time traveling for work, Steve’s hobbies include things you can do while waiting in airports or driving a car, like humming to himself. Jesse Frolek is a 4th generation farmer from near Lidgerwood, ND. He along with his father and brother run a corn and soybean crop rotation on 2,200 acres and have been no-till farming for more than 30 years. As a means to diversify and offset low commodity prices, Jesse recently turned his long-time gardening hobby into a business. ‘Uncle Jesse’s Produce’ provides fresh, seasonal produce to local farmer’s markets and SCSAs. Thank you to our generous event sponsors: AGWEEK and CommonGround North Dakota.” Thanks to Phillip Breker for the interesting and informative report.

Marvin & Jenise Duncan visited at the home of Bill Anderson & Kathy Brakke on Thursday, August 30. Mrs. Duncan is the daughter of the late Arnold & Elizabeth (Ahrlin) Fedje of Shuman Township, and is a cousin of Kathy’s. Mr. Duncan, a native of Cavalier County in northeastern North Dakota, retired a few years ago, after many years as a staff member of the Federal Reserve Board, and later as an officer of Farm Credit Services, reorganizing the ag lending system after Federal Land Bank and PCA went under during the farm crisis of the 1980’s. Mr. Duncan views the current economic and fiscal policies of the U. S. Government with considerable concern, particularly the huge budget deficits and the massive inequality in income distribution. This week, though, he enjoyed seeing the tremendous stands of soybeans and corn in Sargent County.

Stephen Kulzer of Hartford SD visited in Rutland at the home of his parents, Norbert & Beverly Kulzer, from Friday, August 31 to Sunday, September 2. Mr. Kulzer joined several classmates from the Sargent Central High School Class of ’87 for a “Golf Outing” at the Forman Golf Course on Saturday, September 1. The group included: Stephen Kulzer; Dan Narum; Scott Christianson; Mike Gaukler; Shane Lee; Jeff Colemer; and, Danny Wise; also known as “The Magnificent Seven.” They figured that they had better get together for a round of golf while they could all still swing a golf club and bend over to set a ball on the tee. A good time was had by all, and justifiably so.

A large crowd of family and friends gathered at the Coteau des Prairies Lodge on the evening of Saturday, September 1, to help Mike & Phyllis Wyum of this community celebrate their 40th Wedding Anniversary. The following information was furnished by the bride, Phyllis (Saunders) Wyum: “On September 2, 1978 Michael Wyum and Phyllis Saunders were married in Hunter, ND. There was a church ceremony followed by a reception, but there wasn’t a wedding dance. Knowing how much their parents enjoy dancing, Dena Wyum and Monica Ptacek planned a celebration with a dance for their 40th anniversary. On September 1, 2018 the Coteau des Prairies Lodge was filled with friends and family who came to share the joy and wish them well.  In addition to their two daughters, their family includes sons-in-law Darren Ptacek and Tom Kyllo, and three grandsons, Landon, Carter and Jacob Ptacek.” The Wyums’ many friends in the Rutland community extend their congratulations and best wishes to them on the occasion of their 40th anniversary.  Thanks to Phyllis for the report.

Wendy Honchl of Lisbon Maryland has been visiting at the Ransom Township farm home of her mother, Violet Wyum, during the last week of August and the first week of September. During her stay in her home community, Wendy also participated in the anniversary celebration for her brother & sister-in-law, Mike & Phyllis Wyum, at the Coteau des Prairies Lodge. Wendy, a 1980 graduate of Sargent Central High School, is employed as a medical professional in Maryland.

Cayuga native Chuck Kiefer & his wife, Carolyn, visited at the Ransom Township farm home of Chuck’s sister, Lois Breker, during the first few days of September. Chuck stopped in for coffee and conversation with the Assembled Wise Men at the Lariat on the morning of Wednesday, September 5, and reports that he and Carolyn are in the process of making a leisurely trip from their Summer home in Minnesota to their Winter residence in Texas, and plan to visit several old friends and family members on the way. Before their visit in the Cayuga & Rutland area, they had checked in with Cogswell natives Larry & Diane Dahl, and with Rutland native Gary Narum, at their homes on Bad Medicine Lake in Minnesota. As an older brother, Chuck exercised the right, and the duty, to correct some information furnished by his younger sibling, Bill Kiefer Jr., last week. Chuck states that when Wayne Gomarko and Richard Edgerton were selecting the members for their baseball teams at the Cayuga ballpark back in the 1950’s, he was always the first one picked, and that whoever made the second selection got to pick both Wayne’s brother, Jack Gomarko, and Dorothy Webb to even things out.  So, the record stands corrected.

Uff-Da Day XXXIV preparations in Rutland are on-going. Arrangements have been made for the inflatable games that are popular with the kids, and some in Rutland are getting their units ready for the Uff-Da Day Parade. Nate & Shawna Bergh have been fine tuning their “self-propelled picnic table, putting the final touches on for passenger comfort. A number of candidates for public office in the upcoming November General Election have also informed the Parade Committee that they will be on hand to greet folks along the route. Four more Uff-Da Day lefse making sessions are planned for next week, on Tuesday, September 11, and Thursday, September 13.  Uff-Da Day, Sunday, October 7, is just 4 weeks down the road, and “Everyone Is Invited!” states chairperson Marcia Brakke.

Meanwhile, on the statewide scene, the 2017 session of the North Dakota Legislature has enabled North Dakota property owners to get heartburn twice a year by requiring the State’s counties to send out tax notices that are not tax notices prior to the date for the State’s political subdivisions: counties; cities; school districts; townships; fire protection districts; etc.; to finalize their budgets for 2019. Public hearings will be held by the local subdivisions prior to the adoption of the final budget and the tax levy for the coming year.  In December the real tax notice, the one that must be paid, will be sent out.  “Only two things in this life are certain,” the old-timers used to say, “death and taxes.” To that truism some latter-day wit has added, “but death doesn’t get more expensive every year.” Well, it could be worse. We could be working in the White House, where Bob Woodward’s new book indicates that the daggers are out and back-stabbing is the name of the game.  As of Friday, September 7, 2018, there will be 85 weeks down and 123 weeks to go until January 20, 2021. Won’t that be nice?

That’s the news from Rutland for this week. For additional information about what’s going on in the little city that can, check out the community’s internet web site at www.rutlandnd.com, and stop by Rutland’s Facebook page while you’re at it, too. Don’t forget to patronize your local Post Office and remember to keep the pressure on the U. S. Postal Service and the North Dakota Congressional delegation to SAVE OUR POST OFFICE! Later.